Disclaimer: I am not JKR and I will never be. Anything you recognize from Harry Potter or its related works is not mine.

Author's Note: I have no excuse. I'm sorry. I just forgot, plain and simple. Please read the Author's Note at the end of the chapter and enjoy. I hope you like it.

Chapter Forty-Eight

Saturday, December 31st 2022

Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire, England

He doesn't see all that much of her the rest of the evening, because Grace is as much host as guest at this party and she's constantly trying to make sure everyone is alright and they're not running out of food and drinks and generally bustling about. Occasionally, she lets herself be convinced to take a seat behind the grand piano on the lowest gallery and play. Lorcan always stops to watch her when that happens, because Grace, when she coaxes a melody out of the huge instrument both intensely focused and lost in the music at the same time, is a sight to behold. Then again, that might just be him. One time Eva catches him staring and when he tells her of his thoughts she quite gleefully informs him that he is biased.

The hands of the clock draw ever closer to midnight, at which point he and Eva will be buried underneath a mountain of party guests all trying to congratulate them at once. Lorcan is still not sure if he likes that even if this is the fourth time they have their birthday party on this day. He knows Eva likes it though and Lysander finds it amusing, so he doesn't complain. He is so lost in his thoughts that he doesn't notice he is being approached until someone taps him on the shoulder. Lorcan turns around. He couldn't have stopped the smile if he wanted to.

"Do you have a moment?" Grace asks as she returns his smile.

"For you? Always." Her smile widens a little and he thinks that even the cheesiest lines are worth it if they make her smile like that as he lets her pull him up the stairs from the middle gallery to the balcony and from there out of the ballroom. "Where are we going, Gracie?"

"Up," she grins at him and pulls him to the stairs leading to the second floor and then once they are there to a set of stairs that bypass the third floor and go straight to the attic. He raises an eyebrow at that, but doesn't comment until they actually reach the attic.

"So… what's the plan?"

The light in the attic is dim, but there is just enough of it for him to be able to see her clearly. So when she turns to him and smiles widely and it takes his breath away just a little. "You're good at warming charms, right?"

"Yes… why?" he looks at her curiously.

"Because I didn't bring a coat," Grace says as she pushes open the window. She grabs a little bag from beside the window and climbs outside. He simply stares at the open window until she pokes her head back in. "You coming?" she holds out her hand.

He laughs and steps forward. Her hand is warm in his and he marvels at how well their hands fit together even as he climbs out the window, which would probably be easier without holding someone's hand, but he can't bring himself to care. The roof is covered in snow and it's only when he looks around that he realizes they're on the roof above the family wing. "Why this side?" he asks.

"Because there will be lots of people on the other side of the roof at some point. You know, to watch the fireworks," she smiles. "There aren't any doors that lead out here." She nudges the window until it at least appears to be closed and smiles at him. "But I am going to need a warming charm."

Lorcan draws his wand and casts warming charms on both of them while she puts the bag on the ground and spins in a circle, laughing. She's even more beautiful than she normally is, twirling around on a snow-covered roof wearing his sweater and as she spins out of the attics's shadow and into the moonlight, the realization hits him. And it should scare him, oh how it should scare him. But it doesn't. Not when she holds out her hands and beckons him closer. "Dance with me, Lorcan," she whispers when he is standing in front of her, her breath clouding what little space there is between them and he just smiles and nods.

"Kunstlerleben?" he asks, and she laughs delightedly as he waves his wand.

"Kunstlerleben," she agrees. And then he pulls her close and leads her in a waltz across the rooftop. The snow glints in the moonlight and the view of the surrounding lands is stunning, but Lorcan can't tear his eyes away from Grace long enough to admire either of those things. He wonders for a moment when she started looking at him like that and how he could have possibly missed it, but then decides it doesn't matter. What matters is the two of them right here and right now. She smiles at him and he kisses her forehead lightly.

They dance until the music fades and continue to sway slightly even when it is completely silent. There's something magical about this, he thinks, as she leans against him and rests her head above his heart. Because the real magic isn't spells and enchantments. It isn't music or food either. It's this. He tightens his arms around her and time seems to stand still.

When a clock strikes midnight somewhere and a faint roar of indistinguishable words rises from the general direction of the ballroom, Grace pulls away slightly and looks at him. "Happy Birthday Lorcan," she says softly.

"Happy New Year, Gracie," he replies with a smile and she laughs lightly.

Her laugh fades into a brilliant smile and for a moment they stand on the rooftop in silence once again. Then, she raises herself onto her tiptoes and kisses him softly. It's just a faint brush of her lips against his, but it's more than enough for his mind to go entirely blank. "Happy New Year," she whispers. Her breath ghosts over his lips and he smiles and leans in just slightly. He doesn't kiss her, not quite, but she closes the distance. This kiss lasts longer, it's still tender, still sweet, still a little shy, but there's a kind of certainty in it that wasn't there before.

When they break apart both of them are smiling widely and Lorcan lifts his hand to brush a strand of hair out of her face. "Gracie?"

"Yeah?" she looks up at him.

"Will you go out with me?" He tells himself that he has no reason to be nervous, but he can't stop himself from biting his lip.

Grace smiles and uses her thumb to gently tug his lip out from between his teeth. "I'd love to."

"Great." Lorcan thinks that if it could his smile would grow until it is wrapped around his head. "In that case I'll come up with something."

She laughs and shakes her head at him. "I…" she starts to say. "I brought something. Hang on." She extracts herself from his embrace and reluctantly he lets her. She heads for the window they climbed out of and picks up the small bag she was carrying earlier, before she returns to his side.

"What's that?" he stands behind her and wraps his arms around her waist.

"How about you have a look?" she leans against him.

"How about you do and I'll keep holding you?" She laughs, but takes a small box out of the bag and opens it.

"One chocolate cupcake with raspberry filling and raspberry chocolate buttercream," she says softly, holding it up.

Lorcan just stares silently for a little while. "You're amazing," he says finally. And then he tightens his grip on her waist and spins them around in a circle until he's dizzy. She's laughing in his arms and it feels so good to hold her close and know he's allowed.

"You," she gasps between bouts of laughter. "You ruined the cupcake."

"Oh," he looks at it. She's right. It did look a whole lot better before he started spinning them around. "Sorry?"

"I have 17 more, don't worry. This one was the prettiest though…" She studies the cupcake in a slightly regretful way and then puts it back in the box and closes the lid. "You're probably being missed," she adds softly. "There must be a whole lot of people downstairs who want to wish you a Happy Birthday." She takes a step forward.

"Who cares about them?" Lorcan grabs her hand and pulls her back to him. His other hand cups her cheek and he leans in for a kiss. He hears the box drop to the floor and for a moment he thinks that the cupcake is really ruined now, but then he's kissing her or she's kissing him and all other thoughts go out the window.

IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I know I said this story would be longer and I've mentioned the January chapters, but February is still giving me trouble and since it's been that way for at least four months now, maybe even longer, I somehow doubt it's about to stop. If it does, I will continue to write this story. This is not the ending I intended originally, but then the story changed while I was writing it and progressed quite differently in places.

For now, though, this story will end here, because I like to think this is a good ending point. I will mark it as complete. If I ever bring it to the intended ending, I will post the new chapters, but only if it is entirely finished.

I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. A huge thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed or favorited, it meant the world to me.

All my love,

Liz