Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling et al. Any characters or locations you recognise are the intellectual property of these individuals and corporations. I make no money from the writing of this story.
Thank you for all the reviews and alerts. The response to this story has been amazing so far!
-oOo-
Chapter II
Severus Snape ignored the tell-tale pop of Apparition that signalled the arrival of one of his house-elves. Carefully, he measured exactly four and four-sixths of an ounce of powdered dragon eggshell and folded it into the delicate brew he was tending. His house-elves knew not to disturb him when he was in his lab but they had their ways of letting him know he was needed urgently. If the banging of pots and pans in his kitchen was any indication, then whatever had happened required his immediate attention.
Nothing, save an earth-shattering event, would distract him from finishing whatever stage of a potion he was working on so it was another seven and a half minutes before he placed his potion under stasis and climbed the stairs from his basement to the kitchen of his remote cottage.
"What is it, Sparta?" Severus asked resignedly when he entered the room.
His head elf immediately stopped what he was doing, turned and bowed, much to his master's consternation. "Master, great descendant of the Most Noble House of Prince," Sparta began.
Severus waved his hand impatiently. "Yes, yes, I am your Great Master et cetera, et cetera. Just get on with what you have to say!" They went through this every time!
"I am here to offer my congratulations, Master."
"For what?" Severus asked blankly. He had done nothing to warrant specific congratulations since the last time he had seen the elf.
"Congratulations on the birth of your son, Master," Sparta said.
"MY WHAT?!"
-oOo-
Thirteen Hours Earlier
'Molly, it's time!'
The ethereal silver glow of Hermione's Patronus had woken Molly and Arthur Weasley when it lit up their bedroom in the early hours of the morning. Molly was instantly awake when she heard the voice of her daughter-in-law deliver the news she had been on tenterhooks waiting for for the last several days. She dressed quickly in the clothes she had laid out every evening in anticipation of this call and pressed a kiss to her groggy husband's cheek.
"I will let you know as soon as there's any news," she promised.
"Of course you will," Arthur said with a yawn. "Tell Hermione good luck and I expect to be one of the first visitors."
Molly wasted no time, bustling down the stairs, grabbing her cloak from the hook as she passed it and picking up the two bags on the chair by the fireplace. After throwing the pinch of floo powder down, she entered the fireplace and called out, "Granger Residence!" letting the green flames swirl her through the network and expel her into her daughter-in-law's sitting room.
She was greeted with the sight of Hermione bent over grasping the back of the sofa and breathing deeply. Molly immediately moved to her and placed one hand on the small of her back, the other on her forehead and guided her through the breathing pattern. Once the contraction had passed she asked, "How long have you been going?"
"As it turns out, since about nine o'clock," Hermione answered with a grimace. "I thought it was just the normal back pain I've been experiencing the last few days but I had a pretty strong contraction about twenty minutes ago and my waters broke just before I called you."
"Off to St Mungo's we go then," Molly said bracingly. Hermione nodded. There was no one else, save Ron of course, that Hermione would have wished to have with her at this time. Even back on the day Hermione had confirmed her pregnancy, Molly was there.
Hermione felt a little bit sad that she was sitting there alone. While this was something she had certainly envisaged sharing with her late husband, she was pragmatic enough to know that wishing would never make it so. A knock on the front door broke her out of her self-imposed reverie and she went to answer it.
"Molly!" she said in surprise, opening the door wider to admit her mother-in-law.
Molly hugged the younger woman and gave her cheek a little pinch. "Hello, dear, I came by to be with you while you did this."
Hermione returned her hug and kissed Molly's cheek. "Thank you," she said, the emotion causing a slight tremble in her voice. "I know this isn't easy."
"Sweetheart, when you have your own baby you will learn that nothing is ever easy—apart from loving him or her with all of your heart. Not even death can break that kind of love. I love both of my departed boys as much now as I ever did and I will continue to do so until I take my last breath and go to meet them again. Of course they will be breathless from having to have cleaned up decades of mess before I see where they've been living all these years." Both women laughed which held at bay the tears in their eyes following Molly's declaration. "I said I would support you so here I am. Would you like me to cast the charm?"
Hermione nodded. "Yes please, I was about to myself but it's better if someone else does it," she said nervously.
"Come along then," Molly said, striding briskly into Hermione's bedroom. Hermione smiled at her mother-in-law's characteristic no-nonsense tone and action. She followed her eagerly. As a Healer, Hermione was highly aware of her body and its condition at any time. She often practiced various (harmless) techniques on herself and documented her own health on a regular basis. There had been changes in her body in the days since she had had the IVF procedure performed. Her blood pressure had elevated slightly and her average core temperature had increased. The last two days she had felt an intense exhaustion following her shifts; it was nothing like anything she had ever experienced and only sleep had been able to restore her. Hot, sweet tea and chocolate did nothing.
"Right, sit down on the bed and let's get started," Molly instructed. She waited while Hermione seated herself and lifted her top, exposing her midriff. "Ready?" she asked with a smile. Hermione nodded. Molly drew her wand and pointed it at Hermione's abdomen. "Comprobo Praegnatus," she intoned, swishing her wand twice and ending with three quick flicks. They waited with bated breath. Barely a minute had passed before Hermione's abdomen began to glow slightly; rapidly becoming brighter and brighter until there was no doubt that the spell had indeed confirmed her pregnancy. Hermione bit her lip and looked at Molly with an excited gleam in her eyes. "It's positive," Molly said happily before Hermione threw herself into her mother-in-law's arms, laughing and crying at the same time.
"I am so happy for you, dear," Molly said, her eyes brimming with tears to match Hermione's.
"This is really happening, isn't it?" Hermione asked.
"Indeed it is, your opportunity for second thoughts has long gone now," Molly joked.
Hermione drew back and placed her hand protectively over her abdomen. She shook her head rapidly. "Not one second thought is running through my head," she said. She laughed again. "I am so happy, Molly. I didn't think I could ever be this happy again!" The tears spilled over once more and Molly embraced her daughter-in-law again.
"These last years have been incredibly hard on you, losing first your parents and then Ron so close together. I knew though that Death would not beat you; you've risen above your grief and made the ones responsible for it pay—literally—and moved on with your life. I know you will never forget my son, and you will always be our daughter. This child will be our eighth grandchild and we will love him or her with all our hearts. I will be with you as much as you need."
"Thank you, Molly," Hermione said softly into the older woman's shoulder. "It means so much to me that you understand that my life has gone on. I really appreciate that you will share this journey with me, especially since my own mother is gone." Despite Hermione having saved her parents from perishing at the end of a Death Eater's wand, she had been unable to save them from the car accident that had claimed their lives five years previously. She took solace from the fact that her relationship with them before their death had been stronger than ever but she still missed them almost as much as she missed her husband. The passing of time dulled the hurt but occasions like this brought it back again.
"It is my honour, love. Now, how about a nice cup of tea?" Molly asked.
"Certainly," Hermione said, getting up.
"No, no, I'll get it. You need to conserve all your energy now, dear. You just have a seat on the sofa and let Mother Weasley take care of you." Hermione knew it was useless to protest. When Molly broke out the 'Mother Weasley' card it was easier just to obey.
The pair of witches accessed the floo again, this time calling out for St Mungo's. Upon arrival, Hermione was swiftly admitted and installed in the maternity ward. A Medi-witch attended her and her Healer arrived to examine her, declaring that she was five centimetres dilated and everything looked good. Now all they had to do was wait.
Several hours later they were both sitting knitting baby booties and laughing about the time Charlie had unexpectedly arrived after dinner one Sunday night.
Hermione sat on the couch in the sitting room of the Burrow, a bowl of ice cream resting on her protruding belly.
"Didn't I tell you that is the best use for that?" Ginny asked with a laugh.
Hermione grimaced. "Yes, and it is, but I can't help but feel a bit horrible for doing this." She stirred the slightly melted ice cream idly. "Where is Harry with my M&M's?" she demanded.
Harry burst through the front door at that moment. "Here!" he said, thrusting the large bag at his pregnant sister-in-law. "I had to go all the way to Exeter for these!"
"And I truly appreciate it," Hermione said with a grin as she upended the entire bag into her bowl and began to stir the candies in. She dug her spoon in, piling a huge amount of dessert onto it and into her mouth.
"Whoa! Hermione, are you channelling Ron?" a not-often-heard voice asked from the kitchen doorway.
"Charlie!" most of the occupants of the room shouted. Everyone except Hermione jumped up to greet him. She did try, but after a few seconds of struggling, she just shrugged and went back to eating her ice cream. She waited patiently until the redhead flopped down onto the sofa beside her.
"So how are you and the parasite?" he asked, slipping his arm around Hermione's shoulder and giving her a squeeze.
"Dn clyr ncrnvw mpsite!" Hermione said through her mouthful of ice cream.
Charlie burst out laughing. "Sorry, Ron, I thought we buried you a few years ago but clearly we buried Hermione and you've been masquerading all this time!"
Hermione swallowed and smacked her spoon against the side of Charlie's head. "Be nice!" she admonished. She shook her head. The Weasley boys all seemed to thrive on mocking one another—even death did not stop it. Bill, Charlie and George would constantly emulate Fred and Ron's worst habits. They were not even above bringing up their past misdeeds to distract others from whatever it was they were doing. Even Harry and Percy would join in on occasion. "And don't call your niece or nephew a parasite!" Hermione finished.
"Hermione, that thing in there is attached to you. It's sucking its own life force directly from you to sustain itself and will continue to do so until the day it decides you're no longer good enough and exits your body in the most painful way possible." Charlie said all this in the most macabre tone he could muster. "Give me the dragon way any day. All the fun of sex then the female just lays an egg she has to sit on for a few months. Much more efficient," he teased. "Look at you, you didn't get the fun and now you have the parasite! OW!" Hermione whacked him with the spoon much harder this time. Charlie swiped his finger through Hermione's ice cream and scooped some into his mouth.
"I am never going to let you speak to this baby you know," Hermione said mulishly.
Charlie just laughed. "I'm not allowed to talk to any of the moochers! Why would I have thought any differently for this one?"
"UNCLE CHARLIE!" several voices screamed all at once and he was soon buried under a pile of small children. Rarely being around meant he was regarded as the favourite uncle when he did turn up. Hermione just shook her head in amusement again and continued to eat her ice cream.
A particularly strong contraction hit Hermione all of a sudden—the strongest one yet. She gasped with the pain, all thought of controlled breathing flying out of her mind as she chanted over and over, "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!"
"Breathe!" Molly said firmly. She knew things were going to move quickly now. The same thing had happened to her all six times she had given birth. The process seemed smooth and easy and all of a sudden, things turned on a Knut and she spent the next several hours wondering why on earth she was putting herself through this.
"Granger, Granger, Granger, anyone would think you were having a baby," Draco Malfoy teased as he leaned against the doorframe. He had just arrived for his shift and a glance at the patient board revealed his colleague had finally been admitted.
"Shut it, Malfoy," Hermione said through gritted teeth. "I dare you to come over here and say that. That slap I gave you in third year will feel like a love tap by the time I'm done with you," she threatened.
Malfoy just laughed. "I am a veteran of the delivery room, Granger; you think I haven't been threatened before? My own wife was in here a few months ago."
"Yeah," Hermione panted. "It's your fault I'm in this situation!"
"WHAT?!" Malfoy's voice raised several octaves in his shock at Hermione's accusation.
"It was your idea for me to use IVF; ergo it is your fault I'm here! I must blame a man, and I've chosen you. Get over here!"
"Yeah… that is not happening!" Malfoy declared. "Good luck, I'll see you when it's all over!" He quickly left the doorway.
Hermione's contraction was over by the time he had cleared the room. She picked up her knitting as though nothing had happened and said, "That was fun!"
Over the next several hours Hermione's contractions became closer and closer until she was finally fully dilated and in the final stages of labour. Molly and a Medi-witch held her hands while her Healer and another Medi-witch monitored everything with the baby.
"Big push on the next one, Hermione!" the Healer instructed.
"No, I'm done," Hermione said, her breath laboured and sweat pouring down her face.
"Not yet, you're not," Molly said. "Come on, love, just a bit more."
Hermione sobbed for five seconds before pulling herself together again and bearing down once more. She took a deep breath and pushed with all her might as soon as the next contraction hit.
"Yes, yes! Keep going," the Healer shouted. "Here's the head!"
It was all a blur of pushing, screaming and voices all telling her to 'breathe!' and 'push!' for the next several minutes until a very indignant cry pierced the air as her baby was finally pulled from her body. The Healer held the newborn up; very clearly displaying he was of the male persuasion. Hermione and Molly both burst into happy tears at the mere sight of him and he was immediately placed on Hermione's chest.
"Oh, Hermione, he is precious!" Molly declared.
"Hello, Baby!" Hermione said, she was laughing and crying at the same time. She looked up at her mother-in-law. "I was wrong, I've never been this happy!" She placed her hand on her son's back and rubbed gently. He began to calm under the ministration of his mother. Molly bent down to place a kiss on the baby's tiny head, her joy almost equalling Hermione's.
Within minutes, the baby boy was cleaned, dressed, swaddled and in his mother's arms enjoying his first meal. Molly had gone out to the hallway to send her Patronus to Arthur, Harry and the rest of the family to let them know of the baby's arrival. As had been previously determined Arthur, Harry and Ginny were the first to visit, arriving just after Hermione had been moved into her own room.
"Where is my Godson?" Ginny demanded as soon as she walked in the room. Hermione had asked her and Harry to serve as her baby's Godparents almost immediately after she had discovered she was pregnant.
"Here," Hermione said, handing him over to her sister-in-law.
"He is perfect, Hermione," Ginny said softly, cradling the newborn in her hands. She made little kissy faces at him, giggling when he seemed to just stare at her and dismiss her antics. "What is his name?" she asked.
"Jonathan Ronald Granger," Hermione said promptly. She had decided on names months ago. If the baby had been a girl she would have been called Helena Ronda. Jonathan and Helena were her parent's names and she was determined to honour her late husband somehow.
Molly's eyes immediately teared up. "That's—that's beautiful, Hermione, thank you," she whispered.
Arthur cleared his throat awkwardly. "I know you kept your name when you married, but if you want to use Weasley, you may," he offered.
Hermione faltered for a second before Harry stepped in. "If I may," he said tentatively. Hermione nodded gratefully. "Ron told me this, years ago," Harry began. "First let me say Ron was inordinately proud to be a Weasley, but he knew he what he was—the younger son of the younger son and one of many, many Weasleys." Everyone in the room nodded. "Hermione is the first Granger in our world, and we all know how much she has distinguished herself," he said proudly. "Ron wanted to start a new dynasty; their kids were always going to be named Granger, not Weasley."
Hermione and Ginny both nodded. Although Arthur and Molly were surprised, and just a tiny bit disappointed, they could see and respect their late son's reasoning. They knew it did not mean that he was ashamed of his name or his family—it may have been slightly true in his younger years when he was still under the shadows of his many brothers and resentful of his place so far down the totem pole. This idea actually sounded exactly like something Ron would have suggested once he grew up and matured. Arthur could see that being the sire, so to speak, of an entire new dynasty would have appealed to his son and nothing more was said about Jonathan's surname. Hermione had still honoured his son with the baby's middle name and he could ask for no more than that.
Hermione relaxed when her parents-in-law offered no objections to her son's name. She nodded to Ginny to pass Jonathan off to Harry. Ginny did so and then climbed up on the bed to lie next to her friend and sister. "You okay?" the redhead asked, putting her arms around her.
Hermione nodded and snuggled slightly into Ginny. "Yeah, I am," she said. "Where are the boys?"
"At Bill and Fleur's," Ginny replied. "How was it?"
"You know, I thought you were crazy when you told me that you kind of forgot how bad the birth was after it, but you're right. It's like, I know it was bad, but I don't care. Look what I got, look what I made!"
"Third most beautiful baby boy I've ever seen!" she teased. Hermione gave her a mock-scowl.
"Most, most beautiful," she argued. Ginny just laughed and hugged her. It was an argument neither of them would convince the other of. "Thank you for everything," Hermione said softly.
"You're welcome," Ginny whispered. "Family forever and ever."
Harry looked at the girls fondly before turning his attention to the baby in his arms. "Aren't Mummy and Aunty Ginny funny?" he asked, speaking in baby-talk to his new nephew. "You're going to have to get used to them. But don't worry too much, me and James and Albus will be around to do all the manly things with you. I'll teach you how to fly a broom and climb a tree and no one can hurl a garden gnome as far as me. I'll show you my secret technique and you can be an honourary Potter in the gnome-throwing stakes. Whoa!" Harry stared down at the baby in surprise before bursting out laughing, gaining the attention of the others in the room.
"Hey, what do you reckon the chances are of Snape being a sperm donor?" he asked. Four identical looks mixed with astonishment and skepticism stared back at him.
"Why on earth would you ask that, Harry?" Hermione asked, affronted.
"No joke, this baby just made a face at me that was exactly like Snape whenever he heard the name Potter." Harry fairly spat his surname in a credible imitation of their former Potions professor. He looked down. "He just did it again!"
"Harry, don't be absurd," Hermione said primly. "If you're going to be ridiculous then hand my baby back to me."
Harry just grinned and cradled the baby closer. A knock on the door had everyone looking up to see George and Angelina there. Molly and Arthur excused themselves with hugs and kisses and promises to visit the next day, allowing the next of the family in to meet and welcome their newest member. Harry relinquished the baby to Angelina and George crowded over her shoulder to get a good look.
"Hey there…" he trailed off and looked to Hermione for a name, "Jonathan," he greeted when Hermione said her son's name. "You look like you won't have as big a stick up your bum as your mum does. I've already got a box of my best pranks set aside with your name on—whoa!" George abruptly cut himself off and looked at Hermione in shock. "Hermione, your kid looks like Snape!"
"See—I told you!" Harry agreed emphatically.
"That's it; you two go and stand in that corner and don't look at or talk to my son ever again!" Hermione said firmly. The two men did as she said, albeit not without arguing.
"I swear, Hermione; that kid looked like he wanted to take points and give me a detention!" George declared.
"Then it shows he is clearly very clever already," Hermione argued back. Ginny and Angelina both laughed. The five of them continued to banter for a while, men and women clearly siding against each other until Hermione let out a huge yawn.
"That's our cue," Ginny said. She hugged Hermione one more time before climbing off the bed. "Congratulations. Your life will never be the same again."
Hermione laughed. "Thanks," she said drily. She accepted Jonathan back from George having relented to the boys' begging to hold him again several minutes earlier.
"Here's your mini-Snape," he said with a grin. Hermione just gave him a dirty look and grudgingly accepted the kiss he gave her. Harry and Angelina said their goodbyes as well and Hermione was finally left alone with her baby.
-oOo-
Meanwhile, Severus had been reeling from the news delivered to him by his elf. He had Apparated to Prince Manor and confirmed that there was, in fact, a line threading from his name and the magic had formed a name. The name Jonathan stood out before him; he tried to figure out exactly how this could have happened. It had been years—years!—since he had lain with a woman. Even then he knew he had scrupulously applied contraception charms every time. This was not possible. There was no reason why—
A horrible thought occurred to him and he immediately turned on the spot, Disapparating to another location.
He began banging on the door of the spacious home he had landed in front of immediately. "DRACO!" he yelled as he pounded on the wood.
"Severus!" Draco yanked open the door, wondering what on earth could have happened to his Godfather to make him act this way.
Severus barged into the house. "What did you do?" he demanded.
Draco closed the door. He would normally have made some quip about the way the man had entered without an invitation but he could feel the anger rolling off the other wizard in waves. "I do not know what you are referring to," he said calmly, hoping Severus would calm down.
"I participated in your little study—as embarrassing and undignified as it was. I donated my… my… you know what I donated, in confidence it would be used for the intended purpose. How did this happen?" Severus demanded.
Draco really had no clue what Severus was talking about. Yes, he knew Severus had donated his sperm to his study. Draco had not been shy in asking every male of his acquaintance to participate. It had taken quite a bit of convincing to get Severus to wank into a cup for him but he had extolled the noble aspiration of researching magic at its core, knowing that appealing to the academic within his Godfather would finally sway the man. "How did what happen?" Draco asked.
"How did my sperm end up fathering a child?" Severus asked, baring his teeth in anger. He had even lost his hesitance in naming the substance he had provided.
"WHAT?" Draco shouted.
"Yes, a name has embroidered itself onto the Prince Family Tapestry stemming from my name. I have not been with a woman at any time close to this being a natural occurrence yet my sperm was at St Mungo's. Again I ask, how did this happen?" He punctuated his question with pauses that took Draco straight back to the man's classroom. The inflection only underlined how seriously peeved his Godfather was.
"I don't know," Draco said seriously. This was a very big problem. A sudden thought occurred to him. "Oh, no!" he said. He tried. He really tried hard but the laugh bubbled up from his stomach and he could not stop it. Only one baby had been born at St Mungo's that day. Within seconds he was doubled over, laughing harder than he ever thought he had before, clutching his stomach and with tears rolling down his face. Severus merely stared dispassionately at his Godson during his fit. He did not appreciate being the butt of whatever humorous situation had grabbed hold of the boy. He was about to threaten him with torturous potions when a single word managed to escape Draco's lips, "Gr-Granger!"
"Granger what?"
"Granger had your baby!"
"WHAT?"
"It's the only possible explanation," Draco said.
"What do you mean?"
"Sorry, Healer / patient confidentiality. It's not my fault if you go to St Mungo's and pay a visit though."
Severus stared at him a moment longer before turning on his heel again and Disapparating away, this time to St Mungo's.
Maybe there he would get some answers.
-oOo-
Hermione was relishing the quiet. The tiredness that had overcome her when the others were there had miraculously disappeared once she had the chance to spend some time alone with her baby. She had sat up with her knees bent and was resting Jonathan on her thighs. Mother and son were examining each other intently, bonding in the most ancient of ways. Hermione could not keep the smile off her face as she checked him over, making sure he had all his limbs, examining every inch of him and marvelling once again that this tiny creature, this beautiful baby had come from her; been made by her.
Presently, Hermione began speaking to him. "How can I love you so much already? The other mothers told me I would but I didn't really believe them. If I had to right now, I would throw myself out of that window for you. Look at you. You are wonderful. Your eyes are so blue; I wonder what colour they will turn out to be. Most babies I have seen with this colour turn out to have quite dark eyes. And you have so much hair! All black, too—clearly not from me. But that is of no matter; I don't know who provided the sperm to make you but I will be forever grateful to him for it. And I will tell you all about your other Daddy, your Daddy who had to go away but who would have loved you with every fibre of his being.
"I promise to do my best by you. You will be my top priority from now on. Everything I do will be for you and to make your life better. It's you and me against the world, kiddo, but we'll be fine. You already met Nanna and Grandad Weasley as well as Uncle Harry, Aunty Ginny, Uncle George and Aunty Angelina. Over the next few days you'll meet the rest of your aunties and uncles and all your cousins. They will teach you to play Quidditch and throw gnomes, but you must promise me to be careful, okay?" She reached with one of her hands and hooked her little finger around the baby's tiny hand. "Pinkie promise. I know we're not their family by blood but we are by marriage and for them, that's as good as. Even though our little family will be just the two of us, we will never be alone. You will grow up big and strong and then you'll go off to Hogwarts and become a proud Gryffindor—oh my God!"
Hermione stared down at the look of utter derision her son gave when she told him he would be a Gryffindor. She knew that he did not understand her, and his facial expressions at this point were involuntary muscle contractions, but the timing and the look were impeccable. She could clearly see what Harry and George meant. Jonathan did look exactly like Severus Snape at his most haughty when his face contorted like that!
"Okay, that was weird," she said. She wiggled a little bit and picked Jonathan up, bringing his face closer to hers. "I am about to issue my first, official Mummy order: never make that face again!"
"He cannot help it if he has the sense to not want to be a Gryffindor," a voice said from the doorway. Hermione looked up to see the man in question standing stiffly at the entrance to her room. Taking a moment to ensure Jonathan was safely tucked in her arms and she herself was presentable (as presentable as a woman could be mere hours after giving birth, anyway), she invited her former professor into the room.
"I would have expected better from you, Severus," she said. They had long been on a first-name basis. "If you are here because of something Harry or George has told you then you are wasting your time."
Severus scoffed. "You underestimate me," he retorted. "I put little to no stock into anything either of those two imbeciles says. My information has come from a completely reliable source. To put it bluntly, that is my son you have there."
"My son," Hermione refuted, holding the baby even closer.
Severus had the grace to nod in acknowledgement. This situation had been thrust upon him and he had not had any time to prepare himself for any form of argument. If there was one thing he understood, it was the protectiveness a mother could and would display when necessary. He certainly had no intention of coming between the sacred mother/child bond, but he had to understand how this baby had come to be born.
"What makes you think this is your son?" Hermione asked.
"Ancient Prince family magic," Severus replied promptly. "The family tapestry was imbued many centuries ago with the blood of the then Head of House and every one of his descendants has since had their name embroidered on the infernal thing upon birth. One of my inherited elves has long been tasked with keeping track of additions to the tapestry. Imagine my surprise when he came to my house today and informed me I now had a descendant of my very own. I do not shirk my duty, even when it is not a duty I asked for."
Hermione rolled her eyes at his dramatic statement. She shifted the baby in her arms. "Well let me relieve you of your obligation. I have not asked for nor do I want your presence in our lives if you are going to see us as an obligation or a burden. Although I do have to ask, why on earth did you donate sperm for the purpose of artificial insemination if you were going to act like this when a baby was conceived?" she asked.
"And therein lies the problem, Hermione," Severus said. "I…donated… for Draco's genealogy study, not for my donation to be used to father a child." Hermione's mouth dropped open. This was a big problem! "I now seek to understand what will happen next."
Seized by an irrational moment, one she would later blame on the residual hormones in her system, Hermione clutched Jonathan tight to her chest and declared, "Well you're not putting him back!"
The mere thought of that impossibility surprised a snort of amusement from Severus. His lips continued to twitch as he answered, "I think we can safely say that is not one of our options."
Hermione relaxed and shook her head at her momentary bout of madness. "Look, you really don't have to do anything," she said. "I believe you about your tapestry, my son clearly resembles you and I am really sorry your donation was mixed up somehow. But I always intended to do this by myself, with whatever help I might need coming from my family. I have no need for monetary or emotional support from anyone and I will not embroil myself or my son in any form of custody battle. I am not unreasonable. Now that we know about Jonathan's paternity I am willing to include you in his life. Know this though, if you are involved, you are to be involved. I will not have him pulled from pillar to post at a whim depending on your other commitments, be they business or personal. I don't expect you to answer right away, but once you make the commitment to him, you are making it for life. I will see to it personally."
Severus was familiar enough with the declarations of Gryffindors to know that Hermione meant every word she said. He was ill equipped to deal with the gamut of emotions he was currently experiencing. One feeling he could definitely identify was gratefulness. Gratefulness that Hermione was being reasonable, demonstrating that sense of logic she was famed for. Gratefulness that she was giving him time to consider the situation and come to a conclusion. There was one thing though… "May I see him?" he asked.
"Of course," Hermione answered. He came to the side of the bed and bent over to see his son closely for the first time. Hermione shifted, surprising him when she actually handed him the baby rather than just moving him in order for him to be observed. Luckily Severus had recently been handling Draco's baby on a regular basis so he was able to take and hold the infant rather deftly with no awkwardness.
As he looked down into the face of the newborn in his arms, Severus' breath hitched. He had always scoffed at parents who saw themselves in their babies; he certainly could see no similarities between the scrawny infants and the adults that had sired them. It was only once they were older, Harry Potter being a perfect case-in-point, when the resemblance was more pronounced. Staring back at him was an amalgamation of baby pictures he had seen of himself and his mother. Granger's influence was certainly prominent as well (especially in the ears and the little upturn of the nose), but he could clearly see the Prince eyes, the Snape cheekbones and the mixture of the two, from him, of the high forehead.
A never-before-felt surge of emotion coursed through him. He had been bound by vows for most of his life to protect and defend various children, both through his profession and through his personal promises. He had felt a rapport with his Godson for most of his life and had always tried to steer him, not always successfully, in the right directions. Never had he laid eyes on a child and felt an immediate connection. Never had he felt an immediate, overwhelming need to protect and defend to the death, of his own will and his own wish; to gladly lay down his life so that this child, his child, could live and thrive. Eyes that mirrored his own stared back at him. Jonathan seemed to regard him for a moment before stretching his little neck up and then settling down to sleep. His mouth puckered slightly and a tiny mewl of contentment emanated forth, as though he knew that the hands that held him were perfectly safe and he could sleep without fear. Unconsciously Severus lifted the tiny babe and brought their heads together. He placed a gentle kiss on Jonathan's forehead, oblivious to the look of awe that Hermione was giving him.
After gazing down at his son for a few moments longer, he lifted his eyes to the woman in the bed. "I am his father," he said. "I want to be his father; I want to be part of his life."
-oOo-