What just hit him? A wad of newspaper? What in the name of Salazar?
"Good morning, Malfoy."
He jumped off the couch and spun around.
"Oh, it's just you"
"Now is that any way to speak to your host?" Harry chuckled as he poured Draco a cup of coffee.
"Thanks mate. Hey, where's Eden?" She wasn't on the couch when he woke up.
"What do you mean, shouldn't she be in her room?" Harry had an obviously fake look of confusion on his face.
"Well, she-we-ahem. Shefellasleepinmylaponthecouch" he stumbled the words out as he drank his coffee. Harry had a grin spread across his face. He was enjoying this way too much.
"Oh I know. Hermione came barging in our room and dragged me out here in the middle of the night just to see that. She was gushing about how cute you were-"
"Ok ok I get it geez!" Draco rolled his eyes. "You never answered my question though."
"Oh right, Eden and Hermione went to meet with McGonagall and bring her up to speed on everything. Eden is eager to get back to Hogwarts, but we want to make sure everything is safe."
"That's good. I think it'll be good for her to have something to do besides sitting here worrying all day."
"I know what else would be good for her."
"Shut it, Potter!"
Harry raised his hands in surrender. "I was just thinking it'd be good for her to get outside and get some fresh air, what were you thinking of?" He wore a wicked smirk on his face with one eyebrow raised.
"Watch it Potter. We both know what you were really thinking. She's not ready. I'm not going to push her into a relationship after just leaving a horrible one. That wouldn't end well for either of us."
"Honestly I agree, but don't let her hear you talk about what she is and isn't ready for. I know from experience that'll only get your shoulder smacked."
"How did we get ourselves such headstrong women?"
"Hey you had the opportunity for a docile society wife and you turned it down. Besides, Eden's not your woman…yet."
"Ugh don't remind me. Astoria's nice and pretty, but we never would have made each other happy. And maybe someday I'll have a chance with Eden, but she's just not emotionally available right now. It wouldn't be fair to her or me to enter into a relationship before she's ready."
Harry chuckled as he finished his tea. "Maybe you should've been a mind healer, Draco, you certainly sound like one."
"That's because half the reason I came out on the other side after the war was because Hermione pushed me into seeing one. I still see him every once in a while. That wife of yours really knows her stuff."
"And to think, you used to have a thing for her."
"Harry-"
"I'm just joking Malfoy, I know nothing ever really happened there. I'm not threatened by it. You only have eyes for a certain Irish redhead now anyway."
Draco didn't know what to say to that, so he just stared into his coffee. He raised it to his lips when Harry continued.
"Merlin, one day you might have Seamus as a brother-in-law"
Draco spit out his coffee and began coughing. He shot Harry a glare.
Harry bent over laughing, barely managing to get words out, "Merlin, that'll be something."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Godric, Ms. Finnagan. From what you and Mrs Potter have told me, you've been through an awful lot, you poor dear. Don't worry about a thing! It sounds like Mr and Mrs Potter have taken care of a lot of the logistics, so of course you are most welcome back here. After the war, we redid all of the wards around the school so you are perfectly safe here. No one enters the grounds without me being alerted. I can also give you a list of mind healers we've worked closely with since the war. They've helped students and other staff immensely."
"Thank you, Headmistress. I'm sorry I've caused such a fuss."
"You've done no such thing! I'm just glad you've gotten away from the vile monster. I do have a question for you, Hermione."
"Yes maam?"
"Do you know if Mr Malfoy is planning on returning as well? If so, I'll need to let Mr Johnson know of the arrangement."
"I believe so. You see, he got into a rather violent confrontation with Mr. Dolohov once he realized Eden's situation. So I believe it would be best if he came back here as well, to prevent any further issues."
"Quite right. I for one am glad he was there when you most needed him, Ms Finnagan. Well, I'll have Mr Filch and the house elves ready both apartments. Would you ladies like to join me for tea?"
Hermione glanced at Eden before nodding her head. "It would be our pleasure."
Once the tea was poured and snacks served, McGonagall continued her conversation. "Now, Ms. Finnagan, have you made any contact with your brother?"
"No ma'am, you see he's working in the States, with their ministry and Muggle government. I don't want to bother him with this."
Hermione had forgotten all about poor Seamus. Why hadn't she thought to contact him? "Nonsense, Eden. He's your brother, he cares about your wellbeing. He should know about this."
"Fine, I'll send him a letter via muggle post. I don't want him to come racing back here and interrupt his work. I'm away from Ivan and I have my friends for support now." She smiled at Hermione, who reached over and patted her hand. "I really just want to get back to work, to feel a sense of routine and normalcy."
"I can understand that Ms. Finnagan. Well, I appreciate you bringing this to my attention and staying for tea, but I'm afraid I must be going, I have a board meeting in 10 minutes. Stay as long as you like, and you're more than welcome to use my floo."
"Thank you again, Headmistress."
"You are most welcome, Ms. Finnagan. Mrs. Potter." She left the girls with a smile and headed down the steps.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
New fanfic chapter 8
The remainder of the first term went without incident. Draco and Eden had settled back into their respective teaching positions and grown closer than ever.
Seamus had come to visit despite Eden's protests, along with their mother. After seeing she was okay and giving Harry, Hermione, and Draco his sincere thanks, he reluctantly went back to work in the states.
After exams they sent their students off for the Christmas break and began planning their holiday. Harry and Hermione would spend Christmas Eve with the Weasleys, but usually spent Christmas Day with Draco. This year Eden would be joining them, as her mom chose to go visit Seamus in the states.
It was two weeks before Christmas and Draco decided to go to Diagon Alley to do some shopping. He had invited Eden but she refused. She still didn't feel safe leaving Hogwarts. He understood.
She had been seeing a mind healer twice a month since the incident, and he noticed it had helped her immensely. She no longer flinched when anyone touched her, and according to her, she was no longer having nightmares. She was almost back to her old self. Almost. He still noticed sometimes she would look over her shoulder, or jump at a loud noise. And she never left Hogwarts. He knew though that she wasn't going to be okay just overnight. It would take time for her heart to heal. And he'd be right there beside her the whole way.
He was musing on this as he made his way to Madame Malkin's, looking for the perfect gift for her. He had gotten Harry a new pair of quidditch gloves and Hermione a new quill set, plus those sugar quills she loved so much. He picked up some of his mother's favorite chocolate. Even though she wasn't speaking to him, he still sent her chocolate for Christmas and her birthday. He never received a response, so he didn't know if she ever actually ate it.
The last person he had to shop for was Eden. He noticed she liked to do her hair up in fancy trinkets, like they used to do in the European Renaissance age. And he had to admit it always made her long curly locks look like a work of art. That's why he came by madame Malkins. He wanted to find a pretty new trinket for her hair.
As he perused the shelves, he passed by a silver hair pin. It was a circle with the pin attached by a thin chain. On the circle was a twisted silver branch, and at the top, a blue sapphire sitting at the center of a silver raven, reminding him of Ravenclaw's diadem. This was perfect. It was a little pricey, but he had some money saved. He quickly purchased the trinket, shrunk the packages, and headed back out to the street.
He felt lighter than air as he strolled Diagon Alley, looking for a place to stop for dinner. After he ate, it was dark, so he headed back to the apparition point. However, he felt uneasy for some reason, like someone was following him. He glanced over his shoulder just in time to see a shadow disappear into an alleyway. He was being followed. He made three right turns in a row, and still, every time he looked back, he just barely saw that shadow still behind him. He grabbed his wand and kept walking. Once he reached an unpopulated area, he spun around, sending a nonverbal expelliarmus into the darkness. The next thing he saw was a purple flash of light, and the world went black.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Stupefy!" The spell hit the assailant in the back, causing him to fall forward. Ron cast a quick patronus to his team of aurors and approached the man. He was large, Russian if he had to guess, but he didn't recognize him. He then turned his attention to Draco. He wasn't bleeding but was writhing in pain before he finally passed out. He knew that spell. He sent another patronus to Harry and as soon as his auror team arrived to arrest the other man, Ron levitated Malfoy, going to the nearest floo to St Mungo's.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Draco awoke to bright lights. Somewhat blinded, he groaned and tried to sit up. Nope. That hurt. A lot. He laid back down and turned his head. Asleep in a chair in a corner was Hermione, curled up in a ball. He smiled at that and looked to his other side.
He saw Eden, also asleep, leaning onto the side of his bed from a chair, hand outstretched like she had been holding his. Had she? Why did she leave Hogwarts? What happened to him that was so bad it caused her to leave her safe haven? Who was that person following him? What was that spell he was hit with? He wanted answers. Hopefully the healer or nurse could give him some. Just as he was about to call someone, Harry walked in.
"Hey mate, how are you feeling?"
"Like I got hit by a bludger."
"If only it was just a bludger."
"That bad, huh?"
"They almost lost you at one point. If Ron hadn't found you when he did, you might have died."
"Ron? As in Weasley?"
"One and the same. He saved your life."
"He's never going to let me live that down."
"Probably not."
"Bugger. So what happened?"
"Well, what do you remember?"
"I remember feeling like someone was following me. It was dark, and I tried to disarm them but missed. Then I saw a flash of purple light. It must have been a nonverbal spell; I never heard it. Then I woke up here. How long have I been out?"
"Four days"
"Great Salazar! Four days? What in Merlin's name was I hit with?"
"Well that took a bit of detective work on Ron's part. At the very beginning of the war when Voldemort attacked the ministry, Hermione was dueling Antonin Dolohov and was hit by a nonverbal purple spell. It didn't leave any outward physical marks but caused severe internal injuries, literally killing the person from the inside out. Ron recognized it after noting the similarities between how both you and Hermione reacted to the spell. Once the aurors showed up and the man was later identified as Ivan Dolohov, that confirmed you were probably hit with the same curse Hermione had been years ago. Apparently Ivan is Antonin's nephew. He must have shared the curse with him. Nonetheless, you're lucky Ron was there, otherwise you'd be toast."
"Of course it was Dolohov. He's in custody now, right?"
"Yes. He's being transferred back to the Russian ministry for trial. Charges include attempted murder and domestic abuse."
"Thank Merlin. He'll finally see some justice."
"Indeed"
"Wait. Why was Ron there? I was in Diagon Alley all day and never saw him."
"Well, this is the part where you're going to have to remember he saved your life."
"What did he do?"
"He saw Ivan following you. And thinking of you like he does, he thought you were meeting up with this shady character to do Godric knows what. So he followed both of you. He saw the entire exchange, though, so he knows you weren't actually up to no good."
"Why am I not surprised? Isn't it time he just let it go?"
At that moment, Ron walked in. He looked sheepish, with his hands in his pockets and shoulders by his ears. "Hey Malfoy, I heard that last bit and you're right. I'm sorry it took me this long to let our petty differences go. I'm sorry I followed you, I should've known better."
Draco held up his hand. "Stop right there, Weasel. I, for one, am very thankful that you chose to follow me; otherwise, I'd be dead. So, thank you for being suspicious of me and not leaving me to die. Oh, and for having Ivan arrested."
Ron looked like a deer in headlights. Harry bumped his shoulder and said, "You better take it mate because that's all the thanks you're going to get."
"Uh sure, this doesn't mean I like you or that we're friends or anything."
"Wouldn't dream of it"
"Ugh you two are hopeless" the three men turned their heads to the chair in the corner, noticing that Hermione was awake.
"Oh come on Hermione, it's just the bloody ferret." Ron said.
"Hey!" Draco shouted, waking up Eden in the process.
"Can't a lass get any sleep around here?" She sat up and rubbed her eyes.
Draco flashed her a smile. "Sorry, love, someone has decided to be petty and call people names."
"And that's my cue. Get well ferret!" Ron waved as he left the room, dodging the tissue box Draco threw at him.
Hermione stood and crossed her arms. "I swear you two are worse than children!"
"Hey, he started it!"
Eden stood and patted Draco's hand. "Don't get so worked up; we need to go let the healer know you're awake and see about busting you out of here."
"Thank Merlin, I'm already sick of this bed." With that the trio walked out. Draco wasn't about to admit it to them, but the conversation had worn him out. He laid back in the bed and drifted off to sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
New fanfic ch 9
Two days later, Draco was released to go home. He was still on bedrest for a week, and for two weeks after that, he was confined to a wheelchair. His friends were determined to make the best of it though. Hermione had brought in a muggle television to his apartment, and the four of them spent most nights watching Christmas movies. At least one of them shared meals with him throughout the day, and even a few of his students visited. One afternoon, Eden had brought him lunch, and they ate in comfortable silence. That is, until Draco noticed her leg bouncing. She was nervous. Why?
"Eden? Is something wrong?"
"What? No, nothing's wrong. I don't think."
"You don't think? Come on, love, you can talk to me."
Eden ran her hand through her hair and sighed. "Do you remember the first night we met? When we had dinner with Harry and Hermione, and you asked me to dinner?"
"Yes, of course I do"
"Well, I almost took you up on it."
"I understand why you didn't"
"I had just had my first fight with Ivan, when I left to go to Hogwarts. He was so cold to me, even in his floo calls and letters. I thought about breaking it off then. I was so angry at him. I almost wanted to go to dinner with you if not just to get back at him. That wouldn't have been right though. So I stuck it out. Boy was I wrong."
"You couldn't have known-"
"I know, but what it is the muggles say, hind sight is 20/20? If I knew then what I know now, I would've had no problem accepting your offer."
"So you only turned me down because of Ivan? Not because you weren't attracted to me?"
"Merlin's beard, Draco, of course I find you attractive! I'm not blind for goodness sakes! I felt guilty finding you so attractive while I was dating someone else. Even after the incident with Ivan, I've been attracted to you, and not just for your looks either. Wipe that smirk off your face, Malfoy, your head still has to fit through the door!"
Draco laughed at that and turned to brush a stray hair out of her face. "So what's stopped you? I have certainly wanted to have a relationship with you, but I wanted to make sure you were ready. I didn't want to push you."
"I know and I appreciate that. I think I just thought you deserved better. Someone who wasn't so broken. You deserved someone who could give all of herself to you, and I didn't think I could give you that. But after Ivan attacked you and you almost died, I realized I couldn't live a life without you in it and be happy. I don't want to make that mistake again. I'm ready now; I probably have been. I was just too scared to take that next step because I've been so broken, and I didn't trust myself to make good decisions. But now…now I just want you, Draco." She grabbed both of his hands in hers as a stray tear streamed down her face.
Draco reached his hands up to cup her face and wiped her tear with his thumb. He rested his forehead on hers, "You have me, Eden. You've had me since that night I asked you to dinner. And I'll always be yours, if you'll have me." He bridged the space between them and brushed her lips with a kiss softer than air. When they broke the kiss, he embraced her and kissed the top of her head. "Happy Christmas Eve, Eden."
"Merry Christmas, Draco."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Harry and Hermione were surprised to show up at Draco's apartment to find it decorated to the nines for Christmas. They were even more surprised when they found Eden in Draco's lap snogging him in the wheelchair.
"Get a room!" Harry shouted.
This made Eden jump out of the chair and turn beet red. Draco just laughed and tossed a throw pillow at Harry. Hermione giggled and ran over to Eden. "Finally! I didn't want to rush you but Godric, it's about time!"
"Oh sod off! The elves will be here any minute with dinner! You can put the gifts under the tree and I'll go to the kitchen to start some tea."
Harry chuckled and bent down to whisper to Draco. "Mate, you haven't been dating her for five minutes and she's already bossing everyone about."
"I heard that!"
Draco laughed and Harry tried to cover himself with a cough, then they set about doing as instructed.
When the elves came with dinner, they were stunned at the feast laid before them. Harry and Hermione had made Christmas cookies for all of the elves and began passing out the bags to thank them.
As they ate, they laughed and talked about anything and everything. Just like old times. When they could eat no more, the group moved to the living room. Harry and Hermione shared the couch while Eden resumed her place in Draco's lap. Harry gave each of them a package, and they began to tear it open. Both were a bit confused to find tiny robes inside, Draco's Slytherin and Eden's Ravenclaw. Eden figured it out first.
"Oh sweet Merlin! Hermione!" She leapt out of Draco's lap and ran to hug her friend. It dawned on Draco soon after, and a large smile spread across his face as he clapped Harry on the back. "Congratulations mate. A baby. Wow. That's big."
"Tell me about it. I'm terrified."
Eden turned to him, "Oh, nonsense! You'll do great!" She began peppering them with questions. "When are you due? Do you have any names picked out? How are you feeling? Do you know the sex yet?"
"Love, let them breathe! I'm sure they'll tell us all in time!"
She finally released Hermione and came to hug Harry's neck. "Sorry, I'm just so excited! I love babies! You two will be the greatest parents!" She kissed his cheek then went to the tree to receive her packages. "Now I don't think I could top that news, but I hope you like them nonetheless."
Harry opened his to reveal a red and gold beanie, while Hermione got a red and gold headband. Hermione marveled at the gift, "I didn't know you knitted?"
Eden waggled her finger and laughed, "Crocheted…there is a difference and don't you forget it."
Draco chuckled at that. "Those are a sight better than those jumpers Mrs Weasley makes you every year!"
Hermione smacked his shoulder, "Shut it, Draco! She works hard on those!"
Draco shot a desperate look at Eden. "Are you just going to sit there and let her treat me like this, while I'm laid up no less?"
It was Eden's turn to smack him. "She's right! A lot of love and effort goes into handmade things. If you shut your gob and opened your gift, you'd see!"
He opened the gift and his mouth dropped in awe. He lifted it out of the box to reveal a black cloak (also crocheted) with the Slytherin crest embroidered on the back. The hood and hem of the cape boasted silver trim. The clasp was a silver metal snake's head with a matching silver loop. It was beautiful. This had to have taken her ages.
"Eden, this is beautiful, thank you love" he gave her a chaste kiss and folded the cloak back up. "My turn! Hermione, would you mind grabbing my gifts?" With a nod of her head, she passed them out. Harry thanked him for the gloves, and Hermione gushed over the quills, both the sugar ones and the real ones. Now it was Eden's turn. Why was he nervous? Surely she would like it, right? Hopefully she didn't think it was too gaudy.
Eden's eyes bulged and she gasped, bringing her hand to cover her mouth. "Draco…"
"Do you like it?"
"Like it? Draco, it's beautiful. I love it, this is too much."
"Never. Would you like to try it out?" His suggestion was purely selfish. He wanted to see her in it. He loved when she did her hair up fancy.
Eden giggled, "I'll be right back," and she ran to the bathroom.
Harry cast a sideways glance toward Draco. "Should we leave? I didn't get to see what it was, but it seemed like a pretty intimate gift."
"What? No no stay, it's just a bobble for her hair."
Harry let out a sigh of relief. "Oh good, I didn't feel like gouging my eyes out today."
Draco sent him a sneer, and Hermione smacked his shoulder. Again. They sipped on their hot chocolate for a few minutes before Eden returned. "What do you think?"
Hermione gasped, "Oh, Eden, it's lovely! And it suits you so well! Good job, Draco!"
"You look beautiful, love," he gave her cheek a kiss before she sat back down in his lap. And she did; the blue of the sapphire complimented her eyes perfectly. She had pulled the top layer of her hair back into a loop and placed the pin so it would stay. It created the perfect half up do. She also took a few strands of curls out to frame her face. She looked a vision. A work of art. A work of art he planned on admiring for a long time to come.