A/N: I have had a really, really bad today today, which basically just involves me being very ill until about an hour ago, and now my youngest is sick. This flu thing is a vicious cycle.
Anyways, since I had a bad day, and now feeling better, I decided to finally post my newest fic, Working Together. This story is different from my others, such that it starts off with Hermione/Ron and will eventually lead to Dramione, however, that is way down the line. It's also a bit more on the dramatic side, I think? It's more serious but I will still put in cute and funny parts, don't worry!
Trigger warnings: Mentions of rape/hinting at rape; and thought/ suggestion of abortion.
I hope you enjoy this new story! I only have a few chapters written so far, so updating will be sporadic, especially once I post all of my pre-written chapters.
Enjoy! ~HufflepuffMommy
Working Together
Hermione sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the white stick-like contraption in her hands. She heard Ron come in through the floo and sat upright, wiping away the tears that had been streaming down her face and tried to gain some composure.
"'Mione? You home?" he called out.
"I'm in the bedroom," she said, her voice cracking slightly from crying just moments before.
She stood up as he entered the doorway, placing the contraption in her pocket, before giving him a small smile.
He smiled back in return, but his brows drew together in confusion. He knew she had been crying- after the war had ended a few months before, they had both been able to spot the signs in each other when one of them was upset.
"Hey," he said, walking over to her and gathering her up in a comfortable hug. "What's wrong?"
Hermione squeezed her eyes shut, willing the tears to not pour out. Not yet. She let go of Ron, unsure if this would be the last time he'd touch her, and she nibbled her lip in worry.
Ron reached out and rubbed his thumb along her bottom lip, stopping her actions as he gave her a kind smile. "Mione, you can tell me if you want. Or we can wait until later if you prefer-"
She shook her head. "No… no, I need to tell you, now, it's just…" she trailed off, unsure of where to start.
"...Just?" he asked, nodding his head encouragingly while starting the process of taking off his work robes.
She watched as he tossed his robes on the bed, then starting taked off his button up shirt.
"You know I love you… right, Ron?"
He gave her a lopsided grin. "I love you too."
She nodded, taking a deep breath. "I have some…. news. And I'm not sure how you're going to take it."
Ron pulled out a t-shirt from the one drawer he had in her flat and slipped it over his head before walking back over to her, holding both her hands in his.
"Just spit it out 'Mione. I'm sure nothing can be worse than-"
"I'm pregnant, Ronald," she said, clamping her eyes shut as she did her confession.
Ron stopped talking immediately and just gaped at her. When he didn't make any sound or movement, Hermione finally opened her eyes, gauging his reaction.
Slowly, the gape turned into a wide grin. "You're...pregnant?" he whispered.
Tears started slipping out of Hermione's eyes as she nodded. "Yes," she whispered back, looking down.
He put a finger to her chin and lifted it up so he could look her in the eyes. "Hermione… I don't know why you're so upset. Having a child with you is… well, sooner than expected, but it was something we talked about, didn't we?"
Hermione slipped her hands out of his and sat on the bed again. She pulled out the contraption from her pocket, a positive pregnancy test, and stared at it.
Ron sat gently next to her. "'Mione, I swear we'll make this work. I'll quit being an auror.. Start working full time at the Joke shop. George has been asking me to be partner with him anyways and-"
"I don't think it's yours," she said just above a whisper.
Ron frowned, not sure he heard correctly. "What?"
She finally looked him in the eyes. "I'm not sure the baby is yours," she stated again.
"Not mine? But… whose else could it be? We've barely left each other's side since after the war."
Hermione looked into the confused face of Ron's and burst into tears. "I think… I think it's Draco Malfoy's."
Ron's eyes grew wide in shock. "Malfoy's? How… What… When?" he asked.
"It was (hic) before the war (hic) ended," she said, hiccuping between words. She took a few deep breaths before continuing. "When we were caught, at Malfoy Manor, something happened while you and Harry were down in the cellars and… well, I think I might be carrying his child."
Ron's face hardened. "What do you mean 'something happened'? Are you saying that Malfoy… that he…." His face had turned the color of puce and he was so upset that he couldn't get any more words out.
Hermione nodded and grabbed Ron's arm, knowing he was about to get up and probably storm off to the Malfoy Manor right then and there. "But, it's more complicated than that." Ron scoffed as she continued. "I swear Ron, it wasn't his fault."
"Hermione," he said, irritated, "How can something like that not be his fault?"
"There's more to it. He was forced to do it," she said, biting her lip and looking down again.
Ron finally stood from the bed and began pacing, trying to process all of the information thrown at him.
"We were at the Manor at the end of April, right?" he asked.
She nodded, sniffling.
He frowning at her. "Wouldn't you have known sooner? I mean, that was 4 months ago for Merlin's sake."
Hermione shook her head, wiping away a few wayward tears. "It's normal to miss a few cycles when under stress… I just thought that was it."
Ron closed his eyes, his anger fading and being replaced with sadness, for both himself and her. "And…. there's no way that the baby could be… mine?" he asked quietly.
Hermione stood and walked to him, grabbing his hands into hers now. "I wish it were Ron. I truly do. But, if the baby was yours, I would only be a few weeks along. I… I think I'm much further than that." She lifted her shirt slightly, showing a small bump that was hidden underneath. Ron gasped slightly then looked into her eyes.
"Are you… are you going to keep it?" he asked.
It was Hermione's turn to look confused. "Of course… why wouldn't I…"
"Oh, I don't know, maybe because getting impregnated by being rape-"
"Ron!" she hissed, letting go of his hands and turning away from him, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Well, it's true though!" he said, raising his voice.
She turned back around to face him, her mouth set in a hard line. "A baby shouldn't be killed because of that though-"
"Are you kidding me?" he asked.
Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She really didn't want to argue that conversational topic at the moment. "I think… I think we need to get Harry. And I need to talk to the both of you of what happened... what really happened."
Ron nodded in agreement, shuffling his feet, not looking at her.
"And… I also need to speak with Malfoy."
Ron's head shot up. "Why?"
"Why? Because it's his child."
"I don't think that's a good idea, 'Mione," he said, shaking his head.
"Why don't you think so?" she asked.
"Because he'll take the child from you, you know that right? That's his precious heir," Ron spat, motioning to her stomach.
Hermione shook her head, placing a protective hand on her abdomen unconsciously. "No, he won't. I won't let him. He'll have visitations, of course, but he will not be keeping the baby away from it's mother," she stated.
Ron scoffed. "Yeah, well, don't tell me I didn't warn you."
Hermione huffed back at him and swirled on her feet out of the room.
"Where are you going?" he asked, following.
"I'm going to Floo call Harry and have him come over," she stated, grabbing a handful of powder.
"Wait…" he said, grabbing on her wrist lightly. He waited until she looked up at him. His voice was softer when he spoke. "Hermione, please. Let's just… before we bring anyone else into this, can we talk about it more? Maybe, come up with a plan, so to speak?"
Hermione sighed, replacing the powder in it's container. "Alright, fine. But can we at least order in first? I'm starving."
They talked as they ate and an hour later, their floo roared to life and Harry stepped into their flat.
"Hey," he said, brushing the soot off his clothes before making his way over to the couch, sitting next to Hermione as Ron flanked her other side. "I got your owl. It said you wanted to talk about something important?"
Hermione took a deep breath and nodded. "Yes. Well…"
Her voice caught in her throat and her eyes began to water again. Ron took her hand into his and intertwined their fingers. "Do you want me to?"
She shook her head. "No. No, I'll do it."
Harry watched with a perplexed expression, his emerald eyes going back and forth between his two best friends. "What's going on? Are you alright, 'Mione?"
Hermione let out a watery chuckle. "I suppose, all things considered," she muttered.
Harry waited a few moments and when neither spoke, he started to get worried. "Can someone please tell me what's going on?"
"Alright, alright," said Hermione. "But you have to promise to not say anything until I'm done."
Harry nodded, urging her to start.
"I'm pregnant," she said.
Harry opened his mouth to speak but she held up a finger. "You promised. No talking."
Harry shut his mouth quickly and nodded again, a wide smile across his face.
"I'm about four months along," she said, and watched as Harry's expression turned to confusion.
"It's not Ron's," she said quietly.
"But… who's?"
Hermione glared at him, and he shut his mouth with a snap.
"There's something that happened to me, while we were at Malfoy Manor, after we got caught," she said, looking down at her hands-they were shaking. Ron was still holding onto one and Harry reached over and held the other. She smiled and sniffled, getting the courage from her friends to continue.
"You two were in the cellars while Bellatrix was tor-torturing me... You know about the carving in my arm because the scars won't go away, but that wasn't all. Afterwards, she… she f-f-forced Malfoy… Draco, I mean, not his father to, um… " she closed her eyes a tear slipped out. She felt both boys hands grip hers tightly.
"She forced him to…" she stumbled over what words to say. "to... sexually assault me," she said quietly.
"Oh Hermione," Harry whispered, pulling her to him. She let the tears spill as he held her, Ron's hand never leaving hers in the process. "Why didn't you tell us?"
"I-I couldn't. I think I was in shock at first, not wanting to believe it happened. And then.. We were in a battle, and I didn't want either of you to worry about me."
"But afterwards, 'Mione. Why not after?" Harry asked.
"Because telling you both would just cause unnecessary stress and more hate towards Malfoy. He was as much of a victim as I was." She heard Ron scoff and she lifted her head to face him, squeezing his hand. "Ron, it's true. Bellatrix imperiused him. He couldn't help it. He was… crying. And saying sorry over and over until she forced him stop talking."
She wiped her eyes, sitting up a little bit. "After the war, there was so much going on, with funerals, and meetings, and getting Hogwarts and the Ministry back in order that honestly, when I missed a few cycles, I just thought it was normal. But.. the other day…." she trailed off, placing a hand on her abdomen. "My pants wouldn't fit. I had to enlarge them slightly… and my breasts-"
Harry cleared his throat, fidgeting uncomfortably.
Hermione flushed slightly. "Sorry."
"And you're sure it's Malfoy's?" Harry asked.
Hermione nodded, stating the same facts that she had told Ron earlier.
"So, now what?" Harry said after they all sat in silence for a while.
"Well, I guess the next step is- talking to Malfoy," she said with a slight shrug.
Harry glanced over at Ron, who's face had hardened, but nodded in agreement. Harry looked back at Hermione. "Do you want us to go with you?"
She shook her head. "I appreciate the offer, but no. This is something I need to do on my own."
"You know we're here for you," he said. "You don't have to do this alone."
She looked between Ron and Harry, a smile forming on her face. "I know. But as I told Ron earlier, it will be less stressful if it's just me there."
Harry nodded. "Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find me."
She smiled at him. "I will Harry. Thank you." She kissed his cheek before he stood up to leave. "Oh, um, can you tell Ginny for me? I don't feel like explaining it all over again," she said tiredly.
Harry smiled. "I'll let her know. Let me know how the meeting with Malfoy goes, yeah?"
She nodded, waving slightly as he stepped into the floo and disappeared back to Grimmauld Place.
"When are you going to talk to Malfoy?" asked Ron.
Hermione shrugged. "I don't know. I was going to owl him tonight and tell him that I need to speak to him and set up a time."
Ron nodded before standing up. "Well, I'll let you write your owl. I'm going to shower and then maybe we can watch a little bit of telly?"
Hermione nodded absently. Ron bent down and kissed her cheek. "I love you, 'Mione."
She closed her eyes. "I love you too, Ron."
When the redhead disappeared into the bathroom, Hermione finally got up to get a piece of parchment and began writing a letter to the father of her child.
A/N: So... thoughts? I love input!