Chapter 4

Draco's prediction about the noise level – of the feminine shrieking sort anyway – in the Great Hall was fairly accurate. Rather than adjust the hearing aids themselves (and risk the baby's irritation), Harry had cast a silencing spell variant to just keep noise to normal speaking levels for a small bubble around Richard. The trick had earned him a smirk from the blond wizard, who had swung open the doors to the Great Hall... and quickly stepped behind Harry and his son.

It proved to be a prudent idea, as the newcomers were enveloped almost immediately by both Hermione and Tonks, with various Weasley spouses hovering to exclaim happily over the baby's pale-colored hair. Giving in to the obvious wish of his oldest female friend to hold the baby, he passed Richard over and watched his son be absorbed into the gaggle of admiring women.

"We don't exist at the moment, do we?" he remarked to Draco, who moved to stand beside him as the women moved away.

"I suppose Hermione will remember you eventually, but the rest, probably not." The Slytherin shrugged. "Might as well join the men up at the table until this lot remembers we're here to eat."

Finding that a less daunting idea than staying amid the females engaged in spoiling his son utterly rotten, Harry followed him the rest of the way to the staff table, glancing around the Great Hall as he did. The ceiling had been repaired after the final battle and displayed the outdoor sky with all its former glorious enchantment. There were more tables than the four that had existed in Harry's time, and at his questioning look, Draco explained.

"First years sit together regardless of House. Severus figured they have plenty of time in their common rooms to form House ties. He's prone to rearranging seating if they clump up by House at that table too. Usually only has to do it once or twice before they get the idea." With a wave of his hand, Draco indicated the sixth student table. "Same idea, but opposite age group. Seventh years have the same rules. It cuts down on House rivalry, and it's better than abolishing Houses altogether."

Harry nodded. While some students, like Luna, had often sat with friends at other House tables, it hadn't been a common practice to mingle during meals.

"Summertime, most of the staff and family gather for dinner. Kids sit at the family table in both summer and during term," continued the explanation, and the blond wizard indicated a table in an alcove not in full view of the student tables. "During term, spouses usually sit there too, although summers it's not unusual to spill down onto the student tables. We're asked to take turns sitting at the staff table, at least four of us at each meal. There's a schedule, although you're likely exempt until Richard's a bit older."

The explanation ended there, as they'd reached the men gathered around the staff table, and Harry was immediately swept into the arms of his foster father. He returned Arthur Weasley's hug, which lasted longer than a welcome home embrace normally would, but the others seemed to understand the need each widower had for the other's comfort at the moment. Arthur had come for the funeral in January and then had returned to spend the Easter holidays with Harry and Richard along with Severus and his family. It had been the week he'd finally been able to bring the baby home from the hospital after nearly four full months in NICU.

Finally, Arthur and Harry stepped back, meeting each other's gaze fondly. "It's so good to have you both back, Harry," the older man said.

"It's good to be back, actually." Harry found himself swept from Arthur into an equally emotional hug from Remus, then passed among the Weasley males for enthusiastic, brotherly hugs.

"Oy, Harry, maybe you'd have been safer with the women," he heard, and he laughed at the amusement in Draco's voice.

"Perhaps. Although at least the Misters Weasley won't pinch his cheeks and remark on how he needs to eat more, as the women will when they remember they forgot to greet him." Severus' silky voice was as amused as Draco's.

Of course, that just prompted his foster brothers to do exactly what was predicted for the women, and Harry found himself laughingly shoved into Charlie's lap so the wheelchair-bound man could add his own pinch to the routine. He managed an escape when Charlie began a rather enthusiastic poking of ribs in the name of checking if he were too thin.

"Millicent!" Ron cried out, causing the dark-haired, sturdily-built woman to turn from the group with the baby. "Your husband's molesting Harry a bit here."

The Potions professor simply shook her head at the antics of the men, easily distracted by Richard being passed into her arms from her sister-in-law.

Harry found himself in a much less boisterous, but no less welcome, hug from Neville and smiled. "It's not fair that you're taller than me," he muttered to his fellow Gryffindor.

Neville laughed. "I've been taller than you since fifth year. You'd think you'd be used to it by now."

As the men began to sort out seating at the table, Harry's gaze went to the children's table, where many mischievous eyes met his. Where once meals in the Burrow's kitchen had been a sea of redheads broken up only by the darker shades of his and Hermione's hair, the children seated here had much more variety to their looks. With none of the Weasley offspring marrying redheads, the trait hadn't surfaced in many of the children.

Neville's gaze followed his own, and he began to name off the children, pointing among them with ease of practice in the names. His own status as an honorary Weasley after marrying Hermione made him uncle to almost all of the children at the table, and Harry wouldn't be surprised if the non-Weasley children called him that out of sheer peer pressure. The surprise to Harry was the final child introduced, Draco's daughter, Alcyone.

The calm grey eyes that met his when the girl was introduced were pure Malfoy, of course, the same silvery shade that her father and grandfather had. But her hair lay in silky, jet-black braids, as far from the moonlight-blond of the Malfoys as it was possible for hair to get. She returned Harry's smile with one of her own and then ducked her gaze shyly back to her plate.

"Takes some getting used to, doesn't it?" Neville said softly. "I'm just glad I'm more used to Andromeda than Bellatrix when I look at her. Otherwise, it'd be a bit eerie how much she looks like a Black with her inheriting her mother's dark hair."

Harry nodded in silent agreement, glad Draco wasn't close enough to hear the remark. He'd already managed to somehow offend the man twice without knowing how. Hearing any remark comparing his daughter to his thankfully dead, insane aunt was not likely to help matters in the least. He turned back to the staff table to find the men had enlarged the platform and table to seat all the adults, and he was dragged unceremoniously to sit between Ron and – to his surprise – Draco.

The redhead elbowed him as the women finally made their way to the table. "We stuck them all on the other side. Figured that way they can pass the baby back and forth among them, at least until they remember there are a couple more babies around to share."

That drew laughs from the men as the women sent mock glares and found seats so that the house-elves could finally serve the meal.

"It's a bit like a Weasley family gathering here tonight," Harry said.

"Of course, mate. We weren't about to let you come home without a proper welcome. Those of us who aren't idiots anyway."

"Who?" Harry did a mental headcount of the redheads and then sighed softly. "Ginny didn't come?"

"She was invited, but Ernie was convinced it was inappropriate for them to be here tonight, at your welcome home party of all things." As he dug in to his food, Harry noted his friend's manners were much improved from their school days, which was probably due to the patient training of Ron's wife Orla. The younger Ravenclaw had managed to add some polish to her husband after six years of marriage.

"Oh." Harry sighed. "It's completely old history, Ron. I wish they'd understand that by now. It's not like I didn't move on."

"Yeah, but I think everything this year for you dug out every bit of guilt all over again for both of them."

"It shouldn't."

"Give it time. They'll come to their senses eventually and realize they're just being stupid."

Harry hoped Ron was right. The last thing he wanted was rumors of a rift between himself and Ginny or her husband. It would cause the papers to dredge up all the old gossip in a heartbeat and probably make up plenty more to embellish it. He had no wish to be pitied again because Ginny had chosen someone else in the final year of the war when he'd been gone on the Horcrux hunt with Ron and Hermione.

Shaking off the pessimistic feeling that had crept up on him when he'd realized the MacMillans hadn't attended tonight's dinner, Harry turned his attention back to those who had bothered to come. It was easy enough to do in the chatter around the table as people rushed to catch him up on the latest news of their family and of former classmates.

He had to laugh when talk turned to the coming school term and much teasing was directed toward Severus about obtaining three Weasley students all at once. He knew something was up when Tonks grinned cheekily across the table at the Headmaster.

"You know, Severus, Remus tallied it up the other night for me. Do you realize that those three are only the first? You'll have a Weasley starting school every single year for the next eleven years, at least."

Laughter erupted around the table as Severus looked horrified at the thought, which prompted Remus to chime in with what was obviously a planned disclosure between him and his wife. "Perhaps he should be more concerned when that eleventh year rolls around. After all, that's the year he gets a Weasley, Potter, and Granger offspring all in the same year."

"I assure you, Remus, that you'll be Headmaster, not Deputy, when that happens, as I fully intend to retire the prior year," came Severus' obviously amused reply. "You forget one of those children is also a Longbottom!"

The laughter went from amused to uproarious then, and Harry was happy to be joining in, though he realized Draco didn't seem to be quite as amused by the jokes.

He waited until the talk had drifted to other topics before asking the blond quietly, "Anything wrong?"

Draco gave a shaky jerk of his head, obviously not wanting to talk. Unwilling to tread where he was unwelcome, Harry turned back to the rest of the table conversation. Whatever was bothering the Slytherin would have to wait until Draco wanted to talk about it. If it kept up, he'd ask Severus, perhaps, but for now, he figured it best to let things lie.