So, I'll start by admitting that I fibbed about the last chapter being the end. I really didn't want to write any more, but...it didn't feel over. And so I wrote more. Problem now is that it feels even less done. *sigh* Why couldn't you guys have just read the one-shot and let me be finished? :p
Further, please note that this chapter is tediously LONG and filled with characters...too many! Sorry. For reference, I included a character list at the end of this chapter. Why at the end? Well, because it's really only for anyone who might be confused by my rambling babbly chapter. Probably should have edited out a bit (like the non-Quidditch game nonsense), but...didn't! So...10,250+ words for you here!
And again...thank you for reading and reviewing and favoriting. :-) And sorry for the typos...I just could not reread it AGAIN! :-(
Warning: This chapter has a teeny tiny bit of smooching, but...is, once again, without any real smut. Sorry. But there is a little bit of kidlet stuff in the beginning, so there'a bit of cuteage!
Happy Christmas!
Just another day in the lives of Draco and Harry...
Thursday, 25 December 2008
~ o ~
This was only Harry's second Christmas as a father, but he knew that waking up before the children on Christmas morning was quite the anomaly; children just seemed to have an internal clock that had them up and about—and wide-fucking-awake—long before sunrise on this grand day. Not that Harry ever was while growing up. No, he'd had no reason to rise early on Christmas morn when he was a child.
Well, except to cook for the Dursleys.
But most children did have cause to rise early and Harry was surprised that he did not hear the pitter-patter of little feet. But that was fine with him, because he could get a lot more accomplished without having to answer their endless questions, make small talk, or change dirty nappies.
Glancing at his sleeping boyfriend—Draco seemed to be out!—Harry smiled, then carefully rolled out of bed and went straight to the bathroom. After having a piss—which wasn't exactly easy without the usual relief of his morning...issues—Harry washed his hands, then headed down to the kitchen to make coffee and start breakfast before the house was booming with activity.
But he only got as far as the second floor landing. As Harry was rounding the stairs to continue down, he saw Caelum's door inch open just enough for the boy's tousled blond head to poke out, a happy grin on his face.
"Hey, buddy," Harry said, stopping. "Father Christmas fill your stocking?"
Caelum's grin widened and he bobbed his head. "Uh-ha."
"Anything good?" he asked, knowing that the boy would have already spilled the filled stocking and riffled through its contents.
"Yep," he said—then pouted a little. "No Crup though. I think Father Christmas listened to dad."
"I'm sorry," Harry said, trying not to smile at the adorable pouty face his son was displaying. Then, to change the subject, he asked, "Wanna help me with breakfast?"
Quickly forgetting the Crup he apparently hadn't received for Christmas, Caelum nodded. "Can we have jam doughnuts?"
Starting down the stairs again, Harry scratched his ear. "Um. Yeah. I think we have some."
"How about kippers? Can I have kippers too?"
Harry frowned. "With jam doughnuts?"
Caelum nodded. "It's Christmas, I want everything," he said excitedly.
Harry laughed. "Fine then, but don't eat so much you make yourself sick...we have a big day ahead of us."
"Can I have hot chocolate too?"
Harry shrugged. "Sure. Why not?"
"Because dad says it makes me spazdic," the boy said honestly.
Chuckling, Harry corrected the boy. "I think you mean spastic."
"Yeah. That."
"And maybe that's not such a great idea. Your dad will kill me if you're bouncing off the walls when he gets down here."
Again Caelum pouted for a moment, then nodded. "Will you make fresh orange juice? I really like it fresh...'specially when you make it."
"Yes, I know you do...and of course I will," Harry said as they reached the ground floor and turned to go into the kitchen. Grabbing the boy by the waist, Harry swung him up and onto the counter, then proceeded to make his and Draco's morning coffee. Draco liked his sickeningly sweet and so Harry also pulled out the sugar and dumped in a massive amount, then added some hazelnut-flavored powder, which the blond practically had an orgasm over every time he consumed it.
"Why does dad like that nut stuff in his coffee?" Caelum asked.
"Because it's sweet...like you," Harry said, then dipped a finger in the powder and offered it to the boy.
Opening his mouth, Caelum licked the hazelnut powder off Harry's finger, then grinned. "Yummy."
Harry nodded, then went to the refrigerator and started taking things out for their breakfast. After covering the counter beside his son with the food he was going to make, Harry rummaged around for the proper pans and got them heating on the cooker.
"Hey, Cael," he said when he noticed the coffee was about ready. "Would you mind going down to my old place and getting my favorite mug?"
Caelum frowned. "What's it doing down there?" he asked as he slid forward and jumped off the counter."
"I was hiding one of your dad's Christmas gifts yesterday morning and forgot to bring it back up."
"Oh," Caelum said, then he nodded and ran off.
Chuckling, Harry opened a cupboard and pulled out his favorite cup—he'd fibbed about leaving it downstairs—and started preparing his own coffee—he liked vanilla flavoring—then took a sip and waited for the boy to return. It only took a nano-second.
"Daddy! Daddy!" Caelum screamed as he ran back into the kitchen, his arms wrapped around a white ball of fur. "Look what I found downstairs."
Pretending to be surprised, Harry set his cup down, then knelt beside the boy. "Wow, Cael, Father Christmas must really like you."
Caelum grinned. "Dad's not going to be too happy with him though," he said. "How many times did he say no Crup?"
"I said it at least fifty times," came Draco's voice from the doorway.
"Oh, but Dad, he's brilliant," Caelum said. "Don't you think so? I can keep him, right? I promise that I'll take care of him. And he's not really a Crup...just a Muggle puppy, see?"
Setting their younger set of twins on the floor—who immediately toddled over to Caelum and the puppy—Draco looked at their oldest child and smiled. "Of course, son, I wouldn't take a Christmas gift away from you," he said—then cast a glare at Harry and mouthed, you little fucker!
Harry only managed to look slightly sheepish. He'd known he'd be in trouble with Draco, but the look of pure joy on Caelum's face when he came upstairs with his new puppy made it all worth it. Besides, he knew Draco wasn't really angry about it. Though the blond kept telling Caelum no, Harry knew he was softening on the issue and was just about to relent. Harry'd just moved that up a bit.
"You are in so much trouble," Draco whispered as he went to the coffeemaker and poured himself a cup, then took a sip—moaning obscenely after swallowing.
Harry grinned.
"Not that kind of trouble, Potter," the blond said, knowing that Harry was thinking he'd be getting punished in the bedroom.
Harry's smile barely faltered as he leaned closer and pulled Draco into his arms. "If it's any consolation...Cael was right, it's not a Crup."
"That is not at all reassuring, Potter," Draco complained. "Puppies are a lot of work and, if you didn't already notice, we have several human puppies of our own to care for."
Harry chuckled. "I'll help him with it. You'll see, having a dog is great fun."
"How the hell would you know?" Draco bristled. "If I remember correctly, you've never had anything other than an owl."
Harry frowned. Even a decade later Hedwig's death hurt; he'd still not replaced her, preferring instead to just send his Patronus...or, in cases of emergency, Kreacher was always available. And for his Muggle friends—he'd gained a few while working for the Met—snail mail and his mobile worked just fine.
"Every boy should have a dog, Draco," he rationalized. "It's...a rite of passage."
"And so we're going to eventually have five dogs running around here?"
Harry scratched his head. "Hmm. Maybe I didn't think that one through."
"You think?"
"And what about the girls? No dogs for them? Cats maybe?" Draco asked. "I'm not overly fond of felines, Potter...and they make me sneeze."
"Noted."
"You didn't buy me a cat, did you?" the blond asked suspiciously.
"No, but I considered it."
Draco rolled his eyes. "Why would you think I'd want a cat?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't know. They're sort of snooty and so are you."
"I am not snooty!"
Snorting, Harry said, "Yes. You are. And again with the arguing with me over things you're supposedly not...but so completely are."
Draco then teasingly—childishly—stuck out his tongue.
"Ooo, I love it when you do that," Harry whispered as he quickly leaned forward and took the extended muscle into his mouth. "Besides, you're a novelist...isn't every writer supposed to have a cat hanging around, for like...a muse or something?"
"Where do you hear these things, Potter?"
Harry shrugged. "I do have a special gift for you though, love," he whispered, then nibbled on the blond's ear.
"Were you not listening when I said you're not getting any, Potter?" Draco asked—as his eyes drooped closed. "You're not," he reiterated.
"I heard you and...this isn't about that," said Harry, giving the blond a few more biting kisses, then backing off. "Why don't you take these three into the lounge and I'll call you down when breakfast is ready."
"Hmm. As much as I'd like that, I think we'll stay and I'll help you."
Harry shrugged. "Suit yourself, but...maybe you could go back up and gather the rest of our brood."
Draco rolled his eyes. "More dirty nappies for me," he complained. "Yay."
Harry laughed. "Are you a wizard or what, Draco? Just magick that shite gone," he said, laughing at his choice of words.
Draco frowned. "Sometimes I forget that I can use magic again," he said quietly.
Harry nodded his understanding. The blond hadn't really been able to be around any sort magic—including his own—for a very long time and had gotten used to living as a Muggle. How, Harry did not know; it must have been excruciating for someone who'd grown up surrounded by it to suddenly have to live without it. He couldn't even imagine it and he'd grown up without it.
"But you can," the dark-haired man whispered back. "Enjoy it."
Smiling, Draco nodded.
Leaning in, Harry gave Draco a final kiss, then swatted the blond's behind and turned toward the cooker to get to work.
~ o ~
After opening presents, the Malfoy-Potter clan sat at their dining room table and ate the hearty Christmas morning breakfast that Harry had cooked for them, then went back upstairs to the lounge to watch a holiday movie. Well, the two men were going to watch the movie while the children played with their new toys. Most of the children anyway—clutching her new baby doll, twenty-month-old Aria had fallen asleep on the sofa next to Harry and their one-year-old twins, who had been staring up at the fairy lights on the tree, were now dozing on the floor under it, Lyra hugging her "baby dowwy" and Sirius holding his twin sister.
"Look at them," Draco said with a smile. "Fought sleep as long as they could."
Nodding, Harry covered his mouth and yawned. "I love it when they totally pass out like that," he said. "They can sleep anywhere."
Draco snorted. "Just like their poppy," he said, thinking about the time Harry'd passed out in a cupboard while they were playing hide-and-seek with the kids one night.
Harry blushed. "Hey, I'd worked all day and was exhausted."
"And so ended your Muggle career as a copper," the blond said happily—he'd hated Harry's ridiculously dangerous Auror-like Muggle job and was thrilled when the dark-haired man finally decided to quit working fulltime for the Met and stay home with him and the children.
"Hmm. Sure did," Harry agreed. He'd been more than happy to quit his full time job and stay home. The only reason he'd worked so much to begin with was because he was bored out of his bloody mind and lonely as fuck. But, he certainly wasn't either of those things anymore. Not with a boyfriend and seven children. He was still working though—doing private investigations, which he only accepted on a case by case basis. And only non-dangerous jobs—because Draco freaked out at the mere thought of losing him.
"Sooo...you said you have a special gift for me. Come on...let's have it."
Harry grinned. He'd been wondering how long it would be before the blond asked. He'd only given him until half eight, but Draco had lasted an extra fifteen minutes. He was impressed.
"All right," Harry said. "Close your eyes."
After rolling his eyes, Draco pursed his lips and complied.
Waving a hand in front of Draco's closed lids—to see if he was peeking—Harry moved his hand to the left pocket of his loungewear pants and dug around, then pulled out a small box.
"Hurry up, Harry...this is painful."
"Okay," he said as he held the box in the flat of his hand, "you can open up now."
Draco's eyes snapped open and immediately focused on the small box in front of him—which Harry gently opened, exposing a ring.
"Draco, you know I'm going to bollocks this up, so I'm just going to ask. Will you marry me?"
Draco grinned and, without a moment's hesitation, nodded, then slowly reached for the ring. It was a relatively plain wedding band, with a soft round curve and a satin finish, and made of platinum and white gold, the two different metal colors intertwined and penetrating through the depth of the ring design and visible through and through. It was lovely.
"Do you like it?" Harry asked after nervously watching the blond inspect the ring.
Draco nodded again. "I love it, Harry," he said, then held it out to the other man. "Put it on me."
Grinning, Harry sat up straighter and took Draco's hand, then slipped the ring on and smiled. "It looks good. I wasn't sure if it would. I was worried it was too...plain for you."
Draco shook his head. "No. It's perfect," he said. He was holding his hand up and looking at the beautiful ring that looked so right on his hand—and smiling. "You know, I was planning on doing the same thing, but you stole my thunder."
Harry frowned. "Oh. I'm sorry."
Draco shook his head. "No. It's fine. I was...stalling," he admitted, embarrassed. "Merlin, I hate admitting that I was scared, but I was. And now I don't have to be, because you saved me, once again."
Harry grinned. "That's my job."
"And sooo," Draco said, leaning slightly away from Harry and digging into a crevice of the sofa, then quickly returning with another small box, "this is for you."
Draco let Harry take the box and open it, then he reached out and plucked the ring from said box and smiled. "I know you already asked and I said yes, but...I need to ask too. Harry James Potter, will you do me the honor of becoming my bonded husband?"
Nodding, Harry let Draco slide the ring over his finger. His ring, also made of platinum featured a textured center and polished edges, creating a beautiful contrast, but it wasn't quite as delicate-looking as the ring he'd given the blond.
"It looks like me," he said.
Draco released his breath. "You like it then," he said, relieved.
"I do...very much."
"Good. I wasn't sure. I was going to commission a jeweler to create something, then have it stamped with the Malfoy family crest, but then I found this and imagined it on you. I thought it was right, but I've been second-guessing my decision ever since I picked it out."
"Well, stop that," Harry said. "This is great! And, we could still have it stamped on the inside. We could do both rings."
Draco shook his head. "Only if we have a crest made for the Potter family and put them inside together, side by side."
Harry grinned. "That's actually a great idea, Draco. I'll have to hunt around in my vault first though...might already have one."
The blond frowned. "How can you not know?"
"Because there's a lot of shite in there and I've never bothered to inventory it all. Plus, I have Sirius' vault too. And his house. There's so much crap in here, you have no idea."
"Oh right. I forgot that Sirius Black was your godfather," Draco said, shuddering a little as he remembered the stories he'd heard during their third year—and then later when the man was murdered.
"And your mother's cousin."
"Wait. You own that grim old place that my mother's cousins grew up in?"
Harry nodded and chuckled to himself at what Draco had called the Grimmauld Place. "Didn't I mention that?"
"Obviously not, Potter, or I wouldn't be asking."
"Right. Well, now I have."
"Is that where you were living before moving in here?" Draco asked, wondering why he'd never asked these questions before.
Harry shook his head. "Naw, it's disgusting in there and...much too large for just me. I would have been rattling around in there. And it's creepy. There's the viciously mean and loud portrait of Walburga Black permanently stuck to the wall in the entrance hall...and...a row of shrunken house-elf heads mounted on plaques on the wall in the first floor stairwell. And countless other things. Nope, didn't live there."
"Big though, huh? Maybe we should consider gutting it out and moving there."
"Well, I'll show it to you, if you want, but it's a dump," Harry said.
"Fine," Draco said—then the Floo flared.
"Draco, darling, can I come through?" Narcissa Malfoy asked.
"Of course, Mother," the blond said as he and Harry got to their feet.
Coming through, the older blonde woman went to her son and hugged him, then hugged Harry too—then glanced around at the Christmas morning mess. "Happy Christmas, dears," she said to her grandchildren—and was immediately engulfed by the small arms of four of her son's children.
After lots hugs and kisses, the boys went back to their playing and Narcissa settled onto the settee across from the one Draco and Harry had been sitting on.
"Would you like some tea, Narcissa?" Harry offered.
"Oh, yes, dear," the woman said. "Thank you."
Smiling, Harry headed to the kitchen and Narcissa looked at her son.
"You look happy, darling. Are you having a good morning?"
"Oh yes," Draco said, then held up his hand to show his mother the ring Harry had just given him.
Her eyes widening, Narcissa leaned forward to inspect her son's ring. It's wasn't nearly as ornate as most of the pure-blood engagement rings she'd seen, but it definitely suited her son's delicate hands.
"It's lovely, darling," she said—then frowned.
"What's wrong, Mother?" asked Draco. "Don't you like it?"
"Oh, the ring is quite exquisite, darling. It's just...won't you and Harry change your minds about today, dear...and come to the manor for dinner?"
Draco shook his head. "I'm sorry, Mother, but we're expected over at the Burrow. I promised."
The woman's nose scrunched up, causing her face to look like someone had shoved something smelly under her nose. "But, Draco, that will leave us alone."
Sighing, Draco reached up and rubbed the side of his face. He hated the guilt. It was so hard to resist and he knew she'd waited for Harry to be out of the room to trip him up with it—and he didn't appreciate it at all. Looking back at her, he shook his head. "Mother. I've made a commitment and I'm not going to back out. Harry and the children and I are available tomorrow, for Boxing Day, but not today," Draco said firmly, "as I told you last month...and three weeks ago...and last week...and yesterday."
Pursing her lips, his mother looked about to argue—and so Draco continued.
"And, if you remember correctly, despite everything, the Weasleys did invite you and Father over as well...for Harry," he added, because he knew his mother had a soft spot for his Harry.
Frowning, Narcissa's blue eyes filling with pain. "But...that woman murdered my sister," she whispered.
Draco sighed. It had been almost ten and half years since the war and his mother had still not let that go. "Are you serious, Mother?" he asked. "Your sister was insane."
Narcissa blinked at her son. "I know, but...she was still my sister."
Draco nodded. "And so is Aunt Dromeda...whose daughter was murdered by Aunt Bella, Mother. Isn't it time to let bygones be bygones?"
The blonde woman bit her lip and blinked back tears that she refused to let fall. She spent time with her living sister, but they never discussed the war or their losses.
"Besides, the sister that you still have will be there as well...at the Burrow."
Narcissa's nose wrinkled up again. "I've heard the place is atrocious," she said.
Draco rolled his eyes. "Yes, from me...years ago when I was jealous that Harry was friends with Ronald Weasley when he'd refused my hand, but...I haven't actually been there."
"I'm still not sure how that happened...you and Harry not getting on," the woman said with a snort.
"I was a little shite, Mother. I've faced that fact," said Draco. "But we've all grown up and, for Harry, have put it all in the past. Couldn't you do it too? For me?"
"I don't know, Draco," she said. "I'm not sure I can and I don't see your father socializing with Weasleys."
Draco laughed. "Frankly Mother, I don't either, but...they're Harry's family, so they're now mine as well. It doesn't do well to squabble with one's in-laws."
"This is true," the woman said to her son. "And your Harry has been very good about your father's persnicketiness."
The blond man snorted. "That's a nice way of putting it."
Narcissa waved her hand dismissively. "I was trying to be diplomatic, darling. I am well aware that your father is downright discourteous when it comes to Harry."
"That's still putting it mildly," Draco complained.
"I know, but...at least your father is acknowledging the children now."
Draco nodded. "That's something, I guess."
"He loves you, darling. He'll come around."
"Well, I won't be holding my breath," Draco said with another snort—then smiled as Harry walked back into the room.
~ o ~
Standing in the family lounge in front of the Floo, Draco fussed with Harry's collar, then knelt down to do the same to Caelum's, then glanced at the other children before going over to the mirror to check himself again.
"What are you doing, Dad?" asked his oldest son, his gray eyes going to Harry curiously.
His hand on Caelum's shoulder, Harry gave the boy a look that pretty much said, let me handle this, then crossed the room to Draco and physically turned him around. "Draco, the Weasleys all know us and they're not going to give a rat's arse whether we're neat and orderly or come in arse over elbow."
Draco cracked a smile at the image Harry's words caused, but said, "I care."
"I know you do, love, but...just remember that if we're too spiffy we'll be completely out of place over there."
"Right," Draco said—but then went back to straightening his tie.
Rolling his eyes, Harry reached out and loosened the blond's tie, then quickly pulled it off.
"Hey!" Draco wailed. "I want to wear that."
Harry shook his head. "You're not wearing a tie. You'd be the only one and you'd look ridiculous...then you'd blame me for letting you overdress. Plus, there might be Quidditch." Grabbing Draco's coat, Harry held it up. "Come on, let's get moving."
Sighing, Draco let Harry help him put his coat on, then turned toward the Floo. "So, how do we do this?"
"I'll go through, then I'll signal and you can hand the kids through."
Draco nodded. "Right," he said. He hated traveling by Floo; it was so dirty! "Are you sure I'm safe there?"
Smiling, Harry leaned in and kissed his boyfriend. "Yes, dear. I'm absolutely certain that my family won't do anything to your pretty little head."
Draco kissed back, but wished he'd not promised Harry he'd go to the Weasley's house for Christmas. Right now he'd be much more comfortable at Malfoy Manor with his own parents—difficult as his father was sometimes.
Taking up Draco's newly ringed hand, Harry gave it a kiss, then tugged the blond to the Floo. "Give me a minute. I'm likely to be accosted the moment I get there."
Draco nodded.
"In fact," he said, picking up Sirius and Lyra, "I'll take these two with me as distractions for whoever is waiting."
Draco nodded again, then watched Harry disappear into the Floo.
~ o ~
"Oh, 'Arry!" Harry heard as soon as he stepped through into the Weasley's kitchen. "Give Tante Fleur ze babies," she said, rushing him.
Harry laughed and handed the woman Lyra, then felt Sirius being lifted from his arms by someone else. It was Andromeda and he smiled gratefully at her.
"Merlin, with that black hair, he looks more and more like his namesake every time I see him," the woman said. "Except for the green eyes. He has your eyes, Harry."
"That he does," the green-eyed man agreed. "Give me a minute though...to get the others and Draco through before Draco chickens out and refuses to come."
"Hmph! 'E'd fit right in 'ere, with all ze chickens in ze back," Fleur said with a grin, her accent not really much better than it used to be even though she'd been living in England for a decade now. There'd been a time when she didn't feel quite at home at the Burrow—Molly had objected to her son's choice in a wife—but those days were long gone.
Harry laughed again, then said, "Be right back."
Turning, he stuffed the upper half of his body through the Floo and quickly came back with two more children; Scorpius and Aria. Caelum came through next, holding Orion's hand, then Draco and Corvus followed more shyly.
Finally, they were all there.
"Harry!" Hermione said, coming into the kitchen and throwing her arms around her long-time friend, then doing the same to the clearly uncomfortable blond—whether he liked it or not. "Draco. I'm so glad you're all here. Happy Christmas."
"Happy Christmas," Draco returned somewhat stiffly, then glanced around the kitchen. In the time he'd been dating Harry, they'd never come here together before—mostly because there were so many of them and traveling wasn't easy—but it was pretty much how he'd imagined it to be; small and cluttered and cramped.
But it was homey and lived-in too—Draco could easily concede to that—and he could immediately see why Harry loved it so much.
"Caelum!" came Teddy's scream from the other room. "Get. In. HERE!"
Grinning, Caelum looked up at his dads. "Can I?"
Without checking with Draco, Harry nodded. "Sure buddy. Have fun," he encouraged while watching their three oldest run out of the room.
Frowning, Draco moved closer to Harry. "It's...pretty chaotic in here," he whispered, his eyes going around the room—and noticing that not one of his children were in the room anymore.
"It's fine, love...don't worry," Harry tried to reassure the man clinging to him.
And then things got more crazy—the backdoor banged open and a host of boisterous men entered; five red-heads he knew and a brunet man Draco didn't recognize.
"Where's mum?" Bill asked his wife as he pulled his hair back into a ponytail, as they all came in laughing and carrying on.
"Molly ees in ze sitting room with ze ladies, Bill. But vere are your manners, 'usband?" the blonde woman chided, giving the man a firm slap on the chest. "Can't you see zat 'Arry's family is 'ere."
Wincing, Bill noticed the presence of the Malfoy-Potter family—apparently at the same time as the rest of those who'd just entered—and gave a wave hello.
"Harry! Mate!" Ron bellowed. "So glad you guys finally made it."
"Yeah, just in time to not have to help put up the tent out back," grumbled George—but he was teasing, of course. "How's it hanging, Harry?" the red-haired man asked after giving Harry's hand a firm shake.
"Nice!" came the voice of a very pregnant Angelina from the doorway. "Must you be so crude?" she asked her husband—but her husband just laughed.
"Things are good, George," he said. "Really good." Then he went over and hugged George's wife. "You're looking lovely, as always, Angelina," he said to her.
The dark-skinned woman grinned and winked at him. "Of course," she said confidently.
Harry just laughed.
"Why is it that you laugh when she says that, but I'd have gotten scolded if I'd said it?" Draco asked quietly—but everyone still heard him.
"Cuz you're a git, Malfoy," George quipped.
Draco bristled at this, but he didn't have a chance to respond because Angelina Weasley thumped her husband on the shoulder and glared at him. "Be nice!"
"What?!" George said in his most innocent voice.
Having not said anything yet, Charlie Weasley stepped forward to greet them. "Hey Harry. Been a while, huh?" he said, shaking the dark-haired man's hand then taking Draco's before the blond knew what hit him. "Malfoy. I hear you're making Harry here blissfully happy."
Shaking the stocky man's hand—because he wasn't really given a choice—Draco glanced quickly at Harry, then back at the dragon-handler, giving a clipped nod. "I'm trying," he said honestly.
"Well, that's all we can ask, isn't it?" Charlie said with a grin. "Anyway, I'd like you'd both to meet my partner—"
"Oi!" Ron interrupted. "Get this, Harry, Charlie's boyfriend's name is Chuck! Chuck and Charlie." He sniggered.
Charlie rolled his eyes and tilted his head toward the man next to him. "This is Chuck," he drawled. "Chuck, this is Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy."
The man named Chuck grinned. "Hey, nice to meet you both," he said. "I've heard so much about you."
"Don't believe everything you hear, especially from this one," Harry said, pointing at Charlie.
Both Chuck and Charlie laughed.
"Is anyone going to offer Harry and Malfoy a drink?" Percy asked a bit snootily, once there was a break in conversation.
"Pfft! Harry knows where the liquor cabinet is, Percy," George said with a snort. "If he or the wife wants a drink, he knows exactly where to get it."
"True, but...thanks Perce," Harry said politely as he took Draco's hand to shut up the snarky remark he felt coming. "We'd love drinks. We brought our own, as well as some wine for the parents." Harry looked at Draco and the blond opened the bag he was carrying and pulled out the bottle that was supposed to be for Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, then held the bag out to Percy.
"Great!" George burst, intercepting the bag and strutting out of the room—causing Percy to roll his eyes.
"Sorry," Percy apologized for his brother. "If you'll come into the sitting room, we'll pour you two a drink. Let's hope before George consumes it all."
~ o ~
"Oh, for Godric's sake, Mum! You told me to bring whomever I was dating," Ginny bellowed. "And I did."
Molly, hands on hips, glared at her daughter. "I said you could bring a date. A date! As in one! Not almost a third of a Quidditch team."
Rolling her eyes, Ginny threw her hands up. "Well, I couldn't decide, so I brought them both," she said, not telling her mum that she'd actually culled through her boyfriends and picked her two favorites. "But I really don't remember you specifying only one. And, if Harry can bring Malfoy and their seven rugrats, then you can certainly put up with two of my boyfriends."
Lifting a bottle of Muggle beer to his mouth, George plopping down in the nearest chair and prepared to watch the show—as everyone else filtered into the room.
"Two of her boyfriends," quipped George, holding up two fingers and winking at his sister. "Nice, sis!"
Seeing him, Ginny grinned—then seemed to realize they room had filled up. "Hi everyone! Meet Terence Higgs and Anthony Rickett...my dates! Please make them feel welcome or I'll Crucio you within an inch of your life," she threatened with a grin.
"GINNY!" screeched Molly—but that only caused the younger woman to roll her eyes.
"Okay, Molly, give it a rest," Arthur said as he came in and looked around the room. "And we're not finished in the back, boys. The lot of you can come out and help me with a warming charm while the ladies handle the house."
"Pfft!" Ginny burst, still in a snit over her mum's old-fashionedness. "I don't have any kids in here and I don't cook, so I'll help out back. Come on, boys." And with that, she and her boyfriends headed out back.
Ginny's brothers laughed—except for Percy—and most everyone followed the tenacious young woman.
"Oh, that girl!" Molly growled as the back door snapped shut. Then, noticing Harry still in the house, she glared at him. "I thought you were going to tame her, Harry Potter!"
"Sorry, Molly, but this one is about all I can handle," Harry joked as he grabbed Draco's hand again.
Draco tried—and failed—to pull his hand away, then gave Harry the evil eye, because he hated it when his dark-haired boyfriend made it seem like he was high maintenance—even though he knew that he often was. "You little shite," he hissed under his breath as he smiled at Molly Weasley.
Molly sighed, then smiled and came forward to hug both Harry and Draco. "So glad we're all here now," she said. Then she frowned. "Or...are we still waiting on your parents, dear?" she asked Draco.
Shaking his head, Draco said, "No, I'm afraid they're not going to be able to make it this time, Mrs. Weasley."
"Molly," the plump woman instantly reminded him. "And that's too bad...though I'm not surprised."
Draco wasn't either and so he said nothing about it. Instead, he held out the bottle of wine he and Harry had brought. "This is for you and Arthur, Molly...from our vineyard in France. If you like it, I'll make sure you have as much as you want."
Molly accepted the proffered bottle and looked at its label, then grinned up at the blond man. "Thank you so much, Draco dear," she said. "I'm sure we'll love it. Now, you two should go outside with the rest. I'm sure they're not working too hard out there. Probably not at all."
"Thank you, Molly, but...the children," Draco objected, not quite sure what he should do.
"Oh posh!" she said, waving her hand to dismiss his concern. "What's seven more children when there are already eleven in here...and plenty of women to care for them? Go on...get out and enjoy some adult time."
Draco glanced at Harry and frowned, but Harry just smiled. "Thank you, Molly," he said as he pulled Draco toward the back door.
~ o ~
And Molly had been right, the men—plus Ginny now—were just hanging out in the back.
But not really only the men. Molly's aunt Muriel was sitting out there too, talking the ear off some young woman that Harry felt like he should recognize, but wasn't quite sure who she was.
Leaning into Harry, Draco whispered, "Her name's Mafalda. Complete gossipmonger and know-it-all."
"How do you know?"
"She was in Slytherin. A few years under us. Very smart, but always boasting. Annoying chit. And an eavesdropper too," Draco explained. "I remember Pansy once grabbing her by the hair and dragging her out of the Slytherin Common Room. Said we'd not have any more problems with her. I think Pansy threatened to expose that she was the daughter of a Squib and a Muggle."
Harry frowned. "That's...a bit harsh, isn't it?" he said, still not much of a fan of Pansy Parkinson.
"The hell it is!" Ginny said, coming up behind the gossiping pair. "Sorry to eavesdrop, but I can't stand Mafalda. I have no idea why mum invited her and her snot-nosed husband. Ravenclaw. Thank Merlin they don't have any children."
"Yet," Ron said, suddenly appearing beside them with George.
"Come on, Gin, be nice," scolded George.
"Pfft! You didn't have to share your room with her when she'd visit, George. She's horrible," Ginny complained.
"Well then, she'll fit right in with our lovely aunt, won't she?" George teased.
They all looked over there and watched the younger witch conversing with their great aunt, Muriel, the old bat. You could just tell they were talking smack about others.
"Do you suppose another Dung-bomb under her chair at dinner is in order?" George asked.
Ginny snickered, but Ron said, "Don't you dare, George...mum'll have a fit."
George sighed. "All right then. How about Mafada's chair?" he asked hopefully.
"Now that I'd like to see," Ginny said, "but...probably not a good idea."
"Don't you remember her, Harry?" Ron asked. "Mafalda, I mean. She tried several times to bring us Death Eater gossip from Slytherin, but we never believed her."
Harry frowned—as did Draco—and shook his head. "No. Sorry."
"And so...why's she here?" Draco asked.
Ron pulled a face. "Didn't you know, she's a cousin? Like...third cousin or something on mum's side."
"And that guy with them?" Harry asked, eyeing the man sitting with the two women.
"That's Mafalda's husband, Eddie Carmichael. He's the one that Hermione caught trying to sell that Baruffio's Brain Elixir to younger students. Remember, he tried to sell us some...in fifth or sixth year?"
Harry nodded. "Oh right," he said, only vaguely recollecting the incident.
"Anyway, as I recall, Hermione confiscated the stuff and poured it down the toilet. Said it was probably illicit," Ron continued.
"Of course she did," Draco said, rolling his eyes. "I don't know how you two could stand her...back then," he added when Ron glared at him.
"I recognize that older guy," Harry said, gesturing across the tented area to where he saw Arthur Weasley standing and chatting with three other men.
Ron nodded. "Yeah, you met him at Bill's wedding. That's dad's younger brother, Arnold. Remember, he spent part of the evening thinking you were his son, because we'd disguised you under red curls...even though we were calling you cousin Barny and that's not his son's name."
Harry nodded and laughed. "Oh right."
George laughed as well. "I remember that. He'd had a few more drinks than he was aware of; Fred and I spiked his punch early on, then kept refilling his champagne once he'd switched over. He was completely pissed by the time the wedding was broken up."
"You two are...were...evil," Draco said—then frowned and looked embarrassed.
George blinked in surprised, but saw how uncomfortable the blond looked. For a second, he considered capitalizing on the other man's discomfiture—he would have in the old days—then decided against it. He told himself that he did it for Harry, but wasn't completely sure that was true. "Yeah," he finally said, then sighed.
"Who're the other two?" Harry asked, to fill the void.
"Dad's other brother, Arliss, and my cousin, Rusty. Rusty is Arnold's son," Ron explained. "Rusty wasn't at the wedding, because his wife was having a baby, but our uncle, Arliss, was there with his wife and sons; they have three of them. I think his wife, my Aunt Elizete, must be inside with mum. Their sons aren't here today though."
Draco snorted. "Rusty?"
"Think his name is funny, do you?" Ron asked, looking affronted.
The blond shrugged. "Actually, it quite fits. Red hair and all."
"Yes, well...you have a redheaded kid now yourself, Malfoy, so...you might want to shut it," said Ron—and Harry wasn't at all sure his friend was teasing.
"Hey," Harry cut in, looking at his friend. "Guess my son's middle name."
Draco's eyes widened and he shook his head. "No, Harry, it's all—"
"Which one?" Ron asked with an eye roll and a snicker. "I mean, you two do have a Quidditch team's worth of kids now."
"Oh, because you're one to talk, coming from a family the same size," Harry teased back. "But I was talking about our older twins. I don't think you've ever asked."
"Er...I think you're right," Ron agreed. "All right then, what is it?"
Harry looked at Draco—who looked like he wanted to vanish—and grabbed his hand and squeezed. "It's Alfred," he said. "For Albus Dumbledore and...Fred. Corvus Alfred Malfoy-Potter."
George gasped. "My Fred?" he asked, his voice low and full of surprise.
Draco nodded. "Yes. I hope...that's all right."
Frowning, George just stood there for a moment—then he blinked and walked away.
"Nice, Potter! Thanks a lot," Draco growled. "They're finally accepting me and you have to go and blow it."
"I'm sorry, Draco...I didn't think. I just...I'm sorry," mumbled Harry, feeling horrible.
"No," Ginny cut in. "I never thought I'd say this, Malfoy, but...I think I rather like you better now. I mean, you were a nasty little shite in school, but you've clearly changed."
Draco frowned at the red-haired woman. "Um. Thank you, I think."
"And I can't say I've ever seen Harry so happy," she continued. "That makes you okay in my book. And don't worry about George. He's not upset about what you did."
"He's not?"
Ginny shook her head. "On the contrary, you've moved him into silence. That's hard to do," she said with a grin, then leaned over and hugged the blond, then kissed his cheek. "So, thank you, Malfoy. May I call you Draco?"
His gray eyes wide, Draco shrugged. "I supposed."
"Because, we are family, you know?" Ginny said. "Even without you being with our Harry here."
"Right. Well, Mother never liked to discuss you riffraff," the blond said, trying to look serious.
Ginny just snorted, gave the man another quick hug, and went off to join her boyfriends—who were getting the third degree from Bill and Charlie. "Hey! Back off!" they could hear the red-haired woman yell at her oldest brothers.
"Our Fred?" Ron asked, as soon as his sister had gone. "You named your son after our Fred? Even before Harry?"
Silently, Draco nodded—and he wasn't sure, but he might have seen a bit of moisture in Ron Weasley's eyes.
~ o ~
Later, after presents had been opened and everyone was outside again—sporting Molly's homemade hats, gloves, scarves, and jumpers, among other things—the younger people were talking about putting a friendly game of Quidditch together.
But they were already arguing over teams, which did not bode well for the match being a friendly one.
"So, we have nineteen adults and only fourteen slots, so five of you can't play," Bill said to the assembled group of younger adults—cutting to the chase, but clearly not including himself with those who would be cut.
"Well, Angelina's not playing, because she's pregnant, so we only need to trim our numbers by four," George reminded them.
"And I'm not playing," Hermione put in from the chair in which she sat nursing her six-month-old son, Hugo. "You guys know that."
Ron nodded. "Yeah, Hermione's shite on a broom anyway," he said—then glanced at his wife to make sure he wasn't in trouble. She just shrugged; it was true, after all.
"And Percy's out too," George added. "He's worthless."
"Hey! I'm not that bad," Percy argued.
His wife snorted. "Yes, love, you really are," she said, agreeing with her brother-in-law, but giving her husband a loving squeeze. "But that's all right, because I'll be sitting out with you. Besides being shite at Quidditch, Lucy needs to be fed."
"And I'm not playing either," Eddie Carmichael informed the group, without giving any sort of explanation.
"That settles it then," Bill said. "Teams?"
"Chuck can play any position," said Charlie.
George snorted. "Yeah, I'll just bet he can."
Charlie just rolled his eyes and gave his brother a shove, but everyone else laughed.
"Well, we only need two Seekers, so...who's it going to be?" Bill asked.
"Wait," Ginny interrupted. "Let's pick teams first."
Ron frowned. "But then one team might end up with two Keepers and not enough Chasers...or something."
Ginny rolled her eyes. "That would make it more interesting, but I doubt it'll happen...we're all pretty good and can play multiple positions."
Charlie nodded. "Gin's right."
"All right. By age then?" Bill queried.
Everyone nodded.
"So, let's see. Rusty, Charlie, Fleur, George...Malfoy, Ron, and Mafalda on one team," Bill said as he mentally figured out ages. "And Chuck, Persephone, Terence, Anthony, Harry, Ginny, and myself on the other. Do I have that correct?"
Both Charlie and Draco frowned, because their significant others were on the opposite team. Charlie only appeared to be disappointed—probably because he knew how good Chuck was—but the look on Draco's face was hard to read.
"I don't think Malfoy likes it that Harry's playing for the other team...so to speak," George observed teasingly. "Tired of losing to Harry, are you?" he asked the blond.
Draco's face reddened.
"Or is it that you don't like it that Potter's on the same team as Gin, Draco?" Terence Higgs asked, seeing his ex-Housemate's face and thinking he knew what the problem was.
"Pfft! He's worried about the wrong Weasley if he's got a problem with that," George quipped.
"GEORGE!" Charlie bellowed, causing Chuck to chuckle—which told everyone that he'd already been aware of his boyfriend's tryst with the younger dark-haired war hero and that he didn't have a problem with it.
Draco, on the other hand, whipped his head around to stare at Harry and crossed his arms over his chest in irritation; he'd clearly not been aware and was not at all pleased about what was revealed. Ron's jaw dropped open and his face turned bright red; it was bad enough that he thought his best friend might have slept with his sister, but...Charlie too? And Ginny, her eyes open as wide as saucers, looked over at George questioningly, silently asking why he'd not mentioned that juicy bit of information before.
"You said no one I know," Draco accused.
Harry shrugged. "Well, you don't know Charlie...or didn't when I told you that," the dark-haired man corrected himself.
"I sort of knew of him," the blond grumbled, thinking about their fourth year when the dragon-handler had come to Hogwarts with his dragons for the Tri-wizard Tournament.
"Oh, stop acting all devastated and innocent, blondie," Ginny cut in, grinning from ear to ear. "I know for a fact that there's someone here, besides Harry, that you've been with too, so...yeah."
Draco's face instantly went pink—and so did Terence's, revealing with whom Draco'd had sex.
Harry grinned. "So he's the seventh year."
Looking embarrassed, the blond gave Harry the tiniest of nods, then turned and glared at Ginny. "I might just have to revoke my consent to use my given name, Weaslette," he threatened.
Ginny just laughed. "You think that would stop me, Draco?" she asked—then to the group she said, "Are we going to play some Quidditch or what?"
"Wait!" Fleur said, holding up a hand. "Let's make zis fair. If ze rest of us can't 'ave our signeeficant others on our team, zen maybe we should split Geenny up from 'er boyfriends as well," she suggested, then glanced at her sister-in-law apologetically, worried that she had stepped on toes.
But Ginny wasn't upset at all. Shrugging, she nodded. "Yeah. Sure, that's fair. I'll switch places with Mafalda."
Everyone nodded again and the two groups separated to work out who would play which position.
~ o ~
"Well, we have two who were Beaters at Hogwarts, so...what do you two say?" Bill asked, his eyes going to his sister's boyfriend, Anthony, and then his distant cousin.
Mafalda shrugged. "Works for me," she said—and Anthony nodded.
"Great," Bill said, glad his annoying cousin didn't argue. "So, Harry, heard you're a decent Beater, but seeing as we already have two of those, we'll just put you in the position you're used to...Seeker. That all right?"
"Fine," he said, but cast a glance over at Charlie...knowing full well that Charlie was a brilliant Seeker, making him more than a challenge to beat.
"Chuck, since Charlie said you can play any position, do you have a favorite between what's left?" Bill asked next.
The brunet shrugged. "It doesn't really matter, Bill...wherever I'm needed. I'm fairly proficient at them all; my sister, Ariel, is on the American National Quidditch Team, so I trained quite a bit with her."
"Excellent!" Bill said with a smile. "So...Persephone...Rusty mentioned that you played in Greece."
The black-haired woman nodded. "Yes, I played a similar game. We have five hoops to score through though. I think I could easily defend just three," she said. She cast a glance at her husband, wondering what position he'd take for the other team, then looked back at Bill Weasley and smiled.
"All right then. Terence. I believe I heard you were a Chaser for Slytherin," Bill said next, his eyes going to the other of Ginny's boyfriends.
"No actually," Harry interrupted, "Higgs was a Seeker before Draco joined their team."
"Oh. Sorry," said the eldest Weasley sibling, frowning. "Um. Hmm."
Terence shrugged. "It's fine. Potter's better than I ever was...I'm fine wherever."
Harry frowned. "Are you sure? Because...I don't mind."
"Afraid to go up against Charlie, are you?" the ex-Slytherin half-taunted.
"Well, it does make me a bit nervous," Harry admitted, "but...I'm not afraid or anything."
"Good boy!" Bill said as he gave Harry a friendly slap on the back. "So, Harry is Seeker, and that leaves Terence, Chuck, and me as Chasers. Yeah?"
Everyone nodded. "Sounds about right."
~ o ~
Just a short distance from Bill's team, Rusty Weasley was organizing his team. "So, I hear Ron's a fairly decent Keeper, yeah?"
Ron blushed, but George and Ginny shrugged and nodded. "He'll do," she said.
"You up to it, cousin?" the older man asked the younger one.
"You bet," said Ron, looking pretty confident.
"Great! All right, so...we know who's Seeker," Rusty said, looking at his cousin Charlie—and completely disregarding that Draco Malfoy had once been a Seeker as well and causing the blond to clench his jaw.
Seeing this, Charlie spoke up. "There's Malfoy too," he said. "I was told he's pretty great."
Ron snorted. "One guess who told you that," he teased.
Draco's eyes narrowed. "I'll have you know that—"
"Hush up, Draco," Ginny cut in. "When are you going to learn that Ron just likes riling you up?"
Draco frowned, then closed his mouth on the matter.
But he wasn't the only one frowning. Rusty was to. He hadn't known Draco Malfoy prior to this day, but most of what he'd heard about the man wasn't good. Frankly, he didn't even like that the blond was here...after what he and his family had done during the war. Rusty had lost his mother in the first war and was old enough at the time that he remembered her and the loss. And he'd lost friends in the second war. No, he was not a fan of the Malfoys. However, he would defer to those who seemed to have reason to trust the blond—Draco Malfoy was, after all, the boyfriend of Harry Potter. And so he shrugged to show that he would not argue.
But Draco did.
"No, if we want to win, then Charlie's the better choice," Draco put in. "Besides, as many of us know, I've always had hard time playing against Potter."
George snickered. "Kicked your arse at Hogwarts, he did."
Draco glared. "I wouldn't go that far, Weasley!" he snapped.
Ginny laughed. "Well, at least we now know that all the shenanigans between you two at Hogwarts was just a bunch of foreplay."
Draco looked affronted. "It was not!" he argued.
Ron rolled his eyes. "Could we just get on with this?"
Rusty nodded. "Right. Charlie's Seeker. Ron's Keeper. I'm assuming George is a Beater, so we need another Beater and three Chasers."
"I'm fairly decent with ze broom, Rusty, but...I don't theenk I'd make a very good Beater," said Fleur, shaking her head.
"Chaser then?" Rusty asked, making the silver-blonde woman smile and nod. "We still need another Beater. I'll do it if neither of you two want to, but...I'm really more of a Chaser."
Draco glanced at Ginny Weasley. "I'd rather be Chaser."
Ginny shrugged. "I'll join George...we're an excellent pair."
George grinned at his sister, then draped an arm over her shoulder.
"All right then, we're set," Rusty said with a nod.
~ o ~
Approximately an hour and a half later—soaked through and through with sweat and rain—the group headed back to the Burrow from their match. They'd all played hard, but with little result.
At least not with the result that either team had hoped for; it had ended in a tie.
"I cannot believe you caught the Snitch right after they scored that last goal, Charlie," Ron bitched, pushing his sopping hair out of his face. "We had them!"
"Hey, in this weather it's not like I could tell what the score was," Charlie said in defense of himself—and, as if Mother Nature were listening, the rain that had been falling steadily began to fade just a little bit. "And, if you remember correctly," Charlie went on, "I had Harry here all over my arse."
Ron snorted. "That's nothing new, apparently," he said, not so under his breath—causing Draco to frown.
"Well, Ickle Ronniekins, if you'd have not let twenty goals through, we'd have won," George grumped, but half teasingly—then turned and glared at their older brother. "Which, by the way, I blame you for. The loss, I mean. You didn't bother to mention that Chuckie Boy here is a bloody professional," he said, gesturing at Charlie's boyfriend.
"He's not," Charlie argued. "His sister is."
"Yeah, but he's clearly just as good," Ginny huffed as she was joined by her boyfriends, Anthony pushing a wet strand of hair off her cheek and kissing her, then taking her broom to hold for her, then slipping his arm around her waist, while Terence grabbed her free hand and squeezed.
"Hiya, beautiful," the ex-Slytherin said to her as he planted a kiss on her forehead.
"Oi!" Ron bellowed. "You three...stop that and behave. Older brothers here. Four of us!"
Ginny responded by first glaring at her brother, then turning to face Terence to give him a big wet kiss.
"Oh Merlin, my eyes!" Ron roared, then looked at his brothers. "Are you guys going to just let her get away with this?"
Bill shrugged, but George added his two Knuts. "She's twenty-seven, Ron...our sister can do anything she wants. Just like the rest of us."
This caused Charlie to laugh and throw an arm over Chuck's shoulder and pull him close. "Nice match, love," he said, ignoring his youngest brother's annoyed glare. "You didn't share the Quaffle with everyone else though. That wasn't very nice," he scolded his boyfriend.
"You know I'm not very good at sharing, Charlie," the brunet said, sort of pouting. Then, looking over at his boyfriend's sister when he heard her giggle—she was now hanging over Terence's shoulder, her long wet red hair swinging back and forth—he grinned and nodded. "Unlike your sister's boyfriends apparently."
"And you," Ron said, turning from those who were goofing off and toward Rusty and continuing his rant. "You didn't mention that your wife is probably the best Keeper on the planet."
Rusty grinned, then leaned in and kissed said wife, but it was she who spoke. "Ahh, sorry Ron," she said, giving him a hug too. "Maybe next time I'll be on your team."
"Damn straight you will!" Ron snapped.
"Eet was a tie zough," Fleur said. "Zat's sort of nice. No one weens, but no one loses either."
"Right," Bill agreed as he joined his wife and confiscated her broom.
Rolling his eyes, Ron stomped away, grumbling as he went.
"I think you've upset Ickle Ronniekins," George joked, then ran after his brother—presumably to smooth things over.
"I still theenk eet was a good match," Fleur repeated. "What do you theenk, 'Arry?"
Harry'd been walking quietly, smiling at the banter between siblings and holding Draco's hand—somewhat possessively, because he knew his blond boyfriend was feeling a bit uncomfortable. Fiancé, he reminded himself.
"Um. Yeah, it was a great match," Harry agreed, then raised Draco's hand to his lips and kissed it reassuringly.
"Hey! Is that...a ring?" Ginny burst, instantly struggling herself off Terence's shoulder, then grabbing Draco's hand. "It is a ring! Is this an engagement ring? When did you two get engaged? And why didn't you tell us?"
Laughing, Harry glanced at Draco, then back at the group. "Just wanted to see how observant everyone was. I was betting on Hermione noticing first, but...she's been busy with the baby. But yes, we're engaged," he said, holding up his own hand to show off his own ring.
At this Ginny squealed—in a very un-Ginny-like manner—then reached out and hugged them both. Harry, of course, smiled and hugged her back enthusiastically, but Draco was more stiff and reserved about the contact, causing Ginny to pull back and half-glare at him.
"You know, you're really going to have to get used to this if you're going to be part of the family, Malfoy," she said, "because...we're touchy-feely people."
Draco snorted. "Well, I'm not," he protested.
"So. When did this happen?" Ginny asked again, ignoring the blond's words.
Both Harry and Draco grinned. "This morning," they said in unison.
"And when's the wedding?" she asked.
"No wedding," Draco said with a quite shake of his head. "I loathe all that nonsense."
Harry nodded. "Yeah. What Draco said. Plus, Narcissa gave her approval for us to do it privately, so...we'll probably just go off somewhere and get married."
"Bonded," Draco corrected.
Harry nodded. "Right. Bonded. Sometime soon?" he said, turning to look at his fiancé for confirmation.
"Yes. Definitely soon," the blond agreed—then frowned. "But wait. She did? I mean, when were you discussing this with Mother?"
"At the twin's birthday party. She wanted to know if we were ever going to bond and I told her I didn't know that we could marry...er...bond. Whatever. Many places in Muggle society marriage between same-sex couples isn't allowed, so I didn't know," Harry explained when several people looked confused.
"Zat ees completely unfair," Fleur put in, shaking her head of silvery hair and frowning. "I sometimes wonder about zese Muggles. Zey are so backwards."
Several nodded.
"It's not just Muggles. My mother isn't exactly pleased about it either," Chuck said. "Says I'm preventing her from having grandchildren."
"Zat is rideeculous!" Fleur burst. "Look at ze number of children zat 'Arry and Draco 'ave. Doesn't she know zat wizards do not need a witch to 'ave babies?"
Chuck nodded. "Well yes, but it's not as easy for most wizards as it's been for Draco. We have some friends who have been trying for years, to no avail," he said. "But what my mother doesn't seem to realize or understand, no matter how many times I tell her, is that I don't want any children. Never have."
Charlie nodded. "Neither do I," he said. "We're just too busy with our jobs and, to be perfectly honest, I'm just a little too selfish. I like being able to just pick up and go do whatever it is I want to do without having children to think about."
"Plus, our jobs are dangerous," Chuck added. "Wouldn't be right to bring children into a situation where they might lose one or both of their parents."
"See Potter, it would be wrong to have continued that copper job now that you have children," Draco said teasingly—but he meant it too.
Harry rolled his eyes—they'd been over this a number of times until he'd finally quit—then smiled and said, "Yes dear," causing the group to laugh.
"So, when's the next one coming, Malfoy?" Charlie Weasley asked with a smirk.
Draco's eyes widened. "No. Uh-uh," he said as he shook his wet head. "There will be no more children from me. If there are any more, Harry's having them!"
Several people chucked—disbelievingly.
"No, really, he is. Right, Potter?"
Leaning in, Harry kissed the blond and nodded. "Yes, I did agree to that," he said.
Draco sighed with relief. "Good, because I'm not doing that again...four pregnancies for six babies is quite enough, thank you very much!"
More laughing from the group.
"So...back to my mother and us bonding," Draco prompted.
"Oh. Right. So, your mother was worried that we were going to continue on having babies without the benefit of marriage and it bothered her," Harry went on. "Then she told me she wouldn't even mind if we just ran off together."
Draco's eyes widened. "She actually said that?"
"Well, not in so many words, but yes," the dark-haired man said with a nod.
"Well, our mum's going to mind," Ginny interrupted. "You know she's going to have fit if she can't throw you a wedding, Harry. You're a son to her, you know."
Harry nodded. "Yeah, I know. But—"
"And speaking of mums," Bill cut in, then nodded over at the tent where those who'd not been playing Quidditch had remained. "I think Malfoy's parents decided to come after all."
Horrified, Draco turned and, sure enough, his parents were standing there under the Weasley's heated tent—looking awkward as fuck!
Typos! I bet there are tons! *sigh*
And speaking of...Rebelghost85, I can't respond to your review if you don't sign in. Anyway, thanks for pointing that out in chapter nine and thanks for reading and reviewing! :-)
Character List...
Arthur Weasley (58) – according to JKR, he has two brothers, I've named them (below)
Molly Weasley (née Prewett), (59)
Muriel (119) – Molly's aunt, surname unknown, mentioned (but not talked to in story)
Arliss Weasley (61) – Arthur's older brother (name made up), mentioned (but not talked to in story)
Elizete (55) – Arliss' wife, mentioned (but not talked to in story)
Arnold Weasley (57) – Arthur's younger brother (name made up), mentioned (but not talked to in story), wife (I've named her Rosemary) is deceased (first war)
Andromeda Tonks (née Black), (55), mentioned (but not talked to in story)
++ Teddy (10) – Remus and Tonks' son, Andromeda's grandson
Lucius Malfoy (54), mentioned (but not talked to in story)
Narcissa Malfoy (née Black), (53)
Bill Weasley (38) – Arthur and Molly's first born
Fleur Weasley (née Delacour), (31)
~ Victoire (8) – (not in story)
~ Dominique (6) – (not in story)
~ Louis (3) – (not in story)
Rusty Weasley (37) – Arnold's son (I made his name, but it appears that he exists)
Persephone (35) – Rusty's wife, made up, of Greek ancestry
~ Claus (11) – son (not in story)
~ Cliodna (9) – daughter (not in story)
Charlie Weasley (36) – Arthur and Molly's second born
Chuck Singleton (36) – Charlie's American BF, completely made up for this fic, but I didn't make up his "sister" (Ariel)
Percy Weasley (32) – Arthur and Molly's third born
Audrey (29)
~ Molly ll (3) – (not in story)
~ Lucy (new) – (not in story)
George Weasley (30) – Arthur and Molly's fourth/fifth born
Angelina Weasley (née Johnson), (31)
~ Fred ll (4) – (not in story)
~ Roxanne (on the way)
Ron Weasley (28) – Arthur and Molly's sixth born
Hermione Weasley (née Granger), (29)
~ Rose (2) – (not in story)
~ Hugo (new) – (not in story)
Harry Potter (28)
Draco Malfoy (28)
~ Caelum (8)
~ Orion (5)
~ Corvus (5)
~ Scorpius (3)
~ Aria (1)
~ Sirius (1)
~ Lyra (1)
Ginny Weasley (27) – Arthur and Molly's seventh born
Terence Higgs (31) – one of Ginny's many BFs, not made up (he was in Slytherin)
Anthony Rickett (30) – one of Ginny's many BFs, not made up (he was in Hufflepuff)
Mafalda (25) – a cousin, not made up (she was the daughter of Molly's second cousin)
Eddie Carmichael (29) – Mafalda's husband, not a made up character (he was in Ravenclaw)