Chapter Thirty One: Decisions, Decisions

Laughter rang out, loud and clear, a sound more fitting two playmates than two nearly grown children. And yet, it was from these two nearly grown children that the delighted sound issued from.

They were playing.

A long, slick banister inhabited Malfoy Manor, polished and buffed to reflect light as well as a small star. It was down this winding rail that the two slid down.

Breathless, Draco ran up for another slide, Kit right behind him. As Kit came down after him, he held out his arms and caught her as she flew off the balustrade, swinging her around twice before setting her down gently and running up to do it all over again.

This time, Kit got to the top first and, laughing, straddled the railing, blowing a kiss in Draco's direction before zooming off.

This time, however, when she flew off, she hadn't been expecting arms to wrap around her, to lift her into the air and swing her around. So she thought it was Draco, that he had raced back down the stairs to catch her.

Laughing, she closed her eyes and turned in his grip, laying a light kiss on his mouth.

Opening her eyes, she blinked.

The man still held onto her waist, his grip firm even though her feet now touched the ground.

Grinning slightly, he murmured in the voice least favorite to her ears, "Well now. I do believe that that was as pleasant a welcome as I've ever had."

Draco flew of the banister and skidded across the floor on his knees to them. The laughter in his eyes died as he looked at his mother's guest holding onto his favorite girl. Tighter than need be, too, to his imagining.

Standing, he dusted off his hand and held it out, less out of courtesy than out of want to get his hands off Kit. "Quentin." He acknowledged, voice as cold as the wind that lashed outside.

A slow smile spread across his face as he took in the tactics that he himself knew all too well: jealousy. "Draco. Good to see you again. Looks like you've been –" He glanced at Kit "—enjoying yourself. And here I thought you'd be all lonely up in your deserted castle."

"Yes, well." Draco maneuvered himself so that Kit now stood beside him and on the far side of Ridge. "As you can see, that isn't the case."

"As I can see."

His smirk grew as the silence lengthened. Kit shifted.

"Well. It is certainly a pleasure to see you again. Beautiful company is always appreciated." Reaching out, he grasped her hand and bent over it, kissing it lightly.

Kit murmured something indistinguishable and tried to, unobtrusively, draw her hand back, but his grasp tightened.

"It is always a pleasure." He repeated, eyes trained solely on Kit.

He knew that his gaze was making her uncomfortable, and he knew the jealousy and anger was boiling up inside of Draco. He let it fester a moment longer.

"Yes. Well." Unable to stand it, Draco stepped up and disengaged their hands. "You'd best go up and see my mother, hadn't you? I'm sure she'll be happy to – accommodate you."

Irritatingly enough, he found that Draco's gaze left no room for argument. Having said his greetings, he had no reason to haunt them any longer before making his presence known to his hostess.

Smiling resignedly, he bowed again. "You're absolutely right. Mab knows how your mother hates to be kept waiting." All the Malfoys do.

Turning, he began his way up the steps, trailing his hand over the banister that the two had so recently vacated.

Draco turned to Kit, whose face was slowly creeping with a blush. Her eyes were a dark crimson of a firey embarrassment.

Draco raised his eyebrows, waiting.

"Um. Why – why is he –"

"Here?" He interjected helpfully, voice heavy with sarcasm. "Well, my dearest mother decided that since it is the holidays and all, it would be simply lovely if some of our family were brought all together, and since there was a young person joining us, why not invite the next closest in age? Wouldn't it make for a spectacular party?" He glared after the direction Ridge had gone off in. "You can just tell that that was a rhetorical question."

"Oh." Kit was silent for a moment. "So – you two are –"

"Related? Yes." Draco sighed and ran a hand across his face, all smiles exhausted. "Mab, I could count myself host of a thousand 'parties' if only he were not present... but anyway. What's done is done. But you'd think, after last summer... she'd realize or at least not be completely oblivious..." His voice trailed off into a murmur, and he stared off into something unseen by her eyes.

The look she saw there, unshaded for that fraction of a moment, was so lonely, so lost, that it made her heart ache to see. It caused a reaction so deep inside her; it felt as though someone had reached out and snagged her very core. Reaching out, she grasped his arm and hugged it tight, tears pricking at the corner of her eyes. Horrified, she reached up and wiped them away.

"I'm sorry." She murmured, shuffling them away. "I don't know what's wrong with me. But Draco –" She took a deep breath. "Whatever – whatever it is – I'm here. I – I don't plan on leaving you, you know, if – if you ever need me." Looking up into his still, grey eyes, she saw a stirring of something unnamable behind them. "You're too good for this." She whispered fiercely. "Too good for any of it. Remember that?"

Draco stared at her for a long moment. Something unreadable flickered across his features – then quick as it had come, vanished. "Tch." He snorted. "You're so stupid. Getting all concerned and mushy over nothing." He flicked her on the forehead. Hard. "Stupid."

"Hey!" Kit rubbed her head tenderly and scowled. "I am not mushy."

He grinned. "But you admit to being stupid?"

"You're just mean." She said and stuck out her tongue, pure impulse.

To her amazement, he laughed. Not loud or long. It was a surprised sound, as though her wasn't quite used to it and unsure if her were doing it correctly.

"You're right." He told her, the ghost of a smile flickering temporarily across his face. "You're absolutely right. Now get going, we'll meet at supper. And no more puppy eyes, got it?"

"And no cow looks from you, either."

That miraculous sound came again. "Agreed."

Watching him as he jogged up the steps, Kit swiped a fist across her face. "Mushy, he says."

Hello! Oh, lucky me, I still have some of you trapped in my snare – you waited! Ach, I'm next to tears... anyway, before the water works start, I'll say thank you and be off to work on my next chapter.

Red-Devil15 – I'll try my best, don't worry – I don't intend to disappoint!

Midnight Walker – Thank you, your understanding awes me; if it weren't my story, I'm not sure how much I'd credit me. Um. Yeah. I give you my most ravishing court bow for your compliments!

JustGinny – As soon as you get to this chapter, you'll see this in reward to your reply: KUDOS! HOORAY! TA-DA!

Pinkeye346 – Naturally in response to 'thank-yous,' a 'your welcome' is expected – but I ought to be thanking you instead, cuz you guys stuck with it! (well, if me's an it, then yeah, I s'pose that makes sense...) Hooray! Thank you!

Anyway, I just wanted to do that... you rock!

Enjoy!