Harry Potter: An Alternate Universe

15) Wonderful News

Year: Graduated 1998
House: Slytherin
Gender: F
Love Interest: Draco Malfoy

Story inspired by Astoria Malfoy, who's actually married to Draco in the books. But that don't matter nothin' now ;)

The morning of December 15th, you had a headache. Again. That morning also marked the third day you still haven't gotten your period. The signs were all there, but you were nervous.

The odds of you being able to conceive were slim to none. That's what the doctor warned you about, anyway. And the chances of you surviving childbirth if you were to conceive are unlikely. It's how your mother passed. And your grandmother's grandmother. It was a blood curse than ran through your lineage. Even still, you wanted to have a baby with Draco for ages now. It wouldn't hurt to check.

That morning, you woke up as soon as sunlight streamed through the curtains. Your husband was still sound asleep beside you, his even breaths faintly heard. Your fingers lightly brushed his forming stubble, down to the back of his neck, and along the ends of his hair. You started to lean forward, when a few taps came at the window. Startled from his sleep, Draco's eyes fluttered open and also turning to the sound of the noise.

You got out of bed first, going around the bed and opening up the blinds. The sun stung your eyes, and it took a moment to adjust to the sudden bright light. An owl continued to peck at the glass, and you let it inside before closing the window back up. It had just started snowing outside. The owl flew onto the cabinet opposite the bed, and you retrieved the envelope attached to its leg. You handed it to Draco, who was rubbing his eyes groggily. The letter floated out of its hand, and began to speak in a low, bored voice.

"Mr. Malfoy, we are excepting you at Gringotts at 8:30 sharp, for an urgent meeting regarding a recent lawsuit on the bank. Please arrive on time. We apologize for the inconvenience." The message ended, and the letter tore itself into little pieces and landed on the bed. Draco sighed.

"So much for a day off."

"Wait till your father hears about this," you joked. He snorted, tilting his head at you.

"Very funny."

"Right you are." You ruffled his hair before he grabbed your wrists, holding you to the bed while he rose from it.

"Glad to see you're not still mad at me." His voice was smooth like honey. He was referring to your snippiness from yesterday. Mood swings were another sure sign.

"I am really sorry," you said. "I'm not sure why I was in such a mood."

"I forgive you, dear," he said, tilting your chin up. A sly expression played on his face. "Besides, I have something planned for us tonight."

"So do I. I think we should have dinner out." You paused. "What were you thinking?" He shrugged naively, but with that same sly grin.

"You'll see." He backed out of the room to get changed.

"It won't interfere with dinner?," you called out. He returned from the other room, his button-up open revealing his bare chest. His lips caught yours eagerly.

"These things usually don't." Warmth crept up your cheeks. Even after all this time, he still made you swoon. He smiled, returning to where he was to finish getting dressed.

"I'll be back by 5 with any luck." You were in the bathroom looking for aspirin. He had his hair slicked back in gel, dressed up in his usual suit and tie. You looked at one another in the mirror above the sink. You gave him a quick peck on the cheek, and he was off to work. Today was a good day for you to have off.

Your headache had returned, stronger and more nauseating than earlier. You downed the aspirin with water, then set off searching the rest of the house to find the ingredients for a Chelidonium Miniscula potion.

It required a yellow flower whose genus was in the poppy family, and you'd recently gotten a bunch of flowers and herbs as a gift. It also needed Devil's Snare, for its detection of premature life, or anything with the potential of becoming a conscious living thing. Like an unborn child.

Luckily, you had everything you needed. For nearly two hours, you bent over a smoking cauldron preparing the potion. When it turned a thick dark yellow, you knew it was done. With a ladle, you took a scoop and poured it into a flask. It was like any ordinary liquid; completely lifeless and plain. Now was the time, after waiting and waiting, you'll finally know for sure.

With potion in hand, you held it just an inch in front of your abdomen, where you'd expect a baby might grow. The contents of the flask began to glow, like light was pouring out of it. Your free hand covers your mouth in shock. It couldn't be. You had to be sure.

You held the potion away, and it returned to its dull state. As it grew nearer your body, it glowed again. It's official.

Tonight, you told yourself. I'll tell him tonight. You thought about nothing else the rest of the day.

Soooo... no triple update. Hope no one's too disappointed.
This one will be a two-parter. I won't tell you which one it's gonna be (it's a surprise).

So stay tuned for updates!

Hopefully I'll be all caught up soon enough.