Chapter 9
The next day, Hermione was out in her backyard, letting Emma and Daniel play in the sunshine when she heard a familiar laugh just over the fence. Peeking her head over the fence, she saw Angelie conjuring large purple bubbles from her wand for Ryan and Arissa, while Draco, having just come back with food from Diagon Alley, had gotten splattered completely with the bubbles that popped.
"Having a picnic are you?" Hermione asked.
"Duck Hermione, these bubbles are a menace." Draco laughed, wiping off the goo from his leather pants. Hermione looked at Angelie who winked and she went back to reading her book.
"Only to your leather pants, daddy." Arissa replied, peering into the enormous basket that Draco brought. She fell into the basket as she discovered loads of candy. "Fizzing Whizbees!"
"Arissa! Get out of there!" Draco said, picking his daughter up from inside the basket. "And these are for when we go to the park."
"Daaaddy.can't I have just one?" Arissa whined. She was especially good at making herself look melancholy.
Draco looked at Angelie, as if to get her approval. "Don't look at me, you bought them." Angelie replied, now having streamers coming out of the end of her wand.
Draco sighed. "You can have one, just one, and no more of this pouting business. You're going to look exactly like her mother and I can't say no to her."
"Oh really?" Angelie asked.
"Mummy does your date last night mean that you and Daddy will get married again?" Ryan asked.
Angelie stopped the streamers from her wand. "What?" Draco asked. "What did he say?"
"Will you and mummy get married again?" Arissa asked, echoing her brother.
"Er...." Angelie sputtered. "Why don't we get you two chucked over the fence into Emma and Rupert's backyard, and me and your father can talk about it."
"No, don't talk about it yet, I want more Fizzing Whizbees." Arissa replied, eagerly sitting on her father's lap.
~*~
Draco led the way to the top of the hill where they would spend the rest of the afternoon, Arissa's tiny hand in his. "Draco! Draco Malfoy!"
"The fans... have found me." Draco replied. Angelie took the kids aside letting them indulge in sweets as Draco signed photos and took pictures.
As the last swarm of fans came upon him he tried to get away faster by saying "I'm here with my family so I'm sorry that I have to make this quick."
Draco scribbled his name on the last few photos and then went off to the spot that Angelie had set the basket down. "Wipe that smile off of your face, Draco."
"Sorry, it's been plastered there." Draco replied, releasing his face from a smile and sitting down next to Angelie. "Merlin's beard, my face hurts."
Angelie leaned over and put her hands on his face, pressing his face a bit to contort it. "My Draco, your skin is so smooth. What IS your secret?"
"In the morning I exfoliate, at night I moisturize." Draco replied, matter- of-factly. His gray eyes looking straight into Angelie's.
Angelie held her laughter until she just let it out in peals. "You're funny Draco. You're funny."
"I thought you were being serious." Draco replied, face still being contorted by Angelie. She patted his head and lay her head on his lap. "Angelie, would you fancy a nice dinner tomorrow night at the manor?"
"Are you cooking?" Angelie asked.
"Yes." Draco replied, running his fingers through her hair.
"I'm there." Angelie replied. There was a thud and a cry from where the twins were playing. Angelie was up on her feet before Draco could even fathom what was happening.
Something is to be said about that whole motherly intuition. "Angelie, where are you going?" Draco yelled, running after her.
Arissa was sitting under a tree, Ryan next to her, supine. "Arissa, Arissa, what happened to him?" Angelie asked, cradling her young son.
"We were climbing up the tree, and he fell on his side." Arissa said, she had been crying very hard, thinking her brother was dead.
"How far did he fall, love?" Draco asked, picking Arissa up while Angelie was checking his pulse, common Muggle thing to do but considering she didn't know what she should heal first, it was the best thing to do.
"From that branch, there." Arissa, said pointing her finger to a branch way up off the ground. "Is Ryan dead?"
"No, darling, no.." Draco said, holding his daughter to his chest. "He's not."
Angelie looked up. "Thank god no. Only a few broken bones. Bracciam reparo."
"Maybe we should go home." Draco said, putting Arissa down. "Let me take him."
They made a long walk home and Draco set Ryan down. Angelie did not wake him after healing him, knowing it was better for Ryan to rest the remainder of the day. Angelie had placed Arissa in her bed.
Draco was in his bedroom, watching his Muggle television. Hair in disarray he was dozing in and out of 'Friends' just as Angelie, with much trepidation walked into the room. "Draco? May I?"
"Since when have I ever said no to having a woman in my bedroom?" Draco said, grinning.
"Right, anything with... Anyway, as much as I love the manor, I am not sleeping downstairs, it creaks and scares the living daylights out of me." Angelie replied.
"And why on earth would that lead you upstairs?" Draco asked, intimating something with his tone.
"You know Draco, if you keep being cheeky, I'm going to spend my night with our dear little Ryan." Angelie said, half stepping out of the room.
"Cheeky? Who? Me?" Draco grinned, sitting up. "Come on, you were always nice to smell."
Angelie looked at him oddly as she walked to the bed. "You are so weird Draco."
"Ah, but who's crawling into the bed?" Draco asked, grinning at her.
"I'm stopping.while I'm ahead, Draco." Angelie replied, getting herself comfortable. "And don't try anything Draco because I will curse you from here to Azkaban. Twice."
"Fiesty are we?" Draco asked.
"You're asking for it Draco." Angelie said, only jokingly.
"But, I'm just being my, er, self?" Draco said, thinking about this. "You know, James Bond, suave, slick, sexy." Angelie snorted. "What? I'm not sexy?"
The next day, Hermione was out in her backyard, letting Emma and Daniel play in the sunshine when she heard a familiar laugh just over the fence. Peeking her head over the fence, she saw Angelie conjuring large purple bubbles from her wand for Ryan and Arissa, while Draco, having just come back with food from Diagon Alley, had gotten splattered completely with the bubbles that popped.
"Having a picnic are you?" Hermione asked.
"Duck Hermione, these bubbles are a menace." Draco laughed, wiping off the goo from his leather pants. Hermione looked at Angelie who winked and she went back to reading her book.
"Only to your leather pants, daddy." Arissa replied, peering into the enormous basket that Draco brought. She fell into the basket as she discovered loads of candy. "Fizzing Whizbees!"
"Arissa! Get out of there!" Draco said, picking his daughter up from inside the basket. "And these are for when we go to the park."
"Daaaddy.can't I have just one?" Arissa whined. She was especially good at making herself look melancholy.
Draco looked at Angelie, as if to get her approval. "Don't look at me, you bought them." Angelie replied, now having streamers coming out of the end of her wand.
Draco sighed. "You can have one, just one, and no more of this pouting business. You're going to look exactly like her mother and I can't say no to her."
"Oh really?" Angelie asked.
"Mummy does your date last night mean that you and Daddy will get married again?" Ryan asked.
Angelie stopped the streamers from her wand. "What?" Draco asked. "What did he say?"
"Will you and mummy get married again?" Arissa asked, echoing her brother.
"Er...." Angelie sputtered. "Why don't we get you two chucked over the fence into Emma and Rupert's backyard, and me and your father can talk about it."
"No, don't talk about it yet, I want more Fizzing Whizbees." Arissa replied, eagerly sitting on her father's lap.
~*~
Draco led the way to the top of the hill where they would spend the rest of the afternoon, Arissa's tiny hand in his. "Draco! Draco Malfoy!"
"The fans... have found me." Draco replied. Angelie took the kids aside letting them indulge in sweets as Draco signed photos and took pictures.
As the last swarm of fans came upon him he tried to get away faster by saying "I'm here with my family so I'm sorry that I have to make this quick."
Draco scribbled his name on the last few photos and then went off to the spot that Angelie had set the basket down. "Wipe that smile off of your face, Draco."
"Sorry, it's been plastered there." Draco replied, releasing his face from a smile and sitting down next to Angelie. "Merlin's beard, my face hurts."
Angelie leaned over and put her hands on his face, pressing his face a bit to contort it. "My Draco, your skin is so smooth. What IS your secret?"
"In the morning I exfoliate, at night I moisturize." Draco replied, matter- of-factly. His gray eyes looking straight into Angelie's.
Angelie held her laughter until she just let it out in peals. "You're funny Draco. You're funny."
"I thought you were being serious." Draco replied, face still being contorted by Angelie. She patted his head and lay her head on his lap. "Angelie, would you fancy a nice dinner tomorrow night at the manor?"
"Are you cooking?" Angelie asked.
"Yes." Draco replied, running his fingers through her hair.
"I'm there." Angelie replied. There was a thud and a cry from where the twins were playing. Angelie was up on her feet before Draco could even fathom what was happening.
Something is to be said about that whole motherly intuition. "Angelie, where are you going?" Draco yelled, running after her.
Arissa was sitting under a tree, Ryan next to her, supine. "Arissa, Arissa, what happened to him?" Angelie asked, cradling her young son.
"We were climbing up the tree, and he fell on his side." Arissa said, she had been crying very hard, thinking her brother was dead.
"How far did he fall, love?" Draco asked, picking Arissa up while Angelie was checking his pulse, common Muggle thing to do but considering she didn't know what she should heal first, it was the best thing to do.
"From that branch, there." Arissa, said pointing her finger to a branch way up off the ground. "Is Ryan dead?"
"No, darling, no.." Draco said, holding his daughter to his chest. "He's not."
Angelie looked up. "Thank god no. Only a few broken bones. Bracciam reparo."
"Maybe we should go home." Draco said, putting Arissa down. "Let me take him."
They made a long walk home and Draco set Ryan down. Angelie did not wake him after healing him, knowing it was better for Ryan to rest the remainder of the day. Angelie had placed Arissa in her bed.
Draco was in his bedroom, watching his Muggle television. Hair in disarray he was dozing in and out of 'Friends' just as Angelie, with much trepidation walked into the room. "Draco? May I?"
"Since when have I ever said no to having a woman in my bedroom?" Draco said, grinning.
"Right, anything with... Anyway, as much as I love the manor, I am not sleeping downstairs, it creaks and scares the living daylights out of me." Angelie replied.
"And why on earth would that lead you upstairs?" Draco asked, intimating something with his tone.
"You know Draco, if you keep being cheeky, I'm going to spend my night with our dear little Ryan." Angelie said, half stepping out of the room.
"Cheeky? Who? Me?" Draco grinned, sitting up. "Come on, you were always nice to smell."
Angelie looked at him oddly as she walked to the bed. "You are so weird Draco."
"Ah, but who's crawling into the bed?" Draco asked, grinning at her.
"I'm stopping.while I'm ahead, Draco." Angelie replied, getting herself comfortable. "And don't try anything Draco because I will curse you from here to Azkaban. Twice."
"Fiesty are we?" Draco asked.
"You're asking for it Draco." Angelie said, only jokingly.
"But, I'm just being my, er, self?" Draco said, thinking about this. "You know, James Bond, suave, slick, sexy." Angelie snorted. "What? I'm not sexy?"