Chapter One

"How is she doing?"
"Fine, she'll make it."
"Are you sure Poppy?"
"Albus, I'm positive."

"Mama?"
"Yes baby?" Vienne looked down at Alexandra, who sat on the floor with a plush dog in her hands.
"Is daddy going to be back for Christmas?" Alex asked.
Vienne signed and sat down next to her daughter, pulling Alex into her lap. "No, he's not."
"Next Christmas?"
"No."
"The one after that?"
"No."
There was a pause.
"Is he ever coming back?"
"No Alex, he's not."

Alexandra Bordeaux-Black sat straight up in bed, panting as cold sweat trickled down her back. She shuddered as a cool wind blew through the room, freezing her momentarily.
"Go back to sleep," came a soft voice from the corner of the room. A small back cat slunk out of the shadows and jumped to rest at the bottom of the bed. "Albus will have a fit if you do not."
"I heard something."
"Yes, your fool of a father knocked over the umbrella stand and your dear grandmothers shrieks could be heard until he had the sense to shut the damn curtains."
Alex sighed. "So he's back? Unharmed?"
The cat curled into a ball. "Of course he is unharmed, or else you would have been notified."
Alex nodded. "Yes, I know."
"Why aren't we still with the Malfoys?" the cat asked suddenly, turning her amber eyes to her Mistress. Alex shrugged. "Dunno, I guess-"
She cut herself off as she heard voices in the hallway. She slipped quickly back under her covers, feigning sleep as the door to her room opened a crack. "...So has she been good?"
"She's been an angel."
"Good."
Alex's eyes were wide as the door closed again.
The night dragged on, and Alex didn't know until the next morning that her entire life had changed.

"What do you mean he's dead?" Alex stood up, staring at Remus.
"He went after Harry, and Bellatrix Lestrange caught him with a spell," he explained gently.
Alex sat down on the bed, hard. "Are... you're serious?"
Remus nodded. "Yes Alex." After a moment he left, not feeling that he should be there.
She crept back toward the window, and rested her head against it. She felt sick and her entire body was hot, uncomfortably hot.
He's dead.
After a moment she stood up and left, grabbing her cloak. She pulled it around herself, and went out of the bedroom. Remus looked up at her as she passed him. He let her go and she left, making her way out of the house.
As soon as she was outside, she collapsed on the sidewalk. The house sucked back into the space it had been in, Alex not noticing it as she kneeled there. Her body shook with angry sobs as she hugged the cloak around her. Rainwater threatened to spill down the back of it.
"Why?" she whispered. "Why did this have to happen?"

Sirius snorted as he looked over at her. "Watch."
He pointed at the bucket that hovered above Snape's head and very slowly, it tipped. It soaked the professor with soapy water, and he spluttered.
Sirius grinned at her. "Yes! That was absolutely perfect!" He pulled into her into a rough hug, twirling her around, and she laughed, hugging him back.
"Sirius." A sharp voice came from behind them and he set her down, turning to Dumbledore. "Yes sir?"
Dumbledore sighed. "May I speak with you alone? Alexandra, how about you go in there and help Professor Snape?" Alex rolled her eyes and disappeared around the corner. She halted there though, stopping to listen to their conversation.
"Sirius, I need you to be more serious with Alexandra. It was hard enough pulling her from her mother's antics, and now that you're here, you're undoing my work."
"Albus," said Sirius, his voice gentle, "Maybe Alexandra doesn't need that kind of guidance right now. You have been teaching her constantly for these many years; I think she needs to have a little bit of fun."
"Yes, but not your kind of fun. She does not need to be able to outwit Fred and George Weasley."
"And you know very well with my guidance that she would be able to."

She sobbed, her entire body shaking as she fell forward, bracing herself on the concrete sidewalk. As her crying subsided, she sat back on her heels, hiccuping.
She looked up at the stars as the rain stopped. She blinked back a fresh wave of tears and stood up. She pulled her head down, and walked back to where the house would be. The Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix is at Number Twelve... She watched as the house pulled forward and Remus met her at the door.
"You are going to catch a cold out there," he said quietly, helping her out of her cloak and wrapping a blanket around her as he pulled her inside. Alex stared at the purple curtains that hung in front of her grandmother's portrait.
She pulled out her wand, and torched them.
"Alex!" Remus cried. "What are you doing?"
"I'll have you know," Alex said quietly to the woman in the painting before she had a chance to start screaming, "That your son is dead. What you have strived for all these years has finally occurred, and you will leave us quietly, as well as the rest of your portrait. You promised."

Sirius looked up at the curtains, then down at his daughter. "These portraits will last as long as I do, because I am the last of the Blacks. When I die, they will all leave, as was promised by my mother on her deathbed. And they will never return."
"I thought I was a Black."
"You are a Black by blood, and by love." He smiled at her, then the smile turned into a frown. "But not politically. Politically, you are illegitimate; because you were born while you mother and I were not married."
Alex grinned up at him. "So they'll torture everyone until you die, and then I don't have to deal with them with my children?"
Sirius nodded. "Yes. And then, you can torch the canvases for all I care."

The woman in the portrait nodded grimly. Her voice was not horrible and screechy as it had been when she screamed; now it was soft and sultry. "Yes, I promised. And I felt it the moment he died."
She turned out of the portrait, and left; all of the other portraits woke and left as well, following the other woman's lead.
Alex turned to Remus, who was staring at her. "Shall you do the honors or would you like me to?" she asked.
"By all means," he replied after a moment, "Have at it."
Alex nodded, and torched each and every single one of the portraits that were in the hallway. Her eyes reflected the fire as she kept careful control of the flames, not starting on the next one until the current one was out. When everything was gone, she turned to Remus, and he hugged her.
"Why did he have to go?" "Harry needed him."
"And I suppose he loved me as much as Harry?"
"He always has. I hope you didn't think otherwise."
"No, never."
Alex pulled away from him, and went into the living room. She stared at the tapestry as she pulled out her wand, a smirk curving onto her lips.

"I heard about your father," came the cat's silky voice. Alex looked down at her as it came to rest in her lap. "And I am sorry. He was a good man."
"I know, Furis," Alex said, scratching Furis' ears. "You should see the mess I made in the front Hallway; I burned all the pictures. I went and pulled down that damn tapestry as well." Alex shook her head. "It seems the reason Grandmother put a Permanent-Sticking Charm on it was so no one could get at the safe behind it. It has all the wands of my family since... god knows when. My father's old one is in there too."
"Go to sleep," Furis said abruptly, jumping off her lap. "You need it."
Alex nodded. "You're right."
Furis looked up at her Mistress as she settled to sleep. Then, she went down to survey the damage Alex had made as she thought.
The girl was nearly emotionless from being shuffled from home to home since her mother died 9 years ago, and she couldn't inherit anything until her fathers will had been read, and that wouldn't happed until they found his body. That meant she was knutless until then, and the only way she could pay for her books was through Dumbledore and Remus.
Furis paused outside the kitchen where Remus had pulled out Sirius' will. "...'Everything below is to be given to my only daughter, Alexandra Seraphine Bordeaux-Black, who is to be placed under the care of Vienne Thérèse Bordeaux, and until her death, where Alexandra will be under the care of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore or anyone he sees fit, both of these in the case that my death happens before Alexandra is 17 years of age'..."
Furis shook her head, her honey colored eyes full of sorrow. Her poor Mistress. She herself had been willed to this man called Albus Dumbledore, and then in turn been given to Alex; so she knew what it was like.
As with anyone in Azkaban that was sentenced for life, Sirius' will would come into effect in two years, 17 years after his sentencing. It happened whether they died, escaped, or lived by that time.
Furis crept forward again, treading carefully into the hallway. Her entire body went rigid.
Ash was spread all over the floor, and the walls were bare save discolored patches where the pictures had once hung. The room still blazed with heat, and the only thing left standing was the umbrella stand. If too many people walked through the room, the ash would become ground into the carpet, and not even magic would be able to remove it.
Furis sighed, and crept back to her Mistresses room.

Several weeks into the summer, the Weasley Family showed up, all seven of them in half-shock at the disappearance of the portraits. Remus met them and hurriedly explained. "Alex set fire to them after Sirius' death reached her. Apparently the people in the portraits were to leave after the last of the Blacks died off, and left, no questions asked."
Arthur nodded. "Yes, Sirius explained that to me once. Where is Alex?"
"She's out back with one of her Muggle friends. Why don't you all go and get settled in."
"Muggle did you say?"
"Arthur," Mrs. Weasley warned, heaving up the bag she was holding.
Mr. Weasley frowned. "Yes, yes, of course dear."

Alex grinned over at Sean and handed him her wand. "It's not going to work."
Sean shrugged. "Oh well. I'm still giving it a try."
Alex shook her head and leaned back into her lawn chair. She adjusted her sunglasses, stretched out and said, "Go for it."
"You're very pretty."
"Yes, I know. Just get on with it."
"Alex!" "I'm kidding Sean. Thank you." Alex smirked at him then sat back up and kissed him. "So are you."
Sean laughed, and ran his hands through his dyed red hair. "Yeah."
She leaned forward to kiss him again when an 'ahem' cut in. She looked up at several red-headed young men and a grin spread over her features. She jumped up, and they all hugged her at once.
Sean's handsome face suddenly went grim as he saw them all hugging his girlfriend while she was in a bikini. He stood up as the last one let go, and spoke softly. "And you are?"
Alex turned to him, and the laughing look died off of her face as she saw his jealously. "These are my brothers-well, not really, but I did grow up with them. Charlie, Bill, and Ron. Fred and George are probably off wreaking havoc and..." she paused, and frowned, looking back at the young men. "Percy?"
Bill spoke. "We got a letter from him apologizing, but that was it."
Alex nodded and turned back to Sean. "Percy is off at work; he disagrees with some of his families values. Ginny is probably inside; she's the youngest. Ron is my age and then it's Percy, Charlie, and Bill."
"Well," Charlie broke in, "We have to go and clean up the mess you made with your little fit of burning but we just came out here to say hello and welcome back." Charlie and Bill left, leaving Ron.
"Harry and Hermione are coming next week," he said quietly. "How are we going to explain you?"
Alex shrugged. "I don't know. We'll figure out something." Ron nodded, casting a wary look at Sean, who was gripping Alex's wand very tightly. He pressed his lips together, and left.
Alex turned back to Sean, a grin lighting up her face. "Now, where were we?"

"I don't like him." Ron said what they were all thinking. Charlie sighed as he cast another spell onto the carpet. "You and the rest of this family. But he'll disappear soon enough just like the rest of them when they realize that she can turn them into frogs."
"Or rats," Fred suggested.
"Or Lima beans," added George.
"Ick," they all agreed.
"Charlie is right though, she does need to try to date Wizards, but we also can't put restrictions on what she does," Bill said, looking down at them all. "Technically, she's not our sister, no matter how much it feels like she is and she is her own person. It would be like one of us telling Ron that he can't hang out with Harry because he's a half-and- half."
Ron paled, but said nothing as they continued cleaning.

"Alex?"
"Ngg."
"Alex, wake up."
Alex's eyes opened slowly and she caught a shock of bright red hair. "Ginny?" She looked over at her alarm clock and groaned. "It's four in the morning... what's wrong?"
"Professor Dumbledore needs you."
"Can't it wait?"
Ginny shook her head. "No. It has something to do with Malfoy."
Alex sat up, giving Ginny a look that was very close to glaring. "Fine." She pushed off of her bed and stood up, swaying slightly. She let Ginny lead her downstairs, hugging herself against the cold. It had been stupid of her to wear shorts and a tank-top to bed.
When they reached the kitchen Arthur, Dumbledore, Molly and Remus were sitting at the table, all looking down at a piece of paper.
"What they bloody hell do you want?" Alex demanded, looking at her surrogate father testily. He continued looking down at the paper as he spoke. "Thank you Ginny. You may go back to bed now."
They all looked up at her as Ginny left, then all but Dumbledore cast their eyes down again.
"If you're ashamed of what I'm wearing it was because I was asleep," she said dryly.
"Yes," Dumbledore said, standing up. "Well, go and change into something decent. You and I must visit the Malfoy Manor as soon as possible."
"Don't tell me Draco has gotten stuck in the Carnivorous Gardens again..." Alex complained.
"Actually, I cannot see that Draco, or his siblings are even alive right now Alexandra," he said, looking pointedly at her. "So, if you please, go change."
Alex nodded, suddenly fearing for her childhood friend.

Alex jumped around as she tried to get her sock in place. She fell over, but grinned as it was on.
Furis stared at her. "Where are you going?"
"To rescue Draco," Alex said, plopping down on her bed, pulling her boots with her. Furis rolled her eyes. Alex and Draco had become childhood friends when Dumbledore had left her there several weeks while others were unavailable. She knew her Mistress cared deeply for the family, especially Draco.
Her eyes narrowed as she watched Alex lace up her boots. "You are going to the Slytherin-boy?"
Alex nodded, tying the last knot and standing up. "If he's in trouble, then I have to help him, simple as that."
Furis nodded. "Of course. I'm coming with."
Alex pulled her cloak on. "Like hell you are. I need you to stay here. I couldn't afford for you to get lost, or hurt."
Furis glared at her. "Fine."

"So, what exactly happened?" Alex asked as Dumbledore set up the fireplace.
"Narcissa alerted me that all her children are missing and she's afraid Lucius is the culprit." He blew on the small flame, and it suddenly caught, sending fire racing down the length of the wood. "So I checked our status reports of the twins and Draco, and found no vital signs. They may be dead," Dumbledore explained as he tossed Floo powder into the fireplace. "Or someone blocked the outgoing spells, and they are rebounding somewhere."
Alex nodded. "Okay. Makes sense."
Dumbeldore nodded. "Of course it does." He stepped into the fire, then bellowed, "Malfoy Manor!"

"I haven't been able to look anywhere." Narcissa met them at the fireplace, her eyes fearful.
"Why not?" Dumbledore's voice was gentle.
"I just... I can't."
"That's fine Narcissa. You come with me and we will look for Gabriel and Gabriella. Alex, you go down to the dungeons; Draco is probably down there," instructed Dumbledore. Alex nodded and left immediately, looking for the whipping post in the dungeons that she knew was there. She found it soon enough, as well as a little more than she had bargained for.
Draco was hanging from a rope, his feet a foot or so above the ground. His arms were pulled above his head, and they were tied to the rope that held him aloft. He was nearly naked, looking as if he had been pulled from his bed in the middle of the night.
His lean, pale body was striped with whip marks and his chest heaved as it tried to get air into his lungs, the position of his body not allowing him to breathe correctly. She touched his waist gently and his eyes flew open.
She looked up at him as his cold blue eyes looked down at her, all vividness gone.
"Draco, how long have you been there?" she asked quietly.
"Chained up? Since about 11. Hanging? Only about an hour. I can see down your shirt you know." A smirk graced his lips as he peered farther. "You're wearing the blue bra I like."
She smirked and murmured, "Same Draco. Does it have stripes or spots?" Her speaking was only to calm him down.
"Neither," he replied as he tossed his hair out of his face. She finally severed the tough ropes and he fell to the ground in a heap. "Flowers, purple flowers," he groaned, trying to stretch out to keep his muscles from cramping. Unfortunately, he knew exactly what to do. "Still same sexy Draco after this I hope."
She smiled, as she untied the ropes that bound his hands. "You'll always be sexy."
"And you'll always be insanely fine," he replied, rubbing his wrists as he closed his eyes.
"If Sean heard you he would murder you."
"So? I'm going to die anyways. But I've got a favor before I go," he said, opening his eyes again to look at her.
She rolled her eyes. "You're not going to die; but what's your favor?"
"Could I kiss you, so out of all the times my father has accused me of making out with you, at least one will be true?"
"Oh Draco... I have a boyfriend.." She bent down and brushed stray locks of sweat-soaked hair away from his lips. "But why not?"
She kissed his lips lightly, pulling away from him after a moment.
He grinned. "Always loyal to the one you love, huh?"
A cry was heard. Alex pulled away from him, standing up.
"That's Gabriella," Draco said in horror. He attempted to sit up, gasping in pain. Alex bent down and grasped his hand. "Come on," she said, pulling him up. He got his balance, and went slowly for where the cry was heard.
Alex went after him and as she went, her wand fell from her pocket. She turned around to go back for it and stopped as she saw a foot on it. Pressure was applied and she cried out as the wand snapped in half. She looked up at Lucius Malfoy as a cruel smile twisted his face.
"If you touch her I'll kill you," came a deadly voice from behind her. Draco was standing behind Gabriel and Gabriella, both of whom had their wands out and their other arms wrapped around their older brother.
They seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, but Alex knew better. The Malfoy Manor had many secrets that you didn't know unless you lived there. It was quite a bit like Hogwarts, always changing and someone who was a mile away one second could be standing next to you the next.
"Alex, move," ordered Draco. She was about to move when Lucius took a hold of her wrist, pulling her to him. He switched his hand to her hair, yanking it back.
"If you make a move then I will kill her," he snarled.
Gabriella's wand moved to the whipping post as she passed Draco's wand to him. "If you kill her then your precious horsewhip goes up in flames."
"And if any of you do anything of any sort then this whole castle blows up by the shattering of a Phoenix feather," Alex said. The heel of her boot rested on the phoenix feather that had come from her wand.
"This is ridiculous," came Dumbledore's voice. "All of your threats are foolish and you all know it. Now if you please, Lucius; unhand Alexandra this instant." Dumbledore was standing behind Draco.
"No."
"Lucius do not argue with me."
"Make me." With that Lucius murmured a spell and Alex fell to the floor as he disapparated. Alex choked as the spell Lucius had cast took hold, quite literally, and threatened to throttle her.
"Finite Incantatum!" Dumbledore said, pointed his wand at Alex. She gasped for air, the invisible hands that had threatened to strangle her disappearing. She leaned on the floor on all fours, and soon bent back to feel the red marks on her skin.
"Let's go," Dumbledore said. "Alexandra, we will take the Floo Network to Grimmauld Place. I will take Narcissa and the twins now. You fix up Draco until I return. They will not welcome him openly." Alex nodded and was soon left alone with Draco.
"Come on," she whispered, standing up. "I need to do something about your wounds; you're bleeding everywhere."
She cast her eyes around the dungeon for something to bind them up with, and her eyes alit on the whipping post. Draped across it was the whip that Lucius had used on Draco, and left there carelessly when he had gone after his other two children. She walked over to it and coiled it quickly, catching the edge of it on her hands, and nearly cutting them open. She pocketed it, went back to Draco, and helped him up the stairs.

"So how's Sean?"
Alex glared at Draco, who was stretched out on the couch as they waited for Dumbledore to return. "He's fine."
Draco stared back at her. "I'm not trying to be evil. You don't need to freak out at me."
Alex's glare didn't soften. "Oh shut up."

The entire table looked up as three people fell out of the fireplace.
"Albus?" Remus asked uncertainly.
Alex spoke for him. "Draco Malfoy has been hurt badly."
Dumbledore spoke after she did. "Yes. Molly, if you will help me dress his wounds, I would appreciate it."
Dumbledore levitated the young man, who he had rendered unconscious. Molly followed him out of the room, carefully keeping her feelings to herself.
"He was whipped," Alex said as once. "Magical wounds of course. I could heal them halfway, but..." she paused and held up her wand, which was snapped in half.
The people in the room stared at the broken wand as she tossed it on the table. "Lucius Malfoy," Alex hissed, taking Molly's chair.
"Your wand or Draco?" Remus asked, his eyes still on the wand.
"Both," Alex said. "He stepped on my wand and whipped Draco. An Atrum Verbero." The entire table swore to varying degrees under their breath.
"Did you see it?" Arthur asked. Alex withdrew it from her cloak, wincing as it cut her hand. She set it on the table, and they all stared at it next to her wand.
"Good god," Moody said. "I haven't seen one of those since they excavated the Egyptian ruins."
Bill nodded. "Yes, I remember... they had it locked up for quite some time." Moody nodded, then reached out a grizzled hand and took the whip. "I'll take this into the Ministry. Get that hand looked at kid, or it'll never heal." With that the only Auror stood up and left, leaving Bill, Charlie, Arthur and Remus with Alex.
"Was it bad?" Charlie asked, his voice genuinely concerned.
Alex nodded. "Yes; he was strung up from the ceiling by his hands. I don't know how he survived so long."
Arthur cut in. "You all know that I don't like Lucius Malfoy, but creating an Atrum Verbero... and using it on his own son?" He shook his head. "No one deserves that."
Alex agreed. "Yes. And what makes me most angry is that he's gotten away with it. He's used it on him before; I've seen the old scars. Draco would have died if we had gotten there any later."
"Go to bed," Remus said softly. "You deserve some rest after what you have been through lately." Alex snorted and stood up. "Yeah, my father dying, my wand snapping in half, my family hating my boyfriend, and my childhood friend nearly killed... I think you're right."

"So, is he any better?" Alex asked Mrs. Weasley as she stirred a batch of cookie dough. Mrs. Weasley nodded. "Well enough to make snide comments."
Alex sighed as she stopped stirring. "I'm sorry. I'll have a talk with him."
Mrs. Weasley shrugged as she pulled the previous batch out of the oven. "No, it's fine. He's not insulting us; it's his father he's adamant on killing." Molly looked over at Alex. "He's been asking to talk to you," she added.
Alex frowned as she scooped dollops of the cookie dough onto the pan. "Well, there's nothing he can say to me. I swear," she grumbled, "No one likes Sean."
Mrs. Weasley spoke carefully. "Sean is a muggle, and he's a little protective of you. It's a little understandable. My sons want to protect you; you're like a second sister to them. Draco is you're friend and he's probably a little bit jealous. Sean is good looking."
Alex laughed. "Mollly!"
"What?"

"You're still mad at me, aren't you?"
Alex glared at Draco over her book. "Why don't you like Sean?"
Draco glared back at her. "Why are you dating him?"
"You just don't like that he's a muggle, right?"
"You just don't care that he a muggle, right? You'd date him just because of it."
Alex stood up. "Draco Lucius Malfoy!"
Draco smirked. "I won."
She sat back down. "You're infuriating."
"I know, but you still love me."
"Unfortunately," she murmured, hiding back behind her book.

Alex pulled slowly away from Sean, careful not to wake him. She slipped out of her bedroom, and down to the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of water, soothing her parched throat.
She nearly spit it out when she heard Draco behind her. "If you're going to screw him could you do it at his house I so I can't hear you?"
She turned to him, her eyes catching on the half-full whiskey bottle on the table. "Draco, did you drink all of that?"
Draco shook his head, swirled the ice in the glass as he replied, "No, this is only my second glass."
"I think that you should go to bed."
"I think that you should stop screwing the muggle."
"Draco, stop, please." Her voice wavered. She was suddenly very scared of Draco. "You can't control me."
"You're right, I can't." He stood up. "Just be careful then. And I promise I won't hurt him unless he hurts you first."

For the first few days that Harry and Hermione were there Alex managed to stay unnoticed until she and Hermione bumped into each other in the library. Alex had to explain just about her entire heritage to her before she would let her through to where Draco sat. When she finally did make it through, she felt eyes on her back until she sat down next to Draco.
"Granger stop you?"
Alex nodded as she dropped the books onto the table. "Yes, as if I'm not pressed enough as it is."
Draco laughed. "I still can't believe that they're making you take a test on each subject, for each year." "That's 5 years, 5 subjects. That's 25 effing tests, I don't know if I'll make it long enough to even get through the year. Luckily for me," She shot him a charming smile, and opened the Potions book. "You all get to help me learn all the stuff that I haven't so far, so when I get to school, and I have to take 5 tests a day, I won't fail on my stupidity, but on not getting enough sleep... Do we have a cauldron around here?"
Draco shrugged. "Dunno. It's your house."
Alex ran a hand through her hair. "Not technically." She made a face. "Not until they find his body, or until the read his will 2 years from now. Then," she paused, and looked up at him. "Then, I get a whole lotta shit.
"So until then, please don't remind me."
Draco smirked. "Well, a lot of people are going to be reminding you. You know that there's going to be a memorial for him within the Order, right?"
Alex nodded, pulling her long black hair away from her neck. The heat was becoming unbearable. "Yes, Dumbledore wants me to say something about him, and he's going to ask Harry as well, and Remus."She blew a stray hair out of her face, and kept her eyes on the book. "So how is Mr. Potter?" Draco asked, propping his feet up on the table, his pale blue eyes wicked.
"As far as I've heard from Remus, Mr. Potter is coping quite a bit better than I am," Alex replied, running the finger of her free hand down the page of the index.
"I saw that you torched all of the paintings in the hallway."
"Yeah," Alex said absentmindedly, flipping to a page in the book. "Not much trouble really. Promises on deathbeds or something."
"Alex," Draco said, taking his feet off of the table and pulling the book away from her, "It's Sleeping Potions, not Stepping Potions. Are you alright?" He flipped to the right page and handed the book back to her.
"Yeah I'm fine, thanks."
Draco looked at her weary face, the tiredness behind her eyes and the helplessness in her movements that was telling him so much more than she would let on. "No, you're not."
She stood up and slammed the book. "Draco, shut up! You don't know anything, okay?" He looked calmly up at her tear-filled eyes. "I've known you for ten years, Alex. I think that I know when you're exhausting yourself in order to get away from a problem. How about you tell me about it so we can try to fix it? You can't go into your exams like this; you will fail."
He watched as tears spilled down her cheeks and she sat back down. "Sean is still freaking out about this whole Wizarding thing."
Draco raised an eyebrow carefully. "Sean, your boyfriend Sean? He seemed okay with it."
She shook her head. "No. When I told him what my father had done, and how he died, he would barely look at me."
"He's a Muggle. Muggles have a hard time understanding Wizarding things," Draco said, his voice emotionless. "Everyone knew he was going to run away as soon as he found out you could turn him into a pumpkin at the slightest whim."
She snorted and wiped away her tears.
"Just like all the others. Why do you keep doing this to yourself? Why don't you go out and get yourself a nice, strapping young wizard? They can handle the fact that your father disappeared behind a curtain," Draco pointed out.
Her tears stopped. "I know that they can, but Muggles are different. They don't know the true nature of things. They're so innocent and naive that they just... they're better."
Draco snorted. "Better because they're stupid enough to believe that the Dark Mark is a hologram? That all those people died from a 'gas explosion' 15 years ago? Better because they actually believe all the bullshit our Ministry is feeding them about Voldemort, when the truth is right under their noses? Is that it? Tell me Alexandra, because I am dying to know."
"Stop being so selfish," Alex said sharply. "That is how you look at it... that is why we're different. You look at Muggles as stupid, and blind. I look at them as smart, because they have to deal with getting through life by working. They have to labor in order to bring home dinner while all we have to do is wave our stupid wands."
Draco's eyes narrowed. "You think none of us have to work? Our ancestors worked their asses off in order to give us what we have now. All these spells and charms and potions didn't just appear! They had to create them from scratch, with a wand and a mind, and that was it."
She glared at him. "None of your family has worked a day in their lives."
Draco gave a strained chuckle. "Yeah, my father got into the Minister's mind by sitting on his ass all day. We can sit here and not do anything because that is the life our parents and their parents have created for us. One day, we will have to do the same for our own children but right now, we are privileged, and whether you like it or not, the Muggle that you are screwing is jealous of that."
Alex stood up, glaring down at him. "Don't say that!"
Draco looked up again at her forest green eyes the same way he had done every single time she glared at him in anger, and replied softly, "You don't want to hear it because you know it's true." He watched as she slowly sat back down. "I'm right, aren't I?" he asked.
"Oh shut up."

Draco's eyes narrowed as he looked out at Alex and Sean. He knew exactly what they were talking about. He watched as Sean's hand traced the curve of Alex's body, even though his eyes weren't even trained on her face.
Draco gripped his wand tightly. He wasn't scared for her; she would be just fine. The Death Eaters would not go for her; they would go for Sean. In that way, they hurt her, and then hurt him, but because they didn't kill her they could use her again and again. It was an interesting tactic, and an effective one at that.
He wasn't jealous either. He knew that they were in love, but he also knew that soon, Sean would disappear, whether it be from the Death Eaters killing him or from his own fear of Alex. And then, Alex would move on, as she had always done.
The Death Eaters had gotten stronger, and restless since Voldemorts return. Their display of recklessness at the Ministry of Magic at the end of last year had probably earned each of them a special talk with Voldemort himself. Not to mention a Crucio here or there.
They were desperate for more followers and would do just about anything to get him back over to their side. And with the luck he was having right now, they would end up murdering Sean to get at him through Alex.
But Voldemort had recruited some new creatures since his recreation, and that meant that he had several extra tricks up the sleeve of those long black robes of his. Draco was scared to death of one of those new creatures, being that the Malfoy Mansion was considered home to them. The Ballroom Shadows his mother had called them. Not a particularly creative title, but it described them well.
Draco shook his head as he watched Alex's own head hang, and Sean's hands drop from her body. The young mans eyes were steely as he left Alex on the balcony. He passed Draco in the living room without looking at him.
Draco went out to Alex as she went over to the edge. "How did it go?" he asked, standing next to her.
She leaned against the stark white metal railing, and laughed softly. "Well, you were right. And he's not coming back."
Draco put his hand over hers and squeezed tightly. "I'm a guy; I know these things." She shook his hand off and snapped, "Don't tell me that. I don't care if you are a guy and that you know these things. You are still supposed to be my friend, and you are still supposed to tell me what's best for me." She flung her hair out of her eyes and looked up at him. "Besides, you're one of the only wizards who hasn't deserted me," she said softly. "I've got loads of Muggle friends, but they don't know who I am, and the only people I have here now, are you and the effing Weasleys."
She shook her head and looked back out at what little there was of the grounds. "Remus only takes care of me because I'm his best friends daughter. I bet he wishes every goddamn day that I had died instead of Maria and Diana. He loved those two like there was no end, because they were all he had left. Everyone had left him here, and now he was stuck with the bloody traitors wife and kid, when he could barely support himself."
She dug into her cloak pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. She held them up as if toasting him. "I haven't had one in a year, through everything. This finally takes the cake." She opened the pack and slipped one between her lips, lighting it with a snap of her fingers. She inhaled deeply, and the smoke blew out through her nose and mouth.
"That's a disgusting habit," Draco said softly.
She shrugged. "I know, but everyone has a flaw."
"Give me one."
Alex laughed and handed him one of them. "Albus is going to murder me."
Draco shrugged as he lit the cigarette. He blew smoke from his nostrils and said softly, "God, if I keep this up my namesake will really become true."
"I only smoke under stress Draco, and if you're going to start then you should only do so as well," Alex said, watching the smoke drift away.
Draco shook his head. "Neither of us should be smoking as it is. How long have you been doing this?"
Alex laughed as she flicked ash off of the end. "Ever since we got into your dads stash... so about 4, 5 years."
Draco nearly swallowed the cigarette. "Are you serious?"
Alex nodded. "Yeah, I was avid for a good year until Albus caught me once and nearly blew a top. Since then, it's only been social and when I'm under stress. I have been trying really hard to quit this past year; dad didn't like the smell because it hurt his sensitive nose when he was in Animagus form, and I didn't like how I craved it. Once he died, I've kept a pack around in case something decided to push me over the edge."
She still had about half of the cigarette left in her hand when she crushed it against the railing. "I'm not perfect Draco," she said, looking up at him. "And one of these days Albus is going to realize it, and so is the rest of this bloody world. And then," she flicked the cigarette away, "I am not going to be welcome."

AN: Okay, so it's finally out. Let me know what you think. Also let me know if you're confused about something... because then I'll be able to fix it later and you won't be confused. however... some things are supposed to make you confused, but just tell me anyways.

I know that there are a lot of changes from the original, such as Sean being a muggle, the situation with Alex's mum/name of Alex's mum, Alex's legitimacy, and Maya/Maria. If you didn't read the original... then oh well.

Please R/R!!