Epilogue
The funeral of Draco Malfoy was a grand affair. He would lie next to his wife in the Malfoy mausoleum after the casket viewing was finished. Blaise, the eldest son of Draco, looked at the elderly woman looking down on the casket in silence. His father had requested, in his will, that an invitation be extended to her. He wondered why the woman his mother had told him his father loved second to only his family never came to visit or talk to them during his father's life, and why his father had chosen to give her his diaries.
She didn't know that he knew her; his parents had asked that it be this way. Draco Malfoy's legendary silver eyes had been full of concern for this lady when he had spoken to Blaise on his deathbed. Blaise had always wondered secretly what had made this woman so special to his father. He wondered what had made his mother so jealous of her; although she had tried to hide it, Blaise always knew her better than anyone else.
Draco Malfoy could never be unfaithful to his wife…Blaise knew that. The bond of Felis Semper bound them tighter than blood. But whatever Draco and this woman had together, Blaise's mother had been jealous of it. It was as close to infidelity as anyone could come without being unfaithful, but Blaise still didn't understand exactly what it was, how his father felt about this woman, why he felt this way. He couldn't love her more than he had loved Pansy, right? They were meant to be, Felis Semper, love forever…so how else could Draco Malfoy have aroused jealousy in a devoted wife.
Blaise shrugged. It was all in the past now.
Ginny Weasley-Potter looked down at the casket in front of her. Draco Malfoy had aged, but his face shone of contentment…crow's eye wrinkles had formed at the edges of his eyes from years of laughter. She knew now that Draco had had a good life; the one he was meant to have. She was happy to have his diaries. They had been addressed to her; it had been like reading 65 years worth of letters from an old friend. That was really all he was now. She had never stopped loving him, but time had faded the pain of loss. From his diaries, she could tell it had been the same way for him.
His children stood around the casket, and she approached the eldest son, Blaise, to extend her regrets.
He asked her gently, "Did you know my father?"
She looked up at the spitting image of Draco. "Yes, a long time ago. We were friends. Was he a good father?"
Blaise smiled. "The best ever. We all loved him. I think he named my youngest sister for you…Ginevra?"
She smiled, tears suddenly filling her eyes. "Maybe he did. I wish…we could have kept in touch."
Blaise smiled at her. Suddenly she reached out a hand to him. "Were your mother and father happy?"
Blaise looked at her quietly, and said, "Yes. They had us." He gestured at his siblings.
She smiled. "That should be enough for anyone, right? My husband and I have four together."
She glanced back at the casket and looked at Draco's legacy…his family. "I'm glad he had a good life. I always wished that for him."
Blaise looked at her silently, and then asked abruptly, "Were you the woman my father loved? More than my mother?"
Ginny looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean?"
Blaise looked at her with silver eyes that burned into her soul…just like Draco's had. "My father and mother were happy, but my father just loved my mother. He wasn't in love with her. She knew it and accepted it. They never told us, their children, but I could tell. I have always been gifted at reading people. Were you the woman?"
She nodded sadly. "Yes, but we had different lives. It was too late for us. You - his children, his family - were the ones he loved most. Believe that."
Blaise said with a sigh, "I do. But…the woman who could demand such loyalty from my father…I'm glad I met you."
She smiled, tears running down her cheeks. "My husband is waiting for me. I'm so sorry…that things had to be this way."
Blaise watched her walk down the aisle. At last, the mystery that had stayed in his head for so long had finally been solved. His father had somehow, in some way, loved this woman wholly and truly. And he could tell that this woman had loved him back. He didn't know the whole story…he doubted anyone but those two would ever know it…but now he knew that his father's love had not been unrequited.
His youngest sister, Ginevra, walked up to him. "Who was that lady, Blaise?"
Blaise looked down at her surprisingly chocolate eyes and smiled. He would take their secret to his grave. A favor to the father who had always been the best father he could be, who had hidden his bitter regret under layers of love for his family.
"Just a friend," he said simply.