Summary : Draco reveals Scorpius's new pet, and gets embarrassed in the process
Rating : K+ (Strong language)
Disclaimer : I do not own any of the characters, buildings etc. from the Harry Potter series.
Extra Info : In this, Draco is married to my fan character Ashley and also has a daughter called Araminta. Pairings include ~ Ron x Hermione, Harry x Ginny, Luna x Neville, Pansy x Blaize and Draco x Ashley. Oh, and Albus now has a toad and a few other people have made up children :) Oneshot.
ENJOY!
A lonely, cloaked figure walked the dark streets of Hogsmeade, a bitter look upon his face as the cold, winter winds blew and Jack Frost slowly bit at his gloveless fingers. He blew on them in a half-hearted attempt to cure the numbness which was slowly settling in. As he walked, the sickles in his pocket clinked faintly, waiting to be spent.
Laughter and light could be seen as the old man limped around a corner. The creaky old door of The Three Broomsticks flew open, and a young couple could be seen, silhouetted by the firelight which flooded through behind them. They staggered a few feet and stopped for a drunken kiss, the girl pushed up with her back to the window, sweet nothings whispered into her ear by her lover.
The man reached the pub as the couple sauntered off to one of their houses to spend the night in each others company. The man smiled crookedly, the two reminding him of his younger life, love and happiness. The door creaked closed behind him as he entered the room, suddenly engulfed by the music and laughter of a crowd of old drunkards and youthly pub-goers, all caught up in the ecstasy of the Christmas upon them.
He took a seat at the bar and un-wrapped his many layers of clothing. His face was worn from the past times of war, death, destruction. The barman nodded a quick hello, raising his eyebrow in silent question. The man, a regular at the establishment, simply nodded in a silent reply. Almost at once, a tankard appeared on the tabletop afore him, filled with a ghastly brew, only for the strong stomached. He handed over the sickles and took a gulp of the concoction, turning his head to survey the rest of the crowd.
Up the back, at a table a little away from the main crowd, there were seated a group of about ten young adults, talking quietly among themselves, laughing at their private jokes and enjoying one another's company. He moved, carrying his wares, to a table nearby to get a better view of them all. He took another gulp of his brew and focused on them.
At least eight couples, all joining in with the fun and games at their table. Well, almost all. There was one man, with ashen blonde hair tied back in an emerald green ribbon, who did not seem to be enjoying the festivities. As much as his wife tried and tried, and as much as friends tried and tried, he did not remove himself from the foul mood he seemed to be in.
Grumpy, at Christmas. Who could be so haunted as to be grumpy at Christmas? He wondered this to himself as he sat and drank the rest of his drink, finally finding the will to stand and leave the pub without a word.
"Oh come on Dray, lighten up would you?" Ashley was getting a little fed up with her husband, everyone else seemed to be having fun…so why wasn't he?
"Can't we just go home instead?" He whined for the umpteenth time. He was such a child sometimes.
"No. I happen to be having a good time, even if you're not. And besides, wouldn't you rather be out with your friends than sat inside that bloody house doing nothing?"
He looked at her and raised one of his delicate eyebrows.
"On second thought, don't bother answering that" She sighed and joined in with Harry and Ginny's conversation.
"Albus wrote to us yesterday" she explained. "Complaining about his choice of pet of all things"
"He only asked for the bloody toad about a million times" Harry slung his arm around Ginny and grinned. He was a happy man these days, was Harry.
"We got Hugo an owl and he still hasn't sent us anything" Said Hermione.
"Don't worry love, I'm sure he's just busy with his mates or summing. You remember how we were" Hermione looked at Ron and smiled.
"Of course I do. That's what I'm afraid of" She smiled and kissed him sweetly.
"We bought Alice a lovely white owl, rather like yours Harry" Her silvery voice entered the mix of sounds bustling around them.
"Like Hedwig you mean? What did she call it?"
"She called her Luna, like her beautiful mother" Neville aimed it more to her than Harry, and you could physically see the love in the mans words to his wife. A round of 'aww' fluttered round the table.
"Well, we decided to buy Jessica a toad at first, but she kept changing her mind and eventually ended up with a rat named Horace" Blaize Zabini chuckled, his infectious laugh catching Luna and Ginny in it's wake. He looked down at his wife, passed out with her head resting calmly on his shoulder, black hair pulled back in a firmly secured bun.
"I see Pansy's had a good night at least. Not like this grouch sitting beside me" Ash glanced at her husband. The only move he had made in the past five minutes was placing his elbow against the tabletop and leaning his chin on his hand.
"So what did you get then, for Araminta and Scorpius?"
"Well, Araminta decided on a Pigmy Puff, god knows why, and Scorpius…" Ash frowned for a minute. "Actually, I don't know what he got. That was Draco's job"
"Come to think of it" Said Ron. "I don't remember seeing him with any animal at the platform in September"
"That's because of the stupid deliveryman who got our order mixed up with someone else" Draco stated. It was about the second thing he had said to his friends all night.
"Why couldn't you have just taken it with you when you bought it?" Ash was confused. It was just another animal.
"Discount if we got it by home delivery"
"Funny, I can't remember any type of animal being delivered to our house that week"
"Firstly, it's not a house, it's a manor" Ash rolled her eyes. "Secondly, you were at a game that day. It came while I was on my lunch break so I had it sent to Scorpius within the hour"
"Oh yeah…..I remember that game. Puddlemore United versus the Holyhead Harpies. I remember Ginny played quite well in that game" The two women smiled at each other.
"I remember you did too. Very nearly beat us as well" They laughed at the friendly rivalry between them.
"So what did he get then?" Harry continued the line of questioning about Scorpius' unknown pet.
"What does it matter? It's just another animal"
"Then why, may I ask, are you avoiding the question?" Harry asked the question playfully, though there were hints of curiosity in his tone. Ever the Gryffindor, Draco thought. No wonder he became an Auror.
"Who said I was?"
"Nobody, it just seems that way. Slightly suspicious of you"
"No it isn't"
"Yes it is"
"Isn't"
"Is"
"Isn't"
"Is"
"Don't you two ever stop?" Hermione giggled, the effects of the mulled wine they were all drinking beginning to take effect.
"I'm just curious is all" said Harry, raising his hands in a playful surrender.
Draco mumbled something incoherent into his hand.
"What? Did you say something?"
He sighed and took his hand away from his mouth and spoke again, just as a group of drunken singers passed their table.
"Sorry, I still can't hear you"
"It was a bloody ferret! Alright? He wanted a white ferret to take to Hogwarts and that is what he got"
The whole table looked at each other knowingly, turned back to him with smiles on their faces and he instantly knew what was coming.
They burst into laughter almost simultaneously and Draco could feel the blood rushing to his face as it turned bright red with embarrassment.
Ash looked at her friends, confused at their laughter. She turned to her husband who was now almost tomato red, and asked;
"Draco? What are they laughing at?"
This only earned more bellows of laughter from the half drunk 'Adults', and Draco turned an even brighter shade of red as he buried his head in his hands and remembered the story of Draco Malfoy, The Amazing Bouncing Ferret.
Did you enjoy? Review please :)
Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus