Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Harry Potter world, including Hogwarts, Draco and Ginny. I do own the plot to this, and some of this characters I own as well, but nothing else.

Author's Note: The fourth chapter! This chapter is just in-between stuff, you know. Not really crucial to the story, but they need to be there. It is, and I know, rather hurried, but I don't want to dwell too much on the details of it. Oh, I am aware that Ginny's name is Ginevra, but I'm keeping Virginia for now because MtaM was done with Virginia. Awesome response, guys! Reponses to reviews, as always, at the end of the chapter! KTHX. Read on!

It Wasn't Unexpected

Summary: SEQUEL TO MARRIAGE TO A MALFOY Krystal and Michael are in their 5th year at Hogwarts and they still are as "polite" as they ever were to one another. Being in different Houses does not help the situation, but maybe Christmas can. R&R please!

Chapter Four:

Family Encounters

"Hurry up, Draco, the train will be arriving any minute now!" said a rushing Ginny as she dragged her husband, two little boys and a stroller with two babies through the barrier between Platforms 9 and 10 in King's Cross Train Station. It was three minutes to 9pm and the train arrived at exactly 9pm. As they crossed the barrier, they came to a halt just in time as to not crash with a couple with identical girls tugging at their clothes.

"Hey, Harry, Hermione," greeted Ginny with an exhausted smile as one of her sons positively claimed to be held. She bent down to pick little Wilson up and gather him in her arms, sustaining him on her hip.

"Following in your mother's footsteps, Gin," said Hermione cheerily, kissing her on the cheek as she took turns to greet all the children, and finally - with exclusive formality - Draco. Ginny laughed gracefully.

"Not exactly, Hermione. They just pop out on their own now…" she said as Harry hugged her - Marina and Jane, Harry and Hermione's twins, tangled themselves on her robes. She patted each of them on the head. "Hello, babies!" They cooed at her and hurriedly went to their mother's side again. Hermione, who was pregnant again, came to stand next to Ginny while Harry and Draco engaged in a sort of formal conversation. The two men had considerably become more civil now to each other, though they really did not like each other. There had been too many curses thrown, too many insults… too many differences altogether for that to happen.

"So, do you know what you're going to have, Hermione?" asked Ginny, switching Wilson onto her other hip. Hermione nodded solemnly, smiling.

"A boy, finally… James." She grinned, patting her almost unnoticeable belly. Ginny smiled brightly at her friend. "Harry's very excited about it. You know how much he wanted to name one of her children after his father. And he already named Marina after Lily… her middle name, you know. What about you though? Are you planning on more children?"

"Certainly not!" said Ginny, laughing. "Merlin knows I already got my hands full with five of them. " At that moment the familiar scarlet engine drew into the train station and parents all around them began getting anxious and smiling as the train whistled and came to a halt.

A hustle of footsteps later and there was mayhem in the station, parents greeting their children all around. Ginny and Hermione spotted their children and each shouted their respective name.

"Michael!"

"Krystal!"

Krystal whipped her head around and caught the bright red hair of her mother. "Mum!" she exclaimed and ran as fast as she could, throwing herself into her mother's arms who equaled her hug just as tightly, or as tightly as she could with Wilson on her hip. Krystal pulled away and ruffled Wilson's hair. "How are you, squirt?" she asked affectionately, kissing his cheek chastely.

Besides them, the Potters were all tangled in a family hug. Marina and Jane permanently attached to Michael's legs. "Hey there, shrimps, why don't you give your big brother a kiss?" he asked, bending down so each twin could kiss a cheek and furthermore attach themselves now to his shoulders. He laughed good-naturedly.

Krystal had hugged her father tightly, and had had to be pried out of Ormand's hugging limbs as he had jumped on her as he saw her. Now she was cooing at the stroller where her two new siblings were sleeping at. "Oh, mum, they're so adorable!" she said, turning to her mother with a smile. Just then, Marina and Jane, who had left their brother to breathe, came running and latched themselves onto Krystal.

"Kryst! Kryst!"

"Hey there Pumpkin and Pastry," she greeted and the girls positively squealed at the mention of the nicknames Krystal had thought up for them. She ruffled their hair and then she greeted Harry and Hermione.

Finally, after their parents had chatted for a while, they resolved to leave to their homes already. The group excited through the barrier and crosses the street toward an abandoned building. They checked the street for muggles and then went into the alleyway, entering through the side door. Inside, a woman behind a desk greeted them.

"Welcome to the London Floo Hub, how can we help you this evening?" she asked in an everlasting cheery voice.

"We need two fireplaces, please," said Harry to the woman and she nodded, checking the floor around them.

"Number 7 and 6, respectively," said the woman, checking something in her clipboard. "Floo powder?"

"No, thank you, we're carrying with us. Have a nice evening." Ginny smiled at the woman and the group left down the hall. They said their respective goodbyes and left towards their homes. First were Marina and Jane, hand by hand, shouting the code of their home and in a swirl of green they were gone. At the same time, in Fireplace 6, Wilson and Ormand had just done the same.

Then Draco – and Harry, in the next fireplace – left. Then, Ginny with the stroller and Hermione alone on the adjacent fireplace. Last but not least, Michael and Krystal waited for the fire to burn down again so they could step in.

They stared at each other for a long time. Each opened their mouth to say something, but closed it again. Krystal was the first to break the stare and she walked into the fireplace, dragging her trunk behind her. "Malfoy Manor!" she shouted and she was swirling in green. Michael shook his head, stepped into the fireplace with his trunk and poured the Floo Powder on it. "Potter's Cottage!" and off he was.

------

"It's good to be home, no?" asked Draco to Krystal as she placed her trunk down on her room and began unpacking some stuff. Krystal nodded from within.

"That it is, father. I missed it quite a bit." Krystal sat on her bed. "Now I'm tired and I want to go to sleep. Good Night."

"Alright, darling. Good night." He turned off her torches with a wave of his wand and closed her door and left.

Krystal looked at the dark ceiling of her room and sighed. It was so good to be home already. She'd missed her brothers and her mother and her father dearly. She had even missed the house-elves and the ghosts. But Christmas was upon her and she dreaded the gift exchange, she didn't want to give Michael her gift, even though she had already bought it. But still, she didn't want to see Michael at all, even though she knew it was inevitable.

Sighing, she turned on her side. Why couldn't she have a single coherent thought without Michael being involved in it? It was indeed very frustrating because of the fact was that once his name popped into her mind, there was no possible way on earth that it would leave until it had a least haunted her for five to ten minutes, possibly even more.

But of course, it was his fault. He just had to kiss her, didn't he? She hated him even more for that now. How dare he? She, of course, had not told any of her friends about that particular spot of concurrence that had happened. She thought it best not to. One thing was certain though, she didn't like him one bit… or so she constantly reminded herself.

------

Draco and Ginny Malfoy were in their bedroom. A tired-looking Ginny had just pulled Gabriel from her breast after feeding him and was now in the process of tucking him to go to sleep besides his twin sister. Cassandra already slept soundly.

Ormand and Wilson had been tucked in long before she breast-fed her two new children. "Draco… I'm going to have to go on birth control, even though that potion is awfully-tasting." She made a face as she plopped down on her bed. "It's too much work to handle so many children. I don't know how my mum did it, I tell you."

Draco looked up from a book he was reading, and, smiling, placed the book down and gathered her in his arms, circling her with them. She melted back against him with contentment. "Well… you were the one that did not want to use it in the first place. Even though having this many children has is ups. Family outings are certainly more fun." He grinned and she sighed.

"You're right, but no more after those two." She gingerly signaled to the cradle holding her two newborn twins. She then cradled herself against the thin silky material of her husband's nightshirt, yawning. "Are your father and mother coming tomorrow?"

"Yes…" Draco nodded. "For a little while. They just want to see their grandchildren and be off."

"Mmm… okay…" Ginny mumbled, slowly drifting off to sleep. Soon, all she could focus on was that darkness that was so welcoming and engulfed her as a wave of sleep took her away from her semi-conscious state. The last thing she felt was Draco kissing her shoulder and hugging her more tightly.

------

"My, my, aren't you precious?" asked Narcissa Malfoy, cooing at Cassandra who was now playing with a lock of Narcissa's blonde hair curiously. She tugged on it and Narcissa laughed half-heartedly. "Now, now, careful there, Cassandra. Oh Virginia your children are just angels."

"Thank you, Narcissa," said Ginny smiling as she rocked Gabriel in her arms.

"Oh, there she is, the precious sleepyhead." Narcissa smiled, depositing Cassandra into her cradle to go hug her granddaughter Krystal fondly. "Oh, I see you still wear the necklace I sent you with Lucius years ago." She smiled even more broadly.

"Hi Grandmother," Krystal said, hugging her back and suppressing a yawn. "Where's Grandfather?"

"Asking for me, are you, Krystal?" asked the deep voice of Lucius Malfoy. Krystal squealed and ran into her grandfather's arms, who welcomed her with some sort of grimace. "Hey there, how's my favorite granddaughter?"

"I'm fine!" she said, unlatching herself from him and smiling broadly. "Oh, I have so much to tell you about school, Gradfather, and about Quidditch!"

"I understand you're the Keeper, right?" He asked, she nodded and he put an arm around her shoulders. "Do come then, tell me everything."

------

He heard giggles and felt a faint tickling sensation on his face. He wrinkled his nose, he didn't want to wake up just yet, he was having a very good dream, a very comfortable one at that. But the tickling sensation and the giggles just wouldn't go away.

"Marina, Jane, leave your brother alone!" said the voice of Hermione Granger, Michael opened one eye to peer at his mother, who had her hands upon her hips while she had her gaze fixed on his two twin sisters which were innocently staring at their mother.

"Sorry, mum!" they squealed at the same time and ran past her giggling. Hermione turned back to her son with a smile, though the corners of her mouth were twitching as though she wanted to laugh.

"Now that you're up… want me to tell your father to fix you some breakfast? You know I couldn't cook if my life depended on it." She laughed somewhat and looked at him brightly, apparently attempting not to laugh harder.

"Sure, sure," he said derisively, rubbing at his eyes gingerly. He stretched and yawned in bed and looked up at the clock on his wall, which read nine thirty am. He groaned and threw his legs off the side of the bed, muttering slightly.

He looked around his room; it was messy. His trunk lay somewhere at the foot of his bed and the clothes that had been in it were now sprawled around its edges as he had searched for the gifts yesterday for safekeeping. He knew the twin tornadoes always wanted to find out their presents before Christmas and so he hid them very carefully this time.

Speaking of said tornadoes, as he was walking out of his room, they were giggling and looking at him from the doorway to their room, which was directly across from him. "Such a pretty girl!" said Marina… or was it Lily? He winced and saw the mole near her mouth, it was Marina… then again, he glanced to the side and he saw that the other girl had the exact same mole in the same place. It was too soon in the morning to know which was which.

Michael just ignored them and on his way to the bathroom, found his father ready to go down the stairs and start some breakfast. Harry suppressed a laugh. "Michael… er, is there something you'd like to talk to me about?"

"No, why?"

"I just… er… nevermind," Harry laughed as he saw his wife behind Michael shushing him and in fits of silent laughter. Michael looked from one parent to the other and then just entered the bathroom closing his door behind him.

"Do you think I should have told him?" asked Harry, nearing Hermione and hugging her. She was still laughing, as was he.

"He'll find out in three… two… one…"

"AAAAAAAH! I'M GOING TO KILL MARINA AND JANE!" they heard Michael scream and they laughed even harder. Harry gave Hermione a brief kiss on the mouth.

"Oooooh!" Marina and Jane said together and giggled, closing their bedroom door again. Harry and Hermione laughed and interlaced their fingers, preparing to go downstairs. Michael emerged from the bathroom, his face clean from the makeup his sisters had put on him.

"Where are they?!" he asked, rather grumpy.

"They made a run for the backyard when they heard you scream," said Hermione, laughing. "But you looked better with the makeup, dear, it does wonders."

Michael growled at his mother and went down the stairs and out into the backyard. Harry and Hermione laughed. "How long do you think he will take until he finds out that we lied to him about Marina and Jane's whereabouts?" asked Hermione with a smile.

"He's smart. About an hour or so. Gives me time to prepare breakfast." They grinned and Harry went down the stairs followed by his pregnant wife.

---Review Responses---

anniePADFOOT- Awe, thanks! You are TOO kind, hun! I rather like Michael too; I've become rather fond of him. xoxo!

EgyptsStar- I know the feeling! As soon as I got back, I plopped down in my bed and the world turned right side up again. Oh, Lucius won't make too much appearances… or maybe he will… hm, I need to sort that out in my head. Too much plot bunnies hopping around. There'll be a LOT of people in the Burrow, aye? –giggles- It'll be very fun to make up characters. Mucho love for ya. xoxo

lavenderab- So do I. I hope I can twist it around so they fit perfectly with each other. Need to build up the relationship.

Slytherin Queen- A sibling for Krystal or Michael? –giggles- I think you've come to find now that Krystal has four more siblings and Michael has two more. Happy reading!

Americasweetie- Then I am very honored that you gave my story a try.

debbie2- Thank you very mucho, hun.

PsychoticMika- Hey, chika! Read your story… fabulous! Thanks for the review, mean a lot to meh! ; Ttyl by MSN! n-n; Mucho love.

dreamy-crazygirl- It's D/G, not D/Hr, but I'm sure it was just a measly mistake. Either way, thank you for your reassurance that you will keep reading, I hope you like!

Madison27- Hey, fancy seeing your name again! I do have to rush a bit as I have the story all mapped out already, but who knows… sometimes even after I have the story mapped out, I still find a way to put more things into it.

i hate george bush- Thanks! Awe, too bad that it is still raining over there. And Christmas is indeed a time for miracles, which is why I plan on making it as real as possible.

Catherine- Fancy seeing you around here! Thank you for the nice comments, appreciate them very, very mucho. I plan on updating at least once a week, but I am starting some advanced classes the 6th of july. I only hope that they aren't too much of a burden and that I can continue writing with no excuses… if not, there is always the weekend, you know.

aLyKaT73- Thank you very much! I hope you keep on liking it!

---Don't forget to check and keep track of my blog, link found on the second chapter, because there'll be quite a bit of important info in there and you guys can comment in a more direct way there. It also states every time I update and it has the story mapped out as well as some other tidbits important to the MtaM series storyline---

Author's Note: Review, please! This chapter was hard to write, argh. Well, I suppose next chapter will be rather easier! Do leave a review and tell me what you think! Next chapter: We see Ron!

-Blue