Summary: Draco wasn't going to let a stuffy work meeting keep him from missing one the most important ones of his life.
Rated: K
Genre: Family
Warning Tag: Medical Setting; References Pregnancy
Competition/Challenge Block:
Written For: Monthly Challenges for All (Year 3); Hogwarts (Term 14)
Hogwarts: Ravenclaw; A.10 - Study of Magical Object #3: Write about someone showing a hard-working nature (restriction: the character can't be a Ravenclaw)
MC4A: Sh Bingo (1B-Conference/Seminar)
Word Count: 631
At the Right Meeting
Draco anticipated this meeting to come up on his schedule that morning. It was marked as 'Urgent Attention' and there was no way for him to get out of it. A recent situation came up that involved the auror department investigating his company due to an increased problem with poachers and they circuluating their product wherever they can to turn a prophet. Draco knew his business was in the clear, having consulted with Luna who single-handedly built and customized his company's import channels and ensured sustainable and humane sources were always maintained.
Naturally, the ministry still didn't care, and he already knew this meeting was going to be about the mandating hold on all imports be made until the illegal product was found and removed from the market. It was going to cause a lot of problems for a business that mainstreamed and circulated wand and potion materials and ingredients from all over the world.
Astoria insisted he tended to the problem because she would put his needs over her own every time when it was important, which he often scolded her for, especially since she was nearing the end of her third trimester and was put on bedrest as a precaution. The healer and a mediwix were there with her around the clock, but Draco felt like he was betraying her by leaving her to her own devices to tend to something far less important.
So there he ended up, sitting at the head of the conference table with an array of stuffy old wixen and his associates to hash over something he knew was going to happen a week ago. The imports were frozen, investors were furious, buyers were a mix between angry, frustrated, and upset.
Draco zoned out through most of it, declining everyone's suggestions for alternatives and workarounds. Their hands were tied at a legal standpoint, and he'd be damned if he allowed the company he built from the ground up to tap into blackmarket deals and exploits.
He only snapped to attention when his personal assistant came in, which was something he was told to not do during meetings, and handed him a note that said Astoria had gone into premature labor and was safely transported to the hospital.
Scrambling to his feet, Draco didn't even bother to clear his personal notes from his area as he closed the distance between him and the door. "This meeting is over. Just deal with and cooperate with the ministry."
Flooring to the hospital, Draco beelined it to the maternity ward and found his wife put up in one of the exam room. She smiled at him when he appeared in the doorway, scanning the space before entering.
"You're early," Astoria said, holding her hand out to him. "Our little Starlight decided to arrive early. Due to how he is positioned, and for his general safety due to him being premature, they will have to perform surgery."
He raised a brow at the foreign term that was surgery, a semi-new practice that was slowly being implemented into the magical world, but didn't argue against it. If it meant that both she and their son would be healthy and safe, Draco could care less what was done, muggle or magic aside, to make it happen.
Taking a seat on the edge of her bed, he let out a sigh of relief and closed his eyes. "So he isn't here yet?"
"No, but he will be here soon," she explained, squeezing his hand. "They are prepping now. What of your meeting? Surely it hasn't ended already?"
Draco shook his head. "I am where I need to be. The old oafs can wait or drop dead for all I care."
She laughed at this, and he couldn't help but smile in return.