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I, Too, Shall Follow by notwolf [Reviews - 3]

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May 4, 1979 (Four months after the Millennium Ball)

“Are you going to sit there like a lump all afternoon, or do you plan to speak sometime in the near future?” asked Severus snidely as he observed his friend staring fixedly at the television, where he’d been since he arrived half an hour ago.

“Huh,” grunted Regulus, unable to tear his eyes away from the Western in which (complete surprise here) cowboys and Indians and cavalry were having a full scale battle.

“Well, that’s a start,” sneered the other. He sat down, deliberately jamming an elbow into Black’s side.

“This telly thing is amazing,” said Regulus, reaching out for the fourth time to touch the screen as if perhaps he could reach right inside, and getting the same look of disappointment when his hand struck the glass. “How come wizards don’t have cool stuff like this?”

“I wouldn’t know.”

“Make the picture change like you did before,” entreated the younger boy, almost bouncing up and down with excitement.

“How old are you again—five?” asked Severus with a smirk, expecting the kid to begin clapping any minute.

“Just turned eighteen,” answered the other as if he hadn’t caught the sarcasm. “And it’s not my fault I never got to have a toy like this.”

“It’s not a toy…just turn the knob.”

Regulus took hold of the indicated knob and twisted it to the right. An advertisement for toothpaste graced the screen as a smile spread over his face. He seemed every bit as enthralled by that as he’d been by the Western. Snape poked him in the ribs, prompting him to crank the knob again. A courtroom drama. Another click produced a talk show of some sort.

“This is so fantastic!” he squealed, giddy with the power at his fingertips.

“Okay, enough.” Severus stood up and clicked the machine off. The picture rapidly shrank in toward the center of the screen until only a dot of light remained.

“What’d you do that for?” asked Regulus crossly, throwing himself against the back of the couch.

“I’m afraid it may be too much for you to handle,” replied Severus dryly. “You need to take it in small doses.”

“Arsehole,” sulked the other.

Severus gave another smirk. “Addicted already? Before your mind was sucked out by the boob tube, I thought you said you came here to tell me something.”

I was stalling, moron, Regulus griped to himself. The television had afforded him the perfect, riveting opportunity to forget why he’d come. Now there was no excuse for delay. He’d come with news; now was as good a time as any to deliver it. Finding his eyes flitting everywhere but at Snape, he said, “Well, you know my family is friendly with, um, Jack’s family?” He paused to allow Severus time to rail inwardly. “I heard Glenna had the baby a few days ago. It’s a girl, in case you wondered.”

Tight lipped, Severus shot back, “Why would I care?”

Regulus shrugged, ducking his head. “I think you should go see Glenna, congratulate her.”

“And WHY would I do that?” demanded Snape, his black eyes boring a hole in the top of Regulus’ skull.

“Because you still love her, and maybe being friends would be better than never seeing her again.”

For being a seemingly naïve little dork, Black was remarkably perceptive, Severus grumbled to himself. Nevertheless he growled, “First of all, you need to learn to mind your own business. I don’t know where you come by your delusions, but I have no intention of presenting myself for ridicule and/or rejection. I thank you for your misguided concern, now drop it or I’ll bash your head in.”

“You’re welcome,” Regulus retorted as sarcastically as he dared, considering the upcoming request. “Can I watch more of the magic Muggle telly?”

XXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOO

Since the smashing success of the Millennium Ball, Lucius’ life had gotten easier, at least regarding his job. The other governors, for the most part, had come around to seeing that Malfoy was a force to be reckoned with, and whether they liked or loathed him as a man, they supported him as an integral cog in the wheel that made money appear in their coffers.

Returning to his office after one of their Board meetings, Lucius was smiling and humming a little tune as he rounded a corner. The tune caught in his throat and his smile vanished upon spying Arthur Weasley with one of his redheaded Weaslettes in tow, blocking the hallway. He glanced about furtively, then very quietly took a couple of silent steps backward. If he could escape unnoticed, he wouldn’t have to deal with the ankle-biter. Arthur was no problem at all, but those blasted brats…

He backed around the corner. Good, well done, Malfoy. He spun around right into one of the older Weasley boys, all of eight or nine years old, nearly knocking the child to the floor; the shock sent his heart racing. Quickly composing himself, he raised an eyebrow and glared at the boy. “What are you doing slinking about the Ministry?”

“I’m not, sir. I just went to the loo.”

“Well…off with you.” Lucius made to leave.

Instead of obeying, Bill cried out, “Dad, Mr. Malfoy is here!”

Lucius glared again. “Was that necessary?”

Bill shrugged as he wiped a sleeve across his nose, making Lucius want to retch. “Dad wants to talk to you.”

“Perhaps I’m busy.”

“I won’t take much time, Lucius,” said Arthur, who’d popped around the corner with his curtain climber attached to his leg. “I meant to make it to the open Board meeting last week, but family obligations and all.”

“Hmm,” replied Lucius with what he tried to pass off for a pleasant smile, but which came off as more of a disdainful grimace. He’d have to work on that. “What is it, Arthur?”

“Bill here, he won’t be attending Hogwarts for a couple of years, but Molly and I thought it would be nice if there were classes available for children before going to Hogwarts.”

“Hasn’t he been taught at home?” inquired Lucius, thoroughly surprised. Every witch and wizard he knew had taken private lessons in the basics from tutors, or at the very least their parents.

“Of course Molly’s taught him to read and write and such, but I meant organized classes with children of the same age,” explained Arthur.

“Those already exist. They’re called Muggle schools,” said Lucius drolly. “I should think you’d latch onto the chance to hobnob with the beasts.”

Getting his dander up, Arthur responded, “The fact that they don’t have magic doesn’t make them beasts. I’ve known purebloods who are less civilized.”

“Ah, touche, Arthur. I presume present company is excepted.”

Whether Weasley agreed or not was to be left up in the air, for yet another dust-stained, redheaded boy of about six came strolling down the hall with his hands in his pockets. “Charlie, where have you been?”

“I don’t know,” admitted the lad. “Bill left me by a fireplace, and I went in and got sucked up, and—”

“Charlie Weasley! Are you telling me you used the Floo Network without permission?” barked his father.

The boy grinned. “Well, I just stepped in when a lady was leavin’, and then she sent me back.” He looked rather proud of himself.

“Bill, how could you leave him! I should tan both your hides!”

Lucius cocked an ear. He’d been of the impression that the Weasleys were incapable of disciplining their brood.

All the commotion brought Molly Weasley scurrying up the corridor from the direction of Lucius’ office, pushing a stroller with two identical tots. “Arthur, what’s wrong?”

“My God, is this the Hall of Weasleys?” Lucius exclaimed. The other two adults looked over at him, then resumed their chatter. He hadn’t exactly meant to blurt it aloud, and made a mental note to practice more censorship. He was slipping.

He glanced down at the babies, who appeared to be between twelve to fifteen months old. Pity they’ll be raised like the rest of the Weasleys, he thought. At that moment the twins turned their faces up at him at precisely the same instant, faces tilted at precisely the same angle; Lucius could swear an evil glint played in their eyes. They stared unabashedly at him to the point of making him feel foolishly uncomfortable, then turned their heads to babble at each other and laugh. If Lucius didn’t know babies were incapable of such things, he’d believe they’d been mocking him, or perhaps plotting against him.

Arthur addressed Lucius while leveling a displeased frown at his sons. “I’m sorry, Lucius, I’ll have to catch up with you another time.”

“Not a problem, Arthur. What with costs and liabilities, I doubt there’s much the Board can do in the way of instituting classes anyway.” Lucius nodded to the adults and carefully skirted around the stroller as the twins locked him in their disturbingly piercing gaze.

If it weren’t completely irrational, he’d have bolted for his office to escape the creepy little imps, though once he’d marched inside in a dignified manner, he shut the door and leaned heavily against it. He hoped he wouldn’t have nightmares of being stalked by cuddly redheaded demons.

XXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOO

Why did he do this to himself? What insane, masochistic compulsion drove him to come here? Severus stood on the doorstep clenching and unclenching his fists, turned and started down the steps, hesitated, then spun around and came back. He could be a man about this. He was nineteen, not nine.

His knock was answered by a house-elf he recognized from the many times he’d been here when they were dating. “I’d like to speak to Glenna,” he said curtly.

The elf disappeared, leaving him standing at the open door like an idiot. He could still leave, there was time for that. But no, he’d come to see her and that’s what he intended to do. Not until a shadow crossed in front of him did he wonder why he hadn’t considered that her husband might not take kindly to his wife visiting with her old lover.

Mulciber suddenly filled the void in the doorway, his sturdy form contrasting with Snape’s lanky one. “What are you doing here?”

Severus motioned inside, his voice unwavering. “I came to congratulate Glenna—and you—on your new daughter.”

Without a word, Jack shoved him hard in the chest, pushing him back, then stepped out onto the porch with him and closed the door. “That’s rich, Snape, really rich. Maybe I should be the one saying that.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“You can quit pretending. I’m not as stupid as you and my dad give me credit for!” seethed Jack, his eyes narrowed, his tone bitter. “I know the kid isn’t mine.”

Several seconds of incredulous silence followed. At last Severus managed, “How dare you accuse Glenna of cheating!”

“You’ve got balls, you know that!” Mulciber shouted, stopping barely short of drawing his wand. “I thought it was weird, the kid coming too soon and being so big, but when I got a look at her, I knew. She looks just like you, tiny hook nose and all!”

Rendered speechless from sheer astonishment, Severus merely gaped at him.

Jack went on, oblivious to the shock in the other man’s face. “You get Glenna pregnant and refuse to marry her, then you have the gall to show up and want to see her! I should kill you! But you know what? I’m gonna take care of the baby and love her like my own, which you wouldn’t do, because I love Glenna.”

“I want to talk to her,” Severus croaked, then added quietly, “Please.”

Jack moved aside as he made a flourish at the door, saying snidely, “Try to keep it in your pants. I want to make sure the next one she pops out is mine.

On unsteady legs that felt more like cardboard than flesh, Severus entered the house. Glenna being nowhere in sight, he Apparated up to her room and knocked lightly, his heart pounding in his chest, his mind whirling. Glenna opened the door with a cry of surprise.

“Hi, Glenna,” he began softly.

“Severus, what are you doing here?” she asked in a hushed voice.

“Don’t worry, Jack knows I’m here.” That seemed to put her at ease, for she sighed in relief and waved him in. “I came to congratulate you on the baby.” His eyes roamed over her figure, which was still a little puffy from the pregnancy. She seemed tired, worn out, yet in his sight she’d never looked so beautiful.

“Her name is Jacinta,” said Glenna, picking up the infant from her crib and carrying her over for Severus’ inspection.

He gazed down at the tiny face, framed by wispy black hair; while the girl’s face was filled out, not sallow or drawn, her button nose did indeed hook slightly at the end, bearing a striking resemblance to his own. He sucked in a dismayed breath. Her eyes, a bright blue, though shaped and set identically to his, studied him as intensely as he studied her. “She’s perfect,” he whispered.

Glenna smiled and cuddled the girl tenderly. “Yes, she is, and such a sweet baby. She hardly cries at all, she’s so alert, so smart.” She felt a rush of pride creeping into her cheeks and turned to the window. “The mediwitch says a lot of babies start out with black hair, only it falls out and turns color later.”

“Is that what you’re hoping?”

“What?” She wheeled around once more to face him.

“You wouldn’t want her to look too much like me, would you?”

“Severus, what are you—”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were pregnant before going to Jack?” he asked quietly, evidently pained.

Shocked, Glenna only stared in horrified realization, the baby clasped so tightly to her chest she began to squall in protest. He knew! With a defeated slump she moved over to collapse into a chair, tears welling in her eyes. “Jack told you, didn’t he? I was hoping she’d look like me so he’d never suspect, but he confronted me the day after she was born.”

Severus approached her and dropped to one knee. “You should’ve told me. Didn’t you think I’d want to raise my own baby?”

“It’s not that simple!” Glenna cried, the words flowing out like a river whose dam had finally burst. “You were so preoccupied with all the things going on in your life, and I was running low on your potion. I didn’t want to bother you with that, too, so I only used it sporadically. When I found out I was pregnant, I figured you’d think I was trying to trap you. You said you didn’t ever want kids, you didn’t want to get married. What was I supposed to do? I’d be the laughingstock of the community for getting knocked up and being unwed.” The tears perched in her eyes began to stream down her face, and her body heaved with sobs. “I had to do what was best for me and my baby.”

“Our baby,” he corrected her softly. Never in his life had he felt like such a perfect heel. Yes, he’d had things going on, but it had never occurred to him that Glenna might feel slighted, might hesitate to ask him for what she needed. And he had told her he didn’t ever want children, so when it happened, what was she to think?

“Our baby,” she conceded. She jiggled the child gently to calm her mewls while trying to wipe her own eyes.

“Let me hold her.” Kneeling beside her, Severus held out his hands, half afraid the woman would deny his request, both pleased and frightened when she deposited the bundle in his arms. Shifting the teeny head to the crook of his arm as he’d learned so many years ago with his siblings, he looked down in wonder at the tiny being he’d helped create. “Jacinta. My baby.” These were words he had never in a million years thought would come from his lips. “Why Jack, Glenna?”

Glenna shrugged one shoulder lightly. “Because he was the perfect solution. He loves me, I care deeply for him, he’d be obligated to marry me if he got me pregnant. Jacinta will be recognized as pureblood; she’ll have a good life.”

“But she’s mine. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”

“It should’ve meant something to you!” she shrilled. “I should’ve meant something to you, but you didn’t want me or the baby, you only wanted that Mudblood!”

“Don’t call her that!”

“See? Even now, with your daughter right here in your arms, you’re worried about Evans!” A new bout of weeping overtook Glenna; she leaned forward over her knees, wrapping her arms around her head as she rocked back and forth. “Jack loves me, he wanted to marry me, he’s even willing to raise your child. I’m lucky to have him.”

A miniature war had begun to rage in Severus’ brain. He longed desperately to tell her how he truly felt, but even if he could force the words out, would it make a difference? Would she divorce Jack to come running to a man so skittish about marriage, putting her daughter’s future on the line? Probably not, and why should she? Did he have the right to expect her to? Up to now he’d given her no cause for hope. More than likely, any declarations of love on his part would serve only to make things worse in that she’d stay with Jack, yet always wonder ‘what if’. She’d regret marrying the one man who’d shown her absolute loyalty and devotion, who’d give her the world on a silver platter instead of the pitiful offerings of an impoverished Potions assistant who moonlighted as a Death Eater. As much as it broke his heart to think it, she was better off with Jack.

“Glenna, I…I’m so sorry. I didn’t want things to turn out like this.”

She lifted her tearstained face to look at him. “Don’t worry, you won’t have to be responsible for Jacinta. No one will know; they all believe she’s Jack’s.”

“That’s not what I meant. I’m sorry I hurt you, so very sorry. I’d like to take responsibility for my daughter. I want to be involved in her upbringing.”

“I don’t think so, Snape,” came Jack’s voice from the doorway. He strode over quickly and plucked the infant away before Severus could react. “In the eyes of the law, she’s mine. I’ll raise her that way.”

Severus stood up, his body shaking from suppressed emotions, not the least of which was fury. “Do you honestly think I’ll stand by and watch you be cruel to her, Mulciber?”

“Cruel?” echoed the other with a disdainful laugh. “Why would I be cruel?”

“I know how you were brought up. I know your father and what he’s capable of with his own son. Jacinta isn’t yours—”

“Give it a rest, Snape,” Jack sneered and rolled his eyes. “Make no mistake, this kid might have your seed, but I’m the one she’ll call ‘Daddy’. I’m the one she’ll come to when she’s afraid or needs something. I would never hurt my child.”

“He’s telling the truth, Severus,” said Glenna, rising and coming to stand beside her husband. “Jack isn’t like his father. He’s kind and gentle with Jacinta.”

“Even so, I have a right to know her,” insisted Severus. “You can’t tell me she’s mine, and in the same breath tell me to butt out of her life.”

“Severus, it would seem suspicious to others if you were seen with her very often, don’t you understand?” pleaded Glenna. “They might see the resemblance and make the connection.”

“So I’m supposed to go home and pretend it never happened?” he exclaimed in disbelief. “I can’t do that.”

Mulciber, cuddling the child in one arm, had drawn his wand with the other. He pointed it directly at Severus. “I think you’d better do that.”

“Jack, don’t!” Glenna made a grab for the wand but he evaded her and stepped away, keeping it aimed at Severus.

“Leave now,” Jack intoned, his face grim.

Because it would be futile to go for his own wand, and because he couldn’t very well hex the man when he was holding the baby, even if he managed to get his wand out, Severus cast a final glower and Disapparated down to the front door. This wasn’t over, not by a long shot!





I, Too, Shall Follow by notwolf [Reviews - 3]

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