Chapter Four
A/N: Thanks to my great reviewers, Guest, BunnyBear27, and .
The next morning, Draco awoke without a single care. His head was a little heavy on his shoulders, as he remembered that he had not gotten to bed until well after midnight, but at least the fact that it was a Saturday allowed him to relax for just a little longer.
However, it only took a moment for the pleasant haze of sleep to fade away, giving the man a very clear reason why he had felt so strange when he had wakened. Or, to be more accurate, the four reasons.
Suddenly, all memories of the previous night came flooding back to him. The ring of the doorbell, the argument with Lissy, the four children stood awkwardly on the doorstep. For once in his life, Draco wished he really could have forgotten the events.
With a sigh akin to one of a wronged man, the blonde rose from his bed, stretching his arms out wide and taking a huge gulp of air, attempting to prepare himself for the challenge ahead.
Upon entering the dining room, Draco near despaired to see that his parents were absent from the table, leaving him alone with the four children. To say that the atmosphere was tense would be a gross underestimation.
"Good morning." Draco said, moving down to his regular place to the right of the head, where his father would usually sit. Though he was still quite cautious of the children, he had to admit he was impressed that they had sat themselves in the correct places at the table, Rigel to his right, Asterion to his, Capella opposite Rigel and Phoebe next to her. For children who had never lived in a traditional Pureblood household, it was impressive, he would give them that.
None of the four responded to his greeting, and they all gave little notice when he tried to make polite conversation. It was obvious that it would be more difficult than he had anticipated, getting them to see him as a father once again, even for the first time, in the case of the small girl with a teddy bear on her lap.
"Did you all… sleep alright, last night? Well, this morning." he asked, his voice trembling once again, as it always seemed to do when he spoke to the children. They all seemed to have that effect on them, particularly Phoebe, as she was as good as a stranger to him.
"Dad, you don't have to keep trying. We know you hate us." Rigel stated. It was the second time the boy had done so in less than twelve hours. 'No, not boy.' Draco reminded himself, with a slight sigh. 'That phase is long gone.'
In any case, the boy's attitude was terrible, and as his father, whether he liked that fact or not, the Malfoy heir was not about to let him get away with it.
"Rigel, that is enough! I am sick and tired of your attitude. I am your father, and you will show me some respect!" Draco responded, his voice rising in tone with each word he spoke, as if his pent up rage was finally escaping in the words.
"Father?! You're no father to us! You walked out on me when I was ten years old, Ellie was nine, and Aston was only seven. Fi wasn't even born, for Merlin's sake! You didn't even know she existed! If you're a father to us, then tell me. What position do I play in Quidditch? What subject did Ellie get an O in last term? What Chocolate Frog Card does Aston need to finish the Founders set? What's Fi's favourite colour? Don't know? Well, let me tell you this. There are distant family friends we see once in a blue moon that know the answers to all of those questions, and you don't. So, I'm sorry, Draco, but you are not a father."
As his huge speech came to a close, Rigel stood, his chair scraping along the wooden floor and falling to the ground as he bolted from the room, leaving only a silent room of shocked people in his wake. The children, or the ones that remained, looked from one to the other along the breakfast table. Even they were shocked by their eldest brother's behaviour, though they had grown up in the same house as him, and knew very well how over reactive he could be.
"Don't worry. Rige is always like this. He'll never accept that people have changed." Capella commented, casting a sympathetic glance in the direction of her father, who smiled gratefully at the fifteen year old.
"Does that include me?" he couldn't help but question, wanting to see if he had at all made a difference of the past twelve hours.
"I don't know. I don't really know if you've changed yet, so I can't tell." the brunette responded, twisting a lock of her hair around her finger. That raised another topic to Draco's mind.
"What have you done to your hair? And you, Aston?" the man asked the two, looking from one to the other.
"We dyed it. We didn't want to be associated with you, either of us. I'm surprised Rige didn't do it as well, to be honest. He hated you more than both of us put together. And I don't blame him." Once Aston had finished speaking, the first time Draco had heard him do so since he had returned, the boy stood from his chair, exiting the room with Capella not far behind, pulling Phoebe forcefully from her chair so that the girl was not left alone with the man.
When he was finally left on his own, Draco let out an enormous sigh. In truth, the meal had gone a lot more smoothly than he had expected it to do, leaving the blonde wondering what exactly he may have been expecting. A sudden voice from the door brought him away from his thoughts once again.
"It didn't go well, then?" asked the voice. Draco knew there was a smirk on the figure's face, without even needing to glance around to see.
"No, Father, it didn't. I think I have a lot of work to do."
A/N: And it almost worked! Poor Draco, being rejected so much. But still, he may make progress with one of the children in the next chapter. Guess which one it'll be. Review!
