Thank you for all the well wishes with my doctor's visit! It really does mean a lot to me. I thought I'd let you all know that I'm working on something new, but I'm not sure when it'll be posted. The biggest problem is I can't decide which pairing I want to do. Draco will be around though!

Chapter 13
Ron waited outside of the Malfoy Group's main office as rain began to fall. It was the second to last place in the world he wanted to be, but talking to Malfoy was a top priority. One fat drop of rain landed atop Ron's head, causing his to curse beneath his breath.

"Okay there, Weasley?"

Ron turned towards the door to find Draco exiting, a black umbrella over his head. "Fine," he muttered, lowering his head as the rain intensified. At Draco's suggestion, he moved under the building's awning to protect himself from the onslaught of the weather. "How's Mione?" he asked, pushing his wet red locks away from his eyes.

For his part, Draco remained calm and cool; not at all like a man having a conversation with a former enemy about the girl he loved who'd divorced the other before learning she was pregnant. "She's good," he told him. "Getting big. She's always hungry or weepy or tired or running to the loo. I, um, she had an appointment at St. Mungo's a couple of days ago, and asked me to come with her. The healers think it'll be about six to eight weeks now before she delivers."

Ron nodded as he listened to the person he should despise speak. But he couldn't bring himself to hate Draco Malfoy anymore. The former Slytherin, a boy who once looked down on both Hermione and himself for their familial backgrounds and allegiance to Harry Potter, now smiled as he discussed the muggleborn witch. Ron found it slightly unnerving that their childhood enemy knew more about his child than he did.

"Can I see her?" Ron asked, cutting Draco off mid-sentence.

Draco closed his mouth immediately and tightened his grip on the umbrella's handle. "Well, I'm certainly not going to stop you," he replied, wondering why it had taken seven months for Weasley to ask. Ron looked at him hopefully, as if waiting for Draco to tell him that Hermione would welcome him with open arms and marry him once more. "She's not exactly happy that you haven't been around though," he added as a warning.

Ron nodded contritely, his gaze averted to his rain-soaked shoes. "I promised I'd try, even asked if she wanted to get back together," he shared. He noticed the frown Draco wore, sure that Hermione hadn't told him about their conversation at the hospital. "She said no, though," he added.

It did little to improve Draco's mood though. She'd mentioned his offer in passing, but had downplayed it as more of an obligation on his part than a desire. But, now as he listened to her ex-husband, he realized Ron believed there was a chance of a reconciliation. Was it his place to inform him of their relationship though?

Shaking his head, Draco motioned for Ron to follow him to the nearest Apparition point. Wordlessly, they entered the house and Draco led Ron to the living room. "What are you doing up?" he asked, surprised to find Hermione reclining on the sofa.

"Needed a change of scenery," she replied. She sat up just enough to kiss him when Draco leaned down to adjust the pillows behind her back. He flashed her a worried look as he straightened up. "The healer said it's fine to move around a bit. I promise I'm not overdoing it."

"Are you feeling okay?" he asked worriedly.

With a smile, Hermione nodded and cupped his cheek. "Nothing to worry about," she replied. "I picked a name today. I've been thinking about it for so long, and then today it just came to me."

"That's great," he replied. "Maybe you can tell me later. There's someone here who wants to speak with you."

Turning her head with a questioning look in her eyes, she spotted Ron lurking in the foyer. He smiled hesitantly at her before she returned her attention to Draco. "Is this some kind of ambush because I can't run away?" she asked.

With a small chuckle, he assured her it wasn't before excusing himself to check on Scorpius. "Good luck," he murmured as he passed Ron on his way up the stairs. The redhead nodded before proceeding into the sitting room. Nervously, he took a seat, perched on the edge of the nearest armchair. Hermione sat up to reposition herself with her feet propped up on the coffee table. Her hands rested on the swell of her stomach as she waited impatiently for him to speak. "You look good," he commented.

Hermione scoffed. "My ankles are swollen, my shoes don't fit, I'm the size of a baby whale, the baby has been pressing on my bladder for the last week, and Draco has a conniption every time I move," she complained. "There's nothing 'good' about this."

"I'm trying here, Mione," he sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"Not hard enough," she retorted, glowering at her ex-husband. "You said you'd try to be a part of this, but I haven't seen nor heard from you in over a month. It won't be this way when she's born. I won't have my child asking why her father is never around. Either you're in this completely, Ron, or you're out."

Ron felt his cheeks warm with anger when she issued her ultimatum. "And how am I to be in when you're with Malfoy all the time?" he demanded, gritting his teeth to keep from yelling. "You turned down Harry and Ginny, Mum and Dad, and me when we offered to help. But then Malfoy comes in and suddenly you're fine with someone else helping. I want to know why. I deserve to know why you seem so willing to let that ferret be the father instead of me."

With a small measure of difficulty, Hermione pushed herself off the couch and got to her feet. "What makes you think you deserve anything, Ronald?" she inquired, fighting back her own urge to raise her voice for fear of waking Scorpius from his nap. "We had a few drinks too many and I got pregnant. That's as far as your involvement has gone. I'm not letting Draco be the father. He's been kind enough from the start to help me because I needed it. There's no ulterior motive, no desire to cut you out of the baby's life. But keep it up, Ron, because you'll accomplish that all on your own." Deciding she was done speaking with him, she left the room to make her way upstairs.

"We're not done, Hermione," Ron warned threateningly. "If I have to, I'll take this to the Minister. I will make sure I see my daughter."

"No one's stopping you," she stated, allowing him to see himself out. When she reached the second floor landing, she spotted Draco coming out of Scorpius's room. "You shouldn't have brought him here," she muttered, entering her own room.