A/N: A huge thank you goes out to all who reviewed, most changes have been made. Huge thank you to GinnyW for her help. Read her surrogate fic on Ashwinder entitled "To Beget An Heir." It's really well done. Thank you also goes out to my other two betas Athena and Lori who make dreams come true!
The moon over the next evening was the thinnest crescent. There were no clouds in the sky, and the stars seemed to be closing in on the earth. Severus noticed this sky. He remembered this sky. This was what the sky looked like the night of the final battle. The night the sky fell down.
When Severus had returned to the quarters, the headmaster had come calling.
"I brought you some books and a contact sheet, Severus. There is one Muggle phone number there for an agency," the old wizard said as he entered into the sitting room.
Severus uttered a quick thank you and sat down in his leather chair. He gestured to the leather sofa on his right. Albus sat down and snapped himself some tea and maple biscuits. Severus continued to look over the list of contacts.
"I do not believe I will be contacting a Muggle agency. I want to be sure that my child is magical. I read earlier that it decreases the chances greatly."
"I understand Healer Granger is in good health?"
"She is as bushy and busy-bodied as usual."
"And the hospital, is it as bad as I hear?"
Severus sighed and set down the parchment. The old man was determined to have a conversation with him. "Yes the line-ups are excruciating."
"I see. Ginvera Weasley must have her hands full."
"I did not see the Weasley girl, but I would imagine hospital administration is not a pleasant job these days." Severus stood and walked over to his liquor cabinet and removed and expensive crystal cognac decanter.
"I have applied to the board of governors to donate a number of house-elves for a period of time." Dumbledore sipped his tea. "I am confident they will not object."
The Potions professor nodded, not knowing what to say. He didn't handle the family estate. It was his, but his mother took care of the donations and real estate.
The two men sat in silence staring into space.
"Perhaps you should try and find a lover, Severus," Albus said while finishing his tea. "You will need someone to care for the child once it is born."
"Thank you, Headmaster. If you don't mind, I have some work to do," Severus said, trying to mask his annoyance at having to share his problems with more than one Gryffindor in the last 24 hours. He felt his predicament quite embarrassing and was in no mood to share with the class.
"Ahh. If you are in need of any council I am happy to assist at any point in time. Good evening Severus."
The potions professor was alone to begin writing correspondence to various agencies.
In the dark of the night, Ginny Weasley looked over the accountant's numbers at her desk. She had a meeting on Tuesday with one of the most generous patrons.
Harry came up behind her and began to massage her shoulders.
She instantly melted into him.
"Relax, Gin."
Turning, she looked at her husband and rubbed her eyes, "There is a flu epidemic going around. There are so many people with high fevers. It is going to kill us!" She groaned with her face in her hands. "The Hogwarts' house-elves will pick up some of the slack if we can get them, but what we really need is more beds and staff. The only thing holding the place together is magic."
She began rubbing her temples with her fingers again. This was more stress than she could cope with. "The hospital is starting to remind me of The Burrow, Harry! We need a new wing! We can hardly handle this baby boom! The ward is full right now! I don't know where we would put them!"
"I know, Gin, I know." He turned her around and continued to rub her shoulders. "Relax, come to bed," he whispered.
She smiled. "That is a wonderful idea."
At long last there was peace. Hermione had worked eighteen hours. Soaking in her tub was just the right pace for now.
She always found it odd that she handled complicated pregnancies. Hermione had never been pregnant. She didn't know what it was like to have something growing inside of her. It must be an incredible miracle.
That was probably not something she would ever experience. She had chosen a career and in this day and age she would never have time. No time for love, no time for marriage and no time for babies. She would just have to be content to absorb the pregnant glow from her patients.
An odd thing happened while these thoughts went around in her head, she began to cry. The hormonal pull to motherhood was very strong. She was, after all thirty.
Last Easter, Hermione had visited her Grandmother in Surrey. It was the family tradition to have tea and coffee after mass. The men would leave to play a game of golf and the women would visit and cook. Her cousin Sydney had brought her three month old baby.
The baby was passed around to all the women and inspected. It was the competitive mother edge, each wanted to see if that baby was prettier, or healthier, or blonder, or more blue eyed, or more smiley than the ones they had given birth to.
When it came Hermione's turn to hold the baby her mother had taken the baby away right away. "You shouldn't hold a baby at your age Hermione. It can be dangerous. You will want to saddle up with a man and quit your job!"
It was meant to be a joke, and everyone laughed, but Hermione knew she was right. She had chosen her career. It was hard to deliver babies everyday and not want one.
As fate would have it reality had an agenda, and Hermione heard the doorbell ring. Then it rang again. And again, until she ran to the front door in her bathrobe and flung the door open.
"Neville! Luna! What's wrong?" Hermione gasped at the very frantic looking Longbottoms.
"Hermione! I am so glad! We need help! Luna is having contractions. We went to the hospital, but they stopped us when we got there. They said it was a false alarm, but she is having them again and this time her water broke."
Hermione took Luna's other arm. "How far apart are her contractions?" she asked helping them into the house.
"They seem to be about every six minutes."
She threw a clean sheet over her bed and propped Luna up on some pillows.
"Neville, I need you to Floo the Hospital! The red Floo powder is on the mantle."
Luna screamed in pain.
"Oh God, Hermione, is she going to be ok?" Neville looked frightened.
"Neville, I know you are afraid, but you have to do what I say. I don't know how much time we have. She could be quite dilated already, I don't know, but she is going to have to go the hospital at some point. I can deliver this baby, but she is going to need to recover somewhere. Floo the hospital and tell them to send some help, if they can."
Hermione knew there was no point in going to the hospital for this birth yet. She was competent enough, besides there was a bed here. God only knew if there were any beds or staff at the hospital ready for this.
Luna was thrashing about in pain and whimpering, "It's coming! It's coming!"
Hermione sat down on the bed. "Luna, you need to look at me."
Luna looked at her, eyes red with pain.
"I am going to see how dilated you are. I am going to take off your pants and underwear. Resist the urge to push for now ok?"
Hermione removed her pants and underwear. Luna looked embarrassed for a moment.
"Luna, there is no reason to feel embarrassed. It happens to everyone, and it just wipes away, ok?" Hermione reached to her desk for the baby wipes Ginny had left behind the other day and cleaned Luna up. Hermione cast an ultrasound spell to see the baby's positioning. Her heartbeat increased tenfold.
Neville returned from the living room. "Hermione, I can't get through, all the operators are busy. How is she doing?"
"She is at about seven centimeters. It is ideal to wait for ten. Stay with her, and tell her not to push. Call me if you get worried or she starts pushing on her own. I need to get some things. I will only be a moment." With that Hermione took off into the kitchen and bathroom.
The baby was breach. She could hardly digest what was happening. She charmed some water hot, grabbed some clean white towels, sterilized her scissors, and grabbed a few other things before she heard Luna screaming again.
"Luna, I need you to look at me," Hermione said when she entered the room again. "We have to wait a few more minutes. The baby is breach. That means it is not going to come head first. Do not push or bear down at all yet, you could hurt yourself. We do not have time to get to the hospital; we have to do it here."
At that point Hermione felt like an idiot. Why hadn't she cast a pain spell yet? Poor Luna must be dying over there. Hermione's head was not in the right place to be doing this right now. She needed help. Then it hit her. "Neville, Floo Hogwarts! Get Madame Pomfrey over here now!"
There was no response.
"Neville? Neville?" Hermione looked over and saw Neville passed out on the floor. She set Neville up against the wall "Oh great! I will be right back, Luna. I need you to do your breathing counts."
Hermione ran to the fireplace and dumped floo powder into the fire. "Hogwart's Hospital Wing!"
Hermione screamed into the fire, "Madame Pomfrey! Madame Pomfrey!"
A very tired, stern looking Mediwitch came to the fireplace. "Miss Granger? Whatever is the matter, you are interrupting my conversation with the Headmaster."
"Luna Longbottom is giving birth and the baby is breach, I need your help and some of your potions, come quickly. Blood replenisher, disinfectant and Pepperup. I also need a number 16 gauge IV and a preload of 1 liter of lactated ringers. Bring your wand! Try and find another hand."
"Oh my! Yes dear, go back to Luna, and keep the fire open, I will be there in as soon as I can."
Hermione went back to Luna. She was whimpering quietly.
"Luna, Madame Pomfrey is coming. We have to perform a caesarean. Everything is going to be alright." Hermione undressed Luna with her wand, leaving only her bra on and covered her with a sheet. She gave Luna a drop of antacid potion.
Not two minutes later, Poppy Pomfrey and Albus Dumbledore came through the fireplace. "I brought gloves, dear, here."
"I always love to see a baby born," Albus said smiling.
Hermione almost laughed at the image of the headmaster holding the new baby and offering it a lemon drop.
"Luna, we are going to give you an IV," Hermione explained.
"Hold her other hand, Albus, and keep note of her pulse," the Mediwitch ordered while taking her wrist and starting the IV.
Hermione put her hand on Luna's spine and whispered an incantation. It was an incantation she was not allowed to perform unless she was in the hospital, but she would deal with the repercussions later.
Madame Pomfrey eyed her, in disapproval.
"Ok, I have done a spinal, Luna. You won't feel a thing. I need you to keep your eyes on Albus. Stay relaxed and breathe."
Hermione conjured a force field around Luna's lower half, Madame Pomfrey, and herself. Nothing was allowed in or out, most importantly germs. Taking her wand the Medi-witch cast an X-ray spell so Hermione could see exactly where the baby was, where the arteries were and the depth of Luna's skin. She began to cut an incision in Luna's belly while Poppy slowed the bleeding with a charm.
When the incision was complete, Hermione set down her wand and gently eased the baby out and handed the baby to Poppy, who gently cleaned out his nostrils and gave him a tap. He began to cry and was wiped off and wrapped in a warm towel.
"Luna, you have a boy, all ten fingers and toes," announced the Mediwitch.
Hermione lifted out the placenta and weaved the incision closed. When it was complete the force field was taken down.
The birth had been completed in twenty minutes, and Luna was given some replenishing potions while she held her baby. Neville was still out cold when Luna dozed off to sleep.
She would be moved to Hogwarts in a few hours to be under Madame Pomfrey's watchful eye for a few days. There was no point in returning to St. Mungo's.
Albus held the baby with a twinkle in his eye. "They are treasures, aren't they? They possess the smallest of hands, the smallest of noses and the biggest of hearts."Hermione smiled and nodded, taking a sip of her coffee.
"Have you ever considered a child yourself, Miss Granger?" he asked, eyes glimmering.
Sighing she responded. "It has crossed my mind, Professor, but there is no time to settle down right now. I have been told by Ginny that it can change your whole point of view. From an educational standpoint it would be nice to have some more experience."
"Ah, I see. Parenthood was a journey I neglected to take in life also. Sometimes I feelremorseful of my decision."
"Albus, you have raised more children than anyone I know," she joked before finishing up the last bit off hot liquid in her mug..
TBC
A/N: Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoy! It's about midnight and I have a final in the morning so I don't know what else to type as far as author's notes go. Please review! I will be answering the reviews at the end of next chapter. Peace with you all!