Author's note: Hey eveyone, its been forever! I know... so uhm, here's the next chappie, and it has baby malfoy in it... its my peace offereing so don't pelt me with tomatoes. Also this one goes out to my goodfriend DawnaMafloy. She owes me some stuff too! hahahahaha

Chapter 34 – On the Outside

Draco was pacing. This was all part of the act, he told himself. He did not want to inside the hospital wing hearing Granger's-he didn't even bother to correct himself it would only depress him further-screams and her squeezing the life out of his hand. No he didn't need to be present at his child's birth.

Right?

Damn. He couldn't even convince himself. Like it or not he wanted to be there for this. He didn't want to become Lucius, almost not noticing that he had children at all.

As soon as Hermione's impassioned scream broke out Madame Pomfrey had demanded that he get out of the room. She had said something about female wards and gushing.

Well, that had gotten him to leave, the gushing part. He could have lived his entire life without hearing about gushing. Especially Hermione Granger-malfoy gushing.

Well, not that he minded another kind of gushing but… well, never mind enough about the bloody gushing.

He was a trained medic and he had seen hundreds of ailments and maladies but really, this was a completely different story.

Ack. There it was again. Pictures in his head.

Knowing that he was alone, Draco scrunched up his features touching his hand to his forehead and repeated a mantra to himself under his breath.

"Getthemoutgetthemoutgetthemoutgeththemout!"

After a few undignified moments of doing this, he straightened out and took a deep breath. He turned on his heel and marched up to the door of the hospital wing, intent on being with his wife to see the birth of his first child he had his hand on the knob and was about to turn it when-

"Master Malfoy, I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Draco froze.

Dumbledore.

Oh, fuck, please let him have just arrived.

He dropped his hand and turned around to see both Professor Dumbledore and Professor Mc Gonagall standing in the entrance way.

"Ah, professor…s" he said, carefully wiping any expression on his face and hoping that they would attribute his more clumsy manner to the birth of his child in the next room. "Hello."

Mc Gonagall arched an eyebrow but Dumbledore smiled at him kindly.

"I understand that you wish to be with Madame Malfoy at a time like this, but as I am sure you are not aware, upon birthing, wards are put on birthing rooms that let only women enter."

Dumbledore turned to the witch at his side and made a sweeping gesture for her to enter the hospital wing. The transfigurations professor wasted no time in doing so.

"Not to worry, young malfoy," Dumbledore said. "She'll tell us when the birthing is finished. The spells are negated from the first cry of the child."

Draco sat on one of the couches, letting his shoulders slump.

"Is this some form of torture, professor?" he asked, not really addressing Dumbledore, He wasn't so sure why he was actually talking to headmaster. Though he respected the man, he never much liked him.

He heard another cry of Hermione inside and longed-actually longed to be inside, to be involved with the birth somehow. Perhaps he could be of some help. Perhaps something went wrong and he could save his child.

Merlin, he hated being so out of control.

"Well, Master Malfoy," the headmaster said thoughtfully. "I do believe that the wards against men are due to the gushing."

Draco looked at him incredulously, so see the mischievous smile on the headmaster's face and the twinkle in his eye, after a tense pregnant pause Draco let out bark of laughter that was grossly unlike him. Just hearing Dumbledore say something so… well, un-Dumbledore seemed to ease some of the tense confusion of the young man's shoulders.

Just then, however, a shrill cry sounded in the other room and Draco's attention was drawn to it immediately.

Dumbledore appeared to hear nothing.

"My son." He said his face showing incredulity and awe. It was the most open he had ever been around anyone that wasn't Severus Snape the potions master, or Gideon the owl.

Dumbledore turned to him only to see a black blur that seemed to fly across the room and throw open the doors to the hospital wing, shocking the women inside.

Professor Mc Gonagall was soothing an exhausted looking Hermione and Madame Pomfrey had just wrapped a wailing human baby in a white blanket. Dumbledore looked at the scene with unabashed awe as prim, propped and unreachable Draco strode up to Madame Pomfrey and took the little bundle of joyful shrieking pink-ness and proceeded to stare at it in absolute fascination. The child ceased his wailing as soon as his father took hold of him. Draco then turned to Hermione, kissed her gently on her forehead and murmured,

"You did good, love."

Followed by the most joyful, open smile any of them had seen from the likes of Draco Malfoy. Hermione's deep breathing hitched for a moment as she watched Draco interact with his first born more candidly than she had ever seen him.

"Have you decided on a name?" asked Madame Pomfrey as she gently wipe a tear from her eye. "It's a boy." She added belatedly.

Draco nodded, for some reason knowing that Hermione wouldn't argue with him about this.

"This is Seth." He said.

From her place on the bed, Hermione reached for the bundle which Draco placed gently in her arms. Little Seth finally yawned and opened up his eyes to reveal that they were pearly gray, just like his father's.

"Seth Nicholai." Hermione added. "Seth Nicholai Malfoy."

Draco looked at her rather surprised, he wondered if she knew the significance of that name.

Dumbledore and mc Gonagall had watched the scene unfold in front of them, both awed by the arrival of new life. Finally Dumbledore managed a few words.

He beamed.

"Welcome, Seth Nicholai Malfoy." He said. "We've all been waiting for you."