Chapter 22 – An Uneventful Day

Harry and Hermione looked up at each other, both with tears being held back by pure will.

"He …" Harry swallowed against the lump that had formed deep in his throat, "He's proud of us,"

"And he still loves us," Hermione added in a whisper, only just louder than Harry. "He still thinks of us as family."

As one being, the two moved closer together and curled up as best they could. When they were secure in each other's embrace, they allowed their tears to fall.

~Hampsterline~

Bellatrix smiled softly as the kitten and fox playfully jumped and pawed at each other. She had been alarmed to find the two of them with silent tears and had, without thinking, swooped down on the two of them cooing and drying their tears. She hadn't felt it was her place to pry, so rather than asking what was wrong, she just asked what she could do to help.

In reply, the two of them transformed into their creature forms and curled up together on her lap.

She was shocked from her thoughts by bell-like laughter and a rough, wet thing touching her face. She opened her eyes and let out a startled squeak when she found herself eye-to mouth with a black fuzzy thing full of sharp teeth. The laughter once again came and Bellatrix became aware of what the wet, rough thing was, as well as a loud rumbling that she had somehow managed to ignore until now.

"Can someone tell me what, exactly, the cute fluff-ball is doing?" Bella mumbled from around Harry-the-kitten's stomach.

"Congratulations," Remus said with dry amusement, "you've been adopted by a nesting cat-demon."

Bellatrix pulled the kitten off her head and gaped incredulously at the man.

"Is now a bad time for a visit?" the owner of the bell-like laughter asked.

"Luna!" Harry yelled happily as he wriggled free of Bellatrix' grasp and ran towards the girl. Ignoring the man who was standing beside her, he glomped his laughing friend purring happily.

"I'm happy to see you too Harry," Luna said, ignoring how her odd friend was sniffing her and running his fingers through her hair. "How are you today?"

"He's nesting," Remus said with a chuckle. "It finally hit him that his mentor was no longer his mentor and that he is in the process of being courted, so don't be surprised if he starts mothering you."

Harry jumped when a laugh that was slightly deeper than Luna's, but no less musical, came from behind him. Without releasing his blonde friend, Harry tilted his head back until he was able to look into a pair of silver eyes.

"Hi," he chirruped, "you're pretty."

The man smiled softly at the younger male.

"Thank you," he said, "as are you."

Bellatrix chuckled softly as Harry once again turned shy and hid his face in Luna's neck.

"Harry, that was my daddy," Luna giggled softly as the slightly older male sneezed due to the scent spray she had chosen that day. She giggled again when her friend said something, tickling her with the vibrations. "I didn't get that sorry."

Harry nuzzled her neck before starting to lap gently at the corner of her eye, purring soothingly.

Remus coughed, trying to hide his laughter, making Harry snap out of his mothering mode once more. As he realised what he had done, he blushed.

"Sorry," he mumbled with a pout, "I want a kitten."

"I know you do Kitten," a new voice came from the doorway.

Within the blink of an eye, Harry vanished from his spot and appeared in the arms of his mate, mewling for his attention. The black-haired teen let out a purr of contentment as Draco's fangs slipped easily into his shoulder and stayed there. After a few moments, the fangs were removed and the holes were licked closed.

"I also want kittens," the blonde whispered into his mate's flickering ear. "I can't wait to see you round with kits and fledglings, smelling my blood within your body and hearing multiple heartbeats where only one should be." He nuzzled the spot his fangs had just been, "But we have to wait. Only ten months Kitten, then we can start on a kitten or three of our own."

Harry nodded, flushed with both embarrassment and desire for what Draco had described.

Draco placed a gentle kiss to the top of Harry's head and pulled a flat square box rom out of his robe. "I ordered this the day after we signed the contract," he said as he turned Harry around in his arms and placed the box in his hands.

Harry looked up at him with large green eyes, hugging the box to his chest. "For me?"

"For you."

Harry beamed up at Draco and gently removed the ribbon so he could open the box. Harry's eyes widened at what his mate had got him before looking at the slightly nervous vampire.

"I …" the blonde sighed and looked away, flushing slightly. "On Sunday when you got back from visiting Willa and Nicolas, do you remember me biting you?"

Harry nodded with a soft smile. "You also did an odd hiss-growl before-hand."

Draco nodded, still not looking at his mate. "That odd hiss-growl and the bite was a ritual used in ancient times to bond a vampire to their chosen. When we are young, our non-vampire parent feeds us. Once we reach mating age, we no longer are allowed to take their blood and must stick to the artificially made crap until we find our mate. It is rare for a vampire's mate to live the same length of time as the vampire so a ritual was formed to bind the vampire's and its mate's life forces together so the mate wouldn't die before the vampire."

Harry smiled sweetly and rose on tiptoe to nuzzle his mate's cheek. "And you performed it on me that day, didn't you?"

Draco chuckled weakly. "Yeah, I did. It may have been sub-consciously done, but it was still done."

"I don't mind that you marked me Draco," Harry said, cooing softly. "I am yours and you are mine: Our signed and sealed contract is proof enough of that and I probably needed it," he admitted.

"I still would have preferred to talk to you about it though," Draco responded, looking down at his mate. "Anyway, the gift is part of the ritual."

Harry looked back at the open gift with new understanding. Reaching into it, he pulled out a leather wrist cuff that looked butter-soft. It was deep grey in colour with a silver and emerald dragon design stitched around the outside. Harry traced it, awed at its beauty.

"It is my personal motif; my emblem," Draco said, watching his mate closely. "My name means 'Dragon of Bad Faith." He reached into the box and pulled out a collar that matched the cuff perfectly, but had a small dragon charm added. "This is yours," he said as he placed it around Harry's neck, gently caressing the cat-demon's cheek as he ensured it was on correctly.

"This is a claim – my claim – on you for those who do not have an enhanced sense of smell," Draco explained as he fiddled with it. "Dominants get a wrist cuff. Submissives get a collar and those who are born as neither or both are given a necklace or bracelet."

"So if Blaise was a vampire, he and Rinie would have a necklace or bracelet?" Harry asked, fiddling with the cuff.

Draco smiled and nodded, pulling his hands away. "Exactly."

Harry nodded with a smile and gently put the cuff on the wrist of the blonde's dominant hand before placing a soft kiss to the area. When he raised his head, he was startled to see Draco's hand reach for the pendant and the same hiss-growl language from the other day came from the blonde's throat. Both cuff and collar glowed a soft grey before slowly vanishing from view.

"Amazing," Luna's father said, breaking the silence and making both Draco and Harry to jump and hiss at the man. Everyone else laughed or chuckled at the couple.

"You forgot you weren't alone, didn't you?" Bellatrix said, still chuckling softly. She started laughing again when Harry growled cutely at her.

Luna followed her friend to the table when Remus called out that the midday meal was ready. She wasn't participating in any of the conversations that were going on around her, but she didn't feel left out. For the first time in her life, she was included in a group of people who accepted her and were happy to know her. A hand grabbed hers, pulling her from her thoughts as her first friend playfully stuck his nose tip into her ear and sniffed, making her giggle.

'Yes,' she thought as she was pulled behind the playful cat-demon, both of them giggling uncontrollably, 'I could easily get used to this feeling.'

~2BA Line~

Bellatrix smiled as she watched the two demons. She had been lucky in that Remus had explained to her that Harry only needed them to be in the room with him to get him used to their presence. If she hadn't been told, she would have felt extremely put out since the wonderfully playful teen was now seated at the table surrounded by paper and parchment.

"Sorry about this," his voice said, pulling her from her thoughts. "I should have done this yesterday."

"No no no," Bellatrix hastened to assure him, "I don't mind at all. In fact, I find it fascinating to watch you write. You don't seem to stop writing, if just flows smoothly. Even Severus, who is the most literate person I know, can't write like that; even he has to stop and think of the appropriate word of phrase to use at times."

Harry smiled shyly. "It's because I know them so well," he admitted as he returned to the parchment before him. "I know how advanced their language skills are so I don't need to think of how they will interpret something and I know where their interests lie so I can talk – well … write – to them about what they are interested in. The younger children get stories about Hogwarts and the people inside her – a history lesson disguised as fun. Mama Figg or one of the older kids read them out for them so they are all together in one scroll. One scroll per portrait or person. So far they have heard about Siri and Remi. I'm thinking of doing Blaise and his family next. I'll ask tomorrow if they mind."

"Tomorrow?" Bellatrix asked, confused.

"Yeah," Harry replied with a distracted smile on his face. "I see Willa for an hour or so on Wednesday's s and Sundays. I'm her new Healer so I'm keeping a close eye on her and the babies."

"So I still come tomorrow?"

"Of course," Harry looked scandalized at the thought of her not coming. "Just come at around lunch time instead of breakfast, unless you want to chat with Hermione and whoever else comes during the day."

Bellatrix nodded her understanding and focus on the sight and sound of Harry's pen running smoothly across the paper he was writing on.

"I don't really talk to the younger children who are in school about much," Harry admitted as he put aside his now finished letter to one side and reached for a medium sized scroll and a small stack of parchment. "They tell me about their friends, what they are learning and beg me to come visit soon while I ask about how school is going, how they are and promise to visit them as soon as I can. It is more of an exercise for them to practice their reading and writing than anything else. Each child gets a paragraph or two written for them and them alone, while the majority of their letter from me is written in one big communal one for the entire orphanage that Mama Figg reads out."

Bella smiled and leaned back, allowing the teen to talk.

"The older kits and the teens get longer letters and what we talk about depends on the person. I have learnt a lot of things from them and our discussions on their hobbies and interests. Then there's Mama Figg and Tom. They are the ones who get my longer letters."

"It sounds like you have made quite the family from them," Bellatrix stated softly.

Harry nodded and looked up at her, pausing in his writing. "That's what we are," he said with a smile, "a rag-tag bunch of people whom no-one wanted or no-one could care for who found family in each other."

"It was you who brought us all together though Harry," Hermione said with a smile. "We wouldn't be as close without you being there." She placed her own pile of paper and parchment on the opposite side of the table to Harry and Bellatrix with a soft sigh of relief. "You are the centre of our family."

Harry flushed lightly as he placed his pen down and massaged his wrist to get his blood flowing properly once again.

"I'm sure you would have managed," he eventually said with a smile. "You always have."

Hermione blushed lightly. "Are you alright to do dinner tonight?" she asked, changing the subject. "You haven't cooked for a while."

Harry nodded and hummed in pleasure as he stretched. "I'm going to start now." He turned to Bellatrix. "Are you staying for the evening meal?"

The older woman quickly went over her schedule and slowly nodded. "Yes, I do believe I can stay for tonight's meal. I should also mention that Narcissa will be with me tomorrow."

Harry and Hermione smiled at her.

"Remus told us that during lunch," Hermione said as Harry wondered towards the kitchen. "You and Lady Malfoy take over Remus' and Sirius' classes during the full moon, don't you?"

Bellatrix nodded. "I take over Charms for Sirius and Narcissa takes over Defence." She shuddered slightly, "Never, and I mean NEVER get on her bad side. One student thought that due to her breeding, sex and slim body she wouldn't be a good Defence instructor. Not only did he discover the folly of his thoughts, but the rest of his class got front row seats to the prowess of the Black Family."

"I had heard from Sirius that the Black family were highly trained in combat."

"Oh we are," Bellatrix agreed, "and we all specialize in a different form of combat as well. Narcissa is best in Defensive Combat; Sirius is best at duelling and I am good with weapons. Sirius' younger brother is a Master of using potions in combat and mine and Cissa's older sister is one of the best strategists in the UK."

"It sounds as though you have a very strong family," Harry said as he placed a tray of tea and biscuits onto the table between the two females. "Is it something to do with genetics or is it trained into you?"

"A bit of both to be honest," Bella shrugged. "We are taught the basics for everything from a young age and when we discover what our forte is, that skill is trained to an inch of its life. Draco has gone through it even though he is the Malfoy heir."

"It makes sense," Harry stated, placing a full tea cup and saucer in front of both females. "Even though he is not a Black by name, he is a Black by blood. The lessons he learnt in childhood he will want to teach to his own children." Without a thought, Harry's hand rested itself on the area where his and Draco's future kittens would grow.

"And once we decide on what they are gifted with, we will do our best to help them master it," Sirus said as he plonked himself into the seat beside his cousin. "After all, until I find someone worthy enough of the Black family name to carry an heir, it will be one of Harry's and Draco's kids that will be the Black heir."

He grinned at Bellatrix. "Hey Trixie, you ready for tomorrow?"

Bellatrix grinned widely. "Has there ever been a time I've not been?"

Sirius grinned back at her, revealing their shared heritage as his features mirrored hers. "There is always a first time for everything."

"Not when it comes to me and my time torturing your students there isn't," Bellatrix retorted gleefully.

Sirius laughed and pulled the older woman into a hug. "Have I ever told you how glad I am you are related to me? Life would be boring without you to challenge my stupidity."

"You have no idea how glad I am to hear that Remus and I aren't the only ones to do so," Hermione stated from her place at the table.

Sirius yelped, let go of Bellatrix and fell backwards in shock. Harry, Hermione and Bellatrix burst into laughter as he blinked stupidly at the young brunette.

"When did you get here?" he asked blankly.

"We've been here all along Siri," Harry said with a laugh.

Once again the man blinked as though dazed and the three with him began laughing once again.

~12Line~

Remus, Severus, Draco and Blaise stopped and inhaled deeply, ignoring the loud chatter going on around them. Almost hesitantly, Remus opened the door and a wave of scented hot air broke over them.

"Whatever it is, I hope it is dinner," Blaise said, mouth-watering.

"It is, but it isn't ready yet," Hermione said with a smile from her place beside Bellatrix.

Draco put his bad down and nodded at his soon-to-be-sister-in-law. "Is Harry around?"

Hermione smiled. "He's just getting snacks to go with our tea."

Draco smiled his thanks and sank into the closest chair with a sigh of relief.

"Are you alright Draco?" Harry asked as he placed a large pot on the small table in the centre of the room.

"Just a bit tired Kitten," he said, smiling at the concerned male. "I have a bit of homework to do and not much time to do it in. Quidditch tryouts are on tonight and I'm not sure if I want to be on the team this year. I don't think I will have the time or the energy to do what the team needs me to do."

Harry climbed onto his lap and nuzzled his cheek softly. "Do you enjoy playing?"

"I do enjoy it, but I will give it up," Draco answered.

"Don't do that," Harry said, causing Draco to rear back in surprise to look at his mate. Harry smiled at him.

"You need to have some time for you," he said calmly. "If you don't you will burn out or you will lose yourself. I love you too much to allow that to happen."

Draco looked at Harry with such a deep seated love and adoration that everyone in the room gaped. Harry returned the look with one of his own and ran his hand gently through the vampire's blonde hair.

"Go to the tryouts Love," Harry said with a soft smile. "Do your best, spend time with friends and acquaintances who aren't caught up in the drama of creature mating habits and then come back to me and eat good food surrounded by family before turning your attention to business. When you leave, you hug me tight, take a moment to absorb my scent and aura, then you go back to your Dorm and relax before going to bed and tomorrow, you do it all over again."

Draco placed a gentle kiss to Harry's temple and pulled him down until his head was tucked under his chin and the black-haired demon was seated side-ways.

"What would I do without you Kitten?" Draco asked.

"Drive us all insane before attempting to kill Sev for making you drink artificial blood," Blaise said dryly.

Draco laughed and reached for his cup. "That sounds accurate," he admitted. He settled deeper in the chair and no-one was surprised to see his hold on Harry tighten slightly.