Disclaimer: *sob* *sob*, I own nothing from the books or movies…*sob*
AN: Sorry it's been so long guys. My brains have been on shut down. That and I've been busy. But here we go…….
CHAPTER VII
It was a quiet morning. Birds sung softly outside as the sun peaked through clouds. All was quiet in the girls' dorm of Gryffindor tower.
at least it was until....
"MORNING SUNSHINE!!!!!" yelled a red-head to the bushy-haired witch.
Groaning in a most unlady-like fashion Hermione rolled over to look at her clock. At seeing the lovely time of 6:45 looking back at her, Hermione let out another groan.
"Who destroyed your brain so much that it would cause you to believe that any time before 8 in the morning was a good time to get up?" Hermione asked in disbelief.
"well if you must know it was the Headmasters idea to let the students into Hogsmeade starting AT 8 in the morning." Ginny said while finding something for Hermione to wear. "and as you've already noticed its already past 6:45 which only gives us just over an hour to get you up and ready to go to Hogsmeade."
Slowly getting out of bed, Hermione grumbled about how the weekend was meant for relaxation and sleeping in. "I still don't see why I'm up before 7."
"We need to get you ready for today. We have to buy our dresses today for the ball next week!" Ginny said as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Now hurry up so we can meet Harry and get some breakfast."
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"You know eventually you're gonna have to pick a dress, you two." Harry said with some annoyance.
Having sat in the store for 3 hrs had made Harry tired and hungry. It took him no more than 10 minutes to find his attire for the ball, so he had no idea how it could take so long to find a dress for the girls.
"We have to find the perfect one!" Ginny said. "And seeing as we rarely ever have a ball at Hogwarts other than the Yule Ball during the tournament three years ago, I want to make the most of it."
Snickering Hermione added quietly, "That and you want to knock the great Harry Potter of his broom with your stunning looks."
Laughing Ginny could only nod in agreement, a glint in her eyes of what was to come. The Boy Who Lived wouldn't know what hit him. Walking out of the changing room she started slipping on the shoes that matched the dress. At hearing Hermione's gasp of surprise, Ginny spun around a worried look in her eyes.
Hermione stood there staring at Ginny.
Worried, "What is it? What's wrong?" Ginny asked
Looking into Ginny's eyes with a smile on her face Hermione answered, "We've found your dress."
Ginny turned to look at the mirror. 'Yes.' Ginny thought. 'This is the dress.'
"Now all we have to do is find your dress." Ginny said
Giving a sigh Hermione sat down. "Ginny I don't know how I'm gonna find a dress. All of these dresses I've tried on so far just don't work. You can see clear as day that I'm pregnant in every one. I wouldn't even bother going anymore, but Dumbledore says the Heads have to go together."
None of these dresses were meant to be worn by someone who was expecting. They were made for teenagers who were figure conscious and wanted to look their best in hopes of being the most beautiful at the school ball. Ginny looked at Hermione and began rolling up her sleeves. Just as she made sure it was known before, Ginny Weasley did not back down from a challenge. And dress hunting for a pregnant Hermione was a challenge.
Twenty-two dresses and Forty-five minutes later the three walked out of the store arms filled with what they would be wearing to the ball.
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Sneaking into a small empty alley between two stores in Hogsmeade Hermione explained her plan as she shrunk their packages.
They had been sitting in the Three Broomsticks drinking their butterbeer, eating their food, and talking about what they had learned from all of the pregnancy books they had read this past week (with a few well-placed muffliato spells), when Hermione suddenly grabbed them and dragged them into the alley. Hermione talked to fast to really understand what was going on. She said something about an appointment, muggles, and making it back on time.
Grabbing both of their arms without any warning, except to hold tight Hermione spun on the spot.
Arriving in another alley a little more disheveled than before, Harry and Ginny followed behind Hermione. Still quite confused as to what was going on, they decided it was best to just follow Hermione and see where she would lead them. She was after all the smart one out of the three of them.
They walked into a building and then into some sort of medical office.
"What are we doing here?" Ginny asked.
"Weren't you listening to me before we apparated?" Hermione asked in return.
"Nope." Harry said. "Didn't catch a word you said."
"I'm here to schedule an appt. with a doctor." Hermione said simply. She then walked up to the lady at the desk and told her she needed an appointment.
Getting the papers to fill out for being a new patient Hermione went to go sit down with the Harry and Ginny.
"Why are you making an appointment here? Are you sick Mione?" Harry asked.
"No, I'm not sick. I want a check up for me and the baby. Make sure were healthy and good to go. That and I want advice on some things. You can't get everything from a book." Hermione said.
"That's got to be the first time I've ever heard you say something like that before, Mione." Ginny said with a smirk on her face. "I thought you were a firm believer in books."
"Oh my God, Hermione doesn't believe in books anymore! Whatever will the library do?" Harry said laughing.
"Madam Pince will be so disappointed." Ginny added giving a disappointed look to Hermione, before she couldn't take it anymore and cracked up laughing too.
Laughing along with them, Hermione stood up while giving them a look. "What she doesn't know, won't hurt her." Going back up to the lady at the front desk, she gave her the paperwork.
"When do you want your appointment?" The lady said, while looking at her computer.
"Any time on the weekend is fine." Hermione said. "Do you have an opening next weekend?"
"Morning or afternoon?"
"Early afternoon please."
"1:30 is our earliest afternoon appointment."
"That's perfect." Hermione said while grabbing the appointment card from the lady. "Thank you."
With that they walked out of the office and went back to back into the alley. After apparating back into Hogsmeade, they walked back to the castle hoping that no one noticed they had left.
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He had been looking for her all day. Draco Malfoy had walked all around the school, through Hogsmeade, and back again. He'd been through the library four times today already. He was tired and annoyed. It was 8:35 in the evening and he hadn't seen her once today. Pushing the doors open to the library for the fifth time that day, he sighed. If she wasn't in here he was giving up. After going down every single aisle and looking at every table, he finally found her in the very back surrounded by books.
"Granger." He snapped. "Where have you been? I've been looking for filthy self all day."
"Well what do you want?" Hermione asked. She didn't know why he was being so rude. They had been almost friend-like while planning for the ball. She thought he was growing up.
Obviously that was a fluke, Hermione thought.
"I'm supposed to tell you that we are going together to the ball. McGonagall said I had to tell you today. Since we're Heads were supposed to show some sort of unity." Malfoy said. And once he finished his sentence he turned around and left.
Looking at her watch, Hermione finished up her conclusion to her essay for Binns. She then gathered her stuff and head off to the common room.
Cutting her off, just as she was leaving the library, they turned her in the opposite direction of the common room.
"Uh guys? Where are we going? The common room is the other way." Hermione said.
"We've decided that we're gonna sleep in the RoR." Harry answered.
"It's much nicer in there." Ginny added. "That and we can talk freely and not worry about being bothered by annoying, sneaking, eavesdropping boys."
"Or be goggled by flirty, pink, gossiping girls." Harry said
"You guys were meant to be." Hermione said. Laughing at them.
Walking into the RoR they set their things down and relaxed. They hadn't done all that much today, but even so, they were exhausted.
"So why did you set up an appt. for a muggle doctor, Mione?" Ginny asked. She knew a bit about how muggle objects worked because of her dad, but she didn't know about muggles themselves, and as such she couldn't quite see why Hermione would chose to go to a muggle doctor when a magical Healer was available.
"I grew up as a muggle and I feel more comfortable that way. Not to mention that I don't want to the world to know about my pregnancy. I felt it was best." Hermione said. "If I had gone to St. Mungos then they would have had to contact the Headmaster and he would have had to let the staff know and then it would somehow slip out and eventually it would be common knowledge."
"Yea, you're probably right about that." Harry said, he was quite familiar how fast rumors spread. True or fake. "So what are you going to do about potions though? That can't be safe with all the ingredients and fumes and stuff."
"I'll look ahead on the syllabus and see what days we will be working on stuff that might be dangerous. And on those days I'll do my own experiments and see just how good the twins products are." Hermione said.
At the look of confusion on their faces, Hermione said more specifically "I'm gonna use their products to feign sick and skip class."
"What? I can skip class if I want to." Hermione said at seeing the shock on their faces. "But I expect full notes on the class and what the homework is."
They talked some more and laughed some more before realizing just how tired they were. They climbed into their own beds the room had made for them and fell into deep sleep.
(meanwhile)
Draco sat on his bed. Being Head Boy gave him perks such as his own dorm in the slytherin dorms. He read the letter his father had sent him again.
Draco,
Induction the 31st. eleven pm. Pick you up at the gates.
Your father.
It was a short letter, but it told him just how fucked up his life was. He didn't want to be Death Eater, and he knew his parents didn't want him to be one either. They had learned what a mistake it was to join him in the first place.
He knew they loved him and were scared for him. But he knew if he refused to join they would not only hurt him and his parents, they would kill them too.
He laid down in his bed in an attempt to sleep.
It had been a log day, and a long week. And he knew this week was only going to get worse.
So there it is, another chapter. I'll try to get the next one up as soon as possible.