When Hermione woke up the next morning, she thanked her stars she was no longer in the Ron world, not that she planned on seeing him for a while if she did return there.
On that same note, luckily she was in the bed of the Draco she was married to, and not the one whose house she'd decided to bunk at. Waking up in his bed would have been very awkward.
She tried to keep her head from pounding, and her numerous thoughts from doing the same. Among them were the phrases, What were you thinking going to Draco's house two seconds after leaving your husband? and, Ron will never be amicable with you again. As upset as she was with him, she didn't want to keep her children away from their father, and it wouldn't be good if every time they had to see each other they were fighting.
"Granger, what is going on in that head of yours?" She heard Draco ask from beside her. "You've been staring at the ceiling for the past five minutes."
"I was just wondering what I would do if my world came crashing down on me," she admitted.
"Is this about your coworker?" He questioned, and assuming he was right, he rolled over onto his side with his arms supporting his head and continued along. "Well, if I were to ever cheat on you- which I never will because I'm not stupid- you would probably hex me to hell and back, and then you'd torture me in some horrible way you could only think of. You'd probably kick me out of the house, and I'd go without a fight. You'd keep the kids of course, but you'd probably let me visit them because you're not heartless. And eventually I'd come crawling back on all fours, and you'd take me back because I'm irresistible."
He said his last sentence with a smirk, and Hermione took advantage of his position by removing his pillow from underneath him and smacking him across the head with it.
"Don't be so sure," she laughed. "You had at least seventy-five percent of that correct."
"I had all of it correct," he said, wrapping his arms around her and pressing her against him. He began to kiss her in various places from her chest and above, when they were interrupted by their door barging open. They quickly let go of each other, fixing themselves into a less compromising position.
"SARDINES!" Scorpius yelled. "Ari's hiding!" He was out of the room just as fast as he came in.
Draco chuckled as he kissed Hermione once more on the lips, and then slid out of the bed. "It's a good thing our house isn't too big or we'd never have time for this game on a school morning."
Sardines? Hermione wondered. She hadn't played that in years, but it made sense that her kids would know it. Hopefully her way of playing it was the same as how they were going to play at that moment.
"We'll give her ten more seconds," Draco said as he stretched himself. "Three-two-one!"
He shot out of the room just as Scorpius had, and Hermione just watched in amusement.
She was going to participate in the game, just at a slower pace than the boys were. At her thought of boys, she realized that she needed to get Pollux, seeing as Draco was occupied with something more exciting.
She went to Pollux's room, and smiled when she saw him already standing up in his crib, his hands on the railing, and his legs bouncing up and down.
"I think someone wants to be let out," she said as she lifted him into her arms, and placed a kiss on his cheek.
As she turned back towards the door, something caught her eye. One of the closet sliding doors was slightly open, which was odd because she had a thing about having closet doors either all the way open or all the way closed. Curious, she went over to it and slid it open.
Huddled against a back corner with a wide smile at being found, was Ariel. The little girl gave Hermione the shushing signal and then motioned for Hermione to come in.
Stifling a giggle, Hermione stepped in and then closed the door again behind her, leaving just a sliver open so she and Ariel could keep watch. Pollux seemed to know something was going on, for he stayed silent and rested his head against Hermione's shoulder.
A couple minutes later and Scorpius entered the room. He got down on his knees to look under Pollux's crib, and sighed when he found no one there. Then a mischievous smile crept onto his lips as he looked towards the closet. He quickly slid it open and then shout whispered, "Gotcha!"
"Be quiet Scorpy or Daddy will hear you!" Ariel quietly shrieked.
"Too late!" Draco grinned, jumping in from the hallway. He frowned when he realized he was the last one. "Dang it."
"Mummy won!" Ariel proclaimed as they all got out of the closet.
"Did she?"
"You should've gotten Pollux first," Hermione winked.
They all migrated downstairs to the kitchen where Hermione and Draco prepared their wired kids a small breakfast of toast and half a banana, while Ariel regaled them with how she had decided on her hiding spot.
"I didn't think you guys would ever find me there!" She said as her parents took their seats at the table, and everybody let out a laugh.
"Oh, Granger," Draco started. "Ron told me-"
Hermione's slice of toast fell out of her hand at the mention of Ron's name, and her body gave a slight jerk.
"I just got a sudden chill," she excused herself, picking up the bread in her hand again. "You were saying?"
Draco eyed her strangely, but continued on. "He told me he has a surprise for us and will be stopping by sometime today."
"He'll be coming here?"
"That's what he said," Draco answered. "Is everything alright?"
No. Yes. Maybe…
You'll be fine with him here Hermione, she told herself firmly. This is a different life and a different Ron. You'll be fine.
"Yeah, just, you know, want to be sure not to go anywhere so he won't miss us," she lied.
"I can tell him to call you before he heads over."
"No, it's fine. I'm sure we'll be home whenever he decides to come."
"Alright then. Well I better go now. Have to go save those lives!"
Draco hugged and kissed all his children before saying goodbye to Hermione, letting her know he'd be back in time for dinner later that night.
Hermione sat patiently on her living room couch, waiting for Ginny to apparate in. She needed to talk to someone about Ron, no matter what she had told herself that morning about not worrying about it, so she had called her only confidant as soon as she had returned from bringing Scorpius to school. Besides, venting didn't really count as worrying.
"I'm here," Ginny sang as she walked into the living room. Hermione assumed Lily had gone straight to Ariel's room, where the sole Malfoy girl was already at play along with Pollux.
"So, I'm guessing you have important things to tell me about your other life."
"Yes," Hermione started slowly, not wanting to say it all in one breath as she had a habit of doing. "I left Ron, like I said I would."
"By left I'm hoping you mean that he left."
"Unfortunately no. He refused to let me go, and…he actually tried to force himself on me."
"He didn't!"
Hermione nodded in answer. "I stupefied him before he could do anything, thank goodness. He stayed down long enough for me to get the kids and drive out of there."
"Where did you go?"
"Draco's house," Hermione said sheepishly, phrasing it so it was almost a question.
"Oh my gosh you didn't!" Ginny exclaimed, her mouth forming into a giant smile.
"It was Rose's idea!"
"That is just too perfect. But let's rewind to when you told Ron you knew he was a lying, cheating, ass. I want it to be as if I was right there with you."
Hermione told Ginny what had happened with as much detail as possible. She probably could've made a short film with the way she described the situation.
"I like your daughter," Ginny said. "It seems she got all of your genes, and if she got any of Ron's, quickly disposed of them. If you ask me, I think she saw something that the other you had been ignoring, and of course once you got there that all changed. Seriously, you and Draco are just drawn to each other, no matter what reality you're in."
"I was actually thinking the same thing," Hermione blushed.
"You know what I always wanted to know? What he did with his ten minutes back in Flitwick's class."
"I was wondering the same thing. I don't think it was good, though. I looked at him when he was done, and he just looked sad, like something bad had happened."
"You should ask him. Use being his wife to your advantage while you can," Ginny winked. "Well, I know that all this bad stuff happened in the other life, but you need a day out of celebration. So for the next few hours we are going to pamper you with everything a free woman deserves."
Ginny made good on her word. They went into muggle London and got manicures and pedicures for them and the girls, and then they went out for lunch and desert. They then went to a clothing store where they each bought a couple outfits for themselves and their kids.
By the time Hermione returned home she was exhausted, but she only had a couple of hours to regroup before going to pick up Scorpius from school. Luckily both Ariel and Pollux had drifted off for afternoon naps, which would make it ten times easier for her to just sit back and relax.
She made her way to her room and noticed that something was on Draco's side of the bed. As she went to inspect it she realized that it was a pensieve; the same pensieve she had used in the other life.
It must be a Malfoy family artifact, Hermione concluded, since it obviously belonged to Draco.
Next to the pensieve were three vials, and a note with what she could tell was Draco's handwriting.
I came home for a short break but you were still out, it said. I was looking at these after you went to sleep last night, and I thought you'd enjoy looking at them again too.
Yours Always,
Draco
Instantly curious as to what memories the vials held, Hermione picked one up, uncorked it, and let the contents flow into the pensieve. She thought back to when she had last used the pensieve and grimaced. Hopefully whatever these memories had to show was much better than one unveiling a cheating husband.
She let the memory swirl around for a couple seconds before dipping her head in, a little nervous for what she was about to see.
She appeared inside the dining room of a flat, her and Draco's memory selves sitting at a table. By the lack of food on their obviously dirty plates, they had just finished eating.
"So, not that I don't love having you to myself for the night," Draco said with a grin. "But is there a reason you sent Scorpius to my mother's house?"
"Maybe…" Memory Hermione smirked, and then she hopped out of her seat to grab something she had hidden behind their couch. It was a green gift bag with white tissue paper sticking out of it.
"Ah, a gift. I love gifts. What's the occasion?"
"Just open it," Memory Hermione said, placing it in front of him.
Draco removed the tissue paper and then reached in, pulling out a navy blue onesie clearly supporting Puddlemere United. On the back it had the name Malfoy and the number two on it.
"I don't think this is going to fit me Granger, or Scorpius," Draco said with a shaky laugh as he kept turning it back and forth. He then looked at Memory Hermione with a wide smile on his face. "It's not for any of us, is it?"
Memory Hermione shook her head and then let out a giggle before being promptly swept into Draco's arms.
"I want a girl this time Granger," he said as he began to kiss her.
"That's entirely up to you," she responded, returning his affection.
The memory faded as they began to move towards another part of the flat, and Hermione was brought back to her bedroom.
That must've been when I was pregnant with Ariel, she thought with a smile.
Without wasting any time she put the memory back inside its vial and proceeded onto the next one.
She appeared in the same flat, only this time she was in the kitchen. Her memory self was preparing dinner, and Draco and Scorpius were yet to be seen.
Three minutes passed with nothing but her memory self cooking, although there was a container of blueberries that she kept glancing at for prolonged periods of time, as if she was contemplating something about them.
The sound of a key entering a keyhole and being turned caught Hermione's ears, and a moment later the door to the flat opened, revealing the husband she had been waiting for.
"Hey, Granger," he greeted her memory self, kissing her on the cheek once he reached her. The other Hermione turned her head so that she was facing him fully and allowed him to really kiss her.
"Need help with anything?" He asked when they broke apart.
"Could you rinse those blueberries for me?" She asked.
"Of course."
"You know, I found out something interesting today."
"Yeah? I thought you already knew everything interesting," he joked as he picked up the container of blueberries and began to run them under the faucet.
"Fine, I won't tell you then."
"No, I'm sorry," he laughed. "Tell me, please. What is this new interesting fact you have to tell me."
"One of those blueberries you're holding is about the same size as our baby."
There was a clatter as Draco dropped the container he was holding.
Memory Hermione watched in amusement as different emotions flitted across his face: surprise, confusion, excitement.
"Our…ah…did you say?...Are you?"
"Yes!" She squealed.
"Seriously?"
"Yes!"
Draco quickly pulled her to him and hugged her tightly.
"I can't believe it. We're having a baby," he whispered.
"Yes, we are."
The memory ended, and when Hermione got back she waited a minute to start on the next one. She knew that last memory had been her pregnancy with Scorpius, and the very first time she had to tell Draco she was carrying their child. She could only imagine how nerve wracking it had been, letting him know he was going to be a father for the first time and that their lives were about to change.
Hermione removed the memory and returned it to its vial, and then poured in the last vial of memory, which she had a feeling was going to be her announcement about Pollux.
Taking a breath, she bowed her head in. She was promptly dropped into the same room she was in, although it was dark now. Draco was sitting on the bed while her memory self was standing to the side of him holding two small boxes in her hands.
"I got these puzzles from George today, he said he wanted us to try them out," Hermione said. "They're called Pensieve Puzzles. You use it like a pensieve, but in puzzle form."
"So I think of an image and transfer it onto the puzzle?" Draco asked.
"You transfer it onto the box of the puzzle and it will transfer it accordingly onto all the pieces inside."
"Interesting."
"Want to see who can put theirs together the fastest? Both of these are only a hundred pieces."
"You're on, Granger," Draco grinned, rubbing his hands together at the challenge.
Memory Hermione handed him his box and then took a seat next to him, transfiguring the space in front of them into a hard surface for them to work on.
"Hey," Draco frowned, looking at his box. "This one already has a picture of a lion on it."
"You're box is actually just a regular one. I already turned yours into a particular picture earlier, and put the pieces in this box so you wouldn't know what it is."
"So I don't get something to look at and you do? Some would consider that cheating."
"You don't think you could still beat me?"
"Of course I can still beat you, Granger," Draco scoffed rifling through his pieces. "We'll begin on the count of three then. One-two-three!"
Draco began to search through his box hastily, trying to find what Hermione could only assume were the edge pieces. That was after all the logical way to start a puzzle.
Memory Hermione was doing the same, but at a surprisingly leisurely pace. She kept looking over at Draco's progress and smiling.
Hermione looked at their puzzles. She knew hers was supposed to be a picture of a running horse, because that was what was shown on her box. With Draco's it wasn't yet at a distinguishable point, but so far it looked like the only colors it contained were shades of black, white, and grey.
"What the hell is this supposed to be?" Draco wondered out loud, and Memory Hermione just chuckled.
"You'll see," she said.
It took Draco fixing a few more pieces together before Hermione figured it out, and as much as she wanted Draco to hurry and finish his puzzle before, she was now very impatient for him to be done with it.
"Granger…" he said softly as he came close to finishing it, obviously recognizing it for what it was. His speed quickened as the pieces in his box rapidly dwindled down, and finally there was only one left. He picked it up and fit it carefully in its spot, and then he stared at it.
It was a sonogram, and in the midst of the waves of white there was an area of black with a white blob the size and shape of a peanut growing into it. Draco circled it with his index finger.
"Is that…?" He asked quietly.
"Yeah," Memory Hermione said, leaning over to rest on his shoulder and look at the picture herself. "That's our baby."
He gently nudged her off of him and then guided her face to his with his fingers so he could kiss her.
"Another one?" He said, resting his forehead against hers.
"Another one," she smiled, giving a small laugh along with it that was promptly cut off by his lips covering hers again.
The memory faded as the two began to lie back on the bed, and Hermione found herself brought back in the bedroom at present time.
She wiped under her eyes, tears having collected there after witnessing the quiet emotion that had been displayed in the last memory.
His third child and he's still in awe about the whole thing, she mused. She had always figured that after the first pregnancy the rest were somewhat of a non-event for husbands, but Draco had proved her wrong. He was surprised and overjoyed every single time.
She gave a laugh as she realized that when she had told him she was pregnant this time all she had done was announce it out loud. It was pretty anti-climatic after how she had done it the first three times, though Draco didn't seem to mind.
Oh well, I'll think of something for when it really happens, she thought, and then she blushed at her insinuation. She chastised herself for already making plans. Even though she knew Draco was the one she wanted to be with, who knew if everything would happen exactly as it did the past week. She didn't want to set herself up for disappointment.
She put the memory back in its vial, and then moved all three vials to the nightstand. She thought about moving the pensieve, but decided not to because she was tired and feeling lazy. She instead went over to her side of the bed and moved back the covers, ready to take a short nap.
Knock knock knock.
Hermione's eyes snapped open at the noise, and she groggily got out of her bed. She wondered who it could've been, considering that she wasn't expecting anybody.
Maybe it's one of the neighbours, she thought.
She opened the door, and then caught her breath. The person's back was turned to her, but there was no mistaking the red head of hair.
Ron. She had forgotten that he had planned on coming over.
"Hey, 'Mione," he greeted her with a smile. He had turned around at the sound of the door opening so that he was now facing her. He let himself into the house like it was the natural thing to do, Hermione having left enough space for him to walk through. It took her a couple of moments to remember that this wasn't the Ron she had left in the middle of the night.
"Where are the kids?" He asked as he made his way to the kitchen, Hermione following behind him.
"Scorpius is still at school and the other two are upstairs taking naps."
"Dang it, I forgot about the school thing. I was hoping they would be all up so I could give them a surprise. I suppose you'll just have to do it, 'cause I can't stay very long."
He pulled out an envelope from his pocket and then took out four pieces of paper from it.
"I got tickets to the World Cup!" He exclaimed, fanning them out for her to see. "Three for the kiddos and one for that husband of yours. I also got some for Harry and his lot. Sorry, it's just going to be a Daddy, Uncle Ron, and Us day, so no mums allowed."
"Oh no, my life is ruined," Hermione said, faking dejection.
"See, I knew you'd be okay with it. Ginny was a little upset, but she's already planning a day out for you and her, so I think she's over it."
"Thanks, Ron. You're the best uncle ever."
"I know, right?" He grinned. "How are you by the way? I haven't seen you since game night." He became slightly awkward as he said this, knowing he was broaching what could possibly be an uncomfortable topic.
"I'm fine Ron, everything's fine."
"So you and Draco aren't fighting or anything?" He asked, and she briefly wondered if he was hoping for them to be.
"No," she answered more firmly than she probably had to.
She was surprised when he breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh good," he said. "I don't fancy being in the middle of one of those again. The last time was more than enough for my life."
"The last time?" Hermione said before she could stop herself.
"Yeah, when you and Draco were fighting because you had stayed at Krum's house while you were visiting Bulgaria," he said, and his eyebrows scrunched a little at her clear lack of memory of the event. "You didn't speak for nearly a week?"
"Oh, yes that one," she said, and she even threw up her arm for that 'I just remembered, how could I have forgotten' effect. Ron did the same, buying it without question.
"It was terrible that one. Especially since I took his side. But let's leave the past in the past, eh?" He added when Hermione shot a glare at him. They were quiet for a moment before he spoke again. "You're a stay-at-home mom and yet still find time to study."
"Hmm?" Hermione said, confused. Ron then picked up the charms book Ginny had lent her and that she had forgotten on the kitchen counter. "Oh. Of course. Just reading up on the Disparem charm."
"Disparem? I remember that, nearly got into trouble for accidentally using it on you that one time. If I recall correctly you broke up with me not long after that incident," he chuckled.
"Sorry," Hermione said, even though she wasn't. It just seemed like the appropriate thing to say.
"Don't be. It was probably one of the best decisions of your life. I wasn't good for you 'Mione, and you deserved so much better. Luckily Draco was there to pick up my slack."
Hermione smiled at the compliment. "I still find it amazing that you two don't hate each other anymore."
"It took a little bit of time, but we both came to our senses for your sake. Anyway, I better go. Danielle is waiting for me."
"Danielle? What happened to Juliet?"
"She just wanted me for my money," Ron said as he walked back towards the door, and she followed behind him. "Have Draco call me later so we can discuss our game plans."
"Alright."
"See you later 'Mione." He left her with a quick hug before leaving the house.
Well that went way better than you thought it would. Way to keep it together Hermione.
Hermione looked at the clock and realized she had ten minutes before Scorpius would be out of school. She hurried upstairs to wake up both Ariel and Pollux and get their shoes on, before apparating to the campus.
Despite getting what she thought was a late start, she was a couple minutes early, so she waited against one of the pillars in front of Scorpius' class, while Ariel took Pollux to the playground nearby.
"If I knew there'd be attractive mothers here, I'd have come picked up my son every day," someone said from beside her, and her head turned toward the speaker in both surprise and recognition. "Hello," Draco smirked, clearly enjoying the way her mouth was slightly open.
"What are you doing here?"
"I got off work early so I decided to meet you here and pick up Scor."
As if on cue, the door to the classroom burst open and Scorpius bounded out.
"Dad!" he shouted, noticing Draco first. He jumped into his dad's arms and hugged him, then moved on to Hermione once Draco put him back down.
"How was school today buddy?" Draco asked, taking Scorpius' backpack from him.
"It was awesome!" Scorpius said, and he began to tell Draco everything he did that day starting from when he first got to the school.
They walked over to the playground where Ariel was playing with Pollux, and like their older brother before them, they immediately stopped what they were doing to greet their dad.
"Why don't we go to the park?" Draco suggested as he gathered Pollux into his arms.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Both Scorpius and Ariel squealed.
"I think they like that idea," Hermione laughed.
They apparated home first to get some toys and snacks together, before piling into their car and heading to the same park they had gone to on Sunday.
Hermione waited as Draco laid out a large blanket, and then joined him on it when he was done, sitting Pollux in front of them to play with some toys. Scorpius and Ariel had ventured to the playground and joined another group of kids in a game of tag.
"Thank you for setting up the pensieve for me," Hermione said. "It was nice looking at those memories."
"I thought you'd appreciate it. We'll have to add this last time to the group. Only seven more months and there'll be another child sitting in front of us, and Pollux will be the one out on the playground with the others," Draco mused.
Hermione just let out a chuckle as she ruffled Pollux's hair. "Do you want another boy or a girl?"
"Girl of course. You?"
"I'll take either," she smiled. "But I've found I'm more partial to boys."
"We are an amazing species," Draco winked.
Hermione just rolled her eyes at him before speaking again. "Can I ask you something?"
"You can ask me anything, you know that. Besides, nothing could be worse than your last question."
"Sorry about that."
"It's fine, really, as long as you know that I would never do something like that to you."
"I know," Hermione said, putting her hand in his.
"What do you want to know?"
"Remember back in our eighth year, when Flitwick taught us the Disparem charm?"
"Yes…" Draco responded, not sure where she was going with it.
"What did you do for your ten minutes?"
Draco laughed. "I can't believe you're asking me this ten years later. May I ask why?"
"Ginny and I were reminiscing, and it got me wondering." Hermione fibbed.
"I see. Well, for the first run through I-" he began and then he stopped, smiling sheepishly.
"What?"
"This is kind of embarrassing for me Granger. I've never told anyone this before."
"But we had to write about it to Flitwick!"
"I lied," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing. "It's not that hard to make up a story about what you did for ten minutes of time, especially when you can be completely reckless."
"Well what was so embarrassing about it?"
"I kissed you."
"You kissed me?"
"Yep. Right on the mouth."
"And that was embarrassing why?"
"Because if you recall we were in a classroom full of students, including your boyfriend at the time."
"Oh."
"Thank goodness I was the only one who would remember experiencing it. But for that first five minutes they got to witness me kiss you, get shot down by you, and then get punched in the jaw by Weasley."
"I'm sorry," Hermione apologized.
"Don't worry, it didn't hurt. Weasley has a weak punch- still does actually."
"What did I say?"
"After I kissed you? I asked you if you would ever choose me over Ron, and you said no because of our friends, expectations- you know, the usual."
"I'm sorry," Hermione said again.
"You broke my heart in those five minutes, as cheesy as that sounds," Draco admitted freely. "I was so upset I spent my next five minutes trashing the nearest empty classroom."
"Of course you would," Hermione scoffed playfully. "Well, obviously I changed my mind about you."
"Yeah, the very next day." He brought his face to hers and kissed her tenderly.
"Was I able to fix your heart?" she whispered against his mouth.
"Made it whole again and then some," he smiled, before kissing her again.
Draco's face was suddenly pushed away from hers, and Hermione opened her eyes to find Pollux standing next to them with his hand pressing on Draco's cheek.
"My Mummy!" He frowned.
Both Draco and Hermione chuckled. "Looks like someone's Oedipus complex is kicking in early," Draco commented as Pollux tugged on Hermione's hand and then walked her to the playground. She followed him wherever he led her on the structure, making sure he didn't bump into anything or fall off.
He had just guided her across a hanging bridge that ended at another platform of the playground, when a boy that looked to be about Scorpius' age hurriedly pushed past Hermione, knocking into her. She didn't even have time to think before she fell backwards and out one of the side openings of the playground, barely missing the attached fireman pole.
She landed flat on her back, and even though it had been a short fall, it hurt. It hurt a lot.
She was able to hear Draco yell her name, before she closed her eyes and lost consciousness of everything around her.
A/N: And there you go! I hope you enjoyed it, especially the memory portion because it was my favorite part to write. This was the penultimate chapter, so be ready for the end :(