Hermione was furious! She had her arms folded as Charlie drove his truck. "I just don't understand it? You're going to raise some dead guy's baby? Have thought about that at all?" he snapped.
"Of course I have! I talked with Harry and Ginny. Regulus has all the paperwork together for me. It is going to be just fine," she spat and rubbed her damp brow.
"Sweets, I can understand you wanting to have a baby. I can even get that poppin' an egg in the cooker with some spice is better than a one-night stand. Darlin', you are taking on too much yourself. At least a living man would have the choice to step up and help you. Sirius Black is fucking dead. Like dead dead. On top of that, he was the worse example. A drinker. A smoker. A big deviant." Charlie finished and tapped his hand on the steering wheel.
Hermione glared at him. "I don't care. I am doing this Charlie. See this is why I haven't told your family anything and don't plan to until it's already done. I am having his baby. If this is the only shot that he will have a child, I am taking it." Hermione retorted sharply.
"Sweetheart, you aren't looking at the big picture. Who is going to want to be with a single mother with two kids? One is hard enough to handle as it is. I worry that you aren't following the natural way of things. Find a man, fall in love and then have his babies." His voice was soft as they pulled up the driveway.
"Go drop those off for me, would you? I suddenly have no desire to be in this truck with you," she growled as she was unbuckling.
"Hermione, if you are angry you know I am right," he responded and she sounded in annoyance.
"Just go, Charlie. I will figure out how to get to town later," she spat and climbed out of the truck.
The Weasley pulled out of the driveway and Hermione walked up to the entrance. She was still seething as she walked into the Malfoy's and glanced around.
"Master Malfoy and Lady Malfoy have young Master Lupin out in the garden," Ramsey declared as he was coming down the stairs.
"Thank you, Ramsey. It is nice to see you," Hermione declared, and the man's lips twitched.
"It is most pleasant to see you, Miss Granger," he told her.
Hermione walked through the hallway and zipped up her coat as she went toward the back door. When she went outside the sight was hilarity. Draco was stumbling around in the snow and listening for the boy who was hiding and throwing snowballs ever so often. The man would bend down and make a snowball, attempt to hear for the boy and toss it in that direction.
Narcissa was standing on the porch, watching the scene. "Good afternoon," Hermione softly spoke as she walked out.
The Malfoy matron glanced back and beamed. "Aren't they the sweetest?" she mused as Hermione stood next to her.
"They are. It is nice that Teddy had a good time," the young woman sighed.
Narcissa glanced over at her and her brow knitted. "You seem upset, is everything alright?"
"Just a petty argument. Supposedly I am setting myself up for loneliness by having a child by a dead man," Hermione huffed, shaking her head. "I don't understand how that could be such a wrong thing."
Narcissa wrapped one of her arms around the young woman. "Well, some don't understand what you would do for those you love. Do you know why Sirius Black never wanted to be a father?"
Hermione shook her head. "Only that he felt he would screw up the child."
"That is one of the reasons I am sure. However, a bit of insight on my late cousin's past might help. Sirius was a strong-willed boy. We grew up not far from each other, and occasionally I would see the boy at parties. However, his mother had an ill temper for him. As if she could see the sweetness in his heart, and wanted to break him in like a horse. Regulus told me that she would beat them if they didn't act like noble gentlemen. Belts, switches, riding crops… you name it the woman was delighted to apply it." Narcissa paused and breathed heavily.
"It wasn't until she tried to force him into a contract with my sister, Bellatrix, that you could see the extent of the woman's madness. Bella had commented how fun it would be to twist him into her own personal plaything one evening and it gives me shivers just thinking about it. She was deranged. Walburga was overjoyed to think of such a match, but Sirius took a stand. He packed up a small bag in the middle of the night, snuck off to Regulus's room and bid him farewell before disappearing like smoke. He covered his tracks and did so well. It wasn't until his parents died that he even surfaced enough for Regulus to know what happened to him. He silently kept tabs on his brother and found ways to get him money without Sirius knowing it was from him. Regulus loved his brother," Narcissa finished and exhaled.
"Poor Sirius," Hermione sighed.
"Regulus knew he would have been in the same situation if he did not heed his parents and follow the lines of loyalty. He was extremely loyal to his brother as a child; nearly idolized him. However, Walburga had to have her favorite son and the other would be left for ruins. It was as if Sirius acted out to protect Regulus. Took the beatings so he didn't have to do so. Dealt with her shipping him off to other nobility likely for disturbing reasons I bare not think about. Sirius was the sacrifice. Regulus has never forgotten that." Narcissa murmured then cleared her throat from the emotional build up.
Hermione covered her face with her gloved hands and cried. "Poor Sirius. He never let his heart and love break from all of that abuse," she sobbed lightly.
"Which is why Regulus wanted you to do this. You loved him as he was. Tender and loving under all those shields he must have built over the years. He must have been an outstanding godfather to Harry, because you wouldn't have agreed if he wasn't."
"He was and he always made me feel like I belonged," Hermione sighed and glanced out at the boys out in the snow. "Him and Remus were always there for me and Harry. My parents worked hard to build themselves from nothing, but I was so alone. They made me feel apart of something special."
Narcissa kissed the young woman's temple. "You are special, Hermione."
"Mum! Oh, mum, I had the best time!" Teddy shouted as he ran up the stairs.
She bent down in time to catch him in her arms. "I am so glad. I guess I should call your Uncle Charlie and apologize so we can get home." Hermione sighed, causing Teddy to pull away.
"What happened to Uncle Charlie?"
Hermione thinned her lips before sighing. "I got mad at him and told him to leave," she admitted and Teddy scoffed.
"Mum, did he need a time out?" he asked her as he pulled away from their embrace.
"Something like that. Let's go in and have some tea and we will talk about it, alright? It is probably best for me to tell you now because I don't think your Uncle Charlie is going to keep that a secret."
"Hey, Granger, mind helping me up these icy stairs?" Draco called out.
Hermione erected herself from her bent pose and walked down to him. She wrapped her arm around his and helped him up the stairs slowly. When they were on the landing, Draco hemmed. "Kid, you want to go get the toys you took to your room to show your mum?"
"Okay, Draco," Teddy declared with a nod and skipped off toward the house.
Hermione watched him disappear inside before Draco spoke again. "Listen, Granger, I know you are nervous to tell him, but he is going to be happy. He won't care how you are doing it or why, he will just love it. I am sure if the technology was like this when I was a kid, my mom would have done this herself as well," Draco said as they walked toward the house. "Just don't be so hard on yourself. Charles is a fucking moron if he doesn't understand this will bring you happiness."
She sighed and opened up the door. "He is right. This would limit my chances of finding a partner willing to accept a mother of two children, one of which would be a baby from a dead man." She admitted and Draco snorted.
"Okay, and? It isn't like you are doing this because of boredom or self-realization. You are doing this because this unborn child, this idea, needs you. That is reason enough as it is to do it. Give yourself a bit of credit, Granger. You tend to always do the right thing, other people just get in your way."
Hermione led him over to the table and helped him sit down in front of where he left his cane. Narcissa sat down next to him as Teddy reappeared in the room. He was carrying several different figures and set them on the table. "See, mum, Draco let me have them when I come over," he announced and Hermione sat next to the boy who was organizing them.
Narcissa cleared her throat, "Ramsey, can we get some tea and hot cocoa for Edward?" she asked and the man soon appeared from the kitchen. He was holding a tray and set down the different cups with the tray in the center of the table. "Ah, always a mind reader, Ramsey, thank you," Narcissa declared as he finished handing out the cups.
"Of course, my Lady, anything else?" Ramsey murmured with a bow.
"No, we shall be fine, thank you," the Malfoy matron responded and the butler disappeared.
Hermione frowned. "How does he know when to find us?" she asked in curiosity.
Draco chuckled and sighed. "Well, around the time I lost my sight, my mother put cameras around the house for security. The only places that cameras aren't are my wing and my mother's… well and the bathrooms and bedrooms."
Hermione's cheeks turned bright red. "Oh, had I known he was watching so much…" she gulped.
"Oh, don't worry about Ramsey. He has been with the family for years. We paid for his son to go to Hogwarts and that's why he takes Sundays off every week. He goes and visits his grandchildren and his son's extended family. Poor gentleman lost his wife before working for us. By then he was living with his parents in efforts to take care of them and his son. When we hired him, Lucius grew snitty with me for paying for Michael's schooling, but the boy was brilliant. Hence why he was an Aquila, I believe. He is a doctor now."
She gasped and shook her head. "That is Michael Corner's father? I had no clue!" she exclaimed and Draco laughed.
"Jesus, Granger, you act like this isn't a small world. There is a reason I never pranked the Aquilas, hadn't you noticed that? Michael and I may not have seen eye to eye, but we respected each other. I saw him from time to time on summer holidays. He would come over and spend the day, much to my father's disapproval. He was also the one to treat me after my accident. Of course, then he was just in residency."
Hermione laughed in shock. "Wow, that is absolute madness. I had no idea," she said with a head shake.
"Look, mum, I have a big black dog and a wolf like my dad and Uncle Sirius's favorites," Teddy declared, trying desperately to get her attention again.
That brought Hermione back to the task at hand and she exhaled before sipping her tea. "Teddy, I want to talk to you about something important." She mumbled and Draco cleared his throat.
"Maybe we should give them privacy, mother?" Draco inquired.
"No, it is quite alright, I think this will be good since it really is a family matter," Hermione said, but it was the discomfort in her voice that made Draco stay put and sip his cup.
Hermione was beyond nervous. "Okay, mum. What's wrong?" Teddy responded after sipping his hot chocolate.
"Well, your Uncle Regulus asked me to do something special. You remember all the stories of Uncle Sirius that Uncle Harry tells you about all the time?" Hermione inquired and the boy nodded with a smile.
"Yes, Uncle Sirius was the best, Uncle Harry told me so himself," Teddy remarked and held up the large dog. "He had a dog named Snuffles that he got from the pound. Uncle Harry says he ran away when Uncle Sirius went to Heaven."
Hermione cleared her throat and nodded. "He did. Well, I was asked to try and have him a baby through special science tools. They put a bit of him and a bit of me together to make a baby. I just got a call today and it worked, so when I go back to New York, I am going to come home and grow Uncle Sirius's baby in my belly. Do you understand?"
Teddy scowled deeply and crossed his legs as he stared at her. "Are you going to keep the baby?"
"Well, yes. He is going to be your baby brother," she replied, and Teddy tilted his head.
"And he will have his own room? And I will be able to read him stories?" The boy asked before sipping his cup again.
Hermione would have found this hilarious that he looked so focused on the conversation if they weren't talking about life changing experiences. "Yes. That is why Uncle Charlie is helping us move after Christmas break. By the time you come back for spring holiday, we will live down the street from Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny." She told him and ran her fingers on the table. "This doesn't mean I love you any less, Teddy."
"Oh, I know mum. You are going to have me a brother then?" He asked calmly and she nodded.
"Yes, I am going to have you a baby brother. You don't mind?"
Teddy grinned widely. "Nope!" he exclaimed, setting down his cup. "I love you so much. Thank you for being the best mum ever. I wrote to Santa and asked him for a brother and he must have told you!" He shouted and hugged her tightly.
Hermione let her threatening tears fall and she kissed his hair. "How did I get so lucky, Teddy. I am going to have you to help me with your brother. I love you so much," she sighed and he giggled in her embrace.
"Mum, you are amazing. Thank you," he replied and pulled away. "Did you name him? Can I help?"
Hermione exhaled with a smile. "I had decided on doing something very traditional, your Uncle Regulus begged me to do. I determined Rigel would be a good name. It is the star they used to navigate on sail boats, did you know that?" she asked and Teddy made a face.
"Ree-gal?" he pronounced with a frown.
"Rye-jel, lovely," she corrected, and he sighed.
"Well, okay, but I am not calling him that," he retorted with a look of skepticism.
"Tell you what. We will talk more about it when it comes closer, okay?"
Teddy gave her a hallmark Remus expression; it was a chiding of her disregard to his persistence. "Mum, you can't call my brother Rigel. That is a silly name." he muttered and she groaned.
"Oh, my son, you are too much. How about you go on up and get changed and we will figure out how we are getting home soon," she responded and he sighed.
"Okay," he pulled away and started his journey toward the staircase. "I am gonna be a big brother. Wait til I tell James!" he declared and she watched him disappear from the hallway.
"Well, that went extraordinarily well," Narcissa said as she lounged in her chair.
Draco chuckled and rubbed his face. "Well, I suppose now that you told him there is no backing out."
"No, not at all. That boy is going to be obsessed, but if I didn't tell him now, he might have been upset." Hermione sighed with a nod. "Yes, it will be fine. Now that he is happy with the choice, I don't think anyone else will outwardly disapprove."
"Hermione, you are always welcome to stay with us," Narcissa declared with pursed lips.
"I know and thank you for the offer. I just think it would be best if I don't. Regulus agrees with me," the young woman replied, causing Draco to cringe.
The young woman pulled out her phone and sent a quick text. As much as she didn't want to start another fight with the rough Weasley, she knew she had to get home.
"Why don't you come over for Christmas Eve. We are throwing a small party," Draco offered, making Hermione snap her vision back to him.
"Well, I don't know. I usually go to the Weasleys' for Christmas," she murmured, shifting her posture.
"It will be fun lots of fun. You can enjoy watching my cousin get sloshed and sing old English tunes while playing the piano. We usually have an array of entertainment and play Christmas films in the theatre for the children." Draco said as his hand went to the back of his neck and his cheeks were lit with color.
Hermione sighed and chewed her lip. "Alright, but I cannot stay. I have to be at the Weasleys' house early in the morning." She caved and Narcissa clapped.
"Very good! I will make sure to have Edward's gifts under the tree for him then. I do love a good Christmas party. I am going to make sure he is alright," she declared, but in the way she squeezed her son's shoulder, there was more to her exit.
The young woman listened to her footsteps down the hallway before Draco spoke. "I think what you're doing is very courageous," he muttered as he tapped the table with his fingers.
"What do you mean?" Hermione inquired, her voice was shaky.
"Well, it takes plenty to raise a child that isn't your own. However, I think it takes more to raise a child of someone you loved without the intention of them being there. You are doing that twice over and I cannot help but be in awe of you. It makes me feel like you are probably the greatest woman I have ever met." He declared and chewed his bottom lip.
Hermione couldn't help the swell of emotion that tightened her chest. "Thank you. That is the grandest compliment I have ever heard," she whispered, and a tear trickled down her cheek.
"Even if we never find our way back, Hermione, I will always be here when you need me. Alright? You are doing something no one else would for my family and you aren't expecting anyone to fall to their knees for you. That is the difference between someone who is normal and someone who is transcendent." Draco announced and reached for his cane.
Her hand reached out and she squeezed his arm tenderly. "Draco, you are a better man than you think," she told him and he turned to her.
There was a moment of tension that was building. The same emotional swivel that took them the first time. It made her cheeks bloom with heat and her heart pound in her chest. His hand rose to her cheek and Hermione's breath hitched in her lungs. It would have continued had the ringing of her phone pop the bubble of passion building.
"I have to take this," she sighed and he pulled away from her. "Charles," she said into the phone when it connected.
"Sweets, are you ready? I am sorry I upset you. Ginny would stab me with a steak knife if she thought I ditched you at the Malfoys." Charlie announced into the phone.
"Yes, we are ready, I am sorry that I was abrupt. Let's not talk about how you feel in front of Teddy, I just told him," she replied and Charlie groaned through the phone.
"So, it's official then? You aren't going to think more about it before you do this?"
"No, Charles, I have thought about it for months. I want to do this and I need you to support me as a friend and family," she retorted.
"Okay, I will do what you need me to do then. The house is nice, you guys are going to be unbelievably happy," Charlie's voice sounded gentle and Hermione smiled.
"I know. It will be a nice start," Hermione spoke with relief.
"Alright, I will be there in twenty. Maybe we can go get some grub, I am sure Teddy will be hungry."
"Thank you, see you soon," Hermione said and hung up.
Draco shifted his head. "Did he change his mind about being a father?" he asked, but Hermione could hear a twinge of jealousy.
"No, he is just helping as family now. That part of our relationship ended when he left me because of my son. I don't want someone in my life who can't be a father to him or my future children," she sighed and folded her legs.
"Well, it is truly his loss."
"Yes, well, it was bound to happen. I knew you couldn't change the direction of the river's flow a long time ago," she exhaled and closed her eyes.
"Hermione, does it factor in that I cannot have children of my own? Is that something you cannot live with?" he questioned, his voice was twisted with bitterness.
The woman laughed and puffed. "No, Draco, it never has nor ever would. That is just as criminal as someone denying love for someone based on color or country origin. That isn't me and you know that."
"Would you be opposed to coming and spending the day next weekend? I know that you will not come during the work week, despite how easy it would be. Teddy could spend the day here with my mother and you wouldn't have to drive on the icy roads back and forth." He mumbled, rolling his cane between his fingers.
"How about we will see how the weather holds? We are expecting a blizzard by Wednesday," she declared, and he exhaled.
"I would feel better if you didn't drive during a snowstorm," he replied.
"Tuesday night then. I will come with Teddy and if the blizzard happens at least, we can get some work done here. But I am not staying with you, Draco. No tricks. No pranks. No guilt. Or I am taking my son and we are leaving, understood?"
"Crystal clear, Granger," he said with a smile.
"Good. If I hear one word about me sleeping with you or shagging you, I am never coming back. Your mother will have to come pick up my son to see him and he will not spend the night again. I don't want this to be like last time. I need to have room to trust you again," she finished, and he exhaled.
"That is more than I could ever deserve," he responded with a bob of his head.
"Alright, now I have a few minutes until Charlie will be here and I have to wrangle my son. I will see you tomorrow morning," she said and stood up. "Do try to be ready on time." She walked toward the hallway and he cleared his throat.
"Good night, Granger. See you tomorrow," he called after her.
"Good night, Draco."