Disc.: I used a quote (or set of quotes) word for word. Other than that (which are all kinds of not mine), the plot is mine.
Chapter Thirty Three
Narcissa was waiting for them at the top of the stairs, by the front door. Lily was surprised that Narcissa seemed genuinely happy to see her, sweeping down the steps to embrace first Theron, then Lily herself. There was still such strength in those otherwise frail looking arms.
"Is this he?" Narcissa whispered, touching the top of Gentry's head.
"That's my baby brother!" Theron said proudly as the baby slept on in the carrier. Lily moved slightly so that Narcissa could see the baby's face.
"Oh, my. Lily's he's beautiful," Narcissa whispered, caressing the small boy's cheek.
"Thank you," Lily felt the tension slip from her shoulders.
"I put you in your dad's old, room, Theron," Narcissa nodded toward the house. "Your things are already there. Lily, dear, I set you up in the room next to the old nursery. It's a few doors down from Theron's room. I knew you'd not want to be too far from him."
"Oh, Gran!" Lily cried, covering her face. Narcissa wrapped her arm around Lily's shoulders and guided her into the house. Draco followed behind, uncomfortably.
"Shh, it's going to all work out," Narcissa promised. Lily wiped her eyes quickly, hearing Theron's footsteps on the stairs.
"Mum, can I go outside and play? Just in the gardens?" Theron asked.
"By yourself?" Lily asked. Theron flushed.
"Well, my friend from school lives just beyond the pond," Theron muttered.
"The grounds are protected," Draco promised.
"Okay, go ahead and go, but not swimming naked in the pond!" Lily called. Theron whipped around, his face fire engine red.
"MUM!" He hissed before he ran out the door.
"Who lives beyond the pond?" Lily asked Draco.
"Elena Goyle," Draco told her. "Elena and her daughter, Caroline."
"Caroline?" Lily's interest was piqued.
"Poor girl fell pregnant a little after you did, I suppose," Narcissa shook her head sadly. "Never would say who the dad was, never married. Her family nearly disowned her until I so gently reminded them that a few of our strongest Slytherin family came in not knowing their fathers. That shut those old biddies right up." Narcissa laughed.
"Ah," Lily nodded. "I should stop in and see her. I knew her sister in school."
"Darla, was such a spirited girl," Narcissa offered. "Let me show you to where you'll be staying with the baby. Gentry, I remember Theron saying. He named him?"
"Yeah," Lily followed to the brightly lit bedroom with large windows and a quaint nursery attached to it. Lily eased the baby from the carrier and placed him in the crib, managing not to wake him. Lily looked out the window to see Theron running with a girl through the garden. Lily wondered if she was the Caroline that her son had begun the love letter to, and if she was, what she was like. Lily didn't have to wait for long, Theron dragging the girl up the stairs and straight to Lily.
"Mum, this is my friend from school, Caroline," Theron introduced. Lily glanced at their clasped hands and the two children dropped their hands at once. "Caroline, this is my mum, Lily Malfoy. She FINALLY married my dad."
"Theron!" Lily reprimanded. The last thing she wanted to flaunt the fact that she'd finally married her son's father, when poor Caroline's mother hadn't.
"It's okay, Mrs. Malfoy," Caroline replied, her smile sweet. She flipped her golden hair behind her and made eye contact with Lily. Lily could see what her son saw in Caroline. She was breath-taking. "I'm not ashamed. It's probably what Theron and I had most in common at first, we didn't have fathers in our lives, and only strong mums."
"My mum knew your mum in school," Theron pointed out.
"She was a few years ahead of me," Lily explained. Caroline smiled.
"Theron, you said you were going to show me the baby," Caroline pressed. Theron turned to his mother.
"If we're super quiet, can we go look at Gentry?" Theron asked. Lily nodded toward the room, and Theron took Caroline's hand, dragging her through to the nursery. Lily leaned against the doorway, the two of them peering over the edge of the crib.
"Oh my goodness, he's so tiny!" Caroline whispered. "He's everything you said he was, Ther!"
"Told you so," Theron grinned at her and Lily's heart melted. They stood by Gentry's crib, hand in hand, and Lily couldn't but think that this was a flash of the future, the distant, distant future. Maybe one day, her son would stand beside a crib with his bride, looking in on their child.
"I should probably go. Mum'll worry if I don't make it in time for dinner," Caroline said with a grin.
"I'll walk you home," Theron offered. He looked to Lily, who nodded and the two of them left, hand in hand. It made Lily's heart swell, that despite everything that the world had done to her, she was still able to instill love in her son's heart. She looked to Gentry who was stirring, and hoped that she wasn't too broken now to do the same for him.
"I spoke with Agatha, and I think she'd like to have you visit," Narcissa mentioned at dinner. It was just the three of them, Lily, Theron, and Narcissa. Draco was working late and a house elf had Gentry in the next room, playing on a thick mink blanket with blocks. The tot was pushing up really well and looking around, which tickled the house elves.
"Agatha?" Lily frowned. She couldn't place who Agatha was, exactly.
"Agatha West, Gentry's other grandmother," Narcissa dismissed.
"Gran, I don't have to go, do I?" Theron asked. "Caroline and I plan to spend the whole summer playing and practicing for Quidditch, and those teas are so stuffy."
"I think for at least this visit, your mum and brother should go alone," Narcissa suggested.
"Gran, it didn't go well last time," Lily pointed out softly. She looked down at her dish.
"I'd say not," Narcissa chuckled. "But I reminded her that Damon is her only son, and Gentry is her grandson. She'd hate to miss out because things don't go her way. I daresay, I do have a way with convincing folks to get over their selves."
"So, tea tomorrow?" Lily made a face and Narcissa chuckled.
"If you'd like for me to go with you, I will," Narcissa offered. Lily shook her head.
"I made my bed, I need to sleep in it," Lily answered. She pushed her food around her plate for a bit before Draco came home for dinner, looking tired. Lily looked up at him, hopeful that he'd have some news of the boys, but he shook his head and tucked into the plate the house elf brought him.
"Missus, the baby needs eating," the house elf squeaked bringing the baby to Lily. Gentry was rooting around, and Lily smiled, surprised that the house elves picked up on such early cues.
"Pagda was a mother's helper," Narcissa explained. Lily wondered if feeding Gentry would bother Draco. "Don't mind Draco. He'd not notice if I had a parade of topless dancers tap dancing on the table."
"Would so," Draco laughed. "But in honest, Lily, it didn't bother me when you used to feed Theron, or Imfamy used to feed Scorpius, it certainly isn't going to bother me if you take care of Gentry's needs."
He focused back on his dinner and his conversation with Theron about Quidditch. Before long, it was time to bathe the baby. Narcissa came and sat with Lily while she bathed and changed her baby, quiet as the mother and son had a moment together. Lily dressed him in his little footie pajamas and placed him in the crib. He fussed for a moment, but settled and Lily left him to join Narcissa in the small sitting room of Lily's bedchamber.
"He's a darling little thing," Narcissa murmured.
"He is," Lily agreed.
"You're worried about them, aren't you?" Narcissa pointed out needlessly. Lily nodded. "It's different this time, Lily."
"I know," Lily responded but she didn't know how things were last time, just this time, and when she kissed Scorpius good-bye, it felt strangely like forever. She didn't know if she could lose him again. Damon, either.
"You're very lucky to have two such beautiful sons in your life," Narcissa shared with her. Lily nodded, not looking up. "I do wonder, though, if you and Scorpius have discussed having more children?"
"We've... we've not really," Lily confessed. "I'd like more children... with him."
"I'm sure that you and he can decide that when he returns," Narcissa promised as she stood. "Now, I must get my old bones off to bed. Good night, dear, and it's good to have another female Malfoy under this roof. Maybe, someday, if the stars align, we can get one of birth to rule them all." With that, Narcissa cackled as she slowly walked off. Lily shook her head, changing in to her pajamas and going in to kiss Theron good night.
"What are you up to tonight?" Lily asked. Theron held up a book on Quidditch.
"Did you know Grandma Potter is in here?" Theron asked. Lily smiled despite herself and nodded.
"Grandma Potter was an amazing professional player," Lily nodded.
"I wish I'd gotten to meet her," Theron murmured thoughtfully as he turned back to his book.
"Me, too," Lily confessed. "Now, don't stay up too late, you here?"
"Yes, ma'am," Theron tossed with a smile before turning back to his book. Lily ran into Draco in the hall.
"Just telling him good-night," Lily explained. Draco nodded.
"Lily, can we talk before you head to bed?" Draco asked. Lily hesitated, torn between wanting to run to bed and hide under her covers versus following him to his study to talk.
"The baby-" Lily protested weakly.
"Pagda will come get you if he's in need," Draco promised and he offered her his arm. Lily reluctantly took it, allowing him to lead her to his personal study. She looked around the room, having never had a reason to be in there before. Even when she wandered the manor previously, she'd never entered. Draco led her over to the fire place, relinquishing her to sit.
"You wanted to talk?" Lily pressed.
"I wanted to tell you about when I first fell in love with your mother," Draco's voice was soft, not quite a whisper, but rather a velvety smooth cadence.
"I'd rather-"
"I think you'd like this memory," Draco promised. He waved his hand at the table between them and a pensieve appeared before them. "I can tell you, or I can show you."
"You can show me?"
"These sorts of magics have been long disbanded, but from time to time, we Aurors use them," Draco confessed. He held his wand to his head, holding the tip to his temple and pulled free these silvery wisps of something other worldly. He dipped his wand until the silver filled the bowl.
"So, what do we do now?"
"Dive in, head first, of course," Draco chuckled.
"Of course we do," Lily shook her head, taking his hand and the two of them leaned forward. Lily felt herself tipping head first but with Draco there, she didn't fight it. Instead she let herself fall until her feet seemed to hit solid floor.
"Do you recognize this place?" Draco asked. Lily glanced around.
"It looks like Flourish and Blots, but not as old..." Lily murmured. She pointed to the tall shelf. "I talked to Scorpius for the first time right over there. But- but why are we here?"
"Look," Draco said pointing with his free hand at three children, a blond that looked a lot like Scorpius, and two others, a ginger haired girl and a raven haired boy with gold rimmed glasses and a lightening bolt scar.
"My parents?" Lily asked. Draco nodded and they walked closer.
"Your mom was getting ready for her first year," Draco explained. "Gilderoy Lockheart was there, see, that's before he addled his brains."
Lily watched as her father in child form struggled away from the tall man after a giant round of too bright flashes, and child-Draco approached child-Harry.
"Bet you loved that, didn't you Potter. Famous Harry Potter can't even go into a bookshop without making the front page." child-Draco snarled at child-Harry. Lily felt her fists clench at the cruel words that came out of child-Draco's mouth. Draco patted her on the shoulder.
"Watch," Draco whispered as child-Ginny stepped between Harry and Draco.
"Leave him alone!" child-Ginny demanded.
"Oh, look, Potter, you got yourself a girlfriend." child-Draco taunted. Draco turned to Lily.
"I knew then, without really even getting it, that I was so in love with your mother that it hurt, it truly killed me, to see her with anyone else... and she was with a fair few guys before settling down with your father," Draco explained. "She had such fire, such spunk. She was unlike any girl I'd ever known before."
The two of them landing back in the study, Lily looking at him. She frowned. She'd known that her dad and Draco hadn't gotten along in school, but something in that bit of interaction made her believe that there was pure hatred at one point, at least on the part of Draco towards Harry.
"You hated my father, actually hated him," Lily pointed out. Draco grimaced slightly and nodded, focusing on his hands.
"I did," Draco confessed.
"What really changed?" Lily asked.
"Your mother, she changed me," Draco sighed softly. "She could have left your father once you were in school, but she loved him. Loved him more than me, and she stayed."
"But you two still saw each other behind his back?" Lily pointed out.
"Yes," Draco nodded. "I'm ashamed to admit that."
"You should be," Lily crossed her arms.
"The minister made it impossible for me to not get to know what a purely unselfish and wonderful man your father was," Draco scratched the back of his head. "I didn't know at the time that she was back with him, I swear. I only thought his goal was to make me even more guilty about being with her."
"Did you never call it off?" Lily asked.
"That Easter before your mother was attacked, by then we'd mutually agreed that the time had come. Either we would come clean or call it quits," Draco offered.
"What happened?" Lily asked.
"You and your brother fell in the pond," Draco shrugged.
"He tackled me!" Lily protested. Draco chuckled. "But that doesn't answer the question. Did you guys come clean or call it quits?"
"We... reluctantly... called it quits," Draco hung his head. He looked up at Lily, eyes bright with unshed tears. "It was the hardest thing I have ever done, to hug your mother and walk away. I had hoped, so many times over, that you had been mine, an excuse for your mother to have to leave your father, but it wasn't meant to be. Ginny and I weren't meant to be."
"So like that, you guys were done?" Lily asked.
"There was the temptation, always present. It's why I had my mother pick you up when you went on holiday with us that summer. I was too heartbroken to risk it," Draco confessed. "Your mother was the love of my life."
"What about Scorpius' mum?" Lily pressed.
"I loved Infamy, don't get me wrong. I loved her probably like you love Damon, but Ginny held a part of my soul that no one could touch," Draco whispered. "I didn't know about the minister until much, much later. After I'd already vied to get you the job under him. If I had known his obsession with your mother, and how that could have translated to you, I'd have never even suggested you for the position."
"He... he hurt me," it was Lily's turn to confess. Draco nodded understanding. "I only have the one memory that I have free access to, but that one sample showed me exactly how sick, how sadistic he was."
"I'm so sorry, Lily," Draco sighed reaching for her. Lily went willingly, his arms encircling her. Lily rested her head on his shoulder. "I didn't know he'd done those things to any of us, to you, until it was all too late."
"I think, I would like you to help me unlock the rest," Lily whispered through her tears.
"No, Lily," Draco shook his head. "I wasn't there for the one, wasn't with you for whatever reason. It nearly killed you, could have killed Gentry. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you again."
"Please, Draco," Lily begged, pulling back. "I need to know it all. I can't live in fear of what the worst that Minister Parker can do to me because he's already done it. He took my mum from me, he took Scorpius from me, and my dad and my brother, and he ruined me."
"Honey," Draco stroked her hair, pulling her close again. "You're not ruined. No matter what he's done to you, you could never be ruined."
"I still have to know, want to know," Lily pressed. "It's my right, a right he's taken from me."
"Okay," Draco nodded after a moment. "But, give me a few days to make arrangements. I need to get a healer on standby, just in case, and I doubt that your friend, Marshall will be down with it again."
"Promise you're not just blowing me off," Lily pushed. Draco smiled at her.
"I promise Lily," Draco assured her. "Before you leave here, you'll know it all."
"Thank you," Lily embraced him one last time before pulling free.
"You should probably be off to bed. You're facing Agatha West tomorrow, and that woman scares the ever-loving... well, let's just leave that at that, okay?" Draco chuckled as Lily stood. Lily made a face that made Draco laugh a little harder.
"Good night, Draco," Lily called as she left the study. Draco remained, a moment, hanging his head.
"Ginny, Ginny love... I don't know what to do about your child," he sighed sadly to the darkness before putting out the fire. He didn't glance out the window, just headed out of his study. If he had, he'd have seen the briefest flash of light, a face barely lit in the flare of a match to light a pipe. A man that had bade his time, all along, waiting patiently for his moment of opportunity to come along. With a tuneless whistle the man slunk back into the shadows, biding his time.