VII

This is based on the Surrogate Mother Challenge on WIKTT. For full description of this challenge, please see the author's notes at the end of the first chapter.

Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling. I do not own any of the characters or things in Ms. Rowling's wonderful universe, although I would really love it if she would send me a Time-Turner!

Special thanks to my beta Southern_Witch_69, and to my wonderful muse, Meredith!

Severus was sweeping about the classroom of his sixth year Advanced Potions class. Despite the fact that they were the chosen few students that had achieved top marks on their Potions O.W.L.s, Severus still felt that the classroom was full of dunderheads. Regardless of the unfortunate events of the morning, he was not in as foul a mood as usual. The midafternoon break that he had from classes was spent with Hermione, and although it was no different than any other time he had spent previously with her, it had been...pleasant.

He was currently walking between tables and workstations looking for an unsuspecting student to terrorize. He spied a likely target and went in for the kill. Peering down his long nose whilst standing over the student's cauldron, he sneered scornfully. "At what point in the instructions does it say that the potion should turn red, Mr. Cobblepot?"

Severus enjoyed this part of teaching, the belittling of students. It made him feel an inch taller, for a few moments at any rate. It was always a short-lived glory, but he had decided long ago that he would take whatever he could get. He had to suppress a grin as the nervous boy shuffled and stuttered his pitiful reply. Of course, the boy had not followed the directions carefully; Severus knew exactly where the idiot had erred. He was getting ready to deduct precious House points when the sounds erupted through the dungeon walls.

"DAMN YOU, SEVERUS SNAPE! YOU LOUSY, SLYTHERIN BASTARD! I HOPE YOU ROT..."

Severus had heard enough. What the hell is going on? He cast a Silencing Charm on the walls and shouted at his students. "Bottle up a sample of your pathetic excuses for this potion and get out of my sight!"

The students knew better than to mess with their irate Potions master, and they completed their tasks rapidly. None of them wanted to be the last one left alone in the classroom to have to face their teacher's wrath. Needless to say, Mr. Cobblepot was the first student to exit the room.

What the hell was wrong with the girl this time? Had he not been polite this afternoon? Did he not refrain from screaming at her over the vomiting incident that morning? He was bloody well livid that she would even think to scream so loudly.

Severus stormed through his classroom into his office, slammed the door shut, and proceeded towards the door leading to his living quarters. He dropped the wards and entered to find Hermione standing in the living room clad in nothing but an emerald green towel. A glimmer of triumph flashed across his black eyes, but he kept his mask firmly in place. He knew, of course, exactly what had transpired.

Hermione was fuming with anger. It was radiating off of her as the heat off of a burning inferno.

Unsheathing his wand and pointing it at her he yelled, "Quietus! What the bloody hell do you think you are doing shouting like that throughout the school?" He narrowed his eyes, and then hissed, "Do not ever do something as childish as using the Sonorus Charm to amplify your voice to get my attention again."

"What do you expect me to do when you do things like this to me?" she spat back.

Severus began circling, as a hungry tiger circling its prey. He eyed her carefully as he paced. When he became fully aware of her lack of dress, his anger ebbed slightly. He saw small beads of glistening water on her shoulders and chest. Her hair was still pulled back in the braid with only the ends of stray tendrils damp from, what he assumed had been, her bath.

He stopped in front of her and lifted her chin with his finger. "I did not do anything to you, Mi...Hermione."

"You did something to my bathroom! I've been complaining for weeks that the hot water always seemed to run out rather quickly during my showers, and you brushed it off. But, you did it!"

"And, what precisely did I do?" he asked in his silkiest tones.

"I'm not sure," she replied feebly.

"So," he said, dropping his finger from her chin. "You are not sure? How can you accuse me of something when you are not even sure what it was you are accusing me of?"

She narrowed her eyes and glared coldly at him. "What did you do, Severus?"

He met her glare, but refused to answer. He was rather enjoying watching her work through this.

After a few minutes of tense silence, Hermione spoke again. "My showers for weeks have gone cold shortly after I start them. Then today..." Hermione paused and gritted her teeth. "Today, I try to take a nice hot bath. Do you have any idea what happened while I was taking my bath, Severus?"

"Although it is blatantly obvious that you wish to share all of the intimate details of your bathing rituals, Hermione, it is of no interest to me." A feral grin grew on his face as he watched a blush start from her bare chest and slowly creep up to the tips of her ears. "Despite what you may think, the trivial details of your day to day activities are of no interest to me. If you have a point to make, then make it. Now!" The redness of her face went from embarrassment to anger in a flash. So easily manipulated, he mused inwardly.

"I have a point, and you know it!" She took a deep breath in a futile attempt to regain her composure. "As I was saying, I was taking a bath when suddenly all of the taps began discharging copious amounts of ice cold water! I couldn't shut them off! I couldn't reheat the water magically! Nothing worked! I was forced to get out!" Her piercing eyes shot daggers at him. "Now, tell me. What did you do?"

Severus stepped back and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Are you certain that it was I? Could it have not been Peeves that tampered with your water supply?"

"Peeves? Peeves? PEEVES?" she screamed, her voice becoming louder with each word. "Damn you! No, it wasn't Peeves!" She took a step closer to him and dangerously hissed, "Tell me what you did, Severus."

"Why, my dear Hermione, I only did the same thing that I have been doing all along." He paused and leant down closer to her so that their faces were mere inches apart, and he whispered, "I am protecting my investment."

Hermione stepped back, her eyes wide as she attempted to figure out the meaning of his words.

Severus stood tall once more, regaining his stance of dominance. "Idiot girl! Did you not know that elevated body temperatures of the carrier during gestation can cause brain damage to the fetus?"

Hermione's mouth gaped open in shock. Once she found her words, they came forth with renewed vindictiveness and anger. "Why you arrogant, ruddy git! Who the bloody hell do you think you are? You are controlling every aspect of my life! What I eat, where I eat, when I eat! You tell me what to do, where I can go...EVERY DAMN THING!"

Severus did nothing but passively watch her as she steadied herself to begin the discussion again.

Gathering her strength, Hermione began the conversation once again. "What was it that you specifically did to my bathroom?"

She hated the way he seemed so damned sure of himself, assuming his nonchalant stance and appearing bored. "I merely set a charm to monitor your internal body temperature. The charm is designed so that when your temperature reaches 37.8 degrees Celsius, the water taps will...shall we say...effectively cool you down."

Hermione noticed a victorious gleam in his eyes as he said the last few words. Evil greasy git! She fought an internal struggle to keep her voice calm and controlled. "Severus Snape, that is the most asinine thing that I have ever heard."

Hermione watched him as he walked towards his chair and began passively drumming his fingers on the back of his chair. It was a sheer battle of wills between them, one in which Hermione was determined to win. She wanted him to speak next. It was several long agonizing minutes before he finally spoke.

"Surely you have read the data of which I speak, Hermione. That prolonged elevated temperatures in the carrier can cause brain damage to a growing fetus?"

The word 'carrier' grated on her more than she let on. I am not some sort of incubator! Hermione bit the inside of her lip to keep her angry thoughts from spilling out of her. She carefully organized her thoughts before speaking. "Yes, I have. However, the data, of which you speak, is inconclusive. I have also read that if a mother is uncomfortable during pregnancy that she should take a long bath and relax," she answered firmly. Did your mum take too many cold showers, Professor? Is that your problem? she added to herself.

"A long bath, Hermione, not a steaming sauna. I daresay that if you were to take a warm bath, you would find that you could soak much longer before suffering the ill effects of the charm. Besides, it is much safer for the child."

"Oh, bugger!" she snarled in frustration. "You do realize that this is completely ridiculous, don't you?"

He looked at her, but made no reply.

Hermione paced the room before she decided to approach the subject politely, once more. "If I attempt to limit my time, will you release the charm on my faucets?"

"No," Severus simply replied.

"DAMNED, RUDDY, INSUFFERABLE, BLOODY BASTARD!" Hermione hollered.

Severus watched her rage at him. Ruddy hormones, he thought with a mixture of disgust and amusement. He brought his fingers up to pinch the bridge of his nose, as if this single act could shield him from the onslaught of a pregnant woman's temper.

Severus snapped his attention instantly back to her when in the midst of her tantrum she raised both hands up to clutch the sides of her head in frustration, thus causing her towel to drop to the floor and gather at her feet.

Hermione was quick to retrieve her coverings, but not before Severus had a good look at her. Wizarding robes certainly hide a great many things! he decided. She had pale, pink skin, youthfully perky breasts, and soft curves. She was neither overly thin nor did she carry excessive weight. Severus found himself admiring the young woman's form.

In light of her obvious embarrassment and his boredom with the current line of discussion, Severus decided to take advantage of her distraction.

"I am finished with this discussion, Hermione. I will not compromise," he said firmly.

Out of embarrassment and fury, she swiftly disappeared with a huff into her rooms. She completely missed the amused grin that played about Severus' lips as she left the room.

Severus reveled in the moment of silence and threw himself into his favorite leather armchair. What had he been thinking when he had insisted that this girl...no, you cannot think of her as a girl any longer, not after seeing that figure...live with him? He knew that hormonal teenagers were enough trouble to deal with on a day to day basis, but he now decided that a pregnant witch was far worse.

He closed his eyes and brought forth her image once more. Severus fruitlessly attempted to convince himself that his only interest in Hermione's body was due to his impending child's genetic traits. A great part of him was now hoping that the child inherited far more of her physical traits than his. Except for that ruddy, unkempt hair! I really do not wish to have a boy with a mass of frizzy hair. Severus shuddered at the mere thought.

He began spinning thoughts of his child in his mind. When he had first set out to do this, he had not given much thought to what it actually meant to have a child around. After spending the last month sharing his living space with Hermione, however, he was beginning to see that it could take some getting used to. He had always led a solitary life and spending so much of his free time in another person's company was not something he was used to doing. What would it actually be like with an infant? He was not overly concerned. That was where house-elves and nannies came in handy. He would be present in the child's life, but he did not have any intention of changing nappies or singing lullabies. He would hire someone to attend to those meager tasks.

Severus had always assumed that the child would be a boy, a true heir. However, the possibility of a female child crept upon him. He wondered quickly if the gender of the child would affect his father's will. It should make no difference, he told himself hastily. In the Wizarding world, if there is a female child that is the last of a bloodline, then when that child marries, she and her spouse have the option of taking either her familial name or his. If, of course, she married into another line that was dying out, preference went to her husband's bloodline. This decision had to be made prior to the marriage, however, and it was the only thing that was causing Severus any concern. Severus was only planning on one child, and he could not afford to have any problems crop up. He decided that he should write to his solicitor to clarify his father's will, so he could prepare for all contingencies.

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Hermione went into her rooms. She was a mixture of emotion, all of them out of control. She took her few moments of privacy and began to try to compose herself, though little could keep her from being furious with the man. He was nothing more than a domineering control freak. There are way too many days of this that I have left. I don't think I'll last that long.

In the privacy of her room, she could admit that her reaction had been rather harsh. It actually was rather foolish of her to cast the voice Amplifying Charm on herself while her magic was behaving so awkwardly at times. But, that was a lousy thing to do to a person, she thought to herself.

"Yes, it definitely was," Hermione agreed aloud to the room.

The next morning and each morning following Hermione would wake up to a small plate filled with cream crackers, Melba toast, and water biscuits. There would also be a piping hot cup of peppermint or lemon tea. The first morning it sat accompanied with a small note in a spidery scrawl, which read:

Eat and drink before rising. It will aid in settling the nausea.

It did seem to help a little, but nothing stopped the morning sickness completely. Hermione still spent more than one morning sitting on the floor of her bathroom willing herself not to continue dry heaving once the contents of her stomach had been thoroughly expelled. Severus would always come looking for her. Although he never issued words of comfort, he did always gather fresh, cold-water dampened facecloths for her face and neck, and he would then help her to the living room.

Neither spoke of the 'loo' incident. Hermione resigned herself to taking shorter showers. However, she silently vowed that nothing was going to interfere the next time she truly felt the need for a long soak in the tub.

The days and eventually weeks of October slowly passed. Hermione remembered the month as nothing but a mixture of nausea, sleepiness, and an emotional roller coaster. When she was feeling up to it, she would still spend her afternoons visiting with old friends and professors, and she started spending two evenings a week with Professor Flitwick. She spent those evenings marking essays for the small wizard and often wondered if any of the students ever bothered to open a textbook.

When October turned into early November, Hermione felt that she was nearing a milestone. The first trimester would be over near the end of the month. She was looking forward to a time when she did not feel the urge to expel her last meal and when her emotions were again under her own control. She did not broach the subject of Severus' impending departure from Hogwarts at the end of the year yet. She wanted more information on his plans, and as of yet, he was not all that forthcoming with information.

One morning during their breakfast, Severus informed Hermione that she was to see Madame Pomfrey that afternoon.

"Okay. Are you accompanying me to see her?" Hermione asked carefully.

"I will see to it that you arrive to the hospital wing without incident, but no, there is no need for me to stay. If something is amiss, Poppy will make sure that I am informed," he said complacently.

Hermione had breathed a sigh of relief at this. The last thing she wanted when being poked and prodded was for Severus Snape to be standing over and watching.

When she was finally sitting on the hospital bed, dressed in nothing but a hospital gown, she was extremely grateful that Severus wasn't there. Even though this was a familiar setting, it still reminded Hermione of the unease she had felt while at the fertility clinic several weeks prior. Odd really, it seemed like it was so much longer than it actually was. Her life had certainly taken quite the turn since the summer.

Madame Pomfrey opened the divider that had Hermione sectioned off from the rest of the ward just enough to allow herself in and closed it again.

"Good afternoon, Hermione," she said smiling.

Hermione nodded and attempted to match the broad smile but failed miserably. "Good afternoon, Poppy."

"Well, I need to check you all the way out, top to bottom," the older witch said. "I'll be as quick and as gentle as possible. Okay?"

"Yes."

Hermione lay back as Poppy began the careful scrutiny of her body. Finally, the Mediwitch pronounced, "Well dear, everything seems to be fine. The size of your uterus is right in line with your dates. Right about twelve weeks, I'd say. Are you still feeling ill?"

"Yes, terribly," she replied.

"We'll give it two more weeks; it should pass by then. If it doesn't, then we can try to do something about it. Just try to eat a little something before you get up in the morning and eat foods high in vitamin B6. Anything else, my dear?"

"Yes, actually, the Healer at the clinic said something about a spell to hear the baby's heartbeat," replied Hermione in a questioning tone.

Poppy smiled. "Yes, I was getting ready to do that. However, it is really recommended that you don't try it yourself until your hormones are more stabilized. Casting spells on yourself can be dangerous," she warned.

Hermione nodded.

"All right, you hold you wand over the abdomen and say Fetus Sonorus Maximus. If there is nothing there, then the wand tip will not change. If there is a viable fetus, it will burn turquoise. No doubt this is the test that Healer White performed to confirm the pregnancy. Once a heartbeat can be detected, the wand tip will amplify the sounds from the fetus." Madame Pomfrey paused, held her wand over Hermione's abdomen, and cast the charm. Soon Hermione could hear a "whoosh-whoosh-whoosh" sound coming from the tip of the Mediwitch's wand. It sounded to her much like rushing water, but it was the most glorious sound she had ever heard.

Hermione spent the rest of the afternoon thinking of the sound and the life that she was growing inside of her. Frequently placing her hand on her belly, she wondered about the child's sex and features. Would she look like her? What would he sound like? Will she share the same passion for learning? How many of his father's snarky habits would he possess? Those and so many more questions swam through her mind, and the joy from her meeting with Poppy quickly faded into sorrow as she buried her face in her hands and sobbed. Oh, God. Will I ever know the answer to those questions?

Southern's Notes: I'm certainly glad she stood up to him about that bath (though I wish she'd told him aloud what she thought of him) business, but I think I would sneak off to the prefect's tub myself. I feel sorry for Hermione here, and I hope that arse hears her crying and feels a tinge of guilt at least. Ah, well, off to wait on my cliff for the next chapter.

A/N: Oh come on now! I was nice in this chapter...that's not an evil cliffie! A little angsty maybe, but it needs a little angst, sorry. Thanks for reading!