FIC: Christmas Child [Harry/Draco]

[mini_fest_mod]

Title: Christmas Child
Author/Artist: alafaye
Pairing(s): Harry/Draco
Prompt: 58, Draco and little Scorpius find themselves homeless on Christmas. Harry takes them in.
Word Count/Art Medium: 2424
Rating: PG
Contains (Highlight to view): *Slight character bashing*
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: Thanks to my beta, vix_spes.
Summary: See prompt.



"I know it's not your bed at home, but it's just for tonight. I promise."

Harry frowned, passing an alley on his way home. He peeked around the corner and frowned harder. Draco Malfoy and his son were sitting on a broken pallet, looking exhausted.

"Why can't we just go home, Papa?" Scorpius asked.

Draco sighed. "I told you, someone needed it more than we did."

"But there are a lot of rooms!" Scorpius said. "They could have stayed in there and we all could have had breakfast together."

"Scorpius, love, please," Draco pleaded. "Just go to sleep, okay? I promise, in the morning, we'll go home and you'll have all your presents."

"And Tilly will have the pancakes ready?" Scorpius asked through a yawn.

"Yeah," Draco said softly.

Despite his promises, Draco looked lost and unsure. Harry didn't know what had happened, but decided that he couldn't let either Malfoy sleep out in the cold. He cleared his throat and Draco looked toward the street, hand falling to his pocket where surely his wand was hidden.

"Harry," Draco said carefully.

"I, uh..." Now face to face with Draco, Harry found his words failing.

"Come to gloat?" Draco sneered.

Harry shook his head. "No! I just...it looks like you need a place to stay tonight."

Draco narrowed his eyes. "Is that what it looks like?"

Harry held up his hands. "I don't know what happened, really. I'm just on my way home and I happened to overhear you letting Scorpius know that you'll be home tomorrow."

"And?"

"Well, I just, if you need a place for tonight, you're welcome to stay at mine. I've got the room."

Scorpius looked around Draco with wide eyes. "With a bed?"

Draco groaned. "Scorpius--"

"What?" Scorpius asked, innocent.

"There are a few extra beds, yeah," Harry said. "And it's warm." He looked at Draco. "No strings attached."

Draco took a deep breath and studied Harry for a long moment. Then he looked at Scorpius who waited anxiously. Draco ruffled Scorpius hair. "How about it? Want to go stay with a famous wizard tonight?"

Scorpius beamed and jumped up. "Yes!"

Harry chuckled and Draco stood. He put his hand on Scorpius shoulder and lifted his chin. "Well?"

~~~

"I haven't had dinner yet," Harry said as he led Draco and Scorpius into his house. "Are you two hungry?"

"Yes!" Scorpius said. "We were about to eat when someone came bursting into the dining room."

"Scorpius!" Draco hissed.

Harry raised an eyebrow as Scorpius wilted. "Sorry, Papa."

Draco looked carefully at Harry as he knelt down in front of his son. "What have I said about telling people about our business?"

Scorpius bit his lip. "To not to. But, Papa, he's the wizard who killed Voldemort! He can't be bad!"

"Scorpius," Draco warned.

"Fine," Scorpius said. He looked completely dejected and upset.

"How about you go pick out your bed?" Harry said. "My room is the last one at the end of the hall, but you can take any of the rest."

"Really?" Scorpius asked, eyes wide. "Papa, can I?"

Draco nodded. "Sure. Go ahead. Come back down, though, for dinner."

Scorpius rolled his eyes and took off up the stairs. Harry half smiled. "He's got a lot of energy."

Draco winced as he stood. "A bit too much for his old man."

"Well." Harry rubbed his hands on his trousers, nervous. "Dinner. I'm hungry and it looks like Scorpius is, too."

Draco nodded and absently trailed Harry to the kitchen. "Can I help? I'm not very adept in the kitchen, but I can chop vegetables."

"Sure," Harry said. "I was planning on a simple pasta dish, if that's all right."

"It's fine. I'll put together a salad, then, shall I?"

Harry set some vegetables on the table for Draco to cut up as well as some bowls. He put the pot on to boil and started cutting a loaf of bread of garlic bread. He licked his lips, curious but cautious about asking questions. "So."

Draco's hand faltered in its cutting. "I suppose you want to know what happened? It seems that Astoria has decided that as I wish to file for divorce, she has a claim to the manor."

Harry didn't know too much about wizarding law, only enough to understand what he needed to for his potions supply shop. Still, he knew that Astoria taking the manor was not part of divorce proceedings. "How?"

"She invoked an ancient law," Draco said. "It seems that the Greengrass family has the right to claim property or finances if a spouse wishes for divorce. As compensation."

Harry frowned. "Ancient? But then surely your family has something similar to keep the manor with a Malfoy heir?"

Draco smirked. "Indeed. All of the Malfoy family lands, homes, money--all of it--must be held by the current head or the heir. If the head is dead and the heir underage, then a guardian will be appointed."

Harry looked at the ceiling. "Couldn't she sue for full custody of Scorpius?"

"Yes."

Harry looked at Draco who had ceased cutting the vegetables and was instead glaring at the board. Or more likely the image of his wife in his head. "When the Greengrass' and their attorney stormed into the manor, I kept Scorpius near me. I suspected that she would be there for him and was not going to let her take him--she has not been a suitable mother for him. But the attorney explained why they were there and I fled through the Floo to the Leaky. It was only then that I realized that I had no money on me, the bank was closed, and that I would be unable to reach anyone."

"You'll have to wait until after Christmas, though, to talk with your lawyer," Harry said.

Draco nodded sadly. "Yes. In the meantime, however, she can come and take Scorpius. After all, until a legal decision has been made, she is considered the sole parent because of the divorce."

Harry smirked. "Good thing you're here, then. No one can come onto my property without being added to the wards. Their attorney can send an owl, but they cannot come here and get him. The Ministry will be closed for the holiday, too. We'll be waiting at your attorney's office first thing on the 26th and we'll make sure that she doesn't get to keep Scorpius."

"We?" Draco's lips twitched.

Harry flushed. "Only if you want, of course. I just--don't like to leave people alone who need help."

Draco sighed. "It won't be that easy, though. Due to the law being what it is and how long custody hearings can go on, she may have custody of him for several months."

Harry didn't often use his fame, but there were times it came in handy and he did still have good friendships with certain Ministry officials. "I'll owl a few people tomorrow and see what I can do to get things settled quicker. If that's all right?"

Scorpius came barrelling down the stairs. "Papa! Harry has a cat--it's black with yellow eyes and..."

"It's more than all right, Harry," Draco whispered as Scorpius carried on, describing the last fifteen minutes he'd been away.

~~~

"You've taken me at my word without knowing if I'm telling the truth," Draco said later.

Scorpius had wound down quickly after dinner and was now curled up with Harry's cat, Salem, in the bed he'd picked out. Harry had opened a bottle of wine he'd received as a gift some years ago that he hadn't ever had a chance to open. Now seemed like a perfect time for it.

Harry considered how best to answer. "It's because of Scorpius--he clearly loves you and you've looked at him like he's everything to you. Not to mention, he hasn't once talked about his mother or asked about her."

Draco nodded. "That's a good answer." He scrubbed his face with his hands and sat back. "Thank you. I do appreciate this."

Harry shrugged. "There were more than a few wizards and witches left homeless after the war. Some because their homes had been taken as compensation for crimes committed during the war. I decided that it didn't matter what you had done--your home is your home. I set up a fund to help people get back on their feet if they need it."

"Just another charity case?" Draco said with a sharp edge in his voice.

Harry held up his hands. "No. Just...well, you're not the only one. And I don't mind."

"Like helping people?" Draco asked.

Harry half smiled. "Bingo."

Draco picked up his glass and sipped it. "The legal battle is going to be hell. Regardless of whatever you can do, I might need someplace to go. Would you happen to know of any place that would rent to me?"

Harry pretended to consider it, but somehow, his decision had been made when he had seen Draco and Scorpius in the alley. "Yeah. I do. Here."

Draco snorted. "I'm serious."

"So am I."

"I couldn't--"

"You will."

"But--"

"I won't hear of it. Finding homes and flats is difficult enough if you are a sentenced criminal. For former Death Eaters, it's worse. You shouldn't have to deal with prejudices on top of a legal battle; you'll stay here."

Draco shook his head. "Fine, I'll stay. But only until I can find somewhere else."

~~~

Epilogue

One Year Later

Harry groaned as he was spat out of the fireplace at Draco's home. He dusted himself off even as he thanked the charm on the bottle of wine that kept it from breaking.

"Still can't Floo?" Draco teased, entering the entrance way.

Harry shrugged. "I think the manor doesn't like me."

Draco rolled his eyes and took the bottle of wine from Harry. He then pulled on Harry's robes to give him a quick kiss. "Happy Christmas."

Harry smiled and gave Draco a proper hello kiss. "Happy Christmas."

As Draco had predicted, the legal battle had gone on. The Greengrass law had stated that the Greengrass who had been divorced was entitled to some kind of recompense. However, the Malfoy law maintained that the manor and all the lands attached to it must be kept with either the head or heir. Neither could Draco give Astoria even half his fortune--the money was needed for the keeping of all the lands. And yet wizarding law stated that unless proven otherwise, the mother was to be given custody of any children from a marriage meaning that Astoria could have been Scorpius' guardian. If she had been, she could have taken all the lands and also Draco's money.

The longest part of the proceedings had been determining who was to be Scorpius' guardian. The judge and the attorneys all agreed that it came down to a matter of legal custody; if Astoria was granted custody, Draco would have to surrender his family's lands and money. On the other hand, if Draco was given custody, Astoria could not claim either the land or money as recompense. The Greengrass law would have be settled in another way--to be determined after custody was decided.

Several months had been spent wherein Scorpius was given to a foster family and witnesses and home visits were conducted and everyone interviewed. The toll on everyone, especially Draco and Scorpius, had been enormous and Harry had suffered with them, having grown attached them both and unwillingly to see any ending other than Draco winning custody.

In the end, Astoria's story had fallen apart. Due to law, Astoria was granted unsupervised visits with Scorpius. She had presented a good front--a doting, caring mother who was dearly upset by her former husband's desires to keep her and Scorpius apart. But an early return from the social worker to collect a signature from Astoria had torn it to shreds. When the worker had returned, her knocks had gone unanswered. She'd entered, calling out for Astoria. Receiving no answer and not hearing either Astoria or Scorpius, the worker had entered the home to find them. Scorpius was alone in a study and Astoria was chatting with a rather large group of friends.

Astoria defended her actions, saying that the gathering had been planned for months and she couldn't just not have it even if she was going to be seeing Scorpius. When asked why she hadn't invited Scorpius to the gathering, she had said that children didn't have a place in an adult only gathering. Scorpius had been quickly asked how often his mother had any such gatherings and how much time she actually spent with him; the answer--not much--had quickly ended the hearings.

Draco had been awarded sole custody and his home, lands, and money given to him. (It had been held by the court until the hearings were done.) To comply with the Greengrass law, Draco had handed over several ancient books and artefacts that his family had held; though it had not been the traditional recompense (in fact, it was the first time in Greengrass history that neither money nor land had been given as recompense), it had satisfied the law.

Draco had invited Harry over the first night he had returned to the manor and their relationship had been changed. High on the relief and the lack of stress, they had finally given in to what they had both desired for months. And in the morning, there had been no regrets and Scorpius had happily accepted their relationship.

This was their second Christmas together, but Harry was going to make sure it would be better than their first. Inside his coat's pocket was a shrunken bag of gifts for both of the most important men in his family.

"Harry!" Scorpius yelled as he ran into the hall. He wrapped his arms around Harry's waist with a beaming smile. "You took forever."

"I had to make sure that Santa knew where I was," Harry said.

Scorpius nodded solomnly. "Of course. But, Harry, he would have known anyway."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Is that so?"

"He's magic!" Scorpius said.

Draco chuckled and picked Scorpius up. "That's right. Now, is dinner ready?"

Scorpius nodded. "Yes!" He smiled at Harry. "Tilly makes us all our favourite foods for Christmas! There's roast beef and potatoes and apples and juice and--"

Harry nodded as he listened along and Draco's hand slipped into his. He smiled and squeezed Draco's hand. Happy Christmas, Harry thought happily, Yes, it is.

Comments

[veritas03.livejournal.com]

Very sweet!! :D

[alafaye]

Thank you :)

[shadowycat.livejournal.com]

A lovely little story! :D

[alafaye]

Thank you :)

[bk7brokemybrain.livejournal.com]

You had me with little Scorpius having to sleep on a pallet in an alleyway on Christmas Eve. *wibble*

[alafaye]

*lots of hugs* Sorry love!

[fantasyfiend09.livejournal.com]

I loved Scorpius and the ancient wizarding laws. Sweet story. :)

[alafaye]

Thanks :)

[killerangels13.livejournal.com]

Poor Draco and Scorpius. It was a good thing Harry was there to save them.

[alafaye]

Exactly!

[susannah-wilde.livejournal.com]

Awww, sweet story :)

[alafaye]

Thanks!

[awickedmemory.livejournal.com]

Ahhh! I was so excited to see what would come of this prompt, and the end result was definitely worth the wait! This is so adorable! Good for you, Harry, for butting in - good for you, Draco for accepting the help, and being a good father! And Scorp was just darling, aww! ♥

[alafaye]

It was a beautiful prompt and the boys just made the job easier!

[jx-walker.livejournal.com]

Lovely.

[alafaye]

Thanks :)

[lemonade8.livejournal.com]

A sweet story of compassion!

[alafaye]

Thanks ♥

[capitu]

Awww. This is about the sweetest thing I've ever read. :)

[alafaye]

*blush*

[ashindk.livejournal.com]

I wrote for this prompt too, and it was so interesting to see how different our stories turned out. Yours was very sweet.

[alafaye]

The thing that most fascinates me about this fest is how different prompts can be written!

[evening12]

I love a Draco who ruffles Scorpius' hair and of course a caring father! Draco. I know that this was a Drarry fic but I really feel like Scorpius stole the show. I adore how Harry's car caught his attention and how he's really just a kid like any other kid.

[alafaye]

Scorpius just likes to be the center of attention--it's something I discovered when I first started writing him. Little drama queen in the making ;)