Title: The Perfect Wife
Author: slytherin-nette
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters you recognize from the HP books in this story. All I own is the plot. Everything else belongs to JK Rowling. She rocks.
Pairings: DM/femHP, RW/LrM, BZ/HG, SB/RV, BM/??, AM/?? and many others.
Warnings: This is a Post-Hogwarts story so it will be slightly more mature than TPG but equally insane. Wahaha. Also, this story contains PREGNANCY, RATED scenes and SLASH relationships.
A/N: I hope you all enjoy this chapter as much as I have been DYING to write it! :D Lots of love! :D
Chapter 21 – Epilogue
"GARRETT DRACO MALFOY! GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW! WE'RE GOING TO BE LATE!"
A pair of amused and exasperated emerald green eyes blinked in surprise and peered up from the pages of a rather thick textbook to stare up the living room staircase. Several rushed thuds and loud grumbles of complaints echoed from the rooms upstairs of the large Godric Hollow estate that morning – followed by Garrett Potter Malfoy's equally loud but slightly annoyed response.
"I'LL BE RIGHT DOWN, FATHER! I'M JUST FIXING MY HAIR!!!"
Sighing and setting his magical spell book down onto his lap, Gabriel Potter Malfoy laughed to himself and stood up slowly from the couch, walking over to the foot of the stairs where he had already deposited his trunk and all his belongings. As he walked over, his newly bought eagle owl, Caia, gave him a hoot of acknowledgement from where she was perched in her cage atop his trunk.
Just beside her, Garrett's slightly darker eagle owl, Saber, simply stared at him, its dark eyes peering intently at him as though he was trying to find out if he was his owner or not. Giving the proud, male owl a small grin and shake of his head to indicate that he wasn't Garrett, Saber relaxed – and Gabriel went back over so he could reach out and ruffle Caia's feathers in greeting.
"Good morning, girl…Are you as excited to go to Hogwarts as I am…? Let's hope everything turns out well, huh…?" Gabriel grinned as Caia answered him with a hoot of agreement and nipped his finger affectionately in response. As he sat down onto the edge of his trunk and waited a couple more minutes by playing with Caia's feathers, Garrett soon appeared at the very top of the staircase – a slight scowl on his handsome face and Sylens, their pet snake, wrapped around his neck.
At the sight of his older twin brother, Gabriel offered the other Malfoy son an amused smile and gestured briefly to the wristwatch on his wrist. "Good morning, Gar…Slept in this morning, did we…? Father specifically told us last night that we had to leave early today." He told him, hiding a laugh when Garrett just answered him with a single glare as he stalked down the stairs.
The older Malfoy was still busy slicking back his blonde hair from his face with several amounts of hair wax, pausing every now and then to peer at his reflection from the wall mirrors.
"Speak for yourself…I didn't sleep in! I was busy fixing my hair…Besides, what's all the rush anyway? It's not like the train will leave without us." He drawled back arrogantly just as he hopped from the last step and stalked over to his own trunk, reaching out and patting Saber on the head.
Gabriel raised a single eyebrow at him and frowned, watching as his brother began busying himself with fiddling with the contents of his trunk to get his wand. "Uhm…Gar…I think it will. I remember Mom telling me this story once of how the Hogwarts Express left her and Uncle Ron—"
He stopped and rolled his eyes when Garrett no longer seemed to be listening to a word he was saying. The older Malfoy was now busy fussing with the collar of his shirt and gesturing briefly for Sylens to slither and curl up his arm instead so he could fix his shirt. His attention suddenly drawn to the familiar snake, Gabriel fused his eyebrows again and set his book back down onto his lap.
"By the way, Gar…Are you sure that first years are allowed to bring in a SNAKE to Hogwarts? I also remember the letter saying only owls, cats, rats, and toads were allowed in." He reminded him pointedly, gesturing to Sylens again as the snake curled itself around Garrett's upper arm.
Garrett let out a derisive scoff, turning around so he could level his twin brother an irritated glare. "Oh stop nagging me already, Riel! Besides…If they aren't, I'll just write a complaint about it to Grandfather and he'll force the board of school directors to change the rules for me. DUH." He smirked and sniggered to himself as though he found Gabriel's question too stupid to even consider.
Instead of feeling irritated at his brother's response, Gabriel was pretty much used to it at this point and just sighed again – looking up and sharing a look of pointed look with Sylens in amusement.
"I don't know how you manage to fit around his neck with his big head anymore, Sylens…" He hissed in parseltongue, drawing the snake's immediate attention as it seemed to smirk back and gave him a similar look of amusement that did not go unnoticed by Garrett's narrowed green eyes.
"Sometimes…Master Riel…I ask myself the same question…"
"I HEARD that you two."
Gabriel stifled a round of sniggers with his hand at the sound of Garrett's annoyed, parseltongue retort at them and stood up from his trunk, placing his book back into one of his bags. He was just about to speak up again when he finally heard his father's approaching footsteps coming from the other room, causing both twins to turn around instantly as he entered.
Decked out in elegant robes of black and looking just as young and handsome as ever as he did nine years ago, a slightly irritated Draco Malfoy strode right into the living room towards them – a small bag of floo powder in one hand and the small, pale hand of the twin's little sister in his other.
At the sight of her two older brothers, the doll-like and slightly flushed face of Hailene Antoinette Malfoy – as Draco had so specifically named her – looked up at them – her bright silver eyes looking misty with tears. She sniffed once and buried her face against her father's cloak, hugging her beautiful porcelain doll closer to her chest as she followed her father into the living room.
Draco was unaware of his daughter's reaction, however, as he shot a slightly sheepish Garrett a warning glare – the glinting look in his eyes instantly causing his older son to cringe in nervousness.
"Garrett…We are FIFTEEN MINUTES behind schedule. As the Head of this family, I will NOT put up with such reckless IRRESPONSIBILITY from MY OWN son…Is that understood?!"
Gabriel muffled another round of sniggers as he watched Garrett's face flush darker in embarrassment at their father's harsh reprimand. The older Malfoy son nodded meekly and grudgingly began to gather his things into his arms, choosing to ignore the pointed smirk Gabriel was giving him.
Draco kept his cold glare on Garrett's embarrassed face and waited until his two sons had followed him to the Floo-Connected fireplace in the middle of their living room, tapping his foot impatiently onto the floor in his growing agitation. As soon as both twins had gathered their things, Draco raised his wand and flicked it over the fireplace – igniting a beautiful fire right in front of them.
As their father was busy with setting the fire, Hailene – or 'Hale' as her mother so liked to call her – took one look up at Garrett's flushed face and stuck her tongue out at him in avid disdain, instantly causing Garrett's scowl to darken as he growled and answered her with a mocking sneer.
"Hey…Brat-face…You're got a SPIDER in your hair!"
Hale's bright silver eyes widened fearfully at once at his words right before she burst into tears and buried her face into Draco's cloak again, clutching on tighter onto the Malfoy Head's hand.
"DAD—DY!!!!! GARRETT'S TEASING ME AGAIN!!!"
More than used to this little exchange at this point, Draco glanced back down just as he was opening up the pouch of floo powder in his hands. He shot his wincing son another cold, warning glare.
"No allowance for a week."
"B—but…Father, you can't—!"
Garrett's eyes widened and he could do nothing but sputter in his indignation when Hale immediately stopped crying and looked back up to stick her tongue at him again, giggling when her older brother's eyes flashed and he began baring his teeth at her in a furious, irritated growl.
"Why you little—"
His father cut off the rest of Garrett's growling threat as he tossed a handful of floo powder into the fireplace, shoved his older son right into the bright green flames and nodded for him to go on.
The rest of Garrett's properly formed, scathing retort to his younger sister died on his lips as he grumbled and rolled his eyes. He cleared his throat before shouting out their proper destination.
"DIAGON ALLEY!"
As soon as Garrett had disappeared off and Draco was about to toss another pinch of floo powder into the fire, Gabriel took that opportunity to kneel down and kiss his little sister's mane of pig-tailed, silver-blonde hair. Hale giggled at this and smiled sweetly up at him, her eyes lighting up.
"Gabriel…You're next."
Draco pushed his younger son lightly into the green fire again, watching as Gabriel winced and coughed several times before finally managing to clear his throat enough to speak out loud.
"DIAGON ALLEY!"
When he had gone and all that was left was for Draco to magically shrink their trunks, Hale blinked up and began tugging on her father's hand again—drawing the Malfoy Head's attention to her curious eyes. Looking back down, he couldn't help smiling as he was met once again with her beautiful face – which despite her blonde hair and silver eyes – already looked so much like her mother's.
"Daddy…? Where's Mommy? Isn't she going to see Garrett and Gabriel off today?"
Her questions did nothing but incite another knowing and slightly mysterious grin onto her father's face as he bent down and rewarded her with a kiss on her forehead. He flicked his wand over the twin's things before grabbing her hand again, carefully placing the shrunk items into his pockets.
"Unfortunately, your mother had some…paperwork…to take care of. She'll be back tonight."
Hale's eyebrows fused together in confusion but just as she was about to ask her father what he meant by that, Draco had already lifted her up into his arms and walked right into the green fire.
"DIAGON ALLEY!"
"Ugh…Can you believe that first years aren't allowed to bring broomsticks? How utterly plebian of them, first thing I'm going to do is complain to the Headmaster about their blasted rules! I can't even try out for the Quidditch team until second year! It's all a bunch of rubbish, you know!"
As he followed his twin brother down the packed London Station later on that morning towards the platform, Gabriel began to groan out loud, wanting nothing more than to strap on a pair of earmuffs onto his ears. Highly amused at his reaction, Sylens had crawled down from Garrett's neck and had slithered up Gabriel's arm instead, shaking his head at Garrett's loud, boastful complaints.
"He's ALREADY grating on my nerves…Merlin! I know he's my twin brother but I can't believe I'm going to spend a whole YEAR with just him! I'm going to go crazy!" Gabriel hissed irritably to Sylens in parseltongue so that Garrett wouldn't hear, seemingly causing the snake to smirk in reply.
When Garrett did nothing but continue on with how he was going to talk to Grandfather about all of the 'injustice against the first years', Gabriel eventually tuned him out and followed Draco and Hale's forms silently through the bustling crowd in the station – stopping every now and then to avoid a passing muggle or two whenever they crossed their path. He and Garrett were pushing their trolleys along as they walked, finally stopping when their father had led them to a small barrier.
Turning around with a small smirk on his face, Draco raised an eyebrow at his twin sons' utterly bewildered expressions at him and gestured to the barrier in growing impatience.
"Well…? Go on, then! Hurry on up before any of these FILTHY muggles see us! Go on!"
Garrett and Gabriel shared a look of question with each other before staring at the barrier again, shaking their heads at their father's instructions in utter confusion. Hale giggled at their identical expressions and began to imitate her father, pointing excitedly to the barrier as well.
"Go on! Go on! You both look so SILLY!"
Draco smirked at his daughter's words and finally reached forward, tugging onto Garrett's hand and shoving him towards the stone barrier. "Really, you two…I expected better intelligence and comprehension skills from MY sons. I suppose you get your naiveté from your blasted mother—"
Garrett's eyes widened and he began struggling furiously against his father's hold as the Malfoy Head began shoving him closer and closer towards the hard, STONE barrier up ahead.
"N—now, wait a second! H—hold on! Th—that looks like it hurts! F—father?! FATHER, WAIT—"
Gabriel and Hale both began laughing as Garrett soon disappeared within the barrier, followed by his trolley and belongings as Draco shoved them in after him as well. Then, nodding to Gabriel the same way, the younger Malfoy took the hint and began to walk towards the barrier as well – pausing only in mild confusion to turn around and shoot his father a look of suspicious query.
"Father…You said Mom wouldn't be able to see us off today…Where is she exactly…?"
Draco just grinned and winked at him, reaching down and ruffling Hale's pigtails again.
"Let's just say…Well…You and Garrett will see her very…very soon."
Gabriel didn't bother asking any further questions as he arched an eyebrow but shrugged, turning back around and rushing through the barrier with his trolley carrying his trunk and belongings. As soon as he had gotten through and he caught sight of his twin brother's figure rushing over to where some of his friends had already gathered near the very back of the station, Gabriel took a deep intake of breath and began to run after him – rushing in while pushing his trolley with his hands.
He didn't get far, however, as pretty soon – his eyes widened just before he collided rather sharply with just another trolley headed in the opposite direction, automatically causing him, his things, and the other person he had bumped into to come crashing down into a heap on the ground.
Wincing in pain and cursing himself repeatedly in his head, Gabriel jumped back up onto his feet in alarm – a whole horde of rushed apologies already beginning to issue from his lips.
"Oh…Bugger! I'm sorry! I'm terribly sorry, it was my fault! I wasn't watching where I was going and I—" He stopped right in the middle of his sentence and froze up, blood immediately rushing into his pale cheeks. He caught sight of the figure of a petite girl about his age with bright blue eyes and long, chestnut brown hair looking right back at him with a sheepish smile on her face.
A couple of freckles lined her cheeks and she wore a pair of framed glasses but her eyes positively glowed as she grinned at him, reaching to pick up his fallen sketchbook from the ground. Gabriel heard Sylens hissing something into his ear but he ignored him, reaching down as well and hastily beginning to gather the girls' fallen schoolbooks and things from the ground.
"U—uh…I—I'm terribly sorry…I really am, I—"
The girl laughed once before holding up his sketchbook to his face, gesturing to the sketch right on the first page. "Wow…She's really beautiful…Who is she…?" She asked curiously, drawing Gabriel's attention to the picture he had drawn of his mother when she had been asleep.
Blushing profusely under the girl's intent gaze, Gabriel reached out and hastily took the sketchbook from her hands, shoving it back into his bag in embarrassment. "M—my…My mother…"
The girl in front of him smiled again and nodded, reaching out and taking her books from his hands. When Gabriel seemed unable to say anything to her for those next moments, the girl spoke up again – biting her lip and gesturing to the Hogwarts Express in front of them in mild embarrassment.
"Do you mind if I ask you where the entrance to the train is…? I'm terribly sorry…It's just that…Well…I'm a muggleborn and my parents don't have a clue as well actually and…Uhm—"
She stopped talking when several chattering voices suddenly interrupted her from behind, causing both her and Gabriel to look up into the friendly faces of the two he could only assume to be the girls' parents. His suspicions proved correct, however, as the two brunettes grinned down at their daughter and turned their attention to him, their eyes widening when they pondered the situation.
"Oh…Annie! Have you made a new friend already, sweetheart…? Is he a wizard too…? Oh this is all so exciting, isn't it? George, do you suppose that train will fly when it takes off? How fabulous!"
Unable to prevent a laugh when he noticed the look of apologetic embarrassment that 'Annie' was sending his way, Gabriel shook his head and rewarded both adults with a polite smile.
"The train entrance is right over there, Annie…? Was it? I'm Gabriel…Again, I'm sorry to have bumped into you like that. I'll be going now…" Just as he had turned to leave, Annie's mother spoke up again – her full attention suddenly focused on the young Malfoy son in slowly growing realization.
"Wait a minute, dear boy…Your face looks awfully familiar…Where have I seen it before—"
"GABRIEL HARRY MALFOY! GET OVER HERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!"
Wincing again at the sound of his father's impatient, growling voice, Gabriel shot Annie and her parents another apologetic smile before taking off – pushing his trolley of belongings hurriedly in front of him. As soon as he caught sight of his father's tall frame right by the end of the train where he was standing with several of their family friends – his godparents Uncle Ron and Aunt Lorraine included, Gabriel sighed and walked over to them, stopping just as he reached his twin brother.
Garrett took one look at Gabriel's slightly flushed face and mussed-up blonde hair before sneering and shaking his head, rolling his eyes at his twin's appearance. "Honestly, Riel…I keep telling you to gel your hair back like mine. Otherwise, it's going to keep flying all over your face like that! It isn't seemly." He complained in annoyance, gesturing for Sylens to crawl back up his arm.
Choosing to ignore his brother's implied insult and halfheartedly attempting to fix his hair, he turned back around and met his Uncle Ron's grin of amusement at him. "Hmm…If Gabriel starts doing that, Garrett…Then I'm afraid we won't be able to tell you two apart anymore. It's hard enough as it is." He kidded lightly, grinning as he looked up and offered Draco a similar smirk.
The Malfoy Head didn't react to this and merely sneered back at him, shaking his head at the other man in obvious dislike. Lorraine saw this expression and shot her older cousin a fierce glare, the warning in her expression causing Draco immediately to roll his eyes but offer Ron a brief nod.
"Weasley…Lorraine…" His eyes softened slightly when he flicked his eyes down and gave the beautiful redheaded 13-year-old holding onto Ron's hand a similar nod of greeting. "…Francesca…I'm glad to see that you've taken on more Malfoy genes than that of your disgusting father's."
He winced when Lorraine's beautiful features flared up quickly into hostile veela form, immediately causing the Malfoy Head to take several steps backwards amidst Ron and Gabriel's laughter. Chessie had wrinkled her face at Draco's words and shook her head at him in disagreement.
"Ew…Uncle Draco…Please don't call me by my first name! It doesn't sound right!" She shuddered for effect and if anything, Draco returned her look with one of his own as he shook his head and gave her a discontented scowl. "Then don't call me 'Uncle Draco' either! Ugh…It sounds…Wrong!"
Gabriel hid a laugh at his father's reaction and managed to look up just in time to see Garrett's own godparents – their Uncle Blaise and Aunt Hermione—making their way towards them with Elliot trailing right behind. As soon as the young Zabini son saw Chessie waving to him, his face lit up immediately and he waved back, rushing over to her and giving his best friend a warm hug.
Garrett made a face when he saw this and rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to watching the crowd of students gathering near the train. Hermione had rewarded both Malfoy sons a kiss to the forehead when she had arrived while Blaise gave them both a grin before walking over to stand beside Draco, laughing as he clapped his scowling best friend lightly on the back.
"Hey Drac…You finally joined the throng of parents sending the kids off to school, did you? Where's Potter…? Isn't she going to see the twins off?" Blaise watched as Draco's smirk widened and he shook his head, leaning over to whisper something to him so that his sons' couldn't hear.
Unaware of their conversation, Elliot and Chessie had both looked up and gave Garrett, Gabriel and Hale warm smiles of greeting. "Hey you two…You're finally going to Hogwarts this year! Hope you get into Gryffindor! It's the best of all houses!" Chessie chirped cheerfully at them and she was immediately echoed by her younger sister behind her from where she held onto Lorraine's hand.
"Gryffindor is the BEST of all BEST! Daddy says so!" A silver-blonde Natalie Weasley chirped out loud with a nod behind her sister, earning herself a rather disgruntled glare from Hale.
"Nuh-uh! MY Daddy says SLYTHERIN is the best of all houses! Not Gryffindor!" She stuck her tongue out at the other girl in haughty annoyance, eliciting a laugh from all the adults around her.
Elliot reached over and whacked Chessie lightly on the head, smirking and turning around to clap Garrett and Gabriel lightly on the shoulders. "Don't listen to her…I'm looking forward to having you both join me in Slytherin alright? You're Malfoys, you're meant to be in Slytherin anyway!"
Garrett seemed to smirk in agreement at his comment but Gabriel just frowned, looking up in question to see that even Draco was smirking at them with a look of self-assurance on his face. He was just about to ask him if that 'all Malfoys belong in Slytherin' comment was true when Hale broke the silence again by looking around the area, her silver eyes blinking up at her father in question.
"Daddy…? Where's Aidan…? I thought we could play together today…" She began scowling impatiently after she said this and at the mention of Ginny and Anton's 9-year-old son, Hermione laughed and answered Hale's question for her by reaching down and ruffling her silver blonde pigtails.
"He isn't supposed to go to Hogwarts yet, sweetheart…Much like you aren't yet. I think he's waiting for you at the Manor right now…You can go there after you see your brothers off."
Hale's smile brightened at Hermione's comment and she nodded, her blonde pigtails bouncing as she moved her head. Draco couldn't help chuckling at the adorable sight and was just about to speak to his daughter again when another trio soon joined them. He looked up, scowling immediately after when he was met with the sight of Luna and Daniel Longbottom walking up to them.
At the sight of his longtime childhood best friend, Gabriel immediately grinned and exchanged a high five with Daniel – the sight of which causing both Garrett and Draco to roll their eyes. As Luna exchanged greetings with everyone else, Daniel reached up and gave Gabriel a punch to the shoulder.
"Hey Riel! Long time no see! Where's Aunt Jaimee…? Isn't she with you?" Daniel had frowned when he looked up and found that his favorite Aunt wasn't there but Gabriel just shrugged and answered him with an equally confused frown. "I don't know either, actually…Father says she has some important papers to finish up this morning. Speaking of which, where's YOUR father, Dan?"
Daniel grinned proudly and answered his best friend with a wink. "Dad's on another mission for the Ministry…He won't be back until tomorrow. He's Head Auror, after all…What do you expect?" His voice sounded filled with pride as he spoke that it called Garrett's attention from beside Gabriel.
The older Malfoy twin sneered in derision and shook his head, flicking his gaze up and giving his amused father a discontented scowl. "Great…And you told me just yesterday that even Uncle Byron is off on some 'secret' mission for the Ministry as well. And he's Head Unspeakable…Why is it that everyone else's jobs seem so much more interesting than yours and Mom's, Father…?"
Chuckling helplessly at his older son's complaint, Draco smirked down at him and reached over so he could adjust Garrett's shirt and collar more neatly. "Oh well…Excuse us for not being 'interesting parents' enough for you, Garrett…Your mother and I try our best, you know."
Garrett sighed in frustration at his father's evasive response, turning back around and tapping his foot impatiently as he waited for more students to arrive. Within the next five minutes that elapsed, his own longtime childhood best friend – James Vallehan Black – had also arrived and ran over to greet them, clapping Garrett several times in excitement on the older Malfoy son's back.
"Hey everyone! Hey Gar! Wicked, you're finally going to join me in Hogwarts! We're going to RULE the school!" He and Garrett exchanged smirks and a couple of signature handshakes – the sight of which causing Sirius and Regina to laugh as they eventually joined the largely forming group.
As soon as he caught sight of Draco's stiff figure, Sirius grinned wider and slapped his nephew hard on the back – causing the Malfoy Head to wince in annoyance at his presence. "MALFOY! Good to see you! Taking care of my little Prongslet, I hope? Ah, look at them! All so grown up! How time flies!" He grinned widely and gestured to James and Garrett in amusement, oblivious to Draco's angry sneer.
"Yes…It does…Unfortunately it seems to slow down whenever I'm around you, Black."
Sirius glared at him while all the other adults – including Regina – laughed at Draco's sarcastic retort, causing the children to momentarily pause their conversations so they could look up. When the adults began talking amongst themselves again, they all shrugged and eventually tuned them out – returning immediately to their own little worlds as they initiated as many conversations as possible.
"Did you check out the selection of broomsticks on display today, Gar? Bloody wicked, they are! I'm hoping I can convince Dad to buy me the newest model of the Firebolt! My sister Keira says I can already try out for the Quidditch team this year! I'm of age, you know!" James ranted proudly to Garrett with a grin, causing his best friend to grunt back and answer him with an irritated scowl.
"Yeah, yeah…Rub it in, why don't you?! It's bad enough that I can't bring my Firebolt with me this year but I can't join the Quidditch team too?! Ugh…Bloody idiots, the lot of them! Perhaps I can convince Father to talk to the teachers for me so I can—HEY! WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING!"
The rest of Garrett's drawling response was abruptly interrupted when a purple-robed figure out of nowhere suddenly came crashing against him from behind – forcing him to whip around and glare at the offending person in fierce anger. A pale, black-haired girl – some amounts of baby fat still lingering on her cheeks and limbs – glared right back at him and returned his scowl with her own.
"Geez…I'm SORRY! I didn't MEAN to bump into you, MALFOY! I just lost control of the trolley! Besides… You didn't even TRY to avoid me because you were too busy yakking away all that hot air! I'm surprised that snake around your neck hasn't died yet from all your bad breath!"
At the sight of Olivia Winchester, the daughter of his family's relatively more disliked pureblood acquaintances, Garrett's sneer hardened and he turned around fully so he could face her – his green eyes narrowing mockingly as they flicked up and down her slightly chubby form.
"Wow…For once, you're actually right, Winchester…How could I NOT have seen you coming with your humongous, WHALE-LIKE body coming right at me?! I wonder how many chocolate frogs you've eaten today…You're certainly beginning to LOOK like one anyway!" He and James both immediately burst into taunting sniggers after he said this, both boys laughing harder when they caught sight of Olivia's slightly tearful eyes and how she was seething with anger at Garrett's words.
"WHY YOU…Y—YOU STUPID BLONDE JERK—"
"OLIVIA! OVER HERE! DO NOT ASSOCIATE YOURSELF WITH THAT FAMILY!"
Still scowling as she looked up and met Garrett's wide, mocking sneer at her, she sniffed once before giving one indignant 'humph' and stalking off towards her father, Philippe Winchester, not too far away. Garrett and James both watched her go with matching smirks on their faces, shaking their heads in laughter when Olivia continued to ignore them and didn't bother turning back around.
"Can you believe that…WHALE…is going to my batchmate in Hogwarts?! Ugh…And I thought she would be attending Beauxbatons instead. It's bad enough I have to put up with her disgusting face during pureblood gatherings, I have to see her in school too?" Garrett shuddered to himself, wincing in pain moments later when Gabriel had reached over and gave him a hard whack on the head.
"OW! WHAT THE—RIEL?! WHAT DID I DO NOW?!"
James had pretty much lost all interest in the twins' antics and was now more focused on peering around Garrett's standing form to give a blushing Hale peering at him a wide, teasing grin. As soon as he had done this, however, the pig-tailed little girl blushed even darker and hid behind her father, causing James' mother to laugh softly in amusement to herself when she had seen this.
"Oh James, honey…Stop it! You're scaring her! Leave her alone!"
Hearing Regina's laughing, admonishing remark to her son, Draco stopped talking to Blaise long enough to look down in surprise, his eyebrows fusing in question when he saw that Hale was now hiding her embarrassed face against his cloak. Narrowing his eyes, Draco glanced back up again and at the sight of Sirius' grin several feet away, the Malfoy Head growled and shook his head slowly.
"NOT my daughter. DON'T even think about it, Black…Not ONE word."
Sirius' grin widened even more at the implied warning in Draco's words and he gave his son a mischievous wink, laughing when all James did was to blink up at him and shrug in confusion.
"What…Dad? Am I missing something here…?"
Before any one could attempt to answer James' bewildered question, everyone suddenly glanced up again as soon as they heard a loud whistling from the far end of the station – followed by the students gathered around them hurriedly rushing on towards the entrance of the train.
A tall, silver-blonde girl already decked out in her Ravenclaw Uniform and a Head Girl badge pinned right onto her robes began hurriedly making her way towards them as this happened, stopping only for a few moments to reward Draco and Lorraine with a brief kiss to the cheek in greeting.
"Everyone! The train's just about to leave! Get on board! Go on before you lose a seat!" Cherry-Lyn Malfoy Princeton – Hogwart's chosen Head Girl for that year – exclaimed, reaching out and helping Garrett and Gabriel along with their trunks as all the other kids began to gather their things.
As all of this happened, Hale's gray eyes immediately began to dampen with tears and she began to sniff to herself, watching sadly as her two twin brothers began picking up their things. Draco had let go of her hand for a couple of minutes to help his sons with their trolleys, walking them over to the nearest train entrance so that he could hand them their stuff as they got on board.
Just before they were stepping up onto the train however, Garrett and Gabriel both caught sight of Hale's tearful expression and stopped, turning back around to stare at her. While Garrett just arched an eyebrow and stuck his tongue at her in mock annoyance, Gabriel's features softened and he walked slowly towards his younger sister, kneeling down so he could pull her into a tight hug.
Hale hugged him back instantly and sniffed against him, waiting until her older brother had given her a kiss to the forehead before she pulled away and held her porcelain doll up to him.
"Cynthia wants a kiss goodbye too…" She told him pointedly and at that, Gabriel laughed and bent down to give the doll a kiss as well, pulling away so he could give his sister a playful wink.
"Don't you worry, Hale…I promise that Garrett and I will write to you EVERYDAY while we're at Hogwarts and that we'll send you lots of dolls and chocolates too! How about that?"
Garrett rolled his eyes at his brother's words and glanced pointedly at his watch in annoyance. "Do I HAVE to…? And chocolates…? Won't she get FAT if we keep sending her those all the time?!"
One look at Gabriel's fiercely flashing green eyes was all it took for Garrett to wince to himself before sighing in defeat and rolling his eyes, walking reluctantly back over to his sister to give her a brief – and slightly awkward – hug as well. "Alright, alright…Whatever makes Princess Brat here happy... Just stop crying! You'll get tears all over my shirt…And no I will not kiss your doll! Ugh!"
Hale giggled at her older brother's irritated drawl but reached up and pressed her doll's face against Garrett's cheek anyway, causing the older Malfoy son to pull sharply away and groan in annoyance. "Ugh…That's disgusting, Hale! Gabriel just got his germs on that thing! Get away!"
Watching the picturesque scene from just a couple of steps away near the train, Draco bit back the tender smile that was fighting to break out on his face. He continued to look on in silence as Hale finally relinquished her hold on Garrett and allowed her two brothers to walk back to the train.
They stopped just as they reached their father, however, and looked up at him with identical, slightly formal expressions of farewell on their handsome faces. His traditional family breeding keeping him from doing anything else except nod at them in silence, Draco just gave them both a calm smirk. Fortunately, Garrett and Gabriel seemed to understand their father's unspoken affection perfectly and they gave him identical grins, their eyes already beginning to glow with their excitement.
"Father…Well…I suppose we'll—"
Draco's chuckled at Gabriel's attempt to say something and interrupted him by stepping up to his sons, reaching his hands up and placing them firmly on both their shoulders. The train's whistle began to blow behind them just as Draco looked down and gave them both one last wink and smirk.
"Go make me proud."
Garrett and Gabriel's eyes twinkled and they grinned up at him one last time before both Malfoy sons laughed and took off, running right into the train entrance seconds before it closed and the Hogwarts Express began to leave – a horde of students waving to their parents from the windows.
Draco walked over to Hale and hoisted her up into his arms, walking several steps forward after the train so he could watch and wave back to Garrett and Gabriel from where they peered out the window of the train. Both Malfoy sons were still waving to their father and sister when the train finally faded from their sight and sped off in the distance, the sight of which bringing a genuine smile to Draco's face as he was briefly reminded of his own unforgettable experiences back at Hogwarts.
Once the train was gone and most of the other families around them were already beginning to walk back to the station, Draco finally took notice of Hale's sniffling form in his arms. His 9-year-old daughter was still crying to herself as she hugged her doll tighter against her chest, her teary silver eyes lingering intently on the direction the Hogwarts Express had gone off towards.
"Princess…? Why are you crying? You'll see your brothers again soon, I promise…And after two more years, you'll get to go to Hogwarts with them too. Don't worry…Okay…?"
Hale's frown darkened and she glared up accusingly at him with misty gray eyes.
"…Humph…"
Draco let out an affectionate laugh at her reaction and hugged his daughter closer against him, tilting his head down so he could plant a kiss onto her forehead. Hale hiccupped and blinked up at him, her features creased into a scowl as she looked up into her father's teasing, handsome smile.
When she didn't say anything but continued to scowl and pout up at him in growing agitation, Draco relented and shook his head again, chuckling helplessly to himself as he hoisted her up onto his shoulders and began to walk them back towards the barrier leading out of the platform.
"Tell you what…Why don't I take you to your favorite doll shop in London today and buy you that big, beautiful dollhouse that Mommy wouldn't get for you…? How does that sound, my Princess?"
Hale's eyebrows furrowed and she looked up at her father with a confused expression.
"But Mommy said I couldn't have that dollhouse because I had so many already—"
Draco cut her off with an arrogant smirk, shaking his head at her in amusement.
"Lesson one, Princess…A Malfoy…Always…ALWAYS…gets what he or she wants."
"…GRYFFINDOR!"
Gabriel felt utterly and completely sick to the stomach at this point as he watched Daniel Longbottom hop off the stool in the center of the Hogwarts Great Hall that night – the loud cheers and welcoming exclamations from the Gryffindor table at the far right of the room greeting his entry.
Right beside him, he heard Garrett's arrogant, drawling voice as he continued to boast loudly to Penelope McConway standing beside him. The pretty, brunette girl – who was also incidentally one of the family acquaintances the twins had met before during many pureblood gatherings – had taken the liberty of latching onto Garrett's arm since they had met up on the train and was now listening intently to everything the Malfoy son was saying — including stuff about Quidditch and himself.
Rolling his eyes at his brother's antics, Gabriel reached up and tugged impatiently on the sudden tightness of his collar – flicking his eyes desperately around the large Great Hall. He saw a couple of familiar faces glancing back at him – Chessie and Victoire Weasley from the Gryffindor table, Elliot Zabini, James Black and Baxter Cunnngham from the Slytherin table and even Cherry-Lyn Princeton from the Ravenclaw table – all of which were watching him and Garrett in keen interest.
When Daniel had finally settled himself in with the other Gryffindor first years, he looked up and shot Gabriel a thumbs-up from across the hall. Unfortunately, this did nothing to soothe his nervousness as he began to break out into a nervous sweat – incited even further on when he saw the brief smile and curious stares he and Garrett were beginning to draw from all the Hogwarts teachers.
"Malfoy, Gabriel!"
As soon as Professor McGonagall had called his name out loud, Gabriel winced and flushed even more in embarrassment when the students around them began to whisper more loudly amongst themselves – followed by several pointing fingers at his and Garrett's forms. Gulping loudly and forcing himself to step up to the small stool situated in the center of the room, Gabriel looked up and managed to lock his wide green eyes with Professor Dumbledore's twinkling blue orbs.
The Hogwarts Headmaster looked as though he was trying hard not to show his laughter at the sight of him and sat back against his seat as he watched McGonagall lowering the hat onto Gabriel's head. Gabriel stiffened even more in panic when the hat eventually covered his vision, forcing him to wait in silence by staring blankly at the darkness that surrounded him.
"Ah…A Potter AND a Malfoy, huh…? Most…Intriguing…I've been waiting to get inside your head, young Gabriel…" Gabriel gulped again at the sound of the hat's voice flooding his head and clenched his fingers tightly around the stool's edge. Sensing his nervousness, the sorting hat chuckled and spoke up in an amused voice. "Why so nervous, young Mister Malfoy…? Surely you should know already which house I'm going to place you in…It's in your lineage…And your heart, from what I see."
As soon as he heard the sorting hat's words, Gabriel's spirits dampened and he sighed, rolling his eyes in reluctant defeat. "I suppose it's off to Slytherin then for me now, is it…?" He mumbled under his breath but to his surprise, the hat let out a chuckling laugh and began to speak up again.
"Oh no…I was talking about your OTHER lineage, Mister Malfoy…For surely, you should know by now that you are most certainly a true—GRYFFINDOR!"
The sorting hat had shouted the last word out for the entire Great Hall to hear and at once, everyone broke out into a flurry of different reactions. Over at the Gryffindor table, many of the students began to cheer and clap loudly for their newest housemate while the Slytherins looked shocked and were gaping at them in shock – unable to believe that a Malfoy could be in Gryffindor.
Gabriel ignored all their reactions, however, and was grinning widely when McGonagall had removed the sorting hat from his head. The Transfigurations Professor was also smiling as she watched Gabriel hop off the stool and rush over to join his new house, looking back and meeting his twin brother's questioning glare with a slightly sheepish smile and apologetic shrug.
Settling himself down onto the seat beside Daniel, they exchanged another high five before laughing and beginning to join the excited conversations of the other Gryffindors around them.
"Malfoy, Garrett!"
Still scowling and highly annoyed at having to be separated from his twin brother, Garrett rudely shrugged Penelope's hand off his arm and strode over to the stool. He sat down and waited impatiently as McGonagall lowered the sorting hat onto his head again, only to sigh and yank it up again just moments later when even before the hat touched his blonde head, it had shouted—
"SLYTHERIN!"
This time, the Slytherins burst into loud cheers and applause while everyone else around the room just rolled their eyes at the well-expected occurrence. Garrett smirked to himself in self-satisfaction before looking up and shooting his grinning twin a scowl again across the room.
Gabriel smiled at him and shrugged, cheering for him anyway and watching as his twin brother eventually sat himself down onto the Slytherin table between James and Baxter. His two friends welcomed the older Malfoy son by grinning knowingly and patting him on the back.
As the sorting eventually continued and more and more first years began to be sorted into their appropriate houses, including Penelope McConway in Slytherin, Annie Williams in Gryffindor, and Olivia Winchester in Ravenclaw – the Headmaster finally stood up and walked to the center of the Hall.
"Welcome, welcome, welcome! It gives me utmost pleasure today to come across – even in my very old age, I must add – some of the fresh new faces of our newest students this year! Now…Before anything else and before I leave you all to enjoy your scrumptious feast—"
His words unwittingly elicited a growl of agreement from Gabriel's stomach from where he was watching by the Gryffindor table, causing Daniel to smirk at him and Annie Williams – who had taken up the seat right across from Gabriel – to giggle to herself at his embarrassed, flushed expression.
"—I'd just like to discuss a few important matters with all of you today! First off…As everyone SHOULD know by now—" Dumbledore paused and took great care in shooting some of the Weasleys around the room a pointed look. "—the Forbidden Forest is STRICTLY FORBIDDEN. Hogsmeade visits are for third year above only…and Seventh years should prepare for their hunting season this year."
In the middle of Dumbledore's speech, Gabriel met Garrett's identical green eyes across the room and shot his brother an excited smile – which the other Malfoy son reluctantly returned. Eventually, both Malfoy sons turned back to the front of the room again and watched as the Headmaster began introducing the teachers one by one. Garrett and Gabriel both waved to Professor Snape and he gave them both a brief nod, otherwise offering no other form of acknowledgment.
"At last…Now that's over…As some of you may already know…Professor Thompson and Professor Moore will both be retiring this year…Instead, taking Professor Moore's place as your new Charms Professor and Head of Ravenclaw house…I'd like you all to welcome…Professor Longbottom!"
Gabriel nearly choked on his pumpkin juice in shock as he looked up and watched as Luna Lovegood Longbottom entered the hall from the front side entrance, pausing to give her proudly grinning son a wave before she sat down onto the teacher's table. Daniel laughed at the shocked expression on his best friend's face and reached out to help tap him several times on the back.
"Oh yeah…I forgot to tell you, Riel…My Mum's teaching Charms this year. It was very last minute…Dumbledore just sent the letter about two days ago and I never got to tell you since then." He grinned again and shrugged sheepishly when Gabriel just glared at him in mild annoyance.
"Yeah, well…A little heads-up would have been nice, Dan—"
Dumbledore smiled mischievously and silenced everyone by raising his hands again, gesturing for them to calm down. Once the students had resettled themselves, he looked over to the far right of the room, frowning slightly when Luna shot him a pointed look and shook her head several times.
"Oh…Oh I see…Seeing as…Unfortunately…Your new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor has yet to arrive, I shall continue on with the introductions later. For now…Everyone…Enjoy your feast! For tomorrow…Your classes begin!" He winked when the students answered him with several groans.
As soon as the Headmaster had sat back down and all the other students around them began to busy themselves with the food that was rapidly beginning to appear on the table, Garrett turned back to James beside him at the Slytherin table, a pointed smirk slowly forming on his face.
"My father says that Dumbledore is nothing but a raving old crackpot who knows nothing about running a school…" He drawled loudly, causing the other Slytherin first years around him to laugh in agreement at his words. Baxter Cunningham gave him a particularly amused grin and gestured over to something behind Garrett just by the Ravenclaw table beside them.
"Hey Malfoy…Looks like Winchester doesn't look particularly pleased to see you tonight. Did you do anything to upset her again…?" He sniggered when Garrett's sneer hardened and he turned around in his seat again, looking up and meeting Olivia Winchester's hateful snarl across the room.
The Ravenclaw snarled at him and pointedly turned to the girls beside her – obviously making it clear to Garrett that she was whispering something bad about HIM. Garrett's eyes narrowed at this and he gave her a mocking smile, arching a single elegant eyebrow up at her before he shouted loudly.
"What's the matter now, Winchester…?! Not enough food for you over there?! Here, you can have mine too…" He added further injury by lifting his plate of food up and holding it out toward her with a harsh laugh– immediately eliciting a sharp gasp of furious insult from Olivia's lips.
Her teeth clenched and her face flushed in humiliation, she ignored the loud boisterous laughter that was coming from the other Slytherin first years who had heard Garrett's comment and stood up from her seat, something held right in her hand. Garrett was too busy sniggering and giving James a series of high fives to notice this, however, and simply began to turn back to his dinner.
Just before he managed to look away, another round of laughter from the Ravenclaws suddenly interrupted him and he froze – turning his face back around in slight confusion.
"What the—"
SPLAT!
The Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw first years – and even some of the upper-year Slytherins – all burst out laughing, pointing and smirking at the sight of Garrett flushing dark red in humiliation as he tried to wipe off the smear of chocolate cake Olivia had whipped right at his face.
Beside him, James and Baxter were also falling over themselves with laughter and turned away so that Garrett couldn't see them – their shoulders still shaking in their mirth. His hands clenching tightly into fists at his anger, Garrett turned back around and met Olivia's haughty smile across the room, his green eyes flashing in warning at her as he gave her another sneer.
"This means WAR, Winchester…"
Gabriel was still laughing at the sight of his twin brother's face smeared all over with chocolate cake across the room when a soft voice called his attention from behind. Blinking in surprise, he turned slowly and was soon met with Annie Williams' curious, inquiring blue eyes at him.
She offered him a friendly smile, gesturing to his twin brother from where the older Malfoy son was currently locked in a furious shouting match with Olivia Winchester just right across the Hall. "You certainly seem to be completely different from your twin brother…Gabriel…? Was it…?"
Gabriel began blushing again under her friendly gaze but nodded and offered her a bright grin. "So we've been told…We're still close though…Me and Gar…He's my best friend and brother. Despite how much of a prick he can be…How about you…? Annie…? Any brothers or sisters?"
Annie blushed at his sudden question but shook her head and laughed. "I'm an only child…Which is my parents were really shocked AND thrilled when I received my Hogwarts acceptance letter. At first they thought it was some kind of joke…All of it just seems so unreal." Her voice trailed off when she noticed Gabriel's amused grin at her and she shook her head, looking back up at him.
"What about you, Gabriel…? Is your family purely magical…?"
He laughed and nodded, nudging Daniel sharply in the ribs next to him when his best friend began giving him teasing smirks. "Call me 'Riel', Annie…It's my nickname. And…Well… I suppose you could say that…My father comes from a long line of pureblood wizards while my mother is a half-blood. So I suppose that would mean that I'm…75% magical…? All technically speaking of course…I…Think?"
Annie giggled at his quip and nodded in understanding, beginning to blush again when she noticed that Daniel was looking back and forth between the two of them and making a face.
"Okay…Uhm. Riel. I—I see…W—well…Th—that is—"
She was interrupted when a rather loud voice spoke up from beside her, forcing her and Gabriel to turn to the right at the sight of Marissa Goldstein, a rather pretty fellow first-year, scoffing as she gave Annie a look as though she was the stupidest person she had ever beheld in her life.
"Are you DAFT, Williams?! That's Gabriel MALFOY, you're talking to! He belongs to one of the most prestigious pureblooded families in Europe! Are you honestly THAT clueless about the magical world and its customs…Ugh…" She ignored Annie's offended flush and turned back to Gabriel's shocked expression, holding her hand out to him and giving him a sweet, beautiful smile in greeting.
"MY name's Marissa, Gabriel…But you can call me Rissa for short. It's a real pleasure to meet you." She offered the Malfoy son another overly friendly smile, watching as Gabriel's cheeks colored at her attention and he nodded back, forced by his breeding to plant a kiss onto the back of her palm.
"The pleasure is mine, Rissa…Please call me Riel."
His response sounded automatic as he pulled away, managing to look up just in time to catch a glimpse of what appeared to be a humiliated expression on Annie's face. He didn't get enough time to ponder on it, however, as their attention was drawn again by Dumbledore at the front of the Hall.
The Hogwarts Headmaster was up on his feet again and was now gesturing once more for the students to keep quiet, his light blue eyes twinkling once again in mischief. Nodding to where McGonagall was shooting him questioning looks, he turned back and gave the students a wink.
"Dear young students… It gives me great pride and honor to introduce tonight…Hogwarts' new DADA Professor…Returning for the first time since she graduated many years ago from Hogwarts…"
Gabriel met Garrett's equally confused expression across the Hall.
"—may I present…Professor Jaimee Potter Malfoy!"
Two pairs of startled green eyes widened comically in horror from two separate areas of the deathly silent Great Hall that night as the side doors near the Head Table blasted open again and revealed – without a doubt – the cloaked, grinning figure of none other than Jaimee Potter Malfoy.
The twins watched – completely stunned speechless and sputtering incoherently to themselves– as their strikingly beautiful mother walked right up to the Head Table amidst the loud applause and excited murmurs that had begun to spread like wildfire across the different House tables.
After giving Dumbledore a warm hug of greeting, Harry grinned again and made to walk over to her rightful seat beside Luna near the end of the table – only to cringe sheepishly to herself in embarrassment later when she had accidentally stubbed her foot onto Snape's chair and inadvertently tripped over him. Snape growled loudly when she caused him to spill his pumpkin juice down the front of his robes, eliciting several sounds of laughter from the other students who were watching the scene.
"POTTER! YOU CLUMSY OAF! WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING!"
Still cringing and offering a seething Severus Snape a helpless shrug of apology, Harry held back a smile and settled herself down onto the chair beside Luna's helplessly laughing figure.
Dumbledore also chuckled at this, turning back to the students with a wide smile.
"Incidentally, Professor Malfoy will ALSO be taking on the new responsibility of being the new Head of Gryffindor House this year…So let's all give her another round of applause in welcome again."
Harry blushed slightly at all the attention but answered all their cheers with another nod and conspiratorial grin, her green eyes rapidly scourging the entire Hall for a sign of her two twin sons.
When she found them gaping back up at her with identical horrified looks – the two of them separated into far, opposite corners of the room into Gryffindor and Slytherin – her smile widened and she shook her head in amusement. She inwardly reminded herself to tell Draco later that he had lost their 'bet' when she got back home before looking back up to peer curiously at her two sons again.
Her amusement soon faded, however, when she caught sight of Garrett and at once, she glared menacingly at him. Her eyes narrowed when she caught sight of the fact that her older son seemed to have paused right in the act of punching one of his fellow housemates right on the face.
Sensing his mother's angry glare at him, Garrett's eyes widened even more and his fisted hand lowered automatically. Gulping, he turned and promptly met Gabriel's face across the hall again.
The twins didn't have to be near one another to realize that they were thinking the same thing.
"OH…BLOODY…HELL…"
A/N: And…………………………………………………………………………………We're DONE! We're finally REALLY…DONE!
*runs hastily back to her room and collapses into a crying, rumpled heap of tears onto her bed*
Please don't ask me how old Dumbledore would be by this time already. I don't know either. X_X I just couldn't write Hogwarts without him! *giggle* Oh and Hale is eventually sorted into Ravenclaw in the future if any of you are curious. *grins* :D
Sweet Merlin, I can't believe I've finally finished this story! It seems like only YESTERDAY that I was starting on it and planning out the would-be plots and twists in my head…*Sigh*…But alas…My dear, loyal readers…Our journey together with Draco and Jaimee and the rest of our beloved Malfoy family must finally come to an end…*Tears begin to fill her eyes again*
But don't worry! You'll definitely STILL be seeing a lot of me again, I promise! Although I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing… *cringes to herself* I will be starting on Phoenix Tears pretty soon and for those of you who don't know, it's another DM/femHP fic…Although much darker and not nearly as happy-happy as this one. Still…I hope you give it a chance! You might like it! :D As of the moment, I am STILL undecided if I will write ficlets about the twins…I'll keep posting updates on my profiles if ever I decide to write one so you can all just check every now and then if you'd like. ;)
I'd just like to say…A BIG...WARM…HUG…AND SWEET CUDDLES AND KISSES to EVERYONE who stuck with me through this story and to those who kept reviewing and helping me out! Thank you so much for all the comments, suggestions, support and encouragement! You all have my deepest gratitude and I love you all SO MUCH for being such great readers of this series! I am not joking when I say that I could NOT have finished these series without you! So warm hugs and kisses to all! :D
So since it's the last time for this series…I implore everybody to please LEAVE ME ONE LAST REVIEW AND TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS ALRIGHT? MWAH! THANKS TO EVERYONE AGAIN!
This is slytherin-nette…Signing out. Lots of love, everyone! Cheers! :D