They stepped out of the green flames and into the Ministry of Magic, laughing and joking as usual. The friends, still known as the golden trio 7 years after the Daily Prophet had dubbed them so, were still remarkably close. As they'd done in Hogwarts they made sure to spend together as a threesome. Hermione and Ron had an open invitation to 12 Grimmauld Place (although usually wise to owl half an hour in advance, Ron had barely recovered from the time he floo'd in on top of Harry and his sister in a state of undress) and always made sure to join Harry for a hearty breakfast on the morning of a mission. All of them worked at the ministry, Hermione had risen through the ranks and now directly reported to the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt. Ron and Harry worked as the senior team leading active field agents in the Auror department. Kreacher always prepared a filling delicious breakfast and Hermione really enjoyed having these meals together. It was nerve wracking seeing off her husband and best friend repeatedly on treacherous missions. In her current role she was privy to strategic mission details and knew just how much danger they regularly faced. Sometimes she wished she didn't know like the early days when they were all starting out in their careers.
This morning as usual Hermione was nervous, knots in her stomach but she was hiding it behind loving looks and smiles. As she emerged spinning through the green flames she felt the stress nearly overwhelm her. Just nerves she thought, nothing knew there. But something more was amiss on this particular morning, she felt weak and light headed. Despite stepping away from the fireplace and heading towards the lifts she still felt like she was spinning, or the ministry was, and it was making her feel nauseous. Ron and Harry continued with their banter and didn't notice her dropping out of the conversation.
She didn't want to worry either of them, they needed to concentrate on the upcoming mission. Normally she would accompany them to the Auror's floor and say goodbye properly. But she knew she wasn't going to make it.
"Oh no, I've forgotten my legal file for discussion at the Wizengamot this afternoon. I'm so sorry I need to pop home."
"That's not like you…guess I'll just have to put on a public display of affection right here" Ron pulled her into a kiss "I love you. We'll be home as soon as we can, I promise. Please don't worry and don't spend the whole time working!"
Harry blushed, even after all this time he felt incredibly awkward when they seamlessly switched from friends to lovers making him the third wheel. Usually he would have left them to their own goodbyes and discreetly disappeared through security into the offices. He pulled Hermione into a tight hug, "I'll look after him, good luck with Wizengamot later".
"Bye boys, love you both" Hermione turned on her heel and walked briskly to the fireplace they'd just arrived through. She knew it didn't do well to linger on goodbyes on mission days. The routine was to eat together, avoid any mention of work or pending mission, arrive at the ministry together and say goodbye at the office door like they'd see one another at the end of the day. It didn't matter that it could be a day or a week or a month (the record for their longest mission to date) before they saw one another again. But today Hermione had another reason for leaving quickly.
She wasn't sure where to go, home was a possibility but she didn't want to be home alone, sick with nothing to do but worry about Ron and Harry. At the last second she decided to head to the Burrow, she could always count on Molly for tea, comfort and sympathy. Maybe she'd even have a potion to help her feel better and return to work within the hour.
Hermione stumbled out of the fireplace and into the kitchen of the Burrow, the floo had affected her even worse this time. The whole kitchen kept spinning and she felt the wave of nausea overtake her. She fell forward to the sink and let the sickness come. She heaved until all her breakfast had emptied from her stomach and then some. She was aware of someone joining her, they were rubbing her back and pulled her hair out of the way. They tried speaking to her but there was a loud whooshing noise in Hermione's ears blocking everything out, she couldn't even process who was with her. As she lifted her head out of the sink the room tilted and everything went black.
Hermione awoke and found herself lying on the sofa in the Burrow. She was embarrassed about her ungracious arrival but relieved she'd come here and not gone home alone. She wondered it if was food poisoning but really hoped not as Ron and Harry might also have be affected and they needed to be on top form. Molly bustled in from the kitchen with a tray.
"Darling girl! Are you feeling quite alright? Here drink this first please, anti-sickness potion and then water to wash it down."
"I'm so sorry Molly, I was walking through the ministry with Ron and Harry to see them off but suddenly felt so ill. I just made an excuse to leave and ended up here. I didn't tell them I wasn't feeling well. They have enough to think of today and I don't need to be worrying about me."
"Of course you are to come here when you're ill! Don't worry I haven't told anyone just yet. You only fainted a few moments ago"
"Thank you. Gosh I feel terrible"
"You look awfully peaky dear, any idea what might be wrong?" Molly had a mischievous glint in her eye.
"No I'm not sure, maybe something I ate or I've suffered from low blood pressure before, kind of felt like that before I fainted."
"Yes, maybe dear. Why don't you get some rest? Lie down for an hour, I'll look over The Home Healers Complete Guide and see what I can find. Let me owl Kingsley and tell him you're taking a sick day."
"Oh I don't know we're awfully busy at work at the moment" Hermione made to sit up but she was feeling rather exhausted.
"Nonsense your health comes first and I won't hear of it."
"Thank you" Hermione agreed as she laid back down, secretly pleased the decision was made for her. A rest sounded amazing and she shouldn't feel bad for giving her body what it needed. Molly summoned a blanket from the basket by the fireplace and placed it over her. Hermione felt sleep come almost instantly.
She woke an hour later feeling immensely better after the nap. Sitting up on the sofa she could hear Molly making tea in the kitchen. She stretched and yawned and noticed the large volume on the coffee table. The Weasley's version of 'The Home Healers Complete Guide' was worn and well used which made her smile. It helped raise and tend 7 children, cuts and scrapes of grandchildren and minor injuries of various members of the order of the Phoenix through two wizarding wars. Hermione loved Molly's caring soul, she always felt welcome here even without Ron.
Molly had left the book open at pages which she'd thought might explain Hermione's symptoms. Nausea, light headedness, tiredness to list what she knew. She couldn't help but to pry, she was so hopeful. She'd been desperately searching for signs of an impending grandchild from her youngest son and his wife. All her other children had babies or at least on the way and she was starting to wonder if having a family just wasn't in their plans. She thought Hermione might prefer to prioritise her career rather than start a family, it wasn't the choice she had made but Hermione was something of a special witch. It made her heart ache for Ron as she saw so much of Arthur in him and knew he would make a wonderful father.
Hermione gasped as she read the chapter heading… 'In the Family Way a Charm Confirmation'
Hermione immediately burst into tears, great big ugly noisy sobs. She was shaking and finding it difficult to breathe.
Molly arrived beside her on the sofa and pulled her into a huge bear hug. She held her until the sobbing softened to whimpers. "I'm so sorry my dear, I didn't mean to upset you. I was hoping this would be good news".
Hermione was horrified, did her mother in law really think she was upset at the thought of being pregnant!?
"No, no, no…sorry let me catch my breath." Hermione hiccupped and tried desperately to compose herself. She's never discussed this topic with anyone other than Ron. Molly rubbed her back again and waited patiently. It took all Hermione's strength to start this conversation but it was time to share.
"I guess I better start at the beginning, I've never spoken to anyone other than Ron about this." She sniffed again and looked to Molly for reassurance, she felt like a child needing motherly love.
Molly didn't speak, anxious to hear what was going on. She gave Hermione an encouraging smile and continued to rub her back.
"After the battle, within the week, you know we were all assessed by healers, mind and body." Molly nodded her eyes wide. She hadn't known what Hermione needed to talk through but she didn't expect it to go this far back. What trauma has this poor girl been holding.
"Well my physical showed extensive internal scaring. They…they told me I had very limited chance of ever being able to have a baby" Hermione blurted the words out, knowing if she didn't she'd be overcome with emotion again, she couldn't stop. "Ron and I had only just shared our first kiss at the start of the battle. I knew he was born to be a father and I withdrew from him. I didn't tell him for weeks and tried to put distance between us hoping he'd give up on me, maybe move on and find someone to give him a family. I really tried to save him from my defective body. But we'd crossed the line from friendship to something more. Eventually he demanded to know why, he wanted to know why I was being so horrid. I'm…I'm sorry I don't k…k…know why I'm telling you all this. I just feel like I need you to understand that I didn't try to trick him into being with me." Hermione sobbed again.
Molly looked aghast, she had no idea the children had been dealing with this in the aftermath of the war. She was wracked with guilt, thinking back to the summer after the battle she had been consumed with grief mourning Fred. She hadn't noticed what the youngsters in her home were going through. They were alive and that was all she'd needed to know. They had matured so much while on the run, become so independent, she never pushed any of them to share what had happened or talk about how they were coping. Molly could barely get through the day herself. She couldn't believe such awful things had been happening under the Burrow's roof and she didn't know.
Secondly Molly thought back to the times she assumed Hermione wasn't interested in a family. She thought the brightest witch of the age was simply prioritising her shiny career path. That was so obviously painfully wrong of her and she was wracked with guilt. Her heart was breaking at the realisation of what Hermione and Ron had gone through, alone. Hadn't the war taken enough from them?
"I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you. But what I do know, is that Ron has loved you since before he understood what love was, I watched it as you grew together. He would never have been separated from you. He would choose you above all else and so would we, dear. You've been a Weasley for many years before your wedding day, before the battle. You and Ron were meant for one another and this wasn't your fault. Go on my dear" Molly hugged her daughter in law tightly as her own eyes silently filling with tears.
Hermione felt relief. A big reason she'd wanted to keep this secret, apart from dread of being pitied, was that her in laws would blame her for trapping Ron in a relationship knowing she couldn't give him what he wanted. She knew these thoughts were ridiculous, Ron had told her so many times, but it was a deep seeded fear that lived within her.
"You're right, he wouldn't let me. He was kind and patient and after a lot of talking I finally told him, blurted it all out, kind of like how this conversation is going." She gave a feeble laugh through the tears and sniffled.
"Anyway that's all history, Ron was magnificent. He held me night after night making sure I knew he loved me regardless of our future. He knew what he was getting into from the first weeks of our relationship. He's truly been wonderful; I don't deserve him. A month after our wedding we went to St Mungos and were under the care of healers for years trying to conceive. That's how I know the spell, we tried and tried and tried again, tested and tested but the dark magic scarring from Malfoy Manor ran deep. Everything failed, every testing charm showed no baby, it was hurting so much Molly…..we wanted nothing more than a baby…we gave up last year." Hermione's voice was barely a whisper, Molly leaned in to hear her. "We sat down and talked it through, we have nieces and nephews and when Harry and Ginny told us they were pregnant we just decided that was enough family for us." The tears fell heavy again. All the pain had come to the surface, all the disappointment and rage at how unfair it all was.
Molly gasped pulling her hand to her mouth and pulled Hermione close to her bosom. She couldn't comprehend how much pain her poor son and wife had been through on their own, for years. Her own tears fell as she felt she'd let them down in some way. Somewhere in the back of her mind behind the pain she registered how proud she was of Ron and what an incredible young man he'd become. She must tell him more often.
"Anyway that's when we decided to focus on us and our careers, we accepted the promotions we were offered and resigned to our life together, just us. And it's not so bad, we love one another enough, it's actually been such a relief to let it go and move on."
"I'm so sorry my dear girl, I had no idea"
"That's how we wanted it. We didn't want pity. We haven't even told Harry, he took on too much guilt from the war as it was. It's been so hard to hear him talking about their baby. We're so happy for them, honestly we are, I can't wait to give him or her a cuddle. But Harry says he can't wait for us to be parents too and it breaks my heart seeing the pain in Ron's eyes."
"I understand dear. I don't know what to say. I do know Harry would want to know, he wouldn't want to make you and Ron feel bad." Molly held her tight stroking her hair, they sat quietly for ages. Hermione felt such relief to share this with her mother in law. Ron would be pleased she'd finally opened up, he was right, holding it in had been causing pain.
Hermione knew Harry would want to know but she wasn't ready to tell him yet. She didn't want to take away this magical time from him and Ginny but maybe after their baby was born they might tell him they don't plan on starting a family. Maybe that way he'd simply stop mentioning it. Her and Ron were at the point in their lives and marriage that people would be speculating, especially being celebrities of the war. Everyone in the wizarding world felt they could talk about their life choices without really knowing them or their situation. She didn't care about others but Harry did deserve to know.
"When you say you gave up…" Molly interrupted her thoughts.
"We stopped attending healers appointments, undergoing physicals and taking fertility potions. We just gave up." Hermione sniffed.
10 minutes passed, both women lost in thought. Molly was still holding Hermione and gently rocked her back and forth.
"Hermione given your symptoms…do you think it is worth a check?" Molly asked tentatively.
Hermione abruptly sat up, she'd stopped crying ad swallowed hard. She hadn't considered that actually all her symptoms did align with being pregnant. When her and Ron gave up she thought that was the end of the journey, that she'd never do the charm confirmation again. Never once did she consider she'd fall pregnant without help from the St Mungo's specialists. But thinking over the last few weeks, she'd been so tired, falling asleep on the sofa every evening. Her breasts were tender and there had been waves a nausea she'd blamed on being hungry.
"M…m…maybe…do you think I should? I guess I've had so many no's another can't hurt. I'm sorry I was so swept up in the trauma of our journey I never considered…"
"I know dear. I'm here for you now, if there is anything I can do. I've been through 6 pregnancies and I know the symptoms well. I hear the pain you've been through but I see that glow around you and I think you could try the charm. I don't mean to get your hopes up though. You've been through so much." Molly was completely conflicted. She'd been so sure Hermione was pregnant from the moment she'd seen her being sick in the kitchen sink this morning, pale and drawn but serene. She'd known when her other daughter in laws and Ginny had become pregnant before they broke the news. However, maybe she was wrong this time and she didn't want to give Hermione false hope, she'd obviously been through too much, her and Ron both.
Hermione considered what to do. Ron had always been with her to do the weekly charm test. Should she wait for him? But then it was so very unlikely and she didn't want to get his hopes up again. They'd given up together and resigned to their childless life. She'd seen the hope fade and fake smile mask his disappointment for every test for years. She didn't want to see that look on his face ever again.
Before she could talk herself out of it she reached for her wand and began the intricate movements muttering the spell she'd performed so often. Molly reached over and pulled her other hand onto her lap, clasping it between both of hers.
A soft golden orb slowly floated from the end of Hermione's wand and travelled towards Molly entering her chest and into her heart. A second orb lazily left the wand and floated into Hermione's heart space warming her. A third orb floated from the wand. Hermione stopped breathing, she felt her hand being crushed by Molly. She couldn't comprehend what was happening, the orb floated to her stomach and disappeared into her womb, finding the third little heartbeat within the room. She looked at her tummy and placed her hand over it. She lifted her head slowly to look at Molly with wide eyes.
"Oh Merlin, Hermione, Darling you're pregnant!"