A/N: It's 4:30 AM so please forgive any errors as this has only been lightly edited. Chapter takes place on February 16th & 17th, 2009. Chapter title is a reference to the George Michael song. RIP Momma Malfoy.

TW: References to Suicide/Suicidal Ideation

"Somebody had sex."

Draco had only just Apparated to the Marjoribanks Gardens. He tossed his hands in the air and asked,

"How could you possibly know that?"

"Oh, mate, it's all over your face." Bastien grinned. "Was it good?"

Draco nodded.

"It was ..." He shrugged. "Slow. Meaningful. Mostly nice that she wanted it again, because I've been waiting ages. I never wanted her to feel guilty about it, but fantasizing about her is never quite as good as actually being with her."

"D'you think it'll be a regular thing again?"

"No. She is still missing whatever it is she needs to be fully Hermione. But she caught a glimpse and it felt so good. Sometimes it is easy to forget I am in love with a woman, because she is such a legend that I get lost in it. I want her to succeed at everything, and that is my priority, to uphold the legend. But she is also a person, and being with her like that is more satisfying than anything else."

Bastien frowned.

"Nobody has ever seen her like that before. Been able to separate the two, I mean."

"I hadn't always done so. When we were together the first time, I believe that was our trouble. I saw Hermione as a paragon of stability while that's only partially true; it's not all of who she is. The rest of Hermione was broken and I didn't see it. Now I do, and we are working through it together."

"You two are so adorable, it's disgusting."

"Oh, like you're one to talk, Queensbury-Patil."

"Hey," Bastien laughed, "everyone knows Padma could use me as a mop and I'd ask if she wanted me to do the dusting, too. When you find someone who sees you the way you've always wanted to see yourself, you commit to that. I don't think changing my name made me less of who I am, I don't think being supportive for Padma makes me less of a man, and I know we want to spend our lives together."

"I can't change my name for Hermione," replied Draco, "and I would never ask her to take mine. Though, if we have a child I suppose that would be a bit of a problem."

Bastien rolled his eyes and grumbled, "Idiot."

"Sorry?"

"The hyphen exists, Draco. Your only decision would be Malfoy-Granger or Granger-Malfoy. Personally, I think Malfoy-Granger rolls off the tongue a bit better, but whatever would suit the two of you."

"It's just ..." Draco bit down on his lip trying to hide a smile. "I might get to be a father. Truthfully, I believe I gave up on that idea years ago. A decade ago, even. It's all I wanted, and Hermione wants to have a child with me. She wants to have a child with me. I get to be better than my father ever was to me. For the first time in ages, I look at my future and I see what I want."

Bastien bumped Draco's shoulder and grinned.

"Nice, isn't it? This time last year, you probably don't remember, but this time last year you were half-dead. After a month or so, you finally braided your hair, shaved, and came downstairs. You looked like you were putting an effort in again, and it was the biggest relief of my life. Now, look at you! You've got a girlfriend you love, a future to look forward to, and I've driven over speed humps softer than your bum."

Draco laughed.

"Thank you. Truly, though, if a year ago you had told me I would feel this happy, I would not have believed you. It seemed impossible to me. You know, I don't believe I've ever told you this. Hermione asked me several weeks ago why I didn't kill myself. I said that I knew what I wanted to do, and I would do it unless someone stopped me. I chose to go to you because I knew you would answer the door."

Bastien pulled Draco into a hug.

"I care for you. That's why we do this, the running, why I'd answer the door for you any time. You anchor this family, Draco, you're the centre. The steady one. I care for the edges, make sure no one falls too far off. Everyone has a reason to be here and our family doesn't judge. There's never been another group of people that makes me feel quite as safe as this one. I have loads of friends, but you're family. I love you, and I know you'll never give me hell about changing my name, not like everybody else has. So my door is always open for you and Hermione if she needs me."

Draco pulled Bastien close and nodded.

"I know."

"But I want to make sure you know."

"All of you are married now, in that phase of your lives. I am not there yet, but I will be there eventually. Promise me I won't feel like I am too late."

"You won't," insisted Bastien. "Take all the time you need."

"Can we run now?"

"No, because you're warm and I'm freezing, so hug me a bit longer."

.oOo.

Life-changing moments shouldn't happen on Tuesdays. It is a completely unremarkable day of the week. Everyone believes Mondays are the worst, but Tuesdays are the true shit of the week. There are no expectations of Monday. You're late? Sure. You're tired? Of course. On Tuesday it's go-go-go, no damn excuses, work even though you know nothing good will happen. Even once you're done, there's three more goddamn days to go.

Draco did most of his paperwork in the library. Hermione enjoyed spending her time there, determining which of their books she would read. She was adorable; her enthusiasm for discovering a new, interesting work was as alive as Draco had seen her since ... since. The Tuesday after Valentine's, Fennel popped into the library. He was an older elf who had grey hair sprouting out of his ears. Oddly enough, he was also Hermione's favourite. Not that she would ever admit it, but his slow speech and steady presence seemed to be what Hermione needed most in a house-elf during that time. He walked over to Draco and said,

"You have visitors, Master Malfoy."

Draco tossed his quill onto the table and asked, "Who?"

"Tracey and Theodore Nott, Master Malfoy."

"Oh! What an unexpected surprise. Please bring them here to the library."

"Yes, Master Malfoy."

There was a loud crack as he Disapparated. Hermione grumbled from where she had curled up in an armchair.

"How much does it pain you to tell them 'please?'"

"It was odd at first," admitted Draco, "but I am getting rather used to it. Fennel and Sprig still refer to me as 'Master Malfoy' but the rest have switched to 'Mister Malfoy.' Are you comfortable with that?"

"It's exceeding my expectations for what you were willing to do. To be quite honest, I thought I would have to fit myself into life here in the manor. I never expected that you rebuilt this house and tailored it to me."

"I tailored it to us."

"Exactly. This works for us."

Moments later, Tracey and Theo walked into the library. Hermione jumped up to hug Theo. He held her close, and Draco was incredibly grateful Theo had been there for Hermione while everyone else was focused on him. She clearly needed a firm presence to ground her.

"How are the twins?"

"Well," said Tracey. "Can we sit?"

"Of course." Draco waved his hand and three additional chairs moved into a semicircle around him. "Here, please, I am so happy to see you both."

Hermione, Tracey, and Theo settled in. Before Draco could say anything, Theo said,

"We know how much you love Scarlett."

Draco frowned and insisted, "I love both of my godchildren."

"Yes," Tracey agreed, "but you see a lot of yourself in Scarlett and you are her role model. Not me, and not Theo, you. Which is one of the reasons what we are about to tell you is painful."

"Merlin's arse, that is one hell of a way to begin a conversation, Trace!"

Theo took a deep breath and admitted, "We are coming to you and Hermione because we are out of our depth."

"Completely out of our depth," added Tracey. "Completely fucked."

"Okay." Draco's frown deepened. "How can I help?"

"We need both of you."

Hermione perked up. Theo took another deep breath, looked Draco in the eyes, and revealed,

"Scarlett wants to drop Quidditch."

Draco blinked.

"I must have misheard you. Quidditch is nearly her entire childhood. Everything she does involves Quidditch in one way or another."

Tracey said, "We enjoyed the ballet. Theo more than me, but it was interesting. Sebastien couldn't have been more bored, but Scarlett ... She loved it so much because, to her, she saw that Muggles can fly without brooms. That's what the ballet became to her, Draco, it's flying. Scarlett wants to fly on her own, so she wants to be a ballerina."

"We are talking about the same Scarlett, right?" asked Draco. "My goddaughter wants to give up the only hobby she has to pursue a Muggle art?"

"Yes," replied Theo. "And this is why we need Hermione, because the Wizarding world doesn't have ballet. We don't have anything for her, and she wants to be involved in the Muggle world. How the bloody hell do you introduce your own child to a world you know nothing about?"

Hermione barked out a laugh, and everyone turned to look at her. She shrugged.

"Apologies, it's only that my parents said the same thing when they got my Hogwarts letter. It is funny to see that train on the opposite track."

"What should we do?" asked Tracey. "I don't want to destroy her dream, or to tell her wizards can't do ballet. Theo and I discussed it, and we will allow her to do this, but ... We have no idea where to go. We haven't the faintest idea where to start!"

Hermione wondered, "Where do they learn? Maths and such, where do the twins go to school?"

"They don't." Draco said, "They have a tutor three days each week. We don't have official schooling before age eleven."

Hermione frowned.

"What about children who cannot afford tutors? What happens to them?"

"I don't know. I've always paid for tutoring for the twins. If Blaise and Dean have a child, I will do the same for them, the same for Pansy, or Bastien and Padma. Everyone in our family is taken care of."

"But what about the children who aren't in your family?" asked Hermione. "Good God, Draco, I had no idea ... Who teaches children that two plus two is four? Who explains why the sky is blue or—"

"I don't know."

"This world is so backward." Hermione shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe I never thought to ask that question before. Focusing on Scarlett, there is a school in Lancashire that does Muggle education with an excellent ballet program. They do let in eight-year-olds, but Scarlett wouldn't be able to begin until the fall."

"Tracey and I won't split up the twins until they go to Hogwarts."

"Sebastien could attend as well. It is an academic institution, but their ballet extracurricular is a great starting point for dancers. Dean's youngest sister, Zara, does ballet there. She is in her second year and Dean says she enjoys it. Draco and I can schedule a tour for us at the school, if you like?"

"I ..." Tracey shrugged. "I feel like I'm failing as a mum, you know? My daughter wants this so much, and I want her to have every opportunity. But I know nothing about this. Would a Muggle school even accept wizard children?"

"I don't see why not." Hermione said, "I went to school in the Muggle world for years and I ended up alright." She frowned. "Well, I would have, barring the circumstances."

Theo said, "We are willing to try anything, but I don't want to alienate my children from the magical world. I also don't want to tell Scarlett she can't do what she wants to do. My father was that sort of parent, just as Draco's were. We will not limit them. I won't do it, Hermione. Trace and I did not plan to have kids so early, but we did and we love them, and I want them to have every opportunity. Scarlett and Sebastien are the only children in our family right now, the first, and I don't want to fuck it up. We don't get another chance at this. If Scarlett said she wanted to learn to sew or play Gobstones or raise Dragons, even, we know where to go for that. But this? It is like I am following my children into a new world and I don't know any more about it than they do."

"You knew to come to me," Hermione reassured him. "I love the twins and I would never put them in a place I thought they didn't belong. Dean vouches for this school, and I trust him with everything."

"Are there other options?"

"Loads!" Hermione scrambled about and grabbed a piece of parchment. She Summoned Draco's quill and began to write down ideas. "There are many good ballet studios, and Scarlett is a perfect age to begin."

Draco stood up from his chair and said, "Excuse me. I need to go."

"Draco?" asked Hermione, concern in her voice. "Do you need me?"

"No, Scarlett needs you. Do what you do best, my knowledgeable, fantastic girlfriend."

Hermione shouted after him.

"I trust you, my loving, gorgeous boyfriend!"

"Thank you."

"My tall, graceful boyfriend!"

Draco laughed as he neared the door and Hermione continued yelling at his back.

"My artistic boyfriend!"

Draco shut the library door behind him right as Hermione shouted,

"MY BOYFRIEND WITH THE FANTASTIC BUM!"

Draco laughed and made his way up to his mother's study. She was reviewing some of the estate filings when he walked in. She looked up and smiled.

"My son!"

"Hello, mother."

"Come," she motioned to the chair in front of her desk, "sit."

Draco sat where he was told and sighed.

"I need your advice."

"Regarding?"

"I love my godchildren equally."

Narcissa insisted, "I would never have believed otherwise."

"However, it has always been easier for me to understand Scarlett because she is so much like me. A troubling amount, really. Now, she has given up Quidditch and wishes to take up ballet."

"Oh? How wonderful! I never understood how Quidditch gained such popularity, it seems like murder on the thighs."

"It feels like I am losing her a bit. Scarlett and I have Quidditch as our thing. I taught her everything she knows about the sport, and I loved coaching her. Now she wants to do something I can't help her with and I feel like she is abandoning me. Or, I suppose, perhaps I am not the stable life figure she needs anymore. I was not prepared, and Hermione is still a bit far away from me, and now Scarlett ..." Draco shook his head. "This hit me very quickly and I wanted to come to you before I said something I couldn't take back."

Narcissa's face fell. She walked around the desk and pulled a chair up to sit at Draco's side.

"I lost you once because I was ignorant of what, or I suppose whom, you loved. You chose to be with Blaise as a lover and I chose to let go of both of you instead of supporting you when you needed me to be there. I am sorry for that, my son. I will spend the rest of my life trying to be the mother you needed at that moment. Then your father and I nearly lost you because we were ignorant of your pain for so long. Scarlett needs you to be there for her, as she always will. You are the person she looks up to."

"But why should she?" asked Draco. "What do I bring to the table? If we don't have Quidditch in common, then how do I relate to her?"

Narcissa smiled softly and patted Draco's knee.

"Sometimes, my son, you are an idiot."

"Your advice has the gentle touch of a Centaur's hooves."

Narcissa laughed.

"Oh, Merlin, you are wonderful. It is nice to hear you joke again; I have missed that about you. As for relating to Scarlett, you do not play Quidditch any longer. However, you make art and that is all ballet is. Ballet is art, so Scarlett is following in your footsteps. Who better to coach her through understanding something new than you, who taught yourself to draw?"

"But it is Muggle art." Draco groaned. "How can I presume to learn anything—"

"With her. You learn as she learns. That is how you grow with a child, Draco. You experience new things together and encourage them when they want to give up. This is a great opportunity for you to show her how to take on a new adventure. Plus, who better than you to teach her how to put her hair into one of those little buns?"

Draco laughed.

"I suppose you are right about that."

"You believe the Granger girl is distant from you now, but she isn't. She is here, living in the manor comfortably at your side. I see the way she looks at you, and I am happy you found the love you were searching for. This will likely bring the two of you closer together, as you will need a guide in that world. All I see for both you and Scarlett are positive things to come of this."

"You are right."

"Yes," Narcissa nodded, "I am. Believe it or not, I learn from my mistakes. Besides, Jack is softening me a bit to the Muggle world. He and Abigail took me for a ride in their car last week. It was somehow amazing and miserable at the same time. However, I would certainly prefer it to a broom." She paused then wondered, "Why are you so worried about this?"

"Because," Draco admitted, "if I fail with Scarlett then it means I will likely fail as a father to my own child. I want to be certain I can do this before Hermione and I make that commitment. Though I want it so desperately."

"Of course you do. All that love in your heart, Draco Malfoy, it needs somewhere to go. That is what will make you a great father. You listen, you care, and you will do the most important thing any child needs a parent to do."

"What's that?"

"Show up."

"Oh."

"All any child wants is for their parent to be present and to be proud of them. Theodore and Tracey are always proud of their children, but your family is nontraditional. Merlin knows nothing about you has been traditional, my son. Scarlett will want someone who can lead her into that world with confidence. She will learn better and be better because you and her parents will always be there to tell her what she is pursuing is worthwhile. That is how you become a good parent, you are present to help them learn. Just as I had the privilege of teaching you how to braid your hair, you will have the privilege of teaching your son."

Draco asked, "Am I being unfair to Sebastien?"

"That boy loves Hermione Granger the way you once admired your father. I think he has Hermione as his own guiding light. While you two love the twins equally, they will each travel their own path that requires guidance. Be the guide Scarlett needs, and everything will end up exactly as it is meant to be."

"I am going to ask you a question, and I need you to answer honestly."

"Always."

Draco took a deep breath then said, "Do you believe I will make a good father?"

Narcissa nodded.

"Your father and I never truly understood who you were meant to be. When we nearly lost you last year, it became clear you would never be the man we tried to force you to become. As a parent, you know you have failed when your child would rather leave this world than be in it. I failed you, and I know you will never fail any child the way your father and I wronged you because I know your strength. This time last year you were contemplating suicide, and look at you now. Look at how incredible you are to have come this far in so short a time. You have rebuilt your entire life, and your family was there to support you through it all. You built that family, my son. Not me, not your father, not Theo or Blaise ... You built it. Any child you bring into this family will be welcomed, will be cared for, and they will most certainly be loved."