Okay, so I had this idea just a bit back- what if Newt and Tina gave birth to a deaf child? I've ended my main Newtina fic only days ago but couldn't help myself. To be honest I actually already have headcanoned Newtina children so this one is a different ficverse entirely. I'm not deaf and not an expert on deafness either, so most research for thsi fic will be taken from the internet. If I get anything wrong or ofending, tell me immeadiatly.
With that said, onwards!
"Where do you think you're going?"
Newt Scamander spun around two steps away from the door, suitcase in hand. The Ministry official who he'd been waiting to talk to for two hours already had finally left his office, arms folded and glaring at Newt.
He could feel his tongue weighing down in anxiety and discomfort. If he'd try talking now he'd sound like a stammering fool; that occasionally happened during awkward or uncomfortable moments. Newt absolutely hated it, but he'd suffered through that condition for thirty-two years now and he wasn't going to grumble about it now.
The official coughed, glaring at him and tapping his expensive shoe on the polished floor. Newt suddenly realized the man was still waiting for an answer.
"Ah. Yes. I- I, um- well-" he was stuttering. Blinking hard, Newt cursed himself for not leaving faster. "I was- just leaving, sir. I got an owl- um- My wife just went into labor and… well, I desperately need to be there for her."
"Then you can afford to stay for at least another hour." The official glanced at his watch. "Wives are forever exaggerating these sort of things. Trust me on the matter, I've had four of them."
Newt bit back a retort that maybe the man's attitude was the reason he'd had three failed marriages. "All the same, sir, I'll be leaving."
"What about the manuscript, if you may, Mr. Scamander?"
"With all due respect, sir, my wife and unborn child matter infinitely more to me than getting my second book published."
Newt ducked his head, turned away, and slipped through the door into the busy Ministry lobby.
Tina was waiting for him in the Delivery Ward of St. Mungo's, lying in a clean bed and breathing in little gasps of air. A nurse was by her side, waving a wand over a piece of paper and making little notes in scrawling handwriting. The nurse looked up when Newt rushed in and gave him a demure smile.
"Ah, you must be Mr. Scamander." She said, putting down her sheet of paper. "We've been waiting for you. Your wife seems to be doing well so far. Let's hope she'll remain that way throughout the delivery."
Newt nodded, a little out of breath. "Yes, sorry- can I sit with her?"
The nurse began to answer when Tina gave a shaky laugh. "You can ask me, you know, I'm not asleep."
"Right. Right, of course." Newt nodded and sat right down on the floor beside her bed, causing her to let out another quiet snort.
Tina's fingers drummed the side of the bed, letting out some of her pain. Frowning, Newt took her left and in his own right and let her hold it. She gave his palm a squeeze, crushing his fingers in a tight grip. Newt winced; his wife was rather strong.
It was a few hours later when Tina let out a little scream. The nurse immediately shooed Newt away from the hospital bed, blocking his sight as she quickly examined Tina's pregnant stomach and checked whether she was physically ready to give birth. Newt's fingers twitched with nerves, his fists clenched and unclenched, and his heartbeat was going crazy. He'd delivered maybe dozens of creature babies, each one healthy and functioning in minutes. This was so very different however- he was standing in a small hospital delivery room with a strange nurse and his birthing wife whimpering in pain. There was nothing in Newt's life that could have prepared him for this.
Queenie's words of advice floated through his head: Stay calm for Teenie, hold her hand and don't even flinch if she crushes it, leave off the silly "you're fine" statements and talk to her about your future child. Of course, Queenie was only guessing when she told him all that; she'd never actually given birth yet. Then again, she was the most qualified person for Newt to approach about the subject. Talking to Jacob about pregnancy would be like questioning a dog about Shakespeare. Newt wasn't judging. He was the same.
Gathering up his courage, Newt crept over to his wife and took her writhing hand. Tina's fingers stilled for a moment, then she started squeezing his hand stronger than ever. Newt ignored the pain. He knew Tina was suffering far, far more than he was and even complaining in his thoughts seemed disrespectful.
"Hey." He started speaking in a soft and low tone, the one he used on frightened creatures when he was trying to calm them. "Can you hear me? You don't have to listen to what I'm saying, just focus on my voice. You're doing great. You must be really scared. So am I, to be honest. I talked to Queenie, did you know? She was very patient. She told me that you're so very strong that this will be over soon and you'll have done wonderfully. Hey, what do you think it'll be like with a baby? Merlin's Beard, we're about to be parents..!"
He went on like that, rambling about babies and children and families and anything that came into his head as he crouched beside Tina's bed and stared at the floor, clutching her hand as though he would never let it go. There were other voices around him- healers, nurses, Tina's high-pitched shrieking. But none of that mattered. All that mattered was keeping hold of her hand until everything was safe.
It was what felt like hours later when a hand settled on his shoulder. Newt jerked away, leaning towards the metal hospital bed. The hand was attached to a tall healer with round glasses and a kindly smile.
"Son, you've been sitting in that spot for hours." The healer said. "Why don't you get up, perhaps wash your face in cold water?"
Newt's eyebrows furrowed, annoyed at this man's nonchalant behavior. "Sir, my wife is-"
He stopped talking in the middle of his sentence, listening. There was quiet, the only sound being soft breaths of a sleeping human being and a few hushed voices from the next room. Newt's eyes widened. He scrambled to his feet, leaning over the bed. Tina was lying there, asleep, sweat glistening on her forehead. She was in a hospital gown now and her stomach was noticeably smaller, a sheet draped over her from the torso down. She looked so peaceful Newt had to put his hand on her steadily rising and falling abdomen to make sure she was still breathing.
"She did it." He said, voice croaky from overuse. "She did it and I was too busy babbling to even realize."
The kind healer chuckled softly. "You did good, son. And so did she. Quite a fighter, that American witch."
"My wife." Newt said.
There was a silence. The healer (who had a nametag that read JOHNS, Newt now noticed) put his hand on Newt's shoulder again and firmly guided him to the nearby restrooms. Newt washed his face quickly and returned to Tina's side as quickly as he could, kneeling on the floor before Healer Johns handed him a stool.
A few minutes later, he spoke up again. "My baby- is it a boy, or-"
"-A girl." The healer finished his sentence with the answer. "A very beautiful baby girl."
Newt's face split into a beaming grin, and he covered his mouth to keep from laughing with joy. "A girl! Oh, Merlin's Beard, I'm a father! To a little baby girl!"
Tina stirred from her slumber, grunting slightly. She blinked slowly and moaned, raising a shaky hand to get her hair out of her face. Newt started and was swift to brush away the few strands of raven-black hair that were thrown over Tina's eyes.
"You did it, love." He whispered, fingers still delicately fondling her hair. "We have a daughter."
She groaned. "Thank the heavens that's over-"
Then she silenced. "A daughter?"
"A daughter. It's a girl, Tina."
Tina clapped her hand over her mouth in amazement, eyes widening and filling with happy tears. "Mercy Lewis, I never thought this day would ever come!"
They were both a bit damp-eyed and sappy and a little gushy, but none of the healers or people with them in the room seemed to mind in the slightest.
"Would you like to see your child?" Healer Johns asked from behind Newt's back.
Newt nodded, squeezing Tina's hand gently. "If we could."
The healer strode over to the door and yelled something out to the nurses in the other room. There was a muffled response, then a woman who was obviously part goblin floated through the entrance with a tiny baby in her arms. As gently as though he was handling spun glass, Newt took his daughter from the goblin nurse and held her to his chest.
"Hello, darling." He murmured, softly rocking the bundle of blankets that was his firstborn. "You won't remember this moment when you're older but this is it- you're part of the world now, love, and your mum and I have been waiting three years for you. Lord, you're the most wonderful thing that I've ever seen."
Tina sat up, wincing. "Are you talking to the baby?"
"Of course. She can understand every word I say, can't you, darling?"
The baby didn't respond, still sleeping quietly. Tina chuckled and reached out to her. Stooping over, Newt delicately passed the girl to his wife.
Tin stroked her baby's cheek with a touch as light as a feather, the newborn's skin smooth under her fingers. Everything about the baby girl- from her tiny eyelids to her miniature hands to her itty bitty mouth –was so absolutely charming that Tina had to fight back tears again.
"She's so beautiful." Tina breathed, gazing at her daughter with adoration. "Look at her, Newt, she's beautiful."
"She really is." Newt smiled. "She really is."
AN: this is my first time writing a delivery scene, so... it's not the best