Chapter 2 - Albus Severus Potter

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Harry's POV
I watched my grey owl, Jangle, fly in through the window, bringing a cold air through the house. He carried a few letters, but one paticularly caught my eye. It was from St. Mungos. I opened it, curious and was shocked at what it read:
"Dear Mr and Mrs Potter
We are writing to inform you about your recent pregnancy scan, your baby is...different. Please write back so we can arrange a time to talk to you, and explain.
Yours sincerely
Herbert Pye
Healer at St Mungo's Hospital of Magical Maladies and Injuries
Sixth floor, pregnancy ward."

I was shaking with anger. Our second-born child, Albus we had now decided, might be born with a disability or worse?
Calm down, I told myself, it could be something else. But calming down wasn't working.
I needed to know what was going on. I needed to find out what was "different" about my son, as they had so crudely - in my mind -phrased it.
"Ginny!" I called up, desperation leaking into my words. "Ginny, come here, quickly!" Tears were threatening to spill from my eyes.
"Okay Hun!" I heard pounding footsteps go down the stairs, and a moment later, Ginny was stood before me, anxious to see what was wrong. "Harry? Harry, are you okay? What's wrong dear?" I simply shook my head and thrust the letter towards her.
As she read it, her eyes widened, and she looked up at me.
"Don't worry dear, I'm sure it'll be fine - perhaps he's not- he's not disabled - not that there would be anything wrong with that - but maybe he's just... I don't know, emitting more magic?"

"Admit it Ginny, even you don't believe that! And yes, of course we'll love him just as much if he is disabled, but what about the rest of the family? Hey? What about Ron, and Hermione, and George, and Angelina, Percy, Bill, Charlie, your parents, what will all they say? Perhaps they will care for him, but inwardly? Behind our backs? They could be like the people we'll see in the streets. They could say that he's grotesque and shouldn't be able to walk this earth. They could-"

"I GET IT! OKAY? I- I get it Harry. But I'm trying to be positive. I don't want to think my siblings and family will act like that. Can you please, just once, for me. Can you please just - just think of the better. Let positive reasons for him being different come to mind? Please Harry." She was crying, and I felt horrible. Yet, somehow her words angered me more.

"I'm sorry Gin, I really am. But... how - how do I think positively? I was brought up by people who despised those like me - us. I was left every year with an old woman who knew who - what - I was, yet never once told me. I was forced to stare at pictures of cats, and eat stale chocolate cake - and the cake was considered a treat. I'm an orphan. I was lied to Gin, for eleven years. I had to do the cooking, the cleaning, all sorts of chores, and slept in a cupboard, that was under the stairs. I only had broken toys. Or ones I saved up for by myself, which took years.

"All my clothes were hand-me-downs. I was bullied at school. And when I finally find out who I really am, there's some murderer still out to kill me. I had to evade death at eleven! And again the next year, I was despised and people suspected and accused me wrongly, and I nearly died again, but ended up saving you. The list goes on, but my point is that I never had a childhood. And a childhood is there to provide you peace, happiness, and innocence. How am I supposed to think positively, if my son may have to go through the same bullying? Answer me that."

But I gave no time for her to answer, and left her in the kitchen, tears gliding down her cheeks, letter in hand. I grabbed my coat, and went outside. I didn't know where to go, so just thought of a field. A beautiful, sunny field. Hoping it was an actual place, I apperated there. Opening my eyes, I found the place I had imagined, and wandered over to a set of metal swings. I sat down, and suddenly found faint, blurry memories rushing back to me.

"Higher, higher!" I screamed in delight. Turning around, I saw my daddy pushing the swing, a smile stretched across his face as my mummy took a picture.
"Hold on then Hazza!" I felt myself soar through the air as I went forwards and back over and over, giggling.
"James, slow down!" Mummy told daddy off. "He could fall and hurt himself!"
"Yes ma'am." Daddy saluted her, and continued to push me, albeit slightly lower and slower.
"Nooo! Faster! Higher! I go into sky like dada!"
Daddy and mummy laughed at this.
"Is that right? Are you gonna be a Quidditch player when you're older?" Daddy asked me as the swing slowly came to a halt.
"Yes." I nodded importantly.
"And what position will you play?"
"Um..." I sat there, thinking.
"A chaser like daddy?"
"No." I said firmly.
"Beater?"
"No." I repeated.
"Keeper?"
"Wha's de one where - where - where you catch the gowden fingy?"
"You want to be a seeker?"
"Yeah."
Daddy laughed again.
"Haha, that's ma boy! We'll train you up, eh?" I nodded again.
"Yeah."
"What's the magic word?"
"Um... stubeefy?" This made my parents glance at each other and burst out laughing each other. "Wha's so funny?"
"Oh nothing dear, it was just a good guess." Mummy told me.
"Ok. Is eet... ex-ex-expelly-armius-ius?"
"I was thinking of please, but that'll do." Daddy chuckled, ruffling my hair.

I was thrust back into reality, sitting on a lonesome set of swings. I decided that it could be my special little place, for the kids to go when they were older. Hang on, kids. Ginny.
I apperated back home, and burst into the kitchen. She wasn't there.
"Ginny?" I called. "Ginny honey, I'm sorry! I am so, so sorry!" There was still no reply. "Ginny? Ginny!" I was desperate to find her, and searched every room, until at last I reached the bedroom. There, I found a note resting on the bed, written in her curly, cursive handwriting:
"Harry,
If you are reading this, it means you've returned. I'm sorry about earlier. I made the soonest possible appointment to see the Healer. It's at twenty-seven past two. If it's not too late, please go to the sixth floor, first left, third room. James is at Mum's. I'll maybe see you there,
With tons of love,
Ginny xxx"

Glancing at my watch, I saw that I had nine minutes. Without thinking, I apperated directly into the reception. The sixth floor had been added on after the war, when they realised that most witches and wizards would use a different hospital or doctors surgeon for maternity-type things. I took the lift, and tapped my foot impatiently for the lift to move faster. At first, I got a few stares and annoyed glares from others in there, but I simply shot them glares back. Then, someone just had to go and recognise me.
"Bloody hell! It's 'Arry Potterrrr!" He yelled, whilst the others cheered.
"Oh merlin, no."
They started bursting into some random song. Ugh. All too slowly, the lift reached the sixth floor. I rushed out, and through the corridors, following Ginny's directions.

"Mr and Mrs Potter to see Healer Pye please, that's Mr and Mrs Potter to see Healer Pye." Said a short, plump woman with curled blonde hair. I rushed forwards, at the same time as Ginny. We were pointed into the direction, and entered.
"You came?" She whispered to me.
"Always." I whispered back, hugging her.
Inside, we found the Healer waiting for us.
"Please, take a seat." He told us, gesturing towards the empty black plastic chairs that were facing him across the table. We slipped into them, and turned to face him. "So as you know, we are here to discuss something with the-"
"Hang on a minute please sir." I interrupted him. "Muffilito. There, now, please continue." He looked at me curiously, yet returned to what he was saying.
"We're here to discuss the pregnancy scan. Mr and Mrs Potter, I'm afraid to say that you're son will be-"
A/N: Hehe cliffy! Alice here!
So, how did y'all like that?
What do you think is "different" about Albus?
Who's excited for the season finale of Doctor Who Part 2?
No one? At all? Eh, as long as Moffat doesn't ruin it, it'll hopefully be okayish.
Please, please, please comment, vote, share, fan and give feedback. Or just tell others about this story.
Thank you guys, to everyone who has read this so far!
-Alice! Xoxo

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