School passed quickly for Draco. He soon finished the books he had taken from the Malfoy library, and began to look for ways to break an ancient marriage rite in Hogwarts' library. Madam Pince had been surprisingly helpful, clearly enjoying having a student who quietly asked for help, was reading by choice instead of for homework, and never made a sound.

Draco would go into the library for an hour a day, slowly working his way through all the books on ancient rituals he could find; he was becoming quite the expert.

The problem Draco had was that the ancient marriage ceremony was a strong ritual; he hadn't been able to find a counter ritual yet, or a spell strong enough to cancel it.

o - o - o - o - o

By the time summer came around, Draco had made little progress. He was a quarter of the way through all the books the school library had on the subject, and only hoped that by the time Voldemort performed the ritual - just before Yule -, he'd have found a solution.

Draco and Harry spent the summer holidays having fun; they both realised that Harry would probably be very restricted by the bond. They flew on their brooms everyday, and Harry, who still hadn't played quidditch yet, learned to love the skies. In the evenings, they'd duel. They discovered they were very evenly matched; while Draco was stronger, Harry had gray magic so she could cast spells of either alignment without trouble.

When Draco had to leave for Hogwarts at the end of the summer, he didn't want to go. Both he and Harry realised that if they wanted to see each other again, it would depend on Voldemort.

So they said their goodbyes reluctantly, finally acknowledging the truth in words; that this was the last time they could meet as themselves.

o - o - o - o - o

Draco's classmates noticed a marked change in his behaviour once he returned to school. He became moodier and moodier as the weeks passed, only spoke when he was spoken to, and was rarely seen outside the library. The only happy anyone saw him happy was when he received a letter from his 'secret lover' (as the other students had nicknamed Harry), which he did every morning. He would write a response by lunch, send it off, and then receive Harry's reply the next morning, and so on.

Harry would tell him about her progress casting the (very difficult when wandless) Patronus charm - hers was a dragon -, and ask about his schoolwork. But her letters grew gloomier and gloomier, until, four days before Hogwarts broke up for Yule, Draco didn't get a letter. And he knew it was Voldemort's fault.

His hands dug into the Slytherin table, turning white, as his fingernails dig trenches into the wood. His classmates turned to look at him as the table began to ripple out from his fingers. The huge windows, lining the great hall, began to rattle in their frames as Draco thought about what Voldemort had done to his Harry. He pulled all his magic in as tight as it would go, comforting himself with memories of how it had danced with Harry's own magic.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't notice his head of house walking over to him. He did, however, flinch as a hand dropped on his shoulder, and then Professor Snape was gesturing for Draco to follow him, and Draco walked behind his potions master all the way down to his office.

When they entered, Snape instantly whirled around.

"What was that, Malfoy? All the magic I could feel in the air... it was yours, wasn't it. What happened that made you want to destroy the great hall?" The potions master demanded. Draco looked up at him, then down at his feet.

"I can't tell you anything. It could cause someone I love to die, or be seriously injured" Draco replied, despondent.

"I am your housemaster; my job is to help you with your problems. What can I do to convince you to tell me what is wrong?" Snape asked, sure Draco was exaggerating and it was something minor.

"You could swear a wizards oath." Draco said back, and was very surprised when Snape nodded at him in consent; wizards oaths could never be broken, unless you wanted to lose all your magic. Draco narrowed his eyes at Snape, aware that Snape probably thought his troubles were unimportant.

"Fine. Swear to never act in a way which informs or could inform another sentient being about the nature or content of this meeting." Draco said, sure he had covered everything which would allow Snape some freedom. The man in question frowned, unsure why his student was being so thorough for something Snape was still sure was very minor, but he shrugged and swore the oath anyway.

Draco took a deep breath. "You know that Voldemort has returned, right?" Draco asked, indicating where the teachers dark mark was hidden.

"Yes, I am aware; he has been back for a year now." Snape replied, uneasy; why did Draco's secret have anything to do with the dark lord?

"My father was the one who kidnapped Harry, and she's lived at Malfoy Manor all this time." Draco started, but was interrupted by his professor.

"Who's Harry?" He asked, confused.

Draco looked Snape directly in the eyes. "Harriet Potter."

Snape froze, not liking where this was going, but he gestured for Draco to continue, needing to know the full story.

"Last year, when Voldemort returned, he sent my father as a messenger to tell her that he would be forcing the ancient marriage rite on her, once he was ready. And then, he performed it last night." Draco explained, his eyes shut as he thought about Voldemort and Harry. "The ancient marriage ritual is the kind which compelled the dominant person - Voldemort - to consummate it." Draco finished, his hands clenched into fists.

Snape tried to control himself, saying "you mean to tell me that Harriet Potter has been raped by Voldemort", his voice barely a whisper.

Draco only nodded.

Snape waved Malfoy out, his thoughts on Harriet Potter and every terrible thing he had thought about Lily's daughter.