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N.E.W.T.S arrived during the third week of May. The whole attention of Gryffindor House had been on studying, a fact which made Harry grateful beyond all belief. He was thoroughly sick of the constant babying and worried mother hens following his every step. Once the all-important tests came about, however, everyone’s focus moved from Harry’s pregnancy onto their own futures.

Harry spent his out of classroom hours studying under the careful tutelage of Hermione and Draco. The 7^th years found the blonde Slytherin more frightening than Hermione. At least Hermione could be talked into breaks occasionally. Only Harry could sway Draco. Draco would call a halt to day-long study sessions only when it seemed Harry couldn’t handle another second of sitting.

When those times came, Harry could be found in the nursery, puttering and making things just so for the baby’s arrival. Draco envied him his calm and serene outlook on their future. Personally, Draco Malfoy was terrified of the tiny little thing residing inside his Harry. Oh, he loved her already, and couldn’t wait to see her and hold her…and spoil her, though no one would ever hear that out loud; but the idea of becoming a responsible parent at the age of 17 nearly made him quake with fear.

He was also nervous about the birth. Most male deliveries did not go smoothly. Combined with the absolute certainty that, as Harry Potter was the delivering father, something was bound to go wrong, the whole situation was making Draco a panicked wreck. He’d tried very hard not to smother Harry in the last few weeks, but his fear of losing the young man just after they found each other was huge.

Thankfully, Harry understood without words. He never complained when Draco snuggled up next to him during studying, sometimes so closely that it pinched. He was the first to offer his open arms when they retired to bed in the evenings, knowing that Draco would inch closer and closer until he thought Harry was asleep before gently cuddling Harry close. He even allowed Draco to hold his hand during class.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t allowed during the N.E.W.T.S. exams. Students had to be judged on their own merit. Spells were installed to ensure no cheating would occur, as was the separation of each student into their own cubbyhole for written exams. Everyone received the timetable for 7^th year exams just before breakfast on Monday. Harry investigated his own.

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
8-10	Herbology Written	Potions Written	Care of Magical Creatures Written	Charms Written	DADA Written
10-12	Herbology Practical	Potions Practical	Care of Magical Creatures Practical	Charms Practical	DADA Practical
12-1	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch	Lunch
1-3	History of Magic Written	Divination Written	Astronomy Written	Transfiguration Written	FREE
3-5	FREE	Divination Practical	Astronomy Practical (10-midnight)	Transfiguration Practical	FREE

Harry’s schedule differed from Draco’s in that Draco never taken Divination and had dropped Care of Magical Creatures as soon as was feasibly possible. Draco had taken Runes and Arithmancy in their place. Harry was relieved to see that he at least had a day before he had to face the humiliation of having an entirely different potions practical than every other 7^th year. Granted, Snape had worked with the Ministry officials to make sure that the replaced test was just as hard as the original, it just lacked any potions ingredients that might prove dangerous to an expectant person. Of course, that did little to help Harry’s embarrassment at once again receiving special treatment.

Dumbledore clinked his fork to his glass and announced that the exams would be beginning in 5 minutes. That gave the under years a chance to clear out the room and the staff to set the room up for test taking. With a sigh, Harry folded up his schedule and moved against the wall with the rest of his year mates. He watched in amazement as the Professors transformed the tables and chairs in the Great Hall into individual workstations.

They then moved into casting the anti-cheating spells and the silence spells. After that, they beckoned the students to take their places. Harry gave Draco a smile and a kiss for luck and then took the chair next to him. That was the last they saw of each other for the next four hours. Harry found that while the teachers could see the students, an opaque barrier kept the students from seeing out of their designated space.

The written portion went by smoothly. Harry was grateful for all the help that Neville had given him in the last few weeks. He had no doubt that if he found the exam easy, Neville would pass with flying colors. As each student finished their written, they would hold up their hand and a professor would come round to take the written and escort that student to the mini-greenhouse set up in the adjoining room for their practical. At the completion of the practical, the student was set free to do as they saw fit until lunchtime.

Harry met back up with Draco at lunch. The whole of the Great Hall was filled with anxious 7^th years discussing how they did on the exams. “I was so nervous about the last question on the third page,” Hermione waved her hands as she spoke.

“Why?” Draco asked curiously. “We went over that question just 2 weeks ago, remember?”

Hermione’s eyes widened. “I know!” she exclaimed. “But as I was writing, I thought…hmmm, what about the practical uses of Hartunmus root? Didn’t that fit in with the question as well? Well, I just couldn’t decide which one to put down!”

Draco frowned. “I see. You know, you’re right. They both have the same uses.”

Harry exchanged eye rolls with Ron. “I might have been a little unsure of your choice in the beginning, Harry,” Ron whispered, “but I gotta say that anyone who can deflect Hermione’s drilling about what we put for that question is definitely the guy for you to marry.”

Harry elbowed Ron playfully and dug into his food. After lunch came the History of Magic exam. Harry had been dreading it for years. The material wasn’t all that difficult, but every time Harry closed his eyes to try to remember a fact, he could hear Professor Binns voice droning in his ear. After the third time of nearly falling asleep as was his habit in History, he vowed to just write down whatever he thought of first. Maybe he’d get some wrong answers, but at least he’d stay awake through the end of the test questions.

That night he slept like a log, the drone of Binns still in his ears. When Draco shook him awake the next morning, he rolled over and dove under his pillow. It took 30 minutes, various threats and finally the unfair tickling of feet that Harry could no longer reach to drag him from his hiding place. Because Tuesday…was the Potions exam.

That morning’s breakfast was the quietest seen that year. The younger years stayed silent out of fear for their lives. More than one 7^th year had threatened to hex a giggling 3^rd year. Dumbledore sat at the head table grinning like there was no tomorrow. Strangely enough, even Snape had a smirk.

“Ah, Severus,” Albus snickered quietly. “The day of the N.E.W.T.S Potions exam is always so somber.”

“After seven years, headmaster, they are finally realizing that I wasn’t being a bastard for no reason,” Snape murmured, eyeing the horde of students below.

“I think there will always be those that disagree with you, my boy,” the old man laughed.

Snape followed his gaze to the Gryffindor table and the death glare being offered by Weasley. He sighed. “Fortunately, I don’t care, Albus.”

Dumbledore shook his head. “Don’t forget to whom you’re fibbing, Severus,” he chided.

Snape rolled his eyes. “Fine. I suppose I do care how some of them feel,” he grated. “But only a select few.”

Dumbledore nodded. “Speaking of which, how did the arrangements go with the Ministry of Magic for Harry’s practical?”

Snape sneered. “Ignorant bastards were going to have him make a rejuvenating potion.” Dumbledore raised an eyebrow and Snape nodded. “One whiff of powdered dragon wing and he’d have had heart palpitations the like of which the Ministry had never seen. I simply don’t understand how Fudge can hire such incompetents!”

Dumbledore hid most of his smile behind his cup of tea. If only Harry knew how fiercely Snape had been monitoring the Ministry’s choices he would never fear the man again. However, since the terror-factor was the only thing that kept Snape teaching his precious potions to ‘ignorant children’ each year, Dumbledore decided to let it slide. “Well, I’m glad you caught that error, my boy. And don’t forget…no matter how incompetent the Ministry staff, I don’t want to lose my Potions Master to them quite yet.”

Snape dropped his head in a slight acknowledgement, refusing to let show how Dumbledore’s praise made him feel. A few moments later and Dumbledore called for the younger years to take their leave and the second day of testing began.

Harry had only one moment of panic during the written. One of the last page questions had to do with male fertility potions. He skipped that question and raced on ahead, mind going willy-nilly, and had to not only backtrack to answer the fertility question, but also to correct the answers he had been too flustered to make any sense of. Finally, he finished the written and held his hand up.

He was carefully escorted to the adjoining room, the Ministry officials making sure that no student came into contact with him at any point. Really, Harry thought it was stupid. They had to have known that he was going to take a different practical than everyone else. Nonetheless, they made a precise point of letting him see no one.

He was pleasantly surprised to find that the potion they required him to make was the very one that he and Draco had studied so carefully last week: the polyanimagus potion. He knew that there were no toxic ingredients in it and, though he was unable to test it out on himself, the potions master that was supervising its creation nodded in a pleased manner and offered to test it himself. Harry knew at that point that he had succeeded. No potions master worth his weight would dare try a student’s potion if they weren’t sure of its validity.

At lunchtime, Draco crowed for nearly a half and hour about how simple the tests were. Hermione, much to the disgust of the rest of the table, crowed right along with him. “Oh, Harry,” she offered up during one of the very short cease-fires of the mutual admiration society, “what did you make for your practical?”

She looked suitably impressed. “That’s a really hard potion. Surely you didn’t test it out though?” she asked worriedly. Draco perked up at her tone and pulled his attention away from the conversation he was holding with Seamus.

“Test what?” he demanded. “They didn’t make you test your potion did they?” his voice dropped into a growl.

Harry shivered, loving the protective note in Draco’s tone. “No, love,” he smiled, patting Draco’s hand. “The potions master giving the exam tested it.”

Draco whooped, the sound drawing all eyes to the Gryffindor table. Harry attempted to hush him up but was too caught up in laughing at the normally staid Slytherin howling in glee. “That’s great!” Draco shouted. “You got an ‘O’ for sure!” He turned to Hermione and began a lively discussion of potential grades for the Arithmancy test they had next.

Harry just sighed and went back to his potatoes. ~I married a nerd. ~ He thought with a fond smile.

Divination wasn’t bad. Correction…the written Divination wasn’t bad. He’d long since mastered the knack of true Divination simply by noting all the quack procedures he had to go through just to ‘live’ to the next class session. The practical sucked. He kept trying to focus on scrying but all that he could see was pink clouds. Finally, he just gave up and asked for another mode of divining, stating that his daughter refused to let him see anything but the walls in her new room.

The official didn’t find his comment amusing. He was pretty sure that he didn’t get an ‘O’ on his Divination N.E.W.T.S.

That night, Harry fell into bed exhausted beyond all belief. He didn’t even feel Draco tuck him in and for the first time in months, the baby didn’t wake him up in the middle of the night. This was good, as he had Care of Magical Creatures the next morning. He knew that he had to make an extra effort to pass that exam, as Hagrid would be anxiously awaiting the results.

Unfortunately, he had to rely on the studying he’d done over the last few months because, as he quickly found out…Hagrid didn’t go by the book very often. Most of the creatures that were on the test had never seen the light of day in the Hogwarts’ animal pens. He felt pretty secure in the written though, enough so that he didn’t check the paper over a third time as he’d done in Potions or even in Divination.

He couldn’t believe his luck to head out to the practical room and see a cage with a runespoor in it. He grinned at the official who eyed him warily and then hissed a greeting at the three-headed snake. Most of that exam was taken up with the examiner asking Harry to ask the poor creature very personal questions. From the awed looks the man kept giving him to the adoring cooing he was doing to the runespoor, Harry felt pretty sure that he just got his second ‘O’ of the week.

He amused his tablemates at lunch with the snarky responses the snake had made that he hadn’t the courage to translate for the excited examiner. After lunch, they took their Astronomy written. Once again, he had a good feeling about his work. Good enough that he didn’t even complain when, straight after the test, Draco rushed Harry off for a long nap before preparing for the Astronomy practical that evening.

He was kind of embarrassed, though, when Draco refused to let him out the door that night without a winter cloak, an extra scarf and a set of gloves in his pocket. He finally gave in after Draco turned the sad boo boo lip on Hermione and Ginny, who glared at Harry for making Draco feel bad about caring for Harry’s health. He could have sworn that he later saw the three of them giggling as they moved out of the portrait door.

Practically dead on his feet after the exam, Harry conked out before making it back to the room. Hermione cast a lighten spell on him and Draco swung his bonded up in his arm and transported him back to their room.

The next day was a nightmare. At least for Harry. The Ministry officials were quite pleased, actually. The written Charms exam went well, but the baby woke up during the practical. Simple charms turned into extravagant disasters that the examiners demanded to see duplicated again and again.

If Harry locked a chest, the baby unlocked it just as quickly…the lid flying open and everything in the chest flying through the air in a whirl until it finally dropped on their heads. If Harry charmed water to heat to a specific temperature, the baby caused the examiners coffee to boil and shoot out of the cup practically scalding the Ministry officials.

No matter how hard he tried to convince the examiners that each repetition of the charm caused the baby to become irritated and caused him pain, they were more interested in the science of it. He couldn’t count the number of times he heard, “show a stiff upper lip, boy.” By the time lunch rolled around, he was nearing a breakdown.

He wandered into the Great Hall, not having the energy to climb the stairs to the dorm as he had done the first two days. He didn’t know what he looked like, but was pretty sure it was something close to death warmed over from the looks the other students gave him. He flopped onto his seat and dropped his head onto the table. He must have fallen asleep for a bit because the next thing he knew, Draco was gently calling his name.

Harry sat up, flinching as his stomach cramped. “Bloody examiner made me cast everything at least 4 times because the baby made some ‘interesting changes’ in nearly everything I did,” he groused, not caring if he sounded like a petulant child at the moment.

A tic formed in Draco’s eyebrow. “And did they not notice that you were in excruciating pain with every casting?” he enunciated carefully.

Harry snorted. “Apparently I need to learn how to ‘show a stiff upper lip’.” Draco surged up from the table. “Dray?” Harry called nervously as the blonde stalked through the tables like an avenging angel. He attempted to rise, to go to his infuriated bonded, but Hermione and Ron each held onto an arm.

“I wouldn’t, Harry,” Ron stated calmly. “He looks about ready to Avada someone.”

Draco made a straight line for the head table. He planted himself in front of Dumbledore and snarled, “I demand the immediate termination of the Charms examiners.”

Silence fell across the room. Dumbledore placed his cup of tea onto its saucer and leaned forward. “That is indeed a grave demand, Mr. Malfoy,” he said easily. “Might I know the nature of your reasoning?”

Draco forced himself to unclench his fists. “Indeed, Headmaster, I would be delighted to inform you of just that. If I may be permitted to come closer?” He gestured to the dais upon which the head table rested. Dumbledore inclined his head and Draco was soon ensconced in a circle of professors repeating what Harry had told him, no doubt with his own personal thoughts on the matter.

Dumbledore’s customary twinkle disappeared. Minerva’s thin lips pressed in to a moue of disapproval. Sprout and Flitwick looked horrified. Everyone had just the expression one might expect to see, save Snape. When Draco had finished his tale, Snape exploded from his chair, much as his godson had done only minutes ago. The headmaster attempted to wave him back to his seat.

“Severus, we must hear all sides of the story,” the old man said, though anger was evident in his own eyes.

“Bollocks!” shouted the younger professor, shocking most of the Hall’s inhabitants. “There are no sides to be heard!” he continued in a lower tone. “They attempted to use a testing student as a guinea pig, Albus. I can name a half dozen Ministry laws that violates off of the top of my head, not to mention what Black will do when he hears of this!”

Albus looked interested once again. “You would actually correspond with Sirius to pursue this, Severus?” Snape’s expression took on a slow simmer and Albus grinned. “Very well, my boy. Since you are so animated on this subject, I will allow you to…question…the examiners on their thinking.” Snape nearly knocked his chair over in his hurry to leave the room.

“Severus,” Dumbledore called after him. “Do try not to make any of them cry?”

Snape made them cry. Dumbledore was called into a private meeting with Cornelius Fudge on the matter. Apparently, the officials…after making themselves presentable…had fire called the Minister of Magic to complain about the verbal abuse that Snape had heaped upon them. They also had some silly notion that Snape had made a death threat or two along with something about a dismembering hex.

Snape made no excuses. Dumbledore offered no apologies. Yet somehow Fudge left that day, tail between his legs, mumbling something about probation periods and terminations. But Harry found out none of this until after the Transfiguration exam.

The written was enough to calm Harry down after the vigorous Charms practical. The theories and spells swirled through his head like a balm and he knew when he raised his hand after the last question that here was another subject that he would have no difficulty passing. His positive attitude sagged a bit as he felt the baby move.

Sure enough, she was awake for the practical. Harry transfigured a chair into a four-poster bed. The baby wanted the Gryffindor common room couch. Harry transfigured a stick into a goat. The baby preferred a dog that looked just like her grand-godfather. Harry transfigured a block of wood into water into pumpkin juice. The baby liked the taste of milk better, thank you.

After each transfiguration, the board would frown and scribble something on their clipboards and Harry would bend over, clutching his gut. By the third cock-up one of the examiners, a young woman hardly older than Harry, called a halt.

“Mr. Potter,” she requested, “could you please explain these strange circumstances?”

Harry flushed. “Yes, ma’am,” he murmured. “I’m pregnant, as you can see.” He gestured to his stomach. “The baby is a bit…different,” he said carefully. “She seems to be able to cast any spell I’ve cast and from what I’ve seen just today, she can apparently see some of the things I’ve seen.”

Harry shrugged. “Well, that…” he pointed to the couch, “is the couch from our common room. It’s the only place she’ll let me sit without kicking me in the ribs. It’s her favorite place to have me sit.” He flushed a bit at the skeptical looks. “A-an that…” he pointed to the dog laying in the corner, “looks exactly like my go- er…my friend’s dog. And she hates pumpkin juice. I always get heartburn when I drink it. She really only likes milk.”

He tried to smile but the dour looks on the other examiners’ faces didn’t bode well. The woman sighed as she glanced at her companions. “Let me just see, then,” she stated as she stood. And with that, she began the judicious application of a few prior incantato spells. After a few minutes in which there was total silence save for the revealing and dispelling spells, the board discovered that Harry’s transfigurations were indeed quite correct. And that Harry’s baby was indeed quite peculiar.

“By Great Merlin,” the examiner on the right exclaimed quietly. “This is a ruddy miracle! Boy, cast something else,” he demanded. Harry winced, not ready yet to go through another half hour of pain for someone’s curiosity.

“Absolutely not!” the woman snapped. “This is not a horse and pony show. We can clearly see that Mr. Potter knows what he is doing and is in great pain by doing it. Forcing him to demonstrate more spells just to satisfy our whims is cruel and inhuman.”

With reluctant sighs, the two men finally agreed with their female companion. They let Harry go with a nod. They were quite pleased with their forced agreement several hours later when word came concerning the sacking of a Charms examiner for continuing in the very same vein they had turned from. Harry was astounded at the protective streak Snape seemed to have towards him and trod very carefully around the sour faced man for the rest of the evening.

Friday morning came far too early but with it came the realization that they only had one more N.E.W.T.S. class. Or at least Harry did. Draco and Hermione had Ancient Runes that afternoon. He kissed Draco goodbye at the end of breakfast and trotted over to his seat for the last test he would ever take in the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

He flew through the written and wasn’t surprised when he was told he was the first student finished. He was led to the practical room and faced his final panel of examiners. “Good day, Mr. Potter,” intoned a stately older gentleman.

Harry smiled nervously. “Good day, sir…sirs,” he included the rest of the room.

The first man cleared his throat. “For the purpose of this exam, I would like to have a mock duel.” Harry nodded warily and took up position across from the examiner. The first part of the duel went well. Harry ducked or dodged or used the Protego spell to shield against the attacks, managing to get in a few of his own attacks as well, much to the older man’s delight.

The crux of the situation came when Harry decided to disarm his opponent. “Expelliarmus!” he called, expecting the older man’s wand to fly from his hand. What he got was the older man flying across the room. He had completely forgetting that the baby associated Expelliarmus with danger. The examiner hit the wall with a loud thud and several cracks that Harry might have been concerned about, save for the sudden roaring agony in his midsection.

He dropped to his knees and followed that quickly up with a header onto the floor. He laid clutching his belly and moaning as the room whipped out of control. Chairs, desks, people and items were flying about haphazardly. It looked as though a whirlwind had suddenly been cast with Harry as the center. He could vaguely make out some screaming, high piteous screaming, and wondered whom it could be.

It was only after a petrifying spell cast on his person that he realized the screaming was his own. He was levitated to the infirmary. He wanted to apologize. He wanted to know if everyone else was all right. He wanted to ask if he’d passed. He wanted Draco. What he got was Madam Pomfrey and Headmaster Dumbledore.

“Harry? Harry, my boy…can you hear me?” the normally jovial voice sounded worried. Harry nodded, scared to open his eyes, scared that if the baby saw something she didn’t like, she’d have another go at him.

“Harry, dear,” Pomfrey’s voice, also worried. “Harry, you’re going into labor. It’s not just pangs this time. This is for real. I’m going to cast some spells to ease the pain and to calm you. Let me know if they work, all right?”

“No!” he nearly shouted. “I-I mean…yes, I want him here,” he tried to explain, “but he still has another N.E.W.T. to do.” He looked up at the headmaster’s vaguely disapproving stare. “Please, sir,” he begged. “Please don’t ruin this for him. I’ll be fine. Labor should last for a while yet, right?” he glanced up at Pomfrey for help.

She frowned but nodded. “I can’t see the boy giving birth for a few more hours, Albus. It might even make it easier if we didn’t have so many bodies in here,” she sighed, giving in to the pleading look on the young man’s face.

Dumbledore sighed but nodded as well. “Fine. We will wait until Mr. Malfoy is out of his exam. But,” he pointed a long, gnarled finger at Harry. “You are to do exactly as Poppy says, young man.”

Harry smiled through his pain. “Yes, sir. She can cast to her heart’s content. I’ll even let Professor Snape dose me up with some of his concoctions if you like.”

Albus nodded. “Good idea, Harry. I’ll have Severus come down immediately.” Harry winced, knowing he had only himself to blame for that one.

Dumbledore waited at the entrance hall for the Gryffindors and Draco to come down. He caught them just as they were noticing Harry wasn’t there. “Hello, children,” he smiled. “How did your tests go?” A chorus followed, mostly filled with positives. “Wonderful!” he patted heads and shoulders. “I was sent to tell you that young Harry is resting and that he wishes you the best of luck on your Ancient Runes exam, Draco.”

Dumbledore just smiled beatifically. “He’ll be fine in a few hours, my boy. Just run along and finish your exam and all will be well.” Draco nodded and moved to the lunch table. Dumbledore went back to his office wondering why it was so much harder to mislead a 17-year-old boy than it was to mislead the Dark Lord.

Five hours later, he was back at the entrance hall. This time, the jovial smile was gone. In its place was a pinched frown. Draco knew immediately that something was wrong. He planted himself in front of the headmaster and glared down at the old man. “What?” he demanded.

Dumbledore just motioned for Draco to follow him. Tagging along behind were Mione, Ron, Neville, Pansy and Millicent. He hesitated briefly as he saw the entourage behind Draco, but the look on the blonde’s face was enough to force him to confide. Which he did as they walked.

“We have a slight problem, Mr. Malfoy,” he began. “I mislead you earlier at your husbands behest. He went into labor during his DADA practical.”

Dumbledore kept his eyes on the hall in front of him. “Harry went into labor over five hours ago. He begged us not to interrupt you because he wanted you to complete your tests. Myself and Madam Pomfrey agreed only because it seemed as though he would be in labor for a while as most first time mothers are.”

Dumbledore sighed. “But, Harry’s child…your daughter…is rather a difficulty none of us could have foreseen.”

“What does that me--…bugger this,” he snapped, and shoved past the headmaster to race down the hallway to the infirmary. Dumbledore slowed and watched the others shove past him as well.

Draco slammed through the infirmary inner doors and glanced frantically about. He spotted Harry in the far corner of the room and shot to his side. He nearly stumbled at the sight of his husband. Harry had no color. None. He blended into the sheets with an almost frightening similarity. His shock of dark hair was soaked with sweat and his eyes were shining with tears.

He lay gasping, an occasional sob breaking through his concentration. Madam Pomfrey hovered over the top of him trying to sponge cool his forehead. “What the hell is going on here?” Draco breathed.

“Dray?” Harry’s attention moved to the blonde and he smiled in heartbreaking relief. “Dray…” he held out his hand. Unable to keep it aloft, it fell to the bed. Draco was there in a moment, clutching it gently.

“I’m here, love,” he smiled reassuringly. He then turned to Pomfrey. “Why doesn’t he have a pain spell on?” he demanded with a growl.

Pomfrey looked plaintively at him. “I’ve tried. Over and over, I’ve tried,” she said quietly. “The baby keeps throwing them off.”

“What about a potion?” Hermione asked worriedly peering over Draco’s shoulder.

Pomfrey shook her head. The group was startled when Snape stepped up from the other side of the curtain. “Unfortunately,” he stated, “the child neutralizes everything I’ve tried.” Draco’s eyes begged his godfather to help. Snape shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry, my child,” he said softly. “There’s nothing we can do to stop the pain or dull his senses.”

“We’ve been waiting for you, Draco, so we could start a caesarean section,” Poppy added, beginning to bustle about, gathering items.

“But…but if the baby is stopping all the spells and the potions…” he asked haltingly, confused.

Pomfrey stopped for a moment, looking sadly at him. “I’m sorry, Draco. It’s the only way. The baby isn’t letting us cast on her or her father. We can’t remove her by magic. We have to cut into him and take her out manually.”

“But…the pain?” he whispered, staring down at Harry’s colorless face. Harry who was so dear to him. Harry who meant everything to him. Harry who hurt so much now that he didn’t even know they were discussing causing him more pain. “Please, make it quick,” he begged quietly.

Pomfrey nodded. “Everyone out. Millicent,” she called. “I need you to assist. Draco, if you think you can stay out of the way, you may take up residence at your husband’s head. If you are prone to fainting, vomiting, or attempting to stop me at any point, leave now or I will be forced to hex you mid-birth.”

Draco started at the sincerity in her voice, but nodded. “I’ll do as I’m told, ma’am,” he said.

At that point, she seemed to forget he was in the room. She and Millicent worked seamlessly together. They prepped the operating area and gathered everything they might need for a muggle style birth…then they stood over Harry’s convulsing body. Draco had moved from holding Harry’s hand at his side to holding both Harry’s hands over his head. He leaned down and kissed his husband on the forehead.”

“It’ll be all right, Harry,” he murmured. “Millie is here with Pomfrey. They’ll take care of you. And I’m here. I won’t leave you, love. Just hold onto me, all right?”

Harry nodded, unable to make any coherent words. “We’re going to strap you down now, Harry,” Pomfrey said calmly. “It’s for your own protection. This will hurt quite a bit and we don’t want you thrashing about making it worse. Do you understand?”

Harry nodded again and the women went about strapping Harry’s legs, hips, chest and arms to the bed. Draco was left without anything to hold onto, so he leaned down to press his cheek to Harry’s. “I love you, Harry. It’ll be okay. Soon, you’ll be holding our baby. I bet she’ll look just like you…beautiful and precious.”

He wanted to cry. He knew that Millie and Pomfrey could see that as well, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He just kept leaning over Harry’s head, trying to show his love and nearness with every word, every caress.

Out in the waiting room, just two doors away from the operating area, a few others had joined the 7th years that had followed. Ginny, Colin, Seamus, Dean and Lavender all showed up in one group. Moments later, Crabbe and Goyle slunk down the hallway. They took up position against the far wall and eyed everyone seated as if daring them to demand the Slytherins go away.

Pansy rolled her eyes and moved to them. Grabbing each by an arm, she dragged them over to the chunk of floor she had claimed for her own and shoved them down. They were surprised to find Ginny and Seamus, who were sitting next to Pansy, move over with a smile to make room for them. They all sat quietly, waiting.

When the first scream came, half of the waiting room echoed it. They stared at one another in terror and frantically clutched at each other for support. The scream that followed dragged tears from nearly every eye. The next dozen screams ran together. Pansy clapped her hands over her ears. After a moment of hesitation, Crabbe put an arm around her shoulders and she flung herself into his arms. He held her, locking pained eyes with Goyle who began to pet Pansy’s back comfortingly.

Hermione gripped Ron’s hand until it turned blue, but he didn’t complain. He just sat biting his lip until a tiny streak of blood ran down his chin. Ginny wrapped her arms around her knees and began rocking. Neville moved closer and enveloped her in a hug.

Back in the infirmary, Pomfrey tossed the scalpel onto the cart and plunged her hands into Harry’s body. His screams grew shriller and he attempted to buck from his position. Draco clung to Harry’s upper body, screaming along with his love, trying to keep Harry from seeing the sickening mess that was his stomach. A moment later, Pomfrey pulled a wriggling little girl from her home of 9 months and handed her to Millie.

The Slytherin held the child as the mediwitch cut the umbilical cord and tied it off. A moment later, a healthy squall echoed through the room and Millie smiled as she took the baby to clean her up and wrap her in a blanket. Pomfrey made short work of the placenta and immediately grabbed for her wand. Giving a pain spell a try, she was relieved to find that once the baby was gone from her parent’s body, Harry’s body allowed her to help it.

He stopped whimpering and lay quietly while Pomfrey healed his incisions magically. An instant later, a shining pink scar was the only proof that Harry’s guts had been exposed to the world, and Pomfrey was beginning to clean up the disturbingly huge pools of blood that stained everything in sight.

Draco waited precisely the amount of time it took the mediwitch to nod to him before he was clambering over the top of Harry’s bed, trying to kiss every exposed inch of him. “I’m so sorry, love,” he cried, not even caring anymore if anyone saw his tears. “I love you so much, Harry.”

Harry stared up at his husband with a smile. “I love you too, Draco,” he returned hoarsely. “Thank you for being here.”

Draco laughed through his tears. “Where else would I be, idiot? You’re my world, Harry Potter-Malfoy.”

Harry shook his head. “Nope. Just Harry Malfoy,” he whispered. Draco stared down at him in shock. Harry just grinned and sat up, knowing that if it weren’t for the pain spells in effect, he would be doing no such thing. He looked over Draco’s shoulder. “Is that my daughter?” he joked, pointing to the bundle in Millie’s arms.

She nodded, a smile lighting up her normally plain face. “Indeed it is,” she stated, handing the baby to her birth parent. Harry took her gingerly, holding her so that Draco could see her tiny features.

“Oh, Merlin, Harry,” Draco breathed, staring in awe at the shock of dark hair and the baby-blue eyes. “She’s beautiful.”

Harry nodded. “Yes she is. Hi sweetie,” he whispered. “Remember me? I’m your daddy.” He glanced up at Draco’s shining face and smiled back down at the little girl in his arms. “And this is your other daddy.”

A tear hit Harry’s arm and he tactfully refrained from pointing out that it was Draco’s.

Harry glanced up and nodded with a smile. “Sure,” he said. “Draco, you hold her. They’ll be better able to see her from there anyway.”

Draco gaped. Having Harry call her Draco’s daughter was one thing. Letting him hold the sweet bundle was entirely something else. He took her in his arms, as careful as though she were the most fragile thing in existence. Just before the doors slammed open, he glanced back at Harry and smiled. Then he lowered his lips to her tiny head and gave her a gentle kiss.

The hordes of visitors didn’t seem to faze her at all. She opened bright eyes and blinked calmly at the cooing girls. She waved a tiny hand in the air at the ‘uninterested’ boys. She yawned when Dumbledore smiled down at her. She cocked her head when Minerva cooed at her. And in the most amusing moment of the day, she stretched both arms out and waved them at Snape when he was pushed forward by Albus to frown down upon the spawn of Potter.

Snape stepped back quickly at the mischievous smile on Draco’s face, less he wind up holding the blasted thing in front of his almost-former students. “What are you naming her? Lily? Severina?” Ginny snickered at her potions master.

The two young men smiled at each other and then down at their daughter. “Acacia Elise Malfoy,” Harry stated.