September 2004
Daphne was waiting for them as they made the short walk up to the front door of the small countryside manor. Blaise had been loathed to move so far out from the city but the truth of it was he'd follow Daphne off the edge of a cliff if only to be whinging the whole time.
Their son, Isaac had his nose pressed to the window watching them approach. Isaac was the reason Daphne hadn't returned to her last year of Hogwarts, which is when Astoria had finally started to warm to him. Between a child out of wedlock and an ex Death Eater son in law, the elder Greengrass's disowned both girls saying they rather see the estate rot than go to them, which was a feat the sisters bragged about.
Issac threw open the front door. He was Blaise in miniature except for Daphne's blue eyes. "FINALLY someone to play with, even if she is a girl. " Evelyn wiggled uncontrollably to get down and chase after her cousin.
Daphne came from around the corner wearing light blue robes and for all the world looking like the lady of a manor.
"Thank you for taking her this weekend. I got Isaac's owl, though according to the letter I wasn't supposed to tell you about that, I'm supposed to make it 'look like my idea.' " he and Daphne laughed.
"He's a Slytherin alright. It's no problem to have Evi really, whenever you need us." The witch looked off in the distance for the kids. "But I do need to ask you something, in person."
"Go on- " Draco prompted closing the door behind him.
"Who is she? Don't give me that look, I know you and you've had that besotted puppy look like you had with Pansy then Astoria and you've had it for a while now "
"Daph I haven't even told my parents- "
"Is it because she's muggle-born? Or is it because she's been married before...or both?" The blonde witch grinned, tilting her chin proudly. "Ooorrr both?"
"Oh no how did you- "
Daphne let out a squeal. "Oh, I can't wait to tell Blaise." She pitched her voice lower "I hate Granger and her stupid hair. Granger is in all my classes it's so obnoxious. I wank to Granger giving history lectures in my dreams but don't tell anyone."
"Merlin's tits, alright keep your mouth shut. Yes, it's Hermione Granger not that it's any of your business. She has a kid with Weasley, so it's all very...complicated." The wizard hid his face behind his hand remembering himself as a teenager.
"I just wanted to know where my niece is spending all her time Draco. She's the only piece of Astoria I have left. For the record, I wholeheartedly approve. She treats Evelyn well and I know she can keep her safe. " Daphne shrugged. "And you're obviously head over heels for the witch."
Draco rolled his eyes at his ex sister in law. "Speaking of Granger, we have a dinner to be at..."
Daphne opened the door. "Have a good time. Go get your witch but you're going to have to tell your father at some point!" Draco was already halfway down the path to where the wards were shimmering in the distance.
October 2004.
Once the manor came into view, Draco dashed out of the fireplace, not even bothering to banish the soot from Floo travel from his robes. He stormed past several whispering portraits, two very noisy house elves who were pretending to clean and even his mother who was standing outside the study doors, waiting to try and placate him.
In a burst of unintentional magic, the double doors to study slammed open, causing the whole house to shake slightly and several portraits running from their frames ( as several came in to see the commotion.)
Lucius Malfoy was sitting behind his writing desk, floor to ceiling windows streaming in the sunlight behind him, studiously reading the newspaper, ignoring the outburst from his son. His cold grey eyes lifted from behind reading glasses to met the identical ones of the wizard in front of him.
"What. the fuck. Is this?" Draco tossed a crumpled letter on the desk.
"It appears to be a letter from Gringotts. Has someone slipped a Befuddlement Draught into your tea at the Ministry? Lucius pretended to study the letter but a cat-like smile was growing on his face.
"I know its a fucking letter from Gringotts. What I need an explanation about is why you intend on keeping your grandaughter's inheritance from her -"
"Not forever, I just have to keep the family fortune safe until you have a suitable heir to keep the Malfoy name going. It's not a slight on Evelyn."
"IT IS!" Draco shouted, shaking with the indignation and taking a deep breath, knowing his father would win the more he lost control. Occlumency walls fell back into place, shielding Hermione and Rose. "It's a slight on Evelyn as well as myself, Father. What if something happened to me today?"
"You don't think your mother and I would disinherit Evelyn because she's female, and supposedly a Malfoy - "
"HER NAME APPEARED ON THE BLOODY TAPSTERY AND YOU KNOW IT-" Draco curled his fists so hard his nails bit into the flesh of his palm.
"Only because you were married to that wretched girl at the time. There's still whispers Draco-"
"I don't give a fuck-"
"BUT I DO!" Lucius finally dropped the calm demeanor and stood as quickly as he could. The second war had worn him down to a man almost twice his age but he still held on the pride and name with an iron grip. "And I will not let the Malfoy name be sullied but letting our vaults go to anyone but a legitimate heir, you're 24 there's still plenty of time and witches out there to accomplish it." He sat back in the desk chair, glaring up at his son with fury. "And I will not see a knut of it go to a Weasley stepchild."
"How do you know about her?" Draco snapped.
"You aren't half as discrete as you think you are." Lucius spat back. "You're own mother saw the four of you in Diagon Alley herself. "
"And I for one, don't have a problem with it," Narcissa said from the doorway. "It's a new age Lucius if we want to survive we must adapt, we must let go of all our old grudges." She came all the way into the room and stood next to her son. "Evelyn will see her portion of the Black inheritance so you needn't worry, it'll be enough to ensure she's taken care of. And if you marry the Granger girl then, whatever you allocate to her daughter is fine with me as well."
Lucius sneered at both of them. "You've gone soft Narcissa."
"I suppose I have in my old age. I am a grandmother after all. But intend to enjoy it. After all we've lost Lucius…" the witch tentatively touched Draco's arm. "Can we speak...somewhere else?" She shot a look at her husband before briskly leaving the room,Draco following after her.
She opened a pair of glass pained door out to a garden path, pressing a fist to her temple. "Do you love her Draco? Truly, does she make you happy?"
Exhaling a heavy breath, resisting the urge to snap something sarcastic Draco took a moment for before answering. It was a fair question after all if she was willing to fight against her husband for him.
"I do love her and she does make me happy. Incredibly happy. I'd marry her tomorrow if she'd have me." his voice was surprisingly quiet even to his own ears. "And I love Rose as if she were my own."
"Rose?" Narcissa asked perking up slightly. "Lovely name." There was a beat of silence again. " I'll work on your father, he doesn't actually think Evelyn isn't yours he just wants for you to have a son, to secure the family line after we're gone."
"I don't give a fuck about the family line, or the money. You know that. I just want my daughter to be recognized by her own grandfather for who she is." Another wave of anger pulsed through him though more subdued than the others. " I have to get back to work, Mother. "
He was almost to the Floo when he realized his mother followed him back inside. She called after him "Be patient with your father, he's just trying to protect his family."
Hermione had just finished her lunch at her desk when there was a quiet knock on her office door. Not expecting anyone yet, she cautiously cracked it open to see Draco leaning on the doorway looking thoroughly worn down.
"What's wrong?" she pulled the door all the way open, tugged him in by the arm, and closed the door. "Draco what's happened?"
He encased her in his arm around her, pulling her head against his chest and burying his nose in her hair, sighing deeply. She let her arms wrap around his back and relished the feeling of having him in her arms. There was so further intent from the action, he was just holding her like he would slip away if he let go. She inhaled the scent of him, marveling at how even after a year together she still couldn't get enough of it.
"My father knows," he mumbled after a long moment. "My mother too but she's ok with it."
"How's he taking it?" she didn't lift her head, suddenly fearing this might be their last conversation.
"Furious. Taking it out on where it hurts me the most-"
Hermione gasped and looked up at him. "Surely not. "
"Trying to withhold Evelyns inheritance until I settle down and have a "real" heir. " He scoffed. "Doesn't matter to me but I don't want her to feel-"
"Move in with me." she'd been thinking about for a few weeks and was going to bring it up over dinner maybe with a few jotted down points on notecards. Now she'd gone and just blurted it all out. "If you want. You're there all the time anyway, it's not the manor but it's enough space for now. Unless you want to get your own place that would great too-"
"Granger- "
"We could use the same nanny then too, I've been thinking about interviewing for a new one or to wait until she can start primary school -"
"Hermione, breathe."
"My point is, if you want to, you can move in with me, this weekend." she sighed in relief as he smiled at her.
"I think I'd like that."
31 October 2004.
"Only Luna bleeding Lovegood would get a marriage license in March, take a summer-long honeymoon and come back to do a sunset bonding ritual with all her friends and family, on Hallo-fucking-ween when it cold as- "
"Draco stop complaining. It's your best friend's wedding." Hermione leaned in closer too him, leaning on him as the climbed over the hill, dead grass crunching underfoot and Hermione's heels sticking in the dirt. Their daughters were completely impervious to the cold and already sliding down the valley ahead. The bonding ceremony between Theo Nott and Luna Lovegood was over and the couple had conspicuously disappeared into the woods leaving their guest to meander around the property of her father Rook shaped house.
"Where are we anyway?"
"Ottery St. Catchpole, look over there- that strange boxy house is the Burrow."He pointed to it off in the distance.
"You. are. Joking. "Draco's mouth was actually hanging open.
"I'm not, that's it. " Hermione pulled her coat tighter around her.
"We should stop and say hello, they'd love that -"
"Ehhh-" Hermione bit her lip trying not to laugh and encourage him.
"Just...invite ourselves in...get comfortable on your ex's bed…"
"I think he would notice- "
"No. We'll bring the whole Lovegood clan with us for a distraction. Tell them the Weasleys touched their weird plum tree- "
"That'll start the third wizarding war -"
"Exactly." At that moment Potter came jogging over the hill and down into the valley carrying his firebolt and a much smaller broom with both boys trying to keep up with him.
"Gonna fly Malfoy? I have no time these days so I'm not waiting for you. "
Hermione summoned a large picnic blanket from her beaded bag and spread it on the ground and then sat on it smoothing out her dress. "Go on."
Draco vanished with a crack and reappeared a minute later with his broom and Rose's short pink broom in tow.
The valley was just deep enough where they could get height from where they started but still be in the shadow of the hill. One Rose and James had there broom they started racing closely watched and cheered on by Harry and Draco. Rose instinctively knew to lay herself flatter against the broom to pick up speed and started to lap her cousin easily.
"Damn she's good. Wish Ginny could see this."
"Yeah." Draco cleared his throat. "So, have you thought about putting James in Littles Quidditch? I don't know what the muggle equivalent is-"
"You know the name is pretty self-explanatory, Malfoy. No, I didn't know there was such a thing in our area." Potter lowered himself back to the ground and tried to coax Albus on the broom.
"There can be, there would just need to be a coach for it." Draco lowered himself too and Evelyn gave him a wary side-eye. He'd tried it before and so far it appeared she was afraid of heights.
"So do it then and I'll sign up James. No Al, just sit still on the broom-"
"They won't let me," Draco said very quietly, only loud enough to be heard by the other wizard.
Potter froze on the spot, giving up on trying to convince Albus to stay on and watching the toddler flip himself off and run away.
"That's bullshit. " He muttered pushing his glasses further up his nose. "You were cleared of everything."
"Yeah well, I wasn't given a new last name with my squeaky clean record so here we are." He scooted over to Evelyn who was already starting to cry at the sight of the broom. "Just try it, sweetheart." The little girl shook her head and ran up the hill towards Hermione.
The screams of the other two kids broke out as James tried to take Rose's broom. She kicked him off and in his anger James picked up a stray tree branch and tossed it at her. Rose ducked it artfully and pulled in a tight spiral up all while taunting her cousin.
"Okay Malfoy, I'll coach the Littles Quidditch but you have to help, alright?"
Draco rolled his eyes. "Whatever Potter. I don't want those kids to learn to catch the snitch with there mouths anyway."
"That was ONE TIME."
Hermione summoned a small paperback novel from her bag and lit her wand for reading light as the sun died off in the distance. Evelyn came struggling up the hill and crawled into Hermione's lap, positioning herself to look at the book as well.
"What's it say?" she asked running her fingers over the pages.
"I'm afraid you might think this book is very boring, There are no pictures and it's not really for children." She then remembered all the times she'd heard that growing up when she wanted to read something and shook her head." Would you like me to read it anyway?" Evelyn nodded and settled herself into Hermione, who began to read aloud.
Music started up from up the hill and Hermione supposed it was time to go back. Rose was starting to get whiny and Evelyn was nodding off her lap, so it was probably going to be polite excuses to the bride and groom to go home. She called for Draco and started doing a mental headcount.
There was someone missing.
But there wasn't, Evelyn was there holding her hand and he had Rose and their brooms in his hands.
Maybe the person whose missing just hasn't been born yet said a quiet voice in her head. Well, it was still much to soon to even consider that, they weren't even married yet, he'd just moved in, He'd mentioned in passing wanting more and her vaguely thinking well just one more wouldn't hurt…
She was getting ahead of herself. There was time to go before they got to that stage.
Still might want to bring it up though.
January 1 2005.
The only light in the room was the glowing blue flicker from the TV playing Return of the Jedi. It had been her idea to get Draco to give Star Wars a try by insisting New Years eve be a movie marathon. The sitting room was covered in popcorn as both girls slept on the couch next to their respective parent, with a firm grip on the bowls that had been filled with treats before the sugar crash.
Hermione twisted the chain of her new necklace around her finger in thought. One of her gifts from Draco was a pendant of his constellation laid out in delicate silver and diamonds. It radiated with protective enchantments worked into the metals, something she dared not think about the cost of. It was beautiful and personal and she never ever wanted to see the bill for it.
"Draco-" she whispered, leaning her head back against the cushion of the couch. "It's midnight. You better kiss me if you want to keep me. And by keep me I mean I'm falling asleep."
His pale eyes reflected the blue of the TV as he carefully leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on her mouth. "That's the best I can do for right now without waking Evelyn up. I'll make it up to you later."
She grinned. "What do you want to do in the new year?"
She could tell Draco hedged for a moment before speaking. "I want to be with you. That's all I can really think of. I want to marry you, this year. I'll ask for real later with an obnoxious ring and band everything you'll hate it." She pressed her hand into her face to keep from laughing loud enough to wake the kids. "And I suppose a few promotions at work would be nice. What do you want?"
She worried her lip for a minute. "I want to this Runic study in Sweden but it would mean being away for a few weeks...we'll talk about that later. I want to possibly get a realistic timeline to run for Minister - " Draco mouthed What?! But he was smiling so she carried on. "I would like to get married if that's important to you...but I want to maybe try for another baby. If you want to."
"What brought that on?" he wasn't smiling anymore, more contemplative than anything.
"The girls are getting older. I don't want to have little kids when I run for Minister and, and this is most important, I want to have a baby with you, Draco." He turned back to the TV as the credits started to roll up the screen. "If you want to that is. It'll take a few months to get potion out of my system, and then probably a few more months of trying before I even get pregnant, so ...please say something you're making me nervous."
His tongue darted out over his bottom lip as his eyes flicked over her again. "You're mad Hermione Granger. I should have known from the start. Alright, let's do it, let's have another baby."
Bonus reel
1 January 2005.
"Granger...some is ringing your doorbell."
Hermione groaned. "No one rings the doorbell they all come in by Floo. You're dreaming."
The bell rang a few more times before Hermione realized what was happening. Her parents we're bringing breakfast by this morning for the year. They were the ones ringing the doorbell. They had called in the middle of a particularly rough night with the girls so it had totally slipped.
"Shit shit shit..." Hermione threw a robe on a hurried down the stairs.
"The fuck is happening?" Draco sat up, still bleary-eyed but alarmed.
"Shit shit shit..." Hermione repeated flying down the steps. "Coming Mum! Coming dad!"
"Hermione what the -"
The front door was open and her parents were on her doorstep, with big smiles holding up groceries to make breakfast. Draco was still on the stairs, only in low slung grey pajama pants, visible in height and position of still on the stairs behind her.
Helen laughed and dropped a carton of eggs, turning bright red. Rob's mouth drew into a tight line of disapproval.
"Good morning." he greeted them stiffly. " I take it you weren't expecting us then?"
"No, I'm sorry I forgot to bring it up, Dad." Hermione cleaned up the mess with her wand discreetly.
Helen was still giggling uncontrollably, snorting every few seconds and waving a hand in front of her eyes to keep from tearing up.
Rob shot her a very Hermione look and then did the same to Draco. "It's good to see you again, but do you mind putting on a shirt so I can have my wife back?"
Notes:
I know the pendant thing is probably in a lot of other fics but *shrug*
And you didn't think Lucius would give in quietly, did you? Does he have a change of heart...idk we'll find out.
Chapter 8: The proposal
Summary:
The first big fight and the subsequent proposal. Evelyn's OTP. Buckbeak is not invited.
Notes:
I know I said Littles Quidditch...it's coming. I have so many of these its a job to sort lol.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
March 2005
" Permits and Waivers, level one." The lift voiced as Draco opened the golden grate and steps out on the marble floor.
The office was a simple hall of four doors and a desk facing the lift, with an ancient-looking witch seated behind it.
"Morning. " Draco said as a greeting. He put the forms down on the counter and slid them to the witch. "Permits for Muggle repelling and concealing wards."
The witch tilted her glasses down and looked at him with beady black eyes. Her lip curled as she took the papers without looking at them.
" For Littles Quidditch," he said feeling the need to explain himself from the witch's judgement.
"Somehow I doubt that." She didn't do anything more with the papers so he back away slowly and made for the lift. He thought he heard the sound paper being shredded.
April 2005
It happened on a quiet Sunday morning.
It was a relatively quiet morning in the flat. The only sound was Evelyn's constant stream of consciousness chatter as she milled around, ignoring her food and looking for trouble.
Draco had his section of the Prophet propped open on his lap, one bleary grey scanning the words, with his tea and wand on the table in front of him.
She couldn't concentrate. Disciplining the girls had something that had primarily fallen on her, and she'd told him he needed to be more consistent with Evelyn especially. "You need to move your wand before she grabs it."
"No." He said, voice still rough with sleep. Hermione knew he needed 2 rounds of tea and about an hour to form whole sentences, so she tried to be gracious but-
"Then you'll have to discipline her when she grabs it" she said simply, keeping her eyes on her paper. He made a half-hearted noise to show that he had heard her.
A few moments passed, where Evelyn wandered out of the room and dug into the toy box in the sitting room, in what sounded like she emptied the contents on the floor.
Draco pulled out a page and folded it up, passing it to Hermione. "What do you think?"
It was a real estate ad for a grand looking manor home. Not quite as large as any of the typical Sacred 28 places and certainly only half the size of Malfoy manor, but it still looked to her like a small country worth of land.
"I thought we'd stay closer to work, closer to my parents. I really like where we are now, it's easy to get to work-" she ruffled the paper in her hands. "Besides the cost is outrageous -"
"S'not." He cleared his throat, and Hermione could tell he was revving up his mind with insufficient caffeine and wake up time, so she braced herself for the worst of the snark. "It's never hard to get to work, you're a fucking witch."
"You're a fucking wizard, put up more security enchantments if you must." She snapped back.
" Besides cost isn't a factor, and it shouldn't be when it comes to our kid's safety- "
" Evelyn no-"
But like the opportunistic predator toddlers are, her tiny hand has shot up over the edge of the table, grabbing the wand she so coveted. Draco made to take it back, but their daughter had already taken off with it, screeching in joy.
"Now you need to get it from her and discipline her!" Hermione shirked. "Put her in time out; don't just ignore what she did was wrong." Evelyn was filling the air with multi-colored bubbles at top speed, delighted with herself.
"Don't tell me how to parent my kid Granger!" He snapped eyes still locked on the wand.
" Your child? When did it become yours instead of ours -"
"When you cared more about your career than protection -"
"Malfoy, the wizarding world is safe! The past is gone, we can move on-"
"It's so fucking easy for you, isn't it ?!" He abandoned the fight for the wand and turned to Hermione. "It's so convenient to be the fucking savior of the wizarding world, right? To just get to move on -" there was an edge of ruthlessness she hadn't seen in his eyes in a long time. "I am the past Granger, everything about me is tied to it. "Evelyn was stopped mid-motion watching the adults, unsure of what to make of tension in the room.
Hermione never knew what caused her to say it, but she knew she didn't mean it as soon as the words left her mouth.
"Then maybe I don't want to be tied to you. If you can't let go of the past enough to care about what I want or raise our children properly..." Her mouth trembled as she swallowed back the tears.
With one swift movement, Draco plucked the wand from his daughter's loose grasp and pointed it at Hermione. His lips were white from being pressed together in, pressing back whatever he was thinking to throw at her.
Instead, he moved his arm over to the stairs and summoned a suitcase and some of his and Evelyn's clothes, and they packed themselves before landing in his outstretched hand. He didn't say anything else except for scooping her up and disappearing.
The silence that immediately filled the flat crushed her. Sitting down where she stood and cried for almost an hour.
An owl arrived from the Burrow; Molly asking if they could possibly keep Rose one more night and bring her back tomorrow afternoon. Grateful for her timing, Hermione agreed to it, wondering how or what she was going to explain once she did come back.
Automatically, she started to wander around, picking up. Once the downstairs half the flat was clean, it was too difficult to look at. She wondered if she'd ever see Evelyn dancing in front of the television again or feel her heart flutter when she'd turn the corner and see Draco playing with both girls or reading Babbity Rabbity for the millionth time because "daddy does the voices better!"
She opened their bedroom door, and it overwhelmed her all over again. Evelyn's white stuffed dragon was in between their pillows from where she'd slept in between them. She'd admonished him for that too but had given in after only a few minutes. She clutched it and cried herself to sleep.
When she woke, hours had passed. The sun had finished its arch over the sky and was starting to dip below the horizon. After dragging her stiff muscles to the toilet, she stopped to stare at herself reflection in the sink. Her cheek were still puffy, her eyes still red from crying and her hair was beyond salvaging for the day.
She opened the medicine cabinet to find something for her muscle aches and saw a small empty vial. Her daily dose of the contraceptive potion, empty as she had slowly eased off of it over the last few weeks.
"Are you the source of all this?" she asked the empty container. Frowning as she though. she supposed her libido had dropped, she had been a little bit more tetchy...and maybe a little less receptive. With a heavy sigh, she dressed and scraped together her courage, grabbing the dragon off the bed to bring with her.
Rolling the fine glittery powder in fingers, and steeling her nerves, she called out "Malfoy Manor" into the Floo and hopped she guessed right, and that Draco was the first person she ran into.
No such luck. Narcissa was sitting across from the fireplace, tea tray, and table floating next to her, as a smartly dressed house-elf appeared to clean up the dust.
"Oh, um, Hello Mrs. Malfoy. I'm sorry I just…"
She smiled graciously. "Tea Ms. Granger? I've been expecting you ever since …" she pretended to think "an hour or two after Draco arrived. Though it must have been a bigger fight than I thought to keep you this long."
"Please, call me Hermione -"
"Then you may call me Narcissa, as I suspect you'll be a 'Mrs. Malfoy' yourself before too long - "
Hermione felt herself turn scarlet. "I wasn't aware Draco mentioned his intentions yet."
Narcissa waved a hand. "He was nosing around the Black family vaults a few weeks ago, asking about Calladora Black's Ring which is supposedly cursed against anyone who isn't pureblood. When I inquired as to why he said something like "we should be sure to get rid of it just in case." I love it when wizards think they are being sneaky but are so transparent." Narcissa set her teacup down without so much a clink. " Before you go up to Draco I just want to tell you one thing. "Hermione managed to swallow her embarrassment long enough to tilt her chin up to meet Narcissa's eyes. Dark blue like Evelyn's. "First of all, I hope we can make amends from the past, but that will only come with time. I hope you grow to trust me and I could meet Rose one day, Draco's told me about her.The second thing is I'm always available to babysit any and all grandchildren -" There was a glint in her eye as Hermione felt her own eyes widen "That was a guess." The corners of her mouth turned upward. "The manor has 10 rooms only three of which are occupied. Please feel free to fill them up for me."
Hermione stammered, snapped her mouth shut, opened it to say something only to close it again. "Thank you, Narcissa, for your generosity. I'm... i'm going to see Draco now." Narcissa nodded and picked up her teacup again. The house-elf motioned to Hermione to follow her up a flight of marble stairs to the western wing of the house.
Draco's bedroom was nothing like Hermione had imagined it. The walls were covered in dark wood bookcases, the same as the furniture, only dwarfed by floor to ceiling windows. Most of the colors were deep blues and greys with only a hint of emerald every now and then. Off to the corner a pair of double doors were propped open to a circular room awash in baby pink that must have been Evelyn's nursery. The wizard in question was lying on the bed, facing the circular room away from the door.
"No Mother -"
"It's me- "
Draco sat up, turning around to look at her. His eyes too were bloodshot, and his hair was messy, but it only made her fingers itch to touch it.
"Evelyn forgot her dragon..." She held it up from her bag. "We need to talk."
"I think you were perfectly clear. You don't want to - "The hurt was shining in his eyes.
"I don't want to tie myself to the past. I don't want the war to become my one defining moment in life, I want so many things Draco." Hermione slid her bag off her shoulder and let rest on the floor.
"I hope you get them." he said in a hoarse whisper.
She scoffed and climbed on the bed towards him. "I want you. I want them with you and Evelyn. "His shoulders curled away from her; a sign his walls were still up. "I'm going to tell you something I haven't told anyone." She grabbed his hands and took a deep breath. "I don't go on holiday because I get anxious in unfamiliar places. If I don't know the area or anyone around, I start to- "she swallowed a sob. "I start to panic and get paranoid, I tried to go on a short honeymoon with Ron to a part of France I'd been too before, and I couldn't even manage that." She blinked back tears. "It's the same reason I'm afraid to move ...why I'm afraid of always being held back by the past because in some small way I am."
She braced herself for his response, feeling more than vulnerable after admitting that which she kept so close to heart. After all, what would people say if they knew…
Draco's voice was soft, even reverential as he hooked a finger under the chain around her next to pull up the pendant he'd given her for Christmas.
"I'm afraid of losing you... I'm afraid of losing Evelyn...and Rose… "His voice caught, and he cleared his throat. "I don't know what I'd do...I still think you'll wake up one morning and decide you don't forgive me and walk out on us…"
"Marry me." She whispered. "No more walking out, no more what if's and regrets. We'll let go of the past together. Marry me, Draco. Please?"
His eyes flickered over her lips like he was about to kiss her but he just smirked, still staring at her. "Did you ask my father for permission, Granger? Did you ask for my hand in marriage- "
"Not on your life, Malfoy- "laughter bubbled up from her lips as he huffed and rolled his eyes.
"I'm offended that you'd think I'd just run off with you Granger...You think I'm just some trollop who would shack up -" Hermione was laughing earnestly and put her hand over his mouth to try and stop the sarcasm spilling from him. He continued talking, and she lifted her hand to catch what he was going on about.
"- not a virgin but I come with a substantial dowry and an even bigger -"
She slammed the hand back over his mouth. "Our daughter is right there! I think…"
Draco pulled her hand off. "She's napping. I know it's late in the day- nevermind- "
At the edge of the bed was Evelyn, glaring at Hermione. She put her fists on her hips and crooked a finger at her. Hermione got down and sat eye level with the toddler
"Yes sweetheart?"
"You hurt Daddy's feelings, Mummy….Not nice…"
"Evi sometimes grown-ups argue-"
The next look the child gave her was so familiar it took her breath away. It was one of her looks, a look she'd given to Harry and Ron for the better part of her life, one she gave to Draco when he said something vastly inappropriate. It was the first time she saw herself...
"Ok, I'll apologize. I have a question for you, though."
Evi looked at her warily.
"Can I marry your Daddy?"
She smiled and nodded. "Then you can kiss" she made a smacking noise with her mouth and laughed.
Hermione clambered back on the bed and sat cross-legged facing him. "Try this one more time. Draco Malfoy will you marry me? "
"Daddy say yesss"
Draco looked down at his daughter then back up to Hermione. "Fine, I suppose I will Granger."
"Yay!" Evelyn clapped and did a little dance.
There was a polite knock on the door and a moment later, Narcissa peered inside.
"Grandmother!" Evelyn went sprinting for the door. "Daddy said yes!"
Back at the flat, Draco reclined back on the bed, hands tucked behind his head, watching Hermione get ready for the night.
He was really hoping they could make up in his favorite way as they hadn't had a chance to quite yet.
A little glass vial came sailing out of the bathroom at him. He caught it and examined it.
"So if I was a little short with you these last couple days…blame that."
"I don't know what this is, Granger."
"That was my last dose of contraception potion. It's all gone…" she watched him nervously from the bathroom, fiddling with the straps of her nightie.
He put it on the nightstand. "If you're sure…"
"Well …" and for the second time that day she was crawling across a bed toward him, but this time his pulse quickened. "If I have this baby at 26, they'll be starting Hogwarts when I'm 37, which is about when I'd like to start my bid for Minister, 38 at the latest… I don't fancy running while pregnant or with a baby in anyway soooo…." She trailed a finger down the center of his chest. "I'd really liked to do it now while I'm getting home at 5 and have every weekend off."
"Wow...you really know how to turn a bloke on with that kind of talk." He wanted to say more, but it was hard to think with her sliding onto his lap and having her hands roam all over him. He cupped her chin and brought her lips to his. Something managed to come to the forefront of his mind, though. "How long have you been planning this? "
He felt her smirk as she leaned forwarded and kissed along his jaw. "Quite possibly for a while now...I may have been doing the math while we were in Avignon."
"Granger -
"You're the one who said you'd marry me. " She laughed and pressed in for another kiss "Can't take it back now."
Bonus reel
February 2005.
Hermione surveyed the chaotic mess that was the downstairs of her flat.
The kitchen was a ruin of its former glory with every imaginable dish pulled out and small snack wrappers littering every surface.
The sitting room was covered in toys and blankets as the TV played its usual loop of overbright children's cartoons.
Rose was lying on the floor in only a pink nightgown with a fan blowing on her, eyes glazed over only half awake staring up at the tv. She coughed, and the tv and the lights in the kitchen flickered from the magical interference. Hermione went over to her first, pushing her hair from her face to feel her forehead. She was still feverish to the touch despite the cold air blowing on her.
"Hi sweetie, how are you?" Rose whined in response "I know the flu is no fun. Have you eaten?"
"No. I don't want to. Daddy and Evi say its cold but I'm hot. Mummy, what's a Buckbeak?"
Hermione laughed as the question was so absurd it caught her off guard, but Rose just narrowed her eyes at her in annoyance.
"Buckbeak was a hippogriff that was at school, at Hogwarts that I told you about. Why where did you hear that?"
She turned her head to the two blanket-covered lumps on the couch. "Daddy said 'Everyone is invited to my birthday party except Buckbeak' and then went back to sleep. Why can't Buckbeak go to his party?"
"Daddy and Buckbeak well… they didn't get along." A look of concern crossed Rose's face. "But there's plenty of time before his birthday, maybe they'll make up." She patted her daughter on the leg and stood to examine the sleeping wizard on the couch.
He had sworn he felt absolutely fine when he volunteered to stay home with both their sick children this morning, but she had suspected he'd been stretching the truth somewhat. Now she looked down at the Draco sized lump of blanket on the sofa with a bit of blond hair sticking out of it, and the Evelyn sized purple sheet curled next to him.
Groaning, he pulled the blanket off his face, stared around, and gave a little startled when he saw Hermione. "Shit. I didn't mean to fall asleep. Or get sick. "He tried to pull back the covers from Evelyns face but was met with a flurry of kicking and screaming. "Yeah, alright, keep your hair on. "
Hermione did a little spell that pulled up basic health readings for both of them. "You got it too. But it looks like you were able to get something to eat that's good."
" I tried everything to get these two to eat and drink all day. Fought me the whole time. I gave up when it sounded like we had a pair of dying hippogriffs in here."
Hermione laughed quietly. "That explains the Buckbeak thing."
Draco made a face. "That bastard can not come to my party no matter what he says, he's not invited.