The Potion Master's Apprentice

Chapter 19

Severus smiled as he wrapped his arm around Harry's stomach. He was due soon, and the baby's magic sparked gently at his touch. He still felt like he didn't deserve such a wonderful man at his side, but he was determined to make sure that he did everything in his power to ensure that Harry didn't want for anything.

He was still a bit irked that Harry wouldn't let them find out the gender though. Severus would never admit it out loud, but it had nothing to do with his tendency to dislike the unknown. He was simply excited to start thinking about names.

Gently rubbing the area where the baby's magic was strongest, Severus let himself drift to sleep.

Harry was beyond furious. This was the third time tonight that he'd have to get up out of bed to go to the bathroom. He'd finally managed to get comfortably snuggled up to Severus and was having such a wonderful time getting some much needed rest that he couldn't believe he was getting up once more for the loo.

Somehow, the next week couldn't go by fast enough. He was beyond ready to meet his child and he was even more ready to not have to pee every hour like clockwork. And to make matters worse, last week his chest had started to swell out of nowhere. According to the healer, that was normal but it was weird to look down and see small breasts and it threw his already precarious balance off.

He crawled back into the covers and tried to drift off to sleep but try as he might he just couldn't get comfortable. It seemed that every position made his back twinge slightly, another thing he'd been growing extremely tired of lately. Giving up on sleep was his only option at this point. He got up, mourning the loss of the comfy warmth he had and went to the kitchen to eat breakfast before his bladder decided there were more important things to be done.

He wasn't feeling up to anything extravagant, so he sliced up a cucumber and got a glass of water before heading to the living room. He plopped down in his favourite spot, wincing as his entire body protested the sudden change in position. Harry conjured an ottoman and propped his feet up so his knees were bent as much as they comfortably could be before he started munching away on his breakfast.

Severus woke up late and came trudging down the stairs just after Harry had decided to get up to make lunch. They still had some ham and lettuce in the fridge that would make a wonderful sandwich.

Severus watched Harry stand and make his way to the kitchen. Maybe he was groggy-waking up tended to do that to him-but it seemed like Harry was moving slower than usual. He assumed the baby had kept him up most of the night.

"Harry, I'll make you lunch. You didn't get much sleep last night, did you?"

"No, I woke up a billion times to use the loo and then I just couldn't get comfortable anymore. Since laying down hurt, I gave up and came down here." Severus stopped in his tracks.

"Lying on the bed hurt? You've never had that complaint before." Harry shrugged and started slicing the bread.

"Usually I can eventually find a comfortable position, but I gave up on that today. It wasn't worth it if I was just going to have to get up in half an hour again anyway." Severus let it go, but kept a worried eye on Harry after that.

Every time the man readjusted his position, he would make a face. It didn't necessarily look pained, but it didn't look like a walk in the park either.

Harry glanced at the clock again. The last few hours the twinges had become more pronounced although they weren't any more frequent than they were last night. He yawned and asked Severus when the healer was scheduled to come by again.

"She's supposed to be coming by in half an hour or so. Are you sure you're alright?" Severus's concerned gaze met his.

"I'm fine, just tired. I can stay awake until she gets here." As if to put emphasis on his excuse, his body decided a yawn was in order. Truth be told, he was a little nervous for when she arrived. Last month when the Weasley's had come over-this time only a handful of them-she had been finishing her appointment with him and Severus left to entertain the guests. He used the opportunity to ask her how he would know if he was going into labour and she had described what the beginning stages felt like for most people. Since he wasn't in a ton of pain, he wasn't going to interrupt whatever it was she was doing.