Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Harry Potter! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every Saturday!
—————————————————————
"Won't you come in, Mother?" Severus asked Eileen as he gestured inside the house, "Dinner has already been prepared."
"Of course, Severus, thank you." Eileen nodded.
Harriet followed her mate as he led her and Eileen over to the dining table, which Disencan had outfitted handsomely with polished plates, silverware, and goblets.
Severus pulled out chairs for his wife and mother, which they both politely sat in before he took Maggie from her grandmother's arms and placed her in her own seat that looked similar to a muggle high chair.
"You have a lovely home, Severus." Eileen smiled approvingly at her son as she glanced around.
Disencan scurried out of the kitchen to retreat to his room, but Eileen happened to catch a glimpse of him before he vanished from sight.
"........And a house elf too?!" She exclaimed.
Severus's chest swelled with pride at the look on his mother's face as she nodded at him, "You've done very well for yourself, son!"
"Thank you, mother." Severus answered with a stoic frown.
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Snape, did you say that Severus has a sister?" Harriet cut in, unable to keep her curiosity to herself.
Severus frowned as his mother looked over at Harriet and nodded, "He had a sister, yes, dear.....Lavinia, my only daughter. Unfortunately, she died in infancy." Eileen glanced at Severus again. A warm smile crossed her pale face as she explained, "Two years later, my handsome boy arrived."
Severus bristled at his mother's undue praise as Harriet nodded and replied, "Oh.....I see.....I'm terribly sorry."
"Thank you, dear, but the past is the past and we cannot change it, can we?.....Let us dwell on more pleasant musings, when can I expect my second grandchild?" Eileen asked Harriet as they all began to eat.
"Oh......" Harriet blinked, flattered that her mother-in-law had asked, "In about four and a half months."
"Halfway there, then?" Eileen grinned as she took a bite of her food.
"Right." Harriet nodded with a soft smile, "Halfway there."
"How have you been feeling, my dear?" Eileen pressed.
"Well, for the most part." Harriet shrugged, "A bit tired, but not bad at all."
"You're fortunate then." Eileen quipped as she took a sip from her goblet, "When I carried Severus, I was too ill to lift my head above my pillow from the moment he was conceived to the moment the midwife placed him in my arms."
Harriet smiled as she looked over at Severus and noticed a strange look wash over his face.
She wondered if his expression came from sympathy for his mother or plain embarrassment before Eileen went on, ".........Boy or girl?"
"We're waiting until the birth to find out." Harriet nodded with a polite smile.
Severus watched his wife lay a hand over the adorable mound of her belly.
"Ah." Eileen nodded. She sniffed before she took another sip from her glass and told her daughter-in-law, "Well, if it's another girl, you can always try again."
Severus narrowed his eyes at his mother.
"I.....beg your pardon, Mrs. Snape?" Harriet asked.
".....To have a son." Eileen blinked. She smiled bitterly at Harriet as she laughed and said, "Oh, come now, my dear, surely you know that all alphas want sons? Don't worry! If this child ends up being another daughter, you can try again for a boy......Come and see me first though, there's a very useful potion available to women in our position......I drank it once and look how that turned out!"
The longer his wife and mother spoke to each other, the more uneasy Severus felt.
Maggie blinked.
"I don't doubt your brewing abilities, Mrs. Snape." Harriet nodded as she cleared her throat, "But I don't think your son cares much if he has sons or not, as long as his children are healthy and well."
Eileen laughed heartily.
The richness of the sound irritated Harriet as she watched her mother-in-law's black eyes sparkle with mirth.
Eileen quieted herself after a moment but she kept a smile on her face as if Harriet had told a great joke before she raised her goblet to her lips, cracked an amused grin, and said, "Please, dear, you can call me Eileen."
While the family continued to share their meal, Rabbie watched closely from the shadowy entrance to the darkened hallway.
—————————————————————
Although dinner ended quickly, the rest of the evening dragged on.
Eventually, Severus, Eileen, and Harriet all went to sit in the living room.
Maggie went to bed first.
Harriet took her to her nursery for the night as Rabbie followed loyally.
Harriet tried desperately to outlast their guest, but the life she carried dictated a strict need for ample sleep.
"Take the poor girl to bed, Severus." Eileen frowned at her son as Harriet nodded off on his shoulder for the second time, "It's exhausting work to grow a child, she should be under the covers resting."
"Forgive me, Mother." Severus replied as he scooped Harriet into his arms while he stood to his feet, "I'll return in a moment."
Harriet barely heard her husband as her eyelids fluttered while she laid in her mate's strong embrace.
The siren song of waiting slumber called to her as Severus deftly carried her down the hall to their bedroom.
A soft sigh escaped Harriet's lips as Severus gently placed her in her nest, fluffed the pillows behind her, and pulled the soft blankets up to her shoulders to keep her warm.
"Sev......." Harriet whispered without opening her eyes.
She could still smell the nearness of her mate and she took great comfort in his scent.
"I'll be next to you soon, my love." Severus whispered as he reached out and gently stroked Harriet's hair, "Rest.....and you'll wake in my arms."
That thought seemed to soothe Harriet further as she abandoned her battle to stave off sleep and allowed herself to slide into a blissfully dreamy haze.
While Harriet slumbered, a content smile formed on her lips.
Severus paused for a brief moment and frowned down at his wife in tender admiration.
From Harriet's long, soft hair to her fair face, Severus couldn't help but marvel at his mate's refined beauty.
Once he knew that Harriet would not wake from the action, he leaned down and carefully pressed a loving kiss to her smiling lips.
She wriggled slightly under the blankets as Severus rose to his feet and walked to the door.
Before he left the bedroom, he turned back and cast his wife one last glance of true, unconditional devotion.
As Severus stared at Harriet longingly, the softness in his black gaze was truly touching to witness.
—————————————————————
Severus had badly wanted to crawl into Harriet's nest with her and cuddle her close, but he ignored his own selfish desires as he walked down the hallway and rejoined his mother.
"Is your wife alright, my darling?" Eileen asked worriedly.
"She's perfectly fine now that she's resting." Severus replied as he sat down across from her.
"Lovely." Eileen commented. Severus frowned as he watched her stand to her feet with a nod as she spoke, "It's quite late.....I suppose I should be going. I do appreciate you hosting me this evening, Severus. It's been wonderful to see you again."
"Can you not linger to discuss the matters mentioned in my letter?" He asked.
Eileen mirrored Severus's forlorn expression as she gazed at him.
Without another word, she resumed her seat.
"What do you wish to know, Severus?" Eileen sighed, "The details of childbirth aren't normally discussed between a mother and her son."
"That is not the subject of my interest, Mother." Severus scowled, "Have you ever met a witch named Ingrid the Strong?"
Eileen fell silent but she shifted uncomfortably while she glanced around the room.
"I beg you not to lie to me." Severus frowned.
".......Yes." Eileen reluctantly admitted, "I've met a witch named Ingrid the Strong."
"Did she ask to watch over me after my birth? Did you turn her away?" Severus asked quickly, "Did she offer to stay with me......as a sort of guide?"
"Yes, yes, and yes." Eileen nodded as sadness crept into her dark eyes. Her gaze flickered up to meet Severus's black stare as she explained, "I allowed her to stay with your sister.........She promised to protect her and watch over her, but......those were empty words I suppose, because she......she....."
Eileen put a hand to her face in sorrow as her voice trailed off.
Severus frowned before he dared to ask, "......What happened to Lavinia, Mother? You've never mentioned the cause of her demise."
"No one knows, but your father was never the same after we lost her." Eileen revealed with a bitter smile. She looked at Severus and shrugged, "I laid Lavinia in her cot one night and when I went to her nursery the next morning, she had passed into the next world. I never heard a scream or a cry.....Ingrid the Strong claimed that her death had been natural........That there had been nothing to do.....but I didn't believe her. I didn't believe her for a moment! As soon as I knew you were living inside me, I sent her away."
Silence fell for a moment before Severus frowned at Eileen as she met his gaze and smiled, "Your poor father was never the same after Lavinia left us.......I thought he would return to himself after you were born, but I was wrong and I'm sorry about that, I truly am.........I've always done my best to protect you, Severus, my sweet boy. I love you with all my heart."
"Thank you, Mother." He answered with a nod.
An hour later, after Eileen apparated away from her son's cottage, Severus went to cuddle his wife in her nest.
Doubt filled his mind as he tried to determine who to trust and why.
If Ingrid the Strong's name was accurate, then why had she not saved his sister?
If Lavinia's death had truly been unavoidable then why had his mother never sought Ingrid's help during all of the years she had spent in pitiable squalor?
.......Would his life have been different if Eileen had not rejected Ingrid's assistance?
While he lay with Harriet, Severus mentally revisited some of the darkest memories from his childhood.
He recalled an alarming amount of instances where he and Eileen could have used the aid of an ancient witch to escape his father's venomous mouth and brutal hands.
Severus sighed as he clutched Harriet close and kissed her cheek.
To his surprise, she wriggled in his grasp and sighed as she made a slight return to consciousness.
".........Sev?" Harriet asked drowsily.
"Yes, my love?" He answered in a low, rumbling purr.
"If we have another daughter, will you love her like you love Maggie?" Harriet asked as she blinked her sleepy, emerald eyes.
Severus stared down at his wife with an expression of utmost seriousness as he vowed to her, "If you bear me one hundred daughters, my love, then I will care for each of them as the priceless treasures they are......You need not worry about such silly things.......You and our children are my life."
Harriet seemed more than pleased with her husband's answer.
She let her eyes close once more as she rested her head on Severus's chest.
Worried and confused, Severus probably wouldn't have gotten any sleep at all that night, if it hadn't been for Harriet and their unborn baby cuddling against him with the soothing scent of his mate filling his heart and soul.