Lunar Eclipse

Chapter Thirty Three

*11:40 p.m , August 31*

"This is your fault!" Ginny cried, flopping against the pillows, sweat dripping down her freckled face.

"I know, dear. I'm sorry," Harry apologized for what felt like the thousandth time. He grabbed a washcloth from a basin and wrung it out a bit, before dabbing the cool fabric against Ginny's face.

There was a knock at the door, all of a sudden, and Ginny closed her eyes.

"Come in!" She called, hoping it wasn't another Healer that was coming in just to tell her she wasn't ready to push.

But a flash of red hair caught her attention, as Charlie's head and shoulders appeared from behind the door.

"Charlie!" Ginny exclaimed, pain and exhaustion momentarily forgotten. Charlie had apologized several weeks ago, telling Ginny that he wouldn't be able to make it to the hospital to see her and the baby, as he was going on a retreat with the sanctuary to a small wizarding village in Russia for two months. Apparently there was a rare, endangered species there, and their eggs were going to hatch soon, and needed protected from poachers.

"Hey runt!" Charlie entered the room, letting the door close behind him. "How's it coming?"

Ginny let out a small groan, rolling her eyes. "She's already got the Weasley stubbornness, that's for sure."

Charlie chuckled, a deep, genuine, rolling laugh as he made his way to Ginny's side, planting a small kiss on the top of her head and ruffling her hair affectionately.

"And how are you doing Harry?" He asked, and Harry's eyes widened. This seemed like a trick question- there were no safe answers. If he answered he was well, Ginny would curse him for having the easy job. If he said he was tired, Ginny would curse him for suggesting that she wasn't tired. Either way, the chances of being cursed were high.

"Just excited to meet our baby girl. Ginny's been doing really well, she truly is the stronger of the two of us," Harry treaded carefully, hoping that this response would appease his wife.

Thankfully, Ginny gave a small 'humph' with a nod of approval, and Harry bit back a sigh of relief.

"I thought your retreat wasn't over until- ahh!" Ginny began, but her question was cut short by another contraction tugging at her body.

Charlie found Ginny grasping for his hand, and he offered it to her. The look of surprise on his face when she squeezed it tightly made Harry stifle a laugh, even though his hand was being squeezed just as tightly.

The contraction seemed to drag on forever, but eventually began to ease up.

"They're right on top of one another now," Harry stated, looking at his watch.

"You think?" Ginny panted, her body relaxing once more. "Harry, can you go get a Healer please? I'm feeling a lot of pressure, like I need to push."

But before Harry could leave, Padma entered the room with a smile. Harry opened his mouth to ask how she knew, but Padma began speaking before he could say anything.

"I was just about to come in anyways. I just heard her as I was coming in," she smiled.

"Okay, Ginny, I'm just going to check how dilated you are," Padma told Ginny, who nodded.

"Do you want me to leave?" Charlie asked, still holding Ginny's hand.

"No, please stay," Ginny's voice sounded tired and worn out.

"Ginny, I've got some good news," Padma smiled, standing back up. "You're fully dilated, so once I get some more Healers in here to help, you can start pushing on your next contraction."