Chapter 35
Disclaimer: Many thanks to JK Rowling for her wonderful works. They are hers and hers alone. I have only borrowed her characters for a while and built my own little fantasy around them. There is no pay involved for me in doing it.
Chapter 32
"Finally!" Ginny shouted across the room at them when they left the bedroom. Everyone was running around wildly from the kitchen to the bathroom and back to the kitchen, congregating around the sofa. Since everyone was speaking at once, they had to piece together what was happening.
…Angelina…
…the stress of…
…all the shouting…
…water broke…
…someone with the children…
…no time…
…need more towels…
…George…
…coming here and now…
…sorry about the couch…
…get her to the hospital…
…any minute now…
"She's having the baby now?!" Hermione said in shock. "Here?!"
Draco was calm itself as he stepped forward and said, "Okay, everybody relax. And, back up!"
The command in his voice made most everyone jump and do what he'd said.
Only Molly, the panicked grandmother-to-be, stood in his way, "She needs a doctor!"
Draco nodded and looked her in the eye. "Mrs. Weasley, we're going to get her to St. Martiniques as soon as possible, but for now you need to let me help her."
When she didn't move, he reminded her, "I'm trained for emergency situations like this. She's going to be fine."
Molly looked into his eyes and nodded as she stepped to the side.
He sat down on the edge of the sofa, looked Angelina over quickly, and then glanced up, "Mione, send a patronus to the hospital and see if they can get someone here quickly. She's too far along to move now. Ginny, sorry about your party, but I think we'll be a little late. Can you call Blaise and let them know what's happened?" Without waiting for either to answer, he looked back down at Angelina, "You're going to be fine. Just trust me."
She laughed a little around her pain, "Who would ever have thought I would believe Draco Malfoy when he said that."
He smiled at her joke and then felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see a very worried George next to him.
"Is she okay?" he asked softly.
"I was just going to check on that. Why don't you hold her hand and let me see where we are?"
George looked at his wife and then back at Draco. With a nod he moved to sit next to his wife's head and hold her hand.
Draco cast a shield to give Angelina some privacy and went to work. The rest of them stood around the shield and listened to the voices and sounds from the other side. Each face was etched with worry, and many hands were being wrung when they heard Draco's command to push, Angelina's elongated scream and George's encouraging, "Come on baby, you can do it!"
They all jumped when a doctor and two nurses popped in just as the baby's first cries were heard.
With a broad grin, Draco dropped the shield and relinquished his spot to the professionals, before he handed the baby to the nurse.
He turned to a shell-shocked George and a beaming, but tired, Angelina, "Congratulations on your son."
The room erupted in cheers and cries and Draco cleansed himself quickly before he uncomfortably accepted several hugs and kisses, as the family swarmed them. The doctor had placed the baby on the coffee table and erected another shield around them as he and one nurse examined the child. The other nurse attended to Angelina.
The nurse waved her wand one last time over Angelina to alleviate any remaining pain, and then stood to smile at Draco. She reached out her hand to shake his, "Mediwitch Cooper. You did a great job, sir. I just need to get some information from you, if you don't mind."
Draco nodded and she flicked her wand one more time to make a clipboard and quill appear. "Name."
He smiled down at Hermione, who leaned against him, her face beaming in pride, "Draco L. Malfoy, badge number 74582."
The nurse looked up sharply, "You're not a doctor?"
He laughed, "No, ma'am. First year agent."
"Wow," she smiled at him. "How many of these have you done?"
"First one," he laughed. "I guess the training took."
She laughed with him, but Angelina sat up and caught his eye, "That explains it."
He looked at her, "Explains what?"
She laughed at the look of defensiveness on his face, "Why you didn't remember to use a pain relieving charm, Malfoy. I must be the only witch in history to have had a natural birth!"
"Oh, man, I knew I was forgetting something," he said truly chagrined. "I'm so sorry, Angelina!"
She leaned back against George and closed her eyes, "George, honey, looks like we have a free babysitter whenever we need one, huh?"
George nodded and smiled at her, still lost in his swirling emotions, "I'm a dad."
Angelina laughed and Hermione smiled at the couple, "Congrats, guys."
George reached out to take his son from the doctor, "Is he okay?"
"He's perfect. Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Thanks to that young man, you had a perfectly normal, if a bit painful, delivery. But, we still would like to get the two of you to the hospital for basic observation, okay?"
A few minutes later Hermione had vanished all the remaining mess and the room had emptied by half. The medical staff, Molly, Percy, Charlie, Cynthia, George, Angelina, and new baby Ian, had all gone to the hospital.
Ginny and Fleur went to check on the children and tell them what had happened, while Harry, Bill, Draco and Hermione collapsed onto the chairs and sofa. Hermione accioed one of the bottles of champagne she had planned to take to the party and glasses for everyone. When the girls joined them again they toasted to the new life.
Draco leaned against Hermione and sighed, "I can not believe this day."
"I know," she smiled. Then she reached out, took his hand and felt it tremble in hers, "Are you okay?"
He nodded with his eyes closed, "Wow. Just…wow. Makes all that other shit kind of insignificant, you know?"
Harry smiled a little, "You did a great job, man."
"Thanks." He opened his eyes, looked over at Harry and Ginny and laughed, "I freely admit it now, I've never been more nervous on the job before."
Ginny sat on Harry's lap with a soft smile on her face, "Well, you wouldn't have known it. You were totally Mr. Calm-Cool-and-Collected."
"You ver amazing," Fleur nodded as she reentered the room.
Bill laughed, "Let's see if you're that calm when it's your turn though."
The others laughed with him, but Draco turned his head to look at Hermione. He took in her smiling brown eyes, perfectly arched eyebrows, pert little nose, and beautiful mouth with its full lower lip. When her eyes turned to his, he imagined those eyes in a tiny face and smiled.
"I think I'll be fine," he said softly.
Hermione smile softened and she leaned over to kiss him lightly, "Yeah, you will."
The other two couples smiled at them and then at each other.
The comfortable silence was broken when two pops were heard behind them.
Snoop took in the scene and said with a smile, "Party cancelled, I guess."
Beth leaned against Blaise, still dizzy from her side-along apparition, but a wide smile on her face, "Sounds to me like the party was here."
"Congrats on your first child, D," Blaise joked. They all laughed as he sat down and accioed glasses and another bottle, "So, how was it?"
Draco laughed, "Messy, loud, scary as hell, and cool as shit!"
Everyone laughed and toasted again. Blaise suggested they go back to the loft and bring the food over, since it was getting late and the food would go to waste. They also had to stop the other guests from coming. Harry and Bill offered to help Blaise and Draco go get the food and the four of them flooed away.
Beth and Snoop then demanded to hear everything that had happened. Neither expected the story they got, and by the end Snoop was ready to kill Ron. When the men apparated back into the room, they heard Snoop screaming, and saw Hermione laying back against the sofa with her eyes closed, and Ginny and Fleur nodding.
"What did we miss?" Blaise asked the room at large.
Draco, having heard the names Snoop was using to describe her husband, knew what they had been discussing.
"Come help me set this up in the kitchen, B. I'll fill you in."
When they came back out, Blaise's face was stony, but he understood Draco's feelings and kept his mouth shut. His eyes spoke volumes though as he glared at Harry. Harry understood and nodded at the unspoken message. Only then did Blaise relax a bit.
Snoop had downed three shots of firewhiskey before she had calmed down enough to be coherent. After that she had started to cry as she apologized over and over to Hermione. As soon as Draco entered the room, she turned her apologies on him.
"Georgina, it's not your fault. I don't blame you, okay?" He was very uncomfortable around crying women and didn't know what else to do, so he pulled her into a hug and patted her back awkwardly, "Stop crying, please. We're not upset with you. Stop, okay?"
She sniffled and stepped back from him with a nod. Then she smiled a watery smile up at him and said, "If it makes you feel any better, I do plan to kill him slowly and very painfully when he gets back from the hospital."
He smiled down at her, "Thank you."
Harry and Bill went in to the play room to gather the children for lunch. Fred, Charlie and Cynthia's oldest, came out dragging his baby brother, Remus. Bill carried his twins, JeanMarie and Shelley, and Harry carried Jamie, as Teddy and Albie ran in front of him. Hermione conjured a table and chairs for the children and high chairs for the smaller ones, and placed plates in front of them. Ginny took Jamie and gave him a bottle as all the adults settled in to eat, as well.
When the food was cleared, Hermione clapped her hands to get everyone's attention and then pulled out her wand. "I know this isn't how it was planned, but it still feels like a party to me, so…"
The children cheered when she flicked her wand and balloons and confetti rained down on them. Then with another more elaborate wave, a large sheet cake appeared on the coffee table, the candles already lit.
"Time to sing," she laughed.
They sang and cut the cake. Music played loudly and several people danced to it with the children, as they enjoyed their impromptu party. Due to the loud music, they didn't hear the pops as the Weasley family started to apparate back. But, their presence caused a stir, and more food and drinks were conjured. Charlie and Cynthia checked on their children, while Percy imperiously filled everyone in on what had happened at the hospital. Both Hermione and Snoop wondered at Ron's absence.
Charlie filled them in when he said to Snoop, "He's back at The Burrow. I explained that I didn't think it was a good idea for him to come over here and he thought he should go check on dad."
Hermione thanked him quietly and moved away. Snoop looked up at her brother-in-law with a sad attempt at a smile.
"Why does he do these things, Charlie?"
He shook his head at her, "He's always acted first and thought much, MUCH, later, Georgie. He's a hothead and often an idiot, but he's my brother. What he did was awful, but he did it for loyalty, for love. He did it, however misguided the decision, to try and protect Hermione. Try not to be too hard on him, okay?"
She nodded and smiled wickedly up at him, "Regardless of what I said to Draco, I promise not to kill him. I'll just hurt him really badly."
He laughed as she made her way across the room and stepped into the fireplace.
"Dammit, Ronald, what more proof do you need? You had that man followed for almost two solid months!"
"I know, but, Dad, he's…" Ron sat at a chair in the kitchen, his head in his hands. "I don't know what to do anymore."
Snoop stepped into the doorway, "You apologize until your nose falls off. And, then you start all over again!"
"Honey," he said as he jumped up.
"Hello, Georgie," Mr. Weasley said weakly from his chair. "I guess you heard."
She sidestepped Ron's outstretched arms and leaned back against the counter with a heavy sigh, "Oh yeah. I got an earful. How could you two do that to her?"
Arthur looked down at his hands as he mumbled, "We didn't think about it like that."
"I was only trying to make sure he didn't pull anything on her, hon. I didn't expect it to turn out like this." Ron shook his head, "I don't know how I'm going to make her understand."
Snoop looked at the two men, "I don't know what to tell you. I can't believe you stooped this low. I feel like I've been living with a liar. A man I don't know."
When Ron lifted his head quickly to look at her, she continued with tears in her eyes, "You didn't do this to protect Hermione, Ron. You weren't looking to keep her from getting hurt. You purposely set out to find something to prove yourself right. You wanted to hurt Draco and you wanted to be right. You were willing to invade the privacy of a person you love, just to find a way to punish Draco for being with her. I don't know how you…I just can't understand you right now, Ron. And, I can't be near you anymore tonight. You two hurt and betrayed Draco, Hermione…and me. Every day that you didn't tell me about this and stop it, you lied. And, I can't look at you. I just came to tell you to stay here for a while. The fireplace will be closed. The wards will be up. I love you Ron, but I can't be with you right now."
She turned to walk out of the kitchen, but he grabbed her arm, "Georgie. Honey."
She pulled her arm away and cried, "No!" and continued to the door. When she reached it, she said softly over her shoulder, "I'll call you tomorrow. We'll…talk."
He came up behind her, but didn't touch her. "Can you forgive me? Please, can we get through this?"
She nodded and shrugged at the same time. She couldn't speak, her throat was too clogged with the sobs she tried to hold back.
Arthur said from behind them, "We'll fix this somehow."
With another nod, she fled the room and they heard her shout out their home address.
Ron looked back at his father, despair etched on his face, "Oh gods, Dad, what have we done?"
Two days later Draco sat at his desk during his break, thinking about how he was going to tell Hermione about their new bank account. He had come up with a few ideas, but he discarded each one when he envisioned the fight at the end, and Hermione kicking him out of her life. He knew the longer he waited the worse if would be; he risked someone else telling her about it before he did. But, he just didn't feel like getting into yet. Not until he had a good plan.
His mind kept going in a circle. First, he would be sympathetic to her feelings, remembering that she had good reason to want nothing to do with his family, or their money. Then, he would get defensive. As both his father and Blaise had pointed out, it was his money, too. And, if she loved him, then she needed to accept that he came with money and responsibilities. Then, he would swing back to sympathetic. Hermione hadn't by any means grown up poor, her parents were dentists after all, and she now had a lot of her own money, but she wasn't used to and didn't like the responsibility and formalities that came with his family's money. Then, back to anger…well, she bloody well better get used to it, she was going to marry a Malfoy!
This, of course, led to a goofy smile and a few minutes of daydreaming. Then, back to the beginning.
He was stuck in his mind's never ending loop when the intercom on his desk beeped and the front desk secretary's voice broke through.
"You gotta visitor here up front, Malfoy."
Draco pushed the button, "Be right there. Thanks."
As he left his desk, he straightened his robes. He didn't know who would be visiting him in the middle of the day and didn't want to look sloppy. He pasted on a polite smile and turned the corner to enter the lobby.
The smile dropped into a sneer, "What do you want?"
Ron turned to face Draco and stepped back at the look on the pale man's face. He automatically lifted his hands in surrender as he hurriedly said, "I'm not here to cause any trouble, Malfoy. I just need to talk to you."
"I'm working," Draco said as politely as he could manage. Ron's actions had caused a stir amongst the officers standing nearest them. "Whatever you have to say can wait."
Ron glanced nervously at all the agents and aurors who stood ready to back Malfoy, their hands clearly on their wands, and cleared his throat nervously. Putting his hands in his pockets and then quickly removing them, he asked, "Um, look Mal…Dra…Draco…we…I mean, I…look, can we just go somewhere? Five minutes, that's all I ask."
Draco's sneer became even more pronounced. He wasn't about to give in to Ron's request. He knew it wouldn't take him more than five seconds to lose it and kill him.
His voice was low and controlled, his eyes molten silver in his anger, "Weasley, you have two seconds to get the hell out of my sight, before I…leave now!"
Ron started to speak, but thought better of it and backed away a few steps. Then, with one last glance at Draco, he turned and left.
Draco's anger stayed with him the rest of the day. By the time he got back to the apartment, he was raring for a fight.
Unbeknownst to him, so was Hermione.
He popped into the apartment and called her name. When he heard her moving around in the kitchen he began his story as he flung his robes on the bar.
"You won't believe who had the nerve to show up at work today! Weasley, that ass! He came in and actually thought I would give him five minutes of my time so that he could…"
He stopped when he saw her in the doorway. His first thought Man, she's beautiful when she's angry. The next, Dammit! What now?!
"What?" he asked, his body frozen under her frigid stare.
"I guess the all powerful, rich as Croesus Malfoys didn't take into account something as simple and MUGGLE, as the daily mail!" she sneered.
He backed up a step as she advanced slowly on him, "Mi? What are you talking about?"
"Forget a little something, Malfoy?" she sneered in his face as she waved an envelope at him.
He snatched the envelope out of her hand without looking at it, "Would you just tell me what the hell is going on!" he sneered back.
She put her hands on her hips and glared at him, "Read the return address and take a damn guess!"
American Bank of Wizards
P. O. Box 556677
New York City, NY 10101
"Crap," he said as he finally understood. He'd spent hours trying to find a way to tell her, fearing the entire time that someone would blow it for him. And, then he'd been beaten to the punch by something as simple as a monthly bank statement.
He closed his eyes and tried to think, but the low hiss of her voice made him snap them open.
"Look at me! What is the meaning of this?"
"Mi, love…" he began as he reached for her.
She jumped back from him and tapped her foot, "Don't you 'Mi, love' me, Malfoy. Start talking!"
Suddenly, all the anger Draco had held all day, rushed back to the surface, "What? What do you want me to say, Granger? Can't you read all of a sudden? It's a bank statement!"
"I know it's a bank statement, smartass! Why does it have my name on it? And, what the hell is with that sum?!"
He pushed away from her and paced to the window. When he turned back to her, his face was impassive, "Well, my darling, we all powerful, RICHER than Croesus, Malfoys call that money. You may have heard of it. Galleons, sickles, knuts. Or, should I translate it into muggle for you?!"
She glared at him and he was reminded of the look on her face way back in third year. He prayed she would not try to hit him again.
He braced himself as she slowly made her way across the room to him, "Don't try to be a condescending ass again Malfoy; you don't pull it off well any more! Why is MY name on a bank statement with so many zeroes on it that it looks like there's holes in the paper? And, why is the first transaction a transfer from THEM?!"
He snarled at her, "THEM happens to be my parents. The same ones you entertained here a few weeks ago!"
"Stop trying to change the subject," she screeched. "Why?!"
Ron's visit was completely forgotten as he raged back at her, "Okay, how's this?! My PARENTS thought it would be nice to give us something to make things easier. They were trying to show US how they are okay with everything. They were trying to welcome you, dammit. What are you so angry about?!"
"What am I angr…are you joking?! Welcoming me. Yeah, right! I will not be bought by the Malfoys! I'm not some dumb little bimbo that's impressed by money being thrown at me!"
"I know that!" he shouted. "And, I told Father that when I found out. That's why I didn't say anything about it. I knew you'd go over the edge about. Miss High and Mighty Granger, too good to accept anything from anyone."
She stepped back from his anger, but fisted her hands at her sides, "Don't you dare, you snake! This isn't about me. This is about your damn family trying to control me. And, I will not allow them to…"
He snapped at her, "Dammit, no one's trying to control you, Hermione!"
"Not yet," she fumed. "Just wait! First, they try to buy me with this. The next thing they'll be telling me where I am allowed to work! And, how my children should…"
The conversation he'd had with his father came back to him, so he interrupted her, "Mi, stop."
The anger was gone from his voice and that in itself surprised her enough to jerk to a halt.
He put his fingers to the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes when he continued. "Look, I don't want to fight about this. I've already had this fight a hundred times in my head and I'm tired of it. There's nothing you can say that I didn't say to Father, and there's nothing either of us can do to change it. The money's ours. We can use it or not. OUR choice. They aren't trying to buy you or control anything."
Any more, he thought to himself.
He opened his eyes to look at her, "They just don't know any other way to show their acceptance, okay?"
He watched her turn away and sit heavily on the couch. He waited for a response.
"Malfoy money," she said to herself with a shake of her head.
"I am a Malfoy," he reminded her.
She winced, "I know."
"Gee thanks," he muttered darkly as he turned to face the window. "Father and Blaise both told me the same one thing and I just now realized how true it is. You need to face the fact that I am still Draco MALFOY. I may not be the same selfish, childish, person I was, but I am still a Malfoy. That means I have responsibilities, obligations, a hell of a lot of money, and my family to answer to. If you want me, then you have to accept all of me. It's your turn to bend this time, Hermione."
She looked up at his stiff back. But, before she could think of what to say, he apparated away.
She blinked at the spot where he'd stood and slammed her fist against the sofa. She quickly accioed the phone and began to dial Ginny's number. Before she got to the last number she punched 'End.' Ginny would listen to her, and maybe even sympathize for a moment, but then she would turn practical, as always. She would point out the same things Draco had and Hermione wasn't in the mood for that. She thought about calling Beth or Snoop, but neither would really understand. They didn't share the long history or the pain of the memories. Normally, she would have called Harry or Ron, but she didn't feel right sharing this with Harry. And, there was no way she was calling Ron.
She needed someone to talk to who would listen to her side of things. As was now her habit, she left him a note before she stepped into the fireplace.
"Mommy!" she yelled as she stepped out on the other end.
Her mother came running down the stairs, "Hermione?! Baby, what's wrong?"
Author's Notes –
Every read is a treasure, every review a gift. And, I thank each and every one of you!
And, a warm welcome to the story and additional thank you to the following for adding my story, or me, as a Favorite, or setting an alert for it: gingerkisses9, Dreamshade, Miss November June, MataHari1989, dedanaan, darkmistress16, belle vie cheri, and oufan.