"Hadrian, Draco-is everything alright?" Severus met the boys at the top of the staircase and set up a silencing charm to ensure that they were safe from eavesdroppers.

"Everything is fine now," Draco said, "Although I would recommend keeping Pansy away from us for the remainder of the evening." He scowled at the thought of the Slytherin girl, and for a moment his eyes-which had returned to normal before they came downstairs-flashed silver.

"Narcissa has already taken care of it," Severus assured him as he looked over Hadrian, checking for any signs of injury; "Are you alright Hadrian?" From the research he had done he knew that jealousy often caused Veela to be harsh with their mates, and no one wanted to see Tom try and fight the Veela for hurting his son.

"I'm fine Severus," Hadrian replied, "Just dreading all the stares I know we'll face."

"They had better not stare at you if they know what's good for them," Draco growled, wrapping a possessive arm around his mates' waist; "I can't promise that I will be able to control my instincts the next time I perceive someone as a threat. What is Mother telling the guests?"

"She is planning to tell them the truth," Severus replied, "Or part of it, at least; Hadrian claimed Sanctuary after being abused by the Muggles, and you granted it, then you discovered last night that he was your Mate and therefore no one is to approach him without your permission. Also, as it is inevitable that someone will slip up and actually call him Hadrian in front of the guests, she will tell them that "Harry Potter" agreed to adopt the name "Hadrian" so that he could better fit in with his new family and distance himself from the Muggles he grew up with."

"That should work nicely," Draco nodded, "I am ready to go back in-Hades?"

"I'm ready," Hadrian agreed, stepping out of Draco's hold and instead linking arms with his Veela; Severus gave them a brief smile before cancelling the privacy charm and leading them downstairs and back into the ballroom.

As they entered the room, Narcissa made her announcement-adding that paying too much attention to Harry-now-called-Hadrian would earn them animosity from her Veela son and that he would likely attack first and ask questions later. With the explanation-and warnings-given the boys once again mingled among the guests, but this time Draco kept his arm firmly around his Mate. Arden was also by the boy's side; the little dragon had turned down Draco's offer to pick him up and instead walked in front of the boy's as they traversed the ballroom, sitting down directly in front of them whenever they stopped.

At one point Theo and Blaise had come up and apologized for Pansy's behavior, and Draco had brusquely informed them that the only person responsible for Pansy's actions was Pansy herself. Once that was over with the four settled down to talk for a bit; now that Draco had mingled for a while he was free to actually enjoy himself and he transfigured a couple of chairs into a loveseat for him and Hadrian to share.

"So, Draco, what made you decide to grant Potter Sanctuary before you knew he was your mate?" Theo questioned, taking one of the empty chairs while Blaise took the other; "Weren't you worried that you would make the Dark Lord angry?"

"Everyone knows that Veela instincts can kick in early if the Veela's mate is seriously injured," Draco began, "and when Potter came to me seeking sanctuary he was in a lot of pain, although the stupid Gryffindor tried to hide it."

"Hey!" Hadrian protested, "I didn't know if I could trust you-I'm surprised I even thought to ask for Sanctuary, since I only heard Sirius mention it once!"

"Yes, well regardless, Hadrian here was on the verge of passing out," Draco continued, unperturbed by the interruption, "I didn't notice that at first though; I ordered us some lunch, and I was trying to convince him to eat when he suddenly screamed and toppled over, unconscious. I noticed blood seeping through his shirt and-well, the injuries were very bad; I applied a healing salve but they came back worse than before, so I called Severus for help. I started feeling very protective over him, which I now realize was caused by my Veela instincts. The Dark Lord found out what happened and decided to honor the customs of Sanctuary and see if we can't get Hadrian to switch sides."

"Which I am seriously considering, after what I've gone through the past few days," Hadrian said, leaning into Draco and smiling when Arden climbed up on the loveseat to lay across their laps, "I mean, my supposed enemies have treated me ten times better than the adults who were supposed to protect me ever have." Arden let out a soft growl and Hadrian smiled down at him, scratching behind his ears.

"I can't believe the Gryffindor Golden Boy is actually consorting with Slytherins and Dark Wizards-"

"And the Dark Lord; oh my!" Hadrian interrupted Blaise; the three pure bloods looked at him in confusion, but Snape-who happened to be passing by-couldn't help but let out a small snicker. "Um, it's kind of from a Muggle movie," Hadrian explained, "There's this girl named Dorothy who winds up in the magical land of Oz and she has to defeat an evil witch in order to go back home. Well, at one point they-that's Dorothy and her companions, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow-are walking through this forest and they start worrying about all the wild animals that could be there and they start saying; 'Lions and Tigers and Bears; Oh my!' and then they actually meet a lion, but he's the Cowardly Lion and he's scared of them more than they are scared of him and…" he trailed off at the blank looks Draco and his friends were giving him; "Never mind."

"Drakey! What's going on?" They all looked up at the screech, and Hadrian shivered at Draco's low growl as the Veela pulled him closer until he was actually sitting in Draco's lap; the dragon didn't seem upset at his displacement, but rather stood in front of them, also growling at the Slytherin girl; "Potter took off with you earlier, and then your mother told me not to speak with you; I don't understand Drakey!"

"Understand this," Draco glared at her, and the girl took a small step back at the low growl she could hear in his voice, "Hadrian is mine; you will stay away from my mate if you value your life."

"Who? Oh, you mean Potter?" Pansy sneered, "What would I want with him? I was only being nice earlier because your family offered him sanctuary, but he obviously has no manners as he turned down my gracious offer of a dance. Really; what would I want with a pathetic little Half-blood? The Dark Lord will dispose of him eventually anyway." Throughout her speech Draco's growl had been getting louder, and Hadrian could once again feel talons pressing against his skin, although they didn't actually pierce it.

"What part of 'he is my mate' don't you understand?" Draco demanded, tightening his grip on Hadrian as he fought the urge to rip Pansy's head off; Hadrian didn't fight it but leaned more solidly into the Veela, and his mate's scent helped Draco keep his hold on sanity, "Hadrian is my mate; I have no desire to be with anyone other than him, and anyone who gets between us will die a slow and painful death. Crabbe! Goyle!" The two bigger boys, Draco's body guards ever since they had been children, stepped forward and looked at Draco, waiting for his instructions. "Get her out of here before I kill the stupid bint." The two Slytherin's mumbled an agreement and took hold of Pansy's arms, but someone else intervened.

"It's alright boys," Severus said silkily, "I will take care of Miss Parkinson; it seems she needs a lesson on Veela's and their mates. Come girl, before you provoke Draco any further." Arden looked back at Draco and then followed Severus and Pansy, growling at the girl and obviously making her uncomfortable as Severus lead her away from the party.

"Calm down now Dray," Hadrian said softly, relaxing into the Slytherin's hold and laying his head back on Draco's shoulder; "Severus and Arden will take care of her; she shouldn't bother us again tonight."

"Stupid bint," Draco muttered, turning his head so that he could smell Hadrian's hair, the scent helping him to calm down, "I think she wants to die."

"She never did know how to let go gracefully," Blaise commented, watching the interaction between his best friend and the former Golden Boy; "I'll try to keep her away from you until she comes to her senses."

"Ha!" Theo scoffed, "You'll be waiting a while for that! Pansy is like a dog with a bone; she doesn't know when to stop, or how to give in. Never-the-less, I shall also endeavor to keep her away from you. Are you okay now Draco?"

"I was always okay," Draco returned with a sneer, "It was that useless Parkinson who was almost in trouble." He pressed a soft kiss to the side of Hadrian's neck, relishing in the shiver it produced. "I do, however, thank you for your offer of assistance-I really would hate to have to kill someone this early on in the relationship. Crabbe-you and Goyle may go now." The two lumbering Slytherin's left without another word-not that they had actually said anything to begin with.

"What are you going to do if the Dark Lord does decide that he needs to get rid of Potter?" Theo asked, "You know the prophesy as well as I do."

"I don't think that will happen," Hadrian replied with a smile, "The…Dark Lord and I have already spoken and, well, we've come to an agreement." He paused for a moment and then tilted his head back to look at Draco; "You can tell the rest if you want; I don't think they would betray us-it's not in their best interest."

"I agree," Draco nodded, "I will tell them-after supper. Theo, Blaise-after I open my presents Hadrian and I need to talk to you; we haven't told you the full truth yet, but I think you deserve to know exactly what we found out, and why the Dark Lord is no longer set on killing my mate." Blaise and Theo nodded their agreement as Arden came trotting back over to them, followed by a bemused Severus.

"Arden lit her robes on fire," Snape informed them, "Needless to say, Miss Parkinson was not pleased and she left for the evening. Now come; Narcissa said it is time for dinner and presents."

Dinner passed uneventfully, and then Draco opened his presents. Many of the gifts were expensive but fairly useless, meant to show the giver's status, while a few were actually useful, things Draco could use in school-even if they were a bit ostentatious, such as the ostrich-feather and gold quill and the set of potions vials made of Swarovski Crystals. Draco's second gift from his parents was a weeks' vacation for two at a popular wizarding club for teens, Severus gave him a small line of credit at a prominent potions ingredient shop, and Tom gave him a gift certificate to an exclusive restaurant in Paris. When he opened the dragon figurines and saw the sigil etched into the wings, Draco was hard-pressed to hide his excitement as he looked up at Hadrian, who was standing beside his chair.

"Hades-these are-do you have any idea what these are?"

"Dragon figurines?" Hadrian replied with a cheeky smile, "And yes, I know that they were made by Isabella Slytherin-George pointed out the markings to me. So, I guess you like them?"

"They are amazing," Draco said, when Arden let out a soft growl he added, "Almost as amazing as Arden. In fact, I don't think I've appropriately expressed how much I appreciate the gifts you've given me." Without any warning, Draco pulled Hadrian into his lap and thoroughly kissed the brunet in front of everyone.

"No Tom, don't interrupt," Narcissa placed a hand on Tom's arm as he moved towards the boys, no doubt intent on separating them.

"This behavior is highly inappropriate," Tom protested, "You can't tell me you approve of this!"

"Why yes, we do approve of Draco showing appreciation to his mate," Lucius drawled, "After all, he is a Veela-it is a natural instinct."

"And, if you were to interfere Draco could very well see you as a threat," Severus pointed out, "I'd hate to hex my godson to stop him from killing you." Tom glared at them all and the guests held their collective breaths; they were all somewhat disappointed when he merely said;

"Very well; I shall leave them be-for now." About this time Draco finally broke the kiss and the party resumed-although he refused to let Hadrian retreat to his own chair. Once all the presents had been opened and the cake was served the guests broke into smaller groups and Draco, Hadrian, Theo and Blaise retired to the small parlor down the hall. Hadrian once again shared a couch with Draco, and Arden lay across their laps, his head resting on Draco's thigh.

"So, what terrible secret are you getting ready to burden us with?" Theo asked nonchalantly as he draped himself in a chair-Hadrian couldn't help but notice that he wasn't nearly as graceful as Draco, and he smirked a little as he leaned up against the blond.

"First you both have to swear not to tell anyone else without our permission," Draco stated, "This is very important and very few people know; the Dark Lord is one of those people however, so you will not be able to blackmail us."

"Take all the fun out of it why don't you?" Blaise said teasingly, and then he and Theo made a wizard's promise to keep the information secret.

"I guess you want me to start it off again?" Hadrian asked with a sigh, "I'm getting really tired of having to tell the story over and over again."

"Well, after this we could make a copy of our memories and place them in a pensieve," Draco suggested, "Although I think that would take longer than just telling the story."

"You're right," Hadrian nodded, stroking Arden's scales as he-once again-told the story about what he had gone through the past few days; "The other night I overheard my aunt and uncle talking to Dumbledore about how he was paying them to neglect me and such, then he gave them permission to physically abuse me and also gave them some potions to stop me from fighting back. My uncle beat me pretty badly but I managed to escape and wound up here, where I passed out from blood loss and Draco and Severus saved me. Then Tom-the Dark Lord-showed up and said he wasn't going to kill me and they had Draco and me watch some memories where we discovered Dumbledore is the bad guy, Tom is my dad, and I have a mom and a twin sister who are still alive somewhere in America. Also, Hermione is not a Muggleborn-Bellatrix is her mom-and Dumbledore Imperiused Bellatrix and her husband, forcing them to Crucio Neville's parents into insanity. Ginny is not actually a Weasley-she is the Potter's-James and Lily's-real child and…I think that's it, right Dray?"

"Yes, that about covers the basics," Draco confirmed, "Although I can see Theo and Blaise are having trouble believing you."

"You have to admit it's farfetched," Theo arched a brow, "I mean, Dumbledore, the paragon of light , is actually evil and the Dark Lord-"

"Whose real name is Tom," Blaise supplied helpfully.

"-the Dark Lord is actually your father," Theo continued, "not to mention crazy Bella is the Mudblood Granger's mom, only Granger isn't a Mudblood, and the blood-traitor Weaslette is actually the Potter heir? Next you'll tell me the Dark Lord is all for the mingling of wizards and Muggles."

"Of course not," Hadrian scoffed, "He still thinks our worlds should be separated, he just knows that there are better ways to go about it than killing anyone who doesn't agree. Although, he does still plan to kill Dumbledore, something I agree with. I guess you'd like to see the memories before you believe me?"

"Not trying to call you a liar, but yeah; the memories would help," Blaise said, "I don't suppose you have them with you?"

"Of course I do," Draco replied, pulling the small vial of memories out of his pocket, "This holds the last bit of memories; that should be enough for you to see that we are telling the truth. We don't have a pensieve, but Fred taught me a spell to bring the memories up on a sort of viewing screen; will that be acceptable?"

"Yes," Theo agreed and Blaise nodded, "But why don't you just borrow your parents' pensieve?"

"Because we aren't supposed to be sharing the memories with anyone," Draco replied, "They don't want us involved, so we decided to take things into our own hands." Arden chirped his agreement, lightly hitting Hadrian with his tail.

"Very well," Theo said, "I'm ready to view the memories." Draco nodded, pulled the stopper out of the bottle and said the incantation to let them all view the memories.

"I guess Fred helped you separate the memories too?" Hadrian asked once the memories started playing on the screen; he had erected a privacy spell around Theo and Blaise so that no one outside of the room would hear the memories.

"Yes," Draco replied, "I was telling him how inconvenient it was to wait while people viewed the entire set of memories, so he made a copy of every memory we saw and then separated them so that we could choose which ones to play. You know, you really need to go through your belongings back in our room; I'm sure you have a bunch of junk in the bottom of your trunk that can be thrown away."

"You're probably right," Hadrian grinned, "I never really clean it out-I just throw the top layer of trash out at the end of each year and put my new books and such on top."

"Well, we'll go through it and get you a new trunk for this year," Draco said, "Something with different compartments so that you can find things more easily. Perhaps we can go Monday when Mother goes to the ministry to be appointed as your guardian."

"Or we can go when we get our school lists," Hadrian shrugged, "It's not like I'll need it before then. I was also thinking that tomorrow we should take a look at those books; I believe Tom and your dad were working on the journals, but we can translate the potions books."

"I'm interested to see what sort of potions are in there," Draco agreed, "Do you get the feeling that they are purposefully keeping us from the actual journals?"

"You think so too? I think they're afraid of what we might find," Hadrian said, "There's no telling what sort of spells and such Mathias and his wife recorded;" he frowned thoughtfully before adding, "We should try to get ahold of them if we can, but don't let them know what we're doing; they haven't forbidden us from reading the books, so we can't get in trouble for it."

"Very Slytherin of you Hades," Draco said approvingly, "Oh, it looks like Theo and Blaise are done." He quickly took down the silencing spell and looked at his friends; "Well?"

"We believe you," Theo said, after sharing a quick glance with Blaise, "The question is, what do you plan to do now?"

"Well, our parents had an organization called the 'Order of the Black Rose' and they are planning to start it up again," Draco began, "But, of course, they won't allow us to join-"

"Which is why we are going to start our own organization," Hadrian finished, "We already have Neville, Luna and the Weasley twins on our side, so are you two willing to join us?"

"Join you in doing what, exactly?" Blaise demanded, "You still haven't told us your plan." Draco growled lowly at Blaise's tone, only relaxing when Hadrian rested his head on the blonde's shoulder and Arden gave a soft, reassuring chirrup.

"Well, to fight against Dumbledore, of course," Hadrian's tone said that he thought it was obvious, "Not outright fighting him, like with hexes and such, but undermining his authority and uniting the school against him. In addition, we want to reach out to everyone who has been negatively affected by his meddling and show them what truly happened."

"Well, as long as you aren't planning to just run at him with swords drawn and wands blazing, I'd like to help," Blaise said, "From what I saw in that last memory…Dumbledore is far more evil than we ever thought the Dark Lor-what should we call him?"

"The Dark Lord," Draco replied promptly, "He doesn't know we've told you the truth yet, so you should still refer to him as you would have before tonight. Do you two have any other questions?"

"What do you plan to do next?" Theo asked, "It seems that there is much to be done if we are going to make Dumbledore pay for his interference; we are going to make him pay, right?"

"Eventually," Draco nodded, "but we have to move carefully-we don't want him to know that we know what he did."

"Is Hadrian really your mate then?" Blaise asked curiously, "Or was all that just for show so that you could explain him being here."

"He is my mate and no one had better interfere," Draco growled again, and Hadrian shook his head with a sigh.

"Calm down Dray," he said, "It was a legitimate question; yes, we're mates Blaise, so you should probably tell all your friends so that they don't piss Draco off. Also, I'm getting re-sorted at the beginning of the year, and I expect I'll be in Slytherin."

"Yeah right," Theo scoffed, "Why would the Hat put you in Slytherin? You're the ultimate Gryffindor-er…no offense Draco." Theo gave Arden a wary look when the dragon growled at him too.

"Long story, but the Hat originally wanted to put me in Slytherin," Hadrian replied, moving Arden out of the way so that he could sit on Draco's lap; the Veela seemed to be cranky, as he became tense any time Blaise or Theo spoke to Hadrian, and the brunet didn't want to risk Draco attacking the other boys; Draco willing wrapped his arm around Hadrian's waist and pressed a kiss to the side of his neck. Hadrian shook his head lightly before continuing; "I had already been told all Slytherin's were evil though, so I asked it to put me somewhere else, and it chose Gryffindor." Arden snorted in what appeared to be annoyance before climbing up on the back of the couch and wrapping around Draco's shoulders.

"Interesting," Blaise said thoughtfully before getting to his feet, "Well, we-at least Theo and I-should get back to the party before someone comes looking for us. We should get everyone you've converted together sometime before school begins."

"At Hadrian's birthday party, if not before," Draco replied, "If you see my parents, tell them that Hadrian and I will be out shortly-"

"I don't think so, Son," Lucius said drily, "You have hidden away in here long enough, and we can't start the dancing without you."

"Dancing?" Hadrian groaned, "I hate dancing! I'm absolute rubbish at it."

"And neither of us can dance with anyone else," Draco pointed out, "So I really don't see the point." He crossed his arms and scowled at his father, reinforcing Hadrian's belief that the Veela was in a cranky mood.

"It is tradition," Lucius replied, "However I can see that you are in a mood, so I will give you ten minutes to collect yourself; after that you will return to the ballroom and remain for at least an hour. For every minute past ten I will add ten minutes to the time you must remain at the party, and I will insure that Hadrian sleeps in his own room tonight-is that clear?"

"Yes Father," Draco pouted; Lucius nodded in satisfaction and then motioned Theo and Blaise out the door; Arden gave a peculiar chirping sound and jumped down from the couch, following Lucius out the door, and then Hadrian and Draco were alone.

"And what has you acting all grumpy?" Hadrian demanded once the door had closed, "Every time your friends spoke to me you acted like you wanted to attack them."

"They were being disrespectful," Draco pouted, "And…just having so many people around us for these past few hours has been slowly wearing away my patience." He tightened his arm around Hadrian's waist and the brunet leaned back, tilting his head so that he could see Draco's face.

"And we all know how little patience you have to begin with," he teased the blond, earning a playful growl from his Veela.

"Yes, well I think I have shown considerable restraint by not attacking you while we still had company in the room," Draco replied before twisting around until he had Hadrian laying down on the couch beneath him, "Of course, we're alone now…"

"Dray-" Hadrian's protest was cut off as Draco leaned in and pressed their lips together in a gentle kiss that had Hadrian relaxing immediately. Hadrian wrapped his arms around Draco's neck to hold him there and hesitantly nibbled at the other boy's bottom lip; Draco's lips parted readily, and Hadrian took the initiative to invade the Veela's mouth with his tongue, mapping it out in an attempt to assert some dominance-he didn't mind Draco taking the lead most of the time, he really didn't, but he also didn't want Draco to think that he was going to sit back and let the blond do whatever he wanted. The playful battle for dominance lasted a few moments, then Draco let out a soft growl and took control of the kiss and drawing a soft moan from Hadrian; Draco shifted on top of the brunet and then lowered his hips, pressing their erections together and causing Hadrian to jerk away from the kiss with a sharp gasp. Draco smirked and trailed kisses down his neck to the spot he had marked earlier, pressing a gentle kiss there that made Hadrian shiver as he continues to press their groins together. Before he could do anything else-like begin to get Hadrian out of his clothes-there was a loud pop and-

"Master Draco! Tillie is sorry to be interrupting, but it is being ten minutes!" The house elf sounded anxious, "Master Lucius is saying you is needing to be at party now, or else!"

"Fine-we will be there as soon as we straighten our clothing," Draco informed the house elf, and Tillie vanished with another pop; "This has to be the worst birthday ever," Draco complained as he slid off of Hadrian and then helped the other boy to his feet, "I can't wait until everyone goes home and it is just us."

"Yes, such a horrible birthday," the sarcasm in Hadrian's voice was pronounced, "You got a party with your friends and family, a table-full of gifts, and you managed to convince some deity to make me your mate, forcing me to be with you unless I want you to die-ow!" Hadrian pouted at Draco, who was scowling at him, "What? I was just kidding! No need to be all abusive!"

"Your sense of humor leaves something to be desired," Draco replied, straightening both his and Hadrian's clothing; "Now, we will return to the party, and if you don't show me proper respect-"

"I was just kidding Dray," Hadrian interrupted, "I'm still a little shocked at how things turned out, but I'm not upset about being your mate. And you had better stop threatening me; just because you're the so-called "dominant" that doesn't mean I'm going to let you push me around." He leaned up and gave Draco a quick kiss on the cheek, "Let's go; we only have an hour and then we can leave the party."

"Fine," Draco sniffed, turning away from Hadrian, "You're such an inconsiderate mate; I want to know what deity decided to punish me by forcing me to be with you-I must have done something terrible in a past life."

"Well, of course you did," Hadrian said cheerfully, taking Draco's hand as they left the room, "You're an evil Slytherin git, remember?"

"You will pay for that statement Hades," Draco promised, "Just wait until we are alone." Hadrian met his glare with a bright smile as they re-joined the party once again.

The next hour went by fairly quickly; Hadrian and Draco danced a few times and Hadrian was surprised to find out that he was actually decent at it when he let someone else lead. They spoke to Theo and Blaise a bit more-always about innocent subjects, such as the summer homework which Hadrian had yet to start, and they also spoke to a few of the other guests. There had been once incident where an older wizard bumped into Hadrian and Draco started to lose his temper, but the man apologized to Hadrian and Draco, so the Veela let it go, although Hadrian sensed that he was disappointed at not being able to punish the man.

Aside from that incident the party went smoothly, and after the hour was up Draco and Hadrian took their leave, with Narcissa warning them that they would not be permitted to sleep in the following day. The two boys headed upstairs and changed in their separate bedrooms, after which Draco joined Hadrian in the brunet's room.

"Might as well just call it a storage room," Hadrian commented as he knelt down in front of his trunk; after their conversation earlier he became curious to see what was actually in there, and decided to go through it before going to bed.

"You could always have the house elves make the bed smaller and add an oriental screen," Draco suggested, "Then you would have room to add a few soft chairs and a small table so that you have a private place to meet with your friends, while still having your own room in case you get irrationally angry with me and decide you want to sleep in here."

"Ha ha," Hadrian said drily, "When I get mad at you I'm certain I will have a very valid reason. Come on Dray; help me go through this stuff." Hadrian opened the trunk and first set aside the box he had stolen from his uncle's study, intending to go through it later, and then he pulled out his school books from the previous year, as well as his summer assignments; Draco immediately banished them to Hadrian's desk, and looked on in disgust as Hadrian pulled out his clothes-Dudley's old hand-me-downs.

"The only clothing half-way decent in here is your school uniform and your underwear," Draco commented, wrinkling his nose, "Do you feel any particular attachment to the clothes?"

"No," Hadrian replied, "But I sometimes use the clothes to cushion things that might break, so just make sure there aren't any objects mixed in with the clothes before you throw them out." The boys spent the next twenty minutes or so sorting through Hadrian's trunk; the clothes were all tossed to the side with spare scraps of parchment, old school assignments, stale candy and other trash to be picked up by the house elves when they were done. All of Hadrian's old schoolbooks as well as the handful of other books he had received over the years went on his bookshelf, as did the few personal items he had-the miniature Hungarian Horntail from the Tri-wizard Tournament, the sneak-a-scope Ron gave him in third year, the photo album of his parents-rather his cousins, since Lily was his real mom's cousin-and a few other items that he had received for Christmas over the past few years. His invisibility cloak-would he have to give that to Ginny?-and the Marauder's Map (which he was not giving up, no matter what anyone said) he placed in a hidden cabinet by his bed that would only open to his magical signature. At the very bottom of the trunk Hadrian found the penknife and the mirror that Sirius had given him the previous year; the mirror was shattered from Hadrian throwing it angrily into his trunk, but Draco assured him it could be fixed. Once the trunk was empty of everything valuable Hadrian banished all the rubbish on the bottom, and Draco summoned a house elf to get rid of the clothes and such, and then Hadrian picked up the box and followed Draco to his room, where they both sat in the window seat once again.

"Where did you get that box?" Draco asked, "And why does it say 'Freak' on the lid?"

"I took it from my uncles study before I ran away," Hadrian replied with a shrug, "I don't know what's in it, but I'm guessing it's mine-either that or it belonged to James and Lily. I-I'm not sure if I want to deal with whatever is inside it tonight; maybe I should wait until tomorrow to look through it."

"Whatever you like Hades," Draco said agreeably, "We need to really get started on our summer work tomorrow as well, and we should look at that journal. I wish we could get a hold of Slytherin's books…"

"Maybe…if I talk to Tom alone he'll let me see them," Hadrian mused, "It's worth a shot, right?"

"Definitely," Draco nodded, "So, after breakfast tomorrow we can go through your box, then we will begin our homework and after lunch we can start translating that book, which will leave us with the rest of the evening to relax." Draco let out a yawn and got to his feet; "I don't know about you, but I'm ready for bed."

"Yeah, I think I am too," Hadrian replied, "Why do I feel so drained?"

"Since you were in the room with me when I reached my inheritance the magic probably affected you as well," Draco replied, "Have you felt any different today?" Harry tilted his head thoughtfully, taking Draco's offered hand and allowing the blond to pull him to his feet.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't felt as embarrassed when you kissed me and such in front of people today," Hadrian replied, "And I could also feel your magic when you got mad, and after we went back downstairs I noticed that I felt responsible for keeping you from freaking out."

"The magic from my inheritance seems to have started out bond," Draco said, "Normally we wouldn't begin to form a bond until after we both turned sixteen, but it's started early; most Veela's don't get to be around their mate until after the mate reaches the age of sixteen, so this is rather new and not documented."

"Of course," Hadrian rolled his eyes, "Not only do I have to be a Veela's mate, but we can't even have a normal bond. Speaking of, what was that spell you used on me earlier? And why did you have your wand up my…"

"Well, I had my wand in your tight little hole so I could cast a spell, obviously," Draco smirked at Hadrian's blush, "As for what spell…" Draco trailed off, looking uncertain, "Well, it was somewhat instinctual; I read about it in a journal written by one of my Veela ancestors, and…I don't think I should tell you."

"Draco," Hadrian said warningly, "What did you do? You'd better tell me now-if I find out later I'll just be even more pissed."

"Okay," Draco sighed, "Well, it was a sort of binding spell; remember how I had you say that you are mine and no one else could make you feel as good as I could?" Hadrian nodded slowly, green eyes narrowed; "When you said that, my Veela magic enacted a spell and…it's not like either of us could be with anyone else anyway-not unless you're willing to let me die."

"Wait," Hadrian glared at him, "Are you telling me that you used a spell to…to…to make sure that I could never have sex with anyone else? Is that what you did Draco Malfoy?"

"Yes," Draco said simply, standing straight and meet Hadrian's gaze head on, "But as I said, neither of us are able to have sex with anyone else anyway, so I really don't see what the big deal is."

"You don't see…" Hadrian trailed off, trying to reign in his temper; how dare Draco do something like this? As if he thought Hadrian would cheat on him…the stupid Slytherin…"You arrogant prick. You had no right to cast such a spell on me; it's not like I would have tried to be with anyone else regardless-I don't want you to die; or at least I didn't, but right now…I could just about AK you myself. Stupid…gah! I can't even look at you right now! I'm sleeping in my room tonight."

"No!" Draco grabbed his arm, stopping Hadrian from walking away, "You can't! It's…I need you in here; please Hades. You saw how I was earlier; if you sleep in a separate room-"

"I don't see how that's my problem," Hadrian said coldly, "You don't even see that what you did was wrong! Why should I care if you suffer tonight? You obviously didn't worry about how I would feel when you cast that stupid spell. Now let me go, Malfoy."

"Don't call me that," Draco growled, but there was a hint of desperation in his voice as he pushed Hadrian back down onto the window seat; "Don't-don't call me Malfoy; not after everything…" He trailed off again, closing his eyes only to open them once more and scowl at Hadrian, who was struggling to get out of his grip. "Stop it Hadrian; I need to think."

"Then I guess we're going to be here for a while," Hadrian said nastily, ignoring the small pain in his chest as he said that; he vaguely felt like he should apologize, but he quickly pushed the feeling away. "We all know how difficult it is for you to actually think; now, let go!" Hadrian used a burst of magic to push a startled Draco away from him, but the blond recovered quickly and managed to trap Harry against the wall before the brunet could leave the room.

"You are not going anywhere," Draco hissed, "You are mine and you will-"

"Get out of my face!" Hadrian shouted, twisting in Draco's grip; the Veela's grip on his arms was beginning to hurt, but he fought not to show it; "Your possessiveness is what got us in this situation in the first place!"

"No, your inability to listen to the simplest instructions got us into this mess," Draco retorted tightening his grip even more, "I told you last night-hell, my entire family, including Severus told you-not to let anyone flirt with you, but did you listen? No; you were too worried about hurting that whore Pansy Parkinson, and you didn't stop to think about the consequences! If you hadn't let her-"

"I never wanted her to touch me!" Hadrian interrupted angrily, trying to kick Draco in an attempt to get away; he made contact with the blonde's shin, but that only succeeded in making Draco growl again; "Draco! Stop it! Pansy just latched onto me…like a leech! I told her to let me go; Blaise and Theo were right there-they'll tell you! But even so, that doesn't give you the right-"

"I had every right," Draco hissed back, "I am your Dominant, and I have the right to administer punishment and take corrective measures however I see fit; right now you are at the height of disobedience, and I will not stand for it! You will apologize to me right now, Hadrian Riddle-apologize or face the consequences of your actions."

"I'm not-I already apologized for the Pansy thing!" Hadrian protested, "And I'm not…wait; I need…Draco, why are we both so angry? There's…I really just want to hex you into oblivion right now, and I don't even know why!" Hadrian closed his eyes and focused on calming his breathing, wondering where all that rage had come from. "Arden-"

"Is sleeping in your room, as you very well know," Draco said tersely, "Well Hadrian? Are you ready to apologize?"

"You haven't apologized yet," Hadrian pointed out, keeping his voice steady, "and I was upset first; you…I made a mistake, but you overreacted with that spell-why can't you just admit it? You know I didn't encourage her." He paused to take a deep breath and then opened his eyes, meeting Draco's still-angry stare. "Draco-if you stop holding so tight I promise I won't try to leave; I'll stay in here so we can discuss this."

"You won't sleep in the other room tonight?" Draco asked suspiciously, "You swear it?"

"I promise I'll sleep in here tonight," Hadrian replied; the change in the Veela's mood was swift-one moment Hadrian could feel the anger rolling off him in waves, and the next Draco was calm again, although he still looked irritated. "What was that all about Draco?"

"I'm not sure," Draco said slowly, releasing Hadrian's arms and frowning at the other boy's slight wince, "I didn't mean to hurt you; are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Hadrian said softly, dropping his gaze, "I might have some bruises, but it's nothing serious; you have a healing potion, right?"

"Yes," Draco replied, "Take off your shirt so I can see." Hadrian thought about protesting, but he wasn't prepared to break this fragile truce yet, so with a sigh he unbuttoned his pajama top and let it slide off his shoulders. Once the shirt was gone Draco laid gentle fingers across the purpling marks he had previously left, and noticed how Hadrian bit his lip against the pain. "I am sorry I hurt you Hades," Draco said softly as he traced the bruises, "Come sit down and I'll get some salve." Draco slid his hands down until he was able to intertwine his fingers with Hadrian's; he tugged gently and led him over to the bed.

"It's not really that bad," Hadrian tried to reassure him as Draco made him sit down, "We really should talk first, and then you can get the salve."

"No," Draco shook his head stubbornly, "I hurt you, and I'm going to fix that first, then we will talk. Just stay there; no, in fact-Accio Bruise Balm!" A small container flew out of the bathroom to land in Draco's hand; "Here-now just sit still." Hadrian rolled his eyes but obediently sat still as Draco applied the balm to his bruises; the thin paste tingled unpleasantly for a moment, then the pain faded and when he looked down the bruises were gone.

"Thank you," Hadrian said, "Okay, so we know why I was mad-the whole using-a-spell-to-bind-me-closer-to-you-without-my-permission-thing, but why did you freak out so badly when I tried to leave?"

"Ah!" Draco said, a look of understanding flashing across his features, "Of course; it was because you threatened to sleep in another room, I'm sure of it. When you were upset and yelling at me about the spell I felt guilty and was on the verge of apologizing, and offering more explanation, but then you threatened to sleep in the other room…and I just lost control."

"But you said I could sleep in there when I needed to," Hadrian protested, "I was supposed to be able to use that room when I get to upset to be in the same room as you!"

"I know," Draco replied, "and you will be able to use that room…eventually. It seems that right now, with this still being so new and the bond being so thin right now that having you away from me for that long isn't a very good idea. It will get better over time, but I'm not sure exactly how long it will take; it could be a week, it could be after your birthday, or it could be after we physically complete the bond."

"So even when I'm mad at you I have no choice but to sleep with you?" Hadrian demanded, "Typical." He crossed his now-unbruised-arms and pouted.

"You will need to sleep in this room," Draco confirmed, "but if you truly are that angry with me, we could probably conjure another bed for you-or me-to sleep in."

"I'm not going to kick you out of your own bed," Hadrian rolled his eyes; "I just want to get this settled tonight. So; that spell?"

"It's instinctual," Draco replied, "I felt threatened-normally a Veela will stay in seclusion with their mate for the first few days after the bond is initiated; being around so many people and then having Pansy throw herself at you…well, it was already trying my patience and putting strain on our bond. I knew intellectually that you weren't interested in her, but…my inner Veela, if you will, felt threatened because you didn't hex her away from you. I felt…almost as if you were rejecting me, and my Veela instincts demanded that I make sure everyone could see that you were my mate, and also that you would never want to leave me, and then the spell happened."

"So…you didn't actually plan the spell?" Hadrian questioned.

"No, I didn't," Draco responded, "I'm sorry for casting a spell on you like that without your permission. As for my anger and our argument a few minutes ago…our already strained bond caused me to lose a grip on my emotions when I thought you were going to sleep in the other room; once again it felt like you were only a step away from rejecting me, and this…enraged me. Due to our bond, you were able to feel my anger and it added to yours, which then added to mine and…well, we both lost our grip on sanity for a few minutes."

"So in order to not repeat tonight we need to avoid people for a few days?" Hadrian clarified.

"Yes," Draco nodded, "Although, I believe being around my parents, your father and Severus will be alright, as long as we get enough time to ourselves as well."

"Okay," Hadrian agreed, "I guess that means we should tell them about what happened tonight, but we can leave out the bruises; you didn't mean to do it, and I don't want Tom to get mad at you since I forgive you. I'm sorry for losing my temper as well."

"Apology accepted," Draco said with a smile, "So, are you ready to go to bed, because I know I feel exhausted."

"Yeah, me too," Hadrian agreed before biting his lip uncertainly, "Although…look, I still need a bit of time to process everything; I-can we set up another bed for me? Just for tonight?" Hadrian almost took it back when he saw the sad expression on Draco's face, but he managed to keep his gaze steady.

"Of course," Draco replied, "I wish you felt comfortable enough to-but I suppose I understand. Just, if we start to feel unreasonable anger or sudden depression, you'll lay with me so it doesn't get out of hand again, right?"

"If it comes to it then yes," Hadrian said; Draco nodded and then conjured a smaller bed next to his own; it was piled high with pillows and blankets, and looked even more comfortable than Draco's own bed. "Thank you;" Hadrian said softly, watching as Draco lay down under the covers before he climbed into the conjured bed; "Good night Dray."

"Sweet Dream Hades," Draco replied sadly, and they both settled down without saying another word.

Twenty minutes passed, and Draco was both relieved and disappointed when he felt no ill effects from Hadrian sleeping in a different bed-relieved because that meant they wouldn't have another argument, and disappointed because it meant he really would have to sleep alone tonight. As he thought this, Draco heard Hadrian get out of the bed.

"Hades?" he questioned, "What are you doing?"

"Coming to bed," Hadrian replied as he climbed up on the opposite side of the bed from Draco; "That is, if you still want me to."

"Of course I do," Draco assured him, "but what changed your mind?"

"Well, I wasn't really intending to sleep on that bed," Hadrian admitted, "I just wanted to test it and see if it would cause us any problems, in case we get into a fight again. Now that I know I can at least sleep in another bed if you annoy me again, I'd really like to sleep with you."

"Obnoxious Gryffindor," Draco huffed, but Hadrian could hear his amusement, and then he felt a hand on his wrist; "Come here, you git." Hadrian chuckled and allowed himself to be tugged over until he was lying against Draco; the blond lifted Hadrian's head and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips, before allowing Hadrian to settle down with his head on Draco's chest. "Prat;" Draco said good-naturedly.

"Slytherin git," Hadrian retorted; "G'night."

"Good night," Draco responded, wrapping Hadrian in a comforting embrace; within moments both boys were sound asleep.

AN: Chapter up; yay! And I'm already working on the next one, so I should be able to update again soon, hopefully; it just depends on whether or not my muse feels like cooperating. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed!