Chapter Text
Narcissa Malfoy never broke a promise. Always careful to keep her end of the bargain in any agreement she found herself in, no matter how small the deal might be. So, when her only son had made her promise that this time, just this time, she would be the one to take him home from school instead of a nanny or one of the elves that served at the Manor, she saw no alternative but to accept the deal she had made with the little lord.
She apparated directly from Wiltshire to London, having landed in front of a large combined set of three victorian houses.
The exterior of the building was immaculate. The Old London Victorian houses were of intricate detailing, with large ostentatious bay windows and an expensive woodwork that adorned both the entrance door and the windows. The terracotta tiles gave a much serious tone to the old building and, to Narcissa's delight, a large front yard graces the school, ridding it a little from all the gray and brown tones used in the big city. Tall chimneys punctuated the skyline, adding to the house's imposing presence.
The Preschool for Magical Children was bustling with life. Giggles could be heard from the corridors, rich laughter of the stubborn carefree children who didn’t take orders well as warning voices from teachers followed them all around.
While Narcissa absolutely adored the energy a child would bring to one's life, she did not mind having only one son in her life. The witch imagined that she was pretty lucky to have had an obedient child, one who knew the time and place to be as carefree as these runaway kids. Thank Merlin for that.
She was waiting for Draco when, from the corner of her eye, she noticed not something , but rather someone. Narcissa had seen and heard of her before, glances here and there and Draco’s incessant rambling about his swot new friend.
There, sitting solely, under an oak tree, was a little girl holding a book much larger than her childish hands could hold. Except she was not holding the book. No, the girl was levitating it, her tiny fingers barely touching the book cover.
She was rarely surprised. Having a magical child at home and being a witch herself, left little room for surprised reactions towards magic when little bursts of accidental magic were an intrinsic part of her life. But her son never showed this much control of his magic, even having manifested it at the early age of two. It left the older witch curious about what else the little girl would be able to do.
“Mummy you are here!” Narcissa was shaken from her thoughts when a tiny voice shouted at her, obviously grinning if the excitement in his words were any proof.
A tiny body launched itself at her covered legs, barely circling her legs with his tiny arms. She placed a hand on his head, stroking his soft, almost white, blond hair. Behind, never taking her eyes off the boy, was her niece, Nymphadora Tonks, who volunteered from time to time at the school. She nodded at the girl. Having only started her second year at Hogwarts, Dora barely had time to do any extracurriculars, but she still found time to lend a hand at the school.
“Hello, my dragon. What did I say about how one should behave in public?” She asked softly. The little boy was looking at her, grinning with all his teeth at her.
“To use my inside voice.” he responded promptly, a smile never leaving his face. Draco understood protocole, but even the most obedient of children were still, well, children. It was okay to have some slip up here and there. The witch couldn’t help but smile at him when she noticed the daisy in his hand. "Is this for me?"
Draco blushed a little and shook his head.
"That's okay, love." Narcissa reassured him. "Maybe for Dora?"
He again shook his head.
"Then who is it for?"
The little boy opened his mouth as if to answer, but was rendered silence when a figure started approaching them. The little girl, with the book now under her arm, was walking towards them, her brown neatly arranged curls boucing along the way. She stopped in front of them and bowed. Narcissa was stunned.
“Miss Tonks, my mum is over there.” She pointed to a woman who was leaning against one of those Muggle vehicles, dressed in an apparently expensive fur white coat. Her hair was neatly arranged in a chignon of auburn curls and a green emerald pendant adorned her neck.
Draco, remembering the little daisy in his hand, offered it to the girl who cautiously took it into her hands, warm shades of red coloring the little blushing girl cheeks.
Oh. I see.
She seemed to not know what to do and looked to Dora for answers. The girl only laughed and approached the child, crouching so they were at the same height.
“That’s okay love, you can go now. I’ll be right here watching you. Off you go.” Dora said as she adjusted the little girl's bow hair, her own hair turning into a pale shade of pink. The little girl looked at Narcissa, Draco and Dora then bowed again, this time smiling a little, her cheeks with a much lighther tone now, before walking straight to her mother. When she reached the woman, the girl bowed again before embracing her mother’s legs. Before entering the vehicle she turned and waved Dora her goodbye.
“And who might that be?” Narcissa asked, still holding Draco’s hand.
Nymphadora turned her head just a little, just to show her aunt she was listening.
“That's Hermione Granger, Aunt Cissy. Her parents are some kind of muggle healers.” the girl said, but her eyes grew wide as she remembered more. “Her dad is also a Duke I think.”
“Is she always like that?”
Dora laughed sadly, her hair now in a deep navy blue tone.“If by that you mean her being extremely formal then the answer is yes. Her grandmother was the one to start her education and the kid absorbed everything a little too well. Her father actually told mum that he decided to enroll her here to see if being with kids her own age and who were also magic would ease her a little.”
“Did it work?” Draco tugged at her dress trying to catch her attention. She lightly squeezed his hand, implying he waited.
“Not in the slightest. Though she is actually way more relaxed now than when she first came here. During play time she and the other girls always pretend to be in a ball and I swear she’s the only one who plays according to society rules.”
Narcissa hummed in approval.
“It shows that she was well educated.” Draco tugged again.
“She’s a kid, Aunt Cissy. Her mother is much more traditional than her father, I bet she’s the one still keeping those strict etiquette lessons. Hermione should be screaming out her lungs and pulling the pages out of books, not acting like a debutante looking for a husband.” the younger witch argued.
“She’s a Duke's daughter, Dora. A well educated one it appears, she must be up to her title.”
“Thank Merlin mum didn’t marry some noble man. She still insists for me to at least learn the customs from her side of the family. I say this with the all the kindness of my heart, but if I have to memorize one more constellation name I might crack”
Narcissa laughed at her niece’s drama at the same time she felt her dress being pulled again.
“Well, if you and your cousin have anything in common that would be your complete lack of patience.” The witch smiled at her son before, unexpectedly pulling him up into her arms, something she rarely did in public. “Time to go before this one starts stomping his foot.”
Nymphadora hugged them, pulling at Draco’s cheek till he started laughing and said her goodbyes. Narcissa waited till her niece was inside to apparate back home.
As the world shrunk and dissolved in a white mist, an idea crossed her mind.