Title: Echoes
Author name: Cosmic
Author email: bananacosmicgirl@hotmail.com
Category: Slash
Sub Category: Romance
Keywords: harry severus mpreg
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: SS/PS, CoS, PoA, GoF
Summary: “The cries of a young child echoed through the corridors.” Snape
has a daughter but few know the secret behind her existence. Harry
is confused and Hermione decides to step in. Mpreg, HP/SS.
DISCLAIMER: This story is based on characters and situations created
and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited
to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner
Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark
infringement is intended.
Author notes: Warning: This is HP/SS slash and Mpreg. If you don't
like it, don't read it.
Chapter five: Something missing
~~~~~
Ronald Weasley
I knew 'Mione was hiding something from Harry and me. It had something
to do with Snape, I knew that much. Every time she'd look at him,
she'd get this slightly concerned look on her face. She didn't
know that I noticed, but I did.
For a while I thought that she might have developed some sort of
sick crush on the greasy git. When I cornered her and asked her,
she got a good laugh. Still, she wouldn't tell me.
I figured that the only other way to find out what was going on was
to watch Snape just as intently as 'Mione was. I found a few odd
things.
First and foremost, I remembered the rumours about Snape being sick.
Those had been circulating around school for a while, but lately
they'd died down. Either Snape was well again, or it had just been
a rumour to begin with. To justify 'Mione's acting, I decided that
it was the former, though.
I also noticed a bit of a weight-gain. Not much, I guess, but since
I was watching him so closely, I saw it. He seemed to have... filled
out. Since he was getting heavier, I began checking what he was
eating. Thing was, I'd never cared to notice anything about his
eating habits before, so I couldn't really tell if they'd changed.
But he seemed to eat a lot.
Perhaps he'd been cursed with some unknown illness. When you live
in the Wizarding world, anything is possible, after all.
Still, it didn't seem quite right, because he seemed fine most of
the time. Well, as fine as that git can ever be, anyway. Fine is
really not a word to associate with anything Snape.
Then finally, in early May, I found out what Snape - and 'Mione -
had been keeping a secret. Suddenly, all those extra kilos just
fell off him and he was gone from classes for a two days.
A week later, Sandra appeared and everything fell into place. After
all, as I said before - we do live in the Wizarding world.
~~~~~
That night, Hermione told Harry that Sandra could sleep in the boys'
dorm if the others didn't mind.
"
As long as it's just one night and I get to cast a silencing spell
on her if she's too loud, it's fine," Seamus said.
Neville seemed almost scared of the baby. She was related to Snape
after all, the teacher Neville feared more than anything else.
He just nodded his consent. Dean shrugged. "It's fine with
me," he said.
Ron got to be the one who changed Sandra's diapers. He laughed at
the looks on the other boys' faces - the colours raging from green
to white and purple.
"
I think I'm going to be sick," Neville mumbled and disappeared.
Harry held Sandra down gently as she squirmed to be free. She didn't
want a diaper at all. When Ron was done with her, Harry picked
her up and put her pyjamas on. To his surprise, the pyjamas were
a deep red colour, rather than the usual green and silver.
The other boys, including Ron, walked downstairs as Harry went about
with the task of putting Sandra to sleep.
The light weight of the child in his arms felt natural by now. She
was a rather small child, delicate-looking and precious. Her skin
was like porcelain and soft like silk. Her jet-black hair was soft
under his touch.
Like Sev's hair...
The thought came unbidden into his mind and his eyes snapped open.
Where had it come from?
Sandra seemed to notice his startle, because she lifted her tired
head from his shoulder to look at him curiously.
"
It's nothing, sweetie," Harry lied to her.
Why does it feel like I'm missing something here? Why does she feel
so safe in my arms?
Sandra looked at him thoughtfully for a moment before deciding that
she was too tired to care. She lay back down, head on his shoulder.
Harry continued to stroke her back gently.
When the baby had fallen asleep, Harry put her in the crib Hermione
had transfigured and left the room. His mind was filled with questions
though, as he made his way downstairs to join his friends again.
It felt like he was missing something; something important.
~~~~~
Draco Malfoy
I have to admit a grudging respect for Hermione Granger. She found
out two months after I did and she didn't tell the school about
it. The Daily Prophet would have paid her quite a lot of money
for a story like this, I bet. Still, she didn't say a word, not
even to Potter or the Weasel.
Towards the end of Sev's pregnancy, she and I were asked to work
together to keep his secret safe. The work included directing the
attention to something else than Sev's repeated visits to the bathroom
during class (and outside of class, of course) as well as helping
Madame Pomfrey keep an eye on Sev'. He was never a very good patient,
whether it be after a bout with the Cruciatus Curse courtesy of
Voldemort, or to keep the baby inside of him healthy.
Despite the latter, he was very careful to follow Pomfrey's orders
on what he was allowed to eat and do. He loved Sandra before she
was born. After he had come to terms with his raging hormones,
he became more... at peace, I suppose is a good word. Not that
any of the Gryffindorks, except Granger, would notice, but there
it was. Sev' is not someone that anyone could call a happy person.
Yet in the late stages of his pregnancy, as well as in the nine
months since she was born, he has been in a better mood than he
was before it all happened.
I still wonder who the other father is.
In May, it was lucky that Granger and I were there in class with
him.
Sev' was prowling around in the classroom as usual, casting biting
remarks at the Gryffindors. I sniggered from my seat. Sev' can
be downright hilarious in his comments about Longbottom's stupidity.
We were reviewing today; the potions we were making were three
simple ones that everyone but Longbottom could do in their sleep.
I was already finished with my potions, so Gregory Goyle - my partner
for the day - and I were just sitting around, watching the others.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sev' grimace suddenly. I looked
around. No one else seemed to have noticed.
Since Sev' looked fine for the next half hour or so, I didn't ponder
it. But then, I heard him gasp slightly again. I looked over at
him and was shocked to find frightened eyes looking back at me.
Granger caught my gaze next and we managed to communicate without
words. There was still another hour left of class; we had to see
to it that it came to an end without drawing attention to Sev'.
An accident would have to happen to get the class dismissed. Granger
understood and I could see her searching her brain for something
to add to the potion before her to make a smaller explosion. Finally,
she smiled slightly and took a hair from her own head. Swiftly,
she let it fall into the cauldron. I applauded her inwardly for
her actions.
Sev' stood by his desk, which meant that he was almost as far away
as he could be from the cauldron when it began wheezing and bubbling.
It turned an odd shade of blue and then there was a small explosion.
Granger got some of the liquid on her, but other than that, everyone
was fine.
I caught Sev's gaze again and he understood what Granger had done
and why.
"
Who did that?" he bellowed, playing along in our charade.
"
I'm sorry, Professor," Granger said, her voice sounding pathetically
weak. I know she hates doing things wrong, even if they were planned
to be wrong.
Sev' turned to the class. "Class dismissed!" he yelled
at us and turned to Granger, glaring at her. "You'll have to
come with me to the Infirmary."
She nodded meekly. Ron and Harry moved past her. She mumbled something
to them, probably to get them to leave and not worry about her.
I said the same thing to Vincent and Gregory. They took off without
a question.
Now Granger, Sev' and I were left in the room.
"
Let's get you to the Hospital Wing," I said. "'Cause my
assumption is correct, isn't it? You are in labour?"
The frightened look in Sev's eyes returned as he looked at me. "I
believe so."
~~~~~
The night had gone well. Sandra slept through the night, although
she woke up at five thirty in the morning. Harry presented her
with a bottle of warmed milk, which she happily accepted. He lay
down with her on his bed, sleepily watching her. There was something
about her...
At breakfast, Harry was a bit more successful in feeding Sandra than
he had been the previous evening. The house-elves knew by now what
to make for the youngest person at Hogwarts - milk, oatmeal and
a slice of cheese. The milk was in a cup with a lid so that she
could drink by herself without spilling all over.
"
Harry, do you mind returning her to Professor Snape before class?" Hermione
asked, looking distracted. "I forgot one of my books, so I'll
have to go and get it. Can you?"
Harry frowned slightly and then shrugged. "Sure."
He thought Hermione looked a bit too happy about the answer, but
signed it off to the oddness that always seemed to surround him.
"
Dada," Sandra said, holding out a slice of cheese to Harry.
"
No thanks, that's your breakfast, not mine," Harry said.
"
Gaa," Sandra agreed and put the cheese in her mouth. Harry chuckled
at her. She looked proud that she'd managed to get him to laugh.
"
You know," Ron said to him, "For someone being related
to Snape, she's really pretty cute."
Harry laughed.
~~~~~
Remus Lupin
Albus floo-ed us that day in May and said that it was time. Siri
and I hurried to Hogwarts. We had promised to be there when Severus
gave birth, after all. Siri would stay outside, but Severus had
asked me to be his emotional support in there. When he'd first
enquired, I'd been surprised, but I quickly realized that he had
no one else to ask. Albus was going to be there, but his fatherly
figure wasn't what Severus needed.
Albus opened a line between our fireplace and the Infirmary's, to
allow us to get there quicker.
When we arrived, the Hospital Wing seemed to be in an organized sort
of chaos. Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy were both in the room,
on either side of Severus. Dumbledore was speaking to Poppy, who
was running around the room to get everything ready. She was going
to perform a C-section on Severus to get the baby out.
I walked over to the bed where Severus lay. His exterior seemed calm,
but one look in his eyes and I knew that he was anything but.
"
Hello, Severus," I said.
"
Remus," he replied, before he gasped in pain as a contraction
grabbed hold of his body.
Hermione and Draco looked worried. I knew that they had both found
out about Severus' pregnancy, Draco two months before us and Hermione
just a week or so after us. Just like Siri and I, they had been
sworn to secrecy. That was the way Severus wanted it.
I'd visited him three times since I found out that he was going to
have a baby. We'd just been sitting together, sometimes talking
and sometimes not. We realized that what had happened years and
years ago was not something to hate each other for for the rest
of our lives.
He'd told me that he didn't want the Wizarding world to know about
his pregnancy because he didn't want to be laughed at. Male pregnancy
happened perhaps once every other century and they had never been
accepted. He didn't want his child to grow up looked upon as a
freak.
I had accepted his explanation and honoured his wish. I did wish,
though, that he would tell Harry.
Poppy moved Severus to one of the smaller, private rooms. We didn't
want some student with a bruise to come in and see what was happening,
not when we'd managed to keep it secret for so long. She also sent
Hermione and Draco out, although they were permitted to stay in
the Hospital Wing. She understood that they wouldn't be able to
concentrate in class as it was.
She made Severus get up and walk.
"
It will be another hour or so before I'm ready to perform the C-section," she
said. "You weren't supposed to go into labour today!"
There was a shower stall where Severus could take a shower too. Apparently,
warm water could relieve some of the pain. I was ordered to stay
close while he showered, in case something unexpected happened.
"
I don't need a babysitter," Severus sneered at me, the pain
making his mood even worse than usual.
"
Not yet," I teased, unable to resist.
The contractions came closer and closer together and Poppy suddenly
realized that this labour was going about much faster than a normal
one. Unless she wanted the baby to break it's own neck trying to
press out through a birthing canal that didn't exist, she would
have to perform the C-section sooner than expected.
Severus lay on the bed, his face contorted in pain as another heavy
contraction wracked his body. When it released its hold on him,
he sank back into the pillow, his face sweaty and pale. I took
a wet cloth from the table beside the bed and dabbed his forehead
with it.
Poppy got all her things together and was finally ready to start.
I stood next to Severus. He grabbed hold of my hand as yet another
contraction grabbed him and he screamed. Even when dealing with
the after effects of the Cruciatus Curse, I couldn't remember hearing
him scream like that.
Poppy gave him pain medication and then placed a big green sheet
that covered all of his body except his head and his huge stomach.
Then she began cutting. I couldn't watch. I smelled the blood all
over, the werewolf in me making itself known, and I found myself
wondering if I should really have agreed to this. But then Severus
tightened his grip around my hand to the point where I thought
my bones would break and I knew that it had been the right decision.
The C-section was over quickly and suddenly, we all heard the amazing
sound of a newborn baby's cries.
"
Congratulations," she said to Severus, "You have a girl."
