The Werewolf's Child

Across the Moonlit Sea

Sev pulled out and leaned back against the tiles, letting the water run over him. Remus nestled back against him and sighed.

"My body is going to be much less.....female when all this is over," he said, looking down at himself lazily.

"I don't think that's going to be a problem for me," Sev said. "You're not all that female now, to tell you the truth," and he cupped Remus' soft cock with his hand and gave it a gentle, possessive squeeze. "Just so goddamn sexy all the time. I don't know how you do it."

"I think it's because I like it so much," said Remus, smiling up at him. He reached up to kiss him, but then took a sharp breath in and he closed his eyes. He arched his back and leaned against Sev. He let out that low animal moan again and the bump was a tight hard ball. "Oh shit," he grunted. "It's gripping.....right in my back."

At last he relaxed. He opened his eyes and looked at Sev through the steam with wide worried eyes. Sev saw a tint of blue in his deep brown irises. That was odd. He had never seen that before. He felt the tingle of magic in the air.

"It's time to go, Lupin," he said.

"I know," said Remus. "It is."

********

They woke Amanda and Gavin to tell them good-bye and that it was time for them to leave to have the baby. Aunt Spider found them an old rucksack to pack a few necessities. Sev rushed around and packed some clothes. Toothbrushes and razors. The baby clothes, still in their yellow shopping bag from the baby store. He poured his half finished wolfsbane potion into a mason jar. Aunt Pepper fixed them tea and cauliflower sandwiches to bring along and they all walked down to the beach in the moonlight together to see them off. Remus got in the boat. Sev and Aunt Pepper pushed off. Sev hopped in and started rowing over the silvery moonlit sea. The children and the aunties stood on the shore and waved until they could see them no more.

Sev rowed as if his life depended on it, putting all the energy from the rising panic inside him into rowing the boat as fast as he possibly could. If there had been any doubt in his mind whether Remus was in labor as they were getting ready to go, by the time they were in the boat there was no question. Remus sat on the bottom of the boat, between Sev's knees, and every ten minutes or so he closed his eyes and grabbed Sev's leg and breathed through another contraction. About halfway to the mainland Remus said "Oh," and looked up at Sev.

"I think I peed myself. I'm all wet."

"It's your water breaking," said Sev, who had read all about it in the pamphlets. He rowed faster.

********

Once on shore they apparated to the Forbidden Forest and started walking up the trail to the rise where they had met Firenze months ago. Remus stopped periodically to lean against Sev, closing his eyes and breathing heavily. He seemed to be doing worse. There was a shine of sweat on his pale face, in spite of the cool night and with each contraction he sagged heavily into Sev. Sev helped him along as best he could, kicking himself every minute that they hadn't planned things out more carefully. He had no idea how to find the centaurs, or how to contact them.

The weather was different this far north, chillier. A cool wind was blowing from the east and then it started to rain - a light misty kind of rain. It made the trail slippery and treacherous. Sev walked behind Remus on the steep rocky path to catch him, lest he fell.

They made their way up the trail slowly, painfully, until they came to the spot where they had met Firenze on that cold moonlit night months ago. Now it was rainy and cloudy and the hilltop was utterly deserted. Sev felt the near panic he had felt all night erupting into full blown, actual, uncontrolled panic. There was no one there. He had no idea what to do next.