Author's note: Another idea that just popped up in my head randomly and wanted to be written. It doesn't have any link to any of my previous stories, just so you know.

Warnings: established slash; MPreg; birth; a bit of foul language; fluff (look, no angst!)

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling owns it. I also don't own The Sleeping Beauty.

I hope you'll like it!

Always Be Prepared

"Look, don't you think it would be better if you stayed home?" the twenty-five year old, blond haired man proposed, trying yet another futile attempt to keep his spouse at home.

His dark haired lover snorted and after pulling his sweater down, he reached for his robes and slipped them on. "No, I'm joining you. I don't want to miss this. You know Teddy has been looking forward to this."

Draco sighed aggravated and the bed creaked slightly when he leant backwards on his hands. "Harry, be reasonable, please," he said exasperatedly. "You're just a few days away from your due date. What if you go into labour during the play?"

Harry sighed and turned around to face him, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I'm fine, Draco," he stressed. "I still have a few days to go and while she has dropped lower, the Healer has said it will probably take a few more days before I go into labour."

"Yes, but we're talking about you." Draco scowled darkly. "When have you ever followed the rules? Just because the Healer said it wouldn't happen for a few more days, doesn't mean it won't. I really would be more at ease if you stayed here. I can go and put the memory in a Pensive for you afterwards."

"But that's not the same thing!" Harry protested and approached him – albeit with some difficulty as his rounded stomach made it quite hard to move around at his normal pace. "Teddy has been practicing for weeks for this play and he's so excited to show us the results. He'll be disappointed if I'm not there."

"If we explain to him that it's because of the baby, then he'll understand," Draco tried again, but he recognized he was losing the argument.

"But I want to see him in this play as well," Harry remarked calmly and sunk down on the bed. "Draco, it's not as if we're away for an entire evening! Only two hours at the most. Even if something happens, we'll have more than enough time to come back, grab our stuff and go to Saint Mungos."

"Didn't you say you had cramps this morning?" Draco reminded him pointedly and reached out to rub over Harry's back soothingly. The ring around his finger glinted weakly into the late sun set shining through the window.

Harry waved away his concern. "They were just cramps. I'll be fine, I promise!" His own hand was absentmindedly rubbing over his large stomach. "I'm going crazy being cooped up inside the entire day, Draco. I just want a change of scenery for a little while."

Draco sighed again and dropped his hand. He pursed his lips and looked away. "Fine, we'll go together," he acquiesced and then threw a warning look at his husband, who smiled brightly at having won the argument. "But as soon as your cramps start again, we're going home, understand? I don't care whether the play is still going on then, I'm not having you deliver our daughter in the middle of the school!"

"You worry too much." Harry rolled his eyes and gave him a swift kiss on his mouth. "I'll be fine, you'll see."

"Yes, yes," Draco muttered darkly and stood up. "I'm taking the Portkey with me just in case."

His husband of three years smiled softly and his green eyes glittered, making Draco cough and look away before he did something as undignified as blushing.

With a bit of help from the blond, Harry managed to stand up again. He placed his hands on Draco's shoulders and raised a bit on his tiptoes to drop a sweet kiss on his lips.

"I love you," Harry whispered with a smile.

Draco smiled back; one of his hands acting as support on Harry's back while the other was placed against the side of his belly. "I love you too."

A soft nudge against his palm was the answer.

Half an hour later, the couple entered the school where Teddy was currently enrolled. They made their way through the corridors, past various colourful drawings and paintings, until they reached the large hall where the play would take place.

A lot of parents were mingling in front of the doors, waiting for them to open. Teddy's class would perform a play based on the Muggle story The Sleeping Beauty. The teacher had chosen that particular story not only for the magical elements mentioned in it, but also to familiarize the Wizarding children with Muggle culture, so that the gap between Muggleborns and Halfbloods and Purebloods wouldn't be too big. The teacher herself was a Halfblood and had decided that it was time that the Purebloods and Halfbloods (the ones living in the Wizarding world mainly), who otherwise would never come into contact with Muggle culture, needed to learn something related to Muggles as well.

Teddy had managed to get the part of the prince and was very excited about that. Despite having his reservations about having to kiss a girl on the lips – "Uncle Draco, girls have cooties! Why can't I kiss a boy like you and Uncle Harry?"; (that had been a rather awkward moment at the dinner table with his aunt) – the eight year old boy had diligently studied the lines for his role and was hell bent on being the best prince there had ever been.

Which was why he had practically begged his uncles to come and see him, because he wanted to show how good he could act.

Harry and Draco had just arrived near the doors – they kept a bit to the side as they didn't want anyone to accidentally bump against Harry – when the heavy, oak doors opened slowly and two teachers welcomed the group of adults and older children with large smiles on their faces. They were ushered into the large hall and directed to their appointed seats.

Harry and Draco had seats near the back and to the end of the row. The school had created a sort of platform so that the people who had to sit in the back could still follow the play without having to stretch their necks or look around other people to catch a glimpse of the children in the front.

As soon as everybody was seated – which actually took quite a while as a lot of people had turned up to watch the play – the teacher of Teddy's class stepped on the podium and used the Sonorus spell on herself.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I am very happy to see you all gathered here to watch the play of The Sleeping Beauty," she started and smiled brightly. "The children have been working very hard for this evening and are very eager to show their family and friends how well the play has turned out to be. If I may ask your attention and silence, the play can start."

The people immediately quietened down and as soon as only the occasional creak of a chair was heard and all the whispers had died out, the teacher stepped off the podium and the spotlights were turned on, illuminating the entire podium. The large, red curtains were drawn back to show the decor of a castle with two majestic chairs placed in the middle and a brown crib placed near it.

Draco sunk a bit lower in his chair and made himself comfortable. He felt Harry's hand on their shared arm seat and entwined their fingers, gaining a quick smile from the man next to him before they both focused their attention on the children who had started the first scene.

Something was wrong with Harry.

To that conclusion Draco arrived after an hour had passed since the beginning of the play. Twenty minutes after the play started, Harry had shifted around a bit. Draco hadn't paid much attention to it – since Harry had entered his eight month, he had had difficulties with sitting comfortably as the weight of the baby taxed his back and the chairs provided by the school weren't exactly the most soft and comfortable ones either.

After a while however, Harry's grip on his hand had tightened occasionally and the fidgeting around had grown worse.

After yet another squeeze in his hand, he turned around and whispered, "Harry, is something wrong?"

Green eyes flashed towards him before they focused back on the play. He shook his head; his lips a fine line on his face. "No, nothing. My back just hurts a bit from these stupid chairs."

Draco pondered a bit before he removed his hand, making the other man glance at him surprised.

"Lean forwards a bit. I'll rub your back," Draco offered and twisted around so that he wouldn't get pain in his shoulders or neck from the weird position.

Harry smiled gratefully and shifted forwards a bit, so that his back wasn't leaning against the chair anymore. He bowed slightly forwards, his eyes still trained on the play and took a deep breath when Draco started firmly massaging his back.

He had been doing that quite often for the past three months; Harry was prone to getting back pain and Draco thought that the least he could do was massage his back and lighten the strain a bit.

A soft groan of relief reached his ears.

"Thanks, Draco," Harry whispered.

Draco just nodded and continued to rub his husband's back – which actually felt quite tense. Blond eyebrows furrowed together in confusion; Harry's back had never been that tense before since he became pregnant. Did this mean something?

As Harry didn't say anything anymore nor wiggled around, Draco decided to keep quiet for now; focusing part of his attention on the play and keeping most of it for massaging his lover's back.

Nothing significantly happened again until ten minutes before the ending of the play – they had been given no break as the play only lasted two hours – when a sudden gasp attracted Draco's immediate attention.

"Harry?" Draco asked sharply and ceased the slow rubbing of Harry's back. "What's happening?"

Harry offered him a weak smile and straightened a bit up again; his hands resting on top of his stomach. "She gave a harder kick than I expected," he murmured and he sounded somewhat strained.

"You're sure that's all that happened?" Draco asked suspiciously. His lover was behaving stranger and stranger and he couldn't help but suspect something was amiss.

Harry nodded and gave him a tight smile. "Yes, yes; just a harsh kick. You know how hard she can kick," he muttered and winced.

"Harry, come on …"

"Look! Teddy is about to kiss the princess!" Harry said quickly and gestured to the front. He grinned. "And without looking disgusted. That practice must have really paid off."

Draco frowned, but looked back; his hand now resting idly on Harry's back. His eyes were looking at the play, but his brain was busy trying to figure out just what the hell was going on with Harry.

Two minutes before the end – when all the children gathered on the podium to receive applause – Draco couldn't hold himself back anymore and he whipped his head around when he heard a pained whimper escaping Harry's mouth.

"Come on; I think it's time we go back home," he urged and stood up after having briefly clapped his hands together. "You don't look so well and you can rest at home."

Not looking well was an understatement. In just two hours Harry had become very pale and some strands of his hair was plastered to his skin; his breathing had become rather laboured and Draco had caught many winces and grimaces passing over his face when Harry thought he wasn't looking.

"Ah, er," Harry stammered and Draco narrowed his eyes, wariness increasing when Harry didn't stand up immediately. "I kind of have a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Draco asked flatly, but his heart started to beat wildly in his chest.

Shit, he knew something was wrong with Harry! He should have insisted on going home earlier, no matter Harry's protests!

"I, eh, … Well, my water broke and she's coming a lot sooner than I thought," Harry replied in a small voice and he looked up at his husband with pained and worried eyes.

"Damn it, Harry! I told you, you should have stayed home!" Draco snapped and searched through his pockets for the special Portkey that would land them straight into their bedroom. "Come on, we're going home and then to the hospital."

"What about Teddy?" Harry asked concerned and this time, the whimper he released was louder and his arms clenched around his stomach.

Wasn't there supposed to be some more time between each contraction?

"Aunt Andromeda is here as well – I'll send a Patronus to her, so that she can go pick him up," Draco said and hastily formed the Patronus with his message, watching it slip around other people to reach its intended target. He then turned back towards Harry and helped him stand up. His knees nearly buckled when Harry suddenly bent in two, a pained moan escaping him.

"Come on," Draco muttered and made sure he had a firm grip around Harry. As soon as he felt Harry's hands clenched around his arms – wincing slightly when they squeezed down harshly when yet another contraction hit him – Draco activated the Portkey and they disappeared, leaving a slightly soaked chair behind.

Draco placed Harry on the edge of the bed for the moment and marched over to the bathroom adjoining their bedroom. "Did we put your bag here?" he called out, but his eyes had already spotted the large, grey bag filled with extra clothes. "Never mind, I found it!"

When he hurried back to Harry, however, the man had crawled into the middle of the bed and was rocking back and forth, panting harshly.

"Do you think you can walk to the fireplace?" Draco asked concerned and placed the bag on the bed.

Harry shook his head and lurched forwards, his hands clenched into the sheets. "I – I don't think I can walk; it hurts too much," he managed to bring out between strained groans.

"All right." Draco licked his lips and forced himself to remain calm. The Healer had warned them that once Harry had gone into labour, it could all happen quickly. But she had also said there would be enough time for them to reach the hospital. "I'll carry you then."

When he reached out with his arms, Harry fended him off weakly and fell back against the pillows; his pale skin was quickly become red and his chest went up and down rapidly.

"No, no time!" he gasped. "She's coming now, Draco! Hgnh, shit!"

"What, now? As in now now?" Draco couldn't help but ask shrilly.

This was not how it was supposed to happen, damn it! Harry was supposed to be in the hospital, being guided by the Healer while he gave birth to their daughter.

Not lying on their bed here, on the verge of giving birth with no professional help nearby.

"Yes, now!" Harry snapped and glared at him. His eyes slid close when he was attacked by another wave of pain. "She's not going to wait, Draco!"

"Fuck!" Draco swore and swept the bag off of the bed. Harshly he tugged off his robes and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. He grabbed his wand and barely fifteen seconds later, a basin filled with warm water and a pile of towels floated over towards him. After directing them to the side of the bed, he turned his attention towards Harry, who was biting his lip hard.

"Let's get you a bit more comfortable first," he murmured and with another wave of his wand, Harry's dark blue robes and dark trousers disappeared. Another flick of his wand and Harry's sweat drenched sweater was exchanged for a longer, white T-shirt.

Pained eyes were locked on his face when he helped raise Harry's legs to check his progress. A tremor went through his muscles when another contraction coursed through him.

"Looks like you can start pushing very soon," Draco muttered distracted and he bit his lower lip. Harry had progressed far more than he had expected. "Harry, how long ago did your contractions start? The cramps this morning weren't just cramps, were they?"

Harry glanced away guiltily; the knuckles of his hands turning white with the strength he was using to clench the sheets. "I really thought they were cramps this morning, but they got worse throughout the afternoon. I just thought they were Braxton-Hicks contractions, like I got a couple of days ago."

Draco groaned in exasperation and shook his head. "Would you please start listening to me? If you had told me the cramps were lasting throughout the day, then I could have let the Healer come and examine you!"

Harry huffed. "I didn't know, okay?" He wiggled around a bit, one hand clutching his belly. "Are you going to call the Healer?"

Draco snorted and kicked off his shoes, so that he could sit down on his knees on the bed, in front of Harry. "No; with your luck, by the time I get back here with the Healer, you probably would have given birth already. I'm not going to risk letting you be alone for even a second now."

"Who's going to help me then?" Harry asked confused and a low moan escaped his throat; a grimace tainting his flushed face.

Draco rubbed over his knees soothingly. "I am."

"But you don't have a Healer's degree," Harry remarked blankly, wiping some strands of his hair out of his eyes.

"No, I don't." Draco cleared his throat and he felt his cheeks heat up a bit when he continued, "But mother insisted that I learnt how to help you with the birth if it happened in our home. The Malfoy family has a tradition where the baby has to be born in the house and only the father is allowed to help, as that would help the baby familiarize itself with the parents' magic."

"I wasn't told about this tradition." Harry's eyebrows furrowed and his legs twitched a bit.

Draco shrugged and mentally went over all the spells he had to use during the delivery and the steps they had to take. "You had every intention of delivering in a hospital and you've stated from the beginning that you wouldn't follow every tradition, so mother thought it would be pointless to inform you about this one."

Despite that, Draco had made sure that he knew how to deliver their daughter safely. Harry's luck had always been wacky at best and it hadn't been that farfetched to imagine that Harry would be forced to give birth at home. Draco preferred to have a Healer helping Harry, as they had actually studied for this, but he didn't dare to risk leaving to alert the Healer.

The next spell he murmured, confirmed his suspicion: Harry was ready to start pushing. Hopefully the actual delivery would go smoothly.

Wiping his sudden sweaty hands off on his trousers, he swallowed down the ball of nerves and panic and forced himself to remain calm. Panicking wouldn't help the other man at all and Draco didn't dare to contemplate what could go wrong if he didn't keep his wits about himself.

"Draco?" Harry's question came out rather breathless as he had been trying to keep his breathing under control and not quite succeeding in it.

"It's time," Draco stated and after quickly, but thoroughly disinfecting his hands, he squeezed Harry's left knee reassuringly. "Okay, with the next contraction, I need you to start pushing. You can rest once the contraction stops and with the next one, you'll start again, okay?"

"Okay." Harry replied, but his voice wavered; his eyes going back and forth between his heaving stomach and his lover.

It suddenly struck Draco that Harry was nervous. Why wouldn't he be? This was their first child and none of them had any experience with childbirth. Thanks to Harry's rather quick progress, they couldn't even benefit from the help of an experienced Healer.

Draco gave him a soft, reassuring smile. "Everything will be all right, okay? I don't think it will take long before she's born. I just need you to hold on for just a bit longer."

Harry nodded silently; determination slipping back in his eyes.

The sudden tensing of hands in sheets told Draco that a new contraction announced itself and Harry took a deep breath and started to push; half sitting up, half laying down.

Harry's head dropped back on the pillows and a huge sigh escaped his mouth, while sweat trickled down his face.

"You're doing well, Harry; keep going," Draco murmured encouragingly. A spell he had found in one of the books about Healing monitored both Harry's and the baby's heartrate. A quick glance on it reassured him that so far nothing was going wrong.

"Fu-fuck, this hurts like hell!" Harry brought out through clenched teeth when he started pushing again.

"Just a bit longer," Draco soothed, keeping track of Harry's progress.

He got a glare as response. "I know that!" Harry snapped and he swore again when he fell back. He released the tortured bed sheet to rub over his stomach. "I just want her out of me!" He grunted through another contraction and his back arched a bit.

"I know, Harry, but I can already see her head! Just a few more pushes and you're done!" Draco said and a sliver of excitement wove itself through his voice.

It was strange to see his daughter being born – he had thought he would be sitting next to Harry during the delivery, offering his support while the Healer delivered the baby and then brought her to them. Now however he could follow everything that was happening and it had something – magical. Out of the world – not that he wanted to use such a cliché, but it was the truth.

He had seen a lot of magic happening: magic that Healed; magic that harmed; magic that killed; magic that had such awful effects it made him shiver and recoil with disgust. There was magic meant to lighten the workload; magic to amuse and spread fun like the one the Weasley twins used.

None of those were as amazing or life changing as seeing his daughter being born.

And now that he was experiencing this particular kind of magic, he wondered how he could ever have thought that he had seen the best magic could offer.

Nothing came even remotely close to seeing his daughter being born.

Right when almost her shoulders were out, Harry fell back with a choked scream and his breathing had become worse.

"Just a bit more, Harry. Her shoulders are almost out. Just a couple more big pushes and you're done!" Draco urged, one hand already supporting his daughter's bloodied and slime covered head.

A smothered sob escaped Harry's throat, but he started pushing again, albeit a bit weaker than before.

It didn't matter, though. Not even five minutes later, their baby girl slipped out and Draco was holding her for the first time, her crying filling the room.

Carefully he cut the umbilical cord and washed off the blood and goo sticking to her skin. As soon as she was clean, he wrapped her in a soft towel and placed her next to him on the bed.

Harry passed the afterbirth quickly and Draco helped him clean up as well. The womb would dissolve on its own – it probably already had, considering their baby was no longer inhabiting it.

"How is she?" Harry rasped and held out his arms in a silent plea to hold her.

Draco's face almost hurt with how widely he grinned, but he couldn't hold himself back. "She's perfect, love." Lovingly he handed over their daughter to Harry, who pressed her against his chest.

"Oh my god, look at her," he breathed out and his green eyes shone with unshed tears. "She's beautiful!"

"Yes, she is," Draco agreed readily and settled down next to his tired and now obviously flatter looking husband to look at their baby girl.

She had inherited Harry's black hair, but she had Draco's nose. She opened her eyes and revealed very light blue – which would most likely turn grey in a couple of days.

"I can't believe we made her," Harry whispered awed and he lightly caressed her cheek with one finger.

Draco pressed a kiss against his cheek. He then smiled ruefully. "With our next child, please listen to me more often."

A weak chuckle left Harry and he glanced sideways. "I promise to listen more," he said solemnly and then his eyes twinkled merrily. "Good thing you were prepared."

"Having you in my life, Potter, has forced me to be prepared for everything."

That earned him a laugh.

The Floo downstairs chimed loudly and a high voice called out, "Uncle Draco? Uncle Harry? It's me!"

Both men chuckled and settled themselves more comfortably on the bed. It looked like their daughter would already meet two family members.

They shared one last look filled with love, before their attention was turned to the bright blond boy barrelling his way into their bedroom.

AN2: No idea at all why this popped up in my head .-. Oh well *shrugs* What do you think of it? Please leave your thoughts behind in a review!

Cuddles

Melissa

P.S. For more information about my upcoming and posted stories, please visit my profile.