His Muggle Wife (A Severus Snape Love Tale)

Chapter 5: His Little Reunion

Severus looked towards the door when it opened to reveal his wife carrying a tray of tea and scones. He knew she must be full of questions but he was grateful she was willing to wait and did not bombard him with questions then. He himself had been very surprised seeing the familiar faces from his past. First Lionel, and now, them. Two too many surprises in one day, he told himself. Just when he thought he had run away from his past, his past caught up with him today. It was a small town he was now living in, a very small town away from the big city. Even Hermione's Muggle town was far away from here. He wondered how Lionel and Minerva had found him. He had not used his magic, so it would be difficult to trace his whereabouts. Ah, it is magic after all, he thought. Minerva had slapped him and he knew he deserved it. The woman had always thought of him as a son despite their differences. During his short stay at St Mungo's Hospital to recuperate before he decided to flee, Minerva was always there, taking care of his needs just as a mother would. And the golden trio, well, Harry must have intimated to them what he saw in his memories. The Weasley boy was always scared of him, and the Granger girl had always treated him coldly, and the Potter boy, the son of the former love of his life he almost died protecting, had spent a good number of his school years hating him too. Now they just had a look of admiration and newfound respect on their faces for him. He felt genuine happiness radiating from them as they hugged him earlier. Meredith had shot him a confused look. Meredith. He should have told her about his past, but would she have understood? She would tell her soon. He would tell his guests about his new life but for now, their wedding picture in the room was enough to tell his guests who the woman serving them just now was.

It had been an awkward moment with them in the room and he had prayed Meredith would show up quickly. It was as if his once cold nature as the frowned-upon Professor Snape had returned. The new Snape was not like that at all. If the people who knew him in the past saw his behavior and mannerism now, they would never have believed that was the always-cranky-and-moody Severus Snape known to the wizarding world. He could crack a joke now and together with Bruce, would pull clever pranks on Meredith, Soledad and Catalina. But now... his coldness had returned seeing the people from his past. He did not want to appear like that but... he just could not help changing into his old self, a cold Snape.

The golden trio was frantically speaking, as if excited to see him, telling him about their lives which seemed boring to his ears. Minerva just kept quiet for a reason Snape knew why; she was still overwhelmed by emotion and it would be evident that she was crying if she talked.

"Who would like tea and scones?" Meredith asked while successfully masking her uneasiness with a huge, genuine smile on her face. "I made the jam and the cream myself."

She set the tray on the table and poured tea for everyone, as she politely asked everyone to help them with the scones. The Ron boy who flirted with her was the first to help himself. Though she felt uneasy with the awkwardness around her, Ron's amusing behavior entertained her and made her feel at ease. This boy's officially my favourite stepson, if he is indeed my stepson, she thought.

"It's delicious, Meredith!" Ron announced his praise with his mouth full. "I mean... Mrs Snape," he corrected himself in a timid tone, when he met his former professor's cold stare at the mention of his wife's first name.

"Meredith is fine, Ron," she told him, and he smiled in return.

"Thank you, Meredith," the old woman said accepted the cup of tea from her hand. She took a sip and put her cup down on the table. "I sincerely apologise for what had happened outside. Oh, where are my manners? We haven't been properly introduced. I am Minerva McGonagall, Severus's former colleague."

"Meredith Snape," Meredith said as she shook her hand. A former colleague? She must be like M in James Bond. She looks old enough to be M, even her last name starts with M. What a coincidence, she thought.