Sorry for the wait and I hope you enjoy!

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Waist Deep

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Harry sat on the edge of Pansy's bed, with his back to her and stared down at his hands, random thoughts coursing through his head. He had stayed the night, and most of the morning in bed with her, which was incredibly embarrassing, because he didn't even know what time it was now. He couldn't believe that he had allowed himself to stay so long with Pansy. She was incredible, and it was a little safe to say that he had gotten to know her far better than he had originally thought.

He started when a tray of food appeared out of thin air on the table by the window he was facing. His green eyes strayed towards the woman on the bed—tangled in sheets—and he started when he noticed her sleepy gaze trained on him. "Good morning," he said lightly.

Pansy smiled and propped herself on her elbow. "Indeed," she said with a small grin, watching Harry's cheeks color. "There's no need to be shy anymore. I think we got to know each other better than many friends should last night."

"Pansy…"

"Look," she interrupted. "If you're going to start all of the 'not good for you' shite, do it after breakfast," she said, standing in all her nude glory and walking off without shame or embarrassment towards the loo.

Despite the burning on his face, Harry couldn't tear his eyes away from her. He sighed and stared down at his hands, wondering what it was that he was doing. What would Ginny have thought had she been alive? Simple… nothing. He wouldn't have even looked at Pansy twice if Ginny had been around. It was a little sad, but true.

When Pansy stepped out, she was in a silky robe, and her face looked fresh from the recent wash. She walked towards the food and took a seat on the chair nearest to the window. Her eyes perused the food and she finally settled for some fruit and some freshly baked croissants. Harry watched her as she delicately picked at her food, and he found his eyes following her mouth as it savored the bits and her eyes closed at the taste. He swallowed hard and looked away, thankful that his pants and boxers were nearby so that he could use the restroom.

Pansy watched him walk away looking awkward and a little guilty. She rolled her eyes to herself and realized that getting Potter to come back to her and to her bed would take some work and time. She understood what it felt like to lose the closest people you loved, but she genuinely wanted to get to know him on a more intimate level aside from a physical one. She let out a soft sigh and brushed her dark hair behind her ear, tapping her chin in thought.

She hadn't ever imagined that behind the unassuming man that had wanted nothing to do with fame, there was a man with a burning touch and with unbridled passion. She just had to coax it out of him and then just sit back and enjoy the ride. Pansy's eyes moved towards the door he had disappeared behind as it opened and Harry stepped out. She felt a smile curl at her lips when she saw that he decided to leave his shirt off as he joined her, taking the seat across from her at the small table.

"I'm now asking for much," she said quietly, after a moment of silence.

Harry paused in his quest for a baked treat and nodded once, staring at her expensive rug, soft beneath his bare feet. "I guess… that's good, because you know that there's not much I can offer you at this moment."

Pansy offered him a smile. "For now it's good enough for me. I can be patient. But… you have to promise that you'll make the effort to let me in, even a little."

Harry looked up at her and was amazed at the fact that she was turning out to be one of the most understanding people he had known. She had been obnoxious and trailing after Malfoy back when they had been in school, but there seemed to be no trace of the girl she had once been. She was beauty and fervor wrapped into a smooth, curvy, and exotic package. He could see himself with her easily and it scared him. His only fear now would be how Mrs. Weasley would take this. He didn't need to tell her right away, did he?

"There's no rush to make anything public," Pansy said calmly, as if reading his thoughts. "It'll be our little secret." She set down her plate and stood, moving to stand between his parted knees. "Okay?" she asked, dragging his face back by her fingers in his hair.

Harry stared up at her and nodded as best he could, swallowing hard as her lips lowered to nibble on his. His hands slipped up her hips of their own accord and he felt his body begin to react to her. Where was all of this desire for Pansy coming from? Harry wondered, his green eyes slipping closed as her lips and teeth slid over his.

He supposed that there would be time enough to figure it out later. For now, he was more curious to figure out whether she tasted like strawberries or cherries.

……

Gray eyes surveyed the situation with an intelligence far beyond his age and a bit of confusion. His mommy wasn't married. Why was Kyle in her bed then? Did that mean that he would be his new daddy? Lysander frowned to himself and crawled quietly onto the bed, laying down on the other side of his mother. He looked at her and then reached up to hold her nose closed.

Hermione slapped at what was impeding her breathing and finally began to wake. Her eyes blinked slowly and she started in surprise when she saw that Lysander was sitting in front of her, while Kyle slept at her back, wrapped snugly around her. "Good morning, sweetie. What are you doing here?" she asked him slowly.

"Morning, mummy. What's he doing here? Are you two getting married?" he asked, gray eyes curious, under his disheveled mop of chestnut hued hair.

Hermione felt a smile tug at her lips and shook her head. "No, sweetie. Kyle and I are friends. We were just… keeping each other company. You know… the way uncle Harry keeps us company sometimes?"

There was a derisive snort from behind her, and Hermione realized that Kyle was now awake. "Did you honestly just compare me to a man you think of as a brother?" he asked her smartly.

Hermione hid a smile. "It's what Lysander needs to know and can understand at this moment," she explained.

"Were you making a baby?" Lysander asked eagerly.

"Wh-what… sweetheart, what are you talking about?" Hermione sputtered.

"Tommy said that when adults sleep together in a bed, a stork delivers a baby," said Lysander matter-of-factly.

"Honey, no. That's not how adults have babies," Hermione said in mortification. Her baby was asking her questions she wasn't ready to answer just yet and it was freaking her out. For the love of Merlin, he was four! "Adults need to get married in order to have a baby."

Silvery eyes were still curious and filled with questions. "Did you marry my daddy?"

It was a question she was at a loss to answer. She couldn't lie to him, but she couldn't very well tell him the truth. He would know the story behind his conception and birth once he was old enough. He wouldn't be able to understand it now.

Draco's eyes merely narrowed and he watched his son over Hermione's shoulder. "Do you want your mother and I to get married?" he asked softly.

Hermione averted her gaze from her son and didn't turn to look at Kyle either. It was a loaded question with an answer that she couldn't figure out just yet either. She looked at her son and the boy smiled brightly, his little nose scrunched up adorably. "I like having Kyle as my daddy," he said.

"Maybe sometime soon you'll get your wish," Draco murmured, brushing a kiss over Hermione's temple.

She smiled to herself and looked at her son. "Don't listen to anything else this Timmy tells you," Hermione said seriously.

The boy giggled. "His name is Tommy." Lysander slipped into her arms.

Hermione hugged him tightly, tickling him and hearing his wonderfully sweet laughter. "Did you wash your face and brush your teeth?" she asked him.

"Yes, mummy. Are we going to ride the horses again today?" Lysander asked eagerly, already forgetting all of the questions that had completely thrown Hermione so early in the morning.

"We'll have to ask Kyle," she said lightly.

Pleading gray eyes moved towards Draco. "Can we, please?" he asked, climbing over Hermione and jumping into Kyle's arms.

Hermione sat up in the large bed and turned to see Lysander in full use of the puppy-eyed look, complete with a pout. She shook her head and put her face in one of her hands. "Uncle Harry and I are going to have words when we get back," she mumbled.

Draco gave her a quizzical look, which she missed, and turned back to his son who was giving him the most adorable look he had ever seen. Was there anything that he wouldn't be willing to give to the child in his arms? "If you eat everything for breakfast today, we'll go on the horses. But you must eat a serving of fruit and some oatmeal as well. Yes?"

Hermione looked at him again and smiled at the ease in which his fatherly side came through with a child that wasn't his own. What would he say if he knew who Lysander's father really was? Would he judge her? Would he be like McLaggen and discriminate for the blood running through an innocent's veins?

"Okay!" Lysander cried happily, hugging Kyle in excitement. "Can we get breakfast now?"

Kyle nodded and sat up, pulling Lysander into his arms. "Come on. Let's go see what the elves are making for breakfast while mummy does whatever she needs to do alone," he said, winking at Hermione before walking out of her room.

Hermione watched them go with a content smile on her face and felt her heart flutter in her chest. She hadn't felt this way before, not even with Ron, who was resting in peace. If life was giving her a chance to be happy, after so much loss and so much guilt, then she was very much willing to take this opportunity. She wanted to know what true love was, and Kyle was also offering it to her on a silver platter. He got along with Lysander, and he didn't judge her for who she had been. He wasn't a bad man and as far as she could tell, he had no secrets. Hermione got out of bed, with a more positive outlook on life than she had ever remembered having, and made her way to the restroom to begin her morning rituals.

She slipped into a pair of jeans and a warm sweater shirt and tied up her mass of curls into a ponytail before she walked towards the kitchen. Kyle and Lysander were already seated at the breakfast table, Kyle smearing cream cheese onto a bagel, and with her son sipping on his orange and carrot juice. She took a seat next to Lysander and smiled at him as he kicked his legs under the table with a happy grin.

"Mummy, your hair is funny," Lysander commented, giggling.

Hermione glared at Kyle when he forced back a snort of laughter and pretended to drink from his coffee. The liquid burned his upper lip and Hermione smirked. "Serves you right," she said primly, pushing her unruly fringe away from her eyes.

Draco couldn't deny that seeing her mass of huge curls brought back many memories from Hogwarts. Unfortunately, not many of them were happy memories. They usually involved a lot of insults hurled at the future mother of his child; the memories didn't sit well with him anymore. What he wouldn't have given to go back in time and slap some sense into his younger self.

After breakfast was done, Draco and Lysander went of to get into comfortable clothing before heading out towards the opposite side of where the vineyards stretched out. There was a horse stable filled with beautiful pureblood horses. Lysander had instantly fallen in love with a beautiful black stallion, but Draco knew that he'd have to breed him in order to get his son a pony to grow at his rate. He saddled the horse up himself and then picked out a mellow mare, the color of a silky golden brown, for Hermione. He caught himself from comparing the horses with Buckbeak, since he had known Hermione had ridden on the creature before. He needed to be cautious on the things he said around her because any little detail concerning his adolescence would easily give him away.

He helped Hermione on first, and then placed Lysander on the saddle before levering himself up behind his son. "More confident today?" he asked Hermione.

She nodded and pulled on the reins, following him and Lysander at a slow trot. "Won't you tell me a little about your family?" Hermione asked him quietly, keeping an eye on their surroundings.

Draco was silent for a moment, gathering his thoughts and the story he had begun to concoct in his own head for when Hermione asked to know more about him. He knew that he was waist deep now and that the more lies he told her, the harder it would be for her to forgive him, but he was in too deep and there was no going back anymore.

"My parents died not too long ago," he started. He would only distort his own past in a way that would make her less curious about how he had grown up. "They weren't always supportive of who I was."

"You mean a Wizard?" Hermione asked.

He hated himself for continuing with the lies, but it had to be done. "As difficult as it is to imagine, yes."

Hermione mulled that over for a bit. She couldn't imagine what her life would've been like if her parents hadn't been there for her every step of the way. All the way to their deaths, they had loved her and accepted her. She felt her eyes tear up at the memory of her parents laughing and smiling on the last anniversary that they had ever celebrated.

"Are you alright?" Draco asked her in worry, allowing Lysander to take the reins.

She let out a long breath and nodded. "I just… miss my parents."

"…How did they die?" he asked, because he supposed that Hermione expected him to.

It took Hermione a moment to swallow her tears and then choke out her answer. "They were murdered."

"I'm sorry," Draco said, and he found that he very much meant it. After all, he'd been on Voldemort's side back then. "I can't begin to imagine what that must've felt like." He stretched out his left hand and Hermione took it gratefully in one of her own. Their eyes met as he pulled her arm towards him, brushing his lips across her knuckles.

Hermione smiled and felt a blush bloom on her cheeks at the look he was giving her. Her heart fluttered in her chest like a little bird and she could already feel it letting down its defenses. She suspected that it wouldn't be long before she was completely in love with Kyle. Releasing his hand, she took back the reins of her mare and they continued their little excursion until they passed his vineyard, and walked up a trail and over a hill. There was a beautiful lake on the other side.

They stopped at the very edge of the lake and Draco hopped off of his horse before helping his son and then Hermione down. He took the horses and walked over to tie their reins off on a low branch on a nearby tree. Both he and Hermione took a seat on the grass and in the shade, watching Lysander as he began to collect different sized twigs and admire the lizard he had just discovered.

"So… how many girls have you brought here before?" Hermione asked him in a playful tone.

Draco let out a genuine chuckle and shook his head. "None. Don't look at me like that," he said in amusement. "If I'm honest with you, there hasn't been a serious woman in my life for quite some time."

"After who?" She was honestly curious to know more about him and his past now.

He stared at her dumfounded. What was he supposed to make up for that question? "She… she and I didn't get a chance to delve deeper into a relationship. I… had to leave, and I never saw her again," Draco said quietly, unable to meet Hermione's soft, brown eyes. He stared at their son instead and noticed that the boy was still watching the sunbathing lizard on a rock with keen interest.

"Did you love her?" she questioned carefully.

"I don't know," he said honestly. I love her now, he mused to himself. "But you're my present now," Draco said quietly, reaching up to brush his fingers over her jaw.

Hermione smiled slowly and leaned towards him so that their lips could meet in a light, chaste kiss. Cupping her jaw, he deepened the kiss a little, still mindful of their child nearby, and felt Hermione sigh gently against him. "I want you to love me," he murmured against her lips, feeling them quirk up in a smile.

Her dazed eyes opened and gazed into his pale gray ones. For once his eyes didn't remind her of Draco. "I think that slowly but surely we're getting there," she admitted with a shy smile.

Draco felt a bitter twinge race through his heart when reality came crashing down. Of course she wasn't in love with him. She was falling in love with Kyle. Maybe he had doomed himself to live the life of a man who in all reality did not exist. Someone who had been alive for only five years now. Instead of replying to her words and letting her know that he was very much in love with her already, he kissed her again.

"Yucky…" came Lysander's voice from nearby.

Hermione and Draco came apart and looked at the boy, but he wasn't looking at them. He was staring down at the lizard. "What happened, sweetheart?" she asked him.

"I tried to grab him and his tail fell off. Didn't it hurt?" Lysander asked, eyes wide.

Draco—Kyle, he had to think of himself as Kyle—shook his head. "It's the way he protects himself. If a bigger animal grabs him by the tail, it falls off and the lizard can get away. He'll grow it back in a couple of days," he replied to his curious son.

Lysander looked fascinated. "Mummy, can we get a lizard when we get back home?"

Hermione made a face. "I don't think so, honey. Who is going to clean its home, and feed it, and make sure that Periwinkle doesn't eat him?"

Kyle was giving her an incredulous look. "I've never heard of a cat that eats lizards," he said dryly.

Hermione shook her head. "If he was capable of drinking the potion that turned him blue, there's a possibility that he'll eat a lizard if he gets the chance."

He ended up chuckling and motioning their son over. "How about you wait for Periwinkle to be a little older before you get another pet?" he asked diplomatically.

Lysander gave them both a pouty face. "But—!"

"No 'buts,' love. Both you and Periwinkle aren't old enough to have another pet. Why don't we head back so that you can play with the dogs in the garden?" Hermione asked instead, getting to her feet and offering her son a hand. He took it and stood, still looking as if he wanted to argue, but he stayed quiet and surly.

Draco stood and hid a smirk at the expression on Lysander's face. Though it irked him to think about his own father, the look on the boy's face very closely resembled Lucius, and consequently him. Lysander was a Malfoy through and through, and despite his thoughts, it made him proud as a father. "We can go swimming later too, if you'd like. I didn't show you where we had the indoor pool," he said in a cajoling tone.

Lysander's features brightened and a smile came quickly to his face. "Yes! Mummy, can we go swimming please?" he asked, jumping in place.

Hermione nodded. "Sure we can, sweetie. Let's get back and see if I remembered to pack up our swimsuits," she said.

"And how about we have homemade pizza for dinner?" Draco asked.

Hermione gave him a dubious look. "You know how to make pizza?"

"I tried a few times before and it doesn't come out so bad. I'll be happy to show the both of you how to make it," he said, lifting Lysander up so that he could sit on the saddle of the horse on his own.

Hermione untied the reins to both horses, and together she and Kyle began to walk back down the path. "You're too good to us, you know," she said quietly.

Draco smiled to himself and nodded. "It's because I want you and Lysander to be my family. I've been alone for a long time. I'd like to be Lysander's father, and I would like to be the one man who holds your heart. That's only if you allow me to, of course."

Hermione nodded and gave him a bright smile. "We still have a lot to get to know about each other, but I'm willing to give our relationship a try. I've been alone for a long time too, with the exception of Harry, but he's my brother and companion. My heart is calling for something more," she said quietly.

Draco wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple, trying to keep his heart from bursting in his own chest. It hurt to know that he couldn't show himself for who he really was, but he desperately wanted to. The aftermath of the war, the death of his parents, the birth of his son, it had all shaped the man that he was now. There were no traces of the spoiled, arrogant boy who had known nothing of the world and what it meant like to truly love someone. Not until Granger and the boy sitting astride a horse had walked into his life.

"Will I get to call you daddy?" Lysander interrupted his thoughts.

Draco smiled and noticed the careful look on Hermione's face. "Yes. If your mother says it is okay with her, you can call me daddy."

Hermione looked at him in pleasant surprise and then smiled, leaning over to brush her lips against his cheek. Her eyes were glassy, but they held no traces of sadness. "Thank you," she said quietly.

Draco nodded and looked away from her beautiful face. He had to come clean soon, before he lost Hermione and Lysander for sure.

Blaise Zabini has always been one for making grand entrances and unannounced. He and his best mate Malfoy had always had a flair for the dramatic, and so as he came through the floo of his villa in France, he opened in arms in a grand gesture. He rolled his eyes when he realized that no one had been around to see it. He looked around and heard noises coming from the kitchen.

"Hey… your one true love is here!" he said with a smirk. He pushed open the swinging door and the man's real last name fell from his lips. "Ma—" his eyes bugged out when Granger and her son looked over at him curiously. "Ma…te…" he recovered lamely, noticing the death glare on Kyle's face.

Hermione looked from Blaise to Kyle in surprise. "I didn't know you two were friends," she said inquisitively.

Draco cleared his throat and nodded. "We met before the opening of his restaurant. Blaise was kind enough to give my wine a try and aside from being friends, we're business partners," he said smoothly.

Blaise looked at the boy sitting on the counter, his cheeks covered in flour and his bright gray eyes giving him a look full of intelligence. He was like a mini-Granger with Malfoy's face and his mother's colors. He found himself grinning at the sight of the kid. "This is your boy?" he asked the room in general.

Draco said nothing as Hermione nodded and smiled. "He's Lysander," she said, voice filled with pride.

"Nice to meet you," said Blaise, offering the boy his hand. The kid smiled and took it, shaking it like the little Malfoy that he truly was. "Sorry to barge in. I didn't know you were entertaining guests," he said to Kyle.

"I left a note at the office," Draco said in a bored tone.

Blaise shrugged. "I imagined you were just overseeing your vineyard. Again, sorry for barging in. I guess I should go," he said, turning towards the door.

"We're making pizza. Can't he stay mummy?" Lysander asked Hermione.

Hermione looked at Kyle and he nodded. "Why don't you stay and try the disaster that Lysander calls a pizza?" she asked.

Blaise stopped at the door. "Uh… sure. I suppose I can stay and have dinner, but then I must be on my way. I do have plenty of ladies waiting for me back in London," he said, waggling his eyebrows.

"Some things never change, do they?" Hermione asked, grabbing a cloth and wetting it before setting about cleaning Lysander's cheeks.

"I guess they don't," Blaise said, his eyes on Kyle.

Kyle's smile was tight as he looked at his old friend. "Why don't you two get started on frosting the cake while I speak to Blaise in private," he said.

"Sure," Hermione said with a puzzled look on her face.

"Business," Blaise explained before walking with Draco towards his office.

Once they were in the room, Draco put up silencing wards and locked the door to make sure they weren't interrupted. "What the bloody hell are you doing here?" Draco snapped. "You were about to give up my real identity to Hermione and my son!"

Blaise scoffed. "Take off that ridiculous getup when you're trying to yell at me," he said in a snarky tone.

Draco pulled off the ring and instantly his pale complexion and nearly white blond hair came into view, followed by the shifting of his features to his normal face. He was beginning to forget what he even looked like, he thought wryly. He ran an agitated hand through his short hair. "Remind yourself to call me Kyle. If you call me Malfoy again before I'm ready to tell them who I really am, I will burn you to cinders and then process you into my wine."

Blaise smirked and knew that Draco had long since forgotten how to be evil. "I never did care for what the Prince of Slytherin had to say. You've lost that evil touch, too," he said, taking a seat in his chair.

"What are you doing here?" Draco asked, letting out a long breath and sitting in his large, leather chair.

"This is getting complicated. You need to just get it over with and accept the consequences," Blaise said quietly.

Draco nodded. "I know. But… I want more time with them. Once I tell them who I am, there's a great possibility that Hermione will hate me and that I won't ever get to see my son."

Blaise sighed. "You're in deep shit my friend. Which is precisely why you should do it now. Later will only make it worse."

"Yes, I know," Draco replied absently. "I'm going to tell her on her birthday."

"Happy-fucking-birthday," Blaise said with a scoff.

"I know," Draco muttered to himself. "Why did you come?" he asked, getting back to the point.

Blaise shrugged. "Pansy has kept Potter in her flat since you've had Granger and the kid here. She's usually my drinking buddy as well as my fuck-buddy, but I guess I need to go out and find new ones of both."

Draco smirked. "Jealous?"

Blaise shook his head. "No. But I am bored."

"Well, go be bored somewhere else. I have a family to win over," Draco said, standing and placing the ring back onto his finger. Kyle came back to his face and he was scowling fiercely.

"You have a charming kid. Remember that he invited me to stay and have dinner. A polite Malfoy; never thought I'd live to see that day. He's nothing like you or your old man," Blaise said as they walked out of the office, effectively shattering the wards.

"I'll take that as the compliment that it is," Draco said.

Blaise just smirked and nodded, walking into the kitchen with his old friend in time to see Hermione tickling Lysander, and the boy's face now covered in chocolate frosting. "He looks like someone I used to know," he said casually.

Hermione froze and turned to look at the both of them, noticing the twitch in Kyle's eyebrow. "I'm sure he does," she said coolly, turning back to her son and giving no other comment.

Draco covertly brandished his wand at Blaise and the other man just smirked. "Why don't you go down to the cellar and pick out a good vintage wine?" Kyle asked pointedly.

"Right," Blaise said before he disappeared.

Draco walked over to slowly wrap his arms around her slim waist, relief flooding him when she leaned back into him. "Is that cake ready?"

Lysander nodded happily. "It's already in the regrigerator."

"Refrigerator," Hermione corrected with a smile as Kyle kissed the side of her neck and her shoulder gently.

"We'll have to find a way to come back on our own one of these days. At least for only one night," he murmured against her ear.

Hermione's cheeks colored at the implication of his word and nodded. "I'll get Harry to baby-sit."

Feeling his heart pound away in his chest at the thought of being alone with her and in a place that had been his home for a long time, he nodded and kissed her cheek before stepping back as Blaise's footsteps echoed up the steps of the cellar.

Dinner was a nice, pleasant affair and Blaise actually shared intellectual conversations with Hermione about the economy, the history of ancient runes—which nearly put both Draco and Lysander to sleep—and lastly about the war crimes bill. Blaise was completely on her side and for that, Hermione was grateful. She had to excuse herself from the table when Lysander nearly fell asleep on his slice of cake. She carried her son into the room Kyle had given to him.

She changed him into his favorite pajamas and smiled when he barely even stirred. Placing him in the sheets of his bed, which warmed magically, Hermione brushed the silky hair from Lysander's forehead, feeling inmesurable love course through her for her son. He'd had a tiring day, after swimming, playing with the dogs and rolling in the dirt in a contest to see which one of them could get the dirtiest, and then helping Kyle knead the dough for the pizza. It was a miracle he had remained awake for so long.

"Mummy, will you tell me a story about daddy?" Lysander asked sleepily.

Hermione started in surprise; she had been so sure that he had been asleep. "Not tonight, honey. But soon, I promise you. I'll even show you pictures of him."

"Really?" he asked with a hopeful smile.

Tears gathered in her eyes. "Yes, sweetie. When we get back home, you'll be able to finally know what your father looked like." Her son settled back into sleep and Hermione stood, nearly jumping out of her skin when she realized that Kyle was standing in the doorway. He looked a little pale, and she gave him a worried frown. "Are you alright?"

Draco nodded numbly. "Yes. Fine. I think I just had a bit too much wine," he said, as calmly as possible. He couldn't very well try to convince her to not show their son pictures of him, but… but then the boy would blurt out that he had seen him and he and Potter wouldn't be able to stop the disaster that would come.

Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck and sighed against his shoulder. Draco closed his eyes and relished in the feel of her in his arms. "I think I'm ready to tell my son who his father is," she whispered.

Draco swallowed hard and nodded. "Whatever you decide to do, I will be here for you." She smiled gratefully and moved up to brush their lips together in a sweet, wine flavored kiss. Draco kissed her back slowly, his blood burning, but his fear escalating. He needed to talk to Potter and soon.

I know, not much happened in this chapter, except more and more clues and maybes. Also, it was disappointingly short, but we're getting to the action, don't worry. We're closing in on Hermione finding out who Kyle really is, but it'll be a surprise that no one will expect. Either way, I hoped everyone enjoyed the fluff and the touch of sensuality in the beginning there. I'm very much aware that I only replied to about half of the reviews and I'm really sorry, just don't think that I don't appreciate your words because I do. Time just hasn't been on my side and I'm still in school. I won't have a complete vacation until mid-July, so updates will still be slow. But at least I didn't take four months again, right…? …right?

Anyway, I do want to thank you all for reading and reviewing: ShadX a.k.a Shady a.k.a Shade, Laguna, aquamarine04, David Fishwick, Ardastra, , Robyn Hawkes, sailorV, ChermaineisAwesome, Weaselbee, Terry Moon, imsimplyme, klpulzone, Avanell, tfobmv18, my-favorite-name, Zethinka, tigger2025643119, peaceloveberries, shaberry, MisZHPLoVeR, mentarisenja, softballgal93, hawk Lawson. You all have my gratitude for being patient and for taking the time to review my work. Have a great weekend everyone and don't forget to let me know what you thought of this chapter!

Joey

P.S. Apologies for any errors that are bound to show up. I will get to them as soon as I can. Have a good one!