A/N: Well damn… I did it! Two years of work and I've finished my first ever fic! I never expected to reach 100k or have people follow/comment so consistently, I am extremely grateful to each and every one of you, you've made finishing this up fun!
Thanks as always to TectonicTigress and TriDogMom for being the best Alpha's ever! I could not have done it without their thoughts and encouragement!
Now… onto the last chapter, I do hope you enjoy!
In the six weeks since their last time in the cave, Hermione could happily say that their life had thankfully, slowed down. She had woken next to Draco, feeling thoroughly refreshed and together they bid farewell to Lofn's cave and moved all of Hermione's belongings to Draco's cottage. Within the week, Draco found them the perfect country home, whilst it was still larger than anything Hermione would have considered previously, she appreciated that Draco had scaled back his initial vision.
Looking out over the green expanse, Hermione breathed in the fresh country air, still unable to believe Draco had moved everything along so quickly. From their initial viewing— where Hermione burst into tears at the mere sight of the house— to having the offer accepted and contracts exchanged only two weeks passed. It still boggled her mind that this was it, their home, the place their son and daughter would grow up.
Leaning against the door frame, Hermione rubbed consoling circles where she could feel the children moving, their activity having really picked up in the last few weeks. She and Draco now spent their evenings counting the kicks and recording it in their journal.
Hermione still found it hard to believe that everything had fallen so perfectly into place but, watching Draco as he interacted with their friends and family, she couldn't imagine it any other way.
With her research into the cave officially completed, Hermione suggested to her supervisor they allow St Mungo's to use the pool in some fertility trials. The idea came to her one night following a conversation with Ginny. They'd been having a girls night whilst the boys went out to the Leaky and ended up talking about their pregnancies, with Ginny revealing that their healer was baffled by the pregnancy as Harry's latest test hadn't shown any major improvement. When they worked the dates back, Hermione released right around the time of conception, Harry had been in the pool water with her.
When she got to the office the following day, Hermione pulled Harry's file from that day and noticed a slight increase to his magical core. Whilst it wasn't enough to prove that the pool water also affected his fertility, after a conversation with Healer Bradstone, Hermione was confident it had.
This in turn, led to Healer Bradstone asking Draco for a sample to further back up their assumption and it was safe to say Draco happily obliged. The following week at their check up, Healer Bradstone advised the pair of them to be extremely careful when the pregnancy was over as Draco's count was exceptionally high and his sperm very mobile, meaning they could very easily fall pregnant again.
However, the most startling thing they had discovered during that appointment was that Hermione's magic had returned— stronger than it had been before. As soon as the words had passed the Healers lips, Draco cussed and reminded Hermione of their night in the cave, the strange pain she experienced and their lingering marks.
Healer Bradstone quickly summoned Healer Norton— and Healer Turpentine for good measure— so they could run some diagnostic tests before allowing Hermione to even attempt the simplest spell. When every test had come back clear and Hermione had been able to perform multiple spells without any negative side effects, they had all given her a clean bill of health.
"Hiding from your own birthday party, Granger?" Theo asked, making Hermione jump as he and Daphne entered the room.
"Not at all," Hermione smiled back, greeting the pair with a hug.
"Those babies are getting big now," Daphne commented, nodding at Hermione's protruding stomach.
"Don't I know it," Hermione laughed, rubbing her hand over the stretched skin wincing as one of the twins kicked her hard in the ribs, "I think it's getting a bit cramped in there."
"Come on then," Daphne said, looping her arm through Hermione's and walking with her out into the garden, "let's get the mum to be a seat."
"As long as Draco doesn't start talking about his super sperm," Theo muttered darkly, making Hermione laugh and Draco look up.
"I was wondering where you were," Draco said, taking Hermione from Daphne and steering her to sit in their cosy loveseat.
"Just admiring the view," Hermione replied, leaning into Draco and sneaking a kiss.
"Not in front of the children," Narcissa scolded as Ajax and Teddy came zooming over.
"It's good to show affection," Maia replied, scooping Ajax up into her arms and peppering his face with kisses as the child giggled and squirmed.
"What did Draco get you for your birthday?" Ginny asked, leaning back into Harry's arms, a small smile on her face as Harry's hand moved to the slight curve of her stomach.
Hermione blushed slightly at the question, it wasn't embarrassing, it was just personal. "Draco had a personalised family tree made for me." It was truly beautiful, something Hermione knew she would cherish forever, Draco had limited it to only show their parents— not needing to see the entire Black Malfoy line.
"That sounds beautiful," Ginny replied, "do the babies show on it yet?"
"Only as baby boy and baby girl Malfoy," Draco answered, "their names won't appear until the births are registered."
"Are you guys ready for the babies arrival?" Daphne asked, sipping on her cocktail as Theo drifted off to find Blaise.
"As ready as we can be," Draco replied, hoisting Teddy up onto his lap as the youngster turned his hair platinum blonde.
"The nursery is set up," Hermione added, ticking each item off on her fingers, "bassinets are ready in our room, clothes are organised, overnight bag is packed, there are lots of blankets and we've got the cutest double pushchair to take them out in."
"And you're still not going to give us a hint as to their names?" Narcissa pried, arching a perfect eyebrow as she sipped her tea.
"Not a chance," Draco laughed, "that's for us only."
"I've been trying to break him for weeks," Harry added, laughing as he remembered using every known Auror interrogation technique to no avail.
"They're both being very tight lipped," Hugo chuckled, "won't even tell her own parents."
"This is one of the few things that's just for us," Hermione said, leaning into Draco, "until they are born anyway."
"So unfair," Maia pouted, releasing Ajax so he could go back to playing with Teddy as he squirmed from Draco's lap, "and we can't even have a hint?"
"Are they constellations?" Narcissa interjected, looking hopefully at Draco and Hermione.
"Our lips are sealed," Hermione replied coyly, miming locking her lips as she smiled.
Both mothers huffed at Hermione's statement making the younger adults laugh.
"I'll be back in a moment," Draco said, rising from his seat and looking over at Harry, "Potter, will you give me a hand?"
"Of course," Harry replied, kissing Ginny's cheek before following Draco into the house.
"I wonder what they're up to," Hermione mumbled, watching the two retreating forms with suspicion.
"Don't worry about it darling," Maia responded with a knowing smirk.
"Hmm," Hermione said through pursed lips, absently rubbing her now huge stomach as the twins wiggled around.
"Are they still keeping you up?" Daphne asked with a nod towards Hermione's stomach.
"Yeah," Hermione sighed, recalling how Healer Bradstone told her to expect this in the later stage of her pregnancy. "I think they are night owls."
"You were always keeping me awake at night," Maia laughed, leaning into Hugo, "just think of it as practice for when they are here."
Just as Hermione opened her mouth to reply, Draco's voice carried over the garden, "happy birthday to you…" as he carried a giant cake.
"Oh Merlin," Hermione whispered as Ajax and Teddy came running back over screaming "cake!" at the top of their lungs.
Hearing everyone sing along with Draco, Hermione felt her cheeks stain with a blush, still not one for a lot of attention.
Stopping in front of Hermione, Draco placed the cake down on the table and wrapped his arm around Hermione's shoulder, "happy birthday darling, don't forget to make a wish."
Leaning into his embrace, Hermione closed her eyes and allowed the feeling of family to wash over her, knowing she had everything she needed right there.
Opening her eyes as everyone applauded, Hermione caught Narcissa's eye as she looked between Hermione face and chest, clearly trying to get Hermione to look down. Seeing her mark on show, Hermione hastily pulled the collar of her dress up, sending a grateful smile to Narcissa as Draco cut the cake and shared it around.
They had made the decision only to share their accidental bonding with their parents, needing to come to terms with it themselves before sharing with their wider circle of friends. Needless to say, Narcissa had been thrilled when they went to her to decipher the meaning of the black X's over their hearts.
Using Narcissa's book, they discovered the X stood for the rune Gebo and one of its many definitions was sacred union. When they reviewed everything that had happened between them in the cave, leaving out some of the more lemony details for all their sakes, they all speculated that a tentative bond had formed when they first entered the cave.
Although their bonding was not in keeping with the traditional tale of Lofn, Narcissa suggested Draco's feelings for Hermione all that time ago sparked the interest of Lofn after decades of not being called upon. Unable to fully bond the pair of them that night, the already existing bond of friendship was strengthened with ancient magic.
With Draco's reminder of the literal sparks between them the night they conceived the twins, Narcissa insisted Lofn tried to bond the pair of them that night. However, due to Hermione's still intact wedding bonds she couldn't be bound to another. So naturally, the next time they were together, the bond took hold.
"Where's your head at?" Draco whispered, sitting down beside Hermione and handing her a slice of birthday cake.
"I was just remembering, everything," she whispered in reply. Their bond was made up of so much more than sex, the one thing Hermione could remember above everything else was their connection. There wasn't another soul in the world who knew her like Draco did.
Draco was her one true home. Being bonded to him was no longer scary, it was right. After everything they had endured together they gave each other strength and never had Hermione placed such trust in one person. Her whole life had been about being the smartest person in the room, knowing more, being better than anyone thought she could be.
It had certainly saved lives, changed many others, but letting go of the need to control the variables set Hermione free. Surrounded by her family and friends, eagerly awaiting the next chapter of her life to begin, Hermione felt like the luckiest witch alive.
After all the cake had been consumed, gifts exchanged and children taken home, Hermione snuggled into bed with Draco. "Thank you," she said, snuggling back into Draco's embrace as she maneuvered her pregnancy pillow into place, "this has been the best birthday ever."
"Anything for you," Draco replied, kissing gently along Hermione's neck as she melted into him, "can I ask what you wished for?"
"You can," Hermione murmured, taking his hand from her bump and pressing a kiss to his knuckles, "I didn't wish for anything."
"Why would you waste your wish?" Draco questioned, smiling when Hermione returned his hand to her bump in time for a firm kick to his palm.
"I didn't need it," Hermione confessed, wincing slightly as a well aimed kick struck her ribs, "I already have everything I need, right here."
Placing a kiss to her cheek, Draco gently squeezed Hermione, there wasn't a day that went by where he didn't feel grateful for the life he now had. A life that once upon a time, seemed unattainable. "I love you," he muttered, his breath ghosting across her ear lobe making her shiver beside him.
"I love you more," Hermione assured him, twisting her torso slightly so she could capture his lips for a kiss.
"Not possible," Draco teased, settling himself back around Hermione and closing his eyes. Content in each other's embrace, they both drifted into dreams of their future, together.