Chapter 12

"Remind me why we're the ones who've been stuck with this?" Neville asked as he wiped paint off the skirting board.

"Because George is hopeless at decorating and Harry's playing the pregnancy card…again," Draco replied, stepping back to check his handiwork.

They were decorating the nursery at Harry and George's, having been roped into doing so by the hapless couple. It was for the best; all of George's previous attempts at decorating had always ended in disaster, so much so that Harry had banned him from ever doing so in the future. Harry himself was normally a dab hand but his blood pressure had been rather high and so George had insisted on bed rest.

"I think we're doing a bang-up job," Draco said. "I had no idea I was so good with a paintbrush."

"Painting and decorating not part of a rich kid's upbringing, eh?" Neville asked with a gentle smile. He was still careful about bringing up Draco's childhood, and he wasn't ever certain if the man was open to joking about it but he was handling the subject with kid gloves.

"Surprising, isn't it?" Draco asked, returning the smile. "It must be my creative, artistic side coming out."

Harry and George had gone for a nice, neutral palette of yellows and creams, and Harry had gone into nesting mode on overdrive. Furniture and all manner of baby paraphernalia were arriving on a daily basis and George had remarked that they'd need to buy a second house to accommodate it all.

"Luna's coming to paint a mural on the far wall tomorrow. We're just the labourers," Neville said, pleased to see that the first coat looked very smart.

" That girl, she can turn her hand to anything," Draco said with a fond smile. He looked around the room and ran his hand over the cot that had been assembled and was currently covered with a dust sheet. "Do you ever think about it?" he asked, looking up at Neville.

"Think about what?" Neville asked.

Draco looked away, his cheeks flushed. "Children," he said quietly. "Do you ever think about having any of your own?"

Neville paused. He'd never really considered it, not in any real sense. Of course, he'd never had a relationship that had lasted any significant length of time and, he was certain, he'd never been in love with anyone before. He'd never imagined a future with someone, a future that included things like marriage and children, but now he had to stop and wonder.

"I don't know," Neville said with a thoughtful frown. "I've never really…I mean…maybe."

"I think you'd make a wonderful father," Draco said, fiddling with the dust sheet.

"You think?"

"Of course. You're kind and patient and gentle; you'd be able to raise a child with love and affection. You'd be amazing."

"Well, I guess that's a conversation we'll be having in the future, hm?" he said, and Draco's eyes widened. "What?" Neville asked with a grin. "You think there's the slightest chance my future doesn't include you?"

"Well, one doesn't like to assume," Draco replied, looking as though he might skip off down the street singing at any moment.

"Assume away," Neville told him. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Here you go, gents," George said, coming into the room. "Nice cold beers."

"Ta," Neville said, taking one and taking a large swig.

"Oh guys, it looks great," Harry said, appearing in the doorway.

"I thought I told you to stay in bed," George said with an admonishing look at his husband.

"I was bored," Harry said with a sigh. "Besides, I checked my blood pressure and it's fine."

"It's fine because I made you rest all day. Now, get back into bed and I'll sort out dinner for our wonderful decorators. Don't argue with me," he said, holding up a finger as Harry opened his mouth to do just that. "Dinner in an hour, gents," George told Neville and Draco, "and if you hear this one creep out of bed, hex him for me."

George placed his hands on Harry's shoulders and steered him out of the room, flatly ignoring his protests. Draco came to stand next to Neville and slipped an arm around his waist, saying, "Reckon we'll end up like those two?"

"Maybe," Neville said with a smile. "If we're very lucky."

They finished painting and stayed for dinner, Teddy, as usual, fixing himself to Draco's side for the entire evening. Charlie was due to make a visit in the next couple of weeks and Teddy was buzzing with excitement. He thought Charlie was the coolest person he'd ever known and he'd made his plans to apprentice with the man after school very clear.

"And then after that I want to study at The Centre for Natural Magic although I haven't decided what course I want to do," he said licking ice cream from his fingers.

"You do surprise me," George said wryly. "I thought you had that picked out from birth."

Teddy stuck his tongue out at him and said, "You'll have to be nice to me when I'm a famous naturalist and I get to choose what old people's home to stick you in."

"God I love this kid," said Neville with a laugh.

"Have him then."

"In a heartbeat," Draco said, leaning over in his chair and throwing an arm around Teddy, who cuddled in close with a smile.

"Love? Is something wrong?" George asked Harry, and Neville looked across the table to see that Harry had gone very pale and was taking long, deep breaths.

"I don't know," Harry said, his hand on his bump.

"Dad?" Teddy said uncertainly.

"It's alright, sweetheart," Harry said with a strained smile. "Nothing to worry about."

"I think we should take you to hospital," George said with a hand on Harry's back, looking more concerned by the moment.

"I think that would be wise. I'm fairly certain I've just gone into labour," Harry replied, looking shell-shocked.

"No," George said, getting of his seat, looking panicked. "It's too early. You're not eight months until next week."

"I know, but it's happening. It's alright," Harry said, reaching up and taking George's hand, "babies are born this early all the time and they do just fine. She's going to be ok."

Neville watched as George helped Harry to his feet, pulling him close and holding him tightly. He whispered something that only Harry could hear then kissed him so tenderly that Neville felt a lump form in his throat.

"Nev, will you and Drake take Teddy to yours?" Harry asked.

"Of course. We'll take good care of him."

"Come here, sweetheart," Harry said to Teddy, and the boy hopped out of his seat to be swept up in a hug by his parents. "You go with Drake and Uncle Nev and when we next see you you'll be a big brother."

"Are you going to be ok, Dad?" Teddy asked, clearly worried.

"I'm going to be just fine, darling."

"I'll look after him, love. I promise," George said, pressing a kiss to Teddy's head. "You be good for your uncles and we'll see you as soon as we can."

Draco cuddled Teddy to his side while Neville helped George take Harry to the floo. He watched as both men disappeared through the flames and sent up a silent prayer to whoever was listening to protect Harry and the baby.

He sent Draco upstairs with Teddy to pack an overnight bag while he cleared up the dinner plates and what little mess was left in the kitchen. Teddy was clearly shaken and Neville was determined to make the night as fun as possible for him to try and take his mind off things.

"Dad's going to be ok, isn't he?" Teddy asked as they arrived back at the cottage, his voice oddly small.

"Of course he is, sweetheart," Neville said. "You know your dad – tough as old boots. Besides, your pa won't let anything happen to him, you know that."

Teddy nodded but his concern was still apparent. "Hey," said Draco, running a hand through Teddy's sandy hair, "why don't we build a fort down here? We can watch a film and sleep down here if you like."

"Can we?" Teddy asked Neville, looking a little brighter.

"Drake's the boss," said Neville with a smile.

They got pillows and blankets from the linen cupboard and set up camp in the living room. They used a couple of dining chairs, along with a few strategic spells, and constructed a very respectable fort. They lined the floor with pillows and Draco charmed the inside with strings of fairy lights that twinkled cheerfully.

"This is awesome," Teddy declared, lying on his front as Neville set up Pirates of the Caribbean on the DVD player.

"Not a bad endeavour, if I say so myself," Neville said with a smile.

"We should go into business," Draco added. "We'd make a fortune."

Teddy was soon captivated by the swashbuckling adventure, even though he'd seen it well over twenty times. He sat between Neville and Draco tore his eyes away from the TV only to ask questions about pirates and to ruminate on how he himself would make a good one.

As the night drew on, Neville looked over to see that Teddy had wormed himself to lie with his head in Draco's lap. Draco was raking his fingers through the boy's hair, which had reverted to turquoise, a soft, content expression on his face. Neville wondered if it was the familial bond between them that made them so close or if something in them just spoke to one another, but Draco had fallen head over heels in love with his young cousin.

"I think you'll make a good father too," Neville said softly, and Draco looked up in surprise, as though he'd forgotten anyone else was there.

He gave Neville a charmingly shy smile and said, "I'd like children. I'd like to give them the chance to have everything I never had, to feel safe and loved. When I'm with Teddy…I can just…picture him as my own. I know it's stupid."

"It isn't stupid at all. He adores you and you're so gentle with him. I love watching the two of you together."

Draco smiled and looked down at the little boy, smoothing his hair off his forehead. "One day perhaps I'll be a father."

"We'll have to muddle through it together," Neville said and Draco looked up at him with eyes full of hope. They had a future together, Neville was certain of it, and he was going to hold onto it with both hands.

They eventually all snuggled down and went to sleep in the fort, Teddy wedged between them, exhausted from the day's events. Neville slept surprisingly well in the charming little fort, despite Teddy's occasional wriggling, but he was still perfectly aware when the fire roared to life and he heard George calling his name.

He scrambled out of the fort, Teddy and Draco continuing to sleep undisturbed. He knelt by the fire and was flooded with relief when he saw George grinning through the flames.

"It's a girl! She's so tiny, 4 lbs exactly and absolutely perfect. Harry's resting but he's top notch, both of them have been given a clean bill of health and we should be allowed to go home in the morning. Oh Nev, she's incredible. I can't stop looking at her."

"I'm so pleased, George," Neville said with a smile. "You had us all worried."

"Is Teddy ok?"

"He's fine. We've built a fort and now he's fast asleep. He was worried but I think we managed to distract him."

"Thanks Nev, don't know what we'd do without you."

"Go and get some rest and leave your daughter to sleep!"

"My daughter," George repeated with wide-eyed wonder. He was on cloud nine and Neville doubted very much whether the man would be able to calm down long enough to get any sleep.

They arranged for Neville and Draco to bring Teddy over late the following morning and Neville went back to bed, deciding to leave Teddy sleeping and tell him the news in the morning.

Of course, the moment Teddy learnt he had a sister he was desperate to get home. Neville and Draco had to appease him with a big cooked breakfast followed by a stint in the greenhouses. By the time they took him home he was practically vibrating with excitement.

"There's my boy!" George said, wrapping him up in huge hug as he stepped through fireplace. "We missed you so so much. Now, come and meet someone special."

Neville watched, his arm around Draco's waist, as George led Teddy to the sofa where Harry was sitting with a tiny bundle in his arms. He looked tired but he was radiating happiness and Neville watched as Teddy sat beside him, reaching out an unbelievably gentle hand to stroke his sister's cheek.

"Teddy, this is your baby sister," Harry said as George sat on his other side, smiling down at his daughter. "Nev, Drake, come over and meet her," Harry said, beckoning them over.

"What are we calling this little bundle?" Neville asked.

"Yvette," Harry said, looking up at him. "Yvie for short. Who wants a cuddle?"

"I do," said Draco, holding his arms out while Harry carefully transferred his sleeping daughter to him. "Oh my goodness," Draco said softly. "She's so beautiful."

Harry cuddled Teddy to his side and said, "She gave us a bit of a scare, that's for sure, but she's absolutely perfect." He pressed a kiss to Teddy's now bright pink hair and said, "We can only hope she's as content a baby as you were."

"No chance with all those Weasley genes," Neville said with a laugh, looking over Draco's shoulder at the sleeping bundle in the man's arms.

"Don't remind me," Harry said with a groan. "She'll be her father's daughter alright."

"Nothing wrong with that," George said with a grin. "She'll have brains and beauty."

"Are you alright, Dad?" Teddy asked. "Really alright?"

"I'm fine, sweetheart," Harry assured him. "Especially now I'm back in my own home with my best boys."

"And your best girl," Teddy added. "Can I help you look after her?"

"I'd love that. You'll be invaluable, my love."

"She's so precious," Draco said, utterly captivated as he looked down at the sleeping baby. "Hi Yvie, welcome to the world, little one. I hope you know how lucky you are. You have the best parents I could imagine and a smashing big brother."

"Not to mention two excellent godfathers," George said, wrapping an arm around Harry's shoulders as they both smiled up at Neville and Draco.

"Godfathers?" Draco echoed, looking stunned. "Surely you just want Neville to…I mean I'm not really…I shouldn't be – "

"We'd be honoured," Neville said, feeling as though he might burst with pride, while Draco looked too stunned to speak. The man took a deep, shuddering breath and said with a whisper,

"My goddaughter."

They stayed at George and Harry's for the rest of the day, helping to finish the nursery and doing a spot of cleaning and cooking for the new parents. Teddy was enraptured by his sister and kept hovering next to Harry to make sure the little baby was alright. He was a boisterous child but he displayed a gentleness with her that Neville would have never believed he possessed.

Neville and Draco cooked dinner while Harry and George acclimatised themselves to life with a new-born. It was lovely to watch them together, to see how they were blossoming into this next stage of their life together and Neville found himself wanting the same for his own life. With Draco now a permanent fixture, he was able to see if as a possibility for the first time.

"We'll come and see you soon," Neville said as they all exchanged hugs by the fireplace. "We don't want to impose."

"Speak for yourself," Draco said, leaning around George, who had his daughter tucked in the crook of his arm, and stroking the baby's cheek. "I'll be back as soon as possible for cuddles with my goddaughter."

"You're always welcome, you know that," Harry said, looking worn out but happy.

Draco was practically vibrating with excitement when they arrived back at the cottage and it did Neville's heart good to see him so happy. "I have a goddaughter, Neville," he said, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he took Neville's hands in his own.

"I can't tell if you're pleased about it or not," Neville teased.

"It's so unbelievable," Draco said, his smile wide. "I have friends, I have a cousin and a goddaughter, a future on the horizon…and I have you. Without you I wouldn't have all of this, I'd still be living in the backstreets of Knockturn slowly killing myself. You're the reason for everything good in my life."

"I just came along at the right moment. You'd have sorted yourself out, I know you would."

Draco shook his head. "No, I needed help, I needed a lifeline. You could have left me in that alleyway or asked me to leave after a week here but instead you gave me sanctuary, you helped get me well, you gave me purpose. I'm happy for the first time in years and it's all because of you."

"You're not the only one who needed saving," Neville said softly. "I didn't realise how lonely I was, how much I wanted what Harry and George have. You make me happy too."

Draco sighed happily and reached up to brush a hand through Neville's hair then reaching down to rest on Neville's cheek. "Make love to me," he whispered softly.

Neville's heartbeat sped up and he placed his hand over Draco's, saying, "Are you sure? You know I don't – "

"I'm sure," Draco said with quiet resolve. "I love you and I want to be with you."

Draco knew his own mind and Neville didn't want to insult him by insinuating that he had no autonomy in the matter. He took Draco's hand in his and pressed a kiss to the knuckles before he turned and led the man upstairs to the bedroom.

He took the man in his arms and kissed him softly as Draco's arms slipped around his neck. He could feel that the other man was nervous and he wanted to prove that he was worthy of the trust Draco had placed in him, he wanted to show him how beautiful sex could be when there was love involved.

It was new territory for Neville too. He'd never shared a bed with someone he loved, he'd never felt for anyone the way he felt for Draco and this moment between them felt like something special. He undressed Draco slowly, reverently, taking his time and making sure that the man felt nothing but safe and cherished.

He removed his own clothing and guided them both to the bed, covering Draco's body with his own as they lay down. They kissed softly, languidly, Draco's kisses never failing to set Neville's nerves on fire. Skin pressed against skin as their cocks rubbed gently together, Draco pressing himself upwards for more contact.

Neville let his hands and lips wonder all over Draco's slim torso, caressing the soft skin beneath him. He mapped out the scars that littered the man's body, worshipping each one and thanking the gods that fate had delivered this man into his hands, that he could now keep him safe and protected, determined that no new scars would join the ones of the past.

"God you're so beautiful," he whispered as Draco moaned softly with each touch. "Do you have any idea how much I love you?"

"No more than I love you," Draco said breathily, writhing against Neville's body and sending pulses of pleasure through him.

Neville reached for the lube from the bedside table and said, "We're going to take this slowly, ok?" Draco nodded and Neville leant forward to meet the man's lips in a slow and sensual kiss. He let his hand trail downwards, gently brushing Draco's erection, teasing him with the light dance of his fingers.

He moved downwards and began to tease Draco with his tongue. He pressed light kisses to the man's hardness then swirled his tongue around the weeping head. He kept his movements slow, revelling in the play of Draco's thigh muscles under his hands, in the soft, breathy moans above his head.

He slicked his fingers well with lube and circled Draco's entrance gently before carefully insinuating one finger. He took Draco's cock into his mouth as he worked his fingers in and out, Draco practically mewling when he added a second. By the time he added a third, Draco was pressing down on them, practically begging for more.

Neville removed his fingers then slicked himself up well before he settled between Draco's legs. "Alright love?" he asked.

"God yes," Draco groaned. "Want you inside me, want to feel you."

Neville positioned himself and pressed forward carefully, taking his time and letting Draco's body accommodate him. Draco was tight and gloriously hot around him and Neville thrust slowly and deeply, allowing himself to lose himself in the gorgeous body beneath him.

He met Draco's lips as the man's legs wound around his waist, sending him deeper still, his hips shifting to an angle that had Draco moaning against his mouth. It was amazing, breath-taking, and Neville's skin tingled as pleasure and emotion mingled inside him to fill him with heady intoxication. He felt closer to Draco than ever before and he wanted to keep the man in his bed forever.

"Oh yes, Neville," Draco breathed. "Fuck yes."

"Yes feel amazing," Neville moaned. Thrust after thrust built the pleasure more and more. Draco's moans were the sexiest things Neville had ever heard in his life and he wanted to spend the rest of his life being the one responsible for them.

Feeling Draco writhe against him was incredible and he reached a hand down to wrap around the man's straining erection. Draco bit his lip and looked up at him with hazy eyes, sending yet another shock of pleasure through Neville. He pumped the man's gorgeous prick in time with his thrusts, Draco arching into his hand as he clenched his muscles around him.

"Oh Drake," Neville whispered, and Draco came with a gasp of pleasure, spilling himself all over Neville's hand. Neville began to thrust hard into the man's sated body and finally found his own release moments later. He collapsed on top of Draco, his breathing ragged as his body trembled with his release.

Mindful of crushing the man beneath him, he carefully pulled out with a cleaning charm and rolled to the side. He pulled Draco close and pressed a kiss to his temple. "Are you ok?"

Draco gave a breathless laugh and said, "I can't begin to tell you how ok I am. That was incredible."

Draco snuggled into his side and soon, with the emotion of the past 24 hours coupled with the utter satiation he felt, he was drifting into a pleasant sleep. When he woke in the small hours, he was alone. He gave it a few moments to be sure Draco wasn't in the bathroom, then decided he needed to find the man.

He threw on his jogging bottoms and went in search of him, finding him curled up in the armchair in the sitting room. His worry melted away when the man greeted him with a warm smile and said, "I couldn't sleep, didn't want to wake you."

"Is everything ok?" Neville asked, perching on the arm and rubbing Draco's upper back.

"Better than ok. My mind was just going a mile a minute." He reached for Neville's hand and laced their fingers together. "That was the first time I've ever been…present during sex. I was there in my own body for all of it and it was…oh Neville, it was so beautiful. I had no idea sex could be like that."

Neville gave him a sad smile and Draco continued, "I've only ever known it to be aggressive and shameful, but that…there was nothing shameful about that. It's like a whole new world's opened up to me, like I can finally see things for how they should be."

Neville used his free hand to rake through Draco's soft hair and said, "I've never suffered the awful things that you've been through but I can tell you that I've never had an experience like that before. I've never felt so close to someone, so completely that…that I belonged to them."

Draco smiled, tears in his eyes, as he said, "I love you. I'm yours for as long as you'll have me."

"A bloody long time then," Neville said, leaning down to meet the man in a kiss that felt like an affirmation of something, something Neville desperately wanted.

AN: My favourite chapter to date :) I hope you all enjoyed it, please leave a review and let me know!

Keep a lookout for my new Snarry oneshot too. It's a light-hearted little bit of nonsense that I hope will give you all a giggle.