A/N: Happy birthday Tweety!
I just re-translated the big bit of latin in chapter two or something and realised its kinda….. wrong. DON'T RE-TRANSLATE IT. And now I sit back and watch you go and re-translate it. All I can say is – I TOLD YOU SO!
Special thanks to AMPebbles – the only one so far to suggest any baby names. I also just realised that I've made Ginny 'show' really early, so I've come up with a reason to explain that too. I don't know if it would really happen in real life, so please correct me if I'm wrong. Read on peeps!
Disclaimer: Because I keep forgetting to write one, this one automatically counts for the rest of the chapters and all previous that doesn't have one: I do not own anything remotely related to Harry Potter
Chapter Five – First Pictures
"What are you doing here Rita?" Hermione sneered. This shocked me even more – I'd never heard Hermione talk that way – not even to Ron (whom she was frequently annoyed at). Rita rolled her eyes,
"Doing what every reporters been trying to do for days – see what's going on with Harry." Hermione narrowed her eyes and glared at the snotty reporter,
"If you weren't allowed in here, its obviously none of your business. Buzz off Skeeter."
"Well!" Rita looked smug and placed her hands on her hips, "I doubt you could do much damage on your own and she," at this point she turned her head back to me, "doesn't seem to be doing anything to help." I pulled out my wand and made a move to get up when I felt the baby move inside me. I fell back against the cushions and wrapped my free hand around my stomach as if to say 'Not now, not now not now!' Rita looked smug,
"No one will believe an 18 year old witch who hasn't even finished Hogwarts yet. Why would they?" Hermione glared at the woman,
"I may only be 18, and I may not have finished school yet but let me tell you – I have just spent the past year running from Voldemort with Harry Potter, and helping bring about his downfall. I was there when he died and I help fight Death Eaters at the battle not four days ago. Where were you then Rita? Getting a manicure I suppose." Hermione jeered. I never seen her so angry before – not even at Ron, "I have already been offered a job at the Ministry that would have taken you years to get to. I was top of my year and I intend to go back and finish my education AND I am personal friends with the Minister for Magic himself. I'm sure they'll listen to me." Rita looked shocked and, well to put it bluntly, rather pissed that her threat was empty. She opened her mouth to reply when the door opened and in walked Ron followed by a new Healer. Seriously, where do they keep getting these?
When Ron finally noticed the situation, he stopped and his mouth hung open. I had a sudden urge to say 'Stop licking the floor Ronald and find your wits.' But I didn't.
"Ron," Hermione said, still glaring at the woman beside her, "Be a dear and go fetch -" at this point I was having a massive sense of déjà vu, " a ministry official." She turned her head slightly to face us, and I realised she had a smile on her face. A creepy, somewhat triumphant smile, "I think they'll be very interested to know there was an unregistered animagus running around the ministry." Ron did nothing – still frozen in shock. I stood up and had to steady myself on the edge of Harry's bed 'cause I was shaking so much. The Healer looked from a gaping Ron, to a furious Hermione, to a shaking me and then to a startled Rita and nodded.
"I'll go get someone." Then she was gone. Ron had finally gathered his wits and raised his wand at Rita,
"How did you bloody well get in here?" He asked her, seeming a lot calmer than Hermione or me. Hermione looked at him like he was crazy – which I think is probably possible.
"How do you think? Have you completely forgotten the incidents from our fourth year?" As it dawned on Ron, I sat down again, my shaking almost uncontrollable by now. Hermione sat Rita down in the chair she had been previously occupying and tied her up. The black cords tightened around Rita's struggeling body,
"What do you think your doing? You cant do this – I am Rita Skeeter I am -" Her voice was muffled by the cloth Hermione tied around her mouth,
"Oh put a sock in it. No one wants to hear your lies." Rita's eyes widened in horror at her words and I fought to keep the giggles I could feel swirling around my stomach at bay. You could tell no one had ever spoken to her that way before.
My shaking had calmed down quite a bit by now – so I tried to stand and fell heaviliy against Harry's bed and jumped away knocking into Ron.
"Bloody hell!" He yelped in surprise and I realised I had stood on his foot, "What was that for?" I looked at him, a scared expression on my face,
"He – he – he," I swallowed and began again, "He flinched. When I landed on him." Ron looked from my wide, afraid eyes, along my shaking hand that was pointing at the slight bump in the sheets where Harry's hand lay. As we watched, a small ripple in the sheets proved my statement. Ron's eyes almost popped out of his head and Hermione had her hands over her mouth,
"Harry?" I stepped forward and placed a shaking hand over his, "Can you hear me?" I had felt stupid, cause I knew he wouldn't answer, "Can you squeeze my hand?" It was all I could hope for.
No such luck.
I stood there shaking, tears overflowing and pouring down my cheeks. I feel someone place a hand on my shoulder and turn to see Hermione, a kind smile on her face, the angry look gone. I realised how much I needed this girl. She was the only one who would understand how I feel during the coming months. I turn back to Harry as the door opened. I spun around, feeling all my previous shaking coming back with such a force I fell back against Harry and gave a sob when I felt him flinch again. The Healer walked quikly over to me and eased me back into the chair and tried to calm me down. The man who had been following her walked in and surveyed the room with a proud eye. He had long mud brown hair that almost reached his shoulders, piercing blue eyes and a smart navy pinstriped suit that probably was worth more than my whole house put together. In short -he reminded me of Malfoy.
"My name is Damien Chatsworth, from the Unregistered Animagus section of the Magical Law Enforcement department. I -"
"Woah!" Ron interrupted, "They actually have a department for that sort of stuff?" The Ministry wiI have been summoned on the pretense of an unregistered animagus." He turned to Rita, "I assume that's it?" Hermione stepped forward,
"My name is Hermione Granger. Rita Skeeter is an unregistered animagus. In my forth year, the Tri-Wizard Cup was held and around that time, lots of stories kept coming out about me and Harry," Harrys hand twitched under the covers and I let out another sob. Hermiones eyes flitted to me, then back to the ministry official.
"These stories contained information that no one knew other than us, which we found odd. After the tornament was over, I caught Rita on the window sill of the Hospital wing at Hogwarts. She takes the form of a black beetle, with markings around the antenna and eyes that match those ridiculous glasses she wears. I noticed her today doing the same thing." Chatsworth looked at her confused, "Spying, I mean." She corrected herself.
Chatsworth nodded,
"I shall take her back to the ministry for further investigation. Come." He took Rita's arm and walked her outside. Soon we heard the resounding crack from them disapparating.
I felt another sob building in my throat and felt tears flood over my eyes, making it impossible to see.
The Healer patted my back awkwardly then cleared her throat. I looked up, wipping my eyes to see her properly,
"Um, Miss, will you just come with me for a minute -"
"But what if something happens?" I cut across her. I couldn't bear to be away from Harry for a minute. I needed the reassurance that he was there, able to hear me or not. The Healer shook her head,
"I'm sure he won't wake up in the next ten minutes. And if anything happens," she said quickly, cutting me off, "I'm sure Miss Granger or Mr Weasley will let us know." I looked unsure, my eyes flicking between her and Harry, "It's only for ten minutes, I swear." I sighed and got up, defeated. She smiled and lead me outside, down about fifty different corridors, then into another room like Harry's except it was bigger. There were four beds with curtain frames around them, with what looked like muggle machienery sitting beside it. I stared at them confused. They looked like something dad was showing me in a book a few years ago….
"Is that an… ultrasound?" I asked the Healer
"The equipment to perform one, yes."
"But," I stepped forward to get a better look at it, "it's a muggle device. It uses electricity." I took Muggle Studies, so unlike my muggle obsessed father, I actually knew the term for what muggle's use to power lights and other electric objects. The Healer nodded,
"This is the only part of the hospital that uses electricity. Sometimes, muggles can be rather smart at getting around using magic." She lead me over to the nearest bed. "Lie down and relax while I start it up."
I lay down warily. The machine beeped and the Healer lifted up my shirt to reveal the small bump. She rubbed some see-through gel onto my stomach and placed part of the machine that connected to the screen on the table. The gel was cold and I shuddered at its touch.
"How many months have you been pregnant?" She asked
"Around a month and a half I think, I'm not entirely sure." The Healer looked confused,
"That's what I thought, though the babies seem much more developed. Almost four months at least." I swallowed hard,
"Babies?" I asked weakly. The Healer nodded,
"All three, healthy and well developed by the looks of things. Do you want to know the gender?" She looked expentantly at me.
My head was spinning. 'All three' she'd said. THREE? I was having TRIPLETS! And what did she mean by 'much more developed'? I'd only been throwing up for a month and a half, and you normally don't show for them! What was going on in my body?
"Miss Weasley?" The Healer waved a hand infront of my face. "Are you alright?"
"Triplets?" I asked weakly
"Yep. They appear to have been concived around the 24th March. Do you want to know the gender?" I shook my head, not for a no, but to clear it. The Healer took it for a no and took a towel to wipe the gel off my stomach. I felt the baby, no, one of the babies kick and gasped. The Healer must have felt it too, because she smiled, "You've got some strong children there Miss." She helped me up and held out three postcard sized photographs, "Ultrasound pictures. For your parents." I nodded and tucked the photos in a pocket, still in to much shock to register what they actually were.
The Healer lead me back to Harry's room. Hermione was sitting on Rons lap, talking in low voices. When I walked in, they jumped up,
"Ginny!" Hermione said, "We were just going to head home, I mean, back to the Burrow. Are you coming?" I didn't say anything, but walked over to Harry. I felt more tears build up behind my eyes and blinked them away. I bent down and kissed his cheek. I pulled out one of the pictures from my pocket and placed it upside down in his hand, and whispered,
"Don't worry. I'll get back on my feet. Someday. You just better be there to help."
Then I turned and left, knowing that if I didn't leave now, I never would. Ron and Hermione followed, still talking in low voices. I swallowed my tears of guilt. I had just left Harry alone with a postcard.
A postcard of my babies first pictures
A/N: Hope you like posh Hermione! BABY NAMES! PLEASE! Odd, unusual names if possible, I like them.