This was written for the Fairest of the Rares Love Fest. It's a gift for AlexandraO (look up her profile, since I can't link...go ahead, I can wait...). It's unbeta'd so all mistakes, of which there are probably many, are mine.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. I make no money from anything
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"I think you should see a Healer, Nymph."
Hermione glared at him, way up at him as he towered above her, from her spot on the cool tile floor. "I will be perfectly fine, Thorfinn Rowle. If you hadn't insisted on going to that Merlin forsaken, vermin infested pub last night, this wouldn't have happened!"
The hulking blond wizard frowned as he ran some water over a flannel and knelt beside his wife, patting the wet cloth over the back of her neck. "That may be so, but what about the night before when we went to my sister's for dinner. You can't tell me that you think Ingrid poisoned you as well. Something is wrong and has been for some time. You've lost half a stone and I'm concerned, love. Please? Do it for me?"
Big blue eyes, widened in his nearly patented pleading expression met her whiskey brown ones and she sighed in defeat. "Fine. You win." She pouted as her husband's lips curled up in a small smile. "Go make the appointment while I clean up a bit. I think it's passed for now."
Thorfinn stood and turned to go though the quick intake of breath behind him told him the worst was not, in fact, passed.
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"Excuse me?"
Thorfinn's eyes were wide and fixed on the matronly Healer as she faced the couple.
"You're expecting." She smiled at them, her lips curling into a smirk at their obvious shock.
"Excuse me?!"
"Repeating it in a more shrill voice will not change the facts Mrs. Rowle. I don't honestly understand what you fail to grasp. You are, as they say, with child. Up the duff. Have a bun in the oven. Preggers. Knocked up. In the Family Way. Pregnant."
With each new euphemism, Hermione's face grew progressively redder and Thorfinn's laugh grew harder to hold in. By the time the Healer had finished and shoved the pamphlets in his hands, with a carelessly tossed instruction to make another appointment in a month's time over her shoulder, his mirth couldn't be contained.
"By Merlin's saggy shorts, woman!" The pamphlets scattered in the air as he tossed them and threw his arms around his tiny wife, who was still frozen in shock. "We're going to have a baby!"
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"Come to terms with the news yet?"
Hermione huffed as she tugged her shirt up over the ridiculously adorable bump and Thorfinn snorted in amusement.
Healer Kauffman, who hadn't seen them since their first visit where she'd teased Hermione mercilessly, waved away the glare the younger woman shot her way. "You're not the first to be shocked, dear. Believe you me, you're hardly the worst I've seen. Ever wondered why there aren't any sharp instruments in the maternity ward rooms?"
She winked at the couple and Hermione giggled.
"Now-" The Healer clapped her hands and pulled her wand from the pocket of the hideous lime green robes she was forced to wear. "-you're about 20 weeks now. I'm going to do your routine scans today, but would you like to know the sex of the baby?"
Thorfinn's eyes lit up and he nodded emphatically. At the same time Hermione' nearly moved the bed as she shook her head vigorously in the negative.
Healer Kauffman looked between the two and grinned. "Looks as if there's some disagreement. Would you like some time to talk about it?"
"Just a moment, if you don't mind, Ma'am." Thorfinn bowed his head slightly as he turned toward Hermione, who still had her shirt tucked up under her bra as she reclined on the hospital bed.
"Oh, I love a man with manners! You make sure you keep him, you hear me dearie?" Hermione giggled as the Healer winked and made her way to the other side of the room to tinker with some of the other equipment.
"I have a proposition for you, Nymph. I'd like a chance to get everything ready for our little Prince or Princess. So if you'd really rather not know, what if the Healer tells me and I keep it a secret. That way I can get everything ready and you can relax. How does that sound, love?" He brushed a stray curl off her forehead and rested a hand on her stomach, only to be met with a strong kick.
"Well, I think someone agrees with your plan." Hermione grinned up at her husband, tears welling in her eyes at his thoughtfulness. "That sounds like a perfect idea. Call the Healer back over then and let's get out of here. I'm starving!"
Thorfinn's booming laugh beckoned Healer Kauffman back over and she returned with a smile. Her wand made practiced movements over her patients stomach bringing up a floating model of a baby with various numbers and runes, none of which he could read.
But the baby...the baby was perfect. At least in his eyes.
He could see Hermione's eyes glaze over in awe as she took in the tiny fingers and the tiny toes. He kept his eyes on his wife and the floating image of his child as the Healer gently took his arm and towed him a few feet away, though she only chuckled at his completely inattention to her.
"Mr. Rowle. Would you like to know the sex of your baby now?"
His bright blue eyes snapped to hers, his attention immediately and solely on her. "Yes. Tell me."
The older woman smiled up at him and casually cast a silencing charm around them. "How do you feel about dresses and bows, Papa?"
He swore his heart nearly stopped in his chest, years of pink and butterflies, and indeed dresses and bows flashing before his eyes. Then boys and more dresses and men and walking her down the aisle and letting her go and-suddenly there was a chair behind him and his head was between his knees as the Healer gently rubbed his back and spoke calm words in his ear that didn't quite register in his mind.
A daughter. He was having a baby girl. It was simultaneously the best and most terrifying thing he'd ever heard in his life.
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Week 22
"Thorfinn, I don't think this is really necessary."
"Nymph, just stay out. You promised that I could take care of it!"
Hermione stood in the hallway with her hands on her hips, the invisible barrier he'd somehow erected not permitting her to pass. "I understand that! But I think this impenetrable magical field is slightly overkill!"
"Nope!" The lumbering blond wizard stalked toward her, bending to press a kiss to the crown of her head. "It prevents your curiosity from getting the better of you. Plus it keeps all the fumes and such confined."
"Oh! You!" An incomprehensible noise escaped his tiny wife as she spun and stomped away, presumably to the kitchen to eat her weight in waffles, her newest obsession of the week. Thorfinn laughed as she turned to retreat once more.
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Week 28
"Shite!"
Hermione grinned. She stroked her swollen stomach from her curled up position in the squashy armchair in the library.
"Merlin's saggy balls, how do Muggles do this bullshite?!"
She picked up her bookmark and set the battered volume on the side table. With a heavy sigh, she wiggled her way to the edge of the chair and heaved herself forward, waving her arms for balance as she stood.
She made her way down the hallway, giggling at every expletive coming from the forbidden room, until she found herself at the magical barrier.
"Finn?"
"Yes, Nymph?"
"Do you need any help? I can call Harry over."
Silence reigned for a few moments and Hermione heard a huff of annoyance. "Fine. Call him over."
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Week 33
"So, how are you holding up?"
Hermione regarded her sister-in-law in between sips of lemonade. "What? You mean the because of the baby or because of your brother?"
Ingrid laughed boisterously. "Either? Both?"
The women giggled as Hermione gazed over the back garden.
"The baby is doing well. It's growing right on schedule, if not a little large-"
"But with Thorfinn contributing half it's genes, did you have any doubts?!"
"Oh Merlin, don't even joke! I'm terrified of giving birth to his spawn! And he's driving me absolutely round the twist! Do you know how many bags he lugged home in the past fortnight?! I lost count at ninety seven!"
Ingrid's eyes grew wide as she paused in her quest to search out the best blueberry scone on the platter before them. "Ninety seven?! Good Godric, what on Earth could he possibly have bought?!"
"Oh, no! I lost count at ninety seven. And your guess is as good as mine."
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Week 39
"Thorfinn?"
Hermione's voice wavered through the hallway as she struggled to stand from her favorite armchair in the library.
"What is it, Nymph? I'm a little bit busy here!" Thorfinn rolled his eyes. Sweet Salazar, she probably wanted another ice cream cone or a foot rub or-
"Oh nothing important. It's just that the baby's coming. Like, now."
The colossal racket Thorfinn made as he stumbled into walls and tripped over his own feet as he struggled to get to her drew some giggled from Hermione, even as she gritted her teeth through a contraction.
"Oh! The baby's coming! Come on! We've got to go to Mungo's!"
She watched as her blond husband streaked past her, swooping down to grab the small duffle bag they'd packed and bounding down the stairs. The whoosh of the Floo sounded a moment later and she grinned knowingly.
The Floo activated again and heavy footsteps clomped quickly up the stairs, revealing a sheepish Thorfinn, his cheeks tinged red under his beard and his hand extended courteously to her.
"Sorry about that, love. Lost my head a bit, didn't I?"
They made their way slowly down the steps and back into the Floo, her giggles echoing behind them the entire way.
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"I just can't believe how beautiful she is."
Hermione grinned at her husband as he marveled at the tiny baby in his arms. "I can't believe you knew she was a girl for months and didn't give it away."
Thorfinn stood up straighter, a wide smile on his face. "Well, I can't believe you doubted me."
Hermione pulled out her wand and waved it casually over the door to their home and pushed the door in, letting her husband step in ahead of her.
"Surprise!"
The muted whisper yells still startled her and she squeaked in surprise as her sister-in-law and Harry waved from the front hallway.
"Oh Merlin! You startled me!"
Ingrid chuckled quietly. "Well, we tried not to! We were quiet!"
"Well, since you're here, this is Siri Diana Rowle." Hermione beamed proudly as she leaned her head on Thorfinn's bicep.
Harry pulled her in for a hug, ignoring the unshed tears in his eyes over the baby's name. "You look ravishing, love! And let me have a look at the little Princess! Hand her over, Rowle! That's my goddaughter you're hogging!"
Thorfinn chuckled and carefully transferred the tiny girl over to his wife's best friend. Harry and Ingrid migrated to the sitting room to coo over the baby while he grabbed his wife's hand and towed her away.
"Come on, Nymph. There's something I want you to see. They've got her for a few moments."
He led her up the stairs and down the hallway, wandlessly dropping the magical field that had kept her away from the baby's room for all those months.
"Now, we can change anything that you don't like."
Then he pushed the door open and Hermione's jaw dropped. The walls were a light grey with a happy teal stripe bisecting the middle of the room all the way around. Cartoon quidditch characters and unicorns frolicked happily across the walls while a mobile made of fluffy white clouds spun over and equally white crib. A cushy grey rocker sat in a corner beside a bookshelf filled with both magical and Muggle children's books, while the floor was covered in the softest teal rug imaginable. A bench in the corner opened to reveal toys of all sorts and Hermione nearly melted when she saw the stuffed bunny she knew had once been hers sitting right on top of the pile.
"You did all this?"
Thorfinn blushed under his beard. "Of course I did. I told you to leave everything to me. There's even clothes and nappies and a changing table in the closet. The bloke in the baby store said I'd need all that as well."
Her eyes swam with unshed tears as she threw her arms around his neck, her feet lifting off the ground with the effort. His arms steadied her, as they always did, and he sighed into her hair. "Do you like it, Nymph?"
"I love it, Finn. And I love you."
"Well, you and Siri are my world. And only the best for my two girls."