Ember to Ember (Sequel to Volunteers) Chapter 12
Author's Note: Yeah, so this is the last chapter. And since this story is supposed to be taking place in 2007/2008, y'all can imagine that this chapter is happening... well, right now. Somewhere in an AU where Deathly Hallows didn't happen in quite the same way, what with some folks not being very dead, and others regrettably unavailable for an Epilogue ;)
Thanks hugely to scrtkpr for betaing this twice, again, and to naatz, for wonderful beta as well :) :)
Now, because this is the last chapter and it's April 30, I get to do a little plug! As I've mentioned before, this is a sequel to Volunteers, a fic written for hds_beltane. hds_beltane was a gift exchange created last year by twistedm, for fics featuring H/D/S in different combinations and permutations, with postings going up during the month of Beltane (May), and often featuring a Beltane theme.
Guess what starts tomorrow? The second round!
So: Go! Read! It's a brand new set of fics at hds_beltane. You know you want to :) :)
Title: Ember to Ember
Chapter: 12 (of 12)
Pairing: H/D
Word count: 5000.
Chapter 1: May
Chapter 2: June
Chapter 3: July
Chapter 4: August
Chapter 5: September
Chapter 6: October
Chapter 7: November
Chapter 8: December
Chapter 9: January
Chapter 10: February
Chapter 11: March (previous)
Date: March 27
From: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
To: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
Got held up. Start dinner without me.
Date: March 31
From: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
To: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
At St. Mungo's, nothing to worry about. Troll had a nervous breakdown and we're being treated for Trollbogey burns. Don't expect me home tonight.
Date: April 20
From: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
To: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
Rehearsal going into overtime tonight. Am about to kill the director. Could you pick up Ben?
Also, re. the Muggle Liaison e-mails, I'll set up my account so everything I get as Liaison gets automatically cc'd to you.
Date: April 20
From: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
To: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
I'll pick up Ben and I'm hoping you can explain what the hell cc'd means. BTW, want me there for your parole session?
Date: April 20
From: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
To: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
No thanks. Having a lot of Firewhisky ready on hand for after might be a good plan though. And look at you, using internet acronyms. Very sexy.
Date: April 21
From: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
To: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
>:)
oooOOOooo
April 30
"Draco? When do we go on?" asked Alec, and Draco suppressed the urge to snap at him. It was only the fifth time he'd asked.
"Just a few more songs," he said patiently. Merlin, but he wished he hadn't agreed to attend this. Dinner entertainment at a London art pub; not his first choice of performing venue. And he very much wished that his own performances hadn't been spliced here and there in the program. It would've been very nice to just sing and leave.
On the other hand, he had to admit this was a pretty good crowd, and it was good publicity for Kara, and for himself as well. The theme of the concert was the British Isles, so there were a lot of tourists, many groups and singers. Ironic, that just as he was leaving Ireland, he should be doing a concert where about a third of the songs celebrated it.
He was leaving Ireland. It kept hitting him as a surprise for some reason, and he was only now realizing he was going to miss it a great deal. He'd lived there for almost nine years, and even though he knew he'd never really belonged, being both English and a wizard, he'd felt at home there. As much as he could feel at home anywhere, being a foreigner among Muggles whether any of them knew it or not, and an exile in his own world.
He belonged with Ben, though. And with Harry and Alec. There was a lot to be said for that.
"Can you come sit with us after our song is done?" Alec asked.
Draco nodded. "Yes, of course. My choir won't sing again for a while after that. Ben, stop picking," he said, pulling Ben's fingers away from his nose.
"It still burns," Ben sulked.
"So next time, don't put a vinegared chip up your nose," Draco said, amused. "You're old enough to know better."
Onstage an interminable Irish singalong had some of the drunker patrons singing along and calling out responses, and it really was rather remarkable that, for a country so famous for poetry and music, what Ireland seemed to churn out most prodigiously were simplistic, forgettable drinking songs. And Harry and his family were singing along with the chorus. Draco suppressed an eye-roll. Not that it didn't have its own charm, but it was so typical that the Weasleys would latch onto it with gusto. The finer things in life were wasted on them.
He shook himself mentally. No, that wasn't the right attitude. His life, god help him, included Weasleys now, and he'd best get used to them. It wasn't that hard. Ron and Hermione - they'd even progressed to first names, and not just because calling Ron "Weasley" would be confusing - were at his place about once a week, so far with no casualties, and Harry's parents-in-law were fairly inoffensive. The other Weasleys, he could do without. Bill and George were friendly enough, but he still couldn't look at Bill's scars without a humbling sense of shame. And there were far too many unpleasant memories attached to George Weasley, the very least of which was the beating Draco had endured from him in his fifth year. The glasses and the stammer always made Draco think of his own father's crimes, and they weren't pleasant thoughts.
Fred and Percy were just uncomfortable to be around. Despite what Fred had said to him at the hospital, there was no love lost between them, and likely never would be.
Funny that the Weasleys he would have the least problems with were the one he'd once written a mocking song about and the one he'd called Mudblood.
Finally, the drunken singalong was done, and Draco followed his choir and the children's choir onto the stage, wishing he were leading them instead of simply singing. The performance was enjoyable anyway, though the song itself was a little sentimental for his taste, all about exile and loss. Rather depressing, really. He cleared his mind and concentrated on the music, putting the meaning of the lyrics out of his mind.
Then they were off the stage so that Kara could sing her Johnny Be Fair and Irish Ballad solos, and he brought the kids back to the table where Harry and his family were sitting. He glanced around the place; about half the people in the audience seemed to be musicians and singers.
"She's quite talented, isn't she?" said Hermione, leaning over to speak to him. "My mum saw an advert for her next show."
"Yeah, she's doing well."
Kara certainly loved it here; she was getting gigs almost every day, she was where the action was, and her star was rising. Paradoxically, she was a better mother now that she wasn't around as much any more, because she missed Ben, and made the most of her time with him, instead of dragging him along to most of her functions. Not that she'd ever been a bad mother, per se. Just a somewhat distracted one.
"She's taking Ben tomorrow for Beltane, is she?"
"Yeah, thank god. We really needed her last year."
"We should've thought this concert thing through better" said Harry. "It's over far too late. The boys'll be exhausted for tomorrow."
"I've got child-safe Pepper-Up."
"You're going to get there in the morning, right?" said Hermione. "Set up the last of the wards?"
He nodded. "Have to leave early, too; it's a three-Floo trip out there."
She grimaced. "How annoying."
"I'll be very glad when the term's over and I don't have to do it every day. It's not terribly time-consuming, but it is rather draining."
Harry nodded. "Well at least this year we know a lot of the issues that are likely to come up. I'm sure it'll be easier than last year."
"Oh, did you get the NewFace amulets?" Draco asked.
"Right here," said Harry, patting his shirt pocket. "Alec wanted one to make him look like Ben, so they'll both be dark. They'll look like brothers," he said, smiling. They hadn't thought it wise to bring the boys to Uisneach Hill this year, considering all the publicity, but Ben had been distraught at the thought of missing their last Beltane in Ireland, and Alec had been adamant that if Ben was going, he wanted to go too. "The one they got for you is dark too. So, with Kara there, you'll all look like a family, and I'll just be some bloke who hangs around with you."
"I'm still a little surprised that your parole officer said you could use a disguise," Ron said.
"I think having Gr- Hermione argue on my behalf helped a great deal." She'd pointed out that they didn't have time to find another Muggle Liaison, and, as Draco was volunteering his time in the service of the wizarding and Muggle community, he should be allowed to keep himself safe. It hadn't hurt that Harry had briefly dropped in on the meeting either.
"Ben, sit," said Ron, as the audience laughed and clapped for the end of Kara's song. "Your mum'll be along soon."
"You know, if they'd said no, you still could've gone," Harry chuckled, leaning closer and speaking low into Draco's ear, and an unexpected shiver ran down Draco's back. "Been the Green Man again?"
"No thank you," Draco said, the shiver unceremoniously morphing into a shudder. "Sex with a woman once was enough."
"Really?" Harry's eyebrows went up. "Only one?"
Draco nodded, checking the program. Three more songs.
"What about men?"
Draco thought a moment. "Erm. Seven. Theo Nott, and five Muggles. And you."
"Oh." Harry blinked. "I didn't realize that."
"What?"
"You seemed very... experienced," Harry said, and somehow the shivery feeling was back. Draco's smirking response died mid-chuckle as he felt Harry's hand on his leg. Harry was smiling brightly at him and above the table it looked totally innocent. Beneath it, fingers were creeping up his thigh.
Draco glanced at the stage. Only two more songs till he went on. Bugger...
His mind was speeding ahead, performing quick calculations involving their distance from the washrooms, average density of the crowd, audial background, proximity of children, density of Weasleys - both in terms of numbers and perceptiveness - and coming up distressingly short in terms of being able to take this anywhere satisfactory.
"Not a good idea..." he murmured, pulse racing.
"What's not a good idea?" Ron said, startling them both.
"Erm, getting a beer," Harry said hastily. "Interferes with music... things." Draco snickered and earned himself a sharp elbow.
"So Kara's happy in London, then?" asked Hermione.
Draco nodded, grateful for the topic change and nervously hoping his body would seize this excellent opportunity to settle a bit before he went back onstage. "Only thing that's upsetting her a bit is that Ben's already losing his accent. Don't think Kara realized that was going to happen."
"You never know," Harry said. "He may move back there at some point in his life, and get it back. Or pick it up. You did."
"I did?"
"Didn't you ever notice? You rolled your r's a bit more when I first met you."
Draco frowned. "Do I still?"
"I don't notice it. Not sure if it's that I got used to it or you don't do it any more."
"No, it's fading," said Fred. "Not that I've heard you talk much, but it was noticeable at first."
Draco nodded, as always a bit uneasy when one of the other Weasleys spoke to him. He checked his watch.
"Did you pick out your music tonight?" asked George.
"Merlin, no. I don't much mind Fields of Athenry or Will Ye No Come Back, but the director chose an absolutely execrable version of Loch Lomond." He wrinkled his nose, then noticed their director signaling for their choir to gather again. "Speaking of which, I'll be back later." He ruffled Alec and Ben's hair and headed for the stage, thanking Merlin he'd been able to get his body's reaction to Harry under control... at least visibly.
Don't look at Harry, he reminded himself. It was normally a bit of a charge, knowing Harry was in the audience, occasionally catching his eye... but he wouldn't put it past Harry to raise an eyebrow suggestively, or smile at him the way he knew would make Draco get so very - yeah, no, best not look. Think about music instead.
It was going to be rather boring for a while, he thought as they began Will Ye No, not having a choir of his own to lead. Though he had been asked to temporarily lead a wizarding choir whose director was ill. Hadn't decided on that offer yet; it was tempting, but he wasn't sure all the members - or the audiences - would want him there. It did help that the choir was mostly half-bloods, and about half their concerts were for Muggles.
The irony was not lost on him.
Alec adored this song, with its wistful longing for a return of what had been. Another song of a failed battle, though this one was Scottish, not Irish. Maybe that was why he'd felt at home in Ireland; it was a land that had lost, and lost rather spectacularly, but not been bowed down.
Then they were done, and he could look at Harry again, and there was only one more song to go before it was time to take their kids home. He headed for the washroom as another soloist began a vaguely humorous ditty making fun of traditional Irish ballads.
Oh, wonderful, he thought as he got to the loo and found Fred Weasley already waiting in line there. There was a short, awkward silence.
"It's so strange, you doing Muggle things," said Fred abruptly.
"I suppose so. I'm used to it."
"Everything ready for tomorrow?"
"Almost."
"Worried about publicity?"
Draco shook his head. "We've got the NewFace amulets. Thanks, by the way. Besides, I did the job last year with no serious problems."
"Different this year. You've been in the news."
"I know." He shrugged. "Just have to hope the people who are still holding a grudge don't like to travel."
Fred frowned. "You can't blame people for holding a grudge. You may think it was no big deal-"
"I've never thought that," Draco said evenly. "I have never defended any of what I did. Or anything my family did."
"You said you were sorry and then you did an act for the parole board," Fred said, barely suppressing a sneer. "Doesn't wipe away the consequences of what you did, not that you'd care-"
"Says the man responsible for giving Byron Montague nightmares for years."
Fred blinked. "Who?"
"You and your brother shoved him into a disappearing cabinet."
Fred's face cleared. "Inquisitorial Squad Montague? Gobshite had it coming-"
"He was stuck in there for days. And he wasn't ever the same afterwards. Jumped at shadows for a long time, terrified of being locked in again. Did you care about the consequences when you did that? Did you ever pay for it?"
"You're comparing that to what you-"
Draco shook his head, impatient with himself for bringing it up. "No. Sorry. Shouldn't've brought it up."
"You're damned right."
The bathroom door opened, and Fred moved towards it. Draco put out his hand. "You know," he said conversationally as Fred turned to look at him, "Your sister's portrait is on our night table. Every morning when I wake up, I see her. I sleep with her widower and I'm raising her son, and I know they both lost her because of the man I chose to follow. Harry loves me, but he'll never stop missing her. My son has a mother, but Alec doesn't, and there's nothing we can do to fill the hole that's left in his life. There were consequences to what we did, I know that. I see them every day. I don't need to be reminded."
Fred gave him a hard stare, then went into the washroom.
And damn it, it was time for his final song, and he hadn't had a chance to use the loo. He hurried onstage, and gave a start as Harry's voice spoke into his ear.
"... did you say to him?"
"I t-told him he was going to lose Alec," said another voice, and Draco blinked, realizing the cheap Remote Ear connection to Harry that the Aurors had provided him with for security had turned on, again, and he could now hear whatever was going on at Harry's table. And... bugger, he couldn't take out his wand to stop it, here in the midst of his Muggle choir...
"What?" said Harry.
"I told him that if he k-kept it up he was going to lose the only bit of G-Ginny we had left. Told him not to be a c-complete arse or Alec would s-start to hate him."
Harry sighed. "You lost Ginny too. And you lost a lot more. Why can you move on and he can't?"
"I was a b-bit pissed at you at first," George admitted. "It p-passed." There was a pause. "So, how's it g-going? Living together?"
Draco's heart skipped a beat.
Harry cleared his throat, and there was a low chuckle from somebody near Harry.
"Oh really? That good?" said Ron.
Good thing the stage lights were fairly low-key, because his cheeks felt like they were burning and his stomach felt oddly light. He determinedly kept his eyes on the director and not Harry.
"I... I still think, sometimes, that... that it shouldn't feel this good." Harry cleared his throat again. "I... I wonder what Ginny would've said."
"She's gone, mate," Ron said. "And I'm not just saying rubbish like 'She would've wanted you to be happy.' She's gone, and you can't live your life double-guessing yourself and only doing things she would've approved of."
"She didn't like him much."
"None of us did," said Ron reasonably. "We were kids. We're not any more. What she would've wanted or not wanted for you isn't really relevant, I don't think." There was a pause. "And don't worry about Fred. Or Percy or Anne. They might never really come around. But..."
"But it's n-not your problem, mate."
"And as for Ginny," said Ron, "remember you two joked you'd start your kids' names with A, and see how far down the alphabet you'd go?"
"Yeah."
"Maybe she'd l-like it that you got to B at least, yeah?"
Harry chuckled. "Maybe."
All right, now Draco felt like laughing and crying, which was just... ridiculous. And generations of Malfoys were probably spinning in their graves.
There was a long pause. "Still miss her, don't you?" asked Demelza.
There was a small indistinct sound from Harry.
"It's all right if you don't think about her as much," she said. "That's supposed to happen, eventually."
"Not sure I really want it to."
"You c-can't have three of you in that bed," George pointed out.
Draco breathed a sigh of relief as they began their final song, the one that started out with such a promisingly beautiful solo and such wonderful interweaving of music, and degenerated into such inane and pointless vocal fiddling around. At least it drowned out the sound from the Remote Ear. He drove the conversation out of his mind and just concentrated on the way his part and Kara's wove together.
And soon enough, the stupid thing was over, and they could finally leave. He made his way back to Harry's table, started to pick Alec up out of Molly's lap, and Alec blinked sleepily.
"No, I want to listen to the last song," he said, and Draco and Harry glanced at Ben, sleeping soundly in Arthur's lap, and shrugged.
"And now we've roamed the Isles enough, let's end it with a toast to right here," said the emcee, and a soloist began singing Streets of London, with the crowd joining in with the chorus. A sad and a fitting end to the day.
"We'll see you tomorrow," said Hermione, as he and Harry carried their sleeping children to the Floo.
oooOOOooo
Draco put Ben in the lower bunk as Harry floated Alec up to the top. Ben turned in his sleep, pillowing his head on his arms, forehead scrunching up a bit. Draco ran a hand over his dreadlocks as Harry whispered "Goodnight, boys," gave them both a kiss, and left the room.
Draco sat on his son's bed for a few moments, watching him peacefully sleeping. It really was different, this living together business. There was a lot more chaos to his life now, though part of that was due to the daily three-Floo commuting he had to do. Alec was easy to live with - as easy as any five-year-old could be - and he and Ben were getting along just fine. There were more fights than before, but they passed quickly and without lasting harm. He supposed it was as close to a sibling relationship as any. Even the extended family wasn't so bad, now that they were finally getting used to Ben and Draco.
Odd, that Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy's grandson now saw Arthur and Molly Weasley as his grandparents.
He stood and brushed Alec's hair back from his forehead as Alec turned over and hummed a bit of a tune, and he headed for his own room, closing their door behind him. He glanced at their picture shelf in the hallway, where magical photographs of Kara and Ginny Weasley smiled and waved, and felt sorry for Ginny. It was anybody's guess whether she would've understood her singularly un-Weasley child, but somehow he knew she would've loved him and been proud of him.
"Are you coming to bed?" Harry asked from their bedroom. Draco smiled and joined Harry in their room, taking his lips in a slow kiss, chuckling as Harry returned it and deepened it.
"Really? Harry, it's past midnight."
"I know, but both of us don't need to be at the Hill early tomorrow. You sleep in and I'll go there early, set up the wards."
"All right." He closed and leaned back against their door, letting Harry run soft lips down his neck. He reached back and untied Harry's hair, enjoying the silky feel of it running through his fingers, black and silver strands tumbling in a wave down Harry's back. He drew in his breath as Harry knelt down, undoing Draco's Muggle trousers, pulling aside the black shirt he'd worn for the concert. There was something incredibly sensual about a lover's hands undressing you. Especially when they were so slow and gentle, so familiar. He groaned as Harry took him into his mouth.
He dropped his head back against the wall, running his fingers through Harry's hair, closing his eyes as Harry's lips touched him softly and Harry's tongue started to do wicked things to him. His heartbeat sped up, and he moaned quietly, sparks racing through him as Harry chuckled at the sound and the vibrations ran through him.
"Like it?" Harry said, breaking off for a moment, then took him back into his mouth in a way that made it extremely difficult to answer. He pulled Harry up in response, bringing their mouths together again, and reached down to undo Harry's trousers, slipping a hand inside.
Harry moaned. "Erm. How do you want to..."
"Up to you," Draco answered, a bit breathless.
"Well, since you're going to be sleeping in a bit tomorrow, why don't you do all the work tonight?"
Draco chuckled as they moved to the bed, and he continued to remove Harry's trousers, grinning when Harry gasped and closed his eyes. Harry bit his lip as Draco stroked him, then pulled off his own glasses and Draco's, setting them on the bedside table. They slowly removed each other's clothing, finally ending up skin on skin, tongues embracing, hands roaming over familiar planes.
He gently pushed Harry onto his back, and Harry waved a small bottle over towards them. Draco took his time, rubbing lube on and gently relaxing Harry to take him in. He recalled their first time together, how tense Harry had been, how Draco could almost feel his pain despite the obvious pleasure Harry had also felt. So different from now. Their dance now was familiar, warm, comfortable, and more than Draco could've imagined he'd ever have, a year ago.
"Come on," Harry whispered, and threw his head back with a groan as Draco entered him and settled over him, taking one hand in his and beginning to thrust, slowly, teasing him.
"I'm not in any hurry... I'm sleeping in tomorrow, remember?" he whispered back, and Harry bit his lip.
"Bloody hell... you've... got the worst sense of comic timing..." he whispered, his eyes closed, head beginning to move back and forth on the pillow, hips coming up to meet Draco's thrusts. "Draco, come on. Please. I need to come. Now."
Draco laughed and kissed him, thrusting faster, and soon Harry was bucking against him, crying out his name-
"Oh shit!" Harry's eyes suddenly popped open and he made a frantic wave towards the door. "Draco, silencing spell, the boys-"
Draco closed his eyes tightly and groaned, because fuck, if that wasn't dismal timing, nothing was. "Right." He rolled them over so that Harry was close enough to the night table to aim a wand and say the incantation, because having a small child knock on the door asking, "Daddy, are you having a nightmare?" right in the middle of an otherwise spectacular orgasm was an experience that, really, nobody needed to undergo more than once.
He settled over Harry again, breathing hard, bringing them back to where they'd been when Harry had so rudely interrupted them, panting as they reached for the summit together. Catching his breath at the sight beneath him, Harry's muscles working as his strong body writhed under Draco, he captured Harry's lips and gasped as Harry cried out, a warm wetness covering their stomach and they both came in the middle of a kiss, the brightness of their climax shining on and on, both gasping into each others' mouths and holding each other tightly.
And then it was over. He sighed into the warmth of Harry's neck, his eyes closing as Harry's lips ghosted over his face, his eyes, tenderness in every caress. Harry's fingertips absently tracing the Dark Mark as he pressed a line of kisses onto Draco's neck.
I still think, sometimes, that... that it shouldn't feel this good.
Draco closed his eyes, breathing in the scent of sex and sweat, and belonging and love.
"Mm, don't forget to set the alarm," Harry said, yawning.
"I won't."
"Oh, the amulets are near the sink for tomorrow." Harry smiled sleepily at him, and almost immediately fell asleep. Draco lay listening to him breathe for a while, then frowned. There was some kind of noise from the living room... a quiet clicking...
He carefully got up, absently soothing Harry as he made a soft questioning sound.
What the... oh. He chuckled at the long scarf, in Slytherin green and grey, that Molly had begun knitting for Ben, and allowed him to take home when he wheedled her into it. She'd evidently charmed the needles to put on more rolls of yarn when they ran out, because the scarf was now probably long enough to keep most of Slytherin House cosy, with a few Ravenclaws thrown in as well.
She should've used yellow and black yarn instead. That was one thing that he and Harry and the entire clan agreed on when it came to their kids: destined to be Hufflepuffs, the pair of them. Just and loyal, patient Hufflepuffs are true, and unafraid of toil. Although perhaps Alec's musical genius could put him into Ravenclaw, and Ben's bravery Sort him into Gryffindor. Slytherin wasn't an option, for either of them.
Odd that the thought didn't disturb him at all.
He stopped the needles and quieted down a small toy broom that had begun humming in the toy box. Checked the wards around the study; they'd had to send their desktop in for repairs once already, as spells interfered with electronics. It had taken the techs a while to fix it, and Draco was half convinced it had just fixed itself once it was away from magic long enough.
He should really see about finding a wizarding electronics store. Arthur or George might know of one. Or perhaps Hermione.
He checked their supply of Floo powder. Last day of term at Trinity College was May ninth, and he was eagerly anticipating the end of his daily commute. Saying goodbye to the people he'd known there would be a bit harder; he'd grown closer to his Muggle students and choir members, and the choir children, than he'd thought possible, and was only now realizing he'd genuinely miss many of them.
But.
Harry and Kara and Ben and Alec were here now. As well as a new job at the music college, courtesy of a parole officer who was a hell of a lot more professional and sympathetic than the one he'd left behind in Dublin. Maybe because of the small amount of positive publicity he'd received in the press, or because of Harry's support. Or maybe she just felt her job was supposed to be to help parolees live law-abiding lives, rather than make them miserable. She was a welcome change, anyway. She'd said that as long as he only used magic to 'nudge' the local college to give him a job he was actually qualified to do, she would allow it.
He headed back down the hall and stopped at their picture shelf again, gazing at a photo Kara had taken of himself and Ben at Beltane last year.
The embers of the Beltane bonfires had still been glowing when he and Harry had left Uisneach Hill almost exactly a year ago, full of hope and excitement and fear. He'd driven two hours back to Dublin, put Ben to bed, and not been able to get the memory of the kisses he and Harry had shared out of his head. Tomorrow there would be singing and dancing, a May Queen and a Horned King, White Women and Red Men, tourists and pagans and protestors, and at the end, the embers of another pair of bonfires. And who knew what the next year would bring.
Their bedroom door was open and he gazed in at Harry, sleeping peacefully. Then he picked up Ben's little goddess figure, sitting next to their pictures on the shelf.
For what it's worth, if you're somewhere out there... thanks. Somehow you knew what I needed, and what Ben and Harry and Alec needed too. Thank you for what you've given us - all of us. We'll honour your gifts.
And he gently placed her back on the shelf, then headed back to bed, and to Harry.
ooo000ooo
Author's Note 1: OK, remember when I said I really don't remember ideas people give me (re. missing scenes) unless they're in the right place? This is not the right place. So far I've had four people give me really cool ideas for missing scenes, and all I can remember is this: they were really cool.
I wish I was kidding.
I want to hear your prompts. But I have the attention span of a toddler with ADHD on a sugar high, and if they don't go on the "please give me prompts" entry, they shall be lost in the ether forever. Not trying to be a bitch here; just being realistic.
I'm posting an entry where people can give me prompts. Please put your prompts there. Pretty please?
Author's Note 2: The songs referred to are Tim Finnegan's Wake, Fields of Athenry (mentioned in chapter 8), Johnny Be Fair, Tom Lehrer's The Irish Ballad, Will Ye No Come Back Again, Dennis Leary's Traditional Irish Song, Loch Lomond, and Streets of London. The lyrics can be found at the Lyrics Page.
Author's Note 3: Last one, I swear!
Thanks so much, guys, for sticking with this story. Your comments and reviews have made me smile so hard, with every single chapter.
♥♥♥
ETA: OK, obviously I lied about the last note being the last note, but here goes: the first DVD Extra, for scrtkpr and a few others, is for Draco's Veritaserum interrogation the day he was arrested, and can be found here.
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March (previous)
DVD Extras:
Requests and list of completed extras
August 5, 2007 (after Chapter 4, August, Veritaserum)
November 23, 2007 (after Chapter 7, November, Fred v. Anne)
February 8, 2008 (after Chapter 10, February, Aftermath)
February 10, 2008 (after Chapter 10, February, Indecision)
September 1, 2013 (after the last chapter, the Sorting Hat)
Thanks hugely to scrtkpr for betaing this twice, again, and to naatz, for wonderful beta as well :) :)
Now, because this is the last chapter and it's April 30, I get to do a little plug! As I've mentioned before, this is a sequel to Volunteers, a fic written for hds_beltane. hds_beltane was a gift exchange created last year by twistedm, for fics featuring H/D/S in different combinations and permutations, with postings going up during the month of Beltane (May), and often featuring a Beltane theme.
Guess what starts tomorrow? The second round!
So: Go! Read! It's a brand new set of fics at hds_beltane. You know you want to :) :)
Title: Ember to Ember
Chapter: 12 (of 12)
Pairing: H/D
Word count: 5000.
Chapter 1: May
Chapter 2: June
Chapter 3: July
Chapter 4: August
Chapter 5: September
Chapter 6: October
Chapter 7: November
Chapter 8: December
Chapter 9: January
Chapter 10: February
Chapter 11: March (previous)
Date: March 27
From: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
To: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
Got held up. Start dinner without me.
Date: March 31
From: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
To: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
At St. Mungo's, nothing to worry about. Troll had a nervous breakdown and we're being treated for Trollbogey burns. Don't expect me home tonight.
Date: April 20
From: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
To: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
Rehearsal going into overtime tonight. Am about to kill the director. Could you pick up Ben?
Also, re. the Muggle Liaison e-mails, I'll set up my account so everything I get as Liaison gets automatically cc'd to you.
Date: April 20
From: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
To: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
I'll pick up Ben and I'm hoping you can explain what the hell cc'd means. BTW, want me there for your parole session?
Date: April 20
From: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
To: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
No thanks. Having a lot of Firewhisky ready on hand for after might be a good plan though. And look at you, using internet acronyms. Very sexy.
Date: April 21
From: hjpotter@gringotts.wzr
To: malfoyd@globalcafe.ie
>:)
oooOOOooo
April 30
"Draco? When do we go on?" asked Alec, and Draco suppressed the urge to snap at him. It was only the fifth time he'd asked.
"Just a few more songs," he said patiently. Merlin, but he wished he hadn't agreed to attend this. Dinner entertainment at a London art pub; not his first choice of performing venue. And he very much wished that his own performances hadn't been spliced here and there in the program. It would've been very nice to just sing and leave.
On the other hand, he had to admit this was a pretty good crowd, and it was good publicity for Kara, and for himself as well. The theme of the concert was the British Isles, so there were a lot of tourists, many groups and singers. Ironic, that just as he was leaving Ireland, he should be doing a concert where about a third of the songs celebrated it.
He was leaving Ireland. It kept hitting him as a surprise for some reason, and he was only now realizing he was going to miss it a great deal. He'd lived there for almost nine years, and even though he knew he'd never really belonged, being both English and a wizard, he'd felt at home there. As much as he could feel at home anywhere, being a foreigner among Muggles whether any of them knew it or not, and an exile in his own world.
He belonged with Ben, though. And with Harry and Alec. There was a lot to be said for that.
"Can you come sit with us after our song is done?" Alec asked.
Draco nodded. "Yes, of course. My choir won't sing again for a while after that. Ben, stop picking," he said, pulling Ben's fingers away from his nose.
"It still burns," Ben sulked.
"So next time, don't put a vinegared chip up your nose," Draco said, amused. "You're old enough to know better."
Onstage an interminable Irish singalong had some of the drunker patrons singing along and calling out responses, and it really was rather remarkable that, for a country so famous for poetry and music, what Ireland seemed to churn out most prodigiously were simplistic, forgettable drinking songs. And Harry and his family were singing along with the chorus. Draco suppressed an eye-roll. Not that it didn't have its own charm, but it was so typical that the Weasleys would latch onto it with gusto. The finer things in life were wasted on them.
He shook himself mentally. No, that wasn't the right attitude. His life, god help him, included Weasleys now, and he'd best get used to them. It wasn't that hard. Ron and Hermione - they'd even progressed to first names, and not just because calling Ron "Weasley" would be confusing - were at his place about once a week, so far with no casualties, and Harry's parents-in-law were fairly inoffensive. The other Weasleys, he could do without. Bill and George were friendly enough, but he still couldn't look at Bill's scars without a humbling sense of shame. And there were far too many unpleasant memories attached to George Weasley, the very least of which was the beating Draco had endured from him in his fifth year. The glasses and the stammer always made Draco think of his own father's crimes, and they weren't pleasant thoughts.
Fred and Percy were just uncomfortable to be around. Despite what Fred had said to him at the hospital, there was no love lost between them, and likely never would be.
Funny that the Weasleys he would have the least problems with were the one he'd once written a mocking song about and the one he'd called Mudblood.
Finally, the drunken singalong was done, and Draco followed his choir and the children's choir onto the stage, wishing he were leading them instead of simply singing. The performance was enjoyable anyway, though the song itself was a little sentimental for his taste, all about exile and loss. Rather depressing, really. He cleared his mind and concentrated on the music, putting the meaning of the lyrics out of his mind.
Then they were off the stage so that Kara could sing her Johnny Be Fair and Irish Ballad solos, and he brought the kids back to the table where Harry and his family were sitting. He glanced around the place; about half the people in the audience seemed to be musicians and singers.
"She's quite talented, isn't she?" said Hermione, leaning over to speak to him. "My mum saw an advert for her next show."
"Yeah, she's doing well."
Kara certainly loved it here; she was getting gigs almost every day, she was where the action was, and her star was rising. Paradoxically, she was a better mother now that she wasn't around as much any more, because she missed Ben, and made the most of her time with him, instead of dragging him along to most of her functions. Not that she'd ever been a bad mother, per se. Just a somewhat distracted one.
"She's taking Ben tomorrow for Beltane, is she?"
"Yeah, thank god. We really needed her last year."
"We should've thought this concert thing through better" said Harry. "It's over far too late. The boys'll be exhausted for tomorrow."
"I've got child-safe Pepper-Up."
"You're going to get there in the morning, right?" said Hermione. "Set up the last of the wards?"
He nodded. "Have to leave early, too; it's a three-Floo trip out there."
She grimaced. "How annoying."
"I'll be very glad when the term's over and I don't have to do it every day. It's not terribly time-consuming, but it is rather draining."
Harry nodded. "Well at least this year we know a lot of the issues that are likely to come up. I'm sure it'll be easier than last year."
"Oh, did you get the NewFace amulets?" Draco asked.
"Right here," said Harry, patting his shirt pocket. "Alec wanted one to make him look like Ben, so they'll both be dark. They'll look like brothers," he said, smiling. They hadn't thought it wise to bring the boys to Uisneach Hill this year, considering all the publicity, but Ben had been distraught at the thought of missing their last Beltane in Ireland, and Alec had been adamant that if Ben was going, he wanted to go too. "The one they got for you is dark too. So, with Kara there, you'll all look like a family, and I'll just be some bloke who hangs around with you."
"I'm still a little surprised that your parole officer said you could use a disguise," Ron said.
"I think having Gr- Hermione argue on my behalf helped a great deal." She'd pointed out that they didn't have time to find another Muggle Liaison, and, as Draco was volunteering his time in the service of the wizarding and Muggle community, he should be allowed to keep himself safe. It hadn't hurt that Harry had briefly dropped in on the meeting either.
"Ben, sit," said Ron, as the audience laughed and clapped for the end of Kara's song. "Your mum'll be along soon."
"You know, if they'd said no, you still could've gone," Harry chuckled, leaning closer and speaking low into Draco's ear, and an unexpected shiver ran down Draco's back. "Been the Green Man again?"
"No thank you," Draco said, the shiver unceremoniously morphing into a shudder. "Sex with a woman once was enough."
"Really?" Harry's eyebrows went up. "Only one?"
Draco nodded, checking the program. Three more songs.
"What about men?"
Draco thought a moment. "Erm. Seven. Theo Nott, and five Muggles. And you."
"Oh." Harry blinked. "I didn't realize that."
"What?"
"You seemed very... experienced," Harry said, and somehow the shivery feeling was back. Draco's smirking response died mid-chuckle as he felt Harry's hand on his leg. Harry was smiling brightly at him and above the table it looked totally innocent. Beneath it, fingers were creeping up his thigh.
Draco glanced at the stage. Only two more songs till he went on. Bugger...
His mind was speeding ahead, performing quick calculations involving their distance from the washrooms, average density of the crowd, audial background, proximity of children, density of Weasleys - both in terms of numbers and perceptiveness - and coming up distressingly short in terms of being able to take this anywhere satisfactory.
"Not a good idea..." he murmured, pulse racing.
"What's not a good idea?" Ron said, startling them both.
"Erm, getting a beer," Harry said hastily. "Interferes with music... things." Draco snickered and earned himself a sharp elbow.
"So Kara's happy in London, then?" asked Hermione.
Draco nodded, grateful for the topic change and nervously hoping his body would seize this excellent opportunity to settle a bit before he went back onstage. "Only thing that's upsetting her a bit is that Ben's already losing his accent. Don't think Kara realized that was going to happen."
"You never know," Harry said. "He may move back there at some point in his life, and get it back. Or pick it up. You did."
"I did?"
"Didn't you ever notice? You rolled your r's a bit more when I first met you."
Draco frowned. "Do I still?"
"I don't notice it. Not sure if it's that I got used to it or you don't do it any more."
"No, it's fading," said Fred. "Not that I've heard you talk much, but it was noticeable at first."
Draco nodded, as always a bit uneasy when one of the other Weasleys spoke to him. He checked his watch.
"Did you pick out your music tonight?" asked George.
"Merlin, no. I don't much mind Fields of Athenry or Will Ye No Come Back, but the director chose an absolutely execrable version of Loch Lomond." He wrinkled his nose, then noticed their director signaling for their choir to gather again. "Speaking of which, I'll be back later." He ruffled Alec and Ben's hair and headed for the stage, thanking Merlin he'd been able to get his body's reaction to Harry under control... at least visibly.
Don't look at Harry, he reminded himself. It was normally a bit of a charge, knowing Harry was in the audience, occasionally catching his eye... but he wouldn't put it past Harry to raise an eyebrow suggestively, or smile at him the way he knew would make Draco get so very - yeah, no, best not look. Think about music instead.
It was going to be rather boring for a while, he thought as they began Will Ye No, not having a choir of his own to lead. Though he had been asked to temporarily lead a wizarding choir whose director was ill. Hadn't decided on that offer yet; it was tempting, but he wasn't sure all the members - or the audiences - would want him there. It did help that the choir was mostly half-bloods, and about half their concerts were for Muggles.
The irony was not lost on him.
Alec adored this song, with its wistful longing for a return of what had been. Another song of a failed battle, though this one was Scottish, not Irish. Maybe that was why he'd felt at home in Ireland; it was a land that had lost, and lost rather spectacularly, but not been bowed down.
Then they were done, and he could look at Harry again, and there was only one more song to go before it was time to take their kids home. He headed for the washroom as another soloist began a vaguely humorous ditty making fun of traditional Irish ballads.
Oh, wonderful, he thought as he got to the loo and found Fred Weasley already waiting in line there. There was a short, awkward silence.
"It's so strange, you doing Muggle things," said Fred abruptly.
"I suppose so. I'm used to it."
"Everything ready for tomorrow?"
"Almost."
"Worried about publicity?"
Draco shook his head. "We've got the NewFace amulets. Thanks, by the way. Besides, I did the job last year with no serious problems."
"Different this year. You've been in the news."
"I know." He shrugged. "Just have to hope the people who are still holding a grudge don't like to travel."
Fred frowned. "You can't blame people for holding a grudge. You may think it was no big deal-"
"I've never thought that," Draco said evenly. "I have never defended any of what I did. Or anything my family did."
"You said you were sorry and then you did an act for the parole board," Fred said, barely suppressing a sneer. "Doesn't wipe away the consequences of what you did, not that you'd care-"
"Says the man responsible for giving Byron Montague nightmares for years."
Fred blinked. "Who?"
"You and your brother shoved him into a disappearing cabinet."
Fred's face cleared. "Inquisitorial Squad Montague? Gobshite had it coming-"
"He was stuck in there for days. And he wasn't ever the same afterwards. Jumped at shadows for a long time, terrified of being locked in again. Did you care about the consequences when you did that? Did you ever pay for it?"
"You're comparing that to what you-"
Draco shook his head, impatient with himself for bringing it up. "No. Sorry. Shouldn't've brought it up."
"You're damned right."
The bathroom door opened, and Fred moved towards it. Draco put out his hand. "You know," he said conversationally as Fred turned to look at him, "Your sister's portrait is on our night table. Every morning when I wake up, I see her. I sleep with her widower and I'm raising her son, and I know they both lost her because of the man I chose to follow. Harry loves me, but he'll never stop missing her. My son has a mother, but Alec doesn't, and there's nothing we can do to fill the hole that's left in his life. There were consequences to what we did, I know that. I see them every day. I don't need to be reminded."
Fred gave him a hard stare, then went into the washroom.
And damn it, it was time for his final song, and he hadn't had a chance to use the loo. He hurried onstage, and gave a start as Harry's voice spoke into his ear.
"... did you say to him?"
"I t-told him he was going to lose Alec," said another voice, and Draco blinked, realizing the cheap Remote Ear connection to Harry that the Aurors had provided him with for security had turned on, again, and he could now hear whatever was going on at Harry's table. And... bugger, he couldn't take out his wand to stop it, here in the midst of his Muggle choir...
"What?" said Harry.
"I told him that if he k-kept it up he was going to lose the only bit of G-Ginny we had left. Told him not to be a c-complete arse or Alec would s-start to hate him."
Harry sighed. "You lost Ginny too. And you lost a lot more. Why can you move on and he can't?"
"I was a b-bit pissed at you at first," George admitted. "It p-passed." There was a pause. "So, how's it g-going? Living together?"
Draco's heart skipped a beat.
Harry cleared his throat, and there was a low chuckle from somebody near Harry.
"Oh really? That good?" said Ron.
Good thing the stage lights were fairly low-key, because his cheeks felt like they were burning and his stomach felt oddly light. He determinedly kept his eyes on the director and not Harry.
"I... I still think, sometimes, that... that it shouldn't feel this good." Harry cleared his throat again. "I... I wonder what Ginny would've said."
"She's gone, mate," Ron said. "And I'm not just saying rubbish like 'She would've wanted you to be happy.' She's gone, and you can't live your life double-guessing yourself and only doing things she would've approved of."
"She didn't like him much."
"None of us did," said Ron reasonably. "We were kids. We're not any more. What she would've wanted or not wanted for you isn't really relevant, I don't think." There was a pause. "And don't worry about Fred. Or Percy or Anne. They might never really come around. But..."
"But it's n-not your problem, mate."
"And as for Ginny," said Ron, "remember you two joked you'd start your kids' names with A, and see how far down the alphabet you'd go?"
"Yeah."
"Maybe she'd l-like it that you got to B at least, yeah?"
Harry chuckled. "Maybe."
All right, now Draco felt like laughing and crying, which was just... ridiculous. And generations of Malfoys were probably spinning in their graves.
There was a long pause. "Still miss her, don't you?" asked Demelza.
There was a small indistinct sound from Harry.
"It's all right if you don't think about her as much," she said. "That's supposed to happen, eventually."
"Not sure I really want it to."
"You c-can't have three of you in that bed," George pointed out.
Draco breathed a sigh of relief as they began their final song, the one that started out with such a promisingly beautiful solo and such wonderful interweaving of music, and degenerated into such inane and pointless vocal fiddling around. At least it drowned out the sound from the Remote Ear. He drove the conversation out of his mind and just concentrated on the way his part and Kara's wove together.
And soon enough, the stupid thing was over, and they could finally leave. He made his way back to Harry's table, started to pick Alec up out of Molly's lap, and Alec blinked sleepily.
"No, I want to listen to the last song," he said, and Draco and Harry glanced at Ben, sleeping soundly in Arthur's lap, and shrugged.
"And now we've roamed the Isles enough, let's end it with a toast to right here," said the emcee, and a soloist began singing Streets of London, with the crowd joining in with the chorus. A sad and a fitting end to the day.
"We'll see you tomorrow," said Hermione, as he and Harry carried their sleeping children to the Floo.
oooOOOooo
Draco put Ben in the lower bunk as Harry floated Alec up to the top. Ben turned in his sleep, pillowing his head on his arms, forehead scrunching up a bit. Draco ran a hand over his dreadlocks as Harry whispered "Goodnight, boys," gave them both a kiss, and left the room.
Draco sat on his son's bed for a few moments, watching him peacefully sleeping. It really was different, this living together business. There was a lot more chaos to his life now, though part of that was due to the daily three-Floo commuting he had to do. Alec was easy to live with - as easy as any five-year-old could be - and he and Ben were getting along just fine. There were more fights than before, but they passed quickly and without lasting harm. He supposed it was as close to a sibling relationship as any. Even the extended family wasn't so bad, now that they were finally getting used to Ben and Draco.
Odd, that Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy's grandson now saw Arthur and Molly Weasley as his grandparents.
He stood and brushed Alec's hair back from his forehead as Alec turned over and hummed a bit of a tune, and he headed for his own room, closing their door behind him. He glanced at their picture shelf in the hallway, where magical photographs of Kara and Ginny Weasley smiled and waved, and felt sorry for Ginny. It was anybody's guess whether she would've understood her singularly un-Weasley child, but somehow he knew she would've loved him and been proud of him.
"Are you coming to bed?" Harry asked from their bedroom. Draco smiled and joined Harry in their room, taking his lips in a slow kiss, chuckling as Harry returned it and deepened it.
"Really? Harry, it's past midnight."
"I know, but both of us don't need to be at the Hill early tomorrow. You sleep in and I'll go there early, set up the wards."
"All right." He closed and leaned back against their door, letting Harry run soft lips down his neck. He reached back and untied Harry's hair, enjoying the silky feel of it running through his fingers, black and silver strands tumbling in a wave down Harry's back. He drew in his breath as Harry knelt down, undoing Draco's Muggle trousers, pulling aside the black shirt he'd worn for the concert. There was something incredibly sensual about a lover's hands undressing you. Especially when they were so slow and gentle, so familiar. He groaned as Harry took him into his mouth.
He dropped his head back against the wall, running his fingers through Harry's hair, closing his eyes as Harry's lips touched him softly and Harry's tongue started to do wicked things to him. His heartbeat sped up, and he moaned quietly, sparks racing through him as Harry chuckled at the sound and the vibrations ran through him.
"Like it?" Harry said, breaking off for a moment, then took him back into his mouth in a way that made it extremely difficult to answer. He pulled Harry up in response, bringing their mouths together again, and reached down to undo Harry's trousers, slipping a hand inside.
Harry moaned. "Erm. How do you want to..."
"Up to you," Draco answered, a bit breathless.
"Well, since you're going to be sleeping in a bit tomorrow, why don't you do all the work tonight?"
Draco chuckled as they moved to the bed, and he continued to remove Harry's trousers, grinning when Harry gasped and closed his eyes. Harry bit his lip as Draco stroked him, then pulled off his own glasses and Draco's, setting them on the bedside table. They slowly removed each other's clothing, finally ending up skin on skin, tongues embracing, hands roaming over familiar planes.
He gently pushed Harry onto his back, and Harry waved a small bottle over towards them. Draco took his time, rubbing lube on and gently relaxing Harry to take him in. He recalled their first time together, how tense Harry had been, how Draco could almost feel his pain despite the obvious pleasure Harry had also felt. So different from now. Their dance now was familiar, warm, comfortable, and more than Draco could've imagined he'd ever have, a year ago.
"Come on," Harry whispered, and threw his head back with a groan as Draco entered him and settled over him, taking one hand in his and beginning to thrust, slowly, teasing him.
"I'm not in any hurry... I'm sleeping in tomorrow, remember?" he whispered back, and Harry bit his lip.
"Bloody hell... you've... got the worst sense of comic timing..." he whispered, his eyes closed, head beginning to move back and forth on the pillow, hips coming up to meet Draco's thrusts. "Draco, come on. Please. I need to come. Now."
Draco laughed and kissed him, thrusting faster, and soon Harry was bucking against him, crying out his name-
"Oh shit!" Harry's eyes suddenly popped open and he made a frantic wave towards the door. "Draco, silencing spell, the boys-"
Draco closed his eyes tightly and groaned, because fuck, if that wasn't dismal timing, nothing was. "Right." He rolled them over so that Harry was close enough to the night table to aim a wand and say the incantation, because having a small child knock on the door asking, "Daddy, are you having a nightmare?" right in the middle of an otherwise spectacular orgasm was an experience that, really, nobody needed to undergo more than once.
He settled over Harry again, breathing hard, bringing them back to where they'd been when Harry had so rudely interrupted them, panting as they reached for the summit together. Catching his breath at the sight beneath him, Harry's muscles working as his strong body writhed under Draco, he captured Harry's lips and gasped as Harry cried out, a warm wetness covering their stomach and they both came in the middle of a kiss, the brightness of their climax shining on and on, both gasping into each others' mouths and holding each other tightly.
And then it was over. He sighed into the warmth of Harry's neck, his eyes closing as Harry's lips ghosted over his face, his eyes, tenderness in every caress. Harry's fingertips absently tracing the Dark Mark as he pressed a line of kisses onto Draco's neck.
I still think, sometimes, that... that it shouldn't feel this good.
Draco closed his eyes, breathing in the scent of sex and sweat, and belonging and love.
"Mm, don't forget to set the alarm," Harry said, yawning.
"I won't."
"Oh, the amulets are near the sink for tomorrow." Harry smiled sleepily at him, and almost immediately fell asleep. Draco lay listening to him breathe for a while, then frowned. There was some kind of noise from the living room... a quiet clicking...
He carefully got up, absently soothing Harry as he made a soft questioning sound.
What the... oh. He chuckled at the long scarf, in Slytherin green and grey, that Molly had begun knitting for Ben, and allowed him to take home when he wheedled her into it. She'd evidently charmed the needles to put on more rolls of yarn when they ran out, because the scarf was now probably long enough to keep most of Slytherin House cosy, with a few Ravenclaws thrown in as well.
She should've used yellow and black yarn instead. That was one thing that he and Harry and the entire clan agreed on when it came to their kids: destined to be Hufflepuffs, the pair of them. Just and loyal, patient Hufflepuffs are true, and unafraid of toil. Although perhaps Alec's musical genius could put him into Ravenclaw, and Ben's bravery Sort him into Gryffindor. Slytherin wasn't an option, for either of them.
Odd that the thought didn't disturb him at all.
He stopped the needles and quieted down a small toy broom that had begun humming in the toy box. Checked the wards around the study; they'd had to send their desktop in for repairs once already, as spells interfered with electronics. It had taken the techs a while to fix it, and Draco was half convinced it had just fixed itself once it was away from magic long enough.
He should really see about finding a wizarding electronics store. Arthur or George might know of one. Or perhaps Hermione.
He checked their supply of Floo powder. Last day of term at Trinity College was May ninth, and he was eagerly anticipating the end of his daily commute. Saying goodbye to the people he'd known there would be a bit harder; he'd grown closer to his Muggle students and choir members, and the choir children, than he'd thought possible, and was only now realizing he'd genuinely miss many of them.
But.
Harry and Kara and Ben and Alec were here now. As well as a new job at the music college, courtesy of a parole officer who was a hell of a lot more professional and sympathetic than the one he'd left behind in Dublin. Maybe because of the small amount of positive publicity he'd received in the press, or because of Harry's support. Or maybe she just felt her job was supposed to be to help parolees live law-abiding lives, rather than make them miserable. She was a welcome change, anyway. She'd said that as long as he only used magic to 'nudge' the local college to give him a job he was actually qualified to do, she would allow it.
He headed back down the hall and stopped at their picture shelf again, gazing at a photo Kara had taken of himself and Ben at Beltane last year.
The embers of the Beltane bonfires had still been glowing when he and Harry had left Uisneach Hill almost exactly a year ago, full of hope and excitement and fear. He'd driven two hours back to Dublin, put Ben to bed, and not been able to get the memory of the kisses he and Harry had shared out of his head. Tomorrow there would be singing and dancing, a May Queen and a Horned King, White Women and Red Men, tourists and pagans and protestors, and at the end, the embers of another pair of bonfires. And who knew what the next year would bring.
Their bedroom door was open and he gazed in at Harry, sleeping peacefully. Then he picked up Ben's little goddess figure, sitting next to their pictures on the shelf.
For what it's worth, if you're somewhere out there... thanks. Somehow you knew what I needed, and what Ben and Harry and Alec needed too. Thank you for what you've given us - all of us. We'll honour your gifts.
And he gently placed her back on the shelf, then headed back to bed, and to Harry.
ooo000ooo
Author's Note 1: OK, remember when I said I really don't remember ideas people give me (re. missing scenes) unless they're in the right place? This is not the right place. So far I've had four people give me really cool ideas for missing scenes, and all I can remember is this: they were really cool.
I wish I was kidding.
I want to hear your prompts. But I have the attention span of a toddler with ADHD on a sugar high, and if they don't go on the "please give me prompts" entry, they shall be lost in the ether forever. Not trying to be a bitch here; just being realistic.
I'm posting an entry where people can give me prompts. Please put your prompts there. Pretty please?
Author's Note 2: The songs referred to are Tim Finnegan's Wake, Fields of Athenry (mentioned in chapter 8), Johnny Be Fair, Tom Lehrer's The Irish Ballad, Will Ye No Come Back Again, Dennis Leary's Traditional Irish Song, Loch Lomond, and Streets of London. The lyrics can be found at the Lyrics Page.
Author's Note 3: Last one, I swear!
Thanks so much, guys, for sticking with this story. Your comments and reviews have made me smile so hard, with every single chapter.
♥♥♥
ETA: OK, obviously I lied about the last note being the last note, but here goes: the first DVD Extra, for scrtkpr and a few others, is for Draco's Veritaserum interrogation the day he was arrested, and can be found here.
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March (previous)
DVD Extras:
Requests and list of completed extras
August 5, 2007 (after Chapter 4, August, Veritaserum)
November 23, 2007 (after Chapter 7, November, Fred v. Anne)
February 8, 2008 (after Chapter 10, February, Aftermath)
February 10, 2008 (after Chapter 10, February, Indecision)
September 1, 2013 (after the last chapter, the Sorting Hat)