Teddy Lupin was sat at his kitchen table reading the Daily Prophet, a mug of tea in his hands, when he heard a noise in the hallway.
'That you, Vic?' He called out without looking up from the Quidditch section.
Victoire Weasley popped her head around the door and smiled at the boy with the blue hair. 'How did you hear me?!' She asked with an astounded look on her face.
'Years of Auror training, love.' Teddy grinned.
Victoire playfully pouted as she sat with him at the table. 'Have plans been set for Christmas Day yet?'
'Auntie Mione and Harry were still debating over it last time I checked.' Teddy sighed. 'Uncle Draco isn't helping - you know how much he loves to antagonise Harry - but I think it will be at the Manor.'
Victoire tried to hold back a giggle as Teddy's hair changed at the mention of Hermione and Draco. He'd managed to control his eyes over the years but his hair still turned bright blonde and tightly curled at the mention of Hermione or Draco. Though Teddy Lupin had lost his parents to the war, and he always wished he had had the chance to meet them, he had gained many parents in their place. Draco and Harry were the two main father figures in his life while Hermione, Ginny, Narcissa and Andromeda took on the roles of his mother and he couldn't have asked for a better support system given the circumstances. His hair, however, always gave away his true devotion to those he called his Aunt and Uncle.
'It would make sense if it were at the Manor.' Victoire said. 'Hermione is determined to have every member of the family over and I can't even begin to count how many people that would be. Grandma Weasley, though she would try her hardest, would struggle to get everyone into The Burrow.'
Teddy was about to reply in agreement when a familiar owl flew through the open window and landed in front of him.
'It's from Cissy.' He said when he saw the handwriting on the envelope. After glancing over the contents he smiled. 'The Manor it is.'
***
'Thirty seven?!' Draco cried. 'Are you joking, Hermione? We can't have thirty seven people over for Christmas dinner.'
'Your mother and I have already decided, Draco.' Hermione sighed. This was the third time they'd had this argument over the past day.
'It's an outrage.' Draco grumbled. 'It's all Teddy's fault for being with Vic!'
'Now you're just being ridiculous.' Hermione laughed.
'I am not!' Draco replied with a huff. 'We have never had them all over before and it just so happens that this year Teddy moved in with Vic. That says to me that it's all his fault.'
With a shake of her head Hermione finally joined Draco on their armchair, a book ready to be read aloud in her hands. 'You forget that Lyra has been with James for a couple of years now, too. If you hadn't put your foot down about her not moving in with him until she was twenty then they'd be in the same position as Ted and Vic. It was only a matter of time before we had everyone over for Christmas.'
Draco leant his head back and pursed his lips. He hated it when Hermione was right.
'Alright, I give up.' He grumbled as he took the book from her hand and opened it to where they had left off. 'But if I go missing after an hour with them all then don't come and find me.'
Hermione smiled as she placed a kiss on his forehead. She knew he wouldn't complain for too long after her comment about their eldest daughter. Lyra and James had been official since their Seventh Year at Hogwarts; being Head Boy and Head Girl had only brought them closer, cementing their lifelong friendship turned relationship, and Draco hated it. Admittedly, he knew that she could do a lot worse than James Potter but the thought of her being alone with him in that dormitory made his fists clench and he'd made a point of not letting her move in with him as soon as she graduated. Hermione had tried to make him see reason but it was the only thing he could never be swayed on when it came to his eldest daughter.
Draco had no regrets about having Lyra at such a young age but he did NOT want to be a grandfather. So he tried to control that as much as possible by keeping her at the Manor for as long as he could. Hermione was sure that he only used the "too young to be a grandfather" card as an excuse for not wanting his first born to leave home just yet. He was also slightly unwilling to admit that he and Harry could soon be in laws.
'Mum! Dad!'
Hermione and Draco perked up at the sound of shouts coming from the entrance hall of the Manor. Checking her watch, Hermione was surprised to find that it was later than she expected, and immediately stood up from her seat on Draco's lap.
'I thought we'd at least have the afternoon alone together.' Draco muttered as he also stood up from the armchair. Before they were interrupted by their children he quickly pulled Hermione in by the waist and placed a passionate kiss on her lips. He felt her melt against him and he wished that they would have the privacy to continue.
'Draco,' Hermione sighed against his lips.
'Nope,' Draco said as he pressed a kiss to her nose. 'Not allowed to sigh like that right now.'
Hermione let out a quiet laugh, she was obviously thinking the same thing as her husband, but before she could pull away he bent down to whisper in her ear.
'Save it for later.'
A shiver ran down her spine as he walked out of the library and she took a calming breath before closely following him.
It was early afternoon and their two youngest children had returned to them sooner than they anticipated. As Draco had said, they were expecting them to come back more towards the early evening and with Lyra being at her job at Flourish and Blotts they were looking forward to having the Manor to themselves for a few more hours.
Bright smiles from Cassie and a small smirk from Scorpius greeted Hermione and Draco as they found their children waiting for them by the stairs. Scorpius had his Hogwarts trunk with him while Cassie had her backpack tightly strapped over her arms. Ginny had offered to pick Scorpius up from Kings Cross the day before, as Cassie was already having a sleepover with Lily, and both children had spent the night in Godric's Hollow.
Hermione was quick to pull Scorpius into a crushing hug. 'I missed you.'
'Alright mum enough of the gushing and the tears,' he complained. 'I have enough of that when you send me to school.'
'Oh hush.' Hermione grumbled. She knew from a young age that Scorpius would be just like his father when it came to the emotional things (though Draco was admittedly more affectionate than Hermione ever anticipated) and she had learnt to simply ignore her son's complaints and hug him regardless.
When she finally let him go she turned to find Draco talking quietly to Cassie while she sat on his hip with her arms wrapped around his neck. Hermione knew she was the clingiest of all of her children, especially with Draco, but it always warmed her heart to see them like that. She knew that Draco was wrapped around his youngest daughter's little finger.
'Is Grandmother here?' Scorpius asked.
'She'll be here in an hour.' Draco said as he placed a gentle hand on the back of his sons head in a warm gesture.
'Lily said that we're having everyone over for Christmas, is that true?' Cassie whispered in Draco's ear.
'Yes, darling.' Draco confirmed, shooting a soft glare at Hermione who only beamed in return.
'Everyone?' Scorpius asked with a raised brow. 'That's a lot of bloody people.'
'Language, Scorp!' Hermione scolded, shooting a glare right back at Draco when he stifled a laugh.
'Oh, come on mum,' Scorpius whined. 'Dad says it all the time in front of Cassie!'
'And I have tried for years to tell him off for his use of foul language.' A new voice said.
The four Malfoys turned their heads to find another walking down the hall.
'You're early, Mother.' Draco said as he received a kiss on the cheek.
'I wanted to check up on Hermione,' Narcissa smiled as she greeted her daughter in law with a kiss on the cheek. 'I assumed she told you that we decided to have everyone here for Christmas and I knew you'd be... unhappy with the decision. I thought she may need some support.'
Hermione smirked at Draco as he scowled at his mother, while Cassie giggled in his arms at his facial expression and wrapped her arms tighter around his neck.
***
Lyra Malfoy was known for her forgetfulness.
Her Mother was a lifesaver when she was at home, always somehow knowing what it was that Lyra had forgotten to do, and her Father tried his hardest to train her out of it. He was obsessed with her writing lists of things she had to do so that she was less likely to forget. Unfortunately, for Draco, it never really worked.
Her siblings teased her for it endlessly. Scorpius was always antagonising her by tricking her into thinking that she needed to do something. Whereas Cassie was the one who took after their Mother and helped her to remember things, despite being a decade younger, but then proceed to tease her about it anyway.
Her Professors at Hogwarts always mused about how she managed to turn every one of her assignments in on time yet would often forget her quill, or her ink, and sometimes even her wand. Professed Longbottom would simply send her a sympathetic smile and tell her that he knew what it was like to be the forgetful one.
Lyra didn't mind being forgetful. She always remembered the important things. She was always on time for classes at school and was now always on time for her shifts at work. She never forgot a birthday and she never forgot what she'd read in a book if she found it important. She never usually let herself think that she was forgetful and often didn't realise she'd forgotten something until someone pointed it out or she had sufficient evidence to remind her of what she'd forgotten.
However, when the bell above the door rang at Flourish and Blotts late that evening and she heard the voice of James Potter floating through the shelves of books, she had a feeling that she'd forgotten something very important and it had been bothering her all day. James found her staring at a bookcase with a frown on her face, something he had never done before.
'You alright, Lyra?' He asked as he placed a kiss to her temple.
She was still frowning at the books when she replied. 'I've forgotten something.'
James smirked. 'What is it this time, love?' He was often the one who carried a spare quill, spare pot of ink, or a spare roll of parchment around for her at school. When they lived in the same dormitory he'd always do a sweep for her wand before they left for classes just in case she'd left it lying around.
'I don't know.' Lyra sighed. 'I have this feeling that I've forgotten something really important.'
'I'm sure someone will remind you soon.' James replied, kissing her cheek and taking her hand. 'Are you ready to go?'
'I just need to grab my bag.' Lyra nodded as she pulled him towards the counter.
After collecting her things and shouting a goodbye to her boss, with a promise to see him for her shift tomorrow, she pulled James out of the shop and towards the Leaky Cauldron.
'You're not working tomorrow.' James laughed when she finally came to a stop.
'What?' Lyra asked. 'You know I'm working everyday until Christmas Day.'
'Tomorrow is Christmas Day, love.' James replied, smiling at her. 'Maybe that's why you feel like you've forgotten something, you've lost track of the days again.'
'Oh.' Lyra frowned. That did feel like part of the problem. She'd lost count of the days and thought it was still a week to go before Christmas. 'Yeah, maybe that's it.'
'Come on, we promised your mum we'd have dinner with them tonight in line with tradition.'
James managed to coax Lyra over to the Floo, who was now unusually quiet and faintly frowning, and he escorted her through the flames into one of the sitting rooms at Malfoy Manor.
'Ah, you're here!' Ginny said as the two made their way to the dining room. 'We thought you'd forgotten.'
'I think Lyra did.' James said as he kissed his mother on the cheek.
'Are you alright?' Hermione asked Lyra quietly. 'You look a little pale.'
'I'm fine, mum. I just... lost track of the days.' Lyra mumbled with a faraway look in her eyes.
Hermione frowned but let it go. She knew Lyra would often lose track of the date but she was never normally this affected by it.
'Are you sure you're not forgetting anything else?' Hermione whispered.
'I don't know.' Lyra admitted. 'I've had a feeling all day that there's something important that I'm missing but it must be that I didn't realise Christmas was tomorrow.'
'Okay, darling.' Hermione said with a smile. 'Let me know if there is anything else bothering you, okay?'
Lyra nodded and, after giving her Father a quick kiss on the cheek, took her seat at the table next to James.
It had become a tradition in recent years for the Malfoys and the Potters to have a small dinner get together on Christmas Eve and, despite the large gathering they were due to have tomorrow, they weren't about to go back on their new tradition. Given how close their children are to each other it was easy for their dinners to quickly become a flurry of chatter. Most of the time Harry and Hermione would discuss various Ministry topics while Draco and Ginny would discuss Quidditch. Malfoy Industries were large investors and often took over Quidditch teams based on Ginny's recommendations during dinner conversation.
Hermione was discussing Auror training with Harry and James when she noticed how Lyra hadn't said a word throughout dinner. She made a mental note to check on her later as Scorpius and Albus got into a heated discussion about detentions.
'You've definitely had more than me!' Albus cried.
'Absolutely not, Al. You always get one from Minnie when she catches you roaming the corridors late at night.' Scorpius smirked.
'I do not! If we count the one that Neville gave you the day before the holidays that you've not done yet then you've had more.' Albus argued.
'If we're getting technical then you have to count the one that Filch is yet to serve-.'
'It's not my fault the old git is four weeks late on serving a detention.' Albus huffed.
'Language!' Ginny scolded, masking the sound of a fork clattering to a plate.
Lyra abruptly stood and excused herself from the table without a second glance.
James looked over to Hermione with a raised brow. She shrugged in return and gestured for him to follow, much to Draco's annoyance.
'Do you know what's going on with her?' Draco asked Hermione under his breath.
'She seemed out of sorts when she came home from work. Said she was forgetting something. James simply said she hadn't realised it was Christmas tomorrow.' Hermione explained in hushed tones.
It was surprisingly quiet after that at the dinner table. James and Lyra never returned to their meals but Hermione threatened to hex Harry and Draco if they tried to leave and follow their children.
'They're adults.' Hermione hissed to the pair. 'They need their space and they wouldn't leave a dinner like that if it wasn't something important.'
The two men kept quiet.
Upstairs, James Potter was pacing.
'James will you calm down?' Lyra huffed from her seat on the end of the bed.
'Calm?!' He asked with a small squeak. 'You expect me to keep calm? Your dad is going to kill me.'
'He's going to kill me.' Lyra insisted. 'I'm the one who forgot.'
'No, no, no, no, no. He's going to kill me and then he's going to kill you.' James countered as he threw himself on the floor and stared at the ceiling. 'Can you just do it? Save me the torture?'
'James stop being so dramatic.' Lyra pleaded. 'You're not the only one freaking out right now.'
James sat bolt upright and looked over at Lyra. 'We need to go see Ted and Vic.'
Lyra frowned. 'Why do we-?'
'Trust me, they'll know exactly what to do.' James promised. He got up from the floor and gave her a quick kiss before pulling her over to her fireplace.
They were gone in a flash of green flames and were back before anyone realised they had left the Manor, just in time to join everyone for after dinner drinks in the sitting room.
***
'Ron, can you stop feeding Hugo chocolate frogs, we're leaving in one minute!' Pansy shouted from one of the upstairs bedrooms.
'Alright.' Ron called back before he turned to his youngest. 'Sorry mate, mum's orders.'
Hugo pouted but knew not to question his mother's final decision.
'Rose!' Pansy shouted as she swept into the living room to join her husband and youngest. 'We're leaving now!'
'You look lovely.' Ron whispered as he slipped an arm around Pansy's waist. She scoffed in return but accepted the kiss on the cheek.
'I look like a whale.' She groaned. 'Why I let you knock me up again I'll never know.'
Ron gave her a lopsided grin and she returned it with a glare.
'Sorry, mum. I couldn't find where I'd put my gifts for Al and Scorpius.' Rose said as she raced into the living room, slightly out of breath and holding two wrapped boxes.
'Don't worry, Rosie. Mum's just a little emotional.' Ron teased, earning a giggle from Hugo and a death glare from Pansy.
'I will not hesitate to kill you.' Pansy warned as she grabbed the Floo powder.
Ron bit back a laugh as Hugo handed him a bronze knut from his pocket when Pansy had turned her back.
'You weren't betting on mum making death threats again, were you?' Rose hissed to Hugo.
'Yeah, dad was certain he'd get one before we even got to the Manor.' Hugo giggled.
'Are you three ready? We're late as it is.' Pansy ushered the two kids through the fire and took Ron's hand.
When they arrived on the other side they noticed that they were in fact late and, by the looks of it, the last ones to Floo in.
'Ronald Weasley, it's all your fault that we're late again.' Pansy hissed as the two children ran off to join their younger relatives and say a brief hello to the adults.
'Will you ever forgive me, Pans?' Ron said, with only a slight hint of sarcasm, as he slipped an arm around his wife's waist.
Pansy didn't drop the unimpressed look despite the arm around her waist, kiss to her cheek, and question of forgiveness. She loved to make him suffer and grovel every now and then. Their marriage worked because Ron indulged her and simply accepted that things were his fault even when they weren't. And he knew that angering a pregnant Slytherin would not be his smartest move.
'Oh, Pansy you're absolutely glowing!'
Ron breathed a slight sigh of relief at the interruption. Pansy was nothing if not reserved in her public displays of vexation towards her husband.
'Oh, piss off Blaise!' Pansy hissed. 'I'm thirty eight weeks pregnant there is nothing glowing about me.'
Towards others, however, she was rather outspoken with her irritation.
'Weasley, can I interest you in a glass of Firewhiskey?' Draco asked Ron over Blaise's shoulder. 'Perhaps a bottle?' He muttered as an after thought as he glanced at Pansy.
'Don't you start, Draco.' Pansy huffed. She pulled out of Ron's grip, pecked his cheek, and went in search of the women in the hopes that they were less likely to anger her further.
Draco and Blaise waited until Pansy was far out of view to offer Ron a pat on the back and words of condolence.
'You're coping better than I did with the third. They get more emotional and easily set off the more pregnancies they go through.'
'Why do you think I only had the twins? I applaud you for putting up with pregnant Pansy, Weasley. Rather you than I.'
Across the room the four eldest "children" were attempting to have a private conversation.
'Just tell them-.'
'If you say that one more time, Teddy, I'll-.'
'Will you two stop arguing?!' Lyra hissed, glancing between her blue haired relative and her raven haired boyfriend. 'No one needs to tell anyone anything.'
'Maybe they're right, Lyra.' Victoire offered in a soothing tone. 'If we both-.'
'Come on, Vic, we said we wouldn't-.'
'I know we said we'd wait but maybe-.'
'You don't have to say anything just because James and I-.'
'I think we should tell them over dinner.' James said, cutting the arguing off. 'Vic's right. If we do it together it won't be as bad.'
'Are you joking, James?!' Lyra asked as quietly as she could. 'Dad will have a heart attack! And then he'll kill all four of us!'
'That's why I suggested we tell them together. Then he'll only have one heart attack, rather than two.' Victoire offered.
'Not helpful, Vic.' Teddy said with a small chuckle.
'We're not getting anywhere with all of this arguing.' Lyra said with a sigh. 'We need to think about the best way to approach the problem and we aren't doing that by bickering.'
'Who let the Ravenclaw in?' James smirked, earning him a whack on the shoulder. 'Ow!'
'So help me, Merlin. James Potter I am not in the mood for your cheek.' Lyra warned.
'Alright, alright.' James said as he placed a comforting hand on Lyra's shoulder. 'Why do we have to tell them? Can't we wait a few weeks and then break it to them gently?'
Lyra shook her head, looking close to tears and slightly pale. 'Mum brews the potion for me, she'll know sooner than that if I don't take it, and I was due another a few days ago. I'm honestly surprised she didn't realise before I did that I'd not taken it yet and forgotten the last one, too.' Before she could burst into tears at her mistake, Lyra buried her head in James chest and let him rub comforting circles on her back.
***
'Are you sure, dear?' Narcissa asked again.
'Positive.' Hermione nodded.
'How are you so certain?' Molly Weasley questioned.
'I have that "feeling".' Hermione said with a pointed look.
Molly, Narcissa, and Andromeda glanced at one another and nodded.
'Right, well... so, how do you suppose...' Narcissa tried, lost for words for the first time in her life.
'I think why Cissy is trying to say is, have you mentioned it to her yet?' Andromeda cut in.
'No, it was only when they got here this morning that I noticed.' Hermione admitted. 'Maybe I've got it wrong.'
'A mother's intuition is never wrong.' Narcissa said with a smile. Hermione tilted her head in agreement; Narcissa always knew what was going on and over the years Hermione chalked it up to her natural intuition.
'Perhaps talk to Teddy first.' Molly offered. 'Just in case.'
Hermione turned to Andromeda and opened her mouth to ask if she would have "the talk" instead.
'No, no.' Andromeda laughed. 'This one is on you, Hermione.'
***
The largest of the Manor's dining rooms had to be extended with the amount of guests that were due to join the Malfoys for Christmas dinner. Two tables had been set; one for the children, minus the four that were now classed as adults, and one for the rest. It was the largest Christmas any one of them had ever taken part in.
Hermione had to nudge Draco several times throughout dinner in an effort to keep his grumbling to a minimum and every few minutes she, or Ginny, had to intervene with the children in order to prevent trouble.
After her pre dinner conversation with the three older women, Hermione hadn't had the chance to pull Teddy to the side but she watched him and Victoire intently when not dealing with the other distractions surrounding her. It was because her mind was elsewhere that she missed her daughter discreetly passing most of her food to James in favour of only eating dry roast potatoes.
Hours passed. Mr and Mrs Weasley went home to The Burrow with Bill, Percy, Charlie, and George with various wives and children in tow. Younger children of those who remained were put to bed in various rooms of the Manor and soon only a third of the group remained in the sitting room. Pansy was stretched out on the largest sofa - to which no one dared argue - with her feet propped up on Ron's lap and a pile of pillows supporting her. The rest of the group were scattered across the floor and remaining armchairs.
Hermione was still trying to hype herself up for her talk with Teddy.
'How are things with you, Teddy, now that you and Victoire have moved in together?' Narcissa asked. 'Have you settled yet?'
'I think so, Aunt Cissy.' Teddy replied, smiling down at Victoire as she rest her head on his lap. 'We don't see much of each other in the week with Vic at St Mungo's all the time.'
'Oh, I forgot to ask how healer training is going Vic!' Hermione exclaimed, desperate for details. In another life Hermione had imagined herself as a healer and often wondered how rigorous the training was.
Victoire and Lyra, who was similarly resting her head in James' lap, had been having another argument in hushed and urgent whispers when Hermione asked the question.
'It's okay.' Victoire said as she turned away from Lyra. 'A lot of long hours but it will all be worth it, I'm sure.'
James and Teddy were now arguing in hushed whispers as Victoire answered and one person in particular had had enough of the secrecy.
'Will you four just bloody tell us what is going on?! I'm sick of hearing you trying to argue quietly.' Pansy huffed as she shifted into a different position. Hermione straightened up and glanced over at Andromeda and Narcissa. Draco noticed her shift in posture and sent her a questioning look. Victoire and Lyra slowly moved into sitting positions.
Teddy, Victoire, James, and Lyra had never looked more guilty in their lives.
'I don't know what you're talking about Auntie Pansy.' James said hurriedly.
'We were just discussing next year's Christmas presents.' Teddy said, rather unconvincingly.
'Right.' James said, although he sent a questioning look towards Teddy. 'Always good to get a head start.'
'Always be prepared, that's my motto.' Teddy replied as his hair turned purple.
'Teddy, your hair has given you away.' Draco pointed out with a stern look at all four of the young adults. 'Explain yourselves.'
'Shit.' Teddy hissed. 'Sorry guys.'
Lyra took a deep breath, looking over at Hermione apologetically, and opened her mouth.
'I'm pregnant.'
Lyra quickly closed her mouth, certain the words hadn't come from her, and glanced at a red faced Victoire.
'Oh, Vic, that's... unexpected news... but congratulations!' Ginny exclaimed, unable to hide her excited smile. 'Have you told your parents yet?'
'Um, not yet.' Victoire admitted. 'We were planning to wait a little longer before telling anyone.'
Blaise pulled a small leather bound book from his pocket and summoned a quill. 'Who had Teddy and Victoire for Christmas Day?'
'That,' Pansy said with a satisfied smirk as she held out her hand for the pouch of coins. 'would be me.'
There was a collection of groans from the group, as Pansy had won yet another bet, mixed in with a few murmurs of congratulations for the expecting parents. The four young adults had little time to be peeved at not being included for the bet. Teddy's ears had gone red under the heat of Draco's eyes. He felt a scolding coming on once Draco had recovered from the shock. Lyra was guiltily staring into her lap to avoid looking at Hermione again.
'We also have some news.' James said quickly, as if he had worked up the courage and spoke before he could second guess it.
Lyra gripped his hand until her nails bit into his skin, hissing under her breath. 'Don't you dare, James Potter. I swear I will hunt you down and castr-.'
'Lyra and I are also going to have a baby.'
Pansy's mouth popped open in shock.
Ron had been too busy eating a chocolate frog to hear the news.
Blaise dropped his quill.
Luna was checking the mistletoe for Nargles.
Harry simply blinked at his eldest son.
Ginny's eyes were wide.
Hermione looked as if she were struggling over an Arithmancy equation.
Andromeda and Narcissa were looking at one another, both mouthing "great-grandmother?!" at each other.
Draco looked paler than usual.
Teddy, Victoire, James, and Lyra kept quiet, waiting for the silence to be broken.
Minutes passed without a word.
Blaise carefully picked up his quill and turned a page in his notebook before clearing his throat.
'Don't. You. Dare. Zabini.' Draco said through gritted teeth.
Blaise closed his notebook and tucked it back into his pocket with the quill.
Harry stood from his chair at the same time Draco rose from his. They nodded at each other and held out a hand for their wives to stand too.
'You four. With us. Now.' Draco said calmly, looking down at the soon-to-be parents.
They didn't question his tone. Teddy and Lyra knew that beneath the gentle voice he was no doubt simmering with anger and frustration.
Once the eight had left the room, Blaise pulled his notebook from his pocket and opened it back up.
'PUT IT AWAY, ZABINI!' Draco yelled from the hallway.
Pansy snickered.
***
'I'm not sure what our purpose is here.' Teddy said as he gestured to himself and Victoire. He was ignored.
They had been dragged into Draco's study and made to sit in front of his desk as though they had been sent to the Headmaster's office and were about to receive detention. All four parents were suspiciously quiet.
'Anything we say to them they're going to throw back in our face.' Ginny muttered to Hermione under her breath.
'Maybe Vic and I should leave the rest of you to it?' Teddy offered again.
'I know.' Hermione nodded with a whisper to Ginny. 'They're basically the same age we were. If not older.'
'I really think we're not needed here.' Teddy insisted.
'I'm just not ready to be a grandad.' Harry hissed as he rubbed his temples. 'How does one become a grandad?'
Draco gave Teddy a dismissive nod as he poured himself a glass of Firewhiskey from his emergency stash. Teddy and Victoire were quick to leave, shooting apologetic glanced at Lyra and James.
Slow tears were rolling down Lyra's cheeks as she looked into her lap but James was too terrified to give her more than his hand to hold onto as a source of comfort.
'I'd like a few minutes alone with my daughter.'
Hermione looked as if she were about to object given his earlier anger.
'Please?'
Everyone left them alone with no further argument, only one final glance from Hermione as she closed the door behind her.
'Dad, I-.'
Draco cut her off with a wave of his hand. 'How?'
'I-I'm s-sorry?' Lyra asked.
'How did it happen?'
'I don't think-.'
'Was it an accident? Did you plan this?' Draco clarified as he finished his drink.
Lyra stifled a sob and wiped her nose on her sleeve. 'I forgot my potion... last month. I lost - I lost track of the days and...'
'You're sure you're pregnant?' He asked, his jaw twitching with tension.
Lyra nodded, her eyes cast down into her lap. 'Vic checked last night so that we didn't have to go to St Mungo's. She says I'm about three weeks.'
Draco let out a sigh as he rubbed his hand across his jaw. He wanted nothing more than to shout at her, scold her, be angry at her, but he didn't have it in him. His eldest child, his first born daughter, was pregnant with his grandchild at only nineteen. She was younger than he was by just a few months when he found out about her, a week shy of exactly twenty years ago, and he knew he should be angry at how young she was. He knew he should want to hex James Potter for impregnating his daughter without marrying her first.
But he would be a big fat hypocrite if he did any of those things. So he stayed silent.
'Dad, I'm scared.'
It was barely audible; a whisper within the sobs. Only three words but it was enough for him to pull his daughter out of her chair and embrace her. Enough to hold her as she cried into his suit jacket like she would when she scraped her knee as a child. Enough for him to brush her pale blonde curls away from her face and gently shush her like he used to when she woke up from a nightmare. Enough to close his eyes and vow to protect Lyra's child with every fibre of his being, like he had done with Hermione when she was pregnant with the daughter in his arms.
'Don't be scared, darling.' He whispered. 'Everything is going to be fine.'
***
It was twenty five minutes later when Draco led Lyra back into the sitting room to rejoin the others. After many words of encouragement from Draco and teary apologies from Lyra in the privacy of his study, they walked through the door arm in arm. She received a quick peck on the forehead before rushing off to sit in the armchair with James while Draco rejoined Hermione on the sofa.
James had clearly had a stern talking to from Harry and Ginny as he was sat looking rather sheepish while Teddy looked relieved to have been dismissed without a similar talking to. Victoire was curled up into Teddy's side, sleeping.
'You look like you've been crying. Did he give you a hard time?' James asked as he circled his arm around Lyra's waist.
'Not at all.' Lyra said, sending Draco a grateful smile.
'You look like you've been crying.' Hermione whispered as Draco placed an arm around her shoulder.
'I'm mourning the loss of my youth.' Draco mumbled back as he kissed her hair. 'I'm about to become a grandfather.'
'At least all of your grey hairs will blend in with the blonde.' Hermione laughed, earning her a poke in the ribs.
'Now that everyone has calmed down a bit,' Blaise said as he hesitantly pulled the notebook from his pocket for the third time. 'would we like to know which slimy git won the second bet of the evening?'
'I can't believe you've placed bets on us without letting us join in.' Teddy huffed.
'We were in the same boat twenty years ago.' Hermione said with a smile. 'They'll let you join in with the next round of bets.'
'I want to hear the wrong guesses for us two first.' said Lyra. Now that it was all out in the open she was in much higher spirits. She was still terrified but the fact that James was still alive was enough to tell her that her Father had taken the news rather well.
'Okay, where do we start.' Blaise said with a smirk. 'Unfortunately for me, I'd already lost. Pansy-.'
'Just... get to the point, Blaise.' Draco sighed. 'Everyone's dying to know who won.'
'Well, mate. I believe congratulations are in order two fold for you tonight.' Blaise said with a sly grin. 'First, for becoming a grandfather. Second, for correctly guessing the week in which we would find out.'
Lyra's jaw dropped. 'You - you - you - why were you so angry if you thought we'd be pregnant by now?!'
'I wasn't betting on it being so soon out of hope, darling.' Draco smirked at his daughter. 'It was within my best financial interest that I go for this week.'
'I can't believe I lost out by a few days.' Hermione muttered from his side.
'Mum, you too?!'
'Well, there's a poetic sort of irony to this week.' Hermione offered with a smile. 'It's almost exactly twenty years ago that I told your father and everyone else here about you. We both thought it would be rather funny to place the bet for this week, we never thought we'd be right.'
'I never knew that.' Lyra muttered. 'What was the day you told dad?'
'It was at the Annual New Years Eve Gala of 1999.' Hermione said with a whistful smile.
'How romantic. Better than Christmas Eve during dinner.' James muttered in Lyra's ear. She giggled and gently elbowed him in the ribs.
'Any other "romantic" stories I should know about?' Lyra asked her parents sarcastically.
'Have they ever told you about the broom cupboard near the library?' Blaise asked with a smirk on his face and mischief in his eyes.
A/N: hello all my lovely readers!
I just want to thank everyone (again) for all of the love that I receive on a daily basis in the comments of this fic and the votes that it gets - it means the world! As a thank you (and a Christmas present) I wrote this bonus chapter just for fun. I hope you don't mind that I've come back and added more on the end - I couldn't help myself when I thought about what a Malfoy family Christmas would involve and actually had a blast writing this extra long chapter.
I also just wanted to say that if you could spare a day or two reading the other Dramione fic on my page (Inside Your Mind) I would be extremely grateful! It's completed so you won't have to wait for any updates and I'm super proud of it - though I will be doing a heavy edit at some point.
Once again, thank you for all the love and support. I read every single comment and every one of them brings a smile to my face (I love that you all love soft Draco as much as I do) and I wouldn't do this if it weren't for you amazing readers.
Merry Christmas!
E x
P.S. if any of you talented people make fan art of this fic please please let me know, I'd love to see it!