A/N: wow, I can't believe that I haven't updated this fic since 2014. I am so sorry to everyone reading, I know how annoying it is to have an author stop updating there fic, life has got in the way of writing bit over the last year and a half, but I'm hoping that I'm going to have some more time to write. I'll reply to reviews at the end of the chapter, but for now here's the next chapter of A Veela's Mate (sorry about bad spelling/ gramma, thought I was better off posting and editing later considering it's been so long).

Disclaimer: Harry Potter does not belong to me blah blah blah.

Lucius could hardly contain his excitement as him and Harry retired to his study. His mate was everything he had ever dreamed of; funny, intelligent, kind, and he seemed to be willing to accept Narcissa, something Lucius had been worrying about since he had first felt the pull. Narcissa had been his best friend for years, and had helped him contain his Veela urges and keep his sanity when he could not find his mate.

They settled into chairs by the roaring fire in the study, and Harry glanced around the room, pleasantly surprised at how warm and inviting it was. He could feel Lucius' eyes on him and turned to face the older man, smiling slightly. Since Harry had arrived at the manor, Lucius had looked like a different man, somehow freer, as if Harry's acceptance of him had changed him physically, which Harry realised was definitely a possibility.

Harry had always thought that Lucius' long hair was platinum blond, but now studying it in the fire light he realised that it looked softer, the flames highlighting the different coloured strands. In fact, seeming at ease in his private rooms, away from the pressure of the Malfoy family name, Lucius seemed softer in every aspect, his face had relaxed and looked less pointed, and his normally impeccable posture had become slightly more comfortable. He smiled, a slightly nervous, sheepish smile, and Harry realised that the elder Malfoy was the most beautiful man he had ever seen.

Harry shook himself, he had been staring for a while, and Lucius was starting to look concerned, and cleared his throat.

'I suppose we should talk about the details of the arrangement' he eventually said, and Lucius stiffened slightly.

'If you are not comfortable mating with me, Harry, then I will not push you to do so, I will not do anything to hurt you, and it would kill me quicker than not mating' Lucius said, looking worried.

Harry smiled at him, hoping to put his mind at ease, 'that's not what I meant at all Lucius, I was merely wondering when we need to be mated by, this is my first relationship and I don't want to rush things, but I also don't want to cause you any discomfort.'

Lucius hoped Harry hadn't noticed his sigh of relief but though that it was very likely that he had, 'well it depends on the circumstances, courtships can go on for over a year, but in our case I think a year from the first bond forming would be the maximum I could stand.'

Harry nodded, looking deep in though and then asked, 'would you be able to tell me a bit more about how the bonding works, I tried to find information on it in the library after Dumbledore first told me what was going on, but I really couldn't find much'.

'That's because Veelas see the bond as sacred and do not want too much information getting to the general wizarding population, we are quite a secretive race, we've had to be to survive and gain places of respect.' Lucius replied. 'I thought you may struggle to find information on the bonding process and our customs, so the books in your study are all written by Veela or there mates, they are passed down through Veela families.'

'Thank you, that was very thoughtful' Harry smiled at Lucius, happy that he was not annoyed or amused by his ignorance.

'But of course I'm very happy to tell you whatever you wish to know, I just thought you may prefer to have more than one way to learn these things. Before I begin, would you like a drink?' Lucius asked.

Once they were settled back in the plush armchairs, both nursing a glass of whiskey, which Harry had never had before, but was finding much more enjoyable that fire whiskey, Lucius began.

'A Veela mating has several specific steps; acceptance, courtship, engagement, bonding and mating. We have already completed the acceptance stage, where you have agreed to the mating and moved into the manor. The next stage, the courtship is my chance to prove to you that I can provide, financially and emotionally, and you are able to reject the courtship at any point.'

Lucius shuddered while he said this, 'although if you did I would probably die within a few days. The courtship will include me taking you on dates, presenting you to my family, and meeting yours, providing you with a comfortable home with meals and clothes and anything else you may need and giving you gifts. At the end of the courtship I will ask you to bond with me and if you accept we will move onto the engagement stage. Once you have accepted my proposal, it will become dangerous for you if you wish to reject the mating bond, as our magic will begin to bond in preparation for mating, and you could get ill, and in some cases you could lose your magic. This stage is mainly a continuation of the courtship stage, although obviously it is also used to plan the wedding.'

Harry smiled at the thought of a wedding, although he was well aware that a Potter- Malfoy wedding would be a complete circus, it also meant that Harry would finally get a family of his own, and there was always the cake to look forward to.

'The bonding will take place in front of our loved ones, and is very similar to a normal wizarding wedding, although the vows we take are much more ancient and binding, and so for the actual bonding wards will be placed around us. The bonding is unbreakable and if we do not mate within 24 hours, we would both die.' Lucius said with a shudder. 'The mating will be the first time we have sex, during which I will partially transform and mark you as mine. We will then be fully bonded' Lucius smiled at Harry, waiting for questions.

'And this can last up to a year?' Harry asked, Lucius nodded in response.

Harry fought back a yawn and cast a quick tempus charm, exchanging a shocked look with Lucius when they realised that it was quarter past one in the morning. Harry smiled and placed his empty glass down, saying 'I suppose I better get some sleep, I have classes tomorrow, and Narcissa wanted to go shopping after. Thank you for a lovely evening'

Lucius smiled back at Harry, but looked nervous about something. At Harry's prompting, he admitted that he had to tell him one more thing about the mating process.

Lucius looked worried as he explained, 'In order for the mating to be complete, we are not able to use any contraception, and because of the high levels of magic present, the majority of couples conceive during the first mating.'

A/N2:

SeraphimSera: thank you for reminding me that I really really needed to update this fic, I hope you enjoy the chapter.

AchillesTheGeek: I think Sirius will be included, because of Lucius' help in the DoM the battle would have been won much more easily, and I love Sirius, so I don't like killing him off haha.

To everyone else, I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to update, but I promise that this story will be being finished, so feel free to bully me until I update. Thank you all so much for reviewing.

For anyone reading My Soul, In Your Hands, I will be updating that ASAP, hopefully tonight so keep an eye out.

As always, thank you for reading and please drop me a review, they're all appreciated.