Two Trimesters
Afterwards, Hermione barely remembered tumbling out of the wooden frame as Hagrid opened the frame of the wooden mare. She was exhausted and the unicorn was slumped in the clearing, panting.
"Yer gave 'im a thorough workou'," Hagrid praised her.
"Splendid! You will join us next year then, Hermione," said Parvati.
Hermione could not easily forget the consequences. That summer she grew pale and sickly and began throwing up in the mornings.
"Are you OK, dear?" asked her mother, Lesley.
"Fine, mum," said Hermione as she emerged from the bathroom after spending a long time rinsing her mouth. "Listen, some friends have invited me to the Quidditch World Cup Final…"
Her mother's face fell.
"Oh, sweetie, we get to see so little of you as it is."
"I also have to study," said Hermione firmly. "Everyone who is serious about the exams next year must do that."
She felt bad about lying to her mother like that, but from this point on she would be spending even less time with her than Harry did at the Dursleys. She was to all intents and purposes, an emancipated minor now. So much her mum and dad didn't know… how could they understand how Hermione had gained so many hours by using the time turner? How much older did that make her? Old enough to be a mother already?
00O00
Hermione went to the Quidditch world Cup as planned. That summer had been trying. She was constantly throwing up in the mornings, but now she had passed the sickly phase, and gained a radiant glow in her cheeks. The morning they set off to pick up the portkey, she noticed a slight bulge around her belly. She wore an extra loose top to conceal it.
At the portkey, they happened to meet Amos and Cedric Diggory. Amos was a bald guy, with a scrubby brown beard and twinkling eyes. Cedric was an impossibly handsome young man, with a sculpted face, grey eyes and black hair.
Amos greeted them all good naturedly and did a double take at the sight of Harry. "Merlin's beard, Ced. That'll be something to tell your grandchildren. You beat Harry Potter at Quidditch."
Cedric looked uncomfortable. "Dad – it was an accident. Harry fell off his broom…"
"But you didn't, Ced. It doesn't take a genius to work out who's the better flier, as I'm sure Harry agrees."
Cedric shrugged. "Sorry."
Hermione could see he was embarrassed, and wanted to say something to try and comfort him. She stepped forward and noticed his collar was crooked. "Hold on, young man, your collar is crooked." She straightened it out. "There. Don't you look handsome."
Cedric stared at her in amazement.
"Hermione … what in the world are you doing?" said Ron, sounding fearful.
"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry, it must be my maternal urges kicking in," said Hermione, feeling herself blush. There was more to being pregnant than she knew.
"Riiiggghhhht," said Ron. No one else seemed to know what to say… so embarrassing.
Hermione did not enjoy travelling by Portkey. Surely it was not good for her in her condition? She felt dizzy and nauseous again afterwards. When they introduced themselves to Mr Roberts, the Muggle organiser of the camp site, it was obvious the poor muggle was confused and suspicious of the magical goings on.
"Some bloke over there was wearing a kilt," he said, pointing.
"Shouldn't he be?" said Arthur Weasley nervously.
Harry smirked and Hermione suppressed a smile.
At that moment, a Ministry wizard showed up and obliviated the poor muggle. Hermione was shocked. What a thing to do to an offensive muggle who couldn't fight back. It turned out that Mr Roberts required ten memory charms a day to keep him unaware of the strange goings on… yikes. What effect would that have on him, and wasn't inflicting magical lobotomies and treating it as a joke bizarre in a universe where we're supposed to be outraged by the use of the Imperius Curse? The whole thing seemed to be treated as a joke, where we're supposed to laugh at the bit with the Ministry worker having to go to the trouble of obliviating him.
They had the chance to meet different people they knew from Hogwarts at the World Cup. They saw Seamus Finnigan and a sandy haired witch who was obviously his mother. Where was his father, the muggle?
"Yer supportin' Ireland, I presume," said Mrs Finnigan.
"Oh yes, um," Hermione began, "how is Mr Finnigan?"
"Livin' with a witch didn't suit him," said Mrs Finnigan, "so I had to erase his memory. He's probably still wondering around with no clue who he is."
The others laughed at that, but Hermione felt strangely ill. Really, after the events of the entire World Cup, the part with the Death Eaters levitating muggles seemed less shocking and inhumane by comparison.
00O00
When they got back to Hogwarts, Lavender and Parvati had not returned. Hermione wondered whether they had left and gone into the Forbidden Forest permanently, as outcasts. Was that the fate that awaited her? In Care of Magical Creatures, it transpired that Hagrid had carried out another pervy fantasy of mating a manticore with a firecrab to symbolically re-enact his own monstrous conception (and producing the Blast Ended Skrewts). Firecrabs are not too awful, but wizards do require a license to own one. Manticores however are foul monsters. In this coupling, the male firecrab represented Hagrid's wizard father and the manticore female his giantess mother.
Hermione's pregnancy continued over the coming months. She tried to conceal it by wearing increasingly thick jumpers and saying it was because of the cold weather.
At the Halloween Feast she had cravings for all sorts of strange foods, including pickled onions and ice cream. She couldn't help it. She just had to keep shovelling it into her face. Then came the time for the Goblet of Fire to spit out the names of the Champions. To Hermione's amazement, Harry's name came out as a fourth champion. Harry looked as shocked as he did. Dumbledore called for him and he went.
"Hold on a minute," Hermione protested. The crazy headmaster couldn't seriously be thinking of putting her friend in that awful contest where Champions actually died?
"Sit down, Hermione," said Ron, pulling her arm to make her sit down.
She glared at him. "Don't you care about our friend?"
"He put himself in," said Ron, tersely. "It's always him who gets the attention, and he knows it."
Hermione didn't trust herself to speak to him. How could he be jealous over something like this, when Harry's life could be on the line? She decided to wait in the boys dormitory to corner Harry and comfort him about it.
She slipped up the stairs from the Gryffindor Common Room, sat on Harry's four poster and drew the curtains shut. Nothing to do now, but wait. She had noticed how she grew tired easily these days. Where was Harry?
She waited until she heard Ron come up, but remained silent. Harry came up later and she threw aside the fourposter bed curtains.
"Oh Harry." There was a Gryffindor banner tied around him, and she hastened to unknot it while Ron just watched.
"So, congratulations," said Ron grimacing.
"Congratulations?" snapped Herimone. At that moment, her offspring kicked her insides with the force of a mule kicking. She winced and put a hand to her belly.
"What do you mean, congratulations?" said Harry.
"Well you put your name in. You're the champion," said Ron.
"That'll do, Ron," said Hermione, trying to make her tone sound like a warning. Ron drew back the curtains of his four poster in a huff.
Hermione sat herself down on Harry's bed. She was only wrapped in a pink nightie. She stroked her belly.
"Are you alright, Hermione? Why's your belly swollen?" said Harry, sounding awkward.
"Oh, Harry. Isn't it obvious?"
"You've been eating too much?" said Harry. "You should see how Dudley put it away before he was forced to diet… oh."
"Yes. Oh is right," said Hermione with a wry smile.
"But how? Who's the father?" said Harry bluntly. "I didn't know you had a boyfriend."
Hermione laughed, despite her sombre mood. "A unicorn did this to me. But don't tell Ron – he may get jealous of that as well."
"Yeah, I don't get why he's being like this." said Harry.
"He's not being rational," said Hermione, "he only thinks of the prestige part of the Tournament, not about how dangerous it is."
"That's the Gryffindor way," said Harry.
"I wonder whether we're both in the right house," said Hermione.
00O00
When Harry discovered that the first task involved getting past a dragon, Hermione knew she had to help him get good at summoning charms. It was hard work for both of them. Harry really couldn't seem to get into it. Hermione got tired and had to sit down to help him practice. Finally he got it right. She hugged him.
"Your belly is getting in the way," said Harry. "When's the foal due?"
"March some time," said Hermione weakly. "Oh, but it's going to be awful having to watch you face a dragon." She cupped his face in her hands. "Whatever you do, don't get hurt. I – I can't take my best friend getting burned or clawed…" She realised there were tears in her eyes.
"Wow, you really don't get the Gryffindor ideal of blundering headfirst into danger without a plan or any thought for the consequences. Although I can chalk all that up to pregnancy hormones," said Harry. "If it makes you feel any better, I'd rather be at the castle with you than anywhere else, even if the price is facing a dragon."
"Awww…" Hermione kissed him on the cheek.
00O00
As she had expected, the first task was awful. It was bad enough having to watch the other three champions menaced by the dragons, but as for Harry's turn with the Hungarian Horntail. It gave her such a turn that she thought she might accidentally give birth prematurely. She put her face in her hands and sobbed through most of it. At last it was over and Harry had got the egg. She rushed over to congratulate him.
Ron sidled up. "I reckon whoever put your name in the goblet is trying to kill you," he observed.
"That's clever of you," said Harry acidly.
Hermione clung to him. She was heavier now with the weight of her foal and she almost dragged him down. "Enough arguing," she said weakly. "That was awful. I'm going to complain to Dumbledore. I should've done it sooner. He ought to insist that the Tournament be cancelled. There's obviously something wrong about it."
00O00
She and Harry went to the entrance to Dumbledore's tower. Harry guessed that the password would be candy of some kind. Eventually he guessed cockroach cluster, which was correct – who would've thought?
To her great relief, the stairs carried them upwards like an escalator. Hermione did not think she could face more steep stairs just yet.
At the door to Dumbledore's office, they could hear Dumbledore and Fudge arguing. "Minister, you must cancel the tournament," Dumbledore was saying. "Clearly there is something gravely wrong…"
"I will not be thought a coward!" retorted Fudge.
"A true leader worries about what is right," replied Dumbledore serenely.
"What did you say?" shouted Fudge.
Harry knocked on the door and it swung open.
Fudge forced himself to grin. It looked quite painful. "Well, that will be all Dumbledore."
"Is there no chance then? The Tournament won't be cancelled?" said Hermione anxiously.
"I have no power to overrule the Minister for Magic," said Dumbledore.
"Right. Great." Hermione knew her voice sounded brittle.
"Oh, it's alright," said Harry. "I'm not trying to be a hero, but you saw how I beat the horntail, sir."
"I did indeed Harry."
00O00
This did nothing to help Hermione's anxiety. Why couldn't Harry take things seriously? She was sitting in the library one evening while Harry was off with Ron somewhere. She had to sit down a lot lately and couldn't spend as much time looking over the shelves for books. She sat down with a copy of Advanced Magic and tried to concentrate as her foal in her womb kicked her. Then she looked up. Viktor Krum was in the library and coming right towards her.
