Hermione placed her towel on the soft sand. It was night, she removed her shorts and her paternity blouse. Her belly protrued far beyond her bikini pant and her breasts swelled with the ripeness of mother's milk. Not long now, she thought as she waded into the Black Sea. She went far enough so that she could float without much effort. She lowered her ears below the water line and looked at the stars. How peaceful it was, total silence with nothing but the heavens to fill her eyes. She could barely keep up with everything that had happened. Viktor was constantly scrambling, If he wasn't in school he was at Quiddich practice either for the school team or the national team. His mother seemed to be the one in charge and although she was a gentle old gypsy with many old tales and songs, she watched her like a hawk and was very strict. Hermione was hardly ever allowed to leave the house. "Bad Spirits," she would say. "The vampires might get you and it would mean a double meal for them." Her favorite piece of advice was, "Don't look in the mirror too long, it will make the baby ugly!" This wasn't as oppresive to Hermione as it was comic. She knew that even though she could hold her own, the gypsy mother would beat her in a fight, and bad blood was not the way Hermione wanted her baby to be brought into the world. She saw this as a golden opportunity to teach herself 5th year magic.
The gypsy was after all a full fledged witch; the top of her class at Durmstrang. "Very Distingvisht, my mother," Viktor would say. There were many cases where she would appoint herself surrogate teacher to Hermione and instruct her on the proper way to do magic.
"You call zis defence!?" She would scream at Hermione when perusing her books. "Zis is nonsense! Why, don't you know the only way to fight dark magic is to learn it? Come child, you must learn the proper way to kill a vampire and a warewolf, they are very common around here."
"But I can't kill a warewolf, it is human after all. How do I know that it's not someone I know."
"You know warewolves? Are you mad, child?" Viktor's mother glared at her.
"Yes, one of the best defense against the dark arts teacher I've ever had!"
"Teacher?? At Hogwarts?!? Dumbledores' gone mad! Is he still zere, dis warewolf?"
"I'm afraid not, but I still keep in touch with him."
"Great Heaven's child do you know how cursed you might be right now?"
"Mother, leave her alone," Chided Viktor. "She's taken on deatheaters, she can take care of herself."
"Pish, we'll see how you fair in these parts, girl, there are more dangerous things out there than deatheaters."
She floated for a while, dove underwater to make sure she was completely wet and then swam ashore. Wrapping herself in a cotton towel, she walked up the beach to the small house up on the dune. Oh, she thought as she felt the baby kick.
"Dinner is ready, child." The Gypsy yelled. "Come, my dear, eat!"
Hermione came in to find Viktor sitting at the table beaming at her with a mouth full of Goulash. She smiled back at him with a giggle.
"My mother's recipe," the Gypsy said. "She was Hungarian." Hermione walked over to where Viktor was sitting and kissed him as he swallowed his Goulash. She sat over the steaming plate and began to eat.
"How was your day, babe," She said to Viktor with her mouth full.
"Quiddich practice was terrible. I don't know what the beating coaching staff is thinking. They have the worst strategy I've ever seen. There are some big matches coming up and our beaters just don't do so vell."
"I really wish you hadn't told them you would play this year, you're about to go into playoffs, what if the baby comes while you are away. I need you here, Viktor."
"They told me this year most of our games would be home games. I don't go anyvere till mid-June, the baby is sure to be here by then."
"What about our wedding?" She asked.
"We can get married after the season is over, don't worry, my precious Hermy, there is plenty of time to become my wife. I first must tell you how we are to live, once this season is over. I have it all worked out with some of the other wizards in town. You will see. It will be a very comfortable way to live for us and it will help us..." Hermione shot up out her chair suddenly. Viktor and his mother started at her inquizitively. She groaned slightly and put her hands on the table. Viktor stared down towards her legs and saw that water was leaking from her bakini pant. Her mother was immediatly aware of what was going on.
"Viktor! Quick! Put up some water," she starting muttering in Bulgarian. "Fetch the doctor, boy, quick!" She put her arm around Hermione and led her into the bedroom. "Now, now, my dear, you just rest there on the bed, we'll put a nice wet cloth on your forehead." She pulled out her wand and began to cast additional protective spells around the room. "To guard against the vampires. They can smell birth from over 10 miles away," She said.
For the next five hours, Hermione experienced the most excrutiating pain she had ever known. Yet in what seemed like the blink of eye, Astrid Melony Granger Krum was born at about 1 am, May 31st. Hermione looked at the baby resting on her chest. Viktor came in and smiled, "may I have a vord," he said. Hermione smiled and laughed at him.
"You may have more than that," she said as he leaned over and kissed her hard. "Congradulations, Mr. Krum on your new daughter."
"Thank you Mrs. Krum. Is there room there for the three of us?"
"Well, I'm not Mrs. Krum just yet, but yes I think we could fit you on here."
Viktor lied on the bed next to her. "Hello, my little Pearl of the Black Sea," He took the baby's tiny hand and shook it gently. "Hello, my Pearl..." And there they slept well until the baby cried for food.
The gypsy was after all a full fledged witch; the top of her class at Durmstrang. "Very Distingvisht, my mother," Viktor would say. There were many cases where she would appoint herself surrogate teacher to Hermione and instruct her on the proper way to do magic.
"You call zis defence!?" She would scream at Hermione when perusing her books. "Zis is nonsense! Why, don't you know the only way to fight dark magic is to learn it? Come child, you must learn the proper way to kill a vampire and a warewolf, they are very common around here."
"But I can't kill a warewolf, it is human after all. How do I know that it's not someone I know."
"You know warewolves? Are you mad, child?" Viktor's mother glared at her.
"Yes, one of the best defense against the dark arts teacher I've ever had!"
"Teacher?? At Hogwarts?!? Dumbledores' gone mad! Is he still zere, dis warewolf?"
"I'm afraid not, but I still keep in touch with him."
"Great Heaven's child do you know how cursed you might be right now?"
"Mother, leave her alone," Chided Viktor. "She's taken on deatheaters, she can take care of herself."
"Pish, we'll see how you fair in these parts, girl, there are more dangerous things out there than deatheaters."
She floated for a while, dove underwater to make sure she was completely wet and then swam ashore. Wrapping herself in a cotton towel, she walked up the beach to the small house up on the dune. Oh, she thought as she felt the baby kick.
"Dinner is ready, child." The Gypsy yelled. "Come, my dear, eat!"
Hermione came in to find Viktor sitting at the table beaming at her with a mouth full of Goulash. She smiled back at him with a giggle.
"My mother's recipe," the Gypsy said. "She was Hungarian." Hermione walked over to where Viktor was sitting and kissed him as he swallowed his Goulash. She sat over the steaming plate and began to eat.
"How was your day, babe," She said to Viktor with her mouth full.
"Quiddich practice was terrible. I don't know what the beating coaching staff is thinking. They have the worst strategy I've ever seen. There are some big matches coming up and our beaters just don't do so vell."
"I really wish you hadn't told them you would play this year, you're about to go into playoffs, what if the baby comes while you are away. I need you here, Viktor."
"They told me this year most of our games would be home games. I don't go anyvere till mid-June, the baby is sure to be here by then."
"What about our wedding?" She asked.
"We can get married after the season is over, don't worry, my precious Hermy, there is plenty of time to become my wife. I first must tell you how we are to live, once this season is over. I have it all worked out with some of the other wizards in town. You will see. It will be a very comfortable way to live for us and it will help us..." Hermione shot up out her chair suddenly. Viktor and his mother started at her inquizitively. She groaned slightly and put her hands on the table. Viktor stared down towards her legs and saw that water was leaking from her bakini pant. Her mother was immediatly aware of what was going on.
"Viktor! Quick! Put up some water," she starting muttering in Bulgarian. "Fetch the doctor, boy, quick!" She put her arm around Hermione and led her into the bedroom. "Now, now, my dear, you just rest there on the bed, we'll put a nice wet cloth on your forehead." She pulled out her wand and began to cast additional protective spells around the room. "To guard against the vampires. They can smell birth from over 10 miles away," She said.
For the next five hours, Hermione experienced the most excrutiating pain she had ever known. Yet in what seemed like the blink of eye, Astrid Melony Granger Krum was born at about 1 am, May 31st. Hermione looked at the baby resting on her chest. Viktor came in and smiled, "may I have a vord," he said. Hermione smiled and laughed at him.
"You may have more than that," she said as he leaned over and kissed her hard. "Congradulations, Mr. Krum on your new daughter."
"Thank you Mrs. Krum. Is there room there for the three of us?"
"Well, I'm not Mrs. Krum just yet, but yes I think we could fit you on here."
Viktor lied on the bed next to her. "Hello, my little Pearl of the Black Sea," He took the baby's tiny hand and shook it gently. "Hello, my Pearl..." And there they slept well until the baby cried for food.