Chapter 1: Touchdown
"Manava! Welcome to Tahiti, Madame et Monsieur. Your reservations are in order. If you will follow Kiki, who will be your personal House Elf during your stay with us, she will lead you to your villa. Maururu!" The proprietor of the Wizard's Resort gestured to the smallest Elf Severus had ever seen, about the size of a two-year-old human, with dark, olive green skin and a wardrobe that consisted for the most part of blossoms in a riot of colors and varieties. Kiki the Elf offered Rose and Severus Snape each a lei made of tiare, a fragrant gardenia like blossom, hibiscus and orchids. Rose was given red and white flowers; Severus, green and white. The newlyweds then followed Kiki out of the lobby into a red setting sun and the surf's susurrations.
Arms around each other's waists, Rose and Severus Snape strolled down a path of volcanic sand, through a tropical garden of shadows and delicious fragrances, to one of several small detached buildings of pink stucco built on stilts, the palm-thatched roofs covered with blooming frangipani and dendrobium orchids hung in pots from the eaves.
Rose was tired and overwhelmed by the rush of events that led her to this, a honeymoon of magical proportions. She ruefully remembered her first wedding, and the aborted camping trip in Finland, which was her first husband's idea of adventure and romance. The camping was cut short by the fact that even in June, Finland was cold and damp enough to require wool and even down blankets in the evenings, while the Arctic mosquitoes needed aircraft carriers for launch pads. Rose wasn't much of a camper; her idea of roughing it meant going without electricity. Since the cold-blooded bastard she'd married first didn't keep her warm at night, they spent the rest of the month in hotel rooms, featuring the Scandinavian standard: very narrow, twin beds. By contrast, the evening air in Tahiti was warm and filled with the salt of the Pacific, and insects were not in evidence. Rose firmly shut out any further comparisons, although she was willing to bet money that twin beds were not on the program. She laid her head on her husband's shoulder. In the event that twin beds were in evidence, she was sure he would immediately fix the problem.
Severus squeezed her waist gently. Rose was rather pale and far too quiet for his liking. "Just a bit farther." Severus was fearful of pushing his pregnant wife beyond her strength. She was still moving steadily, but not with her typical brisk, urban, earth-eating stride. She was 7 weeks along and carrying twins, which would have slowed down most women, but in addition she had spent a whole day Apparating halfway around the world in stages, after several weeks of wedding preparations, including lawyers, the unplanned pregnancy, the revelation of generations of family secrets, curse-breaking, spell-casting, the actual ceremony, two receptions and the execution of her first husband for casting an Unforgivable on his own unborn daughter by her new husband.
(For details, refer to The Dancing Master and Wedding of the Millennium, also by this author.)
Severus was new at the husbanding trade and inclined to obsess, which Rose found endearing after the callous treatment she endured the first time around. She smiled and squeezed him back. "No worries, love."
"Monsieur, may Kiki bring dinner or refreshments?" the House Elf asked, once she had shown them about their quarters and unpacked their scant luggage. They ordered dinner and then dismissed Kiki for the night.
"Everything is wonderful, Russ: the food, the island, this cottage. I feel like a princess." Rose had regained some color from the rest and food. She felt shy, no doubt due to the complete novelty of her present circumstances. "I wanted to swim in the moonlight, but I am exhausted."
"Why don't we nap for a bit, and when we wake up we'll paddle in the lagoon. We are going to be adjusting to the local time for several days anyway. There is no set program to follow." Severus was beginning to feel drained, himself. With little more than setting wards, a quick wash and a kiss goodnight, the Potions Master and his Muggle-raised bride relaxed in deepest slumber. Severus curled protectively around his new-made wife in a superbly comfortable, queen-size bed, convinced that it didn't get much better than this.
Rose awoke at dawn to the sound of birdcalls and surf and the effect of pregnancy on the bladder. She slid out of bed and her husband's embrace, and decided to indulge in a bath, since she was fully awake and likely to stay that way. "Kiki," Rose called softly. The Elf appeared, dressed today in all white flowers, bringing with her bubble bath, toiletries, a light breakfast, and towels. Rose ordered a full breakfast for two after her bath, and inquired about the options for purchasing suitable clothing for the tropics. She dressed in her swimsuit and investigated their quarters while waiting for Severus to awake.
The smell of food finally roused him when Rose waved a plate of sausages under his nose. He opened somewhat gritty eyes to find the sun well up, a variety of exotic dishes lined up on the nightstands, and his wife in a form-hugging black garment resembling her ballet leotard, only uglier. He rubbed his face and scalp. "What are you wearing, Rose?" was the first thing out of his mouth. Even his voice was gritty.
Rose handed him a cool glass of fresh pineapple juice and sat on the edge of the bed. "It's hideous, isn't it?" She shook her head. "I haven't done much swimming lately, and this is the only suit I have. It's designed more for a concrete pool in a grotty gym club than a lagoon in Tahiti. Its only virtue is it doesn't ride up or fall off or become transparent in water." She passed him a plate of fried plantain and another of scrambled eggs. "I was hoping to shop for clothing once we arrived, but I would like to swim before the sun gets too high."
"You must be feeling better, to be so energetic this morning," he remarked. She did look blooming, the increased blood supply of pregnancy adding color to her cheeks. They ate in silent contentment. Severus took inventory of his own health. His exhaustion due to the extended Apparitions required to get them to Tahiti vanished as his hunger was satisfied. "I'll clean up quickly. Then we can try the waters." He showered and shaved and brushed his teeth. Rose summoned Kiki to clear away the dishes.
"What should I wear to swim?" Severus asked Rose. "I don't want to cause a scandal, but I haven't any kind of swimwear." Rose thought the bath towel he had wrapped about him looked fetching, but she wasn't going to say so, with a House Elf in the room.
Said Elf spoke: "The resort has clothing available through the gift shop. This Guide to Services includes a catalog. If Monsieur will select a style, Kiki can procure a perfect fitting swimsuit."
Severus looked through the catalog. "Very well, Kiki. Would you kindly bring this ensemble for me," he pointed, "and that one for Madame. And be sure to include sunscreen." Kiki complied with a snap of her fingers, then cleared away breakfast and vanished.
Rose stripped off her hated old one-piece swimsuit, but before she could dress in the new one, her husband changed the program. "I would like some dessert first," Severus said. He dropped his towel, and clad only in a smirk, he gently but firmly insisted on his prerogatives. It was some time later that Rose finally donned the new outfit: a two piece swim suit of moderate cut, in tropical patterns of green leaves and flowers in gold and shades of white and red. The fabric was smooth and silky, not the coarse plastic texture of synthetics. A matching long wrap skirt and a blousy long-sleeved shirt in white to protect from the burning sun, rope sandals and a large brimmed straw hat with a sash to tie under the chin completed her ensemble. Severus donned an abbreviated pair of black swim trunks, a white gauzy tunic that dropped to his knees with open long sleeves, a straw boater and sturdy leather sandals. Thus arrayed, the newlyweds went down to the water hand in hand.
"You look like something out of Hemingway, Severus, in that gear," Rose remarked. She pulled off the cover-ups, pulled on goggles, applied waterproof sunscreen and dove into the turquoise lagoon. Severus followed, more gingerly. He was not much of a swimmer but he found the blood warm water relaxing, if not particularly refreshing.
"You are quite the mermaid, Rose," he remarked, as he watched his wife cavorting in the clear blue water. Tired of floundering, he simply stood in chest deep water shaded by palm trees.
"Not really," Rose responded. "I'm an amateur at best. My daughter Sarah wanted to be a mermaid when she grew up, and swimming was good therapy for her, so we spent a lot of time in the water. But nothing ever came of it." Rose looked a bit sad. "I'm going to lie in the shade, now."
Severus was bemused. "How does one grow up to be a mermaid?" He handed her out of the water and led the way to deck chairs under a canvas canopy. Rose dried off and donned her cover up clothing, then stretched out face up on a reclining chaise, partially covering her face with the straw hat.
"There is a deep freshwater spring in Florida, where Babcia Sophie lives, if you remember, which has an underground viewing room. Girls train to dive perform aquatic ballets there for the tourists. It's called Weeki Watchi. It is quite special."
"It's a Muggle thing, then," Severus said. "I thought you were referring to having a silkie or a merman in your family tree."
"I wouldn't know, would I?" Rose remarked faintly. Did such mythical creatures actually exist? "The Babas ensured that I grew up completely ignorant." She lay back and closed her eyes. "I am sorry, Russ. I'm not the person you thought you were marrying, not the person I thought I was, either. If you want to revoke this marriage, I would understand. We can undo everything, I expect." A tear leaked from one eye, under the cover of her hat.
"Kiki," Severus called, "please bring us luncheon suitable for a mother-to-be." Arthur Weasley had warned him about keeping a pregnant wife watered, fed and rested.
The House Elf arrived with a savoury beef stir-fry on rice, a salad, and a plate of fresh fruits. "Kiki has also brought milk for Madame. Milk is recommended for growing bones."
"Thank you, Kiki." Severus took the hat off Rose's face. "Before either of us says anything more, I want you to eat." He adjusted her chaise to a sitting position and started handing her food. Rose ate, reluctantly for the first two bites, and then with a heartier appetite as her blood sugar rose. Frowning in thought, Severus began his lunch, too.
"Rose, after all the change and chaos inflicted upon you these past weeks, you are easily exhausted. I will do my best, if you tell me how, to take care of you." Severus wiped the sweat from his forehead. The day was warming fast. He pulled Rose into his lap for cuddling, and they balanced rather precariously on the chaise. "One thing no one can undo. I will not let you go." The excellent Kiki discreetly widened the chaise for two and then made all the dishes disappear.
Rose was so silent and still, Severus thought she dozed. He watched the clouds drift and boil overhead. A few hot tears soaked into his tunic; he stroked her back and neck and hair. "Well, Severus, I have been married before, but I have never been so well cared for, ever. I don't feel worthy of it. I feel like a fraud." Rose grasped his shoulder, nestling in closer.
"I think you resemble an amnesiac more than a fraud," Severus replied. "We have to find out: who is Rose Mallorn Snape?
"For one thing, you are definitely among the Purebloods in Magical society. Dumbledore can trace his family back to Merlin's mother. You can go back to Crete and the Minotaur. Only the Egyptians or the Chinese could give you any significant competition," Severus smirked. "I can see the headlines now: 'Rita Skeeter Exclusive Report: The Living Legend Among Us.'"
Rose shuddered. "I don't want anything to do with that woman! I just want to be competent, as you and Dumbledore and Hermione are. My own son knows more about magic than I do, thanks to the Babas and their hiding-lights-under-a-bushel program."
Severus continued to stroke her back and hair. "Well, there is a short term problem with that. While you are pregnant, your magic is concentrated on helping the babies grow. You won't be able to choose a wand until after they are born, so the study of Charms, Transfigurations, or Defense Against the Dark Arts is out for now. Potions is out, since we don't want any chance of poisoning. That leaves Divination, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Herbology, Astronomy, History of Magic, Muggle Studies, which you could teach, and Care of Magical Creatures. You wouldn't want to try flying while pregnant, unless you did it soon, before your body mass shifts too much. So, you could get a thorough background in Magical theory now, and then do the practicals after the children are born." Severus kissed her forehead. "You haven't ever done any wandless magic, have you?" Rose shook her head. "No doubt you were completely inhibited by the Cloaking Spell. You needn't worry, Rose. There's plenty of time for learning. I didn't marry you for your Magical ability, but I won't turn down such a bonus gift. "
"You didn't marry me for children, either, Russ. I feel so foolish. I always had such trouble conceiving, and at my age I expected never to need birth control again." Rose was embarrassed. "I was mistaken."
"Children are another gift I never hoped to have," Severus was bemused by the profound changes in his life, now that he was free of both his masters, Voldemort and Dumbledore. "You aren't old or foolish, any more than I am, and you had trouble conceiving because your husband at the time was preventing it." Severus was growing angry, just thinking about it. Her first husband had used Rose as a House Elf, and fought her dreams every step of the way, crippling their daughter Sarah, to boot, in his misogyny and selfishness. The bastard got what he deserved.
"He told me he wanted seven children, one for each day of the week," Rose mourned. "How was I to know he really didn't mean it?"
Severus felt dizzy. "Did you want seven children, Rose?"
"I was willing to try. I like children, and even after raising a couple, I don't mind more." Rose rubbed her tummy, and then paled. "Can we afford these children, Russ? I never thought to ask. I have no idea what the economics of the Magical world are like. I can start lining up some more business so we have enough income."
Severus Snape snorted. "Is that what makes the Muggle world go round? Is everything tied to money?"
"Pretty much. A thoughtful person wouldn't want to be unable to feed and educate her children," Rose sighed. "Of course, there are those who cannot plan, or meet with disaster, or don't care, and children go hungry every day, or die of preventable diseases, or never learn how to survive."
"Our children will not want for anything, Rose, not the four we will have, or seven, or seventeen. Remind me to review our finances for you when we get home." Severus pulled her closer. Rose stared off into space, lost in memories.
"One of the Babas had seventeen children, I was told. She did it the hard way, one at a time. I never met her. She was Grandma Sophie's mother-in-law. We were estranged from that branch of the family when Sophie divorced her husband." Rose's far away look sharpened into the here-and-now. "So, how many children are we planning on having, Russ?"
"Why don't we take it one or two at a time?" Severus shook his head, contemplating seventeen little Snapes running through Hogwarts. To see the expressions of the staff, it might almost be worth it. "When either of us decides we've had enough, then we can stop. I think it is time for your nap, little Mother. Let's rest in the heat of the day, and go out on the town in the evenings." He walked her back to the villa and after they showered and made love, both drifted off to sleep: Rose clutching the Snape heirloom pendant, Severus clutching her.