Debi wasn't surprised that the Wizarding World had its equivalent of ultrasounds, and that they didn't involve drinking enough water to float the Titanic, or cold, nasty gel smeared all over her tummy. Healer Abramowitz had been horrified at the idea of all that water given how sensitive a pregnant woman's bladder was, and had assured her that no, she didn't have to worry about peeing herself and others.
She sneaked a glance downwards at her belly and began stroking the smooth, firm curve. She'd definitely started to round out in the last few days, and not just from the chocolate she couldn't seem to stop sneaking no matter how much she tried to eat a healthy diet.
No wonder they say pregnancy is weird. I never could stand chocolate milk before, or Mexican mole sauce on steamed broccoli, or hot cocoa with a steak, or hot cocoa on a steak...
Health Abramowitz was all smiles as he walked in. "Good morning, Debi. How are you feeling?" He nodded to her, then activated a dictating quill.
"Really, really good," said Debi. She lay back as the Healer began running his wand up and over her tummy. "Really hungry, too. I'm not gaining too much weight, am I?"
"Oh no. You're perfectly on target - "
Something in his tone sent a shiver up her spine. "Is something wrong?" She grabbed at his arm. "Is my baby all right?"
"It's - privatus." The Healer looked bewildered. "Debi? Have you ever been near a werewolf?"
"A werewolf?" Debi stared at him. "Of course I've been near a werewolf. I work for Remus Lupin. I'm over at his house all the time."
"And do you ever eat or drink anything when you're there?" The Healer looked more shocked than worried, which made it worse. "Like, say, chocolate?"
"Um, we usually have a cup of tea, or lunch, or sometimes dinner if he's on a deadline. He's a chocoholic and sometimes shares - " Debi dashed tears from her eyes. "Oh God. I caught some werewolf disease, didn't I? The baby's deformed, or dead, or - "
A box of tissues flew into her hands, and the Healer, usually so professional, had sat down on the examining table next to her and wrapped an arm about her shoulder. "Debi, Debi, it's nothing like that. The baby is perfectly healthy as far as I can tell."
"Then what's going on? Is it a Squib? I can deal with that, I was raised Muggle and - "
"Here. You need to see this for yourself." Healer Abramowitz stood, pointed his wand at her belly, and spoke a few words. An image appeared in mid-air that she recognized instantly as a fetus, tiny and curled and -
"Is that - " Debi's jaw practically hit her chest. "She has a tail?"
The Healer nodded. "You must have somehow absorbed some of Mr. Lupin's DNA during a visit around the time your child was conceived." He hastily stuffed more tissues into her hands as the tears began in earnest. "Your baby will be basically human, but she'll be a wolf in utero and will only turn human after she's been exposed to one or two full moons. After that, she'll either be a wolf animagus or a true werewolf."
He continued on, telling her that there were versions of the Wolfsbane designed for infants that actually tasted rather good, and that he was sure Mr. Lupin and Mr. Snape would be happy to teach her and Zach all they needed to know about caring for a baby lycanthrope, and wasn't it lucky she was married to a fine young Healer who was so good at medical research? Soon enough she was on her way home, armed with a small library of pamphlets on lycanthropy in children, support groups, and a story about how a traveler who wanted to go to Italy but ended up in Holland learned to love tulips.
It was all well and good, but only the only thing she could think as she headed for the Underground was how in hell she was going to tell her mother that she was about to be the proud grandma of a baby werewolf.