Hello Everybody! I hope ya'll are having a good new year so far! ___
Once again thanks to QianYun for fixing up my horrible grammar and well just English in general lol.
I hope you are all enjoying this story thus far!
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Chapter 3: Stolen Moment
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"Both of you are doing just fine," Madame Pomfrey smiled as Neville got up from the bed. He quickly put his robes back on and she left their little curtained exam area. He had started having checkups for about two weeks and for some reason they always seemed to happen on one of Madame Pomfrey's whims. She had confessed that she had never dealt with a pregnant wizard before and just wanted to check and double check everything.
He was grateful for her and everything she was doing… but there were only so many times he liked to be prodded and poked a week. Although he would never admit it, every time she declared him healthy, he felt more and more relieved. He had been a little worried because he still wasn't showing and he was positive that women started showing before their second trimester, but Hermione had reminded him that not all pregnancies were the same and his would most likely be very different because he was a man.
"I can't believe it's already been 11 weeks!" Madame Pomfrey proceeded her second ritual of babying him, giving him more vitamins, crackers and, well… anything she felt like he needed before he could get through the doors.
Neville sighed, trying to shove all of it into his bag as he made it out of the door. Sometimes he felt like she was more excited about it than he was.
"So how is everything?" he looked up to see Hermione and Ron sitting against the wall… appearing to be waiting for him. He stared at them for a second, not really knowing how he felt about that… It made him feel warm…
"Everything is good, as always." Neville smiled and gave Hermione a hand up as they stood. "I think she just does this because she's fallen for my ruggedness."
"Riight," Ron snorted. "The day someone describes you as rugged is the day someone mistakes me for a Malfoy."
Neville stopped himself from commenting on what Ron could do with Malfoy for all he cared because Hermione was there. The sandy-haired teen had promised to keep it a secret because Ron still didn't know what he was doing… or where his relationship with the blonde was going.
Neville didn't know if he should tell Ron that even though he liked boys, he had never been in a relationship - or probably done as much as Ron and Malfoy had - no matter what the ginger thought. But apparently what had started their fight a few weeks ago was Ron's concern for Neville: Ron thought he had been acting differently and was worried (Neville was trying to keep the fact that he was pregnant a secret from the world) and Ron had apparently voiced it a few times while Malfoy was around…
Neville didn't know how he felt about Malfoy getting jealous. To him, it was a preposterous idea that anyone would be jealous of him. He eyed Ron and wondered if the redhead had realized that Malfoy was being jealous- probably meant he did care in some weird way that Malfoy's cared.
The redhead tripped over his feet mid-step and blushed as Hermione laughed loudly.
No, Ron probably wouldn't figure it out unless Malfoy beat it into him.
"Oh, Neville, I almost forgot." Hermione stopped and started rummaging through her bag. "That lily you have…I asked Krum about it."
"Krum… as in Victor Krum?" Ron looked at her as she turned red but ignored him and grabbed a piece of paper, handing it to Neville.
"The Praegnan Lilly is local to Bulgaria, so I asked her to write him about it." Neville grabbed it as Hermione gave him a grateful look. One day he was just going to have to sit everyone down and tell them all their secrets in one sitting… It would probably make life a little less stressful for him.
"Hn… flowers…" Ron snorted, obviously not satisfied with that reasoning. "Where is it anyway? You used to have it by your side any time we weren't in class."
Neville smiled and pulled his robe open to show them a pocket he had made on the inside to carry it around. "I've been carrying it to classes in this because Professor Sprout said it needs to stay close to me most of the time until it blooms. It works because it's so small anyway." He lifted the little jar out and looked it over… there still wasn't anything sprouting from it.
"You're really excited about that plant, aren't you?" Ron looked at Neville in disbelief as he put the plant back in his jacket along with the letter from Krum, and they continued on their way.
"Herbology to me is your Quidditch." Neville laughed as Ron shook his head.
They made their way up the stairs to get their books for Charms when Neville suddenly felt a strange jolt in his body and everything around him started spinning. He lost his breath for a second, but suddenly there were arms holding him up.
"Neville!" He closed his eyes, trying to ignore the nauseous feeling that was growing.
"Neville, are you alright?" He opened his eyes to see Hermione in front of him looking worried; he looked down at the freckled arms that were holding him up. Ron must have caught him from falling backwards…
"Yeah… just… strange…" He mumbled and stood up a bit shakily. It had been a very weird experience… maybe he should ask Madame Pom… He shook his head, no, that would just make the teachers worry more and then they wouldn't let him attend classes.
"Couldn't you guys have the decency to do that in your room?" Neville pulled away from Ron as Malfoy's condescending tone made its way down the hallway. He looked up and noticed the blond sneering at him, and then noticed how many people were shooting him weird glances.
He hadn't even noticed them there before… maybe he should lie down for a bit.
"Shove off – where are you going, Neville?" Neville huffed, suddenly not really in the mood to be listening to Ron's and Malfoy's half-hearted bickering… or whatever they did. He made his way up the stairs, but as he was passing the blond, there was a jolt again- this time it was the stairs deciding to move. He tried to balance himself, but Malfoy had been caught off-guard too and bumped into him. This time he really was falling backwards and he couldn't grab onto anything.
"Neville!" It was Hermione and he heard a ripping noise but hit his back against the stairs before someone had caught him from rolling down. He hissed in pain and looked up to see Professor Lupin looking at him worriedly.
Then there was loud shouting and he looked up to see Ron and Hermione both yelling at Draco, who seemed a bit startled before he yelled back. Neville noticed the blond had a piece of black cloth in his hand.
"What is going on here?" McGonagall was at the top of the stairs in a second.
"Oh, be quiet, you two." Neville noticed for the first time that Pansy had been with Draco through the whole ordeal. "It's not like he's pregnant or anything." She laughed at that, obviously finding pushing pregnant people down the stairs something hilarious that should be watched.
His breath hitched.
Malfoy's eyes were wide… He stared at Ron for a second and then looked down at Neville. Lupin was suddenly pulling him to his feet, and he held onto the professor for support.
"Longbottom's pregnant?" Neville flinched at the sudden way the stair area became silent at Malfoy's tone.
"That's enough…" It was McGonagall who seemed to have composed herself from seeing Neville lying on the stairs to Malfoy figuring it out. "All of you…in my office now."
Neville winced as he put some weight on his right leg. He must have turned it awkwardly while falling.
"Minerva, I'm taking Mr. Longbottom to the hospital wing; it seems he's hurt his leg." Lupin's voice was at his ear and the woman nodded before taking off to her office being followed reluctantly by Ron, Hermione, Malfoy and a very startled Pansy.
"Can you walk?" He looked up at the werewolf who was looking at him worriedly. Neville suddenly felt bad for getting annoyed at the professor even though he couldn't figure out why he had felt that way before. He nodded but hissed as he put weight on his leg.
"Alright then." And before Neville had time to protest, he was lifted bridal style into the teacher's arms. He covered his face with his hands, not wanting anyone to see him like that but then noticed his sleeve was torn.
His mind went blank as he looked at it. There was a big piece missing. What happened to… His eyes widened as he remembered the piece of cloth Malfoy was holding in his hands. Did the blonde try to catch him as he fell? No… it was…
Impossible? No, Ron and Draco getting together had been an impossible idea. A man pregnant was an impossible idea.
"What's wrong?" Neville's head snapped up at Snape's voice. The man was walking quickly over to them with his robes billowing behind him. "I heard students talking…"
Neville froze. The stairs had been incredibly busy with everyone going to class… other people had to have witnessed the exchange. He tried to think of a way around it, but he couldn't come up with anything so he put his hands over his eyes. Everything had been going so well. Maybe no one would believe it… No, he knew how gossip was in this school… everyone lived for strange news.
Now the whole bloody school knew.
"Neville, what's wrong?" He looked up at Lupin who still had a worried expression and he looked over at Snape who was looking blank as usual. He shook his head and put his hands over his eyes again.
"Neville…" It was Snape's voice this time and Neville didn't want to think about how long it would take his Gran to find out now.
"Everyone knows…" he said it as softly as he could, with hope that it wouldn't be true. "And if they don't know right now, they'll all know by tonight…"
Neville was glad that no one spoke after that as all three of them made their way to the hospital wing. His mind was racing on how they could cover it up… or how to make sure his Gran wouldn't find out right away. He hadn't mailed his Great Uncle in a while…
"Professor…" Neville winced as Lupin laid him onto one of the hospital beds. Madame Pomfrey had apparently stepped out for a second and Snape went to go find her. Lupin looked at him, waiting for him to continue. "Could you owl my uncle? Let him know that the whole school is probably going to know soon. I would, but I don't know when I'll get a moment again and he could probably distract my Gran for a little while…"
Remus smiled down at the sandy-haired teen; it was obvious Neville was trying to space out all of the confrontations he was going to have to face, and he wondered idly if it might be easier to face them all at once… but he nodded and gave the teen an encouraging smile. "I don't mind, I had to owl some people anyway."
Neville sighed gratefully; okay, so his Gran would be okay for a while… He bit his thumbnail as the doors burst open with a pale Madame Pomfrey.
"I leave this wing for one moment and of course it's you, Mr. Longbottom." She seemed to be trying to calm herself as she grabbed a tray of tools and walked over to him, moving Lupin to the side. "Fell down the stairs…" she huffed, "one more thing after this and I'm going to make sure you never leave this wing… for class or not."
"I didn't really fall down the…" he started, but she silenced him by shoving him back on the bed with a mild scoff.
He looked over to see that Lupin had gone and Snape was standing there now… almost looking a little lost with nothing to do.
"Severus, be a dear and make sure he stays still for me." Neville watched her turn around and start messing with some stuff on her tray and then saw Snape move around the bed so that he was on the other side of Neville. He smiled uncomfortably up at the older man who had the same expression as usual.
"Your robes ripped." Neville watched the man pick up the sleeve on his right side and then it seemed he was looking around for any more damage, obviously thinking that falling down the stairs shouldn't have caused something like that.
"No… uh… Malfoy tried to keep me from falling… I think…" He blushed slightly and looked away from the older man. He really didn't know if Draco had tried to catch him but he had had his eyes closed…and the cloth in the other teen's hands just seemed to be enough proof for him.
"I see." Neville looked back at the black-haired man to see he had a strange, slightly amused yet smug smirk on his face. He liked it a lot.
"Hold this, Mr. Longbottom." Madame Pomfrey put a jar in his left hand and then paused. "I'm going to unbutton your shirt."
Neville flushed and started to sit up, but was pushed gently back down. He looked up to see Snape, but the man had turned around and wasn't looking at him anymore. Neville flushed even more at the thought of it. Madame Pomfrey's icy-hands unclipped his robes and pushed them apart.
"Oh! Can you get the plant out of the inside pocket?" He just remembered the lily and prayed nothing was wrong with it. She gave him a quizzical look but searched the inside of this robe to pull out the small pot with Krum's letter. Neville gasped… there was a small green sprout inside the pot now.
She put them on the tray beside his bed and then unbuttoned his shirt the rest of the way, but Neville was too distracted by the little green bud growing out of the small pot.
"Is there something wrong with your plant?" Neville looked over to see Snape was looking at the green sprout as well. He must have taken Neville's gasp as bad news; he blushed and shook his head.
"No… it didn't have a sprout before…" he looked back at it… It was a little bigger than he thought it should be considering it had to have just happened.
"Plants grow…" Neville found himself giving the older man a glare before blushing and realizing what he had done.
"I-I know that." He huffed, but then Madame Pomfrey took the jar out of his left hand and he looked at her. He saw her taking blue goo out of it and groaned. This was going to be uncomfortable if she was going to do what he thought she was going to do.
He had only had to have it done once before but apparently the…. blue goo… whatever it was, helped let her know how things were going inside. She had read about it in a magazine.
"You know the routine," she gave him an apologetic nod, "sit back and think of England." Neville flushed at the words but saw her brighten up too. She gave Snape an uncomfortable look, obviously having forgotten the professor was there… and just witnessed her saying that…
"You know what I meant." She didn't look up at Snape again while she rubbed the cold goo on his stomach. Neville shuddered slightly and looked up at the black-haired man who seemed to be trying to find something else to focus on.
He had to admit he felt very silly, laying on a bed with his shirt open and being gooed in front of the older man… but apparently Snape was even more embarrassed with it because Neville noticed his cheeks had gone a light pink and he looked uncomfortable.
He wondered if Snape was thinking about their incident at the beginning of the year. He hadn't been stripped all the way but… he wondered idly how much the older man remembered of it. It would be understandable to feel uncomfortable in this situation, but Neville found himself not wanting Snape to be uncomfortable with it.
"It's supposed to help with knowing what's going on in there." He squirmed slightly as she finished but he pointed at the blue goo on his stomach. Snape looked at him before following his finger and looking at his now slightly blue-tinted flat belly. The older man nodded slightly before returning his gaze to Neville's face.
"How's your leg feeling?" Snape asked him softly, looking down at Neville's right leg.
"I probably just twisted it." Neville was glad for the distraction as the nurse prodded his stomach. "It's really not that bad."
Snape had just nodded but Pomfrey looked up at that. "Hurt your leg? I'll have to look at that next. Really, boy, you should tell me these things first."
Neville sighed and flopped his head against the pillows before huffing at Snape. "Now she'll really want to keep me here overnight."
This made the other man smirk slightly. "I would think you might want to avoid others for as long as you could if they have figured it out."
"Oh." Neville hadn't even thought of it. What was going to happen once everyone figured it out? Would they treat him differently? Sure, his friends had reacted pretty well to it, but they had been through a lot with each other. He bit his lip… would other people think he was some freak? He knew some of the muggle-borns had different views on homosexuality, but what about a man being pregnant? Were they going to treat him like some kind of freak now?
There was a warm hand wrapping around his that startled him out of his thoughts. He looked down at his right hand and saw a pale hand with long fingers wrapped around his. It had surprised him the first time… about how warm Snape's hands had been.
He looked up at the older man, who was giving him a strangely calming glance. He smiled and squeezed the warm hand, thankful for the comfort, when Madame Pomfrey stopped and sighed thankfully.
"Everything is okay." She smiled and handed him a towel to wipe himself off with. He used his left hand but didn't let go of Snape's in his right. "Just be thankful you didn't fall on your stomach, you're probably going to be a bit sore. Mr. Longbottom, I am going to have to stress that you try not to get yourself in these situations, you're already heading into your second trimester and it could have been a lot worse if the baby had been more developed."
He nodded and sat up, sliding back so he could lean against the pillows. "I will be more careful, I had gotten a bit dizzy before the stairs started to switch."
"Maybe I should see about you staying in here instead of your dorms…" She mumbled and headed over to his feet. "Which one?"
"The right." Neville nodded, "But I don't want to leave the dorms, the guys have been very helpful and…"
"It will get harder for you to move around in your last trimester." Pomfrey sniffed before tugging his shoe and sock off; lifting up his pant leg, she inspected his slightly swollen ankle. "A sprain… well, you're staying in here tonight."
"Fine, but I'm not going to live in here…" Neville mumbled, glancing over at the silent black-haired man. "She really can't make me live in here, can she?"
"She can do a lot of surprising things…" was all the answer he got from the professor. "You should probably button up, you feel a bit cold."
Neville flushed as he noticed his shirt was still wide open and reluctantly let go of the man's hand before buttoning up his shirt. He looked up to see that Snape wasn't looking at him again. Suddenly a thought hit him, "Don't you have class with the second years right now Prof… Severus?" He had looked around to see that Pomfrey wasn't in the room - she had gone to her office - he could feel his face warm up incredibly.
"I gave them a fourteen inch essay due by the end of the period on the importance of a bezoar, rather easy, I must say." The man seemed to be thinking if he could add anything to their workload and Neville smiled. Snape had gotten out of class when he heard that something had happened to Neville; he looked down at his hands hoping the professor was still lost in thought while he tried to cool his face off.
"I probably couldn't even write six inches on it." Neville laughed as the other man scoffed. But then there was a gentle cough and both of them looked at Madame Pomfrey and she was giving them both a calculating look. Neville blushed; he had forgotten she was there…
"Professor, do you mind keeping Mr. Longbottom company while I go grab some things from Professor Sprout and run something by the Headmistress?" she gave Snape a soft smile.
"It's alright, I can handle myse-"
"If I must." Snape interrupted Neville with a sigh and the sandy-haired teen wondered if his face would ever stop blushing.
"I'll be back in a jiffy." Neville watched her until the doors closed behind her, leaving Snape and him alone. He stared at his hands for a second before looking up at Snape, who seemed to be looking for something as well.
"Where did she put her chairs…?" The man mumbled slightly before pulling out his wand and with a flick, he conjured a comfy looking black chair. Neville noted it had all four legs.
They both sat in silence for a moment; Neville didn't know what to talk about, so he looked around the empty wing. It had always been empty every time he came in… and considering how many times he had been to see the nurse this year alone, it seemed a bit ridiculous that he would be the only one. He huffed before he saw his plant and the letter from Krum.
He picked the Lilly up gently, inspecting the green sprout before setting it on his leg and picking up the letter. He read over the surprisingly neat script.
Neville bit his lip and re-read the letter.
"Is there something wrong?" He released a breath he didn't realize he was holding and looked over at Snape who was staring at him.
"Ha-have you heard of the Praegnan Lilly?" Neville bit his lip again as he watched the older man think about it.
"Yes, it is a pretty rare herb that is used in more difficult and some dark-potions, why wha-" the black haired man stopped before turning his gaze to the small little pot on Neville's leg. His eyes widened slightly and he leaned forward slightly, inspecting the green sprout. "Is it?"
Neville nodded, licking his suddenly dry lips.
Snape actually seemed at a loss for words as he stared at the plant and then back at Neville again. "I have never actually seen one before." The older man admitted.
"It only grows if it's near someone who is pregnant." Neville looked down at the letter from Krum. "For a proper one, the pregnant person should keep it close to them at all times, I knew that- which is why I was carrying it in my pocket." He added and showed Snape the pocket he created.
"But Krum says that…"
"Victor Krum?" Neville nodded at the teacher's question.
"Yes, I knew the lily was originally of Bulgarian nationality so I asked Hermione to write him for me. Well, he says that most women…" Neville coughed and blushed slightly, "don't really want to have to deal with a plant while they're pregnant which is why it's so rare… because most female herbologists are single anyway. It says here that after the seed accepts the pregnant person, it will start growing along with the baby."
He looked eagerly at the plant… this was very exciting… growing something so rare. He looked at the green sprout and then gasped.
"What is it?" Snape was looking at him a bit worried.
"It's accepted me! That's why it started growing!" Neville grinned eagerly at Snape. "Oh, this is very exciting! I need to tell Professor Sprout and… my Great-Uncle Algie! He'll want to know how it's going… oh and…" Neville stopped when he noticed the older man's expression and blushed again. "Sorry, I got a little excited…"
"No need to apologize," Snape was giving Neville an odd expression he couldn't pin down, but then his long pale fingers lifted up and slid down his face gently. "If you are this excited about it, I bet you are going to be a very good herbologist."
Neville flustered and leaned into the warm hand that was sliding into his hair now. It was the first real compliment he had ever gotten from the other man. "I will do my best to meet those expectations…" Neville sighed contently and turned into the hand sliding his face so that his lips met the wrist.
They both froze. Neville opened his eyes and looked at the older man, who seemed slightly startled. They were both watching each other closely and suddenly they were only inches apart. It took Neville a second to realize that he was leaning forward before he pressed his lips gently against the older man's, taking hold of the hand that had been in his hair only a moment ago.
"You need to apologize!" The doors burst open and they both jumped back. Neville barely had enough time to catch the small pot that had fallen off of his knee when he jumped; Snape's chair hit the floor because he had hit it when he had stood up so abruptly. Neville turned to see Ron and Draco, both looking flustered but more like they had been fighting.
He sighed in relief, hoping that they hadn't noticed anything.
"What was that?" Ron pointed at Snape and then Neville, causing the teen to curse mentally.
"What brings you here, Mr. Weasley? It seems that you and Mr. Malfoy are both of good health?" Snape's cool voice rang through the room.
"Oh, yeah," Ron grabbed Draco's arm and pulled the blonde over to Neville. "It's your bloody fault the whole school knows now."
"So they do…" Neville groaned and hid his face in his hands, letting the plant sit beside him on the bed. "What's it like out there?"
"A bloody mess." Ron snorted, "They all think it's me that… you know…" he blushed and made a rude hand gesture.
"5 points from Gryffindor for that." Snape glared at the red-head. "And what do you mean? Why would they think that?"
Ron glared at the blonde who glared back. "It's not my fault, alright? The last thing anyone witnessed was you holding him up!"
"Because you made a scene about it!"
"Well, it was disgusting!"
"To help someone up the stairs?"
"You were all over him!"
"I was not! You ju-"
"As much as I love to watch you two squabble like a married couple…" Snape glared at the both of them. They both flushed and looked down at the ground.
"So they think Ron knocked me up?" Neville couldn't help but laugh at that. "You both could solve that rumor by snogging in public or something…"
Draco's eyes widened and Ron blushed furiously.
"It would be better than my classroom." Snape snorted and both teens choked.
"Well, what was that…when we came in here?" Draco didn't look at Ron, but this time glared at Snape. Neville was surprised to notice that both Draco and Ron were a few inches taller than the older man. "And before you play dumb… you looked like you two were… you were…"
Neville flushed brightly… why had he done that? He should've known better! He didn't look up at the older man, but stared down at the plant beside him. Snape was probably going to be upset that he had done that. He tried to ignore the way his lips tingled in memory of the older man's warm lips against his.
"Is it alright to have a private moment with the person baring my child?" The silky voice wasn't full of any sarcasm or resentment and Neville lifted his head and gaped at the older man who was still pointedly glaring at their intruders. He noticed that Snape's cheeks were pink again. Did… did that mean he? Did he?
What did he mean by that?
"WHAT?" Neville flinched as Ron looked over at Neville opened-mouth and wide-eyed before promptly passing out.
XXX
Neville shifted uncomfortably in the bed. He sighed and ran his hands through his hair, trying to think of something to say. But what could he… it wasn't like they talked much before all of this had happened.
"So… you and Ron eh?" He tried to smile over at Draco Malfoy who was now sitting in the chair Snape had made earlier that day. The blonde glared at him.
"How long have you known?"
"I…uh…" Neville looked back down at his hands. "I thought something was up when I saw you guys in the hall at the beginning of the year… then after the newspaper thing, I kinda guessed."
"Oh." The sandy-haired teen looked over at the blonde who was blushing. "I…see…"
"Well, it's none of my business, really." Neville scratched his head again. "I mean, I'm obviously not against it in any way…"
The blonde had snorted at that. "So when did this happen?" He waved his hand over at Neville.
"About 11 weeks ago…" Neville looked down at his hands again.
"And you two are…" Draco seemed to find it impossible to say the words: kissing, relationship, sex or snog in any sentence that was around or near Snape.
"I don't know." Neville answered honestly. "It was an accident…we weren't really…"
"And you're still having it?" The blonde was looking at Neville with surprise. "Not that I, you know… you say otherwise…"
"I can't take life away…" Neville flexed his hands, "I learned that and I'm okay with it."
"That's… very…" Draco seemed to be trying to think of a good word for what he was trying to describe. "Gryffindor of you… I guess."
"Haha, thanks, I think." Neville smiled at the blonde.
"Sorry… about the stairs, I really didn't mean to knock you down." It had been quiet, but Neville still heard it and he smiled, nodding.
"I know… thanks for trying to catch me too…" He lifted his arm to show the ripped sleeve and Draco turned bright red.
They sat there in silence; both of them looked over at Ron who was staring at them in shock. Like he had never seen such a strange scene before.
Neville had to admit that anyone would think that it was a strange scene to see Malfoy and Neville Longbottom getting along.
"Are you just going to stand there and gawk all day?" Draco glared over at the ginger who was suddenly shaken out of his trance. "Is it really that big of a deal?"
"Well… YEAH!" Ron sat at the end of Neville's bed and looked at him like he was a hard subject to study. "I mean…you HATED Snape!"
"Professor Snape." Draco glared at the redhead.
"You and Malfoy hated each other." Neville grinned at the blonde.
"But he was mean to you!"
"I wasn't nice." Draco scoffed indignantly at not being recognized.
"But…but…" Ron looked at Draco pleadingly and then at Neville.
"Listen." Neville sighed running a hand through his hair. "I honestly don't know what's going on with me and him. This was an accident… but… I liked him even before it happened and…" He bit his lip, trying to think of what to say.
"Tonight, that was a first for us by the way." He glared at them slightly for interrupting, "We… we just need help to keep it quiet for a while."
"Fine." Draco nodded, standing up and Ron gaped at him. "Listen, Snape is my godfather I… If I can help him, then I will."
"He's your godfather?" Ron squeaked.
"Why do I put up with you?" Draco glared at the redhead before smirking slightly. "Oh right…"
Neville blushed and did his best to look nonchalant as Draco whispered something in Ron's ear that made the redhead go a deep crimson. The blond pulled away, then placed a kiss on Ron's hand and left the Hospital Wing.
"Are you going to be okay with this?" Neville sighed and looked at Ron worriedly. "He might make everyone think you're the dad."
"He would." Ron nodded before looking at the back of the hand that Draco kissed and smiling slightly. "Yeah, I'm okay with it."
"I never took you for the pillow biter, Ron." Neville laughed at Ron starng at him wide-eyed and even redder than before. "It's kind of obvious…s o you two have?"
"Done nothing you should know about." There was a sharp reply and Malfoy was leaning against the door leering at them. Ron immediately jumped up and walked over to the door before shooting Neville a sheepish glance.
XXX
The morning after had been more chaotic than Neville could have guessed it would be. First it was Harry, Dean, Hermione, and Luna who showed up wanting to know what happened and if Ron really was the father. After he has assured them, that no, Ron wasn't the father and that he was going to be okay but he would not be in classes today, they left and he was a little worried about why Ron or Ginny hadn't shown up.
Then his day consisted of people either peeking in to the Hospital Wing or even pretending to be sick just so that they could stare at him awkwardly as if they were waiting for a baby to suddenly explode out of him.
After a third year Hufflepuff had complained that he didn't look pregnant, Madame Pomfrey had put him in the bed furthest from the door and placed curtains around it.
Neville sighed and looked out the window he was very thankful for. White curtains got rather boring after a while. He wondered if everyone would calm down after a day or two, but sighed. He would have to face the public eventually. He thought of all the students who had probably already owled their parents… then he wondered about the parents who might complain to the school because they had allowed such a kind of behavior to happen.
He groaned and hoped McGonagall would still let him stay.
"What's wrong?" Neville turned slightly to see Lupin opening up the curtain with a tray of food. At the sight, his stomach growled and he realized how hungry he was.
"I was wondering how much trouble the school was going to get into… and if McGonagall would still let me stay…" Neville grabbed a roll off of the tray and sighed.
"I'm sure Professor McGonagall is expecting you to finish your year here." Lupin chuckled softly. "I heard you had surprise visitors last night."
Neville huffed, taking a drink of pumpkin juice and then blushed… who had told Lupin? He looked up at the older man… if it was Snape, did he say anything about…
"Who…"
"Oh! Professor Snape was grumbling about nosy children this morning, so I guessed." Lupin gave a smile that made Neville think the older man knew more than he should.
But before he could comment, the curtains were thrown open and Neville gasped as his Great-Uncle Algie gasped for air, obviously he had been running.
"Hide! She's coming!" Neville jumped up immediately, knocking the food tray over, and looked around… There was nowhere to hide! He looked at Lupin, who grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the curtains.
"Your Gran, yes?" he looked slightly amused as Neville nodded frantically. They made it to the doors of the infirmary when they were thrown open, Lupin quickly pushed Neville behind another bed that had curtains around it and Neville was thankful that it was empty.
"Where is he, Minerva?" The voice made Neville whimper slightly. She was angry… very angry…
"Augusta! Honestly, calm down!" Professor McGonagall's voice was just as powerful and he heard their feet walk past him. He peeked out of the curtain to see that Lupin was blocking his view of the two women… so they couldn't see him either. He slid out as quietly as he could and made it out of the room just as he heard, "Algie! Where is he? What did you do to him?"
There was a loud crash of noise and he heard more shouting. Neville ran as fast as he could away from the Hospital Wing. He winced slightly when he remembered that he had left his plant there and hoped that maybe Algie would save it from any wrath that it could incur.
He stopped at the stairwell… she would probably go to the Gryffindor common room next, so he went down the stairs toward the Great Hall. He gasped for air at the end of the stairs and looked around frantically. He felt the room spin slightly and grabbed the railing.
"He doesn't look very pregnant." He looked up to see some Slytherin fifth year girls go past him. He could run to the dungeons… She would never guess he went there, she thought he was still afraid of the dark.
"Oh, there he is!" He froze. He knew that voice… but he couldn't place it. "Neville! Over here, dear!" He turned his head slightly to see Mr. and Mrs. Weasley walking straight to him. Ron was looking at them like they were aliens from another planet, but then he noticed Neville and mouthed, 'Sorry mate'.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Arthur Weasley, Ron's dad." He looked at the tall redhead in front of him. He didn't know whether to tell them to run or to get out of his way so that he could. Then it hit him… they thought Ron had gotten him pregnant.
"This is rather exciting!" Mrs. Weasley was beside him in a second laughing. "Our first grandchild!"
"Mum, I didn't get him..." Ron sighed as his mother just laughed again and pulled Neville into a tight hug. "It's not my kid, dang it!"
"I'll admit I didn't even know Ron was… you know…" Mrs. Weasley smiled at Neville in such a way he could only smile back… It seemed to encourage her, "Well, never mind that. How are you feeling? You aren't even showing yet! How far along are you?"
"Around 11 weeks." Neville choked on his answer, startled by the family around him. He looked at Ron who was glaring at his parents and then noticed Ginny who also seemed to be on the receiving end of Ron's glare. She must have been the one that told her parents. "It's really not…"
"There you are, boy." Neville froze again, not able to continue telling the Weasleys that it wasn't Ron's child. He didn't turn around as he heard the footsteps come down the stairs behind him.
"Oh! You must be Augusta Longbottom." Mr. Weasley smiled up above Neville.
"Of course it was a Weasley." His Gran scoffed and Neville groaned. "Nothing better to do with your time, eh?"
Neville felt chills up his spine as he watched the grins from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's face vanish. The room started to spin again and he moved out of the way of the Weasley's. He braced himself against the nearest wall as he heard shouting start. He couldn't hear them properly, but when he opened his eyes he saw that Ron's father had drawn his wand on his Gran but she had her wand out too.
"It doesn't matter what or who they get together with as long as they love each other!" He heard the man's voice.
"You would feel that way." He heard his Gran and suddenly he wanted to hit her, punch her or something. She would never understand, would she?
There was a cold hand on his forehead and Neville was surprised to see Snape standing over him suddenly. The man grabbed his hand and started pulling him away from the scene at the stairs. Suddenly they were in one of the secret passageways of the school; he could hear shouting behind him and was thankful when it started fading away.
The passage ended in a hallway and it took Neville a moment to realize that they were back at the Hospital Wing. The way this school was built still confused him… he didn't remember walking up stairs. He was pulled into the infirmary to see Madame Pomfrey giving his Uncle Algie a pack of ice for a rather large bump that was on his head.
"Oh my! Get him on that bed right now!" He was being pushed down on a bed gently before he was lifted slightly and his shirt was removed, but Neville had to close his eyes again because the room was spinning. He heard Pomfrey's voice above him saying things, and he could hear Snape's voice as well.
Suddenly there was a cold wet cloth on his head and he gasped, but leaned into it. It felt very nice.
"He's worked himself into this. That stupid woman should know better, she's had a kid herself!"
His body felt heavy as a cool cloth was lifted to cover his body.
"My sister doesn't see much sense in things after she's set her mind to something."
There was another cold cloth on his neck now.
"Let's hope McGonagall put an end to it before the Weasley's kill your sister."
There was a cool hand in his and he squeezed it instinctively.
"Why them?"
"They think Ron's the father…"
"I thought it was you?"
XXX
Neville opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was the Praegnan lily. It had gotten a little bigger and he smiled at it. Then everything that had happened came rushing into his head and he moved to sit up, but there were hands on his shoulders in an instant and he looked up to see Snape with bags under his eyes but there was a small relieved smile on the other man's face.
"You need to go back to sleep." The man's voice was a bit unsteady and that didn't bode well with the teen.
"Where's Gran?" He asked hoarsely, pushing Snape's arms away and sitting up. He felt bad for doing it, but he had had enough. He couldn't be like this every time she was near. He tried to stand on his feet and his legs gave out, but Snape was there instantly sitting him back on the bed. "What's wrong with me? "
Snape sighed, "You had a high fever… It's better now but you'll be a bit weak."
"Where's my Gran?" Neville asked again, grabbing the hand that was on his shoulder. "Severus, please…"
There was another sigh but his face was back to its usual blank expression. "She's in McGonagall's office… still…"
"Will you help me there?" But before the other man answered, he was trying to stand again and was happy he stayed up this time. Then robes were wrapped around him and he noticed that he didn't have a shirt on. He looked down at the deep black robes and blushed.
Snape seemed to think about which way was the best to move Neville around before wrapping his arm around the teen's waist. "Put your arm over my shoulder, I think this will be the fastest way to move without me floating you around."
Neville flushed and put his right hand around the older man's shoulder. He couldn't remember being this close to the older man.
"I must warn you that the Weasley's might still be there as well."
"How long have they been there?" Neville looked up sideways at the older man as they made their way down the hall. He could tell it must have been very late from how dark the halls were but Snape seemed to know exactly where they were going so Neville followed him into another secret passage.
"They haven't left the castle, if that's what you mean." Snape's voice was sarcastic like he thought the whole ordeal was a waste of his time.
"Anything bad happen?" He was almost afraid to ask but waited for an answer anyway. There was a pregnant pause.
"Mister Malfoy seems to have snapped and started snogging Mister Weasley in front of the Great Hall." There was amusement in his tone and Neville gasped.
"In front of everyone?!"
"But not until after he shouted that Mr. Weasley was his boyfriend and not yours." There was a chuckle and Neville wondered if he even wanted to see the expression on Snape's face at the moment.
"And how did everyone react to this?" Neville stared at the darkness in shock.
"McGonagall sent everyone to their respective houses and the Weasleys and your Gran and her brother have been in her office ever since."
They walked out into a slightly lit hall and Neville saw the gargoyle statue in front of him. He hesitated, causing the older man to stop.
"We can go ba-"
"I need to do this." Neville sniffed defiantly. He reluctantly let go of the black-haired man's neck but then looked at him. He paused, wondering what he really wanted to do but then there was a cool hand on his neck that had surprised him. "Y-your hand is cold!"
"You still have a slight fever."
"Good, I can blame it on that afterward." Neville mumbled but the hand had moved to his cheek and he moved to kiss the wrist and looked up at the black-haired man. The black eyes were glistening in the torch lights that slightly lit the hallway. And then Neville was against the other man, pressing his lips hard against the others.
He wrapped his arms around Snape's neck and moaned slightly, licking the older man's lips before pulling away and he licked his own lips.
"Fever, right." He grinned at the older man before looking at the gargoyle. "I need to end this madness."
"About time." The gargoyle sniffed and then moved, revealing the stairs up to the Headmistress' office. Neville glanced one more time at the stunned Professor and then made his way up the stairs, hoping that this sudden burst of energy would last as long as he needed it to.
He didn't even bother knocking and opened the door, walking in. The noise immediately stopped and he looked around to see Ron, Ginny and Draco sitting sheepishly in a corner. He saw Algie sitting between the Weasleys and his Gran and Professor McGonagall looked tired as she sat at her desk.
They all stared at him, obviously not expecting him.
"Mr. Longbottom, you should be resting…" Minerva sighed, rubbing her temples with her hands.
"Since he's up, he's leaving with me," his Gran stood up.
"To do what?" Everyone stopped and then looked at him again, apparently not having expected him to speak. His Gran looked at him with a mix of fury and surprise.
"We can talk later, Neville." She glared over at him.
"I'm not leaving. You can't make me." Neville glared back at her. "And I'm not getting rid of this baby either if that's what you were expecting."
The older woman opened her mouth to protest, but he stopped her.
"Just shut it, will you?" He growled and then ran a tired hand through his hair. "I don't care what you say, or what you think and I'll find somewhere else to stay when I graduate if I have to. You can leave now, you're not wanted here. If you feel like talking, and I mean really talking, then fine, I'll talk to you but for now I want you to leave this school." Neville huffed and felt himself fall a little backwards only to be stopped by strong hands.
"I love you but I really don't like you right now." He added, glaring at her again.
"Thank you for that, Mr. Longbottom." He was a little delighted to see McGonagall's lips twitch at the sides. "Augusta, why don't I call down to Hogsmeade and get you a room. We can continue this later."
"No need." The woman stared at Minerva coldly. "He's said what he wanted." And with that, she grabbed her bag and ignored Neville's presence as she went through the door. It hurt him a lot more than he thought it would. Algie stood up, looking a little shell shocked.
"Sorry 'bout that." He scratched his nose, smiling awkwardly at the Weasleys.
"Oh, it wasn't you, Algie." Mrs. Weasley was glaring at the door furiously. "It was your sister."
"I should go after her… you know… make sure she isn't destroying anything." He walked over to the door and put an arm on Neville's shoulder smiling down at him. "I'm proud of you, you know that?"
Neville nodded shakily. He watched his Great-Uncle leave the room.
"Sit down, Mr. Longbottom…please." McGonagall motioned at the two empty chairs and Neville was grateful for Snape as the older man pulled him into a chair and then sat next to him.
"Ah, Severus." Mr. Weasley nodded over at Snape who nodded politely back. "What a day, eh?"
"Sorry about the confusion, Arthur and Molly." Minerva sighed and sat down back in her chair.
"Oh, it's alright." Molly Weasley looked over at her son, who was holding hands with a now dozing Draco. "We still got good news today."
Ron blushed furiously but didn't let go of Draco's hand.
"Sorry you're not getting any grandkids." Neville smiled apologetically.
"Oh honey." Molly looked taken back by the sympathy. "If you ever need a place to stay… and I mean it, you are welcome at the Burrow at any time!"
"Right-o." Mr. Weasley grinned at his wife.
They all got up and said their goodbyes but Mr. Weasley put Neville on his back and carried him back to the hospital and the teen found it hard to walk for himself. He looked back apologetically at Snape who was staring at Mrs. Weasley while she talked excitedly about children and the joys of.
He wondered idly if the Weasley's knew… and he thought he would be okay with that.
Neville laid himself on the bed as the Weasley's said goodbye and left the room. He watched Snape move slowly over to the bed he was laying in.
Their eyes met and the older man smirked. "Your Voldemort?"
"She didn't seem that scary with a fever." Neville mumbled, ignoring how much it had hurt him that she had ignored him on her way out. He figured he deserved it.
There was a cold hand on his head and he put his hand over it. "Must still have a fever… your hands are cold."
"Does it bother you?"
Neville flushed but shook his head and instead kissed the palm of the older man's hand. "I love your hands."
There were cool lips on his forehead and Neville could remember holding tightly onto cold hands before he fell asleep.
XXX
"I can't believe you kissed me in front of my parents."
"I can't believe your parents like me?"
"Why wouldn't they?"
"That's just too weird." Neville opened his eyes slowly, letting them adjust to see Harry and Hermione looking over at something a little startled. He slowly moved to see Draco and Ron grinning at each other while holding hands in the bed next to his. Dean was beside them looking a little scared but Luna was smiling at them like it was the most normal thing in the world.
"Oh, Neville's awake!" He looked up to see Ginny Weasley leaning over him. "How are you feeling?"
"Exhausted." He admitted before sitting up slowly and looking around at them. "Why are you all here anyway? What about…" he had to think for a moment on what class they would be having but realized that it was the weekend. "You got nothing better to do than watch me sleep?"
"Watching a pregnant boy sleep is pretty interesting." Harry offered but then laughed apologetically. "Okay, really we were worried about you."
"Ron, Ginny and…. Draco" Hermione gave the blond a confused look but he just grinned deviously at her. "Um… they told us about what happened… with your Gran… and…"
"So the whole school knows you two are together now?" Neville looked over at Ron and Draco. Ron blushed but the blond looked smug.
"You knew?!" Harry, Dean and Hermione all looked at him in shock. "And you didn't tell any of us?"
"That's the point of a secret, you know." Neville yawned and stretched, his body was a bit sore. "But if you guys want me to share, then…"
"No, that's alright!" Harry, Hermione and Ginny all sputtered. Dean looked at them and then at Neville.
"Spill."
Neville laughed but shook his head. "You wouldn't want me to either… trust me." He pulled his robes around him tighter before realizing that he wasn't wearing his robes. He blushed furiously, looking down at the robes Snape had lent to him the night before realizing they belonged to the older man. He wrapped the robes around him and looked up at everyone.
"So does everyone know who the dad is?"
"Urr… yeah." Ginny scratched the back of her head, "Sorry, but some Ravenclaws had apparently snuck off to get food from the kitchens and they heard our parents talking as they left… Sorry, mate."
Neville just nodded, burying his nose into the robes and enjoying the way he felt wrapped up in it. "I figured as much."
"So it really is Snape?" Harry looked at him disbelieving. "Really?"
Neville glared over at him. "Got a problem with that?" He paused because someone else had said that with him and he looked over, startled, at Ron. Draco was looking at the ginger, rather startled too.
"No… it's just surprising you know." Harry scratched his head uncomfortably.
Suddenly Neville's stomach growled loudly, letting him know that it was starving. He blushed and started getting out of bed.
"No way, mister, we got strict orders not you let you out of bed!" Ginny stopped him from leaving. "We can go get food for you."
"But… I've been in here for so long." Neville moaned, "I don't think I can remember what the Great Hall looks like."
He heard a snort and glared sideways at Draco.
"Well, you can't go in that." Dean laughed as Neville stood up and found the robes were a little too long for him. The sandy-haired teen reluctantly took off the robes but heard spluttering. He looked up to see Dean had covered Luna's eyes and was pulling her away from the bed. Ginny and Hermione were blushing brightly before Harry made them turn around.
"But he has a nice body!" Ginny moaned.
"Don't think I got that reaction before." Neville shrugged at the amused Malfoy and startled Ron as he stared at his sister's back.
"Don't see why not." Neville got flustered and turned his back to the blond as he put his shirt on. He looked back to see Draco laughing at the moping Ron.
"I'm decent!" Neville laughed as Ginny made a sad sniffing noise looking at him. Harry looked at him, a little upset.
"I do have to say… Herbologist apparently have nice bodies." Hermione giggled with the ginger girl.
"I've seen him without his shirt before." Luna was giving Dean a confused look while the black teen looked at Neville, expecting an answer.
"It gets really hot in the greenhouses." Neville flushed and picked up his little potted plant and they made their way to the doors. "So who did you guys promise not to let me get out of bed?"
"Snape." They all chuckled and shut the door behind them.
XXX
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