Giggles and young voices woke Draco before the sun hit his eyes from the window. A moment later there came several loud knocks at his door from small hands.

"Draco," Freya trilled through the door.

"Draco, can we come in?" Conor asked.

Caela's voice came next. "We have a surprise for you."

"What are you lot doing up here?" Harry inquired. "I told you to wait until he woke up, not go wake him up."

"Didn't wanna wait," Caela replied.

"I'm awake now," Draco called out, "so you may as well come in."

He sat up in the bed and stretched as the door opened and the kids began filing in. Harry followed them carrying a tray that he place on the bed next to the other man, allowing him to center it on his own lap.

"We made you breakfast," Marcus announced.

"Can we sing now?" James asked.

"Sing?" Draco's eyebrows raised.

"I suppose if you just can't wait," Harry replied. "Just like we practiced, ready?"

Ten little heads nodded.

"Okay, one, two, three."

"Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Draco. Happy birthday to you."

"Are you surprised?"

"Quite," he answered with a smile. "thank you all. This is a wonderful surprise. What a nice birthday present."

"This isn't your present," Freya told him.

"Yeah, we have more stuff," Michael started.

"To do and to give you," added Riordan.

Harry shook his head. "Didn't we talk about that all being a surprise?"

"But it's his birthday now," James protested.

"Yes, it is my birthday so you can tell me whatever you want."

"No, you may not!" exclaimed Harry. "We're going to leave Draco to eat now and you all are going to go back to your own breakfast then make sure your beds are made. The rest of his birthday will wait and be a surprise."

The children grumbled and groaned, but they left the room.

"Exactly how much more do you have planned for today?"

Harry did his best to look innocent. "Not me, it was the kids' idea. They made the plans."

"Sure, a group of three to six-year-olds planned and did this all by themselves," Draco drawled pointing to the tray filled with pancakes, fruit, bacon, coffee, and juice.

"Nott and Zabini will be here in an hour to take you out for the day."

"Maybe I should just stay out all night too then."

"You would never do that to the kids."

"No, no I wouldn't, but I have a feeling I'm going to regret that."

"You'll love every minute of whatever they have planned."

"Potter."

"Yes?"

"Get out."

Harry left the room laughing.

Draco was waiting in the drawing room when his friends arrived.

"Ready to go already?" Theo asked.

"I'm sure you two have orders to get me out of here as quickly as possible. It seems there's quite a bit of scheming taking place around here."

"Well," Blaise said, "your mother is waiting to see you and we promised we wouldn't be late to get you to birthday tea and we have a few things planned before that so, we probably should go."

"Let's go then."

"Malfoy, could you sound less excited about spending time with your friends?" Harry asked from the doorway.

"He's always like this, Potter, we're used to it," Theo responded.

Blaise laughed. "He's always been the grumpiest of us and he's never really liked his birthday for reasons he can't explain and none of us were able to figure out."

"We're not meeting Pansy somewhere are we?" Draco inquired, suddenly concerned that his friends had planned an additional ambush.

"No, we wouldn't do that to you on your birthday."

"Only on my birthday though, huh? Thanks, Zabini."

The trio took turns stepping into the floo and disappearing.

Harry turned and clapped his hands. "Okay, everyone."

"Is it time to decorate Master Harry sir?" Winky asked as she appeared at his side with the children running from all directions.

"Yes, Winky it is. Please tell Kreacher to begin the cake."

"Dad, I want to do balloons," Marcus said.

"I was gonna do that," Conor pouted.

"You can both work on them. We have a lot. I know you both practiced blowing them up and tying them so you do that and I'll make them float. The rest of you can hang the pictures you drew and the streamers. Remember only here in this room, the library, and the kitchen. They don't need to be all over the house."

The kids took off at a run grabbing their pictures and the streamers. Winky helped them stick everything to the walls with her magic and the tape that Harry had purchased in large quantities.

Hours later Draco apparated onto the front step with Theo and reached for the front door, hesitating.

"Come on, open it," Theo urged. "What are you afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid. I just don't know what to expect. Tea with Mother was what my birthday usually is, calm and quiet. Dinner with ten children who are always wound up worries me. It's bound to be even crazier than usual. Not to mention I'm worried about Potter."

"He is a Gryff, they're much more about feelings and loud obnoxious parties than we are."

"Yeah, we never got loud and obnoxious," Draco drawled and rolled his eyes.

"That time doesn't count.,"

"So what about-"

"No, not that one either."

"Now come on. Quit stalling. Let's go in. It's hot out here."

The blond opened the door and was greeted by a number of balloons bumping up against some sort of invisible barrier.

Theo bopped one away with a laugh as they stepped into the hall. He laughed harder when it hit Draco in the back of the head.

"You're in on this aren't you?" the blond looked back at him scowling.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Theo," Caela called and ran into the man's arms. He picked her up and settled her on his hip. "You brought Draco back."

"I did. We wouldn't want him to miss his party would we?"

"Draco," she reached out to the blonde who took her and held her exactly as his friend had done. "It's party time, your party."

"I suppose it is."

"Daddy says we all get parties for birthdays and you're first," she crowed.

So that's his excuse, but why do I think that's not the only reason he's throwing me a party? Or is that just wishful thinking? No, it's definitely wishful thinking. Maybe moving in here wasn't such a good idea.

"What are you wearing?" he asked the girl, touching the pointy cap on her head, held in place by an elastic band.

"It's a birthday hat. Daddy says lots of people wear them. Everyone has one."

He looked at Theo who shrugged. "Don't look at me. I've never seen them before. Maybe they're a Muggle thing."

They continued down the hall.

"Draco!" a number of small voices yelled when they saw him.

"Come see, come see, come see."

He walked into the library turned classroom and began making his way around the room looking at each of the pictures there after putting Caela down to join her siblings.

"You get to put them in a book at the end of the party," Liam explained. "Then you can have them forever and ever."

"We each made one that shows our favorite thing to do with you," Riordan added.

James bounded over. "We decorated."

Between each picture hung streamers and balloons. Some of the balloons had come loose from their tape and drifted around the ceiling and the floor, making it clear where the ones at the front door had come from.

"It looks wonderful," Draco replied.

"You're hating this," Theo muttered low enough for only his friend to hear.

"Shut up."

Theo chuckled and stood back watching his friends move around the room to each picture to hear about it from the child who drew it and to praise each of them and thank them.

"He hates this," Harry said from behind Theo, causing the other man to jump. "Sorry. I thought he'd love the attention."

"Once upon a time he would have. He's not the same person he was though."

"I know that, but since it's the kids giving him the attention I thought it would be different."

"I think that's the only reason he's still here. He does have a real soft spot for them and he does things for them he wouldn't do for anyone else." Theo responded, keeping it to himself that he also did or put up with many things for Harry that he wouldn't do for anyone else either.

Harry nodded. "You staying for dinner?"

Theo turned to him. "Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss this for the world. Please tell me you have a camera to take pictures and one of those hats for him to wear."

"There's a special hat for him." Harry smirked. "And you get a pointy one like the rest of us. I promised the kids I'd wear one too. I had it on earlier, but the elastic band was biting into my chin. Winky hasn't taken hers off all day. Kreacher is grumbling about it. I'm still trying to convince him it's not clothes."

"It's made from paper, right?"

"I tried that argument."

"Potter, I think you have the most opinionated house elf I've ever met. Is that because you own him or was he always that way?"

At that, the house elf popped into the room and announced that dinner was ready.

"I think he's always been this way; he just kept it to himself when the Blacks were alive. He feels more comfortable being opinionated with me. Can you imagine how much worse he would be if he were free?" Harry asked and shook his head.

"Have one of the kids give him the hat. They're not his master so they can't free him."

"Sometimes I truly appreciate that Slytherin thinking, though I don't know why I thought of that. It seems so obvious."

"Some elves would still turn it down for fear of being free."

Harry nodded. "I'd say most of them. Remind me to tell you about Hermione's knitting sometime."

"That sounds interesting."

Draco was the last down the stairs as the kids insisted he be. They all stood around the table and waited to see his reaction. The room was more decorated than the classroom/library had been. Balloons covered the ceiling. There wasn't a single space left uncovered. Streamers hung from almost everywhere it seemed. Everyone wore a birthday hat, even Theo and Draco saw the smirk on the other man's face.

"Here you go Draco," Conor said, holding out a paper crown. "It's your birthday hat. You get a special one since it's your birthday."

"Thank you, Conor," Draco replied, taking the crown and inspecting it before settling it on his head.

"Yay!" cheered Fiona, joined by the others. "Now, you look like it's your birthday."

"After dinner we have presents," Marcus announced.

"You could just tell me what they are," the birthday man suggested.

Freya frowned. "Uh-uh, we want to surprise you."

"You already surprised me."

"Malfoy," Theo said, barely repressing a chuckle. "Don't ruin their fun. You love presents."

"Everyone loves presents," Draco replied.

"Depends on what they get," Harry added thinking back to his aunt and uncle's Christmas presents to him. "But you will love these."

"I don't need presents. I have the pictures you all drew and you made me breakfast. I don't need anything else."

"There's more though," Michael told him. "There's a special cake too."

"Only if you eat your dinner," Harry reminded the children. "So, dig in."

When dinner was done and the plates were cleared Kreacher brought a cake to the table that was larger than any Draco had seen before. It was covered in white icing with 'Happy birthday Draco!' written in green. Toy dragons sat next to candles that read 22. With a small poke of his wand, the toys came to life, and breathed fire to light the candles. Again the children sang.

"Make a wish," James insisted.

"Daddy says you have to make a wish before you blow out your candles," Caela said.

Theo nodded. "You certainly do, and you must keep it a secret or it won't come true."

Draco shook his head but smiled. He closed his eyes and thought for a moment, then opened his eyes again, leaned forward, and blew out the candles.

"Ok," Harry said, clapping his hands three times quickly. "Upstairs, Draco can open his presents while Kreacher cuts the cake."

"I bet I know what you wished for," Theo whispered as he trailed Draco up the stairs.

"You don't," Draco replied.

"Uh-huh sure. Deny it all you want, but I know what you want."

"I don't and I didn't wish for that. You need to stop now if you know what's good for you."

Theo dropped the conversation but smirked at his friend before moving around the kids sitting on the drawing room floor to sit down there himself and lean against the wall with his legs out and crossed in front of him. Draco also sank down onto the floor.

Harry used his wand and drifted a large stack of brightly wrapped packages to land in front of the blond on the floor.

"All of this?"

"We each got to pick out something," Freya told him.

"I'm not sure where to start."

"Just pick one," Theo suggested.

"Very helpful, Nott." Draco rolled his eyes but did just that.

By the time Kreacher came into the room with a tray full of plates with cake slices, Draco had opened three new quills, one multi-color pack of ink wells and one color-changing ink, two different tiny dragon figurines, a package of sugar quills, and two chocolate frogs. There was still one suspiciously large present waiting.

"Open that one," Conor said.

"I think we should have the cake first," Draco replied.

"But we want to see what it is," Marcus complained. "Harry wouldn't let us see that one."

"He must have been worried you'd give away the secret," Theo replied, ruffling the boy's hair. "How about this? I'll start passing out the cake while you all sit and watch Draco open the last present."

"Excellent idea," Harry said.

Draco shook his head to see Potter and Nott in cahoots, but he slid the package over and looked at the label. To Draco, From Harry, Theo, and Blaise. Merlin's balls, this can't be good. I suppose they wouldn't give me anything too bad to open in front of the children though. He tore the paper off and revealed a cardboard box underneath.

"Oh a box, I can always use a new box," he snarked with a smirk.

"Why do you want a box?" James asked.

Caela giggled, "Silly Draco."

"Boxes are great," Draco replied. "You can use them for everything. You can store things in them, put things on them, you can make believe they're anything."

"Stop stalling, Malfoy."

"Theo just doesn't understand the excitement of a good box."

"So, open that one so you can enjoy it even more, or maybe the kids can use it when it's empty."

"Push, push, push, maybe I want to eat my piece of cake."

Theo brought the birthday man a piece of cake and whispered, "It's not a bad thing. I promise. Don't overthink this, just open it."

Turning back to the rest of the room Theo said, "I know, everyone clap with me." He started slowly and then sped up until the kids were all giggling and falling over laughing.

Draco shook his head and gave in, opening the box. Inside he found a large potions kit. He began pulling out containers of ingredients, answering the multitude of questions from the kids as he did. The last thing he pulled out was a silver cauldron.

"This is all too much," Draco said. "Thank you, but it's too much."

"Could have been more," Theo responded, then pointed to Harry. "He wanted to buy the gold one."

"What's the point in buying it if we don't buy the best."

Theo shook his head. "Now you sound like him."

"And that's a bad thing?" Draco asked with a raised eyebrow.

Theo took a large bite of cake and smiled.

"Are you happy?" Fiona asked.

"Very much. Thank you all. It's getting late. You all should finish your cake and get ready for bed."

"Awww, do we have to?"

Harry chuckled. "You can stay up thirty minutes later than usual, but you have to be in your rooms reading or playing."

His announcement was met with a chorus of cheers.

As they climbed the stairs to their floor Harry asked Draco. "How was tea with your mother?"

"It was nice as it always is. I think she enjoyed it more than me. I really should try to visit her more often. Maybe take a few of the children with me. She needs the company, the house elves just aren't enough."

"So we start scheduling it. Rotate the kids that go so they all get a chance."

"You're sure you're okay with them going to the Manor?"

"They don't know what happened there, and won't for years yet. It's better for them to get a good impression of it now."

"But why?"

"Because you'll continue to visit your mother, and you may choose to move back in there someday yourself."

"Not bloody likely," Draco said emphatically. "Thank you for today, Harry."

"It's your birthday," the other man replied with a shrug.

"Most people don't plan birthday parties for their enemies."

"Former enemy, now friend, and we're not arguing about that again."

"I don't argue about being friends."

Harry just stared at Draco who finally looked away.

"Ok I don't argue about it anymore. Anyway, thank you."

"You're welcome."