This is a mini-sequel to 'Scent' and 'Claim'. 'Scent' was written as a submission for Smythofsky Week (Day #6 Theme - AU) on tumblr. This fic is a submission for Smythofsky Holiday Week (Day #2 – Supernatural AU). POV switch at each segment.

Family

Dave buried his face against Sebastian's soft fur and smiled. It was the full moon, so his mate was in feline form. Even after six years mated, five of those years married, Dave was awed by the beauty and grace of Sebastian as a jaguar. He loved full moon nights – there was something soothing about having the lithe, warm body pressed against him, purring contentedly. They were always connected, but it felt different around the full moon; deeper, stronger.

They'd learned how to communicate better over time; while Sebastian in his animal form could understand Dave, he couldn't speak, so Dave had learned to read his mate's movements and to focus on the bond.

It worked; they worked. They were happy, mostly, but there was something missing.

It had been Dave who first brought it up as a serious topic. The day after the full moon four months prior, he'd sat down with Sebastian and told him, voice low but certain, "We want a baby."

He hadn't meant to say we; hadn't meant to make it a statement rather than trying to open a discussion, but that's how it came out. And it was true. They'd both hinted at the idea of having a child in the past, nothing concrete, just talk of 'one day', but as he read "Where The Wild Things Are" aloud to Sebastian the night before, Dave could feel the ache building in his chest, not just from himself but thrumming along the bond from Sebastian; the desire for a child to care for, for a cub to curl around. There was no doubt in his mind that they were both not only eager, but ready.

"Yeah," Sebastian answered, even though he hadn't needed to, "yeah, we do."

After that they'd talked about everything; their careers, how they wanted to raise their child, potential surrogates. Dave had been a little uncomfortable about the process at first, but he'd long since accepted it. Besides, his yearning to have a family with Sebastian far outweighed any part of him that still thought it would be odd to basically trade his sperm with a female couple for an egg and surrogacy.

A large paw pressed gently against his jaw. Dave ignored it at first, comfortable and deep in thought on their situation. After a moment a spark from Sebastian shot along the bond, somehow feeling like an eye roll. It was followed by the same large paw pushing right between his eyes.

"Fine, fine," Dave chuckled, lifting his head off Sebastian's soft belly to look him in the eye, "I'm paying attention, I promise."

Sebastian let out a little growl, one that came across decidedly sarcastic. He could almost hear Sebastian's voice. Uh huh.

"I am!" Dave protested.

Sebastian raised himself into a half sitting position, until he was facing Dave directly. He moved forward, butting his forehead gently against Dave's.

"I know," he acknowledged, "I think too much. Sorry, I just drifted a bit there. Do you want me to keep reading them?" There was a small stack of papers on the floor beside the couch, where Dave had left them earlier. They were the pairing options suggested to them through the Department of Were Services.

He laughed when Sebastian blew air from his nostrils and shook his head, tilting it to the side slightly, feline eyes questioning.

Dave shrugged, still happy, but also feeling a bit lost. "I just don't feel like any of them are right, I guess, and it feels like we'll be looking forever. I'm just…I want this so much. I know I'm being impatient; I just can't stop thinking about having a baby with you."

Warm fur pressed against his jaw as Sebastian butted his head on Dave again, but this time Dave could feel reassurance projecting from his husband. When he looked down, Sebastian's eyes were glimmering and Dave got the distinct impression that an idea was forming behind them.

It was almost a week later when Sebastian finally shared his thoughts with Dave. He'd hated waiting so long – even though Dave hadn't brought up the subject since, he'd obviously been thinking about it. Sebastian caught the soft sighs Dave released when he looked over the candidates yet again; saw the way his husband's eyes widened just a little when they saw a child playing happily. It had been hard not to tell him each time he saw the wistfulness steal over his features, but it would be worse to get his hopes up if they were only going to be let down.

He'd had so much to do. Sebastian had needed to track down the people involved; that alone had taken several days. After he'd chased down their details he'd needed to contact them, discuss the situation and make sure not only that their views and needs lined up, but also that they were even willing in the first place. He'd been pleasantly surprised to find out that yes, they were registered, and they were compatible. They'd already started an agreement with another couple but it was only in the planning stage and they could break it easily. Finding out that Sebastian and Dave were looking was perfect for them; the couple agreed they would prefer to pair with them, if Dave was happy to do so.

After Sebastian explained everything to Dave, his husband looked eager and excited.

"Are you serious, Seb? They really want to do this with us?"

Sebastian grinned. "Really, babe. If you do, they do. And we've got approval to work towards an official agreement with them if we want to go ahead. I didn't want to tell you before I knew it could really happen…but it can. If you want it to, that is."

There had been some wrangling with their Were Services case-workers, but Sebastian had talked his way around it; the DoWS made a point of only recommending couples that lived in separate states. He understood, in theory, the reasons behind the preferred distance; although it was inconvenient during the pregnancy, keeping a clear line between the families meant less chance of emotional connections being formed that might cause entanglements. This bothered Sebastian, however, because he knew that although Dave was only acting as a donor, he would want to at least know any children he fathered, even if it was only as a family friend.

"Of course I do," Dave exclaimed, curling his fingers happily around Sebastian's, "this is perfect. We know them, Seb, we can trust them. And—"

"And you know we won't be totally cut out of their lives. Or of the lives of the children you give them," Sebastian finished, knowingly.

It wasn't completely unusual; Sebastian had heard of a few official cases where the couples had agreed to stay in contact with each other for the same reason. It was frowned upon by the DoWS, but it happened.

Santana and Brittany lived only an hour away, which wasn't ideal to the bureaucratic guidelines, but it wasn't against them either, so his case-worker had agreed to review the potential match somewhat begrudgingly. The girls had needed an extra day to convince their case-worker, but Sebastian finally got a call from them that morning – they could move forward with their application and formal interviews. Santana and Brittany were on board, as long as Dave was happy to parent with them.

Dave sighed. "I know it's supposed to be better with complete separation, but it just doesn't feel right. And I'm okay knowing I won't be their kids' dad…we'll have our own kids. But it just seems wrong not to even know them."

His hand tightened around Sebastian's. Sebastian squeezed back.

"I know what you mean," Sebastian smiled softly, moving to straddle Dave's lap. He wrapped his arms around his husband and pressed a kiss to his jaw. "I figured you would want that, and the girls feel the same. If we do this, I want them to stay here with us for at least the second half of their pregnancies. And they are only an hour away so whenever we want to have get-togethers, we can."

"I love you, Wildcat. This is perfect."

"You say that now…but just wait until we see a pregnant Santana. We could be setting ourselves up for a complete nightmare." He was joking – sort of.

Dave's eyes widened, but amusement shone through.

"I hadn't actually thought of that. And I can't believe I never realized that she is a Were. Looking back it makes so much sense."

Sebastian smirked and shook his head. "Guess again, babe."

"You're kidding," Dave blinked, clearly surprised.

"Nope. I mean, it would make sense – she'd make a hell of a Were-lioness. But she's human. Brittany is a Were-swan."

Brow furrowed, Dave stared for a few moments at the empty space over Sebastian's shoulder, face pensive.

"I…would never have picked that," he replied, finally, "but now that you've told me, I can totally see it."

Sebastian leaned in as Dave pulled him closer. He smiled as he felt Dave's head rest on his shoulder, warm breath tickling his skin and pressed his cheek against Dave's hair. "This is going to work out, babe," he murmured. "We're going to have a family."

Dave's lips touched his neck in a soft kiss. Happiness, hope and contentment radiated through their bond, and Sebastian felt tension he hadn't even realized he was carrying fall away.

There was still a lot to come; interviews, paperwork, the pregnancy itself. But that was okay, because Sebastian knew he was right – it would work out, and they would have a family.