Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, brilliantly created by J.K.
Rowling. Most situations are based on those created by J.K. Rowling.
Author's Note: I'm going on the idea that Harry Potter and his friends were born in 1980, which is the guess I made after reading book 2, so this chapter takes place in 2004, when the friends are 24 years old (or 23, in Ginny's case). According to the calendar, next year is a leap year so I'm just throwing that in to explain why I used February 29th instead of 28th (it wasn't just a random decision!).
Chapter Eleven: Emma
"What is it?" Ginny asked, curious now.
"It's a card," Hermione said. "I had no idea she put it in here."
"What does it say?" Neville asked.
Ron was the one to read it. "Dear mummy and daddy, Hope you have fun at your reunion. Love, Emma (and maybe Olivia too). P.S. Grandma helped me spell all the words!"
"That's really sweet," said Ginny. "Just like Emma."
"How old is she?" Neville asked.
"She just turned four this past March," said Hermione. "Actually, she was born on Ron's birthday."
"Really?" Luna asked. Hermione nodded.
* * *
"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Ja- ames! Happy Birthday to you!" sang the crowd of Weasleys that attended the birthday party for now one-year-old James Potter. James looked around the crowd, smiling.
"Okay James, now blow out the candles!" Ginny said, and she knelt by her son and demonstrated how to blow out a candle. "Come on, try with me."
James made an honest attempt, but did not produce enough air to extinguish the candle, so his cousin, the now nearly five-year-old Phillip, stepped in to do the job. The crowd cheered, and James clapped for himself, still laughing and smiling. "Okay!" Ginny called out. "Is everyone ready for cake?"
"Me! Me!" Phillip called out.
"Okay, Phil, then you can have the first piece - after James, of course!" Ginny exclaimed, and she patted her nephew on the head. She, along with Mrs. Weasley, started to cut the cake. Ron, Harry and Hermione stood off to the side, Hermione tearing up and dabbing at her eyes with a tissue.
"Are you okay, Hermione?" Harry asked, surprised at her reaction.
"Oh, I'm fine," she said. "I don't know why I keep doing this. It's just that I can't believe James is a year old already."
Harry looked at Ron, a confused expression his face. When Hermione walked towards the table to help Ginny and Mrs. Weasley pass out slices of cake, Ron said, "She's been like this for two weeks."
"Why?"
"I don't know," said Ron. "But she's crying at everything. It's really weird. And then she'll be all happy the next minute."
"That's odd," said Harry, and they shut up when Hermione came back with cake for all three of them. Her mood had improved, and she showed no traces of being in tears just minutes before.
* * *
After the party was over and most of the family was heading home, Hermione and Mrs. Weasley helped Ginny clean up in the kitchen. "You don't have to do this," she said. "I could get Harry to help me."
"Don't be silly," said Mrs. Weasley. "They're listening to a Quidditch game. Harry would be no help to you tonight. Besides, it gives us Weasley women some time to spend together."
Suddenly, a crash sounded as a drinking glass landed on the floor. "Oh my goodness!" Hermione exclaimed, and she felt herself tear up again. She knelt to clean up the pieces of glass, wiping her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Ginny!"
"It's okay," said Ginny, noticing Hermione's overreaction right away, and she sent a glance in her mother's direction. Mrs. Weasley was also looking at Hermione in a knowing way.
"What?" Hermione said, when she saw the way Mrs. Weasley and Ginny were looking at her.
"Hermione?" Mrs. Weasley asked. "Is there something you want to tell us?"
"No," said Hermione, and she realized that they must be wondering why she was crying. "I don't know why I'm crying. I'm just really emotional today. A lot of days, actually."
"Are you also really happy some of the time?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
Hermione nodded. "It's usually one extreme or the other," she said. "I don't seem to have a middle ground."
Mrs. Weasley smiled. "What?" Hermione asked again.
"Hermione, dear," Mrs. Weasley began. "Could you be pregnant?"
Hermione was taken aback. "Could I be - what?" She stopped herself, and did a quick mental calculation, talking softly to herself. "I suppose it was - yes, it must have been... But could it really be -?"
"Hermione?" Ginny asked.
"It's possible," she said.
Ginny shrieked and ran to hug her, soon followed by Mrs. Weasley. Hermione quickly got caught up in the excitement, but she was the one who made them come back to earth quickly. "I said, it's possible," she said. "I don't know for sure."
"You have to find out," said Ginny. "I have to know!"
"You have to know?" Hermione asked, and she laughed. "What about me?"
"Okay, okay, you know first, and then tell me," said Ginny.
"If I am pregnant - for sure - then I'm not telling anyone until I tell Ron," Hermione said.
"Yes, of course," said Mrs. Weasley.
"And please don't tell him we suspect anything," said Hermione. "I'll tell him as soon as we know for sure. I don't want to disappoint him if it's not true. To tell you the truth, this is something we've been talking about lately and really wanting, so I don't want to get his hopes up."
"Of course," said Ginny. "I won't say anything, I promise."
"Thanks," said Hermione.
* * *
A week and a half later, Ron and Hermione planned to celebrate their four year wedding anniversary. They were also celebrating the fact that they had just put a down payment on their first house, and would move in at the end of the summer. Hermione also had some good news for Ron, which she was certain would be cause for more celebration, and she planned to tell him before they went out that night.
Ron came home from work and greeted Hermione with a kiss. She was in their bedroom, getting ready to go. "It's hard to believe we're not going to come home to this place for very much longer," Ron said, as she sat on the side of the bed.
"It will be nice to have the extra space though," said Hermione, and she turned to face him. "Especially considering we're going to be joined by someone else very soon."
Ron's face went from confusion to thrill when he realized the implication of his wife's words. Still he sat on the bed and looked at her while she stood by the dresser. "Really?" he asked, and Hermione felt her heart stop when she heard the hopeful squeak in his voice.
"Really," she confirmed. "I just found out." Ron still sat on the bed, looking at Hermione with a mixture of shock and joy on face.
"Aren't you going to hug me or something?" Hermione asked with a smile.
"Oh!" Ron exclaimed, "Right!" He stood and crossed over to Hermione and pulled her tightly against him. "I love you, so much."
"I love you too, Ron," Hermione said. He let he go and looked into her eyes.
"Say it," he said. "Just so I know it's real."
Hermione eyes danced when she spoke. "We're going to have a baby."
* * *
Hermione's February 22 due date came and went and she was still pregnant, and feeling the strain of it. Even though she was on maternity leave, she spoke to Ginny at work almost every hour. "I'm so bored!" she said. "If the baby would come, at least I'd have someone to take care of, but it's just me sitting around!"
"I know," said Ginny, "I felt the same way just before James was born."
"You did not!" Hermione said irritably. "James was born BEFORE his due date. You had no idea he'd come."
"All right, all right," said Ginny, defeated. "I was just trying to make you feel better."
"I'm just sick of being pregnant," said Hermione.
"How's Ron?" Ginny asked.
"He's all right," said Hermione. "He's really great, actually. To me, I mean. That's the one good thing about this. He's so supportive, he brings me anything I ask for, even if I just mention that I might want it later."
"That's nice," said Ginny. "Hermione, a patient is coming in. I'll talk to you later, okay?"
"Okay," said Hermione, and she reluctantly ended the conversation. She looked down at her stomach. "Don't you want to come out?" she asked.
The baby made no signs of having heard its mother. It wasn't until the late evening of February 29th that Hermione began to realize something was going on. She had had back pain all day, but she attributed it to the extra weight she was carrying around. She had absolutely no appetite. Ron had made mention of it at dinner that night, but Hermione had snapped at him so he had almost stopped talking to her altogether, except she snapped at him about that too so he began to make random comments about the world in general, which seemed to keep her happy.
"It shouldn't be too much longer," Ron said as they lay in bed that night, Hermione moving around to get comfortable. "I mean, I don't know that much about births but I DO know that you can't be pregnant forever."
"Thanks for that," Hermione said sarcastically.
Ron just smiled at her. "Good-night, love," he said and he kissed her cheek before rolling onto his side and closing his eyes.
Seemingly too soon, he felt himself being shaken awake. "It's not time to go to work yet, is it?" He opened his eyes and saw the world was still dark. "Aw, Hermione, don't make me get up yet!"
"Ronald Weasley, I realize that you're a Healer and perfectly capable of this, but unless you want to deliver our baby here in our apartment, you'd better get up and get dressed!" Hermione exclaimed.
"WHAT?!" Ron exclaimed, and he was suddenly fully alert. "You're having the baby NOW?"
"Well, not right now," she said. Oddly, she seemed in a better mood than she had been earlier in the day. "But soon." She was sitting next to him on the bed, and she grabbed his hand as a contraction hit her. When it was over, she moved so Ron could get up and get dressed.
"I'll meet you in the living room," she said, and Ron noticed for the first time that Hermione was fully dressed and ready to go, a suitcase laying at the foot of the bed.
"How long has this been going on?" he asked, suddenly concerned.
"A few hours," Hermione said. "Well, all evening, really, but I didn't realize it was contractions until now. I couldn't sleep, and we certainly had some time before we needed to be at the hospital, so I got ready."
Ron nodded, and stood and went to the dresser to get a pair of pants. "You can just leave that shirt on," said Hermione before she walked out of the room and headed downstairs. Ron nodded again and stepped out of his pajamas and into a pair of pants.
He found Hermione sitting on the couch, her eyes closed, breathing deeply through a contraction. She opened her eyes and saw him. "You ready?" he asked, and she nodded. When they reached the front door, Hermione turned and looked at the house.
"When I come back here, it will be with an extra person," she said, and the feeling was very powerful.
"I know," said Ron, and he smiled and kissed her forehead, then took her hand and they headed out of the house.
* * *
"I have to say that numbing charms work wonders," said Hermione as she sat in her hospital bed, talking to Ron. The nurse had given her the charm shortly after they had arrived, anticipating many more hours of labor, and Hermione was a better person for it. "I'm sorry I was so mean the past couple of days."
"It's okay," said Ron.
"I've just been so stressed out, with the baby coming and being late," Hermione explained.
"I know," said Ron.
"And you've been so great," she said. "You always take such good care of me."
"Because I want to," Ron said, and he smiled at her, and took her hand. "So, you're good here, right? I can head upstairs to work?" he joked.
Hermione laughed. "You do that and I make sure our baby knows his or her father is a complete prat!" Ron sat next to her and kissed her.
"All right, break it up," came Ginny's voice. "Isn't that what put you in this fix?"
"Hi, Gin," said Hermione.
"Hi yourself," she said. "So it's finally happening. We get to meet this mysterious little person?"
"Soon, I hope," said Hermione. "It's getting a little monotonous in here. How's James? And Harry? Are they here?"
"Downstairs with the proud grandma and grandpa," said Ginny. "I should head back myself. I just wanted to say hi and wish you luck."
"Thanks Ginny," said Hermione, and Ginny headed for the door, waving before she shut it again behind her.
* * *
Three hours later, the numbing charm had worn off, and Hermione was in considerable pain when the healer came into tell her she could start pushing. "Finally!" she said loudly.
"Okay, you're almost there," said the healer. "The head is crowning. Now just give me one big push."
Hermione groaned and held onto Ron's hand as she pushed. "Here are the shoulders," the healer said, and Ron turned to look down at the baby making its way into the world.
"Oh my God," he said softly, and he turned to Hermione encouragingly. "Keep pushing Hermione, the baby's almost here. You're doing great!"
Hermione groaned and strained again, and this time, the sound of a baby crying filled the room as Hermione's energy left her and she fell back on the pillows. The healer held the baby up for her parents to see and proclaimed,
"IT'S A GIRL!"
* * *
Hermione gazed down at her daughter, taking in her soft skin, her closed eyes, her light red hair, and she sighed happily. "Hi," she said tentatively. "It's your mum." Ron sat down next to her on the bed. "And that's you dad. And we're so happy that you're here. Happy birthday." Suddenly, she remembered what day it was, and she looked at Ron and smiled. "Happy birthday, love."
Ron's eyes widened. "I'd forgotten," he said. "Never forgot my own birthday before."
Hermione smiled again. "You want to hold her?"
Ron nodded, and carefully took the sleeping baby from his wife. As he looked at her, his breath caught in his throat, and he felt as though his heart would burst. "Hi Emma," he said, the first to use the name they had chosen for her. "It's your dad."
Hermione watched the new father and daughter, and felt a tear fall down her cheek. "I'm sorry," she said.
"Why?" Ron said, his gaze never leaving his daughter.
"Now you have to share your birthday!" she exclaimed, knowing how Ron's biggest complaint growing up was that he never had anything of his own.
Ron didn't say anything to Hermione, but kept his eyes locked on the baby. "Emma, I've had to share a lot of things in my life, but I will never mind sharing my birthday with you." Ron looked at Hermione. "She the best birthday present you've ever given me. That anyone's ever given me."
Hermione smiled. "I love you," she said softly, and they both gazed down at their daughter.
"She's perfect, isn't she?" Ron asked.
"Perfect," Hermione agreed, and she reached out a hand to stroke the baby's cheek. "I didn't know it would be this intense. How much I love her."
"Yeah," was all Ron could say.
"You should tell your family," Hermione said. "I'm sure they're all anxious to know what's going on."
"Yeah," Ron said again, but he didn't move. They stayed looking at the little girl for a few moments, until there was a knock at the door and Ginny's head appeared.
"Can we come in?" she asked. Ron nodded, and motioned for them to be quiet. Ginny walked in, followed by Harry, who was carrying James, and then Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came in. Hermione and Ron beamed at them. "We found out at the desk that she was here," Ginny explained, "cause SOMEONE didn't come and let us know." Her comment went ignored as everyone looked at the baby.
"Oh, she's beautiful," Mrs. Weasley said as she laid eyes on her granddaughter. "Oh Ron, Hermione, she's perfect!" She gave her son and daughter-in-law each a kiss on the forehead.
Ron smiled at his mother. "Would you like to hold her?"
Mrs. Weasley said nothing but held out her arms and took the baby from Ron. Mr. Weasley, Ginny and Harry crowded around to look at Emma. "Baby?" James asked.
Ginny smiled at her son and took him from Harry. "Yes, sweetheart, that's your new cousin," she said.
"Her name is Emma," said Ron. "Emma Rose Weasley."
"Emma," James repeated.
"Looks like another redhead!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed.
"Yeah, unlike this one over here," Ginny said, tickling James, who had inherited his father's jet black hair. James giggled, and reached a hand out to his new cousin. "Be careful," Ginny warned him, but James only punt a hand on his cousin's cheek and then promptly took it away again."
"So what do you think James?" Harry asked. "You like your new cousin?"
"Yes," said James, using another one of the words in his limited, almost two-year-old's vocabulary. "Hold?"
"No, no, James," said Ginny. "You're too little to hold the baby, but maybe I can help you." She sat in a chair with James on one leg and Mrs. Weasley handed her the baby. "See James, you have to hold the baby's head."
"Head," James repeated, nodding as though he understood the whole process of holding a baby.
"Don't hog the baby," said Mr. Weasley, and Ginny smiled as he took the baby from her, and danced her around the room a bit before handing her to Harry.
"You and Ginny will be her godparents, right?" Ron asked.
"Absolutely," said Harry, already falling in love with his new niece and goddaughter. Looking at Emma made him remember the day Ron and Hermione first crossed paths with each other. They had been so young, and none of them could have imagined that they would now be sitting here married and with a child.
"Can I have my daughter back now?" Hermione asked Harry. He smiled at her and placed the baby back in her arms.
Mrs. Weasley looked at the visitors. "I think we should go," she said. "It's been a big day, for Ron, Hermione and especially for Emma here. They need some time to get used to each other." Everyone agreed, and said their good-byes. Ron took his seat next to Hermione again and they resumed starting at Emma, dreaming of her future.
Author's Note: I'm going on the idea that Harry Potter and his friends were born in 1980, which is the guess I made after reading book 2, so this chapter takes place in 2004, when the friends are 24 years old (or 23, in Ginny's case). According to the calendar, next year is a leap year so I'm just throwing that in to explain why I used February 29th instead of 28th (it wasn't just a random decision!).
Chapter Eleven: Emma
"What is it?" Ginny asked, curious now.
"It's a card," Hermione said. "I had no idea she put it in here."
"What does it say?" Neville asked.
Ron was the one to read it. "Dear mummy and daddy, Hope you have fun at your reunion. Love, Emma (and maybe Olivia too). P.S. Grandma helped me spell all the words!"
"That's really sweet," said Ginny. "Just like Emma."
"How old is she?" Neville asked.
"She just turned four this past March," said Hermione. "Actually, she was born on Ron's birthday."
"Really?" Luna asked. Hermione nodded.
* * *
"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Ja- ames! Happy Birthday to you!" sang the crowd of Weasleys that attended the birthday party for now one-year-old James Potter. James looked around the crowd, smiling.
"Okay James, now blow out the candles!" Ginny said, and she knelt by her son and demonstrated how to blow out a candle. "Come on, try with me."
James made an honest attempt, but did not produce enough air to extinguish the candle, so his cousin, the now nearly five-year-old Phillip, stepped in to do the job. The crowd cheered, and James clapped for himself, still laughing and smiling. "Okay!" Ginny called out. "Is everyone ready for cake?"
"Me! Me!" Phillip called out.
"Okay, Phil, then you can have the first piece - after James, of course!" Ginny exclaimed, and she patted her nephew on the head. She, along with Mrs. Weasley, started to cut the cake. Ron, Harry and Hermione stood off to the side, Hermione tearing up and dabbing at her eyes with a tissue.
"Are you okay, Hermione?" Harry asked, surprised at her reaction.
"Oh, I'm fine," she said. "I don't know why I keep doing this. It's just that I can't believe James is a year old already."
Harry looked at Ron, a confused expression his face. When Hermione walked towards the table to help Ginny and Mrs. Weasley pass out slices of cake, Ron said, "She's been like this for two weeks."
"Why?"
"I don't know," said Ron. "But she's crying at everything. It's really weird. And then she'll be all happy the next minute."
"That's odd," said Harry, and they shut up when Hermione came back with cake for all three of them. Her mood had improved, and she showed no traces of being in tears just minutes before.
* * *
After the party was over and most of the family was heading home, Hermione and Mrs. Weasley helped Ginny clean up in the kitchen. "You don't have to do this," she said. "I could get Harry to help me."
"Don't be silly," said Mrs. Weasley. "They're listening to a Quidditch game. Harry would be no help to you tonight. Besides, it gives us Weasley women some time to spend together."
Suddenly, a crash sounded as a drinking glass landed on the floor. "Oh my goodness!" Hermione exclaimed, and she felt herself tear up again. She knelt to clean up the pieces of glass, wiping her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Ginny!"
"It's okay," said Ginny, noticing Hermione's overreaction right away, and she sent a glance in her mother's direction. Mrs. Weasley was also looking at Hermione in a knowing way.
"What?" Hermione said, when she saw the way Mrs. Weasley and Ginny were looking at her.
"Hermione?" Mrs. Weasley asked. "Is there something you want to tell us?"
"No," said Hermione, and she realized that they must be wondering why she was crying. "I don't know why I'm crying. I'm just really emotional today. A lot of days, actually."
"Are you also really happy some of the time?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
Hermione nodded. "It's usually one extreme or the other," she said. "I don't seem to have a middle ground."
Mrs. Weasley smiled. "What?" Hermione asked again.
"Hermione, dear," Mrs. Weasley began. "Could you be pregnant?"
Hermione was taken aback. "Could I be - what?" She stopped herself, and did a quick mental calculation, talking softly to herself. "I suppose it was - yes, it must have been... But could it really be -?"
"Hermione?" Ginny asked.
"It's possible," she said.
Ginny shrieked and ran to hug her, soon followed by Mrs. Weasley. Hermione quickly got caught up in the excitement, but she was the one who made them come back to earth quickly. "I said, it's possible," she said. "I don't know for sure."
"You have to find out," said Ginny. "I have to know!"
"You have to know?" Hermione asked, and she laughed. "What about me?"
"Okay, okay, you know first, and then tell me," said Ginny.
"If I am pregnant - for sure - then I'm not telling anyone until I tell Ron," Hermione said.
"Yes, of course," said Mrs. Weasley.
"And please don't tell him we suspect anything," said Hermione. "I'll tell him as soon as we know for sure. I don't want to disappoint him if it's not true. To tell you the truth, this is something we've been talking about lately and really wanting, so I don't want to get his hopes up."
"Of course," said Ginny. "I won't say anything, I promise."
"Thanks," said Hermione.
* * *
A week and a half later, Ron and Hermione planned to celebrate their four year wedding anniversary. They were also celebrating the fact that they had just put a down payment on their first house, and would move in at the end of the summer. Hermione also had some good news for Ron, which she was certain would be cause for more celebration, and she planned to tell him before they went out that night.
Ron came home from work and greeted Hermione with a kiss. She was in their bedroom, getting ready to go. "It's hard to believe we're not going to come home to this place for very much longer," Ron said, as she sat on the side of the bed.
"It will be nice to have the extra space though," said Hermione, and she turned to face him. "Especially considering we're going to be joined by someone else very soon."
Ron's face went from confusion to thrill when he realized the implication of his wife's words. Still he sat on the bed and looked at her while she stood by the dresser. "Really?" he asked, and Hermione felt her heart stop when she heard the hopeful squeak in his voice.
"Really," she confirmed. "I just found out." Ron still sat on the bed, looking at Hermione with a mixture of shock and joy on face.
"Aren't you going to hug me or something?" Hermione asked with a smile.
"Oh!" Ron exclaimed, "Right!" He stood and crossed over to Hermione and pulled her tightly against him. "I love you, so much."
"I love you too, Ron," Hermione said. He let he go and looked into her eyes.
"Say it," he said. "Just so I know it's real."
Hermione eyes danced when she spoke. "We're going to have a baby."
* * *
Hermione's February 22 due date came and went and she was still pregnant, and feeling the strain of it. Even though she was on maternity leave, she spoke to Ginny at work almost every hour. "I'm so bored!" she said. "If the baby would come, at least I'd have someone to take care of, but it's just me sitting around!"
"I know," said Ginny, "I felt the same way just before James was born."
"You did not!" Hermione said irritably. "James was born BEFORE his due date. You had no idea he'd come."
"All right, all right," said Ginny, defeated. "I was just trying to make you feel better."
"I'm just sick of being pregnant," said Hermione.
"How's Ron?" Ginny asked.
"He's all right," said Hermione. "He's really great, actually. To me, I mean. That's the one good thing about this. He's so supportive, he brings me anything I ask for, even if I just mention that I might want it later."
"That's nice," said Ginny. "Hermione, a patient is coming in. I'll talk to you later, okay?"
"Okay," said Hermione, and she reluctantly ended the conversation. She looked down at her stomach. "Don't you want to come out?" she asked.
The baby made no signs of having heard its mother. It wasn't until the late evening of February 29th that Hermione began to realize something was going on. She had had back pain all day, but she attributed it to the extra weight she was carrying around. She had absolutely no appetite. Ron had made mention of it at dinner that night, but Hermione had snapped at him so he had almost stopped talking to her altogether, except she snapped at him about that too so he began to make random comments about the world in general, which seemed to keep her happy.
"It shouldn't be too much longer," Ron said as they lay in bed that night, Hermione moving around to get comfortable. "I mean, I don't know that much about births but I DO know that you can't be pregnant forever."
"Thanks for that," Hermione said sarcastically.
Ron just smiled at her. "Good-night, love," he said and he kissed her cheek before rolling onto his side and closing his eyes.
Seemingly too soon, he felt himself being shaken awake. "It's not time to go to work yet, is it?" He opened his eyes and saw the world was still dark. "Aw, Hermione, don't make me get up yet!"
"Ronald Weasley, I realize that you're a Healer and perfectly capable of this, but unless you want to deliver our baby here in our apartment, you'd better get up and get dressed!" Hermione exclaimed.
"WHAT?!" Ron exclaimed, and he was suddenly fully alert. "You're having the baby NOW?"
"Well, not right now," she said. Oddly, she seemed in a better mood than she had been earlier in the day. "But soon." She was sitting next to him on the bed, and she grabbed his hand as a contraction hit her. When it was over, she moved so Ron could get up and get dressed.
"I'll meet you in the living room," she said, and Ron noticed for the first time that Hermione was fully dressed and ready to go, a suitcase laying at the foot of the bed.
"How long has this been going on?" he asked, suddenly concerned.
"A few hours," Hermione said. "Well, all evening, really, but I didn't realize it was contractions until now. I couldn't sleep, and we certainly had some time before we needed to be at the hospital, so I got ready."
Ron nodded, and stood and went to the dresser to get a pair of pants. "You can just leave that shirt on," said Hermione before she walked out of the room and headed downstairs. Ron nodded again and stepped out of his pajamas and into a pair of pants.
He found Hermione sitting on the couch, her eyes closed, breathing deeply through a contraction. She opened her eyes and saw him. "You ready?" he asked, and she nodded. When they reached the front door, Hermione turned and looked at the house.
"When I come back here, it will be with an extra person," she said, and the feeling was very powerful.
"I know," said Ron, and he smiled and kissed her forehead, then took her hand and they headed out of the house.
* * *
"I have to say that numbing charms work wonders," said Hermione as she sat in her hospital bed, talking to Ron. The nurse had given her the charm shortly after they had arrived, anticipating many more hours of labor, and Hermione was a better person for it. "I'm sorry I was so mean the past couple of days."
"It's okay," said Ron.
"I've just been so stressed out, with the baby coming and being late," Hermione explained.
"I know," said Ron.
"And you've been so great," she said. "You always take such good care of me."
"Because I want to," Ron said, and he smiled at her, and took her hand. "So, you're good here, right? I can head upstairs to work?" he joked.
Hermione laughed. "You do that and I make sure our baby knows his or her father is a complete prat!" Ron sat next to her and kissed her.
"All right, break it up," came Ginny's voice. "Isn't that what put you in this fix?"
"Hi, Gin," said Hermione.
"Hi yourself," she said. "So it's finally happening. We get to meet this mysterious little person?"
"Soon, I hope," said Hermione. "It's getting a little monotonous in here. How's James? And Harry? Are they here?"
"Downstairs with the proud grandma and grandpa," said Ginny. "I should head back myself. I just wanted to say hi and wish you luck."
"Thanks Ginny," said Hermione, and Ginny headed for the door, waving before she shut it again behind her.
* * *
Three hours later, the numbing charm had worn off, and Hermione was in considerable pain when the healer came into tell her she could start pushing. "Finally!" she said loudly.
"Okay, you're almost there," said the healer. "The head is crowning. Now just give me one big push."
Hermione groaned and held onto Ron's hand as she pushed. "Here are the shoulders," the healer said, and Ron turned to look down at the baby making its way into the world.
"Oh my God," he said softly, and he turned to Hermione encouragingly. "Keep pushing Hermione, the baby's almost here. You're doing great!"
Hermione groaned and strained again, and this time, the sound of a baby crying filled the room as Hermione's energy left her and she fell back on the pillows. The healer held the baby up for her parents to see and proclaimed,
"IT'S A GIRL!"
* * *
Hermione gazed down at her daughter, taking in her soft skin, her closed eyes, her light red hair, and she sighed happily. "Hi," she said tentatively. "It's your mum." Ron sat down next to her on the bed. "And that's you dad. And we're so happy that you're here. Happy birthday." Suddenly, she remembered what day it was, and she looked at Ron and smiled. "Happy birthday, love."
Ron's eyes widened. "I'd forgotten," he said. "Never forgot my own birthday before."
Hermione smiled again. "You want to hold her?"
Ron nodded, and carefully took the sleeping baby from his wife. As he looked at her, his breath caught in his throat, and he felt as though his heart would burst. "Hi Emma," he said, the first to use the name they had chosen for her. "It's your dad."
Hermione watched the new father and daughter, and felt a tear fall down her cheek. "I'm sorry," she said.
"Why?" Ron said, his gaze never leaving his daughter.
"Now you have to share your birthday!" she exclaimed, knowing how Ron's biggest complaint growing up was that he never had anything of his own.
Ron didn't say anything to Hermione, but kept his eyes locked on the baby. "Emma, I've had to share a lot of things in my life, but I will never mind sharing my birthday with you." Ron looked at Hermione. "She the best birthday present you've ever given me. That anyone's ever given me."
Hermione smiled. "I love you," she said softly, and they both gazed down at their daughter.
"She's perfect, isn't she?" Ron asked.
"Perfect," Hermione agreed, and she reached out a hand to stroke the baby's cheek. "I didn't know it would be this intense. How much I love her."
"Yeah," was all Ron could say.
"You should tell your family," Hermione said. "I'm sure they're all anxious to know what's going on."
"Yeah," Ron said again, but he didn't move. They stayed looking at the little girl for a few moments, until there was a knock at the door and Ginny's head appeared.
"Can we come in?" she asked. Ron nodded, and motioned for them to be quiet. Ginny walked in, followed by Harry, who was carrying James, and then Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came in. Hermione and Ron beamed at them. "We found out at the desk that she was here," Ginny explained, "cause SOMEONE didn't come and let us know." Her comment went ignored as everyone looked at the baby.
"Oh, she's beautiful," Mrs. Weasley said as she laid eyes on her granddaughter. "Oh Ron, Hermione, she's perfect!" She gave her son and daughter-in-law each a kiss on the forehead.
Ron smiled at his mother. "Would you like to hold her?"
Mrs. Weasley said nothing but held out her arms and took the baby from Ron. Mr. Weasley, Ginny and Harry crowded around to look at Emma. "Baby?" James asked.
Ginny smiled at her son and took him from Harry. "Yes, sweetheart, that's your new cousin," she said.
"Her name is Emma," said Ron. "Emma Rose Weasley."
"Emma," James repeated.
"Looks like another redhead!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed.
"Yeah, unlike this one over here," Ginny said, tickling James, who had inherited his father's jet black hair. James giggled, and reached a hand out to his new cousin. "Be careful," Ginny warned him, but James only punt a hand on his cousin's cheek and then promptly took it away again."
"So what do you think James?" Harry asked. "You like your new cousin?"
"Yes," said James, using another one of the words in his limited, almost two-year-old's vocabulary. "Hold?"
"No, no, James," said Ginny. "You're too little to hold the baby, but maybe I can help you." She sat in a chair with James on one leg and Mrs. Weasley handed her the baby. "See James, you have to hold the baby's head."
"Head," James repeated, nodding as though he understood the whole process of holding a baby.
"Don't hog the baby," said Mr. Weasley, and Ginny smiled as he took the baby from her, and danced her around the room a bit before handing her to Harry.
"You and Ginny will be her godparents, right?" Ron asked.
"Absolutely," said Harry, already falling in love with his new niece and goddaughter. Looking at Emma made him remember the day Ron and Hermione first crossed paths with each other. They had been so young, and none of them could have imagined that they would now be sitting here married and with a child.
"Can I have my daughter back now?" Hermione asked Harry. He smiled at her and placed the baby back in her arms.
Mrs. Weasley looked at the visitors. "I think we should go," she said. "It's been a big day, for Ron, Hermione and especially for Emma here. They need some time to get used to each other." Everyone agreed, and said their good-byes. Ron took his seat next to Hermione again and they resumed starting at Emma, dreaming of her future.