What Shakes The Elephant

What Shakes The Elephant

Chapter 27 – What Makes Him Stall

“Daddy, Daddy look! I got Shifting Suckers!”

“No way! I got some too!”

“And me! We can all be like Teddy now!”

Harry sat back into his armchair and sighed heavily. Christmas morning was always an endurance run with the whole family. The children woke at the crack of dawn to see the presents they received and play with absolutely everything they could play with. Ron was off to Harry’s right, sitting behind a pile of torn wrappings and Hermione was in the kitchen helping Mrs. Weasley prepare the Christmas feast. George was handing out his gifts to the kids while Teddy laughed and pulled his face into different shapes to make them laugh. Bill and Fleur had not yet arrived with Victoire. Percy would arrive later in the evening, along with Mr. Weasley, and Charlie was in Romania.

The children were popping the Shifting Suckers into their mouths and sucking on them, following George’s careful directions. Soon each of them began changing their hair colour and growing in size or shrinking down. Hugo turned his skin a dark brown and made his eyes glow yellow. Rose had turned her hair blonde (much to Ron’s dismay) and given herself skin pale enough to be worthy of the name Malfoy. Ablus had simply mimicked his father. He now sported a lightning bolt scar and lengthened his hair. Harry shivered involuntarily and then watched as Albus turned himself into a perfect replica of Scorpius.

Lily was amusing herself at great length giving herself rabbit ears and fur where she could. Teddy took this as a challenge and –quite unnervingly –sprouted fur all over his body and modified his features until he looked somewhat like a humanoid werewolf. Ron and Harry gave each other looks before brushing it off, knowing that he was not a full Werewolf like his father. Teddy only had mild wolfish tendencies, much in the same manner as Bill.

James was not taking part in the fun, he was holding the gift that was signed “Mum and Dad”. He had not unwrapped it though it was clear what it was. Harry walked over to him and put a hand on his son’s shoulders.

“What’s wrong, James?” he asked softly. “Don’t want to open your gift?”

“It’s not that,” he answered, his voice cracking gently. “I know what it is. But who will I fly with now that mum’s gone?”

Harry felt his heart sink slightly and sat next to his son. He turned James around and looked into his eyes.

“I’ll fly with you, James,” he replied calmly. “Don’t ever worry. It will be harder now that Mum has passed away but she is gone to a better place. She’s alright and we’ll make it too. Yeah?”

James nodded gently and Harry motioned for him to open the gift. He unwrapped the paper and his eyes widened considerably. He had known, of course, that it was a new broomstick, but he had not expected this one.

It was the newest versions of the Nimbus series of brooms: the Cumulus 470. It was the fastest model below the racing broom category and James had wanted it for months but never dared ask for it.

“Is it… really??” James asked, still disbelieving as he ran his fingers over the polished handle.

“It is,” Harry answered happily. James looked up with a mischievous smile on his face and hugged his father before getting up to run and show off his new broom. Hugo and Teddy both marvelled at it.

Harry got back to his feet and realized that Albus had disappeared. He frowned slightly and walked around looking for him but when he could not find him, Harry went on a search throughout the house. He looked in the kitchen and the kids’ bedrooms but finally came to the toilet, just down the hall. The door was slightly open and Harry walked up, realizing that Al was whispering something.

He peeked inside and his eyes widened slightly. Albus was still morphed to look like Scorpius and he was talking to the reflection, trying to reassure himself.

“It’s ok, Al,” he said, trying to imitate Scorpius’ voice. “You’ll be alright. Your father loves you and will make sure you are all ok. He won’t let you down. And your brother… well he’ll come around eventually. Things will get better and in the meantime I’ll always be here for you.”

Harry leaned his head against the wall and shut his eyes, knowing the feeling his son was expressing but having no way to explain it. He knew Al needed the comfort and support. He knew this. He needed to let Al go spend time with Scorpius. It would do him some good to be around his friend now.

Harry knocked on the door.

“Al, you alright?” he inquired softly. “It’s almost time to eat.”

“I’m alright, dad,” he answered, his face turning back to its normal appearance. The candy had worn out. “I’ll be out in a moment.”

Harry nodded to him and went back towards the kitchen, his head now swimming in thoughts he had been trying to ignore.

The letter that Draco had left him on the kitchen table was in his breast pocket and it was every day. He carried it with him though he dared not think on it for too long. What did Draco mean by ‘answers’? Answers to his emotional issues? Or were they answers to the pureblood curses they had been researching?

If they were answers to those then why did he not come forward with them sooner? He could have saved Ginny and avoided this whole mess!

Then… did Harry really want that, now that he thought on it?

YES. Yes of course he wanted it. Ginny was his wife. The mother of his children. Even if he couldn’t say that he loved her… as much as before…. She was still the mother of his children and they needed her.

But it was too late now anyway. Did Harry really want to know what this answer was? Did he care to find out, knowing that it was far too late to save his wife? Knowing that he had let the answer slip through his fingers? What if Draco had had it all along?

What if he was hiding it out of selfish desires, like he kept the Black family curse a secret for so long? It was possible, wasn’t it?

Then Harry thought of how Draco had come to the funeral with his father and son no less. How he had given that beautiful flower arrangement, in honour of a woman he never liked nor got on with. He had used her favourite flowers. He had been civil and kind and caring…

Why had he done all these things? Was it really just an act of friendship, as he had said?

The thought plagued Harry and tore at his insides every day and night. He wanted to know but he wanted to ignore it as well. These were the reasons he had not yet contacted Draco, though he knew he had to eventually.

He wanted to ignore the fact that he had admitted something (though he couldn’t be sure of what) to Draco and there had been no reply. He did not know what Draco thought or felt and he doubted that he would know. He doubted that he would ever get to know the multi-faceted Draco Malfoy… the one he wished so badly to understand.

Harry shuddered as he realized that he was already more interested in Draco than he had ever been in Ginny. He had never thought on her like this. Not even in his sixth year when he first began to feel his attraction for her.

Though that was also the year that Draco had consumed his mind.

But Draco and Ginny had always been at odds in his mind, just as in reality. And, very frighteningly, Draco had normally taken up more of his mind. Was it normal for him to think this way? Was it alright? Was it wrong or disloyal to Ginny? She had been afraid of this, hadn’t she? Did she know something more than Harry did?

Of course she had, she always did. She had hidden her condition from him for twenty-six years, why shouldn’t she have other secrets from him?

Then Harry thought of Draco’s comment that first night they had met for drinks. He claimed he had always been more honest with Harry than anyone else and, in retrospect, he was probably not lying. There were moments when Draco kept something from him or refused to answer a question, but he had not lied. He had owed Harry nothing and thus did not feel the urge to share his most intimate secrets with the famous wizard.

Harry now wished that some things had been different. He wished that Draco felt more able to trust him with his secrets. But he knew that he had never been forthcoming with Draco himself, and trust was a two-way street.

Harry sighed and sat down to the feast with his family. They were all happy (or as happy as they could make themselves considering they had all just lost a mother, daughter or sister) but Harry felt out of place. For the first time in his life with the Weasleys, he did not feel as though he belonged.

As soon as the din grew around Harry, he let his mind wander back to where it wanted to go. He did not agree and wished not to linger there, but there was no fighting what his heart was demanding.

******

“Father!” Scorpius’ voice echoed throughout the halls as his footfalls on the stone marked his approach. Draco looked up from the notes he had made on everything Luna had told him.

It was late Christmas night and Scorpius had gone off to play with his new broomstick and Wizard’s Chess board. He had Exploding Snap and several assorted items from Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. Draco did not like the Weasleys much but, of all of them, he like George best. That and it gave him a chance to check in on his nephew every so often, though Teddy Remus Lupin never looked his way.

Draco did not make it a point to go into the shop often, he did not appreciate the looks he received but he would make the trip to provide his son with quality entertainment. There wasn’t a child at Hogwarts that didn’t have something from Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes and Scorpius would not be the first.

Now, however, Draco was surprised to see his son hurtling through the doorway of his study in a very un-Malfoy-like manner. He was smiling brightly and clutching a letter in his hand.

“What is it?” Draco asked, unable to contain his amusement. A grin drew itself on his face and he gave a soft chuckle. His father would disapprove but who cared about what Lucius thought?

“He can come, he can come!!” Scorpius exclaimed, hurrying forward to hand him the letter. Scorpius was nearly bouncing with excitement and Draco took the letter from him. It was a message from Albus Severus.

Draco scanned the untidy writing and even through the written words he could tell that Albus was just as excited about the matter as Scorpius was. Potter had apparently decided it a good idea that Albus Severus should come to stay with Scorpius for a while during the break before they went back to school.

“Well, I suppose you’ll have to set things up for him,” Draco suggested wryly to his son. Scorpius nodded and attempted to regain his composure.

“I haven’t given him his Christmas present yet,” he admitted. “I wanted to wait until I could give it to him in person. I hope he’ll like it.”

Draco smiled and agreed, sending his son off to prepare, despite that Albus would not arrive for another few days. Meanwhile, Draco got to his feet and began to pace his study. If Albus were to come, would Potter accompany him?

He had made no effort to contact Draco and had not even acknowledged the letter. Had he really meant those words back in that kitchen? Draco hoped and wished and the moment Harry had spoken them, though they were ambiguous and confessed little or nothing, his heart had leapt into his throat. He wanted Harry to feel the same way about him as Draco did. He wanted it to be a mutual thing… he wanted…

He didn’t know what he wanted, or rather pretended not to know.

Draco paced and paced, worrying that his message was misinterpreted. Or perhaps Harry did not want to know these answers. It was hard, surely. He had just lost his wife to the curse that Draco had professed to be able to cure… at least in theory. Was that the right move? It had been in the heat of the moment, when Draco thought of nothing else to leave with Harry but a letter telling him that he would continue waiting. He could come to Draco in time and Draco would wait…

In retrospect, that was likely not the greatest move. Harry Potter was not quite as dim as they get, but subtlety was certainly lost on him.

He probably had no idea what the letter was intended to mean.

Draco smirked to himself at the thought and decided that, in true Malfoy style, he would take advantage of the idea instead of letting it ruin his plans. He walked over to the bookshelf and removed an ornate silver box from near the top. If it had been covered in dust, the imagery would be complete but nothing in Malfoy Manor was covered in dust, lest the House Elves be sacked for their incompetence.

Draco placed the box atop his polished desk and tapped it with his wand. With a soft melodic tune, the different details engraved and wrought out of the silver turned and spun to allow the top to open. Draco sorted through some of the contents.

This box was one his mother’s box and held many items of great importance to the Malfoy family. Heirlooms and meaningful tokens were here and rarely were they offered to anyone else unless they married into the name.

Draco smiled as his fingertips found the object he sought and he lifted it into his palm. It was still in perfect condition.

--Yes, this is a perfect Christmas gift for Harry.—

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A/N: I… don’t really like this chapter but it served its purpose. Next chapter up soon and I hope you’re all still enjoying it! I promise it won’t be angst forever lol, I just have to get through the roughest parts. I do like to include comedy and some fluffiness and some… I dunno, random stuff? Lol But fun things ahead, I do promise!

Thanks for all the lovely reviews! Don’t worry, Ron will get his eventually. Can’t go around saying things like that about Draco! And to an impressionable child no less! *gawk* He needs a good kick in the pants. Or something. Yes.

Anywho, Yes… this gift has meanings! I’m excited teehee!

Love to you all!