Hermione felt utterly sick. She had read book after book about coping with morning sickness during her first trimester, but nothing was preparing her for this. It was more than just morning sickness… it was afternoon sickness and night sickness. And she was most definitely not enjoying it.

Just the day before in Potions, Parvarti's perfume was so strong that she threw up in Professor Snape's trashcan next to his desk. Not only did she get a zero for the day's potion, but she also had detention that night sorting and labeling potion ingredients through dinner.

And obviously, Harry and Ron were concerned that something was wrong with her. It was unlike Hermione to be sick… and to be getting zeros on class assignments.

"I said I don't want any!"

Both Ron and Harry looked at her, eyebrows raised as she glared at them from the other side of the lunch table. Ron stopped trying to shove the turkey leg into her hand and, instead, put it into his mouth.

"Geez, Hermione," Ron said distastefully. "We just thought if you had the flu or whatever, you needed to eat something."

When Harry gave her that look, she crossed her arms over her chest. "I don't have the flu. It's just allergies. I'll get over it."

She wanted to say, "Why do you care?" but she ignored the urge. She was sure Ron knew something was up with her, that there was a reason why she had seemed so angry with him since they'd been back at Hogwarts.

But she definitely wasn't going to explain it to him. He didn't deserve it, not if he was going to pretend the entire night didn't exist. The thought made her blood boil.

Harry, sensing the tension, changed the subject. "Did you have your appointment with McGonagall today? You never told us how it went. I'm sure you don't have to worry about anything though. You have more than enough marks to be an Auror. McGonagall says I have to take Advanced Potions next year," he said with a scoff. "No way Professor Snape will let me without an O on my Potion's OWL, and I really don't see that happening."

Hermione gave him a sympathetic look. "You'll do fine, Harry. I'll help you study, okay? Look, I've already got a bunch of note cards made up in my room. I'll get them for you after my detention and we'll all study!"

She didn't notice both boys go green at the face. Harry, who looked down dejectedly at his plate, mumbled a quick thanks.

"But anyway, my appointment went terrible," she said. "I have absolutely no idea what I want to be, so Professor McGonagall signed me up to be Madame Pomfrey's assistant for the rest of the year. She seems to think it'll help me 'find my way'."

Both Harry and Ron stared at her.

"You don't want to be an Auror anymore?" Harry said sadly.

Hermione instantly felt guilty at the look he was giving her. She knew he had thought she was going to by side through this entire war, and she was… but she didn't exactly know how that was going to work at the moment, not with what she was going through. She needed time to plan, but for once in her life, she felt like a mess. She couldn't figure anything out, and both boys could tell that this was definitely not the Hermione they had come to know.

"I'm sorry, Harry," she said. "It's just not for me."

He didn't say anything as Ron continued to look at her in shock.

This had been their plan. She couldn't take the pressure.

"I've got to go. Head Girl duties. I'll bring the note cards by the common room tonight," she said before quickly gathering up her books and making her way out of the Great Hall.

Hermione spent the rest of her time that day in classes, where both of her friends ignored her. And she didn't have the guts to say anything else to them, not when she knew there was nothing she could do to make them feel better. What was she supposed to do? They didn't understand… and they never would. Atleast not for now.

The idea of them knowing her secret at some point though made her cringe. She hated thinking about it.

She had been reading a bunch of books about pregnancy in the Wizarding world that she had bought from Diagon Alley before they had arrived at Hogwarts.

Apparently, abortion was very much looked down upon, not that she had even considered that as an option.

And as much as adoption was praised, it was rare. She had thought a lot about this option, but for some reason, she couldn't force herself to look into it more. She didn't know why, and she didn't even know much about this baby growing inside of her, but she already knew that she couldn't give it up.

She was just on her way up to her room to get her note cards after detention when she was pulled by her arm into a deserted corner of the hallway.

"Harry's upset," Ron said simply.

She felt flushed. Ron was way too close to her for comfort. His body was radiating a heat that reminded her of that night and she pulled away, her heart racing.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I don't know what to do, but I can't help it."

Ron nodded.

"I know. I don't blame you, Hermione. But you know, I thought about it, and I think this is a good thing."

She stared at him, unsure. "Why?"

"Because this way is safer, you know? I don't know what we would have done without you all these years, but we care about you too much for something bad to happen to you. Harry can't see that now, but he will. I think he's going to feel a lot better knowing that you'll be safe."

She didn't exactly know what to say. Ron was acting… so completely unlike Ron. This wasn't the Ron she had gotten drunk with this summer. What changed? He was acting so mature… and caring. And that was throwing her through a whirlwind. What was he thinking? Did he like her after all?

But then she thought about that night and she was sure he couldn't like her. He obviously felt horrible about what he did to the point of ignoring it all together.

And then the anger was back and she shoved the image of him kissing her into the back of her mind and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Just because I don't want to be an Auror doesn't mean that I'm not going to help you guys," she said heatedly, and she knew Ron instantly felt the tension. "So, if that's what you were hoping for, we'll you're surely mistaken. And if that means that I won't be safe, well so be it. It's my decision, Ronald Weasley, and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it."

Ron stared at her, eyes wide. If he had known about her pregnancy, he probably would have just called it a mood swing and left the subject alone.

"Hermione, I didn't mean-"

"Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go to my room."

With that, she walked away as Ron watched her in shock.

He shoved his hands in his pockets, shaking his head. "What did I do?"

A/N: Thank you so much for all the reviews. Please let me know what you think of this chapter. I'm not the biggest fan of it for some reason, so if you feel the same, I think I will do a rewrite and a repost. :) Also, if you want to know when I'll be writing/uploading for this story in advance, please follow me on Twitter at AshleyMarieTV2. And tweet me so that I know who you are!