Fairy Rain

"Now you're going to be a good girl while we're gone, aren't you pumpkin?" Mel asks, holding Rachel with his arm and huge hand as they play in his office.

"A'course Gramps!" the small beastgirl coos in agreement. "Will I get a treat?"

Mel chortles before going, "You'll have to eat all of your supper for that."

Their conversation is cut short when a maid approaches. "Master Mel? Majesty Lemia's assistant is here to watch your granddaughter."

Meribia, the city of freedom.

As such, Master Mel has an open door policy. Meribia Mansion has guards on standby, but they offer friendly smiles and invite others in.

But Meribia is a big city. And there are other people with inviting smiles, the lovely ladies at Ramus's shop. Thanks to Draco, it's one of the only shops around that offers Wizarding sweets...

Two pairs walked up to the doors of Malfoy Manor.

First were grandmother and grandson walking hand in hand, though Cepheus soon let go of Lemia so that he might chase the peafowl. Their only warning is the gleeful cry of, "Hi birdies!"

Second were husband and wife, Draco chuckling and holding Mia just a bit tighter as they watched their son run around the grounds.

"Cepheus, come back, sweetheart!" Lemia calls as Mia and Draco join her. "It's time for you to come see your grandmother and grandfather."

"No!" he cheerfully replies, still running around.

Lemia shakes her head and keeps her eye on him as the commotion draws Narcissa to the door. Draco comes forward to greet his mother. He's shortly followed by Mia, who gives her mother-in-law a hug. It was an unusual hug for two reasons...

Mia takes a moment to check over her bag one more time, making sure she's got all the necessary papers for the Magic Guild as well as clothes and toiletries for the week. This includes some outfits for Scorpius and Kaworu so that they fit in a bit more seamlessly.

She finds something in her bag that she most definitely didn't pack: a green teddy bear.

"Cepheus?" she calls. "Cepheus, did you put your bear in Mama's bag?"

He toddles into his parents' room, sippy cup of pumpkin juice in hand and nude except for his diaper, and goes, "Beaw, Mama?"

"Yes, I've got your bear," she says, handing it back to him. "And did you take your clothes off again? Scorpius and Kaworu will be here soon."

"Scowpus an' Kawoo?" he repeats, bobbing a bit.

"Yes honey, Scorpius and Kaworu."

Cepheus toddles out of the room in excitement, calling, "Daddy! Daddy! Scowpus an' Kawoo!"

Mia smiles as she watches her son leave the room, checking through her bag to see if he stuck anything else in her bag.

The walk up to Malfoy Manor was similar, if easier, than last year's. Only this time around, both Draco and Mia were taking turns carrying Cepheus and letting the baby try to take a step or two between them, all bundled up in his warm winter clothes. Lemia followed behind and picked up her grandson so that he may see the peafowl with her while Draco went to the door.

I tie the ribbon in a foolish way. I always have. The way I've done it since childhood was ridiculously simple: a knot followed by two "bunny ears" that were knotted. Ghaleon always tried to teach me the proper way to make a bow so that it would hold but that never seemed to matter since I was never a particularly active child.

I find myself missing those times. I also find it difficult to reconcile Ghaleon's history. He has gone through a full circle in his actions that has included a rest of 1000 years. I can barely fathom it and he, too, has trouble seeing me as I am now and not the sixteen year old girl on the cusp of womanhood I was almost eight years ago. In his mind, it was not as long ago that he savored "the delicious fragility of this travesty," as he might put it, that was Alex fulfilling the role of Dragonmaster that, perhaps, always belonged to Dyne in Ghaleon's mind.

And though I, too, found it incredible on the opposite end of the spectrum, I think it's hard for me to imagine a Dragonmaster coming after Alex. It's hard to imagine needing one. But perhaps these are my words as a mother.

I hold my infant son in my arms, amazed by the fact that I was carrying him at this time last year, and the idea of him becoming a Dragonmaster is a lance in my heart. I find myself wondering if Ghaleon had felt that way about us deep down. I remember well how he would read to me, the superb acting. There was no mistake; he played the villain to the hilt. But his true desire was a better world for us. His means were most foul and he knew others would try to stop him, the reason why he incapacitated Master Mel and my mother. Perhaps he didn't expect the "fragile" children who opposed him.

Even after his defeat, I have been considered a fragile thing. Now that I have a child, one who truly IS fragile, I understand that much more. I'm not sure I will ever be able to think of him as anything other than my baby. The very idea that he might one day oppose me (as all teenagers must, though hopefully not to the extreme as my own adolescent perils) is heartrending.

And that is what Ghaleon was faced with in his last months of his first, true life.

I don't regret stopping him but I regret causing that sort of pain in the process. I am surprised that he doesn't hold it against me, just as he is surprised that I can still remember that he is not a monster but a man.

Perhaps one day I will be able to silence my mind in his presence. Remember things only as they were before as we both so hope. I will never forget what he did nor should I forget. But with the battle won and peace left in its wake, maybe there will come a time for the three of us. A time and place for lighter hearts, where we still laugh and wish.

It started out easily enough: a brief visit to Hawaii for their fifth wedding anniversary. The only thing is a lot had changed between the fourth and the fifth. Just saying goodbye to Cepheus to leave him in Lemia's care took Mia a good twenty minutes.

It wasn't so bad when they were actually in Hawaii, enjoying the local cuisine and entertainment. (Draco escaped the doghouse for looking at the traditional topless hula dancers as Mia was busy watching the shirtless firedancers.)

But then, in the middle of the night, Mia woke up in a panic in the hotel room. She shook Draco awake and started frantically searching, worriedly explaining to Draco that Cepheus wasn't crying and surely something was wrong. He woke up enough to gently explain to Mia that Cepheus was back home with her mother and she was surely taking good care of her.

And then Mia couldn't sleep. She wanted to, but she was too tired. While flopped across her husband's chest, she notices the nightstand and the remote control to the hotel's television.

It's been so long, she had told Draco, since they had seen a movie. Why not enjoy a little late night TV?

Never before had Draco been so interested in working a telephone than he was upon discovering the Home Shopping Network. What better way to spoil his lovely wife than to order the jewelry from home and simply wait for it to be delivered?

A brief, peaceful switch in power led to the discovery of the late night comedy sketch show and the muggle notion that people wearing chicken suits and competing against each other in hustling people to their restaurants with songs is funny.

Perhaps the most interesting find was a modern day superhero movie, which brought about a brief debate on where muggles think such powers come from and distinguishing between advanced technology and magic.

The debate was brief due to sleep finally catching up with them, aided by the lullaby of the television's quiet hum.

Mia is past her due date.

It's getting to the point where she can hardly stand the waiting. Draco being home for his paternity leave has helped, but he's also quite anxious. He did, however, have a brilliant idea to relax tonight: a lovely dinner much like Valentine's.

And Mia could use the relaxing. She's been feeling off all day...

Mia didn't know. Not until she saw the sign.

She couldn't go to the wake, not when she just found out. She didn't know him as well as she could have, but he was a dear friend and a comrade in arms with Will and her. She's not sure how she was able to hold it together all the way back to her quarters in Vane.

Once she did, she collapsed on her bed (as much as she could considering her current shape) and just cried. Cried until she wore herself out, until she almost felt like she couldn't breathe.

It's amazing, the pain of losing a friend.

“Draco?”

The word is said carefully. It's not meant to convey the message of, “We have to talk.” Rather, she's trying to get, “I'd like to talk, but I want to be here for you above all else,” into her subtext.

“Tom has warned me.

“About Blodwen.

“He mentioned that you knew her before, but that was long ago. Before you met him. Before you knew me. I know it's not something you're proud of, but you should know it's something I'm very proud of you for leaving.”

She moves, reaching to hold.

“I want to know what happened, the same way I want to know everything about you. But I understand. I know why you wouldn't want to talk to me about it.

“Though you should know, you have no reason to be ashamed. You are strong. You are fiercely loving. You are the husband by my side, father of our child, and no evil of your past is ever going to change that. I love you. Always have, always will.

“I hope that, one day, you will tell me, but today doesn't need to be that day.”

She leans forward, her forehead tilted enough to touch the mirror.

“Oh, that's going to sound silly...” she murmurs. “It's always the ones you want to talk to the most that are the most difficult to speak to.”

She rubs at the curve of her belly, her previous concern softly turned into a smile at the reassuring little fluttery kicks she feels.

“I do love you so, dear,” she says to her baby. “Mama sounds ridiculous right now, doesn't she?”

The flutters don't say anything different.

“Your Papa loves you, too. He worries so about us when he is the one that deserves the worry.”

Mia glances down, properly taking in her shape.

“How you will light up his life. You'll be the apple of his eye. He's already so happy to know you're here, just as I am. I'm sure he'll love to hold you, and I hope he tickles you and sings to you.”