Closed Marital Bliss

[Ezra Cade]

It had been little over a year since Ezra had proposed to Lyra during a Ferris wheel ride of all things, things had moved very quickly from that point with neither of them wanting to waste any time before making official. The year since Ezra had never been happier, something he never expected to feel but Lyra had changed everything the night of their first encounter and she had continued to do so ever since. Ezra Cade was a different man for knowing and loving Lyra Potter, marrying her made him feel like something he'd never thought possible, a lucky man. Ezra's life was unrecognizable from a year before, he and Lyra had moved back to New Zealand but continued to live in a predominantly muggle part of the country, far away from the magical community, it would have been unthinkable a few short years ago but one fundamental thing had won the day when making the decision. Ezra would do anything for Lyra and she had felt more comfortable living in anonymity among muggles than she did living closer to the magical world. Lyra was happy, their children were happy which made him happy. Ezra had mocked James when he proposed to Maddie so soon after leaving school, not able to understand what possessed him to sign his life away to one woman at such a young age, but now he understood.

Ezra had been spending less and less time at Borgin and Burke's, even with a member of his staff on sabbatical he had more than enough help that he was able to take a step back as he had always intended on doing so when he bought the place. He was much more focused on his work with the foundation and a new venture back in the states that had been kicked around for a few years but Ezra was hoping would soon pick up steam. Ezra felt like he could take on the world. He had got his work done early for the day and with no reason to visit the shop Ezra apparated to the nearest safe spot to their house before he emerged onto the street. It was mid afternoon so most of their neighbours weren't yet home from whatever muggles did for work, which he was glad about. Ezra had changed a lot over the years but he still wasn't comfortable making small talk with muggles. It wasn't a matter of prejudice, thought some of that still lingered from his grandfather, it was his ignorance to what muggles did, talked about. James was lucky, his father in law was a muggle who knew about the magical world so he had an in, Ezra not so much. With no one between his landing spot and his front door it was no time at all until Ezra walked into the house he and Lyra now shared. It wasn't quite as grand as their previous accommodations but it was home. "Honey I'm home," Ezra announced as he entered the house with a sarcastic tone to his voice. He never appreciated how good it felt to have someone to come home to until he had it.

 

[Professor Lyra Potter]

"Kiki, stop poking your brother like that! Will, don't pull her hair! I swear you two!" Lyra said, exasperated as she picked up the slew of toys scattered across the playroom for the fifth time that day. She looked at her two little ones and smiled. They were two and a half now, and they never stopped moving. The brunette was much happier than she ever imagined she could be. Love, marriage, children- those things had been unimaginable for her just a few short years ago, but here she was with a husband and two kids. They had gotten married the next day after he proposed, and Lyra suspected that Ezra had been worried she'd change her mind. Not that there was any chance of that. Ezra Cade was stuck with Lyra Potter forever, and the ring on her finger was proof of that.

Lyra heard the front door open and shut, and she glanced at the watch on her wrist. Ezra was home early. "Daddy's home!" she said in a singsong voice to the twins who were too immersed in their game to pay her much attention. Instead, Lyra got up and made her way to the bedroom where she suspected Ezra would be changing clothes. She peaked her head around the corner to see a shirtless Ezra, still one of her most favorite sights. The brunette moved across the room to where he was, wrapping her arms around him. "Welcome home, my love. How was work?" she asked with a smirk on her lips.

 

[Ezra Cade]

Ezra could hear commotion from the twins as he made his way through the house to their bedroom to change out of his clothes. The twins were at an interesting age where sitting still wasn't a concept they seemed familiar with, despite this Lyra was magnificent with them, she made parenting look easy whereas he felt he lacked a the knack for it even after all this time, natural parenting abilities or not he loved his children more than anything. Ezra smiled to himself as he heard Lyra announce to the children that he was home but from what he could hear they made no noise in acknowledgement, no doubt too engrossed in whatever it was they were doing. Ezra had just pulled off his shirt and tossed it onto the bed when he heard footsteps behind him telling him Lyra had followed him upstairs. Before he could say a word Lyra had her arms around him, he was never more content than when he had Lyra in his arms. "Usual nonsense, but when have I ever talked about work while I had you in my arms?" He smirked kissing her shoulders and neck before finally planting a light kiss on her lips. "How was your day Mrs Cade?" Ezra grinned at her, while Lyra hadn't changed her name in any official capacity it was fun to address her as such in less formal settings.

 

[Professor Lyra Potter]

Lyra grinned up at Ezra as he put his arms around her. It was still odd to think Ezra Cade was her husband, or really, it was strange to consider the fact that she had a husband to begin with and had for over a year now. "To be fair, you don't talk about work often at all." she said, feeling distracted by his kisses. She suspected he didn't discuss work to keep her from the unsavory aspects of his business. Lyra knew Ezra had a dark side before she met him. James, when he had been her boyfriend, had told her about the vile creature his brother was, but Lyra never equated that to the man in front of her. Ezra had always been different with her, but she could see him softening to the world as well. The brunette smirked as Ezra called her Mrs. Cade. She hadn't changed her name, but she did love it when he called her that. Lyra kissed him lightly on his jaw before answering. "It's been uneventful. I bundled Kiki and Will up and took them out for a walk after their afternoon nap. We saw a couple of deer and they loved that." she said with a shrug. Her days were not as action packed as they had been when she played Quidditch, but Lyra thought she'd had enough drama to last a lifetime.

 

[Ezra Cade]

Coming home to Lyra Potter would never get old, it was what he'd wanted ever since they'd gotten involved with each other. "You know my work can be...a little on the shady side sometimes, I prefer to keep you in the dark," He said as he continued to kiss her hoping to pull her attention away from any questions about his work, he'd much rather hear about her day with the kids. "Your day sounds so much better than mine," He said as he continued to kiss her. Ezra was glad he didn't work the ridiculous hours he used to when he first bought the shop or in his early days with the foundation but he still didn't seem to be able to spend as much time with the kids as he'd like.

 

[Professor Lyra Potter]

"I know, and I'm fine with that as long as you're being careful and safe. I want you to come home to us every night." Lyra said, cupping her face in her hand. She knew he was right, and she didn't care as long as he wasn't hurting anyone. Ezra's kisses were quite distracting and disruptive to her train of thought, but she didn't want him to stop. "You know, you could skip work tomorrow. Spend the day with me. I'll call Cameron and see if he'll watch them. We could do something fun, just the two of us." she said, kissing him gently. "Or if you want to spend time with them, we could take the kids to the aquarium. They've been asking to go back." Lyra told him. She was surprised how much of a family man Ezra Cade had turned into since she met him for what she thought was a one night stand.

 

[Ezra Cade]

Ezra smiled and paused his more playful kisses to place a tender kiss on Lyra's forehead, "Lyra Potter, there is nothing on this earth that could stop me from coming home to you," It had been a slow process to become the man standing in that bedroom and Lyra had been at the heart of his transformation. He had gone from wanting her, to loving her, to not being able to picture his life without her. He'd not likely have chosen to have children when they'd had them, but he wouldn't change a thing about his life. The prospect of taking the day off to spend with Lyra was tempting and something easily achieved. "You are very hard to say no too," He whispered in her ear. "How about this, we spend the day with the kids, take them to the aquarium, maybe drop in on their cousins, then hopefully Cameron could take them for the night? We could spend some quality time together," Ezra smirked at his wife, his mind drifting back to their first encounter, what was supposed to be a one night stand had turned into a long weekend in bed but even that had supposed to have been a one time thing. Something had clicked between them, it was why it had been so hard to say goodbye the morning after the first night and why they kept getting drawn back together in the years since.

 

[Professor Lyra Potter]

Lyra put her head on Ezra's chest as he promised her he would always come home to her. She smiled at him, not letting him know that it was one of her nightmares that he would just vanish one day like her father had. She always seemed to lose the people she loved most, and Ezra Cade was very firmly in that category. "I hope not. We need you here." she said, trying to make her voice light. However, the next words out of Ezra's mouth brought a grin to her face. Lyra loved it when he indulged her whims and spur of the moment plans. She hoped they'd never lose that spontaneous aspect of their relationship. "I'm sure that can be arranged with my uncle. I bet Nora is home, too. She loves when Ki and Wills visit." Lyra said. "I'll never say no to having the house to ourselves either." she said, a smirk on her lips. Lyra leaned up to kiss Ezra again before nipping at his neck playfully. She wasn't sure she wanted to wait until tomorrow night.

 

[Ezra Cade]

Ezra ran his fingers through Lyra's hair when she rested her head on his chest, he knew she had suffered loss in her life and the loss of her mother had effected deeply, it wouldn't surprised him if she feared losing him especially with him working with dark artifacts and shady people. Ezra had never expected to enjoy the feeling of being needed, but he did. He liked that he was needed as a husband and as a father, it gave him a sense of belonging he'd always felt was lacking in his youth. Ezra loved his children with every fiber of his being, but sometimes they got in the way of he and Lyra's more passionate side of their relationship. "We should push our luck, try and keep the place to ourselves as long as we can, not leave the bed for most of the following day, it'll be like our first encounter all over again," Ezra always enjoyed it when Lyra was the one being playful, perhaps she couldn't wait until tomorrow. "The kids are downstairs," Ezra said breathlessly as she started nipping at his neck. "And you're not exactly quiet," he smirked.