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Hermione's walk turned into a bit of a run as she made her way down the hill to the Weasleys' humble home. Molly Weasley has been bombarding her with owls and floo calls for the last couple of weeks due to her continuous absence in the Weasley weekend luncheons, Even going as far as sending Fred and George into hounding her in St. Mungo's just to make sure that she was not missing another one. Not to mention Harry and Ron's steady flow of owls that are now building up into a stack on her kitchen table.
It's not like it was her choice to miss all those Weasley gatherings in the past month. It was really Draco Malfoy's fault, him and his superior kissing skills. And then there was Scorpius who would always unleash his wide pleading eyes whenever she announces she's about to leave. But today, she finally managed to put her foot down and untangle herself from Draco's strong arms and enticing promises of freshly pressed coffee. She hurriedly sneaked a kiss on Scorpius' sleeping form and apparated away before she was tempted to stay the whole day with them once again. Hermione cringed as she can only imagine Scorpius' tantrum once he wakes up and doesn't find her there. This will be the first time in quite some time that she won't be spending time with her precious little dragon.
With a small huff brought about by her little jog, she finally found herself in front of the old beaten door of one of the few places she can actually call home. Before she can even knock, the door suddenly flew open as a rather jolly looking Molly Weasley pulled her in for a hug.
"Hermione dear! Where have you been? I have not seen you in such a long time! I was quite worried you forgot about me and Arthur."
"That's impossible Molly! I've just been…uh… busy. Yes! Busy! You know with…."
"Aha! Just as I thought!" Molly interrupted her suddenly.
"Just… as you thought, Molly?" Hermione struggled with her words, half expecting Molly to start cursing the Malfoys for keeping her away from them.
"Work! You've been busying yourself with work again! Do they even give you breaks, dear? You better tell me if they aren't treating you right. You know Percy has connections we can contact, I'm sure he would be quite happy to help. What with him being promoted! Oh Hermione, it's wonderful! We're celebrating his promotion today! And Bill has some special announcement he wants to give later as well. Not really sure what that's about, oh dear you've missed so much already!" Molly gushed.
Hermione didn't get the chance to reply as a timer went off in the kitchen.
"Oh! That would be the pot roast. Come along dear, let's continue this conversation in the kitchen. You wouldn't mind pitching in a helping hand won't you?"
"Of course not, Molly." Hermione replied with a smile.
"And you better tell me everything that happened since you've last been here!"
Hemione could only give off a nervous laugh as she let Molly drag her into the already crowded kitchen.
"Ron's skin was blue all over while Harry went around with half of his face green for a week! Oh! That was such a sight to see!" Molly laughed as she continued to give Hermione an almost play by play of the month's activities.
Hermione covered her mouth daintily with her hand as a chuckle emerged from her lips. As much as she wanted to guffaw at Ron and Harry's mistakes as aurors, she still couldn't bring herself to do so as her affection for the two is very much in the forefront of everything. Too bad she didn't catch them a couple of weeks ago, she could've given them a lecture on how to handle color changing curses carefully. Maybe even get a few pictures of them being all colorful and grouchy. Hermione could only shake her head at the ridiculous predicaments Harry and Ron still get themselves into. Honestly it was like they never even left Hogwarts with all these silly accidents.
She slipped her focus back to the potatoes she was dicing in front of her, her attention too fixed on her task that she didn't even notice the person standing behind her as he covered her eyes tightly with his two hands.
"Guess who." The familiar voice teased.
Hermione's initial panic simmered down to a smile as he took in the familiar voice and calloused palms of the mystery man.
"Really Harry? What are we, 11? I doubt 11 year olds even do that anymore." Hermione laughed.
Harry released his hold of her face and quickly spun her around for a huge hug. "Where the fuck have you been Hermione? For a moment there I thought you decided to be a hermit all of a sudden."
Hermione could only smile as she buried herself deeper into Harry's hug. Her thoughts have been so focused on the Malfoy men for quite some time now that it seemed like the two other important men in her life were being neglected.
"You weren't answering my owls and calls. I even went to your house the other day, only to find it dark and empty. Merlin, Hermione what have you been up to?"
Hermione stilled for a little while, she didn't know Harry visited her house. She didn't really notice any sign of him when she returned from the Manor to change her clothes for work. Well that maybe has something to do with her rushing around that morning. Draco had been particularly persuasive that day and successfully cajoled her for a bit of a lie in, which of course made Hermione late for her morning shift.
"I'm sorry Harry. I've been preoccupied these couple of months and I'm still trying to balance everything out. But I swear that once I got everything sorted out then you'll be the first one to know."
Harry only looked at her with a knowing look in his eyes. They've been best friends for a couple of years now. They even consider each other as family after everything they've been through. And she can tell that Harry knows she's keeping a big secret from him. Something really big and personal that she can't even tell him.
"As long as it's making you happy Hermione, then I'm all for it." Harry smiled.
Hermione smiled back as she went back to hugging him tightly. She only hoped that he would be saying the same words once she finally revealed her relationship with Draco. Harry was still hugging her when the kitchen door opened loudly, its hinges almost coming undone.
"I heard Hermione's here, where in Merlin's beard is she?"
Hermione peeked through Harry's broad shoulder only to lock eyes with a very excited looking Ronald Weasley.
"There you are!"
In a few steps, Ron had crossed the kitchen and was already swinging Hermione around in his arms.
"Blimey Hermione! We've been looking everywhere for you! You've got us all half mad when you weren't answering our owls." Hermione only laughed as Ron spun her around for another swing.
"Just busy." She managed to blurt out with as much dignity for a person being spun around like a ragdoll.
"You gotta take breaks off your work, love. We don't want you catching a bug just because you refuse to take care of yourself."
Hermione rolled her eyes.
"I can take care of myself, Ronald."
"We know you can. You bloody stubborn woman."
He earned a small slap on the shoulder for that, which Ron only laughed off.
"Seriously Hermione, don't you ever do that to us ever again."
"Damn right Granger!" Fred and George pitched in.
Hermione smiled as Ron finally placed her down on her feet as Molly was already scolding them for barging in the kitchen like cavemen. Ron only guffawed as he looped his long arm around Hermione's shoulder and led her out the backdoor towards a sea of awaiting Weasleys.
It was a bit of a blur from there as Hermione was hugged and praised by a whirlwind of red hair and big smiles. Ginny was there of course, her hand tightly gripping Harry's as they exchange a quick kiss now and then. Fred and George were still up to their old tricks as they brought a whole bag of new products to 'test out' on Percy to celebrate his promotion. Percy, being the regal wizard that he is only ignores them as he excitedly talks to anyone who would listen about his new job as a magical law enforcer.
"Blimey Percy! You're making it sound like you're saving the world!" George exclaimed as Percy was yet to stop talking to Hermione about all the dangers of his new profession.
"We are saving the world! Not only the magical but also the muggle world! We are what bridges the two worlds and lets them exist in peace! Merlin knows what our lives would be without us doing our jobs as magical law enforcers!"
George only rolled his eyes as he took hold of Hermione,
"I'm pretty sure Hermione knows more about your job than you do, Percy. So sod off!"
Percy only huffed as Hermione was once again whisked away by another Weasley.
"He just works in one of the offices. Terribly boring if you ask me, but we all know Percy's nuts so I guess he finds it exciting." George whispered with a grin.
"Dad's been looking everywhere for you, he needs help with some muggle contraption thing in the shed out back. Been at it for weeks now and he still couldn't figure out how it works." Fred interjected as if he came out of thin air.
As if on cue, Arthur Weasley's greased face appeared out of the window of the shed, accompanied with smoke and a lot of colorful expletives.
"Son of a banshee!"
"Arthur are you ok?" Hermione worriedly asked.
"Oh! Hermione dear! Haven't seen you here in a long time! Yes, yes I'm quite alright if I do say so myself. This muggle box just won't break open for me! Been at it for months! Still no results!"
Arthur Weasley's ramblings were cut short however by his wife's booming voice from inside the burrow.
"Arthur! You better not be tinkering in that shed of yours! We are going to have a nice normal lunch and no muggle technermenology allowed!"
"Blimey, that woman hears everything doesn't she?" Arthur whispered with a small chuckle.
"Tell me about it." Fred and George replied.
Hermione laughed for what would feel like the hundredth time today. Is it normal to laugh this much? She didn't really have much of a care as she was led by the Weasleys to the long wooden picnic tables on the hill where they would be having lunch.
The table was immediately filled with laughter and talk as the clanging sounds of utensils against plates build up a steady noise. It only took a couple of minutes for Bill and Fleur to arrive, their hands full of wine and some assortment of bread to feast on for later in the day. Bill didn't even bother sitting down as he excitedly blurted out that they're expecting their first child in a few short months. Loud cheers and a lot of hugging were once again done as shouts of congratulations and thanks were made within the long table. Molly of course was beside herself, crying and sniffing all over the place as Charlie arrived with a small pop a few inches from the burrow's fence. Hermione found herself squeezed between Ginny and Charlie as the midday heat slowly cooled down to a more reasonable temperature for a lazy afternoon outside. The loud chatter went on well throughout the day. Hermione wasn't giving much attention to the time until she finally spotted the sun silently setting.
"Merlin, I didn't even notice I was here for a whole day just talking and eating." She whispered to Ginny.
"I'm just glad you managed to unglue yourself from Draco Malfoy's nicely built biceps long enough to talk to us again." Ginny giggled.
Hermione giggled back, he does really have some nice biceps.
"I think I'll be heading out now, Ginny. It was really fun getting to talk to you guys again." She said as she kissed Ginny's cheek goodbye.
With a few wiggles and a lot of goodbye, she finally managed to escape the Weasleys who seemed to be all set on not letting her out of their sight ever again. "Be back anytime, dear!" Molly gushed as she gave Hermione a nice big hug.
"You better be here for the next Weasley brunch, Granger!" Fred and George shouted at her. Hermione only laughed them off as she felt someone drawing her in for a hug goodbye.
"Don't be a stranger, Hermione." Harry whispered.
"Of course not, Harry."
Harry smiled as he finally let go of his grip around her shoulders. "We're always here for you, Hermione. Especially me and Ron, you can tell us anything."
Hermione only stared at him as her heart picked up an erratic beat. Should she tell Harry now? He did just say she can tell him anything. He trusts her enough to accept her choices right?
She was just about to open her mouth when her wand burned hotly inside her tightly clutched fists, its tip erupting with luminous green sparks. That was the signal that she and Draco have been using for the past couple of months. It means a lot of things for the both of them, it can mean that Draco's on his way to pick her up from work or that he's taking her out for lunch. One thing's for sure, Draco only uses that spell to let her know that he's thinking of her or even possibly that he is in some real deep shit and couldn't get out of it by himself.
Hermione's heartbeat picked up as her head went through a thousand different scenarios where Draco was hurt or Scorpius was dying.
"I have to go now Harry, I'll see you later ok?"
"ok – "
Without even waiting for Harry to finish his sentence, Hermione was well upon the apparition point and was gone from sight in less than a second.
Hermione was on full alert as her feet touched the marble floor of the Malfoy Manor. The coolness of it was a welcomed sensation to her as she had become quite familiar with it during all the time she had spent in the manor. She was about to turn to the kitchen to start shouting for Draco and Scorpius when her eyes caught a quick flash of silver from the top of the grand staircase. Her eyes quickly looked up meeting Draco's hard stare and disheveled hair, his hands were crossed in front of his chest, showcasing wonderfully his muscled forearms as he glared at her. She quickly got her bearing and ran to him, already anxious to know as to what had caused him to send out the green sparks but at the same time cursing herself for getting a wee bit distracted by his forearms.
"Merlin, Draco what happened? Is everything alri – " she began.
"Do you know what time it is?" he countered.
Hermione stopped a couple of steps away from him, not at all expecting such a mundane question. She looked at her left hand to consult her watch, finding it bereft and realizing that she must have left it by the burrow as she was helping Molly with the food.
" I – " she began again.
"It's almost 6 in the evening Hermione."
"I don't understand what this has to do with anything Draco –"
"When you left early this morning, I could still remember how you told me that this Weasley lunch was very important." Draco sneered as he emphasized the words Weasley and lunch, making them sound rather like an unpleasant insult.
"Lunch, Hermione. You said lunch. Now, correct me if I am wrong, but I do know that lunch is usually taken during the middle part of the day and does not in fact usually last a couple of hours or up until sunset."
Hermione was gaping at him as she finally realized that the only reason Draco sent the sparks was because she wasn't back yet after a couple of hours with her friends. She was about to argue about how incredulous all this was as a little giggle started to bubble inside her.
Draco Malfoy was jealous!
Draco raised his eyebrow at her as she continued to giggle and stare at him.
"And what is bloody funny?" he asked in his haughty voice.
"You…are…." Hermione replied in between fits of giggles.
Hermione finally crossed the few steps in between them and gave Draco a small peck on the lips. Draco remained unfazed and continued to only stare at her in disapproval.
"I'm so sorry Draco, time just went by so fast. You know I haven't seen them in a while." Hermione pushed on as her arms encircled Draco's tall frame. After a few more moments of stony silence, Draco finally unwound his tightly crossed arms in front of him and settled them on Hermione's waist.
"This day has been pure torture for me. Just thinking about you surrounded by all that Weasel ugliness already gave me a thousand heart attacks today. Not to mention that I have no clue as to what happens in those Weasel lunches, for all I know you would've been sacrificed to Merlin by the end of the day." He whispered in her ear as he continued to nuzzle her neck, giving extra attention to her pulse point which he knew always made Hermione shiver whenever he kissed it. And sure enough, Hermione's small figure gave out a small tremble as her hands wound even tighter around him. Draco smiled despite of himself and the horrible day he had been having so far.
"Scorpius has been crying the whole day, asking for his Healer Mione. To tell you the truth I was pretty much about to succumb to the same activity right before I remembered about our little sparks trick."
Hermione tilted her head a little bit as she kissed Draco's neck with a small smile.
"You know this is kind of your fault in a way." She teased.
Draco withdrew from her embrace, the look of disapproval set upon his features once again.
"How is this my bloody fault? You're the one who completely forgot all about us and spent the whole day with those awful lot."
Hermione smiled and gave him a long kiss, stopping just right on time before the kiss lead to something a lot more.
"Well, if you didn't always seduce me every time I have to leave for a Weasley lunch then I wouldn't have missed them this much and I wouldn't have stayed there for an extended amount of time."
Hermione smiled as Draco only snorted. "Oh please, I refuse to apologize for things that are way beyond my control. It is not my fault that you choose to be seduced every. Single. Time." Draco finished with a kiss in between each his words.
"Now come on Healer Mione, Scorpius has been asking for you since he woke up."
Draco gingerly took Hermione's hand in his and lead her to Scorpius' room, not at all surprised to still hear a couple of cries from inside. Hermione's gut clenched as she can just imagine how Scorpius had been crying the whole time she had been away. The moment she opened the door and crooned for Scorpius, the little toddler was already on his feet and rushing into Hermione's arms.
"Healer….Mi…Mi…Mione." he sobbed as Hermione gently lifted him in an embrace and started patting his back and cradling him a bit.
"Oh I am so sorry my Dragon." Hermione softly hushed.
It was a couple more minutes before Hermione was able to wrestle Scorpius' strong grip on her neck and sat him on the huge bed.
"You…you….were….gone…" he whispered in between hiccups and a few more tears.
"I know my Dragon, I am so sorry for not saying goodbye to you and for returning late. I promise never to do that ever again." Hermione held out her right hand in a sign of promise.
"You…will never …..leave?" Scorpius whispered.
"Never again." Hermione nodded her assent.
"Never ever ever?" Scorpius asked.
"Never ever ever." Hermione repeated.
Scropius leaned into Hermione's embrace once again as the last of his sobs died down.
"Now how about some dinner? That sounds heavenly yes?" Draco said with a smile as he caught Hermione's eye.
Hermione only nodded and proceeded to carry Scorpius out of the room with Draco's hand tightly clasped around her waist.
Later that night, Hermione found herself lying in Scorpius' huge bed with Scorpius facing her front, tightly hugging her and Draco practically glued to her back and almost crushing her in his embrace but she didn't even mind in the least. She was about to slip into unconsciousness when a little voice in her head reminded her that she has yet to tell Harry and Ron about her relationship with Draco. But in that moment where she was surrounded by Draco's all male heat and Scorpius' calming breaths she just couldn't bring herself to care about anything. She'd face those problems with them when it came. She did promise Scorpius that she was never ever ever leaving again. And she fully intend to keep that promise.
I am so so sorry for taking 5 months to update this fic! I had this chapter in my laptop for so long but I just couldn't think of an ending to it for months! I am so so sorry! I know I'm rubbish and that I keep on promising you guys that I'd be better at updating it but I really do mean it when I say I'm doing my best I do hope you enjoy this one ( especially that bit about Draco's forearms ;) ) read and review! I'll be back soon for more updates.
If anyone of you is interested in making a cover photo for this story please do let me know by messaging me or reviewing! How cool would it be if my story has a cover photo?!
Love lots,
TheMalfoys