Lift Yourself Up

Lift Yourself Up

By: Lanni Weasley

Chapter One: First and Foremost

Honestly, Hermione was not looking her best today. This could well be the day that changed their lives forever and here she was, screaming her head off like a maniac at some random person she didn't even know. The person seemed terribly frightened, huddled in a corner, near to the point of crying. Really, it wasn't her fault that this was happening. It was all Ron's fault.

Amazingly enough, Ron wasn't the man huddled in the corner, but the guy trying to stop her from killing the man huddled in the corner. It was rather difficult for him to save him also. He had his arms around her gently and was trying to pull, but very lightly and slowly, lest he might do some damage to her. Yet there was no way he could get her to stop.

"Hun, we should get moving and leave this poor man alone," Ron whispered into her ear, trying to hide his anxiousness. She didn't pay attention him and continued to rant and rave loudly at the top of her lungs. For once, he wasn't at the receiving end of her tirade. Really, he did feel some sympathy for the man. "He didn't do anything wrong. We have to get going--like--now."

"He bumped into me!" Hermione shouted, obviously not caring that Ron was standing right next to her with his face almost pressed against hers. He grimaced and pulled his head away. He, at least, wanted to be able to hear after today. "He bumped into me and it could've done some serious damage!"

"I know, I know, he should be more careful, but now is not the time to tell this man that," Ron said evenly, nodding his head wisely. She shot a glare at him and he rolled his eyes. "It's our turn. They called our names just a minute ago and they're awaiting us."

"But he bumped into my stomach--my stomach! You, of all people, should be beating the living daylights out of him right at this moment!" Hermione yelled furiously, glaring at him now. His shoulders dropped and he looked to the ceiling. If this were any other time, he probably would've been attacking that man with some physical abuse instead of yelling at him. Well, he would've been yelling too, he supposed.

"What's done is done," Ron told her smoothly. And then he added quickly for the man's well being, "I'm sure he didn't mean bumping into you like that, love. I'm sure it was just one little mistake. Somebody probably smacked into him and pushed him a little, causing him to collide into you."

"Ron Weasley, don't tell me that you don't care that this man careened right into my stomach!" Hermione screamed at the top of her lungs angrily. This had become a rather violent scene. Many people were now looking their way, most likely wishing that they had some popcorn and a coke.

"Of course I care, dear, but this is not the appropriate time to yell at this victim of circumstances," Ron said, almost sounding as if he was pleading with her. She glowered at him.

"I'm sorry; I didn't know there was an appropriate time to care about something very important," Hermione snapped coldly, still giving him a glower. He rolled his eyes at her, not really caring if she started to scream at him too. At least it would save that coward in the corner.

"I didn't say that, but, I will say this," Ron replied coolly, "I love you and I want the best for you. That is why it is best if you leave this man alone and follow me down to the room so we can see if everything is alright."

"But now that he has bumped into my stomach, everything might be all wrong!" Hermione started to sob into Ron's shirt, ruining what used to be a perfectly good shirt. He sighed; it had been a brand new shirt, too, but that didn't matter. What mattered were Hermione's ever fluctuating emotions and the fact that her stomach seemed to have expanded to its full capacity.

Like Hermione had been saying, this was Ron's entire fault that this was happening. Had he not admitted that he loved her one night during their Seventh Year, they would never have started dating. Had they not started dating, they would never have gotten married. Had they not gotten married, there would never have been one night of pure bliss. And had there not have been one night of pure bliss, she, Hermione Granger-Weasley, would never have gotten pregnant.

It was Ronald Bilius Weasley's entire fault that she was pregnant, whether he knew it or not.

So, here they were, the almost-ten month newlyweds, standing in St. Martha's Hospital for Deliveries and Children, Hermione sobbing hysterically after some young man accidentally bumped into her stomach and Ron trying to calm her down enough to take her to see the Healer. He held her closely, resisting the strong urge to roll his eyes again, and rubbed her back.

"There, there, 'Mione, we know that everything is fine with the baby," Ron consoled soothingly, rubbing her bushy hair flat. She just continued to sob into his shirt.

"But what happens if something went wrong and we lose the child?!" Hermione wailed hysterically. "What happens if something's wrong with the baby and has some sort of disease?! What happens if--OH!"

Hermione abruptly closed the gates and stopped crying all together. The tears immediately ceased and she just stood there with this shocked look on her face. She was holding her stomach with her hands. Ron gave her a look of anxiety.

"Oh, what?" Ron asked her nervously. "'Oh', like in oh or 'oh' like in OH?"

"No, 'oh', like in, I think the water just broke!" Hermione shrieked wildly, her hands starting to shake. Ron stood there, gaping at her in complete shock. They just gaped at each other, too surprised to move.

"Eh... the water broke?" Ron replied confusedly, still gaping at her in shock.

"Ron, my water just broke!" Hermione squealed loudly. "The baby's coming now!!"

"Now?"

"Now!"

"Now?!"

"NOW!!!!!"

Ron never knew how to handle situations such as these. He began to run around the hospital waiting room with his arms in the air, screaming his head off:

"My wife's water just broke! She's going to have my baby! Her water just broke! The baby is going to be born now! What do I do? What does she do? Where am I supposed to go? My wife's going to have a baby because her water just broke! What do I do? What do I do?!"

A woman, a Healer, he presumed, came rushing to his aid, "Sir, you need to calm down. Where is your wife?" He gawked at her and pointed at Hermione, who was still standing still in shock.

"THE ONE THAT'S BLOODY PREGNANT!!!" Ron screamed loudly. Hermione suddenly started to groan in pain and he started to get scared. He didn't know what to do. He rushed to her side and held her in his arms, waiting for someone to tell him to do what to do. All of a sudden, three Healers came to their side and gathered around them.

"Bring her this way," one of them, a man, said calmly.

"Just follow us and stay calm, sir," another one of them, also a man, added coolly.

"It's going to be alright," the last one, a woman, told him comfortingly. Right now, he wasn't sure if it was going to be alright or not. Hermione was groaning louder than before, telling him that she was in pain. She started taking deep breaths, just like she had been told to do in those "classes" she had been taking earlier on in the pregnancy. Ron followed them, still holding her tightly. They led her into a white room.

"Sir, I'd appreciate it if you to a step out for a second," the woman Healer told him. He found it rather rude to be told to do that. His wife was about to give birth to his child and they were kicking him out of the room already! He glared at her. "I need to get her quickly changed into her hospital gown."

Ron suddenly flushed. "Oh, right," he mumbled embarrassedly, the tips of his ears turning red. This was not the time to get humiliated. He stalked out of the room and looked side to side. He saw a door that had a sign on it that was labeled, Floo Network Room, and he jogged into it. It was empty. He took some floo powder and threw it into the fire. "The Burrow!" he managed to get out.

All of a sudden, Ron saw the Burrow, but he was not completely in it. His head was the only thing in the fire there. "Mum! Dad! Ginny! Somebody! It's Ron and it's important!" he cried out. There was some noise and Ginny bounded into his sight. She had just graduated Hogwarts, but still lived with their parents, as she was searching for a flat of her own.

"Ron, what is it and why do you look so sick?" Ginny asked curiously. Ron had failed to notice that he was sweating gallons of water.

"Hermione's water broke while we were in the hospital!" Ron croaked gruffly, spilling everything out at a hundred miles per hour. Ginny's eyes widened at this. "She's is labor as I speak!"

"Dear Heaven's, I tell mum and dad!" Ginny squeaked hastily, nodding her head feverishly. She moved to jog away when she stopped and looked back at Ron's head in the fire. "In fact, I'll tell everyone and you can go back into the room with Hermione. See you real soon, Ron!"

Ron pulled his head out of the green fire and got back to his feet. He ran out of the room and looked down the hall at the door where his wife was in labor. He ran over to it and knocked. One of the male Healers let him in and he hurried over to his wife, who was now in a white gown.

"Just remember to breathe!" Ron reminded her worriedly. She glared at him through one eye and he saw the heat in them.

"THAT'S WHAT I'M DOING, ALRIGHT!!" Hermione screamed at him. He cringed, but searched for her hand, nonetheless. What else was he supposed to do? Just watch her give birth to his first child? Not bloody likely.

After all, he was the youngest Weasley boy and he was the first to have a child. Today was the proudest day in his life. Today, he would stand out from all of the rest of his brothers. Today, October 31^st, was the most important day of his life.

"Push, please, push!" the woman Healer said loudly.

"WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE I'M DOING?!!!" Hermione screamed irritably at the Healer, who plainly just ignored her and didn't even flinch. She was obviously used to women screaming at her by now and it was nothing any different. Well, Ron would like to tell her otherwise. This was very different. This was his Hermione giving birth to his first child. Obviously, that was very different than anything else.

He went to glower at her when Hermione screamed and grasped his hand tightly. Pain shot up through his arm as circulation began to be cut off. She was squeezing his hand so forcefully for support that she was crushing every bone in his hand. It was painful. And to think, he had thought that Hermione would be the only one in pain. Oh, well, it was for her, he supposed.

Turning red in the face a little from the pain in his hand, Ron watched as Hermione, wearing the most pain stricken face he had seen in his life, was pushing like the Healers told her to. Suddenly, people began to flood in like a water damn broke. He saw his mother first.

"DEAR MERCY!" Mrs. Weasley shrieked wildly, turning around and smacking right into his father, in which caused them both to come to a loud crash behind the white curtain. He was in too much pain to ask if they were alright. Harry came next.

"Whoa, I didn't want to see all that!" Harry exclaimed loudly, shielding his eyes with his hand and turning right back around, walking away and behind the curtain to see if Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were okay. Ron could hear his mother ranting on about how much in pain Hermione looked.

He distinctly heard Harry mutter, "If I knew I was gonna see that, I wouldn't have come yet." The door opened again and Charlie's and Bill's voices floated in, trying to talk over Fred and George's voices. Even Percy's voice came out of nowhere. Hermione's parents, the Grangers, looked over the corner and Mrs. Granger nearly fainted. Mr. Granger had to lay her in a chair.

"Don't go over there," Ron heard Harry warn his five brothers. They seemed to have taken his advice after hearing Hermione's screams and didn't look at Ron and Hermione.

Ginny peered around the curtain and her eyes widened. "Oh, Hermione!" she shrieked, dashing to her other side and gripping her hand tightly. "You can do it! Just a little more, you know!"

"Gin's right; you're almost done and we'll have a beautiful little boy or girl," Ron said softly. Hermione gave him a pained smile and pushed one last time, screaming bloody murder. That's when they all heard the joyous noise, the noise that made Ron smile with so much happiness: A baby's first cries.

Hermione's screams immediately stopped and she had her eyes closed, taking deep breaths. Ron watched as the Healers held a small child and began to clean the baby. After wrapping it up in pink blanket, the woman Healer slowly made her way to Hermione, who had opened her eyes.

Smiling, the woman Healer said, "Congratulations, it's a girl." She laid the child in Hermione's arms and she cradled it carefully, looking down upon the silent little baby girl. Ron leaned on the bars and watched his little girl.

It was a girl. It was a girl. And the most fantastic thing about it was is that that was what Ron had wanted all along. Both he and Hermione had wanted a little girl. He saw Ginny crying with happiness out of the top of his eyes. That was his little girl in his wife's arms. His family and the Grangers walked over to them.

"Oh, she's so beautiful," Mrs. Weasley whispered happily, tears welling in her eyes. "What are you going to name her, dears?"

Ron and Hermione looked at each other and they both smiled. They both looked back down at their little girl admiringly, glee dancing in their eyes. "Lily," Hermione said quietly. "Her name is Lily Jane Weasley."

Hermione and Ron looked up and they immediately connected eyes with Harry. Suddenly, his green eyes pooled up with tears and he gave them a watery smile. They smiled back at him. They had named their little girl after Harry's mother, Lily, in honor of her and her middle name was after Hermione's mother, who's name was Jane.

"Oh, this is so sweet!" Ginny cried out, crying joyously. She hugged Harry and he didn't move at all. She began to cry into his shoulder. She cried when she got too happy all of the time. Fred and George were silent for the first time in their lives as they watched the little girl, seemingly mesmerized. Hermione and Ron looked back down at their baby daughter.

"Welcome, Lily," Hermione whispered gently, smiling down at her. "I'm your mother, Hermione."

"Welcome to life," Ron added softly, letting her grip his finger lightly. "I'm your father, Ron."

Welcome to the planet. Welcome to existence.

Everyone's here. Everyone's here.

"You're a very important girl, you know, Lily," Ron continued on quietly. His daughter opened her eyes and he saw that they were chocolate brown, just like Hermione's. He smiled at that and he saw his wife's eyes were absolutely glowing. "Everyone came here just to see your first few minutes on earth. Everyone came here to just see you, my little girl."

Hermione looked up at Ron happily. "Do you want to hold her?" she asked him calmly. He looked at her, still in initial shock of it all happening, and then nodded his head.

Carefully, she lifted Lily up and placed her in Ron's arms. He stood up straight and just cradled her in his arms, gawking at his daughter. Hermione sat up in her bed and continued to take deep breaths. He couldn't believe this was actually happening. He walked around the room for everyone to see.

"She looks like you, Ron," Bill said quietly, afraid that he might disturb Lily if he spoke loud enough. Fred peered over his shoulder to look at his first niece.

"Yeah, except she doesn't have as prominent features," he added lightly. "She's much prettier already too."

Ron was too busy marveling how much he loved her and his wife in his mind to think about what Fred had just said. Mrs. Granger had tears dripping down her face and Mrs. Weasley was blowing her nose. They seemed to be comforting each other. Mr. Weasley appeared to be thanking someone who lived in the sky for he was looking up and mouthing things.

"Oh, my first grandchild and a girl at that, how lovely!" Mrs. Weasley gushed, looking down at her first granddaughter. It had been especially wonderful that it was girl; now, Ginny wasn't the only one to be born as a girl Weasley.

Ginny had looked at the Lily's tiny fingers, felt them, and immediately went off into another sobbing fit of cheerful tears. "They're so soft and tiny!" she cried softly, rubbing her face into Harry's shoulder.

When Ron stopped in front of Harry, time seemed to stand still. Harry touched Lily's hand and she quickly wrapped her fingers around his finger. He smiled and she opened her eyes blearily, blinking and yawning. Ron held his breath as her brown eyes laid on Harry's green eyes and she--giggled. Harry smiled.

Ron grinned at his little girl when she laid her eyes on him and only on him. Suddenly, without warning, she smiled at him and he thought he might faint. His little girl was actually smiling at him--at him! It was one of the most magical moments in Ron's entire life. He walked back over to Hermione's side and let her hold their daughter again.

Everybody's watching you now. Everybody waits for you now.

What happens next? What happens next?

"Hermione?" Ron suddenly asked in the silence. Hermione tore her eyes off of Lily and looked at her husband happily, blissful tears pooling in her chocolate brown eyes. She smiled at him. "When can we take her home?"

Hermione merely giggled at him and Ron grinned at her. He gave her a one armed hug and a warm kiss on the lips along with it. He distinctly heard Fred and George groan and he smiled against her lips, feeling the same smile at her own. He thought the happiness might never end.