Don't own anything except OC's.
Chapter 29. Morning mishap, sonogram and mum
The next morning I awoke to something hitting me in the head. Groaning, I opened my eyes and glared at the culprit, until I realized it was Freddie Weasley and I almost screamed bloody murder.
He raised his eyebrows at me. "What are you doing in James' bed?"
My eyes flickered to James' sleeping form and back again. "Um, it's not what it looks like."
"And what does it look like?"
"You're such as arse, Fred," James grumbled tiredly. He sat up and rubbed his hands over his face. "She came to talk to me last night. She just fell asleep."
"Good, you never know what can happen these days."
"Like what? Get her pregnant?" James said sarcastically, pointing at my bump.
Derrick, who was walking into the bathroom, laughed and slapped Freddie on the back. "He has a point. Leave them be, Weasley."
"Go away, Wood," Freddie muttered, then realized where his friend was going. "Hey! Don't think you're going into the bathroom before me, loser."
They both ran into the bathroom, leaving James and I alone on the bed. I awkwardly stood up and smoothed down my bed top, noticing just how big my bump had become lately. It was like I had a Quaffle stuffed up my top.
"What you said last night," James said breaking the silence. "Did you mean it?"
"Yes," I replied in almost a whisper. "I talked to my dad last night… he changed my mind about the whole thing."
His face stretched into a brilliant smile that made me a little breathless. "Good. Thank Merlin, I was starting to think you weren't going to change your mind."
"I didn't think I would."
"I had a suspicion," he shrugged, also standing. "Or at least I really hoped you would change your mind."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I can't do this on my own."
"So why did you say you would?"
"Like I said, I really hoped you would change your mind."
I grinned at his giddy attitude. It felt good to joke around with him. "What would you have done if I hadn't changed my mind?"
"I think there would have been a lot of crying involved," James chuckled. "From me, not the baby."
"Well, it's a good job I changed my mind then isn't it?"
He nodded and then stared off into the distance. He was silent for a long moment, then stood showing his Gryffindor bed top and blue boxer shorts. I felt my face heat up at the fact that he had only been in his underwear and we had slept in the same bed. Talk about inappropriate.
"I'm going to get ready," I stated as Ethan started to wake in his bed. "I'll see you at breakfast?"
"Callie?" Louis mumbled from his bed. "What are you doing here?" he yawned widely.
"Attractive. I'll make sure Coco sees that one time."
"What?"
"Nothing. See you guys later."
I ran down the stairs but realized halfway down that people could be in the common room and come to…the wrong conclusion. I peeked around the corner and sighed in relief, there were only first and second years. They wouldn't connect the dots. I hopped along the common room, my feet cold from forgetting socks for bed last night, and up the stone stair case to the girl's dormitories.
"There she is!" Rose screamed the second I walked through the door.
I cringed at her loud tone as Coco, who was stood on my bed, put her hands on her hips.
"Where the hell have you been?" Coco yelled shrilly. "I thought you'd been kidnapped by aliens or something!"
"Aliens?"
"Yes!" she jumped from my bed and landed with a big 'thump'. "Or at least got lost in the dungeons. Where were you?"
"I—well, you see—"
"Don't you lie to us Calliope Rose Denison," Rose scolded.
I felt like a child again.
"I went to see James last night," I admitted. "The baby started kicking and I thought James might want to feel it. I was too tired to walk back so I just slept in his bed—"
"The baby kicked?" Coco questioned, flying forward to put her hands on my stomach. "When? Why? How long for? Was it weird? What did it feel like?"
"Last night, because that's what baby's do in your stomach…what was the next one?"
"Was it weird?"
"Really weird," I said, scrunching my eyebrows together as she put her hands on different places on my abdomen. "Coco, it's not kicking now."
"I'm coaxing it."
"It doesn't work like that," Rose interrupted. "They kick when they want to. He's probably still asleep now."
Coco took her hands away and sighed. "Okay, but tell me next time he kicks."
"Promise."
Coco and Rose were too absorbed in baby talk to care about me spending the night with James. In fact, they didn't seem to take that piece of information in at all. I begrudgingly put on the maternity jeans my dad bought me for Christmas and an oversized black top. I walked between Coco and Rose on the way to the Great Hall, although my news was old now and people were used to it, there was still the few that sent me disgusted looks and titters. I avoided them at all costs, I never saw Slytherin's anymore, but it was impossible to not see them once in a while. Plus, Natalia was on the loose and she scared me.
"Alright preggers," Scorpius greeted me brightly.
"Hey reptile."
"I'm named after a star conciliation, not an amphibian," Scorp groaned.
"Same thing."
"Not really."
"Still not as bad as Severus."
"Hey," Albus said, affronted. "I was named after one the bravest man my dad ever—you know what, it's not even worth it. There's nothing in the world that can make up for the name Severus."
"Especially when it's paired with Albus," Rose giggled. "You poor boy."
"I'm a man."
We all laughed at that one.
Albus huffed as he opened the paper and started to read. As I piled my plate with scrambled egg, the post came. A small red letter was dropped in front of me, the new Witch Weekly that Coco ordered every week, and a picture of the sunset that I assumed was from Sage by the scribbling and mismatched colours. Curious, I picked up the red letter, threw the magazine at Coco, who squawked in surprise, and tucked the picture in my folder to go with the other pictures Sage had made me. I had a rainbow folder in my bottom draw dedicated to Sage related things.
Dear, Miss. Denison.
This is Healer Thane reminding you that you have an appointment for February 20th at St. Mungo's. Please respond to let me know if you can still make the appointment.
Thank you,
Dana Thane.
"Hey," James plopped down beside me. I wordlessly handed him the letter, he read it and tucked it in his pocket.
"That's this Saturday, right?" he asked, putting bacon onto his plate.
"Yeah," I paused. "Two days before my birthday."
"Your birthday's next Monday? Shit, what do you want?"
"You don't need to get me anything."
"Course I do. Don't be awkward, tell me what you want."
"I don't want anything."
"Seriously Callie—"
"Nothing. That's what I want, nothing."
"What are you two arguing about now?" Dom asked tiredly.
I grumbled, "We don't argue that much."
People chose to ignore me. Rude, but also understandable.
"Dom, you'll help me choose a present for Callie's birthday won't you?"
Dom snorted. "Sure, when is it?"
"Next Monday," Albus answered. "Already got the present sorted."
"Twit. Give me some ideas."
I rolled my eyes at James as Coco spoke. "I forgot about our birthday," she laughed at herself. "How can you forget your own birthday?"
"Easily. People sang Happy Birthday last year and I didn't click on until an hour later that they had been singing it to me," Scorpius commented offhandedly as he spread butter on his toast.
I shook my head. What was I friends with?
"Hey mate," a velvety voice interrupted us. I looked up to see Blaise Zabini stood behind Scorpius. A few girls down the table looked up, blushed and giggled. I understood why, Zabini was extremely hot. He had the whole tall, dark and handsome thing, plus he held an aura of mystery that drove many girls wild. Even Rose flushed when he smiled at her and I coughed at the heat in my face. "We need to go and finish that Charms practical."
Scorpius bid us goodbye and disappeared. Dom let out a long breath and fanned her face, I snorted at her.
We spent the rest of the day lounging around the common room and catching up on homework. As I sat staring at the fireplace trying to get out of writing a DADA essay, my mind went too yesterday. I started to wonder where Edith had ended up. Had she went back to wherever she had been before? Was she still in Hogsmeade? Would she try to contact us again?
More importantly, did I want her to?
My eyes flickered to Coco as she did the worksheet for Transfiguration while making conversation with Carly. Did she want to see her? Did she care less about seeing her again, just like I did? I figured not, Coco was a lot more forgiving than me, plus she had always missed having a mum around. Coco was more girly than I ever had been, she loved mum teaching her how to do make-up and what perfume to use. I hated it, preferring to be in the background and jump on the bed while making up my own song about dragons and swords. Though Coco hated mum for what she did to us, she didn't hate mum. I, on the other hand, hated both. I was bitter and stubborn and maybe I should learn to be more forgiving but I didn't have the room or time anymore. If things went right, I would be raising a baby soon…I didn't have time to worry if Edith would fuck off into the wind again. Plus, really, I didn't want to.
I wanted to talk to Coco about it but I didn't get the time. For the next week we spent most of our time with other people and when we were alone one of us was always too tired to talk. Whenever I started the heart-to-heart I had in mind we would be interrupted, either by James suggesting ridiculous herbal remedies for me to take to make the baby healthier or Rose complaining that Scorpius was being an arse.
Before I knew it, it was time for my scan appointment. James and I had asked for the day out on Monday afternoon and were granted the access on Wednesday. We used the headmistress' floo network to get to the hospital and landed in the reception.
"We have an appointment with Healer Thane," James told the receptionist. As the young man looked through files, I saw someone from the corner of my eye pointing at us. Curious, I glared over and watched in horror as he whipped out a large camera. The flash made my eyesight go blurry for a few seconds and I vaguely heard someone shout 'That's James Potter!'.
"Shit," James muttered. He grabbed my hand and pulled. "Come on."
He rushed us down the hallway as people began to crane their necks to look and some got their cameras and phones out to take pictures. Healer Thane was coming down the hallway as we jogged down, she left the door open for us and we fell through. Healer Thane slammed the door shut and I could see flashes of cameras through the small window at the top of the doors.
I felt sick. Was that what my life was going to be like now? I didn't want fame, I didn't want to be in the papers and have articles written about me. Oh Merlin, what if there was a picture of me in the Daily Prophet tomorrow? I balked and covered my mouth with both hands. I couldn't handle this.
"They can be fierce, huh?" Healer Thane smiled. "I always did this for you mum, James, when she was pregnant with all of you. Sometimes we had to open the hospital just for Ginny and Harry to have some peace. It was always hectic when they came."
James frowned at this. "Why are they even bothered?"
"Because the public are interested," Healer Thane answered, leading us to the room we were in last time. I sat on the bed-type chair in the room and took several deep breath to calm myself down. "Your dad saved the world, James, people are bound to be interested in what he does. It's how the world works, which is a pain for you I'm afraid."
"Actually I'm more concerned about Callie," James said. "She doesn't handle things like this well."
As proved by the hyperventilating I was doing.
"Want a drink, Callie?"
I nodded and gulped the cup down once she had handed it to me.
"Thanks," I set the cup on the side. "I'm sorry. These things freak me out a little bit."
"Its fine, honey. I understand," she didn't really, but I nodded anyway. "Now, let's check this baby shall we?"
She put the gooey stuff on my stomach again and rolled it around my stomach. The picture came on the screen again, only this time the peanut sized looked… well, like a baby, unbelievably. I could see the head, the curve of its chest, and the point of its tiny nose. It looked so real.
I hyperventilating started again.
"Wow," James mumbled from beside me. Wow was right, however, I was too speechless to tell him this. Healer Thane talked through healthy eating and other things I should do to help the baby, weighed and checked out I was okay, booked another appointment, and then made copies of the scan and handed them to us, showing us a different way to get back to school. In the staff lounge was a fireplace connected to the floo network and we used that, both silent in awe as we travelled.
Our baby was growing. It was big enough for me to see its full silhouette, I wouldn't refer to it as a peanut anymore. No, it was a baby now. Big enough to anyone, even me, point out on the sonogram. I started to feel the weight of keeping the baby on my shoulders, the sleepless nights, the pooping, the screaming, the crying, the moodiness. My heart pounded as we walked back to the common room.
"I'll sent one to my mum," James said, pointing to the large envelope in my hand that contained the scan photos. "You should send one to your dad."
"Yeah."
"Could I have one for my grandma? She was upset she didn't get one last time."
"Sure."
"And we need to keep one for ourselves."
"Yep."
"Can you only answer in one word?" he smirked.
"Yes."
"Okay then."
I headed for my dorm after giving James two scan photos. I needed to lie down for a while. When I got there Coco was sat on the end of my bed reading a letter. I made my presence known by coughing and walking heavy than I normally would, making her look up and smile.
"How was the scan?"
"Good. We got photos."
"Ooo, let me see!" she ripped the envelope from my hand and took out the last remaining big photo. There was also two small left. "Aw, that's so cute! I can tell it's a baby this time. Last time it just looked like you'd eaten a big peanut."
I snorted and took my coat off, settling it on the handing beside my bed. Coco glanced at the crumpled up letter near her and then back to me. Sighing, I sat on the bed to take off my shoes, which was becoming a lot more difficult since my stomach expanded.
"Who's the letter from?"
"What letter? Haha, I don't know a letter—"
"Coco."
"Okay, it's from mum," she caved at my warning tone. She sat back on her knees and looked at me with big blue eyes. My stomach sank. "She wants to meet up next Hogsmeade for lunch. She wants to talk. Do you want to go?"
"Do you?"
"Not if you don't."
"But you do want to go?"
She shrugged, but I could see the longing in her eyes. The longing for a mum or the longing for the answer to so many questions, I wasn't sure. Maybe it was both. My head was shouting at me to say no, to leave my mum the way she left us, to let her feel only an ounce of pain I felt when she left me the second time. But Coco looked so hopeful, almost desperate, and saying no to Coco was like kicking a puppy.
"Okay. Let's do it."
She beamed and nodded, running off to what I presumed would be the owlery. I kicked off my right boot and puffed out a breath, next Hogsmeade was going to be exciting, I could already tell.
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-Laylax
