The Request by redhead414

Chapter 27

There were nine different paint colors, rolled into uneven rectangles, lined up in a row along the back wall of the spare bedroom that had been deemed the nursery inside the condo that Anya and James shared. There had been much debate about which of the bedrooms would be the nursery, but ultimately, Anya's choice won, and the bedroom next door to their room now housed many bags from the hardware store along with the nine different swatches of paint drying against the already white wall.

Anya was four months pregnant now, her bump slightly pronounced as she wore a thin, green and gray striped, long sleeved sweater with her black leggings and bare feet as she studied the swatches. Hermione stood next to her, also judging each of the colors while Katie sat on the bed, her nose buried in the 'B' book from her encyclopedia. Hermione held a hand against her chest as she tilted her head slightly. "We don't have to just use one, of course."

Anya laughed. "I was thinking the exact same thing."

"They're very gender neutral colors," Hermione noted. "I take it you're planning on being surprised?"

"We want to be surprised," Anya said, her left thumb playing with the back of her wedding rings. "I think it'll be fun."

"I thought you didn't like surprises," Hermione teased, bumping her hip into Anya's.

"It's going to be a boy or a girl," Anya said, moving a hand to her bump. "The only I plan on being surprised is if it comes out not looking like one of us." She rubbed a small circle around her belly and smiled. "I can feel it moving now. James can't, of course, which drives him mental, but I can feel it."

This peeked Katie's interest as she looked up from her encyclopedia volume. "What does it feel like?"

She walked over and sat down on the bed next to her sister, running a few fingers through her brown ringlet curls. "It feels like little flutters."

Katie put her small hands on Anya's belly before pressing a light kiss by her sister's belly button. "I love you baby," she whispered before going back to her book.

Hermione shook her head and laughed at her daughter, her fingers sliding a small, gold heart charm back and forth on the gold chain around her neck. It was a gift from Draco a few weeks ago, the heart holding a birthstone for each of the children with hers in the middle, a note inside the box with his familiar scrawl that said, 'All of your children, close to your heart, forever.' She and Ginny hadn't spoken since that day in her house, when James and Anya made their announcements. Harry was mortified by his wife's behavior, apologizing for it over and over again but Hermione didn't want to hear it from him - she wanted to hear it from her - and she also wanted to hear Ginny apologize to Anya.

"You know Ginny was wrong," Anya said, watching Hermione fiddle with her necklace. "Though I was surprised that you didn't say much of anything that day."

She shrugged, her fingers still holding the charm. "What was there to say, sweetheart? Everything was already done. Yelling wasn't going to solve anything."

"Is Dad still mad?"

Hermione smiled. "He isn't mad. He's just disappointed that he missed the wedding…and that you felt like you had to keep it a secret. I'm not saying he doesn't understand it - but just because he understands it doesn't mean he still isn't disappointed that he missed it."

Anya nodded. "I need to talk to him about it. Maybe I can get him to go to lunch with me one day this week."

"I doubt it would take much convincing," Hermione said with a laugh. "Just pop over to his office. You do remember how to use your magic to get there, right?"

"Funny," she snarked. "And don't mock my muggle lifestyle. We blend in here. It's nice. I was back in Diagon Alley last week picking up some things at the apocathery for a few healing potions everyone was staring at me like I'm some sort of pathetic pregnant girl because no one knows James and I are married yet."