Summary: Draco attends a Weasley brunch for the first time and if he's honest, he didn't expect his very small, distant cousin to be the highlight. Of course, Hermione defending his honour while Ron Weasley was covered in jelly was pretty great, but Teddy won overall.
Draco really should not have been as nervous as he was. He'd had a week to worry and vent to Hermione, so he should have had it over with by now. However, standing in the living room of Hermione's flat that was basically his now, he couldn't help but feel jittery again. It did not help when Hermione tried to helpfully tell him to relax.
"It's just the Weasleys," she said, probably to reassure him. The statement did precisely the opposite.
"My family has openly despised them for the last several decades," Draco reminded her drily. Hermione pursed her lips and glanced up at him, fixing a stray hair that he'd purposely left for her to move. He rather liked her touching his hair, but he'd never admit such a thing out loud.
"Harry and I will be there," she said, her voice hopeful.
Rather than remind her that they were the reason he was being forced to brunch, he gave her a small smile and nodded. His friendship with Harry Potter was best described as conventional, though that was mainly because Draco refused to call it anything else. The fact that Harry regularly joined him and Blaise for drinks after work had nothing to do with their conventional friendship. It was simply a courtesy after a long day at work.
"I can't promise I'll enjoy myself," Draco told her, lacing his fingers through hers. No, it was not a nervous tick.
"Well, I can't promise that all Weasleys will love you."
She didn't give him time to process her words before she apparated them to just outside of what she often called the Burrow. Draco's head spun and as soon as he could see straight enough to, he glared at her.
"Warn me next time," he grumbled. Hermione just grinned and kissed his cheek.
"Remember, no matter what they say, I love you," she said, grinnly cheekily at him. He smiled back at her and pressed his lips to hers firmly before she could pull away.
"I love you too," he murmured. He brushed a soft kiss to the side of her head and said, "Even though you forced me to this brunch."
That caused Hermione to pull away and throw open the front door, pulling Draco inside by the hand he still hadn't let go of.
He was immediately overwhelmed by many things. First, the noise as what had to be a hundred Weasleys chattered at ridiculous sound levels from all around the house. Second, the smell of food hit him like a brick wall. The house smelled both sweet and savory all at once and Draco wasn't sure why he liked it. A woman—Mrs. Weasley, he presumed—was stirring something in the kitchen and shouting for someone named Teddy to stop getting into the sweets.
"—out you get!" she yelled, pushing a blue-haired boy out of the kitchen.
The boy, Teddy, stopped abruptly at the sight of Draco and Hermione. He stared up at them with wide eyes and licked his chocolate covered fingers. Mrs. Weasley glanced them over and opened her mouth, but someone in the kitchen that Draco couldn't see called her away before she could say a word.
"Auntie Mione!" Teddy yelled, barreling toward them both a second later.
Hermione stumbled back as the child collided with her legs and on instinct, Draco reached out to steady her. When Hermione righted herself, she was holding a squirming blue-haired child and Draco couldn't help but stare. What else was he supposed to do with such a thing so close to him?
"Who are you?" Teddy asked, pointing a pruny finger at Draco. Draco glanced at Hermione who just smiled.
"Draco," he said dumbly. Teddy squinted at him, almost as if he was he had heard the word scrutinize and was trying to impersonate it. "Who are you?"
"Teddy!" he said, jumping in Hermione's arms. She struggled to keep hold of him while Draco nodded, more enthralled by Teddy than he wanted to admit.
"Teddy is Remus and Tonks' son," Hermione explained, setting Teddy down when he began to squirm too much. "He usually lives with Andromeda—" Draco felt something hit him at the familiar name— "But since Harry and Ginny are attempting to process an adoption claim on him, he's been living with them."
Potter was adopting? Since fucking when?
Hermione gave him a stern look that told Draco he'd said that out loud and he almost turned red.
"It's recent news and we're keeping it on the downlow for obvious reasons," Harry said from behind him. He nodded at Draco then smiled at Teddy. "Draco's your cousin, kid."
Draco's eyes widened at that as did Teddy's. He'd known he recognised Andromeda's name and now that Harry mentioned it, it was obvious to him. It was a distant relation, but that didn't seem to matter to Teddy who promptly threw his arms around Draco's legs and refused to let go.
"I love you!" he proclaimed loudly. Draco glanced at Hermione who was hiding a laugh. "You should come play with me and Vicky. We play outside since Gramma gets mad when we break things."
Draco let Teddy drag him away, glancing at Hermione only once before listening to every word the small child had to say. If this really was Tonks's son, then the kid didn't really have any living relatives anymore and Draco would admit that the thought saddened him. Teddy didn't seem to notice though and took great pride in showing Draco outside of the Burrow and telling him everything his very small mouth could.
"This is Vicky!" Teddy announced, stopping in front of a girl who couldn't have been more than three years old.
"Victoire!" the girl yelled, glaring at Teddy. She crossed her arms and stomped her foot as she told Draco, "My name is Victoire and only Teddy calls me Vicky. You're not allowed to."
"Very well," Draco agreed. He held out his hand and Victoire looked at him strangely. "My name is Draco."
After a second of hesitation, Victoire shook his hand (it was weak, but Draco would teach her later). As soon as Teddy was sure introductions were over, he forced a toy into Draco's hand and proceeded to explain what they would be playing that day.
* * * * *
Hermione was glad Teddy had dragged Draco off if only because the second he disappeared, several Weasleys demanded an explanation. Despite Harry mentioning last week that they'd like to invite another friend over, they seemed determined to convince Hermione that Draco Malfoy was not a good friend to have.
"He was a Death Eater, Hermione," Ron said, one of his favourite things to say as of recently. "You can't trust him and frankly, we should be worried about Teddy and Victoire. What if he corrupts them?"
"Oh? Is he with Victoire?" Fleur asked, though she didn't sound worried. "I do so hope he speaks French with her. She's become upset with me and refuses to."
Hermione blinked at Fleur's obvious distraction, but appreciated it nonetheless. Later, she'd asked how Fleur knew Draco could speak French when even she didn't know such a thing, but that was not a topic for now.
"I must say," Arthur said, smiling at her a bit nervously. "I was shocked to see he was the friend you were bringing."
"Draco's a good bloke," Harry said, nodding at Arthur. "We've become friends these past years."
Ron scoffed and Hermione glared at him. Before he could insult Draco further, Molly interrupted with a shout for help from the kitchen. The group disbanded slowly and Hermione scowled at each person as they went by. Except for Fleur.
When the table was ready, Hermione offered to get the kids herself in an attempt to talk to Draco for a moment. She did not, however, expect to walk outside and see Draco sitting cross legged on the ground, clearly participating in a make-believe tea party with Victoire. He had even conjured them pink fluffy boas to wear and made Victoire a tiara that Hermione suspected might have been made with real diamonds.
Teddy caught her eye the most. He was sitting in Draco's lap with a matching boa around his neck and watching Draco's movements very closely. His hair was no longer its usual blue, but a striking white that Hermione knew was the exact shade of Draco's.
"Auntie Mione!" Victoire screamed, interrupting the serene bubble they had been sitting in. Victoire lept to her feet and raced across the yard to Hermione.
Draco jumped and cursed as he spilled his imaginary tea. Teddy jumped off his lap, but waited until Draco was standing to walk leisurely toward Hermione. Even with Victoire clinging to her shoulders, Draco leaned forward and quickly kissed her lips. Teddy tugged on her shirt after so she bent down and was shocked when Teddy kissed her very, very quickly. Victoire glared at him and Teddy sheepishly looked away.
"I thought you loved me," Victoire accused, letting go of Hermione to glare at Teddy.
"I do!" Teddy exclaimed desperately. He hugged Victoire tightly and kissed her lips quickly as well. Hermione let out a surprised sound and Teddy turned even redder than before. Beside her, Draco chuckled.
"The food is ready you two," Hermione said, distracting them from what she was sure was about to be another kiss. While they scampered off inside, Hermione turned to look at Draco. "He already adores you. You do realise you'll never get away from him now, right?"
"He's not that bad," Draco said which Hermione knew meant he felt the same way about Teddy.
"Listen," she said, grabbing Draco's shirt gently. "Arthur and Molly are really the most likely to be kind. Well, Fleur likes you, but other than that, Ron's swayed most of the others."
"I'm not worried," Draco told her. Hermione sighed. "Hermione, I'm just here because you asked. Their approval means nothing to me."
"But it does to me," Hermione admitted quietly. She glanced up at Draco a bit shyly and he smiled softly at her. "I know it shouldn't, but they're my family. I haven't even told them we're dating."
"I swear I'll do my best to get them to like me," Draco promised, glancing behind her to where Fleur was standing in the doorway. He pressed a kiss to Hermione's forehead and winked at Fleur who smiled back. "I'll try."
"I know," Hermione said, letting go of him and taking a step back. "It's not you I'm worried about."
Fleur announced herself then and Hermione jumped away from Draco, not knowing they'd already been spotted. At Fleur's insistence, they hurried inside and took the last two seats at the table. Hermione sat beside Victoire and Draco, grimacing at Ron across from her. Draco was ever so thrilled to discover Teddy sitting beside him and Potter on the child's other side, someone he could easily whisper snide remarks to without worrying Hermione.
In Draco's opinion, brunch went very well. Teddy did everything he did which was more fun than annoying (No, it had nothing to do with the glare Potter gave him whenever Teddy refused something Harry offered if it wasn't already on Draco's plate). Hermione was still tense, but by now Draco was familiar enough with her to know she wouldn't relax until they returned back to her flat.
However, he wasn't daft. He could feel the tension as the Weasleys around him either ignored him to converse with each other or uncomfortably attempted to make small talk. Rather than let that get to him, however, he was content to talk with Teddy about Potter without actually acknowledging the man.
At some point, though, Hermione got fed up. Draco liked to pride himself on predicting Hermione's reactions, but he wasn't the only one who noticed her getting angry when she slammed her fork down on the table and glared fiercely at Ron.
"What?" she growled, silencing everyone at the table. "I know you want to say something, so say it."
Ron glared at Hermione for a few seconds and Draco focused very hard on not reaching over and smashing the git's face into the table.
"He doesn't belong here," Ron said. Hermione fumed, but Ron went on to say, "He was part of Voldemort's army and you just pretend like that didn't happen. Did he imperiuse you? Is that why you're such good friends?"
"Ronald Weasley, you're a wretched man," Hermione exclaimed, standing up suddenly.
Draco grabbed Hermione before she could throw herself at him and chose to ignore how three wands were suddenly pointed at him. It seemed to fuel Hermione's anger, however, and he was never one to encourage Hermione to restrain herself.
"You're all hypocrites!" she yelled, shoving Draco's hands off of her. She gave him an apologetic look, but Draco was too busy admiring her to really care. "You fought for the Order to destroy blood superiority, but here you are! Putting yourselves above Draco because of his past and refusing to believe he could have changed."
"Hermione, think about it," one of the red heads said. Draco looked at him strangely and he nervously pushed back his glasses. "He did help the Dark Lord rise."
"So did you, Percy, yet we've forgiven you!" Hermione retorted. The glasses-clad Weasley backed down a little, but didn't fully put his wand away. "And you!" Hermione exclaimed, pointing at George Weasley, a Weasley Draco actually did recognise. "I know the Death Eaters killed Fred, but you should know better than to hold that against Draco when he wasn't even near you then."
George looked rightfully apologetic and silently stuffed his wand away. Beside him, Teddy huffed and glared at him. Draco wanted to look impressed, but figured now was not the best time.
"And you, Ron," Hermione exclaimed, rounding on Ron one last time. "You've been the absolute worst. Draco has had my back since he joined the Ministry. Not only that, but he's saved yours too! You of all people should know he's changed and stop judging him."
Ron glared at Hermione but said nothing. The two continued to scowl at each other for almost a full minute before it was interrupted by Victoire throwing a handful of jelly at Ron. They both blinked down at his shirt and glanced at Victoire who was grinning.
"Mummy made me," she said. Fleur looked unrepentant as she shared a conspiratorial look with who Draco assumed to be her husband.
"Ron, you are making a fool of yourself," the mother Weasley hissed, pulling him back into his seat. Draco gently grabbed Hermione's hand and tugged her back into her seat as well. "I'm sorry this is how your first brunch went, Draco. Usually my boys are much better behaved," she said, pointedly glaring at each of her sons.
"Oh, well I'm afraid that's mostly my fault," Draco said, glancing at Hermione. "My family hasn't given you any reason to trust us, though I do hope Hermione's judgement attempts to make up for any doubts."
"Of course it does!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed, smiling widely at him. "It was a bit of a surprise of course, but if Hermione trusts you, I'm sure we can learn to too."
Draco appreciated the sentiment, but he wasn't going to bet on it. At the very least, the Weasley boys seemed unlikely to forgive him. Well, the three that had pointed their wands at him. The other two—one who had a fascinating scar on his face and another who Draco had heard talking about dragons at least three times since the meal had started—seemed to not hate him.
"He is very good with the children," Fleur said. Draco scowled at her but she smiled and ran her hand through Victoire's hair. "I believe he may even be a good example if the tea party they had earlier regarding diplomacy and manners is anything to go by."
Draco pursed his lips and Hermione grinned at him.
"I kissed Vicky!" Teddy said loudly. Everyone's eyes widened, but Hermione and Draco's widened the most when Teddy followed it up with, "I also kissed Auntie Mione cause I wanna be just like Draco!"
"Fuck," Draco muttered under his breath. Hermione glared at him, but before Teddy could copy him and say that as well, he turned to him and said, "You may only ever say that word if you lose a quidditch match against the Hufflepuffs, understood?"
"Quidditch!" Teddy yelled gleefully which Draco took to mean yes.
The rest of the table stared at them in silence. Ron looked ready to burst and Draco was oddly tempted to prod him with a stick, but refrained.
"Teddy, how about you finish your food?" Harry said weakly, handing Teddy his fork and nudging his plate back toward him. Teddy did as he was told.
"Um, yes," Hermione said awkwardly, rubbing her arm. "Draco and I are dating. Ginny, didn't you have an announcement?" she asked, turning abruptly to look at Weaselette on the other side of Potter.
Weaselette sent Hermione a sour look, but bailed them out nevertheless by saying, "I'm pregnant."
By the looks of it, the table wasn't sure whether to address Hermione's news or Ginny's first. Ever the hostess, however, Fleur seemed to steer the conversation away from Hermione and Draco by congratulating Ginny warmly. Draco let out a breath as the eyes drifted off of him and the focus was bestowed upon the Potters.
"That went well," Draco murmured in Hermione's ear. She gave him a look, but Draco smiled and took her hand in his.
"We'll be in for it later," she told him. Draco would not admit that sounded more like an ominous threat than a vague comment. "Now, finish your eggs or Molly will bully you all the more next week."
Draco choked on said eggs and looked at Hermione with wide eyes and a red face.
"Next week?"
End Note: This was honestly one of my favourite pieces to write so I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do! If you're liking these one-shots so far, please go check out my other Dramione works included completed and in-the-making books!