Eaten Alive
Disclaimer: I own none of J. K. Rowling's characters; I only own Cygnus, and not even his last name. The plot is my variation of DH, without the Hallows (items).
Summary: After fleeing the Tower and Dumbledore's death, Draco has finally met his twin brother, who is the newest Secret Keeper of the Order. Feelings break out between Harry and Draco, but with the War and Horcruxes, they need to focus on defeating Voldemort. And what's with the talk about magical consumption?
Warnings: I don't know yet, but there might be some serious SLASH (meaning I might raise the rating), some very minor swearing (I swear I don't swear anything worse than crap/shit/bastard), and...violence? Hmm...
Pairings: Harry/Draco, Ron/Hermione
Authoress' Notes: First time ever with Cygnus...and I'm going to try to fit in my other HPDM pairing stories...Very slow. Don't ever expect me to update until at least a month later. Darn my schedule.
Chapter One: Rediscovered Flight
He had fled the Tower like he predicted himself to, except, he simply had to be accompanied by Snape. The good thing was having Snape needing to leave him for other errands, though he had been severely scolded to be careful. He remembered quite clearly that night, everything, every bloody thing, and it bothered him even as he neared the Manor, his home.
'Is it still home?' he pondered, scared for his life as he headed for the hidden back gates. His mother would not know he was back. He had planned it carefully, so that no one but the house elves would feel the wards tingle to signal that he came back, back to where his family had resided.
As soon as he passed the wards and into the old blood protection, there was a sharp 'crack' in the air, and a house elf dressed in what seemed to be a potato sack greeted him.
"Master Draco is home, Master Draco is home! Should he not be at Hogwarts? Should Tipsy alert Mistress Narcissa and Master Lucius?!" the house elf wailed into the evening air.
"Shh! Tipsy, no one is suppose to know I'm back!" He was lucky, indeed, to have a personal house elf, which not even his parents could command. They were the ones who gifted him with Tipsy, but they had no power. "I want you to swear that you will tell no one, no one, that I'm at the Manor, alright?" he glared vehemently, and the elf bobbed his head up and down, round eyes twinkling.
"Ugh..." Draco groaned at the sight of twinkling eyes. Immediately, the elf hurried to his side to support his master.
"Master Draco? Master Draco, is something wrong?!" the high-pitched voice carried on loudly.
"No, nothing's wrong. Just don't speak too loudly. Someone might hear." Draco was still trying to get the memory of those twinkling eyes, the damned twinkling eyes, even as they were put out by - he sighed, and shook his head, locks of white-blond hair swishing.
"Tipsy, could you please lock the door to my room, and one of the most hidden guest rooms? I need to move my things, and not let anyone know. Ooh, and can you Apparate me to that guest room? I don't think I can climb that oak tree right now, let alone through the window."
Tipsy bobbed his head even more eagerly, and snapped his fingers while holding onto his Master Draco.
Narcissa Malfoy was enjoying her time immensely as she sipped more from her glass of fine, red wine. Her companion, Mrs Zabini, was sitting across from her, also sipping her own glass of very expensive wine. The Malfoy was about to say something when a large barn owl suddenly swooped down before them.
Mrs Zabini's eyebrows rose, and Narcissa shrugged. The owl held out its talons, and clutched in its grasp was a small piece of rolled parchment, tied with a forest-green ribbon, but not to the owl.
"Your owl does not need to be secured?" Zabini said, eyebrows rising higher. Narcissa looked at her pointedly, though she was wondering about it herself.
She untied the ribbon, and stared at the words in disguised shock.
Mother:
I'm coming back tomorrow. He is dead. Run.
Your son
Narcissa blanched visibly, and the parchment was snatched by Mrs Zabini. "Who's dead? And your son is coming back tomorrow?"
Narcissa straightened, and glared. Taking the slip back, she said, "Not a word out of you, Zabini. You know how...how..." She sighed.
"I know," murmured the other lady. "Be careful."
Draco had settled in by the time his mother got home. He had Tipsy prepare him a filling dinner, and he was sitting on the bed when the wards tingled and signalled that Narcissa was home. He sighed, unhappy with the mere fact that he had to hide from his mother, of all people.
He got up and walked gracefully over to the bookshelf, and scanned it for anything useful on his journey, even though this stop would be the longest, and possibly the most permanent. Two books caught his eye, and he took them down to read.
One of them, the thicker one, was called 'Wondrous Protection of Magic', while the other one, much thinner (though when he flipped through it, the typing was much smaller and more detailed), was called 'Magical Manifestation'. He put down the thin, scarlet book on the desk, and began to read the one on protection.
Just as he read to the end of the introduction, there was a muffled crack, and Tipsy appeared, knobbly knees shaking with worry.
"What is it, Tipsy? What happened?"
The house elf shivered, and then whispered so quietly that Draco had to lean in to hear more clearly. "Mistress Narcissa...she...she...thinks you is coming home tomorrow!" He wailed at the end, and Draco blinked at him, his mind blank from utter shock.
"What?" He managed to say, without stuttering in a way only a Malfoy could.
Tipsy repeated himself, but less confident due to his master's reaction. "Mistress Narcissa thinks...thinks Master Draco is coming home...tomorrow!"
Draco was interrupted again from insistent tapping from the window. A huge white and tawny looking owl with dark river-stone eyes was looking at them through the glass. He weakly got up and removed the pane to let the owl in, wand in hand, ready for an ambush. Nothing came, but the owl dropped a scroll thing onto the bed and left without a whisper of sound.
He untied the green ribbon warily, and when nothing happened, he unrolled it to read the letter.
To Narcissa's Son:
He blinked at the writing. It was handwritten, that was for sure, but that was not the reason he stopped. The writing looked so familiar, like he had seen it everyday, but could not put a name to. He continued reading.
You may wonder who I am.
Draco snorted, and resumed at the stupidity of the person.
I cannot tell you until we meet and until the time comes. I only bear a warning for now, and hope you fare the best of it all. Prepare, and be ready to run. Not by yourself though. Take Narcissa, and Tipsy. And, me, when I come across you tomorrow. You have been warned!
Revealing your better side,
Phoenix
'Revealing my better side? What the hell does this person think?' Draco looked at his elf. "They mentioned you in the letter. By name, for a fact."
The elf burst into tears of joy, and then, looking horrified, bashed his head against the nightstand. Draco moaned silently, and quickly Body-bound the elf. "You are never, ever to punish yourself unless I say so, Tipsy. You have done nothing wrong. Go...take a rest or something."
Tipsy was released from the spell, and looked at Draco with wide eyes. "T-take a rest? But, Tipsy is a house elf, sir! Tipsy is not suppose to -"
Draco glared at him. "That was an order." Tipsy nodded, and Disapparated with a 'crack'.
The wards tingled the next morning.
He passed the layers of wards with grace, confident that he was going to emerge victorious at the end of his final battle in life. It had been a very long time since he had last been home, and he was waiting. Sadly, his mother could have possibly forgotten him, and most likely his brother.
"Well, wouldn't that disappointing." He muttered to himself, and spoke to the dead serpent doorknocker. "Knock." He hissed, and with a 'bang', the knocker complied.
He composed and braced himself, slipping on a familiar mask.
Inside the Manor, Narcissa had gotten up from the breakfast table and to the door, fingers brushing aside stray hair. As if the visitor was not her son, but rather, someone else of importance. She stopped in mid-stride, and shook her head. No, this was her son, and she wanted to be presentable and to show she had not been anticipating this moment since the news of Dumbledore's death was announced.
On the second floor of the Manor, right above the large foyer for the main door, Draco had positioned himself ever since the wards warned him (and all the others in the Manor) of the new arrival. He was worried, not knowing if this was the Phoenix in the letter, or someone else of complete difference. He had silenced all of himself, from his footsteps to his breathing.
Narcissa opened the door, and upon seeing who it was, she ushered him in, and hugged her after he had taken off his midnight blue cloak and shoes. Draco only looked on in shock. There standing was a man, no, boy, still, and he looked like a Polyjuiced version of Draco himself.
"Draco!" Narcissa had cried as she hugged the replica. Draco winced and snarled, silently, while the other boy did not notice.
"Mother," he had murmured. Draco growled, thinking, 'That's supposed to be me down there, not that imposter!'
The other boy continued. "I see you are doing well, Mother. But, sure you realize I am not Draco? He is watching us from upstairs, looking albeit he'd want to kill me and be in this position."
Narcissa and Draco both froze, and the original Malfoy boy lost his control of the silencing spell while at it. His ragged, angry breathing filled the silent space.
Narcissa turned slowly, as if wary of what she would see. "Dr - Draco! When did you get home?" And then she immediately removed herself from the embrace of the replica and slowly drew out her wand. "And who," she said, the pitch of her voice lowering dangerously, "are you, to pose as my son?!"
"I was not posing as your son," The clear and concise voice echoed through the foyer. "For I am your son, but rather, one of two. Father must have really hit you hard with that Obliviate, Mother."
Draco was blinking and shaking his head. The other...him, was acting similarly to himself, with the same voice, posture, looks...it was starting to scare him. And it seemed as if his mother was confused too, though she did not show it visibly. He spoke up. "Can we...take this to the living room?"
Narcissa blinked and looked up, as if forgetting he was there. His twin replied, "Yes, that would be a good idea, brother. Would you care to show me to the living room as if you were the host and I was the guest, or would you allow me to find my way there myself as I know the Manor by heart?"
The comment rang through the room like it did before, and then Draco made his way down the stairs. He paused when his mother said, in a sickening sweet voice, "Why don't you change into some more appropriate clothes, Draco, dear, seeing you are still in your pyjamas."
His face briefly flashed pink, and stayed when he saw his... brother-person smirk. It was scary to see someone who looked and acted and sounded just like him smirk the same way too. And he wasn't even looking at a mirror! He turned and fled into the guest room he had resided in.
They were talking over the coffee table, mother and son. It was strange, Narcissa had noted, he and Draco were so alike. But that was not the point at the moment.
He placed a neatly folded letter onto the table. "That is for you to read if you do not trust me, even with Veritaserum." He took out a little bottle with clear liquid. "Brewed by Potions Master Severus Snape, Draco's...and mine, if you think about it, godfather."
Narcissa nodded slowly as she took in the information. Only important figures to the Malfoy family and other blood relations knew of the Potions Master being the godfather of Draco...but Narcissa was confused.
"How do I not know you, then, if you are my son?"
He smiled grimly, but then was interrupted as Draco walked into the room, dressed in deep green semi-formal robes. Draco glared at his brother before sitting down next to Narcissa and reaching for the envelope on the table. His mother touched his arm gently, and he backed away.
"Well, then." Draco said. "I'll be blunt. Who are you, and why the hell are you here?"
"Manners, Draco."
"I'll start from the beginning. My name," the boy paused. "My name is Cygnus P. Malfoy. I'm also known as...Phoenix." At this, Draco flinched, and Cygnus raised an eyebrow. "I suppose D' sent you the letter already. We'll get to the warning later, Draco.
"Narcissa, you are my mother, just as Lucius is my father. And luckily for you, Draco, as you are my older twin brother."
There was a long silence as the information drilled itself into the other blond heads. "So," Draco muttered, "You are my long lost younger twin brother, who suddenly decided to come back and visit his family?" The spite dripped thickly with his words.
Cygnus exhaled in exasperation. "After I was born, the medi-witches diagnosed me with a mass of uncontrollable magic. They said I might not live. I lived, but after I was old enough to go without being fed by Mother, Father Obliviated you and Draco, to thinking that I was dead and did not exist to my brother.
"I was also sent to live with Severus -"
"You were sent to live with Professor Snape?" Draco queried.
"Yes, it does sound kind of strange if you think about it. I did attend Hogwarts, for your information, and I was in every single one of your classes, brother."
"So how come I never noticed you? Your name, your identical looks..."
Cygnus snorted. "Do you think our father, or Severus for that matter, would allow my name and looks go into the crowd? Seeing that you not knowing me was the point of their whole plan? Sev assigned me a different name and also changed my looks. Though I may be younger than you, brother, I believe I know a lot more than you do."
Draco glared at Cygnus, and then Narcissa spoke up. "Can you show us what you looked like in school, dear?"
Cygnus nodded, and took out his wand. He pointed it at himself, and began murmuring a list of incantations. By the time he was finished, a completely different-looking teenage boy was sitting in front of them.
Draco blinked. This boy...he had seen him before. Rarely, yes, but one did not always manage to stay hidden, even in the Slytherin House.
"In this disguise, I am known as Vladimir Evensong, the misunderstood, geeky, shunned, unseen boy who has an uncanny ability of knowing more than all the other students, but not publicly known for that fact. They do not know my true heritage; they do not know my guardian and life tutor. In other words, they do not know me at all. Yourself included, Draco."
That was the long, red-haired boy with intriguing green eyes speaking. Those eyes...Har- Potter's eyes...Draco shook himself mentally. No, don't think about that...that bastard now, focus on your brother.
Said (now) red-head had tied his hair behind him like Lucius usually did, noted Draco. He cringed at the thought of his father, who was probably on the run like he now was.
Draco swivelled around and turned to his mother. "Wait...Mother, isn't this house under surveillance from the Ministry?"
Narcissa paled for the second time in two days. Cygnus immediately had a stoic look on his face, and stood up. "We can be tracked if we stay too long. To fact, if the Ministry has the house seen with a constant eye, something horrible could have happened by now." He took back the envelope and Veritaserum, and pocketed it into his blue robes.
"And now, the Ministry has most likely also obtained my magical signature. But, my signature looks identical to Draco's with a naked-eye magical signature tracking spell, so they'd be thinking it's my brother." Cygnus stared at Draco in the eyes. "I suppose you have used the silencing spell upstairs, which is even more to our advantage, as the trackers would be confused of why there are two of you. Which there isn't, as I am real." He muttered a 'finite' to himself, and Vladimir melted away back into Cygnus.
He smirked the identical smirk, and Draco had to force himself from grimacing. He was still very uncomfortable around his younger brother, that was for sure.
There was a bright flash of golden-red fire above the table, and a single, smoking feather landed softly. Cygnus swore under his breath, and marched away from them.
"Draco, go pack your bags if you haven't already. You too, mother. The Ministry is coming."
The other two Malfoys got up quickly as well, and made their way to their rooms to pack.
Cygnus was worried like mad. He would have to take his brother and mother to the Headquarters, but what were the other Order members going to say? No one else but him and Severus knew who Albus had appointed Secret Keeper...and it just happened to be himself.
Not to mention the fact the members of the Order still thought it was either Draco or Severus that killed Albus Dumbledore, and now he was bringing his poor brother to the Headquarters...oh this was going to be a mess.
When Cygnus' mother and brother came back, he already had himself prepared. Waving his mahogany wand quickly, the trunks shrunk to a tiny size, and he pocketed them, looking up warily to his Mother.
"You might know where we're going...but I'm going to have to Apparate us into the safe house, rather than have you guys read the writing..." he murmured softly.
Draco stared at him. His brother looked almost...scared. But that was new, though not too surprising, since he hadn't even known his brother before that.
With a dismissing wave of his wand, Cygnus changed himself so he looked like his Hogwarts counterpart again. Looking up with shining green eyes, he said with slightly more confidence, "You two will need to refer to me as Vladimir Evensong, as the place we are going, they only know me as him."
He paused, and then held out his hands. Draco and Narcissa looked at each other hesitantly, both pondering how the sixteen year-old would be able to Apparate a total of three people to a warded house, but grasped his hands anyway. Cygnus took a deep breath, and Disapparated them all with a light 'pop' to the one place where the Light resided...Number 12, Grimmauld Place.
The Ministry arrived a minute later, confused to find no one in the house, not even a house elf, as Tipsy had told the other elves of the situation after being notified immediately by Cygnus.
All the same, Harry Potter did not expect to see his school rival, said rival's mother, and a Slytherin Order member appearing out of thin air in his house.