Bump's Along the Way

FYI: LUCIUS' NICKNAME IS LUCE (PRONOUNCED 'LOOSE') AND SOMETIMES LITTLE LUCY

Luckily for Artemis, her mother-in-law and mother were observant enough to notice that the new mother was exhausted and desperately needed some rest. Otherwise the poor woman would have spent the next couple of hours trying to entertain her family instead of taking some much needed time to herself. After giving Artemis nearly two hours to recuperate the midwife returned to her suite, informing the young woman that it was time for her to try and nurse the baby. No sooner than the words had left her mouth, Lucius and the other male guests made a beeline for the door, mumbling under their breath something about getting something to eat. The only man who stayed was Draco, who sat in a nearby chair softly whispering to his newborn son.

"Draco, bring the baby over," ordered the midwife, as she helped the slowly waking mother sit up. Still mumbling to his son, Draco strode across the room, seating himself next to his exhausted wife. Narcissa and Persephone couldn't help but notice how tired she looked. Labor had taken a lot out of the young woman, and the mother's, still able to recall the exhaustion they felt after giving birth, were worried about her. Artemis had always been a thin girl and while she had gained weight during her pregnancy she hadn't gained nearly enough, though if you asked her she would tell you that she had turned into an absolute cow. As it was, just three hours after Lucius' birth you could hardly tell that she had ever been pregnant. Most would consider this a blessing, but Narcissa and Persephone knew exactly what lay ahead of the new mother and her body certainly wasn't ready to handle the demands that little Lucius was going to make.

"Artemis, you're going to have to take the baby," said Draco, holding out the newborn for his wife to take. For several moments Artemis just stared at the boy, until finally holding out her arms and drawing the newborn against her chest. After the midwife gently opened the front of Artemis' robe and instructed her on how to nurse the baby, she left, promising to return in a few minutes.

"Artemis, you're not doing it right," chastised Draco, as he tried to shift the position she had the baby in. Several moments, after allowing Draco to correct her Artemis let the baby fall back into the position, that she had initially had him in.

"Geesh, you can't hold him like that," huffed Draco, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "You have to support him while he nurses." Just then the midwife returned to check on how things were going.

"Artemis, that's not what I showed you!" she exclaimed, rushing over and placing her hands under Lucius' body. "You have to hold him in the proper position. His bones are still fragile." As she allowed he midwife to impatiently manipulate her arms into the correct position again, tears slowly began trickling down her face, to which both her husband and the midwife were oblivious. Once again, Artemis was unable to hold the baby in the demonstrated manner and he slipped into a very awkward position, one that would not allow him to properly nurse. Realizing that he was no longer being feed, Lucius began to wail, jolting his father from his conversation with he midwife.

"Artemis," huffed Draco, once again trying to shift the baby into the correct nursing position "Come on! I need you to bend your arm."

"Well, if you're so damn brilliant you do it," mumbled Artemis, shoving the baby into his father's arms before turning and lying back down. As she lay there, her body visibly shook due to the force of her sobbing.

"Everyone out," ordered Persephone, sternly.

"But he's hungry. He hasn't had nearly enough to eat," whined Draco, cradling the infant against him as his mother-in-law forced him out of the room. Once everyone had left, Persephone strode over to her daughter, seating herself in the spot Draco had just vacated. Gently, she rubbed her daughter's back, tracing a figure eight with the palm of her hand. After giving the new mother some time to vent her pent up emotions, Persephone forced Artemis to sit up.

"What's the matter?" she asked, gently wiping the tears from her daughter's face using the pad of her thumb.

"I can't do this," she whispered, her eyes welling up with new tears. "If I can't even nurse him, how in the hell am I supposed to raise him?"

"Artemis, no one expects you to know what you're doing," declared the sympathetic woman, her own heart breaking as stared at her brokenhearted child.

"Really? Than why does everyone keep telling me that I'm doing it wrong," she argued.

"Draco assumes that because he's read all of the books he know's what he's doing. But he doesn't. I've raised you to adulthood and I still don't have the slightest idea of how to be a mother. The only thing that anyone expects from you is for you to try your hardest and love that baby like you've never loved anything before." Persephone stroked her daughter's disheveled mane and placed light kisses on top of her head, hoping to calm the distraught mother.

"If you don't know how to do something just ask for help," offered her mother, looking Artemis straight in the eyes. "And before you say it, having to ask for help doesn't mean you're weak and it doesn't mean you're a bad mother. It means you're smart, that you're good enough mother to know when you can't do it on your own."

"Well, why doesn't Draco see that?" whispered Artemis, her tears finally subsiding.

"He does, Darling. Draco's just as scared as you are. You've got to remember that he's only twenty years old. He's still got a lot of growing to do and until he does, he's going to say and do the wrong things. Hell, even after he grows up he'll probably screw up but you've got to remember that he's just as in the dark as you are."

"For a while I didn't think that I wanted him," admitted Artemis, looking down at her hands in her lap, shamefully.

"Who, Draco?"

"No, the baby," Artemis whispered. "Ever since he was born, I just keep thinking how badly I want things to go back to how they used to be. It was so much easier. I'm just so tired and I don't know what to do and I'm a bad mother."

"No, you are not," Persephone exclaimed, forcing Artemis to look up at her. "Everyone has their doubts and that doesn't make you a bad mother. You're scared, and you've got every reason in the world to be, but having fears doesn't make you a bad mother. I don't know what else to say to make you understand that."

"Mother, I don't think I want to be a mother. Everything I went through today just doesn't seem worth it," Artemis declared, staring up at her mother, silently pleading with her to answer the million questions that were running through her exhausted mind. As the words came out of her daughter's mouth, the look on Persephone's face instantly changed from compassionate to furious. Persephone stormed over to the door, flinging it open. Once outside, she approached her grandson and gently stole him from his father's arms.

"The next time my daughter gives you a child you had better make damn sure you don't come between her and that baby bonding," warned Persephone, staring at the stunned young man icily.

"What?" asked a confused Draco.

"Obviously, you're much relied upon parenting books failed to inform you of just how important it is for a mother to bond with her child immediately after giving birth. A mother needs to be able to associate the pain of giving birth to the joy of holding her new child. You took that from her, and you better pray that there's still time to fix it." Persephone strode back into her daughters room, taking Lucius with her.

"Artemis, sit up," whispered Persephone, realizing that her daughter thought that she was angry with her.

"I'm sorry," exclaimed Artemis, desperately trying to hold back her tears.

"Don't be," Persephone replied, holding out the baby for Artemis to take. "I'm going to show you how to nurse. Take him." Reluctantly, Artemis took the boy holding him close against her, her arms holding him in a very awkward position. "When you hold him you have to support his head at all times. A baby's bones aren't very dense, so if you don't support his head and it snaps backward, it can break and even cause brain damage." Instantly, Artemis corrected how she was holding Lucius, making sure that his head was fully supported.

Nearly twenty minutes later Artemis has successfully fed and burped her newborn son. Curling up on her side, Artemis laid her son down flat on his back and spent some much needed quality time with him. Persephone hoped, more than anything, that her daughter would be able pull herself out of this funk. When she had found out that Artemis was pregnant Persephone had been thrilled, but shortly after visiting her own physician she couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy about the idea. Her medi-witch had informed her that due to Artemis' size and age she was fifty percent more likely to fall into a depression. When her daughter reacted the way she did earlier, Persephone knew that her worst fears had come true. If she wasn't able to find a way to get Artemis to accept her role as a mother Little Lucius would end up suffering the consequences.

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"Mr. Malfoy, he'll see you now," said a pretty young intern, ushering the frazzled young man and his son towards the Healer's office. Seeing that he was burdened with both the squirming infant and a baby bag, the nurse offered to keep the bag under her desk until his appointment was over. Eternally grateful for her kindness, Draco accepted.

"Mr. Malfoy," greeted the old wizard, as he stood to shake the new father's only free hand.

"Thank you for seeing me on such short notice Mr. Mortimer, but I didn't know what else to do," thanked Draco, settling himself in the chair across from the old man's desk, his son cradled in the crook of his arm.

"What seems to be the problem?" asked the healer, inking his quill in preparation of taking notes.

"It's my wife, Artemis. I think there's something wrong with her. Scratch that, I know that there's something wrong. She just hasn't been the same since Luce was born... she just hasn't been herself," Draco explained, hoping that the world renowned healer would be able to help his ailing wife.

"Please, elaborate," instructed the older wizard, his pen voraciously dancing across his parchment.

"Well, she refuses to nurse him. Once we left St. Mungo's she refused to breast feed, so we've had to use this muggle contraption called a breast pump. But she won't even feed him that, I have to. No matter how hard he cries she won't go to him. I can't leave her alone with him because I know that if he needs something she won't give it to him." At this point, the exhausted father was on the verge of tears. For the last three months Draco had been Lucius' sole provider. All of his meals, baths, and diaper changes had been done by his father, not his mother. To say that the young man was sleep deprived was an understatement. At just three weeks old Luce had developed a horrible case of colic and Draco had spent almost every day and every night since, trying to console the inconsolable boy.

"So she completely ignores him?" questioned Mr. Mortimer, his eyes never leaving the parchment and his quill never ceasing its endless journey to the bottom of the page.

"Yes and no. I know she hears him and I know she cares, she just won't do anything about it. She hasn't held him since the last time she nursed before leaving St. Mungo's. If he's crying, she starts crying and I can't get either of them to stop. I went to visit my mother when Lucius was six days old, when I got back six hours later, Luce was exactly where I left him, wailing and wet. After finding him like that I figured something must have happened to Artemis, so I went up stairs to our bedchamber and I found her in the closet, bawling. Her son was hungry and he was wet and he was upset and she didn't do anything!"

"Has she spoken to you about it at all?"

"No, she refuses. Actually, she really won't even talk to me about anything. I know that she's capable of being a good mother and I think she wants to, but something's stopping her and I don't know what it is or how to fix it. Worst of all, I've come to the end of my paternity leave. In two weeks, I've got to be back in the office and I can't take an infant with me."

"Mr. Malfoy, you're wife has an extreme case of the baby blues. Typically, new mothers, especially young mothers, suffer from a short period of self inflicted depression which usually lasts about ten to fifteen days. Mrs. Malfoy has suffered from a long term bout of the baby blues and while it is not as serious as post-partum depression, it is still an ailment that must be treated if it does not go away on its own. Now that I know what is troubling your wife, I need to ask you a few questions in order to help me determine why she is suffering from this illness and why it hasn't gone away," Mr. Mortimer explained, reaching for a new sheet of parchment so that he could jot down Draco's answers.

"Does she have a controlling personality?" he asked, staring at the frustrated young man who was gently rocking his son back to sleep.

"Yes, she does like for things to go a certain way."

"Would you say that she run's from situations that are foreign to her?"

"Absolutely," answered Draco, recalling the many instances during the months before their wedding when Artemis had either literally ran off or emotional stalled out.

"Good..." mused the old man, feverishly writing, long after Draco had stopped talking. "Now, when Lucius cries, do you give her the chance to console him before getting involved or do you automatically dash towards him?"

"I go to him immediately. If my son needs something, I'm not going to dally," defended the young father.

"Was there a disturbance of any sort that kept Artemis away from the baby immediately after giving birth?"

"Yes!" exclaimed Draco, jolting little Lucius awake. Thankfully he quickly settled down and went back to sleep. "The stupid medi-witch refused to let me have the baby. She insisted on cleaning him and weighing him before anyone got to hold him. It took her nearly an hour to give him to me."

"And did you immediately take your son to your wife?" asked Mortimer.

"No. I introduced myself and I checked to see if everything was as it should be," Draco replied, not liking where this was going.

"About how much time passed between Lucius' birth and Artemis' holding him?"

"About an hour and a half," answered Draco.

"How much time did they spend together?"

"About five minutes, and then all of our family and friends took their turn holding him," Draco recalled, realizing just how little time his wife had been able to spend with her son on his birthday.

"How is her health?"

"God, she's lost so much weight. She hardly eats and she looks exhausted. I think she sleeps even less than I do."

"Alright Mr. Malfoy, the problem here is that your wife was not given the opportunity to bond with her son, when it is most crucial. Those first few moments after the baby has fully left the womb are some of the emptiest moments a woman can ever experience. Usually, as their teaching instructs, the medi-witch is supposed to immediately sever the umbilical cord and place the baby in the mother's arms. Cleaning and weighing are secondary, even in muggle society. The only time such practices are ignored is if there is an immediate threat to the infant or the mother's health." Draco couldn't believe what he was hearing. He and Artemis had searched for the best medi-witch money could buy, and this was what they got for the small fortune they paid. "For nine months the mother is full, she has purpose, she doesn't have to doubt or wonder about what's next. The baby's still inside of her, therefore, all things concerning him or her, is based on the mother's decisions. Once the child has left the womb, a huge question mark is cast of their entire being. The baby cry's, eats, sleeps and functions based on its own whims, not the mother's. For people with controlling personalities this is often a difficult transition to make."

"Is there anything that can be done?" asked Draco, desperate to end his wife and child's torment. He didn't doubt for one moment that Luce wanted his mum, and her ignoring him was probably making the poor boy miserable.

"Absolutely, but it won't easy. Though it's not a daunting or demanding solution it will be difficult for you," Mr. Mortimer cautioned, Draco's eyes going wide at the implication of what the healer was telling him.

"Me?"

"Yes you. The main reason why your wife has yet to pull herself out of this is due to the fact that no one has made her. No one has confronted her about her actions, or lack thereof. Every time Lucius needs something Daddy is there, which means Mommy doesn't have to face her fears. I did a bit research on her your wife after my intern told me that you wanted to speak to me about her. Based on the information I have I can safely say that she is afraid of things she doesn't know, of things that she cannot control and of things that she cannot predict. Now, the problem is that until she is forced to confront her insecurities and fears, she's not going to."

"So I have to make her," Draco said, piecing together what the healer was telling him.

"Exactly, you need to take your son home, give him to his mother, and leave. You don't have to stay away long but you have to give her enough time to realize that if she doesn't see to her son's needs, no one will." Mr. Mortimer knew that this would be difficult for Draco. After spending the last three months of being solely responsible for his son's welfare, it would be nearly impossible for him to stay in the house and not intervene. This is why the healer was telling the young father that he had to leave them alone together.

"About how long?" questioned Draco

"I would say that fourteen to sixteen hours would suffice, though you'll need to tell her that you'll be gone even longer. Tell her you're going away with friends for a few days. Don't tell her this ahead of time. Tell her as you're walking out the door. If you give her the chance to ask questions you may clue her in on what you're trying to do. More or less, Mr. Malfoy, you'll have to make her feel like you've abandoned her and Lucius."

"Alright" said Draco, hoping that his son would forgive him for what he was going to do. "But is it really a good idea to leave them completely alone. What if she doesn't snap out of it? What if he gets sick?"

"Do you have a house-elf, Mr. Malfoy?"

"Yes, a couple of them actually," muttered Draco.

"Do you have one that you trust completely?"

"Absolutely, her name's Bitsy,"

"You will need to speak with her and have her monitor Artemis and the baby. But you must make it very clear to Bitsy that she must not be seen by your wife. Give her some means of contacting you incase of an emergency," instructed Mr. Mortimer, hoping to calm the young man's nerves.

"Will Lucius be able to remember any of this? Will he be able to recall that his mother refused to interact with him?"

"The good thing about infants is there memory is still forming. If this is corrected now, Lucius shouldn't suffer any ill effects. If it continues then he most certainly will." That was all Draco needed to hear. He wouldn't allow his son to suffer, not if he could prevent it.

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"Artemis!" shouted Draco, as he jogged down the grand staircase of Malfoy Estates, a small suitcase in hand. Slowly, Artemis approached her husband, having just left the sitting room that was just a few feet away.

"Where are you going?" asked Artemis, eyeing the suitcase in her husband hand.

"I'm going to go spend a couple of days with Blaise and Goyle, have some guy time. I haven't seen them in ages," Draco lied, leaning down and kissing his wife briefly on the lips before heading into the family room where Lucius was lying down for a nap in his playpen.

"Bye-bye, love," whispered Draco, pressing his lips against his son's feathery soft blond hair.

"You're taking him with you, right?" asked Artemis, noticing that her husband wasn't gathering the boy for the trip instead he was walking towards the front door.

"Of course not! I don't think that it would be appropriate." After kissing his wife one last time, inwardly begging her to forgive him, Draco opened the door and walked to his car. Artemis dashed after him, throwing herself over the door of the car just as he was trying to open it.

"You can't leave me here with him," Artemis pleaded. "What if he needs something?"

"Than do it, if he's hungry feed him, if he's wet change him and if he cry's just hold him," explained Draco, walking around to the other side of the car and putting his suitcase inside.

"But you always feed him!" she argued, hoping he would either stay or take the baby with him.

"You're absolutely right, I do always feed him. So I don't think it will kill you to do it for a couple of days. Hell, it'll be easier for you than it is for me, just use what you were born with," Draco said, indicating her engorged breasts. "You'll be fine. You've got yourself all worked up over nothing." Artemis looked up at her husband, her eyes wide with fear. Quickly, Draco got in the car and drove away, all the while praying that Mortimer's plan would work and his wife would forgive him.

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"Please, just be quiet!" exclaimed Artemis, resting her head against her knees. Four hours ago, she had seated herself outside the doorway of the family room, silently willing her young son to stop crying. It had been nearly seven hours and Draco had yet to return. Little Lucius had stayed asleep for a few hours but upon waking he refused to be ignored. For four hours straight the little boy had been crying, begging for someone to come to him, and for four hours he remained unsatisfied.

"Please..." Artemis begged, unsteadily rising from the floor and entering the family room. She couldn't believe how loud that boy could scream, and the closer she got the louder his cries became. Just before she reached the playpen, Artemis glanced at the front door, giving her husband one last chance to come in and save the day. Finally coming to terms with the fact that Draco wouldn't be bursting through the door any time soon, the reluctant mother leaned over the playpen and gently removed the wailing infant. Once she had a firm hold on him, Artemis rushed over to the couch and nestled herself amongst the numerous pillows before lying him down on the nearby cushion.

"Do you need a new diaper?" she asked, knowing full well that he wouldn't answer. Sticking her finger under the band on his diaper, Artemis determined that he had in fact wet himself. Luckily for her, Draco had left everything out in plain view, so she didn't have to hunt for the necessary diaper changing supplies. It took her several tries but three diapers later Artemis had successfully changed her son's nappy and also put an end to his incessant cries.

"You're probably hungry, aren't you?" she asked, drawing Lucius back into her arms. Unfortunately, she was out of practice, as she had not nursed her son since leaving St. Mungo's three months prior. Whenever she used the breast pump that Draco had gotten her it didn't matter what position she held it in, which made the unusual contraption virtually foolproof. Though it took several attempts, she was finally able to settle Lucius into a position that was comfortable for the both of them and within half an hour Artemis had fed, burped and changed her son without any major problems.

"That wasn't so bad," she muttered, as she nibbled at the pasta that Bitsy had prepared for her earlier that evening. As his mother ate her supper, Little Lucius couldn't help but watch her with fascinated eyes. Just as she was finishing washing up the dishes she noticed that her little boy was yawning.

"Ten o'clock already," squeaked Artemis, purposely making the high pitched noise. Lucius went wild at the sounds his mother was making, giddily kicking his feet. "Well, I suppose its time for bed, Little Lucy." And with that said, Artemis gathered up her little bundle and headed towards the master suite. Draco had kept a spare crib in their bedchamber, though he had never actually been able to use it. Artemis decided that it would be easier to just keep him in here with her rather than having to dash down the hall when he woke up, which he undoubtedly would. This occurred sooner rather than later. As soon as Lucius' back touched the mattress of his crib he started to wail. Artemis ignored his cries only long enough for her to change into a nightdress. Once dressed, she picked up her son and laid him on the bed before climbing up and lying down next to him. Taking a page from her mother's book, Artemis gently stroked a figure eight pattern on his back with the palm of her hand, efficiently quieting the boy's cries. Within minutes both mother and son were fast asleep.

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Try as he might, Draco simply couldn't stay away for the entire fourteen hours. So, after having been gone for just under twelve hours and having not heard from Bitsy once, he quietly returned to Malfoy Estates hoping that he had given his wife enough time to bond with her son. As he entered the house Draco couldn't help but notice it was completely silent, and in his opinion it was either a really good sign or a really bad sign. After checking the family room and finding the playpen to be empty, Draco snuck upstairs to their bedroom and quietly opened the door. The sight that lay before him was one that he had waited three very long months to see, his wife was lying curled up on her side with their infant son lying next to her on his stomach. Right on cue, Lucius' eyes fluttered open, almost as if he had sensed his father's presence. Draco cautiously sat down on the bed, hoping not to wake his wife. Unfortunately, the little movement he did cause was enough to wake her.

"How are you feeling?" asked Draco, gently smoothing her ruffled hair.

"Good," mumbled Artemis, as she sat up and kissed her husband on the cheek before taking a hold of her son and drawing him against her chest. Taking Lucius over to the changing table, Artemis checked his diaper and changed it, as it was indeed soiled.

"Oh, Draco," called Artemis, turning to speak to her husband just before leaving their room. "I know what you were doing... why you left and I just wanted to say, Thank you."

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WELL I DIDN'T COMPLETELY RE-WRITE THIS CHAPTER BUT I DID REVISE IT AND MAKE SOME CORRECTIONS. A BIG THANK'S TO FAIRYTOPIA FOR POINTING OUT THAT IF ARTEMIS DIDN'T NURSE FOR THREE MONTHS HER MILK WOULD DRY UP, (I NEVER WOULD HAVE GUESSED THAT) AND ALSO FOR REMINDING ME THAT I LEFT ARTEMIS ALONE WITH LUCIUS. I HAD PLANNED ON HAVING BITSY MONITOR THEM BUT I FORGOT TO ACTUALLY WRITE THAT PART.

THANKS

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