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 scenesand SLASH relationships.
A/N: Lots of love everyone! :D
Chapter 19 – Anything but Perfect
Am I…Dead?
Her eyelids heavy and a definite ache weighing down her entire body, Harry grimaced and forced her eyes to squint open – blinking up weakly at the bright white lights of the room around her. Just several inches to her right, she felt the warm, reassuring presence of someone right beside her and tried to sit up, fighting back her exhaustion as she struggled to sit her body up onto the bed.
"D—Draco…?"
She winced when she heard her own voice come out weak and raspy, squinting rapidly as she tried to blink away the sleepiness from her eyes. When she didn't get an immediate response from this, she sat up straighter and spoke again in an uncertain but otherwise clearer whisper.
"Draco…?"
Feeling an immediate jerk of surprise right in the palm of her hand, Harry stiffened momentarily and tried to turn quickly to the source of the movement. Unfortunately, the sudden movement seemed too much for her at the moment and she ended up wincing and clenching her eyes shut again, reaching one of her hands up to massage her aching temples.
Ugh…I feel like a train wreck…She moved her hands down to massage her eyelids. She waited a couple more seconds doing this before sighing and forcing them back open – blinking rapidly in genuine surprise moments later when she came upon the tender scene right beside her.
Her entire hospital bed looked completely clean and white save for the single, dark-cloaked figure of one silently sleeping Draco Malfoy leaning over just by the very edge of the mattress. His arms were folded right beside her pillow and his forehead was nestled uncomfortably against them while the rest of his lean frame remained seated on the wooden chair that was placed right beside her bed.
The sight of him brought such an overwhelming wave of unexplainable mixed emotions welling up in her chest that Harry couldn't do anything but smile weakly at him, reaching a frail hand and gently running her fingers through his soft blonde hair. Draco shifted slightly in his sleep and turned his head, inadvertently allowing her to see the uncomfortable frown on his handsome face.
One look at the dark circles under his eyes told her that he hadn't been able to get a good night's sleep even before she had woken up that night and that thought alone worried her as she stared at him. His eyebrows were furrowed together in a slight scowl as he slept and his left hand was clutching tightly onto her right, their fingers tightly and comfortably intertwined together.
Her eyes wide and her throat too constricted to speak, Harry stared silently at their intertwined fingers in amazement, her fingers unknowingly tightening around his. Under the bright light of the otherwise empty private hospital room around them, the matching wedding bands on their fingers sparkled beautifully beside each other – almost as though they sensed her eyes on them.
Harry stared silently at them, her eyes darkening in guilt and slowly building self-contempt.
I can't believe I almost let us go…What the hell was I thinking…?
She swallowed the dry lump in her throat and reached another hand out again, using it to caress the beautiful silver wedding band that rested on Draco's finger. He had never taken it off since the day she had first given it to him and the sight of it now reminded her so much of why she had fallen in love with him in the first place – and that her husband had, in fact, never strayed from her.
Unable to control the mistiness that was beginning to form in her eyes, Harry bit back another smile and leaned down slowly towards him, placing a sweet, loving kiss onto the top of his head. When she made to pull away, she was surprised to realize that the hand he had around hers suddenly tightened and she looked down in surprise to find Draco's beautiful mercury orbs peering back at her.
They stared at each other's eyes for a long time – misty emerald green blinking rapidly against intense, smoldering silver.
Draco eventually broke the silence first. The corners of his lips quirked upwards into a small, teasing smile and he reached a hand out to stroke her cheek, moving his smooth, elegant fingers along her face until it was wrapped tenderly around her nape.
"Hey…How are you feeling…? Better…?" He asked softly, his voice barely above a whisper as he leaned in and placed a soothing kiss onto her cheek. Harry blushed slightly at this but nodded carefully and watched as Draco sat back up, leaning back against the backrest of his chair.
He blinked sleepily to himself for several times before yawning and turning back to look at her, his hand crawling back down to intertwine with hers. Harry bit her lip and continued to watch him in hesitant silence – the look on her face a mixture of uncertainty, doubt and self-humility.
"Was…W—was I asleep long…?"
Draco looked up at her question and managed a crooked grin at her, nodding as he brought her trembling hand up to his lips and gave each finger a reassuring kiss. "Just a bit…You were out like a light for around two days now…Snape had to inject a couple of potions into you for all that blood you lost." He explained, waiting until Harry nodded to herself in understanding before he continued.
"The rest of the pureblood victims are scheduled to leave the hospital tomorrow afternoon…They've all fully recovered and are completely back to normal. I've already talked to Blaise…Cunningham and some of my other friends just last night while you were asleep." He told her quietly, watching as Harry nodded again and settled herself back down against her pillows when she felt exhaustion overtake her again.
A slightly worried frown forming its way back onto his handsome features, Draco stood up from his seat and pulled the blankets tighter over her heavily bandaged frame. He waited until she had nodded to signify she was comfortable again before he sat back down and continued to speak.
"Black…Granger…Weasley…Longbottom…And the rest of your friends were just here this morning. They should be back a little later on to check up on you again…" When Harry smiled at the mention of her friends, Draco couldn't help but roll his eyes at her and give her a sardonic smirk.
"Weasley seemed particularly interested in trying to land me a punch to the face when he found out about the whole 'Natasha' incident before all this…" He raised an eyebrow pointedly at her but his words accomplished nothing but bring a sudden flare of anger and hardness into her eyes.
"Draco… What's happened…? To Max and Wickham…And Natasha, I mean…? Where are they now…? Did they manage to get away…? How?" Her voice shook slightly as she asked this and Draco sighed as he spoke, reaching out and placing a hand once more over her shaking fingers.
He fingers wrapped tightly around hers again before he spoke, his eyes suddenly hardening and his usual sneer of contempt forming on his face.
"Fortunately, Byron and the other Unspeakables were able to catch them before they managed to escape the premises. They're in Azkaban right now…Serving their sentences…As well as a dozen lawsuits from dozens of England's strongest families." Draco sneered wider as he said this and if anything, the sheer sadistic amusement in his voice caused Harry's eyebrows to fuse together in a frown of suspicion at him.
"You didn't do anything to hurt them…Did you, Draco…?"
Purposely choosing to ignore her question, Draco flicked his eyes back up at her and smirked calmly, one of his elegant eyebrows arching up in mock innocence. "I don't know what you're talking about, Harry…I merely paid Thornton a friendly visit in his cell last night while you were asleep. He sends his best regards by the way…Did you know that the cells in Azkaban were all sound proof?"
Harry's eyebrows rose up further and her eyes widened in horrified disbelief.
"Draco—"
Draco's smirk widened even more and he twirled his wand around the fingers of his free hand.
"Prisoners can scream all they want in there and none of the Azkaban guards could hear anything…It's a rather interesting and sort of barbaric set-up if you think about it." He paused and sighed dramatically, ignoring his wife's warning glare as he tucked his wand back into his pocket.
"Draco Lucius Malfoy…What did you do…?"
Draco's smirk slowly faded away and was replaced by one of his charming smiles, his gray eyes lighting up and the dimple on his left cheek in clear view. He refused to say anything else and leaned in to kiss her cheek again, sniggering when her glare merely hardened at his evasive response.
When after several more minutes of her glaring questioningly at him and Draco evading her queries further by grinning at her, Harry finally sighed and leaned back down against her pillow again. She shook her head to herself and reached a hand up to brush away her long hair from her face.
"I'm sorry…I should have listened to you from the beginning."
As soon as he noticed the guilt in her words, Draco looked up and stared at her in mild confusion, watching as Harry sighed again and slowly raised her green eyes to meet his. She blanched to herself and shook her head, her fingers squeezing his imploringly as she continued.
"I should have…Listened to you when you said not to trust Max right away." Draco's eyes dawned in realization at this but Harry continued anyway, shaking her head so that he wouldn't interrupt her. "I suppose…Even after all that training…I'm still just as…Naïve and clueless and reckless as ever when it comes to judging other people…I can be such a complete idiot at times." She sounded bitter as she said this and at her words, Draco rolled his eyes and reached out to tilt her face up to his.
"Potter—" Draco began, smirking to himself when he met the surprise in her beautiful green eyes. "—I know that you will always be – as you say – a naïve, clueless and reckless little child who runs around thinking that the world is filled with genuinely 'good' people like you…I've known that all along even before I married you and even before when we were still enemies back at Hogwarts."
Harry frowned and made a move to interrupt him but Draco continued away, his fingers tightening around her chin. "I doubt that part of you is ever going to change and I'm more than certain that it's the one reason you were sorted into Gryffindor instead of Slytherin in the first place." He drawled pointedly, smirking to himself when Harry's eyes seemed to flash in annoyance.
"I don't think—"
"NEVERTHELESS. You should know that it is precisely that certain...reckless…optimistic… NAIVETE about you that makes you all the more so bloody lovable in the first place." Draco stopped and held back a smile when Harry froze instantly at his words, her cheeks flushing in immediate embarrassment as she glanced back up and stared at him as though unable to believe him.
"Er…What?"
He chuckled at the gaping expression on her face and shook his head again, reaching out a hand to brush back the long lock of black hair that had fallen into her eyes. "It's because you're so bloody reckless and naïve that…Well…You're you, Harry…And quite frankly…I don't think I'd have you any other way…" He leaned in and silenced the rest of her protests with a quick chaste kiss to her lips, pulling back a moment later to watch the definite blush rushing into her pale cheeks.
"Besides…" Draco smirked again as he pulled away from her and leaned back against the backrest of his seat. "One of us as naïve and the other one as highly suspicious…I would think that's a pretty good balance in itself anyway, Harry…You just tell me when I'm wrong…And I'll do the same."
His words seemed to sink in and accomplished his intention as Harry finally smiled at him, her green eyes softening and her beautiful face lighting up in genuine understanding. "If I didn't say it before…I'll say it again, 'Co…You can be such a melodramatic prick sometimes. Are you a girl?"
Draco's smile immediately became highly suggestive at her teasing remark and his gray eyes dropped down to the first two unclasped buttons of her white pajama top. "You really want to have this discussion again, Potter…? I can point out a FEW subtle differences to you just to prove I'm not." He followed his comment up with a rather perverted leer at the curves of her body – immediately causing his wife to flush dark red, growl and reach a hand out to punch him hard on his left shoulder.
"Perverted BASTARD!"
"Repressed BITCH!"
In spite of herself, Harry let out a genuine laugh and punched his shoulder again, earning herself an irritated glare from her husband as he caught her hand. When it looked as though Draco was going to tease her again, Harry beat him to it and took one look around the empty hospital room again, her eyebrows furrowing together in a frown when she realized one more peculiar observation.
"'Co…Where's the family…? Are they here in the hospital too…?
Draco took one look at the slightly disappointed expression on her face and chuckled, reaching a hand out to tilt her face back up to meet his teasing smile again. "My grandparents were just here…They just went to the Ministry right now to talk to the officials and some reporters about everything that's happened." Harry nodded at this and waited as Draco explained himself further.
"My parents…Well…They were just here about two hours ago. They went back to the Manor to run some quick errands and should be back pretty soon…The rest of the others are just hanging around the hospital. I believe I just saw Byron and Anton sitting in the waiting area outside."
Again, Harry nodded at his words and gave him a grateful smile. "I'd really like to see them soon…Where are the twins…? Are they alright? Have you seen them yet…?" Draco was just about to answer her question when something ate at the back of Harry's mind again and she suddenly jerked in her place –drawing her husband's immediate concern as he shot up in alert and placed a hand on her.
"What? What's wrong, Harry? Do you need anything—"
"Draco! Th—the…The necklace! The diamond necklace you gave me! I—it's gone! I—I…I—"
She stopped immediately when Draco's frowned vanished and he began chuckling at her panic, reaching slowly into the pocket of his robes and pulling out in his hands a thin, beautiful silver chain. Harry's shoulders instantly relaxed when she caught sight of it but she soon stiffened and began to blush again when Draco had reached up and began to clasp the necklace gently around her neck.
"You had it in your hand the whole time, love…" He paused to drop a searing kiss onto the nape of her neck before he pulled back, smirking when he noted he definite way in which she had shivered at the intimate contact of his lips against her skin. "I just took it for a short while so I could have the chain fixed and the diamond charm cleaned...It was soaked in your blood." He told her softly.
Harry's eyes darkened at this and she swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat again, reaching her hand up and wrapping her fingers around the diamond charm once more.
"I—I…Th—thank you…I thought…I was afraid that I'd—"
As her cheeks flushed darker and she continued to fight for the right words to say, Draco took that opportunity to admire her beautiful features – hiding a smile as his eyes lingered intently on her eyes, her pale, pink-tinged cheeks and the way her hair fell teasingly right over her face.
"A—and…I—I…I just…I c—can't…I'm—"
"Do you have any idea how much I love you, you stupid Gryffindork?"
Harry paused right in the middle of her sentence and stared at him. Before she was given a chance to respond, Draco had already leaned in and caught her half-open lips in a deep, searing kiss – his hands automatically going to wrap around her waist and pulling her against his lean body.
Immediately melting against his arms, a soft moan escaped her lips and she wrapped her own arms hesitantly around his neck. She began to kiss him back, every muscle and drugged sense in her body instinctively responding to his advances. His tongue slipped in slowly into her parted lips and she moaned again, opening her mouth completely to him and surrendering herself to his ministrations.
His strong arms tightened around her waist as he pulled her closer, drawing her tongue into his own mouth and smirking to himself when she responded to him immediately. Their tongues battled fiercely and hungrily with each other for a long time – almost as though they were trying to reacquaint and drown themselves in the other's taste. Eventually, the need for air suddenly became too strong for them both and they pulled away, breathing heavily and staring intensely into the other's eyes.
Her cheeks deeply flushed and her lips bruised slightly red from his kiss, Harry stared intently into Draco's piercing gray eyes and tried to force herself to speak. "D—Draco…I…I j—just want to s—say—"
"DADDY! MOMMY!"
The rest of Harry's words promptly died out on her lips.
She whirled around, her bright green eyes lighting up immediately when she was greeted with the sight of a slightly exasperated Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy striding slowly into the hospital room – Garrett and Gabriel's tiny, impatiently squirming forms balanced carefully in their arms.
Following her gaze and the source of the sound, Draco's own eyes softened instantly and he watched with a similar grin on his face as his parents set both Garrett and Gabriel down onto the floor. At once, both Malfoys giggled and toddled their way right into their father's outstretched arms.
Draco winced when his sons had inadvertently knocked the wind out of him as they glomped him but eventually shook his head and chuckled, reaching down to ruffle both toddlers' mane of hair. "Hey you two squirts…How are my two handsome clones? Did you both miss me?" He broke off into a genuine laugh again when Gabriel blinked up at him and answered him with a toothy, baby smile.
"HAS-SOM CWONE!"
Unsure of how to react or what to say at this point, Harry just leaned back and watched the scene in growing uncertainty – a smile on her face nevertheless as she looked up and met Lucius and Narcissa's matching looks of amusement at the tender scene. When they noticed her looking at them, Narcissa spoke up first and rewarded her daughter-in-law with a slightly exasperated smile.
"We weren't supposed to take them with us yet but they were practically screaming their lungs out…They're horribly ruthless when they both want something. They squirmed and kicked at us the entire time on the way here." She sounded so distressed as she said this that Harry winced and gave her an apologetic grimace. Lucius, however, just smirked at her, rolling his eyes at her reaction.
"They are Malfoy sons, darling…Of course they're ruthless at getting what they want. I'd be horribly disappointed if they weren't." He would have said more to Harry but a brief noise suddenly distracted him from behind, causing both him and Narcissa to turn around towards the door.
"Is something wrong—"
Harry stopped when Narcissa spoke up again, turning around to give her one last smile. "Not to worry, darling…We'll be right back. Lucius and I just have to take care of some paperwork down by the reception area. We'll be back soon." She gave her a nod after she said this and after Lucius excused himself the same way, the two older Malfoys left the room – leaving Harry to stare silently at the scene of Draco still talking animatedly to the two giggling toddlers balanced in his arms.
"Can you say it now, Garrett…? FA-THER…FA-THER…Come on, I know you can!"
"…DO-WANNA!"
"Ugh…Bugger."
"…BUG—GER?"
"What? NO! Gabriel, that's not a good word to learn! Gragh!"
Jaimee covered her mouth and let out a small giggle – the sound of which finally drawing Draco's attention as he looked up and glanced at her over the twins' heads. When he finally noticed her watching them, he offered her a reassuring smile and stood up from his seat – carefully balancing both his squirming twin sons in his arms.
To Harry's surprise, he slowly placed both Garrett and Gabriel's tiny robed forms down onto the bed beside her – causing Harry to blink back at him in uncertainty. Ignoring her questioning glare at him, Draco grinned and pulled back, sitting himself back down onto the chair beside the bed.
He watched as Harry blinked several times to herself again and slowly turned to her right, then to her left, meeting both Garrett and Gabriel's big green inquisitive eyes from where they had plopped down beside her. When neither of the twins said anything but continued to stare intently at her, Harry managed a small smile at them and forced herself to speak up in a soft voice.
"H—hey you two…D—did you have fun at your Uncle Sirius and Aunt Regina's house…?"
Neither Garrett nor Gabriel answered her.
Instead, both toddlers blinked again and continued to stare at her in silence – they wide eyes darting back and forth uncertainly from her nervous expression to Draco's face several feet away.
When after several more minutes, Harry still couldn't seem to say anything – Draco sighed to himself in defeat. He was just on the verge of saving her from the situation when to his surprise, his wife reached right over to the bedside table and picked up her wand. Ignoring the questioning looks he was shooting at her, Harry grinned and pointed it over herself, whispering a spell under her breath.
Once the smoke of the spell had cleared and Draco could see clearly into the scene again, his eyes widened and he had to lean back in surprise to watch just as Harry's form reappeared – decked out with a brightly colored jester hat on the top of her head and a bright red ball covering her nose.
At the sight of her, Garrett and Gabriel's eyes both widened even more and they stared at each other before glancing back at her – their identical baby faces creasing together in confusion. Then, to Draco's amusement, it was Garrett who reacted first and the older Malfoy son surprised his mother as he brought his tiny hands up to his mouth and muffled his unmistakable happy giggle.
"…HEEHEE! MOMMY FUNNY!"
The tension on Harry's face drained away and she began laughing as well, watching as Gabriel soon fell into the same state and began giggling behind his hands– shaking his blonde head until eventually gurgling and burying his face into the pillows her bed to muffle his adorable laughter.
"MOMMY…CWOWN!"
Harry made a face and stuck her tongue at them, shaking her head and causing the bells on the jester hat on her head to jingle noisily.
Garrett and Gabriel both fell into identical giggles again at this point as they gurgled and hid under their mother's blanket, their infectious laughter and antics eventually causing Draco to shake his head and begin to laugh as well. He pretended to growl and yanked the blanket up to unveil them, drawing a squeal from both toddlers as they giggled again and crawled around to hide behind their mother.
"MOMMY! DADDY SCARY!!!!"
Harry laughed and was just about to shove Draco away from the bed when a soft knock on the hospital door suddenly interrupted them, forcing both her and Draco to look up in surprise. She raised her wand over herself again and changed herself back to normal before blinking up ahead.
"Pardon me for interrupting…But…Er…Prongslet…?"
Sirius winced sheepishly from behind the hospital door as he peered into the room, looking slightly embarrassed at having broken such a tender moment. Draco didn't hide his annoyance at this and glared at him but Harry gave him a reassuring smile and beckoned him further into the room.
"Paddy! Come on in…What are you doing behind there?" She tried to wave him into the room again but Sirius shook his head and grinned at her, his eyes flicking in the direction behind him. "Actually, Prongslet…Er…I just came in here to say…Well…You have some…Visitors here to see you."
Draco and Harry both blinked and sat up in curiosity at his words. They both ignored Garrett and Gabriel hopping happily around on the bed and watched as Sirius slowly swung the door open behind him, revealing what appeared to be a whole horde of robed figures waiting by the hallway.
"Sirius…? What—"
Harry's voice eventually broke off and she ended up gaping at the scene instead, watching as about a couple dozen pureblooded males and their families slowly began entering the room towards her. None of them seemed to say anything for those next few moments as Blaise Zabini, Oswald Cunningham, Vincent Ashford, Neville Longbottom, Lucian McConway, and even Philippe Winchester – the Head of just about every pureblooded family she knew in Europe – began gathering into a semi-circle around her, all of which were now smiling at her and were slowly raising their hands up to their chest. The Weasleys, Parkinsons, and even her own family – the Malfoys – were also there and they circled around her as well, mirroring the smiles on everyone else's faces on their own.
Philippe Winchester looked particularly irritated at having to be there and was the only one who wasn't smiling but one look at his friends' glares was all it took for him to cringe and grudgingly raise his hand up to his chest as well. Then, as though in an unspoken agreement amongst themselves, each and every pureblooded family in the room began to break out into a slow and steady round of applause – the sound slowly growing louder until the entire room was filled with the joyous sound and Harry could do nothing else but gape and blush in surprise.
Eventually, however, the shock on her face gave way to shy gratitude and she began to smile back albeit uncertainly, blushing darker in embarrassment when Byron, Ron, Fred and George began to add loud rambunctious cheers to the already deafening applause around them. Her final undoing came when Draco eventually surprised her by rising up slowly from his seat beside her bed, turning around and giving her a gentle smile. With that, the Malfoy Head slowly walked over to stand right beside the other pureblood heads and slowly joined into their applause, his eyes lingering over her beautiful face and his chest practically bursting with pride as he watched his friends all around cheering her on.
Behind her, Garrett and Gabriel had stopped hopping on the bed and were now looking around the room in bored confusion, their eyes flicking back and forth between their mother's beet-red face and their father's smile across the room. It was Blaise who eventually broke the applause first and he stepped up to Harry's form on the bed, grinning at her and giving her a teasing wink as he spoke.
"On behalf of all the pureblooded families of Europe, Harry…We'd all like to express to you our sincerest gratitude in risking your life…To save ours. We – and our families – are all in your debt."
"WOOOT! HARRY, YOU'RE THE MAN!"
Harry laughed helplessly at Byron's loud exclamation just before the entire room burst into loud cheers and applause again, the lot of which were now chattering excitedly amongst themselves and were shooting her appraising looks from all around the room. From just the very front of the crowd, one of the older family heads leaned over Draco's shoulder to whisper something into his ear.
"That's some wife you've got there, Malfoy…"
Surprised at having been addressed, Draco blinked up at the older man in surprise before nodding and answering him with a beaming, genuine smile of agreement.
"Oh I know, Kennicot…Believe me…I know…"
The older wizard took one look at Harry across the room before leaning over to talk to Draco again, his voice laced with a hint of amusement and a small amount of disbelief.
"How ever did you win a woman like that over…? She's…Blimey, she's bloody perfect!"
At his loud exclamation, Draco blanched to himself and shook his head in amusement. Amidst all the continuing cheers and loud applause around them, Draco turned around one last time to give the other man a wry, secretive smirk that the other wizard couldn't fully comprehend.
"Trust me…My wife is anything BUT perfect."
Anton's eyebrows shot up to his forehead just as he entered the large bedroom of their Malfoy Estate in France that morning, his eyes immediately darting to the bustling figure of his wife near the edge of their bed. Ginny didn't seem to be aware of his presence, however, and continued on to hurl more and more of her clothing into a large suitcase, pausing only to race back into her large closet so that she could gather more clothes and shove them into her bags again.
When after several tries at trying to get her attention by clearing his throat, Anton finally lost his patience and spoke up in a loud voice – instantly causing his wife to jump and nearly drop the clothes she held in her hand in shock. Whipping around to face his questioning gaze, Ginny's cheeks instantly colored and she glared at him, reaching for something in the pocket of her robes.
"You're leaving…?" Anton asked in shock, inwardly wincing to himself when he heard the inadvertent flatness of his voice. His emotions were desperately trying to keep themselves together for fear of exploding at her and he tried to ignore the stinging in his chest as he watched her pack.
Ginny flushed even darker at his words and she yanked her hand out of her robe pocket, raising something up into the air and slamming it down angrily onto the edge of their bed.
"Well…Aren't you observant…? Finally noticed you had a wife now, did you?" She shook her head disgustedly at him and finally shoved the last of her clothes into her suitcase, raising her wand slamming it shut. After casting a shrinking charm on all her belongings, she turned around and glared at him again, gesturing pointedly to the small wrinkled up envelope she had placed onto the bed.
"I'm leaving, Anton…I can NOT do this anymore! I don't want any more part of this…FARCE!"
Her words brought another frown to Anton's face and he blinked several times at her in confusion, his blue eyes flicking back and forth between her slightly tearful eyes to the envelope on the bed.
"I don't understand what you mean…What are you talking about? Did I do something wrong?" He tried to stop her from walking out by grabbing her hand but Ginny screeched and shoved him away, using the same maneuver to step back and level him with another fierce, angry growl.
"Let GO of me! Don't touch me! Don't you EVER touch me again you…Uncaring…Insensitive…BASTARD!" Her voice cracked at the last part of her sentence, betraying the pent-up emotions she was trying to hold back.
Anton saw it instantly, his face creasing with concern as he tried to pull her back towards him again.
"Ginny…If you could just explain to me what you're talking about…Quite frankly, I have no idea what you're saying! Look, if I did something to upset you then TELL me so I can make up for it—"
Ginny stopped the rest of his protests by scowling and shoving him away again, her restraint over herself finally snapping as tears began to pour down her pale cheeks. Once again, Anton could do nothing else but stare at her and this incited her anger further, causing her eyes to harden.
Ignoring his looks of confusion, she walked towards the end of the bed again and snatched the envelope up, using the same hand to slap it hard onto his face. Anton winced at the contact and grudgingly peeled the envelope off his cheek, watching with a stunned expression as Ginny's eyes continued to leak tears and she took several steps away from his form in growing sadness.
"G—Ginny…? What—"
"READ IT! READ IT YOU…YOU VILE PIECE OF VERMIN AND COMPARE IT TO WHAT YOU HAVE REDUCED THIS 'MARRIAGE' INTO! READ IT, I DARE YOU!" She screeched at him, her blue eyes flashing again as Anton flushed but slowly unfolded the envelope in his hands. He held it up to the light so that he could peer at the elegantly written handwriting etched along the old parchment.
Within a couple of minutes, however, the confusion in his eyes vanished and finally gave way to understanding as he turned back to stare at her with a look of regret on his handsome features.
"Ginny…Look…I actually came here to tell you something important—"
Ginny shook her head fiercely at his words and covered her ears to drown out the rest of his words. "I don't want to HEAR any more of your stupid offers and promises and negotiations, Anton! I've had it! You—" Her voice broke off and she stared sadly at him, her features sagging with defeat.
Anton winced t himself as he watched her struggling to force out the rest of what she wanted to say.
"—for the last TWO years I've spent with you…Y—You…You made me believe that marriage was this…mockery of what a real relationship was truly all about! Y—you made me believe that a genuine… relationship doesn't exist! Or that it can never survive within the context of fidelity and trust and honor and friendship and…love! Y—you made me believe all those vile…Stupid things!"
Ginny's voice trembled as she spoke and she took several steps away from him as she fought to keep herself together, her face flushing in humiliation as she stared into Anton's unreadable face. He shook his head and tried to reach for her again but she shoved him away in anger.
"Ginny, PLEASE just listen to me…I have something to tell you! Look, I know I made all those stupid mistakes and that I have a lot to make up for but if you would just—"
"A—and yet…Here I am…And I—I see…People like your mother…and your father caring so deeply for one another despite all society gossip…Your grandmother and your grandfather keeping up a beautiful marriage for more then THIRTY years! I see Draco and Harry fighting so hard against all their differences just so they could make their marriage work…How do you think that makes me FEEL, Anton?! Do you have any idea how much it all HURTS?! How humiliating and how degrading this is for me?!" Ginny could no longer prevent herself from crying openly now and the sight of her sobbing face caused her husband to wince to himself again in both regret and self-disgust at his own actions.
"I know, Ginny…I'm so, so sorry for everything I've done and I know nothing I say now can—"
"—Which is why I'm leaving, Anton…I'm sorry but I just…I can't do this anymore with you." Ginny held back a fresh round of sobs and very slowly began sliding off her wedding band, her fingers shaking as she reached out and placed it carefully onto the edge of their bed as well.
"I can't take it anymore…I won't…If other people can have such a beautiful relationship in their lives…Well…I'm going to take my chances and look for it too. I…I want the real thing, Anton. I'm…sorry…I want a divorce."
She held back another wave of tears and very carefully turned away from him so he couldn't see her face. Just as she had reached the door, she felt a soft but firm hand grasp her gently by her arm, causing her to tense up instantly and turn around to see his face.
Anton was staring uncertainly at her, the expression on his face one of awkward uncertainty. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he slowly turned her tilted her gaze up to him and looked intently into her eyes blinking in surprise when he noticed their beautiful depths for the first time.
"Ginny, I…I first want to…Well…I have one last offer to give to you."
His uncertain words accomplished nothing but make Ginny sneer at him and shake her head in disgust. She attempted to shrug his hand off her arm but Anton tightened his fingers around her anyway, shaking his head stubbornly as he continued to speak despite her fierce struggles.
"I don't want ANY more of your propositions OR offers—"
"This one is different, Ginny! This one may make you change your mind and make you stay!"
Ginny's eyes flashed and she struggled even more wildly against his grip. "I don't want ANYTHING more from you OR your family! Now let go of me before I punch your lights out! What more could you possibly offer me NOW for me to stay with you again?! What is it?! The WORLD, Anton? Isn't that what you always offer to all your other disgusting women when you want something?!"
Her harsh, mocking words caused Anton to flinch to himself again but he didn't relinquish his hold on her. Instead, he clenched his jaw in fierce determination and spun her around to face him again, reaching his other hand down so that he could tilt her face up to meet his intense gaze.
At his solemn expression, Ginny sneered at him and was just about to mutter another sarcastic retort when his next words promptly forced her next words to die right on her lips.
"Myself, Ginny…I offer you…Myself."
Ginny blinked and continued to stare at him in wary disbelief, the expression on her face almost challenging as she dared him to deny everything he had just said. He didn't, however, and continued to stare imploringly at her, his gaze unwavering as it rested on her shocked features.
"Ginny…I…I don't want you to go…Frankly because I…I think I've fallen in love you."
Unable to process any form coherent thought in her numb mind, Ginny's jaw dropped and she stared at him for a long time – her cheeks flushing slowly and her eyes glistening with a mixture of shock, tenderness and relieved joy all at once. For the life of him, Anton had never felt more awkward in his entire life as he stared right back at her, his face beginning to burn bright red in humiliation.
"I…I realize that wasn't part of our whole a—arrangement and I apologize for that b—but—"
Ginny burst out into soft, helpless and slightly choked up laughter at his sudden stuttering and shook her head at him, biting her trembling lip as she leaned back and stared into his eyes.
"Oh Anton…You stupid veela…That was really all I was waiting for…."
With that, her face lit up into a beautiful smile and she came rushing right back into his arms, knocking her blushing husband onto the floor and wrapping her frail arms tightly around his neck.
Byron was just about to enter Vincent's hospital room a little later on that afternoon when a distinct voice coming from the inside made him freeze in his tracks. Stopping just by the doorway of the room entrance, he peered slowly into the room – his golden brown eyes widening in surprise when he was met with the sight of Jonathan Ashford's dignified, elderly form a couple of feet away.
The older aristocrat was seated on the wooden chair right beside Vincent's bed and looked as though he was caught up in a deep, meaningful conversation with his son – both of which were chuckling to themselves and speaking in hushed whispers that fell out of Byron's range of hearing.
Unsure of what to say or do to address them, he settled for stepping awkwardly into the room and clearing his throat, drawing both men's attention to his presence. At the sight of him, Jonathan just smirked back with a knowing look in his eyes.
"I—I'm sorry for interrupting…Good afternoon, Master Ashford…How wonderful to see you again." Byron had sounded so extremely uncomfortable as he forced the polite greeting out that Jonathan had to chuckle at his expression. Shaking his head, he stood up carefully from his seat and grabbed his cane from the table, turning around one last time to give his son a nod of farewell.
"I'd best be on my way back home now, Vincent…I shall draw up the papers and get back to you as soon as can. Take care of yourself my son."
Vincent smiled and nodded briefly to his father as he exited the room, stopping only just as he passed Byron's hesitant figure to turn and reward the fidgeting Malfoy son with another knowing smirk. Blushing slightly at this, Byron coughed again and pretended to look away just as Jonathan walked out of the room, closing the door shut silently behind him. As soon as they were alone, Byron grimaced again and walked carefully towards the bed, plopping himself down onto Jonathan's vacated chair.
"Hey…You're doing better…How are you feeling…?"
Vincent's eyes softened at his spoken words and he grinned up at him, gesturing to the tubes that were still attached all over his wrists. "Well…I've definitely looked better but I'll be just fine…The Healers say that I can be released tomorrow and that I can get back to work immediately after that."
Byron nodded silently at his words, quirking one corner of his lips into a small smile. "That's…great, Vincent. I uh…I see you seemed to have patched things up with your father…I spoke to him once you know. A couple of days ago when he came to visit you while you were in a coma." He paused when Vincent nodded in understanding at his words, giving him a knowing grin.
"Yes, I know…I was talking with him since this morning. He says you're quite an…interesting character. He was most impressed with the fact that you're a Malfoy son as well…I think he's quite taken in with you." He teased in a light drawl, inadvertently causing a blush to spread on Byron's face.
When the metamorphagus seemed too flustered to speak, Vincent chuckled and continued for him.
"My father and I…Well, we made up. He apologized for everything and…He's renamed me to be the next Head of my family starting next week. I return home to the manor tomorrow." He watched as Byron's eyes involuntarily changed into a subtle color of blue as he looked back up at him, a genuine smile lighting up his handsome face.
"That's great, Vincent…I'm happy for you. Congratulations…" His voice trailed off softly after that, causing Vincent's eyes to darken immediately in concern when he saw his expression.
"Is…Something wrong, By…? You don't look happy enough to see me…"
Vincent's words had a light teasing hint to it but Byron refused to acknowledge it either way as he sighed and shook his head. He glanced back up and met Vincent's confused blue orbs again, allowing the older man to see that his eyes had darkened back into his usual shade of golden brown.
Byron surprised the Head Unspeakable when he forced out a smile and shook his head, indicating to something just by the exit of the room.
"Actually…I brought you something. It's one of the two reasons I dropped by…Here…Let me get it. Just a second…"
As the younger man quickly bustled out of the room, Vincent's eyebrows rose up further – waiting until Byron had reappeared into the doorway with a squirming, golden bundle of fur balanced carefully in his arms. At the sight of it, Vincent's eyes immediately widened and he leaned back against his pillows, watching as Byron began walking back towards him.
"Byron…What in Merlin's name—"
Byron cut right through his exclamation with a bright grin, leaning down so that he could deposit the adorable golden retriever puppy right onto Vincent's lap. As soon as it was laid out on the bed, Vincent unconsciously reached out and pulled it closer towards him, chuckling to himself moments later when it blinked up at him with innocent, golden brown eyes.
The puppy let out a soft, happy bark and began wagging its tail excitedly at him – the sight of which causing both men to laugh to themselves in amusement. Turning questioning eyes back to Byron's face, Vincent raised an elegant eyebrow in query and stared at him in confusion.
"He's a keeper, Byron…But I don't understand what it means. Is he yours…?"
His eyes widened in surprise when Byron smiled and shook his head at him, reaching down to give the slightly drooling puppy a light scratch to the back of his ears.
"I'm giving him to you actually…He's a magically bred golden retriever. His eyes change color depending on his mood so you'd know right away what he's thinking or feeling." He explained, hiding another smile to himself when Vincent's eyes dropped back down in amazement to the puppy barking his lap.
"I see…What's his name then?"
Byron was no longer able to look at him and his eyes dropped to stare at the floor.
"…Shadow."
The softly spoken, single word instantly caused Vincent's eyes to rivet back up and stare intently at him in genuine surprise. A long, awkward silence passed between them after that, broken only by the sound of Shadow's impatient yipping as he barked happily, wagging his tail several times and squirming some more in growing agitation.
When after a few more seconds, Byron still seemed unwilling to say anything, Vincent finally spoke for him, looking up and giving the younger man a hesitant smile. "Thank you…Will you be helping me take care of him, then? I'd love for us both to keep him…" His voice trailed off and if anything, the implied meaning in his words finally elicited a deep sigh from Byron's lips.
Unable to keep his weary thoughts to himself any longer, Byron slowly stood back up – walking over to the foot of Vincent's bed so that he could keep himself a safe distance away from him. "Actually, Vincent…That's kind of the other reason I came here to see you today…Listen…We really have to talk about...Well...This."
Those last eight familiar words seeped right through Vincent's understanding and the smile on his face slowly disappeared, only to be replaced by a small, uncertain frown. Nodding hesitantly at Byron to continue speaking, he leaned back cautiously against the pillows on his bed again and listened intently to his next words.
"The real reason…I got shadow for you was because…Well…Vincent to be quite honest with you…I'm tired of being yours."
His paused briefly to take a deep intake of breath, ignoring the look of protest that was beginning to gather on the older man's shocked, disbelieving face.
"Byron, wait…What are you saying—"
"I…I can't be your constant shadow all the time anymore, Vincent. I'm tired…Frankly, I'm exhausted really…Of always having to be the one to understand you for your actions. To make up for your failures and neglect in this relationship. If you could even call this a proper relationship in the first place." He let out a weak, sardonic laugh, shaking his head at his words.
Vincent's normally bright blue eyes slowly began to fade off into a dull shade with sadness and he stared silently at him, watching as Byron struggled for the right words to say next.
"So you're…You're giving up on me, Byron…? Is that what you're trying to tell me?"
Byron stiffened at the pleading tone he heard in Vincent's voice and forced himself to look back up, meeting the Head Unspeakable's sad expression with a solemn but genuine smile.
"I know a failed relationship when I see one, Vince…I suppose I'm just so tired of tailing after someone who's never going to love me back the same way. I'm sorry…But sometimes…Even a Malfoy has got to learn when to give up and move on when something will just never be his." He offered him another weak laugh and reached out to pat Shadow gently on his furry head.
"Besides…That's why I'm leaving you with this adorable…Furry little rascal over here." He flicked his eyes back up and met Vincent's sad blue eyes intently with his own.
"I know you'll find so many more lovers after me, Vincent…And I'm sure that they'll adore you and love you and even pamper you so much more than I ever did…But this guy…Well—" He ruffled Shadow's dog ears again, chuckling when the small puppy began to bark loudly again and wagged his tail happily in growing excitement.
"—well…Let's just say I hope he reminds you of me whenever you see him. At least you can be certain that he'll follow you around wherever you go and never leave your side even during those times you don't even want him there. I'm just sorry I can't do the same." He stopped after those last few sentences and began to walk away, heading slowly towards the door.
Just as he had touched the doorknob, however, he heard the distinct sound of Vincent's rushed, heavy footsteps along the wooden floor and he hesitated – only to freeze up in shocked disbelief a second later when he felt a strong hand wrapping tightly and securely around his arm from behind.
"Byron…Stop."
Shadow began to bark and yip loudly behind them again but both men ignored him and fell into a deep, uneasy silence. Eventually, Byron let out another deep sigh and slowly willed himself to turn around again. He frowned, looking up and staring right into Vincent's bright blue eyes in question.
"It's alright, Vince…You don't have to say anything. It was my fault for hoping too much—"
Vincent chuckled at his words and shook his head in amusement, reaching a single finger and using it to silence the rest of Byron's protests by pressing it against his lips. When the younger man blinked several times and stared blankly at him in confusion, Vincent spoke again, drawing Byron's attention to the sheepish grimace on his face.
"What if I told you…That I've only just realized…That I was a selfish bastard who couldn't tell when a good thing came to him even if it danced naked right in front of his face…?"
Byron's eyes widened in surprise at Vincent's words but the Head Unspeakable continued to speak further, his voice dripping with an unusual tone of humility and bitter regret.
"What if I told you…That I'm still a selfish bastard now because I'm going to try to persuade you to stay with me…And give me another chance…?"
Byron refused to say anything at first but just stared silently right at him, his eyes flicking back and forth between Vincent's handsome, imploring features and Shadow's barking form bouncing along the bed. After a long tense silence, he finally spoke again – drawing Vincent's attention to the smirk playing on his lips.
"Then I would tell you…Sir…To give me reason to…"
In spite of himself and the nervous pounding of his heart against his chest, Vincent managed a weak smile at Byron's quip and raised his hand again, using it to stroke Byron's cheek.
"Because…I don't need a shadow anymore…? I need a…partner. Someone who's going to be there for me through thick and thin…In the same way I'm going to be there for him."
Vincent's words seemed to make Byron flush slightly and he blinked at him, one of his eyebrows arching up in mild confusion. "Sir…? I don't quite understand what you mean by that—"
Rolling his eyes, Vincent's smile faded and was immediately replaced by a small, wry smirk.
"I love you too…You clueless morphing prick. And quite frankly, I'd be damned before I'm stupid enough to let you go now that I've finally realized that." He sounded so conceitedly sure of himself as he said this out loud that it would have made Byron laugh had he understood him well enough to react.
Unfortunately, all the young Malfoy son could do was to blink and gape stupidly at the other man in shock.
"B—but…Since when? Wh—why are you just telling me that just now, I—"
Vincent grinned again and silenced the rest of Byron's protests by leaning forward, pressing his lips against his in a soft, heated kiss. When he pulled away and Byron still looked as though he was unable to think of anything to say, he shrugged nonchalantly and offered the younger man a sheepish smile.
"Does it matter…? Sometimes…I really do just need a good kick to the head and a push in the right direction for me to realize things…I know that now." He was just about to lean in and kiss the metamorphagus again had Byron not snapped out of his self-induced daze and finally managed a soft chuckle, looking up and offering the Head Unspeakable a wide, teasing grin.
"So…Does this mean… Well in your words at least… I don't have to 'dance around naked in front of you anymore to get your attention'?" His words were tinged with a light hint of humor as he said this that it brought a genuine laugh and suggestive expression to Vincent's own grinning face.
"Well…Only if you want to."
Just as the two were leaning in close for another kiss, a strange sound from the adjacent hospital room just beside Vincent's abruptly cut them off – forcing Byron to pull back and narrow his eyes in wary confusion. Vincent raised an eyebrow irritably at him, watching as the metamorphagus gave him a brief apologetic look before walking over to the door on the side.
"H—hold on a second, Vince…I could have sworn the room beside yours was empty when I passed by awhile ago…I wonder who's—YARGH! OH GOD! OH BLEEDING MOTHER OF MERLIN!"
Byron's voice broke out into a shrill, high-pitched yelp just as he jumped back from the door he had opened at the side of the room – slamming the door back shut immediately and scampering away to hide behind Vincent in horror. Utterly confused at the younger man's astonishingly peculiar reaction and rolling his eyes in annoyance at him, Vincent shrugged him off and began walking to the door to the adjacent room as well, pointedly ignoring Byron's sharp protests and warning cries behind him.
"No, Vince! DON'T open that! I'm telling you, you don't want to do that!
Vincent ignored Byron's shouts and walked over to the door anyway, mumbling irritably under his breath as he reached for the knob. Sensing that his words were being completely ignored, Byron cringed before he shrugged, smirking as he walked back over to where Shadow was still barking across the room and gathering the adorable puppy into his arms.
"Well…Don't say I didn't warn you, love—"
"Byron, I swear you act so much like a child—HOLY MOTHER OF A GOAT-FACED BANSHEE!"
At the sight of Spencer Addison and Severus Snape's quite…intimately…entangled forms just in the other room beside their own, Vincent cringed, reflexively slammed the door back shut and whipped back around, his horrified blue eyes as wide as saucers as he stared blankly at Byron's smirking face across the room.
"Uml…I...Told you so?"
Instead of answering, Vincent paled and his wide eyes slowly rolled up to the back of his head.
THUD!
Sniggering loudly to himself, Byron's smirk widened as he shrugged and turned back to Shadow's happy golden brown eyes, reaching up to scratch the barking puppy behind the ears.
"MOMMY?"
As she and Draco were packing their things and getting ready to leave the hospital the next morning, Jaimee blinked at the sound of Garrett's inquiring voice and turned around. She stepped back in surprise to see that her older son had approached her from behind and was now peering up at her with big green eyes from where he was standing on the floor.
Almost as though the intelligent two-year-old had sensed her confusion, Garrett blinked once before grinning again and smiling angelically up at her, holding up to her in his hands what appeared to be a small, brightly colored baby rattle. Arching an eyebrow in keen amusement, Jaimee took the rattle slowly from his hands.
"Garrett…Sweetie, what's this?" Jaimee paused in the middle of packing her things and raised the rattle up to the light in mild curiosity. From across the room, Draco smirked to himself and leaned sideways against the door frame of the exit, crossing his ankles lazily over the other as he watched his wife.
When Jaimee continued to flick her eyes back and forth between the rattle and Garrett's bright eyes in question, the young Malfoy eventually answered her queries with a sweet smile.
"MOMMY...WANT?"
Smiling and her heart unknowingly melting at her son's adorable smile up at her, Jaimee laughed and shook her head – offering the rattle back to him. "That's alright, sweetie…You can have it. It's yours…I wouldn't want to take it away from—" She paused right in the middle of her sentence and frowned when she caught sight of a name written on the rattle's handle.
"Sweetie…What's this…? Is this—"
Her question eventually broke off into a gasp and she flicked her eyes back to Garrett's widely innocent smile, her eyes narrowing slightly in mild admonishment.
"GARRET DRACO MALFOY…This toy isn't YOURS! It's Daniel's! Why is it with you?! How did you get it?!"
Instead of answering his mother's question, Garrett blinked again and giggled to himself, turning around and meeting his father's knowing smirk across the room with a wide, baby smile.
"ME TAKE! BONGBOTTOM!"
The rest of Harry's sharp, indignant protests were cut right off when Draco promptly burst out laughing at this across the room. When the former Slytherin turned around hastily to muffle the rest of his amused sniggers at Garrett's little comment, Harry's eyes narrowed in annoyance and she hurled the rattle in her hand right at his head.
THUNK!
"OW! POTTER! THAT HURT!"
Draco scowled and rubbed at the forming bruise on his head where the rattle had hit him, promptly choosing to ignore Garrett's loud giggles at him and the way Harry was now cursing and grumbling about him and his 'bad influence on her two innocent children' under her breath.
When Garrett eventually grew bored of his parent's antics and walked back to the corner of the room, a blue-robed Gabriel soon took his place behind his mother's form. The younger Malfoy son slowly toddled up behind his mother and reached a small hand up to tug insistently onto her robes. Pausing in the middle of her packing once more, Harry turned around again and peered down to find Gabriel smiling up at her – holding up in his two hands a large white parchment filled with different colored scribbles all around.
"Hey Gabe…Did you draw this? Is this for me…?"
Gabriel didn't answer her and stepped back, smiling shyly up at her as she held the parchment up to the light. Harry stared at it in confusion – unsure of what to say. Finally, she knelt back down onto the floor beside him and smiled at Gabriel again, laying his drawing flat onto the floor so that they could both peer over it.
"This is a pretty drawing, sweetie…Thank you." She leaned over and placed a kiss onto the top of Gabriel's head, laughing when he gurgled again and trailed his tiny finger to the different colored lines and squiggles all around. "DADDY…GAWWETT…GABWIEL…" He stopped and pointed to a particularly long drawing of a lightning bolt near the very center of the piece of paper.
"MOMMY!"
He blinked and smiled up proudly at her, unaware of the way Harry's eyes suddenly dawned in understanding at what he meant to say. Unable to say anything back at him, she reached a hand out and ruffled Gabriel's mane of silver blonde hair instead, leaning down and rewarding her son with another sweet kiss to both his cheeks.
"I love it, sweetie…Thank you." She stood up and turned around quickly so that Draco couldn't see the emotions on her face as he approached her from the far end of the room. Giving her a knowing smirk anyway, he bent down to gather Gabriel into his arms before standing back up again and look at her in question.
"Harry…? I think the release papers are done by now…Are you ready to leave?"
Still unable to say anything for fear of letting him see her emotional state, Harry nodded meekly and walked across the room towards Garrett, scooping the toddler up into her arms. He giggled and squirmed halfheartedly against her but didn't protest as she cast a final shrinking charm on all her bags and followed Draco out of the room, shutting the door behind her.
As soon as they had reached the lobby and were just about to make their way out towards the apparition area, Harry stopped in the middle of her stride when she heard a familiar voice calling out to her from several feet away. Whirling around at the sound, she stared at the sight of Vincent Ashford exiting one of the rooms and making his way quickly towards them.
"Potter! If I may have a brief word with you…Just for a minute. It's rather urgent."
From where they had stopped near the entrance to the apparition site, both Draco and Gabriel met Jaimee's eyes across the lobby with near identical looks of confusion on their faces. Shaking her head at them, Jaimee shot Draco a reassuring smile and gently set Garrett down onto the floor, watching as the older Malfoy toddler giggled to himself again and immediately toddled over to where his father was standing.
Once Jaimee was sure that Draco was holding onto Garrett's hand, she finally turned back around and met Vincent's reluctant gaze with a nod and a small, uncertain smile.
"What can I do for you, Ashford…?"
Vincent chuckled at her formality and shook his head at her, lifting one of his shoulders into a sheepish half-shrug.
"You can stop with the formality already, Potter…I'm afraid I'm not going to be your boss anymore starting next week. I've been offered a position in the Wizengamot by the Minister…So I'll be resigning from my position of Head Unspeakable and moving up the ranks of the Ministry next week."
At his words, Jaimee's eyes immediately widened and she couldn't help but give him a wide, ecstatic smile. "That's bloody BRILLIANT, Ashford! Congratulations! That's great news!"
Vincent grinned at her enthusiasm and nodded, reaching into the pocket of his robes and pulling out a small envelope and slip of parchment. "I've also been renamed by my father to be the Head of my family so I'll be assuming more responsibilities from now on…So I'm afraid I won't be keeping in touch with the department or any succeeding missions in the future."
Harry nodded in understanding at his words but arched an eyebrow, inwardly wondering to herself where all of his words were going to lead to.
"That's understandable, Ashford…But only fair. So…What can I do for you then…? Is there anything you'd like me to do for you before you resign?"
Her words did nothing but incite Vincent's smile to grow wider and he chuckled at her, shaking his head at her clueless expression. "You really are such a naïve little twit aren't you, Potter…? Here…I want you to take this." He handed her the envelope in his hands and watched as Harry's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion as she read it from her hands.
"Wh—what's this—"
"The authorization papers that will officially name you as the next Head Unspeakable." He smiled at her stunned expression and winked at her, reaching over and giving her a pat on the shoulder. "You've earned it, Potter…You'll make an exceptional leader." He told her, waiting patiently for her reaction when Harry seemed unable to say anything in her shock.
Gulping audibly and flicking her eyes back in question to where Draco and her twin sons were still watching her from across the room, she bit her lip and met Draco's gray orbs. Unfortunately, she flushed even darker in realization when all her husband did was to give her a small smile and nod encouragingly for her to take it.
The next few words that soon came out of Harry's mouth, however, shocked not only Vincent into a disbelieving silence but also Draco into a speechless, gaping stupor across the room.
Shaking her head and very carefully placing the envelope back into Vincent's hands, Harry smiled at him and met his stunned expression with a genuine but slightly apologetic smile.
"I appreciate this opportunity very much, Ashford…I really do…And I'd like to thank you. But unfortunately…There's been a change of plans—" She slowly turned around again and met Draco's wide gray eyes once more, smiling softly to herself when she was met with the sight of her husband gaping at her and shaking his head furiously at her actions.
Highly amused at his unusually incoherent state, she rewarded him with a mischievous wink before turning back to meet Vincent's shocked expression.
"—I think..I'm going to have to decline that offer, Ashford." When he looked as though he was going to protest, she continued in a soft but assertive tone of voice. "I think…I'm going to be taking a long…LONG…much needed break from all this danger and death-defying adventure business…I want to spend the next few years of my life with my family for now."
After another long series of awkward moments between the two of them – several of which involved Vincent blinking at her as though he was having difficulty believing what she was saying – the Head Unspeakable finally shook himself out of his self-induced daze and laughed, shrugging helplessly as he gave her one last knowing smile.
"Very well, Potter…If that's what you really wa—"
"Don't listen to her, Ashford! The bloody git doesn't have a clue what she's saying!"
Draco's angry voice had suddenly interrupted them out of nowhere as he had rushed over to them, Gabriel still balanced in his left arm and Garrett clutching onto his free hand. Ignoring Vincent's surprised look at his sudden interruption, the Malfoy Head turned to his grinning wife and glared at her as though she was crazy.
"Harry, what in Merlin's name are you doing?! This is the one thing you've wanted your entire life! This is your dream! Don't tell me you're giving that all up?! I don't want you to! You're making a huge mistake!" He hissed angrily at her so that Vincent couldn't hear them, wincing several seconds later when Gabriel began to squirm impatiently in his arms.
Harry arched a single eyebrow at his words and met his anxious gaze for a long time, her eyes softening in realization as they rested on every single detail of his handsome face. Eventually, her gaze moved from him and rested intently on Gabriel and Garrett's identical grins, chuckling when they answered her by scowling impatiently up at her in annoyance.
Finally, after what seemed like an hour to Draco, Harry grinned again and turned back one last time to Vincent's curious expression, winking and giving the Head Unspeakable a final nod.
"I'm not giving up my dreams…Not really…Just—"
She bent down again and slowly gathered Garrett back up into her arms, laughing to herself again at his infectious giggles before slowly leaning down and giving him a kiss on the cheek.
"—Going after a new one."
In spite of himself, Vincent hid a smile and couldn't help rolling his eyes as he watched Draco's expression soften at his wife's words.
The Malfoy Head looked as though he was trying very hard to hide his emotions as his free hand automatically reached down and intertwined itself very tightly against Harry's in a gesture of unspoken assurance. When the couple didn't do anything else those next few moments but stare intently into each other's eyes, Vincent had to cough loudly to get their attention.
"Are you sure about this, Potter…? Because to be honest…If you won't accept this position, I'm going to be offering it to the next…brilliant…intelligent…Unspeakable in line after you…" Vincent's voice was dripping with so much pride as he said this that Harry turned again and shot him a look of surprise and keen curiosity.
"Who…?"
Vincent grinned widely at her, arching a single eyebrow in lazy amusement.
"Take a wild guess."
Harry's face broke out into a wide, ecstatic grin while Draco just smirked and rolled his eyes.
"You should have done that from the start. It would have saved us all the trouble. Potter isn't meant to be Head Unspeakable anyway…She's way too reckless and disorganized—OUCH!"
Draco scowled darkly and rubbed at the sore, bruised spot on his arm where Harry had punched him again, his frown furrowing deeper when his wife just shot him a furious, quelling glare.
Gabriel giggled at his father's reaction and blinked up at him. "DADDY GO OUCHIE! BOO-BOO?"
Rolling her eyes at her both husband and her younger son's antics, she turned back to Vincent and gave him one last grin and salute of farewell. Just as she was adjusting a squirming Garrett in her arms and getting ready to leave, Vincent called out to her again one last time – his question causing Harry to pause in mild surprise.
"Will we be seeing you on the battlefield again…Potter…?"
Glancing back over her shoulder to meet his smirk, Harry let the corners of her lips quirk upwards into a slow mischievous grin. She winked at him, bouncing Garrett playfully in her arms.
"Maybe…"
With that, the current Master and Mistress of the Malfoy family shot the speechless, genuinely amazed Head Unspeakable matching smirks before they gathered their giggling sons into their arms and strode out together hand in hand towards the exit, their footsteps clicking loudly along the silent, peaceful corridors.
A/N: We're NOT done yet! Two more wonderful chapters for you all to look forward to before this story formally ends! *tears begin to well up* I promised myself I wouldn't cry…*bawls*
Next Chapter: LAST Rated Scene (*wink-wink*), Seamus and Dean's Party, Last cute family Scene
But first…Before ANYTHING else…You all need to review first of course! :D PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS ALRIGHT? What do you all think? Would you all like a mini-ficlet or perhaps oneshots featuring the twins and their life at Hogwarts? I'm still thinking about it so let me know mmkay? Cheers to you all! :D