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Entry tags:
Scars, Part 33
Rating: NC-17 overall
Pairings: Snape/Lupin, Ash/Tsubasa (OMCs), and a few other minor pairings
Author's note: {} Indicates character's unspoken thoughts.
Disclaimer: Based on the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. No money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.
Warning: AU. This story contains a character from Half-Blood Prince, but does not follow the HBP storyline.
Sequel to: Always, Summer Vacation, For Old Time's Sake, Three's a Crowd, Return of the Raven, Phoenix Reborn, Phoenix Rising, Aftermaths, The Revenant, Ash's Story, and Summer Vacation III. (These stories are archived on my website and also on Moonshadow.)
Summary: Narcissa gives birth, and Tsubasa's parents show up for a visit.
Part 32
Pairings: Snape/Lupin, Ash/Tsubasa (OMCs), and a few other minor pairings
Author's note: {} Indicates character's unspoken thoughts.
Disclaimer: Based on the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. No money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.
Warning: AU. This story contains a character from Half-Blood Prince, but does not follow the HBP storyline.
Sequel to: Always, Summer Vacation, For Old Time's Sake, Three's a Crowd, Return of the Raven, Phoenix Reborn, Phoenix Rising, Aftermaths, The Revenant, Ash's Story, and Summer Vacation III. (These stories are archived on my website and also on Moonshadow.)
Summary: Narcissa gives birth, and Tsubasa's parents show up for a visit.
Part 32
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Early the next morning, Snape and Lupin were woken by an owl delivering a message that Narcissa had given birth to a healthy baby boy, and that mother and baby were doing fine.
"That's nice," Snape mumbled, and rolled over to go back to sleep.
"Severus!" Lupin exclaimed, yanking the covers off of him. "How can you sleep at a time like this? Don't you want to go see the baby?"
"No," Snape replied grumpily, sensing that his chances of returning to slumber were rapidly decreasing. Lupin had been pacing their quarters all last night, as anxious as a child on a Christmas Eve, and had only reluctantly gone to bed at midnight at Snape's insistence. A stranger might have suspected that he was the father of the baby instead of Lukas.
"If you've seen one baby, you've seen them all," Snape continued. "They're noisy, messy creatures, always squalling and spitting up and dirtying their diapers." He pulled the blanket up over his head. "Check back with me in another ten years, when the child might reasonably be expected to carry on an intelligent conversation, and I can determine whether or not he is a worthy candidate for Slytherin House."
"Severus!" Lupin shouting, snatching the blanket back, and Snape sighed in resignation.
"You do realize that visiting hours at St. Mungo's don't start for another..." He blearily glanced at the clock on the wall. "...two and a half hours?"
"We're war heroes," Lupin replied confidently. "I'm sure that they'll make an exception for us. And besides, we're practically family. In fact, we are family--or at least you are. I'm sure that there's a Malfoy somewhere on the Snape family tree."
"I'm sure there is, considering how inbred the purebloods are," Snape sighed. "Although I don't think that second cousins several times removed really falls under the definition of 'immediate family'." Lupin opened his mouth to resume arguing and Snape held up a hand to stop him, saying, "All right, but at least let me have some breakfast first. Besides, I'm sure that Narcissa will be tired after such a long delivery, and we should give her a chance to rest."
"You're right," Lupin admitted a bit guiltily. "I didn't stop to think that Narcissa might not be up to receiving visitors, although the note says that she's fine. Still, I guess that it would be a little rude to drop in unannounced so early."
Snape noted sourly that Lupin didn't seem to think it was rude to deny a cranky Potions Master his beauty sleep or his breakfast. "The baby's not going anywhere, Lupin," he said huffily. "It will still be there in an hour or two."
Lupin grinned and leaned over to kiss Snape on the tip of his nose, which only caused Snape to scowl at him even more blackly. "Sorry, Sev," Lupin apologized. "I guess I'm just excited about the baby."
"Merlin only knows what you're going to be like when Branwen has her baby," Snape grumbled.
"Oh, I can't wait to be 'Uncle Remus'!" Lupin laughed. "Be honest; aren't you looking forward, at least a little bit, to being 'Uncle Severus'?"
"No," Snape replied firmly. "And if it's up to Black, the child will probably be calling me 'Uncle Greasy Git'."
"You know that Branwen wouldn't let him do that," Lupin chided good-naturedly. "And besides, Sirius doesn't hate you anymore. But I'm sorry for waking you, Severus. Did you want to go back to sleep for a bit?"
"I'm already awake," Snape said irritably. "So we might as well go down to the kitchen and get something to eat."
"Well, as you pointed out we do have more than two hours till visiting hours start," Lupin purred as he ran his hand down Snape's chest. "Perhaps I can think of something to entertain you in the meantime, hmm?"
"In that case, I think that breakfast can wait," Snape said, wrapping his arms around Lupin and pulling him close. "After all, I do believe that you owe me some 'entertainment' for waking me up at such an ungodly hour."
"Then I'll do my best to make it up to you--and to help you work up an appetite," Lupin said with a grin.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
So they arrived at St. Mungo's during official visiting hours, making a brief stop at the gift shop to buy some flowers and a teddy bear for the mother and new baby, respectively, before heading to Narcissa's hospital room.
Narcissa was lying in bed, looking tired but radiant as Aileen and the female werewolves fussed over her, helping her to fix her hair--every golden ringlet was perfectly in place, despite the fact that she'd given birth only a few hours ago--and urging her to eat her breakfast to "keep up your strength". Andromeda just patted her on the shoulder and said, "You've done well, Cissy."
"Indeed," Branwen said; she also must have spent the night at the hospital, because she looked tired but proud, smiling at her former student in a motherly fashion. "You've given birth to a fine son, Narcissa."
"Let me take a look at him," Lupin said eagerly, and Lukas rose up out of a chair beside his wife's bed. He was grinning from ear to ear as he very gently and tenderly cradled a swaddled baby in his arms. Only the baby's face was visible within the bundle of Slytherin-green flannel blankets, but Lupin could see that little Cedric Drake had downy golden hair the exact same color as Narcissa's, and that his eyes were the same odd shade of yellow-green as his father's.
"He's beautiful," Lupin said, and Lukas's grin impossibly seemed to grow even wider.
"He looks just like his dad!" The young werewolf Kai said proudly, slapping his pack leader on the back.
"But he looks like Mum, too," Draco added loyally, grinning almost as widely as his stepfather. He was holding a box of chocolate cigars from Honeyduke's, and offered one to Lupin. He chuckled as he accepted the candy, and Draco whispered, "We can't pass out real ones because Mum hates the smell of smoke, and she says it would be bad for the baby."
"Your mother is right," Lupin assured him, peeling the "It's a boy!" wrapper off the cigar. "And I much prefer chocolate to tobacco, anyway." He winked at his lover. "And I'm sure Severus does, too."
Severus gave him a haughty look that seemed to imply Lupin was offending his dignity with such a remark, never mind that everyone in Slytherin knew about Professor Snape's sweet tooth. Then he accepted a cigar from Draco graciously, as if he were doing the boy a favor, and politely congratulated Narcissa and Lukas on the birth of their son.
"Thanks," Lukas said, cooing at the baby as Cedric laughed and waved at him with a small, chubby hand. Fortunately, since his attention was focused on the baby, he didn't notice the incredulous and slightly pained expression on Severus's face, although Lupin did. He smiled, because he didn't need Legilimency to read his lover's thoughts: "How pathetic, to see the fierce werewolf leader reduced to making goo-goo noises at a mewling infant." Or maybe he was thinking it about the entire pack, since the male werewolves were clustered around their leader, smiling just as dotingly at the newest addition to the pack.
Lukas looked up and frowned slightly as he added, "I'm a little worried about his eyes, though. They're yellowish, like mine, and I'm afraid that might mean he's a werewolf."
"Mr. Kimura said it didn't necessarily mean that," Branwen said with an air of patience that made it clear she had repeated this reassurance several times before. "Eye color is not an indicator of lycanthropy. No one in your pack has yellow eyes except for you."
"And anyway, they're more green than yellow," Draco chimed in.
"I thought maybe I was different because I have inherited lycanthropy, and the others were infected through bites," Lukas said.
"I have inherited lycanthropy and my eyes are blue," Lupin pointed out. "The only other werewolf I've known who has yellow eyes was Greyback."
"Oh, that's reassuring, Remus," Lukas replied sarcastically. "Thanks a lot."
"Oh, don't borrow trouble, Lukas," Aileen said impatiently. "Just be grateful that the baby is healthy. There's no need to go inventing problems that don't exist yet."
"But it is possible that he could have inherited my curse," Lukas insisted.
"It doesn't matter," Narcissa said serenely, holding out her arms for the baby. Lukas deposited Cedric in them, and Narcissa planted a gentle kiss on her son's forehead. "He's perfect, werewolf or not. If he does have lycanthropy, then he'll just have to take the Wolfsbane Potion like you and the rest of the pack. Perhaps it won't always be easy, but he won't have to suffer the same hardships that you did. And besides, he has Black blood flowing through his veins; he will be strong enough to handle whatever difficulties that arise."
"Diggory blood, too," Lukas reminded her, leaning down to kiss his wife and then his son.
"And Diggory blood, too," Narcissa agreed. "You and your father were certainly brave enough, as was our baby's namesake, and Gwendolyn has a strong spirit, too. A pity those traits skipped over Amos, though."
"Let's not mention the bastard's name on such a happy occasion," Lukas grumbled.
"Don't swear around the baby, dear," Narcissa scolded, but dropped the subject as everyone (except, of course, Severus) gathered around to admire little Cedric and exclaim over how adorable he was. Severus was remarkably patient under the circumstances, and even managed to refrain from rolling his eyes, but he promptly declared their visit at an end when Cedric began to fuss and Narcissa said it was time to feed him.
"I can't wait till we have grandchildren of our own, Severus," Lupin said happily when they returned to Hogwarts.
"I don't think that Theodore and Blaise will be having any babies in the near future, Lupin," Severus said dryly.
"No, but Theodore will probably adopt an heir eventually," Lupin replied with a smile. "It would make Lady Selima happy, and he takes his duties as your heir seriously."
"True," Severus agreed. "But I imagine that it will be some time before he feels ready to become a parent, and probably even longer before he can find a prospective heir that will meet my mother's exacting standards. Pureblood orphans don't grow on trees, you know."
"Perhaps she can be persuaded to accept a mixed-blood child," Lupin suggested.
"Not likely," Severus scoffed. "But then again, I never thought that she'd accept you into the family, either."
"I rest my case," Lupin laughed. "But I doubt that we'll have to wait for Theodore to give us a grandchild. Dylan and Hermione will probably get married and begin raising a family in a few years."
"Just what I need," Severus groaned. "A passel of bushy-haired, know-it-all little brats!"
"I don't think that Hermione was planning on raising a Weasley-sized brood," Lupin pointed out with a grin. "Besides, those hypothetical grandchildren might take after Dylan."
"I certainly hope so!" Severus declared adamantly, scowling fiercely as if he could shape his future grandchildren into proper Slytherins by sheer force of will. Lupin just laughed and kissed his lover, knowing that Severus would love the children even if they turned out to be bushy-haired Gryffindors.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Lukas took a temporary leave of absence to look after his wife and son, while Tsubasa took over his Physical Defense classes, and life at Hogwarts gradually began to settle back into a normal routine. There was an initial flurry of publicity before the excitement died down, but for once that worked in their favor, since it eased the public's fears to know that the "werewolf murderer" had finally been caught.
Snape grudgingly admitted to himself that Arthur Weasley was exhibiting a remarkable amount of political savvy for an idealistic Gryffindor. It was mostly due to advice from Lady Selima, Erika Dietrich, and Dawlish, but the fact that he was following their advice at all showed that he had gained some practicality and common sense since becoming Minister of Magic--traits that he had seriously been lacking in before.
By giving Rita Skeeter an exclusive interview, he was able to play down the fact that the killings had indeed been committed by a werewolf, and play up the fact that the Ministry had brought to justice a long-lost Death Eater. (Although Arthur generously gave most of the credit to the Aurors and Lukas, while his predecessor, Cornelius Fudge, would have kept the glory for himself.) He would also have named Snape and Lupin as heroes, but they asked that he play down their roles in the matter, due to modesty on Lupin's part and an aversion to publicity on Snape's. At Snape's request, though, Henry was given credit for his help in tracking down Greyback, which pleased his future in-laws and made them a little more amenable to Erika marrying an otherwise unimportant scholar--though Snape had no doubt that Miss Dietrich would have forced her family to accept her choice of husband even without the Daily Prophet's endorsement. She was a strong-willed young woman, and after all, Henry was pureblooded and of reasonably good family, even if he was somewhat lacking in political achievements.
Another bit of good publicity unexpectedly resulted from a morbid situation when the Ministry examined the remains of the Inferi. Most of them turned out to be Muggles, as Snape had suspected, but a few of the older corpses were wizards who had vanished during the first war. One of them was Caradoc Dearborn, a member of the first Order of the Phoenix; he was identified by the family crest on his ring. The ring had been enchanted with a minor protective charm which had not been strong enough to save its owner, but had managed to prevent the ring from being melted into slag when Snape had been forced to incinerate Dearborn's corpse.
The Dearborns were purebloods of high rank, and Caradoc himself had been a popular man, respected and well-liked in the wizarding world. His family had long suspected that he was dead, of course, but they were relieved to finally know the truth and be able to lay their loved one to rest. Caradoc was given a hero's funeral, and the Ministry received credit for bringing him and the other fallen wizards home to their families. Along with Greyback's death, this provided a sense of closure to the public, reassuring them that the war was finally over and that they could live without fear of the Death Eaters--"A happily ever after ending," Selima somewhat cynically told her son.
In short, Arthur Weasley was made out to be a hero in the press, and his modest demurrals to the contrary only made him seem even more noble. The fickle public adored him once again; the Ministry sycophants went back to currying favor, insisting that they had believed in him all along; and all talk of restoring the anti-werewolf legislation ceased, at least for the moment.
By early December, the publicity was dying down, and the students and staff at Hogwarts were preparing for Christmas. Lupin had volunteered to help decorate the castle and was thoroughly enjoying himself; the students were looking forward to the holidays; and Snape was looking forward to spoiling their pleasure a bit with end-of-term exams. So everyone was happy--at least until the less competent of Snape's students received their grades.
Ash was still staying in the castle with Tsubasa although the danger had passed, and neither of them showed any inclination to have him move out. Laura Madley seemed reassured by her half-brother's presence, and while she was obviously still grieving for her parents, she was no longer prone to bursting into tears without warning--much to Snape's relief--and her work in Potions class became steady and reliable once again.
However, that comfortable, familiar routine was interrupted one morning when they were having breakfast in the Great Hall. It started off as a day like any other, with a bored Snape only half-paying attention to Lupin's inane chatter with Ash about Cedric Drake; both werewolves were enamored of the infant, a fact that Snape found somewhat puzzling--after all, babies did little other than eat, sleep, cry, and dirty their diapers. What was there to get so excited about? Personally, he thought that taking in Dylan and Theodore as teenagers had worked out much better; they had been old enough to carry on an intelligent conversation, and didn't wake their parents up at two in the morning demanding to be fed. Well, there had been a few times when Theodore had woken them up with his nightmares, but that was understandable, considering everything that he'd gone through during the war. Overall, having two intelligent, well-behaved (well, mostly) teenage sons was certainly preferable to dealing with a mewling infant, at least in Snape's opinion.
Then he frowned uneasily. Lupin was prone to bringing home strays: his pet rat, Kiseki, and Cabal, the mongrel dog that Williamson and Amos had used in the staged werewolf attacks. (Snape conveniently chose to overlook the little detail that he was the one who had given the rat to Lupin; the softhearted werewolf had accepted the creature easily enough, and he would probably have adopted it on his own, given the opportunity.)
Now, a rat was fairly unobtrusive, and the dog was tolerable, although it got underfoot at times, but a baby was quite another story! Snape wondered if he ought to keep an eye on Lupin to make sure that he didn't bring home an orphaned baby one day.
Just then, Filch ran up to the Head Table and whispered something to Dumbledore about unexpected visitors. The Headmaster just smiled, his eyes twinkling merrily, and said, "Well then, please send them in, Argus."
Filch left and returned a few minutes later with a couple that Snape vaguely recognized: Tsubasa's parents, Yokuto of the crane clan and his wife Reiko. He and Lupin had met them briefly at Chizuru's and Karasu's wedding, although they had not spoken beyond exchanging polite greetings.
Yokuto made his way down the center aisle of the hall with a stately grace, looking as elegant and regal as the late Lucius Malfoy at his best, minus the arrogance. His hair fell unbound to his waist like a stream of black silk, and the streaks of gray amidst the black served to give him an air of dignity, rather than detracting from his beauty. He was clad in a long kimono of dark blue silk embroidered with an intricate pattern of snowflakes in glittering silver thread, which seemed to highlight and complement the gray in his hair. He seemed to glide rather than walk down the hall, moving with the same easy grace that his son did, although without that faint air of suppressed menace that Tsubasa had. The son moved like a warrior, and the father more like a dancer.
Reiko walked beside her husband, an amused smile on her face. She was also clad in a kimono, dyed a lighter of shade of blue-green, embroidered with a whimsical design of fishes and seashells. By normal human standards, she was an attractive woman, but she could not help but look like a sparrow next to a peacock in comparison to her husband's unearthly beauty. If this bothered her, she showed no sign of it; she seemed confident and at ease, and the two of them radiated an air of harmony that only developed between couples who had been living together for many years. Snape glanced at his lover, who was gazing at the visitors with a look of gleeful curiosity in his eyes, and Snape thought to himself that perhaps he and Lupin had begun to achieve that sort of harmony themselves. They still argued at times, of course, but those arguments were playful (well, mostly), and felt as comfortable and familiar as a well-worn pair of slippers.
The couple stopped at the Head Table and bowed politely. "I apologize for the intrusion, Headmaster," Yokuto said.
Dumbledore rose to his feet and bowed in return. "Not at all," he replied genially. "It is a pleasure to see you again, and the families of the staff are always welcome to visit."
"You are most gracious, Headmaster," Reiko said. "Thank you for looking after our son."
"Oh, it is we who are honored to have him here," Dumbledore protested good-naturedly. "The students are learning a great deal from him, and his assistance has proved invaluable. Our Physical Defense instructor, Master Diggory, is out on...ah...paternity leave, and Professor Tsubasa has kindly consented to take over his classes until he returns." He took out his wand and conjured up a couple of extra chairs and place settings, and the table lengthened slightly, leaving just enough space to seat two people between Tsubasa and Lupin. "Please, you must join us for breakfast."
Yokuto politely protested that they couldn't possibly impose on the Headmaster's hospitality, and Dumbledore insisted, with equal politeness, that it was no imposition at all. It seemed to be a sort of ritual act of courtesy, because after a couple more token protests and reassurances, Yokuto happily took a seat at the Head Table next to his son, and Reiko followed suit, still looking amused.
Ash was looking a little panicky about the sudden appearance of his lover's parents; he had the look of a wild animal about to bolt at the sight of danger. Tsubasa, on the other hand, looked more chagrined than nervous. "Dad!" he hissed quietly. "What are you doing here?!"
"Why, I have come to visit my son, of course," Yokuto replied innocently. He appeared to be speaking at a normal volume, but his voice was actually carefully pitched to carry to the rest of the room, a trick that many public speakers learned, although the lazier ones simply used magic (or in the case of Muggles, microphones and speakers) to amplify their voices.
"According to the Daily Prophet, the killers were apprehended; Mr. Randolf's name has been cleared; and peace has been restored to the British wizarding world," Yokuto continued, then paused to sigh dramatically. "And yet you still have not seen fit to bring your mate home to meet your parents."
"Father, please," Tsubasa protested in a strained voice as the students gasped and began to gossip excitedly. "For one thing, I have a full-time job; I haven't had time to go home for a visit. And for another, I would prefer not to discuss my personal life in front of the entire school!"
"S-sir," Ash stammered, jumping to his feet and bowing awkwardly towards Yokuto. "We--I--apologize. Tsubasa told me that you were working to offer shelter to the pack in case we needed it. I should have gone to express my gratitude to you in person, or at least written..."
Yokuto beamed at him, then rose from his seat to walk over to the werewolf, who took an involuntary step backwards before he forced himself to stop and stand his ground. "Nonsense," Yokuto said. "It is natural for family to help one another, and there is no need for thanks."
"F-family?" Ash stuttered.
"Welcome to the family, my son," Yokuto said warmly, and embraced the startled werewolf, whose eyes went wide with shock. Tsubasa sighed heavily and shook his head.
"There, there, sweetie," Reiko said soothingly, reaching over to pat him on the shoulder. "You know how your father is. I tried to stop him, but once he has his mind set on something..."
"So when is the wedding?" Yokuto asked cheerfully, and Tsubasa groaned, burying his face in his hands.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Ash was too stunned to reply to Yokuto's question, but the Headmaster filled the silence by offering them the use of the antechamber behind the Great Hall so that they could have some privacy--a little too late, Ash couldn't help but think, as the students were already in an uproar. The teachers also looked like they were eager to start gossiping, but at least they were polite enough to restrain themselves until Ash and Tsubasa and his parents left the room. Lupin grinned and winked in a way that Ash supposed was meant to be encouraging, but he still felt a bit apprehensive in spite of Yokuto's declaration that he was "family". He had been told that Tsubasa's father was the crane clan's representative to the Japanese Wizards' Council, the equivalent of an ambassador and a Ministry Department Head rolled into one. Would he really allow his son to marry a scruffy, not quite penniless werewolf of dubious pedigree?
"Can we even get married?" Ash blurted out, although he hadn't meant to speak the thought aloud. "Is it legal in your country? I mean, for two men to get married, because it's certainly not legal in Britain." Assuming that Tsubasa even wanted to marry him, which maybe was assuming too much. They were still living together, but they had been taking things slowly, one day at a time, without discussing commitments or plans for the future.
"Oh, same-sex marriage is not yet legal in Japan, in either the wizarding or Muggle communities," Yokuto replied casually. "But the crane folk have no such prohibitions. The bond between lovers is sacred and can never be broken, save by death."
"The crane folk usually don't get married in the normal human sense of the word," Tsubasa interjected, still looking a little harried and unsettled by his father's unexpected visit, which did little to reassure Ash. "The bond between a crane and his or her mate is..." He hesitated, searching for the right words. "It's a sort of psychic and spiritual bond that cannot be denied, and cannot be broken except, as my father said, by death. So there is no need for marriage licenses among us; my people find the humans bewildering and pitiable, that they need pieces of paper and government sanctions in order to be bonded to their mates. When we find our mates, we simply know it in our hearts." He smiled with wry self-deprecation. "Although it takes some of us longer than others to recognize it. So we generally don't make a big fuss with wedding ceremonies, except for the nobles, like when Princess Chizuru married Lord Karasu. It was necessary then to have a big ceremony, in order to properly seal the alliance between our two clans."
"And Yokuto and I had a more-or-less traditional wedding ceremony back home in the States because my mother would have killed me if I got married without her there," Reiko added with a smile.
"And I wanted to do my best to please Reiko's parents, since they weren't exactly thrilled to hear that their nineteen-year-old daughter was planning to marry an older widower who already had a child," Yokuto chimed in. "Not to mention that I wasn't entirely human, although that part didn't bother them as much as the 'older widower with a child' thing."
"Oh, you won them over quickly enough, my love," Reiko laughed. "It's that famous crane charm and charisma. The non-human thing actually reassured them once they got over the initial shock, because the devotion of the crane folk to their mates is legendary. They would never have to worry that you might cheat on me or divorce me."
"But actually, I think it was Tsubasa who won your parents over," Yokuto pointed out.
"True," Reiko admitted. "Even though they were rather disapproving of you at first, they were immediately charmed by Tsubasa. And within three days' time, they were insisting that he call them 'Grandma' and 'Grandpa'."
Tsubasa gave his parents a slightly exasperated but also fond look, as if this was an often-repeated family story. He coughed politely to interrupt their reminiscence, then continued his lecture. "Yes, when a crane marries a human, they will often have a formal wedding for the sake of the human partner's family. However, for the most part, the couple will simply move in together without much fanfare, and their families and friends might throw a small, casual party in their honor to celebrate." He gave his father a pointed look. "The operative words being 'small' and 'casual'."
Yokuto gave him an equally pointed look back. "And when may Reiko and I expect to throw you and your wolf a small and casual party?"
"My 'wolf' does have a name, you know," Tsubasa said irritably, avoiding the question.
"I beg your pardon," Yokuto said, turning to bow to Ash. "I have been unforgivably rude. Allow me to formally introduce myself, although you have no doubt already guessed my identity. I am Yokuto of the crane clan, Tsubasa's father, and this is my wife, Reiko."
Instead of bowing, Reiko extended her hand, saying with a friendly smile, "I'm so pleased to finally be able to meet you, Ash. It is all right if I call you 'Ash'?"
"Yes, of course, please do," Ash replied, cautiously shaking her hand. "I'm Ash Randolf, Tsubasa's...um...er...friend?" He settled somewhat uncertainly on the word "friend" after considering and discarding a few other possibilities, making it more of a question than a statement.
"Mate," Yokuto corrected, kindly but firmly.
"Um...er...begging your pardon, sir, but isn't that up to Tsubasa?" Ash asked diffidently.
"Well, son, do you love Ash?" Yokuto demanded.
Tsubasa sighed in resignation. "Of course," he said, reaching out to take Ash by the hand. "It's just that he's...I mean, we've been through a lot these past few months. I just wanted to let things calm down before we started talking about weddings or parties. Ash lost his parents and gained a new sister; he has other things going on in his life besides me, you know."
Yokuto looked slightly abashed, though not entirely contrite, and he bowed again and murmured, "Forgive me, Ash; I did not mean to make light of your losses."
But Ash was not at all offended. His mind was still lingering on Tsubasa's firm reply, "Of course." The knowledge that Tsubasa loved him made him feel relieved and exhilarated at the same time, almost giddy--a light, bubbly feeling, as if he'd consumed a bottle of champagne, as opposed to the numbness brought on by his usual overindulgence of Firewhiskey.
"It's all right," Ash said. "I've gotten through everything thanks to Tsubasa." He smiled at his lover and squeezed his hand; Tsubasa smiled back at him. "I was pretty messed up even before all this happened, and I didn't really know what I wanted. But I know beyond a doubt now that I want to be with Tsubasa."
"As in permanently?" Yokuto asked hopefully.
Tsubasa rolled his eyes but laughed, and Ash replied with a grin, "Yes, or at least as long as he'll have me."
"Then I will have you forever, Ash," Tsubasa declared, then smiled at his father. "Well, are you happy now, Dad?"
"My happiness lies in seeing you happy, my son," Yokuto said, with an air of slightly offended dignity, then ruined the effect by grinning as eagerly as a child on Christmas Eve who couldn't wait to open the presents under the tree. "So shall we start planning the celebration?"
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
So somehow Ash found himself caught up in the whirlwind of his future father-in-law's enthusiasm as they began planning the not-quite-a-wedding ceremony. All the werewolves had to be invited, of course, along with Laura, and Takeshi and his family. There were also Ash's friends at the Ministry--Arthur in particular would probably be hurt if he wasn't invited--and Snape and Lupin. The latter two were actually more Lukas's friends than Ash's, but they had shown up to help rescue him, after all. And, after some debate, it was decided that Tsubasa's tengu friends should also be invited, so as not to offend anyone, even though they might not want to make the trip from Japan.
"Although Merlin help us if they do," Tsubasa said, only half-jokingly. "The tengu get rowdy when they party, and so do the werewolves, and I shudder to think what might happen when you combine both of them along with a significant amount of alcohol."
"Perhaps we could make it an alcohol-free celebration, sweetie," Reiko suggested.
"It doesn't matter," Tsubasa replied with a wry smile. "The tengu will bring their own, and I suspect the werewolves will, too."
"You can't have a party without alcohol," Ash automatically protested, although in truth, it didn't seem as important now, when he felt intoxicated with happiness without having touched a single drop of liquor.
The Headmaster offered to let them hold the celebration at Hogwarts, but the thought of a public ceremony in front of the entire school, like Lukas's wedding, was much too daunting for Ash, and Tsubasa wasn't crazy about the idea, either.
When they went to tell Lukas the good news, he hugged Ash and slapped Tsubasa on the back, saying, "Well, it's about time!" Then he offered the use of Diggory Manor for the party, which seemed like the perfect solution: it was large enough to hold all the guests, and familiar enough for Ash to feel at ease.
"So what exactly does this ceremony entail?" Ash asked nervously. "I don't have to walk down the aisle in a white dress and veil, do I?"
"I'm sure you'd make a lovely bride," his pack brother Kai quipped, then quickly jumped back as Ash growled and threw a not-very-playful blow his way--not quickly enough, though, because he yelped as Ash's fist connected with his shoulder.
"Not a dress, no," Yokuto chuckled. "As Tsubasa said, we don't normally have formal ceremonies. A simple declaration of vows, perhaps. If you like, you can use the traditional Western vows of 'to love and honor, till death do us part,' or just write your own." Ash stifled a groan, wondering if he was supposed to come up with something romantic and poetic, and his future father-in-law chuckled again. "It doesn't necessarily have to be anything fancy," Yokuto said reassuringly. "'I love you and I pledge to spend the rest of my life with you' is good enough. The only real marriage tradition we have is the exchange of lover's tokens."
"Lover's tokens?" Ash asked.
"Yes, among the crane folk, it is customary to weave a garment, usually a kimono, for one's mate," Yokuto replied.
"But I can't weave or sew," Ash groaned.
"Well, it's not expected of a human partner," Reiko said kindly. "Yokuto wove my bridal robe, and my gift to him was a wedding band. He also gave me one, since it's traditional for human couples to exchange rings." She grinned and winked at Ash. "I can't sew, either, so you needn't worry, Ash."
"The jade bracelet that Takeshi always wears is Aric's token to him," Tsubasa said comfortingly. "So you can get me a ring, a bracelet, a necklace--whatever you like, and I will wear it with pride." Ash still looked doubtful, and Tsubasa insisted, "You needn't be embarrassed. Actually..." He blushed slightly, smiling sheepishly. "I'm the one who should be embarrassed. I've made you a lover's token, sort of, but my weaving and sewing aren't very good..."
"What matters most is the love that is woven into the cloth," Yokuto said gently, although he looked rather smug when he heard that Tsubasa had already made the "lover's token". "If you made the garment with love, then you have nothing to be ashamed of."
"I'm sure it will be wonderful," Ash assured his lover.
"Yes, well...I think I'll just go put a few finishing touches on it," Tsubasa mumbled, his blush deepening, and hurried back to Hogwarts--incidentally leaving Ash behind with his parents.
"Um...is it really all right if I just give him a ring?" Ash asked them anxiously. "It seems so impersonal to just buy something when he's making a gift by hand for me. I've never even seen him wearing any jewelry."
"I wear this, for Reiko's sake," Yokuto said, holding up his left hand to display the gold band on his ring finger. "But for the most part, we don't wear jewelry, except maybe some hair ornaments for the women." He gave Ash an approving smile. "It speaks well of you that you wish to give something more personal to your mate."
"I do, but I'm not, well, very crafty or anything," Ash said miserably. "All I'm really good at is tinkering with Muggle devices." He was also good at stealing and pick-pocketing, but he didn't think that was something that he should admit to his future in-laws.
"Hmmm," Yokuto said thoughtfully, then brightened as an idea occurred to him. "Could you at least braid a few strands of cord together?"
"I guess so," Ash replied doubtfully. "What did you have in mind?"
"Have you noticed that Tsubasa always uses a cord to tie off his topknot?" Yokuto asked, and Ash nodded. When sparring or teaching his Physical Defense classes, Tsubasa would use a bit of plain cord or a strip of leather to tie back his hair, and when he was at ease, he would use a more elaborate silk cord, usually dyed to match the color of his kimono. His favorite seemed to be one made of bright gold silk.
"If you will let me have some of your hair, I shall weave it into a length of thread, and then you can braid it together with some silk to make a hair-tie for Tsubasa," Yokuto continued, sounding pleased with his cleverness. "It will be personal, since it will be made with your hands and have a bit of you in it, and it is also a practical gift that he will be able to put to good use."
"A perfect solution," Reiko said, her eyes sparkling with merriment as she applauded her husband, and the werewolves voiced their approval as well.
"I know that you can weave feathers into silk, but I didn't know that you could do that with hair, too," Ash said, a little startled.
"Well, it will not quite be silk," Yokuto said with a smile. "But your hair should make a strong and sturdy thread: a good symbol for an enduring marriage. So if you will allow me..."
The next part was rather painful, since it involved Yokuto plucking quite a bit of hair from Ash's head before he was satisfied that he had enough, but Ash endured it stoically. He had suffered far worse in the past, after all, and it would hardly impress his future in-laws if he started whimpering like a puppy over a bit of pulled hair.
Yokuto and Reiko had planned to rent a room at the Leaky Cauldron while they were in Britain, but Lukas and Narcissa invited them to stay at the Manor, and they accepted with gratitude. They all had dinner together that night, and Yokuto invited Ash to stay for a nightcap, saying that he wanted to spend some time in private getting to know his future son-in-law. Ash's packmates grinned gleefully, delighted to be in on the little conspiracy, but fortunately, Tsubasa was too distracted with his own plans to be suspicious. He gratefully left Ash in his father's hands and returned to the castle to continue his "finishing touches" on Ash's gift.
Yokuto presented Ash with three lengths of thick, heavy thread: two of gold silk, and the brown and gray one that was made from Ash's own hair. Braiding the three together to make a single cord was simple enough even for Ash's limited skills. He had thought that his hair would look shabby intertwined with the fine silk, but strangely enough, it didn't. Maybe his hair had acquired a bit of luster through Yokuto's magic: the brown had a warm glow to it, like polished mahogany, and the gray gleamed, looking more like silver, so it actually made a pleasing complement to the gold thread. When Ash had finished braiding the cord, Yokuto attached a couple of gold beads to the ends, which made it look even fancier. It actually looked like a gift worthy of his beautiful lover.
"Thank you, sir," Ash told Yokuto, his voice trembling slightly with gratitude.
"No thanks are needed," Yokuto replied kindly, patting him on the shoulder. "You are part of our family now, Ash, and it is only natural for family to help each other out."
Tears stung Ash's eyes, but he managed to hold them in check. Tsubasa had assured him that his parents would accept him as family, but he had not quite believed it. It was a little strange for an outcast werewolf to suddenly have so many people wanting to claim him as family--first Laura, and now Tsubasa's parents.
"Thank you, sir," Ash repeated, in a voice hoarse with emotion. "I mean...I'm glad that you feel that way."
"And what's with this 'sir' business?" Yokuto demanded sternly, although his eyes twinkled with good humor. "Now that we have established that you are family, you must call me 'Father' or 'Dad'."
"Um...er...ah..." Ash stammered helplessly, as Yokuto stared at him expectantly and Reiko gave him an encouraging smile.
"Come now," Lukas said with a grin, slapping him on the back. "You don't want to offend your new father-in-law, now do you?"
"No, of course not," Ash said hastily. "I'm honored to be part of your family, er...Father." He managed to get the word out with some difficulty, finding the more formal "Father" slightly easier to say than "Dad".
Yokuto beamed, as if nothing could please him more than that simple declaration, and without warning, wrapped his arms around Ash in a firm embrace. "And we are delighted that you are now part of our family, son!"
"Um...thank you," Ash said weakly, wondering if he was supposed to return the embrace. He half-expected to wake up any second now and discover that this had all been a hallucination brought on by too much Firewhiskey.
His future mother-in-law seemed to understand how he felt, and she smiled at him sympathetically. "You must remember, dear, that this is all new to Ash," she gently chided her husband. "Please don't overwhelm him all at once."
Yokuto released Ash, laughing, "Please forgive me, son! It is just that I am overjoyed to finally see my son choose a mate! I had begun to despair of him ever finding his true love!"
Ash wondered if having a werewolf spouse was really preferable to remaining single for life; Yokuto apparently thought so. Perhaps he should feel a little insulted, but Ash only felt relieved that he was being accepted, even enthusiastically welcomed by Tsubasa's family, so he just smiled in response.
"Welcome to the family, dear," Reiko said, brushing a light kiss against Ash's cheek. "A slightly eccentric family, I'm afraid, but I hope you'll get used to us with time."
Ash burst into laughter, the last of his nervousness finally dissipating. "I can hardly call anyone else's family eccentric, considering that mine is a werewolf pack!"
"We'll be quite a blended family, then--wolf, crane, and human," Yokuto said cheerfully, and Ash began to feel that this whole getting married and gaining a family thing might actually work out, after all.
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They decided--or rather, Yokuto decided--that they would hold the party that weekend, although it gave them only a few days' preparation time. "After all, we don't need much time to prepare, since it's only going to be a small, casual party," Yokuto said sweetly to his son.
"Whatever you say, Dad," Tsubasa gave in with a sigh of resignation.
There actually wasn't much for Ash and Tsubasa to do, since Narcissa and Yokuto pretty much took over the planning for the celebration--Yokuto with all the enthusiasm of a father eager to marry off his only child, and Narcissa with the smooth ease and efficiency of a pureblood wife who was used to organizing parties and playing the gracious hostess. She seemed very happy to help plan even a "wedding" as unconventional as this one, so perhaps she missed the fancy dinner parties she used to give as Lady Malfoy.
"Mum's in her element; she's missed throwing parties like these, I think," Draco confirmed with a grin as Narcissa conferred with Yokuto over a dinner menu; placed orders for flowers; and barked out imperious orders to the werewolves who were rearranging furniture in the main dining room where the party was to be held. Reiko baby-sat little Cedric while his mother worked, cradling him in her arms as she watched the proceedings with amusement.
"Then perhaps we should give her a chance to throw more parties in the future," Lukas said, then grinned slyly at his stepson. "Better watch out, Draco; she'll be scheming to marry you off next."
"Oh, no!" Draco groaned. "You're not serious, are you? I'm way too young to get married!"
"In the old days, the purebloods used to get married, or at least betrothed, right after leaving Hogwarts," Ash pointed out with a bit mischievous glee, happy to have someone else on the hot seat for a change. "Besides, aren't things going well with you and that little Avery girl?"
Draco's pale cheeks flushed a bright red. "Well enough," he mumbled. "Although I can't see Sera much while she's at school. But she plans to apprentice at St. Mungo's and become a Healer after she leaves Hogwarts, so I don't think she'd want to get married right away."
"Ah, so you have thought about it," Lukas teased.
"Stepfather!" Draco wailed, which unfortunately caught his mother's attention.
"If the three of you have enough spare time to gossip like a bunch of old women, you can come over here and help us with the wedding plans," Narcissa ordered in a tart voice. "It is your wedding, after all, Ash."
"It's not exactly a wedding," Ash muttered under his breath, but meekly obeyed; she was Lukas's mate, and therefore the alpha female of the pack, after all.
Narcissa gave her son a speculative look and murmured to Lukas, "You know, dear, much as I hate to admit it, Draco is a young man now and no longer my little baby..." A few of the werewolves snickered, and Draco's face turned red again. A brief but fierce glare from Narcissa quickly silenced the snickers.
"And Serafina is becoming a young woman, and will soon leave Hogwarts," Narcissa continued. "Perhaps it is time for us to sit down with her mother and discuss our children's future."
Draco shot his stepfather a pleading look, and Lukas said soothingly, "Now, now, dear, there will be plenty of time for that in the future. Serafina is still in school, and she has an apprenticeship at St. Mungo's to complete after that. Besides, these are no longer the old days of arranged marriages, when the bride and bridegroom would not meet until their wedding day."
"Well, of course I wouldn't expect Draco to marry someone he's never met before!" Narcissa said indignantly. "But Serafina is a girl of good breeding, and Draco likes her, so I don't see what the problem is."
"The problem is that Draco is young, and still an apprentice himself," Lukas explained patiently. "A man wants to have an established career and be able to support his wife before he takes a bride."
"I suppose you're right," Narcissa conceded reluctantly.
"Besides, I wouldn't have thought you'd be so eager to see your only son move out on his own," Lukas added.
"Oh, but I thought that Serafina could move into the Manor with Draco when they get married," Narcissa said brightly. "There's plenty of room here, after all."
"We'll deal with that when the time comes," Lukas said gently. "But for now, we should concentrate on getting Ash and Tsubasa married off first, don't you think?"
"Yes, you're right," Narcissa agreed, and Draco breathed a sigh of relief as his mother returned to supervising the party preparations.
Part 34
Early the next morning, Snape and Lupin were woken by an owl delivering a message that Narcissa had given birth to a healthy baby boy, and that mother and baby were doing fine.
"That's nice," Snape mumbled, and rolled over to go back to sleep.
"Severus!" Lupin exclaimed, yanking the covers off of him. "How can you sleep at a time like this? Don't you want to go see the baby?"
"No," Snape replied grumpily, sensing that his chances of returning to slumber were rapidly decreasing. Lupin had been pacing their quarters all last night, as anxious as a child on a Christmas Eve, and had only reluctantly gone to bed at midnight at Snape's insistence. A stranger might have suspected that he was the father of the baby instead of Lukas.
"If you've seen one baby, you've seen them all," Snape continued. "They're noisy, messy creatures, always squalling and spitting up and dirtying their diapers." He pulled the blanket up over his head. "Check back with me in another ten years, when the child might reasonably be expected to carry on an intelligent conversation, and I can determine whether or not he is a worthy candidate for Slytherin House."
"Severus!" Lupin shouting, snatching the blanket back, and Snape sighed in resignation.
"You do realize that visiting hours at St. Mungo's don't start for another..." He blearily glanced at the clock on the wall. "...two and a half hours?"
"We're war heroes," Lupin replied confidently. "I'm sure that they'll make an exception for us. And besides, we're practically family. In fact, we are family--or at least you are. I'm sure that there's a Malfoy somewhere on the Snape family tree."
"I'm sure there is, considering how inbred the purebloods are," Snape sighed. "Although I don't think that second cousins several times removed really falls under the definition of 'immediate family'." Lupin opened his mouth to resume arguing and Snape held up a hand to stop him, saying, "All right, but at least let me have some breakfast first. Besides, I'm sure that Narcissa will be tired after such a long delivery, and we should give her a chance to rest."
"You're right," Lupin admitted a bit guiltily. "I didn't stop to think that Narcissa might not be up to receiving visitors, although the note says that she's fine. Still, I guess that it would be a little rude to drop in unannounced so early."
Snape noted sourly that Lupin didn't seem to think it was rude to deny a cranky Potions Master his beauty sleep or his breakfast. "The baby's not going anywhere, Lupin," he said huffily. "It will still be there in an hour or two."
Lupin grinned and leaned over to kiss Snape on the tip of his nose, which only caused Snape to scowl at him even more blackly. "Sorry, Sev," Lupin apologized. "I guess I'm just excited about the baby."
"Merlin only knows what you're going to be like when Branwen has her baby," Snape grumbled.
"Oh, I can't wait to be 'Uncle Remus'!" Lupin laughed. "Be honest; aren't you looking forward, at least a little bit, to being 'Uncle Severus'?"
"No," Snape replied firmly. "And if it's up to Black, the child will probably be calling me 'Uncle Greasy Git'."
"You know that Branwen wouldn't let him do that," Lupin chided good-naturedly. "And besides, Sirius doesn't hate you anymore. But I'm sorry for waking you, Severus. Did you want to go back to sleep for a bit?"
"I'm already awake," Snape said irritably. "So we might as well go down to the kitchen and get something to eat."
"Well, as you pointed out we do have more than two hours till visiting hours start," Lupin purred as he ran his hand down Snape's chest. "Perhaps I can think of something to entertain you in the meantime, hmm?"
"In that case, I think that breakfast can wait," Snape said, wrapping his arms around Lupin and pulling him close. "After all, I do believe that you owe me some 'entertainment' for waking me up at such an ungodly hour."
"Then I'll do my best to make it up to you--and to help you work up an appetite," Lupin said with a grin.
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So they arrived at St. Mungo's during official visiting hours, making a brief stop at the gift shop to buy some flowers and a teddy bear for the mother and new baby, respectively, before heading to Narcissa's hospital room.
Narcissa was lying in bed, looking tired but radiant as Aileen and the female werewolves fussed over her, helping her to fix her hair--every golden ringlet was perfectly in place, despite the fact that she'd given birth only a few hours ago--and urging her to eat her breakfast to "keep up your strength". Andromeda just patted her on the shoulder and said, "You've done well, Cissy."
"Indeed," Branwen said; she also must have spent the night at the hospital, because she looked tired but proud, smiling at her former student in a motherly fashion. "You've given birth to a fine son, Narcissa."
"Let me take a look at him," Lupin said eagerly, and Lukas rose up out of a chair beside his wife's bed. He was grinning from ear to ear as he very gently and tenderly cradled a swaddled baby in his arms. Only the baby's face was visible within the bundle of Slytherin-green flannel blankets, but Lupin could see that little Cedric Drake had downy golden hair the exact same color as Narcissa's, and that his eyes were the same odd shade of yellow-green as his father's.
"He's beautiful," Lupin said, and Lukas's grin impossibly seemed to grow even wider.
"He looks just like his dad!" The young werewolf Kai said proudly, slapping his pack leader on the back.
"But he looks like Mum, too," Draco added loyally, grinning almost as widely as his stepfather. He was holding a box of chocolate cigars from Honeyduke's, and offered one to Lupin. He chuckled as he accepted the candy, and Draco whispered, "We can't pass out real ones because Mum hates the smell of smoke, and she says it would be bad for the baby."
"Your mother is right," Lupin assured him, peeling the "It's a boy!" wrapper off the cigar. "And I much prefer chocolate to tobacco, anyway." He winked at his lover. "And I'm sure Severus does, too."
Severus gave him a haughty look that seemed to imply Lupin was offending his dignity with such a remark, never mind that everyone in Slytherin knew about Professor Snape's sweet tooth. Then he accepted a cigar from Draco graciously, as if he were doing the boy a favor, and politely congratulated Narcissa and Lukas on the birth of their son.
"Thanks," Lukas said, cooing at the baby as Cedric laughed and waved at him with a small, chubby hand. Fortunately, since his attention was focused on the baby, he didn't notice the incredulous and slightly pained expression on Severus's face, although Lupin did. He smiled, because he didn't need Legilimency to read his lover's thoughts: "How pathetic, to see the fierce werewolf leader reduced to making goo-goo noises at a mewling infant." Or maybe he was thinking it about the entire pack, since the male werewolves were clustered around their leader, smiling just as dotingly at the newest addition to the pack.
Lukas looked up and frowned slightly as he added, "I'm a little worried about his eyes, though. They're yellowish, like mine, and I'm afraid that might mean he's a werewolf."
"Mr. Kimura said it didn't necessarily mean that," Branwen said with an air of patience that made it clear she had repeated this reassurance several times before. "Eye color is not an indicator of lycanthropy. No one in your pack has yellow eyes except for you."
"And anyway, they're more green than yellow," Draco chimed in.
"I thought maybe I was different because I have inherited lycanthropy, and the others were infected through bites," Lukas said.
"I have inherited lycanthropy and my eyes are blue," Lupin pointed out. "The only other werewolf I've known who has yellow eyes was Greyback."
"Oh, that's reassuring, Remus," Lukas replied sarcastically. "Thanks a lot."
"Oh, don't borrow trouble, Lukas," Aileen said impatiently. "Just be grateful that the baby is healthy. There's no need to go inventing problems that don't exist yet."
"But it is possible that he could have inherited my curse," Lukas insisted.
"It doesn't matter," Narcissa said serenely, holding out her arms for the baby. Lukas deposited Cedric in them, and Narcissa planted a gentle kiss on her son's forehead. "He's perfect, werewolf or not. If he does have lycanthropy, then he'll just have to take the Wolfsbane Potion like you and the rest of the pack. Perhaps it won't always be easy, but he won't have to suffer the same hardships that you did. And besides, he has Black blood flowing through his veins; he will be strong enough to handle whatever difficulties that arise."
"Diggory blood, too," Lukas reminded her, leaning down to kiss his wife and then his son.
"And Diggory blood, too," Narcissa agreed. "You and your father were certainly brave enough, as was our baby's namesake, and Gwendolyn has a strong spirit, too. A pity those traits skipped over Amos, though."
"Let's not mention the bastard's name on such a happy occasion," Lukas grumbled.
"Don't swear around the baby, dear," Narcissa scolded, but dropped the subject as everyone (except, of course, Severus) gathered around to admire little Cedric and exclaim over how adorable he was. Severus was remarkably patient under the circumstances, and even managed to refrain from rolling his eyes, but he promptly declared their visit at an end when Cedric began to fuss and Narcissa said it was time to feed him.
"I can't wait till we have grandchildren of our own, Severus," Lupin said happily when they returned to Hogwarts.
"I don't think that Theodore and Blaise will be having any babies in the near future, Lupin," Severus said dryly.
"No, but Theodore will probably adopt an heir eventually," Lupin replied with a smile. "It would make Lady Selima happy, and he takes his duties as your heir seriously."
"True," Severus agreed. "But I imagine that it will be some time before he feels ready to become a parent, and probably even longer before he can find a prospective heir that will meet my mother's exacting standards. Pureblood orphans don't grow on trees, you know."
"Perhaps she can be persuaded to accept a mixed-blood child," Lupin suggested.
"Not likely," Severus scoffed. "But then again, I never thought that she'd accept you into the family, either."
"I rest my case," Lupin laughed. "But I doubt that we'll have to wait for Theodore to give us a grandchild. Dylan and Hermione will probably get married and begin raising a family in a few years."
"Just what I need," Severus groaned. "A passel of bushy-haired, know-it-all little brats!"
"I don't think that Hermione was planning on raising a Weasley-sized brood," Lupin pointed out with a grin. "Besides, those hypothetical grandchildren might take after Dylan."
"I certainly hope so!" Severus declared adamantly, scowling fiercely as if he could shape his future grandchildren into proper Slytherins by sheer force of will. Lupin just laughed and kissed his lover, knowing that Severus would love the children even if they turned out to be bushy-haired Gryffindors.
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Lukas took a temporary leave of absence to look after his wife and son, while Tsubasa took over his Physical Defense classes, and life at Hogwarts gradually began to settle back into a normal routine. There was an initial flurry of publicity before the excitement died down, but for once that worked in their favor, since it eased the public's fears to know that the "werewolf murderer" had finally been caught.
Snape grudgingly admitted to himself that Arthur Weasley was exhibiting a remarkable amount of political savvy for an idealistic Gryffindor. It was mostly due to advice from Lady Selima, Erika Dietrich, and Dawlish, but the fact that he was following their advice at all showed that he had gained some practicality and common sense since becoming Minister of Magic--traits that he had seriously been lacking in before.
By giving Rita Skeeter an exclusive interview, he was able to play down the fact that the killings had indeed been committed by a werewolf, and play up the fact that the Ministry had brought to justice a long-lost Death Eater. (Although Arthur generously gave most of the credit to the Aurors and Lukas, while his predecessor, Cornelius Fudge, would have kept the glory for himself.) He would also have named Snape and Lupin as heroes, but they asked that he play down their roles in the matter, due to modesty on Lupin's part and an aversion to publicity on Snape's. At Snape's request, though, Henry was given credit for his help in tracking down Greyback, which pleased his future in-laws and made them a little more amenable to Erika marrying an otherwise unimportant scholar--though Snape had no doubt that Miss Dietrich would have forced her family to accept her choice of husband even without the Daily Prophet's endorsement. She was a strong-willed young woman, and after all, Henry was pureblooded and of reasonably good family, even if he was somewhat lacking in political achievements.
Another bit of good publicity unexpectedly resulted from a morbid situation when the Ministry examined the remains of the Inferi. Most of them turned out to be Muggles, as Snape had suspected, but a few of the older corpses were wizards who had vanished during the first war. One of them was Caradoc Dearborn, a member of the first Order of the Phoenix; he was identified by the family crest on his ring. The ring had been enchanted with a minor protective charm which had not been strong enough to save its owner, but had managed to prevent the ring from being melted into slag when Snape had been forced to incinerate Dearborn's corpse.
The Dearborns were purebloods of high rank, and Caradoc himself had been a popular man, respected and well-liked in the wizarding world. His family had long suspected that he was dead, of course, but they were relieved to finally know the truth and be able to lay their loved one to rest. Caradoc was given a hero's funeral, and the Ministry received credit for bringing him and the other fallen wizards home to their families. Along with Greyback's death, this provided a sense of closure to the public, reassuring them that the war was finally over and that they could live without fear of the Death Eaters--"A happily ever after ending," Selima somewhat cynically told her son.
In short, Arthur Weasley was made out to be a hero in the press, and his modest demurrals to the contrary only made him seem even more noble. The fickle public adored him once again; the Ministry sycophants went back to currying favor, insisting that they had believed in him all along; and all talk of restoring the anti-werewolf legislation ceased, at least for the moment.
By early December, the publicity was dying down, and the students and staff at Hogwarts were preparing for Christmas. Lupin had volunteered to help decorate the castle and was thoroughly enjoying himself; the students were looking forward to the holidays; and Snape was looking forward to spoiling their pleasure a bit with end-of-term exams. So everyone was happy--at least until the less competent of Snape's students received their grades.
Ash was still staying in the castle with Tsubasa although the danger had passed, and neither of them showed any inclination to have him move out. Laura Madley seemed reassured by her half-brother's presence, and while she was obviously still grieving for her parents, she was no longer prone to bursting into tears without warning--much to Snape's relief--and her work in Potions class became steady and reliable once again.
However, that comfortable, familiar routine was interrupted one morning when they were having breakfast in the Great Hall. It started off as a day like any other, with a bored Snape only half-paying attention to Lupin's inane chatter with Ash about Cedric Drake; both werewolves were enamored of the infant, a fact that Snape found somewhat puzzling--after all, babies did little other than eat, sleep, cry, and dirty their diapers. What was there to get so excited about? Personally, he thought that taking in Dylan and Theodore as teenagers had worked out much better; they had been old enough to carry on an intelligent conversation, and didn't wake their parents up at two in the morning demanding to be fed. Well, there had been a few times when Theodore had woken them up with his nightmares, but that was understandable, considering everything that he'd gone through during the war. Overall, having two intelligent, well-behaved (well, mostly) teenage sons was certainly preferable to dealing with a mewling infant, at least in Snape's opinion.
Then he frowned uneasily. Lupin was prone to bringing home strays: his pet rat, Kiseki, and Cabal, the mongrel dog that Williamson and Amos had used in the staged werewolf attacks. (Snape conveniently chose to overlook the little detail that he was the one who had given the rat to Lupin; the softhearted werewolf had accepted the creature easily enough, and he would probably have adopted it on his own, given the opportunity.)
Now, a rat was fairly unobtrusive, and the dog was tolerable, although it got underfoot at times, but a baby was quite another story! Snape wondered if he ought to keep an eye on Lupin to make sure that he didn't bring home an orphaned baby one day.
Just then, Filch ran up to the Head Table and whispered something to Dumbledore about unexpected visitors. The Headmaster just smiled, his eyes twinkling merrily, and said, "Well then, please send them in, Argus."
Filch left and returned a few minutes later with a couple that Snape vaguely recognized: Tsubasa's parents, Yokuto of the crane clan and his wife Reiko. He and Lupin had met them briefly at Chizuru's and Karasu's wedding, although they had not spoken beyond exchanging polite greetings.
Yokuto made his way down the center aisle of the hall with a stately grace, looking as elegant and regal as the late Lucius Malfoy at his best, minus the arrogance. His hair fell unbound to his waist like a stream of black silk, and the streaks of gray amidst the black served to give him an air of dignity, rather than detracting from his beauty. He was clad in a long kimono of dark blue silk embroidered with an intricate pattern of snowflakes in glittering silver thread, which seemed to highlight and complement the gray in his hair. He seemed to glide rather than walk down the hall, moving with the same easy grace that his son did, although without that faint air of suppressed menace that Tsubasa had. The son moved like a warrior, and the father more like a dancer.
Reiko walked beside her husband, an amused smile on her face. She was also clad in a kimono, dyed a lighter of shade of blue-green, embroidered with a whimsical design of fishes and seashells. By normal human standards, she was an attractive woman, but she could not help but look like a sparrow next to a peacock in comparison to her husband's unearthly beauty. If this bothered her, she showed no sign of it; she seemed confident and at ease, and the two of them radiated an air of harmony that only developed between couples who had been living together for many years. Snape glanced at his lover, who was gazing at the visitors with a look of gleeful curiosity in his eyes, and Snape thought to himself that perhaps he and Lupin had begun to achieve that sort of harmony themselves. They still argued at times, of course, but those arguments were playful (well, mostly), and felt as comfortable and familiar as a well-worn pair of slippers.
The couple stopped at the Head Table and bowed politely. "I apologize for the intrusion, Headmaster," Yokuto said.
Dumbledore rose to his feet and bowed in return. "Not at all," he replied genially. "It is a pleasure to see you again, and the families of the staff are always welcome to visit."
"You are most gracious, Headmaster," Reiko said. "Thank you for looking after our son."
"Oh, it is we who are honored to have him here," Dumbledore protested good-naturedly. "The students are learning a great deal from him, and his assistance has proved invaluable. Our Physical Defense instructor, Master Diggory, is out on...ah...paternity leave, and Professor Tsubasa has kindly consented to take over his classes until he returns." He took out his wand and conjured up a couple of extra chairs and place settings, and the table lengthened slightly, leaving just enough space to seat two people between Tsubasa and Lupin. "Please, you must join us for breakfast."
Yokuto politely protested that they couldn't possibly impose on the Headmaster's hospitality, and Dumbledore insisted, with equal politeness, that it was no imposition at all. It seemed to be a sort of ritual act of courtesy, because after a couple more token protests and reassurances, Yokuto happily took a seat at the Head Table next to his son, and Reiko followed suit, still looking amused.
Ash was looking a little panicky about the sudden appearance of his lover's parents; he had the look of a wild animal about to bolt at the sight of danger. Tsubasa, on the other hand, looked more chagrined than nervous. "Dad!" he hissed quietly. "What are you doing here?!"
"Why, I have come to visit my son, of course," Yokuto replied innocently. He appeared to be speaking at a normal volume, but his voice was actually carefully pitched to carry to the rest of the room, a trick that many public speakers learned, although the lazier ones simply used magic (or in the case of Muggles, microphones and speakers) to amplify their voices.
"According to the Daily Prophet, the killers were apprehended; Mr. Randolf's name has been cleared; and peace has been restored to the British wizarding world," Yokuto continued, then paused to sigh dramatically. "And yet you still have not seen fit to bring your mate home to meet your parents."
"Father, please," Tsubasa protested in a strained voice as the students gasped and began to gossip excitedly. "For one thing, I have a full-time job; I haven't had time to go home for a visit. And for another, I would prefer not to discuss my personal life in front of the entire school!"
"S-sir," Ash stammered, jumping to his feet and bowing awkwardly towards Yokuto. "We--I--apologize. Tsubasa told me that you were working to offer shelter to the pack in case we needed it. I should have gone to express my gratitude to you in person, or at least written..."
Yokuto beamed at him, then rose from his seat to walk over to the werewolf, who took an involuntary step backwards before he forced himself to stop and stand his ground. "Nonsense," Yokuto said. "It is natural for family to help one another, and there is no need for thanks."
"F-family?" Ash stuttered.
"Welcome to the family, my son," Yokuto said warmly, and embraced the startled werewolf, whose eyes went wide with shock. Tsubasa sighed heavily and shook his head.
"There, there, sweetie," Reiko said soothingly, reaching over to pat him on the shoulder. "You know how your father is. I tried to stop him, but once he has his mind set on something..."
"So when is the wedding?" Yokuto asked cheerfully, and Tsubasa groaned, burying his face in his hands.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Ash was too stunned to reply to Yokuto's question, but the Headmaster filled the silence by offering them the use of the antechamber behind the Great Hall so that they could have some privacy--a little too late, Ash couldn't help but think, as the students were already in an uproar. The teachers also looked like they were eager to start gossiping, but at least they were polite enough to restrain themselves until Ash and Tsubasa and his parents left the room. Lupin grinned and winked in a way that Ash supposed was meant to be encouraging, but he still felt a bit apprehensive in spite of Yokuto's declaration that he was "family". He had been told that Tsubasa's father was the crane clan's representative to the Japanese Wizards' Council, the equivalent of an ambassador and a Ministry Department Head rolled into one. Would he really allow his son to marry a scruffy, not quite penniless werewolf of dubious pedigree?
"Can we even get married?" Ash blurted out, although he hadn't meant to speak the thought aloud. "Is it legal in your country? I mean, for two men to get married, because it's certainly not legal in Britain." Assuming that Tsubasa even wanted to marry him, which maybe was assuming too much. They were still living together, but they had been taking things slowly, one day at a time, without discussing commitments or plans for the future.
"Oh, same-sex marriage is not yet legal in Japan, in either the wizarding or Muggle communities," Yokuto replied casually. "But the crane folk have no such prohibitions. The bond between lovers is sacred and can never be broken, save by death."
"The crane folk usually don't get married in the normal human sense of the word," Tsubasa interjected, still looking a little harried and unsettled by his father's unexpected visit, which did little to reassure Ash. "The bond between a crane and his or her mate is..." He hesitated, searching for the right words. "It's a sort of psychic and spiritual bond that cannot be denied, and cannot be broken except, as my father said, by death. So there is no need for marriage licenses among us; my people find the humans bewildering and pitiable, that they need pieces of paper and government sanctions in order to be bonded to their mates. When we find our mates, we simply know it in our hearts." He smiled with wry self-deprecation. "Although it takes some of us longer than others to recognize it. So we generally don't make a big fuss with wedding ceremonies, except for the nobles, like when Princess Chizuru married Lord Karasu. It was necessary then to have a big ceremony, in order to properly seal the alliance between our two clans."
"And Yokuto and I had a more-or-less traditional wedding ceremony back home in the States because my mother would have killed me if I got married without her there," Reiko added with a smile.
"And I wanted to do my best to please Reiko's parents, since they weren't exactly thrilled to hear that their nineteen-year-old daughter was planning to marry an older widower who already had a child," Yokuto chimed in. "Not to mention that I wasn't entirely human, although that part didn't bother them as much as the 'older widower with a child' thing."
"Oh, you won them over quickly enough, my love," Reiko laughed. "It's that famous crane charm and charisma. The non-human thing actually reassured them once they got over the initial shock, because the devotion of the crane folk to their mates is legendary. They would never have to worry that you might cheat on me or divorce me."
"But actually, I think it was Tsubasa who won your parents over," Yokuto pointed out.
"True," Reiko admitted. "Even though they were rather disapproving of you at first, they were immediately charmed by Tsubasa. And within three days' time, they were insisting that he call them 'Grandma' and 'Grandpa'."
Tsubasa gave his parents a slightly exasperated but also fond look, as if this was an often-repeated family story. He coughed politely to interrupt their reminiscence, then continued his lecture. "Yes, when a crane marries a human, they will often have a formal wedding for the sake of the human partner's family. However, for the most part, the couple will simply move in together without much fanfare, and their families and friends might throw a small, casual party in their honor to celebrate." He gave his father a pointed look. "The operative words being 'small' and 'casual'."
Yokuto gave him an equally pointed look back. "And when may Reiko and I expect to throw you and your wolf a small and casual party?"
"My 'wolf' does have a name, you know," Tsubasa said irritably, avoiding the question.
"I beg your pardon," Yokuto said, turning to bow to Ash. "I have been unforgivably rude. Allow me to formally introduce myself, although you have no doubt already guessed my identity. I am Yokuto of the crane clan, Tsubasa's father, and this is my wife, Reiko."
Instead of bowing, Reiko extended her hand, saying with a friendly smile, "I'm so pleased to finally be able to meet you, Ash. It is all right if I call you 'Ash'?"
"Yes, of course, please do," Ash replied, cautiously shaking her hand. "I'm Ash Randolf, Tsubasa's...um...er...friend?" He settled somewhat uncertainly on the word "friend" after considering and discarding a few other possibilities, making it more of a question than a statement.
"Mate," Yokuto corrected, kindly but firmly.
"Um...er...begging your pardon, sir, but isn't that up to Tsubasa?" Ash asked diffidently.
"Well, son, do you love Ash?" Yokuto demanded.
Tsubasa sighed in resignation. "Of course," he said, reaching out to take Ash by the hand. "It's just that he's...I mean, we've been through a lot these past few months. I just wanted to let things calm down before we started talking about weddings or parties. Ash lost his parents and gained a new sister; he has other things going on in his life besides me, you know."
Yokuto looked slightly abashed, though not entirely contrite, and he bowed again and murmured, "Forgive me, Ash; I did not mean to make light of your losses."
But Ash was not at all offended. His mind was still lingering on Tsubasa's firm reply, "Of course." The knowledge that Tsubasa loved him made him feel relieved and exhilarated at the same time, almost giddy--a light, bubbly feeling, as if he'd consumed a bottle of champagne, as opposed to the numbness brought on by his usual overindulgence of Firewhiskey.
"It's all right," Ash said. "I've gotten through everything thanks to Tsubasa." He smiled at his lover and squeezed his hand; Tsubasa smiled back at him. "I was pretty messed up even before all this happened, and I didn't really know what I wanted. But I know beyond a doubt now that I want to be with Tsubasa."
"As in permanently?" Yokuto asked hopefully.
Tsubasa rolled his eyes but laughed, and Ash replied with a grin, "Yes, or at least as long as he'll have me."
"Then I will have you forever, Ash," Tsubasa declared, then smiled at his father. "Well, are you happy now, Dad?"
"My happiness lies in seeing you happy, my son," Yokuto said, with an air of slightly offended dignity, then ruined the effect by grinning as eagerly as a child on Christmas Eve who couldn't wait to open the presents under the tree. "So shall we start planning the celebration?"
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
So somehow Ash found himself caught up in the whirlwind of his future father-in-law's enthusiasm as they began planning the not-quite-a-wedding ceremony. All the werewolves had to be invited, of course, along with Laura, and Takeshi and his family. There were also Ash's friends at the Ministry--Arthur in particular would probably be hurt if he wasn't invited--and Snape and Lupin. The latter two were actually more Lukas's friends than Ash's, but they had shown up to help rescue him, after all. And, after some debate, it was decided that Tsubasa's tengu friends should also be invited, so as not to offend anyone, even though they might not want to make the trip from Japan.
"Although Merlin help us if they do," Tsubasa said, only half-jokingly. "The tengu get rowdy when they party, and so do the werewolves, and I shudder to think what might happen when you combine both of them along with a significant amount of alcohol."
"Perhaps we could make it an alcohol-free celebration, sweetie," Reiko suggested.
"It doesn't matter," Tsubasa replied with a wry smile. "The tengu will bring their own, and I suspect the werewolves will, too."
"You can't have a party without alcohol," Ash automatically protested, although in truth, it didn't seem as important now, when he felt intoxicated with happiness without having touched a single drop of liquor.
The Headmaster offered to let them hold the celebration at Hogwarts, but the thought of a public ceremony in front of the entire school, like Lukas's wedding, was much too daunting for Ash, and Tsubasa wasn't crazy about the idea, either.
When they went to tell Lukas the good news, he hugged Ash and slapped Tsubasa on the back, saying, "Well, it's about time!" Then he offered the use of Diggory Manor for the party, which seemed like the perfect solution: it was large enough to hold all the guests, and familiar enough for Ash to feel at ease.
"So what exactly does this ceremony entail?" Ash asked nervously. "I don't have to walk down the aisle in a white dress and veil, do I?"
"I'm sure you'd make a lovely bride," his pack brother Kai quipped, then quickly jumped back as Ash growled and threw a not-very-playful blow his way--not quickly enough, though, because he yelped as Ash's fist connected with his shoulder.
"Not a dress, no," Yokuto chuckled. "As Tsubasa said, we don't normally have formal ceremonies. A simple declaration of vows, perhaps. If you like, you can use the traditional Western vows of 'to love and honor, till death do us part,' or just write your own." Ash stifled a groan, wondering if he was supposed to come up with something romantic and poetic, and his future father-in-law chuckled again. "It doesn't necessarily have to be anything fancy," Yokuto said reassuringly. "'I love you and I pledge to spend the rest of my life with you' is good enough. The only real marriage tradition we have is the exchange of lover's tokens."
"Lover's tokens?" Ash asked.
"Yes, among the crane folk, it is customary to weave a garment, usually a kimono, for one's mate," Yokuto replied.
"But I can't weave or sew," Ash groaned.
"Well, it's not expected of a human partner," Reiko said kindly. "Yokuto wove my bridal robe, and my gift to him was a wedding band. He also gave me one, since it's traditional for human couples to exchange rings." She grinned and winked at Ash. "I can't sew, either, so you needn't worry, Ash."
"The jade bracelet that Takeshi always wears is Aric's token to him," Tsubasa said comfortingly. "So you can get me a ring, a bracelet, a necklace--whatever you like, and I will wear it with pride." Ash still looked doubtful, and Tsubasa insisted, "You needn't be embarrassed. Actually..." He blushed slightly, smiling sheepishly. "I'm the one who should be embarrassed. I've made you a lover's token, sort of, but my weaving and sewing aren't very good..."
"What matters most is the love that is woven into the cloth," Yokuto said gently, although he looked rather smug when he heard that Tsubasa had already made the "lover's token". "If you made the garment with love, then you have nothing to be ashamed of."
"I'm sure it will be wonderful," Ash assured his lover.
"Yes, well...I think I'll just go put a few finishing touches on it," Tsubasa mumbled, his blush deepening, and hurried back to Hogwarts--incidentally leaving Ash behind with his parents.
"Um...is it really all right if I just give him a ring?" Ash asked them anxiously. "It seems so impersonal to just buy something when he's making a gift by hand for me. I've never even seen him wearing any jewelry."
"I wear this, for Reiko's sake," Yokuto said, holding up his left hand to display the gold band on his ring finger. "But for the most part, we don't wear jewelry, except maybe some hair ornaments for the women." He gave Ash an approving smile. "It speaks well of you that you wish to give something more personal to your mate."
"I do, but I'm not, well, very crafty or anything," Ash said miserably. "All I'm really good at is tinkering with Muggle devices." He was also good at stealing and pick-pocketing, but he didn't think that was something that he should admit to his future in-laws.
"Hmmm," Yokuto said thoughtfully, then brightened as an idea occurred to him. "Could you at least braid a few strands of cord together?"
"I guess so," Ash replied doubtfully. "What did you have in mind?"
"Have you noticed that Tsubasa always uses a cord to tie off his topknot?" Yokuto asked, and Ash nodded. When sparring or teaching his Physical Defense classes, Tsubasa would use a bit of plain cord or a strip of leather to tie back his hair, and when he was at ease, he would use a more elaborate silk cord, usually dyed to match the color of his kimono. His favorite seemed to be one made of bright gold silk.
"If you will let me have some of your hair, I shall weave it into a length of thread, and then you can braid it together with some silk to make a hair-tie for Tsubasa," Yokuto continued, sounding pleased with his cleverness. "It will be personal, since it will be made with your hands and have a bit of you in it, and it is also a practical gift that he will be able to put to good use."
"A perfect solution," Reiko said, her eyes sparkling with merriment as she applauded her husband, and the werewolves voiced their approval as well.
"I know that you can weave feathers into silk, but I didn't know that you could do that with hair, too," Ash said, a little startled.
"Well, it will not quite be silk," Yokuto said with a smile. "But your hair should make a strong and sturdy thread: a good symbol for an enduring marriage. So if you will allow me..."
The next part was rather painful, since it involved Yokuto plucking quite a bit of hair from Ash's head before he was satisfied that he had enough, but Ash endured it stoically. He had suffered far worse in the past, after all, and it would hardly impress his future in-laws if he started whimpering like a puppy over a bit of pulled hair.
Yokuto and Reiko had planned to rent a room at the Leaky Cauldron while they were in Britain, but Lukas and Narcissa invited them to stay at the Manor, and they accepted with gratitude. They all had dinner together that night, and Yokuto invited Ash to stay for a nightcap, saying that he wanted to spend some time in private getting to know his future son-in-law. Ash's packmates grinned gleefully, delighted to be in on the little conspiracy, but fortunately, Tsubasa was too distracted with his own plans to be suspicious. He gratefully left Ash in his father's hands and returned to the castle to continue his "finishing touches" on Ash's gift.
Yokuto presented Ash with three lengths of thick, heavy thread: two of gold silk, and the brown and gray one that was made from Ash's own hair. Braiding the three together to make a single cord was simple enough even for Ash's limited skills. He had thought that his hair would look shabby intertwined with the fine silk, but strangely enough, it didn't. Maybe his hair had acquired a bit of luster through Yokuto's magic: the brown had a warm glow to it, like polished mahogany, and the gray gleamed, looking more like silver, so it actually made a pleasing complement to the gold thread. When Ash had finished braiding the cord, Yokuto attached a couple of gold beads to the ends, which made it look even fancier. It actually looked like a gift worthy of his beautiful lover.
"Thank you, sir," Ash told Yokuto, his voice trembling slightly with gratitude.
"No thanks are needed," Yokuto replied kindly, patting him on the shoulder. "You are part of our family now, Ash, and it is only natural for family to help each other out."
Tears stung Ash's eyes, but he managed to hold them in check. Tsubasa had assured him that his parents would accept him as family, but he had not quite believed it. It was a little strange for an outcast werewolf to suddenly have so many people wanting to claim him as family--first Laura, and now Tsubasa's parents.
"Thank you, sir," Ash repeated, in a voice hoarse with emotion. "I mean...I'm glad that you feel that way."
"And what's with this 'sir' business?" Yokuto demanded sternly, although his eyes twinkled with good humor. "Now that we have established that you are family, you must call me 'Father' or 'Dad'."
"Um...er...ah..." Ash stammered helplessly, as Yokuto stared at him expectantly and Reiko gave him an encouraging smile.
"Come now," Lukas said with a grin, slapping him on the back. "You don't want to offend your new father-in-law, now do you?"
"No, of course not," Ash said hastily. "I'm honored to be part of your family, er...Father." He managed to get the word out with some difficulty, finding the more formal "Father" slightly easier to say than "Dad".
Yokuto beamed, as if nothing could please him more than that simple declaration, and without warning, wrapped his arms around Ash in a firm embrace. "And we are delighted that you are now part of our family, son!"
"Um...thank you," Ash said weakly, wondering if he was supposed to return the embrace. He half-expected to wake up any second now and discover that this had all been a hallucination brought on by too much Firewhiskey.
His future mother-in-law seemed to understand how he felt, and she smiled at him sympathetically. "You must remember, dear, that this is all new to Ash," she gently chided her husband. "Please don't overwhelm him all at once."
Yokuto released Ash, laughing, "Please forgive me, son! It is just that I am overjoyed to finally see my son choose a mate! I had begun to despair of him ever finding his true love!"
Ash wondered if having a werewolf spouse was really preferable to remaining single for life; Yokuto apparently thought so. Perhaps he should feel a little insulted, but Ash only felt relieved that he was being accepted, even enthusiastically welcomed by Tsubasa's family, so he just smiled in response.
"Welcome to the family, dear," Reiko said, brushing a light kiss against Ash's cheek. "A slightly eccentric family, I'm afraid, but I hope you'll get used to us with time."
Ash burst into laughter, the last of his nervousness finally dissipating. "I can hardly call anyone else's family eccentric, considering that mine is a werewolf pack!"
"We'll be quite a blended family, then--wolf, crane, and human," Yokuto said cheerfully, and Ash began to feel that this whole getting married and gaining a family thing might actually work out, after all.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
They decided--or rather, Yokuto decided--that they would hold the party that weekend, although it gave them only a few days' preparation time. "After all, we don't need much time to prepare, since it's only going to be a small, casual party," Yokuto said sweetly to his son.
"Whatever you say, Dad," Tsubasa gave in with a sigh of resignation.
There actually wasn't much for Ash and Tsubasa to do, since Narcissa and Yokuto pretty much took over the planning for the celebration--Yokuto with all the enthusiasm of a father eager to marry off his only child, and Narcissa with the smooth ease and efficiency of a pureblood wife who was used to organizing parties and playing the gracious hostess. She seemed very happy to help plan even a "wedding" as unconventional as this one, so perhaps she missed the fancy dinner parties she used to give as Lady Malfoy.
"Mum's in her element; she's missed throwing parties like these, I think," Draco confirmed with a grin as Narcissa conferred with Yokuto over a dinner menu; placed orders for flowers; and barked out imperious orders to the werewolves who were rearranging furniture in the main dining room where the party was to be held. Reiko baby-sat little Cedric while his mother worked, cradling him in her arms as she watched the proceedings with amusement.
"Then perhaps we should give her a chance to throw more parties in the future," Lukas said, then grinned slyly at his stepson. "Better watch out, Draco; she'll be scheming to marry you off next."
"Oh, no!" Draco groaned. "You're not serious, are you? I'm way too young to get married!"
"In the old days, the purebloods used to get married, or at least betrothed, right after leaving Hogwarts," Ash pointed out with a bit mischievous glee, happy to have someone else on the hot seat for a change. "Besides, aren't things going well with you and that little Avery girl?"
Draco's pale cheeks flushed a bright red. "Well enough," he mumbled. "Although I can't see Sera much while she's at school. But she plans to apprentice at St. Mungo's and become a Healer after she leaves Hogwarts, so I don't think she'd want to get married right away."
"Ah, so you have thought about it," Lukas teased.
"Stepfather!" Draco wailed, which unfortunately caught his mother's attention.
"If the three of you have enough spare time to gossip like a bunch of old women, you can come over here and help us with the wedding plans," Narcissa ordered in a tart voice. "It is your wedding, after all, Ash."
"It's not exactly a wedding," Ash muttered under his breath, but meekly obeyed; she was Lukas's mate, and therefore the alpha female of the pack, after all.
Narcissa gave her son a speculative look and murmured to Lukas, "You know, dear, much as I hate to admit it, Draco is a young man now and no longer my little baby..." A few of the werewolves snickered, and Draco's face turned red again. A brief but fierce glare from Narcissa quickly silenced the snickers.
"And Serafina is becoming a young woman, and will soon leave Hogwarts," Narcissa continued. "Perhaps it is time for us to sit down with her mother and discuss our children's future."
Draco shot his stepfather a pleading look, and Lukas said soothingly, "Now, now, dear, there will be plenty of time for that in the future. Serafina is still in school, and she has an apprenticeship at St. Mungo's to complete after that. Besides, these are no longer the old days of arranged marriages, when the bride and bridegroom would not meet until their wedding day."
"Well, of course I wouldn't expect Draco to marry someone he's never met before!" Narcissa said indignantly. "But Serafina is a girl of good breeding, and Draco likes her, so I don't see what the problem is."
"The problem is that Draco is young, and still an apprentice himself," Lukas explained patiently. "A man wants to have an established career and be able to support his wife before he takes a bride."
"I suppose you're right," Narcissa conceded reluctantly.
"Besides, I wouldn't have thought you'd be so eager to see your only son move out on his own," Lukas added.
"Oh, but I thought that Serafina could move into the Manor with Draco when they get married," Narcissa said brightly. "There's plenty of room here, after all."
"We'll deal with that when the time comes," Lukas said gently. "But for now, we should concentrate on getting Ash and Tsubasa married off first, don't you think?"
"Yes, you're right," Narcissa agreed, and Draco breathed a sigh of relief as his mother returned to supervising the party preparations.
Part 34