Pilfered Progeny - Stolen Dreams

"If it isn\'t Ronald Weasley…!" a sweet voice said, silky and smooth behind Ron.



He turned to see Pansy Parkinson beaming up at him, looking very successful and attractive, wearing a deep blue suit today that flattered her skin and put blue highlights into her currently black hair. "Has the great Quidditch player finally decided to grace us with his presence…?" she asked teasingly.



"Oh, um… hi Miss Parkinson." He said lamely, giving her a faint smile. "I just came to get Hermione…"



"Miss Parkinson…? Why so formal, Ronald…? We DID go to school together, remember…?" she said, slipping her arm through his, her smile growing. "You must remember to call me Pansy, dear…"



She was seriously beginning to creep him out. "Yeah, we did… in different houses. Look, I…"



"We NEVER get together and talk…! You\'re so busy all the time; I heard you made the big leagues, congratulations are in order…!" she smiled winningly at him. If he didn\'t think she was more dangerous than a basilisk and responsible for everything that was going wrong in his life, he thought she might actually have managed to get his trust… Merlin she was smooth…!



"Yeah; I just made the team… I…"



"We need to sit and have some tea and talk about old times…" she smiled at him.



"I can\'t, I…"



"Of course you can…! What\'s a few minutes spent between old schoolmates…?" she asked, beginning to steer him toward one of the conference rooms at the back of the clinic.



Ron planted his feet firmly and pulled free of her grip. "I said NO." He said without any rancor though he was disgusted to even have her touch him. "I have other plans, Miss Parkinson; I will not brush off my daughter for you or for anyone…! She has a dance recital tonight and I will NOT be late because I\'m hanging about here with you."



For one long moment she looked offended by his statement and ready to tell him off for even daring to speak to her in such a manner… and then she shook it off, smiling up at him pleasantly. "Well, of course you should go to that… your child is very important, Ron dear… you\'ll have to come by tomorrow, then…" she beamed at him.



"Ron…?" Hermione said, emerging from her office which the two were actually standing quite near at the moment, frowning. Pansy wasn\'t trying already was she…?



"There you are, \'Monie… c\'mon, we gotta go…" he said, stepping toward the brown-haired woman, reaching his hand out to her.



"Yes, all right, I\'m done for the day…" she said, slipping her hand into his, giving Pansy a hesitant look.



"I take it you haven\'t spoken to him yet, Hermione…?" Pansy said, her sweet smile at his wife sending chills down Ron\'s spine. Something was definitely going on…



"Come on, Ron. Let\'s go." Hermione turned and led him away quickly.



"Talked to me about what…?" he asked her in a soft voice as they exited the building and crossed the parking lot.



"It\'s nothing, Ron…" Hermione sighed, and then quickly made up a lie. "She wants me to volunteer extra time in the downtown clinic this weekend… I told her I couldn\'t because you have a game and I have to tend Rosie…"



"Why in Merlin\'s name was she trying to get all chummy with me…? We haven\'t spoken in weeks; months even… it\'s really weird. She always ignored me every time I went in there before. Ron said, glancing back at the building. Pansy was standing outside and when she saw him look back, she smiled and waved warmly at him. He didn\'t wave back; he pretended he hadn\'t seen her. "I think I prefer being ignored, honestly…" he mumbled.



"Perhaps she just wants season tickets to your games… now that you\'re on the Canons…" Hermione said, unlocking the doors to the car and getting in behind the wheel. Seeing Pansy hanging on Ron like that had shaken her… If had managed to get Ron into the back room… Ron couldn\'t know. Ron had no idea what she was…



"She was never interested in tickets before, and I\'m sure as bloody hell not giving that woman any tickets. I only get three sets and I\'ve already got plans for them…"



"I know, Ron…" she sighed, distracted, nodding her agreement.



He glanced back at the door as he settled into the seat. Pansy was still standing there in the door. How… creepy…. He frowned and shut his door. "We\'re going to be late…"



"No; we have time…" Hermione said, pulling out of the lot.



Ron relaxed back into his seat, sighing with a slight frown on his face. He was trying really hard not to think about the case that Harry was investigating… but it was really hard on him. He\'d gone back home two nights ago but it wasn\'t easy to act in a normal fashion toward his wife anymore. He loved her; Merlin knew he loved her so much… but she was doing things that were hurting their friends. She hadn\'t said anything but he knew he was a lot more quiet and withdrawn than he normally had been with her… he shifted in his seat, sighing, a small clear plastic box in his hand.



"What\'s that, Ron…?" she asked him, glancing at him and seeing what was in his hand.



"Huh…? Oh… Rosie knows we\'re coming. She told me since its her first real recital she wants to have flowers like the grown-up dancers have…" he gazed down at the little pink tea rose corsage he had bought for his daughter.



"She\'ll love it; you\'re such a good father…" Hermione smiled fondly at him. He gave her a bit of a smile, but didn\'t answer, still gazing at the roses."Are you feeling all right, Ron…?" she asked him for about the fiftieth time in the past three days.



"Yeah, yeah… I just got a lot on mind. I\'m okay…"



"Are Harry and Draco coming…?"



"Draco will… Harry said it depends on what he has to do at work…" Ron answered, pulling his eyes away from the corsage.



"I really hope they do… I haven\'t seen them in ages…"



"They had me over for dinner when you were at that convention thing… it was really great to see them…"



"I\'m glad. I didn\'t want you to be bored while I was away… And Rosie loves Harry and Draco so much…" Hermione smiled.



"I could never be bored with Rosie around…" Ron smiled softly as well as they pulled into the parking lot. "Rosie said she\'d have seats for us right up front; mums and dads get special seating…"



"Wonderful… did you bring the camera…?"



"Yeah…" he pulled it out of an inside pocket. "Gotta get lots of photos…"



"See, I told you we\'d get here in plenty of time…" Hermione said as they got out of the car.



"MIMI!!" a dark-haired blur collided with Hermione, nearly knocking her over, seizing her legs in a tight hold. "Mimi!! Mimi I missed you…!" The child squealed with pure undisguised joy.



"I take it she knows you…" Ron said with a soft laugh.



Hermione looked down at the girl, who beamed up with her with a heartbreakingly familiar heart shaped face and vivid green eyes. "Angel… oh…oh my god…" she whispered, reaching to touch the girl\'s cheek.



"Oh Mimi I missed you so much I want to do lessons again and I got my real daddy too and can you come and visit…?" she asked, bouncing happily on her heels as she beamed up at Hermione.



"Angel…!" Harry laughed, moving over to them.



Hermione\'s face lost what little color it had when she saw Harry. "Oh Merlin…" she whispered.



"Come on, Angel. Papa Draco\'s got us all seats…" Harry scooped her up, and the girl giggled and hugged his neck. "I see you\'ve both met my daughter." He commented, keeping his tone light and a smile on his face.



"That\'s Mimi, daddy…!" Angel said happily.



"You know her…?" Ron asked his voice soft and unsure.



"Mimi is who put me in mummy\'s belly." Angel said confidently. "Mimi was mummy\'s best friend, and Mimi gave me lessons and helped me to learn all kinds of neat stuff…"



"I…" Hermione felt weak. "Merlin, Ron… Harry…"



Ron glanced at Hermione. "Did she…?" He said softly. "Well… my little girl is going to dance in the show tonight." He spoke to the little girl, trying hard not to focus on what he\'d just learned. Hermione had made this child… without Harry\'s permission. "You can see her, and meet her after she dances… want to, Angel…?" he offered.



"Will she be my friend?" Angel asked. "I\'d really like that…"



"She\'ll love you. By the way, my name is Ron. I\'m your daddy\'s best mate. You can call me Uncle Ron if you want…"



"You go with Uncle Ron now, Angel, and go find Papa." Harry said, eyeing Hermione. He wouldn\'t blow up, not in front of his daughter.



"I never had an uncle before…" Angel said happily, chattering away as Ron took her into his arms and turned, answering her animatedly as he carried her away.



Harry turned to face Hermione. "So… Do you have something to tell me…?" he asked acidly.



Her face was milky pale and she swallowed, looking down. "Its not… it\'s not what you think, Harry." She said softly. "Tara was a special person, very special… I knew her from muggle middle school, and… she really had no hope of ever having a child without the clinic. I... I didn\'t mean to hurt anyone…"



"You were my friend and I trusted you. How could you do this to me? You knew what Draco and I had gone through to have a family…! How could you do this?"



"I didn\'t do this to hurt you, Harry..." she started, tears in her eyes. "I\'d have asked you, but you were out of town… I really didn\'t think you would mind; she was so desperate…" she bowed her head. "I swear I didn\'t do it to hurt you…"



"Why me…? Why not Ron, why not some muggle donor?! Why me?! How much did she pay

you?!" he demanded.



"Nothing…! She didn\'t pay me anything, Harry!\' She answered instantly. "It wasn\'t like that; she didn\'t have the money to go through the clinic…! Your donations aren\'t tracked like the others; if I had used anyone else besides you or Draco, she would have had to pay hundreds of pounds for the clinic\'s services… she barely had enough money to get by once she got pregnant… I only did it once, one time I swear it…"



"And why should I believe you…?" he glared at her.



"Legilimens me…! Take my memory of it. I don\'t have anything to hide about Angel, I swear it on my daughter\'s life…!" she whispered. "Tara was such a special person, so full of love and life… and her partner Melissa loved her so much… they were so much like you and Draco. I knew that if it took, the child would be loved, cherished…" she whispered. "Then Angel started displaying magical talents… I started going regularly to teach her to control them… I should have told you then, Harry, but you and Draco had just had your successful implantation... then there was that horrible fire, it killed Tara and they pulled her away from Melissa and she vanished… the fire was the day after you lost Andie and I couldn\'t tell you, I just… I couldn\'t…" Hermione\'s voice shook as she spoke, forcing herself to tell Harry as much as she could and he would allow.



"I never want to see you again. You aren\'t my friend, Hermione. I don\'t know you." Harry turned away from her.



Tears streamed down her cheeks unchecked now. "Harry… don\'t do this, please…" she whispered, reaching toward him.



"Leave me and my family alone!" He snarled, magic crackling about him.



She shied back, weeping. "I\'m sorry… I never meant… I\'m sorry…"



"Sorry doesn\'t cut it." Harry stormed away from her, trying to calm down before joining Draco and the others. Hermione did not follow him, crying harshly as she sank to a seat on the hood of her car.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Draco looked towards the door, worried about Harry.



"She… she really did do it.\' Ron murmured, miserable. How could she have done something like this…?



"I\'m sorry, Ron…" Draco said softly. "At least Angel is safe with us now… and we\'ll stop this from continuing…"



He scrubbed at his eyes, trying to stop the tears he felt welling up, nodding. "Yes… it has to stop… Angel is such a sweet little thing…"



"Where\'s daddy, Papa…?" Angel asked, standing on her chair to look back. "And where\'s Mimi…?"



"I\'m sure they\'ll be here soon, love…" Draco soothed her.



"But its about to start, Papa…!" she looked at him, then back at the door again.



"Hey Angel… how about you help me to take pictures…?" Ron asked, trying to focus himself on the children.



"Can I really…? Oh thank you Uncle Ron…!" she smiled.



Ron half chuckled at her enthusiasm and applied himself to showing her all about the wizarding camera and allowing her to take a few photos as the show began.



Harry slipped into his seat. "Sorry I\'m late…" he whispered, giving Draco a soft kiss.



Draco took his hand. "Everything Ok…?" he asked.



"Daddy, look! Look at the girls dancing, it\'s so pretty….!" Angel said, excited.



"Yes, Angel aren\'t they beautiful…? He smiled at her, and then squeezed Draco\'s hand gently, leaning close. "I\'ll survive, lover… I\'m just hurt and angry…" he sighed.



Ron was silent, trying hard to focus on the performance but torn inside. He should have noticed all this years ago… he felt he was responsible for Harry\'s pain, and whatever he had said to Hermione should have been said to him, too…Hermione never joined them, standing instead in the doorway to watch as the recital came to an end.



Rosie took her bow with the others, and then the children moved down the steps and into the audience to find their parents. Ron knelt, his arms held wide as she ran to him, breathless and excited. He gave her a big hug and kiss, and the flowers.



"Did you see me, daddy, did you see…?" she asked, face glowing and beaming with happiness.



"You were absolutely beautiful, Rosebud…" he smiled.



She pulled away and ran to Draco, hugging him, then Harry too. "Thank you for coming, Uncle Harry, Uncle Draco… I\'m so happy you made it…"



"Wild Thestrals couldn\'t keep us away, kitten… you were the best dancer up there…"



"Oh, Uncle Harry; you always say that." She giggled but looked even more pleased.



"It\'s because it\'s true." Draco smiled.



"Could I learn to do that too, Daddy…?" angel asked.



"Who\'s she, Uncle Harry…?" Rosie asked, looking at the new girl.



"Rosie, this is Angel. She\'s my little girl…"



"Yours…? Really…?" She smiled. "Then you\'re my cousin!" Rosie reached for her without hesitation, hugging her warmly in welcome. "You\'re so lucky…! Uncle Harry and Uncle Draco are really great…!"



"I know…" Angel grinned, slipping her hand into Draco\'s.



"Oh dang it… daddy!" Rosie looked up at Ron. "I forgot the cookies I made… can we take them over to Uncle Draco\'s house later…?"



"As long as they say it\'s all right, love." He agreed, giving her a kiss on the cheek.



"You\'re always welcome." Draco said immediately.



"Where\'s mum…? She couldn\'t come…?" Rosie said, looking around for her mother.



"She came, love. I\'m sure she\'s around here somewhere…" Ron said, glancing around. The crowd had begun to thin as parents and their children filed out the doors. Hermione still stood beside the door. She looked at Harry and bowed her head, turning and slipping out.



"There she was… she just went outside Da…" Rosie pulled at Ron\'s hand. "Can I go give her a hug da…?"



"Sure… go ahead, rosebud…" he smiled softly.



"Hey Angel, why don\'t we go and speak with the teacher and see if they have classes available that you can join…?" Draco smiled then kissed Harry. "We\'ll see you outside…"



Harry nodded as he watched his husband leave. He turned his attention to his best mate, standing quietly watching his own daughter make her way through the crowd after her mother. "You gonna be okay, Ron…?" he asked softly.



Ron\'s smile faltered and he shrugged then looked down, nodding. "I… I have to be… For Rosie… she needs me…" he said softly.



"These next few weeks are going to be really tough on you…" Harry sighed. "Just go on as if you know nothing about all this…"



"I\'m tryin… but I don\'t even know what to say to her anymore…" Ron said sadly.



"I don\'t think that Angel was part of whatever is going on… it may be just what Hermione said… she was helping a friend. It was wrong of her, but I wouldn\'t give Angel up for anything…"



"I\'m glad you\'ve got her… she should have been with you a long time ago…"



"We\'ll get through this Ron…" Harry said, giving his old friend a hug.



"Yeah… thanks mate…" He said softly. "And I\'m sorry… I should have known, should have seen… somehow…"



"You had no control over any of it, Ron, and you\'re not to blame at all." Harry said firmly. "It\'s okay… go on. I\'ll see you and Rosie later tonight. I can\'t wait to taste those cookies…"



"I\'ll bring her by in about an hour…" he smiled faintly. "She made a mess out of the entire kitchen, making them…" his eye was caught by his daughter jumping up and down and waving at him from the doorway. "I think I\'m being called... I got to go… See you mate." He said.



"Take it easy, Ron." Harry said, turning to join Draco.



Ron moved to join his daughter, sweeping the child still in her dance costume up into his arms easily. "Ready to go, Rosie…?" he asked, glancing at Hermione, whose face was blotchy and cheeks damp from tears and weeping.



"Yes daddy… I really like Angel; is she really my cousin? Will she be taking dance classes with me…? That would be so much fun…!" she said eagerly.



"I think she might… I bet she has a great room at Harry\'s place. You can play a while with her tonight…"



"Oh! Oh Daddy can I stay the night there? Ple-e-e-e-ase…? I know Uncle Draco won\'t mind…"



"If it\'s all right with your mum and with them, I don\'t mind much. I\'ll just miss my Rosie tonight." He agreed, kissing her cheek.



"I don\'t care if she does, I… Ron… we really do need to talk. I need some time alone with you to talk…"



"You can stay with them, Rosie… but you need to be on your absolute best behavior, baby." Ron said, walking with his girl in his arms and his wife at his side. "Draco is going to need all the help my clever little girl can give him… he\'s expecting a baby and he will need to rest…"



"Draco\'s pregnant…?" Hermione repeated, a tone of relief in her voice. "Oh thank Merlin…" she whispered, fresh tears in her eyes. She was so relieved… but she would never get to see Harry\'s child. She was no longer welcome… "Please, Ron, when you go… tell him I said it\'s wonderful and I wish him every blessing in the world…"



Ron glanced at her, opening the car door. "Why don\'t you tell him yourself?" he asked, setting Rosie on her feet so she could clamber into the car.



"I\'m not coming… I don\'t think I should." She said, avoiding his gaze completely as she got in the car.



"Well… that\'s your choice, I guess…" he murmured, ensuring that Rosie was settled and secure before he sat down himself.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Harry laid Angel down on her bed, smiling down at the girl who had fallen asleep in his arms on the way home. "This has been quite an exciting day for her; she\'s all worn out…" he smiled.



Draco wrapped his arms about Harry, smiling in pure contentment. "We\'ve been blessed… I have never been happier than I am at this moment…"



Harry slipped his arms about his husband, smiling as well. "Yes. We finally have our family…"



Draco kissed him softly, and then smiled as he sighed. "Let me get your supper started…"



"Do you think Ron will be here for dinner…?"



"I hope he comes… he needs to get away. He looked so depressed… I wish there was something I could do to help him…" Draco said, a bit worried. "He\'s really not to blame for what the mudblood did…"



"She\'s not welcome here anymore. If she comes tonight I don\'t care what anyone says, I\'ll hex the bitch… I\'ve warned her. I\'m done with her from now on…" Harry said as he and Draco walked out of the bedroom to let Angel doze, strolling to the kitchen.



"I\'m sorry, love…" Draco said softly. "I know she was a friend to you for many years… but I have to admit I\'m glad. I never felt comfortable around her…"



"She won\'t be coming around." Harry assured.



Draco pulled out the fixings for supper. "We really should get around to telling father about the baby…"



"Yes, I know. I just don\'t want him to upset you…"



"We\'ll bring Angel; she\'ll soften him up for us." Draco chuckled softly.



"He hates me. I can just picture him being horrible to Angel… I don\'t want him to treat her badly, since she\'s my daughter and not your blood…"



"If he does that we\'ll just leave." Draco shrugged. "It\'s very simple… The moment he starts up, no matter what he starts in about, we kiss mother and we simply walk out the door. I don\'t need his approval anymore, Harry…" Draco gave his husband a warm smile. "I have you, and mother, and now Angel as well…"



"And don\'t forget our son." Harry smiled at him.



"Yes…" he smiled, his hand on his stomach for a long moment, giving his rounded tummy a gentle stroke. "I can easily do without father if I must…" he said as he began to prepare things. Harry moved to help but Draco shooed him off, enjoying the preparations. He was just putting the chicken into the oven when the doorbell rang.



"That\'ll be Ron… I\'ll get it." He said, rising. "Ron said Rosie made us cookies; got flour all over the place making them for us…"



Draco chuckled, remaining in the kitchen as Harry moved to the door, pulling it open. "Come on in R… oh." His voice drifted off, his mirth and good humor vanishing in a heartbeat. "Oh… Lucius... Good evening; we… we weren\'t expecting you…"



"Clearly not." Lucius drawled, making a striking figure in his long and rather ornate wizard\'s robes, white-blonde hair loose and flowing, standing casually with his hands resting on the silver snake\'s head of the cane, its silver tip upon the top step. "Well, Potter…? Are you going to invite me in or are you

going to leave me standing upon the top step like an unwelcome peddler…?" his tone dripped with sarcasm.



"Oh… sorry… Of course; come in…" he said, stepping back out of the doorway to allow the elder Malfoy into the entryway.



"Is my son at home…?" he asked aloofly, glancing about with a look of slight distaste.



"Yes, of course… he\'s in the kitchen…" he said softly, glancing back up the hallway. He hoped that Angel would sleep at least until dinner was finished…"



"Would you like a beer…?" Draco asked, coming out of the kitchen, drying his hands on a towel. He halted, seeing that the guest was not Ron at all, but his very imposing father. "Oh… Father… I… Welcome to our home…" he said, rather startled.



"No, Draco, I do not believe that I will have any… what is it you said…? \'Beer…?\' Sounds dreadfully muggle…" He said sourly, moving into the room gracefully. His eyes scanned Draco out of habit to judge his general health and he stopped dead, his vision resting upon the clearly rounded belly. "Draco…" he whispered, his eyes wide.



Draco\'s hand stole over his stomach in an unconsciously protective gesture. "I… I was going to tell you, father…" he said softly.



"You\'re… you\'re with child…?" he asked quietly, and Draco bit his lip, nodding affirmative. Harry moved to his husband\'s side, giving him comfort with his simple presence.



"So large… how far? When are you due?" Lucius asked, only giving Harry a brief yet dismissive glance as he strode to his son, his face revealing only concern. The last three pregnancies had been tragic, almost destroying his son and now he was pregnant again, what were these fools thinking?! "Why are you standing? Sit down, sit down this minute, you shouldn\'t be on your feet…!" he glared at Harry

with the last words.



"But I\'m fine, father…" Draco protested as his father took him by the arm, one hand on his back, guiding him to the most cushioned chair he saw in the room."Nonsense! You should be sitting back and having your every need tended to…! Whatever were you doing in the kitchen of all places…?"



"Cooking dinner…"



He glared at Harry. "You make MY SON cook your DINNERS…?!" he asked in disbelief.



"No, I…" Harry began.



"Are you calling my son a liar?!" Lucius answered in an offended tone.



Harry wasn\'t getting anywhere… "No…!"



"Stop it father!" Draco snapped and Lucius fell silent, looking at his son with more than a bit of surprise. "I was cooking US dinner because I ENJOY cooking dinner!" He said, and this time it was the son glaring at the father. "Don\'t accuse Harry of things when you don\'t know what\'s going on…!"



Lucius took a deep breath and slowly released it, but did not move from Draco\'s side, keeping himself firmly between Draco and his husband. "All right; all right. Perhaps I… overreacted…"



"Not an apology, but it will do for now." Draco grumbled, looking apologetically past his father at Harry, who shrugged in acceptance. He was, after all, used to verbal abuse from Draco\'s father.



"How far are you son…? Why didn\'t you TELL me…?" he asked softly, forcing himself to ignore the presence of the person behind him, focusing only on his son.



"I\'ve reached four and a half months." He answered, relaxing a bit.



"And who is the father? Did you return to that clinic…? Potter, after all, was unable to get you with child for so many years…"



"The father IS Harry." Draco said firmly, cutting off the spew of hateful chatter coming from his father.



"Potter…? You\'re certain…?"



"Absolutely certain, father. Beyond a shadow of a doubt. There has been no other, and no, I did not return to that clinic." Draco said, giving his father a frown, pushing up to his feet again. "Harry is the father of our baby…"



"I see… and you. You\'re healthy…? No complications, no problems…?" Lucius was not going to be put off that easily; he didn\'t care to discuss Harry at this point.



"I\'m in better health than I\'ve ever been, according to my mediwizard. The baby is fine, his magic is strong, and he\'s developing exactly as expected…"



"He…? It\'s a boy…?" Lucius looked as if he was the one who now needed to sit down. "A boy… you\'re giving me a grandson…" he murmured, gazing at his son with undisguised pleasure. "This is such wonderful news… you should be sitting down, taking it easy, taking care of my grandson, Draco, not working like a lowly house servant…"



"I told you father, I enjoy cooking. I do it all the time, for myself and for Harry, and for our guests we often have over for dinner… I\'m NOT helpless, father." Draco gave his father a smirk.



Lucius opened his mouth to object, and then sighed, biting back what he wanted to say. This was all the more reason, in his mind, to get Draco to come home and away from this place, where he would be properly cared for during this most delicate time… Damn Severus, anyway… He should have told him…! Extenuating circumstances indeed…!



"Would you like something to drink, Lucius?" Harry offered.



"Please; yes. Anything but that horrible sounding \'beer\' concoction…" he accepted, gazing at Draco as he moved to take a seat.



Harry smirked and moved to the bar, pulling down a small round clay jar and pouring a shot of his special whiskey.



"Your mother would have come, Draco, but she is… well, a bit preoccupied at the moment…" he said as vaguely as possible.



"Can I get you something too, Dray?" Harry asked. "Tea, perhaps…?"



"I think I\'d rather have juice, if you don\'t mind… pineapple juice sounds heavenly…"



"Can I have some too, papa…?" A soft voice asked from the end of the hall. Angel stood there, rubbing her eyes, drowsy but up for the evening.



"Of course, Angel…" Harry paused to hand Lucius his whiskey, and then he bustled off to the kitchen to get the juice for them both. Angel moved to Draco, leaning sleepily against him to give him a hug.



Draco found himself apprehensively waiting for his father to explode… to sneer, to scowl, to… do SOMETHING….!



Lucius\' face was stony and expressionless as he gazed at the sleepy eyed girl, who turned, still leaning against Draco, comfortable with his arm resting across her little chest. She tilted her head to the side and gazed back at him with no fear in her eyes or her posture. She turned again and looked up at Draco. "He looks a lot like you, Papa… is that man my Nonno…?" she asked softly. Lucius was rather surprised to hear a child use such an endearment; one did not often hear the Italian word for grandfather in England.



Harry moved over, setting one glass of juice on the table beside and handing the other to Dray. "He\'s not, really, Angel…" he started.



"And why in Merlin\'s name would you tell the child that, Potter?" Lucius asked in a rather bland tone.



Harry looked at him with a bit of surprise. "Well… you… I thought you wouldn\'t want…"



Lucius interrupted him with a quick question. "Are you not married to my one and only son?"



"Happily." He agreed.



"Then by marriage right, I am this child\'s Nonno." He answered, turning his attention to the child standing beside his son. "Che è il suo nome, poco un?" (What is your name, little one?) He asked the child in Italian to see if she truly understood any of the language. That would be rather impressive, especially for a child raised by muggle creatures…



"Mi chiamo Angel, Nonno…" (My name is Angel, Grandfather) she answered, taking

up her juice and sipping it.



"Ah… Angel." He sat back, sipping his drink.



Both Harry and Draco paused, watching the two. This was not how they had expected Lucius to behave toward the girl. It was fantastic that he wasn\'t being a grouchy old bastard, but it was rather disconcerting…



Lucius found to his surprise that the glass of whiskey he had been given was empty already. "Potter; a bit more of this if you don\'t mind…"



Harry moved to get him a refill, taking his cup. Angel put her glass down, taking a hesitant step toward him. "Nonno… my mama told me that someday I would meet her papa but I never did… and I wanted and wanted to have a Nonno and a Nona like all the other kids in day care but I never had one… are you really and truly my Nonno…?" she asked him in a hopeful voice, gazing at him in the chair. Lucius was silent a long moment, then he reached out to draw the dark-haired little girl to his side. "I have always wanted a granddaughter to call my own… I am your Nonno, child. Let no one ever tell you differently. Lei è mia propria piccola nipote. (You are my own little granddaughter.)" He told her in a quiet tone that was so tender and loving that Harry never would have believed the man capable of speaking so.



Angel gave a happy cry and threw her little arms around her grandfather, hugging him tightly with childish abandon."I always wanted a Nonno…!"



"You must come visit my home soon with your papa, little Angel. Your Nona will simply adore you…" he smiled softly at her.



"I get a Nona too?" her eyes sparkled.



"Yes, a Nona too." He chuckled softly. "We will of course go riding…"



"On a pony…? A real pony…?"



"Of course a real pony, little one… I have one in the stable who is just your size…"



"But… but Nonno, I don\'t know how to ride a pony…"



"Then we must give you lessons, mustn\'t we?"



"You\'ll teach me, Nonno…?" she gazed up at him, her green eyes sparkling brightly.



"Of course I will little one." He answered in a tone of easy confidence.



She laughed and hugged him once more. "Thank you, Poppy, thank you…!"



Lucius accepted the drink from Harry, eyeing him with a slight frown. "And how long were you going to hid this little angel from her Nonno, eh, Potter…?" he asked in a tone conveying disapproval.



"We just received custody of her today…" Harry answered, moving over to stand beside Draco once more. "Before that, we couldn\'t just go and take her for visits… but she\'s ours now, and here to stay."



"As it should be… now, then; although I do agree that she is an angelic little child, is that a proper name for a Malfoy…?" Lucius asked.



"She is a Malfoy-Potter, father; not only a Malfoy. Her name suits her." Draco answered.



"You don\'t like my name, Poppy…?" Angel asked softly, gazing at him, a shadow of past hurt in her eyes.



Lucius gazed at her, a frown coming to his face. "I am not the first to say your name did not suit…?"



"Uh-uh… my last foster father wanted to change my name to Annie or something… he said I wasn\'t good enough to be an angel. I tried to be good for him, I really did Nonno, but… but I couldn\'t keep everything from happening when I was afraid…" she whispered. "I don\'t care what you call me… I just don\'t want to lose my family…"



"Forgive me for even saying it, my little one. I adore your name and I do think it suits you as a Potter-Malfoy." He said, purposefully putting the Malfoy title in the place of power in her name. "What was this… CREATURE\'s name, my little one…?" he asked in a tone that Draco recognized as calculating, his eyes hard.



"Mister Watson…" she said in a quiet, sober tone, looking sad. "He was two fosters ago… he gave me back to the orphanage because he said I couldn\'t ever be his little girl…"



"You have us now, Angel. You never have to see that man again." Harry said soothingly.



"Indeed you do." Lucius sipped the whiskey, gazing at the girl, whose mood had lightened at her father\'s words. "…and this Watson… he is a muggle, is he not…?"



"What\'s a muggle?"



"One who is not magical."



"I guess so…"



"I see… Well, I will take care of matters." He smiled reassuringly.



"Now father, you mustn\'t…" Draco began.



Lucius waved him to silence; that wasn\'t to be discussed in front of the child. He ran his fingers through her tousled dark curls. "You do look so like James…" he said in a soft, fond voice. "You have his sweet smile and his hair as well…"



"Who\'s James, Nonno…?" she asked, smiling up at him once more.



"He was your father\'s father." He answered, glancing at Harry.



"He\'s in heaven too, isn\'t he?" She asked.



Lucius\' expression blanked again. "Yes, child; he is in heaven." He answered, taking another drink of the curious whiskey Harry had given him. Angel hugged him again, sure he needed to be hugged but not sure why.



Harry looked almost startled as the doorbell rang again, looking round at the door. "Oh… that must be Ron. No, Dray, you stay there. I\'ll get it…" he said, pausing to give Draco a kiss before he moved to answer the door.



Ron stood at the door dressed in a long sleeved white shirt and slacks. Rosie was at his side, clearly excited, her cheeks flushed as she held onto Ron\'s hand with one hand, a box in her other hand. "Uncle Harry! Uncle Harry can I stay over please, please, please, please, please…?!"



Harry laughed, stepping back to let them in. "Well I suppose you may, if you really want to…" he said teasingly.



Rosie squealed happily and ran to Harry, hugging him tight.



Ron chuckled fondly. "She\'s been asking all evening…"



"She is always welcome here, Ron…" Harry assured as they moved into the living room. "Rosie, you remember Angel…"



"Yes, she\'s my cousin…!" she beamed at Harry, and then she noticed Lucius Malfoy. She gave a little curtsy to him as her father had taught her to do when greeting an elder wizard. "Hello, Mr. Draco\'s Daddy, sir…" she said in as formal a tone as a six year old could muster.



"Good evening, young lady." Lucius answered, eyeing the girl appraisingly. "I find it quite heartening that some of the wizards of your generation, Draco, have seen fit to teach their children proper manners…" he mused, feeling very mellowed at the moment.



"Mother would never forgive me if I raised a child with no manners. And mum isn\'t one I\'d care to cross." Ron grinned faintly.



"Honestly, neither would I…" Lucius smirked back at him, saluting him with the glass.



"Can we go play in my room, daddy…?" Angel asked, straightening. "I want to show Rosie all my new toys…"



"Of course, go on, both of you." Harry smiled. The two girls took each other\'s hands and hurried off down the hall, chattering happily to one another.