Title: The Perfect Wife
Author: slytherin-nette
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters you recognize from the HP books in this story. All I own is the plot. Everything else belongs to JK Rowling. She rocks.
Pairings: DM/femHP, RW/LrM, BZ/HG, SB/RV, BM/??, AM/?? and many others.
Warnings: This is a Post-Hogwarts story so it will be slightly more mature than TPG but equally insane. Wahaha. Also, this story contains PREGNANCY, RATED scenes and SLASH relationships.
A/N: Fast update eh? ;) Just a shameless plug-in: The next chapter of Phoenix Tears should be out soon so keep a lookout if you're interested in that story. To those who don't know, it's a darker DM/femHP story I'm writing on the side. :D Otherwise, enjoy the chapter! I think we're past half the story at this point. Things are about to take a drastic turn VERY soon. ;)
Chapter 13 – Falling Apart
Pacing the entire length of the bedroom balcony of their estate in Godric's Hollow, a flustered Harry held her muggle cellular phone tighter against her ear in growing agitation. A low growl escaped her lips as she listened impatiently to Vincent Ashford's rushed voice over the other line.
"What do you MEAN we still have don't have a lead on this case?! Ashford! My husband and my in-laws are PUREBLOODS! YOU'RE a pureblood! This is getting SERIOUSLY out of hand!" Harry snapped out loud in an angry shout, raising a hand to her massage her temples in frustration.
Vincent answered her with an equally frustrated growl over the phone. "Don't you think I KNOW that, Potter?! St. Mungo's best healers are currently working on the damn case as we speak! I rushed over there awhile ago! TWO more sudden cases aside from Cunningham have already been taken in tonight!" He raged, causing Harry's eyebrows to rise up further in dismay.
"What?! TWO more?! Who were they?!"
She heard the Head Unspeakable sighing on the other line. "Let's see…There's Philippe Winchester, if I'm not mistaken… And—" Harry paled in fearful shock when Vincent had said this. "—and just half an hour ago, Neville Longbottom. I realize he's a good friend of yours, I'm sorry—"
Harry didn't bother waiting for the rest of Vincent's sentence and cursed out loud, slamming her fist angrily against the balcony railing. "NO! Not NEVILLE! Bloody HELL!" She growled again and she covered her mouth with her free hand, a dreadful feeling of nausea flooding her chest.
Vincent paused on the other line and waited silently for her to recover from her shock. He had to wait for several more minutes, however, as Harry cursed out loud again and continued to pound her fist and kick against the balcony railing – her shouts echoing in the silence of the bedroom balcony.
Once she had managed to gain a semblance of control over her emotions, she took a deep breath to calm herself and massaged her temples again – the expression on her face one of complete exhaustion. Vincent remained silent on the other line, waiting patiently for her to speak up first.
She sighed and took another deep breath. "I…I'm sorry…I lost control of myself for a minute there. It's just that…Neville is a really good friend of mine and it's frustrating to know that we can't do anything right now because we don't know how the disease is spreading around." She paused and bit her lip, gripping the phone tighter as she flicked her eyes up to the night sky in thought.
"Do you think the disease is transmitted through the air or something? Or through physical touch? Maybe even magical interaction?" She asked wearily but all Vincent did to answer her was to give another loud, exasperated sigh. He sounded irritated as he answered her question.
"I don't know, Potter…I really don't. At this point, all we know is that only pureblood males seem to be susceptible to the disease. I don't understand why yet, exactly…But the Minister is getting rather desperate. He wants us AND the entire Auror department on the case 24/7 starting tomorrow morning. Will you be able to make it by 8AM? We have several investigations to conduct." He asked and at this, Harry suddenly stiffened and flicked her eyes to the date on her magical wristwatch.
"O—oh…Uhm…Ashford, it's my turn to watch my twin sons tomorrow…Do you mind if I stay behind the desk until around lunchtime? I really think I need to stay with them this time—"
Vincent growled impatiently and his voice rose several levels in annoyance. "Potter, this is a SERIOUS case! Do you WANT to solve this or not? When you agreed to take this promotion, I discussed to you CLEARLY the kind of commitment and dedication you needed to exert—"
Harry cut him off hastily and closed her eyes in defeat, raising a hand to massage her forehead in exhaustion. "A—alright…Fine…Fine! Forget about what I said. I'll…I'll think of something. Maybe I can ask my godfather or Regina to take the twins tomorrow…I'll be there tomorrow. 8 AM." She agreed reluctantly, a heavy feeling in her chest when she heard herself saying the words out loud.
Vincent paused for a split second to gather his next words before he spoke up again in an equally exhausted tone of voice. "I realize that I seem to be working you to death, Potter…I wouldn't really know since I'm still a single bachelor but…Do you still want to do this?" He asked quietly, the firmness of his voice causing Harry to stop and blink to herself in slight surprise.
"Excuse me…?"
The Head Unspeakable rephrased his question. "I asked…If you still want this promotion. This is not something I will force on you, Potter…I just need for you to tell me what you intend to do." He told her again and this time, Harry's eyes flashed and her fingers tightened around her phone.
"I have NO idea what you are implying Ashford but how many times do I have to tell you?! YES, I want this job! Alright?! Shall I bloody sing or dance it out loud?!" She growled angrily, eliciting a harsh scoff from Vincent on the other line. He chuckled for a few moments before he spoke up again.
"Very well…8AM tomorrow, Potter. Don't be late. I'll see you then."
He ended the conversation at this and hung up, leaving Harry glaring heatedly at her muggle cellphone in silence. Grumbling to herself, she rolled her eyes and shoved the phone back into the pocket of her pajama top, turning around and slowly making her way back towards the house.
When she saw that the bedroom was still empty and that her husband was nowhere in sight, she fused her eyebrows together and hesitantly trailed on further down the hallway towards his office – stopping briefly just as she passed by Garrett and Gabriel's large nursery beside their bedroom.
Peering inside for a minute to check that both her twin sons were fast asleep, Harry bit her lip to herself before she sighed and continued on towards Draco's large office near the other end of the corridor. She found her blonde husband seated stiffly behind his desk and working his way through several parchments of financial reports all at once – a whole horde of them laid out on his table.
About a dozen quills were magically scribbling away on separate parchments in front of him all at once, pausing only to wait for Draco's further instructions whenever he would stop and make several adjustments or corrections to his statements. Every so often, the former Slytherin would reach out, take a small sip from the mug of coffee beside him, wearily readjust his reading glasses before turning back to reading through the thick stacks of folders and documents in his hand.
Harry watched him silently outside the open doors of his office for several moments, fidgeting hesitantly to herself and trying to form a proper opening sentence in her head. She was just about to speak up in a soft voice when Draco finally looked up and regarded her with a cold, hard glare over his reading glasses, one of eyebrows arching and his lips forming into an unwelcoming sneer.
"If you don't have anything intelligent to say, Potter…Would you mind getting the bloody hell out of my office? In case you haven't noticed, I'm a little busy at the moment – scratch that last line." The last part of his clipped sentence he had snapped to the quill to his right. He turned his head again and pointedly ignored her by raising the parchment in his hands to cover his face from her vision.
Harry flinched at his cold response and wrung her hands nervously to herself again. She swallowed the painful lump in her throat and sighed, finally taking a brave step into his large office. "Draco…Look…Let me just say this. I'm not here to argue with you. I just…I wanted to talk to you about what happened back there tonight at the party. I didn't mean—"
Draco cut her off again by noisily slamming the parchments he held onto his desk, snatching his glasses off his face with an irritated scoff. Ignoring the timid expression on Harry's face, he brought his chilling gaze up and stared intently at her – allowing her to see the steely anger in his gray eyes and the way he was obviously trying to keep himself from exploding.
"You have three minutes, Potter. TALK."
Again, Harry couldn't help flinching and taking a careful step backwards away from him at his harsh, mocking expression – the sight of which she never thought she would ever have to see again since their days back as bitter archenemies at Hogwarts. Draco noticed her reluctance and his sneer hardened even more, his silver eyes glinting dangerously at her from across the room.
Harry bit her lip and began to speak. "…'Co…I just…I just wanted to—"
"To what? To WHAT, Harry? To APOLOGIZE? Is that what you took the time out of your incredibly HECTIC, MULTIPLE lives for?" Draco let out a derisive scoff and shook his head in disbelief, narrowing his eyes and turning away from her to flick his eyes back to the papers on his table.
Harry bit her lip at his response and tried again, ignoring the painful dryness of her throat as she struggled for the right words to say. "Draco, it's not like that…Okay? Look…I'm…I didn't mean to react the way I did tonight towards Garrett…I just…I don't know anything about being a mother and—"
Draco let out an angry sigh and slammed the parchments down again, pausing to look up and meet her eyes with an exasperated glare.
"Oh will you get over your damn masculinity issues, Harry?! It's not even about that anymore! You're a WOMAN! Deal with it! It's not about YOU or ME or you not knowing how to be a good mother! It's about being a good PARENT and frankly, you have no idea what you're doing!" He exploded, the force of his words causing a sharp jolt of anger to erupt in her chest.
She squelched it down, however, and stared back calmly at him – watching as the fires of anger and contempt darkened Draco's eyes into a stormy gray. "I'm sorry for the way I treated our sons, Draco. I didn't mean to shout at them. Besides…It's not like you're a good parent yourself. You spoil the twins so much that they're beginning to think they have no limitations when it comes to interacting with other children. We're both trying to learn here—"
Draco shook his head at this and sneered again, bending back down and ignoring the rest of her words by going back to work. "I'M trying, Harry. YOU'RE not. Your own sons don't even know you. As far as I've seen, you're not just terrible at being a mother. You're a terrible PARENT as well. I don't know what else I can possible say to you." He sounded angry and disappointed as he said this and the weary expression on his face brought a pang of guilt and bitter regret to her chest.
Yeah well…It's not like I know how to be a parent either. Harry thought sadly to herself, her vision blurring slightly as she called to mind the eleven years of neglected childhood she had spent living with her mother's relatives. Taking a deep breath, she hastily wiped the tears from her eyes before Draco could notice, looking back up and noting the defeated heaviness of his movements.
"Draco…I…I'm really sorry…I just…I'm trying…" She sighed heavily and made to walk toward him again, her green eyes softening in concern. Just as she reached his desk, however, he looked up at her again and shook his head firmly, his mercury orbs cold, unwelcoming and carefully guarded.
"Go to sleep, Harry. I won't be finished for another two to three hours. Don't wait up."
He ignored the crestfallen expression on her face as he turned away and went back to reading the reports in his hand. She saw the way he was trying to hide his emotions and reached out to touch his cheek anyway but the minute she had, however, Draco flinched and rudely pushed her hand away.
The next words he hissed out felt like a sharp knife being stabbed right into Harry's chest.
"Don't touch me…Potter."
She stood there – pale with shock and a wounded expression on her face – as Draco sneered at her one last time before he shoved her away, swiveling his chair back and picking his quill up from the table. He ignored her completely after that and shoved his glasses back on, bending back down and forcing his full attention back to his work. Harry stood behind his chair and watched him silently for a couple more seconds, her green eyes dimming with silent realization.
Then, taking a deep, shaky breath, she slowly began to walk out of his office – pausing a couple of inches away from the entrance doors and turning around to cast one last look at Draco's form across the room. The young Malfoy Head stubbornly refused to acknowledge her.
Sighing, Harry forced a weak, sad smile at him anyway. "Good night. I…I love you…Okay?"
She felt a harsh stinging in the corner of her eyes when Draco's only response was to ignore her again and to turn back to the magically writing quill to his right.
"Scratch the last line."
Harry didn't bother waiting any further for him to answer her as she turned and silently rushed out of his office, refusing to break down in front of him.
As soon as she was back out in the hallway, she redirected her shaky footsteps towards the twins' nursery beside their bedroom, wrapping her arms protectively around herself when she heard the rain beginning to pour outside. Once she reached the large, brightly decorated nursery, she slowly walked inside and stopped a couple of feet away from her sons' adjacent cribs.
Unable to prevent a small, genuine smile from breaking out onto her face, Harry took a step forward towards them and very carefully peered down into Gabriel's crib, chuckling when she was met with the sight of her son's slightly mussed up blonde hair peeking out from underneath his blankets.
Still smiling softly, she reached out and gently adjusted the blankets around Gabriel's form, tucking them properly under his chin. After she had done this, she caressed his hair and leaned down to give the sleeping toddler a kiss on the cheek, watching as he snuggled contentedly under his blankets. Once she was sure that he was comfortable, she pulled back and walked over to Garrett's nearby crib next – bending down similarly to inspect her older son in silence.
The older two-year-old was also fast asleep and was sprawled out more haphazardly along his crib than his brother was – an empty bottle of milk laid out beside his head. Harry held back another fond laugh and reached out to take the bottle from him, setting it down on the bedside table in the middle of the twins' cribs. After turning back to Garrett and tucking him properly underneath his blankets, she leaned down and planted a kiss onto his forehead as well, using the same gesture to gently stroke several tufts of silver blonde hair out of his eyes.
Garrett whimpered softly in his sleep and turned to his side. Harry watched him for a couple of minutes until he quieted back down, his breathing slowly returning to normal. Once she was sure that both her sons were comfortable once more, she stepped back again and stood right in front of their cribs where she could see them both – her eyes softening as she gazed at their sleeping faces.
They're really so adorable…No wonder all the older Malfoys spoil them so much. She thought to herself in mild amusement, watching as Garrett turned in his sleep again and laid his head out on his large pillow. Gabriel remained peacefully asleep, his small chest rising and falling with each breath.
Harry shook her to head in amazement when she noticed this, her attention momentarily focusing on her older son's sleeping figure. To be quite honest, she wasn't all that surprised when she realized that Garrett reminded her so much of his father – perhaps seen clearly in the way he was growing up with so much more self-assurance and assertiveness than his younger brother.
At the mere age of two, Garrett was already showing so much of Draco's pride and arrogance that he was beginning to have a negative effect on the other children – even Gabriel at times when he would fight with his brother selfishly for something he wanted. It was manifested at its best just a couple of hours ago when he had managed to make everyone in the playpen cry – including Gabriel.
Strangely enough, however, Harry was more than surprised to realize that as much as Garrett had Draco's pride and arrogance, he also displayed a lot of HER stubbornness and reckless tendencies – a combination of four characteristics that certainly did nothing to make him an easy child to handle.
Gabriel…On the other hand…Well…She smiled again and turned her attention back to her younger son, watching as he inadvertently snuggled deeper into his blankets. From what she had seen from him so far, Gabriel was certainly very different in terms of nature compared to his older brother.
The younger Malfoy, as ironic as it was, actually reminded her of herself.
Even at his young age, Gabriel was more quiet and reserved than any of the other children around him. Unlike his hyperactive twin brother, he preferred to sit off in the far corner of the room with a crayon and paper in his hands – switching his attention every now and then to an occasional puzzle or two but eventually going back to scribbling on dozens of sheets of parchment.
He positively radiated with his father's natural love for learning while displayed Harry's more easygoing temperament – blending in effortlessly with the other children around him and making friends while still exerting his mother's natural skill for leadership in the midst of a big group.
Like Draco, both the twins were very intelligent. She saw that in the way they reacted to certain situations around them and the way they responded to adults with their rapidly expanding vocabulary – obviously collected from talking constantly with their father or their grandfather.
Their magical skills were also exceptionally above normal levels. She could still remember the time when Draco had practically jumped around the entire Manor like a little boy when he came home one night to find his twin sons gabbering away in parseltongue with Septimus – Lawrence's pet snake.
Although from how she heard it, her twin sons hadn't said anything to the snake in parseltongue except 'hello' and 'goodbye' repeatedly; Harry had found her husband's reaction amusing and had teased him about it the entire night. Draco had been too ecstatic about his discovery to care.
She felt a heavy feeling in her chest as she remembered his genuinely happy expression that night and the way he had smiled at her as though he was the happiest man alive. She hardly ever got to see him smiling at her like that now and that realization alone dampened her thoughts again.
It's not like I don't want to be with my children, Draco…You don't understand me at all. She told him silently in her head, desperately trying to ignore the stinging in her eyes again.
Truth be told, she was practically killing herself physically everyday just so she could distribute her time to her family as much as was humanely possible. That included taking the more dangerous assignments sometimes just so she could free up occasional afternoons to see the twins.
As much as Draco accused her of being a complete stranger to her children and about the twins being completely indifferent to her, she actually knew so much more about them than he or anyone else realized. Those few fleeting moments in a day that other people may find insignificant were worth more than anything to Harry and it was during those moments that she pushed herself to the point of exhaustion just so she could watch her children grow up. She wanted to get to know them as much as she could from her observations – even if they didn't know her.
A few fleeting minutes before she went off to work. Waking up in the middle of the night to watch her twins sleeping for just a few moments. Sneaking away for several cherished minutes from her assignments just so she could go down to the Ministry Day Care center to watch her sons playing with the other children. Sometimes even giving up time with Draco just so she could be with her sons.
I don't know what I'm doing wrong…Draco hates me. My sons hate me. I'm so bloody tired every damn night. What more do I have to do? She asked herself silently as she turned around and slowly slinked back to their bedroom, her shoulders heavy with helpless defeat.
Once she reached the bedroom, she sat down onto the bed and lay back tiredly onto the covers, her green eyes blank and her expression numb as she stared up at the canopy of the bed in silence. Across the hall, she heard Draco conversing loudly with some of his business associates over the phone but she just blinked and turned over to her side, curling herself up into a shivering ball.
I'm just one person…I'm just one person…I'm just ONE person…This was the mantra she chanted over and over in her head as she finally gave in and clenched her eyes shut, a single tear escaping her left eye and trailing listlessly down her pale cheek.
I'm just one person…I'm just one person…I'm just ONE person, damn it…How do I do this?! I'm TRYING my BEST! It still isn't enough…She buried her face into her pillow to hide her tears, shivering to herself and beginning to fall into a deep, dreamless sleep.
Draco sighed to himself as he entered their silent bedroom a couple of hours later that night, his silver eyes immediately drawn to the frail-looking, slender figure that was curled up near the very edge of the bed. Jaimee had obviously fallen asleep hours ago and was shivering violently to herself amidst the cool night breeze flowing into the room, her arms wrapped tightly around her body.
Shaking his head, Draco slowly walked over towards her and very gently pulled the blankets over her shivering form, using the same gesture to tuck her in and brush away the locks of hair that was covering her sleeping face. He felt an aching in his chest as he stared at her features, mildly amused at the way he still felt like a lovesick teenager whenever he looked at her beautiful face.
Still so damn beautiful, Harry… Draco thought to himself with a reluctant smile, reaching a hand over to caress her soft cheek. She murmured something incomprehensible in her sleep and shifted slightly under the blankets, turning so that she rested her head better against the pillows.
Draco watched her silently for a long time, sitting himself down on the edge of the bed beside her and reaching out to stroke her hair. Harry was unaware of his presence and slept on peacefully, her breathing even and her body motionless as she continued to sleep on in comfortable silence.
What's happening to my marriage…? Draco asked himself silently, his eyes dimming in bitter regret as he finally pulled his hand away from her and forced himself to stand back up. He tore his eyes away from his wife's sleeping figure and slowly walked over to his closet, emerging from it about five minutes later in his pajamas and with a weary expression on his face.
He sat back down on his side of the bed and set his wand on the bedside table, tucking himself underneath the blankets before finally resting his head back against his pillow.
With everything that's happened lately – including the magical plague and the way Harry had been acting around their children – Draco didn't know what to think anymore or how they were going to fix their marriage. Everything just seemed to be one big, incomprehensible mess.
Shaking his head, he turned his head to the side and cast one last look at his wife's sleeping form beside him, wanting nothing more than to touch her and to fall asleep with her cradled in his arms. He couldn't even remember the last time they had properly been intimate with each other – and that was saying something, considering Draco was completely insatiable when it came to her.
Finally massaging his temples in defeat, Draco turned back over to his side and grabbed his wand from the table, pointing it at the light above their heads. Once the lights had dimmed and he were surrounded by darkness, he buried his head against his pillows and began to fall asleep.
Vincent looked up in surprise from his desk in the Ministry office to the sight of a hesitantly smiling Byron Malfoy entering the room – a cup of carefully brewed coffee in his hand. He watched as the younger Unspeakable set the cup of coffee down on his desk before biting his lip and slowly walking over to stand behind him, placing his hands carefully on the Head Unspeakable's shoulders.
"Hey…Thought you could use a drink. You look stressed out." He greeted, bending down so he could peer over the dozens of documents scattered all over Vincent's desk. He used the same maneuver to rest his chin affectionately on Vincent's shoulder, slipping his arms around his waist.
Vincent stiffened at this and looked up quickly to make sure none of the other Unspeakables around the department were looking at them. Once he had ascertained that everyone else was busy with their own work, he sighed and pulled away from Byron in mild annoyance, swiveling his chair around so that he could meet the younger man's golden brown eyes.
"Byron, I told you not to do stuff like this in the office. We could get caught and that could mean serious injury to both our jobs here." He snapped impatiently, turning around again and setting himself back to work. Byron managed a weak smile at his reaction and shrugged, walking back over to sit down on one of the chairs opposite Vincent's large desk.
"I know…I'm sorry. I guess I just missed spending time with you these past couple of weeks. Everything's been so hectic lately with the pureblood magical disease and all…" He stopped and watched in uncertain silence as Vincent ignored him and continued to sign through a dozen sheets of parchments all at once, pausing every now and then to dip his quill into a bottle of ink.
Despite the other man's silence, Byron continued to speak anyway – lowering his voice into a whisper so that none of the passing Unspeakable agents could hear them. "Anyway…Uhm…I actually came in here to ask you if we were still on for dinner later tonight…" He looked expectantly at Vincent's face, watching as those handsome features creased into a frown of confusion.
The Head Unspeakable paused in the middle of reaching for another report and finally looked up, arching an eyebrow at Byron in query. "Excuse me…? What about tonight?" He asked and he didn't bother waiting for Byron to respond as he turned his attention back to the scattered parchments in front of him, failing to see the slightly crestfallen look on the metamorphagus' face.
"I told you about it a week ago…I have a reservation for us in this new Jazz restaurant that opened up. I thought you knew…" His voice trailed off and he looked up at Vincent again, watching as the other man suddenly froze and flicked his gaze up – his eyes wide in shock and realization.
"Oh…Uhm…That was tonight?" He asked uncertainly, setting his quill down briefly so he could raise his hand and scratch his head. Byron nodded silently, trying not to let the disappointment on his face show as he looked at Vincent's expression. He already knew what was going to happen next.
Vincent sighed and reached a hand towards his quill again, twirling it hesitantly in his fingers as he phrased his next response. "Oh…Uhm…Look…Byron…I don't know if I'll be able to go with you tonight. I just have so much to go through—" He began, his attention momentarily drawn to the horde of messages that suddenly flew into his office and dropped themselves onto the top of his desk.
He picked them up and flipped them open, his eyebrows fusing together again in concentration.
Byron shifted in his seat and let out a disappointed sigh. "Vincent… I've reminded you about this date countless times during the entire week. You never said anything about canceling it until tonight. Look, can you please forget about work just this once and—"
Vincent set the letters he held in his hand down and shook his head, looking back up and giving the younger man a forced smile.
"—do you think maybe we can reschedule? How about next Friday? I'm really sorry. It's just that…Things are really so busy right now and I have a dozen pending investigations that need to be conducted." He told him, reaching over and placing a hand over the one Byron had on the table.
The dark-haired Malfoy shook his head at this and pulled his hand away, looking down so that the other man couldn't see the sadness that was beginning to seep into his eyes.
Vincent went on anyway, completely oblivious to Byron's facial expression. "Besides, you know that we promised each other not to let this little…thing…between us interfere with our work. We both have a lot to do this week. And I really don't want people getting the wrong idea about this—" He murmured pointedly, causing the disappointment in Byron's eyes to harden into anger.
"The…wrong idea…?" He drawled back sarcastically but Vincent didn't hear him, his attention once again distracted by two more messages that flew into his office above their heads.
"—this case is hogging up all my time right now and unfortunately, I can't get off tonight. You understand that right? You know me so well." His voice ended up lightly teasing near the end of his sentence but Byron was way past amusement at this point and was already standing up from his seat.
"Fine. Have it your way, Vincent—"
"Great! So I'll just see you at work tomorrow morning then? 8AM? We're scheduled to be at St. Mungo's again tomorrow to talk to some of the Healers about the disease. I told you about that right?" Vincent looked up after he said this and met Byron's expression again, his blue eyes suddenly riveting upwards to focus questioningly on the younger Unspeakable's tense face.
Feeling a surge of anger welling up in his chest, Byron managed a derisive sneer and nodded mockingly in contempt. "Very well…SIR. Whatever you say." He retorted coldly and just as Vincent caught the hostility in his voice, he had already whirled around and stalked out of the office – not giving the Head Unspeakable any chance to ask him what was wrong or why he was angry.
He passed by a confused Harry along the corridor and held back a groan. His cousin-in-law was carrying a stack of parchments in her arms and looked as though she was making her way towards Vincent's office. At the concerned look she gave him, Byron hid his face and hastily pushed past her, making his way as fast as he could towards his own office across the hall.
As soon as he was safe in the solitude of his office walls, he collapsed onto the chair behind his desk and buried his face into his hands.
He was finding it more and more difficult to put up with his so-called 'boyfriend's' attitude at this point and quite frankly, he didn't know how much longer he could stand for it. I'm not going to wait around forever for you, Vincent. Make up your damn mind. He thought tiredly to himself, massaging his temples in frustration as he took in another deep breath of air.
He must have stayed in that position for a long time because he didn't notice the figure that had suddenly walked into his office and plopped himself down onto the seat opposite him, watching Byron carefully with a slightly concerned face.
"Tired already, Malfoy…? It's too early to take a nap."
Byron jumped at the teasing, familiar voice and looked up from his hands, finding himself staring into the handsome, smiling face of Spencer Addison. Spencer's smile faded, however, when he saw the weary expression on Byron's face and he sat up, raising at eyebrow at the other man in query.
"You okay, By? You look really stressed out…All that Head Officer training must really be getting to you, huh?" He asked in light, cajoling voice, watching as Byron managed a weak laugh at his quip and nodded ruefully, reaching underneath his desk to take out his quill and a bottle of ink.
"I think so, Spence…I'm sorry. I guess I'm a little tired these days from all the late night work. How are you holding up so far? You've been doing nothing but search-and-capture assignments lately right?" He asked idly, leaning back against his seat and rewarding Spencer with an easy grin.
Spencer nodded in affirmation and grinned, twirling his wand casually between his fingers.
"You bet your galleons, I have. To be quite honest, it's been a lot of fun. I work with the new recruits and help them out on their first few assignments. It's just unfortunate that I don't get to work with you or Harry anymore." He mused and at this, Byron sat up and offered him a consoling smile.
"For what it's worth, Addison…I'm beginning to miss having someone hitting on me every five minutes too." He kidded, eliciting a snort of laughter from the other man. Byron rolled his eyes to himself and chuckled, reaching over and taking a sip from the glass of water on his table.
"Sorry. But I can't help it if I've always found you irresistible, Malfoy." Was Spencer's only response and in spite of himself, Byron managed a genuine laugh this time and shook his head at the other man's antics. "You never change, do you…? You're still such a horny, perverted prick." He observed and Spencer shrugged in response, ducking his head sheepishly behind his hand.
"Guilty as charged…?"
Byron grinned wider and raised an eyebrow, gesturing to the folders Spencer held in one of his hands. "So what's that for? Did Ashford give you a horde of investigations to go through too? He just gave me and Harry about a whole night's worth of reports to be studied regarding the plague—" He stopped when Spencer shook his head and offered him another impish grin in response.
"These?" He glanced at the documents he held in his hands. "Heck, no…These are just reports that I have to sort through and return to their proper filing by this afternoon. I'm actually just going to curl up at home later with a good book for a while. It's been a long time since I read something for leisure." He answered easily, causing one of Byron's eyebrows to arch up in mild surprise.
"Home alone, Addison? What happened to that tall, gorgeous Wizarding lawyer I saw you hanging around with last week?" He asked with a pointed smirk, rolling his eyes in amusement when Spencer just grinned and shrugged, leaning back comfortably against the backrest of his seat.
"Oh that guy? That was just a little something I'd like to call a fling, Byron. It was fun while it lasted but it wasn't anything serious. He had really gorgeous abs though...Mmm." He added after a second thought and at this, Byron cringed to himself and shook his head to clear the images away.
"Ugh…That was more than I needed to know. Keep your sick fantasies to yourself, Spencer." He drawled loudly with a grimace, frowning when Spencer just sniggered at him in response.
Byron stared at the Durmstrang graduate for a couple of minutes in thought, his eyebrows fusing together as he considered the situation. After a long silence, he finally looked back up and met Spencer's hazel-tinted eyes, ignoring the loud voice that was hissing at him warningly inside his head.
Oh for the love of all things magic, Byron…Don't do it! It'll make things more complicated. Don't you dare! Don't say it— Byron shook his head to clear the annoying voice away and smiled uncertainly at Spencer, reaching a hand up and brushing back several strands of hair out of his eyes.
"Hey uhm…Spence…" He began uncertainly, nearly regretting his decision a moment later when Spencer's eyes focused intently on him. "Since you're not really doing anything tonight…I have a reservation later at that new Jazz restaurant that just opened near the Ministry." He paused when Spencer's eyebrows rose up in surprise, the other man looking slightly taken back at the invitation.
Byron clarified the rest of his sentence by rushing out his next words. "Vincent was supposed to go with me tonight but he couldn't make it and I figured…Why waste the reservations, right? Do you…Want to come with me later? As friends of course…Not like a date or anything. Don't worry." He reassured him hastily, causing the brief elation on Spencer's face to dim into a small, smile.
In spite of himself, he shrugged anyway and returned Byron's questioning look with a brief nod. "Hey…It's not like I could pass up an opportunity to spend time with you for a boring book right? Sure. I'd love to go with you, Byron." He kidded weakly, instantly causing Byron's tense shoulders to relax in relief. The metamorphagus let out a nervous laugh and nodded gratefully in response.
"Great…That's great, Spence! So…Uhm…I'll come drop by your office at around eight? Will you be coming from an assignment?" He asked but Spencer just shook his head and gave him another disarming smile. "I'll be coming from an assignment but eight is fine. I'm pretty sure I'll be done by then. But uh…Are you sure about this, Byron? I mean…Won't Ashford get mad or something—"
Byron cut off the rest of his concerns with a single wave of his hand, looking way from him so Spencer couldn't see the bitterness in his brown eyes. "It's fine, Spence. I—it's not like Vincent would ever notice anything anyway besides his work so don't worry about it. We're going out as friends." He told him, watching as Spencer nodded uncertainly and finally rose up from his seat.
"Alright…Well…In that case, I'd better get back to work. I just came in here to check up on you. So…I'll see you later at eight then? Is that a formal restaurant by the way?" He asked all of a sudden, eliciting an amused laugh from Byron as he rolled his eyes and nodded in affirmation. "Yes, it is. So you'd better appear in something decent. That means NO leather, Addison."
Spencer made a face at him but laughed good-naturedly and nodded, turning around and finally exiting the room towards his office. Byron watched him leaving for a couple of minutes with a blank expression on his face, his eyes widening in surprise a minute later when he finally noticed the figure of one very shocked and slightly dazed Vincent Ashford frozen just outside his office.
The handsome Head Unspeakable stood a couple of feet away from Byron's office entrance and looked thoroughly uncomfortable, blinking to himself for several times as though in disbelief. When he finally came around, he forced a smile and walked into the metamorphagus' room.
At his sudden entrance, Byron rose up sharply from his seat and walked towards him, shoving his hands awkwardly into his robe pockets. "Vincent, I uhm—"
Vincent shook his head and held up a hand to silence him, a weak, forced laugh escaping his throat. "I uh…I just came here to give you the details about your assignment later. Here…" He cleared his throat and handed Byron the folder in his hand, flicking his eyes down and avoiding his eyes.
Byron took it from him and kept his expression emotionless, noting the definite tenseness of Vincent's shoulders and the way he was clenching his jaw in unkempt anger. Luckily enough, he didn't have to wait long before the slightly older man looked up and gave him an obviously plastered smile.
"So…Uhm…You and Addison, huh? I overheard your conversation just now. You're going out tonight instead?" He asked in an all too nonchalant tone of voice, his smile just a little too eerily friendly for Byron's liking. Byron sighed and nodded, placing the folder carefully on top of his desk.
"Yeah…I guess we are. Listen, Vincent…If that's not okay with you, you can tell me. I don't exactly know the current status of our relationship right now so I wouldn't know what to think—"
Vincent cut him off with another forced laugh and firmly shook his head – unaware of the way his eyes were glinting with jealousy. "N—no, no! That's fine! That's fine, I don't mind at all! I think it's great that you two are spending time together. I'm perfectly okay with it. I am!" He rushed out; ignoring the way Byron was looking at him with a mixture of disappointment and confusion.
"Vincent—"
The Head Unspeakable smiled again and nodded, turning around so fast that his robes swished dramatically behind him. "A—anyway, I'd better get back to work…Have fun tonight alright? I'll see you at 8AM sharp tomorrow at St. Mungo's… Alright? Don't be late." He didn't bother waiting for Byron to answer as he stalked out of the office, closing the door loudly behind him.
"You 'ave been avoiding me, love… 'Ave you grown tired of me already?"
Anton smirked to himself and rolled his eyes when he heard his mistress's pouty, sultry voice over his muggle cellphone that same night. He flicked his eyes up to the door of the Malfoy Manor living room to make sure he was completely alone before he chuckled and plopped himself down lazily onto the couch, propping his two feet up onto the coffee table in front of him.
"Of course not, Sophie…How could I ever grow tired of such a gorgeous woman?" He drawled back automatically, leaning his head back against the couch as he pressed his cellphone closer against his ear. He heard Sophie's teasing giggle on the other line, followed by another flirtatious response.
"Hmm…Zhen you will come visit me tonight? Are you free…? I 'ave missed you so badly zese days…I want you 'ere." She sniffed dramatically for effect, bringing another fond smirk to Anton's lips as he rolled his eyes to himself and brushed back several strands of blonde hair out of his eyes.
"I've missed you too, love…I have. I'm sorry I wasn't able to see you these past couple of days, it's just that…My family has been hosting a lot of social gatherings lately." He answered her, purposely leaving the part out about his wife. Unfortunately, Sophie seemed to bring the subject up anyway and he could almost hear the scowl in her voice when she answered him.
"Hmmph. Now by 'family gazhering', do you mean you 'ave been spending time with 'er? Zis redheaded ball-and-chain of yours?" She mocked impatiently and at her words, Anton felt a surge of irritation, his blue eyes flashing in anger. "Sophie, that happens to be my wife you're talking about. And yes, if you must know…I have spent the last few days with her. She IS my legal spouse, after all." He retorted, rolling his eyes again when Sophie feigned a broken-hearted whimper on the other line.
"But…Zat is unfair, my darling…You know zat I 'ave been missing you terribly…Please come 'ere to see me tonight. I will make it worth your time…" She giggled and let her voice trail off suggestively after she had said this, piquing Anton's interest as he sat up and chuckled in response.
"Oh really…? Well in that case—Wait. Hold on a second, Sophie."
He paused and covered the phone's mouthpiece with his hand just as he felt someone enter the living room and looking up; Anton directed a sheepish smile at Draco just as his older cousin entered the room. One look at Anton's suspicious stance was all it took for Draco to scoff in disgust and roll his eyes at him. The Malfoy Head turned and made his way down the hallway towards the libraries, leaving his younger cousin watching him cautiously until he had turned the corner.
Once he was certain that he was alone again, Anton finally pressed the phone against his ear again and leaned back against the couch. "Isn't your husband supposed to be back from his trip tonight, Sophie? Are you sure you want me there? We could get caught." He teased back pointedly, smirking to himself again when Sophie answered him with a nonchalant scoff.
"Oh please…'e does not get back until tomorrow, darling. Frankly, I would 'ave preferred it if 'e 'ad stayed zhere. 'e is completely boring and unsatisfying…Unlike you." She murmured in a seductive purr again and this time, the lust in her voice brought a shiver of desire down Anton's spine.
"Hmm…Well, how can I resist those words?" He heard her laughing to herself in triumph on the other line. "What time should I be over there, ma chérie? I can probably leave after a couple of hours." He told her pointedly, waiting as Sophie paused on the other line in thought.
"I will be completely alone tonight at around eight…Would you like to 'ave dinner 'ere, my love? And zhen afterwards…I can whip up a little…some-zhing for you for…dessert." Her voice ended in such a sultry chuckle after she had said this that Anton's eyes darkened with lust again and he straightened up in his seat, setting his feet down from the table.
"You little tease…Alright…I'll be there at eight. Wait for me." He hissed back into the phone, his blue eyes narrowing impatiently when Sophie just answered with another light, flirtatious laugh just before she cut the line off, leaving the half-veela to his own thoughts.
He carefully placed the phone back in his robe pockets, crossed his arms and leaned back against the couch again, his eyes flicking up to stare at the beautiful diamond chandelier above his head. He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't hear the door to the living room open again until a figure suddenly sat down beside him, causing the Malfoy son to jump in surprise.
An irritated retort already forming on his lips, he was just about to turn to his intruder and snap out something nasty at him or her when he found himself staring intently at his wife's smiling face instead, her youthful features aglow with warmth and happiness as she regaled him with a smile. Ginny's long red hair was pulled back from her head with a simple clip and her blue eyes glowed brightly amidst her pale skin and the adorable freckles that grazed along her cheeks.
She laughed at his speechless reaction and poked him in the ribs, bringing the half-veela out of his self-induced, speechless stupor. "Are you alright, Anton? You silly git, you're spacing out! Gaping and speechless idiot definitely does not suit you at all." She teased him lightly, causing Anton to blink himself out of his daze and answer her with a soft, amused laugh.
"Yeah…Sorry about that. I was just thinking about something…I uhm…It's just that…You look…really pretty in that dress." He told her awkwardly, feeling an unfamiliar heat rushing into his cheeks as he gestured to the light blue sleeveless dress that wrapped snugly around his wife's form.
Ginny looked genuinely surprised at his compliment and looked down at her attire, her own cheeks flushing delicately in pleasure and mild embarrassment.
"Oh…Thank you…" She answered with a short laugh, nodding her gratitude. "Lorraine actually helped me pick this out this afternoon in Diagon Alley. Your sister has a serious addiction with shopping." She quipped, earning another laugh from Anton as he nodded and gave her a rueful smile.
"That she does…But then again…So do you. I've just received this month's charges on my account. Fifty thousand galleons on shoes, Ginny?" He asked her with a raised eyebrow, his stern expression dissolving into another disarming grin when Ginny flushed to herself in embarrassment.
"Y—yeah…Uhm…About that…I'm sorry. I guess I got a little carried away. Don't worry, I can pay for it with my own money—" She stopped when Anton cut her off with a laugh, shaking his head at her sudden awkwardness. "Don't worry about it, love. I was just teasing. My mother spends about twice that amount on shoes and accessories, I'm quite used to it. Spend all you like." He assured her, bringing a bright smile to Ginny's face as she nodded in agreement.
"Alright...Then spend I shall." She quipped, the smirk on her face causing Anton's smile to widen in amusement. He gestured to the envelope she held in her hand, raising an eyebrow at it in mild curiosity. "What's that you've got there? Not another love letter from some new romantic conquest, I hope…?" He grumbled, earning a laugh from Ginny as she shook her head at his words.
"Nothing like that, Anton…It's actually an invitation to go see that new magical play in London. I promised your grandmother and Lorraine that I'd go watch it with them tonight. My mother is also coming. I'm really excited. I've heard good reviews about it." She told him, the excitement in her voice so infectious that Anton couldn't prevent himself from mirroring her bright smile.
"That's wonderful, Ginny…I'm sure you'll have a great time then. Tell me all about it tomorrow alright?" Ginny frowned at his words and fused her eyebrows together in confusion. "Tomorrow? But won't you be home tonight, honey?" She asked and at this, Anton froze and bit his lip, racking his brain for the right combination of words to say.
"Unfortunately, Gin…I've got to go back to the office later and… fix up some stuff. I probably won't get home until morning so don't wait up for me. I need to…Be somewhere. You girls just go and have fun, alright? I'm sure you four stunning women will take London by storm tonight." He winked at her, causing Ginny to groan again and pretend to gag at his words.
"There goes your tongue again, Malfoy. Always managing to save you out of any situation you get yourself in…I should really cut it off." She kidded, watching as Anton chuckled and answered her with a mischievous smirk. "I'm a Malfoy son. Of course I have a skilled tongue. In more ways than one." He gave her a suggestive look, causing his wife to roll her eyes to herself in helpless annoyance.
"Oh you—"
Ginny stopped herself midsentence when her own muggle cellphone blared to life in her purse, drawing both hers and Anton's attention to it as she brought it out of her bag. She held a finger up at him to excuse herself before she flicked the phone open and pressed it against her ear, rising up out of her seat so she could walk to the end of the room.
From where he still sat on the couch, Anton listened to her hushed conversation for several minutes, noting the disappointed slump in his wife's slim shoulders.
"Uh-huh…Yeah…Okay…I understand, Lorraine. No…That's okay. It really is. It's not your fault."
Anton raised an eyebrow in query, standing up and walking over to where Ginny was standing.
"Okay…I suppose next time then. No that's okay. We'll still have fun. I know. I'm sorry too."
Ginny held up a hand to silence Anton again just as he opened his mouth to ask her what was happening. She shook her head at him and indicated for him to be quiet, pressing her cellphone closer against her ear and cupping her hand over the mouthpiece.
"Alright then, Lorraine…It's really no problem. Uh-huh…Uh-huh...Absolutely. Will do…I'll tell him right now. He's right here in the room with me. Okay…I'll see you then. Alright. Bye."
She flicked her phone off and shoved the device right back into her purse, turning around and meeting Anton's questioning look with a sad shake of her head. "That was your sister. She said she won't be able to make it tonight with us." She began slowly, her voice heavy with disappointment.
Anton offered her a consoling smile as reached over to tuck a loose strand of red hair behind her ear, using the same gesture to cup her cheek.
Ginny blushed at this but continued anyway, flicking her blue eyes down to the floor. "Chessie caught a bit of a cold this morning and so Lorraine has to stay home and take care of her. Oh well…I was looking forward to having Lorraine there too. It'll be horribly awkward later if it's just me…Your grandmother…And my mother." She mused, letting out a heavy sigh.
Chuckling to himself, Anton shook his head and offered her a noncommittal shrug. "Oh come on, Ginny…How bad could it be? My grandmother is a very gentle woman and your mother—"
"—absolutely hates your guts, Anton. I know." She retorted bluntly, causing Anton to blink in slight surprise as Ginny chuckled weakly and sank back down onto the couch. She sighed again as he took the seat beside her, turning to watch the crestfallen look on her young features.
"Very well…I suppose I'll have to learn how to get through tonight somehow. Anyway, wish me luck. I'm going to go get changed right now. My mother will be arriving here in about an hour." She told him and just as she was about to stand up and walk out of the living room, Anton surprised her by placing a hand over hers and keeping her firmly in place.
She froze and turned to look at him in question, her eyebrows fusing together even more when she was met with the thoughtful, slightly mischievous expression on her husband's face. After blinking to himself for several minutes in thought, he finally raised an eyebrow and looked at her, the corners of his lips quirking upwards into a handsome, lazy grin.
"…Why don't I go with you in Lorraine's place instead, Ginny…?"
The serious expression on Anton's face instantly caused Ginny's eyes to widen in incredulous disbelief. She gazed at him as though he had just turned into a dragon or a flobberworm, the frown on her face slowly giving way into an uncertain, genuinely surprised grimace.
After several minutes of her gaping at him, she finally found her voice and spoke again – the grimace on her face slowly transforming into a forced smile. "Anton…Don't be silly. What's with this all of a sudden? Like I said, my mother hates you and you said that you don't like these shows—"
Anton chuckled lightly and nodded in agreement, giving her another easy shrug.
"True…Too true, Ginny…But then again…Don't you think it's precisely because of the fact that your mother hates me that I should strive to win her over? Wouldn't you agree with me that by accompanying her to this show tonight and showing her my charms, I just may be able to do just that?" He teased, the truth in his words finally eliciting a helpless laugh from his wife.
"Well…If you insist…B—but didn't you just say that you had work to attend to tonight?" She reminded him again but Anton just grinned and waved the concern away, reaching over and taking her hand into his. "Don't worry about that. Work can easily be cast aside when it pertains to matters of the family." He answered calmly, drawing another lovely blush from his wife.
"A—alright…If you really want to, then that would be great. I'll go and tell Genevieve right now that you'll be attending with us in Lorraine's place." She told him uncertainly, slowly rising out of the couch and making her way towards the entrance to the living room.
Just as she reached the end of the room, however, she turned around one last time and gave Anton a slightly suspicious look, her blue eyes narrowing at him in disbelief.
"Are you honestly sure you want to come with us tonight, Anton…? I mean…You really don't have to do this. If you really want to be…somewhere else…that's fine too. It really is. That was the deal we made, right?" She spoke softly, the uneasy tone of her voice sending a clear signal to Anton of exactly what she really meant to say.
Instead of answering her question directly, Anton just offered her another handsome – though slightly nervous smile – and nodded, looking directly into her face and meeting her eyes with his own.
"I can assure you, Ginny…It's fine. There's really nowhere else I'd rather be tonight than with you. I would love to accompany you later." He answered easily, failing to see the direct effect his words had on his wife as she blinked and sharply turned away from him to hide her face.
"V—very well…I'll go tell Genevieve right now and get ready. Thank you…"
She looked up and offered him one last beautiful smile before turning around and hurrying out of the large living room, closing the doors gently behind her. Once she had gone and Anton found himself alone once more, he sighed and reached into his robe pockets for his muggle cellphone again – holding it up to the light so he could punch in Sophie's number.
"I'm terribly sorry, ma chérie… I won't be able to make it tonight after all. I…have plans."
Draco couldn't help chuckling in mild amusement as he listened to Blaise, Theodore, and Malcolm cracking lewd jokes to one another in idle boredom, all four of which were currently in Draco's MMC office and were seated along the lush couches overlooking the beautiful London skyline.
His Slytherin friends were hanging out in his office after lunch that afternoon and had currently spent the last forty five minutes regaling Draco with several of their amusing stories and marital experiences thus far. The Malfoy Head was seated behind his office desk across the room and was watching them with a smirk on his face, shaking his head at their boyish antics.
"You are a sick pervert, Nott!" Blaise drawled out loud with a disgusted shake of his head, causing the other two to burst out into sniggers again. Draco hid his own laugh beside his hand and watched as Theodore straightened up in his seat and directed his grin to Draco across the room.
"Hey, that wasn't me! Malfoy gave me that idea! I was just trying it out! In all honesty, I wasn't really able to hold out long…Position was just too tiring." He complained loudly and ignoring the scandalized look Blaise shot at him, Draco scoffed and answered Theodore with an arrogant sneer.
"That's probably because you have low stamina, Nott. I was at it for almost more than half an hour when—" He stopped when Blaise exploded again, holding his hands over his ears and shaking his head furiously to block out the rest of Draco's words.
"Argh! My ears are bleeding! I do NOT want to hear about ANY of your sexual positions or physical stamina! That means ALL of you!" He snapped at Theodore and Malcolm beside him, causing them to break out into laughter once more.
Draco tried to snigger along with his friends but his laughter eventually died out and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat, raising an eyebrow to himself in deep thought. Fortunately, his friends didn't seem to notice his sudden silence and began to talk amongst themselves again, their voices echoing clearly in the silence of Draco's large office.
"Any news on Cunningham's condition yet?" Malcolm asked Blaise just as the Italian Head sat back down against his seat. Taking a sip from his glass of water, Blaise nodded and looked up to meet the rest of their terse faces. "Yeah, just this morning. Pansy said that he just went into comatose…" He told them, causing Malcolm and Theodore to pale in shock while Draco fell deathly silent.
Theodore raised a hand and ran his fingers through his hair in exasperation, giving the other two men a strange look. "From what I read in the newspapers lately, it seems all the victims eventually go into comatose…None of them have died yet so far but they all lose consciousness and fall into comatose about two to three days after they first collapsed." He thought out loud and Malcolm nodded in agreement, pausing to take a sip of his own drink before he responded.
"I heard from some of my other friends that Winchester caught the disease too. Along with that clumsy idiot Longbottom. In all honesty, this is all beginning to freak me out." He told them with a shake of his head. Listening to their words, Blaise sighed again and buried his face into his hands.
"Let's just hope for the best and that no more of us catch it. The Ministry is taking all the necessary measures against it already and Hermione told me that they're releasing in the newspapers tomorrow more preventive measures for purebloods to take to prevent themselves from catching the disease." He told them, earning himself several reluctant nods from his two friends.
Amidst all this, Draco continued to remain silent across the room and listened distractedly to their conversation, his thoughts obviously still elsewhere. Still failing to notice this, Malcolm spoke up again and tried to lighten everyone's mood by giving Blaise another impish grin and wink.
"In any case…Would you care to suggest any positions of yours to us, Zabini?" Blaise choked on his drink when Malcolm had said this, looking up and meeting the other man's smirk with another shocked, scandalized glare. "Excuse me?! Pellerin, I am NOT going to tell you the positions I use—"
"Aw come on, mate…Don't be selfish! We're all men here and it's all a matter of sharing moves with one another! If you want, I can even lend you this book I have. It has—" Theodore stopped in the middle of his sentence when Blaise shook his head again and silenced him with a single, warning glare.
"I do NOT want to borrow your perverted book of Merlin knows what and if you two sick gits don't shut up right now, I'm going to—" Malcolm and Theodore both burst out laughing at Blaise's angry expression, finally breaking Draco's inner monologue with himself and causing him to look up at them with a sheepish, slightly reluctant expression on his face.
"Hey… Speaking of that…I'm a little curious here. Can I ask you guys something?" He spoke all of a sudden, drawing all three of his friends' attention to him as they looked up and gave him a questioning look. At their stares, Draco shifted uncomfortably in his seat again and cleared his throat.
"Have you guys ever experienced…I don't know…A down cycle or something sometime during your marriage? You know…Sexually speaking…I mean…" He added hastily to clarify himself when they looked confused. At his words, his friends' eyebrows arched up in utter shock and speechless stupor.
They stared at him in awkward silence for several minutes – obviously trying to think of the best response. It was Blaise who spoke up first and he gave his best friend a grimace of disbelief.
"Just what are you trying to say here, Draco? Are you saying you haven't slept with your wife for awhile, is that it? And you're asking if it's normal?" Draco felt his face heat up and sneered angrily when Malcolm and Theodore turned their face away from him in a poor attempt to hide their sniggers.
Blaise ignored their reactions and kept his face neutral as he met Draco's slightly embarrassed face. The Malfoy Head silenced the rest of Theodore and Malcolm's laughter with a single, icy glare, causing both former Slytherins to wince to themselves and immediately fall silent in their seats. Turning his attention back to Blaise, Draco sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his hair.
"In a manner of speaking, I suppose you could say that. I'm just worried—"
He stopped when Blaise just laughed and shook his head at Draco's worried expression. "Oh come on, Draco! You and Potter go at it like bloody rabbits! I think you're exaggerating this. How long could it have possibly been? Three days? A week at most?" He asked but he immediately fell silent when Draco looked up, shook his head and answered him with a weak, pointed smirk.
"Nearly TWO months actually…Give or take a few days. I'm not exactly sure at this point."
Blaise and Malcolm both gaped openly at him while Theodore looked at Draco as though he was insane, shaking his head and blinking at him several times as though to make sure he had heard right. When his friends had finally regained their senses, Theodore ended up bursting into amused laughter – causing Draco's eyes to flash as he glared at the other former Slytherin in mild annoyance.
"TWO months?! Son of a bleeding banshee, Malfoy! How are you holding up so long?" He sniggered, ignoring the warning look Blaise shot him from the end of the couch. Malcolm also looked up at Draco and gave him an incredulous smirk, shaking his head and sniggering behind his hand.
"Let me get this straight, Draco…You are married to one of the hottest women I have ever seen in my lifetime and you haven't slept with her in TWO MONTHS?" Malcolm took another sip of his drink before setting the glass back down and giving Draco a sympathetic shake of his head. "That is definitely NOT normal mate. Not at all." He told him and Theodore nodded behind him in agreement.
Draco rolled his eyes at their reactions and finally rose up from his seat, burying his face into his hands as he walked over to his window and peered down at the streets below. "It's just…We've both been so bloody BUSY these last couple of months that we hardly even SEE each other." He growled under his breath, failing to see the pointed look Blaise was giving him from behind.
"I hate to agree with these bastards but I think they're right, Draco. I don't think that's normal in a marriage. I think you and Potter need to sort this out before anything else." He told him calmly and Draco was just about to respond to this when the magical intercom on his desk suddenly blared to life behind them, drawing all four men's attention to it from across the room.
"Sir…? The finance department has just submitted their report to me right here. Shall I bring it into your office for you? I also made you another cup of coffee in case you might want some."
Natasha's feminine voice echoed around the room, causing Draco to sigh and walk back over to his desk to answer her. "That will be fine, Natasha. Bring in the documents now." He told her and before any of his friends could say anything, the large double doors to his office opened and the curvaceous form of his secretary sauntered in – a folder in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other.
As always, the sultry blonde was wearing a very tight and revealing outfit that certainly did not go unnoticed by Theodore and Malcolm's roaming eyes. The minute she bowed respectfully to them, the two former Slytherins looked up over her shoulder and gave Draco a mischievous wink.
Draco shared a disgusted look with Blaise, shaking his head as Natasha straightened and placed the folder and coffee on his desk, looking up and making sure to address Draco with one of her well-practiced, gorgeous smiles. "Can I do anything else for you, Master Malfoy?" She asked him sweetly in a light, flirtatious voice but Draco just shook his head and sat back down behind his desk.
"No. that's fine. Just be sure to confirm all my meetings and appointments for this afternoon. You may go." He answered automatically, giving her a curt nod of dismissal.
She bowed to him again after he had said this and exited his office – her slender figure swaying seductively as she walked out the double doors. Once she was gone, Malcolm turned to Draco again and rewarded his former housemate with a wide, highly suggestive grin.
He whistled and pretended to loosen the buttons of his collar, flicking his eyes back over to where Natasha had exited the office. "Well…You certainly gave yourself a treat when you hired that feisty little work of art, huh?" Again, he ignored Blaise's warning glare and continued to speak despite the very dangerous glint that was beginning to harden in Draco's fierce eyes.
"If Potter doesn't want you, I'm wiling to bet SHE does, Malfoy. Why don't you try her out? That ought to help you with your two-month dry spell." He drawled loudly and before Blaise or Theodore had any time to react to this, Draco was up on his feet immediately and had stalked across the room, seizing Malcolm up by the front of his robes and pulling him to his feet.
The former Prince of Slytherin ignored Blaise's quelling protests and let out a menacing growl, yanking his wand out of his pocket and pressing it very threateningly against Malcolm's throat. A malevolent sneer was forming on his face and he positively shook with unkempt anger. He held his former housemate up higher, sneering wider when Malcolm's feet began to dangle above the ground.
"Draco! Don't bother! Just calm down—"
"Let's get one thing STRAIGHT between the two of us, Pellerin…" Draco seethed out loud in an angry hiss, pressing his wand harder against Malcolm's throat. He ignored Blaise and Theodore's loud protests and felt a perverse sense of satisfaction when he saw the unmistakable fear flashing in Malcolm's wide eyes. "M—Malfoy, hold on a minute here…I was just kidding! I—I didn't mean—"
Blaise and Theodore stood up cautiously from their seats and tried to approach them, their eyes flicking back and forth between Draco's snarling face and Malcolm's terrified expression. The former Prince of Slytherin, however, ignore their presence completely – his eyes narrowing into angry slits as he glared at Malcolm's pale, nervously cringing features.
"I'm known to be a LOT of different things to different people…" Draco began, stopping dramatically to make sure he had Malcolm's full attention. "Most people would even call me an arse or a coldhearted bastard on some occasions and to be quite honest, I wouldn't actually blame them—" Draco laughed harshly after he said this, the sound causing Blaise and Theodore to flinch again.
But then, Draco's mercury eyes suddenly hardened like steel as they flicked back to Malcolm's shaking form, causing the other man to gulp as the blonde easily held him up higher into the air.
"—Like I said…I may be a lot of different things, Pellerin…I may be a coldhearted bastard. I may tear your eyes right out of their sockets right now and believe me…I will ENJOY it. But rest assured; I am NOT some sick, PATHETIC excuse of a man who cheats on his wife!" He shoved Malcolm away roughly, causing his former housemate to grunt and stumble backwards against the couch.
Theodore stepped forward to stop them but apparently, Draco wasn't finished yet. He stepped towards Malcolm again, keeping his wand pointed on his former housemate's cowering form. "UNLIKE you…I was raised with self-respect. I LOVE my wife and if you EVER say anything like that to me again, I will skin you ALIVE!" He hissed out and when Malcolm looked as though he was about to fight back, Blaise finally jumped in and pulled Draco away from the other Slytherin in growing trepidation.
"Alright, alright! Stop it already, Draco!" He rushed out, holding his best friend back as Theodore helped Malcolm up onto his feet, the latter of the two men suddenly looking up and glaring at Draco with utmost contempt in his eyes. He snarled in anger, brushing the dirt off his robes and giving Draco one last mocking sneer. "Tss…For all we know, Potter may be sleeping with some other lucky bastard already…That's probably why she won't sleep with YOU—"
The rest of his sarcastic retort was cut off when Draco broke free from Blaise's grip, raised a hand and slammed his fist right into Malcolm's jaw, causing both Blaise and Theodore to step away from him in shock just as Malcolm was forced to reel back, clutching at his face in pain.
Draco sneered sadistically at this, raising his wand again and pointing it Malcolm's furious face.
"Get out of my office…Now." He hissed in a low, menacing growl, watching with narrowed gray eyes as Malcolm froze and slowly began reaching for the wand in his own robes. Theodore stepped in immediately, grabbing Malcolm from behind and yanking him away before a serious fight broke out.
"Malcolm…Come on…Let's go. I think he's serious." Theodore said quietly, pulling the other man away towards the door. Blaise watched them leaving the office for several minutes before he turned his attention back to Draco, noting the definite tenseness of his best friend's shoulders.
He opened his mouth to say something else but Draco beat him to it and shook his head again, turning away and walking back over to his desk. "That means you too, Zabini…Get out." He drawled in a tired tone of voice, sighing as he collapsed onto his chair and buried his face into his hands.
Blaise stared at him, his eyebrows fusing together in uncertainty. "Draco—"
The young Malfoy Head violently slammed his fist onto his desk, flicking his steely eyes back up and leveling Blaise with an angry, impatient glare.
"I SAID GET OUT, BLAISE! JUST FUCK OFF AND LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE!"
Blaise finally flinched at Draco's explosion and took a careful step back, shaking his head to himself as he hastily made his way towards the door. As soon as the Italian Head had left the large room and the doors to the office had closed shut, Draco let out another frustrated exhale of breath and slumped in his seat, covering his face with his hands in defeat.
Everything's falling apart.
A/N: Aw… Poor Draco. Poor Harry. *sniff* Everything does seem to be falling apart for them doesn't it? *winces at all the glares she receives from her readers* Ehehe. Like I said, every story needs a downpoint for it to be good right? :D This story has about 12 more chapters left at this point so be sure to keep reading alright? And don't worry…Like I always say, I am a sucker for happy endings. ;)
Next Chapter: Harry hanging out with Ron, More purebloods collapse, More Marital complications
LEAVE ME A REVIEW, ALRIGHT? MWAH! CHEERS! :D