Tuesday
Jade woke up in the morning and found that Draco was still sleeping. She smiled and touched his cheek softly wishing that he'd love her the way he did yesterday. There was a small tap on the window and she saw Draco's eagle standing on the ledge of the window, tapping impatiently.
"I'm coming." She whispered getting off the bed and opening the window. The eagle stuck it's leg out and Jade went to untie the letter but Draco stopped her from doing so. She looked up and immediately regretted what she had done. What if this offended him? He wasn't going to talk to her again for a very long time and Jade would have to wait a long time until a miracle happened for him to love her again. Instead he untied the letter from the eagle and tossed it a biscuit from his desk.
"Go shoo." He said closing the window.
"I'm s-sorry Draco, I just went to-" she stopped seeing him smile at her. "What?" Jade asked.
"It's just a letter Jade. There's nothing to apologize about if you're letting my owl in. What are you doing up so early anyway?" he yawned, slipping the letter into a file in his desk.
"I have work today and so do you." Jade said leaning into him
"Why don't you call in sick?" he asked seeing her shake her head.
"But what happens to all those poor children that would need my medical attention?" Jade asked as he picked her up and carried her to the bathroom.
"Well Healer Malfoy what happened to me? Don't I need your medical attention as much as those bratty little kids?" he asked seeing her give him a mischievous smile.
"Let's see exactly what's wrong with you." she said turning on the knobs in the tub and closing the bathroom door shut.
Jade left the house after a reluctant Draco let her go. He felt highly uncomfortable when he was alone in the house without her. He opened the file where he slipped the letter he received this morning and his heart jumped when he saw Molly Weasley's signature on the envelope. He tore the envelope open and read the letter that was sent to him.
Dear my sweet children,
There are so many things that we want to discuss with the both of you, but it's too much to write. Is it all right if we meet? Of course our hearts have been with you for all these years and we must waste no time. Arthur and I cannot tell you how long we've wanted to know how you both were and where you were. We've missed you and are pining to have you back into the family. Arthur and I are available this afternoon if you are willing to meet. We absolutely cannot wait to see you both again and love you immensely.
Love,
Mum and Dad.
Draco immediately sent out a reply.
Dear Mum and Dad,
Will 12:00 at the Hogsmeade station be convenient?
Draco waited at the Hogsmeade station for his in-laws Molly and Arthur. He looked up and saw two middle aged redheads, walking towards him. As they approached closer, Draco could see how worried, excited, anxious and happy they were to see their daughter and her husband that they hadn't seen after 6 years. Arthur and Molly both looked older since the last time Draco had seen them. There were more grays on their heads and their faces looked tired. Arthur looked skeptical and much more relaxed and stern but Molly was simply bubbling in happiness and excitement. They stopped in front of Draco and they took a long look at him.
"Hello." Draco said, not knowing what else to say. This would have been much easier if Jade was with him but he knew that he would have to break the ice with her parents anyways.
"You've grown. Of course you've grown, you're 24 years old. You look so handsome dear." Molly said smiling at him nervously.
"You look very beautiful." He said shaking her hand. She giggled and poked Arthur who gave a curt nod to Draco.
"How are you?" Arthur asked as Draco shook his hand.
"Good…and yourself?" he asked. He had never been this nervous in his life. Well with the exception of having to meet Jade and Draco's parents after getting married so quickly. He remembered how angry Arthur was and how he threatened to take his life for placing his daughter under the Imperious Curse.
"Where's my daughter?" he asked instead of answering Draco's question. Molly pinched Arthur's arm to keep a cool head with Draco.
"I wanted to speak to you both about Jade actually. May we discuss this over lunch?" Draco asked as Molly nodded eagerly. She looked at Arthur who looked like he had a hard time wanting to go anywhere with Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius Malfoy who had made his entire life difficult and always reminded him of his financial status and place in society.
"We might as well." Arthur said.
Draco turned around and they walked into Hogsmeade and spoke to each other about what happened after Jade and Draco's marriage.
"Jade doesn't know I'm here. She doesn't know anything about our meeting today." Draco told them, seeing them suddenly look uncomfortable in their seats. They were in a new restaurant in Hogsmeade, eating their lunch.
"So she doesn't want to see us-"
"No sir, that's not it. I wanted to surprise her. Ever since we've left from here, she's always expressed how much she's missed you both and loved you every day. She's afraid that if she'd want to see you, you might not want her back and she can't stand to hurt you any more than she has." Draco said seeing Molly burst into tears.
"She feels guilty for what she's done and I am too. I wanted to apologize to the both of you for what I did. I took your daughter away from you. I forced her from you and I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have been selfish. I should have been patient and tried to let it work than do something so irresponsible and insensitive." Draco said feeling very frustrated at himself for that. If he had been more responsible, she wouldn't have had to stay away from her parents for all these years. Molly reached out and placed a hand on Draco's.
"Draco you should understand that you both were still children. We were so afraid of losing our baby because that's usually what happens. Rarely, you'd see two teenage children that had just graduated from Hogwarts marry off and stay together after all these years. We thought you both were making a big mistake. People change within time and we didn't want both of you to regret this for the rest of your lives." She told him.
Draco stared in amazement at Molly Weasley. Jade was so much like her. There were so many things that she said that reminded him of Jade. Arthur cleared his throat and pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes.
"I'm surprised you two have made it this far." Arthur said opening his eyes and looking at Draco intensely.
Draco watched Jade's father. This man was torn apart. Jade often told him, earlier in their marriage how close she was to her father and how much her father loved her. Draco understood how Arthur Weasley felt. The daughter that he nurtured all throughout his life, this very daughter was taken away by some idiot pompous boy that was just as rude and arrogant as his father was. Draco also didn't forget that his very own father threatened the life of Arthur's youngest, Ginny Weasley. As if nothing else could have been worse for Draco.
"Sir, I love your daughter as maddeningly as I've loved her when we first married. In that marriage, we've learned a lot from each other. She's turned me into the man that my parents should have made me. I don't think I can live without her Mr. Weasley. I do honestly love her…and I can say with all the confidence in the world that she loves me as well." Draco told Arthur whose eyes softened.
Arthur's eyes welled in tears and he looked away, blinking them away. Molly was already wiping hers, patting Arthur's arm.
"It's so nice to know that Jade's been with someone she loved when we weren't there. What kind parents have we been Arthur? How could we have done this to her? She's our little baby for goodness sake! We should have been adults and brought them back but we never moved for 6 years! If it weren't for Draco, who knows what she would have been turned into?" Molly asked sobbing.
Arthur swallowed and furrowed his eyebrows, trying to console Molly. Draco didn't want to take any credit at all. There was nothing he could do for Jade to make her happy. He never tried. He left her just like everyone had. After Molly had finished crying and Arthur was finally soft, they spoke a little more on what Draco and Jade had been up to for such a longtime.
"Are there any grandchildren for me?" Molly asked fondly.
Draco cringed and looked at the both of them, seeing them smile hopefully at him. "No…we haven't had any children." Draco said...not yet.
Molly gasped and leaned forward, looking concerned. "Is there something wrong with Jade? Oh my goodness, she's always loved children and-"
"We've just been really busy, trying to set our foot down. There's nothing wrong with her, she's always wanted children, since she's a child Healer." Draco told them. Arthur was delighted.
"A child Healer? My Jade? She's always wanted to be a Healer for children. Did you hear that Molly? A child Healer…my daughter." Arthur said. His voice cracked and he placed a hand over his eyes, unable to stop his tears from pouring. Molly placed an arm around him and kissed him as Arthur sniffed loudly and took the tissues from Molly's hand.
"I'm sorry, excuse me." Arthur said.
"Of course, please don't apologize." Draco told Arthur who nodded.
"So when will I be able to see my daughter?" he asked, regaining himself.
"The sooner, the better." Draco said as Molly jumped in her seat.
"Come this evening! Everyone's just arrived and the whole family is celebrating at the Burrow. The only ones we were missing were you and Jade." Molly said.
Draco didn't even need to think about it. He was incredibly happy that this was starting out sooner than he had imagined.
"You have my word. We'll be there this evening then." Draco said as Molly erupted into another fit of fresh tears.
"My dear sweet little boy. I'm sorry I couldn't have known you earlier." She said hugging him tightly.
Draco hugged her back feeling that this is what a mother's love should have been. He released her and turned to Arthur who said nothing but embrace him warmly, patting him stiffly and heavily on his back.
"Such a grown man since the last time I saw you." he said seeing Draco smile in embarrassment.
