"Mmm. It smells fantastic."

"So fantastic."

In a kitchen filled with warm colors that sprung to life and wrapped around its guests with comfort and hospitality, old friends gathered around a large, wooden table to have breakfast. The enchanted ceiling above their heads cast the morning sun on them (to make up for the real grey and rainy British weather). 

"You out did yourself."

 "Outdid yourself incredibly."

With a tentative smile, Hermione placed a pitcher of fresh pumpkin juice on the table, moving the vase with bright sunflowers out of the way to allow her guests more room to settle themselves. She said nothing as she did this. 

"You have to show me how to make these muffins."

"Yes. Pass the secret, please, 'Mione. They're delicious."

Hermione cast the couple a look, biting her lip as she tucked herself in the seat beside her husband. Both Draco and Hermione shared a glance that expressed their sentiment on the tension as they heard clatter of silverware. 

 "I'm an idiot."

"I'm a huge idiot—Oi! Wait." Stopping himself before he could shove a forkful of eggs into his mouth, Blaise glared at Cho as laughs and annoyed grunts broke out at his expense. "Are you really going to start arguing with me so bloody early in the morning, Cho?"

"Why not?" Cho demanded with a firm parenting gaze on her face that became permanent over the years. "You've been annoying me endlessly for almost two decades, what's one morning that I do that to you?" 

Being one of the many who grew tired of the Zabinis' antics, Pansy Weasley was never shy to express her irritation.  "Oh, give it up, Cho. It's been two weeks since the drunken incident. Even I'm over it. You now officially hold a grudge longer than a Slytherin."

"You didn't get over it!" Ron shouted as he resentfully tore into his bacon. "She didn't feed me for days," he told his audience with a shameful mumble. "I had to beg Angelina to toss me their leftovers and endure George's teasing about losing my manly-bits."

Pansy tossed her hair over her shoulder, smirking. "You should have learned your lesson from your last bender, Ronald. In fact, you all should have."

"Exactly," Ginny was quick to agree with her sister-in-law. "Think about the example you are setting for your kids. What do you think they're learning from watching their fathers come home piss drunk?"

"That Weasley is easily whipped, Zabini is still a spineless git, and Potter just nods his head and takes it like a man?" offered Draco with his trademark smirk. "Or are you still grounded, Potter?"

"Piss off, Malfoy. You're lucky Hermione's less vicious than what we've got at home," retorted Harry with a frown, remembering the tickets to Puddlemere United's Quidditch match of the season that he had to return (oh, the embarrassment he felt when he told Oliver Wood exactly why he could not make it). "Couldn't even go to a bloody match...."

Ginny raised her eyebrow at her husband's mumble. "What was that, love?"

"Nothing," Harry was quick to respond with a smile. 

Taking it upon herself to steer the conversation away from the idiotic things their husbands got themselves into, Cho asked Hermione, "Any word on how the kids are settling in?"

"Well, Ariana picked up her habit of writing to us once a week already," Hermione began, noticing how her husband's silver eyes glimmered when his offspring were mentioned. "She said McGonagall sends her regards to all of us. As for Scorpius, well, you know how he is. He prefers not to go into detail about his doings at school. Not that I don't expect a letter from the Headmistress telling me about his rule-breaking."

Ginny laughed at the irony of Hermione having a trouble-making son. "What does Ana say about her brother?"

Hermione sighed. "She still wants to murder Scorpius."

"See, I don't get that," Blaise interrupted, raising his fork as the people around him rolled their eyes. "You being a peacemaker and such, how is it your kids ended up hating each other? With Draco as father it's pretty much expected, mind you, but it's you. Shouldn't they be hugging each other and planning a revolt for house-elf rights?"

Ron snickered with a mouth full of his breakfast. "Or starting a study group that can takeover the entire castle?"

"Sticking their frizzy heads together to improve Hogwarts?" Pansy added with a sneer. 

Draco glared at his guests. "My children do not have frizzy hair."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at Draco (yeah, like that was important) before looking back at the others. "It's just sibling rivalry. We all know how much Scorpius loves Ariana. It's like Ron and Gin's relationship. They argue and disagree constantly, but they care for one another."

"I was the nice one," Ginny informed loudly. "I never did one sodding bad thing to this git. He was the one always pushing me away with his, 'No, Ginny! Harry's my best friend!' or 'No, Ginny! Harry loves me more!'"

"I never said that!"

"Which is so rude of him because I let him play tea-party with me and my dolls when we were kids," finished Ginny.  

Ron took a chunk out of his muffin before deciding to throw it at Ginny. However, he realized what waste that would be, so he stuffed the rest of it into his mouth and settled on flipping his sister off.

"The only sane ones are our Angelo and Savanna," said Blaise with a perfectly smooth voice. His green eyes searched for his wife's brown, both looking affectionately at each other. "Salazar knows they get on just fine. In fact, the other day Savanna saved Angelo from a savage group of pixies."

Draco scoffed at his best friend. "She only saved him because she took his wand and left him helpless as he cried. Sort of like you when you watch films."

"I don't cry during films!" shouted Blaise. "I cry during one film—it's different! And you can't tell me Titanic doesn't pull on your heartstrings because you made Hermione buy it for you!"

 "—Exquisite cooking, 'Mione."

 "—Brilliant as always."

 "—Really jealous."

Laughing at the sudden compliments Ginny, Pansy, and Cho threw at her, Hermione placed her hand over Draco's, dipping her fingers into the underside of his palm as a mean to calm him down. 

"How's work coming along, Harry?" she asked. "Draco tells me the Aurors are thrilled you finally took over as Head."

"You should've seen Kingsley, 'Mione. He practically wet himself," commented Ron with a smirk tugging at his chewing mouth. "Can't blame him, can we? He's got Harry and me at the front. The country has never been more safe, so he can now settle down, take a holiday, and play with his cats."

Pansy resisted the urge to roll her eyes and groan, but instead (because she's learned how to be a proper, supporting wife) she smiled wide at her husband. "Of course, love. I haven't felt this safe since Potter killed the Dark Lord and I found my bedroom rid of Death Eaters taking it as a hotel."

"What are you on about?" snapped Blaise. "I killed that spider in your living room two days ago. I saved both your arses! Now that's safe, Mrs. and Mister Weasley."

Harry cleared his throat, quick on trying to save them all from another feud. "It's been brilliant, Hermione. Most of our cases have been tamed so far. Nothing one Auror per case can't handle."

Ron rose a brow. "What about yesterday night when—?"

The echo of a door opening distracted the adults from whatever Ron was going to say (saving him from Draco throwing a knife in his direction).

"Draco! Hermione!"

"Don't yell, you troll."

"Why the bloody hell not?" Footsteps then proceeded the voices. "Draco, I got your mail. Took it from the owl trying to peck his way in here. I got that letter I've been trying to hide from Mum—" Stopping right on cue, Teddy Lupin appeared at the entrance of the dinning room. He was startled to see Ginny Potter frowning back at him. "Bullocks."

Appearing behind him, a baby in her arms, Victoire Weasley said, "This is exactly why we use our inside voices, Ted. Good morning, everyone," she added when she flashed the adults a beautiful smile.

"Letter?" Ginny raised a brow. "What letter?"

"Did I say letter?" Teddy chuckled in puffs, looking at his girlfriend for help. It never came. "No, what I meant was...was erm..."

Demi let out a giggle, kicking her chubby legs when Pansy tickled her side from her seat. 

"Yes, right," Teddy scooped the toddler out from Victoire's arms, aiming a glare at her before hugging the baby tightly. "What I meant was Demetria behaved herself spectacularly this morning." He gave her a quick bounce, making her giggle again. The sound made his mother's brown eyes soften. "We took her for her usual early stroll at the park and she only attacked one muggle kid. That's a huge improvement."

Cho asked curiously, "How's the improvement?"

"Because in her defense that little boy was rather obnoxious. If I was two years old, I would've given that kid a go myself," Teddy said. "So, really, Merlin bless the baby-world that Hermione and Draco forgot to use a contraceptive spell and ended up having Demi to throw sand at all bully-babies. That sandbox is well protected because of her, so I say, all hail our favorite little mistake!"

Victoire smacked her boyfriend on the back of his head. "Don't say that! Demi is not a mistake."

"Of course not," Draco said, a small smirk over his lips when Hermione glared at Teddy. "She was a slip. A very beautiful, life-changing, happiness-enhancing slip."

"Nice save," Hermione scoffed when her frown was briefly directed at him. "Well, as long as my daughter had her hour of distraction, I won't curse you back to when you were still cute and adorable to have around, Ted."

Teddy smiled apologetically as he said, "You love me, Aunt 'Mione." He walked over to her, placing her child on her lap before kissing her on the cheek. "Besides, I do love spending time with Demi. It gives Vic and me practice for the future, you know?"

At his comment, two loud snorts filled the air. Ginny and Victoire looked at him like he just said he saw the Dark Lord rise from the dead wearing a tutu, dancing his way down the street singing a cheerful tune. 

Teddy rolled his eyes at them before adding, "Anyway, you've got a letter from the Ministry. There's a meeting you lot are supposed to be at in twenty minutes."

"What meeting?" Draco demanded, ripping the envelope from Teddy's outstretched hand. "Did you know about this, Potter?"

Harry furrowed his brows, thinking back. "Kingsley mentioned something, but he never gave an exact date and time. He only said he'd have one of the trainees send out memos a week before."

"Why are they coming in just now, then?" Draco retorted.

Teddy raised a finger in the air, swallowing a chunk of muffin he had stolen from his mother's plate. "I may have...sort of, none intentionally, forgotten to send the memos out. Sorry, Dad."

"Bloody hell," Ron grunted, tossing his fork as he stood. "We better go now before the Minister decides to make an example out of me for coming in late. Again."

"Said I was sorry, Ron!" Teddy called out. Ron flipped him the finger. "Well, what? I forgot. My bad. Vic came in to bring me lunch that day and she was wearing the shortest—"

"Finish that sentence, boy. I dare you," Ginny hissed.

As Teddy paled, avoiding Ginny's eyes, Harry also stood from his seat. "All right, we better be off. Come on, Ted. I'm going to have to find you some other task to do when you aren't training seeing as sending post doesn't meet your focus level."

"And no more visits from you, either, Vic," Ron added with a frown at his niece. "Or I'll be sending Bill a memo about your little conjugal visits."

Victoire looked offended. "I am an adult, Uncle Ron. As such, I am entitled to do what I please. Or who I please."

"No. No." Ron smacked his hands over his ears, shaking his head. "If I can't hear you it doesn't make it real."

Draco glared at Weasley before leaning down to his wife and daughter. "I'll be home later. By the time I come back promise me something, Hermione?"

"Hmm?" Hermione smiled tenderly when Demi moved her tiny palm to Draco's face, patting his cheek adoringly before letting out a giggle. She watched as Draco gently grabbed her arm, placing her palm to his mouth, pressing little kisses to her knuckles before pretending to bite her. Demi's giggles grew louder, happier. 

Draco then leaned further in, looking his wife in her beautiful, warm eyes for a fleeting second before pressing a loving kiss on her pink mouth.

"Promise me we'll have a normal, quiet family dinner," he whispered over her lips after Demi's hands slapped them both on one cheek, signaling that they needed to separate so she could breathe. "Just us."

"Where are you going, Blaise?" Cho's voice rang loudly, distracting Hermione. "You don't belong at the Ministry."

Blaise let his hands slip from the collar of his shirt, forgetting that he was trying to fix it hurriedly before apparating along with Draco, Harry, and Ron. "But I want to go."

"You can't," Cho sighed, rubbing her temples as if she had this conversation with him before. 

"Why not?" he demanded.

"You don't work at the Ministry, darling." Cho looked at her husband, clutching on to her sanity as he pouted. "Besides, even if you're thinking about crashing another Auror meeting, you haven't the time. You have an important business Floo Call at Zabini Corporations, remember?"

"But I want to be a part of the action, Cho!"

"You're the bloody owner of the corporation, Zabini," Pansy hissed, cutting in to help her friend after she pressed a kiss goodbye on Ron's cheek. "Do your damn job."

Hermione cleared her throat, glancing back at Draco with a brighter smile. 

"Tell me you didn't," Draco grunted. "Tell me you didn't invite the bloody Zabinis over."

"Savanna and Ana's birthdays are coming up and Cho wanted to discuss potentially joining the celebration for the girls," his wife informed calmly. "You know Ana hates any form of party, but perhaps if it is conjoined with Savanna, then she'll agree to her. Oh, please, Draco. Don't you want your daughter to have a lovely birthday memory?" 

Although Hermione asked, Draco knew the unavoidable disaster was already set. In the fifteen years of their marriage, not once had she asked permission for anything, and he did not think it would begin happening now. With a frown, he said, "I warn you, though; if Blaise starts blubbering over his daughter growing up so fast, I will curse both of them back to their home and we are moving to Alaska."

Hermione smirked triumphantly. "See you for dinner, then, love."

"You have ruined me," Draco grumbled to his wife before pressing a kiss on Demi's forehead. "Potter, Weasley, come on. We'll barely have enough time to get a good seat." 

Cho grabbed the sleeve of Blaise's button-up before he could follow pursuit. "Sit," she told him.

A loud stomp on the Malfoys' dinning room was the last thing Draco heard before he went through the Floo.

X

"This is it, Aurors," Kingsley Shacklebolt's deep baritone vibrated off the crystal walls of the meeting room. "We will begin the monthly reports with other Ministries and Governments around the globe."

In all of his Head Auror splendor, Harry rose from his chair to look at the men and women giving him their undivided attention. "Take into consideration, however, that the more information we provide and the stronger ties we make with them, we can enhance the opportunities of closing some of our own cases without any extradition nonsense. It is the only way we can finally put the worst of our criminals behind the bars of Azkaban."

"Johnson," Kingsley called a dark-haired man, "you are specifically assigned to formalize a comradeship with the Head Auror in Ireland. He is the only one that can give you information on the Marie Fitzpatrick case. He has all the leads you need on that woman, even her history that can give you insight on her remaining ties in her country and her psychological treatments there."

Crossing his arms over his chest, Harry added, "He should not be too hard to persuade, Johnson. He was married to her, after all."

Draco leered as he leaned against his leather chair. "It's as good as ours, then. There's nothing like a bitter, terrified ex-husband to bring down his lunatic, torturing, men-murdering wife."

Ron chuckled along with the other Aurors. "Poor bastard is probably shaking in his knickers knowing Fitzpatrick is on her way to get him after she grew tired of the bloodshed she left us here to clean up. The bloke is Head Auror, but, honestly, what's not to fancy about having on of Harry Potter's Aurors protect his skin—even if it is Johnson."

Johnson flipped Ron off before looking back at Harry and the Minister. "You got it, bosses. I'm on it."

"As for the rest of you," said Harry, "you all know your targets. I know it might be difficult for some of you, but try to use some charm to warm their hearts up so we can get this done. Questions?" When there were none, he finished with, "Then meeting adjourned."

As the Aurors stood from their chairs, heading out of the glass office, Johnson lingered behind to smirk darkly at Ron. "Heard you're meeting with the Prime Minister, Weasley. Make sure not to scare the poor man again. You do know how hard it was to persuade him to not to cut ties with us after your last encounter?"

"It was one bloody dragon!" Ron hissed. "He needs to get over it and stop pretending like that heart-attack was major. I got him to the damn hospital, didn't I?"

"Ron," Kingsley called, his voice deeper than before as it halted him from smashing Johnson's head against the wall before he made his way out. "Sit down. I've got some things to discuss with you, Draco and Harry."

Ron scowled, doing as he was instructed. "What's this about?"

"Yeah," called another voice, "what's this about?"

  "Lupin," the Minister narrowed his eyes at the teal-haired trainee who snuck in, "out. Now. Don't you have mail to send out?"

Teddy shrugged. "Dad removed me from my post."

"Be my secretary for a few minutes, will you, Ted?" Harry sighed at his son. "Hold any Floo Calls and appointments, stack my mail, and feed the owl."

"But, Dad—!" Harry's eyes hardened behind his glasses, leaving Teddy to grumble. "Fine. I'll feed your bloody owl."

Harry rubbed his temples, feeling a headache surface. "Now I truly believe he's related to you, Malfoy."

Draco smirked, appreciating the fight it was for Harry to raise Teddy. "What can I say? We are charming people." His spun a little on his chair, eyes meeting Teddy's grey ones outside the glass walls. They grinned at each other as Teddy lowered himself behind the Head Auror's desk. 

Ron yawned, bringing back the attention to the private meeting at hand. 

Kinsgley narrowed his dark gaze at him, but went straight into it. "There's a more specific reason as to why all the representatives of the Wizardying Communities are coming together. Of course, to the public it has to appear as magical cooperation and peace in our times, but really there is so much at stake here."

Harry caught the Minister's grave expression. 

"We don't know what or who we are looking for at the current moment, but a string of attacks have taken place globally. All the victims so far have been on both important members of society and normal civilians, but we have found a connection with a majority so far."

"Which is?" Draco demanded, forgetting all about looking at Teddy stuffing Harry's owl with crackers. 

"These are cleverly, calculated murders," Kingsley said. "All on people who had a particular incline of being taught Defense Against the Dark Arts by you, Harry." He conjured up hidden files from the briefcase he had laying over the large table, opening the first one up and pointing a finger at it. "Zacharias Smith, it seems to be, fell down a flight of stairs in his home three days ago. An accident that cracked his skull open, but left traces of torture spells that went undetected by the muggle paramedics that found him."

Ron gaped at the pictures on the desk. "You don't think...?"

"What? A reunion of Death Eaters?" Harry cut his friend off, something more than anger flashing across his face. "No one is stupid enough to attempt that."

"Then what other explanation is there, Harry?" Ron asked loudly. "Muggles?"

Draco stood sharply from his seat, his features just as his actions. "Oh, I'm sure they gathered pitchforks and torches to come after us, Weasley. Think logically, if for once in your life," he hissed. "There's no possible way it is Death Eaters. Potter is right, they aren't stupid enough to mobilize. Their numbers are weak."

The Minister nodded in agreement with Draco. "This is much more than Death Eaters," he said, distracting the previous war heroes and the reformed Death Eater from their looming argument. "While the pattern seems to point to your former classmates, other, unconnected causalities have the same M.O."

Harry pulled the stack of files from the Minister. "We'll get right on this," he said, dismissing him with an authority that came more as the the Boy Who Lived, as someone scorned and in mourning once again. 

Kingsley said nothing as he marched out.

"We are not, by any means, letting the other Aurors know about this. Got it?" Harry said to his two Aurors. "This is kept between us for the time being."

"What if this gets bad? We have to tell Ginny and Hermione—"

"Absolutely fucking not," Draco snarled, slamming a fist on the table, startling Ron before he even finished his sentence. "Do as you bloody want with your respective others, but neither of you are to tell Hermione about this."

Ron glared back. "Malfoy, Hermione is implicated in this as much as the rest of us. It is a security precaution to inform her."

"Hermione is a civilian," Draco's voice was still thick with fury, but the underline of fear was not missed by the two men who had grown to know him over the years. "Our job is to protect and serve them, not to inform them about private Ministry affairs. I will protect my wife from anything, I can assure you, but I will not having you two messing with her head. I do not want her back here, trying to save the fucking world from another murderous nutcase."

"Malfoy—"

"No, Ron. Stop," Harry interrupted his brother-in-law. "Draco's got a point. I don't doubt for a second that Hermione and Ginny can take care of themselves just fine—hell, we all know they'd save our asses quicker than we could ourselves, but...I don't want Ginny involved in this, either. Not yet at least. If you want to tell Pansy, by all means do so, but you aren't to tell anyone else."

Ron did not know who to settle his scowl on when knocking on the office door cut through the thick silence.

"An employee is here to see you," Teddy grunted as he marched in, a note-pad and quill in hand. 

"Who?" Harry asked, settling on his chair once again, closing the files from his prying eyes.

"Not for you, Dad. For Draco." Teddy scratched something off his note-pad. "That's three sickles for handling your mail as well."

In that moment, a tall, curvy woman walked into the office. She had dark, inky tresses that fell down her shoulders, parted down that middle to expose a pale and kind face. She was dressed in classic, perfectly ironed robes, bright green eyes looking at the men before her as she smiled. 

When she zeroed in on Auror Malfoy, in a dulcet tone she said, "Good afternoon, Mister Malfoy. I'm Tanya Rowle. I'm your new secretary."

'What if this gets bad?' — Well, Mister Weasley, step aside and allow room for Draco Malfoy to evaluate the situation. It's about to get ugly.