Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make any profits from posting this fanfiction.
Summary: Non-Epilogue compliant. A depressed, lonely Harry literally stumbles into a man who seduces him with answers to Harry's problems, hands him the promise of happiness…and an invisible shackle to a gilded prison. With answers he hates in his hand will Harry be able to find the elusive happiness he deserves?
Pairings: HP/GW. HP/OMC. HP/OFC. HP/TH (Terrence Higgs). HP/Other Rowling Characters.
Dragonette Debacle – Chapter 22 – Epilogue
15th May 2008
"Harry! Harry! I'm so happy to see you!" Hermione ran the length of the room and threw herself at Harry giving him a huge hug.
"Welcome back Harry mate…" A growl interrupted Ron who laughed and held up his hands in surrender to Jory. "Wow I didn't mean it like that. Friend, I meant friend."
"Yes well, refrain from using that word around me hm?" Jory said and Ron just grinned and nodded before sweeping Harry into a gigantic hug, squashing Hermione in the process.
"I'm so happy to see you guys!" Harry said and tears welled in his eyes. He sniffed and buried into the hug. It had been over a year since he had seen them last. Over a year! In the last couple of months Harry had been in contact with them via floo but the mateship had decided to stay in Petra until May when they would return to their home in the Hebrideas.
"I am so happy you are home." Hermione breathed. "I have missed you so much."
"I've missed you too Hermione. And you Ron."
"Good. Don't go away again yeah? No more holidays, nothing. Just stay where we can see you, alright?" Ron begged and pulled away from Harry taking Hermione with him. Harry nodded and rubbed his sleeve across his eye. A handkerchief was thrust under his nose and Harry knew without looking at the owner of the arm whose handkerchief it was. Considering the brightly coloured rainbows and prancing unicorns it could only belong to one person.
"Thanks Merry."
"You're welcome. Now introduce me." Merry demanded then proceeded to shove his hand into Ron's and give it a shake. "Merton Graves."
"Ron Weasley." Ron said with a bemused look on his face.
"I know." Merton said flippantly. "You can sign my poster of you for me and I'll sign a Weird Sisters poster for you?"
"Uh…alright then." Ron agreed completely flummoxed.
"Come on then." Merton said and yanked Ron along behind him to get to the trunks of luggage. Harry laughed and waved to the completely confused Ron. Hermione giggled.
"Hermione Granger? Hi, it's good to see you again." Su said drawing level with Harry and putting her hand on Harry's arm. Harry smiled down at her and wrapped an arm around her waist. Hermione had a look on her face that said she was trying to work out who Su was even as she shook Su's hand.
"Hermione, this is Su Li. We went to…"
"Hogwarts together! You were in Ravenclaw! How are you doing now?" Hermione said and Su lovingly rubbed her pregnant belly with a smile.
"I'm great. I'm working as an academic." Su said then looked down at her stomach pointedly. "But I'm going to be leaving on maternity leave soon."
"No doubt she will still be working regardless of the maternity leave." Terence offered putting his arm around Harry's shoulders.
Another round of introductions followed.
"Harry, yeh wee bairn is cryin fer yeh and nought ah'm doin' is calmin' him." Maggie said and carried over the screaming baby to Harry. Harry broke away from Su and Terence reaching eagerly for his little boy. His sweet baby. He cradled the boy up to his shoulder and started rocking him. The boy immediately calmed and Harry laughed. Maggie huffed with an affectionately amused smile. "Bossy wee thing's worse than Hamish is! And that wee bratling can whinge fer the entire British Isles."
"Yeah well, Hamish takes after his father." Harry said with a pointed look over to Merton. Maggie laughed and nodded wondering back over to a terrified looking Aengus who was currently holding the whinging Hamish, affectionately known as 'Mishie' and not 'Hammie', with all he other children around him. The poor man might have fathered half of those children but he still wasn't a natural father. Dragons scared him a lot less than his own kids did.
Harry laughed and moved his son down from his shoulder so he could look at his face. So handsome. The week old baby had a full head of wild black hair. His skin was coloured like Nabih's had been and no doubt he would inherit Nabih's brown eyes. But, regardless of all those reminders of the mother who refused to even look at him, little James Sirius Potter was perfect.
"Welcome home Jamie." Harry muttered to his son and the baby inexplicably smiled. Harry laughed and quickly started moving around. His son's gas smelt terrible and Harry wasn't going to stay in one place long enough to have it invade his senses.
"Urgh! The wee bugger's pushed oot something awful!" Aengus grossed and Maggie tutted her tongue at him. Aengus held the baby carefully at arm's reach and pointed his nose away from Hamish. "Oi! Merton! Get yeh arse over here! Yeh wee brat's done something foul in his nappy and ah aint changin' it!"
"I'm busy!" Merton shouted back and went back to chatting with Ron.
"Auch fer heavens sake! Yeh're jest one large sissy! Give him teh me." Maggie chided and Harry turned from the familiar sight with such happiness and love bubbling inside his chest he was sure it was going to burst.
"Happy to be home?" Harry looked up into the questioning yellow eyes.
"Yeah. Very." He said and looked over at Hermione who was chatting amiably to Su. Then he looked back to Jory. "Happy to be home with all of you."
"Ah a perfect answer drágaságom." Jory drove down for a brief kiss. "I love you mate."
"Love you too." Harry muttered back and Jory gave him another kiss, followed by a wink then walked off help Aengus with the children. A hand slid around Harry's waist and pulled him to a firm chest. Harry laughed and leaned his head back on Terence's shoulder. "Yes?"
"Oh nothing I just wanted to touch you." Terence said and Harry sighed and shut his eyes.
"Liar."
"I don't lie."
"Slytherin."
"Why Harry, I didn't know you wanted to play the one word answer game!" Terence teased and slid his arms underneath Harry's so they were both cradling the baby. "But since we are playing I'm going to ask the questions."
"Don't you always?"
"Now now. One word answers if you please." Terence taunted then hummed and kissed Harry's neck. "Alright first question, what are you feeling right now?"
"Home."
"Yes quite. Alright. What do you feel for me?"
"Love." Harry said and rolled his eyes.
"Good answer. What about, what do you want right now?" That question was a little harder and Harry put some effort into thinking about it. Then he shrugged.
"Nothing."
"Aww not even a kiss?" Terence asked and kissed Harry's neck.
"No."
"Hmph." Terence mock sulked and then released Harry to move around and stand in front of him. "Next question. What would you see if you by chance managed to stumble across the famous mirror of Erised? What would you see inside the mirror?"
Now that question Harry didn't have to think about at all. He grinned and shook his head.
"Myself." Terence's face erupted into a gigantic smile and he leaned forwards. The kiss he gave Harry was loving, happy, and teasing.
"Do you know what I would see in the mirror if it was here with us now?"
"No. What?" Harry queried abandoning the one word answers for now.
"I would see all of our mates in bed with us, stripped down to nothing and loving each other as only we can." Terence said lavishly and then smirked leaning in to whisper against Harry's lips. "But later if I looked in the mirror I would only see myself."
Harry flushed red and grinned accepting the next kiss. The kiss did nothing to abate the stirrings of arousal Harry felt but Harry didn't care.
He was back in England. He was promised his job back, or at least an auror job. He had his son. He had another baby on its way. He had all of his wonderful mates around him.
He had all the things he had ever wanted.
He had a family to love.
Authors Note: And we come to the end of the story.
I can only apologise if the last few chapters seem rushed. To be honest they are. However my writers block on this story has become so bad that I lost touch with the characters in it and it's been a struggle to even get a feel for them to finish it off.
Originally the plan was to have a few more chapters and really give everybody a view to Harry's time in his mateship but we had a lot of that in Dragonette Destined and this story was ultimately about Harry finding a mateship to belong in after the horror of his past.
I hope you liked it. Thank you to everybody who stayed and reviewed and waited patiently for me to update. It's been a bit of a journey but we have made it. I don't know what I will do without Dragonettes now...