Disclaimer -- I own nothing... not even my home... it's all JK Rowling's, who is one of the most creative people I have ever had the priviledge to read...

May 5th, 2013

She waddled back and forth across the living room; fighting the voices that sounded so much like her parents. Even now that most of the darkness had lifted, she still heard them. Glad it was just them, and not the other voices that sounded like her own voice at different octives, ranting and raving in her head. Sometimes, she thought she must just be insane. Other times, she was certain of it.

Her brothers were coming over to discuss 'OPTIONS' as they liked to call it. They were so much like their parents. She was finally semi-healthy, but the magic had not returned. She wanted to go back to England; to try to explain before she did something he would never forgive her for.

When her older brothers were seated around the familiar kitchen table, she leaned in, "I need to go back and tell Sirius and Remus. I want to know what you think about it." She loved their counseling. She loved their opinions, and as much as it pained her, they were usually right.

All four men looked a little stunned. John, the oldest, said, "You know, we have had this conversation before. At first, you couldn't go back. And you have chosen to do this NOW? Is it safe?"

"I talked to the doctors, they seem to think I can, but if I do, it has to be now. They gave me exactly one week to make up my mind, because after that, I won't be able to fit in a seat on the plane." She laughed, but it was true. She was extremely large.

"Are you packed yet?" Robert asked. She nodded.

"Have you bought your one-way ticket yet?" Tony asked. She nodded.

"Are you leaving today?" Jeff asked. She nodded again. And within five hours, she was on an international flight going back to the two people with whom she wanted to be with, hoping and praying that they could forgive her just one more time.

Seventeen hours after she left Texas, she arrived at Heathrow. From there, she hailed a taxi to take her to the Leaky Cauldron, where she hoped to floo to the Riddle House or the Cowan Estate; she wasn't sure which just yet. Her shoes were uncomfortable and her dress tight when she arrived. She paid the driver, thanked him for getting her case out of the trunk and walked into the Pub to ask Tom to use the floo. She didn't think to introduce herself, not realizing how bad she already looked.

"Sorry, ma'am, you don't want to floo in your condition. You should apparate if anything."

"I can't."

"The Knight Bus or maybe go to the Ministry and see about a Port-key. One can surely be arranged for you… considering…" his words broke off as her face became a mass of pain.

"Could you…Mungo's?" He looked horror stricken for a moment, watching as she fell to the floor without completing her statement. Tom floo-called the Medi-wizards for immediate transport. When she arrived at St. Mungo's, half-conscious, she was muttering the names 'Remi' and 'Siri', over and over, but all of her identification was Muggle, so the young orderly wasn't sure she was supposed to be at the wizarding hospital. Once the Healers got her stabilized, an orderly took her purse to the Ministry of Magic.

It was only sheer coincidence that the head of the Missing Persons Division entered the office just as the young orderly arrived. Dean Thomas saw the name on the passport and dismissed him immediately.

Taking the muggle ID, he went immediately to Arthur Weasley's office. Several minutes later, St. Mungo's was swarming with Law Enforcement officers, Ministry Members, Sirius, Remus, Mason, Katie, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione came immediately. Madison, Draco, and Steven were summoned as well and showed up minutes after the others.

At the University, Sarah Maples answered her cel phone, spoke for a moment before grabbing Dudley and aparating to downtown London.

Harry was in the middle of his meeting with the Board of Directors of the Bank of England when his cel phone rang. It was precisely the same moment that his ring began to heat up. When he answered the phone, he heard Dudley's voice, "You need to come quick Harry. Whatever you are doing isn't as important as being here..."

Harry looked around the Board room. "Please forgive me. I apparently have a crisis on the home front which only I can assist in the resolution. I will meet with you next Tuesday at eight o'clock at the Estate for dinner to continue this conversation." Standing, he tapped his finger and disappeared from sight.

The older group of people watched in amazement, the most elderly of all commenting, "You must admit, the boy's got style..." the others nodded their agreement before calling an end to the meeting and leaving.

When they met with the staff healer supervising her care through the emergency room, they were told that she was very sick and the healers were working on her now. Sirius asked if he could see her for just a moment. The healer nodded, but told them that they couldn't remain long; explaining that from what they had found in her bag, she had apparently traveled from the United States via a Muggle Airplane, then traveled in a Muggle Taxi from Heathrow. Remus and Sirius nodded his understanding, held hands and entered her room.

She looked horrible, now clad in a white hospital gown with little red cherries on it, and her hair pulled off her face in a ponytail; her body was swollen, her face filled out, but not in a healthy way, even her fingers and toes were puffy. The wedding ring he had given her so very long ago, made a red deep cut in her finger. Both men surveyed her and saw the belly, more swollen than the rest. Her eyes flickered open when she heard the door close. They dropped hands and quickly crossed the space and sat on either side of her bed next to her, "Ro?"

She opened her eyes to look at him, "I…tried…home…you both…sorry," her eyes fluttered and unconsciousness took hold of her again.

Sirius looked up from her into the eyes of his lover before he walked slowly from the room to find someone to explain what was happening. He found the Healer that had spoken to them earlier. "I want to know what happened to my wife. Why does she look like that?"

Harry apparated straight into St. Mungo's and chaos. His godfather was looking murderous while Mason looked on the verge of causing a bit of chaos himself. All Harry was sure of was that everyone needed to be calmed quickly.

The healer looked at Sirius with disdain. "I am rather surprised that you would have the nerve to say that about a woman in her condition. If you will excuse me; I have to get an orderly prep her for surgery," as the healer, with one more dirty look, walked away from the man.

"SURGERY? WHAT KIND OF SURGERY? WILL SOMEONE EXPLAIN THIS TO ME?" Sirius bellowed to the hallway full of scurrying people.

Madison and Mason ran to him when he began yelling to the crowded corridor. "Sirius? What's happened?" Harry stood for a moment without entering the conversation. When he saw both Mason and Madison, he knew they were in for a long day.

"I don't know. The healer just told met that they were 'prepping her for surgery.' She's all swollen, like a potion gone wrong. Her ring is going to have to be cut off. She's half dead in there, and he seems to think I have a CLUE as to what's wrong with her." Sirius stalked off to find someone to talk to. Harry walked to the waiting room.

They looked at each other and entered their mom's room. Remus was holding her hand gently and touching her face. Sirius had not exaggerated, she was a sight. Her skin had an unhealthy pallor to it. Her hair, pulled off her swollen face was at an odd angle. Her hands and the feet they could see from where the blanket did not cover her properly, were swollen as well. They looked from their mother to each other. Her breathing was labored.

Both backed out of the room quietly, bumping into an eldery woman, dressed in blue. "Excuse me; I have to help get her ready for surgery."

"What kind of surgery? Is this to get the ring off?" Mason asked.

"Ring? Oh yes, I'll take care of that at once, I assure you. But no, the surgery is a Merlin Section." They both looked blank at the healer, she rolled her eyes with exasperation and began to explain as if he were talking to a child, "We have to get the baby out of her before her condition worsens, Mer-lin-sec-tion… The baby is just a bit premature, but I don't know by how much. And because we do not know what those idiot muggles did to her, there may be something wrong with the baby."

"BABY?" They both said at the same time.

She looked into the paniced faces of the two before her and added, "Oh, don't worry, if there is, there is an amazing Children's Hospital now. The baby will go there immediately if needed..."

"BABY?" They both said again at the same time.

"Yes, now please excuse me."

He walked past them, but before she got far, Madison caught her arm, in a low carefully controlled voice she told her, "Please understand with whom you are dealing. She is our mother, Rowan Cowan Black. If that name means nothing, let me introduce us… Sorcerer Mason Black and Sorceress Madison Malfoy."

Her eyes opened wide at the mention of the names. Rather than trying to find words, she swallowed hard, nodded and turned into the room.

"We probably should find your dad and explain, then I'll go to Texas and find out what's been happening since she left." Mason agreed. They found Sirius outside the waiting room. Remus walked up before they could speak. Apparently, no one would talk to Sirius as though he had a brain, and he was complaining loudly about the quality of this hospital.

"Uhm, dad?" Mason was apprehensive about telling him.

Sirius looked up from his best friend to see his son walking towards him, "It just boggles my mind that these people can't seem to fathom that I haven't seen her in almost five months."

"She's pregnant. They are getting ready for a Cesarean, I mean a Merlin Section. I need to go to Texas and find out what has been happening since she left." Sirius looked to Madison with a look of shock and bewilderment on his face.

"Pregnant?"

"Yes, apparently the baby is early, so it may have to go to the Children's Hospital as soon as it's born. Mom is not doing well. The healer seems to believe that they will take care of her after the baby is born." Madison left the men with dumbfounded looks on their faces, walked to the waiting room, and she and Draco left together for Texas.

Sirius pushed them out of the way and walked back to Rowan's room. Remus ever close, they entered the room to find the orderly waving her wand over her, removing all hair and cleaning her for surgery. The orderly handed him the severed wedding ring. His hand traced the angry red line cut into her finger. He touched her swollen belly as her eyes opened again.

Her voice barely above a labored whisper, "I thought you might like to be involved with this," she tried to make a joke, but her breathing was still shallow.

"Why didn't you tell us?" She didn't answer him.

She gritted her teeth through another contraction. "Forgive me…" she said the words quickly as she exhaled, "I love you both. I'm…sorry… I don't want…alone Siri. Forgive me. Please." She begged him as another contraction took hold. When it subsided, and her breathing returned to normal, she looked at her husband. "Promise…care… them…" she gritted her teeth through a contraction.

"Shhhhh…Yes… we forgive you. You know we do. Please, try to relax. Nothing is going to happen to you. It'll be okay. We'll figure out what to do later. Just try to relax. I'll let the others know what's happening." He stood and tried to pull his hand from hers. She would not release it. Her grip was painful at best, but he held her hand until the contraction subsided. Then both kissed her forehead and left the room.

When Remus met the Healer just outside her door, the frantic and confused lover pushed the healer against the wall. When the man's head hit, Remus snarled as close as possible at him, "If you had told either of us that she was pregnant, we would not be having this conversation. You acted like we knew what was going on. She's been GONE for five months. It's the first time we've seen her. But instead of explaining yourself or answering my questions, you assumed we knew. I suggest you take care not to kill her during surgery. Because we just got her back and have no intention of rearing that child without her." He released the man who was no gasping for air. Brushing the lapel of his Healer robes, he added "Do I make myself clear?"

Looking from Remus to Sirius, the man replied "Crystal," before entering Rowan's room.