Chapter 99

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The call from Heather asking if she could stay with them again, didn't come for over a month. Tim and Hadrian each talked to her daily, at times they knew the Admiral should be at work and she reassured them that everything was fine. They were beginning to pack up the house and make preparations for the transfer to the west coast. Heather really wasn't that keen on being so far away from her children and grandchildren but Harry assured her that he could collect her with magic at any time so she could still visit as often as she'd like. The distance was no barrier to him and the elves could easily pop anywhere in the world with Heather since she didn't have her own magic to fight theirs moving her.

Some of Heather's friends who'd been told the real story about Heather's extended visit to her children encouraged her that during the transfer was the ideal time to be leaving Thomas. Especially since she had no real friends among the officers' wives at the new base housing, and her friends were worried about how isolated she'd be if Thomas became verbally or emotionally abusive. They pointed out that while preparing for the move she had time to pack her things carefully and separately without arousing his suspicion and he'd be able to settle into the new single accommodation, which at an Admiral level was probably the same accommodation they'd have been given as a couple without dependent children, and it would afford the Admiral the least embarrassment. Tim and Hadrian quietly agreed with her friends when she mentioned it, but resolved to let Heather make her own mind up, reminding her that she had their support no matter which decision she made and that she was welcome to stay with them for as long as she liked or if she preferred Hadrian would happily buy his mother-in-law her own home in their neighbourhood if she was to leave the Admiral or send an elf to collect her every two or three weeks to visit if she wanted to stay with him and move to the East Coast.

"I can't say I love the idea of moving into another base house, particularly knowing we're going to have to move again in the next ten years or so when Thomas retires," Heather said sighing.

"We'd be happy to send someone one afternoon and help you pack if the Admiral is busy away from the house," Tim offered. I'm sure Hadrian knows a couple of elves that would happily have the whole house packed up and everything transported to your new home and set up just the way you want it in a few hours or so for you.

"To be honest I think I'd like to trash the lot of furniture and start again with things I actually like instead of pieces chosen to impress guests," Heather said sighing as she looked at the expensive loungeroom that seemed so cold compared to Tim and Hadrian's well lived in and eclectic home, where warm colours and comfy overstuffed couches paired up cosily with priceless antiques and the children's artwork had a pride of place in most rooms.

"Then do it, you have enough money and the furniture you have is in great condition, you could probably get a reasonable amount for it selling on-line," Tim replied. "If you want help with that send me some photos and I'll list it for you."

"I can't, the Navy expects a certain image from its senior staff," Heather replied.

"The Navy has already decided that this will be the Admiral's position for the rest of his career. There is no need to try to impress anyone," Tim retorted.

"So, we will be in California until Thomas retires?" Heather asked.

"As long as you stay with him, yes it will and there's no guarantee he will want to move back to the west coast on retirement, let alone to the tristate area.

"I'm moving back near my children and grandchildren, he can stay here on his own if he doesn't want to come," Heather declared.

"Who knows where Sarah will be living by then, she'll have finished her masters and she's never mentioned wanting to continue for a doctorate so she won't be at Waverly," Tim replied.

"I was thinking of selling all this furniture and buying something more suitable for the lifestyle in San Diego. I've never liked it and I think I want something warmer and more casual now we no longer have to worry about impressing your commanding officers," Heather mentioned as she served dinner that night.

"There's nothing wrong with this furniture and the new house will be almost identical to this one so it should all fit nicely," Thomas said dismissively.

"I want a house filled with furniture that suits me, and looks like a proper home. Not another display home for the upwardly mobile officer of the Navy," Heather replied.

"Are you suggesting I no longer need to impress my superiors," Thomas asked dangerously.

"Well they won't be coming to the house," Heather argued rashly.

"What do you mean we no longer need to impress a commanding officer, there will be plenty of opportunities to entertain SecNav and the chief of staff when they visit the base. This might be an unexpected side-step but if we put the effort into it I'm sure we can still be promoted to Washington within two or three years," Thomas said angrily.

"None of the people above you in the chain of command are due to retire before you are," Heather said pacifyingly before continuing the argument about the furniture. "I hate all this black and chrome. I just thought it might be nice to have the house decorated more in keeping with the climate. I'm sure I could decorate in a way that's equally impressive without it looking like a furniture store."

"We're taking the furniture," Thomas said finishing the conversation.

"Melanie Redwood redecorates completely every time they move and she told me Admiral Davenport and his wife were very impressed with her new French Provincial décor," Heather said.

"You don't have the flair for decorating. I remember how the house looked before this and the answer is no," Thomas ordered.

"It looked like it was, a comfortable family home, which is exactly the way I wanted it to look," Heather retorted.

"I like the way this room looks now, you are not redecorating," Thomas said bluntly.

Heather sighed, redecorating the lounge area might have been a small thing but it seemed to her lately that she was constantly giving in and letting him have his way to keep the peace. She wasn't ready to leave him but she did subconsciously find herself packing the all the family photos and things she would want to keep separate from the decorator items the Admiral insisted that they take to their new posting, and his awards and personal items. She realised she was taking the cowards way out putting off making any decision at all and that she probably would go to San Diego with him when the time came.

-o0o-

However a few weeks later, Thomas came home spitting mad one day after Tim and his team had been on base investigating a series of thefts from the supply department and all of the Admiral's subordinates had made a point of meeting the Admiral's son and mentioning to the Admiral how proud he must be of him. it can't be said that the men were oblivious, they were well aware that Tim was a sore point with the Admiral though they didn't know why, they just enjoyed the opportunity to piss the man off in a way he couldn't retaliate against them and they knew the NCIS team had flown out that afternoon so Agent McGee wasn't around to suffer from their actions.

He arrived home to find that Heather was happily humming as she cooked dinner and assumed correctly that she'd seen Tim that day.

"I told you clearly that your son is not welcome in my house!" the Admiral snapped.

"As it happened he didn't visit the house, there wasn't time, I went over and had lunch with him and his team," Heather replied placidly. "Agent Gibbs was good to allow me to spend some time with them, when they were so busy but luckily they were making the arrests when I arrived and just had to get the paperwork done for JAG to take over. It's a pity he couldn't stay a little longer and have dinner."

"You invited him to dinner? In my house?" Thomas roared.

"This is my home too Thomas McGee!" Heather stated firmly. "If you didn't want to eat with us you could have had your dinner on a tray in your office but Tim is my son. I will not tell him he isn't welcome in my home!"

"He is not my son," Thomas said severely.

"But he still is mine and I love him," Heather retorted fiercely.

"He is not to come here ever again. I will not have that in my house," Thomas ordered.

"I'm sure Tim and his lover will refrain from kissing and sex in your home if you ask them to, they are both private people and aren't that big on public demonstrations of affection anyway. Tim's boyfriend doesn't work for NCIS anyway so it would've just been Tim tonight," Heather replied.

"You will not invite that disgusting man who corrupted my son into my house," Thomas roared.

"He did no such thing," Heather snapped.

"You're blind about your son. You always have been. You coddled him too much, that's why he became a Nancy-boy instead of growing up to be a real man," Thomas yelled.

"If you mean the seasickness, didn't you ever realise it started the day we had his magic bound. It is your doing that Tim was unable to serve aboard ship and didn't join the Navy," Heather retorted.

"Just as well he didn't, he'd be a disgrace to the uniform," Thomas snapped.

"Tim would be an asset to the Navy just like he's an extremely valuable asset to NCIS being part of the best investigative field team in the whole agency. Just because you don't like some of his personal choices doesn't mean you can rewrite the truth," Heather told him bluntly. "He was never going to force his children into the Navy, and he would never have allowed you to treat them the way you treated him growing up. If anything has made Tim too gentle in his private life it was his absolute determination to be nothing like the abusive father you were."

Thomas moved to strike her and was frozen in place for a moment before stepping back as if pushed. Heather looked at him in shock. This is what happened last time as well but this time she knew that it wasn't Thomas backing down in shock that he nearly hit her it was protective magic preventing him from moving.

"Is someone there?" she asked shakily.

A stranger materialised in front of her holding a silky cloak. "I'm Lynda Sherrington. I work for your son-in-law and he asked me to keep an eye on you. We thought that after he saw Tim today you might be at risk," she said.

"This isn't an FBI case, is Hadrian paying you?" Heather asked.

"Yes Ma'am he is, there's a house elf present the whole time the Admiral is in the house and he sent a message to me to come as soon as the Admiral started to get angry, our orders are to keep you safe and not to tell your son or son-in-law anything at all and not to intervene unless you're in physical danger," Lynda replied.

"Does Tim know that Hadrian arranged a guard for me?" Heather asked.

"Yes Ma'am, and he approved it," Lynda replied.

"Where's the elf?" Heather asked.

An elf arrived with a soft pop. "I be Dosley, I be looking after you this afternoon," she said.

"What were your orders?" Heather asked.

"I be tolds to keep Master Tim's Mom safe. To watch and to call Missy Lynda when Bad Admiral be's getting angry or dangerous, and nots letting him hurt Master Tim or Master Tim's family," Dosley replied.

"So you're not going to tell Hadrian and Tim that Thomas tried to strike me?" Heather asked.

"No Master Tim's Mom," Dosley said.

"No Ma'am, my orders were clear that your relationships and your personal decisions were not his business, he just wants to know you're safe. I must say though Ma'am, personally I'd think that you were a fool if you don't leave him. Your son is prepared to pay for this protection forever and they can afford to do that, but there is a risk that if there's an all wands on deck emergency we would have to leave you unprotected. The elves can only do so much, they're not allowed to use magic on a human without their permission or a direct order from their owner."

Heather sighed. "You're right, only a fool would want to stay with a man who had to be prevented from hitting her. Can you help me pack or is that out of your assigned duties?"

"I will gladly help Ma'am and with magic it will only take a few minutes. I'll just lay him on the bed and knock him out while we finish up, it will be easier than keeping him petrified. Unless you want to take the bed or the bedding?" Lynda said.

"No I don't particularly care for them and I want a fresh start with things I've chosen for myself, not compromised on what I knew Thomas would approve of," Heather replied looking at the bed.

"That's the spirit Ma'am!" Lynda said getting out the suitcases and levitating all of Heather's clothing into one of them. You mark which boxes you want to take and I'll shrink them for you. Mark which ones have electronics in them too, we might have to Fedex some of them, electronics don't respond well to magic, so it's better if they're not shrunk."

Heather pulled out a sheet of return address stickers she would no longer need. "Will these do?" she asked.

Lynda tapped them with her wand. "Even better," she said pleased. "I've got all the women's clothes, what else do you want to take in here?"

"Just the jewellery box on the dresser and the makeup and hair care products from the bathroom, there's a couple of pieces I want from the safe but I'll get them, then everything in the room next to this," she said pointing.

"Are you going to stay with your son Tim?" Lynda asked.

Heather sighed, "Yes I think that is best, why?"

"Then I can use shrinking charms on your clothing and things, you'll need to get Auror Black or one of the elves to reverse them," Lynda replied.

It took the best part of an hour for the three of them to pack up the rest of the house, Heather took all her kitchen appliances, the few things she still had from her family and from when the children were small, and all her craft and hobby things which had been strictly relegated to her work room. She left most of the furniture and the artwork chosen by the decorator Thomas had insisted on hiring.

"Will he remember what happened after he tried to hit me?" Heather asked.

"Do you want him to? I can erase the whole evening from his mind," Lynda replied.

"I want him to remember why I left but I don't want him to remember Hadrian's name," Heather replied.

"It's only a first name, it wouldn't be enough to find him and Tim and Auror Black are well protected," Lynda reassured her. "I could place a compulsion on him to accept you leaving. Or I can obliviate him of our conversation after he was petrified which is what I should do anyway, he knows about magic but we don't want him reminded of it."

"Okay then, do that, but I reminded of him having Tim's magic blocked during our argument," Heather said.

"Done, I took out the details of the argument but left him remembering that you argued and that he tried to strike you. He'll sleep until his alarm goes off in the morning, unless you'd like me to unplug it so he oversleeps?" Lynda said after a few minutes of pointing her wand at the Admiral.

"No don't, his career is important to him. He will avoid making too much fuss about my leaving to protect it, so I don't want to sabotage it," Heather replied. "Did you make him hurt me in his memory?"

"My skills aren't that good, in his memory instead of being stopped by an unseen force I faded the memory, as if his mind blanked out. He won't be sure whether he hit you or not."

"Oh okay! That might be enough to stop him coming after me,"

"Hadrian and I could easily make you look seriously injured, if you want to go to the emergency room and make an official report," Lynda offered.

"No I don't want to do that. He didn't hit me," Heather replied.

"He would have if I hadn't stopped him, and you have no way of knowing that he would've stopped at a single hit," Lynda said seriously.

"If he's charged with beating his wife he will be dishonourably discharged and there will be nothing to stop him from going after Tim," Heather replied.

"Are you going to be alright to drive all that way tonight?" Lynda asked. "I could shrink the car and take you to DC myself."

"No thank you. I think I'm going to need a little time to think things over and I always do my best thinking while driving," Heather replied.

"But you won't have access to any of your clothes til you get there," Lynda said.

"You calls Dosley and Dosleys will helps with suitcases," the little elf said.

"Thank you Dosley but I think I'll stop at the Mall and buy myself a few outfits that Thomas wouldn't have approved of," Heather replied smirking.

"Good for you. Get a cash withdrawal too before he can cancel your cards in the morning. Have a safe trip. It was nice to finally meet you Ma'am," Lynda said as she loaded the last of the boot with what looked like toy suitcases, a few pieces of dollhouse furniture and small boxes.

-o0o-

Heather had hit the Mall as Lynda suggested buying a couple of pair of jeans and some bright T-shirts and tracksuit jackets, and comfortable walking shoes as well as several other things she'd wanted recently but avoided buying including fabric and quilting patterns for the home-made Irish chain quilt she'd always dreamed of making for her bed but known Thomas wouldn't approve of. Finally feeling at least a little positive about making a fresh start, she rang Tim and told him that she'd left Thomas, this time for good. She thanked him and asked him to thank Hadrian for the security he'd provided her, admitting that it had been needed and that Lynda and Dosley had helped her pack and get away, keeping Thomas sleeping until morning.

Tim was eager to have her back with them and promised that Hadrian and the children would be equally happy to have her stay with them for however long she wanted.

Heather agreed that she would stay somewhere on the road overnight and would be there some time tomorrow afternoon, before ringing off.

She got back in her car and drove several hours before feeling sleepy and pulling over and using some of the cash she'd withdrawn to pay for a room for the night and heading towards DC first thing in the morning, unaware of Dosley keeping her under surveillance to keep her safe while her brother Jadrey was sent to keep watch over the Admiral and warn them if he tried to come after them.

-o0o-

Tim took the day off to settle his mother, he knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate on work until he had seen her and then he'd use the time turner to go back to that morning and work the turned day. He and Hadrian had a lazy morning with the children and Tim used the opportunity to take Rosie to her kindy-gym class while Harry rested. The pregnancy was going well but the last few days had been busy and neither man had slept well after the phone call from Heather the night before.

Heather arrived soon after Tim and Rosie arrived home and were helping make snacks before going up to wake Hadrian.

"Hi Mum," Tim greeted her with a hug and kiss on the cheek.

"Hello darling, you didn't need to stay home from work to meet me. I'm fine, I promise," Heather said returning both hug and kiss.

"I was worried," Tim admitted.

"Now where are my grandchildren?" Heather asked.

"The girls are in the kitchen and Teddy's still at school," Tim replied, following his mother who had left to find the girls as soon as she knew which direction they were. He stood there watching her interact with the girls who were both excited to see their Grandma Heather, and immerse herself in their chatter. He understood that this was probably as much a coping mechanism as avoidance of talking about the situation with the admiral but he was happy to allow her the opportunity to bring it up in her own time.

"Rosie said that Hadrian is in bed, is he all right? Did he work all night or is he unwell? I don't mean to intrude if he isn't well," Heather said.

"You're not intruding, we want you here. Hadrian's upstairs resting, he's not unwell exactly but there's something we need to explain," Tim replied. "Don't worry, it's not bad news, in fact it's wonderful but it just might be a bit unbelievable at first," he hurried to reassure his mother after seeing her worried expression.

"Then what is it, is Hadrian well?" Heather demanded.

"He is well," Tim said smiling radiantly. "This might be a bit hard for you to accept but there is a spell that allows a male wizard in a homosexual relationship with another wizard to become able to conceive and carry a baby. Hadrian is almost three months pregnant. Because he doesn't have the physical equipment the baby is entirely supported by Hadrian's magic and he needs a little more rest than a pregnant woman would."

"Is this why he took so much time off when Daisy was a baby?" Heather asked.

"Yes, magic can heal his body almost instantly but it takes time for his magic and his fitness levels to recover to combat readiness. Besides he wanted to take the time off and he doesn't financially need to earn a living at all, so there was no reason for him to hurry back to work," Tim agreed.

"When is the baby due?" Heather asked eagerly. "Do you know if it's a boy or a girl?"

"Not yet, he's eleven weeks, not even showing yet, so the baby isn't due until September, but he can't be out in the field due to the risks and he hates desk work so he's only working a couple of days a week training new recruits most of the time but he had a big case that needed his help in the office full time this week so he's tireder than normal," Tim replied. He was pleased that his mother could be told the truth about this pregnancy and had seemed to accept it.

"So, did you carry Rosie?" Heather asked.

"No, Hadrian did, we can't take turns, the magic doesn't work that way, the spell permanently enables a wizard to conceive at the cost of traditional fertility and is irreversible, we can't take turns, which to be honest I'm quite grateful about, though I feel a little guilty about being glad I don't have to go through it all. Hadrian had actually had the spell cast on him as an assault before we met but didn't think anything of it when we got together since it takes the magic of both parents to actually conceive a child and he thought I didn't have any magic," Tim tried to explain. "That's actually how he found out about me having magic, when he found out he was pregnant."

"Oh! No!" Heather exclaimed though she couldn't help giggling a little at the thoughts of the revelations that would've occurred. "That must have been a shock."

"Yes it was for both of us. I must admit that Hadrian took it better than I did at first. Of course, it would've helped that he at least knew that male pregnancy was possible even though he didn't think it could happen to the two of us, and that he had time to process the information before he told me. But the real problem was that even after I accepted the impossible, I didn't listen to his explanation properly and I thought at first that he'd done the spell on purpose without talking to me about it, and stormed out angrily," Tim admitted. "And then while I was out walking to cool down I was called in to work and still feeling upset and not ready to talk to him I didn't bother to inform Hades, and that was the case I got shot in the shoulder before working it out and my phone was destroyed so I couldn't call him and he thought I was breaking up with him over it. Then Teddy's grandmother Andi died and Hadrian went back to England to accept custody of Teddy. Everything happened all at once."

"So he didn't do it on purpose? How did it happen?"

"He was ambushed by a paid hitman, the attacker was paid to make sure he couldn't have children so their son would inherit his estate. With the level of homophobia in wizarding Britain and the fact that Hadrian was already engaged to a girl I guess he never considered that Hadrian could possibly be gay or bisexual, or that if he was he would never act on it in the wizarding world, so he thought it would work without killing him, and that he'd try to keep what actually happened quiet which would impede the investigation. As famous as Hadrian is in magical Britain, the magical police would have turned the country upside down looking for the killer if he'd been murdered," Tim explained. "It's an incredibly painful spell, usually the healers sedate the patient completely for four days, think almost a magical anaesthetic, while it takes its course so Hadrian was lucky that he managed to get off the street and to a safe place after it was cast, and that the attacker had enough morals to cast a difficult and magically draining spell rather than just killing him."

"Is that why he left England?" Heather asked. "To find a gay wizard to marry?"

"No Not initially, though he admits he thought about the possibility before we got together, he left England because he found out his fiancé had been using love potions on him and he didn't feel safe after being potioned by a girl and her mother who he trusted and being attacked from behind in the street. Because he didn't know what he'd been attacked with and it was affecting his internal organs they scanned for potions as well as spells and he found he'd been dosed with an illegal love potions and broke off his engagement. She and her family didn't take it well and harassed him in public and at work until he couldn't stay and do his job effectively so he was offered an overseas posting," Tim said. "He wasn't looking for anyone to marry and have a family when we met, he just wanted to get away from everything going on and have a chance to get his feet under him and learn how to be independent. His fiancé was his best friend's little sister and he'd spent summers with their family since he was eleven. They'd always treated him like one of their own, and he said the Whole family encouraged their engagement as soon as they finished high school, which apparently isn't odd in their world, though it is here even among magicals. He was devastated when they all turned on him when he broke off the engagement and he wasn't ready to even think about getting into another relationship when we met. We became friends and he had the opportunity to discover what he felt without potions and realised he was gay. He'd never heard of binding children's magic, it isn't done in Britain or Europe, so he had no reason to suspect that I was a wizard until he found out that he was pregnant. It was a huge shock to both of us."

"Oh…Wow.. I don't know what to say…" Heather stammered.

"Congratulations," Tim said dryly.

"Oh yes of course. Congratulations, it's wonderful that the two of you can have your own children, and not have to deal with the stress and uncertainty of using a surrogate or having to choose which of you will be the biological father," Heather said beaming at her son. "But had you planned to have another baby? You already have three."

"We did, though not quite this soon, it was a surprise baby, but not an unwelcome one, and we had originally planned to start trying for another baby in six months or so. Hadrian's healer is a little concerned on the effects of pregnancies a little too close together on his long term health but he says things are all fine at the moment," Tim replied.

"So, the pregnancy is going well?" Heather asked.

"As well as can be expected, we think. The healer said that Hadrian's blood tests are all good and the baby seems to be developing well, we get to see it for the first time next week, but Hadrian is a little more tired than last time and I've noticed that the elves are serving his morning sickness biscuits every couple of hours all day instead of just late at night and in the early morning. His healer is keeping a close eye on him and Hadrian and I have decided that if the healer decides that it's going to harm him to have another pregnancy he will have the spell removed so he cannot fall pregnant again," Tim said.

"Would it be better if I didn't stay with you? I'd be happy to book into a motel," Heather offered.

"No Mom, you're welcome and it's really no trouble to have you here. The elves do most of the housework and the cooking unless Hadrian feels like doing it so having you here won't make any extra work for Hadrian. He and the children will be pleased to see you and have you stay with us," Tim reassured his mother.

"You and Hadrian are getting along better again now that I haven't been here though," Heather said uncertainly.

"Hades and I are getting along better now I'm not spending every waking hour at work chasing a serial killer," Tim corrected her. "It had nothing to do with you staying here."

A/N: Thank you to all those who reviewed, followed or favourited this story for your support.