Hello dear readers! I'm so sorry it's taken so long to get this chapter ready for you! I've had beta problems and health problems and even written some more one-shot stories in between all of that. I hope you all enjoy this chapter which covers several months rather than just 'a day in the life' of our boys and their family. I'll start right where we left off…
Mid-September – the Malfoy-Potter twins are just about 2 months old
******** ******** Chapter 36 ******** ********
It was early morning and just about a week after Draco's graduation party. Harry was just finishing Draco's braid when Dinki announced the arrival of Potions Master Loveday. The brunette bit his lip, "This hair-band has seen a fair few days…I'm glad your mother got it for us."
"I know you're nervous…" Having heard the hesitation in his husband's voice, Draco turned to face Harry and felt the end of his braid hit his back just above his shoulder blades. "But I'll be just downstairs, Harry. He told us the other day that the first week or so of training would be bookwork and I've promised you not to be reckless when we get to the more active training."
"Yes, but you won't be where I can see you…and you'll be busy… I can't just peek in the door and disturb your training to say 'hello' and 'I miss you'." Harry tried desperately not to sound like a whiny brat. "I'm so used to seeing you at a second's notice and now you'll be busy."
Draco smirked, "You have charge of our children, Harry. You'll be busy too."
"I know but they're still really small and they don't do much yet so I just need to feed them and change them and help them play with their toys…" Harry paused. "On second thought, that sounds like a lot. I'm sure I'll be fine, love."
"Don't forget the things from that book Hermione gave us, Harry," Draco shook his head with an expression of amusement but held Harry's hand tightly as they walked down the staircase to meet Al.
"Hello, Draco," The older man said softly. "Hello, Harry. It's certainly nice to see you both again. I was so sorry that I couldn't make it to your celebration last week, boys. I was acquiring clippings of some plants Draco will be studying as well as a few new books on the subject."
"Quite alright, sir," Harry smiled at the potions expert. "You were missed but under the circumstances I think it's entirely excusable."
"Did Harry tell you about our potions garden, sir?" Draco asked smiling. "I'll have to show it to you before you leave."
With that, Draco turned to give Harry a quick kiss on the cheek before motioning for his instructor to follow him to the workspace Harry had set up for them.
Harry sighed and hurried up to see the twins. He peeked into each bassinet and when he saw that his son was awake, he picked the baby boy up into his arms. "Good morning, my sweet boy. Would you like to see the world outside?" He asked as he opened the doors onto the large balcony and stepped out. Harry took a deep breath and sat on the ornate bench that Lucius had insisted was necessary for the space. He looked down into the yard and saw Selene lying under the shade of a tree.
When she saw him a moment later she got on her feet and hurried through the door and up the stairs. She was beside him in seconds with a paw on his knee as she tried to get a good look and sniff at the baby he was holding.
"Caelum, I do hope you're as much of a dog person as I am. Selene seems to really like you." Harry told the baby conversationally.
Caelum just stared at Selene for a moment before looking back up at Harry and blowing bubbles of spit.
Harry took his son's hand and helped the baby feel the dog's fur. The little one cooed and began making soft 'ooh' and 'ah' noises so Harry summoned one of the dog's toys and a rattle for his son. Soon he heard a high pitched shriek from the nursery. "Dinki please bring Lyra out here to me?" He called as he conjured a large mat for the group to sit and play on.
Seconds later the elf was beside him with his daughter in her arms. "Little Mistress be clean, dry and not hungry. So, Dinki be thinking that Little Mistress is being jealous that Little Master has more time with their Papa, Master Harry."
Harry smiled at the baby girl, "Not even two months old and you're already developing your Daddy's high maintenance behavior. You may be a Malfoy, young miss, but you will learn to share." He tapped his daughter's nose which made her begin to coo.
Dinki put Lyra down on the mat and hurried off to her other pursuits while Harry summoned the rattle Lyra had been given. The dog chased her ball around. It was charmed to roll around on its own while remaining inside a designated space. Harry sat on the mat and began to speak to the babies. He told them that he was their papa and Draco was their daddy. He told them that they were loved and special… and then he told them what he had planned for the day.
"I'm going to show you some really great things today. We'll start with colors, my little sweetlings. Lyra, you and your brother are going to love this…" He used magic to tilt and hold the babies up and then shot some red colored sparks over the edge of the balcony. "That's magic, loves. I won't tell you the spells for it yet of course. You're a bit young for that. But I will give you a bit of a show." With that he sent up a shower of green sparks and blue came after that. Lyra seemed to enjoy the purple sparks while Caelum's favorite was obviously gold.
The day seemed to go quickly after the small fireworks display. Harry fed them and changed them quite a few times while continuing to show them colors. When they moved down to the garden, he held up a green apple and showed them green sparks to match the skin of the fruit along with grass of a similar color. He showed them an orange and then showed them orange sparks. He tried to do the same with each color.
Dinki joined them during Harry's lunch time so he could eat too and she got into the act as well. She changed the color of her pillowcase-dress to match whatever color Harry was showing the children. The babies napped often and barely fussed all day.
Harry was just about to mix the babies' bottles when Draco and Aloysius emerged from the lab. Apparently, the two men had finally decided that a good time to stop their studying and rejoin the world outside of potions would be just after dark.
Draco hurried to scoop up their daughter and fuss over her. "How is Daddy's princess?"
"Actually, Draco, she's hungry," Harry smirked handing over a bottle. "And our heavenly little hunter is waiting for his bottle too. So why don't you feed her while I feed him and then we'll eat too. Are you joining us, Al?"
"I'd love to, Harry… If you don't mind of course," Al was grinning as the tiny girl squirmed in her daddy's arms. "My little ones were born after my mastery was finished, you know."
"I didn't know you had children, sir," Draco looked up once she'd taken the nipple and begun to feed.
As their guest smiled reminiscently, Harry sat too and held Caelum in one arm with the bottle in his opposite hand.
"Yes…" Al sighed softly. "I had four. The oldest one is in Australia with her family. Another is in Asia studying their variations of some of our spells. One died in the war before she could really live and the fourth is at Beauxbatons for his last year."
"I'm sorry." Draco held Lyra a bit tighter as he thought of her or her brother going off to school…having a family… being on a different continent from him and Harry…fighting in a war…dying…
"Draco, you don't need to apologize every time the war is mentioned. It's not your fault Voldemort did all those bad things." Harry placed a comforting hand on the blond's shoulder.
"Oh dear, I've put my foot in it again, haven't I?" Al asked as Dinki announced that dinner was ready.
Draco handed Lyra to the elf and quietly assured his instructor that he'd said nothing wrong as he led the way to the dining room while Harry finished feeding their son before joining them. There was soup and salad as well as bread, but the meal consisted of potatoes, broccoli, carrots and a roasted turkey smothered with fresh gravy. It was one of Kreacher's specialties and they always enjoyed it.
Al commented on the quality of the meal, how the flavors really meshed well and the look of the table. He also began talking about the things he and Draco were doing in the lab.
Harry's appetite almost spoiled when they mentioned snail slime and animal blood so he politely asked them to avoid shop talk at the table.
Draco chuckled at the request but complied, asking what Harry and the babies had gotten up to.
Harry gladly told them all about the magical fireworks show and how he was hoping they'd know their colors by the time they could talk. He told them that Selene was being very good with the children and never barked or growled. She never even showed her teeth unless it was to eat a treat or play fetch.
Draco looked ecstatic for Harry and their children but Al's smile was tinged with a sense of longing.
The potions master left soon after the meal and Harry brought Draco out to the garden to sit. They enjoyed their first time alone since the morning.
Draco sat in Harry's lap as he expressed his excitement and anticipation for the next lesson. "I have homework due next week, Harry. Al won't be back until I've finished this assignment so I'll be doing more bookwork than anything over the next few days but the books are so interesting that we almost didn't even notice what time it was."
"Does that mean you didn't eat lunch?" Harry asked his heart sinking with the thought that he'd have to scold his husband.
"No, we'd gotten so engrossed in the books that we forgot." Draco shook his head and didn't notice that his husband wasn't happy with him.
"From now on, I'll make sure Dinki brings you a meal at half twelve during your training if you can't keep track of the time yourself, Dragon." Harry decreed, his voice hardening slightly. "I won't have you skipping meals. It's not healthy."
Draco looked startled at Harry's imperious tone. He looked up into the green eyes his daughter had inherited and saw the temper flickering there. "I'm sorry, Harry. I didn't realize… Of course you're right; I have to keep up with my health."
Harry kissed him lightly trying not to dwell on the disappointment that Draco wasn't taking care of himself. "Please do. I'd hate to have you sick. I love you."
They sat for a while more before going up to bed.
The next lesson was less than a week later as Draco had finished his assignment and owled his instructor.
Al appreciated the lunch tray when it was delivered during their session. He made sure to tell Harry because he never really paid attention to things like time.
Harry simply asked that he try to do so in the future for the sake of Draco's health – if not his own – and everyone got back to their personal pursuits.
Almost a month went by after Draco's first lesson and one day, Master Loveday brought a bubbling cauldron with him.
"This is a complicated potion, so I made it for you. You will learn it next year sometime." Al told Draco before explaining to both of them what it was. "This potion will ward the walls, floor and ceiling of the potions lab as well as the tables and a special robe that Draco has earned by passing the first of the twenty stages in his training. It renders whatever items or surfaces it is applied to fireproof as well as waterproof. In fabric, it protects from rips, tears and stains. It will also block the fabric from absorbing any substances. It never needs to be reapplied to a surface once it goes on."
Harry's eyes widened. "I never knew a potion like that existed!"
"I developed it several years ago, Harry. Nobody knows about it – not even Nick knew." Al smiled.
Harry marveled at the bubbling purple liquid, "Does it work on paper? What about pictures and books?"
Draco was silent through all of this but couldn't stop staring at the large cauldron.
"Yes, I'm certain it would work on paper, pictures and books," Master Loveday nodded.
"Would you be willing to share it with Hogwarts? The library would benefit as would the potions Professor and classrooms." Harry thought for a moment. "Does it work against Fiendfyre?"
Al sighed sadly, "No Harry, I'm sorry to say that it's not quite strong enough for that. Fiendfyre gets too hot for a mere potion to block."
"And Hogwarts?" Harry prodded the man.
"I think that Hogwarts would definitely be a worthy recipient of my potion, Harry," The older man smiled. "I'll speak to the headmistress."
"Great! Do you need help applying it in the potion lab?" Harry grinned. "The twins aren't awake yet and Dinki can watch them for a while when they do."
"Thank you, Harry," Al nodded his acceptance.
Draco was overwhelmed by the capabilities of this potion. While they painted the potion onto the walls, the blond asked many questions of his teacher. He wanted to know everything from the temperature the ingredients were stored at to the reason the potion had to be painted on manually instead of spelled on with their wands. He also asked if his instructor had tried adding sunberries to the potions as it was a known fact that sunberries increase a person's tolerance for heat.
Harry was impressed with Draco's passion for the subject and simply kept working rather than interrupt their deeply intellectual conversation.
The table and other countertops were next to receive a coating of the Impervious Potion as Harry had deemed it. The ceiling was after that and then the door that led into the room. After they'd finished with the room itself, Potions Master Loveday produced Draco's new robe and used a wooden spoon to help submerge it. "This is your apprentice robe, Draco. You should wear it for all of our lessons. When you reach the Master level you'll get a new one and I'll supervise as you personally brew this potion and soak the robe in it."
"May I try the potion on a book, please sir?" Draco asked Al.
Harry wondered which book he'd want to protect this way but he didn't have long to wait.
Master Loveday nodded his agreement and Draco hurried off.
When Harry saw the cover of the book, he gasped, "Draco where did you get that?"
"I found it in the Room of Hidden things. Why, Harry?" Draco asked handing it over to his Master.
"I hid that book in there back in sixth year!" He said as they watched Al take an eye-dropper and dip it into the potion.
"You hid it, Harry?" Draco asked in a hushed tone. "I picked it up while I was in there a few weeks before the final battle. It has Uncle Severus' handwriting and…I want to preserve it as a piece of his knowledge that has been passed on to me."
"I'll apply one dropper-full to the spine of the book and see what that does." Al was saying.
Harry quickly stopped his friend. "I'd like to alter the information inside the book. Will the potion block me from doing that, Al?"
"Yes, Harry. It is meant to protect items and clothing from any damage – be it graffiti, fire or a simple yellowing of the page." The older man said.
"Give me a minute before you apply the potion, please." Harry's voice was hard and grim as he took the book from Draco's instructor.
"Stop! Don't ruin it! What are you doing?" Draco started to protest but Harry stopped him with a raised hand.
He summoned a quill and turned to the page where Severus Snape had written a horrible spell. There it was…in his husband's godfather's handwriting…Sectumsempra: for enemies. Harry added the simple words: Dark Magic, use only if under life threatening attack.
He showed Draco the entry, "This is the spell I used in the bathroom that day at the end of sixth year, Draco. I almost killed you with it and I'd like it noted here that this spell is not to be used unless someone is in extreme danger."
Sighing, Draco bit his lip and nodded, "Alright Harry, I accept your addition."
Harry nodded back and handed the book back to Master Loveday. "You can add the potion now, Al. Thank you."
They watched as the potion was applied. The liquid traveled the length of the spine and glowed purple for a minute before the pages began to do the same.
After the glow faded, Loveday took the quill and found a small blank margin…he drew one short line and when it disappeared, they knew it had worked.
Harry asked if they had enough potion to preserve a few other books and when Al confirmed it, he brought the photo albums downstairs. "This is the first picture album I ever saw with my parents in it. Hagrid made it for me and gave it to me after my first year at school."
Al applied the potion the same way as the first time. The spine glowed and then the pages. When the glow didn't fade right away, they opened the book. Each picture was glowing individually and only when all the pictures were glowing did the glow begin to fade.
"This one is from Christmas." Harry said with a smile. "Lucius and Narcissa had it made for Draco and me." The second album had the same reaction as the first and Harry grinned. "We can place these in the sitting room now, Draco. They won't get sun damage if left out on the coffee table. They won't even be affected by the rain if we forgot them outside!"
"They will also repel dust, Harry," Al told him.
"Wow," Harry was ecstatic because memories of his parents, their friends and his own friends as well as the past year since his wedding were among the most precious things in his life.
"Now we need to coat the floor and then we can eat lunch." Al told the younger men. "This was quite a productive morning!"
They did what Master Loveday told them and had lunch when Dinki brought it. After the mid-day meal, Draco had another lesson so Harry took the children out into the garden for a lesson of their own. Maybe soon, he'd move on to see if they could learn to say 'papa' as well as they had the babbling 'bah-bah-bah' to ask for their bottles.
A few days after the potion had been applied to Draco's lab, Harry took his husband and their children to Malfoy Manor, because Lucius and Narcissa had readily agreed to watch their grandchildren overnight so Harry could give his husband a day out on the town for their anniversary.
Harry was almost more excited than Draco. He recalled the research he'd recently undertaken to find the café Draco had conjured in the Room of Requirement back in February. That little café had been so romantic that Harry had instantly fallen in love with it and he wanted so much to surprise his husband for this special day.
Draco had no idea what Harry had planned but he knew that the brunette would make it special because he was just that sentimental. When he saw the Parisian skyline, he knew Harry had really gone all out.
They walked along the main shopping route and window-shopped while Harry discreetly steered him toward the café. When they got close, Harry didn't have to pretend to feel hungry. He'd pulled Draco close and whispered that they should eat before going further. Draco's breathe caught when he saw the doors to the café and he smiled up into his husband's green eyes.
After lunch at the café, Harry took Draco to the Eiffel Tower where they went up to the top to look out over the city. The blond was distracted by the sights around the tower, so Harry discreetly cast a couple of notice-me-not charms and produced their brooms which had been shrunken and tucked into his pocket. He quietly enlarged the brooms and placed Draco's within his reach before leaning in to whisper a challenge. Upon seeing his broom, Draco smirked with obvious mischief before grabbing it and hopping on.
They flew.
The pair of them flew and played their colorful version of tag well out of Muggle view until Harry signaled for Draco to follow him. Soon the lovebirds landed atop the roof of the Parisian branch of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.
Once safely on the ground, Harry confessed his entire plan. He'd researched the café and arranged for the children to stay at the Manor. With George Weasley in on it, the store in France was set to be an available landing site for the two fliers. The elves would have dinner ready by the time they reached the Portkey which had been specially reserved for them to return to Nettlestone Estate and after that Draco and Harry would retire to their bedroom for the rest of the night.
Draco had no doubt of what activity was planned to happen behind the closed doors of that suite and he couldn't wait.
Ever since Draco had begun his training, he'd shown a pronounced need to submit to his husband and Harry showed – more than once that night - that he was very much up for the task.
Draco reveled in Harry's full attention as never before but also felt renewed by it. He felt treasured and supported by the light, loving leash Harry held as so many others might feel oppressed. Draco also knew the morning would bring back the twins and many other pressing responsibilities, so he let Harry take control.
The morning after was indeed filled with blissful comfort from Harry's caring behavior as well as the aftermath of his own obedience. They both retrieved their children and took up their daily lives again.
It was now almost Christmas again and they were packing their bags to spend a few days at the Burrow before going on to the Manor for the holiday. They'd done all of their shopping by owl for safety and convenience.
Harry was becoming discouraged. Regardless of the adult manner in which he and Draco spoke to their children, it seemed to be taking a while before either of the twins seemed interested in speaking more than the babble they had begun using over a month and a half ago. He shook his head and placed a few changes of clothing into the small enchanted case for himself and Draco while the blond helped Dinki change the babies. After closing the case, he walked over to the nursery door to see Draco cuddling with Lyra while Dinki finished fastening Caelum's nappy.
He grinned hearing Draco talk to their children. "Now, Lyra…my sweet little Lyra, why won't you talk to us? Daddy and Papa want to hear your lovely voice."
"They'll speak in their own time, Dray," Harry chuckled. "It's not like we're going to give up on teaching them to talk just because it's taking a while. Besides that, babies don't do more than babble at this stage. They're not even five months old yet!"
Draco sighed, "Alright, Harry. I just want to encourage her – them to talk."
"Their babble is a first step toward that, love," Harry reminded him. "Remember what the book said?"
"Yes," Draco nodded. "We should encourage them with smiles and cuddles as well as replies to their babbling."
Harry smiled down at his son when Dinki handed the baby over.
Caelum reached for Harry's face and patted his father's cheek. He smiled big and toothlessly as he babbled incoherently.
"Really?" Harry asked the baby. "I think you're right, little one!"
Draco's lip twitched, "What exactly is he right about?"
"He says that the Weasleys are expecting us and we should get our collective bums over there." Harry told his husband with a sparkle in his eye.
Draco chuckled, "Oh, is that what he said? I thought he was telling you his life's ambitions."
Harry grinned, closed his son's small coat and picked up the case on his way to the floo.
Selene sat calmly beside the fireplace. Dinki would be bringing her along later in the day, so Harry quickly scratched behind her ears and said goodbye before dipping his hand into the tin of floo powder.
"See you in a minute, love." He whispered before tossing the powder and shouting the name of Molly and Arthur's place in Ottery St. Catchpole. As soon as he arrived he handed Caelum to Molly and turned to help Draco when he came through.
The blond wasn't far behind but he was a little off balance with Lyra in his arms, so Harry had to catch him. He didn't say anything but, with the sparkle in his grey eyes, Harry could almost hear Draco joking about his hero complex. That being the case, the brunette wasn't terribly shocked to feel the soft pressure of Draco's lips on his cheek a moment later.
The next few days at the Burrow were quite pleasant. Molly took great pleasure in the company of her grandchildren and helped out when she wasn't cooking or cleaning the house. Harry tried to help here and there but Dinki seemed to notice how happy the children made her master's adopted mother so she took to doing most of the cleaning.
Hermione still wasn't happy that Dinki was owned by Harry and Draco but even she could see how happy Molly was to spend the majority of her time with her family rather than cleaning so the youngest Mrs. Weasley stayed quiet on the subject.
Being that the little ones were all at different stages of development, they played with different toys and got different encouragements from their parents. One thing was certain, though, all the babies were happy and healthy…and that was the best thing they could all hope for.
Later that week at Malfoy Manor, Draco was preparing to dress his son in a light blue one-piece jumper with silver snaps along the legs and crotch. He turned away for a moment to glance at Lyra who was waiting not so patiently for Harry to finish changing her before putting on some actual clothing. When he turned back he found that the light blue had changed to a holiday red. Following the kicking legs, he noticed that the snaps had changed to gold. "Harry," He bit his lip to suppress his shock. "When did the book say the earliest signs of magic would appear?"
Harry frowned. "I think they said accidental magic could start anywhere from five to eight months. Why?"
"Your son has decided that he doesn't want to wear blue today," Draco began to smile but a tear ran down his cheek.
Harry gasped and looked over.
The blond glared at his husband. "You've made him a Gryffindor!"
Harry laughed, "Nonsense; his favorite color sparks have always been gold."
"And the red? How do you explain that?" Draco's eyebrow rose slightly.
"Well," Harry scrambled for something to say. "It's Christmas! And red is a bright color! It dominates the tree because the decorations are exactly that color. It has nothing to do with Gryffindor, at all."
Draco rolled his eyes, "My father will be quite annoyed with this."
"Caelum is just expressing himself, Dragon," Harry silently congratulated his son on choice of color. "Besides, they're so young their favorite colors could change at any time."
Picking up their son, Draco turned to face his husband. A slight glance at their fussing daughter brought a smile to his face. "I suppose you're correct, love. Just remember that when you turn around."
Harry turned to find that the dress he'd put his little girl into was just as changed as Caelum's jumper. It had been a frilly dress, purple in color with silver accents but the purple had become mint green. Several of the ruffles had disappeared as well. Harry smiled at his daughter while shaking his head in disbelief. "You and your brother are quite the handful, my darling."
She just giggled with a big smile on her face as her papa scooped her up and led the whole family to meet their Daddy's parents for breakfast.
Lucius grimaced at his grandson's ensemble but said nothing. The meal was served without incident but Caelum's mashed potatoes turned from normal ones to sweet potatoes and Lyra's changed to mashed up carrots. Everyone was amazed at their incredible feats of magic.
Christmas morning saw the arrival of Andromeda and Teddy. Harry was delighted to see them again and he made sure to include Teddy in much of the babies' activities. The adults marveled over the twins' abilities as they watched the three babies at play. Lyra acted strangely shy around Teddy while Caelum was fascinated by the older boy's hair and stared intently at him. Harry made sure to watch Teddy for signs of jealousy because he knew they'd need to be nipped in the bud or someone could get hurt.
Being that Lyra and Caelum had each other, they seemed to already have the knack of sharing but Teddy seemed to pout when he didn't get to play with a toy the others had possession of. Harry and Draco did most of the work with the children but Narcissa and Andy helped too. Lucius remained dignified and observant in the background except when Draco unceremoniously declared that it was his turn to hold one or the other of the twins.
Narcissa insisted that her grandchildren would spend the night in the maser suite for New Years Eve so Harry and Draco would get some alone time. Harry cherished any time spent with his husband and children but the moments they could indulge their carnal desires were the closest to his heart because those were the moments that Draco could give up the Malfoy mask and just be 'Harry's Draco. Harry also knew that the blond needed such times to simply relax.
After settling the babies into their grandparents' suite, he and Draco retreated to their own room and just enjoyed each other. Draco bathed his husband and Harry returned the favor with enthusiasm. They made love several times with differing levels of intensity and Harry knew that the relationship they'd built was still growing deeper.
January came and the childrens' magic settled down. The twins seemed to enjoy changing the color of their clothes but it wasn't something they did on a regular basis. Toys would occasionally fly across the room or just float above the crib of whichever child was performing the magic. Harry and Draco would fuss and praise them but soon they knew they'd have to correct this behavior because the secrecy of the magical world would eventually demand that the children perform no magic before they got to Hogwarts.
Just after the New Year, Draco returned to his training in the laboratory with his instructor. This led to Harry feeling lonely for adult conversation so he began to have a few friends over for play dates with their children. The Weasleys were the most frequent and they often stayed for dinner.
Ron had decided to train as an Auror while Hermione would stay home until Angelica turned one. Ginny was conflicted because she had twins to care for and didn't want to leave her mother in the lurch but what she really wanted to do was play Quidditch professionally. Dean wasn't thrilled with her choice of profession but he promised he'd support her in her dreams while he joined Ron in training for the Auror Corp. George would continue running Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes with the help of his wife and several other members of the family. Bill remained a curse breaker for Gringott's but also spent a fair amount of time at WWW, while Fleur – who was pregnant again – would be a stay at home mother helping Molly care for her multitude of grandchildren. Penelope Weasley gave birth to Herod Gideon on the sixteenth and Percy happily went back to his Ministry job as Shacklebolt's personal assistant.
February, once again, saw Harry celebrate Valentine's Day with extravagant chocolates and a traditional trip to Draco's favorite café in Paris while the twins enjoyed some time at Malfoy Manor. Harry took great joy in his role as 'Papa' so he'd put off a lot of the class work from the business course. Now that the twins were a little older, he didn't feel they needed him to be as involved as much so, after a daily lesson, he gathered with some of his friends to watch their children play in a warded area while he read his school books. Another thing he'd put off was his desire to become an animagus and he felt a little guilty about that so he alternated books about the animagus transformation with the books from his business class.
By mid-March, Draco had reached the third level of his training but the children had yet to speak. One day as Harry was finishing Draco's braid, he heard a shocked squeak from Dinki.
Of course it drew the attention of her Masters. "Little Master said something, Masters."
After tying off the braid, Harry took his son from the elf. "Did you have something to say, Caelum?"
The baby's deep blue eyes met Harry's green ones as he opened his mouth to babble. But what came out wasn't babble at all. "Apa…" His tiny face scrunched up but then he said, "Apa."
Harry's breath caught. It had taken eight months but the baby was calling him Papa.
Draco gaped at his husband until the baby girl in his arms joined into the act.
"Da…Da" She said softly as her hand lightly tapped his pale cheek.
"It is being the first words!" Dinki gasped and suddenly began crying. "Dinki has never before witnessed the first words! Master Draco was speaking it to Mistress Cissa when Dinki was not present but this is being a wondrous thing, Masters!"
Harry and Draco shared a smile as they fussed over their children. They praised and hugged them and Harry shot off their favorite colored sparks just before Kreacher announced that Draco's instructor had arrived.
"Master Loveday will be expecting you, Draco," Harry beamed at the blond as he conjured a glass vial and pulled a memory from his mind to place inside it. "We should go meet him."
Draco nodded with peaceful silence as he cuddled Lyra close before turning to watch Harry give the vial to Dinki.
"Apa?" said a little voice that distracted Harry from the look in Draco's eyes.
"Lyra…" Harry whispered as he addressed the tiny baby. "You said my name, Lyra! You and Caelum have both said it now!" He grinned and fussed kissing her little cheek. He switched children with his husband to cuddle her before shooting off bright purple sparks for his daughter to enjoy. "Dinki, I want you to bring this vial to Narcissa and Lucius. Tell them it's important that they look at it very soon." Harry smiled as Dinki nodded still teary-eyed.
So, the babies are growing and everything seems to be going well with our little family. Will it stay that way?
If you're saying you doubt it...
Well, I don't want to spoil the next few chapters so I won't say one way or the other. Stick around and find out!
Lori