Disclaimer: JKR, the Brilliant, owns the HP universe- not me!
Draco took Louisa’s hand and guided her out of the kitchen. He was thankful for both Dumbledore’s and Mrs. Weasley’s insistence that everyone take a much-needed break before dinner. Though he was desperate to help Hermione, he was worried about Louisa and exhausted from the birth ritual research. He hoped that Dumbledore was right- that Hermione wasn’t in any immediate danger.
“Daddy, we can’t go to the park, can we?” Louisa’s voice startled him out of his reverie. Draco looked down at his daughter- not just my daughter- but Hermione’s, as well, he thought. He knelt down in front of her to be at eye level.
“No, dearest. It’s just not safe right now. But soon, I’ll take you to the park, okay?” he promised. Louisa’s pensive expression slowly altered into a more relieved one.
“She’ll come with us, too,” she replied. It wasn’t a question. Draco looked sharply at Louisa. He pulled his child into his arms, breathing in her wonderful smell. He was always surprised at how such a simple act could be so soothing.
“Yes, Louisa, I want that, too. I want Hermione to be with us,” he said, his face buried in her golden brown curls. Giving her a last squeeze, he broke away from the embrace. He remained kneeling and gazed at his daughter.
“You look so much like her. I don’t know how I never saw it before, Louisa,” he murmured, gently pulling one of her curls out from behind her ear. At this, Louisa’s small smile grew into her signature toothy grin.
“Hermione is beautiful. So I will be beautiful, too, when I grow up,” she proclaimed. Draco chuckled softly at her enthusiasm. He stood and then opened the door to their suite. As soon as the two were inside, he lit a warm cheery fire in the grate. Wearily, he sat down in the armchair in front of the fire. He waited a few minutes to allow Louisa time enough to freshen up. When she walked back into the common room, he held out his arms to her.
“Louisa, come sit with me,” he prompted. She crossed the room and stood at his side.
“You want to talk about Hermione, don’t you? About how she is my mother?” she asked, looking deeply at him. Once again, he was touched by her perceptiveness.
“Yes, love. I just want to know how you feel about all of this. I can imagine that this must be shocking to you- it certainly is to me,” he started. Louisa sat down in the armchair across from Draco’s.
“Well, I feel rather strange about it, Daddy. For one, when I realized that Hermione is my mother- I wasn’t surprised. It was like I already knew that she was- but didn’t know that I knew it,” she paused and looked up at him. “Does that make sense?” Draco nodded his head, wanting her to continue.
“I only feel strange because I think I should have been surprised- or even shocked, like you said. But I’m not. And what I feel about her- what I feel is… I just want her back, Daddy. I feel very sad that she’s not here. And I’m worried about her because of the message she sent to us. She’s scared right now,” she paused again, her brow furrowing. She seemed lost in her own thoughts as she gazed into the fire.
“I feel guilty, too. If Hermione hadn’t been taken, we might not have figured out that she's my mother. If I hadn’t been taken, that might not have happened either. So, all of the horrible dangerous mess has brought me something that I’ve wanted for so long. I’m scared for Hermione- but … well, I don’t know how to say it… I guess I’m not sorry that all of this happened,” she sighed. They both sat there in silence for several long minutes.
“I understand, love,” Draco said at last. He leaned forward and took her small hands in his own. Louisa stood up from her chair, yawning. She gave Draco a quick kiss on the cheek and then headed into her room. Draco continued to sit in front of the fire, watching the flickering flames.
Draco’s thoughts were a jumbled riot. Unlike Louisa, he was quite shocked upon realizing that Hermione was the mother of his child. He’d grown so used to the likelihood of Louisa’s mother being dead that he’d been blind to the obvious truth. Louisa looked and even acted so much like Hermione. The two were so clearly connected, as well. He closed his eyes and recalled how Hermione had taken Louisa into her arms when they’d showed up in the doorway of 12 Grimmauld Place. Seeing them together had felt so intrinsically right. Also, whereas he, Harry, and Ron, had felt a surge of emotions, Louisa had been able to identify a clear message from Hermione.
Had that only happened a bit earlier today? It seemed like a lifetime ago.
He tried to put his thoughts and feelings into some kind of coherence. While he was still astonished that Hermione was Louisa’s mother, he couldn’t help but to feel excited at the revelation. He and Hermione were parents! He remembered their kiss from the night before. He had already known that he loved her. His love, coupled with the passion he felt from their kiss, and now the knowledge that they shared a child together was threatening to consume him.
She’s mine, he thought.
“No, she’s our’s,” he said, thinking of his daughter.
Draco knew that Hermione was indeed bound to him and Louisa. She’d said as much to him already. Louisa seemed to know it, as well. Now he felt their ties so deeply that he was almost frightened at the intensity that was welled up inside of him. He had to get Hermione back- now that he’d finally seen his true family, he was not going to let anything happen to either his daughter or the woman he loved.
He took a deep breath, formulating the beginnings of a plan. He’d need to visit a few ‘old friends.’ Surely, he could dredge up some information regarding the resurrection of the Dark Lord! The remaining Death Eaters could be counted on to be sloppy in their excitement. He was certain he’d be able to glean some of the details.
Only he didn’t know any of the current remaining Death Eaters- the known criminals were all imprisoned. They’d been questioned extensively on the identities of any other Death Eaters. He sighed, knowing that they’d probably be of no use.
Who else is there? he wondered. Peter Petigrew was still at large. He could think of no one else. Though many of his family’s acquaintances were no fans of Muggle-borns, he highly doubted their allegiance to the fallen Dark Lord. He laughed aloud at the thought of Pansy Parkinson as a Death Eater.
“She’s just too stupid,” he muttered.
Just then, he heard a tapping on the window. He looked over to see one of the large regal Malfoy owls. He quickly crossed the room to open the window. He relieved the owl of its letter and watched as the bird sailed off into the evening sky.
“Mother,” he groaned. Quickly he ripped open the ostentatious Malfoy seal.
Draco, my son,
Please come to me as soon as you read this letter. I need you here with me. Your father has told me everything. We both must discuss this with you.
Narcissa
Draco sighed. His mother was clearly around the bend. Though he had no real love left for his mother, he did feel pity for her. Lucius had always been so cruel with her. Though he’d never actually seen his father raise a hand to his mother, he knew that she’d suffered psychological blows throughout their marriage. Instead of feeling relief at Lucius’s death, Narcissa had been devastated. Shortly after Lucius had been buried, she’d began to claim that she’d been talking with him. Her drinking had increased, too. Draco knew she was crazy and thus had committed himself to helping her as much as he could. She was his mother, after all. And Malfoys didn’t abandon each other. So he kept her at home and out of St. Mungo’s, against her doctors’ wishes.
Quickly he rolled up the parchment and threw it into the fire. As he watched the paper blacken, he mused about his options. Dumbledore had expressly told him not to leave the Order Headquarters. Though he knew that he wasn’t safe, he also doubted that the Death Eaters would come after him now that they had Hermione. He knew that the Death Eaters would be looking for Louisa and thus, not him. As long as Louisa remained hidden here at 12 Grimmauld Place, he was certain she’d be safe. He was also confident that Dumbledore, Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Mrs. Weasley- and indeed any of the other Order members- would keep her out of harm’s way.
He also knew that he couldn’t remain on the sidelines any longer, waiting for something to happen. He was so close to having both Hermione and Louisa- he was not going to allow anyone to steal either of them away. With Louisa safe, he felt like he could go and look for Hermione.
He could start with Narcissa. Though the woman was insane, she may have heard some news that might indicate the Death Eaters’ plans. Plus, Malfoy Manor was just as safe as 12 Grimmauld Place, he reasoned. It was unplottable and one could only get the address from the Secret Keeper. Since his father had died, he had become the Secret Keeper. Thus, he knew all of the persons with access to the Manor. It’d be a safe place to start snooping.
He stood and stretched his long limbs in front of the warm fire. He finally felt some resolve instead of just helplessness.
What had Dumbledore said? he mused. That I must do as I see fit? Yes, that’s it. Draco smiled a bit as he realized that the Headmaster must have known that he would need to leave to help Hermione.
Tonight, he thought. Tonight, after we look at Louisa’s thoughts in the Pensieve- I’ll go to Malfoy Manor and see what I can find out. I’ll be back before anyone even knows that I’m gone.
He heard sounds of life down the hall. Their break was over. It was time to awaken Louisa and go downstairs for supper.
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“My love, do you really think he will come?” a female voice cooed into the gloomy darkness.
“Of course he will,” a male voice retorted.
“Now take me to see her- the vile mudblood mother,” he ordered.
The female voice only whimpered in response before Disapparating into the night.