The Next Step || Roddy ||

Dorcas’ voice boomed down the corridor and into his office where he sat at his desk, door ajar at his back as he was expecting to be interrupted any moment now. Rodolphus folded the newspaper in front of him and set in on the desk in front of him. They’d been awaiting the healer’s arrival but he still felt taken off guard by the announcement. It hadn’t been like this with Aurora. She had been planned (though she was supposed to have been a proper male heir) and conceived the traditional way, despite Bella’s disinterest. Healers hadn’t been required until after they suspected a pregnancy. With Dorcas’ stubborn demands that she not ruin her taut little figure just to have Roddy’s baby, there really was only one way to go about things and it meant summoning Healer Hanley early and often. He’d met with Rodolphus and Dorcas on multiple occasions now, though Dorcas had not been aware of all of them. Hanley’s first meeting with her had been some time ago, before their relationship was legitimized, and Dorcas had technically been dead at the onset of their meeting. And brunette, if Rodolphus’ memory served him correctly. Subsequent interactions had all been above board, there was no telling what Healer Hanley thought of the couple after that initial introduction into their shared private lives. Not that Rodolphus worried much about what the help thought of him. If he had, he would have taken more care into being clothed in their presence, but he viewed them much like furniture and he wasn’t going to stop mid-fuck to show some modesty in front of the credenza.

By the time he reached the lounge, Dorcas had already invited Hanley into their home, though an offer to sit appeared to have been overlooked. “Healer Hanley, thank you for coming.” He stepped into the lounge and made his way over to the older gentleman, shaking his hand briefly. “Please, sit.” Rodolphus took up the seat on the sofa next to Dorcas and let his hand rest on her thigh without much attention given to it. “You have news for us, I trust?” That was the point of their meeting today, but the sort of news was yet to be seen. It was expected that Rodolphus have another child, a son. Being a father wasn’t his ultimate goal in life, but he enjoyed it well enough with Aurora and if a second child could wrap the sinister man around their little finger the way Aurora did with her daddy, he would certainly be a spoiled little prince, indeed.

Dorcas might have been done with their meeting, but Rodolphus was not. He felt a thrill of excitement at the half-given announcement and at least one of them needed to speak with the healer about specifics of their unique situation. As always it fell to Rodolphus to be the responsible one of the pair of them. He stared at Dorcas’ arse as she sauntered passed their guest, leaving the healer with a look of disbelief on his face. Soon enough Hanley would come to expect these sorts of displays from Dorcas but thus far the most inappropriate person he’d encountered working for the Lestranges had been Rodolphus himself, and at most a bit of nudity and a call to revive an accidentally murdered mistress was the most absurd house call he’d made – at least to Rodolphus’ knowledge. Who knew, perhaps Ceres and Adolph had similar escapades in their past as he and Dorcas had. Rod was damned well certain that poor Rab never had as much excitement with broomstick-up-her-arse Lilith. Of course, Rodolphus completely omitted any non-sex-based health needs from his thoughts, as the majority of his thoughts were about his dick in some way or another. It felt unnatural to not think about it, or Dorcas’ cunt. Or her arse. Fuck, she had a tight little arse. He was going to tear her apart later, but first they had the healer to attend to. Dorcas so easily distracted Rodolphus.

He leaned forward, reaching for a glass that was waiting for him on the coffee table and smiled as he leaned back into the sofa. “When is she due?” It was the first of many questions Rodolphus held that had absolutely nothing to do with sex. The small part of his brain that afforded such thoughts was packed full of questions. It was too soon to know the gender, but they would be finding out ahead of time. There would be no surprises as had been with his first child. Were there any complications? Was the child healthy? What the fuck were they supposed to do for the next nine months?

Rodolphus could have guessed at his wife’s reaction the moment he heard ‘October’. Dorcas did not fancy sharing anything, least of all her birthday. She was hard pressed to even let Rodolphus be a part of his primary celebrations and sharing the day with her own offspring was certainly not going to go over well. Hopefully, for the child’s sake, he’d come a little early to spare him his mother’s selfishness. Aside from Dorcas’ groaning response, Rodolphus was pleased with the news. They were farther along than he had thought, though in truth he rarely thought far less about this pregnancy than his first wife’s. It was easier when the pregnancy hormones weren’t sleeping in bed next to you every night, slapping you in your sleep for snoring or stealing the blankets or any other offense committed unconsciously and unfairly attributed to thinking she was fat (even if she was). Dorcas usually only kicked Rodolphus for such things, and then promptly rolled over and returned to slumberland without the dramatics. He would be happy for that small salvation of not having to deal with a waddling Dorcas drunk on pregnancy hormones tromping around the chateau, even if it meant explaining to his parents the unconventional manner by which they would be having their next grandchild.

Hanley was talking of eggs now and Roddy was just beginning to tune the man out. He didn’t fancy a maths lesson. It was lucky that the Healer knew Rodolphus well enough to know that he was spending more attention on his drink at that moment and less on the conversation, carefully explaining exactly his meaning and stopping Rodolphus mid-swallow with the word ‘twins’. “Merlin’s hairy balls,” he exclaimed when he finally managed to swallow the liquid that seemed stuck in his throat. Roddy looked to Dorcas who was cursing and looking like she’d just seen a muggle for the first time. “Twins?” he asked the room at large, as if this were some big misunderstanding. “We’re having two? I’ll have two heirs? Fuck, that’s… fuck.” He was dumbstruck but cognizant enough to recognize that he was smiling. The thought that he would have two sons was overwhelming and unexpected, though not as concerning to Rodolphus as it appeared to be to Dorcas.

Threats against his life were not new to Rod, not by his wife nor any true enemy. They rolled off him like a water on a duck’s back, but the idea that he might have purposefully conspired to have twins was humorous. He chuckled slightly, setting his glass on the table in front of him as he stood and crossed the room toward Dorcas. He looked down at her, unable and unwilling to hide the pleasure on his face. They were having a child – two children, and Roddy was absolutely thrilled with it. “You know I would love nothing more than to give you a reason to try, darling,” he said as he snaked a hand around her waist and rested it on her arse. “But even with all the gold in my vault I don’t believe I could have set this up.” Perhaps this was fate punishing her for aborting his first child so many years ago, though Rodolphus didn’t really believe in that sort of thing. Fate was a poor man’s excuse, and Rodolphus was anything but. “It might be best if you leave now.” Rodolphus’ volume raised as he spoke to Healer Hanley while still looking at the thoroughly pissed off face of his attractive lover. It was for Hanley’s own good that he be sent away, lest he witness Dorcas’ attempt at punishing Rodolphus for coercing her into the life she had always wanted. “We’ll be in touch.”