Hi everyone! You wouldn't believe the last couple of weeks I've had! I'm SOOO sorry this chapter's so late! Let's just put it this way – crazy work hours and another funeral plus family dinners and I'm pooped! Hope you all enjoy!

Lori

********** Chapter 16 **********

It was the day before Yule and Harry had finally gotten Draco to begin training with the group. They started with the dagger because the younger prince was already good with that and it would help build his confidence. Blaise and Ron sparred first for Draco to watch and then Harry stepped in to point out a move or two that he thought was important to know. Then, Draco demonstrated a couple of the moves by himself for Harry to see that he could perform them.

The blond could feel Harry's eyes travel his body. It was such a different sensation than when it happened in the bedroom and it made him feel a little self-conscious but Harry seemed to sense this and lightened his expression. When Sirius entered the courtyard and called out to Harry, Draco stopped as well but Blaise came and took over his instruction.

Harry patted the blond's shoulder and told him that he wouldn't be long before going across to meet his godfather.

"I went back to the portrait room, Harry. Lucius lifted the blood ward and we can visit anytime we wish." Sirius had a wide smile on his face. "I asked your parents about their other godchildren besides Neville and Lily told me the girl's name!"

"And?" Harry asked.

Just then Neville came running up and grabbed his arm lightly. "Harry, my grandmother just replied to the letter I sent her last week."

"That's great, Neville, but can we talk about this another time? Sirius and I were discussing something." Harry glanced at Sirius who shook his head.

"Don't, Harry." Siri scolded lightly. "As a royal you must sometimes make time for your family members or subjects when you wanted that time for your own purposes."

Harry nodded thoughtfully. "Alright, I suppose the name of my god-sister can wait a few moments. Neville, do go on."

"She never wanted to tell me the name of my betrothed." He smiled gratefully at Sirius before giving all his attention back to Harry. "Apparently it's tradition to keep the identity of their betrothed from the Longbottom heirs until six months before the wedding. Barmy idea if you ask me, but I convinced her so she sent it in the letter along with the full contract and my betrothal chest! I just wondered if I could ask her to join us here for Yule. Her name is Luna. Isn't that pretty?" He grinned looking back and forth between Harry and Sirius. "Luna Lovegood."

Sirius stared at the boy for a moment before beginning to chuckle which turned into a full blown belly laugh. Harry looked at the older man and tried to think of a reason that this might be funny but other than her name sounding like a sexual innuendo, he couldn't think of anything…and even that wasn't this amusing.

Neville's lips twisted into a cautiously amused smirk to indicate that he also wished to know the joke to which he'd apparently supplied the punch-line.

Finally Sirius calmed down and looked at his godson. "Harry, I've sent a Portkey invitation to your mother's goddaughter. She'll be arriving tomorrow morning. Her name was just provided by the ever-helpful Mr. Longbottom."

It took a few seconds for Harry to make the correct connections but once he did, he choked and began to laugh. "I should've guessed! Blaise and Pansy were betrothed and they are Draco's parents' godchildren. Is that some sort of tradition?"

The question went unanswered as it only sent Sirius into a new fit of laughter. "Luna? My Luna?" Neville was staring at the other two and blinking rapidly. "She's your mother's goddaughter? She's coming here? Tomorrow?" He turned to go and walked off in a slight daze.

Harry smiled at the other boy and called Dobby to recommend an elf to escort Neville to his rooms and give him whatever help he needed to prepare for tomorrow. Then he went back to the others and informed them of the situation.

********** LTF **********

An hour or so later, the group had switched to sword training and Draco was resting as he watched Harry's movements with the larger weapon while he sparred with Ron. Blaise commented once in a while to be sure Draco was paying attention but the blond was much more interested in watching his fiancé's muscles in action than the physical moves.

Severus approached his godson and cringed at the thoughts he could see flashing across the pale face. Catching the eye of the young prince, he allowed one eyebrow to rise in slight censure.

Draco responded with a childish expression while sticking his tongue out in the older man's direction until hearing a sudden yelp from Harry. He jumped up and hurried to the brunette's side. "Oh no! What happened?" He asked Ron as he helped Harry put pressure on his wound while Blaise sent an elf for the healer. She was a friend of Dumbledore's who'd arrived just hours ago to be on hand for the future battle.

Harry's face colored slightly as he mumbled his answer unintelligibly.

Severus snorted but didn't translate.

"What was that?" Draco frowned at him. "I couldn't quite understand you…"

"It was my own fault." Harry sighed heavily and repeated himself. "I glanced over as you made a face at Severus and I became distracted by your tongue. Ron's blade slipped further than I'd planned and got my arm instead of the shield."

Draco blushed as his head tipped forward to be hidden by his hair as he tried to hide his amusement. Although it worried him slightly that the older boy hadn't been attentive to his sparring partner, it was also nice to know his savior wasn't a perfect paragon but still human, after all.

The healer came and treated the wound and, once she'd finished, Severus informed Harry and Draco of Lucius' intention to perform the spell that evening.

"I should be there." Harry sighed. "Are we certain this will work? If I was Riddle, I'd be suspicious of Pettigrew. I'd keep him far away from anything vital. Shouldn't we presume Riddle will think the same way?"

"It's entirely possible that Voldemort will react the way you would." Severus told the young prince. "But it is equally possible that he will not."

"Then how do we know this plan will work the way we want it to?" Harry couldn't understand.

"As with many important things in life, it is a gamble." Severus explained. "We are essentially wagering that he will react the way we want him to."

"I don't like the odds." Harry huffed as he tested his grip on his sword. "Isn't there some way to hedge our bets or something? Fix the outcome? I want guarantees not more variables."

"You have the power, the knowledge and the weapons necessary to complete this task, Harry." Severus insisted. "All you need is the opportunity. This will give it to you."

The young Scottish prince sighed knowing this was likely the only answer he was going to get. "Alright. Does Lucius wish to perform the spell before or after Yule?"

"Before." Severus told him. "He'll be doing it just after dinner tonight."

Draco and Harry hurried off to ready themselves for the meal and joined the group in the courtyard to watch Lucius perform the Imperious curse on Peter Pettigrew.

"We've arranged for the turncoat to arrive here around midnight tonight." Sirius informed his godson. "It's a boy around your age named…"

Harry held up a hand to cut him off. "Not yet, Siri. We can name names after the battle is won. Until then, I think it's prudent to allow our undercover operative to remain anonymous."

Sirius nodded solemnly. "As you wish."

Harry couldn't explain it but there seemed to be a spark of pride in his godfather's eyes. He motioned for the older man to continue with his briefing.

"We've devised a new plan since Severus conveyed your concerns. The operative will be taking Pete-Pettigrew back to Hogwarts where he will remain undercover and in animal form until the opportunity arises to alter the wards. Once he does this, he will return to animal form and report to Remus who will cage him for further prosecution." Sirius did not have an ounce of amusement in his demeanor as he turned to look at his cousin who was looking after her husband. "Lucius will give him several clear and concise commands which will keep him from disobeying or making any further trouble for us."

Harry nodded; his relief evident. "Good idea, Siri."

Lucius seemed to be in a meditative trance as Harry and Draco joined them. Narcissa held a hand out to their son and smiled slightly when he took it but otherwise remained focused on Lucius.

"Father?" Draco called softly and then bit his lip not wanting to interrupt but still desiring some small form of acknowledgement.

The elder blond man opened his eyes and smiled slightly. "This spell will take concentration and power which means I will be slightly weakened afterward. Meditating beforehand will help store energy which will assist my recovery. It is nothing to worry over, Draco."

It was a simple matter of leveling a wand at the target's forehead and speaking the spell with a fair amount of concentration but Harry noticed a slight shiver pass through his future father-in-law's body. Narcissa was biting her lip wearing a deep frown but she stayed silent. Draco clung to Harry's arm as he saw his father begin to perspire.

Moments later, Lucius had finished reciting the agreed upon list of commands for their new double-agent and was finally able to react to what he'd done. Lucius was breathing more heavily than usual and his hands seemed to shake slightly.

Harry frowned as he saw the older man reach out to his wife and seem to be physically stressed. "Lucius…You've gone through more than enough to show us your support. I truly hope you can now forgive yourself for whatever you think you did wrong."

"All that's left is to await the signal from Pettigrew's new keeper and then you can retake Hogwarts." Lucius answered, ignoring Harry's words. His voice was slightly hoarse but otherwise he showed no weakness.

"Tut tut, my dear Lucius." Narcissa teased her husband lightly. "There are still a few other things to see to… holidays… certain official ceremonies…" She smirked in her son's direction.

Lucius nodded gratefully to his wife and sighed with visible relief. "Very true, Cissa, there are several important details which must be seen to in the meantime…including Yule and a wedding or two. When our kingdoms are united and Riddle has paid for his crime, I will see the mistake caused by my horrible misjudgment as corrected."

Although Harry didn't care for this reply, he nodded his acceptance and turned to walk away.

"Now wait just a minute! How can we plan a wedding?" Draco put his hands on his hips protesting as he glared back and forth between Harry and his parents. "Harry hasn't even asked me properly!"

Lucius looked at Harry and one blond eyebrow rose in surprise. "Well that situation must be rectified, Harry."

"Indeed it does…but there's no need to worry…" Harry smirked at the older man and then his lover. "I have something planned."

Draco blinked and blushed slightly from the look Harry fixed on him before beginning to walk away. He bit his lip nervously and trailed after his fiancé as they made their way to bed for the night.

********** LTF **********

Yule went off without a hitch. Everyone in the castle enjoyed themselves and had no trouble expressing such to their hosts.

Harry met his mother's goddaughter and promptly introduced her to her betrothed. Luna was a lovely blonde the same age as Draco and she seemed quite friendly so he introduced her to the Weasleys as well. She got along easily with all of Harry's and Draco's friends though she did seem to have an odd fascination with magical creatures. Neville seemed delighted with her as they began to get to know each other. He even took her to the portrait gallery to meet Lily and James.

Luna stayed at the castle for less than a week and revealed herself to be a remarkable witch. She was gifted in transfiguration, having already become an animagus a year earlier, and had uncanny observational skills. When Luna left, she swore to keep in close touch with Harry and Neville as well as Ginny Weasley with whom she had quickly become attached. She also happily promised to return for the royal wedding whenever that might take place.

Harry and Draco spent New Year's Eve alone in their suite. Harry had asked Dobby to bring their dinner into the sitting area so they could be alone. As the rest of London celebrated the beginning of the new year, Harry knelt at his beloved's feet and proposed. He couldn't wait to make the younger man his but he'd be damned if they rushed into it. They set the date for late January and set about their private celebration.

Draco was beaming the next morning as he told his parents, godfather and friends how romantic Harry had been to propose while the fireworks had been lighting up the skies.

Sirius had teased his godson a little but soon the older man admitted how happy and proud he was of Harry. He then took the young couple up to the portrait gallery to inform Lily and James. Harry couldn't contain his happiness as his parents congratulated them and instructed Sirius to hug both boys for them.

********** LTF **********

With the exception of time spent in conference with Sirius and their other advisors, Harry and Draco happily shared their preferences with Molly Weasley and Narcissa who would be taking care of the preparations for the royal wedding over the next month. The young princes didn't mind that they'd taken over as long as the women promised to take some of their ideas into account.

The princes' advisors were Sirius, Severus and Lucius along with Kingsley Shacklebolt. Arthur Weasley and his sons were among those who intended to participate in the battle and Blaise's father had a few words of wisdom as well but he wasn't counted as an official advisor.

At the first meeting, the advisors gave a detailed assessment of each person's strengths and weaknesses. It was to no one's surprise that Hermione was considered very knowledgeable and capable of many diverse spells but the occasional bouts of discouragement she suffered affected her overall performance. Ron was told that he'd gained speed with his casting. He just needed more practice if he wanted to become a match for Blaise or Harry. The advisors commented that while Draco had only just begun his training, for him to be a close match for the redhead was impressive. They also mentioned that he and Harry needed to concentrate more because they tended to get too easily distracted by each other. Pansy was complimented on her skill with a dagger but in terms of magic, she was considered to be better with potions and transfiguration than the more active spells. Draco also preferred that end of the spectrum but he'd learned the rest at an adequate speed.

Luna – while not an active member of the group – had her own skill set and it was recommended that Harry and Draco learn what they could from the girl. Luna could give the entire group pointers in becoming animagi while at the same time teaching them to be more focused and observant. When Neville had objected to his fiancé becoming involved with the war effort it was only because he was feeling left out. In a burst of insight, Harry suggested that Neville be the first to study with her and find out if his animal form would be useful. Neville then smiled and accepted that he wasn't being left out on purpose they just hadn't found a place for him yet but this could be his chance!

Harry was incredibly pleased with the way that Draco had shown such eagerness to learn anything he could to help as well as teach the others spells he'd learned that they hadn't ever heard of. When the brunette voiced his opinion, Draco blushed and grew shy but then Lucius also commended him and this time he accepted the praise with his head held high.

As the group left the meeting, Lucius called Harry and Draco back. "Harry, have you noticed that Draco, when complimented, tends to…" He trailed off trying to find the words he wanted.

"Turn away from them?" Harry asked. "I have a theory on that but I haven't had a chance to address it."

Lucius nodded slowly turning to face his son. "Why do you not take the compliments as they are meant, Draco?"

"Do you not think you deserve them?" Harry asked softly.

"When Riddle complimented me it always made me feel uncomfortable…" Draco began. He sighed and then tried to explain. "I felt like he was overstating things about me so that I would downplay myself and raise him higher. Like I was only around to compliment him instead of being a person in my own right…as if that was my only purpose."

"To him…in his own twisted mind…that's exactly how he felt, Draco." Harry told him bluntly. "To me…To your parents…to our friends…To so many people, you are so much more than he wanted you to be."

"He was usurping your place in the world, my son." Lucius could see the truth dawning on his child's face. "In order for him to have a place here, he had to."

"I think I understand." Draco nodded, looking back and forth between his father and future husband.

"Now I don't want you to become an arrogant little so and so…" Lucius smirked at the soft chuckle his comment had drawn from both young men. "But please, son… Please have some pride in yourself and your accomplishments…and that will allow us to have pride in you as well."

Draco only nodded again and pulled Harry away toward where Narcissa was calling them.

********** LTF **********

The rest of that day was about the wedding. They got fitted by a group of tailors for robes and tunics as well as trousers and leggings. Narcissa insisted on a full wardrobe for both of them in addition to the wedding clothes.

Harry was getting impatient to leave when suddenly he saw Draco whispering to one of the tailors.

The man was almost double their ages so he merely became curious instead of jealous. He shook his head and kept repeating himself. "No. I'm sorry, Your Highness but we cannot!"

Harry frowned and approached. "What exactly are you refusing to do for Prince Draco?"

"I want him to make you a cape…Like mine…Like you said you wanted." Draco pouted, glaring at the man. "He says that capes of that kind are out of style and refuses to do it!"

Harry sighed and looked at the man. "Isn't there something similar you can make?"

"Of course, Your Highness." The man told him while Draco huffed in the background. "He simply asked if we could make a copy of his cape. There are business reasons we will not do that. There are similar capes and cloaks and I can show you a catalog."

"That's fine. He will pick as many as he wants and you'll make two of each." Harry informed the tailor. "For the wedding – and other future occasions – we'll want to match."

The older man nodded and bowed low before turning to snap his fingers in his assistant's direction. "The catalogs!"

"Draco, thank you for reminding me about the cape. I'd almost forgotten." Harry kissed his beloved's cheek a little while later as the tailors left the castle.

"I wanted it to be a surprise but he was uncooperative." Draco pursed his lips thoughtfully. "But I suppose I could've been more cooperative myself."

"You just need to work on your problem solving abilities, darling." Narcissa broke in. "I'm sure you just needed to adjust the wording of your request."

"Well, the result is the same. We'll have new and matching capes." Harry grinned.

"Yes, we'll have white capes for the wedding and coronation, and red and black reversible ones for everyday use." Draco sighed happily.

"Yes, you'll be very regal, my dear." Narcissa smirked. "Now, the clothing we ordered will be delivered in a day or two, darlings. I'll have the elves take care of it all. For the moment, you are both free but Draco, there is something I'd like to speak with you about."

The younger man sighed with a frown. He'd wanted to drag Harry away for some alone time but he sensed that this was important to his mother so he kissed Harry's cheek and walked away with her.

"Your father and I have – I think – been fairly tolerant of your sharing a bed with Harry over the last few weeks…" Narcissa began as she led him to a nearby sitting room. Seeing her son's eyes widen slightly, she hurried to finish her thought. "And that hasn't been a problem due to your delicate mental state. But with the wedding coming up, we'd like to see you sticking to the tradition of not seeing the groom on the day of the wedding until the ceremony."

Thinking this over, Draco realized it had been a while since they'd tried to sleep apart and he didn't know if he could. He took a deep breath but his response was still a little shaky. "Mum, I…"

"We just want you to try, honey." She said with a sigh. "We'll understand if it doesn't work, but won't you please try?"

"I-I…I need to talk to Harry about this." Draco felt his eyes begin to burn with tears as he stood and rushed out of the room. He tried to hold on to his emotions but it didn't last long. He ran through the corridors until he saw Pansy and Blaise coming out of the library. He ran headlong past them both and into the room.

Blaise gave Pansy a look and they silently agreed that she would stay with Draco while he went for Harry.

********** LTF **********

Pansy took a handkerchief from her pocket and turned to offer it to the blond who quickly took it. "Draco, what's wrong?"

"Mum…" He started, still sniffling into the fabric. "M-Mum wants me to try spending a night away from Harry."

Pansy frowned. "Did she say why?"

"The wedding day tradition." Draco mumbled but then he looked up with wide wild eyes. "But I don't care about that! I want my Harry!"

Pansy bit her lip but ruined it with a giggle. Covering her mouth, she fought to control her amusement.

Suddenly Harry and Blaise came bursting into the room. "Draco? Baby, what is it?" Harry sat next to his fiancé with a worried expression.

Pansy and Blaise listened as Draco explained the situation to Harry and how upset he was about it.

Harry sighed softly. "Oh."

"Oh?" Draco frowned at the brunette. "What do you mean – oh?"

"Sirius talked to me about it too. He said my parents would've wanted me to." Harry said looking sadly down at his feet. "It was while you were with your mum."

"And you said?" Draco blinked in surprise.

Harry met the grey gaze. "I said I'd talk to you and see how you felt about things. Your life has been thrown to the wind, baby. We don't know if you'll be able to cope for even one night without…"

Draco swallowed nervously. "What?"

"If I say 'me' I'll sound like a total prat, but if I say anything else I'll sound like I'm criticizing or belittling you." Harry sighed.

Draco blushed, remaining silent but knowing just what his lover meant.

"There's a week left until the wedding. We'll have to experiment." Harry cringed at the thought.

The blond sighed looking very sad. His companions could all see tears beginning to form.

"I have an idea." Pansy suddenly blurted and turned pink when everyone looked at her. She bit her lip, now hesitant.

Draco took her hand with a hopeful heart. "Please?"

Nodding once, she detailed her stroke of genius. "What if Harry stays with you until you fall asleep and then goes to a different room for the rest of the night?"

Draco chewed his lip and thought it over. "But wouldn't I notice the lack of heat since we spend most nights snuggled close?"

Harry frowned. "We'd have to spell a blanket with my body heat temperature or something similar."

"You're right, Harry. We'll have to experiment." Draco grimaced at the word.

"We'll try the most drastic change first." Harry suggested entwining Draco's hand with his own. "I'll sleep in the sitting room outside of our bedroom tonight. If that works, I'll do the same on the night before the wedding. If it doesn't, I'll hear you call out for me and come right back to your side and we'll try something else."

"Promise?" Draco asked softly sounding incredibly anxious.

Harry looked directly into Draco's eyes. "I swear if you call me, I'll come straight away."

Draco nodded calming down slightly. "Let's not tell them until we have a definite answer."

Pansy shared a look with Blaise who had stayed quiet all this time. She knew they had to say something. "How will you get them to believe you if you don't have proof that you've tried but it isn't working? Someone needs to know what's going on and be a witness."

Harry nodded slowly and thought on this. "We could have Dobby…" He started but that thought died quickly when Draco frowned at him.

"No." The younger man sighed. "We'll need a human witness…and since it was your point, Pansy…?"

"We'll both be there." Blaise spoke softly but there was no hesitation. Pansy only nodded her agreement so it was decided and the group agreed to meet after dinner in the princes' sitting room.

********** LTF **********

As the hours passed, Draco got quieter and more withdrawn. Harry tried not to show his agitation but it was getting more and more difficult. They had Dobby bring them games to play but even that was wearing down the group. Suddenly, Harry couldn't take anymore. "I think the more we put it off the worse our reactions will be."

Draco nodded jerkily as he stood. "I'll just go get ready then."

Harry kissed the blond softly and watched as he went into the bedroom. "I'll be staying on the couch. Dobby will transfigure something for you to sleep on."

"And we'll take turns just as we discussed earlier." Blaise patted Harry's arm just in time for them to hear a loud shout of the brunette's name.

Harry's head whipped around as he strode across to open the door. Blaise barely made it to the doorway as Harry scooped Draco into his arms. "I'm here, Draco. You're safe."

Draco buried his face into Harry's shoulder. "I dreamed…that this was a dream."

"I'm not a dream, Draco." Harry whispered, his arms tightening around Draco. "I'm real, baby. I'm here with you. You're safe."

"Draco, are you crying?" Pansy asked curiosity echoing in her voice.

Draco looked at Harry in confusion. Harry glanced at his shoulder and touched Draco's cheek which were both dry. They looked at their friend and both shook their heads.

"You've recovered somewhat, Draco." She explained. "You're scared but not inconsolable which is how Harry and the others described you before we saw you through that meeting with Ron and Hermione."

"I think you need something tangible that proves you aren't dreaming so that when you wake up scared you can look down at it and know what's real." Blaise looked at Harry. "Do you have anything like that?"

"We could switch family rings…?" Harry suggested. "Wait. My shield is a bracelet most of the time…and since it's only needed for one night, you could give it back after the ceremony. That's something you don't own so you can look at it…trigger it…feel safe and know I'm real."

"We can try." Draco bit his lip as Harry slid the bracelet onto his wrist. They kissed once more before Harry and the others left Draco to attempt sleep for the second time.

********** LTF **********

The next morning at breakfast, Narcissa asked why he and Harry seemed a little worse for wear and the princes were able to report that it was because they'd spent the night before trying to figure out a way to sleep separately from one another and had come up with something.

"The only drawback is that we are going to look like we were up all night." Harry told his in-laws and their uncles after Blaise and Pansy went over the events of the previous evening. "I'll give Draco my wristband shield for that night so it can remind him – when he awakens from nightmares – that he still has me…that I'm real and not going anywhere without him."

Narcissa sighed and looked down. "Draco, your peace of mind is more important than any silly old tradition. If it's really going to strain you that much…I'll never say another word. I'm so sorry!"

Sirius nodded silently in agreement.

Harry smiled at them gratefully. "That would really help, Narcissa. I don't feel all that attached to this particular tradition and I think it'll take a lot of pressure off of us."

Draco couldn't find the energy to do more than cling to Harry's arm in relief. "I think we need some real sleep. The night of experimenting was so exhausting."

Harry nodded in agreement and they abandoned their meals to head off to bed.

********** LTF **********

Spoiler Alert!

Wedding next time!