Home is in Your Arms

Chapter 17

                Things were going great for Elizabeth and Draco except for the daily morning sickness that Elizabeth suffered. She didn’t know why they called it morning sickness because it pretty much hit her any time it felt like it. Usually it was at its worst at around four in the morning, waking her up and making her jump up and make a mad dash for the toilet. She tried not to disturb Draco but he would wake up with her and sit next to her holding her hair back from her face as she emptied the content of her stomach, pressing a cool wet cloth to her forehead.  It was at times like that when Elizabeth realized more than anything how lucky she was to have found him; he was the love of her life now. And the thought of having never ran into him that rainy night was very depressing.

                There were also certain foods that would trigger the sickness and she never knew when it would hit. She soon learned that she couldn’t stomach the smell of chicken or onion.  Fruit was her favorite and usually settled on her stomach fine, that and crackers or bread. After a little bit Elizabeth would feel fine, but she always seemed tired. And she would sleep late in the morning which was nothing like her.

                Elizabeth had finally found out what Draco actually did as far as work when he started conducting business over the phone in his room. He was a trader of wizarding stocks and he owned several properties, including some factories that produced wizard products. She had often wondered what he did for a living. She knew he had money he had inherited from his grandfather. Some mornings she would sit in his lap in the huge comfy arm chair as he drank his tea and read his paper. He also had his hands in muggle stocks and bonds and a few properties too.  Elizabeth would give him her opinions on some of his stock trading and buying and he was surprised at how successful she was at it. But he could tell she was getting bored and he knew it was hard on her not working. She had also decided to withdraw from school temporarily, which surprised Draco.

                They continued to work on Elizabeth’s magic skills until she was just as good as him with her spells and she was constantly reading the books on Magical History and everything else that he’d given her until she had read them all. Her academic abilities put Hermione Granger to shame. It really was too bad that she never got to attend Hogwarts because she would have been one of the greatest witches Hogwarts had ever seen, and probably would have belonged to Slytherin house. It filled him with pride to think about it. But he was glad she had grown up as a muggle because she never would have become the lovely and caring person she was if she’d belonged to the ambitious and arrogant Slytherin House. Draco knew that from his own experience. He wished his own parents had had the sense to get out from under the dark lord’s influence when he was little. Things might have different and he might not have been such a prat. But he had learned from his mistakes and it had changed him as a person for the better.

 It had all happened the night in the Astronomy Tower during his 6th year. The night a young death eater opened a vanishing cabinet letting other death eaters and his mad Aunt Bellatrix into Hogwarts. His job had been to kill Professor Dumbledore, but he had been unable to do it. Professor Snape had been the one to do it, and Draco had looked on in horror as his head master died, falling from the tower. But that wasn’t the end to his terror. Voldemort took up residence in his family home at Malfoy Manor and the horror was just beginning as many wizards and witches lost their lives. Elizabeth knew some of the horror he had went through when he had told her about his part as a death eater, but not the extent of it and he planned on keeping it that way.

Draco and Elizabeth were on one of their trips into the lovely wizard village of Hampshire where Elizabeth loved to visit and work on their spells. They had taken a break and were sitting under a gazebo in the park near a lovely little chapel when she surprised him, “Draco, I know I never got to attend Hogwarts, but do you think I could possibly get a job with the Ministry of Magic? I don’t mind an entry level position or even an internship, but I want to work where I belong. I am not a muggle and it’s time a made a place for myself in this world. I will admit that I will truly miss my acting with the theater and all the muggle arts and history.”

Draco pulled her into his lap, looking into her eyes, “You don’t have to give up your muggle world, in fact I don’t want you to, and it makes you who you are. If you truly want to try to get a job with the Ministry then it is worth a try. But I will warn you that they usually require that the person have a Wizard education.”

Elizabeth couldn’t help feeling bad about all that she had missed out on in this new world of hers because her parents chose to raise her as a muggle. Draco noticed the sad look on her face and he gently took her chin in his hand, making her look up at him, “Elizabeth, you can do anything you set your mind to. I know this. You have a brilliant muggle education and you are as good as me with your spells and magic. Yes, you still have some stuff to learn but I know you will. They would have to be crazy not to give you a shot.” He kissed her softly and Elizabeth snuggled up against him, having made up her mind to try for a job at the Ministry of Magic. She just hoped her pregnancy did not present a problem.

Draco’s wife Astoria was refusing to sign the divorce papers. She was making things extremely difficult for Draco and him seeing Scorpius. Too make matters worse, Elizabeth felt like she wasn’t helping by staying in Draco’s life right now because he could possibly lose any custody of his son due to her part in his life. Draco tried to assure her that it would not be a problem, but Elizabeth knew better. She had read the scathing headlines in the Daily Prophet about Draco Malfoy, his divorce, and his new mystery woman. No one in the magical world really knew her.

She had finally had enough of the papers slamming him, “Draco, I think it is time I moved back into my flat.” She had been staying with him for the past few weeks and January was done. She needed to give him the space and freedom he needed to deal with his divorce and try to get his son back.

“What are you saying?” he looked over at her as if she had lost it.

“I need to get back to my normal life. I can’t continue to take advantage of your hospitality forever. “

                “Woman, have you lost your mind,” he said a little angrily. ‘What in the world was she thinking?’ They had both exchanged vows of love and now she was expecting his baby; he knew it had to be his child. “This is not hospitality,” he said with a slight sneer on his lip, “This is me taking care of you because I love you. If I was already divorced I would be down on my knee asking you to spend forever with me.”

                “But I am not helping you in your divorce process, Draco. All I am doing is making it harder for you to get it completed and have Scorpius back where he belongs, with you,” she said in a loud pleading voice, hoping he understood that she was doing this for him; she didn’t want to leave his side.

                Draco calmed down a bit as he realized that she was willing to do this for him to have his son and not because she wanted to leave him, “Come here, Liza,” he pulled her into his arms, running his hands through her hair, “Everything is going to work out. My lawyers are already working out a deal with her and she will have to agree or she may never see Scorpius again. I am tired of playing games with her and if she wants to play dirty than that is how we will play it. But there is something I need to ask you. Do you want to work with me on finding us a new home together?”

Elizabeth’s face filled with delight and she threw her arms around Draco’s neck causing them both to fall back on the bed, “Really,” she beamed with pleasure, lying across his body, her face close to his, “I would absolutely love it,” she was really getting tired of being cooped up in the room at The Leaky Cauldron.

A look of desire came over Draco’s face as Elizabeth’s soft body was pressed into his and he leaned up and bit her lip gently, “Show me how much you love it,” he growled flipping her over onto her back and straddling her, causing her to laugh.

                Draco’s lips ran along her neck as he held her hands above her head, “I guess I will have to kiss some sense into you,” he murmured near her ear, blowing in it softly. It sent shivers through Elizabeth. He soon had all her clothes removed, having kissed almost every inch of her body until she was begging for him to take her. Draco slowly removed his own clothes and slowly lowered himself between Elizabeth’s legs, his mouth capturing hers in a deep and wild kiss. It only took a few strokes into Elizabeth and they both exploded together her hands tangled in his hair, crying out her pleasure in his mouth. He withdrew from her and rolled over, pulling her on top of him. Draco held her face in his hands gently, looking deep into her eyes. “No matter what,” he said roughly, passionately, “I never want to be separated from you, ever. Do you understand?” Elizabeth loved it when he got this way with her and it helped her realize how much she was loved. No one had ever shown her such passion and protectiveness. Elizabeth kissed him deeply and then settled her head on his chest, her arms around him and his around her as they lay on the bed, “I love you so much Draco,” she whispered against his neck softly.

“And I love you, sweetheart,” he rubbed her back softly, his fingertips running along her spine, “Don’t forget that.”

“As if I ever could or want to. I could spend forever here in your arms,” Elizabeth meant it to. It was so easy to let the rest of the world pass her by when she was in his arms. She could spend a lifetime in his arms. Wherever he was that was where Elizabeth wanted to be and it was home.