Draco thought it was a joke, and his first instinct was to laugh. The idea that his mother could be present in the secret Snape family's house seemed extremely ridiculous to him. But the way Celine was looking at him was far from funny, and Draco felt the smile freeze on his face.
"Are you talking seriously?"
Celine rolled her eyes and huffed in frustration, before pulling him to move.
"Go and see for yourself."
Harry followed them, almost more surprised than him. What was Narcissa Malfoy doing there? Wasn't the Snape's house supposed to be secret, especially from the other death eaters? Looking at Draco he realized that he was absolutely bewildered, and that he hadn't expected this news. If it weren't for Celine, he would have been frozen in place, unable to move.
Pushed by the young woman, Draco entered the kitchen, and was speechless with amazement, when he saw his mother, sitting next to the table, with a cup of tea in her hand... Talking to Astrid!
Narcissa, who had never shown appreciation for muggles in her life, was so calm sitting next to Snape's wife! What was happening there?
"Hello, mother," he managed to greet. Narcissa looked at him, and smiled! Draco couldn't remember the last time his mother had smiled so sincerely. He also didn't remember having seen her as relaxed as she was at that moment.
"Draco, don't stay at the door, it's rude," however, there were things that didn't change.
Draco approached his mother and gave her a cold, polite kiss on the cheek, as was his custom, although without knowing why, he expected something different from her.
"I hope he is not giving you any trouble, Astrid," Narcissa spoke as if Draco wasn't there.
"Not at all, I'm very happy with him," taking advantage of the fact that Mrs. Malfoy wasn't looking, Astrid winked at Draco, letting him understand that his initial insults had been forgiven and forgotten. Draco was grateful, but still astonished by his mother's presence.
"What is going on? Why are you here?" he asked, without understanding what was happening.
"Can't I visit my son?" she asked in turn, without looking at him.
"Yes, but... isn't the location of this house supposed to be secret?" this time, Draco looked at Astrid, somehow sensing that she would tell him the truth. However, the woman looked askance at Narcissa, as if she expected her to be the one to answer.
"There are exceptions," she finally answered, seeing that Narcissa was still staring at the counter, without opening her mouth.
Astrid looked between them and realizing that Draco wanted to talk to his mother alone, she stood up.
"Narcissa, I have things to do, would you excuse me?"
Mrs. Malfoy jumped a little, looking suddenly uncomfortable, but before she could respond, Astrid walked out of the kitchen, grabbing Celine and Harry, who were eavesdropping, as she went, and closed the door.
Draco sat hesitantly next to his mother, who had regained the stiff, cold pose he knew so well. She still did not look at him, and showed a look of polished indifference on her face that was very familiar to him.
"You never told me you knew Astrid," Draco commented, with a certain tone of reproach. He decided to be direct since there was little point in ignoring the uncomfortable situation.
"You didn't need to know," she replied, shrugging her shoulders.
"Have you always known all this about Snape?" Draco asked. "About Astrid, about her children..."
"Let's say that I have been aware of the situation for quite a few years."
OOO
Dumbledore had kept his promise, protecting and hiding the young couple's secret.
The new protection spells made Astrid an almost invisible target for the death eaters, and they both finally felt some safety. As long as they didn't attract attention, they would be safe.
However, her anonymity was compromised in the most unexpected way.
"Astrid, you need to stay out of the house for several hours," Severus informed her, worried, while reading a letter.
"Why?"
"Lucius Malfoy wants to pay me a visit. It seems very important because I haven't been able to plan our meeting anywhere else."
"Malfoy was your colleague, right?" she remembered. "What do you think it is about?"
"I have no idea, but it is not in my best interest to lose his friendship. His position among the death eaters is very important, and I don't want to risk him becoming my enemy."
"Don't worry about me, I'll go to the library. Let me know when I can return."
Astrid spent the rest of the day studying, and lost track of time. Finally, Severus sent her a message asking her to return by muggle means, so it was already nightfall by the time Astrid managed to get home.
She found Severus in the basement, inside the room he had adapted as a potions laboratory. The magician was totally concentrated in front of a cauldron, stirring a potion.
"Is that what your friend wanted? A potion?" Astrid smiled, looking at the cauldron.
"It's more complicated than that," he replied, cutting one of the ingredients into very thin strips.
"Can you tell me?" she asked cautiously.
Severus waved his wand, so that the spoon continued stirring on its own.
"Lucius wanted to ask for a personal favor. He has come with his wife Narcissa, and they have both been very insistent. I couldn't refuse."
"What kind of favor?" Astrid looked at him strangely.
"They want me to prepare a fertility potion for them."
Astrid opened her eyes, surprised.
"That's not what I expected."
"Lucius and Narcissa have been married for several years, and they cannot have children. They are starting to get worried."
"Are there no healers specialized in that?"
"They are, and they prescribed them several potions. They have already tried them without success, and Lucius thinks they may be poorly made. That's why they have come to me."
"I understand," Astrid stroked her belly. "I'm glad you are helping them. I can imagine they are distraught."
"They didn't take no for an answer. I was afraid they would never leave."
"As you have said, it is not in your best interest to lose their friendship. And if you get them to have a baby, they will thank you forever," Astrid looked at the potion. "Is it very difficult to manufacture?"
"Yes, it is a very long and complicated process. It will take several days, and I may have to adapt it to them."
"I can help you with something?"
"Could you make dinner? I have forgotten to eat."
Astrid smiled and kissed him on the cheek.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of you."
Severus passed the next few days locked in the basement. He had promised to deliver the potion, but it required a lot of patience and careful preparation that left no room for mistakes.
However, Narcissa didn't seem willing to wait that long. Her owls arrived daily, inquiring about the status of the potion and demanding answers.
Severus tried to calm her down and keep her away from the house, but the witch proved to be more impatient than they had anticipated.
One day, Narcissa came again, demanding to see the progress of the potion, and Severus was forced to take her to the basement while Astrid remained hidden in the bedroom. When Narcissa was finally satisfied, Severus managed to drag her to the door and said goodbye to her. It took him a few minutes to make sure there was no danger before rescuing Astrid from her confinement.
Shortly after, they both left the house because Astrid had to go to her internship at the hospital. It was then that they realized that Narcissa was not satisfied and was returning with more questions.
The three of them stared, not knowing how to react. It was clear that the witch had seen them leave the house, hand in hand, and now her eyes were on Astrid, studying her thoroughly.
Narcissa realized three things: Astrid was poor, she was pregnant, and she was a muggle.
The witch screamed and prepared to leave, even though Severus tried to stop her.
Narcissa insulted him, called him a traitor, and assured him that everyone would find out he was associated with a muggle. She had never behaved that way, but at that moment she didn't mind losing her temper. In fact, she was so angry and offended that she didn't realize she had stopped in the middle of the road, and only stopped when she heard the honk of a car coming toward her...
OOO
Draco looked at his mother, almost without blinking.
"But do the other death eaters know?"
"Some are aware of Astrid's existence. After all, it would be very strange not to know anything about other people's private lives," Narcissa responded.
"And do they know that Astrid is–?" Draco couldn't finish the question, because the kitchen door opened and Katherine, the eldest of the Snapes, entered through it. She was still wearing her traveling cloak, a sign that she had just arrived home. The girl looked at Narcissa and smiled.
"Aunt Cissi! What a surprise!" she exclaimed, running to hug her.
Draco didn't know if he was more surprised that she called his mother "Aunt Cissi " or that she hugged her back with sincere, smiling joy.
"How long have you been here?" Katherine asked.
"Not much," Narcissa replied. "I didn't know you were coming."
"It's Sunday, today it's family dinner. Ivan and Adrien have also come," the young woman explained. Narcissa was looking her up and down, as if evaluating her.
"I see you are resplendent," she commented. "And a little fatter, are you pregnant?"
"How do you tell me that?" Katherine protested, smiling, although Draco thought it was a frozen smile. "I just eat well."
"It's just intuition," Narcissa then looked towards the door and noticed Ivan. "Are you going to just stand there?" she asked, smiling. Ivan simply laughed, went to her and gave her a big hug. "Enough already! You're going to break my rib," she protested, although her anger was fake.
"But I do it out of love," Ivan kissed her on the cheek and Narcissa ruffled his hair, as a joke. "We already thought they had kidnapped you, Aunt Cissi, you had forgotten about us."
"I've been very busy lately," the woman excused herself.
Draco looked at everything in amazement, as if he were dreaming, but he couldn't help but feel a pang of envy. He saw his mother laugh and hug those two, whom she was supposed to despise for being half-blood and alien to her family, and he felt... he felt jealous.
He couldn't remember the last time he had had that complicity with Narcissa, and he was her only child. It had been years since she had hugged him like that, nor had she shown him that kind of affection, as she did with Katherine, nor had she joked with him, like with Ivan. Draco only remembered his mother addressing him with stiffness and coldness, in a very different way from what he saw at that moment.
He couldn't stand this situation anymore, so he got up and left the room, without anyone trying to stop him, and he thought bitterly that surely, they wouldn't notice his absence or miss him. He also wondered if his mother had really come to see him, or if her visit was because she missed Snape's children.
Draco followed the sound of the other voices and reached the living room, whose large windows opened onto the garden. There, Adrien was talking to Harry about the auror academy tests, while in the corner, Celine and Snape sat side by side, discussing the contents of a spell book. Celine asked curiously, and he responded with rare patience, absent of the biting tone and veiled insults he used at Hogwarts for his students.
That led him to think that even his potions professor might be a better father than his own, and that made Draco even more somber.
His thoughts were interrupted by Astrid, who entered the room, very animated and smiling, and handed Snape a small vial filled with a bright white liquid.
"Here it is."
"You can still take more," he offered, looking at the jar.
"It's not necessary, I already have enough."
"What's that?" asked Harry, who had also been paying attention to the conversation.
"Unicorn blood," the woman replied, making Draco and Harry look at her in alarm. "Blood of a live unicorn," she hastened to say, seeing their expressions.
"And how is that?" Draco asked, not understanding.
"Have you ever had a blood test?" Astrid asked, and Draco shook his head. "We muggles usually do it. We prick a person in the arm and with a very thin tube we draw a certain amount of blood. It's not dangerous," she clarified, watching Draco's expression. "It also works with animals, so it occurred to us that maybe this way we could get unicorn blood without having to kill the animal. Right now, the unicorn from which this blood comes is perfectly healthy, running around wherever it lives."
The kids looked at her in amazement, because despite it being a great idea, no one had ever thought of doing anything like it. Only a muggle could think of taking blood samples from a unicorn.
Celine and Adrien were not so surprised, since they did know all that, just as they knew that Ivan was the one who had just brought the blood sample.
"What do you want it for?" Harry asked.
"To improve the potion. There is still a lot to prove, but with this type of blood I think we will achieve wonders," she gave a knowing look to Snape, who said nothing, but seemed pleased. Again, there seemed to be some kind of private communication between the two of them.
Draco didn't know what they were talking about, and he felt out of place again, so he decided to leave there. He went out through the glass window and walked away through the garden until he was facing the forest. He wanted to be alone to think, but that was making him even more depressed. The image of his mother returned to his mind, hugging Kate and Ivan.
"The forest, think of the forest, " he said to himself, trying to stay calm.
Snape had created that forest. He remembered that he had done it to protect his children, because he cared about them. Draco tried to remember something like that from his parents.
Yes, it was true that they had granted him all his whims, they had given him the best education and they were always willing to speak well of him... but there were never gestures of affection or satisfaction, there was never trust, nor complicity.
Even when his mother had come to beg Snape to intercede for him with Voldemort, she had done so not because she was worried that something would happen to her son, but because she feared that the only Malfoy heir would disappear. Surely, if he had more siblings, she wouldn't have put on this whole circus of tears.
And his father...his father was even worse, since he acted like he avoided getting close to him. Draco knew that Lucius cared about him, and loved him in his own way, but he always had an air of guilt when he felt like they were interacting too much.
Draco tried, he really tried to remember a moment spent with his parents that he could remember fondly, but he couldn't. Everything his parents had done for him had been to ensure the future of the Malfoy name, nothing more.
The most curious thing was that Draco had never been aware of this situation and had only realized it when he entered the Snape's house and saw what it really meant to be a family. He had never realized how alone he was, until that moment, when he had seen what it meant to be accompanied.
The sound of footsteps behind him brought him out of that spiral of bitterness, and Draco tried to calm himself so that what was happening to him would not be noticed.
He listened more carefully and guessed from the sound of the footsteps that it was Celine coming towards him, and perhaps that was why he tried even harder to hide his feelings.
"Have you finished with your private lessons?" he asked, before she reached his side, to show that he knew who she was.
"I just had a little question," Celine looked at Draco, taking in his posture and serious expression, and decided to get to the point. "What a surprise, your mother's visit," she commented.
"Indeed," he murmured, looking at the ground. He had his hands in his pockets to hide the fact that they were shaking.
"Are you ok?" Celine asked softly.
"Why do you ask?"
"Because your expression has changed since you talked to her. You don't seem very happy."
It took Draco a long time to answer.
"It seems that this is the world upside down, and that she has a dual personality," he finally said. "Your siblings have arrived and... her face has changed; she was a different person. It seemed like they were her children and I was the stranger. It's like she's been with you half her life."
"Well, I've always seen her around here," Celine confessed. "Your mother is our godmother. Practically, she has been the one who has raised us, only in this way could my mother continue studying and working."
Draco felt hurt again, since his mother had never taken care of him personally but had instead placed him in the care of a nanny.
"My mother is much closer to you than she has been to me in my entire life," Draco's words were brimming with bitterness. Celine looked at him surprised.
She had always seen Narcissa as a loving and cheerful woman, prone to laughter and playing pranks on them. She had never seen her angry and cold, and it was very difficult for her to understand that Draco was talking about the same person.
"Don't worry, it's probably a bad period," she said, trying to console him.
"A bad time that has lasted seventeen years now," he muttered. "I tell you that my mother does not consider me her son. And if not, look how your mother behaves with you, and also... also your father. Mine have never been..."
"How normal parents are supposed to be."
Celine didn't know what to say to him, because she was very confused, but she felt so sorry for him that she hugged Draco, to give him moral support.
He was grateful, since it had been a long, long time since anyone had made a spontaneous gesture toward him, and he returned the hug, clinging to her, as he had never done with anyone before.
OOO
When Narcissa opened her eyes, she found some greenish eyes staring at her in the middle of a face full of freckles. She tried to speak, but discovered that she had something stuck in her mouth and throat that was not allowing her to breathe normally.
"You have a respirator," it was Astrid who spoke. "Don't worry, I'll take it off right now," the doctor held the tube and told Narcissa to cough.
Narcissa obeyed and was quite relieved when the respirator left her mouth. She then looked around and saw that she was in a room painted white, surrounded by strange devices that made noise. A thin tube was stuck in one arm, the other was in a cast and to make matters worse, they had taken off her clothes and put a horrible nightgown on her.
"Where I am?" she tried to ask, but her voice was barely coming out.
"In a muggle hospital. We couldn't take you to St. Mungo's because Severus said we could jeopardize your reputation," Narcissa looked disoriented and scared, and Astrid sat down in a chair next to her. "You had an accident, a car hit you," she explained. "Apparently your magic helped you a lot, but you still broke a couple of bones. We've already fixed it, so you have nothing to worry about."
"When can I get out of here?"
"As soon as you are discharged. It all depends on the paperwork," Astrid did not add that this could take longer than necessary, because Severus wanted to keep an eye on her.
At that moment, nurse Meg opened the door.
"Astrid, where have you been? Dr. Gordon is looking for you to make daily rounds."
Astrid gave Narcissa an apologetic look and ran out of the room, leaving her alone.
The witch began to curse Astrid, humiliated at having been treated like a muggle and furious at having to be there, without imagining that Astrid had had to ask for many favors to get that room for her alone, nor that the student had gotten a good reprimand from her professor for having neglected the other patients to take care of her.
No, Narcissa didn't know, and as the hours went by, she became more nervous.
She was afraid of the room, so white and austere, and she didn't dare move because she didn't know what could happen if she touched one of those strange devices that kept making noise. She only dared to remove the dropper because the presence of the needle hurt her, and even then, she cowered in fear, waiting for an alarm to sound, indicating that she had done something she shouldn't have.
She didn't know what the television was for, and she didn't know how to use the radio, so boredom was the next feeling she experienced. When she got tired of lying down, she looked for her wand, more than willing to take off the cast and make decent clothes appear to escape from there, but she couldn't find it anywhere.
That made her even more nervous, and her mood could only worsen when they brought her the tray of food, which she found absolutely disgusting and tasteless.
It was already afternoon when Astrid stopped by to visit her.
The woman didn't say anything, but simply checked the data on the devices with a somber expression. She was devastated, since minutes before she had seen her first patient, a nine-year-old boy, die, and the only thing she wanted to do was lock herself up somewhere to cry quietly.
At that moment, she didn't care that Narcissa could be vitally important to her future, and she was about to leave the room, as quietly as she had arrived, but Narcissa's voice stopped her.
"Please don't go," she begged.
Astrid could have left. She didn't owe anything to the woman who hours before had insulted her and her husband. However, she stayed, sitting in the chair.
"What happen?" she asked without encouragement.
Narcissa was embarrassed to admit that she was afraid of being alone in the room, so she tried to appear interested in her surroundings.
"What are all these things?"
Astrid explained to her without much enthusiasm what the machines were for, but without being able to get the image of the dead child out of her head, the sound of the beep that indicated that his heart had stopped beating, her helplessness when she realized that she couldn't do anything, her anguished and pleading look at the veteran doctors, at the nurses, at the green line that had remained motionless...
Her sadness was so evident that even Narcissa, always so focused on herself, realized that something was happening and asked her if something was wrong.
"Have you ever seen someone die?" Astrid asked, about to collapse.
Added to the images of the child were those of her own dying mother, bleeding under her childish hands... and the same helplessness, the same feeling of guilt.
"Yes, to my father," Narcissa answered, a little somber.
"And were you able to sleep afterwards?"
"At first it was difficult, but then you accept that things happen because they have to happen, and that you have done everything you could..." Narcissa's voice was lost.
The blonde was surprised to see that Astrid had managed to reach her, she had managed to get her to speak sincerely, like she had never done with anyone. She looked at the muggle, trying to explain why she had felt the need to be honest with her. Could it be some trick of Snape's? Would there be veritaserum in the food?
Astrid closed her eyes and took a deep breath, and when she opened them again, she seemed to have regained some of her former poise, which greatly surprised Narcissa. She had always thought that muggles were weak and she hadn't expected that new gleam of seriousness and intelligence in the other woman's eyes.
"I suppose... you remember what happened before the accident," Astrid probed, ready to get to the point. Narcissa's nose wrinkled as she imagined what the woman expected of her.
"Yes, I remember," she said dryly.
"Do you think that...? Would it be possible...?"
"You want me to keep quiet to protect you and your bastard," Narcissa understood, glaring at Astrid's belly.
With the robe it wasn't as noticeable, but Narcissa remembered perfectly the bulging shape her belly had under the muggle clothes. It wasn't fair, why did that dirty muggle have what she was having such a hard time achieving?
"They're not bastards," Astrid protested, hugging herself.
"You don't think I'm going to commit to a deal like that, don't you?" Narcissa asked, ignoring her words, and regaining her arrogant rich girl pose. "Please! Your union is an abomination, you are not of the same class."
"That is not true!" Astrid replied, offended. "Money is nonsense, in a few years I will earn more than him."
"It's not about the money," Narcissa replied, speaking as if Astrid were a child. "He's a death eater, and you're just a muggle. You will never be able to live up to him, no matter how much money you have," Astrid narrowed her eyes, very offended, and Narcissa laughed at her. "Won't you be surprised? Come on, muggle, if it were an issue of being rich or poor, this wouldn't be such a complicated matter. Your lack of magic cannot be solved with anything, not even money. And your bastard will be a mudblood who must never be born. Forget about me supporting this madness, I'm not going to waste my time on such nonsense," Narcissa ruled.
Astrid's expression was impenetrable, but not her eyes, which bored into the witch, hurt by her words. However, the woman was very proud, and knew how to maintain her dignity.
"Very well then, we have nothing more to talk about," she declared, standing up. She was not willing to beg for Narcissa's collaboration. "Have a good day," she left the room very dignified, leaving Narcissa alone.
The next day, Severus showed up to see Narcissa.
The witch had been alone all day, with the exception of the nurses who had come to look at her cast and bring her food, since Astrid had not stopped by again.
Narcissa was bored, angry, irritated and desperate to get out of there, and she took out her bad mood on Severus as soon as she saw him. She spent a long time repeating some of the insults she had shouted in the street. Severus endured all this without raising an eyebrow, until Narcissa finally finished her angry speech.
"...and don't you dare try to convince me to keep quiet," she snapped. "She already tried it and I already told her I wasn't going to do it."
"I already know what you've done, and I'm not going to insist or beg you," Severus replied coldly. Narcissa looked at him triumphantly. "But I'll have to erase your memory. It would be... risky for you to retain the memory of everything you know."
Narcissa was so shocked and outraged by his shamelessness and utter lack of honor that for a moment she didn't know what to say. But those seconds of silence helped her think and realize that, despite his coldness, Severus was nervous.
"So, are you going to go ahead with all this?"
"I have no reason not to do it. Don't you think that I am going to change my life because it doesn't seem right to you?" he asked, watching the woman's expression of disbelief.
"By Merlin, Severus, have you lost your mind? Do you know what they will do to you as soon as they find out that you have a muggle lover?"
"She is not my lover," he hissed, angrily.
Narcissa's eyes widened, understanding what he meant.
"You wouldn't dare...? It is illegal! Wizards and muggles should not marry!" she exclaimed. "They will kill you as a traitor, and her too. And your child will never see the light of the sun."
"You've said enough," he gripped his wand tightly, and approached the bed. "I will erase your memory and return you to your home. I'll tell Lucius that you've been at a spa, relaxing. You'll be lucky nothing else happens to you."
Narcissa looked at him terrified, feeling helpless for the first time.
"Wait! What about the potion? What will happen with–?"
"Do you really think I care about your lack of offspring? After you threaten my wife and children? You must have a lot of courage or very little shame to expect me to continue helping you," Severus looked at her with hatred, and without a hint of compassion.
"Please do not do it. I won't say anything," she pleaded, increasingly frightened. "I will keep your secret."
Severus let out a cold laugh, pointing his wand at her.
"And you expect me to believe it? Do you think I'm going to leave my family's safety in your hands?"
"I'll do anything, please," Narcissa looked terrified at Severus and his wand. "I will help you; I can make your union legitimate."
Severus' hand froze in midair.
"What do you mean?" he asked, without lowering his wand.
"I can make everyone think your muggle is a squib," tears fell down Narcissa's face. She trembled with fear, and her hands held tightly to the edge of the sheet.
"That is not possible."
"Yes, it is. It's actually very easy, you just have to share your magic with her."
Severus was frowning at her. Little by little, he lowered his arm, still holding the wand.
"How do you know about that method?"
"My sister Andromeda tried it with her husband's father. She wanted to trick my family so that they wouldn't know that he is a mood–"
"But they discovered it, didn't they? Why do you think it will work for us?"
"Because we will not make the same mistakes. We'll make a family tree, and I'll filter out the relevant stories and anecdotes. Everyone will believe it."
Severus looked at her thoughtfully, evaluating her words. He had never thought about passing Astrid off as a squib.
"But that would mean making her existence public."
"It's the safest thing," Narcissa insisted. "Sooner or later, someone else will discover you, just as I have. You can't erase everyone's memory. And you know very well that the other death eaters are watching you. Everyone suspects you, Severus."
"You're adding weight to your lies, Narcissa."
"Do you think I'm lying?" she wiped her face with trembling hands. "Precisely, it is your excess of secrecy that exposes you. You hide her so hard that many wonder what you are really hiding. Lucius still trusts you because he thinks you're his friend, but even he finds it very strange that your house is protected by the Fidelio Charm."
"You talk nothing but nonsense."
"Your obsession with hiding that muggle is your weakness," she snapped. "Let others see her, and they will lose interest."
Severus said nothing, thinking about what he should do. Despite his cold, impenetrable mask, Narcissa could see him opening and closing his hands restlessly.
"You love her, don't you?"
"Does it matter?" he asked, squeezing his hands tightly.
"It's the only reason why you would do something so stupid," she snapped. But he had frowned, angry. "If you love her, think about what is best in the long term. Somehow you will have to explain the existence of your child," she reminded him.
Severus pursed his lips, but he had to admit that Narcissa was right. He couldn't make Astrid and the babies disappear forever. Reluctantly, he put the wand back in his pocket.
"And what will you ask for in exchange for helping us" Snape drawled, preparing for the worst.
Narcissa looked at him surprised, but quickly controlled her relief. She wasn't stupid, and she knew she couldn't push her luck. Severus' trust was hanging by a thread, and she couldn't risk breaking it.
"I want you to finish the potion," she whispered. "This treatment... is very important."
"I will do it once Astrid is safe," he said, at her anguished look. "As you understand, I will not be able to trust you until this matter is resolved."
"That could take years," tears were falling down Narcissa's face again.
"All the more reason to work hard on your alibi," Severus smiled coldly. "Cheer up. Think of the joy you will feel holding the heir of House Malfoy in your arms."
Narcissa wiped her face angrily but hung her head in resignation.
"All right. I will do everything in my power."
Severus approached the bed very slowly, and reached out his hand towards Narcissa. She looked at him surprised but shook it.
"It better be that way. If you think of betraying us, I will kill you," Severus' threat sounded clear, despite his hissing words .
Narcissa placed a hand on her belly.
"Believe it or not, my life is not the most important thing, Snape."
OOO
Harry didn't know what to do. Snape and Astrid had locked themselves in their laboratory to experiment with the new potion, and Narcissa had deigned to leave the kitchen to talk to Adrien.
Harry felt uncomfortable with Narcissa Malfoy's presence in the house. No matter what anyone said, he didn't trust the woman. He had also been struck by how she and her son avoided each other. In fact, it had been almost an hour since Draco showed any signs of life, without her seeming worried.
Trying to evade the situation, Harry left the house, almost bumping into Ivan and Kate, who were deep in conversation in a low voice.
"When are you going to tell them?" he heard Ivan ask.
"That's my business," she replied. "I don't think it's the right time."
"For you it never is. If you keep putting it off, they will notice, and then it will be worse."
"Can you stop bothering me? I have enough with... Hello, Harry!" Kate interrupted herself, looking at the newcomer.
Ivan turned like a spring, looking at him with a frown. Harry felt suddenly intimidated as he found himself staring at those two pairs of dark, piercing eyes. Again, instinct was screaming at him to take out his wand and be on guard. But Ivan's grimace was instantly replaced by a broad, welcoming smile.
"How are you?" he asked him affably. "I see you survived the training."
Harry chuckled, not knowing how to answer.
"I don't envy you at all," Kate said. "I think I still have consequences from the duels with my father."
"Really?" Harry asked. The Snape siblings exchanged glances, smiling mischievously.
"This is from a Incendio that I couldn't stop," Kate raised the bottom of her tunic, revealing a burn mark on the calf of her leg.
"And I still have a laceration on my ribs that I can't heal," Ivan said, touching his side.
"Broken eardrum," she pointed to her left ear.
"That's nothing, the cornea of this eye is damaged," Ivan pointed to his right eye. Harry looked at them alternately, alarmed by what he was hearing, and surprised by the naturalness with which they spoke about it. "And don't get me started on the fear of small, dark places," Ivan added. Kate glanced at him, then looked at Harry. The corners of her lips trembled, as if she were holding back laughter.
"Has he seriously done all that to you?" Harry dared to ask. He had experienced firsthand how violent a duel against Snape could be, but hurting his own children like that...
Then, Ivan and Kate widened their smiles, and began to laugh. Harry realized that they were making fun of him.
"Sorry, it was too tempting," Kate apologized, still laughing. "This idiot fell off his broom when he was trying to catch a dragon," she explained, pointing to her brother.
"And she left an explosive potion unattended," Ivan replied, looking at her sarcastically.
"It was only two minutes," she protested, as if it were the hundredth time she had heard that.
But Ivan stretched to his full height, frowned, and narrowed his eyes, managing to exactly replicate Snape's grimace of displeasure.
"Two minutes is more than enough to ruin the best of potions, Katherine," he hissed, drawling in a perfect parody of his father's voice. Harry's skin crawled when he heard his voice. But Kate made a fist and punched her brother in a friendly way in the side. "You don't need to act like that," Ivan protested.
"You deserve it, for being an idiot," she replied. Then she looked at Harry again. "So what? are you learning something?"
"To get up off the ground," Harry replied, jokingly. They laughed at that.
"Getting up is the hardest thing," Ivan conceded. "The next step is not to fall every time he curses you."
"I suppose there's something else," Kate insisted. Harry caught the subtle serious tone behind her question.
"There is a spell... I don't know if it is a spell. I've seen him do it lately, but I don't know how he does it," Harry didn't know how to explain it. "He always attacks me from the front, but the spell hits me from behind."
"Oh, the boomerang spell," Ivan smiled.
"Don't call it that, it's not a boomerang at all," Kate scolded. "It's a reverse summoning spell," she explained, turning to Harry. "It's not that difficult, once you know the trick," the young woman took out her wand and approached Harry. "Normally, when you cast a spell, the energy flows out of the wand. With a reverse summoning spell, you must make the energy come to you."
"It's easier if you think of an Accio," Ivan pointed out. "It's the same kind of concept."
"Only you don't want to attract objects, but rather the spell you want to summon," Kate looked around. "Notice the ivy covering the wall of the house. If you wanted to destroy it, what would you do?"
"I would send a Diffindo," Harry responded.
"But you could damage the wall."
"Don't even think about damaging the wall, Potter," Ivan imitated his father's voice again, and this time, Harry laughed. Kate looked at her brother with a tired grimace.
"However, with the reverse summoning spell you would perform the spell from the wall outwards, directly cutting the roots of the plants," she continued explaining. "When you cast the spell, try to pull towards yourself with your wrist and shoulder, like this," she indicated, making the movement. Harry imitated her, finding that it was just the opposite of what he would normally do when performing the spell.
"Diffindo!" he exclaimed, but it did not achieve the effect he desired. The spell hit the wall, making a deep gash.
"No, no, you have to pull towards you, don't push," Kate corrected him, without seeming angry. "Look, like this. Diffindo," but Kate's spell came out with more force than expected, pushing the wall from inside the house, and completely destroying it. The impact of the spell hit them as well, causing them to stumble.
"Kate! What are you doing?" Ivan asked, alarmed. But she didn't seem to listen to him. She stumbled back a few steps, stumbled, and doubled over, retching violently. "Kate? Kate! What's the matter?"
"What happened?" Adrien and Narcissa left the room worried. Harry turned and saw that, in the distance, Celine and Draco were running, alerted by the noise.
Kate was still hunched over, unable to get up. Suddenly, she began to vomit.
"For Merlin's sake," Narcissa approached her, kneeling next to her. She waited patiently for Kate to finish vomiting and hurried to clean her face and clothes. "Don't worry, we won't let them see you like this."
"What's going on?" Snape and Astrid were also running, him with his wand in his hand, ready for anything, and Astrid right behind him, with one hand raised. Her wedding ring shone, enveloping her in a blue halo. When they saw Kate, they approached her, Astrid crouching next to her, and Snape looking around, assessing the damage and the range of the spell.
"Kate, calm down, are you okay?" Astrid asked her. Her voice sounded concerned, but she was observing her daughter with a professional eye, noting her temperature, her pulse, and the size of her pupils. "What happened?"
"She was just doing a little spell," Ivan explained. "Nothing out of the ordinary."
Snape didn't say anything, and just looked worriedly at his daughter, who was breathing heavily. Astrid kept trying to calm her down.
"It's okay, don't worry about the wall," she said in a calm voice. "Are you ok?"
Kate looked around, overwhelmed, but her eyes focused on her parents. She licked her lips nervously before deciding to speak.
"Dad... mom... I'm pregnant."
