Disclaimer: These characters and settings do not belong to me, they belong to JKR.
A/N: Thanks for all the loverly reviews. Hope this is a good update.
Poppy looked up sharply from her checkup of Minerva. Daphne and Albus both stopped what they were doing to listen.
"What did you do Albus?" She looked shocked and awed.
"What? I did nothing!" Albus jumped from his chair, "Hestia came. She claimed she was seeing Minerva's future. She put her hand here" he demonstrated "and chanted for a while and then sat still. What did she do?"
"The virus is dying!" Poppy stared, dumbfounded at Minerva, "Where is Hestia? I must talk to her! I have to find out what she did!"
"She's in her apartment in diagon alley!" Albus blinked and Poppy was all ready at the fireplace calling for Hestia's apartment.
"Hestia!" Poppy yelled into the fire, "It's Poppy! You must come here at once! I need to speak to you!" Poppy rocked back on her heels and stood with her arms nervously folded.
Hestia stumbled out of the fireplace. She looked as if the life had been sucked from her. "What do you want?" She snapped. There were dark rings around her eyes, and her cheeks were shriveled in. She glared, defensively at her interrogators. Daphne gasped at her appearance and brought a robe to cover her slightly shivering form.
"Oh, my" Poppy whispered. Daphne walked Hestia over to the armchair Albus vacated, "What have you done?" She began doing a checkup out of habit.
"She's going to be all right, isn't she?" Daphne asked. Hestia tried to laugh, but it sounded hollow.
"What did you do?" Poppy repeated carefully.
"Once, when I was meditating and exploring different plains, I discovered I had the ability to transfer my energy to the body of another. In that place, life-force is a liquid that can be poured from vessel to vessel. I returned to that place to give Minerva the strength to fight back."
"But it injured you!" Daphne cried, catching Hestia's clammy hand.
"It took a little bit of energy, lass. But I will be fine in a few days. And now Minerva is fine."
"Thank you." A voice from the bed croaked. And everyone jumped turning to discover that Minerva was awake.
"Darling!" ALbus ran over and gently embraced her hand. But as soon as he had, Minerva convulsed in pain, crying out.
The room froze waiting for her to recover her breath.
"The baby!" she gasped and collapsed back into the pillows.
Instantly Poppy ran over to her and began running tests. She paled and turned to Albus, "She's gone into labor!"
"What!?" ALbus' color fled as well, "Can we stop it?"
"I'm trying!" Poppy muttered through clenched teeth. There was a glow of spells around the bed. Albus stood back and began pacing the room. Daphne looked as if she could have nervous breakdown at any moment. Hestia had gone into a trance. And hour went by. Minerva suffered through 2 more contractions. Her screams made the room more frantic. Finally, after another hour and countless contractions, Poppy sighed in relief, collapsing into an empty rocker. Hestia stood and moved to sit on the bed. She stretched her hand out to Minerva.
"NO!" Poppy yelled, "Don't touch her! You cannot give her anymore energy, or you could die!"
"Why did this happen?" Albus demanded darkly. He tenderly brushed the hair away from Minerva's sleeping face.
"The virus caused the baby to feel unsafe," Poppy sighed, standing shakily up and gently administering healing spells to Minerva, "It decided it was time to leave. But I was able to slow things down enough that it should be fine now."
"It had nothing to do with me?" Hestia whispered.
"No, without your intervention, this still would have happened, but Minerva probably would not have survived."
Albus face tightened with apprehension gazing at Minerva' exhausted rest. Poppy stepped in to take charge.
"Albus, you need to go to bed. You need rest. Someone will have to take Minerva's classes tomorrow." Poppy waved her wand and a cot zipped into the room. "Just floo if you need me." She turned to Hestia, "You I'm keeping in the Hospital Wing." And she pulled Daphne under her arm, "Come with me, dearie!" None of her orders were questioned.
Minerva and Hestia slept until well past lunch the next day. Daphne came to her mother's room as soon as her last class was done. She brought in her latest knitting project and Scottish poems. Minerva was just waking up.
"Mother!" Daphne sobbed, diving into the bed, and locking her arms around the stirring witch. "I was terrified last night! How are you doing?"
Minerva smiled and laughed softly at Daphne's eager affection, "I'm a bit sore, darling. But I'll be all right. Help me sit up, will you?" Daphne propped pillows behind her mother. Minerva groaned as she shifted her position. Catching sight of herself in the bedroom mirror. "And could you get my hairbrush?"
Daphne returned as was about to hand over the desired article, when she froze, "May I brush your hair?"
This was an uncommon reversal of roles, Daphne was taking care of her mother. "Of course love!" Daphne contentedly sat and sang to herself as she tamed the raven knots.
No sooner had Daphne laid down the brush, but the door opened and Hestia walked in. There was a deep electricity of question and answers hanging in each second.
"Minerva!" Hestia finally broke the silence, "I was so worried! I couldn't not give you up!"
"Oh, Hestia!" Minerva extended her arms to her sister, her eyes beginning to leak joy, "You gave me so much! How could you have know that I needed you?"
"I have known since September that you would need me!" Hestia made a laughable attempt at her haughtiness.
"What happened to you, Aunt Hestia? Why did you decide to come back at all?" Daphne curled up on the bed, "Not to be blunt, but I've only seen you once before!"
"I was deep in meditation, skimming the fields of time, when I saw your uncle. He was holding her newborn son, he looked so happy. I had been studying in Arabia at the time, and I missed his birth. And I saw each of you being born." Hestia laughed as Daphne's eyes widened, "Yes, even you, squawking little red! And I saw your uncle weeping over Deidre's body.
"And then I fell into a deep sleep. And I dreamed that your mother came, leading a child by the hand. She begged me to come, claiming she needed my help." She gazed at Minerva, "But you would not say why. When I woke, I was terrified. I knew that if I was not there to help you, you would die. But you are too precious to me! And when you told me you were with child, the rest of my dream made sense. I have never seen a newborn bairn. And now, I am to be your guardian until I can hold this babe." She laid her hands on Minerva's bulge, "in my arms."
Minerva stared incredulously at her, "You understand!" She sighed, her voice laughing with happiness, "You finally understand!" And before Daphne could blink, Hestia and Minerva were locked in a desperate embrace.
A/N: Please Enjoy and Review!!
