Chapter Two

Theo

After the war, Theo had been convinced he was going to Azkaban. He was his father's son after all, and while he'd never hurt another wizard, his father had insisted he do some rather unspeakable things to muggles during the war. Somehow that just…never came up? Theo was perplexed, but grateful to not have been questioned under veritaserum and for some equally bizarre reason, Thoros Nott did not throw his son under the Night Bus.

Theo swore that he'd make the best of his undeservedly good luck. He returned to Hogwarts and helped with reconstruction. He asked McGonagall to switch him into Advanced Muggle Studies (a course his father had never allowed him to take), he made friends with Lovegood and Longbottom. He paid for a lawyer for Pansy and Blaise so that they could both be acquitted. Although the plonkers thanked him by immediately running off to Italy to get married. He allowed DMLE curse breakers into Nott Manor to seize all the dark artefacts belonging to his father. He donated two huge properties to be used as orphanages and set up the necessary charities to keep them both running indefinitely.

Theodore Nott did literally everything he could think of to wash away his wartime sins.

Surprisingly, other people noticed. Namely Headmistress McGonagall, who named him Head Boy, and the Golden Girl, who ended up being named Head Girl. They struck up the kind of awkward friendship that would have been impossible before the war, and when Theo's boyfriend had finally been released from Azkaban just hours before classes were due to start, Granger had been a godsend.

She'd accepted Draco's tearful apology and agreed to turn a blind eye to the fact that Draco would be sleeping in Theo's dorm room. She had even helped get all Draco's school supplies delivered. She'd helped Theo measure him for new robes since Draco wasn't allowed to leave campus to go to Hogsmeade and had unaccountably grown while in Azkaban for the summer. Hermione was gracious to Narcissa when she visited.

Regardless of appearances, Theo quickly realised that the Golden Girl was not okay. A forgotten silencing charm led Theo and Draco to dash into her room to find her thrashing and screaming, her fingernails shredding her forearm where Bellatrix had carved into her.

Another night Theo found her passed out drunk on the couch, the vials of sober-up and hangover potion just inches from her fingertips that trailed over the carpet as she snored.

Theo just kept taking care of her as much as he could. Draco discovered quickly that Hermione wasn't eating. She couldn't stomach the Great Hall, Head Girl or not. Theo arranged with McGonagall for the three of them to have meals in the Head Suite. The Headmistress was very understanding of anything Hermione needed.

"I want us to take care of her," Draco whispered in the night, his breath on Theo's neck. Theo wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's waist and hummed in agreement. "She doesn't seem well Theo."

"No, she doesn't," Theo murmured back, "Can't leave the Golden Girl to die by neglect. Don't worry, we'll take care of her." And Theo silenced anything else Draco would have said with his lips.

And slowly over time Theo woke up one day and found himself laying back on the couch, his cock deep down Hermione's throat as Draco railed her from behind. The sounds were obscene. And they just never stopped. They kept taking care of her and she took care of them until the three of them were each other's shelter from the world. It was all a secret, of course. Everything was too fragile and new to let the world crush their joy.

When Weasley showed up on the Valentine's Day Hogsmeade Weekend where Hermione and Theo were helping chaperone the younger students, the scene he created was catastrophic for Hermione.

"I don't want to be your friend!" The ginger menace had screamed at her in front of the crowded street after Hermione had told him in no uncertain terms that she wasn't leaving her responsibilities to have a romantic date with him.

"Well, if we aren't friends then we can't be anything more," Hermione sneered, reminding Theo so much of Draco he had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. She turned toward Theo, grabbing his arm and trying to pull him away from the altercation.

"What's so bloody funny, Nott? Kill some kittens today?"

Theo rolled his eyes. "Weasley, take a bloody hint. She's not interested. What's it been? Five owls, three floo calls and now an in-person visit? Go find some of those war hero groupies and leave Granger alone." He kept his tone bland, occluding lightly to keep any emotion from reaching his face. He wanted to pulverise the ginger tosser.

"What's it to you Nott? You shagging her?" Weasley scowled, his face redder than his hair.

Theo thought of how she had cum on his tongue four times the night before prior to Draco spilling himself in her wet cunt.

"Hardly." Not right this minute, he added silently.

"Not gonna soil yourself with a Mudblood," Weasley snorted. "I'm sure the filthy little slag has already thrown herself at you." Onlookers gasped and Hermione stiffened next to Theo, her jaw clenched.

"We aren't friends Weasley, so kindly fuck off," Theo considered pulling his wand, but drawing on a trainee Auror seemed like a poor plan, especially one with Weasley's poor impulse control.

Theo pulled Hermione into the alley behind the Hogs Head and let her cry into his shoulder. He knew Weasley was often cruel to Hermione when she didn't do what he wanted, but she hadn't been willing to give up the friendship. Theo hoped that the Weasel had finally gone too far.

She whispered, brokenly, "You said you weren't shagging me."

Theo bracketed her cheeks with his hands. "My love, if I was going to announce our relationship to the world I would do it my way. Not because the Weasel was trying to goad me and then use the declaration as an excuse to call you a Death Eater whore."

"And it's not because I'm a filthy mudblood," she whimpered as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Never call yourself that again," Theo growled, his sapphire eyes glittering dangerously. He inched up her dress with one hand, the other on her throat as he tore her knickers from her body and then lowered his trousers just enough to free his cock and slam it into her. She needed to know that it didn't matter what other people knew or suspected. What mattered was them and their happiness.

When they'd gotten back to Hogwarts, Draco staked his claim on her body as well. He'd left bites and bruises from neck to ankle marking his territory. And if Theo suspected that Draco had intentionally finished in Hermione without a contraceptive charm, he kept those suspicions to himself.

When Theo found her vomiting in the morning eight weeks later, just before the spring holiday, Theo couldn't have been happier. And once she was reassured that they wouldn't abandon her, Hermione was too. Draco was over the moon and asked Hermione to be their wife at Blaise's home in Italy where they visited over break. They were able to arrange a quiet wedding before they went back to Hogwarts.

Hermione was a vision in silver and white. Pansy had designed a gorgeous wedding dress for her yet to be released fashion line and she was thrilled to let Hermione wear it.

The two women shocked Theo by becoming instant friends. He knew that Hermione was still smarting from the cold shoulder that the Weaslette had been giving her since she'd "publicly humiliated Ron on Valentine's Day," saying Hermione ought to be "more grateful for the attention of a Pureblood wizard." If only the Weaslette knew who was keeping Hermione warm at night she'd truly pitch a fit.

Draco had been just as gorgeous in a black and silver suit and Theo had worn azure to match his eyes. Blaise's mother was the only witness besides Pansy and Blaise. And it was perfect. Blaise's mother hired a photographer, but said she handled him afterwards. Theo prayed that meant she obliviated him, but there was really no telling with Signora Zabini.

They registered the wedding at the Italian Ministry and paid some hefty bribes to keep it secret.

Theo got really good at disillusionment charms and glamours over their final couple months at Hogwarts. Pregnancy made Hermione's magic a bit unstable so she couldn't cast the charms consistently for herself. Once he and Hermione were accepted into the Unspeakable training program his glamours and illusions had to get even better. Hermione was hugely pregnant at the beginning, Theo found he needed to stay within a few yards of her or the glamour started to waver and he couldn't have that.

After Lyra was born Hermione pretended to have dragonpox and stayed home for about six weeks, but was ready to return to work by the end of that time. Draco took over the mantle of stay at home father with support from Narcissa. Theo adored coming home and finding Lyra asleep on Draco's shoulder, while his husband reviewed Malfoy Enterprises contracts. They just settled into tranquil domesticity, the four of them. Then Scorpius came along two years later, his ice blonde baby locks ignited something in Theo who decided that the next baby would be his biologically. He might have over done it because next were the twins, Emilia and Thea. After the stress of Theo hiding the twin pregnancy at work, the three of them decided that they were finished. Four children were enough.

Then two years ago Casseopeia had surprised all of them by making herself known at nearly five months gestation. Draco didn't stop laughing for nearly a week when they found out they were having a fifth child. Hermione had been less amused, and had finally decided to go part time at the Ministry. She enjoyed her work, but she didn't much enjoy having a boss she had discovered. Theo missed sharing an office with her all day every day, but understood her desire to be with the children more. He was starting to consider leaving too, especially when his work was less than satisfying and he thought of all the children at home with Draco and Hermione.

They'd managed to keep the kids hidden from the British Wizarding World, taking them on trips to Italy to visit the Parkinson-Zabini kids or to New York where the three of them and their children were just another face in the crowd. British Wizarding society thought it was the centre of the world, but in many ways it was isolated.

It was Hogwarts that had them worried, Draco wanted to send Lyra to Beauxbatons and Theo agreed. They'd hidden the child this long, why subject her next year to the derision she was sure to face at Hogwarts, especially once someone did the maths and realised when she had to have been conceived. If she went to Hogwarts there was no doubt among her three parents that she'd be sorted into Slytherin. And then how would she fare in the snake pit? Lyra was their princess, the Malfoy heiress, and thought that everyone would perceive her the same way. Draco and Theo were both terrified that the Pureblood scions of the rest of the Sacred 28 would torment her.

She was a stunning girl with Draco's pale hair and silver eyes. Theo would die to keep her safe.

Standing outside their London townhouse, his wand at Potter's throat, Theo realised that he would kill for her too.