After birth: An Interlude

The last twelve hours had been taxing and Angelina Malfoy's (nee Johnson, ere Weasley) body was more exhausted than it had been in a very long time. The reason for her exhaustion, a baby boy, lay swaddled in her arms, fast asleep after his first feeding. MidWitch Hess checked his lungs for the third time and then left the room to wait in the foyer for Draco, who had taken Thuban and B.J. to the Zabinis' for the weekend. Angelina leaned back in the king-sized bed, her nightgown-clad body sinking into the plush pillows and blankets, her eyes heavy lidded.

The sound of a door opening pulled her from her stupor. She cracked open her eyes as her husband, tall, angular, and blond, stepped into the room, followed by the MidWitch, who was finishing her assessment of the newest Malfoy. "His reflexes are strong, some of the strongest I've seen since the War."

Draco nodded his head aloofly and the witch nervously excused herself, stating that she'd return in eight hours to check on mother and child. Turning, Draco gave Angelina a slight smile, before walking to the bed, sitting down beside her and kissing her forehead. He then moved his hand to the blanket covering his son's caramel-coloured face, gazing at him and stroking his mop of curly brown hair.

"Are you sure you weren't shagging Blaise," he asked.

Angelina looked at her husband in mock disbelief, noting the smirk on his face. "Have you seen B.J.? Surely you didn't think our son would look different?"

Draco looked down at the baby again before lifting his eyes to meet hers. "Look at Thuban. It's not like I don't have strong genes."

"Well, in the battle for dominance, my genes won." Angelina studied her son's face. "Look, he has your nose. B.J. didn't start to show Weasley features until he lost his baby fat."

"Great," Draco mused, "people will be whispering until he's three."

Angelina sighed and leaned further back into the bed. "Agh! Come off it, Draco. I'm tired."

"Aye, Lina. You're beautiful. I'm proud of you. You were amazing today."

She beamed, basking in his compliment, since she hadn't freshened up besides a quick Scourgify spell. It has taken all of her energy just to put on a nightgown. "I gave birth at St. Mungo's in the middle of a war, with no Potions for pain because they were only for battle victims. Giving birth at home with two MidWitches and Potions at my beck and call is nothing."

"It's more than nothing. It's our son."

Angelina chuckled. "So you're claiming him now?"

"What kind of shite question is that," Draco growled, his face tight. Angelina unconsciously flinched, stunned by his tone of voice. She'd heard him use that tone almost daily in his business dealings, but rarely, if ever, with her or the boys. He noticed her reaction and his face instantly relaxed. He took her right hand and brought it to his lips. This is how he apologizes, she reminded herself, enjoying his warm touch. They sat silently for a moment, both of them focused on their sleeping child.

"D," she started, using her pet name for him to show her acceptance of his apology, "are you alright with Maximillian officially being the Johnson heir?" She nodded towards their son.

"Of course," he replied. "We can't have an old pureblood line--even a Jamaican one--die for want of an heir. We already have a son to carry on the Malfoy name. I've already owled our solicitor to draw up the papers. Besides, Maximus looks more like you."

"Maximus? Hmm, we'll discuss later. As long as he's Max at home..." A deep yawn cut off the rest of her sentence and she covered her mouth.

"He will be."

As if on cue, Max opened his eyes and looked straight into his father's. Angelina watched pride and ego wash over her husband's face as he spoke to his son. "Hello, Max." Draco brushed his thumb against Max's right hand and the boy wrapped his fingers--all five, so perfect--in a fist around the thumb, eyes still focused on his father.

Watching Draco with Max, a wave of jealousy caught Angelina by surprise. She wondered if he had done the same thing when Thuban was born. Had he kissed Ginny on the forehead and told her that she was beautiful? Did he wish that the redhead was still alive and laying here, having given birth to his son, instead of her? She prided herself on rarely comparing herself to her husband's first love, but her feelings overwhelmed her. Maybe it was the extra hormones, but she needed to know. "D, do you wish Max had red hair? Or pink hair like Bill and Fleur's sons?"

Draco broke his gaze with Max long enough to look her straight in the eyes, brows furrowed. "Angelina, I wanted our son to look like us." His eyes showed no doubt, which allayed her fears. "You don't want him to have freckles like B.J., do you?"

She knew he was talking about Fred, a man she doubted Draco had ever been jealous of. She whispered, "Never." And she didn't. Fred was her past, even though she had wished for a very long time that he wasn't. But she had put those thoughts away two years ago when she admitted to herself that she loved Draco. For better or worse, he was her present and future.

She leaned against him as Max closed his eyes and fell asleep. The tot--so tiny, only six pounds--definitely had the right idea. "I love you, Draco." She was content. True, both of them had children from previous marriages, but Max made the blended Johnson-Malfoy family complete.

As she drifted off the sleep, she heard him whisper, "Me too." That was as close as she was going to get to I love you from him. Indeed, this was his standard response since they started their courtship nearly three years before. But he showed his love and respect for her in unspoken ways: he trusted her with his money and, more importantly, his son, told her she was beautiful at least once a day (or so it seemed), made love to her like she was a goddess, sought her counsel in his business affairs, took care of her child with another man (a Weasley, no less). Those things meant more to her than three words ever could. Someday she might want to hear the words. But for now, between his actions and their son, she had more than enough proof.

Birth Announcement in The Daily Prophet, 9/30/08 edition:

Maximillian Cassius Johnson-Malfoy

Born to Draco Black Malfoy & Angelina Marie Malfoy (nee Johnson)

September 12, 2008, 3:38pm, London, England

Siblings: William-Jude Johnson Weasley, Thuban Severus Malfoy