February 2, 2010

The Second Trimester

Hermione and Harry sat among dozens of other expectant couples in the waiting room of the Witch Care annex. She was scribbling in her pregnancy log. Her healer had recommended that she keep a log of her eating habits, her physical and mental changes, and questions that arose.

"You told me to remind you of forgetting things," Harry said.

"Yes, good catch love," he said, patting his knee and continuing her writing.

According to the calendar, today marked twelve weeks of pregnancy. Her healer still continued blood work, to ensure that there were no negative effects from the tainted elixir, and to make sure Hermione's nutritional needs were met. After the stress of the Crittendon trial, she blossomed, and he fell more in love with her. A Mediwitch opened the doors to the Healer's corridor.

"Miss Granger, come this way, your healer is ready to see you now."

She lay on an examining table while Luke pushed buttons and prepared the ultrasound machine for operation.

"I still think that's it's amazing that you have those here," she said.

Luke chuckled. "Magic is a wonderful tool in medicine, but with this we can see the baby, to see that everything is progressing as it should. As an added plus, the patients are thrilled that they get to actually see their baby before they're even born. Some aspects of Muggle Complimentary Medicine are truly clever. Now, I'll just be applying this gel on your stomach to make it easier for the probe to move about," he said and squirted a bit of the gel. Her stomach twitched at the coldness.

"My apologies, I forgot to warm it a bit," Luke said and pressed the probe on her stomach. "It will take a few moments for the image to focus."

He pressed more buttons and moved the probe around her stomach. "Ah, here we go."

He pointed to a bean-shaped mass on the screen. "There he is...or she. Can't tell that just yet."

"We don't want to know," they both chorused.

"Noted. He...she...the fetus, appears to measure in at five and one-half centimeters. Heart development is complete-"

"Already?" Harry asked.

"Yes, already. The arms and legs are moving slightly, and the intestines are developing, and I see facial development as well. When you put all of that together, the fetus is no longer just a lump of cells. It looks like a baby," he said and laid the probe aside. "Would you like a printout of the reading?"

"Yes, please," Harry said.

He pressed buttons and the machine printed out two thermal images. "Careful that you don't touch the picture too much, the oil and temperature from your fingers can affect it. I'll let you dress and we can continue in my office."

They marveled over the pictures, and suddenly he hugged her tightly and started kissing her wherever his lips could touch. "You're wonderful, do you know that? Look at this, look what we made," he said proudly, brandishing his picture.

"It's amazing. Daunting, exciting, and amazing. Sometimes it's hard for me to believe that there's a little person growing in here," she said, rubbing the bump protruding from her stomach.

"I don't really think I've been affected by morning sickness, according to my friend Ginny," she explained. "Aversion to smells is one thing, the retching every day is another. It's just been the smells for me." She flipped through the log. "The shortness of breath?"

"Will become more pronounced."

"The absentmindedness?"

"Ah yes, commonly known as pregnancy amnesia. Hormones, concerns of the home and career, and preparing for the baby's arrival- all can contribute to some things escaping your attention."

"Some things escaping my attention? I forgot the name of my boss last week during a department meeting!"

Harry's laugh turned into a cough at her glare. My next concern should shut him up!

"I seem to want more sex nowadays, sometimes more than food."

She glanced sideways at Harry. He was blushing, his coloring as red as a strawberry.

"The desire for intercourse will become more pronounced as well. You can thank the hormones for that; however, it can be good for you. Physically, it's better than any draught for relieving stress, and will keep those raging hormones in check. Emotionally, it reinforces the bond you two obviously have, something that you share that has nothing to do with the baby. There's no reason for intimacy and affection to slow because of pregnancy."

She was nodding and scribbling in her book.

What in the world could she be writing about? Harry wondered.

Luke continued. "Of course, the further along you get, you will undoubtedly find that alternative positions will be necessary."

Why are we sitting here talking about this like we're having tea?

"Yes, I read about it in a book my friend gave me," she said.

"Your friends are giving you sex books?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Ginny- who has been pregnant twice, an expert as far as I'm concerned- gave me a pregnancy book, given to her by her husband who is a healer. Seven pages out of four hundred page book gave suggestions on how to make sex more comfortable into the third trimester. So no, no one gave me a sex book. However, you keep this up, and the pictures in the book will be the only sex you see."

Luke's lips twitched and he cleared his throat. She put her journal in her handbag and stood, lips tightly closed, not sparing a glance at Harry.

"Thank you Luke, especially for the pictures."

"Take care, Hermione. Please see the Mediwitch on your way out to schedule your next appointment."

She marched from the office, Harry hurrying to catch up.

While Hermione was visiting her parents and showing off the ultrasound image, Harry was doing the same at the Hopkins house.

"Why didn't Hermione come with you?" Ginny asked.

"I...might have…set her off at the Healer's today."

"You might have?" Ginny asked.

"Okay, I did, all right? God, the littlest things set her off!"

"It's only going to get worse," Wayne said.

"Fabulous," Harry said.

"It's not her fault," Ginny said. "You have to realize that. She can't help what's going on with her body. She's happy about the baby, but she's worried about taking proper care of herself, and being careful because of a little life totally dependent on her. She's also concerned about you, Harry, don't forget that."

Wayne agreed. "It's true. We as men cannot begin to imagine what women must be feeling with the knowledge that a life is going to come kicking and wailing out of out their bodies. I'm a healer and I delivered my own babies, and I can't begin to imagine it."

"I could have been more supportive in the Healer's office," Harry said.

"We know how intelligent, rational, and kind Hermione is, but she's no different than any other pregnant woman. The mood swings are normal," Wayne said. "As my Healer professor once said: dealing with the emotions of a pregnant woman is like trying to row a boat in a hurricane."

"You can't," Harry said.

"Precisely," Wayne added.

The next morning, the entire department was summoned for a meeting. Allbright came into the conference room with Gareth Hamilton, one of the senior Advocates.

"I'm pleased to see all of you this morning. The reason for this meeting is distressing, so please bear with me."

He cleared his throat and took a sip of water.

"This weekend it was determined that my wife is in the final stages of Nyland's Syndrome."

The room fell silent and their hearts went out to him. Nyland's Syndrome was the equivalent of the muggle disease Alzheimers, except that Nyland's Syndrome progressed at a much faster pace.

"This morning I tendered my immediate resignation, in order to be with her as much as I can in her final days. I've appointed Gareth Hamilton as my replacement. I know that you'll perform as admirably for him as you have for me. It's been an honor to work with each and every one of you."

He left the room blowing into a handkerchief. Gareth Hamilton broke the silence.

"I know we all have work to do this morning, so I'm holding a department-wide meeting after lunch, just to go over some slight changes here in the department."

Many of those in the room glanced pointedly at each other. Hamilton was a good, capable Advocate. He was the senior Advocate in the Civil Law section, and was touted for his contract and business law expertise. His drawback, as Hermione and many others saw, was that he was a bit of a bureaucrat.

Allbright must see something in him that we don't. Why do those types always get ahead?

She had as much tolerance for bureaucrats as she had for...well, you really couldn't compare a bureaucrat to a pedophile. Or a Daily Prophet gossip columnist. Or Draco Malfoy inventing reasons to come to the department to make goo-goo eyes at sweet, lovable Clarice.

Well, hopefully Hamilton realizes that bureaucracy won't work here.