Disclaimer: This is of course as it always is.

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Chapter 5 Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice.

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The children and I were sitting at the table in their room with "War, Weapons, Wizards" sitting open in front of us. I was telling them the story of Gustav the Glorious, and his heroic exploits during the Goblin uprising of 1622. The boys were listening with interest. For once they were sitting quietly, eyes big and half smiles on their faces.

Ever since Draco had removed the calmness spell on the nursery I had been pulling the boys apart at least twenty times a day. It seemed they were making up for the time they lost. The smallest thing could set them off. Julian got more coddled eggs with his toast, fistfight! Nic took the last soldier for his toy army, fistfight! Julian LOOKED at Nic funny and you guessed it...FISTFIGHT! The only time they were calm at all was when they were sleeping or I was telling them of the bloody battles in the History books. The boys had been hard to tell apart up until this last week, but now Julian was sporting a black eye and Nic had a large scrape on his cheek, where Julian had pushed him to the floor and used his face to clear a swath across the nursery room floor. I sighed and continued with the story.

Isle's attitude hadn't changed at all with the spell's cessation, I hadn't expected it to really. Draco had already told me that she hadn't been effected by the spell. So far none of the three had really shown any evidence of any evil death eater ways. The boys were high-strung, perhaps, but not bad, certainly not evil! Isle was a delight. Always affectionate, and worried over my needs. I felt as if she might be starting to see me as an older sister. I looked over at her as I continued to read. Her face clearly showing her boredom, sitting with eyes half closed a little smile upon her lips, she reminded me of how Draco used to look in school all smug contentment. For a moment I could only look at her, my mind drawn back into the past. The air in the nursery felt chilly to me all of a sudden.

The lack of reading drew her out of her reverie, and she looked over at me her smirk deepening. I shook my head lightly, and kept reading.

I finished the story and then asked the children to write a bit about what they thought of Gustav the Glorious, and what his long term contribution to Wizard society had been. I had learned that the boys writing skills were quite good for their ages and on a subject such as this could present a full 12 inch parchment of observations, most of them a bit more graphic than made me completely comfortable, but I figured they were 10 year old boys after all. Ilse on the other hand spent very little time or thought in producing anything more than a couple of lines.

I stood up stretched my back and stifled a yawn. I spent all day with the children, the early evenings either reading the child rearing books I had bought or in the library looking for new protection spells, it had been two years since the war ended that I had had to think about defensive magic. My nights were spent taking turns with Draco walking the grounds. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that Beneficent would try for the children again. The woman was insane, the things she had done already proved that fact.

I walked over to the glass doors that led into a private garden, that served this wing of the house. It was high summer and we were having a spell of blue skies and sunny days. I would take the children out today. Draco 'allowed' me to take them outside each day. The boys needed the time to run off as much energy as possible, it saddened me to see the children so locked into the nursery. I had read in "Dr. Spock's" book (yes its a muggle child rearing book, but a classic) that children need to be active and spend time outdoors. Things would be better at Hogwarts.

As much as it chaffed me to admit it, there were some things about which I had to defer to Draco wishes, and that I didn't verbally give the children permission to leave the nursery was one of them. Since I had already given the boys leave to do so (something which Draco said was not repairable) I didn't see why that was so important anymore. When I had mentioned that to Draco however he had gotten that smooth, contemptuous look on his face and hadn't said a word.

I looked over at the children, the boys were eagerly writing their papers, backs to each other so the one couldn't 'copy' the other. They were really quite bright and I wondered if they would be sorted into Ravenclaw, when they went to school. Ilse was finished and from where I stood I could see about three lines on her paper. She clearly wasn't a scholar. She was certainly sweet, but I didn't see her in Hufflepuff, I could only imagine her as a Gryffindor, my old house. Even though these were Malfoy's by relation, I didn't for one moment allow any dissenting thoughts of Slytherin to flow into my mind.

I turned back to the window, intent on giving the children a few more minutes to finish up.

In the week since our little hide and seeking game in my room, I still hadn't found out why Draco was angry with Morio. Every time I asked the house elf anything about it, the head banging would start. After a while I started to worry about brain damage, and let him alone. It was obvious I was not on the "need to know" list.

Things hadn't really changed much with Draco and myself either, even after a discussion as to my duties, I still felt out of sorts with him. He had laughed when I had asked about days off, something which I understood now, (there was no time off) but at the time had made me seethe with rage. I had never liked people laughing at me, I had always been a smart Witch and prided myself in not being seen as ridiculous. Draco Malfoy however seemed to find me very funny, a great deal of the time.

I stifled another yawn, since I had been here, I think I had slept a total of about ten hours, I was starting to understand how Draco had gotten to the state he was in the first night I came. Lack of REM sleep isn't good for a person. I had read that in a medical text of my father's. I found myself getting irritable more easily, of course it was mostly at Draco and since he is annoying as a general rule it may not have been sleep deprivation at all.

At least Crookshanks was enjoying himself, he had the whole garden to himself, no other cats with which to fight for dominance. Spending the days in the padded armchair in my room, hunting the garden for Gnomes or sleeping in the tree that's branches overhung the courtyard outside the children's nursery, he was living the perfect life of a cat.

A little noise brought my head around, Julian had Nic on his back on the floor, his hands around the other's throat. The noise I had heard was Nic's gasp for air. Ilse just looked at the other two and then away, they seemed to listen to her, but since the room had been released from its magic she hadn't lifted a finger to stop the fighting, something I couldn't quite understand.

"Julian, let Nic go!" I snapped at him. He turned to me, his one bruised eye making him look like a pirate with a patch. He glared and then finally released his brother. Not to be outdone, the moment Nic could breathe again he made his hand into a fist and shoved it into his brother's stomach. Julian made his hands into claws and was just launching himself at his bother, when I grabbed an arm of each boy and held them apart. I was lucky that they weren't a tiny bit bigger or I would have ended up on the floor with them, as it was I needed all my strength to hold them apart like this.

"That will be just about enough of that!" I didn't bother asking any of them whose fault it was or who started it, because I had found out that even though they weren't adverse to beating the stuffing out of each other they wouldn't ever tattle!

"Are your paper's done?" They all nodded.

Julian read his own paper first and then Nic's, since that boy still wouldn't say a word. I had tried, but Ilse and Julian both said Nic didn't like to talk. The boy's papers were amusing in that their focus was on details that had passed me by, but lent themselves to the gory aspect of the story. We all applauded after each paper was read. I used my wand to make a smiling face appear on each boy's paper.

It was Ilse's turn. She stood up and came over to me. This was part of our ritual, she liked to stand near me and read out loud like an actress with the boys as her audience. She put out one arm and looped it around my neck as I sat at the table. Clearing her throat she started to read.

"Gustav the Glorious, fought many years ago in a battle. He was a wizard, but he was also a Mud-blood." It had been a long time since I had heard that word come from anyone's mouth. Certainly not since the war had ended had I heard anyone utter that name and certainly not from the mouth of this sweet little girl.

My body stiffened as she leant into me and whispered into my ear, "You are a Mud-blood too aren't you Hermione?" She pulled away slightly, triumph written on her features.

I was shocked for a moment.

"Ilse! Where did you hear something like that?" I pushed away from her and stood up.

"But you are, aren't you? You are a Mud-blood! Aren't you...Mud-blood?" Her face was transfigured by an ugly sneer and I felt anger flood my body. It was obvious by the look, on her face, that the words hadn't been words of ignorance, but that she was very aware of what she said. I had my wand pointed at her before I even knew it. I was about to utter the same hex that Ron had tried to use on Draco years ago when he had uttered that imprecation.

Whoa Hermione Granger, get a grip on yourself, you can't HEX small children, no matter how awful they are! In none of the child rearing books had they mentioned anything about hexing, with regards, to child rearing. I shakily put my wand in my pocket and grabbed Isle by the arm. Her face was still smug and knowing.

I dragged her into the bathroom and thrust the bar of soap into her mouth.

"When something nasty comes out of little children's mouths, then something nasty can go in them!" I pulled her face so she could see herself in the mirror. Then turned on the water and left the room. I stood outside the door shaking, my arms wrapped around my middle. Somewhere in the region of my heart an ache started.

What was that saying? This hurts me more than it hurts you? Yes that was it, I had thought that quite a trite saying, actually, one that grown ups used just to justify their behavior. Now as I stood there by the door listening to the sounds of gagging and spitting that were coming from the room behind me, I suddenly understood. It was horrible to have to punish Ilse, and it hurt me to know that she thought of me in that way. Mud-blood. I remembered crying at the time that Draco had teased me, but I wasn't a child anymore, and I didn't cry! I ignored the prickle of tears starting in my eyes.

The boys said nothing, just sat in their seats watching me. I walked to the bookcase and got out three reading books. Gave two to the boys and placed the third where Ilse had been sitting. I then left the nursery.

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I paced up and back, all along the corridor, stomping and ranting to myself. My first inclination had been to go to Draco and inform him of what had happened. Then I thought of how each night I would tell him (smugly) of my successes of the day with the children. Ergh, I could just see his face in my mind. It would be his turn to gloat and tell me 'I told you so' and he would do it too! Had I really been so stupid as to think that I would succeed where so many others had failed? Of course I had, I was Hermione Granger, I was brilliant after all. What a fool I had been. I had underestimated Draco's words about Ilse and Ilse herself. A child she may be in body, but in mind the girl was something else entirely.

I stomped around a bit more and wondered what tack she had used on the other people Draco had hired? What had been their breaking points? What else did she have in store for me? Was this the worst she had to offer? I snorted, I had lived through the war, I wasn't about to let some bratty little girl get the better of me! (completely removing the fact from my thoughts that she already had done so!) But I was not going to underestimate her this time, I knew that she would be out to do what she could to drive me away, after all its natural to use what works, and she had done this many times in the past. I needed to be alert to anything. I was going in this time with my eyes wide open!

I went back to the nursery and found the children all sitting at the table with their books open in front of them. For once I didn't care if they were reading or not. Ilse's eyes were still watering and I had a feeling it wasn't from sorrow of what she had done, but from the bitter taste of the soap in her mouth. Her gray eyes remained fixed on her book and she never once acknowledged that I was there. I can't say that I was saddened by that, I wasn't ready for a confrontation at this point.

The rest of the day passed without incident, unless of course you count, during our time, in the garden, when Nic climbed a tree and began pelting Julian with pebbles.

A huge sigh escaped me when I finally blew out the lamps and left the nursery.

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After a solitary tea, I decided I was not about to spend a moment more looking at those child rearing books. I didn't care how the children were reared, that wasn't MY problem, my problem was keeping them alive until they went to school, also to counter anything that Ilse might try to throw in my direction. For that I would need to spend as much time as I could in the library looking for any information or spells that would help me in that department.

I walked slowly down the hallway toward the Malfoy family library. I have to admit that money had its privileges, the library was equipped with ancient manuscripts, and first editions, not to mention any and every updated copy of "Spell's Digest." Under different circumstances I could have happily spent months in that room.

There was a glow coming from under the door of the library making a sliver of light on the floor of the hall. I slowly opened the door and peeked inside. Draco was bent over a manuscript reading, and then writing down his findings on a piece of parchment next to him. Something made me stop from announcing my presence and instead just watch Draco at work. The light from the single lamp reflected a warmth to his normally platinum hair, giving it a golden glow. He was wearing his usual dark robes, and the stark difference between his pale skin and the fabric was quite shocking in its sudden beauty. The sound of his even breathing and the scritching of his quill over the parchment were the only noises in the room. He turned the page on the large tome he was reading and a crease between his eyebrows became visible. His face twisted in absolute concentration.

At the look on his face, my breath hitched in my throat. My fingers itched to rub across his brow smoothing it. For some stupid reason, seeing Draco Malfoy like this made my heart beat triple time. I must be the only witch in the world that gets excited by the sight of a man studying. Ugh, and misplaced onto Draco Malfoy no less. I clearly had problems. Intelligent men could make my knees go weak. I reached out and clutched at the door frame on either side of me.

Before my mind could manufacture any strange fantasies, involving Draco Malfoy and ending with cataloging every book in the library, I pushed my way into the room crashing the door back against the wall to break the feeling I was creating in my mind.

Draco looked up and raised his eyebrow. I didn't say anything, but just allowed my heart to return to normal. After all this was JUST Draco Malfoy, nobody special!

But Merlin help me if he started reading out loud!

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TBC

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Thanks for all the reviews, no time to mention you all individually tonight but I do need to say a personal thanks to ILUVRONWEASLEY.....;)

Also Recs for reading.......

Arbitrary's "Temporary Insanity" Honestly people if you haven't read it by now I worry about you! ;)

BurgandyRed's "Post Hogwart's Affair" is interesting so far as well, give it a try. :)

My next update won't be until next week, I have had the writing bug a bit the last few days, but work will effectively squash it. ;)

OK Folks until next time....toodles! :)