Thank you to all who have read so far. As I stated in the beginning, it has been some time since I have done fanfiction so it makes me happy to see people reading what I've written. Feel free to let me know how you think it's going or if you have any input as this is a work in progress. I have the bigger points pretty much down but I'm always open to constructive criticism and suggestion. I do ask that you don't be an ass and throw out hateful nonsense though I accept that it comes with the territory. Can't make everyone happy now, can I? Also, some NSFW content in this chapter. We're not going all the way but that bond is pushing for completion. If you need music for that bit, I was listening to "Adrenalize" by In This Moment. Now that that bit of business is out of the way, back to our unusual quintet, my loves.

All Around Me Ch. 8

Tempys Secrets and The Seventh Horocrux

Harry woke to the afternoon sun filtering through the curtains and warm blankets wrapped around his battered and sore body. He sighed and settled into the cozy bed, the most relaxed and comfortable than he had felt in months.

He immediately shot up off the bed, grabbing for his wand off the nightstand and checked his surroundings. They weren't in the tent. He felt panic bubble in his chest as he turned to find Ron asleep just as sound as he would be at The Burrow. Trying to get a hold of his frantic breathing, he walked himself through his memories of the last day or so, mentally checking off that things were alright.

With a shaky sigh he lowered his wand and wiped the sweat from his face. They were alright, last night had happened, they were at Tempys home. They were safe.

Figuring he wouldn't get back to sleep and it was already late afternoon by the looks of it, he pulled on the dressing gown Tempy had left for him. He pocketed his wand, remnants of paranoia from being on the run still in his veins, and made his way down the stairs. When he found his way into the kitchen, Tempy was sitting at the table, a pot of tea and two cups set out. She sipped from one as she motioned for him to join her.

"Morning, Tempy." He greeted her, his voice raspy with sleep.

She gave him a subtle nod, "Good afternoon rather, dear."

He grinned, "Yeah, I would say I can't believe we slept so long but we haven't really been keeping to a normal sleep schedule."

"Well, the mild sleeping potion I put in the tea helped I'm sure."

His eyes flew to hers as his hand instinctively settled on his wand, "You what?"

She eyed him lazily, not feeling threatened in the slightest. "Oh, hush, you. The three of you were wound so tight it would have taken ages for any of you to fall asleep and actually sleep. I just mixed a very mild and small dose along with a nutrient potion into the tea to help the recovery process. I apologize if it offends you that I did not ask but the three of you were way worse off than I thought. Honestly, I'm not the bad guy, Harry."

He felt his body start to release its tension and he put his hand back up on the table, feeling a slight chastised.

"Ok… I get it but if you're wanting to continue to do that, let us know. You've already helped us a lot but sneaking them wont go over well."

"I already planned on speaking to each of you about a potion regiment. I'm no healer but I know my potions." She took another sip of her tea. "If it makes you feel any better I did the same to Draco. His mind still needs time to sort out the confusion. I'd rather not have to talk him down twice in one day. I'm a big girl, I can take a curse but his psyche probably couldn't take knowing he cursed me in his confusion."

"He still asleep then?"

"Yes, he woke when I did and, after making sure he knew who I was and that I was ok, I made him stay in bed. I swear, if you or the others are as stubborn as he is I'm going to lose my bloody mind." She sighed dramatically and threw her head back in mock exasperation.

Harry let out a hearty laugh at her antics, "Well, you obviously don't mind adding a few more nutters to your mental menagerie."

She chuckled, "Not really, no."

Harry fixed himself a cup of tea and they sat in silence, enjoying to warmth of the fortifying liquid.

"Harry."

"Hm?"

She stared at him for a few moments before she looked back down to her tea.

"There are things about me, my family, that I can't discuss right now. Things even Draco doesn't know about yet. I want to earn your trust but I know thats difficult when someone keeps secrets. I know people have kept information from you before, information that could have affected the outcome of numerous situations you have found yourself in in the past. It is my hope that Draco and I can enlighten you to some facts that were grievously kept from you. I don't know if the information in my family tree will have consequences in the here and now but I can't help but think they might."

Harry leaned over his cup and stared hard at her, trying to judge her body language and tone.

"Why can't you tell me then?"

She looked up at him, her eyes watery. "I promised my dad. I know that may not seem like a good enough reason but he swore me to secrecy unless it came down to life or death; no other choice."

Harry nodded in understanding, "It's not a bad reason but you're right, I really dont like secrets. So many things in those memories Draco sent me would have changed past events. If Dumbledore had just trusted me, I could have done things differently." He turned his gaze to his own tea, contemplating her situation. "Is there anything you can tell me?"

She thought a bit before answering him. "I can tell you some things but I can't give you names. I just hope what I can tell you gives you enough reason to trust me if or when I have to expose everything." He indicated for her to continue. "My family line is Ancient and thought to have died out but we are the descendants of a cast out woman thought to be nearly a squib. She was nothing but a weak blood traitor to my maternal many times over great-grandfather. She fell in love with a pure-blood that sympathized with muggles. From what I have read in her diaries, he was a good man. They had one daughter who inherited her magical ability, or 'lack there of."

She stood up and walked over to the counter and grabbed a handful of seeds from a container on the window sill and returned to her seat.

"What do you know of elemental magic, Harry?" She asked.

His face scrunched up in thought, "Not much other than I assume they have to do with the elements. This is more of a Hermione thing. Maybe Ron, he was the one who knew about the blood magic on the parchment."

She smiled, "I knew he had more in him than he is given credit for. You're kind of right, that type of magic is based off of the four elements. Most witches and wizards can tap into it a little in the basics of some spells or show a natural affinity for said type of spells. However, in some bloodlines, it is more than just an affinity. It is a natural and sometimes instinctual control over that element."

She held out her hand to him and he lifted his. Her palm opened, dropping the seeds into his. "My ancestors were near squibs in any other magical sense, however they held one of these innate abilities." Her hands gained a faint green glow as her voice trailed off, the seeds in his taking on the same glow.

"My mother inherited it as well, also considered nearly a squib, and she passed it on to me."

Harry felt a surge of magic in his palm, warm like sunlight on your skin on a summers day, and watched amazed as the seeds sprouted and bloomed into full plants, simple herbs by the looks of it. He tore his gaze from the new vegetation grown in his hand to her anxious face.

"You… you can control it that well?"

She slowly nodded, "Not just plants. If its connected to the earth I have some degree of control. The more something bleeds into another element the less control I have. I can't control a stream but I can bend the rocks and banks to change its course so to speak. Or say molten rock such as a volcanoes magma. I have not tested that really, no volcanoes around here to really experiment, but theoretically I could control it a little but it shares its nature with fire. From what I can put together from the diaries left behind, if I were to pair with someone with another elemental line, we could combine the controls. Say a water and air line meet and can create ice or storms or, like I mentioned before, a fire and earth could fully control the molten rock. There was a mention in one diary that stated fire and air would create lightning. Personally I think theres more possibilities or even if you could combine more people but thats neither here or nor there."

"How would you know if you had an affinity?" He was still a bit awestruck but suddenly much more interested in the topic.

"Most are taught they have it by their parents from what I understand. I learned through my mums diaries and so on. You could always try to control one and see that way. Theres ways to test for it. Your family line is Ancient as well so you possibly could. I would think air from what I have heard of your flying capability. The elemental lines manifestations are considered rare these days because most of the Ancient houses have either died out or the magic hasn't been compatible with the pairings that have been made. Inter-marriage among pure-bloods have stunted the growth and continuance of such gifts. I'd bet money that if Weasley had one it would be fire and I'm fairly positive Draco has one for air as well. Both their lines are not as polluted by intermarrying, despite the Black blood in their veins. Hermione is muggle-born so who knows. Depends on if her magic was spontaneous or if she was descended from a squib I would imagine."

"Does Draco know about this?"

Her expression changed from thoughtful to a slight grimace, "Well, he knows my family has a lot of hedge witches. I haven't gone too far in detail yet."

"Why tell me?"

"I needed you to know that you could trust me, even if I can't tell you everything. We don't share a bond like Draco and I do. You don't get the benefit of being able to see, hear, and feel inside my head. Our interactions are and will be based solely on mutual trust and hopefully friendship. I already planned on telling the others what I can as I have told you. Figured if any of you had one I could help you learn about it so you would have another edge in this war. I wanted you to know because its something I can safely tell you to show you that I am not trying to hide or keep secrets that I don't have to keep."

She reached out her hand and took the herbs from him and went to place them back on the counter.

Harry watched as she leaned against the counter, faced away from him. She had said her piece and it was up to him now. He stood up and walked over to the counter and gently grabbed her shoulder to turn her to face him.

"I don't like secrets." He started, her eyes down cast. "We owe you and Draco a lot for what you've given us and told us. If whatever it is that you're holding back can help us I would like to know. But I understand, I'll respect your silence for now. I just ask that if its coming to a point where it becomes an issue, you tell me as soon as you can. Please?"

She looked up at him and gave him a small smile.

"If it looks like it needs to be said, I'll tell you. I just beg that you trust me when that happens."

He nodded and stuck his hand out to her. She took and they shook, coming to an understanding.

A loud thump and muffled yell of 'Harry!' from upstairs broke their bubble and Harry rolled his eyes.

"Sounds like Ron rolled out of bed. Literally."

She laughed, "Go see to him. Hermione should be waking soon as well. I'll go check on Draco. Everyone wash up and get properly dressed and I'll come down and make dinner. We can eat before any serious talk. Theres a few other things to discuss other than what I've told you already and I know theres one thing Draco hasn't told you yet that you're anxious to ask about."

The reminder of the seventh Horocrux snapped his focus back. He hadn't forgotten, per ce, but it hadn't been in the forefront of his mind. He went to ask about it but he had barely opened his mouth before he was cut off.

"No, I will not be telling you. Draco is the one who was told and who must tell you and he will after everyone is washed and fed." Her tone had him shrinking away as if Molly had scolded him. Her face softened, "I know you want to know and you will, Harry. I'm just trying to take care of you guys and help you recover from months of malnutrition and exhaustion. I promise, it will be fine to wait a couple more hours."

"Right, sorry I just… seven? Six was insane but had Draco not reached out we would have thought we were done when we found the six. We would have lost if we had tried to kill him."

"I know, Harry. I'm sorry. Now, try to push it out for now and we'll get some food." She gave him a light shove and headed for the stairs. He shook his head and smiled. For how tentative this all started out, he was already considering her a friend.

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Draco sat on the bed waiting for Tempy to come back. She had wanted him to stay in bed but he had been restless and unable to fall back asleep. He had went down to join her but heard her talking to Harry. Curious, he hung back to listen, not sure if he should intrude or not.

It had hurt him a bit to hear her telling him something she hadn't even shared with him yet. He heard her explain that she intended to explain to them all so that there were as few secrets as possible but it still stung a little.

Tempy found him sitting there and knew instantly something was wrong. She sat beside him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"You never went back to sleep, did you?" She asked.

He shook his head, "No."

She sighed and pulled him to her, his body stiff, "Am I correct in assuming you overheard my conversation with Harry?"

"What gives you that idea?" He scoffed, his hurt giving way annoyance.

"Draco, I'm sorry if you're feeling hurt and I don't blame you if you do but I didn't keep it from you for any set reason. I told you my mum and our family were full of hedge witches just not the whole explanation."

"Yet, Saint Potter gets the full one? What the hell sense does that make, Tempy?" He growled, pulling out of her arms and standing to pace the room.

"It wasn't exactly planned that way! Yes, I had wanted to talk to him, I want to earn his trust and when he asked what I could tell him I figured I was going to be going over it with everyone anyway so I told him. I did not deliberately tell him to not tell you."

"We've been together for weeks now, Tempy and you never told me."

"Oh, when was I going to sneak that long speech in, eh? Between making sure I kept your bloody arse alive when you first dropped in and trying to get you to understand the facts of our bond? Or after your head took a scramble from copying all those memories? Or when they first got here? That would have made for an interesting first meeting!"

"Yes! Let's blame me for everything!" He yelled.

"IT'S NOT ABOUT BLAME, DRACO!" She roared, standing to get face to face with him.

He sneered and she glared, the air around them crackling with magic. The room grew hot as their auras clashed.

There was a frantic knocking on the door.

"Tempy! Draco? What's going on!?" Harry yelled through the door.

"Oh look! Potter to the rescue." He whispered, his voice edged.

"We're fine, Harry! Get the others taken care of we will be down soon." She answered, her glare still on Draco.

"I'm not against you, Draco. I am for you. I know you're still sorting out your head but remember who I am. What you are to me. I would never do anything to hurt you, to trick you, to betray you. Get your anger out if you must, but do not make me out to be a villain."

The room exploded in fiery streams of magic as he lunged forward and kissed her roughly, grabbing her arms tight and pushing her up against the door that Harry was still trying to open. Her magic responded in kind, throwing up wards around the room while the house plants she had throughout erupted into sudden growth spurts. She growled into the kiss and pushed back to free her arms. His hands found their way to her hair and her hip, clutching her tight, as her arms found their way around his neck. He stepped back and lifted her up, her legs wrapping around his waist, and he slammed her back against the door.

The heat intensified as his magic enveloped her, claiming her. His mouth trailed rough kisses and bites down her jaw and throat to her pulse point where he bit down hard and sucked. She cried out and rolled her hips against his arousal, causing him to hiss and pull back, his earlier sneer replaced by a primal look of possessiveness and longing. Her magic reached out and caressed him, encouraging him.

His lips returned to hers, frantic and needy, and she returned it in equal ferocity. He rutted against her, causing friction in just the right spot. She gripped his hair as he swallowed her moans and cries. Their magic sang and sparked as its tendrils intertwined. His hands roamed her body and she felt flames licking her skin, hot but not burning, driving her closer to bursting.

Her stomach twisted tight as he became more insistent and erratic. She could feel as he started to loose control, his body approaching its own completion. She kissed him harder, nipping his lip in the process, and moved with him. The taste of blood and the frantic movements was all that was needed. Their magic exploded around them as they broke, riding wave after wave of pleasure and magic. The room around them was bordering unbearably hot and vines had begun to work their way through small gaps in the houses log walls.

As they both came down, Tempy looked into Dracos eyes and recognized the signs of impending guilt and panic.

"What have I… Oh, Merlin, Tempy…." He caught the sight of the bruise he left on her neck and he stepped back so quickly she almost fell. "I hurt you.."

She reached out and grabbed him, pulling him back to her before he could retreat.

"No, no you didn't. It's ok."

"I was angry. I don't know where it all came from. I was hurt you didn't tell me but not that angry, I don't know where..." She cut him off with a quick kiss.

"Draco, your head is a mess right now. Emotions you shut off for years and had to bury are resurfacing. You're allowed to feel that."

He squeezed her tight, the both of them leaning against the battered door.

"It gives me no right to do what I did. I don't even know how I did most of that.. I've never felt my magic do that before."

"If that had been all out of anger we would be having a different discussion right now. However, I'm pretty certain it wasn't." She tried to soothe him, running her hands through his hair.

He looked down at her, confused, "What do you mean?"

"The bond, love. You were hurt I told someone else, someone until very recently you had to see as an enemy, something about myself that you didn't know. Our bond isn't complete yet and won't be until we consummate it. It felt threatened, add in the storm already in your head, and the magic felt like it needed to make its claim known."

"I still don't think that was acceptable. I pushed you against the wall for bloody sake. I grabbed you, I bit you."

She waved him off, "It's part of the claiming. The bond responds to the most primal parts of ourselves. Did I fight you? Did I call for help? Trust me, if I had wanted to, I could have fought you off. I didn't want to." She pointed to the purple mark on her neck, "This is you claiming me as yours and had we kept going don't doubt I wouldn't have done the same. You are mine and I am yours. Until your head had settled and we complete the bond, there will be occasional reassurances of our bond. And for the record, that was brilliant."

"Brilliant? And thats what this was? Assurance?" He asked, a hint of disbellief in his tone.

"Yes." She nodded factually. "Now that bit with the fire, no that was something different. I must admit, I thought you would be air."

"What?"

She rolled her eyes, "I'll explain downstairs. I was going to wait until after supper to go over this bit but I'm fairly certain theres a confused and worried Harry just outside our door so explanations will come sooner rather than later. You may want to Scurgify us real quick."

He blushed, noticing for the first time the cold spot in his pants, but nodded and quickly cast the charm as she stepped them back from the door. She dropped the wards she had thrown up, allowing the door to burst open under the pressure of three bodies.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione fell to the floor in a pile. They groaned as they looked up to Tempy looking at them in amusement.

"Nice to see I have endeared myself to you three enough for you to come to my aid if needed."

Harry jumped to his feet and looked them both over, holding back the knee jerk reaction to pull his wand on Draco.

"Are you both ok? You two were yelling, then the house filled with some crazy magic. Tempy, your house is covered in vines now and we thought the place was going to burn for a bit. There were flames but nothing was burning, it was bloody insane."

She nodded, "Yeah, I'll call back the vines, sorry about that. As for the flames, turns out I was wrong about Draco being air. He's fire."

Harry nodded in slow comprehension but Hermione and Ron, who had finally pulled themselves back up, stared in confusion.

"Fire? Whats she on about?" Ron asked, eyeing them warily.

Harry glanced at Tempy, not wanting to spill her secrets. She smiled at him and shrugged.

"I'll explain over dinner. Come on you lot."

As she went by Ron, he noticed the bruise on her neck and the faint fingertip marks on her arms. In a rage, he lunged at Draco and brought him down to the floor. He pulled his fist back to punch him but found it and his body bound by the vines that had grown impossibly longer in just seconds. He looked up to see Tempy, a very cold and unfriendly expression on her face.

"Ronald, I said I would explain downstairs." Her voice was flat as she waved her arm, the vines obeying and pulling him off and away from Draco. Another set reached down and helped Draco stand back up.

"There is no excuse to hurt a woman." He said, the vines still holding him tight, causing Draco to look down in shame.

"Pish posh, Ron. If you can hit a man for it, you can hit a woman for it. You really shouldn't hit anyone, mind you, but if a woman attacks you, you fight back. Are you going to tell me that if Bellatrix attacks you and the only way you're getting away from her is to hit her that you wouldn't? Please. Theres a time and place and besides, he didn't hurt me. Cool that head of yours and I will explain what all of that was. Circe, Merlin, and Morganna I need tea." She groaned as she released and called back the vines and walked out of the room.

Hermione went to check on Ron and Harry walked over to Draco. He clapped his hand on his shoulder.

"You alright, mate?" He asked.

Draco eyed him before nodding, "Heads still a bit funny but I think so."

"Good. Still not sure what all happened but lets go down and help with supper, eh? We'll get it figured out."

Draco pulled himself up straight and motioned for Harry to lead the way, leaving a concerned Hermione and Ron to follow them.

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The next hour was tense as Tempy and Draco worked on dinner while Harry acted as a buffer between them and Ron and Hermione. When everyone sat down, Hermione broke the silence.

"Tempy, could you please fill Ron and I in on what Harry already seems to know?" Her tone was short, a bit miffed that they were in the dark as well as concerned about what happened upstairs.

Tempy finished serving simple meal of chicken, potatoes, and vegetables before sitting down and fixing her with a stern look.

"I would appreciate less of that tone. We were originally going to have this discussion after we ate but with what just happened I realize that you all want a proper answer sooner. The tone, frankly, is unnecessary and unwelcome."

Hermione bit her tongue but her face looked like she ate a lemon.

"Harry already knows a little of what that was all about only because I had wanted to have a private conversation with him, which Draco ended up hearing. Draco, prior to that, hadn't been told so you weren't the only ones, just so you know." She stirred some sugar into her tea. "With all the secrets that were kept from Harry, I wanted him to know there were some things I couldn't tell him but not to be malicious or to hide things from him. I simply can't reveal some things due to family oaths. He asked me to tell him what I could so I did. I explained a power I have that he, Ron, and Draco might have due to their bloodlines being as Ancient as my own. I also told him I didn't know if you could or not because I don't know where your magic comes from, family line descended from a squib or spontaneous appearance."

She paused and took a bite of her dinner, silently encouraging the others to do so as well. When they figured she wouldn't continue until they were eating, they followed suit. Once she was satisfied that they would eat, she sipped her tea and continued.

"Hermione, Ron, do either of you know what elemental magic is?" She asked.

They shared a look between them before Hermione answered first.

"It's using the four elements to perform spells and incantations. Some are more skilled in certain spells than others."

"Close but not totally correct. Witches and wizards tap into these elements to use the spells and yes some do have more of an affinity for some but not the whole answer I'm looking for. Ron?" She turned to him, his expression calculating, like he was trying to figure out a board of chess.

"You said an ability because of your bloodline, yeah?" She nodded in the affirmative and he rubbed his hand over his eyes. "Bloody hell, mum said those were just stories."

Hermione turned to him, somewhat annoyed that again he knew something she didn't and probably due to her being muggle-born. The lack of information was so unfair!

"Well, Ron? What were just stories?" She asked, her annoyance plain to hear. Tempy pinned her with another sharp glance before telling Ron to continue.

"Well," he started, a bit uncomfortable, "mum used to tell us stories of witches and wizards who could control an element. Conjure flames and water wandless and wordlessly, pick up the winds and move the earth. She always said they didn't exist though, that they were just stories to entertain us."

"There's the rest of the answer. Elemental witches and wizards do exist. They are bloodline dependent. It is not a skill in which one can learn and master. They are much more rare these days because of the genetic narrowing of pure-bloods killing of the magic as they intermarry as well as the Ancient bloodlines dying out. This type of magic needs room to grow and a compatible witch or wizard to manifest in."

"So there's no way a muggle-born like me could have such a power, then?" Hermione was not happy at what she felt was yet another injustice against her blood.

"Did you not hear me earlier, Hermione?" She snapped. "I didn't say no because I do not know your bloodline. And even if you couldn't have one, its not a slight against you or your blood. Not every magical person can do it, it is strictly in family lines just like some creature inheritances and family magics. Magic does not discriminate, some things just are what they are."

Hermione hung her head and wouldn't meet her eyes. She realized she had been unfair and petulant. She was just so tired of being so left out.

"I'm sorry, Tempy." she whispered, pushing her food around with her fork.

Seeing this, Tempy sighed and leaned back in her chair. "I know our world is unjust in its practices towards you're blood type, Hermione, but I am only trying to give you information that you can use. I had wanted to try and see if any of you presented any tells of having an elemental ability. I had thought Draco would be air but turns out, his is fire, hence all the flames around the house. Mine is earth if you had not figured that out yet. If you wanted to try I would not have objected."

She was silent as she watched her start to eat again, internally sighing in relief. The girl was so malnourished she would have felt terrible if she didnt finish her food.

She lifted her head and sat straight, confident. "I would like to try."

Tempy grinned at the classic Gryffindor behavior.

"Very well, then. After dinner I can test the three of you. Draco is already confirmed fire, Ron I wanna say you will be fire too and Harry air but I was wrong about Draco so who knows. Once confirmed I can help you learn to master it."

Hermione smiled, feeling somewhat better, and dug back into her meal, suddenly hungry again.

Ron cleared his throat, getting Tempys attention again.

"What about the bruises, Tempy? None of that explains how you got those. Just the magic we felt and saw." He nervously looked towards Draco, unsure whether to be angry with the boy or feel bad for him. Draco looked a cross between ashamed and angry with himself while Tempy looked unbothered.

"You already know about soul bonds but do you know what happens when they are incomplete?" She asked.

"Mum never really talked about it that far. Again, she just told us stories but had said they at least existed."

"Yes, well, when bonds aren't completed the bond-mates can feel very insecure in the bond, like someone else could come and steal them away even if the bond itself pretty much prevents that. It's primal and needs a soothing reassurance until its whole. When Draco heard me tell Harry something I hadn't even explained to him yet, he was hurt. His head is still settling and the bond felt threatened so he and his magic reacted. I noticed the signs pretty quickly so I didn't fight it really. Challenged him a bit and told him off yeah but I didn't fight him."

"But he hurt you!" Ron half questioned, half accused.

"Mate, I don't know all that much about bonds, but I don't think he hurt her anymore than she wanted." Harry muttered, a blush creeping across his face causing Draco beside him to cover his face and his own blush.

"How does that make any sense?" Ron asked.

Tempy laughed, "You need to have sex to complete the bond, Ron. To reassure it, you merely need to be a little intimate. In our case, we were both a tad rough. I would bet if you looked, Dracos back and scalp probably have my own claw marks. In fact, I do believe his lip is a bit split."

"Oh Gods." Ron coughed and his head from ears to neck turned bright red in embarrassment.

Tempys laughter grew in volume and slowly the rest of the table joined until even Ron was laughing.

"Well, I'd say you misjudged that situation a bit, eh Ron?" Harry gasped out between laughs.

"Yeah, well, why did you take it so calmly, you didn't know about the whole bond reassurance thing either."

Harry shrugged, his frame still shaking from his laughs. "Tempy is a scary witch, mate. I don't doubt that if he had truly intended to hurt her that she would've hesitated in kicking his arse."

Draco nodded in agreement, "She could, too. Wand or no wand shes not one to mess with." He smiled at her and reached out his hand. He was still not proud of his behavior but she was right. Plus the thought of having her against the door again threatened to bring the blush back.

"I can assure you, I would not mind a repeat of that." Her voice whispered in his mind as she smiled and took his hand.

He smirked and kissed it lightly before turning back to the others and join the new topic of conversation.

When dinner was finished, they helped her clean up before moving out to the living area. Tea was poured and tailored to each others tastes before Tempy asked each person to hold out their wands.

"There are a few ways to test to see if you have an element. Even if you don't have one you can still have an affinity and be more proficient in spells based on an element. Everyone ready?"

With a few exchanged glances and nods of encouragement, she continued. "Right, then. If noting happens we can try again later. With how drained all of you are I don't know that we would be able to call anything forth but its worth a shot. First, I need you all to hold out your wands and close your eyes. Then, you're going to relax and clear your mind as much as possible. What you're trying to do is focus on your magical core. You've used it all this time and probably never properly reached out to it, never gotten to know the feel of its embrace. We feel our magic when we use it so we know it enough to know when something feels off but we don't know it as extensively as we should. When you connect to your magic in this way, your instincts, responses, and over all your magic become stronger, more fluid. Spell work comes more naturally because theres no lack of connection. This will make eventual wandless and wordless magic much easier to learn."

After her explanation, the four situated around her set out to clear their minds and find their cores. Even though Draco had already manifested, she wanted him to purposefully connect to his core in order to properly feel the connection.

The minutes dragged on and after 20 minutes she began to wonder who would quit first. She knew if could take many times on a healthy core to do this but had faith that at least one of them would manifest tonight. The impossible seemed to be possible with the Golden Trio.

To her joy, Draco manifested first. A long serpent like dragon of fire erupted from his wand and coiled around him. He opened his eyes and she motioned for him to stay silent. He nodded in amazement as he stared into the face of his dragon. As they interacted, a noise behind her caught her attention.

Surprisingly it was Hermione that manifested next. Her wand shot a river of water, spectral otters swimming and playing as it circled around her. Her eyes flew open as she openly wept tears of joy. She looked at Tempy and smiled so brightly. She smiled back and nodded, again motioning for silence.

Beside her, Rons wand produced a fiery tornado, a phoenix flying in its gale. His eyes were round and wide at the strength of the magic and he looked to her in gratitude. She gave him encouragement, shushing him as she turned to Harry.

His brow was furrowed and his face covered in sweat. She frowned at the odd sight. It wasn't easy to connect to the core in the way she was having them do so but he looked to be having more trouble than she thought he should. She approached him, as the others withdrew their magic.

"Harry?" She asked. When there was no response she grew worried.

"Tempy? Whats happening?" Draco asked.

"I don't know. He should be able to..." She stopped herself and her eyes grew in horror. "Draco.. I didn't think about the… with him."

His eyes were confused until her meaning became clear. Shite.

"Can you help him?" He asked.

"Whats going on!?" Hermione asked, Ron holding her. Her earlier tears of joy had turned to fear and concern.

They looked at her then back to each other.

"I can try something but you can not allow our bond to flair up, Draco. Our bond is secure, do not let it feel threatened, do you understand? I need you to keep Ron and Hermione calm. Can you do that?"

He swallowed thickly, already not liking the feeling he was getting, but knowing that it needed done, he nodded and pulled the other two back to the sofa to try and calm them down.

With that done, she straddled Harrys lap and laid her forehead against his and slowed her breathing. She forced his eyelids open and used a spell to keep them that way.

"Legilimens!"

She found herself in Harrys mindscape and was horrified at what she found. There were black tendrils reaching out from deep within. She recognized the stink of dark magic and followed pulses of what she recognized as Harrys magic that were coming down the lines of the dark.

She followed it deep down to where his core should be and found Harry with his arms strung up holding him in place beside his core. He was screaming at something she couldn't see. She rushed towards him and knelt before him before throwing her arms around him.

"Harry! Fight it! You can't let it touch your core!" She screamed, hoping he heard her. "I'm here. I'm here, Harry! Let me help you!"

She opened her magic to him and flooded him with it, and together they pushed their combined magic into the darkness binding him, sending them shrinking back to where they grew from. As they watched them retreat, she knew the darkness was still there, knew what its source was, and hoped that they would be able to remove it. She turned to Harry, who looked back at her with questions.

"It attacked me as soon as I got here. Somehow I just knew I couldn't let it touch my core. It felt familiar, like I've dealt with it before."

She frowned at him, knowing she couldn't tell him as she had no real answers other than what exactly it was where as Draco hqd the full story.

"We can explain everything when we get out of here, Harry. For now, its safe to reach your core. Do you want to continue?"

He looked at her unsure before looking back to his core.

"I can trust you, right?" He asked, not taking his eyes off his core.

"Yes." She answered simply.

He gave a quick sharp nod before stepping forward and reaching out for his core.

Draco and the others were watching the two unmoving figures in front of them when Tempy was thrown across the room as Harrys magic manifested around him in powerful gusts. She slammed against the wall and landed with a thud.

"Tempest!" Draco screamed and ran to her, kneeling down and pulling her into his arms. He frantically searched the bond as she lay unconscious, checking her breathing and pulse. When he found them to be steady and that she was just knocked out, he turned his attention back to Harry. He was standing in complete awe at the large snowy owl lazily beating its powerful wings in front of him. He had tears in his eyes as he reached out for it.

"Hedwig..." He whispered and the owl bowed its head, allowing him to pet it before the magic returned to him. Pushing aside his shock, he wiped his eyes and saw Draco holding Tempy.

"What happened?" He asked as he rushed over, kneeling down to check on her.

Draco felt heat rise up in him. He wanted to lash out at the one perceived to have hurt his bond-mate but he stamped it down. It wasn't Harrys fault. He knew that but the feeling was hard to fight.

He grit his teeth, "Whatever happened in there, she was thrown back and hit the wall."

Harry didn't miss the tone in his voice and thought Dracos bond was putting a strain on him. He put up his palms in surrender, "I'm sorry, mate, I don't know why that happened. I promise I wouldn't have hurt her."

Draco shook his head, "I know, Harry. Believe me, I know but the instinct to protect her is so hard to ignore right now."

"Yeah, well, you can relax now, Draco. I'm awake."

The two men looked down at the groaning woman as she tried to sit up. Draco was reluctant to let her go.

"Draco, I'm fine. I need to get up now so we can sort this mess out."

He sighed and he helped her stand up. She wanted to roll her eyes but knew he was just worried for her so she kept her composure and walked to the trio eyeing her with concern and curiosity.

"Well, I'm surprised but pleased to see everyone was able to not only make contact with their cores but have an element in their bloodline. Congratulations to all of you. My dad had said it was more rare these days for all the reasons I gave along with the fact it wasn't taught anymore. I wonder how many people have it but just don't know it?" She pondered.

The three grinned and let out excited laughs. Harry sobered quickly and asked about what had happened to him. Draco and Tempy shared a look and silent conversation before Draco stepped back while she stepped forward.

"Harry, you didn't seem to have a problem getting to your core but the problem was something else wanted to as well and tried to keep you from getting to it. If it had, we probably wouldn't have been able to bring you back. You said it felt familiar?"

Everyone sat down as she explained, eyes wide and bodies tense. They had almost lost Harry?

Harry locked his gaze with her, "Yes, and the more I think about it, the more it feels like the Dark Lord. He possessed me once, in fifth year. He had been slipping into my mind all year, when he was angry or when he was doing something terrible. Thats how we ended up in the Department of Mysteries, he sent me a vision. He was torturing Sirius and I fell for it. He wasn't there and only showed up because I was there. He died because of me." He let out a shuddering breath as he composed himself. "When the Dark Lord came there was a battle and in the end he possessed me. I was able to push him out. Is that what this is?" he asked.

Tempy looked up at Draco and reached to give his hand a squeeze.

Draco leaned forward in his seat and wrung his hands together. "Harry, the Dark Lord didn't leave anything behind that night nor do I believe he is using the link to invade your mind again. Last I had heard about it, Severus said the Dark Lord had written it off as useless since he could not see what you were doing and you would likely not trust a vision from him again so easily."

He paused and stared into his former rivals eyes. The emerald green orbs were tired, haunted by things no one, let alone no one their age, should have seen or done. In them he saw a need for answers, a plea for no more secrets. An end.

"Harry, I promise you, no matter what, we will find a way to fix this. Don't let this become a death sentence because I bloody well will not. We will fix this and we will bring Him down."

Those tired eyes slowly filled with recognition and sorrow as the weight of the words seemed to confirm a suspicion Harry had had for some time now. Draco gave a slight nod before speaking again.

"You're the seventh Horocrux, Harry."