Developments
Draco kept his head down as he walked briskly down the corridor, trying not to notice the person at the other end of it. Just as he was about to pass her, he heard a gasped “Malfoy!” and Hermione Granger dropped to the floor at his feet.
He stared for several seconds, his mind whirling. “They're going to think I killed her,” he whispered, “Oh god. I'm going to be sent to Azkaban…..I didn't kill her!” he blurted at the sound of footsteps in the corridor.
Theodore Nott's eyebrows hit his hairline as he took in the scene. “Are you sure?” He hedged.
“Merlin fuck.” Pansy hissed behind him. “I told you we shouldn't have let him wander off on his own!” she turned to Draco, “Anyone else! Anyone fucking else but the bloody Golden Girl and I’d help you bury the body but for fucks sake Draco! Why did it have to be her!”
“I didn't kill her!” he protested, shrilly, tugging on his hair. “She just…collapsed.”
“For the love of Salazar's snakes,” Blaise muttered, edging out from the group, “she's not dead.”
“What?” several sets of eyes turned to look at him.
“She breathing you sodding idiots! Look!”
“I'm not going to Azkaban?” Draco checked.
“Not yet,” Blaise muttered, hoisting Hermione up into his arms, “But might I suggest that a trip to Madam Pomfrey might be in order in case she decides to rectify that?”
“Yes...” Draco nodded frantically. “But ah…all of us?”
“All of us,” Blaise replied with a hard edge to his voice.
“Put her on the bed and someone explain. Now!” Madam Pomfrey looked at them expectantly, her wand moving over Hermione's prone form despite her eyes never moving from them.
“She just ah…collapsed in the corridor.” Draco offered when no one else spoke.
“No other symptoms?”
“She was just walking past me! Said my name and fainted.”
Madam Pomfrey hummed, “I see.” her eyebrows shot up at one of the readings on the diagnostics she had cast. “Milly!”
“Yes madam?” the tiny elf asked.
“Get me Miss Granger's father. And for the love of Merlin do it quickly please.” The elf nodded as the Syltherins watched with interest. “You sit down. He’ll want an explanation, poor though it was and Merlin help the school if you're not here to ask.”
“What?” Draco squeaked.
“Wait…Granger's parents are muggles how are they….”
“Not muggles,” came a dark voice from the door as the Minister of Magic strode into the room. “Poppy, what is going on?”
“It seems as if Miss Granger fainted at young Mr Malfoy's feet.” she offered.
Kingsley's head swung to look at them piercingly. “Is that so?”
“There's an…explanation that, unless I'm very much mistaken, has nothing to do with any of these students. However, I knew you wouldn't be happy if I let them go without speaking to them.”
“She's going to be alright?” Poppy nodded, a concerned expression on her face. “Poppy?”
“Miss Granger will need to consent to me sharing medical details Minister.
“I am her next of Kin,” he growled.
“And those four are not.”
Kingsley nodded, “You are dismissed.” he barked, “But if I find out there was more to this than my daughter fainting….” he trailed off as they paled, all but bolting from the room.
“Well?”
Poppy nodded to the diagnostic hovering over Hermione's head. “Combined with the malnutrition and her recovery from curse damage, I think her body just became overwhelmed.”
Kingsley looked at her in horror. “Who?” he demanded.
“I don't know. However, I am about to wake her and force a nutrition poton down her throat so perhaps she’ll tell us.”
He watched as she cast in complicated patterns until his daughter groaned, blinking her eyes open as if she’d been woken from a deep sleep. “Dad?” she frowned.
Unable to help himself, his mouth quirked into a smile at the title, still so new despite her age. “You fainted.” he looked at her pointedly, pointing at the tiny flashing charm above her head. Her eyes widened and her hand flew to her abdomen.
“Fuck.” she hissed, frightened eyes meeting his.
“You didn't know then,” he sighed, sitting down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
“No,” she whispered.
“Do I get to ask who?” he asked deceptively lightly.
“So you can avada them?” she checked.
“There has to be some perks to being Minister,” he muttered darkly.
“Dad.” she sighed, “It… it doesn't matter.”
“It bloody does!”
“OK it does,” she conceded, “You still can't murder them though.”
“Why not!” he whined, making her smile.
“Because I imagine I'm going to need them, no?”
He sighed exaggeratedly, “I'm sure you'd cope without them.”
She glared at him in response.
“What do you think's going on?” Theo voiced as soon as they were a safe distance away.
“That's what you want to know!” Pansy demanded. “The Minister for fucking Magic just announced himself as Hermione Granger's father!”
“Well of course he did.” Came the serene voice of Luna Lovegood, reaching up to kiss Pansy's cheek.
“When did this happen!” Blaise demanded shrilly, gesturing between them.
“When Pansy apologised so prettily for being a bitch for so many years,” Luna offered making them choke.
“Right,” Blaise muttered. “Of course. Please don't feel the need to share the details. Now… what's this about Granger and Shacklebolt.”
“Well it's rather hard to contact an undercover wizard once they've returned to our world,” she mused. “Hermione took her stepfather's name. She didn't meet the Minister until just before fifth year. I'm told it was rather spectacular when their magic met.”
She smiled serenely at the gaping Slytherins. “Why didn't she tell anyone?”
Luna shrugged, “The people who were important to them knew, and as much as Kingsley wanted to give her the protection of his name, they didn't think it would make any difference by that point. And she didn't want to disrespect the dad who had brought her up.”
“Mother of Merlin,” Pansy muttered. “Where are they now? Her parents.”
Luna looked uncharacteristically serious. ”They're dead. The Minister is all she has left.” she looked at them with clear eyes, her usual ariness gone, "He is incredibly protective of her.”
“So I imagine he's about to murder whoever knocked Granger up,” Draco muttered stunning them all into silence.
“What?” Theo squeaked.
“That charm Pomfrey cast. It indicated she was pregnant. Dehydrated, too stressed, malnourished and still recovering from curse damage.” he trailed off as his friends gaped. “You pick things up,” he muttered.
“Salazar sack.” Blaise breathed. “Someone knocked up Granger. My money's on the Weasel.”
“Nah he's with Brown,” Theo dismissed, “Skeeter made a point of reporting it. Potters with the Weaslette.”
“So who the fuck was brave enough to seduce the Golden girl?” Pansy demanded. Luna just smiled.
“Perhaps you should remember that if this gets out the Minister will know it was one of you,” was all she said.
“Right then, who am I not allowed to murder?” Kingsley demanded after Madam Pomfrey shoved yet another potion down her throat.
She smiled, her head dropping onto his shoulder, “Can we do this tomorrow?”
“No,” he replied flatly. Having expected that answer, Hermione reached into her pocket with a defeated sigh, producing a D.A. coin.
“Do I know them Hermione?” he checked.
Hermione but back a grimace, “I doubt it.”
Her father paused, “You doubt it. Just how unimpressed am I going to be Hermione Jean?”
“Beyond the obvious my being pregnant without NEWTs?” she quipped.
“If that charm is correct you'll have time to sit them. Just. But time at least.” He dismissed “And while I can't say I'm impressed, nor would I have chosen it for you, it's not the end of the world. Do you feel up to sitting your Potions and Defence ones sooner rather than later?”
Hermione hummed leaning into him, needing the comfort as her mind whirled with the implications of this pregnancy. “We ...we didn't plan this “ she whispered, not answering his question.
“Yes I got that Hermione,” he replied impatiently despite tightening his hold on her before he sighed. “ How could you be so careless?”
“We weren't!” She protested. “Charm and potion. Every time. I honestly don't know how this happened.”
Kingsley pulled a face, not particularly wanting to discuss his daughter's sex life. “Perhaps one of the other potions you're on impacted the contraceptive," he suggested. "How long has this been going on for?”
“Ah ..um well.“ She looked down at her knees, tensing slightly.” Since the middle of fourth year?”
“What?” He barked, pulling away from her in shock.
“It wasn't safe,” she whispered. “No one could know.”
Kingsley froze running through a list inside his head. Thankfully he could rule out his biggest fears. There was no way his daughter was involved with either the Malfoy or Nott boys given their reaction earlier. It didn't leave him with a particularly long list though.
His questions were answered when a frantic looking boy ran into the room followed closely by Minerva
“This is more irregular!” She was protesting.
“Ade.” His daughter sighed, her body sagging in relief at the sight of him.
In a move that genuinely surprised him the boy ignored him completely and pulled his daughter into a hug. “What happened?” he demanded frantically.
“I fainted.” She nutters sheepishly.
“Why?” He asked trying to mask the flash of fear
“Um…” Hermione shifted uncomfortably. “We weren't as careful as we thought?”
Adrian Pucey froze his eyes scanning her face almost disbelievingly.
“Fuck.”
“Yes.” Hermione nodded, “It's not…ideal.”
He let out a bark of startled laughter before he took in the real anxiety on her face. Brushing a curl behind her ear, he attempted to sound less scared than he felt. “We'll figure it out.”
“Will we?” She snorted. “A baby Ade!”
He shrugged “So it's a little bit sooner than we discussed…”
“A little!”
“A lot,” he amended. “But we'll figure it out. You're good at tweaking the plan.”
Hermione let out a groan combined with a laugh thinking her head into his chest. Kingsley watched as the boy dropped a kiss onto the tip of her head a fond smile on his face that slowly morphed into something else when he realised Kingsley was there.
“Ah…Hermione love, why is the Minister for Magic looking like he'd like to murder me?”
Hermione tensed. “Ah. You remember me telling you about my biological father….”
Adrian's eyes blew wide as if he'd only just now connected the dots. “Yes.” He squeaked. “I just ah….hadn't quite realised….”
Arching an eyebrow Kingsley held out his hand. "It seems we're overdue an introduction." He spoke pointedly making Hermione sigh
"Dad!" She growled. "Enough! This is Adrian Pucey. Ade, my dad, Kingsley Shacklebolt
“Nice to meet you, Sir,” Adrian offered, not looking at all like he meant it.
“I’d say the same but given the circumstances….”
“Dad!”
“What? You're all of nineteen and pregnant by a boy I had no idea even existed!”
“We were going to fix that,” she mumbled miserably, “Over the Christmas holidays.”
“Why not mention him before now?”
“Because if it had gotten out his uncle would have murdered him! You know fine well William Pucey walked an exeptionsally fine like with his brother in order to survive! What do you think he’d have done if he’d discovered his nephew was sullying himself with Harry Pooters Mudblood?”
“Don't call yourself that!” two voices commanded, looking startled when they realised the other had spoken.
She shrugged, unrepentant, “It's just a word. My point still stands though.”
“Fine. I understand why you weren't shouting it from the rooftops, but me Hermione, why did you never mention it to me!”
“Because in the beginning, we were figuring out how we were meant to relate to each other,” she admitted slowly. “And then, we both know how irrational Ron and Harry were about all things Slytherin... and it kept getting more and more dangerous and I…I panicked, alright? I couldn't handle the thought of someone questioning the one thing that saved my sanity. It was already hard enough talking him out of ending things so as not to risk me further, I thought having you interrogate him as we both know you would have would tip him over the edge. And I just couldn't. Things were awful enough.”
“Merlin, sweetheart,” Adrian groaned, “When you say it like that it makes me sound like an arsehole.”
She shrugged, “You weren't. I did understand why you were terrified.”
He hummed, pulling her closer as he manoeuvred himself onto the bed, settling her on his lap much to Kingsley's annoyance. “Do you think the wonder duo will be any more receptive now?”
“No,” she admitted in a small voice. “Harry might be but Ron….” she sighed. “I think it's going to go badly, especially as he refused to accept no for an answer.”
“Why didn't you just tell him you were with someone?”
“Because no one knew? Because I couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't abuse their position as trainee Aurors to work out who you were and question you and ultimately if that had happened it would get back to my Dad, who as we've just established, had no idea you existed.”
Kingsley eyed them both contemplatively, not entirely sure what the correct response to this was. Not for the first time, he silently wished her other parents, surely between them they'd know what to do. “I want you home at Christmas,” he said finally. “Bring the boy. We’ll…talk.”
Hermione's eyebrows shot up “Could you make that sound any more intimidating?”
“I could try if you’d like?” he asked pointedly.
“Jesus,” she muttered. Startling when Minerva cleared her throat.
“From what little I've overheard I gather congratulations are in order, Miss Granger?”
Hermione smiled sheepishly. “Yes.”
Minerva nodded, “Might I ask how far along you are?”
“Only six weeks,” she murmured, “so please, can we keep this between ourselves…. it's too early…”
Minerva pulled a sympathetic face, “I will likely have to inform Professor Slughorn and Professor Dawlish, you’ll need to take both Potions and Defence exams early. You've time, but not as much as I'd like.”
“How long?”
“I’d like potions complete before you're twelve weeks, Defence is more a balance issue, so I'd say sooner rather than later but there is not the same rush. We can put protections in place for the babe during it.”
Hermione nodded, “I could do Potions just before Christmas, it gives me a fortnight to read through the course. Would Professor Slugborn be willing to give me lab space? Id like to practice.”
Minerva nodded “Of course. And Defense?”
She sighed, "I'd like to run through the curriculum, so after Christmas?”
“God, I'll let them know.” she turned to Adrian. “Mr Pucey, I will extend an invitation to dinner. And I would like to request a meeting next week where we can discuss…reasonable adjustments.”
“Th..thank you, Headmistress,” he stammered, glancing down at Hermione. “I dont need to stay.”
She shook her head, “No. I…enough hiding. Dad knows, if Harry and Ron react badly he’ll at least be aware. I’ll ah...owl them now so that they don't hear from elsewhere.”
“Should you need my office Miss Granger do let me know. I imagine we’ll be seeing the Messrs Potter and Weasley before the nights out.” Minerva spoke wryly, her eyes on Kingsley. “Minister, I assume you’ll also be staying?”
“Yes.” he agreed promptly.
“Very well. I shall go and find Professor Slughorn in the meantime, I assume you’ll want to get started as soon as possible.”
Madam Pomfrey bustled up as she left, eyeing the charm above Hermione's head. “You may go Miss Granger. I will have an elf deliver a prenatal and a nutrition potion daily. Take them. And I’ll see you back here next week, given how malnourished you were I feel better monitoring you closely.”
“Thanks, Madam Pomfrey,” she murmured, leaning further into Adrian, suppressing a yawn as tiredness hit her.
“You falling asleep, sweetheart,” he murmured
"Hmmm, comfy though.”
He laughed, “Come on, let's get you back to your room, you can nap there.”
“Fine.” she sighed, “But you know my Dad's coming too, right?”
“I’d expected that, yes,” he agreed placidly. “I promise we won't maim each other while you sleep. “
Hermione snorted, leaning into his side as he manoeuvred her to her feet, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “Come on then.”
Kingsley followed silently, wondering how he was supposed to feel about this development.