3 months later...…
A bit over 3 months had passed since Marcus and Rita began staying with their daughter and her husband.
Draco had gotten used to their presence in the house, but he wasn't really a fan of Rita, who kept making fun of him.
He was now 3 months away from being one year old, which wasn't anything special.
He was still little and couldn't do much except move around under strict watch.
Rita and Marcus never once let him out of their sight as Chise couldn't look after him anymore due to her advanced pregnancy.
Her belly looked so big, like it was about to burst; the physician had speculated multiple children. The number, they couldn't really tell.
When the news of multiple children came, it was a joyous occasion for the household, but after knowing of the possible complications that could occur with such a pregnancy, the happiness somewhat died down.
With the help of Marcus and Rita, Mark managed to hire the best wet nurses and physician they could afford.
He wanted his children to survive along with his wife safely.
......….
Time ticked by quickly as the due date was finally upon them.
On this very day, the house was especially rowdy.
Everyone was moving hectically around the house in preparation for the birth except two people.
"Gwamps, your turn," Draco said. He had begun speaking not too long ago.
He couldn't use long sentences, just enough to pass as a 2-year-old.
Everyone was surprised at first, but that didn't last long.
They didn't even know his race, and he had displayed his transformation ability, so they were somewhat expecting him to have other abilities.
The only other changes were his scales becoming a bit harder, his horns growing longer, and his body strength increasing.
It wasn't a massive increase, but he was stronger than those his age.
Being able to somewhat walk and talk at 10 months old was just chalked up as the children of his race matured a bit quicker.
"Hmm, you're weirdly good at this," Marcus replied, nodding his head as he scratched his beard while thinking.
They were playing a game of checkers since no one needed them.
They tried to help but got chased off by Rose, Rita, and the wet nurses.
"I am not good, you're just really bad at this," Draco replied.
"Ha ha ha, is that how it is?" Marcus laughed.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
"Mark, sit down, you're distracting me," Marcus yelled. Mark had been pacing back and forth in the living room restlessly.
"Sorry, I am just nervous," Mark replied.
"Just take a deep breath and relax. You panicking isn't going to help anything," Marcus said.
"Hmm," Draco nodded in agreement.
"See, even your son agrees," Marcus added.
"Sigh, I will try," Mark replied, a bit embarrassed that he was the only one needlessly worrying.
Knock! Knock!
"Are you expecting anyone?" Marcus asked as he heard a knock on the door.
"No," Mark replied, getting up from his chair, he went to answer the door. Upon opening the door, a huge surprise greeted him.
"Mom, Dad," Mark called out in disbelief. They hadn't replied to his letter once since he sent them 4 months ago, so he wasn't expecting them to come.
"Mark, is that really you? You look so thin," Anita, his mother, said while caressing his face with both her hands.
She had a smile on her face that wasn't a smile which sent shivers down Mark's spine, stunning him in place.
"Why aren't you smiling or saying anything? Aren't you happy to see me?" Anita asked, her hands still on his face but grasping more firmly.
"Ahem, aren't you going to invite us in?" a buffed Chientrope man said. This was his father named John.
"Sorry, mama, dad, please come in," Mark invited, relieved that his father saved him.
"Marcus," John said upon seeing Marcus and greeted him with a nod.
"John," Marcus replied, greeting back by nodding. They had met before not long after their children eloped.
"This must be the boy you mentioned in your letters," Anita questioned.
"Yes, this is my son, Draco. Draco, come say hi to grandma, I mean my mama," Mark said.
"Hi," Draco briefly introduced.
"Draco, that is not a proper introduction," Mark scolded.
"What are asking such a small cute boy to do?" Anita scolded Mark as she picked up Draco from his chair.
'Well, he did just ask to say just say Hi,' Draco thought.
"Don't let his cute face trick you. He's quite a smart lad despite only being almost a year old," Marcus said.
"Hmm, he looks similar," John muttered while staring intensely at Draco.
'Why is he staring at me like that, it feels rather uncomfortable,' Draco thought, averting his gaze away from John.
Anita noticed this and acted right away.
Smack!
"Stop, you will scare the boy," Anita scolded John, smacking his head with her hand.
"Shhh, it's ok now. I scared the ugly old man away," Anita said while trying to comfort Draco.
"You have it tough, huh?" Marcus whispered to John.
"Sigh, it's been like that since Mark left home," John whispered back looking exhausted.
"By the way, Mark, where is your wife? Why isn't she here to greet us?" Anita asked.
"Ah, she is about to give birth," Mark hesitantly replied. He had been trying to make himself scarce to avoid his mother's wrath.
"You silly boy, why didn't you say anything sooner?" Anita scolded Mark again.
'Wow, she has scolded almost everyone and it hasn't even been 10 minutes since she arrived. I should probably stay on her good side,' Draco thought.
"John, hold your grandson. I will go see my daughter-in-law now," Anita announced, handing Draco to John.
"Mark, lead the way," Anita instructed.
"Yes, mama. This way," Mark obliged, leading his mother to Chise.
"Wanna play?" Marcus offered John; he wanted to use this opportunity to void his game with Draco.
Draco didn't mind since he was bad at it anyway.
"Sure," John replied, taking a seat and setting Draco on his lap.
It had been an exhausting trip with his wife getting here, so he needed to unwind.
Anita was angry with Mark because he hadn't sent any word to them once since he ran away and got married.
John didn't mind it as Mark was already a full-grown man and could make his own decisions, but Anita thought differently.
Mark was her only child, and she felt like he excluded her from what was supposed to be one of the most important events in his life.
Soon Draco grew tired of watching two old men that were bad at checkers play, so he fell asleep.
Marcus placed him in his room where Clair was currently sleeping. She had been asleep since Rose brought her over.
Time trickled by some more, and the evening soon arrived.
The house of the Black family was different from usual as it had just welcomed 6 new members.