The Baby Project

Chapter Twenty:

I can't be something I'm not,
so please don't throw away what we've got.
You know that I love you,
there's no one above you.
I said it the last time,
this is the last time.'


December had approached Hogwarts.

While most of the students were out throwing snowballs and joining in with
the Christmas festivities, the Seventh years were busy organising their
Holiday schedule so they knew who would get custody of the child and when.

As it stood, most of the student's had decided to 'floo' with their babies
to one another's houses.
It worked out easier this way, as they could drop in on each other whenever
they needed to extra help.

Hermione and Draco were having bigger problems, however.


McGonagall had discussed it all with them.
But they really didn't see her point.

Hermione knew it was the most logical solution...but considering what had
transpired between them almost a week ago, she knew that neither of them
could be trusted to be responsible.

Since that night, Hermione had thought about it all the time.
She felt disgusted with herself...
She was being trusted to be sensible...not give into her urges with the head
boy!


But the disgust didn't exactly stem from the duties that she was currently
undertaking...
It was the fact that she wanted it to happen that night...and she
knew she would probably want it again...

'Who you shouldn't be having lustful urges for Malfoy...He might be a lot
better now than what he was, but that still doesn't dismiss the fact that
you're not concentrating solely on the Project and Airyn...'

But she knew she couldn't help it.
Something had now awakened inside of her, and all she could think about was
how his lips felt against hers...

Draco sat there trying to listen to what McGonagall was saying; holding
Airyn on his knee and bouncing her a little without realising it.
He couldn't take a word in that she was saying...he was too busy noticing
Granger's insufferable body heat next to him.

Again; they hadn't addressed their recent problem.
He knew that the inevitable day would come when they would have to face up
to what was happening to them...but at the moment it was almost as if they
were trying not to mention it.
It seemed like a more comfortable atmosphere when they were just simply
looking after Airyn.

Every now and again he knew that Granger could feel the lingering glances he
would give her across the classroom, and he similarly could feel her's,
too....they were leaving scorch marks on his skin...just like her hands had
done when she had touched him in the most innocent places...

Innocent places; impure touches...

He knew it was better to try and ignore it. After all, this was not the
predicament that every other student found themselves in...

But whenever he was alone in the comfort of his own room, he kept going
through it in his mind...

The way she felt.
The way she kissed him...the way her body reacted to his, against her own
will.

Draco had to snap himself back into reality when he noticed McGonagall
looking at him curiously.

"I think this is the most sensible solution" She finally told them, as they
sat at her desk in her office.

"Are you sure there is no other way?" Hermione asked her.

The professor looked at her sympathetically.
"Not unless either of you like the idea of not seeing your daughter for the
duration of the holidays..."

Hermione sighed.
No, she didn't like the idea of that at all, and she was pretty sure that
Malfoy would rather chew off his own arm than let Hermione take care of
Airyn for two weeks without him.

"Ok" Hermione agreed. "But I will have to let my parents know"

McGonagall gave her a small smile.
"Let the school take care of that, Miss.Granger" She told her. "If we send
out an official letter, it is unlikely that your mother and father will have
any reserves"

Draco suddenly felt African butterflies fluttering in his stomach.

....He was going to Granger's house for Christmas....


_____________________________________


"Where are you going?"

"To my common room"

Hermione looked at him anxiously.
"Are you taking Airyn?"

Draco nodded, looking down at the baby in question.
"They've not seen her yet...I think they will be pleasantly surprised"

"Don't be too long" She told him as they stopped walking in the middle of
the corridor.
She bent her head down and kissed Airyn's forehead.
When she brought her head back up, she realised just how close to Malfoy's
face she was.

He kept looking at her lips as she looked at him, desperate to put his own
on top of them.

Hermione could feel that urge again...but she couldn't let it happen, not
this time.

Last time it seemed so right, and yet she knew it was wrong.
They were supposed to be looking after their daughter, not looking after
their own personal issues of lust.

Hermione snapped her eyes away from his.
Maybe if she didn't look at him so much, she might not get those betraying
feelings that her body seemed to be having more of lately.

Draco noticed the look in her eyes.


She was ashamed.

And it killed him.

Draco's face suddenly held a snarl.
Hermione had not seen a look that harsh on his features for a long time...

"I'll see you later, Granger" he told her, as he turned on his heel and
walked away with their baby.


Hermione looked at his retreating back.
Had he walked away because he was angry with her?
Or was he angry with himself?

Hermione knew that it was dangerous.
They should never had kissed...it only seemed to open a can of worms that
neither of them were ready for...
Not yet, anyway.

Hermione strolled along the corridor, walking past the other students as
they were full of festive cheer.
There was only a week to go until the school holiday's were upon them...and
suddenly Hermione was wishing that they would not come at all.

So Malfoy was going to be living in her house for two weeks?

Was there really no other way around it?

'Of course there isn't' Her brain told her matter of factly. 'You
don't have a floo network in your fireplace, and it is unlikely that Malfoy's
mum and dad would welcome you coming into their Manor...'

So maybe it was the most sensible option...
But she still felt uneasy about it.

It would mean that they would be around each other all the time.
Her mum and dad would get to know him...
Which scared her, because she had a feeling that they might not take kindly
to a boy sleeping in their house for the next two weeks....

They knew briefly about the Baby Project...she had told them about it in a
letter.
They had expressed their concerns, but when Hermione had told them that the
Professors were taking every precaution necessary, they had relaxed a little
about the idea.

Hermione kept walking until she found herself heading towards the Gryffindor
common room.
The portrait of the fat lady swung open, and Hermione stepped through.

Ron saw her first.
He was sat there feeding Joon on his knee, when he gave her a huge smile.

Hermione smiled back.
But she noticed oddly that her stomach didn't twinge like it used to when
Ron looked at her.
...Something was deeply wrong...

"Hey, Hermione!" Ginny shouted suddenly, she walked up to her friend and
hugged her. "I feel like I haven't seen you in a while!"

Hermione laughed.
"That's because you haven't"

Ginny pulled back from her friend, and the frowned.
"Where's Airyn?"

Hermione suddenly felt guilty.
Ginny had only glimpsed at her daughter so far, and it seemed unfair that
everyone else had gotten a good look, besides one of her best friends.

"Malfoy's taken her to the Slytherin common room" She told Ginny.

Ron's ears pricked up.

"What for?" Ginny asked her curiously.

Hermione shrugged.
"Probably to show her off, knowing him"

She still couldn't fight that constricting feeling in her chest...whenever
she thought about Malfoy, she felt like a hand was squeezing her heart...and
it was even worse now that she thought he was mad at her.

"Trust Malfoy to want to show off the only thing that he's done right in his
time at Hogwarts" Ron said from his chair, tickling his daughter's stomach as
she looked up at him.

Hermione said nothing.
She felt like she was going out of her mind!
Why was she feeling so bad about the way Malfoy had been with her when he
walked away?

She felt like she had done something wrong...
And she hadn't felt like that for along time...

"Come and sit down, 'Mione" Ron told her.

She walked towards the chair that sat opposite Ron.
"Why are you in here, anyway?" She asked him, expecting him to be with
Parvati.

"Me and Parvati had words" He told her casually. "Anyway, I needed to get
away. So I brought the twin that doesn't cry every five minutes to
keep me company"

Hermione smirked at him.
Ron never acted well under pressure...
And it seemed that Parvati was piling it on him lately.
But what did he expect? With one child it was hard, but with two it
disastrous!

Especially with Ron.
She noticed that he didn't seem comfortable with children.
He held them wrong, and he didn't really pay any attention to them until
they cried...

Not like Malfoy;
He was the one attempting to wake Airyn up just so he could play with her
fingers, or see those beautiful baby blues.

It was a big contrast.

"I hope Airyn's alright in the Slytherin den" Ginny told her, perching on
the arm of Hermione's chair. "I wouldn't be surprised if they were all
throwing her around and playing 'catch' with her..."

Hermione felt an odd pang in her stomach.


She sincerely hoped Ginny was exaggerating.

_________________________________________


"She's so cute!"

"She's so adorable!"

"She looks exactly like her father!"

Draco couldn't help the smile of pride that he wore on his face.
And rightly so, too.
His baby was gorgeous and he just had to show her off to whoever wanted to
see her.

Miranda Hodge was the first to compliment him.
She had gushed over Airyn...who had sat there on her Daddy's knee, looking
up with her big blue eyes.
Draco was sure that she was going to attract all the attention as soon as
they had entered the room...

Nothing like a gang of gaggling girls to take his mind off another one.

It was driving him crazy.
Since that night they had kissed, all he wanted to do was grab her and do it
allover again...
But that look on her face before had put all sorts of doubt into his mind.

What exactly was she thinking now?
Was she regretting it?
Or was she regretting the fact that she didn't regret it?

'Note to self...Don't think so much...'

"I see that Fatherhood is suiting you pleasantly?"

Draco looked up amidst the crowd of girls to see Blaise standing there,
complete with his own miniature Zabini.

He smirked at his old friend.
"And I take it your feeling the same way?"

Blaise made his way through the crowd, who also started admiring his baby,
too.

A few of the Fifth years were discussing how exciting it will be to get to
seventh year and be able to go through the whole experience themselves.

Blaise sat down next to Draco, and the girls carried on their cooing.
He couldn't help but laugh.

Why were girls so hormone driven when it came to babies?

Draco rolled his eyes as one of the girls pinched Airyn's cheeks, and caused
his daughter to whimper slightly.
Now getting bored, Draco put Airyn's head on his shoulder to hide her from
view.

The girls suddenly got the hint and diverted their attention elsewhere
around the room.

"Look at you; defensive father indeed" Blaise smirked at him. He held his
baby in the air with his arms, smiling when he saw her eyes opening. "This
is Mildred"

Draco looked for a moment.
The little girl had Blaise's features, including the dark hair and skin.
She was quite adorable looking...but nothing could compare to his own child,
of course.

"Very nice..." He said, before looking back at his own creation.
She seemed to be sleeping again...her breath tickling his neck slightly.

"Lavender said she needed some sleep, so she let me take over..."

"Was that a wise move?" Draco asked him, smiling at his friend.

Blaise rolled his eyes.
"Contrary to popular belief, I'm rather adept when holding my own when it
comes to Mildred"

Draco believed him.
So far, he had only seen the Slytherin boys (besides Crabbe and Goyle)
actually holding their own in anything when it came to their children...
For some reason; beyond the cold exterior of the Green and Silver
impression, lay a gentle inner core that seemed to reach out to the babies
more than any other house.

Draco saw Pansy out of the corner of her eye.
She looked lost.

He looked over at her curiously.
She was standing my the Common Room door, staring into space.

"She's been down lately" Blaise told him. "Everyone's been getting at her
for not wanting to be around her baby"

"Well, it's her own fault shes down, then" Draco told him.

He kept his eyes on her.
If it was possible, Pansy looked sad.

"Technically, its not her fault..." Blaise continued. "I actually questioned
her about it yesterday, and she ended up crying on my shoulder for an hour
about it..."

Draco snorted.
"Typical"

"She's got post-natal depression"

Draco's head snapped to Blaise.
He suddenly felt terrible.

He had heard Granger talking about that; saying she was glad that she had
bonded with Airyn.
She had said that she didn't think she could bare it if she didn't want to
hold her all the time.

"I think McGonagall is sorting it out with her and Longbottom..." Blaise
added. "...Apparently that's why we've been seeing him with the baby more
often than we have seen Pansy"

Draco chanced another look at her.
She was an annoying bitch, but she didn't deserve anything like this.
To not want to bond with her baby?
To not want to feel what it's like to hold another human being in your arms
and feel all of the love in the world for it?

No wonder she was looking so ill lately.
He had thought that it was just the strain of sleepless nights...
But apparently it had been Longbottom that was having those.

"Anyway" Blaise said casually, changing the conversation. "How are you
fairing with Granger?"

Why was he asking him about Granger?
Why was he so interested in how himself and Granger were getting on?

Why was Draco being so bloody inquisitive?

Draco shrugged, trying to be casual."
"As well as can be expected, I suppose"

Blaise wasn't buying it.
He knew Draco well enough to be able to tell when he was acting.
But he decided to play along...

"I take it you've found her pleasant side, then?"

Draco looked at him curiously.
What exactly had he meant by that?

"If by pleasant you mean the part of her that is able to keep control over
her wide open trap...then yeah"
Hmm..maybe a little too harsh.

Blaise smirked.
"I happen to find her knowledge quite endearing, to be honest" He told the
head boy, leaning Mildred back onto his chest. "She's one of the only
witches in Gryffindor that I can actually like and dislike all at the same
time"

Draco nodded in agreement.
He was definitely right there.

But what did Blaise know?
As far as he was aware, Blaise had not been up close and personal with
Granger lately...and he definitely had not found himself in the predicament
that Draco had.

"I think she's gone quite mature looking" Blaise mused, looking at Draco out
of the corner of his eye for a reaction. "She's filled out, and her hair is
actually rather nice to look at now"

Draco couldn't help but be pulled back to that night...his fingertips
running through those curls...feeling those curves in question up close and
personal against him...
Draco had to stop his mind wondering, or he knew he would end up with an
unwanted friend tenting the front of his pants.

How did she have the power to do this to him?

And now he was going to her house for CHRISTMAS!
Where he would be in close proximity to her all the time...

His parent's wouldn't be very pleased...they didn't even know about the
project, or Airyn...either it was time to tell them, or he would have to lie
and say he was staying at Hogwarts for Christmas dinner....Head Boy duties or
some bullocks like that.

"Your thinking about her now, aren't you?" Blaise asked him, a smirk playing
on his lips.

Draco was shocked at the boldness of his question.
"What do you mean by that?"

But Draco knew that Blaise had seen right through him.

The dark haired boy sighed.
"So your having feelings for her..." He said casually. "So what? At the end
of the day, you've been living with her for the past few months...obviously
your hormones are running wild"

Draco smirked unwillingly.
If only Blaise knew the full extent of his hormones...

"I've thought about giving Lavender one a few times" Blaise confessed,
laughing as he did. "It doesn't mean that I will have any long lasting
feelings for her"

Draco nodded his head.
He could see where Blaise was coming from...but he just didn't understand.
Blaise had never had any sort of rivalry with Lavender for the past seven
years...he hadn't wished her dead on occasion...and he definitely hadn't
given into any of his newly surfacing, lustful urges...as far as Draco knew,
anyway.

"It's just Granger" Draco stated, stroking Airyn's back as she still slept
on his shoulder. "She's just different to what she used to be, that's all"

"So you want to shag her?" Blaise stated, a little louder than he should
have. "Big deal...you're a teenager, Draco. Get over it"

But the way Draco saw it;
The only way to get over her, was to get under her...

And that wasn't going to happen for a while.



___________________


A/N: Yeah...no kisses in this chapter or anything, but i thought it was important to show their conflicting emotions inside....

And also to let you guys know that there was a reason behind Pansy's non-existance around her and Nevilles baby...
(btw this will become part of the plot, but you will see how, anyway lol)
I thought it was important to show this side of pregnancy, because sometimes it doesn't go as smoothly as every woman hopes...





EGELLA:
Yeah, they have the same healing times and everything :-)
Thankyou for the review!!!


JES:
I'm a big metallica fan, too lmao!
Thankyou for taking the time to review!!!


PAPETGIRL13:
'Baby grow' is just and English slang word for those little all-on-one flannel or cotton button-up suits that you put on babies...i don't know what the american term for it is lol
But babies look adorable in them...they usually wear them from when they are first born, to a few months old....
Glad you asked though, so i could clear it up lol


GRACE:
Yeah i've noticed all of the really dark fics...im trying not to make this one go down that road lol. But hey, evryone needs a bit of angst sometimes lmao!
Hope you keep reading!!!!


MOXIE:
Yeah, I don't think its so much as a complex Hermione is getting...more like a pang of guilt for not putting her heart and soul completely into the baby all the time...But i guess alot of first time mothers might feel guilty for not spending their whole time thinking about their children ...
Just a thought lol :-)
Anyway, she'll get over that when she starts letting it all in lol


LEXY MALFOY:
As usual, you are my rock lmao!!
Thankyou for all of the support!!!!




Again, the support has been tremendous, and i'm really happy that everyone has enjoyed this fic so far!!
I do warn you though...smut is still a little way off....

But now that we know that Malfoy is going to Hermione's for Christmas.....*cackles like a witch in mating season*...

Ooooh....its getting good lmao!!!!

Keep reading and reviewing...you know how much i love your reviews!!!!!
xxx