UchiSays: I know this update is late, but I'm still trying to get back into the swing of this whole 'going to school' thing. It just hasn't occured to me that I needed to update. But I remembered now, so here you go. I know my last chapter pissed a lot of people off, but stick with me please. Things will get better soon (they'll get worst before they get better, but they WILL get better). I'm aiming for the ending everybody wants.

~Itami


Easier to Run

It had had only taken five minutes to explain to Corvus that he would be living with the Malfoys for the next three months, but it had taken nearly twenty-four hours after that to get him to calm down and accept it. The next day was spent packing what he would need for the next hundred days and then doing all of Corvus' favorite things. But all too soon, the time came for Harry to hand his son over to the Malfoys.

They had decided to meet on 'neutral' soil and thus Harry and Corvus floo'd to Blaise's house where Draco and Astoria were waiting. After exchanging some forced pleasantries, Harry sent Corvus up to play with Carmen and Toni, and began rambling off important information to the Malfoys so they knew how to properly care for his son.

"...won't admit to it, but he's slightly afraid of the dark. If you leave his bedroom door open a crack and have the hall light on he'll be fine. He also likes either a snack or a drink before bed; one or the other never both. His favorite snack is ants on a log, but he's allergic to raisins so be careful. He has potions in case he accidentally consumes some in his bag, but they expire next week so you'll have to stop by the apothecary for a new one. Taking the expired potion would be more dangerous than the initial allergic reaction. He's not allergic to grapes, though, and they're his favorite fruit. He can bathe himself, but needs help washing his hair. He never sleeps unless someone either reads him a story or sings him a song. He's a, for lack of a better term, picky eater. But mostly he enjoys Muggle foods, so swallow you pride and shop at Sainsbury..." Harry continued rambling on for a while until he finally ran out of things to say.

"Would that be all, Potter?" Draco asked in a bored tone.

"No, there's one more thing actually. His birthday is in just under a month and we had plans to go the Magic Kingdom, so... yeah."

"The Magic Kingdom?" Astoria asked.

"It's a Muggle amusement park, Corvus was really looking forward to it. It was supposed to be a family trip: him, me, Blaise, Antonio, and Carmella. It would really disappoint him if we had to cancel, but I would understand if you two wanted to spend the day with him since you've never had a birthday with him..."

"If it's a family trip, then Astoria and I could just come as well."

|::-x-::|

Two days after Corvus left, Blaise forced Harry out of his depression and took him to meet his mother.

Camilla Sara Zabini was a kind woman with an aristocratic air about her and an ageless face. Her smooth skin was a shade or two darker than Blaise's. Her thick black hair was done up in tight curls. Her face was wrinkle free and kindly. She was tall and proud. But her most striking feature were her pale blue eyes that looked out of place on the dark backdrop of her heart-shaped face, but held such cutting wisdom it was almost bone-chilling to look into them.

When Blaise and Harry arrived at her home, Harry stood by awkwardly as the woman greeted her son with a hug and kiss on each cheek, before inquiring about the whereabouts of her grandchildren. Seeing the two of them side by side made it obvious the two of them were related. Blaise had the same heart shaped face as his mother, though his features were more sharp and masculine. Their eyes were the same shape as well, though the colors differed. Harry had to wonder if Blaise got his height from his mother as well since there was only about half an inch difference between them. They both had the same aristocratic air about them as well. They were beautiful.

Camilla brought her attention away from her son and fixed her chilling blue eyes onto Harry, making him feel slightly inadequate under her calculating scrutiny. "Mother," Blaise said, slinking over and wrapping an arm around Harry's waist, "this is my fiancé Harry Potter."

Camilla Zabini smiled and just like that the cool frightening image she emitted evaporated. "Pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Potter."

Harry smiled back and suddenly felt a lot less self-conscious. "Likewise, Mrs. Zabini."

"Please, call me Cami. Everyone does."

"Only if you call me Harry."

"Cheers. Now it's a lovely day outside, so lunch will be served on the patio if you would follow me."

Lunch was a casual affair full of simple foods and light conversation. Cami was a sweet woman, very intelligent and opinionated. She had been married eight times and was not above speaking her mind about woman's true role in society versus what the masses thought their role should be. Briefly conversation touched on the topic of the war, like it always seemed to when Harry was involved. Harry couldn't help but laugh when Cami called Voldemort an egotistical, male chauvinistic pig, with an anger problem, an identity crisis, and a god complex. She then went so far as to call the British Wizarding World in general a group of weak little scaredy-cats too frightened of the big bad wolf to get off their fat lazy arses and save themselves and so hid in the shadows while a child fought their battles for them (no offense to Harry).

Harry really liked his future mother-in-law, though he was afraid of being in the same room when she and Hermione held a conversation.

"Enough about the ignorant masses, Harry, why don't you tell me about yourself. I'd love to know more about you than what those rags that pass for newspapers have to say. What do you do for a living?"

"I'm a stay at home father, of sorts," Harry replied. "Though I do have a job, it's more for me to have something to do while my son is at school."

"Blaise told be about your little boy. I would love the chance to meet him, but I supposed I can wait until this custody thing is over. I am so ashamed of Draco at this moment. He's practically been my second son since he and Blaise were in nappies. I never thought him to type to take a little boy away from his home. Narcissa, rest her soul, would be just as shamed if she were to know about this. She never did approve of the Slytherin tactics both her husband and son is so fond of using. Thought she'd raised Draco better than this, but that boy as always been too much his father's son."

"Don't I know it," Harry mumbled to himself. He had met both Lucius and Narcissa during the war. While Narcissa was decidedly neutral of the whole fiasco, Lucius was openly the Dark Lord's man (not in that way). Draco had been set to take the Dark Mark, but had a sudden change of heart before he could. Before the final battle, Lucius had a change of heart as well and warned them of the Dark Lord's plans in return for a full pardon of all his crimes. If not for Lucius' warning, a great deal of people would have died during the final battle, most of them being Hogwarts students.

It wasn't two weeks after the final battle that Harry and Draco had gotten together. Narcissa had taken part in the final battle when she'd learned that her son would be in danger. It was irreversible damage taken during this battle that had killed her early in their seventh year. Despite fighting for the Light, Draco had always shared his father's ideas on the issue, and he claimed it was realizing he was in love with Harry that had made him forgo the dark side.

"Draco is a prat," Blaise said. "We all know that, so there's really no reason to discuss it."