It has been a truly long time since Ron has thought about Draco-bloody-Malfoy. Afterall he did not have time for death eater scum who placed their lives above those of everyone else. Really, how much could someone really, realistically change in a matter of ten years. 18 to 28 is a long time, but not when your core values are the problem. Malfoy was morally gray on the best days and downright disgusting on the bad. He made fun of HArry for being an orphan for bloody sake. Nope, no. People don’t change that much. Even if forced too. Even if they try to put in the work.
So…why is Ron currently looking down at an inspection sheet he and Harry have just been assigned to assist on involving an orphanage/foster home that Malfoy is currently running for Magical beast and being children outside the scope of the Wizarding world. Because it is clear he would never get his hands on a wizard orphan. How did he manage to open an entire place for creatures that disgust him. Or used to? Can someone change so much? There has to be a plot here, a way to boost his moral standing perhaps? Except, Ron did not know about this place at all and it has been in operations for five years now.
Ron and Harry were assigned to monitor the inspection and protect the inspector, who happens to be Hermione. He knows this is not a coincidence, the ‘golden trio’ as they are still called work best together. Despite him and ‘Mione divorcing. Because she cheated on him. With fucking Viktor Krum. She is not the person who does those things, but she did it. Can people change so much? He has changed hasn’t he? No more need to prove himself next to Harry. He is a more confident, self-dependent person. Before he had been self-conscious, and felt like a shadow to everyone in his life. But these were just flaws, not his entire belief system. Hermione does not believe in cheating, yet she did it for ‘love’.
He needs to let that go, probably. It’s not been that long though, but she is his best friend and everyone thinks he needs to get over it sooner rather than later. Part of him wanted to accuse her of cheating more than she admitted, but he knows she was telling the truth. She only cheated physically once, but the emotional affair had been longer and frankly in Ron’s opinion worse.
Finding out what happened between Krum and Mione had broken the trio for a while, Harry jumped to his defense without being willing to remove Mione from his life. They survived a war together, so apparently that means he needs to get over it and be happy for her.
He is on a tangent now. Besides he is not mad about Mione right now, no this is about Malfoy. Malfoy who has to be up to something. After taking a beat and pulling his professionalism back up, knowing he will need to do this unbiasedly. After all, the Creature Equality Department probably picked the three of them to be more biased. He took the newest job to Harry and the two went to find Hermione.
_______________________________________________________________________
The three of them all got together the next morning to head to ‘Draco Manor’ Malfoy’s current residence. They collectively agree to go into this as unbiased as they can manage, and need to keep the children involved in the front of their mind. There are 18 Being and Beast orphans in his home.
Once they arrived they landed in front of a large property hidden behind a large golden gate with a wooden area just behind. There is a large home in the background, but it is hard to see past the trees. Harry took a step forward to grab the knob on the front of the gate to knock, but never got to the knob, all three pairs of their eyes seeing glowing red eyes watching them from the trees. Another pair of glowing eyes just above the red in the trees above, shifting back and forth in the darkness.
Ron took a step forward trying to see into the darkness right when the creature sprang forward hitting the gate hard shaking it. They all three gasped and took a step back away from the gate. The sudden movement startled them all. Before they could completely recover they hear two joyous laughing children in front of them.
The first child, the one that had jumped forward from the trees with the glowing eyes. He has woodsy green-skin, golden glowing eyes, long pointed ears parallel to the ground. With pouty lips, two tusks poking out of the bottom row of teeth, his mouth shaped around the tusks. While he is the size of a 12 year old human boy, he has muscles all over, his chest exposed to the air with large gashed scars all over. Brown trousers, ripped at the bottom. Ron has no idea what kind of creature he is.
The second child is smaller, closer to an average ten year old girl. With no hair or eyebrows. Almond shaped ruby red glowing eyes with no eyelashes. Her skin is pearly white with patches of red that look like fresh blood rubbed on her skin, though they can tell it is just part of her skin. Her ears are pointed as well, but smaller and closer to her head, all her teeth exposed while she laughs. All tiny points with red-tints. Lips just as red as the patches and her eyes. On her head are crimson horns pointed behind her with what look like small flaps of a dragon’s wing. She is wearing a little black onesie and is currently rolling on the ground laughing hard.
A third child comes into view before they can even say anything to the two currently laughing. This child is a dragonborn, his face and body human-shaped like, but a dragon otherwise. His body is covered in maroon scales, the area starting half way on the nose, down his cheeks, jaw, and front of the neck is covered in gray skin. A line of scales over the collar bones, but just under the bone down his chest and stomach is more gray skin. Two large maroon wings measure the same length as the boy hitched up on his shoulder blades leaving them just off the ground. The thinner skin on the inside a pale pink, with the nail, and tiny bones going up the sides all dull gold.
A dragon tail flapping behind with an arrowhead point at the end. The top of the tail is maroon with more gold plated armor, and the underside gray skin. His legs were covered with black trousers. His toes have completely large golden claws, with more golden plated scales. His entire arm is maroon with plates of golden armor, with gray skin palms. He has dark chocolate hair, with four horns. Two larger ones at the top of his head pointed back and two smaller ones just above the forehead and just under the larger pens pointing toward the sky. He is the same height as the tree boy.
“What do you want?” The boy growls at the three of them. The other two are starting to calm down now.
“We are just here to talk to Draco Malfoy,” Hermione tries to appear smaller, more calming and less threatening as she leaned down right in front of the gate.
“Don’t just laugh, go get Ba,” The dragon boy slapped his tail on the ground and bared his sharp teeth at the two others.
“Don’t t’e us wha’ do!” The green boy snapped right back, his voice thick and words slightly slurred by his tusks.
“GO!” He snarled and his wings flared in annoyance. The boy held his ground. However, the little girl stuck out a too long tongue, with a split at the end like a snake, out at him. Then she ran off toward the house. The boys growled at one another for another moment before turning their attention back on the three of them.
“What do you want with Ba?” Dragonboy asked, looking at the three suspiciously.
“Just to talk. I’m Hermione, this is Ron, and that is Harry. We all went to school with him.” She smiled and looked to both him and Harry to do the same. They both knelt down to get on the child’s level and smiled to themselves.
“What’s your name?” Harry asked.
“Ba say we ‘ot t’e st’ange’.” Ron did not really understand, but the dragon seemed to because he started nodding in agreement.
“Baba says we shouldn’t tell strangers that.” He clarifies when it is clear the adults did not understand the other.
“Baba? Is that Malfoy?” Ron asks just to clarify.
“I guess…” The boys look at one another before turning around both sets of ears raising as if listening.
Then an albino husky hellhound jumped out of the wood and slammed into the gate snarling. The entire gate shook with the giant hit and the three of them jumped up to step away from the gate at the immediate snarling. Both boys turned and vanished into the woods, though they could see by the glowing gold and glowing green that both of them were just past the trees.
A sharp whistle has the hellhound backing up and turning away from the gate to go back into the trees. Malfoy’s hellhound had to be bigger than Fluffy and looked twice as mean. Those dangerous red eyes were nothing to laugh at. Ron does not even feel embarrassed that he had pulled his wand out at the sight of the beast. Harry and Hermione had been equally as worried. Hellhounds are fiercely loyal and that beast could rip them apart if it deemed them a danger to the children it clearly is guarding.
Malfoy walked out following the path right in the middle of the wooded area. Strapped to his abdomen and chest is the bottom half of a centaur baby, it’s human half laying on Malfoy’s chest. Its eyes closed, but by its small size and face it is clear the infant is fresh to life.
The baby’s skin is a light caramel with pale spots everywhere. Vitiligo. It has the smallest little tuft of dark brown hair, with two horse ears sticking out of the sides of its upper head. One has dark brown fur while the other is white. Its horse half is hidden by the wrap keeping it secured to Malfoy. Walking beside Malfoy is the little red and white girl, her face scrunched up in a weird-terrifying laugh. Actually seeing her smiling like that they can tell her mouth is two sizes too big for a human, and it comes off as a villain’s evil laugh.
“What are you doing here Potter, Weasley,” He paused when he looked Hermione up and down. “Other Weasley.”
“It’s Granger…again…actually….” His silver-gray eyes danced between the pair before rolling them dramatically.
“That wasn’t my question, Granger.” He looked down at the little girl with sigh, “Veronica, Ragnar, Orion go inside,”
They heard more then saw the three children do as they were told without complaint. Malfoy’s arms shifted, one coming up to make sure to secure the baby's head, while the other was placed on the gate. Not opening just touching it, most likely a protection spell done by touch. Once they explained themselves, Malfoy will have no choice but to comply with their entry or risk becoming an enemy of the ministry, again.
“We have documentation prepared. Due to your involvement with other magical creatures we are under obligation to investigate the purpose and your handling in such matters. Being in contact with such a wide variety of species makes you a direct representation of the wizarding world.” Hermione held up the parchment in front of the gate for him to read with pursed lips and a deep frown.
“This has to happen today? Without warning?” He asked, clearly upset but cleverly not arguing about it.
“It has to be a surprise. So yes.” Harry clarified, giving him a sympathetic look.
“And it need be you three? Or did you all volunteer when you saw my name?” Malfoy sneered at the three of them, though kept his voice calm and reassuring most likely for the sleeping babe. Or perhaps it is for the hellhound lurking somewhere on the property.
“We were assigned, but we assure you this will be an unbiased observation and investigation. We are professionals.” Ron jumped in, puffing his chest out proudly. He is good at his job and proud at having the ability to separate his personal feelings from his professional ones. Something he had not been able to do not that long ago. A snort followed, the blonde clearly not believing them.
“I was about to start cooking for the kids…can I go put the baby down before letting you in or do I need to stay in your sight?” He looked down at the baby before looking behind him toward the house.
“You can go put the baby down if that is more comfortable for you,” Ron answered before Hermione could. By guideline they should not let him out of sight once they see him, but he also did not want this entire experience to be a fight. If they could not let him at least put the baby in a crib before letting three practical strangers in then he will be guarded more than he already is.
Hermione and Harry must agree because they say nothing as Malfoy turns around and heads back toward the woods. They are barely standing there a few moments before another pair of eyes peaks through the leaves. Harry gave a big smile, a gentle chuckle, and waved at the eyes. Instead of revealing itself like the other children, this one turns and runs away. Though it does not go far, they can hear it gently rumbling around in the bushes. Small little growls echoing out.
When Malfoy comes back out he is by himself and looks extremely uncomfortable heading over. Though he does stop to whistle toward the woods. They hear the hellhound bark in acknowledgement before loud movement lets them know the hound is leaving. It is a little unnerving to know that it had been that close the whole time without them being able to tell.
“There is someone…” Harry points over the blonde’s shoulder toward the bushes. Malfoy whipped around in confusion looking around the bushes for a moment before the softest smile Ron has ever seen pulled onto his face.
“It’s okay, Max,” Malfoy bent down and they watched a toddler run out of the pushes over to him. A lion. A lion walking like a toddler. The toddler has human hands, big human eyes, cheeks not big lion cheeks, but his nose, feet, tail, hair, snout, all lion. A tiny little lion-human hybrid. Ron had certainly never seen anything like it. His big mane did not connect in the front, just being a huge fluff of hair around its head with big rounded lion ears at the top of his head, and little orange eyebrows to match his dark burnt orange mane. The rest of his body was covered in dark blonde fur.
Malfoy does not hesitate scooping the little boy up and putting him on his hip to walk back over to the gate. Max buries his face in Malfoy’s shoulder, peaking out to look at all of them. Once they are right at the gate Ron can hear that Max is purring. It also makes it more obvious which of them he is looking at and Ron realizes that it is himself. The little lion is peaking glances at Ron.
“Maxxie, this is Potter, Weasley, and Granger. They went to school with me.” Malfoy waved at each one of them to introduce them after he opened the gate door.
“Hello, Max.” Hermione leaned forward waving at him. Max opened and closed his little hand in a hello, still sneaking glances at Ron.
“Hi, there,” Ron stepped forward as well and watched the lion huff before hiding his face. “Um…sorry?”
“He wants to touch your hair.” Malfoy explained. Ron followed Max’s little green eyes to see that he was indeed looking up at Ron’s hair, not his face. “He likes redheads.”
“Oh, is that all? Go ahead little man!” Ron leaned forward and Malfoy yelped in shock. Max did not hesitate though, leaning forward to push both hands into Ron’s hair. He can feel that Max’s claws have been cut, but could be deadly.
Once he stands back up he sees that Max is beaming at him and leaning his head forward for Ron to touch in return. He laughed and patted his head gently. Shocked to feel how thick and rough his fur is, and it is definitely fur not hair. Clearly it is well managed with how easy Ron’s fingers slide through it.
“So, this is Max. Our documents say you have 18 Being and Beast children here, is this correct?” Hermione asks already to check off that bit of information. Though the document says nothing about a lion boy.
“Um…no…” Malfoy frowned, pulling Max more against him and looked between the three. “I’ve 24 children here.”
Now that certainly is a lot of children. It also shows them how misleading their information is. They really are just going into this blind. All the information on the parchment given to them had been observed from afar by other Aurors or sources. It could all be wrong. The dragonborn is on the parchment, as well as the newborn foal, but the other children they have seen are not.
“Look…no offense…but can we move inside? I can’t really leave the kids unattended this long…I need to be inside with the babies.” They quickly agreed. Harry even apologized, which got a rather confused and suspicious look from Malfoy.
“24 children is quite a lot…” Hermione commented as they walked in after Malfoy closed and locked his gate. “Who all…”
“It was not originally 24, it just kind of happened I guess.” Malfoy bit his lip as they walked. They followed him on the winding path toward the house, the wooded area is pretty big but it is not long before they see the house. “Um…there is Orion, Ragnar, Veronica, Maximus, Mojo, Pluto, Lycus, Cyrus, Phrixus, Circe, Natsuko, Haruki, Romulus, Octavius, Demeter, Brontes, Freya, Beauty, Kreios, Pegasus, Rhea, Vidar, Lunar, Scorpius.”
He spoke as he opened the door to the manor and walked in. Inside they were met with chaos. Animals and children running about shouting, playing, and laughing. As soon as they are inside Malfoy puts Max down and Ron watches the lion run over to a dragon-lizard looking child. With a big fanned ear the same size as his head, covered completely in navy scales, a large tail ending in more pointed fins. No wings, but two very thick large horns, sharp teeth, and slit red eyes.
A small bunny looking baby is jumping up and down trying to reach another baby flying around the ceiling with large black wings, looking human otherwise. It is hard to focus on one child as they are all moving quickly around the room yelling, playing, other animals in the mix, different cat species, dogs, birds, etc.
“Do not might him young lady,” Ron looked down just in time to see a naga baby slithering by his foot pouting as she slid by him. “That’s Rhea.”
Malfoy bent down to pick Rhea up and move her out of their way before putting her back down farther into the living room next to a kneazle, which she immediately attached herself to in a hug, her little snake hairs rubbing their faces against the fur. A baby is crying and an animal is screeching from somewhere. Without missing a beat Malfoy leaves the room and comes back with a baby bundled in his arms. Both the crying and screeching had stopped.
The baby in his arms is an actual fox with a diaper on, and too small arms and legs. Its limbs are too small to hold its body up. He isn’t holding the little one like a pet, instead holding him in a cradle like a baby and heading into the kitchen. Ron follows with Harry and Hermione behind him. He pulls out a bottle to feed the fox while pulling pans out to start cooking.
“This is Haruki,” He showed them the fox boy. “He is a Japanese Kitsune, they start as foxes and will develop into more human looking entities. Um..NATSUKO!” He supplies the information when they just stare at the fox in confusion.
A little girl runs in. She looks between seven or eight, with long pinkish-orange hair, with blonde streaks in it, and a completely human look aside from her eyes being mango orange, the two fox ears, lack of human ears, and her bushy fox tail dancing behind her. She is wearing blue shorts and a pink top.
“This is Natsuko, she is Haruki’s older sister.” Where she is more pinkish-orange, Haruki is a completely stereotypical fox orange to match his animal looks. His ears and limbs are all black though, with a white muzzle and tip of the tail.
“He is very cute.” Ron supplied leaning over the blonde to look at the tiny baby squirming to get better latched onto the bottle.
“Do you want to hold him?” Malfoy looked Ron up and down with an amused look.
“Can I…?” Ron could not hold back his excitement. He does not try to hide the fact he loves babies, he is a wannabe family man, loves being with his nephews and nieces. It had been the worst part of the divorce for him. Because it meant that it would be even longer till he get to be a parent. Malfoy is probably living his dream.
“Sure, actually it would be really helpful, since I need to cook. You don’t have to worry about him choking, he’ll finish that bottle fast and there is another one in the blue cupboard.” Malfoy passed Ron Haruki, and the baby did not even stir at being placed in the arms of a stranger.
“Not shy is he?” He chuckled as Hermione and Harry both came over to gush over the baby as well.
“No, he loves anyone willing to feed him,” Malfoy chuckled as he started four different dishes on the stove. Ron looked over in awe as he watched the man work quickly and officially, making four different types of food like he was building a potion.
“Aren’t you just the cutest thing,” Ron tickled his little belly after he finished his first bottle and watched it chuckle wildly. He moves to get the second bottle and passes Haruki to Hermione when she pleads to feed him next, them all getting lost in the baby magic.
“How old is Haruki? How long have you had Natsuko and Haruki?” Harry asked as he moved to help Malfoy cut vegetables. The blonde seems shocked that they are helping him so much.
“Haruki is 13 months old and I’ve had them since he was three days old.” In-between dropping food in the pots Malfoy grinds down the apple slices into mush before scooping a finger in it to put the mush in Haruki’s mouth between his milk.
“In regards to the orphanage aspect, are you the one who looks for them as a family or is that your magical being connection?” Hermione asked bouncing and patting Haruki’s back to help him belch.
“What?” Malfoy jerked around and glared at Hermione. “This isn’t an orphanage. These are my kids.”
“Wait, what?” Ron is the one who gasps.
“We thought…are they all adopted?” Harry asked.
“Not exactly…most of them are fostered…but permanently. Children are given to me once no other family can be found. Some of them are adopted, but it's a work in process because each magical community has different adoption rules. Haruki and Natsuko are adopted, they had to be to bring them here.” Malfoy shrugged as he got back to his food. “It is not a business.”
“Baba…” A small voice called out and all four adults turn to see a little girl half hidden behind the wall, all that can be seen is one big blue eye. Part of her pale pink hair and matching skin, with one big pig ear sticking out. A Pigling, a Hogkin child. Ron only knows about their existence because Hermione is in the middle of making a formal peace treaty between the local Hogkin and the wizarding world.
“What’s wrong Peggy?” She quickly ran past them to make it to Malfoy, she is a small thing, could not be more than two. Her feet click with each step of her hooves hitting the floor. Her three little gray fingers on each pink hand grip hard on Malfoy’s trousers.
“Vivi ‘wake!” She whispered to the blonde once he leaned down to her level.
“Okay, thanks Princess. Um…Weasley, can you stir this?” Ron moved to help stir the food while Malfoy left for the children.
Malfoy walked back in after a few moments with another baby in his arms. This baby is a blue Faun, two goat legs, entire body the same grayish-muddled-blue fur, goat ears and nose. His long tail is covered in fur while the end has long indigo hair at the end, indigo hair on top of his head, and his hooves are midnight blue. The faun is in a white onesie.
“This is Vidar, he’s five months old. I’ve had him for four months.” He rejoins Ron with the soups turning the fire off and pulling bowls out to start plating for the children with one arm, the other holding Vidar, little Peggy still following him clinging to his leg.
“Do you all eat together?” Ron asked pulling the plates out and letting Malfoy point to which bowl should have which soup, each bowl having a name on the side.
“We do, in the dining room. After I get all the plates down and move the babies into the dining room, I call the others for dinner.” He shifted to the other cupboard to pull glasses out and start putting milk, tea, or water in them. Like the bowls the cups are labeled and come in various sizes. “I can introduce you to all the kids then.”
“Do you want one of us to hold him?” Hermione suggested, slightly rocking Haruki watching Malfoy maneuvering around with Vidar in his arms.
“No, he isn’t like Haru, he doesn’t like strangers. He’ll start screaming.” Ron and Harry both helped the blonde take the plates and drinks to the dining room, and just like everything the chairs have names on them, of various sizes. Once all the food and drinks are ready, he puts Vidar in one of three cribs along the wall. He then takes Haruki from Hermione putting him in a highchair, moving his baby mush out of the way so he does not eat it by himself.
Then he leaves and returns with another infant which he places in the second crib, before leaving and bringing the baby foal to put her in the other crib. After that he goes into the living room and returns with Rhea in his arms, placing her in a highchair designed for her snake bottom. All the babies calmly waited, chirping at one another.
Malfoy once again leaves the dining room and comes back in with a toddler on each hip. One being the little boy with black bird wings, and the little bunny boy with brown skin, yellow eyes, and white hair. His tall bunny ears are the same brown as his skin. He is also in a onesie, a long brown tail poking out at the back, long enough to drag the ground when on his feet.
Peggy is still waddling behind Malfoy with every step. His last time coming in he carries in a mini-version of himself with blue eyes and chin length hair. This toddler, he puts in another highchair, before picking Peggy up and putting her next to Scorpius. Then he slides the three cribs over around his chair, where he puts all the bottles before moving all the plates in front of the babies and toddlers. Before he turned and yelled for dinner, waving at the three extra chairs he brought in for the three of them.
They take their seats as more children filter into the room filling up the chairs. All the children looked at them suspiciously and curiously. Malfoy quickly introduced the three of them by their last names to the children, just telling them they went to school together. Ron noted that Malfoy did not have a plate of food, he instead moved to put three half-cylinder pillows in front of him on the table, and moved each infant onto the pillows, to place a bottle in their mouths. Vidar and the foal both get milk in their bottles, but the third child gets something special.
Malfoy nicks his finger before adding his blood to the watery-milk for the third baby. This baby looks completely human. Vidar can hold his own bottle slightly, but the foal and the human baby both need their bottles held for them.
Looking around Ron is shocked to really register how many 24 children really are. The table is huge and fits them all nicely, and having them all sitting around he can see why everything varies in sizes and fits for each individual one.
“Alright, I want everyone to be nice and introduce themselves to our guests. Oldest to youngest okay. Name and age.” Malfoy addressed the kids who were all quietly eating. Something tells them that they are not usually so quiet, but they are all watching them in-between bites.
“I’m Orion. I’m ten.” The green boy from the woods from when they first arrived. His long pointed ears flap up and down.
“Orion is half-orc, half-troll,” Malfoy threw in, giving his son an encouraging smile. “I’ve been helping take care of him since he was two, and he has lived with me since he was three.” The trio all waved and greeted the boy.
“I’m ten, too! My name's Veronica, but Baba just calls me Nica.” The pearl white girl with red everywhere with the evil smile.
“She’s demon class, succubus. I’ve had her for five years.” He looked over with a beam. “Such good diction baby girl.”
“I’m Ragnar. I’m nine years old. Ba got me as an egg, so I’ve always been with Baba.” The dragonborn boy spoke. Ron is shocked to learn he is only nine, being the size of a twelve year old, and bigger than both the two older children without his huge wings.
“I-I-...m’Pluto…” A little boy stuttered. He has black hair with a white stripe through his bangs, and his undercut white as well, with two black skunk ears. Another class of animal-human hybrid. A very large fluffy skunk tail behind him with a white stripe in the black tail. Sleepy looking dark-dull-gray eyes. The rest of them looked human.
“Good try baby, he is Pluto. He’s eight years old. He has lived here for four years now.” Veronica pats Pluto on the back when he ducks his head embarrassed.
“I’m Circe,” “and I’m Phrixus.” “We’re eight years old!” Two children sing-songed. One with rose pink hair and one with magenta purple hair. Both small pointed ears, though the girl with rose pink hair, her ears point horizontally, while the boy’s ears angle up. The girl, Circe has purplish-blue eyes and Phrixus has ice blue eyes. Both extremely thin for their age, pale skin. Circe has a long dark pink horn, while Phrixus has two large horns pointed forward just above both ears.
“Circe and Phrixus are twins. They are elemental elven nymphs. They have been here for four years, they got here a few months before Pluto.” He chuckled at their bright welcoming smiles.
“I’m Natsuko…and that’s my baby brother, Haruki. I’m seven and he is a baby. Baba brought us here when Haru-chan was new.” She looked to Malfoy to ensure she said it correctly, preening at his approving smile.
“Natsuko is still practicing English. You’re doing so amazing, sweetheart.” She practically glowed at his praise.
“I Roro, six.” A little bat-looking boy held out three fingers on each hand. Ron smiled and waved his fingers making the boy chuckle. He has two brown horns coming out of his temples stopping at the end of his big bat ears. They encircle themselves, they flap open when he smiles. Charcoal black hair. Purple-gray skin. With cherry red eyes, with the smallest slit pupils Ron has ever seen. Two small thin wings. They look like they are meant to be bigger, but they are ripped apart making them non-functioning and small.
“He is Romulus. He is a bat-demon.” Malfoy said as he scooped the human looking baby into his arms to burp it.
“Octavius is six as well. He is mute.” Octavius is an octopus mer-type creature. With red hair, and multicolored skin that seems to be shifting colors. He does not have a nose, his face more rounded, sharp teeth, and a pink tongue. Four arms, two on each side. His arms are side by side rather than on top of each other. Palms and arms both covered in suckers. Human shaped feet, with one long tentacle tail, long enough to drag the ground with big suckers on it. Each finger is a little tentacle, bending in every direction. “He is an octomer, and has been with me for three years.”
“I…’m Demeter….” The little boy mumbled. He has pale skin, lacking pigmentation, with black eyes, and the palest pastel yellow, almost white hair, making the hair look like it is glowing.
“Demeter is five and he is half-vampire, half-genie.” Malfoy leans over to wipe some soup off of Demeter’s chin. Demeter had also been carried into the kitchen by Ragnar, Ron remembered.
“This is Brontes, she is also five.” Brontes is the child sitting on Malfoy’s right and looks like a little human girl with white hair and violet eyes. “She is the only known born werewolf, and I’ve had her for almost five years.”
“Fey is four!” The red-skinned demon beamed holding up her four finger hand up to show her age. Her ears are large and pointed, but shaped mostly human, with two horns on her forehead with a long leathery tail ending in an arrowhead. The stereotypical demon look. No white or pupils in her eyes, just solid sky blue. Making it impossible to tell where she is looking. Her black hair pulled into a fancy braid.
“That’s right, Freya, good job.” Malfoy chuckled at her enthusiasm. “She’s obviously a contract demon. She has only been with us for fourteen months. But it has been an incredible fourteen month, such a darling girl.” She shuffled over crawling into Malfoy’s lap.
“That is Beauty, she is half-Veela and half-pixie, she is also four years old. She doesn’t like strangers.” Malfoy waved at a very tiny albino girl. Her eyes are the lightest blue, white hair, no pigmentation, everything. She looks like she would vanish in the snow, her white dress doing nothing to help. She is currently curled up in one big chair with Freya, hiding behind her. “She took a liking to Fey right away, she’s been here only four months, so she is still getting used to everyone.”
“You’ve met Maximus, he is three, I’ve had him for two years. He came in with Kreios who is also three. Max is a Werelion, and Kre is half-lizardkin and half-dragonborn.” The two boys are sitting side by side next to Harry both looking at the three of them with bright but shy smiles.
“You’ve also met Peggy, her name is Pegasus. I’ve had her since she was three days old and she is two. I got her a few weeks after I got Max and Ker. It was a busy time. That year I had already started the process of adopting Scorpius. He is a shadow-shifter, they take on form of whomever they feel closest to, but when angry his true shadow form comes out. She is a month older than Scorpius.” Wow, that is a lot of children in a short span of time.
“This is Lycus and Cyrus.” He gently poked the two baby’s cheeks. The first is the little black hair boy with black wings. He is of Asian descent, and looks completely human aside from his wings. Then the brown bunny looking boy with a long tail. “Lycus is Angelborn, and Cyrus is a WereKangaroo. They are both one. Ly just turned one last week and Cy is fifteen months.”
“This is Rhea, she is ten months old. She’s a Naga-medusa. You’ve met Vidar. This is Mojo, he is only five days old. Lunar is three months old. Mojo is clearly a centaur and Lunar is half-vampire, half-muggle.” Rhea has emerald green eyes, an emerald snake bottom, with little snakes for hair also emerald. The underbelly of her tail and the snakes’ tails are pale yellow. Her human skin is pale greenish. Mojo is a red roan centaur with brown and white fur. Lunar has bluish-gray hair.
“Bloody hell, Malfoy.” Ron looked around at all the kids. Flinching and apologizing when Malfoy gives him a stern look and the children giggle at his language.
“I’ve already capped out. I’ve already withdrawn from adding anymore children, but it's my third time doing so. I’ve told them Mojo has to be the last one. 23 under eleven is difficult.” As they finished eating the kids started getting up to go play again. Malfoy chuckled as each one stopped by to give him a kiss. The babies in the highchairs all continue playing with their mush, the babies on the table and in Malfoy’s arms have started to doze.
Malfoy spelled his dishes to start cleaning themselves, as he explains to them that it is nap time for all the babies under three. First he puts down the new babies, the one year olds, and ends it with Peggy and Scorpius. They go down fairly easily, the older kids keeping the little ones exhausted. Malfoy takes them to the sofa area where there are three sofas in a circle with enough seating for a large portion of the children. Three orbs keeping track of the babies sleeping in each room.
“What exactly are you investigating?” Malfoy asks once they are all seated, though Octavius comes over and crawls into his lap, to lay his little head on the blonde’s chest. “Sleepy baby?” Malfoy wraps his arms around the boy giving him more support as the boy’s tail wraps and sticks to Malfoy’s trousers.
Brontes also comes over crawling into Malfoy’s space as well, laying her head on his thigh. Malfoy accio’s a few blankets to wrap around the little ones.
On the other side of Malfoy Max and Ker both curl around him as well. Freya and Beauty follow her by dragging the blankets around Malfoy’s feet to nap there. All the other children kept playing.
“Baba, can we play outside?” Natsuko asked and once he said yes all the older children plus Demeter all vanished out of the door together with a quick, “look after the little ones and stay away from the gates.”
“That’s a lot of kids trying to nap on you,” Ron chuckled and Malfoy gave him an unsure look before chuckling as well.
“We were supposed to investigate whether the orphanage was legal and in good measure for the kids, good standing with the different magic communities. However, it's not an orphanage, so I guess we will be making sure you are taking good care of the children and they are all here legally.” Hermione explained.
“And how will you do that?”
“We will talk to the communities where the children originate from. And just this observation should be fine as long as you are open about any questions we have. The kids all seem healthy and happy.” Harry added.
“So let's talk about why they are here and how this all started.” Ron suggested.
“When I was 19 I was still doing my probation for the minister. I made potions for the minister from eighteen to twenty. Though my interest had always been Magical Creature Care. There had been a dragonborn egg which had been rejected by its clan. We assumed it was a dud so it was given to me, I found that there was indeed an embryo growing inside. Thus I took care of it till Ragnar hatched. It’s hard to tell because all his other senses are so strong, but he is blind. He was rejected because they could tell he would be disabled. I got to keep him since no one knew what to do with him. For a year it was just us two.
For the minister a year later I had been in Troll Forest for a potion ingredient collection when I found Orion. He was two years old. Trolls are not intelligent creatures, and swamp trolls are the most brutal of the lot. You can imagine what happens when a troll manages to outpower an orc. It does not happen often, but when it does half-breeds can be the product. These half-breeds are executed or rejected by the orcs and eaten by the trolls.
Both species are born able to crawl and hold their heads up. I have no idea how he managed to survive two years, but he did. Orion tore my arm up when I first found him. He was placed in a Creature Equality housing since neither species would take him. I visited him often. The orcs were fighting to get him so that they could execute him, since no orc-troll had ever survived before. After a year he was finally given to me.
Ragnar and Orion did not get along at first, but they warmed up with time and effort. Four years later I got Nica. Veronica was brought to me because word had gotten around that I took in a rejected Dragonborn and an Orc-Troll. She had been abandoned by her mother and her incubus father. He had impregnated someone and left, Nica had been found surviving on rats in an abandoned building.”
“Damn that is a rough start. These poor kids.” Ron frowned for what the children have been through. One could not tell seeing them now, sweet with Malfoy, smiling, laughing, adoring him.
“I’m sure if you look into the Magical Creature Protector Project than you can easily access why and when I got each of the children, including newest Mojo.” Malfoy explained.
****
They spend the rest of the day observing Malfoy with his children and man he was right about them being his children. All the children love the man, listen to him, he is quick to squash fighting, playing with them, staying engaged the whole day, always with a child in his arms, usually more than the one. A good parent, one that they had not considered he could be.