Rumours_(fqf)

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TITLE: Rumours
AUTHOR: Drake of Dross
EMAIL: litl_rainbow@yahoo.com
RATING: NC-17
PAIRINGS: SS/SB, SS/LM, SB/RL
SPOILERS: Books 1-4, OotP ignored
WARNINGS: MPREG, rape
DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter and associated characters and places are the property of JK Rowlings.

SUMMARY: A simple argument spins entirely out of control. Severus is up-the-duff but refuses to let Sirius acknowledge his culpability. Everyone wonders who the father is, but Sirius is quiet and Severus tells lies when he tells at all.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is an entry in the Harry Potter Mpreg Fuh-Q-Fest (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/harrypottermpreg/)
Challenge: 91. Snape is pregnant. Sirius Black is oddly quiet as the gossip flies. (Submitted by Scarlet Carly)

They were arguing. That was nothing unusual. It would have been more astonishing had they not been. They stood nose to nose in the teacher's lounge, snarling at each other, barely sounding human. Fortunately or unfortunately, their opinions on the matter varied over time, they were alone during this spat. Had there been others, they would have been reprimanded, separated, and the hostilities would have only festered deeper, longer. But it would not have turned violent, it would not have become physical.

Most importantly, Sabrina would never have existed.

Later, they would not remember the insult that Snape unleashed to spark such fury in his enemy. But Black had been furious, they both recalled that very clearly. He had grabbed Snape's shoulder, and his eyes had burned, enraged, as he spun the other man around and shoved him face first against a wall.

Though a tall man himself, Snape was easily the lighter of the two. He spent all his time hovering over potions and rarely did anything requiring more strength than scrubbing cauldrons, and even that was usually delegated to misbehaving students. He was a pureblood wizard of a wealthy family, and as such, his first reaction was to reach for a wand rather than fight back with strength and fists. But Black had his wrists pinned against the wall, and was standing much much too close. A tremour of fear had slid down his spine.

Snape tried twisting away, but Black only moved closer, pressing Snape between his body and the wall. Snape had felt a bulge against his posterior, and his fear had escalated. Black, too, had become acutely aware of their positions. Not questioning the insane plan that occurred to him, Black began to grind his hips against Snape.

He was fully aroused before Snape broke and said his name, the Slytherin's usually controlled voice strained with something Black could not identify. Black knew he was winning this. Before long he would have Snape begging him. To stop or to go on, he didn't care which anymore, though his original intention had only been to scare the ugly pureblood. How they moved from the wall to folding Snape over the lounge's couch, neither would be certain of later.

Black lifted the thick robes of his long-time rival, letting them fall over the front of couch, giving him a good view of Snape's bum under black trousers. He reached to undo the belt buckle. Snape's breathing hitched, but the Slytherin had made little attempt to struggle free. Black took that as tacit consent and undid the buckle, the button, and the zipper. Black trousers fell to pool around Snape's ankles. A moment later, a pair of grey cotton underwear joined them. Black took in the view, smirking in triumph. He remembered thinking irreverently, Your ass is mine. And such a small, lily-white ass it was.

Suddenly, a wand was in Snape's hand. In his eagerness to reveal the other, Black had forgotten that he had left the crafty bugger's hands free. The wand did not point at Black, though. Instead, Snape cast a remarkably strong set of locking and silencing charms at the faculty lounge door. The man was Slytherin to the core, Black had silently marveled.

Smirking, he pressed a fingertip against Snape's entrance, then pushed it inside. The body under him jerked involuntarily, and Snape's breathing was harsh.

"Want this do you?" Black had taunted. Snape's hand still gripped his wand, and his knuckles turned white around the ebony wood.

Snape bit back the hex that hovered on the tip of his tongue, and wondered just when he had lost his mind. He was about to have sex with Sirius Black and he was allowing it to happen. Clearly, he was as empty upstairs as Dumbledore. But he still had his pride. He would not tell Black to get on with it. Nor would he answer that question.

The fingertip left him, and he had to fight his own body to keep from seeking it back. The sensation of another person touching him there had been . . . oddly . . . weird. In a . . . strangely not-bad way. Then the finger was back, wet this time, and pushing against the tight ring of anal muscle. Snape reasoned that there was only so many liquids Black had access to without moving from he where he was. "Black, did you just put your saliva into me?" he demanded, his voice a few notes higher than he would have wished it to be.

"I don't make a habit of carrying lub around with me, Snape, and its better than going in dry."

Snape fell silent, taking the other's word for it.

"Unless you'd like me to use something you've got."

He was about to retort that, potion master or no potion master, he did not carry around lubrication either. Qwik-heal, a painless and fast-acting poison, and a few others that came in useful when one was a Death Eater spy, yes, but lubrication, no. But his words were cut off by a hand encircling his member, and he realized just what 'something' Black meant.

He managed to sound calm as he agreed, "It is preferable to your spit." Much later, he would realize the error of that decision.

Snape rarely indulged himself, even with his own fist. He did not last long against Black's ministrations. He would remember thinking that the couch was going to need serious deep cleaning and deodorant spells when they were done. He would never remember whether or not they had been cast.

Black resumed his previous endeavour with the plentiful supply of newly available lubricant. "I assume you've done this before?" Black had asked dismissively.

"Of course," Snape had replied, not missing a beat before lying through his teeth. He would not show weakness or insecurity to Black. Committed now, there was no option to back out just because Black was far from his first choice to take his virginity. Though, to be perfectly honest, until Black had begun to undulate against him, he had never thought losing his virginity was something he wanted to do.

After a few minutes of preparation, Black's other hand succeeded in fumbling with his own trousers so they, too, fell to the ground. His fingers left Snape's opening and something much more substantial pressed in to their place. Snape arched, and his hands braced himself against the couch, his right fist still clutching his wand in a white fingered grip. The invasion was more painful than he anticipated, and he concentrated on forcing himself to relax his muscles and show none of his discomfort.

"So good, so tight," Black babbled incoherently. He pulled back and pushed in again, burying himself deeper into Snape.

"Black," Snape gasped, keeping the pain from his voice, "I swear, if you tell anyone you did this to me, oh- do that again."

Black grinned in triumph as he hit the prostrate again, and Snape whimpered in pleasure, initial pain forgotten. Snape's half-formed threat was dropped in favour of incoherent exclamations as the pace began to escalate. They were both panting heaving and quite beyond words when Black finally thrust himself home with a shudder, and his seed spilled into the other man. Without the couch to support them, they would have both collapsed into heaps on the floor.

It took some minutes before they had regained their breath and self-control. "Black," Snape repeated, "If you ever tell anyone about what we did just now, I swear I will," he hesitated, trying to think of an appropriately horrible thing to promise. Threatening to reveal him as Sirius Black the escaped convict, while horrible, was far too obvious and easy. Then, he remember something he had once heard McGonagall mention. "Well, I suppose you won't tell, will you? You're bonded to your pet werewolf, aren't you?"

Black's eyes widened in horror and guilt. "Merlin. What have I done?"

Snape smirked, pleased that, even after submitting to the Gryffindor, he was the one who came out with the advantage. He stood, letting his robes fall back down to cover him again, ignoring the deep soreness and filthy state of his arse. He returned his wand to its holster in his sleeve, and further ignored the painful cramping in his fingers as he loomed over Black. "Should so much as a whisper of what came to pass this afternoon reach the ears of staff or students, I swear by Slytherin's Spirit that it is Lupin who will suffer the consequences. You wouldn't want your bondmate to suffer any more than he has to, do you? Pity for you, isn't it, that he has to depend on me for his Wolfsbane." The grin he gave his enemy was feral.

Black glowered at him, flushed red with fury. "Your blackmail is wasted on me, Snape. I have no more wish than you to let anyone know I touched you, you foul, greasy git."

Snape nodded, satisfied, not seeming to notice the insult to himself. "For once, Black, we are in complete accord."

At first, the rumours were innocent. Snape was ill. He had left his first class abruptly, but didn't make it to the nearest toilet before he threw up. Snape missed class again. Snape had been seen going to the Hospital wing.

Albus told him to get more rest, and Sprout suggested a few herbal remedies for nausea and the flu. He told both that he was fine and to leave him alone.

Black thought nothing of it. Snape got sick. That happened to teachers from time to time. There was always something going around. It was hardly worth worrying about. Besides, if the greasy git was worshiping a ceramic bowl, he wasn't plotting against anyone, particularly Remus. Not that he needed to worry about repercussions. He had kept to his end of the bargain and had spoken to no one about That Day. Most especially not to Remus.

Since that afternoon, the two enemies had done a better job of ignoring each other. Dumbledore was very pleased with the both of them and had commended them for their lack of hostilities at the last staff meeting he had attended as the co-DADA teacher (a position created more to satisfy nervous parents who didn't want a werewolf alone with their children than because he was qualified for it). The staff knew his true identity and the story behind his innocence, though he was introduced to the students as "Professor Brown", and wore a glamour most of the time. Those same parents who didn't like a werewolf teaching their children would like a convicted murderer no better.

The rumours began to flow thicker when Snape's diet changed drastically. He ate more, and healthier. Whispers abounded that the illness was life-threatening. Nothing short of that would get Severus Snape to eat a salad or drink milk.

McGonagall told him he was looking healthier, now that he wasn't so disturbingly thin. He had scowled fiercely, and swept from the Hall without a word. The witnesses had stared at each in shock until Hooch had asked in a hushed voice, "Was he blushing?" They had reached the consensus that he had merely been flushed with fury at someone mentioning his weight gain or daring to take an interest in his health.

Over the next weeks, the weight gain became more pronounced, more focused around his stomach. Sinisitra gave him a frown as his increased diet continued, and suggested, "Perhaps you should lay off the heavy starches, Severus."

He leveled a vicious glare at her, and took an additional spoonful of mashed potatoes just to spite her. "My weight is no concern of yours."

Once he left to return to his dungeons, the whispers resumed. Depression, anxiety, continued illness (though there had been no recent reports of him revisiting his last meal), and just plain bloody-mindedness were all aired as possible causes of Snape's sudden collection of extra kilos.

The breakthrough came at dinner some days later. Snape was eating his now-usual volume of food when he suddenly gasped quietly. To those who paid attention, this was not terribly rare. But instead of reaching for his left arm, and excusing himself, his hand drifted toward his extended stomach, his eyes, for once, displaying an emotion other than hatred or anger. Surprise and wonder crossed his features as he regarded his own abdomen.

McGongall and Lupin noticed first, and their curious stares drew the attention of others until the entire staff table was watching the oblivious potion master. Students had begun to notice by the time he came back to himself. Finding himself at the center of so many stares, he rose quickly to his feet and fled the Hall, spots of red staining his especially pale skin.

The teachers exchanged stunned looks until Sprout ventured a question, "Is it just me or is he acting pregnant?"

Eyes drifted toward the Headmaster, whose eyes were twinkling merrily. But it was Lupin who spoke, quietly confirming the question, "I had wondered about the change in his scent. I should have recognized it sooner."

Black's look of horror and shock was not alone.

"How, Albus?" McGongall asked, ever practical.

"From what Severus will tell Poppy and I, the usual manner."

More than one fork was put down, not to be lifted again this meal. "Ain't he missin' parts fer that t' werk?" Hagrid asked, his confusion evident, and shared by several others, Black included.

"He couldn't have wanted this," Lupin remarked. "Why would he take a potion to make it happen? Unless . . ." his voice dropped to barely a whisper, "it isn't Voldemort's, is it?"

"Oh, no!" Dumbledore was quick to assure the suddenly agitated professors, "Severus swears the child's father is on our side." Black took a sip of his pumpkin juice, hoping that with the cup hiding his face no one would notice the sickly gray hue his skin must surely have taken. "And there was no potion," the Headmaster answered the first part of the question, "From what I understand, the boy was holding his wand throughout and seed was mixed."

Flitwick squeaked in dismay. Black had to put his cup down, before his trembling fingers spilled it. If he had doubted it before, he knew now that Snape was pregnant with his child. Guilt pounded through him.

"Who is the other father?" Hooch asked, sounding morbidly curious.

"That," Dumbledore declared with an almost vicious twinkle, "Severus absolutely refused to discuss, beyond that it was not Voldemort or a Death Eater."

There were a few curious students with sharp enough hearing to hear parts of the conversation. By curfew, the whole school knew Severus Snape was pregnant.

When Snape entered the Great Hall for breakfast, the first thing he noted was that every person in the room, from first year to Headmaster, was looking at him. Or, more precisely, his stomach. He turned on his heel and left.

For the next week, every potions class older than fourth year was met by a written message on the board. "Students are reminded that it is a very bad idea to engage in intercourse while holding a wand." Snape himself never appeared, and the lesson was a simple one that no student ever forgot. It did, of course, only fuel the whispers.

For one week, he sequestered himself in his rooms, leaving only to teach first, second, and third year classes. His objective was to allow the rumours to have a chance to calm before subjecting himself to hearing them. It was only partially successful.

He walked to his seat at the staff table, pointedly ignoring the eyes on him, and immediately set to eating, not looking up from his food. To those closest, they could see the very slight tremble of the pregnant man's fork, and his shallow breathing. "Are you all right, Severus?" Sprout, sitting on his left, asked in concern.

The fork stabbed more forcefully at a piece of sausage than strictly necessary. "Perfect," he growled.

The table continued to watch him, until he could stand it no more. He slammed down his fork, loud enough to draw student attention, and glared at each teacher in turn. "If I put a scarlet 'A' on my robes would you stop staring at me like that?"

"Like what?" Dumbledore asked curiously, eyes twinkling.

"Like I'm a fascinating new potion ingredient!" This analogy sent several teachers behind their napkins to chuckle. Only Snape could compare the pregnancy of the staff's most intensely private, sarcastic, and touch-reviling member to a potion ingredient.

Dumbledore did not even attempt to hide his amusement. "Dear boy, you must admit you are fascinating. You have provided us all with a mystery."

Snape flushed, either in embarrassment or fury. "My private life is no business of yours," he snarled, turning back to his breakfast. "And if anyone here gets it into their head that the other father has any claim to my kid or a responsibility to step forward, I assure you he will die a most horrible death if he attempts it."

It was an effort of will for Black not to sink lower into his chair. The warning was clearly directed at him, though Snape's glare never left the piece of innocent toast on his plate.

"Is that not a little extreme, Severus?" Dumbledore asked mildly.

There was no mistaking the anger on his face as he looked up again. "He got me pregnant. Cruciatus is too good for him."

Black flinched involuntarily, but so did Sprout, McGonagall, and a few others at the harshness of Snape's words and tone. Black had to give it to Snape though. After a declaration like that, nobody would believe the other father had sat at the same meal table with him for the last few months, completely ignored. Despite this, Black knew Snape meant every word of his recent outburst.

When Snape left, Lupin clapped Black on the shoulder, speaking lightly into the heavy atmosphere left in Snape's wake. "How does it feel to not be his number one enemy any more?"

Black nearly choked, but managed to stumble out, "I had wondered why the git started leaving me alone." He forced a wide grin, "One mystery solved!"

The Daily Prophet
Hogwart's Potions Master Pregnant!
by Barbara Dexter

It has come to the attention of this reporter that Severus Snape, 37, the potions master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is at the time of this printing, five months pregnant. While pregnancies of Hogwarts teachers are not unheard of, there are a few unique factors about this one:

-Professor Snape is male.
-Professor Snape is unmarried and is not dating anyone either.

These simple facts bring several questions to mind. How did he become pregnant? Who is the other parent, if any? Why did he become pregnant? To answer these questions, this reporter took herself to Hogwarts itself. Professor Snape was unavailable for comment, but his students and co-workers had plenty to say on the subject.

"The git probably drank a potion. Nobody would voluntarily touch the greasy bastard," one Gryffindor fifth year who requested to remain anonymous suggested.

"It is a harbinger of death," the Divinations instructor, Sybill Trelawney, informed any who would listen, "Darkness begets only Darkness." This prediction garnered looks of horror and terror on the faces of nearby students, leading this reporter to believe that Professor Trelawney is a respected seer at the school, and the wizarding public should watch carefully both the dark potions master and his spawn. After He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's defeat, Severus Snape was accused of being a Death Eater. His trial was strictly private, and he was released free of charge. This reporter wonders if, perhaps, justice was not met in that closed room. [Ed: The political views expressed by the author are not necessarily the views of this publication.]

As to the professor's motivation: "He's the Head of Slytherin," Professor Filius Flitwick, Head of Ravenclaw House, explained, "his reasons could be anything from securing an heir to some complicated ploy to knock points off of Gryffindor." With rumour ripe about the stirrings of a reborn Dark Lord, one might wonder if perhaps the Head of Slytherin has a darker plan in mind. [Ed: The Ministry assures us that the Dark Lord has not been reborn.]

When questioned on the mechanics of the pregnancy, Professor Flitwick requested, as a public service, that this reporter inform readers that "Having sex while holding a wand is a very very very bad idea. Severus [Snape] was lucky he only ended up pregnant."

Nobody interviewed was able to say who Professor Snape's partner was.

Snape looked up from his copy of the newspaper to find - unsurprisingly - a large percentage of the Great Hall watching him. The remainder were reading their own copies. He had only four words to say before sweeping from the room, leaving a mostly untouched breakfast behind. "Thirty points from Gryffindor." The door slammed shut in his wake.

There was silence in the Hall for a few moments before everyone began talking at once. Hooch leaned toward Flitwick and told him she thought his 'complicated Gryffindor ploy' idea was right on the money. Lupin spoke up in disagreement, pointing out that Snape had far easier ways to remove points from Gryffindor, and that since he did have a fairly large estate, the Slytherin pureblood probably did need an heir. Sinistra countered that argument swiftly, pointing out that no Slytherin pureblood would ever admit to being homosexual, and that this was obviously a mistake and accident on Snape's part. McGonagall supported this by reminding the professors that if Severus had meant to become pregnant, he would not have hid in his rooms for a week when the news came out.

Black wanted to bring up the point that Snape had publicly threatened to murder his partner, but did not trust his voice to not reveal his culpability. He was not the only one to remember this, however, so a moment later, Sinistra bolstered her position further with that very argument, prefacing her words with, "Just because the Prophet printed those theories, you all seem to have forgotten how Severus has been acting lately." Flitwick defended his theories by reminding everyone that the reporter had interviewed him before Snape came out of hiding.

By the end of breakfast, the consensus among the staff was that the potions master had not intended to become pregnant at all. It was brought up and dismissed that the Slytherin might just be pretending to not have wanted it. But if there was one thing the Hogwarts staff knew about Severus Snape, it was that he did not tolerate mistakes. There was no way in hell that he would pretend to have made one.

If anything, they were surprised he wasn't pretending to have meant to become pregnant and claiming that he had used a potion. Nobody would have questioned him.

Then Vector spoke up for the first time, reminding them all of a point already made: Snape does not tolerate mistakes, not even in himself. Mistakes had to be punished.

Albus Dumbledore was curious. It had been a long time since something happened in his school that he did not know the full details of. True, he had been third to know of the pregnancy itself. Poppy had discovered it first. Severus was told shortly thereafter. Within an hour, that information had reached the Headmaster.

Severus had been ill for some weeks. He had tried several usual remedies, but none of those seemed to help. So he went to consult with the school's mediwitch. A brief examination had returned the prognosis that Severus was perfectly healthy; no diseases or hexes were disrupting his system. She had begun questioning his symptoms.

Nausea in the morning. Lack of energy. Increased appetite. Occasional dizziness or loss of balance.

Poppy had confided in Albus that she only just caught herself from asking when his last cycle had been. Instead, she cast a simple pregnancy test. Severus had not recognized it, and waited impatiently for her to tell him what was wrong. She had asked, very cautiously because he was Severus, whether he was a sexually active homosexual. She had been astonished to see fear flicker in his eyes. He had not directly answered, only asked why she wanted to know.

She told him he was pregnant.

She reported that the man had gone completely white, and she had worried that he might pass out on her. But he held onto consciousness through sheer bloody-mindedness and managed to ask a one word question: how. She had informed him there were several methods, mostly involving desperate wanting, potions, or spells. Severus was a far cry from 'desperately wanting' a child. He did not recall taking any potions or being subjected to any spells prior to the act. Certainly none that would allow for a pregnancy.

'The act', the young wizard had called it. It was as close as Severus would come to admitting he had been involved in sexual activity with another man.

Poppy had been stumped on how else the pregnancy could have begun. Albus was the one to ask where the participants' magical wands had been at the time of 'the act'.

Severus had closed his eyes, and his wand hand lightly fisted, while the other laid flat on the side of the bed that he sat on. He opened his eyes and answered, "My hand was cramped afterwards from holding the wand so tightly. I took it out to cast locking and silencing charms, and never put it away."

Albus stopped the scene from replaying further, taking careful note of that slip on Severus's part. Location now had a clue. It was someplace that people might have stumbled upon, thus requiring locking and silencing charms. Somewhere indoors. That left pretty much anywhere in the castle but Severus's own private room, assuming that it did take place in the castle. Which was unlikely, because that would mean it was another professor who was the father. He dismissed any student as a possibility. While Albus had heard rumours about the potions master and Draco Malfoy, he gave them no credence. Lucius, on the other hand, was not impossible. However, Severus had sworn upon the spirit of Salazar Slytherin that the father was neither Voldemort nor a Death Eater. It was the strongest oath Severus gave, so Albus believed it.

Who else Severus trusted well enough to become intimate with, though, was a question Albus could not answer.

Frankly, Severus struck him as unapproachable as a monk. Not knowing who had wormed past the man's formidable defenses seriously vexed the old Headmaster.

Minerva McGonagall regarded Severus Snape as a talented potion master, a difficult man to work with, and an impossible man to get close to. His pregnancy took her entirely by surprise. The surprise of it happening at all was magnified by the surprise of it not being aborted. The causes of that would be where Filius's theories came into play.

But what truly astonished her was that it was accidental. And it was. Every action Snape made, every blush, every retreat, every word he spoke about it, confirmed that. Her Slytherin counterpart was severely mortified by the whole thing. It took several days and a remarkably blunt talk with Eloise Sinistra to understand why.

Severus Snape was from a very aristocratic pureblood Slytherin family. A family that would not have only frowned upon homosexual relationships, but would have disowned Severus had they been alive now. For Severus had not only been involved with a man, but he had managed to become pregnant. This was Bad News to a Slytherin pureblood. First, Snape was not married, and the child was therefore a bastard. Second, it revealed his deviant nature to the entire Wizarding World. And finally, not only had he been with another man - he was the one who had submitted, who had, as Sinistra so indelicately put it, leaving Minerva bright red, 'taken it up the arse'.

Minerva was somewhat uncertain of the dynamics of gay sex, but the mental picture of that was simply disturbing.

Simply put, Severus saw himself as shamed. His remark about wearing the scarlet letter, Minerva was certain, was completely serious. When it came to extramarital affairs, pureblood Slytherins were as puritan as any witch hunter in the 1600s. Which was not to say they did not happen. It only meant that when they got caught, the repercussions were severe.

The proof of that came two weeks after the Prophet article.

Lucius Malfoy had been stunned by Draco's letter. Severus was the poster child of stiff formality, broom-up-his-arse straightness, and incorruptibility. Never in all the Dark Revels had he ever shown the slightest interest in sex, of any variety. Never in all of the years of their acquaintance had the man ever picked up on Lucius's subtle or even his not-so-subtle invitations. Never since he had turned fifteen had Severus shown any interest in anybody, never had he been paired with anybody even in rumour.

But he was now pregnant. Lucius smiled. This was too good.

The Dark Lord was most interested. It was not everyday that one of his faithful became inexplicably pregnant. They bided their time, allowing the news to settle, allowing Severus to fall into a false sense of security. Then he was summoned.

The rest of the Inner Circle had arrived earlier, contacted and informed of the planned meeting by Lucius himself. Severus took an unusually long time to arrive, but he did. Lucius took one look at his slim appearance and cast, "Finite incantium." The glamour vanished, leaving an obviously pregnant man in their midst. Then Severus did the most remarkable thing: he blushed, and looked at the ground.

Lord Voldemort nodded, and Lucuis stepped forward, smiling coldly. Severus glanced at him, and he saw the other man brace himself against backing away. He pointed his wand at Severus's lapel, and a harmless spell shot from its tip. The letter "A" stood out in bright red relief against the black cloth.

Severus looked up from it, a spark of his usual temper showing in his dark eyes. Such beautiful, dark eyes. "Hypocrite," the word was said softly, but everyone heard it. Perhaps he had noticed Lucius's advances after all.

Lucius merely smiled indulgently and stepped closer, running suggestive fingers along the tense body, over the swell of stomach. "I am not the one who got himself pregnant."

Severus dropped his gaze again. It was disconcerting to see the usually arrogant potion master so . . . submissive. His hands continued roaming over the unresponsive, but unresisting body in front of him. Before the pregnancy, Severus would have used an Unforgivable (which of the three was even money) for standing even half as close as he was now. Lucius smirked at his power and moved to unfasten the top button of Severus's black overrobe. The garment made him look as straight-laced and proper as ever, even with the bulge at his waistline.

Severus's hand came up immediately, catching Lucius's hands in a cold grip, his black eyes conveying warning.

Lucius merely raised an elegant blond eyebrow. "You lost your right to modesty the moment your pregnancy was revealed. You are public property now."

Severus's eyes glittered with fury, indignation, and frustration, before his hands dropped to his sides, and he stared straight ahead. Lucius smirked and resumed his difficult task. How anyone could deal with so many buttons on a daily basis was a mystery to him. Another one was how Severus's partner had gotten through them all in a manner timely enough not to lose interest or cramp his fingers.

With Lucius thus engaged, Lord Voldemort approached. "Who iss the other father, Sseveruss?"

Every Death Eater presented stared in horror as Severus pressed his lips together and refused to speak, still staring into the middle distance in front of him.

The Dark Lord's wand rose and barely stopped in time to prevent a cruciatius from flying at the pregnant man. Red eyes glowed in anger. "You will not leave thiss meeting tonight without at leasst Luciuss satissfying himsself in you, Ssnape. If you do not cooperate it will go far worsse for you than that. I will not remind you of thiss again. Now. Who iss the other father?"

Severus remained quiet and unmoving. Red eyes burned in fury. "Sstrip him, Lucius," he snapped, "Rip hiss clothes if you musst."

Lucius was only too glad to comply. A severing charm cut through no less than four layers of clothing, and left Severus nude. The man remained perfectly still, perfectly silent, with only two red stains on his face to show he was aware of his position. His skin was almost translucently pale. Lucius had seen vampires with more colour. He was skinny, far too skinny for a man in his condition; only the bulge at his stomach made the word 'skeletal' inaccurate. Lucius's eyes drifted, as all the Death Eater gazes did, to Severus's equipment. He was fairly well hung. Not as large as the nose promised, but certainly respectable. Lucius smirked when he saw that, while Severus was mostly limp, he was not entirely flaccid.

Lucius moved out of the way as the Dark Lord moved directly into Severus's line of sight. The Hogwarts professor jerked his head aside, refusing to keep eye contact. Lord Voldemort grabbed hold of Severus's prick, causing the man to draw in a hissing breath. "You will tell me now who the other father is."

"No," the denial was quiet but firm. There was only one reason, well, three, but two were exceedingly unlikely, that Severus would keep the identity secret. The two unlikely causes - impossible, Lucius would have said, but he had stopped believing in the impossible the moment he read and believed his son's letter - were that Severus did not know or because Severus was protecting a lover. The more likely reason was that disobedience would gain him less punishment than admission. Which meant it was either Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter, or possibly even Draco.

Severus clenched his jaw as the Dark Lord squeezed. Red eyes flashed in fury at the insubordination. "You will not return to Howartss until you sspeak the name. Each refusal will be punisshed. Lucius." The Dark Lord forced Severus to his knees, turned so that his tiny tight-looking arse was presented to the blond Death Eater. "If you would?"

Lucius bowed. "With pleasure, my Lord." Severus's stiffening would have been unnoticeable had he been wearing anything. "Hands and knees, Severus," he instructed, and the reluctant man complied with the order under Lord Voldemort's insistence. Lucius was surprised to see the Dark Lord going through the actions Lucius himself was, trying to free his prick as quickly as possible.

Lucius's was thick and fully hard; it had been since Severus was revealed. Voldemort's was long, thin, and as inhuman as his reborn body. Whether it was in its aroused state or not was difficult to judge. Lucius turned his attention back to his own task. Voldemort's privates were not a topic he wanted to contemplate.

He laid his hands on Severus's hips, and could almost feel each muscle string, so tightly wound and tense was the potions master. His finger slid over the taut skin, and down the cleft to the pucker of muscle that was the current center of Lucius's world. So impossibly tight was Severus that he could barely force his fingertip past the small opening. Lucius cast a relaxing spell.

"Do not coddle him," the Dark Lord reprimanded harshly. Involuntarily, Lucius looked toward him, and saw him gripping Severus's hair in a manner that had to be painful, and Severus's face crushed against Lord Voldemort's stomach. The long white cock had fully disappeared into Severus's mouth. How the potion master was breathing was as much a mystery as who got him pregnant.

By the Lord's angry and cruel expression, Lucius decided that it would be useless, if not dangerous to mention that in Severus's current state, penetration would hurt himself as much as it would Severus. So he cast an anti-chaffing spell on his own piece and spread Severus's arse cheeks. He forced himself inside, little by little, sending silent apologies to man beneath him. Severus was a colossal prick sometimes, but this must bloody well hurt. He took comfort in the fact that Severus couldn't be a virgin.

Judging by the difficulty Lucius was having, though, he expected there had only been one time before, and with a man (or, more likely, boy) who was a good deal smaller than Lucius.

When he was almost fully sheathed into the tightness that was Severus, he took a moment to relish it. His cock was in heaven. Such perfection, such unholy flesh, so hot, so reluctant. He wanted it. He took it.

Severus's body shuddered with every impact. Lucius rode him hard, finding ecstasy in the unimaginable friction created between them. He held off coming for as long as he possibly could, not wanting this to ever end, but, all too soon, semen flooded into the plundered hole. Lucius only barely managed enough self-control to milk every last drop into Severus's body, and pull out without collapsing into a boneless heap.

Voldemort closed eyes, and surged against Severus's face one last time before he, too, disengaged himself from Severus. The potions master looked awful. His face was blotchy, either from fury, lack of oxygen, or mortification. His hair was a tangled mess. Blood and semen dripped from his now-gaping hole. Bruises were already beginning to form on the white skin of his hips where Lucius had gripped him.

He was surprised to see Severus meeting his gaze with something like superiority. Lucius told himself not to be surprised by anything Severus does ever again. "Was it worth the wait, Lucius?" the insane professor asked archly, if a little hoarsely. Lucius blamed the man's madness on overexposure to Albus Dumbledore. Or perhaps the pain and torture had finally gotten to him. Severus hated to be touched; he always had. Gang rape was just too much for him.

Voldemort narrowed his eyes. "Are you ready to ansswer my quesstion now, Ssnape?"

"Nope."

Lucius had been a Death Eater for over twenty-five years. He kept an active torture chamber in his basement. Never had anything disturbed him as much as Severus's cheerful response just did.

Voldemort seemed too enraged to notice the signs of mental instability Severus was showing. "Crabbe," Voldemort's finger pointed to Severus's bum. "MacNair." His mouth.

Crabbe was too stupid to realize what he was walking into. MacNair gave Severus a wary look, but was more afraid of the Dark Lord than an unstable potion master. More fool him. But Severus reacted to the new breaches into his body with the same silence as before. He was oddly beautiful, with his head upturned to take MacNair down his throat His back arched down, emphasizing the baby's bulge hanging beneath him, as he took Crabbe's oversized cock into his narrow arse. Not in any aesthetic sense of the word, of course, but in the way death is beautiful. Lucius felt himself getting hard again.

That episode came to its expected conclusion, and Voldemort repeated his question. Severus . . . giggled. "Not telling."

"Goyle," rear. "Pettigrew," front.

For only a second, lucidity seemed to return to the potion master as Pettigrew's name was spoken. Fury and humiliation shone briefly in those dark eyes, before being replaced with blankness. This was it. If Severus's old school rival went through with this, Severus's mind would become completely unhinged instead of being merely unstable. "My Lord," Lucius interrupted, "He's going to break."

Around the circle, other Death Eaters nodded, relieved someone else had the courage or stupidity to say something. Red eyes fell upon him, and he squirmed internally. "Iss that not the point of this exercisse?" the Dark Lord asked coldly, and Lucius felt a chill slide down his back.

He waffled between questioning his Lord and and subsiding, but he owed this much to Severus. "Is this not a little extreme? He is of no use to you in a padded cell."

"Traitorss are no usse to me either." The Dark Lord looked at Wormtail and Goyle. "Get to it," he ordered impatiently. They did. Red eyes focused back on Lucius. "Tell me, Luciuss, who you ssusspect the father of Ssnape'ss basstard iss?" He hesitated a fraction of a second too long. "Potter," Voldemort answered his own question, managing to hiss the name, despite the fact that it had no S's in it.

Lucius looked at Severus, where Pettigrew was fucking his mouth. He decided to drop the Draco possibility. Severus would have admitted to that by now. Yes. At this point, it had to be Potter. Even Dumbledore could have been explained away as solidifying his cover. But not Potter. If it was Potter, that could only mean treachery. To both sides.

Goyle and Wormtail finished, and stepped away. Unlike the previous two times, Severus did not remain on his hands and knees, but instead curled into a fetal position on the ground. He looked bad. Bruises covered his hips, and to a lesser extent, his face and neck. Blood and semen ran down the insides of his thighs. He was coughing up semen and bile. His skin had a greyish cast to it now.

"The father, Ssnape."

In chilling contrast to his body's obvious misery, Severus laughed. "Haven't you figured it out yet? I swear, you're as dunderheaded as a class of first year Hufflepuffs." Aside from the raspiness of his voice, he gave no indication of have just thrown up the results of three involuntary blow jobs.

"Sso it iss Potter."

If Lucius hadn't known Severus for the last thirty years, and hadn't been watching him so closely for signs of madness, he would have missed the tiny startle, and only seen the resultant wince, which could have so easily been mistaken for confirmation of a shameful secret. And it was. Looking around the Circle at the looks of disgust being given to the naked man, he knew that he alone had seen that Voldemort's suspicion had taken Severus by surprise.

He sneered down at the beaten man, to hide his calculating gaze from his colleagues. Something wasn't right.

Severus giggled again. That alone could account for the feeling of wrongness he sensed. "Precious Potter," Severus cooed. Lucius wanted to follow Severus's example and vomit. He was not alone, and Nott didn't confine his desire to simple wish.

His question answered, Voldemort smiled cruelly. "Nott, cover him with your vomit and his own, then either piss on him or ejaculate." Severus just giggled and mumbled about being ticklish as Nott fulfilled his orders. After so much close contact with stomach contents, he was only able to shower Severus in more liquid from the digestive tract, albeit from the other end.

The recently escaped Lestranges were next invited to do whatever they wished to the traitor. Athena drew a knife from her robes, and began to cut shallow furrows into Severus's skin, then rub the filth into the gashes. Assuming Severus was allowed to live, the wounds were almost guaranteed to be infected. Dorjan apparently had no qualms against taking his own turn with Severus, even with his wife right there.

Severus fell silent as Dorjan entered him. Lucius studied his face, as he had been unable too the previous times. There was nothing to see. Even as Lestrange reamed him and Athena sliced him, Severus only stared straight ahead, his expression utterly vacant.

When the married couple returned to the Circle, Voldemort cast a last spell at the prone man. It was the same one every Death Eater heard at his initiation. Severus . . . smiled dreamily, and moved a grimy hand to touch a grimy stomach. "Happy Harry," he babbled. "She moves."

"Luciuss, drop the sslut off at Hogwartss," Voldemort ordered with a final look of disgust, before Apparating away.

The other Death Eaters quickly followed suit, leaving Lucius alone with the broken man.

"Bastard!" Severus suddenly snarled, spitting on the ground where Voldemort had been. Lucius jumped back, reminding himself that Severus was completely bonkers and therefore dangerously unpredictable. "My robes, Lucius." He caught sight of the dark fabric several feet away, "Nevermind." He summoned them to him, wandlessly. Lucius wondered just how dangerous a creature he had been left alone with. "Bugger, Lucius, did you have to sever through the buttons? I believe my mistake was sufficiently punished without requiring me to purchase a new wardrobe."

Even as he muttered irritably, his fingers worked over the sheared fabric and buttons, repairing them with wordless, wandless magic. That an insane person could harness such power was terrifying. Lucius half-drew his wand and readied defensive spells in case Severus turned violent.

The pregnant man dressed himself in the repaired robes. "I can see to my own way back, thank you, Lucius," Severus told him dismissively before pulling his own dark wand from a pocket and Disapparating. Lucius stared at where he had been for a long moment before deciding, as a parent, there were two letters he really needed to write.

Headmaster Dumbledore,

If you were unaware that Severus Snape was a Death Eater, I advise you of it now. At a meeting with our Lord this evening, he was severely tortured. Quite frankly, he went mad. If you refuse to send him to Azkaban or St. Mungo's out of misplaced loyalty to the man or the child he carries, I respectfully request that you at least keep him away from the children, for their safety. He is capable of wandless magic and is unpredictable.

A concerned Death Eater

Draco,

Do not let yourself be in the same room as Professor Snape without at least a dozen other people, one of them being Harry Potter or Albus Dumbledore. He has gone mad.

Your Father

Postscript: If you are that child's father, Draco, I expect you to tell me. HE believes the father is Potter.

Father,

I AM NOT ANYONE'S FATHER!

Draco

PS. Professor Snape seems perfectly normal to me. More normal than since everyone found out he was pregnant. He stopped blushing at the staff table, and has started snapping back at people again.

Lucius,

Headmaster Dumbledore told me of your letter. I appreciate the high praise of my acting ability.

Do tell the Dark Lord for me that I quit. Even if I were still loyal, I wouldn't be after that. And you people think I am the adulterous and depraved one? The lot of you make Black seem a gentleman.

Severus

Postscript: Potter! I cannot believe you idiots thought I was with Potter! If the truth weren't even more humiliating, I would have 'gone violently mad' and hexed you all for the suggestion. Merlin, Lucius, I thought you knew me better than that.

Severus,

I did not believe you capable of coupling with anybody. I had it narrowed down to Potter, Dumbledore, or Draco based solely on the fact that you wouldn't tell. Draco claims he was not responsible, so I assume it was Dumbledore?

Lucius

Lucius,

You asked Draco if he got me pregnant? No wonder the boy has been looking at me so oddly lately. I hope you haven't suggested to him the bastard's ridiculous idea that it was Potter.

Severus

Severus,

I notice you did not deny my Dumbledore theory.

Lucius

Lucius,

Oh, yes. Because wrinkled old men are so my thing. Please, Lucius. I did not deny it because it was too ludicrous to take seriously.

Severus

Severus,

Then who the bloody hell is it?

Lucius

Lucius,

I spent upwards of two hours being raped to avoid answering that question. I took Pettigrew and Voldemort down my throat so I wouldn't have to say. I giggled and pretended it was Potter. Do you honestly believe I'm just going to tell you? Fuck you, Lucius.

Severus

Severus,

That is not how I would have liked to have you. You do know that, right? I am sorry.

Lucius

Lucius,

Spare me. You enjoyed it. You couldn't not have. I know you too well.

Severus

Severus,

I hope your first time was better?

Lucius

Lucius,

If you think you're going to worm information out of me that way, you had best reconsider your strategy.

Severus

Severus unrolled the small slip of paper from the Malfoy owl he had been visited by almost every day that week. He snorted at Lucius words. Severus, You are a bloody annoying prat. - Lucius Severus turned it over and scribbled his response on the reverse side. Lucius, And you wonder why I never went to your bed. -Severus He fastened it to the magnificent owl's leg, and told it to return to Lucius.

Albus watched the exchange and raised an eyebrow. Severus had returned to the castle thoroughly battered after his final meeting with Voldmort, but he had gone directly to his own rooms to clean himself up. He had sent a house elf up to Albus with the message that he could no longer spy. Lucius's letter had arrived at around the same time, and he had been subjected to a thorough interrogation about just how badly the meeting had gone, and why a Death Eater would be so concerned about his mental health.

Severus had managed to avoid most of the details, only saying that Voldemort believed the child was Potter's and this was the cause of his outing and torture. He did not discuss the method of torture, merely assuring him that the Cruciatus was not used and the baby was fine. He also explained that he was allowed to live because he had convinced the Dark Lord and the Death Eaters that he had gone mad, and because Voldemort had Marked the child. Voldemort no doubt wanted Potter to feel the pain of seeing that brand on his baby.

Then the correspondence with Lucius had begun, reigniting all the old fears that the child's father was, in fact, a Death Eater. Specifically, Malfoy Senior. With each additional letter exchanged, it became harder to convince the others that there was nothing between him and Lucius. Even Albus was beginning to doubt him now. It did not help that he refused to share the contents of the short letters.

Weeks passed, the small slips of paper kept passing back and forth between Malfoy Manor and the Hogwarts staff table. Almost all of the professors were 80% convinced Lucius Malfoy was the father. It was the final nail in the coffin that the one time Hooch snatched the letter right of of his hands was the time that the letter said, Severus, Sabrina sounds like a lovely name. Are you sure it's a girl? Narcissa thought Draco would be a girl. You saw the nursery before he was born; all pink and nauseatingly fluffy. I trust you have better decorating sense for the child's room? - Lucius

It was then that Severus decided to give up, accept defeat, and say coldly, "I hardly think it any of your business, Hooch, what Lucius and I decide to name my daughter. But since you are imposing yourself, why don't you tell me your opinion on the name 'Sabrina' so I can tell Lucius what you think?"

Hooch was rarely struck speechless. This was one of those times. Severus reclaimed the scrap of paper from her, and wrote his reply, not bothering to hide what he wrote. Lucius, Of course I am certain it is a girl. Narcissa is aware there are spells for gender detection? Incidentally, Madam Hooch, I don't know if you know her, but she is the flying instructor here, Severus looked up. "So did you agree with us that Sabrina is a respectable name?"

Taken aback by the subtle venom and threat in his voice, she only nodded.

believes as we do that Sabrina is a fine name for our daughter. I fear it is useless to continue denying that you are her father. You may wish to warn Narcissa before the truth reaches her through another source. - Severus He waited until he was certain Hooch had finished reading it before rolling it and attaching it to the Malfoy owl's leg.

Revenge was sweet.

Lucius had to re-read the note five times before he understood just what the bastard had done. The message was complex, as was to be expected from Severus, but completely unmistakable. The traitor had somehow gotten Hogwarts to reach the conclusion that it was Lucius who had impregnated him. The note clearly established that this Hooch woman at the very least, if not all of the staff, had been told explicitly that Lucius was the father. The remark about Narcissa hearing the truth was warning that the story was going to spread. Of course it was going to spread. This was Severus's partner under discussion. The biggest mystery to ever happen at Hogwarts or among the Death Eater ranks. Even the general population wondered about it. The man was teaching their children after all.

Linking the Malfoy name to it would only blow the story wider. Snape was going to pay for this slander.

He wasn't sure how he could contain it though. Hogwarts rumour was beyond his control, even with Draco available to counter the claim. Severus was not chosen as Head of Slytherin merely because he graduated from the House. With a good percentage of the Board of Governors as Slytherin alumni themselves, they would never allow just anyone into that position. Lucius had personally forced the the previous holder of the title to resign so they could give it to Severus. The potion master was intelligent and cunning.

He would not have confirmed the rumour without being able to back it up somehow. As he had with Voldemort, Severus would not give a lie that did not have a firm foundation in belief already. It was good odds that even before Severus said anything, he would have already maneuvered them into reaching that conclusion on their own.

Even among the Death Eaters, once the rumour reach them, it would fly out of control. The whole Inner Circle knew he had been trying to get the Potions Master into his bed for years.

True, they currently believed it was Potter, but with Severus nothing was ever certain. They knew he hadn't gone mad that night. Snape had a reputation as a very skilled liar and actor now. Everything he said or implied was suspect. Anyone who remembered that night accurately would be able to pick out that Severus never actually said Potter was the father. He just hadn't denied it. And why would that be?

Because he was protecting his lover: Lucius. Everyone had seen Lucius try to be gentle with the supposed traitor, even going so far as to question Voldemort himself. He had hesitated when asked who he thought the father was. Oh, yes, Severus had a case for his trap. He cursed himself soundly for using a such a recognizable bird for his correspondence. Unless the real father stepped forward, he was well and truly caught in Severus's web.

There was only one thing for him to do.

"Narcissa!"

A few moments later, his wife entered the room, looking irritated after being interrupted doing whatever it was she had been doing. He stood and approached, then wordlessly handed her the note.

She read his note to Severus first, frowning when she reached his opinion on the hideous nature of her nursery. When she finished, she looked at him in confusion. "Severus is having a girl, then? This is why you called me from my embroidery?"

"Turn it over."

She did, and read Severus's reply. Her face darkened. Her blue eyes flashed dangerously as she crumpled the paper and regarded him. "You and Severus. I might have known."

"Narci, he's setting me up!"

Her disbelief was palpable. "Prove it, Lucius."

He wished desperately that he hadn't carelessly tossed the old letters into the fire. "How do you expect me to prove a negative, Narcissa? I can't be the father! It's a simple reproductive impossibility!"

She waved the note at him, "Lucius, you're exchanging tips about nursery colour schemes! He's here every holiday! I've seen you make passes at him time and time again! What am I supposed to think? Lucius, tell me you can take Veritaseum and say that you have never had carnal relations with Severus, and I might believe you after I see and hear it."

"Narcissa, I can swear, even under truth serum, that it is impossible for me to have fathered that girl!"

Her cold blue eyes narrowed. "That is not what I asked you to tell me, Lucius."

"He was already pregnant, Narcissa! It was under the Dark Lord's orders! That was the only time! My word as Malfoy, Narcissa, that was the only time."

She closed eyes, and made a visible effort to remain calm. The effort seemed wasted, because she then glared balefully at him. "There were witnesses, Lucius?"

He mentally cursed himself. If he was going to admit to homosexual adultery, he should have been more careful about not revealing the circumstances. "One cannot disobey Lord Voldemort, Narcissa," he answered wearily. "Crabbe, Goyle, and Lestrange did as well." If he was going to go down for this, he would not go alone. "MacNair, Pettigrew, and Lord Voldemort himself, also."

Her expression only darkened. "I suppose you enjoyed yourself, did you, Lucius?"

He dropped heavily into a convenient chair, knowing he had lost this one. "Narcissa dear, you know I take pleasure in serving my Lord."

She planted fists on her hips and glared down at him. It was perhaps the only time he had ever mentally compared his dainty wife to Molly Weasley. "Serving the Dark Lord is one thing, Lucius. Severus Snape's ass is something else entirely. One whisper, Lucius, if I hear one whisper about you being that child's father, from someone who believes it, and this marriage is over."

"Narci! I am not the father!"

"Not for lack of trying!" She stalked from the room in a royal huff.

Lucius sunk back into his chair, snapped for a House Elf to bring him some brandy, and decided that could have possibly gone worse. He just had to make sure nobody repeated the rumour in Narcissa's hearing. This would take some work and a generous distribution of galleons.

Sirius heard the news from Remus. "Snape finally admitted who the father was." The animagus felt his heart freeze, and he wondered why Remus wasn't furious. In fact, he sounded . . . amused.

"He did?" Sirius managed to ask without squeaking or throwing up.

"Lucius Malfoy," Remus declared with a note of smugness. "I heard from Sinistra that Malfoy's scrambling to keep the news from his wife. Would serve the bastard right if Narcissa did leave him."

"Didn't Snape say it wasn't a Death Eater?" Sirius asked then mentally kicked himself. If Snape wanted to shift blame to Malfoy, Sirius was perfectly willing to accept that. Especially with Remus's vicious support for Narcissa Malfoy's divorce.

Remus shrugged. "We're talking about Snape here, Sirius. He spends most of his time deceiving people. He even apologized to Albus for lying to him. Besides, who else could it be?"

"Me," Sirius whispered too quietly for anything but werewolf ears to pick up.

Remus froze. His exultation at having the mystery solved at last drying up and blowing away. "You?" he repeated uncomprehendingly.

Sirius gave one sharp jerk of his head. Remus gaped at him. "I just meant to scare him." Remus lowered himself down onto the chair facing his bondmate, watching Sirius with an expression of surprise, betrayal, and horror. Sirius went on, "He was supposed to fight back, he was supposed to tell me to get lost. He wasn't supposed to just take it. He wasn't supposed to, to cooperate. He said if I told anyone what we did he'd mess with your Wolfsbane. Then he turned up pregnant. You heard him say that if I even thought about stepping forward, he'd kill me. We haven't fought since, you know. I think he's too embarrassed to look at me. I know I can't look at him."

"Merlin, Sirius. Snape's carrying your kid."

Sirius shook his head quickly. "His kid. Never mine. More Lucius's than mine. Snape'll never acknowledge otherwise. Hell, Remus, he'd sooner claim it was Voldemort's than mine."

Remus stared at him for a long moment. "Albus said he didn't deny it when Voldemort accused him of having Harry's kid."

Sirius laughed hollowly. "Wow. I'm even lower on his list of people to have a kid with than I thought. Didn't think Malfoy would top the list either."

Remus snorted. "Snape probably just has enough on him to make it stick. Malfoy's acting guilty enough. They're welcome to each other. I think I'm glad the pair of them didn't procreate together."

Sirius shuddered. What a horrible thought. A Snape-Malfoy. "Are you furious, Remy?"

Frowning, Remus looked down at the miserable lump on the couch that was Padfoot, trying to stay mad and not just feel hurt. "You're in the doghouse, but I think I'll be able to forgive you. Eventually."

Sirius grinned weakly. "Do I really get a doghouse? I've always wanted a doghouse . . ."

Lucius Malfoy was in the school Hospital Wing when Severus gave birth to a dark-haired little girl. His excuse was that Draco had gotten a splinter on his palm at the last Quiddich match. But since he barely said two words to his son, allowed his hand to be crushed by Severus, and was the third person after the doctor and Severus to hold Sabrina, his excuse was universally ignored. Most of the staff and all of the students assumed the same thing.

"Can I hold my sister now, Father?"

"Be patient, Draco. Severus, the poor girl has your nose."

"Give her yours. She's minutes old, a glamour spell will be permanent."

Lucius pulled out his wand and made the small adjustment. He smirked. "Much better. She's still got the Snape hair and eyes, but at least she has something of mine now."

"Can I hold her now?"

"Quiet, Draco. She's really quite adorable, Severus."

Severus snorted. "She's yours, of course you think she's adorable. Has Narcissa calmed down yet?"

"Hm. Oh, she's still upset that I was bribing people not to talk around her. I expect she'll calm down in a few months. She hasn't filed for divorce or anything. I say, give her some time in France with her mother and she'll be all too happy to come back."

"Hear, hear," agreed Draco. "Can I hold her now?"

"Did Dumbledore see that bit on her arm before she got wrapped up, Severus?"

Severus scowled. "Bloody bastard. No, Albus didn't see, but he knows of it. Poppy did, though, and probably thinks its hereditary. I'll find a potion to be rid of it as soon as I can. I've been working on it for years, I think I'm getting close. She'll be enough trouble without that bothering her."

"You really were a spy, weren't you?"

Severus started at him for a moment, then shook his head in exasperation. "Lucius, you're a blind fool."

"Can I hold my sister now?"

"Draco, hush. So I take it you don't want to come back to Voldemort, then, Severus?"

Severus stared at him. "No. Even if I weren't compromised, I'm a parent now, and I am not going back to those spineless reprobates. And I can't believe you asked me that in the Hogwarts Hospital Wing."

"They already know what I am."

"You're getting overconfident, I think."

"Father, can I hold Sabrina now"

"Severus, please, don't you think I would have been arrested by now if they could pin anything on me?"

"You're providing plenty of witness material right now."

Lucius rolled his eyes. "Witnesses are for the lawyers to deal with. My solicitors can confuse the Queen into thinking she's a muggle from America. I know what you're doing and it's not going to work, Snape."

Severus tried to look innocent, "Whatever are you on about, Lucius?"

"You're trying to make me think I'm vulnerable and you, with your Hogwarts connections, can protect me. It works both ways. I'll keep you off Voldemort's to-kill list. It's an offer a traitor won't often get. You're not getting out of your other deal. I told you what the price for this farce was, and I'll hold you to it. Draco, do you want to hold your sister before I give her back to Severus?"

Lucius stared at him. They were in Severus's bedroom, but Lucius hardly noticed that. Hell, he was barely aware that Severus was lying on the bed dressed in a mere nightshirt. He had entered a few moments ago with full expectation of getting his payment for the little show of being Sabrina's father. A show that was going to last until one of them was dead. A show he was already starting to believe. It certainly didn't hurt that the girl was absolutely perfect with his nose on her.

His payment for his part in it was simple. Severus would answer a question and perform a service. It was the response to the question that had left him completely out-of-sorts, and in no state to even think about the service, regardless of how much he had thought about it up until this moment.

"Black?!" he repeated in complete disbelief. If true, it was no wonder Severus had refused to tell anyone. He had thought Pettigrew and Lord Voldemort were bad.

Severus raised an eyebrow as if surprised by Lucius's reaction.

"You let . . . first time . . . my daughter's other father is Sirius Black?!"

The other eyebrow lifted to join the first. "What an intriguing sentence, Lucius. Not only is it ungrammatical and illogical, but it also implies you are taking our subterfuge to heart. I believe a renegotiation is called for."

"I'm getting what was agreed upon. Renegotiate after."

Severus shrugged, unconcerned. "Fair enough. I am curious about the dynamics in a bed."

Lucius blinked. "The mongrel didn't even give you a bed for your first time?"

Severus scowled. "What kind of idiot tells Sirius Black he's a thirty-seven year old virgin, Lucius? We did it over the couch in the faculty lounge. Incidentally, you owe me ten sickles."

"What?" Lucius asked, taken aback.

"Accounting for inflation and change in monetary resources, let's make that ten galleons."

"Severus, what are you on about?"

"Twenty some odd years ago, you bet me ten sickles that I couldn't have sex in the staffroom. Unlike the bet about having sex with a Gryffindor, you gave no time limit on that one."

Lucius rolled his eyes. "I have decided I was right months ago. You are insane."

"Too much time with Dumbledore."

"That was my theory as well."

=====