Harry woke up the next day to a scratching on his door. He groaned, but got up anyway and opened the door. Crookshanks sat there and when he saw him, he scratched on his leg. "Hey, Crookshanks, how have you been? Owner's not up yet? You hungry?" Harry smiled and picked the cat up into his arms and walked down the stairs to feed the cat.
He saw that no one was up yet, so he decided to make breakfast. But first, he found the cat food and put it in Crookshanks' food bowl and set it on the floor. The cat rushed to the bowl and began eating. "You were hungry," Harry chuckled and got started on breakfast. He found eggs, bacon, and biscuits. He got to work on them and soon the kitchen was filled with wonderful aromas of breakfast food. It was making him hungry just smelling it.
He heard a noise behind him. He turned around and smiled at who it was. "Good morning, Hermione."
"Good morning, Harry," she replied a little groggy. She looked at Crookshanks and asked, "He woke you up this morning?"
"Yeah, he was scratching at my door," He said back.
"Sorry about that."
"No, it's okay, I don't mind. I'm used to getting up early. Besides, we're going to have to get up early in nine months for a while," he said smiling.
Hermione looked at him seriously. "You sure you're okay with this?"
He smiled and nodded. "Of course. I don't know why I'm not freaking out. I guess it's because it's you. You're my best friend and you make me comfortable."
She smiled dreamily and said, "I'm hungry."
He chuckled and pulled out seven plates. He gave one to her and put some scrambled eggs on it, three pieces of bacon, and two biscuits. "Harry, this is a bit much."
"You're eating for two," he reminded.
"True."
Harry made himself a plate and they sat down at the table and ate their breakfast happily. Harry never knew a time when he was this happy in his life.
"Harry, this is really good," Hermione said eating into her eggs. "I could get used to this."
"Thanks, I'm glad you appreciate it. The Dursleys never did," he said with a sad look. "I'm glad I don't have to go back there anymore."
"Now you'll be with someone who likes your cooking," Hermione said smiling.
Then, they heard shuffling in the doorway. It was Jacob and Charlotte.
"Hey, good morning, Mum, Dad," Hermione said smiling.
"Good morning!" they chorused back.
"Good morning, help yourself to some food," Harry offered.
"Thank you," Charlotte said walking to the food on the stove, while her husband went to pour her and himself some coffee.
"So, Mum, I was thinking that we could go to Hogwarts today to see Madam Pomfrey. She's the school nurse. Since we'll be there for school, I think we should go see her so she and us will be familiar with it," Hermione told her mother.
Her mother thought about this for a bit and then nodded. "Yeah, that sounds good. We'll need to ask Sirius first."
Hermione nodded and the Grangers ate breakfast.
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After breakfast, they all took showers and then asked Sirius if they could use his fireplace to Floo to Hogwarts to see Madame Pomfrey about the baby. He said that was fine and the foursome flooed into Headmistress' office, surprising her.
"Oh! Miss Granger? Mr. Potter?" She asked recognizing them as Harry helped Hermione to her feet. "You okay?" he asked her looking a t her stomach briefly. She nodded assuring him that she was fine and he shouldn't worry.
They turned to their Head of House and smiled. The Grangers standing up as well, as they tumbled out of the fireplace and looked around the office.
Professor McGonagall was sitting at her desk writing something on parchment. She looked at them shocked. "What are you doing here?"
"Hello, Professor," Harry and Hermione greeted with a smile.
"We came to see you and Madame Pomfrey," Harry said.
"Oh, is everything okay?" she asked concerned standing up and walking over to them.
"We kind of have some news," Hermione said blushing. "Um, I'm pregnant."
McGonagall's eyes widened. She looked at Harry, who was looking at the floor embarrassed; then, at the Grangers, who were nodding and looked a little stern. "You-?" she looked at Harry, who nodded before she could finish.
"Oh, my word! What would the Headmaster think?!" she asked herself shocked. "Pregnant teens. I mean, we've had them before, but not any your age, that's for sure. They were all seventeen. But fourteen?!"
The two teens looked down ashamed. Hermione looked up at her and confidently said, "But we're going to keep the baby and raise it. Harry and I both."
Harry nodded grabbing her hand.
McGonagall asked them, "Are you going to get married?"
They both blushed but said, "No."
McGonagall looked at them shaking her head. "We need to speak to the Headmaster, come on." She lead the four of them out of her office and down the corridors a little ways to the Headmaster's tower. She said, "Chocolate Frog." The staircase that led to his office began to move up and they all got on it. When they got to the door, McGonagall knocked and after a "come in", she opened the door and entered the office, with Harry and the Grangers behind her.
"Ah, Minerva, you've brought visitors! Harry, Hermione, Mr. and Mrs. Granger, great to see you!" the Headmaster said.
They all smiled and said hello to him.
"Albus, we have a situation," McGonagall said.
"What is it?"
"It appears that Miss Granger is with Harry Potter's child."
At this, Dumbledore looked up at them. "What? Are you sure?"
Hermione nodded. "I took a pregnancy test when I found out I was...late."
Dumbledore didn't speak for a moment. He was thinking. What he said shocked them.
"We have two options. One, to pull Miss Granger out of school and somewhere safe until she has the baby. Then we can take the baby away from her and have some Muggles adopt it and hide it. Two, we could...get rid of it."
"W-what?!" Harry exclaimed. Hermione put her hands protectively around her stomach. "No! We are not going to get rid of it! And Hermione's not going anywhere! She's staying right here with me!"
"Sir, I don't know how you can just do that! Kill an innocent life?!" Charlotte asked surprised.
"When Voldemort hears that Miss Granger is carrying Harry Potter's child, you know he's going to go after it," Dumbledore reasoned.
"Well, then I'll protect her and the baby. He won't get near it!" Harry cried to the man he always looked up to as a mentor.
"Harry, you're not strong enough and you never will be," Dumbledore sighed.
"Albus!" Minerva protested. "I think Mr. Potter and Miss Granger have messed up, but I do not think it wise to separate them."
The old man looked at her and said, "It's the wisest thing to do. If you don't want to separate them, then Miss Granger must get rid of the baby."
Hermione shook her head at the man she had trusted for over four years. "No! It's not happening!" She turned to her Head of House. "Do you think it will be okay if we could see Madame Pomfrey now?" She wanted-no, needed- to get away from this man now.
Minerva nodded sternly. They gave one last look at the Headmaster and left the office. Harry wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulders as a tear leaked through her eyes. "Sh, it's going to be okay. We'll work it out," he whispered soothingly into her ear and kissed her temple.
"I can't believe that man!" Charlotte exclaimed. "Abortion is wrong, no matter the costs, and forcing Hermione to give her child away?! Do you know how hard that is?!"
"I couldn't do it, Mum. No way. Please, don't let him take my baby away from me!" Hermione cried looking at her mother with sad eyes.
However, it was Harry who spoke. "He's not coming anywhere near you. I can promise you that!"
Hermione smiled at him and McGonagall said, "We could arrange for you a suite, if you would like, to raise the baby when you're here at school."
Harry and Hermione nodded and smiled. "If it's not too much trouble."
They finally arrived at the hospital wing. McGonagall opened the doors and let them all in. "Poppy!" she called for the medi-witch. A few moments later, she came out of her office confused. "Yes, Minerva?"
"Miss Granger is pregnant here. They would like to have a check-up, if you don't mind."
Hermione smiled shyly at the nurse, who nodded her head and guided her to a bed. "Come, dear, sit down." She turned to Harry and the Grangers. "The mother can stay but the men need to step outside."
Hermione looked confused. "But Harry's the father," she told her.
"He still needs to step outside."
Harry gave the medi-witch a glare behind her back and let Jacob lead him out of the room.
"I can't believe that! I'm the father! I should know how my own baby's doing!" he ranted.
Jacob said, "Yeah, I can understand me, but you..."
After about twenty minutes, the door opened and Charlotte stood there with a smile on her face. "You can go in now, both of you." The two men stood and walked back into the hospital wing. Harry rushing to Hermione's side. "Hey, what's the news?"
"Well," she smiled shyly. "There most definitely is a baby in here. And it's healthy and growing as well as it should be."
Harry smiled. "I'm glad." He kissed her cheek, making her blush a bit.
"Unfortunately, we cannot know what the sex of the baby is for another month. Usually, Muggles can't know until they are five months pregnant. But, this is the Wizarding world, so we get to know after a month," she said beaming brightly, making them all smile at her.
"Hermione, you're practically glowing!" Jacob teased.
She blushed again and giggled.
"Come on, we better get back to Grimmauld," Harry said grabbing her hand.
"Oh, come back in three weeks for another check-up. By then, you could probably know the sex of the baby," Madame Pomfrey said to them. They nodded, and with McGonagall and the Grangers, they went back to the Headmistress' office to Floo back to Grimmauld.
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When they stumbled out of the fireplace, Sirius asked them, "So how was it?"
"Well, there's a baby in Hermione, that's for sure. The bad news, however, is that Dumbledore has lost his mind," Harry said almost growling.
"What did he do?" Sirius asked curiously.
"He said that Hermione should get rid of the baby. Either separate us and she'd have it somewhere else and then give it to a safe Muggle family or abort the baby," Harry explained.
Sirius looked dumbstruck. "What?! He said that?!"
They nodded.
"C-can I go lie down?" Hermione asked feeling tired. It was two in the afternoon, but she was wiped out.
"Yes, honey, you better go rest," Charlotte said kissing her forehead.
"I'll bring her up," Harry offered and led her to her room. She sat on her bed and took off her socks and shoes. She looked up at him. "Stay with me?"
He nodded and proceeded to take off his own footwear getting into the bed, leaning his back against the headboard. Hermione got in bed, in between his legs, with her back on his chest. "Hold me, please."
He complied, wrapping his arms around her waist, resting on her stomach where their child was safely tucked into and growing. Hermione rested her head in the crook of his neck. "I still can't believe Dumbledore. I mean, I know you should be safe from Voldemort, but I would never steep so low as to suggest it to be killed."
Hermione nodded. "Did you mean it?"
"Mean what?"
"Your promise to me. That neither Dumbledore nor Voldemort would come near me?"
Harry was shocked. Of course he meant it! "Yes! Of course! No one is coming near you! No one is going to hurt you or the little one!" He kissed her head to seal the deal.
She smiled. "Thanks, Harry."
After a few minutes of a comfortable silence, Hermione spoke up, "What do you want, Harry? A boy or a girl?"
Harry thought a little about her question. A boy would be nice. He could teach him to ride a broomstick, play Quidditch with him, typical male bonding. But a girl would be great, as well, to cherish and love. "Uh, I don't really care what it is, just as long as it's healthy and happy. I'll still love them." Hermione smiled.
"Me, too. If it was a boy, I'm sure, you'd give him a broomstick on the day of his birth," she said pretty much reading his mind.
He laughed. "Probably." He suddenly turned serious. "Hermione?"
"Yeah?"
"What if I'm a bad father?"
She looked at him. "Why would you think that?"
He inhaled and exhaled heavily. "Well, I was raised by the Dursleys and they're not model parents. It's all I know. I don't want that to affect my ways of parenthood."
"Harry, you're not going to be a bad father. You know what the Dursleys did was wrong. You know what not to do. Just love them, okay? I'll teach you to feed them, bathe them, change them. I'll teach you how to chase the monsters away out of their closets. It's an instinct, Harry. You'll know what to do, but I'll help you and give you a push," she encouraged him and kissed his cheek.
He smiled and hugged her. "Thanks, Hermione."
"You're welcome." She turned back around nestled in Harry's embrace, drifted off to sleep. Harry looked at her as she slept. 'She's so beautiful.' He smiled as her chest rose and fell evenly, indicating that she was indeed asleep. He rubbed his thumb against her stomach, causing her to moaned softly and smile slightly in her sleep. He laid his head back against the headboard and soon joined her in sleep.