And Baby Makes Three - Slay the Dragon
Draco didn't want to go; it was as simple as that.
A Halloween party masquerading as a charity gala was being held at Hogwarts. He couldn't understand why he couldn't have just written a big cheque and spent the evening at home. But no, Ginny insisted it would be fun, besides she wanted to see some of their old school chums.
Deep down he had to admit that he simply didn't want to have to answer all the inevitable questions about Ginny. It wasn't that he didn't love his wife, he truly did. It was just that they married very quietly - only her family and their closest friends knew - and he wasn't up to sharing. Not just yet anyway. After their awful break-up was splashed all over the Daily Prophet late the previous year, Draco wanted to spend his married life in relative peace. He was selfish about Ginny and Liam like that.
So here he was, checking their cloaks at the door. They had arrived fashionably late naturally. He watched as she smoothed down the long, ivory silk gown she wore. It had trumpet sleeves, showed just a touch of cleavage and clung in all the right places, showing off her new softly rounded figure. She wore a crown of fall flowers with ribbons in her loose, softly curling red hair. He thought she made the most beautiful princess in all of wizardom and he'd gladly lay down his life for her affections.
Ginny adjusted his black dragon hide jerkin and checked his sword and shield (borrowed from Charlie, of course). "I must say, you're the most handsome dragon slayer I've ever seen," she said coyly, head bowed.
"Oh, am I now," he replied gamely before attempting to tip her head back so he could kiss her enticingly pink lips.
"Yes," she said softly, avoiding his efforts. "But in order to win my heart you have to slay a dragon." She gave him a sly look as her hand lingered dangerously on his hip.
"Slay a dragon, eh," he pondered slowly, shifting the green and silver dragon outfitted Liam to his hip to discourage any further endeavor on her part to tempt him. "I think I can manage that."
"Good," she grinned then, relieving him of the baby. "Then I look forward to rewarding you for your efforts."
As soon as they entered the Great Hall, they were accosted by female Gryffindors just as he had feared would happen. He was immediately excised from the herd as they moved away in one fluid group leaving him on his own by the bar. He could tell the interrogation of Ginny had begun just from the snatches of conversation he could hear. Draco? Don't be so surprised. Married? Yes, January. Baby? Liam, June.
Draco got himself a beer and did what he does best, brood in the shadows. For the first time since the final battle he was keenly aware of the lack of Slytherins - most of them dead or rotting in Azkaban these days. He wasn't quite up to dealing with Potter or his wife's brothers quite yet so he hung back surveying the room, looking for any of his wife's ex-boyfriends who might cause trouble.
"I know what you did, Draco," Pansy said casually as she stopped at his side. She was dressed as a Valkyrie.
"What are you talking about, Pans," Draco replied, his eyes trained on his wife and son across the room. Liam was looking terribly adorable in his little dragon outfit except for Gustav in his clutches. Ruined the whole costume really in his opinion - how was Liam supposed to be a fearsome dragon if he was carrying around a duck?
"Gustav," she said ominously. "Don't think I haven't figured out what happened when he went missing."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
She chuckled then. "Ginny flooed the night the duck went missing asking where I obtained him. Then again the next afternoon to tell me you had found another one."
"So, I found another duck to replace the one the cat made off with is that such a horrible crime?"
"Yes," she purred. "Considering I bought the duck whilst in Germany. Do you really think I'm that stupid, Draco, I charmed the duck so it'd never get lost."
"You are an evil witch you know that?" He glared down at her.
"You say that like it's a bad thing," she said sweetly. "It's so much fun to watch you get so worked up over a stupid little duck."
"I hate you, you know."
"I know, I hate you too. Come on Draco, you can tell me - why do you hate the duck so much?"
He watched through narrowed eyes as Hermione, Lavender, Padma and Parvarti surrounded Ginny and Liam, taking turns holding and fawning over him. Each one of them taking the time to touch the duck, he just knew they were commenting on how cute the stupid thing was.
Pansy gasped. "Oh sweet Morgana! You're jealous of Gustav!"
He cut her a dirty look. "I am not jealous of a stupid duck."
"Yes, you are! Ginny loves him, I love him, and the rest of the girls adore him. He's a ladies' duck! And you can't stand it!" Her laughter was attracting the attention of the people nearby. "The great Draco Malfoy usurped by a stuffed duck!"
Greg and his date saved him from anymore humiliation at Pansy's hands by showing up at a most opportune moment.
"Draco," his old friend said happily, slapping him on the back. "I'd like you to meet…"
"Stephanie," Draco interrupted him, reaching for her hand. "We've met."
"Is there a woman here you don't already know?"
Pansy snorted. "I doubt that."
Stephanie kissed Draco's cheek. "How's Liam? I haven't seen him in weeks now."
"He's good, over there with Ginny somewhere in a sea of Gryffindors. What are you doing here with the big oaf?"
She grinned. "Ginny set us up a couple weeks ago."
"And here I thought Gin liked you," Draco said with a smirk.
Pansy smacked him hard. "Draco, really, play nicely now. I'm Pansy Parkinson. I unfortunately went to school with these two wankers." She took her new found friend by the arm. "Let's go see about my godson."
Draco and Greg watched the girls head across the Great Hall toward Liam's fan club before falling victim to typical male conversation - women and Quidditch.
His eyes had rarely left Ginny and Liam all evening; he stayed on the fringe of the crowd allowing Ginny to bask in the glory she was never allowed back when they were in school. She looked so happy, showing off their son and answering the million questions about them he was sure were being asked. She was finally the belle of the ball and he wouldn't have had it any other way. She would occasionally seek out his gaze from across the room, sending him that special smile she reserved solely for him; the one that make him thankful that he was alive.
It didn't take long for Draco to hone in on undesirable male attention directed toward his wife. A young dark-haired wizard dressed as a knight was giving Ginny's backside a bit too much attention for his liking. He asked Greg who the offender might be, not really keen on what he heard; he started across the Great Hall with a warning from his friend not to do anything stupid.
"I suggest," Draco said dangerously as he walked up behind Ginny's fourth year Ravenclaw boyfriend. "You take your eyes off my wife's arse, Corner."
Michael Corner just smiled up at the imposing figure that was Draco Malfoy. "Have no idea what you're talking about mate."
"I could see clearly from across the room your eyes trained on my wife's arse is what. You had your chance, you were stupid. And now she's mine. Eyes off."
"Wife," Michael said, his voice sinking in his confusion. "Who's your wife?"
"Ginny Weasley," Draco stated in a possessive tone. "Malfoy. Now kindly remove your eyes or I will remove them for you."
"Oh, I thought you guys broke-up last year. Gin moved away didn't she? She just disappeared."
Draco sneered at him. "That would be a no. She married me. We live a quiet life."
"Oh," was all Michael Corner could manage.
"Does Gin know that you're going around terrorizing people," Charlie joked as he put a friendly hand on Draco's shoulder, effectively putting an end to something that was starting to turn ugly.
"Who's terrorizing people," Ginny asked as she wandered up. "Draco can you take Liam, he's getting heavy."
He took his son into his arms, arranging him in such a way that everyone could see the little green dragon outfit with silvery wings. "Hey little monster - charmed the knickers off any of the ladies yet?"
Liam gave his father a big toothless grin in response.
"Michael Corner," Ginny exclaimed, hugging him tight and pressing a kiss to his cheek. "I haven't seen you since graduation. How've you been?"
Draco watched the scene before him through narrowed eyes.
"Down, boy, down," Charlie said under his breath while keeping a firm grip on Draco's shoulder so he couldn't launch himself on the younger man.
"You know my husband, Draco, don't you," Ginny asked proudly, taking Michael by the hand. "And this is our son, Liam. Of course you know my brother Charlie and this lovely lady is his fiancée, Isolde." She motioned toward a tall, black haired witch with deep blue eyes.
He nodded. "Yes, we were getting reacquainted." He paled a bit when Draco shot him a dark look.
"I didn't know you knew each other at school." Ginny gave her husband a quizzical look.
"We didn't," Draco stated as his arm snaked around her waist possessively. "I knew of him."
She had to let go of the other man's hand in self-defense as Draco pulled her closer against him.
"Oh! Look Cho," Michael said, realizing he was free to escape. "It was nice seeing you all again. Gin, congratulations. I've got to, uh, speak with her, yes that's it."
Draco glared at the retreating figure of his wife's ex-suitor as he beat a hasty path across the room.
Ginny giggled at his antics before divesting him of Liam to deposit in her brother's safe keeping for the time being. "Come with me," she said, pulling on his hand.
"Where are you dragging me off to, witch," he half-heartedly protested.
She didn't respond, just pulled him along behind her until she found the spot she was seeking. She stopped, pushing him against the stone wall of the dimly lit corridor before tenderly kissing him.
"You're so adorable when you're jealous," she teased after she finished kissing him.
"I have no idea what you're talking about. And for the record I'm not adorable."
She grinned, slowly shaking her head. "You didn't like Michael being near me, did you?"
He scowled darkly. "No, but what I really didn't like was him admiring your arse." His hands skimmed down to cup her derriere appreciatively through the silk of her gown.
"So, you like my arse do you," she asked as her arms slipped up around his neck.
"Yes, among other things, besides it's mine." He bent low, capturing her lips in a leisurely kiss. "Mine, all mine."
"Well, you know, I didn't fancy all those witches admiring you either."
"There were witches admiring me? I hadn't noticed."
Ginny smacked his shoulder then. "You mean to tell me that you, Draco Malfoy, were completely oblivious to the attentions of so many witches?"
Draco dropped a light kiss on her nose. "Yes, I'm only interested in the attention of a certain red haired witch."
"Oh," was all she could manage before she found herself being thoroughly kissed, leaving her breathless.
He admired his handy work after a few moments - her swollen lips and pink tinged cheeks. "If I recall, I kissed you silly in this corridor back in seventh year."
"More like you almost had your wicked way with me," she smiled slyly. "I don't think Mrs. Norris would interrupt this time if you wanted to reenact that evening."
"No," he said, giving her his best lopsided grin. "A drafty corridor is no place to ravish a princess."
"And just where is the best place then to ravish a princess?"
"In a warm room," he started slowly as he took her hand to pull her along behind him as he made his way back to the Great Hall, "with a crackling fire and lots of candles, on a big, soft feather bed. Our son sleeping soundly in his room across the hall."
"Mmm," she purred. "Sounds more like a seduction than a ravishing."
They made their way back to the Great Hall, making hasty goodbyes to family and friends, and retrieving Liam from Charlie and Isolde before portkeying home.
Draco volunteered to put Liam down for the night, giving him his nightly bottle, to which the baby wasn't all that interested in. He left the tuckered out baby in his dragon outfit for the duration, Gustav tucked safely under one arm.
The sight of Ginny, flowers still in her hair, stretched across their pillow strewn bed in nothing but a pale gold silk nightgown greeted him when he entered their room. His mouth suddenly went dry.
"So," she said seductively. "My handsome dragon slayer, did you slay me a dragon?"
Draco nodded silently, unable to tear his eyes away from her.
"Well, then come here," she said, reaching her hand out to him. "I think I owe someone a great reward."