Morning Has Broken...
Soft kisses trailed down her throat, her chest and over her breasts. He took his time caressing them, enjoying their softness. He played with her nipples and was glad to hear her moan. His butterfly kisses covered her stomach; he couldn't resist licking her bellybutton. She giggled helplessly. The cover slid back, and he saw silvery lines where the skin had been stretched.
He traced them with trembling fingers. "Hermione," he whispered. "Do we…?" His voice faltered. He looked down, unable to speak anymore.
She reached out to gently turn his chin. "Yes, love, you are a father. His name is Sebastian, he is almost two years old."
Severus let his head sink down to her stomach. He was overwhelmed. Not long ago he was convinced that he would never have a loving wife, and now here she was. And he had a family!
He shuddered involuntarily. A family means the danger of being vulnerable. He knew he couldn't bear to lose her. He whispered, "He must be out of his mind, worrying about you!"
It was the first time he referred to his future self.
Hermione's hand gently caressed his hair. "I don't think so. He knows that I am with you. And since you are him, he knows perfectly well that you love me."
He pressed a gentle kiss down the lines on her belly and sat up to face her. "But you have to return to him." An ice cold hand grabbed his heart, and the fear of losing her almost overwhelmed him.
"Yes, and I am afraid, you will have to wait for me for quite some time." She squeezed his hand. "But you will tread dangerous paths, and you would be vulnerable to your fellow Death Eaters if you had a family at that time. It is of utmost importance that you keep your contacts and feign further loyalty to their cause."
"I can't!" he exclaimed. "How can I return and humble myself to somebody who poses a threat to you?"
"Because without you in his inner circle when he returns, I won't have a fighting chance to live."
He hung his head and tried to fight against the rising fear in his heart that the battled darkness certainly wasn't bowed.