Who's Your Daddy? Characters: Severus, Serenus, Remus, Tybalt Summary: Serenus wanted more children, but not like this.
Although the family dinner had been his idea, Serenus only picked at his pork roast and vegetables, pushing them around the plate with his fork, feeling a queasiness that had nothing to do with his stomach and everything to do with the reason why he had convened the family that night. He had news to impart, and he had no idea what the fallout would be; he only knew their lives were about to be changed forever.
"What the devil are you acting like such a sad sack about?" Severus demanded, his unexpected question jolting Serenus out of his reverie and making him jump. "Don't bother saying it's nothing. I can tell there's something going on."
Drawing in a deep breath, Serenus put his fork down slowly and rested both hands on the table on either side of his plate as he lifted his gaze and looked around the table, his expression somber. "I won't say it's nothing," he said quietly, letting his gaze fall on Severus last. "I asked you and Remus to come here tonight because I have news that affects both of you as well as me and Tybalt."
Tybalt was worried and trying not to show it. Serenus had been preoccupied since the previous day, but he'd not responded more than briefly to any of Tybalt's inquiries about what was wrong. Knowing that there were times that everyone needed bit of space, even from people they loved, Tybalt had only smiled and told Serenus he was around if Serenus wanted to talk.
Serenus hadn't, but he had wanted to have Remus and Severus over, which Tybalt thought was a little unusual, but not alarming. But Serenus' recent comment was alarming, and Tybalt went completely still, eyes wide as he looked at his husband, his heart pounding. Whatever the news was it couldn't be good, not with Serenus looking so unlike himself.
"All right," he said quietly, steeling himself for bad news and trying desperately not to let his imagination run away with him.
For his part, Remus was concerned, but he couldn't think what might lead Serenus to be so serious. He smiled as reassuringly as he could. "Well, whatever it is, we'll deal with it together, right? That's what family is for."
Serenus mustered a wan smile at that, but he wasn't at all certain they would all be for family togetherness and support once he dropped this particular bombshell.
"Just spit it out," Severus said impatiently, but there was concern in his eyes as well.
"Right. Well." Serenus braced himself while he tried to figure out exactly how to say what he needed to say. "I haven't been feeling well lately. It's been getting worse over the past few weeks, and it got bad enough that I thought I ought to see a Healer. I had my suspicions about what the problem might be, so I scheduled an appointment with Healer Abramowitz. I saw him yesterday, and he confirmed what I thought."
It only took the mention of Abramowitz's name for the pieces to fall into place for Severus, and he shook his head, frowning. "You're pregnant, right? So why all the fuss and drama?"
Biting his lip, Serenus nodded. "I am pregnant," he admitted in a low voice. "But Tybalt isn't the father. You are."
Tybalt's first reaction as Abramowitz' name was mentioned was a thrill of happiness, which rapidly became a cold feeling of dread as his mind raced at lightning speed, imagining that there was something wrong with the baby or with Serenus, something bad that could endanger their lives. But before his thoughts could do more than jump around and present him with all kinds of gruesome possibilities, Serenus dropped the rest of his bombshell, and he went completely still, frozen in place, eyes so wide they looked like the might fall out of his head.
"WHAT?"
Remus wasn't sure who said the word; it could have been him, or Tybalt, or even Severus, since the croaking gasp of surprise was no doubt common to them all. He boggled, unable to wrap his mind around the thought that Serenus was pregnant with Severus' child. Of course it was possible, given what he himself had planned for the twins' birthday, but somehow the possibility had completely escaped him.
"I'm sorry," Serenus said, his expression mirroring the abject misery he felt. "I'd taken the contraceptive potion! I thought I was protected, but..." He shrugged helplessly. "Something went wrong."
"Are you sure it's mine?" Severus stared at him, too shocked to process the reality of the situation. "How did you even know to check?"
"I didn't. Healer Abramowitz found some genetic anomalies when he was running tests to make certain the baby was healthy, and he performed some more detailed diagnostics and compared the results to his records of the twins. That's when he discovered the baby couldn't be Tybalt's, and that leaves only one other candidate for paternity."
"But how?" Tybalt blurted, then waved his hand in the air. "No, no, of course I know how, and of course even when, since I was bloody well there! But... how could the potion fail? And fail just then? For Merlin's sake, I even shagged you right after Severus did, and the day before that, and the day before that, and the one before that, and probably every day for the previous month! Why then? How could it fail then?"
"Right." Remus' voice was soft. "I know what Tybalt means, but the important question isn't so much how or why, but what do we do now?" He looked at Serenus soberly. "What's done is done. Is the baby healthy, then? Or are there complications? I'm sure there has never been a case like this ever in the history of the world."
"Male twins creating a child together? I should bloody well hope not," Severus muttered. He released a slow, deep breath before looking at his twin again. "Well? Is it healthy?"
"As far as Abramowitz can tell, yes," Serenus replied. "That isn't to say problems won't develop later. With such a close genetic connection..." He trailed off and shook his head, and then he turned to Tybalt. "I'm sorry," he said again. "I don't know why the potion failed then. No form of contraception is one hundred percent guaranteed to prevent pregnancy, but one would think the odds would be in your favor. Maybe stubbornness is a Snapean trait right down to our DNA."
Tybalt gave a wan smile at Serenus' attempt at levity, but he was still trying to come to grips with the though of Serenus being pregnant with Severus' child. It was disturbing on so many different levels, he couldn't even begin to sort them out. But he did know one thing; Remus was right: they were in this together.
Standing up, Tybalt crossed so that he could stand by Serenus' chair, leaning over to wrap his arms around Serenus' shoulders. "What is important here is you, love. What do you want to do? Have you had enough time to figure that out yet, even? I'll stand by whatever you decide."
Remus reached out to take Severus' hand; this was almost as big a shock for Severus, he knew, as for Serenus. "How are you feeling about this?" he asked quietly. "Other than shocked, of course."
As soon as he felt Tybalt's arms around him, Serenus shivered and released a short breath that was half-gasp and half-sob of relief that Tybalt wasn't so disgusted that he wanted to leave, and he reached up to clutch Tybalt's arms, accepting the offered support gratefully.
"I don't know what to do," he said. "I can't make any decisions alone, not when it affects the three of you as well."
Meanwhile, Severus clung tightly to Remus' hand, still stunned, and he shook his head in response to Remus' question. "This doesn't even seem real. My brother is pregnant with my child? It's beyond imaginable. I can't begin to think about what we should do. How do we handle matters if we keep it? But could you consider not keeping it?" he asked, looking at Serenus.
"I don't know," Serenus replied softly. "I don't think so. I'm not sure I want to live with that decision. I'm not sure I can."
The feeling of Serenus clinging to him made Tybalt tighten his arms, holding his husband with all the love and support in him. Serenus hadn't asked for this to happen, and Tybalt wished that there was something, anything he could do to make the pain and worry Serenus felt disappear. He knew there wasn't, though, and so all he could do was be there for Serenus in every way possible.
"You're not very far along. We have some time to think and consider this," he said. He looked over at Severus and Remus. "Whatever the decision is, though, I think Serenus should have the final say. He should have control over his own body."
Standing, Remus moved so that he could hold Severus much as Tybalt was holding Serenus. He and Tybalt were involved, certainly, but when it came right down to it, the people most affected were the twins. "I'll do as Severus wishes, whatever that may be," he replied. "I agree that this is beyond imagining, but we shouldn't rush to a decision. If there is time, I would think it wise to use as much as is needed, so there are no regrets in either direction."
"If I kept it," Serenus began slowly, "what would happen? Would you accept me and Tybalt raising it?"
"I suppose that would depend on whether we agreed to be honest about its true parentage or not," Severus replied, leaning back against Remus. "Then again, I suppose that isn't a decision that needs to be made quickly. We simply need to decide whether you will keep it or not."
"What do you think?" Serenus gazed at his twin, his expression open and vulnerable. "It isn't what either of us wanted or expected, but it's ours."
"I know." Severus fell silent, squeezing Remus' hand tightly as he mulled over the problem. He had shed enough blood in his old life that he found the idea of being responsible for another being's termination repugnant despite the fact that he found the idea of being father to a child born of incest more than a little unsettling. Was this some sort of cosmic punishment for their so-called unnatural acts? If so, it seemed a little extreme to him; he would much rather have dealt with a bolt of lightning or a plague of locusts.
"I cannot advocate getting rid of it," he said at last. "It may not be the best decision considering all the potential complications, but I cannot be responsible, even indirectly, for the termination of your pregnancy. I have enough guilt about playing carelessly with life and death as it is without adding more."
Tybalt drew in a breath; Severus' attitude didn't surprise him, not really, but he meant it when he said the decision couldn't be forced on Serenus. Of course, it occurred to him that if Serenus had felt absolutely adamant about terminating the pregnancy, he could have done so without ever having told any of them about it. Obviously Serenus had some misgivings, which was only natural, but they all did. He wasn't even certain how he felt about it himself beyond stunned, but he would support Serenus no matter what.
"You don't have to make a final decision now, love," he said, his voice low and soft in Serenus' ear. "Not if you aren't ready."
Remus wasn't surprised by what Severus said either; he seemed to remember they'd had this conversation themselves back when they'd found out about Cymbeline, and Severus had said much the same things. True, this was a bit different, and yet Remus understood how Severus felt. "Cymbeline is glad you felt that way," he said, then looked at Serenus and Tybalt with a wry smile. "Severus told me the same, once upon a time."
Serenus nodded, unsurprised by Severus' attitude, and he reached out to Severus, stopping just short of actually touching him. "This won't... I mean, you won't grow to hate me for this, will you?" he asked softly, speaking to both Severus and Remus and even Tybalt, but at the moment, he was most worried about his twin coming to resent him for saddling them all with this burden.
"Idiot," Severus growled. He pushed back his chair and rose to his feet, holding out one hand to Serenus. Wide-eyed, Serenus clasped it and let himself be pulled upright as well. "You aren't solely responsible for what happened. Even I am not so unreasonable as to forget that."
Awash in relief, Serenus wound his arms around Severus and sagged against him, and Severus returned the embrace, stroking Serenus' back soothingly. He wasn't good at comforting, but he could manage to stand there and let himself be clung to easily enough if that helped.
Remus followed along behind Severus, keeping his hands on Severus' shoulders as Severus held Serenus. Tybalt did the same, the four of them standing as a single unit to face what was to come, to offer support to Serenus and to each other.
"None of us could ever hate you," Remus said, moving to stroke one of Serenus' arms lightly where it was wrapped around Severus. "Remember this whole thing was my idea in the first place, and everything that happened was with all of our consent. If Tybalt and I had decided to play with each other, one of us could have ended up pregnant, right? This isn't the end of the world, not by a long shot. We'll get through it together, no matter what. It's not as though this is the first time the Snapes have had a little oddity in parentage, right? And I think Gaius would say it's not all bad."
"He probably would," Tybalt agreed, leaning down to kiss Serenus' cheek. "I could never hate you, love, nor hate any child you had, mine or not. This is a surprise, certainly, but you matter more to me than anything else. I want you to know that with every breath in your body."
"Thank you," Serenus murmured, casting a grateful look at each of them in turn. "All of you. My biggest fear was that you would be horrified."
"It is most unorthodox, but as Remus pointed out, it is hardly the first time our family has experienced odd events." Severus said. "We will manage."
"Exactly," Remus said. Then he paused, giving a slight chuckle. "It occurs to me that a child with all the strength of will of Cymbeline and Etienne, doubled, might kill all of us, though. It might take all four of us to parent."
Tybalt rested his head against Serenus' shoulder, letting the tension drain away. A decision had been reached, it seemed, and now that the doubt was gone, he felt more settled. "You would have to mention that, wouldn't you, Remus? Next you'll have us alert Minerva, right? Since if Cymbeline and Etienne don't drive her over the edge, a double Snape just might."
"Indeed." Serenus gave a watery chuckle, and he let one hand stray down to his abdomen, ready to acknowledge the child at last. "The world might not be ready for this particular child."
"No doubt." Severus stepped back as Serenus released him, and he moved closer to Remus, sliding one arm around Remus' waist as Serenus tucked himself under Tybalt's arm and rested his head on Tybalt's shoulder. "But we will cross that bridge when we reach it. For now, your focus should be on its good health. In other words, enough blubbering. You will not be cast out to trudge alone in the snow, so you needn't fret any longer."
"No more fretting," Serenus agreed with relief. "I promise."
"I'll make sure he takes care of himself," Tybalt said, holding Serenus close. He was certain what was going to become of this, but he was certain that with the four of them united, they could deal with anything. "And I'll take care of him, too." He gave a snort. "And I shall no doubt have to figure out why my grandmother didn't twig to this particular development, since we saw her only a few days ago. Maybe she's finally slipping."
"I don't think any of us saw this coming, but we'll manage," Remus replied, pressing close to Severus. "Well, it just goes to show that life with Snapes is never boring, right? If nothing else, we'll have to be sure to be even more careful in the future, since Snape genes apparently want to fly loose into the population at every given opportunity."
He was surprisingly calm about the whole thing, he found. Perhaps because the wolf knew that even a child couldn't pull Severus from him. He just hoped that this child would be healthy and happy like the other children. More Snapes in the world was not a bad thing, even if this one would be a bit more unusual in its arrival than the others.