Fest Fic: Baby Shoes, Never Worn, PG-13
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hp_bunintheovenTitle: Baby Shoes, Never Worn
Author/Artist:torino10154
Pairing(s)/Characters: Alice/Frank, Augusta
Prompt: #H3: The pair of booties that were never worn.
Summary: At her son's home, Augusta makes a sad discovery.
Word Count: ~500
Rating: PG-13
Warnings/Contains: Pregnancy loss, canon events
Notes: Thank you to S for the beta. Title apocryphally from Hemingway.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
"Mrs Longbottom?"
Augusta had just got Neville to sleep after a full bottle and a half when the healer called her name. She rose from the uncomfortable chair where she'd been waiting and, with Neville in her arms, walked over to the door where the healer stood, her son in the room behind him.
The healer looked at her with pity. Oh, how she loathed it. She gritted her teeth.
"What can you tell me of my son's condition?" she asked gruffly.
"St Mungo's is doing everything possible for your son and daughter-in-law but very Dark magic was used against them." The healer paused. "It's difficult to say how long it will take them to recover." The unspoken "if they recover" hung heavily in the air between them.
"Then I suggest you get to work instead of wasting my time," she snapped and made to turn around.
"Mrs Longbottom?" the healer said again and she turned back toward him.
"Yes?"
"There's no delicate way to put this but, with the strain on her body, I'm afraid your daughter-in-law was unable to sustain her pregnancy."
Augusta stood speechless, staring at the man as if he were speaking a foreign language.
"I'm sorry," he said after a few moments. "Were you unaware of the pregnancy?"
Augusta shook her head. "No," she managed to get out past the thickness in her throat. "I was not aware."
"It was a girl." He looked like he planned to pat her on the shoulder but thought better of it. "Thirteen weeks along, I'd say."
"Thank you," she whispered and, holding Neville close, headed home for the night.
~*~
After a few days, Augusta returned to her son's home to collect clothes and supplies for Neville. She went to the nursery to gather his things. She took the small quilt she'd made from his cot as well as a small stuffed Hippogriff that he'd nearly chewed the ear off.
She refused to believe her son and his wife wouldn't be coming home. This was a temporary setback, not a permanent outcome.
However, Augusta couldn't stop herself from going into their bedroom. Everything seemed so normal. Robes hung in the wardrobe, a comb on top of Frank's dresser, the pretty pearl earrings Alice favoured for family gatherings on her bedside table.
Just before she left, Augusta noticed a piece of parchment on the desk, an open bottle of ink beside it as well as the smallest pair of infant booties she had ever seen.
With a trembling hand, she lifted the parchment and began to read.
~*~
Dearest Mother,
"It seems so formal," Alice said, looking over Frank's shoulder as he wrote.
"You can write what you like to your mum." He chuckled. "Mother expects perfect manners from me."
"All right." She pressed a kiss to the top of his head and set a pair of pink booties down on the desk. "Go on then."
We have happy news to share and look forward to seeing you at the weekend.
Author/Artist:
torino10154Pairing(s)/Characters: Alice/Frank, Augusta
Prompt: #H3: The pair of booties that were never worn.
Summary: At her son's home, Augusta makes a sad discovery.
Word Count: ~500
Rating: PG-13
Warnings/Contains: Pregnancy loss, canon events
Notes: Thank you to S for the beta. Title apocryphally from Hemingway.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
"Mrs Longbottom?"
Augusta had just got Neville to sleep after a full bottle and a half when the healer called her name. She rose from the uncomfortable chair where she'd been waiting and, with Neville in her arms, walked over to the door where the healer stood, her son in the room behind him.
The healer looked at her with pity. Oh, how she loathed it. She gritted her teeth.
"What can you tell me of my son's condition?" she asked gruffly.
"St Mungo's is doing everything possible for your son and daughter-in-law but very Dark magic was used against them." The healer paused. "It's difficult to say how long it will take them to recover." The unspoken "if they recover" hung heavily in the air between them.
"Then I suggest you get to work instead of wasting my time," she snapped and made to turn around.
"Mrs Longbottom?" the healer said again and she turned back toward him.
"Yes?"
"There's no delicate way to put this but, with the strain on her body, I'm afraid your daughter-in-law was unable to sustain her pregnancy."
Augusta stood speechless, staring at the man as if he were speaking a foreign language.
"I'm sorry," he said after a few moments. "Were you unaware of the pregnancy?"
Augusta shook her head. "No," she managed to get out past the thickness in her throat. "I was not aware."
"It was a girl." He looked like he planned to pat her on the shoulder but thought better of it. "Thirteen weeks along, I'd say."
"Thank you," she whispered and, holding Neville close, headed home for the night.
After a few days, Augusta returned to her son's home to collect clothes and supplies for Neville. She went to the nursery to gather his things. She took the small quilt she'd made from his cot as well as a small stuffed Hippogriff that he'd nearly chewed the ear off.
She refused to believe her son and his wife wouldn't be coming home. This was a temporary setback, not a permanent outcome.
However, Augusta couldn't stop herself from going into their bedroom. Everything seemed so normal. Robes hung in the wardrobe, a comb on top of Frank's dresser, the pretty pearl earrings Alice favoured for family gatherings on her bedside table.
Just before she left, Augusta noticed a piece of parchment on the desk, an open bottle of ink beside it as well as the smallest pair of infant booties she had ever seen.
With a trembling hand, she lifted the parchment and began to read.
Dearest Mother,
"It seems so formal," Alice said, looking over Frank's shoulder as he wrote.
"You can write what you like to your mum." He chuckled. "Mother expects perfect manners from me."
"All right." She pressed a kiss to the top of his head and set a pair of pink booties down on the desk. "Go on then."
We have happy news to share and look forward to seeing you at the weekend.
no subject
Date: 2022-03-21 06:26 pm (UTC)I love the way you portray Augusta by showing her emotions and again hiding them (from the healer) behind her sharp words. The details of Neville's as well his parents' things make the second scene vivid. And it's excellent how you give us a glimpse of Frank and Alice in between those lines Augusta reads. Wonderfully done!
no subject
Date: 2022-04-03 05:38 pm (UTC)