Forty-Two
August 1st 2001:
A very pregnant Hermione Granger sat in the living room of her new house. Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Katie helped her finish moving in just a few days ago. They got the nursery all set up, then Hermione’s bedroom and then the rest of the house. She picked a cozy two bedroom house just two blocks away from where Grimmauld place was located. The downstairs had a basic layout consisting of a living room, kitchen, dining room, and an office located off the living room. Hermione deemed that her home library.
“How are you feeling today?” Ginny promised to stay with her until the birth of her baby. That way she wasn’t alone when she went into Labor.
“I feel very pregnant.” Ginny laughed. Ginny herself found out she was expecting a baby just four months ago. “Is Harry going to be here soon?”
“He should be. I can’t believe he won’t teach me how to drive the car.” Hermione and Harry, being the only ones raised by muggles, decided it was a good idea to get a muggle car. Since it was dangerous for pregnant women to travel by most magical means, they needed a back up plan.
“One day, we’ll teach you.” Hermione stood up again. “I have to pee, again.” As she wobbled to the bathroom, she stopped as a sharp pain shot through her body. “Ginny!” She called out.
“What is it?” Ginny came running.
“I think I just had a contraction.”
“Are you sure?” Hermione let out a gasp.
“I’m sure.”
“How do you know?”
“Because my water just broke.” The two looked down at the puddle in between Hermione’s feet.
“I’m here and I brought food!” Harry announced as he walked through the door. He saw the two women standing in the hallways and stared at them. “What’s wrong?”
“Hermione’s water broke.” Harry dropped the bag of food and ran over to Hermione.
“Let’s get you to the hospital. Gin, floo call your parents and let them know what’s happening. I’ll get Hermione to the car.” After finding out she was pregnant, Harry took on a much bigger role as Hermione's brother. He was there for everything she needed him to be there for. Of course rumors circled that Harry was the father of Hermione’s baby but they quickly shut those down when Hermione made a public statement saying she was dating a muggle and it was his baby. “Come on, Mione.” Harry helped her out of the house and into the car. “I’ll be back.” He ran inside to grab the bag they prepared for this instance, got his wife and then they were in the car, on the way to St. Mungos.
~Hours Later~
Lyra Rose Granger was born at six pm on August First. She was a beautiful, healthy, baby girl. Hermione named Harry and Ginny Potter as her daughter’s godparents. She loved her daughter with a deep intensity.
Hermione laid in her bed in the St. Mungos maternity ward, holding her newborn baby. A knock on the door drew her attention away. Hermione would never admit it, but she secretly hoped Draco would come find her. That maybe he suspected the child to be his and out of duty to his blood, he’d beg Hermione to take him back. The dream was cut short as Ginny, Harry, and Ron walked in.
“Hi, How are you feeling?” Ginny and Harry went on Hermione’s right while Ron went on her left.
“I feel good. She’s healthy and beautiful.”
“Beautiful like her mother.” Ron kissed Hermione on the forehead.
“Thank you, all for being here.”
“Of course, Mione.” Ginny said. Hermione noticed Harry was being quiet and suspicious.
“Harry, are you okay?”
“You should tell him.” Ginny and Ron tensed up. The three of them decided to wait until Hermione was home before bringing up Draco.
“Harry,” Ginny said in a warning tone.
“No, Ginny. I know you both think we should wait, but I don’t.” Harry turned back to Hermione. “If I was him, I’d want to know. If I found out Ginny had my baby without me there, I would be pissed. I would be beyond angry. What do you think he’ll do if he finds out?”
“Disown her. He doesn’t care about me, Harry. He does not care. You really think he and his pureblood wife want a half-blood running around?”
“This is his daughter. He deserves to know her. She deserves to know her father.”
“He called me a mudblood.” Hermione mumbled. Everyone froze. “When we broke up, he said ‘Mudbloods are for fucking, not marrying.’ I do not want him around my daughter.” Harry’s jaw tightened.
“He is a royal git. I will not defend him. But as someone who never knew his parents, Lyra deserves the opportunity to know her father, even if he is a git. He deserves to know. Force him to pick whether he wants to change and be a good man and a good father, or not. You do not get to make the choice for him.”
“What happened to not defending him?”
“I’m defending your daughter. Would you rather her grow up and learn you kept her from her father?”
“Yes. I would rather her never know that Draco Malfoy is her father.”
“Harry, we should step out.” Ron tried to usher him out but Harry shook him off.
“Did you ever think that maybe there is something deeper going on here?” Harry pointed out. “Maybe he was forced to marry her. Maybe he was forced to end things with you. Have you ever thought about that?”
“Then why say the cruel words that he did?”
“Who knows? But we also don’t know what else is happening.”
“I’m not going to tell him, Harry. And if I find out that you told him, you’ll never see me or Lyra again.”
“Fine. I’ll drop it.” Harry left the room and Ron followed after him.
“I’m sorry, Hermione. We were planning to bring up the subject in a nicer way.”
“I get where he is coming from, I do. But I do not care what Draco Malfoy deserves.”
“I know. We just want you to think about it. What if he sees it in the news or if one of his friends finds out and they tell him?”
“Then I will remind him that he is the one who left me.” Hermione took a deep breath. “Can we please drop it? I don’t want to talk about him anymore.”
“Okay. How about we talk about how beautiful and precious my goddaughter is.” Ginny cooed after the baby in Hermione’s arms.
“She looks a lot like him. She has his nose and his jaw. I can already see all the bits of him in her.”
“The Malfoy genes are strong.”
“Fuck the Malfoy genes.” Ginny and Hermione laughed. “I will tell her about him eventually. But for now, she’s going to be my little secret.”
February 1st, 2002
“I can’t believe she’s already six months old. She’s grown so much.” Molly Weasley cooed over the baby in Hermione’s arms.
“She is beautiful.” Hermione smiled. “And she’s excited to meet her new cousin. Where are the Potters anyways?”
“They should be here soon.” Molly Weasley said. “Can I ask you something, Hermione?”
“Of course, Molly.”
“She looks a lot like her father. Her hair gets more blonde everyday. Do you plan on telling him?”
“Did Harry put you up to this?”
“No. I only ask this out of concern for you. She looks like a Malfoy.”
“I don’t know what to do, Molly. I can’t go dyeing my six month old’s hair.”
“There are plenty of permanent glamour spells.”
“Do you think that’s wrong?”
“No. If she grows up in the wizarding world, with this hair, people are going to be suspicious. This hair color is not common, it very much belongs to the Malfoys and the Lovegoods. I think doing this could protect her. It would certainly stop people from asking questions.”
“Can you show me those spells?” Molly agreed and from that day, Hermione’s daughter was a brunette. She grew up to wear her dark, curly hair with pride. No one ever suspected a thing and never questioned Hermione’s claims that a muggle was the father of her daughter.
And for sixteen years, Hermione was never worried about someone finding out her deepest secret. Not until she received a distress owl from Headmistress McGonagall telling Hermione her daughter never arrived at Hogwarts for her sixth year.