December 30th, 2011

A/N: My cousin is sleeping over at my house for the weekend, which means this is probably going to take much longer than I intended… Happy New Year's, everyone! Hope you all had a blast, hope no one drank and drove, and hope you didn't throw up all over your friends' carpet. I had lots of fun writing this because I can only imagine the reactions it will get – the chapter, not the author's note. Although…that'll be fun too. Thanks to Cat for beta reading! (:

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Chapter Twenty One (SQUEE!)

As Hermione advised, Lavender told Ron about the pregnancy as soon as she could. She apparated to the Burrow as soon as she woke up on April twenty sixth, and stormed into the room Ron shared with Harry.

Harry grabbed his wand the moment the door hit the wall, and was visibly tense until he put on his glasses and saw that it was Lavender who barged in. Ron took a little longer to come to, but when he did he rushed to Lavender's side.

"Are you alright? What happened yesterday?" he asked, taking Lavender's hands in his and sitting her down on his bed.

Lavender glanced at Harry, who nodded at her and promptly left. At least one of the boys wasn't horribly daft.

"Ron, please promise me that you won't get mad," Lavender said, combing her fingers through her hair repeatedly. Ron personally found the habit incredibly vexing, but he would never let Lavender know that.

"I promise."

"Well, then…ah…I'm pregnant," Lavender blurted.

"You're pregnant?" Ron exclaimed. Lavender stared at him and he lowered his voice. "I just…you're pregnant? How is that possible?"

"I think you very well know how it's possible," Lavender replied flatly.

"Right," Ron said, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "I thought you were using that charm though!"

"I was," Lavender whispered. "It might not have been foolproof. I got it from Witch Weekly."

"Merlin's beard, what will everyone say? You're pregnant and we're not even married! My mother will kill me."

"That's the solution!" Lavender said, beaming at Ron. "That's how we solve the problem! We get married as soon as possible, and the others will think the baby came early. We'll just tell your mum that we want a spontaneous wedding and we'll get everything done."

Ron made a valiant effort to keep his mouth closed until the initial shock wore off. Lavender wanted to get married? Soon? Ron didn't think he was ready for that. Lavender was great – she was working on being less clingy, and she hardly ever argued with him. But Ron didn't know if he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. Now he had to, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that.

"I-Do you want to tell her together?" Ron asked.

"I can't tell her by myself, Ron," Lavender told him quietly.

"And Parvati knows."

"Parvati knows," Lavender answered. She hesitated, then added, "So does Hermione."

Ron couldn't keep his jaw from dropping that time. "Hermione knows? Hermione Granger? Why does she know?"

"I couldn't deal with this on my own, Ron! And she's such an understanding person, and she let me talk without judging me. Without judging me out loud, anyway. She helped me be okay with this. I was a mess before I talked to her."

"Alright, I understand. Hermione is the witch you go to when you have a problem. But why didn't you let me know first?"

"I was scared," Lavender admitted. "I didn't know if you would be happy, or mad, or as scared as I was. As scared as I am. Hermione knows how to word things so they don't sound as bad. That's why I went to her."

"Now all we have to do is tell Mum," Ron said, sighing. "Let's get this over with." He stood and when Lavender was standing as well, he drew her into a hug. "Everything will turn out fine, Lav. Don't worry."

Hermione slowly opened her eyes and let them adjust to the light filtering in through the curtains. She rolled over, expecting to find Draco lying next to her, already awake or still asleep, but he was gone. Instead, she found a note.

Morning love,

You've probably tried skimming the note. I can tell you that won't work. I charmed it so you wouldn't be able to see the bottom until you've read the whole thing. Ha, and you thought you were the only one who ever read a book.

Anyway, today is August first. Do you remember what happened on this day, exactly one year ago?

We ran into each other at a book store, and you completely turned my life around.

I used to think you were an annoying, buck-toothed know-it-all that could never shut her mouth, but now you're my whole world. So would you mind doing me the honor of becoming my wife?

Yes, Granger, I just proposed to you. You'll be able to see the ring in a moment.

Hermione stared at the ring, which sported the largest diamond she'd ever seen. Hermione would be afraid to walk out in public wearing that big of a jewel, lest it get stolen. However, her attention drifted, because it seemed as if Draco wasn't quite finished with his proposal.

I love you, and whenever you think you have your answer, I'll be waiting outside.

Love always and forever,

Draco

"What a bloody romantic," Hermione thought aloud, smiling even as tears filled her eyes. She swung her legs off the side of the bed and quietly padded to the kitchen, where she expected Draco to be. She had not thought they would get engaged for a while, but they had talked about it at least three times, hadn't they? Honestly, Hermione was happy. She was really happy.

Draco's back was to her as he stirred a spoonful of sugar into his coffee. Hermione snuck up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Well hello, Granger," Draco said companionably without turning around. "Does that mean your answer is yes? Should I start calling you Malfoy from now on?"

Hermione giggled, which she almost never did, and nodded. "Yeah," she whispered into the fabric of Draco's shirt. "We're getting married!"

Draco chuckled and faced Hermione, lifting her off the ground and spinning in a circle with her in his embrace. "I suppose we are," he said, kissing her before setting her down. "Who do you want to know first? And by that I mean, who do you want to go into a tizzy about planning this wedding first?"

"It has to be Harry," Hermione replied immediately. "He's my best friend – he's like my brother. I have to let him know."

"Oh, Potter already knows. I told him a while ago, when I first got the ring."

Hermione gaped at Draco. "How-I thought you hated Harry! No, never mind that. I just thought you weren't close enough to him to tell him about your plans," she said.

Draco shrugged. "I had to tell him. What do you suppose your parents would think of me if I kept showing up at their house uninvited and unannounced and asked for their blessing?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "They're already suspicious of me because you haven't introduced me properly." He stopped talking when he noticed Hermione struggling to keep the crestfallen look off of her face. Draco tucked a stray lock of her hair behind her ear and kissed her nose. "Hermione, I didn't mean it like that. But we're engaged now. You should let your parents know."

"I should…but I don't think I can, or will," Hermione mumbled, acting the part of a child caught in a bad act as she studied the floor and avoided meeting Draco's gaze.

Grasping Hermione's chin gently but firmly (A/N: ah, that's used so much nowadays…anyways…), Draco made her look at him in the eye. "Hermione…" Hermione prepared herself for an emotional speech about overcoming fears (as did Lauren's readers) but Draco completely surprised her by saying, "Suck it up, owl or call your parents or whatever it is you Muggle-borns do, and arrange a meeting with them. It's about time all three of you got over something that is in the past."

"You're right. You may go about things in an odd fashion, but you are right. I'll try and act the part of a Gryffindor, and I'll call my mum and dad," Hermione said, smiling weakly. "Does anyone else besides us know?"

"Blaise knows, which means Gina knows, which means Cat knows, which means George knows, and I think you know where this is heading."

"So technically everyone that we'll be telling already knows, except for my parents," Hermione said, laughing. "Why are we going to waste time apparating, then? As you've told me before, a lot of planning goes into a wedding." She grinned at Draco and squealed when he slung her over his shoulder. "What are you doing? I have to start planning!"

"I do not want my fiancé," Draco put extra emphasis on that word, "threatening to kill me because she's worrying far too much about something that won't happen for a few months. Remember what I did the last time I wanted you to relax?"

Hermione paused for a moment. She wanted to delay her meeting with her parents for as long as possible. If Draco wanted to provide an excuse, she would gladly take it.

"Does this relaxation process you're suggesting involve clothing?" Hermione asked as Draco started nipping her ear.

Draco stopped teasing Hermione long enough to snort in disbelief. "Of course not."

Harry was baffled when Hermione asked him to walk her down the aisle. He couldn't very well say no, so he did say yes, but he thought things were improving between Hermione and her parents. Draco had vowed to help, hadn't he?

It wouldn't do any good to dwell on things like that. Harry could only be supportive of Hermione's decisions, the way he had to be supportive of Ron wherever and whenever Lavender was involved.

How is Ron going to react? Harry wondered internally as he paced back and forth in Ginny's bedroom. She watched him calmly, and even began to read a magazine when it appeared that Harry would be occupied in his own little world for a while. Harry was displaying many of the downsides of dating the Chosen One, but Ginny was used to his quirks by then.

"If you're worried about Ron's feelings, you should go and see how he takes it when Hermione and Draco tell everyone else about their engagement at dinner on Sunday," Ginny suggested. "I'm certain that he's the only one that doesn't know already."

"What if he finds out that I knew? That you knew? Won't he get mad?"

"No doubt," Ginny said, going over to Harry and kissing him. "Don't let it get to you if Ron gets mad. It's his own fault for cheating on Hermione. Now I'm actually starting to like the fact that he did, though. Draco really makes Hermione happy."

"He does," Harry said, resting his cheek on the top of Ginny's head. "He's not so bad anymore. But do they have to be so…sweet all the time? It's disgusting."

"You act as if we're not disgustingly sweet," Ginny responded, leading Harry to the kitchen.

Harry chuckled and managed to act interested as Ginny went on about the parties she was going to throw Hermione. He tuned out when she went into detail about the bachelorette party – Harry didn't need to know what the girls were going to do there – and tuned back in when Ginny was done rambling about that. Eventually Charlie entered the room, and Ginny caught him up in current events.

After Ginny led a dazed Charlie to the sitting room, Ron slumped into the kitchen with Lavender in tow.

"How did the appointment with the healer go?" Harry asked, pouring all three of them a mug of pumpkin juice.

"Lav's around three months in, but it won't be too obvious for a while," Ron said, gulping down his drink and searching for something a bit stronger. Lavender noticed and frowned, but she didn't voice her opinions.

"Have you decided a date for the wedding?"

"It has to be soon," Lavender said firmly. "Otherwise I won't be able to fit into a wedding dress. I talked to Mrs. Weasley and we agreed that we should have the ceremony on September eighth. It won't be my dream wedding, but Won-Won and Mrs. Weasley are doing everything they can to make it special."

"I'm sure Won-Won will make the wedding extraordinary," Harry told Lavender, somehow suppressing his laughter so as not to offend her. Ron glared at him and Harry shrugged, his body language hinting at his sarcastic thoughts, 'What can you do?'

Meanwhile, Hermione took the day off of work, as did Draco. Gina and Cat were not subtle whatsoever, and told Hermione she could take the week off if she wanted. They tried to muffle their shrieks of joy by covering the speaker on the phone, but even Draco could hear them. He grinned at Hermione and coaxed a small snicker out of her. She stopped and let Gina and Cat know she'd see them later, and snuggled up to Draco on the couch.

"They're excited, then?" Draco said, nuzzling Hermione's neck.

"They're incredibly excited," Hermione replied. She tilted her head back and studied Draco.

"See something you like, Granger?" Draco smirked. He liked that he knew when Hermione was looking at him, or was close to him. It made their relationship seem even more real.

"You need to get a haircut before the wedding," Hermione said, tugging on a few strands of Draco's hair.

"I will, love," Draco replied, mostly to appease Hermione, which she knew and chose to ignore.

The couple stayed like that for a while, lying close to each other on the couch, discussing their honeymoon. They decided on Paris, because it would remind the both of them of what happened after Draco got back from France in January. They also decided on September second as their wedding date, so if they had children, which Hermione intended to, they could celebrate their anniversary alone, because their daughters and sons would be at Hogwarts by then.

"Would you want a boy or a girl first?" Hermione asked, tracing patterns on Draco's shirt.

"I'm not sure," Draco said, kissing her nose. "What about you?"

"A boy," Hermione answered. Sensing a question, she continued, "To take care of our little girls."

Draco smiled. "You are such a hopeless romantic," he teased, lightly running his fingers down Hermione's spine.

"Stop, I'm trying to have a conversation with you," Hermione said sternly. Some part of her mind wondered if she was frightening Draco with her talk of children, but she felt secure with him, so she refused to think about that possibility for too long.

"I suppose you have names for these children, too." Draco was serious when he said that. Knowing Hermione, she would even tell him what Hogwarts houses they would be in as well as the names.

"I wanted to name two of them after Remus and Tonks," Hermione announced. "They had just started their life together…and they were so supportive and caring about everything. It wouldn't be first names, just a middle name," she finished, less confidently.

Draco rested his forehead against Hermione's shoulder. "That's a brilliant plan, 'Mione, and I mean it. I hate to sound insensitive, although who would have thought I'd say that, but do you want to go to lunch?"

Hermione's eyebrows furrowed together, but she saw where Draco was coming from. They were engaged and they should have been celebrating. Hermione had brought up fallen heroes in a conversation that was meant to be joyous and full of hope. Luckily for her, Draco accepted that part of her and even Harry, because he was scarred too, and he didn't want Hermione to hide the majority of herself for his sake.

"Let's go to lunch, then," Hermione said, kissing Draco and hugging him tightly. "Where did you have in mind?"

Zachary Goldman and Benjamin Warrant stood outside of Draco Malfoy's door, waiting for him to exit his flat. They had been impatient before, and learned from that mistake. They would stay alert no matter how long it took Draco to walk into their trap.

Benjamin had prepared himself for a failed assignment, but the sound of a doorknob turning could be heard. Draco and a brown-haired witch stepped out of the flat a moment later. The plan didn't account for him to have company. A sign from Zachary told Benjamin that his partner had had a sudden stroke of genius, and he stayed where he was as Zachary acted on that genius.

Hermione reached for her wand when she saw the Death Eaters, but she didn't have time to stun the wizards. Goldman grabbed her and disapparated while Draco and Benjamin looked on, one in horror, the other in surprise.

"What the hell?" Draco screamed, too aghast at what had just happened to respond in time to stop Benjamin from shoving him against the wall in an attempt to delay him long enough to chase after his partner, his hands dangerously close to Draco's neck. "Where the fuck did he take her?" he shouted as he fought against the man's hold.

"I don't know!"

"Bullshit," Draco spat as he fought to free himself.

"Honestly, I don't know."

A/N: I assume some of you hate me now xD That's alright. Tell me what y'all think. Should Lavender's baby be a boy or a girl? I kind of want a boy because of Hermione's reason, and there's Rose too, and Hugo, and another kid I won't mention now because that would ruin a surprise...

Also, where did Zach take Hermione! Even I don't know! Suggestions? :D

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