Once everything had finally stopped moving, Cali and Caelum looked at each other. "I was expecting some kind of fanfare, but I guess Mum and Dad don't know the exact date we traveled so they can't kill us yet." Caelum states.
"You do know who our mother is, right? It's more like she is waiting for the opportunity to get the most out of a punishment. Like they said, they will have had almost 18 years to think of something." Cali tells her brother.
Caelum then explains that if his hunch was correct, then their father will have learned that they had to go back in time. A loophole was created by their appearance when Draco and Hermione were teenagers. If the loophole is not closed then an alternate timeline could exist.
"So you are saying that WE might actually get out of this without punishment?", Cali says.
She had barely got the words out of her mouth, when Headmistress McGonagall stepped around the corner. "Ahh, right on time" she sighed. "Follow me please."
Cali and Caelum exchanged a look, they knew this was going to be it. There were no more coincidences in life. The two followed dutifully behind the headmistress as if they were walking to the executioner's chopping block.
Once they had climbed the stairs and passed the gargoyle, they entered her office. There were many chairs seated around the headmistresses desk. Front and center remained empty, while behind one sat their father, and the other their mother.
Hermione wasted no time, before showing her inner Gryffindor.
"So did you have a swell time breaking into my office? I can only assume that you used Mipsy's magic to do it? Knowing how I feel about abusing house-elf magic. Did you not think of the fact that you would be returning and we would both obviously know what you had done? Or did both of you not think you would make it back, or did you just not care?" Hermione immediately started in on the twins.
Draco got up from his chair towards the end of Hermione's ranting and hugged Caelum as tightly as he could. Whispering in his ear, "You made my dreams a reality, I love you, son." He pulled away and grabbed Calista in a bone-crushing hug next. "I've never been more proud of Slytherin House."
"Draco", Hermione screeched. "Get a hold of yourself. This is not something they should be proud of."
"Of course it is, Mi, without them we wouldn't be together, they should be extremely proud."
"Well, this is where it doesn't matter that it's been 18 years we still haven't agreed on it. I still believe that they should be punished. They could have done irreparable damage to time as we know it."
"Well I don't know, we should be happy that they made it back in one piece, and back to the future as we know it."
While their parents were arguing, Caelum and Cali slowly backed away. Headmistress McGonagall chuckled to herself because she could still recall the day that the twins walked into her life. Minerva walked over to the twins and gave each one of them a hug, and instructed them to return to class and not speak of their adventure to anyone or EVER again.
The brother and sister had been gone for almost 20 minutes before Draco and Hermione had finally calmed down. Hermione looked put out that they twins had been dismissed.
"Why did you send them away?", she asked.
"They have done enough today, wouldn't you say? Just ponder this for a moment. Your children love you, and they are just as brilliant as both of their parents. They made it back, they are in one piece, and they have to live with what they have done for the rest of their lives. Just take this as it is, a closed loophole, now all is in order, we can return to our lives, I do imagine you have more important things to do, Minister Granger-Malfoy."
Hermione stood there by the fireplace, her mouth drooping open like a fish, with Draco snickering behind a hand and a smile. It had been quite a while since someone had put her in her place so to speak.
Hermione genuinely smiled, "You're right, Headmistress. I am so sorry for taking up your time. You seem to have all well in hand, as always."
"Come dear", motioned Draco towards the Floo, "They did their part, just as we have done ours. Plus I need to pick up Scorpius from the Manor, before he drives mother totally mental."
Minerva had already returned to the never-ending mountain of paperwork on her desk, as she saw the couple briefly kiss.
"I love you, Draco"
"And I you, Hermione. For a long time now, and Always"
