A Different Beginning

Chapter LXXXIV - Baby and Bounty

Sirius was visibly shaking when he lowered Lexy down to the hospital bed. James and Remus were there now, too, they pulled him back so that Madam Pomfrey could look at her.

"Molly was wrong, right?" He whispered as James and Remus held his arms.

Lily, Tonks, Harry, and Ginny rushed into the room next. Ginny walked right over and pulled Sirius into her arms. That was all it took, he broke down. His arms tightened around Ginny as he cried and she held him in her arms. James and Remus each had a comforting hand on his shoulders but it wasn't what he needed right now. He closed his eyes as the tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Is this my fault? I didn't want ... is it because I didn't want the baby at first?"

"No," Ginny murmured. "It's not your fault." She rubbed his back, hoping that it would soothe him.

Sirius didn't know what he felt. Molly had to be wrong. There was no way that he and Lex were going to lose this baby. How would he ... he hadn't wanted the baby at first. The idea had scared him out of his wits and he had said no. But now ... he wanted this baby so much. He was afraid of losing his daughter and his wife. He closed his eyes and breathed in Ginny's scent. She was what he needed. She was that one friend other than the marauders that knew him inside and out. She understood him and she had that empath thing. He knew she was using it on him now because he could feel the warmth of the power running through him. She was offering him comfort in more then one way. He turned to kiss her cheek and pulled himself together.

"I need ... I need to be with my wife." Sirius pushed away from them and went behind the curtain.

Ginny reached over to take Harry's hand in hers. "Do you think that she'll be alright?"

"I don't know." He replied honestly. None of them knew what to say.

Sirius closed the privacy curtain around him and sat down on the edge of the bed, taking Lexy's hand in his. She looked so pale sitting there. Madam Pomfrey had taken off her trousers and he could see the blood on her stomach and around her thighs. She was still out cold and her hair was matted to her face from the sweat. He brought her hand to his lips. "Poppy?"

Madam Pomfrey held up her hand. "Not now. She's lost a lot of blood."

"Can you ... I mean ... can you save the baby?"

Madam Pomfrey's eyes met Sirius'. "I don't know. But I'm sure as hell going to try."

Sirius watched her work as she gave Lexy some potions and worked to try to stop the bleeding. Then she took a gel like lotion and rubbed it on her belly using her wand to project an image of the baby on the wall. He heard her sigh in relief. It felt like hours watching her work though it really had only been about twenty minutes.

"She's fine, Sirius. It was a big shock and a close call. But the baby's fine. A little shaken, but she's okay. We'll have to make sure she gets some potions and things because of the blood loss, but she's alright."

Sirius grinned. "And Lex?"

Madam Pomfrey smiled. "She's just fine too. Something huge must have set her off like this. I know that she's been extremely worried about a lot of things. I've told her that a lot of stress can be harmful to the baby. Do you know what might have caused this?"

He nodded. "Yeah. She's been worried about her parents."

"I know she's mentioned it. I believe they've refused to move closer and seem to think they will be safe where they are. Lexy disagreed strongly and was stressing herself out over it. She was worried about their safety and about them in general. She also desperately wanted them near her during the pregnancy. I think she was particularly missing her mother. Did something happen with her parents?" Madam Pomfrey asked.