Dragon's
Hermione was nervous while packing up to leave for the day at work though she kept telling herself not to be. It was a stupid reason to be nervous. All she had to do was simply hand someone a birthday invitation. That someone being Draco and that invitation being to their daughter's birthday party, but it was no big deal. Right?
She grabbed her bag and double-checked that she had her wand before she walked out of her office. Locking her door, she looked to see that Draco's door was open. She took a deep breath and walked five steps to his office knowing exactly what she was going to say. When she peered into the room, she saw him with his head down, studying a case file.
She shook her head at herself and lifted her chin. She looked like she was prepared to go to battle as she stepped into his office. "Hi, Malfoy."
Draco set down the file in his hand and looked up at her with a small smirk on his face. "Well, Hello, Granger."
She reached into her purse and grabbed the dark grey envelope that had his name on it shining in silver. She reached the card out for him to take. "I know it's last minute, so you may have plans, but as you may know it's Cassie's birthday."
Draco looked at her, nodding along to her words. He held the envelope in his hands before starting to open it.
Hermione sighed. "It's an invitation to Cassie's birthday party." He seemed to smirk at something as he pulled out the card, but she continued to speak. "It's tonight at six and we're having it at my place. Everyone else is coming as well, but as I said, I'm sure you have-"
"Dragons?" Draco asked, still looking down at the card.
Hermione froze mid-sentence and looked at him. "Yeah..." She studied the way his eyes seemed to light up at the invite. "It's almost like she knows." A small laugh escaped her lips. "She's been obsessed with them since she was little."
Draco looked up at her before looking back at the invite with a small laugh. He turned and opened one of the drawers of his desk and put the invite inside before finding her eyes. "I'll be there."
"Really? Are you sure you don't have-"
"Granger," He cut her off to get her to stop rambling. "I don't have anything better to do with my night. I want nothing more than to be at Cassie's birthday party."
Hermione took a deep breath and took in the look on Draco's face. He was being pure and truthful. It lit a spark in her. "Okay then." She nodded to him. "I will see you later."
Draco nodded and picked his file back up. "See you later, Granger."
~
Hermione made sure everything was set and ready in her flat for Cassie's birthday. Molly was bringing the cake so she could go ahead and check that off of her list. The decorations floated around the flat, paper dragons flying through the air. She even had a banner near the kitchen table that read 'Happy 11th Birthday Cassiopeia!" and it was decorated with flying dragons breathing fire.
According to the time, everyone would start arriving around six and Cassie would be there by 6:15. She wished she could be the one to pick Cassie up, but Harry said he would go in her stead so that she could finish decorating. He also needed to pick up James. The one thing about being the Golden Girl--and being close to Headmistress McGonagall--was that a simple letter could get Cassie dismissed from school grounds for the weekend.
Hermione's heart clenched at the thought of it being a month and a half since she had seen her daughter. She tried to keep herself busy so she wouldn't think about it too often, but it would be a lie if she said her heart didn't break a little more every morning she woke up to an empty flat.
She sat in her empty flat looking at all of the decorations hoping Cassie would love it. Cassie and her love for dragons... Hermione laughed, shaking her head. It seemed like not long ago she was buying Cassie a stuffed dragon for her third birthday.
At 5:50, she prepared herself for the storm that was coming. She knew it was probably a bad idea to have Cassie's birthday party in her small flat, but she wanted her to be home for her birthday. She knew that the moment everyone started to show up she would be counting down the minutes until they left so that she could spend time with Cassie. They only had the weekend before she would be gone til the holidays.
Ginny and Albus showed up at 5:52 followed by Theo, Blaise, and Pansy at 5:54. Molly, Arthur, and George showed up at 5:55 as Hermione told Molly she could set the cake in the kitchen. Ron, Susan, and Rose showed up at 5:57 followed by Neville and Luna arriving at 5:58. Andromeda and Teddy showed up at 5:59.
The more people that showed up, the more Hermione felt nervous. She wanted to see her daughter more than anything, but she also knew that Draco would be arriving at any moment. The only people missing were him, Harry, James, and Cassie.
The moment the time read 6:00, Draco appeared through the Floo looking almost anxious. Hermione took a deep breath as she watched him brush the ashes off of his suit. He was holding a red gift bag and he was wearing black dress pants and a white oxford. His hair was slicked back though there were a few pieces falling onto his forehead.
She shook her head and snapped out of her thoughts, making her way over to her. She pointed down at the present and looked up at him. "There's a table set up for gifts near the window. Cassie will be here around 6:15."
Draco looked around the room at everyone as though they would attack him at any moment. All he did was nod.
Hermione put her hand on his arm, causing him to look down at her and she met his eyes. "This isn't war. It's just a birthday party. You'll be okay."
Draco looked between both of her eyes before taking a deep breath and nodding. "Where did you say the gift table was?"
Hermione pointed toward the window where there was a table full of different-sized gifts. "Over there." She looked back up at him. "I'm going to go and talk to Theo, Pansy, and Blaise. You should come over when you're done."
Once again, Draco nodded and walked off toward the gift table. Hermione made her way over to Theo, Blaise, and Pansy who were drinking punch in the corner of the room. "All three of you have been to each of Cassie's birthdays and yet you still act like it's your first time around the Weasley's."
"I'm not complaining, Molly and Arthur love me." Theo smiled brightly and pointed to Pansy. "It's her that's the problem."
"I am not," Pansy said sternly. "I just," She huffed. "All of these years of being around them and I haven't formed a connection with any of them."
"Have you tried?" Hermione questioned, giving her a knowing eye.
Pansy gave her a thin smile. "Fine. With Cassie turning eleven, I guess it's finally time I make nice with the Weasley's."
"What about the Weasley's?" Draco walked over and stood next to Hermione.
Blaise let out a small laugh. "Oh nothing, just Pansy feeling out of place around the Weasley's even though she has had eleven years to get to know them."
Pansy scoffed and rolled her eyes. "As if you have gone out of your way to getting to know them."
Blaise crossed his arms and looked at her with a cheeky grin. "As a matter of fact, George and I spent nearly an hour at Cassie's last birthday talking about my potions and how we could incorporate them into the joke shop."
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me." She looked at all of them with her mouth open. "You mean to tell me that I am the only one who hasn't gotten to know them? You all made me look so bad."
"Technically speaking, I don't have any sort of connection with them." Draco budded in.
"Yeah, but you've been gone for the past eleven years so you have an excuse," Pansy spoke nonchalantly but everyone froze.
Hermione was mid-sip when the words were spoken but when she couldn't hold it in any longer, she spit her drink back into her cup, laughing. Theo and Blaise soon followed and Pansy stood with her hand over her mouth.
"I'm so so sorry-" Pansy started.
Draco broke out into a laugh and Hermione was trying to catch her breath. "It's fine, Pansy." Hermione was gasping for air and all she could think about was how much she missed seeing everyone together and laughing. "I have to make my rounds before Cassie gets here so I will see you all in a bit."
Hermione walked over to Arthur and Molly as Arthur talked about his new muggle obsession. This week, he was infatuated with how cell phones worked. Hermione promised to bring him one of her old ones when she got the chance.
She then walked over to George and they spoke about how the joke shop was going. He told her about all of the new products that would be available by the end of the month if she wanted to stop by. Hermione told him that she would have to check her schedule but that she would definitely stop by.
She then talked to Ron, Susan, Ginny, Neville, and Luna as they watched the kids run around the lounge room. Neville was able to take the weekend off from teaching at Hogwarts. He talked about how he loved the new group of students he had gotten this year. Luna spoke of Wrackspurts and other things that Hermione couldn't understand.
"I see you decided not to show up drunk to this birthday." Ginny was on the edge of laughing.
Hermione shook her head in disbelief. "Shove off, Gin'."
She finally made her way over to Andromeda who was sitting back in one of Hermione's sofa chairs as she watched the kids as well. "Teddy's getting so big."
Andromeda smiled as she watched her Grandson chase the younger children around. He was able to leave Hogwarts earlier in the day than the others. "He is," She paused. "I can't believe he turned twelve earlier this year."
"I can't believe Cassie is already eleven." Hermione sat down in an empty chair next to her.
Andromeda gave her a sincere smile. "Time really does fly." She looked past Hermione before finding her eyes again. "I see my nephew is here."
Hermione inhaled deeply. "Yes, he is."
"Has he finally decided to be in Cassie's life?" Andromeda looked at her with a knowing eye.
Hermione's mouth fell mouth when it clicked inside her mind. "You knew?"
She nodded. "I'm pretty sure everyone here knows, Darling." She looked around the room before settling on the group of Slytherins. "Why else would Theo, Pansy, and Blaise come to all of Cassie's birthdays?"
A small laugh escaped Hermione's lips. "I guess I didn't think that one through."
Andromeda smiled as she leaned closer to Hermione to whisper. "I don't know the full story, and I don't expect you to tell me, but that boy was raised by my sister and no matter how many mistakes he might have made in the past, my sister knows how to raise someone right."
Hermione sighed with a smile forming on her face. She looked over at Draco who was smiling and laughing with Pansy, Theo, and Blaise. "I can tell." She looked back at Andromeda. "I think I've always been able to tell."
The fire roared to life as James, Harry, and Cassie stepped through the Floo. Everyone yelled Happy Birthday, but Cassie ignored them because the moment her eyes landed on Hermione her face lit up. "MUM!"
Cassie ran straight into Hermione's arms with such force that if she were standing, she would have fallen over. Hermione grasped Cassie in her arms and squeezed so hard she was surprised she didn't complain. "Oh, My Love, I missed you so much." She kissed Cassie's temple.
Cassie pulled back with a bright smile on her face. "I missed you too, Mum." She kissed her on the cheek right as one of the paper dragons flew above them and caught her attention. "IS THAT A DRAGON?!" She jumped off of Hermione's lap and started to scan the air for more.
"Yes, love, there are multiple of them around the flat." Hermione watched as her daughter's eyes lit up, watching as the dragons soared across the ceiling. It almost made her cry with the amount of joy that she felt at that moment. Her daughter was home.
Cassie walked around and said hi to everyone as they wished her a happy birthday. Hermione had stood and walked over to get more punch when Draco came to her side. "She has your fire."
Hermione turned to him with furrowed eyebrows. "What?"
Draco turned around to look at Cassie as he pointed at her. "The way her eyes light up. It's the same look I see in you when you get excited about something."
Hermione looked at her daughter and she could see it. Cassie looked like she was glowing with light and happiness. There was a fire burning inside her and Hermione hoped that she would never lose it.
She looked up at Draco. "I see it."
"Uncle Theo!" Cassie yelled as she ran into Theo's arms.
Draco and Hermione made their way over to the group of Slytherins as Cassie gave each and every one of them a hug.
"Aunt Pansy, I missed you so much!" She turned to Blaise. "I missed you too, Uncle Blaise!" She looked at everyone. "I missed all of you! SO much has happened at school. Aunt Pansy, you have got to see what some people wear, you would fall over. And Uncle Blaise, I see why you like potions so much. It's so fun to mix all of the ingredients together. Oh, and Uncle Theo, you would not believe what happened last week in the Great Hall-"
"Take a breath, Cassie." Hermione laughed. "You will have enough time to tell them everything."
Pansy leaned down to Cassie's height. "Don't worry, little one, we can talk about fashion all weekend."
"Well, maybe not all weekend," Theo budded in.
"Yeah, you have to give some time to your favorite Uncle." Blaise smiled down at her- "OW!"
Theo hit Blaise on the arm. "You are not her favorite Uncle."
"Okay, both of you stop." Hermione laughed. "All of you will have time to see Cassie this weekend but most of all she will be spending time with me, her mother."
Theo, Blaise, and Pansy all groaned and rolled their eyes knowing that she was right. Cassie may love her endless supply of Aunts and Uncles, but they were never going to interrupt Hermione's time with her daughter.
"Hey, I remember you." Cassie looked up at Draco and everyone froze. "You're Mr. Malfoy." She smiled up at him.
"Yes, I am." He smiled down at her. "And I believe today is your birthday."
Cassie nodded eagerly. "I'm turning eleven!" She cheered. "Can I tell you something?" Her demeanor changed and no one had any idea what was to come.
Draco furrowed his eyebrows for a single second before nodding his head. "Go for it."
Cassie wiggled her finger for him to lean down to her height. The moment he was at eye level with her, she looked him dead in the eye with the next words on the tip of her tongue. "Your son is mean."
"Cassie!" Hermione yelled while Theo, Pansy, and Blaise burst out laughing. "We don't say things like that."
Cassie shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "Well, it's true."
Hermione shook her head at her daughter as Draco let a small laugh escape his lips. "I'll tell you what," Draco started as he looked at Cassie and she found his eyes again. "I'll talk to Scorp and if he bothers you again then just tell him that you'll tell his father what he did."
Cassie smiled brightly and put her hand out toward Draco. "It was a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Malfoy."
Draco laughed as he shook her small hand. "As with you, Ms. Granger."
"You two are terrible." Hermione shook her head at them. Maybe Cassie had more in common with her father than Hermione would like to admit.
Draco stood straight and smiled at Hermione. "What can I say? I'm good with business deals."
Theo laughed. "Like father like-" He stopped as a crushing pain hit his stomach and he looked to see Pansy with her arm raised waiting for him to say something else.
Hermione and Draco both fixed him with one look as everyone remained frozen around them. Theo mouthed 'Sorry' to her and the only thing she was glad for was that Cassie seemed to have no idea what was going on.
Hermione kneeled down next to Cassie. "I believe someone has a birthday to celebrate. How about we go do your cake?"
Cassie nodded her head quickly. "Yes, please!"
Everyone gathered around the dinner table as Cassie's eyes reflected the orange fire of her birthday candles. Molly had really outdone herself by adding flying dragons onto the cake. The entire cake looked like one huge flame and had three layers.
Hermione looked around the room as everyone sang Cassie Happy Birthday and she couldn't be happier. She was surrounded by her family and friends as they celebrated her daughter's birthday. Eleven years ago, she would have never thought she would be where she was, but she was glad for everyone who helped along the way.
Her eyes landed on Draco as he sang the words to the song. The way he looked at their daughter was a look she never thought she would see on his face. He glowed in the same way Cassie glowed as she blew out her birthday candles. Hermione knew that she wasn't the one blowing out the candles, but she still made a wish of her own as the flames vanished.
When they made it to gifts, Cassie was spoiled as always. George had gotten her an entire bag of candy from the joke shop, Susan and Ron gifted her a silver charm bracelet that had a book charm on it, Molly and Arthur gave her a red sweater with a C on it and a rubber duck, Andromeda gifted her a new quill with some fresh parchment, and Ginny and Harry went in on a few books Cassie had wanted her own copy of.
Neville gifted her a flowerpot and Luna gave her a pair of pink glasses that Hermione swore looked familiar. Pansy gifted Cassie personalized clothes that were a mix of tops, skirts, dresses, and more. Blaise gave her a painting that pictured a dragon soaring above the water right at sunset and Theo gave her more candy on top of a new bookshelf for her room.
Hermione gave Cassie a golden heart-shaped locket that contained a photo of the two of them inside. She helped her put it on and watched as her face brightened as she looked down on it. "Thank you, Mum."
"Of course, love." Hermione kissed the top of her head.
"Looks like you have one more, little one," Pansy spoke as she grabbed the last bag off of the table.
Cassie grabbed the bag and immediately tore the tissue paper off of the top. She pulled out something soft and large, but she couldn't quite see what it was as it was folded. She stood and unfolded the item, realizing it was a blanket, but when she saw the design, she screamed. "IT'S A DRAGON!" She looked at her mum with her face lit up.
Hermione smiled at her, noticing the color of the bag. She looked to her left to find Draco sitting a few feet away from her. She mouthed 'Thank You' to him as he nodded back to her. She turned back to Cassie to see her already wrapping the large blanket around her small body.
Later that night, when Hermione would be tucking her daughter into bed, happy that she was home, she would go to lay the Dragon blanket over Cassie only to realize that there was something stitched into the fabric. Three simple letters. D.L.M