Yours truly | Severus Snape - Sequel to Sincerely yours

Epilogue

The sunshine seeped through the windows of Mary's room in the Montgomery Manor. A fresh breeze of summer air gently made its way through that one window Mary forgot to close before she went to sleep. She had been staying up late – even later than most evenings. Sure, one of the things that had been keeping her up was a hilarious one-on-one game of Quidditch (if one can even call it that when there are 6 players missing from each team) between Clary and Uncle Theo, and the light conversations that followed after the game. But the main thing that had kept Mary up, was packing. Because this wasn't a mere girls' sleepover she was going to. No no. She was going to visit a man.

Clary and Alison had stayed up with Clary all night, making jokes about how Mary cannot take her ugly underwear with her (as if Severus hadn't seen them already) and that they should go bra shopping in London before Mary's train leaves.

"And how do you expect Uncle Theo to let me go buy sexy bras before going to Severus', when he looked like he was about murder Sev when I first announced him about the trip?" Mary had asked. Clary and Alison had rolled on the floor laughing, Alison suggesting that Mary could borrow Clary's sexy bra's because she never wears them anyway.

"Hey!" Clary had pretended to be offended and gently slapped Alison's arm. "I do wear them. Sometimes", she defended. "And also, I don't think Mary's boobs would fit them."

That would cause another round of giggles in the room.

"I will pretend I didn't hear what you guys just said", Uncle Theo had said when he opened the door to Mary's room. "But I think it is time for you all to go to bed. It's well past midnight."

And for once, Mary, Clary and Alison listened to Uncle Theo.

****

The sound of wheels clicking against the rails filled the air as Mary and Theodore stood next to each other in the King's Cross station. They had just said their goodbyes to Alison and Clary, who were now making their way to Alison's for the rest of the summer. It had been a heartfelt moment for all of them, but the instance Clary and Alison had disappeared in the train, Uncle Theo had turned dead silent.

After another awkward ten minutes, Mary finally cleared her throat.

"That's... Um, that's my train", she announced as another train slid by the platform.

Theodore remained silent for another moment. Then, a simple, "So it seems".

Mary stared at him for a while. He had been so warm, so kind these past months. Especially when Alison and Clary were around. But now that they were gone, he seemed to have turned back to the man he used to be. The man Mary had learned to know from ever since she had been a teenager.

"Well, I'll... I'll go then", Mary finally said and turned around to grab her cart, to which Theodore was still holding onto. But that was the moment when something utterly peculiar happened. Because just when Mary was reaching for the cart, Uncle Theodore took a step closer to Mary and wrapped his arms around her. In a hug. An actual hug.

For a moment, Mary just stood there, shocked as if she had been struck by lightning. And then, she melt into it. Because when Uncle Theo hugs someone, he means it. Of course, the hug wasn't enough to shock Mary no no. As Mary rested her forehead against Uncle Theo's shoulder, she heard a silent whisper. Words that she thought would never leave Uncle Theo's lips.

"I love you, Mary."

Mary blinked. Once. Twice. And then:

"I love you too."

The train whistled and forced Mary and Theodore to pull away from the hug, although Theodore still rested his other hand on Mary's shoulder as he stared pushing the cart towards the train. And when they finally reached the train, Theodore reluctantly let go of Mary and they said their final goodbyes.

Having said that, Mary turned around and disappeared in the train, leaving Uncle Theodore alone on the platform. He watched as the train started moving, taking away the last thing he had left from the only woman he had ever loved.