Well, here's my second one-shot and its Lucius and Hermione again. Hope you enjoy it.
Reflections
"Does it ever feel weird?" Astoria asked as she moved up behind her husband as he stood just inside the door of the garden, watching his father, baby sister and son play amongst the flowers that his mother loved so much.
"Does what, ever feel weird?" Draco asked, moving to take his wife into his arms, placing a gentle kiss upon her temple as they stood together and watched Lucius play with little Scorpius and Vera, something which still surprised him no matter how many times he saw it.
"Does it feel weird having a step-mother that's only about eleven months older than you?" Astoria asked, finally relenting to her curiosity and asking.
"What's brought this on?" Draco asked with an amused smile, frowning slightly in at seeing his wife shrug, offering no explanation for her sudden question.
"Just humour me, does it ever feel weird?" she said with a smile, once again looking out into the garden at her son as he was chased around the flower beds by his baby cousin, Lucius looking on a laughing at their interaction.
"To be honest, I never call her step-mother or mother or anything like that" he told her, "She's always going to be a buck-toothed, bushy-haired know-it-all to me."
"Who you calling bushy-haired and buck-toothed, ferret?" the women in question asked, playing along and reverting back to the old school nicknames they had long ago forsaken. "How are you feeling Tori?" Hermione asked her daughter-in-law, placing a hand on her gently swelling stomach that held their second child.
"Tired but well" Astoria replied with a happy smile, her own hands moving to caress her stomach. "Are you looking forward to tomorrow?" she asked, a sympathetic smile replacing her blissful one as she looked at Hermione.
"I can't wait. It'll be so good to finally be able to hold my little prince again" she said with a tearful smile as she thought of her three month old son, safe and cared for in the children's ward of St. Mungo's. After a problem free first six months Hermione's second pregnancy suddenly took a turn for the worse resulting in the two month premature birth of her son. Since then the little boy had been kept in St. Mungo's until he was strong enough to come home, a day his parents had been counting down to since Hermione herself was discharged.
"I don't know who's more excited, you, father, Vera or Scorpius" Draco said, wrapping his arm around Hermione's shoulders as the three made their way towards Lucius, who had been tackled to the ground by his daughter and grandson, laughing as they attempted to tickle him.
"I think we're all excited, even you" Hermione said with a smile, gently nudging Draco before moving off to pick her daughter off her husband's chest before gracefully sitting down next to him, leaning over to press a kiss to his lips.
"Is everything ready?" Lucius asked when they broke apart, Scorpius having run off to join his parents as they settled down not far away.
"Everything's perfect. Just like it has been for the last three months. All we need is our little prince and then we can get on with our lives" Hermione told him with a happy smile as she thought of their little boy, their Brontë.
"Are you excited Vera? You're going to see your little brother tomorrow" Lucius said to his little girl, pulling both mother and daughter into his arms, once again feeling thankful for the gift that was his wife.
Meanwhile, Draco was relaxing back on his arms as he watched Astoria lead Scorpius around the garden, occasionally picking flowers that the little boy thought were 'pretty like mommy'. Taking a moment to watch his father interact with his wife and daughter, Draco thought of when he discovered that his father had secretly been seeing his old classmate for six months, and how shocked he'd been.
Making his way up to his father study, Draco had a noticeable spring in his step, excited at the news he was about to impart. Eventually reaching his father's study he raised his hand to knock only to pause when he heard two voices coming from within, one being his fathers while the other was mistakenly a female, something which surprised Draco no end. 'Who could father be talking to? And laughing with?' he thought to himself when he heard the bell like laughter float through the door, frowning when the laughter suddenly gave way to moan and giggles, the sound causing Draco to see red and throw the door to the study open with such force it smashed into the wall behind.
"What the hell is going on?" he shouted when he spotted his father sat behind one Hermione Granger, his hands resting gently on her shoulders as her head fell back to rest against his chest.
"Draco, what are you doing here? Is something wrong with Astoria?" Lucius asked, curious as to why his son was barging into his study in such a manner and interrupting his time with Hermione, something he got very little of.
"What the hell are you doing here Granger?" Draco asked, ignoring his father's questions, his eyes solely on his former classmate who had moved away slightly from Lucius, but Draco noticed that the two still held each other's hands, as though they were getting silent support from each other. When neither person answered his questions Draco lost what little patience he had and shouted the question at them again, causing Hermione to jump slightly in surprise.
"Draco don't raise you voice at Hermione" Lucius told his son standing and moving forward so that he was between the two of them. He knew that Draco wouldn't hurt Hermione in anyway, but he still felt the need to protect her, regardless.
"I'll leave you two to it," Hermione said standing and moving next to Lucius, squeezing his hand, "I'll see you later" she told Lucius softly, turning to leave only to be pulled gently back to Lucius' side so he could kiss her goodbye, never one to miss an opportunity to hold the younger witch close.
When it was finally just the two male Malfoy's left in the study Lucius ignored his son and made his way over to his desk, sitting behind it and getting on with his work, fully aware that his lack of interest with his son's outburst would enrage him further, and he didn't have to wait long for his son to cooperate.
"What the hell were you doing with Granger?" he asked, moving forward until he was stood in front of his father desk, his hands resting on his hips as he looked down at his perfectly relaxed and calm father.
"Hermione's shoulders were hurting her from where she'd been carrying her bag. So while we caught each other up on what we'd been doing over the last couple of days I offered to rub her shoulders to try and ease the ache" Lucius explained calmly, as though it were an everyday occurrence, which to him, it was.
"Yeah, that's all well and good. But what is she doing here in the first place? Since when were you friends, never mind close enough to offer massages to each other" Draco said leaning forward and resting his hands on his father's ledger, effectively stopping him from carrying on with his work and bringing his full attention to his confused and slightly angry son.
"Hermione and I met while were both working late at the Ministry. We started talking while were both getting coffee at the canteen. We kept meeting up again and again every time we were both working late, getting to know each other until eventually I asked her out to diner, she accepted and we've been seeing each other ever since. It's been about six months now" Lucius told Draco, a happy smile crossing his face as he thought back on the moments shared with Hermione.
"What about mother, huh? What about her?" Draco asked in a soft voice, talking about his mother still quite painful for him.
"What about Narcissa, Draco. She hasn't been with us for three years" Lucius told his son, beginning to wish his relationship with Hermione could have been kept secret a little longer, he was starting to get a headache.
"What do mean, 'what about Narcissa'? Do you care about her or her memory at all? She's not even cold and you're already with another woman!" Draco shouted slamming his hands on the desk in anger.
"You're mother has been dead for three years Draco. That's three years I've been alone with nothing but my thoughts and regrets and nightmares. Hermione has done wonderful things for me Draco, she's makes me feel alive once again, she makes me feel as though I deserve to be here, to have a second, to right my wrongs. Surely you won't begrudge me a little happiness Draco" Lucius said sitting back in his chair, watching as Draco collapsed back into the chair behind him.
"I'd never begrudge you happiness father. But why Granger, of all people. She's not that pretty, and yes she's intelligent, but what do you see in her?" Draco asked, wanting to know why his father chose his old classmate to be with.
"First of all, Hermione is probably the most beautiful witch I've ever seen. She's doesn't need fancy clothes or jewels to make her beautiful, she's purely natural, which I must say is a welcome change. And like I said she makes me happy, and calm and peaceful. Something that I've had very little of in my life. Now, it may be hard for you to come to terms with my relationship with Hermione, but let me tell you, right now that I am going to continue to see her, whether you like it or not. Although I dearly wish you would accept it and be happy for me" he told his son standing and moving around the desk to put his hand on Draco's shoulder before leaving his son alone in the study with his thoughts, silently praying that Draco was mature enough to overlook his school-yard rivalry with Hermione and accept their relationship. He didn't want to lose his son again.
"Daddy, come on" a small voice said, pulling Draco out of his memories. Looking up he saw his pride and joy, his Scorpius pulling on his sleeve, wanting him to go play with him and Vera as they raced around the garden while Astoria watched with a smile on her face as she gently rubbed her stomach while Lucius and Hermione took advantage of their daughters' distraction to have a couple of minutes to themselves, kissing and whispering sweet nothings to each other as the sun began to set behind the horizon, blasting the once blue sky with purple's, oranges and reds, a beautiful end to a perfect day.
"I can't believe I'm finally holding him. Our little Brontë, finally home where he belongs" Lucius whispered to his wife as he sat in the rocking chair, cradling the tiny baby in his arms, Hermione looking over his shoulder with a happy smile, gently caressing Brontë's dirty blonde hair as the baby sleep peacefully in his fathers' arms.
"It's good to have the whole family together, isn't it?" Hermione asked, resting her head against her husbands as they watched their little boy stretch in his sleep, snuggling closer to Lucius' warmth. "Vera loves him already, I've never seen her so excited" Hermione remarked, noticing from the corner of her eye the girl question appearing in the doorway of the nursery, her lilac blanket and stuffed rabbit clutched tightly in her hands. "Come on sweetie, come say goodnight" Hermione said softly, holding out her hand for the little girl who quickly raced across the room to where her parents and brother were gathered.
"You have to quiet though, okay princess? He's already sleeping" Lucius whispered to the little girl, kneeling down so Vera could press a gentle kiss to the babies' forehead before placing a soft kiss from her rabbit to his cheek, Hermione and Lucius smiling at cute she was.
"Night-night baby" she whisper, looking up at her parents, as though asking if she were quiet enough, receiving happy smiles in response, making her grin and look down again at her little brother, standing on her toes when Lucius stood and made his way over to the crib. Noticing the way her daughter was still looking after her brother Hermione quickly came up behind her and swept her up into her arms, Vera giggling softly as mother and daughter followed Lucius over to the crib, the small family watching their new member wiggle about as he got comfortable in his crib.
Little did they know that from the shadows of the door Draco watched his father and his second family as they watched the baby sleep, his mind going back to when they announced they were expecting Vera, how happy they were that they were having a baby.
"Father?" "Granddad!" Draco and Scorpius yelled as they entered Malfoy Manor late one afternoon, Scorpius running off into the sitting room where Lucius' and Hermione's voices and happy laughter could be heard. Grabbing Astoria's hand the two followed their excited son at a more relaxed pace, reaching him just as he threw himself at Lucius' causing the older man to tumble back on the sofa he was sat on, laughter bubbling forth from everyone at the grandfather and grandsons interaction.
"Oh, I've missed you my little Scorpius. Have you missed me?" Lucius asked while Hermione stood to hug Draco and Astoria.
"Yeah grandpa, I miss you" the little boy said with a wide happy grin before settling himself on Lucius' lap, leaning over to give Hermione a hug when she sat next to them, receiving a loud kiss on his cheek.
"So what did you have to tell us that couldn't wait until we had diner on Sunday?" Draco asked as he and Astoria made themselves comfortable opposite his father and Hermione, their hands naturally finding the others and entwining.
"Well hopefully once you know it, you'll agree it was worth coming out for" Hermione said with a grin as she looked over at her husband, Lucius raising their entwined hands to place a gentle kiss to the back of her hand before they looked over at the other couple. "We found out yesterday that, well," she looked over at Lucius once more, the two breaking into equally large grins before looking over at Draco and Astoria again, "I'm pregnant. We're having a baby" she told them, her other hand moving to rest on her still flat stomach.
"Oh, Hermione! Congratulations" Astoria said jumping up and moving over to her step-mother-in-law and gently pulling her into a hug, resting her own hand on Hermione's flat stomach as though should feel the baby move already. "How far along are you?"
"According to the healers we're about six weeks along" Lucius told her with a happy smile as he looked up at his wife, looking forward to the day he would see their little bundle of joy. Realising that Draco hadn't said anything in response to their happy news, something which upset Lucius slightly. "Draco, what do you think? You'll have a little sister in seven months" he asked.
"A sister? You're having a girl?" he asked, shocked that their first child would be a girl, having always believed that first born Malfoy's were males. Looking over at Hermione and seeing her nod happily he couldn't help but imagine a small baby girl with crystal blue and curly blonde hair, a smile a bright as her mothers and he couldn't help but smile at the image, something which secretly relieved Lucius and Hermione who thought he wouldn't be happy at the news of the new baby. Standing and moving over to his father he held out his hand and shook his fathers in congratulations before moving over to Hermione and pulling her into a hug, truly pleased for his father and wife, and even excited at having a little sister, even if there was a twenty-five years difference between them. He was determined to be the best older brother he could be.
Watching from the shadows as Hermione, Lucius and Vera moved down the hall to put Vera to bed, Draco snuck into the room and up to the sleeping Brontë. Leaning over he looked down at his little brother, watching the gentle rise and fall of his tiny chest, the flutter of his closed eyes as he dreamed his baby dreams.
"You're so lucky you know that? Thanks to you mummy you've got one of the greatest daddy's ever. He's so different now than when I was growing up, so reformed. Little Vera has him wrapped around her little finger and I bet that you're going to be just the same when you're a little older. Maybe even sooner. And don't worry; you won't be the youngest, that I can pretty much guarantee that. Because you daddy and mummy love each other so much, they probably want to fill every room in this manor with little Malfoy's. But you can always come stay with big brother Draco and cousin Scorpius whenever you want to" he told his baby brother with an indulgent smile, leaning over and pressing a soft kiss to his head, "I love Brontë. Sweet dreams" he whispered before leaving him to sleep, closing the door behind him with a soft click.
My second Hermione and Lucius one-shot! I really have come over to the dark side, it's nice. And true that they do have cookies
Hope you like this little one-shot and thank you to everyone that gave me some great LM/HG suggestions, I'm working my way through them and still open for new suggestions if you've got them.
Until next time.
Lady Mimi Alice