Fire and the Dragon

A/N: Ok, another filler chapter. Not at all thrilled with it, but needed to get through the month of April. The next chapter will be much better, I promise. Hopefully will be done by Christmas. Thanks for the reviews and for reading. Ya\'ll are the best!



















Ch. 20 April Showers



April dawned with renewed warmness and fragrance. Hermione spent the majority of her free time trying to perfect the baby’s room.



With the help of Professors Flitwick and McGonagall, she had enclosed a corner of her room to accommodate the impending arrival. Now she merely needed to get a crib and a few clothing items and she should be all set.



She had decided to paint the room a soft pink. To Severus’ horror, he walked in to see the girl teetering on the top of a chair, trying to reach the top of the wall. He had quickly pulled her down and told her that if she needed something done, he would personally see to it.



Though they had finally labeled their relationship, not much had changed. They were perhaps a bit more considerate with one another, but to the public eye, no change of substance could be noted.



One warm day, near the start of the Easter holidays, Hermione sat perched by a window in the potion’s classroom while Severus graded exams.



“Severus,” Hermione breathed while rubbing her abdomen. “Yes?” he said, barely looking up from the parchments in front of him.



“Let’s go on a picnic today for lunch. I am tired of being cooped up in the castle all the time.” Severus spared the time to arch an eyebrow in her direction. “You can not be serious, forgive me if I am not thrilled by the idea, Hermione.”



Her bottom lip began to quiver and her eyes filled with tears. Severus looked at her, as if this were a common occurrence. “Good gods, woman, are you about to cry AGAIN?”



“I just thought that maybe you would like to get out too. Spend some time together.” She sobbed. Severus placed his quill down and motioned for her to join him, flicking his wand to lock the door in the process.



She jumped up, sat on his lap, and buried her head in his neck. “I’m sorry, Severus. I don’t know what is wrong with me lately.” Severus wrapped his arms around her and kissed her head.



“It is quite alright, Hermione. The older women of the castle warned me that you will be a human water fountain until you give birth and your hormones level out once again.” He whispered to her.



She sat up and laughed at his use of the word ‘hormones’ before kissing his cheek and heading to the door. Severus watched with amused interest. “And where, madam, are you off to in such a rush?”



She turned to him and smiled, “I am going on a picnic, alone. No need for you to keep me locked in all day.” She waved at him and headed outside. Severus placed his head in his hands. He would be happy when the witch was back to being stable.



Hermione sat by the black lake, watching the giant squid lazily swim around under the sun. She slowly nibbled her lunch of turkey and cheese on wheat. Simply enjoying her moment of peace.



“Ah, Ms. Granger, there you are, dear.” Hermione cringed at the sudden interruption. She turned to greet whomever had discovered her solitude. An extremely pleased looking Headmistress was closing in on her.



“Good afternoon, Professor.” Hermione said politely, though she really wanted to hex the woman. McGonagall looked her up and down and offered a warm smile.



“Ms. Granger, a few of the other female professors and I had a most wonderful idea. If you agree, of course.” Hermione’s interest was piqued, what was the woman up to?



“Actually, it was Madame Pomfrey that suggested it. She, and I, thought it would be delightful if you allowed us to give you a baby shower sometime in the coming week.” Never had the Headmistress’ eyes held such pleading with Hermione.



Hermione, however, was contemplating the idea. Would she really be able to allow these women to put her on display like a right whale? Seeing the excitement in her old professor’s eyes made her cave. “Alright, Professor.” She sighed. “Thank you.”



McGonagall clapped her hands together and told Hermione to leave all of the arrangements to the others. Hermione went back to her lunch, a bit less relaxed than she had been before.



The morning of the shower, Hermione was dreading getting out of bed. The party was to be held in a few hours in the Great Hall. McGonagall had invited all of the female members of the staff, Mrs. Weasley, Fleur, Ginny, and Madam Rosmerta from the Three Broomsticks.



As every guest arrived, they felt the need to rub Hermione’s stomach, comment on her size, and ask how she was feeling. ‘Pretty bloody damn tired of having people touch me, that is how I am feeling.’ She thought every time.





It was nice, however, for people to be so generous. The first thing she had to do at this ‘show’ was open gifts. There were so many pink clothes and dresses. Ginny had even given her a camera.



After the presents, people generally just sat around and swapped the latest gossip. Hermione was left out of this tradition, so she sat at the end of the table and pushed food around her plate.



Mrs. Weasley approached her. She groaned, oh this was going to be fun. The red-haired matriarch sat beside her and clasped her hands. “Hermione, dear.” She began.



“I can not begin to apologize for my behavior.” Hermione’s eyes darted up to met the older witch’s. “Mrs. Weasley?” she asked, because surely she had heard wrong.



Mrs. Weasley took a deep breath. “These past 7 months must have been so hard on you, and instead offering you a woman’s shoulder to cry on, I have been giving you a difficult time about something that is your decision.”



Both women were crying and hugging as the rest of the congregation looked on in relief. Professor McGonagall nodded her head in approval. It was about time that stubborn redhead got over herself.



After everyone had left and Hermione had said her last good-bye, she left for her rooms, exhausted. To her delight, Severus was waiting for her in his favorite of her two fluffy chairs.



“How was the party, my dear?” he asked, still clearly amused by the old custom. Hermione plopped down in her chair and covered her eyes. “Ugh, I felt like a sideshow freak. Why must older women touch a pregnant stomach?”



Severus chuckled. “They were generous, at the very least.” He had been amazed at what the house elves had brought down to the dungeons. Hermione smiled. “Yes, they were all very kind.”



Standing above her, Severus looked down and smiled. “I understand that you must be tired, however.” He said silkily. “I have only one thing to show you before I leave you to your rest.”



He helped her out of the chair and led her to the baby’s room. Hermione looked at Severus with wonder in her eyes. “But you said it would not be finished until next month.” She exclaimed.



“Forgive me for being punctual.” He droned sarcastically. “I must warn you,” he added, “Mr. Longbottom is entirely responsible for the mess you see on the walls.” Hermione couldn’t stifle the giggle at Severus’ tone.



When he opened the door, Hermione gasped. It was a princess room. The round crib she had picked out was in the middle of the space, decked out in pink sheets. A small chest for clothing sat by the far wall. In the corner was a white rocking chair.



All on the walls, which were pink, were paintings of castles and white/silver dragons that flew at liberty along the walls. The castles seemed to be floating on painted clouds. It was amazing.



“It’s perfect.” She cooed. She turned to give Severus a quick kiss. “Thank you.” She told him. He shrugged his shoulders at her open display. “Well, we couldn’t have you climbing the walls to do it yourself. Stubborn Gryffindor.” She rolled her eyes at his ‘display’.



“Snarky Slytherin.” She shot back at him playfully. “Hmm.” He purred. “That I am, Ms. Granger.” He pulled her close to his chest in a rare, loving embrace, before they bid one another good-night, and went to their beds.