His Veela Heritage by RiverWriter

chapter 29

Hermione was vibrating with nerves and practically hurling her feelings at him through their bond. He'd tried to soothe her with physical contact but it hadn't helped; she wouldn't sit still long enough. She insisted on flitting around trying to be an ideal hostess even though this was only a small family gathering.

It was Christmas morning and they were planning to tell his parents and Teddy about the baby. Andromeda assured them that Hermione was healthy and that the pregnancy was progressing well. Hermione was concerned that she was developing symptoms that would make her condition obvious and she wanted to tell his parents before they figured it out for themselves. Considering that his damnable wife insisted that they have regular dinners with the older couple, that would probably happen rather quickly given her recent aversion to anything that smelled even remotely pungent combined with his mother's love for French cheese.

His parents, as well as Andromeda and Teddy, had spent the night with them so that they could spend Christmas morning together. Hermione thought it all very festive, and had eagerly invited them into their home. Draco understood what she was trying to do. But he resented the delay of his honeymoon and he was very close to kicking them all out. Except, he was absolutely sure that his wife would kill him and he'd decided it would be better if he were around for their little girl after all. If only to assure that somebody made sure she was allowed on a broomstick.

Their little Carina.

He'd decided that was what he wanted to be her name almost from the moment Andromeda told them they were having a girl. It was perfect. He had been fully prepared to make his case, if necessary. 'She's both stars in the sky and our beloved one, I can think of nothing better.' He told Hermione when he'd proposed the name. But it turned out he didn't need to have an argument ready. She'd agreed immediately. 'It's beautiful, perfect really Draco,' she'd said, with the softest, most elated smile on her face.

She'd been the one to come up with the plan to tell his parents in a rather roundabout way that would also hopefully gently break the news to Teddy. When she'd explained her idea to him he'd laughed. Witnessing her Slytherin side was such a turn on.

And that brought them to this moment. They were surrounded by wrapping paper and the area under the tree was empty, he knew it was time. He glanced at Hermione who- in her fluttering about- had landed across the room from him in an armchair, her leg bouncing nervously. When he caught her eye she sat up straight, took a deep breath, and her emotions finally settled. He breathed a sigh of relief.

"I think there's one more gift," she said while moving swiftly out of the room. She returned in mere moments with the cheerfully wrapped package they'd hidden apart from the other presents for this very purpose. She plopped herself down next to her godson, who was playing on the floor with his new toys, and handed him the gift.

His face lit up and he tore into it to reveal a small stuffed dragon in a deep purple color. Draco, knowing his part, levitated the much larger Teddy sized dragon they'd gifted him earlier that morning so that it was in front of Hermione and Teddy. And then he made his way over and sank down onto the floor a few feet behind the pair, to symbolically have Hermione's back without interfering.

Teddy Lupin, despite the odds, or what he'd imagined at the beginning of his relationship with Hermione, had become important to him. And not just because he was his mate's godson, but he'd wormed his own way into Draco's heart. He told anybody who would listen that he had bribed the kid to like him, but something told him that Teddy had made his own decision to trust him, and he respected that choice. He hoped Hermione's plan would work and that their news wouldn't hurt the kid too badly.

"This is a little girl dragon," Hermione began gently, reaching over to stroke the toy, but making no attempt to take it from the boy. "She goes with the mummy dragon. And the mummy dragon has to take care of her hatchling, that's very important. But I know they both love you very much. You'll help her take care of her baby, won't you?"