The Marriage Law

Chapter 18

"Hermione love, we really need to get going," Draco called from their room.

"I'll be out in a minute!" Hermione called back from the bathroom. "Or three," she corrected mentally as she stared at the pregnancy test.

Draco didn't know that she took one every morning. She knew that the result was inevitable, whether or not it be today or a month down the road and that Madame Pomfrey did weekly tests, but still, she had to check for herself every day just in case --

"Draco could you come here please?" she asked as calmly as possible.

"Come on love. You know better than anyone that I'm always up for having sex with you but is it really practical to do it now when we need to get to class in five minutes? You'd never get over it if we were late," he replied jokingly from the other side of the door.

"I need to get to the hospital wing," Hermione said faintly.

Draco had barged in in seconds, his eyes blazing with worry. "What's wrong? Are you hurt? What happened?" he cried.

In answer, Hermione held up the pregnancy test which had turned blue not a moment ago.

xxxxx

Draco paced back and forth between the door of the hospital wing and the nearest bed for the twentieth time. Ever since Hermione had held up that blue test strip he hadn't been able to sit still. He had rushed her to Madame Pomfrey ignoring her indignant protests of "Really Draco I'm perfectly okay to walk by myself!" All that had been left to do after that was wait for her to finish her consultation with the matron. He had felt nauseous the entire time. He didn't know why he was taking the news so hard, it wasn't as though he was ill prepared. He and Hermione had been having sex on a regular basis and following the rules of the Marriage Law, hadn't been using contraception. It was bound to happen. It had to happen. But maybe because of wishful thinking, Draco had hoped that it wouldn't happen so soon. He felt completely ill prepared and ill-equipped to handle the situation. He wasn't parent-material. If he was being completely honest, he was also a bit annoyed and felt slightly betrayed by Hermione. Why hadn't she told him that she was doing her own pregnancy tests on a regular basis? Wasn't he a fifty percent player in this whole thing? Why would she keep that from him? It was his child too. A chill overtook Draco as a terrible thought came to him. Did she feel the same way about him being the father as he did?

"You can come in now Mr. Malfoy."

Madame Pomfrey's kind but no-nonsense voice interrupted Draco's ruminations. He nodded at her but was unable to speak a word of thanks. Like his stomach, his tongue seemed to be in knots. Hermione shot him a weak smile when he entered her curtained-off bed area. He couldn't help studying her stomach to see if a baby bump was forming, silly as it was. Following his gaze Hermione chuckled and said,

"I'm not showing yet though I suspect that in a few months I'll be enormous."

Smoothing his face into what he hoped was a relaxed expression he took her hand and soothed, "I have no doubt that you will be as gorgeous as ever."

Smiling happily Hermione replied, "That's very kind of you but we really do need to talk. How do you feel?"

Draco couldn't help it. He didn't want to be dishonest and quite frankly, he was just angry. Letting go of her hand he turned away and said,

"I'm fine," in an icy voice that indicated that he was anything but.

"Draco," she whispered.

"What?" he snapped, abruptly enraged. He knew that his temper was getting the best of him but he did nothing to reign it in. Right now all of his hurt and anxiousness was pinpointed on her, whether merited or not. "Do you expect me to be thrilled; over the moon that you hid things from me, that you didn't think I was an integral part of this?"

"Oh sweetheart you know that's not why I didn't tell you. I didn't think it was important for you to know. I mean you're with me at our weekly check up with Madame Pomfrey. Quite honestly I was embarrassed about how obsessively I've been testing. I never meant for you to be left out. I want and I need you to be an integral part of our child's life. I'm sure you know that. Are you sure that's what's really bothering you?"

Deep down Draco knew that she was right but all he could muster was, "Our child eh?" Hermione smiled adoringly at him before whispering,

"It's incredible isn't it?"

Grabbing her hand again, Draco began tracing patterns on it while he spoke nervously.

"I want to think it's incredible, really! But all that I feel is sadness and nervousness and terrible fear! I don't want to be like my father."

"Oh Draco you won't be!" Hermione said passionately. "You think you're like him because in the past you were following in his path but you have made your own way! Do you think that I could have fallen madly in love with you if you were like your father? Do you think you could have loved me? Our relationship was awful at first because you were acting like him but you overcame it and look at us now. I, Hermione Granger, a Gryffindor and a muggleborn sit here pregnant with your child and am proud of it."

Draco felt overcome with warmth. She had understood his fears and known exactly what to say. Becoming a parent still seemed absolutely terrifying but it was no longer because of his issues with his own father.

"I couldn't be more happy that you will be the mother of my child," he smiled lovingly at his incredible wife. "Let's just hope that he or she inherits my hair!" he laughed as he ducked the pillow she threw at him.

xxxxx

When they had returned to their pod hand-in-hand, Hermione wasted no time in calling everyone to attention and saying, "We have an announcement to make."

"Let me guess, you guys got married," Blaise joked. Hermione gave him a scathing look while everyone else laughed at either Blaise's look or at Parvati rolling her eyes at her new husband. They all soon turned their attention back to a very nervous Hermione.

"We uh...we...we uh...Draco and I, we..."

"We're pregnant!" Draco finally burst in. "I mean Hermione is pregnant. I'm certainly not...but you all know that...obviously Hermione's the one who's actually having the baby I mean..."

"OH WHO CARES who's actually popping the little guy out!" cried Ginny Weasley who was looking quite pregnant herself.

"Ya congratulations!" Ron Weasley cut in. Everyone who had been chattering excitedly about the latest baby announcement grew quiet as they waited to watch the scene unfold.