Paternity

Paternity, 5/?
By Scribe

Seconds and Suspicion

Severus Snape stopped by Filch\'s office. \"Filch, have any of the students who are staying over asked to be assigned chores for pocket money?\"

\"Aye. As usual, it\'s only the ones who\'re skint. The ones with deep pockets intend to laze about like young lords and ladies, making more work for them that could use a bit of rest.\"

\"Who have we got, and *please* tell me that Longbottom is not among them. He\'d be worse than no help at all.\"

\"No. We\'ve got Potter and Weasley.\" Filch\'s voice held grim satisfaction. \"I\'ll have them doing all the hard, nasty things that they\'ve been putting off for the last few years. I was surprised to hear you weren\'t going off, Professor.\"

\"Yes, well, I have a paper on the history of the domestic uses of potions that I\'ve been meaning to finish for some time now. Since Sprout is going to be working with the subitus libido, and they\'re finally beginning definitive research on the fecundus plant, I thought that slanting it toward fertility and prophylactic potions might give it the direction it\'s been lacking. When do you expect one of them to be free?\"

\"Well, the task I set them is so big that I couldn\'t reasonably give them a time limit on it,\" he said grudgingly. \"But I don\'t expect them to stop for the day before luncheon.\" He snapped his fingers. \"But say, what about the Malfoy lad? He\'s of your own house, and you get along with him, don\'t you?\"

\"Draco? He\'s less of an annoyance than most of them. But do you mean to tell me that HE\'S going to be toiling for pay?\"

\"Surprised me, too. Apparently old Lucius wasn\'t best pleased with his son\'s showing this year, and he\'s punishing him. Young Draco has been exiled to Hogwarts for the summer, without a knut to his name. I thought he waing ing to choke when he came in and asked for an assignment.\"

\"He would have done. Send him to the Dungeon in two or three hours. Dumbledore got wind that some of the departing seniors might be leaving a few surprises hidden through out the school and grounds, and he\'s asked me to do a sweep. Each head of house has already attended to their students\' sleeping quarters, and I am going through all the common rooms.\"

\"Oo.\" Filch made a sympathetic expression--a rather alarming sight from him. \"You\'ll be that tired.\"

\"Not really. Instead of casting a reveal spell in each area, I\'ve cast a magik perceptus spell on myself. For the next twelve hours I will perceive magic power traces as different glows. Of course I\'ve screened out common maintenance spells, or I would have been BLINDED. I\'ve also cast an indictus magika spell, which will allow me to interpret the source of the glows, and determine what causes them, and if they are potentially harmful.\"

\"Is it working?\"

\"I\'ve already found a clutch of Delayed Spawning Giant Frogs taped to the underside of a desk, and a Mumblemouth spell had been laid on my personal goblet. I\'m fairly certain those were the Weasley twins\' parting shots. One more year of Weasleys, thank heavens. Ron Weasley graduates next year.\"

\"What about the girl?\"

\"I\'m not counting Ginny. She\'s hardly annoying at all. If it wasn\'t for the hair, you\'d scarcely know she was a Weasley. I\'ve got to go now. Some traces linger longer than others, but it\'s best to look for them while they\'re fresh.\"

Severus made a methodical sweep of the inside of the school. Aside from a peephole that led from the Hufflepuff boys\' lavatory to the Ravenclaw girls\', he found nothing else. He even made a sweep of the kitchen. He had no desire for some over looked prank to interfere with his sustenance at a later date.

The house elves twittered and scuttled out of his way as he stalked through their domain, scarcely noticing them. He was prepared to leave when there was a timid tug at his robes. He looked down to find a particularly scrawny specimen of house elf peering up at him anxiously. \"Yes?\"

\"Please, sir, my missus and I, we has a problem. We was wondering if we might speak to sir?\" A female house elf was behind the first one, clutching to him like a limpet, and regarding Severus with great, wet eyes.

\"Your name?\"

\"I be Golwoggle, sir, and me missus be Twitchet.\"

\"What is it?\" What sort of problem could a house elf have, anyway? Golwoggle hemmed and hawed, and Twitchet began turning an alarming shade of purple. \"Spit it out!\"

\"Twitchet be with kit, sir.\"

Snape blinked. House elves didn\'t reproduce often, given their long lifespan, but it DID happen. Though usually it was only when a member of the family they were bound to was setting up a new household. \"Congratulations. Do you expect me to be godfather?\ Gol Golwoggle blinked. \"No, sir, how silly. It\'s just that we don\'t know HOW this happened.\"

Snape shook his head. \"As far as I know, the basics are the same for witches and wizards, Muggles and house elves.\"

\"But sir, we dint PLAN on it.\"

That made Severus pause. Though, as he\'d said, the basic mechanics of impregnation were the same, there was one thing distinctly different about house elves--they didn\'t conceive unless they had DECIDED to. \"You, Twitchet--step out so I can see you.\"

She nervously shuffled a few steps to the side. Snape narrowed his eyes, examining her closely. \"Well, yre pre pregnant, all right, but it\'s very new.\"

\"Twere last night, sir, about, oh...\" she looked at her husband, \"one o\'the clock, were it, Gol?\" Another peculiarity of house elves--they knew the EXACT MOMENT that a kit was conceived. Muggles and wizards alike might debate when life began till they were blue in the face--house elves had no such doubts.

Snape sat down. \"I want you to tell me everything that happened up till that moment.\"

Now Golwoggle was turning purple. \"What, everything?\"

Snape rolled his eyes. \"No need to be pornographic. Just tell me what you did that evening.\"

\"Well, sir, it were nothing unusual. We did work late, as there were so much to do, what with the young misters and misses clearing out. Always a bit of clutter to see to, last day. We cleaned the Gryffindor tower, and the second floor classrooms.\"

\"Did you run across anything out of the ordinary? Any funny feelings, like someone might have been casting a spell on you?\"

\"No, sir.\"

\"Did you find anything out of place? Anything unusual?\"

\"No, sir.\"

\"Gol,\" Twitchet poked him. \"What about that there leaf?\"

\"Twitch, that were just some trash what one of the young masters tracked in,\" her husband chided her.

\"What leaf was this?\" asked Snape.

\"Just a common leaf, sir, I\'m sure,\" said Golwoggle. \"Missus found it behind the tub in the Gryffindor boys\' lav. She showed it to me.\"

\"What did this look like?\"

Golwoggle shrugged, but Twitchet clasped her hands. \"Right pretty it were, sir. All like dark green velvet on one side, and silver satin on t\'other.\"

Snape started. \"No, I don\'t believe it. Did you throw this leaf away?\"

\"No, sir. I have it tucked away beneath my pillow. As I said, it\'s right pretty.\"

\"Fetch it.\" Twitchet trotted away, and Snape addressed her husband. \"You haven\'t been frolicking in the plant patch behind the green house, have you?\"

\"Sir!\" said Golwoggle indignantly. \"That be restricted!\"

Twitchet brought the leaf to Snape and handed it to him. He examined it. \"Show me your hands.\" Both elves held out their hands, and Snape concentrated. There was a faint silver glow about their fingers and palms. \"Well, there\'s the explanation. You two have been messing about with fecundus.\"

\"Oooo,\" breathed the two. Then Golwoggle, sounding relieved, said, \"That\'s what it were, then.\" He clapped Twitchet on the shoulder. \"Well, old girl, looks like we\'re caught. The students are going to drive us mad next term, what with coming down to see baby. They love elf kits, they do.\"

\"She\'d better take off work now,\" said Snape, standing up. The gestation period for house elves was ninety days, and such a swift pregnancy required careful handling. \"See Dumbledore, Pomfrey, or myself *immediately* if you feel the least bit off.\" They nodded happily, all worry forgotten, and began to discuss baby names. They seemed to be favoring Turnip, since it would be good for a boy OR a girl.

He spotted Weasley and Potter working diligently along the plant patch in back of the greenhouse, and decided that he\'d need to go have a look at the fecundus--but first he had to check the greenhouse.

~~~***~~***~~***~~***~~***~~~

\"Oh, come *on*, Harry, that\'s *enough*! I want to go into Hogsmead for lunch, then visit Honeydukes. Mum was feeling guilty about leaving me here, and she sent a letter of credit, five whole galleons! I\'ll be able to treat you for once,\" Ron boasted.

\"All right,\" Harry agreed, using flipping one last clod aside. \"It\'s getting too hot, anyway. We\'d end up having to bathe before we went anywhere if we kept on.\"

Ron gathered up the spades and hoes. \"You rest a bit, and I\'ll take these to the tool shed.\"

~~~***~~***~~***~~***~~***~~~

Everything seemed to be as it should be, till he neared the back of the room. He paused, frowning. There was a reddish glow spread over a considerable patch in front of the cabinets. Severus squatted before it, concentrating, but it was fading, and hard to read. Then he noticed a brighter glow coming from just ender the edge of the cabinet. He used the tip of his wand to tease the object out from under the cabinet, then sat back on his heels in surprise. *A subitus libido seed! That explains this massive trace. What on earth happened? Sprout was excited about having them, but very nervous. I seriously doubt she\'d have been so casual as to spill them, and she\'d *never* leave any lying about.*

Snape thought for a moment, chewing his lip. The safest course of action would be to simply destroy the thing. But these were part of an official study, and he supposed they all needed to be accounted for. He found an empty seed packet and levitated the seed into it, then folded it tight and slipped it into his pocket. He\'d decide later whether he should hand it over to Dumbledore, destroy it, or give it to Sprout when she returned in the autumn.

*Now, the house elves said that the leaf was in the Gryffindor lavatory. It had to bee been left there last night, and that means that it was either Potter, or Weasley. Perhaps they\'ll give me an excuse to levy a few demerits even BEFORE their senior year starts.*

~~~***~~***~~***~~***~~***~~~

Ron finished hanging the tools up, then paused. He\'d wiped his face after finishing the work, and it was dim and cool in the tool shed, much cooler than it was outside. He rubbed his forehead, and his fingers slid in a thin film of moisture. He was feeling funny again, and he wondered if he ought to cancel the trip to Hogsmead and go take a cold shower instead.

The shed went dark, and Ron turned quickly. Draco Malfoy was leaning against the door, pale hair gleaming in the thin sunlight that filtered through the shed\'s single, high window. \"What do you want, Malfoy?\"

Draco smirked and stepped over to him. He grabbed Ron\'s hand and pulled it down to his crotch, pressing it down firmly. \"Three guesses, and the first two don\'t count.\"

There was a hard, warm lump under Ron\'s palm. For a split second his hand curved over it, cupping, and then he jerked away, as if burned. \"You\'re out of your bloody mind!\"

\"If I am, then I have company.\" He grabbed at Ron, giving the other boy\'s fly a rough squeeze. \"You\'re just as hard as I am, Weasley. Come on, drop trou.\"

Ron felt his face flame, and smacked Draco\'s hand away. \"Stop it! I don\'t know what came over me last night, but it\'s not going to happen again.\"

\"Don\'t be stupid, Weasley--it *is* happening.\"

\"I don\'t *want* it.\"

\"I wasn\'t going to explain this--I rather like you clueless, but maybe understanding will get you over this damn false modesty. You don\'t really have a choice in this, Weasley, and neither do I. You know those seeds from last night? I should have listened to Beanstone when he told me not to touch them. If I had, you\'d still be a virgin, and I wouldn\'t have a bloody embarrassing liaison in my past.\"

\"What do you mean?\"

\"I mean they were an aphrodisiac--a strong one, and they\'re still working. You can feel it.\" Ron was shaking his head. \"Denial will hurt you in this case, Weasley. If you don\'t give in to it, you\'ll get sick as a dog,\" o lio lied. He was preture ure that fighting off the libido effect might make one feel miserable, but it wasn\'t likely to be damaging. \"Then you\'ll have to go to Pomfrey, and she\'ll have to tell Dumbledore, and HE\'LL have to tell your parents...\" He sighed with mock sadness. \"And I\'d *really* hate to see you in such trouble when the solution is so simple--and so *nice*.\"

Ros shs shaking. The effect was there, Draco righright about that. His blood was racing, his nipples were stiff, and he was hard in his pants. He even felt his asshole twitch in anticipation (the traitor). \"If I do it,\" Ron said slowly, \"will that be it?\"

\"How should I know? I expect so. Beanstone said the effect could reoccur for a couple of days, but it doesn\'t seem to be too virulent. If it does, we can just agree that we\'ll find someone else. I\'ll pick up some slut at the Hog\'s Head, and you,\" he smiled nastily, \"you can have a cuddle with Potter.\"

\"Don\'t you talk about him,\" Ron growled.

\"Fine by me. Now take down your damn trousers and bend over the table.\"

\"This has to be fast. Harry is waiting for me.\"

\"Quick and dirty it is, then. I have no problem with that.\" Ron had lowered his trousers and pants and braced himself on the table. \"You really *do* have a choice bum, Weasley. Spread you legs.\"

Ron shifted his feet as far apart as they\'d go, trapped in his clothes. \"Will you just shut up, fuck me, and get it over with?\"

\"Mm, rough trade.\" Ron felt his buttocks parted, and hissed in surprised pain as a finger breeched him abruptly. \"You said fast,\" Draco reminded him. \"But I\'m being a considerate lover. I brought some Blislide--the best lubricant around. It has a stimulation spell worked in.\" He pumped roughly. \"Can you feel it?\"

Ron gritted his teeth. He could, but he didn\'t want to admit it to Draco. \"I don\'t know what you are, Draco, but you\'re not my lover.\"

Draco forced in a second finger. \"Your fucker, then--all the same to me.\" He laughed when Ron involuntarily pushed back, driving his fingers in even deeper. \"You\'re an impatient slut.\" He pulled free and quickly wiped more of the ointment over his own straining cock. With no further hesitation he gripped Ron\'s hips, moved up behind him, and mounted him.

Ron pounded his fists on the table in pleasure and pain. It had been less painful and more fulfilling with Harry, but he couldn\'t lie to himself wenouenough to believe that this didn\'t feel good. Draco drove in and out of his body at a punishing pace. He reached around and gripped Ron\'s bobbing cock with one hand, fisting it tightly and stroking in counterpoint to his thrusts.

This time Draco finished first, filling Ron\'s back passage with a satisfied grunt. He pulled free of Ron, then turned him. Ron\'s feet tangled in his trousers, and he fell back against the table as Draco sank to his knees. \"I think that was good enough to deserve a little reward.\"

Ron gave a choked cry as Draco swallowed his cock, taking it down his throat in one smooth swoop. *Wouldn\'t you know that Malfoy would be an expert cocksucker,* he thought, dazed, as he shot his load. Draco swallowed, tnen spent a moment nursing the last few drops of come from Ron\'s dwindling erection. When he was done he licked away the last traces, leaving Ron clean and damp. He stood, giving the other boy\'s cock a pat. \"There. Now you don\'t have to worry about clean up.\"

The two pulled up their pants and refastened their clothes in silence. Draco was reaching for the door when Ron said, \"That was the last time. I mean it.\"

Draco nodded, but as he left he was thinking, *I seem to recall you saying something along those lines last night, too.*

~~~***~~***~~****~***~~***~~~

Potter was alone when Snape got back to the patch. He was sitting on the grass beside the cord barrier, leaning back lazily on his hands, face turned up to the sun. The look of serenity irked Snape. \"Potter.\"

Harry turned a green gaze on Snape, and didn\'t bother to get up. \"Yes, sir?\"

\"Didn\'t I see Weasley with you earlier? Where\'s your partner?\"

Snape wondered a bit at Harry\'s smile. It was almost sly, as if he had a secret. \"Ron\'s just putting away the tools, then we\'re heading into Hogsmead.\"

Snape looked over Harry, scanning the patch of fecundus. He immediately spotted the large disturbed patch in the center, and pointed. \"Have you two been where you shouldn\'t?\"

\"No,\" said Harry shortly. \"It\'s marked restricted, plain enough.\"

\"That hasn\'t stopped you in the past, Potter.\"

Ron came back around the greenhouse, and slowed down when he saw Snape speaking to Harry. Harry saw him, and stood up, smiling. Ron felt the stinging ache in his ass, felt the warm trickle of Draco Malfoy\'s coozinozing out into his drawers, and hated himself.

\"You took your time,\" said Harry cheerfully.

Ron could feel himself blushing. *Damn redhead\'s complexion.* \"I took a minute to wipe them down, so they wouldnrustrust. *And now I\'ll have to sneak back and do that before tomorrow.*

\"Weasley, I was just asking Potter.\" He pointed. \"Have YOU been mucking about in those pl?\" ?\"

Ron forced himself to look at Snape\'s chin, figuring that would be close enough to looking him in the face to pass. \"Why would I want to do that?\"

\"I\'ve no idea, but lack of a good reason has never stopped a Weasley from getting into mischief before.\" Snape studied him. \"I suppose a unicorn *could* have come out of the forest and had a roll. They\'re attracted to that.\"

\"What is it?\" asked Harry.

\"Never you mind. You\'ll find out in Herbology next year.\"

\"If you\'ll excuse us,\"d Rod Ron. \"The Three Broomsticks will be full up if we don\'t hurry.\" The two boys started for the lane that led into the village.

Snape watched them go, suspicious. He squinted after them, concentrating, then his eyes flew wide. Potter remained normal, though Snape knew that if he\'d been able to see the scar, it would have glowed a dull maroon. Some magic traces *never* faded. No, it was Weasley that caught his attention. The entire back of the boy--torso, arms, legs, and even head--simply *glowed* silver.

*What did you do, Weasley? Lay down in the middle of the fecundus and make bloody angels-in-the-grass?* Snape considered calling them back, then decided not to. The thought of a Weasley, wallowing unknowingly in a powerful fertility substance, was rather amusing.

Snape started back toward the main building. *I think I\'ll keep an eye on him. It might be useful to my research, after all, to see what sort of effect, if any, it has. After all, it isn\'t as if there\'s any danger involved. I seriously doubt that Ron will get lucky with a girl any time soon, witch or Muggle.*