A/N - Thank you to all of the kind reviewers that have been understanding about my slowed timetable! I got a little stuck on this chapter. Even though I've pictured it from the beginning, I still had to work the new Theo/Astoria storyline into it. Enjoy this addition, and I promise I will update a lot sooner than the previous five chapters.

Chapter 12: Unexpected - April 25, 2008

"How the bloody hell do you go through life only having sex about once a month?" George shuddered, leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees. Theo's mouth dropped open in shock. He shook his head and turned to Draco, who was chuckling into his drink. With three Slytherins always vying to buy the next round for the sake of showmanship, the entire table stayed good and pissed on Friday nights at the Leaky Cauldron since Theo joined the group two weeks ago.

"Of everything I've told you, that was your takeaway?" Theo asked incredulously.

"Welcome to friendship with Gryffindors," Blaise said offhandedly before clapping his old mate on the back. "They have no boundaries and tend to miss the point on most occasions."

"How do they decide which pureblood family is worse?" Harry wondered quietly as he spoke into his drink. Blaise gestured toward the dark-haired wizard, emphasizing to Theo how the Gryffindor proved his point. "What do they care if she marries a Nott over a Flint?"

"Potter, what don't you understand? My dad was almost as high as Lucius within the Death Eater ranks. The Greengrasses didn't want their daughter associated with my stained family name," Theo explained, exasperated by this group of drunken wizards.

"All I'm saying is that I'd marry you over that Flint prat," Harry slurred, pointing his finger just to the left of where the dark-haired Slytherin sat. Theo threw up his hands as if he were surrendering to the stupidity of the conversation.

"Of course you'd marry me over him! I'm like a taller, good-looking version of you with manageable hair!" Theo exclaimed, holding up his glass in a toast.

"I'll drink to that!" Draco clinked his nearly-empty snifter with Theo's raised glass.

"Wait...what are you drinking to, Malfoy?" Ron slurred. "Harry being uglier than Nott or Nott being better than Flint?"

"I'm ugly?"

"No, Harry. You're the most fit looking Chosen One I've ever seen," George said as he handed the bespeckled wizard another drink.

"Why was Flint such a tosser if he wasn't a Death Eater?" Ron wondered, tipping back his empty glass and staring at it in confusion.

"You know, not all Slytherins were Death Eaters…" Draco murmured, absently rubbing his left forearm where his Mark used to be. "Some were just waiting on the final outcome to choose their allegiances, the Flint family included, so they would always end up on the winning side," he explained. Though the sins of his past had long been forgiven by this group, discussing them was always sobering for the blond-haired wizard.

"Dark times aside, I appreciate you lot for allowing me to whine about my life for a bit," Theo said.

"Was that whining? You obviously haven't been around Blaise's dramatics in awhile," Draco chuckled as the rest of the group laughed at the Italian wizard's stunned expression.

"That's fine, gentlemen. I was waiting for Theo to end his senseless, little pity party anyway. Luna already wants to start trying to have children, but I told her that we should wait because all of you make it sound absolutely awful," Blaise responded haughtily.

"Senseless?" Theo challenged, leaning toward the Italian wizard angrily.

"You told your wife, who is good friends with our wives, that we make children sound awful, you bloody twit!" Ron exclaimed as he swallowed hard. He'd certainly pay for it if word of their Friday night gripes made their way back to Pansy.

"Senseless, yes. Hermione fucking Granger is-"

"Malfoy," Draco corrected.

"When she's saving the world, it's Granger," Blaise rolled his eyes and ignored Draco's arms folded across his chest and bitter sneer. "As I was saying, Hermione fucking Granger is looking into your case, which means it is as good as solved. This time next year, you'll even have the chance to have an actual legitimate child and claim your son as your own." At the mention of his possible future, Theo smiled. For the first time since reuniting with his old schoolmates, he actually looked hopeful.

"I hate to agree with this areshole, but she's even meeting with my father next weekend to gain some insight on pureblood marital contracts that she can't find in her books. Between the two of them, Astoria will be freed from Flint as soon as possible," Draco assured his friend.

"Is no one else concerned that Blaise has blabbed to his wife about everything we say here?" Ron asked in frustration.

"Oh, shut it, Weasley!" the Italian wizard laughed. "I didn't tell her anything, you git. I just wanted you to know how much power I hold over you wankers next time you decide to complain about my whining!"

May 3, 2008

After a late night with the boys, Draco gratefully slid into bed next to the nest of pillows that surrounded his wife. Theo was enraged earlier in the day when Astoria turned up on his doorstep crying and attempting to glamour a bruise on her cheek. The group of wizards spent the whole night talking him out of murdering Flint and discussing a legal way to deal with the situation. The witch swore that Marcus hadn't done it on purpose, but Theo was desperate to have her and his son out of Flint's grasp regardless of whether it was an accident or not. At least Hermione finally had time to meet with Lucius this weekend, and Draco had no doubt that the two would have this problem solved quickly.

As if his witch sensed his presence, she immediately burrowed her back into Draco's chest, and her bum nestled against his groin. For a few minutes, he just allowed their magic to blend together. His large hand caressed the swell of his wife's belly, and the boy, who was due early next month, immediately pressed himself into Draco's touch. He smiled, pressing his fingers down one-by-one as his son responded with a nudge to each movement. After some time, he drifted off to sleep while playing with his little unborn wizard.

"More...Draco, more...please," Hermione moaned. The sound of her seductive voice laced its way through his dreamless sleep. Her soft sighs snapped him back to reality. A reality where the sun painted the walls of the bedroom with the lazy orange glow of early morning and his fingers were already exploring the wet folds beneath his wife's knickers.

"You'll have to wake me first, love," he whispered with a grin as she stilled her rolling hips. When he felt her wiggling away, he thought he'd angered her. Usually in this type of situation, he'd have to give her a few minutes before attempting to make a move to fix his blunder. It'd be worth it to bide his time. Suddenly, he was on his back, and Hermione was straddling him

"I'll wake you up alright," she insisted with determination. Somehow, the witch had managed to remove her clothing and ripped his boxer briefs off in some sort of movement he couldn't even begin to comprehend at this early hour. She stayed poised above him, waiting for him to look her in the eyes before sinking down on his hardened cock. Merlin, she was beautiful. Draco began reaching for her hips, but she swatted his hands away. As she rode him, her fingers drifted down her body from her peaked nipples to her cunt, a smirk on her lips.

"Fuck, yes," he groaned as he brought his arms behind his head. Watching her at this moment was the hottest fucking thing he'd ever seen. "Merlin, you're perfect, love," he praised her. "Show me how many times you can come on my dick," Draco growled. His voice spurred her on. Hermione's eyes began rolling back in her head, and her breathing came hard and fast. Just as she was about to fall over the edge and scream his name, the voice of Harry fucking Potter filled the sacred space of their bedroom.

"Malfoy, come quickly," the glowing stag demanded, mocking the very act its mere presence had interrupted, "There's been another incident with cursed Squibs! We need you now! Meet me in my office immediately!"

The couple stared at one another in shock momentarily before Draco jumped into action.

"I'm so sorry, love!" he told Hermione as he gently rolled her back to the bed and regrettably slipped out of her. "It must be something terrible if he's sent his Patronus," he muttered to himself. Potter despised having to interrupt Aurors in their off time. He only did it in an emergency as he had done with the previous three cases involving the cursed Squib children.

"No need to apologize to me, but you'd better find a way to punish Harry for me," Hermione said, offering a sad smile. "I just hope the child is alright," she worried her lower lip as Draco was out of bed and digging through his drawers for clean clothes. Luckily, he always showered and took a Pepper-Up Potion before he fell into bed on pub nights with the boys. He crashed through his morning routine before swooping back to the bed and kissing his wife goodbye.

"Obviously, I'll make this up to you tonight or whenever I am able to come home," Draco said, placing a chaste kiss on Hermione's forehead and stroking her cheek. She nodded in understanding. He grabbed his wand off the night table and stood to Apparate. "Of course, I'll make sure Potter pays for his awful timing too," he smirked at her before he disappeared from their room. The last thing he saw as he left for the Auror Apparition point was Hermione throwing a pillow in his direction with a laugh or grimace, he couldn't be sure which one.

The scene that met him when he entered the Auror office was pure chaos. It seemed like most of the department was scrambling through the workspace searching for answers. What had he missed?

"Why can't we stay with you and Grandfather?" Cassie whined as they readied themselves to Floo over to the Manor.

"I already explained to you that he and I are working on a project to help Mr. Theo-"

"Mr. Theo needs help," Ori added, hugging his mum's leg as if she were doing him some sort of favor.

"Yes. he does, darling," Hermione panted as a dull ache suddenly throbbed in her lower back. It was the same kind of pain she felt just as Draco left this morning. She breathed through it. Turning back to Ori, she stroked her fingers through his curls, gently rubbing her thumb across his cheek as he watched her with his concerned grey eyes.

Her youngest son's unprecedented magic always piqued her curiosity. Every time he did something to surprise them, which was often, she and Draco would speak to Dumbledore's portrait. The former Headmaster found Ori's incident with Theo especially interesting. He informed them that only a child conceived by the purest love could bear such gifts. At that comment, Hermione had to squeeze Draco's knee to keep him from snickering like an immature schoolboy. When they'd finished speaking with Dumbledore's portrait, she laughed in spite of herself along with her husband the whole walk back to the Apparition point. Although she was mature enough to hear the word "conceive" from a former professor's mouth, it always warmed her heart to know that Draco could still find humor in such things. It was no wonder he got on so well with Harry, Ron, and George.

"Can we spend time with Grandfather when we're done watching the play with Grammy Molly and Grandmother?" Scorpius asked politely, pulling his mum from her thoughts.

"We'll see," Hermione answered as she poured Floo Powder into Cassie and Scorp's waiting hands. As they stepped through to the Manor, Cissa was waiting for them with a smile.

"Lucius is in his study. He spent all night pulling various marriage law and marital contract texts from the library and...other places," the blond witch trailed off. It was no surprise that her father-in-law would have hidden texts throughout the family home. Even though the Ministry had done a thorough sweep of the mansion, there were still hiding spots protected by blood magic. Draco hadn't lived here since before the war ended, but he had found a few harmless books and trinkets his father deemed necessary to hide. He simply assumed they were heirlooms and Hermione refused to allow him to destroy any texts no matter how unsavory the subject-matter might be.

"Thank you, Cissa. I have a few ideas, but I'm so unfamiliar with these sorts of things," Hermione explained, feeling quite deflated at her inability to solve the problem on her own.

"I'm under the impression that the situation has become dire. The Notts are a prideful family, and I'm sure it took a lot for Theo to ask for help," Narcissa said sadly. "You've no idea how wonderful it is for Lucius to feel...useful in this situation. Honestly, he's a bit nervous about letting you down."

"Letting me down?" the curly-haired witch asked. Even though she'd been able to get along with Lucius these past few months, she was under no impression that he cared what she thought of him.

"Believe it or not, he's come to respect you, Hermione. As much as he'd love to fix this situation for Mr. Nott, he'd also like to prove to you that he can be useful even if his particular fountain of knowledge is within the scope of things we'd like to change about our world," Narcissa smiled at her son's wife.

"Thank you. That does mean something to me."

"Hello!" Mrs. Weasley stepped through the Floo cheerily. "Who is looking forward to a lovely afternoon at the theatre?" she asked, turning toward the children. "I haven't been since I was a little girl, and I'm so looking forward to it," she prattled on as Cassie, Scorp, and Ori embraced her.

"Oh, Molly, that can't be true," Narcissa declared. "I'll have to have a word with Arthur if he's slipping in the romance department," she warned playfully, giving her friend a warm hug.

"Thank Merlin you're still here. I thought we might have missed you," Andromeda burst through the Floo in a rush. "Do you have room for two more?" she asked as Teddy stumbled in after her.

"Of course, we do. What a delightful surprise!" Molly exclaimed.

"When Cissy told me about your outing last night, I didn't think Teddy would be interested…"

Everything seemed to disappear for Hermione as the older witches discussed their plans with the children for the day. A strong surge of pain began to radiate in her lower back and seemed to slowly roll through her entire body. Perhaps she'd make an appointment with the Healer once she was finished with Lucius.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in…

"Are you alright, dear?" Molly asked cautiously. It took a moment for Hermione to realize the Weasley matriarch was directing the question at her.

"Yes." Breathe out. "I'm fine, really." Breathe in.

"Maybe we should stay," Cissa sounded concerned.

"Grandmother, no. We've been looking forward to seeing a wizarding play for so long. Please take us," Cassie begged.

"Please don't miss anything on my account. It's just a few false labor pains," Hermione assured them. They stared back at her with three expressions full of motherly concern. "If it makes you feel better, I can Floo right over to St Mungo's right after my meeting with Lucius." The three witches still seemed torn. "Go! Please!"

"Alright, alright, but you better have my husband owl us immediately if something happens," Narcissa warned her daughter-in-law. "My son will have all of our wands if he finds out we left you in any state of discomfort."

"I'll deal with Draco. Just go and enjoy your afternoon," Hermione said while shooing the group away. After they finally agreed to leave, she waddled her way down the corridor toward her father-in-law's study.

A few words came to mind when Lucius thought of Hermione, but the main word he would use to describe her would be stubborn. For the nearly-lost-cause of Theodore Nott and Astoria Greengrass, this trait would be considered a positive thing. From the moment the determined witch entered his study armed with her long list of questions, she'd been sure they'd find the loophole in the Flint/Greengrass marital contract.

As he read through the seemingly ironclad paperwork, he reviewed Hermione's detailed notes. She waited patiently for him to finish before she began her barrage of questions. Lucius felt like he was on trial with the Wizengamot again, only this time, the consequences affected others instead of himself. He felt a sense of duty to both Theo, a boy he'd known since birth, and Astoria, a girl he'd once considered for his own son. Perhaps helping these two innocent victims of the war could help him earn back some of Draco's respect.

"Would a DNA test proving Theo's parentage void Flint's rights to the child?" Hermione asked, checking off each question as she moved down her list. Lucius didn't know what a DNA test was. He felt silly. Already failing. The sharp witch caught his brief look of confusion. "DNA is one's genetic code. I won't get too far into the science behind it, but it's a test Muggles use to determine paternity with children," she explained. Muggles could determine parentage by some sort of genetic code? Fascinating.

"I've never heard of such a case among purebloods. It would be assumed that the husband would always be the father," he replied.

"Why?"

"Because clauses stipulating the rules for taking a mistress only apply to men," he answered. A look of disgust crossed her features.

"Is there some sort of charm or curse to prevent a witch from cheating on her spouse?"

"Of course, not. A pureblood witch wouldn't need such a barbaric measure in place to prevent her from going astray," he replied. In all of his years turning his nose down at others, Lucius had never felt the sting of someone returning the condescending facial expression.

"Astoria is pureblood and has been cheating on Marcus for years. You, yourself said there is no way Christopher could be a Flint…" she trailed off waiting for him to catch on as if he were daft. Lucius stared back at her, his previous statement about pureblooded witches mocking him. He nodded once to signify he finally caught up.

"You're correct. I...apologize. Please blame my lifetime of pureblood indoctrination for my biased assumptions. To answer your original question, I've never heard of a case like this where parentage was proven."

"What is a blood curse clause?" the curly-haired witch continued as if Lucius hadn't said anything offensive.

"Yes, that. We really dodged an Avada on that one. The Greengrass family is said to have a blood curse in their line, so it allows the wizard to leave the witch after the first heir is born and marry another. Without it, she could die at any time, and the wizard would be stuck as a bachelor the rest of his life or forfeit the witch's dowry," he explained. "That's probably why Nott Senior refused the Greengrass sisters for Theo from the start. If I'd known about it, I would have included the clause in Draco and Astoria's contract all those years ago," he said off-handedly. The guilt hit him immediately. Hermione's skin paled as a grimace twisted its way from her mouth to her pained eyes. Had Draco not told his wife that he was once betrothed? She braced herself against the desk and gulped in long deep breaths for a few moments. When she finally sat back down, she offered him a placid smile and continued her questions.

"Is it normal that Astoria hadn't signed any part of the contract?"

"An underage witch's father would sign for her."

"She only gets a choice if she is of age?" she challenged forcefully. When she phrased it like that, the whole arrangement seemed somewhat cruel. Growing up, it never seemed like a choice for the witch or wizard. The parents arranged everything, and good pureblooded children obeyed their parents' wishes. Lucius couldn't bring himself to look Hermione in the eye when he gave her an apprehensive nod to answer her question. She was silent for a moment. "Was she of age when this contract was signed?"

"I'm not sure exactly. We could check the document I have for her and Draco's arrangement, I suppose," he replied apprehensively.

"You still have it," she whispered, pain stealing the soft features of her face. "Why?"

"Please believe me; I have no ill will toward you, Hermione. It only just occurred to me that I still have it because it might aid us in solving Theo's problems," he pleaded with the witch. The gears of her brain were turning, and Lucius was ashamed to lose her trust so quickly. "That contract became invalid the moment you and my son completed your bond...not that I would try to invoke that doomed betrothal after...everything," he tried to assure her.

"Thank...you,...Lucius...I...believe...you," she panted through deep inhales of breath and her eyes squeezed shut.

"Are you well, Hermione?" he asked, concerned at the grip his daughter-in-law had on his desk. Waving him off, she nodded too readily. "Shall we get some fresh air? Can I persuade you to take a turn with me in the gardens?"

"That would be lovely," she answered weakly.

As they made their way out to the magnificent Malfoy gardens, Cissy's pride and joy, Lucius had to slow his stride to match the petite witch, burdened greatly by her condition. He offered his arm, which she gripped tightly. They walked in silence at first, taking in the spring bouquets around them.

"The baby...he's moving quite a bit today," she said through tiny, rushed breaths. Lucius peered down at her swollen belly and smiled. It delighted him to know this would be the first grandchild to know him from birth.

"May I?" the blond wizard asked, reaching his free hand toward her. He'd been longing to feel the baby move but felt awkward asking before now. Something about the way Hermione clung to him made him feel like it might be okay.

"Of course," she smiled, guiding his large hand to the spot where the baby was actively undulating beneath her skin.

Lucius gasped as her stomach rolled gracefully toward him, nudging his palm. Raw emotions gripped his heart, and tears sprung to his eyes. He looked up to her gleefully. That's when he noticed that something was very wrong. Her skin had paled, her grip had tightened, and the agony in her eyes alerted him to the fact that he must do something to help her. Suddenly, she fell against him.

"Hermione!" he yelled. She didn't respond. He looked around frantically. What could he do? Lucius had no wand and no access to the Floo. Scooping her up, he cradled her in his arms. There was a small spot of blood seeping through her Muggle jeans. Merlin, this was terribly wrong.

Without another thought, he ran as quickly as he could toward the closest property line, about 400 meters or so just beyond the garden wall. Lucius hadn't run like this since he was a boy. His lungs couldn't take in enough air and his heart was beating its way up through his throat. It didn't matter. He had to save her. Save his grandson. For the first time in his life, Lucius abandoned self-preservation and crossed over the invisible barrier that had imprisoned him these last few months.

A/N - Sorry about this little cliffy. You already know I have a hard time with bad things happening to our favorite couple. This WILL have a HAPPY ending. I will post the update as soon as it is finished. (Hopefully by the weekend)