The young woman was dreamily looking down at her big baby bump and ran her hand over it. The two rings on her left and were reflecting the sunlight that streamed into the house through the big windows of the Snape estate. 

Her smile widened. 5 years. She had been married to Severus for 5 years now and never regretted marrying him for a second. He always cared for her and their firstborn, just as he had vowed he would five years ago. 

She heard hearty laughter coming from a nearby room. She slowly stood and wanted to walk over to them to see what had her favourite boys laughing like that. 

Observing the scene before her, she stood in the hallway.

Severus was standing there, his dark red T-shirt splattered with light blue colour and her four-year-old son had his blue shirt looking just the same. 

Both had their brushes in steady hands, ready to strike the other should he come nearer. 

"What is this all about, Severus, Cian? You wanted to paint this room and not yourselves, as far as I remember." 

Hermione tried to mimic the strict mother as her two boys were standing there with their tails between their legs, awaiting whatever was to come. And yes, to Hermione Severus was just a boy at that moment - he wasn't acting very mature after all. 

Sometimes Hermione asked herself who was the four and who the 45-year-old out of her two men. As strict and serious as he usually was, everything just went away whenever he spent time with his son. 

It was the same every time he came home from another trip to the Ministry. He usually was very moody and quite cranky, but as soon as he stepped foot into his house and his family was waiting for him to come home, he just relaxed. Then and there, only Hermione and Cian mattered to him. However, in a little more than a month there would be another family member there to greet him as soon as his work was done.

Hermione had been teaching transfiguration for 5 years now, only taking a break during both of her pregnancies. She had been home for nearly two weeks now and switched between meeting up with Ginny, who was also pregnant with her first son, going shopping for baby clothes together with the auburn-haired witch, or just relaxing as the next months would get very tiring. 

There would be many sleepless nights for her and Severus. That's the only thing the Snapes didn't like about parenthood. Despite that, Severus found himself often wondering how he got that lucky. He had a wonderful family, a most fulfilling job he really enjoyed, a nice house in the countryside near Hogwarts. 

Yes, he should have been living in the headmaster's flat, but he didn't want his small children to grow up in that ancient castle with all the hidden passageways and alcoves; it would be too dangerous. He wanted his children to have easy access to the outside, where they could play and still be safe. That wasn't possible if they were to live in the castle - too many stair flights and corridors were in between the flat and the grounds. Plus, there were always students running around, and he didn't want his children to be overrun by his pupils. So for now, the Snapes were living in their house until the children were old enough.

"We're obviously painting the walls. See, we only have to do that wall and then the furniture can be placed in here and Baby number two can arrive, my love." The black-haired man laughed and came to stand in front of his very pregnant wife. He bent down and kissed her lovingly on the tip of her nose before quickly giving her a half moustache using his brush and then running away as fast as he could.

 Hermione stood there, gawking at him, before she grabbed another brush and ran after him, reinforcing her son in his advances in this family colour war.

+++++++

Three weeks later Severus was the happiest man alive or so he said. He sat next to his wife's hospital bed cradling his newborn son in his arms, his firstborn already asleep in his lap. 

"What do you think would be a fitting name for this small bundle of joy?" asked a very tired Hermione looking at her husband holding his two sons. 

Severus laid his small son in the bed next to Hermione, before standing up and placing Cian in the hospital bed next to Hermione's. The black-haired man turned to face her, smiling compassionately at her and placing his big hand gently on his newborn's head. 

"What do you think about Valerian?" asked the proud father. 

"The strong... that sounds absolutely beautiful. What about a middle name? Cian wished for his brother to have one, too. Probably only because he didn't want to be the only one with a second name," she chuckled at the last part. 

He whispered: "James." 

Hermione's hand froze in mid-air as she was about to place it on her husband's. 

"James, why would you call him that, with all your past?" she asked unbelievingly. 

"I'm aware that you will probably think me to be mad now, but I assure you I'm not. I may not like the bullying boy James Potter was when we were students, but even I have to come to acknowledge what he did after that. He may not have been the best-behaved teenager back in our school days, at least not to me, but he loved Lily. She chose him and to be honest, I'm glad that she did. James loved her and died trying his best to save her and Harry. He faced Tom all alone just to give Lily enough time to escape. 

Not everyone would have been brave and selfless enough to do so. I always called him a coward, but that was only linked to his behaviour and mannerisms as a boy and teen. The man he had become was brave, and even I have to admit that he really did love her and his son, despite what everyone thought of him. He was a great man and I think he would have made a great father to Harry. He deserves respect from me and I want my son to be able to say: 'That is the man my mom and dad named me after.' and be proud in saying so." 

Severus looked expectantly at his wife whose eyes were drowning in unshed tears. 

"I am so proud of you and I bet that all the others are or would have been. I love you, Sev. I love you so very much. You, Cian Regulus and little Valerian James. I don't know what I would do without you."

At that moment, Valerian began to cry, and his father gently scooped him up and began to pace, rocking his son to calm him down. He whispered to his son, and after a while, the small boy settled down and fell into slumber just as the Potters stepped into the hospital wing. 

"We heard baby number two has arrived?" asked Harry, a very pregnant Ginny on his arm, followed by their two sons, James Sirius and Albus Severus Potter. 

Hermione and Severus smiled at them and Severus greeted: "May I introduce you to little Valerian James Snape? Valerian, these are your godparents, Harry and Ginny Potter with their children. They were shocked at the Snapes' choice in name. 

"Severus, are you two really sure about his name?" asked the emerald-eyed man a bit concerned. 

Severus nodded and started to explain. "Harry, you can't stay in the past forever, one has to forgive for the things that once transpired eventually, and that is my way of doing so. Although I often told and showed you just how much I hated your father when we were attending school, I never said that he died without having changed. I want to praise him for the man, husband and father he became." 

Harry went over to the black-haired man, who was still cradling his small son to his chest and hugged him cautiously, tears glistening in his eyes.

+++++++

5 years later another big event was coming up. Severus had big things planned for his tenth wedding anniversary with Hermione with a little help from his two sons. They were to bring her to the lake at three in the afternoon, where Severus wanted to marry her a second time, but this time with his children around.

He wore his outfit from ten years ago again and pulled his now rather greyish hair back into a bun, just as he had back then. 

Cian and Valerian had suits fitting his own they chose a few weeks ago in Hogsmeade. At three, the guests had all arrived and Hermione walked down to the lake dressed in her wedding gown just as Severus requested her to. 

There, her father waited for her and walked her down the aisle again. The second time was even more overwhelming for the brown-haired witch, now that her family was finally complete. Completely overwhelmed and still madly in love they said "I do" a second time and now their sons got their own rings they could always carry with them on a chain around their neck. 

Severus and Hermione even renewed their vows from ten years ago.

"Hermione, you made me the happiest man alive exactly ten years ago. For ten years now I was eagerly awaiting each new day I got to spend with you and our children. You gave me everything I ever wanted. Everything I wanted but was beyond my reach until I met you again. You gave me a home and your love. You gave me our beautiful sons and I love all three of you with every ounce of my heart and more. I love you all. I love you Hermione and as I promised that won't ever change. I promise."

"Severus, for the ten years every day was a gift for me. It is a gift to be able to go to bed with you and wake up next to you every day and for me that is a privilege I don't want to ever miss again. You have me your trust and your love and conquered my heart and soul. My life is always wonderful with my three men there. When I just think about how this all started, with some memories that were missing... It was our time to make new ones, and we made so remarkably beautiful ones and still make them. Now we just have to keep them and never let them go because they are the things that make us who we are and if we were to lose them, we would lose ourselves. I would never be able to bear the loss of you or our sons. I love you three, but, above all, I love you, Sev. I'll love you forever and always."