Draco and I stood outside the Chateau doors in our nicest clothes of black and grey and waited for the Potters to arrive.

"I really don't want to do this," Draco grumbled.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, no one is forcing you."

Taking my comment literally, Draco began to walk back inside. I scrambled after him, growling, "Don't you dare make me see them by myself!"

After a few more minutes of anxious waiting, a reddish orange car came flying over the treetops.

"Oh, Merlin, they're going to scalp the birch trees," Draco hissed. We watched with wide eyes as birds scattered, narrowly avoiding being hit by the flying car before it scooped precariously to land diagonally in the driveway.

Life came spilling out of the car doors. I counted one, two, three, four- no, five heads. Harry informed me he would be bringing his family, but I had no idea there were so many of them.

A tall, gangly dark-haired man with glasses and a receding hairline emerged from the driver's seat and inspected the front bumper. As soon as he spoke, I realized that this man was Harry Potter. "See, Ginny, I told you I got the hang of it!"

A feminine but firm voice replied. "I think those geese you side-swiped would say differently. I've got to get Lily and Albus out of their car seats, be there in a moment."

A boy about the age of 7 came bounding out alongside his father. "France is bonkers!" he announced.

"Now did Uncle George teach you that word, or Uncle Ron?" Harry waved to us with a sweet but frantic smile. "Hello! Please forgive us. It takes a minute to wrangle the troops."

Draco and I exchanged looks. Harry Potter, vanquisher of the most evil wizard to ever exist, had transformed into a bumbling, adorable dad. He wore a bright blue windbreaker and a tie with golden snitches on it. It was the kind of tie that you would never buy for yourself, but that you get as a gift and are too nice not to wear. Ginny, who was the same age as me, was dressed in a questionable bright color combination of orange and teal. As she balanced a little redhead toddler on her hip, I noticed that she looked just as lively as the last time I saw her in herbology detention.

Harry greeted Draco with a nervous smile. "It's good to see you again, Draco." He extended a hand- but was shocked to look down and see Draco's left arm in a sling. "O-oh, I'm sorry-" he fumbled to extend his other hand. Draco took it, even though he looked like he wanted to die.

Harry said, "Thank you for inviting us. And, I just wanted to say, I was so sorry to hear about Astoria."

Draco made a sputtering "pffft" sound, which caught Harry completely off guard. Thankfully, Ginny entered the conversation before things could get any more awkward.

"Erica!" Ginny greeted me with a smile. "It's been a long time, hasn't it?" When her eyes landed on Draco, her expression soured. "Hello Malfoy." Draco gave her a cold nod.

I asked Ginny, "What are the names of your children?" I saw two boys and one girl. The boys took after Harry, with dark hair and pale complexions, whereas the girl was the spitting image of Ginny.

"This is Lily," Ginny introduced the girl on her hip. "She's going to be three in August. The oldest is James, he's seven- James! James, stop climbing on that statue! Excuse me," Ginny marched over to where the oldest boy was trying to mount one of the stone griffins at the garden gate.

Harry gestured to the last child, who was busy examining a flower. He looked like he was about five. "That's Albus."

Draco's jaw stiffened at the name. "Is that in honor of the Headmaster?" I asked softly.

Harry nodded. "And Professor Snape as well. Albus Severus Potter."

I stalled, unsure what to say. Draco grumbled, "You can't be serious."

"No, actually, that's James Sirius," Harry laughed. Draco looked like he was one bad name away from having an aneurysm.

Harry attempted to lighten the mood. "Do either of you have children?"

I had prepared myself for this moment. "Yes, actually-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAH!"

The Chateau doors burst open and two blonde children came running out, unleashing dozens of colorful toy lizards around everyone's feet. "What the hell-" Draco hissed, lifting his legs to shake off squirming green geckos. "What's the meaning of this?"

"Paisley's s-sorry Master!" Paisley came out, breathless. "Paisley tried to keep the children inside and well-behaved like Master requested, but the children outsmarted Paisley-"

"UNLEASH THE LIZARDS!" Artemis roared.

"EVERYBODY RUUUUN!" Scorpius screamed.

I was nearly doubled over in laughter. Artemis and Scorpius bolted into the front yard to command their lizard army. Harry's son Albus ran off with them, somehow already wrapped up in their world of pretend.

"Your children certainly are spirited," Harry smiled. "They have your hair, Draco!"

Through the initial embarrassment, I thought I saw Draco nearly crack a smile.

I said, "Shall we go inside? I think a lizard's gotten into my shoe."

The Potters joined us at the dining table. Artemis and Scorpius ate their food within minutes and then asked to be excused so they could show Albus and James their toys.

Harry and Ginny listened respectfully as we explained our complicated family situation. They were even happy to hear that Draco and I were engaged. I did most of the talking, as I had so much I wanted to know about what they had done after the War. Harry said he enjoyed being an Auror, but that he was jealous of how much fun Ron was having running the family joke shop. Ginny said she became a professional Quidditch player, but after having Lily she only returns to coach occasionally.

After exhausting the topic of my healing profession, the conversation turned to Draco.

"You want to know what I've been doing since the War?" Draco echoed Harry's well-intentioned question. Draco gave me an annoyed glance. Under his breath, he muttered, "You lot are so lucky I'm sober."

He straightened in his chair, took a sip of water, and said, "I was a dark creature hunter for seven years. Hags, banshees, vampires. Werewolves."

Ginny frowned. "You kill werewolves? But they're wizards."

"The laws in France permit transformed werewolves to be peacefully put down by any means if they pose a threat to humans. The killing curse is exempted, obviously, but there are other ways. Strangulation, drowning, blood loss, electrocution." Draco listed causes of death without batting an eye. I think everyone at the table lost their appetite all at once.

Ginny looked disgusted. "And you've done this for years? You've likely killed dozens of people, haven't you?"

I said a silent thank you that the children were not in the room for this conversation. I didn't like Draco's old job- I hated thinking of him as a killer. But Ginny was probably right. Draco had likely killed many wizards who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Draco's voice lowered. "Only one."

I cocked my head. One? Draco has only killed one werewolf in seven years? He's not lying to save face in front of Harry, is he?

Seeing that everyone's eyes were set on him, Draco reluctantly explained himself. "Although it was within my ability to kill stray werewolves, I found I didn't have to. Other werewolf hunters use diffindo to sever the ligaments and then the jugular, but that only created a big mess of blood that other creatures could smell from a mile away. I didn't care much for that, so I came up with my own method. Once I located a werewolf, I would stun and then restrain them with multiple incarcerous spells. I kept a little bit of wolfsbane to subdue them if they struggled. That usually kept them out of the way until morning light, when they'd transform back to human and escape from their bindings."

I was astounded. This whole time, I had assumed being a werewolf hunter meant Draco executed every werewolf he hunted. But in reality he just kept them tied up until they came out of their transformation. I kept my wide eyes set on Draco as he continued the rest of his story.

"About two years ago, the Dark Mark made my left arm hurt constantly. I didn't realize it was serious, and to manage the pain I was… self-medicating." Draco's eyes became distant. "I started doing my hunts with a bottle of pills and a flask in my pocket. And one full moon, I was not in control of myself, or my magic. And… I made a mistake." Draco paused. He didn't tell us what happened, but from his silence, we could conclude that Draco likely used a spell that ended up having mortal consequences. The table was quiet.

In a low voice that was almost haunting, Draco said, "I stayed with him until the sun rose and he turned back into a human. He… he looked like he was my age. Perhaps a little younger. He had yellow hair, and brown eyes. A traveler with no identification. I carried his body out of the woods and gave him a funeral."

Noticing Harry and Ginny's aghast expressions, Draco lowered his gaze to the table. "...And that's why I quit drinking," he muttered.

"This home is beautiful. It's... hmm… one hundred years old? One hundred fifty?"

"I have no idea," I answered honestly as I guided Ginny back to the first floor after giving her a tour of the Chateau. After dinner, Harry asked to speak with Draco alone, so I had to keep Ginny occupied.

Ginny stopped and stared at the lofty ceilings of the foyer, her gaze serious and cold. "Erica… if things don't go well with the Ministry, do you really plan on living here for the rest of your life?"

I replied, "Well, I have no intention of staying here for the rest of my life."

Ginny's eyes widened. "O-oh, I didn't mean-"

"No, I know you didn't," I reassured her. "But even if Draco's exile is never lifted, I would like to move to a different house in France. This one is a little too haunted for my taste."

Ginny was perplexed by what I meant. To save both of us some awkwardness, I said, "I'll put on some tea," and went off to the kitchen.

On my way to the kitchen I passed the entrance to a sitting area we had started to call the parlor. I picked up on my name being said, and curiosity forced me to stop and listen just outside the cracked door.

"Erica's very serious about healing, isn't she?"

"Healing is her entire life," I heard Draco say. "All she does is try to fix people."

I stood still and listened carefully, expecting to hear Draco complain about how much of a savior complex I had. But the next thing Draco said was, "She does more than just physical healing. At Hogwarts, she tried to heal me emotionally, even though that wasn't her job. She is so devoted to her occupation that she agreed to heal Astoria, even though she didn't want to. She created a werewolf mood stabilizer potion to help her ex-husband. No matter who it is, she heals people with all of her care and attention. She's healed me more times than I can count, and I don't know how I could ever repay her in one lifetime. So...I want to show her that I can make some reparations on my own. Potter-"

"Please. Call me Harry."

"...Harry. I would be humbled if you would testify in my retrial."

There was a beat of silence, and I began to worry that Harry had changed his mind, and was going to refuse. 'You think I would vouch for you, an adulterer and murderer?'

Harry said, "You can count on me, Draco."

The visit came to an end when the sun had been long gone. I think a part of Draco actually liked having visitors to show off to, even if they were Harry, Ginny, and their children. Albus had glued himself to Scorpius and Artemis, asking 'when will we visit again?' with wide green eyes. As Ginny and Draco tried to pry the three children apart, Harry pulled me aside.

"I want to thank you again for putting me in touch with Draco," Harry said earnestly. "The Wizengamot should send a court summons any day now. I'll be giving my testimony in favor of Draco's release. Even though many variables are in his favor, I can't anticipate what the court will decide. You should be prepared for any outcome."

I nodded solemnly. "I am." No matter what the outcome was, I was determined to stay by Draco's side.

"I have something for you," Harry said, which surprised me. If he brought a gift, why was he waiting until now to give it to me?

Harry reached into his coat pocket and handed me a small brown leather notebook. Its cover was frayed, and the edges were water stained. I turned it over in my hands, wondering why Harry was giving me this random, soiled book- but then I opened the front cover and saw the name written on the inside.

Property of M. Sloan.

"Malachi Sloan was a relative of yours, correct?"

I nodded, not taking my eyes off of my uncle's signature. "How did you get this?"

"It was collected by the Ministry after the Battle of Hogwarts," Harry said to me. "It's been locked in a storage room for thirteen years. It wasn't easy for me to obtain it… it contains sensitive information that the Ministry wanted to keep away from the public. But it belongs to you."

"What kind of sensitive information?" I wanted to ask, but did not get the chance. Ginny was begging Harry to hurry to the car before Albus wrapped himself around the bannister again.

"Farewell." Draco nodded to Harry, Ginny and the children as they loaded into the flying car and took off. I gripped Draco's sleeve.

"What is it?" He noticed the open book in my hands.

"This notebook is from my Uncle," I said, excited and breathless. "There's information in here about the Dark Mark. The incantation, the wand movement to create it, everything." I held the book open so Draco could see. "There's even reports detailing experiments of Death Eaters and Healers who had tried to remove it and failed." Draco's eyes widened. I smiled. "This… this is exactly what I need to figure out how to remove the Dark Mark from your arm."

With his good arm, Draco pulled me in for a smashing embrace. "Do you mean it?" He breathed.

"Yes," I wrapped my arms around his neck. "It will take some time. But we'll find the cure."