Fic: Snapshots [Harry/Draco]
Belated birthday ficcie for best_of_five!!
Title: Snapshots
Rating: PG-13
Category: French-speaking!Draco, Protective!Harry, bebbehs...or in other words, fluff and mpreg :).
Disclaimer: Don't own anything and all that.
Summary: Sometimes, life holds a surprise for you. Or perhaps two surprises.
~*~*~
"I don't think I should be this fat already." Draco studied himself in the mirror, turning this way and that.
"Well," Harry began. He knew he had to choose his words carefully. If he was honest with himself, he couldn't really detect much of a change in Draco's figure, aside from a small bump, but that could just as well have been a result from all the extra sugar Draco had been consuming recently. "Maybe it's because you're usually so thin."
Draco gave him a critical look. "Give me that book again."
Harry wordlessly handed over A Wizard's Guide to Pregnancy, 9th ed..
Holding the book at arm's length, Draco's eyes darted back and forth between the opened page ("Week 8") and his reflection. A deep frown formed on his face.
"I'm sure everything is all right." Harry slipped his arm around Draco's waist and gently pulled him closer. "We can ask at your appointment next week."
"I never thought Healer Hendrickson was all that competent. She probably completely miscalculated the date of conception. I look like I'm at least"-Draco counted silently-"11 or 12 weeks along."
"Draco, she's the leading expert in the field. You picked her yourself after weeks of research!"
Draco waved his hand. "Details. Depending on how it goes next Tuesday, we're getting a second opinion."
~*~*~
"Well, that's unexpected," Draco observed as they stepped onto the pavement in front of St. Mungo's.
"Yeah."
"It explains a lot."
"Uhuh." Harry still felt a bit dazed.
Draco's eyes drifted down the road and lost their focus. His hands pushed deeper into the pockets of his robe.
"Are you okay?"
Draco nodded.
Everything about Draco's posture indicated that he was very much not okay, a fact that Harry wanted to remedy right away. He glanced at the many passersby, and found that he didn't care about what they might see or think. He stepped closer to Draco and reached in-between the folds of his robe. The outside of Harry's hand brushed against Draco's cloth-covered fingers, which rested over the slight swell of his belly. They closed around Harry's palm with a nearly crushing grasp.
Draco's gaze flickered to Harry before falling away once more. In a quiet voice he said, "Twins, Harry. I don't know if-" He pressed his lips together.
"Yes, you do. You'll be fine. We'll be fine. It's maybe not exactly as we planned it, but when does life ever go as it's supposed to? Especially for us."
When there was no reply, Harry squeezed Draco's hand, then let go of it to wind his arm around Draco, his fingers climbing up his back to rest between his shoulder blades. Draco exhaled audibly, and relaxed against Harry.
Apparently, Harry wasn't the only one who had decided to forget the presence of Muggles rushing past.
"Home now?" Harry asked.
"Do I get a back rub?"
Harry laughed and pulled Draco into a proper hug. "Yes. I'll even throw in a foot rub. Because I love you just that much." The latter part hadn't come out quite as lighthearted as he'd intended.
"I know you do," Draco whispered. "It's why I'm not too worried about what's going to happen in the next few months."
Harry leaned back so he could look at Draco. "But you are worried."
"Wouldn't you be?"
Harry hesitated for a moment. "Probably, but I'd also know that you would take really good care of me and that in the end, I'd have nothing to be concerned about."
Draco managed a small smile. "I suppose this will just take some getting used to."
"Yes. And I think that will be much easier to accomplish when you're sprawled out on our sofa."
Leaning back into Harry's embrace, Draco replied, "How very astute of you. Take us home, Harry."
*~*~*
"Wake up!"
A sharp finger poked into Harry's side. "Hmm?" He blinked his eyes open and realised it was still dark outside. "Everything all right?"
"Yes, yes, come on now, give me your hand!" Draco yanked on Harry's wrist, causing him to roll over onto his side. His head landed in the crook of Draco's arm. Fingers closed around his hand and guided it to a low point on Draco's belly.
"Can you feel that?"
"It's…warm," Harry replied.
"Warm? Please do tell your brain to start working, will you? Here--" After a some shifting around, Harry found himself more or less wrapped around Draco. "Now?"
What Harry noticed above everything else was the way Draco's breath tickled against his skin and the strong fingers wound into his hair, carding through it with an absent-mindedness that spoke of familiarity and love.
"No?" Apparently, Draco had taken his delay in responding for a negative answer.
Harry concentrated on feeling something under his hand. "I…I'm not sure."
"There's a quidditch match going on in here, you've got to be able to feel that! Press a little harder."
"No, I don't want to hurt-"
"You won't. You know how Abigail likes to poke and prod me during our appointments with her. It'll be fine."
Harry had seen Draco wince in response to the Healer's touches more than once, and he had no intention to cause any similar discomfort.
"It's really okay. I'm not going to break," Draco said softly. "I'll show you." He used his hand, which still rested over Harry's, to firmly push against the side of his stomach.
At first, there was nothing, but then Harry thought something had brushed against his palm, an echo of a movement more than anything else. It returned, and became more pronounced, like a feather lightly dancing across his skin.
Harry gasped.
"Say hello to your two little boys," Draco whispered.
If he could have said anything, Harry would have done just that, but the words were wedged in his suddenly too-tight throat. Instead, he tilted his head up to capture Draco's lips in a light kiss, then dove under the duvet to do the same for his belly, one kiss for each of his children.
"Thank you," Harry said when he was face to face with Draco again.
"For waking you up in the middle of the night?" Draco sounded amused.
"Yeah. For that, and…for everything."
~*~*~
"We really need to decide on names soon," Draco observed, looking down at the sleeping infants lying in the bassinet.
"Hmm, yeah."
"We can't call them Number One and Number Two forever."
"I know," Harry said with a sigh.
"So? Any suggestions?"
Harry seemed disinclined to answer because he ignored Draco and reached into the bassinet to tug the blanket a little tighter around Number One.
"Stop that," Draco whispered harshly. "We only just got them to settle down, and you're going to wake them up again!"
"I just want to…" Harry carefully pushed Number One's hand under the white cloth. "There."
Draco held his breath. There was a little stirring, and the tiny fist re-emerged from under the blanket, but his son's eyes remained firmly closed.
"You're not going to fiddle with that again," Draco warned.
"Fine." Harry's shoulders slumped a little. "I thought he might get cold."
Draco walked around the bassinet. With one hand resting on the small of Harry's back, he said, "Considering it's nearly tropical in here, I think he'll be fine."
Harry nodded, but there was a hint of a frown on his face.
Draco brought his arm all the way around Harry's waist, and gave him a little squeeze, which was rewarded with a smile. "Now tell me about the names I mentioned to you the other day."
"Oh yeah, those. Those were….nice."
"Nice? Your enthusiasm is overwhelming."
Harry clearly struggled to keep whatever he was really thinking under wraps. "Er. I thought that they sounded very…French."
Draco raised an eyebrow. "They are French. Of course they sound French."
"Right. Well, maybe we could…I was thinking that perhaps it might be better-"
"What?"
"Maybe if we used the English equivalents of those names?"
Draco scrunched up his nose. "Why would we want to do that?"
Harry looked at him in an earnest way. "Because then no one would mispronounce their names, and they'd probably have an easier time with them as well."
Draco decided now was not a good time to announce to Harry that he had recruited a former Beauxbaton student as a nanny and that their children would learn French as a matter of course. "Well, there's still some time to decide."
"But didn't you say that-"
"Maybe I spoke too hastily. We should think about this very carefully." Meaning that Draco needed more time to convince Harry that the names he had picked out were more than perfect for their children.
"You're right. I should look through that book with names Hermione gave us."
Draco nearly cringed. "Yes, you go do that. Meanwhile, I shall take a nap."
"That's a good idea. I'll take care of them if they wake up before you do."
Draco returned Harry's warm smile, and with a kiss to his cheek, sauntered out of the nursery.
~*~*~
"Run along now, we'll be right behind you." Draco watched Julien toddle off in the direction of Harry's outstretched hand. His son turned around briefly to wave at him, and then started further down the path, his smaller hand in the firm grasp of Harry's larger one.
Camille made a big show of running ahead, as if she knew the fastest way to the playground. Draco shook his head with amusement. Sometimes he wondered if their dog wasn't secretly the third child in their little family. Well, not for much longer. Someone else would lay claim to that place soon.
"Daddy!"
Henri's enthusiastic shout disrupted Draco's thoughts. "What is it, mon petit lapin?"
"Here!"
Draco crouched down. A little frog was hopping between bunches of bluebells. Henri was trying to reach for it, but Draco stilled his hands. "It's going to be frightened, and you don't want that, do you?"
Henri emphatically shook his head and heavily leaned down on Draco's thigh. Unprepared for suddenly having to balance a three-year old's weight on just one leg, Draco's knee dipped into the mud, much to his chagrin. Even the heaviest cleaning charm would not be able to get that stain out of his new trousers. But his son's joy over being able to see a frog up close surely made up for it. Or at least that's what Draco tried to tell himself.
After a minute, the frog decided it had had enough attention for a day and bounced away with three large jumps.
Henri looked at the empty spot between the flowers with a wistful expression.
"Maybe there will be more frogs at the playground," Draco pointed out and straightened up.
"Really?"
"Why don't we find out?"
"Yes!" Henri started running down the path, but stopped after only ten metres. "It's such a long way, Daddy. Can you carry me?"
Draco hated to turn him down. "But you're a big boy now, Henri. You have two perfectly fine legs to walk with."
"Yeah, okay," He replied petulantly and kicked a stone out of his way. The stone rolled down the path and came to a stop in almost direct line from Henri's feet. He ran up to it and kicked it again, and again. Not even two minutes later, he had forgotten all about his denied request, much to Draco's relief.
When they arrived at the playground, Harry was already pushing Julien on the swing while Camille was digging a hole. "You two certainly took your time."
"We saw a frog!" Henri exclaimed.
"Frogs are boring," Julien countered.
"They are not!"
Draco and Harry exchanged a look. Time for pre-emptive measures.
"How about we take a look around here to see if we can find another frog, hmm?" Draco asked.
"Yes." Henri turned his back to Julien with a flourish and marched off to the opposite end of the playground.
Harry stifled a laugh. "Well, good luck, then."
Unfortunately, the extensive search did not yield another frog. As Henri had found three new pebbles to add to his growing collection, the expedition hadn't been completely fruitless, however.
After all the trudging around near and sometimes in the nearby shrubs, the bench under one of the trees looked rather appealing to Draco, so he turned to his son and said, "Do you feel like taking a turn on the swing now?"
Henri looked back and forth between Draco and Harry and Julien. "I want to stay with you, Daddy."
"Okay." Draco ruffled Henri's hair. "Come on, then."
Once Draco had sat down, Henri held out his arms to him, silently asking to be picked up. Unable to turn him away twice in a row, Draco pulled him into his lap with a slight wince. No more of this, Draco sternly told himself.
Henri snuggled closer, content to take a break from all the running around as well.
Draco rested his cheek against his son's dark blond hair and wrapped him in his arms. The time when he could simply sweep one of his children into an embrace and expect him to stay put was long gone; nowadays, they would try to wriggle away after not even a minute unless they were tired or feeling unwell.
Draco hadn't realised he'd closed his eyes until something wet nudged at his leg and he jumped in response, nearly unsettling Henri, who wiped at sleepy-looking eyes.
"Camille, you silly dog," Draco chided gently. "What do you want?"
The answer came promptly in the form of another nudge.
"Oh, all right, all right." Draco started petting Camille, which she took as a sign that it was okay to rest her head on Draco's knee. As the fabric of his trousers became soggy in that spot, Draco decided they were a lost cause.
Apparently, his dismay was plain to see because Henri giggled at him. "You think that's funny, huh?"
Henri nodded.
"Let's see what you think about…this!" Draco launched a tickle attack until his son was nearly crying with laugher and struggled to get off his lap.
"Let me go, let me go!"
Draco set him down. Henri immediately took off in the direction of the sandbox. Camille had watched the entire process with interest and now shuffled closer to Draco again, a pleading look in her brown eyes.
"Sorry, but I'm afraid you'll have to go bother Harry now if you want another round."
Camille seemed to have misunderstood Draco entirely as she plopped down on his feet and refused to move.
"Or you could try to ruin my shoes on top of my trousers. That's just as well, really."
Draco sighed and leaned back on the bench. Harry was talking to Henri now while also keeping an eye on Julien, who was investigating the rest of the playground.
Without being quite aware of it, Draco's hand wandered under his coat and shirt, seeking the hint of a curve underneath. He didn't know why he hadn't mentioned anything to Harry yet. At first he hadn't been certain, then it never seemed the right time.
His mind had been drifting for a while when he noticed someone sitting down next to him.
Harry smiled at him briefly, but when his eyes fell on Draco's hand, his expression turned serious.
Draco felt nervous all of a sudden. "What?" His voice wobbled.
"Why don't you just tell me?" Harry asked in a sad tone.
"You…you know?"
"Of course I know. How could I not? Do you think I couldn't tell?" Disappointment lingered underneath the imploring questions.
Draco broke away from Harry's gaze. "Sorry."
Quiet moments passed by that made Draco want to crawl away and hide.
"How long have you known?"
"Suspected…maybe a month. Known, for a week."
Harry reached for his hand and entwined their fingers. "I wish you'd told me."
"I meant to, but we were so busy these past few days." He still couldn't quite bring himself to look into Harry's eyes.
"How do you feel about…about…" Harry let the remainder of the question linger between them.
Draco couldn't keep the smile off his face. "I---" He couldn't say any more than that because Harry pulled him into a tight hug.
"I was worried you didn't want-" Harry broke off and buried his face in Draco's neck.
"Never," Draco replied firmly, "Never think that way. This might have been unplanned, but it's certainly not unwelcome."
Harry kissed his cheek. "I can't tell you how glad I am to-"
"Daddy? Are you sad?"
Draco turned toward Julien, who had suddenly appeared at his side and was looking at him and Harry with a questioning gaze. "No, I was just…"
"Daddy wanted a snuggle," Harry finished for him. "Was there something you wanted?"
Julien scrunched up his nose in a way that he had most definitely learned from Draco. "Henri says he saw a bunny. But I don't believe him. I think you need to come look."
"Hmm, I suppose we have to," Harry replied in an amused tone. He looked at Draco. "What do you say?"
The warmth in Harry's eyes washed over Draco. "I say we have some more exploring to do." He stood up. "Lead the way, Julien."
"It’s over here." Julien took Draco's hand and pulled.
Harry leaned over and whispered in Draco's ear. "We can talk more tonight, okay? But just for the record, I'm glad. Really, really glad."
Draco looked back at Harry for a long moment and nodded.
"Dad!" Julien whined. "The bunny?"
"Really, Harry! This bunny expedition is a serious matter and must not to be delayed."
"You better be careful that I don't beat you to it," Harry retorted and set off in a slow jog.
Julien tore after him, passing him easily.
Draco stood still for a moment longer, completely content. He committed every detail to his memory, the sun, the trees in bloom, his family just ahead, and set off in slow steps to discover for himself if Henri had indeed managed to find a bunny.
The End.
Feedback is very much appreciated!
Title: Snapshots
Rating: PG-13
Category: French-speaking!Draco, Protective!Harry, bebbehs...or in other words, fluff and mpreg :).
Disclaimer: Don't own anything and all that.
Summary: Sometimes, life holds a surprise for you. Or perhaps two surprises.
~*~*~
"I don't think I should be this fat already." Draco studied himself in the mirror, turning this way and that.
"Well," Harry began. He knew he had to choose his words carefully. If he was honest with himself, he couldn't really detect much of a change in Draco's figure, aside from a small bump, but that could just as well have been a result from all the extra sugar Draco had been consuming recently. "Maybe it's because you're usually so thin."
Draco gave him a critical look. "Give me that book again."
Harry wordlessly handed over A Wizard's Guide to Pregnancy, 9th ed..
Holding the book at arm's length, Draco's eyes darted back and forth between the opened page ("Week 8") and his reflection. A deep frown formed on his face.
"I'm sure everything is all right." Harry slipped his arm around Draco's waist and gently pulled him closer. "We can ask at your appointment next week."
"I never thought Healer Hendrickson was all that competent. She probably completely miscalculated the date of conception. I look like I'm at least"-Draco counted silently-"11 or 12 weeks along."
"Draco, she's the leading expert in the field. You picked her yourself after weeks of research!"
Draco waved his hand. "Details. Depending on how it goes next Tuesday, we're getting a second opinion."
~*~*~
"Well, that's unexpected," Draco observed as they stepped onto the pavement in front of St. Mungo's.
"Yeah."
"It explains a lot."
"Uhuh." Harry still felt a bit dazed.
Draco's eyes drifted down the road and lost their focus. His hands pushed deeper into the pockets of his robe.
"Are you okay?"
Draco nodded.
Everything about Draco's posture indicated that he was very much not okay, a fact that Harry wanted to remedy right away. He glanced at the many passersby, and found that he didn't care about what they might see or think. He stepped closer to Draco and reached in-between the folds of his robe. The outside of Harry's hand brushed against Draco's cloth-covered fingers, which rested over the slight swell of his belly. They closed around Harry's palm with a nearly crushing grasp.
Draco's gaze flickered to Harry before falling away once more. In a quiet voice he said, "Twins, Harry. I don't know if-" He pressed his lips together.
"Yes, you do. You'll be fine. We'll be fine. It's maybe not exactly as we planned it, but when does life ever go as it's supposed to? Especially for us."
When there was no reply, Harry squeezed Draco's hand, then let go of it to wind his arm around Draco, his fingers climbing up his back to rest between his shoulder blades. Draco exhaled audibly, and relaxed against Harry.
Apparently, Harry wasn't the only one who had decided to forget the presence of Muggles rushing past.
"Home now?" Harry asked.
"Do I get a back rub?"
Harry laughed and pulled Draco into a proper hug. "Yes. I'll even throw in a foot rub. Because I love you just that much." The latter part hadn't come out quite as lighthearted as he'd intended.
"I know you do," Draco whispered. "It's why I'm not too worried about what's going to happen in the next few months."
Harry leaned back so he could look at Draco. "But you are worried."
"Wouldn't you be?"
Harry hesitated for a moment. "Probably, but I'd also know that you would take really good care of me and that in the end, I'd have nothing to be concerned about."
Draco managed a small smile. "I suppose this will just take some getting used to."
"Yes. And I think that will be much easier to accomplish when you're sprawled out on our sofa."
Leaning back into Harry's embrace, Draco replied, "How very astute of you. Take us home, Harry."
*~*~*
"Wake up!"
A sharp finger poked into Harry's side. "Hmm?" He blinked his eyes open and realised it was still dark outside. "Everything all right?"
"Yes, yes, come on now, give me your hand!" Draco yanked on Harry's wrist, causing him to roll over onto his side. His head landed in the crook of Draco's arm. Fingers closed around his hand and guided it to a low point on Draco's belly.
"Can you feel that?"
"It's…warm," Harry replied.
"Warm? Please do tell your brain to start working, will you? Here--" After a some shifting around, Harry found himself more or less wrapped around Draco. "Now?"
What Harry noticed above everything else was the way Draco's breath tickled against his skin and the strong fingers wound into his hair, carding through it with an absent-mindedness that spoke of familiarity and love.
"No?" Apparently, Draco had taken his delay in responding for a negative answer.
Harry concentrated on feeling something under his hand. "I…I'm not sure."
"There's a quidditch match going on in here, you've got to be able to feel that! Press a little harder."
"No, I don't want to hurt-"
"You won't. You know how Abigail likes to poke and prod me during our appointments with her. It'll be fine."
Harry had seen Draco wince in response to the Healer's touches more than once, and he had no intention to cause any similar discomfort.
"It's really okay. I'm not going to break," Draco said softly. "I'll show you." He used his hand, which still rested over Harry's, to firmly push against the side of his stomach.
At first, there was nothing, but then Harry thought something had brushed against his palm, an echo of a movement more than anything else. It returned, and became more pronounced, like a feather lightly dancing across his skin.
Harry gasped.
"Say hello to your two little boys," Draco whispered.
If he could have said anything, Harry would have done just that, but the words were wedged in his suddenly too-tight throat. Instead, he tilted his head up to capture Draco's lips in a light kiss, then dove under the duvet to do the same for his belly, one kiss for each of his children.
"Thank you," Harry said when he was face to face with Draco again.
"For waking you up in the middle of the night?" Draco sounded amused.
"Yeah. For that, and…for everything."
~*~*~
"We really need to decide on names soon," Draco observed, looking down at the sleeping infants lying in the bassinet.
"Hmm, yeah."
"We can't call them Number One and Number Two forever."
"I know," Harry said with a sigh.
"So? Any suggestions?"
Harry seemed disinclined to answer because he ignored Draco and reached into the bassinet to tug the blanket a little tighter around Number One.
"Stop that," Draco whispered harshly. "We only just got them to settle down, and you're going to wake them up again!"
"I just want to…" Harry carefully pushed Number One's hand under the white cloth. "There."
Draco held his breath. There was a little stirring, and the tiny fist re-emerged from under the blanket, but his son's eyes remained firmly closed.
"You're not going to fiddle with that again," Draco warned.
"Fine." Harry's shoulders slumped a little. "I thought he might get cold."
Draco walked around the bassinet. With one hand resting on the small of Harry's back, he said, "Considering it's nearly tropical in here, I think he'll be fine."
Harry nodded, but there was a hint of a frown on his face.
Draco brought his arm all the way around Harry's waist, and gave him a little squeeze, which was rewarded with a smile. "Now tell me about the names I mentioned to you the other day."
"Oh yeah, those. Those were….nice."
"Nice? Your enthusiasm is overwhelming."
Harry clearly struggled to keep whatever he was really thinking under wraps. "Er. I thought that they sounded very…French."
Draco raised an eyebrow. "They are French. Of course they sound French."
"Right. Well, maybe we could…I was thinking that perhaps it might be better-"
"What?"
"Maybe if we used the English equivalents of those names?"
Draco scrunched up his nose. "Why would we want to do that?"
Harry looked at him in an earnest way. "Because then no one would mispronounce their names, and they'd probably have an easier time with them as well."
Draco decided now was not a good time to announce to Harry that he had recruited a former Beauxbaton student as a nanny and that their children would learn French as a matter of course. "Well, there's still some time to decide."
"But didn't you say that-"
"Maybe I spoke too hastily. We should think about this very carefully." Meaning that Draco needed more time to convince Harry that the names he had picked out were more than perfect for their children.
"You're right. I should look through that book with names Hermione gave us."
Draco nearly cringed. "Yes, you go do that. Meanwhile, I shall take a nap."
"That's a good idea. I'll take care of them if they wake up before you do."
Draco returned Harry's warm smile, and with a kiss to his cheek, sauntered out of the nursery.
~*~*~
"Run along now, we'll be right behind you." Draco watched Julien toddle off in the direction of Harry's outstretched hand. His son turned around briefly to wave at him, and then started further down the path, his smaller hand in the firm grasp of Harry's larger one.
Camille made a big show of running ahead, as if she knew the fastest way to the playground. Draco shook his head with amusement. Sometimes he wondered if their dog wasn't secretly the third child in their little family. Well, not for much longer. Someone else would lay claim to that place soon.
"Daddy!"
Henri's enthusiastic shout disrupted Draco's thoughts. "What is it, mon petit lapin?"
"Here!"
Draco crouched down. A little frog was hopping between bunches of bluebells. Henri was trying to reach for it, but Draco stilled his hands. "It's going to be frightened, and you don't want that, do you?"
Henri emphatically shook his head and heavily leaned down on Draco's thigh. Unprepared for suddenly having to balance a three-year old's weight on just one leg, Draco's knee dipped into the mud, much to his chagrin. Even the heaviest cleaning charm would not be able to get that stain out of his new trousers. But his son's joy over being able to see a frog up close surely made up for it. Or at least that's what Draco tried to tell himself.
After a minute, the frog decided it had had enough attention for a day and bounced away with three large jumps.
Henri looked at the empty spot between the flowers with a wistful expression.
"Maybe there will be more frogs at the playground," Draco pointed out and straightened up.
"Really?"
"Why don't we find out?"
"Yes!" Henri started running down the path, but stopped after only ten metres. "It's such a long way, Daddy. Can you carry me?"
Draco hated to turn him down. "But you're a big boy now, Henri. You have two perfectly fine legs to walk with."
"Yeah, okay," He replied petulantly and kicked a stone out of his way. The stone rolled down the path and came to a stop in almost direct line from Henri's feet. He ran up to it and kicked it again, and again. Not even two minutes later, he had forgotten all about his denied request, much to Draco's relief.
When they arrived at the playground, Harry was already pushing Julien on the swing while Camille was digging a hole. "You two certainly took your time."
"We saw a frog!" Henri exclaimed.
"Frogs are boring," Julien countered.
"They are not!"
Draco and Harry exchanged a look. Time for pre-emptive measures.
"How about we take a look around here to see if we can find another frog, hmm?" Draco asked.
"Yes." Henri turned his back to Julien with a flourish and marched off to the opposite end of the playground.
Harry stifled a laugh. "Well, good luck, then."
Unfortunately, the extensive search did not yield another frog. As Henri had found three new pebbles to add to his growing collection, the expedition hadn't been completely fruitless, however.
After all the trudging around near and sometimes in the nearby shrubs, the bench under one of the trees looked rather appealing to Draco, so he turned to his son and said, "Do you feel like taking a turn on the swing now?"
Henri looked back and forth between Draco and Harry and Julien. "I want to stay with you, Daddy."
"Okay." Draco ruffled Henri's hair. "Come on, then."
Once Draco had sat down, Henri held out his arms to him, silently asking to be picked up. Unable to turn him away twice in a row, Draco pulled him into his lap with a slight wince. No more of this, Draco sternly told himself.
Henri snuggled closer, content to take a break from all the running around as well.
Draco rested his cheek against his son's dark blond hair and wrapped him in his arms. The time when he could simply sweep one of his children into an embrace and expect him to stay put was long gone; nowadays, they would try to wriggle away after not even a minute unless they were tired or feeling unwell.
Draco hadn't realised he'd closed his eyes until something wet nudged at his leg and he jumped in response, nearly unsettling Henri, who wiped at sleepy-looking eyes.
"Camille, you silly dog," Draco chided gently. "What do you want?"
The answer came promptly in the form of another nudge.
"Oh, all right, all right." Draco started petting Camille, which she took as a sign that it was okay to rest her head on Draco's knee. As the fabric of his trousers became soggy in that spot, Draco decided they were a lost cause.
Apparently, his dismay was plain to see because Henri giggled at him. "You think that's funny, huh?"
Henri nodded.
"Let's see what you think about…this!" Draco launched a tickle attack until his son was nearly crying with laugher and struggled to get off his lap.
"Let me go, let me go!"
Draco set him down. Henri immediately took off in the direction of the sandbox. Camille had watched the entire process with interest and now shuffled closer to Draco again, a pleading look in her brown eyes.
"Sorry, but I'm afraid you'll have to go bother Harry now if you want another round."
Camille seemed to have misunderstood Draco entirely as she plopped down on his feet and refused to move.
"Or you could try to ruin my shoes on top of my trousers. That's just as well, really."
Draco sighed and leaned back on the bench. Harry was talking to Henri now while also keeping an eye on Julien, who was investigating the rest of the playground.
Without being quite aware of it, Draco's hand wandered under his coat and shirt, seeking the hint of a curve underneath. He didn't know why he hadn't mentioned anything to Harry yet. At first he hadn't been certain, then it never seemed the right time.
His mind had been drifting for a while when he noticed someone sitting down next to him.
Harry smiled at him briefly, but when his eyes fell on Draco's hand, his expression turned serious.
Draco felt nervous all of a sudden. "What?" His voice wobbled.
"Why don't you just tell me?" Harry asked in a sad tone.
"You…you know?"
"Of course I know. How could I not? Do you think I couldn't tell?" Disappointment lingered underneath the imploring questions.
Draco broke away from Harry's gaze. "Sorry."
Quiet moments passed by that made Draco want to crawl away and hide.
"How long have you known?"
"Suspected…maybe a month. Known, for a week."
Harry reached for his hand and entwined their fingers. "I wish you'd told me."
"I meant to, but we were so busy these past few days." He still couldn't quite bring himself to look into Harry's eyes.
"How do you feel about…about…" Harry let the remainder of the question linger between them.
Draco couldn't keep the smile off his face. "I---" He couldn't say any more than that because Harry pulled him into a tight hug.
"I was worried you didn't want-" Harry broke off and buried his face in Draco's neck.
"Never," Draco replied firmly, "Never think that way. This might have been unplanned, but it's certainly not unwelcome."
Harry kissed his cheek. "I can't tell you how glad I am to-"
"Daddy? Are you sad?"
Draco turned toward Julien, who had suddenly appeared at his side and was looking at him and Harry with a questioning gaze. "No, I was just…"
"Daddy wanted a snuggle," Harry finished for him. "Was there something you wanted?"
Julien scrunched up his nose in a way that he had most definitely learned from Draco. "Henri says he saw a bunny. But I don't believe him. I think you need to come look."
"Hmm, I suppose we have to," Harry replied in an amused tone. He looked at Draco. "What do you say?"
The warmth in Harry's eyes washed over Draco. "I say we have some more exploring to do." He stood up. "Lead the way, Julien."
"It’s over here." Julien took Draco's hand and pulled.
Harry leaned over and whispered in Draco's ear. "We can talk more tonight, okay? But just for the record, I'm glad. Really, really glad."
Draco looked back at Harry for a long moment and nodded.
"Dad!" Julien whined. "The bunny?"
"Really, Harry! This bunny expedition is a serious matter and must not to be delayed."
"You better be careful that I don't beat you to it," Harry retorted and set off in a slow jog.
Julien tore after him, passing him easily.
Draco stood still for a moment longer, completely content. He committed every detail to his memory, the sun, the trees in bloom, his family just ahead, and set off in slow steps to discover for himself if Henri had indeed managed to find a bunny.
The End.
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