March 2006

She takes a peek into the bedroom. Astoria is sound asleep, her breathing even and deep. Draco is out with Scorpius and the eldest Malfoy couple has left her to her own devices. Her tutor took off early, so this is the perfect chance.

She walks towards the bedside table, as silently as her kneazle. She knows every single board on the floor. She has been stepping on them quietly for years, so as not to wake Scorpius or Astoria, sometimes both. She follows the weird choreography of balancing on her small feet across the floor and over the carpet.

On the table is her prize. Astoria's wand. Left in its usual place. She takes it and dances her way out of the room. She is so quiet that poor Narkey nearly faints when she stumbles upon him on the corridor. The house-elf quickly cracks out of her way. She giggles at the now kneejerk reaction of the elf. She happily makes her way back to her rooms. She has about two hours before her lessons are supposed to be finished and Aunt Cissa comes looking for her, or Uncle Lucius comes to check her work, which means she has one hour and a half with the wand.

Truth is, she tries, and mostly fails, a few spells for about ten minutes before her Uncle's bellowing voice is heard, resonating through the manor. About two minutes earlier, she had blown up a book while trying to levitate it.

Uh-ooh... Could he know? He didn't see me take it.

"Delphini Black bring yourself and the wand downstairs this very instant!"

So he knows. How!?

The manner of acquiring such knowledge quickly falls to the back of her mind, not forgotten, just de-prioritised for the moment. Uncle Lucius didn't call her Lestrange. He called her Black.

And Black means I'm in trouble, real trouble.

So she ambles downstairs, her crooked "I screwed up" smile on.

At least my middle name was left out.

There is a stern looking woman in a suit and flowing robes standing in the middle of the sitting room. Her Aunt is looking at her, arms crossed, a scold in her eyes. Her Uncle has his arms behind his back and looks even sterner than the stranger.

"Tell me, young lady, what exactly do you think you're doing?"

"So this is the child. You are old enough to understand rules, if any have been taught to you so far."

The witch actually interrupted her Uncle! No one, that she remembers, ever interrupts him and gets away with it.

Her eyebrows are high on her forehead as she replies, taking the despise in the stranger's voice and throwing it right back.

"I do know what rules are. They include, as far as polite witches go, not interrupting when others talk."

Her Uncle is clearly amused; her Aunt gives her the smallest hint of a smile. But the newcomer is not impressed at all.

"Well, little girl, then you should know wizards and witches under the age of eleven are not allowed the possession of wands, let alone the use of them. You are in contempt of the Ministry's legislation."

Her eyebrows are as close to her hairline as they can possibly be.

"Since this is your first infraction, you, despite who you are, will be let go with a simple warning. Know that the Ministry has a trace on all under aged wizards and witches, and that we will be aware of further incidents. Now, whose wand is it and how did you acquire it?"

She is definitely not impressed. Being scolded by a perfect stranger is not something she is used to. A stranger that dares to mention her origins at that. A woman that is actually hinting at the possibility of Delphini stealing something.

"I did not steal it!" The outrage in her voice and the spark of her magic are so clear that the witch takes a step behind.

Her Aunt Narcissa quickly steps in at that. Neither she nor her husband move to shield the Ministry worker. Her Uncle does move in closer, placing a hand on her shoulder. Aunt Narcissa informs the witch that the wand belongs to Astoria, who is probably asleep and didn't even notice it gone.

"Ah yes, Astoria Malfoy. I've heard of her… malaise. She lives a rather secluded existence, doesn't she?"

The hand on her shoulder becomes a vicious claw for half a second. She flinches away as Lucius gives her an apologetic look and walks back to the stranger. His hand encircles Narcissa's waist, and his fingers dig in for a moment, relaxing so quickly she would miss it should she blink.

Delphini knows there is another layer to that conversation, and despite it escaping her completely, her hostility is reassured by the actions of her uncle.

"Miss Edgecombe, I believe your mission here is complete. The offending witch has been notified of her wrong doing. As you said, a warning will suffice in this instance. Let us conclude the matter. You can rest assured that she will not be using any wand other than her own in the future."

Miss Edgecombe swallows and shifts on her feet. Being kicked outside in the perfectly polite way of the Malfoys leaves quite an impression.

"Narkey!" Aunt Narcissa waits for a second as the house-elf pops to her side. "Escort Miss Edgecombe back outside."

No good afternoon, a simple nod from both of them is all she has the right to.

"Good afternoon, Miss Edgecombe." Delphini greets as she is leaving, making the witch turn on her steps and trip on her shoes. She doesn't get a reply; the Ministry worker is too busy following the elf out.

"Now, young lady, back to where we left." Her Uncle Lucius keeps his eyebrows high and his eyes stern.

Her hopes of being let off the hook just this once are immediately shattered.

X

When Draco returns to their chambers, a happy boy in his arms, cuddling what she hopes is a kitten, he has a look that carries a cloud.

"I have something for you", he says as he lets Scorpius down on the bed, next to her. She is hugging the giggling boy as Draco extracts a wand from his pocket.

My wand! How...

She stares at the bedside table for a couple of seconds, trying to piece the puzzle together.

"Delphini?" She can't help but smile at the notion of what might have happened.

"Yes, Delphini." He takes two fingers to the bridge of his nose while huffing in supposed desperation. He uses the manoeuvre to hide his worry at her so very pale lips. "She tried a couple of spells, which made her trace promptly warn the Department for Underage Use of Magic. If she hadn't blown up that book, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't be able to tell it was her... She is downstairs being properly scolded by the tenth time or something. My parents didn't even let her come upstairs to return this and apologize." He can't help but scoff first, and openly laugh as she does. Because she manages to without breaking into uncontrollable coughing.

Scorpius lips spread into a smile of his own, he too knows his Mother is frail and rarely laughs like this.

Astoria heart aches at the thought, but she made her choice. She just hopes to be around long enough to see her boy grow.

"She destroyed a book? Poor Delphie must feel awful about it." She says with a bright smile.

"This is playing with fire, though. I need to talk to her about the Ministry having only so much leeway with us all."

The new kneazle in the house hops around on the bed, chasing the wrinkles on the covers. She keeps her eyes on it as she talks.

"You should go now. Rescue her from all the scolding going on, will you?" She smiles up at him, as he lowers himself to kiss her lightly on her lips.

Her heart aches again. He is never passionate with her, not like he used to. He acts like she is made of the frailest parchment, like she will be blown away by the breeze. She will leave him behind too. This distance harms them both, but maybe, just maybe, it's the distance she needs to let him build. So that he won't suffer when she is gone.

He leaves her with Scorpius, levitating one of his toys onto the bed. "I'll go then" he tells her, as he steps away.

She knows the gesture is supposed not to be noticed by her, but she still catches a glimpse of him turning slightly to look at her over his shoulder. He always does. And his shoulders are always a little lower when the door closes.

She holds her precious baby close, almost as she wants to draw him into her chest. Her failing chest. Spreading pecks on the crown of his head. He never shies or struggles away. Both my man and my boy know. She hopes they know how much she wants to stay.

X

He leans on the doorway, laughing quietly at the scene displayed. His parents have been taking turns it seems. Just like they did with him. His Father a wall of ice and his Mother a softer but no less authoritative version.

"I think she understands now. Do you mind if I take her upstairs?"

Delphini displays her best smile, a wondrous thing he fears could win over the entire world. A sample of that, and he is sure Potter and Weasley would be dismissed from their keeping in touch that same instant.

At a sign of his Father, Delphie hops off the sofa and rushes to him, same smile on her face.

"My turn now!" Her smile is gone, replaced by a miserable grimace. He scoffs and messes up her curls. She tries to push him away, but ends up pushing herself into the doorway.

"Aww! That hurt. Stop touching my hair!"

He signals her to follow him, a gentle hand on her back. Instead of climbing the stairs, he sits down on a step and reaches for her hand, bringing her to stand between his feet.

"Delphie, remember that visit to the Ministry about a year ago?" She nods, in all seriousness, and he carries on. "They have some reason to be a bit suspicious about us. You going about breaking the rules of underage use of magic doesn't help much." He could be nicer, go slower, but despite looking like a child, this girl already has a mind well beyond her years. Rationality and blunt truth work better than tip-toeing around a subject, she has a practicality that often reminds him of Granger.

"Sorry, I thought I could keep it a secret. I didn't know about the trace. And I only wanted to try simple spells that wouldn't harm anyone."

So she is only sorry she got caught and thinks Aguamenti is a simple spell... Oh boy, is she going to be a handful at Hogwarts. "Let's wait for your letter of acceptance and then you'll have your own wand, hum? How does that sound? Let's keep to their book, shall we?"

"I didn't mean to raise suspicion. I was just curious. I won't use other's wands again, I promise."

And she is fully aware of the importance of lying low, apparently. Well, his point seems to have made itself on her mind. Good.

Those are all the words they need, he knows. She understands that she is endangering their cause by getting the Ministry's attention and she knows how to avoid doing so again. Rules.

He rises and extends his hand. One more thing to do. She doesn't even ask if she has to apologize. She knows her wrongdoing and knows apologizing is the right thing to do.

There's an ache in his chest, as if something is pushing his ribs out and his shoulders up.

Pride.

Author's Notes: Thank you all for staying with me for these last few weeks, even with the more spaced updates. My imense gratitude to everyone who has favourited, followed and reviewed this. I'll be back in about two weeks time, as soon as I'm past the exam. In the mean time, feel free to review and make suggestions, my plot bunnies are always up for feeding.

Replies to Guests

To Ruka: Thank you for your kind words. Andromeda will be making an appearence further along, you'll see. In the mean time, you may enjoy Of the Severing of Ties, a side piece to this fic (check my stories)

UPDATE: 21-11-2017 Guess who is back? Side piece being uploaded right now, to be swiftly followed by a new chapter