Salvation

Severus watched him sleep as the dawn broke over them, propped up on one elbow, Harry snuggled safely against him. He had slept less than an hour, preferring instead to watch as his Harry dreamed on. He was utterly exhausted, but happier than he could ever remember being.

The thin February first light filtered in through the window opposite his bed, gently creeping across Harry’s face. He stroked one long finger over one impossibly high cheekbone, smiling softly as Harry turned towards the contact. So different from the beginning, when Harry had shied away from even the most innocent of touches. In those early weeks, once he had regained enough strength to do things unaided, Severus had not even been able to brush his hand accidentally without him flinching. Any accidental contact had made Harry recoil, only allowing physical contact when he initiated it or during his frequent panic attacks. But it had gotten better, and Severus could hardly believe what had happened between them last night. If it hadn’t been for the delicious ache in his thighs and their nudity he would have dismissed it as a particularly intense dream. But it wasn’t, it was real and Harry was his.

Or was it the other way round? Was he Harry’s?

The beautiful creature rolling over to burrow into his chest had him wrapped around his little finger, and Severus couldn’t in all good conscience say that he minded in the slightest. If he was honest with himself, he would say that he worshiped the feeling of Harry owning him. He made the decision to accept this new happiness, to let it lead him, wherever that may be. The emerald orbs fluttered open, locking with his, and without warning it didn’t matter who owned who. They were together and Harry was free from Lucius, that was all that was important.

“Morning,” Harry croaked and Severus found himself pulled in for a sweet kiss.

“Good morning, love.”

Harry moaned and stretched against him, wincing slightly though a small smile lingered through it.

“Did I hurt you?” Severus asked concernedly. Had he been too rough with him? His hand came up to stroke Harry’s cheek, watching the younger man smile up at him.

“No. Well, not in a bad way, I don’t think. It’s not a bad kind of pain, just sort of…there, like an ache,” Harry reassured. “I kind of like it, oddly. It reminds me of what we did,” he added shyly, blushing as Severus chuckled.

“I see. You’re sure I didn’t hurt you? I wasn’t too rough?” Severus asked, Harry pulling him down to lay facing him.

“No, it was…” Harry trailed off, trying to find the words. “You made me feel good, very good. You made me feel the most wonderful things. I never thought I could ever feel that good, not down there, not because of what I have down there. Thank you.”

Harry kissed him softly. “You are very very welcome,” Severus said suggestively against his lips, hearing Harry giggle. “Harry, when I asked you to marry me last night and you said yes, did you mean it? I mean…well…do you really want to, or was it the afterglow of what we did?” Severus struggled, terrified he would change his answer in the light of day but needing to know the truth.

“Yes, I meant it. I want to be with you forever. I never want anyone to touch me again, never anyone but you. If we get married then I can stay, I can be yours forever,” Harry said calmly without a moments hesitation, letting Severus claim his lips possessively, grinning into the kiss.

“Are you sure it’s me that owns you and not the other way round?” Severus joked, his hand coming to rest on Harry’s bare hip. “I never thought I’d have something like this,” he admitted, dropping his gaze.

“Something like what?”

“You, what we have. I never thought I’d love anyone like this, like I love you. I never imagined I’d be engaged, and I certainly never imagined becoming a father. I’m afraid,” he whispered.

“Afraid of what?”

“That it’s not real, that maybe it’s all a dream. I’m afraid that I’ll lose you. Harry, I can’t do that, I can’t lose you,” Severus pleaded, pulling him closer. Harry surged forwards, wrapping his arms around his neck, pulling him into a fierce hug.

“You won’t. Do you really think that I’d go anywhere with anyone other than you? Do you think I would let anyone touch me the way you did last night without killing them first? I mean it, I will never allow anyone but you to touch me, I will never allow anyone to own me but you. I’ll kill them first. I know I couldn’t have stopped him, when he did those things to me, but I won’t ever let myself end up there again. I’m yours, only yours.”

Severus pulled back and kissed him, sweeping away the sudden anger in the young being. “I will never let anyone claim you from me, Harry. So, you don’t have to resort to such violence. I will never let anyone take you from me.”

“So, in light of the way that we feel about someone claiming me away from you, I think it’s a good idea for us to get married very soon,” Harry said, logically, making Severus chuckle.

“Sounds good to me.”

“Severus, can we keep it simple? The wedding, I want it to be small, not too many people. When you think about it, me and you really did all we needed to last night. We had our own kind of celebration,” he finished bashfully, ducking his head in shyness before looking at his lover again, his gaze steady. “The wedding is just a formality to make it permanent. We don’t have to have a big party with all those people, do we?”

“Not if you don’t want to. We can…” Severus broke off as a tentative knock at the door interrupted him. He and Harry slipped back into their discarded sleepwear and he moved to the door, finding Draco waiting patiently behind it.

“The headmaster is downstairs. He’s asking for you,” Draco said. He was still in his pyjamas, his hair ruffled, and Severus supposed he must have been woken by the old wizards arrival. Draco was a light sleeper and he and Harry had been distracted, so it was no wonder he had been the one to greet Albus.

“Draco, please go and tell him that I will be down shortly,” Severus said swiftly. He crossed to the bed, sitting down slowly. “I wish we could spend all day in bed but, regrettably, that is not an option now. Harry, please do not shower yet,” Severus said calmly.

“Why?”

“We may need to do some kind of spell to prove that you now belong to me. I’m not sure what it may entail but we cannot afford to wash away the remnants of last night just yet.”

“Oh. All right. Is it all right if I stay in bed? I’m not sure if I’m ready to see Professor Dumbledore.”

“Of course.” He dropped a lingering kiss on Harry’s lips and smiled at him before pulling on his robe and sweeping from the room. He entered the living room to find Albus seated in one of the armchairs, unwrapping a sherbet lemon. Harry liked the room this way, with all the overstuffed chairs. The number of chairs had increased from four to eight, most of them settled in pairs. It made the room a little overcrowded but the overall effect was comfortable rather than cluttered. He smiled briefly. Harry had told him that it felt like sitting on a cloud and he usually found his lover settled in one with his feet on another, engrossed in a book, whenever he had to go in search of him.

“Albus. It’s a surprise to see you. Forgive my state of undress,” Severus said as he sat down opposite his mentor. He could hear the sound of clinking china from the kitchen, informing him of Draco’s location. “May I make a request before I ask what has prompted this visit?” Severus asked quickly, not wanting to get distracted.

“Of course. I apologise for getting you out of bed,” Albus said, his eyes twinkling madly.

“Quite all right, I was awake. Albus…” Severus faltered, searching for the right words. “Albus, I claimed Harry last night. He wanted it, it was his choice,” he added quickly.

“I see. Was it simply his way of freeing himself from Lucius’ grasp?” Albus said, his words cautious. He was surprised that Remus’ theory of Harry and Severus was correct. It wasn’t often that someone else’s ideas surprised him. Very little did after so many years.

“No, not simply that. Albus, I…” Severus felt like he was confessing something very private and hesitated in telling the old man of his feelings. Albus was the best father figure he had ever been under the care of and he felt that it was important for him to understand how he felt, for him to know of what he had found with Harry, for him to share in it. “Albus, I love him,” he confessed quietly, looking directly into those blue eyes. “And he loves me. He said yes to my proposal of marriage, he wants me to raise his child with him, to take the place of the baby’s father.”

“I am happy for you, my dear boy. How does this make you feel, this relationship with Harry? You are happy, aren’t you?”

Damn it, how did he always know the right words to say, the right things to ask? Severus had wanted to know that ever since his youth. He supposed it must just be the wisdom of age.

“I am happy. I never thought I could be this happy, Albus. It is somewhat alien to me but I am learning to relax into it. He makes me happy, and I believe I do the same for him.”

“Then I am all in favour this relationship,” Albus said with a gentle smile.

“Thank you, old friend. I have to ask though, is there something that needs to be done, a spell perhaps, to prove that he is mine now?”

Albus looked thoughtfully at his former student. The man looked younger than he had in years and it set Albus’ mind at ease. He had seen the longing stares from both Harry and Severus since Harry was in his third year, knowing at the time that neither of them were ready to admit that they held any feelings other than loathing for the other. He found it oddly satisfying to hear that they had finally managed to find each other.

“I am unsure. I do not recall my mother ever having being claimed by anyone other than my father so I cannot look back on my own experience. My mother rarely spoke of what she was and I never questioned it.”

“Perhaps Remus will know?”

“Perhaps. I will go and consult him now so we can get this over with swiftly. I assume that neither you nor Harry have bathed since the union?”

“No, I didn’t think it wise.”

“Probably a prudent decision. I will go and consult Remus now, and when we have this straightened out we can get down to the business of why I have come. I will return shortly,” Albus said as he moved to the fireplace. He flooed out and Severus figured he had at least half an hour, if not longer, before he returned. He moved to the kitchen and fixed Harry a bowl of cereal, fetching Harry’s morning potions from the cupboard. Draco smirked slyly at him over his spoon and he just didn’t have the heart to cast the disapproving glare it should have earned. He smiled back and added glass of orange juice and a cup of coffee to his tray before making his way upstairs.

“I brought you breakfast, love,” Severus said. He set the vials of potion on the bedside table and settled himself beside his lover, sipping his coffee as Harry ate with more of an appetite than Severus had seen since he arrived.

“What did Professor Dumbledore want?” Harry asked between mouthfuls of Cocoa Pops. Thank god for muggle food delivery systems. Solarin was placing orders for them from a compu-thingy, sending their groceries to them via owl, and it kept them in milk and other things that they consumed daily, such as the breakfast cereals Harry had a fondness for, especially the chocolate ones. Solarin had expanded the selection of chocolate cereals and Harry seemed to have developed not only one sweet tooth but an entire mouthful of them.

“I don’t know yet. He went to ask Remus about how we prove I have claimed you before he got to it.”

Harry blushed. “Oh, Sirius is going to take this so well,” he said sarcastically as he leaned over Severus, placing his bowl on the nightstand, his comment earning a chuckle from the Potions Master.

“Oh yes, I’m sure he’ll throw us a party,” Severus said with a dark smile. “I’m sure Remus will help him accept it.”

Harry took his potions and then the two of them were silent, throwing flirty glances at each other over the rim of their cups. Severus was ecstatic that Harry had managed to finish his whole breakfast for the first time and decided to reward him. He placed the two cups on the bedside table and pulled him in for a hungry kiss, Harry reacting wonderfully to the gentle seeking hand that had slipped under the pyjama top to caress his chest, letting his touch move cautiously in case Harry was not receptive to it.

“Severus, I need it, please,” Harry begged between intense kisses, arching beneath the teasing fingers on his nipples, his hips thrusting against the thigh Severus had worked in between his own. Severus was surprised at the immediacy of Harry’s passionate desire, at the sheer force of it as it hit his youthful lover. He took his own lead from Harry’s confidence, letting his lover lead him. Severus wandlessly shut the door and slipped his hand into Harry’s pyjama bottoms, stroking the hard cock, setting a relentless pace. There was no reluctance from Harry, no hesitation at all as he reached into Severus’ boxers and stroked him, the two of them bringing each other to a rapid yet satisfying end, Harry biting down on the shoulder he had uncovered, surprising Severus again with his easily gained release. Severus found that he was pleased to feel Harry’s sticky emissions on his skin. He had worried that with the damage Lucius had caused Harry would not be able to produce it, but it seemed not to be a problem. Even if Harry would never father children, it was still satisfying for him to know that Harry would not have to deal with being different in that aspect of himself.

They panted against each other, taking unhurried kisses.

“That was unexpected,” Harry joked after he had stopped gasping.

“As was last night. I must say, I enjoyed that tremendously,” Severus answered, stripping Harry and himself of their sticky clothes, wiping them off with them as best he could. They both really needed a shower and he wished Albus would come back soon so they could take one, together if he had his way.

Harry smirked as he slid into clean attire, a loose t-shirt and sweatpants. Severus’ clothes were much the same as his own and he thought Severus looked delicious, all sleep tousled and flushed still from their activities. Severus seemed more relaxed than Harry had ever known him to be and it filled him with his own lessening of his general nerves. Harry slipped to the bathroom to relieve his bladder, something the baby was kicking against again, before joining Severus on the landing.

“Harry, I have to say, I am surprised by how easily you have become comfortable with this physical enjoyment of each other,” Severus said as the two of them padded down the stairs barefoot, Harry feeling more confident now. Well, confident enough to face Dumbledore.

“I am too a bit. I can’t explain. It just feels so good, I can’t seem to find the panic like I did before. I’m not even sure when it disappeared, my nervousness. It’s still there but not like before. It’s kind of in the background now,” Harry reasoned. “I suppose your touch must distract me better than before.”

Severus smirked and pulled him in for a kiss before they made their way into the room fully, he and Harry sitting with Draco and chatting about that mornings Prophet until the floo sprung to life, expelling first Sirius and then Remus and Dumbledore.

“You claimed him?” Sirius said immediately, glaring at Severus. Ah, perhaps Remus had not been quick enough with his soothing?

The room went unnaturally still and it occurred to Severus that he had left his wand upstairs on his bedside table. Potentially a bad move right now, Sirius looked murderous.

“Yes, I did,” Severus said calmly, hoping his own calm tone would ease the man.

It didn’t and Sirius seemed to forget he was a wizard as he lunged for Severus, grabbing the front of his shirt. He managed to get in a punch to Severus’ face before Remus and Albus pulled him off. He felt happiness at the blood pouring from the mans nose. But he felt like a monster when he spied Harry.

Draco watched Harry’s godfather grab his own, hitting him hard. His attention was diverted by Harry bolting from his chair, backing up against the wall in absolute terror, his face scarily pale and his eyes wide. Draco moved to him and shoved his own hatred of being touched deep down inside himself as he let Harry cling to him, the grip on his shoulders so tight it was painful, yet he didn’t complain. He rubbed soothing circles on the slim back and held him steady as he panicked like he had seen Severus do. He seemed to be the only one who had noticed Harry retreat, Severus occupied by being attacked, Sirius by attacking, and Albus and Remus by trying to stop his cousin killing his godfather. The sight of Severus’ bloody nose didn’t help matters any, Harry actually seemed to shrink into himself at the red trail. He supposed he could handle this touch until Severus could relieve him of the Gryffindor currently gasping in fear. Merlin, if someone had told him a year ago, or even just six months ago, that he would be letting Potter anywhere near him, except in a fist fight, he would have called them a bloody liar. But he found himself not minding the damaged young man clinging to him. He hated the touch, but he found it felt good to be helping someone. He finally understood why those people his father called do-gooders did what they did. He held Harry a little closer, feeling useful for the first time in a long time.

“You idiot,” Remus snarled at his husband as he pushed him further away from Severus. “Was that really the best way to react to that news? You fool, look at what you’ve done.”

Sirius couldn’t take his eyes off of Harry. He heard Albus healing Snape’s nose and Remus berating him but he couldn’t tear his eyes away. Harry looked absolutely terrified. Terrified of him, of what he had just done. He had hated the thought of Severus touching Harry when Remus had told he and Albus of his theory the first time, but he should never have let it spiral out of control like this. Good God, Harry was even clinging to Malfoy. What had he done?

Severus wiped away the remaining blood with the handkerchief Albus gave him and moved to the two boys, easing a trembling Harry out of Draco’s arms and into his own, feeling Harry panic and clutch at him.

“Black, you are an imbecile. No wonder Sol attacked you,” he snarled, his temper getting the best of him. His eyes widened at the sight of his attacker. Black looked ashen, his wide eyes full of despair, fixed on the small form in his arms. He watched Remus shove the dark haired man into a chair and stand beside it, a warning hand on the unmoving shoulder.

“Severus?” Harry’s shaky voice dissipated his anger somewhat.

He looked down into wide worried green eyes.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Harry asked, his voice worried and insecure, his eyes scanning Severus’ face.

“I’m all right, love. Just a punch to the nose, nothing that hasn’t happened before. Albus healed it for me. See, love? I’m fine,” Severus reassured. So much for Remus soothing Sirius.

Apparently Harry didn’t care who was watching them, and Severus felt that at that moment, he couldn’t bring himself to care either. Harry brought him down into a searching kiss, calming himself in the best way he knew how. He rubbed his hands encouragingly along the slender back, feeling the tension in it ease slightly. When they pulled back, Sirius was looking at them gravely, Remus held a look of resignation and Albus’ eyes were twinkling. Draco was standing uncertainly beside them, apparently unfazed by the public display of affection.

“It’s all right now, he’s all right,” Severus said to them all, seeing a little colour return to Sirius’ face. Damn it, the morning had started out so well. He led Harry to a chair, settling him before perching on the arm, Harry clinging to his hand, his grip almost painful in its strength. “Now, shall we get this out of the way before we go any further? Yes, I claimed Harry. Yes, I intend to marry him. No, I will not use him. No, I will not back down.”

Sirius coughed and looked at Harry, his face pleading, though he looked rather appalled at himself. “I’m so sorry, Harry. I shouldn’t have done that.” He looked up to Severus. “I’m sorry, I should have handled myself better.”

“Yes, you should. Your behaviour was completely out of line, though I can see the thought behind it. Perhaps you can see now why Solarin did what she did?” Severus said spitefully, satisfaction blooming within him at the look of understanding on the Animagus’ face, finally feeling that his sister had been understood. Draco at last moved into the circle, settling himself in a chair not too far from Harry’s. Remus relaxed, though he laid a warning hand on Sirius’ thigh as he sat down next to him. Albus seated himself comfortably, his fingers adopting their usual steepled position, looking for all the world like nothing had happened. Typical Albus. Severus claimed the chair next to Harry’s, not thinking it wise to move too far from him just yet.

“Harry?” Sirius questioned. Harry finally looked up from his contemplation of Severus’ fingers and into his eyes, glaring at him in sudden anger.

“Don’t ever do anything like that again,” Harry demanded, Sirius nodding after a moments pause. He sighed. “Sirius, I love you and Remus, you know that. But I love Severus too. Please, don’t make me have to choose between you and him. Why can’t I just have you both?”

It was this that broke Sirius of all his petty childish loathing of Snape. Remus had been right, if someone had to claim Harry he would rather it be Snape than Lucius Malfoy. He grudgingly admitted to himself that he trusted Snape, though he would never tell Snape that. He reached out and was relieved to feel Harry’s shaking hand slip into his own.

“I would never make you do anything, Harry,” Sirius said with conviction. He felt himself needing to know certain things before he would accept this. Well, as much as is possible for him to accept Snape was screwing his godson. “Do you really love him?” Harry nodded. “And last night was what you wanted?” Another nod. “And this is really what you want, to be married to him?”

Remus looked at Sirius in surprise, he didn’t remember the man being calm enough to register Albus’ statement of marriage. Sirius had looked close to a stroke when Albus had told them of Severus claiming their son, a piece of news no parent ever wanted to know of their child.

“Yes. I want this, I want him. And last night was my choice,” Harry said.

“Then that’s all I need to know. You can have both of us, Harry, you’ll never have to choose. I may not like it but I will be civil to him,” Sirius admitted and Harry nodded. It wasn’t perfect but it was enough.

Sirius looked at Severus. “Do you love him?”

“Yes, I do,” Severus answered honestly.

“All right then. But if you ever harm him in any way or cause him any kind of pain I will kill you,” he said calmly but with a hint of promise.

“I would expect nothing less from a devoted parent,” Severus replied.

Remus looked at the three of them, his cub and the two men he was caught between. He found himself clutching at his papers, hoping that this fragile truce would last, for Harry’s sake.

“So, shall we get down to the matter at hand?” Albus asked cheerily. “Remus, is there something we need to do to prove that Harry belongs to Severus?”

“Yes, a spell, a few forms and a blood sample,” Remus replied as he checked through his notes, clinging to his role of advisor. He was grateful of the fact he had left his bag untouched on the kitchen table last night, he had grabbed it in a hurry. “We need to fill in this first form and attach a blood sample from Harry to it. Then we need to run a spell, Arthur has included it here, and note the results down on the second form, attaching it to the first. Arthur has provided all the things we will need. Though all this is best done before either of them cleanse themselves, so the results will be pure. The tests rely on Harry’s magical signature, which will be in the blood sample. According to the information provided it will hold an echo of Severus’. The spell is to, um, record Harry’s physical state after the claiming. It’s how we prove this, it’s how we legally free him from Lucius,” Remus finished, his face glowing red in embarrassment.

“Good thing you told me not to take a shower,” Harry quipped, Remus and Sirius looking at him in amazement. Had he just joked? Was this really the same person that had panicked at them only yesterday? The same person that had recoiled in terror just a few minutes ago?

Remus decided that last night must have had a good effect on his cub and it sat a little better with him now, now that he knew Harry had visibly benefited from it, though he was trying really hard to ignore the lingering smell of sex on both of them, his heightened werewolf senses picking up what others couldn’t. Mind you, he and Sirius still smelled faintly of vodka and each other, so he wasn’t one to talk.

Harry was baring his arm and Sirius was happily handing Severus the sealed pack of the blood sampling kit Arthur had included. ‘Arthur really considered everything,’ Remus thought.

Severus pulled open the kit and prepared the needle, noting that Sirius looked slightly green. “Harry, who do you want to do this?” he asked, leaving the cap on the pointer.

“You do it,” Harry replied, eyeing the hypodermic warily.

He threaded his fingers in the unruly hair and gently coaxed Harry to looking at him. “I’ll do it as fast as I can, I promise.” Harry took a deep breath and nodded. “Hold on to someone, Harry, and tell me when you’re ready,” he said calmly as he wiped the crook of Harry’s arm with the provided alcohol soaked pad. He watched Harry grip at Sirius, the one sitting closest to him, and fought down his apprehension at having to do something that would cause his love the slightest pain.

“I’m ready,” Harry said, looking away. It slightly amused Severus that Sirius couldn’t watch the procedure either, looking at the ceiling while he comforted Harry.

Severus plunged the needle in and withdrew the blood, trying to go as fast as possible, trying not to look at Harry burying his head in Sirius’ shoulder. He withdrew the needle and placed a cotton ball at the wound, pushing Harry’s arm up to hold it there. “It’s done, love. All over.”

Harry’s eyes were wet with tears but his expression was steady. Harry sat quietly while the form was filled in by Severus, the questions shockingly intimate, and Remus performed the spell, Sirius writing down the results, both of them beet red. Soon enough it was all over, Albus taking hold of the parchments and the vial of his blood to take to Arthur so he could file them with the right channels.

“Now, this marriage. When were you thinking?” Albus asked cheerily, stowing the documents and blood in the pocket of his robes.

Severus looked at Harry. “In the next few days? If that’s too soon…” Harry answered uncertainly, everyone but Severus looking surprised.

“Why so fast, Harry? There’s no rush,” Remus questioned.

“I don’t want any chance of someone taking me from Severus. I want it done as soon as possible. I’m protecting myself, Remus. Surely you can see the sense in my thinking,” Harry replied. He didn’t add that he wanted to be Severus’ forever. That was no ones business but theirs.

Remus looked like he wanted to argue but, to Harry and Severus’ surprise, it was Sirius who stepped in. “Remus, do you really want to be the one who denies him?”

Remus smirked, blushing. “Of course not. If it is what Harry wants, so be it. Albus?”

“Well, I see no reason why they cannot be wed this afternoon. That is taking into consideration a lack of occasion with the ceremony, of course.”

“I don’t want a party, I just want the ceremony. With a party there’s a lot of people in a small space. I’m not ready for that, not yet anyway. Severus, is that okay? Can we do that, just have the ceremony?” Harry asked, looking at his gently smiling lover.

“I see no problem. If you’re sure it’s what you want, then we can do that,” Severus answered calmly, trying not to smile too broadly. It could be that easy. Harry could stay with him forever, it could all be made solid that afternoon. There was no way he was going to complain. Anyway, he couldn’t see the point in all the grandeur. He was all for keeping it simple, keeping it about the two of them.

“What about your sister? Don’t you want her to come?” Harry asked, feeling the man had given in too easily. Though he shouldn’t really have been surprised. Scary Professor Snape was the one who argued with everything he said, Severus was the one who seemed content to let Harry lead. More to the point, the witch was Severus’ only family. Shouldn’t he want to share this with her?

“Oh, she won’t come to a wedding. She has a thing about marriage, she won’t attend nuptials. Besides, it’ll just give her the chance to annoy me when she comes to visit. I might as well allow her one chance to do it, might as well give her ammunition against me, just this once,” Severus replied honestly, watching Albus chuckle and Remus snigger. Sirius seemed to be stunned at his wording but he chose to ignore it. He focussed on the soft smile of his Harry, the way his gaze was understanding.

“All right then.” Harry paused. “Does doing those tests mean that I can go and shower now?” he asked.

“Yes. You go and shower and I will talk with Albus.”

Harry gifted him a sweet swift kiss before disappearing up the stairs, Draco following him to wait in his room for the bathroom to be free.

Severus turned his attentions to the other three wizards. Damn it, there went his chance to share a shower with Harry. Maybe later he could get to do it. “I’m not going to like your actual reason for this visit, am I?” he asked, changing the subject immediately away from the wedding and his relationship with Harry, offering Sirius a way out of the uncomfortable situation. He found he really didn’t want to share it with anyone. He actually heard Sirius sigh in relief at being able to ignore the bond between his boyhood rival and his godson.

“No, you’re not,” Albus agreed. The headmaster sighed, momentarily looking his age. “Lucius attacked Bill and Charlie Weasley yesterday. He seemed to think that they were harbouring Harry. Lucius is beginning to act more and more irrationally. We thought it best to warn you of this. He is looking for Harry actively now.”

“And your plan?”

“To prepare you for a time that may come when you have to put into effect your plans to protect Harry. The time may come when we have to move the three of you to a safer location. Spinners End is known to Lucius, we cannot place it under a Fidelius charm. Grimmauld Place is already concealed, we would move you there.”

“I see the logic in that. It seems wise to prepare for the worst. Lucius is becoming dangerous to those around Harry. To target the Weasley’s shows real thought behind his actions. How are the boys?”

“They seem to be all right, they escaped mostly unscathed. We should be thankful for their skill as wizards. I doubt they would have gotten off so lightly if they had been inexpert. They have already put into place their withdrawal plans devised during the war.”

Severus remembered Bill from the redheads days at Hogwarts. The boy had been abysmal at potions but a friend of his had helped him scrape a pass. He remembered him to be a nice young man.

“And the other Weasley children? Are they safe?” Severus questioned, distracting himself from the memory of two small redhead boys and a smaller dark haired girl covertly flicking potions ingredients at each other, stifling their giggles, during the extra tutoring time he laid on for certain students.

“Yes, actions have been taken to protect them. Minerva is watching over Ron, Hermione and Ginny. We have devised a way to get them to safe keeping at a moments notice should Lucius turn his attentions to the school,” Albus reassured, remembering how fond Severus had been of Bill and Charlie during their time at Hogwarts. How fond he was of all the Weasley children, though he would never admit it. “I have already been to see Fred and George. They are aware that Lucius may visit them, but I have them under the impression that he his simply irrational. Percy is unlikely to be harbouring Harry. He is aware of the rift between Percy and the rest of the Weasley’s?”

“Yes, he is aware. Percy will not be a target. What of Molly and Arthur?”

“I have warded their home, they will be safe for the time being.”

“Severus, what about Solarin? Will Lucius target her?” Remus asked.

Severus contemplated it. As far as Lucius knew, Lucius thought he and Harry to be the worst of enemies. But several children of Death Eaters remained at the school. All it would take to cast suspicion on him would be for one of them to mention his absence from the school in a letter home. Death Eaters still talked. Lucius would hear of it. Lucius knew of Dumbledore’s trust in him, and of the location of Spinners End.

And he knew of Solarin and her gift.

“He might. If he discovers I am not at the school he might start to suspect my involvement. He may seek her out when he realizes this house is protected. Solarin laid the protections, and her magical signature is unique. Lucius would have no problems in recognising it. He has witnessed her gift, he has a rough understanding of how it works, enough to be a threat to her. But I don’t believe he is a match for her, even if she does become a target.”

“He took down Bill, one of the best curse breakers in the business,” Sirius offered.

“Sirius, what Solarin did to you is just a taste. She has her own means of defending herself.”

“What was it she actually did to me?” Sirius asked, his curiosity taking over.

Severus looked at him, measuring his words before he answered. “She calls it Forced Recall. She forces her target to relive every memory they have ever stored all at once. The mind can’t handle it, blood vessels begin to rupture. If she had concentrated harder or for longer it would have made your brain stem explode. She would have killed you. If she had been angry enough, you would have been dead in seconds,” Severus revealed. “Like I said, she has her own means of defending herself. Though, she should be made aware of the situation, as soon as possible.”

“Me and Remus will go.”

“You don’t have to, I can do it,” Severus said embarrassedly.

“Severus, you’re helping our son. Let us help your sister,” Remus countered. Severus looked uncomfortable, and Remus realized that not many people must have offered their help to him before. Slowly, he was beginning to understand the man a little better. He would never understand all of it, and he didn’t want to. Severus was Harry’s puzzle to solve and he was content to leave it be. Severus nodded finally.

“I will find her address for you, I have it somewhere. Harry can entertain you while I find it and take a quick shower,” Severus said, standing as Harry entered the room. He crossed to the younger man and kissed his cheek. “Do not ask what the conversation was, you don’t want to know. Find something else to talk about. I’ll be down shortly,” Severus commanded, Harry nodding immediately.

As far as telling your parents you were in love with your professor, had slept with him last night and were going to marry him that afternoon went, that was practically a home run.

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Bill sank down onto his bed, his mind in a turmoil. He felt old longings rise in him, white hot and painful, and he wished for her to suddenly appear, the way she used to, seemingly out of no where. He never did find out how she did that. He half expected her to creep up behind him now and run her fingers over the back of his neck, whispering in his ear.

‘I love you, Bill, don’t you love me too?’

The echo of her words in his head had him fighting back tears. His desire for her had not dissipated over the years like he had hoped it would, it had simply lingered. The conversation at dinner tonight had just made it that little bit harder to fake the smile. Remus and Sirius had gone to see her, to warn her of Lucius, and they had ended up spending the day listening to her joke about her brother as she took them on a tour of muggle London. He wanted, more than anything, to go and see her, walk with her the way they had done, but he knew it wasn’t an option. She would just run that little bit further into hiding. He knew it wasn’t him that made her hide, but he knew it was him that had made it hard for her to go in the first place.

He had lied to Remus, lied to them all when he had claimed that he and Solarin were just friends in school. He knew Dumbledore remembered their time there, knew that if he were to look Snape in the eye he would be right back where he started when she first left, cold and lonely.

He let his mind wander back to their schooldays, when they had been at their happiest. They had been the oddest couple in Hogwarts history, the Slytherin and the Gryffindor that had been inseparable. Tonks had joined them often, but the metamorphmagus was a member of several clubs and societies so her free time was caught quite often, leaving the two of them alone quite a lot. She had been a year younger, looking like a little porcelain doll when she had walked up to the Sorting Hat on her very first day. They had looked curiously at each other across the Great Hall during the feast. They first met in the library, her limited height making it impossible for her to reach the required book. He had reached over her head, grabbing it for her, smiling shyly at her timid thank you.

He pulled himself to his feet and began to pace, letting himself remember for the thousandth time that day. Not a day went by without her face flitting into his head. Their next encounter had been a few weeks later. He’d been sitting in the library and she had come up to him, asking him if he knew anything about Devil’s Snare. Herbology had never been her best subject. They had spent the next hour sitting there, him helping her to grasp the subject, and then the hour after that talking. Just talking. He found out that day that her name was Solarin, and that it meant one who was made of light that was pure. He chuckled darkly to himself. All her dark hair and dark eyes and yet it had still seemed to suit her. He ended up calling her Arin, the part that meant pure.

He leant upon the scarred wood of the dresser, trying not to let his mind open, not to let it seek hers the way it used to. It was in her third year that they had first kissed. They were sitting by the lake, enjoying a warm Saturday afternoon in May. She was flicking marshmallows into the lake for the giant squid and he had asked her if she thought it was a wise thing to do. She had shrugged and turned to him, kissing him on the lips without a moments hesitation. ‘I think that was a wiser thing to do,’ she had said, grinning at him, her pale cheeks rosy. He had wondered how she had known he wanted her to do that, how she had known he wanted her. She told him what she was that afternoon, and he had found it incredible. She was special, and she wanted him.

He glanced at Charlie as he entered the room, his brother flopping down on his bed with a Quidditch magazine and starting to talk to him about Harry’s marriage, about the girl Remus said had a wickedly dark sense of humour. He drowned him out, his mind taking him to the memory of the first time the connection between them had settled, the first time her thoughts had entered his head instead of his into hers. They had been in bed together, it was her fifth year. She had smuggled him into her private Slytherin room one Hogsmead weekend. It was Halloween. It was their first time. The passion between them had ignited and he had lost himself in her pale skin under his hands, her kiss swollen lips on his own, her dark hair slipping from it’s band to tickle his oversensitive flesh. They had been there, at the brink, when there she was.

[I love you,] came her gentle voice inside his head. It wasn’t the first time they had said it but it was the first non verbal declaration.

He had been a little freaked out by it and had written to his father, asking him what he knew of beings like her, posing his questions as curiosity instead of actual worry. His father had sent him a book.

He sat down on his bed and reached out to his nightstand, running his fingers over the worn cover. Her picture was between the pages.

He grunted in agreement with what Charlie was saying, lying back against his pillows. The book had educated him and he had relaxed into the new, rare, connection, let it develop until they could be in different rooms on opposite ends of the castle and still be distracting each other with their silent mental conversation. It was later that she had taught him to build barriers, to shut her out. But later, when he was in London and she still at Hogwarts in Scotland, they had still had cross country conversations in their minds.

He wondered if she’d hear him now if he opened it. Was it still strong enough? He refrained from it. Why make it harder on himself?

He ran his fingers through his long hair, sighing. His mother kept urging him to settle down, to find someone and make her a grandmother, to make his own happiness.

But how could he, when all he wanted was her?

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Harry keened as Severus attacked a particularly sensitive spot, working out the kink as the early morning April sun filtered in through the net curtains. He was on his front on his bed, their bed, with Severus massaging his sore back. He had slept awkwardly and was paying the price for it. He fingered his wedding band as Severus kneaded his lower spine. It had been Severus’ mothers ring, resized to fit him. Severus wore James’ wedding ring, something Sirius had retrieved from Harry’s Gringotts vault for him as a show of good will. They had married that afternoon in late February, the day after Severus had claimed him, in an exceedingly small plain ceremony. Remus and Sirius had been present, as had Draco, and Albus had officiated it. The living room had been where they said their vows and then afterwards they had enjoyed a quiet dinner, the meal ending in cake. Harry looked back on the day with utmost contentment. It had been exactly what he had wanted. And the consummation of his marriage was something that he would always remember with a smile. The last month and a bit had been the best of his life.

Solarin was due in a few hours, coming to read Draco for something, though Harry had not been told what and he had not asked. It wasn’t his business. If he was supposed to know, Severus would have told him. He was looking forward to Severus getting teased and intended to enjoy it thoroughly.

Draco slipped into the room and perched on the bed by Harry’s feet, a clear distance between them. Both of them respected the others problems with being touched and had turned it into a game, seeing how well they could do things like wash up together and play Exploding Snap without touching. So far, neither of them had managed to lose, but it was fun in its own way.

“Between my shoulders, Severus,” Harry begged, moaning as the nimble fingers moved to the requested spot, working their magic.

“Why are you doing that?” Draco asked interestedly, his eyes fixed on Severus’ hands on Harry’s bare back. How could touching someone look that easy?

“He slept awkwardly and has a sore back. He’s eight months pregnant, his back has enough to contend with as it is without sleep induced aches,” Severus replied, Harry signalling that he wanted to get up, Severus ghosting his fingers over Harry’s ribs.

“Oh. Is it really that painful being pregnant, Harry?” Draco asked, amusing Harry into a fit of giggles. Or that might have been Severus’ fingers dancing over his ribs. He sat up, with Severus’ help, and pulled on his t-shirt, glaring at his smiling husband.

“Pregnancy is no picnic but it’s not that bad really. It gets a bit uncomfortable, but nothing serious,” he answered as they made their way down the stairs. “The worst part is being kicked from the inside,” he said as he laid a hand on his bump, grimacing at the hard hit.

Draco eased himself into a chair and watched as Harry paced. He had been doing that a lot lately, he said it soothed the baby when it was restless. Draco, like Harry, had never been around someone pregnant before and he had discovered that he found it oddly fascinating, the creation of life within Harry’s body. The fact that the child was his half sibling intrigued him too. He had always wanted a sibling. It was ironic that his wish was being granted by his schoolboy nemesis. Harry had allowed him to plague him with questions, staying patient with him through his curiosity, Severus intervening when Harry’s knowledge had given out. It seemed to Draco that Harry understood his motivations for the constant interrogations and he had found himself relaxing into asking the first ones that came to mind. Harry kept trying to trip him into losing their game by asking him if he wanted to feel the baby kick but he always declined, his disgust at being touched keeping him from be defeated. He had actually found that he kind of liked this friendship he had with Harry, though he would never admit that.

“Why does he kick?” Draco asked as Harry glared down at his bump.

“Merely stretching his limbs,” Severus supplied through a slight grin, settling himself in a chair when Harry shooed him away, claiming he was getting in his pacing path.

“Stretching? No way, he’s bloody attacking me here. He’s going to be a beater, I guarantee it,” Harry quipped. The brunette had become very free with his jokes lately.

“It hurts when he kicks you?” Draco asked, genuinely surprised through his amusement.

“Depends what he’s kicking. He seems to like my bladder. I’ll be right back,” Harry grumbled, returning up the stairs, Draco sniggering at the waddle he now possessed.

Draco found himself suddenly nervous without Harry distracting him. He couldn’t decide which would be worse, Solarin finding out what was wrong with him? Or her not finding it?

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Solarin rolled over in bed and fought her nausea, trying not to blast her alarm clock to pieces as she switched it off. Her control was hanging by a scant thread and she knew it. It was getting to the point where she would happily spill everything to Severus if he would just make the pain in her head go away.

Oh God, the visit with Draco. She worried how well she would be able to deal with another’s mind but she would be around magical minds, a far tamer animal, she could draw strength from them. She hoped it would be enough. Muggle minds were too fragile, she slipped into them without even trying. It was their electronic aids, it made their lives cluttered and their minds were easily influenced as a result. The minds of witches and wizards were better, she actually had to push against them to get inside. It was getting to be too difficult to stay in the Muggle world.

She sighed, rubbing her temples. She was invisible in this world, she knew that. Her magical signature ensured that she did not show up on CCTV, and random muggles forgot her as soon as she slipped away from them. She had no phone, no bank accounts, no email address. She never received any mail and she had no credit cards. She had lied to Severus about the shopping she did for them, telling him that she used the computer, but in actual fact she did it herself by hand, paying in cash. She had told him that the food was delivered to her and she sent it on by owl. She did their weekly shopping in person and attached it to her own owl, hoping Severus would accept her story in light of the fact his knowledge of muggle systems was not as good as hers. She had not wanted him to know that she was unhappy here, that her life was so empty. She had no friends and her flat appeared to be uninhabited. There was little food there, no personal effects like pictures or ornaments. She had left most of the things she owned at Spinners End. Her nine to five Monday to Friday job at the toy shop was cash in hand, as were her performances on Saturday nights. She was unnoticed and could leave at a moments notice, and she liked it that way.

She still felt the remnants of the Ministry within her mind, chipping away at her. She let her mind linger on the connection to him, wishing she had the conviction to open it, to talk to him. But she shied away from the notion, knowing one mental conversation would not be enough for her, no matter how much she longed for their mindspeak. It also lingered on her that she was too unstable to be able to trust herself not to hurt him with it.

She gingerly eased herself into a sitting position and slipped out of bed, padding to her bathroom and taking a cold shower, hoping it would do what it had before and shock her control back into place. It didn’t work as well as it had the last time but it would be enough to get her to Severus. She dressed and grabbed a large bag, shoving her clothes into it. Her toiletries were added and her photo album, the only personal item she had with her. She looked around, not seeing anything else she wanted to take with her. She sent her owl, weirdly named Kitty, on ahead, her familiar could meet her at Spinners End. She shrunk down Kitty’s stand and slipped it into her bag before she left the flat, pushing the keys through the letterbox. She had made up her mind, she had reached her limit with the muggle world.

She shoved her headphones on, turning up the volume on her muggle tape player as loud as it would go. The pounding of heavy rock filled her ears and she winced at the sudden noise. It was the only thing she had found that would drown out the noise of all the voices in her head and it would help her make it to Diagon Alley, where wizarding minds would strengthen her control. She walked the short distance from her flat to the Leaky Cauldron, smoking a cigarette on the way.

Her fear of the Ministry be damned, she slipped into the Leaky Cauldron and flooed to Grimmauld Place.

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Harry smiled at Sirius and Draco. They were locked in yet another fierce game of chess. Draco hadn’t managed to beat Sirius at a single game yet, but he was determined. Severus had left Harry and Draco in the care of Sirius and Remus for a couple of hours while he gone to Diagon Alley to do some much needed shopping and to meet Solarin. She had made a hurried floo call to him this morning from Grimmauld Place telling him to meet her there, on the front steps of Gringotts. Sirius and Remus had noticed that she seemed to be rather agitated, yet unharmed, so they had followed her requests to go to Spinners End and watch Harry and Draco. The call had confused his husband but he had agreed to it, even if it had taken him a while to actually leave the house. It was the very first time Severus had left him and so far Harry was feeling cool and collected. Just as long as Severus was home by lunch.

Not long after Severus had left, Solarin’s owl Kitty had arrived and the beautiful black bird of prey was perched on a coat stand, something they had been forced to bring down from Solarin’s bedroom after the old perch had been destroyed, one of Harry’s spells going awry during a Transfiguration lesson. Kitty was perched with Severus’ owl, another black feathered bird called Midnight, and his own snowy Hedwig. Hedwig had arrived at Spinners End a week after he had and he still delighted in her presence, the owl usually landing on his leg and running her beak along his stomach in a show of curiosity for his growing child. Harry was grateful that Hedwig and Midnight had gotten along, and that they seemed to be comfortable with Kitty invading their space.

Harry was sitting comfortably in his favourite armchair by the window, a book forgotten in his lap in favour of watching the heated game. Remus was sat to his right, a thick book of his own the focus of his attention. He winced as the baby kicked him, a sudden inspiration taking hold. He decided to try his luck once more before putting his idea into practice.

“Draco, the baby’s kicking. Do you want to feel him?” he asked lightly, trying to suppress his grin.

“Nice try. I’m not going to be beaten by that, Potter, so give up the ghost,” Draco replied, smirking at him.

Harry laughed. “It was worth a try. Sirius, Remus, would you like to feel him?”

His fathers looked at him in surprise. “Are you sure, Harry?” Sirius asked, the chess game now forgotten. Draco was watching the scene play out with interest. Harry had never made this request before, and so far only Severus had felt the baby kick. This was new and it intrigued the blonde.

“Yes. I want to see how I handle it. Would you like to feel him?” Harry said. He could think of no better way to test his boundaries. He was very wary of people touching his abdomen, wary of someone other than Severus touching him at all. He had allowed Sirius and Remus hugs at the end of their visits and had clung to Draco in fright when his godfather had hit his husband, but he had not done anything like this. And considering Severus was not within arms reach it was a huge step.

The two of them nodded and Harry reached out and took Remus’ hand, placing it lightly on his bulge, immensely relieved when he found himself comfortable with the contact. He couldn’t see himself allowing it on a daily basis, but it was okay for now. Remus’ smile was wider than he had ever seen a smile as the werewolf felt the baby kick. Remus removed his hand and beckoned a nervous Sirius over to them, the Animagus fully aware that Harry was more comfortable with Remus’ contact than he was his own. Harry had told them that it was just something that he felt, he wasn’t sure why, and Sirius had learnt not to take it personally.

Sirius left his chair, moved slowly to the seat to Harry’s left and sat down, waiting for Harry to show him how to do this without scaring him. His godson took his hand and laid it where Remus’ had been, his husband nodding reassuringly. Almost immediately he felt the baby kick against his hand and a wide smile broke across his face.

At that moment, Remus and Sirius looked at each other with a gaze that meant something important. Neither of them cared that Lucius had fathered the child, not anymore, not now. It was their first grandchild, and all they cared about was Harry’s happiness. Harry was positively radiant in his late pregnancy, giving out a practically serene vibe. He smiled almost constantly now, and he had just let them feel the babe kick. They felt all of their old worries and dislikes melt away until there was nothing but happiness.

Their son was healing, he was safe, and they were going to be grandparents. Nothing else mattered.

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Severus walked down the cobbled street of Diagon Alley, completing his purchases with a leisurely pace. He had to keep reminding himself that there was no need to rush, that Harry was safe with his parents, that Solarin wouldn’t be there for another half an hour. But it had taken him a full twenty minutes to actually leave the house. Harry had been fine with him leaving, at least he had seemed it. Severus had been the nervous wreck.

It made him uneasy, leaving Harry. He had not left him since he had found him and it was difficult to leave, even harder to actually stay away. He smiled at the memory of Harry telling him to treat this like a test, to see how well he would do at being apart. Harry had promised him a reward tonight if he could stay away for the full two hours. Damn it, he was going to get his reward even if his nerves were shattered afterwards.

He remembered the article Rita Skeeter had written on he and Harry. It had featured front page of the Daily Prophet a week ago. They had all been impressed by how long it had taken for the press to get wind of them. Severus supposed the reporter must have a source in the Ministry who had fed her the information. Surprisingly Skeeter had managed to get the facts right and the article had been positive. Rita Skeeter had actually endorsed them, not a single negative comment in the entire piece. Severus suspected Albus’ intervention.

The article had been handled well by Harry, his young husband actually joking about it. Thankfully, all owl sent responses to the article had been delivered to Hogwarts. Albus had sorted through it and conveyed only positive mail to them. They had also received several small baby gifts from people wishing to show support of their Chosen One. Severus was enormously grateful that no one in the public knew where he lived, he could only imagine the hoards of owls every morning, and he knew from Albus that not all the mail was pleasant.

Harry’s safe return was now public knowledge and he remembered Albus’ visit about Ron and Hermione. Albus had told Harry that his friends had decided to wait for him to write to them, not sure of how he would handle being contacted. When they had first read the article, they had been angry that no one had told them of Harry’s rescue, and Albus had deemed it acceptable to inform them of Harry’s rape, putting it as delicately as he could and including none of the gory details. Albus had informed them that Ron and Hermione had specified that they were there if Harry needed them for anything, but they would stay away and leave him be until he was ready. Harry still had yet to contact them. Severus knew his husband missed his friends but Harry had said that he just wasn’t ready to confront that old piece of his life yet. Albus had told them both that Hermione was expecting a girl. Harry had found it amusing to think of his friends as parents, giggling about it to Severus one night, but he had speculated that they must feel the same about his own impending delivery.

It did worry Severus that Lucius had seemingly disappeared and he was prepared to move Harry at a moments notice. His love of the little cocoon they had built themselves in his family home didn’t cloud his determination to protect what was his. His new happiness would not be jeopardised, he wouldn’t let it.

He slipped into Flourish and Blotts, heading over to the section devoted to childcare books. Poppy Pomfrey had already instructed him on how to deliver the baby himself, once she had been informed of the situation, so now he was simply looking for a book on how to raise a magical child. He might have raised Solarin but Harry had no experience of children, magical or otherwise. Severus felt that a book on the subject might ease his lovers concerns.

A sales witch approached him. He recognised her as one of his former students and allowed her to engage him in conversation, accepting her congratulations on his marriage and impending fatherhood.

“So, can I help you with something today, Professor?” the sales witch asked, Severus struggling to recall her name.

“Yes, I’m looking for a book on raising magical children. Perhaps you know of a basic one? Something too complicated will not be suitable,” he specified and she smiled at him, searching the shelves and retrieving a slim tome for him.

“This one is our best seller, and the reviews of it claim it to be the best for new parents. It should be all right for your husband, Professor, he should find it easy enough,” she assured.

Severus smiled at her and allowed her to claim commission on the book and a few others on potions that he had selected for himself before he exited the store. He found himself walking towards Diagon Alleys biggest nursery retailer. He knew Sirius and Remus had been buying for the baby since February but he couldn’t help himself. He just kept thinking of the delighted look on Harry’s face when the last set of baby quilts had arrived from the catalogue he had been sent by Molly. He wanted to elicit that response again.

The thought of being the one to deliver Harry’s baby made him feel terrified and anxious. Harry had specified that he wanted no one else, that he would only let Severus do it. Harry understood what was involved with the birth of their child and was adamant that no one would touch his genitals but Severus. The declaration had come as no great surprise to Severus, though it had made him more diligent in his lessons with Poppy. He already knew that a caesarean was out of the question, Harry was too compact inside to be eligible for the surgery, his anatomy making it too high a risk. He also knew that Harry would suffer a lot of pain, his hips and birth canal narrower than a normal females, and he had already stocked up on several different kinds of pain relief in preparation. Harry seemed to be calm in the face of impending childbirth, but Severus was still preparing for the worst. Poppy had warned him that labour and birth could bring out the worst in someone, and Harry’s experiences made it likely that Harry would not react well.

He entered the store and perused the shelves, filling a basket with items plucked at random. He had decided to limit himself to just one basket and refrain from using spells to expand it, he feared he could bankrupt himself all too easily in the process of trying to make Harry smile. He strolled into the maternity wear department, determined to find what his lover had requested.

Harry had woken that morning to not only a sore back but a sore chest as well. On closer examination, Severus had found Harry’s breasts to be swollen, his body preparing to nourish the child once it arrived. He had reassured Harry that it was perfectly normal, that it meant he would be able to breast-feed and that he would find something to help with his discomfort. He reached the rows of what looked like short stretchy vests and Severus selected one that seemed to be Harry’s size, a sales witch assuring him that it was what Harry was in need of. After a moments consideration, he added another two of them and moved on to the other type of garments, the ones labelled nursing bras. Poppy had told him that if Harry was able to breast-feed he may require one of these, so he picked out three black ones, feeling the frilly white ones would not sit well with his husband.

Harry had managed to accommodate his pregnant frame by resizing some of his own clothes. More recently, he had begun to wear Severus’, claiming that they were big and baggy. He had to admit, his petite lover did look slightly swamped in his apparel, but there was something delicious about the sight. Harry had refused outright to wear the maternity wear Molly had sent for him, saying firmly that he’d rather walk around nude than wear the decidedly feminine garments. Harry had exclaimed angrily one morning that he was considering writing a letter to Madame Malkin to ask her why she didn’t stock maternity wear for hermaphrodites, but Severus reasoned that it was probably an empty threat brought on by erratic hormones and an inability to find anything he wanted to wear.

Severus allowed the sales witch to help him find the section of the massive store that held his original reason for the trip, before Harry’s sore chest and Solarin’s odd call. A home birthing kit. Madame Pomfrey had assured him he could get everything in this particular shop. The sales witch led him to a row of rather large boxes. They were each the size of a picnic basket and Severus found himself selecting the one the witch recommended. She claimed it had absolutely everything, and even opened the box to ease his mind. No matter what, Severus would not be caught short during Harry’s delivery. He refused point blank to be lacking of anything that Harry might need. The witch shrunk it for him and placed it into his basket, telling him that if there was anything else he needed that wasn’t in the box, they offered an owl order delivery system.

Severus thanked her and forced himself to walk to the counter and pay for his one basket, though his gaze lingered on the fluffy white blankets strategically placed by the cash registers.

‘Good God, man, we already have a whole trunk full to overflowing of baby blankets, we need no more,’ he thought to himself as he determinedly left the store, starting to make his way over to the wizarding bank up ahead.

Solarin’s call had troubled him. Something was not right with her, he just knew it. She had been jittery during the call and she had seemed to have trouble focussing on what he was saying to her. Above all, she had requested a meeting in Diagon Alley, on the steps of Gringotts. Never in a million years had he expected her to request that. Solarin had not stepped a foot in the Wizarding World since she was eighteen. She had stayed adamant over these past four years that she would never again come back. What had prompted this sudden change? What the hell had happened to her?

He was ripped out of his musings when a hand grabbed his hair, a wand pressed to his throat. He was backed into a shadowy alley, immediately knowing who had grabbed him by the distinctive cologne. Anger swelled inside him and he let his eyes glance at the steps of Gringotts where Solarin was sitting waiting for him, smoking a cigarette.

It would be so easy just to let his anger overwhelm him, to let it rise to such a height that she would feel it, even all those yards away, and come to investigate. It would be all too easy to let her kill him like she wanted to. She had told him that first day, while Harry slept for a full 24 hours, that she would kill Lucius for what he had done to such a beautiful soul if she thought she could get away with it. The venom his sister had showed that day had lingered in his mind and he wanted to let her do it, wanted her to do it for his Harry, the one who had shown him that he deserved to be happy, the one he loved with all he had.

But even through his anger he wouldn’t do that, he couldn’t do that. He refused to let his baby sister become a murderer, no matter how much Lucius deserved her brand of justice.

“Let go of me, Lucius,” Severus said calmly, letting his voice take on a bored tone.

A laugh in his ear and Severus began to think that Lucius was perhaps not all that stable right now. He slipped his own wand from its wrist holster, preparing to defend himself. Years of being a spy had taught him to assess a situation before he acted.

“All this time, I never thought it would be you. I want my pet back, Severus,” Lucius snarled.

“My husband is fine where he is, thank you. After the state you left him in he will never let you near him again. And I have grown quite fond of him.”

“Neither you nor he has a choice in the matter, he his mine.”

Anger rose again in Severus and he saw Solarin twitch, glancing around before she returned to her cigarette. “No, he is mine,” Severus argued.

Lucius let go of his hair and the two former friends faced each other, their wands trained on the other ones throat. Lucius’ cold grey eyes were narrowed in suspicion.

“You want me to share him with you, Severus? I’m sure I could arrange that. Just return him to me,” Lucius said, his voice calmer now. Lucius lowered his wand, adopting a relaxed posture. He looked to Severus as if this were just an ordinary conversation, like all the ones they had shared in the past.

“No, Lucius, I will not share him. He is mine and you will not take him from me,” Severus said slowly, his wand still trained on Lucius though he had lowered it slightly.

“My little whore will be returned to me, Severus. I will not let a dirty little half blood traitor like you get in my way,” Lucius snarled.

“I claimed him from you, Lucius. I married him. He is mine. If you touch him I will have you locked in Azkaban, and don’t think Albus Dumbledore won’t persuade them to give you the Dementors Kiss. Surely you of all people know how much sway Albus has with the Minister,” Severus said, a promise in his voice. He watched a flicker of disappointment and then one of fear cross Lucius pale face. The pale wizard straightened his back and adjusted his clothes, putting away his wand in his cane. Severus had the urge to destroy the stick, Harry’s revelations of what Lucius had used it for clouding him momentarily.

“It is of no matter. If you want him that much, you may keep him, Severus. Consider it my gift to you, old friend” Lucius said calmly, a slight smile on his aristocratic face before his expression turned dark and dangerous. “But the child is mine. That I will not let you have, old friend. I will have my son, and Merlin help you or anyone who gets in my way.” Lucius had moved very close to Severus, invading his personal space to try and intimidate the dark wizard. “I will have my son, Severus, mark my words.”

And with that he swept away, leaving Severus angry and shaken. He leant against the wall, fighting the urge to land himself in Azkaban for murder. He needed to get back to Harry, they needed to move. Lucius was no longer an idle threat to his husband, to their son, to their happiness. The danger was real now. If Severus was correct, Lucius’ next move would be to try and get inside Spinners End, and he wasn’t sure just how long their wards would hold up against Lucius and his determination.

He picked up his shopping bags from where he had dropped them and made his way over to Solarin, keeping his wand clutched in his fist.

“Solarin, I’m sorry for taking so long,” Severus said breathlessly, adrenaline still coursing through his system, making his heart pound.

Solarin jumped, looking at him in surprise, and alarm bells started going off in his head. No one had ever been able to sneak up on her before, never in his entire memory could he remember it happening.

“Sol, what’s happened to you?” Severus asked, sitting down beside her. Something was wrong with her, he knew it. He knew she had asked to meet here for a reason, and that reason had no chance of being something he would like. Her knee was bouncing, and her eyes were darting around at the milling crowds.

“I can’t stay in the muggle world anymore,” she answered, her voice quiet, her eyes not meeting his.

“Why? What’s happened?”

“My control is slipping, Severus. I need help, I’m becoming unstable.”

“Since when?”

She turned to look at him, grinding her cigarette under her heel into the white step, earning a glare from one of the goblins.

“Severus, I will tell you everything, I swear. Just give me time. I’ll tell you, just later. Can you do that, can you hold off on the questions until I’m ready to tell you?” Her voice held a note of resignation, and Severus suspected that she had never wanted to tell him what she had promised to reveal.

Severus considered it. Worry for her was filling him, making even more adrenaline surge through him. Could he wait? Could he control himself until she was ready? His experience of her tempered him. If he pressed the issue she would retreat.

“I suppose I can hold off. On the condition you tell me sometime today,” he bargained.

“All right, I’ll tell you before midnight. We should go, Draco needs my help,” Solarin agreed, standing and grabbing her bag.

“Are you sure you’re up to this, going into his head?” he asked, following her.

“I promised I would, Severus. You taught me to keep my promises. I have enough control to do this. Just don’t let a muggle near me right now, I’m not sure if I could handle it.”

The two of them made their way in silence to the Leaky Cauldron. Severus watching her become more and more steady with every witch or wizard she passed. Her using their minds to steady herself was not a good sign, it was something she had not done since she was a child. By the time they reached the pubs fireplace she seemed to be back to her old self but Severus wasn’t fooled. There was still a nervous tic in her hand. He bit his tongue and let her go through the floo first, thinking it wise to ensure her arrival before his own.

What hadn’t she told him? What had happened to her? And why did he get the feeling he wasn’t going to like what she revealed?

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Harry couldn’t remember the last time he had laughed so hard. His ribs hurt and there were tears running down his face, the baby kicking him in protest of the shaking of his body.

Sirius had finally been beaten by Draco and the blonde had proceeded to tease the stunned ex-Gryffindor until he had turned beet red in embarrassment. Remus was beside him in a similar state of glee, joining in with Draco and teasing his husband through his hilarity.

“Maybe you’re just not man enough any more. You’re losing your touch, old man,” Draco teased, dancing around the living room. Harry couldn’t remember seeing the Slytherin so happy and it made him feel that maybe everything would turn out all right after all.

He calmed himself, getting Remus to help him to his feet so he could pace to calm the baby. The rest of the room quietened down about the time the baby gave up and lay still and the four of them sat in a circle, talking about nothing in particular.

The floo sprang to life and Solarin was thrown into the room, Sirius jumping to his feet to keep her from falling. Harry felt pleased to learn that he wasn’t the only one who had trouble staying on their feet coming out of the bloody thing. Severus came through moments later and Harry gave him a wide grin, his husband letting a relieved one cross his own face momentarily. But, apparently, there wasn’t time for pleasantries.

“We need to relocate to Grimmauld Place immediately,” he said to Sirius, the Animagus releasing Solarin when it appeared she was safe on her feet. Harry noticed she looked ill, paler than usual, her dark eyes bloodshot.

“Why?” Harry asked. “What’s wrong?”

Severus dropped his shopping bags and moved to kneel before Harry, looking up at him, the rest of the room hanging on Severus’ next words. Harry let his hands slip into Severus’, positive he wasn’t going to like what came next. That feeling Draco’s happiness had created was fast disappearing and panic was beginning to take its place.

“Harry, I need you to trust me when I tell you not to panic. I won’t let anything happen to you or our son, I promise,” Severus said calmly, waiting for Harry’s nod before he continued. “I ran into Lucius while I was out. He knows where we are, love. If I’m right, he’s going to try and get in here. We need to leave, right now.”

“But he can’t have me. He’d be locked up, I belong to you. Remus said if anyone touches me like that except you then they’ll be locked up,” Harry recited, his eyes fixed on Severus’, his grip tightening. He found it slightly strange that his panic was receding, being replaced by more anger than he ever remembered feeling.

“Harry, I don’t think that this was ever about you personally. I think that Lucius’ motives for taking you and doing those things to you were based solely on your abilities, on what you could provide him with if he violated you.”

“What do you mean?”

“He doesn’t want you, love. He gave up arguing with me over you far too easily. He doesn’t want you anymore, he wants the baby. I think this has always been about the baby.”

Harry let go of Severus and wrapped his arms around his stomach. “He can’t have him. I won’t let him, he can’t have my baby. He’s mine, my baby, I won’t let that bastard take him from me,” Harry demanded angrily, shocking even Severus with his sudden fury. They had all expected him to panic at news like this, none of them had anticipated anger. Sirius noticed Solarin wince, her slightly shaking hand coming up to rub her temple.

Severus was the first to recover from his shock, having been witness to some of Harry’s more extreme mood swings. Apparently, the fact that Lucius would be thrown into Azkaban if he took the child from Harry had not occurred to Harry right then, the brunette being too angry. He decided to use this anger to his advantage.

“You’re right, Harry, he can’t have him. We won’t let him, we’ll keep our son safe. That’s why we need to move to Grimmauld Place, it’s safer there. We can protect the baby much better there than we can here,” Severus encouraged, satisfied by the determination in Harry’s eyes. He decided that Harry’s parental instincts to protect his child were their biggest asset at that moment. “What we’re going to do is this. Draco and you will go and pack our clothes, and you can show Sirius and Remus where we have put the things for the baby so they can carry them through. I will pack up my potions and Solarin will send on the owls to Grimmauld Place before retrieving her own things that she has left here. We all move quickly and it’ll be all right.”

Harry nodded and the inhabitants of the room set to their tasks, moving rapidly. Solarin sent the owls off and hurried upstairs coming down a few minutes later with a second black bag.

In less than ten minutes they were all assembled in the living room once more, shrinking their belongings and awaiting instruction from Severus.

“Right, Sirius and Remus will go first, followed by Draco. Then Solarin will go through. Someone will need to stand at the other end to catch Harry, he never has been very successful with getting out of the floo without stumbling. I don’t want his bump to topple him while he’s unsteady,” Severus instructed, breaking off when Solarin caught his attention.

“He’s outside, Severus. He’s trying to get through my wards. They won’t hold much longer,” she said.

Severus nodded and let Harry cling to him. “We need to go,” he commanded.

Sirius and Remus grabbed several shrunken bags and boxes and left, followed by Draco and then Solarin. Severus moved Harry towards the fireplace.

“Go on, I’m right behind you,” Severus urged, kissing Harry briefly before the sprite whipped out of sight. As he stepped in himself, he saw Lucius enter the room, blasting the door of its hinges, splintered wood showering the room.

“Grimmauld Place,” he whispered, hoping he would end up in the right place, and enjoyed the look of shock and anger on Lucius face before he whipped out of sight.

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Sirius blinked to get the soot out of his eyes as he moved forwards, dropping the bags and boxes he was carrying and hearing Remus arrive behind him. He managed to get a blurry view of Draco and then Solarin arriving as well before his attention was caught by the rest of the room.

Oh God, he forgot the meeting with Albus. Half the Order was sitting around his kitchen table with Albus and the Weasley’s. Molly had been coming three times a week to get an update on Harry and to mother them. She had arrived today with Arthur, Bill and Charlie. The Order was still active, still tracking down Death Eaters, most of them had been involved in the search for Harry when he was missing. Molly looked at him strangely and Bill looked shocked, though it didn’t seem to be at him. The meeting today was meant to be about how to put Lucius behind bars.

“Fuck,” he muttered. “You have to leave, all of you. Harry…” he began

“Too late,” Draco interrupted as Harry stumbled from the floo, Remus catching and steadying him.

Time seemed to stand still, the whole room silent. Severus arrived a moment later and breathed a sigh of relief before he too looked around in shock. Sirius watched Harry, waiting for a reaction from the Gryffindor. All eyes in the room were fixed on his godson, all waiting with baited breath.

Harry looked around the room, still allowing himself to grip at Remus. Severus arrived behind him and he couldn’t quite decide what he wanted to do. Severus was here, he was safe, he knew that. But there were so many of them, all watching him. He began to list them silently in his head, thinking hard facts of the situation might help blanket the slight panic that was making his heart beat faster.

Professor Dumbledore, Mad-Eye Moody, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Tonks, Molly, Arthur, Bill, Charlie. It did actually help slightly and he found himself breathing a little easier.

He supposed it could have been worse, there could have been more of them. Or they could have all surged forwards to try and hold him. His wand was stowed in his pocket and he found its weight against his leg comforting.

“Harry, are you all right, love?” came Severus’ voice. He let go of Remus and backed up a few steps, Severus’ arms coming around him, his hands coming up to grip his lovers sleeve.

“I’m all right. I just need a few minutes,” Harry mumbled, though he knew Severus could hear him. His husband had never missed anything from him yet.

“Take all the time you need, no rush. We can ask them to leave if you want,” Severus soothed in his ear, his voice low. “Talk to me, love. Tell me what you want.”

Harry swallowed. It was okay, no one was looking at him like he was a freak. Dumbledore, Tonks and Molly were even smiling reassuringly at him, looking pleased to see him. He took a deep breath.

“I think I want a cup of tea. The baby didn’t like the floo,” Harry said simply, earning a chuckle from his lover.

“Molly, could we have some tea, please? It has been a rather stressful day thus far,” Severus announced, following Harry as he timidly moved to the table, taking the seat next to him. Harry had chosen to sit next to Albus and Severus found it incredible how well Harry had just handled that unexpected experience. He had felt for sure that Harry would panic, but his husband had surprised him once again. Where had Harry’s panic gone? Severus could honestly say he didn’t miss it one bit. Though Harry still had his moments, this more confident Harry was closer to the fearless boy he had fallen for in the beginning, the one who had accidentally invaded his mind one Saturday evening. That had been a crush for him, maybe something a little more, but it had grown and now he couldn’t imagine living without his husband, without waking up with him huddled to his chest, without that smile, those green eyes. He knew that Harry would never be the way he was, not fully. He knew that Solarin had been right that first morning when she had said that part of Harry would always be in that room. But this new Harry was calmer, more grounded. This Harry smiled. That was enough.

And he loved every bit of him.

He accepted his tea from Molly and set about recounting the mornings events, his attention more focussed on his sister and the effect she was having on the rest of the room than what he was saying.

Mad-Eye was looking at Solarin suspiciously and Severus found it only reinforced his worry. Mad-Eye had been the one to train Solarin, when she was still able to count her age on her two hands. It had been necessary to teach her to restrain herself and Solarin had loved the grizzled wizard, delighting in the fact that he had been the only person she had ever met who’s mind and emotion she had no reading of. Moody had been too powerful for her to get inside his head and he had instilled his own control in her. She could probably get inside it now, now that she was older and more powerful. That Mad-Eye looked suspicious of her agitated behaviour made Severus fear for his sister more than before.

Tonks seemed to be delighted to see Solarin. Severus remembered that they had been friends at school and found it to be the expected response from the excitable young Auror. But Bill’s reaction was bewildering.

Bill was looking at Solarin intently, the dark haired witch avoiding his gaze. Bill himself looked a bit green and he had taken to rubbing his temple every now and then in apparent pain. Severus remembered the two of them being close at Hogwarts but this interaction between the two made him suspicious. He felt like he was missing something important and he got the feeling that this was one of the things his sister had declined in telling him.

He finished his tale and to his surprise the conversation fell to how they could get Lucius put in Azkaban. He glanced at his husband, finding that Harry seemed to be accepting of the conversation, and continued his observation of the room.

Strangely, Kingsley Shacklebolt looked uneasy, guilty even. Severus wondered what Kingsley had done to elicit his embarrassed look for he could never remember it ever having happened before. Kingsley was confident, self assured. Severus couldn’t remember anything having made the wizard feel in the wrong before. Kingsley had never looked like that previously and he couldn’t quite figure out why the shamefaced glances of the black wizard seemed mostly directed at him.

He tried to suppress a smirk. Charlie was looking lustily at his godson, the blonde seemingly oblivious of the attention he was gathering from the redhead. It amused him no end that a dragon tamer was interested in Draco. Wouldn’t that just be the icing on the cake, elite Pureblooded Draco ending up with supposed blood traitor Charlie? Well, if they could ever figure out what was wrong with the Slytherin that is.

Arthur was absorbed in the conversation, as were Sirius, Remus and Albus. Molly seemed to be having trouble restraining herself from hugging his husband but he was grateful she was keeping herself to herself. He wasn’t quite sure if Harry would stand for it after all that days events.

The conversation was beginning to wind down, turning to opinions of the state of the Ministry and certain laws, Quidditch creeping in as well, and he let his eyes land on his sister fully. Merlin, she looked awful. No wonder Moody was suspicious. She really did look like death now, her already pale skin seeming to be made of ice, her dark eyes bloodshot and her long black hair hanging limp. She had declined sitting at the table, choosing instead to lean against the sink. She had fixed her stare on the wall opposite. The tic in her hand had faded but she still looked agitated, picking nervously at the hem of her top.

“Sirius, do you have a pain potion or a pepper up potion or something. Solarin looks a little ill.”

The room went silent as Harry spoke up and Sirius chuckled. Solarin managed a weak grin and accepted the pain potion without complaint. Severus found comfort in the fact that he wasn’t the only one who thought she looked off colour.

He rested his hand on Harry’s knee under the table in encouragement, feeling the sprite grip his hand and bring their joined hands to rest atop the table. It garnered a few odd looks but it mostly went unnoticed.

“Severus,” Harry said quietly, Severus leaning in to hear him over the hum of renewed conversation about broomsticks.

“What is it, love?”

“We missed lunch,” Harry said shyly.

“Ah.” He glanced at Harry’s watch, noting that it was almost two, and turned to the room again, running his thumb along the back of Harry’s hand, feeling the scars Delores Umbridge had caused. Horrible woman. Harry never lied, it just wasn’t in him to be dishonest. “Molly, we missed lunch in our need for a speedy exit. I wonder if you would be kind enough to rustle something up?”

Molly looked positively ecstatic and Severus barely concealed his grin at the huge portion she placed in front of Harry, his lovers eyes going wide.

“Just eat what you can, love. I’m sure she won’t be offended,” Severus reassured at Harry’s apprehension of the large slab of chicken pie in front of him. Severus had always kept his helpings small, increasing them slowly as Harry’s appetite had increased. Compared to what Harry was used to, the plate looked like a three course meal.

The meal continued on without incident, Harry managing a healthy quarter of the huge portion. As the afternoon wore on, Kingsley took his leave and the other inhabitants moved off into smaller groups, amusing themselves with their own conversations.

Harry sat between Severus and Dumbledore, listening to the conversation on potions between the two, Arthur, Charlie and Draco chipping in occasionally. It mostly washed over him, the baby’s kicking distracting him. He tried rubbing his hand along his bump, hoping it would placate his child but finally gave up.

“Severus, I need to pace. The baby didn’t like the floo at all,” Harry said, making Arthur and Charlie jump.

Severus got to his feet and let Harry use him to hoist himself up. Severus had told him he really wasn’t that big in the bump department but it didn’t help him any. He reasoned that he had been small to begin with. He was finding it harder to get around, especially when getting in and out of chairs. He felt like he had swallowed a quaffle.

Severus sat back down at his insistence and he began to pace, keeping his steps slow and steady. He let his eyes wander as he paced, letting it all wash over him. It wasn’t all that bad really, being in a room with so many people. As long as Severus didn’t decide to leave the room anytime soon he would be fine. Sirius and Remus were in deep conversation with Molly, and Harry caught the word nursery. He moved away from them, not wanting to join. He was feeling grouchy all of a sudden and he didn’t think he would have anything helpful to add.

Moody was in conversation with Bill, though the curse breaker didn’t seem to be listening very closely, he had to keep getting Moody to repeat himself. Bill kept glancing at Solarin and Harry felt that he was missing something. From the way Severus kept glancing at the augur, he figured Severus suspected something as well.

Solarin was looking more animated now, she and Tonks leaning against the sink, engaged in conversation that led to frequent girly giggles. He stared at the three of them, Tonks, Solarin, and Bill. He knew they had all been at school together, and they had been friends. He could see how they had influenced each other by the way they all dressed. The three of them wouldn’t have looked out of place at a rock concert. He noticed that they all wore a dangling fang from one ear, the two females wearing plain silver hoops in the other ears. He wondered when they had all had them done, if they all had them done together. He wondered where they had spent their time at Hogwarts if Solarin had been a Slytherin. Had they sat by the lake, side by side? Had they visited Hagrid together?

It hit him like a tidal wave, the sudden need. He missed Hermione and Ron, missed the way they would spend afternoons in the common room talking about nothing at all, missed the warm afternoons sitting by the lake in the shade of a tree.

The sight of four red heads in the same room as him brought tears to his eyes and he damned his hormones as they began to spill. Damn it, he was standing in the middle of the kitchen, crying for no apparent reason. Sometimes he really hated being pregnant. He saw Solarin glance at him and move to Severus, Harry thankful that she could read his longings so easily.

“Severus, Harry’s crying,” Solarin whispered in her brothers ear. Severus moved fast, gathering Harry in his arms.

She tried to ignore Bill as he looked at her again, longing in his eyes. No, she needed a clear head right now, if she was ever going to be able to read Draco today.

“Talk to me, love. Come on, tell me what brought this on,” Severus urged, stroking Harry’s unruly hair that was in dire need of a trim.

“I just…I was watching Solarin and Tonks….and Bill…and I…” Harry gasped between sobs. Severus was well aware of every eye in the room on them, watching in concern as his husband sobbed. Well, all except Bill who was watching Solarin. Molly seemed actually terrified of Harry’s unexplained sadness. That woman really was too mothering at times, she of all people should realise that Harry’s hormones were wild at the moment.

“You were thinking of your own friends,” Severus supplied.

Harry nodded against his chest.

“Would you like to see them?”

Another nod.

“When, love?”

“Can I see them tomorrow, Severus? It’s Saturday tomorrow, they won’t have to miss lessons,” Harry mumbled reasonably.

Severus kissed the top of his head and turned to Molly, who had timidly moved closer to them

“Would it be possible to pull Ron and Hermione out of Hogwarts for a day?” Severus asked, Molly looking to Albus.

“I don’t see a problem. When?” Albus asked lightly, though Severus could see that even he was shaken by the sudden bout of tears. Maybe he had just become too used to Harry’s sudden and often unexplained changes in mood to be shaken by them.

“Tomorrow. It’s possible to bring them here for the day?”

“Of course. Minerva and I shall arrange it tonight. Is that all right, Harry?” Albus asked kindly, passing the Gryffindor a handkerchief.

“Thank you, Professor,” Harry mumbled, wiping away his tears. “Sorry, everyone. It’s my hormones,” he said to the room and Molly actually let out a sigh. Harry glanced at Severus and stepped out of his embrace, letting Molly hug him lightly before he returned to Severus’ arms, his lover telling him he was proud of how well he was taking all this.

It only lasted a few seconds and it was extortionately light but it seemed to be enough for Molly. She walked around with a smile for the rest of the day.

The afternoon passed quite smoothly after that.

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Solarin locked herself in the bathroom and upped a silencing spell before she screamed. Even with the pain potion, her head felt like it was about to split open. She hunched over the toilet and vomited up the little food she had managed to force down at lunch.

Her control was holding, albeit by a thread, despite the pain. She had seen the looks Mad-Eye had given her and she knew he had identified something was wrong with her. She had been foolish to think that she could hide it from him. Good God, the man had put her discipline there in the first place, of course he would recognise its flaws. And Severus’ questions wouldn’t hold off for much longer.

She pulled her toothbrush from her bag and scrubbed her mouth, trying to abolish the awful taste. She had just finished rinsing when there was a knock at the door. She seriously considered ignoring it. Severus and Moody would never shove their way into the bathroom while she was in there, no matter how overbearing they could be, and there were other bathrooms in the house, whoever needed to pee could use one of those.

“I know you heard that knock, Arin.”

Damn it. Why did it have to be Bill, of all people, why him? Anyone else she could have ignored happily, but she never had been able to pull away from him willingly.

“I know you’re in there.”

Why was he doing this? She had been ignoring him quite successfully all afternoon, why now was he making it difficult for her?

“Arin…”

His voice was teasing now, and she felt herself move to the door. Cursing herself she turned the lock and stepped out, hefting her bag as she stepped through the doorway. She avoided his eyes but apparently that wasn’t what he wanted.

He grasped her arm as she passed and pulled her back, Solarin dropping her bag in the hall, Bill locking the door behind them as he entered the bathroom with her. Her arm tingled where he touched her and she pulled away as if she had been burned, they both did. He faced her head on, positioned between her and the door. It wouldn’t really stop her if she really wanted out but it did create an obstacle.

“Will you talk to me now? Now that it’s just me and you?” Bill questioned, leaning against the door, crossing his arms in an attempt to stop himself reaching out and touching her again.

“What do you want?” she asked, her tone resigned as she leaned against the sink on the opposite side of the room, putting clear distance between them.

“I want to know why you’re here. I thought you were never coming back to the wizarding world. You said that, Arin. Your words exactly. You said never. Why are you here?”

“I changed my mind,” she said, shrugging.

“Liar.” She glanced up at his smirk and smirked herself, though she didn’t meet his eyes. She never had been able to lie to him, not once their connection had solidified. “I’ll let it slide. Just tell me something honestly, will you?”

“What?”

“Tell me why the connection kept opening during lunch. I didn’t open it, Arin, you were opening it. What happened to you? I felt your pain. I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like that from you. It scared me,” he admitted.

She looked up into his eyes in concern and immediately wished she hadn’t. Merlin, those beautiful baby blues got to her every time. “Did I hurt you?” she asked, her voice low.

“No, it was just fleeting, but I felt it. Tell me, Arin. Just tell me. Is it what they did to you? Is it still affecting you? Is that why you’re slipping?”

She didn’t want to say it, didn’t want him to react the way she knew he would but she couldn’t help it. He had always managed to handle her in just the right way.

“Yes,” she whispered and she watched as he came forwards. There was a scant few inches between them now, she could feel his body heat. She looked up into those blue eyes and felt herself losing her resolve. She was slipping and she couldn’t seem to find the will to stop it. She reached out and placed a hand on his chest, their eyes locked.

She let her barriers drop and felt him do the same, their minds brushing against each other. Suddenly there was no pain, no nausea, nothing at all, just his mind, his calm, his control. She let it take hold, let his mind take control of hers as his hands came up to land on the small of her back. Passions ignited and she let him take her in a rough kiss, almost animalistic in its need. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he slammed her roughly against the wall, cracking tiles, swooping in to litter her throat with vicious looking bites. She heard him utter a familiar charm, her skin glowing faintly blue for a second, before he chucked their wands away. They fumbled with zippers and buttons, the two of them only half undressed when he pushed into her, their eyes locked.

[Mine] came his possessive thought into her head as he began to take her, as rough as they had been the very last time, when the need to mark each other had overtaken them. It didn’t take them long to reach the edge, the two of them balancing precariously before her reply sent them spiralling down.

[Yours.]

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Severus was faintly amused by the identical blushes on Bill and Solarin as they exited the bathroom, only to find him right outside the door, leaning against the wall with Moody at his side. His amusement didn’t quite cover the sudden urge he had to maim the redhead, but he refrained. He could get him later. Severus had his arms crossed for good measure and felt extremely fulfilled when Bill scurried away, leaving Solarin to deal with her brother and her mentor alone.

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Harry found himself in the spare bedroom next to his own room surrounded by tins of paint, Molly holding up colour charts to the walls, Charlie sorting through the brushes, Bill looking distracted. Remus and Draco were serving as his anchor for the moment, the two of them surveying the scene with something between horror and amusement, Draco leaning more towards horror. Severus had taken one look at the rattling glasses and plates in the kitchen, given one dark look at Moody and disappeared upstairs, the Auror trailing behind him. Moody had been wearing a dirty kind of smirk and Harry had noticed that his electric blue magical eye had been fixed on the ceiling. Severus had snarled that he needed to “Have a talk with my sister,” and Harry had let him go, letting Remus and Draco be the ones to reassure in his absence. It had amused him, slightly, the sudden anger from his husband about what Solarin might be doing. They had all seen Bill follow her out. It amused him more that it took both Remus and Draco to partially replace Severus’ reassuring presence by his side.

He and Severus had decided to take Harry’s bedroom as their own, and Draco had claimed Sirius’ brother Regulus’ old bedroom, saying that he liked the Slytherin green. Severus had reasoned that Solarin would probably take one in the furthest corner of the house, far away from other inhabitants. Harry had questioned it and Moody had told him that Solarin had a tendency to walk through other peoples minds while she slept. It had not comforted him to think that she could see his dreams.

When Severus had left and Tonks had claimed the attentions of Sirius, Arthur and Albus, Molly had suggested maybe it would make him feel more at home if they decorated the nursery. He had found that he had really liked the idea of getting ready for the baby’s arrival, now only a month away. Strangely, he didn’t feel as worried about the birth as he felt he should have been. He supposed Severus’ gentle reassurances about it were doing the trick.

“So, what colour do you like?” Molly asked.

“Ummm, I don’t know,” Harry admitted, his voice timid.

“I like the pale green,” Draco said.

“Of course you would,” Charlie joked. Harry noticed the way he was looking at the Slytherin, his gaze lust filled yet teasing. “Red’s nice. Red for a Gryffindor baby.”

Harry smiled and Remus chuckled beside him. “It’s too soon to speculate houses, boys. I think the powder blue is nice. Blue for a boy,” Remus offered.

Harry wrinkled his nose. “Isn’t that a little predictable?” he asked the werewolf, gaining more confidence. “It’s nice but it just seems too conventional. I bet everyone has blue for a boy. I want it to be special. My baby’s special, I want him to have a special room.”

The inhabitants of the room smiled at him. “What about purple?” Molly suggested. “Or maybe yellow?”

Harry took the two colour cards from her, his gaze lingering on the yellow. It was a nice colour, powdery, soft. It reminded him of happiness, of the way he felt when he was with Severus. But the purple was nice too, it was a kind of lavender, it was very soothing.

Bill seemed to be staying out of it. He found himself more focussed on the savage looking bite mark on Bill’s neck than on the colours.

“I like the yellow,” Harry declared finally and he watched as Molly thrust a brush into each of their hands and charmed the plain white paint to the colour on the card. Harry noticed that she had not given him a brush. “Mrs. Weasley, why don’t I get a brush?” Harry asked, wondering why he was left out.

“You’re pregnant, dear. It’s best if you direct, tell us if we miss any bits. Besides, I can’t see Severus taking too kindly to me letting you loose with a paintbrush or letting you up a ladder. He seems rather protective. Personally, I think it’s sweet, but don’t tell him I said that. And call me Molly,” she finished with a kind smile.

She directed Harry to the chair near the door and he found himself content to let them get on with it. His back was aching and it felt nice to be sitting once more. He burst out laughing at the look on Draco’s face.

“Come on, Draco, it’s just a bit of paint,” Charlie teased, his attention drawn to the blonde by Harry’s sudden laughter.

“I’ve never painted a room before, the House Elves did it. Won’t I get all messy?” Draco replied, eyeing the tin of paint warily.

“Half the fun. But look at it this way. Paint washes off, but I don’t think the bite on Bill’s neck will disappear that easily,” Charlie teased, Bill turning bright red. Draco smirked and began to paint, though he was careful not to get any on himself.

“It’s none of your business,” Bill said, eyeing his amused mother with a scowl. “Oh, for the love of Merlin! Go on then, you get one free shot without me getting you back for it,” Bill sighed, leaning against one unpainted wall, waiting.

“We all knew you’d find someone, but damn, we didn’t know you were suicidal. Snape’s sister? He’s going to kill you, mate,” Charlie chuckled, thoroughly enjoying the chance to niggle his younger brother.

“She’ll be able to handle him.” Bill looked at Harry, suddenly uncertain of Solarin’s skill in handling her brother. “You won’t let him kill me, will you, Harry?”

“I’ll try but I make no promises. The two of them are close,” Harry admitted, smiling at the way the redheads face dropped.

“Admit it, bro, you like the danger. You became a curse breaker ‘cause you like the thrill. No wonder Moody was looking at the ceiling and the dishes started shaking. I remember you two flirting in school. All those years of all that tension, it’s a miracle the house is still standing.”

Bill actually laughed at that one and Harry found himself relaxing fully into the experience of preparing for parenthood.

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“Hi,” Solarin said innocently, trying to pull up her collar to hide the vicious looking bite marks, and Severus was surprised to see that she looked better than she had all day. Though, the observation didn’t help dissipate the murderous urges he had. “You know, I should go and help with dinner,” she said, trying to walk past them.

“Nice try, girly, Molly gave that job to Arthur and Sirius. We need a little talk,” Moody growled and the three of them made their way to the living room. Solarin sat down but the two men remained standing, making her feel like she was in an interrogation. She just knew that neither of them would accept a lie right now, even if they did believe her. They were muttering quietly to each other and she figured she had a few minutes before their attentions focussed on her.

The only thing she was thankful for was her control being firmly back in place, and the sound of Bill’s voice as they spoke through the connection.

[Sorry to bail] Bill said, apologetically.

[Understandable. I would have done the same if they had given me the chance. Wish me luck, I’m about to be interrogated. I’ll be shocked if they don’t threaten me with a truth serum at least once. What are you doing?]

[I was ambushed by mum on my way to the kitchen. I’m in the nursery with Harry, Draco, mum, Charlie and Remus, painting. I think Harry’s going to go for the yellow or the purple. Draco wants green and Remus wants blue. Charlie’s suggesting red. I’m staying out of it.]

[Five sickles says I get released before you do…] she replied teasingly. Moody and Severus seemed to be done with their conversation and they were moving to the chairs opposite. It seemed her time was up.

[You’re on. See you soon, hopefully.]

[I love you, Bill, don’t you love me too?]

A pleased mental chuckle. [I love you, Arin. All my heart and soul.]

And then his voice was gone, the sweep of his mind his fleeting goodbye before his mind receded from hers, their barriers slipping back into place. She was relieved to feel that her own control was better than it had been in years. It wasn’t something that had ever happened before but she found she wasn’t really surprised that his mind had stabilised hers better than Moody’s training had ever done.

“So,” Severus began, claiming her attention. “Why is your discipline slipping?”

“It’s not anymore. I got a handle on it,” she replied.

“How?”

“I have my own methods.”

Moody smirked at her. Severus looked murderous.

“So, Bill helped you with it?” Moody said delicately, looking pointedly at her throat.

“Yes,” she replied, not looking at Severus, her hand coming up to cover the wounds. “We have a connection, I talk to him through it. It stabilised me, having his mind open to mine. He helped me.”

“Why was it slipping?” Severus asked, grasping the chance to move away from the topic of his sister having sex in the bathroom.

She sighed. “You’re not going to like it, Severus,” she warned. “Are you sure you want to know?”

Severus seemed to consider the question. “Yes. I want to know,” he replied finally, though he didn’t look all that sure to her.

“All right, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” She took a deep breath and braced herself for the onslaught of emotions that were bound to happen. “You remember me registering myself with the Ministry like I was supposed to?” They nodded. “It was you who told me about it, Severus. I believed you when you told me it was the best way to protect myself. You believed it yourself. While I was there the Ministry tried to figure out how I work. They did some…damage.”

Guilt coursed off her brother in waves. Moody looked furious, but there was an echo of regret.

“Stop it, both of you. It was my choice to register. Stop feeling guilty and regretful,” she snapped. “The damage they did lingered. I didn’t realise their rules were so sneaky.”

“Explain,” barked Moody. Ah, there he was, the grumpy man she knew and loved.

“Their rules state that once I’m registered the only way to back out of it is to live in the muggle world. Fine, in theory. But muggle minds are too weak, their thoughts project. The damage they did was just reinforced by the muggle minds.”

“Effectively forcing you to return,” Severus said, it all clicking into place. “What would have happened if you had not left when you did, or if you had not returned to us today?”

“The damage would have turned inwards. My abilities would have inverted, tearing my mind apart. I would have gone crazy and, eventually, it would have killed me. Forced Recall on my own mind.”

The room was silent in their shock and Solarin could hear the echo of Bill laughing in her head, something Charlie had said was entertaining him. His barriers had slipped a little. She pressed the thought of learning a little self discipline into his head and the laughter stopped abruptly.

[You love it.] came Bill’s reply, after a second.

[Not when they’re about to get to talking about me and you and the bathroom incident.] She felt his sudden embarrassment and a slight fear of Severus doing him serious damage. [Relax,] she soothed. [I can handle Severus. By the time dinner rolls round, he’ll be cool with it.] She paused. [I think.]

[I hope you’re right. I don’t fancy dying today. Harry did go for the yellow, by the way.]

[No fear. Besides, I haven’t even got to teasing him about his marriage yet. Nice colour choice. I’ll explain why later. Gotta go, they’re coming out of their shocked silences. Remember, discipline.]

Barriers back up, she looked Severus in the eye. His eyes were heartbreaking as they looked at her and she wanted to reassure him, but she knew that any comforting words she offered would just make him feel worse so she stayed silent.

“How are you feeling now? Your control is steady?” Severus asked.

“I feel fine. Actually, I feel better than I have in years. And my control is well in place, steady as a rock. But, I’m not a fool. I know what’s coming next. I’m ready, Mad-Eye,” she said calmly, settling herself more firmly into her seat.

Mad-Eye stood up and limped over, his magical eye swirling madly but his other eye was steadily fixed on her. He pulled out his wand and pointed it at her.

“You know that I’d never let anyone but you do this, right?” she said to him.

“I know. You took your lessons to heart. You and Nymphadora, best two students I’ve ever had. Ready?” Moody grizzled at her. It was probably the closest to real emotion she had ever heard him express. She nodded. “Legilimens!”

She felt the spell hit her, but it was not how she remembered it. It merely glanced her mind instead of invading it the way he had once been able to. Apparently, her control was better than it ever had been.

Moody looked at Severus. “I can’t get in. That control is iron clad now. I don’t think even another augur could get into her head. Whatever Bill did, it worked, better than my training ever did. If that’s all, I should go and inform Dumbledore. He will want to know that the situation is resolved,” Moody grizzled, walking to the door.

“She is safe to go into Draco’s head?” Severus questioned. Solarin liked to think that there was maybe a little admiration in his inky stare, under all the anger and guilt that is.

“Perfectly safe.”

“Then I require your assistance no longer. My sister and I need a chat alone.” The threat was clear in his voice and Solarin felt her amusement grow. Moody left them to it with a smirk.

Severus fixed her with his best Scary Professor glare, the one that had worked on her when she was younger. She knew she was pushing him to his limit when she pulled out a packet of cigarettes from her pocket, lighting one.

“I’m going to choose to ignore the carcinogens for now, but don’t think I like it,” he snarled.

“Come on then, hit me with the lecture,” she said, earning a scowl.

“We’re going to talk and you will answer me honestly, or so help me, Solarin Eileen Snape, I will find some truth serum.”

She smirked. There it was. “Go ahead.”

“When the hell did you and Bill decide that you would do…that in the bathroom?”

“We didn’t, it just happened.”

“Someone touching my sister does not just happen!”

“Look, it’s not like I’ve just met the guy. Me and Bill were together before.”

His eyes narrowed and she considered that maybe that had not been the wisest thing to say. Lying to Severus now was not an option. He would see right through it.

“When?” he asked, his voice eerily calm.

“In school.”

“How old were you when you first allowed him to put his grubby little paws on you?”

“I was in my fifth year, he was in his sixth. Halloween weekend.”

Dear God, he looked like he was about to explode. She was sure he was about to have a stroke or a heart attack or something along those lines. He didn’t seem able to form a sentence at that moment.

[Stay away from the living room right now. Severus looks livid.] she pushed into Bill’s mind.

“You weren’t even fucking legal! In either world! What the fuck were you thinking? You were fourteen! And how the bloody hell did I not notice the two of you?” Severus yelled, leaping to his feet, and Solarin could feel surprise throughout the house. Ah, no silencing charms. Footsteps were approaching. Sirius.

“Calm down, you’re attracting the attentions of other people in the house,” she said. Sirius’ head poked around the door.

“Is everything all right in here?” Sirius asked.

“Everything’s fine. Just a little sibling issue. We’ll be fine,” Solarin answered, relieved when the Animagus left.

“Severus, listen to yourself. You’re being a little out there,” she said, trying not to laugh in the face of his rage. That would not do her any good. She stubbed out her cigarette in a saucer that someone had left on the coffee table.

“Answer me.”

“No, I wasn’t legal. I was pretty much thinking about how I felt about him. You didn’t notice because we didn’t want you to. Ask Tonks, she was around us all the time and she never noticed that we were more than friends. It was about us, no one else.”

“He’s bitten you to pieces.”

She looked pointedly at his neck, where there was a bight red hickey. He had the good grace to look momentarily sheepish.

“And the bathroom?” he questioned.

“Be thankful we weren’t on the kitchen table, giving you all a show,” she said honestly, and he shuddered.

“He’s not good enough for you. No where near. Completely unsuitable. I won’t stand for it. He’s using you, I can see it even if you can’t,” Severus said, somewhat calmer now. Apparently she had managed to shock him with her answers.

Her temper ignited at the mere notion of Bill using her and she leapt to her feet, advancing on him until his back was pressed against the bookcase.

“You listen to me and you listen good. I would never, ever let anyone use me. It’s insulting and condescending for you to even think that. And Bill is a good man, he’s my good man. He would never use me even if he could. If you think for a single second that I will sit here and take that from you, you’re losing your touch,” she snarled at him.

“He’s not good enough,” Severus spat.

“That is not your call.”

“So, what? Am I supposed to just accept this?”

“I don’t really give a damn what you do. But I’m with Bill whether you like it or not. Don’t make me choose, Severus. Quite honestly I can’t tell you which one of you would win.”

This seemed to make Severus deflate and he silently left the room, determined. She followed him up to the room next to Harry’s, where Draco and Charlie were frozen in their flinging paint at each other. Bill shrank back against the wall furthest from the door and all the other people in the room watched it play out, Harry looking interested at the fury oozing out of Severus.

“I want a word with you. Not now, later, when I’m less likely to throttle you,” Severus said, pointing at Bill. The redhead nodded mutely. “Hurt her in any way and I will make you suffer.”

And with that, it was over. Severus stalked from the room, shutting himself in the bathroom. Solarin suspected that he had upped a silencing spell. Bill slid down the wall, shaking in fear and Solarin let him avoid her touch for the time being.

‘Well,’ she thought to herself, ‘that was practically a happy moment.’

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Draco was finding it hard to swallow. Arthur’s vegetable stew was good, even if it had ended up having to be saved from burning by Molly, but it just didn’t seem to want to go down.

Solarin had said that she would read him after dinner and his nerves were getting the better of him.

“Draco, are you all right?” Harry asked from across the table.

“I’m fine,” he replied, though from the looks he received, he wasn’t very convincing.

Solarin passed Draco another roll from where she sat to his left. “Try to relax. Don’t worry about it,” she soothed. Then she got this mischievous glint in her eyes. She winked at Draco before turning to look at her brother.

“Funny, Severus, you didn’t seem to be inclined to talk about your own relationship when you were harassing me about mine,” she said, her carrying voice causing all the tables inhabitants to look between the two siblings. Harry seemed to be suddenly perky.

“We were discussing you and not me,” Severus said defensively.

“Does that mean that I can talk about you now?”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Oh really? Let me just take this moment to say…I told you so,” she sing-songed. Severus looked embarrassed and Draco realized what she was doing. She was distracting him. And it was working.

“Shut up, Solarin.”

“Told him so about what?” Harry asked, playing along with her, enjoying her making his husband squirm in embarrassment beside him. She seemed to do it so easily. Maybe if he asked her nicely, she would show him how to do it.

“Solarin, you wouldn’t dare,” Severus warned. She ignored the threat.

“The morning he found you, when he was healing you, he asked me to read you. Well, I told him that you had feelings for him, told him what I found in your head. He didn’t believe me.” She put her hand to her head in a move of mocking and Severus glowered at her. “Oh, woe is me, I’m so miserable. Poor Professor Snape, I don’t deserve to be happy, I’m such a terrible human being. I don’t deserve to find love.”

The whole table laughed at her and Harry had to let Severus pull him from his own seat into his lap so that Severus could hide his face against Harry’s back.

“What was it you used to say about marriage, Severus?” Severus seemed to be trying to melt into his chair, or maybe into Harry’s spine, and Sirius was clutching his sides in laughter. “Ah yes, you said that it was a pathetic insipid construct for the feeble and narrow minded. Funny how you look reeeeal happy wearing that ring. I thought you said you would never get married, you’d rather face a firing squad.”

“I hadn’t met Harry when I said that,” Severus mumbled, Harry giggling, though he stroked the arms that were wrapped around him.

“It all worked out, the two of them got there, in the end,” Bill added, trying to help Severus escape Solarin’s clutches. But even being teased to the point of complete mortification had not helped Severus let go of his rage. His head shot up from its hiding place.

“If I were you, I would shut it right now,” he snarled at the curse breaker.

“You know what, you’re being unfair, Severus,” Solarin intervened.

“No, I’m not. I think that, considering he’s fucking my sister, I’m entitled to be a little pissed off.”

“Harry’s fucking my brother, you don’t see me threatening to kill him,” Solarin said as she angrily pushed away her plate. She threw an apologetic look at Harry, who merely smiled at her, shaking his head slightly to indicate that he didn’t mind his activities with his husband being mentioned, as long as it was brief. Draco got the impression that Harry thought Severus was overreacting just a tad.

Severus released Harry and made sure he was safely back in his own chair before he replied. The whole room had swiftly gone silent at the abrupt anger between the two brunettes, all traces of their teasing gone.

“That is different,” Severus replied.

“Why? Because you’re older? Would it make a difference if I was older than Bill? Would it make a difference if I was older than you?”

“No, I would still want to hurt him.”

“Oh, so it’s because I’m a girl?”

“No.”

“Well then you’re going to have to clear this one up for me, Severus, because I don’t understand. Why is it okay for you to be with Harry and not okay for me to be with Bill?” Her stare was accusing but he didn’t back down from it.

“It is not that simple,” he answered, his voice low and dangerous.

“Why not? Make it simple.”

“Fine. I will.”

Severus stood from the table abruptly and stalked round to Bill. He grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and half dragged him out of the door, throwing a meaningful look at Sirius, who grabbed Solarin as she tried to follow them.

“Trust me, he just wants to talk to him. He won’t kill him,” Sirius assured.

“How can you say that? Did you see him?” she argued.

“Because I did the exact same thing. When I had calmed down enough to be rational I took your brother aside and asked him a few things. He just wants to be sure that you’re not going to get hurt. Leave them be,” Sirius reassured.

She relented and retook her seat, albeit reluctantly. Now she was the one who needed distracting.

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Severus threw Bill into the living room and locked the door, upping a silencing spell. Damnit, everyone had heard him yelling at Solarin, he would not be caught off guard again. He looked at the younger man and noticed the bite mark on his throat. It did not help to see it.

“I need to know some things before I even begin to accept the two of you. I can’t ask Solarin, I just keep losing my temper. So, you have to answer my questions. And keep that damn connection closed. This is between me and you,” Severus snarled, beginning to pace to try and calm himself. It seemed to calm the baby when Harry paced, he reasoned, it might work for him, though it didn’t seem to be working at the moment.

Bill nodded and Severus contemplated what he needed to know first.

“Just tell me that the two of you were safe.”

“I never hurt her, it might have gotten a little rough but she never really got hurt,” Bill answered, his eyes sincere.

“I didn’t mean that but it is slightly reassuring to know you’ve never ended up getting too carried away and maiming my sister. I meant when you are together, you have taken precautions, haven’t you? There isn’t a secret abortion that I don’t know about?” Severus asked, trying not to blush. It was the least comfortable conversation he had ever had and he prayed he would never have to have it again, or anything like it. He was just thankful that he was managing not to stutter.

“No, there isn’t. We’ve always been careful, and we always will be. No matter how caught up we are, we always remember to cast that charm.”

“She was fourteen, Bill. She wasn’t fifteen until February and you turned sixteen the week before you ended up in bed together. Did you not consider the illegality of your actions?”

He found it oddly satisfying to see the redhead pale. Seemingly, Bill hadn’t realized Solarin had told him that.

“Not at the time, no, I didn’t. At the time, it was just about me and her.”

Severus sighed at his honesty. This was getting harder, Bill’s openness and integrity getting to him.

“Are you using her?”

“No! I would never use her. I understand that she’s special. But I will never hurt her, I swear it, Professor.”

Damnit, he was being so sincere that Severus felt his anger dissolve, leaving only a need to know. He sat down in a chair, beckoning Bill to sit opposite him.

“I need to know how you feel about her, Bill. I need to hear you say it. And I need to know how you restored her control,” Severus admitted. Bill sat down and looked Severus straight in the eye.

“I love her. It’s probably not something I should be admitting to her big brother, but I have never been with anyone but her. I never wanted anyone but her.” He laughed. “You of all people must be able to see how hard an act she is to follow?”

Severus allowed himself his own snort at Bill’s accurate analysis.

“I love her, I’ve been in love with her since I was fourteen years old. And I would have come to you and asked your permission if I had known who her big brother was. So, I’m asking it now. I love her, I want her, only her. I swear to you that I will never hurt her in any way, and I will never let anyone hurt her. I’m asking your permission for me to be with her, and if you say no, I’ll stay away, I swear it.”

This was unexpected and it caught Severus by surprise. The twenty four year old was displaying such maturity and open honesty that Severus felt the last of his misgivings about the relationship melt away. He trusted Bill with her, trusted him not to use her or hurt her. He trusted Bill to protect her.

“I give my permission. But I don’t want to know any of the details,” Severus confessed, watching the smile that spread across Bill’s face. “Her control, what did you do?”

“To be quite honest, I don’t actually know. We have this connection, I can hear her thoughts in my head. We have these conversations through it. When she arrived here today I felt it, her pain and fragility. We’ve kept it closed for the entire four years she’s been away, but today she couldn’t seem to keep it closed. I’m not quite sure how it happened but she seemed to use my mind to strengthen hers. It’s never happened to us before, but I’m glad it did.”

Severus relaxed after that, and, by the time they returned to the kitchen, they were laughing and joking about some of the pranks Solarin had talked Bill and Tonks into when they were at school. The three of them had given the Marauders and Fred and George a run for their money. They were all amateurs compared to the Odd Trio. The three of them had gone down in Hogwarts history for even managing to prank Dumbledore once. None of them had ever reached the point of expulsion, thankfully, and they had all been Prefects, Bill even ending up as Head Boy.

Solarin looked at them numbly and decided that she never would understand her brother as well as she thought she did.

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Solarin looked at the pale nervous boy seated opposite her in the dim living room, their knees an inch apart. He looked like he wanted to throw up, or maybe run.

“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, Draco,” Solarin promised, her voice gentle. “If you’ve changed your mind then we can just leave it.”

They were alone in the room, but she could sense several minds just outside the door. Severus and Bill were a given, neither of them quite sure what would happen once she entered Draco’s mind fully. No silencing spells had been used and she knew that they were listening at the door. Harry’s mind was present too, and Solarin suspected that Harry had reached his limit with Severus’ absence. Albus and Mad-Eye had left for home just after dinner, so she didn’t have to deal with them hovering as well. She could feel Tonks’ mind in the kitchen, along with Molly, Arthur, Charlie, Sirius and Remus.

The lights were turned down low, the dimness making it easier for her to do this. Draco looked almost golden in the soft light.

“No, I want you to do this,” Draco said, his voice steadier than he looked.

“Draco, you need to understand that there are no guarantees that I’ll be able to find anything. And even if I do it doesn’t mean that we’ll have any answers as to what’s happening to you. I need you to understand that before you agree to this,” Solarin specified.

“I understand. But it’s worth it, isn’t it? It’s worth knowing what you might find,” Draco reasoned.

“Yes, I believe it’s worth it. It’s worth a try.”

“Then I say we go ahead with it.”

“I have to tell you that for me to be able to do this properly I need to touch you. And the process is very invasive. My mind will be fully integrated with yours for a short time. I cannot guarantee you that I will not see something you may feel is very personal.”

“I understand that you’ll be getting really deep in my head, and I accept that.” He hesitated and Solarin could see his reluctance. “What kind of touch?”

“Your hands. I’ll need to hold your hands to do this. If you’re at all uncomfortable with this, with any of it, you need to tell me now. Once we start, I won’t be able to stop at a moments notice. It will take me time to pull back from your mind. This isn’t like when I glance in to a mind. I do that every day, this is more intense, I’ll be able to see everything in your head, you will have no defences against me.”

Draco looked pensive and she watched as his brow furrowed in concentration. She noticed that he had missed a spot of yellow paint on his right ear. She kept her mind completely separate from his, keeping herself centred.

“I want to do this. I understand everything you’ve explained. I’m sure I want this,” Draco said determinedly.

“All right. Are you comfortable with Bill, Severus and Harry being present while we do this? If not they can wait outside like they’re doing already.”

“No, I’m okay with it.”

She sent the silent command through her link with Bill and the three of them entered. “I need the three of you to stay on the edges of the room. Don’t get close to me and Draco unless it appears that something is wrong. Bill, I’m going to half open the connection, so you’ll be the one to know if something’s gone wrong. Are you all clear on that?” she said, her voice leaving no room for argument. They all nodded and took their positions. She looked at Draco.

“All right, are you ready?”

The blonde nodded.

“Ok. Draco, I want you to close your eyes. Focus on the sound of my voice and breathe deep, slow and steady. Listen to your breathing, listen to the gentle swell and flow of it, like the tide. Let it relax you. Let your body go limp, all the tensions seeping out.” She was careful to keep her voice low and even. She could see Draco relaxing and she dropped her barriers half way, letting Bill in, letting her mind stroke Draco’s. “Draco, I want you to imagine yourself standing in the middle of the Great Hall at Hogwarts. All the tables and chairs are missing, there are no candles overhead, it is simply you in the empty Great Hall. You feel calm, you’re safe here. This is a safe place, nothing can harm you here. Look up, see the enchanted ceiling is a bright clear blue. Look out of the windows, see the nice weather. Nothing bad can happen here, this is your space.”

She could feel Harry’s intense gaze on the two of them, her brother-in-law obviously entranced by the whole unique procedure. Harry had told her that he had never heard of a being like her, of someone that could do something like this. She could feel Bill’s mind, lightly against her own. Draco was slightly slumped in his chair, a look of peace on his face. She knew Severus was watching them but she kept her eyes fixed on Draco.

“Draco, I want you to look down at your own body, I want you to imagine that it is a second skin, like a set of clothes. You can simply step out of it and leave it standing there. Can you imagine it?” she asked. If Draco couldn’t do this part then she would have to start again from scratch.

“Yes,” came Draco’s mumbled reply.

“Good. That’s very good, you’re doing so well. Draco, I want you to step out of your body. Walk around it, see yourself from all angles as you walk. Can you see it?”

“Yes. Feels weird, like I’m floating.”

“That’s good, Draco. It’s good that you feel like that, that’s exactly how you’re supposed to feel right now. I want you to remember that I will let nothing happen to you, that I will let you come to no harm. You are completely safe.” She danced her fingers over the back of his hand. “Draco, can you feel me touching your hand?”

“No. Am I supposed to?”

“No, you’re not. You’re the model patient. I’m going to come and visit you now, Draco, come visit you in your Great Hall. Will you show me around?”

“Yes.”

She slipped her hands into his larger limp ones and closed her eyes. She let her breathing slow, let it match Draco’s.

She was standing in her own Great Hall, looking around at her own mind. She could see the clouds of moving images, her memories. Books lay scattered around her feet, her knowledge. Butterflies fluttered around her head, her thoughts. Bright strips of wispy glowing colour were swirling around her legs and arms, some brighter than others, her emotions. There was a silky curtain all around the edge of the room, her own control. It was fluttering slightly, and she could see Bill through the thin fabric. She let herself walk forwards, let herself be carried to the doors. They were opened and she stepped through into another Great Hall.

This was Draco’s mind, and she couldn’t help but feel that she had seen one like it before, though she couldn’t pinpoint where. Draco’s mind was nothing like her own. There was barely enough space for her to take two steps forwards. There was a thick solid wall directly in front of her. Swirling around her feet were barely half a dozen strips of colour, her mind had contained more than fifty.

The small space was crammed with books, Draco’s knowledge bared for her to see. But his memories were hidden behind the wall, as were his thoughts. Two or three wounded butterflies of thought fluttered through the wall, there should have been hundreds of them, and they should have been healthier looking than that. Where was Draco, why couldn’t she see him?

He must have been somewhere behind the wall. She could hear Bill calling to her, though she couldn’t hear him properly. She could feel his worry.

[I’m all right.] she pressed into his mind before she approached the wall. She ran her hand along it, feeling the echo of magic long since cast. The wall had been there a long time, more than a decade. She could hear the buzzing again, identical to when she had last visited his mind. It was so loud. The magic on the wall tasted familiar to her, she knew the magical signature attached to it, but she couldn’t place it.

She could hear Draco calling out to her, he was beginning to panic. The wall was in her way. She pushed against it, but it stood fast. She stood back and let her magic pool in her, let it swirl down to rest in her hands, let it build. She raised her hands and blasted at it, rubble flying at her. She hurried to the hole, looking through the dust. She managed to get a glimpse of a perfectly normal mind behind it, identical almost to her own, and a flash of blonde hair before something hit her, hard.

It hit her in the stomach, winding her. She straightened, looking at the wall. The hole was gone. This was not good. Bill was calling out to her in panic now, and Draco was panicking too. She could feel his physical hands trying to pull away from hers and she let her physical grip tighten. Harry and Severus’ panic was hitting her too, something was wrong, very very wrong, and they knew it. Something was trying to pull them apart.

She found herself hit again, apparently by the wall, and it sent her flying backwards, through the doorway into her own mind.

And then she was in her physical body, and she felt like the real Great Hall had landed on her.

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Something was wrong, Bill could feel it. The faint whisper of Draco’s mind felt odd to him. He suddenly didn’t want her to go into it.

He let his own uncertainty feed into her brain. [Solarin, are you all right?] he pressed with it.

[I’m all right.] she replied before she stepped through.

Bill could feel her confusion and saw it spread across her physical face. He felt his hands tingle. That hadn’t happened that one time she had done this to Tonks when they were younger. There was an odd metallic taste in his mouth. He could feel Draco’s panic through her.

He could feel power pooling in her, settling in her hands, his own suddenly feeling white hot.

“Severus, something’s not right. It doesn’t feel right, we need to pull her out of there,” he said, watching Draco’s face begin to show alarm, the blonde trying to pull his hands back.

“We need to disconnect them. She needs to get out,” Severus said, moving towards them. Harry stayed where he was, Severus fixing him with a quick meaningful look. Solarin was red in the face, and covered in a cold sweat. Oh God, something had just hit her in the stomach, Bill felt the blow in his own body, sudden and hard. She began to gasp for air. He grabbed her arms, Severus grabbing Draco’s, the two of them tugging, but Solarin’s grip tightened.

Draco was beginning to whimper, and his eyes snapped open a split second before something blasted Solarin across the room, straight into the bookcase.

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“Fuck!” Solarin screamed, her hands coming up to press at her temples, pulling at her hair. Books and splintered shelves were scattered around and under her. The chair she had been sitting in was now no more than a pile of smouldering ash.

Harry watched in horror as the augur writhed in pain, screaming obscenities at random intervals. She appeared to be under the Cruciatus curse. It looked like blue electricity was dancing over her skin and even Bill refrained from touching her. Objects around the room were shaking and exploding and Harry moved to stand behind the sofa as the light fixture crashed to the floor a scant few feet from where he was standing. Paper peeled from the walls, incinerating before it hit the carpet, which was unravelling itself. The walls were cracking, the glass in the windows was curving ominously, threatening to explode. After a few moments it quietened.

Things stopped shaking, stopped exploding and Solarin’s eyes opened, now a glowing blood red. She blinked a few times and they were back to their usual fathomless black. Bill moved to her, Severus still checking that Draco was unharmed.

“Pain potion now,” she ground out from Bill’s arms and Harry took that as his chance to help. He hurried from the room, well, as fast as an eight month pregnant magical hermaphrodite could hurry, and down to the kitchen.

“It all went wrong, she needs a pain potion. Severus and Bill look really worried,” Harry announced, surprised that his voice was shaking worse than it had in weeks. Charlie leapt to his feet and Tonks grabbed the potion, the two of them running out of the room. Harry sank down weakly into the nearest chair, realizing for the first time that he was shaking. He couldn’t remember shaking this badly since before Severus had claimed him.

“Harry? Are you all right, pup?”

Remus was sitting down next to him, looking at him with kind eyes. He leaned into Remus’ arms, letting him be a substitute for Severus. It would hold him until Severus had seen to the mess that was Draco’s reading.

“Sirius,” Harry called weakly, gratified to find Sirius hurry to his side. He pulled him into the hug and let the two of them soothe him slightly.

“It all went wrong. Something was wrong, and Severus and Bill tried to pull her and Draco back. But they couldn’t. And then she got blasted back into the bookcase. The chair she was sitting in, it went up in flames, I’ve never seen anything burn so fast. And all the things started to shake and explode. And she was screaming. And when she opened her eyes they were glowing red,” Harry explained, feeling the baby kick wildly in agitation of his suddenly raised stress levels.

Remus and Sirius soothed him as best they could, but the days events were all starting to hit him at once. He felt sick to his stomach when he thought what could have happened if Lucius had been a minute quicker, or them a minute slower. He rubbed his bulge at the thought, suddenly finding the frantic kicking soothing.

The unexpected confrontation of people from his past, from that part of his life when he was, dare he say it, normal, or at least when he had been able to think of himself that way. From when he could still believe that he was a normal sixteen year old boy, before he had started hiding the clear proof of his difference under his shirt. It hadn’t really bothered him at the time, when he had seen them all sitting there. Christ, he had even felt good enough to hug Molly. But now, it was hitting him hard.

The explosion that was Draco’s reading seemed to be some kind of trigger for his nervousness to all come flooding back and he felt his panic rising the way it had when he had first been saved by Severus, rise to the level where he was shaking and sweating and finding it hard to breathe. His limbs felt like jelly and his heart was pounding. He hadn’t been hit with a panic attack like this since before Severus claimed him, not this hard. He needed Severus, more than he could find the words to say, but he knew that Solarin needed him too.

“Don’t move,” Harry whispered, his tears starting to fall. Remus was saying something to Molly but he couldn’t quite make it out. His panic was making it hard to make out anything.

“It’s all right, pup. We’re not going anywhere. We know you need Severus. Will we do until he comes down?” Sirius asked, shooting Remus a worried look over his godsons head. Sirius and Severus had come to a sort of peace, though they still loved to verbally attack each other, and Sirius had come to appreciate that Harry needed Severus more than anything else when he panicked.

Molly handed Remus the potion he had asked for in a small glass and Remus helped Harry to force it down. It was the calming draught that Severus had brewed especially for Harry and the kitchen now held an entire shelf full of the pearlescent blue liquid in little crystal bottles. It was a fraction of the strength of a normal calming draught but it was enough to keep Harry slightly more relaxed until Severus was able to see to him. He was still shaking uncontrollably, but his breathing had slowed a little. He clung to Sirius and Remus, one of their sleeves clutched tightly in each of his fists.

“I have to wait. I have to share him,” Harry mumbled.

“That’s right, Harry. Severus loves you both and right now she needs his help a little more than you do,” Remus encouraged, reassured by Harry actually talking now instead of just gasping. Severus had told them that Harry talking was a good sign, even if it made no sense.

“She looks really bad. She needs more help than me right now. She gets him and I get you two. Sirius didn’t make me choose, I don’t make Severus choose.”

Harry’s logic amused Sirius slightly. He was eternally grateful that Severus had shown them how to do this, how to help their son if he couldn’t. But for the first time in his life he wished for Severus to walk into his kitchen. Harry’s panic was harder to handle than he thought it was. Severus made this look so easy.

“You’re right. That’s very good, Harry. You’re doing well, pup,” Sirius praised.

“Don’t move,” Harry repeated.

It took an hour for Severus to come into the kitchen, and Harry’s logical little statements had gone from being about Solarin, to the baby, to seeing Ron and Hermione the next day, and everything in between. When he entered the room, looking exhausted and worried, he didn’t say a single word. He just opened his arms and let Harry fall into them, hearing the muttered thank you from Sirius and Remus as they gladly relinquished the Gryffindor to the ex-Slytherin. He knew that they had done their best and he was impressed that one of them had not had to come get him.

Harry was breathing hard, and he could feel the baby kicking wildly in protest as he held Harry to him. There was a small glass on the table and he wondered how well the potion had actually worked. He sat down and pulled his husband onto his lap, breathing deep and slow, forcing Harry to copy him. Harry pulled him in for a kiss and he couldn’t quite decide who it did more good for, Harry or himself.

They broke apart and Harry looked at him. “Is she okay?” Harry whispered, his eyes wide and worried.

“She’s sleeping, so is Draco. They seem to be well now.”

“But is she okay?”

“Bill assures me that she’s fine. It really looked worse than it was, love.” Severus stroked his hands trough the unruly mane, down the slim back and round the sprite to hold him. “It scared me too, Harry. It scared everyone, not just you. None of us have ever seen that happen to her before. You didn’t get hurt, did you?”

“No, the light fixture missed me and I went to stand behind the sofa. It seemed the best bet,” Harry replied, feeling the tightness in his chest ease. Though there was still the soreness of his breasts.

“Thank Merlin. I was worried,” Severus breathed. He leaned in and kissed Harry again, just to be sure that he was all right and felt reassured by the feel of those soft lips moving with his own.

He leaned back in his chair and found Arthur pushing a small brandy into his hand. He gulped it down and rubbed his eyes.

“What happened?” Remus asked, Harry content to stay sitting on Severus’ lap, snuggled against his chest with Severus running calm hands along his back, playing with his hair.

“We have no idea what happened, but Bill knew as soon as she started that something was wrong. It turns out that Sol used the same technique on Tonks in their youth and Bill was aware of what was happening then as well. He said it felt completely different this time. He says that it felt like something was punching her in the stomach, though he’s not inclined to talk right now. Sol is not making any kind of sense. She’s exhausted and covered in bruises, though I think that is more from her slamming into the bookcase than anything else,” Severus replied wearily. He chuckled slightly. “The living room is going to need some work. Though, saying that, I think we got off lightly. I think that her control flared wildly, and her magic went with it. There are no ornaments left, and there are cracks in the walls. The books are still intact, though.”

“She is all right though?” Molly asked.

“Bill assures me that she is all right. I am inclined to believe him. He has a rather spectacular bruise on his abdomen. A side effect of the connection. Solarin and Bill have gone to bed, Tonks is keeping an eye on them. Draco is asleep, he has no idea what happened either. Charlie is watching him. We’ll probably get the answers in the morning.”

Harry yawned and Severus decided that it was getting late. He bid them all a good night and led Harry upstairs, the little hermaphrodite following him obediently. Once behind closed doors he kissed Harry as deep as he could, the sprite responding immediately. It wasn’t like the kisses that had lead to lovemaking between them. Harry threaded his fingers in his hair and let Severus run his hands over him possessively, almost compulsively, let him check for the slightest scratch. Harry didn’t need Severus to explain, he knew his husband was worried about his sister and frustrated at having to leave it to Bill to care for her. It wasn’t until Severus’ hands got to his breasts did Harry pull away, groaning in pain.

“Sorry, Severus. I’m just so sore,” Harry said at his husbands confused look.

“Oh god, I’m so sorry, love, I completely forgot. I got you something for it,” Severus said honestly, kissing Harry on the forehead before he moved to the dresser. His shopping bags had been shoved in here earlier and completely forgotten about. He brought them over to the bed and reached for the one with a teddy bear on the side.

Harry sat there watching the man rummage through the bag before he pulled out a short black vest.

“What is it?” Harry asked, poking at the odd garment.

“The woman in the shop called it a sports bra. She assured me that it would help with the discomfort, something about the pressure of the Lycra.”

“A bra?” Harry said, looking scandalised.

“I know that women wear them, Harry, but there is no alternative. I know you’re not a woman, but for now we have to indulge the female side of your anatomy. It’s only for a little while, while you’re sore. When this is all over, I’ll never suggest it again.”

Harry sighed and looked at the bra. “All right,” he mumbled grouchily.

“Do you want to put it on now, see if it helps?”

“I suppose, but I’m not sure it will fit. It looks too small,” Harry said uncertainly, pulling off his t-shirt and hissing as the rough fabric moved over his torturously sensitive nipples. He had a suspicion that Severus would not be playing with them again for a while.

“That’s the point, love. It’s meant to be tight. We’ll try it and if it truly is too small then we’ll resize it to fit,” Severus reassured. Harry reached out and grabbed his icy hands and placed them on his breasts, moaning in relief.

“I couldn’t ask Molly for some ice, not for this. Right now, I love your hands more than anything else in the world. We’ll try it in a minute, just give me a minute. This is the best they’ve felt all day,” Harry explained, his face a mask of utter relief. Severus watched him, feeling his heart skip a beat every so often. The breasts under his hands were bigger than the last time he touched them. Harry had been flat chested before, but now there were tiny little mounds that just fit into Severus’ palm. No wonder Harry was so sore, they had appeared overnight.

It wasn’t often that Harry suffered with his pregnancy, but today seemed to have been bad with it right from the start. Severus had woken first, as always, and when Harry had joined him in the land of the waking he had gone to stretch in his normal way, the way he did which had Severus smiling in anticipation. Harry always stretched and then brought him in for a kiss. But the stretch that morning had Harry whimpering in pain. Harry had followed Severus’ suggestion and taken a warm shower in an attempt to ease his aching back, listening to Severus explain that he probably slept awkwardly from the sink where he was shaving. He never had gotten to finish that shower. His body had decided that it was a good day to visit morning sickness on him once more, rejecting last nights dinner. He had thought he was finally free of it. He would never eat pasta again.

Severus had helped him get dressed and it was there that his chest had decided to add to the day’s body issues. It felt like the skin was peeling off, or maybe that they were about to explode. Harry had endured Severus’ examination of them well, only bruising him slightly as he pressed them. Harry hadn’t really cared that it was necessary, that Severus was being as gentle as possible, just that Severus was quick about it. It hadn’t made him feel any better when Severus had said that he would be able to breast-feed. The knowledge didn’t seem all that much of a compensation for excruciating boobs.

“Okay, your hands are getting warm now. Let’s do this before the cold wears off and I end up screaming at you,” Harry announced and Severus helped him wriggle into the tight band of material.

To Harry’s surprise, it did fit without resizing and it felt amazing.

“Have I told you lately that I love you?” Harry asked, half moaning as Severus smoothed the fabric down along his ribs.

“You told me this morning, just before I left for Diagon Alley,” Severus answered as his smoothing changed into simply feeling Harry beneath his fingers. The events of the day had put him on his guard and he was only now beginning to relax, only now that he was alone with Harry in their own little world.

“Well, let me tell you again, I love you,” Harry said, Severus leaning in to kiss him gently. “But I’m so not wearing a bra any longer than I have to.” Severus chuckled.

Harry stripped down to his boxers, leaving the bra on, and Severus did the same before Severus caught his attention once more.

Harry’s smile seemed to light up the whole room as Severus pulled out a tiny set of Hogwarts school robes. Severus felt all his tensions melt away as Harry gushed over it, as he finally got the smile he wanted. He watched as his lover played with the miniature clip-on tie and ran his fingers over the tiny little Hogwarts crest.

“Where did you get this?” Harry asked.

“Do you like it?” Severus asked, dodging Harry’s question. He wasn’t sure how Harry would take it if he found out that it was a gift from Fred and George. Harry didn’t seem to be in the mood to discuss any other people from his past at that particular moment.

“I love it. It’s beautiful. Just think of him in it. He’ll look so handsome.”

“Well, with you for a parent, what else could he be but absolutely gorgeous,” Severus replied and Harry blushed.

Harry looked at him seriously. “This is killing you, isn’t it? This whole thing of you letting Bill take care of Solarin,” Harry asked, looking at Severus suspiciously though he continued to play with the little outfit, finding that the teeny shirt was made of the softest cotton, that there were little poppers instead of buttons, that the tiny trousers had an elastic waist instead of a button and zipper.

“I feel a little redundant. And I don’t like the thought of my sister doing…that.” Severus shuddered and Harry just managed to hold in his laughter. “But I accept that she is 23, she was going to date sooner or later.”

“Though, you’d rather it was later.”

“How did you get to know me so well?” Severus grumbled, lying back against the pillows.

Harry crawled up the bed, the little uniform still clutched in his hand. He settled himself on Severus’ lap, straddling him, Severus running his hands along his sides even though he was annoyed that Harry could see through him so easily. He leaned in and kissed Severus, the mans annoyance disappearing a little more with every move of his lips. “Because you let me see you, all of you. Well, maybe not all of you, I understand that there are things you won’t talk about and I get it, they’re just too hard to talk about. But I see you. I know you. I’m the only one you let do that. That’s how I’m the only one who knows you like this,” Harry explained, leaning back. It was his favourite way to sit and talk to Severus, straddling him. It reminded him of how gentle the man had been when he first claimed him, when he first showed him how good he could feel.

Severus softened, letting his fingers play with the tight band of the bra against Harry’s ribs. “All right, I admit it, if it were up to me, she wouldn’t date until she hits triple figures and then she’ll be too old to do it.” Harry giggled at him. “But Bill is a good man. In all their time at Hogwarts I can’t remember the two of them ever having a big argument. They had their little spats, and their days when all they did was bicker, but never anything major. He never left her to the mercy of any bully, even if she could defend herself better than he ever could. He never hurt her or let her get hurt, not if he could put a stop to it. I have no reason to believe that he would act any differently now. I trust him with her, though that is another thing that stays just between us, love.”

Harry nodded at the glancing mention of all his secrets that he had confided to Severus. This would be another thing that stayed in their little world.

Harry held the little costume up to his bump, laughing at the way it covered it and then some. “Do you think it’ll fit him when he’s born, or will he have to grow into it?” Harry asked.

“I shouldn’t think that it would be that outsized on him. Keep in mind that you do still have another month to go, love. He’s still got time to grow.”

“Did you see his room?” Harry asked excitedly. He was proud of it and felt that it was perfect for their son. It looked complete with the crib and everything else in there.

“I did. I like it, the yellow is a very nice colour. Molly didn’t let you loose with a paintbrush, did she?” Severus asked, smiling at Harry’s animated expression, the sprite bouncing slightly in his enthusiasm, the uniform still held to his belly.

“No. She wouldn’t let me. She made me stay in a chair and give orders on who had missed bits. But I did get to watch Charlie and Draco have a paint fight. That was fun, watching Draco get all messy. He looked horrified.” Harry contemplated his bump, dropping the costume and bringing Severus’ hands to feel their son kick the last of his faint sleepy kicks before he settled down to sleep for the night.

“Do you still want to see your friends tomorrow? I know it scared you to see that happen to Solarin. If you don’t want to we can change the day,” Severus asked, playing with Harry’s hair with his free hand.

“I still want to see them tomorrow. I’m kind of looking forward to it. I’m nervous but I want to see them. I miss spending time with them.” Harry paused. “Are you sure Solarin’s all right?” he asked, looking into dark eyes with green ones that took Severus’ breath away.

“Positive. She’s going to be bruised and sore for a few days, but she’s fine. I don’t know what happened but she’ll tell us in the morning. She’s fine, love,” Severus reassured, cupping Harry’s face and running his thumb over a cheekbone.

Harry nodded, looking down at his bump again, admiring the way Severus’ hand looked on it. “How big do you think Hermione is?” Harry asked.

“According to Molly, Hermione is bigger than you in the bump department.”

“But…Hermione is two months behind me,” Harry said in disbelief. He hadn’t really believed Severus when he had told him he was small.

“I told you that your bump was small.”

“But…do you think he’s okay in there?” Harry asked, looking at his stomach, stroking it. “What if he’s too small?”

Severus found the concern so sweet he almost sighed pathetically. Almost. “Harry, you are very petite. It makes sense that your baby would be small also. All the spells we have done show that he’s very healthy. You’ve got to remember that you were starved, Harry. He’s bound to be a very little boy. He’s perfectly healthy, I promise.”

“But my magic interfered with the spells. Are you sure you’re sure?”

Severus chuckled slightly. “That just stopped us from seeing him. The spells to check his health were perfectly normal. He’s just a little small.”

“All right, I’ll stop worrying then. Well, I’ll try,” Harry said calmly, placing the uniform in the bag once more and dropping the bags to the floor, Severus holding his hips so he didn’t fall. Harry looked at him, those green eyes taking Severus’ breath away again. “How are your lessons with Madame Pomfrey going?”

Severus grinned. “She threatened to hex me if I don’t listen to her when she tells me that I am absolutely ready to do this.”

Harry laughed as he stood and stretched, this time with no pain. “Then I think you’re ready. I filled in that plan sheet you wanted me to do, the one for the labour and birth. It’s in one of the boxes.”

“I’ll find it in the morning. We’ll go through it together in a few weeks, nearer the time. That way you’ll be absolutely ready when the labour starts and you’ll know what to expect.” Severus yawned and slipped into the covers, making himself comfortable. “I got you a book as well, love. It’s a guide for new parents. Should tell you everything you ever wanted to know,” Severus said as Harry lay down, snuggling into his embrace, the two of them adopting their usual position of Harry’s back to Severus’ chest, Severus’ arms wrapped around him. Though, admittedly, Harry had begun to need a pillow under his bump so he didn’t topple over.

“Severus?” Harry whispered into the dark a while later.

“Mmmmmm?” Severus hummed.

“Can we use my dads name as a middle name?”

“Which father are you referring to? You do have three of them.”

“My biological dad, James. Can we use his name as a middle name for the baby?”

“If you like,” Severus replied instantly.

“But I thought you and my dad never got along,” Harry asked confusedly, choosing his words carefully.

“We didn’t. But, Harry, he’s your father, which makes him my father-in-law. He’s family to me now, and he’s a part of what made you who you are. I can’t hate him now, not anymore. Without James Potter, there would be no you. If you want James, even for a first name, I’m absolutely on board. Just promise me something.”

Harry had a warm sensation settling in his heart. “Promise you what?” he asked.

“Tobias is never even considered for the baby.”

“But it’s your middle name. I don’t understand.”

“Tobias was my father. I was given his name as my middle name and Solarin has Eileen as hers, after our mother,” Severus said simply, his voice seemingly calm, but Harry could hear the undertone of pain. Harry rolled over and encased Severus in a warm comforting hug. Severus never talked of his parents and Harry didn’t ask. It was one of those things he would leave be unless Severus needed to offload, just the same way Severus never pushed him into talking about things he didn’t want to share.

“Tobias never even gets considered for the baby, I promise,” Harry said firmly into the mans neck. Severus cupped his arse and they gave up conversation at that point for an entirely more satisfying activity.

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The morning of the visit was a calm one for the most part. Or at least it started off that way.

Molly had arrived early that morning and had breakfast laid out ready for them all when Remus ambled down the stairs at seven, proclaiming Sirius to still be asleep. Severus and Harry had joined him at twenty past and Charlie and Draco had wandered down around eightish, Draco looking cheerful and well rested, a big smile plastered on his face. Severus commented that whatever happened last night didn’t seem to have done Draco any harm. Draco replied with a small explanation of it feeling like a weird dream he had. They were all chatting amicably about the upcoming events of the day when Solarin and Bill wandered in at half past eight.

Bill followed Solarin to the table, the witch sitting down delicately. Bill looked a little sore as well. Harry noticed that even through her obvious pain she had still managed to dress in a tight pair of jeans and a skin-tight black lace camisole. He could see dark vicious bruises along her shoulders, before her long dark hair covered the rest of her back. He noticed an odd sort of burn, kind of like a tattoo, on her left shoulder. It was a ring of runes surrounding a length of rope, coiled like a snake ready to strike. Harry thought it looked creepy. He wondered what it was for, why she had allowed something that looked so painful to be done, why it had been that symbol that was chosen. Severus seemed to be determined to ignore the bites on her throat. Harry took it as a sign that she was comfortable in present company that she had chosen such an outfit and not her attempt to annoy her brother further, though he couldn’t be sure of that.

“I’ve looked worse,” Solarin reassured Harry, noticing his worried stares, smiling gently.

“Are you okay?” Harry asked. She was a little battered looking but she appeared alert and cheerful.

“I’m fine. It’s just a few bruises and a slight ringing in my ears,” Solarin said as Tonks bounced in. She had spent the night on a camp bed in Solarin’s room, Bill taking the bed with the augur. The three of them had figured that physical closeness between the brunette and the redhead would probably help Solarin stay stable after such trauma. They hadn’t seen the need to push Solarin’s control anymore than it already had been. To them it had felt like the time they had camped out on the Hogwarts grounds, though Bill and Solarin had not slept cuddled up that night.

“Good morning all,” Tonks said brightly, plopping down beside Bill.

“Morning, Tonks,” Molly said, brightly. “Tea?”

“I’ll take a pumpkin juice, thanks,” Tonks said as she helped herself to some blueberry pancakes from the huge stack in the middle of the table.

“Solarin?” Draco asked. He looked paler than usual but Harry put that down to the shocks of last night. Overall he looked unharmed and Harry figured that Solarin had somehow protected him during the explosions.

“Yes, sweetie?” she replied, accepting a croissant from Severus. Severus was pleased to see that Molly had taken their little chat to heart. He had taken the Weasley matriarch aside before dinner the previous night and mentioned to her that Harry wasn’t able to eat such large portions. His lovers breakfast of scrambled eggs with a hot buttered roll looked more a size that he was used to. Severus also noticed that Molly had listened to him when he had told her no toast.

“Well, I was wondering if you managed to get anything from my head last night,” Draco said a little uncertainly.

“Yes, we’re all wondering what happened,” Severus added.

“To be honest, I’m not sure I could tell you what happened. I’m not sure myself,” she admitted. “Well, it started out normal enough. I went in to my head to begin with, and it was fine, just the way it always had been. But when I stepped into Draco’s head it was bizarre.”

She took a sip of coffee before she continued.

“Severus, do you remember me telling you that Draco’s white noise was loud?”

“Yes. You said you had never encountered something like it.”

“Never, but I have seen a mind like Draco’s before. When I got into his head there was this great big wall in front of me. I couldn’t even go two steps forwards. The buzzing was coming from the wall, not Draco’s barriers. It is not his white noise.” She noticed the confused look on Harry’s face. “Harry, the way I described it to Draco last night is exactly how I see it. I see an empty Great Hall. I can walk through it, looking at what I want.” Harry nodded and she looked at Severus. “I have seen a mind like it before, once, but I couldn’t tell you who’s mind that was.”

“So, this is not a normal occurrence?” Severus asked.

“No, definitely not. The wall didn’t seem to be harming Draco, it was more just there. Well, that is until I tried to get through it. I blasted a hole through it. It didn’t seem to like that.”

She turned gingerly to Draco, looking him straight in the eye. “I managed to get a look behind the wall before it threw me back. I saw your mind, Draco. It’s perfectly normal behind the wall.”

“But the wall isn’t supposed to be there?” Draco asked uncertainly.

“No, but it doesn’t seem to be doing you any harm, just me.” Draco nodded and gave a shaky sort of smile and Solarin turned to Severus once more. “The wall is out of the ordinary.”

“Did you manage to learn anything of it before you were thrown out?”

“Well, the wall is old. It’s been there more than a decade and I’d be willing to bet that it’s been there for most, if not all, of his life. The thing that is most interesting is the walls magical signature. It isn’t Draco’s.”

“Not mine?” Draco asked.

“No. Whatever the wall is, it was put there by someone else. I recognised the signature on it but I can’t place where I’ve tasted it before.”

“Tasted?” Harry asked.

“To me, each and every magical signature has it’s own unique taste. I can tell you who cast any spell simply by the taste I get in my mouth.”

“So, what did the wall taste like?” Harry asked, nibbling at his roll.

“Metallic, like when you put a penny in your mouth. Coppery. It is so odd, I know I’ve tasted it before, I just can’t tell you who it is. It’s right there on the tip of my tongue. It’ll come to me eventually,” Solarin reassured.

“So, whatever is wrong with me was probably done by someone else?” Draco asked.

“Definitely done by someone else. The signature wasn’t yours.”

“What would you surmise about the whole experience?” Severus asked.

“The wall is old, wasn’t put there by Draco and doesn’t like me. Apart from that, all I can tell you is that his mind is perfectly normal behind it and it isn’t doing him any harm,” Solarin supplied. “If I had to guess, I’d say that the symptoms Draco has described are indicators of something bigger. I don’t think that the symptoms are the problem themselves, I think that they’re symptoms of something else.”

“Why can’t I remember it properly?” Draco asked.

“Always happens. Ask Tonks, the people I integrate with can never remember the experience fully, it appears to them as a sort of dream they had. I think it’s because no one can actually do what I do, so their minds reject the experience as out of the ordinary and pass it off as the work of imagination,” Solarin said, Tonks nodding reassuringly with a smile. Draco seemed to accept this easily enough and ploughed on with his next question.

“Can you make the symptoms go away?”

“Not yet, but we’re getting closer. It’s only a matter of time before we figure this out. Try not to worry about it. You’re family, we won’t let any harm come to you if we can help it,” Solarin said and Draco blushed faintly. “What time do your friends get here, Harry?”

“I don’t know. Remus?” Harry said, looking at the werewolf.

“Albus called just before you all came down and said that they’d be here about eleven. He said that they can stay until a few hours after dinner but then they have to go back, or they might be missed. He doesn’t want anyone asking questions about where they’ve disappeared to,” Remus supplied. “If people start asking, they might look into what properties we all own in an attempt to find you. The last thing we need is the press getting wind of your new living arrangements. Even if they cannot find this house, they can still send owls.”

“Oh,” Harry said. He was about to ask Solarin about her abilities in more detail but the floo sprang to life and Moody came thundering out, looking furious. He had Kingsley Shacklebolt in a death grip, his hand around the black Aurors arm in a crushing clasp.

“Tell him,” Mad-Eye snarled at Kingsley, pushing him roughly towards the table though he kept his grip on the arm. “You tell Severus what you did.”

All eyes fixed on the Auror and Harry wondered how long Moody could apply pressure to the arm before it snapped. No one noticed Solarin get up from her seat and walk over to Mad-Eye, until she shoved him away from Kingsley, though her mentor kept his grip on the arm.

“Stop it, you’re hurting him!” she demanded angrily.

“Why the fuck are you defending him?” Mad-Eye asked her incredulously. From the look on Severus’ face, Harry soon realized that this argument between them was out of the ordinary.

“Because he doesn’t deserve to have his arm crushed by you.”

“No, he deserves death after what he did.”

“Stay out of it, Mad-Eye,” Solarin warned as Moody finally released Kingsley.

“Do you want to tell Severus what Kingsley did? Do you want to tell him what you conveniently forgot to tell us yesterday?” Moody asked her and her face fell. She looked at Kingsley angrily.

“Why the fuck can’t you keep your mouth closed? I kept you out of it, why couldn’t you just shut your mouth?” she yelled at him and Harry was shocked to see him recoil in fear, shaking his head. Harry got the impression that Kingsley hadn’t told Moody anything.

“Solarin Eileen Snape, what is he talking about?” Severus asked, his voice deathly calm. Solarin took one look at him and realized that he wouldn’t accept a lie, that if he needed to, he would find some truth serum and force it out of her. She always knew as soon as he used her full name that she was in trouble.

She took a deep breath and looked at the wood of the table as she spoke, wishing, not for the first time, that she could lie. Even if she somehow managed to fool Severus, which was highly unlikely, she would never fool Bill, who looked almost as simmering angry as her brother. “The Augur Law states that any testing done on me by the Ministry must be done with an Auror as a witness. Kingsley was the one who watched them try and break me,” she admitted quietly.

The result was instantaneous. Severus was out of his seat and throttling Kingsley before anyone could stop him. Solarin was screaming at him to stop and Bill was right there with Severus, punching Kingsley while Severus’ hands tightened around his throat. They both looked angrier than Harry had ever seen someone. Their wands lay forgotten on the table. Harry sat there watching, listening to Molly and Remus yell at Bill and Severus to stop. He felt his own anger burn inside him, but stayed sitting. He was far to easy to lift off his feet. Tonks was being held back by Sirius, the young witch trying to get at Kingsley as well. Harry hadn’t even seen Sirius come in. Charlie and Draco seemed to be stunned by the whole situation.

Suddenly, Severus, Bill and Tonks were on the floor, on their knees. Bill was holding his ears in pain, Severus and Tonks were bleeding from the nose. Solarin was standing there, angrier than Harry would have believed she could ever get. There was no white left in her eyes, the whole of the orbs were pitch black and there was a glowing red swirling in them. Harry found he was thankful that he had stayed in his seat.

It ended and Solarin helped them all up, one at a time, sending Kingsley to stand by the fireplace for his own protection. The two wizards and witch returned to their seats when it dawned on them that they would not be able to kill Kingsley today. Moody stood by the cooker, his face dark as he watched the scene.

“Why did you stop us, Arin?” Bill yelled angrily, looking daggers at Kingsley. “He was there, he watched it happen. You used to tell me that you were just having them try and figure out how you worked, you never told me that they were trying to break you. And he stood there, letting them do that to you.”

“He doesn’t deserve to die for it,” Solarin replied easily.

“Yes, he does,” Severus snarled.

Solarin sighed and turned to Kingsley. “Go home. Go now,” she ordered and he did as he was told, casting guilty looks at all the residents of the kitchen before he whipped out of sight. Solarin turned to the room.

“You know what, I never thought I’d be forced to use my abilities on any of you. No matter what he’s done, those reactions were completely out of line,” Solarin said angrily, looking at Bill, Severus and Tonks in turn. “All of you know how I feel about physical violence. I may have caused a few nose bleeds and rendered a few people unconscious but I have never sunk to the level that you all did just there. What you just did was utterly disgusting.”

“He stood there and let you get hurt,” Severus argued, though Harry didn’t see it as a good idea at that moment. “He deserved to feel a little pain.”

“So hex him unconscious. So hit him with a headache curse. Find a better way. Severus,” she paused, looking at the rest of the room. She seemed to be strengthening her resolve. Bill was looking guilty and Harry suspected that he was being scolded silently through the connection Severus had told him that they had. Tonks looked shocked at her own actions.

Solarin sat down next to her brother, taking his hands in hers, forcing him to look her in the eye. “Severus, watching you try and kill Kingsley took me right back to being three years old and watching our parents.”

Severus looked devastated and Harry wanted to comfort him, but he knew that this was not his moment, it was hers. Solarin let Severus draw her into the safety of his hold, let him soothe himself.

They pulled back and Solarin turned to Moody. “Was that really necessary?”

“Yes,” the grizzled wizard replied immediately. “You should have told us.”

“I think that we all just witnessed why I didn’t. How the hell did you find out about Kingsley anyway?”

“I went to the Ministry and pulled your records,” Moody stated simply.

“Those records are sealed. No one is supposed to be able to look at them,” Solarin rationalised.

“I’m a senior level Auror, I have clearance.”

Solarin sighed and Harry thought she might kill Moody right there and then. But, to his surprise, she looked at him sadly.

“Why would you do that? I told you everything yesterday,” Solarin asked.

“No, you didn’t. You were really short on the details, girly. Would you like to tell the truth or would you like me to do it? And don’t even think about lying to us, I already know the details, I will lay it all out,” Moody warned.

“You’re a son of a bitch, do you know that?” Solarin asked angrily.

“That may be true but it’s not the issue here. You tell them or I will. Severus and Bill deserve to know the truth.”

Solarin sighed and looked at Severus and then Bill.

“Fine,” she grumbled. She got to her feet and moved to lean against the sink, crossing her arms. She looked miserable as she took a deep breath and began to speak, her eyes fixed on the floor. Every eye in the room was on her, hanging on her every word, and she seemed to speak to no one in particular. “When I got out of Hogwarts me and Bill got this little flat over Flourish and Blotts. He was in his second year of training with Gringotts. It was a real rat hole but it was ours. Severus told me about the Augur Law, told me that registering myself would offer better protection than anything else. I believed him, so I went.” She looked at Harry briefly before she looked back down at the floor. “I saw you looking at my Brand, Harry,” she said, briefly touching the mark on her shoulder. “The Ministry branded me with it, a symbol of what I am. Even the most low down of Ministry workers will know what it means. And to answer your question, yes, it hurt. But I accepted it, it was part of keeping myself safe.” She sighed and glanced at Moody. The grizzled wizard nodded at her to continue and her eyes slid to the floor once more.

“It started small. They were testing me, seeing what I could do. They’d bring in wizards to see how well I could get inside their heads. They started with Purebloods. Then they moved to half-bloods and finally to muggle borns. They tried every permutation in between and they seemed impressed that I didn’t have a problem with any of them. Then the real trouble began. They gave me a potion. I can’t tell you what it was or what was in it, except that it smelled like a sewer. They said it would make it easier for them to test me, make it easier for them to prepare me for the life I would have to lead as an augur out in the world. I took it like a good girl. They brought in a Ministry worker. He was low level, insignificant. They had used the Imperious curse on him. His mind was laid bare. The potion stripped away my control for a while, made me defenceless against his open mind. They made him relive all of his worst memories, made me watch them. When it was all over they said that it was simply another test to see how well I could handle it. They said it was preparation for if Voldemort ever came back.”

She grabbed a glass of pumpkin juice from the table and took a sip before she continued and Harry found himself angry once more. Harry had never had a family, and now he had Solarin. She had always smiled, she had never pushed him, she had been his friend right from the word go. This was the witch who had looked at him with kind eyes when he was broken, who had been more interested in him than his injuries, who had held him as he screamed, whispering soothing nonsense in his ear. Someone had hurt her, someone had hurt his sister-in-law and he wanted them to suffer.

“A few weeks later, Severus came to visit me for Christmas. They’d gone back to the original methods of testing so my control was stronger when he arrived. Bill had gone home and I told him that my brother was overprotective, that he wouldn’t take the news of a boyfriend well. Severus stayed until just after New Year, and a few days later Bill came back. We moved into one of the apartments above Gringotts so he could continue his training. I didn’t mind, it was nicer than the one we were in before. Every morning Bill would go off to his training and I would go off to the Ministry. They told me that repeating the process with the potion was necessary, that it would prepare me. They gave me it every morning when I arrived and then they would bring on a new mind for me to experience. There was one, a muggle. Tiny little thing he was, couldn’t have been more than sixteen. They used Crucio on him until his body gave out. He lasted for hours, and every time they used the spell I screamed with him. At the end of every day, they sent me home and I said nothing. I went home and puked and cried for hours. Bill was working on some catacombs they had unearthed under the Thames, he didn’t come home until late. I was always smiling when he came home, he never suspected a thing, and if he did I just said that I was tired, that the testing took a lot out of me. He let it lie.”

She took a deep shuddering breath.

“It wasn’t until just after my eighteenth that I realized I was in trouble. I was making things explode with every surge of emotion I felt, mine or someone else’s. I was unable to block out any thought, emotion or memory, however small. It finally came to a head one day in May. I was in the Ministry and they brought in a child. She was so small. She was muggle. She had these big dark eyes and long dark hair. She couldn’t have been more than five. They didn’t even need to use the potion anymore, months of them using it had destroyed my ability to stop myself. They started saying things to me, about the girl, about how her family had died. She kept asking for her brother. They said that her father killed her mother and I snapped.” She wiped away a few tears that had slipped out of her glassy eyes. “I killed her,” she whispered.

She wiped away her tears and sniffed. Harry wanted to kill someone and, by the looks of the others in the room, he wasn’t the only one. Molly had a plate gripped in her hands, the porcelain threatening to break under the pressure. Remus had a crushed bagel in his hands and Tonks’ hair had turned an angry shade of red. Draco and Charlie looked like they were about to snap the table in half, they were gripping it so hard. Severus looked like he was about to throw up, and Bill looked murderous. Moody stood stock still by the cooker, his staff grasped tightly in his hands. He looked saddened more than angry and Harry reminded himself that Moody had already read the details in her file. Sirius’ was the most intriguing reaction.

Harry knew that the augur and the Animagus had been in a shaky kind of acquaintance ever since she had lost her temper with him and he hadn’t thought Sirius cared that much about her except to tolerate the fact that she was now living in his house. But Sirius looked half mad with anger. The glass he had been holding had shattered under his sheer force of grip and the shards were cutting into his hand, but he didn’t notice. His blazing eyes were fixed on her.

“I had Bill help me leave that evening. By the next day I had left the Wizarding World and was set up in a little flat a few streets away from the Leaky Cauldron. I sent Severus a letter telling him that I was sick of the Ministry and I wasn’t ever coming back. I told Bill that the Ministry had accidentally caused some damage and he let it slide. They both let me go, accepted my explanations even if they didn’t like it. The only thing I had managed to keep control of through the whole experience was the connection and I had shut it down. I didn’t want Bill to know. It upset him but I told him that it wasn’t a good idea during the testing, that there were things I didn’t want him to know about my childhood and he let it be. Until yesterday, I haven’t set foot in the Wizarding World for almost four years straight. Kingsley was the one they pulled in to be a witness. He was only a year out of training, he was naïve. He didn’t realize the damage they were doing until the end. They fooled him just like they fooled me, manipulated us both. I told him to keep his mouth shut and I wouldn’t drop him in it. Don’t blame Kingsley for this, it wasn’t his fault. It was no ones fault,” she finished. The whole kitchen went up in an uproar, all of them yelling and screaming about the Ministry being the lowest form of life and what they wanted to do with them. Solarin and Moody were the only ones who remained silent, letting them all have their moment.

It took a full twenty minutes for anyone to calm down enough to speak rationally.

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Bill asked. There was hurt in his voice.

“I didn’t want you to end up in Azkaban for murder. And I didn’t want to admit that I had let myself be used like that. Though, I couldn’t tell you what they were trying to accomplish,” Solarin replied, kissing him gently and letting him pull her into his lap, his arms firmly around her waist.

She looked at Severus as Molly began to heal Sirius’ hand for him. “Sevus, say something,” Solarin urged.

“I won’t kill anyone if you make me a promise,” Severus said after a minute of looking into eyes that matched his own. His voice was calm and he looked accepting of her deception of him but Harry wasn’t fooled. Harry knew his husband was feeling guilty but had a suspicion that the guilt would be something that would never go away.

“What promise?” Solarin asked.

“Promise me that you will never ever hide something like that from me again. If someone hurts you, you will tell someone. Don’t ever hide anything like that again.”

She nodded and Severus gathered Harry into his arms, soothing himself with his comforting weight on his lap. Harry couldn’t honestly say that he blamed Solarin for hiding it, or for getting fooled the way she had. He wasn’t angry anymore, just disgusted that someone would do something like that to someone like her.

“I can’t believe this, we can’t let them get away with this!” Sirius yelled angrily.

“They’re not getting away with anything,” Moody said. There was a smile on his face that chilled Harry to the bone. It was dangerous and vengeful.

“What did you do?” Remus asked.

“I took the file to Dumbledore. He took it to the Minister. We spent most of the night in the court room. The whole Department of Mysteries has been disbanded. All the people who ever had a hand in what happened to her have been thrown in Azkaban for attempted murder, with the exception of Kingsley. He was called in as a witness under Veritaserum. He’s been suspended indefinitely. He’ll probably end up with a desk job and under constant watch to make sure he doesn’t get used again. But aside from that, the Minister has changed the law,” Moody said calmly.

“What do you mean, changed the law?” Solarin asked.

“Apparently, all augurs are women and there is never more than one at a time in the world. Something about the immense power contained within you, it gets transferred or something. Something about you makes you unique, makes you strong enough to handle the abilities. The Department of Mysteries has been luring in augurs for as far as the records go back, they have controlled and damaged them all, just like they did to you. Solarin, you are the first to live. Every augur that has gone before you has been killed by the Department of Mysteries. They were driven crazy and their abilities turned inwards.” He took a swig from his hip flask. “It’s an old legislation, but there is a law that calls for the destruction of every augur. They were classed as highly toxic magical goods required to be disposed of for pubic safety. The Department of Mysteries was enforcing that. Well, when the Minister saw the law and read your file, Dumbledore didn’t need to do any convincing. He changed the law this morning, at three am.”

“What does the new law say?” Severus asked. Solarin’s eyes were wide and she looked like she was holding her breath. Harry reminded himself that she had been hiding for years.

“The New Augur Law of Cornelius Fudge states that the use of the potion used on Sol is illegal under punishment of the Dementors Kiss, though the potion doesn’t even have a proper name. It’s called Augur Opiate for now. The new law states that no one can touch her, ever. No tests can ever be performed. If anyone ever tries to do anything like that to her they can be executed without trial. Sol can kill someone in self defence and not be punished for it. Cornelius was fuming. He was horrified by what he was shown. He’s also changed her classification. She is no longer classed as highly toxic magical goods required to be disposed of for pubic safety. She is now classed as a highly coveted magical being with direct personal protection from the Ministry itself. The Minister has classed Solarin as the most valuable witch in the world. She’s more precious than all the gold in Gringotts.”

The room was still and silent. Solarin seemed to be having a hard time breathing. Her hand had come to rest over her Brand and she was running her fingers over the pattern. Her silent tears dripped down onto the pale skin of Bill’s arm. Without a single word, she removed Bill’s arms and stood up, walking from the room. They heard the slam of a door above them and then the house fell silent. Bill made to stand but Severus stopped him with gentle words.

“Leave her be, she just needs some time alone. It’s nothing to do with you, it’s her issues. She’s closed the connection hasn’t she?” Severus asked quietly.

“Yes. How did you know?” Bill asked in surprise and confusion.

“Because I know my sister. She just needs some time alone to figure this out for herself. She has lived most of her life needing protection from some wizard or another. She just needs time to get her head around the fact that she’s free now,” Severus reassured. Bill nodded and relaxed back into his chair, looking cold and lonely.

“Why did you do all that Mad-Eye? You must have known what would happen if you went to Fudge with that file. You must have known that the whole Department of Mysteries would be held accountable. Why did you do it?” Tonks asked.

“Because Sol is my student. I’ll be damned if I let someone get away with hurting my student. You and Sol were the best students I ever had, I’ll be damned if I let anything happen to either of you. And if I can’t stop it, I’m damn well going to get retribution for it,” Moody said, his voice fierce but soft. Tonks was blushing slightly and Moody pulled her into a one armed hug.

“Thank you, Alastor,” Severus said, and Harry knew that he was saying more than just a simple thank you. He leaned in and kissed his husband softly, and then lay his head on Severus’ shoulder, those strong slim arms coming around him.

“I did it for one reason and one reason only. Sol is one of mine and I want to be able to sleep at night. I did it for all of us, Severus. We can sleep easy knowing she’s safe. I’ll be sent to hell if I let someone jeopardise that.”

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When Dumbledore arrived with Ron and Hermione two hours later, Solarin was still hiding herself away. Bill had opted to help his mother in clearing the house to distract himself.

Buckbeak had been released into the wild, much to Hagrid’s delight. Kreacher the house-elf had died some months ago and with him the remaining dark magic in the house had finally dispersed. The tapestry of the Black family tree had fallen off the wall, as had the finally silent portrait of Sirius’ mother and the mounted heads of house elves. The house was slowly being cleared out of any lingering dark artefacts and no one could say that they had ever seen the house look better. Sirius and Remus had spent the small hours of that morning cleaning up the living room and it looked like nothing had happened in there, though there were no ornaments and there was the lingering smell of smoke.

Severus met Dumbledore in the kitchen, Hermione and Ron looking nervous.

“Harry is in the living room, waiting for you. Hermione, would you like some tea to settle the baby?” Severus asked kindly at the sight of the witch resting her hands on her prominent bulge. Molly had been right, Hermione was twice the size of Harry around the middle.

Ron and Hermione looked at him in shock and he chuckled. “Your friend has had a good effect on me,” he joked and they smiled, sitting at the table and accepting tea.

“Professor, how is Harry?” Hermione asked. Severus admired the way she had kept her mouth shut over the fact that her friend had married a teacher. He also suspected that she was responsible for her husbands silence.

“He is very well. A little nervous about seeing you both but he is looking forward to it.”

“Is there anything we shouldn’t say or do? We don’t want to upset him,” Ron asked.

“Don’t touch him unless he initiates contact. Don’t mention toast. Let him lead the conversation, he’ll let you know what topics are suitable. Let him lead, it’s always the safest bet with Harry,” Severus advised. “He is still Harry, he’s just a little different than you knew him to be. Try to keep in mind that he is pregnant and his hormones have a tendency to run a little wild. Just remember that he’s identified as male and it’ll all go smoothly.”

They drank their tea quickly and Severus led them up to the living room, the door wide open and Harry sitting in an armchair, appearing to be peacefully reading a book with Remus at his side.

“Harry, your friends have arrived, love,” Severus said gently. “I’ve got it from here, Remus.”

Remus nodded and grasped Harry’s hand with a reassuring smile before he left the room, heading upstairs. Severus led Ron and Hermione in and tried not to laugh when he noticed that Harry’s book was upside down. Harry never had perfected acting relaxed.

Severus sat himself beside Harry in the chair Remus had vacated, Ron and Hermione choosing to sit down opposite them. The scene was silent and tense and Severus waited for Harry to make the first move.

“I don’t blame you, Ron,” Harry said quietly, the redhead looking at him curiously. “For telling Severus about my bleeding. I don’t blame you for telling.”

Ron looked incredibly relieved. Harry had always known how to handle him. It was no great shock that Harry had known he was feeling guilty. “I’m so sorry, mate. I was scared for you, I thought it might help them find you,” Ron admitted and Harry smiled gently.

“It doesn’t matter. I probably would have done the same if our roles were reversed. It’s okay. It doesn’t matter now, anyway. I have the evidence of what I am under my shirt,” Harry said with a wide smile, laying a hand on his bump.

Hermione giggled. “Harry, you’re tiny. It’s not fair, I look like a whale.”

“No, you look pregnant. And, believe me, I feel the same. I was teeny to begin with, I’m definitely feeling the strain even if I am smaller than you,” Harry reassured, the witch smiling at him.

Harry pulled Severus closer to him. “I’m okay now,” he said quietly. The two of them had agreed that Severus would stay with him until he felt comfortable and then he would leave the three friends to catch up alone.

Severus kissed him gently, ignoring the badly concealed surprise from the two visitors, and nodded. He stood and excused himself, leaving the room. He stood on the stairs and smiled as he heard giggles.

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Severus found himself travelling the house aimlessly. He was slightly lost without Harry to distract him. They usually spent their afternoons talking about whatever came to mind, be it the baby or something else. He was at a loss. He wouldn’t interrupt Harry and his friends, he didn’t want to join Molly in her cleaning of the house and, for the first time in he didn’t know how long, he had no desires to brew any potions.

Severus found himself in the library, a room situated next to the living room and rarely entered. The room was dark and still, the smell of old pages lingering in the air. He felt incredibly calm in this room and faintly wondered why he had avoided it before now. He perused the titles on the shelves, intrigued by the rather substantial collection of Muggle literature. Probably Remus’ collection.

“Do you think this is what she meant?”

Severus jumped as the voice floated out to him and it took him a minute to locate where it had come from. Tucked into the window seat and partially hidden by the loose curtains, Solarin stared out of the window to the street below.

“So this is where you’re hiding,” Severus said as he joined her on the window seat, curling his long legs up so he sat Indian style opposite her. He rested his elbows on his knees and rested his head in his hands, looking at her. She had been crying, he could still see the tear tracks. “Do I think what is what who meant?”

“Mum. Do you think my freedom is what she meant when she used to say it?”

“Say what?” Severus asked, careful to keep his voice gentle. Solarin had not talked of their mother since she was five and Severus had allowed her silence. But now she was offering to discuss her and Severus was going to tread carefully.

“That we were worth more than all the gold in Gringotts. When Mad-Eye said it, I just started thinking of her. Do you think this is what she meant?”

Severus contemplated it. He had forgotten their mothers old saying. It hadn’t even occurred to him that Mad-Eye’s words had made something other than relief rise in his sister.

“I think she meant that she loved us. I think she meant that we were precious to her, more precious than anything else.” He sighed. He had known that one day this conversation would come up, but he had never really been able to prepare himself for it. What their father had done had been horrific, barbaric. How did you even begin to try and understand it? “Sol…when mum died and I took custody of you, I never regretted it for a moment. Some of the best days of my life were spent taking care of you.”

“I know. We were happy together, we were a team. We still are,” she replied. She wouldn’t look at him, but he didn’t expect her to. Solarin, despite being an augur, had never been good at talking about her own emotions.

“I tried to give you everything I could. My only regret is that I was never able to give you her,” Severus confessed, watching a fresh tear slide down her cheek.

“I never expected you to. You performed magic, not miracles. Besides, I don’t remember ever missing out. I had you, that was enough for me.”

“But it has always seemed unfair to me that I got to have so much time with her and you so little,” Severus argued.

“It’s just the way it is. I had you, you were enough for me. I remember you always second guessing yourself, always wondering if you were a good enough parent for me, if you were going to turn out like him. You’re nothing like him, Sevus. You’re a good man, you’re a million times the man he ever was.”

The two of them sat in silence for an hour, and the one after it. Severus could hear Harry laughing and joking with his friends and felt thankful that he didn’t have a connection with him like Solarin had with Bill. He wondered how she had managed to keep her early years from him. This was something he didn’t want to share with his little elfin beauty. His childhood was something he would never discuss with anyone but his sister. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Harry with it, or that he was trying to protect him from the details, but it was something he felt was private. Solarin would always be the only one who could truly understand and Severus couldn’t decide if he was thankful for that or saddened by it.

“Did you know that she was leaving him?” Solarin asked him, lighting a cigarette.

“No,” Severus replied and he watched her nod slowly, allowing her to light up without complaint. He finally understood why she smoked. Their father had always hated it.

“The day she died she was leaving him. She was wearing a blue jumper and a grey skirt. She was wearing the black boots I used to hide my dollies in. Her coat was beige. She hadn’t packed any bags, she just put my coat on me and said that we were going on an adventure. It was just after he broke your arm, do you remember?”

“Yes. I was at the old factory. I used to go there to get out of the house. I was only a few days out of Hogwarts. Dumbledore was still trying to put together the things for me to get the two of you out of there,” he confirmed.

She nodded. “It was raining and you’d gone out without your coat. Mummy said I could be a special girl and carry it to you. She said that we were going to go and get you and then the three of us were going to go on a special adventure. Dad came in, he’d been drinking. I could smell it. Mummy told him we were going to the shops to get some milk. He smiled and told her to hurry back. We were going to walk along the river and then go back along the back streets to get you. We only got as far as the river.”

Severus watched her as she ran her hands along the glass, fighting for the words to say. She looked like their mother. They had both inherited their fathers dark eyes and hair, his thinness, but Solarin had the look of their mother. She had her face shape, her easy smile, her gentle nature. Solarin may have had a bit of a temper, but she was more likely to joke with you and make you cookies than lash out at you.

Solarin was the only person on the planet who had seen what had happened to Eileen Prince-Snape at the hands of her husband. Severus had always wanted to know but Albus had told him to leave it be. Pressuring her to tell him would have caused more problems than it solved. Albus had told him that she would tell him when she was ready. Severus had never bargained on it taking nearly nineteen years.

“We were walking along the riverbank, laughing and singing. We were singing nursery rhymes. Dad came out of nowhere, I didn’t even sense him coming. He grabbed her hair and hit her in the back. He said that she was a whore, that me and you probably weren’t even his. That we were probably the children of one of her freak friends. She pulled out her wand to try and stop him but he grabbed it. He snapped it over his knee and threw it into the river. She was crying. He ripped off her coat and threw that into the river as well. It was her good one. I remember wondering what she’d wear. He pinned her to the ground and I thought that he was trying to stop her running or something. I should have run, should have come and got you, but I couldn’t leave her. She looked so scared.” She took a deep shuddering breath and Severus knew to stay silent. To interrupt her now would do more harm than good. She wiped away her tears. “He was pushing at her skirt and she tried to push his hands away. He hit her, really hard. He bent one of her wrists back. It snapped. She was telling him to stop, that he was wrong, that she would never do that to him, that we were his. He kept saying that he’d show her what a whore she was. Her arguing with him just made him worse. He started pounding on her, hitting her everywhere. And then he was yanking at her skirt. He ripped her tights, the ones that I used as a skipping rope the day before. She was crying and I got mad. I hurt him and then he got really mad.”

She ran her pale hands through her dark hair, making it spill into her eyes, stick to her tears.

“He wasn’t down for long, I wasn’t strong enough then to hurt him with any force. He grabbed me and started shaking me. You told me later that you heard me screaming and I suppose that him grabbing me must have made me do that but I don’t remember screaming. He threw me down and started to hit me, on my back mostly. I curled into a ball the way you used to. It seemed to help you, I thought that it might help me too. He kept screaming that I was a bad girl, that it was my fault, that I was a freak. And then mummy was there, pulling him off of me, pushing him back. She looked so angry. He stumbled and nearly ended up in the water. Then he was against her. I thought that he was trying to hug her, the way he always used to after he hurt her, after he was bad.”

“She was screaming and I couldn’t understand why she was on the floor again. I crawled to her and she was holding her stomach. There was so much blood. I thought it looked like that bottle of ketchup I spilled once, the one that went all over the good table cloth. She was shaking. You were there, you hit dad with your cast and he went flying into the river. There were sirens and the neighbours all around us. Mummy was looking at me, with her big brown eyes. She said it then. She said “My babies are worth more to me than all the gold in Gringotts.” And then she looked like she was sleeping. I shook her, do you remember? She wouldn’t wake up and I couldn’t understand why. Then you were there, and you picked me up and carried me to the house. You sat me on the sofa. You locked the door and stuck your head in the fire. Dumbledore arrived. He pretended to be our grandpa.” She let out a small shaky laugh. “He was so good at it. He dealt with the police for us. We sat together all afternoon, you and me. I was on your lap and you told me about the angels, about where mummy had gone. That night I woke up crying and crawled into your bed, you held me all night.”

She finally looked at him and reached forwards, wiping away tears that he hadn’t realised he had shed.

“You were my hero. My big brother. My Sevus. No man will ever take your place. No man ever saved me like you,” she said. She crawled forwards and settled herself in his lap, curled up with her head on his chest the way they had been all those years ago, that rainy day in June.

They cried together and stayed like that all afternoon, missing lunch. They stayed like that all afternoon, and ignored Molly calling them for dinner. They ignored Sirius coming to find them and Remus asking them if they were all right.

They didn’t move until Harry and Bill came to get them together, the redhead and the brunette holding out their hands to the siblings, each taking their one and leading them from the room, leading them away from being four and seventeen, away from that rainy afternoon in June and into a future that seemed bright.

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After dinner Harry found that he had a few hours before Ron and Hermione had to return to Hogwarts. Dumbledore had joined them for dinner as had Moody, the grizzled wizard running several complicated spells on his plate to check for poisons out of sheer habit.

They all found themselves in the living room. Harry found himself curled in Severus’ lap, Ron and Hermione copying their pose across the room. Molly and Arthur had taken a sofa, as had Remus and Sirius. Draco and Charlie were occupying two armchairs side by side. Harry grinned at them. They seemed very cosy, even if they didn’t touch. Dumbledore and Moody had chosen chairs near the fire, and Moody had taken to tapping his wand against his knee.

Solarin was lying on the floor, on her front on a pile of pillows. Bill seemed to be trying to build a house of cards on her back and Tonks was vandalising a picture of Minister Fudge on the front of that mornings Prophet. Solarin kept offering suggestions of what would be appropriate, preferring instead to ink over the picture of Rita Skeeter. Every time she spoke the house of cards crumbled and Bill growled, starting again. Harry suspected that she was doing it on purpose.

Solarin and Severus had seemed happier than Harry could remember them ever being after they had been retrieved from the library. He wondered what had gone on between them in there but he knew that if he was meant to know then Severus would have told him so he left it alone.

They were all chatting about nothing in particular when Molly suddenly fixed Bill with a calculating glare, her lips twisted into a mocking smile.

“You know, no matter how often I got letters about Fred and George and how bad the letters got, they never even came close to the ones about you,” she announced, wagging a finger at a sheepish looking Bill. Solarin and Tonks were grinning.

“Come on, mum,” Bill said, laughter only a breath away. “I was never that bad. I still made it to being a prefect, and Head Boy.”

“Be that as it may, you were a hellion, all three of you.”

“It’s amazing that the three of you were never expelled, some of the things you did,” Charlie added, though he smiled. Harry got the feeling that there was a joke going on that he didn’t know about.

“I felt that maybe making Tonks and Bill into prefects might tame her a little,” Dumbledore said. “Alas, it seemed to make them all worse.”

Now even Dumbledore was smiling at the three on the carpet.

“What are they talking about?” Harry asked Severus, surprised that his husband was grinning as well.

“The Odd Trio,” Bill supplied and Harry was shocked that Hermione didn’t tumble out of Ron’s lap to the floor with how fast he shot up in his seat.

“No way! It can’t be you! No bloody way!” Ron yelled. Harry was relieved to see that Hermione and Draco looked as confused as he felt.

“Afraid so, little brother. That was us,” Bill confirmed.

“And you held out on us all these years. Some brother,” Ron joked.

“Can one of you explain what the hell the Odd Trio is and what they have to do with the three of them?” Harry asked, beginning to get pissed off.

“Harry, the Odd Trio were the worst pranksters to hit Hogwarts ever. They were worse than all the Marauders and Fred and George put together. They went down in Hogwarts history as the only students to ever get Albus,” Remus explained. “Their reputation also includes pranking every single one of the teachers and most of the students.”

“And that was the three of you?” Harry questioned, Tonks nodding though Bill and Solarin seemed to be consumed by a fit of giggles.

“If you were got by them you used to say that you were got by the ghosts,” Charlie offered.

“Why?”

“Because we could never prove who it was, they were too good. They got caught for a few of their weird and wonderful misdeeds but most of them went unsolved.”

“Though we were always aware of the situation,” Severus intervened.

“Didn’t stop us getting you several times,” Solarin replied.

“Unfortunately,” Severus grumbled with a smile.

“Tell us,” Draco said. “Tell us of your pranks.”

The three on the carpet looked at each other. “All right, but Solly’s telling it. She was the mastermind behind most of them,” Tonks said.

Solarin sat up and crossed her legs, a devious little smile on her face. “Fine, fine. Well, we were called the Odd Trio in school. Two Gryffindor’s and a Slytherin is quite a combination. We all dressed a little differently, and me and Tonks were different. It made us easily identifiable and we earned the nickname. But the name the Odd Trio didn’t become connected with all the pranks until after we left. Before that, we were called the Ghosts.”

She looked thoughtful. “Well, ask some questions and we’ll tell you,” she offered.

“Biggest prank?” Ron asked.

“Turning the whole school into a swamp. Every floor, every room, everything. Teachers offices, bathrooms, dorms, the whole place. We turned it into a swamp the Halloween of my third year. No one could prove it was us because we were in Hogsmeade at the time,” she supplied, Bill laughing beside her, Tonks sniggering. Her hair had turned a bright sunny yellow.

“Impressive,” Harry said.

“Thank you, we were rather proud of that one.”

“So, what was the one you did to Albus?” Sirius asked and Solarin actually collapsed in a fit of laughter.

“We…”

“You,” Bill argued. “That one was all yours, we had nothing to do with that one.”

“You’re right. The Dumbledore incident was all me. Well, I invented this charm to turn his hair and beard a bright luminous purple with green polka dots. He found it funny to begin with.”

“How long did it take to get rid of?” Sirius asked.

“Nearly two weeks. His amusement ran out after two days. I never got caught for it.”

“What about other students?” Harry asked.

“Well, the only notable one that comes to mind was the yeti incident. There was this group of Slytherin’s. They didn’t like the company I kept so I was the target of their bullying a lot. Bill got upset about it,” Solarin said. “We were standing outside Transfiguration one afternoon, I was waiting to go in for a lesson and Tonks and Bill were waiting with me. This group of Slytherin’s came along and we hexed them. Their entire bodies sprouted this six foot long hair. They looked like yeti’s. It took Madame Pomfrey three days to undo.”

The whole room roared with laughter and even Hermione looked impressed.

“How did you get the teachers?” Draco asked.

“Those were just too easy. They were so gullible,” Solarin said. “Well, Severus was a given, but we’ll get to him in a minute. Well, there was Flitwick. We charmed his eyes so that one morning he woke up and couldn’t see his legs. Took Pomfrey hours to figure that one out. Ummm, Hagrid we got with his coat. We charmed it to run around the room. Took him six hours to actually catch it. Filch we got by turning Mrs. Norris into a bat for the day. He cried about that one, come to think of it. McGonagall was the absolute best though.”

“And the one we got into the deepest trouble for,” Tonks supplied.

“True, it was the one we nearly got skinned alive for, never mind expelled,” Solarin giggled. “I convinced Tonks to transform into Bill for the day and I took polyjuice. We positioned ourselves so that she saw Bill everywhere. She thought she was going nuts.”

“We would have got away with that one if she hadn’t seen us all together,” Bill added.

Solarin laughed, light and airy. “She was so mad. She petrified us all and levitated us to Dumbledore’s office. Severus had to spend the next month smoothing her ruffled feathers to actually stop her from expelling Tonks and Bill, and Severus held the threat of expulsion over me for six months after that.”

“You needed something to curb you. Your pranks were starting to get a little out of hand. You seemed to calm down once you yourself became a prefect,” Severus supplied.

“You were very wise,” Solarin praised and Severus smiled fondly at her. “But we did get you more than anyone else.”

“She never told us why you were the most frequent target. We figured that she took offence at you being so harsh a teacher,” Tonks added.

“Well, as her brother, I was the obvious target.”

“So, what did you do to him?” Harry asked.

“Oh, all sorts! We turned his hair pink once, he spent a whole day looking like a salmon, then there was the time we turned his skin blue in the middle of a class. Couldn’t prove it as none of us were actually in that class. What else? Oh! We heard some Hufflepuff claim that he was so bad tempered because he never got laid and it gave us inspiration. We invented a charm to stick his legs together. He woke up one morning looking like a kind of half human, half merman. It was hilarious, watching him hop around his rooms. We were hidden in his closet. Took Dumbledore hours to end the spell.”

“Oh my God,” Harry laughed. Severus looked disapproving but he was still smiling, so Harry figured he was taking it all in good fun. He wasn’t so sure Scary Professor Snape had seen the funny side though.

“We were the reason he started locking his potion stores so well. It was one of the last ones we ever did together before me and Bill graduated,” Tonks said.

“What did you do?” Hermione laughed.

“Well, we snuck in and rearranged all the jars. We swapped over some labels too, though we didn’t mislabel any of the dangerous ingredients, it was mostly things like camomile and aloe. Took him weeks to reorganise it. He was bitching about that one all summer,” Solarin said. “All in all, there were very few people we didn’t get at least once.”

“You never managed to get me,” Charlie argued. Solarin grinned.

“Oh yes we did,” Tonks said. Charlie looked incredulous. He had been at Hogwarts with them, two years above Bill and Tonks and three years above Solarin.

“How? When?” Charlie spluttered.

“It was your fifth year. Me and Tonks were in our third and Arin was in her second. You were sitting doing your History of Magic homework in the Great Hall, one day after dinner. It was still packed in there. We charmed a quill so that no one but us could see it and then we floated it behind you. We tickled you with it, the back of your neck, your hands, your arm, that space on your back between your shirt and your trousers. You kept scratching at it. Honestly, it looked like you had fleas,” Bill explained, Charlie’s jaw dropping further and further as he went on.

“You gits! I couldn’t get a date for the rest of my time there because of you three!” Charlie argued.

“You asked for it. You bragged the Ghosts couldn’t get you. You shouldn’t issue a challenge if you can’t handle the consequences.”

Charlie looked a little annoyed but mostly cheerful as he relaxed into his chair again.

Harry sat there, listening to all of their pranks, until the time came for his friends to leave. He snuggled down into Severus’ embrace that night with a big smile. He couldn’t remember ever having so much fun.

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Severus awoke at two am to find himself alone in bed and the bedroom door wide open. It was two weeks after Harry’s visit with his friends and Severus had found Harry to be more relaxed than ever. Ron and Hermione had visited twice more, the second time bringing Neville and Luna with them at Harry’s request. Harry had thoroughly enjoyed Luna’s zany pregnancy tips, not following a single one. It seemed to be becoming a regular Saturday event, Harry disappearing for hours on end to spend time with his friends. Severus had taken to spending time with Solarin and Bill during these periods of solitude, actually finding that he enjoyed the curse breakers company. Severus had become accustomed to Harry’s newly developed pregnancy quirks. Severus was now used to Harry having acquired odd little habits, like covering his scrambled eggs with chocolate syrup. But he had never woken to find Harry missing from their bed. It was always Severus who stirred first.

He slipped from the bed and pulled on his robe, padding out into the hall to find his little elfin beauty. He began in the nursery, a room that Harry spent a lot of time in. He smiled at the room even though he found it empty and he leaned in the doorway, looking at it. He had never imagined finding love, let alone that he would be standing here a mere two weeks away from being a father. He felt incredibly blessed.

The room was the pale yellow of Harry’s choosing. Solarin had told them that every emotion was a different colour to her. The augur had explained that she felt emotions dance over her skin and then she looked at the people around her. The person the emotion had come from was surrounded by a coloured glow. To her, pure happiness was a soft yellow.

The room held an antique rocking chair that had been a gift from Tonks’ mother. It faced the window and Harry spent a lot of time sitting in that chair, talking to the baby. The ornately carved crib that had once held Severus, and then Solarin, stood in pride of place in the centre of the room. His mother had hidden the Prince family heirloom in the attic at Spinners End and Severus was glad to see that his father had not managed to destroy it. It held fluffy blue blankets and soft stuffed toys. A mobile of different coloured dragons that had been a gift from Charlie hung over it, spinning slowly. There was an ornate chest of drawers that Sirius and Remus had gifted them with. It held an extortionate amount of baby clothes, and there was the assorted lotions and potions associated with newborns gathered on the top. There were little teddy bears on broomsticks stencilled on the walls near the ceiling, the pictures charmed to move and fly around the room, chasing a snitch.

Harry had been right, it was perfect for their child. Severus wrapped his robe tighter around himself and went off to search the rest of the house. He knew that everyone else was sleeping and it gave him the feeling of great stillness.

He finally found Harry in the kitchen, standing by the kitchen counter wearing nothing but his bra and boxers. He was eating ice cream from the tub and Severus felt his blood rush at the sight.

“Harry?” Severus asked softly. “What are you doing up?”

“I was hungry and I wanted something sweet. So I came down and found the ice cream. Want some?” Harry asked, holding out the loaded spoon with his loaded question. Severus prowled forwards, devouring the dessert.

“The bed is cold without you,” Severus complained.

“I’ll help you warm it in a minute,” Harry offered, feeding Severus another spoonful. Harry suddenly got a lusty gleam in his eyes and it made Severus shiver in anticipation of what his husband had come up with this time.

As Harry had progressed with his pregnancy, he had become more eager in their intimacy. Each day saw Harry having Severus take him at least three times, if not more. Harry seemed to walk around in a permanent state of excitement. Severus was all too happy to oblige, and he was just thankful that they had stopped short of giving everyone else in the house a show.

“Severus,” Harry said, drawing his voice out in a low caress, setting the tub and the spoon down on the counter.

“Yes?” Severus replied, biting back a moan as Harry slid his hands across his chest, as he pulled off Severus’ robe, letting it pool at his feet.

“How about we warm this kitchen counter first?” Harry asked, nipping at his lovers throat.

Severus devoured Harry’s mouth, pushing him back to press against the counter. He pushed down Harry’s boxers and hoisted him onto the counter, Harry spreading his legs immediately, grabbing Severus’ hips to pull him forwards. Harry had already had Severus take him four times that day, and Severus put this sudden passion down to hormones, letting himself enjoy the ride. He seemed to be Harry’s favourite craving and he loved it. Harry’s arms came around his neck and pulled him into a scorching kiss, their tongues battling furiously. Severus pushed down his own boxers and moaned as Harry’s hand slipped down to stroke him, his cock already painfully hard. They had gotten rougher with each other, but never to the point of Severus causing bruises. Severus loved treating his lover like spun glass and Harry adored being treated that way.

“Harry,” he moaned, letting his fingers caress Harry, stroke him, slip into him, finding him wet and ready.

“Please, Severus, I need it,” Harry gasped. Severus slid into him slowly and the two of them stilled, savouring the moment. Harry wrapped his arms around Severus and pulled him in for a messy kiss. Severus held Harry’s hips as he began to move, Harry’s legs coming up to wrap around him. Neither of them would last long, they knew that, they never did when Harry was in one of these moods. But Severus had learnt to relax into them, learnt to make it good for both of them through its speed.

All too soon, Harry was yanking at his hair, screaming into his mouth, thrusting desperately against Severus’ invasion of his body, the two of them tumbling over the edge in an explosion of cries and kisses.

“I love you, Severus,” Harry whispered against his lips, the two of them still joined.

“I love you.”

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A week after the kitchen incident, Harry found himself alone with Hermione in the living room, having a peaceful Saturday lunch. Ron had landed himself in detention, and Harry had not been in the mood to endure Neville and Luna’s tips on babies. His patience was a little thin, had been for the last few days. He had felt that Hermione was the only one who could understand how uncomfortable he was now.

“How am I meant to stand this? I can’t get comfortable, no matter what I do,” Harry complained, shifting in his seat.

“How long have you felt awkward?” Hermione asked, taking a sip of tea.

“About a week. Not to give too much information, but me and Severus haven’t had sex for a whole week. I just can’t stand it, it’s too uncomfortable,” Harry revealed, trying not to laugh as Hermione snorted into her teacup.

“Ummm, well…Hold on, I just need to try and get over that little statement,” Hermione laughed. After a minute, she shook her head and smiled at him. “Sorry, I’m okay with you being with Professor Snape, but you keep catching me off guard with it.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay, I just keep forgetting that you two are intimate. I think that’s a good thing. My head might explode if I think too deep into it. I’m still kind of shocked that you married a teacher.” The two of them giggled. “No, he makes you happy, that’s all I need to know,” she said, smiling as he grasped her hand. She leaned a little closer. “Me and Ron haven’t done it in weeks. I know exactly how you feel.”

“So, how do you get comfortable? And how do you stop Ron getting pissed off with it? I mean, Severus seems to be fine with it, he’s really great with it actually. But Ron can be a bit of a hot head. How do you stop him feeling left out?”

“I find hot baths help. Oh, you know those ice pack things they put in lunch boxes?” Harry nodded. “I use a bandage to wear one against my lower back, it helps a little. Hot and cold, the extremes really help me, they might work for you too. As for intimacy, Ron’s taken to rubbing my belly with baby oil. It helps him feel involved and, my god, does it feel good to have him do it. It helps stop the tightness in the skin,” Hermione advised.

“That might be an idea. So, you looking forward to it, being a mum?” Harry asked.

“Kind of. I think, at this point, I’m more looking forward to not being pregnant anymore.” They giggled and Harry was forever in her debt when she conjured a napkin into an ice pack for him. It was absolute heaven. Thank god the witch had already turned seventeen. “Seriously, I think that Molly’s more excited about being a grandma than I am about being a mother. But I am looking forward to it. I can’t wait to take her to the park for the first time, and hear her first word,” Hermione divulged. “Aren’t you excited?”

“I guess.”

“What’s on your mind?” Hermione asked at his sudden worried look.

“I am looking forward to it, really. It’s just…”

Hermione sat silently, letting Harry lead like Snape had told her to. She wondered what was going on inside her friends head. She knew that she herself had her doubts about becoming a parent, but Harry had a whole different set of issues. Hermione couldn’t imagine having gone through what Harry had to get his baby.

“It’s just, he’s safe where he is. While he’s still inside me, Lucius can’t get to him. Once he comes out, what if I can’t protect him?” Harry whispered, staring at his bump.

Hermione got out of her seat, with a little trouble, and knelt down in front of him. She rested her head on his knees and looked up at him.

“Harry, I hate to say it but you have a bit of a saving people thing. You managed to save the whole world from Voldemort. You will have no trouble keeping your child safe,” she reassured.

“But I had all of you to help me save the world,” Harry argued. Severus had been right that first morning. Harry was stubborn. He had begun to cry and Hermione passed him a tissue.

“And you have all of us now. Do you really think that Severus will let anything happen to his chance of fatherhood, let anything happen to either of you? He loves you more than anything else. Do you think that any of us would let anything happen to your baby? And I have to say, from my research, Solarin is one scary witch. The books say that she can do things that would make your eyes pop out.” Harry laughed shakily. “No one is going to let Lucius have him. None of us will let Lucius near either of you, especially once he’s born.”

Harry took a deep breath and nodded, moving slowly to the floor and into her arms, letting his best friend save him for once.

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The letter arrived with dinner and had Solarin squealing in an uncharacteristic display of girly excitement. Harry thought she looked three instead of twenty three.

“Would you like to tell us what the shrieks of glee are for or should we begin to guess?” Severus drawled, watching his sister dance around the kitchen.

“I’m singing at Enchantment on Monday night!” Solarin announced, draping herself across Bill’s back and waving the parchment in his face. He laughed and it took him four attempts to actually grab it.

“What’s Enchantment?” Harry asked.

“It’s a club in Diagon Alley. It’s pretty swanky, really upmarket. A lot of Aurors and Ministry officials go there after work. It’s a big deal to perform there,” Sirius answered. “How’d you score a gig like that?”

“I know the owner, his name is Jean-Claude. I used to sing there before I left the Wizarding World. When I stopped, Jean-Claude gave me an open invitation to come back. I sent him a letter a week ago and he sent me this. I’m the headliner for Monday night,” Solarin said proudly. “I have a sound check tomorrow and then I go on at eight.”

“Can we go?” Harry asked, Severus looking at him in bewilderment.

“Go where?” the Potions Master asked.

“To Enchantment. Can we go and watch her perform?”

Severus looked at Harry in amazement. “You want to?” Harry nodded and Severus looked at his sister.

“He’ll be surrounded by Aurors. I’ll be there, so will Bill. And you, of course,” Solarin reasoned. “Sirius, Remus, you want to come?” The two nodded and she received confirmations from Tonks, Charlie and Draco as well. “We’ll all be there. He’ll be surrounded by people to protect him and I’ll have a word with Jean-Claude. He can make special arrangements. He’ll be very well protected.”

“How can you be sure that Jean-Claude will give in to your requests?” Remus asked and Bill gave a smirk.

“Well, considering I’m the witch who brought in the biggest profits he’s ever had I’m thinking that he’ll give me anything I want. He’s not having such great luck at the moment getting good acts. According to the letter, I’m making quite a stir already and the fliers have only just gone out. Jean-Claude will give me anything I ask for if I bring him money in,” Solarin said.

“So, can we go?” Harry asked again.

“I see no reason why not,” Severus said and smiled as Harry beamed at him.

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Monday rolled around and Harry could hardly contain himself. For the first time in days he actually felt somewhat comfortable and more energetic than he had his whole pregnancy. He couldn’t wait to actually get to the club.

Solarin had spent most of yesterday at Enchantment and Bill had gone with her. Bill said that they would love the show and Solarin had grinned. She had made special arrangements for Harry to be there. Jean-Claude had been so grateful that she had agreed to perform that he had agreed immediately to her requests. Harry knew that the bouncer would be on his guard for Lucius, as would Jean-Claude and the barman. They had a secluded table in the back, half hidden in the shadows so Harry didn’t have to deal with people staring at him all night and Solarin would be watching the whole place from on stage.

They arrived at the club at about seven so that they could get settled before the doors opened at half past and Solarin went on at eight. They were greeted by Jean-Claude himself, who turned out to be a French wizard who looked like your typical Hollywood vampire. He had slicked back black hair and was very pale. He was wearing a white shirt with lace ruffles. He had a tendency to kiss Solarin’s hand and call her ‘ma petite’ which made Bill growl slightly.

Solarin herself looked every inch the rock star. She had dressed in black jeans that appeared painted on and a red and black corset. Her dark hair was hanging loose and her makeup was expertly applied. The dark eye shadow made her eyes seem to burn. Her boots were knee high dragon hide and her belt was studded with rhinestones. Her black fishnet gloves and a black leather choker completed the look.

Harry found himself safely secluded in the corner of their booth with Severus to his right and Remus to his left. Mad-Eye had even come along and he hovered near the table, looking suspiciously at everyone. Harry was surprised but elated when Fred and George strolled in at ten to eight and joined them, amusing them with tales of their more unusual customers.

At eight, the lights went down and Harry jumped as Solarin appeared, encased in flames. Bill explained that while on stage she did quite a few magic tricks that the average witch couldn’t produce. It was how she made the club more money in one night than it made in a whole month. Considering it was a very successful bar, that was saying something. Harry relaxed into it and thoroughly enjoyed watching her. Her tricks ranged from making the whole crowd euphoric, to casting an illusion to make it seem like there were three of her on the stage, all dancing around.

She was really good, Harry decided. Her voice could go from husky and soulful to light and airy. The music was a good mix of rock and pop, with a few dance numbers thrown in. Solarin was dancing provocatively with one of the guitarists and Harry could hear Severus and Bill plotting beside him.

“Maybe if we both ganged up on her, she’d stop doing that,” Bill suggested, glaring at the man grasping Solarin’s hips as she swayed them.

“That’s a good idea. It might just work,” Severus agreed, sipping at his butterbeer.

Bill flinched. “She’s telling me to relax, it’s just dancing,” he revealed.

Harry laughed and grinned up at her.

The evening went on so smoothly that Harry was completely caught off guard when Lucius strolled up to the bar and ordered a drink at half nine.

Solarin’s eyes narrowed and Harry clutched at Severus, pointing out the blonde to his husband, who alerted the rest of their group.

“Solarin’s telling me to tell you all to stay where you are. She says that Lucius is hers tonight,” Bill said. They all stayed sitting, and Severus pushed Harry further back into his seat, cloaking him in shadows. One of the backing singers took over from Solarin and she came floating through the crowd to the table. Jean-Claude glided up beside her, his face dark with anger.

“He has rendered my bouncer unconscious without his wand,” Jean-Claude said to her. “I can alert some Aurors to get rid of him for you, ma petite.”

Harry was incredibly afraid. He had met the bouncer, his name was Joe and he was huge. He was six foot four, and had arms bigger than his pregnant waist. That Lucius had knocked him out with only his fists made his heart pound.

“No. Leave him to me, Jean-Claude. Lucius is mine tonight. Carry on like nothing is happening,” Solarin said calmly. Harry could feel panic start to rise in him, but he was suddenly struck by how scary Solarin looked right then. It didn’t help him much.

The augur moved around the table and leaned in close to Severus.

“Trust me. Give me Harry,” she said.

“Are you completely barmy?” Severus asked.

“No, I’m angry. Trust me, I won’t let anything happen to him. But I need him to help me deal with Lucius. Give me Harry.”

Severus looked at Harry and the hermaphrodite nodded, easing himself out of his seat and taking Solarin’s hand. The witch led him away from Severus and turned to face him.

“Harry, I need you to trust me and do as I tell you. I promise that I won’t let him touch you, I’ll keep you safe, and when I’m done you can go right back to Severus. I promise that I will never ask you to do anything like this again but this experience will be something you enjoy in the end. Okay?” she asked.

Harry nodded, not trusting himself to speak at that point.

“Good. Right, I need you to panic for me. Imagine that Severus is not here. I need you to panic the way you did when you first came to us. Can you do that for me?” Harry nodded and let his panic rise, let it consume him. Solarin’s eyes were watering slightly. “Whoa, that is strong panic,” she breathed. “It’s perfect. Harry, I want you to cast your mind back, I want you to remember how much pain you were in, how much pain he caused you. I want you to go back to that room again, just for now.”

Harry nodded and hugged her slightly. He had no other way of telling her that even through his panic, even through the memories that threatened to suffocate him, he was still all right. He was with her, he was okay. She nodded and took him by the hand. “I will not let go of you until I send you back to your seat. Then Tonks will take you back. If you want to pull out, tell me.”

He shook his head and she led him to the bar, led him so that they were standing just behind Lucius. She reached out and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned and smiled at them, Solarin pulling Harry slightly behind her.

“My my my, look at this. The famous Solarin Snape and my little whore. Solarin, I haven’t seen you for years, not since you were seven. I must say, you have grown up,” Lucius said, eyeing her perversely, his eyes seeming to undress her. “I must say, I was delighted to hear of the changes in the augur law. You must be so pleased.”

“Ecstatic,” she deadpanned and Lucius nodded slightly before he focussed his attentions on Harry.

“My little legend. How I have missed you. Haven’t you missed me? Missed our little sessions together. I’ve missed you writhing beneath me,” Lucius said, a wide dangerous smile on his face. Harry felt his panic reach fever pitch as Lucius reached for him, probably intending to pat his bump. He kept remembering the stabbing pain of the Cervix Shields, the pain of Lucius inside him. He kept his mind away from Severus and his gentle lovemaking, of his reverence as he touched Harry. “You are looking big now. I can’t wait to meet my son.”

Lucius’ hand never reached it’s target. Solarin reached out and placed her hand on Lucius’ chest, right above his heart. It was immediate. The blonde wizard crumbled to his knees, gasping, trying to scream in pain through his sudden inability to take in a full breath. Solarin pulled Harry behind her and he placed his hands on her shoulders as she squatted down to Lucius’ level. No one in the crowd had even noticed. Solarin had placed them all under an illusion so they didn’t see what was happening right in front of them. But Harry, Jean-Claude and the rest of their party could see.

“Awww, does that hurt?” she mocked and he nodded, his lips beginning to take on a blue tinge. She removed her hand and rested her chin in it, balancing her elbow on her knee, her other hand stroking over the back of Harry’s on her shoulder. “Really? Well, that is Harry’s panic that’s making it hard for you to breathe. It’s what’s making your heart pound, and what’s bringing on the cold sweat. It’s hard to see, right?” He nodded, his eyes wide with fear.

“Well, I just thought you should feel one of his panic attacks for once. Now, the pain that your feeling, the feeling of being tortured, that would be his pain, the pain you caused when you violated him. See, the Ministry taught me to transfer emotions. I thought you’d like to feel Harry’s as a gift. Do you like it?” He shook his head, trying to gasp out some words. He looked like he was dying and Harry felt sudden elation at the sight.

“No? Really? I thought you liked Harry’s pain. After all, isn’t that why you spent all those months torturing him? No? Well, I just thought it might be a gift you’d like. Doesn’t it just make you hot, aren’t you getting your rocks off on it? No? Shame, I thought you’d love my gift. I thought you got off on pain.”

She beckoned Tonks over and Harry was pulled away slightly, but he refused to be led back to his seat. He wanted to see what she did next. Lucius seemed to be close to passing out, and there was blood pouring from his nose and eyes. He coughed and blood dribbled from his lips.

Solarin grabbed his chin and forced him to look at her. “Now, I’m not stupid enough to believe that this will keep you away from Harry and the baby permanently, but it might make you realise how foolish you are to think you’ll get anywhere near them. But let me educate you on a few things. I’m not seven years old anymore, and I’m not afraid of you like I was back then. I’m not a little girl who doesn’t have the power to take you on. I promise you if you come near my brother-in-law, or my nephew again, I will make this little experience feel like a holiday. You will wish for death. I’m stronger now, and I can take you on and win. Don’t be a fool and think you can win against me. Now, I’m going to stop this and you’re going to leave. You’re going to stay away from here tonight, because if I see you here again tonight they will be housing you in the St Mungo’s psychiatric ward for the rest of your life. Do you understand?”

He nodded and she smiled at him.

“Say ‘I understand’” Solarin instructed and he glared at her.

“I understand,” he gasped and she put her hand to his chest again, the rapist gasping in great lungfuls of air.

He scrambled to his feet and wiped away some of the blood. He backed away from her towards the door, Mad-Eye grabbing him and making him jump.

“Let me help you out, boy,” Mad-Eye said cheerfully, half dragging him to the door.

Lucius paused in the doorway and looked at Harry. “Be seeing you, my little legend. And I can’t wait to meet my son,” he said silkily before he was gone.

Solarin turned to Mad-Eye. “Take the door. I want someone I can trust to handle themselves on it if he’s stupid enough to come back,” Solarin ordered and Moody nodded. She turned to Jean-Claude. “Joe goes home. He’s had enough for one night. Send him home.” Jean Claude nodded and Solarin moved to the table.

“Is he all right?” Solarin asked Severus, looking at Harry.

“He appears to be,” Severus replied. He looked at her proudly. “That was impressive.”

“I learnt what I could from the Ministry. It’s a shame I can’t take Harry’s pain away from him.” She looked at Harry, the Gryffindor taking a shaky sip from his orange juice. “Harry, are you all right?”

He nodded and grinned at her. “That was brilliant,” he said quietly.

“Thank you. Glad you liked it. Would you like to go home?”

He shook his head. “No. I want to stay and enjoy the rest of the night.”

She nodded and Bill kissed her before she moved back to the stage, continuing her act as if nothing had happened.

Harry decided that he was rather glad that Solarin was on their side.

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Severus contemplated the last week as he dressed for the day. Harry had thoroughly enjoyed his night out and had raved about Solarin’s treatment of Lucius all week. Severus had become used to waking up alone and usually wandered down to the kitchen to find his lover pacing to ease his discomfort. Harry had taken to placing an ice pack in the tight band of his bra against his spine. He said it felt better. They hadn’t been able to make love since the kitchen incident but Severus hadn’t minded. They had developed an odd sort of routine before bed each night. Severus would rub baby oil or moisturiser into Harry’s bump and then Harry would sit there and watch while he touched himself. Harry seemed genuinely to enjoy watching Severus bring himself to climax. Harry was the one who asked him to do it every night. It was an odd sort of intimacy but they enjoyed it.

Harry had finally decided to call himself the carrier. He had reasoned that Severus was the father and mother was too feminine. He had explained that he still considered himself male and to call himself the father as well would cause the baby unnecessary confusion. He had rationalized that carrier was an appropriate name for himself and everyone had agreed to it.

They had gone through Harry’s birth plan almost daily, Severus wanting to ensure that Harry knew what was coming. The home birthing kit had taken up residence on the floor behind their bedroom door. Harry was due any day now, and he was sure that they were as ready as they could be. He had perfected three specialist potions for Harry. They and the painkillers were all ready in place for Harry when and if he needed them. The inhabitants of the house all seemed to be on a knifes edge, just waiting for something to happen. Severus could practically feel the anticipation in the air.

He was pulled out of his contemplation as Remus appeared in his doorway.

“Severus, something’s wrong with Harry,” Remus announced and Severus hastily tied his shoes with a spell.

“What kind of something? Tell me what’s happening,” Severus ordered, following Remus down the stairs.

“Well, he’s pacing and we didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Then Solarin came in and she said that there was something off with him, that she could feel something almost like pain coming from him. We tried asking him what was wrong but he won’t talk to anyone, he just keeps pacing,” Remus explained. “It couldn’t be time, could it?”

“It probably is. We’re not sure when his actual due date is as we can’t be sure when he actually conceived. All we have are rough timetables. It’s roughly any day now.”

The two of them entered the kitchen and Severus moved to Harry, who was pacing. His hands were on his bump and he seemed to be rubbing it to try and make something go away.

Severus pulled Harry into his arms and held him around the ribs. The shorter man looked at him though he continued to rock side to side.

“Harry, talk to me love. Tell me how it feels,” Severus urged.

“Uncomfortable, like he’s pushing against me inside, like he doesn’t have enough room or something. And it keeps getting tight across my bump. It doesn’t hurt, just feels uncomfortable, like before, but worse, kind of. I know it’s not a good description, but I don’t know how else to tell you,” Harry explained, holding on to Severus’ shoulders as he rocked.

“It’s all right, love, I understand you. How long had this been going on?”

“Since quarter to one. I thought he was just restless so I came down to pace. I never made it back to bed. I was going to come and get you if it got worse. I thought it would go away.”

Severus glanced at the clock. It was now a quarter to seven.

“I think that it’s not going to go away, love. You’ve been at this for six hours.”

“I’ve started, haven’t I? He’s on his way, right?” Harry asked. Severus was bemused by how calm he sounded.

“Yes, love, I think he is. Hold on to Remus for me while I have a feel,” Severus instructed as he passed Harry to Remus. The hermaphrodite held Remus’ shoulders and he held his ribs while Severus slipped his hands down, feeling the swell of the child.

“He’s dropped, Harry. That’s why it feels like he’s pushing down inside you. He’s moved down. You’re right, Harry. You’ve started.”

Harry nodded and moved back to holding Severus once more, Severus motioning to Remus to sit down. Severus rubbed his hands along the bump, helping Harry to ease himself.

“Have you eaten anything?” Severus asked.

“I did eat a bagel at about four, but it didn’t stay down for long. And then my body decided to stage a mutiny. I think we can safely say that there’s nothing left in my system but a baby,” Harry joked.

“All right, I think we should stick to water or fruit juice for now, just to be on the safe side,” Severus mused. “Harry, why don’t you talk everyone through your birth plan?”

“Why? We went through it again last night,” Harry asked.

“Yes, we did, but they need to know as well. Why don’t you explain to them what you want while you bring him into the world?”

Severus was counting on Harry being so sure on the plan that he didn’t panic as he went from one stage to the next. He hoped his theory was right. It looked like this was going to take a very long time.

“Well, I’m going to move around and relax for a while,” Harry began, the people at the table watching him, listening to every word. “And then, when the pains get bad, I’m going to relax in the tub, ‘cause the water will help make it feel better and Severus has made me some potions that go in the bath. When it comes time to push, I want to do it in my room. So, Sirius is going to sit on the bed and I’m going to hold onto him. Remus is going to rub my back. Madame Pomfrey is going to be in there just to keep an eye on things. And Severus is going to help me deliver the baby. I’m going to be on all fours because the book says that it’s easier to push him out that way.”

“That’s very good, love. Perfectly remembered,” Severus praised. “Now, do you want me to pace with you?”

“No. Sit down, I’m okay. Have some breakfast or something,” Harry said. Severus took a seat at the table.

Seated around the table were Solarin, Bill, Draco, Charlie, Severus, Molly, Remus and Sirius. They all chatted about nothing in particular while all covertly keeping an eye on Harry. Draco refrained from asking Harry questions just then. He figured that Harry would probably snap at him.

As the hours wore on Harry began to grip the kitchen counter at regular intervals, gritting his teeth. It was just past noon when Harry moaned and called for Severus.

“Talk to me, Harry,” Severus urged as Harry gripped at him.

“It’s starting to hurt. It’s not too bad yet, but it’s starting to hurt,” Harry ground out through clenched teeth.

After that, Severus had to pace with Harry, the sprite grasping at him every so often as another contraction hit. At about one, Harry grabbed Severus hard and gasped, his eyes going wide.

Severus had grabbed at Harry as he had thrown his whole weight at him, his husband burying his head in his chest. Harry whimpered.

“Severus, I’m leaking,” Harry moaned, looking down at the puddle he was now standing in.

“It’s all right, Harry. It’s your waters breaking, it’s meant to happen,” Severus reassured as Sirius spelled away the mess and dried Harry’s trousers. “Solarin, would you go and run a warm bath in the bathroom nearest my room, please. Come on, love, it’s time for the bath now.”

Solarin and Bill hurried from the room and Severus chuckled at Harry’s amused reply.

“Already?”

“It’s been twelve and a half hours,” he said as he began to lead Harry to the door.

“Really? I didn’t notice the time passing,” Harry replied calmly. It was all okay, it was all going to plan. As long as they followed the plan, Harry reasoned, he would be fine.

“Sirius, you should call Albus now. He’ll know who else needs to be called. All of you stay down here until I call you. If you come up before you’re called, you’ll be deviating from the plan and Harry won’t do well with that,” Severus said as Harry rocked in the doorway. “Though, would one of you bring us some drinks in a few hours?”

All of them nodded and watched as Severus and Harry disappeared slowly up the stairs.

The two Potter-Snape’s reached the bathroom just as Solarin turned off the taps.

“Sol, the home birthing kit is in my room, just behind the door. I have written out instructions for how it should be set up, they are secured to the top of the box. Could you please set it up for us?” Severus asked.

She nodded and moved from the room, Bill following her out. Severus closed the door and Harry leaned against the sink as Severus added the necessary potions.

“What do they do?” Harry asked as Severus poured in the last one. The water had taken on a blue tint.

“Well,” Severus began as he helped Harry strip off his clothes. “The first one is to relax your birth canal. This isn’t going to be easy for you, love, you’re very narrow, but the potion will help. The second one is to numb you slightly down below. It won’t take away all feeling, that wouldn’t be safe to do, but it will help. The third one will calm you and make it easier for you to sweat out the pains. Come on, in you go.”

Severus held Harry firmly as he lowered himself down, getting comfortable. Eventually, after many variations in position, he ended up on his knees, his head resting on his folded arms on the lip of the tub. Severus slid down the wall to sit beside his head.

“Better?” Severus asked at Harry’s relieved smile.

“Brilliant. It feels so much better now I’m in the water. How long can I stay in here?”

“Until the time comes for you to push, that is if you still want to push him out in our room.”

“Yeah, in our room. So, I’ve got a while in here then?”

Severus considered it. “Depends on how far along you are. Is it all right if I check you?”

Harry nodded and Severus moved to Harry’s hips, thankful that he had worn a short sleeved t-shirt today. Harry grimaced as he slipped gentle fingers into him.

“So, you’re checking my cervix, right?” Harry asked.

“That’s right. I’m seeing how dilated you are.”

“And I have to be at ten for it to be time for me to start pushing, right?”

“Yes.”

“What am I now?” Harry asked as Severus removed his fingers and came to sit by his head again.

“Four.”

“Four? Four? That’s it? Twelve and a half hours and I’m only four?”

Severus smiled at him, running his fingers through the unruly hair. “Think of it like this. You’re almost half way there. Slow and steady is the best way. It’s better this way than if it came on fast.” Severus broke off as Harry gasped, grabbing his hands and groaning through clenched teeth. The pain passed and Harry panted as it faded. “Are you in pain, love? Do you want a potion?”

“No, not yet. It hurts, but it’s more uncomfortable than painful,” Harry explained. “Maybe in a bit, when it gets worse.”

Severus was impressed by Harry’s calm acceptance of the fact that this pain would get worse.

They spent the next few hours talking about anything that came to mind, stopping regularly so Harry could moan at the pain, grasping at Severus. He continued to refuse the potions all throughout his time in the tub.

At about six, Solarin brought them up drinks.

“We’ve been invaded,” she said with a smile as she handed them their glasses of water, keeping her eyes on Harry’s face. “The kitchen is ram packed and the Weasley twins have opened a bookies at the table.”

“What’s the strangest bet?” Harry asked as Severus sloshed warm water over his back, placing his glass on the tiled floor.

“I can’t quite decide between you having twins or the baby turning out to be a girl,” she admitted, moving forwards and letting Harry clasp her hands tightly as another pain hit.

“Fuck!” Harry cried. This one was stronger than the ones before, and he hoped that it would all be over soon. He was very tired.

“Who suggested twins?” Harry asked as it passed.

“Who else? The twins,” she replied with a smirk.

“Well, tell them that they can fuck right off. Twins? They’re cruel. I’m going to get them for even suggesting such a thing,” he said and Solarin chuckled. “Who suggested that he’s a girl?”

“Luna. Strange witch, that one. Nice, but strange.”

“Definitely strange, but very nice with it. I admire her imagination, but I hope that she’s got the money to lose. I’m fabled, it’s written in stone, he’s a boy.”

“I’ll be sure to pass that on. I’ll leave you to it,” Solarin said, stroking Harry’s hair before she left the room, closing the door behind her.

“Luna is way out there and the twins are cruel,” Harry said to his husband.

“Very true. Harry, can I check you again?” Severus asked.

“Go on then, but if you tell me I’m only at five again, I’m going to hex you,” he warned, earning a smile. Those fingers slipped into him again and he scowled at the feel of them.

“Seven and a half, almost eight. Nearly there.”

“Good, I’m bloody tired,” Harry grumbled. “Why the hell does it hurt like this?”

“Your cervix is being pulled open with every contraction to allow the baby passage.”

“Wonderful.”

At ten pm, Severus left a very worn-out Harry in the tub and moved to the top of the stairs, calling down for Sirius, Remus and Poppy Pomfrey.

“It’s time,” he said, instructing Sirius on where to sit on the bed and placing a pillow across his lap for Harry to bite down on. He directed Poppy to a chair. It was placed far enough away for Harry to remain accepting of her presence but close enough for her to keep an eye on everything. He turned to Remus. “How’s it going down there?”

“Everyone keeps wondering what’s taking so long, and Draco has fallen asleep at the table,” Remus replied as the two of them moved to the bathroom.

“Harry, come on, love. It’s time for you to push now,” Severus coerced as he and Remus helped him out of the tub, Harry refusing to put on his robe. Harry was in too much pain to care about his nudity.

They guided the exhausted being into the bedroom, Harry complaining that it had never felt like a thousand steps before, and eased him down onto his knees, Harry resting his head on the pillow across Sirius’ legs. Severus arranged his knees far enough apart for Harry to push without resistance that didn’t need to be there.

“It’s time, Harry. You need to push with the next pain,” Severus instructed. Harry shook his head, moaning his complaint. Remus knelt down and began to rub Harry’s back, Sirius began to wipe his face and neck with a cool wet cloth and Severus stroked his thighs and hips but still Harry continued to shake his head and voice his complaints.

“I don’t want to push,” Harry cried as another contraction hit. “I’m tired.”

“Harry, I know that you’re very tired and that you’ve been doing this for a very long time, but you need to push now,” Severus argued.

“No! Fuck you, you push!”

“Harry, please push for me, love.”

“No! Fuck off and leave me alone!”

Severus crawled up to lay his head beside Harry, stroking back his sweaty hair. Harry was sobbing and it broke Severus’ heart.

“Harry, I know you are very tired, and I know that you have been doing this for a very long time. I know this, but you just need to work hard for a little bit longer,” Severus enticed. “Once you push him out, we’ll let you sleep.”

“But he can’t come out!” Harry sobbed, closing his eyes against the pain. He reached out and grabbed Severus’ hand. “Please, Severus! You can’t let him come out! Make him stay where he is, please!”

“Why not, love?” Severus asked gently.

“Because he’s fine where he is, he’s safe there. He’s safe inside me, why can’t he just listen and stay there?”

“Because it’s time for him to meet us.”

“But Lucius can’t get him while he’s still inside me. He’s safe there. If he’s not inside me then Lucius can get at him,” Harry explained, looking at Severus with big green eyes. “If he comes out, Lucius can try and take him from me.”

“Harry, Lucius will never come near him, I promise. I won’t let him near our baby. But it’s time, love. You can’t stop this. The baby has decided that he wants out. He needs you to get him out into the world. He’s counting on you to do this,” Severus promised.

“It hurts, Severus,” Harry whimpered.

“I know it does, sweetheart. Do you want a potion now?”

Harry nodded and he fished the little bottle of green potion from his pocket. He helped Harry sit up enough to gulp it down before easing him back to his pillow.

“It won’t make the pain go away completely but it will take the edge off,” Severus explained and Harry nodded.

“You promise I can go to sleep after this?” Harry asked.

“I promise that as soon as he is out, we will do the rest and you can sleep,” Severus agreed.

“And you promise he’ll be safe once he’s out?”

“I swear on my life we’ll keep him safe once he’s out.”

Harry took a few deep breaths. “All right, I’ll push.”

Severus kissed him and moved back down, positioning himself to guide the baby out.

“All right, Harry, when the pain comes again, I want you to push down with as much force as you can, just like it says in your book,” Severus instructed, and, this time, Harry nodded.

Harry began to groan and Severus called at him to push. Harry did as he was told, grunting against it. They went on like this for a few more pushes before Harry screamed.

“Oh God! Inside, Severus, it hurts inside! I’m ripping, I can feel it!” Harry screamed, pulling at Sirius’ belt, the Animagus mopping cold water between Harry’s shoulder blades.

Severus slipped his fingers into him and felt the top of the baby’s head emerging through Harry’s cervix.

“He’s coming through your cervix, Harry. You’re not ripping, you’re just stretching. Come on, Harry, push!” Severus reassured, encouraging him to bear down as Harry groaned again, a new contraction rippling across him.

Harry continued to scream as he pushed, and Severus didn’t stop him, encouraging him with his pushes and rubbing his hands along his legs and hips in praise. Harry continued to push for hours, his screams getting a little louder with every one, the baby slowly inching it’s way down the too narrow passage, Harry eventually biting down on the pillow as it got worse.

At three am, after five hours of pushing, Severus could just see the top of the baby’s head if he held Harry open. Harry was worn out and fast approaching the point of giving up. Remus and Sirius were looking worried, but Severus was impressed by how reassuring they were to Harry through the bloodcurdling screams, how calm they sounded. Severus looked at Poppy.

“Is this right? He’s been pushing for hours and he’s not even crowned yet,” Severus asked. Poppy got up from her chair and peered over Severus’ shoulder, keeping her hands to herself as she examined what Severus was questioning about. She nodded to the Potions Master and moved so that Harry could see her. Harry acted as Severus had expected him to.

“Fuck off, I don’t want you! I want Severus, don’t you dare touch me!” Harry screeched at her.

“Harry, she’s not touching you, she just needs to ask you some questions,” Severus soothed, rubbing circles on the base of his spine. “I’m still here, it’s still only me touching you down below.”

“I don’t want to answer questions.”

“Harry, please. I need to know the answers.”

Harry fell silent and Severus nodded to Poppy. Sirius sponged at Harry’s face before she spoke, Remus rubbing his back.

“Harry, can you tell me how the baby feels?” she asked kindly.

“What the fuck are you on about?” Harry demanded angrily.

“It’s a special kind of magic. Because we don’t have equipment to monitor him, your magic reaches inwards and you can tell how he feels,” she explained. “Can you tell us how the baby feels?”

Harry screwed up his face in concentration as he felt deep down inside to how his baby felt.

“He’s bored. And he’s tired,” Harry answered, reaching out and grabbing Remus’ hand. The werewolf returned the grip and stroked Harry’s shoulder with his other hand.

“But he’s calm? He’s not panicking?”

“No. He’s fine, just tired and bored. And he doesn’t like being squeezed out, he’s uncomfortable. He’s fine,” Harry snapped.

“And how do you feel? Can you go on?”

“I suppose. I have to, don’t I? I don’t have a choice,” he said grumpily, moaning as yet another contraction started to break in him.

“How do you feel, Harry? The baby is tired and bored and doesn’t like being squeezed. Tell me how you feel,” she instructed, Harry glaring at her. His patience was wearing thin with her even being in the room and his body was wracked with pain again, so no one could really blame him for the way he answered her.

“How the fuck do you think I feel?” he yelled. “I’m fucking tired and in fucking pain! You try pushing a baby out and see how you bloody feel! Now, fuck off and leave me alone!”

Poppy backed off, her hands raised in a move of submission. Harry buried his head in his pillow and sobbed.

“I want it over! Just make it stop, please, make it stop!” he begged. “Please, I’ll do anything, just make it stop! Severus, make it stop! If you loved me, you’d make it stop for me!”

“I do love you but I can’t make it stop, Harry. If you keep pushing it will be over soon and it will stop,” Severus explained.

“Oh God!” Harry screamed as another pain hit but he didn’t push. He gripped at Sirius and Remus, buried his head in his pillow again and cried, screaming at the pain. Sirius and Remus murmured soothing words to him as Severus looked to Madame Pomfrey, who was reclaiming her seat.

“Poppy?” Severus asked as he stroked Harry’s legs through his screams, the sound going right through him and making him want to do something, anything, if Harry was just free of this pain. Harry was giving up, he could see it, no matter what he said about being able to go on. He knew his husband, and it didn’t matter what anyone told him, Harry was giving up.

“All births are different. This one is just very long. He says he can go on and he says the baby is fine. Give him another pain potion and get him to keep pushing,” Poppy advised. “Harry would know if the baby was in distress, and Harry would really be fighting against you if he couldn’t carry on. It’s all normal, Severus. Just carry on. There’s no other way, he has to push him out.”

Severus nodded and Remus wiped his forehead for him as he worked out his next move, flexing his stiff hands. He stood and stretched, his knees cracking after so many hours kneeling. He walked around the room for a moment, getting his circulation back while his mind worked.

He moved up and sat down with his back against the bed, his knees drawn up. Harry looked at him, the other three in the room watching them, waiting to see what happened next.

“Hello, Harry,” he said gently. “Would you like a cuddle?”

Harry cried at him and fell into Severus’ arms. Severus stroked his hair and wiped away his tears as Sirius draped a huge towel over his nude godson. Severus kissed the sweaty forehead, right on his scar, the way Harry liked as the other two men stood and stretched.

“Please, Severus, no more. You pull him out. You have him for me,” Harry begged. He was on his side, his head resting against Severus’ knee, cradled by those strong slim arms and legs that he loved so much. Granted, he had to have one leg bent with his foot on the floor and the other bent one lying on the plastic sheet as there was too much resistance for him to close them, but his Severus was here, he was safe. He could beg for mercy now.

“I can’t, love. I promise I would if I could. I can’t get a grip on him, or I would pull him for you. And I swear to you, if I could take your place and do this for you, I would, without a second thought. But, you see, I can’t. He needs you to do this. You’re his carrier, he knows that you can do this for him,” Severus reasoned, feeling Harry grip at his hair with a shaky hand.

God, Harry looked utterly done in, he was amazed that the sprite was still conscious. Harry was drenched in sweat and he was trembling in pain and exhaustion, tears pouring from his eyes. He helped Harry gulp down water from the glass Remus handed to him. Harry had refused it before, but his Severus was holding the glass now.

“Please, don’t make me push anymore. I’m so tired, and it hurts. Severus, it hurts so much, it’s even worse than the bad things. Please, Severus, it hurts,” Harry complained, his voice a little less raw after fluids.

“I know. I know it does. But it will soon be over, I swear. All you have to do is push him out, that’s all,” Severus replied, relentless. Harry groaned at him.

“This is like when I first came to you and you told me that I had to come to all meals, and I had to try to eat. This is like that, isn’t it? You won’t let me not do it,” Harry rationalised.

“Yes, it is like that. You have to do this, you can’t stop, not now. You’re too close to the finish line.”

“Oh God! Severus!” Harry screamed as another contraction hit him and Severus held him closer, letting Harry tear at his shirt and shriek and curse, rocking him and murmuring soothing words to him. When it was over, Harry sobbed at him.

“I’m scared,” Harry wailed.

“I know, love. I’m going to be honest with you, I am too. The thought of having to watch you in pain for another second terrifies me. But I’ll make you a deal. I’ll be strong if you will.”

Harry sniffed and nodded. “I’m frightened, Severus. Are you sure nothing’s wrong? It’s taking forever.”

“Nothing is wrong, love. It’s just dragging out. Try not to worry, I’m here. Don’t you know that I plan on keeping the both of you forever?”

Harry smiled at him and pulled him in for a tired kiss.

“Would you like more potion, Harry?”

Harry nodded and Severus helped him gulp down three vials, one after the other, and then a whole four glasses of water before the next contraction hit, Severus rocking and soothing him again. Severus reasoned that the potion was weak and he could give Harry up to five at one go if need be. If it wasn’t enough then he could top it up.

“Will you carry on for me, love?”

“I have to, don’t I? He needs me to do this,” Harry replied. “I’ll push.”

“I am so proud of you. Now, Sirius is going to hold you and I’m going to help you get him out,” Severus said, helping Harry back to his knees, though there was now a pillow beneath the bony knees as Severus had noticed that they were bruised.

“No more rubbing my back, it’s annoying me,” Harry said. “Remus can help Sirius and do the cool cloths, those help a bit.”

“All right, Remus will help with the cloths now.”

“Severus, I love you.”

“I love you,” Severus replied, kissing Harry softly before moving back down. Remus moved up to take his place and took over the cloths, Sirius occupied by Harry gripping his hands.

“Take the towel off, it’s hot in here,” Harry asked and Remus pulled it off while Severus helped Harry spread his legs once more, centring himself so he stayed steady.

“Are you ready?” Severus asked.

“I’m ready,” Harry ground out as the pain hit him again.

“Push for me, Harry. Push hard.”

So Harry pushed, and pushed, and pushed. He screamed and cursed, screamed for all the world that he hated Lucius, that no one would take his baby from him.

“Fuck! No way, no no no!” Harry shrieked at half four, the sun just beginning to rise, Harry arching away from the pain, refusing to push again.

“Talk to me! Why do you say no?” Severus asked over the pained wails.

“I can’t push! I can’t do it!”

“Why, Harry? Why can’t you?”

“He’s gonna split me in two! He’s gonna rip me to shreds!” Harry explained in breathless moans, his grip white-knuckled on Sirius’ shirt, the material beginning to split. Harry had moved up to grip his godfather, trying to get away from the feel of the head crowning, and Harry’s head was now on Sirius’ shoulder.

“Harry, give me your hand,” Severus instructed, seeing Harry obey without hesitation. He took the slim hand and brought it down under Harry, brought it down to where the top of the head was now poking out.

“What’s that?” Harry asked, running his shaking fingers over the slick flesh.

“That is his head. See? It’s right there. Now, feel how tight you are around him.” Harry’s fingers touched the tight opening around the head. “You’re not going to be split in two, I swear it, it is a physical impossibility. But you will tear. I promise you that they will be small. We discussed this, remember? Remember we talked about tearing. What did I tell you?”

Harry took a few deep breaths, trying to get his mind to work through the excruciating pain. He entwined his fingers with Severus’ and that seemed to help a little.

“You told me that if I tore then Poppy had taught you a spell to heal them for me,” Harry replied.

“That is exactly right. You will tear, love, and yes, it will be painful. But I swear to you that I will heal you afterwards,” Severus explained, knowing that Harry would work best with flat out honesty right now.

“Promise?”

“I promise. I can cut you, if you want. Remember we talked about episiotomies? It’ll make it a little easier to get him out. If you want it, I can do it.”

“Remember I told you that you could go fuck yourself before even considering doing that to me?” Harry replied immediately. “No fucking way, no episi thingies. I’d rather tear.”

Severus chuckled. “All right, no cut. But he won’t tear you to shreds or split you in two. Just a few small tears. Come on, Harry, he’s right there, you can touch him now, love. Just keep pushing for me.”

“Okay, I believe you. But I need a rest, just give me a minute,” Harry said, gulping down water from the glass Sirius held for him. Severus glanced at Poppy, checking if it was advisable for Harry to stop and rest so close to the finish. She nodded at him and he chuckled at Harry’s next statement.

“Oh God, how good was that water.”

“Like heaven?” Severus asked and Harry nodded, their fingers still entwined. “All right, Harry. Take the time you need.”

“What time is it?” Harry asked, panting as he tried to regain some strength, enough to push some more. “How long have I been at this?”

“It’s half past four in the morning, pup. You’ve been in labour for twenty eight, nearly twenty nine hours,” Remus supplied and Harry groaned, wishing he hadn’t asked.

“That makes it more than a whole day. How much longer?” he asked, twiddling with Sirius’ hair to distract himself.

“Only as long as it takes you to get him out,” Severus pledged. Harry sighed in exhaustion before he nodded.

Harry pulled his hand back up, let go of his godfathers hair and gripped at Sirius’ shirt, biting down on his pillow again, which he had dragged up with him, as he began to push, half screaming half grunting. Harry shook with the effort of it, shoving his hips down in an attempt to make the head come out faster. Severus supported his perineum, pushing back against his hips, and wiped away blood as he tore. Sirius held him around the ribs, holding him steady. At the end of it, only half the head was out and Harry was gasping.

“Is he out?” Harry asked, craning his head to look at his husband. “Did I do it?”

“Not yet, love, almost. You got half his head out. A little more, Harry.”

“Parenthood better be fucking worth this!” Harry screamed, his head falling onto his pillow, punching Sirius’ chest. The Animagus said nothing, he simply stroked his hair and winced at the impact, Remus smirking at him as he sponged Harry’s arms. “I’m so tired!”

“I know, but you are so close. Push, Harry, push again for me.”

Harry pushed, screaming and grunting again, and Severus watched the small tearing grow, heard Harry’s ear splitting sobs as the head emerged, saw him ram his thin thighs further apart as he shoved his hips down again. Severus pushed against him once more, helping him to force out the child. First the eyes, then the nose and finally the mouth and chin. Harry collapsed against Sirius as the head finally passed, gasping and sobbing.

“GET HIM THE FUCK OUT OF ME!” Harry demanded, flinging his pillow across the room. Sirius shifted so Harry was able to get a better grip on him, Harry twisting his fists in the shoulders of his shirt; Remus placed a gentle hand on the base of Harry’s spine, pressing the cold wet cloth against his sweat-slicked skin, and pushed his damp hair away from his face with the other hand.

“Almost there, Harry,” Severus placated.

“NO! NOW! GET HIM OUT OF ME NOW! ALMOST ISN’T FUCKING GOOD ENOUGH! I WANT HIM OUT NOW! GET HIM OUT! JUST MAKE IT END, GET HIM OUT!”

“Let me check for the cord and clear his airways, and then you can get him out,” Severus bribed, feeling for the cord and finding only neck, clearing the airways.

“You said that you couldn’t pull ‘cause you couldn’t get a grip on him. If I pass his shoulders, will you pull?” Harry asked, panting, rocking his hips to try and alleviate the pressure once he felt Severus’ fingers disappear.

“Yes, if you pass his shoulders I will pull,” Severus agreed. “I’m done, Harry. No cord around his neck, airways clear. This is it, love. He’ll come with one more push, just one more. Push with all you have left, Harry.”

Ah. Harry hadn’t considered that he would actually have to push to pass the shoulders, though he felt very foolish for thinking that they would just miraculously fall out of him. If it was that simple, he wouldn’t have just spent more than a day in labour. The man had to be kidding. All he had left? There was nothing left, absolutely nothing. Severus would make him carry on, but maybe his fathers would save him, maybe they would free him from this torment.

“But I don’t have anything left! Please, Remus, please make it end!” Harry argued, convinced he could go no further, turning his head, looking to his adoptive father with big green tear filled eyes.

“Yes, you do. You can do this. Come on, one last push and we’ll let you sleep. Just give Severus one more great big push and out the baby comes,” Remus urged, sponging his sweaty back and neck.

“No, I can’t push anymore! I’m tired, please, just do it for me!” Harry begged, locking pleading orbs with his godfathers kind blue ones. He had saved the man from Azkaban, he could save him from this. “Please, Sirius, please do it for me!”

Sirius smiled at him. “We know you’re tired, Harry, and if we could let you give up now, we would. But we can’t let you give up and we can’t do this for you, I wish we could. Just one more push, that’s all. You can do this, I know you can. You’re my special boy, you can do this. Just one more big push and it’ll all be over,” Sirius encouraged, kissing the dark hair and rubbing his sides. Harry gripped at his arms as he panted, trying to get his brain to function through the agony and fatigue.

“Only one more, one last big push, that’s it and then it’s over, you promise?” Harry demanded to the three men.

“We promise. Give me one last great big push and he’s out,” Severus confirmed, reaching back and rubbing circles on the soles of Harry’s feet with his thumbs. “Come on, sweetheart, you saved the world, one push is nothing. You can do this, just one push, love. Give it all you’ve got, get him out.”

Harry didn’t think he had anything left, he was so drained. He couldn’t ever remember being so tired. But Severus didn’t lie to him, he promised, he always told him the truth. He must be able to give him one more push, Severus said so. Somewhere deep inside he found a last supply of strength and he used it all to bear down, feeling one hard shoulder and then the other pass, feeling the body being yanked at by Severus, feeling himself opened impossibly, rending agonizingly. Sirius was holding him around ribs, pulling him against Severus’ tugging, and Remus was stroking his back, gripping his hands. The two of them were telling him, over his screams, that this was it, that he was so brave, that he was their special boy, how proud they were of him. And then it was all over. He was out. And Harry was finally released.

Severus watched Harry pant for a few moments before he wrapped his arms around Sirius’ shoulders, buried his head in his neck, gripped Remus’ hand and began to bear down. He watched as first one shoulder and then the other came free, Harry bleeding profusely as he tore further. Severus reached out with shaking hands and began to tug gently, Sirius pulling at Harry to help free the tiny body. Harry wasn’t even pausing now, he was gasping, screaming, swearing, pushing, and giving up all in one go. He pulled as Harry pushed, and finally, the body came free in a great rush of blood and fluid and shrieks. Harry collapsed against Sirius, his parents telling him that they were so proud of him, that he had done so well. Harry was drawing great shuddering breaths, sobbing for all he was worth, breathlessly proclaiming that he had done it, that he was out, that it was over.

Severus lay the bawling child down on the protective sheet that covered the floor and wiped it off of all the blood and fluid and muck that came with childbirth. He cut the cord and looked down. He had to look twice because he couldn’t quite believe what he was seeing. But Poppy was standing over him, smiling, so it must be true.

Harry didn’t care about anything but the fastest way to get himself to a bed. He was sinking into unconsciousness, he could feel it, but a small surprised statement from his husband had him managing to keep his eyes open just a moment longer than they should have been.

“Tell Luna she’s rich. It’s a girl,” Severus announced and his two fathers-in-law looked at him in shock.

“What?” came Harry’s breathless reply. “No, we’re having a boy. Remus said so. Fable says so. It’s a boy. Dylan James Albus Potter-Snape. I pushed out a boy.”

Severus picked up the now sleepy shivering baby and held her so that Harry could crane round and see her.

“Oh. It is a girl,” Harry said. His eyelids drooped. “That’s nice.”

Severus wrapped her in a clean soft towel, cradling her close. She stopped crying and looked up at him with big sleepy eyes. They were the lightest blue but Severus could see a green tint to them. She yawned and closed her eyes, drifting off. “Do you want to hold her, Harry?”

“No! You said I could sleep, you swore I could,” Harry groaned. “I’ll hold her later, I swear, just please, you promised I could sleep if I pushed. I know we said him but it’s the same baby. I did my bit, I pushed. Now you let me sleep. You promised, Severus, you swore.”

“All right, sweetheart, okay, you can sleep, we’ll do the rest. Is it all right if Poppy cleans her up and checks her over?” Severus asked.

“Fine, but she doesn’t leave the room with her.”

Severus passed Poppy the now sleeping baby and turned his attention to Harry. He was groaning in pain once more.

“Severus, it hurts again,” Harry complained.

“Just the afterbirth, Harry. No pushing required. I pull for this whole bit.”

In the end, Harry did end up pushing the afterbirth, reasoning that if he pushed it would come out faster. Severus didn’t argue, and didn’t even bat an eyelid when Sirius proclaimed that the bloody mass was absolutely disgusting. He pushed it to one side and set to cleaning Harry up, the sprite already asleep kneeling. He healed the tearing, cast a cleaning charm on his legs and genitals and pulled Harry back against him, having Remus help him pull a pair of briefs onto his exhausted lover. They weren’t Harry’s usual boxers but they would be the only things that would hold the pad in place that Harry needed to wear. He positioned the thick pad between the thin legs, securing it, and had Remus help him pull the nursing bra onto Harry. Together they dressed him in a pair of soft flannel pyjamas and eased him into bed.

When Poppy was done cleaning and checking her, she handed the baby to Sirius and cleaned up the mess while Harry was seen to. By the time Severus and Remus looked around, no one would have known that Harry had just given birth in there, it was clean and ordered.

Severus sat on the bed, stroking back Harry’s hair, telling his sleeping lover how proud he was of him, how much he loved him. Sirius and Remus were cooing over the sleeping baby and dressing her in a little blue baby grow. They wrapped her in a blanket and moved to Severus.

“Here, Severus. Hold your daughter,” Sirius said, helping Severus to take her. Severus looked down at the tiny little girl, tears spilling. He knew he was smiling like a fool, he knew that he was crying in front of one of his childhood enemies but he couldn’t help it. He was a father.

“Is she all right?” he asked Poppy, the witch smiling broadly at him.

“She’s fine. Three pounds, four ounces, tiny little girl. I’ve never seen a newborn so small. But, she is absolutely perfect all the same. She’ll need feeding in a few hours but she’ll sleep for now. Harry put her through the wringer, she’s tired,” Poppy reassured.

“She is meant to be a girl then?” Severus asked, the tiny fist wrapping around his finger and holding on tight, as if to say ‘you’re mine’. Like carrier like daughter. “It isn’t our eyes playing tricks on us?”

“No, she’s a girl, just like she’s meant to be.”

“This means that Harry is the first hermaphrodite ever to have a girl as his first child. He’s making history again,” Remus said with a smile.

“But they are both all right to sleep for a few hours before Harry has to feed her?” Severus asked, slipping his daughter into the small bassinette someone had moved to stand beside his side of the bed.

“Yes. She’ll let you know when your time is up,” Poppy confirmed.

“You should sleep, Severus. We’ll tell everyone about her,” Sirius said as they clapped Severus on the back and headed for the door.

“Thank you,” Severus called absentmindedly. He was too busy stroking one silky black curl on the tiny little girls head.

He tucked her in and cracked open a window, a light morning breeze making the curtains flutter. He stripped down to his boxers and gazed at the little girl once more. He glanced at the clock. She had finally put in an appearance at five am. 29 hours Harry had been at it, seven of those spent pushing. No wonder Harry had passed out. But the little girl was worth it, and he knew Harry would see it that way.

He eased himself into bed and wrapped his arms around the sprite that immediately curled up against him, despite his exhaustion.

He was a father. He and Harry were parents.

He fell asleep with a huge smile on his face.

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