The cure cannot be worse than the condition.

It was hardly necessary to announce her pregnancy when, at five weeks pregnant, she fell prey to violent morning sickness. Anything and everything made her sick, and she could barely take care of Will because her sense of smell was so strong.

Cedrella did as much as she could to help Andromeda, but the young witch was pretty much helpless and soon confined to her bed. The poor girl was completely miserable, and but the time she was seven weeks, she barely had enough strength to get out of bed.

Arthur and his mother came to her one morning as she shivered, tired, hungry, sick, and curled up in a miserable little ball. "Dromeda," Arthur said to her gently, "we need to get you some help, and that means something more than home remedies."

"I'm sorry," she whimpered, tears coming to her eyes. "Sorry."

"We have to take you to St Mungo's," Arthur said softly. "It isn't your fault, but you need help."

Andromeda closed her eyes, tears running down her face as she accepted her fate. "We're going to put a Sleeping Ward over you to help while we're taking you there," Arthur told her.

"Okay," Andromeda whispered, and Cedrella placed the ward immediately.

"All right," Cedrella said. "Let's go."

The next thing Andromeda knew was that she was waking up in a strange place, feeling very strange. Fear shot through her until she saw the door open and Cedrella entered the room, Will in her arms and a Healer behind her.

"Oh, you're awake," Cedrella said in surprise. "How do you feel?"

"Strange," Andromeda whispered. "But not sick...I'm thirsty."

The Healer helped her sip some water, and Andromeda lay back with a sigh. "You were in pretty bad condition when you arrived," the Healer told her.

Cedrella walked to sit on the bed by the girl. "You've been here for two weeks, Andromeda."

Andromeda frowned. "Two weeks?" And she looked at her baby boy.

"You have some very powerful spells on you right now," the Healer said kindly. "You probably can't feel much of your abdomen at the moment, and there's also a spell placed to keep you from smelling anything. We've reset your digestion and your magic, as both of them were a mess."

Andromeda turned to Cedrella. "Is Will okay?"

"He's fine, dear," Cedrella answered. "Now, there are other things you should know. Your unborn child was disturbing your magic—"

"Your hair changed colours multiple times while you were sleeping," the Healer commented.

"You're not going to like this," Cedrella warned her, and raised the girl's right sleeve to reveal a metal cuff.

"What?!" demanded Andromeda in outrage at the sight of the magical restraint. "Why is this here?"

The Healer shook her head at the girl. "Because your magic and the baby's magic are doing some unusual things. This at least should keep you and the baby from hurting each other."

Andromeda was furious, but Cedrella said, "This may be necessary to save both you and the baby, Andromeda. I know you'll do what's necessary for it."

She was still angry, but held out her arms for her son. "May I hold Will?"

"Here," Cedrella said, laying the child on Andromeda's chest.

"Hi, Will," she whispered, her mouth opening in delight as he looked up unsteadily and grinned at her.

"Mmm," he said, gripping the front of her gown.

"Okay, beautiful," she said, and before anyone could stop her, she had begun to feed him.

The Healer was horrified. "You should not be breastfeeding in your current state," she said sharply. "Your body is weakened—"

"I want to for just a minute," Andromeda snapped, cradling the child protectively.

"I will put you to sleep," the Healer warned her. "We have full permission to make sure you're cared for properly."

"Just a minute," Andromeda breathed. "I haven't held him in weeks. I'm okay for the moment."

The Healer readied her wand, but Cedrella stepped forward. "Andromeda, feeding him will only make your body have to work harder. You need to stop—"

"No!" Andromeda screamed, and Cedrella started slightly at the girl's rage. Will immediately stopped feeding and started crying, Andromeda instantly cradling him and trying to comfort him.

"Mumma's sorry—Mum didn't mean to," Andromeda breathed. "It's okay, Will."

"Take him," the Healer said to Cedrella, raising her wand.

"No!" Andromeda cried in near hysterics. "No, please—I just want him with me—I won't let him feed again, I promise—" and she let out a heartbroken sob as she clasped her baby to herself, as helpless as a Muggle in a Death Eater's hands. "Where's Arthur?" she sobbed.

"He's working," Cedrella answered.

"I need him," Andromeda sobbed. "I want him with me."

"He'll be here tonight," her mother-in-law promised.

Andromeda cried even harder and Will began to scream, upset that his mother was upset. "Dromeda, he won't calm down unless you do," Cedrella said over the noise. "You have to be strong for him."

Nevertheless, it was still several minutes until Andromeda could hush her sobs, and nearly two hours before she got Will to quiet down. Almost immediately after that, Andromeda fell asleep with Will in her arms, exhausted by her exertions, leaving Cedrella to watch over them.

Hours later, Andromeda woke up to find herself alone with the Healer and fear shot through her. "What time is it?" she asked tentatively.

"Four-thirty in the afternoon," the other woman answered.

Andromeda took a deep breath to steady herself: her husband would soon be leaving work and coming to see her—she hoped.

Sure enough, her husband soon arrived, and she almost cried when she saw him, holding out her arms to him. "Andromeda," he murmured as he sat down and wrapped his arms around her.

She latched onto him tightly, beginning to cry as she began to tell him everything that had happened. He managed to catch just enough of what she was saying to understand that she was traumatised by her magical restraint and the Healers threatening to take Will away from her.

"Don't leave me here," she sobbed in his arms. "Arthur, I want to go home."

"I'll be here for the next few days," he said softly. "I'm glad you're doing better; you were very sick."

He lay down next to her, holding her close as she wept. "They think the baby has Metamorphagus powers, Dromeda, and that's part of why this is so difficult."

Andromeda nodded. "I have some powers myself," she sniffed. "I can hide marks on my skin and things like that, but I don't have full powers."

"Ah," he said. "I'm not surprised you kept that to yourself."

She gave him a weak smile. "No one needed to know," she said. "My powers don't help anyone else."

He smiled and kissed her head gently. "You're a brave woman, Andromeda."

"Not really," she answered. "I'm a survivor."

"You're a jewel," he told her, and her eyes filled with tears.

"I've missed you," she whispered. "You understand me more in some areas than even your mother. You've been here for me since I was brought to you."

He let her move to where her head rested on his chest, and he gently rubbed her back. "But you feel better?" he asked.

She sighed. "I feel strange," she replied. "But yes, and I want to go home."

Arthur embraced her slightly. "You will," he said. "But I want to be certain that you're well enough to be cared for at home."

"Sorry to be so much trouble," Andromeda whispered. "I don't know why I'm so weak this time."

"I love you," he said quietly, stroking her hair comfortingly. "You're just a bit unlucky this time, with the sickness and conflicting magic and all. There's nothing weak about you, Andromeda."

"I can't wait to have some energy back," Andromeda sighed. "And I want them to take this restraint off."

"Did they not tell you why they put it on you?" he said in astonishment, sitting up to hold her better.

"They said my magic was disturbed," Andromeda frowned, curling back into his arms and looking up at him. "That they had to do it to protect me and the baby."

Arthur took a deep breath. "I was told that your body was so exhausted that it began to reject the baby as a last resort," he said as gently as possible, though his sick wife still stared at him in horror. "Your magic was trying to protect you, and they had to stop it."

"No," she whispered, rubbing her hand over her stomach. "I wouldn't..."

"You were very sick, Andromeda," he murmured. "They saved the baby—you couldn't control what was going on, and they had to keep you unconscious because you were so ill."

"I tried to kill my own baby?" Andromeda whispered, tears coming to her eyes again. "Arthur—"

He hugged her firmly, feeling her body shaking slightly. "I know you would never do such a thing, Andromeda. It wasn't your fault."

"Oh no," Andromeda cried. "Do I have to have this on the whole time I'm pregnant?" He didn't answer immediately, and she went limp in his arms, crying in despair.

Barely a minute later, the door opened, and Arthur, not recognising the woman, asked, "Who are you?"

Andromeda barely looked up, then gasped when she saw the witch. "You!"

"I've been sent to help Andromeda," the woman said simply. "The lead Healer is required to be here at all times while I'm here, and I've been told to only speak to Andromeda."

Andromeda sat up, her husband firmly gripping her hand. "I know her—she's the Black family Healer," she murmured to him. "She's okay."

Arthur got to his feet but stayed right at his wife's side. The woman approached and the St Mungo's Healer stayed close by. "I'm to see if there's anything more that can be done for you, dear."

Andromeda took a deep breath, visibly relaxing as the other witch drew her wand and began to examine her. After a few moments, the woman frowned. "So, tell me what you've been experiencing, dear."

"I've been horribly ill," Andromeda breathed. "I couldn't keep anything down, not even potions meant to help me. Every smell made me sick, and then I started getting weak because of it all...I don't remember anything else."

"Well, there's no reason that you should have a restraint," the Black family Healer said, Arthur looking shocked as Andromeda glared at the St Mungo's Healer.

"Who exactly sent you?" Arthur asked her firmly.

Andromeda looked over to snap at her husband, then realised exactly why he was concerned. She looked over at the woman. "Did my father send you?"

The Black family Healer withdrew a piece of parchment from her pocket. "Here," she said, moving to give it to Andromeda when Arthur reached for it.

"Don't—!" Andromeda began to warn him, but the parchment had already burned him and he yelped, dropped it onto the sheets. "Arthur—" She kept herself from scolding him and picked up the note.

It was handwritten by Narcissa to say:

I know you'll question this, so here's your answer: I sent her to help you because she understands and knows your powers.

Hope you're doing better than last I heard,

Cissa

"Oh," Andromeda breathed as the letter disintegrated in her hand. She looked up. "Okay."

"I've noticed certain spells on you," the Black family Healer said. "Some helpful, some not so much. You are not the problem, Andromeda, but your magic is disturbed. Have you been using wandless magic recently?"

Andromeda scoffed. "Not since I've been here."

"And before that?"

"Not really," Andromeda said after a moment of thought.

"I believe the confusion of magic is coming from your unborn child, not you," the woman said to Andromeda. "It is a Metamorphagus, of that I am sure, and it seems to have changed some of your internal organs and ultimately hurt you and your magic."

"What?" Andromeda and Arthur gasped.

"You can't feel it because of the numbing spells," the woman replied to Andromeda, "but you should be in severe pain right now."

"What can we do?" Andromeda breathed.

"We can place spells to keep the baby from harming himself and you while he's still so small," the Black family Healer said simply. "Put you back to normal, and keep you from dying a slow, secret death."

Andromeda bit her lip, scared, and Arthur looked up, seeing the St Mungo's Healer frowning. "How can the baby do that if it's so small?"

"No child is too young to display magic," answered the woman quietly. "Besides, I know Andromeda doesn't have this power." She reached out and pulled a lock of fiery red hair in front of the girl's eyes. "It's got to be the baby doing that. We've got to put some safeguards in place to keep him from touching her magic, then get her back to normal."

"Oh—you're sure?" Andromeda breathed. "It's not me trying to harm the baby?"

"If so, it's because he's attacking you accidentally," she answered. "I will be very careful, Andromeda, and you are being monitored."

"Okay," Andromeda said with a nod, feeling her husband take her hand.

The Healer looked at her kindly. "I will be removing the Protective Wards from the baby," she said. "There must be no separation between these wards and the baby."

Andromeda nodded, squeezing Arthur's hand tightly as she was very scared. "Okay," she whispered.

The Healer began, and Andromeda closed her eyes, holding tightly to her husband's hand. She felt magic coursing through her, and as she felt wards and spells being lifted from her, so many scents hit her that she was sick instantly.

She sat up quickly, throwing up over the edge of the bed as the Healer paid no attention and continued to concentrate. She cried out in pain as one of the wards lifted from her stomach. "Ah!" she cried, wrapping her arms around herself. "Oh, it hurts!"

"Put your arms down," the Healer told her, but Andromeda was in too much pain. Seconds later, the girl's world went dark.

Arthur looked down at his very pale wife, wondering how the poor witch was going to get through the rest of the pregnancy. He was amazed at the amount of complex spells that had been done to her and he hoped that it had been to some benefit.

"Andromeda," he murmured, stroking her face gently. "Please be okay: I don't know what to believe."

"In a few minutes, we'll wake her up," said the Black family Healer. "We're letting her magic reacclimate and watching her and the baby for a little longer."

Arthur merely nodded, and was very nervous when they took the Sleeping Spell off of his wife. He saw her eyes flicker open, full of fear before they settled on him. Her magic crackled, and he said, "The restraints are gone, love; be careful."

"How do you feel?" the Black family Healer asked quietly.

"Pregnant," Andromeda whispered, rubbing her hand over her stomach. "Somewhat sick, but...okay."

"All right," the woman smiled. "If you can't keep down the Anti-nausea potions, diffuse them in a room or a ward as you sleep. Also..." and she moved over to Andromeda's bedside. "I want you to feel these wards on the baby." She helped Andromeda find where the wards were located, then said, "These will grow with the baby, and your protection wards need to be able to stay outside of those wards, okay?"

"Yeah," Andromeda murmured, taking a deep breath. "You were right about that pain."

"Your little one seems to like causing magical mischief," the woman smiled. "A guaranteed magical child." She set a small bag on the bed next to the girl. "These tablets are to use in the bath to calm your magic and relax your body. I think you'll know when to use them."

"Oh, all right," Andromeda murmured. She looked up at her husband. "Have you been here all night?"

"Yes, but it's fine," Arthur said. "It's much more important that you're healthy."

Andromeda looked back at the Healer and said, "Thank you...you probably saved me and my baby."

The Healer smiled. "I was sent here to do my job, Andromeda. You know whom to thank. Now." She moved away from her bed and began to close up her bag. "St Mungo's has a policy of a certain timeframe before they'll release you, but you should be okay. You can contact me if you need anything: I have the authority to care for you."

"Thank you," Andromeda said gratefully as Arthur sat down next to her. They sat there until the woman had left, and Andromeda turned, curling up against her husband. "Are you going to sleep here?" she asked.

"For a few hours, I hope," he answered. "I do want to go home before I come by tomorrow."

She nodded, and they lay down to rest, snuggled up together as comfortably as they could.