Chapter One : An Unexpected Illness.

Welcome back to An Unexpected Development. I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it !

I'm posting this on the same day because of how short the prologue was. I hope this chapter gives you a better feel of where the story is going !

PixieWillow x

June 20th :

When Hermione woke up that morning to a ruckus going on outside her apartment, she had only one thought in mind : that she was going to be sick . She was always able to tell when she was going to vomit and today she could feel it in her stomach. When she was awake enough to realise that the ruckus outside was actually someone banging very loudly and very rudely on her door, she slowly made her way out of her bedroom. She had no desire to shake up her stomach more than it already was, so she took her time going to the door. When she opened the door to a very angry, fiery redhead she realised that she was in a lot of trouble.

''Finally you answer the door ! I've been stood here knocking for at least 20 minutes ! What were you even doing ? Have you completely forgotten that you were supposed to meet me in Diagon Alley 2 hours ago ? I can't believe you Hermione !'' screamed Ginny, barging into the apartment and past her bestfriend, who stood there in shock at the rant.

Before Ginny could continue shouting at her, Hermione felt a sudden urge to run to the bathroom. As soon as she got to the toilet she was sick, expulsing everything she had eaten the day before from her body. When she had finished, and after a small amount of dry heaving, Hermione turned to her bestfriend who was standing in the bathroom doorway, looking sheepish.

''I'm really sorry for shouting at you like that Hermione. Are you okay ?'' she asked, obviously worried for her friend.

''I've felt better,'' replied Hermione with a small smile, ''I must have caught a stomach bug''.

''You should really try and sleep it off. I'll go to Mum's and get you some of your favourite chicken soup, you know how great it is when you feel ill. I'm sure she can cook some up in no time.'' Ginny always rambled on when she was worried, it was one of the more adorable aspects of her personnality. It almost made you forget about her scary side. Almost. After helping Hermione back to bed, Ginny left for the Burrow, hoping that the chicken soup really would help Hermione.

Only a few hours later, Hermione woke up to a horrific smell wafting in from her kitchen. Before she had time to think, she ran to the bathroom, feeling a desperate need to vomit. The only problem with that plan was that her stomach was entirely empty, having not eaten anything since her last spell of vomiting. After dry heaving for what felt like hours, Hermione made her way towards her kitchen, only breathing through her mouth. What she saw there surprised her. In her kitchen, fluttering around like a housewife, was Ginny Weasley. Anyone who knew her also knew that she was anything but a housewife. In any case, when Ginny noticed Hermione walking in she gave her a radiant smile. She looked like she'd been made to be a housewife in that moment. Only in that moment though. After wiping her brow, Ginny smiled again at her bestfriend, gesturing for her to sit down.

"I brought you some of Mum's soup. It should really help to calm your stomach. I know how much you love chicken soup as well," she remarked. All Hermione could do was nod for fear of gagging. She was struggling to stand the smell of the soup, that she usually adored. That was one of the reasons she hated being ill. Why couldn't comforting smells stay comforting instead of making you feel even worse?

"How do you feel right now?" inquired Ginny with a sympathetic and knowing smile.

"I feel like I've been hit by a train, only worse. Like I've been hit by a train, a bus and then a train again. It's also like my stomach is on a rollercoaster. I hate being ill." replied her bestfriend.

''You should eat some of this," Ginny offered, placing the bowl of soup in front of Hermione, "it should truly make you feel better. At least you'll have something to puke up if need be!" Hermione knew how hard her bestfriend was trying, so she slowly took a mouthful. Ginny continued: "I thought I'd let you know that Harry is planning on popping by in a while to check on you. You know how worried he gets when you're ill."

Hermione, not trusting herself to speak without regurgitating what she just ate just smiled and nodded at Ginny. After bringing the third spoonful of soup to her mouth she realised that she may have made a mistake by trying to swallow the soup to be nice to Ginny. Without giving her friend any notice, she stood up and ran to the bathroom, bypassing Harry who had just entered the apartment.

She sunk to the bathroom floor, vomiting in the toilet, only to find that hardly anything would come out. Harry, who had followed her automatically, was holding back her hair and slowly rubbing circles on her back, trying to soothe his aching bestfriend. Ever since the war, Harry had been very protective of all of his friends, especially Ron, Hermione and Ginny. He was prepared to do anything in order to not run the risk of loosing them.

As Hermione slowly stopped dry heaving and started sobbing, Harry put his arms around her and brought her close to him. Although he would have felt extremely uncomfortable in this position a few years ago, Harry was now completely at ease hugging Hermione like this. They were closer than they had ever been after the Final Battle. Everything had just clicked into place since then and they never felt awkward around each other. They spent what felt like hours curled up together on Hermione's bathroom floor until she had cried out all the tears in her body and slowly fell asleep. When Harry was sure that she wouldn't wake, he lifted her up slowly and carried her to her bedroom. He laid her down under her covers, surrounded by mountains of pillows. She didn't even stir when he tucked her in and quietly left her in the world of dreams.