Sunday, 05 July 2009
Draco and Hermione were preparing to leave St. Mungo's for his flat, when he remembered gifts he had in his office.
"Accio new baby blankets," Draco intoned, pointing his wand in the direction of his office.
Hermione raised an eyebrow at him. "Is there a particular reason you're summoning baby blankets? Where did they come from? The twins already have their own."
"Yes, they are gifts from the house-elves, although at the time I thought it was for me since the first day that I received the first gift was the day I had just received my promotion. I never realised that all the elves, and even the portraits knew about the twins since they just congratulated me. They never said what for and I never asked." He shrugged. "It was over the next few months that the elves really surprised me. Any time I would leave the manor after visiting my parents, there would be a gift waiting for me by the fireplace in the reception hall," Draco explained.
"You didn't think it at all strange that they were giving these to you at all?" Hermione asked.
Draco shrugged. "You don't argue with an elf when they give you gifts, you accept them graciously, otherwise they're likely to harm themselves if you refuse. Especially if they're family heirlooms." He paused, mulling over his next words. "Besides, every single gift was baby oriented, and at the time I thought it was one of their ways of acknowledging and congratulating me for my promotion. How was I to know that it was because I'd unknowingly fathered the next Malfoy heir?"
"Do you find it odd that even though we are not married, our daughter is the Malfoy heir? I mean, I was expecting your father to try and fight it, but he's not."
Draco closed his eyes and took a deep breath, he knew they had discussed this very subject more than once over the past couple of weeks, but with Hermione being sick with influenza, and then pneumonia, up until the day before, he could understand why she would have trouble remembering. Being sick really took a lot out of her, so much so that she was unable to nurse their children for a few days. No matter how much she wanted to, the potions she was on to fight the flu, and especially pneumonia, contained ingredients that were not good for newborns.
"My father mentioned it on Saturday, two weeks ago, but it was more how the outside world would see it rather than him trying to fight it. And even if he wanted to try and fight Elysia's birthright, there's nothing he can do. Nouna's magic connected with both her and Xavier since before they were born. Oh, I forgot to tell you, Toran told me the other day that as soon as they were born, their names stitched themselves onto the Malfoy tapestry. Your name did, too. Xavier's even changed from Marcus when you decided to change it."
An eyebrow rose on Hermione's face. "You mean when YOU changed it, because you apparently hate Marcus Flint more than you ever did Harry."
Draco grinned shamelessly. "Exactly."
Shaking her head, smiling, Hermione voiced her next concern, "Something I still don't understand, and have been thinking about off and on since the day after the twins were born, is-"
"There's something the Brightest Witch of our Age doesn't know?" Draco joked, earning a glare from the brunette witch sitting in front of him.
"You're lucky our children are here, you prat." He returned her glare with an unrepentant grin. "What I was trying to say when I was so rudely interrupted was that for generations, the Malfoys have had single birth babies, how did we end up with twins?" She tilted her head to the side, thinking. "We both know that one of the blessings Ginny and Adrian included was a fertility blessing. That specific blessing must be how it happened, because twins don't run in my family either."
"It's entirely possible," Draco agreed. "That and the introduction of new blood to the family line can't hurt either."
"Good point. I'll have to research both ideas," Hermione mused to herself.
"You're not researching any time soon, Hermione." She opened her mouth to argue but Draco stopped her before she could say anything. "No, you will be busy enough with Elysia and Xavier for the time being that you won't have the time nor the energy to research."
Hermione sighed. "I know, but you know how I am. It's in my nature."
Draco smiled and knelt in front of Hermione, taking her hands in his own. "I know it is, but look at it this way, you survived the bed rest I put you on before the twins were born." He chuckled. "At least you'll be able to be up walking around this time."
She laughed with him, a smile on her face. "That is very true." Her grin faded slightly. "I'm honestly terrified."
Draco let go of her hands and reached up to cup her face in his warm, large palms. "How do you think I feel? I've only known for not even a month that I'm a father, you've had since November to get used to the idea." He winked at her, softening his words.
"I know you haven't had much time to get used to being a father, but there's just so much to worry about and getting the twins home is just the beginning."
Draco sighed, brushing a thumb over the crease in her forehead. "Bluebell, we will worry about all that other stuff at a later date, but only as needed. Right now, we have more important things to worry about, like our two little ones we have to take care of. Together."
Hermione's small smile and nod was enough encouragement for Draco to know that they would be able to discuss any other problems that they may stumble across later. Just like they did with the potential problem of them being bonded together that is until Draco had been able to confirm with the ministry that they in fact had not been bonded together at the same time as Adrian and Ginny had.
Out of the corner of his eye, Draco caught sight of two baby blankets, one yellow and the other green, wiggling their way underneath the door. Once each blanket was free from the door, it zipped into Draco's hand.
Standing up, Draco made his way back to where both of his children were sleeping. Laying both blankets over his shoulder, the new father carefully picked up his daughter and made his way to where Hermione was seated.
"Would you like to do the honours for our daughter?"
"Yes, please." She smiled in return, accepting her daughter from her father.
Draco gave Hermione the yellow blanket before returning to pick up his son and wrap him in the green blanket still hanging over his shoulder. Once both children were wrapped in their new blankets, Draco looked to Hermione.
"Shall we leave for my flat?"
Hermione stepped forward, slipping her right hand through the crook of Draco's left arm. "Yes, let's go home."
Draco's heart skipped a beat when Hermione called his flat home. Ever since their children were born, the two new parents had been arguing about where Hermione and the twins would live. The discussion had been put on hold for a little while when Hermione was really ill and they had finally come to a decision just the day before right here in Hermione's room.
Hermione completely refused to move into Malfoy Manor and Draco could understand why, war memories still lingering in the minds of all the survivors. The brunette knew that her own flat didn't have enough space and even though Molly offered the Burrow for her use, she didn't want to impose.
It was as Draco was again suggesting that they move in with him when Nouna showed up and put a stop to all arguments.
The little patronymic elf looked at the two of them in the room critically before her eyes settled on Hermione. "You refuse to stays at manor, so yous will be staying with Master Draco. Young missy and master needs Master Draco," she raised a hand, pointing at Hermione, "and so does you!"
Hermione opened her mouth to try and argue with her, but Nouna popped out of the room before she could say anything, leaving Hermione to look at the smiling face across the desk from her.
"Looks like we're staying with you," she concluded.
Breaking himself out of his thoughts, Draco kissed the top of Hermione's head, murmuring, "Home, I like the sound of that."
The young parents had a long road ahead of them, but between the two of them, their family, and their friends, they just might make it.