Estranged

Chapter 10

"It's still unsettling, you know." Draco said, his hands braced on the Pensieve.

"We know, we aren't used to it either." Hermione said.

Draco took a breath and submerged his head, and suddenly he was falling. He landed on his buttocks yet again. Today, they landed in his flat.

"Draco, please just sign the papers." Astoria said.

"Why can you possibly want to sign your custody away, Astoria?"

"It's not that I don't love him, Draco. I do. He's everything to me, and that's why. He deserves someone who is committed to being his parent. I want to focus on my career, and I can't travel for it with a baby, Draco. Besides, he's so much happier when he's with Harry than he ever is with me."

"That's not-,"

"That is true, Draco. You think I don't know about you two? Everyone knows about you two. Please, just sign the papers."

Draco sighed and signed the papers, officially singing away all of Astoria's rights as a mother. "Maybe when he's older, you would like to visit?'

"I would, perhaps." She kissed his cheek. "I'll be on my way then. Thank you for everything, Draco."

The memory shifted to the flat, this time however, Harry was sitting on the couch with a small toddler in his arms and Draco was studying with his feet on Harry's lap.

"This is four months after Astoria left. Scorpius is almost a year old, and I'm twenty-one."

"Draco, you study too much."

"I can't study too much when I want to get into medical school, Harry. My advisor told me I need to maintain a 3.8 to be in the running for Oxford's medical school."

"Draco, we both know that you have already been accepted."

"I don't know for sure."

"You literally received an email that says "Congratulations, Draco Malfoy. We are so bloody excited to teach you how to take metal out of people's heads." You got in Draco."

"That doesn't mean that I can slack off. I still have to graduate from undergrad. Do you have any idea what you want to major in?"

"English."

Draco's head shot up. "What? That's out of nowhere."

"I know, but I loved my class last semester. Scorp, look at Harry. I'm going to be a professor." Harry beamed at the baby who was babbling excitedly at being paid attention.

"I would have never pictured Harry enjoying English. Is he a professor now?" Hermione said.

"Yes, he achieved his dream and he is working as an English professor at Oxford. Has been since he was twenty-three."

Draco watched himself again. It was an interesting experience. He supposed that the others, the magic folk, were used to the sensation. But it was strange to watch himself from six years ago. He studied his face, running his hand along his forehead and feeling the faint start of wrinkles that had no sign of showing on his younger self's face. He began to look at Scorpius. He had forgotten how small the boy had been, as he was much taller than the other children his age. He smiled as he gazed at the baby. He never thought he would be baby hungry, but alas.

He switched his focus yet again to Harry, his heart warming as he watched the other man play with the toddler. There had been so many nights where Harry would just sit on the couch with Draco's feet in his lap as he played with Scorpius, read him books, tried to teach him how to walk. Harry had wanted to see Scorpius's first steps so badly that he almost always had his phone ready to film.

"Draco, were you two together at this point?"

"No, not yet. Why?"

Lily smiled. "The way your memory self is looking at Harry in the is the exact way that you're looking at him right now."

Draco's face started to flush, turning a stunning shade of pink.

"Mr. Doctor man, how old are babies when they begin to walk? Isn't a year a little late for him to not be walking at all?"

"It depends, Harry. Some babies walk at really young ages and some don't walk until they're older."

"But he's so smart."

"Intelligence has nothing to do with walking, Harry."

"Dada!" Draco looked at Scorpius, having heard his name from the baby's mouth. "Dada!"

Draco realized, shortly after Harry, that Scorpius was in fact looking at Harry and bouncing in his arms. Harry and Draco locked eyes, a mutual acceptance and confusing in both pairs. "Dada!" The baby grew more demanding, reaching for and grabbing the glasses off of Harry's face.

"Dada is over there." Harry said, pointing at Draco who was speechless.

"It's fine. I don't mind." He said finally.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course, the boy sees you as much as he sees me."

"It was a week and a half after this that we became a couple."