Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1

Draco adjusted the cufflinks of his tailored suit as he took in his reflection from the large standing mirror in his bedroom. On the outside, he looked like the pureblood heir that his father and mother had raised. His hair was perfectly styled and his suit fit to perfection. But on the inside, he was broken. He felt as if his chest was caving in, his lungs collapsing. He was barely functioning. Glamour charms hid the dark purple shadows under his eyes. 

He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself for the evening. It would be the first time since the break up that he would see her . He had not spoken nor seen Hermione Granger in three months but he knew everything about her still. Just a few weeks ago, the cure for Lycanthropy that she had been working on for years had been announced in the Daily Prophet. She was heralded as a hero all over again. The Brightest Witch of the Millenia. A Golden Queen. 

Hermione had made a small statement saying it would not have been possible without her team of researchers, saying they deserved more credit than she did. Humble. She was so bloody humble. He never deserved her. He couldn’t believe that he had been able to call her his for as long as he did. 

Since Draco was a child, he was promised to marry the youngest of the Greengrass girls. Since the war and the imprisonment of his father, Draco thought that the contract was null and void. An owl from Azkaban brought Draco’s world crashing down five months ago. He was still to marry Astoria. Apparently the Greengrasses did not mind the tarnished Malfoy reputation as long as his vaults still held the hundreds of millions of galleons that were stated in the contract. Astoria and her parents only cared for the money. In return, they would bolster the Malfoy name in pureblood circles. 

Draco no longer cared for the Malfoy name but his mother and father still did. Narcissa had become frail since the end of the war and suffered from bouts of depression due to their lowered status. While he had no doubt that his mother loved him, he couldn’t be certain that his mother would ever accept Hermione. He also knew that Lucius was still in his mother’s ear, even all the way from Azkaban and Draco was terrified of Lucius discovering their relationship and potentially threatening Hermione. In short, Draco was just too afraid to deal with the repercussions of being with Hermione Granger. He didn’t want to lose his mother and deal with the fall out of his family. 

Not only that, he also knew that his family name would destroy any successes that Hermione would achieve. Her achievement of curing Lycanthropy would be downcast because of his name. People would sneer at her instead of kissing her feet. She deserved the best and the best was not him. 

A knock at his bedroom door brought Draco back from his thoughts. “Come in.”

Blaise Zabini entered looking every bit the pureblood heir himself with his three piece suit and shining dragon hide loafers. 

“Is she there yet?” Draco asked him. 

Blaise didn’t need to ask who he meant. “No, not yet.” 

While their relationship was kept a secret from the wizarding world at large, their closest friends knew. It had been hard for them to keep to themselves when hanging out as a group. Draco and Hermione had always been extremely into each other and their friends had joked that they spent more time fucking than actually sleeping when retiring for the night. They weren’t wrong. They had always been insatiable for each other. She was perfect for him. Soft, gorgeous curves and long curly hair that he loved to grab onto. 

Since the break-up, however, lines were drawn. Pansy, Theo and Daphne refused to speak with him. They had each given him a piece of their mind before locking their floos and cutting him from their life. Blaise was the only snake who still kept in contact with him albeit it was not the same friendship as it used to be. He had even once been friends with Weasley, Potter and his wife, Ginevra, but they hadn’t said a word to him since that fateful night. If he saw them in the streets, they didn’t even sneer at him. They just walked past him like he didn’t exist and that was somehow more painful. 

Draco took a deep breath, swallowing his fear and putting on a cool mask of indifference before he nodded to Blaise and followed him out of his bedroom so they could floo to the gala. 

“Astoria and your mother are already there,” Blaise said with no ounce of emotion in his voice. “Your mother is practically bouncing with excitement with the attention she is receiving. Astoria is the monotone bitch that she always is, flashing her engagement ring to anyone who listens.” 

“Not surprised,” Draco mutters. “It’s a wonder that she and Daph are from the same family.” 

Blaise snorted, “You can say that again, mate.” 

Daphne had been disowned from her family after she announced her relationship with Ron Weasley, who was and would always be a blood traitor in her family’s eyes. Daphne had been more courageous. Draco sighed. While he was a bloody coward. 

He and Blaise flooed together to the St. Mungos gala that would raise money for the upcoming year. He knew Hermione would be here because she was being honored for the cure she had developed. Draco didn’t want to come as he didn’t want to take a moment away from what was supposed to be her night but his family were prominent donors and his mother was adamant in him attending to better their reputations. 

The irony of all of this was the praise his mother was giving to Hermione in the days leading up to the gala. 

“Hermione Granger is so bright, isn’t she dear?” 

“I convinced Lucius to donate a million galleons to St. Mungos so we can get a photo with Miss Granger. Of course Lucius isn’t happy about the muggleborn’s success but this will be wonderful for our image!” 

Draco had just nodded along with his mother. Astoria kept her face stone cold and poised. Draco knew that she was more prejudiced than his mother and he thought that must be why Lucius wanted her to be Draco’s betrothed so badly. 

He found his mother and Astoria in the ballroom near the main table talking to the St. Mungos Director. Both he and Blaise grabbed a rather large glass of firewhiskey before joining them. 

“Mother, Astoria,” Draco greeted, giving them both a peck on the cheek. “Lord Pucey, it's a pleasure to see you.” 

“You as well, young Lord Malfoy,” he boomed. “I was just telling your mother and fiance here about how I’m trying to set Adrian up with Healer Hermione Granger.” 

Draco’s eyes widened as he took a sip of his whiskey and began to cough, shocked. 

“Darling?” Astoria asked, clearly embarrassed. Blaise patted him on the back to help him breathe. 

“My apologies, wrong pipe,” Draco breathed. “Please continue.” 

Lord Pucey fixed him with a quizzical stare but continued, “As I was saying, Miss Granger is a beautiful, single and talented witch. I think Adrian would be the perfect match for her.” 

Astoria cackled and all eyes turned to her. 

“Oh sorry,” Astoria snickered. “How rude of me. Lord Pucey let me relieve you from such a terrible idea. There is a rumor that Hermione Granger is pregnant.” 

All the air left Draco’s lungs and he could have swore that Blaise stopped breathing as well. 

“But I’ve seen Healer Granger and she doesn’t look pregnant,” Fawley argued. 

“One can hide many things, Lord Fawley,” Astoria said conspiratorially. Draco looked to his mother who looked absolutely shocked at the bit of gossip but she said nothing. 

From his left, Draco heard Blaise’ breath hitch and he knew immediately that he must have seen Hermione. Draco turned his head and found his witch, fuck no longer his witch, across the room with her back to him. Her beautiful chocolate curls cascaded down her back in loose ringlets. He gulped as he noticed how the green silk of her dress molded to her perfect ass like a second skin. His heart started beating erratically when he noticed her hand was holding the hand of a man that Draco hadn’t spoken to in months, Theodore Nott. 

“Draco…” Blaise whispered. 

Rage started building in Draco’s chest as his breathing became hard to control. The possessive beast that used to thrive in Draco when he and Hermione were still together woke from its slumber to roar loudly. 

Time stopped though when Hermione turned and again, Draco felt as if all the air left his lungs. 

Hermione actually was pregnant. 

She must have been at least 4 or 5 months along given the fact she was showing. Her green dress highlighted her bump proudly and the deep v neck of the dress perfectly accentuated her growing breasts. 

Draco’s brain short circuited. It was the only excuse he had as he began making his way toward her. He had to know. Their relationship had only ended three months ago and they had been exclusive, which had to mean…

Golden eyes met silver as Draco was brought to a standstill by her glare and he was instantly transported back to the night that it all fell apart. 

**** Flashback ****

His tiny muggle device alerted him to a text from Hermione as he sat nervously by the fireplace in his room. After speaking with several lawyers over the course of two months, Draco was told that there was nothing he could do to get out of his betrothal contract to Astoria Greengrass. His choice was to either give up his inheritance and his family and be with Hermione or stay in the contract. All Draco wanted was to stay with Hermione but his intrusive thoughts told him that he wasn’t good enough for her. That his family name would always tarnish her glow, her success and so Draco made the decision for the both of them. 

Tomorrow, his betrothal would be announced in the Daily Prophet and so tonight, he would end his relationship with the love of his life. 

He flooed to Hermione’s house in Hampstead shortly after he read her text saying she was home. He was met with frantic kisses as soon as he stepped out of the fireplace. She jumped on him and wrapped her legs around his waist as she kissed him deeply. Draco groaned, his mind momentarily blank from her otherworldly presence. 

“Draco,” she breathed, smiling against his lips. “I have the most wonderful news to tell you.” 

“Something more wonderful than curing Lycanthropy?” he said, trying to mask the growing sadness in his voice. But Hermione was clever and she picked it up immediately. 

“Shhh we’re still putting the final paper together and it won’t be announced yet but yes it’s wonderful news,” she replied. “What’s wrong though? Something the matter?” She released her legs from his waist and Draco reluctantly set her down, realizing that the kiss they had just shared might be the last one they ever had. 

Draco took a deep breath and started occluding. 

“Why are you occluding? What’s going on, Draco?” 

“Hermione, we have to end this.” 

Hermione’s eyes widened and then her brows furrowed. A million emotions flitted across her face and in her eyes. Confusion. Hurt. Betrayal. Sadness. 

“What?” Her voice was uncharacteristically small. 

“I’m to marry Astoria Greengrass. It will be announced tomorrow in the Daily Prophet. I wanted to let you know in person so we can be cordial moving forward. Our arrangement has been…fun but I need to be serious now. I need to fulfill my family du…”

Hermione found her voice and a scream erupted, shattering his walls. “OUR ARRANGEMENT? We’ve been together since sixth year, Draco! We lost our virginities to each other. What the fuck are you talking about?” 

Draco stuttered, calling on his walls to rebuild so he could escape the dread and despair. “Hermione, I’m sorry but…”

“You’re sorry?! SORRY? Has this been a joke to you this whole time? Have you not taken us seriously? 

“Of course I took us seriously…”

“Have you been fucking her this whole time too?” 

“What?! No, of course not. It’s only been you. I’ve only ever been with you.” 

She scoffed, tears running down her face. “You were never serious about us though, were you? Your promise to tell your parents and take us public after I announced the cure was never real, was it?” 

Draco’s heart stopped. He had meant it but the betrothal got in the way. He didn’t say anything. 

“Say something you fucking coward!” She screamed, sobs escaping her body. 

“I’m so sorry, Hermione,” Draco’s voice broke. 

“No you’re not,” she sobbed, falling to the floor and clutching her stomach. 

He didn’t know what to say. Tears of his own flooded his eyes as he saw the love of his life break down in front of him. He wanted to comfort her but he was the one who had caused her pain. He had done this to her. 

“Get the fuck out of my house,” she screamed, venom in her voice. 

Draco nodded and stepped through the floo. Once home, he attempted to send a patronus, which she had so lovingly taught him, but all his happy memories were suddenly fractured. He wrote a quick missive to the Potters, telling them to go to Hermione, and then he summoned a bottle of Ogdens and drank while he destroyed his study.  

***** Flashback Ended *****

Tears began to form in his eyes as he took in her form. She let go of Theo and said something to him before leaving the ballroom abruptly. Draco’s eyes followed her and he suddenly realized that he didn’t care about Astoria or his mother finding out. He had to know and so he followed Hermione out of the ballroom. Shutting the door behind him, he saw her open the doors onto the veranda and he ran after her to catch up. 

“Get away from me, Draco,” she spat, whirling on him immediately. 

“Hermione, you’re pregnant?” Draco gasped. “Is the baby mine?” 

“Why do you even care, Draco? Go back to your precious pureblood fiance and pureblood life. You didn’t want me anymore so why would you want this?” 

Draco knew he deserved that but he couldn’t help but scoff. Anger that he knew shouldn’t be happening was welling up inside. Anger at himself and his fucking terrible decisions. 

“Of course I care if my child is growing inside you!” 

Hermione rolled her eyes.

“Is it Theo’s?” His voice turned deadly. The possessive beast gaining control. 

“Shut the fuck up,” she said with venom. “I would never do that to you. I was faithful. I don’t know if I can say the same for you.” 

Draco breathed heavily. “I never cheated on you, Hermione.”

She eyed him. Her glare was deadly. “Yes, they’re yours, Draco.” 

“They?” he croaked. 

“I’m pregnant with twins.” Her voice was shaky. 

Draco couldn’t breathe. Hermione continued. 

“This was the happy news I tried to tell you before you BROKE MY HEART,” she cried. 

Draco ran his hands through his hair. Fuck fuck fuck fuck.

“Hermione, come back inside, sweetheart,” a deep voice came from their right. Draco turned to see Potter and Theo walk outside towards her. Theo gathered her in his arms and kissed the top of her head. 

“Fucking fantastic, Theo,” Draco seethed. “I knew you’ve carried a torch for Hermione since Hogwarts. You finally got to step in, huh?” 

Potter marched right up to Draco and punched him exactly where Hermione had in the third year, sending Draco to the ground. 

“I’ve been wanting to do that for fucking months,” Potted gritted out. “Not that its any of your fucking business but Theo offered to marry Hermione and she said no. He’s willing to adopt the children that you let go.” 

Draco sat up and rested his head in his hands. The reality of the situation crashing down on him. He looked up to see Theo lead Hermione back inside. His entire world walking away from him. 

“Potter,” Draco said, defeated. “I only did it because I don’t deserve her. I didn’t know she was pregnant.” 

“Even if she wasn’t, you should have fought for her but you made your decision and it wasn’t her. You chose your pureblood ideology instead.” 

“No, no,” Draco rasped. “I don’t care about that. I never really have. She knows that. I didn’t want Lucius to harm her. I didn’t want to bring down her success or stand in her way.” 

Potter scoffed and walked away, leaving Draco broken and bloody on the floor. 

Blaise found him shortly after. Draco hadn’t moved from his spot, he sat there numbly. As Blaise crouched in front him, Draco was hit with overwhelming clarity of what he needed to do. 

“I made a mistake, Blaise,” he said quietly. 

“No fucking shit,” Blaise responded, as if that was the most obvious thing in the world. 

A shriek made both men turn their heads as they saw Astoria rush towards Draco. 

“What happened?!” She said shrilly. “Why are you bloody? Why are you on the ground? No one has seen this right? This won’t be in the papers?” 

Draco started laughing. Of course she only cared about what would be written in the papers. 

“Why are you laughing?” She said, visibly annoyed. 

“Agreeing to go through with this betrothal was the worst decision I’ve ever made,” Draco laughed, pushing himself off the ground to stand. He wiped the dust off of his trousers. 

“Excuse me?” She shrieked. 

“You care about money and status more than your sister and I almost made the same decision to forgo the most precious thing in the world to make the same exact mistake.” 

“Let’s go inside, Draco,” Blaise said cautiously. 

“We’re not getting married, Astoria,” Draco said coolly, his eyes narrowed. “Our contract from this moment forward is void. Go find someone else’s vaults. Maybe Pucey?” 

He strode inside purposefully to find his mother. Blaise vanished the blood from Draco’s face and performed a quick episkey to put him back to rights. He nodded his thanks to his friend and left Astoria back in the dust where his cowardice lay. 

—-

Draco looked frantically for his mother and found her in a discussion with the Greengrasses. Perfect, he thought. He made his way over to them purposefully. 

“Don’t do it here, Draco,” Blaise warned. 

“I don’t give a fuck anymore,” Draco responded resolutely. 

“Fucking hell,” Blaise muttered. 

His mother and Astoria’s parents turned to greet him as he approached. 

“Lord and Lady Greengrass, I regret to inform you that I am canceling the betrothal contract with Astoria. Mother, I have urgent matters to attend to and I require your assistance.” 

Naricssa’s eyes were huge but she was too shocked to respond so she just nodded and placed her hand on his arm. 

“Excuse me?” Lord Greengrass spluttered. “You must be joking. Your father will take away your inheritance. You’ll be disowned for breaching the contract.”

“I frankly don’t care. Write to him in his cell.” Draco turned and guided his mother from the ballroom before any of the Greengrasses could make a scene. 

“Draco what is happening?” his mother whispered. 

“I’ll tell you as soon as we’re home, Mother,” Draco replied. Blaise hot on their heels. 

—-

Once they were in the sitting room of the home Draco had purchased after the Ministry had seized and torn down Malfoy Manor, Draco released all of his frustration and anger. An anguished yell tore from his throat as he grabbed what was likely an heirloom vase and smashed it on the ground. 

“I loved that vase! What is happening, son?” Narcissa shrieked. 

“Draco!” Blaise yelled. He removed his wand from his pockets and vanished the destroyed vase. His mother let out a little cry. 

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Draco kept pacing, continuing to run his hands through his hair. He turned and stared at his mother. She looked frail but so concerned for him. He could no longer hold in who he truly was nor who he truly loved. 

“I have been in a relationship with Hermione Granger for five years,” Draco confessed, his eyes were wild. His mother’s face paled. “I’ve been in love with her for years and was going to tell you about her in a few weeks time, however, the letter from father arrived five months ago and ruined everything. I did not have the strength to do the right thing. I was so afraid of what father would do and if he would threaten her. I was afraid of your reaction and I was afraid of what the world would do to Hermione. I took what I thought was the easy way out. I broke up with her the day before the betrothal was announced..”

“Oh Draco…” his mother sighed. 

“...that same night she was going to tell me that she was pregnant. She’s pregnant, mum. With my babies.” A choked sob escaped Draco.

“Babies?” His mother whispered. 

“She’s pregnant with twins and she wants nothing to do with me,” Draco replied quietly, tears falling freely down his cheeks. 

“I’m going to be a grandmother?” she whispered, a smile appearing. 

“Mother, what?” Draco said, confusion etching his features. “She wants nothing to do with me. I fucked up.” 

“Clearly you fucked up, son,” she said, sternly. “Honestly I was never a fan of the Greengrasses. Astoria has always been frigid.” 

Draco looked at her incredulously. “But Hermione is a muggle-born.” 

“I cannot believe you think that I care so much about that like your father does. I love your father but he is stuck in the past. I will handle him and I will handle any fallout with the Greengrasses. I only followed what I thought you wanted.” 

Draco let out a disbelieving laugh. “I’m a fucking idiot.” 

“Yes,” Blaise and Narcissa answered at the same time. 

“I could have stayed with Hermione this entire time,” Draco said, sitting down in one of the plush armchairs close to his mother. “I can’t believe this. What should I do?” 

“What you need to learn now, son,” Narcissa said. “Is the art of groveling.” 

Draco nodded as he turned his attention to the fire. He would do absolutely anything to get Hermione and his children back. 

“I need to prove to her that the babies are not the only reason why I broke off the betrothal. She needs to be reason enough.” 

Narcissa nodded sagely. “I agree. You need to talk to Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley. Speak to her friends and find out the damage.” 

“I already know the damage,” Draco muttered. 

“No, son,” Narcissa said sadly. “What has likely gone on behind closed doors is likely worse than what she’s shown you. It’s going to be a hard road. She may never come back to you but you need to show her you care and that you will show up for your children.” 

“I don’t know what I will do with myself if she doesn’t come back to me,” Draco whispered, fresh tears welled in his eyes. Salazar how was he still fucking crying? 

“You need to be ready for that if it happens, mate,” Blaise said as he handed him a fresh glass of firewhiskey. 

Draco nodded as he rushed to his desk to send out two separate owls. Both were to deliver a message to Potter and Ginevra and then the Weasel and Daph. He just hoped that one of them would answer. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 2 . 

By the time Draco fell asleep, it was nearly dawn. He had spent all night discussing a plan with Blaise and his mother. Ultimately, Draco had decided to disinherit himself from the Malfoy line so he would no longer be beholden to Lucius and the contract would be magically nullified immediately. Narcissa had been devastated by his decision at first, however, after several fire whiskeys and reminders of her future grandchildren, they had agreed that it was for the best. 

Both he and his mother could not predict what Lucius would do once news reached him from Lord Greengrass so it was also decided that Draco would go to Gringotts with his mother first thing in the morning followed by a trip to the Daily Prophet to run an announcement of his ended betrothal to Astoria and how he no longer saw himself as the Malfoy heir. He would go by Draco Black now and the freedom that this new last name promised caused him to feel hope for the first time in months. 

Draco awoke to scratching on his window and a headache in full swing from the amount of fire whiskey he had consumed. With a groan, he reached for the vial of sober up potion from his bedside table and grimaced as he downed the contents. 

The damned owl pecked at his window again and Draco met its beady eyes with a glare before the memory of last night pulled Draco from his haze and he rose from his massive bed to hastily let the owl in. He didn’t know who he wished the owl was from more. He knew Hermione wouldn’t be writing to him no matter how badly he wished it was her. It was likely Potter or Weasel responding. After the punch Potter delivered (Draco was actually impressed with Potter’s punch since he was such a wiry guy), he found himself surprised that he kind of hoped that it was Weasel more. 

He opened the letter and scanned the short message quickly. It was the best he would get and he would take it. 

Ferret, 

Ron and I will meet you at Hyde Park near Prince Albert’s statue at 2pm today to hear you out. If you do or say anything that could hurt Hermione further, I will not hesitate to deck you again. 

Potter

Who in the bloody hell was Prince Albert? No matter, nothing some flattery to an old muggle woman couldn’t fix. He had become an expert over the years at asking muggles for directions when out in muggle London with Hermione. She had found it adorable. 

He quickly responded that he would be there before heading to the shower to get ready. He and his mother had agreed to meet for breakfast at 7am so they could be at Gringotts when they opened at 8. 

Dressed in one of his classic 3 piece suits, he opted for all black. He was, after all, saying goodbye to the life he had always known. Might as well dress the part. 

He descended the stairs and found his mother already sitting at the dining table impeccably dressed in her formal robes. 

“Bit dramatic, my dragon?” Naricssa asked with a raised brow. 

“I’m not sure I know what you mean, mother,” Draco replied as he sat down beside her at the head of the table. 

“All black? Really? You act as if you’re going to a funeral,” she frowned. 

“This is a rebirth. I’m saying goodbye to the old me. The me who was a coward. Besides, my new last name is Black. It’s fitting.” 

“Maybe a bit too on the nose then.” She wrinkled her nose. 

“Fine, I’ll change,” he rolled his eyes. “I don’t want the press to think I’m upset about the broken engagement anyways.” 

“Precisely.” She drew her wand and masterfully changed his shirt from black to white and transfigured a silk handkerchief from her napkin while adding his new initials, DLB. 

“Let’s drop the middle name,” he said resolutely. Narcissa nodded and the handkerchief changed again to be DB. 

“Frankly I’m surprised you’re being so accepting of all this, mother,” Draco said cautiously. 

She sighed. “Your happiness is all that truly matters to me. While I don’t entirely understand, I can accept that you deserve to live the life you want when so much of it already was decided for you. I never wanted you to be marked. I will never forgive your father for that. I love him but I will never forgive him.” 

“But you kept going on about restoring the Malfoy name amongst pureblood culture? You were so sad before. I thought you missed your status.” 

“Oh my dragon,” Narcissa reached for his hand. “I did. I will. It's the only life I’ve ever known but seeing you happy is what matters most. I will do whatever needs to be done to see that reality. If it means going through all of this, then I’ll do it.” 

“What will Lucius do to you though, mother?” 

“Do you not consider him your father anymore?” 

Draco shook his head. “He stopped being my father when he put the Dark Lord first.” 

Narcissa wiped a lone tear from her eye. “I will handle him. I am also tired of his bad decisions. If he reacts horribly then I will do what needs to be done.” 

She patted his hand with finality. “Now let’s head off to Gringotts. It's almost 8am.” 

Draco didn’t like the cryptic response from her but he let it go. They had more pressing matters at hand, like getting his witch back. 

—- 

The one and only reason Draco tolerated the goblins of Gringotts was their discretion. He had no issues transferring all of the gold, jewelry and other priceless heirlooms from his heir vault and other inheritances to his new Lord Black vault. He even had his mother move half of her gold from her Malfoy vault back to her personal Black vault for insurance. All in all, they completed the transfers within a couple of hours and even met with their solicitors to update all documents with his new station. The final piece of business was the personal letter he decided to write to Lucius explaining it all in detail and effectively ending it with a ‘Fuck you.’

Pleased with their work, they finished their errands at the Daily Prophet where Draco was to take out the full front page with his news. At first, Draco was in as good of spirits as he could be. He thought about Hermione’s reaction when she saw what he did. He hoped she would know that he had done it for her. She had to know that, right? His mind was consumed with her as he entered the building until he saw the news for the current day. 

Golden Girl Pregnant and Unmarried! Who Tarnished the Brightest Witch of the Millennia? 

  Golden Girl and Theodore Nott Expecting? 

Pregnant and Alone; How the Golden Girl Went from Medical Savior to Disgraced Outcast

Draco saw red. How dare they speak about her like that? She had saved the lives of essentially every wizard and witch in the world and if that wasn’t enough, she then found the cure for Lycanthropy. 

“Draco..” His mother warned, sensing his fury. 

He realized that if he handled the situation the way he wanted to then talk would start about why he cared so much so Draco did what he knew best. He occluded. 

They approached a portly witch who must have been the assistant to the Editor in Chief. She peered up at them from a piece of parchment she had been reading and her eyes went wide at the realization of who was in front of her. 

“Do you have an appointment?” She asked, her voice shaking. 

“I don’t need an appointment,” Draco drawled. His mother was ramrod straight. The picture of pureblood elegance. 

“Lord Malfoy, he’s occupied at the moment.” 

“Mr. Richmond is an old friend of ours,” Narcissa said primly. “He would be outraged if you denied us from visiting him. I’m going to assume you don’t know so let me make this clear, we have a heavy influence here at the Prophet. You will let us in to see Mr. Richmond or my son and I will just head in ourselves. We’re really only talking  to you to be polite.” 

The woman swallowed and nodded. “Please, go in.” 

“Thank you,” Narcissa replied. Draco passed the woman and held the door open for his mother who entered as if the office was actually hers. 

“Mr. Richmond,” Draco drawled. “I would say it's a pleasure but we both know that’s not the case.” 

The man in question spluttered at their intrusion. “Lord Malfoy and Mrs. Malfoy, my apologies for forgetting our appointment?”

Draco smiled at that. Good man for rolling with it. He knew where his salary came from. 

“I don’t have a lot of time so I’m going to get right down to it,” Draco stated. He placed the full weight of his stare at Richmond. “I am renouncing my title as Lord Malfoy and will no longer be the heir to the Malfoy line. My betrothal contract to Astoria Greengrass is nullified and frankly I couldn’t be happier about it. I am, as of this morning, Lord Black and the heir to the most ancient and noble House of Black.” 

Mr. Richmond’s mouth was hanging open, his eyes wide, not making a sound. 

“You will dedicate the front page to this announcement tomorrow morning. Further, you will rescind the disgusting headlines about Hermione Granger that made front page news this morning. She is a war hero and a brilliant healer who has done more for this world than anyone here combined. I will not have our family name back a paper that prints such trash.” 

Mr. Richmond nodded fervently. 

“You will also make sure that Rita Skeeter is not allowed to touch my story or any story regarding the Golden Trio ever again. If she does, fire her.”

Mr. Richmond just kept nodding. 

“That’s all. Thank you for your time.” Draco stood up from his seat and held out his hand to his mother to help her up. 

They left the building shortly after. Draco walked his mother back to the Gringotts floo so she could head home. 

“Be strong, my dragon,” she said gently, knowing where Draco was headed next. 

“Potter and Weasley will tear me apart,” he said softly, looking at the ground. His earlier confidence shattered. 

“Tell them what you did today. Show them how serious you are. Be open and honest. You are a good man, son.”

“I’m not, mother.”

“You were misguided. You’re doing the right thing now. You just need to keep doing it.”

Draco met his mothers soft eyes and he tried to give her a soft smile of reassurance. “I’ll try my best, mother.”

“I’ll see you at home.” Narcissa disappeared in the flames as Draco turned to head to the nearest apparition point. The hardest part of the day was just beginning.

Chapter Text

Chapter 3

The weather was uncharacteristically sunny for the time of the year. Draco found himself wishing he had a pair of sunglasses as he checked his watch for perhaps the tenth time in two minutes. Potter and Weasel were officially late. Draco turned for what had to be the fifth time to make sure he was at the statue of the prince they wanted to meet at. Was the man supposed to be a symbol? Draco internally kicked himself for not researching this prince fellow prior to arriving. Malfoys, no Blacks, were always prepared. 

“Oi! Malfoy!” The distinct voice of one Ronald Weasley called out. Draco turned to see tweedle dee and tweedle dumb walk toward him. Both of their chests were puffed out and both looked angry.

“Let’s go for a walk,” Potter suggested with a glare. Draco just nodded and gestured for them to lead the way.

The three men walked in silence as Draco called on the courage he was working up to voice the monologue he had been steadfastly practicing. 

“Look,” he said, his voice wavering. “I fucked up. I fucked up majorly. I let myself get in the way and destroy the person I love most in the world. I wish I could take away Hermione’s pain but I can’t and I will never forgive myself for all the hurt I’ve caused her over the course of her life. I never deserved her. I still don’t. I let my family’s history come between Hermione and I. I was an idiot.”

Weasley snorted. “No shit, Malfoy. You hid your engagement from her and told her the day before it hit the newsstands. What’s the fuck was that about?”

“I was trying to find a loophole! I didn’t want to drag her into my mess while she was working on the cure.”

“This is Hermione Granger we’re talking about, Malfoy,” Potter spat. “She would have stayed up every night for months trying to figure this out with you. We could have helped too.”

“If my lawyers couldn’t figure it out, how could you all?”

“Are your lawyers considered the brightest of their age? Did they defeat the deadliest dark wizard of their time?” Potter seethed. Weasley cast a silencing charm around them. Potter nodded at him gratefully. 

Draco remained silent. 

“That’s what I thought. You doubted her. You doubted your future with her. You were afraid to face any consequences that could come as a result of being with her. Losing your precious pure blood history.”

“I LOVE HER! I DIDN’T WANT TO RUIN HER REPUTATION!” Draco roared. “I wanted that future with her more than life itself but I’m not good enough for her.”

“You should have let her decide. She thinks you left her so you could marry the perfect pure blood bride. She doesn’t think she’s good enough for YOU. I don’t know how you could have hurt her more. She is destroyed,” Weasley spat. 

Draco was breathing heavily. She was destroyed . He had done that to her. His occlusion walls couldn’t withstand any longer. 

“I know I should have let her decide. I should have told her immediately. It is the biggest regret of my life and I have many. She has never been one though. I love her. I will do anything for her. I know I’m too late to come to my senses but I’m still going to try. I’m no longer Draco Malfoy. I removed myself from the Malfoy vaults and family documents. There will be an announcement tomorrow in the Prophet.”

Weasley and Potter stared at him incredulously and responded at the same time. 

“You’re serious?”

“The fuck?” 

Draco nodded. “I’m burning myself off the family tapestry as soon as I get home. I nullified the contract with the Greengrasses. I even wrote a letter to Lucius that essentially ended with a ‘fuck off.‘“ 

“What will Lucius do?” Potter asked, his Auror voice coming in.

“I don’t know,” Draco answered truthfully. “I already did to myself what I suspected he would already do. He loves my mother too much to do anything to her but we moved some of her gold just in case. He doesn’t know about Hermione or the babies yet but it wouldn’t hurt to put some eyes on her just in case. The timing of her pregnancy news and my broken engagement may cause him to suspect something.” 

Potter sighed. Draco could feel his weariness. 

“Alright, I’ll assign some Aurors to her. Look, Hermione has been staying with Gin and I on and off since your break-up. She is broken, Malfoy. I have never seen her so upset and I’ve known Hermione for a long time. We’ve been through hell together so that says something. Now this news won’t be enough. You have an incredibly hard road ahead of you. My advice to you is to think of your children. She’s not going to be able to forgive you anytime soon so show up for your twins. Prove to Hermione with your actions. She needs more than words.”

“Do you think she’ll ever forgive me? She could ever love me again?”

“I don’t think she could ever stop loving you, Malfoy,” Weasley replied. His blue eyes were penetrating Draco’s shields. “She doesn’t want to love you but she does. I don’t know if love is enough for her to trust you again. I don't think you deserve it frankly but it's not up to us so I agree with Harry, if she forgives you, it is going to take time.”

“It doesn’t help that the media are being such pricks to her now too,” Harry grumbled.

“I threatened the Prophet and told them to rescind the nasty headlines and framed it as a way of goodwill and image so they wouldn’t suspect my involvement.”

Potter eyed him warily but then nodded. “Thank you for doing that. Ron, Theo and I have already tried offering her solutions to help with the public scandal.” 

“Yes, you already mentioned how Theo offered to marry her,” Draco seethed. 

“She said no,” Potter said in a matter of fact manner. “She doesn’t see Theo like that even though we know Theo wishes she did. His offer isn’t off the table though.” 

“I will claim the children as my own, she doesn’t have to marry the prat.”

“She wants nothing to do with you right now,” Weasley cut in. 

“They’re my children though!” Draco rasped. “She can’t keep them from me, can she?”

“Hermione is too good of a person to keep them from you but she needs time right now. It also doesn’t change the fact that the world will judge her for being a single mother. She doesn’t care but she doesn’t want your children to face those consequences. That’s the only reason she’s still somewhat entertaining Theo’s offer.”

“Weasel I’m surprised you didn’t step in automatically,” Draco scowled. 

“I proposed as well but everyone who is close to us knows that Hermione and I aren’t right for each other and she doesn’t want me to, as she says, ‘shackle herself to me.’”

“Oh but she’ll do that to Theo?”

“Theo’s different,” Potter sighed. “You know as well as I do how those two are like kindred spirits. She doesn’t want to tie Theo to herself either, which is why she denied him at first, but if he keeps asking her and if anything were to happen to the babies, she will do anything to keep them safe.”

Draco made a noise that was between a whimper and a cry. He was so fucked. 

“Can you at least tell her that no matter if she was or wasn’t pregnant, that last night would have been the catalyst either way? I would have done the same thing I did today even if she wasn’t pregnant. I wish it didn’t take me seeing her again for me to do what was necessary.” Draco knew without a doubt that as soon as he had seen Hermione at the gala, his world shifted back to where it was meant to be all along. 

“I’m not sure I believe that,” Potter replied. 

“Good thing I’m not seeking your forgiveness” 

“You should be asking for it if you want us to help.”

“You’ll help me?” 

“Why else are we here?” Weasley jumped in. “Look, we liked you before you reminded us of why we used to despise you at school. You used to make Hermione happy and that meant everything to Harry and I. If you truly are going to follow through and you realize how much you fucked up, then we’ll see what we can do.” 

“You’re going to have to tell her all this yourself,” Potter added.

“After I burn myself off the family tapestry, the first thing I was planning on doing was write her a letter. I doubt she’ll talk to me in person but I’ll do anything to make that happen. If she says anything, please tell me? And please tell her about this conversation and to read the Prophet tomorrow?”

Potter sighed and Weasley looked up to the sky as if he was searching for patience.

“I’ll relay the message but I can’t promise anything. For now, I think you should think about making some real changes so she knows you're serious. Find a job, maybe find a flat in muggle London near her so you’re closer to helping out with the babies.”

“I will,” he responded immediately. “Thank you for meeting me.”

“I still want to punch you again,” Potter growled while Ron laughed. He fucking laughed!

“It’s not funny Weasel,” Draco muttered. “Blaise had to fix me up and he did a half ass job. I had to redo it before I went to bed.”

“Cry me a river,” Weasley rolled his eyes. Draco looked at him puzzled. “Muggle phrase.”

“If she says anything, I’ll owl you Malfoy,” Potter confirmed. “But if she tells us not to intervene then you’re on your own.” The three were now back at the statue. 

“Thanks, Potter,” Draco said genuinely. “Is there a reason you wanted to meet by the royal muggle?”

“It’s a tall statue. We figured even you could find it,” Weasley snickered. 

Draco scowled as watched the two walk away. 

———

Lucius Malfoy sat poised as ever in his cell, playing solitaire with a deck of cards he had won off of Dolohov during their recreation time. The evening guard had promised to play poker with him and he was looking forward to winning a cigarette. The guard had told him it was a new apothecary invention for keeping his mind sharp. Lucius had been grateful. 

“Malfoy, you have some letters,” a guard said gruffly, handing him two letters. One from Lord Greengrass and the other from…Draco Black?

Lucius raised his eyebrows at the second letter and swifty tossed Greengrasses letter to the floor as he ripped open the letter from Draco and scanned it frantically. A maniacal laughter bubbled past his lips and he found himself uncontrollably laughing at his son. He had finally grown a pair of bollocks. But why? Why remove himself from the family inheritance? How was Narcissa handling it? 

Lucius wasn’t overly fond of his son. After all, Draco was just supposed to be his replacement for when Lucius died himself. His own father has told him the same thing. In his yearly appointments with his Healers before the war broke out, they had explained how he seemed to lack empathy. Lucius had scoffed at that. He loved Narcissa so that couldn’t be true. 

He tossed the letter onto his cot. There wasn’t any way he could leave Azkaban to sort out this mess but he would find out why his son took such drastic measures. 

Lord Greengrass’ letter was rather drab. The man moaned about the breach of goodwill and how the Malfoy name meant nothing if Draco didn’t come to his senses. Lucius found himself wishing he could see the man’s face when he found out Draco had removed himself as the Malfoy heir. 

Lucius reached for some parchment so he could pen a letter to Narcissa. He needed to understand Draco’s logic behind making such a drastic decision. It was times like these that he wished he and Narcissa had another son. A son who understood the importance of family duty. A son who wasn’t selfish. Where did Draco learn that from anyways? Salazar, he thought. 

Perhaps he could get Narcissa to hire someone to Imperius their son and undo this mess. Yes, she would listen to him. He would fix this and then marry Draco to a French pure blooded witch who didn’t have a mundane father like Lord Greengrass.

Chapter Text

Chapter 4

After graduation, Harry and Ginny had completely remodeled Grimmauld Place. What was once a dreary townhome filled with blood purist paintings and Slytherin green furnishings, was now filled with bright colors and both moving and muggles pictures of friends and family. While it wasn’t her quaint house in Hampstead that Hermione loved so much, she was happy to have the constant support that Harry and Ginny gave when she lived with them. 

She sat at their kitchen table while she waited for Harry and Ron to return. She knew her best friends were having a “talk” with Draco. In Ron’s words, we’ll see what he wants but regardless we’re giving the ferret a stern talking to. Harry had turned back to her before he left to tell her that he’d punch him again if he threatened Hermione or the babies. She had given him a wobbly smile in return. She was grateful for those two. 

Her ginger tea was starting to grow cold as she circled her spoon absentmindedly, lost in her thoughts and memories. 

—- Flashback —-

Hermione had still been sobbing on the floor of her house when Ginny and Harry flooed over after Draco broke up with her. They didn’t even know why she was so distraught until the following morning when Hermione could finally string words together through her sobs to explain what had happened. While Ginny became enraged and started spewing off everything she’d do to the ferret, Harry was deadly calm. He seemed to be thinking something over in his mind and then, coming to a decision, he floo called all of their friends to come over. 

Theo, Pansy, Ron, Daphne, Neville, Luna and Blaise had come over within the hour. Hermione was cuddled on the couch still crying into Ginny’s shoulder. When Pansy made the mistake of asking where Draco was, Hermione began hyperventilating, causing Harry to give her another calming draught. 

Once the drought took effect, Hermione had relaxed enough to explain. “Draco broke up with me to marry Astoria. He told me that he needed to fulfill his family duties and that our arrangement had been fun…” She trailed off as fresh tears filled her eyes. 

Pansy and Daphne’s eyes had bugged out of their heads and they rushed to her side to pull her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. 

“I’m going to fucking kill him,” Pansy declared. 

“He’s dead to me,” Daphne agreed. 

“The worst part is that he doesn’t even know,” Hermione whispered. 

Harry’s brow furrowed. “Know what, Hermione?” 

“I was going to tell him but then he broke up with me,” she said softly. “I’m pregnant.” 

“Fuck,” Blaise swore as collective gasps sounded from around the room. 

“Hermione, darling,” Theo said as he reached for her hand. “I’ll marry you. We can pretend the baby is mine and you won’t have to worry about anything.” 

“I’d offer to marry you, Mione but you know I love Daph and we never worked out well together,” Ron said sheepishly. 

Hermione laughed for the first time. “Merlin, that would be a terrible idea.” She turned to Theo. “That’s very sweet of you, Theo, but I can’t even begin to think of that right now plus I can’t do that to you. Also, its babies, plural. I’m having twins.” 

Everyone's eyes widened. 

“It’s not an imposition at all. I’d gladly do it,” he added eagerly. Pansy and Daphne both smirked. 

“Honestly I just need my friends right now,” Hermione said, swallowing a lump in her throat. “I don’t want to be alone.” 

“We’ll all help you with them,” Ginny assured her, patting her hand. 

—--

Hermione was pulled from her memories as she heard the floo sound from Harry and Ginny’s kitchen. She felt a flutter in her stomach as she felt one of the twins move.

“Mione?” Harry called. “You there?” 

“Quick!” She answered. “I feel one of the babies!” 

Two sets of feet rushed into the kitchen. Harry and Ron were wide eyed as they reached her and placed their hands on her growing stomach. 

“Hmm,” she said thoughtfully. “They must have stopped.” 

They sighed as they sat down next to her. 

“We just saw the prat who shall not be named,” Ron announced. Harry watched Hermione carefully for her response. Even after a few months, any mention of Draco could cause her to go into a downward spiral. She used to pride herself on how resilient she was and hated that he momentarily shattered it for her. 

“What happened?” she asked, trying not to let her voice wobble. 

“He disinherited himself,” Harry replied. “He’s Draco Black now. He removed himself from the family tapestry and ended the engagement. There will be a full page spread in tomorrow’s Prophet.” 

“You think he’s telling the truth?” 

“He wasn’t wearing the infamous Malfoy signet ring,” Ron added. “He was torn up.” 

“He should be!” She spat. 

“We agree,” Harry said, shooting Ron a warning look. 

“What I’m trying to say, Mione, is that he seems genuine and he seems to be devastated by what he did. He said seeing you at the gala was the catalyst.”

“His reputation and the knowledge of his two heirs were the catalyst,” she seethed.

Ron nodded, “He has a lot to prove to you and to everyone. We’re not on his side. We just wanted to tell you what he told us after he reached out. What you do is your decision. We’ll support you no matter what.” 

“He also asked you to read the Prophet tomorrow,” Harry said, reaching for her hand that wasn’t on her stomach. 

Hermione looked at her best friends and nodded. “I love you both.” 

“We love you too,” Harry returned as they both stood up to give her a hug. 

“I don’t know what to do,” she confessed, her voice breaking. “I want my babies to know their father. I won’t take that from my children.”

“You don’t have to have all the answers right now,” Harry assured her, stroking her back. “Just focus on your pregnancy. Ginny, Daph and Pansy are going to help you baby-proof your house today right?” 

“Yes, and get started on the nursery. Pansy supposedly has a vision and I’m too tired to fight her on it.” 

“I’m sure it will be beautiful no matter what,” Ron said with a gentle smile. 

“I just asked for neutral tones since I don’t know the genders yet.” 

“When do you find that out?” Ron asked, walking away from their group hug to make his own cup of tea. 

“Technically I already can find out but I keep going back and forth on whether or not I want it to be a surprise. I thought I would have Draco to make these decisions with. He used to be so good with my indecisiveness,” She said, her voice grew quieter towards the end.

———

A week had passed since Draco had met with Potter and the Weasel. True to their word, they told him that Hermione had agreed to hear about their conversation and read the Prophet article. She hadn’t responded to any of the letters that Draco sent and when he asked Potter and Weasel, they wouldn’t tell him if she even read them. 

No matter, he’d get her to respond eventually. Right? 

Despite Hermione not replying, he did hear from Pansy and Daphne. Both of them sent a howler that started out quite cruel but then ended by telling him to make it right with his little lion and future cubs. It pained Draco hearing that. His cubs . 

He hadn’t heard from Lucius since his infamous letter but his mother reported to him that Lucius had sent her one. Draco had actually laughed when he read his request for his mother to use an unforgivable to make Draco undo the damage. Narcissa had rolled her eyes and told him she’d take care of it so Draco gladly let it go. He had enough to focus on. 

A few more days passed before a small golden owl greeted Draco one morning as he reviewed several different listings in Hampstead that were close to Hermione’s house. 

His mouth dropped open when he realized who the owl belonged to. Hermione .

He greeted her owl, Athena, and fed her a treat before his shaking hands took the letter from the owl's talons. 

With and uneven breath, Draco tore the letter open and began to read,

Draco,

Meet me at Grimmuald Place this Thursday evening at 6pm. You have exactly 1 hour to talk to me. Don’t be late.

Hermione 

It was short. Draco read it repeatedly until he was sure that there were no secret meanings in her brief message. Even so, he was elated to see her familiar handwriting yet he was also terrified. He had two days to prepare. Two days to prepare his case for her. This called for help.

Blaise arrived shortly after with a muggle whiteboard and markers. 

“What is this for?” Draco asked, confused.

“I always see muggles do this when they’re trying to plan something big in the movies,” he explained. “It’s called a ‘war room.’”

Draco rolled his eyes but couldn’t help the grin. Blaise was truly a good friend. “Right then, let’s begin.”

The two spent hours in Draco’s study going through potential talking points and arguments. Draco didn’t want to stutter or come off brash. He needed to remain calm, regretful and open. He could do that. 

Once they were satisfied, they made a list of the top three flats in Hampstead that fit Draco’s criteria. His main goal was to eventually move back in with Hermione and the babies so he didn’t want anything extravagant. He also needed to make sure he could afford it in case Lucius was able to change his mother’s support.

He knew getting a job would be an important step in earning Hermione’s forgiveness. He needed to show her that he was his own man, making his own decisions. He didn’t want a career that was too demanding. Ideally he’d be doing something where he could work from home and spend time with his children. Lucius hadn’t been around much during Draco’s childhood and when he was, he was cold and distant. Draco, on the other hand, wanted to be a father who his children could rely on and shower them with love at every opportunity. 

With his potions mastery and background of handling all of the Malfoy financials, Draco was fairly confident he could fulfill a need in the market for increasing production of certain medications and potions that weren’t readily available and grew more expensive as a result, like Granger’s Lycanthropy cure, which was soon to be released to the general public and was already causing worry that there wouldn’t be enough. 

Through Blaise, Draco was already working his way through the necessary business permits and meeting with suppliers who could help him get started. While starting a business of this magnitude during such a turbulent time in his life wasn’t ideal, Draco knew it had to be done. He would be able to solve a problem that would pain Granger and the wizarding public while he made a massive profit. 

Before he knew it, Thursday evening arrived and Draco was dressed in his finest. He stood near the floo with his Tempus charm up so he could count down the seconds until 6pm. He would get there at exactly 5:59:59. He knew she appreciated being on time. 

Stepping through the floo, Draco arrived at Grimmauld Place at the time he wanted. It was quiet in the parlor as he looked around. The only noise being a burgundy grandfather clock as it chimed to announce the new hour. 

“Hermione?” he called, his voice gravelly. 

Hermione appeared immediately through the doorway, her eyes wide as she took him in, looking uncertain. Draco swallowed a whimper that threatened to escape as he gazed up at her form. She was wearing a red sweater dress that did nothing to hide her bump and he was grateful. She looked like an angel. Her hair was curled to perfection and she had on a red lip that made him want to nip at her lower lip.  

“Hello, Draco,” she said, her voice quiet but calm. The fire in her tone from when they last met was gone. “Harry and Ginny aren’t here but all I need to do is send a patronus and they’ll apparate here immediately.” 

Draco nodded, still dumbstruck at her beauty. He wanted to touch her bump, feel his babies, that would be okay, right?

“Let’s go to their library, Kreacher has tea for us.” 

He followed her through the townhome and cursed himself for not saying anything yet. He had been preparing with Blaise non stop for this for the last two days. He needed to get it together. 

“How are you feeling?” He asked. “How are the babies?” 

She sighed. “I’m doing the best I can. The babies are thriving. I have another appointment next week.” 

Draco’s breath hitched. He wanted to go to that appointment. 

They passed through the doorway of the library and sat across from each other. Hermione’s hands were fidgeting in her lap as she said, “You have one hour Draco, no more. Say what you need to say.” 

Draco realized that he just needed to get everything out there. 

“I made the biggest mistake of my life when I chose my family duty over you. I never wanted to hurt you, Hermione. I know I did anyway and in the worst way possible. I don’t care about blood purity. I don’t want to be my father. I have always loved you. It’s always been you. It will continue to always be you no matter how this turns out between us. I am so fucking sorry. You deserve so much better than me. I should have told you about the letter from Lucius regarding the betrothal as soon as I got it. We could have had so much time to figure a way out of it. But I didn’t do that. I only thought about myself and how I would bring you down. I thought about how I would fuck up your accolades and that you deseverd someone who would only improve your standing. I didn’t think about what you wanted. I was a coward. I’m so sorry, Hermione. 

I also want to apologize for how late it took me to get my shit together to realize I fucked up. I know you think that I’m only doing this because you're pregnant but I’d like to think I would have done the same thing I’m doing now even if you weren’t. I’ve thought about you every single day and have been a mess without you. Just seeing you across the room before I could tell you were pregnant caused a bomb to go off within me. You ruined me, Hermione. I am yours and I have always been yours.” 

He was breathing heavily towards the end, he kept his eyes trained on her the entire time. He wanted her to see that he meant every word. Hermione had tears in her eyes as she stared back at him, perfect little droplets falling down her high cheekbones. He wanted to lick the salt from her face. 

“Thank you for the apology but I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to forgive you. My heart is shattered, Draco. It feels like every promise, every touch, every kiss was a lie. Our entire relationship feels like a lie. I know you say that it wasn’t but I’ve lived the last three months feeling so fucking betrayed by you.” Her voice was now steely. 

“It wasn’t a lie, Hermione, I promise. I was a coward. I’ve loved you since sixth year. I love you now and I will love you for the rest of my life. You’re it for me, Hermione. I was a fool to let you go. I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to prove that to you.” 

She wiped a tear from her eye and took a steadying breath. “These are all pretty words, Draco, but I need action. I know you removed yourself from the Malfoy family. That’s a step but I’m going to need a hell of a lot more if I’m ever going to be able to move forward with you. And that is a big if.” 

Draco nodded vigorously. He knew that. 

Hermione continued. “That being said, I want my children to know their father. I would never rob you of that but I have requirements if you’re going to be in their life and these are non-negotiables.” 

“Okay,” Draco said immediately. This was going as good as it could be, all things considered. 

“They will take my last name. We are not married and I am carrying them. They will live at my house in Hampstead and they will never meet Lucius, Narcissa or anyone who believes in that blood purist bullshit.” 

Her conditions broke his heart but he understood and he deserved it. Maybe he could one day become a Granger too. He wasn’t opposed. Draco needed to pose one amendment though. “My mother has been supportive of my decision and she says that she only wants me to be happy. Honestly, she’s been extremely excited about our twins so I ask you to reconsider so my mother can meet her.” 

Hermione considered this for a minute, she had a faraway look in her eyes that meant she was thinking heavily. “As long as she’s not a blood purist, then she can meet them but I will always be present and the second she makes a comment about blood status, she cannot be around them.” 

“Understood, thank you Hermione.” He appreciated her bending this rule for him. It was a big win and he was hoping that they could continue to make strides. 

“I have an appointment with my healer on Monday morning if you would like to come? I’ll find out the sex of the babies and I figured you should be present for that since you haven’t been able to experience most of my pregnancy.” 

“Fuck yes, please Hermione,” he begged. 

“Okay, meet me at St. Mungos at 9:45am. My appointment is at 10.” 

Draco resolved to be there at 9:30am. Nothing would keep him from being there for her and their cubs. After hearing that from Pansy, he couldn’t get it out of his mind. He longed to call her his little lion again. “Thank you, Hermione. You have no idea how much this means to me.” 

She only nodded and looked away, he saw the depth of her emotions in her eyes and he struggled to keep his composure as well. 

“I’m looking at flats in Hampstead so I can be near to help you and the twins whenever you need me.” 

“Oh!” She replied, looking surprised. “Really?” 

“Yes, I want you to know that you can rely on me. I’m hoping to sign off on one this weekend so I can move in next week. All are available for immediate move in.” 

“Alright then,” she breathed. “I guess that makes sense.” 

“I’m also starting a new venture. I won’t bore you with all the details now since our time is almost up but I want you to know that I’m not going to rely on my family money to provide for you and our twins. I know you don’t need me to be a provider but let me show you that I’m serious. I’m done being a Malfoy. I want to be the man you deserve.”

Hermione’s eyes were wide as she nodded. “Okay.” 

“Okay,” Draco breathed a sigh of relief. 

“I’m going to go lay down now,” she said as she stood up from the loveseat. “This has been…a lot for me but I’ll see you on Monday?” 

“Yes, I wouldn’t miss it,” he promised as he mirrored her actions. “Do you need help with anything?” 

“No, not right now,” she replied with a small smile. “On Monday we can talk more about what to do next. I’ve done a little shopping already with Pansy, Ginny and Daphne but I think you may enjoy it so we can go together sometime soon.” 

“I would love that, Hermione,” he said genuinely. He wanted to hold her while she fell asleep like he used to. “Thank you.” 

She nodded. “Good luck with the job and the flat hunting. I’ll see you soon.” She turned and walked towards the stairs that led to what must be her bedroom at Grimmauld. 

Draco watched her ascend the steps wistfully before turning to leave himself. He was proud of how much he kept it together but he couldn’t help but notice how drawn she had seemed. For being four months pregnant, she seemed too skinny. She needed him to take care of her. He used to be so good at that and he had reveled in it. He resolved himself to do it stealthily. No one, not even herself, could take care of her like he could. 

Heading to the floo, he made a promise to himself that he would take care of her from the shadows for now until she was ready to let him back in. After all, he was going to be a father soon and he wanted so desperately for Hermione to call him daddy. He felt his cock twitch at that thought and as he reached his room, he warded his room against intruders and stripped so he could grab his cock and come to the image of Hermione calling him daddy while he fucked her from behind.

Chapter Text

Chapter 5

The three flats that Draco and Blaise visited in Hampstead Heath were all approximately within a kilometer of Hermione’s house. To Draco, this was not close enough and even though he knew he wasn’t going to live in whichever he chose forever, none of the flats he viewed were to his standards. 

“I don’t know, Blaise, I didn’t like any of these flats,” Draco groaned as they walked through a neighborhood towards Hermione’s house. He had suggested going for a walk to see if they could find any available flats or homes that were closer to her that the muggle realtor missed. 

Blaise smirked. “Not posh enough for you?” 

Draco glared at his friend, “Is it too much to ask for a library? I don’t understand how that’s not viewed as a necessity. Besides, you know I need one. Books are Hermione’s love language. I need a library for my strategy to win her back.” 

“You really think Hermione is going to come to your flat anytime soon?” 

“I feel like she’ll want to investigate the place where our children will be at times.” 

Blaise chuckled. “Are you hoping to run into Hermione on this walk?” 

“It would be a very welcome bonus,” Draco sighed. “Despite how hard last night was, it was the first time I felt complete since I let her go. I don’t feel like myself unless I’m with her.” 

Blaise whistled, “You have some serious self-work to do then, if that’s the case.” 

Draco rolled his eyes, “I see how you look at Luna. Don’t give me that.” 

Blaise held up his hands in surrender as they finally made it to Hermione’s street. 

Draco stared wistfully up at her house. She hadn’t changed much since they broke up other than placing pumpkins and red mums on the stairs leading up to her front door. She owned a two story attached brick house with white shutters and a handsome black painted door with gold furnishings. Hermione had always loved flowers and it was evident with the flower boxes hanging outside her windows and the rose bushes she had in her front yard. Pansy and Daphne had helped Hermione design the landscaping for her front and backyard, leading to seasonal flowers growing throughout the spaces. Jasmine bloomed in the Spring and Summer while mums dominated Autumn. 

“The house next door is for sale, Draco,” Blaise observed. 

Draco whipped his head toward his friend and joined him in front of the house that was attached to Hermione’s. 

“I’m buying it.” He took down the phone number and plugged it into his muggle mobile. 

“You haven’t even seen inside it,” Blaise guffawed. 

“It doesn’t matter,” Draco said nonchalantly and raised the phone to his ear so he could call the realtor. 

“What if Hermione doesn’t like living next to you?” 

“She didn’t mind me looking in the neighborhood so I’m sure this is fine. Besides, this will be incredibly easy for the cubs.” Draco had decided to lovingly start referring to the twins as their cubs in hopes that his little lion comes back to him. 

“Yeah, Mike?” Draco said into the mobile as the realtor answered. “Put an offer in for 25 Holly Place in Hampstead…Yeah I know we didn’t see it today…Put in an offer for 25% over asking price…I don’t care if that’s above what you think we need to come in, I need the house…Keep me updated.” He hung up and grinned at the house in front of him. 

“What happened to saving money in case your mother takes Lucius’ side? You’re launching a business mate.” 

“I know, I know but I don’t think she’s going to do that and I still have more than enough saved away for emergencies. Besides, the house right next to Hermione is for sale. That has to be fate, right?” 

“And you said you weren’t keen on divination,” Blaise chuckled.

Draco rolled his eyes. “Hermione isn’t keen on divination.” 

“Right and whatever Hermione isn’t keen on, you’re not keen on.” 

“I can picture it now, Blaise,” Draco mused, ignoring his friend. “Once we’re back together, we’ll tear down this house and expand Hermione’s into this plot.” 

“You’re getting ahead of yourself,” Blaise warned.

“I know but let me dream,” he sighed. 

—-

On Saturday, the realtor congratulated Draco on his offer being accepted in what had to be the fastest home buying process the realtor had ever been involved in. Pleased, Draco put the man in touch with his new assistant, Owen, who had come highly recommended by Blaise, to facilitate next steps and the move in date. Draco pushed for a date as soon as possible and also put Owen in charge of fixing any issues with the house along with the decorating and furnishing. Since Draco was still very much on the outs with Pansy, he had told Owen to use his home with his mother, Highguard Manor, as inspiration. 

Once the papers for the house were signed later that day, Draco and his mother stopped in a muggle bookstore to look for baby books to fill the nursery in Granger’s home. If there was one thing about his children that Draco knew for sure, it was that they were both going to be voracious readers. 

His mother flitted through the rows of books in the kids section of the store, “oohing” and “ahhing” at the cute displays and the multitude of options. While Draco was particularly taken with a story of a little rabbit saying goodnight to the moon that had a handsome green cover, his mother had already pulled five different books for them to purchase. 

“Mother,” Draco laughed softly. “We don’t know how big Granger’s nursery will be. I thought we decided on two books now and a promise for a bookcases’ worth once we get an idea of the space.” 

“Draco,” she chided. “How can I possibly just pick two?” 

“Well really you get to choose one because I get to choose the other one,” Draco teased. 

“Nonsense,” she said with a wave of her hand. “We’ll buy as many as we want for now and keep some at your new house and the rest at Highguard.” 

“Hermione has total control and last say in anything about the twins,” he reminded her gently. He loved how excited his mother was but they needed to be realistic about the current situation. 

“I know, my dragon,” she set the books down and touched his face. “You’ll get your family back.” 

“I don’t know if I will, Mother,” he choked back a sob. He willed himself to keep it together. 

“Just keep respecting her boundaries and showing up for the twins,” she smiled at him. “Like she said, actions speak louder than words and now you’re doing everything you can to make it up to her.” 

He took a deep breath and nodded. “Right then, let’s take these to the till.” 

Draco picked up the books and followed his mother through the children’s section and back to the front of the store until his mother let out a little shriek of what he thought was delight. 

“Mother?” 

“Look at this, my dragon!” She held up two plush green dragon stuffies. “Little dragons for your babies! We must buy these.” 

Draco nodded enthusiastically, a smile wide on his face. “They are perfect, mother.” 

—- 

By Sunday, Draco was a nervous wreck. He paced up and down the halls of Highguard Manor as he thought about their appointment tomorrow morning. No one knew, besides his family and his and Hermione’s closest friends about the pregnancy. If he showed up and was seen going into the same room as Hermione for her appointment, surely everyone would find out. Did she want that? 

As if on cue, his muggle phone rang and Draco’s heart stopped as read who the caller was. Hermione .

“Hermione, hey!” His voice came out choked and he was embarrassed by how high it was. He cleared his throat and said in a much lower tone, “How are you? I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

“Yeah, I’m good, thanks,” she replied, her tone serious. “I’m calling to discuss the appointment tomorrow morning. I realized after you left that we didn’t talk about the potential for our situation to be made public.” 

“Yeah, I was just thinking about that actually, I’m glad you called. I’ll do whatever you want to do. It’s your call.” 

“They’ll label me as a homewrecker if this comes out,” she said. “I don’t care about my reputation but I don't want our children to suffer and be dragged through the press.” 

“I can speak to my mother about handling the press and how we should approach this if you’d like?” This was one thing he could definitely help with. If there was anything his mother excelled at, it was spinning a story in their favor.  

Granger remained silent, thinking, until she said, “I’m amenable to hearing what she has to say, until then though, I don’t want anyone to find out.” 

“I understand.” 

“I’m back at my house now and will open my floo to you tomorrow morning at exactly 9:30 am. Why don’t you floo over then and we can arrive together? Harry let me borrow his invisibility cloak so you can wear that until we’re in the room with the healer. I already have my healer and medi-witch under a strict NDA so they won’t be able to say anything.” 

“That’s brilliant.” Leave it to Granger to make her healer team sign a fucking NDA. Merlin, this witch was amazing.

“Great!” she replied. “Well I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Goodbye, Draco.” 

Before he could respond, she hung up and Draco sighed. One day at a time, Draco. She’s calling you now. This is a win. 

He turned on his heel and headed toward his mother’s tea room to fill her in on her latest task. He knew she would be thrilled. She thrived on situations like this where she could bend public opinion to her will. Draco figured if he couldn't give his mother the upper echelon of pureblood society, this could be a nice consolation prize, but neither of course compared to her future grandchildren. 

—-

Draco once again found himself nervously adjusting his cufflinks as he prepared to see Hermione. This time was different though. He would get to meet his children for the first time, hear their heartbeats and find out the genders. Would they pick out names together after this?  

At exactly 9:29:59, Draco stepped through the floo and found himself back in Hermione’s house for the first time since they had broken up. He felt a pang through his chest as he observed the room where he had ended their relationship. Like the outside of her house, her sitting room was exactly the same. He walked to one of her bookshelves where she kept her frames. His face fell at the realization that she had taken down all of the photos of the two of them. Taking photos, both muggle and magical, had become a favorite hobby for both of them. Her frames had photos of them in the Room of Requirement after graduation, their vacation to Bali the year prior, and his personal favorite, her kissing him on the cheek as he smiled into the camera during a weekend away in Cornwall. 

“The photos are still in their frames but I packed them away a couple months ago.” 

Draco turned to find Hermione leaning against the doorway, watching him with a small frown. He didn’t know what to say back to that. Of course she would pack them away, he didn’t blame her, and he was happy that she at least still had them. 

He cleared his throat, “Are you ready to go? Do you need me to hold anything for you?” 

“I’m ready and no, I’m okay, thank you though,” she replied. As he walked toward her, Draco realized that it felt like he was approaching a wounded animal. She shrank away from him somewhat and held her purse close to her. He stopped and nodded, waiting for her to make the next move. 

“How are you feeling?” she asked him. 

Draco blinked. “I should be asking you that question.” 

She tilted her head, waiting for his answer. 

“I’m nervous but I’m more so just really bloody happy that you invited me.” He answered truthfully, staring into her honey and whiskey colored eyes. “How are you feeling?” 

“I’m excited for you to see them for the first time and to not be alone,” her voice was small and Draco’s heart broke all over again hearing how she had been alone. 

“I’ll never let you be alone again if you let me,” he breathed, his eyes imploring her. 

“We should go,” she replied, digging in her leather purse, which of course had an extension charm on it, for what he imagined was Potter’s invisibility cloak. 

“Ahha!” She exclaimed, pulling out the cloak and handing it to him. “Harry will be cross with me if you take it so come home with me after the appointment and you can give it back to me here.” 

“Okay,” he agreed as he wrapped the cloak around him.

“Touch my arm through the cloak and we’ll floo together,” she explained. “Are you ready?” 

“Yes, I’m ready.” 

“St. Mungos!” she called as she threw the floo powder into the hearth. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 6

Draco saw how the healers and medi-witches watched Hermione with admiration as she walked with a hidden Draco to her treatment room. The confidence she exuded demanded respect and it made him bring a fist to his mouth so he could bite his hand in order to hide the groan that threatened to escape. She was so fucking sexy.

The moment she closed the door behind them, he removed the cloak and stretched. “Thank Salazar we’re here. I couldn’t stand being hunched over for another second.” 

Hermione rolled her eyes and took the cloak for him to fold and place in her purse. “So dramatic.” 

Draco couldn’t help but notice the small smile she gave him as she said it. The possessive beast inside him preened. She smiled at him . 

He walked over to her and helped her to get on the bed. He wanted to tell her how turned on he had been watching everyone’s reaction to her but decided that it likely wasn’t what she wanted to hear so instead he said, “Do the healers know I’m here?” 

“They know the father is coming today and that any breach of the NDA will result in an immediate lawsuit.” Hermione made a small noise of discomfort as she situated herself. 

“Are you okay? Do you need anything?” He searched her face for any discomfort. 

“I’m fine, Draco,” she reassured him. “Just hard to get comfortable with the babies.” He gazed lovingly at her stomach, knowing he was about to see their heartbeats.

“I can’t wait to meet them,” he said softly, turning his gaze to hers and seeing a look that he hadn’t seen in months. Her eyes were soft, so much emotion showing in the gold of her irises. 

“I can’t wait either,” she whispered. 

Before he could say anything else, the moment was ruined as the healer strode in. Draco turned his head to see none other than Adrian fucking Pucey, who’s face had blanched at seeing Draco.

“Draco is the father?” Adrian asked in a disbelieving tone. “No way.” 

“Yes, Pucey,” Draco sneered, remembering the conversation with Pucey’s father who wanted him to court Granger. 

“Draco,” Hermione warned. 

Adrian chuckled as he approached Hermione. “How are you feeling today, mama?” 

What the fuck? Draco thought. 

Hermione gave him a warm smile in return that made Draco scowl. 

“I’m feeling pretty good,” she replied. “The twins have been kicking a lot since Draco has become involved.” 

Draco’s eyes widened, “Really?” His heart flipped, all previous disdain for Pucey forgotten. 

“Yes,” she nodded before turning back to Adrian. “I’m assuming that’s normal?” 

“It is,” he explained. “It’s very common in strong magical pregnancies for the baby or in our case babies to recognize the father’s magical signature and to be active when he’s around. It’s their version of saying ‘hi’ I suppose.” 

Draco grinned as he looked at Hermione who was giving him a look he couldn’t place. He couldn't determine if it was positive or negative. He just knew she was deep in thought. 

“Let’s see how they’re doing,” he said as he cast a diagnostic charm on her belly. 

Draco held his breath until he heard two little heartbeats that made him tear up. He looked at Hermione who was already watching him. She had a warm smile on her face that made him want to get on the bed next to her. 

“Both are doing quite well,” Pucey stated. “They may come early as that is the case with twins a lot of the time but we’ll see now that Draco is in the picture.” He gave Draco a glare. 

“What do you mean?” Hermione asked, her brows furrowed in confusion. 

“Now that Draco is around more. His magic will be able to help stabilize the pregnancy and allow the twins more time in the womb to develop.” 

Hermione frowned as she looked at Draco and then back to Pucey. “You mean if Draco hadn’t been around, then they could have been born premature?” 

The healer nodded and Hermione whimpered. 

“I’m so sorry, Hermione,” Draco said as he reached for her hand. “I’m here now though. I’m not going anywhere I promise.” She allowed him to hold her hand loosely and Draco counted it as a win. 

“Do you want to know the genders yet, Hermione?” Pucey asked, pointedly ignoring Draco. “Or did you want to wait until Theo can come? I know he proposed.” 

Hermione tensed as Draco glared at Pucey. 

“Theo and I are not engaged, Adrian,” Hermione said, squeezing Draco’s hand in reassurance. “I’m not in a place right now to be with someone while Draco and I navigate co-parenting.” 

Draco’s heart went from being elated to automatically sinking. Co-parenting? He reminded himself that he had to play the long game. He would have to settle for whatever she could give him right now. 

Hermione continued, “But yes, if Draco wants to know then yes, please tell us what the genders are?” She looked at Draco and he nodded his head in return. 

Adrian gave them both a pleasant smile as he said, “You’re going to have a little boy and a little girl.” 

Hermione gasped as tears fell from her eyes. She looked at Draco and broke out into a brilliant smile. Draco beamed at her. 

“One of each,” he whispered to her as he squeezed her hand. He wanted to bring their foreheads together and then kiss her sweetly but he reminded himself yet again that it wasn’t allowed. He did not have the right to do that. 

Hermione closed her eyes and sank into the cushions of the hospital bed, a look of contentment over her features that made Draco bring her hand to his lips and give her knuckles a soft kiss. Her eyes opened immediately and stared at him. Draco gulped. How many times did he have to remind himself! 

“I’ll give you both a minute,” Pucey said, obviously sensing the tension in the room. 

As soon as the door closed, Draco turned to Hermione again. “I’m so sorry I forgot myself. I was just so excited.” 

She took a deep breath and pulled her hand away from him. Draco felt the air leave his lungs. “It’s alright, Draco. Just please be more careful.” 

“I will, I promise,” he said. 

Hermione nodded. “I guess we should talk about what’s next?” 

“I found a place that's near you so I can help whenever you need. Knowing now that I should be as close to you as possible, I think you’ll be pleased with where it is.” 

She looked at him expectantly. 

“I bought the house next to yours,” he confessed. Draco didn’t want to see the anger he assumed was coming so he settled his gaze on her bump. 

“I’m sorry, you what?” 

“The house next to you was for sale and I bought it so I can be there for you and the twins whenever you need me. I’ll leave you alone and won’t bother you unless you call for me or I guess unless the twins need me as they get older,” Draco babbled. 

Hermione reached for chin and titled his head so their eyes met. “I don’t know if I should be angry or relieved.” 

“I vote for relieved,” he said eagerly, his eyes searching hers. 

She sighed, “I’m too fucking tired to feel mad about this. I will not have you interfering in my private life though” She looked at him sternly. 

“What do you mean? You’re going to date while our children live under your roof?” 

“I will at some point, Draco. Do you really think I’ll remain celibate? At some point, you’ll go back to your family and find another pureblood wife.” Her voice was shaky. “And I will raise my children when you get bored and leave us.” 

Draco closed his eyes and shook his head. He didn’t blame her for thinking that, for having so little faith in him. He had put that distrust there. It was up to him to prove that to her. 

“I am not going to leave you, Hermione. I am not going to abandon you and our children. My hope is that one day you’ll forgive me and we’ll be a happy family. I told you on Thursday that I would spend the rest of my life proving that to you. I meant that and I will keep my promise. If that means watching you date other men while I babysit, then fine. I just want you and our children to be happy.” 

He watched as the anger dissipated from her body. She wiped the angry tears from her eyes and sat up so they could leave. 

As she handed him the cloak, she said through tears, “What if I can never forgive you?” 

Draco wrapped the invisibility cloak around his frame so only his head was visible. “Nothing changes. I will spend the rest of my life trying to get you back.” 

She wiped more tears from her eyes, “We better go.” 

Draco sighed and covered himself with the cloak as he grabbed onto her arm again. They made their way down the hall and flooed back to her house. He immediately straightened and took off the offending garment as soon as they stepped inside. 

“I can’t believe we’re going to have a little boy and a little girl,” she murmured as she took the cloak from him. 

He turned to face her. “I’m so excited, Hermione. Can I please give you a hug?” Truthfully, he wanted to kiss her and then deepen the kiss and take her on the floor. If he hadn’t been a coward, he knew that would probably have been their reality. 

She nodded and Draco brought her into a gentle hug. He breathed in her shampoo of jasmine and vanilla and sighed in contentment as he felt her soft breath against his chest. He traced protective runes into her back with his fingers, not wanting to let her go. 

“Draco,” she said, turning to look up at him. Time stood still as they both stared at each other, as if memorizing the other's features. He loved the fullness of her lips, the high cheekbones and large doe eyes with thick eyelashes. He wanted to kiss each individual freckle along her nose and cheeks. 

The floo sounded and a cough broke Hermione from her spell. Draco closed his eyes in defeat. That had been real. Why had it been interrupted but then he opened his eyes and fury pulsed white hot in his chest. 

Theo Nott arrived.

Chapter Text

Chapter 7. 

“Draco,” Theo greeted stiffly, his green eyes studying Draco and Hermione’s embrace. 

“Theo,” Draco growled, his arms unintentionally pulling Hermione closer.

The witch in question scoffed and removed herself from Draco’s grasp. “If this is about to be a pissing match between the two of you then go outside.” 

Theo smirked. “Love, I was only coming by to check on you after your appointment. Like I always do.”

Draco bristled but knew if he tried to throw Theo out then that wouldn’t make him any closer to winning back his little lion. “While that’s kind of you, Theo, I’m here now. I’m the father of Hermione’s children and I will be there for her and the twins for the rest of their lives.” He emphasized each time he said “I” while glaring at his former best friend. 

Theo didn’t back down. “You abandoned her and then came back because you saw she was pregnant. What is going to stop you from leaving again the moment you see something better come along?” 

His words cut into Draco like shards of glass. Emotions began to bleed out of him. 

“Let me make myself perfectly clear, no one is better than Hermione. I’m never leaving her again. I made that mistake once and it cost me EVERYTHING,” Draco roared, his voice breaking at the end. His eyes shone with rage and his hands pulled at his hair. He felt half crazed. 

Theo watched him cautiously. “I just want what’s best for her.”

“What and that’s you?” Draco asked, defeated. All of his insecurities were exposed. 

“I don’t know, Draco,” Theo replied calmly. “I’m just trying to help.” 

“You were my friend, Theo.”

“I was but I am also hers. How could I stand by you when you could be so callous with her?” 

“I told you, I made the biggest mistake of my life and I’m trying to fix it. I’m trying to be the man she deserves and it’s hard to do that if you’re in the way.” He looked pleadingly at Theo. “Please, mate, I want to be the father that my children deserve.” 

Theo’s face hardened as he stared Draco down and then he turned to Hermione. “Hermione, darling,” he said gently. “Do you need anything?” 

Draco shifted his gaze to Hermione, who was standing by the door, watching the two with glassy eyes. 

“Hermione,” Draco rasped. 

She shook her head at Theo. “Thank you but no I’m alright. I appreciate you checking on me.”  She then turned to Draco and said with a shaky voice. “I’m going to lie down but I’ll call you later so we can finish our conversation.” 

Both men waited a few minutes as they listened to her walk up the stairs. 

“How about this, Draco,” Theo said, his voice deadly calm. “I won’t broach the topic of proposing and I’ll stop checking in on her like this so you have a chance to prove yourself to her but the moment you fuck up or the moment she wants someone else, I’m going to be there.” 

Draco breathed heavily, nostrils flaring. He didn’t want to cause a scene in her home, she deserved peace. 

“I won’t fuck up,” Draco promised, his voice equally as vicious. 

Theo gave him a single nod then walked toward the floo. “Maybe in a few years time we can go back to being friends, Draco.” 

Draco sneered, “Fuck off, Theo. There's no coming back from this.” 

“Yeah probably,” he snorted. He then turned his head back toward Draco one last time. “Look, I do wish you the best of luck though, for her sake. I just want Hermione to be happy and I’ve never seen her happier than when you two were good.”

Draco sat in one of Hermione’s leather arm chairs and sighed, running his hands through his hair again. “You’re really fucking confusing, Nott. You tell me I don’t deserve her and that you want her and now you tell me that she was never happier than when we were together.” 

Theo scratched the back of his head as he took a step toward Draco. “We’ve known each other since we were in nappies, Draco. I can be unbelievably pissed at you, have a thing for your girl and wish you the best all at the same time. As you know, I’m a man of many talents.” 

Draco scoffed and without another word, Theo left. He remained in her chair for a few more minutes as he digested their conversation. The man was truly a fucking menace. He knew Theo’s feelings for Hermione were real but he also knew that their friendship meant a lot to him too. He took his threat to heart, not that it would change anything. Draco wouldn’t fuck this up. Hermione was his . 

—----

Hermione sat at the top of the stairs, resting her back against the wall as she listened to the two men downstairs. She was so tired of the drama, so tired of fighting with Draco. It felt like it was all she was doing. She rubbed her swollen belly absentmindedly as she thought of the environment she was bringing the twins into. While Hermione traditionally had thrived in chaotic situations (her entire schooling at Hogwarts), she did not want to continue this trend into motherhood. 

At night, she would dream of waking up in the middle of the night to her crying children while the man she loved was already heading to the door. He would tell her to go back to sleep so she could rest while he would rock them both back to sleep. He would be doting on her and the twins. He would make sure she was taking care of herself. When Hermione first found out she was pregnant, it was Draco who was the man in her dreams, but now, the man’s face was blank and she found herself wondering if it could ever be Theo. 

Hermione loved Theo but she wasn’t in love with him. They had never been romantically involved as she had always been with Draco and quite frankly, she had never even thought about being with another man, let alone him. Since the break up, Theo had been a constant support to her. He would come over after work when Hermione wasn’t at Harry and Ginny’s and bring dinner for her. He’d go for walks with her on the weekends and read books with her in her library. He’d listen to her fears and aspirations for the twins. In theory, she knew Theo was everything she should want for her children. But he wasn’t Draco. 

As she sat and listened to the men argue downstairs, she daydreamed of a simpler time before their break up. She closed her eyes and rested her head against the wall. Draco had been so in tune with her needs, both physically and mentally. Before she left in the morning to go to the lab, he would have her breakfast and lunch already packed for her with her tea prepared exactly how she liked it and a stasis charm on everything to keep it fresh. She would come home and Draco would be reading at the kitchen counter while cooking dinner. 

She had always joked with him about how he would be the perfect DILF. At first, Draco didn’t get the muggle phrase but after she demonstrated on her knees exactly what a woman would like to do to a man like him, he quickly got on board. He even went as far as to buy a shirt with the word and gifted a matching green one to Harry, since he and Ginny had been trying for a baby, who had immediately turned crimson upon opening. Draco had looked smug until Ginny pointed out that it seemed like Draco himself wanted to fuck Harry, causing Draco to splutter and turn pale. Hermione had erupted into a fit of giggles and took the mortified man home where she reminded him just how much she loved him, over and over again. 

She missed how Draco used to hold her when they slept. She missed how he would whisper how much he loved her as she fell asleep. She missed how connected she felt to him when they would make love. How dirty he would be when he talked to her and how hard she would cum for him. 

But most of all, she missed how much he made her laugh. He had always known exactly what to say to her whenever she was down. It was like they had their own language and no one, not even Harry or Ron, came close to understanding her like Draco did. 

She felt like he had known her better than she knew herself and that was the problem wasn’t it? She had become so reliant on him that when he had left, she was broken and left to pick up the pieces by herself. Now with Draco back in her life, she saw how hard he was trying to be that person again and she wasn’t sure how to let him back in. 

—--

A noise coming from the stairs broke Draco from his thoughts. Worried now, he abruptly got up from the chair and jogged toward Hermione’s staircase. He found his little lion sitting against the wall, her eyes closed and arms gently caressing her stomach. 

“Hermione?” He asked. “Is everything okay?”

She opened her eyes slowly and looked at him. She always wore her heart on her sleeve and he could see plain as day how much pain she was in emotionally. 

“I’m so sorry you had to hear that, Hermione,” he apologized, his voice sincere. “What can I do to help you?” He slowly made his way up the stairs, one step at a time. 

“I’m so tired, Draco,” she whispered. 

“I know, littl…Hermione, I know. Let me take you to bed.” 

She nodded and accepted Draco’s extended hand. He gently led her to her bedroom and tucked her into bed. 

“Go to sleep, okay?” He whispered, running his fingers through her hair. She leaned into the touch.  “Do you want me to stay until you wake up?” 

She shook her head. “I’ll call you when I wake up.” 

He let out a shaky breath, trying not to look disappointed. “Okay, I’ll have my phone with me. Sleep well.” 

“Thank you, Draco,” she said softly, her golden eyes locking him in place. 

“Anything for you, Hermione,” he replied as he reluctantly drew his hand back from her hair and walked toward her door. He thought he heard her say, ‘I missed this’ but he couldn’t be sure. 

Before he left, Draco made her favorite toastie and placed a stasis charm on the plate so it’d stay warm for her. He then cleaned all her dishes the muggle way and left a note on her fridge telling her that she was running out of her favorite tea and that he’d bring some over next time if she wanted him too. Then Draco flooed home, feeling a weight on his chest as he began to realize that she may never be able to forgive him. 

Chapter Text

To pass the time while Hermione was napping, Draco floo called Owen to go over the status of the new house and the progress being made on the permits for what he was now calling “Black Industries.” He was pleased with what Owen had to share. Despite only two days passing since he bought the house next to Hermione, the muggles had agreed to move out that week. They also allowed Owen and his mother to come over during the week so they could plan the interior design. Originally, he wanted the interiors of his house to match Highguard, however, after more thought, he decided that he wanted to mirror Hermione’s house just in case they got back together and decided to combine their two houses. Draco was just being efficient after all. 

His muggle cell phone began to ring. Draco’s heart soared knowing it was Hermione. He quickly ended the floo call with Owen and answered. 

“Hermione,” he greeted. He couldn’t help the low and sultry tone that came through. “How did you sleep?” 

“Really well, actually,” she replied, her voice cheery. “I’ve been so tired lately. The twins are really taking it out of me.” 

“I’m just a call away if you need anything and I’ll be in my new house hopefully next week so I’ll be even closer.” 

“Merlin, I still can’t believe you bought the house next door,” she laughed. “I don’t know why I’m surprised though. It’s so Draco of you.” 

“Still using my name as an adjective are you?” he joked, a wide small appearing. 

“Yes, I suppose so,” she sighed, her beautiful laugh dying. His face fell. He missed her beautiful, melodic laugh. 

“Thank you again for bringing me to the check-up this morning,” he changed the subject, hoping to not completely spoil her mood with the past but knowing it was near impossible. 

“Of course, Draco,” she replied. “You deserve to be there.” 

“I don’t know if that's true but thank you for saying that and believing I should be. How are you feeling? Are you hungry?” 

“I’m doing just fine, you mother hen. It looks like someone made me a cheese toastie and did my dishes while I was sleeping.” He could tell she was smiling. 

“I figured you’d be hungry when you woke up so I didn’t want you to have to worry about anything.” 

“Thank you, Draco. Uhm, we should probably talk about the babies’ future a bit and names. I’m going to be quite busy at work this week but I’ll be working from home on Friday and likely more permanently until their birth starting next week.”

 Draco lit up. This gave him so many opportunities to be around and to help her more. “Friday works for me or Saturday or Sunday, I don’t have any plans except for helping you.” 

Another chuckle from Hermione, “No other plans?” 

“You are my only priority, Hermione,” he said seriously. 

She sighed, “Okay, why don’t you come over on Friday around 4. I can show you the nursery  and we can figure out what we still need. I have some ideas for names as well.” 

“I can’t wait,” he breathed. 

There was a slight pause on Hermione’s end until she said, “Me too, Draco, me too. I’ll see you soon.”

“Wait, Hermione!” 

“Yes?”

“If you need anything before then, please let me know. I saw you were running out of your tea so I’m already planning on bringing that over on Friday but I can come sooner if you need and can even bring you dinner if you’re working late.” Draco kept cracking his knuckles in anticipation of her answer. He knew he was being a bit overbearing but he wanted her to see how much he meant it when he said that he was going to be there for her. 

“Thanks, Draco. I’ll keep that in mind.” She hung up before he could say goodbye. 

—--- 

The week dragged on after that as Draco eagerly waited for Friday afternoon. To his relief, Hermione began texting him Wednesday afternoon. 

Draco stared at his phone. He wanted so badly to call her his little lion again but knew that he had to be careful. He didn’t want to overstep and he didn’t even know if she wanted to be his little lion any longer. 

She didn’t text him again after that and Draco worried if he had fucked up anyways. He kept staring at the conversation, wondering if he did go too far but then she was calling him and Draco picked it up on the first ring. 

“Hey Draco,” she said timidly. 

“Granger, everything okay?” He replied, worry lacing his tone. 

“Yes, but I just got home and I’m so exhausted and I realized I don’t have any food so I was wondering if you could remind me of that Indian place you used to always order for us? I haven’t had it in months and I’m really craving the tofu marsala they have.” 

Draco’s heart soared. She needed him! 

“Oh I can pick it up for you, it’s in Shoreditch, which is a little bit of a trek for you and I know you shouldn’t be apparating at this stage of your pregnancy so let me go,” He offered eagerly. 

“How did you know I can’t apparate?” He could hear the surprise in her tone.

“Uhm, my mother gave me some of her magical pregnancy books and I bought a few at a muggle bookstore with her a few days ago. I’ve been reading them whenever I have a free moment,” he confessed. He was so nervous about doing something wrong with Hermione and his cubs that he had gone full swot-mode with the pregnancy books, taking notes and highlighting important sections, which was about 90% of each book. 

“Oh.”

“I just want to be prepared to help in every scenario. You need a partner and while I can’t be your partner romantically, I want to be the best damn co-parent because you deserve the best and I'm pulling a you and rambling...” he trailed off and he could hear a light giggle on the other end of the line

“Thank you, Draco. I think it’s really smart you’re doing that. Let me know if you have any questions while you’re reading. We can compare notes,” she let out another small giggle at the end and Draco smiled. He was making her laugh! 

“Well I can pick up your dinner and if you wouldn’t mind, maybe I can grab something for me too and I can bring my notes tonight? I do have quite a few.” He hoped that he could impress her. If anyone appreciated good note taking, it was Hermione. 

“Sure, that would be nice. If you don’t mind that is,” she said hesitantly. 

“I don’t mind at all, Granger,” he said earnestly. “I’ll put the order in now and be there in an hour.” 

“Okay...See you soon, Draco.” 

Draco hung up and immediately called the Indian place. Truthfully it was slightly closer than he made it out to be but she didn't need to know the specifics. Soon, he would be preparing her breakfast, lunch and dinner just like he used to be doing. Just like he should be doing. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 9

Food in hand, Draco apparated to Hermione’s backyard and knocked on her back door. They used to always do this whenever Draco would come over. Back when he had a key, this was how he entered the house some days and he found himself feeling nostalgic as he waited for her to open the door. 

She appeared a moment later, looking like an angel. She wore a white cashmere sweater dress that hung from her shoulders, highlighting her collarbones. Soft curls tumbled down her small frame and she wore a diamond pendant necklace that he had gifted her for her birthday the year prior. He hadn’t noticed her wear any of the jewellery he had bought her over the years until today, making his heart flip as he hoped it was a positive sign. 

“Thank you so much, Draco,” she said, taking the food from him as she entered her kitchen while he took off his shoes by the door. 

“Really no trouble at all,” he replied. Please let me do this for you every day, he begged internally. “I bought some extra samosas as well because I know you’ll just take mine if I didn’t.” He couldn’t hold back the smirk. 

Hermione rolled her eyes as her cheeks tinged pink. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” 

“Hmm, really? ‘Oh Draco can I please have a bite of your samosas? I’ve been such a good girl.’ You know I can’t deny you when you say that.”

She chuckled, “I suppose you’re right. I do tend to use your weaknesses at times to get what I want.”

“I’ve said this once and I’ll say it again, you should have been in Slytherin.”

Hermione smirked. “Right, let's serve the food and then you can show me your notes and I can answer any questions.” 

Three hours later, after eating copious amounts of Indian food and discussing her pregnancy and what to look out for, they retired to her library where Draco brought out his notes. He could have sworn he saw Hermione’s eyes darken as she saw how he had organized pregnancy, birth and infancy into different binders with colored sections to help easily locate any topic that might be needed. 

“You made this?” She breathed, her pupils dilating.

Draco nodded, trying to hold back his excitement over her reaction. “Like I said, I’ve been devouring the pregnancy books and I feel like I’ve got a good grasp on everything we could need once you’re further along and when you give birth. You know I like to be prepared.” 

“Oh yes,” she said breathily. “Thoroughly prepared.” 

They stared at each other and Draco prayed to all the muggle gods that no one disturbs their moment. He wanted to close the distance, pick her up, and kiss her on top of her desk. He didn’t dare though. He was in dangerous territory and he was terrified of spooking her. 

“Hermione…” he said huskily, approaching her warily. 

She blinked and the moment was gone. She stepped away from him immediately and Draco felt pain with the increased distance. 

“Sorry, I uhh, wasn’t expecting this,” she said as she started to play with a curl - a habit she had whenever she was nervous. 

“No need to apologize. I should be going. It’s late and you need to sleep more. I’ll be back on Friday afternoon? We can talk through names? I’ve already come up with a few to run by you.” By a few he meant about ten each, ranked and with notes about what he liked about each of them. 

“Yes, that would be great.” She walked him to her back door. 

“I should be moved in next week so soon I can just walk and not apparate.” He smiled sheepishly at her. 

Hermione gave a soft laugh in return while shaking her head. “You’re incorrigible.” 

He smirked in return, “Good night, Granger.” He quickly exited before he could be tempted to do anything else, like kiss her forehead or cup her face. 

He apparated into the night after he heard the click signaling she had locked the door. 

—-

Draco busied himself with approving designs and furniture for the new house Thursday morning and then spent the afternoon and Friday morning interviewing candidates for executive roles and looking at different proposals for Black Industries. He became more and more convinced as the mounting paperwork took over his desk that Owen needed a raise. The amount of work the wizard had done for him in the first week alone was staggering. 

By the time he came up for air on Friday, it was mid-afternoon. He left his study at Highguard to shower and prepare himself for his date with Hermione. He knew realistically it wasn’t a date but he treated each outing with his little lion as if it would be his last, putting in all the effort he could to win her affections. 

Speaking of affections, Draco was continuously plagued whenever he was in the shower or asleep dreaming of her, which led to quite a few glorious wanks. He leaned his head against the tiles of his shower wall, stroking himself, remembering what he thought may have been the time they conceived the cubs. 

***

She had just come home from the lab, hair wild and magic sparking. 

“DRACO!” She had called, her voice shaking with emotion. 

“Yes, little lion?” he answered, racing down the stairs from their bedroom to see her. 

“We did it!” She yelled as he entered the room, finding his witch bouncing up and down in excitement. 

“Seriously? Holy fucking Salazar! Of course you did!” he yelled back enthusiastically, running to her and picking her up into his arms, swinging her around as they laughed in celebration. 

“Yes!” she cried, happy tears streaming down her face. 

“You are the most brilliant witch this world has even seen,” he said reverently. “I’m the luckiest bloke in the world.” 

She whimpered before crashing her lips against his, tongues fighting for dominance as she wrapped her legs around his waist. He groaned, squeezing her supple, firm arse through her healer uniform as he pushed her up against the wall. 

“No teasing, Draco,” she whined. “I need you, please.” 

“Such a needy little lion, aren’t you?” He sliced her healer robes down the middle with his wandless magic, a flurry of buttons and fabric flying through the room. 

“Oh fuck,” she breathed. 

“I know that gets you just as wet as my fingers do,” he rasped, pulling the ruined robes from her body so all that was left was her beautiful, soft, exposed skin. “You are so fucking beautiful…and all mine ” He emphasized the last word before sucking on her pulse point and plunging his finger into her pussy. 

She cried in ecstasy. A chant of Draco’s and Yes reverberating around the room. 

He dug his palm into her clit while adding a second finger and curling them to reach the spot he knew she couldn’t on her own. He felt her walls fluttering around him, her moans getting louder as she fucked herself on his fingers. 

“Be a good girl and cum all over my fingers,” he begged. Her arms were wrapped around his neck, pulling on the silky strands of his hair.

“Draco!” she cried as she tipped over the edge, Draco groaned feeling her cum on his fingers. 

“That was so fucking good, baby, you’re such a good girl. You're going to cum on my cock next.” He vanished his trousers and boxers, feeling her perfect heat against his hard cock. He brought his left hand back to rest under her arse along with his other hand while he slowly rocked against the outside of her cunt, hitting her clit. 

“Fuck me, Draco…please!” 

Draco just grunted in response and lined himself up, entering her in a swift thrust. They both moaned as he stilled, fully seated inside her. 

“Feel so fucking good. So tight. Made for me,” He murmured, allowing her time to adjust to him. 

Even after all this time, each time they came together felt like the first time and it made Draco feel like what they shared was special in a way that others could never experience. Like they had always been together, in this lifetime and in prior lifetimes as well. 

“Move, Draco,” she begged, moving her hips to find more friction. 

“Like this, little lion?” he taunted, thrusting slow and deep, wanting to feel every inch of her walls. 

“Yesssss,” she moaned. He found her lips with his and kissed her deeply as he began to pick up his pace, fucking her hard against the wall, ensuring his pelvis hit her clit with he snap of his hips. 

“Draco, I’m going to cum,” she warned, her pussy already fluttering around him. 

“Cum for me baby,” he begged. She broke a second later, her walls suffocating his cock as they both moaned. He continued to fuck her through it, determined to last so he could bend her over the couch and mount her from behind. 

She became putty in his hands as he carried her away from the wall and briefly left her pussy, causing them both to whimper, so he could turn around. 

“There you go, baby,” he encouraged, stroking his cock languidly with his hand as he watched her settle against the back of the couch, arching her back for him and giving him a glorious view of her tight little hole and pussy. He was breathing hard, willing himself to calm down a fraction so he could get her to cum again before he did.

Hermione wasn’t allowing it though. “What are you waiting for? Fuck me, daddy!” 

Daddy? Draco’s eyes widened even larger, he grunted as he entered her again hard and fast. He found that he very much liked the nickname. She had never called him that before but it made something in him snap. 

She screamed as he wrapped her hair in his left hand while his right gripped her hips, sure to leave a bruise. 

“Fucking making me lose all control…calling me daddy…going to fuck all of my cum in you….give you my heirs….fucking made for me…” he babbled, no sense of what he was saying. 

He was so lost to the moment that he forgot about a contraceptive charm and the fact that Hermione had recently stopped her muggle birth control to switch to the potion. Instead, he released her hair and brought his thumb to her mouth. 

“Suck on my thumb, baby,” he ordered. She complied immediately, sucking his thumb with passion, making Draco pump even harder into her. 

“I love that hot little mouth of yours,” he gasped, releasing his thumb and tracing it down her cheeks to the puckered hole that was tempting him. “I need to fill you up. Need to feel you cum again.” He gently pressed into her hole with his thumb and began to fuck her ass in time with his cock in her cunt. 

“Yes!...Yes!...Yes!” she cried. Her orgasm hit both of them out of nowhere, she milked him for all he was worth as he couldn’t help but spill his seed into her as they both moaned aloud. 

***

Draco grunted as he came all over the shower, feeling dazed from the power of his orgasm. That was most definitely when they were conceived, he thought with a smile. How fitting that she had called him daddy for the first time then. 

He dressed quickly once he was out of the shower and felt clear headed from his wank. 

He found his mother in his study, looking through the furniture options he had chosen. She gave him a small smile. 

“It’s going to look lovely, my dragon.” 

“I think so too, mother,” he replied, softly. “I’m going to head to Hermione’s so I’ll be back late this evening.” 

“To discuss names, yes?” 

Draco nodded. “I’m bringing my list as well but ultimately she deserves to choose their names.” 

“Yes, that makes sense. Everything will work out, Draco,” she said, pushing back his hair slightly. 

Draco didn’t answer because he didn’t know if that was true. He just gave her a gentle smile before reaching for his phone and apparating away.

Chapter Text

Chapter 10

Draco felt an immediate sense of relief when Hermione opened the back door for him with a wide smile. Was she smiling because of him? Salazar, he hoped so. 

She reached for his hand and placed it on her growing belly. “One of the twins kicked when I heard the pop of your apparition. Do you feel it?” She was so excited, her enthusiasm infectious. 

Draco smiled as he kept his hand on her belly, desperately wishing to feel his cubs. Sure enough he felt a kick against his palm and his eyes went wide. 

“I felt it!” He exclaimed, making a sound of disbelief. “How often is this happening?” He lifted his gaze from her belly to her beautiful face. 

She blushed. “More frequently now that you’re back in our life. Seems like whenever I mention your name or you and I are in the same room, they are moving like crazy.” 

Draco’s heart swelled. “You talk about me a lot, Granger?” A smug look appeared on his face. Hermione rolled her eyes and dropped his hand off of her stomach as she pulled him inside. 

“For planning purposes, yes, I am. It’s hard not to mention the father of my children when I’m thinking about the future.”

Draco wanted to cry. This had to be the best sign to date that she was considering taking him back. 

“What future might that be?” he asked eagerly, following her into the kitchen where she had two steaming cups of tea waiting for them. He felt like he looked like a lost puppy. 

“The logistics of co-parenting really,” she replied nonchalantly. Draco’s heart sank, he felt a pit in his stomach. This wasn’t what he thought she was going to say but of course it would be. Why would she take him back? 

He cleared his throat to distract from the lump he felt growing. “Right, of course.” 

“For instance, muggle schooling, daycare, who gets the children on weekends versus weekdays. There’s just so much to think about.” 

Draco nodded, “We can talk about that but I think let’s first start with their names and what we want to do when they’re born? There will be plenty of time to figure the rest out.” He felt dejected but he wouldn’t give up. 

She sighed. “Yes, you’re right. You know I always like to plan years in advance.” She looked at him sheepishly. 

He chuckled. “Oh I know.” 

She smirked and then slid a piece of paper across the table towards him. “Anyways, here is a list of the names I like. I hope a few of them stand out to you?” 

Upon reading the names, Draco furrowed his brows in confusion as he saw that they were all constellation names. 

“I didn’t think you’d still want this?” He said in disbelief. 

“It’s a beautiful tradition, Draco,” she said softly. “I was always going to follow it. Even if you didn’t grow a pair.” 

Draco snorted but then looked at her seriously. “Thank you, Hermione.” She just smiled in return and nodded. He turned his attention back to the list and procured his own and slid it across to Hermione. “Here’s mine but I want you to know that you get final say.” 

He watched her study the list and was pleased to see her with an amused look on her face. She lifted her gaze to him and beamed. 

“Who would have thought we like the same names?” she mused. 

“I’m somehow not surprised in the slightest,” he said fondly. He placed the lists side by side;

Draco's

Hermione's 

“You also have more names listed here than I do,” Hermione smiled, her eyes returning to their lists. “I’m assuming the stars next to the names are your favorites?” 

“Yes, but again, I’m open to whatever you want,” he replied, drumming his fingers along her dining table. 

She hummed as she thought more. “For our son, I’m not a big fan of Scorpius if I’m being honest. I just know you've always loved that name so I wrote it for you. Castor could grow on me but I’m so happy that you starred Lynx. That’s my favorite too. I just think it’s such a beautiful and strong name.” 

His heart swelled that she remembered how much he liked the name, Scorpius and while he was slightly put out by her not liking it, he reminded himself that it was her decision and he was just lucky to be part of the conversation right now. “That’s okay, I expected you to not like every name I put on the list. I think Lynx is perfect if that's what you want?” 

Hermione studied him, her golden eyes narrowing as she observed his reactions. She seemed to come to some sort of conclusion as she nodded and said, “We don’t have to make a final decision right now but I think that it can be our front runner for our little boy right now.” 

Draco felt emotional hearing her say, ‘our little boy’ and ‘our son.’ He took a sip of tea to distract himself from thinking too much about it. 

“That sounds good to me,” he agreed as he set the tea cup back on her table. “What about names for the second little one?” 

Hermione’s smile grew wider as a blush rose to her cheeks. “I’ve always wanted a little girl,” she confessed quietly. “Don’t get me wrong, of course I’m so excited for our son as well. I’ve just always had dreams of a little blonde curly haired girl with brilliant eyes.” 

Draco couldn’t help but smile back at her. “I see we both love the name Lyra and I think it pairs really nicely with the name Lynx.” 

Hermione wiped a tear from her eye, “Yeah I think so too.” A soft chuckle escaped her lips. “Lynx and Lyra. I love it, Draco. I love them so much already.” She looked down at her belly fondly and rubbed her stomach. “I love you both so much,” she whispered to her belly. 

Draco tried to hold the whimper that threatened to escape. Witnessing this moment felt like he was intruding on something that he shouldn’t be a part of but desperately wanted to be. He watched her longingly, wishing he could walk over to her and place his head against her belly while tracing protective runes into her skin. 

She wiped her eyes and gave a small chuckle, “I have been such an emotional mess recently with all these damn hormones.” 

“Don’t apologize, Granger,” he said hoarsely.  

—--

Hermione looked up from her pregnant belly to meet Draco’s gaze after he had told her to not apologize. She was struck speechless at the look that was written so plainly on his face. He was devastated. His eyes were burning, a molten silver that caused an ache between her legs. She silently cursed herself. Another side effect of her pregnancy that was becoming harder and harder to control was the fact that she was horny all the damn time. The worst part is how she only wanted him . When she had opened the door to see Draco, she had immediately soaked her panties. He always had that effect on her but the feeling was even more drastic. She was hyper aware of his body. The drumming of his fingers on the dining table made her think of how those fingers could make her cum within seconds. 

She let out a small moan at the thought. Draco froze. 

“Granger..” he said, his voice low and eyes watching the rise and fall of her chest. “Are you alright?” 

“Yes,” she replied breathily. “Just happy we came to such an easy agreement on names. I felt them kick and it was harder than usual so sometimes I make little noises.” 

“Little noises?”

“Yes.” 

“Those sound like little noises I used to bring out of you,” he rasped, his pupils dilated. 

Shit, shit, shit, she thought. I need him to get out of here before I ask him to bend me over this table. 

“No, not at all,” she said weakly. 

“Is that so?” He leaned forward, one of his hands disappeared under the table and she could only assume he was adjusting himself. 

She nodded, not trusting her voice anymore. He searched her eyes with his own. She could see the desperation in his eyes. His need for her. She knew he could see it within her own too but Hermione also had something else visible. Defiance. While she was weak for his body, she would not be weak for him. She had come so far and was not nearly ready to let him back in. 

She took another sip of her tea, breaking eye contact and ending the spell he had her under. “Once I get close to delivering, will you be living in the house next door?” Her eyes met him again and she could see him trying to regain his composure. 

“Yes,” he muttered. “I’m trying to move in by early next week. It looks like everything will be on time.” 

“Good to hear. Once I’m closer to delivering, it will be good to have you close. I can call you on your phone if my water breaks or I need to go to the hospital.” 

“What about once Lyra and Lynx are born? I read in one of the muggle pregnancy books that sometimes a parent sleeps in the nursery or a crib is placed in the parents room. I know the latter wouldn’t work for us so I was wondering if I could place a single bed in the nursery and sleep there some nights to help out?” 

Hermione’s eyes widened. She hadn’t expected him to offer her that. In fact, she hadn’t expected him to be this agreeable so far. She thought it over. It wasn’t a bad idea per se but having him so close to her was dangerous. She was barely controlling herself right now. It was taking all of her self control and memory of his betrayal to not sit on his lap. 

“That’s kind of you to offer but I’m not sure if that’s a good idea. I’ll think about it, okay?” 

“Whatever you need, Granger.” He continued to stare at her longingly and it was breaking her. She needed space now. 

“I’m not due for another appointment for a couple weeks so I think you should focus on moving into the house and I’ll text you if I need anything in the meantime.” 

She saw his eyes cloud over in disappointment instantly but he said nothing, just nodded. 

“Ginny and Harry are going to throw me a baby shower next weekend,” she added hesitantly. “Would you like to come?” She didn’t know what she wanted his answer to be. While she wanted nothing more but for him to support her, she was still having a hard time being around him. 

“Yes, I would love that if you’re comfortable with me being there.” 

“Yes, I’m okay with it…I know you said your mother is supportive but I’m not ready to see her yet so please don’t ask if she can come.” 

She saw the sharp intake of breath and she tensed, readying herself for a fight. None came. 

“I would never force you to make my mother come, Granger,” he said gently, reaching out for her hand but then withdrawing as if reminding himself that she wasn’t his to touch or comfort any longer. “Besides I don’t think it's a good idea anyways.” 

“Did she change her mind?” Hermione asked, a bite to her tone. 

“No, no,” Draco replied quickly. “It’s your baby shower, I want the day to be perfect for you and the last thing I want is for you to worry or be stressed with my mother there. You’ll be plenty bothered enough with me being in attendance.” 

She eyed him warily but then nodded. “It will be at Grimmuald Place, starting at 1pm.” 

“Since I’ll be right next door, would you like to floo together?” 

She could hear the hope in his tone. While she wasn’t sure if it was the best idea, she realized that Draco would have a hard time at the baby shower being surrounded by her friends and family who, by association, strongly disliked him right now. 

“Sure, we can do that,” she acquiesced. The smile he gave her in response blinded her and she couldn’t help the smile she gave him in return. 

“Thanks litt…Granger,” he said. She caught the nickname that he almost called her and it sent a pang through her heart. 

He continued, “I ordered ahead of arriving here from the French bistro down the street. They should be here soon with our dinner. I was hoping you could show me the nursery after dinner?” 

“That sounds lovely,” she replied, standing up to take her tea cup to the sink. “Thank you for ordering dinner, Draco.” 

Draco walked up behind her and placed his tea cup in the sink with hers and grabbed a drying cloth. 

“You know I’m still surprised you cleaned my dishes the muggle way the other day,” she said with amusement. 

“Well you were right, it’s very calming and I like taking care of you.” 

She didn’t reply as she absorbed his words, handing him one of the washed tea cups. “I liked when you do that too.” 

Chapter Text

Chapter 11

“Mate, looking at your phone like that isn’t going to make Hermione text you,” Blaise shook his head as he watched Draco staring at his muggle phone in his new office of his home, which was right next to said witch. “If you want to talk to her so badly, why don’t you act like a normal wizard and I don’t know, knock on her front door? Or maybe text her first?” 

Draco huffed. “She said she needed some space ahead of the baby shower this weekend and I’m trying to honor it. I just didn’t think she would still need this much space. I haven’t heard a thing from her. What if she’s hungry? Is she getting enough sleep?” 

“Maybe she wants a bit of space because you bought the house next door and she knows you’ll hover around her like a mother hen,” Blaise chuckled. 

Draco scowled and broke the staring contest with his phone to review the latest documents for Black Industries that Owen had sent over. 

“Is Owen single by chance?” Draco asked casually, not taking his eyes off the proposal in front of him. 

Blaise raised an eyebrow, “Where is this going?”

“If he was single I was thinking maybe you could set him up with Theo.” 

“I don’t think Theo is looking to date anyone right now.” 

“Well he should because then he’d leave my witch alone,” Draco grumbled. 

Blaise rolled his eyes while he sat in the seat across from the scowling blonde. “Theo isn’t dating anyone because yes he propositioned Hermione but also because he and Charlie Weasley broke up around the same time as you and Hermione did.” 

Draco snapped his attention to Blaise. “Convenient timing.” 

“Relax you possessive bastard. Theo walked in on Charlie with someone else when he went to surprise him in Romania. Apparently, Theo wanted to be serious but Charlie wasn’t ready. He was pretty distraught when it ended and, well, he and Hermione bonded over it.”

“Fuck,” Draco murmured. As much as he wanted to murder Theo for making moves on Hermione, he couldn’t help but feel bad for one of his oldest friends. “Poor Theo. I really don’t like the guy right now but that’s really fucking shitty.” 

Blaise nodded solemnly. “He was pretty broken up about it for a bit but you know Theo, he buries his shit and then the next week he was focusing all his energy on Granger.” 

“Does he actually even want to be with her? Or is this his way of sticking it to Charlie?” 

“You really think Theo would propose to a broken-hearted woman who he fancied since Hogwarts just to get back at an ex? He has a flair for dramatics but c’mon Draco he’d never do that.” 

“I know,” Draco raked his hands through his hair. “Hermione showed me the nursery Friday night after we decided on names and had dinner. It’s beautiful, Blaise. It’s a pale yellow with sunflowers and little animals painted on the walls. She told me that Pans, Daph and Ginevra have been helping her a lot but then I saw a cream colored rocking chair in the corner and she mentioned that Theo had bought that for her.. I keep seeing Theo in that nursery with her and our cubs and it fucking tears my soul apart, Blaise. Thinking about him in that rocking chair, holding my son or daughter, makes me want to scream.” 

Breathe in, breathe out. 

Breathe in, breathe out.  

Draco felt like he was on the urge of breaking everything in his study but he couldn’t lose it in front of Blaise and definitely couldn’t when he was right next door to Hermione. 

“That hasn’t happened yet and I doubt it will to be honest. Hermione was so in love with you. That doesn’t go away overnight. She’s having your children, Draco.” Blaise awkwardly patted his back while reaching for his glass of firewhiskey. 

“I’m going to get destroyed at this baby shower,” Draco mumbled into his hands. 

Blaise smirked. “Yeah probably but you deserve it.” 

“Yeah, I fucking know I do,” he groaned. 

“Are you going to tell me the names you two decided on?” Blaise asked. 

Shaking his head, Draco reached for his own firewhiskey. “Not yet. You’ll find out at the baby shower.” 

“Tomorrow then,” he said. “At least you’ll get to see Granger again.” 

“Yeah…tomorrow,” Draco agreed. “I miss her.” 

“She’ll protect you.” 

Draco laughed, “I think you’re wrong there, mate.” 

“She’s always been a hero for the downtrodden,” Blaise grinned. “That’s you, mate.” 

“Yeah but I hurt her,” Draco sighed. 

“I’m trying to make you feel better and I’m failing miserably, aren’t I?” 

“Yeah, fuck off, Blaise. Leave me to brood in silence, yeah?” Draco gave him a small smile though. “Thanks for helping me with everything.” 

“We’ve been best friends since nappies,” Blaise patted his back again. “I’m here for you.” 

—--

Of course it was raining on the day of the baby shower. Draco stood outside Hermione’s front door with a bouquet of calla lilies. In his mind, he was unofficially courting her so each day he had been sending a fresh bouquet of flowers to her home. She had sent him a quick text to say thank you after the first bouquet but then didn’t reply when he explained the meaning. 

Space. He could give her space. 

Who was he kidding, he felt like he was dying by not talking to her. 

Hermione opened her door on the second knock, looking like a vision in a lavender colored, off the shoulder sweater dress with her glossy curls framing her face and tumbling down her back. 

“You look radiant, Granger,” he said reverently. She was everything he wanted. Everything he could possibly dream of. Yet, she wasn’t his and it was all his fault. 

She blushed beautifully. “Thank you, Draco and thank you for the flowers. You really don’t have to be doing this.” She reached out and took the calla lilies from him to take inside. Draco was on her heels, charming his shoes dry as he followed her into the kitchen where he saw his bouquet of tulips from yesterday in another vase on the dining table. 

“You loved flowers when we were together and I just wanted to start that again. You deserve beautiful things,” he said earnestly. 

Hermione cut the stems from the lilies and placed them in a vase that had been her mother’s. She turned her attention to him and Draco’s breath hitched as he took in the image of her standing in front of the bouquet. An image of Hermione in a white gown walking down the aisle with white calla lilies filled his mind. He shook his head to try and dispel it.

Not now. Not now. 

“Are you okay, Draco?” She studied him like she would a patient. Clinical and calculating. 

“Yes, I just had a bit of a headache earlier. Shall we head off?” 

She narrowed her eyes but then nodded, heading toward the floo. “Everyone knows you're coming and have been told to be on their best behavior.” 

“Thank you, Granger.” He looked down at her as she reached for his hand. 

Her lips curled up slightly. “That means you need to be on your best behavior too.” 

Draco couldn’t hold back the smile. “No promises, Granger.” 

He jumped as he felt her smack his arm.

“Draco!” 

“Alight, alright,” he laughed. “I promise to be on my best behavior as well.” 

He took a deep breath as Hermione called for Grimmauld Place and they stepped into the floo. 

A colorful scene of blue and pink streamers and a stoic Potter welcomed them. Draco took in his surroundings and grinned as he saw little cut outs of Hermione’s face in pink had been scattered along the floor like rose petals, directing them towards the party. 

Hermione raised an eyebrow at Potter as she too noticed it. 

“Ginny’s idea. I had no part in the decorating. It was mostly the girls, Theo and Ron.” 

Draco stiffened at Theo’s name while Hermione laughed, “Ron? I can’t picture him taking any part in this.”

Harry smirked. “Once we knew that Draco was definitely coming, let’s just say that Ron wanted to include Draco in the decorations.” 

“Oh my gods,” Hermione giggled while Draco scowled. 

“Granger, you said everyone would be on their best behavior.” He looked down at her pointedly. 

“Calm down,” she rolled her eyes. “We don’t even know what Ron did.” 

“It can’t be good, I’ll tell you that right now. I mean look at Potter’s face.” 

“Just a bit of fun, Malfoy,” Potter sniggered as he motioned for them to follow him. 

Draco groaned, squeezing Hermione’s hand a bit tighter. She stopped and placed a hand on his chest. 

“Look at me, Draco,” she said softly. 

He stopped and tucked a curl behind her ear as he complied. 

“It means a lot to me that you’re here and taking this seriously. I know I haven’t been present a lot over the last week but I just need time to sort my feelings and ready myself for their arrival and what it means for us,” she bit her lip in thought. “Just do your best for me today, okay? For Lynx and Lyra? I recognize that it won’t be easy so thank you for being here with me, with us.” She rubbed her belly with a warm smile. 

“Anything for you and our babies,” he reached for her hand that was resting on her belly and placed his on top. “An afternoon with a group of people who want to Avada me won’t change that.” 

She snorted, “Right then. Let’s go into the lion’s den.” 

“After you, litt…Granger.” 

Hermione squeezed his hand but didn’t drop it. Instead, she led him into the large sitting room where he was met by a gaggle of fawning women and men who rushed towards Hermione, causing Draco to step to the side and release her hand. 

He was always amazed by the love Hermione brought out in people towards her. Pans and Daph were gushing about her dress while Luna, Ginevra, Neville and Potter stood close by, watching Hermione with adoring looks in their eyes. He saw Theo standing near the presents, arranging them in perfect rows while he snuck quick glances at her. Draco huffed in annoyance as he caught Theo winking at her, resulting in a blush from Hermione. His huff turned into a low growl.

In an effort to remain on his best behavior, Draco turned his attention to Blaise who was laughing at something Ron was showing him. Curious, he walked toward the two men and immediately widened his eyes in horror. Groups of pink and blue ferret balloons stood tall and proud in each corner. 

“Ah, Malfoy!” Ron boomed. “Like the decorations? I couldn’t let Hermione be the only star of the show. You did put in half the work!” 

Blaise guffawed while Malfoy spluttered in response. 

“This is just cruel, Weasel,” Draco snarled. 

Ron just rolled his eyes. “Relax, ferret. You can handle a bit of teasing. It's the least you deserve.” 

Draco ignored him and turned back towards the room to look for Hermione. He found her sitting on the couch next to Daphne and Theo. The latter who was resting his arm on the back of the couch behind her. As if he could tell that Draco was boring holes into his skull, Theo turned around and smirked at him. Draco gritted his teeth, trying hard to keep himself from attacking him. 

She’s pregnant with your cubs. She’s pregnant with your cubs. 

He pulled himself together and walked toward them, eager to erase the space between him and Hermione. 

He sat on the floor right in front of her and was pleased when her hand reached out to stroke his head, feeling the strands of his hair. Draco preened. He had hoped for this. When they had been together, Hermione used to sit on the couch with Draco on the floor in front of her while they watched the telly. She had loved running her hands through his hair before giving in to Draco’s pleading to give him a head massage. He wouldn’t beg her to do it this time but he had high hopes that soon it could be a possibility. 

“Have you forgiven him already, Hermione?” Neville asked, looking at the interaction with confusion. 

Hermione huffed and turned from her conversation with Daphne to face Neville. “Can we please not discuss my situation with Draco at my baby shower?” She turned to Ginevra. “I thought everyone knew to not mention anything?” 

“They do, ‘Mione, but I think Neville’s confused because you’re petting Malfoy’s hair,” she pointed to where Hermione’s hand continued to stroke. 

“Oh!” Hermione immediately removed her hand and Draco deflated at the loss. He heard Blaise snigger from the corner. “Old habit, I suppose. We, uh, used to do this quite a bit.” She cleared her throat and then turned back to Daphne, clearly uncomfortable. 

Draco raised his head to see Pansy glaring at him and motioning him to follow her. Fuck . 

Once inside the kitchen, Pansy casted a Muffliato and dug in.

“You are such a fucking idiot,” she seethed. “What was with the whole hair petting? She looked upset once Neville said something.” 

Draco sighed, “It’s just something she used to do after dinner to me as we read books or watched the telly. I got jealous of Theo being next to her so I sat in front of her to be near her and then she just started doing it. I couldn’t say no.” 

“You knew she was going to do it,” Pansy accused. 

“No, I just thought that maybe she’d do it,” he said sheepishly. 

“Merlin, help me,” she groaned. “What part of Hermione needs to heal and this is her day that you don’t understand? You left her to marry someone else. Full stop. A pureblood too. Astoria fucking Greengrass, which by the way. Really? Anyways, you abandoned her after you made these grand plans of telling your parents. It took Theo and Neville to hold me back from flooing over to yours to Crucio you. I know that you know better than anybody how forgiving and loving Hermione is. Do not use that to your advantage to get her back.” 

“I am not fucking doing that,” Draco seethed. He was kind of doing that, he thought . 

Pansy gave him a pointed look. 

“Fuck, okay maybe a little bit but its not on purpose,” he admitted. “It’s really hard to not fall back in the same patterns that we had from before. I know everything about her. How can I not do what makes her happy?” He ran a hand through his hair. 

“Bringing home takeout and coming to the baby shower is one thing but sitting in front of her so she can unknowingly run her hands through your hair because of muscle memory so you can make Theo jealous is different.” 

“You’re right, I’m sorry, you’re right,” he looked up to the ceiling and closed his eyes. 

“Don’t tell me that. Tell Hermione.” 

“I know, I will, I told her I’d be on my best behavior and I already fucked up,” he said, his voice defeated. 

“Just keep trying, Draco,” she said sadly. “I want this to work out. Not for you but for those babies and for Hermione.” 

He nodded, not trusting his ability to speak at the moment. Pansy sighed then left him in the kitchen to brood. 

Ten minutes later, Draco reentered the party to find Hermione giggling at something Theo was saying as she sat in a chair near the gifts. His heart sank watching them and negative thoughts started pouring in. 

Hermione deserved better than what he could give her. 

Theo would be a better father than him. 

Why was he even here?  

“Draco?” A familiar voice called for him, dragging Draco from his thoughts. He looked up to find Hermione watching him with a puzzled look on her face. “Ready to share the news with me?” She reached her hand out to him with a little smile on her face. 

A lifeline. 

He nodded and approached her, gratefully taking her hand. 

She gave it a squeeze, “Draco, do you want to say the boy’s name and I’ll say the girl’s name?” 

“Sure,” he said back softly, lost in her eyes and the constellation of freckles across her nose. 

With a wide smile, she turned back to the others, “We’re going to follow the Black family tradition of constellation names. I decided to do it because I think it’s a beautiful tradition.” She paused, resting her other hand on her belly. “Our daughter’s name is Lyra..” She looked at Draco.

“And our son’s name is Lynx,” he announced, his eyes still on Hermione. 

A mixture of gasps and cheers erupted as friends and family descended on Hermione. Blaise embraced Draco with a warm hug. 

“I’m so happy for you, mate,” Blaise said with a wide smile. 

Draco tore his eyes away from Hermione to smile back at Blaise. “Thanks, Blaise. I’m really fucking lucky.” 

“We both are,” Hermione answered, watching them with a smile as Potter helped her up from the chair and Ginevra hugged her from behind. 

Opening presents was actually quite a fun process, Draco admitted to himself. He watched as Hermione gushed over matching newborn outfits and the different baby books. Draco happened to admire the pink and blue dragon stuffies that Blaise brought and even appreciated the Slytherin baby blankets that Theo brought. 

Eventually the party winded down and Draco was more than ready to take Hermione back to her home. He could tell how exhausted she was and she had barely eaten anything. She hardly touched a bite of the cake he had cut for her. When he saw a yawn, he knew he could step in. 

“Hermione, are you tired? I can help you get home,” he offered while shrinking the gifts so he could fit in the pale yellow baby trunk that Neville had bought as a gift. 

She nodded and said her goodbyes. Pansy and Potter eyed him warily as they hugged Hermione. Theo murmured something in her ear that had Hermione blush, making Draco’s blood boil. 

She finally reached him and took his arm so he could lead her to the floo. 

“Did you enjoy yourself?” he asked, unsure of how she was feeling given he had overstepped in the beginning. 

“Yes, it was so nice of everyone,” she responded with another yawn. 

“Let’s get you to bed,” he said. “How did I do? Does my behavior get me an Outstanding?”

Hermione snorted, “Maybe an Acceptable. We’ll talk about that tomorrow.” 

“Tomorrow?” Draco asked hopefully. 

“Yes, I will call you when I wake up but I was hoping to see your new home?” 

Draco beamed. “Of course! I didn’t want to ask in case you thought it was too soon.” 

“Well Lynx and Lyra will be over there at some point so I may as well help with their room.” 

They stepped through the floo and Draco was relieved when they were back in her familiar sitting room. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Draco responded, watching as Hermione made her way toward the stairs. “I’ll put the baby trunk with all the gifts in the nursery, if that works for you?” 

She waved her hand in agreement. “See you tomorrow. Goodnight, Draco.” 

Draco chuckled, it was only 7pm but he was glad that she was finally taking her rest seriously. He floated the trunk up to the nursery and then padded over to the front door. He didn’t think about any ramifications of leaving this way since he had entered here earlier but he immediately regretted it when he heard the flash of a camera go off.

Chapter Text

Chapter 12

Witch Weekly

Black Heir Seen Leaving Pregnant Golden Girl’s Muggle Home

By Rita Skeeter

This reporter has received the biggest news of the year! Former Death Eater Draco Black (nee Malfoy) was seen leaving the suspected home of Hermione Granger yesterday evening. The Brightest Witch of the Century and creator of the Lycanthropy Cure is notoriously private, only attending events directly related to her causes, making the location of her home difficult to locate. 

Fear not, dear reader! It seems our Golden Girl has been hiding out in muggle London of all places! How does Lord Black know where Healer Granger lives? Well, it appears that Miss Astoria Greengrass, who used to be betrothed to Lord Black, has all the answers!

‘Draco was fully committed to our engagement until the night of the gala celebrating Miss Granger so I naturally grew suspicious when he suddenly called it off. As you know from our teas, Rita, I am quite a sleuth myself so I have been undercover following Draco to see for myself if he is the father. From what I can gather from the photograph that I shared with you, Draco, seems to be quite close with Miss Granger. One can only suspect that he had an affair with Miss Granger, impregnated her and is now trying to do right by her. I am horrified a man of his upbringing would stoop so low.’ 

As a long time friend of the Greengrass family, I would have to agree that this is very suspicious indeed. We know from history how Healer Granger likes to dig her claws in powerful men, see her past dalliances with Harry Potter and Victor Krum. One wouldn’t be surprised if Miss Granger saw an opportunity once she saw how the should-be Malfoy heir was on his path to redemption with the perfect witch on his side. 

Is Draco Black the father? We’ll find out, dear readers. 

—-

Upon hearing the camera flash, Draco disapparated straight into his study so the photographer didn’t get his face captured. He paced, anxiety peaking as he ran his fingers through his hair. 

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. 

He floo called Owen and his mother for an emergency PR meeting. Both appeared at his home within minutes. 

“Time to fight fire with fire,” Owen proclaimed, putting on his glasses and levitating his notebook and quill to take notes of their conversation. “Look we knew this was going to happen at some point so we need plans of attack. Firstly, Draco, you need to calm down and focus. Second, Hermione appreciates a well thought out plan. Let’s get this taken care of so you can share what we’re going to do with her and you can then make a decision together.”

Narcissa sat primly in the chair facing Draco’s desk, staring at Owen with large, admiring eyes. 

“Alright, Owen,” Draco said, his head in his hands. “What do you suggest?”

“Your family essentially controls the Prophet, use it to your advantage. Reach out to them to see if this photo is theirs or will be sold to them. If so, scrap it and we’re fine. If not, let’s use the Prophet to tell your story with Hermione. Re-write whatever bullshit is going to be printed with the actual truth.” 

Draco nodded, “Mother, can you send an owl to Richmond?” 

“Yes, my dragon,” she summoned a piece of parchment to send the missive. 

Draco continued, “Hermione values her privacy. I highly doubt she’s going to want to do a tell-all, especially during a time when she’s trying to forgive me and allow me in her life. We need something else.” 

“Fair, how about you still use the Prophet but since the photo hopefully doesn’t show your face, you dismiss it as gossip?” 

Draco shook his head, “Lynx and Lyra will be my heirs and it will be public knowledge at some point. We’ll need to do something more in the middle. Perhaps just releasing a statement and dismissing any negative rumors, once we know what those are, and asking for privacy at this time.” 

Owen tapped his foot in thought. “You might be right. It will come down to Hermione like you say. What about Astoria and your father?”

Narcissa jumped in, “Lucius has no power and no say. He has not written back since I voiced my support for Draco and threatened divorce if he tried to do anything about it.” 

Draco shot his mother a look of thanks. “I don’t care about Astoria. If anything she’ll try and use the news to make her look like a woman scorned when we all know that she and I didn’t care about each other. I will not address her in any comments or statements other than to say that I did not cheat on her nor did I want to be betrothed to her in the first place.” 

“I’ll get a few statements written up now that you can take to Hermione in the morning,” Owen supplied. 

“Thanks, Owen. She usually wakes up at 6am so I’m going to be up at 5 and sit outside her back door waiting.” 

“Don’t worry boss,” Owen said with a smirk. “You have the best team working on this.” 

Draco snorted, “I know I do, Blaise was right about you.” 

Owen gave a devious smile, “I’m trying to convince him to let me be his and Luna’s third.” 

Draco choked on his firewhiskey and Narcissa gasped. “Salazar, Owen, not in front of my mother.” 

“You three would be a very attractive triad,” she observed, looking at Owen up and down. 

“Why, thank you, Mrs. Malfoy!” Owen batted his lashes. 

“No, Owen,” Draco groaned. “What about Operation Theo?” 

“We really need a better name for that. But don’t worry, that's still very much on but I can’t put all my eggs in one basket, can I?” 

Draco shook his head, “Get me those statements will you? I’m going to try and sleep.” He turned to his mother. “Let me walk you to the floo.” 

—-

Standing outside Hermione’s back door, Draco held a flat white for her that was under a stasis charm to keep warm. The lights came on downstairs and Draco tapped on the door. A few seconds later, Hermione appeared, looking very confused as she unlocked the door for him. 

“Draco? Why are you here? Is everything okay?” She asked, worry lacing her tone. 

He grimaced. “When I left your house yesterday, a camera flashed before I could disapparate back to mine. I don’t know why I didn’t just apparate from inside or use the back door. I clearly wasn’t thinking but I think we can expect some press today.” 

She opened the door wider and motioned him to come in while taking the flat white. 

“They don’t know where I live though. For all they know, you were just in muggle London.” She said, voice shaking. 

“We can assume that but I think it's best to be prepared just in case.” Draco removed the parchment from his pocket and laid it out on her kitchen table. “I had Owen work on a few different statements that we can have run in this evening’s Prophet just in case anyone puts it together. My mother will take care of my father but there isn’t anything he can do if news breaks to the public that Lynx and Lyra are mine.” 

Hermione studied the different statements. “These are good. Who is Owen?” 

“My new assistant. He came recommended by Blaise.” He eyed her nervously. “Are you okay?.” 

“No. I’m furious and scared but I’ve been talking to my mind healer about this inevitability and me panicking won’t change anything, it will just be bad for me and the babies.” She paused, re-reading the statements. “If the Prophet ties you back to me, I think we announce that you’re the father. We won’t have to hide anymore and we can get all of this press over with. With that in mind, I like Owen’s third option.” 

—

I am deeply disappointed with the negative gossip surrounding the renowned Healer Granger who has not only helped save the wizarding world but also cured Lycanthropy. Slander and speculative press should not be allowed against someone of her character. The truth is, Healer Granger and I entered into a loving relationship before my forced betrothal. I never cheated on Miss Greengrass when we were engaged. Healer Granger and I separated so I could fulfill my family duty and I have regretted the decision ever since. Once I learned of Healer Granger’s pregnancy with our twin children, I ended the false engagement and disinherited myself so I could be the man and father that she and our children deserve. We wish for privacy during this time so we can navigate this journey together without the press interfering. Thank you, Lord Draco Black and Healer Hermione Granger

—-

Witch Weekly arrived a few hours later at Granger's house. A few minutes later, her home was bombarded with Pansy, Potter and Theo who were up in arms over the article. 

“Join the club,” Draco snarled. “I’m furious. I can’t believe she was following me.” 

“Your obliviousness astounds me!” Pansy shrieked. “Of course Astoria was tailing you. I would have thought that maybe she would have hired someone to do it for her but I bet you that she has been suspicious since the gala.” 

Theo was leaning against the wall, shaking his head. “So what's your plan to fix this?” His eyes fixed on Draco. 

“We have a statement drafted that we sent to the Prophet that will run tonight. We’re not going into any details but are expressing our disappointment while sharing the news of the twins,” he waved his hand toward the statement on the table. 

“‘Mione, how are you feeling about all of this?” Potter asked, lifting his gaze from reading the statement to check on the witch. 

“I’m bloody furious,” she scoffed. “I’ve been stewing over this all morning. Draco’s been here since 6am.” 

Potter’s eyes went wide and flashed to Draco. 

“It’s true. I was up most of the night with Owen and my mother strategizing a path forward. I had to get to her as soon as possible so we could decide on a path forward together.” 

Pansy eyed him and he detected a note of…approval in her gaze?

Hermione reached out for his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before releasing it again. “Yes, I appreciate it. Waking up to that article would have sent me into a frenzy but I was strangely okay when he told me and shared his plans.”

“Planning is like foreplay to you, Granger,” Pansy smirked. 

Hermione blushed beautifully and Draco felt his cock twitch. He looked to Theo who was scowling, making Draco smile and the possessive beast inside him preen. 

Potter gave a noise of disgust. “So you’re just going to send the statement and that's it? What about your house, Hermione? Are you safe?” 

Hermione nodded. “They didn’t print my house number, post code or give any indication to where in muggle London I live. Draco is sending a letter from his lawyers to Witch Weekly to seal the photograph and ensure they aren’t able to write anything about where I live or personal information.” 

“I’m also going to have my lawyers file a protection order against Astoria for myself and Hermione since she has been essentially stalking us.” 

Theo sat down next to Hermione, “If you need anything, please let us know, yeah? We’re here for you. I know this hasn’t been easy for you.” 

Draco rolled his eyes and scoffed. Hermione kicked him from underneath the table. 

“Honestly, Draco,” she scolded, glaring at him. “You caused this. Like you, Theo is just trying to help.”

“Trying to get into your knickers,” he mumbled to himself. 

“Excuse me?” 

“I said you’re right, Granger,” he said, glaring at Theo.

Hermoine eyed him, tears starting to well. “I’m trying to be strong right now but I really don’t need this! I’m so fucking tired of this bullshit. I should be talked about for my accomplishments, not for my baby daddy and his failed engagement. I need your support, not your immaturity. Grow up.” 

Draco shrank in his chair, chastised. “You’re right, Hermione. I’m sorry. I’m trying so hard to fix this. You don’t deserve to be in this position. I’m so sorry.” 

“I think I need to be alone right now,” she said, rising from her chair. “I’m going to work from home. Draco, let me know if anything comes from the Prophet and what the reactions are. Until then, I need space.” 

Potter and Theo glared at Draco as they followed him to the floo. 

“Do you need anything, bestie?” Pansy asked as she rubbed Hermione’s arm. 

“Can you stay a bit? I could use a pep talk while I write to my mind healer for a session,” Hermione hiccuped. 

“Of course,” she responded, warmly. 

Draco waited for the other wizards to leave before he left himself. He watched as Hermione let herself feel her emotions. This was his greatest fear, seeing her not being revered for all the positives she’s done for the wizarding world. 

“I’m so sorry, Hermione,” he said to her. “I just get so jealous seeing Theo comfort you knowing that he wants you.” 

She sighed, “I know. I’ll talk to him. It’s not fair to you and I’ve told him that I’m not looking for anything romantic but I need you to just focus on our children right now. Not petty fights over a girl you both fancy. I need you to be the man I know you can be.” 

“I will be, I won’t let you down” he pleaded. 

Hermione nodded, “Just give me some space, okay? I’m not saying no to a future with you by the way but I’m also not saying yes. I need you to show with your actions that you’re in this. Be a father first and maybe, someday, you can be a partner too.” 

“Let me know if you need anything, Granger. Pansy, take care of her for me, please.” 

Pansy nodded, still studying their interaction. “You can count on me.” 

With that, Draco flooed home, plans already swirling with ideas to get his witch back. He finally accepted to himself that he needed to play the long game.

Chapter Text

Chapter 13

The next two months of Hermione’s pregnancy flew by. True to his word, he gave Hermione the space she wanted and kept himself busy with his new business and setting up a replica of Hermione’s nursery in his home. He was actually quite pleased with how his mother was able to design his home to compliment Hermione’s perfectly. He knew he was a skilled legilimens but the fact that he had been able to plant the interior design of Hermione’s home so well in his mother’s mind had him preening. 

Although she had asked for space, he still attended every healer appointment with her and she gave him status updates on how she was feeling. She had set strict boundaries after the article had come out. He wasn’t allowed to text or call her, he couldn’t show up uninvited to her home or drop off meals. If she needed or wanted to talk to him, then she would initiate. So far, that was not as much as he’d like. He was going stir crazy knowing she was just next door, especially now that she wasn’t going to the hospital or lab anymore. 

What surprised Draco the most during those two months was how public perception of Hermione’s pregnancy and his siring of said pregnancy wasn’t entirely negative. Initially, Hermione had received numerous howlers about her sullying the Malfoy bloodline, however, after a week, the number of howlers had reduced to none. He only knew this because Blaise was keeping him up to date via Luna. Thanks to the statement made in the Daily Prophet, the papers quickly dropped the story line and, to Draco’s knowledge, no one would take a meeting with Astoria. Last he heard, Astoria had fucked off to the continent to pursue a betrothal with another pureblood, preferably one that didn’t hear of her situation in the UK. 

An opinion piece in the Prophet by one Padma Patil outlined the struggles muggle-born women faced in today’s wizarding society and painted Hermione as a heroine for following her heart and remaining true during what must have been a period of immense emotional turmoil when Draco had left her. His stomach had dropped reading the article but he and Owen had commissioned it, with Hermione’s approval of course, to ensure she had the support she needed. He was hopeful that these small actions were showing her how serious he was about being in both her and their children’s lives. 

Draco had just gotten back from the latest healer appointment with Hermione. Not surprisingly, she and the babies were perfectly healthy and Hermione was practically glowing at the praise Adrian was bestowing on her.

“You’re going to be such a good mom” 

“How is the beautiful mom-to-be doing this morning?” 

“Look at you! You’re glowing. Pregnancy suits you.” 

Draco had tried hard to keep it together, his fists clenched at his sides and biting his tongue so he couldn’t make a retort at the man. 

Hermione took it all in stride, rolling her eyes good naturedly at Adrian and telling him how inappropriate he was being. Draco agreed wholeheartedly, privately seething. 

Now they were back at her home and she had asked him if he could carry the bedding up to the nursery for the cribs that had just arrived. He followed her dutifully up the stairs, mesmerized by the swing of her hips. 

Merlin, she looked delectable . He bit back a groan as he imagined running his tongue along the curve of her ass. 

He did not get the relief he wanted when he set the bedding down on the changing table, helping her unwrap the bedding and putting it on each individual crib. She’d bend over the crib to watch him, giving him the perfect view of her tits, becoming heavier with each passing day. He swallowed. He needed to get out here for an emergency wank. 

“Do you need help with anything else?” he choked, keeping his gaze trained on the notes of honey in her eyes. Cold showers. Cold showers. Don’t ruin this with your cock!

“Yes,” she nodded, a bit breathless herself. Did the stairs tire her? 

“Are you okay?” he asked, growing concerned as he examined her more closely. 

She was visibly flushed, her pupils slightly larger than normal as she looked at him. Holy fuck is she turned on too? 

“I’m uh just fine,” she replied, biting her lip. “Recently my hormones have been a bit all over the place and I’m just having a moment right now.” 

His eyes widened as he took a deep breath to steady himself. Salazar, she was turned on . He had read about this in the pregnancy books he bought. At some points during pregnancy, the woman would be in a heightened state of arousal. He had waited eagerly for this back when he thought he might be in her good graces in no time. How wrong he had been. 

“Can I help with anything? Do you want me to get you anything?” he asked, feeling incredibly put out that she wouldn’t need him. 

He fondly remembered the muggle vibrators that they used to play with and wondered if she had bought any new ones…unless...was she seeing Theo? Was he tending to her needs? Draco blanched. No, that would be…weird. 

“Can you hold me?” she asked, her voice breathy yet holding the slightest bit of hesitation. 

His terror quickly morphed into glee as he nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, of course, where?” 

She bit her lip in thought and looked down as she answered, “My room. Follow me.” 

Her delicate hand reached for his, causing Draco to instantly relax as he followed her to what used to be their bedroom. He was delighted to see that she hadn’t changed anything and to his shock, he saw a photograph of them framed from Yule last year sitting on the bookshelf near the bay window. His heart warmed and a wide smile bloomed across his face. 

Hermione didn’t appear to notice, singularly focused on her ( their ) bed. 

“Can you lie against the headboard and I’ll lean against your chest?” She asked him timidly. 

Why was she so nervous? If anything he should be the nervous one. 

Draco squeezed her hand before releasing it and followed her directions, leaning against the headboard and spreading his legs so she could fit between them. He felt a contented sigh leave his lips as she did just that, resting her weight against his chest. He begged his dick to stay down so he could enjoy this moment of respite with her. 

Reaching for his arms, Hermione draped them around her so his hands could rest on her belly. Draco nuzzled his face into her hair, breathing in the jasmine and warm vanilla scent she always carried with her that never failed to calm him. 

“I wish we could do this every day,” she whispered.

Draco felt the gnawing guilt in his stomach grow stronger. He didn’t reply. He didn’t know what to say. 

She continued.

“I’ve been so lonely, Draco. I’m supposed to have a partner to support me, to love me, to be here every day without obligation. To hold my hair when I had morning sickness, to make me ginger tea, to feel every kick, to make love to me.” 

A choked sob escaped her throat. Draco felt his own tears start to stream down his face. 

“I know, Hermione. I’m so fucking sorry. You have no idea how much regret I have for what I did.” 

“I’m so tired of being alone,” she cried. 

“You’re not alone, Hermoine. You have a whole army of friends who love you and the babies.” 

“They’re not you,” she sobbed. 

Draco shattered. He held her closer to him, his tears soaking the soft curls of her hair. Every brick of his occlumency walls were shredded to pieces. 

They laid there for minutes or hours, he didn’t know, crying together. 

“I’m never leaving you again, Hermione,” he vowed. “Even if you only want me as a friend and co-parent, I’m here for you, Lynx and Lyra. I’ll take whatever you give me.” He kept repeating words of reassurance, whispering promises in her ear while Hermione cried until she eventually fell asleep. Draco kept holding her through it all, terrified of letting her go. 

—--

Draco woke to soft moans coming from the witch still laying against him. He blinked rapidly as he tried to piece together his current reality. Hermione was still using him as a pillow but now Draco could not hide the fact that his cock was to full attention and the witch was unknowingly rubbing her lower back against him. He began to breathe deeply, begging his dick to relax but Hermione was relentless and he had no choice to but to wake her up before he exploded. 

“Hermione, love,” he rasped, drawing protective runes against her stomach. 

“Mmmm” she moaned, reaching her arms behind herself to loop around his neck. 

“You have to wake up, love. I’m not sure that you want this and it's taking all my self control to not touch you the way I want.” 

He felt the moment she woke up. She stiffened but didn’t release her hands from his neck. She breathed deeply. 

“What if I need this, Draco?” she whispered, her chest rising and falling quickly, her nipples straining against the fabric of her dress. 

“I don’t think you want this with me,” his voice was strained. “I don’t want you to regret it.” 

“Just this one time, please, Draco,” she begged. “I need to be touched.” 

Draco released a strangled noise as his hands began to wander towards her breasts. He rolled her nipples as she began to pant and wiggle against him. 

“Fuck, are you sure?” he groaned before licking the side of her neck and nipping just behind her ear. 

She nodded frantically. 

“Words, love,” he commanded, using her breasts to press her more firmly against him. 

She gasped. “Yes, Draco!” 

Draco growled before turning her head and meeting her lips in a firm kiss, their tongues dancing against each other as he kneaded her tits. Fuck, he missed them. When had they gotten so big?

“I want to come,” she whined, breaking the kiss to moan into his mouth. 

Ever the devoted follower, Draco shifted behind her. “Move forward a bit baby so I can lie down.” She did as he asked instantly, allowing Draco to scoot forward and lay on her pillow. “Now, I need you to be a good girl and take off your panties. When you’re done I want you to come up here and ride my face so I can taste you.” 

Hermione’s eyes widened with lust. Draco couldn’t believe this was happening. He pinched himself twice to make sure this was real. 

He watched with hooded eyes as she immediately removed her panties and did as he asked, straddling his head and holding onto the headboard.

“Good girl,” he purred, reaching under her dress for the globes of her ass and lowering her pussy down to his waiting mouth. “I’ve missed this so much. Going to drown in you.” 

Hermione let out a loud moan as Draco began eating her like a man starved, alternating between flicking and sucking her clit with his tongue. Hermione rolled her hips against his face, causing him to groan as he was surrounded with the sweet scent and taste of her. 

“More!” She begged as Draco entered her slick folds with one of his fingers. 

“So fucking tight,” he mumbled before fucking her in earnest with his middle finger then adding in a second finger, returning his attentions to her clit. 

She rode his face with abandon, yelling his name as she came closer and closer to the precipice. Draco couldn’t help but buck his hips as he felt her come undone, so turned on by bringing his witch pleasure, not caring if he embarrassed himself by coming. 

“DRACO!” she screamed as she came. Draco drank in her juices and removed his fingers from her aching cunt to palm his clothed, throbbing cock. 

Hermione slowly removed herself from him and Draco whined at the loss. Fuck he had missed that so much. How had he ever thought he could give that up? 

“Fuck,” she breathed, laying down on the bed beside him. 

“My thoughts exactly,” Draco responded with a light chuckle. 

She turned towards him, “Thank you, I needed that.” She looked towards his cock, still straining at his trousers. 

“That was for you,” he said softly. “I’ll take care of myself at home. I don’t want to do anything further that you might regret later.” While he really wanted to fuck her, he wouldn’t dare put any of the progress they made at risk. 

She nodded as Draco tucked a curl behind her ear. He decided that he would push his luck a little bit.

“Can I bring over dinner this evening?” he asked hopefully. 

Hermione bit her lip in thought. He could see her weighing the pros and cons in her head. 

“Sure,” she answered. “But Draco, what just happened doesn’t change anything. We’re not back together. I don’t fully trust you yet.” Her voice was hard and stern. Draco shivered. Why did that turn him on even more? 

“I know,” he nodded. “I’ll take whatever time you give me with you and the twins.” 

Hermione got up then and retrieved her panties from the bed. Draco sighed, he had wanted to steal those from her without her noticing. 

“I’m going to shower but I’ll see you tonight,” she said as she made her way to the ensuite bathroom and closed the door. 

Draco watched her go and fell back onto the bed when she closed the door. Another step forward to hopefully the future that he wanted.

Chapter Text

Chapter 14

Over the next several weeks, Draco had gotten Granger off three more times. Bringing her to orgasm with his fingers and his tongue but never with his cock. Draco didn’t mind though. He was actually positively thrilled that she was open to being this vulnerable with him. In fact, he had wanked more in the last three weeks than he had in the last 6 months. He found her so utterly sexy pregnant with his cubs. Merlin, did he want to tell her that. He held back though, not wanting to scare her off or potentially stop all the progress they had made together in the last month. 

This progress also included daily lunches, walks and dinners together either in his home or in hers. They had little moments where he saw glimpses of their old life together. Hermione laughing at a joke he made while on a walk or debating magical theory while cooking dinner. 

At first, they still slept in their own homes but recently Draco had started staying over in the baby’s room as Hermione came closer and closer to her due date. 

When his house was finally complete, Hermione had been amused when he gave her a tour, which was essentially a replica of hers but with more expensive furniture. 

“Godric Draco, you would do this,” she had laughed, a smirk at her lips as she waddled around his home. 

“I don’t want Lynx and Lyra to be confused!” He had defended, following her closely. 

“Mmhmm sure, Draco,” she mused, giving a melodic laugh that made his heart flutter. She could always see right through him. 

Being able to take care of her again had brought Draco a joy that he hadn’t felt in a long time. It seemed that her need for space had diminished somewhat and, at times, he caught her staring at him with what he thought was a look of longing. Each time, she blushed and looked away, going back to whatever task she was doing at the time. He wanted to tell her to give in, to give them another chance, but he knew that she needed to come to that decision on her own and his prodding would only push her away. 

Now, Hermione was over 8 months pregnant and Pucey had warned them both that she could be giving birth any day now. Hermione was frantic, pacing around her home and ordering Draco around to finish last minute preparations.

Draco! We can’t forget the hospital bag! Is it near the floo? 

It’s been there for a few weeks now, Granger. 

I can’t take that fucking ferret stuffie is staring at me one second longer, we need to get rid of it, Malfoy. 

Fucking finally! Incendio.

In truth, Draco was a little amused at Hermione’s irritability and was more than glad to be ordered around by her. He had an inkling that Hermione enjoyed it too. More than once, he saw her with hooded eyes when she’d ask him to move a bookcase or bring a box up the stairs to the nursery. Did Draco happen to roll his sleeves and wear tighter pants the more he caught on? Absolutely not. All the moving around made him sweaty so he needed to show his forearms to cool down. It also just happened that all his pants had shrunk, making it terribly inconvenient for his muscular thighs and the bulge of his cock. He caught Hermione ogling him more than once and smirked that he still had an effect on her. 

The day was uncharacteristically sunny for March, allowing Draco and Hermione to take a longer walk than usual. Pucey (he refused to call him Healer Adrian as Hermione did) had mentioned sex and walking would help induce giving birth. Since they were most definitely not having sex yet and Hermione was feeling too uncomfortable to let him get her off, they had agreed to take a longer walk with the hospital bag minimized in Draco’s pocket. She started having contractions mid-way through and when they reached the door, her water broke, causing a shriek from Hermione. 

Draco sprung into action, knowing competency was a turn on for Hermione and he would be damned to not take advantage of it. He picked up his pregnant witch and strode towards the floo, walking her through everything he had and reassuring her that every step she put in place for her birthing plan was followed. She stared at him with wide terrified eyes, completely silent as she listened to him. He couldn’t tell if she was speechless or too afraid to speak.

Medi-witches immediately directed Draco to their hospital room as they called for Pucey. Once Hermione was settled in the hospital bed, she reached for his hand. 

“Thank you, Draco,” she said, with so much warmth in her voice that Draco practically melted. “You have been so supportive these last few months and I just want you to know that I see it.” 

“I’m not ever going to stop, Hermione,” he vowed, staring into her golden eyes. She smiled but then her face morphed into pain as a contraction passed through her. 

“How’s my Golden Girl?” Pucey asked, striding into the room with a cocky smile. Draco growled. She wasn’t his anything. 

“How does it look like I’m fucking doing?” she seethed between breaths, staring him down. 

Draco smirked as Pucey went pale before collecting himself and putting on a more professional persona. 

“Sorry Hermione, I know this is going to be hard but I promise you’re going to be just fine,” he told her as he settled into a stool at the end of her bed and flipped the end of her gown so he could take a look at her cervix. 

Draco knew that this was standard procedure. Healers had to do this when delivering babies but Draco fumed and squeezed Hermione’s hand without thought as he watched Pucey look at his witch’s perfect pussy. HIS pussy. 

“OW! For fucks sake, Draco!” Hermione screeched, leveling him with a dirty look. 

Draco immediately lessened the pressure on her hand and gave her a sheepish look as he said, “Sorry, Hermione.” 

She cursed under her breath and muttered something like, “jealous prat,” but Draco couldn’t be sure. His eyes were laser focused on Pucey. He had to make sure nothing untoward was going on. 

“Okay Hermione, you're moving fast. You’re already about 8 centimeters dilated so you’re going to start pushing soon.” 

Pucey then called for the medi-witches to complete prepping the room before Hermione started pushing. 

Hermione turned to Draco, “I’m scared. What if I can’t do this?” 

Draco noticed the tears welling in her eyes and he reached forward to smooth back her already braided hair. He smiled at his handiwork. Braiding her hair was another thing he had started doing for her each morning so it wouldn’t frizz as much while she was in labor.  

“You’re Hermione fucking Granger,” he cooed. “You are the strongest witch I have ever met. You can do anything.” He paused, brushing her high cheekbones with his fingers. “We’re going to meet Lynx and Lyra and if they are anything like their mum, they are going to be fighting like hell to greet the world in record time.” 

“You think so?” she asked him, breathing through another contraction. 

“I know so,” he assured her. “Plus, I know you want an Outstanding in giving birth, don’t you?” 

She beamed at him, giving him a brilliant smile. “I won’t settle for any less.” 

They both turned back to Pucey who was giving them a quizzical smile. “You’re going to grade her giving birth, really?” 

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him and Draco settled into his chair to smirk, ready for the show. 

“Motivation, Adrian, it’s motivation. If you’re not going to help with that then shut the fuck up and do you job.” 

Pucey gave a disbelieving laugh while Draco growled. He was so turned on. He looked up to the ceiling to pray to the muggle gods for his erection to settle down. 

“You’re right, Hermione, let’s do this,” Pucey settled down in front of her as the medi-witches flitted around them. “Alright Hermione, on the next contraction I want you to push.” 

Draco sat in awe as he watched his witch deliver their children for over 9 hours. He alternated between being her verbal punching bag, reassuring her, and letting her break his hand while she held it. He loved every second of it. He couldn’t believe that he had almost missed out on this because of his family’s ludicrous ideals. 

Lynx was born first at 8 pounds 10 ounces, announcing his arrival with a scream. Hermione gave a disbelieving laugh while Draco immediately started crying once the medi-witches cleaned him up and handed him to Draco. 

“He’s so beautiful,” Draco said to Hermione, both gazing at their son adoringly. 

Lyra came five minutes later at 7 pounds 11 ounces, crying softly and quickly turned to making little noises of contentment once she was placed on Hermione’s chest. Draco gently placed Lynx next to her and sat back down next to Hermione so they could stare at their newborns. 

“You definitely got an Outstanding,” Pucey observed, breaking Draco from his trance. He scowled at the annoying healer. 

“Pucey, I’m supposed to grade her,” Draco asserted. 

Hermione rolled her eyes but appeased him, “And your grade is the only one that counts. What did I get?” 

Draco grinned, “You got an Outstanding, little lion.” 

Both of their eyes went wide at his slip-up. 

“I’m sorry, Hermione, I know you’re probably not ready for that..”

“Shh, Draco,” she soothed with tears in her eyes.  “I’m still your little lion, I never stopped being that and these two here,” she fixed her gaze now on Lynx and Lyra resting on her chest, “are our cubs.” 

Draco started sobbing and surged forward to place his forehead against hers. “You have no idea how fucking happy I am to hear that.” 

“Language, Draco,” she chided playfully. “We’ll see where this goes but I’m willing to try again. Let’s call it a probationary period.” 

Draco nodded enthusiastically, “I’m going to pass with flying colors, just you wait.” 

Hermione giggled, “I hope so.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 15

Once home from the hospital, the weeks passed in a joyful blur with countless visitors and sleepless nights. Draco continued to sleep in the nursery while Hermione slept in her bed. Even though he was now on “probation,” she was adamant that they sleep apart so she could continue to sort through her feelings. Draco had no choice but to concede and he counted the days until Hermione was ready to be more intimate with him again. He didn’t even need to be physical with her. He just wanted to hold her, breathe in the vanilla scent from her hair, whisper promises in her ear, hear her little whimpers… 

Draco groaned aloud as he daydreamed of holding her, waking up Lynx in the process. 

Hermione must have had an internal alert system for when the babies cried because she appeared instantly, eyes glued on Lynx as she cooed at him. Draco watched her with reverence as she settled herself in the rocking chair and began to nurse him. Lyra, who must have sensed she was missing out, began to fuss and Draco sprung into action, picking up his daughter so she could join her brother and nurse. 

As the twins settled in against their mother, Draco crouched next to Hermione and ran his fingers through the wisps of Lyra’s blonde hair. 

“Do you think their hair will be as bushy as mine?” Hermione asked, her eyes shining with love as she watched them. 

Draco chuckled. “Merlin, let’s hope not. I think Pansy will have them using Sleakeazies if thats the case.” 

“Prat,” Hermione teased. “You loved my hair.” 

“Correction. I love your hair. Present tense. I’ve always loved your hair.” 

Hermione gave a small smile in return. 

“Do you think my mother will be able to meet them soon?” Draco asked hesitantly. He had been meaning to ask Hermione this question since before she gave birth but never found the right time. 

Hermione tensed. “I don’t want Lynx and Lyra around anyone who is prejudiced and views them as less than.” 

“Hermione, I promise my mother doesn’t hold those views anymore and she is supportive of our relationship.”

“How do you know she isn’t just saying that?” Hermione challenged, keeping her voice low. 

“Because she went against my father and has been nothing but helpful since I disinherited myself. If she had shown any signs that that wasn’t the case I wouldn't be asking this question to you right now,” he assured, his voice hushed and reserved. 

Hermione sighed but then nodded. “I need to be there then for the first meeting. It's not that I don’t trust you but I can’t bear to be without them and I need to see it for myself.” 

Draco beamed, “Yes, of course!” 

Lynx detached from Hermione’s breast with a pop and reached for her hair with his tiny fingers as he closed his eyes. 

Hermione giggled, “He is obsessed with my hair.” 

“Like father, like son,” Draco replied with a smile then proceeded to grab a curl with his hand to mirror Lynx. Hermione rolled her eyes. 

“Would you like to go for a walk once they're done nursing? I could use the exercise,” Hermione said, shifting in her seat to get more comfortable as Lynx began to nurse again. 

“Yes, that sounds great. I just need to floo call Owen when we get back to get some progress reports on Black Industries and schedule a time for us to see my mother.” 

“You have to go through Owen to schedule a date with Narcissa?” 

“Well no but it's preferred so I don’t get sucked into a 45 minute conversation that really only needs to be 5 minutes,” Draco explained. 

Hermione smirked. “You used to be such a momma’s boy.” 

“I still am but now I’m fixated on you,” Draco replied with a feral grin. 

Hermione snorted. “That doesn’t sound as sexy as you think it does.” 

He laughed and shook his head, “Yeah that was pretty cheesy wasn’t it.” 

“I was thinking we can tell Harry and Pansy that they’re the godparents this weekend when we meet everyone in the park for their little welcome to the world party?” 

Draco nodded, “I still can’t believe Pansy and Daphne insisted on this. They aren’t their children.” 

“I think it’s cute plus it would be good for us to get out of the house. We’ve been cooped up here since we came home and I am dying for some socialization.” 

Draco raised an eyebrow. “We’ve had plenty of visitors.” 

“Yes, but I miss my friends, Draco,” she said, exasperated. “I need us all together again.” 

In truth they hadn’t been with the entire group since their baby shower so Draco knew that Hermione was likely struggling since she had grown so reliant on her friends in the past year. 

“Okay, little lion,” he agreed, standing up to stretch his legs. 

*****

Hermione had been taking his breath away for years so it wasn’t a surprise when she walked down the stairs in one of her muggle jeans and favorite jumpers while babbling to Lyra that his breath caught. 

Lynx squirmed in his arms as Draco whispered in the baby’s ear, “Your mommy is the most beautiful woman in the world. We will have to protect her and your sister with our lives.” 

“Are you ready?” Hermione asked brightly. Draco nodded in return as he placed Lynx next to Lyra in the stroller. 

One of the best discoveries about having twins was the bond that formed so quickly between the babies. They became inconsolable if they didn’t have direct contact with each other for too long and they often saw the two trying to hold hands or touch some part of the other’s body. It made Draco even more grateful that he was present in their lives and he marveled that Hermione had given him such a gift. 

They flooed together to Diagon Alley and walked from the Leaky toward the park. Even though they were in the beginning of April, Hermione and Draco kept casting warming charms on their newborns so they wouldn’t catch a chill. Hermione had even cast a protective shield around the stroller to blur photos from the press and keep out dark magic. Draco had been impressed when she cast the charm and he was not surprised in the slightest when she explained that she had invented the spellwork herself with a shrug. 

Ginny squealed when she saw Hermione and the stroller and did a combination of a run and a skip to them. Pansy raised a manicured eyebrow at Ginny’s reaction but couldn’t stop her own smile as the sleeping babies came into view. 

“Salazar,” Daphne exclaimed. “They are so cute! I want one.” Ron beamed from beside her. 

Draco noticed Theo standing slightly behind the group, observing carefully with Blaise with a smile on his face. Since the birth of the twins, Theo had kept his promise in taking a step back. He came to visit the cubs a couple times and had been respectful to Draco’s position by not flirting with Hermione.  

While their friends fussed over the twins, Draco took the moment to watch Hermione as she laughed at something Harry and Ron were talking to her about. Unsurprisingly, both Harry and Pansy had been overjoyed to learn that they would be the godparents. To everyone’s shock, however, and to Pansy’s horror, the normally stoic witch had teared up when Hermione made the announcement. Pansy had immediately picked up Lyra and promised that she would not grow up to have her mother’s fashion sense. Hermione laughed with a roll of her eyes. Harry promised to teach both Lynx and Lyra to fly, much to Draco’s chagrin. That was his job.

As the afternoon continued, Draco got the distinct feeling that they were being watched. The hair on the back of his neck rose when he saw the figure of Astoria Greengrass watching from the edge of the park. Blaise followed his gaze and gave him a brief nod, silently communicating that he would cover for Draco. 

“I have to run to the loo, little lion,” Draco whispered in Hermione’s ear. She nodded absentmindedly and returned to her conversation with Ginny and Pansy. 

Draco strode purposefully toward Astoria who narrowed her eyes with a predatory grin as he approached. He motioned for her to follow him behind a tree and cast a muffliato so the inevitable rising of their voices would distract from their party. 

“Draco,” she purred. 

“What the fuck are you doing here?” he spat, crossing his arms over his chest. 

Astoria rolled her eyes. “Are you done playing house yet?” 

Draco laughed. “This isn't playing for me, Astoria. This is my real life. My real family.” 

“What if I told you that your father would reinstate your inheritance and allow you to set aside a trust fund for the mudblood and your children if you drop the act and follow through with our proposal?” 

“I’d tell him to shove it up his ass,” he barked. “I’m not interested.” 

“Of course you are, darling,” she said, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder. “You were born to fill this role and you can’t ignore your duty to breed the next Malfoy heir.” 

“The Malfoy heir doesn’t exist anymore. The family name died when I disinherited myself.”

“You’ll come to your senses,” she approached him slowly and ran a finger down his arm. “We both know that you’ve always been curious about me. About us. We were meant to be Draco. The picture of pureblood royalty. Can you imagine how powerful our children would be?” 

Draco shook his head and took a step back, putting distance between them. “I’ve never been interested in you or about us. You’re delusional.” 

She advanced again, “You sure about that? I happen to remember a night when we were betrothed. You seemed perfectly curious then.” 

“What are you talking about?” Draco seethed. “When I was forced to hold your hand while your parents were drolling on about pureblood ideals?”  He could not believe the shit she was spewing towards him. He had never approached her intimately in any way during their betrothal. 

But then he heard her . “Draco?”

He turned around immediately to find Hermione standing there with tears falling down her beautiful face. His heart sank as he canceled the muffliato and moved further away from Astoria. 

“Hermione, I promise it’s not what it looks like. Let me explain.” 

“Do explain, darling. Lucius is waiting for your answer and I’ll be waiting in your chambers,” Astoria purred, running her hand down his arm once more. 

She then apparated away before Draco could turn on her. 

“What?” Hermione croaked.

“She’s not telling the truth, Hermione, I promise,” he rasped, approaching her with his hands in a position of surrender. “I’ll tell you everything at home but she tried to get me to reinstate the engagement which I vehemently said no to and I swear on my life that I don’t want that.”

“Why was she here? Why didn’t you tell me you were going to talk to her?”

“I felt someone watching us and when I saw her I told you I was going to the loo so it wouldn’t ruin your time because you were really looking forward to today. I thought I could get rid of her and then tell you at home.” Draco was breathing heavily. He felt like his entire life was on the line. 

“I…” Hermione hiccuped and then started to cry. “I want to believe you.” 

“Please, little lion,” he begged, cupping her face. “Please believe me. I promised you I would never leave you and our cubs and I’m not going to break that promise. We can face her and my father together. I shouldn’t have lied to you.” Draco was frantic; he knew his eyes were wild. 

Hermione hugged herself and took a step away from him.

“No, Draco,” she said softly, shaking her head. “This is your mess. Until you deal with this, I think we should take some time. I can let you know when you can come see Lynx and Lyra. I won’t keep you from them. I just…I still don’t trust you fully and until then, I think you should stay at your house.”

“No,” he cried. “Hermione, please. This isn’t fair.”

“Not fair?” She laughed in disbelief. “This entire situation is unfair. The fact I have to deal with a man who couldn’t choose me is unfair. The fact that you continue to hurt me is unfair, even when you don’t intend to. The fact that I still love you despite EVERYTHING is unfair.” She yelled, drawing their friends' attention. 

She turned and stalked off to the group, collecting the twins in their stroller. Harry and Ginny left immediately with her while Blaise and Pansy ran to Draco.

“What the fuck?” Pansy seethed. “What did you do?!” 

“Astoria showed up,” Draco choked out. “Said all this untrue bullshit and it just showed Hermione that she still doesn’t trust me. I’m going to lose them, Pansy.” He sank to the ground, not knowing what to do as he began sobbing in earnest. 

“Blaise, take him to yours. He shouldn’t be near anyone right now,” Pansy ordered. 

“Fuck, Draco,” Blaise sighed, grabbing the wizard and apparating away. 

Pansy strode back to the group with purpose. 

“What the fuck happened?” Theo asked with deadly calm. “What did he do?” 

“Astoria came and fucked everything up. Apparently she was telling all these lies and apparated away before Draco could do anything about it. Hermione doesn’t know what to believe. Blaise took Draco back to his place.” 

“Fucking ferret,” Ron seethed as he kicked at the grass. 

“Right, I’m leaving,” Theo apparated away before anyone could stop him. 

“What should we do?” Daphne asked. “Poor Hermione.” 

“We just have to be there for her. She’s so lonely and now she’s probably thinking that she’s going to raise those two without him again.” 

“Well that’s not true at all,” Neville cut in. 

“Of course it's not, darling,” Pansy agreed. “We need to take care of Astoria and then we clean Draco up for Hermione.” 

“He doesn’t deserve her,” Ron argued. 

“No shit, Weasel, but that’s not up to you to decide,” Pansy spat. “Blaise, Daph and I will help Draco take down the frigid bitch while you, Luna, the Potters, and Neville will be on Hermione duty with the babies. I’m sure Theo is in that camp as well.” Pansy rolled her eyes as she mentioned Theo. She loved the tosser but she knew he would just make this mess even more complicated. 

******

Hermione held a sleeping Lynx and Lyra to her chest as she rocked them in their nursery. Since coming home from the park, Hermione had gone mute. She was completely lost in her mind as she thought about how she had gone off to find Draco and suggest that they go on a date. He had been so hesitant since they came home from the hospital, telling her that he would take things at her pace. 

Clearly, she wasn’t ready. 

Hearing Astoria talk about “his chambers” and seeing her run her fingers along Draco’s arm had shattered the confidence she had built in their relationship. She had let him in too soon and again, she was paying the price. 

She wanted to believe Draco. Deep down she knew she actually did believe him but the fact that she wasn’t 100% sure proved to her that she was not ready for them to get back together. He still had so much he needed to do before he could be the partner that she needed and deserved. 

Harry and Ginny were downstairs waiting for her with a cup of steaming hot tea but Hermione couldn’t bring herself to face them yet. Just this morning her and Draco had been happy. How fragile their relationship was. 

A sob escaped Hermione as she bent her head down to kiss her babies. 

“We’ll be alright,” she promised. “I love you both so much.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 16

The level of Draco’s fury had reached a limit that he’d never experienced before. Rage coursed through his veins like a poison, infecting his heart and mind as he paced Blaise’s study, imagining all the ways he can kill Lucius and Astoria without anyone finding out. He was sick of the man who was supposed to be his father trying to control his life when all he’d ever done was bring him and his mother pain. 

“Firewhiskey?” Blaise asked, pouring himself a glass as he watched Draco with wary eyes. 

Draco shook his head, not trusting himself to fly off the handle if he touched alcohol. He needed a clear head. He felt so incredibly idiotic for thinking that Lucius and Astoria would just disappear from his life if he dropped the Malfoy name. Shouldn’t that be enough? Why were they still so bloody insistent on him? 

He growled, frustrated with how stark the beginning and end of his day were from each other. 

Why did he feel like he could just walk up to Astoria at the park while his little lion and newborns were just a few meters away? He should have told Hermione immediately. Instead, he felt like he needed to protect his family. Protect Hermione from her day being ruined but, in reality, he ruined more than just her day. He ruined the fragile blooming of their reconciliation. 

He swore, running his hands through his hair. He couldn’t accept that it was over. He could fix this. He needed to prove to Hermione that this horrible part of his life was over. He would not be a puppet to Lucius and his pureblood ideals. He would not surrender to Astoria’s whims. He was stronger than this. He was Draco Black. No longer a Malfoy. This was a new beginning for him. A chance. 

“Call Owen,” Draco ordered, striding to the window and looking out to the gardens outside Zabini Manor. 

Blaise nodded, finishing his drink then striding over to the floo. A few minutes later, his assistant wiped the soot off his suit from the hearth.  

“So what happened now?” Owen asked, raising a brow at Blaise since Draco was still staring out the window, clearly lost in thought. 

“Astoria ambushed Draco at our party for their twins. She said all this untrue shit of course and it just proved to Hermione that she doesn’t fully trust him yet.” 

“We have to ruin her and Lucius,” Draco said, still looking out the window. 

“There is already a protective order against her,” Owen pondered. “We can say that she violated it.” 

“That can only do so much,” Pansy declared, striding into the study with Daphne on her heels. Blaise handed her and Daphne a tumbler of firewhiskey. 

“Boys,” Daphne acknowledged as she took a sip. 

“Pansy is right. We need to ruin Astoria socially,” Draco said, crossing his arms over his chest as he turned to the group. “That’s what she cares about. With her behavior, I’m sure that won’t be hard to do. With Lucius, he’s already on thin ice with my mother. When she hears about this, I think divorce could be on the table. She’ll be livid. She has been dying to meet Lynx and Lyra and won’t be happy with today’s developments.” He released a heavy sigh. 

“Leave Astoria to me and Pansy,” Daphne said, looking directly at Draco. “Between us, we know every magical designer across Europe. We can excommunicate her from their circles.” 

Pansy smileed ferally. “It won’t be hard but it may take some time. Blacklisting is an art form.” 

“I also doubt that Lord and Lady Greengrass are still keen on me. I’m a disinherited member of the Sacred 28, which means I’m at the bottom of the totem pole. Blaise and I can find other matches for her and send to her parents as… goodwill for me breaking the match. I know Goyle is single and has been pining after Astoria since Hogwarts.”

Daphne nodded solemnly. “If anyone can bring Astoria to heel, it's our parents. She doesn’t fancy Greg though.” 

“I don’t give a fuck,” Draco replied curtly. Blaise snorted.

“It only means that she won’t be as agreeable to the match,” Daphne explained. “We will need to sweeten the deal.”

“That’s why we’re going to ruin her reputation,” Pansy jumped in. “She won’t have a choice. Greg will be her best choice for a match. No one else will want her.” 

“Do whatever you two need to do,” Draco ordered, returning his attention to outside the window. 

“Do you want me to do anything about the protection order?” Owen asked Draco, a little incredulously. “It’s the most obvious and immediate next step.” 

“Yes,” he answered. “File the report to Potter since he was there and will take it seriously. If Hermione and I file at the same time, then we can request an obliviation of certain memories too under grounds of protection. Make that happen. Astoria sounded unhinged when she was talking to me. Made my skin crawl. You know what, I also want Aurors to watch Hermione’s house. Make sure that happens.”  

The road before him was beginning to clear. Hermione was right, she shouldn’t have to clean up his mess. He got them into this situation and he would get them out of it. 

*****

Hermione joined Harry and Ginny a little after the twins fell asleep. She accepted the tea gratefully from Ginny as she sat down at the kitchen table and took a sip. 

“Thanks for coming back with me but I really want to be alone right now. I just want to cuddle up with Lynx and Lyra.” 

“I know, ‘Mione,” Harry said gently, reaching for her hand that was resting on the table next to her tea cup. “We just want to make sure you’re okay and ask what we can do to help.” 

“You know I actually believe him,” she confessed, looking into the eyes of her best friend. “I know he doesn’t want her but I just can’t shake the lingering doubt in his commitment to me and our children. I need him to finish all this personal drama with his family and the Greengrasses before we can even think about being together again.” 

Ginny nodded, reaching for her hand joined with Harry’s. “I think that’s a great idea. Just focus on the little ones for now and if it’s meant to be, it will happen” 

“Ugh, I hate that phrase,” Hermioned groaned as Ginny smiled. 

The floo sounded and Hermione’s eyes widened. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll check to make sure it’s not Malfoy,” Harry assured her. 

Hermione rested her head in her hands as she watched Harry head into her sitting room. “I cured Lycanthropy and helped Harry end a war. How can I be this affected by a man?” 

“Love,” Ginny answered simply. Hermione sighed. 

“Good news is that it wasn’t Draco and I now blocked your floo so he doesn’t show up unannounced. Bad news is that this tosser is now here,” Harry announced, pointing behind him to an impeccably dressed Theo.

“Theo, what are you doing here?” Hermione asked as the man crossed the kitchen in an instant and kissed her on the forehead. 

“I wanted to make sure my favorite girl was okay,” he replied with a smirk, crouching down in front of her, a concerned look overtaking his handsome features. 

“Don’t tell me ‘I told you so’ or I will hurt you, Theodore Nott,” Hermioned warned the curly haired Slytherin. 

Theo sighed, “That’s the last thing I want to say to you, sweetheart. I just want you to be happy.” 

He rose to take a seat between Hermione and Ginny and looked between all three of them who stared back at him quizzically. 

Theo rapped his knuckles on the table. “Right, so what's our plan?” 

Hermione blinked. “What do you mean? Draco needs to sort this. I have two newborns to take care of.” 

“You should file a complaint against Astoria for your protection order, Hermione. She violated it today and the fact that she knew we would be there is concerning.” Harry said. 

Ginny and Theo both nodded in agreement.  

“I know,” Hermione said. “I just can’t deal with this right now.” 

“Malfoy will likely file one too. Filing together as a united front will be important to dispute any claims she may have and make this a larger deal. We don’t know what she may do to you, Lynx or Lyra.” 

Hermione swallowed. “You’re right. File the complaint and do whatever you need to do to make her go away. I just want my babies protected.” 

“They are, sweetheart, don’t worry,” Theo assured her. “Potter, can you assign an Auror to her house?” 

Harry nodded. “I’m going to station myself and Ron on alternating schedules for the time being. With the complaint filed, we can move to request an obliviation of your home from her memory.” 

“That sounds a bit extreme,” Hermione replied. “You know how I feel about memory charms.”

“Think about Lynx and Lyra,” Theo told her. 

“I am!” She snapped. “I just can’t think of obliviation without my parents and I despise how it’s allowed in the ministry.” She bit her lower lip in thought, fighting herself internally. “Fuck…okay this goes against every piece of my moral code but if that’s what needs to be done to keep them safe then do it.” 

A tap at her window interrupted them from their conversation. Harry rose to open the window to allow Draco’s eagle owl in. Hermione sighed as she opened the letter and recognized his signature scrawl. 

Skimming his words, she relayed his message to the group, “He has similar ideas to us but he’s planning a full attack against her and Lucius. He wants to file a complaint together and immediately request the obliviation, then work with her parents to create a new betrothal of her and Gregory Goyle.” 

Theo snorted. “What about Lucius?” 

“Apparently Draco is going to file a motion to remove communication rights from Lucius based on Astoria’s claims and Narcissa wants to divorce him…” Hermione trailed off. “Wouldn’t that make him more volatile?”   

“If he can’t reach anyone on the outside then he can’t do anything,” Harry assured her. “Lucius is in Azkaban for life.” 

Hermione nodded. “He also asked if he could see the twins tomorrow.” She broke out a pen and summoned a piece of parchment. 

“What are you saying back?” Theo asked, trying to see what she was writing. 

“I’m filling him in on our conversations, essentially agreeing with him and saying that he can come over in the morning to see Lynx and Lyra. Him and I need to talk anyway about all of this and I want to hear him out. We need to co-parent after all.” 

“I can stay with you tonight Hermione if you’d like,” Ginny offered. “I want practice anyway for when Harry and I get pregnant.” 

“Ginny, that's so sweet of you, are you sure?” 

“Only if you promise I’m the godmother of your next child,” she smirked. 

Hermione rolled her eyes and laughed. “I knew you required something but yes of course I already wanted you for that.” 

Ginny squealed.

“It’s not happening anytime soon though!” Hermione said with a smile. “Draco and I have enough on our hands. Let us focus on our babies.” 

“Draco huh?” Harry chuckled. 

“Merlin,” Hermione muttered. “Ignore me, I'm tired. I don’t know. Let’s go upstairs, Ginny. Thank you all for being here for me.” 

“We’re always here for you, Hermione,” Theo smiled. 

Harry nodded. “I’ll be down here keeping watch and I already sent a patronus to Ron to let him know what the plans are when I got Theo at the floo.” 

Hermione smiled gratefully and motioned for Ginny to follow her up the stairs. While she felt uncertain about her future with Draco, she was relieved that a plan had been put together so quickly. 

Ginny joined her in the nursery as they watched Lynx and Lyra sleep peacefully. She held her best friend and couldn’t help but think about how maybe her and Draco had jumped back into what could have been too quickly. She couldn’t deny that she loved him but she knew that their children deserved a healthy foundation and that couldn’t be done until she trusted him again and the past was fully put behind them.

Chapter Text

Chapter 17

Azkaban loomed large as Narcissa approached on the ferry. When she had initially learned of how Draco managed to muddle his relationship with Hermione again , she was ready to hex her only son. She understood his initial need to protect Hermione’s day and take care of the Astoria situation on his own but honestly how could men be so daft sometimes? 

She cast a warming charm on herself as she finally entered the prison, putting on a cool mask of indifference. Truthfully, she wasn’t sure how she felt about seeing Lucius today for the first time since Draco disinherited himself. They had always had a loving relationship. It wasn’t a love match per say but they had grown to love each other in their own way. 

Since she was next of kin to Lucius she was able to see his visitor list and, just as she and Draco thought, a Miss Astoria Greengrass had come to visit her husband three times in the last few months. 

Well, this was going to make her visit a WHOLE lot easier. 

Lucius was chained to the visitors table, his long hair had become brittle and wrinkles sagged into his skin. Despite this, he looked poised and confident, a smirk playing at his lips. 

“Lucius,” she drawled. “It seems you’ve been busy since I last wrote you.” 

“Darling,” he purred. “Whatever do you mean?” 

“Last I checked, it was uncouth for an unmarried woman to visit somebody else’s husband. Care to explain why Miss Greengrass felt it necessary to visit and not inform me nor send her parents in her stead?” 

Lucius remained passive. “The poor woman was distraught at losing her betrothal agreement to our son. How could I say no?” 

“That same woman showed up at a party for my grandchildren and caused a scene that would make you embarrassed to consider her for the Malfoy name.” 

A feral grin emerged. “Is that so? Tell me, Cissa. Did she end up Imperiusing him?” 

Narcissa’s eyes widened. “Are you mad, Lucius? No, she did not. Was that the plan? Hermione interrupted the conversation they were having.” 

He huffed in annoyance. “I told her that if she wanted to succeed, she should seduce him and Imperius him. That way we get our son back and can continue with the family line.” 

“She failed at both,” Narcissa shook her head in disgust. “Thank Merlin that Hermione arrived when she did then.” 

“That girl was never that bright. It's a shame that Daphne was disinherited.” Lucius took out what appeared to be a small cigar and waved over a guard to light it for him. “Anyways, we have an agreement with the Greengrasses and I will not break it. It’s bad for the family name.”

“Are you mental?” Narcissa asked incredulously. “You’re a Death Eater. THAT is bad for the family name.” 

He rolled his eyes. “Not if the Dark Lord would have won.” 

Narcissa scoffed. “You know what? This is making what comes next a whole lot easier.” She brought out papers from her purse and slid it across the table. “I’m divorcing you, Lucius. I cannot stand by your side a moment longer. A part of me will always love you in some way but it’s getting harder and harder to figure out why.” 

Lucius extinguished the baby cigar on the papers, causing them to smoke slightly. “You will not divorce me.” 

“You think this is the only copy?” Narcissa chuckled, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Don’t be so naive. I don’t need your signature to finalize the divorce since you’re here. We are done, Lucius. I am no longer a Malfoy.” 

She watched as Lucius sat there fuming, seemingly at a loss for words until he replied, “Why are you here then? You didn’t need to deliver this in person.” 

“You’re right, I didn’t,” she responded primly. “I came for closure and to congratulate you on your impending marriage.” 

“What in the name of Salazar are you talking about?” he seethed. 

“Well since Draco is now a Black and you’re the only unattached Malfoy in the family, now you can fulfill the contracts with the Greengrasses and marry Astoria. Originally, we were going to try and convince her parents to cancel the contract and make a new one with Gregory Goyle but when we realized what could happen when I inevitably divorced you, well, we couldn’t resist.” 

His eyes bugged out of his head. “You can’t do this, Cissa! I love you!” 

Now it was Narcissa’s turn to roll her eyes. “I don’t know if that’s true. You’ve only ever loved power and the Malfoy name.” She got up from her seat to leave. “You’ll also be pleased to learn that Astoria will likely join you in Azkaban now that I know she was going to Imperius my son. Thank you for that.” 

“Cissa, don’t leave, please!” 

“Please, Lucius, you’re embarrassing yourself. The Greengrasses have already agreed to the match and the Ministry will bring Astoria here after her trial so you both can be married. You’ll have to fight for conjugal visits in courts of course but I’m sure you both can figure that out. Congrats.” 

She left as Lucius began to rant and rave behind her. She tuned him out. What was that muggle saying? Out with the old, in with the new? She smirked. Men could be so daft. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 18

Little progress was made with Hermione over the weeks that passed since the twins’ park party. While Draco did resume sleeping in the twins' nursery, the moments similar to what had happened in the morning prior to their party had stopped. She was distancing herself emotionally from him. She was there physically, they had found a rhythm in tending to Lynx and Lyra, but any time Draco had tried to talk to her about the party or about them, she closed herself off. He understood, of course, but that didn’t keep him from wishing that she would give him another chance. He respected her boundaries though. The last thing he wanted was for her to drift even further away. 

He couldn’t help but feel like she was pulling away anyways. He was agonizing about his status with his witch. She treated Draco like a friend now and he despised it. She didn’t look at him wistfully or with longing. She treated him like he was Potter and it was driving him insane. A part of him knew that she was just trying to protect herself from getting hurt but he couldn’t help but dwell on the idea that maybe she was going to end up with someone else one day, and the thought of someone else loving her was devastating to him. 

A flicker of hope burned to life in his chest when Draco shared the news of how he was able to end the drama with Astoria and Lucius. She had taken the news with a smirk, learning how Lucius would have to marry the woman once his divorce with Narcissa was finalized. Since then, he caught some glances his way and once, when he was reading to the twins, he caught her watching him with a warm smile and he beamed back at her. 

The flicker grew stronger when Hermione brought up the twins meeting Narcissa on her own while they were stationed on her couch, watching a muggle TV show while she was breastfeeding. “Does Narcissa still wish to meet Lynx and Lyra soon?” 

Draco snapped his attention to his little lion. “She’d love that, Hermione. When?” 

“I’m still on maternity leave so honestly we can do it whenever. It’s not like I do much anyways right now. My whole world is in my arms.” Hermione kissed both of their heads as they suckled. 

Draco’s heart warmed at the sight. “I’ll send her an owl. Perhaps we can meet her at my house? I’m not sure how comfortable you are with having her in your home.” 

Hermione seemed to ponder this for a while and then nodded. “I don’t believe she’s a blood supremacist anymore, especially since she’s divorcing your father and has been so supportive. I just am nervous to have her in my home since I’ve only met her a handful of times at different ministry functions.” 

Draco nodded in understanding, knowing it was his fault that the two most important witches in his life didn’t know each other because of his inaction. 

“That’s completely fair,” he reached over to smooth back a wispy curl from on top of Lyra’s head. "I’m sorry again for what happened at the party, Hermione.” 

She sighed, clearly frustrated that he was bringing up the topic again. “I know you are, Draco. I forgave you. I just don’t trust you yet with my feelings.” 

“I know,” he replied gently, lifting his gaze so he could stare into her golden depths. “You have a right to but I promise that I will never do anything to hurt you again.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Draco.” 

“This one I intend to. You three are my entire world. I want to know what it will take for you to give me another chance?” 

“Action,” she replied simply. “I need action, not pretty words, which you’re doing by the way but I need more. I need time. I need you to respect that.” 

He nodded solemnly. “I’m trying so hard, Hermione.” 

“I see it, Draco, I promise.” 

With that, he dropped the subject, knowing that there wasn’t anymore to say. She would bring it up again when she felt like she could trust him. 

*****

Draco paced the sitting room as he waited for his mother to arrive. Hermione was on the carpet with the twins having tummy time as she made funny faces to see them snort and smile up at her. 

“If anything, I should be the more nervous one,” Hermione said, her attention still solely focused on Lynx and Lyra. “Your daddy needs to relax, right my loves?” she cooed. 

Draco’s eyes widened at her use of daddy. It sounded so good coming from her mouth. His sexual fantasies of her had increased twofold since she had given birth. A repeating vision of her screaming daddy as she came underneath him etched into his mind as he wanked each night. He felt his trousers stiffen and adjusted himself quickly, internally berating himself for being turned on just before this pivotal meeting and in front of his children no less. 

The floo sounded as Narcissa Malfoy stepped through in midnight blue dress robes and her hair perfectly styled in a chignon. He watched her face transform into a large smile as she saw her grandbabies for the first time playing on the floor with Hermione. 

“Hello, Miss Granger,” Narcissa said with a warm smile before turning to Draco. “My dragon.” 

“Mother,” Draco acknowledged, returning a smile. He tilted his head signaling his mother to follow his lead as he sat down on the floor next to Hermione. 

“I would call you Mrs. Malfoy but I’m not sure how to address you now with the divorce,” Hermione said, watching the older witch as she sat next to Draco on the floor. 

“Call me Narcissa, dear,” she responded with a small smile. “Thank you so much for allowing me to come today. It means the world to me to finally meet these two precious darlings.” 

Lyra made a nonsensical sound as Lynx turned his head and reached his little hand for his sister’s, letting out a sigh once they made contact. 

“Narcissa it is,” Hermione replied. “They are very in tune with each other's emotions and needs. They crave contact. Our healer told us that this is common between twins and their bond should grow even stronger with time.” 

“How gorgeous,” Narcissa breathed, tears forming in her eyes. “They are absolutely beautiful. I see a little of both of you in them. Curly hair for Hermione, blonde for Draco. They both have Draco’s nose but your lips, Hermione.” 

“They both have Draco’s eyes but Lyra has flecks of gold coming through,” Hermione added. 

“Can I hold them?” Narcissa asked. 

“Of course,” Hermione replied. “They are basically finished with tummy time anyways. Do you want to sit on the armchair over there and we’ll bring them over to you?” 

Narcissa nodded eagerly as she made her way over. Draco shot Hermione a grateful look as he bent to pick up Lyra while Hermione held Lynx.

“Oh they are so precious,” she said softly, gazing down at their little faces as they rested on Narcissa’s chest. She turned to Hermione, “Hermione, I promise you that I no longer believe in the blood purity nonsense that my husband is subscribed to and Draco is lucky to have had you. I’m so sorry for everything that my family has put you through over the years, especially recently. You don’t deserve that. I hope one day you can forgive me for the role that I played in the war and the fact that my son didn’t feel secure enough to tell me about your relationship. I’m so sorry.” 

Hermione blinked back tears. “Thank you, Narcissa.” She paused, gathering herself. “I really appreciate you saying that and we wouldn’t have won the war if you didn’t lie for Harry.”

She turned her gaze toward Draco, “I would do anything for my son.” 

Draco gave her a warm smile in return. 

The remainder of Narcissa’s visit was overwhelmingly positive and, to Draco’s slight surprise, the two witches became quickly well acquainted, bonding over stories of a young Draco and Hermione sharing stories of how they were able to hide their relationship. Narcissa had been floored, she could not believe she had not suspected anything, chalking up Draco’s disappearances over the years to being with his friends. 

He watched them both fondly, scolding himself for not introducing them sooner. He had known that his mother would come to love Hermione but he did not know it could happen as fast as it was. He loved how Hermione’s eyes would twinkle each time she would giggle at something Narcissa shared or when his mother flashed one of her rare full face grins in the direction of Hermione and his children. His mother had smiled more today than she had in the last few years combined. He shouldn’t be surprised though. That was the power that Hermione yielded. The ability to make anyone feel like they were the center of the universe and to feel so unconditionally loved. He cursed himself for what felt like the millionth time for being such a fool. 

His mother left late into the afternoon, well after Hermione set the twins down for their afternoon nap in the nursery of Draco’s home, which of course was a spitting image of Hermione’s. He watched as his little lion settled into an armchair with her tea after his mother flooed home. 

“That went better than I expected,” she confessed, taking a sip. 

“I’m so glad to hear that,” he smiled, watching her intently. She looked more relaxed than she had in ages. 

“I knew you wouldn’t lie about your mother but you must understand that I had to see it for myself.” 

“Hermione, you’ve barely properly met my mother before. I completely understand being here while she met Lynx and Lyra. I’m just sorry I kept this budding friendship between you two from happening.” 

She chuckled, “I am quite cross about that too. Your mother is quite funny, you know.” 

“Not many have the pleasure of seeing her like that,” he smirked. “I’m happy you’re one of them.” 

“Me too,” she smiled back.

Chapter Text

Chapter 19

In the blink of an eye, Lynx and Lyra were almost ten months old and crawling all over both of their parents' homes. Hermione sat on the floor of their nursery, playing peekaboo with an overenthusiastic Lyra while Lynx sat with his dragon stuffie watching skeptically. 

Hermione remembered when they were both able to sit up by themselves for the first time, summoning Draco with her patronus so he could experience it as well. Lyra had achieved it first, babbling at her brother as if she was teaching him how to do it. Within minutes, he was sitting up in front of her reaching for his sister with his chubby fingers while Lyra tried to clap as she bounced on her bottom. Hermione had teared up, emotional about the obvious bond the two shared and proud of her babies. 

Lynx’s scrutinizing gaze caused Hermione to giggle, reminding her so much of his father. Lyra screamed in excitement as Hermione opened her hands to expose her face. Lynx turned to his sister in alarm before seemingly giving up and returning his attention to his stuffie. 

“Knock, knock!” A voice sounded from the door. 

Hermione turned her attention from Lyra to Theo who stood in the doorway with a charming smile and his signature dark green dress robes. 

“Theo!” She replied warmly. “Why are you all dressed up?”

The wizard entered the room and scooped up Lyra with dramatic flair, who yelled enthusiastically and reached for his chocolate curls. He gave a kiss before setting Lyra back down next to her stuffie.

Meanwhile, Lynx used the moment to crawl towards his mother, begging to be picked up. He clung to her, babbling as if he was telling her something serious. Hermione couldn’t help but feel like Lynx was trying to create distance between herself and Theo. While Lyra was warm with everyone she met, Lynx was more selective and he had not yet accepted Theo. 

“I’m actually meeting Charlie,” he said sheepishly. “He’s in town and asked to talk.” 

“Oh!” Hermione’s eyes went wide. “How do you feel about it?”

Theo sighed. “I’m not sure honestly. I won’t do anything casual. I learned that last time. I want something real.”

“What if he’s ready for that now?”

“That’s why I’m here.” 

Hermione furrowed her brows in confusion. 

“You have to know I have feelings for you, Hermione,” Theo explained. “I want to know if there’s a chance that we could ever be together. If there is, then I’ll tell Charlie to bugger off. But if not, then I might give him another chance if that’s why he’s here.” 

Lynx started babbling again like he was answering for his mother. 

“Theo, my situation is complicated,” she began. “I have twins with a wizard I have an intense history with and I can’t understand my own feelings towards him. Until I know that, I can’t give you an answer.” She took a step towards him. “I know that’s not the answer you want to hear but I think you should hear Charlie out. Don’t wait for me, Theo. That’s not fair to you.”

His face fell but he nodded, “I understand, Hermione.”

“Besides, if you still have feelings for Charlie you need to explore that. I’m in a position right now where I can’t just think about me. I have two little ones too so I can’t be with someone who may not want me in a few years.” 

“Hermione, I’ve wanted you since Hogwarts,” he replied vehemently. 

She blushed furiously. “You know what I mean though.” 

“I suppose I understand where you’re coming from but please don’t tell me how I feel. I would do right by you.” He looked at her imploringly.

“I know you would, Theo,” she gave him a small smile. “But you deserve a partner who is sure too and I’m just not in a place to do that right now.” 

“Please tell me if anything changes, okay?” He asked, placing his palm gently against her cheek. Lynx reached up and smacked his little hand against Theo’s. 

Hermione giggled, “Someone is a very possessive little boy.” 

Theo rolled his eyes, “I wonder who that came from.” 

“That would be me,” Draco stated coldly. He stood by the entryway with his gaze trained on Theo. His eyes flickered to Lyra who had started playing with her pink dragon stuffie on the ground. He strolled to his daughter and picked her up, placing a kiss to her curly blonde head. “What are you doing here, Nott?” 

“Just having a private conversation with Hermione,” Theo replied, equally as cold. He removed his hand from her cheek and turned back to her. “I’ll talk to you soon.” 

She smiled, “Bye Theo, let me know how it goes.” 

The curly haired Slytherin nodded before leaving the room. Draco’s eyes followed him out as he bounced his daughter in his arms. 

“Theo and I were just talking, Draco,” Hermione said, kissing Lynx’s little head. The boy relaxed in the presence of his father, cooing as he watched Draco holding his sister. 

“It seems Lynx and I think differently,” he said, his voice devoid of any warmth. 

Hermione narrowed her eyes, “now is hardly the time for a conversation like this” she looked pointedly at the twins. “And, in case you forgot, we are not together so you have no right to behave like this.” 

“I know, Hermione,” he said, his voice strained. “It’s just really hard to think of you with him or anyone else when it should be me.” 

“Again, not here Draco.” 

He nodded, “Whenever you’re ready. Please just know I’ll be waiting and there’s no one else I want. You’re it, Hermione. Unlike Theo, there’s no dragon tamer who wants to meet up and I promise there is no pure blood bride that could change my mind.” 

She sighed. “I’m trying, Draco. I told him that I have to sort my feelings for you before I could attempt any type of relationship either with you or someone else. Besides, the well-being of Lynx and Lyra are my top priority.”

Draco’s gaze softened. “I know, little lion.” He took a deep breath and then said, “I’m here to see if I could take the twins for a walk? I figured you might want some time to yourself.” 

She smiled, “Yes that’d be great actually. I could use a run.” She handed Lynx to his father. Lyra immediately reached for her brother and they babbled at each other as each rested their heads on their father’s shoulders.

“I wonder what they talk about,” Hermione wondered aloud, watching them lovingly.

“I would give anything to know,” he replied.

“Alright I’ll meet you downstairs to say goodbye, I’ll be right there.”

After throwing on a pair of leggings, sports bra and a tank top, Hermione padded down the stairs. She was thrilled to have this time every couple days to go for runs. She knew it would be hard to get her body back to what she was used to, and frankly she didn’t care too much about looking the same, but she wanted to be confident in how she looked. Running helped with that and also allowed her to turn her brain off for once. Some of her best decisions and ideas came after a long run. 

Draco’s eyes raked down her body and Hermione felt herself blush as he so openly ogled her. 

“Do you have everything you need?” She asked, lacing up her trainers and ignoring his obvious staring. 

When she didn’t hear a reply, she looked up to find the wizard still watching her. “Draco? I asked you a question.”

“What? Sorry, Granger.” His cheeks turned pink as he blushed, causing a smirk of her own to form. 

“I asked if you have everything you need?”

“Oh yes, we’ll be just fine. I hope you enjoy your run. We’ll be back in about 45 minutes but if you want to run longer you can.”

She flashed him a grateful smile. “Thanks! I’ll see you all soon.” She kissed both Lynx and Lyra on the forehead before heading out. 

——

Draco had always been possessive but nothing matched the level he felt when it came to Hermione. With Lynx and Lyra in the world? It tripled. 

Now, watching Theo in their children's’ nursery with his hand on the mother of Draco’s children – and one day wife he told himself – had made Draco see red. 

Mine . 

“That would be me,” Draco said coldly, his eyes flashing with anger. He had taken stock of every touch and glance Theo made toward Hermione since Draco had come back into her life. Draco knew, he knew , that he wasn’t allowed to feel this way towards her. He had fucked that chance when he broke both of their hearts. Yet, he couldn’t help himself. That all encompassing feeling to make Hermione know that she was his kept trying to break to the surface and Draco was trying desperately to lock it down. 

She was his reason for breathing. Their children were his air. He needed both to survive and he wouldn’t allow anyone to come between that. 

He cooed at Lyra as he set her next to her brother in the stroller. Draco knew how important running was to Hermione. The chance to calm her ever calculating mind. It also gave him the added benefit of seeing her in those muggle leggings that hugged her arse just right and tight little tops that she referred to as a bra of some kind. While he loved them, he despised other wizards and muggle men seeing her like that but it also brought out a sick thrill in him because he knew that she was only his. 

Now though? She wasn’t and Draco was dreading seeing her come down the stairs in what would inevitably cause his cock to harden and his heart to sink. 

He heard her before he saw her. She was skipping down the stairs, her beaming smile blinding him as he took her in. There were so many things he wanted to say to her.

You are so beautiful.

Stop denying us.

Please trust me again. 

I miss you so fucking much. 

Draco was broken out of his thoughts as she called his name again. After saying goodbye, he looked at his two cubs and he could have sworn they were smirking at him. Draco rolled his eyes but he matched their little grins. 

“Soon little lions, soon.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 20

A week later, as Hermione ran through the trails of Hampstead Heath park, her thoughts weighed heavily on her from the past year. She saw how hard Draco was trying to make up for his massive mistake and it was clear that he still loved her. He proved it through each longing look, being the perfect father to Lynx and Lyra, his willingness to essentially do whatever she wanted, and the space he gave her to work through her feelings. While she always forgave, she never forgot. And while she forgave Draco, she had a hard time figuring out how to move forward with him. 

She still loved him deeply and she wanted her children to grow up in a family with parents who were in a committed and loving relationship. However, if trust wasn’t there yet, then Hermione knew she would never be able to truly move on, which would set up their future for disaster and that’s the last thing she wanted for her new family. 

Hermione picked up her pace slightly as she bounded down a hill, thinking of Astoria. The witch was now married to Lucius and serving a two year sentence in Azkaban for violating the protection order and having intent to Imperius Draco based on Lucius’ accusations. Hermione had spoken at length with both Pansy and Daphne about the situation and how deep down she knew that Astoria had been fabricating her relationship with Draco but she couldn’t bring herself to outright dismiss it. No matter how much she wanted to. Hermione’s heart at the time was still too fractured to take Draco at his word no matter how much she wanted to sweep it under the rug. She needed to continue her healing without their relationship distracting from that. It wouldn't be fair to her or Draco.  

Each day though, she felt her heart mending just a little bit more. Her trust in him became just a little bit stronger. She started to return the longing glances, thought about how it felt to be held by him, loved by him, and cherished by him. She would never admit this to anyone, but she even missed how he used to take care of her and she loved how he would get off on doing it. To Hermione, Draco was her home and she had felt somewhat displaced ever since their break up. The birth of Lynx and Lyra helped to bridge the gap but she couldn’t help feeling like something was missing and she knew it was Draco. 

He was her safe space and guardian. He knew how she was feeling before she could even identify it herself. It was as if he had received an O in Hermione Granger. Not even Harry or Ron knew her like Draco did. He was her other half and she missed him. She was tired of second guessing herself and her feelings. She knew what she wanted and what she had to do. 

So Hermione decided toward the end of her long run, as she approached her home where Draco and her babies were playing inside, that she would give Draco Malfoy a chance. She could no longer deny the ache in her chest each time she saw him with Lynx and Lyra. How right it felt to be with him when putting them down to sleep. 

Opening the door, she found Draco making sandwiches. She melted, knowing that he knew she would likely forget after her shower since one of the twins would likely need something. 

Draco turned from where he stood, smirking, likely thinking the exact same thing. He set the mustard and turkey down, turning so he could lean against the counter with his arms folded. 

Merlin, he was so sexy . His arms corded at the movement and biceps flexed. His eyes darkened, taking in her sweaty body. 

Without saying a word, Hermione marched up to her wizard, who furrowed his brows in confusion as he watched her, and kissed him like she had wanted to for months. She molded into his body as Draco stood there, clearly not expecting the kiss. He hesitated for a fraction of a second before groaning and wrapping his arms tightly around her, settling on the curve of her arse and pushing her further into him. Hermione moaned as she felt him harden against her. 

She gasped, breaking the kiss as Draco kissed her jawline. “Where are Lynx and Lyra?” 

“I put them down for their nap about 10 minutes ago,” he replied between kisses as he moved to her neck. 

“So we have time then,” she stated, arching her neck in invitation. 

Draco paused and turned his gaze back to her, “Hermione, please don’t tease me. I need you to be sure. I’ve missed you so bloody much.” 

“I’m sure, Draco,” she whispered before kissing him again, trailing her tongue along his bottom. “I love you. I missed you so much too.” 

“Oh fuck,” Draco’s eyes widened as he picked her up and silencio’d his feet, striding towards the stairs and up to her bedroom. After locking and warding the door, he laid her on the bed, gazing at her longingly. “I love you too, little lion. I’m never letting us go again. I’m so sorry - I was so fucking stupid.” 

“Shh, it’s okay, Draco,” she said gently, reaching toward his face and running her fingers through the soft strands of his hair. “I already forgave you but I’ll say it again. I forgive you.” She trailed her hands down his chest and attempted to remove his shirt. 

Draco grunted as he roughly pulled it off, eager to be naked with his witch. 

“Make love to me, Draco, please,” she begged, watching as his pupils dilated. He bent down to do just that, claiming her lips with all the passion that they had missed over the last year. 

Finally, she felt at home .

Chapter Text

Chapter 21

Mine.

Mine.

MINE.

Draco’s thoughts were on a constant loop of possessiveness as he took his time to kiss every trace of skin on Hermione’s body. She writhed underneath him, moaning his name that only ignited the feeling in his chest. He was burning for her. 

She was delectable. He could taste the salt on her skin from her run and it made him groan as he licked it off her. Starting with the curve of her neck and then making his way down to her navel. She had vanished the remainder of their clothes once he began to kiss her in earnest, causing his already hard cock to turn rock solid, pre-cum beading from the top. 

He was ravenous. Every whimper, plea, and moan from her was feeding his desire. He finally reached her glistening pussy and moaned at how wet she was. His left hand snaked up her body to knead her breast as his right rested on her hip to bring her pussy closer to his waiting mouth. 

“You have no idea how much I have been aching to taste you again,” he rasped, taking the flat of his tongue and licking through her folds to her clit. “So fucking delicious, little lion. Is this all for me?” 

“Yes,” she breathed, staring down at him, her hands coming to rest in his hair. “It’s always been just for you.” Draco’s eyes rolled to the back of his head at her declaration. She knew him too fucking well. 

That’s right. You’re mine. Fucking MINE. 

Instead of responding, he dove into her pussy, sucking on her clit in waves. Hermione cried out, hands tightening in his hair.

“That’s it, baby. Ride my face,” he demanded, circling his tongue around her bud as he removed his left hand from her breast and inserted one finger into her tight channel. She began to move her hips to match the thrusting of his finger. With her hands, she guided Draco back to her clit where he flicked it with tongue in rapid succession. She was panting, rolling her hips against his face. 

“Fuck, Draco, you’re so good,” she cried. “Just like that, OH!” 

He could tell she was getting close, her pussy fluttering around his finger as he inserted a second and began to thrust deeper, curling his fingers just so to reach her front wall. 

“Draco, Draco, DRACO!” she chanted, breathing heavily and rolling her hips even faster. 

He then sucked her clit into his mouth and she broke spectacularly. A gush of her orgasm flooded his fingers and moaned as it traced down his chin. Removing his fingers, he licked down to her entrance to clean the remnants of her pleasure. 

“Taste like fucking sunshine,” he muttered, bringing her hips impossibly closer. His left fingers, covered in her essence, moved to trace tight circles on her clit. 

“Oh fuck..” she cried. “Draco!” She came again, flooding his mouth and Draco preened. 

Tastes so good. All mine. So good for me.

She pulled on his hair, dragging Draco up to meet her lips in a fierce, all consuming kiss. 

“Do you like the taste of yourself, baby?” he asked while rolling his cock against her folds. 

“Yessss,” she gasped. “OH please fuck me Draco, I need you.” 

Not needing to be asked twice, he reached for his wand and cast the contraceptive charm. A warm pink glow seeping into the skin of her stomach. 

“I’ve dreamt of you every night, little lion,” he told her, teasing the tip of his cock at her entrance. Hermione snaked her hand down his chest, sending shivers down his spine. She reached his cock and grasped him firmly, causing Draco to hiss. 

“I dreamt of you too, Draco,” she whispered. “I missed us. I’m so sorry it took me so long.” She ran her palm along his cock, gripping his base firmly before gliding to the tip and back. 

Draco gasped as she picked up her pace. “No love, don’t apologize.” He crashed his lips to hers. She parted her lips in invitation and he began to fuck her mouth with his tongue. 

He broke the kiss, panting and bucking his hips into her hand. “I’m going to fuck you so full of my seed it’ll be like my cock never left your gorgeous cunt.” 

“Pleaseee,” she whined, wriggling her hips closer to his weeping cock. 

Draco entered her in one, swift thrust until he was fully seated. They both moaned loudly at the sensation. He didn’t dare move, allowing him time to adjust and calm down.

Don’t fucking cum. Don’t fucking cum!

“Oh Draco,” she moaned. “You feel so good. Your cock was made for me.” 

Draco’s self-control snapped. He sat up slightly and bent her legs so her knees were by her face, tightening her pussy even more. He groaned, breathing through his nose deeply before beginning to thrust into her hard. 

“So fucking tight, baby,” he snarled, “Taking me so fucking well…This is my pussy…mine…I want to drown in it…Tell me who’s pussy this is.”

“Yours!” she cried, kneading her breasts as he fucked her into the mattress. 

“Good girl,” he moaned, taking his left hand from her ankle to gather some of the wetness from where they were joined and rubbing her clit in tight circles. Immediately her pussy started fluttering. 

“I’m so close!” she gasped. 

He grunted in reply, picking up the pace of his thrusts until her cunt clamped down on his cock with her orgasm, sending him into freefall right behind her. He came hard and loud, as if claiming her for all to hear. 

Thank Salazar they remembered the silencing charm, Draco thought as he wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled her into his chest, rolling onto his back so she hugged him like a koala. 

“I love you, Draco,” Hermione whispered. “I never stopped. I’ve always been yours. I’m so sorry it took me so long to come back to you.” She broke into small sobs at the end, burying her face into his chest. 

“Hey, hey, little lion,” Draco chided softly. “None of that. You did what you needed to do while juggling being a new mother. I was never upset with you so please don’t cry, my love.” 

She nodded although her tears didn’t stop. “I love you so much.” 

“I love you too,” he replied, tilting her chin so he could see her golden eyes. “I loved you when we were sixteen, I love you now, and I’ll love you when we’re old and grey.” 

She smiled at him and it was like the sun was shining in his face. His entire being lit up. 

“Can you take a shower with me?” She asked with a coy smile. His cock twitched at the invitation, still inside her. She whimpered at the feeling. 

Instead of responding, Draco’s right hand moved to cup her arse while the other snaked around her lower back. He lifted both of them from the bed and raced into the bathroom. 

Hermione giggled at Draco’s actions playfully swatting him as he turned on the shower and charmed the water to immediately be warm before he pressed her against the tiles. Still inside her, he pressed their foreheads together and started to thrust languidly as he cupped her arse. 

“Forever,” Hermione whispered, tilting her head to kiss along his jaw. Her arms still wrapped around his neck. 

“Forever,” he agreed, finding her lips with his as they continued to make love under the spray of the shower. 

Chapter Text

Chapter Twenty Two

The next week felt like a dream to Draco. Finally they were back together! His heart leapt each time he thought about it. What once seemed like an impossible feat was now his reality. They felt like a real family. He started sleeping in Hermione’s bed (could it be theirs yet?), making meals for her again, making her come multiple times a day…

At every opportunity, Draco and Hermione shagged. Both expressed how they felt like when they had just gotten together as randy teenagers. He claimed her everywhere he could in both of their houses. On both kitchen counters, his bed, her bed, their studies (Hermione bent over his desk would be a memory he would revisit frequently), their bookshelves, and even her backyard. 

Yes, Draco was feeling like his life was finally coming together. He had even started speaking to Owen about hiring a contractor to figure out how to break the wall down between their houses. Was it too soon? He didn’t think so but he also knew that was a question for Hermione. If he had it his way, this would have already been done the day after they got back together but Draco knew he couldn’t do that. He had tried asking her when she was riding him on the couch of her sitting room but the sudden arrival of his mother had derailed his plans spectacularly. 

Hermione and Narcissa had both let out identical shrieks while Draco turned a bright red, scrambling to cover Hermione and himself with a knit blanket that was hung over her sofa. 

His mother covered her eyes, “I’ll uhh just be heading home, so sorry for not telling you ahead of time! But also about time! Happy for you both! Goodbye darlings!” 

At first Draco thought Hermione would be furious but she continued to surprise him. She had burst out laughing, causing Draco to join her as their foreheads rested against each other. 

“Cat’s out of the bag,” Hermione giggled. 

“What?” Draco asked between chuckles, puzzled at the phrase. 

“Muggle phrase, love,” Hermione sighed, kissing him on the cheek. “It means that we’re not just in our little world anymore.” 

As Draco began to run his fingers down her waist back to her bum, a cry from upstairs stopped him in his tracks. Hermione gave him a languid kiss. 

“That would be Lynx,” she kissed him again. “Let’s head up before Lyra joins the chorus.” 

He whimpered as she dismounted him, throwing on a robe to pad upstairs. Draco found his discarded boxers and joggers, hastily pulling them up and joining his witch in the nursery to take care of their cubs. 

“Are you okay with everyone knowing we’re back together?” Draco asked hesitantly, reaching down to pick up Lyra and join Hermione at the changing station where she stood with Lynx. Hermione had preferred muggle techniques when taking care of the twins. She felt like it was a better way to bond with their children, rather than employing a nanny or house elf or using magic. At first Draco wasn’t sure if he agreed, but soon realized it gave him more time with them and Hermione, which he loved. 

“Yes,” Hermione said automatically. “I don’t want to hide us. We’ve done too much of that.” 

Draco felt his shoulders sag in relief. “I’m so happy to hear you say that.” 

“Did you think I would want to keep us a secret?” She asked, quickly glancing at him before turning her attention back to changing Lynx. Both twins were babbly, as if they were adding their views to the conversation. 

“I honestly wasn’t sure,” he replied truthfully. “I was prepared just in case you did. I thought you might want to see how the first few months were before letting others know.” 

She hummed in thought. “No, I don’t think so. I really want us to work, Draco, and keeping us a secret wouldn’t only harm that.” She finished Lynx’s diaper and blew a raspberry on his belly, causing the baby to erupt in giggles. 

Draco beamed at her, finishing up Lyra and then doing the same. Lyra babbled excitedly, reaching her arms up to Draco so he would pick her up. 

“You have no idea how happy I am, little lion,” Draco said softly, bouncing Lyra in his arms as Hermione approached him with Lynx. 

“I think I have an idea,” she smiled. “I feel the exact same way” She leaned in, giving Draco a soft kiss. 

They parted to find both Lynx and Lyra watching them with wide eyes and gummy smiles, their teeth just starting to poke through. 

“How do you want to tell everyone?” he asked as he followed Hermione out of the nursery and down to the kitchen where the twins’ bottles were waiting. 

“Honestly, I don’t want to wait,” she replied, glancing back at Draco to give him a shy smile as she opened the refrigerator to retrieve their bottles. “We could invite everyone over and do like one big announcement? Or send letters to everyone and just leave the floo open so if anyone wants to come over, then they can if they want?” 

“We’ll have another situation like what my mother walked in on if we do the second one,” Draco smirked, reaching for Lyra’s bottle to feed her. 

Hermione blushed, “You’re right. Well the twins’ birthday party is in a month. We could do it then but I don’t want to wait that long.” 

“I have a meeting with Blaise, Owen and my mother tomorrow so I’ll let them know then. Don’t you have brunch this weekend with basically everyone? You could tell them the news then?” 

She bit her lip in thought and Draco’s eyes were immediately drawn to her mouth. Saliva pooling as he thought about biting that luscious lower lip himself. 

“That’s a good idea,” she replied. “We’re going to muggle London too so we don’t have to worry about the press. I’d rather us make an announcement or be seen together as the catalyst for the public to find out.” 

“Smart, little lion,” Draco placed the empty bottle in the sink next to Lynx’s so they could be magically cleaned together. He followed Hermione into the sitting room where they sat on the floor together so the babies could crawl around and play. Lynx crawled immediately toward his sister, reaching for her. 

“I’m going back to work soon,” Hermione said, twirling a curl with her finger. “I’m going to miss being with them all the time.” 

Draco took her free hand in his and rubbed calming circles into her skin. “I know love but they’ll be so excited to see you when you get home. Mother and I will be here to take care of them while you save the world.” 

“Are you sure you have time to do that, Draco? I mean you just started your new business and I know your mother has the charity work she’s passionate about.” 

“Mother could not be more thrilled about spending more time with the cubs, she’s already planning on giving most of her duties to the other ladies. As for me, I can work from home but I did want to talk to you about potentially hiring Lolly to help when needed.” 

Draco held his breath while he waited for her response. Lolly had been a Malfoy house elf who had essentially raised Draco from birth. She was beloved by Draco and his mother and was paid handsomely once Narcissa freed her after the war. 

Hermione cocked her head in thought. “You know how I feel generally about house elves but I also know that Lolly has been freed for years. If we do this, then I also want to pay her on top of what you and your mother do.” 

Draco’s eyes widened. If that was the case then Lolly would earn more than Owen. Thinking about it though, Lolly did deserve that and it would fuel her addiction to buying designer muggle childrens clothing. 

“Done,” Draco agreed easily. “I’ll organize that this evening for us and let her know. She’ll be thrilled. Lolly has been asking my mother to meet the twins for ages.” 

“What! She could have come over. You know how much I adore Lolly!” Hermione had the cutest look of frustration on her face. 

“It was so tense between us and then we just got back together. I didn’t want to cause any additional strife or stress for you.” He knew how much Hermione loved Lolly. They had gotten along famously ever since she met the house elf back when they were together at Hogwarts. 

“That’s fair, love,” she sighed, watching as Lyra giggled as Lynx babbled to her, waving his dragon stuffie in the air. “I’m sorry it’s been so tense. I feel bad.” 

“Don’t love,” he assured her. “Everything happened the way it needed to for us to come back together. I love you.” 

“I love you too, Draco,” Hermione smiled, leaning toward him and gently kissing him on the lips.

Chapter Text

Chapter Twenty Three

While Hermione was out for a run with the twins using the baby jogger, Draco sat at his desk eagerly waiting for his mother, Blaise and Owen to arrive. While his mother already knew, she was having an extremely hard time keeping the news to herself. She was bursting at the seams, sending owls twice a day since she walked in on them asking if she could tell the ladies in her charity group or talk to Pansy. 

Blaise was the first to arrive, striding in with his robes billowing and a smirk on his face. 

“Why are you so happy?” Draco asked hesitantly. 

“Just came from Luna’s,” Blaise said. “She learned the most interesting position from her visit to Sweden…”

“That’s enough, I don’t need to hear more,” Draco interrupted. While he was happy for his friend, truly he was, he did not need a play by play ruining his current glow from his morning escapade with his little lion. 

His friend settled in one of the chairs across from his desk, the smirk still settled on his face. 

Owen came through next, head buried in his muggle phone. “Okay Draco the magical contractor we both like said it would cost about 500K galleons to clear the wall separating you from Hermione’s home with the least amount of damage…” 

Draco’s eyes widened. Owen would not take the news from him! 

“Little early to be inquiring about that, huh Draco?” Blaise chuckled, looking at him with a raised brow. 

“Owen!” Draco called, distracting the wizard and calling attention to the fact that it was not just them in the room. 

“Preemptive planning, Blaisey,” Owen cooed, winking at the wizard as he leaned against one of Draco’s bookshelves. While Owen didn’t know that he and Hermione were fully back together, he did know that they had shagged. Draco had come back from Hermione’s one morning looking thoroughly fucked with his hair mussed and swollen lips. At the time, Draco was too excited to keep it inside and had told Owen he was making progress. 

Narcissa entered last, her hands resting on her new Birkin that Draco had bought her to keep her hush hush about his new relationship status.

“Darling, please tell me that the news is out?” 

Draco rolled his eyes as Blaise looked at him questioningly. “First order of business, Mother. I was just waiting on you.” 

“Go on then,” she smirked, waiting. 

Draco smiled, “Hermione and I are back together.” 

“Fuck, seriously?” Blaise asked, eyes wide. 

“I JUST THOUGHT YOU TWO WERE FUCKING!” Owen yelled, his hands on his cheeks in shock. 

Blaise turned around, “Wait what?! You knew?” 

“Oh please, I see him every day. He tries to hide that freshly fucked look but I can tell,” he rolled his eyes dramatically. Owen turned back to Draco, clapping his hands with glee as he said, “I’m so happy for you too!” 

Draco laughed as Narcissa squealed excitedly. 

“Fucking finally!” Blaise said, getting up from his seat to embrace him. Draco stood and met Blaise halfway. 

“Thank you for all your support through everything, Blaise,” Draco said seriously as he hugged his best friend. “You are truly one of the best people I know.” 

“Love you too, Draco,” he said, releasing him from the hug to sit back in his chair. 

“So tell us everything,” Owen asked, crossing his arms as he waited eagerly. 

Draco did as requested, telling the group from beginning to end how they got back together. Blaise and Owen had guffawed as Narcissa shuddered when Draco recounted how his mother had originally found out. 

“So what did Hermione say when you asked her how she felt about combining your houses?”
Owen asked, eagerly awaiting Draco’s answer. 

“I haven’t asked her yet,” he sighed. “I keep meaning to but then something else we need to talk about gets in the way. I’m going to ask her after she tells everyone at her brunch tomorrow.” 

“Wait so this means we know before The Chosen One and the Weasel?” Blaise asked with glee. 

Draco smirked, “Yes, actually so please hold it over their heads as much as you want after Hermione’s brunch.” 

“Is Theo going to be at the brunch?” Owen asked, raising a brow in Draco’s direction. 

“Yes,” he said darkly. “But Charlie Weasely will be there too and Hermione tells me that they are back together so he shouldn’t be a problem anymore.” 

“Ooo the dragon tamer brother of the Weasel?” Owen perked up, eyes alight with excitement. 

“Yes…” Draco trailed off, eyeing him with trepidation. 

“What?” Owen scoffed. “He’s hot and so is Theo. You know how badly I want to be in a Triad. Maybe they’d let me be their third.” 

Draco rolled his eyes.

“Theo ended it because Charlie couldn’t commit,” Blaise cut in. “So I doubt he’d be interested.”

“But Blaisey,” Owen smirked. “This is the thing. We’d just share with each other. No one else would be involved.” 

Draco shook his head in exasperation. “As much as I despise Theo right now, I don’t think that’s a good idea, mate. They just got back together and for both selfish reasons and because he used to be my best mate, leave them alone. If Theo comes on to you then maybe go for it.” 

Owen narrowed his eyes at him as he considered, “Fine but only because I work for you!”

He chuckled, then said, “Right so walk me through the costs that the contractor shared and then let’s dive into an update on the latest manufacturing contract for Black Industries. That fucker is trying to overcharge us, I know it…” 

—---

Hermione had chosen the brunch spot strategically within muggle London. She was meeting them at a smaller breakfast spot in Marylebone that was posh enough for Pansy, Daphne and Theo but small enough where there wouldn’t be a chance for the rest of the wizarding world to be present. 

She arrived first (as usual) and called Draco to let him know she had arrived safely. 

He picked up on the first ring, “Little lion, we miss you already.” 

“I miss you three too. I’ve been gone for all of 10 minutes and I already want to come home. Going back to work is going to be so hard.” 

“I know, love, but it will get easier with time, I promise.” His voice was so soothing and Hemione found herself closing her eyes and leaning into the phone. “I wish I could be there right now to help you.” 

“I’m having a hard time remembering why I don’t have you here with me right now,” she confessed, taking a seat at the table. 

Draco chuckled, “It will likely go smoother if I’m not there but text me if you need me and I’ll pop over immediately. I have Lolly on standby.” 

Hermione smiled, “Of course you do.” Lolly had come over the night prior to acquaint herself with both Hermione and Draco’s houses. The little elf was already fawning over Lynx and Lyra. 

She looked up to see Harry and Ginny arrive with Ron. “I have to go, love. I’ll call you as soon as I can.” She waved them over to the table. 

“Talk soon, little lion. Good luck. I love you.” 

“I love you too, Draco,” she smiled into her phone, still brimming with happiness each time they told each other that. 

Ginny arrived at the table first as Hermione shut her phone and placed it in her purse. 

“Mione!” She exclaimed, embracing her in a warm hug. “Where is Lynx and Lyra? I was hoping to see them today.” 

“They’re back at home with Draco,” Hermione explained, tossing her curls over her shoulder as she reached out to hug both Harry and Ron. “They are still teething so sleep has been hard to come by recently for all of us.” 

Hermione cocked her head as she noticed Ginny gave Harry a pleading look. “Spill Potters.” 

Ginny turned and squealed, not waiting for her husband. “I’m pregnant!” 

Hermione’s eyes widened in surprise as she shot out of her chair to hug the witch again. “Congratulations! I know you two have been trying for a while. I’m so happy for you both!” She turned to Harry and gave him a hug as well before turning to Ron, “Did you already know?”  

“I found out last night at the Burrow,” Ron smiled fondly at his sister and Harry. 

“It’s still really early on so we want to keep it to us for a little while longer before telling everyone else,” Harry said as he released Hermione from the hug. 

Hermione nodded, “Of course! Uhm can I tell Draco?”

“Something tells me that you have news as well,” Ginny said conspiratorially, raising an eyebrow in her direction. 

She blushed, “Perhaps I do but I want to wait until everyone is here first.” 

Harry narrowed his eyes and then looked at his wife. They seemed to have a silent conversation between them before he turned back to Hermione and nodded, “Yes, you can tell him as long as the ferret keeps it to himself.” 

“He’ll behave,” Hermione winked at them and Ron groaned. 

“Blimey, I have a feeling I already know.” 

They were interrupted by Pansy as she joined the group with Daphne and Neville in tow. 

“Lions!” She greeted primly, taking a seat next to Ginny with Neville on her opposite side as Daphne joined Ron to sit next to him. 

“How was shopping love?” Ron asked Daphne, kissing his witch on the cheek as he inspected the number of bags that had been minimized to fit in a larger bag she set down under her seat. 

She booped his nose, “You’ll be happy with some of my purchases I expect.” 

Ron turned bright red as Pansy cackled. “Neville got a little preview since he was a good boy and joined us.” 

“I would have if I’d known!” 

“You’ll be very happy, mate,” Neville winked at him as he settled in his chair and placed his arms around Pansy. 

“Oooo what did we miss?” Theo asked with a smirk, sitting down next to Daphne as Charlie placed his jacket on the chair opposite him then walked over to Hermione. 

“It’s been so long since I’ve seen you,” he smiled, giving Hermione a warm hug. 

“I’ve missed you too, Charlie,” she smiled at him. 

As she sat back down, she saw Theo watching their interaction with a pleased look on his face. While their relationship was still new, she was happy that they were giving it another go since she knew how much he had missed the wizard despite his assurance that he wanted to be with her. 

After everyone ordered and their respective teas and coffees had been delivered, she knew now was the time. Hermione felt her stomach swoop in anticipation. 

She cleared her throat as all eight heads turned to her, “I have something I’d like to share with you all.” She swallowed, preparing herself for their reactions. “You’ve all been so supportive of me over the last year and I just want to thank you for being there for me, Lynx and Lyra. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, which I know isn’t news to you all here, and I’ve decided to give my relationship with Draco another go. As hard as I tried not to, I still love him and he’s been trying so hard to be the father and man I need him to be.” 

She was met with a mixture of wide eyes, smiles and gaping mouths. 

“Oh Hermione, I’m so happy to hear that,” a dreamy voice appeared from her right. Hermione turned to see Luna arrive. “Your aura is so much happier it seems, you’re glowing!” 

Hermione felt tears well as she got up to greet the witch, “Thank you, Luna. I thought you couldn’t come.” 

“Well Blaise said you had something important to share so I moved my meeting with the Ministry.”

Hermione beamed at her as both witches moved to sit down. 

“Hermione, as long as you’re happy, we’re happy,” Pansy said sincerely. 

Daphne nodded along in agreement, “He has been putting in a lot of effort it seems and you deserve so much happiness.” 

“Thank you both,” she smiled gratefully at them. 

Harry reached for her hand, “We’re happy for you too, Mione. Say the word though and we’ll take him out if he hurts you again.” 

Ron nodded sagely, “I have no problem doing so.” 

“Yes, we can make it really quiet,” Ginny smirked. 

“He won’t hurt me,” Hermione said softly. “I have confidence in him.” 

All gazes turned then to Theo and Charlie who had remained silent. Theo still looked like he was in shock, his mouth open as he took in everyone’s positive reaction. Charlie looked worried, his fingers drumming along the wood of the table as he watched Theo. 

The silence was interrupted then by Charlie who turned to Hermione and said, “I’m happy for you too, Mione.” 

“Thanks, Charlie. I appreciate that,” Hermione replied hesitantly, her eyes still on Theo. “Are you doing alright, Theo?” 

She watched him close his eyes and take a deep breath. 

“I don’t understand, Hermione,” Theo said. “He left you.” 

“I’m not asking you to understand, Theo,” she said gently. “I’m asking you to be my friend and support my decision.” 

She watched as Charlie reached for Theo’s hand, who in turn laced their fingers together. He took several more deep breaths before turning back to Hermione, “What if he does hurt you again?” 

“Then I deal with it but I refuse to think about that now when he hasn’t done anything.” 

“But Hermione, he has done something. He already hurt you.” 

“Theo, I know but I can’t have his past mistakes dictate how I live the rest of my life. I don’t deserve that and our children don’t deserve that. I love him. I never stopped. We’re trying again. I can’t live the rest of my life thinking what if. We deserve another chance.” 

He sighed, squeezing Charlie’s hand before nodding. “You’re right I don’t need to understand. It’s your decision and your life. I hope it works out.” 

She watched as Charlie smiled at him encouragingly, blowing him a soft kiss from across the table. Hermione then turned her attention to everyone else, “So that’s it? I thought I was going to meet more resistance if I’m honest.” 

Pansy scoffed, “Honestly Hermione, we’re your friends and we know you. Once you’ve decided on something, there’s no changing your mind.” 

She giggled, “I suppose you’re right.” 

The rest of the brunch continued without incident and Hermione was grateful for how they responded. While Theo remained more quiet than usual, she knew he was likely to take the news harder than anyone else. She had hoped that the inclusion of Charlie would ground him, which he had to her relief. While Hermione loved Theo as a friend, she was still cognizant of his feelings, however, she couldn’t bring herself to tell him separately. She knew Draco wouldn’t like it and she also knew that Theo’s reaction may have been more severe. Her focus now was solely on her children and Draco and she was determined to find her happy ending. 

Chapter Text

Chapter Twenty Four

Since telling their friends, Draco felt more freedom than he had in his entire life. Finally everyone knew. No more hiding. He was free to love his witch in public and he was determined to show her and their cubs off to the world. 

Taking her hand in his, Draco led Hermione to his study after they had put Lynx and Lyra down for their afternoon nap. With their first birthday fast approaching, Hermione had been working herself ragged trying to make it perfect for their cubs. He knew she felt guilt over returning to work, no matter how much he reassured her. Hermione seemed to be trying to make up for it by meticulously planning their party along with Narcissa and Lolly. Draco wanted her to relax, to feel like she was enough. Because she was. She was more than enough. 

“You’ve been too busy recently, little lion,” Draco cooed, sitting in his desk chair with his legs spread as he gently urged Hermione to stand in the space between. 

“I just want it to be perfect, Draco,” she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck and stepping closer, allowing Draco to rest his head on her chest and bring her closer by hugging her waist. 

“Try not to worry, my love,” he assured her, drawing soothing circles on her back. “Mother and Lolly are following your instructions to a T and you know they wouldn’t settle for anything less than perfect either.” 

She only nodded and he could tell that she was lost in her mind. 

Draco internally debated whether now was the time to bring up combining their homes. He knew she was likely to be stressed but he also knew that their lives would be a little less complicated with the barrier gone. 

No time like the present. 

“You’re doing so well love juggling going back to work and being a mom,” he said softly, raising his head to look up at her. She looked so vulnerable like this, her golden eyes shining and lips parted as she met his gaze. “We are so lucky to have you.” 

“No, Draco,” she responded, smoothing back his hair. “We’re so lucky to have you.”

He beamed at her, holding her a bit tighter. “I wish there was something more I could do to help you be a little less stressed.” 

“You’ve been great, Draco,” she cooed. “You’re such a good dad to them and you’re always here when we need you.” 

“I know it hasn’t been very long since we got back together but Hermione I’ve never felt this happy in my entire life.” 

She beamed back at him, “Me either, Draco. It feels like a huge weight has been lifted off my chest.” 

“Would you be interested in making our living situation a little more permanent?” 

She looked at him, puzzled. “What do you mean?” 

“I mean that I used to live here with you before everything happened and I would like to again but with our growing family, I was wondering if you’d be open to expanding the house into mine so we have more space?” 

She furrowed her brows in thought, “Is this the reason why you decorated the house to look exactly like mine?” 

Nothing gets past her. 

Draco had the decency to look sheepish. “Possibly…” 

Hermione chuckled but then turned serious as she thought about it. “I agree that we should find something more permanent but with everything going on right now I don’t think I can add one more thing to my plate.” 

“I can handle it, little lion,” he said quickly, trying to dispel her anxiety. “You wouldn’t need to do a thing. We can stay at one of the Black family cottages in the Cotswolds while we wait for it to be completed and I can set up the floo so it is direct to your office at St. Mungos.” 

“You’ve been thinking about this a lot, haven’t you?” she said mischievously. 

Salazar, she was taking this a lot better than he thought. 

“Yes,” he blushed, nuzzling back into her breasts at the admission. “I even got some quotes already.” 

“Draco!” 

“For research purposes, love,” he smirked as she tilted his head back to meet her gaze. 

“And I’m assuming you have someone already on standby?” 

“You know me too well. Say yes, love, please?” He begged playfully, nipping at her dress. 

He watched as she rolled her eyes playfully at his antics. 

“Okay, yes,” she acquiesced. “But after Lynx and Lyra’s birthday party! I’ll be way less stressed once that's done.” 

“Perfect, love,” he agreed as he let his hands wander down to cup her arse. “Now I’ve been staring at your beautiful arse all day. Can you be a good girl and give daddy his reward for being so patient?” 

“Mmmm,” she hummed, leaning into him further as his hands trailed down to her inner thighs while he began to kiss the exposed skin above the neckline of her dress. 

“Please, baby?” he asked softly, lifting his head to see her golden molten eyes, pupils blown wide. 

“Yes,” she breathed, sinking to her knees as Draco groaned at the sight. Before he lost all thought, Draco quickly warded and silenced his office so they didn’t wake up the twins.   

“Such a good girl,” he praised, running his fingers through her curls as she reached to remove his belt and unbutton his trousers. He helped her remove the offending garment and his silk boxers so he was bare before her. Breathing heavily, he watched as she trailed her fingers up his thighs and leaned forward to lick his tip. 

“Fuck,” he gasped. 

Hermione hummed again, inching closer to his cock and licking a long stripe from base to tip. Draco let out a low moan, his hands gathering her hair so the unruly curls wouldn’t disrupt her. 

She inched even closer so she was right against the edge of his chair and took his cock fully into her mouth, moaning as she hollowed her cheeks and sucked.

“That’s right, baby,” he moaned, slowly starting to thrust his hips into her mouth as she took him deeper. “Fuck, baby, look at you…taking daddy’s cock so well.” 

He felt her breathing through her nose as she opened her throat to him. 

“You’re so fucking hot, this sweet little mouth is going to make daddy come,” he grunted, thrusting a little faster as one of her hands snaked down to touch herself while the other gripped his base and started to move in time with his thrusts. 

“Are you getting wet from me fucking your tight little throat?” Draco asked reverently, his hands moving to the side of her face as he started to fuck her mouth faster. “Going to come, baby. Are you going to swallow like a good girl?” 

She moaned and nodded, thrusting her hips against her fingers. Draco lost it, roaring her name as he came. He watched, completely dazed as Hermione cleaned him up, still touching herself as she licked his shaft like a sugar quill. 

“Mmmm so tasty, daddy,” she purred. 

That snapped Draco back to attention. Growling, Draco gently tilted her head to meet his eyes before reaching to pick her up and place her on top of his desk, flipping the bottom of her dress as he did to expose her cunt to him. 

“I need to eat your pretty little pussy, baby,” he rasped, pulling her hips to the edge of his desk as he sat back down in his chair and scooted forward. 

He started panting as he noticed his pussy glistening with her arousal. “Fuck, you’re so wet.” 

“Please, Draco,” she whined, wriggling her hips. 

He didn’t need to be told twice. He vanished her tiny knickers and pulled the straps of her dress down, exposing her heavy breasts and he moaned at the image she presented him. Draco dove in and immediately started suckling on her clit while his hands found purchase on her tits, tweaking her nipples. 

Hermione moaned as her hands reached for his hair, pulling as she started to roll her hips against his mouth. 

Inserting two fingers, Draco groaned as he felt her cunt already fluttering and clenching his fingers. He rotated between sucking and flicking her clit with his tongue, determined to make her do more than just come. He fucked her with her fingers, adding a third and curling to tease her front walls. 

Hermione screamed, rolling her hips even faster as she held his face against her pussy. 

“Fuck, Draco!” She moaned. “I’m…I’m going..” She couldn’t finish her sentence as Draco sucked hard on her clit, causing Hermione to scream his name as she came spectacularly all over his face. 

He drank her greedily, removing his fingers to knead her breasts as Hermione panted, still moaning as she felt her wetness on her sensitive nipples. Once satisfied that he cleaned her properly, he stood and gathered her in his arms as he sat back in his chair. 

“Mmm so good baby,” he kissed her jawline as Hermione’s eyes fluttered closed. 

“You really enjoy being called ‘daddy’ don’t you?” Hermione asked, a small smile gracing her face. 

His cock twitched at her question and she giggled, feeling him grow hard against her. “Does that answer your question, love?” 

Her grin grew wider and Draco swore she never looked more beautiful. Her eyes opened a tad as she leaned in to kiss him.

“We still have twenty more minutes until Lynx and Lyra wake up,” she whispered suggestively. 

Draco grunted, “Yeah?” 

“Yeah, daddy.”