Chapter 2
The once-familiar feel travel by portkey jarred against his memory, and for a moment he felt like he was a teenager once again. He half expected to have appeared on platform nine and three-quarters, ready to return to Hogwarts.
Instead he was in a tiny office, overflowing with papers and folders. It was the direct opposite to the kind of workplace Epsilon had expected for his friend.
"Take a seat," Draco told him, shifting the papers enough to uncover a chair. "Look out for the cat."
"Cat…"
As if on cue there was a soft meow, and a fluffy ball of fur stalked over to leap onto Draco's lap.
"You have a cat," said Epsilon flatly.
"What did you expect? A dog?"
Epsilon continued to stare around the room.
"Sit down," insisted Draco again, tapping a teapot with his wand. "We have a lot to discuss. Excuse the mess."
"No, it's alright, I'm just surprised. I expected your office to be more… meticulous."
"It would have been," said Draco, pouring out two mugs of tea. "If I'd taken the job my daddy had set up for me by the time I was six. If it wasn't for you and Justin, I'd probably be Minister of Magic by now,"
"Damn, I'm sorry."
"I wasn't looking for an apology," Draco grinned, holding up a mug like a salute. "Thanks. So, what have you been up to?"
The question took Epsilon by surprise.
"What? I thought we needed to talk about… the boy."
"Sebastian is sleeping. My secretary will let me know when he wakes up. So, what happened to you when you took off? How has the last decade been treating you?"
Epsilon squirmed under Draco's stern gaze.
"At least you've grown," continued the blonde man. "You were always the smallest out of all of us."
"I know," said Epsilon quietly, spotting a ring on his friend's finger. "So… you're married?"
"Yep, got a little boy."
"Really? What did you call him?"
"Scorpius."
Epsilon choked on his tea.
"You're kidding, right?"
"Of course I am! He's called Lysander."
"Because that's a much more sensible name," snorted Epsilon. "Please tell me your wife chose it."
"Yes," smirked Draco. "Hermione has a taste for Shakespearean names."
"You married Hermione," said Epsilon with a small smile. "That's nice."
"Yeah."
"I thought that her and Justin were a… thing."
"Yes, they were," said Draco. "But life happens, people change... He's married to Jimmy now, remember him? The sweet kid in the year below?
"Wow. Good for him."
"Yeah. They're out in Singapore at the moment, 'finding themselves' or something equally wacky."
"Justin?"
"He was never the same after the battle."
"Yes, well, none of us came out fine and dandy, did we?"
"He's happy now, I guess that's all that matters. You just disappeared."
"Um… sorry?"
"Did you go straight back to America?"
"No. I wandered around a bit first. Just drifted really. I was being hunted."
"Yes, I was one of those looking for you. Led us a merry dance."
"I didn't want to be found!"
"That became evident."
"Dumbledore just wanted to drag me back to become his poster boy!"
"Yeah, I know, we stopped looking after the first few weeks. You know how to stay hidden."
An awkward silence fell between the two, and Draco began shuffling his files again.
"Papers… papers… ah, there they are!"
He extracted a few sheets of parchment with a flourish, handing them over.
"If you'd just sign on the dotted line, I think I have a quill here somewhere…"
"No worries," said Epsilon, pulling a biro out his pocket. "I never worked out how to use a quill."
He examined the forms carefully.
"Sebastian Icarus Brown?"
Draco shrugged again. "That's his name. Or it will be when you've signed those forms. Please be aware that this contract is magically binding and cannot be rescinded… etc etc…"
"Got it."
"Excellent! Just date it and then…"
"The door opened, and a young man stuck his head in the door."
"Code white," he said. "The boy's awake and ready to leave."
"Thank you, Frank."
The man disappeared back out.
"My secretary," explained Draco. "Dumbledore's got wind that something going on. Let's get moving."
Epsilon was led out the office into a little sitting room area. His attention was immediately drawn to the boy sat on the threadbare sofa. He was small and skinny, with brown hair that fell over his eyes. His arms and face were coated in freckles.
He looks just like her, was Epsilon's first thought, but then the boy, his son, looked up at him, and he saw Sebastian's eyes for the first time.
"Well," said Sebastian. "There's no mistaking that shade of green."

XXX

"What's going on?"
"Hi dad," said Epsilon, not even glancing at his father. "How's it going?"
K didn't answer, following his son's gaze through a glass window. In the room beyond a boy was scribbling on one of the glass boards. Equations, he noticed, though what they were for he really couldn't tell.
He turned back to Epsilon, frowning.
"You're white as a sheet."
"Thanks."
"I mean it. What's going on?"
Epsilon nodded his head towards the boy.
"Meet Sebastian,"
"Okay, that's Sebastian."
"He's your grandson."
It was a testament to the various surprises that had been sprung on K in his lifetime that the news barely made him blink.
"My grandson?"
"That's right."
"I see."
There was a moments silence.
"His name's Sebastian?"
"Yep."
"Sebastian?"
"That's what I said. You seem more shocked by the name than the biological relation."
"Well... how old is he?"
"Ten. Doesn't talk like it, though. Kid's a genius. I mean, look what he's doing now!"
"I'll be damned."
"He takes after his mother. She did arithmancy professionally."
"You're not exactly short of brain cells yourself."
"He's got my eyes."
"You seem awfully calm about all this."
"Trust me, dad, I'm completely freaked out. It just... I guess it still needs to sink in."
"Good luck with that. This should make things more interesting."