Fearn't Ever Further

.~*~.Fearn't Ever Further.~*~.

Chapter Two

Muggle Influence

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This part of the chapter is not from any particular first-person POV.

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"Now, do you think we have about everything?" asked Remus, eyeing their shopping bags. "Or is there still something we should get?"

"No more," whined Olivia. "I'm exhausted. Besides, I think we should leave something for the others."

"What's wrong, little one?" asked Draco, laughing. "Aren't you females supposed to like shopping?"

She smiled a bit at him. "Well, yes," she said, "and I do enjoy it, I really do. But with the rate you two are going at it, no amount of enjoyment might help me to not get exhausted." With a small grin, she then added, "You know, when I was a kid, I couldn't understand how anybody could be addicted to shopping."

"Well, do you understand now?" asked Remus, laughing. At the same time, he glanced around. When no Muggles seemed to be looking, he then fished out his wand and waved it, shrinking their purchases into three tiny packages, then handed one to each of the young and pocketed his own.

"Well, I still don't understand it, by the strict definition of the word," Olivia chuckled. "But it certainly is easier to believe." Her silver eyes twinkled with amusement. "You two are clearly shopaholics!"

Remus smirked. "Well, don't blame me," he said. "It was your Father who wanted to reach out into the Muggle business world, and it's him who is earning all that money. I'm merely kindly saving him from the trouble of having to change it all into Galleons."

"Do you ever feel bad about it?" asked Draco then. "Don't take me wrong, I'm certainly not trying to blame you or anything. But doesn't it ever bother you that you're just living off Father's fortune?"

At this, the werewolf shrugged. "It used to," he said. "However, it doesn't anymore for three reasons. One, I'm earning a whole lot of money myself, being the Keeper of the Wolf's Staff. Two, like Lucius often reminds me, as his husband I'm also one of the owners of the Malfoy Industries. The other two owners are Luicus himself and Olivia here, as you gave up your ownership by taking the name of Potter. And three, well, Lucius noticed right away how difficult it was to me to use his money. So, he told me to consider it a payment: one Galleon for every minute I had to spend alone after he married Narcissa." With a bit of a smirk, he finished, "I'm not even near making him pay wholly yet."

Draco laughed. "And that's just so typical," he said. "Only a Malfoy can own anything that carries the Malfoy name. When the time comes, I will undoubtedly inherit more money than I could ever spend, but the Manor and Industries will inevitably fall to you, Olivia."

The girl smiled briefly. "Well, as interesting as that is," she said then, "I'm starving. Would you oppose to having something to eat before we head to the nearest Floo station?"

"Well, I certainly wouldn't protest," Remus said. "Let's try to find some nice restaurant, shall we?"

"Oh, no," Draco said, grinning. "We came to a Muggle shopping trip, so let's be as Muggle as possible. So, we are going to eat there." And, at this, he pointed at an all-too-recognizable symbol nearby.

"Oh, no," Remus groaned. "I am not going to eat there! True, let's be Muggle, but enough is enough!"

"Aww, don't be so stuck up, Dad," Olivia laughed. "You're starting to sound like Father and Severus. Draco's right, that's the last place any wizard would ever eat in. So, let's go!" And so she and her half brother started to drag Remus towards McDonald's.

Some people glanced at them as they made their way towards the counter. Nobody gave them a second glance, however. They were naturally all dressed in Muggle clothes, and to avoid further attention, they had chosen clothes that wouldn't make them come out as too rich. Therefore, they were just a yet another family out for a lunch -- well, except for their jewelry anyway.

"I fear you're becoming too much a snob, Steppy," Draco said cheerfully. "Father must be rubbing off on you. Really, what do you have against this perfectly fine restaurant?"

"Oh, shut up," Remus said, rolling his eyes. "And besides, don't call me Steppy. I do believe I have said that often enough." He scowled at his smirking stepson.

"Oh, but you are that, aren't you?" Draco asked mischievously. "By marrying my father you redefined yourself as my stepfather. Now, why on Earth couldn't I call you that?"

"There is a certain difference between 'stepfather' and 'steppy,' Draco, and you know it very well, the werewolf said, rolling his eyes towards the ceiling. "So, do not purposefully irritate me."

"Of course not, Steppy." Draco smirked, Olivia snickered, and Remus just rolled his eyes again.

Once they had eaten, Olivia felt refreshed enough to continue shopping for a bit. "I think I could use a new dress," she said. "Besides, it would be a perfect opportunity to try out that new shop."

Draco nodded instantly, but Remus politely refused. "You two go along," he said. "This is as good time as any to get some presents to you two. Just call me when you're done, okay?"

So, they parted ways. Remus continued exploring the mall, while Draco and Olivia headed for a very particular shop. It was brand new and very expensive, and everybody who had money went shopping there. Incidentally, it just happened to be the newest Muggle addition to the Malfoy Industries. Just like Draco had predicted, Lucius indeed had extended his business to the Muggle World, and was doing very well this far. Now, his children were going to use this particular fact on their advantage.

So, the half siblings entered the store. They chose to ignore the doubtful glance the shopkeeper gave to them and went to look at the dresses instead. Olivia looked through the very expensive pieces of clothing, while Draco gave her his own opinions and tips.

At last, Olivia settled on a nice blue dress. Lately, she'd started to make some difference from the green-and-silver line, although she still often wore the Malfoy colours. So, she walked up to the salesman, Draco following on her heels. "Excuse me," she said, "but could you perhaps spare me a moment?"

To both her and her half brother's shock, the man just glared at her. "Go play elsewhere, girl," he spat. "I have paying customers to serve. I don't have time for the likes of you."

Taking one look at Olivia's shocked and almost fearful expression, Draco made his decision. Except for Christmas shopping, this trip to the Muggle world was also an occasion to celebrate the fact that Olivia could finally go around just normally, only using Calming Potion in the most difficult situations. He'd be damned if he let this bastard spoil his little sister's achievement. So, Draco reached for his cell phone.

"Don't worry," he said coolly to the man at the same time as he pulled Olivia nearer to himself to offer her some support. "Soon you'll have more than enough time in your hands, and you won't have to serve anybody." Dialing a number, he then raised the phone to his ear.

After a moment, his father answered the phone. "Draco?" he asked. "Is something wrong?"

"Not necessarily wrong," the young wizard said, at the same time glaring at the Muggle man in front of him. "There's just a bastard working in this shop of yours who was rude to Olivia."

Now, there was more than just a hint of steel in Lucius's voice as he said, "Don't do anything, just stay where you are. I'll Apparate nearby and come there to make sure the git regrets ever being born."

"Fine, we'll be waiting." Ending the call, Draco then gave the salesman yet another glare. "Our Father is just around the corner, coming to fire you. Don't worry, though. He won't hurt you... much."

The man looked scandalized. "Who do you think you are, young man?" he demanded.

At this, Draco raised an eyebrow. "I am Draco Potter, née Malfoy," he said calmly. "And this is my sister, Olivia Malfoy. Yes," he said at the man's shocked expression, "as in, the Malfoys of the Malfoy Industries. The owners of this wretched little hole that is -- oh, forgive me, was your working place." He smirked evilly as the salesman looked horrified. And for good reason too.

Soon enough, Lucius walked into the shop, Remus following him closely. The werewolf went immediately to Olivia's side, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. At the same time, Lucius walked to stand by his son, glaring coldly at the unfortunate Muggle man.

"I heard that your service to my daughter was less than satisfactory," Lucius said, and the Muggle shivered. The three other people perhaps didn't look like anything but an ordinary family -- the very reason why had made what was turning out to be the worst mistake in his life. Lucius, however, was a different story altogether. From his perfect Armani suit to his cane, his appearance screamed of power and wealth. Also, his face was one the Muggle knew very well. That of his highest boss.

"I -- I'm sorry, Mister Malfoy," he stuttered. "I did not know that she was your daughter."

"That is no excuse," Lucius said coldly. "You are supposed to be perfectly polite to anybody who enters this shop, regardless of their name or wealth. As you failed that task, you clearly aren't capable of filling your post. Consider yourself fired." With a last glare, he added, "And don't exhaust yourself by trying to find a new job in some other shop. I promise to make sure that you will not manage, even if it means that I have to buy every clothing store in the country. No one is rude to my daughter."

The man swallowed. "Yes, Mister Malfoy," he mumbled, not doubting Lucius's words one bit.

"Very well. Now, Olivia," Lucius said, turning towards his daughter, "was there something in here you'd like to have?" His tone was wholly different from that he'd used only moments before.

"Forget it," Olivia said quietly. "I just want to get out of here as soon as possible."

"Very well," Lucius said. And so, the Malfoys and one Potter left the shop.

*

"No, Sirius. Absolutely not." Severus glared at his husband. "I will definitely not come with you."

"Aww, come on, Severus," Sirius chuckled. "It could be fun, you know. And besides, you said yourself that you would want to know what exactly makes me go there. Don't you want to see it for yourself?"

"It's quite enough that I see the results," replied Severus, glancing up and down Sirius's body. All the time he'd spent in a wheelchair had not left any traces to his muscular body, or at least those traces had already disappeared with his working out. "And the results are, frankly, rather impressive."

"Exactly." Sirius grinned. "And that's just why you should come along, too!"

Now, Severus raised an eyebrow. "So you would love me more if I was like those brainless heaps of muscle?" he asked, seemingly calm, but a hidden threat in his voice.

"Of course not." At this, the Animagus drew his husband into a tight embrace. "There's no way I could love you more, Severus," he said softly. "Because I already love you more than anything."

This again caused a raised eyebrow. "There's always a chance for better."

So, to do better, Sirius kissed him.

*

"Tell me again why I agreed to this," Severus said dryly. He glanced around with obvious distaste.

"Why, because you love me, of course," Sirius said teasingly. "And because you want to make sure that I don't leave you for some young, muscular idiot." He flashed a bright grin. "Come on now, Severus."

"If you insist," sighed the Potions Master, stepping out of the doorway of the Muggle gym to the inside of the place. Sirius's grin grew even brighter, and Severus was doing his best not to scowl at the whole place. He was only doing this to keep Sirius happy. And he would not do it again.

He still couldn't comprehend why he'd agreed to this in the first place. Probably it was just the sex making him unable to think. So, when Sirius had again started his whining, suggesting that they'd go to just a small gym so he wouldn't feel so uncomfortable, he'd finally agreed to go. A bad mistake, it seemed now.

Sirius cheerfully enough started lifting weights after warming up a little. Severus merely watched him, not too eager to try out the different apparatuses that, to him, looked rather like some mean torturing devices. Of course, his activity didn't go unnoticed by the other people in the gym.

Soon three men approached him. They were all over six feet tall, and at least twice as wide as Lucius, who could at least match their height. They rather looked like smaller versions of Hagrid to Severus, except that Hagrid looked much less frightening. Not that they'd scared Severus, of course; over the years he'd come to bear about anything that might came about. One of them was blond, another red-haired -- he reminded Severus badly of Weasley -- and the third one was bald, but had a ring on his nose. How disgusting. It wasn't that Severus minded Sirius's earring, but a piercing on one's nose? He would never accept that!

"Why're you watching that guy so closely?" asked the blond. He didn't look very clever, but then again, neither did his companions. However, they all looked very mean.

"Why wouldn't I be?" asked Severus snappishly. At seeing their frowns, he raised an eyebrow. "Okay, so he's my husband. Got a problem with that?" he added sharply.

"Hell yes," the ring-nosed one said, taking a threatening step forward. "We don't like queers."

"Well, you are the queer fellow here, I'd say," the wizard replied coolly. "Really, a ring on the nose? What do you think you are, a bull, or what? Then again, by your IQ, you're probably just that," he then added thoughtfully. Snapping his tongue at them, he said, "Don't bother me. It's not healthy for you."

"And you would give us troubles, eh?" laughed the red-haired man. "Or maybe your dear husband will do that? He doesn't look like he could stand one round with any of us, and you look even less like that."

Severus merely shrugged. "Well, he's not as fit as normal," he said carefree, an evil plan starting to take form in his mind. "You see, he got a bit out of practice as he was recovering from an... accident."

"Accident?" asked the blond man, frowning in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, just a sabotaged motorbike and such," Severus said nonchalantly. "A policeman almost died, though. Another man was put into jail for that trick." Then he said, after a small pause, as if he'd been thinking, "Of course, he's not even nearly as bad as he was when he'd just got out of prison." And not even a single lie.

"He's been in prison?" the nose-ring guy asked. "What for?"

"Why, yes, he has, thirteen years, I think. And as for what for..." The Slytherin shrugged, forcing his expression to stay calm. "Well, two deceits and murder of thirteen, his best friend as one of the victims."

For a moment, the Muggles just stared at Sirius, then turned back to Severus. "And you sleep with him?" asked the red-haired one disbelievingly, staring at his lean, almost sickly thin frame. It was definitely not very convincing, at least not in the eyes of these men who put more value on muscles than anything else.

"Yes, I do. He's not that bad, if you know how to... handle him." The Potions Master smirked evilly.

"Have you been in prison yourself?" asked the blond man with an even bigger frown.

"Why, yes," Severus said nonchalantly. "For several murders, tortures, and rapes. My brother-in-law bought me free, though, so I wasn't there for long. It didn't certainly stop me, though. Hardly even slowed me down." And he still hadn't lied once. Really, he was getting even better at this than he'd been!

The three Muggles glanced at each other. Then, as one, they turned around and left hurriedly. Severus just shook his head in amusement as he watched them leave.

Later, as Sirius and Severus had left the gym, Sirius turned towards his lover. "Well, how was it?"

Severus shrugged. "The gym was rather boring," he said. "But the amusement there was great."

And, even though Sirius asked repeatedly, he did not explain this statement.

*

"Father, what's wrong?" asked Olivia, frowning. "I haven't seen you this angry in ages!"

At first, the blond man just glared at her, but seeing his own silver gaze calmly returned, he just sighed. "A thousand times damned Muggle businessman," he muttered. "He got this wonderful idea of inviting me and my whole family to his 'traditional Christmas dinner'. I tried to explain that I don't know his customs -- for all he knows, I am a member of some weird religional group with a wholly different culture -- but he said that it doesn't matter. Then I said that his other business partners hardly would approve of the fact that both my son and I have husbands instead of wives, and he said that it doesn't matter, either. Of course I could have just simply refused, but he's my most important Muggle business contact, so..."

"So we're going, then?" Remus asked calmly.

"Precisely," Lucius sighed. "I've got invitations for Draco, Olivia, and their dates as well. Which means, Olivia," he said, looking at his daughter, "that you'd better ask Malcolm to go as your 'date,' unless you want to have all young men there after you. Odd culture or not, they can smell money anywhere."

"Clear as crystal, Father," the girl replied happily.

*

Christopher Bay glanced warily at his watch. He had only got vague promises of arrival from Lucius Malfoy. Half a year ago, nobody had ever heard of Malfoy, but now the man was one of his most important business partners, and many of his other acquaintances had expressed their interest in meeting him. It would be a true victory for Christopher if Malfoy showed up for his traditional Christmas dinner. Not to mention that, Christopher had to admit, he was quite fascinated with the man. He'd like to get to know him better.

Just then, a servant maid hurried to him. "Mister Bay," she said, "the Malfoys have arrived."

Immediately Christopher started to hurry towards the entrance of his enormous house. He got there just in time to see six people step in. None of them had an overcoat; instead, they had some kind of cloaks. Briefly wondering just how weird their culture might be, Christopher hurried to greet them.

"Oh, welcome, Lucius," he said, shaking the blond man's hand firmly. "I was just wondering whether you would show up at all. And is this your family?" he asked then, eyeing the other people.

"Good evening, Christopher," the other man replied. He was wearing a black Armani suit, a green silk shirt, and a dark grey tie, and his long, platinum blonde hair had been pulled back and tied with a black ribbon. "It is pleasant to meet you. This is my husband Remus. Remus, this is Christopher Bay."

"I'm pleased to meet you, Mr. Malfoy," Christopher said, eyeing the man up and down. Although he was clearly younger than his husband, Remus Malfoy's hair was mostly silver, whereas Lucius's platinum hair had been left completely untouched by age. Other than the shoulder-length hair, he noticed the almost hypnotizing amber eyes, dark grey suite, and the jewelry. Like Lucius, he had an engagement ring and a wedding band, both clearly expensive, and a heavy seal ring, although his ring was platinum, not silver like his husband's. What really caught Christopher's eye, however, were his earrings. Usually Christopher thought that men wearing earrings were ridiculous, but with Remus Malfoy, that certainly wasn't the case. Two finest emeralds he'd ever seen, framed with platinum snakes -- God, these people had money. Lots.

"Oh, please just call me Remus," the man said. "It is pleasant to meet you, too, Mr. Bay."

"Christopher, if you wouldn't mind." Eyeing the rest of his newly arrived guests, Christopher then asked, "And who might these young ones be?"

"Meet my son Draco and his husband Harry," said Lucius dryly. "They're both Potters." Grey suits and silk shirts, expensive silver engagement rings and wedding bands, and a shiny emerald on Draco Potter's left earlobe. What was it with the Malfoys and silver and emeralds?

After shaking hands with the young men, Christopher glanced at his youngest guests. "My daughter Olivia and her boyfriend Malcolm Snape," Lucius introduced in response to his questioning gaze. "She and Draco are both mine; they have different mothers."

Young Snape had a black suit similar to that of Lucius's, and his black hair was on a ponytail, too. The black eyes were so sharp that Christopher, a man with much experience in the cold business world, had to turn his gaze away after only a moment of looking him in the eye.

Olivia Malfoy, however, looked almost shy. Unlike her half brother, she was a brunette rather than blonde, though the silver eyes were the same. The model of her forest green dress was a bit strange, but beautiful. The girl herself wasn't remarkably beautiful, but indeed pretty. And, of course, not a young man Christopher knew of would have even glanced at her face; with the jewelry she was wearing. A silver seal ring like her father's, a silver snake on her necklace, and, good God, emerald earrings. As in, earrings, each of which had been finely carved from a single emerald.

After greeting the last two guests, Christopher then led them to the dining room. His other guests were there already. Peter Higgins, Jean McKell, Guy Barrel, and Tom Dillard were all there with their wives, and Julian Wright, Ian Parley, and Steven Richards all had also their children. Thus, there were seven teenagers in the room, the Malfoys excluded, and only one had a date with her. That meant six young men, all with a definite interest for everything pretty and rich. It was truly fortunate that Olivia Malfoy had a date already, lest she would have been in serious trouble with them.

"So, my dear guests," Christopher said after quick introductions, flashing a grin, "if you would be so kind and take your seats. The dinner will be served in just a moment." Everyone complied, of course,

however, not everything would go as smoothly as to not have any disturbances. "I'm sorry, Christopher," Lucius said smoothly, eyeing the carefully set table, "but I do fear my husband gets allergic reactions from silver." At this, he collected away all the silverware around his spouse's plate and moved them aside, replacing the spoons, forks, and knives with other ones, although for his life Christopher couldn't tell where the extra cutlery came from. Then, Lucius gave the brunet man a nod, one that was returned with a smile.

"Allergic to silver?" asked Christopher, frowning. "Well, that is most unfortunate. I have noticed that you have some kind of an infatuation with silver," he added teasingly.

Lucius, however, shook his head. "Silver is traditional in the family, true," he said, "but the only things made of the metal in question in our home are nowadays my seal ring and Olivia's jewelry. Everything else has been moved to one of my estates in France. Can't risk Remus stumbling over silver, you see."

"You have an estate in France?" asked Barrel, mildly interested. "That must be interesting."

"I bet it is," the blond man said, raising an eyebrow. "However, for the circumstances given, we never visit there. Well, I don't think we've ever visited any of my estates," he then finished with a shrug.

"Wrong," Remus said calmly from his side. "We did spend some time in that villa in Italy, remember? The one you gave me as a wedding gift?"

"He gave you a villa as a wedding gift?" echoed Samantha Dillard, glancing sideways at her husband. It was obvious that Mr. Dillard hadn't given her quite as enormous a gift when they'd gotten married.

"Well, yes," Lucius said, again shrugging a bit. "It wasn't that difficult a choice. Sure, there was this nice little castle in Transylvania I could have given as well, but I'd already given it to my best friend when he got married. For some reason he didn't like it very much, though."

"What a surprise," muttered Harry, and the other members of the Malfoy family all grinned. Seemingly this was some kind of an inside-joke. Christopher planned to ask for an explanation to it later.

Then, however, they all concentrated on the dinner for a moment. The discussion continued, of course, but it was pretty light chatter with nothing interesting said. As the participants were who they were, however, soon they started to talk about business. Well, most did. Olivia and Laurel Richards were deep in a discussion about the latest fashion, one that Draco occasionally participated in, and the teenager boys were talking about some topic or another.

Just as Lucius was considering a rather interesting offer from Julian Wright, however, their conversation was suddenly interrupted. "Would you please be so kind and keep your hands off my leg?" hissed Olivia, glaring at Sean Wright, who was sitting on her side. The boy went white. Giving the scene one glance, Lucius then turned towards the elder Wright and coolly reclined.

Well, yet another reason to respect Lucius Malfoy, Christopher decided. The offer had been very good, and both would have benefit from it. Many people he knew -- in fact, most of the men around the table at the moment -- would have accepted anyway. However, although Christopher knew very little about Lucius's mysterious religion, he did know what the man held holy: his family. An immediate doom would meet those who were foolish enough to offend his family members. That would also happen to Sean Wright, at least considering the death glares the boy's father kept giving him. Good.

After that incident, the teen boy's previously rather offensive behaviour turned much milder. They even managed to get to the end of the dinner without any further incidents. When everybody started to rise from the table, however, something else happened.

Lucius took support from his husband as he stood up. Christopher had previously noticed that even with his rather impressive cane, which was longer than the man himself was tall, Lucius still limped. He'd always fought down his curiousness about that, however. One of his other guests, though, was not that tactful.

"Mister Malfoy?" asked Phyllis McKell, a nasty, all too curious old hag. "Is there something wrong with your legs, perhaps?" There was an almost predatory glint in her eyes.

For a moment, the blond froze. Then he said, "I injured them in an accident a few years back."

"Oh!" exclaimed the woman, trying to hide her malicious smirk. "What kind of an accident was it?"

"An explosion." It was obvious that Lucius did not want to discuss that topic. Remus gave the woman a warning glance, and Draco, Olivia, Harry, and Malcolm all frowned at her.

However, Phyllis McKell would not be stopped. "An explosion! Really? How did it happen?"

Now, it was Lucius himself who locked his cool eyes at the inquiring woman. "Mrs. McKell," the man said, quietly but firmly, "as another result of that explosion, two of my children died. Their bodies were recognized exactly four years, two hours, and twenty-seven minutes ago. Philip was five, and Joyce only four. So, do forgive me for not giving you all the details of the said accident." And with that, he turned around and walked to the balcony. Nobody made a move to follow him.

*

Lucius sighed as he leant forward, glancing around the quiet garden of Christopher's mansion. Like he'd been told, the tradition was that the guests went to the nearby sitting room to talk. However, he made no move to go to the door in the opposite end of the balcony, the one that led to the sitting room.

It was Christmas. And, at Christmas, he always thought about Philip and Joyce, and little Kathleen. He'd decided to forget about them for a while and try to enjoy Christopher's dinner. However, that old hag had spoiled everything. He could only hope that the night hadn't been spoiled for his whole family.

When the door behind him was opened, he didn't turn around. Instead, he waited until the other man had walked to his side, then looked up. Like he'd expected, he saw Christopher.

For a moment, neither man said anything. Then, however, Christopher's quiet voice broke the silence.

"I had a wife," he said. "Beautiful, intelligent, kind. She was everything you can hope for in a woman -- or a man, for that matter, I'd guess. Anyway, her name was Maureen, and I loved her. Very much." After a small pause that Lucius didn't even try to interrupt, he continued, "We also had a daughter, Georgia. She was the most adorable little girl possible with a pretty smile and good manners. She was an angel, basically." Yet another pause. Then, with a voice that was hardly more than a whisper, he continued, "She was only six years old. It was a car accident; the other car's driver was drunk. Georgia died immediately. They took Maureen to the hospital, and for a moment, they were sure she would survive. But she didn't."

They were again quiet for a moment. Then Lucius said, "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry for you, too." Christopher sighed. "Phyllis McKell is just an old hag," he said. "Don't mind her."

Lucius glanced at the man. As much as he hated to admit that even to himself, he was starting to like him. In fact, he felt like they could be rather good friends. Of course, he could not tell anybody. If the word leaked out to anybody, even -- or especially -- his family, that Lucius Malfoy was making friends with Muggles, they would never let him live it down. No, none of them could ever know.

"A good couple," said Christopher then. "That daughter of yours and her boyfriend, that is. Although I do have to admit that I've never seen a young couple as shy of each other as they are."

"I'll tell you a secret, Christopher," the blond said, smirking. "They're not really dating. Olivia just took her best friend along so that she wouldn't have all the young men here after her." With another smirk, he added, "Of course, there's always this little crush Malcolm has for her. Everyone but Olivia knows about it. My dear, innocent daughter, however, still genuinely believes that he's only interested in boys."

"'Everyone?'" echoed Christopher questioningly. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, the extended Malfoy clan," the other man replied. "My family and friends. There's my former brother-in-law and best friend Severus, and his husband Sirius, who happen to be Harry's adopted fathers. Then my dear ex-wife, Narcissa, with her husband and three children, and the last sibling of their family, Lilian, who is Malcolm's mother. And then there's always Mrs. Weasley, one of Harry's best friends. She's divorced her bastard of a husband, though. They have two daughters, who don't seem to mind the fact that their father is in prison for the attempted murder of Sirius." With a small smirk, he added, "All in all, we're pretty happy. And we stick up for each other, if nothing else."

Christopher shook his head in quiet wonder. "I envy you, Lucius," he said with a small sigh. "You've got everything that I don't. That family of yours... That is magic, pure and simple, if you believe in magic."

"I do believe in it." Seeing the weird glance he got from the other man, Lucius sighed, too. "Let me tell you a story, Christopher," he said quietly. "Olivia was never planned. Her mother and I... It was just a one-night stand. I never even knew of her, until just recently." Lowering his eyes, he went on. "We adopted her after she'd run from home, Remus and I... Her stepfather had abused her. However, a man I'd rather not talk about didn't like the fact that we had her, and put us on trial, trying to take the custody from us." With a humourless smirk, he went on, "It was beginning to look like a lost case. Then, however, my best friend had this odd dream. Because of the dream, he was convinced that Olivia was mine, and had DNA tests run. And, well, they came out positive. We won. After that, how can I not believe in magic?"

"You're a fascinating man, Lucius, with an interesting life." After a small pause, the Muggle added dryly, "In fact, if I wasn't completely straight and if you weren't already taken, you'd have me after yourself."

"Why, I'm touched." The wizard raised one elegant eyebrow. "But you're right, it's better not to even try anything of the kind now. Remus most definitely would not agree." With a smirk, he added, "It bothered him quite enough that I was with him while I was still married to Narcissa. Never mind that Narcissa always had her own affairs around, too."

"So it wasn't a love marriage, then?" concluded Christopher.

Lucius shook his head. "Definitely not. She's like my sister more than anything else, more so than my real sister ever. That's a nice quality in a friend, but definitely not something you want to see in a woman you're supposed to sleep with." At this, he flashed the other man a dry smirk.

Christopher returned the smirk. "Indeed." Then he glanced at the doors leading inside. "I think it's the time we join the party," he said. "Or at least the time I do, anyway. It's awfully rude for the host to be absent."

"You're right," said the blond. "I'll come with you. I'm sure Remus is getting anxious already."

And that was true. They hadn't even got to the sitting room door as it was opened from the inside and Remus peered out. "Oh, I was just coming to fetch you, Lucius," he said, giving his husband a bit concerned smile. Then he took one glance at the two men, sniffed the air once -- although this went unnoticed or simply ignored by Christopher -- and grinned. "By the way, Christopher," he said smoothly, "thank you for inviting us. Perhaps you would like to join our New Year party next week? I fear it's not going to be attended by any but our family and friends, no business contacts at all, but I do think you might enjoy yourself." Oh, yes. Nothing ever went unnoticed by the werewolf.

Christopher bowed a bit. "I would be most honoured to do so," he said.

"Although I'm afraid our manor is a bit hard to find," Lucius mused. "We'll just send a car to fetch you, if that's okay." He glanced questioningly at his -- well, friend, who nodded immediately.

"Fine. So that's settled, then." Remus's smile was bright as ever.

*

Lucius glanced up at the house-elf on the side of his bed. As the Christmas evening had been spent at Christopher's, the next day they had just stayed at the manor, belatedly fulfilling their own Christmas traditions. It'd been just a little gathering, the same people as at Christopher's party, as Severus and Sirius were on a vacation, and their other relatives and friends would come over New Year's Eve anyway. It'd been rather late when they'd finally got to bed, and after that, Remus had done a fairly good job at keeping him awake, not that he'd minded that much. So, it was with a rather irritated voice as he snapped, "It'd better be damn important if I have to get out of bed on this ungodly hour."

He glanced down at Remus, who had not stirred. Well, better that way. No matter what the phase of moon was, his husband needed all the rest he could get. So, uncaring of the pain of it, Lucius lifted himself up from the bed without help. Limping then to his cane, grasping it, and pulling on a robe, he followed the house-elf towards the sitting room where there was a firecall waiting for him.

To his great surprise he saw his son's face in the flames. Draco looked pale and scared. "Father?" asked the young wizard a bit breathlessly. "Father, where did Sirius and Severus go for their holiday?"

Lucius frowned a bit. "To a place called Phuket, I think," he said. "It's in Thailand. Why so?"

"There's been a tsunami," his son said, now sounding really scared. "Right where they are. Hundreds of people are missing, thousands, even. It was just on WNN. They might be..." He trailed off, biting his lip.

Lucius felt his heart clench in his chest.

*