Chapter 25
"So Hermione this will be a little warm." I nodded as the lady put some gel on my lower abdomen, Theo and Draco were stood either side of me. I insisted on doing the pregnancy the muggle way the whole way through. I didn't want to draw any attention to it in the wizarding world. I still wasn't ready to go back to that part of me, where everyone knows who I am, photographers everywhere I go, people who still didn't think I belonged there would make their views very clear. It was so much easier for me to just hide away in the world where I'm just a normal person, no expectations.
Today was my 12 week scan. We all looked at the monitor waiting for the image to pop up. I tried to explain this as best I could to them both before the appointment. I didn't know much but I knew some of what happened. They were staring at it both impressed at how it worked and with the anticipation of seeing their child for the first time. Our child for the first time. The lady paused the screen and pointed out the baby. It looked weird, I couldn't believe there was an actual human being growing inside of me. We all stared at it not saying anything. She captured the frame and wiped the gel off letting me sit back up. "Everything looks good, coming along really well. Your due date is September 20th" My eyes widened.
"That's a day after my birthday."
"I mean if the baby is born on your birthday, it will definitely be the most memorable birthday, and the best birthday present."
"And the most painful" She laughed and nodded. "So everything looks okay? I don't need to do anything different or avoid anything?"
"No, just the specific foods and drinks in the list I have given you. Your bump may be a bit smaller than usual, as you are quite petite anyway. Have you suffered with eating disorders in the past? I only ask because these sorts of things can trigger people and if you need help or support, I want to be sure you can get it."
"No I hav.."
"Yes she has." Theo said before I could finish. I sighed and rolled my eyes.
"No, I haven't. I have never been diagnosed with one, I just had an 'unhealthy relationship with food'. But I'm fine now." I looked turned to face Draco. "Help me out here." He looked to Liz who was just looking between us all a little baffled.
"We make sure she eats three times a day, healthily, and I can vouch that yes, she is a lot better than she was a few months ago."
"I can even get you the notes from a therapist I saw. It was only two sessions but it does state it in her notes. I was never actually told I had an eating disorder."
"Okay, I don't need proof. Just make sure that you eat properly. I have to weigh you every time you come anyway, I won't tell you the number when I do and if you need any help then please tell me. I'll keep these two updated as well and let them know if I have any concerns. Okay?" I nodded and she smiled.
"Also Doctor, could you please explain to these two I am allowed to work as far up to 30 weeks?" They both sighed either side of me making her laugh again.
"Call me Liz dear. Now being protective with a first child is completely natural. But yes, Hermione will be fine to work up until 30 weeks, even longer if she feels up to it." I turned and looked at them.
"Told you." I loved being right so much. Theo interjected.
"Ah yes but Liz did she tell you this job can be quite stressful?"
"What job isn't stressful at times dear? She will be just fine. If I have any concerns when taking her vitals I'll tell you, but neither of you strike me as insensible people. Hermione will know her limits and I'm sure she'd tell you if she needed a break. Now, you can collect your pictures on the way out and I'll see you in a few weeks for your next scan, you can find out the sex of the baby at that one if you want. Any issues though let me know." We all thanked her and left the office with the photos.
"So has that convinced you enough that you'll let me actually work?" They looked between each other and Draco nodded.
"Fine, but you are only doing maximum six meetings a week working up to sixteen hours a week."
"What?! Come on I can do more than that." I complained.
"I'll make it five meetings and ten hours if you complain more." I stopped talking and sighed.
"Six meetings and twenty hours?" I said as we got into the car. Draco shook his head no and I pouted my bottom lip out making Theo laugh. Draco stared at me a while longer and rolled his eyes.
"Fine. Six meetings and twenty hours. But that's it, and I can change it if I see fit." I stared at him in disagreement. "Take it or leave it darling." I crossed my arms.
"Okay fine." Theo laughed at my attitude. "Don't you laugh. I'm not pleased with you for misdiagnosing me in there."
"Babe she needed to know. If this does trigger you then I want to make sure you will be able to get the help you need." I sighed and shook my head. "It won't trigger me I am fully aware of how I am going to get bigger with a whole ass baby inside of me." Theo looked across me at Draco and raised his eyebrows at him. They seemed to have a silent conversation between themselves.
"What is this? What's going on?" I asked moving my hands gesturing between them. They both smiled and sat back not saying anything. I let out yet another frustrated sigh and was getting more and more wound up the closer we got to home. I complained about anything and everything I could. As soon as we walked through the door Theo shut it and I began to complain more but before I could Draco gently pinned me up against the door kissing me. He moved from my lips to my neck and I pretty much melted beneath him and he picked me up walking me to the bedroom putting me on the bed as Theo got to undressing me.
"You're extremely wound up love" Theo said as he pulled my underwear down. "We're going to help you with that." He began kissing down my stomach and then went straight to my core and it wasn't long before I was screaming his name. He was right, I felt better already. Between them they managed to melt away all of my previous pent up anger and emotions, and I was just tired now, my body completely spent. I was led with my eyes shut my back against Theos chest as he ran his fingers up and down my thigh, Draco was drawing patterns on my arm with his fingertips.
"Thank you, for that." I felt Theos breathe tickle my ear as he laughed a little.
"No thank you." He whispered as he kissed below my ear.
"I didn't think it was possible, but I feel like I love you both even more." Draco paused momentarily but then continued drawing patterns. I opened my eyes to see him staring straight back into mine smiling softly. He moved to stand up and pulled on some clothes.
"I'll be right back." I nodded and shut my eyes again. Theo moved from behind me and sat up to leave too.
"You're going too?" I asked sitting up.
"I will be back in literally two minutes." I got up and chucked on Theos tshirt and a pair of baggy joggers. I loved wearing his tshirts, they smelled of him and a little hint of Draco. After a while they both came back in standing in front of me their hands behind their backs. Theo extended his hand out and handed me a small box.
"What's this?"
"Just open it." I looked back down and opened it with care, and inside was a key. I took it out and held it looking back at him again in question.
"It's a key?" I said still really confused. He nodded. "Does said key open anything?" I asked laughing a little.
"It's a key, to our home." I am still confused.
"I already have a key? Did you change the locks or something?" They both laughed and shook their heads.
"It's a key, to our new home. We bought a house. We love this place but it's not exactly ideal for a baby. Not enough closet space." I looked between them both.
"You bought a house? When can I see it?" I said smiling and shaking my legs with excitement.
"We'll take you when it's finished." Draco said.
"Wait when it's finished? It's not built?"
"Nope. We are building us a new house. I made good on my promise to build you and Theo here a new closet." Theo winked at me and looked back to Draco. "We will let you decorate it how you want to though." "Thank you. This is such a great surprise." I loved the idea of decorating our forever home. I couldn't wait to see it. Draco extended his hand out giving me another box.
"We have this as well." It was a smaller sized box. Unless it was a smaller key, I had one other thing pass my mind of what it could be. But they wouldn't do that now would they? I wouldn't say no if it was that. I opened it slowly and sat inside was a beautiful ring. It had a silver band with an oval shaped diamond in the center. It wasn't huge, but it wasn't tiny either. It was elegant and timeless. Perfect. I continued staring down at it my mouth agape, then Draco spoke making me look back up. He and Theo were both down on one knee. I put my hand to my mouth and started crying. "We can't put into words, how much we love you. We want to spend the rest of our lives, loving you, loving each other, and loving this beautiful new life we're bringing into the world." Theo spoke through his tears also crying with me.
"You make us complete. And we will spend forever, making sure you know how much you mean to us. Hermione, will you marry us?" Theo asked. I had the biggest smile and nodded. They both stood and Theo placed the ring on my finger.
"I can't believe this is happening." I laughed through my tears and they both hugged me. "Have you already asked each other?"
"Don't worry sweetheart, he confessed his love for me already. This is technically a promise ring that he gave me earlier in the year." Theo pointed out a black band on his ring finger. I never realised it's placement until now.
"This is a beautiful ring. I don't know how I got so lucky." I looked back down at it. "I'm gonna have to tell Ginny. Harry is going to hate you both. She's going to be onto him so much now, especially because we are also having a baby." Theo pointed at me. "Potter will be fine. Anyway, you need to eat, I'm gonna go make us some dinner, and Draco sorry to say this right now but you need to call your Mothers healer, he said he needed to talk to one of us and I promised we'd call back before the end of the day." Draco nodded and kissed me on the head before going down the the office. Theo had finished cooking and we were sat eating on the sofa. Draco finally came out of the office after not having leaved all evening. He looked tired. "Everything alright?" "Yeah. He said he needed to call me back, said she wasn't really talking much sense. I dunno, I'll just wait to hear back." Theo nodded and gestured toward the kitchen. "Foods in there, though you'll have to fight Hermione for it. Seems that she's craving spicy food." I laughed and nodded. "I am. I can't get enough." Draco laughed loudly from the kitchen and came back. "What is it like having a craving? Do you just get mad if you can't have it?" I thought about it for a moment. "It's hard to explain. I just get this intense feeling that I need to eat a certain thing right now or yeah, I'll just get pissy." Draco laughed and his phone began buzzing. He rolled his eyes and answered.
"She what? Right so what does that.. no. That's not happening... she doesn't want to get into this with me" He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I gotta call you back. No. Bye." He hung up the phone and swore. He seemed absolutely livid. Theo touched his arm gently.
"Whats happened love?" Draco shook his head and looked between us and cleared his throat.
"I need to talk to you. Alone." Theo looked at me then back to him and nodded. They both left and went to the office for a few minutes before coming back in. Theo looked... concerned? I stood up and threw my hands in the air.
"Okay what's going on?" Draco looked to Theo almost silently pleading with him.
"Sweetheart I really don't think we should get into this right now." What was happening?
"Why not? I'm worried now what's happened?" He sighed and walked back over to me.
"Okay. Come and sit down" I sat back down and Draco walked to stand by the fireplace, Theo sitting next to me. "It would seem Dracos Mother has um, well she's had someone keeping an eye on Draco, and it's gotten back to her that we are all together." I shrugged.
"So...?"
"So she has said that she wants to meet with us all. But.. well she's still on house arrest and she can't actually leave the..." I stood up and stepped away shaking my head. Fuck no.
"No. There is no way I am taking myself and our unborn child into that house, Theo. How could you even ask me that?" They both knew I couldn't do that. Theo stood up and looked to Draco who shook his head then back to me. "What are you not saying?" Theo sighed.
"She knows about the baby and has threatened to publish it if we don't agree. She has also said she will sue us for shares of the money under her maiden name. Says it technically belongs to her too." Theo blurted out.
"Is that even possible?" I asked.
"Depends on the lawyers and case she builds. But it's not impossible that's for sure." I didn't know how to feel. I had a storm of sadness and anger all bubbling up inside of me. Draco was really trying his best to keep his anger under wraps.
"Hermione I will do everything I can to try and fix this."
"To what end though Draco? How are you going to control what the paper prints or know who it is that's following us all? Even if we win the case she builds against you there's still the other parts to it. I want nothing to do with the wizarding world as far as I can help it, not yet anyway. I can't risk people finding out about the baby there are still dangerous people out there who still hate people like me and everything I have done. What if my being pregnant makes people want to find us and hurt our baby because of who we are? There are people who still hate you two and that makes us the perfect target. What if someone tried to take or hurt the baby..." I was panicking. Crying, shallow breathing, and shaking. Theo stood up and hugged me into him.
"Okay listen to me. No one, is going to hurt us, or the baby Hermione. Breathe with me." Theo regulated my breathing after a few deep breathes and Draco was still trying his best to stay as calm as possible. Though I could practically feel the anger radiating from him.
"What the fuck does she want? We know she's not doing this for the money." Theo spoke answering his question not letting go of me as he did.
"She wants to hurt us love. She won't stop until she gets what she wants either. She's given us no choice but to go back to that fucking manor and she knows it."
Draco got out his phone walking to the office as he dialed and slammed the door shut behind him. He was on the phone shouting, yelling and swearing. Theo sighed and kissed me on the head.
"Theo how am I going to.."
"Don't think about it now. Come on, we're going out. You're not staying here and listening to that for the next few hours."
"But what if he.."
"I will text him saying where we are. Now come on." I sniffed and he took my hand leading me past the closed office door where Draco was shouting on the phone and out of the flat. We took a walk around and stopped at a little coffee shop.
"Is he going to be okay?"
"He'll be fine babe. He's angry and I just didn't want you listening to it, it was only going to make you more anxious. He will try his best to get you out of it though. He really will."
"How am I going to go back there?" I sat back and fiddled with the sleeve of my jumper.
"Well you know the stories behind some of my times at the manor. I had to go back most days, during 6th and 7th year and I hated it. Every time I walked through those doors, I would feel the pain, and hear the screams. But, Draco was always right next to me. He hates that place as much as the both of us, but his presence calmed me somehow. Now I am hoping he would have managed to get at least you out of it, but if we have to go, we will be with you every step of the way."
"Oh I've been so self centered in all of this. I've been going on about me and of course you and Draco feel exactly the same I'm sor.."
"Don't apologise, please. You are carrying our future child. I want you to worry about you, and them. Not me, not Draco. You are the priority sweetheart. Besides I know it's not ideal, but at least we can occlude if we really have to. I know you don't know how to do it do you?" I shook my head.
"Never had to learn it. Was it something you had to learn? Did you have to become an occlumens?" Theo laughed a little.
"You could say that. We had to learn it for survival, I guess. Pretty much everyone we were surrounded by at the time, were very skilled legilimens. Draco is a pretty good legilimens too, I can do it but I don't like to. We used to communicate with each other that way sometimes. Anyway they could slip into your mind and you'd have no idea, that they were in there. So for protection for ourselves and for each other, we had to learn it. It was hard, and I became so comfortable with it because of the horrors I saw every day, that I almost lost myself. I did it back to back no break for too long and I was barely alive. I felt nothing. It took Draco some time but he finally got me back to myself. Hence why I don't do it anymore."
"I worry sometimes that Draco will get so fed up with feeling everything so deeply that he'll do that."
"I wouldn't worry about that love. He's smart. Knows his limits, unlike me. My Father didn't help either because there was no break from Malfoy Manor to mine. They were both as bad as the other."
"You don't have to answer, if you don't want to. But what happened to your Mother?" Theo ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breathe.
"I was told by my Father she died from an illness when I was six. But I've heard other theories, just from listening in on conversations and they all lead to the same conclusion." I didn't need him to say it.
"Your Father." He nodded. "Why would he..?"
"He beat her often. Probably just went too far one day. She would tell me, if ever I heard it going on, to hide in my closet. She had charmed it so that whenever I got in and shut the door, the noise would stop, and it would light up like I was sat under the stars. That's where she would read the stories to me. The book that Draco found. She loved me, so much. She would always get beat more for protecting me from him too." He cleared his throat. "You know I always wonder, if she survived. If she had got out and away from him. Would I have been where I ended up? Would I have been on that side of the war? Because she was good, my Mother. And I like to believe I wouldn't have been who I was, if she was still here." Theo stared out of the window a while.
"What was her name?" He looked back at me and smiled fondly, the hurt was in his eyes but there was also pride. He was proud, that she was his Mother.
"Christina." I reached my hand over the table taking his in mine.
"Theo it sounded like you were the most important thing to her in the entire world. She loved you so much. And I'm sorry, she's no longer with us. But believe it or not, I think she's a huge reason why you're so good now, and she'd be so proud of who you are today." He cleared his throat once more and wiped a tear from his cheek.
"Thank you." Theo brought is wrist up looking at his watch. "Well, I think he is probably going to be off the phone now. You wanna head back?" I nodded and stood as he took my hand in his and we walked back to the flat.
Theo opened the door, and we made our way down the corridor and stopped suddenly in our tracks. The whole of downstairs, was trashed. The sofas ripped and burned, the kitchen cupboards were hanging off their hinges, glasses and plates were smashed all over the floor, the piano broken. Both magic and force was used to completely destroy the place. Theo held his arm out stopping me from walking in any further.
"Baby stay here. Please." I nodded and stayed where I was as Theo continued to walk slowly inside drawing his wand. "Draco?" Theo took a deep breathe and walked around the room, his feet crunching over glass with every step. We heard a bang come from the office, Theo walked quickly toward it and opened the door pointing his wand inside before lowering it. Theo sighed then looked back to me and held his hand out. I stepped forward taking it and we walked in. Draco was sat on the floor, his knuckles bruised and bloody, with his knees bent up resting his elbows on them. Theo squeezed my hand and let go to sit down next to him. I moved in and sat on the chair behind the desk looking down to them both. "What happened?" Theo asked as he took his hands in his healing them slowly.
"I was on the phone with my Mother and she threatened you, our child, the mother of our child and was forcing us all to go back to that fucking house. I got your text saying you had gone out, and I was just so angry and I lost it. I had never been so ashamed, to be who I am. To be associated with her."
"What was the outcome of the phone call?" Theo said quietly. Draco shook his head staring down.
"She wouldn't budge, but she did agree to sign an agreement that if we went she would stop her bullshit. I'll make sure it's tight. No loopholes."
"That's fine."
"No it's not Theo. What if either of you were here?" "You knew we weren't. This was bound to happen at some point Draco. We knew it would. It was only a matter of time." "I just don't know if that's it though. What if it happens again? I can't be trusted to raise a child." He looked back up to Theo "I hope it's yours. I don't want to pass my genes on. My bloodline deserves to die with me." A silent tear fell down my cheek and I stood leaving the room and going upstairs. I went to the closet and pulled out the books I got them for Christmas getting Dracos. I updated it and went back downstairs shoving it in his hands.
"Open it." I demanded. He looked up at me and then back down not moving. "Now, Draco. I swear if you don't open it I will walk out that door and not come back." Tears were still falling down my cheeks. I didn't mean that, but he needed the push. Theo looked up at me sadly then back to Draco who reluctantly then opened the book. He flicked through each page and saw all of the memories he had already seen and then came to the new ones I had just put in. There was me receiving the snow globe, us at meetings, getting engaged, us at the doctors office. He got to the last page and saw the most recent memory photograph. It was this moment. When I came into the office and saw him as he is sat right now. He scoffed and looked up at me.
"Why would this, be a good memory?" He asked me frowning.
"Because I love you. Every, single, part of you. The good, and the bad. This book is not for good memories, it is so you know, why I love you. This baby, our baby, deserves to be loved and protected by both of you, just like you do me. Regardless of if Theo is the biological Father, you will be just as much their Father as Theo would be." I sniffed and sat down on the chair mentally exhausted. "I will not let you continue hating yourself. You can't choose where you came from, but you can choose where you go from there. You can choose, to be with me and Theo and let us help you and love you. Or, you can choose to give up on yourself, and if you do that then you're giving up on us too. Giving up on our family. So what's it going to be Draco, because I'd rather know now than years down the line when you just wake up one day and decide that you don't want this anymore. Don't want us anymore." Draco sighed and put the book on the floor next to him and rubbed his hands over his face. Theo looked nervous as he was waiting for his answer. After a while of silence Draco moved his hands down and stood up walking toward me.
"I'm not giving up on our family. I would never walk out on you." I stood too my face still angry. "I can't stand, how much you hate yourself. I know this was to be expected, but please, let us love you." He pulled me into him and held me, Theo stood up and put his arms around our backs hugging us too. We stayed for a while and Theo pulled back speaking to Draco.
"I think you need to go to bed. We can talk more about this tomorrow, but you're exhausted." He nodded and walked to the door which proved how tired he was. He turned back stopping at the door way looking at us.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't change her mind." He left and went upstairs.
"That was a good idea, getting the book. It worked, even if it didn't look like it. Do you feel okay?"
"Fine. I'm just tired. Do you?"
"Yeah. You wanna come up with me?" I shook my head.
"I'm not as angry as I was, but I don't want to sleep up there tonight." Theo nodded in understanding but looked torn between us. I let out a small laugh. "Go on. I'll fix the sofa and sleep down here. He needs you more than I do right now. I'll be fine."
"Shout if you need me." Theo kissed me on the head and went up to join Draco. I got out my wand and fixed the sofa best I could and grabbed a spare blanket turning on the fire. I was lead so that my feet were closest to the fire and pushed two sofas together so it was a wider 'bed'. I led upon it and sighed placing my hands on my stomach. I really hoped we have all this sorted by the time you come little one. I got myself a book that wasn't broken and read until I fell asleep.
I turned over half asleep and saw the dark shadow of the back of someones head in front of me. I screamed and kicked whoever it was in the back a few times.
"Ow! Hermione it's just me."
"Draco?" He sat up and rubbed his back where I kicked him. "What are you doing down here? Wheres Theo?"
"Still upstairs. When he said you didn't want to come up I stayed with him until he fell asleep and then came down here. I don't like the thought of you being down here on your own, any creep could come through the door." I sat up and stared at him.
"Oh. Well that's fine." He sighed and shook his head.
"You're still mad at me."
"I'm not mad at you." Draco scoffed.
"You were mad. You said you would leave and not come back. That doesn't strike me as best pleased."
"Okay fine I was mad but I'm not anymore. Plus I wouldn't have actually done that but you were pissing me off. Draco I just wanted to get through to you that I couldn't possibly love you anymore than I do. And if this baby is biologically yours then I wouldn't want you to be disappointed. To resent them, or me." Draco ran his hand over his face.
"That's not how I meant it."
"Doesn't matter. You said you hoped it was Theos. Didn't even specify biologically, just that you hoped it was nothing to do with you. How else would you mean it?"
"I didn't even think about it like that. I just meant that.. well I didn't want the baby to have every bad quality that I possess. Or mess it up like my parents did me."
"Or the way mine did me?" We both turned and saw Theo walking downstairs. "Sorry, I heard you screaming. Do you think I'm going to be a bad Father because of how I was raised?"
"Of course not Theo."
"So why would you be? I don't know about you love, but I intend on doing everything opposite, to how my Father did it. I intend to ensure that this baby is raised with all the love and care I never got. That you never got. And I already know that because it's half of Hermione, this child is already half of one of the most amazing people I know. And if it is biologically yours. Well that's gonna be one pretty amazing child." Theo walked around climbing onto the make shift bed.
"I talk to them, you know, the baby. If I'm on my own in the bath or just lounging on the sofa, and you know what I talk about the most? The fact that I will probably never know, another child who is going to be more loved and protected than them. No child that is going to have two Dad's who will be as supportive, providing, and present as you will be. And it just breaks my heart, that you don't see that too." Draco smiled sadly and nodded.
"I think I'm starting too, darling. You are both just so patient and loving and kind. I don't know what I did to deserve you both. But I consider myself the luckiest guy in the world, that I have you." He turned to Theo "Thank you, for sticking with me through everything." Then to me. "And thank you, for giving me this chance."
"We love you so much." Theo said leaning into kiss him. He then came down and kissed my stomach. "And we love you so much." He whispered before sitting back up. "Okay, now that has been sorted, both of you shut up. I've been forced to squeeze onto this stupid, uncomfortable, broken sofa and stay down here tonight and I intend to get some sleep." Theo lead down to my left and me and Draco looked at each other confused.
"Why can't we just all go back upstairs to the actual bed babe?" I asked Theo poking his back.
"The principal of it all. We are staying here. Plus it will be amusing to see when we get this memory in our book." That it will. We all led down and had the worst sleep since we stayed at my apartment.