"Have you heard anything from Draco at all?" Pansy asked, walking around Blaise to look at what he was writing.
"Why would he reach out to us?"
"Skeeter is after him again. Asking me to go the manor and see him. She was implying Draco wouldn't be there. You don't think he'd be disowned?"
"He might be, since there's a rumour Lucius Malfoy stopped looking for any wizards or witches for him."
"I don't see why he couldn't get someone, Draco's always been the most attractive."
"What a lovely thing to hear from your fiancée." Blaise said sarcastically and she huffed.
"Well, you always knew I settled for you." She teased and he narrowed his eyes at her.
"In any case I've not heard from Draco, I have though heard from this new Wyvern company." He said.
"So?" She asked. "Isn't that the company that made the pen? Why did they reach out to you?"
"It appears they're expanding and exploring options. They're asking me about the mills that processes the Davis cotton in Italy." he said.
"Interesting..." Pansy said reaching for the letter she showed him. "Wouldn't your mother be angry that they're reaching out to you instead of her?"
"I'm not worried, it's not like I married her. She can't make her only son disappear."
"I heard that my darling boy." They both turned to a beautiful witch that barely looked a day over thirty.
Pansy always did find her beautiful, even more than Narcissa Malfoy, but Pansy would never say that out loud in case Draco would hear it and kick her out of his life for the offense.
"Did you? I thought you only spied on my dear fathers in the coming months before they disappeared." He smiled coldly at her. "Do I need to be more careful mother dearest?"
"You really are adorable." She cooed petting his cheek. "I gave you the title myself, why on earth would I get rid of you?"
"Though why you did it is still confusing to me, you made it very clear I couldn't until I was twenty-five." Blaise said annoyed at all the work he suddenly had to take on.
"Hmm... maybe I had a vision of the future and decided to stir things up." She smiled making her way out. "Of course, if you want my advice, I'd be happy to give you my guidance."
"I can manage mother." he smiled as she left. Blaise shook his head once she was gone. "I should sleep with a knife under my pillow."
"Oh, give her more credit. She'd just smother you with the pillow." She cooed and turned her attention back to the letter. "Who would be stupid enough to try to compete against that family?"
"Or angry enough." Blaise said taking the letter back. There was a stretched silence and their eyes widened as they glanced at each other. "No."
"How?"
"And when?"
Pansy looked at the new pen on Blaise's desk. "Draco was always good at potions but he wasn't... that clever to make something like this." She said curiously analysing the pen.
"Looks a little... muggle if you ask me." He said and Pansy scoffed.
"Oh please." She looked away thinking. "Draco wouldn't survive a day out there." She paused as the words of her teasing hit her own heart. She sat down, tears in her eyes.
"Ugh, are you crying?" She smacked him, wiping her tears away.
"You didn't see the pictures of that lover that broke the engagement. I had to go through them to see what the editor would approve. He was a good kid when I saw him in Hogwarts." She said.
"At least it wasn't Draco." Blaise said and sighed looking at the Wyvern company's letter. "So, what exactly is his plan then?"
Just then a letter arrived, dropping into her hands. She stared at the name on the back for a long time, recognising that cursive anywhere. She ripped open the letter and looked inside. She smiled, relief coursing through her as she read the letter. She put it away and kissed Blaise on the cheek.
"Maybe you should arrange a business meeting to find out." And headed for the door.
"And where are you going?" He called.
"None of your business, do stop my elf from coming after me." She said. The elf squeaked behind her as Blaise froze it in place.
oOoOoOo
Draco groaned as he stared at the fireplace.
"Come on, if I don't get you over there my mother will take my head." Ron said nudging him forward.
"Good, die." Draco groaned.
"Not today. Get in." Ron said nudging him a little harder but never hard enough to hurt or make him lose his balance. Harry had already gone over to the Burrow and Draco was feeling the seconds stretch far too long. "Any longer and you'll be full-term."
Draco smacked his arm in frustration and stepped into the fireplace.
He stepped out into a very quiet, rather than jovial, home. He instantly looked for Potter, who looked at him in panic, tense and lost for words.
"Harry..." Draco whispered but everything was so quiet that he might as well have shouted it. "What exactly did you say?" He asked, forcing a smile as he looked at the people in the house feeling awkward.
Ron appeared seconds later and looked around. "Geez, did someone die?" He asked confused.
"Ron... did you know?" Ginevra was the one to speak first and Draco felt his heart thundering in his ears once more. Oh Merlin. What in the cursed caverns did Potter say?
"Know what? Harry? Care to pitch me in on what the silence is all about?" Ron asked confused, looking at Hermione for an explanation but she merely shook her head, not wanting to say anything. Or not knowing where to start.
"He said they're having a baby." Ginevra said flat out and Draco turned to Potter enraged.
"What is wrong with you? Before I even got here?" Draco snapped.
"It's true?" Ginevra said and Draco glanced at the whole family and the shame ate him up. Then the hormones hit him like a lightning bolt and his vision began to blur. Potter wasn't saying anything and his breathing began to catch in his throat.
"Oh, Draco." Hermione tried coming closer and Potter tried to reach out to him, but Draco smacked his hand away stepping back. Draco felt a whimper escape his lips and the sobs followed. What the heck was happening to him? Oh, Merlin now he was even more humiliated. And that only made him cry harder.
"I think we need some air." Ron said pulling him out of the house leaving the rest of the family inside.
oOoOoOo
Harry felt guilt eating up at him and turned to George angry.
"I'm so sorry, I better put that... away. Carefully." George held his hands up in a poor apology, grabbing the box from the food table. George's latest product was sitting amongst the snacks.
Apparently, he'd put them down for a second and forgot to come back for them. Harry ended up throwing one in his mouth since they looked like regular toffee and ended filled with the giddiness of liquid luck and the no-filter of veritaserum within seconds.
"Harry, sweetheart it's so good to see you." Mrs. Weasley had said, enveloping him in a hug as she came out of the kitchen. The rest of the family were playing snap in the living room or putting up the decorations. Ginny started to get up to come and say hello.
"Harry! When is your new friend coming over?" Mr Weasley asked and Harry couldn't hold back.
"I can't wait for Draco to get here! We're having a baby!" He shouted it to the entire room. Hermione who'd been coming over with a tray of food from the kitchen froze looking at him with eyes like saucers and her mouth hanging open. Unable to comprehend that he had even announced it to the room in that way. Ginny looked like a deer caught in headlights and George bounced to his feet, hopping over with urgency.
"Woah, Harry! My darling little brother, you better eat this one until the effect of that wears off." George said bouncing over and throwing a golden jelly-bean into his mouth, which shut his lips together.
By the time the giddiness wore off and dread began filling his insides Draco arrived. But the jelly-bean was still in effect and he couldn't do anything or even say anything in his defence.
"Come Harry dear you better sit down and drink something." Mrs. Weasley said passing him some water before turning enraged at George, smacking him behind the head. "I told you to be more careful with your hairbrained experiments!" She smacked George a couple of more times relenting only when the red-head squeaked out of the room.
"You can't do this to me, I'm a grown man!" He called down and with a flick of her wand, a charmed flip-flop flew upstairs and George's running intensified until he locked himself somewhere.
When Harry finally felt his vocal cords relax and a bitter taste from the jelly-bean settled in his mouth which he washed down with water.
"Oh my god, Draco's going to kill me." He croaked with embarrassment.
"Well... um... my word Harry. We had no idea you were in such a serious relationship with mister Malfoy." Mr. Weasley said and Harry smiled softly looking up at them.
"It's a long story. I was hoping... to explain after the celebrations. It's not entirely a pleasant story." Harry said. "I guess that's gone out the window." He groaned.
"Just go find him, I'm sure he just needs to hear what happened from you." Mrs. Weasley said with a warm smile and Harry sighed, nodding his head. He was so grateful for the guardian bond, because he'd feel a million times worse if Draco didn't have anyone supporting him right now after that blunder.
oOoOoOo
Ginny had to sit herself down very slowly, staring blankly at the carpet.
It all made sense now. Why Draco was in his house, why Ron screamed at her and was furious, why Harry barely looked at her more than once when she came to visit.
"Oh Merlin... I almost killed Harry's baby." She thought. She'd already told her brothers that she almost knocked Harry's 'guest' into the wall, once Harry confirmed he was coming. So now they all knew it was Draco and now she knew how close she was to hurting Harry in an irredeemable way.
But something didn't make sense. Harry never expressed an interest in guys. And he never would have kept a relationship from Ron for that long. She knew Ron was genuine when he said he didn't think Harry was seeing anyone when they spoke at her team's training grounds. Something else was up and she was going to find out.
oOoOoOo
Harry came to find Draco with puffy red eyes from crying but mostly calmed down, eating a cinnamon bun that Ron brought from the kitchen.
"Draco I am so sorry." Harry said. "George left some experimental toffee on the table and I instantly blurted it out."
"Mate..." Ron shook his head.
"It's true and then he threw a silence jellybean into my mouth while the effects wore off so I couldn't even say anything to explain!" Harry felt so bad seeing Draco's puffy eyes from how upset he'd been.
Draco huffed and took a deep breath nibbling more of the cinnamon bun. "I know... I mean... I didn't know but I pictured something strange would have happened..." He sighed. "You're lucky cousin Ron,"
"Nope." He was ignored.
"Is so good at this." He said, his mouth half full as he spoke. Harry had seen Ron eat the same way and found it revolting when he did. And yet when Draco was doing it, Harry found him adorable.
"How exactly did you announce it?" Ron asked.
"Your parents greeted me... Mr Weasley said where my new friend was and... I just said it at the top of my lungs that I couldn't wait for Draco to arrive and that we were having a baby." He said, mimicking the tone of voice he'd used but a lesser volume and groaned covering his face in shame. "I am so sorry." Harry said again and both Ron and Draco looked at him with wide eyes before he saw Draco holding back a smile and then a laugh broke out.
His heart jumped in delight at the sound of Draco's laughter and he could only chuckle scratching the back of his head. Ron didn't know if to look embarrassed or amused.
"So much for telling them delicately." Draco managed between chuckles.
"That's what I said!" Harry said and came to hold his hand. "Sorry."
"Never mind, Harry. I forgive you." He said and finished the treat. "Let's go."
Once back at the burrow he walked in hand-in-hand with Draco and they greeted them with a smile.
"Draco, have a seat, you must be freezing." Mrs. Weaseley said and before Draco could reply Mrs. Weasley had him sitting in the softest chair in the burrow with a large mug of hot cocoa on his hands and a blanket over his legs making him look rather cosy. Albeit significantly embarrassed as the 'I'm fine' really too kind' 'I can manage' went ignored for the most part.
Once Arthur pulled her away by reminding her about the goose cooking, Draco sighed with relief.
"So, are you two going to explain what is happening?" Charlie asked and Harry looked at Draco who sighed sitting up a little straighter.
"I don't want to put a damper on the celebrations, we were going to wait until afterward." Draco said glancing at Harry.
"How can it be a damper when you bring such joyous news?" Mrs. Weasley said hurrying back after having checked on the dishes.
Harry was about to suggest they leave it for later once more but Draco gave his hand a squeeze. "Alright..." Harry sat on a stool next to Draco's comfy chair but it made him more comfortable to sit close to him. "Draco and I... began speaking again about five to six months ago, more or less?" Harry asked and Draco nodded. "On one of the Orphaned Children's Refuge events." Harry said.
"The one that the Malfoy's run?" Percy confirmed and they nodded.
"We... met, talked," Draco started.
"Was your fiancée around when this rekindling happened or...?" Ginny slipped in and Harry smiled tensely as his eyes widened slightly, with the subtlest shake of his head in her direction. "What? I'm not supposed to ask the biggest elephant in the room? Malfoy would have been two months away from a wedding by the time you two started your so-called talking."
"No, Alfred was not around while Harry and I met." Draco finished.
"Isn't that a bit strange?"
"Well, Ginny, one doesn't usually take their fiancée to talk to their secret lover." George pitched in and Harry noticed the way Ginny clenched her jaw tight, biting her tongue. George's tone was clearly overly pleasant in a way that told her to shut up before she puts her foot in it even more.
"We weren't... I... I didn't, I wanted..." Harry tensed feeling Draco's hesitation and reached to hold his hand, feeling his shaking. Draco had put so much value onto his reputation, his family's reputation, the way people perceived him. He tried to act within those expected rules as best he could. Harry wouldn't agree with some of those rules but this lie was hard for Draco, and so it was hard for Harry to see him try and force it out. It had been Hermione's idea and Draco had agreed and sounded so sure about it but now saying it out loud he could see how terrible Draco felt to be having to say any of it to strangers, as far as Draco was concerned.
"I chased him." Harry admitted. "I chased Draco, it became a little embarrassing really."
"Like 6th year." Ginny pointed out.
"Like 6th year? What happened 6th year?" Draco asked.
"Nothing happened 6th year." Harry jumped in, suddenly feeling his own face heat up with embarrassment but also his own shame at how stupid he'd been.
He almost killed Draco at the time with his obsessive surveillance and suspicions of the blonde. He looked at Ginny in disbelief, who just looked at him with genuine concern. He told her that in confidence, only Hermione and Ron had ever known how intensely he'd monitored Draco back in sixth year. He wasn't entirely wrong that he was up to something but it was stupid of him to think of the blonde as a black-hearted monster that would stop at nothing, rather than a scared sixteen-year-old trying to obey orders to keep his mother alive as Voldemort's hostage.
He tried to push through the guilt to act normal, like he was not thrown back by Ginny's words. "I became drawn to him and wanted to talk to him more and more. I... kinda enjoyed the benign little arguments we started getting into." He smiled warmly as that part was true, even though the timeline was not correct. "I'd missed him in my life. And I wanted to meet with him more."
"But I was engaged... and I reminded him as such multiple times." Draco looked at him. "But I missed him too... and my engagement was boring, proper, stale. Alfred Davis was too perfect and it just... something didn't feel right. No one is ever... that perfect." He shook his head frowning as if he genuinely couldn't believe himself for not catching that something was wrong sooner. "I started having doubts and then, I thought of Potter. I missed how he always riled me up and made things exciting..." There was a fondness in Draco's voice laced with amusement that made Harry think he wasn't actually lying.
"Then Draco agreed to meet with me. It was supposed to be for an innocent chat and we ended up escaping into muggle London when a reporter seemed to spot me." He chuckled scratching the back of his neck. It was easy to lie when they were all patched together half-truths.
"In the end we had a walk, went to dinner and... and it was lovely. I didn't want the day to end and have to go back to reality so... I accepted Harry's offer to come over to his place and then... well."
"Then you cheated on the man you were going to marry." Ginny pointed out and Harry was very close to ruining the night entirely and telling her to shut-up in her own home.
"Ginny." Mrs. Weasley said sweetly. "Can you check on the mulled-wine? That's a dear." Ginny rolled her eyes and scoffed going to the kitchen.
"I did." Draco said, just loudly enough and fast enough that Ginny caught it before she managed to enter the kitchen. He could tell from the way she paused for half a second. Harry almost worried she would turn around and insult Draco but thankfully she kept going. "We were drawn to each other and yes, I cheated. And that's how I became pregnant." Draco said and took a sip of his hot cocoa, looking confident but Harry could tell his nerves were frazzled.
"Wait... that doesn't make sense." Percy said, looking deep in thought. "I thought wizard pregnancies don't really happen that easily."
"No, they don't." Mrs. Weasley agreed with a frown.
"And... that's where the dampener is." Draco said, his tone apologetic for ruining the celebrations, before they even got started. Draco looked at them awkwardly and sighed. "Alfred Davis had been feeding me potions and secretly having me monitored to ensure I was ready to conceive as he wanted."
"But then Draco and I met up and one thing led to another. In the end, well... we ruined his plans." Harry said, holding Draco's hand firmly. "Draco and I were staying away from each other for a bit when Alfred was found cheating and said Draco had cheated first. Draco respects his family very much and didn't want to embarrass them. We didn't know if Alfred knew about us or if he was just saying it to look better to the Daily Prophet readers, so we decided to stay away from each other for a bit until things died down."
"I was already planning on ending my engagement with Alfred. I was just trying to get everything in line, arranging the dowry to be returned, paper-work, scheduling family meetings, and then... the articles started. I felt enraged, embarrassed, humiliated that he was even saying such vile disgusting things when until I got pregnant, I'd never even been with another witch or wizard!" Draco said incensed. He couldn't look up. "Then I began getting tired, exhausted. I kept wanting to see Harry, but I didn't want to until the circus Davis was creating died away. I didn't want to drag Harry into that. Then he went to help Andromeda with his god-son so I waited. And I went to a mediwizard to get checked out, and then I found out I was pregnant. So, I panicked and ran away."
"Luckily it was on the day I'd come back from Andromeda. At that point I'd missed the worst of the articles. I wanted to come out with Draco and tell the truth but he convinced me against it. Then we found out that Davis must have been feeding him potions because his energy was very low. If we hadn't met up again Draco and the baby... well..."
"I would be dead, if it wasn't for Harry taking me in." Draco said and Harry felt his panic at the slip through their held hands.
"Of course, I was going to take you in, with or without the baby, of course I wouldn't have left you out there." He replied honestly. Ron cleared his throat and brought them back to the story.
"Draco that's awful. Are you ok now? The baby is ok, healthy?" Mrs. Weasley asked, mothering him sweetly and Harry smiled warmly as he looked flustered.
"Yes, I... I'm fine. I'm with Harry. I'm safe." He smiled warmly and Harry felt his heart skip a beat. That was their story. It was good they practiced it before. And in front of the Weasleys before they turned to the press.
"Congratulations, Harry. You'll be a dad soon." Charlie said and they all joined in with their praises once more. Harry smiled brightly, truly overjoyed as he was congratulated.
He looked up as Ginny glanced at them from the kitchen entrance, looking still concerned and not entirely convinced with their story.
He had to talk to her. She knew him better than anyone, even Ron or Hermione. They were together and in love, ready to share a life together, so of course he never would have done that with someone he wasn't fully open to about his fears, insecurities, feelings. He wasn't even sure how with all of that they somehow missed talking about children, or maybe Harry himself didn't realise what he wanted until he realised what he did not want.
The party went on as usual. Dinner, Christmas crackers, bad jokes, ghost stories and finally settling down into quiet conversation. Harry chose to go find Ginny when Draco was distracted discussing dragons with Charlie. She glanced at him and served two mulled wines, signalling for him to come out with her outside. They sat just beyond the kitchen light, where the garden was fenced with a short stone wall they could sit on. The air thick with a chill but the sky was clear and filled with stars.
Harry sipped the spiced wine humming as they always made it just right. "You're angry." Harry pointed out and she scoffed.
"Just amused that you think I'd ever believe that bullshit you two just spewed." She said, drinking her own wine. Though Harry had the feeling this was probably not her first cup. Harry sipped more wine. He tried to think of his words carefully.
"That is our story." Harry said decisively.
"That's your story or you're making that your story." She challenged.
"Ginny, we broke up because we wanted different things. Don't make me judge you differently just to be petty."
"Harry. I know you. You don't like men, and even if you did, you'd never choose Draco-frikin-Malfoy. Merlin, Harry. What is going on? If you're just trying to help him out of a sticky situation then I'm not letting him take advantage of you." She said decisively.
"Damn it, Ginny. I did start seeing Draco. We started crazy but now we're blessed with a gift, the chance of a family, he's giving me that."
"You have a family with us, with me." She said reaching out for his hand and once more Harry pulled back feeling her hand cold compared to the usual current of warm energy he was used to feeling from Draco.
"Ginny. We were going to be a family. But we wanted different, fundamental, things."
"Harry." She whispered reaching out to him once more and Harry sighed as she used that voice and felt a twinge of emotion at her hurt tone. He stopped himself from pulling away again. "I was wrong... I wanted to tell you. I'm sorry I hurt you so stupidly back then. I was wrong. I-I want a family. I want a family with you. And not in ten or fifteen years." She said softly. "I still love you. I never stopped loving you."
Harry shook his head. He looked down thinking of how to tell her. "Ginny, things have changed. I love you only like a-mph!" He didn't expect her face so close when he turned to look at her.
He didn't expect the feel of her lips against his own. He didn't expect Ron to come and tackle her over the garden wall to drop on the other side into the snow with a squeak, both rolling off down the small hill by the burrow leaving him sitting there frozen in shock.
It wasn't until he saw Draco coming to the door looking around and looking back to normal that Harry realised what might have happened with Ron and got up rushing to Draco's side.
"Don't come out, it's cold." He said but Draco frowned as he saw him come closer and reached up to touch his lips. Harry froze remembering that Ginny had been wearing red lipstick and turned to wipe his mouth with his back sleeve, but the damage was done.