Author's note: This chapter involves female periods. It's not graphic, but if you're a male reader, or if the topic makes you uncomfortable, you may want to skip over parts or the entirety of this chapter. If you want to know what's involved before reading onward, there's a very mild description of female cramps (based on MY personal experience only), and a description of blood. There's the mention of tampons, but no details as to how they're applied.
The following morning, Dora rose feeling rather unwell, but not in a way she was familiar with. She didn't feel dizzy or feverish, but her stomach rather hurt, but more as though there was mild pressure building up inside her lower stomach. Carefully, she rose from the bed and used the loo. She felt no better afterwards.
She pulled on her dressing gown and walked downstairs slowly.
"Good morning!" her parents greeted, and gave her their customary hugs.
"Mum, I don't feel very well," Dora told her, afterwards.
Andromeda beckoned her to come forward, and placed a hand over her forehead. "You do look rather pale, but your temperature is fine. Does your stomach hurt?"
"Yes. But it doesn't hurt the way it usually does when I'm ill," she answered, aware that this sounded odd.
"Do you feel dizzy?" Ted asked, frowning, knowing this was a symptom she often experienced while ill.
"No, not at all dizzy," she replied.
Andromeda frowned. "Let's unlace you, and see how you feel afterwards." She put an arm around Dora's shoulders. "Come, let's get you settled in the sitting room."
A few moments later, Dora lay on the couch feeling odd in just her nightgown and dressing gown. The stomachache had eased slightly with the removal of her night corset, but it wasn't gone by any stretch. She had felt, when it had first come off, as though it had been too tight, even though it felt fine the night before, and usually felt even looser in the morning.
After hearing this, her mum frowned again. "I'm going to make sure nothing is amiss in your body," Andromeda said, gently poking her frame with her wand. "Appendicitis is very rare in our kind, but I don't want to overlook anything."
Fortunately, after a few moments of her mum waving a wand over her frame and checking the results, they could safely eliminate any interior problems. Additionally, as Dora had no fever, she wasn't (technically) ill. She might not feel well, but it was likely just a stomachache, and would go away on its own.
"Perhaps a Stomach Soother would help," Andromeda mused, but she sounded dubious.
Dora knew why. That potion was meant to settle upset stomachs, often right after the witch or wizard had just thrown up. Her symptoms didn't match this, and it likely wouldn't do much to help-if anything at all.
"Could I try having breakfast first?" Dora asked, moving to a sitting position and pulling a blanket over her.
Andromeda laughed and planted a kiss on her forehead. "Of course you may. I'm relieved that you have an appetite."
Dora ate without incident, and found that her aches neither increased nor diminished.
Her mum didn't think it would be wise to lace up to her daytime measurements, not with this mysterious ache, and Dora had to agree. She did unlace, though, and donned a pair of regularly robes over her chemise-which wasn't strictly necessary without a corset, but it was far softer than her robes-before making an attempt at reading for Muggle Studies to take her mind off of her stomachache. Mid morning, she had to use the bathroom again, and was startled to see blood not only in the bowl, but also between her legs.
"Mummy!" she yelled. "Mummy, I'm bleeding!"
Dora wasn't panicked-she knew she had gotten her first period-but she felt a wave of unease and helplessness all the same. Before she had time to process her feelings, though, her mother was there, menstruation supplies in hand.
"It's all right," she soothed, reaching over to give Dora a hug. "I know it's scary, love, but it's perfectly normal."
Dora nodded, still feeling rather lightheaded, and accepted the tampon her mother held out to her.
She knew what to do, and her mum looked away as she applied it. Then, Dora stood, accepting the wet wad of toilet paper her mum held out, still facing away, to clean off the blood between her legs.
Once everything was in order, and she'd washed her hands with particular care, Andromeda walked her to her room and went over the details of how often she was likely to need each tampon, and how to dispose of them. Vanishing was still two years away, and the pipes couldn't handle them, so she was to wrap them in paper and throw them in the rubbish bins in the bathroom.
"My first lasted three days, and was quite strong. It's a good thing you're home for more than that time," Andromeda told Dora. "It's certainly not a fun way to spend your last few days, but better here than at school."
Dora nodded. "Is that why my stomach hurts?"
"Yes. You have cramps," Andromeda explained, eyes wrinkling in sympathy. "I dare say it's not very pleasant, but lacing up does help. Well, your stomach may feel bigger at the beginning of your cycle, so it's best to give yourself a half inch or an inch more room to breathe." She shook her head. "You'll get used to it in time."
Dora did feel a bit better, so she slowly laced herself to seventeen and three quarters. The remaining cramps disappeared, and she felt the supportive hug she loved. It wasn't too loose to be uncomfortable, nor too tight to make deep breaths difficult. All the same, the remaining small ache didn't leave entirely, and she spent most of the morning on the couch, wrapped in warm blankets, resting in front of the fireplace, slowly drinking off into sleep.
Andromeda gently roused her around noon for lunch, which she allowed Dora to eat on the couch. Her father joined them, not able to give much advice, but there and supportive all the same.
"Will I have this...thing...every month from now on?" Dora wondered, after having finished her sandwich, and moving onto her soup.
"It might not be every month in the beginning," Andromeda soothed. "It can take awhile for your periods to regulate, and some never entirely do. Mine was within a week of my expected date after about five cycles, and it was the same with my sisters. But I knew one girl who was left guessing until our seventh year."
"I don't know which I'd rather prefer," Dora remarked. "I reckon I would rather know when to expect this...bleeding."
Andromeda chuckled. "My mother called it a curse. In part because it meant that she wasn't expecting, and they were always hoping to have a son. In part because of what menstruation entailed."
"Did she lace to thirteen and a half when she had her cycles?" Dora wondered.
"Yes, because all of her robes were tailored to that measurement." Andromeda rolled her eyes. "We always knew to be especially obedient on those days."
Dora made a sympathetic face, then finished her soup.
Andromeda handed her a warm mug of hot chocolate afterwards. "As you know, chocolate has healing powers, and it's especially delicious during this time of the month."
With a laugh, Dora took a long sip. Yes, it tasted better than ever, and she could even feel the ache in her stomach begin to diminish.
The rest of the afternoon was a quiet one. Dora remained on the couch, but occupied herself with reading, board games with her parents, and a couple of episodes of muggle TV shows. After unlacing and bathing, she replaced the tampon with another-as it was on the verge of leaking through. Andromeda treated her to a back rub, then gently laced her to nineteen inches.
"Please don't go right away," Dora murmured, turning on her side.
Her mother held her more closely in response.
The following day was far easier. The cramps were gone as long as Dora wore her corset, and she awoke in her mother's arms without any pain. She simply needed to remember to change her tampon every several hours, and she could almost forget about the fact that she would bleed for several days every month.
"What did you do before muggle tampons?" she asked, curiously.
Andromeda turned rather red, but explained that witches generally used padding on top of their undergarments, and Vanished them both as needed. But it was uncomfortable, to which Andromeda could attest to personally, and had reverted to the muggle tampon as soon as she married Ted and met his family.
"It was certainly a relief, and I haven't gone back! Mind," she added, giving Dora a squeeze, "I didn't need them during the first year or so of my marriage."
It was Dora's turn to redden. "I reckon that while muggles might have missed the boat with exchanging corsets for bras, they nearly made up for it with how they deal with their periods."
Andromeda chuckled. "Well, there are still muggles who wear corsets, but I expect they're seen as rather odd."
They headed down for breakfast, and Dora felt a pang of sadness when she saw the date on their calendar.
With Christmas and her birthday celebrations over, there were only a handful of her Christmas holidays remaining. She didn't mind school, of course, but it was always rather difficult to return after any holiday. Especially leaving her family.
It might have been nice if students were allowed to return home after lessons each day, but that might mean the elimination of the house system. Perhaps, she mused, a better solution would be allowing them to spend weekends at home when they wanted.
Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Also, even though the Easter holidays meant two weeks free from lessons, she would spend nearly that amount of time doing homework and studying for exams. Those students who returned home didn't exactly have a relaxing holiday...
Especially since Easter would be later than usual, in the third week of April.
"Have you given any thought," Andromeda asked, after breakfast that morning, "to your Easter holidays?"
"Stay at school, making my way through piles of homework, and begin studying for exams," she answered, with a sigh. "Same as last year. It's never much of a holiday."
Andromeda looked sympathetic. "I always thought they had no right to call it one, with all of the work they assigned."
"Did you always stay at school?" Dora wondered.
"No, I wasn't allowed. None of us were. We returned home, and my mother hosted an Easter lunch with pure blood family and friends. Rather stuffy, I always thought, but I enjoyed seeing some of my other relatives." Dora knew she meant Sirius and Uncle Alphard. "I did enjoy knowing I wouldn't have to keep having my corset tightened," Andromeda mused. "Whatever measurement my waist reached when I returned home for the Easter holidays, my mother allowed it to remain that way until the end of term. My family expected high marks in all lessons, and my mother knew that if I was still adjusting to a new waist measurement, my performance would suffer. My mind certainly hurt from all the studying, but I could breathe with ease for as long as three months. The day after exams, of course, my training began in earnest," she added, rather wryly.
Dora smiled at her mother. "I reckon it was worth the extra homework, then."
She laughed. "Well, almost."
When Dora went upstairs to change into her day clothes, her mum followed her to help, which was rather surprising, as she usually only laced Dora when it was time for bed, but Dora certainly didn't mind. She savored the feel of her mother's gentle, yet study hands on her laces. She urged her mum to continue until she could manage a very comfortable seventeen and an eighth. How long it would take to work off the last eighth, she didn't know, but Dora was quite pleased with her appearance when she looked in the mirror. Her mum beamed at her.
"You are certainly making more progress than I ever did? You're comfortable? It's not too tight?" Andromeda's asked, studying Dora.
"I'm fine, and it feels lovely," Dora assured her mum, taking a deep breath for emphasis.
"Good. Why don't you try one of your new robes today? Just for fun?" her mum asked, peering at the closest, where they had hung her five new robes.
"All right." Dora deliberated before retrieving a periwinkle one. It contained just enough embroidery to make it stand out beyond her ordinary robes. The waist wasn't tailored, not the way her dress robes were, but there was more volume to the skirts than her ordinary robes.
Dora did a little twirl as she glanced in the mirror, then laughed in a rather self conscious manner.
Her mum gave her an approving smile. "It suits you very well."
"Thank you. It's beautiful."
"You're most welcome."
Andromeda then beckoned Dora to the couch by her bed, and she felt a bit nervous all of a sudden.
"I was hoping you might come home for the Easter holidays," she said, simply.
"But, why? I'll have so much work..."
Her mum placed a hand on Dora's. "I know, my love, and I don't ask this lightly. It's only...we haven't seen your cousins for quite some time, not for almost two and a half years. Of course, it's difficult, your being away at school, and only a handful of weeks to see us during the term." Andromeda paused, then continued. "Your father and I would love to see them for Easter. We can arrange to have them over, so we won't lose time with traveling. And," she added, "you can wear your dress robes, and I'll style your hair."
Dora sighed. "I want to see them, Mum. I do, really." And the prospect of being able to get dressed up again was very, very tempting. She could still feel the lovely swish of the fabric around her legs, and the way the bodice held her up, making her beautiful, showing off her small waist. "It's only...you know how much work there will be. And having them for Easter? I'll miss an entire day of studying!"
"I'll help you. So will your father," Andromeda promised, placing her hands on her daughter's. "Besides, it won't really take the entire day. Half a day, perhaps. They won't stay overnight, and it is quite a drive each way for your dad's brother and his family."
Dora sighed again. It wasn't that she didn't want to see her parents before the summer. She did, very much. As well as her cousins. They might not understand her world, but they were her family.
"I'm just afraid that I will get behind, and not be able to catch up."
Andromeda reached out her arms, and Dora let herself fall into them.
"I promise. We will help in any way we can. Well, anything that doesn't go aground school rules. I can't write your papers," Andromeda added, with a laugh. "I don't want to make you come home, and I don't need an answer today. But will you think about it?"
"Yes," Dora answered, feeling that she could do that, at least. "I promise, I will think about it."
Andromeda kissed her forehead. "Thank you, honey."
Dora finally finished Aldershot's book that day, and, upon reflection, rather thought it could have been half its length. Still, it had been an enjoyable read, and in light of what she now knew about corsetry when her mother was a teenager (which had been in the early 1960's), she wished there was a more updated version.
"Is there?" she asked her mum, carefully placing the book in her trunk. "It was published decades before you were born, and..."
"And harsh practices were still in use?" Andromeda sagely finished.
Dora nodded. Even during her mum's teenage years, punishment corsets were still commonly used, so perhaps her grandmother's decision not to purchase one had shown her to be somewhat of a detractor from convention. Then again, if you could lock your daughters' laces from hundreds of miles away, a punishment corset might be unnecessary. Weren't they used, in part, as a disincentive for loosening your laces without permission? That was how Dora had understood it, anyway.
Andromeda sighed. "I expect that some parents will always be ambitious for the sake of their daughters."
"You mean Polly and Becky's parents?"
"Becky's mother rather less than Polly's. She understood the error of her ways when I spoke to her, and you said that she's been easier on her daughter?" At Dora's nod, Andromeda smiled, then continued. "But from what I've seen of Polly's mother, she's rather happy to push her daughter towards success, at least early on. Rather silly, as the beginning is the worst time to do so. Adjusting to a corset can be challenging, especially a new one, and the last thing a poor girl needs is to be pushed to lace tighter."
"Polly told me her mum wished she'd had her begin when she began to bleed," Dora recalled.
Andromeda both sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yes, take a challenging time for a young girl, and limit her breathing while you're at it. Goodness, let the poor girl recover before setting another obstacle in front of her.
Dora couldn't help but giggle at her mother's indignation, but having just experienced her first cycle, agreed entirely. "Perhaps you ought to Floo over to her house?" she teased.
Andromeda put her hands on her hips in mock consternation. "I might, if she visits and can't manage a proper breath."
They walked after lunch, a rather longer one than usual. There was an air of solemnity, because even though the holiday was not entirely over, it was rapidly approaching. Dora wanted to savor what was left, take it all in, and her parents seemed to be of the same mind. Even after they completed the circuitous route to their house, they remained staring at the ocean for several moments, watching as the giant waves became smaller and smaller as they eventually landed on the shore, no more than a few inches of water in depth.
Dora's feet didn't hurt when she entered the house, but she was happy to remove her heavy winter boots. Her mother seemed of the same mind, and nearly slumped into the couch.
"Oh, that feels nice," she said, with a laugh. "I say, we must have walked a good few miles."
"If you like, I can give you both proper foot rubs," Ted offered, as Andromeda shimmied out of her socks.
"I don't need any persuasion," Andromeda laughed. "Dora, would you like to go first?"
"I'll wait until you've had your turn," she answered. "I'd like to do a bit of reading."
"Studying?" her dad teased.
She shrugged. "Well, yes. I'd like to master the theory behind Cheering charms before I return to school."
"Those are fun!" Andromeda enthused, as she stretched out on the couch. "Professor Flitwick always makes that lesson enjoyable."
Dora went to her room to retrieve her textbook, but returned to see her mother with her eyes closed, and a very peaceful expression on her face. It occurred to her that her mother was really quite young. She'd married just before she'd turned eighteen, and expected Dora less than six months into her marriage. A little over nineteen years of age when Dora had been born at St. Mungos, Andromeda had celebrated her thirty-third birthday back in October. Dora had never asked her roommates just how old their parents were (and, of course, Elizabeth and Sarah's mothers had older children, and likely had waited until at least twenty to marry...), but now that she thought about it, her mum was likely the youngest.
She tried to sort them out in her mind. Becky had older siblings by two years, so her mum was likely at least two years older than hers. She couldn't remember about Demelza-perhaps her roommate was the oldest. Polly certainly was, but her mum didn't look as young as her own. Morwenna had one older sister. Finally, Hannah was the oldest, but her dad was a muggle, and they didn't come of age until they were eighteen. Knowing that training for muggle doctors took ages, they might have waited even longer to marry.
Yes, even if Andromeda wasn't the youngest, she was certainly very close to it.
Suddenly, her kitten jumps on her lap, meowing loudly, demanding attention. Dora chuckled as she began to pet the furry creature.
"Well, aren't you determined?" she murmured, watching as the kitten made herself at home on her lap.
"Mew!" the kitten agreed, looking up at her before stretching out.
"Have you decided on a name?" Ted asked, looking over at her.
Both of his hands were on her mum's foot, working at the base of her heel. Dora knew that her pure blood training had required the use of high heeled shoes since she was old enough to train her waist. The shoes had fit her well enough-they didn't hurt her feet or cram her toes together-but wearing shoes with a three inch heel every day occasionally gave her heels pain when she walked...well, as much as they had earlier. Unlike corsets, heeled shoes had been an article of clothing her mum had entirely banished from her wardrobe, claiming the discomfort was not worth any attractiveness. Besides, with robes that reached the floor, who could tell what your shoes looked like?
"I'm not sure," Dora answered, truthfully. "She's very playful, and loves to run around. She also sleeps in the oddest positions!" she added, with a giggle.
The previous night, the kitten had slept curled up in the space between Dora's arms and side. Very nearly in her armpit.
Thoughts of the winter dance came to her mind, especially the icicles wrapped around branches.
"I rather like the name 'Ivy,'" she said, tentatively. "She twists around me like that."
Both of her parents laughed at this.
"I like that!" her dad praised.
"Ivy certainly suits her," her mum agreed, eyes still closed, expression peaceful, yet with a smile on her lips.
Dora looked down at the kitten. "Ivy it is, then."
She felt her eyes close, and then her father's hand on her shoulders.
"Would you like me to loosen your laces, in case you fall asleep?" he asked, gently.
"That's all right, but thanks."
Dora knew she would be fine sleeping at her daytime measurement for a nap. A full night might be more challenging, but whenever she woke up from a nap without having unlaced, she always felt the warmest, most powerful and secure hug she could imagine. She wondered if some witches actually tightened their laces before bed, even if it went contrary to recommendations...
No, she wouldn't do it. Certainly not until she became of age. Maybe, she'd try it once, then, just to see. She could always loosen them later.
Now, Dora made her way under the covers, leaning on her side against her mum.
Her dad placed his hands on one foot, and began to give her the same treatment he'd given her mum earlier. It was even better than she remembered, and Dora let herself relax, any remaining tension vanishing from her body. With her corset holding her in that familiar warm, sturdy, reassuring hug, and her dad working out any small amount of tension on her feet, she felt safe, warm, secure, and so overwhelmed by happiness, it was almost hard to breathe. Then, Dora felt her kitten crawl on top of her legs through the blanket, before making her way to rest on her chest.
All the while, the foot massage continued, and Dora's eyes closed, sleep taking over.
Author's note:
Next up-the Tonks celebrate New Year's Eve.
As always, if you're enjoying this, please take a moment to take a few words of feedback. Thanks!