The Marriage Decree

Chapter 148: Scorpius is a Natural

Hyperion must be arguing why he should close his shop because Draco then sighs, "Yes, we'll be there in twenty minutes. See you soon."

Hermione is grinning when he hangs up. "You know he doesn't mind."

"I know, which makes it worse because now he's losing out on business," Draco says, throwing his phone back into the fruit bowl.

"Hyperion always says family comes first. He doesn't care about missing out on a day's work." Hermione tries to assure him. "I'm going to bathe Scorpius. Can you dress him after?"

"Yeah, I'll finish off down here." Draco presses a kiss on both his wife's and son's forehead.

Twenty minutes later, they're standing in front of Hyperion's driveway after apparating from their house. Before they close the gate, Hyperion runs out of the house to take Scorpius from them.

"There's my little man; look how grown you are?" Hyperion coos, lifting the toddler into the air to get a better look at him.

Scorpius giggles, kicking his feet in the air. When Hyperion lowers him into a hug, Scorpius wraps his arms around his neck, hugging his great-uncle back.

"Come on, Sarah's made breakfast," Hyperion calls back to Draco and Hermione.

"You didn't need to do that; we've already eaten," Draco mentions.

"But we haven't, so come on."

Hermione closes the door behind her and then takes off her shoes, following her husband and Hyperion into the kitchen, where a small table is filled with cereals, pastries, eggs, bacon and sausages.

Despite eating already, the food smells delicious, so after hugging Sarah in greeting, Hermione helps herself to a croissant and cup of tea.

"How have you both been? We haven't seen you in so long," Sarah asks.

"Mum, we saw them during the summer. I'm sure you've been busy with work," Hyperion mentions.

"You don't know the half of it," Draco sighs. "We're getting observed by the Ministry now, which is stressful."

"Oh, I know, Arania is a teacher, and Ofsted is the most stressful three days of any teacher's career," Hyperion comments.

Hermione nods in agreement. "Our personal grades were low, but they were far too harsh. Am I not supposed to encourage students to independently research topics they're interested in but I don't cover within the Ministry-ordered curriculum?"

Draco chuckles, "The joys of teaching are beginning to be overshadowed by the stress. We hoped to have a relaxing weekend, but then we got a letter from New York requiring our presence at a meeting. We're grateful you're taking time off to look after Scorpius for us."

"Nonsense," Sarah dismisses Draco's concern. "We love Scorpius and can't get enough of him."

Hermione smiles, watching her son chew on a piece of sausage Sarah had given him on a plate. Scorpius then picks up a piece of croissant and holds it out for Sarah.

"Oh, thank you, dear." Sarah takes it and pretends to eat it, then places it on her plate when his eyes are diverted. "He's a sweet boy. Have you thought about giving him a sibling?"

Hermione glances at Draco, who looks amused rather than nervous like herself. They had agreed to tell Hyperion's family soon. Still, Hermione was scared they'd react similarly to her family, which she didn't want to experience again.

"Mum, Scorpius is barely a year old; give them time, they're only twenty-one years old," Hyperion tells her off for pressurising them.

Hermione drops the remaining croissant back on her plate, feeling sick with nerves.