A/N: Don't get too excited. Wedding to come next chapter!

TW: Discussion of Suicidal Ideation
CW: Explicit Sexual Language
CW: Reference to Prior Sexual Abuse / Dubcon
CW: Discussion of Vasectomy Depression (Not sure that's something that needs to be tagged, but better safe than sorry.)

"We're getting married in a month."

Draco smiled at Hermione across the table at dinner. It was just the two of them, with Draco's parents off on holiday.

"Yes, we are."

"I want to speak with you about the ceremony."

"Hermione, I would be content to snog you, hand you a candle, and call ourselves married right now."

She laughed.

"I've already had a wedding, but I want this to be special for you."

"I get to be with you for the rest of my life. That is special."

"No," Hermione shook her head, "I want this marriage to begin in front of our family. I've already said everything I have to say to you, but I haven't said it in front of them. I want everyone important to us to see how much I love you; and why this is different from my first marriage."

"One look at me and one look at Weasley, then anyone can see this marriage will be a far cry from your first nuptials."

"I want Theo to be my second."

Draco blinked.

"Sorry?"

Hermione repeated, "I want Theo to be my second."

"Theo was meant to be my second."

"I know it is a strange request because he is essentially your brother, and—"

"Not essentially. He is my brother in every way that matters. I haven't even asked Blaise, yet, and—"

"Theo was there for me when Ron and Harry were not. Ron could hardly look at me because of what I'd done to you. Harry was too deep in whatever issues he's having to care for me when I needed him. And that is fine, of course, he deserves to take care of himself. But I needed them and Theo was the only one who showed up in a meaningful way. He alienated himself from your entire family just to help me get through each day."

"And I am grateful that he did," insisted Draco.

"Ginny is my maid of honor because she is my best friend, and I am still a bit upset at Harry. Then, I really can't have my ex-husband in my wedding party. Ginny has been a shoulder for me to cry on more times than I can remember because she saw my marriage to Ron for what it was. She also sees this relationship for what it is. I want Theo to be my second because he did the same thing, seeing me for who I really am. It came down to him or Romi, and as much as I love Romi, Theo comes with a sense of safety. If you will allow it, I would like for Theo to be my second."

Draco nodded.

"If it means that much to you, I believe he would be honoured."

"He was the only part of you I could hold onto." Hermione stared down at the table and admitted, "Theo and Ginny held my hands through recovery. They were the only two who believed I was worthy of a second chance. (Besides Dean, of course, but Dean sees the best in everyone.) When you agree to be my husband, Draco, I want to be with the only two people who have always believed that was possible."

Draco shrugged.

"It is done, then."

"You won't fight me on it?"

"Why would I?"

"No reason. Sometimes I forget I don't have to explain everything to you."

"To me," replied Draco, "Theo deserves a spot in my wedding because he is my brother and has been with me since I could crawl. For you, Theo deserves a spot at your side because he risked every relationship he has just to ensure you were taken care of. One of those things clearly outweighs the other."

"Why is this so easy with you?" asked Hermione. "Everything is so easy."

"I wouldn't say everything is easy, but what is mine is yours. Isn't that the point of being married? My family is your family."

"Is it mad that I feel we've already been married awhile? When I wake up Christmas morning, I don't believe I will feel differently than I did the previous morning."

"Good." Draco grinned. "Because nothing will change for me. From the moment you offered to perform the purity ritual. Or, I suppose, Dean refers to it as the 'eternity' ritual. I quite like that name. Anyhow, I cannot speak for you, but the moment you did that was when I made the commitment."

Hermione's cheeks turned pink.

"The first night I spent here with you was when I knew this was my future. Watching you let everything go, hearing you fall asleep whispering how much you love me, and not wanting to leave you the next morning. I never felt that way with Ron, always fighting for his attention and his affection. You are so full of love that I never feel a need to compete for it."

"Just as I never need to prove myself to you."

"You gave me a second chance, and that was everything I will ever need to know."

Draco laughed.

"I love how you think my motives were altruistic. Like letting you back into my life wasn't the most desperately selfish thing I have ever done."

"Just as me wanting a second chance was the most selfish thing I have ever done."

"Maybe," Draco conceded, "but I think we both deserve this."

Hermione grinned and nudged Draco's foot underneath the table.

"What are you wearing?"

Draco looked down and frowned.

"T-shirt and trackies?"

"I meant to the wedding." Hermione laughed. "What are you wearing to the wedding?"

"It's a surprise."

"What do you mean, it's a surprise?"

"Isn't it a Muggle tradition that the bride doesn't see the groom's outfit before the wedding?"

"You have it backward," replied Hermione. "The groom doesn't get to see the bride before the wedding."

Draco frowned.

"Isn't that the same thing?"

"No, it is all about the dress."

Draco teased, "Who's to say I am not wearing a dress?"

"Your mother would murder you the moment you walked through the door."

"I suppose you're right."

"Besides, we can't both be in dresses," Hermione added, "we'd be competing with each other."

"Then, clearly, you must wear the trousers."

Hermione pointed her fork at Draco and insisted, "No."

"Admit it, my bum would look fantastic in a wedding dress."

"Your bum would look fantastic in anything, but that does not mean you get to wear a dress to our wedding."

"All I'm saying is that it would make a fantastic photo on the front of the Prophet. The most powerful woman on the continent, marrying your technically-acquitted war criminal fiancé in a dress."

Hermione smiled softly at Draco and asked, "Joking aside, have you selected anything?"

"Yes, and I will be wearing trousers."

"And a jacket?"

"Of course." Draco hummed, "However, the shirt is negotiable."

Hermione playfully threw a dinner roll at Draco, and he laughed.

"I will be wearing a shirt, trousers, jacket, and shoes. That is all you get to know because I do want it to be a surprise."

"Will Bastien be your second, then?"

"Yes," Draco replied without hesitation. "I was tempted to ask you for three so I could include him anyway. This works rather well."

"Everything always seems to work out for us in the end, doesn't it?"

"On Christmas Eve I will get to call you my wife. Anything else is window dressing."

.oOo.

Draco went to visit Blaise the following afternoon. Blaise opened the door and grinned, likely having guessed the purpose of this visit. Draco stepped into the foyer and sighed.

"There are times this place still feels more like home to me than Malfoy Manor."

"Because everything bad that happened to you before you came here has a resolution." Blaise shut the door and said, "Nothing at the manor was ever resolved, not really."

"How did you make this feel like home?"

Without a moment's hesitation, Blaise answered, "Dean."

"Hmm?"

Blaise led Draco into his office and took the chair behind the desk.

"When I moved in, I brought furniture and food and all the technical bits that make this a livable house. I knew from the first time Dean walked through the door that he felt like home. A home is something you put your heart into. I put my heart into him, which is reflected in our house."

"The manor feels home-ish, now that Hermione is in it," Draco admitted, "but there is still something missing."

"I think we both know what's missing."

"When the time is right, I suppose." Draco leaned back in the chair and said, "You know why I'm here."

"Yes." Blaise smiled. "You are here to ask me to be in your wedding party and I accept with far more enthusiasm than is appropriate!"

"Excellent. You will need to speak with Lee Jordan, of course, to go over the ritual practices as this is a nontraditional ceremony—"

"Why would I need to take part in anything?" asked Blaise. "That is for your first chair."

Draco blinked.

"You are my first chair."

Blaise went eerily still for several moments. Of every reaction Draco anticipated, that disquieting silence never made the list. Eventually, Blaise used the pad of his thumb to wipe away a tear about to escape from his eye. Draco confirmed,

"Since Theo was meant to be my second chair, Hermione has stolen him from me to reflect her appreciation for what he did during our estrangement. You were always my first choice and I want you to know that."

Blaise nodded.

"I believe you."

"Good."

"That does not mean I understand your choice, but I …" Blaise took a shaky breath in. "I appreciate it."

"I know you do."

"Would you …" Blaise frowned and a crease formed between his eyebrows. "Would you mind explaining it to me?"

"Everyone tells me that I taught you how to love."

"You did."

"I am grateful to have done that for you. I cannot imagine a single universe in which you and Dean are not together, and I am honoured to have facilitated it. However, in the time since our breakup I have realized how much you changed me, too."

"In a positive way, I hope."

"In the best way. Because you knew what I had let people do to me. You'd seen it done, even. Violent, violent things …" Draco shuddered at the memory of knuckles hitting the underside of his jaw. "Even with all of that, after I had whored myself out to anyone who wanted to hurt me, you didn't care about any of it. You saw a man who needed to be loved and you loved me. So many times I believed I was too far gone and you have always been there to pull me back from the edge."

"Because you couldn't see the man you were meant to become, but I could."

"I remember the first time you kissed me. God, I'd wanted you to do it forever but never thought you would. You were slow and deliberate about it, giving me time to choose whether to walk away. Everything was slow and gentle, and your face is always so smooth, I always felt a bit bad with the stubble, because—"

"I liked it." Blaise blushed. "I liked it very much."

"—you were so perfect, and gorgeous, and everything I should have loved. My best friend, and the sex was great, waking up with you was great, yet I couldn't find enough of myself to be present with you. I am sorry for that."

"You were enough. It may not have been all of you, but I appreciated every bit of what you gave me."

"I have always been enough for you, and that is why you are my first chair." Draco paused then amended, "'Chair' is a bit of a misnomer since you'll be standing and everyone else will be sitting—"

"Do you remember when you first told me about your illness?"

Anorexia.

Draco doubted Blaise would ever be comfortable saying the name aloud. It was foreign, uncomfortable, and had taken more of Draco's life than he cared to admit.

"You said it was difficult to tell someone who matters. I have always mattered to you, and I hope you know how much that means to me. When my mother all but abandoned me I had no one, so you stepped up to give me a family. Theo was already as good as your family, but I was the first person you chose to be part of this thing you created. Our love had its time and place, and I think we are both better for it."

"Yes."

"You are choosing me again, and I am honoured to accept."

Draco situated himself so his right ankle rested on top of his left knee, and leaned forward to put his elbows on the edge of Blaise's desk.

"I always said I wanted a relationship like the one you have with Dean, but I think I finally understand the difference between what you have and what I wanted."

Blaise raised an eyebrow and asked, "Oh?"

"You and Dean, your love is for you. Look at how you asked him to marry you."

Blaise blushed.

"I never figured out how to do it, so I went ahead with it at the moment when it felt best."

"Right, rolling over and pulling the ring out of the bedside table, no need for anyone to know but the two of you. I didn't want that. My relationship with Hermione is loud and there for the world to see. The moment she said yes, I wanted everyone to know. I found the love that was right for me, and I want you to be there when I make it official."

"And I will be."

"I know. Now, the ceremony will be a bit different …"

.oOo.

Sebastien sat at his small desk with a quill in one hand and an ink jar in the other. Draco was on the floor, cross-legged in front of him.

"I have ideas for your wedding words."

Draco corrected him with, "Wedding vows."

"Sorry." Sebastien looked Draco straight in the eyes and said, "I have ideas for your wedding cows."

Draco barely managed to force back a chuckle. He nodded for Seb to continue.

"Hermione's favourite colour is yellow."

Draco confirmed, "It is."

"Yellow's a stupid color, but I think you should say it's a better colour just because Hermione likes it."

"Brilliant. Write that down."

Sebastien frowned in concentration as he scribbled notes on his parchment, then his head popped back up.

"Her teeth are very white. You should say she has nice teeth."

Draco conceded, "I do like her smile, so add that to the list."

"And—"

"What's going on, here?" Theo popped his head into the room. "I thought you were meant to be studying."

"We finished!" shouted Seb. "Now I'm helping Uncle Draco write wedding words!"

"Vows."

"Wedding cows!"

Draco laughed and said, "He'll get there eventually."

"I do need to talk to Draco, Seb, so—"

"Absolutely not." Draco shook his head. "Your son is giving me gold."

Theo opened the door and nodded for Seb to, "Go find your mum and ask if she needs help with anything."

Sebastien frowned and insisted, "Uncle Draco needs help! What if his wedding words are bad?!"

"Right, Theo," Draco repeated, "What if my wedding words are bad?"

"You," Theo pointed at Draco, "Can stuff it. And you," he pointed at Sebastien, "can finish helping Draco in an hour. Is that alright for you?"

"Yes, dad."

"Good." Theo high-fived Seb as he squeezed by, then waited until he was out of earshot. "You and I need to talk."

"So you said."

"Hermione asked me to be her second at your ceremony, and I want to say yes. However, I also want to make sure it is alright with you, and that you know I'm not choosing her over you in any way."

"Of course. We talked about it before she asked you. It means a lot to her."

"I want you to understand why."

"I do."

"I think you should have a better understanding, because it kills me to know I am on the other side. You are my brother, and I know I should always take your side, and that is what I did. I promise, Draco, I cared for her because I care for you, and I think you should see what that looked like. So, follow me?"

"Everyone's been so cryptic lately. You with this, Bastien cancelled our runs for the month without notice, and James hasn't replied to my last few letters. I suppose I can follow you down memory lane for a bit."

Draco stood up, joints creaking a bit more than they used to, and followed Theo out the door, down the hall, into the shared study. Draco frowned when he saw a small Pensieve had been sat on the desk.

"Is it this important to you?"

Theo nodded.

"Hermione and I have a close bond, one I'm not sure I would call friendship, it's … It is more like a deep trust and understanding. More than friendship, but of course not in any way that would make Trace feel insecure in our marriage."

"Right."

"So … I think you should see what happened the night she hit you. Maybe then you will understand what we went through together and just how far I had to help her along."

"No," Draco insisted, "I know that already. I don't need to see her like that."

"I think you should," replied Theo, "but if you don't want to then I won't force you."

"Why?"

"Because I have looked forward to being part of your wedding for ten years and feel like I am abandoning you by saying yes to her. And I wouldn't do it unless I felt it was right."

"And I trust you."

"But I want you to see why I chose to spend all that time with her even if it alienated me from my own family. Bloody hell, Bastien and Blaise were calling me a traitor for months."

"I recall."

"If you see what I saw on that day, I think you will see why I did what I did, and understand how far Hermione has come in the years since."

"Right." Draco shrugged. "Shall I jump in, then?"

Theo nodded. Draco stuck his head into the basin and fell forward until his feet hit the floor of Hermione's old house. It was familiar and, in a way, he missed it. The notion of a charming little house fit for the two of them and a child would always tug a bit at Draco's heart. He looked around to see Hermione curled up in her chair, just as he remembered leaving her. Theo sat on the arm to Hermione's left. She had hardly moved and her presence had diminished. Hermione was limp, with her knees pulled up to her chest, curled into the corner of the chair. She grumbled,

"Ron will never forgive me for this."

"He is not the person who needs to do the forgiving."

Hermione sniffled and asked, "Why are you even here?"

"Because I've seen this before. Draco fell so far out of himself that we never knew how to pull him back. I couldn't fix him, couldn't help him or save him. There is nothing I can do about it now, and Merlin knows I won't be able to help him this time around either. But I can help you through this."

"I don't deserve your help or your pity." Hermione's eyes began to water. "I did this."

"Was it an accident?"

"Of course it was an accident!" Hermione hiccupped. "I never want to hurt him. He has been so good to me, and we have been good together."

"Then it can be forgiven. Accidents can be forgiven, Hermione, given the proper time and effort. You only need someone to hold your hand along the way. Since Potter and Weasley are too thick-headed to do it, then you're going to need someone to step up. I didn't step up for my brother, but I'll be damned if I let you go through this alone."

"I …" Hermione's face was red and splotchy. "I thought I could keep it together, I really did."

"Look, when Trace and I learned she was pregnant, the whole fucking world stopped. We didn't want to have kids at twenty, good God, we thought maybe thirty. Maybe! We had businesses to run. Trace had just filed paperwork for the distillery, I was working on a massive project, and neither of us knew what to do. If Draco hadn't stepped up for us, I dunno what we would've done. Especially as Scarlett's grown, he's almost like a blueprint for her, in weird way. We step up when we need each other, Hermione, and as far as I am concerned you will be part of our family again."

She shook her head and cried, "But I'm not now, am I?"

"No." Theo rubbed her back in slow circles as she collapsed in on herself. "But you can earn your way back in. And, as far as I am concerned, you are still part of my family, Hermione. Seb adores you."

"Maybe he shouldn't," she snapped. "What I did wasn't right. I'm not right."

"Draco is a good example for Scarlett about accepting who she is, for being strong and embracing her athleticism. You are the same for Seb, a great role model."

"Not anymore."

"Yes," insisted Theo, "yes, even more now because my son will look at you and learn how to overcome mistakes. He will see that sometimes you have to work on yourself to be better, and that family helps family even when it is difficult."

"Not worth it, Theo. I'm not worth it."

"You're the most powerful wizard I've ever met, and I won't let you lose that. I won't."

Theo went upstairs, and Draco was left downstairs with Hermione.

Wait.

Draco tried to move, to go upstairs, but he couldn't leave his current line of sight. This wasn't Theo's memory. Draco slowly turned to face Hermione as she retreated into herself. Draco wanted to go to her, wrap her in his arms and promise it would all be okay. Tell her that two years on they would be getting married, that they were trying for a child and happier than they'd ever been.

Hermione didn't move at all, and it was terrifying. Like she could simply slip away, slide out of existence at a moment's notice and only leave a shadow of herself behind. Draco glanced at the clock to see it had only been an hour since she arrived home. About fifty-seven minutes since she hit him. Draco was probably still at Bastien's flat, his friends fretting about trying to figure out how best to handle the situation.

It was all about him, and Theo was the only person who thought to stay with Hermione. Draco stood there, watching her, wondering what would've happened if Theo was not present. Hadn't Draco always said the same thing? There had never been a moment, not even in the hours immediately afterward, when he hadn't loved Hermione. Theo did this for his kids, and he had done it for Draco.

The woman in the chair in front of him bore no resemblance to the Hermione he was about to marry. She had given up. Draco was in the same place at the same time, and maybe that was the truth of their relationship. They began too early and weren't honest enough with each other.

Theo padded quickly downstairs with a bag in tow.

"Right, I grabbed everything I thought you'd need for a few days, and if I missed something Trace will know what to get."

Hermione swallowed thickly then sighed.

"Where are you taking me?"

"My spare room. It's a bit messy, not all of us can afford house-elves, you know, but there is a bed with clean linens and a nice quilt. Tracey's gram made it a few years ago and it'd keep you warm even at the North Pole, I'm telling you." Theo awkwardly cleared his throat. "Anyway, you can't stay here alone so you'll come with me until we can figure out how to move forward."

"We?"

"What?"

"You said I will be with you until we figure out how to move forward. I am not your responsibility."

"Yes, you are."

"I'm not."

"Fine, you're not my responsibility, then. You're my friend. Now, come here so we can take you somewhere that doesn't feel quite so …"

"Suffocating," offered Hermione.

"Brilliant, as ever." Theo held out his hand and said, "Come on."

Draco was pulled out of the memory and slammed back into his body. He squinted his eyes shut and tried to regain his bearings. He gripped the edge of the desk and said,

"I am sorry I yelled at you for this."

"Not a problem. You both are worth the effort."

"You did the right thing."

"I know."

"You are not abandoning your place in my life, Theo, you are accepting your place in hers."

Theo nodded.

"Okay. If this is what you want—"

"Why are you so against this?" asked Draco. "I thought you would be ecstatic that she chose you."

"I am!" Theo insisted, "I am so grateful that she appreciates me enough to want this, but … You know, when I thought about you getting married I was always with you. You're my brother, you did this for me and I want to do it for you."

"You are doing this for me. Everything you just showed me was for me."

Theo nodded.

"Don't make this into something it isn't," said Draco. "When you look at the people Hermione trusts, it's Ginevra, Ginevra's husband, Blaise's husband, Hermione's ex-husband, Romilda, and you. She said you give her a sense of security, Theo. I am going to be her husband, her partner, so why would I want to take away someone who makes her feel safe?"

"You're right."

"I know!" Draco laughed. "I know."

.oOo.

That night just when they were about to go to sleep, Draco pulled Hermione tight against his chest and held her there. He pressed a gentle kiss to her temple and said,

"Sebastien helped me write wedding vows today."

"He is adorable; he wants our wedding to be perfect. He's nearly as bad as your mum. I am surprised he hasn't harangued Blaise about the cake."

Draco smiled and found Hermione's hand so he could twine their fingers together.

"You are the role model Seb's parents never thought he would have."

"Just as you are the love I never thought I would have."

Draco was grateful the lights were out, as he felt himself blush. He teased,

"Now who's good with words?"

"Theo showed you, didn't he?"

"Yes."

"I wish I would have been strong enough to tell you I was struggling, then we might have avoided all of that. We could have gone through this together instead of apart. I never had a relationship where I could talk to a partner and felt like I could admit I don't have all the answers.

Draco nestled into the pillow and said, "Even you need space to breathe, my incredible, intelligent, Order of Merlin First Class fiancée."

"Even when I need space, you are never too far away."

"Always here for you, Granger."

"And I am always yours, Malfoy."

.oOo.

Draco caught up with Bastien out in Muggle London. They had lunch in a nice restaurant, the sort that brought water to the table the moment Draco's bum touched the seat. Bastien looked the usual part of fancy pharmacist, but something about him was off. Before he even looked at the menu, Draco asked,

"Are you alright?"

The floodgates opened immediately. Bastien shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair before wiping tears away.

"No, mate, I'm not okay."

"What's wrong?" Draco spotted their waiter coming and nodded for him to leave before he got to the table. "Is everything alright with Padma?"

Bastien pressed his lips together and kept his gaze trained on the table.

"Before we got married, we agreed we never wanted kids. I'd be a shit father, I think, and I dunno how that would ever change. I'd give it my best, but I'd rather continue working toward alchemy, you know? We aren't Theo and Tracey, we're Bastien and Padma and it wouldn't work the same. Padma doesn't want to go through a pregnancy, and I understand." Bastien took a deep breath before he revealed, "A couple months ago I had a vasectomy."

"Oh."

Oh my God.

"Okay." Draco insisted, "That is fine, if you both agreed it was what you wanted to do."

"Well it was." Bastien took a shaky breath in. "But then I did it and … And it's permanent, you know?"

"Not always."

"Well it feels permanent. Literally, there was a bit of pain for awhile, and everything with my balls is a bit different, you know? What's the point of even having them anymore? I woke up the next morning and everything kind of hit me in the face."

"How do you mean?"

"I mean, what if Padma does want to have a kid down the line and now I can't? She'll have look for cock elsewhere. A cock with functioning balls."

"Padma doesn't strike me as the sort of woman who would change her mind on something so monumental."

"It just doesn't feel the same, I feel less … You know. Not quite as much of a man as I was before."

"As long as Padma can still get a good ride off your dick, I don't understand why you think your masculinity suffered at all. Especially considering your wife seems to be pleased with the results."

"God, she's doing great. She doesn't have to take the bloody potions anymore, which was the whole point." Bastien shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "She's happier. And I would do anything to make her happy, you know that. She's Padma."

"Exactly."

"But …"

Draco asked, "Is this why you stopped running?"

Bastien nodded.

"I put on my trackies one morning and was hyperconscious of my boys down there. All I could think about was how useless they were, and how useless I felt."

"This isn't about your future children, is it?"

"No," confirmed Bastien, "it's not. I feel like people look at me differently. I took her name, I moved into her house, and now she's literally got me by the balls. Which isn't fair to her, and I can't talk to her about this because I know she'll only say I'm being stupid. Or try to psychoanalyze me."

Draco insisted, "You should tell her how you feel."

"Probably, but how do you tell your wife she makes you feel like less of a man?" Bastien sighed. "Because it's not her fault. I'd do anything for her, it's just that I know everyone thinks it's weird. Men don't do this, you know? Our last names are supposed to mean something, but it means nothing to me. Padma is my world and I want that reflected in my name."

"That makes perfect sense to me."

"Of course it makes perfect sense to you, because you're the sort of man who understands what that means. What it means to be a man who loves his goddamn wife. A man who can be confident in his choices even when they are not what the world expects of him. That is what it means to be masculine, and I can't do it, mate. Padma's house. Padma's name. Padma chooses everything from the duvet cover to the rugs to the curtains."

"Does Padma know more about duvet covers, rugs, and curtains than you?"

"Of course."

"Does she ask you whether you like her selections?"

"Yeah."

"Then it sounds like you're on the same page. That is not emasculating, Bas, that's marriage."

"But … But is it, though? Because Theo hasn't done it. Blaise hasn't—well, I mean that bastard doesn't need to. Ron hasn't, Harry hasn't, Neville hasn't, Ernie hasn't … Look at everyone I know who is in a committed relationship and I am the only man stupid enough, desperate enough to render my balls completely useless. Why is that?"

"Because you're confident enough in your choice and in Padma's judgement to make that commitment."

Bastien huffed.

"When you put it like that it sounds like I'm being a bit melodramatic."

"Please," Draco laughed, "you are talking to the king of melodrama. This barely makes the scale."

Bastien chuckled.

"I suppose you're right."

"You should tell Padma how you feel."

"I suppose you're right again."

"Can we order now?" asked Draco. "Blaise says this place has amazing chips."

"Why did you bring me to lunch, anyway?" asked Bastien.

"Oh!" Draco shook his head. "Right. I want to ask you to be second chair at my wedding. Now, do you think lunch is too early for wine?"

"But …" Bastien sputtered, "But you and Hermione only get two chairs each."

"Mhmm," confirmed Draco. "Correct. Hermione has chosen Ginevra and Theo to be her first and second respectively. Blaise will be my first chair, and I want you at my side when I marry the love of my life."

"YES!" Bastien pumped his fist in the air and shouted loud enough for some of the patrons to look. "God, yes!" He pulled Draco into a tight hug. "I am so happy for you!"

"The way I look at it, I went to your door when I was at the lowest point of my life, and you answered. That's true friendship, and it's love. You earned that spot, Bastien."

"I'd do it again if you needed me."

"You were there when I was on suicide watch, making sure I had a friendly face to wake up to. You gave me six hours of each day back then, and I know it's not easy to make that commitment. You had to invest your time in me, your love, your hope … I love you, Bastien Queensbury-Patil, and anybody who thinks you aren't enough of a man does not get to say shit until they have put it all on the line for someone the way you did for me."

"God, yes, I can't believe you're letting me do this for you."

Draco held Bastien in his arms, sensing he wasn't quite ready to let go. Bastien pulled back a moment later to chuckle and say,

"Suddenly my balls don't seem so important."