#kumatandraws

Shiloh learns to crawl

An art commission by @kumatan0720

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"Oh gosh—she's doing it! She's doing it, Draco! Come see!"

Hermione tore her eyes from Shiloh for half a second to watch as Draco came sprinting into the nursery from their little kitchen, half-washed bottles in hand, elation filling his eyes.

"She's doing it?" he echoed, his voice breathless.

Hermione nodded and turned back to their daughter. Shiloh was on her hands and knees, rocking back and forth in her blue footie pyjamas. She had been edging closer and closer to crawling with each passing day, and Hermione swore that this time Shiloh had moved one of her knees.

She had been scooting around on her tummy for several weeks, reaching for her mummy's wand or some other shiny bauble. The transition to supporting her own weight on her hands and knees was relatively new. But every time she came close and Hermione and Draco gathered around her to watch her arrive at her new milestone, she would suddenly lose interest, falling onto her bottom and looking around before declaring in a loud and confident voice, "Ba!"

What exactly she meant by, "Ba!" Hermione had no idea, but she hoped it didn't translate to, 'A watched cauldron never boils.'

But this time would be different. She was sure of it. Shiloh seemed confident, somehow. Bold. Excited. She had a glint in her eye as she stared at a plush dragon sitting on the floor nearby.

"Come on," Draco egged on in a whisper, his own eyes wide, identical to his daughter's.

Shiloh rocked back and forth again, as if she was trying to convince herself that she was ready to propel herself forward.

Draco crouched down beside Hermione, the two of them following an unspoken agreement to be silent observers from this moment. Even though Draco's soapy hands began to drip onto the rug, she said nothing, choosing to watch Shiloh instead.

One knee forward. Then an arm.

Shiloh moved forward a couple inches before collapsing onto her tummy. Hermione watched as Draco grimaced.

She no longer doubted the kind of father he was to their daughter.

Watching him watch Shiloh made her heart sing.

A shriek from Shiloh made Hermione whip her head around. She was back on her hands and knees, rocking once more. This time, her wide, gummy smile stretched across her face as she stared at the plush dragon.

One knee forward. Then an arm.

Then again. And again. And again.

She kept crawling until she was close enough to the dragon to reach out and grab it in her pudgy little fingers. And as she fell backwards onto her nappy-padded bottom with the dragon in her clutches, Hermione and Draco surged forward to scoop her up and shower her with praise.

"Well done, darling!"

"That's our girl!"

Scene from The Gift of Life, Chapter 12

I am seriously beyond elated at the lovely work that KumatanDraws has done. From Draco’s soapy hands to the determined look on Shiloh’s face, she’s captured he moment perfectly! It’s so fluffy and soft and I’m going to be staring at it for DAYS.

To read more, see:

The Gift of Joy on AO3 and FFN