Author's Note: Hey guys! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. Yet again, life got in the way. My poor baby got sick again, and then my husband and I both got it, AND we had to completely rearrange the house to accommodate our new king sized bed. But this chapter has a LOT of good stuff! As always, I don't own Harry Potter or any of the original characters! Please leave a review!

I woke up the next day, and for a moment, I had forgotten the awful events of the day before. It didn't take long to remember though. As the heartbreak came crashing down on me, I heard Harry's voice, nagging at the back of my mind.

Majella Catherine Potter, get out of bed.

Harry, please don't.

I told you that you needed to tell George, and you didn't, and now look what happened. You ruined the only relationship you've ever had.

Why do you even CARE, Harry? You never wanted us together from the very beginning. So don't pretend that you're upset that we aren't together now.

Harry seemed confused for a moment, and then replied:

Look Jella, just get the fuck out of bed and get down to breakfast. I don't have time to babysit you. In case you didn't realize, I'm a TriWizard champion, and instead of having my sister there to help me make sense of it, I had to hear about how she's locked herself up in her room and won't talk to anybody because her boyfriend finally found out that another guy kissed her, and she hid it from him. I'm tired of it being all about Majella. I have a serious problem and you don't seem to care.

Excuse me? Did you seriously just say that? You absolute dick. I have done EVERYTHING for you. It's NEVER about me! All my life I've been in your fucking shadow! Nobody cares about the sister of the Boy Who Lived. All they care about is you and your fucking scar! For years, I have stood on the sidelines, saving your worthless life, not getting any glory or recognition, while you take all the credit for yourself! Who was it who got you, Ron, and Hermione through the fucking enchantments, first year? ME! Who was it that found out there was a basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets AND sent Fawkes to you? ME! Who was it who saved you and Sirius last year from the Dementors? ME! Just fucking leave me alone, Harry. You've always been a shitty brother, and I can see that that's not going to change any time soon!

Well...fine Majella. I guess I won't tear you away from your little pity party. When you grow up, let me know.

With that, he severed the connection and threw up a wall around his mind. Grumbling about how unfair my life was, I got out of bed and took my braids out. Rebraiding my hair into pigtails tightly, I considered putting makeup on again. Instead, I gathered my books and made sure my homework was done. Everything being in order, I decided to brave the Great Hall for breakfast. On my way through the Common Room, I saw Malfoy sitting in an armchair by the fire. He had turned it sideways so he had a good view of the girls' dormitory from where he sat. Figuring he was probably waiting for Pansy, I was surprised when he got to his feet and fell into step beside me. We walked silently side-by-side through the halls, each lost in our own thoughts. I didn't want to be alone, but I also didn't want to be seen with Malfoy following me everywhere. I didn't think anything with George would be made better that way.

Malfoy and I entered the Great Hall and made our way to the Slytherin table, where we sat and loaded our plates. I tried to angry the heated stares from the Gryffindor table, but I couldn't help my curiosity. Raising my eyes, I saw Ron, Hermione, Harry, Fred, George, Lee, Ginny, and probably half the other Gryffindors glaring at Malfoy and I.

"I think I'm going to go eat in the kitchens." I told Malfoy.

I left the Great Hall, rushing to beat the tears. I was able to hold them in until I reached the door to the kitchens, and then I lost it. Sinking to the ground, I bawled my eyes out miserably until my whole body ached. I heard footsteps and quickly rushed to wipe my face.

"Oh...hello, Majella."

"Oh...hi Cedric," I sniffled. "You're awfully late for breakfast, aren't you?"

"Well, I was actually planning on eating in the kitchens." He paused, looking at my tear stained face. "I assume you had the same idea. Come on, you look like you could use a Butterbeer or five."

Allowing Cedric to help me to my feet, I followed him into the kitchens, where we were greeted by a the house elves joyfully. Dobby bounced in front of us, making a low bow and starting to say something. He stopped mid-word when he saw my tears. Grabbing my hand, my favorite house elf pulled me to my favorite table by one of the fireplaces and he handed me a spoon and a Butterbeer. Wordlessly, Winky brought out my favorite jams and a stack of muffins and placed them in front of me. Impressed, Cedric took a seat next to me.

"Well you obviously come down here often," he laughed. "The house elves don't even need to ask you what your comfort foods are any more. I take it you hide out here when you're upset?"

"Yeah," I smiled, Cedric's good mood infecting me slightly. "I've always said that it's a wonder that I'm not four hundred pounds after spending most of last year in here. I usually come in here when Harry and I aren't getting along, because he has no idea where the kitchens are or how to get in. It's my one guaranteed hiding spot. Although now that you and Malfoy both know about it, I doubt that it'll be any use to me any more."

"Why do you say that?" he asked, confused.

"Well I just figured that you'll both be coming here more often now too, so it won't be my special place of solitude any more..."

Laughing, Cedric said, "No Majella, funny enough, I usually only eat in here when I'm too busy to go eat a real meal in the Great Hall. I promise, I won't disturb your solitude."

I could tell he was making fun of me, but I couldn't be mad at him. He was so kind. No wonder he had been chosen as a champion.

"Hey Cedric, I know you and my brother are competing now...but could you and I be friends? I just...I don't really have many of those, especially in light of recent events...and I like talking to you. You cheered me up when I figured I would spend the rest of my day crying non stop."

"Majella, I would be honored to be your friend," Cedric replied, smiling. "And I don't see Harry and I as competing. We're both in the TriWizard Tournament, but if either of us wins, it's still for Hogwarts. The way I see it, we lucked out and got two chances to win, just in case one of us loses."

I smiled. It was hard to be upset when Cedric's positive energy was around me.

"Thank you, Cedric. I really appreciate you being so kind to me...not many people are doing that nowadays."

"Well, maybe you're just not hanging out with the right kind of people then," he laughed. "Anyways, Majella, I gotta get going, but I'll see you around okay? Keep your chin up. No matter how bad it gets, at least you're not likely to die this year, like I could."

"Merlin, don't tell me that!" I shrieked. "I don't want to think about you OR Harry dying in this stupid tournament!"

"Relax, Majella, I promise, neither of us are going to die. I guarantee it."

With that, he swiped one of my muffins and headed out the door. Just as he reached for the handle, the door swung open, revealing Malfoy. Cedric said a quick hello as he went on his way, and Malfoy rushed over to me.

"Jella, are you ok?"

"Yeah, surprisingly, I'm all right. Cedric found me crying in the hall and made sure I made it in here safely. He even cheered me up somewhat. He's not a bad guy, that Cedric Diggory."

"Yeah, well I'd hate to see you fall for him. He's a Hufflepuff." Malfoy made a disgusted face.

"What the hell does that have to do with anything?"

"Well...I don't like the idea of you dating a Hufflepuff. I'd rather see you with a Slytherin. Specifically...me..."

"Malfoy, you know I can't right now. My relationship with George LITERALLY just fell apart yesterday. I don't feel like dating anyone else right now."

"I know, Majella. But when you DO feel like it, I'll be here waiting. I'm not going to let another chance with you slip through my fingers."

"Malfoy, you never HAD a chance," I laughed.

"Maybe not, but that was MY fault." He looked down at his hands. "I can't believe the way I acted. I treated you so horribly."

"Hey, I'm the one that's supposed to be upset, here." I reminded him. "Besides, that's all in the past. We're friends now, remember?"

Malfoy sat up straighter in his chair and smiled.

"Yep. The best of friends."

"Um..." I smirked. "Maybe just acquaintances?" I laughed at the consternation on his face as the bell rang overhead.

"Well...time for class I guess," he said.

Malfoy grabbed my bag for me, and motioned for me to follow him. After grabbing my bag out of his hands, I led the way to the door. We made our way to our first class (History of Magic) chatting and trying to keep me from thinking about George. To Malfoy's credit, he tried to keep the conversation aimed towards good things that didn't remind me of the tournament, George, or my brother. The change I saw in Malfoy from the little shit he had been last year was astounding.

The rest of the day, Malfoy rarely left my side, choosing instead to make sure that I didn't get jumped in the hallways. What was it about this year and me getting hexed?

Classes went all right, besides the glares from Gryffindors. By the time Defense Against the Dark Arts came around, I was glad to have a class without my brother and his friends giving me the stink eye. Moody walked into the room, and I immediately regretted my excitement for his class. Not only was it a tough lesson, but Moody's keen interest in me always made me nervous. Ever since he had seen me throw off his Imperius Curse, he had taken to staring at me with his magical eye, as if trying to see inside my very body, to where the magic flowed. I tried to keep my head down and not call attention to myself in his class, but every so often he would call on me to help him demonstrate a curse or jinx.

As soon as the bell rang, I rushed out of the room, not even looking back to see if Malfoy was following me, though I knew he was. He'd been a faithful shadow all day, keeping me company, and raising my spirits. At least I was lucky enough to have ONE good friend right now.

Double Potions was next, and while I was glad to have the extra time to spend in the dungeons, and with my favorite subject, no less, I wasn't looking forward to a double block of Harry and his friends. As we walked, Malfoy passed me a badge and told me to pin it on my robes. I didn't even bother looking, I just did as he said. By the time we got to the dungeons, all of us Slytherins were waiting outside the door to the Potions room. Every single one of us was wearing a badge, which on further inspection, said

SUPPORT CEDRIC DIGGORY-

THE REAL HOGWARTS CHAMPION!

Just as I was about to take mine off and scream at Malfoy, Harry and Hermione walked up. Harry looked at the badges, straining to see what they said.

"Like them, Potter?" Malfoy said loudly, making me jump. "And this isn't all they do – look!"

He pressed his badge into his chest and the words vanished, replaced by a different message. Peering closer, I saw what it said, and gasped.

POTTER STINKS

As the rest of the Slytherins laughed their asses off, I took my badge off and threw it. My eyes met Harry, and I silently begged him to understand that I hadn't known what the badges said.

Save it, Majella, I don't want to hear it.

Harry turned away from me as Hermione argued with Pansy. Malfoy said something about Mudbloods, and I saw Harry snap.

"No, Harry, please, not here." I whispered.

"Go on, then, Potter," Malfoy said. "Moody's not here to look after you now – do it, if you've got the guts."

In a split second, both my brother and my new best friend shouted jinxes at each other. They hit each other in midair and ricocheted off at angles. One hit Goyle, who started to grow hideous (and painful looking) boils all over his face. The other hit Hermione, who immediately clutched her mouth, panicked. Hermione's teeth were growing at an alarming rate. They had extended past her chin now. I knew this jinx. It was the Densaugeo jinx. It was painful, and could cause your death if you didn't get it fixed right away.

"And what is all this noise about?" came the soft, deadly voice of my favorite teacher.

As everyone clamored to explain, Snape pointed to Malfoy. We all went silent, and I prayed that Malfoy wasn't going to lie his ass off. Maybe I had been wrong in trusting him.

"Potter attacked me sir."

"We attacked each other at the same time," Harry cut in.

Snape surveyed the damage and sent Goyle to the hospital wing. He refused to help Hermione though, so she turned on her heel and ran down the hall, away from the horrible situation. Luckily for Harry and Ron, who apparently weren't speaking to each other (I was seriously out of touch, being cut off from my Gryffindor friends), they started yelling at Snape at the same time, so you couldn't tell quite what they said. I had a good idea though. Snape glanced at me, and I pleaded with him, silently, to not kill my brother and his friend.

"Let's see," he said smoothly, keeping his cool. "Fifty points from Gryffindor and a detention each for Potter and Weasley. Now get inside or it'll be a week's worth of detentions."

I knew Snape was being unfair, but I was just glad my brother was still alive. Malfoy smirked and flashed his badge at Harry, who wasn't sitting with Ron. I didn't know why Ron and Harry were fighting, but I had bigger fish to fry.

"What the HELL is wrong with you?" I asked Malfoy as he took a seat beside me.

"Look, Majella, I never said that Harry and I would get along. Besides, he's not exactly being the greatest brother to you, you know. I thought he should get some payback."

"Well it wasn't cool, Malfoy. Hermione got hit by your stupid Densaugeo jinx. She could be really hurt right now. And you don't even seem to care. Maybe I was wrong about you. You're only being nice to me so I'll go out with you."

Malfoy didn't even have the sense to look ashamed.

"That's not the reason, no, but I don't understand why I should change my entire life, just because you've seen a better side of me than I show to anyone else."

I swore under my breath, but apparently not quiet enough, because I heard the Potions Master swoop up behind me.

"Miss Potter, kindly watch your language, or you can join your brother and his friend in detention." he said warningly.

"Sorry, sir," I said, sarcastically. "I guess I forgot that I was in a classroom. That's what happens when a teacher acts like a fucking jerk."

I knew I was skating on thin ice, but I didn't care. Snape would likely not be angry with me later on, but he would have to save face and put me in detention. Since I knew Snape wouldn't allow me to be in detention with Harry and Ron anyways, I knew that detention would probably consist of me learning to do wandless spells with Snape. Plus there was the added bonus of Harry thinking that I was selflessly sticking up for him and Hermione.

"Very well, Miss Potter, a week's worth of detention. And one hundred points from Slytherin."

Malfoy howled loudly and glared at me, but I didn't care. He couldn't scare me, when I knew for a fact that he would do anything to keep me safe. From now on, I would just have to be careful around my new "friend". I could use his feelings for me to my advantage, but I would have to be careful not to develop any feelings of my own.

Potions passed with only a slight hiccup (Harry was called out to do an interview and photos with the rest of the champions), and I quickly got lost in the world of antidotes. To me, antidotes were easy, and they were fun. Malfoy, who was always Snape's second favorite, had little trouble as well, so we were done well ahead of the bell. Malfoy seemed to be feeling sorry for making me angry, because he was definitely sucking up to me now. He helped me pack my potions kit back up, and when Snape asked to see me after the bell, Malfoy waited behind, for me to catch up. Snape set the time for my detention (seven o'clock that night) and let me go on my way.

We slowly walked to the Slytherin dungeons to drop our things off before dinner. I barely spoke to him, still angry about what he had done to my brother and Hermione.

"Majella, I AM sorry, okay? I just...I'm not supposed to like him. I'm not supposed to be nice to him."

"Says who? Who the hell tells the great Draco Malfoy who he is and isn't allowed to like?"

"Jella...it's complicated. I can't explain."

"Whatever, I don't care to talk about it any more. It's not just because of what you did today. It's because you've showed me that I shouldn't trust you. If you're serious about this friendship, you're going to really have to show me that you're the person I spent so much time with the past few days. Because I refuse to be friends with someone who is going to treat my FAMILY that way."

He hung his head, ashamed, and for a moment, I almost forgave him right then and there, just to wipe the sadness off his face. Almost.

"Look, Malfoy, you can't just be nice to one sibling and be awful to the other. That's just not how it works..."

"I'm sorry, Majella. You're right...I'm sorry."

We reached the dormitories, and we each put our bags away. Meeting back in the Common Room, we decided that dinner in the Great Hall would be a little too much of a repeat of this morning, so we headed for the kitchens. When we got there, Dobby and Winky greeted us, giving me a searching look. Assured that I wasn't going to burst into tears again, they led us to my favorite table by the fireplace and set some food down in front of us. Giving Dobby a hug, I thanked him, promising to snag him one of the scarves Hermione was knitting.

We heard the door open again, and I immediately panicked, thinking it was George. Instead, I saw the friendly face of Cedric.

"Hi, you two. Mind if I join you, or would you rather eat dinner alone?"

"Cedric, hi! I don't mind, if Draco doesn't." I said, raising an eyebrow at Malfoy.

"Sure," Malfoy shrugged. "Why not? It'll be nice to have some friendly conversation."

"Oh shut up," I said, nudging him in the ribs. "I'm not THAT bad."

Cedric laughed and sat across from me, careful not to sit between Malfoy and I.

"You know, I figured I would find you guys here tonight. I thought after this morning it would be your go-to, Majella."

Thinking back to this morning and the awful looks I had gotten from my former friends, I nodded in agreement. It hadn't been a very fun day.

"Jella, don't forget, you have detention tonight," Malfoy reminded me.

"Fuck! I shouldn't have mouthed off to Snape, but to be fair, you shouldn't have attacked my brother either, so fuck you, Malfoy. At least I know Snape isn't going to make me do anything awful. He's going to be teaching me some defense, since I'm not learning anything except how to be terrified for my life in Moody's class...he said he might even teach me wandless magic, if he thinks I can do it."

Draco and Cedric looked at me, shocked.

"So you mean you KNEW that he was going to give you detention, but called him a 'fucking jerk' anyways, because you knew that the detention was going to be fun? Majella, I officially hate you."

"Shut up, you know you don't mean it," I told Draco.

We spent the next couple hours eating and joking around with each other, comfortably falling into an easy friendship. If the three of us could just stay like this forever, my life would be perfect. Sadly, seven o'clock came all too early, and my two friends walked me to Snape's office. We said our goodbyes and Cedric left to go work on homework. Draco told me to let him know when I was done, through a mindfast, and he would meet me in the Common Room, and then he hugged me (surprisingly) and left. Smiling wide, I pushed Snape's door open, and prepared myself for the lesson ahead.

"Fuck me sideways!"

After three hours of setting myself on fire, I was regretting my decision to try wandless magic.

"Language, Miss Potter. I could still put you in real detentions, if you'd like."

"Oh stuff it," I muttered angrily.

"I heard that."

"Good," I said, raising my voice. "I'm sick of you telling me what to do but now how to do it! I'm sick of setting myself on fire! And I'm sick of this fucking headache!"

"Majella, I've already told you. This isn't something that I can explain to you. You have to FEEL the magic within you. You have to draw it up from your very depths. I can't explain how to do that. That's something you have to figure out on your own."

"Fine, whatever. Let's try again, then."

"Very well. When you're ready, clear your mind, and feel yourself drawing power as you did with mindfasting, only this time, from inside yourself. I'll be waiting with the water in case you burst into flame again." Snape snickered at his joke.

"Oh yeah, really funny..."

I cleared my mind no problem. However, I was still struggling to FIND the magic within me. The idea behind a wand is that it focuses and strengthens your internal magic. However, I was having trouble even accessing the magic that was supposedly inside of me. All of a sudden I felt a tingle somewhere in my mind. Curious, I poked at it with a mental finger, and my entire body vibrated with the sudden contact.

"I found it!" I yelled, startling Snape.

"Oh, you did? Very good. Now you're going to draw magic from there the same way you do your wand. Don't forget to use your cling wrap trick to keep the magic from leaching out."

"Right, ok. Here goes nothing."

I tried again, finding the magic much faster the second time. This time, instead of poking at it, I pulled as much power as possible from it, and I thought Wingardium Leviosa in the direction of Snape's quill, as loudly as possible. All of a sudden, the quill shot up in the air. Startled, I broke the connection.

"Did you see that? I fucking did it, fuck yes!"

"Language, Majella," Snape reminded me, though he couldn't contain his laughter at my excitement. "You did very well, I'm proud of you."

"I think I've earned myself a break." I said proudly.

"Actually," Snape said, "I'd better get you back to your dormitory, Majella. It's getting late."

I yawned. Maybe that wasn't such a bad idea.

"All right, let's go then." I said, trying to stifle another yawn. I'd been working hard for hours, and I was beat up and tired.

As promised, Malfoy was waiting up for me in the Common Room when I got back. After catching him up on my lesson, we sat and talked for a while, but I could feel my eyelids start to droop. Malfoy grabbed a blanket he had stashed beside him, and gestured for me to sit next to him. I scooted over so that we were touching, and he put his arm around me. I snuggled in, leaning my head on his shoulder, and sighed contentedly. Maybe it wasn't so bad, being his friend. He started stroking my hair and singing a soft song.

"What are you singing?" I interrupted, not understanding the words, although they sounded familiar. I raised my head to look at his beautiful silver eyes.

"It's an old Gaelic lullaby. My mother used to sing me to sleep when I was young."

"Oh, it's beautiful." I sighed, as I snuggled back into him. I must have heard it in Ireland, but I was distinctly aware of a feeling of deja vu, like I had heard the lullaby in a dream.

He continued to sing and stroke my hair as I dozed off, and I wondered if my father had ever sang my mother to sleep like this. As I started falling into a real sleep, I thought I felt Draco kiss the top of my head, but before I could register it, the waves of sleep washed over me.

I woke up slightly cold, but comfortable enough. It took me a few a minutes to wrap my head around the situation at hand. I was in a bed, but it wasn't my own. There was a slightly musty smell in the air, like old socks that had been shoved in a drawer and forgotten. I looked around, and as my senses warmed up, I heard snores coming from all directions. I swung my feet to the floor, anxious to leave, when I accidentally stepped on somebody.

"Ahhhhhh!" I squealed, terrified that I was going to be jinxed.

"Shhhh, Jella, calm down."

"Malfoy? Where am I? Is this...your room?"

"Yeah," he replied, bashfully, rubbing his hand through his beautiful blond hair. "You looked so peaceful last night, and I didn't want you to have to sleep on the couch again...so I brought you in here and tucked you in. Don't worry though...I slept on the floor."

"Malfoy, you didn't need to do that," I said, unsure of whether to be grateful or embarrassed. "Look, I need to go get dressed...but I'll meet you in the Common Room in about forty-five minutes or so?"

Malfoy nodded his head and before I could turn to leave, he gave me a quick faltering hug. Almost as if he was struggling to resist the compulsion. Giving him a smile, I said goodbye and walked quietly to the girls' showers. Careful not to wake anyone, especially Pansy, I showered and braided my hair before slipping my clothes on quickly. I couldn't remember how much homework I had from the night before that wasn't finished yet, but I brought everything I had, just in case. One of these days, I would need to just suck it up and buy a planner.

By the time Malfoy made it back down to the Common Room, I had already been waiting a few minutes. Smiling, he grabbed my bag and began walking out the door.

"Malfoy, give me my bag back." I laughed, chasing after him.

"Not on your life," he replied mischievously. "I'm holding it ransom."

"Ransom for what?"

Malfoy looked confused for a moment, and then handed me the bag.

"I don't know," he said quietly. "I guess I forgot."

We chatted amicably on our way to the Great Hall, but when we got there, I paused, afraid to go inside.

"Draco...what if we just keep going to the kitchens?" I asked, afraid to face my brother and his friends.

"Jella, we can't hide from our problems. You and I are going to have our breakfast, and we are not going to worry about anybody else. We are going to have a good time, and George Weasley and Harry Potter be damned!"

With that, he grabbed my hand and practically dragged me through the Great Hall. As we took our seats at the Slytherin table, I could feel the heat of the stares from the Gryffindor table, but I refused to give them the satisfaction of seeing my pain. As Malfoy and I made a show of acting like we were having the time of our lives, I felt a familiar tingle in my mind.

Jella, what the hell are you doing with him?

Look, Harry, I needed SOMEONE to hang out with, and since everyone has decided they hate me...

You know that's not it at all, Majella.

Oh really, so you're not all giving me the death glare right now?

You hurt George, and you've been a shitty sister. Nobody wants to deal with your shit anymore, Majella.

Yeah, well news flash, Harry, I don't want to put up with your shit anymore either. You treat me like I don't even exist except for when you need something from me. That's not love, that's not caring. That's manipulation. And I'm tired of it. I'm tried of being your lackey.

Angry, I threw a brick wall in Harry's path, closing my mind off to him. I glanced over at the Gryffindor table and wasn't surprised to see Harry's face grow thunderous. I turned back to Malfoy.

"Is it ok if we go now? I'm not hungry any more, and I'd like to go somewhere without all of the glares from the Gryffindors."

"Of course," Malfoy said. "We have a free period first, so we have almost two full hours before class. Do you want to hang out in the kitchens or the dungeons?"

"I think the kitchens. I need some tea and maybe some ice cream."

Malfoy laughed and grabbed our things. We left the Great Hall but not before I heard Harry telling Hermione about our mindfast conversation. Malfoy must have heard as well, because his steps grew quicker and he placed his hand on the small of my back, effectively pushing me along with him. I was grateful for the help, because without it, I would have stopped in my tracks, likely turning around and confronting Harry. That was not a good idea, especially in the middle of the Great Hall. Lost in my thoughts, I was surprised when I saw Dobby in front of me. He bowed low, his ten hats almost falling off his head.

"Miss Jella, Dobby has a surprise for you!" he squeaked.

"Oh, Dobby, you don't have to get me a surprise. I'd rather get you one," I told the smiling house elf.

"No, Miss. Dobby has already found the perfect surprise for Miss Jella."

Dobby held out his hand proudly, bouncing on the very tips of his toes. Examining the 'present', I glanced at Malfoy, utterly confused.

"Dobby...what is this?"

"It is a tea bag, Miss Jella."

"Yes...I see that Dobby...thank you..."

"Miss Jella, it is a MAGIC tea bag," Dobby laughed.

"Oh, I saw those at the World Cup, this summer!" Malfoy said excitedly. "You tap it twice and tell it what kind of tea you want, and when you put it in the hot water it makes that kind of tea. And then when you're done, it dries itself, and you can use it again!"

"So it's basically going to save me a ton of money on tea, is what you're telling me," I said to Malfoy, happily. I turned back to Dobby with a smile. "Thank you Dobby, thank you so much! I really appreciate this!"

Reaching down, I pulled my favorite house elf into a tight embrace, doing my best to keep the tears from falling. What amazing friends I had. Finally letting Dobby go, I led Malfoy to an empty table, where there was already a bucket of ice cream and two spoons waiting. Dobby set a steaming mug of hot water down in front of me, and I smiled. Now was as good a time as ever to try out my new tea bag.

"Blueberry, honey tea, please," I said, tapping the tea bag twice with my wand. I dropped the tea bag into the hot water and immediately the soothing smell of blueberries and honey met my nose. I gave Dobby a grateful smile and took a sip. It was, without a doubt, the best blueberry and honey tea I had ever tasted. Malfoy and I relaxed, eating our ice cream and talking about our pasts. I told Malfoy everything, including the memory of my mother, from last year. He was just as confused as I was, so we spent time trying to figure out why I could remember something from so long ago. After a moment, I decided to tell Malfoy about Snape's involvement in the memory too, which still blew my mind.

"Wow, you've got to be kidding me," he muttered, lost in thought.

"I know, it's completely ridiculous, isn't it?"

"I didn't know Snape even KNEW your mother, let alone that he was in love with her."

"I knew he had fancied her, and I knew they had been friends, but when they were in school, Snape started to hang around the Death Eaters, and Mum didn't like it, so they stopped talking, as far as I knew. And then when she started dating my dad, I guess Snape was upset, and decided to get the Dark Mark. I had no idea that they ever talked after that..."

Malfoy and I sat in silence, each letting our thoughts take their own shape, when all of a sudden, we heard the door open. I saw a flash of red hair, an angry, "FUCK" and the door slammed closed again. Malfoy and I looked at each other, knowing exactly who had opened the door. He must have seen us. It was only then that I noticed how close Malfoy and I were sitting, our arms touching, and our heads bowed close together. Maybe my subconscious was trying to tell me something.

The next two weeks passed much the same, with Malfoy and I spending every waking hour together, whether in class, the library, the Great Hall, or the Slytherin Common Rooms. The shock of seeing us together had pretty much worn off for everyone, though I still sometimes caught a glance of George, his face almost as red as his hair, and trembling. I didn't understand how he could be SO angry, when he must have known by now that I had never invited Malfoy's advances. Surely, I thought, Harry must have told him. But every time he saw me or Malfoy, or even worse, both of us together, it was always the same. I didn't really care any more, because honestly, Malfoy paid more attention to me than George had, and he seemed to genuinely care about me. He even started helping me try to piece together who had put Harry's name in the Goblet of Fire. He made it very clear that he wanted exactly NO ONE to know, but that if it would make me happy, he would do everything in his power to help me protect my brother. Harry, the ever ungrateful shit, had no idea that I was trying to help him, as per the usual. He hadn't even spoken to me since our last fight, and every time he saw me, he quickly looked away. At first, I was hurt. My own flesh and blood was treating me like...well, like a Slytherin. But after a while I stopped caring. HE obviously didn't care, so why should I? Malfoy tried to convince me to try to make up with Harry, but I was too stubborn. There was no way I was going to admit that I'd been wrong. As far as I concerned, Harry was the one that needed to apologize, and I would wait til kingdom come if I had to.

Harry, it seemed, was enjoying the fame he so often said he hated. Just a couple days after his interview with the rest of the Champions, Rita Skeeter came out with the most disgusting piece of trash I had ever read. In it, Harry spoke of our parents, saying that he got his strength from them. Apparently he spent a lot of time crying himself to sleep over their deaths. Now, I obviously knew that wasn't true, but I didn't bother to say that to anybody else. Why should I, after all, stick up for Harry when I barely even wanted to be related to him?

Rita Skeeter also wrote a lovely piece about Harry and Hermione dating. I knew that wasn't true either, because I knew how much Hermione liked Ron. But again, I didn't try to dissuade anyone thinking otherwise. I kind of liked Harry NOT being the miracle child any more. It seemed that the majority of the school hated him, and that was just fine with me.

Ron was among those of us who weren't exactly on Harry's side, surprisingly. Apparently, he was insanely jealous that Harry had be chosen a champion. He didn't believe that Harry hadn't entered his name, so he was understandably pissed when he thought that his best friend was lying to him. Ron spent a lot of time hanging out with Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan, which meant that you could always pick up the faint scent of singed hair and smoke whenever the three of them were around. I never thought I would see the day when Harry and Ron weren't up each other's asses, but it was nice to not have to constantly tell Malfoy to shut up with his jokes about them being gay for each other. Not that being gay was bad or anything...one of my best friends on Privet Drive was gay. His parents hadn't known, last I had heard, and had they found out, he probably would have been sent to reform school. Anyways, Malfoy's jokes weren't annoying because they were about my brother being gay, they were annoying because they were about my brother. Of course, lately, Malfoy seemed just as angry with Harry as I was, which was also fine with me.

The weekend before the first task of the TriWizard Tournament, we had our first Hogsmeade visit. Only third years and up were allowed to go, which was great because you didn't have to deal with all the first and second years who were still getting used to life in the castle. Malfoy and I went together, with the plan being that we would hit Zonko's, Honeydukes, and a couple of the other fun shops before stopping to eat at the Three Broomsticks and then heading back to the castle early. After about three hours of shopping and having fun, Malfoy and I decided to stop and have lunch.

"Shit, Majella, I'd rather not go in here," said Malfoy, his beautiful pale face turning pink.

"What's wrong, Draco? The Three Broomsticks has the best food. Unless you want to walk all the way back up to the castle on an empty stomach..."

"Jella, Hermione's there, by herself."

"Yeah...and?" I asked, confused.

"She's talking to someone, and I doubt it's herself, since she's such a smarty pants. So I'm guessing the 'Boy Who Lived' is in there too, under that damn Invisibility Cloak he got from your dad..."

"Damn it!" I turned on my heel, angry, and started storming towards the Hog's Head.

"Majella, slow down. I don't feel like getting poisoned today. Let's just wait til we get back to the castle to eat. We can be there in less than a half hour if we walk fast."

"Fine. Whatever," I said, swiftly changing direction.

I knew I was being immature, but I was peeved. First off, Harry had ruined what had actually been a great day so far. Then there was the fact that I was still pretty sore about the fact that our father had left the Invisibility Cloak for Harry, and nothing for me. It always made me feel even more insignificant to think that my parents didn't love me as much as they loved Harry. It wasn't exactly a big leap. They had a ton of pictures of them with baby Harry, I was lucky to have found the SINGLE photo of our mother and father holding me. And for some reason, unlike every other photo of our parents, the photo with them and I was a Muggle photograph, which is to say, it didn't move. I never got to see my mother's eyes crinkle with love when she smiled at me, I never got to see her beautiful green eyes glint, or her red hair sparkle. I never got to see her kiss me and affirm that she did, in fact, love her daughter. I got to see all these things in their pictures with Harry, though, which made me feel like absolute shit.

Before I knew it, we were back at the castle. Only then did I realize just how hungry I really was. During our walk back from Hogsmeade, not only had I ignored Malfoy, but I'd ignored my stomach as well. I ranted and raved to myself silently, instead. But now that I could smell the glorious lunch waiting for us, my stomach growled and cramped uncomfortably. We took our seats at the Slytherin table, Crabbe and Goyle (ever our silent shadows) sitting a few seats away. They were close enough to see us and head off any potential harm done to us, but far enough away that they couldn't hear our conversations. As much as I disliked them both, I'd gotten used to their strong and silent presence, and I had to admit, they actually made me feel pretty safe.

As Malfoy and I ate, we talked, and my bad mood started to fade away.

"So then, after hours of searching and crying her eyes out, my mother FINALLY found me, dead asleep, behind the sofa in the second drawing room. And when she put me back in my crib, she had to put enchantments all around me so I didn't melt the bars again!" Malfoy howled with laughter, trying desperately to get the words out before the laughter consumed him.

I took a good long look at him, marveling in the beauty of his face. His pale skin, so soft and smooth, his blond hair glinting in the candle light, and his eyes, a steely gray when he was angry, but with a hint still of the soft silver that came over them when he looked at me only. I laughed along with his story, imagining his mother putting enchantments all around the two-year-old Draco. He had so many amazing stories of his mother, and none of his father. In fact, he never spoke of his father if he could help it, but I was too afraid to ask why. There were just some topics that he and I never brought up between us. It was an unspoken rule that we wouldn't pry into things that the other didn't want to talk about, though I burned with the urge to examine his mind while he slept, to see why his father never featured in his "happy family" stories, as I called them.

"What's wrong, Jella?" he asked, after his laughter had subsided.

"What?" I said, snapping out of my reverie. "Oh, nothing. I was just thinking." I smiled at my best friend. Shall we head to the Common Room? I want to relax now that I've eaten myself into a food coma."

"Of course," replied Malfoy, flashing his brilliant smile at me. God, how I lived for that smile.

He held his hand out to help me up, as always, and for the first time ever, I took it. And when I had gotten to my feet, I didn't let it go. Malfoy's face turned pink, and his eyes flashed silver. A good sign that he was happy. We walked the entire way to the dungeons, hand in hand, Crabbe and Goyle trailing behind us.

"Majella, Draco, wait up!"

"Oh, hi Cedric," Draco said, grinning at our friend.

Cedric came running up to us, with a note in his hand.

"Here, Majella, this is for you."

"What? What is it?"

"It's from Dumbledore," Cedric replied, clutching the cramp in his side. He must have sprinted the entire way.

"Oh, great, I bet he's going to show me another memory," I said quietly to Draco.

Unfolding the note, I read it quietly and nodded my head.

"Yep, he wants me to come by around 8 tonight to show me something. He said that Snape will be there too, so it's probably something about Sabine again."

Malfoy nodded, but Cedric looked confused.

"Who's Sabine?"

"Oh, sorry Cedric, I forgot that I hadn't told you. Sabine was Snape's older sister. Apparently she had something to do with Voldemort."

"Oh, that's weird. I never knew that Snape even HAD a sister," Cedric mused.

"Yeah, I know, nobody did. Anyways, thanks Cedric. I'd like to stay and hang out, but I need to go lay down before my meeting with Dumbledore. I'm exhausted enough as it is."

Cedric nodded and waved, smiling, before turning and walking back towards the Hufflepuff hall. Draco and I entered the Slytherin dormitory and headed up to his room. Nobody else was around, it still being early on a Hogsmeade Saturday. I curled up on Draco's bed, and he sat beside me, stroking my hair. He told me stories until I could barely keep my eyes open, and then he stretched out, down the length of the bed, so that we were laying side-by-side. He held his arm out, and I gratefully scooted over, snuggling into his warmth. He put his arm around me, and my head rested on his chest. Listening to his heartbeat, I wished we could stay this way forever.

"Draco, sing me the lullaby again."

"Very well," he replied.

As he sang, he wove his fingers through mine, his thumb gently rubbing my hand, soothing me. His beautiful, rich voice reverberated in my mind, and my thoughts whirled with the emotions he evoked. I sighed, happy to be here, with my very favorite person of all. Malfoy finished my lullaby and his voice went silent, the comfortable quiet of the dormitory room settling around us.

"I love you, Majella," he breathed, his voice shaky and low.

Half asleep, I replied, my throat scratchy with sleep.

"I love you too, my Dragon."

Author's note: EEEEEEEEEEEEEP! What do you guys think? Is Majella letting her emotions cloud her judgement or is Malfoy really turning over a new leaf? Do you think it's too good to be true? And what the hell is up with Harry, huh? Thanks to my faithful readers, who proofread my junk, and who keep me writing! I love you guys!