One reviewer said she hoped there would be some Scorpius in this chapter. I hope this makes your wish come true!

This chapter is belatedly dedicated to JaspersBella, which I meant to do on her actual birthday. Sorry, and I hope you like it!

Chapter 18
Hermione was a bundle of nerves when she entered her flat for the first time in months. Draco had seen to it that it was clean and well stocked, and promised to stay the night to help her ease into her new life. She protectively held Joanna in her arms while Draco opened the front door, shifting Scorpius from one side to the other to make his task easier.

He followed her inside and set Scorpius down. The little boy immediately followed Hermione to the sitting room and climbed onto the sofa beside her. "Her's pretty, Mimi," he stated, looking affectionately at the baby. "Why her so small?"

"You were once this little too," she told him. "Your daddy even showed me pictures, and let me just say you get handsomer every day."

Scorpius blushed and leaned up to kiss her cheek. "Love my Mimi," he said when he sat back down.

"Scor, come give me a hand," Draco called from the kitchen as Joanna began to cry.

Mumbling to himself about wanting to stay with Hermione, Scorpius scurried out of the room. Hermione chuckled softly as she fixed her blouse to feed her daughter. She could hear the conversation between father and son happening one room away. Sighing, she settled in as Joanna quieted down.

"Mimi, I back!" Scorpius declared just as Joanna finished feeding. "And Daddy made lunch. Joey can't eat a sandwich though."

When Draco entered with lunch, she flashed him a grateful smile. "Let me just put her down," she whispered as she rocked the baby to sleep. "If Scor needs a nap, you can put him down in my bed."

Draco watched her go as she disappeared into the nursery before turning his attention back to his son. He could remember Scorpius as an infant, fearful that he was so small he'd break. He recalled all the nights he lost sleep, not because Scorpius cried, but because he enjoyed watching him sleep. His first word had been broom, he'd taken his first steps in the foyer of Malfoy Manor, and discovered a penchant for stealing other people's ice cream cones when he was eleven months old.

He was pulled from his reverie, physically, by Hermione. She'd already put Joanna down before pulling him into the nursery. "You did this?" she asked, tears wetting her eyes.

The walls of the nursery had been painted a soft purple with white trim around the door and window. Above the crib hung a mobile populated with small, twinkling fairies that would sing when it was turned on. Joanna Rose was painted in an elegant script against the back wall, decorated with small roses around her name. "I had help," he told her.

"It's beautiful," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Thank you, Draco, for everything. Merlin, I'm not sure I'll ever be able to stop saying that."

He gingerly wiped away her tears and smiled. "I like hearing you say my name," he whispered. "The script on the wall, that was all my mum. She embroidered a pillow for Scor when he was born. He's thrown up on it, spilled chocolate syrup on it, dropped it in the toilet, and pitched it out the window. Thank goodness for cleaning spells."

"This'll be foolproof then," she guessed, turning to look at it once more. "Unless she draws on the wall. In which case I'm sending her to live with you."

Draco chuckled. "You can come see her on weekends," he added. "You know, Mrs. Weasley wasn't too keen on you rejecting her help in favor of mine. Again."

Pulling out of his embrace, she smiled as she exited the nursery. "What can I say? You're better looking."

They returned to the living room to find Scorpius seated on the coffee table with his sandwich resting on his knee. Before either adult could inquire as to why he was where he was, the little boy smiled and offered his explanation. "I couldn't reach the table from the couch, so I moved closer."

Hermione kissed the top of his head and ruffled his hair. "You're too smart," she told him as she sat to eat her own lunch. Draco sat beside her and they spoke amiably until Scorpius announced he was tired.

"I'll put him down," Draco said at the same time as Hermione said, "I should check on Jo."

They met again in the hallway between her bedroom and the nursery, Joanna in Hermione's arms. "Weasley coming by at some point?" he asked, tracing a finger down the baby's soft cheek.

Hermione replied with an uncaring shrug. Ron was the farthest thing from her mind, and it didn't bother her one bit. He'd shown up at the hospital only an hour before Joanna was born, and left soon after he held her for the first time. "I've resigned myself to the idea of going it alone," she finally said. "If Ron doesn't want to be involved, there's nothing I can do to force him."

Scowling, Draco shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. He'd hoped that his talk with Weasley had done some good. Perhaps it hadn't. He hadn't mentioned their conversation to her, but it seemed only right that he did now. Hermione frowned as he spoke, and Draco wondered if she was upset him with or with Ron. "I know it wasn't my place to talk to him. I was just trying to help," he concluded defensively.

"It's fine," she replied softly, her mood hard to read. She returned to the sitting room and settled down on the sofa. Looking up, she saw Draco standing uneasily in the archway. Smiling, she assured him, "I'm not mad at you. I'm not really even mad. It's just...you and Ron always hated each other. Here was your chance to convince him to stay away, but you didn't."

Releasing a deep breath, he joined her. "Sometimes Scorpius asks about his mother," he said. "He asked me once if she didn't love him, if he was the reason she left. I hated lying to him, but how do you tell a little kid that no, your mother never really wanted you? Most of the time he's fine without her, but once in a while he'll ask about her. That's why I told Weasley what I did. I'd hate for Joey to think her father doesn't love her."

"Is it better that he comes around once in a while, whenever he feels like it?" she wondered. "She'll wonder if he doesn't love her then too."

"You know, the last time he mentioned Astoria, a couple months ago, it was right around the time you came to live with us," he told her. "I swear that kid is too smart for his own good. He told me he didn't mind not having her around because he has you, and he knows you love him."

"I do love him," she confirmed as her eyes watered. "He's sweet and smart and loving. Do you remember that day I took him to the Burrow with me? Well, I never told you, but he threatened to kick Ron in the shins if he made me cry. I wouldn't have actually let him do it, but I appreciated it anyhow."

"I feel like, in our own way, we've been something of a family," he said. "And I'm hoping somewhere down the line we can make that permanent."

Hermione smiled. "Are you proposing?" she asked.

He returned her smile with one of his own. "Not yet, but soon."