Hermione was less than pleased that she did not get to find out the gender of her faux- child. An irrational side of her blamed Luna, though the blonde Ravelclaw was hardly to blame. There was something off putting about the way McMiggins reacted to Luna's surprise twins. It was as if the pregnancy had become real for a moment.
The incredulous thought was brushed off by Hermione. Surely McMiggins's reaction was just shock. After all, the chance of receiving twins never occurred to anyone. Perhaps Luna's potion was not made right, thus leading to the extra child.
"It's a boy anyways," Draco said as he sat down beside her on the loveseat. "No need for McMiggins to perform the test." He decided to push his luck and laid down with his head on Hermione's lap.
Since McMiggins dismissed the class, there was still time to spare before Potions with Snape. Hermione and Draco returned to their dorm whilst the others went to their own. Ginny had asked if she wanted to come over, but Hermione declined. She wanted to leave Ginny and Blaise alone to celebrate their future baby boy.
"You're thinking too much, Love. I can practically hear your brain working," Draco said.
Hermione looked down at him with a slight frown. "How are you not the slightest bit upset that we didn't get to find out the baby's gender? We won't get to find out until next week!" Subconsciously, Hermione's fingers began playing with Draco's hair. And although the brunette was oblivious to this, the blonde was definitely aware.
Draco shifted his body slightly so he was even closer to Hermione. His legs dangled off of the loveseat due to his height, but he didn't mind due to Hermione's fingers weaving through his hair.
"I already told you that we're having a boy," Draco drawled.
"You say it so often that I've come to ignore it," Hermione said absentmindedly. She gently massaged his scalp, now noticing what she was doing. His hair felt so soft she couldn't resist continuing to touch it.
Draco let out a small sigh of satisfaction. "If it consoles your little heart, you can decorate the baby's room. But if there is a hint of pink and frills I will turn everything black."
"Is this your way of compromise?"
"Take it or leave it." Either way, it was a win for Draco. He still got the room decorated with little to no work.
There was no response from Hermione, so Draco took it as an 'okay.' He closed his eyes and relaxed into the brunette's soft touch.
Hermione looked down at Draco, taking in how peaceful he looked. His lashes all but touched his high cheek bones. And his lips... His lips looked so inviting and soft. Hermione felt compelled to lean down an steal a kiss. She reasoned that it wouldn't have hurt to kiss him. Hermione brushed one hand down to his cheek tentatively. To her surprise, he felt warm, and his skin was soft. Draco leaned into the palm of her hand and slowly opened his eyes.
"Granger." His voice came out low.
"Malfoy," Hermione whispered. She licked her lips, which did not go unnoticed by Draco.
Their eyes locked for what felt like forever. Silver clashed with gold, and tension began to build up through their gazes. Draco turned his head slightly and kissed the palm of Hermione's hand. He watched as her lips parted slightly.
"You're gorgeous, you know that?" he whispered.
Hermione's breath caught in her throat. She felt her heart clench. "You must be blind."
"No," Draco said. "You must be blind."
The next couple of days for Hermione and Draco were rough. Whilst the other pairs were planning names and rooms for their future faux-child, Hermione and Draco planned for the upcoming Halloween Ball. When they weren't working on school work or head duties, they were in the Great Hall eating in silence. And by the time they were done with it all, they were too tired to do anything but sleep.
"Are you coming with me to Hogsmeade tomorrow?" Hermione asked. She stifled a yawn and rubbed her eyes.
Draco looked up from the Potions essay he was working on. "Of course." He flashed her a small smile that looked too attractive to be legal.
Hermione nodded then stifled another yawn. She felt her eyes water and her eyelids dropped. Sleep was calling for her. Her hand rested on her baby bump, which was definitely showing. Off of her calculations, she was around five months pregnant already. By next week, she'd be in labor. The thought was terrifying to all of the faux-pregnant girls.
Hermione began to pack up her things to retire for the night. She would've fallen asleep on the love seat if it wasn't for the fact that Draco was already on it. As she prepared herself to get up, a fluttering in her stomach caused her to stop. A frown found itself on her face as the strange feeling continued.
"Draco." The brunette looked into the blonde's eyes. "I think the baby's kicking."
The Slytherin Prince was up in an instant. He practically threw himself at Hermione, who was sitting in one of the armchairs. His hands rested on her stomach as he knelt in front of her. "Are you sure? I don't feel anything."
"Well you might not, but I sure as hell do," Hermione retorted. She felt the fluttering once more.
Draco's hands roamed around her stomach, trying to feel some sort of kick. There was a slight weight on his chest. It took him a moment to realize that he was holding his breath out of excitement.
The feeling of his hands on her body caused Hermione to forget about the baby kicking for a moment. The warmth of Draco's hands became the only thing she could focus on. "I think the baby stopped."
"Are you sure?" Draco looked up at her. His hands slid over to hold her waist, and his thumbs rubbed soft circles on her sides. "You don't feel kicking?"
Hermione shook her head apologetically. "The only thing I feel is tired," she said truthfully. For what felt like the tenth time that night, Hermione yawned. She leaned back in the armchair and closed her eyes, ready to fall asleep.
Suddenly she felt herself being lifted. Draco had carried her into his arms bridal style. Her head rested on his chest as he held her in his arms and began to walk towards her room.
"Hey," Hermione murmured. "Why are you so nice this year?"
Draco didn't reply right away. Instead, he continued to carry the barely conscious princess to her room. There was a comfortable silence between them as he entered the bare room. He gently laid her down in the middle of the bed and began to undress her. Hermione made no effort to move, but looked up at Draco through half closed eyelids.
"I've learned something this year," Draco said quietly.
"Oh?"
"Mmm," he hummed. He took off her shoes and socks. "You're not that bad for a muggleborn."
"Muggleborn, eh? No more mudbloood?"
Draco paused. He fought the urge to flinch. "No. Never again mudblood." He moved to take off Hermione's skirt. His movements were slow, giving her more than enough time to protest. But Hermione continued to just lay in bed, staring at him as he undressed her. Draco peeled off her skirt, marveling at the sight of her bare legs. He nearly choked on his spit when he realized that Hermione was wearing a pair of silver lace underwear.
Instead of continuing to undress her, Draco walked over to her chest of drawers to get a more comfortable shirt for her. He eyed the orange Chudley Cannons shirt she still had, but his attention soon landed on a familiar green shirt. It was the same shirt he had given her to wear a few days ago. He picked out that shirt without a second glance and walked back to the almost sleeping brunette.
Hermione slowly sat up and took the shirt out of Draco's hands. "Turn around so I can undress."
Draco raised an eyebrow at that, but nevertheless obeyed. He turned around then heard the sound clothes shuffling. A blouse was suddenly tossed onto the floor beside him. Then a bra landed on top of the blouse. Draco eyed the fabric with much interest until he heard Hermione say, "You can turn around now."
When he turned to face Hermione, he felt all air leave his lungs. "Fuck, Granger," he swore under his breath.
Hermione laid on the bed in nothing but his shirt and her underwear. Her hair was sprawled out from under her in a beautiful curly mess. She gazed up at Draco, barely conscious. Her hand patted an empty space on the bedside her, beckoning for him to come closer. "Lay down with me," she mumbled.
Draco didn't hesitate. His took off his tie and dropped it on the ground, then kicked off his shoes and socks. He sat down beside the brunette. Her hand suddenly tugged at the sleeve of his shirt. Draco unbuttoned his shirt, but left it on. He slowly laid down on the bed, only to be engulfed in warmth and Hermione. Everything smelled like her. It was intoxicating. Hermione moved closer to Draco and closed her eyes.
"Stay with me until I fall asleep,"she whispered.
He stared at her for a moment, taking in how breathtaking she looked. "As you wish."
Hermione woke up feeling hot. Heat surrounded her, and there was a weight on her waist along with something hard pressed against her back. Slowly her eyes opened. All she saw at first was blinding light coming from her window. But after a moment or two of letting her eyes adjust, she realized she was in her room. Though how she got there, she had no idea. The last thing she remembered was Draco carrying her. Everything after that was a blur.
It didn't take a genius to realize that the Slytherin had stayed around though. Hermione could feel his warm breath on her neck as he continued to sleep. She hated to admit it to herself, but she liked waking up like this. Minus the overwhelming heat of course. Though when Hermione slowly kicked the blanket off of her torso, she felt a lot better.
"Go back to sleep."
Hermione nearly jumped at the sound of Draco's voice.
"It's too early. Sleep," he said. His voice was low and slightly hoarse. It brought shivers down Hermione's back. If his voice always sounded like that, he could have convinced her to do anything.
Hesitantly, Hermione closed her eyes. To her surprise, it wasn't that hard to fall back asleep.
It was only an hour later though when Draco woke up. He woke up feeling well rested, which was an uncommon feeling for him. He and Hermione had changed positions during their sleep. Draco was now on his back with the witch practically on him. Her head was on his chest, which nearly gave him a mouth full of her untamed hair. Her leg was draped over his hips.
It was almost time for breakfast, and despite how comfortable Draco was, his stomach was aching for food. Slowly, he untangled himself from Hermione. He made sure not to wake her up as he got out of bed. Draco grabbed his shoes and socks before he left the room, but one of his socks was missing. He leaned down to check under the bed, and sure enough, it was there, next to a crumpled piece of paper.
Draco grabbed both and unfurled the paper. His eyes widened at the title of it.
36 QUESTIONS THAT LEAD TO LOVE
1. Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?
2. Would you like to be famous? In what way?
3. Before making a telephone call, do you ever rehearse what you are going to say? Why?
Draco frowned slightly. A telephone call? he thought in confusion. Definitely a muggle contraption. He continued to look through the list.
30. When did you last cry in front of another person? By yourself?
31. Tell your partner something that you like about them already.
Lists of questions filled the page. Draco's eyes scanned over every word, skeptical of whether the title was true or not. He didn't even know why Hermione had the paper in the first place. After all, love was never something they had discussed. Pretending to be married was discussed. Sleeping arrangements were discussed. But the possibility of actually falling for each other was never brought to attention. Had Hermione planned to make him fall in love with her with these questions?
No. Granger isn't that gullible, and she loathes me. Draco shook his head as a small part of him said, Granger obviously likes you enough to sleep in bed with you.
He crushed up the paper and looked down at Hermione. "What are we going to do?" he muttered under his breath. Draco slowly left the room with his clothes and the paper.
Hermione and Draco walked side by side through the store. There were baby bottles, pacifiers, clothes, and just about everything needed for a child in every color. A shopping cart was in front of them, though it was empty unlike the other couples'.
"What's wrong with this one?" Hermione rolled her eyes and held up a package of baby bottles.
Draco scrunched up his nose and looked around the store in distaste. "Everything in this blasted shack is cheap."
"You're being too picky." Hermione tossed to package into the cart then added a pack of green pacifiers. She made her way towards the clothing aisle. Ginny, Luna, Lavender, and Pansy were already there, searching for the right clothes for their children. A twinge of jealously ate at Hermione. She wished that she knew the baby's gender like the others.
"Oh Hermione, look how cute this is!" Lavender held up an orange Chudley Cannons onesie. "Won't Ron just love this?"
"Absolutely," Hermione agreed with a small smile.
Immediately Ginny and Lavender began showing her all the clothes they picked out. Hermione continued to smile and nodded every now and then to show her approval. Luna was too busy searching for clothing that, in her own words "repels Estraldies." When Hermione asked what those were, the blonde replied, "Oh they're mean creatures. They make babies cry all the time. Can't see them of course, but they're less attracted to babies that wear a certain shade of blue." None of the blues in the sea of clothing matched the shade that repels Estraldies so far.
As for Pansy, she silently looked through the clothing for what would look adorable on her future daughter. She stood far enough from the others to show that she wasn't included in the conversation, but close enough to show she was with them. "Hey, Granger," Pansy said. Hermione turned to her, slightly relieved to have a break from Ginny and Lavender's gushing. "This would look good on a boy or girl."
It was a white onesie with a cartoon pale green serpent on the front. It was simple enough, yet Hermione and Pansy both knew that Draco would approve.
"Thank you," Hermione said as Pansy gave it to her.
Pansy gave her what looked like smile, though Hermione wasn't sure. The two never interacted enough to know much about the other. But Hermione pitied Pansy, since the Slytherin never had any friends besides Draco, Blaise, and Theo.
"Have you thought of names yet?" Hermione found herself asking Pansy. She walked over to her and searched through the clothes in front of Pansy.
"A few," Pansy murmured. "Harry is set on Lily," she said softly. A slightly dark look crossed Pansy's features. "I like the name, but it just seems a bit sacred, yeah? To name our fake daughter after his mother just doesn't seem worth it. It should be saved for something real."
"Have you told Harry that?"
Pansy pursed her lips together, signalling a no. "Does telling him that the name is atrocious count?"
"No."
"Then no, I haven't. How about you and Drake? Have you two talked over names?"
That would require communicating, Hermione thought. "No," Hermione said truthfully. She felt slightly embarrassed. She and Draco were supposed to be the model students, and yet they were the most dysfunction of all the couples.
"Try looking up names of constellations," Pansy offered as she picked up a white onesie covered in tiny flowers. "It's a Malfoy tradition." Pansy placed the onesie into her cart.
The two of them made small talk, keeping things civil. It was easier than they had thought to begin with. Eventually Ginny, Lavender, and even Luna joined in on their conversation. The five girls talked about their pains through pregnancy, and how helpful or unhelpful their partners have been.
"Blaise still puts up with my weird cravings. Last night I made him go to the kitchens and get me ice cream, chips (french fries) , and pickles," Ginny said sheepishly.
Lavender snorted. "I woke Ron up at three this morning to get me pasta. Fettuccine alfredo to be exact."
"Speaking of cravings, I could go for a milkshake right now," Pansy mused. She licked her lips and a sighed. "A milkshake with crisps and a burger."
Hermione's stomach ached in agreement. "That sounds amazing," she said.
"Talking about me again?"
Hermione turned around to see Draco looking at her with a smirk plastered on his face. The other guys were behind him talking about quidditch.
"You wish," Hermione scoffed as Draco sent her a wink. She couldn't stop the blush that reddened her cheeks.
"We're taking a break to eat," Lavender announced, saving Hermione from facing an awkward silence. "You boys go pay while we go," she ordered as she abandoned her cart and walked towards the front of the store.
The guys gave her an incredulous look. Much to their chagrin, the other girls followed suit. Their hungry stomachs took priority over everything. But Hermione hesitated before she left, and looked at Draco with questioning eyes. "Do you have the money?"
"Yes, Love," he answered. He pulled out a wallet and showed her the money that filled it. "See? Go eat. We'll meet up with you all later," Draco said. He gazed at Hermione's growing stomach and gave what looked like an affectionate smile. "We need our son to be healthy, yeah?"
"Or daughter," Hermione objected. "Harry and Pansy can't possibly be the only one out of us all to have a girl. Oh, and Luna," Hermione muttered the last part.
"Potter isn't-"
"-a Malfoy, and Malfoys always have sons first," Hermione drawled.
"See? Now you're understanding it," Draco joked. Then his expression morphed into a slightly more serious one. "Go eat." He surprised her by kissing her cheek. "And you look beautiful today, Mon Chaton," he whispered in her ear.
Hermione eyes widened and she gave Draco a frazzled look. Her lips parted, but nothing came out. After a second or two, she joined the rest of the girls, red faced and embarrassed.
"Careful 'Mione," Ginny joked as they left the store, "someone might start to think you two actually like each other."
A/N Helloooo. Sorry this is a bit late. But thank you for reading! Sorry for mistakes!
-KittyKat