Chapter 91

"Do you want to hold him?"

Hu Yetao blinked and looked up to see Su Miake smiling at him. He would never have thought such a gentle look possible from her after the way she'd acted at that first Board meeting.

"Sure," he replied uncertainly; he'd never held a baby before and he didn't want to drop him; he looked incredibly fragile.

But he ought to learn since he would be holding his own in nine months. That thought both excited and terrified him in equal measures.

Hu Yetao held out his arms, trying to mimic the way Su Miake had had her arms positioned.

Su Miake handed him over and Hu Yetao carefully pulled the little boy into his chest, making sure to support his frighteningly floppy neck.

Hu Yetao held his breath as blue eyes opened for a second to look up at him and then closed again, his little rosebud mouth moving as though chewing before he quickly settled back to sleep again.

Hu Yetao smiled, Su Mo's body was so warm and he smelled so good. "Hi Su Mo," he said to the slumbering newborn. "Be nice to your big sister and try not to steal all the attention, okay?"

There was a giggle from Su Min and Hu Yetao grinned at her as he unconsciously started to rock Su Mo a little from side to side.

"You're a natural Mr. Yetao," Su Miake's husband observed jovially.

Hu Yetao looked up and smiled, feeling his cheeks flush a little in embarrassment.

"I'm Su Xia, by the way."

"Nice to meet you," Hu Yetao replied with a nod, "and congratulations."

"My wife did all the work," he answered honestly, slipping an arm around his wife's shoulders. "She was amazing."

Su Miake rolled her eyes. "And Su Xia had to be restrained so that he wouldn't hurt the Healer - who was just doing his job," she said, poking him in the ribs.

Su Xia smiled self-consciously. "It's hard to sit back and see your mate in so much pain." He glanced at Oscar. "You'll see Wang, one day it will be you watching Hu Yetao scream bloody murder. And I've heard male Omegas have a really tough time of it."

Hu Yetao swallowed and glanced at Oscar, who looked slightly stricken.

"Xia." Su Miake glared. "Don't say such things; you'll scare poor Hu Yetao into not having any children." She turned back to Hu Yetao holding her son. "You'll do fine, you're strong."

Hu Yetao tried to feel reassured but he only felt nauseous.

He quickly turned back to gaze down at Su Mo again, seeking reassurance in his warm weight and serene expression. Hu Yetao felt his expression soften and his heart melt a little.

He could do this, whatever happened, it would be worth it.

He glanced up to find Oscar's assessing gaze on him and he smiled a little at the warm affection there. His Alpha looked affected by the sight of Hu Yetao holding the baby, he must have been thinking about how his mate was carrying their child right at that very moment. He hadn't looked like that since the pregnancy confirmation in the infirmary.

"Do you want to hold him?" Hu Yetao asked.

Oscar's eyes widened and Hu Yetao passed him over before his mate could protest.

Oscar swiftly recovered and pulled the baby into his chest. He stared down at him with both fear and wonder on his face.

Hu Yetao grinned and then spotted Shui Xian and his husband watching them from nearby. She smiled at Hu Yetao and he could see the slight sheen to her pale eyes, clearly moved by the sight of her son holding little Su Mo. Xiaocheng's eyes were also on Oscar but Hu Yetao couldn't read his mood at all.

Hu Yetao turned back to watch his mate and had to force himself to not put a hand on his stomach, the urge to connect to his growing baby nearly overwhelmed him. He'd been so busy worrying about Oscar and everyone's reaction to him being pregnant, that he'd hardly had the time to think about being pregnant; to enjoy it, or even to anticipate their child's arrival on any level.

He was a bit saddened that his experience thus far had been somewhat tainted by everything else going on.

There was a gentle but insistent tugging at his trousers and Hu Yetao broke out of his wandering thoughts to find Su Min staring up at him impatiently.

"Are you done with the baby now?" she asked.

He laughed, as did Su Miake and Su Xia.

"Yes, I'm all yours now," he replied. He glanced at Oscar, who was still staring at the baby in his arms. "You okay if I entertain Su Min for a minute?"

Oscar finally looked up and nodded. He opened his mouth as though to say something and then shut it again, before nodding once more.

Hu Yetao smiled, knowing Oscar probably had all sorts of baby-related thoughts running through his head. He touched his Alpha's arm briefly before turning his attention back to Su Min, hoping Oscar wasn't exhausted enough to accidentally drop the baby in his absence. Su Miake's mild-mannered countenance would probably turn feral fairly quickly if he did.

He took Su Min's hand and steered her out of the grand ballroom and back into the large hallway. "Your house is very beautiful," he said to her as they walked past gilded paintings and red velvet wall hangings.

"Yes it is," she said solemnly, causing Hu Yetao to grin at the blunt immodesty that only a child could get away with.

He took her around the corner and stopped, looking around to make sure they were alone first before crouching down to her level.

"How would you like to be invisible?" he whispered. "Just for tonight?"

Su Min's eyes widened. "Invisible?" she repeated in a hushed voice.

Hu Yetao nodded and then brought out his Cloak from under his arm. "This is an Invisibility Cloak," he whispered seriously. "If you put it on then no one will be able to see you. You can sneak up on anyone's conversation and hear what they're saying without them knowing you're even there."

Su Min's eyes lit up as she smiled, greedily reaching for the Cloak.

Hu Yetao placed it in her hands but didn't let go as he looked her in the eye. "This Cloak is very special to me, my father left it to me, so I need you to take extra special care of it - and don't let anyone else use it or even see it, all right?"

Su Min nodded gravely and Hu Yetao knew she understood and that she would take care of his beloved Cloak.

"Don't take it outside but you're free to wander the house with it," Hu Yetao added, not wanting the Cloak to be dragged through the snow and slush.

"Thank you Hu Yetao," she replied, hugging the garment to her stomach, expression earnest. "I won't let anything happen to it."

"I know you won't," Hu Yetao replied with a smile. "Make sure you keep an eye out for me getting ready to leave later because I won't be able to find you."

Su Min giggled and nodded. She swung the Cloak around her tiny shoulders and everything south of her neck disappeared.

Hu Yetao grinned and reached out to flip the hood of the Cloak up over her head until not a trace of her could be seen. "Remember people can still bump into you, so stay out of their way or you'll be discovered - and no eavesdropping on me, okay?"

"Okay Hu Yetao," the disembodied voice replied cheerfully.

Hu Yetao straightened and listened to her shoes tap away on the hard flooring back towards the ballroom.

He chuckled and slipped his hands into his pockets as he also made his way back. He'd now solved the problem of where to keep his Cloak while he was at the party as well as giving his little friend something to keep her occupied with while her brother was showered with attention.

Hu Yetao stood in the doorway, idly watching the crowded room. He spotted Oscar over with his parents at the far right side of the room, looking as though the three of them were having a somewhat serious conversation.

He hoped they weren't talking about his pregnancy because Su Min could be lurking nearby. He was fairly confident that they wouldn't discuss such a thing in a room full of people though. Being Nundu, they would be quite adept at keeping secrets.

Hu Yetao was startled when something brushed against his neck and he turned to see a tall man he didn't recognize, apparently sniffing at his neck and invading his personal space in a way that instantly had him on edge.

"What are you doing?" Hu Yetao demanded with a frown, taking a step back.

The man, who looked to be in his forties, leered at him. "You smell delicious little Omega," he practically purred, looking drunk on Hu Yetao's scent. "I was hoping you would dance with me."

"No thank you," Hu Yetao quickly replied. "My Alpha wouldn't like it - and neither would I, for that matter."

The man's expression darkened and Hu Yetao felt his heart rate tick up in response.

"Hu Yetao, darling, you promised me a dance."

Hu Yetao nearly sighed in relief as Chenchen suddenly appeared and grabbed him by the arm. She flashed a faux apologetic look back at the stranger as she dragged Hu Yetao away to the dance floor.

"You're welcome Yetao," she smirked as she forcefully positioned Hu Yetao's arms around her and then nudged him to start dancing.

Hu Yetao smiled at her. "Thanks, you're a lifesaver. I hate dancing but it's worth it to be away from that handsy Alpha."

Chenchen threw her head back and laughed. "You hate dancing because you're terrible at it Yetao," she said, unashamedly taking the lead in their waltzing as she moved them across the floor amongst all the other couples. "You'd better get used to it because Oscar loves dancing, all Purebloods do, and he will expect you to be presentable at your wedding."

Hu Yetao snorted. "Well I'm not a Pureblood and there isn't going to be a wedding."

Chenchen narrowed her eyes. "You don't want to marry Oscar?"

"I would if he asked but I don't think he's interested in marriage. I think Claiming me was enough for him. I don't care either way."

Chenchen narrowed her eyes disbelievingly. "I'll speak to him about it," she said decidedly. "He's just not thinking straight, which I meant to talk to you about," she continued blithely. "What is up with Oscar lately? Are you keeping him up with wild animal sex every night or something? Because he looks completely worn out."

Hu Yetao almost replied with 'I wish' but wasn't about to get into a discussion about his sex life - or lack thereof - with Chenchen. He decided to go with just a few kernels of truth mixed in with deliberate evasion.

"No, he's just really worried about me getting attacked again and attaining high scores in his N.E.W.T's," Hu Yetao replied smoothly. "All this stress is keeping him up nights. I'm about to demand some Dreamless Sleep from Chen for him to get some proper rest."

Chenchen nodded. "See that you do Yetao. I worry about him - but don't tell him that."

Hu Yetao grinned. "I wouldn't dream of it, Parkinson."

"That boy keeps too much to himself," she continued and then sighed. "All Slytherins do to an extent, but Oscar, in particular, has made a nasty habit of it."

Hu Yetao also felt like sighing. "Yeah, I'm learning that," he said vaguely.

Chenchen eyed him shrewdly. "I never would have thought I'd say this but, you're good for him Yetao. You care about him but you also don't put up with his shit. He needs that."

Hu Yetao chuckled and then on a whim, spun Chenchen out and back in before dipping her low as the last note of the violin faded away.

Chenchen laughed in surprise and then smirked at him as he lifted her back up. "Nicely done," she said, clapping along with everyone else as they applauded the string quartet. "Not bad for an Omega."

Hu Yetao snorted but didn't respond as he applauded the musicians, who nodded in acknowledgment before beginning the next piece.

Hu Yetao turned back to Chenchen only to find Keyu suddenly standing in front of him.

"My turn," he said abruptly as he took Harry's hand for the next dance.

Chenchen looked as though she was about to protest but another young man swooped in and asked her to dance.

"Don't do it, Yetao," she said over her shoulder before walking off with the smiling man.

Hu Yetao frowned and began to take a step back. "She's right, Oscar wouldn't like it."

Zhou Keyu smirked and glanced over Hu Yetao's shoulder to the far side of the room. "I don't think he cares about much of anything right now Yetao."

Hu Yetao turned and quickly spotted his mate sitting slouched over in a chair at the side of the room, head resting against the side of the armchair with eyes closed and lips slightly parted.

He was fast asleep.

Zhou Keyu pulled Hu Yetao into his arms and began to dance before Hu Yetao could think of a response. He frowned at Keyu and decided to just allow the one dance and avoid making a scene.

"Just one dance Keyu," Hu Yetao warned.

"Of course," Keyu grinned triumphantly. "I do hope Oscar isn't drooling over there, he'll be most embarrassed."

Hu Yetao glanced over at his Alpha with concern. "I'd wake him but really, he needs the rest."

"It's almost as though he's preoccupied with other things," Keyu said pointedly.

Hu Yetao turned back to face him, frown deepening.

"I noticed your faux pas with the champagne there Yetao, I'm sure one little sip isn't going to-"

"Shh!" Hu Yetao hissed as they moved around the floor. He wasn't even really paying attention to what his body was doing as Keyu smoothly led him in the fast-paced waltz. "Don't say it."

"It's true though, isn't it?"

"I'm not telling you anything," Hu Yetao replied stiffly.

Keyu laughed. "I'm not an idiot Yetao, I know."

"You're guessing," Hu Yetao shot back.

Keyu smiled and shrugged. "It's an educated guess - but I'll stop talking about it."

"Thank you." Hu Yetao hoped the song would be over soon, he didn't feel comfortable dancing with an Alpha who he knew was interested in him. Or at least, one that used to be interested in him - before the pregnancy. "I'm surprised you wanted to dance with me Zhou Keyu, I thought Alphas weren't interested in Omega's who are you-know-what."

Keyu arched a brow. "I'm not dancing with you because I want to shag you, Yetao, I just wanted to dance and make some of the other men jealous."

Hu Yetao relaxed a fraction. "Oh."

Keyu swung him around with a grin. "You're not that irresistible Yetao."

Hu Yetao finally cracked a reluctant smile. "I'm hurt Zhou Keyu."

The Slytherin chuckled. "Knew you had a huge ego."

Hu Yetao laughed as Keyu spun him out and in, just as he'd done to Chenchen.

Hu Yetao blinked, the spin suddenly making him a little dizzy.

Keyu paused, his smile replaced with a frown of concern. "You all right Yetao?"

Hu Yetao's stomach churned and he quickly shook his head. "Just… just a little dizzy."

Keyu quickly took him by the arm and led him off the dance floor. "Come on, let's get you some fresh air."