To Be or Not To Be
By cenagurl
A/n: Harry Potter does not belong to me…
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Chapter 3: And All Hell Broke Lose
Draco thought the kids the devil's spawns.
The moment he stepped into the front hall of the Potter's residence, two high-pitched shrieks were heard all over the house, followed by loud bangs and a crash.
"Lillian! Sirius!" came a woman's voice from upstairs. The noise stopped at once, and two kids about four years of age came running from the room on his right, a girl and a boy.
The girl had long black hair and large brown eyes. The boy on the other hand, had flaming red hair which stuck out in different directions, like Potter's had back at school, and bright green eyes.
"Muuuummy!" Lillian screamed. "Sirius took Matilda's head off again, and he tossed it outside the window!" she shot the boy a nasty look, and he stuck out his tongue in response.
Then, as though just noticing their presence, the girl gave another ear-splitting shriek and rushed towards them, a huge smile on her little face.
"Aunt 'Mione!" she chirped, giving a giggle when Hermione scooped her up and twirled her around. Draco watched them in fascination, his heart suddenly racing at the sight of Hermione holding a child so tenderly, with a beautiful smile on her lips.
He wanted to see her hold their child like that.
Now where did that come from? He mentally asked himself. It was not like he was planning on having a baby with her. He still had a family tradition to hold on to, but somehow, he found himself not caring whether she was a mudblood or not. She had saved his mother after all. And she helped him with his costume shopping. That really set her apart from the others.
His train of thought was disrupted when he saw the little boy edging towards him with a naughty look in his eyes. Without thinking, Draco began to back away, shooting an uneasy look at Hermione, who didn't seem to smell the danger.
She was talking animatedly to the little girl, who was listening raptly to every word she said. Hermione's eyes were alight with glee, and mischief as well, and her cheeks were turning rosy from all the excitement. A few locks of curly brown hair had already fallen from her braid, somehow flattering the shape of her face even more. Draco cursed himself for thinking she looked adorable.
Draco's gray eyes snapped back to the boy, who was only a couple of steps from him now. Draco inwardly cringed when his back hit the cool green wall--- a dead end. He looked down at the boy, who was grinning like a rascal now; slowly he inserted his pointing finger in his right nostril, then, as quick as lightning, wiped it on Draco's expensive khaki pants.
Draco bellowed in outrage and disgust just as the boy turned and ran upstairs, laughing maniacally all the way. Hermione and the little girl jumped in surprise, and Draco shot a livid look at her direction.
"The brat," he said slowly, each word punctuated with an angry note. "wiped snot on my pants."
Hermione looked as though she was containing her laughter. She was about to reply when Ginny came bounding the stairs, her vivid red hair flying behind her.
"Hermione! How long have you been here? Harry just left--- the ministry needs him early today--- Malfoy, what are you doing in my house?" Ginny said all these in a single breath. Lillian had wriggled her way out of Hermione's arms and went running towards her mother with a happy shriek, babbling about something Draco had no inking of.
"Oh, he'll be accompanying me and the kids at the amusement park," Hermione said as though it was the most natural thing in the world. Ginny stared at her like she was mad.
"I didn't know you two are… cozy," she said, baffled.
"I'll explain the situation sometime," Hermione said kindly. "Are the kids all set?"
"Will the kids be safe?" Ginny blurted out.
Hermione gave her a surprised look. "Of course they will be. Are you questioning my capability to take care of them?" she demanded, half-joking, half-serious.
"I have absolute faith in you, Hermione. It's your companion I do not trust," Ginny said pointedly, and Draco gave her a cool stare.
"Then your bloody kids won't come with me and Granger. We have better things to do than baby-sit them," he said smoothly, and Ginny glared at him.
"We are taking the kids to the park," Hermione positively growled at him, and he had the good sense to shut up. "He won't do anything to them, I promise to you, Gins," she said.
Ginny reluctantly agreed, and ten minutes later, they were off.
Little Sirius didn't look one bit guilty about wiping snot on Draco; on the other hand, he kept shooting him triumphant looks that made Draco itch to jinx the boy.
"We're going to the amusement park in my world today," Hermione announced cheerfully to the kids as they walked across the street. "So we'll be traveling the muggle-way--- wouldn't that be exciting?"
Lillian nodded vigorously. "Will we be riding a train?" she asked excitedly. "We will be, sweetie," Hermione told the girl gently. She then glanced up at Draco, who was watching her with his intense gray eyes. She blushed at the look he gave her; he smirked in reply.
"Oh, I haven't introduced you yet!" Hermione suddenly said. "Lillian, Sirius, I would like you to meet Draco. Draco, these are Lillian and Sirius. Lillian just turned four last month and Sirius is five years old,"
"Five years, three months and nine days old," Sirius corrected in a bossy voice. "Hi, uncle Dwaco," Lillian said shyly, giving Draco a friendly little smile. Draco decided he liked the little girl.
They crossed a few more streets before arriving at an old bar similar to the Leaky Cauldron. They went inside and went out through the backdoor, right into the muggle world, where Draco saw countless noisy contraptions once again, honking and blaring angrily.
The kids seemed delighted to see these though. "You have a car like that, don't you, aunt 'Mione?" Lillian asked, pointing at a small red car parked at the sidewalk. "Yes, in fact I do," Hermione replied, barely noticing Draco's ashen face.
Sirius noticed it though. "Are you going to throw up?" he asked, his eyes wide with eagerness. "That would be totally cool,"
"No, I am not," Draco bit off, dragging the kid as they walked towards the station. "Aww, too bad," Sirius said. "I guess you still need to eat some of mum's cabbage soup to throw up--- I did twice, and it was icky but fun,"
The child's comment made Draco laugh out loud. Hermione gave Sirius a reproving glance though. "But it's true!" Sirius burst out, and little Lillian nodded empathically at her brother.
"It tastes horrible aunt 'Mione, even dad hates it," Lillian said. "Last night we saw him throw all the soup on his plate outside the window and tell mum he finished it all already,"
Even Hermione smiled this time. The four of them continued an easy conversation as they boarded the train, Draco slowly losing his nervousness and dislike to the boy who besmirched his pants with bogey.
As they stepped out from the train, Lillian had let out a loud shriek as she spotted a candy shop across the street. Hermione then led them to the shop, and let the kids choose the sweets they wanted. Lillian got several lollipops, while Sirius complained.
"Don't they have chocolate frogs here? And where are the acid pops? The cockroach clusters?" he asked loudly, and Hermione shushed him up. The little boy chose a few bars of Mars, then, along with a large bag of M&M's.
"Why don't you pick something, Draco?" Hermione asked, and Draco felt an odd sense of contentment at the sound of his name on her lips. "It's on me, I know you haven't tasted any muggle sweet yet," she added in a whisper.
So Draco picked up a large Butterfinger bar, and Hermione paid all their purchases at the counter. As they went out of the shop, Hermione turned to the kids and said, "Were going to ride a bus now, then we're off to the amusement park," she said, and the children squealed with glee.
Draco was back to looking uncertain again. He had never ridden a bus before, even in the wizarding world.
He was a nervous wreck by the time they were about to board the bus, and Hermione saw how white his face was. "Are you okay?" she asked with concern in her voice.
"Yes," he replied, but he felt very queasy.
"Why don't you eat your chocolate bar?" Sirius asked him as they sat at the back of the bus. "We'll see if it really tastes like fingers with butter,"
Hermione looked horrified at the child's words. "Sirius James Potter, you will not say such disgusting things again. Don't listen to him, Draco," she said as she unwrapped another lollipop for Lillian.
Draco then unwrapped his chocolate bar and took a small bite from it. It tasted heavenly; he took another bite, this time a big one, and continued to munch on it until none was left.
"You look like you're going to eat the wrapper too," Sirius remarked, and Hermione laughed. "I'll buy you more when we reach the park," Hermione promised Draco, who gave a feeble thanks, his face pink.
When they reached the entrance of the park, Draco was greeted by a noisy mob of people milling about, some laughing, some licking lollipops, and some looking ready to throw up. There were vendors everywhere, selling colored hats, stuffed toys, and little souvenirs as well.
"I'm going to buy us tickets, you and the kids wait here okay?" Hermione told Draco, and disappeared before he could protest.
"Uncle Dwaco, I want that dollie over there!" Lillian shrieked, tugging at Draco's hand with her sticky little fingers. It took all Draco's strength not to shout at the little girl for dirtying his hand with a mix of her lollipop and saliva.
"Okay," he said instead, and Sirius lagged behind them as he led the little girl to the shop, looking blissfully at the display of jester hats and bonnets. Lillian pointed the largest doll with long curly brown hair and big brown eyes and Draco asked the vendor for the price.
"I'll give you twenty pounds for that, 'andsome," said the vendor with a flirtatious smile. Draco looked at her quizzically. Twenty pounds? Was she going to hit him for asking the doll's price? Was the doll not for sale?
"I'd like to see you try and pound me, madam. Tell me the bloody price so I can get out of here,"
It was the woman's turn to give him a bewildered look. "Are you on drugs, son?" she asked kindly, and Draco grew more confused. He bit back a retort though.
"Just tell me the price, and I'll pay, okay?" he finally ground out in a calm voice.
"I just told ye, sonnie. Twenty pounds it is,"
Just then, Hermione appeared beside Draco, the tickets clutched in her hand. "Are you going to buy something?" she asked, and Draco nodded. "Lillian wants that doll over there, and this woman tells me she wants to pound me twenty times to get it,"
Hermione looked at him strangely for a moment, then she burst out laughing. She then leaned close to enlighten him.
"Pounds is the currency here in the muggle world," she whispered in his ear, and Draco couldn't help but shiver at her light breath against his lobe.
"I don't have any muggle money with me," he whispered back, embarrassed. "I'll pay for this one first. You can pay me back later," Hermione replied, giving him an impish grin before getting a few wads of cash from her wallet.
"Yay!" Lillian gave an excited shriek as Draco handed her the doll. "Thanks a lot, uncle Dwaco! I'm going to name this dollie 'Mione because she looks like aunt 'Mione,"
Draco examined the doll, and saw that what she said was true. Now he wanted one for himself. He wanted to kick himself for such ludicrous thoughts.
"Shall we come in now?" Hermione asked brightly.
"But aunt Hermione, I want that hat over there," Sirius groused, eyes on the multi-colored jester's hat on the shop across them. "Okay, we'll buy you one," Hermione promised, and the boy's face lit up with joy.
"And I want Lillian and uncle Draco and you to wear one too!" Sirius added with a roguish smile. Hermione smiled in reply while Draco scowled. The hat looked bloody stupid to him, and he'd rather walk naked than put one on his head.
But a few minutes later, as they entered the park, Draco trailed behind them, a deep scowl on his face as he willed himself not to throw the hat he wore away. It was a bloody jester's hat, complete with four small silver bells. He hated it.
"Where would you like to ride first?" he heard Hermione ask the kids, and Lillian, as usual, gave a loud shriek. "I want to ride the ponies over there!" she screamed, pointing at a large, round contraption with horses stuck in the middle, going round and round.
So off they went to the merry-go-round. Lillian wanted a pony to herself, and Sirius sat on a coach with some other kids while munching on his chocolate bars. Hermione and Draco had to share a pony because everywhere else was full; Hermione was sitting in front of Draco, her legs on the side of the horse and her hand on its head.
"Why do people ride here in this stupid fake horses?" Draco asked. "I mean, couldn't they just saddle up real horses? That would be more fun than this,"
"Well, it is safer this way," Hermione told him, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "At least you won't worry about the horse throwing you off or something,"
Draco was acutely aware of how close they were. Her cheek was practically touching his face, and he could smell her hair--- it smelled like vanilla, and it was driving him insane.
"Hermione," he called out softly, loving the sound of her name in his lips. She turned to look at him, surprise visible in her brown eyes.
"You called me Hermione," she said in awe. "Not mudblood, not Granger, not snotty-know-it-all, but Hermione," a huge smile tugged at her lips, and Draco felt as though he was punched in the stomach.
She looked too beautiful that he had the sudden urge to kiss her. It took all his strength to hold back, and he managed in a sort of strangled voice, "And why are you surprised? You also called me by my first name today. Isn't that just fair?"
"I guess so," Hermione replied with a wistful note in her voice. "And I just love the way my name sounds in your lips," she said before she could stop herself. Draco saw heat rise up her face, and he almost laughed at her adorable expression.
Oh, how he wanted to kiss her!
Then, as though reading his dirty mind, the ride suddenly lurched to a stop. "It's over," Hermione said, carefully climbing off the horse. Draco followed, and then they went next to the ride Sirius wanted.
Viking. Draco felt his stomach clench as he saw the people in a very large boat-shaped contraption which swung very high to the left and to the right screaming their heads off in fright, as though someone was cursing them.
"It looks scary, aunt 'Mione," Lillian said, clutching her hand tightly. Hermione gazed down at the girl and said gently, "Don't worry, sweetie, aunt Hermione will be there with you so you have nothing to be scared of,"
Draco took this as an opportunity to escape. "Look, Hermione, why don't you and Sirius just take that ride while Lillian and I stay down here and watch?" he asked.
"I want to ride it now, because I know aunt 'Mione will be there with me," Lillian shrieked, and Sirius said to Draco, "You aren't scared, aren't you?"
"You look pale, Draco," Hermione added, touching him on the arm comfortingly. Draco shivered at her touch, his whole body suddenly alive with emotion. "You can stay here if you don't feel like riding,"
"No, I'll join you," he found himself saying. Why, he had battled powerful wizards at the wizarding world before, so why should he be afraid of an odd contraption? Somehow that thought made him feel a little better.
And so when it was their turn to ride the Viking, Draco sat at the corner, fastened his seat belt, and clutched the rail until his knuckles were white. He was jolted out of his reverie when Hermione laid a warm hand on his cold one on the rail.
"It will be alright, Draco, trust me," she said lightly as she squeezed his hand. "Just hold my hand when you feel scared,"
Draco let go of the rail and clutched her hand instead. Then the contraption began to move, slowly at first, then a little faster and higher. He held on tighter to her hand as his stomach turned at each up and down movement.
"Breathe in when we go up, then breathe out when we go down," Hermione said, and Draco did as he was told. Soon, all his tension began to fade away, replace by thrill and excitement.
As the Viking went up, the people yelled, and as it went down, they screamed--- Draco now realized that it was not of fright, but of enjoyment, of fun. He even joined at the screaming, and he and Hermione laughed until the contraption slowed down again.
Blaise was wrong about the place after all; it wasn't a place Draco would call hell, but heaven.
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After their adventure at the park, Draco and Hermione dropped the exhausted kids back at Godric's Hollow before continuing their shopping spree. They bought the last piece of Draco's costume, the black tights, then Draco offered to treat Hermione dinner before dropping her at her place.
Hermione couldn't keep her eyes off Draco, who, in her whole existence, never thought would be acting this nicely towards her. He had been an immensely enjoyable company that day, making her laugh and feel relaxed. She also couldn't help but notice his roguishly handsome face, and mind-addling smile, which sent bubbly shivers down her spine.
"Wine?" Draco asked, making a gesture towards the cold bottle of wine Madam Rosmerta had given them along with their orders. The soft light emitted by the candle on the table somehow made Draco's face as boyish as it had been when they were still at Hogwarts; somehow the sight made Hermione's stomach flutter, as she suddenly seemed catapulted back in time, when they couldn't stand each other's presence.
So much had really changed in the last two days. Who would have thought she and Draco would become this close? Surely, were they to encounter anyone who knew them back at Hogwarts, they would have squinted up the sky to see if pigs had begun to soar high above.
"Hermione, are you alright?" she was jolted back to reality by Draco's worried voice. "Yes," she replied automatically, heat rising her face in embarrassment. Had she been staring? "I'd like some wine," she added, extending her goblet towards him and he slowly poured an acceptable amount in her glass.
"I'm just curious, but what have you been doing for the past years?" Hermione asked as a start of a conversation. Draco rolled his eyes at her. "As if the Prophet hasn't been gossiping on my life almost everyday," he said sarcastically.
"You can't always trust the Daily Prophet, you know," Hermione told him in a levelheaded voice, taking a dainty bite from her steak. She could feel Draco's eyes on her lips, and she suppressed a shiver. "But did you really break off your engagement with Pansy?" she asked curiously.
Draco nodded, a dark look crossing his face. "She sent hate mail for about a month before I told her I would honestly file a case against her to the ministry if she won't quit," he said.
"Why did you break off the engagement in the first place?" Hermione couldn't help but ask.
"She was a pain in the arse," he answered without a hint of guilt about speaking ill of his ex-fiancé. "Always dragging me shop to shop, forcing me to buy her things, diving for my face for a wet snog in the middle of the street… and the last straw was when she shouted at mum for…" he stopped, his cheeks turning pink.
"For what?" Hermione pressed on, her curiosity piqued. She felt a burst of happiness in her heart that Draco decided not to marry Pansy, who did not seem to change one bit since they were at Hogwarts.
Draco cleared his throat before speaking again. Apparently, he was obviously embarrassed with what happened. "For daring to get close to a mudblood like you," he said in a quiet voice.
Hermione stared at him in utter surprise. Draco broke off his engagement for her? Now that was totally far-off.
"W—why?" she stammered, still reeling from the shock
"She didn't have a right to shout at my mother in the first place. Besides, it's none of her goddamn business as to whom my mother gets close with," Draco said, looking very uncomfortable with the topic.
"And…" Draco continued, when Hermione didn't speak. "were she in your place seven years ago, with my mother in prison, I don't reckon she'd inspire her like you did,"
Hermione felt a warm, tingly feeling flood her at Draco's words. "And what do you think would she have done?" she asked, finally recovering from her astonishment.
"I think she would have whined until one of the Death Eaters' tempers finally snap and decide to perform the killing curse on her," Draco answered, an amused smile tugging at his lips. Hermione's eyes accidentally strayed there a moment longer than intended, and she had this sudden urge to feel it against her fingertips.
"Anyway, enough about me, what have you been doing besides doing the boring job of an auror in the past seven years?" Draco asked, and Hermione fought to concentrate on his words. His lips were too damn enticing to watch in her opinion.
She forced herself to meet his eyes, and when she did, her heart did a somersault. His eyes looked at her questioningly and amusedly, as though he was wondering why she was staring at him so avidly.
"Me?" she managed to say in a high-pitched voice. She always sounded like that when she gets nervous. "My life's been pretty boring, even the Prophet doesn't seem to find it interesting enough for gossiping,"
Draco was eyeing her intently. "Still dating Weasel?" he asked wryly.
"W—what? Heavens, no! Ronald's getting married to Luna this spring," Hermione blurted out loudly.
"Do I detect jealousy in your tone?" Draco scoffed, playing idly with his fork.
Hermione glowered at him. "I was over Ron years ago," she said vehemently. "If you say so," Draco said in easy agreement, taking a sip of wine. That made Hermione all the more furious.
"You don't sound as though you believe me," she said with a glower. Draco grinned devilishly at her. "Why do you care whether I believe you or not?" he asked challengingly, and Hermione blushed.
"I don't, so don't flatter yourself," she told him coolly, and he laughed. "You're a pretty poor liar, Hermione Granger," he said in his drawling voice, and Hermione's heart skipped a few more beats than normal.
"Why do you care?" she shot back at him and he gave a pleased chuckle. "It pleases me," he replied. "At least I'm aware you can't be sneaky on me,"
"I can be sneaky when I want to," she said, resisting the urge to punch away the skeptical look on his face. This man was very confusing! How could she want to kiss and hit him at the same time?
Then, as though reading her mind, Draco commented, "You look as though you're making a particularly difficult decision, like if you're going to hit me or not,"
"I am deciding on it," Hermione admitted, not daring to reveal that she considered kissing him too.
"You know what? I'm also trying to make a decision, and I think I need your assistance," Draco said seriously.
"What is it?" Hermione asked.
"I'm deciding whether I should give in to something I've been urging to do all day," he responded, his gray eyes boring into her confused ones. His gaze then fell on her lips, and she tensed up. Did he want to kiss her?
"It's almost ten, I have to get home," she said, quickly standing up, her face flustered. Draco also stood up, leaving some cash on the table for Rosmerta, before following Hermione out the door, who was walking at an amazingly fast pace.
"Hey, wait up!" Draco called out, walking in large strides to keep up with her. When he managed to get near her, he grabbed her arm and she finally slowed down.
"I can go home on my own," she told him, her face averted away from him so he wouldn't see how red her face was.
"I told you I'd accompany you," he said firmly, and she protested no further. They walked in tensed silence, and slowly, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, Draco's hand moved down from her arm to her hand, which he clasped lightly.
Hermione felt all tingly again at his touch, but she did not ease her hand away. Her house was located at Hogsmeade Village, a pretty little white bungalow with a flowery garden in front.
When they reached her front porch, she finally turned to him and said stiffly, "Thanks,"
She was about to turn away when his intense gray-eyed gaze stopped her. "I've finally decided," he said, taking a step toward her, and Hermione, whose mind went totally scattered, stood rooted on the spot.
"On what?" she asked slowly, stalling.
Draco gave her a look that told her just what he wanted to do. He then reached over and took her face in his hands. The way he looked at her already made her knees weak; what more if he kissed her?
He was slowly leaning his face towards her, giving her all the time to flee. But how in the world could she?
But she had to. She'd be damned if she would let him kiss her.
"I don't think doing this would be a good idea," she blurted out, and Draco stared at her in confusion.
"I'm a mudblood, remember?" she asked hurriedly, trying to pull away from the circle of his arms, but he held her firmly in place.
"The hell I care," he growled in a hard voice that Hermione actually flinched.
"You might not care now, but you will, when things get too complicated," Hermione told him dryly.
"What the hell do you mean?" he asked exasperatedly.
"You won't marry a mudblood," those words tumbled out her mouth before she could stop herself. Draco's eyes widened, then he gave a laugh.
"What in Merlin's name are you talking about?" he asked with a smirk.
Hermione gave him a reproving glare, and he sobered up. "Kissing would lead to sexual arousal. Sexual arousal might lead us to my bed. Your seduction may cause my pregnancy. Were I to get pregnant, I wouldn't be very happy having a child without a father," she told him in a voice that made him think she was talking about their lessons back at school.
Then he laughed again at her wit. "Typical Granger, always thinking of the consequences first before taking action. No wonder the Death Eaters really wanted you dead," he said.
Hermione's dark scowl was her reply to him. Draco leaned over and kissed the frown away from her forehead. She actually let out a sigh, as though she liked what he just did.
"If I would get you pregnant, Hermione, I would stand by my responsibility," he said seriously, and Hermione saw the sincerity in his eyes. He just might be telling the truth.
But that didn't mean she would let him have his way.
"Your mother wouldn't want you marrying a mudblood," she told him pointedly. He scoffed as he said, "Actually, I think my mother would like you very much for an in-law. She was pretty sad when you left her seven years ago to work in Romania,"
"That doesn't mean she would want me as her in-law," Hermione said crossly. "And why are we talking about marriage anyway? I don't even want to marry you," she huffed.
"You started it," Draco reminded her. "Kissing won't lead us to marriage, you know," he added with a roguish grin.
"Didn't you listen to what I've said a while ago?" Hermione asked in frustration.
"Not unless you think I kiss very well that we would want to do more," Draco said triumphantly, and Hermione colored.
"You're an arrogant ass, Draco Malfoy," Hermione seethed.
"I know I am," he said cheerfully. "And you like it,"
"Goodnight," she said briskly, pushing him away, and turning towards the door.
"What, no goodnight kiss?" Draco called out.
Hermione wished she hadn't turned around to face him. He looked so boyishly handsome under the moonlight that it took every fiber of her being to stop herself from jumping on him.
She also wished she hadn't lost herself once more in those limpid gray depths.
"It depends," Hermione found herself saying, and a smile quirked his lips. "On what?" he asked.
"If you would promise not to enjoy too much," she responded.
His smile grew bigger. "I think I should be the one to warn you that, Hermione," he said in a low voice that made Hermione quiver with anticipation.
"Then I'll pass this time," she said after a few moments of tensed silence. "We wouldn't want to end up, married, would we?"
"So we're back to that, aren't we?" Draco said lazily, cocking a brow at her.
"Yes, this conversation is pretty tiring, and it really is late. I'll see you at the ball, Draco," she said, turning away and walking towards her house, not daring to look back again.
She just might end up married if she did.
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A/n: So, do you like it:D Let me know!