It's finally done. When I started this I never thought it would end up 24 chapters long, I didn't even think I'd get to 10. I am however very glad this is finished as I can now focus on my other fics.

I just want to thank everyone for your support.

Enjoy!

Whoever claimed giving birth was a beautiful, natural event that any mother was lucky to go through; well to be quite frank they deserved shooting. Giving birth was in no way beautiful and Severus was quite sure even the term natural was stretching it. At least in his case. What was natural about squeezing out what felt like a watermelon, out of a hole no bigger than the circumference of his finger? Oh sure it was how women were made; their bodies were designed to stretch in ways that didn't bear thinking about. But him? Well not for the first time, he cursed the curse that had left him in such a state.

"It's a boy!"

Then again, perhaps the curse wasn't quite so terrible after all.

"Fuck, oh shit Severus. We have a-oh merlin we actually have a son! We have a son! I-oh merlin I'm finally a dad! Fucking hell…I'm a dad, I have a son. I-whoa-okay I think I need to sit down".

Absolutely ridiculous. Here he was recovering from having pushed out a seven pound baby and only now after everything was done, the afterbirth delivered and both of them cleaned up, did James suddenly decide to faint on him.

"You doing okay?" Well he was still his husband after all.

"Yeah, yeah I just-we have a son now. We're both parents and we have a son and-" James fell quiet.

"James?" Severus called quietly, too exhausted to do much else.

"I'm the luckiest son of a bitch there ever was".

Severus couldn't stop himself; he laughed. Perhaps it was the exhaustion, perhaps the pains of giving birth or maybe it was just that he'd been so sleep deprived it was making him a little loopy. Or maybe that was the potions in his system. Either way, Severus found himself laughing, James soon following his lead.

"Sorry, I should have asked how you are. Are you okay? Are you in pain? Do you need anything? Do you-?" James rambled.

"James? As much as I love you, could you please shut up? Just stay there, okay? Just stay with me". Severus peered at James through bleary eyes. It seemed the day's events were finally catching up with him. "Actually, would you mind telling everyone the news? I just-" Severus fell silent. On closer inspection, James realised he'd fallen asleep.

Chuckling lightly, James smiled dopily at the exhausted wreck of a man lying in the hospital bed. Despite the sweat on his brow, his flushed skin, greasy hair and pained expression on his face, James still believed he was the most beautiful man he'd ever seen. But then he was somewhat biased, considering the man was not only his husband but the mother (father?) of their child. Their very first child at that, although James privately hoped he wouldn't be their last.

"I'll be right back" James whispered, before exiting the room to deliver the news.

"I bloody knew it!" Sirius' voice carried through the ward, shortly followed by the unmistakeable sound of flesh hitting flesh and a rather loud yelp. Even in sleep, the sound was enough to put a little smile on Severus' face.

"What are we going to name him?"

It was perhaps a question they really should have answered by now. Almost a full day had gone by and yet they still hadn't found a name for their firstborn. Sirius certainly wasn't helping matters, choosing the most archaic names imaginable to get a rise out them both. On the plus side it had served to lift their spirits. The mere suggestion of Rufus and Brutus had them in peals of laughter, both picturing a full grown rottweiler in the baby's crib, dressed in little cotton booties, a bonnet and sucking on a dummy.

"How about Paul?" James made a face. Not Paul then it seemed.

"Why not something French? How about Phillipe? Or François?" Severus, much like his husband, made a face of his own.

"No, it just sounds so pretentious" Severus sighed, this was harder than he thought.

"Well what about a compromise then? One French and one English name for both of his parents' heritages?"

"But I'm not actually French. I was born in England, that makes me English. So why can't we just do two English names that aren't pretentious?"

"But like what? I mean what are we gonna do, name the kid after the both of us? Say know there's a thought, James Jr of Severus Jr". James appeared to loose himself in thought.

"Not Severus Jr, that just sounds wrong. And I thought we said we weren't going to be pretentious? So no names that sounds like they're from the fourteenth century, okay?"

"But it so hard" James whined. Severus only snorted. "Pervert" James grumbled as he came to realise what he said.

"Says you. Now come on, we need a name. You know, I kind of like the idea of James. We could make it his middle name. It could be like you're handing down the marauders to him. Although I hope he doesn't get into nearly as much trouble as you did".

"I did not, okay I did but for at least half of those times it was Padfoot's fault we got caught. It doesn't count unless you get caught".

Severus smiled, memories of his own idiocy flashing through his mind. Apparently he'd had a lot of them. "Then you're okay with naming him James?" Severus asked.

"I am only if you are".

"You're such a sap" Severus snorted, complaining as James very gently cuffed him around the head. "You're supposed to be nice to me; I just squeezed out a watermelon for you".

"But he's tiny! If anything he looks more like a small pumpkin".

Severus gaped at him. "Tiny? You think seven pounds is tiny? I think you should have a long talk with your mother in the near future. I don't know what she's been filling your head with, but I assure you seven pounds is not bloody tiny".

James frowned, clearly that had been the wrong thing to say. But what to say now to get himself out of the mess he'd once again landed himself in. "What about Harry?"

"Harry? What about Harry? Who's Harry?" Severus asked, confused.

"For the baby. What about Harry? It's not pretentious, it's nice and simple. Harry James Potter-Prince, it has a nice ring to it don't you think? Or we could still go Prince-Potter, make him royalty" James grinned.

"We're not naming him Prince-Potter. He'll have his classmates taking the piss out of him for years to come. Hell I'd bet if there'd been someone in your class named Prince-Potter you'd have took the piss".

"I would not" James complained. Severus gave him a look. "What? I wouldn't. I mean yeah if it had been Prince something else I probably would have. But not if they were part Potter. That's family".

"Oh" Severus, for once, had nothing more to add. James allowed himself to revel in his little victory.

"I like Harry" Severus said a few moments later. He cast a glance over to where their son lay sleeping. Neither were keen to wake him, his shrill cries still ringing in their ears.

"So we have a name? Harry James Potter-Prince, I like it" James smiled.

"Yeah" Severus smiled back. "Me too. Will you go let them know? I'm just going to sleep a while longer".

"Of course. I'll be in the chair over there if you need me".

"You're going to hurt your back sleeping in that thing". Severus yawned.

"Oh please. I'm not some ninety year old with a bad hip. One night sleeping in that thing won't kill me".

"Famous last words" Severus muttered. Soon enough he was fast asleep once more. James only snorted as he left the room.

"Famous last words my arse".

Of course a few hours later, as predicted, James found himself moaning and groaning much like his husband had done. "My back!"

"I told you so". The words every man dreaded to hear.

"Oh shut up" James scowled.

As if sensing his parent's distress, the newly named Harry took that as his cue to start wailing.

"Fantastic" Severus said dryly.

James only groaned once again.

Living with a newborn was bound to be tough on any parent. But with Drippy, Augustus, James' parents, Sirius, Regulus, Mathieu and whoever else at hand to help them at a moment's notice, they had it somewhat easier than most. That said, it had been difficult to speak with Remus about the matter. While they both trusted him implicitly, it was the wolf that had them worried for their son's safety.

It had been a difficult conversation for all, one that thankfully had ended quite happily. It seemed there had been recent interest in studying werewolves and their habits, one article of which had gone into quite a lot of detail about the importance of family bonding and the like. While Severus had questioned how the researcher had come about his information, surely he hadn't lived among them like he'd claimed; he still saw the sense in it.

Bonding; a behaviour as old as time itself. So simple yet so effective in ensuring health, prosperity and love. Of course with the wolf thrown in, things weren't quite so simple, at east by human standards. But in a way it was even simpler. The wolf was attuned to its most basic instincts. Harry couldn't possibly be seen as a threat. James had long been pack, Severus too a few years down the line. That both should have a child, born of their own blood no less, could only be considered a blessing. The wolf saw it for what it was, a way for his pack to grow. Harry served to strengthen their numbers, if anything he was a valuable commodity. No, the wolf saw no reason to hurt the cub.

It was a vast relief to all that knew Remus' secret. No one wished to alienate him, but things had suddenly changed with Harry's arrival. No longer did they only have themselves to think of. They now had someone that needed them, someone that demanded their love and attention in a way that only other parents could really understand.

Of course there were still days when all they had were each other, some days not even that. With James working, albeit in a much safer job where there were no killing curses flung at his head every hour or so, there were days Severus was left with Harry alone. Well alone was perhaps a bit of a stretch, Drippy was usually there ready and waiting to take Harry whenever needed. But neither he nor James had felt comfortable leaving Harry to Drippy's care whenever they wished it. Both he and James had plenty of memories regarding old classmates who'd grown up in such a household. Where for years their nurturing was delivered by a house elf and not their own parents. Growing up such a way only ever seemed to produce spoiled brats with egos the size of Jupiter. Neither had wanted their son to turn out such a way.

The first few weeks of young Harry's life were certainly chaotic. Even though James had been given leave from work for a few weeks, they both still found themselves so busy they could hardly take a breath. There were many times both wished they could ready little Harry's mind. He cried when he was hungry, he cried when he was tired, he cried when he was unhappy and he cried when he needed changing. For those first few weeks it seemed all he did was cry. It soon became apparent that in order to sleep, they needed Drippy's help more than they'd originally planned. But any lingering guilt they felt over leaving their child in the house elf's capable hands, was soon forgotten the minute they awoke from a long and uninterrupted sleep. The first in many weeks in fact. It was quite possibly one of the happiest moments they'd shared together, barring of course the birth of their son. But it was a damn close second.

Both James and Severus remembered the first time Harry smiled, the memory of which was only foreshadowed when Harry first learned to laugh. Having heard only his cries, it was a proud moment for both when Harry seemed to learn how to take pleasure in the world as children so often do. And in all honesty, he was absolutely adorable when he did so, melting the hearts of whoever was there to watch him.

As the weeks passed and Harry grew larger, his parents watched him grow with a mix of fascination and trepidation. Already at three months he no longer felt like glass, no longer was he as fragile as he had been. The rate at which he was growing was simply alarming and neither parent was sure how to handle such rapid change. But they gave it a damn good go. Since no one ended up hurt and no fires were started, it was deemed a success all around.

Soon enough, quicker than anyone would have liked really, Harry first birthday came and went. And with it, some very unpleasant news for the little family. For the last few years, that had been talk of war and rumours about a Dark Lord circulating Europe. For a time Severus had thought them only rumours, however James had been able to confirm to him that the possibility of war was very real indeed. In his work, James had become privy to some sensitive information shared between French and British governments. Information that had unsettled the man enough that he'd pleaded with his parents to leave the country for their own safety. His parents had complied, all too eager to spend more time with their grandchild, something Severus could tell greatly relieved his husband.

The next step was to convince the rest of the marauders to leave their homes. Peter, surprisingly, was the easiest to convince. No one was quite sure what Wormtail had been up to, but the last time he'd met he'd seemed happy, healthy and full of life living in Wales. No sign of a missus, not yet anyway, but he seemed all too eager to leave Wales for France. Padfoot claimed it was the rat in him craving all those lovely cheeses France had to offer. Remus wasn't very happy with him for that. Remus, somewhat kinder than the idiot he'd chosen as a mate, believed the promise of beautiful French women might have swayed Wormtail's mind. Prongs privately thought it was a bit of both, though by now he'd learned to keep such thoughts to himself.

Now Remus and Sirius however had been a different story. Sirius was fast becoming one of the ministry's finest aurors, having helped prevent a number of high profile plots and attacks made by the Dark Lord and his minions. It was therefore understandable that he was reluctant to leave such a life behind. However he'd all but shoved Remus into the floo after James first suggested they move. Remus, unlike Sirius, had ended up just as he feared. Virtually no employers had been willing to hire a werewolf and work was rare for him to come by. Much to his despair he'd become just as he'd feared, a househusband who spent his days gardening and reading as he waited for Sirius to return. As you can imagine, it was a dreadfully boring life.

The good thing about France however, was that Remus had a chance to begin anew. Werewolves, while not celebrated for their existence, certainly weren't ostracised to the point of suicide like they were in England. Employers were willing to take them on, particularly during the oh so many strikes that seemed to occur every few weeks or so. While the wizards didn't share the same complaints as their muggle counterparts, they certainly weren't foolish enough to pass up an extra day in bed. You might even call it their nation's favourite pastime.

Remus had a future in France while Sirius had one in England. Understandably this led to many arguments between the pair. Eventually they came to a compromise, Remus would got to France and occupy one of the Black family's properties. Sirius meanwhile would remain in England, visiting France every weekend and most of his days off. Remus had hoped doing so would finally convince the man that it was too much a hassle. Sirius, after only a couple of weeks, found himself agreeing. Although what had actually swayed his favour were the extra days off James seemed to get while he was there working his arse off. Not that he didn't love his work, he did, he just happened to love his bed even more. Especially if there was a certain wolf already in it. And so, within another few weeks, Sirius too had re-joined the rest of the marauders. Surprisingly he had few complaints about it. Fewer still when he ended up working as an auror for the French Ministry anyway. It turned out all those French lessons he'd been forced through as a child really weren't for nothing after all. Even if he did from time to time confuse fromage with frottage. Honestly the looks he got because of it, well let's just say there were red faces all around.

As the war progressed and Harry grew, rumours had begun to spread about the Dark Lord's encroaching darkness. Through his family's contacts, Sirius heard tales about a number of Regulus' former classmates joining the mad man. Yet Regulus himself had somehow refrained. No one was quite sure of how or why he did so, yet Sirius found he couldn't be prouder of his brother. When last heard from, the young man was living in Italy. All Sirius cared about was that he was alive and well.

It was a difficult time to grow up that was for sure, yet for the little family little had changed. Both James and Sirius were promoted, Severus and Remus had banded together to create their own little potions company and even Peter managed to find a nice lass to settle down with. But they themselves had remained as good friends as ever.

It wasn't until a while after Harry's first birthday, the babe having just recently learned to speak, that the little family were faced with a rather important change. You see when a man and a woman loved each other very much, or in this case a man and a man got absolutely smashed one evening, well let's just say things happened and they were expecting once more.

No one was prepared for it. Well actually that's a lie, everyone but the happy couple themselves had been expecting it. But no one had said anything because they quite liked having their heads attached to their shoulders. Eventually though Severus came around to the idea. Mainly because Harry had somehow gotten wind of what was going on and although just a baby himself, Severus could swear little Harry knew what was happening. Clearly he got his intelligence from him and not his idiot father who'd forgotten to use protection spells. That he himself had failed to do so as well conveniently went unnoticed.

James of course was ecstatic by the news. Once he'd gotten over the shock that is. He was one step closer to achieving his dream of having enough children to start his own quidditch team. A dream he'd conveniently forgotten to mention to Severus many a time.

No one could deny that what lied ahead would be difficult. With a business to run, baby to care for and another on the way, Severus was in for some stressful months ahead. Not to mention the war, the war that loomed over them all, no matter how hard they tried to deny it. However Severus knew he had little to fear, only fools had nothing to fear. He had friends, a family of his own and a loving husband by his side.

Had Severus looked back, he'd have realised he had indeed ended up just as many had predicted. He'd borne a child and had another on the way. He'd married a rich man and lived in a fancy home. But he'd also started his own very successful business and gained an impressive reputation within the potions academic field. He may have ended up like society expected he would, but he'd also done it on his own terms. And while his pride stung a little at the insinuation that he'd been wrong, that society had been right, he also took pleasure in rubbing his success in their faces. He was much more than a simple breeding machine and he didn't give a shit what they thought. He had what he wanted and more and that's all that mattered to him. Society could go fuck themselves for all he cared.

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