THE COVER UP
DISCLAIMER: I don't own any part of the Harry Potter universe and I am grateful to be able to borrow them for a short time.
Reviews are a writer's coffee: they keep us going as long as we get some. *hint*
Finally Liam put the tattoo gun down and looked at the two people in his shop. "I don't think a laser is going to work. You yelled the loudest when I tried to push the point of the gun into the lines as deep as would be needed to remove this. When He did this, He went deep. I'm sorry, but they'd have to remove most of your arm to remove this."
The words echoed hollowly in Draco's head. He didn't admit it but he was really hoping that it would happen and he would finally be rid of this reminder.
He watched as the two young people before him deflated at his words. "There's no way? You're sure? Maybe someone else would know how?" Draco asked.
"You can go to a regular muggle doctor to have it looked at but the fact that it moves occasionally might freak them out." Liam answered.
"Thanks for trying, Liam." Hermione said quietly. "It was a long shot anyway. Let's go Malfoy."
"I guess I can keep it covered up. It's not like I haven't been doing that this whole time." The sadness was obvious to the two people with him.
Hearing him say 'covered up' reminded Hermione of the conversation that brought them here and it hit her, "What about a cover up? Liam, can it be covered?"
"I was wondering if you were going to ask me that. It would require some serious detail work and we probably won't be finished with it in one sitting. The pain might be too much to do that, but I think it could be done."
"What do you mean a cover up? I keep it covered now." Draco asked.
"A cover up is another type of tattoo." Liam started to explain, "With an old or ugly tat like that one we place a better tattoo on top of it so you can't see the original one." Draco had a blank look on his face but Hermione was smiling. "Come look." He led the pair over to his desk where he had been studying the picture of the Mark.
"Look, here's the original," he placed a piece of thin paper over the top and started to draw a Maori tribal design over it until it was a definite pattern of lines and shapes but you couldn't see the original that was underneath. "And here is what it could look like when it's done." He flipped between the two images. "You don't even need to use this design. The Mark on your arm is pretty simple so the cover design won't be hard. The hard part is not hitting any of the lines that are already there. That's when the pain hits the hardest."
"What kind of designs can you do?" Draco wanted to know. He was getting excited. He didn't mind having a tattoo as long as it wasn't the Mark.
"Anything really."
"Can I look at yours, see what you have on?" Draco asked.
"Sure, there's a story behind every one of them." He looked at his arm and pointed to pin up style tattoo, "That one was for when I got out of the Army, very 1940s pin up. This one is for my niece that died." He had pointed to a portrait of a small child's face that was surrounded by wings. He pointed to a fish on the inside of his wrist, "This Koi fish is a Japanese symbol for change and being brave enough to change."
Draco was very impressed by the work and the stories behind each one. "Army? Wizards don't have a military. Do most designs have meanings behind them and how do you choose which design or event in your life to mark?"
"Muggle Army; even though I'm a wizard I still wanted to serve my country. It was hard keeping my wizard side a secret and yes, most of the traditional designs, like the Koi or this Maori design," he pointed to the paper in his hand, "do have a particular meaning. I suggest you do some real research if you find a design you like in a traditional or cultural form. And as for what to choose or event to commemorate, that's up to you and not all tattoos mark major events," he pointed to a long tattoo of a snake that looked to be moving around several other tattoos. "I got this one because the artist was really good at snakes, not much good at anything else, but the detail work on the snake is amazing."
"I don't think I could pick out what I wanted right now." Draco commented.
"You don't have to nor should you. This is a pretty big deal. Once this one is done, you can't go over it again since we won't be able to see the original lines. This is it. So, go home. Think about something you wouldn't mind seeing every day for the rest of your life and contact me when you have some ideas. Mina can send me the images you come up with. I'll see which ones work best as a cover up and let you know. Then you can decide if it's worth it or not."
"How many should I send you?" Draco asked.
"Five or six. And mark them in order of preference. That way if one of them doesn't work, we have other options. Take your time though. There isn't a time line here to get it done. Do you have time right now to check out some of the design books? That might give you an idea of what can be done and what you might like to have done."
"Absolutely! Wait, do we?" Draco turned asking Hermione. He was getting excited and nervous at the same time and both emotions were fighting for dominance on his face.
Even Hermione was excited, smiling & laughing. "Sure. We might be late for dinner, but we have about an hour."
"Excellent! Here you go." He handed each person a 15 cm thick book of designs and photos and pointed to a couple of chairs.
They sat down & started to flip through the books, frequently pointing out possibilities for each other. Draco kept suggesting Hermione get a tattoo as well. "Look! This is one of an open book. That's perfect for you."
"Ok, here is one for you." She held the book out for him to see a photo of a flying unicorn with hearts & flowers surrounding it.
"Funny, Granger. At least mine fit you." He grumbled. She smiled at him and they both continued to look through the books.
"Draco, check this one out! This is perfect!" Her excitement brought his attention to her. It was a picture of a dragon with green scales and it looked like it was clawing its way out of the arm.
"That's great! Let's remember that one. Look at these, what are these, portraits? They're amazing in detail."
"It looks like it was painted! Would you consider a portrait? Who would it be of?"
Draco shrugged at her question but had a pretty good idea of who the portrait would be of.
Their hour was up and they apparated to Hogsmead. They were very excited about what they had learned. "Did you find anything that might be something you wanted?" Hermione asked.
"The better question is, did you find something you would like to have?" Draco countered.
"I might have." She teased and smiled.
"Me too. Especially that dragon. Come on, Mina we're going to be late." They hustled up the castle to discover they were only a few minutes late for dinner. They sat at the Gryffindor table and continued talking. "That dragon was great. I wonder what it means." Draco said.
"What it means?" Her brow was furrowed in confusion.
"Liam said that in some cultures, like Japanese, certain images mean different things. That fish he had on his wrist meant change or being brave enough to change. So I wonder if the dragon means something."
"We'll ask next time we see him. So, you like the dragon, did you like the fish?"
"I like the meaning of it. I don't know if I'm a fish type of man but maybe."
"Any others?
"A portrait maybe and I saw one that was a family crest."
"Malfoy family crest on your wrist? Really?"
He shrugged, "there was a very interesting image of a scorpion."
"What about any other animals? Owls? Tigers? An elk?"
He gave her a disgusted look. "Like a stag? I'm not St. Potter."
"Draco, you're still there?" He looked confused at her, "St. Potter?" He just smirked and continued eating. She realized that was all she was going to get out of him about it so she added her own comment, "Ok then, how about a Hippogriff?" She laughed at him.
"Keep it up Granger." He mock growled.
They continued their conversation through dinner and even into breakfast the next day. By the time the week was over they had complied a list of 15 options for Draco's tattoo. At the top of the list was the Koi, the dragon, a portrait, the scorpion and a stylized sun.
The following month was the next Hogsmead weekend and they apparated directly to the shop's back room.
"Liam! We're here."
"Shop's empty; come on in, Mina." They entered the room. "Draco! Good to see you! Made some decisions?" He asked as he hugged Mina.
"Yes sir and I have some questions." He said as they shook hands.
"Well, I like questions. How about a cuppa and we can talk."
"Tea, Liam? You? On a Saturday night?" Mina questioned.
"I might have a client," he pointed to Draco. "I stay sober for business."
They both laughed with him. As they were having tea, Draco asked his questions and after careful consideration it was determined that the portrait of his mother wouldn't work for a cover up. The lines of the Mark were too dark and the scorpion didn't have the correct shape. After much talking and consideration and learning why the Koi symbolized bravery and transformation, Draco was having trouble deciding between a dragon holding Draco's own wand or the Koi. Whichever one he chose, he wanted it colored.