2/2 for today!

Tuesday, October 21, 1998

One of Hermione's Muggle friends' parents had always said "Tuesdays are the worst day of the week. At least Monday's are the beginning and Wednesdays are the beginning of the end. Tuesdays are just…there."

This Tuesday was exactly that. Hermione had about a million things that needed to be finished. Her and her mother needed to go get their robes righted for the All Souls Day Party at Mansao Zabini, she needed to schedule both the Magical Midwife and her regular doctor's appointment, and she had to prepare for another Pureblood tea.

She was frantically trying to find her earrings when her mother appeared at the door. She was holding Hermione's other shoe and the set of earrings. "Looking for these?"

Hermione huffed out a laugh, "How did you guess?"

"Mother's intuition, you'll see soon enough. How can I help?"

"There's just so much to do!" Hermione cried, frustrated.

"Like what?" Jean asked with a raised eyebrow. "Theo's already scheduled the medical appointments and I have our robe fitting scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. If you're feeling too stressed for the tea, I know the ladies won't be upset if you cannot go, you're nearly at your Confinement."

Hermione scoffed, "I'll not be going into Confinement"

Jean laughed, "But the Purebloods-"

"Sod the Purebloods! That's not how it's done on the Island so I won't be doing it unless the Doctor or Midwife tells me I must."

Jean chuckled. "I think my only real worry is that they'll feel like you're rubbing it in their faces."

Hermione sighed, "I get that, but if it's not an argument for diversifying the gene pool, I'm not sure what is."

"A very fair point. We shall play dumb if confronted," Jean said, holding out her arm to her daughter. "Shall we be off?"

The tea, like most, was full of drama, but she was fortunate to be able to check in with Daphne. The wedding was being pushed forward with all of the chaos from the war. The original plan was for spring, but they'd decided on a winter wedding to take place in early December.

"Maybe I'll promptly get pregnant and my child will be the same year as yours," Daphne said with a giggle. "You will be sending them to Hogwarts, won't you?"

"A part of me would love for him to go to Hogwarts, walk the same halls as his fathers, but I'm not sure if the place has the diverse focus of education that I'm looking for," Hermione said with a sigh.

Daphne nodded reassuringly. "I understand that. Alexander and I have talked about a temporary relocation to the French chalet or the Belgian apartment. A bit of a honeymoon, and if we like it there…" she trailed off.

Hermione grinned at her. "I hope you do enjoy it. I've never been to Belgium, although my maman took me to France when I was a child. Say, Daph," she continued after a moment of silence. "I heard a few of the women talking about Confinement. What is that?"

Daphne flushed, "Well you know the last trimester, most women go into seclusion so as to keep the baby safe. Although most don't have nearly as healthy of a pregnancy as yours. There has been lots of," she looked around and lowered her voice, "inter-marrying, so there are sometimes issues."

Hermione nodded, "Do you think I'll offend people if I do not go into Confinement?"

Daphne looked at her for a few seconds. "I'm not totally sure. Normally I'd ask Helen, but since…"

Hermione nodded and grasped her friend's hand. "I understand," she whispered. "I'll have maman ask around."

Daphne was called over to chat with one of the older women, and Jean quickly took the seat next to her daughter. "How are you feeling?" she asked softly.

"I'm alright," Hermione said, sighing slightly. "I'm just a bit tired."

"I think we can head out," she murmured, "I think I've collected enough gossip for the day."

"You've really settled into their circles well," Hermione said as they made their way to the hostess.

"Yes well, I've had my fair share of forcing myself into polite society with the Practice, it's not easy fitting in anywhere, but we always make do, don't we?"

"That we do," Hermione said, resting her head on her mother's shoulder. "But now, I'm ready for a nap."

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think or if you have any thoughts about what might happen next!

Check me out on Instagram!