Choices

"Well, have a seat," Poppy said. Molly sat down in a chair in the matron's office. Arthur sat right next to her and held her hand lovingly, trying to calm her down. Minerva sat at the back of the room for moral support.

"Okay, down to business, Molly," Poppy said taking out a note pad and quill. "So you're two weeks pregnant," she said as she wrote in her notepad. "This is your first check-up. You still remember the procedure from your other pregnancies, correct?" she asked. Molly nodded. "Okay, well, we need to examine you AFP, ANT, and CVS."

Molly gaped at her.

"Could you please freshen up my mind?" she asked, a bit frightened. Poppy smiled.

"Of course, my dear. AFP is Alpha-Fetoprotein. We'll take some blood to check for any abnormalities in the baby's brain or spinal cord. ANT is Amniocentesis. It's a test to check for any fetal problems. CVS is chronic virus sampling. It's just a check for genetic disorders," Poppy explained.

Molly nodded, still feeling a bit overwhelmed. She hadn't done this in a long, long time. She had to give what seemed like a pint of her blood and let Poppy take fluids from her stomach. Poppy used a long slender needle and inserted it through the skin of her stomach into her womb. Molly almost passed out at the sensation.

"Well, now that the baby is taken care of let's focus on you. I'll explain to you again the various stages of a pregnancy. Pregnancy is about 36 to 40 weeks long, and is broken down into three trimesters. The first is 1 to 12 weeks. You're right in it. The second is 13 to 26 weeks. You'll experience mood swings, heartburn, trouble with sleeping. Your skin may stretch and dry. You may even get varicose veins. It's nasty but they'll go away. Your breast will grow and the nipples may leak but don't worry. You'll gain weight and swelling may occur. A dark pigmentation will surface on your skin. The end of morning sickness usually occurs. And you'll start to feel the baby kick," Poppy said.

Molly rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath:

"Oh, yes. I remember kidney shots quiet clearly."

"Do you have any questions?" Poppy asked, ignoring the commentary.

Molly shook her head. Then remembered something.

"When do I need to come back?" Molly asked.

"Oh well, I have you scheduled for the same time next month. By then we can give you an ultrasound, and see the baby. I want to keep a close watch on you because of the … circumstances of the conception. But I see no reason to panic yet."

Poppy fell silent for a moment and Molly wanted to get up. Poppy shook her head and seemed worried. Minerva nodded encouragingly to her. Seeing this, Arthur furrowed his own brows in worry and looked from one witch to the other. Poppy sighed deeply and asked softly:

"Molly, have you thought about abortion?"

"What?!?" Molly stared at her blankly. She couldn't believe her ears.

"Well, that is one possibility. Others would be to keep the child, or to give birth to it and give it up for adoption. The last option is abortion", said Poppy and paused, giving Molly time to digest the news. Then she commenced. "Time is of the essence if you decide to abort. Legally we can abort up to the 12th week. The risks and complications are relatively low. Only in cases of rape or disabilities in the child are exception allowed. But you would feel the death fight of your child since it would be big enough to …"

Molly stormed out of the room and ran to the nearest bathroom. There she threw up until nothing was left in her.

Meanwhile in the Hospital Wing, Arthur tried to follow his wife but was stopped by Minerva. It was the first time she deliberately touched a man and afterwards too astonished to break free of her hold on him.

"Don't, Arthur. Let me. I think she needs another woman right now. Your time comes when she made her decision and you have to back her up no matter what."

Arthur nodded, still stunned that never had talked to and touched him. Minerva gave him a quick and trembling smile, then turned to the door and followed Molly out. She guessed where her younger friend had disappeared to.

Pushing open the door to the nearest bathroom, she could already hear Molly's sobs and simultaneous retching noises. Minerva peaked into the first cubicle and found Molly kneeling in front of the toilet. Slowly she stepped closer to Molly, making sure she was noticed and didn't scare Molly.

"Darling, are you fine? Please talk to me", she pleaded quietly.

Molly turned to her and wrapped her arms around Minerva's waist, sobbing even harder. Minerva wrapped her arms around her shoulders and slid to the floor, seating herself with her back leaning against the wall and drawing Molly to her bosom. Softly she hummed a lullaby to calm her, a lullaby she had sung to her own children.

"What do you want to do?" she asked after a while.

"I don't know, I just don't know!" Molly cried out in desperation. "How am I to choose? What if it's Arthur's child and I abort it? But what if I don't abort and it's ... Lucius'?"

"Try to forget for a moment the question of the child's father. The question you have to ask yourself is: are you strong enough to give birth to another child?" Minerva tried to reason with her.

"I have given birth to 7 children already. I don't think another poses that much of a problem."

"Ginny is 14 years old now ..."

"But everyone always said I was born to be a mother. Big hips and so on."

"Alright. The next question then is: do you want this child?"

Molly was silent and seemed to think of this one over thoroughly. Her forehead was furrowed and her eyes were tightly shut. Minerva gave her all the time she needed. Long moments passed without either woman speaking.

"I don't know. For me this question is linked with the question of the child's father.2

"Did you and Arthur planned for another child after Ginny?"

"No, we thought seven were not ... oh, I understand."

Molly fell silent again. This time Minerva added another piece of wisdom.

"It doesn't matter this much who is the father. The child is yours for sure. That's the one plus of being a mother. The knowledge that this child is yours."

Molly's eyes opened wide. Minerva was right. She loved her children not just because they were Arthur's but because they were hers as well. Another couple of moments passed before she looked up and said with great determination and conviction:

"I was always against abortion. Perhaps this situation justifies an action like abortion but that's not me. Arthur already said he would raise the child as his own ... and I ... don't really want it but ... it wouldn't be fair to punish the child for the crimes of one man who could by chance be its father. I'll keep it and raise it."

"And perhaps it isn't even Lucius' but Arthur's instead. There's always hope", Minerva added, thinking positive.