CHAPTER THREE: Prodigy
Hermione slowly opened the door, letting Eric enter before her.
"I'm gonna go upstairs, Aunt Mina."
Hermione smiled.
"Such a good boy, Eric," she said, scuffling his hair.
"Stop!" he said in an overly low voice and Hermione laughed.
"Go on now," she said, shooing him away. As Eric smiled and bounded up the staircase, Hermione turned to Jr. "Why so quiet now, baby?"
"I'm scared, Mummy. What if he doesn't like me?"
She laughed softly.
"Everybody loves you, baby."
Jr. shook his head furiously.
"Edward doesn't like me," he said and Hermione smiled as she started up the stairs.
"Edward is a bully, baby. Do you really think your Daddy is a bully?" she asked, causing Jr. to shake his head again and tie his arms around her neck, facing behind them. "Tell me about school, sweetie."
"Mr. Burns brought us macaroni and we made pretty pictures. Mine was a big red dragon, and it had fire too... he said I could bring it home tomorrow. Do you like macaroni pictures, Mummy?" he asked. Hermione smiled.
"If you made it, I'm sure I'll like it."
"Hm... do you think Daddy likes macaroni pictures?" Jr. asked innocently and his mother laughed.
"You'll have to ask him sweetie, but I never remember him saying otherwise. What else did you do today?"
"There was a new girl today, Mummy. She had icky pink bows in her hair, but she was nice. We played in the sand box on the playground. She showed me that if you get some water from the fountain and put it in the sand it'll stick together... and we made the bestest sand castle I've ever seen... Everybody came over to see, and it was really cool... but then Edward came over and stepped on it. I don't like Edward very much, Mummy," he said, scowling and Hermione hugged him as she walked slowly down the hall, listening for movement.
"If you take after either of your parents, you and Edward will be best friends by Junior High."
Jr. shook his head furiously.
"No way. He's mean. He took Emmy's cookie at snack time, too. And she cried," Jr. said as if he should be imprisoned for life after such a crime. Hermione smiled.
"Who's Emmy, sweetie?"
"The new girl. Her real name is Emilia."
"Oh, I see," she said, shifting him higher on her hip. "And what did you do when she cried?" Jr. looked blankly at her.
"I gave her mine," he said as if it was the most obvious thing he'd ever had to tell. Hermione smiled widely.
"That was very nice of you, Draco. And what did Emmy do?" He made a face.
"She kissed me," he said disgustedly and Hermione smiled.
"Like this?" she asked and kissed him on the cheek. Jr. wiped it away.
"Ew... yes, like that. That's the fifth time you did that today, Mummy."
Hermione laughed.
"I'm sorry sweetie. I could do it again?"
"No, that's okay," he said quickly and she laughed.
"Can I have a kiss, then? Pay back?" she asked, using his childishness as a distraction while she waited to hear any word of his father. Jr. smirked and did as she asked, giving his mother a big wet kiss on her cheek. "Thanks."
As she approached the door to Draco's old room, there was a semi-loud bang from inside, followed by some light moans of pain. Hermione giggled, but Jr. tied his arms around her neck and hugged her tight.
"It's okay, baby, I promise. Will you wait out here for a minute?" she requested and the little blonde nodded. "Good."
Hermione placed him back on the floor, a few feet from the doorway, and Jr. sat down against the wall, hugging his knees. His Daddy was behind that door... and he was nervous. Jr. watched his mother slowly open the door, then slip in. She didn't come out for a few minutes.
~*~*~*~
"Draco?" Hermione asked amusedly as she stepped into the room. The tall blonde man turned around.
"I don't think I'm seventeen anymore, Mia," he said, shaking his head and Hermione laughed. Her fiancée was standing before her in some of his old clothes... which were quite tight, and very short on all accounts. He'd attempted to do something with his long hair, but it hadn't turned out quite right; the cut was lopsided and choppy.
"I'd have to agree with you there, Draco," she said and felt a flutter. I'd been so long since she'd talked with him... so long... too long... "This is why I gave you my wand, dear." Draco smiled.
"I guess I'm a little rusty," Hermione approached him, taking the smoking wand from his hand and giving it a few flicks. Instantly, Draco's clothes fit perfectly, and his hair was back to the way she remembered it; falling into his eyes. Hermione looked up at his face and gasped slightly. It was like seeing a ghost... it really was Draco, standing in front of her... alive... and smiling. "You're just as beautiful as I remember, Mia... I like what you've done with yourself," he said, smirking slightly, and running his fingers lightly over her stomach. Hermione smiled.
"It wasn't easy, I'll tell you," she said, looking down at his hand. Draco watched her for a moment, then traced his hand up to her chin, lifting it. He gently placed his lips to hers and Hermione took a deep breath as she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing back with all in her. When they pulled apart, Draco didn't stop. He kissed across her cheek, behind her ear, then moved down to suck gently at her neck. Hermione made small moans of pleasure, his movements bringing back wonderful memories of the times they'd shared together.
"Mummy?" called a timid voice from outside, but Jr. didn't open the door. His father stopped all at once, eyes popping open as he remembered why Hermione had had to leave... the baby. Sensing this, Hermione smiled and took a small step back, kissing his lips again.
"Do you want to see him?" she asked softly, backing up toward the door. Draco numbly nodded. She continued to smile and opened the door about a foot. Hermione then turned around and crouched near the floor. "Ready?" he heard her whisper, and seconds later, she stood, small arms wrapped around her neck. Jr. clung to his mother, and she could tell how nervous he was. She turned back toward the older of her boys, but Draco was still unable to see his son properly. When Jr. didn't move, Hermione coaxed him. "Come on, sweetie, it's okay." Hesitantly, Jr. let his grip loosen and turned to face his father. Draco was dumbstruck.
"Hermione... he's beautiful," he said softly, and Hermione smiled.
"Of course you think so; he looks just like you."
Jr. didn't say a word. He simply gaped at the man before him. He looked just like he'd thought he would. When Draco turned to face Hermione, Jr. felt a wave wash over him and shivered. He looked exactly like the picture when he looked at her. Then, Draco turned his eyes back to his son.
"Hey, there," he said softly, and held out his hand to the little blonde boy. Jr. looked at the hand for a moment, then placed his own within it.
"Hi," he said, much to Draco's amusement. It was phenomenal to him that his son could already speak. Then, Jr. narrowed his eyes curiously. "Are you my daddy?" Draco smiled. Him, a father. Amazing.
"Yes, Draco. I am," he boasted, but Jr. looked even more curious.
"Are you sure?" he asked, and both Hermione and Draco laughed.
"Yes, I'm pretty sure."
Jr. only paused a moment more before nodding. Then, he jumped, as if startled.
"What is it, baby, what's wrong?" Hermione asked, shifting him higher on her hip. Jr. looked to her, but Draco looked between them, worried.
"Nanna is home," Jr. said. Hermione looked confused.
"What? How do you know that?"
Jr. shook his head.
"Her car is quieter than Uncle Harry's. You have to listen really hard to even hear it if you aren't up close," he said and Hermione just stared at him. Then, a sound came from downstairs.
"Hermione! Hermione, love, are you home?" called the unmistakable voice of Mrs. Narcissa Malfoy. Hermione's eyes widened and she shot a look at Draco, then turned back to her son.
"How did you know that?" she asked in a whisper and Jr. shrugged.
"I don't know... I just knowed," he explained and Hermione blinked. "Are you okay, Mummy?" Shaking her head slightly, Hermione nodded.
"Yes, Junior, I'm fine."
Jr. looked from his mother, to his father, and back again.
"Mummy, can I stay with Daddy while you answer Nanna?" he asked, but his tone sounded determined, as if he planned to do so no matter what Hermione said. She looked up at him, then to Draco, who was smiling like a maniac. Nodding, Hermione kissed his cheek.
"Of course you can, if you want to, Junior." She placed him gently on the floor, then quickly kissed Draco's cheek as well. "I love you," she whispered before turning and leaving the room, a smile on her face. Once she was gone, Draco looked down at his son, who was standing with arms crossed, looking curiously up at him. He didn't know what to say. Jr. just stared for a few moments, then he dropped his arms.
"Okay, she's downstairs. Come on, I want to show you my room," he said happily, grabbing his father's hand and pulling him from the room. Draco followed, smiling.
The two turned down a corridor on the other side of the manor a few moments later, and were greeted by very loud rock music. Draco seemed a little confused, if not intrigued, but Jr. just seemed annoyed. He led his father past the room the noise was coming from, to the one next to it.
"Wait here, Daddy," he said and Draco nodded, smiling. Jr. turned around and walked to the noise filled room, knocking loudly on the door. Another blonde boy appeared shortly after.
"What?" he asked.
"Eric! Auntie Ginny said to keep up a shushy charm when you play your music!"
Eric looked a little surprised.
"Okay! Sorry, Draco... geez. For a five-year-old you sure are high strung."
"I'll be six in three months, so there!" he said, crossing his arms.
"Oh yeah? Well, I'll be eight in five. You can't catch up to me, you do realize that, right?" Jr. tried to think of a comment to come back with, but he gave up quickly and exploded in a sigh.
"Yeah, I know. Just put the charmy up, peese? I'm trying to talk to my daddy over there," he said, pointing toward his door. Eric looked surprised again.
"You mean he really is here?" he asked and Jr. glared.
"Of course he is! Mummy wouldn't lie!" he yelled and Eric stepped back slightly.
"Dude, calm down... I didn't say that... I'm sorry, Draco. I'll turn the charm on. Go talk to your daddy," he compromised with a gentle tone and Jr. smiled smugly.
"Thank you," he said, then turned and walked back to his room, closing the door. Eric shook his head and returned to his music, muttering the password to the charm his father had set up to keep it from annoying everyone within earshot.
Jr. waited with arms crossed until the music stopped, then he turned to Draco.
"Okay. We can talk now," he said, sitting on the floor. He looked up at his father, obviously expecting him to do the same. Immediately, Draco did.
"Okay, then."
For a moment the two just sat, both Indian-style, facing each other. Then Jr. spoke.
"I need to tell you something," he said, sounding determined, and Draco nodded, meeting his serious gaze.
"Alright."
"You hurted Mummy really bad," he said, and Draco's smile dropped. "I don't know why you left us, but before I let you have Mummy back, I need you to pom-miss you won't do it again." Draco was amazed. Not only was his five- year-old son, whom he'd just met that day, speaking to him like an equal, but he must have been the smartest child he'd ever met in his lifetime.
"I promise you, Draco. Never again," he said solemnly. "I love both you and your mother very much, and if I'd had a choice, I would never have left the first time."
"Peese tell me what happened, Daddy. Mummy won't say; she says I'm too little to know yet, but I don't think I am."
Draco looked a little uneasy.
"I'm sorry, Draco, but if Mummy doesn't want you to know, she must have a good reason."
Jr. looked saddened for only a few moments before he smiled.
"If I tell you something she doesn't want you to know, will you tell me something she doesn't want me to know?" he pleaded. Draco seemed a little torn. He wanted to know what his son was planning... he could delude his story... make it more child friendly. It never occurred to him that the baby might want to know what happened... Draco almost believed that he expected to see Hermione still pregnant... that he hadn't missed a thing... but of course, that wasn't possible.
"Okay, deal... but only if you go first," Draco said, smiling at the child's reaction. Then, Jr. grew solemn.
"Alright. I was just telling Mr. Burns today about her stories. Mum tells me stories sometimes, and I know... I know they're about you and her... but she always makes it into a fairy tale with a prince and a princess... or a knight in shining armor. But it's you. I know, Daddy. And when Mummy tells the stories, when she's remembering... she's so happy. I don't need the stories to go to sleep anymore... but I ask her for them, just so she can be happy. But sometimes I think it might be worse that way... because once the story is over... once the prince and princess kiss and live happily ever after, she's sadder than before, because she knows the princess isn't really happy.
"Mummy missed you. She cries all the time... especially at night. Last Friday was the last time. I always go to her room when she's crying... and sometimes just when I know she's sad, and I think it makes her feel better, but it's not the same. My entire life, she's never called me Draco. She calls me Junior... or one of them yucky little Mum names... because she'd cry. Whenever someone else called my name, I could tell she was thinking about you. I always know, Daddy, cause she gets this dark black color deep in her eyes. She loves me, but I make her sad. Because I'm like you. I don't mean to be; it just happens... and she cries, and I feel guilty. I don't like it when she cries.
"But, she called me Draco today, Daddy. Six times; I counted. Never once in my whole life... and then you come today, and I get six times... and she didn't have the dark black color in her eyes. It was a different black, almost gold... she was happy. Mum isn't happy a lot. I can't let you make her sad again; that's why I asked you to promise not to leave. Do you understand, Daddy?" Jr. finished, still staring seriously into his father's eyes. Draco was stunned. He'd known Hermione would be upset; she did love him after all, but he didn't think she'd be upset enough for their five- year-old son to worry about it. When he regained himself slightly, Draco nodded.
"Draco, you have got to be the most observant person I have ever met in my lifetime."
Jr. smiled.
"Mummy tells me stuff like that all the time," he said, then paused. "Will you tell me what happened now? You promised." Draco smiled.
"That I did," he said and took a deep breath. "A very, very long time ago, before we even knew we were going to have you, Mum, me, and a friend of ours went to school together. Our friend's name was Harry. Do you know Harry?"
"Uncle Harry? Yep, yep. He lives here, Daddy."
Draco looked confused.
"Harry isn't your uncle, Junior."
Jr. nodded.
"I know. He's Mummy's friend. And Antie Ginny isn't really my Aunt, and Eric isn't really my cousin... but I just call them that," Jr. said and Draco smiled.
"Well, Uncle Harry and Antie Ginny, and Uncle Ron too, do you know Uncle Ron?" he continued. Jr. nodded. "Well, your mother and I, as well as them, went to school together. Then, when we were almost finished, a very bad man tried to harm a lot of the people who don't know how to use magic."
"Muggles," Jr. provided and Draco smiled proudly.
"Right. This bad man tried to harm the muggles. A very good wizard, who you will meet when you turn eleven, trained us to fight against the bad man. We tried very hard, and almost succeeded, but the bad man lived. A few years later, Mum and I found out we were going to have you. Not long after, bad man came back. It was my job to go and fight him again, Draco. Do you understand that?" Jr. nodded.
"Like Superman and Lex Luthor," he said and Draco smiled.
"Something like that. I had to go, or the muggles might be hurt. Uncle Harry, Uncle Ron, a lot of other people we knew in school, and I went to fight the bad man. Mummy would have come too, but she couldn't, because of you. I'm not blaming you, Draco; I'm glad she couldn't come. It wasn't a very fun place. Antie Ginny had been sick, and couldn't come with us either, so it was just us men.
"There were some children there, Draco. Younger than you are now, most of them... and they weren't all muggles. There was a wizard boy there, and the bad man was trying to hurt him. I couldn't let that happen. When the bad man saw that I'd saved the boy, he tried to hurt me. I don't remember much of what happened after that, but the bad man is gone now, and when I woke up, I was very, very, very far away from you and Mummy. It took me a long time to make it back home. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Daddy; I understand. It wasn't your fault. Why didn't Mummy want me to know that?" he asked, sounding slightly hurt, and Draco shook his head.
"I'm sure she didn't want to keep anything from you, Draco, but Mummy has a hard time with things involving the bad man. She would never talk to me about him, either... and she simply had your best interests in mind. Mum wanted to make sure you were ready before she told you," he explained and the little boy nodded.
"But I told her I wanted to know... shouldn't that mean I'm ready?" he asked. Draco laughed.
"Little boys have a tendency to think they know more than they do, son."
"Daddy, what happened to the little boy the bad man wanted to hurt?"
Draco shook his head.
"I don't know, Junior."
"What was his name?" Jr. asked, and Draco smiled slightly.
"Eric."
Jr.'s eyes grew wide.
"My COUSIN Eric?"
Draco looked surprised. No... that didn't make sense. Harry's child couldn't be the same Eric; it was impossible.
"I don't think so, Draco. You'll have to ask Uncle Harry."
There was quite a long pause before Jr. spoke up.
"Will you play with me?"
~*~*~*~
"Narcissa!" Hermione called as she rushed from the bottom of the stairs to the kitchen, where Narcissa would presumably be; she'd gone grocery shopping while in town. "Narcissa, you're never going to believe this!"
"Good lord, child, what is it?" Narcissa asked, turning around as Hermione appeared in the doorway, rubbing her hands on her skirt. Hermione was beaming like a light bulb.
"You may want to sit down," Hermione instructed and, looking curious, the older woman did as she was asked.
"Did something happen, Hermione?"
She nodded violently.
"Narcissa... Draco's back. He's alive," she said and the color drained from Narcissa's face.
"W-What? Where is he?"
"Upstairs with..."
"Hermione, how can you just let some man who claims to be my son into this house? What if it isn't really him? What then?"
"It is, Narcissa, I'm sure of it... I didn't believe it either, at first... but there's no way anyone could pretend so well... he recalled things no one but we knew... and he called me Mia. No one else ever called me Mia, Narcissa. I promise, it's him," Hermione gushed to her shocked mother-in- law to be.
"I have to go see him," Narcissa said suddenly, jumping from her seat and starting toward the doorway.
"No!" Hermione called and Narcissa spun.
"What? Why?"
"Because... he's with Junior."
"Alone? Are you sure that's wise dear? I believe you, but the poor child's only just met him today... do you think he'll be alright by himself?"
The brunette smiled widely.
"He requested it."
Narcissa sighed.
"We'll give them ten more minutes; then I want to see my son!" she yelled happily and Hermione smiled, holding up her hands in surrender.
"If you so desire, Mrs. Malfoy."
Narcissa playfully punched her shoulder.
"You bet I so desire... Mrs. Malfoy."
Hermione smiled and looked down at her ring. The ring that once meant happiness... then symbolized sorrow... and now told of the future.
"Not quite yet."
Hermione slowly opened the door, letting Eric enter before her.
"I'm gonna go upstairs, Aunt Mina."
Hermione smiled.
"Such a good boy, Eric," she said, scuffling his hair.
"Stop!" he said in an overly low voice and Hermione laughed.
"Go on now," she said, shooing him away. As Eric smiled and bounded up the staircase, Hermione turned to Jr. "Why so quiet now, baby?"
"I'm scared, Mummy. What if he doesn't like me?"
She laughed softly.
"Everybody loves you, baby."
Jr. shook his head furiously.
"Edward doesn't like me," he said and Hermione smiled as she started up the stairs.
"Edward is a bully, baby. Do you really think your Daddy is a bully?" she asked, causing Jr. to shake his head again and tie his arms around her neck, facing behind them. "Tell me about school, sweetie."
"Mr. Burns brought us macaroni and we made pretty pictures. Mine was a big red dragon, and it had fire too... he said I could bring it home tomorrow. Do you like macaroni pictures, Mummy?" he asked. Hermione smiled.
"If you made it, I'm sure I'll like it."
"Hm... do you think Daddy likes macaroni pictures?" Jr. asked innocently and his mother laughed.
"You'll have to ask him sweetie, but I never remember him saying otherwise. What else did you do today?"
"There was a new girl today, Mummy. She had icky pink bows in her hair, but she was nice. We played in the sand box on the playground. She showed me that if you get some water from the fountain and put it in the sand it'll stick together... and we made the bestest sand castle I've ever seen... Everybody came over to see, and it was really cool... but then Edward came over and stepped on it. I don't like Edward very much, Mummy," he said, scowling and Hermione hugged him as she walked slowly down the hall, listening for movement.
"If you take after either of your parents, you and Edward will be best friends by Junior High."
Jr. shook his head furiously.
"No way. He's mean. He took Emmy's cookie at snack time, too. And she cried," Jr. said as if he should be imprisoned for life after such a crime. Hermione smiled.
"Who's Emmy, sweetie?"
"The new girl. Her real name is Emilia."
"Oh, I see," she said, shifting him higher on her hip. "And what did you do when she cried?" Jr. looked blankly at her.
"I gave her mine," he said as if it was the most obvious thing he'd ever had to tell. Hermione smiled widely.
"That was very nice of you, Draco. And what did Emmy do?" He made a face.
"She kissed me," he said disgustedly and Hermione smiled.
"Like this?" she asked and kissed him on the cheek. Jr. wiped it away.
"Ew... yes, like that. That's the fifth time you did that today, Mummy."
Hermione laughed.
"I'm sorry sweetie. I could do it again?"
"No, that's okay," he said quickly and she laughed.
"Can I have a kiss, then? Pay back?" she asked, using his childishness as a distraction while she waited to hear any word of his father. Jr. smirked and did as she asked, giving his mother a big wet kiss on her cheek. "Thanks."
As she approached the door to Draco's old room, there was a semi-loud bang from inside, followed by some light moans of pain. Hermione giggled, but Jr. tied his arms around her neck and hugged her tight.
"It's okay, baby, I promise. Will you wait out here for a minute?" she requested and the little blonde nodded. "Good."
Hermione placed him back on the floor, a few feet from the doorway, and Jr. sat down against the wall, hugging his knees. His Daddy was behind that door... and he was nervous. Jr. watched his mother slowly open the door, then slip in. She didn't come out for a few minutes.
~*~*~*~
"Draco?" Hermione asked amusedly as she stepped into the room. The tall blonde man turned around.
"I don't think I'm seventeen anymore, Mia," he said, shaking his head and Hermione laughed. Her fiancée was standing before her in some of his old clothes... which were quite tight, and very short on all accounts. He'd attempted to do something with his long hair, but it hadn't turned out quite right; the cut was lopsided and choppy.
"I'd have to agree with you there, Draco," she said and felt a flutter. I'd been so long since she'd talked with him... so long... too long... "This is why I gave you my wand, dear." Draco smiled.
"I guess I'm a little rusty," Hermione approached him, taking the smoking wand from his hand and giving it a few flicks. Instantly, Draco's clothes fit perfectly, and his hair was back to the way she remembered it; falling into his eyes. Hermione looked up at his face and gasped slightly. It was like seeing a ghost... it really was Draco, standing in front of her... alive... and smiling. "You're just as beautiful as I remember, Mia... I like what you've done with yourself," he said, smirking slightly, and running his fingers lightly over her stomach. Hermione smiled.
"It wasn't easy, I'll tell you," she said, looking down at his hand. Draco watched her for a moment, then traced his hand up to her chin, lifting it. He gently placed his lips to hers and Hermione took a deep breath as she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing back with all in her. When they pulled apart, Draco didn't stop. He kissed across her cheek, behind her ear, then moved down to suck gently at her neck. Hermione made small moans of pleasure, his movements bringing back wonderful memories of the times they'd shared together.
"Mummy?" called a timid voice from outside, but Jr. didn't open the door. His father stopped all at once, eyes popping open as he remembered why Hermione had had to leave... the baby. Sensing this, Hermione smiled and took a small step back, kissing his lips again.
"Do you want to see him?" she asked softly, backing up toward the door. Draco numbly nodded. She continued to smile and opened the door about a foot. Hermione then turned around and crouched near the floor. "Ready?" he heard her whisper, and seconds later, she stood, small arms wrapped around her neck. Jr. clung to his mother, and she could tell how nervous he was. She turned back toward the older of her boys, but Draco was still unable to see his son properly. When Jr. didn't move, Hermione coaxed him. "Come on, sweetie, it's okay." Hesitantly, Jr. let his grip loosen and turned to face his father. Draco was dumbstruck.
"Hermione... he's beautiful," he said softly, and Hermione smiled.
"Of course you think so; he looks just like you."
Jr. didn't say a word. He simply gaped at the man before him. He looked just like he'd thought he would. When Draco turned to face Hermione, Jr. felt a wave wash over him and shivered. He looked exactly like the picture when he looked at her. Then, Draco turned his eyes back to his son.
"Hey, there," he said softly, and held out his hand to the little blonde boy. Jr. looked at the hand for a moment, then placed his own within it.
"Hi," he said, much to Draco's amusement. It was phenomenal to him that his son could already speak. Then, Jr. narrowed his eyes curiously. "Are you my daddy?" Draco smiled. Him, a father. Amazing.
"Yes, Draco. I am," he boasted, but Jr. looked even more curious.
"Are you sure?" he asked, and both Hermione and Draco laughed.
"Yes, I'm pretty sure."
Jr. only paused a moment more before nodding. Then, he jumped, as if startled.
"What is it, baby, what's wrong?" Hermione asked, shifting him higher on her hip. Jr. looked to her, but Draco looked between them, worried.
"Nanna is home," Jr. said. Hermione looked confused.
"What? How do you know that?"
Jr. shook his head.
"Her car is quieter than Uncle Harry's. You have to listen really hard to even hear it if you aren't up close," he said and Hermione just stared at him. Then, a sound came from downstairs.
"Hermione! Hermione, love, are you home?" called the unmistakable voice of Mrs. Narcissa Malfoy. Hermione's eyes widened and she shot a look at Draco, then turned back to her son.
"How did you know that?" she asked in a whisper and Jr. shrugged.
"I don't know... I just knowed," he explained and Hermione blinked. "Are you okay, Mummy?" Shaking her head slightly, Hermione nodded.
"Yes, Junior, I'm fine."
Jr. looked from his mother, to his father, and back again.
"Mummy, can I stay with Daddy while you answer Nanna?" he asked, but his tone sounded determined, as if he planned to do so no matter what Hermione said. She looked up at him, then to Draco, who was smiling like a maniac. Nodding, Hermione kissed his cheek.
"Of course you can, if you want to, Junior." She placed him gently on the floor, then quickly kissed Draco's cheek as well. "I love you," she whispered before turning and leaving the room, a smile on her face. Once she was gone, Draco looked down at his son, who was standing with arms crossed, looking curiously up at him. He didn't know what to say. Jr. just stared for a few moments, then he dropped his arms.
"Okay, she's downstairs. Come on, I want to show you my room," he said happily, grabbing his father's hand and pulling him from the room. Draco followed, smiling.
The two turned down a corridor on the other side of the manor a few moments later, and were greeted by very loud rock music. Draco seemed a little confused, if not intrigued, but Jr. just seemed annoyed. He led his father past the room the noise was coming from, to the one next to it.
"Wait here, Daddy," he said and Draco nodded, smiling. Jr. turned around and walked to the noise filled room, knocking loudly on the door. Another blonde boy appeared shortly after.
"What?" he asked.
"Eric! Auntie Ginny said to keep up a shushy charm when you play your music!"
Eric looked a little surprised.
"Okay! Sorry, Draco... geez. For a five-year-old you sure are high strung."
"I'll be six in three months, so there!" he said, crossing his arms.
"Oh yeah? Well, I'll be eight in five. You can't catch up to me, you do realize that, right?" Jr. tried to think of a comment to come back with, but he gave up quickly and exploded in a sigh.
"Yeah, I know. Just put the charmy up, peese? I'm trying to talk to my daddy over there," he said, pointing toward his door. Eric looked surprised again.
"You mean he really is here?" he asked and Jr. glared.
"Of course he is! Mummy wouldn't lie!" he yelled and Eric stepped back slightly.
"Dude, calm down... I didn't say that... I'm sorry, Draco. I'll turn the charm on. Go talk to your daddy," he compromised with a gentle tone and Jr. smiled smugly.
"Thank you," he said, then turned and walked back to his room, closing the door. Eric shook his head and returned to his music, muttering the password to the charm his father had set up to keep it from annoying everyone within earshot.
Jr. waited with arms crossed until the music stopped, then he turned to Draco.
"Okay. We can talk now," he said, sitting on the floor. He looked up at his father, obviously expecting him to do the same. Immediately, Draco did.
"Okay, then."
For a moment the two just sat, both Indian-style, facing each other. Then Jr. spoke.
"I need to tell you something," he said, sounding determined, and Draco nodded, meeting his serious gaze.
"Alright."
"You hurted Mummy really bad," he said, and Draco's smile dropped. "I don't know why you left us, but before I let you have Mummy back, I need you to pom-miss you won't do it again." Draco was amazed. Not only was his five- year-old son, whom he'd just met that day, speaking to him like an equal, but he must have been the smartest child he'd ever met in his lifetime.
"I promise you, Draco. Never again," he said solemnly. "I love both you and your mother very much, and if I'd had a choice, I would never have left the first time."
"Peese tell me what happened, Daddy. Mummy won't say; she says I'm too little to know yet, but I don't think I am."
Draco looked a little uneasy.
"I'm sorry, Draco, but if Mummy doesn't want you to know, she must have a good reason."
Jr. looked saddened for only a few moments before he smiled.
"If I tell you something she doesn't want you to know, will you tell me something she doesn't want me to know?" he pleaded. Draco seemed a little torn. He wanted to know what his son was planning... he could delude his story... make it more child friendly. It never occurred to him that the baby might want to know what happened... Draco almost believed that he expected to see Hermione still pregnant... that he hadn't missed a thing... but of course, that wasn't possible.
"Okay, deal... but only if you go first," Draco said, smiling at the child's reaction. Then, Jr. grew solemn.
"Alright. I was just telling Mr. Burns today about her stories. Mum tells me stories sometimes, and I know... I know they're about you and her... but she always makes it into a fairy tale with a prince and a princess... or a knight in shining armor. But it's you. I know, Daddy. And when Mummy tells the stories, when she's remembering... she's so happy. I don't need the stories to go to sleep anymore... but I ask her for them, just so she can be happy. But sometimes I think it might be worse that way... because once the story is over... once the prince and princess kiss and live happily ever after, she's sadder than before, because she knows the princess isn't really happy.
"Mummy missed you. She cries all the time... especially at night. Last Friday was the last time. I always go to her room when she's crying... and sometimes just when I know she's sad, and I think it makes her feel better, but it's not the same. My entire life, she's never called me Draco. She calls me Junior... or one of them yucky little Mum names... because she'd cry. Whenever someone else called my name, I could tell she was thinking about you. I always know, Daddy, cause she gets this dark black color deep in her eyes. She loves me, but I make her sad. Because I'm like you. I don't mean to be; it just happens... and she cries, and I feel guilty. I don't like it when she cries.
"But, she called me Draco today, Daddy. Six times; I counted. Never once in my whole life... and then you come today, and I get six times... and she didn't have the dark black color in her eyes. It was a different black, almost gold... she was happy. Mum isn't happy a lot. I can't let you make her sad again; that's why I asked you to promise not to leave. Do you understand, Daddy?" Jr. finished, still staring seriously into his father's eyes. Draco was stunned. He'd known Hermione would be upset; she did love him after all, but he didn't think she'd be upset enough for their five- year-old son to worry about it. When he regained himself slightly, Draco nodded.
"Draco, you have got to be the most observant person I have ever met in my lifetime."
Jr. smiled.
"Mummy tells me stuff like that all the time," he said, then paused. "Will you tell me what happened now? You promised." Draco smiled.
"That I did," he said and took a deep breath. "A very, very long time ago, before we even knew we were going to have you, Mum, me, and a friend of ours went to school together. Our friend's name was Harry. Do you know Harry?"
"Uncle Harry? Yep, yep. He lives here, Daddy."
Draco looked confused.
"Harry isn't your uncle, Junior."
Jr. nodded.
"I know. He's Mummy's friend. And Antie Ginny isn't really my Aunt, and Eric isn't really my cousin... but I just call them that," Jr. said and Draco smiled.
"Well, Uncle Harry and Antie Ginny, and Uncle Ron too, do you know Uncle Ron?" he continued. Jr. nodded. "Well, your mother and I, as well as them, went to school together. Then, when we were almost finished, a very bad man tried to harm a lot of the people who don't know how to use magic."
"Muggles," Jr. provided and Draco smiled proudly.
"Right. This bad man tried to harm the muggles. A very good wizard, who you will meet when you turn eleven, trained us to fight against the bad man. We tried very hard, and almost succeeded, but the bad man lived. A few years later, Mum and I found out we were going to have you. Not long after, bad man came back. It was my job to go and fight him again, Draco. Do you understand that?" Jr. nodded.
"Like Superman and Lex Luthor," he said and Draco smiled.
"Something like that. I had to go, or the muggles might be hurt. Uncle Harry, Uncle Ron, a lot of other people we knew in school, and I went to fight the bad man. Mummy would have come too, but she couldn't, because of you. I'm not blaming you, Draco; I'm glad she couldn't come. It wasn't a very fun place. Antie Ginny had been sick, and couldn't come with us either, so it was just us men.
"There were some children there, Draco. Younger than you are now, most of them... and they weren't all muggles. There was a wizard boy there, and the bad man was trying to hurt him. I couldn't let that happen. When the bad man saw that I'd saved the boy, he tried to hurt me. I don't remember much of what happened after that, but the bad man is gone now, and when I woke up, I was very, very, very far away from you and Mummy. It took me a long time to make it back home. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Daddy; I understand. It wasn't your fault. Why didn't Mummy want me to know that?" he asked, sounding slightly hurt, and Draco shook his head.
"I'm sure she didn't want to keep anything from you, Draco, but Mummy has a hard time with things involving the bad man. She would never talk to me about him, either... and she simply had your best interests in mind. Mum wanted to make sure you were ready before she told you," he explained and the little boy nodded.
"But I told her I wanted to know... shouldn't that mean I'm ready?" he asked. Draco laughed.
"Little boys have a tendency to think they know more than they do, son."
"Daddy, what happened to the little boy the bad man wanted to hurt?"
Draco shook his head.
"I don't know, Junior."
"What was his name?" Jr. asked, and Draco smiled slightly.
"Eric."
Jr.'s eyes grew wide.
"My COUSIN Eric?"
Draco looked surprised. No... that didn't make sense. Harry's child couldn't be the same Eric; it was impossible.
"I don't think so, Draco. You'll have to ask Uncle Harry."
There was quite a long pause before Jr. spoke up.
"Will you play with me?"
~*~*~*~
"Narcissa!" Hermione called as she rushed from the bottom of the stairs to the kitchen, where Narcissa would presumably be; she'd gone grocery shopping while in town. "Narcissa, you're never going to believe this!"
"Good lord, child, what is it?" Narcissa asked, turning around as Hermione appeared in the doorway, rubbing her hands on her skirt. Hermione was beaming like a light bulb.
"You may want to sit down," Hermione instructed and, looking curious, the older woman did as she was asked.
"Did something happen, Hermione?"
She nodded violently.
"Narcissa... Draco's back. He's alive," she said and the color drained from Narcissa's face.
"W-What? Where is he?"
"Upstairs with..."
"Hermione, how can you just let some man who claims to be my son into this house? What if it isn't really him? What then?"
"It is, Narcissa, I'm sure of it... I didn't believe it either, at first... but there's no way anyone could pretend so well... he recalled things no one but we knew... and he called me Mia. No one else ever called me Mia, Narcissa. I promise, it's him," Hermione gushed to her shocked mother-in- law to be.
"I have to go see him," Narcissa said suddenly, jumping from her seat and starting toward the doorway.
"No!" Hermione called and Narcissa spun.
"What? Why?"
"Because... he's with Junior."
"Alone? Are you sure that's wise dear? I believe you, but the poor child's only just met him today... do you think he'll be alright by himself?"
The brunette smiled widely.
"He requested it."
Narcissa sighed.
"We'll give them ten more minutes; then I want to see my son!" she yelled happily and Hermione smiled, holding up her hands in surrender.
"If you so desire, Mrs. Malfoy."
Narcissa playfully punched her shoulder.
"You bet I so desire... Mrs. Malfoy."
Hermione smiled and looked down at her ring. The ring that once meant happiness... then symbolized sorrow... and now told of the future.
"Not quite yet."