Boy - (A 'Blaire Zabini' sequel) || Draco Malfoy

24 - Family Ties

"What about Rose?"

"Hmmm," Ron shrugged, extracting something unidentifiable out of his nose, "it's alright, I suppose."

I shuddered in disgust as he rolled whatever it was between his finger and thumb and flicked it across the room.

"I like it," Jack said, as he 'walked' Mr Dog loudly along the coffee table. "It's pretty, like a flower."

"Thank you, Jack," Hermione beamed, rubbing her now hugely swollen stomach. "It's nice to have some helpful input."

The four of us were 'chilling' in our living area, recovering from my disastrous attempts at spaghetti bolognese; Ron, Hermione and I slumped on the sofa picking dried bits of pasta out of our teeth as Jack played at our feet.

"We've still got two whole months left to think of names!" Ron groaned. "What's the bloody rush?"

"It's called nesting, Ron," I said, rolling my eyes. "It's a mother's instinct to prepare everything in advance for the baby's arrival."

"I don't remember you getting this so called nesting thing when you were pregnant," he grumbled, glaring accusingly at me, "you made me do your share of the chores whilst you slobbed out on the sofa day and night."

"I had swollen ankles!"

"Weren't too swollen every time word reached us that Mum had made cake." Ron muttered under his breath.

"Will you and Daddy have another baby soon, Mummy?" Jack asked, looking up at me curiously.

Ron, Hermione and I exchanged anxious looks. Jack had never asked me anything like this before and I didn't know how to answer him; how to explain that his dad actually had another baby, but with another woman.

A thought which made my heart give a most unpleasant twist.

"I think that we might be busy enough down here as it is!" Ron said in an overly jovial voice as he reached across to pointedly pat Hermione's bump.

Jack seemed happy enough with this explanation and said no more until I tucked him into bed later that night.

"I'm glad, Mummy," he whispered in my ear, "I don't want to share you and Daddy with anyone else."

"Me neither," I whispered back, holding his small body tightly to me as I tried to ignore the slow breaking of my heart.

*****

Something was troubling Draco the moment he stepped inside his and Astoria's home, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

It wasn't until he entered the kitchen and saw his wife crouched down by the oven did he realise what it was.

"Astoria," he gasped, "are you... cooking?"

"Ah, honey," she looked up, smiling at him. "You're home. Good day at the office?"

What the fuck?

"How's Scorp?" He said at once, "I came home at lunchtime to check on him and you weren't here."

"Just thought I'd pop out to get us some fresh air." Astoria said lightly, getting to her feet as she brushed back her hair from her sweaty forehead. "Even in the winter months children need that, you know. It's not good to be cooped up inside all the time. And I know you only want what's best for your children. Don't you, darling?"

Her eyes flashed and an uneasy sensation stirred in the pit of Draco's stomach.

"Is he in his cot?" He said, his voice coming out strangled, "I'd like to see him."

"Freshly watered and fed," she said in an unnaturally sweet voice, "all ready to see his daddy."

Without saying another word, Draco hurried up the stairs to the nursery, the tight feeling remaining in his chest until he saw that Scorpius was indeed lying peacefully in his cot.

He scooped him up, sighing with relief as he held him to his chest, feeling the reassuring warmth of his tiny body, pressing his lips against the soft wisps of platinum hair upon the top of his head.

He was being paranoid, he told himself. Astoria was just trying to make an effort, that was all. Clearly motherhood was changing her for the better.

"So, did you take Scorp anywhere nice?" He asked her later over the dinner table, trying to keep his tone light as she served him up a generous helping of chicken and mushroom pie.

"Oh, you know, just here and there," she said vaguely, giving a dismissive wave of her hand. "Wine?"

They ate in silence; every now and then Draco's eyes would dart nervously up towards his wife.

"I was thinking of buying some more clothes for the baby tomorrow," she said idly, "and maybe some toys and other items of educational need. I may need to pop into Gringotts, actually."

Draco's head shot up, panic twisting his insides.

"That is okay, isn't it?" Astoria continued, looking at him curiously, her eyes widening slightly at his reaction.

"Uh- y-yes," Draco stammered, trying to think quickly, "but you know those goblins, they can be such tricky characters. Especially after what happened at my parent's house during the war."

"Oh, yes, all those poor goblins," Astoria pouted, tears swimming in her eyes. "That must have been utterly traumatising for you."

"What I mean is," Draco said, suddenly feeling the need to loosen his collar, "why don't you just let me deal with the bank side of things and I can arrange an allowance of some kind for you? A generous one, of course, to cover all of Scorp's needs too. It will save you having to deal with the goblins."

"Oh, would you?" She breathed, her face lighting up as she dabbed at the corner of her mouth with a napkin, "that would be marvellous, thank you, darling."

Draco felt his body sigh in relief.

Feeling as though he'd dodged a hex, he slept soundly that night, knowing that Jack's existence still remained safely unknown.

Little did he realise though, whilst he was lying in bed that night, his dreams, as always, containing Blaire and the future he prayed they'd someday get; his wife was downstairs hurriedly attaching a note to the family owl's leg.

A note that contained just four words.

He knows. Follow him.

******