It was Christmas, and the snow was falling slowly from the enchanted ceiling. She sat with a blond boy in front of a humongous Christmas tree, each eagerly opening their presents. Stopping at random intervals for a snogging session. Finally, they had gone through both their piles and the boy pulled out a velvet box...Hermione winced, her head pounding with pain. She sighed, heaving herself off the bed, heading over to the washbasin. What was the point of trying to remember when the doctor himself told her that she couldn't?
Before she even took two steps, she felt the water break, and fluids came leaking from under her hospital robe and down to the floor. She screamed, "My baby!" Immediately a group of nurses came in, helping her to the bed. "No need to worry, Ms. Granger."
Hermione yelped as she was hit by her first contraction. "Breath, Ms. Granger, it won't help if you hold your breath." One of the nurse flashed a toothy grin. "It won't be getting any be'er, but just think how wonderful i'ell be bringing a new life into this world." She leaned in. "I've had four meself." Then she left, leaving Hermione alone with her contractions.
[2 hours later]
"Harry, I'm so glad you are here."
Harry barged into the room, panting loudly. "I'm-sorry-I just-I just got out of class." Hermione smiled, even though she was in pain. Could Harry be her boyfriend? Could this be their baby? Harry pulled a chair over and sat down, gently rubbing the back of her hand. "How are you?" He whispered. Hermione threw away any doubt she had of Harry being the father of her child. She reminded herself, 'You don't remember anything, let alone if you were dating Harry, or if you slept with him. Anyways, if he wasn't the father, why would he be sitting in the delivery room? Wasn't that only something the husbands and to-be-dads did? It was something even best friends didn't do.'
Sweat dripped steadily down Hermione's face, as she concentrated on her breathing exercise with the Head Nurse. Her contractions had gotten stronger and came in shorter intervals.
"He he hoo..he he hoo" the Head Nurse continued the breathing exercise, but was cut short by a painful scream from Hermione. "UHHHNN."
The Head Nurse quickly rushed out of the room, summoning a certified doctor to deliver the baby, who was well on the way. Harry took her hand, coaching her as she went through labor. Hermione repaid him by gripping his hand so hard that he felt his fingertips going numb. "Breath, Hermione-BREATH." Harry's face was turning a deep shade of purple, the pain in his hand making him a little woozy.
Little did anyone know that a certain Malfoy was watching from under an invisible cloak, leaning against a cabinet full of medical supplies.
The room door slammed open and the Nurse barged in, following behind who Harry presumed was the doctor. "Keep breathing Ms. Granger." The bald man pulled on a pair of gloves, and with the help of the Head Nurse, secured Hermione's legs to the bed with her thighs spread. Her contractions had gotten even faster and harder, and Hermione screamed in pain. "Push, Miss, you have to push harder." The doctor stood, waiting to catch the baby as it came into the world. Hermione jolted up as the baby's head slid out, gripping Harry's hand even tighter.
"You're doing good, honey. Push a little harder." The Head Nurse wet a towel and dabbed Hermione's pained face with it.
"Good. Good. A little more." The doctor coaxed.
"UHHHHNNNNNNN." Hermione screamed as she pushed one last time, and feeling the baby slide out, she collapsed on to the bed, panting heavily. Crying emmitted from the doctors arms as the baby took its first breath.
"Congratulations, it's a baby girl." The doctor smiled at Hermione, detaching the umbilical cord before taking the baby away to be washed.
A paled Hermione lay, catching her breath. "A baby girl, Harry, we have a baby girl!"
Harry flashed a huge smile, still clutching to his throbbing hand. "A baby girl it is."
"You two should be proud parents." The Head Nurse cooed at the baby before handing her over to Hermione and Harry. Hermione smiled up at Harry. There was no doubt he was the father of the child.
"I'm so sorry I arrived late, but I came as soon as I got the news." Harry looked apolegetically at Hermione and the baby girl.
"Oh, thats quite alright, my gaurdian angel has been here every night. He sits in that chair over there-," Hermione pointed at a chair not far from the bed,"-and keeps me company and talks to me. He tells me how beautiful I am and how much he loves me." Her lips curled into a smile.
Harry's eyes narrowed. "Tell me more about this gaurdian angel of yours."
"Oh Harry, he is wonderful! He has the most intoxicating grey eyes, and the softest blonde hair I've ever seen." Hermione sighed, although she hadn't seen him, she knew exactly what he looked like.
Harry muttered quietly under his breath. "Malfoy." He searched the room with his seeker skills, honing into any movement. A flicker of movement by the medicine cabinet caugh Harry's eyes. Slowly, he wandered over. "I should've known he would be here." Harry grumbled to himself.
Pretending to be interested in the contents of the cabinet, he looked in only to find a few basins and ointments. "Malfoy." He seethed through his teeth. He may have forgiven Hermione, but he was in no way ready to forgive Draco.
"Potter." A voice sounded from his right.
"I'm surprised to find you here." Harry tried to keep from flinging off the invisiblity cloak and reveiling him.
"Likewise." Harry could imagine the smirk on Draco's face.
"Harry." Hermione called. "Who are you talking to?" She cocked her head to one side.
"No one, I was just sorting through the medicine cabinet." Harry suddenly interested himself in rearranging the flasks and basins in front of him.
"Well, come over here, I want you to hold our baby too."
Harry dropped a flask he had been holding, and it crashed to the ground, breaking into a hundred miniscule slivers.
Draco gasped in disbelief, he felt like his heart had been ripped out and stomped on. He slid down the side of the cabinet, until he sat on the cold marble floor. He gripped his chest in pain, trying to squeeze back the tears that stubbornly trickled down his face. He cried for Hermione, who didn't remember him, and for his baby girl, who would never know her real father, but most of all, he cried because he knew that Potter had won again.
"Harry, you're scaring her." Hermione tried to hush the crying baby, who, upon hearing her mother's voice had resumed smiling and wiggling her tiny toes. "Yeah, little princess. You got daddy's nose, huh? You look just like daddy." Hermione cooed as the baby fell asleep. "Come over here, Harry. What are you so scared of?" Harry moved unwillingly over to the bed. He didn't want to be the one to tell her that he was not the father of the baby, but instead Malfoy was.
"Harry, look at her nose, it looks just like your's." She smiled up at him and reached a hand out to grab his dangling one. Hermione squeezed tightly. "Look at our baby, Harry. We brought her into this world. Isn't she beautiful?" Harry nodded, unable to say any more. As much as he wanted to be with Hermione, a part of him knew it wasn't right to keep her from the truth, but how was he going to tell her?
"What should we name her, Harry?" Hermione rocked the baby back and forth.
"What should we name it if it's a girl?" A tenor voice rumbled through Hermione's brain.
"Heidi...it's lovely." Came the silky smooth voice again, sending shivers of excitement down her back. She squeezed her eyes shut, not able to remember the face of the voice. Silent tears started building again.
"Heidi," She whispered, almost as if the sliver of a memory would wash away if she said it any louder.
Harry looked down at her, his face breaking into the most charming of smiles. "Heidi it is, love."
"Get some rest, love. Tomorrow's a big day." Another shard of her memory evaded all the thoughts in her head, Hermione tried as hard as she could to remember where the voice had come from.
"'Mione, are you alright? You look a little pale." Harry frowned.
"No, I'm fine. This is all I've ever wanted; a happy, healthy family." She leaned up, kissing Harry lightly on the lips.
Draco, meanwhile, had gotten up and silently apparated out of the room, unshed tears stinging the back of his eyes.
I think I kinda got the birthing process wrong, but seeing that i've never had a baby before..I would know. hahaha