The Half-Giant Family

Chapter 7: Panic

Severus was pacing his living room, twisting his fingers in front of him nervously as he waited for Kingsley to arrive. He breathed a very shaky breath as he saw Kingsley appear out of the flames, looking at him worriedly.

"Sev, what's wrong? Are you okay? Is Harry? Hagrid?" Kingsley said as he moved to stand in front of the lightly shaking Severus.

"Harry's fine. Hagrid's fine," Severus said a tad distractedly as he looked up into the deep brown eyes that held warmth and something else which he couldn't quite place, but it made him feel… warm, and safe, and many other things that he really couldn't think about at that moment, although he didn't really truly understand what many of them were.

"But you're not?" Kingsley said gently, though it wasn't really a question, "What happened, Severus?"

"I… I think Dumbledore might have started to suspect something… about me being a bearer," Severus breathed, his voice quivering ever so slightly as he looked down at his knotted hands and twisted his fingers together some more.

He startled slightly at the feeling of Kingsley's warm, gentle hand on his arm and looked up at the man who was looking at him with such concern that it twisted something in his heart. No one had ever really been concerned for him before. Not like that. Not that much. Not ever.

"Let's sit down, Sev, and you can tell me what happened," Kingsley said gently, his voice smooth and rich, with worry and care that no one had ever shown Severus before, and it sent more warmth, and safety, and everything else roiling through Severus' stomach and heart.

Severus nodded and Kingsley led him over to the sofa where they sat next to each other, but in a way that enabled them to face each other easily. Kingsley's hand never left his arm, and the pad of his dark thumb traced gentle circles into it. Severus was surprised that such a small movement could have such a, somewhat calming effect on him, but he relished in it anyway.

"What happened?" Kingsley asked.

"When my class ended I went to see Harry, and Hagrid. They were on their way to drop some pumpkins off for the house elves, but the Headmaster stopped them and was arguing with Hagrid. I got involved and when Harry saw me he called me 'mummy'. Dumbledore went on a spiel about how we should let Petunia raise Harry so that he grows up with the right morals and so that he doesn't get away with calling me and Hagrid 'mummy' and 'papa' because he needs to know about Lily and James' sacrifice. And calling me 'mummy' is wrong. I said some things about how Petunia and her husband would raise him, and how he is gay himself so he shouldn't have a problem with a man being called 'mummy' by a child, and about how I have tried to get Harry to stop. But I may have said something that gave him some hints about my bearing abilities, and… my magic flared up slightly, I don't know if it was enough for him to notice, but he looked at me with those wide eyes as if he was putting some pieces of the puzzle together, and… I don't know, I got the impression that he may at least have started figuring it out,"

"Right, alright, that's okay, Sev,"

"It's not okay," Severus said, almost desperately. He didn't know why he was allowing himself to be so vulnerable, but he felt safe, and cared for, with Kingsley, and part of him craved those feelings.

He always had done.

"Sev, he can't, legally, do anything to you. If he tries anything, anything at all, with you and your abilities then we can work with that. We can add it to our case against him. But also, I will do everything in my power to protect you, Severus. I will get you some protective jewellery, a portkey, and anything else I can to protect you with. If he tries anything, it will backfire on him,"

"He's smart. He can figure his way around things," Severus said quietly.

"Hm, he's smart. But when he's desperate, or when he thinks he is in the right, then he doesn't always think things through all the way. Which gives us all the power we need to work around him. Sev, no matter what happens, I will be here for you, to help you, I promise. I will keep you, and Harry, safe," Kingsley said fiercely.

"I… I just don't want him to use me like that. Anyone really. But him especially. I can't… I can't be forced to have a baby with him, Kingsley. I can't have him have that level of control, and power over me, or my baby, I can't," Severus hated to admit that he was panicking, he was usually good at hiding these things.

But it was too much to bear. The thought of being forced into that position by Dumbledore or all people. The power that Dumbledore would have over him, over his child. He couldn't imagine what Dumbledore would do to the child given everything he does to other children. It hurt to think about, but it was the thought that was most prominent in his mind. Potentialities flashing through his mind that made him panic all the more.

"Severus, I need you to breathe for me, okay," Kingsley said gently, although to Severus it was a tad muffled over everything else that was going on in his mind.

Kingsley took Severus' hand gently in his own and led it to his own heart so that Severus could feel his heartbeat, "Severus, I need you to take a nice deep breath in for me," he said smoothly, taking a deep breath in himself, "That's it. Now out," he took a deep breath out, and Severus copied the movements beneath his hand.

"Good, and again. In… and out… In… and out… That's it, Severus, just breathe… In… and out… I promise you, Sev, that I am not going to let anyone use you for your abilities… In… and out… No one is going to force you into a pregnancy… In… and out… No one is going to have that level of power over you, Harry, or any child you may bear in the future… You are safe with me, Sev, and I promise that no one is going to be able to do anything to you that you don't completely want… In… and out… I want you, as soon as your classes for the day have finished, to go to Hagrid's Hut and stay there until I return with protective jewellery, a portkey, and everything else I think will help, okay? You will be safe. I will keep you safe. And if he tries anything, even just something small, then know that I will protect you from it as best as I can, and I will bring the full force of the law down on him. We can build a case against him, Sev. With any scrap of evidence we can find, there is so much he is hiding but as I said, if he is desperate he doesn't think things through properly, so there has to be some evidence against him somewhere. We will find it, and we will truly make sure yourself, and the children are safe. I promise,"

Severus couldn't stop himself from leaning into Kingsley's shoulder as his breathing calmed, shaky as it was. Some part of him needed to be close to the man, and he didn't really understand why. But the man was safe, and warm, and he cared. Though Severus couldn't fathom why.

He also didn't understand the deep, shaky breath Kingsley took as he wrapped his strong arms around Severus and held him close.

"Everything will be okay, Sev. I promise. I've got you,"

Severus didn't know how long they stayed like that, but he relished in every second of it.

And when he went to his next class he didn't want the man to leave. The anxiety built again as he watched the man floo away, but he had no time to dwell on it as he taught his last two classes then promptly made his way back to Harry and Hagrid who were sitting in Hagrid's overly large armchair reading another book.

"You okay, Sev?" Hagrid asked worriedly, Harry also managed to look worried.

"I… Yes, I will be," Severus said, "How has your day been?"

"It's been nice," Hagrid beamed at him with gentle eyes.

"Good," Severus said as he sat at the table, knotting his fingers together tightly on the table as he waited for Kingsley.

As soon as Hagrid had finished reading the book to Harry the toddler made his way over to Severus, beaming up at him and lifting his arms in the air. Severus couldn't help but smile, some of his anxiety lessening as he picked Harry up and held him close.

"Have you enjoyed your day, Harry?" Severus asked, trying to keep his mind from his worries.

"Yeah!" Harry said, "Pum'kins, and 'Oona," he pouted cutely, "I want 'Oona back. She friend. Bu' papa said she someone else's,"

"Maybe she'll come and visit you again one day," Severus said.

"Yeah! 'Ope so," Harry nodded, resting his ear against Severus' chest.

Kingsley arrived two hours later and it felt like a weight was lifted off Severus' chest when he saw the items Kingsley had brought for him. Harry was happy to see the man, too.

Kingsley looked at Severus with concerned eyes as he showed Severus what he had managed to get. An elegantly carved silver ring to protect Severus from potions and minor spells. A necklace to protect him from the same things, but acted as a portkey that would take him to Kingsley's home if he said the word, "safe," along with a small silver stud earring that was a portkey which would only activate should Severus be unnaturally unconscious. There were a few other bits also, and Severus was rather overwhelmed that someone had gone to that much effort in an attempt to keep him safe.

The man even brought some small bits for Harry, too, which really did set Severus' heart going in ways that it had never done so before.

He really needed to stop.

"You'll be okay, Sev. I promise," Kingsley said quietly, "You aren't alone anymore. I will keep you safe,"

And Severus couldn't help but try and believe him.

Hiya, how are you all?

A shorter chapter this time but I hope you enjoyed it none the less. I am so bloody exhausted at the moment, haha, but I tried my best with it. So... what is going to happen next? Let me know what you think is coming. Or anything you would like to see, maybe, even if it is only a little thing.

Anywho, I posted an essay/petition where I (un)officially explain why I think I should be cast as my favourite character, Severus Snape, in the new HBO series, despite the fact that I am a woman. It would mean a lot if you went and read it, but no pressure. It isn't going to lead to anything, unless, by some miracle, it goes viral, but it was fun to write. It is on my AO3, Maraudering_Paige. Feel free to go and check it out.

Also, I am working on some Spotify playlists for my fanfics, so if you can think of any songs you think work with the stories as they are so far, or where you think they are going, or songs that give you the vibes you get from the stories, then please do let me know and I will give them a listen, then potentially add them to the playlists. If you would like to go and give them a listen as they are now then you can find me on Spotify under the name Maraudering_Paige. They aren't that long at the moment, but we are making progress and I will continue adding to them the more music I listen to and when I have the time to do so. But still, if you can think of any relevant songs then do let me know.

I have a Facebook group called Maraudering_Paige which you are all welcome to join if you would like to and are able to. It is where we can talk about Harry Potter, fanfics, life, share memes and more. It is also where I have somewhat of an update schedule for my fics and will be keeping you up to date on what I am working on, in regards to fanfics, original works, and more things. So if you are interested in joining then I am more than happy to accept you all.

I also now have a TikTok and an Instagram for my fanfic writing escapades. The username is maraudering_paige on both of them so feel free to follow me, and we shall see how often and what kinds of content I can post when I can. But it is another way for me to keep you all up to date if you don't have Facebook and such, and for me to spread the word about other things I am working on and things I want to do and such. So yeah, feel free to join me on those if you are able.

And finally, if you like poems, then I write them and I have started a where you can read 1 or more poems every month depending on how many I have the time to post. You also get access to information about my original books I am working on before anyone else. And you get your name listed in the acknowledgements section of any book I publish whilst you are a Patron. For £2.22 a month. If you would like to join me over there and read some rants I call poems, and get updates on original work, then you may. My username over there is Paige_Makepeace. No pressure, by the way, you certainly do not have to if you can't or don't want to. I understand. I just thought it would be a cool thing to try. Any money made from this will go towards helping me write and publish the original novels I am working on. Including the one I am hoping to publish first which is a slow-burn, witchy, bisexual/lesbian enemies to lovers book. You will also be able to read the first draft of the first chapter of my book, so, if you are interested in doing that then feel free to go and subscribe if you want to.

If there are any other platforms you think I should join you all on then let me know and I will have a think.

I hope you are having an amazing day!

Kind regards,

Paige xx