(no subject)
Warning! Read the challenge first. Then you will know whether or not this is a story you want to read.
The Challenge: It starts with a secret pregnancy. Somehow Harry becomes pregnant, but keeps it a secret from most (few can know, or it can be a complete secret). He gives birth, at some point he finds out that Severus is the other father.
Meanwhile Severus gets sick and finds out that his only chance of survival is to get some sort of magical transfusion (or any other fake or real condition) but this requires his immediate family to be tested. Snape thinks he's doomed because he has no real family to speak of, or so he believes. Harry hears about it and returns to Hogwarts with their child to try to save Snape. Snape has to deal with finding out he's closer to being connected to Harry than he thought, and a child he didn't know existed.
Authors Notes: I thought carefully about this challenge since I don't normally do AU fics and decided to do an alternative sixth year where none of the major things that happened in HBP are taken into account (I actually love HBP and respect the points of no return which occurred; they just won't work for this story). There will still be a few small details from HBP such as Harry being Quidditch captain and inheriting Grimmald Place. This is not the norm for me, but should be an interesting deviation.
chapter one: the secret pregnancy
"Inspirum Gravida," shouted a familiar voice from behind a tapestry in the dungeon. A pink light hit Harry Potter in the stomach, and he doubled over in pain. He didn't need the chorus of guffaws going on in front of him to know what had just happened. His winning team had won last weekend's Quidditch match against Slytherin, and Draco Malfoy just couldn't let it go. Normally, Harry avoided Malfoy's hexes, but he couldn't very well avoid walking past all possible hiding places on the way to Potions. 'Well,' Harry thought, 'A punch in the stomach isn't the worst pain I've ever suffered, and if Malfoy needs a spell to do it for him, he isn't worth the points Gryffindor would loose if I punch him back.' Ron and Hermione helped Harry off the floor just as Snape strode into the hallway.
He smirked almost imperceptibly and said, "Fifteen points from Gryffindor for not being in your seats."
Ron opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione hastily whispered, "No, we'll just lose more points."
Harry had a sore stomach for next several days; he decided that ignoring it was the best strategy, as people who saw an uninjured person without obvious signs of a well-known illness enter or leave the hospital wing asked too many questions, and whether or not you answered them had no bearing on the rumors which would circulate about your condition. On the tenth morning after Malfoy's hex, Harry was vomiting violently into the toilet in the lavatory nearest to the dormitory.
Ron stood outside the stall, "Are you ok, mate?"
Harry stepped out of the stall and replied shakily, "I'm fine. Just great."
They met up with Hermione, who was just leaving Gryffindor Tower for breakfast. "Harry, you don't look so good."
Harry replied, "I don't feel so good. That hex really did something to me."
Hermione asked, "What was that hex again? I have some time before Arithmancy. I'll go to the library and look it up to see how long it lasts."
"It was called Inspirum Gravada. Thanks, Hermione."
At lunchtime, they all sat down at the Gryffindor table, Hermione looking very grave.
"So, did you find out how long the hex lasts?" Harry asked quietly.
Hermione nodded. "It lasts for approximately nine months, maybe longer if you -"
"Nine months!" Ron exclaimed through a mouthful of carrots.
Hermione nodded. "Yes, that's because the spell causes pregnancy."
Harry almost fell out of his seat. Ron laughed, "Come on, now, Hermione, really, Harry's going to fine in a couple of days, right?"
Hermione shook her head. "It's kind of like love spells. It isn't dark or particularly dangerous, but it's wrong to use it against someone. We should go to Dumbledore immediately."
Ron grinned and said, "Malfoy will be expelled for sure."
Harry finally managed to utter a one-word question, "How?"
Hermione replied, "Well, the spell was created by a desperate witch who couldn't get pregnant so she figured out how to get her husband pregnant. It takes the genetic material of the person who is hit with the spell and combines it with that of the first person who uses magic around him. If that person doesn't have the, um, parts needed to have a baby, the spell changes the body as needed."
"Neither of you did any magic when you helped me up, did you?" Ron and Hermione shook their heads.
"Then it could be anybody in class, or even in the hallway after class."
Since there was no "foolish wand waving" in Potions, any certainty of who used magic first during or after class was impossible.
"Well, Harry, you could get a potion from Madame Pomfrey." Hermione said so quietly they could barely hear her.
"Oh, the nausea's fine now." Harry replied.
Hermione shook her head. "No, not for that--"
Harry stood up from the table. "No. I can't. I won't."
That night, when they were finally left alone in the common room. Hermione figured the due date to be sometime in the week after Harry's birthday.
"Well then, it's simple," Harry said, "We don't tell anyone. I will be an adult, and nobody will be able to do anything to me. I don't even have to come back to school if I don't want to."
Ron and Hermione weren't so sure about keeping this a secret, but they vowed to help in any way they could.
Thankfully, the morning bouts of nausea stopped the following month, and Harry felt almost entirely normal. Hermione learned a spell to listen to the baby's heartbeat. When they tried it out one night after the common room had emptied, Harry could hardly believe what he heard. At first, the idea of a baby had terrified him, then he had went into a comfortable state of denial. Now, it was all so very real to him. He was going to be a single teenage father. His whole world would change, but, on the other hand, he had a chance at the family he always wanted. It would only be a family of two, but that was still better than being in a family of four where you weren't even treated as part of the family.
Another month passed and Harry was practicing with his Quidditch team for an upcoming match against Ravenclaw. Hermione told Harry he needed to quit playing before he managed to injure the baby. Luckily, Ron came to his defense with a story about the Chudley Cannons' seeker, Belinda Marsh, winning a match just three weeks before her baby was born. All Hermione could reply with was how irresponsible that was. Harry was intrigued by this story and later asked Ron to loan him his book about the Chudley Cannons to see what precautions, if any, were taken. He was quite surprised to find out that most of the opposing team had not even known she was pregnant.
By the time Christmas holiday came, Harry felt he needed to use the Concealing Charm Hermione had taught him to make sure that no one could suspect the secret he was keeping. It had to be done every two hours to be effective, but as Harry was already ducking into the loo to pee almost that often, this was not a major problem. Although his robes would hide any minor hint of roundness for at least a few months, Harry wasn't taking the chance that he might forget to clasp his robe closed enough. For Christmas, Harry got a set of color-change baby clothes, which would change color based on the baby's mood, from Hermione. In a strange turn of gift-giving, Ron gave Harry a copy of his mother's favorite baby book, Spellbound New Moms and Magical Babies.
Before they knew it, spring had sprung. Harry had become moody and often took long walks on the grounds alone. He occasionally visited Hagrid, but did not confide in him because Hagrid could not keep secrets from Dumbledore. Harry sort of suspected that Dumbledore already knew his secret (he seemed to know everything else), but also knew that he would respect Harry's right not to talk about his pregnancy or future plans.
Summer came without incident for Harry. After what seemed like Hermione's millionth lecture on eating properly and taking care of himself for the baby, Harry forbade any further mention of his health, the baby, or anything remotely pregnancy-related. So the Golden Trio all became a bit more prone to fits of the sullens, as Molly would say, and far less likely to be caught sneaking out of Gryffindor Tower after curfew, except if it was Harry having a sleepless night and going down to the kitchen for a snack and friendly conversation with Dobby.
chapter 2: the birth
It almost seemed that the school year had just begun when it came to an end. Ron had decided that Harry would stay at the Dursley's for only a few days before coming to the Burrow for the summer.
Being underfed had been bad for him as a growing boy, but as a pregnant and still growing teenage boy, it was much worse. At least now Dudley's clothes from last year fit with Harry just having to leave the jeans unbuttoned. On his second night there, he laid down to rest, but he got right back up. What had been a dull ache in his lower back had turned into pains that radiated all the way around his midsection. He carefully redid the Concealing Charm and half-walked, half-waddled to the loo. He then got a pain in his abdomen so sharp that he had to take a deep breath. No more than five minutes passed before another pain came.
Duddley pounded on the door, "Hurry up in there! I gotta go."
Harry drew a sharp intake of breath and yelled back, "Go to the fucking downstairs loo, you whiney git!"
Dudley was so shocked that he scurried down the stairs without saying another word. Harry knew he would hear it later about his language from Aunt Petunia, but at this particular moment, he didn't care.
"No, baby, not now, not here," Harry whispered to the child, whom he hoped was listening.
He turned the shower on warm and stepped in. A tear fell down his face, and he clenched his eyes shut. The warm water felt good on his belly. He could feel the tightening of his abdomen, but there was no more pain involved. After he calmed down, he slipped into bed and went to sleep.
Finally, on the eve of the sixth night at the Dursley's, Pigwigeon arrived in a flutter with a small note. She was so excited at having found the addressee that she almost left without allowing Harry to remove the note from her leg.
Dear Harry,
I wish you would have let me tell my mum why you wanted to come so soon; she didn't say yes until an owl arrived this afternoon from Dumbledore saying to go ahead and get you tomorrow. You can let the Muggles know we're coming, or not, doesn't really matter.
See you tomorrow around 12:30.
Ron
Harry almost jumped for joy, but he was far too tired. The following morning, he awoke to Aunt Petunia yelling, "Time to cook and not burn the breakfast!" Harry pulled the cover tight over him. He hoped it had been sufficiently covering him. He remembered the last time he had done the Concealing Charm was a little before four in the morning when he had to go to the loo, and it was after 6:30 now so he quickly redid the charm with his wand, which had not been confiscated (the one locked in the cupboard was a fancy joke wand courtesy of Fred and George).
"Mum! Mum!," Dudley was yelling as he ambled heavily down the stairs, "I saw Harry with his cover half off when I got up to use the loo last night, and his stomach, it looked like he was p--pregnant."
Aunt Petunia stopped what she was doing and eyed Harry suspiciously before replying, "Oh, my little Dudders has such a creative imagination! It was a funny dream, a very funny dream." And she laughed a false high laugh.
Uncle Vernon half chuckled and half coughed over his coffee and newspaper.
Dudley kept staring at Harry's midsection, and Harry simply smiled back. He should have known Dudley would sneak into his room at night for one reason or another; he wondered if Dudley was looking for sweets or simply listening for him to possibly mutter in his sleep. It didn't matter. He was leaving today and, hopefully, would never come back.
As promised, at 12:30 there was a knock at the door. Harry was cleaning the banister on the stairway and carefully came down the stairs. When Aunt Petunia opened the door, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Ron stood at the doorway, and a nice, new Ministry of Magic car sat in the driveway. Aunt Petunia looked like she could faint at the sight of them. Dudley appeared to be holding his tongue, quite literally, and Uncle Vernon just grunted, "You can have Harry. He's grown too sickly and pale at that school of yours to do anything useful." Harry couldn't believe his luck; he was leaving without a fuss. Mr. Weasley raised his wand and said "Accio Harry's trunk!"
Mrs. Weasley asked Harry if he needed to get anything else. Harry had his wand tucked into his pocket hiding beneath his shirt. He carefully Accioed Hedwig's cage. She hooted wildly all the way down the stairs. Harry caught the cage, but Molly took it from him, muttering loud enough for the startled Dursley's to hear, "Really, cleaning without magic in your delicate condition. Let's leave these crazy Muggles." Dudley was horror struck. Aunt Petunia gasped, and Uncle Vernon turned very red. Harry said, "See ya." and walked out of their lives forever.
Before they got into the car, Molly Weasley hugged him and patted his belly. Ron was red faced. "I didn't tell her; I swear."
"Oh," Molly replied, "I knew it when I saw you get off the train. It was the rosy cheeks that gave it away. Am I safe in assuming none of my children are responsible in any way?"
Ron came to his defense, "No, Mum, it was a hex. No idea who the other parent might be."
Arthur said, "Who was it that did the hex?"
Harry replied, "It doesn't matter. What's done is done. As far as I'm concerned,
the child is mine alone. If you want, you can drop me off at Grimmald Place."
Molly smiled at him. "Now, Harry, you can't expect us to leave you alone at a time like this." Harry returned her smile.
The Burrow was everything Harry remembered. Ginny came out to greet him. Mrs. Weasley made him sit down and eat. That evening Hermione came for a visit, insisting she was staying until the baby came. This brought to the forefront of Harry's mind the event he was dreading. He had read about it in Spellbound New Moms and Magical Babies. The book described the physical process in a straightforward manner, but it had also said that pain potions could not be used for this purpose because they would go directly to the baby. It also recommended against any spells that cause sedation as injury to the caster when the mother woke up was very likely.
Spending lazy summer days at the Burrow was wonderful. He didn't bother using the Concealing Charm; they all came to enjoy watching the baby's various body parts, especially the bum, stick up against Harry's stomach. Harry started sleeping more than he felt he should, but Molly said that he should store up as much sleep as he could because he would need it later.
Harry's seventeenth birthday was quite a celebration with all sorts of gifts. The most interesting of the gifts was from Hagrid. Several school owls were carrying a funny looking basket. A wild yipping came from inside. Hermione expressed her sincere hope that it didn't have three heads. When Harry opened the basket, a puppy that looked suspiciously like Fang jumped into his arms. The note attached to his collar said:
Happee Birthday Harry!
Fang got a girlfriend in the forest. This was the runt of the litter, and I didn't think he'd make it on his own. Hope you like him.
Hagrid
Everyone laughed as Harry was thoroughly licked. He set the puppy down and it's whine sounded very wolfish, but Harry decided not to ask Hagrid what the mother dog looked like.
That evening, Harry rested on the living room sofa. Mrs. Weasley offered him another piece of birthday cake. Harry shook his head and rubbed his lower abdomen. He was going to just go to bed and forget about his stomach, but a nervous voice in the back of his head said he might not be getting any sleep that night.
"Um, I was just wondering," He asked nervously, "How much does it have to hurt for it to be time for, um--"
"Oh," Molly said excitedly, "I wouldn't get my hopes up for tonight unless you absolutely can't lie down. When it comes again, let me feel your stomach."
Ron watched from what he felt was a safe distance as his mother carefully raised Harry's shirt and laid her hand gently on his stomach. A few slightly tense moments passed before the strong tight feeling in Harry's stomach made another appearance. Molly didn't start to talk until it passed.
She smiled and said, "I'd say that's getting strong enough. How long has this been going on?"
Harry shrugged and answered, "I thought I felt something this morning. Then, this afternoon, it got like this. I figured it would go away again like it did before."
"Well, I'd have been complaining by now. You just try to relax. I know that's easier said than done." She bent down slightly and said very softly in his ear, "Now, you feel free to curse and scream whenever you feel like it. Merlin knows I did."
Harry laughed. "I'm ok, really."
Molly then said, "I'll go upstairs and let the girls know. I say the more support you have the easier it will be."
Harry and Ron nervously stared at each other. Ron asked tentatively, "Is it really so bad you want to scream?"
Harry replied, "It's no worse than when my scar hurts."
The girls came bounding down the stairs. They chattered excitedly.
Molly came down and waved her wand and the lights dimmed. This seemed to set a quiet mood for everyone.
"Now, Harry, you just make yourself comfortable and let your body do its thing." She then went into the kitchen and got some drinks for everyone. It was butterbeers for everyone, except Harry, who got a lemonade.
Harry wondered how long he would have to go through this and what would happen when this was over. He hadn't had a chance to gather too many things, and he didn't even have a room set up for the baby at Grimmald Place. Why was he thinking about all this now? He began to feel emotionally overwhelmed and tears started streaming down his face. Ginny sat down beside him and hugged him.
Molly knelt beside him and asked softly, "What's wrong?"
Harry sniffled as he replied, "I can't be having a baby! I know I'm supposed to be brave, but I just want it to stop!"
Molly took hold of his hand and said in her most gentle voice, "Not everybody believes this, but I think that birth is a sort of right of passage into parenthood. If you can get through this, you can get through everything life is going to throw at you. I think you are already being brave."
Harry smiled at her and said, "Then you must be really brave. Is it true you forget about all the pain when you see your baby?"
Molly laughed. "No, that's just part of what you remember. I still remember each of my children's births as if they happened only yesterday. I remember that it hurt, but I also remember how happy I was."
Ron and Ginny both rolled their eyes; they knew what was coming.
"Bill was born in our bedroom. Arthur was stupid enough to knock me out with a spell. Let's just say he never considered doing that again. Charlie was almost born outside. We thought we had plenty of time to take a walk. Percy was born very matter-of-factly on the sofa here. Fred and George decided to both enter the world bum-first. Now, Ron caused my wand to be confiscated temporarily by my husband, owing to a well placed hex that made him experience what I was experiencing. And finally, Ginny was born in the bathtub. I really only meant to relax there for a little while, but it turned out to be pleasant and peaceful."
"I like the bath idea. I think I need to be alone for a while."
Mrs. Weasley looked very concernedly at him. "We'll all wait in here for you, but you take your wand in with you just in case you need anything."
Harry nodded and walked as carefully as he could out of the room before he had another nearly unbearable pain. He went into the bathroom where the Weasley's old-fashioned claw foot bathtub awaited him. He locked the door and put an Imperturbable Charm on it. Then, the pain he had so carefully been ignoring hit him like a ton of bricks. He yelled every curse word in the English language, and it seemed, a few of their French and Latin equivalents, (Hermione would have been impressed) at the top of his lungs, knowing that no one would hear him.
He relaxed in the bath and enjoyed a much needed break in the intensity of the pain. When he was ready, he got out of the tub and put on his dressing gown. He ambled slowly back into the living room. Mrs. Weasley insisted on putting a blanket around him as he paced impatiently.
After a couple of hours had passed, Harry began to feel different. The sensations he was feeling had moved distinctly lower. He didn't feel like he could pace anymore, so he sat down gingerly on the nest of blankets Mrs. Weasley had prepared for him on the floor. Everyone was sitting by him. It was quiet except for a few moans from him. Suddenly, the moans changed to grunts of effort. At first, Harry didn't even realize what he was doing. Then he felt Ginny sitting behind him, supporting him upright. Ron and Hermione were on either side, whispering words of encouragement. Molly was sitting near his feet. It seemed to take a long time, but at least it wasn't as painful as earlier. He reached down to feel what was going on and found that he was touching the top of his baby's head. Molly was grinning widely and she nodded at him in silent encouragement.
Only a couple of minutes passed before he heard the most beautiful sound in the world, his baby. Molly gently laid the baby on Harry's stomach and put a warm blanket over them. Harry peeked under the blanket before announcing that he had a baby girl, and her name was Lily.
Hermoine looked at her watch and said, "11:59-- Harry, she shares your birthday."
Lily nursed happily, wide-eyed and alert. She had dark hair which was very untidy and looked as if it would never stay in one position for too long. Harry looked into her eyes. They were as black as a starless night. He realized with a shock that he knew these eyes. He had been forced to look into them during his ill-fated Occlumency lessons. Her eyes showed a hint of great intelligence. They were clear and full of emotion, unlike her other father's which were opaque. Harry realized what should have been obvious. Snape had taken points from Gryffindor in the hallway that afternoon, casting a spell which caused red beads to trickle down from the Gryffindor House point counter in the Great Hall. With Ginny now cooing over the baby and not sitting behind Harry, when he passed out, his head hit the edge of the blanket mere inches from the bare floor.
The Challenge: It starts with a secret pregnancy. Somehow Harry becomes pregnant, but keeps it a secret from most (few can know, or it can be a complete secret). He gives birth, at some point he finds out that Severus is the other father.
Meanwhile Severus gets sick and finds out that his only chance of survival is to get some sort of magical transfusion (or any other fake or real condition) but this requires his immediate family to be tested. Snape thinks he's doomed because he has no real family to speak of, or so he believes. Harry hears about it and returns to Hogwarts with their child to try to save Snape. Snape has to deal with finding out he's closer to being connected to Harry than he thought, and a child he didn't know existed.
Authors Notes: I thought carefully about this challenge since I don't normally do AU fics and decided to do an alternative sixth year where none of the major things that happened in HBP are taken into account (I actually love HBP and respect the points of no return which occurred; they just won't work for this story). There will still be a few small details from HBP such as Harry being Quidditch captain and inheriting Grimmald Place. This is not the norm for me, but should be an interesting deviation.
chapter one: the secret pregnancy
"Inspirum Gravida," shouted a familiar voice from behind a tapestry in the dungeon. A pink light hit Harry Potter in the stomach, and he doubled over in pain. He didn't need the chorus of guffaws going on in front of him to know what had just happened. His winning team had won last weekend's Quidditch match against Slytherin, and Draco Malfoy just couldn't let it go. Normally, Harry avoided Malfoy's hexes, but he couldn't very well avoid walking past all possible hiding places on the way to Potions. 'Well,' Harry thought, 'A punch in the stomach isn't the worst pain I've ever suffered, and if Malfoy needs a spell to do it for him, he isn't worth the points Gryffindor would loose if I punch him back.' Ron and Hermione helped Harry off the floor just as Snape strode into the hallway.
He smirked almost imperceptibly and said, "Fifteen points from Gryffindor for not being in your seats."
Ron opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione hastily whispered, "No, we'll just lose more points."
Harry had a sore stomach for next several days; he decided that ignoring it was the best strategy, as people who saw an uninjured person without obvious signs of a well-known illness enter or leave the hospital wing asked too many questions, and whether or not you answered them had no bearing on the rumors which would circulate about your condition. On the tenth morning after Malfoy's hex, Harry was vomiting violently into the toilet in the lavatory nearest to the dormitory.
Ron stood outside the stall, "Are you ok, mate?"
Harry stepped out of the stall and replied shakily, "I'm fine. Just great."
They met up with Hermione, who was just leaving Gryffindor Tower for breakfast. "Harry, you don't look so good."
Harry replied, "I don't feel so good. That hex really did something to me."
Hermione asked, "What was that hex again? I have some time before Arithmancy. I'll go to the library and look it up to see how long it lasts."
"It was called Inspirum Gravada. Thanks, Hermione."
At lunchtime, they all sat down at the Gryffindor table, Hermione looking very grave.
"So, did you find out how long the hex lasts?" Harry asked quietly.
Hermione nodded. "It lasts for approximately nine months, maybe longer if you -"
"Nine months!" Ron exclaimed through a mouthful of carrots.
Hermione nodded. "Yes, that's because the spell causes pregnancy."
Harry almost fell out of his seat. Ron laughed, "Come on, now, Hermione, really, Harry's going to fine in a couple of days, right?"
Hermione shook her head. "It's kind of like love spells. It isn't dark or particularly dangerous, but it's wrong to use it against someone. We should go to Dumbledore immediately."
Ron grinned and said, "Malfoy will be expelled for sure."
Harry finally managed to utter a one-word question, "How?"
Hermione replied, "Well, the spell was created by a desperate witch who couldn't get pregnant so she figured out how to get her husband pregnant. It takes the genetic material of the person who is hit with the spell and combines it with that of the first person who uses magic around him. If that person doesn't have the, um, parts needed to have a baby, the spell changes the body as needed."
"Neither of you did any magic when you helped me up, did you?" Ron and Hermione shook their heads.
"Then it could be anybody in class, or even in the hallway after class."
Since there was no "foolish wand waving" in Potions, any certainty of who used magic first during or after class was impossible.
"Well, Harry, you could get a potion from Madame Pomfrey." Hermione said so quietly they could barely hear her.
"Oh, the nausea's fine now." Harry replied.
Hermione shook her head. "No, not for that--"
Harry stood up from the table. "No. I can't. I won't."
That night, when they were finally left alone in the common room. Hermione figured the due date to be sometime in the week after Harry's birthday.
"Well then, it's simple," Harry said, "We don't tell anyone. I will be an adult, and nobody will be able to do anything to me. I don't even have to come back to school if I don't want to."
Ron and Hermione weren't so sure about keeping this a secret, but they vowed to help in any way they could.
Thankfully, the morning bouts of nausea stopped the following month, and Harry felt almost entirely normal. Hermione learned a spell to listen to the baby's heartbeat. When they tried it out one night after the common room had emptied, Harry could hardly believe what he heard. At first, the idea of a baby had terrified him, then he had went into a comfortable state of denial. Now, it was all so very real to him. He was going to be a single teenage father. His whole world would change, but, on the other hand, he had a chance at the family he always wanted. It would only be a family of two, but that was still better than being in a family of four where you weren't even treated as part of the family.
Another month passed and Harry was practicing with his Quidditch team for an upcoming match against Ravenclaw. Hermione told Harry he needed to quit playing before he managed to injure the baby. Luckily, Ron came to his defense with a story about the Chudley Cannons' seeker, Belinda Marsh, winning a match just three weeks before her baby was born. All Hermione could reply with was how irresponsible that was. Harry was intrigued by this story and later asked Ron to loan him his book about the Chudley Cannons to see what precautions, if any, were taken. He was quite surprised to find out that most of the opposing team had not even known she was pregnant.
By the time Christmas holiday came, Harry felt he needed to use the Concealing Charm Hermione had taught him to make sure that no one could suspect the secret he was keeping. It had to be done every two hours to be effective, but as Harry was already ducking into the loo to pee almost that often, this was not a major problem. Although his robes would hide any minor hint of roundness for at least a few months, Harry wasn't taking the chance that he might forget to clasp his robe closed enough. For Christmas, Harry got a set of color-change baby clothes, which would change color based on the baby's mood, from Hermione. In a strange turn of gift-giving, Ron gave Harry a copy of his mother's favorite baby book, Spellbound New Moms and Magical Babies.
Before they knew it, spring had sprung. Harry had become moody and often took long walks on the grounds alone. He occasionally visited Hagrid, but did not confide in him because Hagrid could not keep secrets from Dumbledore. Harry sort of suspected that Dumbledore already knew his secret (he seemed to know everything else), but also knew that he would respect Harry's right not to talk about his pregnancy or future plans.
Summer came without incident for Harry. After what seemed like Hermione's millionth lecture on eating properly and taking care of himself for the baby, Harry forbade any further mention of his health, the baby, or anything remotely pregnancy-related. So the Golden Trio all became a bit more prone to fits of the sullens, as Molly would say, and far less likely to be caught sneaking out of Gryffindor Tower after curfew, except if it was Harry having a sleepless night and going down to the kitchen for a snack and friendly conversation with Dobby.
chapter 2: the birth
It almost seemed that the school year had just begun when it came to an end. Ron had decided that Harry would stay at the Dursley's for only a few days before coming to the Burrow for the summer.
Being underfed had been bad for him as a growing boy, but as a pregnant and still growing teenage boy, it was much worse. At least now Dudley's clothes from last year fit with Harry just having to leave the jeans unbuttoned. On his second night there, he laid down to rest, but he got right back up. What had been a dull ache in his lower back had turned into pains that radiated all the way around his midsection. He carefully redid the Concealing Charm and half-walked, half-waddled to the loo. He then got a pain in his abdomen so sharp that he had to take a deep breath. No more than five minutes passed before another pain came.
Duddley pounded on the door, "Hurry up in there! I gotta go."
Harry drew a sharp intake of breath and yelled back, "Go to the fucking downstairs loo, you whiney git!"
Dudley was so shocked that he scurried down the stairs without saying another word. Harry knew he would hear it later about his language from Aunt Petunia, but at this particular moment, he didn't care.
"No, baby, not now, not here," Harry whispered to the child, whom he hoped was listening.
He turned the shower on warm and stepped in. A tear fell down his face, and he clenched his eyes shut. The warm water felt good on his belly. He could feel the tightening of his abdomen, but there was no more pain involved. After he calmed down, he slipped into bed and went to sleep.
Finally, on the eve of the sixth night at the Dursley's, Pigwigeon arrived in a flutter with a small note. She was so excited at having found the addressee that she almost left without allowing Harry to remove the note from her leg.
Dear Harry,
I wish you would have let me tell my mum why you wanted to come so soon; she didn't say yes until an owl arrived this afternoon from Dumbledore saying to go ahead and get you tomorrow. You can let the Muggles know we're coming, or not, doesn't really matter.
See you tomorrow around 12:30.
Ron
Harry almost jumped for joy, but he was far too tired. The following morning, he awoke to Aunt Petunia yelling, "Time to cook and not burn the breakfast!" Harry pulled the cover tight over him. He hoped it had been sufficiently covering him. He remembered the last time he had done the Concealing Charm was a little before four in the morning when he had to go to the loo, and it was after 6:30 now so he quickly redid the charm with his wand, which had not been confiscated (the one locked in the cupboard was a fancy joke wand courtesy of Fred and George).
"Mum! Mum!," Dudley was yelling as he ambled heavily down the stairs, "I saw Harry with his cover half off when I got up to use the loo last night, and his stomach, it looked like he was p--pregnant."
Aunt Petunia stopped what she was doing and eyed Harry suspiciously before replying, "Oh, my little Dudders has such a creative imagination! It was a funny dream, a very funny dream." And she laughed a false high laugh.
Uncle Vernon half chuckled and half coughed over his coffee and newspaper.
Dudley kept staring at Harry's midsection, and Harry simply smiled back. He should have known Dudley would sneak into his room at night for one reason or another; he wondered if Dudley was looking for sweets or simply listening for him to possibly mutter in his sleep. It didn't matter. He was leaving today and, hopefully, would never come back.
As promised, at 12:30 there was a knock at the door. Harry was cleaning the banister on the stairway and carefully came down the stairs. When Aunt Petunia opened the door, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Ron stood at the doorway, and a nice, new Ministry of Magic car sat in the driveway. Aunt Petunia looked like she could faint at the sight of them. Dudley appeared to be holding his tongue, quite literally, and Uncle Vernon just grunted, "You can have Harry. He's grown too sickly and pale at that school of yours to do anything useful." Harry couldn't believe his luck; he was leaving without a fuss. Mr. Weasley raised his wand and said "Accio Harry's trunk!"
Mrs. Weasley asked Harry if he needed to get anything else. Harry had his wand tucked into his pocket hiding beneath his shirt. He carefully Accioed Hedwig's cage. She hooted wildly all the way down the stairs. Harry caught the cage, but Molly took it from him, muttering loud enough for the startled Dursley's to hear, "Really, cleaning without magic in your delicate condition. Let's leave these crazy Muggles." Dudley was horror struck. Aunt Petunia gasped, and Uncle Vernon turned very red. Harry said, "See ya." and walked out of their lives forever.
Before they got into the car, Molly Weasley hugged him and patted his belly. Ron was red faced. "I didn't tell her; I swear."
"Oh," Molly replied, "I knew it when I saw you get off the train. It was the rosy cheeks that gave it away. Am I safe in assuming none of my children are responsible in any way?"
Ron came to his defense, "No, Mum, it was a hex. No idea who the other parent might be."
Arthur said, "Who was it that did the hex?"
Harry replied, "It doesn't matter. What's done is done. As far as I'm concerned,
the child is mine alone. If you want, you can drop me off at Grimmald Place."
Molly smiled at him. "Now, Harry, you can't expect us to leave you alone at a time like this." Harry returned her smile.
The Burrow was everything Harry remembered. Ginny came out to greet him. Mrs. Weasley made him sit down and eat. That evening Hermione came for a visit, insisting she was staying until the baby came. This brought to the forefront of Harry's mind the event he was dreading. He had read about it in Spellbound New Moms and Magical Babies. The book described the physical process in a straightforward manner, but it had also said that pain potions could not be used for this purpose because they would go directly to the baby. It also recommended against any spells that cause sedation as injury to the caster when the mother woke up was very likely.
Spending lazy summer days at the Burrow was wonderful. He didn't bother using the Concealing Charm; they all came to enjoy watching the baby's various body parts, especially the bum, stick up against Harry's stomach. Harry started sleeping more than he felt he should, but Molly said that he should store up as much sleep as he could because he would need it later.
Harry's seventeenth birthday was quite a celebration with all sorts of gifts. The most interesting of the gifts was from Hagrid. Several school owls were carrying a funny looking basket. A wild yipping came from inside. Hermione expressed her sincere hope that it didn't have three heads. When Harry opened the basket, a puppy that looked suspiciously like Fang jumped into his arms. The note attached to his collar said:
Happee Birthday Harry!
Fang got a girlfriend in the forest. This was the runt of the litter, and I didn't think he'd make it on his own. Hope you like him.
Hagrid
Everyone laughed as Harry was thoroughly licked. He set the puppy down and it's whine sounded very wolfish, but Harry decided not to ask Hagrid what the mother dog looked like.
That evening, Harry rested on the living room sofa. Mrs. Weasley offered him another piece of birthday cake. Harry shook his head and rubbed his lower abdomen. He was going to just go to bed and forget about his stomach, but a nervous voice in the back of his head said he might not be getting any sleep that night.
"Um, I was just wondering," He asked nervously, "How much does it have to hurt for it to be time for, um--"
"Oh," Molly said excitedly, "I wouldn't get my hopes up for tonight unless you absolutely can't lie down. When it comes again, let me feel your stomach."
Ron watched from what he felt was a safe distance as his mother carefully raised Harry's shirt and laid her hand gently on his stomach. A few slightly tense moments passed before the strong tight feeling in Harry's stomach made another appearance. Molly didn't start to talk until it passed.
She smiled and said, "I'd say that's getting strong enough. How long has this been going on?"
Harry shrugged and answered, "I thought I felt something this morning. Then, this afternoon, it got like this. I figured it would go away again like it did before."
"Well, I'd have been complaining by now. You just try to relax. I know that's easier said than done." She bent down slightly and said very softly in his ear, "Now, you feel free to curse and scream whenever you feel like it. Merlin knows I did."
Harry laughed. "I'm ok, really."
Molly then said, "I'll go upstairs and let the girls know. I say the more support you have the easier it will be."
Harry and Ron nervously stared at each other. Ron asked tentatively, "Is it really so bad you want to scream?"
Harry replied, "It's no worse than when my scar hurts."
The girls came bounding down the stairs. They chattered excitedly.
Molly came down and waved her wand and the lights dimmed. This seemed to set a quiet mood for everyone.
"Now, Harry, you just make yourself comfortable and let your body do its thing." She then went into the kitchen and got some drinks for everyone. It was butterbeers for everyone, except Harry, who got a lemonade.
Harry wondered how long he would have to go through this and what would happen when this was over. He hadn't had a chance to gather too many things, and he didn't even have a room set up for the baby at Grimmald Place. Why was he thinking about all this now? He began to feel emotionally overwhelmed and tears started streaming down his face. Ginny sat down beside him and hugged him.
Molly knelt beside him and asked softly, "What's wrong?"
Harry sniffled as he replied, "I can't be having a baby! I know I'm supposed to be brave, but I just want it to stop!"
Molly took hold of his hand and said in her most gentle voice, "Not everybody believes this, but I think that birth is a sort of right of passage into parenthood. If you can get through this, you can get through everything life is going to throw at you. I think you are already being brave."
Harry smiled at her and said, "Then you must be really brave. Is it true you forget about all the pain when you see your baby?"
Molly laughed. "No, that's just part of what you remember. I still remember each of my children's births as if they happened only yesterday. I remember that it hurt, but I also remember how happy I was."
Ron and Ginny both rolled their eyes; they knew what was coming.
"Bill was born in our bedroom. Arthur was stupid enough to knock me out with a spell. Let's just say he never considered doing that again. Charlie was almost born outside. We thought we had plenty of time to take a walk. Percy was born very matter-of-factly on the sofa here. Fred and George decided to both enter the world bum-first. Now, Ron caused my wand to be confiscated temporarily by my husband, owing to a well placed hex that made him experience what I was experiencing. And finally, Ginny was born in the bathtub. I really only meant to relax there for a little while, but it turned out to be pleasant and peaceful."
"I like the bath idea. I think I need to be alone for a while."
Mrs. Weasley looked very concernedly at him. "We'll all wait in here for you, but you take your wand in with you just in case you need anything."
Harry nodded and walked as carefully as he could out of the room before he had another nearly unbearable pain. He went into the bathroom where the Weasley's old-fashioned claw foot bathtub awaited him. He locked the door and put an Imperturbable Charm on it. Then, the pain he had so carefully been ignoring hit him like a ton of bricks. He yelled every curse word in the English language, and it seemed, a few of their French and Latin equivalents, (Hermione would have been impressed) at the top of his lungs, knowing that no one would hear him.
He relaxed in the bath and enjoyed a much needed break in the intensity of the pain. When he was ready, he got out of the tub and put on his dressing gown. He ambled slowly back into the living room. Mrs. Weasley insisted on putting a blanket around him as he paced impatiently.
After a couple of hours had passed, Harry began to feel different. The sensations he was feeling had moved distinctly lower. He didn't feel like he could pace anymore, so he sat down gingerly on the nest of blankets Mrs. Weasley had prepared for him on the floor. Everyone was sitting by him. It was quiet except for a few moans from him. Suddenly, the moans changed to grunts of effort. At first, Harry didn't even realize what he was doing. Then he felt Ginny sitting behind him, supporting him upright. Ron and Hermione were on either side, whispering words of encouragement. Molly was sitting near his feet. It seemed to take a long time, but at least it wasn't as painful as earlier. He reached down to feel what was going on and found that he was touching the top of his baby's head. Molly was grinning widely and she nodded at him in silent encouragement.
Only a couple of minutes passed before he heard the most beautiful sound in the world, his baby. Molly gently laid the baby on Harry's stomach and put a warm blanket over them. Harry peeked under the blanket before announcing that he had a baby girl, and her name was Lily.
Hermoine looked at her watch and said, "11:59-- Harry, she shares your birthday."
Lily nursed happily, wide-eyed and alert. She had dark hair which was very untidy and looked as if it would never stay in one position for too long. Harry looked into her eyes. They were as black as a starless night. He realized with a shock that he knew these eyes. He had been forced to look into them during his ill-fated Occlumency lessons. Her eyes showed a hint of great intelligence. They were clear and full of emotion, unlike her other father's which were opaque. Harry realized what should have been obvious. Snape had taken points from Gryffindor in the hallway that afternoon, casting a spell which caused red beads to trickle down from the Gryffindor House point counter in the Great Hall. With Ginny now cooing over the baby and not sitting behind Harry, when he passed out, his head hit the edge of the blanket mere inches from the bare floor.