The characters here and the world they inhabit are the creation and property of JK Rowling and her assigns.

January 8, 1999

Teardrops fell into the dishwater even as she cursed herself for weakness. Seven days. It had been seven days since she had last seen him. Since the day in March that she had been brought to his office, she hadn't gone this much time without him. It made her ache. She rubbed her belly. Being almost two weeks overdue didn't help much, either.

Nymphadora had been late, but somehow it wasn't a problem. She and Ted had enjoyed all of the different tricks and wives' tales they heard for bringing on labor. Those things weren't an option in this case. Severus refused to believe that the baby was his, and Andromeda had gotten tired of trying to explain it, and now he was gone.

She finished the lunch dishes just as Arabella brought Teddy in. "Nap time is all over. He's got new nappies and he's bright and ready to play with his grandmother," said the Squib.

"I'll take him, now," said Andromeda. "You've done so much of the work today."

"I don't mind, you know, dear."

"Thank you. I'll take my little man, here, into the drawing room."

She set the little boy on the floor and sat on the couch, watching him crawl around. He crawled to her and lifted himself on the edge of the couch. "Mumumumumub," he said.

"I'm Grandmother," she replied, smiling down to him. For some reason, she had a hard time focusing on him right then.

"Bah bah bah bah bah."

He walked along the side of the couch, holding it with his hands as he went. Andromeda smiled at him and wanted to say something, but suddenly she felt all funny. It was hard to breathe for a minute. The moment passed and she relaxed. Teddy got to the end of the couch and was reaching for the cloth hanging over the edge of an end table.

"Oh, no you don't, little wizard." She chuckled and turned him around, setting him to stand at the side of the coffee table. He cruised along the edge of that and around to the side near the couch. Andromeda felt relaxed and content as she watched him learn about his world.

"Mum mum mub," he said, holding his hands up to her. His hair turned bright blue and she couldn't resist. She started to lift him up when an actual pain hit her. "Mrs..."

It was all she could do to set the baby down, which caused him to wail, his hair turning bright shades of orange and red as he yelled. That brought Arabella to the room. She took one look at Andromeda and picked Teddy up. She went into the kitchen and used the Floo to call upon Poppy.

April 30, 1998

"Stop pacing, Severus. It won't make me any more sure of what the situation is. You might as well sit."

Poppy conjured a chair for Severus to sit in. She sat by Andromeda's side and started examining her. The patient gave a small yelp when the mediwitch started the internal exam, causing Severus to growl.

"It's fine, Severus, I just didn't expect it," said the patient.

"I can't say I expected it, either."

"Do you mean the baby?"

"What kind of a man takes his wife on a camping trip, Death Eaters casting hexes over their heads, when she's pregnant?" He stood and started pacing again.

"I know this is uncomfortable, but try to breathe evenly, dear," said Poppy as she pushed on Andromeda's tummy.

"I wasn't pregnant when I was with Ted."

"You must have known you could become so. Why would he take such a risk with you? Why would any man as besotted with a woman as he was with you put that woman, pregnant, in danger?"

"Severus, I haven't been pregnant in twenty years. I had Nymphadora and several miscarriages. Ask Poppy—she was there. There was no possibility of pregnancy when I was with Ted."

"Obviously you were wrong." He folded his arms and looked at her in a way she had only seen him look at students and the professors he despised. He never looked at her in this way, and it hurt.

"It was twenty years, Severus. I was convinced that I just couldn't. I never dreamed it was an issue, so I didn't even think of it when we—I've spent the last week realizing that it must have been Ted who couldn't."

"You were clearly mistaken about both of you."

Her voice was a little choked. "We tried. Ten years we tried to give Nymphadora a little sister or brother. First there were the miscarriages, and then not even that, and after a while we just stopped trying. We never did anything to prevent pregnancy either. I assure you, Severus, if we were able to have a child this spring, we would have had any number of them long before now."

He was unconvinced and his face clearly said so. Andromeda bit her lip and looked away from him. "Poppy, can you estimate when the baby was conceived?"

The mediwitch laughed. "I haven't confirmed to you that you are yet." She looked at her audience. Andromeda was suddenly unsure, and Severus looked impatient. "Congratulations, Andromeda, you're going to have a baby." She went to a desk and did some calculations on a parchment. Severus sat down again while they waited. Then she named a date that Andromeda remembered.

They had walked near the lake on a mild day. It was during the holiday and the students were away. On a whim, he had turned and removed the fastenings from her hair, causing it to flutter in the breeze.

"Severus! It will get in an awful snarl!"

"Do you know how beautiful you are right now?"

She looked up at him and felt beautiful. He leaned down and kissed her, his hands running through her hair. She looked up at him again and saw him framed by the blue sky and the fresh air and smiled with a genuine smile for the first time in months. Without any word they both sank to the ground, unfastening one cloak to lie upon and the other to cover themselves. Within moments they were making love in the afternoon sunshine. When it was over he picked a daisy that was near her head and traced her face with it. She had never seen quite the look that was on his face. It was almost carefree.

Later that night he had combed the tangles that had gotten into her hair. It was a prelude to more lovemaking. The next morning had brought its own difficulties and Severus had returned to his usual demeanor, but Andromeda had found her heart touched by the winsome man who played with her hair and tossed flowers into her lap.

"Is that the earliest?" she said.

"It's most likely, but it could be anytime after about three days before." It was the day she had first worn the ivory nightgown, two days after she had come to Hogwarts.

"You see, Severus, it was after I came here. I wasn't mistaken about Ted."

"You are mistaken about me." He got up and left.

Andromeda was confused and a little hurt. "What do you suppose he meant, Poppy?"

"Perhaps he doesn't want the child. He's a Death Eater, after all."

"The Dark Lord found out about it last night, and he seemed delighted."

"Have you thought about what you're going to do?"

"I've spent a week thinking of almost nothing else. This is my baby. I hope to start him or her on a long and happy life. Nymphadora might find it a little odd to have a younger brother or sister who's so young, I suppose, but this is simply how it happened."

Poppy gave her some advice and admonitions and left. Andromeda stayed in the bedroom all day. She ate a light lunch and dinner. In between she read some books, looked out the windows and sighed. She went to bed early, weeping over her newfound love and child, then took a moment to mourn again for the charmed life she had led before. In her youth Ted had always been there, and as a result she had never known unrequited love or the pain of lost love. Now there was no Ted and clearly she couldn't rely upon Severus in the same way.

Severus went into his office and found Draco, who was calmly eating his breakfast and acting as though he hadn't been straining his ears for every word. "Don't pretend you don't know. I know you better than that. You heard everything."

"Not everything. Is it yours or the Mudblood's?" asked Draco around some sausage. "Because if it's half-blood, Aunt Bella knows a hag..."

Severus suddenly became aware of a new danger for Andromeda. He couldn't decide where he wanted to stand in all of this, but he couldn't let her suffer either and she wanted this baby. "She says it's not her husband's." He remembered what she had told him and a part of the conversation from the evening before came to mind. "The Dark Lord is pleased."

Draco grunted in agreement and finished his juice. "I had better get to class, then. There's no telling what the detention will be for tardiness this week." He wiped his face with a napkin, picked up his bag of books, and left.

Poppy came through the office at that point. "Try not to argue with her. She's in much better condition than when she first arrived, but she's still in a fragile state. She's still mourning her husband, regardless of whatever the relationship she has with you is, and pregnancy has always been hard for her."

"She said she's had some miscarriages. Are there any particular dangers she should avoid?"

"I would put Death Eaters high on the list, but no. In every case, the child she lost was simply not right. She isn't particularly old, but her age doesn't help matters, either."

The mediwitch left, and an emptiness filled the room. Severus realized that he was used to the presence of the woman in this office, now. He pondered the situation as he stared at cold eggs and toast.

"Well?" asked a voice over his shoulder.

"When I want an opinion, old man, I'll ask for one."

"Congratulations on your impending fatherhood."

"I'm not going to be a father, Albus."

"Have I misunderstood the nature of your relationship with Andromeda?"

"I'm a Death Eater. How can I possibly take part in causing life?"

"The same way that Narcissa and Lucius did, and the Notts and Crabbes and Goyles, and many other families."

"It's not the same."

The portrait sighed. "It's exactly the same, Severus, but I won't argue the point with you."

"If there's any question about the father..."

"Is there?"

"Not in my mind. If others come to the same conclusion I did, the child could be in danger."

"Do you have a plan?"

"Yes, I believe I do."

Dumbledore looked at him for a moment. "As long as it doesn't interfere with your last task for me, Severus, I think I can approve. That last task is critical, though. Don't let the boy down. And, if you can manage to watch over the students here for as long as possible, that would be best as well."

Severus sighed. "Of course."

During his meetings that morning, he learned just how much he had come to depend upon the witch who stood quietly in the corner and made sure his papers were in order. During lunch he discovered how he had started to enjoy the companionship of a pretty witch over a meal. At dinner time he realized that he missed her and the way she smiled at him from time to time.

He left the dishes for the house-elves to clear up and approached his bedroom. There was a candle on his nightstand and she had laid out a nightshirt and dressing gown for him. He wondered if she was looking after his comfort or leaving him a subtle hint. He prepared for bed and sat down heavily near her. She opened her eyes and he saw how wet her eyelashes were.

"I think we should get married."

A small smile went across her face. "Then you realize the baby is yours?"

He shook his head. "No, I can't have children."

"Oh." She thought a moment. "But it can't be Ted's; it has to be yours."

"No, Andromeda. I can't have children. I'm a Death Eater."

"I don't see why that matters. Plenty of Death Eaters have children. Look at my younger sister."

"I simply cannot. Somehow it must be Tonks's child."

She knew he was wrong, but she also knew she would never convince him. "Why do you want to marry me if you're so sure?"

"Draco seemed to think that if the child is half-blood, the Dark Lord or your sister will want to kill it. If I recognize it as mine, there's a good chance that they won't do anything. The Dark Lord seemed pleased last night."

"Yes," said Andromeda absently.

"I do care for you. I shouldn't have let myself, because I knew that they would just take you away and give you to someone else, but this changes that. I've come to care for you and appreciate your presence in my life. If we marry, I will try to be a good husband."

"I—that's kind of you," she said with soft irony. "Do I have to give you an answer right away?"

"Not immediately, but soon would be good." He reached to pull her close. "The Dark Lord was right about one thing. You please me. I missed you, today. I missed your efficiency and your companionship. I greatly missed this." He started kissing her, then, a kiss she felt move deep through her body so that surely their baby felt it. A tingle started within her that she had to obey. She leaned up into his kiss and before much time passed, the dressing gown and nightshirt that she had laid out for him were on the floor along with her nightgown. They found other ways to keep themselves warm.

A/N: Thanks, as always to Trickie Woo for beta reading!