I know. I know. I have been very behind on updates and I don't know why...

Oh well, Im trying to get back on track. Enjoy! Ta for everything.


Severus leaned forward in his chair and nodded enthusiastically. His eyebrows were raised in an 'I completely agree' sort of fashion, and his hands were folded beneath his chin. He had been seated like this for a good 15 minutes, listening uninterestedly in fact, to the ranting of Remus Lupin.

Remus had been waving his hands in an eccentric manner, rambling on about the amazing wildlife in the woods. He had photographically described a pair of foxes lurking around the young rabbits in the meadows, explaining how the rabbits could see from the sides of their head so they had managed to escape unharmed. Severus had snorted at Remus' remark of killing other animals. He had received a thump to the arm in response.

"And then Sirius showed me a lake, Severus, it was crystal clear which makes me believe there must be a mountain close by but there can't be, so I really don't know how to explain the clear spring water. Maybe it has something to with eco-"

Severus was spared Remus' lecture on clear spring water by the sound of something slapping hard against glass. He looked out the kitchen window and spotted an owl ruffling its head. The poor bird had flown straight into the kitchen window. Severus eagerly rushed to the owl, delighted that he had contact from the normal world. He pulled the letter from the owl which he recognised as a ministry bird, and turned the letter over in his hands. It was addressed to him, but why would the ministry be contacting him? The hand writing explained it all.

"It's from Lucius," he announced, leaning against the counter and opening it up.

"Aren't the Malfoy's supposed to have these large, elegant eagle owls?" Remus asked, nodding at the ruffled bird perched on the window sill. The impact had left him looking cross eyed around the room.

"Ministry Owl" Severus explained.

"They can't afford less stupid looking birds?"

"They can, but they refuse to waste the money, now shush"

Remus scowled at him.

Severus,

I returned home from the ministry due to an urgent owl from Cissa. Draco has run away from home. What am I going to do? I don't know why he would do such a thing, Severus. I'm at my wits end with worry. Should I contact the ministry and get someone to go looking for him? Should I go looking for him? This is awful, I think he may have left because he is to be married. I should have listened to him and reconsidered. Now I've lost my son. Please, write back immediately.

Lucius.

Severus stared at the letter. He was relatively lost for words. Had he read correctly? Draco Malfoy, heir to the Malfoy fortune, has fled his home? Surely it couldn't. He re read the letter which clearly stated Draco had gone. Left his home. A flutter of worry settled in his stomach. It was that feeling that rooted in your gut, panging every so often to remind you that it was there.

"Draco's run away from home" he blurted out, picking up his cloak and dashing towards the fireplace.

"What? Whe-Where are you going?" Remus asked spinning around in his chair.

"To Malfoy Manor! Lucius is in a complete state" Severus told him while he pulled back the fire guard and searched for the floo powder.

Remus stood up and fastened a jacket around his waist.

"I'm coming" he decided.

Severus shook his head. "No, you are staying here," he said, "I am not having you tumble out at the end of a luxurious Mansion to be sick all over the carpet."

"What!? I won't be sick. You know very well I can keep that under control now and a simple cleaning spell would fix it if I did get sick."

"Remus, I don't want you parading through the fields if we have to go look for him. It will be too much of a walk for you and you'll get tired and stressed, and I don't want that to happen"

Remus folded his arms and stood his ground. He was going and no one could tell him otherwise. So being in the presence of Lucius Malfoy might be a bit intimidating and slightly scary, but he would have Severus who would protect him. From what Remus remembered, Narcissa Malfoy was a pleasant enough Slytherin to him when they were in school…or was that only because she fancied Sirius? Either way, he was going and nothing could change his mind. Severus seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

"Alright fine, come" he grumbled tossing floo powder into the fire place.

Remus grinned and stepped into the fire alongside Severus, clutching his arm. The sudden suction into the network turned his stomach a bit and he clung to Severus. Maybe he should have got the train or something. Within a few seconds he had wobbled out into the sitting area of the Malfoy home. There it was again. That nasty feeling in his stomach. A hand was slapped to his mouth and he looked up.

"Don't. be. sick," Severus hissed. He quickly glanced around the room in search of a canister for Remus to realise the stench of death from. Anywhere but on the Asian rug that carpeted the entire room.

"Sev-"

Remus gagged, opened his mouth and from within the depths of his stomach, out flowed a white, sticky, gravy smelling liquid. It splashed onto the priceless rug immediately seeping into the fine threads. Remus coughed and spat out a clump of something that looked like broccoli.

"Remus!" Severus squeaked dropping the umbrella stand he had grabbed from the corner.

"I'm sorry! I really am" he gasped staring down at today's dinner.

He pulled out his wand and tried a cleaning spell on the destroyed carpet. The heavier slime was removed but the horrible stench of Sirius Black cuisine remained. Now he was in trouble. In his school days while Remus was beneath James' cloak, he remembered hearing some people talk about the ruthlessness of the Malfoy's. One Slytherin they were spying on even mentioned the torture dungeons within the labyrinth of the Manor.

"He'll kill me" Remus mumbled glancing about for an escape root.

"He won't kill you" Severus stated firmly, walking forwards and resting a hand on his lover's shoulder, "Not while I'm here he wont. Accidents happen."

The door to the living room opened and Lucius Malfoy entered the room. He was dressed in his usual manor of wizarding robes, but they looked quite ruffled as if he had been anxiously tugging on them.

"Severus, thank Merlin you came!" he boomed, rushing forwards purposely avoiding Remus.

"How long has he been gone?" Severus asked taking Lucius' hand and shaking it.

"According to the kitchen elves he has been missing since 9 this morning" Lucius told him as he led them from the room and down towards the guest area.

As they walked, Severus in step with Lucius, Remus tagged along behind him admiring the wall paintings. He spied a particular nasty looking one. A large warrior stood upon the breast of a grey werewolf, spear in one hand getting ready to pierce the wolfs chest, the other hand balled into a fist and raised in the air. He cringed and began looking at the portraits.

"Nasty scruff" screeched one portrait eyeing him up and down.

Remus flushed. He had been wearing some old tattered muggle jeans and a sweater when they had left the house.

"Come along Remus," Severus called, tugging on the sleeve of Remus' jumper, "Just ignore the portraits," he whispered "They insult everyone."

"They don't insult you!" Remus hissed back.

"Well that is obviously because Severus spent a sufficient amount of time in this house whilst he was growing up" spat Lucius, "In here."

Lucius opened the door to the guest living room and motioned towards the armchairs. Remus hesitantly sat beside Severus, avoiding eye contact with anymore nuisance portraits. He was offered a glass of brandy but politely refused it. Lucius grunted looking offended.

"Where is Narcissa?" Severus questioned, trying to remove Lucius' attention from Remus.

"She's in Draco's room sobbing her eyes out," Lucius told him, "Why would he do such a thing?"

"I told you not to force him into marriage, Lucius. But you didn't listen to me or your sons pleas."

Severus had decided he was going to be straight with Lucius. There would be no beating around the bush.

For a moment Lucius looked ashamed. His eyes were turned down and he was nervously biting his bottom lip.

"But that is no excuse for running away from home!" he replied firmly "Draco has no idea how the Muggle world works. He has no money and cannot use magic."

"Has he not gone into Diagon Alley?" Remus piped up, doing his best to be helpful.

Lucius eyes Remus with hatred. "My son is not stupid. If he doesn't want to be found, he won't be found"

"Draco has had a general interest in Muggles for quite some time now" Severus told the both of them "He has approached me on numerous occasions asking about the Muggle world. I think that's where he may have headed."

"Impossible!" Lucius said angrily "My son does not mix with filthy mudbloods. He has a lot more sense then that."

"Draco has his mind, Lucius. He is interested in Muggles and has overcome the barrier between the common wizard and the non magic folk." Severus replied with equal emotion.

"He will not be mixing with filth!"

"Well right now we have no idea where he is or who he is mixing with" Severus yelled, standing from his seat and slamming his glass onto the oak table.

"Where ever he is" Lucius growled, standing up to match Severus. He stood a head smaller. "I can assure you that he is not mixing with the mudbloods"

"Oh and you just know that do you? You have no idea what your son is like, Lucius. You have poisoned his mind with these silly misinterpretations about Muggles and -"

"Draco is the heir to Malfoy Manor. He will be living here when Narcissa and I are gone, and he will not be stupid enough to parade muggles through it. I know my son, Severus; I know he is not the kind of boy to go against my wishes."

"So you told him to run away, did you?"

That seemed to bring sense to Lucius. His clenched his lips tightly together and flopped back into his seat.

"Your right" he mumbled, resting his head in his hands "I do not know my son. And now he's gone."

Severus took his seat again and sipped his brandy. He had cracked Lucius Malfoy; he deserved a bottle of brandy for that. Remus shifted uncomfortably. He wasn't sure of him being there was a nuisance or helpful.

"I'm sure Draco will come back" Remus said quietly "He will want to continue his education and see his friends."

"No he won't" Lucius said. His voice was strained as if he was going to cry, "My son is out there on his own. With nothing. No one to help him and no where to keep safe. What am I going to do?"

"Have you tried sending an owl onto him?" Severus suggested. His stomach was one again clenching with worry. This was his god son. A boy who has been hidden from the beauty of the world all his life.

Lucius nodded, pointing at a bunch of letters on the fireplace. "Narcissa sent all of those out with the owls," he explained "But they just returned. Draco is probably sending them back. He doesn't even want to speak with me."

"Well at least we know he's alive," Remus said "Which means there is always a chance at having him come home."


Draco sat against a red bricked wall, looking up and down trying to decide where he was going to go next. He was hoping to have reached London by now, but he had slowed down numerous times to look at some Muggle contraptions. He had come across something known as a 'bike'. A group of boys around his age where using them on the road. Draco had stopped for a while, pretending to tie is shoe lace and he managed to catch a few words of their conversation. One of the boys, a very tall boy with a red cap, was pointing to the middle of the 'bike' and saying that his chain needed oiling. Draco wasn't exactly sure how you oiled a chain. Or what a chain was doing on these 'bikes' in the first place. Another boy, who was smaller then Draco and wore a very baggy pair of jeans, began ranting on about how his front wheel had buckled in while he was doing a 'rabbit jump'. He had been pointing to the front wheel on the bike, which was considerably battered looking.

Further on down the road Draco had discovered the shoes with wheels. He remembered seeing them before. Although he hadn't found out what they were called, he did discover that you could take really nasty falls on them. Draco had decided that he wouldn't be buying a pair of those things. Instead, he would just learn to Apparate. The possibility of being splinched was there, but it was better then rolling straight into a brick wall.

"Where to next?" he asked himself.

Draco hated to admit it, but he knew he was lost. This was as far as he had ever ventured and now he didn't know which way central London was. He couldn't use his wand, and he didn't know how to use Muggle signposts. A loud bang jerked him from his thoughts. He looked up and saw a small, dark car speed by. Smoke was jutting from the back of it, and the passengers had the windows rolled down and music boomed from within. They cheered at Draco as they passed. He shrunk back against the wall not wanting to draw attention to himself.

"Are you ok, sweety?"

He looked up into the face of a young woman. At her side was a toddler of about 4 years. He was clinging to his mothers leg and had ice cream splattered all over his cheeks. Draco's first thoughts were that he should push the woman away and run. She could be someone looking for him, or maybe a deranged lunatic on the run from Azkaban.

"Actually, yes," he said, deciding it would be easier to stay polite and calm, "I'm a bit lost. Can you tell me where Victoria Street is?"

"Why of course," the lady said, "If you walk down this way until you come to a large yellow building, then go left and cross the first bridge and your in Victoria Street. Off to that Music Fest are you?"

"Music Fest?" Draco questioned. He had no idea what this lady was talking about.

"Yes, all the teenagers around here are heading in that direction. People from all over the country have travelled to London to see some of these mad bands. The youth of today, I tell you, think nothing of the future because their to busy wasting the days away-"

"Erm, yes, thank you for the help," Draco interrupted her. He hurried off in the direction of the yellow building, not wanting to listen to some mad ole bat rant about music and youths.


Silly Draco running off like that...

:P

ValidHacker

(Remus Pwnz)