AN: Hey, I don't know how many people are still reading (I can see the hit count, but I don't know how many of you are actually reading the entire chapter). Please drop me review, the anonymous ones are turned on.

"Thank you." Lily said as she stepped up to the counter. "For coming, even though it just meant sitting in the waiting room for a few hours."

"I got work done." David shrugged and put an arm around her shoulder. "Are you doing okay?" He looked down at the bandaged arm.

"Handled it like a pro," the tattoo artist said as he stepped forward. "Thanks for drumming up business for us, David." The man smiled as Lily handed him the agreed money from the agreed upon price. "If you want a new piece…"

"I know." David smiled.

"Thanks again," Lily told him. She stayed under David's arm as they walked over to a corner of the shop. "Are you apparating us home?"

"Yes," he said and pulled Lily a bit closer, minding her arm as a crack filled their ears. In a matter of seconds the two of them were on the front doorstep of the cottage. "I am excited to see that piece," David said.

"You just have to wait." Lily looked down at the bandage. A tattoo had not crossed her mind before, some of her cousins had them; Teddy had a gorgeous piece on his back. She felt like she should have told her parents, but it was her body and she was an adult. Truth be told it was David that got her thinking about it. The first time she saw him in a short sleeve shirt, the edges of the tattoo peaked out. It was a silhouette of mountains on his upper arm, my home, he told her. On his shoulder blade there was an old fashioned sailing boat, and the deathly hallows symbol on the inside of his forearms. The symbol had a story behind it, from his Durmstrang and Quidditch days.

"Good thing the robes we wear for school are so loose otherwise the students would have many questions," David said. "Are you hungry? Do you want me to make something or do you want to go to the hall? We should be able to make it in time for dinner."

"I can cook," Lily said. "Besides I don't know if I trust your concoctions." She rolled her eyes.

"You have cooked the last two times, besides how hard can pasta be?"

Lily sat down in the chair and watched as he tried to prepare anything, reaching for her wand and getting ready to intervene as per usual. This seemed to be an everyday occurrence. Since she talked with David in the summer things between them had gotten better. It seemed, though, they were both walking on egg shells as far as taking things further. David would put an arm around her shoulder, Lily would grab his hand when they apparated together, and they both would fall asleep on each other while either grading papers (David helped when a translator was needed) or reading.

"Lily, I have been meaning to ask, what are your plans for Christmas break?"

"I was thinking about staying here," she said. Going home to her family used to be mandatory in her mind and as much as she wanted to go, something was telling her to stay away.

"Oh."

"What?"

"Nothing, my parents are going to America to visit my mother's family, I will be celebrating with them early. The travel to get to and back is horrendous and I have work to do soon after."

"I was not set about staying here. Why don't I ask my parents if you can come as well?"

"If you truly wish to stay here, then I do not want to force you or inconvenience your parents."

"My parents thrive in chaos." She got to her feet when she saw more steaming than normal. Standing right next to him she murmured a few words to keep the pot of water from boiling over. He pressed a hand on the small of her back. "And I would like you there."

Before either of them could process what was happening they got closer until their mouths met, pressed closely against one another. Lily reached up place one hand on the back of his head, he curled an arm around her side. One they pulled away David looked at Lily trying to gauge her reaction.

"I apol—"

"I wanted it," she interrupted. "Merlin, did I do something wrong? I thought…"

"No." He smiled. "I was just… You said that…"

"We can take things slow." She took a step back. "I can set the table, alright?"

"Yes, of course." A lazy smile crossed his face as a grin crossed Lily's. David is safe, she told herself. He was a wizard with a practical career. This was going to be alright.

Lily fussed with the dress she wore. David had never actually seen her in one, she usually preferred ripped jeans or flannels. It was a sweater dress with short sleeves and a cowl neck, dark green in color. It complimented the deep red of her hair along with her warm brown eyes. "Is this alright?"

"You don't have to dress up for them." He stepped over as she saw her pack her overnight bag. Lily just frowned at him, taking in his outfit. He wore a faded flannel shirt that was soft to the touch. She wanted to curl up against him whenever he wore it.

"I just want to make a good impression. I met your father before when I went with my mother when she was covering a Quidditch game, but I haven't seen you mum."

"Trust me." David patted her shoulder. "Do you have everything? The portkey will be taking off soon enough."

"Yeah, how about you?"

"Good… listen do you mind if we sleep in the same room? My parents turned one of the guest bedrooms into an office so it isn't really usable unless we transfigure some furniture." David looked downright sheepish as he asked.

"David, I am 24 years old. I think I can handle sharing a bedroom with my boyfriend."

Lily didn't say that she welcomed it. They hadn't done much past snogging on the couch occasionally. It took her back to dating Scorpius, but they both seemed on the same page. Unlike with Jordi, she was never in a rush to get with him, she liked enjoying his company. The two said they would move slow and they did just that.

"Just remember to bundle up, it'll be cold."

Under his watchful eye she slid on a pair of fleece lined tights and slipped on a pair of boots before wrapping her uniform clock around her body. He did the same thing, slipping a hat on as well after twining a scarf around his neck.

"Come on." He grabbed her hand and tugged her outside to where an old boot sat. They both placed a hand on it and in an instant they were off. A few moments later they were touching down on the ground, Lily stumbling forward a bit to be caught by David. "Just down the hill, our house is kind of secluded," he explained.

When Lily had regained her balance a smile crossed her face as she inhaled the clean mountain air. "Like your tattoo." She pointed, then began to trace the landscape in the air. "It's beautiful here." She closed her eyes as the breeze whipped around her.

"It is also freezing out here. Come on." He laced his hand in hers and they went down the hill to the small house that rested at the base of it. From the window Lily could see a fireplace. David let them in and kicked off his shoes at the door, Lily followed suit. "Mum, dad," he called out.

In no time a petite a woman with brown hair and blue eyes appeared, standing on her tip toes to give her son a hug. "I am so glad you came home. It's good to see you."

Lily noticed that her accent was clearly American. After all this time living in Bulgaria she had not picked up on it. "Nice to meet you, ma'am."

"Call me Julie," she said and stepped forward to wrap Lily in a hug. "Your Lily, David has told us so much about you. It is good to finally put a name to a face."

"Thank you for having me."

"Of course, let me take your cloak." She waited as Lily wiggled out and then took David's before levitating them to a coat rack with hooks enchanted to be like grabby hands. "Viktor is around here somewhere…" She looked around. "David go find your father." She gestured in some vague direction that her son seemed to understand. "Come to the kitchen with me."

Julie looked at Lily before setting off towards the kitchen. The younger woman watched as she began to take out stemmed wine glasses and place them beside a bottle of wine. "Do you want a glass?"

"That sounds lovely," Lily responded. "What's for dinner?"

"Traditional Bulgarian food," she informed her. "David probably hasn't had it in a while and I don't mind making it if Viktor helps me. So it'll be Moussaka and this salad I have never been able to pronounce the name of."

"You don't speak Bulgarian?"

"A few words, enough to get by." She shrugged. "I took German in high school, do you know what that is? I know you're British."

"Just the last few years, right?"

"Last four." She smiled as she pulled out her wand to tap on the wine cork in order to remove. "Viktor speaks English fairly well so we can bridge the language barrier fairly easily."

"David offered to help me speak German, translation spells come in handy but I can't rely on them on a daily basis." Lily grabbed the four wine glasses and followed Julie as she moved forward into the dining room.

"You know, you are quite different from the girls he usually brings home."

"How so?"

"It's hard to pinpoint." She floats the bottle of wine to begin pouring into each glass. "Don't take this the wrong way but you are very British. Also, you don't seem to be entranced by my husband's career."

Lily just nodded. Her whole life she had gotten used to people fawning over either her mum or her dad. To her they were just people, amazing people that she cared about deeply, but people nonetheless. When David and his father came in, it was clear to see where the similarities lie. If they were the same age they would have appeared to be twins, accept David had his mother's personality with an easy smile and none of the intense seriousness that his father possessed.

"Dad, this is Lily." David held out his hand to pull her close, but then settled one hand on her shoulder.

"Nice to meet you, sir." She thought briefly about giving him a hug, but instead settled for a hand shake.

"Call me Mr. Krum."

Julia had stepped close to him and elbowed him gently in the side.

"I mean Viktor that will be fine." He forced a smile. "We are glad to have you in our home." He goes towards the table and the rest of them follow suit.

Dinner passes with pleasant conversation and delicious foods. The main dish is layers of meat and potatoes with a savory sauce accompanied by a salad made of cucumbers, tomatoes, and a salty white cheese. The wine chosen complements it well and Lily has an additional half glass against her better judgement.

Still, she was content when the end of the night came. David took a shower while Lily got undressed and put on pajamas. He had a smile for her when he slid in beside her. It was clear it was a childhood room what with the bookshelf containing texts that had a progression of reading levels along. That paired with a various Quidditch posters and a box full of discarded toys/sports equipment.

"You really don't mind?" David asked as he got into bed.

"No." She got closer to him as he settled in. "I like it." Inching closer she placed a kiss on his lips. It didn't go much passed that as they laid there. David fell asleep first and Lily admitted it was uncomfortable. He liked to sprawl out on the bed on his stomach so she curled her body into a c- shape place the hand on top of her waist. They didn't quite fit together but that was alright, she would make it work.

"Lily is actually coming?" James questioned as he helped his dad in the kitchen. Beatrice had not gotten off work yet, and neither had Ginny. It was supposed to be a family dinner, done in honor of the fact that Lily was actually coming home. They had not seen her since the few days during the middle of the summer. "Is she coming alone of bringing someone again?"

"David will be accompanying her, if that's what you're asking."

"Six months, that's a long time. Since Score she usually tosses them to the side after a few months."

"James Sirius," Harry said. "Respect your sister."

"Dad, we have hardly seen Lily since she started working at Durmstrang. Do you get letters? I certainly don't. Then when we actually get to see her she brings some strange guy in tow."

Harry sighed and began to massage his temples. "Can you listen to what you are saying?" He shook his head. "I would give anything to have a time turner to record this and make your ten year old self listen to it, when you made your sister cry over Quidditch games."

"I am never going to live that down, am I?"

"Certainly not. Besides, James a year ago Lily could have said the exact same thing about you. She hardly saw you accept when you showed up drunk off your arse at her doorstep."

"Lily told you about that?"

"No she told Albus and Albus told me, because he is the only one out of you three I can get a straight answer from." Harry shook his head. "Listen, just be civil and remember that any complaint you have about Lily can be turned back on you."
"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Lily dating that muggle police officer did not make me happy because she hid it from us as long as she could. Then you go and lecture her on it before dating a muggle yourself."

"Because I realized I had my head up my arse. Bea is the best thing that ever happened to me." He shot his dad a lazy smile. "I want to ask her to marry me, thought I would do it on Christmas. It is her favorite holiday."
"Have you ever met her family?"

"In a few days I will."

Harry slid an arm around his son, patting his shoulder. "Good for you. It seems like my boys are getting ready to get married."

"What?" James' eyes widened. "Albus and Score…"

"I did not say a word." Harry stepped away from his son and gave him a smile.

Nearly an hour later everyone was in the Potter house accept for Lily. Beatrice was in the kitchen unwrapping what looked to be a plate of Christmas cookies. Albus and Scorpius were setting the table by hand, talking in hushed tones. When they were about ready to give up waiting on Lily, the fireplace began to crackle. Out stepped Lily with a large bag in her hand, shortly following her was David, a smaller bag in his hand.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," she said.

"It's fine, I'll put away your bags." Ginny pulled out her wand and began to levitate both Lily and David's bags. "You'll be staying in Albus' room. James' room is still unfit for guests even after he moved out years ago."

"Thank you, ma'am," he said, stepping to place a hand on Lily's shoulder. "And thank you for letting me come over again."

"Not a problem, us Weasley's have a way of adopting people into our family." Ginny issued a wink in Harry's direction. "Come in, come in."

They sat around the table, getting settled down as dishes of food were leviatated in. Small talk commenced, nothing more than asking how they had been doing, hearing about jobs. Things took a turn, though, when Lily asked for Albus to pass the potatoes. When she reached for the bowl across the table, Scorpius got a good look at her forearm. The next thing she heard was the clatter of metal against china.

"Are you alright?" Ginny questioned.

Scorpius wiped his mouth on a napkin before looking pointedly at Lily. "What is that?"

Lily set the potatoes down and curled her arm against her body. "A tattoo haven't you seen one before?"

"Since when do you feel the need to permanently mark yourself?" he questioned.

"I don't have to justify myself to you." Lily reached for her fork and gripped it tightly in her hand.

"I think it is quite tasteful," Harry said. "May I see it again?"

"It's a compass rose and the coordinates for London," she explained, twisting her arm to show her father. "After I saw David's tattoo I thought it was beautiful to have something to remind me of home."

Scorpius visibly tensed and took in David as he sat in front of him. David who looked so clean cut with a pair of chino's with a cable knit sweater. Everything he had was easily hidden underneath long sleeves.

"Mine's on my shoulder, wraps around it in a band. It's the silhouette of the mountains you can see from my home in Bulgaria." David looked back down at his plate, the table had settled into near silence. "So, Albus, Lily told me that the both of you transferred out of the auror department."

"Yes, I work in the investigative unit now," Albus explained. "Score's working as a paralegal in the Court divisions of Magical Law Enforcement."

"The both of you transferred out?" David lifted a glass of water to his lips.

"There is a strict inter departmental dating policy for aurors." He looked to Scorpius and patted his hand. "It was our only choice."

David about spit out his water. "Wait, you are Scorpius Malfoy?" He pointed to the man beside Al. "The one that Lily dated for three years?" He turned to her. "You didn't tell me this."

"I thought it was still a secret." She held up her hands.

"Dad caught us again." Al's cheeks were tinged pink. "He has impeccable timing."

"Again?" David leaned back in his chair. "You dated Scorpius after he had been caught with your brother before?"

"There is such thing about being bisexual," Scorpius snapped.

Further down the table Harry looked mortified; Ginny looked as if she was ready to jump in at any moment; James was suppressing laughter; Beatrice had spit out her water; and Albus had his hand resting on his boyfriend's arm.

"I misspoke, when I was younger my dad caught me with my boyfriend," Albus explained.

Before anyone else can speak, Ginny gets to her feet and declares it is time for dessert. She recruits half the people at the table to help and begins to levitate away dishes. The rest of dinner is maintained with forced civility, Lily certainly hopes that David can survive the actual Christmas day festivities.

After James and Bea leave—they both have work at a ridiculously early hour the next day—Albus is reigned into Christmas decorating and David is pulled away by Harry to discuss some things. Lily goes to the kitchen to help with the cleanup, beginning to do the dishes by hand to clear her mind. As she scrubs away she senses someone's presence. "I do not feel like talking with you," she snaps before letting go of the dish and causing it to clatter in the sink. "Scorpius, please."

"Lily, I come in peace." He holds up his hands in surrender mode. "Truthfully, it may not be my place but I am worried about you."

"You are right it isn't your place." She picks the dish up again and begins to furiously scrub. "We are over. you have no say in my life, alright? You may be shagging my brother and as much as I have tried to be accepting it is still hard to wrap my mind around it."

"You better get used to it," he said.

"You proposed to Al?" She dropped the dish again and whipped around. "Seriously?"

"He proposed to me."

"Congratulations," she forced the words out but did not mean them. As much as she wanted to be happy for her brother, as much as snippets of visions assured her that they belonged together and Scorpius was not in her future, it still stung.

"Lily I know you want—"

"Do not finish that sentence," she ordered.

"Fine. But tell me this, is David actually the man for you? Do you picture a white picket fence future with him? Because it seems to me that—"

"You are judging him Scorpius." Her voice had an edge to it that she disguised with a sing song way of speaking. "I seem to remember someone's mother doing the same thing and them being annoyed by it."

"The scenario is completely different. I am still your friend and when I see him…" Scorpius looked at her, Lily had turned her body and braced her hands against the sink. He came to stand beside her. "You deserve better."

"Leave me alone," she hissed. "Have a nice life shagging my brother, but I don't want you to be a part of it."

"That's a big surprise, you have someone that cares about you and you just throw them away. Isn't that what happened with that muggle—"

"What the hell happened to you?" she asked. "And don't talk about Michael like that." She felt the tears sting the back of her eyes. After all this time, she still wondered what had happened to him, still felt regret over how she had ended things. Fear and anger and losing Roxie…all of it melded into one and he was the target of it all.

"Lily, I apologize, I…" He went to touch her, but then realized how bad of an idea that was. "I care about you and something seems wrong with David."

"Because as much as we want to admit we still can't stand the thought of seeing each other with different people."

"It just shocked me. Hearing that you teach at Durmstrang and have a tattoo and are dating this man…"

"He is a good man," she told him pointedly. So very much like Scorpius and so very much different. Or rather they had one similarity, they both played Quidditch. David was sweet always with a smile on his face, he towered over Lily not only in height, but in size as well. Scorpius was intelligent and quick witted, David was smart too, but in his own right. He tended to speak slower as he was constantly translating things back and forth in his mind. When he spoke it was with great care. Unlike Scorpius, you would never be for certain that David was a pure blood with how he acted.

"Lily?" David's voice called out before he entered the room. Harry was close behind him and the two of them looked concerned. "See I told you it was nothing." David had a smile on his face, but a worried look.

"The two of us were discussing a few things, I better find Albus we both have work tomorrow."

Harry stepped forward to say something to his daughter, but David moved quicker. He placed a hand on her back and began to whisper a few words in German. Lily laughed and leaned into him. She did not even notice her father leaving.

"Are you sure you are alright? You looked upset."

"It's just hard being around Scorpius." A hand went up to touch his face, cupping his chin and looking at him with a smile. The thing was, David did not make her instantly feel better, he distracted her for a bit, but she did not need him or even want him very badly, she just enjoyed his company. It was better that way.

The Weasley Christmas was always an adventure. This year the Potter children were the topic of conversation being passed around. Albus' engagement to Scorpius, James new girlfriend whose family he was visiting first, and of course Lily. Lily's 'antics' as most of the cousins referred to them, had always been a popular topic of idle gossip.

"Is that him?" Rose questioned as she stood next to Dom. Her eyes were fixed on the tall man with broad shoulders next to her. "Where on earth did Lily meet him?"

"Durmstrang," Dom said, crossing her arms over her chest and lifting her chin. "I am surprised you haven't heard Uncle Ron ranting about him."

"Why would my father be ranting about Lily's boyfriend?" Rose inquired. "He seems like he'd be rather dull if he didn't look like that."

"He is the son of Viktor Krum." Dom gave her a wicked grin as she watched her cousin's eyes widen. "I'm going to say hello, you can gawk from the corner." She flipped her hair behind her as she walked forward. "Lily, how nice to see you." She hugged her cousin tightly.

"Dom, you look lovely." Lily pulled away and then reached for the arm of the man next to her. "This is David, David this is my cousin, Dom."

"Nice to meet you." He held out a hand, but found himself in a one armed hug instead.

"Weasley's tend to hug," she explained. Then her eyes looked at her cousin and widened at the side of her arm. "That is gorgeous Lily." She took her cousin's hand. "I was thinking of getting one for…" She shrugged.

"Dom, if you want someone to go with you." Lily pulled her cousin into her arms again. "I should come home more often, shouldn't I?"

"Yes." Dom laughed. "Watch out for Rose, as per usual."

"Wouldn't have it any other way." Lily then curled into David, letting a large arm wrap around her. "Wasn't that easy?"

"Lily, don't toy with me. Does easy have a different meaning here?"

"Funny." She rolled her eyes.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Go right ahead." Lily gestured to the couch and lead him to sit down at one.

"Who was your cousin talking about when she saw your tattoo?"

Lily clenched her fist and took a deep breath, doing what she could to ground herself. Memories flew back to her all to easily, and not all of them good. "Dom's best friend was our cousin, Roxie. Roxie was an auror, Scorpius' partner…She was shot in the line of duty."

"You told me about her."

"It happened less than a year ago and this is our first Christmas without her." Lily sighed.

David did not say a word, but reached to pull her under his arm. His body was strong and rigid. It was as if his shoulders could take the weight of the world, or at the very least her world. "Should we meet the rest of your family?"

"I suppose, but steer clear from Scorpius."

"You never told me exactly what happened last night."

Lily shook her head as she wiggled out from underneath. "It was a long story… I promise to tell you later, right now we have to make nice with everyone."

And make nice they did, or rather David did. He was popular with the family and charmed Grandma Weasley while enchanting Victoire and making Teddy happy by giving him a reprise from Stella. She had grown quite a bit and was more than content to sit on his lap beside her Aunt Lily. The thing that made her smile, though, was that as she sat beside him it was easy for her to picture a future.

7 Months Later, June

Scorpius stood still as his mother adjusted her tie. Astoria Malfoy may not have approved of her marrying Albus Potter, but that did not mean she would allow him to look like anything less than his best when they recited the vows. "Are you nervous?" she questioned.

"A little." He rocked on his heels as he thought of Albus in the room over. The wedding was far from traditional, they were just going to be married in the Ministry office with their close family as witnesses before having a dinner party. His mother wouldn't let that happen so the two were going to enter from the sides. "But then I remember its Al." He shrugged. "There isn't a whole lot to be nervous about, he's my best friend."

There was quite a bit to be nervous about. In the past few months their faces had been splashed across several covers with sensationalized articles. They took it in stride and let it not get to them either the praise or the criticisms. Two months ago the two of them moved in together into a place that was not an apartment. Granted it was tiny one bedroom house with a small loft. The area was full of muggles and wizard integrationists. Of course the press had a field day at that and they were painted as some sort extreme left liberals, but that was a conversation for a different day.

"Scorpius… Albus Potter may not be my first choice for you to marry. I may wish that you were taking a wife instead of a husband…" She took a deep breath. "But you are happy, the both of you are and the two of you respect each other and have a healthy relationship. That is all a mother should ask for."

"Yeah…" Al's speaking habits had gotten to him and now he was noticeably less precise when he spoke. This would be fine but it irritated Hermione to no end now that he worked with her.

"I'm heading out now, I was just checking in on you to make sure that you were doing alright."

He waited for a few minutes, waiting for his time to come. Ginny came by and gave him a thumbs up before heading to her own seat. Exiting the room he walked towards where the ceremony was and official opened the door with a flick of his wrist. Across the way he saw Albus coming towards him, looking carefully put together in his vest, button up and slacks. Scorpius felt overdressed in his blazer, but he was used to that by now.

"Hey, relax." Al placed on hand on the taller man's shoulder as the stood in front of the official. "I got you."

"I know." Scorpius stood closer and reached to touch him as well, his hand resting on the middle of his back. The rest of the ceremony flashed before his eyes. The vows he agreed with, memorized the words, but he couldn't tell you what exactly happened. When it was announced they were supposed to kiss, they paused for a moment, but when he looked into Al's eyes everything was fine. He leaned down and Al stretched a bit, their arms going around each other and a kissed. Everything in that moment made sense. Al was safe. When he kissed he wasn't pushing harder than Scorpius, they had the same amount of pressure. It wasn't like Lily, free falling and terrifying or Steve were it was much too tentative or worse yet, Ophelia with her sticky sweet lip gloss.

For the first time in his life Scorpius understood the appeal of a family and a 9 to 5 job…When they clasped hands and he saw the wedding band on his finger he was ready for all that. He was ready to do it with Al.