Essential Hope

Madam Pomfrey had forced me to stay in the hospital wing overnight, even though I had insisted that I’d felt fine. Fred had reluctantly left my side after several dozen warnings from Madame Pomfrey; I’d slept restlessly that night. Whether it was from the battle, the news of Dumbledore, or the image of my father standing over me, I wasn’t sure. I just figured it was a combination of all three. Yesterday had been Dumbledore’s funeral. I remembered sitting in one of the front aisles; Fred on my right, Harry on my left. We’d cried until our eyes went dry.

The sunlight filtering in through the partially opened blinds drew me from my restless sleep. My stomach felt queasy this morning.

What did Madame Pomfrey give me last night I groaned silently as I stumbled into the bathroom. After heaving up the few contents in my stomach, I made my way back to my bed. I pushed my pillow up against the wall and sat up, waiting for the nausea to pass. A soft tapping on the window drew my attention; glancing over, I was surprised to see Ebony perched on the sill, a letter attached to her leg.

Rushing over to the window, she fluttered in, perching on the desk as I took the letter from her. She gave my hand a small nip, and then disappeared back out the window to hunt. As I dropped back onto my bed, I tore open the top of the letter and pulled the paper out.

Kelsey,
Your brothers and I are planning a trip to the Bahamas this summer. Jeff will be in Massachusetts visiting family, and we’d love to have you come along with us. I know you left on a bad note before the school year, but I would love to reconnect with you, sweetheart. We’re leaving June 30th, and we’ll be back in time for you to attend school next semester.
Let me know if you’ll be joining us! We’d love to see you honey.
Love,
Mom

Tears stung my eyes; that was the most sincere thing my mother had ever said to me since my dad died. Ever since Dolohav had killed him, she’d been distant and angry, and always treating me horribly. The thought of vacationing with my mom, Lakey, and Carson made me feel happier than I had in a long time. And if Jeff wasn’t gonna be there, how could I resist? I’d have to talk to Fred first, though. Maybe he could come with us.

Madame Pomfrey had a stack of parchment and a few quills, so I quickly wrote my mom a reply.

Mom,
That sounds like a lot of fun! Would my boyfriend be able to come along with us? He’s a great guy, I’d love for you all to meet him. Let me know,
Love,
Kelsey

I called for Ebony, and tied the note to her leg. As I watched her fly off, I heard the door to Madame Pomfrey’s room open, and I turned to see her walking towards me, a folder in her arms. She spotted me, and beckoned me over to the bed.

Worried, I went over without hesitation and anxiously sunk down onto the mattress.

“Ms. Werner,” she said, her voice gentle with concern. “You’re blood tests have come back, and I’ve found some very surprising news.”

My heart stuttered for a moment; I took a deep breath, preparing for whatever she had to say. What could be wrong with me? I felt fine; well, except for throwing up this morning. But that was most likely just from whatever Madame Pomfrey had given me.

“What?” I asked, working hard to keep my voice even.

“Ms. Werner, you’re pregnant.”

Out of all the reactions I could have had, laughing was the weirdest. I burst into a fit of laughter, clutching my sides and bending over. Gasping for breath, I sat up, wiped my eyes, and asked,

“You’re joking, right?”

“No, Ms. Werner. I’m completely serious. “ Still laughing softly, I stared at her, waiting for her to crack a smile; to laugh along with me and say “No, I’m just kidding. You’re perfectly fine”.

She just gave a small shake of her head; instantly, the smile dropped off my face, and I drew in a sharp breath. Madame Pomfrey opened the folder and turned it towards me. I read down the paper until my eyes saw:

Pregnancy: Positive

Pushing myself up off the bed, I paced towards the window, running my hands through my hair.

“Oh my God…” I breathed, shaking my head. “No, no, no. That can’t be right.”

“Ms. Werner, I understand teenage pregnancy is very hard to go through. You have a number of options open to you. We can send you to St. Mungo’s for an abortion-“

“What!?” I gasped, whirling around. “No! No way!”

“Or,” Madame Pomfrey continued, “We can help you through you’re pregnancy, if you need it.”

“I’m not having an abortion,” I said firmly, instinctively wrapping my arms around my body.

“Do you know who the father is, dear?” she asked, a hint of sympathy in her voice.

“Yes,” I breathed, feeling as if someone had just hit me in the gut with a bludger.

“Why don’t you speak with him first, then, and decide what you’ll do?”

“Yeah, yeah,” I said, taking a deep, shaky breath.

“I’ll discharge you now, so feel free to leave whenever you like.”

I was out the door before she had finished speaking.

Oh. My. GOD. I’m pregnant, I said to myself, disbelievingly. Oh God, how’s Fred gonna react?! Will he leave me?

Instantly, I shoved that possibility out of my head. Of course Fred wouldn’t abandon me. Draco might have, but not Fred.

I took the stairs two at a time, heading towards the common room, where I knew everyone would be; the train wasn’t for another few hours, and I knew they’d wait for me so we could go down together.

Rushing through the portrait hole, I burst into the common room, searching desperately for Fred. Angelina was sitting on the couch with Ginny.

“Where’s Fred!?” I exclaimed, spinning around in a complete circle.

“Up on the Astronomy Tower,” Angelina said, frowning at me. “Is everything alright?”

“I’m not sure,” I called over my shoulder, sprinting back out of the portrait hole and heading towards the astronomy tower. As I ran through the corridor, the memory of the battle rang fresh in my mind. For a moment, I paused at the bottom of the stairs, taking it in.

The sound of voices coming from above got me started again, and I rushed up the stairs until I appeared on top, panting heavily.

“Kelsey!” Fred exclaimed, jumping up at once from his perch on the edge of the tower; as he reached me, he pulled me into a bone crushing hug. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were getting out so early, babe. I would’ve been down to get you,” he apologized, giving me a kiss. I gave him a tight smile.

“It’s fine, really.”

Immediately Fred’s anxious smile turned into a concerned frown.

“What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

“Yes, of course,” I told him, giving him another hug. As we pulled away, I saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione leaning on the ledge, talking softly and observing the scenery. Taking Fred’s hand in mind, I pushed my surprising news to the back of my mind and walked over to my friends.

“What’s that?” I asked Harry; he had a golden locket in the palm of his hand.

“The horcrux.”

“You found it? Did you destroy it?”

“Well…”

Harry cleared his throat as he launched into the story of his and Dumbledore’s final adventure. As he drew to a close, I said softly,

“You’re not going to Hogwarts next year then, are you?”

He shook his head.

“Dumbledore left me this task, and I have to complete it if we have any hope of destroying Voldemort.”

“Well I wanna come,” I told him, leaning beside him, glancing over as I saw Fred begin to examine an odd-looking bug crawling across the ground. “And don’t say no,” I warned Harry, just as I saw his mouth begin to open. “I know for a fact you’ve probably already told Hermione and Ron they could come too.”

Harry let out a frustrated sigh, frowning at me. Finally, he said,

“Okay, okay, you can come too.”

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“Ah, home at last,” Fred sighed, dropping back onto his bed. I stood in his doorway, wearing a purple tanktop and a pair of white shorts, my arms crossed as I watched him.

“Are you all settled in now?” I asked, coming inside and shutting the door.

An amused smile came across his face. As he stood up, he pulled me into a tight hug and said,

“So, you really want to ‘talk’, eh?”

“Fred,” I began, pushing his hands away as he began to pull my tanktop up.

Immediately his face clouded with worry.

“What? What’d I do? Are you mad at me? Is this the end? Are you done with me? Am I washed up? Am I old and-”

“No, jeeze, calm down,” I said with a laugh, giving him a soft kiss. “But this is serious… and it’s gonna change a lot of things between us.”

“Did you mistake George for me?” he asked, his face taking on its most serious look. I rolled my eyes.

“How could I? Everyone knows he’s the better twin. I know I’ve got the downgrade.”

“Ouch,” Fred laughed, plopping onto his bed and pulling me onto his lap. “Love you too, babe.”

“I hope you do,” I said, losing my smile. Fred’s face lost its trace of laughter as he stared at me.

“You’ve been like this since we left Hogwarts. What’s wrong, babe?”

Taking a deep breath, I looked into Fred’s gorgeous green eyes. Instantly, all my doubts of our future were pushed away. I knew, no matter what, Fred would stand by me. He’d be there whenever I needed him, and he’d support me until the end of everything. He’d take care of me, and our baby. He wouldn’t leave me, he wouldn’t hurt me, he wouldn’t lie to me, and he wouldn’t betray me. Fred loved me, and that was more than I could have ever asked for.

“Well,” I said, taking a deep breath. “I’m pregnant.”