Chapter 18

Doomed To A World Of Mistrust

By Jane Bingham

After He Who must Not Be Named fell on that fateful night, the world took a sigh of relief, for now things could hopefully go back to normal. The world rejoiced when we could walk down the street without being prosecuted for something as simple as our blood. Stores were no longer overthrown for hiring 'undesirable' employees, and there were no more on the street murders. So we all started to settle back into the norm we so desperately craved.

But despite this, there are still so many secrets being covered up by the Ministry. And I know that the people can't possibly know everything; that some things are better left as secrets since it is the only way that we could possibly function as a whole.

However, there are some things the secrets we need to know. It has been almost three weeks since that earthquake struck, resulting in so many deaths and injuries. Houses were destroyed and streets torn apart. While some of us might try to placate ourselves into believing that it was a natural occurrence, we all felt the shift in magic that night. It wasn't natural. Something caused the quake. And every time one of us tries to question Aurors or the Minister, none of them say a thing that could possibly help us understand. Do we not at least deserve the right to find out why our country was torn apart?

In addition to this, the murder last night of Clarence Bigby leaves much to the imagination as to why he was targeted. While murders still have occurred since the war, it has been over disputes or random muggings gone wrong. But according to first hand witnesses who saw the body, he was brutally tortured and burned alive until the point where he as barely recognizable.

All I ask is that we as a community are informed for things such as these. The secrets that we keep are the reason society was so easily torn apart the first time. And yes, we do not need to know everything, for it is probably safer that way. But at least give us assurances every now and then that things are okay and we do not need to constantly be in a state of panic over what is happening.

Hermione sighed as she placed down the paper. She couldn't blame the reporter or anyone else for wanting to know about why seemingly random things were happening. She would be demanding answers, and going to everyone or anyone related if she didn't know. Hell; the only reason she had a fraction of a clue what was happening was because it was her son who came back.

"Mommy?" she heard a small voice call out. She looked up from the paper to see Scorpius standing a few yards away from her, rubbing his eyes from still being tired, despite sleeping through the night, in wrinkled hand-me-down pyjamas which Molly had dropped off.

"Good Morning Scorpius," she smiled. She picked up her son and gave him a tight hug; needing it after the night before. Seeing the dead body there had been hard on her. Half the reason she had gone into healing was to try and save people so they could live longer, especially after all the losses she had suffered in the war. While she knew she probably could have been an Auror, she couldn't handle any more deaths.

Her son grinned as he wrapped his arms around her and placed a kiss on her cheek. "Morning, Mummy," Scorpius said in his young voice.

She held him for a few more moments, before placing him gently down in a chair, "Are James and Hugo up yet? Or are they still asleep?" not that she would blame the other children if they were; it was pretty early in the morning, but it would seem that her child inherited her ability to rise with the sun, unlike the other two who were their fathers' children, in more ways than one.

Scorpius nodded, "I was hungry," he said sheepishly, "Can I have waffles?"

Hermione laughed, "Sure, sweetie. Would you like some milk with it, or some juice?"

"Juice?" Scorpius said hopefully, "Can I help you make them?"

"Of course," Hermione grinned, glad her son wanted to take part in helping her. While she had doubts at times in her abilities as a new mother, it would seem like the future her was able to raise a child with great manners. "Put on an apron first, then wash your hands, and we'll get started."

"What are you making?" she heard a voice call out from the doorway. She looked up in surprise to see Draco standing there, leaning against the frames.

"Daddy!" Scorpius said, as he leaped up to hug his father. "We're making waffles! Want to help us?"

"Sure, Scorp," Draco said, as he bent down to hug the boy. Upon releasing him, he said, "Now, go on and wash your hands like your Mum requested."

As Scorpius walked over to the sink, Hermione turned to the former Slytherin.

"I didn't know you got in last night," Hermione said softly, "How was everything?"

"Not good," Draco said in a low tone, "I'll bring you up fully on details later today when we go over to the Burrow, but the gist of it seems to be that he was in charge of getting the files during the break-in that landed me in the hospital. From what I can tell, someone clearly wasn't all that pleased with what Clarence found."

"That's terrible," she gasped. "Are Harry and Ron still there?"

He nodded, "I came home since there wasn't a lot I could do. They have a few of the newer Aurors finding out details of his life, but of course they don't really understand the full significance of the case."

She sighed, "I hate that all of this is happening," she admitted to him.

Draco was about to respond, when Scorpius came back to the two of them, ready to get started.

"First we need some flour," Hermione instructed, as Draco walked to the cabinet where it was being held, "Scorpius, would you like to stir while we add in the ingredients?"

Grinning, Scorpius clapped his hands in agreement. She handed him a wooden spoon and charmed the bowl so none of the batter would spill over the sides and mess up the kitchen. Draco smiled as he caught her preforming the spell, but didn't say a thing, as he poured in the flour.

She added in the sugar while Draco cracked eggs into a separate bowl, whisking them, before adding it into Scorpius' bowl.

When the batter was done, she poured some of the mixture slowly into an iron that she had bought her friends a few years ago, as it had been something Harry had wanted for years.

As the batter cooked, Scorpius started jumping up and down in the kitchen, waiting eagerly for the waffle to be done, so Hermione set him and Draco on preparing some fruit and cream to top of the waffles as it would give the two of them something to do.

While walking back to the iron, she felt her foot step on a toy that one of the children must have left out, and start to loose balance. As she started falling over, she felt a pair of arms grab her and pull her up, and in doing so, the force sent her straight into Draco's chest.

Which was definitely somewhere she hadn't intended to be. And it didn't help that he was so warm despite his pale complexion, and that she felt her breath catch slightly in her throat.

As she pulled away, she chided herself for her ridiculousness; especially since Draco didn't seem to be at all affected by it, other than asking if she was doing okay.

"I'm fine," she insisted, heading back to the iron to remove the now cooked waffle. It was just her mind playing tricks on her due to the domestic like scene that was currently occurring in the kitchen.

"Is it done?" Scorpius asked eagerly, as he came up behind her with a plate.

"Mmhm," she said as she took the plate from her son, to add the waffle to, before giving it back to him. As she placed the batter on the iron for the next waffle tray, she headed to the table to sit with Scorpius for a few moments, all while avoiding eye contact with Draco.

"What do you think?" Draco asked him, "Are the waffles good, or should I just pretend to be full?" he teased.

"They're very yummy!" Scorpius said as he added more strawberries to the ever growing pile of fruit on his waffle, "Thank you, Mummy."

"You're welcome, Scorp," she kissed his forehead, as she stood to remove the next waffle. She supposed it would have been quicker to use magic on the iron to make them cook instantly, but if there was one thing she had learned over the years, it was that sometimes patience made food taste the best.

She took the second waffle off the iron and placed it on a plate before handing it to Draco.

Draco smiled at her, "Thanks," he said as he gratefully took the plate from her.

She was about to head to the iron to make another waffle for herself, when she heard an owl tapping at the window. Curious, she walked over and let it in.

Scorpius squealed in excitement as the owl flew in and landed on the table. Draco gave her a questioning look, clearly not recognizing it as a ministry belonged owl.

She took the letter attached to the owl's foot and pulled a letter from the envelope.

Dear Hermione,

I wanted to write to you to since I haven't seen you since our date a few days ago. I had a fantastic time with you, even if it was so abruptly cut short by tragedy. The circumstances were extremely unfortunate, however, if you are willing, I would love to go on another date with you soon. Hope to hear from you again soon.

Take Care,

Oliver

"Who's it from, Mummy?" Scorpius asked, trying to peer over her shoulder.

"Just a friend, Scorp," She said, cheeks reddening slightly.

She avoided looking at Draco whom she was sure was watching her with a scrutinizing gaze, clearly knowing very well just who the letter had come from. However he didn't say a thing, as he silently ate his breakfast.

She folded the letter, and delicately placed it down on the table. She would reply later, but for now, she would simply enjoy some time alone with her son and his father.

Draco yawned as he took a seat at the long table in the burrow. It had been a long day and he had been slightly worried through it about going over to the Weasley home due to the past that the two families had between them.

He knew Ginny had gotten over it, and Weasley seemed to have reluctantly buried the hatchet, he was still sceptical about the rest of them. Sure, the Matriarch of the family seemed to treat him well enough whenever she came by to help with the children, however it was not the same as being in a house full of people who once despised him just as he had they.

Harry had assured him that it would be fine, despite being slightly overwhelming at first, and that while he might need to worry about them teasing him, he shouldn't expect bodily harm; well nothing permanent at least.

That itself had nearly sent him running for the hills, but his partner's wife had given Harry a dirty look before reassuring him as well.

So far, he had noticed a bunch of wary looks his way, but no one had gone out of their way to address the situation, so he followed suit and did the same.

He looked wistfully over to where Scorpius was playing with James and Hugo, as well as Teddy Lupin and Victorie Weasley, Bill Weasley's daughter. The young girl was barely two years old, and the other boy was nearly four now. It was weird to think about that the child was technically related to him, as his late cousin's child.

When Harry caught him staring, he leaned over and said, "Do you want me to introduce you to him?"

Draco was caught off guard, but replied, "I don't know. I mean my family is the reason he has no parents. Why would he want anything to do with me? If he doesn't fully understand now, he will in a few years."

"How many times do I have to tell you that your family's actions are not your own," Harry shook his head, "Besides, the two of you are both severely lacking in the family department; wouldn't you like to get to know him? Even Scorpius seems to be taking a shining to him."

Draco sighed, but agreed. He followed Harry over to where the children were playing, but stopped slightly when he saw Andromeda standing across from him. He had never seen his aunt in person before, due to his mother's family disinheriting her, but looking at her, she looked like a less crazy Bellatrix.

"Draco," she said in a soft voice. He studied her face and saw there were no traces of malice in her eyes.

"I wanted to approach you after the war, but I wasn't all that sure how to do so," Draco admitted to her, "Especially after everything that happened, I wasn't sure you would want to see me."

"Of course I would," Andromeda said. "I've been keeping tabs on your life, to make sure you were doing okay after your father's arrest. You've made quite a life for yourself."

He nodded, "I wanted to prove that people were capable of change."

She pulled him into a tight hug, to his surprise, but he didn't pull away as his aunt held him briefly, "Draco, I don't want to intrude into your life if it is not something you wish, but I would like to be a part of it, if it's okay with you."

He smiled at that, "I do want that," he said softly.

"Would you like to meet Teddy?" his aunt asked him softly. When Draco agreed, she called her grandchild over, "Teddy, this is your uncle Draco. He and your mother were cousins."

Teddy's eyes widened at the prospect of having another relative, and his hair immediately changed colour to the same pale blonde Draco had on his head.

He laughed lightly at that, "I like your hair," Draco complemented him. "It suits you."

Andromeda grinned as well, "Much better than the blue you had before," she teased Teddy, as she lightly poked his stomach, causing the boy to laugh, and blue tips to appear in his hair.

"I like this," Teddy announced as he gave Draco a hug.

He grinned and wrapped his arms around the little boy, "A wonderful compromise," Draco said as he released him from the hug.

As Teddy walked away to resume playing with the boys, Andromeda said, "How is your mother taking all of this? It can't be easy for her."

"She's trying," Draco admitted, "It's hard for her to accept that Scorpius is a half-blood and there is a chance the remainder of the Malfoy line won't be pure if I don't marry a pureblood. But she's realized that unless she changes how she thinks, then she'll have no family left. And that's worse for her than the purity of my line."

She looked hesitant, and Draco decided to say, "I think she misses you as well. But she's too stubborn to make the first move in reconciling, or she's too afraid that you'll reject her to try and reach out to you."

"She always was proud," Andromeda said softly, "I'll send her an owl inviting her for tea. Hopefully you're right, and she doesn't send the owl back with an unopened letter."

Draco smiled, "Thank you for being so open. A lot of people wouldn't be as forgiving of their family after everything you've gone through."

She smiled as well, "We can't always choose our family, but despite that, it doesn't mean that we should hold them to unrealistic expectations if they don't deserve it. You were nothing but a child through both wars. You did what you had to do to protect your family as we all did. It wasn't you or your mother who killed my husband and daughter. Besides, I've always thought that in a different upbringing, you would have turned out differently."

"It's a shame that I didn't," Draco said softly, "But if I had, I might not have a son now, despite the odd circumstances behind it."

Andromeda nodded, "It's funny how much a child can change your life, isn't it?"

"In ways you don't even expect," Draco said, "I didn't think I would have children for several years, yet here I am with a five year old son, complete with a set of manners and already raised past most of the difficult stages of his early life."

"And how are things with Hermione?" Andromeda asked, "She's always been a lovely girl. Are the two of you going to try to have a relationship now?"

Draco shook his head, "We decided against it. Besides, she's seeing Oliver Wood, so even if I changed my mind, she's not available."

"Do you want her to be?" Andromeda asked him gently. When he said nothing, she continued, "Draco, if there's one thing I've learned, it's that life is much too short for regrets. It can change when you least expect it, leaving you regretful of all the things you never got to do. If you want to tell Hermione how you feel, then don't waste time with fear."

He was about to respond, as Harry peered into the living room, "Guys, everyone's here, so we're about to start."

Draco nodded at his partner as he rose to his feet.

"Remember what I said, Draco," Andromeda said as she placed a hand on his arm.

He took a deep breath as he took in his aunt's words. While he understood where she was coming from, things were different in his circumstances. Besides, right now he had bigger things to worry about; such as being in a room full of Weasleys.