CW: mentions of snakes, chosen names, dead names, testing, parties

Chapter 34: Merope's triumph

"Tom," Marvolo mumbled from his chair in the study. "Would you mind making some tea? I'm almost finished editing this chapter."

Everest looked up, rubbing at his eyes and nodding blearily. Ever since he'd finished the orphanage project, Marvolo had been pushing them to get the second Slytherin tome finished. They had almost completed it too - Marvolo was faster at editing than translating, so they'd split up tasks that way.

"Oh!" Marvolo cursed, smacking himself on the head. "I'm sorry, it's Everest. I keep forgetting you've changed your name."

"It's alright," Everest smiled. "I know I'm a bit old to be changing my name."

"I'm a bit old to be remembering anything, more like." Marvolo joked, returning to his editing. "Extra sugar should help with that, I think."

Everest laughed as he walked down the stairs slowly. He still felt a little sore from all of the construction work, but overall he felt very satisfied with how everything fell into place. Plus, Merope would be coming home tomorrow, taking some of the housework off of his shoulders.

He had to admit, Marvolo had surprised him with his easy acceptance. As Everest brought the water to a boil, he thought back to how he'd explained the final day of construction and the complicated past he had with his first name. And he'd expected Marvolo to be against the idea, if only because it was different. But instead, Marvolo had simply nodded and said.

"I never liked Tom anyway - at least Everest suits you better."

And that had been it. Marvolo's memory was not the greatest, but considering it had only been a couple days, Everest thought it was pretty impressive that he was catching on so quickly. He was still catching himself mentally, remembering at odd moments that he now had a name he could be unashamedly proud of. It was a little disorienting sometimes, but mostly Everest just felt like he'd really stepped into himself.

He finished the tea, smiling to himself as he finished making the tea. He'd added extra sugar to Marvolo's tea, along with a plate of biscuits. Taking the steps back up took a concerted effort, though he levitated the tray with his wand so he could use his hands to help him climb them.

"So," He said, setting the tea down in front of Marvolo. "If we stay on track, I think we can send this off by the end of the week. I already have a colleague in mind."

"Who?" Marvolo asked, taking a sip from his cup. "I thought Mr. Sinclair specified in historical nonfiction?"

"No, not Mr. Sinclair." Everest smiled, putting sugar into his tea.

"Have you heard of Newt Scmander? He's a leading expert in magical creatures - and he's currently working on a rather large project about them all. I think, if we sent this manuscript to him, there's a very good chance he will add it to his book. Having it under his name will make it much more credible."

Marvolo looked appalled when he'd first started talking, but slowly smiled as he continued.

"That's very clever of you, Everest."

Everest smiled back, leaning in his chair. "Thank you, Marvolo. But we should hurry - he's working on the script in America right now - but I don't know where he'll be traveling next."

"I'm impressed." Marvolo went back to editing. "How did you find out where this Mr. Scmanader was going to be?"

"Oh," Everest had prepared the answer in advance. "I heard it when I was in Diagon Alley last time."

Marvolo nodded, already consumed by the chapter he was editing. Everest smirked as he returned to his work. He loved working with Marvolo, who matched his workstyle perfectly and was passionate about what they were trying to accomplish. They both missed Merope, but living in essentially a bachelor pad worked for the two men.

About an hour or so later, they decided to take a break and stretch their stiff muscles. When they made it down the stairs, they found Amata on her perch, a letter tied to her leg. She had clearly just arrived, as she was ruffling her feathers to warm up.

"Oh," Marvolo grunted, shuffling over to Amata and taking the letter. "I bet it's Merope letting us know when she'll be home."

He opened the letter, his face paling as he read. "Oh…"

Marvolo handed the letter off wordlessly to Everest, taking a seat at the kitchen table and holding his heart.

Immediately concerned, Everest read the letter through quickly. It was incredible news! Not only had Merope passed all of her exams, but she'd got high scores in every single one of them. Everest allowed himself a small moment of pride in his teaching abilities, then looked over to Marvolo. The poor old man looked like he was about to faint.

"Marvolo," Everest said slowly. "This is great news! What's wrong?"

"I...I just can't believe it." Marvolo whispered hoarsely. "Our lives have changed so much since you came along. I never thought my little girl would become so confident and strong. I never thought I could be so happy."

He reached out for Everest, holding his hands.

"Thank you," He said sincerely. "Thank you for saving my family."

Everest felt tears gather in his eyes, but he shook his head.

"It was an honour, Marvolo. And make no mistake - you both saved me just as much as I saved you."

The next day, both men waited impatiently for Merope to return home. After they'd finished crying together, both of them had cleaned and cooked in a frenzy. They wanted to surprise Merope with a welcome home party and all of her favorite things. At first, they'd considered writing to the Littles as well, but then they'd decided against it. This first night would just be about family - they could have another party later with the Littles.

The charm above the fireplace alerted them to Merope's arrival, as they dashed around with the finishing touches. By the time Merope's feet touched the hearth, both of them were standing in front of the table and smiling at her.

"Oh!" Merope cried, stepping out of the fireplace. "It's so good to be home! How have you both -"

But her mouth just fell open in surprise as she took in their normally plain kitchen and dining room. It had all been transformed into a wonderland, bright baubles and fairy lights making all of the handmade decorations glitter and glow. They opened their arms in unison to Merope, smiling ear to ear.

"Welcome home, Merope!"

"Oh!" Merope's eyes instantly filled with tears, her face breaking into a smile as she ran over to hug them both. "Thank you! This is all so beautiful - is that cream?"

"Yes," Everest chuckled. "We got some tarts from the baker as well."

"Come, come." Marvolo said, guiding Merope to her chair. "I want to hear all about your exams - start from the beginning and don't leave a single detail out."

Merope blushed, but happily began telling them all about the journey. She shared about the other people there for testing she'd met and the fun they'd had during breaks. She told them about the different examiners she worked with for the written and practical exams. By the time she'd finished sharing everything she'd experienced, they'd finished supper and dessert and were curled up around the fireplace.

"But enough about me!" Merope laughed. "What have you both been up to while I was away?"

"Well," Marvolo replied. "Tom's been busy restoring an old orphanage - it just barely reopened. Oh, and he's changed his name to Everest."

Everest felt himself tense slightly with anxiety. Merope had been the one to name him, though of course not the Merope sitting before him. But still...would she accept him for what he was?

But Merope just smiled brilliantly at him. "It's a perfect name, Everest! I didn't want to say anything because I didn't wish to offend you, but 'Tom' always felt wrong for you."

"Plus," She shuddered in revulsion. "It always reminded me of that Riddle boy. Oh, I'm so glad he went abroad for the year."

A warmth spread all throughout Everest's body. It was that simple, wasn't it? Real, unconditional acceptance. He had always wanted to find people who would see him, really see him, and accept him. Before, he would have found it impossible that these two people could be where he'd find that acceptance. But Everest had learned, after all this time, that nothing was impossible.

Notes:

Merope did it!

Happy Reading!