Title: The Perfect Wife
Author: slytherin-nette
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters you recognize from the HP books in this story. All I own is the plot. Everything else belongs to JK Rowling. She rocks.
Pairings: DM/femHP, RW/LrM, BZ/HG, SB/RV, BM/??, AM/?? and many others.
Warnings: This is a Post-Hogwarts story so it will be slightly more mature than TPG but equally insane. Wahaha. Also, this story contains PREGNANCY, RATED scenes and SLASH relationships.
A/N: To the same STILL unsigned reviewer: I'm REALLY tired of this so I have one last thing to say before I ignore you completely: Get a life. Read an encyclopedia or a goddamn biology/pregnancy book. To everyone else: Aw… I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH! Thanks you for all the wonderful support! Don't worry, I will CONTINUE to write for you guys and I WILL finish this story! You're all wonderful readers! Follow my lead and just ignore that reviewer. Don't let her spoil your fun with the story, mmkay? You all rock! *huggles everyone*
To avoid any confusion, please assume that this chapter occurs at different times THROUGHOUT the first trimester. I apologize if some of the symptoms may seem a bit exaggerated at times but I thought it would make things more entertaining. Hahaha. Enjoy!
Chapter 6 – The First Trimester
"Jaimee…I'd just like to warn you. Pregnancy has been known to…stimulate certain hormones more actively in some women. This may cause sporadic changes in moods or behavior at certain times." Richard Wickham peered curiously at Harry's confused expression where she sat in front of his oak table in his large office.
"What kind of hormones sir? Is it something I should worry about or take medication for?" She asked in mild concern, failing to see the slightly amused smile Wickham was hiding as he wrote into her medical file. He paused, looked up and answered her with a quirky grin.
"Well…Nothing serious, really. You may feel slightly more irritable on some occasions…Especially towards your spouse. You may feel happy one minute or depressed the next – it all varies on the woman, to be honest. Your senses can also be a little more heightened. Also, don't be surprised if your sex drive increases occasionally, it's perfectly healthy."
She blushed slightly at the phrase 'sex drive' and tried to look away from him as Wickham politely pretended not to notice her discomfort. "…And the mood swings, sir? Are they normal or should I warn my friends about them just in case?" She asked, blinking when Wickham merely chuckled to himself at her question.
"Oh I'm quite sure they'll all be aware of the situation, Mistress Malfoy."
Tap-tap-tap-tap! Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap!
Harry's left eye twitched dramatically in growing irritation as she tried to ignore Draco's incessant tapping of the tip of his quill against the surface of his work table from the corner of the room. Clenching her hands into tight fists, she shifted in her seat and tried to focus on the game of chess she and Byron were playing near the fireplace of the large, elegant family room of Malfoy Manor.
It was a lazy Sunday afternoon and she and Draco had spent the weekend in Malfoy Manor that past week – on account of the other family members wanting to congratulate her about her pregnancy. Draco was seated in the far corner of the living room, going through some work-related documents and files while Anton, Reggie, and William were seated and talking amongst themselves by the coffee table near the center of the room.
She and Byron were currently involved in a fierce game of Wizard's Chess for the past hour now and as she tried to concentrate on deciding her next move, Harry heard the annoying, incessant tapping of the tip of Draco's quill against the table again.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-TAP!
Ignoring Byron's confused look at her distracted fidgeting, Harry finally snapped and whirled around from her seat to glare at her unsuspecting, innocent husband from across the living room.
"Draco, do you HAVE to tap that stupid quill so loudly or shall I stuff it down your throat?!" She snapped irritably, causing the Malfoy Head to freeze in shock before he slowly looked up from his work documents and leveled her with a confused, incredulous gaze over his reading glasses.
"…Excuse me?"
Harry sneered at him and glared right back, her hand already itching to grab her wand from her pocket and hex her former rival with a nasty curse. "You HEARD me, Malfoy! I'm trying to bloody concentrate here and I can't do it with you tapping that BLOODY quill every five seconds!" She growled louder, causing Draco's eyebrows to fuse together in utter bewilderment as he slowly – and very cautiously – set his quill down and raised his hands up at her in a mocking 'I surrender' pose.
She glared at him as he did this; her eyes narrowed into slits as Draco warily adjusted his reading frames and set back to reading his work documents in confused, meek silence. Anton saw this from where he sat and couldn't help making an amused comment.
"Jaimee, Draco was way on the other side of the living room. You heard him tapping his quill from all the way over there?" He asked in confusion but he bit his lip the minute Harry's glare lifted from Draco and flicked over to him. One look into those blazing green eyes was all it took for Anton to cringe and offer her a sheepish shrug.
"B—but…Yeah…He was kind of irritating. I have to agree. I'm glad you told him off. Ehehe." Anton ignored the death glare he received from Draco as he turned back hastily to a smirking William and Reggie and initiated another conversation before Harry could say anything else.
Harry failed to see the amused grin on Byron's face was she turned back to their chess game and made her move. The metamorphagus looked as though he was having difficulty holding in his laughter when he saw the utterly bewildered; questioning expression Draco sent him from over Jaimee's shoulder. Ignoring this, he turned back to Harry and gave her an innocent smile.
"Your move, Harry."
She nodded in acknowledgment and moved her knight several squares forward before leaning back against her seat and waiting for Byron. As the dark-haired Malfoy mulled over his chess pieces, Harry flicked her eyes back up and stared curiously at her husband once again from several feet away.
Draco looked intent on a particular piece of parchment and was taking a long sip from his mug of coffee. After he did this, he set his cup back down gently onto the table, readjusted his glasses and flipped over to the next set of documents on his table.
"Draco?"
The former Slytherin froze at the unreadable tone of her voice and slowly lifted his eyes up from his documents to meet hers. Byron, Anton, Reggie and William all looked up and watched the impending scene with identical smirks hid carefully behind their hands.
"..What, Harry?"
Draco's response sounded cautious and wary. He lifted a single eyebrow and gave his wife an expectant gaze as he waited for her response. Harry still looked remotely curious as she shrugged to herself and leaned back against her seat, crossing her arms over her chest.
She cast a brief glance at Byron again to make sure he was still concentrated on their chess game – to which Byron responded to by hastily flicking his eyes back at his pieces – before she turned back and gave Draco a strange, nonplussed look.
"Were you….you know…always this irritating before we were married?" Her tone of voice had sounded so nonchalant and inquisitive that Draco's eyes widened in utter bewilderment and the documents he held slipped from his hand onto the carpeted floor.
"…What?!"
This time, Byron couldn't prevent the snort of laughter that had escaped him and he masked it by a coughing several times. Anton had sniggered while Reggie and William had both looked away at this scene and pretended to busy themselves with staring at the large fireplace in front of them.
Jaimee shrugged and lazily crossed her legs, looking back up and giving Draco another questioning look. "For some reason…I can't explain it. Your very presence just…irritates me. I don't know…It's just that…You're there…You're tapping too loudly… Moving too slowly…Sipping too damn noisily. Moving too much. I can't help it." She said out loud, causing Draco's hackles to rise further at the sheer lack of logic in her explanation.
His temper got the better of him at this comment and he was just about to snap something back at her when William caught his eye from across the room. The youngest Malfoy son gave him a sympathetic smile, gestured frantically to Harry and mouthed the single word 'hormones'.
Understanding what he meant, Draco reluctantly – with as much self-control as he could possibly muster – squelched the insult that was forming in his head and narrowed his eyes at Harry instead. He stood up and began gathering his things from the table. "If it helps, Potter, I am not TRYING to irritate you in any way." He muttered through clenched teeth, forcing himself to walk away.
He heard her laugh derisively behind his back. "Oh really? Then you just really seem to have such a natural talent for it." She quipped and this time, Reggie, Anton AND William all had to glare at him in warning when Draco had whirled around and raised one of the books he held in his hand in an attempt to hurl it right at his wife's smirking, pretty face.
Byron was practically choking with laughter now as Harry finally turned back to their game in silence, ignoring the way Draco was muttering the most interesting curse words under his breath as he walked to the very far end of the room where he was sure Harry could on longer hear him.
As soon as he had sat down on another table and laid his things out once more, Harry spoke up again in the middle of reaching for her knight piece. "Bloody hell! You did it again! Can you BE MORE QUIET with that, Draco?!" She snapped again in a louder voice.
The sight of Draco growling and practically tearing out his hair in exasperated frustration finally made the other Malfoys crack up as Anton, William and Reggie all burst out laughing. They watched in heavy amusement as Draco slammed his fist against the table, grabbed his stuff and stormed out of the living room towards his private office.
As soon as the Malfoy Head was gone, Harry's fierce, irritable glare suddenly shifted until she was glaring very silently at Anton, William and Reggie on the couch. She waited for them to acknowledge her as they continued to snigger amongst themselves for several more seconds. It was Reggie who noticed her glaring first and the minute he did, his laughter died in his throat and he nudged Anton and William sharply to get their attention.
Unfortunately, Harry's next few words cut off the rest of their hilarity. "Seriously. LAUGH HARDER, guys. You already sound like a pack of hyenas; do you want me to transfigure you all into one?" She threatened dangerously and one look at the daggers in her eyes was all it took for all three Malfoy sons to stop laughing and simultaneously bolt up from the couch in panic.
"I—I think I have to go do something in the kitchen." Anton rushed out as he gave Harry a nervous smile before scampering out of the living room. Reggie and William both excused themselves the same way and scurried off after him – leaving a completely oblivious Byron in the room staring intently at his chess pieces as he contemplated his next move.
"I wonder why there were in such a hurry." Harry thought out loud to herself as she turned back to their game. It took about five more minutes of blissful silence before Byron made a final move with his bishop and exclaimed loudly as he jumped up from his seat in triumph.
"CHECKMATE! I win again, Harry! Hah! I TOLD you I'm unbeatable! Or maybe you just SUCK." He gave another loud, ecstatic cheer and began dancing around the room – stopping only seconds later when he realized that Harry had fallen silent and was staring at the chess board in shock.
Byron stiffened immediately when he noticed the expression on her face. She had looked up at him and gave him a wan, shaky smile. "Congratulations, Byron…I can't believe I lost for the third time. You must really be good at this game." She blinked and cast her eyes back at the chessboard and unknown to Byron, the emerald orbs suddenly grew misty with unshed tears.
"You bet I am, Harry! I didn't graduate top of my batch for nothing! Fancy another round before dinner—" The metamorphagus was grinning and was about to challenge her to yet another game as he sat down when Harry finally buried her face into her hands and promptly burst into tears.
"Y—you're right…I must really SUCK at this game! I feel so bloody stupid!" She sniffed to herself, her voice breaking and the expression on her face looking so heartbroken that Byron shot out of his chair again and began frantically waving his arms at her in panic.
"N—n—now hold on a second, Harry! I—I was only kidding… Th—that's unfair! Y—you can't do this to me – you can't pull the p—pregnant woman bit on me! I w—wouldn't know what to do w—with a crying pregnant woman! I don't even know what to do with normal crying women!" He practically circled idiotically around her in a helpless panic before belatedly realizing he had a handkerchief in his robes. He handed it to her and stepped away when she snatched it out of his hands.
Harry buried her face into it and continued to cry louder – her soft sobs echoing down the silent hallway. "I—I'm sorry! I d—don't know why I'm crying…B—but I—I can't stop…" She sniffed again and her shoulders shook with sobs as she dabbed her eyes repeatedly with his handkerchief.
Byron was eyeing her with a very cautious grimace and looked as though he was watching a ticking bomb that was on the verge of explosion. "Y—you okay? You going to be okay like that, Harry? C—Can I go now?" He asked shakily, his eyes wide with uncertainty.
Harry lifted her face from the handkerchief to answer him but the minute she opened her mouth, another trembling wail came out. "I really DO suck at this! Ron used to beat me at chess all the time too…I never won against him either! I—In fact…I NEVER won at Wizard's Chess! I suck! I'm horrible at this game!" She ended up crying again and this time, Byron finally stepped back from her and began backing away towards the hall.
"R—right then…Ehehe…L—let me just— DRAAAACO!!!!" He broke out into a run near the end of his sentence, his loud cry for help echoing through the long, silent corridors of Malfoy Manor.
He returned moments later with an irritated and furious Draco at his heels. The minute the Malfoy Head reentered the living room and saw the heartbroken expression on his crying wife's face, his silver eyes flashed dangerously and riveted to glare darkly at Byron's sheepish, apologetic grin.
"Byron…WHAT did you DO?!" He growled dangerously, the looming threat in his voice unmistakable as he rushed forward and gathered a sobbing Jaimee into his arms. She immediately buried her face against his chest and began crying against him, unaware of the way he was still glaring at his nervously smiling cousin from over her shoulder.
"BYRON—"
The metamorphagus was already backing away and heading towards the door. "Well, it looks like everything's going to be okay now. So I'm just going to go—"
"WHAT did you do?!"
Byron cringed again and ducked his head sheepishly behind his hand. "We were playing chess and I beat her and she just started crying—"
"You played a game against a PREGNANT WOMAN?!"
"—t—then I accidentally teased her about sucking at chess and then she just started crying and I didn't know what happen—"
"You told a PREGNANT WOMAN she SUCKED at CHESS?!"
Harry flinched when she heard Draco's angry shouts and immediately pulled away so she could look up at him – her lower lip trembling and her eyes wide and teary like a child's. "A—are you mad at me, Draco? I—I'm sorry…" She began to cry again and this time, Draco's immediately forgot all about Byron and cringed to himself as he hugged her to his chest again.
"N—no, love…I wasn't shouting at you. Shhh…Don't cry." He mumbled awkwardly – obviously not used to feeling of comforting a crying woman before in his entire life that all he could think of doing was patting her lamely on her back and stroking her hair.
Byron took that opportunity to back away again and give Draco one last, nervous smile. "I—I think I hear a call from somewhere. I—I'd better get going, Draco…Ehehe…I'll see you—"
"Funny. I don't hear anyone calling you, Byron." Came Draco's threatening, deadpan response but Byron shook his head laughed hastily as he finally reached the door.
"You wouldn't. The call's from….God." Byron had already scrambled the hell out of there before Draco could even blink at the utter insanity of his response. As soon as they were left alone, Jaimee's sobs seemed to calm down within the next couple of minutes and she sniffed softly, tilting her head up so that her face was turned towards his neck.
Draco dropped a feather-light kiss onto the top of her head and wrapped his arms tighter around her slender frame in a silent gesture of comfort. He held her like that for about a couple more minutes before he realized that Jaimee was no longer crying and was now more concentrated on nuzzling his neck and purring softly in appreciation.
"Mmmm….You smell sooo good, 'Co…I could just eat you up…" She chuckled softly as she brought her arms up to wrap around his neck and she pulled herself closer against him, her lips already pressing several searing kisses onto the pulse point of his neck in growing desire.
Draco immediately stiffened and blinked several times, staring down in shock as his pregnant wife had now apparently forgotten about crying altogether and was now more intent on licking and sucking very heatedly at his neck. Cautiously untangling his arms from around her waist, Draco placed them squarely on her slim shoulders and pushed her back gently so he could stare at her face.
Her cheeks were flushed heavily in desire and her eyes were glowing with lust as she stared hungrily at him, her breaths coming in short, shallow gasps. At the wary look he gave her, she bit her lip, smiled seductively and began coyly unbuttoning the top buttons of his shirt.
"H—Harry…? What are you doing?"
"What does it look like…?"
She smirked mischievously at him and answered him by very boldly moving up and straddling his lap on the couch, eliciting a panicked, high-pitched squeak from Draco as he flinched and turned wide, panicked eyes to the living room entrance in case one of his family members walked in.
"Harry! Are you mad?! First I'm ANNOYING and now you're practically jumping me?! We're in the FAMILY ROOM for Merlin's sake! My parents are just downstairs!" He hissed frantically at her, flushing in imminent arousal as Jaimee merely giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. She ignored his attempts to pull away and began to grind her hips against his, causing Draco's eyes to widen even more as he felt himself harden instantly at her ministrations.
Sensing his body's immediate reaction to her movements, she grinned wider and promptly shoved one hand into his pants, causing Draco to meep loudly and attempt to push her away. "Potter, STOP IT! Not HERE and you're going too bloody fast!" He protested, trying to move away.
She ignored him and leaned back down to suck at his neck again, successfully causing the blonde's pupils to dilate instinctively in lust as he heard the groan that escaped his own lips. She stuck her hand insistently down the front of his pants and in his haze; Draco almost forgot to push her away.
"Damn it, Potter!" Draco made one last attempt to push her off his lap but the minute she moaned and leaned down to catch his lips in a fierce, hungry kiss, he forgot all about his protests altogether and found his own hands snaking down to squeeze her bottom from underneath her skirt.
The minute he did this, Harry seemed to smile in triumph within their intertwined lips and pushed a helplessly aroused Draco back onto the couch. She ignored any of his feeble protests and silenced them with another kiss right before she pounced on him with the stealth of a female tiger.
"………W—wait! N—Not so fast, Harry! STOP! HARRY!"
"—frequent urination may be a problem as well so don't panic if you find yourself going to the bathroom quite often. I suppose I won't need to elaborate on the occasional bouts of nausea and morning sickness. You may also feel a bit more—" Wickham paused and fused his eyebrows together carefully as he tried to form the words of his next sentence.
"—let's just say, responsive towards the opposite sex. Men who may not normally be attractive to you may suddenly catch your eye – it's just your hormones talking, really. Also—"
"So you're saying I'll be…randy a bit more?" Harry asked in horror, her raspy voice cutting off the rest of Wickham's drawn out explanation as she glared at him from across his table. The Head Healer bit his lip and gave her an awkward, uncertain cringe.
"I suppose that's—"
"But then it's like I'll be in heat! That's not right, is it?!"
Wickham looked extremely uncomfortable as he met her gaze. "In a manner of speaking."
Vincent Ashford looked up from his table across the semi-transparent walls of his office to see Harry walking out of her office for the third consecutive time for the last fifteen minutes that morning. Shaking his head and telling himself to ignore her, he flicked his eyes back to the papers he held in his hand and continued to read them in thoughtful silence.
He was distracted once more about ten minutes later when another familiar moment caught his eye and he looked up to the sight of Harry crossing the entrance of his office again as she made her way back to the bathrooms. Feeling a little irritated, Vincent clenched his hands into fists and pretended to ignore her – finally snapping another minute later when Harry reemerged from the bathrooms and made to cross his office again to get to hers.
Vincent finally slammed his fist against the table and flicked his blue eyes up at her.
"…POTTER!"
Blinking in innocent confusion, Harry paused in the middle of walking across his office entrance and turned to look at him with a wary smile. "Y—yes, sir? Was there anything you wanted?" She asked uncertainly as she walked cautiously into his office and nervously bit her lip.
Vincent leveled her with a fierce glare and tapped his wand impatiently against his desk before speaking. "Potter, what the hell? You've been walking back and forth from your office to the bloody bathroom for the past THIRTY minutes. It's DISTRACTING! Can't you stay in one place?" He drawled, narrowing his eyes at her as Harry reddened and answered him with a helpless shrug.
"I can't help it, sir…These babies seem to think my bladder is a squeeze toy or something because I end up going to the bathroom every ten minutes." She answered him bluntly, hiding a smirk when the anger froze on her boss' face and was immediately replaced with awkward comprehension.
"I…See…"
Feeling a little bit mischievous, Harry grinned to herself and couldn't help making the Head Unspeakable even more uncomfortable with her next chosen words. "It gets really troublesome, sir. Really early in the morning, I end up getting the worst morning sickness and throw up all the time. Do you know anything about it, sir?" She asked him curiously, hiding a smirk when Ashford gave her another awkward grimace and shook his head.
"Er…No, Potter. I don't. Why don't you go back to your office now?" He nodded to her and sighed in relief when she happily sauntered back away and did as he said. As soon as she was gone, Ashford shook his head to himself and dipped his quill into a bottle of black ink.
"Forgot the git was bloody pregnant…This is why I'm gay." He muttered irritably to himself as he turned back to his documents and began affixing his signature on each one. For about fifteen minutes, he was able to work continuously without any unwanted distractions.
He was just about to start on another batch of documents that needed his signatures when another sharp movement caught his eye and he sighed, looking across his office to see Harry standing up from her table and grabbing her jacket. The female Unspeakable looked as though she was just about getting ready to leave that Vincent had to check his watch to make sure it wasn't lunch time before he got up to call her.
"POTTER! GET IN HERE!"
Another innocent smile was on Harry's face as she whistled and walked over to his office, shoving her hands into her jacket pockets. She met his angry, irritated glare with a wide grin and shrugged expectantly at him when she reached the front of his desk.
"What's up, boss? Do you need anything?" She blinked up at him in confusion as he loomed over her form in annoyance. His eyes pointedly inspected her jacket and the bag she had slung over her shoulder before he raised an eyebrow at her in question.
"And just where do you think you're going? It's 10:30AM! Lunch time doesn't even start for another hour and a half. You know you're not allowed to leave the office without my permission." He drawled slowly, his eyes narrowing when Harry answered him with a sheepish smile.
"Yes, I know that sir…But you see, a month ago I ate this really REALLY delicious sweet-thing from Japan while I was there on an assignment and for some strange reason, I really want to eat it again. I'm about to go out and buy some." She rushed out impatiently, causing both Vincent's eyebrows to practically disappear into his scalp when he heard her words.
"Japan? You mean you're going all the way to Japan in ASIA because you want to buy sweets?!" He asked incredulously, his eyes wide and his voice cracking in disbelief when Harry simply nodded in affirmation and gave him another bright smile.
"They're called Manju, sir. They're really good, I promise! I'm planning to buy about a couple dozen boxes when I get there, I'll let you try some!" She was just about to turn around and walk out of his office again when Vincent finally snapped out of his shocked trance.
"Potter! I am NOT about to let you use the Ministry's International Floo network to buy bloody SWEETS!" He growled, slamming his fist against his table and causing the female Unspeakable to jump in surprise. When she recovered, she blinked up at him and scowled childishly.
"But SIR! I really MUST EAT THEM! I can't concentrate!"
Vincent looked at her as though she was the stupidest person alive. "You MUST EAT them?! That's ridiculous! What do you think this department is, Potter?! What do you take ME for?! We are the Department of Unspeakables and we have not got TIME to let you go off to Japan to buy your bloody sweets! There is work to be done and there are lives to be saved! I will not have you waste time—"
Harry raised a single finger and gave her ranting boss another sheepish smile. "Sir, do you mind holding that thought for a minute? I have to go to the bathroom again." She didn't bother waiting for his reaction as she whirled around and scurried off; unaware of the way the Head Unspeakable's face had frozen in a cringe that was a mixture of incredulity and annoyance.
"What the bloody hell…?"
As soon as she returned, Vincent blinked himself out of his sputtering shock and cautiously directed his gaze at her again, clenching his hands into fists when he noticed that she was merely smiling innocently up at him as though nothing happened.
"So can I go now, sir?"
Vincent felt like shouting at her as he slapped a hand against his forehead and stifled the curse words that wanted to escape his lips. Before she could say anything else, he shot her one last glare and finally collapsed back down onto his seat in wearied exasperation.
"Go back to your office, Potter! NOW! Before I decide to give you even MORE workload and you'll be pulling overtime all WEEK!" He snapped threateningly, ignoring the displeased scowl on her face as she looked down imploringly at him again. She remained exactly where she was standing, crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a stubborn glare.
"Sir, I hardly think you're being fair. I—"
"I SAID GO BACK TO YOUR OFFICE, POTTER!"
Harry blinked at him, her bright green eyes involuntarily flicking down to focus intently on the muscles along his stomach that were seen slightly through the material of his shirt. Raising a single eyebrow, she tilted her head slightly to the side in thought.
"You know you look really good in that shirt, sir…It shows off your amazing stomach muscles."
The moment those words had left her lips, she saw Ashford's eyes practically bulging out of their sockets in stunned dismay.
"….I beg your pardon, Potter?"
Harry instantly flushed and tore her eyes away with a nervous laugh. Pretending to look interested in the wall behind his desk, Harry began whistling loudly to herself and ignored the horrified expression on the Head Unspeakable's face.
"….Were you just checking me out?!"
Instead of answering his shaky question, Harry flicked her eyes back up to his pale face and gave him another angelic smile.
"…May I go to Japan now, sir?"
Ashford felt like screaming and yanking all his hair out in his utter frustration.
"NO, YOU MAY NOT GO TO JAPAN! WHAT DID I JUST BLOODY SAY, POTTER?!" He exploded, grabbing his jacket and cautiously pulling it over himself before the hormonal pregnant woman in front of him could make any more lewd observations about his body.
She blinked at him for several times before she calmly took the seat across his desk, crossed her legs and gave him a calm, thoughtful smile. "Have you ever been pregnant with twins, sir…?" Her voice sounded so deceptively sweet that Ashford stiffened and backed away from her as he answered.
"….I'm a man, Potter."
Harry nodded in careful understanding, folding her hands neatly on his table and pretending to mull over in her head what she was going to say next. "Exactly. You've never been pregnant before because you're a man…A rather loud, irritating one at that, if I may say so myself." She paused to laugh lightly at the indignation on his face before she continued.
"Now…I don't know if you know, sir…But I used to be a man myself before three years ago when a bloody potion changed me into a woman. Now…As a woman with a past male background of 17 years, you realize this is all rather very DIFFICULT for me right now…?" She paused again and looked up at him, noting the definite cringe of anticipation on his handsome face.
"Well noted, Potter…"
She gave him a beautiful, saccharine smile. "Thank you, Sir. Now. Do you, by any chance, also realize that by DENYING me the chance to go buy the one thing that I am UTTERLY CRAVING FOR at this particular moment…That you are, in fact, DENYING me the one thing that might make me feel better today amidst a malfunctioning bladder, a truckload of BORING unfinished reports sitting on my desk – which I threw up on awhile ago, mind you – and the urge to practically jump every godforsaken male in this room?!" She said this all in a fast, straight and perfectly coherent sentence.
A stunned Vincent blinked once and cautiously began to move his chair backwards away from her in growing nervousness. "I realized that now, Potter—"
"Oh good, Sir! That's very good! Then you might also need to realize AGAIN that – I AM BLOODY PREGNANT WITH TWO BABIES, YOU STUPID, INSENSITIVE BASTARD!"
Ashford let out an involuntary meep of fear and practically jumped back out of his seat when Harry's voice had suddenly risen to a loud, angry shriek that echoed along the walls of his entire office. He stumbled clumsily away from her growling form as she shot out of her seat, slammed her palms down onto his table and began to descend on his cowering figure.
"HOW WOULD YOU LIKE IT IF I SHOVED SOMETHING UP YOUR ARSE AND KEPT IT GROWING THERE FOR NINE BLOODY MONTHS?! YOU'RE LUCKY YOU'RE STILL A STUPID MALE SO YOU DON'T EVEN UNDERSTAND HALF THE HELL A PREGNANT WOMAN GOES THROUGH! SO DON'T YOU BLOODY DARE TELL ME YOU WON'T ALLOW ME TO GO BUY MY SWEETS BECAUSE YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING, YOU STUPID SON OF A MONKEY-EATING, GOAT-FACED BANSHEE!"
Vincent's jaw was gaping uselessly and his eyes had gone incredibly wide with terror as he stared up at her seething form, his face pale and frozen in an expression of stunned panic. All of the other Unspeakable agents around the entire department had also frozen in their seats and were watching the rare scene of the arrogant Head Unspeakable being screamed at by a very pregnant Jaimee with a mixture of amusement, disbelief and hilarity written on their faces.
Several offices away, Byron was having a difficult time trying to hold in his laughter when he saw the dumbfounded expression on Ashford's face. Normally, he would have gone over there to try and help calm his cousin-in-law down but apparently, Harry had yet to finish her hysterical tirade.
"—AND I WANT TO EAT MANJUS RIGHT NOW! I'M A MALFOY TOO AND I'M BLOODY CARRYING TWO OF THEM SO I DESERVE TO GET WHAT I WANT! RIGHT NOW!" Her screaming ended abruptly as she paused, blinked and took a long, calming inhale of air.
She let out an exhale, glanced back up at Ashford's unmoving, unblinking form seated behind his desk and suddenly rewarded him with another sweet, bright smile.
"…So may I go now, sir?"
The Head Unspeakable was looking at Harry in a way that could only be described as the way a normal man would look at a fire-breathing dragon. Pale and his eyes completely dazed, Vincent managed to lift a single, shaking hand and gestured weakly to Spencer from across the hallway.
"You called, sir…?" Spencer asked cautiously as he entered Ashford's office, his hazel eyes riveting sharply to Harry as she turned around in her seat and welcomed him with a bright smile.
Ashford was obviously still in speechless shock as he pointed a trembling finger at Harry. "A—Addison…N—new assignment. Go with Potter. S—see that she gets what she wants." He croaked out in a nervous, raspy voice, wincing and flinching sharply away when Harry jumped out of her seat.
"Thank you so much, sir! Come on, Spence!" She gave the Head Unspeakable a cheerful smile over her shoulder right before she seized the other Unspeakable by his robes and dragged a slightly reluctant Spencer out of the office. Vincent watched them leave in silence, his face still incredibly ashen as he reached a single hand up and shakily loosened the collar of his robes.
From the entrance, the rest of the smirking Unspeakable agents heard Harry and Spencer's rather amusing conversation just as they were exiting the department's premises.
"Mmm… Spence, are you using new cologne? You smell like vanilla…"
"………I'm GAY, Harry."
"—appetite may vary sporadically. You may find yourself constantly hungry no matter how much you seem to eat. Try to eat as much healthy food as you can for the sake of your twins, it's important they get enough nourishment."
Harry cringed to herself and gave Wickham a sheepishly innocent smile. "Sir…Being pregnant means that I can't drink any kind of liquor or alcohol right?" She asked, laughing nervously as Wickham's eyes snapped up and leveled her with a fierce, pointed glare.
Biting her lip, she quickly averted her gaze and fidgeted with her thumbs on her lap.
"I knew that."
Ron and Hermione shared a look of both disgust and amusement across the table as they watched Harry scoop copious amounts of practically every dish spread out on the table onto her plate. She ignored their muffled chuckles as she grabbed several muffins from a nearby serving dish and stuffed a small chocolate one right into her mouth.
The three of them were currently eating lunch right in the middle of the large Ministry cafeteria that afternoon. Many of the passing officials were giving them curious stares as they passed – no doubt shocked at the hulking amount of food on the female Unspeakable's plate.
When she heard Hermione giggling to herself, Harry narrowed her eyes and gave her an irritated glare. "Mrarghh? Mrarghh shoo fuhhnny?!" She snapped, her words muffled as she accidentally sprayed Ron with bits of muffin from her mouth.
Wiping his face in mild annoyance, Ron blinked and answered her by handing her a table napkin. "Hungry much are you, Harry…?" He asked in amusement as he leaned back against his chair and watched as his pregnant best friend began wolfing down her food in a matter of seconds.
Harry gave them both an indignant glare, chugged down an entire glass of water and slammed it back down onto the table. "HEY! Don't you DARE judge me! I'm eating for THREE, remember?! You eat like this just to fill yourself, Ron!" She snapped, glaring at her laughing best friend just before she began gnawing on a piece of chicken leg.
Hermione laughed at the expression of dismay on Ron's face and handed Harry another glass of water. "She's right, Ron. Don't tease her. There are TWO growing boys inside her right now who need a lot of energy so it's natural she eats like this. To think I had it bad when I was carrying Elliot… It must be so hard for you to be carrying twins, Harry…" She gave the other girl a sympathetic smile but Harry just shrugged and shoved another muffin into her mouth.
"It's not that bad yet, 'Mione. If anything, at least Draco can't fight back with me in my current state." She smirked at this and happily began to refill her plate with more food. Ron made a face at her words and shook his head. "Ugh…I can't believe you're carrying children that are half-human and half-FERRET." He kidded, causing both Harry and Hermione to laugh at his quip.
"I remember when I had those sporadic appetite moments. It was horrible! I felt like whatever I ate, I just couldn't seem to stop because I was still hungry! It was like having a bottomless pit in my stomach or something…" Hermione mused to herself with a small thoughtful smile, watching as Harry paused and took another long swig of water.
Ron snorted in mild amusement and began filling up his own plate with food as well. "You bloody women need how to learn to eat a lot more anyway. By the way, how are those mood swings coming along, mate?" He asked with a knowing grin, waiting until Harry looked up at him in thought for a moment before shrugging dismissively in response.
"You know, I haven't really had any yet…Strange, huh?" She chuckled as she raised another forkful of food to her lips. Ron gave her an impish grin and shook his head. "Can I please be there when you start snapping at Malfoy, then?" He asked, eliciting another easy laugh from Harry when she heard the boyish excitement in his voice.
Hermione ignored their antics and blinked at Harry in disbelief. "Are you positively sure about that, Harry? I talked to Ashford a couple of days ago and he mentioned something about—"
Harry cut her off Hermione's question rather abruptly when she raised a single finger, sniffed and looked at Ron's plate with wide, horrified eyes. Hermione's eyebrows immediately fused together in concern and she rose up from her seat to grasp her pregnant best friend worriedly on the arm.
"What is it, Harry? Are you feeling okay? Do you feel dizzy—"
"Is that LIVER?!"
Ron jumped in surprise at the hissed anger in Harry's voice. She had directed her question at him and leveled him with an accusatory glare. Glancing nervously up at her angry features, he answered with a confused look and a noncommittal shrug.
"Yeah, it is. Do you want some—" Harry raised a single finger again in a gesture for him to stop talking. Her face turning green with disgust, she gave Ron another dirty glare before she quickly grabbed a paper bag out of her pocket, bent over the side of the table and retched right into it.
"EWWWWW…Harry!"
Hermione and Ron both cringed in disgust and turned away as Harry sat back up and wiped her mouth. She flicked her wand and promptly levitated Ron's plate of liver right up into the air, dumping it carelessly into a nearby trashcan in the corner of the cafeteria.
Ron scowled at her in annoyance. "Hey! I was still eating that—" He cut himself off when he found himself staring right into Harry's dark, blazing green eyes. "—b—but that's okay because I was just about done! Ehehe! No worries!" He shoved a forkful of potatoes into his mouth and looked away, hoping that Harry would take the hint and leave him alone.
Unfortunately, the next few words that came out of his pregnant best friend were ones that even Ron could never have anticipated in his life. "Ron, did you know that the muscles on your arms are really well-defined? Hmmm. I can't believe I never noticed before." Harry mused nonchalantly, tilting her head to the side as her eyes fell upon Ron's left upper arm.
Hermione had to choke down the laugh that threatened to escape her when Ron instantly began choking on the food he had just swallowed and gaped up at Harry as though she had grown an extra head. Harry's cheeks had flushed in embarrassment when she realized what she had just said and she hastily tore her eyes away from the sputtering redhead.
Ron shot up from his seat, practically hyperventilating, and looked down at Harry with his eyes bulging out of his sockets. "Have you officially gone MENTAL, Harry?!" He croaked out, his loud voice causing several heads in the Ministry Cafeteria around them to turn in mild curiosity.
For her part, Harry looked as though she had just swallowed a flobberworm and was trying to choke down her embarrassment by munching heatedly on another muffin. "Oh Merlin's bloody beard… I just hit on RON. What in Merlin's name is wrong with me…?" She mumbled miserably under her breath, causing Hermione muffle more laughter when Ron gaped and sat back down in an angry huff.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he scowled and gave Harry a discontented glare. "Hey! I resent that! Just what is THAT supposed to mean, Harry?! Am I not 'hit-worthy' material enough for you now?! Huh?" He added after a couple moments of silence. Harry merely looked up at him and blinked several times, her eyes laden with exasperated irritation.
"Ron, I am NOT having this conversation with you."
"—Because CLEARLY, you have yet to realize the full strength of my charms!" Ron pointed smugly to himself and raised his chin up in masculine triumph. "You see, THIS package here is MORE than just biceps and good looks, I'll tell you! If you remember, there were DOZENS of girls lining up to date me back when we were at Hogwarts—"
Harry gave him a blank stare, smiled graciously and stood up from her seat.
"I have to pee again."
"—and FURTHERMORE! A whole LOT of women are STILL hoping to get with THIS! Lorraine's lucky isn't she? It's not funny, Hermione! Wait – Harry—Where are you—HARRY! Oy!"
Wickham finally flicked her medical folder shut and looked up to give her a reassuring nod. "Finally, your cravings are likely to start soon. You may find this unexplainable urge to look for a certain specific tastes in your mouth and may feel almost desperate to do so. Do not hesitate to ask your husband to help you with this. After all, a happy pregnancy will most probably lead to a successful delivery." He told her with a comforting smile.
Harry shifted uncomfortably in her seat, her eyes darting around the room to make sure they were the only ones there. Once she had ascertained this, she raised a hand up to loosen her collar and finally spoke up in a nervous, embarrassed whisper.
"Sir…About the increased sex drives…Are you sure they're normal?"
Her cheeks flushed heavily after she had said this statement but this was nothing compared to the reaction of Wickham. He was blinking rapidly and looked as though he was desperately trying to keep a straight, neutral expression on his face as he answered.
"Well…They vary in very pregnancy, Jaimee. But yes, I assure you that they're perfectly normal. Why do you ask?" He peered at her and chuckled when Harry seemed to blush even darker and pretended to shrug and look nonchalantly out the window.
"Oh…Nothing. Uhm…Just checking."
Seated at the long, elegant table in the Malfoy Manor dining room, Draco hid an amused smile as he watched his pregnant wife heap enormous amounts of food onto her dinner plate. Harry was practically reaching for every single dish that was within range of her that he couldn't help chuckling softly and speaking up in a wry tone of voice.
"The world isn't nearing a famine any time soon, Harry…" He teased lightly as he reached over and handed her the plate of salad she was so desperately reaching for. Flushing red in embarrassment, she snatched the plate from his hands and answered his quip by sticking her tongue out at him.
"I may be eating for THREE but the amount I take in won't NEARLY be enough to fill your big head, Malfoy." She retorted, causing Draco's smile to fade into a scowl. He glared silently at her smirking face, unable to say anything back for fear of inciting her unstable emotions.
When she gave him another smug smile and happily turned back to eating her dinner, Draco sulked quietly to himself and moodily began heaping food onto his own plate. "You're just lucky you're carrying my children, Potter…Otherwise, I'd just love to shove that—"
"Finish that sentence, Malfoy." Harry threatened darkly as she looked back up at him with narrowed green eyes. Once again, Draco could do nothing but glare back at her in silence. They ignored the cautious looks they were receiving from the house-elves serving their dinner around them and began to eat their meal in silence, pausing every now and then to shoot each other dirty looks.
The room was filled with nothing but the occasional clinking of their silverware and glasses against the table when Harry suddenly looked up at him again in idle thought. She tilted her head slightly to the side and voiced the forming question in her head.
"I wonder how you would taste covered in chocolate syrup…"
Draco's fork froze midway to his lips and slipped from his fingers, clanging noisily against his plate with a loud clatter. He had to blink several times to made sure he heard right before he finally flicked his wide, shocked silver eyes up to meet Harry's innocent smile.
"………I beg your pardon…?"
Smirking at his reaction, Harry shrugged to herself and coyly dropped her eyes back to her plate. "Just a thought…Hmm. Now that I mentioned it, I suddenly have this horrible craving to eat chocolate." She looked imploringly at him, causing Draco to raise an eyebrow in growing apprehension.
"I'll have the house-elves send up the dessert then." He answered nervously, the expression on his face still slightly wary as he eyed Harry's mischievous grin.
She nodded and smiled sweetly at him before raising another forkful of food to her mouth. Thinking that her previous question was just a momentary lapse, Draco was right in the middle of taking a long sip of his drink when Harry chose that moment to shock him out of his wits again.
"Draco…Is it just me or do my breasts suddenly seem bigger?"
The champagne Draco had just sipped into his mouth ended up being sprayed all over the clean marble floor of the dining room. He coughed several times to clear his throat before looking at his wife with a mixture of shock, scandal and incredulity written all over his face.
"…What?!"
Jaimee was looking down the neckline of her dress and using a single finger to poke at her breasts in avid curiosity, laughing to herself before she looked back up and met Draco's stunned, gaping expression. "Well? Don't they? They feel so heavy to me, all of a sudden…And lately, they've been feeling really tender and sensitive. Is that normal?" She asked, rolling her eyes when all her stunned husband seemed capable of doing was sputtering awkwardly in response.
"U—Uhm…I uh…I don't know...M—maybe you're just imagining things, Harry..."
He swallowed audibly and took a long swig of his drink again, his hands shaking as he dropped the now empty glass down onto the table. Harry sighed loudly to herself in exasperation and shot up from her seat – walking over to him until she was standing directly in front of his pale, shaking figure.
"I'm telling you! They're definitely bigger! Look, touch them!" She grabbed his hand and shoved it down the neckline of her dress, causing Draco to meep again as several of the house-elves gathered around the dining table blushed in embarrassment and hastily scurried out of the room.
His face burning bright red, Draco shifted uncomfortably to hide the growing arousal in his pants and answered her by giving her a nervously plastered smile. "R—right…They definitely feel bigger—" He felt himself blushing darker when his hand involuntarily squeezed her breast as though out of its own accord. "—and softer…Actually, they feel…really nice…"
Harry's left eye twitched at his perverted comment. She glared down knowingly at his rather sheepish smile, shaking her head when Draco flushed even darker in realization. Clearing his throat, he yanked his hand away as though she had caught on fire and allowed a nervous laugh.
"A—anyway! Where's that house-elf?! You should try the chocolate truffle cake Grandmother baked this morning! It's the breast cake ever—"
"…'Co?" Harry was obviously trying to hide a smile as she walked back over to her seat and sat down. Draco pretended to hide his embarrassment by rolling his eyes. "Haven't I told you not to call me that, Harry? I happen to like my name and I hate it when people cut if up like that—"
"Draco?"
"What?!"
She leaned back against her chair and gave him a smug smile. "You said breast. Breast CAKE ever. You are such a PERVERT! Hahaha!" Her shoulders began to shake with pent-up laughter when Draco's cheeks flushed red again and he glared menacingly at her in warning.
"I said BEST! BEST cake EVER. Get your bloody ears cleaned!" He growled but it didn't have the same effect as Harry just gave him another teasing wink.
"No, you didn't! You said BEST."
"I said BREAST! Wait – NO! BEST! BEST, damn it! POTTER!"
Harry was in absolute hysterics at this point and was having difficulty breathing in between her laughter. After about a moment of glaring at her, Draco finally relented and smiled as he watched her, admiring the way her cheeks were flushed slightly with an endearing shade of pink.
When she noticed his intense staring, her laughter died down and she pretended to look away to hide the growing blush on her face. Smirking at her adorable reaction, Draco was just about to stand up and walk right over to her when Harry froze abruptly in the middle of eating her dinner and gasped, her eyes growing to the size of saucers as they riveted to his face.
Draco was by her side in a heartbeat – his handsome face creased in worry as he knelt down in front of her and placed a hand on her stomach. "What is it? Is it the babies? Are you alright? Do you need anything? Shall I carry you upstairs? Do you need to rest?!" He rushed all these out hastily in panic, his other hand reaching up to cup her cheek in concern.
She shook her head furiously and swatted his hands away, standing up straighter in her seat and glancing around the table. "No, it's not that! I'm fine! I just really have this sudden craving to eat…" Her voice trailed off and her eyes roamed around the table again in growing annoyance.
Draco felt a twinge of ire at her words as he stood back up and glared down at her form. "That's it?! A sudden craving?! What the bloody hell Potter, you got me panicked over nothing! What do you want to eat now anyway?! I'll send the house-elves to fetch it for you—"
"Sugar-apple!" Harry exclaimed cheerfully as she got up to her feet and looked imploringly up at him, reaching up to coyly adjust his collar. Draco peered down at her and irritably raised a single, aristocratic eyebrow. "Sugar apple? You mean like an apple coated in sugar or something?" He asked in a deadpan voice as he raised a hand and indicated lazily to a nearby house-elf.
Just as the house-elf was walking over to them, however, Harry shook her head fiercely at his words and gave her husband an angry, impatient glare. "No! You git! I meant a Sugar-apple! A Sweetsop! It's an actual sweet fruit with that name…I was able to eat it once when I was out on a mission. It has got the most delicious; amazing smell…I really want one." She looked up at him and gave him another imploring smile that Draco sighed in defeat and indicated to the house-elf again.
"Hold on…Whatever that is, I'll ask a house-elf to buy you some. Where did you eat it anyway?" He asked, smiling reluctantly when Harry's eyes instantly brightened at his words. Smiling happily, she wrapped her arms coyly around his neck and gave him a teasing, beautiful smile.
"…But Draco….I don't want the house-elf to get it for me…I want you to buy it. I don't know why but it seems it'll taste so much better that way…Does that make any sense?"
"None whatsoever, Potter. No bleeding way." Was Draco's immediate, deadpan response.
"Draco, pleeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaase…………"
She looked up at him through long, elegant lashes, watching exasperation and irritation coursing through Draco's features as he firmly shook his head again. Resorting to more Slytherin tendencies, Harry opted to try one last time. She scowled and raised big, glassy green eyes up at him in a beautifully pouting expression that she had often observed Hermione and Lorraine using occasionally on their husbands whenever they wanted something.
Apparently, the little trick seemed to work as her stubborn husband cracked almost instantly.
"…Ugh…Don't look at me like that! Fine, you little Slytherin minx! But I'm only doing this for you because you're pregnant. I'm the Head of this family, I'm not meant to be sent out on errands to buy bloody fruits for you." He drawled arrogantly, rolling his eyes as he waved the waiting house-elves around them away in dismissal.
When he turned back to face her, Jaimee was looking up at him with another bright smile and was wrapping her arms tighter around his neck in gratitude. Draco simply rolled his eyes to himself at her reaction. He reached down to place his hands on her shoulders and pushed her slightly away from him so he could look questioningly into her eyes.
"Whatever, Potter. Now where in Merlin's name did you buy that sodding sugar-apple? Hurry up and tell me, I have a truckload of work that has to be finished by tonight." He complained loudly, waiting as Harry seemed to pause for several minutes in thought. After about a moment, she suddenly cringed in realization and looked up at him to give him a sheepish smile.
"…Guatemala?"
"WHAT?!"
Draco's eyes had grown to the size of saucers and he had flushed in disbelieving anger as he glared down at her. She flinched at his shouted response and let out a nervous laugh, gulping audibly and trying her best to look nonchalant as she began teasing him again by playing with his collar.
"………Or at least in the Caribbean, I think. Draco, please…?? I really want them!" She ignored his attempts of further protests and shoved him to sit back onto her vacated seat – only to straddle his lap purposely about a moment later, causing a strangled, high-pitched yelp to escape his lips.
"H—Harry, I can't go to Guatemala right NOW! I'd have to get special permission from the Ministry to use the International Floo Network and even THEN I'd have to search all over the damn place for it! Can't you crave for something sold HERE—Oh, god! Mmm… Don't stop…."
Draco's voice instantly trailed off into incoherent sounds as Harry began grinding her hips against his and dropping searing kisses along the base of his neck. "Draco, please…? I really…really must have a sugar-apple right now or I'll be restless the entire night…Please…?" She loosened the buttons along the front of her dress and arched backwards slightly to give him a good glimpse of her breasts, smirking to herself when Draco's eyes automatically dropped down to stare at them.
"Ugh… Harry, please don't do this me…I'm exhausted and I have to go through a dozen reports later. I don't have enough time to go searching all over the bloody Caribbean for your— Mmm… Merlin, don't stop…Oh god…" His adamant refusal trailed off again as Harry began grinding her hips more insistently against his and her hands began slipping into his shirt to caress his chest.
"Draco, please…?! I promise I'll never ask you for anything else ever again…I just REALLY REALLY want a sugar-apple right now and the Ministry will never allow me to use the International Floo Network while I'm pregnant." She batted her eyelashes at him and leaned down to nip and suck along the curve of his shoulder, eliciting more groans from the former Slytherin.
"Argh……Harry, I'm serious! You're barking mad if you think I'm going to go all the way to—" Draco's voice ended in an abrupt whimper as Harry had leaned in and licked behind his ear. Hearing his reaction, she smirked again and leaned in closer to whisper something directly into his ear.
"I'll make it up to you in bed, I promise…Just please…Please go out and buy some sugar-apple for me? Please, please, please, please, please…" She timed each enunciation of the word 'please' with a kiss on different parts along his chest until Draco finally groaned in utter defeat.
"FINE, I'll get your damn sugar-apple. Damn you, Potter…You're so bloody annoying as a woman!" He grumbled moodily as he gently pushed her off his lap and grudgingly got up with a sour look on his thoroughly flushed face.
Harry hid a smile as she watched him adjusting his pants to hide the somewhat obvious bulge between his legs. The minute he saw her laughing at him as he did this, he sneered at her and mumbled darkly under his breath as he began heading for the door.
"Evil, conniving bitch."
Harry just grinned wider and happily sat back down onto the vacated seat, ignoring the interesting stream of curses that were pouring out of her husband's mouth as he grabbed his coat and began heading for their floo-connected fireplace.
"I love you too, 'Co. Oh and bring me about five boxes of sugar-apples alright?!" She called out after his retreating back, laughing out loud again when Draco didn't bother turning around and simply raised his hand up to flash a very rude finger in the air in response as he exited the room.
Shrugging at this, Harry chuckled softly and reached across the table to help herself to yet another generous helping of mashed potatoes and salad.
Ugh… I'm so bloody exhausted… Draco thought to himself about four hours later as he stepped out of the fireplace and blinked sleepily around the Malfoy Manor living room in search of his pregnant and very cunning wife. To his annoyance, the former Gryffindor was nowhere to be found and this did nothing but raise the Malfoy Head's hackles even further as he began striding down the hallways.
If that miserable little Gryffindork is sleeping, so help me, I will shove these sugar-apples down her throat. I don't care if she's carrying my children; I can't BELIEVE she sent me all the way to bloody GUATEMALA to buy these damn fruits! Draco thought irritably to himself as he yawned and made his way through the long maze of corridors in search of his pregnant wife.
After about fifteen more minutes of searching for any sign of her, a thoroughly sleepy and exhausted Draco found her lounging in his office and happily munching on several chocolate frogs as she went over some of her own work-related files and reports. As soon as she saw him entering the room, she broke out into an ecstatic, beautiful smile and practically jumped at him – causing Draco to cringe in exhaustion again as the boxes of sugar-apples he carried nearly tumbled onto the floor.
"Argh! Potter, watch it will you?! I'm too exhausted for you to be jumping all over me! Here are your bloody sugar-apples! Now leave me alone, I have to start working!" He snapped as he handed them over to her and crankily sank down onto the seat behind his desk, yawning and halfheartedly attempting to read through his work reports.
He didn't bother looking up as Harry exclaimed cheerfully and began tearing through one of the boxes. "Thank you SO MUCH, 'Co! You're the best!" She chirped but instead of answering her, Draco just flicked his folders shut and let his head drop down onto his table with a loud 'thunk'.
Ugh…Sleep…Sleep…Sleep…Bed… He thought numbly to himself, his eyes drooping tiredly until they finally closed and the pen he held in his hand dropped down limply onto the floor.
Munching contentedly on a sugar-apple, Harry blinked at the sound and whirled around in surprise, scowling when she saw that Draco had, in fact, fallen right asleep. Walking back over to his slumbering form, she poked him lightly on the shoulder and spoke up in a loud, insistent voice.
"Draco…? Draco, wake up!" She scowled darker and began jostling him awake, almost regretting her decision about a moment later when the Malfoy Head jerked awake – accidentally scattering his documents along the floor – and blinked rapidly up at her in confusion. He looked slightly disoriented and ran a hand through his hair, unknowingly messing up the blonde strands.
"Wh—wha? Wh—What's wrong…? What is it, Harry? What do you want now?!" He growled sleepily, glaring and blinking blearily up at her as she hesitated and took another bite of her sugar-apple. "Are you that tired? Do you have to work right away?" She asked meekly, blinking innocently at him when Draco's eyes narrowed in suspicion at her strange question.
"What does it look like, Potter?! Do I look like I'm not bloody tired?! You just sent me all the way to Central America to buy you those damn fruits!" He retorted incredulously, feeling another surge of anger when all Harry did was give him a sheepish shrug and smiled at him in apology.
"I'm sorry, Draco…But…Well…" She shifted uncomfortably and flicked her eyes down to her feet before voicing out the rest of her sentence. "I have another craving—" Draco cut her off instantly before she was able to say anything else and shot up sharply from his seat in outrage.
"Oh NO! No bleeding way, Potter! Did you not hear what I said?! I am EXHAUSTED and I'm not about to go traipsing halfway around the world for you again to buy you Merlin-knows-what and if you think for one MINUTE that those womanly charms are going to work on me again, you're—"
Harry cut him off with a fond laugh, shaking her head at his words and giving him a reassuring smile. "No, Draco…That's not what I meant. This is different…I'm craving for something else. Something that shouldn't be so difficult for you to give me…" Her voice trailed off at this and she grinned suggestively at him, her eyes suddenly gleaming in unmistakable mischief.
Draco slowly began to back away when he saw this, his eyes darting nervously to the door in growing apprehension. He knew for a fact that his wife wasn't nearly sorted into Slytherin for nothing and he had no intention of underestimating her for that. Harry, however, simply smiled back innocently at him – obviously hiding something from him behind her back.
"Harry…What have you got there?" He asked carefully, his eyes narrowed as he began to back away even more. He felt a twinge of nervousness when Harry simply stood there and continued to grin at him like a Cheshire cat, her green eyes twinkling with something Draco couldn't quite comprehend.
Walking slowly towards his retreating form, she began whistling and pretended to look interested in glancing around his office. "Oh nothing…Just something I picked up from the kitchens awhile ago while you were gone. Say, Draco…You weren't able to eat dessert awhile ago huh?" She asked, still smiling as Draco looked thoroughly and utterly bewildered at her question.
"No…I wasn't. Why do you ask, Harry?" The former Slytherin looked just about ready to run away out the open doors of his office when Harry finally stepped in front of him to block his path. Quirking the corners of her lips into a very sexy smile, she finally began moving her hand forward to reveal what she had been hiding behind her back.
"Oh nothing…Guess what I found in the kitchen!"
Draco's eyes widened comically in horror and he nearly tripped over his own feet when he caught sight of the large bottle of chocolate syrup she held in her hand. He paled even more when Harry's smile transformed into a smirk and she took another step towards his retreating form.
"H—Harry, wait…I—I'm tired! I just got back! I can't do this right now! I—I—" The last part of Draco's shaky sentence ended up in a terrified squeak as he whirled around and bolted for the door. He didn't get far as his wife – who was unfortunately the Ministry's top Unspeakable agent – lazily raised her wand and pointed it directly at his running, cowering form.
Draco stumbled instantly onto the floor in a tangle of his own limbs right before Harry flicked her wand again and had his struggling form bound securely on the floor. Then, whistling nonchalantly to herself, she grabbed the bottle of chocolate syrup off the table and cheerfully began walking to their bedroom – keeping her wand pointed at his form as she dragged him along with her.
"H—Harry! I'm TIRED! I really am! Y—you can't do this to me right now! I'm EXHAUSTED!" Draco stopped when he saw Anton heading their way towards the other end of the corridor and at the sight of his younger cousin, he began struggling more desperately and shouting out to him.
"ANTON! Anton, you've got to help me out here! I'm being taken against my will! I'm—" The rest of Draco's words were silenced when Harry raised her wand again and flicked it over her husband's form, effectively silencing his shouts and muffling the rest of his words.
When Anton blinked and gave them a nonplussed look as they passed him, Harry just smiled at him and gave him a reassuring shrug. "Marital spat…Don't worry about it." She winked at his confused look and continued walking towards their bedroom while dragging Draco along behind her.
At the sight of Draco's wide silver eyes and the way his older cousin was continually mouthing the words 'HELP ME!' at him, Anton raised a single hand and scratched his head in utter bewilderment.
"I'm never getting married."
A/N: Hahaha! What a very SCRUMPTIOUS craving indeed, Harry. *winks* This chapter was actually GREATLY inspired by an episode of my favorite TV series of all time: FRIENDS. (The episode when Rachel was pregnant.) I positively LOVE that series. :D
Also, Some of you have been asking: I will write a trimester per chapter so as not to drag the pregnancy on. Then I will do a time lapse of about 2-3 years after the twins are born and THAT'S when the actual conflict of the story begins. So yes, the story will have parenthood but STILL focus on their marriage. This is 'The Perfect WIFE' after all. :D Also, the story will probably last about 20-25 chapters depending on how the plot goes. :D
Next Chapter: Second Trimester Troubles… More of Harry's naughty 'urges'. *smirk*
PLEASE REVIEW! :D