Chapter 5
When they each made it to the table they were pleasantly surprised to see Tom sitting next to an excited Draco while Bellatrix and her husband Rodolphus were in the midst of their own conversation. They all turned in their direction when they entered the dining room.
“Morning mama! Morning Daddy and Papa!” Draco smiled. The little blond was a ball of energy for whatever reason and the adults found it cute. His blond hair was unkempt and it only made him look younger. The trio smiled at their son.
“Good morning, Dragon.”
“Good morning, Dragon.”
“Good morning, love.”
They exchanged pleasantries with the rest of the occupants at the table. Once seated at the tabled an array of breakfast items showed up and refreshment glasses were refilled. Everyone served themselves and dug in. Conversation was lively and it was an all around pleasant affair.
Lucius turned to his son. “Draco have you started on your summer assignments at all yet?”
Draco, who had been whispering to his grandpa, looked up at his father. He shook his head in the negative. “ Not a lot. I finished my work for my charms and potions last night. I wanted to get some stuff done and then be able to relax a little bit.”
He said glancing at Severus at the mention of his potions assignments. Both of his fathers nodded.
“Better to get them out of the way now and leave more room to play later. Right, Dragon?”
He nodded to his grandpa, “Right.”
The parents watched the exchange before Tom turned to the group.
“What are your plans for the day?” He asked.
“I have some work to do for the Ministry and a couple of meetings, but after that I am free to relax a bit.” Draco smiled at that. That meant that his Papa would be able to spend time with him.
Don’t get him wrong, he loved both his mother and dad dearly and enjoyed spending time with each of them, but as of late Lucius had been up to his neck in paperwork and work in general for the ministry and it left little to no time for him to spend time with his family. As he got older he understood the demands his father had to meet, at least he tried to. But he would be lying if he said there had not been moments where he had been deeply disappointed when it was Severus and Narcissa telling him goodnight and tucking him in with his other parent nowhere in sight. He remembered once during the summer before his first year when his dad had promised that he would be there with him when he got his first wand. For most, if not all magic children, getting a wand was a big step in their life and was almost like a coming of age sort of thing. Bot Severus and Narcissa had been there, but Lucius had been called away on last minute business and couldn’t make it.
The boy had been absolutely devastated and even had to fight back tears as he watched his dad walk away in the other direction. No amount of soothing from Severus or Narcissa made him feel any better. And when he finally found his match he had tried to put on a happy face, but both adults could tell that it was a front and that the boy was heartbroken. They had taken him out for ice cream after and when they got home Draco had asked to be alone. That had caused one of the biggest fights between the parents who had rounded on Lucius the minute he got home.
“It’s just a wand,” he had said.
“Yes, your child’s wand. You know how important that moment is for people like us.” Narcissa argued. Lucius let out a tired sigh.
“We had then when we were his age and despite our home lives our parents were there for us and proud of us.”
“No one said I wasn’t proud of Draco.” Lucius met his husband’s ire with a scathing glare. Severus folded his arms over his chest as Narcissa put her hands on her hips, both of them looking down at the blond man. Severus scoffed.
“Not like we can tell.”
“Are you really going to sit here and tell me how I feel about my own son?” The aristocrat’s voice had taken on a dangerous tone to it, but neither of the two partners were affected by it.
“No one’s telling you anything Lucius except the fact that our son feels neglected by his dad.” said man turned his icy gaze to his wife.
“I do not neglect our child.” He countered. “I am doing everything I can so that he can have a comfortable life. I am working for all of us. Why can’t you see that?!” Lucius stood up from his desk chair and went to pour him a stiff drink.
“No one said you weren’t but you just like we do that money will never be an issue for Dragon. Between the Black family name and every other title we have our son will never have to worry about wealth. Hell even Draco knows that.” Narcissa sat down next to Severus and there was a tense moment of silence between the three. Severus ran his hand through his hair and let out a breath before asking
“Luce, what was one thing that we always had in common. One thing that we all longed for when we were younger?..”
“The one thing that we swore we would never deny our son.” Narcissa finished.
It was then that all the anger flowed out of the blond aristocrat and his head fell into his hands.
“Have I really been that terrible of a father that I have begun to neglect my own child?” He questions. His partners look at him with softened eyes, their anger too having vanished. Narcissa rose from her chair and walked behind the man’s desk. He pushed back and his wife took refuge on his lap.
“You aren’t a bad father, you could never be. But we all know that it takes more than material things to raise a child.”
Lucius let his head fall back with a tired sigh causing Severus to rise from his seat also to the back of the chair to gently massage his temples. “It just seems like there is constantly nonstop work to be done. And it’s not like I like having to stay so late at work. I hate it when I can’t be here to tuck him in at night, and truthfully it breaks my heart to think about what he may say when I am not around- how he will question my love.”
Narcissa laid her head on his shoulder and pressed a kiss to his neck and Severus went to running his fingers through his hair.
“What do I do?” Lucius questions. “What can I do?” His voice wavered and both of his lovers could see his eyes become glossy with unshed tears.
“Make it up to him.” Narcissa stated.
“Let him know that his papa still loves and cares for him. And above all else,” said the potions master.
“Apologize.” Narcissa finished.
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That conversation had stayed well in Lucius’s mind ever since and would always pop up whenever he had to leave for work. Since then he made it his mission to always be there for his child, especially at night. Although there were some instances where he couldn’t get out of work and come home, he made sure to floo home an hour or two before his son went to bed to talk to him about his day and to tell him goodnight. He had even arranged to be able to get some projects done at home and he always allowed himself to interact and play with his son whenever he had breaks. And if he couldn't, Draco would sometimes sit in the study with a book or puzzle, sometimes going as far to sit in his lap quietly while his dad worked. Their relationship had improved since then and Draco was well aware that all of his parents loved him dearly.
“Can we go riding after breakfast?” Draco asked out loud.
“I don’t see why not.” Narcissa said.
“I suppose that would be relaxing,” Severus drawled out. Everyone else decided it would be a nice idea for family time to go horseback riding. The young Malfoy then turned to his Papa, looking hopeful.
“Papa?”
“I have some paperwork I need to get done Dragon,” his son deflated. “But I join you shortly after I am done, it should only take an hour.” This seemed to appeal to his child as he was rewarded with a bright smile and a nod.
“Before you do that Lucius,” Tom started. “I’d like to speak with you about something in private.” He turned to his son. “You too, Severus.”
The dour man looked confused for a moment but nodded shortly after.
After breakfast was done, the dishes were popped away to the kitchen and Tom followed his son and his lover to his office. Draco headed upstairs with his aunt, uncle, and mother to get ready for their family outing. Narcissa glanced back at her husbands’ retreating backs and wondered what that was about but wasn’t worried since she knew they would tell her later on.