Another Monday, so that means everyone gets another chapter! This time, Esdras makes a life changing decision.

My thanks, as always, to those of you who have read, and even more thanks to those of you who have reviewed:

To the ever faithful KRP – The chapter title may have given it away, but it certainly was a fitting title. And it is rather telling that the twins didn't get concerned, but you're right, little Calla, all of three feet tall, isn't much of a threat to anyone. As for how Eric got in, you can just assume it's due to some sort of emergency link from St. Mungo's. Presents weren't included for a reason, it's only Christmas Eve. They'll be opening their gifts tomorrow. And you're right; Esdras was definitely getting a little gloomy there, so Katie's return will definitely get things better in terms of his mood, food stores, and Ministry dealings.

To the ever faithful perrinette – Behold, I am proud to bestow upon you the title of ever faithful reviewer. Review with pride! And you're quite right, everyone is happy again. Hurray! Percy and the Minister don't visit until Christmas Day, so Esdras will miss them. And more people than just Fleur are fans, Sasha's gone platinum!

To the ever faithful Maelys – Behold, I am proud to bestow upon you the title of ever faithful reviewer. Review with pride! I'm glad you like everything so far. I love the cloaklings, they're so much fun and they're so cute, too. And now that Katie is back, she'll be back with a vengeance.

To the most excellent buffalo1 – Sadly no, there was no wind up horse for the toad. However, some of our favorite floating friends did send her the following: a swift kick in the pants, a long walk off a short pier, and a pie in the face. Dementors are nothing if not generous.

To the oft hidden, but nonetheless charming NaginiFay – It's only going to get better! I'm writing the finale now.

All the rest of y'all who haven't reviewed really should. It's good for you and will increase your good karma. And, I enjoy hearing what you think, because your reviews help make me a better writer. So go on, press the button.

And as usual, all text in italics is in Azkabaaner and I don't own HP.

Chapter 12 – Love and Joy

Christmas Day, and the door to Bellmont swung open and a bright peal of laughter, unheard for many months, floated in. Katie Bell, freshly released from St. Mungo's Hospital under the strict condition that she rest, was held firmly in Esdras' arms. She laughed uproariously as he carried her into the house. She gave him a quick thump on the shoulder. "Put me down, you great cloaked oaf! I can walk on my own two feet, thank you very much."

The King of Azkaban released his squirming bundle and set her down. However, she did not let him go, choosing instead to remain wrapped in his arms. They were followed by the smiling forms of Timothy, Elizabeth, and Eric Bell. The Bell family was together again and it showed in their smiling faces. Mrs. Bell hung her coat in the closet and smiled happily. "Well, I'll get breakfast started. Eric, set the table. Tim, would you mind helping me?"

As the two men nodded, Katie huffed indignantly and looked to her mother. "And what do you want us to do, mom?"

Mrs. Bell looked at the pair for a second, a smirk on her lips. "Esdras, I'll give you the difficult job. Put Katie on the couch and keep her there. The healer said she shouldn't overexert herself."

The Dementor nodded sharply and again lifted Katie up, unconcerned by her protestations. "Yes, ma'am."

As he glided easily into the living room, Katie's protests calmed. "Good work, darling, you have her fooled. Now put me down." Esdras, however, remained completely unfazed as he glided to the couch, laid her down, put a blanket over her, and tucked her in. He took a seat at the edge of the sofa and every time she tried to get up, he gently pushed her back down. The blond mortal glared angrily at the Dementor. "Exactly whose side are you on?"

Esdras smirked. "My own. Your healer gave you strict instructions that you were to rest, and Dr. Transom agreed. You have to listen to them. I can make it an order if I have to, Captain Bell."

Katie huffed angrily. "One month bed rest is too much. I feel perfectly fine. I'm ready to go back to Hogwarts right now. I feel healthy enough to play against Slytherin."

The Dementor shook his head. "You're not. I saw the triage spell. You're still very sick. You may not be able to play Quidditch for a while once you get back to school."

She gasped. "But what about the Hufflepuff game?"

Esdras cut off her argument by leaning in and pressing her to the sofa with a passionate kiss. Katie ceased struggling and, when he broke the kiss, looked up at him with playful eyes. Esdras grinned. "You have no earthly idea how much I've missed that."

The mortal wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled. "Well, I suppose if you won't let me get up, this is the best way to keep me down."

The Dementor nodded. "Yes, well, I doubt your healer or Dr. Transom would see it the same way. This might fall under the category of 'overexertion'."

Katie grabbed Esdras' shirtfront and pulled him close, her lips brushing against his. "Overexert me all you want."

They were interrupted by the fireplace flashing from yellow flame to green. Inside the flames was a familiar hood which spoke with a wry voice. "King Esdras, Lady Katherine, glad to see things are back to normal."

The mortal giggled softly and smiled at the fireplace. "Good morning, Lord Aaron. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

Aaron laughed softly. "Well, I was talking with Christine and we figured that since you are on hospital enforced bed rest and would be unable to come to New Demnin, we could bring dinner to you tomorrow evening. I wanted to see if you and your family would agree."

Katie nodded and shouted towards the kitchen. "Mom! The Reapings want to bring dinner over tomorrow evening."

A voice echoed back from the kitchen. "That's fine, dear."

The mortal turned back towards the fireplace and smiled. "You heard her."

The prime minister nodded and spoke cheerfully. "Wonderful. We'll come over around five o'clock. Tell your mother not to worry about anything; we'll take care of it all. Happy Christmas to you all."

The pair both echoed back the holiday sentiment before the fireplace connection closed. Esdras smiled happily. "Now, where were we?"

A firm tapping on the door caused Katie to sigh. "Apparently, you were just getting the door, love."

Esdras groaned and floated up and into the hallway where he called out through the door. "Who is it?"

The voice called back. "It is Malachi and Stephanie. We've come to see Katie."

The Dementor smirked and thought up a question only the two of them would know. "Very well, then. How did you two first meet?"

Stephanie replied happily. "Malachi taught me to speak English."

Esdras flung open the door and smiled brightly at the pair of Dementors. "Happy Christmas. Come on in, she's in the living room."

The three glided into the living room and Katie smiled happily at her friends. "Malachi, Stephanie, what brings you here?"

Stephanie floated over and knelt at the sofa beside her. "Aaron told us you had woken up, and I just had to come see you today. You'll never guess what Malachi did."

Esdras, standing behind the girls, arched an eyebrow at Malachi. He was simply floating, arms crossed, with a smug expression on his hood. The Dementor king's jaw dropped. "Oh no, you didn't."

Malachi's nod and Katie's excited squeal came at the same time. Esdras looked over Stephanie's shoulder just in time to catch sight of the glowing fire emerald ring before the Dementress spoke. "We're getting married!"

Katie stood happily on Platform 9 ¾, nestled between Esdras and Dr. Transom and surrounded by a phalanx of Dementor guards. These guards, however, were not standard Infantry. Katie was being protected by the last remaining loyal Marines of Azkaban, under the command of Tarquin Sanguis. The years since the unfortunate incident over the Quidditch pitch had been eventful, and even the demotion for his insubordinate act hadn't kept him down. In fact, as the highest ranking Marine to remain loyal to the king, Sanguis had quickly been promoted to admiral and placed in command of the Azkaban Marine Corps. Presently, his corps consisted of one hundred twenty Dementors, all of whom were surrounding Katie, cloaked in Riot Assault cloaks and armed to the teeth. When confident the station was secure, Admiral Sanguis floated to Esdras and saluted. "The station has been secured, Majesty."

Esdras returned the salute. At his side, Katie smiled. "Admiral Sanguis, I admire your attention to detail, but this is far too much, even for me."

The Marine admiral bowed deeply. "Not at all, Lady Katherine. You saved my life three years ago when you stayed the Glaive in His Majesty's hand. I have not forgotten the debt I owe you, and I will repay it. Consider our protecting you to be merely the interest."

The mortal nodded with a soft smile on her face and watched as the Marines kept their careful guard. She sighed sadly as Esdras hefted his trunk. "Why can't I come with you?"

Esdras merely sighed and pointed to the doctor. "Him. Talk to him. I want you to come, but I can't give you medical clearance." He smiled and kissed her softly. "Now, I'll come and visit you every day like I did when you were in the hospital."

The mortal sighed and nodded. "Well, at least this time I'll be awake for it."

The Dementor grinned and leaned in for another kiss but was promptly pulled away and tossed into the air by an enthusiastic redhead. Ginny Weasley interposed herself between the two and grinned at her teammate as she pulled her into a hug. "Katie, you're well enough to come back? This is great; we need you back on the team!"

Katie happily returned the hug but smiled sadly. "I'd wish I could, Ginny, but I'm not healthy enough to come back to school yet, apparently." She gestured to Dr. Transom. "They want me to rest at home for a month, and then if I'm well enough, they'll let me come back."

Transom nodded. "And even then, there's no telling that she'll be healthy enough to play Quidditch immediately."

Ginny sighed sadly, but managed to find a smile. "Well, none of that matters. All that matters is that you're awake and back."

Katie nodded and smiled playfully. "And I believe I have you to thank for keeping Esdras from going insane while I was away." At the redhead's cautious nod, Katie hugged her tight. "Thank you for looking after him. I couldn't have trusted anyone else."

By this time, the others of the Weasley clan and their associates had noticed the long absent blond and threaded their way through the imposing Marine barrier. Ron and Hermione both offered their well wishes, but Harry was all business. "Katie, do you have any idea what happened to you?"

The blonde shook her head sadly. "Esdras has told me everything that happened, including how I managed to survive. He and I have gone over the whole morning a few times, but I can't remember anything after I left his side to go to the bathroom. I wish I could remember, though. I want to know what happened."

Harry turned to Esdras and opened his mouth, but the Dementor was faster. His voice was icy with his native accent. "No. I will not attempt to look through her memories. She's still recovering from spell damage that was severe enough to kill her and I'm not going to put any additional strain on her. Besides, with everything that went on afterwards, there are more important things that she and I have to worry about. Are we clear?"

The scarred mortal stared wide eyed at the glowing eyed Dementor and nodded quickly, memories of the terrible pair of death gods flashing through his mind. Esdras smiled peacefully and wrapped an arm around Katie. Their peace was short lived as Hermione and Ron were pushed aside and an all too familiar drawl called out. "Out of the way, weasel, mudblood. Make room for people that matter."

The Malfoys, Draco and Narcissa, passed quickly by. The Dementor watched calmly as Hermione held back Ron and Harry held back Ginny, and then he spoke loudly. "Say Ginny, did you enjoy spending Christmas at home…with your father?"

The redhead looked to the Dementor and smiled a smile her twin brothers would smile. Her voice was equally loud. "Oh yes, Esdras. It was wonderful. It was so nice to have the entire family at home."

Esdras nodded, barely able to keep the smile out of his voice. "You're very lucky. It would be horrible to have to spend the holidays without a parent." Draco Malfoy turned to level an insult but he was stopped by Esdras' polite voice directed at his mother. "Excuse me, Mrs. Malfoy, but I was wondering if you could deliver a message for me."

The woman with the perpetual sneer turned her attention to the Dementor and tossed her platinum blond hair as she scoffed. "I will do no such thing."

The Dementor smiled. "I was hoping you would. It's for your sister Bellatrix."

The already pale woman paled enough to make the Hogwarts ghosts jealous before she managed to stammer out her reply. "I…I have no idea where she is."

Esdras nodded idly. "Of course you don't. Anyway, should you happen to see her, pass on this message." He stepped forward and calmly kissed the woman on the lips. When he pulled away, he was in his natural Dementor form, hood lowered. He spoke with a menacing whisper. "She will know exactly what it means."

As the two Malfoys rapidly backpedaled away, Esdras stepped back to Katie's side. He took mortal form and looked ashamed. Before he could apologize, Katie nearly tackled him and kissed him passionately. When she broke the kiss, her eyes were shining. "That. Was. Brilliant."

The Weasleys were laughing hysterically. Esdras merely smirked. "That should keep her looking over her shoulder for a few days, at least."

The whistle of the great red engine blew, signaling that the train was preparing to leave the station. As the Weasleys saw their children off, Katie smiled and wrapped her arms around Esdras. "Study hard, take good notes for me, and I'll understand if you're not able to come by every day."

Esdras laughed and kissed her softly. "You're not getting rid of me that easily, my love." He hefted up his trunk and turned to Transom and Sanguis. "Get her home safely and make sure she's well tended to. I'll see you back at New Demnin."

The two admirals nodded and saluted and the mortal smiled and waved as the Dementor floated towards the train. As he levitated his trunk into the train car, he was joined by Aaron. "All divisions ready for transit to Hogsmeade, majesty."

The king nodded, looking to the rail ahead as the train began to slowly come to life. "Let's do it."

As the train began to trundle along, Esdras found a place to stow his trunk and sit down. After a few minutes, though, he returned to the train car door and opened it. He stepped out into the air and floated up to join the men keeping a defensive formation around the train. He floated along until he came to the engine where Aaron was stationed. The prime minister's hood arched in surprise. "Yes, Esdras?"

Esdras pointed up to the skies above. "I want to talk to you alone."

The two Dementors ignited their afterburners and flew up about two thousand feet into the air. Once they were assured of privacy, Aaron looked curiously towards his old friend. "This is going to be something big, isn't it?"

The king nodded, but didn't speak immediately. It took him a while to get his thoughts together before he looked cautiously to his friend. "I need you to keep this a secret from everyone." When Aaron had nodded his assent, Esdras sighed and continued. "You heard about Malachi and Stephanie, right? They're getting married." Again the admiral nodded. Esdras steeled himself and spoke quickly. "I want to ask Katie to marry me. I wanted to get your opinion on it."

Aaron's hood went wide in surprise. Then, after a second, he started laughing happily. "Well it's about damn time."

Esdras smirked. "Is that your opinion as my friend or as the Prime Minister of Azkaban?"

The minister shook his hood, trying to get his laughter under control. "Both!" At Esdras' confused look, he elaborated. "You're my best friend, and I've never seen you happier than when you are with Katie. You're even happier than when Christine makes you your own mint pie so you don't have to share with anyone."

The king's hood went wide. "Don't tell Christine you said that. You know how much I like her mint pie."

Aaron shook his hood. "Don't worry, I won't say a word." He sighed and looked to his friend. "And Esdras, the people love her. She's as much a Dementress as any to the people. She'd be accepted as queen consort without hesitation."

Esdras nodded quietly. "Back when I was competing in the Triwizard Tournament, while Kara was still the Oracle, she gave Katie a prophecy. She told her that she would become the queen of Azkaban and have a long life and legacy."

Aaron let out a low whistle. "Well, I think that says it all, don't you?"

The Dementor king nodded and turned to his friend. "Thank you, Aaron."

The prime minister shrugged as they pointed themselves towards the train, beginning the freefall back to the ground. "That's what I'm here for."

The freefall was refreshing and when Esdras returned to the train, he walked down the corridor intent on returning to his cabin. However, he paused when he looked into one compartment and saw a familiar person. Without thinking, Esdras stopped, opened the door, and stuck his head inside. "Ginny, can I have a word with you?"

The redhead looked up from her game of Exploding Snap and smiled. "Sure thing." Within moments, Esdras had led her to the same door he had exited the first time and stepped out with her on his back. A few minutes after that, he was back at two thousand feet with a mortal on his back. Ginny smiled as she looked down at the train below. "So, to what do I owe the honor of a free flight?"

Esdras was very serious. "I need you to keep this a secret. Only Aaron knows what I am about to tell you and I want to keep it that way." Ginny nodded solemnly and the Dementor nodded. "I know a lot about mortals, but I haven't studied everything. I know you know about weddings and whatnot because Bill is getting married." He paused. "What is the right way to ask to marry a mortal girl?"

Ginny's squeal was almost deafening and she talked in a continuous stream. "Oh Merlin, Esdras, you're going to ask Katie? Oh this is wonderful; you two are so perfect together! I can't believe it, she's so lucky and you are, too. Oh, what am I saying, you're both lucky!"

The Dementor smiled slightly. "Well, I haven't asked her family yet. And I don't even know how to go about it with a mortal family or how much I should offer them. The bride price for a Dementress of Katie's grace and character would be well over five hundred bars of platinum."

The mortal paled. "Esdras, mortals don't have dowries or bride prices. You won't have to give her family anything other than your assurance that you will protect her and provide for her."

Esdras nodded. "I can do that. Is there any form of ritual combat I will have to engage in if her father should refuse my request?"

Ginny shook her head and muttered under her breath. "Dementors…" She sighed and spoke calmly. "Look, all you have to do is ask her. She's the one you're marrying and she makes the final say. Some people ask the girl's parents beforehand, Bill did that with Fleur's parents. There are no bride prices, no dowries, no combat. There is just love."

The Dementor blinked in surprise. "Oh…well, that's easy then." They floated along for a while more. "What do I have to give her when I ask for her hand?"

Here, the mortal smiled brightly. "Mortal tradition is a diamond ring of some kind. Something that shows everyone that she's engaged."

Esdras nodded his head slowly. "We do the same thing with fire emerald rings. And the Dementor presents the Dementress with a white cloak for her to wear on their wedding day."

Ginny grinned brightly. "I think diamonds and fire emeralds go just fine together. Your crown is proof of that. And a white cloak would compliment a white wedding dress perfectly."

The king of Dementors looked back to his friend and sighed nervously. "This is getting very real very fast, Ginevra. I hope I'm not making a mistake."

The mortal shook her head. "Trust me, you're not."

The weeks passed slowly and Esdras began counting the days until Katie would again be at Hogwarts. Even though he was Apparating to and from Kilmarnock on a daily basis, it just wasn't the same with her not at school. He kept trying to tell himself that this was not due to the fact that he couldn't get in a good snog while her parents were in the same house, but quickly realized he wasn't fooling anyone. The evening before his birthday he went to bed happy. Tomorrow would be his 316th birthday and a Saturday, meaning he would have his entire day to spend with Katie.

The Dementor slept soundly, visited only by the most vivid dream he had ever experienced. When he woke in the morning, he simply lay with his eyes closed reliving it. Katie had come to him in his dream and, while dreams of his mortal lover were not uncommon, he had not had a dream as vivid as this since before their relationship was consummated. Actually, as he replayed the dream in his head over and over, it became clear to him that he had never had a dream that vivid in his entire life. Sighing contentedly and rolling over, he was prepared to chalk the dream up to pent up hormones until he rolled onto a very soft, very warm body.

Esdras illuminated his eyes and flailed wildly as he tried to float out of bed. He had only made it a foot into the air by the time he realized who was looking directly at him. Katie, in all her glowing mortal glory, smiled up at his semi-hovering form. "Good morning, birthday boy."

The Dementor took mortal form and blinked with wide, glowing eyes. He tried to get his mind around the right words. Failing this, he simply posed a question. "How?"

Katie stretched seductively and looked up at him with playful eyes. "The healer had an appointment open up late on Friday and he knows how impatient I've been and how well I've been healing, so he asked if I would like to take it. I naturally agreed. Long story short, he cleared me to come back to school. I packed my trunk, Flooed in, put my stuff away in Gryffindor, and snuck in here using my Azkaban naval identification." She gestured to a pile of clothes on the floor containing a naval identification badge and a pair of skimpy purple knickers before grinning playfully. "I'm surprised you didn't wake up last night when I crawled in bed with you."

Esdras lowered himself down onto the bed, coming to rest beside her. "I did, I just thought it was all a wonderful dream. But this is even better. Having you here, it's the best birthday present I could ever ask for."

The mortal smiled and leaned up, capturing his lips in a soft kiss. "Happy birthday, my darling." Her voice fell to a low, sultry whisper as she slipped below the bed sheets. "Now, let me make your dreams come true."