My Father's Only Rule || DRACO MALFOY X SNAPE'S DAUGHTER

Nineteen Years Later

September 1st, 2017 - King's Cross

Jane happily led the way as our family of five made our way to platform 9¾. Proudly sporting her Gryffindor colors and excited for her third year, she dragged her little sister along, who was nervous as ever. Jane Celine, sometimes called JC, was named after my best friend. The first name is obvious, but the middle name is a nod to our favorite movie, Titanic, and Celine Dion. I truly believe that she watches over me through my daughter. She's my daughter, born years after my friend died, but she is Jane Baldwin. From the way she walks to the way, she knows how to talk to me when I'm down. I can't believe she's real every time I look at her. I'll always have my best friend with me. She started school a year before Harry's oldest son, James. Her confidence reminded me every day that after all my mistakes, I still managed to make her. Studious, ambitious, and a natural leader.

Lucy reluctantly followed. Not so eager to start her first year, she was not having it. It was bad enough that she was always in Jane's shadow. She was always Jane's little sister. And while Jane loved it, Lucy wanted to be more. And I never blamed her for it. Severa Lucy, who we called Lucy, was named after her two grandfathers. One locked away in Azkaban forever, the other, in a better place. She reminded both Draco and me of the best parts of the fathers we had lost. She really is an extraordinary person. She knew she'd be starting school with Albus and Rose. And she knew that Jane was good friends with James. But somehow, she felt like she would be lonely.

Draco and I pushed our daughters' trolleys as William, distracted by the noises of the train station, was goofing off behind us. He was spinning around in circles, tired of having to watch his siblings go off to school and being told he has to wait. William Draco, named after his father, was one year younger than Lily Potter and Hugo Granger-Weasley. William was a goofball, and his sisters adored him. He was usually getting into trouble at his muggle primary school, but he had good intentions. We had asked him many times what house he was hoping to be in and he always got too distracted to answer. We had a hunch he'd be in Gryffindor, but we knew only time would tell.

Dropping off and picking up my children at King's Cross was becoming my favorite time of year. Not just because I was sending my children off on their own adventure, but because I got to see my old friends and reminisce. At first I was worried that Jane would have a hard time making friends when people heard the name Malfoy. But she blew us all away with her first year of school. And then she quickly became friends with a Potter. We knew we wouldn't have anything to worry about.

We braced ourselves to step onto the platform. Through the midst of students loading their things and saying goodbye to their parents, I noticed some familiar faces. Draco, refusing to be friends with the Potters, but respecting that I was, stayed back. James Potter immediately spotted Jane and ran to her. She let go of her sister's arm to run to him.

"Come on," she said. "Let's see it." James proudly lifted his hair out of his face to reveal an obviously fake lightning scar.

"I told you," he said. "Runs in the family. I knew it would turn up eventually."

"You liar," she said. "Let's see how long it lasts." She licked her thumb and started rubbing it vigorously on the fake scar, causing the ink to come off.

"JC!" he screamed as he got away from her.

"That's what you get when you try to pull one over on me," she said. "Come on. Let's get a compartment."

"Not so fast," I told them, stopping them from getting on. "You're not getting on without your sister," I said to Jane. "And I know your father's not letting you get on without your brother," I said to James. "And neither one of you is getting on this train without giving your parents a proper goodbye." They sighed and scurried off. I found Ginny and Harry standing with Ron and Hermione. Hermione was talking to Rose, making sure she was ready. Harry held Albus tightly in his arms the same way that Lucy wouldn't leave my side.

"Hi, Harry," I said as I approached them.

"Oh, hi, Grace," he said back. "Now we know where James went."

"They're around here somewhere," I said. "Are you alright, Albus?"

"I'm fine," Albus said. But it didn't sound like he was.

"How about you, Lucy?" Harry asked. "Excited?"

"I suppose," Lucy said.

"Oh, hey, Grace," Hermione said as she approached us with Rose. "Aren't you glad they're all starting together? When will that one be coming along?" she asked, referencing William who was running tirelessly around a pillar that Draco was leaning up against.

"One year after that one," I said, pointing to Hugo, who was by Ron's side. James and Jane came running towards us.

"Can we get on now?" Jane begged.

"One second," I said, catching Draco's eye and signaling it was time to say goodbye. He picked up William and hoisted him over his shoulders to carry him over to where we were all standing.

"Alright," he said. "Girls, say goodbye to your brother." Jane and Lucy, who have been obsessed with William since the day he was born, swarmed him with hugs and kisses as he wiped them off, pretending that it bothered him. Then I hugged Lucy as Draco hugged Jane, and then we swapped daughters while Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione said goodbye to James, Albus, and Rose. James and Jane rushed onto the train, followed swiftly by Rose, and reluctantly by Lucy and Albus.

"Is he alright?" I asked Harry.

"Scared about being in Slytherin for some reason," Harry said. "What about Lucy?"

"Scared of being alone. She's got nothing to worry about, though." I said.

"I know," Harry said. "None of them do. They just won't realize it until all of this is over." Draco placed a hand on my shoulder as we tried to watch for the kids in the windows. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Pansy Parkinson and Blaise Zabini, straightening the jackets of their two children before sending them on the train. Pansy watched as they entered, but Blaise saw Draco and me out of the corner of his eye. He smiled at us and we smiled back in acknowledgment.

I never quite came to terms with how I felt about Blaise and Pansy. And I never quite figured out how Jane would have felt about it. On one hand, I think she would have wanted Blaise to be happy, just not with Pansy. On the other hand, I think she would like something to laugh at from Heaven. But regardless of what Jane thinks about it, the fact remains that I always thought I'd be sending my kids to Hogwarts with Jane's and Blaise's kids. But instead, they're bound to meet the children of Blaise Zabini and Pansy Parkinson. I truly don't know how I'll feel if they ever become friends.

A single tear fell down my face as the train took off and our kids waved at us through the windows. And it suddenly hit me how I had been a mom for thirteen years, which is almost the amount of time my dad had been a dad without even knowing it. I never understood the things my dad did, and I broke the only rule he ever asked me to follow. And not long after I found him, I lost him. And it wasn't until after he was dead did I realize how great he was and the importance of all he did. I thought about how long it would be before my children realize the importance of all I was doing. But a thought settled over me that was both unsettling and easing as my husband wiped the single tear from my face and pulled my head into his chest. A thought that I knew my children would soon realize whether I liked it or not. Some rules are meant to be broken.