Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of it's characters. Nor do I pretend to be as good at this as J. K. Rowling. I do this for my own pleasure, and hopefully someone else like myself will enjoy it as well until she gives us Book 6.

Chapter 2: Patiently Waiting

Ron Weasley stepped out into the bright sunlight from the dreariness of the Auror Headquarters building. He shielded his eyes until they could adjust to the onslaught of light streaming in. For a change, Ron was off work at a normal time, well normal for most people. The sun was still shining, and he was going to have dinner with his wife. But first, they were going to meet at his sister Ginny's office for their exam. He was unsure if his sister could be of any help, but it at least felt good to know that their secret was out in the open, and his family supported them fully.

Ron made it to St. Mungo's in a few minutes. He could have apparated there much quicker, but he wanted to enjoy the warm afternoon air during his walk. Ron loved his job, but it wasn't often that he could enjoy a leisurely afternoon stroll, and he intended on taking full advantage of the opportunity. He amused himself along the way by watching the witches and wizards he passed along the way. People dressed in all manner of clothing, from the very traditional wizards robes to modern muggle clothing. Ron had been counting the number of pregnant women he had seen on this journey. He counted 11 on his 8 minute walk. He wondered if those couples knew how lucky they were and couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Was the whole world pregnant except for them? Very little in life is fair, he lamented.

When the doors of the lift opened onto the obstetrics ward, he immediately recognized a bushy-haired brunette sitting in the waiting room. He made his way over to her and gently kissed the top of her head. She was reading a copy of "Witch Weekly" that had been left in the lounge.

"Hello darling. Have you been waiting long?"

"Oh, no. Just got here myself actually," she said, smiling at the redhead. "I've already checked in with the mediwitch at the counter. She said Ginny will be with us in a few moments."

"Alright then. Any clue as to what she's looking for?" Ron asked, skeptically.

"Not a one. Probably just wants to make sure nothing was missed."

Before Ron could respond, a thin woman with a long, pointed nose called their name. "Weasley? Are you the Weasleys? Good, follow me." she said as she led them down a corridor to a room at the end of the hallway. "Just wait here. Dr. Potter will be with you momentarily."

The room was well appointed, with two large squashy armchairs that faced an elegant cherry desk. Pictures of babies lined the walls. Some of them were sleeping, while others were crying or cooing within their frames. Hermione smiled and waved at one of the photographic babies, who in turn smiled back and tried to wave by opening a closing a pudgy little fist.

"Oh Ron. Isn't she darling? What a beautiful baby." Hermione said, beaming.

Ron placed a comforting arm around his wife's shoulders. "She is at that."

A few moments passed before they heard Ginny enter the room. "So sorry about that. Seems that every baby in England wants to be born today. I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you here. I know that you've been to many other healers and specialists, and they've told you the same thing. I don't want to try and get your hopes up falsely, but I've done quite a bit of research on infertility and I am aware of some treatments that most healers have never heard of. " Ron reached over and grabbed Hermione's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I'm going to need to ask you some very personal questions and do a physical exam on you both. I don't want you to feel awkward about this because I'm your sister. If you agree to go ahead with the tests, I'll be your healer and I assure you that anything we reveal here will stay in this room. No one else will know about it unless you tell them. You have my word on that."

Ron looked into his wife's eyes, and knew his answer. "Of course we trust you Gin. Sorry, Doctor Potter. I have a hard time being optimistic since we've heard nothing but bad news. But we trust you with our lives. If you can find anything to give us hope for a child....Well, we'll go through any bloody tests you throw at us. What have we got to lose at this point?" Hermione simply nodded her head in agreement.

Ron was lead into a small examining room and given a cloth gown to donn. After he had shed his clothing and was attired in the gown, the mediwitch assisting him instructed him to drink a blue potion and lie back on the exam table. Immediately after drinking the solution, he felt a little lightheaded and was glad that he was already seated upon the table. He could feel the potion making it's way through his system and felt his stomach becoming warm. He wondered what kind of tests Hermione was having to endure as Dr. Potter entered the room.

"This won't take long, Ron. I'll let you know everything I'm going to do before I do it. First, I'm going to do a general scan of your body to determine your overall health. Then I'll do a more in depth scan of your abdomen and groin. You won't feel anything during this part. Finally, I'll have you drink another potion and do the final test. You may feel a little nauseous after drinking this potion, but I'll give you something for that when we're finished. Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be." Ron leaned back onto the table and tried to relax.

Dr. Potter waved her wand in a slow, methodical fashion over the length of Ron's body. As she slowly progressed from his head toward his feet, a green glow emanated from the tip of the wand. Once this was completed, she began the scan of his midsection. This time the wand tip glowed a vibrant red, as bright as the setting sun. Just as she had said, Ron had felt nothing during these tests. This wasn't so bad, really. Dr. Potter crossed the room, picked up an eagle-feather quill, and scratched the results down onto a piece of parchment. Ron recognized this quill as the one their brother Bill had given her at Christmas last year. She put the quill down and returned to Ron's side, carrying a vile of foaming pink solution.

"This is the last test. I need you to drink all of this in one swallow. Then we will wait for 10 minutes. If you are feeling ill at the end of the test, I'll give you something for it." She handed the vile to Ron.

"Cheers," Ron said as he brought the potion to his lips. It smelled quite nice actually, a bit like the bubble gum from Honeydukes. He swallowed the potion quickly. The taste was quite nice as well, nothing like the horrible potion he had been expecting. For the first few minutes, it seemed as nothing was happening. But then Ron began to feel a bit queasy. He closed his eyes and hoped it would pass. He still had 5 minutes to go before Ginny would give him an antidote. As the minutes wore on, he felt his stomach turning and his mouth began to water. He hoped that he would be able to keep the potion down for the remainder of the test. He had one minute to go, and he was miserable.

Dr. Potter could see the discomfort on Ron's face. "Almost there Ron. I've got the counter potion here ready for you." She was holding a container of yellow liquid. Ron clamped a hand over his mouth, afraid to open it in response.

"Time's up. How's your stomach?"

Ron, face a greenish tint, was sweaty and shaking. "I think I'm going to be sick."

Dr. Potter's face dropped. "Really? I didn't expect the reaction to be so strong. Do you think you can take the counter potion?"

Ron could only shake his head. She handed a basin to Ron just in time. As he retched into the bowl, she placed a comforting hand on his back. "There, there. You'll feel better in a moment." Ron could have sworn that he had seen a smile on his sister's face before he had dived into the basin again.

Once Ron had lost all of the contents of his stomach, Dr. Potter handed him the counter potion. He downed it as quickly as possible, and his stomach immediately relaxed. Why had he been so sick? She had said that it would make him somewhat nauseous, but not violently ill. Did this mean that he had failed the test? Ron was dying to ask her, but didn't want to know if it was bad news. He decided to wait for her to tell him the results.

"When you're feeling up to it, go ahead and get dressed, then meet me in my office. I'll fill you and Hermione in on the results at the same time. I'm sorry you were so ill. I didn't expect you to have such as strong reaction. Are you feeling well now?"

"Yeah, much better. I'm actually quite hungry now."

Ginny laughed. "Some things never change, brother dear. I'll see you shortly."

"Gin, were Hermione's tests as bad as that? Is she alright?" Ron asked, worry evident in his eyes.

"She's quite fine Ron. Nothing as spectacular as your tests, I assure you."

Ron walked back into the office, where he saw his wife seated in one of the armchairs. They asked each other what kind of tests had been performed. Hermione, just as Dr. Potter had said, was not harmed in the least. Although she had an internal exam as well, she did not have to take the potion as Ron had. Dr. Potter entered the office and sank into the chair behind her desk. Ron was unable to read the expression on her face. He had told himself that he would not get his hopes up, but realized at that moment that he had done exactly that. His heart was pounding in his chest and his palms became sweaty. He nervously rubbed them on his pants as he waited for the results. What would they do if there was no hope for them to have a child of their own?

"Ron, Hermione, I have the results of your tests." Ron sought Hermione's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Her touch was comforting. " I must say that while some results were quite expected, I am baffled at the results of others. There's no easy way to say this, so I'll jump right into it. I have good news and bad news."

A/N: Aren't I evil? You'll just have to wait for the next chapter to find out. Does anyone see what's coming? The chapter title is thanks to 50 Cent. And speaking of thanks, I want to thank the following reviewers:

LJ Fan: Hey there, my sappy friend. Thanks for being my first reviewer. You know, Radio came out last week. Make sure you have a box of tissues when you watch it. My eyes still hurt, and I saw it in the theater! A parallel to friends huh? Ginny did find something, but I can't tell you what it is until Chapter 3. Stay tuned. I love your reviews, even when they do get off topic. Keep um coming, babe.

BuckNC: And I love that you love having me back! I'm honored that this is on your favorite stories list. Hope I don't disappoint.

AnonymousPHancock: Thanks for sticking with me. As for happiness ahead, you'll just have to keep reading (evil grin ).

Brittney-Btrflies: Thanks so much. Hope you liked At Last. And please, keep reading and reviewing. It makes my day.

procrastinator99: BTW, I love your name. That sums me up as well. I love Cornwell, but the new novel is not my favorite. I lived in Richmond for years, so part of what I like about her books is that Virginia is like another character, one that I know very well. So I feel like one of my favorite characters has been killed off. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy her writing. But would Faulkner have been the same if he set his novels in, say, New England instead of the deep south? My favorite Patricia Cornwell book is The Body Farm.

Tanya J. Potter: Glad you liked it. I tried to update as soon as I could, just for you ;)

michelleywelley: Thank you so much. I was honored that you thought this could be a sequel to your story "There for You". I love it, by the way. Update soon, please. Anyway, stay tuned. Things get more interesting in the next chapter.