Chapter One
"Come on, Gem. Hurry up," Draco called from outside the bathroom door. "It's Christmas Day. We should be downstairs by now." I rolled my eyes, sliding out of the bath and tying a fluffy towel around my body. Don't get me wrong – when I roll my eyes, I roll them out of the utmost affection for my younger brother. He was one year younger than me and even though he knows I am not a true Malfoy, he doesn't complain that I am the heir. In truth, I have always believed that he was happy he was not the heir – I got the full brunt of responsibility for this generation and the perks while he just got the perks. Not that I'm complaining, either, my brother deserves his happiness and prepping his reputation at social gatherings has never been what he enjoys. He prefers quidditch over everything. I do, too, if I'm honest, but not as much as him.
I pull my wand from the marble counter and perform a few spells to speed up the process. I can just imagine him out on my bed, sighing irritably. My hair is suddenly dry, as well as my body. The bathroom is clean and the towels washed and returned to their places. While I am only seventeen (in my sixth year at Hogwarts), I still performed magic outside of school and have for years. I live in a wizarding household and any detectable magic can be blamed on my parents and if I'm caught, my father is on the school board and the wizengamot. I am in no danger of expulsion.
I quickly dress in casual dress robes and leave my hair to fall down my back in unruly curls inherited (as I'm told from Aunt Andy) from my father. My other cousin Bellatrix (in Azkaban) also has the same curls. I walk out of the bathroom not too long after Draco's call. Just like I imagined, he is sprawled across my luxurious bed, also wearing casual dress robes and listening to the buzzing of a golden snitch fly around my bedroom. I snatched the ball out of the air.
He sat up suddenly. "Hey! Why did you do that?"
I laughed loudly. "Just showing you how it's done for next year's quidditch tournament." Draco and I competed on opposing teams for Quidditch each year. This year, Ministry Official Dolores Umbridge cancelled Quidditch for the rest of the year. But with the DADA curse, I knew it would only be for this year. I inspected the snitch. There was no inscription on it. Usually, gifted snitches were inscribed with a loving message. "Where did you get this, Draco?" I asked.
"Father bought in for me last week in Diagon Alley." Draco slid it from my fingers and pocketed it, grabbing my arm to drag me out of my beautiful room.
Both of us had matching rooms here in Malfoy Manor – a bedroom with a private bathroom, a walk-in closet and enough room space to fit in a sitting area, a desk and a mahogany book case. Although, in my room there was a giant window that took up half the wall to the right of my bedroom with a gran window-seat and the layout was completely different, as well as the colours. The colours in my room were neutral – purple, white and blue. Draco's room was mostly green, silver, black and brown. I knew my family had been shocked when I was sorted into Gryffindor during my first year. And to appease them, I got rid of any orange or gold and decorated my room with neutral colours.
Our parents were in the first floor drawing room, sitting on a sofa close to the spectacular Christmas tree – adorned with colours of green, silver, purple and blue. They smiled as my fourteen-year-old brother – soon to turn fifteen in a few months – pulled me over to them. We sat on the ground as we always did.
"Morning," I said, brightly, tucking a wild curl behind my ears. "I'm sorry I took so long. I just wanted to annoy Draco." To add affect, I ruffled his platinum blonde hair. He pushed my hand away with as much dignity as you can possibly achieve in one as young as him.
My mother laughed as loudly as she could in times as dark as this. "Go on, Gem, Draco, open your presents."
Both of us exchanged comforting, excited smiles in the safety of our home before pulling the nearest present to us. Mine turned out to have a label of 'Narcissa' (probably from our dad to our mum), so I handed that one off and pulled another to me. This one did indeed have my name on it. I pulled it open with little grace since Draco was already hugging mum and dad for his first gift (a broomstick care kit). My first present turned out to a charm bracelet. It was very pretty and intricate – there was three keys on the dainty chain and in-between each of these key charms were meaningful icons. A book, a potions bottle and a wand. All the charms were really pretty – the detail was so fine. I knew my mum had to have picked that one.
"Thank you," I said, turning to face my parents, grinning widely. "It's so beautiful. Will you help me put it on?"
"Of course, darling," my mum said. My dad and Draco had already started talking about quidditch. When it was just the four of us, our exchanged were loving and warm and we could be ourselves. It was only in the company of others when this reality melted away into a much darker one. I knew that this summer the manor would become darker and darker to accommodate Lord Voldemort. My father wanted out, I also knew, but that was impossible and I could not judge him, knowing what I know about his own acceptance of me.
My mum took the bracelet from me and tied its dainty chain around my left wrist. "Sweetheart," she said. "I picked this gift for you and I picked it for a reason. The three keys are goblin made. They are keys to your vaults. The Selwyn vault, the Malfoy vault and the Black vault. I know you don't need them to enter the vaults but times are changing and the goblins may need identification first." I looked down at the bracelet and retrieved my wand from my robes, casting a non-verbal enlargement charm on one of the keys. It grew and grew until it was a decent size. As I looked closer, I noticed you could clip it on and off.
"Thank you," I repeated. "I'll take good care of them." I allowed the key to shrink again and stashed my wand away.
"Gemima, the other charms were picked for a reason, too. They are all real. That's a real book of general spells for emergencies. That's a spare wand. The potion is vial is empty – ready for your own potion to store. Now, go and open some more presents. I think Draco had already gone through all of his." We both laughed. Sure enough, surrounding Draco were scraps of paper and a multitude of new items from robes to knick-knacks. I reached for my next present, too.
In the end, I received loads of new clothes, some jewellery, books, a new broomstick, potions ingredients and a lot more. Andromeda and her family sent along a letter wishing a Happy Christmas and a broomstick care kit. After opening the rest of the presents and giving hugs and the lot (Mum even gave dad a kiss for a particularly pretty necklace), we headed to the dining room, where the house-elves has set up a range of foods for us to eat.
"Draco, Gemima," said Dad. "How is school?" A typical question from our father during the holidays and any parent, I would wager to guess.
"Awful," I said, putting my fork down. "That ministry official Umbridge keeps picking on the Gryffindors. I heard some of her detention include a blood quill."
My mother put her knife down, at attention. "Has she used one of those of you – either of you?" She asked, looking between Draco and I. We both shook our heads.
"No," answered Draco. "Just mainly Potter and his crew, as well as the Weasley twins. The rest of the school finally seem to understand that they should stay out of trouble this year."
"I came close," I confessed. My father looked up sharply. "I defended a lower year who was being bullied by hexing a seventh year. Umbridge caught me. Severus helped me. I served detention with him instead.!
"We sent a gift to Severus this year, right dear?" Dad asked, patting Narcissa's hand.
"Yes. We sent him a new potions kit."
"Yes, yes, of course. That's good. I'll have a word with the school board but for now, I want both of you to keep your heads down this year. Do you understand?"
Draco and I nodded and then we all continued eating. After another few minutes, mum caught my eye and asked: "Are you excited for our trip away on Saturday?"
I grinned. It was one of our excursions. "Yes, I am. I just need to buy my school supplies and I'm ready to go. Where are we going this time?"
"France," she answered.
I looked up immediately. "Wow." In all our adventures, I'd never been to France. I knew Draco had, with Dad last year, but mum had felt ill so I stayed with her. It was half a business trip, so they had to go. Draco sent me loads of letters raving about everything and brought me back a book on Invented-French-Spells and How-To-Make-Your-Own.
"We'll go to Diagon Alley tomorrow to buy everything. Draco, will you come with us?"
"Of course, mum.
Mum turned towards Draco now. It was obvious to me that Draco felt that our mum loved him less than me and this had caused animosity on his side. "What will you and your father be doing while we're away?"
"Dad's going to bring me to a Quidditch match. We haven't decided which one yet."
The breakfast continued on, with us each asking questions we didn't get the chance to in our letters. It was all going great until Dad decided he needed to ask me something private. "Gemima," he said. "Are there any boys I need to know about at Hogwarts?"
I started coughing on the bit of food I was swallowing, quickly summoning a glass of water and swallowing some. Draco had started laughing sometime during this episode but my parents were giving me that look. And then I wanted nothing more to disappear. "Um," I said. "Can we leave that sort of thing to a need-to-know basis?"
"So, we don't need to know," Mum said turning to Dad. "I think that implies something, don't you dear?"
"Yes, I do. Draco!"
I turned my gaze on him, warning him. He looked like a ferret then, the one he'd been turned into last year – terrified. My eyes stayed on his but his were on Dad, who was giving him a look.
"She's dating Theodore Nott," he professed.
"Traitor," I hissed.
"Theodore Nott," repeated my father. "Pureblood. A respectable family."
"I broke up with him," I declared. "Last month. Your info is wrong, brother."
"No, it isn't. You're still dating him. You just don't want father to find out or he'll push for a betrothal contract."
"I'm not dating him," I insisted.
"Yes, you are."
"Draco, Gemima," our mother broke in. "That is enough. If your sister says she isn't dating him, then she isn't."
"Yes, mother."
I sighed in relief. The conversation was dropped then. It was true. I had dates Nott but I'd broken up with him when I'd found out he was lusting after my generous inheritance. This was something I was used to – I was the heir to three fortunes after all, publicly.
My surname was officially Black. Not that anyone knew that. The teachers all called me Miss Malfoy and they had since I was sorted, quite shockingly, into Gryffindor. But I had turned seventeen last week – the 17th of December – and had publicly claimed my Black heritage. My father understood fully. My name was now Gemima Black. The reaction of my housemates was not something I was looking forward to. I knew my uncle Sirius Black had escaped Azkaban during my fourth year but I'd had no contact with him.
However, my father had confessed to me that he was innocent. I kind of wanted to find him, meet him, find out if he was anything like Regulus Black. My biological father had been this great mystery dangled over me my whole life – he'd realised that blood purity wasn't all that and defected. And he was killed for it. By Lord Voldemort. I hated him with all of me – I didn't judge my father for his choice as an adolescent but I would be killed before I succumbed to it also. I would ensure this was the same for Draco. I would act like the perfect pureblood daughter (without the blood purity beliefs) until the time came when I chose or I am forced to break rank.
Early the next day, my father pulled me aside. "Gemima, I have something serious to discuss with you. Come into the study."
I followed my father into his dreary study. Really, it was just a desk and a chair, as well as some book cases around the walls. "Yes?" I said, taking a seat on the chair in front of his desk.
"Okay. Let me be straight with you. You are an adult now. You have turned seventeen. It's time I share some important decisions with you. This summer, the Dark Lord will be taking over the Manor. It will be used as a headquarters of sorts. Now, I know how you feel on the matter and so, I need you do to something for me." He leaned back in his leather chair, hands clasped, hair tussled (which was uncommon) and looked me straight in the eye.
"Anything," I said straight away. Although I hoped that he wouldn't ask me to join him. But I knew my father would not ask such a thing of me. Still, a part of me feared it.
"I want you to join the Order of the Phoenix."
"What?" I demanded. "That would mean publicly disowning you and mum and Draco. You would really ask this of me?"
"Yes. After the war is over, you'll come back to us. For now, go to Dumbledore, tell him of your birth father, explain your hate of the Dark Lord. Ask to join him and his side. But not publicly until this summer. If the Dark Lord discovers this before you and Draco are safely on the opposing side, he'll demand Draco receive the dark mark to ensure his loyalty. I won't allow this to happen."
"And Draco?" I asked, surprised.
"Bring him with you, Gemima, please." He had always called me Gemima, as if joining in with my nickname would anger me. My name had always been a sign of love and loyalty to Regulus Black and I knew my father knew this. It made me love him more. He tried not to replace the man I had never known. But both of them were my father.
I nodded, rising from my chair and rushing around to the opposite side of the desk and hugging him. "I will, dad. I love you. I promise I'll protect Draco."
He returned the hug. "I know you will. I love you, too."