Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.
Greta Arginald was coming home from visiting a friend's house. It was late at night, and the sun had long set.
As she walked along, puffs of air flew out of her mouth from the cold weather. She pulled her long coat around her a little more.
Her husband was probably worried sick about her now, as she had forgotten to phone earlier before leaving the warm home of Petunia Dursley.
She thought about the warm supper she could look forward to when she got home. Mattia had promised to cook tonight so that she could go have some time to catch up with her old friend. This was the first time she had met Petunia face to face, but she had been her pen pal for years.
Greta was excited when she and Mattia had decided to leave Italy to start a new life in a new country. She was even more excited to hear that the house they were moving to was close to Privet Drive.
She and Petunia had eaten lunch together, and lost track of time, and she accidentally had stayed well past supper time.
Greta hoped Mattia wouldn't be mad.
Tightening her scarf around her neck, she shivered.
For the first time, she thought that maybe it wasn't a good idea to walk home alone so late at night.
This part of town was known to be shady, after all. She should have gotten Petunia to drive her home.
She guessed excitement had clouded her judgment a bit.
A bus passed the sidewalk she was walking on.
She didn't notice the figure that had appeared out of the shadows across the road as the bus passed by.
Greta took out a cigarette and lit it with her lighter.
Before she could take a puff, she felt something at her throat.
"What do you want?!", she asked her attacker.
"I'll give you all my money, just please let me go! I'm with child!", she shouted, fearing for her unborn baby.
"I have no use for money.", said the man behind her.
She dared to look down to see what he was holding at her throat.
She was shocked to see that, instead of a blade, it was a long claw.
"What I want is for the prophecy to be fulfilled. You carry a strong child in you. I can sense it! I can smell it!", he said.
"What prophecy? Please, just leave my baby alone!", she pleaded.
Before she could even take another breath, she was spun around, and she felt two stabs in her belly.
She fell to the ground, paralyzed.
Her attacker walked away.
Twenty minutes later, she was writhing in agony.
It was like someone was pouring acid in her stomach!
She started breathing heavily.
She tried to scream, but her throat tightened every time she tried.
She felt something moving around in her stomach.
Her baby!
Her eyes traveled to her stomach, and she almost fainted.
Sticking out of her stomach was a tiny head with black hair, and a mouth gnawing at her flesh.
The baby opened its mouth, and inside were what looked like tiny shark teeth, the incisors longer than the rest. The baby opened its eyes, and they were completely black, no white to be seen. Finally, she heard sirens.
There was an ambulance coming! As blood pooled around her, Greta's world turned black.
Mattia Archinald was busy making mashed potatoes and steak, while listening to the Telly play in the living room.
He was happy.
Looking at the cookbook in front of him, he turned the page.
He tasted the potatoes on the stove, and decided they needed garlic.
Sprinkling some in, he smiled to himself.
Greta would love this!
She hadn't mentioned it to him, but tonight was their anniversary, so he wanted it to be special.
So, when she mentioned going to Petunia's for a while, he jumped at the chance to cook a special dinner for her.
He had the radio on a romantic station, and had cleaned their small kitchen and table, lighting two candles on it, with a bowl of strawberries and whipped cream in the center of the table for dessert. He knew it was cheesy, he had seen the same thing done on the several chick flicks Greta had forced him to watch.
But Greta loved cheesy romantic things, so that's just what he did.
He heard the timer go off, so he took Greta's steak out of the oven.
She liked hers rare, so it hadn't taken long to cook.
He, however, liked his well done, so he knew his would take a while longer to cook.
Popping his in the oven, he smiled to himself.
Their baby would be arriving soon, and the anticipation was killing him!
They didn't know if it would be a girl or a boy, but he knew he would love it the same either way. Couldn't wait to look at that sweet smile and those eyes.
He wondered what color they would be. He hoped they were blue like on his mom's side of the family.
He couldn't wait to have that little hand wrap around his finger.
Mattia knee Greta would be home any minute, so he set the table after the timer for his own steak went off. He grabbed the champagne and poured them each a glass. Then, he got the mashed potatoes and put a serving for each of them in two small dishes.
He cut up Greta's steak, and then set about cutting up his own. Once he was done, he sat down with his napkin in his lap and waited.
While he waited, he thought of the things he would do with his son/daughter. He would teach them to ride a bike, teach them to color, play games with them, read them stories, and one day maybe teach them a little about his profession.
Mattia was a dentist.
Ever since he was a little boy, he was obsessed with teeth, whether it be fossilized teeth from a museum, or his own teeth.
In fact, Mattia didn't stop believing in the tooth fairy until he was nearly fourteen.
He hoped his child would have good teeth.
If not, surely he could fix them.
Thirty minutes flew by, and the food was starting to get cold.
Mattia was beginning to get a little nervous.
It wasn't like Greta to be out this late.
Another twenty minutes passed by, and Mattia was slowly ringing his hands.
After the next forty minutes or so, Mattia was downright pacing.
"Maybe I should call Petunia.", he thought.
As he was walking toward the phone, it suddenly rang, making him jump.
He picked it up and twirled the chord nervously around his finger.
"Hello, this is the Archinald residence, whom am I speaking with?", he asked.
"Mr. Archinald? My name is officer Dunn. I'm afraid there's a problem, and I need you to come down to the station. It's not a matter to be discussed over the phone."
"A problem?", he thought.
"What kind of problem?"
"Yes m'am, I'll be there right away."
Mattia didn't even bother saying goodbye before hanging up the phone. He grabbed his car keys and raced out the door, food long forgotten.
When Mattia got to the police station, officer Dunn was waiting for him.
She looked grim.
"Is Greta okay?", asked Mattia.
"Greta is in the hospital now, and thankfully she is now in stable condition. I'll be honest with you though, I didn't think she'd make it. Some psycho attacked her tonight."
Mattia felt like he was going to faint.
"And our baby?", he asked.
"The attacker was also a cannibal. He stabbed your wife with two needles paralyzing her while he tried to eat the baby out of her body. Thankfully a bystander saw what was going on, and called for help, and the baby was saved.
He's in the maternity ward now.
Unfortunately the attacker fled the scene before we arrived, and no one got a look at his face, so he's still out there. We have arranged for you and your baby to stay with a woman named Petunia Dursley until your wife is well enough to come home.", explained officer Dunn.
Mattia breathed a sigh of relief.
They were both okay.
"Your wife is sleeping now, but you can see your son. Would you like me to drive you to the hospital?", asked the kind officer. The exhausted husband, and now father nodded.
After a ten minute drive, they reached the hospital.
Mattia got out and thanked officer Dunn.
She just smiled and drove off.
Mattia pushed through the double doors of the hospital.
He walked up to the front desk where a man in a nurse's outfit stood shuffling some papers.
"Excuse me, my name is Mattia Archinald and I'm here to see my son.", said Mattia.
The nurse looked up and gave a sad smile.
"You're the one who's wife got attacked? Follow me."
The nurse, who, by judging his name tag, was called Henry, motioned for Mattia to follow him.
Mattia did.
When they got to the maternity room, Mattia was shocked at what he saw.
Those eyes he wanted to be blue didn't have any whites.
Those teeth he wanted to be perfect looked like the teeth of a baby shark.
And that hand he wanted so desperately to hold onto his finger was filled with claws.
Mattia fainted.