Moments of Love

Hermione grabbed the edges of the toilet and retched violently, her whole body covered in cold sweat. It was dark and quiet; she had had to rush to the bathroom almost straight from sleep. Ron hadn't noticed, and she had no strength to call for him.

She groped the sink with her hand, looking for the tap, and her hand knocked something down. Glass clinked against porcelain, and she realised she had broken the bottle of Ron's favourite aftershave.

'Oh...' She hesitated, but then decided that the occasion warranted a bad word. One of Ron's favourites would do well -and it was not too strong.

'Bloody bottle!'

She tried to pull herself up, but the world spun around her, and she sank to the floor.

'Ron,' she said desperately. 'Ron, wake up!'

But steps were already walking towards the bathroom. The door opened and Ron came in, yawning and rubbing his eyes.

'What the - Hermione, is something wrong?'

'Morning sickness,' Hermione sobbed. 'And it's all your...bloody fault...'

As she spoke, the strong smell of the aftershave filled her nostrils, and she could feel the burning rising in her throat.

'Watch out!'

She turned around at the last moment, and a fresh batch of vomit flew into the toilet. Her head was dizzy and achy, but she was vaguely aware of a strong hold under her arms. Water flowed, and something cool and wet brushed against her mouth.

'There you go,' Ron said and threw the wet towel in the sink. He put his arms around her, and they sat on the cool floor quite silently. Hermione tried to force her mind away from her churning tummy by listening to the faint chirping of the early morning birds and enjoying the warmth of Ron's chest.

'I'm sorry I blamed you,' she said when the worst wave of nausea had passed. 'It's not your fault.'

'Nah, don't apologise. That looked pretty awful,' Ron said, stroking her arms. 'But did I really hear you swear?'

Hermione blushed in the darkness.

'Yes,' she said in a small voice. She could feel Ron shaking, and as she looked up, she saw that his body was wobbling with inaudible laughter.

'Don't you laugh, Ronald Weasley! I have a feeling you'll hear much worse things from me before the baby arrives.'

'I guess it is true, then,' Ron said, biting his lower lip. 'I really am a bad influence on you.'

And then it was his turn to whisper something in her ear that made her cheeks go quite pink.

The croissant was watching her. Even though she was writing frantically and not looking at it, she could sense the thick flakiness and smell the putrid, greasy smell. A slice of ham flopped to the table from its depths, glimmering under the bright lights of the office.

'Hermione, dear.' Juliana entered the room holding a stack of papers. 'I finally got that report from the French Ministry, and - are you all right?'

'I'm fine,' Hermione said huskily.

'You're terribly pale,' Juliana said and laid the papers on the desk. 'Aren't you eating that croissant? They're absolutely delicious, by the way; I'm so glad the Ministry finally changed the caterer. Miss Tuffington was a good cook in her day, but bless her, after her 127th birthday she did get a bit blind. I swear I once found a slice of carrot in my custard!'

'Please.' Hermione closed her eyes. Carrot and custard... Her tummy had started burning ominously, and she took a quick sip of daisy cordial from the "I love Ronald" mug that Ron had given her on her first day at the office. A Yesteryear Pregnancy had recommended daisy cordial for morning sickness, and it did in fact help a bit. Molly had brewed her ten huge bottles, but she was already on the eighth one.

'Should I call the nurse?' Juliana leaned over Hermione and felt her brow. Her perfume wafted in Hermione's nose, strong and spicy. 'You aren't too hot, though.'

'It's m-morning -' But Hermione couldn't get the words out; paired with the nasty pastry, the smell was just too much. She rushed up, knocking her elbow against Juliana's stomach, and ran to the loo. Fortunately, it was right by her office.

'Hermione?' Juliana opened the door and peeked in. 'Are you sick?'

'Just morning sickness,' Hermione breathed. She held her hands under the ice-cold water and dabbed it on her face.

'Oh no, I'm sorry. Can I do something?'

'No, thanks. Or, actually, yes. I think I'll work from here today, so could you bring me that report and my mug and the bottle beside it?'

'Of course.'

Hermione sank on the toilet and waited. After a couple of minutes, Juliana came in, put the mug and the bottle on a wicker table under the towels, and handed Hermione the report.

'I think you should go home, though. You're as white as snow.'

Hermione shook her head.

'It's the same everywhere. And Ron is on an all-day mission in the north, and I don't want to be alone in this condition.'

'I see. But you let me know right away if you need help.'

'I will.' Hermione leaned against the wall in agony, but her mouth stretched into a reluctant smile as her eyes caught the mug. A picture of Ron was smiling and winking vigorously at her under the flashing red and yellow text.

'Oh, and one more thing, Juliana...' She turned to look at the door that was already closing. 'Could you please destroy that rotten croissant?'

'Everything is looking good here,' the nurse said and closed a brown manilla file with a snap. 'And since you're now on your 12th week, it means morning sickness should be over soon.'

'Oh, I do think it's passing already,' Hermione said enthusiastically. 'I've been really well these past days. And I think I can already feel a bump!'

'Which she has been showing off to every visitor,' Ron added from the chair next to Hermione. 'My Mum, my Dad, her parents, all my brothers, her cousins, and the clerk at Flourish and Blotts.'

'Well, there definitely is a small bump! Don't you agree?' Hermione stroked her flat tummy. 'Pregnancy Week by Week says that it's completely possible to see the bump at this stage.'

'Er, yes, in some cases,' the nurse said, looking slightly dazed.

'Then again, it's my kid and I'm pretty buff,' Ron said conversationally and glanced down at his body. 'It might be a 13-pound porker.'

The nurse coughed and picked up a quill.

'Yes, well, like I said, Mrs Weasley is in perfect health, and the baby is fine, too. Here's a card with the time of your next appointment.'

'Thanks!' Hermione beamed. 'Actually, I wanted to ask you something. I read that there is a spell that can reveal the sex of the baby. Is that true?'

'There is a spell, yes, but we don't use it and we most certainly don't recommend it. Any spell that pierces such a delicate thing as the womb is highly risky.'

'Oh,' Hermione said. 'Well, it'll be a surprise, then.'

Ron grinned.

'Not a big fan of surprises, our Hermione. She'd like to be fully prepared for every possible situation.'

'I'm afraid that is impossible right now,' the nurse said with a smile. 'We'll know only after six more months.'

Hermione let out a small, sad sort of sigh.