Fic: Of Babies and Harpies
Title: Of Babies and Harpies
Pairing: Draco/Ginny with Harry/Hermione on the side
Rating: G
Summary: Ginny tells Draco that he's going to be a father for the first time.
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Notes: This is for the lovely dragonsangel68.
“I’m pregnant.”
Draco blinked half a dozen times and stared at the redhead next to him. When Ginny had taken his hand and said she had something important to tell him, a sliver of dread had unfurled in the pit of his stomach. Did she want to move house again? Was she going to leave him? But the two words she’d blurted out as soon as they were alone, standing outside in the cold on an elegant marble balcony, were two words he’d never have contemplated coming out of her mouth, not even in his wildest dreams (which did get pretty wild).
“You’re... you’re what?” Perhaps he’d heard wrong.
“I’m pregnant, Draco.” Ginny’s voice was soft, and she wrapped her arms around her stomach protectively.
“But how--” Draco stopped for a moment as he tried to gather his thoughts. “How did this happen?”
In spite of everything, she laughed. “You need me to explain that to you? Well, when a witch and a wizard--”
“No, no, shut up. I didn’t mean that. You take a monthly potion.”
“Do you remember a few months ago when I came down with that awful ‘flu?”
“How could I not? You drove me crazy.”
“Ha! And I suppose you didn’t act like a five year old when you got it.” Ginny retorted, raising her eyebrows. Draco didn’t like being sick, it was undignified. He hated having to rely on anyone else and a simple case of the ‘flu had left him on his deathbed.
“Do you have a point?”
“Of course I have a point,” Ginny snapped. “The potion I took to make myself better somehow countered my contraceptive potion.”
“I see.” Draco did see; he knew it was possible for one potion to neutralize another, but it hadn’t even entered his mind that he would need to check.
“Are you angry?” He looked at Ginny properly for the first time since they’d gotten outside, and was dismayed to see tears shimmering in her eyes.
He reached out and pulled her into his arms, resting his chin on her head. “Of course I’m not angry, just... surprised.”
Ginny placed her arms around his waist and cuddled into him. “You and me both. I thought perhaps I’d eaten something that didn’t agree with me, or that I was coming down with the bloody ‘flu again.” They stood quietly together, the cold night air enveloping them like a thick blanket. “What are we going to do?”
Draco was silent for long moments, although the answer was quite obvious. “I guess we’re having a baby,” he said. “A baby,” he breathed more to himself, the word sounding foreign on his tongue.
He continued to hold Ginny close to him, partly because he hated seeing her upset about anything, and partly so he could try and process the news. He was going to be a father. Ginny was carrying a tiny human being inside her. The idea was so overwhelming that Draco realised he’d told her an untruth before; he wasn’t just surprised, he was flabbergasted.
~*~
“Ginny’s pregnant,” Draco told his companion flatly. It was early Monday afternoon and they were seated outside one of the many cafes in Diagon Alley, sheltering under the shade of a large striped umbrella.
Hermione’s eyes widened. “Oh, how wonderful!” she said, getting up out of her seat and throwing her arms around him.
“Get off me!” Draco hissed, horrified. “We’re in public!” It had taken him two days to wrap his brain around the news that he and Ginny were going to be parents; he’d finally owled Hermione and asked the witch who was now as equally well known for her choice in husband as she was for her work at St. Mungo’s as one of their best Healers to meet him. It was another oddity in his life, that he should count Hermione Granger as one of his confidantes, but ever since he’d begun dating Ginny four years previously, life had proven to be very odd.
Hermione appeared to ignore him as she took her seat again, picking up her pumpkin juice and sipping it. “How far along is she?”
“Two months,” Draco said with a sigh. He’d spent a horrific day yesterday accompanying Ginny from one Healer to another, to confirm the pregnancy and get all the gory details. Their baby, a boy, was due at the end of February (Draco fervently prayed his son would not arrive on March 1. It was bad enough that the child would be related to Ron Weasley; Draco certainly couldn’t handle the thought of Weasel crowing that he shared the same birthday as the newest Malfoy) and everything was progressing normally at this stage of the pregnancy. They would be sharing their news with the obnoxiously large Weasley family on Friday, a night Draco would rather skip altogether. Ginny, on the other hand, was glowing with happiness and eager to share her wonderful news with her family, and he loved her enough that he didn’t want to upset her.
“So will you be getting married before or after the baby is born?”
Granger’s voice brought him back to the present. “What?”
“Marriage, Draco,” Hermione said impatiently. “You do realise you and Ginny will have to marry.”
“We don’t have to do a damn thing,” Draco retorted huffily, resisting the urge to throw his head back.
The Hermione of young would have come back with something equally snappy, but the Hermione who sat in front of him just cocked her head and studied him intensely. “Of course you don’t,” she said softly, “but I can’t imagine Ginny will want the baby to have unmarried parents.”
Draco knew she was right, but didn’t want to say so. “You know, I didn’t realise Potter was such a glutton for punishment.”
“What on earth are you talking about?”
“How else can you explain why he’d willingly marry a harpy?” Draco tried to keep his face blank, but the smile that told Hermione he was teasing made the corners of his mouth twitch.
“Harry happens to love me, Malfoy,” she said smugly. Draco rolled his eyes. “Was there an actual reason you wanted to see me?”
“Of course there’s a reason. I wondered if you’d...” he trailed off, his request suddenly sounding a bit silly. “You know, be there for Gin. You know what she’s going through right now, and she’ll have a wedding to plan. I’m sure she could use some support and I know you two are close.”
Hermione beamed at him. “You know I’ll do whatever I can. How exciting! A wedding and a baby! We’ll have to have a baby shower and there’ll be the date and location and dresses to think about...”
Draco tuned Hermione out as she droned on and on about all the planning needed for a wedding and a baby, and something to do with chickens at nighttime, and almost absently put his hand in a pocket inside his robes, where a small velvet box containing a rather large sapphire and diamond ring had been sitting for three months. He’d never really found the right time to ask the question, even though he very much wanted to.
Once his companion was done prattling on, he knew he’d left the planning in capable hands. Between Hermione’s almost ruthless efficiency and love for endless lists, Draco had no doubt Ginny would have all the help and support she needed in Hermione. He stood, bringing the meeting to an abrupt end.
“I have to go. See you Friday at the Burrow?” He threw a few galleons on the table to cover the drinks.
Hermione nodded. “Yes, we’ll be there.”
Draco looked from left to right to make sure nobody was looking, and then leaned over. “Potter’s a lucky man,” he whispered in her ear, then kissed her cheek and let the crowd swallow him.
~*~
It was a busy time at the Malfoy-Weasley household; a wedding was being held in two months time, followed by the arrival of young Master Malfoy four months after that. Ginny had succumbed to morning sickness, but thanks to a potion Molly had used for all six of her pregnancies, Ginny’s suffering was minimal. Draco had dutifully offered his opinion when asked, but had been largely happy to leave everything to Ginny and Hermione, the latter of whom had taken over the planning of both events, easing a lot of the pressure off Ginny.
“I thought I might find you here,” Ginny said as she stepped onto the back porch. Draco was standing near the stairs, staring out into the darkness. “Something on your mind, darling?” She came over to him and Draco pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her rapidly expanding belly.
“No, just enjoying the peace and quiet.”
Ginny leaned back into him, resting her head on his shoulder. “Doesn’t seem to be much of that these days,” she said a little ruefully.
“It’ll all be over soon. Once the wedding is over, we have a whole month to ourselves, you know. Sun, sand, and a private cabin.”
Ginny kissed his cheek. “It will be wonderful to be alone.” She looked up at the inky night sky, dotted with silver. “Look how beautiful it is up there.”
Draco glanced up briefly. “It’s beautiful down here, too.”
“I love you,” she murmured, just as his lips met hers in a soft, tender kiss.
“Come on, let’s go to bed.” As Draco led her inside, Ginny felt like the luckiest witch alive.
Pairing: Draco/Ginny with Harry/Hermione on the side
Rating: G
Summary: Ginny tells Draco that he's going to be a father for the first time.
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Notes: This is for the lovely dragonsangel68.
“I’m pregnant.”
Draco blinked half a dozen times and stared at the redhead next to him. When Ginny had taken his hand and said she had something important to tell him, a sliver of dread had unfurled in the pit of his stomach. Did she want to move house again? Was she going to leave him? But the two words she’d blurted out as soon as they were alone, standing outside in the cold on an elegant marble balcony, were two words he’d never have contemplated coming out of her mouth, not even in his wildest dreams (which did get pretty wild).
“You’re... you’re what?” Perhaps he’d heard wrong.
“I’m pregnant, Draco.” Ginny’s voice was soft, and she wrapped her arms around her stomach protectively.
“But how--” Draco stopped for a moment as he tried to gather his thoughts. “How did this happen?”
In spite of everything, she laughed. “You need me to explain that to you? Well, when a witch and a wizard--”
“No, no, shut up. I didn’t mean that. You take a monthly potion.”
“Do you remember a few months ago when I came down with that awful ‘flu?”
“How could I not? You drove me crazy.”
“Ha! And I suppose you didn’t act like a five year old when you got it.” Ginny retorted, raising her eyebrows. Draco didn’t like being sick, it was undignified. He hated having to rely on anyone else and a simple case of the ‘flu had left him on his deathbed.
“Do you have a point?”
“Of course I have a point,” Ginny snapped. “The potion I took to make myself better somehow countered my contraceptive potion.”
“I see.” Draco did see; he knew it was possible for one potion to neutralize another, but it hadn’t even entered his mind that he would need to check.
“Are you angry?” He looked at Ginny properly for the first time since they’d gotten outside, and was dismayed to see tears shimmering in her eyes.
He reached out and pulled her into his arms, resting his chin on her head. “Of course I’m not angry, just... surprised.”
Ginny placed her arms around his waist and cuddled into him. “You and me both. I thought perhaps I’d eaten something that didn’t agree with me, or that I was coming down with the bloody ‘flu again.” They stood quietly together, the cold night air enveloping them like a thick blanket. “What are we going to do?”
Draco was silent for long moments, although the answer was quite obvious. “I guess we’re having a baby,” he said. “A baby,” he breathed more to himself, the word sounding foreign on his tongue.
He continued to hold Ginny close to him, partly because he hated seeing her upset about anything, and partly so he could try and process the news. He was going to be a father. Ginny was carrying a tiny human being inside her. The idea was so overwhelming that Draco realised he’d told her an untruth before; he wasn’t just surprised, he was flabbergasted.
~*~
“Ginny’s pregnant,” Draco told his companion flatly. It was early Monday afternoon and they were seated outside one of the many cafes in Diagon Alley, sheltering under the shade of a large striped umbrella.
Hermione’s eyes widened. “Oh, how wonderful!” she said, getting up out of her seat and throwing her arms around him.
“Get off me!” Draco hissed, horrified. “We’re in public!” It had taken him two days to wrap his brain around the news that he and Ginny were going to be parents; he’d finally owled Hermione and asked the witch who was now as equally well known for her choice in husband as she was for her work at St. Mungo’s as one of their best Healers to meet him. It was another oddity in his life, that he should count Hermione Granger as one of his confidantes, but ever since he’d begun dating Ginny four years previously, life had proven to be very odd.
Hermione appeared to ignore him as she took her seat again, picking up her pumpkin juice and sipping it. “How far along is she?”
“Two months,” Draco said with a sigh. He’d spent a horrific day yesterday accompanying Ginny from one Healer to another, to confirm the pregnancy and get all the gory details. Their baby, a boy, was due at the end of February (Draco fervently prayed his son would not arrive on March 1. It was bad enough that the child would be related to Ron Weasley; Draco certainly couldn’t handle the thought of Weasel crowing that he shared the same birthday as the newest Malfoy) and everything was progressing normally at this stage of the pregnancy. They would be sharing their news with the obnoxiously large Weasley family on Friday, a night Draco would rather skip altogether. Ginny, on the other hand, was glowing with happiness and eager to share her wonderful news with her family, and he loved her enough that he didn’t want to upset her.
“So will you be getting married before or after the baby is born?”
Granger’s voice brought him back to the present. “What?”
“Marriage, Draco,” Hermione said impatiently. “You do realise you and Ginny will have to marry.”
“We don’t have to do a damn thing,” Draco retorted huffily, resisting the urge to throw his head back.
The Hermione of young would have come back with something equally snappy, but the Hermione who sat in front of him just cocked her head and studied him intensely. “Of course you don’t,” she said softly, “but I can’t imagine Ginny will want the baby to have unmarried parents.”
Draco knew she was right, but didn’t want to say so. “You know, I didn’t realise Potter was such a glutton for punishment.”
“What on earth are you talking about?”
“How else can you explain why he’d willingly marry a harpy?” Draco tried to keep his face blank, but the smile that told Hermione he was teasing made the corners of his mouth twitch.
“Harry happens to love me, Malfoy,” she said smugly. Draco rolled his eyes. “Was there an actual reason you wanted to see me?”
“Of course there’s a reason. I wondered if you’d...” he trailed off, his request suddenly sounding a bit silly. “You know, be there for Gin. You know what she’s going through right now, and she’ll have a wedding to plan. I’m sure she could use some support and I know you two are close.”
Hermione beamed at him. “You know I’ll do whatever I can. How exciting! A wedding and a baby! We’ll have to have a baby shower and there’ll be the date and location and dresses to think about...”
Draco tuned Hermione out as she droned on and on about all the planning needed for a wedding and a baby, and something to do with chickens at nighttime, and almost absently put his hand in a pocket inside his robes, where a small velvet box containing a rather large sapphire and diamond ring had been sitting for three months. He’d never really found the right time to ask the question, even though he very much wanted to.
Once his companion was done prattling on, he knew he’d left the planning in capable hands. Between Hermione’s almost ruthless efficiency and love for endless lists, Draco had no doubt Ginny would have all the help and support she needed in Hermione. He stood, bringing the meeting to an abrupt end.
“I have to go. See you Friday at the Burrow?” He threw a few galleons on the table to cover the drinks.
Hermione nodded. “Yes, we’ll be there.”
Draco looked from left to right to make sure nobody was looking, and then leaned over. “Potter’s a lucky man,” he whispered in her ear, then kissed her cheek and let the crowd swallow him.
~*~
It was a busy time at the Malfoy-Weasley household; a wedding was being held in two months time, followed by the arrival of young Master Malfoy four months after that. Ginny had succumbed to morning sickness, but thanks to a potion Molly had used for all six of her pregnancies, Ginny’s suffering was minimal. Draco had dutifully offered his opinion when asked, but had been largely happy to leave everything to Ginny and Hermione, the latter of whom had taken over the planning of both events, easing a lot of the pressure off Ginny.
“I thought I might find you here,” Ginny said as she stepped onto the back porch. Draco was standing near the stairs, staring out into the darkness. “Something on your mind, darling?” She came over to him and Draco pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her rapidly expanding belly.
“No, just enjoying the peace and quiet.”
Ginny leaned back into him, resting her head on his shoulder. “Doesn’t seem to be much of that these days,” she said a little ruefully.
“It’ll all be over soon. Once the wedding is over, we have a whole month to ourselves, you know. Sun, sand, and a private cabin.”
Ginny kissed his cheek. “It will be wonderful to be alone.” She looked up at the inky night sky, dotted with silver. “Look how beautiful it is up there.”
Draco glanced up briefly. “It’s beautiful down here, too.”
“I love you,” she murmured, just as his lips met hers in a soft, tender kiss.
“Come on, let’s go to bed.” As Draco led her inside, Ginny felt like the luckiest witch alive.