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Disclaimers: This is all very AU and is primarily based on the first season of the tv series. Haven’t read the books, which sound substantially different. This started as a crackfic, brainstormed from me wondering about what gifts a heart eater might encounter, and how dangerous that could be. It turned more serious because these three seem to attract all the feels.
Like a Box of Chocolates...
Fitz was bored, mind-numbingly bored during his turn monitoring the wards and property security cams. That’s why the 15-year-old witch only noticed that the security wards were finally ringing alarm for the first time in his experience. Pulse hammering, he scanned the cameras and just caught a glance of a brunette young woman running towards the clan lodge with purpose. ‘A stranger! An intruder is approaching’ he launched out of his chair shouting.
Oma and Opa hurried to meet him in the hallway as his Great Aunt, Tante Hildegard appeared at the threshold of her surgery with the madchen. Fitz’s father and uncles raced up from the carpentry shop and forge with their hunting rifles to meet the girl who had stopped dead on the old stone bridge that crossed into the farm’s courtyard proper.
‘Please—,’ she gasped for air, breathless from running. Her hair and clothing were a mess with twigs and burrs. Mud was smeared up one jean leg. ‘Bitte. We need the healer Hildegarde— ‘
‘Who the hell do you think you are— ‘growled Uncle Fredrik, stepping forward.
‘Marcus Edge said you’d be expecting us. Hurry, he’s early!’ She interrupted frantically.
‘I am Hildegard.’ Fitz’s elderly but stout aunt stepped forward cautiously, ‘but Marcus said to expect his son…’
‘I’m Annalise—Nathan’s…mate.’ Annalise said as an afterthought. ‘Hurry, but only you please! Discretion is paramount’ she finished in a whisper, coming closer.
‘Two of us must go to guard our healer, that is not negotiable,’ retorted Fredrik.
‘And an assistant’ returned Hildegard.
‘I have an alchemist to assist you,’ returned Annalise. ‘I must insist you swear a vow of silence’.
‘Very well. Fitz!’ Fitz started as his tante rounded on him, ‘You will come, and you as well, Freddy.’ She silenced a protesting Fredrik with a look. ‘Any friend of Marcus is a friend of ours.’ She began conferring with the strange girl in low voices as they entered her surgery.
Within minutes, they reappeared with bundles of supplies. ‘We are journeying a short distance.’ The elder instructed. They performed the vow ceremony
Entering the wood, Annalise handed them each a black orb— ‘Bite down and run’. Suddenly the world shifted, and Fitz found himself in an empty forest clearing. Annalise startled them by grabbing each of their hands and cutting them to drip their blood on the ground, muttering a particularly complicated sounding warding spell. The air shimmered and revealed an extensive garden and a tiny old cabin. All manner of plants grew on and around it. Fredrik whistled, noticing difficult to cultivate woodland species and rare herbs growing like weeds.
A cry shattered the peaceful dusky air then. ‘Ugggghhh! Never again, mate, never again!’
Annalise herded them up the uneven porch steps, muttering yet another spell. The battered heavy door flared sigils briefly, as she opened the door for Hildegard. The German witches got only a brief glimpse inside before a snarling face with burning dark eyes flashed fangs across the room and roared ‘GET OUT!!!!!!!’ The door slammed shut in their faces so hard the hinges rattled.
They stood in shock for a moment, and Annalise opened her mouth to apologize. She was interrupted as blue stained fingers thrust the door open, and a flustered white-haired man peered out. ‘Mon Dieu! I’m so glad to see you!’ The pair quickly embraced. Another snarl came from the room, ‘Stop that! It’s the healer, mon cher!’ The man admonished the third person, before addressing Hildegard. ‘Pardon, Madame—his protective instincts have been making it difficult to control shifting more than usual. I am Gabriel.’ He bowed his head, then gestured within, ‘and this is our Nathan.’
His great aunt collected herself as if going to war; then marched inside saying loudly, ‘There will be NO shapeshifting or other nonsense during my work!’ She stopped short, gasping, the rest of them piling against her.
Inside, clutching two ropes to stay upright, knelt a sweating young man on the only bed. His swollen belly filled out his drenched night shirt. Nathan Edge grimaced and grit his teeth as another contraction hit— ‘But there’s a chance that it could make it easier, innit?’
Vienna, 9 months before:
There was a sort of irony to this heart eating business, Nathan reckoned. So many witches had non-combative gifts that you honestly have no clue what they were when you finally had their heart in front of you. ‘I mean, look at my father,’ he mused. ‘Ate the heart of my mum’s husband, discovers when he’s going to die.’ He wondered if Marcus regretted that decision at least once.
Of course, his father’s clan had been very traditional blood witches apparently, so he supposed Marcus might consider it sacrilegious to waste a Gift. That seemed in line with the intense tutoring sessions Marcus sprung on him periodically since Wolfhagen. The Wolf would appear out of seemingly thin air, train him as relentlessly as Celia for a few days, break his stony facade briefly to share something about his mother or their family, then disappear again. Sometimes Marcus would suggest their next destination be one of his friends in the area; apparently, both he and Gabriel agreed that survival meant frequent relocation.
At first it felt wrong eating the hearts of Fairborns they killed in self-defense; it felt too much like stealing Gifts—the supposed hallmark that the Fairborns said made Marcus a monster. Meanwhile, the culture of his Bloods ancestry had a strong tradition of ‘to the victors go the spoils’ and a disgust of how Fairborns allowed precious Gifts to be wasted and witches to be ‘forgotten’. So, Nathan felt torn for months, until surprisingly Annalise again announced, ‘You need tools to survive.’
When both surprised boys looked at her, she staunchly defended her pronouncement as usual. ‘They sought you out to kill you, Nathan. Show mercy if it doesn’t risk you and yours, but it is foolish to waste gifts that could protect people and dreams you hold dear.’
And so he ate the hearts. And learned to control more and more powers. As his powers grew and he took in more witches’ remnants on, he was beginning to understand his father more. Knowing friends and enemies so intimately aged you. Multiple witches had tempered Marcus’ bloodlust for revenge, he had been just trying to survive and help his people before the Fairborn Council had given him cause to avenge Nathan’s mum. Now, his father again devoted most of his time to coaxing the Blood Clans into an alliance and trying to prevent family groups from suffering the fate of his clan.
Nathan and Annalise were still working on perfecting their gifts, under Gabriel’s tutorship and a revolving door of clan elders and various witches allied against the Fairborn Council. He was Nathan Edge to most Bloods now though, son of The Marcus Edge, so he didn’t feel comfortable admitting that he felt like he didn’t know what the fuck he was doing sometimes. He could be honest with Annalise and Gabriel, but they honestly were in the same boat. God, he missed Celia so much. She never pulled a punch and could be a bitch, but he missed her blunt honesty and unfailing moral compass. Even though they were supposedly fated to be at odds, he had slowly learned to trust her sense of honor and knew her armor shielded a core of kindness and compassion. He could have admitted to her that sometimes he had no fucking clue what Gift he had absorbed.
Sometimes he wouldn’t know for weeks to months, like whatever bloody power he gained from one of the Dutch Fairborns that attacked them with an automatic rifle in Denmark. He still didn’t know what it was. Nathan was beginning to wonder if some witches could be born Fain like the Squibs in Harry Potter. Over a month and not a twinge, a spark, a vision, nothing. Maybe Gabriel had a spell to identify Gifts, he mused sitting in the efficiency they were renting in Vienna.
Dusk was settling across the city as Nathan lounged on the sofa and Gabriel finished up cooking dinner. Annalise had left for an evening shift at the restaurant where she had found a server job. When they stayed in more low-profile locations, they tried to get temp jobs to build up their funds. Alchemy ingredients cost money after all.
Gabriel startled him by sprawling beside him with a bowl of noodles and sautéed chicken with a sigh, raising his eyebrow at him. "Just thinkin’...”
"OH, so that was the burning smell I noticed— “He flashed a mischievous grin as Nathan shoved him. They mock fought, laughing, then Gabriel prodded him. ‘Get some supper while it’s hot.’
They ate and joked until they were stuffed and lazy. Gabriel produced one of his joints and lit it. They savored the peace of a quiet night in.
Nathan nuzzled the other blood witch’s hair, deeply inhaling the herbal tones the silver blonde always smelled like. Gabriel’s hand absently resting on Nathan’s knee began to caress up his thigh. Without speaking, they shifted together into a tender, slow kiss. Gabriel’s tongue sought entry and Nathan welcomed him; their kisses became more heated as their hands roamed each other.
It had taken time for both of the younger teens to gain control and confidence with their magic, but Gabriel had proven a remarkably patient guide. With new self-control, Nathan was delighted to finally gradually explore more intense ‘faire l’amore’ with the other two teens.
Sighing happily, Nathan leaned backwards on the sofa, bringing Gabriel with him. Pulling at shirt hems, and shucking trousers enthusiastically, they continued caressing each other and kissing, laughing as they got situated.
Breathless from kissing, they broke apart. Nathan panted in anticipation was Gabriel sucked one of his nipples between his lips and nimble blue stained fingers trailed down and into his pants to stroke Nathan’s penis.
‘Wwwait’ he gasped. Gabriel looked up from kissing his neck in concern, ‘D’accord, mon amour?’
‘I want you inside me tonight.’ He said earnestly, looking into Gabriel’s crystalline eyes. Gabriel looked touched but concerned.
‘There is prep to do, especially for your first time, dear. I’d never want you hurt. Some don’t like it.’
‘I know—I remember our last conversation,’ Nathan bit his lip and confessed, ‘I actually already…did most of the prep before you got home, just in case…’ He blushed furiously.
Gabriel raised his eyebrows in bemused surprise. ‘Did you now?’ Nathan’s earnest exuberance and sweetness never failed to charm him, and he felt a warm flash of affection for him. He slid his fingers under Nathan’s pants and around one cheek to find his anus stretched some and even slick with lubricant. ‘Someone took notes’ he teased huskily. Nathan gasped at the tone and his large dark eyes dilated at the sight. He made quick work of stripping off their knickers as they worked their way to the bed in lockstep, too busy kissing and caressing. His knees hitting the bed, Nathan sprawled onto the mattress as
Gabriel fished lube out of the bedside table.
Gabriel smiled down at him, eyes hot and suddenly dipped down his torso to take Nathan’s head in his mouth. Nathan shouted and bucked up instinctively. Gabriel looked up to watch as pleasure chased surprise across his face. Sucking and bobbing his head, he slipped one, then two, then three fingers into Nathan’s anus, scissoring and stretching the younger teen further. Nathan ran his fingers into Gabriel’s hair and could only clutch at strands as the pressure began to build and his muscles tightened. Then Gabriel crooked his fingers, firmly massaging Nathan’s prostate, twirled his tongue around the head of his penis, then suddenly swallowed him down as far as he could. Nathan saw stars as an orgasm hit him like a train and gasped open mouthed.
Ready, Gabriel swallowed as much as he could and gently released him as Nathan sagged limply back into the sofa.
‘But wait, what about— ‘Nathan slurred in protest. Gabriel hushed him with a deep kiss—Nathan could taste himself and shuddered.
“No better way to relax you, mon amour.’ He reassured, smiling triumphantly. Peppering Nathan’s face, eyelids with kisses, he reached for the condoms.
Nathan grasped his arm in protest. ‘No, I want to feel all of you.’ He said passionately, staring Gabriel down. ‘Please…You had us all get tested, and you regularly scan us for hexes.’ he switched tactics, turning on his puppy dog eyes. Gabriel felt a little thrill run up his spine if he was honest, of the idea of them possessing each other so fully.
"Okay, okay" he replied softly as they stared at each other. He captured Nathan lips again as he thoroughly coated his aching cock and lined himself up against Nathan’s entrance. ‘Tell me if you need a moment or if you want to stop.’ He admonished tenderly. Nathan nodding rapidly, already breathing faster in anticipation.
He gritted his teeth at the delicious torture as he slowly pressed forward, watching Nathan carefully as the younger man gasped open mouthed at the sensation. He stopped once fully sheathed and they both released breaths that they didn’t realize they were holding. ‘How are you doing?’ he murmured, resting his forehead against Nathan’s.
Nathan took some deep breaths as he adjusted to the stretch and fullness that was so completely new to him. "Yeah. Yeah, I’m ok. You can move." His whole world seemed to shrink down to just the two of them as Gabriel began to thrust slowly and deeply. After a few careful ones, he changed angles and Nathan saw stars again as he began hitting Nathan’s prostate. "Oh my God…” He clutched Gabriel’s back and shoulders, back arching with each thrust. One hand caught his and they clutched each other.
They both rode the building wave, heads bowed close, watching each other. Nathan had already decided before that he loved to watch both of his lovers’ faces as they orgasmed. Nothing seemed more intimate, as their eyes connected and Gabriel’s mouth gasped open silently, eyes rolling up. As his thrusts became more erratic, Gabriel had let go of his hand to stroke Nathan’s penis again, running his thumb in circles around the head. With one last hard thrust, he ground against the other man’s prostate, causing Nathan to follow him into orgasm.
They collapsed together; limbs tangled as they embraced. ‘Je t’adore, mon coeur…mon amour, mon tout, J t’aime.’ Gabriel whispered into Nathan’s neck, kissing him. ‘I love you.’ Nathan replied quietly smiling, capturing those wandering lips in a deeper kiss. A shrill whine cut through their afterglow as they finally heard the long-forgotten kettle, causing them both to break into laughter.
Catching his breath, Gabriel rose and switched off the burner and cleaned them up with a towel. They quickly changed the sheets and curled up together.
When Annalise stumbled in after closing late, she muttered about apparently missing a good time and kissed them both on the cheek as they greeted her sleepily.
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Three months later, they had moved onto an isolated cabin in the Black Forest for the summer. Gabriel detested the insects but was the first to admit that spring and summer are the best times to live off the land and harvest ingredients. Nathan needs the space and privacy to practice his gifts too.
Not that he has been feeling up to it. Annalise and Gabriel have been mother hens as he kept tiring easily lately. The tremendous belly pain he felt earlier has resided, but he still feels bloated and hungry all of the time. More than the typical teenage boy, and that’s saying something.
It’s morning and Gabriel has surprised them with bacon from his last trip into one of the villages where he hauls mushrooms and other wild herbs to sell at market. Nathan is nursing a cuppa at the battered table while Annalise hauls in some firewood for the ancient woodstove while Gabriel holds court over frying bacon and scrabbled pheasant eggs.
"Maybe we could get some chickens!" Annalise says, when suddenly a wave of nausea hits Nathan.
He barely makes it out the door before he is retching off the side of the porch.
"I told you those mushrooms looked too far gone!!" Annalise reproaches him, rubbing his back. She guides a still green Nathan to the sofa while Gabriel brews up tea that smells strongly of ginger.
“Take it easy a couple hours to a day, and all should be well." He reassures them.
But the nausea continues to wax and wane daily. When Annalise starts filleting some fish she caught and proudly showed off, Nathan doesn’t last a minute. The other two share confused, worried glances as Nathan irritably waves them off and climbs back in bed to sleep it off.
After she fries the fish up in silence, Annalise suddenly announces she’s going to town. She puts his now standard meal of toast down beside Nathan and kisses his brow. Gathering her rain gear and a basket, she kisses Gabriel’s cheek and heads out into the rainy grey day.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~She comes back before dark with a pharmacy bag overflowing with pregnancy tests, some antacids, and milk of magnesia.
"You’re joking!" Gabriel says incredulously in protest while Nathan glowers from his cocoon of blankets.
"Annalise, that’s a poor prank, innit?" He scowls in a particularly un-Nathan-like bad mood.
She doesn’t back down, in typical Annalise fashion. "I dare you to! Look, just humor the paranoid girl," she replies looking between the two men.
Groaning the song of the long suffering, Nathan hauls his aching, tired carcass to the outhouse with the bag like a scolded schoolboy, arm outstretched like its contents might bite him. Annalise rolls her eyes after him as they wait.
As time rolls by, and still Nathan does not emerge, they share a look of concern and cross the clearing.
“Nathan…are you okay in z’ere?" Gabriel knocks lightly. They hear the door unlatch, and it slowly swings out to reveal a pale Nathan, trembling and clutching five positive capped tests.
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"HOW is this happening?!?!?" Gabriel is losing his grip on reality. He really is. This is one of several reasons why he pursued mostly men in the past. He still has nightmares about the punishment Mercury dealt to Oliver when Gabriel’s predecessor had the audacity to not only fall in love but get her pregnant. ‘Every Precaution’ was Gabriel’s motto when it came to sex. He had lectured the other two repeatedly about safe sex. But since he had been in a closed sexual relationship with their little group for over a year, he had relaxed his rules. This was unheard of! Thanks to Mercury’s exacting standards, Gabriel was very well read for his age, and he couldn’t recall ever hearing of this. "Is this some bizarre curse???” He paced in front of the stove, mind whirling through diagnostic spells and past readings. Annalise herded Nathan to the sofa again, bundling him in a quilt and holding his hands while he continued to stare shellshocked.
Realization dawned on Nathan’s face. ‘It’s one of the Gifts.” Gabriel stopped short and joined Annalise in staring at him.
"A Fairborn months ago—it seemed like he had no discernible power.” He explained softly. ‘I couldn’t figure it out and thought that I’d just ask my da next time we saw him. Looking back, I had some cramping, but I thought it was just some residual healing from the fight.’ He trailed off and looked down at his hands.
"What are we going to do?' He bit back a sob, "I’m scared, mates.”
“Well, first." Annalise shook herself and said briskly, "Nathan, do you want to have this child?"
"We don’t know how safe this is, or what would happen if we try to end the pregnancy...” Gabriel said hoarsely, leaning against the table and rubbing his face. They searched each other’s faces; Nathan broke eye contact first, staring down where his fingers tugged on his sleeves. Gabriel and Annalise shared a long look of understanding—neither could bear to lose Nathan.
"I think…I think that I want to have ‘em," Nathan haltingly admitted. "I hardly dared to dream of being a father before, but now that I have a chance, I want ‘em badly. Is that selfish? Crazy? What do you two want?" He only heard their fast-beating hearts as a response.
He looked up at them, tears threatening and smiling. ‘I want to make a family, a home with you two.’ And hears them skip a beat.
Then Annalise smiled tremulously back at him, and Gabriel found himself smiling back wistfully with tears falling. Nathan barked a high-pitched laugh, and it was like a damn burst. All three started laughing and crying. Gabriel joined them on the sofa, hugging them fiercely.
"Trust you, of all people, to get knocked up on the run, Nathan Byrne." Annalise chuckled, shoving his shoulder.
That night, as they prepared for bed, they took turns trying to feel anything from Nathan’s stomach. Gabriel couldn’t stop staring in awe. ‘Une petite merveille,’ he murmured, kissing below Nathan’s navel.
"I will see Mercury dead before she comes near you." He swore with sudden seriousness.
"Agreed,” Annalise replied. "But in the meantime, we need to keep our family safe.”
Their family. Nathan’s eyes misted as he watched Gabriel and Annalise process the thought as well. He couldn’t stop grinning, and soon they were all grinning like maniacs again. Gabriel beckoned, and they scooted together, sandwiching Nathan in the middle. They fell asleep Embraced, limbs tangled again.
After several attempts of meditating and mentally calling out to his father as he had been taught, Nathan managed to contact Marcus and notify him that they needed to find the best witch midwife that they could. Because of the ‘unique’ situation, a fain hospital wouldn’t do. This was so awkward—‘Surprise! You’re going to be a grandda in 6 months… if we live that long…yaaay…’
Even hundreds of miles away, his father’s exasperation and worry were palpable: ‘You seriously got her pregnant at a time like this??’ Nathan was so self-conscious about not being aware of his new powers, that he didn’t bother to correct Marcus.
‘Hildegard Sollenberger, of the Brisigavi’ popped in his head after several minutes. ‘I’ll let her know that you will be seeking her soon. But tell no one about the baby if you can help it. There are eyes and ears everywhere. Be careful, my son.’ Marcus whispered in his mind.
He relayed all of this to his lovers that evening as they gathered in the cabin.
‘He’s right,’ said Gabriel. ‘This changes everything.’ They looked at each other. ‘We are lucky because the Brisigavi territory is actually just to the south of us. We should make long term plans for this cabin, for at least the next year.’
Annalise nodded—‘ My German is better now; I’ll look for a more permanent job in the larger fain town.’
‘I can grow more produce for you expand your offerings at market, Gabriel,’ Nathan said. ‘The more difficult to find herbs and medicinal plants, at least.’
‘Yes, as long as you don’t overtax your magic, darling.’ Gabriel worried, ‘This is doubly new territory for us all.’
Present Day
Hildegard’s face smoothed into a calm, sympathetic expression. ‘No, dear—it’s dangerous to shift once you are fully dilated because the baby doesn’t always shift with the… parent anymore.’ Down to business, she found the sink and started scrubbing her forearms and hands. ‘Heads up, cold hands.’ Her usual exam took some improvising, ‘Yes, you are very far along, well done!’ she praised Nathan cheerfully. She looked up at the other four. ‘Well, stop gawping there—much to do!’
Barking orders, she began murmuring in the boy’s ear, massaging his back as he sagged in relief that someone more experienced was taking charge.
Three hours later, (and some very colorful Welsh and English exclamations from Nathan that had Annalise snickering) a new little witch entered the world.
"Has a name been chosen?" Fitz asked.
Annalise and Gabriel looked up from their spots on either side of Nathan reclined on the bed. He held the tiny little girl against his chest as she nursed, his awestruck gaze stuck on her. "Corianna Marie" he whispered, then looked up carefully at Gabriel and Annalise. Annalise wiped tears welling in her eyes, nodding. They turned their eyes to Gabriel.
Gabriel still looked shellshocked, staring at his daughter. His daughter. He cleared his throat and whispered "Corianna Marie", lips curling up until growing to a tearful grin. "Elle est belle, notre petite merveille." kissing her forehead.
He looked up and gazed at both of his mates, his rarely unguarded face openly full of love. "You are miracles" he murmured, kissing Nathan and then Annalise deeply. Their faces glowed.
Clearing his throat gruffly, Friedrik produced a hip flask and toasted the child with a traditional Schwarzwald Blood Witch blessing, passing the flask around. Hildegard smiled at them and said warmly "I will let Marcus know all is well.” She ushered her menfolk out the door. The alchemist followed, producing three new orbs.
"These will take you home," he handed them each one. "Thank you. I owe you a great debt.”
"The honor was mine—" Great Aunt Hildegard’s eyes were alight. ‘I’ve only read briefly about such Gifts. From what I’ve seen, your family has an extraordinary future.’
Dark thoughts clouded Gabriel’s expression as his eyes grew distant. "I wish not for that."
The healer touched his shoulder, "Have faith in yourself, alchemist, and in Them." She nodded toward the house.
He smiled wryly, "Always in them.”
“I trained once with a decimateur—early in my education. If your Annalise wishes to learn, her gift can be very applicable to the healing arts. She and you all are always welcome at our home." Hildegard nodded to him as she left.
Introducing to Marcus
It didn’t take long for Hildegard’s message to travel, if Marcus’s arrival less than a week later was any indication. The pointed comment about missing details had alarmed him a bit.
The intentional snapping of a twig underfoot announced his presence. Nathan looked up from resting under the large oak, cradling Corianna to his chest as his gardening tools sprawled nearby.
"Oi, where have you been?" Nathan greeted sarcastically. ‘I absorbed this gift that I couldn’t identify." Looking down at his daughter’s sleeping face, he asked her. “I found out the hard way, didn’t I?"
When he was met with silence, Nathan looked up again and straightened. Marcus stood stock still staring at them, and his expression was so raw that Nathan’s heart broke for him.
"C’mere now," he said gently, guiding his father down beside him. ‘Grand-Da.’ He announced proudly, earning a choked laugh from the other witch.
"Meet your new grand-daughter, Coriana Marie Edge" At Marcus’s questioning gaze, he continued solemnly, ‘Gabriel doesn’t know his family name for sure—he believes Mercury stole that too.’
Their attention was stolen by a little noise as Corianna yawned and stretched her whole little body. Waking, she turned dark baby blue eyes on them and cooed. Nathan smiled back, then glanced again to see Marcus utterly absorbed and smitten with the baby. Not remembering that brief happy bubble of his own infancy, he had only rarely seen this side of Marcus Edge. The first time he could ever recall being his Gifting Ceremony, when his father cradled him to his chest and when he spoke tenderly of Cora Bryne, his lost love.
Seeing him now like this, Nathan could almost imagine those precious days that his parents dreamed that maybe they could be happy together, when Jessica wasn’t so damaged, when Nathan himself was only as blessing as a child should be. If he squinted, maybe he could even see the young Blood Witch who had shared love and laughter with his family and sprawling clan, before the Fairborns had wiped them out. Nathan saw unconditional love and new hope in him.
"Do you want ta hold ‘er?” He offered.
Marcus started hard, then glanced up with luminous, wondrous eyes. "May I?" he asked hoarsely, tears pricking. Nathan wordlessly passed over his precious cargo, heart warm and bursting. He glanced over to the porch to see Gabriel and Annalise watching them, intertwined in each other's arms. They just smiled at each other for a moment, or maybe for an eternity, before Nathan went back to watching the so-called devil’s heart heal some in the presence of new kin. It was a bad time to have kids, but maybe it was the perfect time too.
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Notes:
I’ve thought of some funny and smutty pregnancy scenes, as well as the emotional roller coaster Gabriel would have gone through thanks to Mercury induced trauma, but this end seemed to write itself. I feel like Nathan is the open hearted, and no-nonsense foil to his father and the warring witch factions who are stuck in their vengeance, hate, and fear. Nathan has been paying for their sins his whole life, and he’s clearly sick of their feuding and the pointlessness of it. His grandmother, Annalise, and Celia reinforce these beliefs by assuring him that this constant, endless war/feud is wrong, and that he is not born bad.
This fic assumes like many that Gabriel had an abusive childhood and that he’s seen some terrible things in Mercury’s tender care. Since his ‘last name’ literally means button in French, I suspect that is a last name assigned to him by Mercury.
I could have sworn Nathan’s mother was referred to as Jules by other characters, but a fan source said that the tv version was Hayley and the book version was Cora. I chose the second because it worked better in the baby name.