Harry bounced the heels of his new trainers against the legs of his chair at Angwin's Cafe. Everytime he bounced his shoes, his magical laces would change colour. It was mesmerising... hypnotic...

A light fingertip to his chin drew his gaze away from the pretty laces, "Harry, please eat your sandwich," Echo spoke softly.

"Okay, mum." Harry's gaze left his trainers and he reached for the sandwich on his plate. "Can I have some pumpkin juice?" He asked just as he took a large bite of the sandwich.

Severus cast a discouraging glance towards his son. "Milk," he said simply. Harry scowled right back and took a second, aggressive bite of his sandwich. Ice cold milk for the two youngest appeared on the table and Harry quickly picked up his glass to wash down the bites of his sandwich. Severus smirked and then looked over towards Draco and Sophie.

Sophie occupied her brother's lap and was doing more talking than she was eating. Her conversation was low, though, and being across the table, Severus couldn't make it out. Draco's attention was completely on his little sister, though, and he even made sure that she had little bites of fruit or her sandwich to eat in between sentences.

Most surprising was the interaction between Hermione and Lucius. When they'd first arrived at the cafe, Hermione, bereft of Draco as he had gone towards Sophie, had sidled up next to Severus, her fist knotting in the heavy fabric of his outer robes. He'd placed his hand upon her shoulder, lightly, enough to give her the bit of courage she needed to face Lucius.

Hermione had only met Lucius once, and that had been in her second year at Hogwarts. Lucius had come to the Quidditch match to watch his son as Seeker, and she had inadvertently run right into the tall, forbidding wizard.

A gloved hand shot out, trapping several curls, and trapping young Hermione on the steps that would eventually branch to the right where the House of Gryffindor sat to watch Quidditch. The sneer on the white-blonde haired wizard scared her as she did her best to maintain her balance on the step that she stood upon. It would take only the slightest movement for him to push her, and she'd fall. Most likely to her death from a broken neck.

"Bushy hair... bringing a book, or two to a Quidditch game," he glanced sidelong at the two books Hermione clutched under one arm. Lucius Malfoy had not, yet, let go of her hair. "You must be Hermione Granger. The Mud... Muggle-born that is besting my son in all his classes." A hard edge glittered in the man's grey eyes and Hermione tried to say something brave, but couldn't find her voice.

To Hermione's surprise, and relief, the tall wizard let go of her hair, and stood graciously aside to let her pass. Hermione did so, but found herself stopped once more as Malfoy's serpent-headed cane firmly touched the crook of her elbow. She shivered as she looked down at the fangs of the silver headed serpent that were threatening to pierce through her robe sleeve and to her vulnerable flesh.

Lucius spoke softly, warningly, "It is... unwise, Miss Granger, for someone of your... background to bring so much attention to herself." He leaned closer, but did not smile as he whispered, "The wrong attention."

With a flourish of cape and cane, the elder Malfoy turned abruptly towards the Slytherin side of the stands. Hermione, still frozen in place, jerked suddenly as two heavy hands dropped solidly upon her shoulders. Craning her neck, she caught the stern gaze of the Potions Master as he directed her towards her Gryffindor housemates. Oddly, she was quickly released, but not before the professor had squeezed her shoulder comfortingly.

Draco, his sister's hand in his, had introduced his father to Hermione, but she hadn't moved any closer. It wasn't until Lucius had bowed in deference and apologised for any time he might have insulted or frightened her that Hermione's Gryffindor backbone came back to life, with, of course, a slight nudge from Severus and a smile from Draco.

Now, they were seated beside each other as Hermione told Lucius about her parents, explained what dentists were, and asked her own polite questions about Lucius' time at the circus.

Sophie suddenly slid off Draco's lap and scurried over to her father's side of the table. She tugged on the sleeve of his robe. Lucius interrupted his discussion with Hermione, which had drifted to a favorite subject of his, symbolism in the wizarding world, and looked down at his rather stricken daughter. Sophie was also hopping back and forth on her feet, with her hands wrapped in her crisp pinafore.

"Papa, I..." she cut herself off as she glanced in embarrassment at the full table. Releasing a portion of her distressed pinafore, Sophie crooked her finger at her father and he leaned over to give her his ear. She whispered, "Papa, I need the loo!"

Hermione had overheard and smiled as she touched the little girl's shoulder. She looked up at Lucius silently, and he nodded. "Sophie, why don't you come with me?"

Sophie quickly glanced between her father and Hermione. Making her decision, Sophie grabbed Hermione's hand and tugged. The older witch smiled and rose from her seat, saying, "We'll be back shortly." With a slight smirk, she allowed the little girl to pull her into the cafe and to the ladies loo.

Much later at home, at Fairwinds, Lucius and Severus finished up with some potions that had been simmering all day while Draco and Hermione played with Sophie and Harry. Echo, tired from the long day, had been pleased to have Hermione and Draco staying the night so that she could have a bit of peace and a lie-in.

While Lucius headed down to the subterranean potions lab, Severus hovered worriedly over his wife as she settled beneath the silk comforter on their bed. He touched her warm cheeks with the back of his fingers and placed several stray curls back over her ears. Echo smiled up at her husband sleepily.

"Are you certain you're all right, Beauty?" Severus asked softly as he sat down on the edge of their bed beside her.

"Honestly, Severus, I'm just over-tired. It was a busy day." She laced the fingers of her right hand through his right hand, and dropped her other hand over his left, which was settled on her bump.

Echo had miscarried her first two children with her wretched, first husband, Oland Childermass. When the new couple had initially met with Echo's Healer they had both hoped that the miscarriages had been caused by Childermass's illegal use of old, Coercive Magic, that kept his wife in line. They had learned, though, that Childermass had cursed his wife in such a way that her babies would never have come to term. Despite an Abortive Curse, and the Coercive Magic, the Healer had patiently explained that possible stress had led to Echo's miscarriages. That meant that Severus and Echo had to visit the Healer on a weekly basis in order to make certain that all was well.

Echo seemed happy, and content, but Severus worried every moment. He didn't want to lose their child, but neither did he want to lose his beloved wife. He leaned over to kiss her brow as her eyelids fluttered closed.

Stepping just outside of their bedroom, Severus summoned Dobby. The small house elf, who had finally done away with the multiple hats and socks, now wore just one hat, albeit a different one each day, a different pair of mismatched socks each day, and a long jumper that reached his knees. As this particular one had a "D" on the front of it, it was undoubtedly one of a few that Molly Weasley had knitted for the elf.

"Dobby, Lucius and I will be working in the lab until dinnertime. Would you keep an eye on Echo for me as you go about your work?' Severus asked.

Dobby smiled and bobbed his head in delight. "Dobby is pleased to watch over Mistress Madame, Master Sir!" Severus rolled his eyes. Even though he had requested the small elf to call himself "Sir", and Echo "Madame" he still managed to tack on the ever-present title of master and mistress. Dobby was not a bonded elf, and was free, and paid, in the Snape household. He even had a day off in which he spent most of his time either knitting in his sewing room, or playing with Harry.

"Dobby is having request, for Master Sir, though," he hesitated briefly and then wrung his hands.

"Yes, Dobby?" asked Severus waiting patiently.

"Dobby is going shopping for groceries tomorrow and Friend Harry and Little Miss Sophie wish to come with Dobby, Sir. They is be asking many times, and Dobby is wearing down."

Severus chuckled at his son's persistence, and in knowing that even a house elf could be verbally bullied into a corner by a precocious child. "Do you wish to take them, or would you prefer that I intervene with those two snakes?" asked Severus.

Dobby's eyes widened. "Oh! Master Sir is not needing to curtail exuberant children! Dobby is fine with taking them to grocer, but Dobby is needing to make certain is all right with Master Sir, and Master Lucius."

"I see no reason they cannot go, Dobby." He scowled in warning. "Although, I charge you with permission to appropriately punish, or bring them home should they not behave. I'm certain that Lucius will require the same. If I recall, you often disciplined Draco, did you not?"

Dobby sniffed, and his eyes blinked seriously. "Dobby was good elf nanny to Master Draco, Master Sir. Dobby be good to Friend Harry and Little Miss Sophie, too."

"Speak to Lucius, then, and I'm certain those two will be readied by Echo tomorrow," Severus replied. With a nod, he strode down the hallway, then down the stairs and through the narrow door that led to his lab.

The next day, in Harry's room he was a bundle of nerves as his mother combed his long hair (which was just shoulder length and had been recently trimmed by his Uncle Lucius). His mother fussed over his shirt, his trousers, and his multicoloured jumper that had been knitted for him by Dobby. It even had pockets!

Echo glanced down at her son's bare feet and clucked her tongue almost the same way his father did. "Harry? You had socks on just a few minutes ago. Where are they?"

"They're yellow. I don't like yellow," he replied, pointing helpfully towards two, small yellow spots on the floor by his bed. He watched impassively as Echo summoned the socks.

"Harry! These were clean socks!" she chided firmly and handed them back to him. "Now put them on and then get your boots on."

Harry scowled at the yellow socks and stubbornly crossed his arms over his small chest. "I don't wanna wear yellow socks!"

Echo huffed in exasperation, blowing a dark curl off her cheek. "You'll be wearing boots, Harry. Nobody will see your socks."

"But I'll know they're yellow, mum," he spoke seriously.

Echo gave the little boy a glare that was as dark as any he'd ever received from his father. "Put... your socks on and then put... your boots on, or I'll have your father deal with you."

Harry gulped as he snatched the socks and went to sit on the edge of his bed. Echo had swatted his backside a time or two, but since she'd become pregnant, that was a chore she'd turned over to Severus. If his father had to 'deal with him' that almost always meant a spanking. Not that Harry got into trouble all that much anymore in which a spanking was required. His father was very good at shouting, or sticking him in a corner, or lately, having him do extra chores around Fairwinds.

He slipped his bare feet into the yellow socks and then worked his feet into the boots. Once done, he jumped onto his feet and grinned at his mother.

Echo smiled. "Wonderful! Get yourself down the stairs and wait patiently on the sofa for Sophie."

"Okay, mum!" Harry darted out of his bedroom, and as he ran down the stairs, he didn't hear his mother muttering about 'no running in the house'!

Lucius was seated on the edge of his daughter's bed as she stood between his knees with her back to his chest. He was busy plaiting her silky hair into a neat French braid. Sophie's finger was drawing little invisible doodles on her father's knee.

"You'll obey Dobby?" he asked firmly.

"Uh huh," Sophie replied, not really paying attention.

Lucius lightly tugged his child's hair. "Pay attention, little owl," he admonished.

Sophie stopped her drawing and leaned, just a bit, against her father's leg. "I'm s'posed to obey Dobby and I'm s'posed to behave and I'm s'posed to not let go of Harry's hand." Her eyes sparkled as she smiled. "Papa?"

Lucius finished the braid with a green ribbon. He kissed the top of Sophie's head. "What's on your mind, Sophie?"

Sophie turned and wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed before looking up into her father's grey eyes. "Can I get some chocolate for Draco?"

Lucius picked up his daughter, turned slightly, and then gracefully placed her feet back down on the floor as he withdrew a small, leather pouch from his pocket. He shook out two copper knuts and handed them to Sophie. She held each shiny coin in a hand and danced around the room briefly with them.

"So, I take it you like your big brother?" Lucius asked with a smirk.

Sophie stopped dancing and tucked her precious coins into her pocket. "He's nice. Did you know he and 'Mione are going to get married?"

"I do know that," Lucius chuckled softly as he removed Sophie's shiny black patent leather Mary Jane's from the floor of the wardrobe. He knelt, and his daughter stuck out her right leg so the first shoe could be slipped on.

"'Mione says we'd be sisters. I like 'Mione. She's pretty and is really smart and lets me ask lots of questions."

Lucius buckled both shoes. "I understand that Hermione likes to ask questions, too." He stood up and grasping his daughter's hands, he pulled her to her feet. "All right, downstairs we go. Dobby is a very time conscious elf, so we don't want to have to make him wait."

Sophie took her father's hand in hers and escorted him down the stairs. In the living room, Severus was giving some last minute instruction to Dobby. The house elf's head was bobbing as he listened, but his expression was very serious. While Severus spoke to the elf, Echo was buttoning up Harry's winter cloak and tying the strings under his hat.

Sophie broke from her father's light grip and ran over to Harry. "Hi, Harry! We're going to an elf grocery and papa says I have to hold your hand!"

"Cloak first, Sophie, dear," Echo interrupted as she held out a soft, rosy coloured winter cloak. Echo had purchased the cloak, the matching hat and mittens, when she'd seen Sophie's rather worn, old winter cloak.

Severus had finished giving Dobby instructions regarding his two charges and then turned to Lucius. "We'll be going to a few apothecaries today, Lucius. The two potions we need to finish will be simmering for the next two hours." Severus tossed on his outer cloak and then stepped over to brush a kiss to his wife's cheek. "Resting today, Beauty?"

Echo shook her head. "Cooking. Dobby bought me a very nice cookbook, "House Elf Cooking Tips" that I want to try out, so be sure you're back here in time for lunch." She grasped the lapels of Severus' robes, pulled him down, and gave him a kiss that had him blushing, and Lucius chuckling at his friend's embarrassment.

Severus gruffed, glowered, and strode over to the fireplace. "Do you mind if we get going, Lucius?" Before throwing the Floo powder into the flames, he turned to his son. "Behave yourself, Harry, and keep a close eye on Sophie."

Harry grinned as he grasped Sophie's hand. "I will, dad. Bye Uncle Lucius!"

Echo watched as the flames in the Floo turned a bright green, carrying her husband and his friend away to their first destination of the day. Dobby then took Harry and Sophie by their free hands, making a circle, grinned, and they popped away.

Echo smiled and patted her belly. "Just you and I baby. Let's do some cooking!"