A/N: Thank you to my reviewers shaymars(I know, sorry for my absence, but thank you for staying around!), Hp-Disney, Honoria Granger and schleifchen(Thank you so much! This review made em so happy)! hsx

CHAPTER 28-

After giving birth to James Sirius, Ginny and her son had been taken to St. Mungo's to make sure they were okay. Ginny was fine after a couple of hours, but James had to be put inside a muggle incubator. The umbilical cord had been wrapped around his neck but the healer and medi-witch had managed to cut it before James lost too much oxygen, but he was still in danger of developing health problems due to being born prematurely.

Hermione had joined her in hospital, waiting to give birth to our twins. She had been in there for a week now, and I had been travelling back and forth to St. Mungo's to spend time with her. On the eighth day, the day before I was due to start my paternity leave, I was in the office filing some documents for Harry. When I only had two documents left, Blaise burst into the office.

I looked up, noticing how the glass in the door was shaking. 'You alright, mate?'

He nodded. 'You might not be though.'

I narrowed my eyes at him. 'What's happened?'

'An owl from St. Mungo's was sent to our office instead of yours accidently. It's Hermione. Her waters have broken.'

I dropped the files and grabbed my satchel from my desk. 'Who else knows?'

'My entire office. Including Weasley. He's determined to make it to the hospital before you and pose as the father. Theo and Seamus are holding him back so you better hurry.'

I nodded, Blaise following me as I made my way to the lift. 'Okay. Put Wilson in charge of my office. You go and see the Minister.'

'He's in a meeting. He won't take any messages.' Blaise said as we climbed into the lift together.

'Believe me, he'll take this message. Tell his secretary that Hermione has gone into labour with his godson. He'll come out to see you and when he does make sure he goes to restrain the Weasel before coming to St. Mungo's. Get everyone in my office to alert the rest of the Weasleys, Hermione's father and Mrs Brandwood-Spencer as well as my parents. Alright?'

Blaise nodded and stayed in the lift as I ran to the apparation point, glad that there was no queue for once. I made myself concentrate on St. Mungo's instead of Hermione and the twins and I felt the familiar pull of the apparation, finding myself stood in the reception of St. Mungo's, my mother and Fenrir stood waiting there already.

'Draco!' My mother engulfed me in a hug. 'One of the healers here owled us. Come on, Hermione needs you.' I nodded and the three of us climbed into the lift to go up to the maternity ward, trying to walk calmly along to the ward once we had reached the right floor. My hands were shaking as we got nearer the ward and I almost dropped my satchel which Fenrir took off me as we came to the front desk.

'My fiancée, Hermione Granger has gone into labour.'

The medi-wizard behind the desk smiled. 'Draco Malfoy?' I nodded. 'This way please.' The three of us followed him through the ward, past the two beds that had been occupied by Hermione and Ginny, to a separate room. 'Her waters have broken and her contractions have just started. Mr Potter and Miss Weasley are with her now. When her contractions are three minutes apart, please come and get a nurse or a healer.' I nodded, barely listening, and entered the small sterile room. Hermione was led on a bed in the centre of the room wearing a hospital gown, Harry stood by the side of the bed with Ginny, who was holding a sleeping James in her arms.

'Draco!'

I ran to Hermione and kissed her, taking her hand in mine. 'It's alright. I'm here now.' She smiled, but her face quickly contorted into one of pain and she cried out, gripping my hand tightly through her contraction. It was over quickly, out of breath and chest heaving.

Narcissa rushed over to the other side of the bed and took Hermione's right hand. 'How far are you dilated?'

'Two centimetres the last time someone came to check about five minutes ago.'

'The contractions should be fairly far apart at the moment.' Hermione nodded and lay back onto the bed and I kissed her forehead, helping her through the next half an hour of contractions and pain, Ginny and my mother on hand to help. The Weasley's arrived along with Kingsley and Julie when Hermione was six centimetres dilated. I made an excuse to get some fresh air, Mrs Weasley and Julie replacing me in the labour room, and I paced up and down the ward, trying to calm myself down. I was going to be a father by the end of the day.

I rested my head against a wall, taking deep breaths. After a few minutes, I felt a hand on my shoulder and I looked up to see Fenrir.

'You alright?'

I shook my head. 'Hermione's gone into labour and I have no idea what to do, dad.' The werewolf looked up at me and smiled. I hadn't even realised what I'd called him until he grinned. Ever since he had begun dating my mother, we had grown closer, going out to the pub every Friday night, and I managed to get him a job as a correspondent in the Magical Creatures department so he could help improve conditions for werewolves.

'I have no idea. I've never had to deal with this before, son.' I looked up at the older man and hugged my surrogate father tightly. 'It's going to be okay, Draco.'

'But what if she dies in labour? Or if one of the twins die? Or both?' I ran my fingers through my hair realising that I sounded just like Harry when Ginny was giving birth. My dad patted my shoulder reassuringly. 'It'll be fine. Hermione's stronger than any witch that I know. She and the twins will be safe before you know it. Come on.' We went back into the labour room together, my mother sat by Hermione's bedside, holding her hand, Molly, Ginny and Julie nowhere to be seen. My fiancée smiled as I entered and I went to her side immediately.

'Fenir, can you just come with me for a moment?' My parents left, and as soon as the door closed, the heart rate monitor reacted with another of Hermione's contractions. She squeezed my hand as she breathed through the oxygen mask.

'Nearly there.' I said, watching the pattern of her heart rate come down. 'Alright?' She nodded and removed the mask.

'I'm fine.' Hermione tried to smile at me and rested a hand on her large bump.

'You're not.' I sat down on the edge of the bed and joined one hand with hers on the bump and threaded the other in her hair. 'I wish I could take this pain for you.'

'It'll all be worth it in the end.' We sat in silence, only speaking when she had a contraction. They came closer together and she was gripping my hand so tightly that it left small red marks. She was crying with the pain and I couldn't do anything to help her. As she came down once more, she spoke. 'My contractions are three minutes apart. Get somebody.'

I ran to the door, yanked it open and shouted at the nearest person who happened to be George. 'Get a medi-witch and a healer!' The red-head nodded and ran off, just as Mr Weasley came down the corridor with Hermione's father.

'Sorry that I'm so late, Draco, wh-'

'Her contractions are three minutes apart and she's nine centimetres dilated. The twins will be delivered soon.' I grabbed his arm and dragged him into the delivery room, Hermione smiling despite her exhaustion.

'Dad.'

'I couldn't get away from work. Are you okay, darling?'

Hermione nodded, wiping her forehead. 'I'm glad that you made it on time.' He grinned, but it was cut short when Hermione shouted out. The two of us helped Hermione through the next contraction, a healer and a medi-witch entering the room just as it ended.

'Miss Granger, how are you feeling?'

'It's painful and I'm tired.'

'Nothing unusual then.' The healer smiled and checked Hermione over. 'Ten centimetres dilated. We'll get the room ready for the babies.' The medi-witch began conjuring towels as the healer addressed Hermione once more. 'Who do you want in the room when you give birth?'

'Draco, my dad and Narcissa.'

The healer nodded and went to the door, shouting for Mrs Malfoy, my mother bustling in straight away before the door was shut. 'Alright then, which position feels the most comfortable for you to give birth in, Miss Granger?'

'Lying down.' The healer nodded and directed us to stand by Hermione's bed side, handing us all rubber gloves and green healer aprons to put on in case something happened. The contractions were happening all of the time now, but the oxygen mask had been abandoned in favour of breathing techniques that would help more when Hermione gave birth.

After ten minutes, the room was ready as was Hermione, who was ready to push. She was holding mine and my mother's hands as she did the breathing exercises, the healer and the medi-witch at the other end of the bed.

'Isn't this a fairly quick birth?' I asked my mother opposite me.

She shrugged. 'It's different for everyone. Some can take over thirty hours, some under five. Hermione has been like this for nearly two hours now.' I nodded and groaned as Hermione gripped my hand as she went for the first push, whimpering as she did.


Four hours later, Hermione was exhausted but our children had arrived safely, wrapped in white blankets and gurgling softly, both thoroughly adored by our friends and family before they said their goodbyes. I held Orion in my arms, rocking him back and forth, finding that tears gathered at the corners of my eyes as I looked at him. His chocolate eyes were wide open, and he had luckily inherited Hermione's facial features, but was stuck with my straight blonde hair. Ara, in Hermione's arms, looked almost the same, except she had blonde ringlets that looked as if they were stuck to the top of her head. Ara grabbed Hermione's little finger in her small fist and I smiled. She was going to be beautiful, just like her mother, and hell would ensue if anyone even thought that they could touch her.

'What are you thinking?' Hermione asked from next to me on the bed.

'How beautiful Ara will be and how many people I'll have to kill if anyone touches her.' Hermione laughed softly. 'You?'

'Hoping the Orion won't be a hopeless womaniser like his father.'

'There's nothing wrong with being a womaniser, as long as he finds the right woman in the end.' I kissed Hermione's cheek and she smiled.

'I suppose you're right.' She sighed. 'I can't believe they're ours.' I smiled and we swapped the children so I was now cradling Ara.

After a few minutes of a comfortable silence, I nudged Hermione. 'By the way, you owe me twenty galleons.'

'What? Why?'

'Don't you remember? We bet on which gender was going to be born first. I told you Malfoy first-borns are always male, and Orion was born first. I win.' I smirked at her and she blushed.

'Can't I repay you in some other way?' She asked, looking up at me through her eyelashes.

'Of course. Only because it's you.' I gave her another kiss, having to pull away when the door opened, seeing a medi-witch stood in the doorway.

'I'm just going to check over Miss Granger as well as Orion and Ara and then you're good to go home.'