Title: Charlie Weasley's secret.
Summary: Charlie Weasley and Draco Malfoy finally meet up after seventeen years apart. Charlie has something to tell Draco though. (Slightly AU due to change of Scorpius age)
Disclaimer: I owe nothing but the weird idea.
Prompt: "Will you hand me the butter Daddy?"
"Sure"
"Of course"
*Awkward break*
"Shit!"
Draco Malfoy had never liked the summer sun. His pale skin didn't do good with the sun, it got burned too easily. Sun also meant warmth, and warmth meant sweat, and Malfoy's didn't sweat. It ruined the exterior.
He sighed inwardly as his mind produced that thought. He tried to change after the war, he really did, but some of his father's words stuck too deep at times.
One could then ask why Draco Malfoy - when he didn't like the sun - sat on his porch with a glass of firewhiskey in his hand, bathed in the afternoon sun.
The answer was simple, and it sat across from him, a full glass of fire-whiskey in his hand.
Charlie Weasley.
The ex-couple hadn't seen each other since the war, which was nearing seventeen years.
Charlie had returned from Romania a couple of years back (after having grieved the war he found out how important his family was to him, especially George who hadn't smiled in ages before Charlie came along), but the two men had never come around to meet except when it happened randomly at street corners.
"I hear you have a son, and a wife" Charlie smiled, and Draco realised - not for the first time that day - that seventeen years and a war had done nothing to the warmth in Charlie's smile.
Draco nodded, and the smile that only Charlie had ever caused, prided his lips. So broken, yet still happy. Because Draco loved his family, butt he'd have loved that it was Charlie's family too.
"I married Astoria as my father wanted, just after the war." he told him.
"The year after, we were blessed with a beautiful boy, Scorpius".
Charlie nodded politely. He already knew all of this, and he knew Draco was aware of that fact. Draco needed to tell Charlie though, he needed to tell him that he was happy, that Charlie didn't need to worry about him, or feel bad for having left (Which Draco knew Charlie would even though Draco had been the one asking him to leave, if Draco wasn't happy).
"He looks exactly like me, besides his eyes. They're blue like his mothers" Draco's voice was fond as he spoke, and Charlie was hit by guilt, because he knew exactly which eyecolour Scorpius had. He also knew that Scorpius was more fit than Draco had been at that age. Charlie would be the one to know that after all.
"And he must be running on his last year on Hogwarts by now? If he was born the year after the war, I mean" Charlie asked, his voice as polite as his former smile.
He knew which year Scorpius was in. He knew that the boy was a Slytherin, he loved potions like his father, hated Arithmancy like his mother. He smiled whenever he got nervous, and made a small jump of happiness when he received good news. All this, Charlie knew after having studied the boy for over a year. He didn't tell Draco though, not yet.
Draco nodded, "School year starts in two days" he said, and Charlie's smile was now pleasant as he asked.
"Ah, and where may he be now?"
"He's with a friend of his, should be home in time for dinner though, if you want to join us?" Draco replied questioningly, looking up from his firewhiskey.
He wasn't sure Charlie would like to stay with Draco's family, and he probably had his own to go home to as well.
"I'd love to" Charlie said with a smile that matched Draco's surprised one.
He said it just as Draco realised that he didn't know if Charlie had a family.
He took a sip of his fire-whiskey, waiting the appropriate time before changing subjects.
"What about you Charlie? Have you found any guy to settle down with?" he asked, and Charlie looked up nervously. God it was a long time ago Draco had last seen Charlie nervous.
"Me? Hmm.. Yeah, I got a guy, wonderful lad, reminds me of you actually" he said, smiling again to try and hide his nervousness.
He had learned enough from Draco to hide his sweaty hands, and he was still enough Charlie Weasley for his heart not to beat fast and his eyes not to flicker.
"What's there to be so nervous about then?" Draco asked. He wasn't used to Charlie being the one squirming under words and attention, but it amused him.
"It's wonderful for you"
Charlie's smile became warmer again, Draco truly wanted hi to be happy - Charlie still doubted that he'd like Charlie to be happy with the guy he was with though.
"He's quite a lot younger than me" he said uneasily, and he knew that Draco enjoyed himself way too much as he took a sip of his glass. It only made Charlie roll his eyes though, still not touching the liquid he normally loved.
"Aren't they always?" Draco finally asked, "The boyfriends of yours? Or maybe it's only a lover for you?" there was nothing judging in Draco's voice, he just knew Charlie, and Charlie didn't mind. He was relieved if anything, Draco still didn't hold it against him that he once again had found someone too young for him.
Charlie had always had a tendency to do so, and maybe if he didn't know that he loved them passionately and unconditionally, he would feel ashamed.
No, not maybe. He would.
"He's not even of age" he stated, biting his lip. It was a habit Draco had given him, something he had noticed Scorpius do lately as well.
Draco froze momentarily. An odd thought occurred in his mind as he thought of all Charlie had said, but he pushed it away, Charlie wouldn't.
Still, it made sense with why he was so nervous. Draco couldn't seem to make it fit with the Weasley though, he wasn't like that.
"I hope you know what you're doing Char" he said, his tone that as a worried friend rather than a worried/angry father.
Charlie grinned, one of those bright grins which could burn Draco's skin better than the sun ever would.
"Do I ever?" he asked as he finally drank from his glass.
Draco felt like Charlie had just lost a heavy weight for a heavy weight and the dragon tamer once more looked like the man he had fallen in love with twenty years ago.
Draco was happy that his opinion still mattered that much to the redhead.
He shook his head at Charlie's words.
"That's the problem with you Charlie. You love so much that nothing else matters" after a second, he added, "I miss that".
...
At dinner that night, Draco made Scorpius and Charlie talk, wanting the two of them to get along.
He was happy when they chatted away, talking about dragons which Draco had done his best to teach Scorpius anything about.
"Why are you actually here Charlie? I've never heard my father talk about you" Scorpius looked up at Charlie who looked over at Draco.
Draco could see nervousness creep back into Charlie's eyes, though he misjudged the reason.
It wasn't because he was afraid that Scorpius wouldn't like the idea of Draco and Charlie being together - he already knew that - it was because he was worried that Scorpius was going to assume Draco knew about them, and would tell him now.
"Charlie helped me through a very hard part of my life. We.. We were engaged"
The whole room seemed to become oddly quiet.
Astoria hadn't known that Draco and Charlie had been engaged when Draco asked him to travel back to Romania, leaving Draco alone in Britain. The shock made her forget to try and break the silence that had fell over them.
After a minute or two, they all went back to eating, no one saying anything.
Draco walked to take back his words, Scorpius wanted to yell at Charlie, and Charlie just wished he had told Draco.
"Will you hand me the butter Daddy?" Scorpius asked as the tension in the room seemed to lessen.
However, as two replies ("Sure", " 'Course") sounded, it came back with full force.
The room was completely silent once more, none of them barely breathing.
"Shit" Charlie finally exclaimed, looking over at Draco with apologetic eyes.
Draco's silver eyes blazed with an anger Charlie knew had only ever been reserved for him, when he screwed up completely.
"Porch. Now!" Draco barely kept himself from yelling at the man. As Charlie did what he was told immediately, Draco calmed down just enough to not hex him. At least the Weasley still respected him that much.
"Scorpius!" He barked, causing his son to look up at him instantly.
"Go to your room"
Scorpius was about to argue, but as his father turned on his heels and briskly marched away, following Scorpius' boyfriend, he obeyed. He excused himself to his mother who seemed to be at a loss for words.
"He could be your son?!" Draco yelled as soon as he was outside.
He didn't that was still bigger and stronger than him, he was too furious for that.
Charlie put his hands up in surrender.
"That was why I was so nervous about telling you" he said, and Draco remembered how Charlie had been so relieved when Draco hadn't judged him. However, it did the opposite of its purpose of calming him.
"I don't care about your age!" he raged. "We were engaged! Now you're shagging my son!"
Charlie knew better than to roll his eyes, or smile at the vision. He had always loved when Draco's grey eyes blazed silver, and when his cheeks flushed with anger, when Draco lost control.
He shouldn't think about that now though, let alone mention it.
"I left Britain so you could marry Draco, but I never stopped loving you" before he could continue, Draco shook is head.
"Don't. Start!" Draco hissed, but Charlie had had enough of lying and being afraid of what Draco would say, Draco would hear the truth now, no matter if he liked it or not.
"Imagine coming back, heart aching for you, and suddenly, he's standing there" Charlie continued. "He is.. He was you Draco" he said, "I couldn't help it"
Draco's shoulders dropped as he looked down. He wasn't done yet. He was still a father, and a protecting one of them.
"So you're shagging me? Only you can't, so you use him?" he asked, and he closed his eyes as Charlie sighed. He didn't want to hear this.
"In the beginning, I guess yeah, but Scorpius isn't you Draco" he said, making Draco look up.
"He looks like you in so many ways, does like you in so many situations, but no matter how little I wanted it at some point, he also differ from you in just as many ways, and I still love him with all my heart"
And just like that, he was sold. He couldn't glare at Charlie anymore, couldn't keep up his temper, his anger.
So.. Originally, the story was supposed to be Charlie being with all three Malfoy's, but when I wrote it, it just seemed to end better here than later on.
However, chapter two is the continuation of the conversation for whoever wants to read it..