Chapter 4

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world belongs to JKR, not cocoachristy

A/N: Thanks so much to the wonderful betas southern_witch_69 and Meredith. Those two go way above and beyond the call of duty for me and I am much in their debt!

Chapter 4

Hermione was in slight shock as she left the dungeons. She hoped that she had done the right thing, but wasn't sure. Severus Snape was a hard man. She wondered if she would be able to out Slytherin the master Slytherin. But, this was her chance to get what she truly wanted, and she was going to do everything she could to make it happen.

Flinging open the small side door to the grounds, Hermione drew in a long deep breath of fresh air. She missed the brisk Scottish air and the rolling grounds of Hogwarts. She decided to take a walk around the grounds to collect her thoughts before she left. The first thing she would need to take care of was university. She didn't think it would be a problem to study by owl; people did it all the time. Her major was Charms, and she had already spoken with Professor Flitwick about becoming an apprentice after she completed her studies, though he had not given her an answer as of yet. Usually, he only took a Ravenclaw as an apprentice, and at the present, Terry Boot was working with him. Hermione sighed. Maybe she wouldn't be allowed to stay at Hogwarts anyway because of the contract.

As she continued her walk, Hermione found herself in the rose garden. This had always been one of her favorite places to think, and she was not surprised that she had ended up there. Just as she sat on one of the benches, she was greeted by a familiar voice.

"Miss Granger, I am so glad I ran into you today."

"Professor McGonagall! How lovely to see you," said Hermione, turning her head with a smile.

"It's very nice to see you also. I trust you are well? And, please, call me Minerva, as you are no longer a student here."

"I am well, thank you, and do call me Hermione." Hermione glanced at her former professor with a contemplative look. "I suppose you are wondering why I am here?"

"I would imagine you have just finished your meeting with Severus. What did you decide, Hermione?"

Hermione didn't reply. She had already signed the contract and was not supposed to talk of this to anyone.

Minerva noticed her distress and told her, "Hermione, I know that Severus is looking for a surrogate mother and wishes for you to take this task on for him. I also know about the contract, so you may feel at ease talking to me."

Hermione was relieved to have someone to talk to who may be objective. "I signed the contract. I am going to do it."

"That does surprise me. I must admit, Albus and I were certain you would say no."

"Do you think I have made a mistake, Professor?"

"That is not for me to decide, Hermione. It is between you and Severus. I am curious to know if you can live with the terms of the contract."

"I tried to renegotiate the contract, but Professor Snape was having none of it. I decided to sign it because I do owe him a Wizard debt I can only hope that I can eventually change his mind on some of the terms." Change his mind about ME, to be precise.

"I see. How do you feel about Professor Snape, Hermione?" Minerva wanted to know.

Hermione panicked slightly. Did Minerva suspect how she felt about the Potions master? She felt so vulnerable, like everyone could see right through her. What would Minerva think of her if she knew she was in love with Professor Snape? Would she worry about the age difference? Even though Snape was nineteen years older than she was, she didn't think that would matter much, especially in the Wizarding world. Besides, she knew that Minerva and Albus were together. Perhaps she would be concerned about his past? No, that couldn't be. Albus and Minerva both trusted Snape. Maybe they would not think she was right for him?

"What do you mean, Professor?" Hermione asked in a slightly stilted voice.

Minerva sighed. She knew Severus and Hermione had worked very closely together for eight months as they created the potion that weakened Voldemort. She had watched them grow to respect each other, although she doubted either would admit it, and she suspected they had feelings for each other as well, though each was too stubborn to admit that either.

Minerva knew Severus would consider Hermione as being too good for him. He believed he would never be able to live down his past, and Minerva was sure he wouldn't want to put Hermione through the struggles he would face for quite some time due to his reputation. She also knew the age difference would bother Severus as it had bothered Albus when they fell in love.

However, Hermione was a Gryffindor, like herself. Age wouldn't be a problem for her, if Hermione truly loved Severus, as Minerva suspected she did. She believed she knew what would hold Hermione back. Because of Severus' teaching style, most students thought he hated them, the Golden Trio most of all. She believed Hermione would feel as though Severus could never reciprocate her feelings.

Minerva loved Severus and Hermione both as though they were her own children. She and Albus had, for various reasons, never been able to have children of their own, so Minerva always held certain people close to her heart. Severus and Hermione were just two of them, and she wanted to see them both happy.

Minerva wanted Severus to have his heir, as she knew how important it was to him. She also believed he could be an excellent father, but she didn't want Severus to have his dream at Hermione's expense. She feared Hermione was getting in over her head. Hermione hadn't said what she was hoping to change about the contract during her pregnancy, but she could imagine that it was Severus' feelings towards her. It wouldn't be the first time a young woman thought she could change a man and be wrong. Minerva needed to know the extent of Hermione's feelings for Severus.

"What I mean, Hermione, is what are your intentions concerning Professor Snape?"

"Ummm, I don't have any intentions towards Professor Snape, per se; my intentions are more towards the baby," Hermione answered, her eyes darting downward. She would never be able to tell Minerva she loved Professor Snape with all her heart and wanted nothing more than to be in his life forever.

"I see. Well then, what are your intentions concerning the baby? I thought you signed a contract giving Severus all rights to the child."

"Yes, I did. I tried to renegotiate the contract, as I said, to at least let me be in the baby's life, but he wouldn't do it. So, my intent, you could say, is to try to change his mind while I am living with him." And if by some small chance he happened to fall in love with me in the process, all the better.

"Do you think you will be able to do that, Hermione? Severus was very adamant about the contract when he spoke with Albus and me."

"I have to try, Minerva. This child will be a part of me, regardless of what Professor Snape says. He will be using my egg. There has got to be a way to change his mind!"

"Well, Hermione, if anyone can convince him, it will be you." Along with Albus and me, she thought to herself. She reached over and patted Hermione's arm. "I must be going. There is only one more month left before term starts, and I have much to do before then. Where does the time go?"

"Okay, Minerva. It was nice talking to you. I'm sure I will be seeing you soon, as I will be moving in the castle next week. Have a nice day," Hermione offered with a small wave, as Minerva headed toward the castle.

After her talk with Minerva, Hermione felt a little better. She decided what she needed now was more information on becoming a surrogate mother. It is always best to be prepared in everything you do, thought Hermione.

Hermione Apparated to Grimmauld Place and changed into Muggle jeans and a pullover before venturing out into London. She was glad no one was there; she didn't feel she could deal with any questions or sideways looks right now. She found a directory in a small pub, giving her the location of the Centre for Fertility at London. She took the Underground to the closest stop and walked from there to the Centre. Hermione wanted to find out all she could about what to expect. After explaining to the receptionist that she had been asked to serve as a surrogate mother, she was given several pamphlets to read. She found a quiet corner to sit in and opened the first one.

"Today's surrogate mother is the legal mother of her baby from the moment of conception. A married woman shares rights to her child with only her husband, as he is the legal father by law. A legal agreement must be written and signed by the woman being inseminated, also by her husband if she's married, and by the person(s) intending to adopt the child. It's the only way to exchange rights to the child.

If you would like to be a surrogate mother, apply at one of our many locations. A surrogate mother or a sperm donor, you must be at least 18 years of age living in the UK, Channel Islands, or Isle of Man. If you are interested in having a surrogate mother carry your child, please feel free to contact us immediately. All donors and mothers are subjected to testing and screening.

There was much more, but Hermione couldn't finish reading. She could hardly believe what she'd just read! That sneaky, no-good Slytherin BASTARD! He must have known all this. That had to be why he insisted she sign the contract before she left.

Hermione knew that when she signed the magical contract she had forfeited all of these rights, and Snape must have known it too. She wanted to kick herself for not coming here sooner. She had been so worried about renegotiating the contract that she hadn't even thought to check the legalities. The cleverest witch of her age? She had never felt more stupid in her life.

Hermione's instinct was to go straight back to the castle and give Severus Snape what for. How dare he do this to her? He must really be congratulating himself right now for having pulled one over on her. Bastard! She stormed out of the clinic with the pamphlets and was halfway to the Underground stop when she began to calm down. Going back and having it out with him would do no good. She had already signed the contract, and there was nothing to be done. Severus wouldn't even have to legally adopt the child, as Hermione had signed her rights away before even leaving his office. And why? Because she loved him. She wanted him however she could get him and had allowed her emotions to rule her decision. Exactly as she was just doing.

If she went to him now, in the frame of mind she was in, it would only make things worse. She would never get him to let her see the baby, much less start to have feelings for her. No, she needed to stick to her plan. She would certainly not get him to see her in a better light if she barged into his office telling him what a lowlife, son of a bitch, heartless bastard he was or by hexing his balls off.

Hermione took a few deep breaths and decided to go home to Grimmauld Place, as no one was likely to be there. Harry had finished his Auror training and was working with Moody. Ron worked at The Quibbler writing for the sports section. Ginny worked in one of the many offices run by Malfoy, Inc., which was just as well. She knew Draco and Ginny would probably get married soon, and Ginny would never have to work again if she chose not to. None of them would be back home until the end of the day, so she would have some time to think this through.

She knew she needed to go to the university to speak with her advisor about doing her last year by owl, but she decided to go the next day. She wanted to finish reading through all the information she had been given, so she would be prepared for next week. Hermione Granger would not make the mistake of being unprepared again. She arrived at Grimmauld Place with this thought in mind and headed for the sofa in the study, parchment and quills in hand.

**********************************

Severus Snape was a very happy man indeed. Hermione Granger had signed the contract. It had taken some convincing, but he had gotten his way in the end. That also made him happy, as he rarely got his way in anything. A knock on the door brought Severus out of his reverie.

"Enter," Severus said.

Albus Dumbledore opened the door, walked in, and sat in the chair in front of Severus' desk. "Well, Severus, how did your meeting with Miss Granger go?"

Severus smirked. He knew the old man would be down in the dungeons before the day was over. The suspense was probably killing him. "Very satisfying," Severus replied.

"Satisfying to you or Miss Granger? Or, dare I ask, satisfying to you both?"

Severus rolled his eyes at the headmaster's dramatics. "To me, Albus. Miss Granger signed the contract, as I suspected she would." I will have her here with me for at least nine months. Very satisfying to me, indeed.

"Severus," the headmaster said, very seriously. "I doubt that she properly researched the legal aspects if she signed without too much of a fuss. She may very well find out that legally she had rights to this child until she signed your contract. How do plan to explain yourself to her if it comes up?"

"I have nothing to explain, Albus. She had the contract for a week before we discussed it. She could very well have researched things and chose not to. That is not my fault." Thank Merlin she didn't. That is very fortunate indeed.

Albus sighed. "Severus, she will still feel you tricked her."

"I did no such thing. I chose not to tell her something she could have very well found out herself. She had that contract for a week. It is not my fault she did not feel the need to find out more information before coming to our meeting," Severus snapped.

"How very Slytherin of you, Severus. Omitting details is the same as tricking. Even if you don't see it as such, Miss Granger most assuredly will, should she research things herself," Albus said.

"Yes, Albus, and I still stand by what I said earlier. It is through no fault of mine she did not spend her week wisely." This old man is not going to ruin the only good mood I have had in a long time. Even receiving the Order Of Merlin can't compare to this!

"Very well, Severus. I hope you know what you are doing. I must be going. I am meeting Minerva soon for lunch."

"Good day, Albus," Severus said. "Enjoy your lunch."

"See you later, my boy." And, with that, Severus was left alone with his thoughts.

Severus truly did not feel as if he tricked Hermione. He had given her the contract to read over and a week to do it in. Had she been in Slytherin, the first thing she would have done would have been get all the legal information she could find. He smirked. She had probably been so concerned about renegotiating his contract that she hadn't even thought of that.

Severus had almost weakened while she was in his office earlier. She seemed to truly want to be a part of the baby's life. He felt an ache in his chest at having to deny her. He didn't want to deny her anything; he wanted to give her the world on a silver platter. But, Severus knew she wouldn't want anything that he had to offer. Why would she? She could have anyone she wanted.

Severus felt confident that once this was over she would go back to her life and eventually forget about him. He knew she would not forget the baby; how could she? However, he was certain there would be no lasting damage, and he would have a piece of her when she left. But, what will she have but a broken heart because you have denied her access to this child? Severus quickly pushed those thoughts away. It would not do to dwell on them.

Severus had decided to give her monetary compensation after she had delivered the child. He did not have to, as there was nothing in the contract that stated he should, but he wanted her to have something for her trouble. He decided 35,000 gallons for a boy and 25,000 gallons for a girl. Some people would not agree that he would pay more for a boy than he would for a girl, he knew, but a boy would carry on the Snape name, not just the line.

Severus had decided to do some research on the different stages of pregnancy. If he was going to have a hormonal witch living with him, he wanted some idea about what to expect. He wanted to make her as comfortable as he could while she was here. Maybe then she will never want to leave. Right. Like that would ever happen. With that thought, he left the castle in search of information.

**********************************

After several hours of pondering, Hermione was sure of one thing. She was happy that she was doing this the Wizarding way instead of the Muggle way. The Muggle way could take three or four tries, sometimes more. There was so much involved! She had owled the agency Severus had made arrangements with and asked about the procedure. She found out it only took one try. She would be given a potion to induce ovulation, go back the next day, and be inseminated while a spell was cast to make sure it worked the first time. The procedure also ensured there would be no multiple births, unless you wanted one.

The news also meant she would definitely be pregnant with Severus Snape's baby by next week. She had such mixed feelings. She felt like she was already hormonal! She always wanted to have a baby, but she had thought she would go through the pregnancy with her husband by her side. Instead, she was going through it with the man she loved, but he'd already told her he wouldn't have her around when it was over.

There has just got to be a way to make him see my side of things. What can I do to ensure my place in this baby's life? In Severus' life?

Hermione had been giving this a lot of thought as she could think of nothing else. She had begun to wonder why he had really chosen her. Of course, she did owe him the Wizard's debt, and she knew she did have above average intelligence, despite her overlooking a bit of research into surrogates. But, she was not the only intelligent witch out there. Out of all the people at the agency, there had to have been someone who was adequate. So why had he asked her?

It would certainly have been easier to choose someone he didn't know to do this, considering the terms of the contract. If he wanted someone he would never see again, shouldn't he have picked someone he didn't have mutual friends with? They had a lot of history together.

No, there had to be a specific reason he chose her, and she was determined to find out exactly what it was. At first she thought it may have been to punish her because of his dislike for her, but she had quickly dismissed that notion. This was something too important to be of any petty use. She wasn't sure what his reasons were, but she knew she had nine months to figure them out.

Hermione looked up from her place on the couch when she heard the front door close and saw Ron entering the room. He had been spending much of his time there with Harry, slowly leaving the Burrow.

"Hi, Hermione," Ron greeted. "How did your meeting with Snape go?"

"Well," Hermione sighed. "I'm not exactly sure how it went, but I did decide to do it."

"That is an interesting way to put it."

"Yes," Hermione agreed. "I wanted to renegotiate the contract, but he flat out refused."

"Then, why did you sign it, Hermione?" Ron asked.

"He wouldn't forgive the debt. Oh, Ron, I don't know what to do! With the contract I signed, I won't have any rights to this child at all, and Severus won't even allow me to visit the baby!"

"Then what in Merlin's name made you sign the contract, Hermione?" Ron demanded.

"I think I can change his mind. I will be living with him during the pregnancy. Surely during those nine months we can come to a better agreement," Hermione explained.

"Did he specify you had to live with him during the pregnancy in the contract?" asked Ron.

"Yes," Hermione told him, "he said it was to monitor my health and keep an eye on my eating and sleeping habits."

"Well, he has a point there," Ron chuckled.

As the conversation drifted to sports and Luna, neither Ron nor Hermione noticed Harry slip back out the front door.

**********************************

Severus Snape was in his office reading books on pregnancy. He had learnt that a lot of changes took place at different stages of a pregnancy. He was surprised to learn so much happened during the first trimester, such as sensitive and tender breasts, tiredness, nausea, (he secretly hoped Hermione skipped that symptom) and the need for frequent trips to the loo. Those were just a few. It was a lot to take in.

During the second trimester, a pregnant witch could grow 'scatterbrained' and her belly would start to show the baby growing inside. Severus was particularly looking forward to that part. He wanted to see Hermione round with his child. He knew he would find her even more beautiful. He read she would have some new discomforts during this trimester, such as sleeping problems.

The third trimester would bring many changes: frequent urination again and a huge belly. He contentedly imagined Hermione going through all of these changes. The change that caught his eye the most, however, was the change in a witch's sex drive. The book said that although every witch is different, many found their sex drive went through the roof during pregnancy. That should be interesting to find out, he thought with a smirk.

He was sitting there contemplating what he had learned when his door suddenly burst open, and a very unpleasant looking Harry Potter stepped in.

"Potter, to what do I owe this pleasure?" Snape smirked. He knew exactly why Potter was here.

"I want to talk to you about what you are doing to Hermione," Harry snapped, slamming the office door shut behind him.

"I am not doing anything to her she has not agreed to." Although I can think of several things more I would like to get her to agree to.

"I want you to stop this surrogate mother bullshit," Harry demanded.

"Why on earth would I do that? I want an heir, and she is the perfect choice to be my surrogate. Not that I need to explain anything to you."

"Don't you care what you are doing to Hermione? She is beside herself worrying about not being able to see the child once it is born. Although why she would want to claim anything created by you is beyond me!"

"That is quite enough, Potter. This is my private business and I will not discuss it with you or anyone else other than Hermione. Now, I suggest you leave my office at once." Snape's fingers were just itching to grab his wand and hex Harry Potter to the next universe.

"Fine, Professor, I'll go. But, know that you have not heard the last of me."

With that, Harry turned and stormed out of Snape's office, slamming the door again.

Interesting, Snape thought. Did Hermione know Potter was coming here? No, she couldn't have. She would not have wanted him to. Was she really that upset about not being in his baby's life? Was she really "beside herself" as Potter had claimed? Severus supposed he would just have to watch her closely and see what happened.

**********************************

The week flew by, and Hermione again found herself in Professor Snape's dungeons.

"I trust you were able to get your affairs in order and have made arrangements with the university?" Snape asked.

"Yes, Professor, it has all been settled. Have you made our appointment?" Hermione was so nervous her palms were sweating. She hoped he could not detect the tremble in her voice.

"Yes, I have. We will leave tomorrow morning at eight sharp. Please be ready," Snape instructed.

I will never be ready to have your baby like this. "Yes, sir, I will be. Could you show me to my rooms now?" Hermione could feel the weight of her situation weighing on her, and the last thing she wanted to do was to cry in front of Professor Snape. That would not help her plan at all!

"Follow me, Miss Granger," Snape instructed.

Hermione followed her former professor to a large bedroom down the corridor from his. It had a four poster canopy bed with sheer white curtains. A large, mahogany desk and bookshelf stocked full, including several advanced Charms books. When Hermione ran a finger along their spines and raised an inquisitive eyebrow at Snape, he merely said, "I know your major is Charms at university, and I wanted you to have some books on the subject."

Hermione said nothing but continued to look around the room. She noticed a door that she assumed led to the bathroom. Snape must've been reading her mind.

"That door takes you to the bathroom. There is another door inside the bathroom that connects to my room, so please be sure to lock it whenever you are in there." Unless you wish for me to join you.

"Okay, thank you, sir. I would like to take a nap before dinner. I will see you at six." Hermione just wanted to be alone to collect her thoughts and get some control over her feelings.

"Very well, Hermione. I will see you then," Snape said. He turned and left her room, shutting the door softly behind him.

As Snape left Hermione alone, she whispered softly, "And, so it begins."

Up Next: Hermione and Severus go to the clinic and Severus overhears a confession.