Disclaimer: HP and Co. belong to J.K Rowling, not myself. A/N: Hey guys, so sorry for the long wait! I really hope the wait was, indeed, worth it. Huge shout out and thanks to my beta Black Rose of Twilight for sticking with me.
Anyway, hope you guys enjoy!
R/R!
Chapter 21: Family Vacation
Orion grinned proudly as he and Sirius stood back admiring their handiwork. The room was finally done. It had taken a few days, more paint than Remus had ever seen and a lot of work, but it was done… and in Orion's opinion, it was perfect.
The large room on the second floor of Marauders Manor had been completely re-done in a forest theme. The walls were covered in trees, rocks and even a small lake, all of it surrounded by animals (of the mythical kind) charmed to appear and disappear within the painted forest. The ceiling was reminiscent of the Great Hall at Hogwarts with an outdoor theme, except it was charmed to only show the night sky with a changing moon and sparkling stars.
The furniture in the room was all intricately carved with little forest images and Orion's bed, which was massive by the way, had lovely vine covered columns.
"We did good Pup." Sirius said, ruffling Orion's blond hair with a grin. The young teen nodded eyes wide as he took everything in.
"I think we should do dragons in Draco's room," Sirius mused, "Or merpeople or something." He said scratching his chin with a paint covered hand.
"Maybe you should see what Draco wants before you get carried away Sirius." Remus said as he came up behind the pair. "Your room looks lovely Pup, wonderful job." He added as he dropped a kiss on Orion's head, grimacing as he saw paint covering the young teen's hair.
"Your mother is going to have a fit." He mumbled, then he returned his attention to the room. "Should we get the rest of the family? I know they've been dying to see this place, especially with all the different colours you've been tracking home after painting sessions."
"Do you think they'll like it?" Orion asked his uncle, his tone a bit worried. It was very different from his regal room in Malfoy Manor.
"Of course Pup, you love it so they'll love it." Remus reassured the young Malfoy. "Go floo them, Sirius and I will tidy up in here." He added as he drew his wand and began to cast various cleaning spells to get rid of the extra paint and drop clothes. Orion scampered off heading straight for the large fire place in the kitchen. Marauders Manor had two major fireplaces, one in the large entry hall for guests and one in the kitchen for family members. There were many more, but these two were the most used. Grabbing some floo powder, Orion cast it into the fire before thrusting his face in the flames and calling out the name of his home.
"Hello Orion." Lucius greeted as his son's face appeared in the fire. "Are you ready for us?" The paint smattered face nodded a massive grin threatening to split his face. "I'll gather the others and we'll be right over." Lucius grinned at his child. Narcissa was going to have a fit when she saw Orion all covered in paint. Rising from his chair, Lucius called a house elf and had them gather the others. Everyone was home, minus Severus who was away on an ingredient collecting mission.
Moments later Lucius, closely followed by Draco, Tom, and Narcissa were stepping into the kitchen at Marauders Manor. Remus was waiting for them, having sent Orion off to scrub up as best he could after he had called his Father.
"Ready?" The werewolf asked curiously, amber eyes shining with amusement.
"Of course!" Draco grinned, "He's kept this a massive secret, I've been dying to see it!"
"Even Sirius has kept it a secret," Tom drawled, "And the amount of paint I've seen covering those two over the last few days hints that this was a large undertaking."
"You haven't seen the half of it. I'm having nightmares about paint stains." Remus said with a sigh. Narcissa grimaced slightly at the sound of that; she hadn't been to pleased to see her son coming home covered in paint, but he'd been so happy she hadn't been able to scold him. Laughter sounded down the hallway as Sirius skidded into the kitchen closely followed by a laughing Orion. Thankfully most of the paint had been extracted from his hair though the same could not be said for the Black Lord.
"Oh my." Tom drawled taking in his lover's multi-coloured locks. Sirius just beamed before nudging Orion lightly on the shoulder. Grinning the youngest Malfoy squared his shoulders and presented his arm to his Mother.
"If you would all follow me?" He said offering his mother his arm. The Malfoy Mother beamed and took her son's arm and the pair lead the rest down the hallway and up the stairs towards Orion's room. The large wooden door was shut, but carved into the wood was an animated stag, a large black dog, and a werewolf. All three stood at attention as Orion approached. Releasing Narcissa's arm, Orion leaned in close and whispered something, the door guards relaxed and the door swung open allowing the first glimpse of the wonderland inside.
"Password protected door?" Lucius looked at Sirius with mild concern.
"It has an override password like the dorms at Hogwarts do, just in case. But we figured this way he has his own safe space if he ever needs it." Sirius explained. Lucius nodded, relaxing slightly before peering into the room.
"Marvelous!" The blond man exclaimed, his hand falling onto his son's shoulder and squeezing lightly.
"You like it?" Orion asked shyly.
"I love it." Lucius reassured chucking as Orion ran off to show Draco different things. The older brother beamed at the younger one watching as the pair explored the room together.
"Dragons you say?" Draco mused, "That would be pretty cool." He added as Sirius joined the pair arms gesticulating wildly as he tried to explain his vision for Draco's room.
"This is really well done," Tom murmured as he peered closer at a half hidden centaur. "Who did the enchanting?" He asked Remus.
"Sirius and myself, mainly Sirius though. This really was his and Orion's project." The werewolf replied.
"Amazing." Tom said watching the detailed creature disappear from view.
"You really like it?" Orion asked. He had come to stand behind Tom when his godfather and Remus had been talking.
"Yes I do." Tom said wrapping an arm around his godson. "It's very well done." Orion blushed lightly and slipped free wandering over to Narcissa so she could both praise his work and bemoan the small bits of paint left in his hair.
-Blood-
After the great room unveiling, everyone travelled back to Malfoy Manor, though Narcissa had refused to let Sirius into her home until he had showered. So after one shower and multiple scourgify, Sirius was allowed into the house.
"On this momentous day," Lucius began, once everyone was seated comfortably in the family room and drinks had been served. Wine for most of the adults though Remus had opted for a hot chocolate, despite it being summer, and both Draco and Orion had butterbeer.
"Momentous?" Sirius questioned curiously from his spot next to Tom.
"Yes momentous." Lucius said sneeringly playfully at the Black. "Narcissa and I have an announcement." He gestured for his wife to come and join him.
"Months ago Draco wrote Narcissa and I requesting that we take a family vacation, preferably somewhere warm." Lucius began. "We've been thinking about it, and we have decided that we would love to take a family vacation. All of us." He added, looking sternly at Tom, Sirius, and Remus. There was silence for a moment before Draco let out a very un-Malfoy like shout and bounded forward to hug his parents yammering excitedly.
"Vacation?" Orion asked looking stunned.
"Yes, we've decided to go some place warm as Draco requested for two weeks, it will be nice to do something as family before you two return to school."
"Where are we going?" Draco asked excitedly as he returned to his seat next to his still shocked brother.
"A wizarding resort in the Dominican Republic." Lucius said with a grin as he produced some pamphlets from inside his jacket and handed them out. "We'll take an international portkey from the Ministry which takes us directly to our resort. I've booked a villa for us, which comes complete with two house elves. The resort provides food and beverages, though I expect you two to behave yourself. Draco you are considered legal in the Dominican, but I expect you to behave." He added. Draco grinned and Orion grinned at his brother. The youngest Malfoy wasn't too worried about drinking or anything like that, he was just thrilled at the idea of a family vacation.
"Are there any activities?" Sirius asked as he pursued the pamphlet.
"Yes, there are a few historic wizarding locations nearby, as well as some muggle activities which you might enjoy." Lucius responded. "Our travel wizard at the resort will fill us in on the various things to do once we arrive."
"Look at the pool!" Draco said pointing out the picture to Orion. The two were glued to the pamphlet as was Narcissa, though she was more interested in the spa.
-Blood-
Orion, Sirius, and Remus stood staring in awe at the mountain of luggage sitting in the floo room. The family was preparing to leave for the Ministry and Orion and the older Marauders had been waiting for ages for the rest of the family to get their luggage together.
"Did I not pack enough?" Orion whispered to Sirius nervously. He had packed his summer clothes as well as a few formal dinner outfits since he knew his Mother would insist. He'd also packed a few games for himself and Draco, but that was it. Sirius and Remus had done much the same but judging by the amount of stuff Draco, Lucius, Narcissa, and Tom had stuffed into various trunks as well as bags made their own items look paltry in comparison.
"I saw what you packed Pup, seemed like the perfect amount to me." Sirius said eyeing Tom's stuff with trepidation.
"Are you ready?" Lucius asked as he walked purposefully into the floo room. The family room hadn't been able to accommodate all the luggage.
"Are you?" Sirius asked incredulously.
"I believe so." Lucius said eyeing the luggage critically. "I suppose if we've forgotten anything we can always send an elf to retrieve it."
"Forgot what? The kitchen sink?" Sirius sputtered noting the completely serious expression on Lucius' face. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, the Malfoy Lord summoned an elf and had it gather the remaining family members.
Finally everyone was ready to go. Lucius had sent two elves ahead to the resort with their luggage though a few important things were shrunk and kept safe in his breast pocket.
"Did you bring enough?" Sirius asked Tom as the pair waited to floo to the Ministry.
"Of course, I wanted to make sure I had enough books." Tom responded dryly.
"Vacations are for fun Tom! Not studying." Sirius admonished with a groan. He was dating a nerd! Remus rolled his eyes at his friend's antics; he had packed a few books and was very much looking forward to reading them poolside. Thankfully the full moon wasn't until the week after his return so he didn't have to worry about it.
"Some of us find reading fun Sirius. Now it's your turn." Remus interrupted the playfully bickering pair to shove the dog animagus into the fireplace.
Orion stood sheltered between his father and brother at the Ministry. In Lucius' hand was sitting an innocuous muggle travel brochure, or the portkey as they all knew it. The youngest Malfoy's breath hitched slightly as he looked at it. He hadn't used a portkey since that fateful night in the graveyard and he was a bit nervous. He had emergency portkeys on his person, his family had insisted, but he had yet to use them.
"It will be fine. This is a planned portkey." Lucius reassured his youngest son, his hand gently rubbing the back of Orion's neck.
"I know, but..." Orion trailed off and nestled a bit closer to his father.
"I understand." Lucius said softly, "This is the best way to deal with what happened, using portkeys for the tools they are and learning to trust in your family and knowing they would never put you in any danger." Orion nodded shakily and reached his hand out to touch a corner of the shiny paper. Everyone gathered around and soon each person had a finger on the brochure.
"Three seconds now." Lucius said before suddenly, everyone was hooked behind their navel and jerked forward. Orion's eyes screwed shut as the tugging and spinning began and before he actually knew it, he was being dumped out and landing rather roughly on a gorgeous tiled floor. The first thing he noticed was the heat; it was warm, really warm. Second was his brother's disgruntled groan from next to him. Cracking an eye open, Orion watched as the adults all landed perfectly, not a hair out of place. With a chuckle Sirius reached forward and he and Tom disentangled the brothers before helping them to their feet.
"Lucius this is lovely." Narcissa said as she straightened Orion's hair while Draco fussed with his own.
"Thank you." Lucius said smugly as a concierge came forward to escort them to their room; Lucius had already paid so they weren't required to wait.
"Mr. Malfoy, if you and your family would follow me please? Your villa has been made ready and your elves delivered your luggage earlier." The man said in slightly accented English.
"Thank you." Lucius said nodding for the man to show them the way. After a short walk through the lovely grounds, the concierge lead them down to a large villa. The door opened out to the pool which had both Orion and Draco grinning.
"The front door opens to the pool and the back door has a small path that leads down to our private beach. It has muggle repelling charms all over it, so you won't be bothered." The man said handing out key cards to each family member.
"The key cards are magical and as VIP guests they allow you access to every part of the resort. All the food and drink has been paid for so feel free to use any of our many restaurants when ever you choose. There are a few formal restaurants which require reservations; if you wish to make some just let any staff member know and they will accommodate you."
"Thank you." Lucius said as he pocketed his card and followed the man inside. The villa was three stories tall with four bedrooms and two large sitting rooms. There was a small kitchen, fully stocked, and a nice dining area. There was also a deck on the second floor with a small pool of water which could be warmed or cooled with a simple charm.
"Draco and Orion are on the top floor, you two are sharing a room. Tom and Sirius are in the large room on the second floor and Remus is in the room across from them, and Narcissa and I are on the main floor. Each room has an ensuite washroom for your convenience. The elves have already unpacked your things in these rooms so I suggest you all get changed for the weather and then we can begin exploring. In the main lobby of the resort is our travel wizard and he's more then willing to book anything you wish, though if you leave the resort please let someone know." This last bit was said to Orion and Draco.
-Blood-
A little while later everyone had freshened up and was wearing appropriate clothing for the weather. "Narcissa and I are off to check out the restaurants and make some reservations." Lucius said extending his arm to his wife.
"I think Orion and I are going to check out the pool." Draco said glancing at his little brother.
"Make sure you apply some sun potion to keep from burning." Narcissa warned. She had a large brimmed sun hat on and a flowing, knee length dress. On vacation the Malfoys tended to dress a bit on the muggle side since most wizarding fashions weren't vacation appropriate.
"I believe I'll join you," Remus said nodding at the boys, "those pool chairs are calling my name." The man had a large book tucked under his arm much to Sirius' disgust.
"Sirius?" Tom asked curiously, "Any plans or should we just join Remus and the boys?"
"I'd like to look into some activities but I can meet you four at the pool." The dog animagus said with a smile. Tom pecked his lips and nodded before following Orion, Draco, and Remus after summoning his own book to read by the pool.
"Nerds." Sirius bemoaned under his breath has he headed out the door, a loud yelp emitting from his as Tom hit him with a mild stinging hex.
Giggling Orion followed Draco and Remus towards the pool, stopping to collect towels from a stand where two house elves were handing them out to guests. There weren't very many people around the pool, which Draco was happy about, and the tall blond immediately claimed a group of chairs as well as two large umbrellas before settling down.
"Don't forget to apply the sun protection potion." Tom reminded the boys as he settled in his well shaded chair.
-Blood-
Sirius headed happily for the pool with numerous magical pamphlets as well as a few muggle ones clutched in his arms. He wanted to show the boys these and pick out a few activities to do, some were actual planned excursions to some really neat sounding places and others were suggestions of places to check out. He was sure Remus and possibly Tom would be interested as well, but Sirius wanted Orion and Draco to have the first pick, this was a vacation for them after all.
Rounding the corner of the pool the dog animagus stopped as the sound of laughter greeted his ears as well as a sight he was sure was the result of heat stroke or hallucination. Orion, Draco, Remus, and Tom! As in the Dark Lord, were all splashing about in the water having a grand old time by the look of things. A ball bounced about and Draco and Orion tossed themselves into the water to keep it in the air almost like a muggle game of volleyball. Blinking his eyes and resisting the urge to rub them Sirius dumped his papers, in what he assumed was Remus' chair, before letting out a war cry and splashing into the water soaking all four of the players as he did so.
"Sirius!"
"Padfoot!"
"Argh!"
"Stupid Mutt!" Were the cries that reached the dog animagus' ears as he surfaced a massive grin threatening to split his face. He shook his hair, sending more water flying everywhere much to his companions dismay. Tom, who had unfortunately been standing closest to where Sirius had hit, was dripping wet. His hair was now plastered to his skull and water was running down his nose. Biting his lip Sirius resisted the urge to burst out laughing at his disheveled partner. It wasn't often the Dark Lord of Britain looked so foolish.
"Laugh and I curse you." Was the hissed response as the man raised a hand and wandlessly summoned a towel to dry his hair and face off with. Fortunately, it wasn't Sirius who laughed, but Orion. The young teen, just as wet as both his godfathers, was nearly bent double with belly giggles erupting from him as he took in the sight. Tom's eyes softened for a moment, he couldn't very well curse his godson, especially not with them getting along so well at the moment.
-Blood-
An hour later the pool group was now lounging on various chairs around the pool. Tom had insisted that the boys sit under an umbrella to get them out of the sun for a little while as they weren't used to the heat. Sirius was stretched out in the sun talking about how he wanted a tan though Tom was sure the man was just going to burn but neither he nor Remus were able to talk any sense into the man. Speaking of Remus, the werewolf was lying in the shade with the boys reading a book that actually looked quite interesting. Laughter drew his attention and he glanced at the two blond haired boys sitting beside Remus. Orion was sprawled out laughing uproariously at something Draco had said judging by the smirk on the older blond's face.
He flashed back to when Narcissa had told the family she was pregnant and how excited Draco had been. It had been a shock for all of them as they'd expected the single, spoiled, little boy to resent having to share. Instead Draco had been ecstatic and had spent the rest of Narcissa's pregnancy hugging his mother's protruding belly and telling his new baby brother stories.It had been adorable and made Orion's disappearance all the more devastating. Shaking the morbid thoughts away Tom turned his attention back to his own book though he found his mind drifting more often then not.
-Blood-
"Are you ready for dinner?" Narcissa asked the boys as they came into the main room of the villa. They had changed for dinner as per their mother's request.
"Yes." Draco responded for the pair. The family had decided to go out for dinner, just the four of them, for the first night so Lucius had booked one of the more intimate restaurants.
"You both look very handsome." She said with a grin laughing as Draco preened in true Malfoy fashion where as Orion blushed awkwardly and looked down at his shoes.
"What are Tom, Remus, and Sirius doing tonight?" Orion asked his mother curiously.
"I think they're just planning on having dinner at the hotel buffet, though Tom does have some private meals booked for him and Sirius at some point." She said thoughtfully. Lucius finally emerged from his and Narcissa's room and grinned at his gathered family.
"Are we ready?" He asked curiously.
"Just waiting on you." Orion said cheekily causing his father to laugh. It had taken a long time for Orion to feel comfortable laughing and joking with his family. Ruffling Orion's hair playfully Lucius led the way towards one of the many restaurants on the resort grounds.
After the Malfoy family departed, Remus and 'the couple' as the werewolf had begun calling them in his own mind, headed towards the large buffet which was housed near the pool. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were served at the buffet and the food was reportedly quite good.
Walking into the large room Tom was pleasantly surprised at how lovely the dining room was, he wasn't sure what he had expected but it wasn't this.
"Wow!" Sirius breathed as he claimed a four person table before talking off to explore the food. Rolling his eyes, Remus followed after Sirius while Tom went to the small bar to order some drinks. After getting food and drinks the three men sat about chatting in the comfortable atmosphere.
"I can't believe how much happier Orion is." Sirius said, "The difference between Harry and Orion is astounding." He added. Remus nodded his agreement.
"This has been good for him. I don't even want to think about where he'd be or how he'd be doing if he was still Harry Potter." Remus' mouth twisted slightly, that had been an awkward to say. Tom frowned, that didn't even bear thinking about. There were so many twisted things that could have, would have happened if Orion hadn't been discovered but Tom absolutely hated thinking about the way he had been found. No one deserved the kind of treatment his godson had endured at the hands of those filthy muggles. Just thinking about the situation made his hands clench and itch for his wand.
A soft hand rested on his own and Tom glanced down, a small smile flicking over his features when he saw Sirius' hand resting calmly on his own; the man sitting next to was him laughing at something Remus had said and Tom felt himself relaxing and calming down. He couldn't believe the influence Sirius had on him and how much he genuinely enjoyed being around the younger man. Shaking the sad thoughts from his head, Tom retuned his attention to enjoying a meal with his lover and someone he was quickly coming to regard as a good friend.
-Blood-
After two lovely dinners the split up groups joined back together at the villa.
"How was dinner?" Remus asked Lucius as the adults settled onto the deck with a bottle of wine. The deck was large with comfortable chairs, it ran right out onto the beach and they had a lovely view of the ocean during the day and of the stars at night.
"Wonderful, the food was superb and the conversation was even better." Lucius said with a grin.
"Did the boys enjoy it?" Sirius asked from where he was lounging against Tom's chest. He was much more tactile then Tom was and the Dark Lord was having to get used to it, though he had to admit he didn't mind, much.
"Yes, Draco is quite accustomed to eating out." Lucius said with a blush, knowing him and Narcissa had blatantly spoiled their oldest son. "Orion is… adjusting I would say. He liked the food but I could tell he felt a bit awkward."
"Well until Hogwarts he didn't really eat…." Remus said remembering the starvation his cub had endured. "And then once at Hogwarts he just ate the food provided until he had permission to go to Hogsmeade, and even then it's not like there are many fine dining options." The werewolf pointed out.
"True." Lucius said with a chuckle, "He'll adjust."
"He'll have to." Sirius piped up, "He's a Malfoy now and you lot are quite stuck up." Sirius said sticking his nose in the air playfully.
"We are the best." Lucius said smugly though the small twinkle in his eyes let the others know he was joking around.
-Blood-
"I've never seen the ocean before." Orion said as he stared in awe at the large expanse of water before him. It was their second day in the Dominican and after spending the previous day at the pool, he and Draco had decided to check out the beach.
"Never?" Draco asked his younger brother in shock. Orion just favoured his older brother with a look and headed towards the water. Shaking his head and chuckling, Draco chased after Orion and the two ran towards the water. Standing in the shallows with waves gently hitting him in the knees Orion couldn't stop smiling. He couldn't believe this was his life. This time last year he'd been being beaten daily by Unc-no, by Vernon and then had ended up in St. Mungo's. Shaking his head he glanced at Draco and grinned, he couldn't believe how happy he was.
"What?" Draco asked curiously seeing Orion's grin. His younger brother immediately blushed and ducked his head shyly.
"Nothing, just happy." He admitted. Draco beamed and immediately pulled Orion in for a tight hug.
"I'm happy too, we all are." Draco admitted softly before he and Orion were suddenly knocked arse over tea kettle.
"Sirius!" Remus shouted as he watched his best mate tackle the boys into the water.
"What Moony?" Sirius asked as he and Draco fished Orion out of water. Remus didn't even respond just through his arms into his air in disbelief.
"You two okay?" Sirius asked though he was still smiling.
"Yes." Draco said glancing at Orion to make sure the younger Malfoy was fine.
"Fine Siri, we'll get you back though!" Orion grinned, his eyes sparkling with the promise of mischief.
"Uh oh." Sirius teased, "You'll have to try pretty hard to prank a marauder." He said with a smirk. Orion and Draco just shared a grin.
"Never underestimate a Slytherin." Draco promised calmly as they walked out of the water where Remus was standing with an armful of rest of the day continued in this manner; lots of laughter, lots of fun, and some good food. Orion hadn't felt so at peace in a long time and he was genuinely enjoying the time he spent here with his family.
A/N: Hey guys hope you enjoyed the chapter! Once again, super sorry for the long wait. I'll try and be better, but no promises.
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