Epilogue
It was a Sunday morning when the two of them were wed, in the midst of the summer. She remembered that day, as the despite the various reassurances that if they needed to, weather charms could be cast, that the sun was shining brightly on them, and it seemed as if even nature refused to keep them apart any longer than they had been.
It had been years since they had met, years since they had fallen in love, and been torn apart by a war that was raging on around them. Years since they had been miserable without each other, and years that they had wasted trying to live lives of people they weren't.
She couldn't regret her first marriage, not when it had given her Rose. And nothing could take away the joy that she had gotten from that union in the form of her daughter. Rose and Leo were her entire world, and despite Leo only being in their lives for a few short months, she loved her son so strongly already.
She remembered feeling oddly calm this time around. The first time, she had been riddled with nerves and anxiety, unsure of her choice. Molly had tried to reassure her that it was normal, that all brides felt that way. She had known something was wrong though, but she refused to listen to the nerves then.
This time was different. She loved Draco, and she had never once wavered in those feelings. She knew she was making the choice that she wanted; the one that she wished were there all those years ago, despite knowing that who they were after the war was not the same as who they were back in school. That it wouldn't have worked out with Draco back then, because too much had happened and they needed some time to find themselves again, and find their way back to each other once more.
"Hermione?" Harry said, peeking in as she sat in on a chair, fixing Rose's hair slightly to add more flowers as she had requested. "It's time."
"Leo?" she asked, slightly worried about how her son was faring.
"He and Draco are standing at the other side of the aisle," Harry smiled at her.
She and Draco had talked before time, agreeing on wanting their children to be a part of their wedding; how could they not? Rose and Leo were such a big part of their lives already, and anything less felt wrong. So Draco got Leo to stand alongside Blaise and Theo as his groomsmen, and Rose alongside Ginny as a bridesmaid.
"Mummy, let's go," Rose said grinning as she stood up eagerly. Her daughter had been ecstatic to be part of a wedding, especially hers and Draco's.
She remembered the feel of her heart racing as she made her way down the aisle, her eyes never once leaving Draco's from the moment she entered the room. She remembered barely hearing Kingsley's words as he wed them, instead focusing on Draco and how much it meant to her that after all this time she was finally getting the future with him that she had dreamt about so often back in school, despite knowing better at the time.
She remembered hearing him speak, heart stopping at his words.
"Hermione, you are the love of my life," he had told her, not once bothering to look at the others in the room, "My light, my life, my heart. You have given me everything that I didn't dare to dream about having: a home, a family, and happiness. There was a time, back when we were in school, where I dreamed about whisking you away in the dark of the night, and running away just the two of us. To have a life together and pretend that the war didn't exist all around us. But that wouldn't have been who either of us were; to run away when we were most needed.
"And I love you so much, Hermione," he told her softly, "I want to spend the rest of my days with you, grow old with you, and have a family so large that there is always laughter, always happiness, always love. To be with you every day of my life, and to never lose you. And I can promise you that now that I have you, I'll never let you go again."
She had wiped away tears, as she looked up at him, "Draco, I've loved you since we were all but children, fighting in a war that children shouldn't have belonged in, and unsure of our place together in that world. But I'm all grown up now, and I've never been more sure of my place in this world, which is beside you, and with our children. And I never want to spend another day away from it. You, Rose, and Leo, are my entire world, and I want to spend the rest of my days with you; together."
She remembered the shower of stars falling upon their heads, as she kissed her new husband softly. She remembered hearing Rose and Leo giggling, and holding her son's hand, as Draco took their daughters in his and the couple made their way down the aisle as a family and into the reception hall.
She remembered when they were a year into their marriage, and watching her children play with a sense of longing, and Draco coming over to her, asking what it was that was the matter. She remembered confiding in him, that she wanted another child, that she wanted to expand their family even more.
She remembered holding Draco's hand, as they, Rose, and Leo, proceeded back into the orphanage, to bring home William, and then two years later, Rhea.
She remembered feeling so happy those days, as her family grew larger, and fuller, and how happy she's been everyday since then. How happy she's felt surrounded by her children and husband.
She worried at times, that insecurities would plague her children; how Rose was her biological daughter, and that Ron was not in the picture.
Because he tried to be; he tried sobering up a few times, but never for a long enough period of time that she trusted her daughter with him alone. And Rose knew Ron existed. She saw him from time to time at family gatherings or on her birthday when he promised to stay sober.
She did wish that he tried harder, because her daughter deserved that much. And while Rose loved Draco like he was her father, it didn't change the fact that her biological father couldn't change enough to at least be a regular part of her life.
Thankfully though, her children did not feel as if Rose being Hermione's biological child meant that they were any different, like she had initially feared they might. They knew they were loved despite of it.
And now, four years after their wedding, she stood in their backyard, watching their children run free and wild, clearly having the time of their lives. So much had changed, for the better, since she was that scared girl in school. She had grown, and had time to find herself once more, as the adult she wished to be and not the scared girl who made choices she shouldn't have had to have made.
She knew her family members were happier as well. Narcissa had insisted on being a present part of her grandchildren's lives, and true to her word, she was. And between her, Andromeda, and Molly, Hermione knew her children were happily spoiled between them, not that she objected much. Both Andromeda and Narcissa had lost so much, shy of Draco and Teddy, that Hermione was grateful the two of them had each other to lean on.
It was rare for them to have a day without Teddy over at their place, playing with his cousins, or having a sleepover either at theirs, or at the Potters. And it seemed as if the large family she had always wanted had finally come, even if it weren't in the way she had initially wanted as a child.
She had changed her job after Neville's parents' case. It had been the push she had needed to get her out of the prosecution field and into the field of law she really wanted to be in; fighting for cases that were dear to her heart and to help those out who were not as fortunate as she had been in her life. And in all honesty, she was happier now than she had been in years.
She didn't talk to her parents much still, and some days were a lot harder than others because of it, but she had come to terms with it. She sent them letters, the muggle way, of her life and of her children, but in all honesty, she had no idea whether they read it or not. Her house was on the muggle mail route, and she had insisted they gotten a telephone, which her parents had the number for. So if they wanted to reach out to her at any time, they were more than capable of doing so.
She sighed to herself, as she pushed the thought out of her mind. Today was about Leo, and his seventh birthday. And as she watched Rose tell everyone who came proudly that her younger brother was now all of seven years old, she couldn't feel prouder. Even Will and Rhea were taking part, as they ran around, playing the games that they had set up for the younger ones.
"What are you thinking?" Draco asked, as he came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her tightly, and she leaned into him. He always had a way of knowing something was on her mind, and she felt a sense of relief at his presence.
In the years of her marriage, she could already feel a big difference between that of her marriage of her and Ron. He was always willing to balance the load with her so that at least one of them would be home for dinner, if not both of them. She felt like the two of them were partners, and she wasn't trying to balance being a housewife and a working woman.
"I haven't been feeling well over the last few days, Draco," she murmured to him, "And I did a couple tests."
"Is everything okay?" he asked, eyebrows raising at that. He had noticed that something was off with her, and she knew that it was only a matter of time before he asked.
"I'm pregnant," she said softly, turning around so that she could gage his relationship facing him.
"You are?" he asked, slightly shocked, and she didn't blame him. Since the doctor had told them that it was unlikely that she would be able to have kids, the two of them had hardly been careful about using protection charms.
"I am," she confirmed, "I'll have to talk to the healer to get them to confirm it, and to make sure that there is no chance of things going wrong due to complications because of my condition. It doesn't change how I feel about our kids though," she said hastily. She knew that her husband would never think it, but she wouldn't be able to bear it if her children ever doubted her love for them.
"They wouldn't," he promised her, "I heard Rhea talking to Rose earlier about wanting a younger sibling. I think she's tired of being the youngest to the boys and Rose. They'll be so excited to have another sibling to play with."
"Are you happy?" she asked him softly, taking his hands in hers.
"Always," he said, kissing her crown. "I love you, Hermione Malfoy, and the prospect of having another child with you, regardless of the method, makes my heart soar. I love having a big family with you, and having another child would only increase the amount of love in this house."
She leaned into him, kissing him slightly as she cupped his face. "I love you too, Draco Malfoy."
"Mummy," she hear Will say as he ran up to them, "Can we cut Leo's cake now?" She turned to see her son and Lily Potter give them pleading eyes.
She grinned, as Draco tried to hide a smirk. Despite half her children not technically being related to the Weasleys, they acted as tight as cousins. And with the amount of grandchildren Molly and Arthur currently had, it made family gatherings rather lively.
She looked around, as her guests, filled with Weasley cousins, Callie Longbottom, and a few dozen other of her son's friends, and nodded.
"Of course, Darling," she said, and Draco summoned the cake from the kitchen and onto the table in front of them.
As the guests filled up around them, she shot a look at her husband. Despite being surrounded by his friends and family, she knew gatherings like these were always bittersweet for him. While he was surrounded by those who loved him, she knew it was hard for him that his father couldn't be here. Not physically, but because of who his father had chosen to be. That instead of choosing his son and his wife, Lucius Malfoy had chosen to believe in ideals that had lost them the war. Ideals that with each passing day, were losing their place in their world. And in doing so, he had lost his son.
She was happy, and with every passing day, she loved the life she had with her family more and more. And she knew that when morning comes she would take on whatever life threw at her together with her family by her side.
A/N: As I finish off this series, I would like to thank all of you for reading it, reviewing, and following. I enjoyed writing this series and being able to follow the journey of Hermione and Draco both when they were in school and out of school. For now, I'm still planning my next fic, but hopefully I see you all soon!