I think I've been gone far too long. Sorry about that. (And I'm sorry I left you alone, Abs! :tackle So, I shall post DOUBLE! (The first is Abi's and the second is mine.)


Alicia sat on the edge of Ron’s bed, twisting the edge of the blanket in her fingers while Fred patted her shoulder gently. The doors opened and Jamie moved straight to his cousin’s side, his face pinched with worry. Fred glanced at Emily, Draco, and Hermione quickly before his eyes were drawn back to Ron.

“Not how we imagined handing over our presents,” George muttered, flinging an arm round Jamie’s shoulders.

“I warned you the Hogsmeade trip was cancelled,” Alicia mumbled, her gaze on Jamie.

“We wanted to look at buying a shop,” Fred said defensively. Alicia shrugged, batting his hand away from her shoulder.

“Thank god you saw the drink was poisoned,” George said, nodding to her.

“I didn’t see it quick enough though, did I? Look at Ron.” She made a sad little gesture with her hand, now looking at the floor.

“We’ve told you, this isn’t your fault,” Fred said while George wrapped his arm round her waist, pulling her to her feet. “Harry saved Ron with that Bezoar, and you saved Harry by knocking that drink out his hand.” Alicia replied with a shrug, twisting away from George.

“Alicia?” Emily came to stand beside her, linking her fingers with hers. “The twins are right… Look at the positive side of it- Ron’s alive, Harry’s alive, Slughorn’s alive, and you’re alive.” She bumped her with her shoulder, making Alicia smile a little. “If you’d not had your vision, you’d all be dead right now, still in that office.”

“Fine… But stop calling me a hero,” Alicia said, scowling at the twins, who crossed their hearts. “Oh, Emily’ll be the one laughing when I get hormonal, because I would bind you to my side permanently,” she added, making the others laugh.

“Do we want to know?” George said, swapping a horrified look with his twin.

“I don’t think we do,” Fred replied, glancing from his cousin to the purple haired girl beside him.

“I forgot, you don’t know, do you?” Jamie said suddenly, his cheeks turning pink.

“Didn’t we just say we didn’t want to know?” the twins said together, making Emily chuckle.

“Oh, okay then… You don’t care that you’re going to have a second cousin, then?” Alicia said innocently, her hair flashing scarlet.

“Okay, first, that’s good, right?” Fred said, frowning.

“Why would it be bad?” Jamie said sharply, glaring. Alicia laughed and grabbed his arm, tugging him into a chair.

“A little person who’s the perfect mix of Jamie and me is kinda scary, isn’t it?” She giggled.

“Exactly, and second- I didn’t need the mental images, thanks,” Fred continued, pretending to be sick.

“Oh, behave,” Jamie spat, rolling his eyes as Draco and Emily laughed.

“Are you going to tell what it is?” Draco said as he sobered up, glancing at the couple.

“Not yet… We’ll wait and let you find out the natural way, I think,” Alicia said, smirking. “It’s only fair- you know about yours,” she added, grinning at his frown. After that, the conversation moved towards the attack.



After they all discussed the attack, who the poison was meant for, and who sent it, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley arrived. Madame Pomfrey kept reminding them about the amount of visitors allowed at a time, and Emily and Draco took the hint, along with Harry and Hermione, and left the Hospital Wing.

Harry and Hermione headed off for Gryffindor Tower, while Emily and Draco went to their rooms.

“Ali already told you the sex, didn’t she?” Emily asked immediately, her curiosity eating up at her.

Draco smirked as he removed his shoes and climbed into their bed. “Why do you want to know?”

“Why don’t you want me to know?” she challenged, changing into a pair of cotton shorts and a dark purple halter-top.

“Because I’m not allowed to tell you,” he told her smartly and she grimaced at him.

“Fine,” she scoffed. “I really didn’t want to know anyway,” she said as she sniffled mockingly.

“I promised; It’s not like I enjoy keeping things from you, you know,” he said as he kissed her lips.

“I thought that now that we’re married, we’re not supposed to keep secrets from each other,” Emily pouted and he chuckled.

“Mm, but we’re not a normal married couple, now, are we? Besides, you’ll find out soon enough, love. Now, subject change, what should our baby’s middle name be?” he asked. He grabbed her arm and pulled her into bed, kissing down her jaw and neck, slowly making his way to her stomach.

He lifted the material from her belly and laid his ear right over her bellybutton, like he’d done on many other occasions as of late.

“Let’s start with girl,” he added absentmindedly.

“Since you chose girl first, does that mean it’s a girl?” she asked with narrowed eyes.

“I’d be happy with any sex. So, no it does not mean it’s a girl. And, no, that does not mean it’s a boy either,” he added when she opened her mouth to interrupt. “It just means I’m happy we’re having a baby and I’d like to give it a full name,” he told her lovingly as he kissed her stomach.

“Well,” Emily hesitated. Draco stared at her with a raised eyebrow and she bit her lip.

“Spit it out then, what did you have in mind?”

“How about Aria Aleeza?” Emily whispered. “It means joy,” she added.

“I like it,” he said thoughtfully as he nodded. “Aria Aleeza Malfoy,” he said while littering kisses all over her stomach. Emily beamed at him as her fingers played with the hair at the nape of his neck.

“And a boy?” she asked.

“Hmm, how about Sirius…Rigel? Sirius Rigel Malfoy?” Draco asked, his brow furrowed in thought.

“I love that! It’s a star, too, right?” Draco nodded in confirmation, his lips twitching upwards slightly. Emily narrowed her eyes, but he avoided them as he went back to listening to her stomach.

“Who do you think that poison was meant for?” asked Draco.

“I don’t know, but I think Hermione’s right—it wasn’t meant for Ron and that necklace wasn’t meant for Katie. Who do you think it’s for?”

“I don’t know…"

"Do you think Lucius is trying to get to us?” she asked hesitantly.

He looked up at her sharply before sliding up so that his entire body covered hers. He framed her face with his hands, staring into her eyes intently.

“No, I don’t think it’s Lucius. Lucius would know what he’s doing. He wouldn’t make amateur mistakes. If that poison or necklace was meant for us, it would have gotten to us. Besides if the necklace was for us, then why didn’t Katie just turn around and hand it to one of us? No, I think it was meant for someone else. Someone else that somebody really wants dead. Almost as if it were a mission of sorts…to get inducted into something,” he muttered the last part, his brow crinkling in concentration.

“You can’t honestly think what I think you’re thinking,” she said.

“I bet you can’t say that five times fast,” Draco smirked and she smacked his shoulder. “Fine, fine,” he shrugged. “I don’t know for sure who it is, but I do have my suspicions.”

“What’s going to happen, Draco?” Emily whispered.

“What do you mean?”

“When it gets out that we’re pregnant. When Lucius and Bellatrix find out that we’re pregnant.” Emily’s voice cracked.

“We’ll deal with it when it comes,” he soothed. “I won’t let anything happen to you; to either of you."

*

“We’re still going to see Madam Pomfrey before the Quidditch match, right?” Draco asked as he moved around their room, in search of his one pair of red socks.

“Yeah,” Emily mumbled with another yawn as she pulled on her flat-footed, golden shoes. She was wearing blue jeans with a red and gold Weasley Jumper from Molly.

Draco wrapped a Gryffindor scarf around her neck and kissed her chastely as he searched for his Slytherin scarf. The only thing he wore in spirit of the Gryffindor match were the red socks, which he made sure were completely covered and hidden from others.

“Let’s go before we’re late for the match,” he told her as he stuffed his wand in his back pocket. Emily nodded absentmindedly as they hurried down their stairs, but Emily halted to a stop and ran back up the stairs and into their bathroom, emptying the contents of her stomach into the toilet.

“Remind me to ask Madam Pomfrey for that potion that helps with morning sickness,” Emily rasped as she washed her mouth out in the sink and rubbed her protruding belly. She was about six months along, and she was about to learn the sex of their baby, and more importantly, of who won the bet with Draco. He refused to give her a clue, which she was thankful for because she wanted to wait until it was natural to find out, not because her sister was a psychic.

“You sure you’re okay to go the match?” Draco asked in concern as he pushed the hair out of her face and laid a hand on her stomach. He couldn’t think of anyone more beautiful in that moment than her, round with his child.

“Yep, peachy keen, let’s go,” Emily reassured him as she grabbed his hand and they went downstairs for the second time.

Alicia and Jamie were waiting for them on the couch, standing when Emily and Draco touched ground.

“Ready?” Alicia asked with a grin, which Draco met with one of his own.

“Lead the way,” Emily answered as she grabbed a coat and draped it over her arm.

This was the first weekend since her pregnancy started to show that she was actually going out. It was easy to hide the baby bump during classes and at meals because of her robes, plus a small concealment charm, but when wearing normal clothes, it was relatively hard to hide and the charms are a pain to keep up, so most weekends she stayed in her rooms.

“So, shall we put a little more into this ‘bet’?” Draco asked with a smirk.

“No way! You already know the sex; that’d be cheating!” Emily argued as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“Loser makes breakfast tomorrow?” he prompted, ignoring her outburst.

“No.”

Emily waved to Ron and Harry as she made her way to one of the beds at the far end of the room. Alicia and Jamie stopped at Ron’s bed for a minute to talk as Emily got comfortable in her bed, her hands nervously picking at the invisible lint on the bed sheets.

“Why are you nervous?” Draco asked with an affectionate smile.

“Reflex,” Emily shrugged as Madame Pomfrey made her way over.

“Hello, dears, we’re waiting for two others to arrive, and then we’ll get on with it,” she announced before returning to her office.

“Who are we waiting on? Do you know?” she asked, confused.

“Not a clue,” said Draco.

“Alicia!” Emily called out suddenly, causing Draco to jump in surprise.

“I’m not telling you, so don’t ask. It’s meant to be a surprise!” she answered the unspoken question. Emily grumbled to herself as the others chuckled.

“We’re not too late, are we?” Remus shouted as he burst through the door, out of breath and hair windswept.

“Remus! What are you doing here? Tonks!” Emily grinned while Remus went to her side, Tonks following closely.

“You honestly think I’d miss the appointment where I find out what sex my grandbaby is going to be?” he grinned.

“And my second-cousin?” Tonks added.

Alicia, Jamie, and Harry ambled over to Emily’s bed.

"You know, that's a bit... weird when you think about it. All the inbreeding. I mean, Draco and I are technically-" said Emily.

"It's best not to think too long on it," Draco interrupted.

"Besides, it's normal in the Wizarding World, especially among purebloods," Tonks shrugged.

"That's... That's messed up." Harry's face scrunched up in disgust.

Before anyone could say anything more on the matter, Pomfrey was back. “Ready to find out?” she asked. She poured a potion into a small cup and handed it to Emily.

“What will it do?” Emily asked curiously.

“About a minute after taking it, your stomach will either glow pink for a girl or blue for a boy; it’s quite simple,” Madame Pomfrey explained.

Emily chewed on her bottom lip as she took the proffered potion and looked over at Draco. He smiled encouragingly, one hand on her stomach and the other smoothing back her curls. She downed the drink in one, her gaze never wavering from his face. After about thirty seconds, Remus clamped his hand over her left one, which she hadn’t realized had been tapping impatiently against the bed.

“I hate waiting,” Emily muttered as her gaze shifted to her belly. It still remained glow-less for another twenty-five seconds, before it finally took on an orange like aura around her clothed stomach. The orange shifted to green before finally settling on a bright pink.

“Pink,” Emily breathed, still staring at her stomach even after the glow faded.

“A girl!” Remus crowed as he wrapped Emily in a one-armed hug and kissed her cheek.

Emily slowly sat up from the bed, in a sort of daze as she swung her feet over the side.

“Emily?” Draco asked worriedly as he cupped her face. “Are you okay?”

Her eyes lifted to his, immediately filling with tears, and his eyes widened quickly.

“What’s wr—” he began before being squeezed to the point of no breathing by his lunging wife. Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck, her legs lifting to tangle around his waist as she cried into his neck. Her baby bump made it a bit more difficult, but they somehow managed the awkward hug.

And before he had time to even register what had just transpired, she started kissing his neck and jaw before claiming his lips in a desperate, intense, happy ritual that was as old as time.

They heard their family and friends laughing in the background, one even coughing slightly in hopes of breaking it up. But they paid them no mind as Draco’s fingers curled around her red locks and he nipped at her bottom lip.

“A girl,” she whispered between kisses with a little sigh as one of her hands moved to his face to trace his jaw line and cheek bone.

“Mm, I win,” he whispered in response. She giggled lightly before kissing him again chastely.

“I love you, you know,” she mumbled as she rested her forehead against his.

“Mm, I’d hope so, since you’re my wife and all, and pregnant with my daughter,” he whispered.

“Aria,” she breathed, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

“Aria,” he echoed with a grin as he gently let her feet connect with the floor before kneeling in front of her and pushing her sweater up and over her bump. He littered kisses along her skin, whispering Aria repeatedly as Emily’s hand fingered through his platinum hair.

“Ahem! Care to spread the joy?” Remus asked impatiently, though his eyes were twinkling. Draco stood from his position on the floor, his cheeks a light pink color as Emily grinned at the other occupants of the room.

Remus engulfed her in a hug, kissing the top of her head as he questioned, “Aria?”

Emily nodded happily as she pulled back from him. “We’re naming her Aria,” she announced as she glanced back at Draco. He grinned before kissing her chastely on the cheek while he and Remus shared one of their ‘man hugs’.

“Merlin, you have no idea how much I’ve been dying to tell you,” he confessed.

“Serves you right for being impatient.”

*

“C’mon, we’re late as it is! Everyone else has gone down to the match and I’m perfectly fine, Draco,” Emily whined.

“You’re sure?” he asked uncertainly with one hand on her cheek and one on her stomach.

“Draco Malfoy, you will be the one that isn’t okay if you ask me that one more time,” she threatened.

“All right, let’s go… If you’re su—” he started before cutting off immediately when Emily took out her wand and raised her eyebrow challengingly. Draco swallowed his words before flying across the room and opening the door for her.

She smirked as she crossed the threshold and waited for him to follow into the hallway.

Draco grabbed her hand in his and kissed her temple as they walked through the deserted castle on their way to the Quidditch Pitch.

She leaned into his side and closed her eyes with a sleepy smile. Draco tensed suddenly and she frowned as she peeled her eyes open to look at him curiously.

“What’s the—” she started before a movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. “Oh,” she muttered as a hand went protectively to her pregnancy bump.

“Well, well, well,” Blaise cackled and the two smaller girls that flanked him grimaced more than they had been doing before.

Draco positioned himself to be slightly in front of Emily as her hand clutched tightly to his shirt, begging him to not do anything rash.

“What do you want, Zabini?” Draco asked loudly. Blaise studied him before his gaze turned to Emily, sliding down her body before his eyes landed on her stomach. They widened an infinite amount and he smirked.

“Oh, Lucius will love this,” Blaise said sarcastically.

“Lucius has nothing to do with this, nor do you,” Draco spat. “Now if you’ll excuse us…” Draco put a warm hand on Emily’s lower back, to lead her away from the scene, but Blaise’s next words caused him pause.

“Do you really think he’d allow that to take his name? My guess would be a no, so I don’t think he’ll have any problem with me…doing…this,” he said triumphantly as he sent a curse at Emily.

Draco pushed her out of the way, causing her to trip over her feet and fall on her side. At the same moment, Draco was thrown backwards by an invisible force and Emily called out to him, wishing immediately after that she had kept quiet, because it caused Blaise and the two little girls to turn their attention to her. She whimpered when she saw that her wand had dropped somewhere within the fall and now was on the other side of the hallway, out of her reach.

Blaise walked up to her slowly before bending down to her level. “And he definitely won’t derive me of doing this,” he whispered before he stood back up and braced himself to kick her in the gut, where Aria was currently kicking in annoyance at being awoken so harshly.

Emily closed her eyes and curled her body into a ball, trying to protect her stomach with her arms and knees.

She cringed through the anxiety of waiting for his kick, but after a girly scream and a thump, accompanied without a kick to her body, she peeked one eye open, and started crying at the sight of Jamie squatting down next her, reaching out a hand, and asking if she was all right.

She glanced around and saw that Blaise and the two girls were nowhere in sight, having fled at being outnumbered. Alicia was enervating Draco and helping him stand. Emily let out a shuddering breath as Jamie helped her up from the ground and started firing off questions about what happened.

Emily shook her head and nodded at the appropriate times as Jamie and Alicia led her and Draco back to the Infirmary. Emily looked to Draco to make sure he was okay, but he stared determinedly at the floor, both hands deep in his pocket. Emily’s eyes filled with tears as she realized that he was ignoring her.

Merlin, I hate hormones, she thought as she swiped at her tears.

Emily barely listened to the Healer as she fussed over her body while she performed diagnostic spells and administered the correct potions to help with her fall and her anxiety. She just stared at her husband as he looked at his lap.

Madame Pomfrey demanded that she be put on bed rest for the remainder of the weekend, and so after Jamie and Alicia helped her get settled back into her bedroom, she had to convince them repeatedly that she’d be fine and they should return to the Quidditch Pitch.

When they had finally left, Emily wandered down the stairs and into their Common Room in search of Draco. He was sipping at a smuggled-in-Firewhiskey as he stared moodily at the wall.

“Are you—are you mad at me?” Emily whispered as she stood at the other end of the couch. He shook his head without saying a word and she sat down timidly.

“You haven’t so much as looked at me, much less talked to me, Draco. I don’t understand what I did wrong.” Her voice cracked at the end and she berated herself for her stupid emotions.

“It’s not you… It’s me,” was his answer. Any other circumstance and she probably would have laughed at the Muggle cliché, but right now she felt like bawling.

“Is it—is it what he said? Did you change your mind?” she whispered.

“No, Emily, it isn’t what he said. It’s what I did,” he snapped and her eyes widened in understanding. She sighed in relief as she crawled down the length of the couch and sat right next to him. He buried his face in his hands as her hand gently squeezed his thigh.

“You didn’t hurt me, Draco, or Aria,” she said softly.

“Don’t lie. I pushed you!” He quickly pushed her hand off and jumped up, pacing.

“To protect me! Draco, if you hadn’t done that, Madame Pomfrey said we could have lost her!” she cried.

“You’re on bed rest because of what I did, Emily! Tell me that’s not my fault.”

“I’m on bed rest because of Zabini, not you. Please hear me when I tell you this, Draco. I love you more than anything. And this is anything but your fault. Please don’t push us away,” she whispered, and at that, he looked at her. His eyes shone with a look she hadn’t seen on him before and before she knew what was happening, he attacked her.

He rained kisses all over her face and neck and she laughed at the absurdity of what they’d been through within the past two hours.

“Merlin, I love you! I’m so sorry, Ems. I didn’t mean to,” he whispered as he moved to kiss her stomach, too.

“Nonsense, nothing to be sorry for,” she said.

“He knows now,” Draco whispered as he kissed her forehead and pulled her into his lap.

She snuggled up to him and yawned. “We’ll deal with it when it comes,” she echoed.