Hermione slowly strolled down Diagon Alley, revelling in the warm summer sun. She was in high spirits as over the last couple of weeks, everything had seemed to go right for her. She'd started working for the Malfoys, and was finding the job very fulfilling. At times it could be tough, especially as Draco had correctly predicted she was often rejected at the mere mention of the name Malfoy. But she could already see how much she could achieve and she had high hopes that she could prove vital in the restoration of the Malfoys family business.
On a personal level, she was moving into her new penthouse that weekend. As Draco had promised, she'd been involved in the design and furnishing of the penthouse, and now it was nearly ready. She'd also just come from an appointment at the hospital, and her pregnancy was progressing nicely. Everything was as it should be, and now before her next appointment she had to decide if she wanted to know the sex of the baby, or if she wanted it to be a surprise when she gave birth.
Musing on what she would decide about finding out the sex of the baby, she picked up a few things for her new home, and couldn't resist a few baby bits as well. With the uncertain start to her pregnancy, she'd put off buying anything baby related, but now her future seemed surer and she knew for certain that she was keeping her baby, she allowed herself to start preparing for the future.
Lost in her own thoughts, Hermione didn't realise she was passing the Weasley's joke shop, until she heard a familiar voice calling her name. Looking up, she found George standing outside of the shop, waving in her direction. Hermione hadn't seen George since Harry's funeral, and even though he hadn't been present when she'd been kicked out of The Burrow, she was still wary on his thoughts on the situation as she made her way over to him.
"Hi," Hermione said softly.
"Don't I get a hug?" George asked, opening his arms to Hermione.
With a small laugh, Hermione stepped into George's arms. "I wasn't sure you would be talking to me," she admitted.
"Why?" George snorted. "Because my family are crazy? I get why Ginny was hurt by what happened, but their reaction was a bit over the top. Kicking you out of the family was extreme. And I for one, don't agree with their stance. If you ever need anything, you come and find me."
"Thanks George," Hermione said with a smile. "That means a lot to me. Things have not been easy these last few weeks."
"Are things getting better?" George checked, concern evident in his eyes. "Can I do anything to help?"
"Actually, things are turning out pretty good," Hermione replied. "A lot's happened these last few weeks. I could tell you about it if you have time to grab a drink."
"I'm sure I can take a break," George said. "I'll just go and tell Lee I'm popping out."
Five minutes later, Hermione and George were ensconced in the café where Hermione had briefly worked. While George sipped on a caramel latte, Hermione had ordered tea and a large slab of chocolate cake, which they shared. As they settled down, Hermione checked on George and how he was coping with life after his recent loss.
"It's still hard," George admitted with a sigh. "I can't get used to Fred not being here. But Lee, Angelina and Alicia have been great. They're all pitching in with the shop, and making sure I've always got someone to call on if I need it."
"That's good," Hermione said with a nod. "And you know, I'm also here for you, George. I would have been in touch sooner but with everything that's happened with your family, I wasn't sure where we stood."
"We stand as friends, as we've always been," George assured her. "And I'm also sorry for not getting in touch. I kept meaning to reach out to you, but I never seemed to get around to it. Maybe I was worried you would blame me for how the rest of the family treated you."
"I would never do that," Hermione said with a smile. "And speaking of your family, how are they?"
"They're all good," George answered. "Muddling on as usual. Sadly, you're still a sore subject with them. I can't see them forgiving you anytime soon."
"I'm not sure it would make a difference now," Hermione admitted, spearing a large piece of chocolate cake on her fork and popping it into her mouth with a satisfied moan. "I know they had every right to be angry with me, and I don't blame them for needing time to get their heads around everything. But I'm not sure I can forgive their total abandonment. I was left all alone, and for a time didn't know how I was going to survive. My promised job at the Ministry fell through due to lack of childcare, and I have to admit I was pretty desperate."
"How desperate?" George asked in obvious concern.
"I seriously considered putting the baby up for adoption, or moving back to the muggle world," Hermione admitted.
"Oh, Hermione, I am so sorry," George said, reaching across the table to take hold of her hands. "You said things are going well now, so I take it something changed."
"It did, and you'll never believe what," Hermione said with a chuckle as she explained to a stunned George about the lifeline she'd received from the Malfoys.
George listened with an open mouth as Hermione explained about the unexpected twist her life had taken, and when she had finished, he admitted that it had been an offer too good to miss. Although he also admitted that it shamed him slightly to think that the Malfoys had been so kind to her when his own family had turned their backs on her.
"There is one more thing that might cause trouble down the line," Hermione admitted. "I've informed the Ministry that I'm having Harry's baby, and once they're born and it's confirmed he's the father, my child will likely inherit Harry's estate."
"That is what Harry would have wanted," George said, echoing Neville's sentiments. "He would have wanted his child to be taken care of, so why would that cause trouble."
"Because your family have apparently petitioned the Ministry to gain access to his estate," Hermione said.
"How can they do that?" George asked in confusion. "Harry's fortune had nothing to do with my family?"
"There will be a blood link somewhere in the family tree, there always is in pure blood families. But they can put in a petition as his surrogate family. To be honest, if I wasn't having Harrys child, I would have agreed with your family having the inheritance. After all, I'm sure Harry would rather his money go to them then some dim and distant relative who just so happens to be a complete stranger."
"I'm sure he would rather his money went to his child," George concluded. "I'm sure my family will see that."
"I hope so, but given what else has happened, I'm preparing myself for them to accuse me of stealing his money," Hermione admitted. "But I have no intention of using the money. If I am given his vault at Gringotts, it will remain as it is, until our child is old enough to access it. I don't want the money for myself, George. And thanks to my new job, I won't need it to support my child. I can do that on my own."
"Harry would be proud of you," George said with a soft smile. "You're going to make an amazing mother, and your child is going to be lucky to have you."
"I also hope my child is going to have a fun Uncle George," Hermione said in a teasing voice.
"You bet," George replied with a wicked grin, the likes of which Hermione hadn't seen on his face since before the war had started to get serious and he still had Fred by his side. "And what about the Malfoys? Will they be part of your child's life?"
"More than likely," Hermione confessed with a nod. "Narcissa has been so kind to me, and I think we're going to be friends for life. I'm also getting more friendly with Draco. Even if these stupid hormones of mine seemed to have developed a crush on him."
"Ooh, nice," George teased with a grin. "And how about Lucius Malfoy? How are you getting on with him?"
"To be honest I've only seen him a few times," Hermione replied. "At the minute he's been too busy trying to save Professor Snape's life. He's found a couple of experts, who have come to this country to help, but there's still a lot to do, and Lucius is trying to help as much as he can. But he's genuinely trying to change, and I think he's happy with my participation in the business."
"Of course he is," George said with confidence. "You'd be an asset to any business."
For the next hour, Hermione and George continued to catch up, and when they parted, they made a vow to keep in touch and to meet regularly. Just because Hermione had been disowned by the rest of the family, didn't mean her friendship with George had to suffer.
...
Several days after her reunion with George, Hermione moved into her new penthouse with the help of Narcissa and Draco. Not that she needed much help as her belongings were pretty lacking. To be honest her new purchases took up most of the room in her new place.
"Here we are Crooks," she said to her cat as she released him from his cat carrier. "Our new home."
"Is everything to your liking?" Draco checked. Even though Hermione had handpicked the furnishings in the penthouse, he'd been the one to implement the decoration.
"Everything is perfect," Hermione said with a smile. "Now all I need is to stock my library, and sort the nursery."
"Actually, you might just have to do one of those things," Narcissa said, taking hold of Hermione's hand and leading her towards the spare room which Hermione had earmarked for the nursery.
Opening the door with a flourish, Narcissa revealed a perfectly decorated nursery, all ready for use. The room was decorated in a pale cream colour with splashes of colour coming from a rainbow rug, colourful bookcases and drawers and pictures of cute, colourful animals. The crib in the corner was filled with stuffed toys, and another corner held a rocking chair covered in a vibrant throw with a dragon printed on it.
"Oh my god, I don't know what to say," she gasped, gazing around the room as tears came to her eyes. "This is too much."
"No, it's not," Narcissa insisted. "It's just one less thing for you to worry about."
"More importantly, do you like it?" Draco asked.
"Like it, I love it," Hermione gushed. "Thank you both, so much. You really didn't need to do this."
"We know, but we wanted to do it for you," Narcissa said.
"And I appreciate it," Hermione returned. "And in return, I am going to do something for you. I am going to cook you dinner. Would you like to invite Lucius over?"
"I would, but he's still busy with the experts, trying to find a cure for Severus," Narcissa replied with a slight frown.
"Is it not going very well?" Hermione checked.
"It's slower going than we anticipated," Narcissa admitted. "We still have high hopes for a cure, but I think it's going to be longer arriving than we had hoped."
"I'm sure it will come," Hermione said as she headed into the kitchen to whip up dinner as a thank you for everything the Malfoys had done for her.
To be honest the surprise nursery was just the tip of the iceberg and she was well aware that she had so much more to be grateful for. When the family she thought she could always rely on had abandoned her, she'd been saved by the most unexpected of families, and she would forever be grateful for the chance she'd been given and the life she was now able to make for herself and her child.