Previously on A Tale Of Two Wizards Full Circle: Chapter 15
For several seconds, there was complete silence as the men mulled over Carmela's words. The first to agree was Matt as the others followed suit. There was a consensus. Hermione and Scorp had had enough sadness to last them a good, long while.
/*/
After her shower, Hermione sat with Scorp just watching him as he began drifting off to sleep holding his well worn family photo. It was fairly early, but her little wizard had had a long day. Lying there, Scorpius looked so much like his father it was uncanny. The thought made Hermione's eyes sting. Bloody stupid git had killed himself and left a little boy fatherless. Thoughtless, bleeding prick. A soft sigh escaped Hermione and hung heavily in the air.
Getting up from the side of Scorpius' bed, Hermione thought, if Draco was to appear before her, she would kill him again. Small sighs continued to escape her lips as she tiptoed to the bedroom door.
Earlier, Hermione had heard someone say, the worst is over. Her question; for whom? With one last weary sigh, Hermione headed downstairs expecting to commiserate with her closest friends and family when all she really wanted to do was pretend her irresponsible husband hadn't left her holding the bag of life.
A Tale Of Two Wizards Full Circle: Chapter 16
While the group of family and friends waited for Hermione to reappear, Matt decided to spend a few minutes with Louis. Excusing himself from the group, Matt headed down the hall to the den.
Instead of his usual eyes closed, sleepy countenance, Louis cast a wide eyed, wide awake glance at Matt.
"Matthias, so good of you to remember your elder," Louis commented crankily. "I was of the mind I had been forgotten. The service went well I would imagine."
Matt offered a brief smile hoping this was not going to be a challenging conversation. He wasn't up to any of Louis' shenanigans at the moment.
"Hello Elder. You sound out of sorts. Shall I come back at a more opportune time?"
"What gives you the idea I am out of sorts? I spoke a truth and made an inquiry. However, I do feel as though I should have been advised of several things before now. You of all people know I like to keep informed."
Matt didn't want to hear Louis' nonsense, but believed he knew what the Elder was feeling. Louis hadn't had any contact with Hermione since Wednesday, and that conversation hadn't gone all that well.
"Forgive us Louis. As you well know, these are trying times for the family. I'm sure Hermione will be in to see you soon. Until then, let me assure you Draco was given a splendid send off in both Italy and Britain. Neither Mr. Saverio Cross nor Mr. Zacharias Smith left any stone unturned." Reaching into his inside pocket, Matt pulled out several magical photos from Draco's service in Britain. "Hermione requested that photos be taken of the service as well as the internment. I took the liberty of spiriting away a few just to show you. So you see, you weren't forgotten."
Holding the four photos in front of Louis' eyes one after another, Matt let his Elder have a good look at each.
Louis stared at each photo then asked Matt to go through them again, more slowly, which Matt was glad to do.
If there was such a thing as pain in the eyes of a portrait, it appeared in Louis eyes just before he closed them tightly as though he'd experienced a sudden glare.
"Thank you Matthias. I look forward to seeing the lot. If you'll excuse me now, I'm suddenly very tired."
"Of course. I did have business to discuss, but that can be done at a more expedient time," answered Matt softly as he returned the photos to his pocket and headed for the door.
Matt had one foot out of the door when Louis made one last statement without opening his eyes. "Yes, we can discuss business another time. Please don't mention my little snit to Hermione. She has more than enough to be getting on with. Good evening to you."
Louis had seen the error of his ways.
"My lips are sealed. Good evening to you too Louis."
/*/
By the time Matt got back to the living room, Hermione was ensconced between Hannah and Carmela. Blaise, Seth, Sal and Theo had said their goodbyes shortly after Hermione returned to the room. The rest of the family had taken Carmela's advice to heart, so the conversation rather than being solemn and maudlin was fairly lighthearted. At least, the comments and stories seemed to have put Hermione in a relaxed mood.
When his Wonder Wizard Watch showed 7:45 London time, Fausto suggested to Carmela they get ready to floo home. Although reluctant to leave Hermione, Carmela agreed with her husband. It was time to go. When Fausto stood, Xavier stood followed by Matt, Kim, and Emilio who all took their turn to say goodbye and wish Hermione well. Everyone accept Emilio told her she should be sure to contact them if she needed anything. He simply replied it had been his pleasure when Hermione thanked him for doing such a good job with Scorpius.
Carmela accio'd her already shrunken, packed bag before giving Hermione and Hannah one last hug as she fell in line to follow her husband through the floo.
/*/
Alone with Hannah and Harry, Hermione commented that the hard work was done and the harder work would begin. Both Hannah and Harry assured her they would be right there for her. With a small smile, Hermione joked that she knew that and was only getting her last whines out before her new life began.
Harry corrected his pseudo sister. "The very last thing you are Hermione is a whiner. You will come out of this stronger than you've ever been. Don't forget, I've known you since you were a bad tempered, know-it-all eleven year old. Even under the most adverse of conditions, you didn't whine. Perhaps you dictated quite a bit, but you never whined.
Hannah gave a snort of laughter along with a cheeky comment. "Well, it would seem nothing has changed."
Hermione let out a squeal before agreeing there might be a bit of truth in both their statements.
Harry and Hannah smiled fondly at their girl knowing she would always be alright.
The three friends had one last drink before parting for the night.
"I'll see you after work," Hannah offered, kissing Hermione on the cheek. "And your brother will probably see you every hour on the hour tomorrow. He's sure you can't live without him."
Hermione chuckled, knowing Hannah was probably one hundred percent right.
/*/
Hermione who had only picked at her food during the repast called for Dusty to bring her a small snack as she finished the last of the wine in the bottle.
Dusty had over done it, but Hermione was surprised to find she was hungrier than she thought as she scooped up the last bit of lemony sprouts and celery with an embarrassing burp. It was a short five minutes later when Hermione's rumbling stomach made her hurry to the bathroom.
/*/
Hermione decided to shower while she was in the bathroom. It was quick and satisfying. Hurrying to her and Draco's bedroom, she pulled on one of the nightdresses Draco hated. Too much cloth he used to joke as he separated her from the gown.
Hermione didn't dwell too long on what Draco used to say. Instead, she did what made her happy. She went to check on Scorpius where she leaned over, kissed him then positioned his family photo where he would be sure to see it when he woke.
She remained staring down at her Draco look alike for several more minutes letting out sigh after sigh before finally retiring to her room.
Before closing her eyes, Hermione thought, there's no Draco to shout at. What will I do for entertainment?
/*/
Emilio was happy. As far as he was concerned, the day had gone well on all fronts. He had been a hit with Scorpius and his food had been a hit with the guests. He wanted to get home to savor the day in private. After stepping out of the floo, Emilio didn't linger except to bid Kim and Matt a hasty goodnight. In two strides, he was outside the front doors turning into apparition.
It was a quick drink and a cool shower for Emilio. As he showered, Emilio remembered his nearly contentious conversation with Matt.
You'd rather take some bull shite position rather than fight for the witch you've always wanted? Hermione is a beautiful witch. Undoubtedly, there'll be plenty of men who will try for her attention. Stop wishing, and start realizing you should be one of them. It won't be today, tomorrow, or the next day, but the day will come when the line begins to form. You need to be there. You are good enough to be there.
Emilio had paraphrased his cousin's words, but it was close enough. When it came to Hermione, Matt had more confidence in him than he had in himself. Emilio never thought this would be something he could consider. She had married Draco. The end. Now the end was being rewritten. If Merlin looked on him favorably, Emilio Lozier might still have a chance to get the witch of his dreams.
Stepping out of the shower, Emilio cast a quick dry spell on his thick, black head of hair. However, once his hair was dry, reason returned. He and Hermione as a couple was a pipe dream. A shower dream. After all that had gone on, he'd never even make the top ten of wizards Hermione would like to….. Emilio couldn't bring himself to say the last word. It was too painful to think of any other wizard slipping into bed with the woman he was born to love.
Sitting nude on the side of his bed, Emilio listlessly sent the damp towel to the dirty clothes bin. Suddenly, the events of the day didn't seem so spectacular. Suddenly, real life had set in.
/**/
Hermione slept in on Monday, and didn't wake until she was ripped from a dream where Draco was rubbing her arm trying to get her attention. She opened her eyes and found herself looking into a younger pair of handsome gray eyes.
"I'm up mum. I'm up. I'm dressed too. Dusty made eggs and toast and duce." Scorp said almost all in one breath.
Hermione smiled at her precocious, little boy before kissing him on the nose. "I see you're up," she replied, coming to a sitting position and swinging both legs over the side of the bed. "I'm sorry little man. Mum slept too late. I see you have mum's mobile again. Remember mum asked you not to play with it. My mobile isn't a toy. What I think we'll do today, is go to the shop to buy a toy mobile for your very own."
"Yes mum, yes," shouted Scorp, handing Hermione her phone. "Scorp wants a mobile only for him. Come on mum. Come on. Eat some eggs and toast so we can go to the shop."
Hermione picked Scorp up and swung him around. "Slow down young man. Mum has a few things to do before we can go to the shops."
"Crissy please." Hermione called out.
Crissy appeared before her with a pop. "Yes Mrs."
"Please take Scorp to his room. I'd like you have him practice his letters then he can play. Scorp is no longer allowed to play with my mobile. If you, Embers, or Dusty see it in his hand, please remind him he is not allowed to have it. He and I will be visiting the shops where I'll purchase him one of his own. Is that clear?" Turning to Scorp she asked, "Is that clear to you little man?"
"Yes mum. Scorp is getting his own."
"Correct. You may take him now Crissy. I'll let you know when to get him ready to go out."
"Yes Mrs. Crissy take good care of her little man."
/*/
While she was dressing, Hermione gazed at all Draco's handsome clothes. He had been fastidious in his attire. It was expected of Draco Malfoy. As Hermione brushed her hair, she thought about how to dispose of such finery. She definitely wouldn't vanish them, and she definitely couldn't offer the clothes to any of the family. She wouldn't be able to handle seeing Gas, Seth, or Sal walking around in Draco's suits. Two other options were a Muggle consignment shop, or donate it all to a Muggle charity. With the last stroke of the brush, Hermione realized she didn't have to do everything in one day. Draco's things could wait until another day.
Three things Hermione did want to do, speak to Louis and properly welcome him to Malfoy Estate, gather all condolence cards in one place, and get a start on Scorp's memory book.
/*/
Hermione quietly entered the den. "Good morning Louis. I've been remiss in welcoming you to Malfoy Estate. I apologize. Scorp and I appreciate your request to hang here to look over us."
"Good morning Hermione. Thank you for the kind words. Now that Draco has been interred, I hope some of the weight has been lifted from your shoulders."
"It has and it hasn't Louis. There is so much more to do. However, those things can be done a bit at a time. We'll manage."
From there, Hermione explained in detail how both Services had gone. Louis listened intently with nary a snide remark. As had Matt, Hermione mentioned the magical photos she would show him as soon as she could get them in order.
Louis simply thanked Hermione for the information before opening up an entirely new subject. "Will Matt be taking over Malfoy Manor?"
Hermione was caught completely off guard. "Matt? Malfoy Manor? Why would you ask that Louis. Matt has nothing whatsoever to do with the manor."
"Don't get annoyed Hermione. I only thought it will be many years before Scorpius comes of age to take his rightful place, so the current Head of Malfoy family business should step in until that time."
Leave it to Louis to aggravate my arse, thought Hermione before responding. "As far as I know Louis, nothing along those lines has been discussed. In any case, it's not up to Matt Lozio to dictate what will or will not be done with Malfoy Manor. Matt will have enough going on as he steps into Draco's shoes. I suggest you refrain from trying to make him Master of Malfoy Manor as well. I have several other tasks I need to see about. If you'll excuse me."
Louis spoke up before Hermione could leave the den. "It wasn't my intention to upset you. I was only looking out for your well being."
"No Louis, you weren't. You were interfering, and I won't have it. Offer your advice when asked, not before. I don't want to be cross this early in the morning, so please refrain from testing me, or Matt."
After the door closed with a firm snap, Louis fixed his eyes on a point across the room mumbling, "I am a Malfoy. It is my duty to inquire after Malfoy matters. I was not interfering. They will need me. Of that I'm sure."