"Hadrian what on earth are you doing?!"
"What does it look like I'm doing?"
"You look like your cleaning, but that doesn't make any sense cause we have the house elves for that. House elves who just came and told me that you are doing their job."
"Well, no offense to them, but when the same people clean the same space over and over again they tend to become neglectful of certain aspects. I am simply fixing these errors."
"Come now get up from there." He tries to pull me up from the ground where I am scrubbing the lower wall.
"Let go of me! I have to get these things done before I can't anymore. I've wasted enough time as it is. We have less than three months left and by then I'll be too big to do it!"
"You're already too big to be doing this. What if you or the babies get hurt. It can't be safe to use cleaner."
"Did you just call me fat?!"
"What?! Of course not I just said--"
"And I'll have you know I would never put our children in danger for the simple matter of cleaning. I've made the elves put plenty of protections on me in case I so much as stumble wrong, and I'm using soap, not chemicals. I'm not stupid Tom, just leave me alone."
---Tom's POV---
"Narcissa, you have to talk some sense into him please."
"Why? What's wrong?"
"He's been at it all week, cleaning everything! He started in the room we'll put the nursery and he won't stop! I think he's done the entire floor and is only now moving on to the main level. I've tried to stop him but because I said the first time I saw it he was getting too big to be doing that, every time I try he bursts into tears and yells at me for calling him fat!"
Instead of being sympathetic, the healer begins to laugh at my situation. Not just little chuckles, but full belly laughs. I huff in frustration as she tries to pull herself together.
"Tom, you shouldn't worry so much. This is perfectly normal, it's called nesting, and it's just him trying to make sure everything is ready for their arrival. Just make sure there is an elf or yourself watching him at all times so he can't hurt himself, and everything will be fine. Also, it wouldn't hurt to rub his back or his feet every once in a while. He's carrying twins, but he's too stubborn on a normal day to say he's in pain. If he had any concern the children weren't okay he would say something, but if not he would just live through it."
---
"Hadrian, may I speak to you?"
"I'm not in the mood to argue Tom. I am under a lot of stress trying to make sure this house is clean."
"I know I know, I'm not here to argue, I'm here to apologize."
"You are?"
"Yes. Come sit?"
He complies, taking a seat next to me and placing a hand firmly on my stomach.
"I understand that this needs to be done, and I'm sorry for trying to stop you. And I definitely don't think you're fat, I think that you are absolutely beautiful right now, just as much as always. The thing is that I can be overprotective and worry too much sometimes, but I'm just trying to keep you guys safe."
"I know. I'm sorry I keep getting mad at you."
"It's alright. I do think I have a compromise. I promise not to stop you if you promise to call myself or a houself to watch you as you clean, not because I don't trust you, but because I still worry that something will happen and you won't be able to get someone in time."
He was about to argue but thankfully didn't.
"Fine. If it will make you feel better."
"It will. Now, what is this Narcissa tells me about you potentially hiding bad backaches from me?"
He blushes brightly.
"How did she--"
"She's a mother too Kitten. She knows these things. Here, turn around and let me rub your back. You'll feel better."
He does so reluctantly, but is soon a moaning puddle in my hands. Narcissa was right, he must have needed this more than he let on.
---Hadrian's POV---
"Mmm, now that, is delicious."
"Hey! Hands off mister! Those are for the party."
"What can I say, Love? Your cooking is simply irresistible even if I don't like that you are up and moving around so much." He gives me a pointed look to which I roll my eyes.
"Tom, you know she said it's good for me to move around before the babies are born, and I will continue to do so until she tells me otherwise."
"Still, we're getting awfully close to your due date. Besides, I feel like this is pushing things a bit." He gestures to all of the food laid out on the counters causing me to blush at the lack of space.
"We have a lot of guests coming over for Christmas."
"I think the elves can handle things from here. Come on, I'll rub your back and feet, then you can take a nap before the guests arrive."
The large amount of pain in my back and feet both prevents me from arguing, and I find myself nodding off to a soothing foot rub.
---
"Hadrian look at you! You look amazing!" Hermione calls to me as she and her parents arrive, one of the few that enter through the front door instead of the floo.
"Thank you. You look pretty good yourself. I know someone who won't be able to keep their eyes off you tonight."
She blushes and swats my arm playfully.
"How are the babies?"
"They're doing really well. I just wish they'd be here already. I can barely find a comfortable position to sleep anymore, although Tom got me a body pillow that has helped a lot."
"That's good."
"Yes Hermione mentioned that you were pregnant, though I must admit I didn't believe her at the time. I thought it was just a joke. I think it's wonderful you're able to have children together despite the fact your both men. Congratulations."
"Thank you Mrs. Granger."
"Hermione!" Draco calls as he sweeps her into a hug.
"Hi Draco." She grins.
"Did you hear? The twins finally asked Blaise out just now. They caught him under the mistletoe!"
"What? Really?" I ask with excitement.
"I thought I told the house elves no mistletoe." Tom wonders aloud.
"I overruled you as I count for four votes, you count for one, and these two each count for one making it six against one."
"Where do you get that math from?!"
"From the fact that I'm the one carrying your children for nine months along with all the symptoms that come with it."
"But I'll never win another argument for the rest of our lives that way!"
The Grangers laugh at his misfortune.
"That's the way its meant to be mate. One kid is all it takes." Mr. Granger tells him before they walk further into the house.
"Come on. Almost everyone is here now and I'm starving."
---
"Just a little further, no peaking." Tom says as he guides me blindly through the hallway.
I have my tail out holding his waist for added support. He stops us, opens a door, then removes the blindfold spell. I blink a few times to clear my vision, but it doesn't matter much as it soon clouds with tears.
"Oh Tom! It's perfect!"
In front of me is the nursery, all painted and done up. The walls are the forest like we had talked about months ago with the Weasley twins, animals moving through it like all Wizarding paintings, and fireflies give off a soft glow. Up above is the perfect reflection of the night sky made to look like there are no walls or roof.
In one corner, there is a large Hogwarts castle jungle gym for them to play on when they are older. There is a bookshelf next to a comfortable looking rocking chair, all done in browns, blues and greens to match the forest, the carpet having been done long and green like grass. There are two dressers, one for each of the twins, and there is now a second closet, one for a boy, and one for a girl. A changing table sits by the door and not far from that is two cribs, both dark wood and separated just enough for someone to fit in between.
Even the attached bathroom has been baby proofed and made to look like the lake with fish and the giant squid swimming around. The knobs are all shaped like fish and charmed to go soft if anyone slips and hits them.
"Nevil and Luna directed the painter on the forest, Neville knowing the plants, and Luna the animals. Hermione and Draco enchanted the sky to reflect outside but so it wouldn't show clouds or storms. Blaise and the twins and Charlie actually built the castle themselves. Bill put up wards and baby proofed everything. Pansy and Daphne arranged all the furniture."
"And you directed things and told them the things we wanted for it."
"Of course."
"Thank you Tom. I love it. It's gorgeous."
"Anything for you my love."
---
I wake up alone, but as this is a normal occurrence with Tom's position as the Dark Lord, I simply roll over and pluck the note off the nightstand that I know he has left for me.
Had an emergency to take care of. I won't be home for dinner. Send an elf if you need me. I love you.
-Tom
Written in parseltongue. He is paranoid as per usual. The closer we get to my due date, the more protective he becomes.
A sharp kick to my bladder tells me that I will not be falling back to sleep, so I get up and waddle my way to the bathroom. When I'm done, I cast a wandless tempus to reveal it is only 7:30 in the morning. I groan, but decide to call for breakfast.
"Mimsy." No response, "Mimsy? Kipsy? Anyone there?"
The lack of response is unsettling, and I grab my wand from the bedside table, making my way slowly downstairs in hopes I don't run into anyone by the time I make it to the fireplace. I make it there without a problem other than being tired from the increasing difficulty I have been having to move. I throw a handful of floo powder in the fireplace, calling out for Riddle Manor, but I don't go anywhere.
"Well, well, well. Having some difficulty there Mr. Potter?" Dumbledore asks as he walks in the room. "Oh my, well I wasn't expecting that. You must be past your due date with a stomach that size. Now I see why you left with Mr. Malfoy. He must be very excited. Unfortunately for him he won't be there to see the birth of his child."
I reveal my creature form on instinct, making noises in warning that I did not believe myself capable of previously. Ron steps out from his spot further back where I did not notice him at first.
"We won't be able to transport him like this. A portkey won't take someone who's pregnant."
"Not to worry. We will just have to make sure the distraction we provided for Tom and the Death Eaters lasts long enough for the child to be born."
"But that could be days."
"Not if we induce labor. I've picked up a few handy spells in my day."
I growl at him, using one wing and my wand to aim at them, the other wing hovering protectively over my vulnerable belly. He makes the first move, Ronald quickly following his lead. I stay at my place in the fireplace, knowing I am cornered, but at least my back isn't exposed.
Unfortunately, it's two against one and with the pregnancy I am much weaker than usual. They soon overpower me, and Dumbledore sends a final spell that only hits me in the neck, but it's enough as the magic spreads down towards my stomach. I try to use what magic I have left to stop the spell, but it's not enough. There is a sudden sharp pain in my stomach that has me crying out as fluids soak my pants.
"No, no, no! Please just leave me alone!" I beg as I clutch my stomach.
That is when the first contraction hits, and all I can do is sit there on my knees in pain. In my distraction, he manages to summon my wand.
"You should have just done as I said and this wouldn't be happening. Would it have been so hard to follow the plan like a good little pawn?"
"What will you do to them?" I ask when the contraction finally passes.
"Well I'll admit it was an unexpected complication. I am in a good mood today, so I think I'll be generous. You will receive no aid in this, however if both you and the child survive the birth, it will be passed off as Ronalds here, and you two will wed."
"What?!" Ron yells.
"Calm down. You need not treat it as your own in private. If you step one toe out of line though Mr. Potter, or should I be saying Mr. Snape? Or even Mr. Malfoy? I can't imagine a pureblood would allow a child to be born out of wedlock. Anyhow, if you step one toe out of line, it will be your child that suffers the consequences."
"No! Please no. I'll do anything!"
"It is too late for that, I'm afraid. I have cut off all access to this house, and only Ronald and I can get in and out of this room. Now, we will be back to check on your progress every so often. For now, Ronald, I believe I saw some delicious looking desserts in the kitchen when I was taking care of the elves. What do you say we go see what there is?" With that, they leave me to labor alone in the sitting room.
---
"Ah!" I gasp as another contraction wracks through my body.
They check on me every hour, or so they say, and it's been about three and a half now. I managed to move myself over to the sofa after they first left, so there's that at least. The contractions are getting faster, about every fifteen minutes or so, but there's nothing I can do but lay here and try to come up with a plan. I've tried the windows already, but of course he wouldn't be that stupid.
I'm hoping that he doesn't find out they're twins and I can hide the weaker of the two here for Tom to find. It's not ideal, but it's better than the alternative.
"Where are you Tom?" I whisper.
Then an idea hits, and I call out to him in my mind.
"Tom?!"
"Hadrian? What's wrong? You never contacted me this way before. "
"Dumbledore's in the house! He did something, I'm in labor and I can't call the elves. He said he took care of them, I don't know what to do!"
"What?! How long?!"
"I've been in labor for about three to four hours now. Whatever you're working on is a distraction. He thinks Draco is the father and wants him occupied."
"Okay, okay. I'm going to figure out a way to get you out of there. How far apart are your contractions?"
"About fifteen to twenty minutes. They can't portkey till the baby is born so he induced me. When they're born, he plans to take them with us and pass them off as Ron's."
"Alright let me know if anything changes, and do everything you can to hold them in."
"Tom, I'm scared."
"I know, Love, but I won't give up until you're all safe. Just hold on."
Though he is clearly reluctant, he pulls his mind away aside from the open door he leaves between us.
---Tom's POV---
"Somebody get me Severus and Remus immediately!" I roar into the hallway of Riddle Manor where Dumbledore's forces are trying to infiltrate.
In the meantime I cover my bases and attempt to floo, aparate, and portkey in, as well as call the elves. Nothing works, and in a fit of rage, I scatter everything on my desk and kick my chair over with aloud yell.
"What's wrong now?" Severus asks in a bored tone as today has been hell but we've held up so far.
Now I know why. They don't want in, they just want a distraction.
"This is a set up. Dumbledore has Hadrian and he's forced him into labor."
"No!"
"Yes! I've tried everything, flooing, aparating everything! I can't get in, and he can't get out."
"There has to be something. Something we are missing."
"We need to get Bill in here. Things like this are his specialty. But it will blow his cover." Remus suggests.
"Then get him in here now!"
"Of course."
He disapears to the floo that only works for those with the Dark Mark or someone with an object holding some of my magic.
"I'm so sorry! He must suspect us. I had no clue. I knew he was looking for your hideout, but even we don't know--" Bill rambles when he arrives.
"Shut up! I don't care what you knew, I care what you know. Can you get me into the Haven?"
"Theoretically yes, but it could take some time. Does he know how they intended to escape despite the locked wards?"
"A portkey."
"Damn, okay so we need to be able to manipulate the exception to get us in rather than them out."
"How do we do that?"
"First thing first, we need to get to Gringotts. They have easy access to everything I need as well as the best resources available. Only problem is they'll charge us to use them since I'm no longer employed there."
"Money isn't an issue, I'll take care of it, just get me in there"
He nods and we floo there right after putting Lucius in charge.
"We need access to any tools he needs, any fees will be taken out of my accounts."
"Mr. Riddle this is not like you, may I ask the reasoning?" Ragnok asks from behind them.
"If you must know, Dumbledore has Hadrian trapped in our home until he gives birth at which point he will aparate them away."
"I see. No charge, come with me quickly."
He leads us back to a large circular scrying room.
"Is this what you needed Mr. Weasley?"
"Yes sir, thank you. May I also get some long distance ward breaking tools?"
"Of course they will be sent immediately and someone will be on standby at all times if you need anything else." With that he leaves the room, and Bill begins to work.
"So first thing is figuring out the type of portkey he is using. It can't be a timed one as that would leave him stuck there unless he wants to remove the wards. We also know that it is not limited by number of people, so that makes it a generic password portkey."
"Is that a good thing?"
"Yes and no. It's easier to direct, but also easier for them to escape."
"Well--"
"Tom shut up and let him work! It's only going to take longer if he is distracted!" Remus yells uncharacteristically.
"I'm sorry. Please, just get us there."
He nods, then gets to work, occasionally calling out orders in Gobbledygook. He actually ends up with two goblins actively helping him crack the wards.
---
I whimper as another contraction hits no more than minutes after the last, and far more intense. The pressure is building and I have a sudden desperate need to push. My head shakes involuntarily, and as embarrassing as it is, I squeeze as tightly as I can in an attempt to keep my baby inside of me where it is safer.
"Tom?"
"I'm here. We're at Gringotts trying to get in, are you alright?"
"Hurry. I can't hold on much longer. Need to push."
"Please, just a little longer Hadrian. Bill is on the case and he's almost done. Some goblins have gathered to help fight him so I can help you. It won't be long."
"How are things coming along? It shouldn't be much longer now right? Oh no. What is this? I hope you know no matter how long you stall, it won't matter. Now get those pants off and spread your legs."
"N-no!"
He waves his wand and my pants disappear, then again and my legs are forcefully spread further than should be possible. I cry out in pain, and the baby drops lower. It takes everything in me to fight against my bodies natural urges.
Then Ron screams, and Dumbledore is forced to investigate.