It was the first day in weeks that the sun was already up when he woke. He glanced at the clock on the bedside table: it was ten to nine. There was something about the house, something about the atmosphere, that allowed his anxious morning behavior to disappear. Beside him his wife did not stir. Far be it from normal for her to be up before ten. He nudged her lightly and she let out a low groan before rolling over and putting her face into the pillow beside him.

"Ginevra, it's almost nine, my darling. You mumbled about having to do something in the morning before bed last night," Draco informed her, burying his hand in her thick waves of hair.

She murmured a response and remained stationary. After a moment she reached up and whacked his arm away from her.

"I can't tell what you're saying, love," he told her, pulling at a piece of her hair that was on his pillow. "Maybe you could pick up your head and say it again." He was surprised to see her lift her head.

"Fuck off," she said before putting her head back in its original place.

Ignoring her request, Draco settled back into the bed. Wrapping his arm around her, he sighed in contentment. He spent the night in the house maybe once a month since last December, but he had never found a better place to sleep. He was happy that he made the rash decision to visit his wife the night before. Remembering her answering the door in her tattered old shirt, knickers, and thigh highs, he couldn't help but think she knew he was stopping by. She had even opened a bottle of wine, claiming that she was celebrating something from work, but they both knew what red wine did to her.

They played the game of her asking him why he was there, and him coming up with some sad excuse. It continued to the bedroom and that's where they woke. No matter what he said to Blaise or Pansy, he liked nothing more than waking next to his wife after a night together.

"Is it really almost nine?" she groaned, flipping over and facing Draco. "I have to take Orion to Luna's boy's stupid birthday party."

"Do you think I could come?" he asked, propping himself up on his elbows as Ginny got out of the bed.

"I don't think you'd want to go, Draco. You know the parents at the daycare are mostly Muggles. I don't think you would have much to talk about," she admitted, opening the closet and pulling a fresh towel from the top shelf. She turned to face him, raising an eyebrow at his smirk.

"You're beautiful," he told her, sitting up completely. "And you know I'm fine with talking to Muggles. If they're the parents of my son's friends, then I think I should get to know them," he reasoned, watching Ginny walk around the room completely naked. "Do they know anything about me?"

She opened and closed a few drawers before finding what she was looking for. Throwing a light blue sundress onto the bed, she walked to the bathroom. "Luna and Neville do, of course. A few of the others do, too. I think it's a bad idea for you to come."

"I'm his father and I would like to accompany him to this gathering!" Draco demanded, pursing his lips after finishing.

Ginny mulled it over in her head for a few moments before sighing. "I'll think about it—"

"Think about it? It's in two hours," Draco cut in, confused about what his wife was thinking.

"I'm going to take a shower. Can you wake 'Rion up and make him some breakfast? I'm sure he'll be happy to see you." She turned and entered the bathroom without waiting for a response from him.

Draco sat in the bed for another minute, remembering how calm it was before he woke her up. Finally, he stood up and pulled on his pants before walking to Orion's bedroom. He pushed the door open and watched the blond five-year-old sleep. He was getting big. Sometimes it was shocking how fast children grew. It was also quite shocking how clean his room was. Draco didn't remember Ginny being the type to keep things clean. She must have made an effort since he was gone.

Draco kneeled down next to his son's bed. It was worrying him how his hair was beginning to become more of a strawberry blond. That would not do. "Ri," Draco whispered, rocking the boy in his bed.

Slowly he opened his eyes, waking calmly unlike his mother. "Dad?" he asked, surprised yet still tired. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you this morning. Mum said I might be able to come with you to your friend's birthday party," Draco told him.

"Really?" he asked, his excitement waking him more. He sat up in bed and reached for Draco, wrapping his arms around Draco's neck for a moment. Orion leaned back in bed after a second and raised his eyebrow at Draco's lack of clothing. "If you come to the party you have to wear something else."

"Okay, I'll put on something nice just for you," Draco promised.

"I hope Mum says you can come!"

Draco smiled at his big brown eyes; he was obviously happy to spend time with his father. He wished Ginny was that excited to see Draco. "Let's go get some breakfast," he said before picking Orion up and hauling him over his shoulder. His son giggled wildly as they hopped down the steps.

"Can we have pancakes?" Orion requested once he was sat down in his chair at the table.

"I'll see what I can do," Draco answered, walking into the connected kitchen. Only a minute after he entered the kitchen the owl came in with the post, scaring him more than he would like to admit. "Archimedes!" The bird carried the mail to Orion, snubbing Draco, not even letting him get close enough to pet him. "Fine," Draco spat. "Be that way."

"I got the mail, Dad," Orion informed Draco, holding up the stack of envelopes. "Look, this says my name on it." He pulled out the bright green envelope and began to open it.

Draco supervised his destruction of the mail, smiling as piece of green paper fell to the floor. "Ah, it's from Uncle Ron," Draco told him. The letter held pictures from his recent trip to the United States Quidditch Cup.

"Look, Dad, I'm going to play Quidditch, too," Orion boasted, pointing at a keeper for the New York City team.

"You'll be great," Draco encouraged, digging through the rest of the mail. "Ugh, Ginny," he whispered, pulling out a final notice bill. He opened it and pinched the bridge of his nose. Finding a new envelope, Draco put all of her bills inside and sealed it. "Archimedes, quit this and come over here. I need you to deliver something for me."

The bird hooted and stayed in its place. After Draco called his name a few more times, Archimedes finally flew over to him and held out his leg.

"Take this to my accountant, I know you've gone to him before. His name is Jeremy Sanders and he works in my building on the seventh floor. Thank you," Draco added, watching the beautiful bird take off. He held his head for a moment, wondering how Ginny let things get that far without calling him first.

"Dad, I'm hungry," Orion said, digging through Ron's photos still.

"Sorry, I'll get started on those pancakes now."

It seemed the universe would not let him make breakfast, for as soon as Draco took out the flour the doorbell rang.

"Mum!" Orion yelled, unnecessarily.

"I can get it, 'Rion," Draco said, crossing the room to the front door. He peaked through the peephole and let his forehead hit the door with a thud. Pausing to gather himself for a second, he opened the door. "Potter, welcome to my home." No matter what he said, Draco did not make any movement to allow Harry to enter the house.

"Draco, lovely to see you, and in such few clothes. How wonderful," Harry smiled sarcastically. Harry was dressed in a button down shirt and nice trousers, something Draco thought was quite formal for a Saturday morning.

"What do you need?" Draco asked him, not bothering to hide any hatred in his voice.

"Molly asked me to drop off this basket for Ginny," he answered, holding up a wicker basket filled with sweets. "It's for the party."

Draco reached forward to take it but Harry pulled it away. "Stop fucking around."

"I'd like to come in," Harry told him, a sly smile on his face.

"That's not happening. Give me the basket or leave," Draco commanded. He stiffened as Harry sized him up, knowing that Harry some how thought himself better than Draco. If he had his way, Draco would have set up wards that would keep the scarred clown from ever setting foot on his property.

"You know, Malfoy, I believe this is Ginny's house. I think she would want me to come in," Harry informed Draco, pushing the door out of his hand.

Draco let him in, only to keep himself from punching him. "Just put it down somewhere and go. Ginny's in the shower."

"Uncle Harry!" Orion cried, running from the table to the new visitor. "What are you doing here? Are you coming to the party, too?"

Harry reached down and wrapped his arms around the young boy. "I was thinking about it. Did you get Ron's pictures of the Quidditch games?"

"Yeah!" Orion yelled, pulling Harry by his hand to the kitchen table he had been sitting at earlier. "I'm going to be a keeper when I play."

"I can teach you a few moves when you're old enough to ride a broom," Harry offered, ruffling the kid's blond locks.

Draco watched the scene with extreme discomfort. He didn't know what to do, so he went to his son's side. "I think I'll be able to teach him. I was just as good as you back in school, Harry." Draco forced himself to call the man by his given name, but felt bile rise in his throat once the word came out of his mouth.

"Don't be silly, Draco. By then Ginny won't let you anywhere near her kid. I'm sure you'll mess up one way or another and she'll be forced to remember who you really are," Harry explained, his voice sounding friendly so Orion would not be suspicious.

Draco didn't respond, knowing there was no good way to answer Harry's attack. If he stayed quiet, maybe he wouldn't be blamed for the conflict later when Ginny heard about it. The family gossiped like no other and somehow Draco was normally at fault for things he didn't start.

"Don't you think you should wear a long-sleeved shirt?" Harry questioned, interrupting Draco's thoughts.

Draco furrowed his brow, genuinely confused about why Harry would ask such a question. "Why?"

"To cover that thing up," Harry answered, pointing at Draco's slightly faded Dark Mark. "Bit disgusting to flaunt it about if you ask me."

Draco trembled slightly. Besides his relationship with Ginny, his Dark Mark was his only insecurity. It was something from his past that he could not cover up. He was forced to live with his decision forever. He opened his mouth to talk when he heard someone else chime in.

"No, Uncle Harry," Orion held out his hand at the older man. "It's okay, it's Daddy's mistake," Orion explained, covering the mark with his small hand. "But we forgive him." The boy looked up at his dad with wide eyes, waiting for a response.

Draco tried his hardest to not allow the burning behind his eyes to turn into anything more than that. He smiled down at the little blond boy and then closed his eyes. He remembered Orion asking about the mark when he was younger a couple of times. Draco would tell him it was his mistake and Ginny would always add that he was forgiven. To hear his own son stick up for him, in a way no one besides Ginny ever had, struck him.

"It's Mummy's mistake, too," Harry hissed.

"What's Mummy's mistake?" Ginny asked, coming down the last of the stairs. She looked beautiful with her hair braided over one shoulder. It was still wet, and there were big spots on the top of her knee length blue sundress because of it.

Harry tried to hide a look of surprise on his face as the woman came into view, but it was clear she had scared him. "Oh, nothing," he lied. He moved over to the basket he came with. "Your mum gave this to me to deliver," he explained his presence.

"Ah," Ginny nodded, inspecting the baked goods. "Thank you," she smiled up at Harry. She turned to Draco after a moment. "Did you make breakfast?"

"No, I was just about to when Harry came," Draco told her, crossing the room to reenter the kitchen. "I was going to make pancakes."

"Good, I'm starving," Ginny said, taking a seat next to Orion. "Good morning 'Rion, how are you?"

"Morning, Mum. Are Uncle Harry and Daddy coming to the party?" the boy asked giving his mum the sweetest smile he could muster.

Draco watched Ginny's eyes lock on the wall as she tried to figure out what to do. "Orion, don't pester your mother. Let's eat breakfast and then talk," Draco called into the room, hoping Ginny would reward him for defusing the situation.

"Okay," Orion mumbled to himself, upset with the response he was given. "Can Harry at least stay for breakfast?"

One of the many downsides to Draco not being able to spend as much time with his son was Harry Potter becoming such a big role in his life. If Draco still spent every night in the house, he was sure Orion would already be on his way to hating Harry. "He's probably too busy, Ri. He has autographs to sign. You have to remember that ten years ago, Harry was the most famous seventeen year old in Britain."

"Draco!" Ginny scolded him. "Of course Harry can stay if he wants to."

"I'd love to," Harry said, turning away from Draco and beginning his walk to the kitchen table. "I would rather be the most famous seventeen year old than the most infamous."

"Oh, how right you are," Draco laughed sarcastically. "But who ended up with the girl?" He instantly regretted it after it came out of his mouth. He stared down at the bowl of batter he was mixing. The lack of a response made Draco even angrier. Somehow Harry was extremely good at curbing his snarky comments in front of Ginny. He did always play the victim well.

"I'm going to see if he needs any help," Ginny told the table, before entering the kitchen. "What are you doing?" she whispered to him harshly, leaning against the wall next to him.

"Making pancakes, I thought that's what you wanted," Draco answered, not wanting to truly address the situation.

"Can you just try to be nice to Harry?" Ginny begged, playing idly with the necklace she wore.

"You don't know what he says to me when you're not around. Who knows what he says to Orion. He's probably trying to turn him against me," Draco grumbled quietly, making a test pancake and setting it aside for himself.

"No one could make Orion hate you no matter how hard they tried. He idolizes you. Last week I found him digging through your side of the closet and trying to put on a pair of your trousers," Ginny told him, moving to stand closer to him.

Draco smiled to himself for a moment before thinking of Harry once more. "He mentioned my mark, Gin." His hands shook slightly as he poured small mounds of batter onto the pan.

"Orion did?" she asked, surprised.

"Potter," Draco breathed, flipping the four pancakes he had cooking.

"D," Ginny cooed softly, standing behind him. She took a moment before stepping forward and wrapping her arms around him. She placed her head against his bare back and sighed. "I wish I could take the mark from you and wear it instead."

"That's ridiculous, it's my mistake," he answered, scooping the pancakes onto a plate. He rested his free arm over hers.

"But you're forgiven," she reminded him, pressing a kiss against his back. She paused, probably taking in the moment, before sighing and stepping away from him. "If you really want to come to the party today, you can," she offered with a shrug.

"I don't want to come if Potter's going," Draco told her bluntly. If he had to spend even another second with the self-important jackass, he would snap. "I don't know what your thing with him is, but I don't want to be a part of it."

Ginny laughed at his ridiculousness, probably thinking he was joking on some level. "My 'thing' with him?" she asked with air-quotes, a smile playing on her lips.

Draco turned to show her how serious he was for a moment, and then turned back to his task. "Yes, your thing. Whatever you two are doing. Fucking," Draco supplied with a shake of his head. He scooped the last pancake onto a plate before looking at his wife.

Her face was pale with anger, her lips a thin line. "You idiot," she whispered finally. Her lip quivered for a moment before her hardened features returned. "You… you bloody bastard," she spat, her eyes on the floor.

Draco hated seeing her like that. He hated when she was about to cry, when she was so angry with him that she could cry. Apologise, he told himself, but he couldn't. All he could ever do in these situations was egg her on, probably because he was an idiot and a bloody bastard. "Don't pretend you aren't shagging him. Lying about it is just disrespectful to me. Own up to the fucking, Gin," Draco snapped, angrier with himself than her.

She yanked the plate of pancakes from him and met his eyes. Her brown ones were glossy and so filled with tears it was amazing that none had fallen yet. Picking up the pile of plates for the table, Ginny turned away from him to leave. She paused before the door and looked over her shoulder. "I hate you," she whispered, her voice shaking.

"Good."