Happenstance

Chapter 14: Family Reunion

After removing her dress and paying for her purchases, Luna headed home so that she could start preparing supper. When she entered the house, she was surprised to find that it was absolutely silent. Luna had assumed that Draco and his friends would have managed to make a mess of things, but they hadn't. Instead, the trio and Landon were no where to be found. Assuming that they went outside, Luna hurried to the kitchen and began working on the food.

Just as the clock chimed six, Luna was finally at a point were everything was pretty much self sufficient and she could go and get herself ready for the party. As she was making her way to the staircase, the front door opened and Draco, with a sleeping Landon tucked away in his stroller, entered the foyer.

"Hey," Luna said, uncharacteristically chipper due to her excitement over her run in with Neville. "Where were you guys?"

"We took Landon to Diagon Alley for a bit and then headed to the park," Draco explained, removing his jacket. Luna had to admit, even the few hours she had spent away from Landon had been quite hard on her. She'd missed him so much. Gathering him into her arms, Luna placed light kisses on his forehead.

"He's out cold," she laughed, noting how Landon's eye lids didn't even flutter when she moved him. "You must have tuckered him out."

"Yeah, he was the center of attention, that's for sure," Draco said, recalling his afternoon out with Landon and the boys. "Blaise and Goyle found him quite useful."

"What do you mean?" Luna didn't like the sound of that. All of Draco's friends were rather well know for some of their less than savory behavior and Luna wasn't sure she wanted to know exactly what they'd been up to while she was away.

"Turns out babies are chick magnets," Draco said, laughing at the look on Luna's face. "They're evenings are pretty well booked for the next few weeks. Blaise actually managed to convince so poor witch that Landon was his child. She didn't even seem to notice that Blaise is black and Landon isn't."

"You used my son..."

"Our son," Draco corrected, heading towards the kitchen to get something to drink, Luna trailing behind him, prepared to nag.

"Our son," she amended, annoyed by his correction, "to pick up girls?"

"Yes, and it worked wonderfully, I might add," Draco said, smugly, as he playfully pinched her cheek. "It's not like they did him any harm, so there's no need to get your knickers in a twist."

"Couldn't you have just played peak-a-boo with him, instead of using him to get laid," Luna grumbled, swatting his hand away, as a small smile cracked the stern look she was trying to give him.

"I didn't use him to get laid. My friends did, and if I'd thought for a moment that it would have any sort of affect on Lanny than I wouldn't have allowed it. Frankly, he loved the attention." Draco turned and left the kitchen, ice tea in hand, before returning upon realizing that he'd forgotten the baby. Luna had half a mind to not hand Landon over but since she only had an hour and a half before their guests arrived she opted to let him take the baby so she could shower.

"Whatever you say," she huffed, signaling the end of their playful squabble and handing Landon to his father. "Can you give him a bath and get him changed for the party while I shower?"

"That was my plan," he assured her, gently jostling the sleeping baby until he woke. This proved to be a mistake, as Landon started screaming bloody murder. "Somebody's a cranky-butt."

"Sounds like it," Luna laughed, jogging up the steps towards her room before calling down to Draco, "I'll be out in a few minutes and then I'll take him so that you can get ready!"

"Alright," Draco yelled back, his ears ringing slightly, thanks to Landon's bellowing.

It only took Luna half an hour to shower and put on her makeup, which left her plenty of time to finish up the last bits of preparation for their house warming supper. When Luna had emerged, freshly showered and clad in her silk dressing robe, Draco handed Landon to her and headed for his own lavatory, so that he too could shower. In what seemed like ten minutes, Draco was finished getting ready and had returned to the kitchen, where Luna was busy bustling about, trying to tend to both Landon and the food.

"Shhh, Lanny," Luna cooed, gathering him out of his bassinet and bouncing him gently. "Mommy's got to get supper finished and then she'll feed you." Landon ignored his mother's attempts at placating him and continued his extremely loud crying. "Calm down. You don't want your mean old grandmother and grandfather to see you like this, do you?"

"I don't think he cares, Love," Draco answered for Landon, as he removed his blazer. Luna had almost forgotten just how wonderful he looked in a suit, never mind an extremely expensive, perfectly tailored designer suit. Slowly, knowing full well that Luna was ogling him, Draco strode towards her, his arms outstretched to receive his son.

"Here, I'll take him so you can get things wrapped up," Draco offered, staring down at her with a sly smirk on his face, his body gently pressed up against hers, unnecessarily. For several moments Draco just stared down at her, with Landon quietly laying against his chest, while Luna returned his gaze, her lips slightly parted and her breathing labored. At that moment, Draco knew that Blaise had been right when he said that Luna was torn between wanting him and not wanting him. There was no way she could fake the sort of reaction he'd just brought on by merely standing next to her. Deciding to toy with her a bit, he asked, "You alright?"

"Yes," Luna stammered, after taking several moments to compose herself, "of course. Why wouldn't I be?" Not wanting to have to look at him any longer, for fear of the thoughts he might stir, Luna busied herself with setting the appetizers on their platters. Quietly, Draco came to stand behind her, his mouth barely an inch from her ear.

"You just seemed a bit bothered," he whispered, his breath coming out in gently puffs against her skin. Luna had elected to wear her hair in a fancy updo, which allowed Draco's breath to sweep across the bare skin of her neck. "I know you've got to be stressed out over this dinner, especially since your Dad's bringing his new girlfriend with him, but I don't want you to let it ruin your evening."

"I'm fine," Luna stammered, rushing to the other side of the kitchen, in hopes of getting away from him. 'He smells so good,' Luna thought, as she began inspecting the glasses for water spots. A few moments later, something he'd just said finally registered in her hormone addled mind. "What do you mean my father's bringing his girlfriend?"

"Did I forget to mention that earlier?" Draco asked, the smug smirk falling from his handsome face when he realized there was a good chance he was about to get yelled at. "Your father owled before the guys and I left, and said that he'd already made plans for the evening, but that if he was able to bring his girlfriend with him, he'd be able to come. Since you weren't here, I just owled him back and said that it was fine to bring her with him."

"Well, it's not fine," Luna huffed, slamming one of the very expensive Waterford crystal glasses down onto the marble counter; luckily, it didn't shatter. "The last thing I need to deal with tonight is his new toy!" Before their conversation had the chance to go any further, there was a knock at the front door. "Shit," Luna muttered, looking down at her dressing robe. "I'm not dressed yet. Can you get that, while I go get changed?"

"You mean you're not wearing that?" Draco asked, playfully, fiddling with the tie of her robe. "I thought you were going for that sexy, just got out of bed... and put my hair up in some fancy and incredibly complicated do,look." Luna couldn't hold back a smile. It seemed like Draco always managed to make her do that whenever she was down, even if she didn't want to.

"Get the door," Luna laughed, as she high-tailed it to her bedchamber.

Just as Draco was leading his mother and father into the sitting room, Luna, all dolled up in her new gown, strode down the staircase and went to meet them. When she saw how Narcissa and Lucius were dressed, Luna was glad that she had taken the initiative and purchased a new gown for their little get together. Narcissa, as always, looked absolutely fantastic and not nearly as old as she was. She didn't know how the forty year old witch managed to look no more than a day over thirty, but so that she could keep disliking Draco's mother, Luna convinced herself that whatever Narcissa did to maintain her youth, had to have something to do with the blood of babies. As the older witch removed her expensive outer robes, still unaware that the mother of her grandchild had entered the room, she commented on Draco's choice of decor.

"It's not what I would have done," Narcissa said, gently stroking her son's cheek as he took her and Lucius' robes, "but if you like it, and your dear girl likes it, than that's all that matters."

"She's not his dear girl," Lucius corrected, a sneer on his otherwise handsome face. Even Luna had to admit that, no matter how evil Lucius Malfoy was, he was still a gorgeous man; a trait that Draco had already shown that he'd inherited. "How many times do I have to remind you of that?"

"Ignore your father," Narcissa replied, excitedly holding out her arms so that she could take hold of her grandson. "Oh, would you look at him! He's just perfection... absolute perfection!" The moment the tiny infant was in her arms, Narcissa was in her own little world; one that didn't include her son or husband. This gave Draco a moment to chat with his father, an event that he most certainly wasn't looking forward to.

"Why did you take our robes?" Lucius asked, settling himself into one of the armchairs. "Where's your house elf?"

"Luna doesn't want one?" Draco replied, tensely. He'd known that this was coming. Draco didn't doubt for a second that his father would give him the what for, within moments of his arrival. That was one of the reasons, one of many reasons actually, that Draco had been avoiding him. "She's been handling everything herself and I think she's done a pretty fantastic job at it."

"Nice to hear the two of you are getting on so... domestically," Lucius said, snidely. "Do you make your own meals now, too?"

"No, she does it for me," Draco replied, rolling his eyes, already wishing the evening was over. "Be nice to her."

"Excuse me?" Lucius hissed, not liking the demanding tone in his son's voice. "You don't order me around, Draco. I will treat her however I damn well please."

"Do remember that this is my home and I'll not stand for my wife being mistreated... not even by you," Draco sneered. In that moment, he was sure that he'd never disliked his father more, and the tone in his voice, one that would put anything Lucius could muster to shame, showed it.

"I wasn't aware that you two had married?" Lucius asked, an amused look on his face. Inside, the older wizard was fuming. How dare that ungrateful prat speak to him in such a manner! No matter how angry Lucius was, he knew that if he went too far with Luna that evening, his son would personally see to it that he didn't return to their home for quite some time. Luckily, Draco didn't have time to answer his father, due to Luna's arrival. Even luckier for Draco, Luna had been too far away to hear him address her as if wife. If she had, Draco would be in for, what he liked to call, a nag-fest.

"Mr. Malfoy," Luna said, politely nodding towards their guests. "Mrs. Malfoy."

"Hello dear," Narcissa said, happily, standing to go and meet Luna as she entered the sitting room. Unexpectedly, the older witch hugged Luna as best she could while holding Landon, and kissed her on the cheek. "You look gorgeous! That dress looks unbelievable on you. I wish I'd gotten my figure back so quickly after having Draco."

"When do you expect that to actually happen?" Lucius asked his wife, snidely, not having risen from his seat. "It's been over eighteen years and I'm still waiting for your old self to make an appearance." Luna, Narcissa and Draco stared at Lucius, dumbfounded by his cruel words.

"Ignore him," Draco interjected, seeing the hurt look in his mothers eyes. "You both look amazing and you know it." When his mother turned away so that she could continue speaking with Luna, Draco glared at his father. The further the evening progressed, the less Draco liked his father. Just as everyone was getting settled; Narcissa and Luna on the couch fussing over Landon, who was just eating up all of the attention, and Draco and Lucius, glaring at each other from opposite ends of the room, there was a knock at the door. "I'll get it," Draco offered, eager to get out of his father's presence; he could feel a headache starting to form already, thanks to the tension he was feeling. Luna knew that it had to be her father at the door, so she followed behind Draco, wanting to see who this mystery date could be. "You ready for this?" Draco asked, gently stroking her cheek as he stood in front of the door, his other hand resting on the handle.

"No," Luna admitted, smiling weakly. "Open the door." Leaning down, Draco pressed his lips against her forehead, before doing as she'd said. The sight before her made Luna's jaw drop.

"The bar maid!" she exclaimed, an incredulous look on her face. Draco, too, was quite stunned by what he saw.

"Luna," her father said, tersely. "This is Rosie. My girlfriend."

"Like hell she is!" Luna snapped, still unable to cope with this bit of news. Not wanting Luna and her father to fight, Draco ushered her towards one of the empty rooms nearby, while Mr. Lovegood and his girlfriend removed their robes and put them away. Before Draco even had the chance to shut the door behind them, Luna let loose her fury.

"Unacceptable!" she shouted. "Un-fucking-acceptable! I don't... but she's... No... Just no!"

"Now, don't hold back," Draco joked, receiving a deadly glare for it. 'It's official,' he thought, 'the night can't get any worse'. "Don't you want your Dad to be happy?"

"Shut up!" Luna snapped, not even trying to answer his question or rationalize her behavior. "Madame Rosmerta?! Madame Rosmerta?! Not cool, Draco... not cool!"

"You can keep saying that all you want to, Love," he said, softly, wrapping his arms around her. "But it's not going to make their relationship go away. It's time for your Dad to make his decisions based on what he wants, not what you want; and you need to let him do it."

"But..."

"No buts," Draco said, more firmly this time. "You need to worry about Lanny and yourself, now. Not your Dad. Let him have his fun. Even if it is Madame Rosmerta." Draco was trying to cheer her up, but apparently his words had the opposite affect. Within moments, Luna was sobbing against the bare skin of his neck. "Love, its alright."

"She's nothing like my Mum!" Luna exclaimed, suddenly. "She's doesn't even look a thing like her."

"Why would she?"

"Why wouldn't she?" Luna asked, sadly.

"Why would she?" Draco repeated.

"Why wouldn't she!" Luna shouted, extricating herself from Draco's arms.

"Look, we could do this all night," Draco said, laughing at their childish responses. "She's not your Mum and she probably doesn't want to be your Mum. There's no way that your Dad could love Rosmerta as much as he loved her, so you haven't got a thing to worry about. He's not trying to replace her, Luna. He's just trying to move on with his life. Doesn't he deserve that?"

"I guess," Luna admitted, wiping her tears away. "You know, you're right. I forgot that I'd thought it was a good idea for him to start dating. It must just be the hormones." Luna muttered a refreshing charm to rid herself of the remnants of her fit.

"You are the wishy-washiest woman I've ever met!" Draco exclaimed, throwing his hands up in frustration. "Hell, at least now I know you're not just like that with me, but with everything!"

"Now that's just rude," Luna said, laughing and returning to the sitting room where her father and Rosmerta had already joined Lucius and Narcissa. Upon entering the room, Luna and Draco found all four adults huddled together, staring down at Landon who lay in Lucius' arms. No sooner than they went to rejoin their guests, there was another knock at the door.

"I'll get it," Draco said, placing his hand on Luna's lower back and pushing her towards Madame Rosmerta, who looked like she wanted to speak to the younger witch. Once he was sure that Luna wasn't going to turn and run, or worse, hex her father's new girlfriend, Draco jogged to the front door. He didn't have the slightest idea who it could be, since everyone that he'd known was coming was already seated in the sitting room, ogling his son. Secretly, Draco hoped that it was Blaise and Goyle, coming to crash the party, but as he opened the door, he realized that his desire to end that evenings festivities was the last thing he should be concerned about.

"Oh... fuck me," Draco groaned, knowing that his having thought that the night couldn't possibly get any worse, had been proven wrong.

"I'll pass on that," the wizard said, nonchalantly, sidestepping the stunned blonde and entering the expansive foyer. "But thanks anyway."

"Professor Snape," Draco greeted, unable to believe that his former Head of House was standing in his foyer.

"Well, are you just going to stand there like an idiot or are you going to show me to the party?"

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SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG, BUT TRAINING THE NEW GIRL AT WORK WAS A PAIN.

GOOD NEWS IS, MY VACATION JUST STARTED, SO I SHOULD BE POSTING QUITE A FEW CHAPTERS THIS WEEK : )

I WONDER HOW MUCH TROUBLE SNAPE WILL CAUSE?

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