Chapter 20

Mood swings and Fears

Hermione woke 4 weeks after finding out she was pregnant and sighed to find her husband's side of the bed empty as per the recent norm. She had barely seen her husband since the day she had found out she was pregnant. He had made sure he was never in the same room as her and made sure to address her only as Mrs or Madam Snape. He had stopped all form of non-professional contact and waited until she was asleep before he even thought about entering the bedroom. He didn't touch her at all and she was fairly certain he'd put some form of spell on the bed to ensure that they did not find their way to one another in sleep.

She felt tears spring to her eyes once again. She missed her husband and had found herself dreading the arrival of her child rather than embracing it. She felt that the news she was expecting had pulled them apart rather than closer together. In fact, she now felt worse about their marriage than she had done when they were simply pretending to be married.

The only time Severus had even looked at her was the morning she had gaped in the mirror at the small bump in her stomach. He had scowled at the offending bump and turned on his heal without a word.

Hermione looked up at the sound of a knock on the portrait door and she called for the portrait to allow the person entrance. It was Rain and Suzan.

'Oh pet.' Susan said as she saw her tears filled eyes. 'Is the professor still ignoring you?'

'Yes!' and 'I don't know wither to sob or scream and throw things, this baby had ruined everything! He won't even look at me, never mind let me talk to him! He hasn't touched me since we found out, and now that I'm starting to show, he won't even look at me, all I get out of him these days are good easy Mrs Snape, fix this Madam Snape!' Hermione ranted and the two girls let her do so, they all knew that she was feeling abandoned by her husband and yet none of them quite had the courage to call the man out on it as they would have for any of the other husbands.

'Hell I'm surprised he isn't calling me Miss Granger at this point! Stupid git! Did he think I did this on my own? Oh no he wasn't there at all, he didn't enjoy fucking me every chance he fucking got did he!' Hermione spat, her sorrow turning to rage. 'And now I'm craving fucking pickles, I don't even like pickles, and I can't even order the bastard to get them for me because he won't stay in the same fuckwitted room as me!'

'Lets go get you zome pikeels zen zall wee' Rained said guiding the girl out of her quarters and to the great hall where she sat grumbling under her breath and biting furiously into pickle after pickle. Making the boys around her wince every time she bit down.

Pansy shushed her daughter, lightly as Seamus attempted to feed his son with little success. 'He'll come around Hermione, he's probably just shocked, it's one thing to know that you need to have a child by law, it's another to find your wife pregnant.'

'I'll bet Seamus didn't all but divorce you though did he? No because you married a Gryffindor not a stupid filthy cowardly snake, who's good for nothing but running away!' Hermione spat causing the child in Pansy's arms to start wailing.

'Gee taing gut Hermione! It's not like we've slept or anything!' Seamus snapped at her and Hermione promptly burst into tears.

'Seamus! She's got it hard enough as it is!' Pansy snapped standing and making her way over to the Slytherin table, leaving Seamus on his own.

'I hate this law.' Harry said with wide eyes watching the scene before him and his wife glared at him and poked him in the ribs.

'Sure cause you got the hard bit right?' she muttered angrily.

'I need to get back, Lav's not had much sleep and her nipple's…Ron trailed off with a shudder, their six-week old son Graham Ronald Weasley was one of those babies that only slept for an hour at a time, and the pair were at their wits end since he wouldn't seem to take to the bottle meaning that Lavender always had to get up and feed the little mite.

At that moment Severus choose to walk past the Gryffindor table not even acknowledging his wife as she called his name softly, hoping he'd at least look at her, which only caused her to burst into a fresh round of tears.

'Merlin's sake.' Neville said as he stood up and turned to face the professor's retreating back. Wincing at Hermione's shrill wail. 'Professor Snape. With all due respect sir, take your wife back to your rooms and talk to her before you find yourself mauled by a pride of lions.' He said glaring at the head of Slytherin.

Hermione looked up to see that at the head table McGonagall and Dumbledore were both on their feet glaring at the man as well. She glanced up and down the table and saw that those who were not heavily pregnant or tending babies were also standing and glaring at the man.

Severus glance at all the Gryffindor's waiting to pounce. And his eyes landed on his wife who was looking at him with hopeful eyes. He pulled himself away from her gaze and turned to continue on his way.

'Severus Snape, ye escort that Lassie back to yer chambers this instant! Or so elp me god I'll tan yer hide!' McGonagall screeched her wand now drawn.

Severus paused mid stride and turned to face the Scottish professor. 'My married life is my own Minerva and neither you or your Gryffindor's have any say in the matter.' He said quietly but deadly.

Hermione knew he wasn't happy with being humiliated like that, but she was tired of being humiliated. She had been called a whore, a harlot when they had first been married but now she was called much worse, she was surprised that the ministry hadn't been banging on her door to check that her child was in fact her husbands, with all the rumours that had been flying around her this passed month. No, she thought to herself, Neville was right enough was enough. Was she a Gryffindor or wasn't she?

She stood and watched her husband's retreat for a second waiting till the man was nearly at the great doors before she drew her wand. 'You will damn well stop and you will fucking look at me you thrice damned coward!' She bellowed flicking her wand at his turning back so that he was blasted through the doors and onto the floor of the entrance hall.

She stalked to him her hair crackling and her face red with anger and her robes billowing behind her as she moved closer to her husband.

'Up.' She snapped her hands on her hips. He glared at her from his position on the floor, 'I said get up!' She thundered and he did so. As she turned in the direction of their chambers. 'You better follow me you bastard or so help you I'll make myself a widow!'

The man dutifully followed the enraged girl and once they were in their chambers he turned on her. 'HOW DARE YOU, YOU INNOLENT…'

'LITTLE MARE?' she finished reminding him of the words her own father had said to her moments before he had gone to strike her. A strike which Severus himself had saved her from. 'You listen here and you listen well Severus Snape, I am pregnant, and nothing you do or say will change that fact I'm scared I'm confused, I'm fucking angry!' she said picking up a pen pot and tossing it at him.

Severus, dodged the projectiles and opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off.

'I know you never wanted to marry me Severus, but I had thought we'd overcome that? I thought you loved me? Because I sure as hell love you! Though now I'm not so sure you do, cause if you loved me as you claimed to, I would not be pregnant and alone!' She screamed, this time whacking him with a cushion from the couch.

He tried to take it from her but she only threw it at him instead hitting him on the side of the head.

'I should, have my husband beside me to help me through it, instead I face mood swings, cravings, insufferable lust, back pain, swollen ankles and Newt exams alone!'

She continued picking up a second cushion to beat him with. He stepped back out of her reach and she abandoned the cushion as she continued to rant at him.

'Walk out on me that's fine! I'll move back into the spare room, you needn't touch me again, you needn't even see the child, you can wank into a jar and I'll get a doctor to impregnate me for our second compliance with this godforsaken law!' she screeched this time throwing a vase mere centimetre's away from his head, it hit the wall behind him with a smash.

He opened his mouth again but she threw her previously abandoned cushion at him watching with pride as it hit him in the face.

'But whatever you do Severus Snape you will not bring the ministry bearing down on me and my child because you are being an insufferable arse! When we are outside these walls we will act like a damned married couple. We've done it before and we can do it again, all I want to know is why you've changed your mind!'

'Can I speak now Woman?' he said with annoyance, glaring at her, as he moved the rest of the throwable objects out of her reach.

'You mean you want to speak to me now? Well that'll be a first in a while then.' She scoffed and turned away from him.

He looked at her tense form and sighed he'd been an arse, he knew he had been, but he was stubborn, all the anger he had felt over his rather public scolding faded as he realised his wife was hurting and that he had been the one to hurt her. His annoyance at being used for a target also vanished, she had every right to throw things at him, he was glad it had mostly been cushions.

'I do love you Hermione.' He said finally. His head hung in shame. 'I…I've been foolish…but I've not stopped loving you.'

'You have a funny way of showing it!' she huffed turning to face him once more. He winced worried she might remember she had a wand this time.

'I know…I…I never thought I'd ever be a father…in truth I'd hoped never to be…I am not the sort of man who should be a father Hermione.' He said his voice cracking as long buried memories came flooding back to him. 'I had thought if I distanced myself then the child wouldn't have to face my fists if I ever lost my temper. I thought maybe if I pretended you weren't pregnant then you wouldn't be, and I could stop myself…' she shook his head it didn't matter he'd destroyed her faith in him. He slumped into the chair and put his head in his hands.

'Your father beat you didn't he.' She said after a long moment.

He made a noise of agreement but didn't look up from his hands. Hermione felt her anger wash away and yet another round of tears flood her eyes. She knelt down in front of him and pulled his hands away from his face.

'You are not your father Severus, you will not be like him, your own experiences will force you to be better than he was.' She said stroking his cheek.

'I'm quick to anger Hermione, I might, if the child misbehaves…I.'

'Do you hit your students?' She asked and he shook his head. 'Then what makes you think you'll hit your own child? You have the restraint required to not hit a student and god knows some of them need it, so you'll have the restraint required to not lay hands on our children.'

'I've ignored you little witch, why are you not drawing and quartering me?' he said taking her face in his hands.

'Because love makes us mad.' She said with a smile placing a kiss to his lips. 'But be warned Severus Snape you ever treat me like a doll you can toss to the floor again, then I will draw and quarter you, do I make myself clear!'

'Most defiantly,' he said as she pulled him to his feet, and towards the bedroom.

'You can make it up to me, by shagging me senseless, I've missed my husband.' She said as she closed the bedroom door.

'We have classes.' He said stuttering slight as she tore at the buttons of his robes. He still didn't think he'd done enough to earn her forgiveness. He didn't deserve her body right now. He still wasn't completely sure he deserved her at all.

'Oh I think Dumbledore expects us to be a while, I'm sure he'll cover your morning classes.' She said as she divested him of his robes and moved onto his shirt.

'But.' He tried feebliy as one of her hands moved to grip his hardening length that was still covered by his trousers.

'Do you want to upset me again Husband?' she said giving him a deliciously hard squeeze.

'Fuck.' He said picking her up and throwing her gently on the bed, toughing his shirt to the floor and quickly stepping out of his trousers. He would deal with making it up to her later. He had missed this wonderful little witch and if she was willing to take him back into her bed so quickly who was he to judge. He only wished he hadn't been so damned stupid as to freeze her out for so long. He wished he had talked to her rather than walking away like a coward.

He made quick work of her own clothing leaving her in only her bra and panties. A pale silk ivory set with pink bows and French knickers. He drew his eyes over her exposed form and licked his lips. His eyes landed on the small but noticeable bump in her belly.

Slowly he reached foreword to caress it. He sucked in a breath and looked at his wife's face. She was smiling at him allowing him time to gaze upon his unborn child's evidence in the world. He pressed a kiss to her belly and muttered an almost unheard apology to the little being inside before he slithered up his wife form and took her lips in a kiss that conveyed just how sorry he was for the way he'd treated her. He pushed into her lightly and they both sighed in bliss and slowly they came climbing to a climax that left them both breathless.

'Forgive me Little witch.' He whispered as he pulled her close and held her in the comfort of their bed.

'Always Severus, Always.' She muttered happily as she snuggled into him and held him tight as if she was afraid that this was a dream and when she woke up they would still be fighting.