Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Harry Potter! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every Saturday!
—
By the time that Hogwarts' winter break started, Severus had reduced his hours at the castle to such an extent that he hardly noticed.
Fledgling was due to arrive frighteningly soon and as Mother Hen's energy waned, Father Raven's vigilance increased.
While the snow flurried down one morning during the week of Harriet's due date, she peacefully slept in her nest, lying with the warm covers enveloping her in the soothing cradle of a deep, dreamless sleep.
Harriet's cottage smelled of fresh amber and simmering cinnamon, a fragrance that Severus had devised to mask the scent of the potions, creams, and elixirs that he was busily brewing downstairs in the small kitchen, all designed to help the omega through her coming struggle and the weeks that followed.
Severus had made lotions for Harriet's belly, which she applied daily, most often with his eager help.
He also had a good stock of cream for her nipples.
Father Raven knew that Mother Hen's sensitive rosebuds would be seeing their fair share of use once fledgling came, although he had gladly complied with Harriet's request to prepare them.
Severus had spent many chilly evenings by the fire, nursing from Harriet as she soothingly raked her fingers through his black hair and stroked his scalp while her harmony ball hung between her breasts.
In addition to the skin care regimen that he had devised for his lover, Severus had prepared pain potions, tranquility candles, and a variety of other products that he knew she would appreciate and may very well assist her with the upcoming ordeal and her recovery.
Father Raven often spent hours brooding over matters.
Fledgling's birth was no exception.
Severus had gathered every supply that he had read about which could be of potential necessity or use when the time came.
He worriedly hovered over Harriet during their waking hours and he slept fitfully each night, rising every hour or so to peer cautiously at her and verify that she was still alright.
The nursery was ready.
The cottage was clean.
Severus had even taken the time to cook meals in advance and store them with a freezing charm for preservation so that his attention could be solely focused on Harriet and the baby after the birth.
As he finished the last batch of witch-hazel infused sanitary napkins that he had scheduled himself to make that morning, he placed them in a sterile jar and began to prepare breakfast while the mother of his child slept on, blissfully unaware, snuggled in her nest upstairs.
Harriet was just starting to stir when Severus came gliding into her room with a warm plate of food and a large cup of tea.
He placed the tray on the nightstand and sat down on the side of the bed as Harriet blinked up at him from where she lay.
"Good morning, Mother Hen." Severus purred as Harriet squirmed in the blankets.
Severus bent forward to let Harriet drape one arm around him and clutch his hand as he helped her to slowly sit up.
The soft groan that escaped Harriet's lips as she moved sent ripples of tense worry surging through Severus before she replied with a sigh, "Good morning, Father Raven."
Severus tried not to stare at the swells of Harriet's heaving breasts or the curve of her bulging belly as she eased herself back against the mound of pillows on the bed.
He lifted the tray and offered it to Harriet, who took it from him and slowly began to eat, with one hand resting on her mounded belly.
"How are you feeling today?" Severus asked anxiously as his eyes scanned over the heavily pregnant omega, looking for any signs that labour had started.
"...Like I'm about to be a Mum." Harriet replied as she blew out a breath.
Severus was instantly alerted.
"Are you in pain?" He asked quickly, "Where does it hurt?"
"I'm always in pain now." Harriet grumbled as she situated herself to get comfortable with an irritated exclamation, "Where doesn't it hurt?!"
Severus fell silent for a moment while Harriet sipped her tea.
She scowled over at him and asked, "Can't you give me something to induce labour? Like a potion or an elixir?"
Severus frowned at Harriet as he replied, "I'm not giving you anything without obtaining the specialist's consent first. You can't have much longer to go now, Potter, you're nearly there."
Harriet sighed again in frustration and leaned over to sit her tray back on the nightstand without bothering to ask Severus for help.
Severus glanced at the untouched pieces of food on her plate and he narrowed his eyes suspiciously as he spoke, "You barely ate anything."
"I appreciate you bringing me breakfast, but I don't want much to eat. I feel nauseous this morning." Harriet huffed.
"Shall I take you to the lavatory?" Severus asked.
"No." Harriet quietly answered.
Harriet covered herself up with a blanket but Severus stared at her like she was a bomb that was ready to explode as he questioned, "...Do you believe that we'll meet fledgling today?"
"No…...but how should I know?" Harriet grouched as she yawned sleepily and closed her eyes.
Severus was used to Harriet being exhausted and napping in the afternoons, but she didn't normally go back to sleep right after she woke in the mornings.
Father Raven stood from the bed but Harriet's hand reached out and caught his.
"Lay with me." Harriet commanded.
Severus decided to humor her request.
As much as he wanted to do one last reading of his textbooks on labour and delivery, to take one more count of how much he had of each potion and cream in his supply, Severus didn't feel like he should leave Harriet's side that morning.
He wordlessy removed his shoes, his cloak, and climbed into the nest next to her.
Severus blinked at the way Harriet curled towards him, making herself comfortable against his chest while she quickly fell back asleep.
He watched her closely and idly lifted a hand to let it graze through her hair.
Severus's brow furrowed when he noticed something.
Curiously, he inclined his head closer towards Harriet.
Severus's dark eyes narrowed to slits as he realized how much sweeter Harriet's scent had become, practically overnight.
He admitted to himself that the pregnant omega had smelled lovely since he had first visited her humble dwelling, but the scent rising from her skin that morning was thicker, richer, and fuller as her instincts screamed out to Severus in a primal signal for him to stay close.
His heart clenched with anticipation as he raised his wand and lit a couple of candles around the room with a few strokes of his wrist.
A moment later, Harriet's bedroom was bathed in a soft glow on that dark, cloudy morning.
The pleasant, delicate scent of the candles mingled with the cinnamon and amber that wafted from downstairs.
Severus was hopeful that the aromas would be relaxing to Harriet while she slept.
Mother Hen needed her rest.
Father Raven knew that fledgling would be joining them very, very soon.
—
Severus left Harriet's side that day only to visit the lavatory and bring their meals.
As the hours wore on, her appetite remained diminished.
Every hour, Severus placed his hands on her womb, trying to determine if he could detect any tightening, much to Harriet's annoyance.
As they readied for bed that night, Severus wasn't quite sure what to do with the very fidgety omega in his care.
Harriet had refused to eat more than a mouthful of dinner and she had only been able to swallow a couple sips of water.
Her gentle disposition had been replaced by an uncharacteristic hatefulness that made Severus smirk.
As irritating as her abrasiveness was, a part of him found it almost…..amusing.
The moon sat high in the sky, beaming down over the thick blanket of snow outside as Severus watched Harriet toss and turn in her nest, trying and failing to get comfortable.
"I can't find a good position!" Harriet huffed as she scowled over at Severus.
"Perhaps a massage would be helpful?" Severus offered in his low drawl.
Harriet growled as she struggled out of the covers until she was standing on her feet.
"Where do you think you're going?" Severus asked as he watched Harriet hurriedly pull her robe around herself and fasten the tie over the generous swell of her belly.
He narrowed his eyes when she ignored him and stomped out of the bedroom.
In one smooth motion, Severus rose from her nest and followed the sound of her footsteps across the hallway and into the nursery.
In the baby's room, Harriet started to open the drawers of the dresser and frantically sort through all of the storage bins as if she were in a desperate search for something very important.
Severus's black eyes glimmered as he stepped through the doorway and warily watched her.
"...May I ask what it is that you're hoping to accomplish?" Severus asked slowly, "Everything has already been folded and placed appropriately."
"Well, everything hasn't been done properly!" Harriet snapped as she smoothed out a onesie that had a miniscule crease across its neckline.
Harriet was filled with such an unignorable urge to make that room perfect that she started to feel dizzy.
Severus's nervousness grew as his black eyes followed Harriet while she hurried around the nursery, straightening this and adjusting that, with an urgency that suggested fledgling was a house guest who was going to knock on the front door at any moment.
"You should come back to bed and rest." Severus commented as he kept his dark stare fixed on Harriet. A frown of concern marred his pale face as he spoke, "You'll need your strength for-"
Harriet was standing by the changing table when Severus saw her green eyes shoot wide open and her breath hitch all of a sudden.
Harriet dropped the baby toy that she was holding.
The forgotten object clattered noisily to the floor as her hands flew to the sides of her belly.
Severus was swiftly behind her like a swooping bat.
His strong hands pressed over hers while he whispered in her ear, murmuring in his low, velvet voice, "Breathe, Potter…....that's it, in and out...In and out, it'll pass….give it a moment"
"J-Just let me nest!" Harriet whimpered.
Despite her cry, she leaned back against Severus as he supportively held her aching womb in his elegant hands.
Father Raven's pulse quickened when he felt the rigidity of Mother Hen's abdomen under the pads of his fingertips.
Harriet's behavior and loss of apetite had aroused Severus's suspicions.
He had anticipated it, so he didn't understand why shock and fear clouded his mind about what was happening, but Father Raven knew as well as Mother Hen…...
Fledgling was ready to hatch.
