***

See disclaimer in Chapter 1. I own nothing. JKR is a god.

***

"It's too risky," Harry said, folding his arms across his chest emphatically. They'd been arguing about this for most of the evening, and he hadn't budged from his original stance. "I won't do it."

"It's less risky than having to look over your shoulder constantly for the rest of your life," Pansy said, her face drawn and anxious. She rested a hand protectively over her belly – shielding the child that, while not biologically hers, had become very important to her."The rest of his life, too."

"You don't know it's a boy, Pans," Draco said absently, correcting her as he often did when she spoke about the baby. "And have a little faith. We'll find her some other way. Harry's right. It's too dangerous."

Hermione slammed a hand down on the table, rattling the dinner service that hadn't been cleared away yet.

"It's not," she said, her eyes blazing. "Do you think I would put your child at risk? I wouldn't, not even for this. It's perfectly safe. Healers do it all the time."

Hermione wanted to draw a tiny amount of the baby's blood to use in a Defluo Cognatus spell, a type of blood magic that could be used to track a lost relative. It was one of the only types of blood magic the Ministry condoned.

"It would be safe if a Healer did it, but it's not the kind of thing we can just waltz into St. Mungo's for," Draco said, his tone brusque.

Hermione smiled, happy the blond had danced nicely into her trap.

"How fortunate we know a Healer who makes house calls, then," she said, winking at Pansy. "He'll be here tonight."

***

"This would be best if I had the baby's full name," Theo said, turning to look at Harry and Draco. They were in Pansy's room, where she could recline comfortably on the bed. He glanced down at his wand again, recording Pansy's pulse. "The more specific the spell is, the less risk there is."

"You said there wasn't any risk!" Harry cried, wrenching his hand from Draco's to advance on the Healer.

"I said there was very little risk," Theo corrected, tapping his wand to Pansy's chart to transfer the vitals he'd just taken. "There's always a small risk of complications from any medical procedure, especially one performed on an unborn child."

"We're not doing it," Harry said, his face stony. He glanced at Pansy, who looked unsure for the first time.

"Harry, there are risks to any spell. I imagine you use Pilo every morning to shave, right?" Theo asked, squeezing Pansy's hand. Harry nodded. "Did you know you risk eliminating all of your body hair every time you use the spell? Worst case, you could actually slit your throat with it. But you don't, because you were trained how to use the spell correctly. You gauge how much power to put into the spell subconsciously, and your intent is clear when you cast."

Harry's frown deepened as he considered Theo's words. He understood the Healer's point. Even mundane spells carried an inherent risk if they were administered inappropriately.

"The same is true of the spell I'll use on the baby," Theo continued, seeing his words were having the desired effect on Harry. Pansy had also relaxed slightly, her fingers no longer rigid in his. "I've done this spell hundreds – if not thousands – of times. Drawing blood is routine. It's a bit more complicated in this case, which is why I asked for the baby's name. Using it will help me focus my magic on my precise intent, meaning the procedure is that much safer."

Draco cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. Hermione stood next to him, her hand on his shoulder.

"I think we should go ahead, Harry," he said, studying the dark-haired man's face. "I trust Theo. He's taken great care of Pans so far, and you know he'd never do anything to intentionally put her or the baby at risk."

"I've read about using the spell on unborn babies, Harry," Hermione said, squeezing Draco's shoulder. "It's perfectly safe. All the Healing journals say so."

Harry looked at Pansy, his only ally. When he saw her eyes flick from Theo's face to his own, he knew he'd lost her, too.

"Alright," he sighed, stepping away from the bed. "Corvus Parkinson Potter Malfoy or Cassiopeia Pansy Potter Malfoy."

Pansy, who hadn't heard their choices for middle names before, teared up at the words. Draco grinned and rolled his eyes at her show of emotion, drawing a slightly watery smile from the witch.

Theo nodded slightly, drawing a small glass vial out of his bag. He held it up to the light, inspecting it for any tiny imperfections. Finding none, he cast a quick Sterilizing spell on it, letting it hover in the air so he didn't re-contaminate it with his hands.

"Do you want to step out for the procedure?" he asked, knowing Harry and Draco wanted to be surprised by the sex of their child, which he'd have to cast a spell to determine so he could use the correct name.

"How long will it take?"

"Just a few seconds," Theo assured Harry, patting Pansy's hand. "Neither Pansy nor the baby will feel anything. As soon as I have the name, I'll cast the spell to retrieve some of the baby's blood. That will be painless, too."

Harry and Draco exchanged a hesitant look. They both wanted to be there in case anything went wrong, but at the same time, they didn't want to learn the sex of the baby if they could avoid it.

"Go," Hermione said, giving Draco a shove toward the door. "I'll stay with Pansy, and we'll call you as soon as it's over."

Theo waited until the two men had closed the door behind them before drawing his wand. He held it over Pansy's swollen belly, his gaze locked with hers as he cast the spell. The air above her shimmered slightly before a blurry image of the baby materialized. Theo studied it for a moment, Banishing the image when he found what he was looking for.

"Poor kid," he said, smirking. "Corvus. What a name to saddle a kid with – like life isn't going to be hard enough for him as is, being the son of a Potter and a Malfoy."

Pansy squealed, reaching out to grab Hermione and drag her closer.

"I was right! I just knew it!" She rested both of her hands against her belly, palm side down. "Hello in there, Corvus! You're going to be the most perfect baby ever, aren't you?"

Hermione laughed, touching her own palm to Pansy's stomach.

"Don't listen to the bad man, Corvus," she crooned, leaning in so she could speak directly to Pansy's bump. "Your daddies will hex anyone who even thinks about teasing you."

Theo laughed, flicking his wand in a complicated pattern that brought the image back, hovering off to the side this time.

"I want to monitor the baby, just in case," he explained, Summoning the vial to his side. "I'm not expecting any problems, mind you, but I like to be cautious."

Pansy swallowed and nodded, her eyes wide with fear, all lightheartedness forgotten as Theo touched the tip of his wand to her stomach. She and Hermione watched the projected image, holding their breath.

"This will be over in just a second, Pans," Theo said, his voice low and assuring. "Minuo Corvus Parkinson Potter Malfoy."

He drew his wand away, tapping it with a soft tink against the side of the hovering glass vial. The vial immediately began to fill with blood, stopping as soon as Theo removed his wand. He narrowed his eyes to inspect the hovering image, apparently happy with what he saw, since it promptly disappeared. The whole procedure took less than five seconds.

"All finished," he said, muttering a spell that capped the vial, which dropped into his waiting hand. He handed it to Hermione with a smile, flourishing his wand again and Conjuring a large lollypop for her as well.

"A little Muggle humor," he whispered conspiratorially to Pansy, winking at Hermione. "Their Healers – doctors, they call them – always finish procedures by presenting candy."

Hermione laughed, eyeing the lollypop appraisingly.

"Where's mine, then?" Pansy said, jutting her lower lip out in a mock pout. "I deserve two. I'm eating for Corvus, too, you know."

Theo brandished his wand again, a bouquet of forsythia and gardenias appearing in his other hand. Another flick, and a basket of Chocoballs and an assortment of other Honeydukes' chocolates materialized on the bed near Pansy. She grinned in delight, reaching out to take the fragrant flowers from him.

Theo leaned forward, burying his face in her dark hair and breathing in her scent. He pressed a kiss against her warm throat, his lips quirking when he heard her breath catch.

"Anticipation and secret love, Healer?" she asked, her voice pitched for his ears only.

Theo blushed slightly, sitting back. Hermione quickly excused herself on the pretense of fetching Harry and Draco.

"The language of flowers never lies," he whispered, winking at her. "And I think the chocolate states my case rather well, too."

***

"Just one more time, Hermione," Harry said, his brow furrowed as he thought.

"Fine," the witch sighed, smoothing out the map in front of her. They'd been discussing this since lunch, and Harry's reluctance was wearing on her nerves. "I will dip the scrying crystal into the vial with C-" Hermione broke off, unspeakably grateful that both names the men had chosen started with the same letter. She'd nearly slipped twice already, and Pansy wasn't faring much better. "– the baby's blood and say the incantation. I'll then hold the crystal over the map, and it should point us to the general area where Ginny is."

"And it works even if she's under Fidelius?"

"Even if she's under Fidelius," Hermione agreed, nodding. She had several maps spread out around her – one of Great Britain and several that covered most of the Continent. They thought it unlikely Molly and Ginny had left the country, but they could try again with other maps if this yielded nothing. "Shall I start?"

Harry opened his mouth again, but Draco took him by the shoulders, forcing him into a nearby chair. "Yes," he said, sending a stern look at his fiancé. Harry was worried Draco would leave him behind in the search for Ginny, and he'd spent the afternoon stalling.

Hermione stretched before hunching over the map in front of her, the scrying crystal she'd gotten from Lucius clutched in her hand. She carefully opened the small vial of blood, letting the crystal's silver chain unfurl so she could dip it inside. A tiny amount of crimson liquid adhered to the point of the crystal, and Hermione re-capped the vial, just in case they needed more blood to try again.

She tapped her wand to the crystal, concentrating as she said the incantation. "Parens Reperio," she said, focusing all her will on finding Ginny.

The crystal shimmered and glowed slightly, pulling on the silver chain in Hermione's hand as it sought Ginny's location on the map. The crystal spun and shuttered, changing direction several times before honing in on a tiny island off the coast of Wales. The crystal dropped heavily on the map, the blood marking the location clearly.

"Holyhead?" Harry asked, incredulous. "She's hiding in Holyhead? As in, the home base for her Quidditch team?"

Draco laughed, shaking his head.

"Apparently," he murmured, taking a closer look at the dot on the map, trying to forget the fact that the mark was his child's blood. "She may be hiding out with a teammate, or maybe a fan."

"That would complicate the Fidelius," Harry said, squinting as he studied the map. "Maybe they're not using one."

"It might just be an intermediate stop," Hermione said, casting a Cleaning charm on the crystal and returning it to the velvet-lined box where Lucius kept it. "We should move quickly, just in case they don't plan to stay there long."

"We should," Harry agreed, folding the map and stuffing it in his pocket. "We'll go just as soon as we get you, Narcissa and Pansy to the safe house."

Hermione rolled her eyes, Summoning the map from Harry's pocket. She grabbed it as it flew toward her, rolling it up and smacking him over the head with it.

"Don't be an idiot," she sniffed, inspecting the map and daintily placing it in her bag.

"You're not all going with us, and there's no way I'd leave Pansy here unprotected!" Harry yelled, his jaw clenched.

"Nor would I expect you to," Hermione conceded. "But I am going with you. Lucius can go with Narcissa and Pansy."

"That's –"

"A good idea," Draco finished, cutting Harry off. He shrugged off his glare easily. "Father's one misstep away from Azkaban. You said so yourself, Harry. He shouldn't go with us."

"But Hermione –"

"Is a brilliant, capable witch who can look out for herself? Yes, I quite agree," Draco said, smirking at Harry's reddening face. "Let's tell the others what we're doing. We can have Pansy in Bulgaria by dinner, and we can leave for Holyhead at first light."

"Bulgaria?" Harry asked, so surprised by the location of the safe house that he forgot to argue.

"Of course. Did you think I learned the language for fun?" Draco asked, rolling his eyes.

"So Krum?"

"Helped us, yes," Draco said, nodding. "I owe him a great deal for that."

Harry glanced at Hermione, who was poring over a spell book in the corner, and raised his eyebrows suggestively.

"I wouldn't, Potter," Draco warned, following Harry's gaze. "She'd send you arse over ears if you so much as suggested that getting them back together was part of repaying Krum's kindness."

Aware that he'd baited Hermione far past her boundaries over the last few days, Harry just nodded sagely, pulling Draco closer for a kiss. He favored Draco with a lopsided grin when they broke apart, leaning in to whisper in his ear.

"Arse over ears?"

Draco chuckled, his skin heating at Harry's words.

"It could be arranged, if you'd like to take your punishment with me instead," he purred, laughing when Harry nodded emphatically.