Baby Blues
Summary: What's a couple to do when they can't give birth? Adopt…or is there another way? Ron x Hermione, Harry x Draco, plus some surprising other pairings…read and find out!
A/N: No kidding; this idea came out of nowhere one Friday night before school started. Now it's out of my mind and into yours – good luck with it. I hope you're intrigued as much as I am how this is going to turn out! Please review if at all possible – both positive and negative are greatly encouraged…I'm always looking for new ways to improve, or new ideas. Thanks for reading!
Chapter One
"You want me to do what?" Harry stared at his best friends in amazement.
"We're sorry to drop this on you, Harry, but the healers at St. Mungo's have told us it's the only way." Hermione held the hand of her husband tightly as she explained to her long-time friend.
"I-I can't. That's cheating; it has to be!" The young man protested, running fingers through unruly raven hair.
"It's not cheating if all around consent. Please, Harry, I'm willing to try just about anything right now." Ron covered his other hand over Hermione's clasped one. The position gave them a huddled appearance; the look of a defeated couple.
Harry tried another tactic, reasoning. "Look, Hermione, didn't you research it? Can't you figure out some other cure for this?"
"I searched everywhere – I, I even returned to Hogwarts to see if there was anything useful in the restricted section. That's where I came across this idea."
"A fertility rite? How do you know if it's even possible?"
Hermione made an exasperated sigh, honed from long experience with more ignorant wizards. Even ten years after leaving the wizarding school she still behaved as if fellow students asked her glaringly obvious questions. "It came from the Galenic Encyclopedia of Previously Mysterious Magical Illnesses and Medical Curse Effects."
"That was in the Restricted Section? Shouldn't it be outside in the general library?" Harry was slightly relieved to find a topic that wasn't as uncomfortable as the one they'd begun the conversation with.
"Most of it is, but I noticed several torn pages in the unrestricted version. So I did a little digging in the Restricted Section." Hermione smiled, obviously proud of her research. Ron nodded, patting her hand. Lately he seemed to let his wife do most of the talking for him.
"How'd you even get in?" Harry leaned back in his chair, amused.
"I have friends in convenient places, Harry. You're not the only one with liberties." She seemed smug.
"You mean teachers." Harry translated.
"Well, you know, she was always the teacher's pet." Ron smirked.
Hermione gave him a rather severe look, resembling, at least to Harry, McGonagall. 'She would probably make a fine teacher at Hogwarts, if she hadn't started doing Auror work.' He thought to himself.
"You would have done well too, Ron, if you hadn't been so disrespectful in your final year." Hermione was pointing out to Ron.
"I got tired of the prefect drill." Ron shrugged. "So I stopped caring."
"You almost lost the chance to get a good job. If I hadn't helped you so much-"
Harry was enjoying the friendly banter when the front door opened, surprising the group in the living room. The newcomer paused, grey eyes scanning the room. The eyes paused briefly over Ron and Hermione on the couch, and lingered on Harry, sitting across from the two in a comfortable armchair.
"Long time no see, Weasleys." Harry's roommate and lover entered the flat, pausing to take off his overcoat, hanging it in the entry closet.
"Malfoy. I assume you've been dandy." Ron tried for a smile and lost, just barely.
"Oh, quite fine. But you two seem tense – kids giving problems or something of the sort?"
The couple on the couch flinched at the remark.
Draco's eyes widened and he looked at Harry for confirmation. "Did I hit too close to home?"
"Honey, why don't you take a seat?" Harry sighed. Just what he needed. A slight throbbing in his forehead warned him that a headache was quickly rising.
Draco, for his part, seemed worried. He quickly moved over to the armchair, sitting on the chair arm, then reaching out to stroke his partner's hair. "What's the matter?" he murmured.
"Why don't you let them bloody tell you?" Harry snapped irritably, rather annoyed by the turn of events. He had wanted to avoid the shocking discussion as much as possible really. But he didn't stop Malfoy's hand from its ministrations.
The opposite pair looked at each other. Ron asked softly, "Do you want me to-?"
"Go ahead. Maybe you should explain the whole story." Hermione offered.
"Yes, please. Tell me how this all got started." Harry interrupted. Hermione glanced at Harry's rather irritable expression, moved to the worried and suspicious look on Draco's face, and finally settled on her husband's resigned features, which had taken a turn for the worse since the news was first received. She leaned over and kissed his cheek, a wish for good luck. He smiled back at her. Finally, he faced the other couple.
"All right, it all started six years ago." Ron sighed and began.
A/N: All right…so you guys tell me what you think! Should I give it up as a bad job, or keep going? If you're wondering about length, by the way, the chapters willseriously get much longer if I know people are interested! So review, please!