AN: Okay, I must say that I love this chapter. I think it's one of my favorites :D I hope you like it too. Standard disclaimer applies!
The night that his news broke, Harry once again went to bed early. He was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Perhaps that was why he ended up thrashing and screaming in his bed a few hours later, in the grips of the first vision he'd had all year. Ron quickly jumped out of his own bed and ran to Harry gripping him by the shoulders and trying to shake him awake. The other boys were now sitting up in their beds and looking slightly alarmed.
"Someone go and get McGonagal, now!" He shouted over his shoulder. Seamus bolted from the room as Harry let loose with another scream, his body stiffening and then convulsing.
"Harry!" Ron exclaimed, trying to keep his friend from falling off of his bed. "Harry, wake up!" He yelled as he shook his shoulders again. Harry suddenly gasped as his eyes shot open. He looked around frantically for a second, trying to get his bearings. "Neville, get a rubbish bin. He's probably going to be sick." Ron said as he sat next to Harry and tried to calm him. "It's alright Harry. You're okay." Harry groaned and rolled to his side as he cradled his aching head in his hands. He suddenly lurched up and grabbed for the waste basket that Neville had just placed beside his bed. He retched horribly as Ron helped to hold the bin and support him. He shook and gasped as he tried to get his breath back. Dean brought a wet cloth from the bathroom and gave it to Ron so he could drape it over Harry's neck. Harry was starting to subside back into his pillow when Seamus came back with Professor McGonagal in tow.
"Harry, what is it? What did you see?" She asked as Ron got up and offered her his seat on Harry's bed. She sat down and reached for his hand. He gripped her hand tightly and swallowed.
"Voldemort has Snape." He said, his voice hoarse from screaming and vomit. "He knows that Snape kept my pregnancy from him, because of Draco's comments about Potions class in the Prophet." He closed his eyes and let his head fall back into his pillow. "Snape's trying to convince him that Dumbledore had him under a Fidelius charm, but I don't think he believes him." He pulled the rag from his neck and dropped it over his aching forehead. McGonagal squeezed his hand again and he looked back up at her.
"Could you tell where they were Harry? Was there anything you could see that you recognized?" He thought for a moment, trying to remember if he'd seen anything familiar. He looked up at her suddenly.
"Malfoy." He said. He had to clear his throat before he could continue. "The Malfoy family crest was over the fire place mantle." She nodded and patted his hand.
"Well done Harry." He nodded and shut his eyes again. "Will you be alright?" She asked as he grimaced and brought a hand up to his head.
"I'll be fine." He said as Ron handed him a glass of water. "Go tell Dumbledore. Help Snape." She nodded and patted his hand again before hastily heading off for the headmaster's quarters.
"Are you really okay Harry?" Ron asked as he sat back down beside his friend. Harry rubbed his hands hard over his face, pressing on the scar on his forehead which was still throbbing, but nodded in response.
"I think so. I can't guarantee that I won't puke again though." He said. He exhaled shakily and then made to sit up. Ron pressed back on his shoulder.
"Give yourself a minute Harry." He said as he tried to get his friend to lie back down. Harry gave him an exasperated look.
"I don't have a minute Ron. One more nudge to my bladder and my bed is going to be soaked." He said as he cupped his belly in one hand. "Help me up." He held his free hand out to Ron and they got him levered up out of the bed and to the bathroom without incident. He was just finishing up when he felt what he thought was a Braxton-Hicks contraction start to tighten up his abdomen. He rubbed his belly and tried to breathe the way Hermione had told him too, but it quickly progressed from the slight discomfort of Braxton-Hicks to a full out, squeezing pain. He whimpered as he braced himself with one hand on the counter.
"Ron!" He yelled as it seemed to squeeze tighter. The door cracked open and Ron's face peered around the edge. "Ron, something's wrong! I think this is a real contraction. It really hurts." He gasped out. Ron threw open the door and ran over to his friend.
"Sit down." Ron said as he put the lid down on the toilet. He helped Harry ease down and thought for a moment as Harry panted. "Call for Dobby Harry. We'll send him to get Madame Pomfrey." Harry nodded.
"Dobby!" He said half sobbing. Two seconds later Dobby appeared in the middle of the room. The happiness on his face at having been summoned by his favorite wizard was quickly replaced by worry.
"How can Dobby help Harry Potter?" He asked looking back and forth between the two boys.
"Harry needs Madame Pomfrey, Dobby." Ron said. "Tell her that he had a bad vision and now he's having a really strong contraction. Not one of the Braxton kind." He instructed. He looked back at Dobby as he knelt in front of Harry. "And after you see Madame Pomfrey, go wake Hermione and tell her the same thing. Do you have all of that?" Dobby nodded briskly and was gone with a snap of his fingers. Ron turned his attention back to Harry who seemed to be relaxing slightly.
"Is it backing off?" He asked. Harry opened his eyes and nodded as he continued his breathing. Slow and steady, in through his nose, out through his mouth. "Do you want to try to get back to bed?" Ron asked as he stood back up. Harry nodded.
"Give me a minute though. It's not completely gone yet." At that moment they heard Hermione's worried voice calling from the other room. Ron went to the door and opened it the rest of the way.
"We're in here Hermione." He called. She had apparently stopped to get Ginny as both girls were hurrying into the room. Ginny went immediately to Harry and knelt down in front of him.
"What's happening, Harry?" She asked as she reached for one of his hands and started rubbing it. Harry sighed and sat up a bit more, relaxing as the last of the contraction ebbed away. He sighed deeply and looked at her.
"I had a vision." He said as she helped him get to his feet and head toward his bed. "Voldemort is seriously pissed off at Snape for not telling him about the baby. He was using the cruciatus curse on him." He sat on the edge of his bed with a groan.
"Yeah." Ron interjected as he joined them. "And we all know how well Harry reacts to that scenario. He was screaming like a banshee and jerking all over the place. I had to keep hold of him to keep him from falling out of the bed." Harry grimaced suddenly and they all looked at him warily.
"She's kicking like mad." He said in explanation as he rubbed at his belly. He looked down as he spoke to the baby. "I know Sweetie. I didn't like it either." He eased himself down to his left side and tried to relax. About thirty seconds later Madame Pomfrey hurried in to the room, slightly breathless from having to hoof it up the stairs from the common room.
"I keep telling Dumbledore that we need real fireplaces in the dorms. Not just these little stoves. This is exactly why!" She panted as she moved to Harry's side. "How are you feeling Harry?" She asked as she placed her hands on his belly.
"The contraction is gone now. I don't know how long it lasted, but it really hurt and neither one of us liked it very much." She nodded and reached into her pocket for her wand. She cast the heart rate tracking charm and the sound of the baby's heart beat filled the room, steady and strong. The mediwitch nodded in satisfaction as she monitored the heart rate for a few moments before canceling the spell. Harry suddenly grunted and tensed, looking up at Madame Pomfrey as he gripped his belly.
"It's tightening up again!" He said in a panicky voice as he tried to resume his deep breathing. Madame Pomfrey quickly pushed his pajama shirt up over his belly and laid both hands upon it to try and gauge the strength of the contraction. "Ow!" Harry moaned as the pain reached its peak. "Oh, my God." He whimpered. Ginny tried to lay a comforting hand on his shoulder, but Harry grabbed it and hung on for dear life as his steady deep breaths dissolved into ragged panting. Ginny quickly knelt down next to him and spoke softly as she ran the fingers of her free hand through his hair.
"Try to relax Harry. If you tense up, it's just going to hurt more." She saw him make a visible effort to relax, dropping his shoulders which he had hunched up around his ears and relaxing his face. "Keep your breathing even. Nice deep breaths." She said before taking a few deep breaths along with him. He nodded minutely and evened his breathing out, following her example. She continued to speak softly to him and run her fingers back through his hair, watching with relief when he started to relax after nearly a full minute. "Is it going away?" She asked. He nodded and opened his eyes.
"Thank you." He said softly as he looked up at her. She brought his hand up and kissed the back of his fingers while continuing the soothing motions of her other hand.
"Harry," Madame Pomfrey said as she pulled his shirt back down over his belly. "I want you in the infirmary. If these contractions don't stop on their own we're going to need to use some potions to calm them." She offered him her hand and between Ginny and herself, they got him upright on the edge of his bed. He looked up at the elder witch, his eyes full of worry.
"There was barely five minutes between those contractions." He said as Hermione bent and slid his slippers on to his feet. "Will you be able to get them stopped?" Madame Pomfrey sighed as she looked down at him.
"I can't promise anything Harry, but I think that once we get you to the infirmary, into bed, and calmed down, they're going to start tapering off. I have plenty of potions on hand that are very effective if we need to use them. We'll just have to wait and see." They got him to his feet and started the trek down to the common room. It was slow going as Harry was afraid that any wrong moves on his part would bring about another contraction. They stopped in front of the fireplace and Madame Pomfrey took a small pouch of flue powder from the pocket of her dressing gown. She turned to eye Ginny speculatively and then offered her the pouch. "You may accompany us to the infirmary if you like Ms. Weasley. You seem to be very good at helping Harry to calm down." Ginny didn't hesitate as she removed a pinch of powder from the bag and handed it back. "The rest of you can go on back to bed. You can come and see Harry in the morning before class." She raised her hand to still Ron and Hermione's protests.
"Harry needs to rest and I don't need a bunch of extra students crowding his room." She said with an air of finality. She escorted Harry in to the fire place and they disappeared in a whoosh of green flames. Ginny turned and gave Hermione a quick hug.
"I'll come back once he's asleep and let you know how things are going." She promised. Hermione hugged her back and nodded. Then she pushed the younger girl gently toward the fireplace.
"You'd better hurry." Ginny turned and enter the fireplace. She threw down her pinch of powder and said "Hospital Wing" before disappearing in the flames.
As she stumbled out of the fireplace at the other end she saw that Harry appeared to be in grips of yet another contraction. He was leaning heavily on a table with one arm while the other was looped under his belly for support. He looked at her and she could see the raw pain and fear in his eyes. She hurried over to them and took over for Madame Pomfrey who was calmly caressing his back.
"Keep breathing Harry." She encouraged him. He closed his eyes and nodded, leaning into her touch. He started to surface from the pain a few seconds later. As soon as he was able to stand upright again they got him to his room and into bed. Madame Pomfrey left Harry in Ginny's care as she hurried off to raid her potions cabinet. Harry shifted to his left side and ran his hand gingerly over his stomach.
"She can't come yet Ginny." He said, his voice cracking with emotion. "It's too soon." A tear ran from the corner of his eye as he said this. She cupped his cheek in her hand and smoothed the tear away with her thumb.
"You can't think about that right now Harry. Just try to concentrate on getting your body to relax." She said as she took his hand in hers. She straightened his arm out and laid it across her lap then, starting at his shoulder, she ran her fingers slowly down his arm and back up again, exerting just enough pressure that it didn't tickle. "Close your eyes and breathe." She told him as she started the motion again. He obeyed and tried to allow himself to be relaxed by her gentle touch. The next contraction took longer to come and wasn't quite as bad as the previous ones. Madame Pomfrey came back with a couple of bottles shortly after it began. Once it was over, she approached him with a small purple bottle in her hand.
"Here Harry. I want you to take his one to start with. It's just a mild muscle relaxant. We'll start simple and move on to the more aggressive potion if we have too." He took the bottle and downed the potion in one gulp, grimacing at its foul taste. Ginny offered him a sip of water and took up his other arm as he laid back into the pillow, giving it the same gentle massage technique. Seeing that this was far more effective than anything she could offer aside from potions, Madame Pomfrey left them to it and went to find Harry's chart.
Ginny spent a good five minutes on his arm before she put it down. She hesitated a moment as she reached for the hem of his shirt, but moved resolutely onward and started to push it up over his belly. He grabbed her wrists and she looked up at his face seeing embarrassment reddening his cheeks. She smiled and gently extricated her wrists from his grasp. She took his hands and tucked them up onto the top of his belly, just below his breast bone.
"It's okay Harry." She pushed his shirt the rest of the way up and started to give his belly the same treatment she'd given his arms, dragging her finger tips from top to bottom, moving from the outer edges to the center, over and over again. A blissful thirteen minutes had passed before she started to feel his belly tighten under her fingers. Harry furrowed his brow in pain and started his breathing again. Ginny wasn't sure if she should stop or not. Harry answered that question when he reached up and laid his hands over hers, pressing them to his belly and stilling her motions.
After only about thirty second she felt the muscles under her hands start to soften again and Harry released his hold on them. She continued to work on his belly for another couple of minutes before she reached up and pulled his shirt back down. She scooted herself down to the end of the bed and uncovered his feet. She lifted them and sitting cross-legged, she once again pulled his slightly puffy feet into her lap. She had finished one foot and was working diligently on the second when she heard him start to quietly snore. She smiled at him, proud of herself for having helped ease his pain and fear. She wriggled silently out from under his feet and tucked the blanket back around them. She gave his belly a gentle caress and felt the baby roll sedately under her palm.
"Go to sleep munchkin." She whispered to the baby. She kissed him on the forehead and moved quietly to the door. Madame Pomfrey, Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagal were all gathered around a bed directly across the hall from Harry's room. As she approached she saw that the bed's occupant was none other than Professor Snape. He looked ghastly. One of his eyes was swollen and purple and there were a myriad of other small cuts and bruises all over his face. His breathing was hitching on every inhale and she saw that one of his wrists was bound up and held securely to his chest with a sling. Ginny stepped up beside the adults and touched Madame Pomfrey on the arm to get her attention.
"Harry's asleep." She said when the mediwitch turned to look at her. Madame Pomfrey looked inordinately please.
"Wonderful!" She exclaimed. "And according to my monitoring charm it's been over half an hour since his last contraction." Ginny nodded and Madame Pomfrey beamed at her. "You should consider a career in the medical field Ms. Weasley. You have the touch for it."
"I might seriously consider it." Ginny said. She looked at her potions teacher. "Is Professor Snape going to be alright?" she asked. Madame Pomfrey nodded.
"Time is the best healer. He just needs to rest. If I know him at all, he'll be back in the classroom in a day or two." The healer said. Professor McGonagal harrumphed.
"He'd be dead if we had gotten to him too much later, the fool. Voldemort wasn't going to buy that Fidelius line Severus was trying to feed him." She looked at Dumbledore. "At least you managed to rid the world of that awful snake of his." Dumbledore smiled at her.
"Yes Minerva, that was quite a bit of good luck sent our way." He said, a secretive gleam in his eyes. He looked at Ginny. "How is Harry?"
"Exhausted," She said. "He's finally asleep. He's scared too. He's terrified that he's going to lose the baby. He loves her so much…" Her voice caught a bit with her emotions and she had to clear her throat and blink quickly as turned back to Madame Pomfrey. "I'm going to head back to Gryffindor Tower to let Ron and Hermione know that Harry's okay." The mediwitch nodded.
"I'm putting him on bed rest for a few days, until we're sure this episode isn't going to repeat itself. You are all free to come see him before and after classes." Professor McGonagal spoke up.
"Have Ms. Granger bring him his class work so he doesn't fall behind. Her tutelage will be just as effective as time spent in a classroom." Ginny smiled and nodded and bid them all good night.
It was two A.M. when Ginny finally got back to the common room. Ron and Hermione were sitting in front of the fireplace when she entered. Hermione was staring in to the flames and chewing her normally impeccable nails, while Ron was sprawled in an arm chair, fast asleep. Hermione spotted her as she approached.
"Ginny!" She exclaimed loudly. Ron snorted and jerked awake, blinking blearily at them. Hermione took her by the hand and led her to the sofa to sit down.
"He's okay." Ginny said. "And so is the baby." Hermione wilted in relief and Ron sat down next to her patting her on the knee. "He had two or three more contractions after we got to the infirmary and Madame Pomfrey gave him a muscle relaxer. It seemed to do the trick. They stopped and he's sleeping now." She relaxed back into the cushions and let her head fall back.
"Can we see him?" Hermione asked eagerly. Ginny nodded.
"Madame Pomfrey said she's putting him on bed rest for a few days, but we can come see him before and after classes." She opened her eyes and looked at Hermione. "Professor McGonagal wants you to bring his classwork so he doesn't fall behind." Hermione smiled.
"I can do that. I'll take him his wandless magic book too. He can practice while he's recuperating." She looked at Ginny suddenly serious. "Have you heard anything about Professor Snape?" Ginny nodded.
"They got to him in time. He's pretty beat up, but he's alive. He's in the bed across the hall from Harry's room." She yawned suddenly and stretched. "I'm knackered. I'm going to bed. I think we're still expected to make it to classes on time tomorrow." Ron and Hermione followed her to the dorm room stairs, Ron grumbling about being tired in the morning. They went to their individual dorms and all fell gratefully into their beds.