The whole room shifted when those words came out. Instantly the tension and attention was on me. People stepped towards me, and by people, I mean everyone. It was one swift movement, like a huge wave.
"Stop!" I commanded, putting my hand up as a universal stop sign. The wave froze, not sure what to do. The Wellington's were the first to move, scattering to get around people who were frozen in place. I concentrated on breathing more than anyone else, but I did see the Weasley's get up in a hurry as soon as their wits found their way back.
"Don't you even think about it-" I hissed at them, but before my words had even left the air Molly was taking a deep breath, preparing to yell,
"DON'T YOU TELL ME WHAT TO DO! YOU ARE PREGANT AND DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER TO TELL ME! THAT IS MY GRANDCHILD AND I'LL BE DAMNED IF I AM NOT GOING TO INTERFERE-" and then she was interrupted from a surprising source. "YOUR GRANDCHILD! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS! THAT CHILD IS MY GRANDCHILD AND I WILL BE DAMNED IF YOU INTEREFERE!" I had always known that Sky was capable of such volumes, especially when owls were on her kitchen table, but to hear and see that come from Keefer, as he loomed over a startled Molly, it was almost terrifying. Almost, but not quite. For me at least, Molly and her clan seemed...well, terrified. Even the famous Harry Potter seemed unnerved. I suppose the moment was ruined by the fact that this made me burst into near hysterical laughter, which Keefer joined in. Without a word of explanation or even bothering to stop laughing, Keefer picked me up bridal style and carried me out bridal style. It was a miracle he didn't drop me, the two of us were enjoying side splitting laughter. We left the entire courtroom awe struck, only moving to watch me be carried out of the room, not even bothering to close their jaws. The only exception was Lucius, but he was still on the floor giggling, so I think of him as being in his own group. I'm kinda jealous of his group. Think about it! The whole world is funny, you get to ride on a dolly.
"Keefer, where are we going?" I was only slightly uncomftorable at that moment. "Oh...uh...the apartment?" His voice was just so unsure that it was a little pathetic. "No." I told him, I did not want to give birth in my own bed. Ew.
"Okay...the lobby? No, too many people. The hospital section? It's pretty close, wow you must have gained a lot from this pregnancy...OW!"
I smacked him for that and he put me own. I did gain a lot from the pregnancy, a ton, but that was beside the point. That was supposed to be unnoticable and not pointed out by the man carrying me. "Well, I think the hospital section is just around the corner so..." Keefer was walking ahead of me, peaking around the corner to see if his internal map was okay.
"Nope, I was wrong! Let's hurry into the other room!" he hissed, pushing me at an awkward speed.
"Dad, what are you-"
"Shhhh!" he cut me off and I wasn't planning on messing with him. He had already screamed at one red head today, I wasn't about to tempt fate. Keefer cracked the door open and peaked out, in the exact same way that he peaked around the corner. I was almost shaking with nerves. Not really because I was nervous about who I was hiding from, but because it was at that moment that I realized that I was going to be giving birth soon, and I was currently standing in a darkenend room with my adoptive father who faints at the sight of blood and was hiding from a mysterious evil doer. And I really wanted a taco.
"Okay, the coast is clear, but don't make too much noise!" Keefer whispered at me. Not to me, at me.
"What is going on? Who are we hiding from?" I begged for information with my words. He looked at me, his eyes full of sympathy, but didn't say anything.
"I am not moving until I get some information! And a taco." I insisted, but I'm pretty sure that the taco thing took away all my credibility. We both stood there for a minute, each more stubborn than the other. I winced slightly with only a mild pain, I shouldn't have winced at all. But I did. And Keefer sprang into Dad mode, scooping me up and carefully placing me over his shoulder. Through careful placement and squirming, I was comftorable-ish. Keefer marched his way out of the room, very carefully so as not to be heard.
"I hope my water breaks on you!" I hissed at him. He muffled a laugh, but then ewwww'd at that the thought. I ewww'd back, since that would be nasty.
"Keefer," my voice was quiet, I was suddenly filled with concern, "
what will we do if my water breaks?" "Don't worry, I saw a show on the Discovery Channel once, I think I know what to do."
"What show?"
"Um...you know the show...with the lady...at the zoo..." He mumbled at the zoo vecause that was what tipped me off. "I AM NOT A ZEBRA!" I screeched, he had seen a show where a woman helped deliver a zebra. A freakin' zebra! "SHHHHH!" that was the moment that I became very happy to be up on his shoulders, and not in the way of the shower he surely just produced.
"Where are we going?" I whispred,
"I don't know." He whispered back. "Keefer, I feel as if you're a pirate and I'm your parrot with really sensitive ear drums." I whispered at him, and we both stopped talking for a moment, and then started giggling. It was a fun moment.
"There you are! You won't believe who we just saw!"
"DON'T SAY IT! SHE DOESN'T KNOW!" Keefer whispered this, but it was still a roar.
"Who are we talking to!" with the way we were positioned, I was facing the back and couldn't recognize the voice.
"It's me! It's Mummy! Are you okay, hon?"
"Oh, hi Sky. I'm not too bad, and yourself?" I was just so polite. The moment called for it. Keefer turned so that I could see her, and she looked slightly distraught.
"Are you okay? Like that? For Pete's sake, Keefer! Put her down!" Sky was such a mum at that moment. Keefer obeyed, but as soon as my feet touched the floor his hand was clamped on my shoulder. He apparently thought that I was going to waddle away as fast as I could, despite techinically being in labor, and get myself in trouble. That could have been kind of fun...Headlines across the wizarding world could have read "Pregnant Witch Robs Bank!" or
"New Mum Murders Mercilessly!" That could have been fun...But no. I stayed put.
"Who are we hiding from?" I whispered, even though Sky had pretty much declared that unneccessary.
"Why are you still whispering?" Keefer asked in his normal voice.
"I'm not quite sure, I guess I like to be different. Now, tell me. Who are we hiding from?" I continued to whisper. "We are hiding from the Easter bunny." Sky's lips went intense and tights as she said this. It was too ridiculous to laugh at.
"What!" I hissed at her, and Keefer's expression went blank.
"The magical world is strange, and that story is believable! And you need to sit down! You are in labor!" Sky didn't like the fact that she couldn't think of a good enough lie.
"Where's everyone else?" I whispered as Sky almost forcefully led me down the hallway. Keefer followed loyally, reminding me of Bobby. Sky kept me talking, or at least tried to, but I refused to do anything but whisper back. She must have sounded crazy to anyone who heard her. Keefer stayed quiet, unsure of himself.
Sky led me to the hospital, and as I was walking the pain started up. The pain I could deal with, but the problem started as soon as we were officially in the hospital section. Everyone who had been in court that day was there, waiting for me. People stared at me, talked to me, yelled at me, followed me. I didn't even blink. The way I saw it, I had two choices. I could either focus on the people screaming at me, or on the pain that is labor. I went with the easier thing to deal with, the pain of labor.
"Mum, the first person to touch me is the first to die." I whispered to Sky, and she looked like she felt the same way. I slipped into a room that had a nurse waiting for me. She was young, calm, and undoubtedly a witch. She led me into the room and promptly shut the door behind me, locking everyone else out.
"Don't try anything! She's insane!" I could hear Sky holler through the door. Instead of worrying about that, I just climbed onto the bed in the room and put my feet up. The room was rather dull, white walls, gray carpeted floors, one bed, machinery that looked like that of a muggle hospital that had been tweaked by the wizarding world.
"Where's everyone else?" I asked the young nurse. She smiled at me, her eyes soft with something more than a smile. "Well, they're running late...but there's no need to worry! I know what to do, and I hear you work in a hospital."
"I can't deliver my own child! Are you insane! Go out there and get me a bloody doctor! NOW!" I yelled at the poor girl, but she was serious. I didn't have to be nice, I was in pain. The nurse went out to the room of too many people to try and find help. After about ten minutes I got impatient and peeked out the door. All the attention was on nurse lady, so I slipped out, searching for a familiar face.
"I'm going in." Sky declared, coming towards me, but she was cut off,
"If anyone's going in there, it's me!" Molly was the one to cut her off.
"Why should you get to?" Sky insisted, "She's my daughter!"
"She was mine first!"
"Okay, that's enough." I was the one cutting off now.
"Look, Molly can come in, but just because she's had tons of kids and knows the ropes." I explained, my voice strained with anoyance.
"That's not fair! I have lots of kids!" Sky pouted.
"Yeah, but we're all adopted!" I snapped at her. All the Wellington's gasped at my words.
"Oh, come on! Most of you are Asian!" I snapped again. I turned around to go in, and Molly tried to put a hand on me. "Don't touch unless you have to!" I snapped at Molly that time. She let me go back in alone, but I stayed where I could still hear everything going on outside the door.
"Okay, we need one more person to help, a catcher." the nurse lady explained. She tried to sound calm, but nerves were getting to her.
"Harry." Molly decided before anyone could say anything.
"Me!" He gasped, as if there were tons of Harrys in that room.
"Yes you! You're someone she's always trusted, and if you can catch a snitch, you can catch a baby! Now get in there and calm her down!" Harry shuffled in, and I got into the bed. I sneered at him, and all the color left his face.
"So, what am I catching today?" he tried to crack a joke, but I didn't even pretend to laugh.
"I don't know." I told him dully, searching the room for a focus point to look at to ignore the pain, just like I had told so many women at work.
"What do you mean you don't know? I thought you worked in a hospital! Don't they have those machines? You know, that shows the baby?"
"Yeah, but I never got to use it. All I got to hear were heart beats. Strong and healthy." I explained, he nodded, some color returning to his face. Then the pain started back up, and his mood changed.
