Petunia brought Dudley and Harry with her to her second prenatal visit to the gynecologist. They were both nervous at first upon arriving at the clinic, thinking they would be getting more vaccinations. When she explained that no, she was the one visiting the doctor today, their concerns transferred instantly to her. They settled down again when she explained no one was getting any needles, but that they might be able to hear their little sister's heartbeat today. They followed her eagerly to the examination room after that.

The doctor was satisfied that the pregnancy was going well. Her weight was on track. Her morning sickness had subsided as it was supposed to. Her blood pressure was normal. When Petunia lay back on the examination table with her shirt tucked up beneath her breasts for the doctor to measure her womb, two curious heads popped up next to her.

"Mummy's still not very fat," Dudley observed. "When does she get fat?"

"The baby will start showing more soon," the doctor promised with a gentle laugh as she pressed down on Petunia's lower abdomen. "I can already feel it here."

"She's a girl, not an it," Harry corrected primly.

"You're hoping for a little sister, are you?"

"She is a girl," Harry insisted.

"Well, maybe she is at that. But don't be disappointed if she changes into a boy between now and June."

Harry's eyes widened. "Can that happen?"

"You never know," the doctor said mysteriously. She laid a measuring tape across the skin, then rolled it up again and set it aside. "Mrs. Dursley, would you like me to show your children what I'm palpating for?"

"Oh! Yes, please."

"What are your names?"

"I'm Dudley, and he's Harry."

"Alright, who wants to go first?"

"Duddy does," Harry said. The doctor raised her eyebrows in amusement. Harry shrugged. "Duddy always wants to go first."

"I commend your patience, young man."

Dudley looked conflicted, both annoyed at Harry somehow upstaging him in the doctor's estimation and simultaneously, yes, absolutely wanting to go first. His curiosity about his younger sister won out. "I go first."

"Say thank you to Harry," Petunia ordered him.

"Thank you, Harry." Dudley stretched out his little hand and rested it on Petunia's belly. The doctor gently took it, moved it a little, and pushed it down so as to feel the firm, muscular organ. "It's hard," Dudley said.

"Yes, that's your mummy's womb. The baby is inside. It will get bigger as the baby does."

"Oh."

"Me next!" Harry cried, reaching his own hand forwards. The doctor obligingly helped him feel as well. Harry grinned widely when he was done and leaned forwards to put his head close to Petunia's belly. "I love you!" he whispered loudly.

Petunia and the doctor both smiled at eachother. Dudley immediately imitated Harry . "I love you more!" he whispered, and planted a kiss on the side of Petunia's abdomen.

Harry looked annoyed and elbowed Dudley. He held up his arms, reaching out as far as he could to each side. "I love her this much."

"Well, I love her this much," Dudley said stubbornly. His arm span was a shade wider than Harry's. Harry scowled to see it and wiggled his fingers, trying and failing to stretch his hands even wider.

"It's not fair. You're bigger than me!"

The doctor smoothly interrupted this little rivalry. "Alright, I'll be measuring the heartbeat next. Move back a little, boys." The doctor took out a handheld ultrasound recorder and squeezed some thick gel onto the probe. It was cold when it touched Petunia's skin, where the boys' warm hands had been just moments before. And there it was, the fast blip-blip-blip of her daughter's fetal heart tone. She felt a warm, happy sensation all through her chest at the precious sound. Petunia beamed and reached a hand out to the side. The boys trotted to her side immediately, argument forgotten. She stroked their hair.

"One hundred and fifty-one, right in normal range," the doctor declared. She wiped off the gel and helped Petunia sit back up. "Everything looks good today. Do you have any questions for me?"

"No, I'm feeling really quite good this time around."

"Second pregnancies are often easier than the first," the doctor agreed. "Alright then, we are done. I'll see you again in about six weeks, but call if you have any questions or concerns before then."

"Thank you."

"And bring the boys back! They're a treat."

Petunia bundled the boys up again before leading them out of the clinic and into the cold wind. "Keep hold of me, you two. I need to pick up some vitamins before we go back home."

"What's vitamins?"

"It's the pill Mummy takes in the morning, Diddy. It has extra nutrients that help keep the baby healthy."

"Nutrients?"

"Nutrients are the parts of food that are good for you. There are different kinds, depending on what you're eating."

"Like what?"

"Well, most foods are made of a combination of carbohydrates which is like sugar, fat, and protein which is like meat. But then there are other things present in smaller amounts, and these are the minerals and vitamins. Like salt. That's a mineral. Um, vitamins are a little different: they don't taste good, but if you don't have enough of them, you can get sick. And the baby needs extra vitamins because she's so small and growing so fast, which is why Mummy needs the pill, not just the vitamins naturally present in food."

"Oh."

"Is vitamins why you make Harry and me eat gross green things?"

Petunia grinned. "Yes. Spinach, peas, and broccoli are good for you. They have a lot of vitamins."

"Can I eat a pill instead?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"Because I said so."

Dudley stamped his little foot and groaned in frustration, but that was the extent of his protest, as they had now reached the pharmacy.

"Why don't we see if there's a picture book about food and nutrition at the library on our way home?"

"Ooh, yes!"

"And one about cars!"

"And one about dragons!"

"And one about... dragons driving cars!"

"That would be so cool!" The boys jostled together, excitedly coming up with more and more fantastical picture book concepts. Petunia smiled and hummed a little as she led them up and down the pharmacy aisles. It really was a remarkable change time and day school had wrought. It was just over a year ago that they had been still constantly at each other's throats and pitching awful tantrums that made Petunia feel like a failure as a mother and want to weep in frustration. And now instead the boys were best friends with a healthy sibling rivalry. It gave one hope for the future, to see how much good could come from a starting point of such stress and grief.

First day of February. That meant the new Dueling Club would be starting in one week. It meant half of Dirk Prentiss' weekly detentions/counseling sessions were done. It meant Severus would need to brew extra stock of love potion antidote, and that he would be torturing himself by forcing the fourth year classes to learn, for their own good, potions to prevent pregnancy and treat sexually transmitted infections. Maybe he would do the intoxicant lecture for the seventh years the same week to get the pain over with; that lecture was coming together surprisingly quickly, after he'd owled Dorchester at Tallow and Hemp to get updated information on what potions and muggle substances were currently most popular.

Most importantly, it meant the dreaded Hat had been handed off to Filius, without ceremony. Thank Merlin. Severus made a beeline for the Protean journal as soon as he returned to his quarters after Dirk's detention. Petunia had asked whether he had any suggestions for baby names. He had not wanted to risk the Hat picking the winning name so he had merely said he would think on it, and closed his mind to the Hat's nattering every time it raised the subject (which it did, about four times per day). He had quite a few names stirring in the back of his mind now.

Petunia, I have given the matter some thought and have several floral suggestions: I prefer Dahlia, for the alliteration to match with Dudley. The flower is native of the Americas, but due to its beauty has made its way into the traditional language of flowers, symbolizing beauty and dignity. The roots also have some medicinal value against infant colic, which could be construed as good luck. Daisy would also fit the bill on the alliterative front, and it symbolizes innocence and joy. But it might be too common, and the only medicinal value is in an unappealing wound poultice. Alternatively, Violet may suit, if you wished her to share initials with Vernon. This also stands for innocence, and humility. Violets have more uses than either daisies or dahlias, helping with sleep, inflammation, and even some disorders of the nervous system when prepared properly in a copper cauldron. They also make flavorful teas and elegant confections when candied. There are plenty of other possibilities I could recommend, if none of these suit. -S

He had tried to come up with a good option starting with 'P,' but he didn't want to inadvertently name her after the Hogwarts Matron, and he loathed the names Pansy, Peony and Primrose. He had also thought about Heather, Holly, Ivy, Laurel, and Lavender, which would recall Harry, Iris, and Lily, respectively, but decided against recommending them unless his initial thoughts were rejected. He had never liked the name Daphne. Dianella he quite liked, but the flower's other name was Flax Lily, and he wasn't sure how Petunia would take the suggestion for that reason. Freesia and Jasmine he also reserved; they were pretty, and the taste of the flowers in a green or lemon tea set them apart. Silene he liked the sound of, despite its prosaic uses. Veronica was an option, but did not roll off the tongue so well as Violet, nor did he find the flowers as attractive. He liked Wisteria vines but considered the name unacceptable because that was also a street in the Dursley's neighborhood, which would surely set the child up for snide jokes.

It figures you would consider symbolic meaning, edibility, and medicinal uses, not just the sound of the name and appearance of the flower -P

Names are important! -S

I'm not complaining! I just find it amusing. Explains why you took your time responding. You probably have a whole book of notes on all the names you were thinking of, don't you? She wasn't wrong exactly; his notes would indeed fill a book if he had actually committed them to paper. Everyone else just phones me up with whatever random name they thought of that sounded good in their head -P

Severus snorted. If that was all the care most muggles put into the task of naming, no wonder so many muggleborns arrived with common, meaningless names. Wizards put great store in naming. Some believe the act of naming can guide the fate of the child. -S

Really? Please tell me that's just superstition. -P

Unknown. It might be a case of self-fulfilling prophesy. Or it might not. The belief originated in legendary tales of the lost and possibly mythical art of Naming magic. Severus did not believe True Naming existed in this day and age, but on the other hand, Remus Lupin's name was frighteningly apt for a werewolf. He couldn't imagine the parents choosing that fate deliberately. If he had been in Lupin's father's place with a surname like that, he would have stayed away from first names with any association with the wolf, just to be safe. But perhaps the family was populated by fools who knew no history, or fools who preferred to snub what they saw as superstition. Regardless, there are enough examples of apropos naming in the wizarding world, I would not suggest a poisonous flower to you, or a name with other unfavorable associations. Not worth tempting fate -S

Give me an example of these self-fulfilling prophetic names. I'm curious. -P

There are six on the Hogwarts staff. Sybil Trelawney is the Divinations professor, named for the Ancient Greek prophetess. Hers I'm sure was chosen because the Sight is known to run in her family; her mother was probably trying to kindle the ability. Pomona Sprout teaches Herbology; her case being both the family and given name (Pomona was a Roman goddess of fruit), it might be that the name labeled the family talent rather than the other way around, but still. Then there's Argus Filch, the caretaker. He is a squib, but his ability to espy mischief in the corridors matches his namesake Argus Panoptes, the hundred-eyed giant of Greek myth. Silvanus Kettleburn, named for the Roman god of the woods who is often conflated with Pan (the Greek God of the Wild), teaches Care of Magical Creatures. Bathsheda Babbling teaches Ancient Runes, several languages thereof. And new this year we have added Aurora Sinistra to the staff - not only is her specialty astronomy, but she is also left-handed. -S

How many people are on staff there? -P

Seventeen, including myself -S And his own name meant "stern," so really, there were seven on staff.

You're right. That's too many to be a coincidence. Either you wizards are too good at naming for your own good, or there's something to that superstition of yours... I do like 'Dahlia.' It has a nice sound to it, Dahlia Dursley. -P

I hoped you would -S

And you're right about Daisy being too common. Dorothy (my mother-in-law) suggested it as well, but it sounds like an old woman's name. Or a pet's name even! I'll add both Dahlia and Violet to the options list. And keep sending me suggestions! I'll probably run our favorites by you at some point, to make sure we don't accidentally name her something suggestive of something appalling. -P

I shall help however I can -S

Author's note: again, no offense to anyone whose names Severus and/or Petunia for whatever reason don't like. It is funny to think of all the too-accurate names in Harry Potter as being prospective instead of clever character illustrations on the part of the author. It makes wizarding parents uncannily good at subconsciously predicting their offspring's jobs, talents, curses, and animagus forms. Maybe pregnancy hormones bring out witches' prophetic tendencies or something lol. Thanks as always for the reviews. Next update will be delayed, as I am leaving town this weekend. Look for it next Sunday or Monday.