Secrets

Chapter Two

Precious Time

She stared at it for the longest time. Pink...pink...She couldn't believe it. She was pregnant. Pregnant. At seventeen years old, Head Girl of Hogwarts, she was pregnant. What a role model she would be for the first years....Pregnant....She couldn't believe it! And then she had to tell the father and everyone who the father was...

She looked down at her stomach - there was a baby inside, a human being. Of course, there was always the option of aborting it...

No! said a little voice in Hermione's head. That's a human, a living human...it could have great potential!! Yes...she couldn't abort it...

Now she knew why she was sleeping in later, feeling puffier, and feeling sick. And then there was last month's period, which had been there for less than half as long as it should have been. She should have known....But then again, she had preformed the anti-pregnancy charm, hadn't she? How could everything had gone so wrong? How?

She should have read the spell more carefully...maybe it expired after a certain period of time...or...or....She didn't want to accept that she had possibly done it wrong, of course - how could the smartest girl in school mess it up? It didn't seem possible! Her head was a mess, her thoughts swirling inside her, making her feel sick again. But what made the most sense to do was to wait a while - a few days, maybe a week - and try again. And she wouldn't tell anyone. Not even him. No, especially not him, of all people.

Sighing shakily, she threw the tester away and pulled up her skirt. Yes, this would take a lot of thinking. Suddenly a vision of a plaque reading "Hermione Granger, the Bad Girl Head Girl of Hogwarts" appeared in her vision, and she laughed bitterly.

"Hermione?"

Oh shit.

It was Ginny. Hermione heard the soft tap-tap of Ginny's feet on the cold stone floor, walking toward her stall, slowly but surely. Don't say anything. Pretend you're not here, Hermione thought. Maybe she'll leave...but she already heard you laugh, genius! Oh great. Fabulous.

"Hermione?" Ginny repeated, sounding cross. "I heard you, I know you're in here. I may be a little sixth year prefect, but I'm still not stupid, and I'm still your friend, no matter why you were just skipping class."

What?

"Yes, I'm in here," Hermione said in her stall, trying to open the lid for the metal waste basket on the floor without making a sound. When she finally pried it open, she saw another pregnancy tester in there - except the line on it was blue. Damn them, Hermione thought angrily. Of course, they can have sex and not get pregnant, but when I do? God, why does this have to happen to me? She closed the lid silently. "I wasn't skipping. I...I threw up and then I came in here. Call of nature, you know." She tried to make her voice sound natural, not shaky at all, but she still heard it quiver as it echoed on the stone walls.

"You swear you weren't skipping?" Ginny said. She sounded like she was smiling.

Hermione picked up her bag and unlatched the stall door; it swung open and she saw Ginny standing there, her prefect badge shining in the dim light, her arms crossed over her chest. "Yes, I swear," Hermione said, trying to sound as light and happy as she could. "Ask McGonagall, ask anyone - I got sick."

"Really? Must be the flu..."

"That's what Madam Pomfrey said," said Hermione, dumping her bag on the floor next to Ginny and washing her hands. Her heart was pounding perilously fast, and she whispered to herself, Don't panic. The last thing you need is to panic. Don't worry. Just breathe. In, out, in, out.

"Did you say something?" Ginny said. Her freckled face appeared in the mirror over Hermione's shoulder, their hair touching and making them look like Siamese twins; Hermione's curly brown hair faded slowly into Ginny's straight hair, and if she had been younger she would have burst out giggling. But they were older now, each pretending to be too old for such nonsense as laughing yourself silly - but in their hearts they really longed to be able to do that without attracting strange stairs.

"No," Hermione said quickly, turning off the water and drying her hands. "I didn't. Er...what time is it?"

"Time for second class," said Ginny automatically. "Sixth years have Transfiguration...I'd better be going," she added just as the bell rang. The corridor outside was suddenly loud with the sound of voices and footsteps. "Damn, I have to patrol! See ya later, Hermione!"

And with that, Ginny left.

Hermione breathed a long sigh of relief and glanced down at her stomach briefly - but she couldn't look longer than for a minute. She felt like she was going to be sick again but the feeling almost immediately passed. All she needed to do was...what class was she going to now? She felt dizzy - thoughts were whirling around in her head so fast she almost felt sick. Concentrate, Hermione, she thought. In, out, in, out...Herbology. No wait, that was the class first after lunch...what did she have? Defense Against the Dark Arts? No...Potions, she realized with a jolt. Oh God, with the Slytherins. She checked her watch. She had five minutes.

With a resolve face, Hermione picked up her bag and exited the bathroom, closing the door almost silently behind her and mingling in with the rest of the school. It was noisy and for a moment Hermione felt turned around; then she sprinted up to Gryffindor Tower as fast as her shaking legs could carry her. Not even bothering to be neat, she threw her Transfiguration books on the bed, scooped up her Potions books, and ran back down into the common room, right into -

"Ron!"

"Hermione! Where the bloody hell have you been?" Ron asked, looking worried.

"You found her?" This was Harry's voice, and all of a sudden he emerged from behind a couch, looking extremely relieved.

"Bathroom...I had to g-go to Madam Pomfrey for stuff for my stomach," Hermione said, trying to sound casual but only hearing her voice shake.

"Ah," Harry said, straightening up. "C'mon, it's Potions. With the Slytherins."

"Sickening slippery Slytherins, sickening slippery Slytherins," sang Ron, clapping his hands on his knees and making a face like a snake, sticking his tongue out and spitting. "Stupid slithering Slytherins."
Hermione smirked but felt a stab of annoyance that wouldn't have usually affected her so. She glanced down at her stomach and resisted the temptation to rub it lovingly and whisper to it - she would look quite strange talking to her stomach, from Ron and Harry's point of view. She still felt very sick, but smiled all the same.

Then she realized that Potions was with the Slytherins.

For the first time in five minutes, she'd see the Slytherins.

She drew in a deep, shuddering breath, as she realized...she'd have to tell the father.

Now.

"Let's go."