A/N. Was the last chapter THAT bad? There was a drastic drop in reviews and now I'm kind of sad… Let me know how you feel about the direction of the story.

A new song for the Draco and Hermione playlist: In Her Eyes by Josh Groban. Listen to it on youtube, it's absolutely beautiful.

Also, we see Ginny this chapter! I know, I know, I've been ignoring her… but she is my least-favorite Harry Potter character of all time and sometimes I like to pretend like she doesn't exist.

…~oOo~…

Chapter Thirteen: In Which They Honor the Tonks Family

They sat around the kitchen table with mugs of coffee while all the students returned to the yard to play, but the spirit had gone out of them. They were too anxious because of what happened. Out the window, Hermione could see the troublemakers – Margot, Chelsea, Yvette, and Adam – sitting in a circle, chatting amongst themselves. A lot of the students did similar things, breaking off into groups to talk.

Around the table was Harry, the twins, Neville and Luna, Molly and Arthur, and Hermione. They were all waiting for something to say something when they heard the Floo flare and they all tensed, but relaxed when a loud, familiar voice started calling out, "Mum! Dad! You will not believe what I saw in Diagon…" her voice trailed off as she entered the kitchen saw everyone's solemn looks.

"Who died?" Ginny asked, only half-joking.

Shaking her head, Hermione said, "None of the Order."

"Then what's with the long faces?" she asked, slipping onto the bench beside Hermione.

"We found Pettigrew," Fred said.

"Well, Pettigrew found us," George added.

"It wasn't pretty," Fred told her.

George shook his head in agreement.

"Oh, God," Ginny said, her eyes wide.

A loud creak from the stairs made them all jump but when they looked it was just young Teddy, scrubbing at his eyes, having woken from his nap. He went right up to Hermione and said sleepily, "Did you lose?"

"Hmm?" Hermione asked, confused.

"Hide and seek," Teddy said. "You look sad. Did you lose? Did Freddy and George win?"

Hermione snorted softly, remembering her white lie. She nodded and Teddy stretched up to kiss her cheek. "It's okay," he told her, patting her hand.

"Well, of course we won," George jumped in, straightening up and giving the boy his best smile.

"Of course," Fred agreed. "We're only the best Finders in the entire world!"

"Come on, Teddy," George said, standing up and swooping down to pick up the boy and then launch him into the air, catching him smoothly again. "Let's play again! We'll play in the sitting room! This time, you can find us, how about that?"

Teddy squealed in excitement and nodded vigorously. Once he was on the ground again, he was running towards the sitting room with one eye closed and counting loudly. He got a little mixed up between seven and six, but for the most part he got to ten easy enough. Fred and George went to keep the boy occupied and Hermione smiled to herself. Those boys would make great fathers one day.

"What exactly happened?" Ginny asked quietly, mindful of the little boy only in the next room.

"Pettigrew was delusional," Hermione said. "He had this notion that the Harry's Prophecy was actually Teddy's and thought that if he brought Teddy to the Dark Lord that he'd be accepted back into his ranks. He was the one following Andromeda in France. He's been at this for years, just waiting for her to have Teddy with her. He found her in New Zealand. Krum is her Secret-Keeper and is going to see her now, but…"

Molly with watery eyes put the wand that Peter Pettigrew had with him on the table.

"That's Andromeda's," Ginny said, her freckles looking even darker on her ashen face.

"And we haven't gotten word from her about any attack," Arthur said sorrowfully. "Unless he wiped her memory, but that seems unlikely, sadly. Pettigrew was crazed, obsessed… out of control."

"Is the bastard dead?" Ginny demanded tightly, her blue eyes darkening a shade.

Everyone hesitated, but they nodded.

"Good," Ginny said, her hands clenching. "Who do I have to thank?"

"Malfoy," Harry said quietly.

Blinking, Ginny looked around. "Malfoy was here?"

Resting her elbows on the table, Hermione cradled her head in her hands and nodded. She rubbed her eyes and sighed.

"Is he still around? I want to shake that snake's hand," Ginny said fiercely.

"Ginny," Arthur reprimanded gently.

Tossing her hands in the air, Ginny said, "What? I can't be happy that traitorous, evil, self-serving rat is dead? The rest of you are acting like you just came back from the funeral of a loved one and I just don't understand why!"

"You weren't here, Ginny," Neville said quietly. "It was very frightening. And quite traumatic for some of the kids. We were in the cellar and we heard all of it happening right above us."

Luna nodded. "It was scary…"

"Your mother was almost hurt, Ginny, you might try to be more sensitive," Arthur said, rubbing his wife's back soothingly. "And it's very possible Viktor will return to tell us we've lost a friend."

"Viktor went alone?" Ginny said, her brow furrowing in concern. "Are you sure about that? What if Pettigrew had allies?"

"We doubt it," Arthur told her. "He's been hiding from everyone these last few years. The Ministry, the Dark Lord, the Order… And for New Zealand is very safe. They were completely unaffected by the war."

"Still," Ginny said, crossing her arms. "You think we'd be a little more careful? There's this thing called the 'buddy system' we should work on instilling!"

They heard the Floo and they all turned to the kitchen entrance eagerly.

In walked Viktor Krum. He'd activated the emergency Portkey he had for Andromeda's hideout and looks slightly unsteady on his feet. He was up to his elbows in dirt and his trousers were stained with grass stains to his knees.

All he did was look everyone in the eye and nod silently, the pain evident in his eyes. Molly started sniffling again, Harry hung his head, Neville looked deeply troubled and one tear ran down Luna's cheek. Ginny frowned deeply, but went to offer her mother comfort with her father.

Guilt washed over Hermione. She closed her eyes, regretting every bad thing she'd ever thought about the woman.

"I buried her on a hill," he reported somberly. "Vhere the light touches ven it rises."

"Someone has to tell Tonks's portrait," Luna said sadly. "I will, I suppose."

"And Teddy," Harry said, his eyes falling shut. "I will."

"The entire Tonks family gave their lives for the cause," Arthur said. "We should honor them in some way."

…~oOo~…

It was a bad day. When they all returned to Mould-on-the-Wold, Tonks's cries could be heard through that entire half of the manor, breaking everyone's heart. Ted Tonks sat in the same frame as his daughter, trying to comfort the inconsolable girl.

The kids were all still nervous, but they all participated when Fred and George brought them clay to make little shapes and things from them. A crying Teddy, who didn't entirely understand what had happened to his grandmother but was distraught over it, made an impression with his hand in the clay. He painted it blue.

Teddy clung to Harry like a baby koala for the rest of the day.

The children made little teapots, abstract pieces, bowls, little hats, and many other little trinkets. They shaped hearts and diamonds and four-leaf clovers for good luck. They'd all met Andromeda and were asked to make something that reminded them of her. For the older kids who'd had the privilege to know Tonks when she was alive made baubles for her.

It was nighttime by the time they were all finished. While the children ate, the twins baked the clay in the yard, and when they went out, they had stuck together and stacked all of the little trinkets into a shapeless statue, a little tower of each piece they made. It was a menageries of train cars and bicycles and stars and tea-cups. And right in the middle was Teddy's blue handprint – it was only right as he was the last remaining descendant of the Tonks family tree. Because Andromeda had never truly been a Black, she'd always marched to the beat of her own drum and threw herself wholeheartedly into the family she and her husband created.

On the very top of the abstract structure, they lit an undying candle and they left this little memorial in Grimmauld Place in the sitting room. The candle wouldn't ever die out and the wax wouldn't melt. It would stay that way until someone snuffed it out.

…~oOo~…

That night Teddy insisted on staying with Harry, which sort of hurt Hermione a little, but she understood. She had taken care of Teddy when he was still a baby, but Harry was in his most recent memories. They had that bond that only boys had.

Hermione wanted a few moments with the newly made statue after all the students were sent to bed. When she arrived in the Grimmauld Place fireplace, she found Ron sitting in the armchair, leaning back with a glass of scotch and staring pensively at the statue. He didn't look angry, even though that was really the only emotion he showed these days. He looked haunted though, with dark rings under his glassy eyes. He was either pissed drunk or had been crying.

When he saw her enter the room, Ron said, "She was nice. A pain in everyone's arse, but nice." His voice was a little groggy, but perfectly clear. He'd been crying then.

"Yes, she was," Hermione said, hugging her stomach. She'd felt cold to her core all day. It didn't help that it also felt like the longest day of her life.

"Heard Malfoy did something useful for once," Ron said, throwing back the rest of the amber liquid. He only winced and then sighed before grabbing his walking stick and pushed himself onto his feet. "I'm glad he's dead. I know it's not the Gryffindor thing to say, but I am. Mum raised us to believe all life is precious, but there are some people who just don't deserve to live. They do more damage than good. They ruin lives, kill innocent Muggles and nice women, betray their best friends. It's those kinds of people who are better off gone. Don't you think?"

Hermione considered this. Ron was always one to hold grudges, the one who gave into the darker side of him a bit easier than the rest. It's what made him strong, what made him determined, and what made him who he was. But this felt different.

After a length of silence, Hermione said gently, "I'm not ready to give up my faith in people just yet, Ron. It's the only thing keeping me standing."

With a sad look, Ron limped over to Hermione and gave her a half-hearted, teasing chuck to the chin. "You're one of the good ones," Ronald said. "Too good, maybe." He paused. "I know you're probably pretty hacked off at your boyfriend for executing Pettigrew like that, but don't be too harsh on him."

Hermione blinked and as she opened her mouth, not sure what she was going to say, Ron shook his head and said, "Yeah, yeah, the dumb one figured it out. Figure it might've taken Harry a bit longer, though. I'm fine. Pissed off, yeah, but you caught me at a soft moment and I don't have it in me to yell at your for it. But I should warn you that Harry's a bit beaten up over it."

"I know," Hermione sighed.

"You've grown into quite the heartbreaker," Ron said with the tiniest of smirks.

"Oh, have I?" Hermione said wryly.

"Yes, but I was first," Ron said firmly. "I won't let anyone think otherwise. I was the original Hermione Granger Heartbreak."

"Technically, Viktor was," Hermione pointed out lightly.

"Naw," Ron said, waving the notion off. "I fancied you first. I reserve that right."

Hermione chuckled, overjoyed to see a little bit of the old Ronald Weasley shine through the angry, grouchy, closed-off new Ron. "I'll make sure to alert the press."

"You better," he said. He pressed a friendly kiss to her forehead and said, "Best be on your way in case your boyfriend decides to pay you a visit."

Hermione frowned at the thought. "It was pretty scary to see him like that," she said.

"Well, sure, Draco Malfoy's a scary guy," Ron said with a shrug. "He's gotten all Snape-like, it's uncanny. But even if you don't agree, he did what he had to do to protect you and my family and that's what a man does. He protects the people he loves. And I've been found sorely lacking in that category as of late, so I can only be grateful to him… which irks me more than anything."

"Ronald Weasley, you are a conundrum," Hermione said, shaking her head.

"Naw, just drunk, sleepy, moody, and sad," Ron said. "Go on, now. No use spending your night around us forgotten ones." He looked over at the statue forlornly. "It's too depressing."

Unsure of what to say to that, Hermione turned and ducked into the fireplace, waving to Ron once more before returning to Mould-on-the-Wold. The sad little wave he'd given her in return just before she was swallowed by green flames had left a sharp pang in her chest.

Returning to the quiet, dark manor left her feeling empty. Everyone was in bed, and even if they weren't sleeping, they wanted to be left alone with their thoughts.

Hermione went to the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea to hopefully calm the uneasy feeling in her stomach. But even tea couldn't cure the squeezing tension in her belly when Draco walked into the kitchen, looking dead on his feet.

He walked right up to her and she held rigidly still. There was the smallest glint of hurt in his eyes at how tense she was, but he bent down to kiss the tip of her nose anyway.

"I don't regret it," Draco said, getting straight to the point. She was grateful for his forwardness, he never dilly-dallied. "I regret not being smarter about it. It was an impulse kill, I had to do it. But the second I did, I realized that the Dark Lord could never know. He wanted Pettigrew alive and if I disobeyed his orders… and even explaining how I got the opportunity or how I found him would be messy. Peter Pettigrew needed to die and that I don't regret."

Hermione shuddered and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"You just said that you weren't," Hermione pointed out.

"I'm sorry that I've made you feel this way," Draco said lowly. "Conflicted and nervous around me. I would never hurt you, though, Hermione."

"I know that," Hermione said firmly. "I'm just…still a little shaken from today."

"Do you want me to go?" he offered.

Hermione thought about this. Did she? Maybe she needed the time to think and she couldn't do that with him there. But maybe she needed him to comfort her… Never mind, that was a laugh. Draco wasn't a coddler. But he would make her forget. He would make her smile. He would lighten the mood with a terribly cynical, rude comment about someone in the Order.

But her head felt cloudy. And she just wanted to sleep.

"Can you just… hold me?" Hermione said, feeling defeated. "Just for the next few hours before you have to go."

"I'll hold you for as long as you like," Draco promised.

…~oOo~…

The thud of a body hitting the floor above her played over and over in Chelsea's head. The memory of being in that stuffy basement and hearing every little thing happening above her was… soul-shaking. They heard the threats, the sound of ricocheting hexes, and then the loud drop of a body.

"Are you alright?" Margot asked. She was spending almost every other night at the manor now. She bunked with Chelsea, the two of them sleeping head-to-foot on the bed.

"No," Chelsea told her honestly. "Not really."

"Me neither," Margot said. "It was scary. We are always being told about escape routes and hidden rooms and emergency cellars, but it all just seemed like too much precaution. But now…"

"The threat is real," Chelsea filled in.

They were both quiet and they could hear Tonks's sniffling from the hallway.

"It is sad," Margot said. "She is a portrait, not the real soul of Tonks, so she really, truly can never see 'er mother again. Unless a portrait is made for Andromeda, but that won't 'appen for a long time."

Chelsea nodded.

They both jumped when there was a light knock on the door.

Chelsea padded over to the door hesitantly and opened it only a crack. Standing outside was Adam. He held a blanket and his pillow, looking embarrassed.

"Margot here?" he said, peeking he head through.

"Yes," Chelsea said.

"Erm… can I hang out for a bit?" he asked. "Can't sleep."

Chelsea just opened the door further, letting him in. They spent a few hours talking, even playing a few rounds of Exploding Snaps, and ultimately, Adam fell asleep on the carpet. Chelsea was dreamless for the first time in weeks.

Although, Margot did snore like a freight train.

…~oOo~…

When Draco woke up to find a small boy tucked under his arm where he thought Hermione was, a part of him wanted to get up and leave, but another just wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet for once. Teddy had obviously really crawled between he and Hermione, nuzzling himself right between their chests and under their arms. His hair was blonde while he slept and absolutely unruly, sticking up everywhere.

Hesitantly, Draco brought his hand up to Teddy's head and smoothed down the soft locks. They stayed down and the boy rolled a little. Draco couldn't help but smirk when he saw one of the boy's hands firmly locked around a fistful of Hermione's curls, the other one lodged in his mouth. Draco wondered if he was too old to be sucking on his thumb, but decided it didn't matter.

And for a few minutes, Draco could fantasize about a future where he woke up to a blonde little boy and Hermione every morning. The overcrowding warmth of an overfull bed, the smell of baby oil and strawberry shampoo, the feeling like the world could crash around him and he wouldn't care because he had everything he needed within arm's reach.

Teddy's little body jerked in his sleep, lost in his dream, and Draco saw Hermione wince at having her hair tugged. Gently, Draco dislodged Teddy's hand from her hair and saw Hermione's face relax and sigh, adjusting her head and falling deeper into sleep. Teddy rolled closer into Draco's chest, his now-empty fist clutching Draco's t-shirt.

Fatherhood had always been such an unfathomable thing until that moment. It could happen, Draco realized. Maybe not now, but someday, maybe they'd live in a world where he could raise a family, break traditions, and have mornings like these. Maybe. It was a big "maybe".

But not altogether impossible.

…~oOo~…

~ So Long And Thanks For All The Fish ~