Breakfast at Natalie's

"Welcome aboard The Boggart!" said a man dressed in a regal captain's outfit. He waved witches and wizards past with a cheerful smile and a wave. Malfoy stood on the gangplank with Hermione, Natalie, Cassie, and Riley, each clutching their own luggage somewhat anxiously. Not one of them had ever been on a ship, especially not one of this enormous size.

He had arranged the trip the same day of the hospital visit. The woman at the travel agency had told him that there were two cruises heading to the Caribbean with space left on both voyages. After taking a look at the amenities the trips offered, he decided that The Boggart would better suit a family outing. He'd bought tickets on the spot, and when both Natalie and Hermione had returned from work, he showed them the brochures and everyone began talking excitedly. They'd had the weekend to do some quick clothes shopping (formal attire was acquired, and none of them had bathing suits that fit).

Malfoy was delegated the rather unpleasant task of calling Pansy and telling her that they wouldn't be able to make it to her Christmas party, as they would not return from their vacation until a couple days after it.

"You promised!" she'd screeched through the phone.

"I know," he said. "I'm sorry."

He heard her huff angrily and then slam down the phone. Well, at least that was over with. He knew she'd forgive him for it in a week or two; she never stayed mad at him long.

"Draco?" said Hermione, bringing him back to the present. "What are you doing? You're blocking everyone else."

He looked around and realized that, indeed, he was keeping everyone behind him from boarding the ship, and they were starting to give him nasty looks. He quickly gave the captain his ticket and caught up with his family.

"So it looks like we have 3 separate cabins," said Natalie, reading off a slip of paper. "One for me, one for the kids, and one for you two."

"What? I thought I was getting a room to myself," said Malfoy, snatching the paper away from her. "We've got Cabins Ten, Eleven, and Twelve. I want Twelve."

"I'll stay with the kids," said Hermione, as they walked down the carpeted hallway.

"There's only two beds in a room at most," said Natalie. "They'll be alright by themselves. They'll be in the room between ours, so if they need anything, we'll be on both sides."

Hermione grumbled by way of acquiescence.

"This is larger than I thought it would be," said Malfoy, opening the door to Cabin Twelve. The room was about the size of a normal bedroom, with smooth wooden floors and furniture. Nautical themed paintings adorned the wall, and there was even a bathroom wedged in the corner. Two beds were arranged against the wall, it's puffy pillows and soft blankets looking quite inviting.

"Of course it is," said Hermione, pushing past him and heaving the luggage in with her. "You bought first class tickets. And when did this get so heavy?"

"You shouldn't have brought six pairs of shoes," admonished Malfoy, going to the window and pushing aside the curtain.

"My room is about half the size of yours," said Natalie, coming into the room and looking around. "Of course, that's because there's only one bed in it, but I guess I can't complain really. At least I don't have to share a bathroom with anyone."

They ushered Cassie and Riley into their room, which had been decorated for guests their age. The room was painted blue with different sea creatures in many colors. The furniture was much smaller, and the bathroom had a stepstool.

"Wow, look!" said Riley, running over to the desk. "A fish tank!"

"Don't touch, Riley," said Hermione. "You don't know if it's poisonous."

"It's just a goldfish," said Malfoy, peering into the tank. "It won't hurt him."

Still skeptical, Hermione steered her son away from the tank. The three adults helped Cassie and Riley unpack their clothes and other things into the child-size wardrobe and chest of drawers. Cassie insisted on placing her blankie and her favorite stuffed animal on the bed, tucking them both in.

After everyone had unpacked, they decided to go to the top deck to see what kind of activities there were on the ship.

"Hey, I didn't even notice the ship was moving already," said Malfoy, looking over the railing. "It's going really smoothly."

"That's what the brochures promised," said Hermione, checking the activities schedule. "Dinner is from five until eight. They've got billiards and poker in one of the game rooms...where's the stuff for kids?"

"Right here," said Natalie, looking at a separate schedule. "The kids' swimming pool is open every day from nine in the morning to five in the evening. They have movies, board games...oh, and a daycare center. This is pretty nice. You guys don't have to look after them all the time. They'll be with all the other kids their age and you can pick them up whenever you want."

"Let's go check that out," said Malfoy, and they went below deck again. The floor numbers were slightly confusing here: instead of going up, they were going down. So the second floor was really the floor below the top deck, which some people were calling the "lobby." They got off the lift and turned down a brightly colored corridor, where they found a large sign, which read: Childcare Center.

"Hello there," said a young woman, smiling at them. "Welcome to the Childcare Center. Our hours are from eight to five. If your child needs care after eight, we'd like to refer you to enroll in the evening session, which is from eight in the evening until three in the morning."

"Where's the pool?" said Cassie, peeking out from behind Malfoy's legs.

"And what's your name, sweetheart?" said the woman, bending down to Cassie's height.

"My name is Cleopatra," she said proudly. "And my brother is Julius Caesar."

"Her name is Cassandra, and her brother is Riley," explained Hermione quickly. "I see they've been reading their books on Egypt." She let out a nervous chuckle.

"Well, Cassandra, did you know that Cleopatra was a queen?" said the woman, beginning to lead them away.

"I know," said Cassie. "And I don't like being called Cassandra. My name is Cassie."

"I think we'll get along fabulously," said the woman, looking up at Hermione. "If you'll just come inside and fill out a couple forms..."

After filling out the forms and being assured that the children would be safe and well cared for, the adults went back up to the top deck.

"Well," said Malfoy, "anyone up for a game of billiards?"

"That's not open until after dinner," pointed out Natalie. "Why don't we go to the pool? There's six of them total, so pick which one you want to swim in."

"Let's go to the one on our floor," said Malfoy, and they all went back into their rooms to change into their swimsuits."I'll go change in the bathroom," said Malfoy, grabbing his swim trunks and one of the ship's fluffly robes. Hermione shrugged and pulled out two bathing suits.

"Which one should I wear?" she asked through the door. "My bikini or the one-piece?"

"Whichever you want," he called back, his voice slightly muffled.

The one-piece will make me look older, I guess, she thought. More matronly. But I don't want to look too young either. I wonder if my stomach will look alright.

Sighing, she put on the bikini and looked in the mirror affixed to the back of the door. Not bad, she thought. Especially for a pregnant woman. It was too early in her pregnancy to even show, so she still looked reasonably thin, though a bit pasty from lack of sun.

At that moment, Malfoy came out of the bathroom, wrapped in the robe.

"Oh, I thought you were done," he said, turning away to face the wall when he saw her without a robe on.

"I am," she said. "And why are you wearing that robe? It looks ridiculous."

"I'm...cold," he said, though really he was just insecure. Ever since he had taken up office work for the trial, he hadn't been working out much, and he thought he didn't look very trim.

"Are you guys ready yet?" said Natalie from outside the room. "You're taking too long. I'm freezing."

Hermione opened the door, and they found Natalie standing outside in a dark blue one-piece, tucking her platinum blonde hair into a swim cap.

"What?" she said, snapping her swim goggles on. "Is it crooked?"

"No," said Malfoy, "but why are you wearing that?"

"We're going swimming, aren't we?"

"Yeah, but not real swimming," he replied. "I meant, like, floating-around-in-the-pool-and-splashing-people kind of swimming."

"Well, I neglected to mention the fact the all the pools are different. The one on this floor is a lap pool."

Malfoy groaned. "Great. Just great. What other pools are there?"

"The indoor water park is on the sixth floor," said Natalie, "and I think the leisure pool is a floor above that. I don't know what the fourth floor is."

"Well, we're going to the fifth floor then," said Malfoy. "Are you alright with that?"

"Sure," said Natalie. "Go ahead. I'll be fine on my own."

They agreed to meet back at the Daycare Center at five, and Natalie went off towards the lap pool.

-------------------------------

At nine o'clock, Malfoy went to watch (and possibly participate in) the Exploding Snap tournament in one of the game rooms as Hermione put the kids to bed, assuring them that she would be next door reading a book in case they needed something. This left Natalie by herself, wondering what to do. Uninterested in the games and having already seen the movie playing, she wandered down to the sixth floor. There was a ballroom, a banquet hall, a dance club, and a bar with a lounge and billiard games. After poking her head into the dance club (the ballroom and the banquet hall weren't open), she decided that it was too crowded and too loud. That left the bar.

She entered quietly, stepping across the dark green carpeting. She perched herself atop a barstool, and the bartender came over.

"What can I get you to drink, miss?" he asked her.

She had not really been to many bars, and wasn't quite sure what to order, so she said the first thing that came to mind: "A margarita, please."

With a tap of his wand, the bartender had the drink made and presented it to her.

"How much is it?" she asked, rummaging in her purse.

"Three Sickles if you're not First Class," said the bartender. "If you are, your drinks are included in the ticket price, unless you ask for wine or one of our house specialties."

"I'm First Class," she said, but she gave him a tip. The drink was tangy and tasted of strawberries of mangoes, and she found that she liked it. She was just licking the salt off the rim when she saw someone sit down beside her out of the corner of her eye.

"I'll have a beer," said a male voice, and Natalie quickly stopping licking the salt, embarrassed. She heard the pop of a cap, and a clink as the bottle was set down. "What's your name?"

She looked around, wondering who the man was talking to, but everyone else was crowded around the billiards game.

"I'm talking to you," said the man, looking amused. "I'm Kevin. Kevin Montgomery."

"I'm Natalie," she said, finally daring to look at him. He was quite handsome, with light brown hair and hazel eyes and a teasing, yet kind smile. She could tell that he was confident by the way he held himself, and if she wasn't mistaken, also intelligent. "Do I know you from somewhere? You look familiar."

"You were swimming in the lap lane next to mine," he said. "Blue swimsuit, right?"

"That's me," she said, remember that he had been the one in the red swim trunks.

"I thought that was you," he said, nodding and sipping his beer. "When I saw you flying across the pool, I said to myself, 'Now there's a woman worth meeting.'"

Not knowing what to say, Natalie blushed.

"And here we are, sitting next to each other," he said. He noticed her almost finished drink. "Can I get you another drink?"

"Oh, I don't know," she said. "I already had one."

"Those don't have much alcohol in them," he said. "I'll get you another."

He waved the bartender over, ordering her another margarita and a basket of Ginger Newts.

"You shouldn't drink on an empty stomach," he said, taking a Newt for himself and sliding the basket toward her.

"Thank you," she said, nibbling on one. There was a pause, but not an awkward one, as they both took a few sips of their drinks.

"So, are you vacationing alone?" he asked.

"No, I'm actually here with my brother and his...girlfriend," she said. "It's sort of a family vacation."

"And I guess they left you all alone when they went to the club?" he said, a twinkle in his eye.

"My brother's gone to watch the Exploding Snap games, and I expect his girlfriend's probably with him," she said.

"Want to go for a walk?" said Kevin. "It's rather stuffy in here, with all the smoking and such."

Taking their drinks with them, they took the lift up to the top deck, where numerous other couples were enjoying the soothing sound of the waves and the starlit sky. They walked to the edge, looking over the railing into the darkness below.

"You're very quiet," said Kevin, resting his arms on the railing.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I just don't know what to say...I mean, I haven't done this in a long time."

"What, talked to people?" he teased. "Here's how you do it: they say something, and then you respond to it. You laugh a little, share something about yourself, listen to their story..."

She laughed. "Alright, how old are you?"

"Thirty-two, but asking personal questions wasn't part of the lesson," he said, his eyes dancing with laughter. "And you look about twenty-five."

"Try twenty-nine," she said, shaking her head. "Well, going on thirty. My birthday is in January."

"You certainly don't look it," he said, "and I'm not just trying to flatter you."

"Thank you, I think," she said.

They stood looking at the ocean for a few more minutes, until Natalie begun to shiver from the constantly blowing wind. Kevin offered her his jacket, and she refused it politely, saying that it was time she went back to her room anyway.

"I'll walk you back then," he said. "Which floor are you?"

"Third," she said. "I'm in Cabin Twelve. What about you?"

"Me too," he said, as they stepped into the lift. "I'm in Cabin Twenty-Three, so I think that's down at the end of the hall across from yours."

They said nothing for the rest of the way, and when they reached her room, he embraced her carefully and kissed her on the cheek.

"I'll be at the lap pool at six tomorrow. Join me if you can manage to drag yourself out of bed that early," he said, grinning.

She smiled back and watched him walk down towards the end of the hallway before shutting the door. When she climbed into bed, she thought she could still feel his strong arms around her.