Here I come to find myself, catch the tide

Looking for a peace at the end of the line

Sometimes I can't help myself feel the tide

I'm all at sea and so unwise

I'm so afraid I'd lose your love as time goes by

But courage is a fire and a beacon so bright

The sunset builds a memory - our love signed

And all I see becomes a lie

I close my eyes, I know you're there, love of mine

Standing on the shore in a world I designed

The sunset fires a lonely flare into the sky

And all I see we say goodbye

Looking for a place called home

~ Home, Above and Beyond

Emma:

For Emma, confessions were a hard concept. Trust was even harder. For all of her life she had been taken advantage of due to her trusting mostly everyone.

First there were her parents, who settled the foundation for Emma's inability to trust. A father who lied to her from day one and a mother who was never home enough to actually establish a good relationship with her daughter.

Then there was her teacher, Mary Margaret Nolan who she couldn't trust after learning that she was the "other woman."

Third was her now ex-boyfriend, Neal Gold who broke Emma's heart into little tiny pieces.

Fourth was her best friend, Robin, who refused to believe Emma.

Fifth was Mandy, the woman who took Emma in only to throw her back out.

Sixth was Greg and his wife Tamara who lied about who they were and put Emma in jail.

And there were many more.

So yeah, Emma had a problem with trust. And due to all the lies, deceits and pain Emma went through she built herself a strong hold, a defense, to keep out the bad.

It gave her many things, the gift of noticing a lie, the gift of a good job, the gift of being excellent at her job, the gift of money, the gift of a good life, the gift of security and safety…

But it never gave her the gift of love.

And with Caroline shedding tears like no tomorrow, it reminded Emma just how much love hurt.

Emma was shocked to come home after work and find her sister crying and a letter on the table to the side. Emma dropped everything, and scooped Caroline into a hug. She scanned the letter, wondering what could possibly be bothering her so much. Turns out it was the letter from their mother.

Emma reflected over all of this as she poured hot chocolate into two mugs. She topped it off with whip cream and cinnamon. Forbes hot chocolate always had to have cinnamon. She carried the mugs over to Caroline who had by now proceeded to the couch with a blanket and an almost empty tissue box. Emma couldn't help but create a grim smile due to the sight that her sister created.

Scattered around Caroline was tissues on the floor and the couch. She was wrapped up in a blanket that went all the way up to her chin and her hair was mussed. Emma shook her head and walked in setting Caroline's mug on the table while she sat herself beside the bundle of sadness.

She looked at Caroline and put her arm on the top of the couch behind Caroline's head. She didn't say anything but rub Caroline's shoulder and sip her cocoa.

"Why did mom lie?"

Emma sighed and focused on the blank TV in front of them. "She didn't lie. She just….kept things to herself."

"That's the same as lying."

Emma shrugged. "Maybe. But either way you now know the truth." Caroline sniffled.

"But was it worth it? I mean I'm so confused and hurt and I just don't know what to think."

Emma sighed and squeezed Caroline's shoulder.

"Mom was in a complicated situation. And she acted irrationally. She was hurt and that made her vulnerable making her search for the quickest solution which happened to be Lucius Malfoy. You and I both know she regrets it and yeah it hurts what she did but we can't let it control us forever. If we do it'll destroy us because that's what hate does."

"You speak from experience?"

"Yeah. I do."

Caroline turned and looked at her sister and saw her green eyes glistening. "What exactly happened Em?"

Emma sighed and leaned back against the couch crossing her arms in the process. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"When I was little, nine to be exact I saw something I wasn't supposed to see."

"I was a baby then right?"

"Yeah."

"What happened?"

"Let's just say I never need the birds and the bees talk."

Caroline gasped, a hand shooting to her mouth. "You saw mom and dad doing it?"

"No. I saw David and Mary Margret doing it. In our parents' bedroom. I was so young, I didn't understand what was going on so I ran out of the room. David heard me hit the door and scrambled after me. He grabbed my arms and furiously told me never to tell mom and he was just so angry and I was so scared."

"Emma…"

"After that I eventually learned what was happening. And I couldn't help it but I resented him so much. I hated him so much. He was cheating on mom because he wasn't getting any and I couldn't stand him. I confronted mom about it and she knew and it turns out she was having her own affair. Then came Draco and everything was getting so complicated. David wanted me to live with him after the divorce, and I just…I just couldn't live the lie anymore by pretending to be some perfect little family."

"So you ran."

"So I ran."

"Emma…I am so…"

"Don't Care. What's in the past is in the past."

"But it's scarred you. I can't believe Dad did that."

"No one can. The perfect David Nolan being a corrupt man and an adulterer? No one would believe it. He's too…good in their eyes."

"I don't think I can ever talk to dad again."

"You should Caroline. This isn't your battle, it's mine. David and I need to resolve it ourselves. Don't let our feud ruin your relationship with him. He's your dad Caroline."

"He's yours too."

"No. Not anymore."

"Does Draco know?"

"Bits and pieces. He is our half-brother so he does know more than you. I figured mom explained some stuff to him."

Caroline nodded and snuggled into her blanket. "We need to have a chat. All of us."

Emma simply nodded her head in agreement and the sisters waited for Draco to arrive home.

…

Draco was whistling to himself as he walked back to his home from the post office. He smiled, knowing that Hermione would have a big smile on her face when she opened the gift. As Draco thought about it more, his smile grew bigger.

"Draco!"

Draco slowly turned his head up and saw Kurt and Blaine running up to him.

"Hey guys."

"OMG WE HAVE HUGE NEWS!" Kurt was practically squealing with joy as Blaine smiled on happily.

"What guys?"

"Hermione Granger is officially dating the football captain Ronald Weasley!"

Draco felt his heart drop and his smile slowly disappeared. "What?"

"You heard us. Nerd girl is dating one of the hottest guys in the school. That'll boost her popularity. I didn't know Ron went for the brainy types let alone her going for brawny. I'm actually kinda shocked."

"I have to agree Kurt. Don't you think so Draco?"

"Uh…yeah…totally."

"Well anyway. Just thought we'd share that piece of gossip! C'mon Blaine I want to go tell Mercedes. She's going to die when she hears this."

"I'll meet you there. I just need to talk to Drake about our chemistry project."

"Sure. No problem hun."

Kurt kissed Blaine on the cheek and the ran off to find Mercedes. Blaine stood there and looked at Draco pointedly as he stared onto the ground.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing."

Soon Blaine eyes grew wide with realization. "Oh my gosh…you like her…don't you?"

"Uh no. I have no idea what you're talking about. That's ridiculous."

"Well I did always picture Hermione going for you rather than Ron."

"Really?!"

"HA! GOTCHA!"

Draco rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Whatever. She's with the Weaselbee. Plus, we're just friends."

"Uh huh…"

"Look Blaine I don't like her okay? We just talk about books. That's it. She's drab and kinda boring."

"Whatever you say Drake. Look I'll catch you later. I've got to find Kurt. See you around."

Draco nodded and watched as Blaine ran off. As soon as he was out of sight Draco collapsed onto the bus bench and put his head in his hands. Damn the Weaselbee for stealing his girl.

Okay well Hermione wasn't his girl but Draco was the Slytherin Sex God. He knew how to woo women and yet…he was too late with Hermione. He'd been friend zoned. He felt heavy.

Draco had never been rejected but then again the girls had never been Hermione Granger either. His past "girlfriends" had been empty vessels of pure vanity that dated him because of his looks and popularity and he dated them because of the attention he received from having them on his arm.

But Hermione wasn't every other girl. Sure she dressed nicely but her looks weren't her main concern. She could maintain a conversation, and her comebacks were witty and efficient. How one could be attracted to her solely based on beauty is crazy. She was so much more. She deserved more.

Draco laughed to himself. How on earth could he be the man for her? He was broken. Broken beyond repair with the family scandal and the school catastrophe.

When he was living in England and attending Hogwarts he was the brightest pupil at the time and also one of the bad boy. Dumbledore was the Headmaster and was a kooky old bastard who had won the hearts of every house but Slytherin. The Slytherins loathed Dumbledore. So one night they decided to humiliate him. It was Tom Riddle's idea, and Draco happily went along with it.

Along the way though the prank soon became a lot darker than originally attended and Draco wanted out. Tom threatened him and he conformed to the group. He didn't want to lose his status and become an outcast.

On Halloween, the Hallows feast occurred and the group of Slytherins involved held sly smiles and a twinkle in their eye. Just like every feast, at one point Dumbledore would disappear and head up to the astronomy tower.

The prank was simple. Terrify the Headmaster in the creepy old astronomy tower and push him towards the window to then be covered in mud, dirt, and anything else unsanitary they could find. Then they would take pictures while unknowingly to him and then spread them throughout the school like wild fire.

So they followed him to the astronomy tower. Once the prank began the Slytherins began to laugh because there headmaster was covered in mud and dirt and slime. But then as the laughter was growing Draco noticed Blaise sneaking away from the group in their hideout and approaching the headmaster whose back was to him. Draco blinked, realizing that Tom intended to push the headmaster off the tower. Draco scrambled away from the group and ran towards the duo screaming, "TOM NO!" Draco jumped in between Tom and Dumbledore but the force of Tom's push caused Draco to fall into the headmaster and push him out the window and down went the headmaster to his death. None of the other Slytherins saw and Tom blamed the fiasco on Draco. Draco was held responsible for Albus Dumbledore's murder. He was on trial and found to be not guilty due to a surprising and unexpected witness statement from his ex-girlfriend (who had dumped him for his arch nemesis Harry Potter). She confessed to seeing Dumbledore trip and fall and therefore stating it to be an accidental death not a murder. After the scandal Draco was sent to be an outcast because the school still believed him to be at fault. Even his own house.

His "friends" left him and Draco's worst nightmare came true. He was the outsider. He lost his place on his football team as captain (soccer cause he's from England), his girlfriend had dumped him and his father was furious with him. His step mother simply smirked whenever she saw Draco around the manor, as if she knew he'd be sent away.

And his mother's death provided the perfect opportunity. When he received the news he was distraught but his father….his father locked himself in his office for days. Even Narcissa couldn't get to him. Draco then decided he was going to go to the United States for her funeral. He needed time away from England. He told his father but his father never answered. With great sadness Draco had packed his bags, and headed to see his dead mother and the sisters he was forced to leave.

This brought him to his current state which was sitting on a bench all alone. He laughed because everything bad was happening to him and he didn't deserve it. His mother was dead, his father hated him, everyone at school hated him and the girl who he liked (he had finally admitted it) was with someone else. Draco chuckled a sad laugh and as he did he felt warmth. He blinked as he recognized the feeling seeing as it was the same one that embraced him on the plane. He looked around but failed to see anyone. Draco shook his head and got up and headed home.

…

When he arrived he saw Emma and Caroline sitting at the kitchen table with coffee in their hands. They seemed to be in a deep conversation.

Draco threw off his coat and boots and chucked them into the closet. He was no longer sad but rather angry. Weasley didn't deserve Granger. Draco may not be a good guy, but he was much better than Weasley. And what did Weasley and Hermione share anyway? Nothing! He's the exact opposite of her!

"Draco?"

The blonde haired boy looked up and saw his sister staring at him expectantly.

"Sorry guys. I'm just heading up to do homework you two can keep talking."

"Actually we were hoping you could join us."

"Alright."

Draco slowly moved and joined the duo at the table. Emma got up and poured him hot chocolate topped with whip cream and cinnamon.

"Let me guess. The cinnamon is a Forbes thing?"

Emma smirked and Caroline sighed. "It's actually a Swan thing. Dad hated hot chocolate with cinnamon."

"Oh. Cool. I guess."

"Look Draco we figured with Caroline finally knowing everything we should…talk."

Draco gulped and looked at his sister. "Alright. Let's talk."

…

Emma nervously fidgeted with her mug as the awkward silence rung in the air. "So…"

"So." responded Caroline.

"You guys said you wanted to talk."

"Yeah I know Draco. Look, Caroline and I were talking about mom and we figured that all of us need to talk together to clear the air. We need to get arid of any barriers that we have."

Draco nodded and Emma let out a breath. "Who wants to go first?"

Caroline sighed. "I will."

"When Emma left Mom learned a year later she had breast cancer. She didn't seem shocked but rather she accepted it. Back then I couldn't understand but now…things make a bit more sense."

"Anyway she took it in stride. I wasn't too bad at first but soon she fell into a coma for months. No one knew if she'd make it out. Most of the town was unaware and Dad took over at the station to fill in for Mom."

"Anyway, Dr. Hart, you know her as Zoe Emma, she was Mom's doctor and she was fantastic. She took great care of Mom and was constantly checking up on me. She's kind of like a mentor to me you know? Her life wasn't great either. Actually it's kind of like mine. But that's not the point."

"Zoe was there for me because no one else was. I mean technically they were but no one actually knew what Mom and I were going through but Zoe and a few nurses. Moving on from that, eventually Mom woke up but she suffered a lot of pain from the chemotherapy and radiation treatments. She was in constant pain and Zoe had no idea why. None of the doctors did."

"Out of the blue she started getting better. She was talking, moving; she even could get out of her bed and walk around. It was a miracle, but it didn't last. All too soon she was back on hospital bed and doing worse than before."

"And eventually she was gone. She had gotten too weak and she couldn't fight it anymore. It was the worst day in my life."

Emma wrapped and arm around Caroline and Draco grasped her hand as the tears fell down her face. Five minutes later Caroline was clearing the tears and taking a deep breath.

"Sorry guys."

"You have every reason to cry Care. You were closer to her than we were."

"Thanks Drake."

"I never knew Mom had the cancer till it was too late. No one ever contacted me or told me."

"I know Em and I wish they had. You too Draco. I could've…I could've had my family with me."

Both siblings hugged Caroline and she took another deep breath.

"How are you doing now?" asked Emma.

"I'm surviving. I miss Mom a lot but it does help that you two are here and Emma helped clear a lot of stuff up with her. I'm saving for university. I want to go into event planning. I'm…I'm okay or at least…I will be."

Emma smiled and Draco grinned. This was good. This was progress. "Alright I guess I'll go next."

"As I told Caroline, I was nine when I learned about David's affair with Mary Margaret. After that things were tense between him and I and frankly, I hated having to keep the secret and it destroyed our relationship. I told Mom and she knew aned that's when I learned she was having her own affair. I always knew Mom and David had it rough, they got married so young but as a kid you always hope you know? You always hope that no matter what they'll make it through. Boy was I ever wrong."

"And after they divorced, David wanted me to live with him so he could mend our relationship but I didn't want that. I couldn't trust guys after him. Well technically that's not true. There was Neal but I'll get into that later. So I lived with Mom. Around the time they divorced Caroline, you were six and Draco you were five. Obviously Mom had the affair after Caroline was born and frankly got pregnant really fast with Draco. It was a barely a year your Dad Draco and Mom were together when they had you. Technically that's not true either. They were seeing each other before hand, in public places before Mom was pregnant, while she was pregnant and after."

"Anyway, after the divorce Draco came to visit us every summer and people asked questions because no one knew who Draco was. Mom told the town he was our cousin who had to live with us in the summers cause his parents went away when really his dad was living in the town as well as Mom."

"During this time I was dating Neal, he's Mr. Gold's son. Neal was…the first guy to notice me and for a girl at fifteen who didn't have a lot of good knowledge of boys and a lot of insecurities around guys…it was a big deal for me. So I fell head over heels for him all too fast. I didn't know him and I think that was part of the problem. I gave him things that I wish I never had. Don't get me wrong, he was a good guy just…not the one for me you know?"

"Emma….what happened?"

"He got me pregnant."

"AT FIFTEEN?"

"Seventeen actually. Two years after we got together."

"Oh my goodness! What…what happened?"

"I miscarried. He and I had gotten into a fight, I was so scared and stressed, I was practically reliving the moment with David when I was nine and I began bleeding. I was rushed to the hospital and I begged them not to call Mom. They agreed reluctantly and the next day I was let out. Neal didn't talk to me again he just got up and left. And it hurt because I felt so much guilt for miscarrying his kid and he left because of what I did. I know it's not my fault now but it scarred me."

"And I was so tired of living a lie at home because we weren't a perfect family, we were so far from it yet we had to keep up these appearances. No one could know the truth and I was hurt and in pain and just…I ran. I ran to New York and started over though it sure was as hell not easy."

"I became a thief. I really good one. I stole money, food, amongst other things. I met a woman names Mandy. She was nice. Gave me new clothes, and a place to stay. But later she learned something about me, I'll never know what it was, but all of the sudden she threw me out calling me filth and scum."

"So I was back on the streets. Eventually I met two other thieves, Greg and Tamara and we made a decent team. Greg would distract them and then Tamara and I would steal the goods. But one day, and I really should have seen it coming, but Greg and Tamara took off with some watches and left me for jail. The cops arrested me and I was sent to prison for eight months."

"Once I got out the police had been viewing my records and were really impressed with my, well, I'll refer to them as talents… they offered me a position on the Manhattan police force. I took it willingly because I had no job. There I met my superior Graham Humbert and eventually I became a well-respected team mate till I heard about Mom's death and had to head here."

"And that's my story."

The room was silent. Both Draco and Caroline had their mouths open, completely dumbfounded.

"Wow."

"Yeah."

"Emma…are you…you know…alright?"

"Caroline…I wouldn't who I am today if it weren't for those experiences. Yeah they sucked as hell, but they made me a stronger person today."

"But Emma…"

"But nothing. I. Am. Fine. There's no doubt about it. It's been years since those events occurred and you'll be happy to know that it was I who caught Greg and Tamara and put them in jail for quite a few years. My life has been good after all those painful experiences."

Caroline simply nodded and wrapped her sister into a tight hug. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks Care."

Emma looked over her sister's shoulder to her brother who smiled a small smile and nodded his head. Emma couldn't help but return the favour.

Caroline had always been a touchy feely kind of person who expressed her love for others through physical affection. Draco on the other hand was more of a verbal affectionist. He would tell you how much he appreciated you and for that Emma was grateful. She wasn't a touchy feely person herself.

"Alright Care, I can't breathe."

"Oh sorry. Draco?"

"I'm up next. Okay. Well I moved at eleven because Mom and Dad had a huge fight and she told him she couldn't be with him and he didn't understand. I didn't either at the time but after reading her letter, I get it now. Anyway, so Dad moved to London, England. He started up his business there, he's an accountant, and the business began to do well. Dad was invited to all the high social galas and there he met Narcissa Black, my step mother. She was, is a vile woman and honestly, I can't stand her. Dad never loved her though and she didn't love him either. Their marriage is based solely on convenience. Her Dad was one of the wealthiest men in London and with Dad marrying his daughter, Dad's business soared and he became huge in London and was recognized as the best accounting firm in London. Narcissa married him for his money I guess even though she had plenty of her own…I think somewhere deep down she did love him but knew my father would never return the affections."

"She hated me when she met me and instantly convinced my father to send me off to boarding school. And he did because he was so focused on his business."

"So off I went to Hogwarts where I became popular instantly. All of the kids knew who my dad was and they wanted to be my friends. It was great because for the first time I actually felt wanted. I had girls on my arms all the time and all the guys wanted to be me."

"It wasn't until this year when everything changed. There was this new kid, Tom Riddle. He was in my house, Slytherin, and he was a messed up kid. Hogwarts is divided into four houses, Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Anyway, Tom had a real hatred towards the Headmaster, Dumbledore. Granted none of the Slytherins really liked him. We thought he was insane. But Tom didn't simply not like him he loathed him. So on Hallows Eve, you guys call it Halloween, Hogwarts usually holds a feast and Dumbledore every year leaves and heads up to the Astronomy tower to look at the stars. Some of the Slytherins, myself included, planned a prank. It was simply, just taking pictures of him covered in mud."

"So we played it and it was going great till I saw Tom sneaking over to Dumbledore whose back was to him. It dawned on me that Tom was going to push Dumbledore out the window to his death. I ran towards them and jumped in-between them. It was too late though. Tom pushed with so much force that I crashed into the Headmaster and in return he fell out the window. His death was instantaneous."

"After that Tom blamed it on me and I was in such shock I couldn't deny it. I was brought to court but found not guilty due to my ex-girlfriend's testimony. She admitted that I wasn't the cause of the death but Dumbledore had tripped and his death had been accidental."

"Father was furious and Narcissa was pleased because she never liked me. I became an outcast at school because student still believed I was to blame. I'd never felt more alone in my life. And then the call came and I felt empty. I took it as an opportunity to leave London and the past behind. I told my father and he locked himself in his study. He really loved her. Narcissa wasn't pleased and I can't lie and say it didn't make me happy because well…it did."

"And that's my story."

Emma didn't know what to say and neither did Caroline. Both were silent as they took on in their brother's story. Caroline then pulled Draco into a fierce hug and Emma got up from the table and joined in.

All of the sudden the air felt lighter and warmer and the rest of the evening was spent in blissfully conversation with an atmosphere of new beginnings.

And for once, the place felt like home.

A/N: That chapter went completely the opposite of what I hoped. Sorry guys! Aha kind of. Anywho, read and review and be ready for lighter chapters ahead. This one was kinda heavy.

~ Ember G.