"I'm swearing off men."
"Really?"
"Yes, celibacy doesn't sound so bad right now."
Hermione laughs. "Talk to me a few years and we will see how that celibacy is working for you."
Ginny shakes her head with a small smile on her face as she stares down at the baby in her arms. "This is the only man I need in my life." She says lovingly to her new born son.
This is her second day in the hospital after giving birth to a perfectly healthy baby boy. He's seven pounds, five ounces with a head of thick blonde hair. He looks just like Draco but no one else seems to put that connection together. Her family and Theo's keep coming up with long lost relatives that he must look like, but she knows the truth… and so does Hermione. Who stared, with out blinking, at the child when she first saw him.
"So, what's the game plan now?" asks Hermione as she sits down on the hospital bed.
Ginny lifts her finger to the baby and he grabs it, holding it with his little hand. "I'm not sure… Anna and Andred said I could stay with them as long as I want… but I don't know if I want to do that. I may move into the house I shared with Theo again so I can be alone with the baby for a while." She sighs tiredly. "I just wish Theo was here."
Hermione pats her leg. "Me too… Have you heard any news from the Auror department?"
She shakes her head. "They still think he just fell over board. Anna refuses to accept that he's dead, though. It's not easy."
"What do you believe?"
She looks to her friend. "If he didn't die seven months ago… He must be dead now…." She says quietly. "We would have heard from him otherwise…."
There's a knock on the door and a nurse comes in. "Mrs. Nott, you have another visitor."
"Who is it?" she asks.
"Draco Malfoy, he says he's a friend of the family.
"You tell that bastard he can't come in here!"
"Hermione," Ginny says lightly, trying to calm down her friend. "Maybe he has a right to see him."
"No, he doesn't. He's nothing but a..." she stops what she was about to say when she sees Ginny's face. "Fine, alright."
The nurse leaves and a few moments later Draco enters the room and his eyes lock on Hermione. They both glare at each other hatefully.
"Malfoy."
"Mudblood."
"Why you disgusting…"
"Hermione, could you wait in the hallway please?" Ginny asks pleadingly.
"Yes, leave." Says Draco snidely.
"Draco, don't be hateful or you can walk right back out that door." Snaps Ginny. She had been through childbirth; she can handle Draco Malfoy right now.
Hermione walks to the doorway, giving Draco a painful shove in the shoulder on her way out. He scowls at her back and then turns to Ginny on the bed. His face softens.
"It's a boy then?" he says with a smile playing on his lips as he takes steps towards her.
"Yes," she looks down to the baby. She sighs, "he looks just like you." She admits.
Draco smiles arrogantly as he looks down at his son. He runs a long finger down the soft skin on his cheek. "Can I hold him?" he asks quietly. His eyes never leave the baby, looking at him with a sort of awe.
Ginny bites her lip before nodding and handing the baby to Draco who is looking very awkward. "You have to support his head." She says as she reaches out and places his hand in the proper place. "There you go."
He smiles at her and she looks away. "He's so small." He says as he walks around the room, rocking the baby in his arms. "This is my son." He says to himself he then turns to the girl on the bed. "What did you name him?"
Ginny immediately straightens her spine and locks her gaze with Draco's "Theodore Jackson Nott."
His eyes flame with anger and Ginny fearfully watches as he glares at her with stormy eyes. She doesn't want him to hurt the baby. "You named my son after Nott?" he says, his voice getting louder with each word.
"What did you expect? I wasn't going to name him after you." she says defensively. "Theo was my husband. They all think that the baby is his." She looks at her son in Draco's arms. "We're going to call him Jackson though… "
He gives her a cold look that sends a shiver down her spine and then walks closer to her. "It doesn't matter." He says, but the tone of his voice obviously shows that it does. He hands the baby back to her and she's relieved. "I want to be a part of his life, Ginny. Even if people don't think he's mine. I think I have that right." He says flatly.
"Alright." She says, without properly thinking it out. She's exhausted.
He smirks. "Good."
She looks up at him curiously. "I heard that Astoria is having a boy soon." He shrugs his shoulders and she furrows her brow. "Aren't you happy about that… you'll have a proper heir with your wife." She says hopefully. Since he reacted so warmly to Jackson… perhaps he'll do the same with his son and leave her alone.
"I already have a child with the woman I love." He tells her while looking deeply into her eyes. She doesn't say anything. "I should be going. " he smirks down at the baby. "You did well, Ginny. He will be handsome, like me."
With that he leaves and she slumps against the bed.
X
"Why are you so happy?" questions Astoria meanly as Draco sits down at the table.
"Am I not allowed to smile, darling?" he says mockingly with a cruel smirk on his face.
She turns her head from him as he begins eating. "Just when you smile about something it probably means something unpleasant for someone else." She spits out.
He smirks at her again. "You're very perceptive."
"I do try."
He leans back in his seat and studies her. He takes a drink of his wine. "The house elves tell me you tried to send an owl out earlier today."
She drops her fork on the ground and her face turns pale. She picks it up and laughs nervously. "That's not true. They're lying."
He laughs at her. "They don't lie." He says. "So tell me… who were you writing to?"
Anger boils up inside of her and she throws her plate across the room, spilling her food. The plate crashes to the ground and breaks into little pieces. "Damn it, Draco! You know who I was writing to! Stop playing with me. You have my letter don't you?"
He gives her an unpleasant smile. Not effected at all by her outburst. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out the letter she had written. "Must have slipped my mind," he says lightly. He takes his wand out and lights it on fire. "Really, though, what were you planning to accomplish by writing to Ginny?"
She watches the flames eat her words with a heavy heart. "I was going to warn her about you, you lunatic. I was going to let her know what a cruel, sadistic, murderer you are!" she screeches.
"I have a feeling she knows most of that already." He looks off into space and smiles. "I held my son today."
She watches him with disbelief. "You're going to have another one soon. Are you going to be so wistfully happy when he's born as well?" she asks with concern for her unborn son. If she can't be around for him she hopes that Draco will actually care for him like he never did for her.
He looks at her. "His birth," he looks down at her stomach. "is one of necessity so I can walk away from this marriage." He says with no emotion.
"What happened to you, Draco? You never use to be like this. You were the one that initiated this marriage in the first place!"
"I changed my plans."
She feels tears in her eyes. "Promise me you'll love him. Please, say that you'll take care of him properly… like a father should."
He places his napkin on the table and stands up. "I'm done eating." Is all he says and he walks away. Astoria stands up and pushes everything that was on the table on the ground. Feeling a little bit better when she sees everything break and shatter.
X
"Why so grumpy?" she says as she kisses Jackson's head. "Are you hungry, little one?"
She takes the baby out of the cradle and walks over to the rocking chair. She lowers the strap on her night gown and begins feeding her son. She sighs and relaxes into the chair. It's two in the morning… babies are adorable, but they are not fun.
Her thoughts travel to Draco. He has been surprisingly normal these past couple of months. He doesn't freak out when she tells him no to something and he hasn't tried anything on her. When he visits them he only talks to Jackson, buying him nice things and playing with him. He's been good at giving her space as well. He's also been very sympathetic when she talks about Theo and his disappearance. He listens to her when she talks about him, with out getting angry or jealous, and he gives her comforting words when she cries. He's acting like the Draco she fell in love with again.
His other son was born last month and Ginny thought he wouldn't come around as much, but it didn't seem to stop him. She hasn't seen little baby Maxwell… but she is curious. He is Jackson's half brother after all. She wonders if they look alike. She closes her eyes and begins to hum a soft tune for her son. She's pulled out of her tranquility by a vicious tapping on the window. She adjusts Jackson's position and stands up to open the window.
"Damn bird." She glares at the owl as it nips her fingers when she tries to untie the letter. Pushing it off of the window ledge, she's smiles when she hears it hoot indignantly and fly off. Ginny walks back to the cradle and puts Jackson down before opening the letter.
Ginny,
I'm sorry for sending this owl so late but I have no idea what I'm doing. Astoria left me and Maxwell two days ago, she said she was never coming back. He keeps on crying and I have no idea what he wants. I think I'm going to have a breakdown if he doesn't stop yelling... I know it's a lot to ask but will you please help me. I have no idea what I'm doing.
Please,
Draco
She rereads the letter four more times before she makes her decision. Her compassion over rides her concern, so she bundles her son up and floos to Malfoy Manor.
X
"Draco?"
Draco immediately stands up when he hears Ginny's voice in the hallway. He smiles to himself but lets it drop when he opens the door.
"Gin, thank you so much for coming." He says. "He hasn't stopped crying all night."
She gives him an uncomfortable look as she adjusts her cloak. "Have you fed him?" Draco nods. "Does he need to be changed?"
"I've already checked that too." He says.
"Show me where he is." She says and follows as Draco leads her down the hallway to the nursery where the baby is screaming at the top of his lungs. She can't see the pleased smirk on Draco's face as he opens the door for her.
She walks into the nursery and scrunches up her nose at the loud noise that's coming from the cradle. Jackson starts moving in annoyance by her chest so she turns to the man behind her.
"Will you hold him for me?" she asks. Not wanting to bring him further in the room. She doesn't want him to start crying as well.
"Of course," he says as he takes the baby into his arms.
He watches from the door way as Ginny walks towards the cradle. She looks down at the little boy who's currently screaming and kicking his legs. Her face softens immediately. Draco smiles as she picks him up and starts rocking him against her chest, trying to make him calm down. Things are working out exactly as he wanted them too. Maxwell starts to quiet down when Ginny begins singing to him.
"He just needed someone to love on him." she says quietly as she smiles down at the little boy in her arms.
Draco nods his head. That's probably true. He hasn't been held by anyone since he came home from the hospital over a month ago. Astoria is no longer here and he sure as hell wasn't going to do it. House-elves don't know much about affection either, they just know how to feed and clothe him. Draco watches her take small steps towards him.
"Thank you." He says as he smiles warmly down at her.
She gives him a small smile. "He's cute." She tells him as she runs her fingers through Maxwell's dark hair. She looks up to him again with a worried expression. "So, Astoria left…"
"Yes," he says quietly, not wanting to disturb either of the children they are holding. He motions for her to follow him and he leads her into a sitting room. He takes a seat on one of the comfortable blue couches, with Jackson snuggled against his chest as Ginny takes a seat in the arm chair across from him. "Said she didn't want to have anything to do with me or the baby." He lies.
She watches him for a few moments, unsure if she believes him. "She didn't even want to try to care for Maxwell?" she asks.
Draco shakes his head. "She hates him because he's mine."
Ginny furrows her brow and looks down at the baby in her arms. He has brown hair, probably inherited from Astoria, and an adorable little face. "How can you hate a little boy like this?" she says as her motherly instinct kicks in. She runs her fingers along his smooth skin and doesn't notice Draco smile smugly.
"I'm really at a loss as what to do with him." he says, acting confused and sad very well. "I don't know how to care for a baby."
"Can't your mother help?" she asks him, her eyes not leaving the boy in her arms.
"No," he says as Jackson grabs his fingers. He smiles fondly down at his son, the son that he had with Ginny, the son that he loves. "She says I have to learn how to do this myself…" again another lie, but he needs Ginny to want to help him so he can be close to her.
She starts to worry her bottom lip between her teeth. "I guess…" she starts and Draco's eyes snap to her as she looks down at the ground. "I guess I could help you out if you need it." She says, not sounding completely sure if it is a good idea.
He smiles to himself. "That would be wonderful, Ginny."
She gives him a shy smile. "Looks like he's finally asleep." She says quietly as she looks down to Maxwell. She stands up. "I'll put him back to bed." She says and leaves the room.
Draco relaxes more in his chair and shifts Jackson so he can look at him properly. "We're going to be a proper family soon." He says and kisses his head. "and you will no longer have that terrible last name." he says against his skin.
Ginny and Jackson leave Malfoy Manor and Maxwell is left in his cradle… where he will stay until she comes back.
X
Ron glares at his little sister. "What are you doing with Malfoy's kid again?" he asks accusingly. "You're with him so much you might as well be his mother."
She rolls her eyes and tucks the blankets a little tighter around Maxwell and Jackson. She's pushing them in a double stroller through the park by her house. "You didn't have to come with me, you know."
"I wanted to spend time with my nephew. Not Malfoy's spawn."
Ginny's cheeks grow hot at his words. If he only knew who Jackson's real father was.
"If you're going to say things like that, I would rather you left." She says heatedly.
Ron wisely keeps his mouth shut. "Why are you watching his kid anyways." He asks in a more controlled voice.
She sighs. "He had a business meeting." She says as she smiles down at the boys who are looking at her with matching silver eyes. Ron snorts beside her. "He did, Ron, and ever since Astoria left him he's been a mess. He doesn't know the first thing about babies and he needed help. So I'm helping." She brings her hands down and plays with their fingers. "and stuck in that big house I don't think Max gets much attention. Do you baby?" she says in a light voice.
Her brother gives her a disgusted look. "You've become too attached to that kid."
She glares at him but refrains from answering. "Oh, Mom wanted me to tell you that you and Jack have to go to the burrow on Sunday for supper, or else she will never speak to you again."
Ginny laughs out loud, "If only that was the truth..."
"Yes, her threats are a bit misguided aren't they?" Laughs Ron.
They share a smile and walk back to her house, the house that she lived in with Theo. After a cup of tea and a few shared stories Ron leaves, reminding her again to go to the Burrow on Sunday. Ginny rolls her eyes as she closes the door and two seconds later Draco floos in from the fire place.
"Hey." He says as he smiles at her. He starts loosening the tie around his neck as he looks down at the playpen were the two boys are stationed. "Ah, there's my son." He says and picks Jackson up, placing a kiss on his head.
Ginny frowns. She's noticed that he doesn't pay much attention to Max and she can't understand why. She walks to the play pen while Draco is walking around the room with Jack, and picks Max up, figuring he needs someone to love him too. "How was the meeting?" she asks as Max starts playing with her hair.
He looks to her. "It was boring, like usual."
She looks down at the baby in her arms. "Aren't you going to say hello to Maxwell?" she asks lightly. Her brother was right; she has become attached to him.
"I was just getting to that." He answers with a smirk on his face. He walks closer to her and they switch kids. "and how are you doing, little guy?" he asks kindly. "You didn't give your mother too much trouble, did you?"
Ginny's face turns red at Draco's words. "Wrong child." She laughs nervously. "He already has a mother."
"Not really." Says Draco quietly as he looks down. "You act more like his Mother then Astoria." She watches him with a strange sort of look on her face. He catches it and frowns. "I'm sorry, it just slipped out." he tells her and she doesn't know if the slip of his tongue was intentional or not. She can never tell with him.
"It's alright…"
He smiles at her and then puts Maxwell back in the play pen. "My parents are hosting a charity event this Saturday."
"Oh," is all she says as she watches him put a toy by the baby.
"Yes, and I want you to go with me as my date."
"Draco, I don't think that's a good idea."
"Why not?"
"You know why," she snaps at him. When he narrows his eyes she sighs tiredly and puts Jackson down beside Max. "It's not a good idea." She says quietly.
"You said we could be friends." He says lightly. "Aren't we friends, Ginny?"
She looks away from him. She knew that would come back to bite her one day. "Friends don't go on dates, Draco." She says tightly.
"Then it's not a date." He steps close to her and she can feel his breath on her neck. "Please, come with me…" he brings his lips close to her ear and places his hand on her back. " I don't want to go alone."
She shivers. He's hasn't touched her since she was pregnant all those months ago. She closes her eyes when he presses his body into hers. "I won't" she says breathlessly.
"You will." He says and places a kiss on her neck. One hand comes up to her cheek while the other tightens its hold on her body. "I want you to come, Ginny."
Her body responds to the double meaning in his words and she's mad at her self for it. She steps away from him.
"I'll pick you up around eight." He says as he takes Maxwell and leaves, not waiting for her to respond.
X
Gregory Goyle stands by the punch bowl watching people as they enter the main hall. He turns around and opens the flask from his jacket pocket, spilling the firewhiskey into his punch glass. He turns back around with a smile on his face as he brings it up to his lips and takes a large gulp.
His eyes travel to the doors when he spots Draco's head of blond hair. He's been wondering why Draco all of sudden hated Theodore Nott so much, to the point where he wanted him dead. He just couldn't understand it. Theo and Draco had never been particularly close, but they hadn't exactly hated each other either. What could Theo have taken from Draco that would anger him that much?
They had set Theo up in some muggle hospital in America. There would be no chance of him ever coming home; he doesn't even know who he is. Needless to say Goyle did feel a little guilty about the whole thing… but not as guilty as he would feel if he had actually killed him.
His eyes travel to the redhead by Draco's side, who's looking decidedly uncomfortable and she keeps on sending nervous glances to her date. Goyle narrows his eyes. Wasn't she Theo's wife? That's Ginny Weasley… or Ginny Nott to be exact. The puzzle pieces start to come together in his mind. When Theo started to date Ginny that's when Draco started to act differently. Could this be the reason Draco went so crazy? He glares and clenches his fists.
This was all over a girl?
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A/N: I realize I'm turning Draco in a psycho... I can't help it, though. It just sort of happened that way...
