"Perfect," muttered the man, stroking Ms. Norris. He was correct- the bait had been cast.

After 7, long years it was time to place her back into the world he'd stolen her from. This time everything would fall into place. She'd be his pawn, and when everything became too much she'd come to him willingly.

He may have misleading intentions but at least he was humane. It only took one push before the avalanche was created.

"Go along," he said quietly to the cat. "I believe we need to...remind a certain couple of the rules,"

Shielding her eyes, Adara pushed herself up into a sitting position. It was mid-afternoon and the morning's events all came rushing back. Sunlight streamed through the windows in the hospital wing, illuminating a glass of water on the side table.

She looked at her shoulder, which was now neatly wrapped in bandages. Sighing, she collapsed into her soft pillow. What was she going to do about everything?

"Thank Merlin you're alright," drawled a familiar voice. "I thought you were going to be rude enough to die on me,"

She jolted upwards to find a very disheveled Luca. He gave her a tired smirk but he looked genuinely relieved to see her.

"What are you doing here? And why are you so filthy?" she said, appalled that he hadn't changed. He was normally so meticulous about his appearance.

"I wanted to see if you were okay- only because I needed to make sure your family wouldn't sue mine if you died," he added quickly. Shaking her head, she smiled. At least one thing hadn't changed. Yet it faded when the mishap in potion's was brought to the front of her mind.

"Seriously, why do you care? I'm supposed to be no one to you," she said dejectedly, looking away.

"Ah," he said softly, angling his face. The light spun his hair with gold, the dirt streaking his face more apparent. He folded his hands and locked his eyes onto hers.

"I'm…God, I suck at this. I'm sorry," Luca mumbled. "I thought that if they saw you with me they might try and hurt you again. You clearly didn't catch my winking,"

Confused, Adara recalled the mysterious eye twitching.

"That's what you were doing. But that still doesn't seem to justify your actions. I appreciate you looking out for me but you know I can handle myself," she said carefully. He swallowed and rolled his head back, releasing a dry laugh.

"You're too observant for your own good," he said wryly, cocking his head. "I do admit that I was a bit cowardly. I was worried what my father would think if he found out I was hanging around a Hufflepuff,"

Taken aback, Adara narrowed her eyes.

"Is it really that bad to be with the likes of me?"

"No-not at all," Luca said, eyes widening. "It's just that in my family there are severe repercussions for disobedience. But I was really worried he might actually try and get rid of you if he found out,"

She was conflicted. He did seem genuinely sorry and was looking out for her well being but why hadn't he said so earlier?

"Is there a reason why I wasn't told before? I get your family has expectations but I deserved an explanation,"

"I know. But that sad look in your eyes is so damn," he said drily, pausing. "Degrading. I felt like crap seeing you look at me like that. So here I am, down to earth, saying sorry. And I know very well what your going to say,"

Adara twiddled with the bandage on her shoulder. There was no doubt he was genuinely sorry because it took a lot to get him to come down his horse.

A small grin began to form. Thank god he'd apologized- she could be proper friends with him and shove all of this away.

"Fine. I will accept your apology. But you're right- I must say it," she said wryly. "Is the great Luca Malfoy apologizing to someone? Let alone a lowly Hufflepuff?"

He flushed and looked away.

"More like an annoying Hufflepuff," he grumbled. Crossing her arms in protest, Adara side eyed him. Thank goodness that things were fairly back to normal. That is if you ignored the attack of the giant snake.

"As much as I love seeing you not being a pompous idiot, do you have any ideas about why your family's pets would attack me?"

"I honestly don't know. Like I said, Lucius says you have something they want but I can't think of what that might be. After all, if Father thought you were bad company then I think he would've done something other than send a monster," he said solemnly.

"Which brings me to ask, what in the hell is so special about me?" she asked resignedly. What was going on was clearly dangerous, but it was even stranger that he was helping her. She supposed at this moment he was a true friend because it was his family doing this to her and he'd had various opportunities to walk away.

Luca looked lost in thought but he carefully averted his gaze. Slowly reclining in the chair, he picked up the charred remains of his scarf.

"As much as I enjoy having these near death experiences, if you want to keep living, that is what we must find out,"

Breathless, the four boys raced back to the castle.

"Shit, shit, shit," muttered Sirius as Remus stumbled beside him. It had been way too long since Adara had left to get coffee and James didnt have the map. They'd frantically checked the trails in case she'd accidentally gotten hurt but there was no sign of her.

James prayed that she had a change of heart and decided to go back to school. He really wouldn't be able to live with himself if something horrible had happened to her. Again.

They reached the entrance to the great hall and ignored Filch's protests. Sirius chucked a Sparkling Slime at him for a good measure. He skidded around the corner, nearly knocking over a surprised Albus Dumbledore.

"What's the rush boys?" he asked sternly. Crap. They needed the map now.

"Have you seen Adara?" asked Peter nervously. Sirius looked at him expectantly.

"Ms. Patil is in the hospital wing," he answered kindly.

Alarmed, James sprinted down the corridor. What had happened to her this time?

No, no, no, no, no. Thousands of scenarios flashed through his mind as he shoved the doors open, knocking over a very angry Madame Pomfrey.

"Adara," shouted Remus. She was sitting quite calmly on a small, white cot. And next to her was Luca Malfoy.

Freezing, James directed a glare at him. Was he the reason she was in here?

Turning his attention to her, he noticed the bandages wrapped around her shoulder. Dread filled his stomach and he slowly faced Malfoy.

"What the hell did you do to her?" he said angrily, lunging forward. Remus grabbed his shirt and forced him to still.

"I believe this is where I take my leave," he said crisply. He arose abruptly and left before they could snag him.

"What's going on? What happened to you?" Sirius asked, worried. She smiled that god forsaken smile and his heart plummeted.

"Nothing much. I came back to the castle because it was too...slippery at the paths and on my way back I accidentally got a good whack from the Whomping Willow," she said tiredly. James was still wary- after all, it didn't explain why Malfoy looked about as bad as her.

"Care to explain why Malfoy was here?"

She raised her eyebrow in amusement.

"He's my friend," she said slowly. "He was visiting,"

"Looking like that? And didn't you just fight?" interjected Remus. There was definitely something wrong, something she wasn't telling them.

"Listen. If I needed to tell you, I would. I swear on Sirius's hair," she said solemnly, ignoring Padfoot's silent laughter. Shaking his head, he gave her one last scrutinizing glance.

"If you say so. You'd better not be going to class,"

She smiled grimly.

"Not if I can help it. OWLS are this year and if I don't pass, I'm doomed,'

Resigned, James sighed.

"Fine. But be careful. It's been a week and you've nearly died twice,"

She looked at him wearily and then burst out laughing.

"Do you know how stupid that sounds?" she said amusedly. Remus shook his head but joined in, Sirius following suit. Eventually, the five of them were laughing their heads off, bandaged shoulders and suspicious Malfoy's forgotten.

"We'll visit you later, Patil," said Sirius cheerfully. Despite her protests, Madame Pofrey had insisted she stay in bed. She only agreed because she had almost revealed what happened to her and she couldn't have the boys worrying about her.

She waved at them until they left, the doors booming as they shut.

It was quite lonely and Adara was already bored when an owl flew through the window.

"Are you here for me?" she asked kindly. It hooted, holding out it's leg. "Thank you very much, Mr. Owl,"

Untying the parchment, she gently unfolded it, smoothing out the creases. A small smile grew on her face. It was from her father.

It had been ages since she'd last heard from him, and with a jolt she realized she might get an answer about Adaralyn Thorn.

Tracing her fingers over her father's familiar scrawl, she began to read.

Dar,

DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT investigate the matter of Adaralyn Thorn. I'm afraid by the time you read this it will be too late.

By merely speaking that name you will place yourself in great danger. Please, please listen to us.

DO NOT go looking for her or they will come for you.

Love,

Your father

Confused, she read it again. It contained none of the normal reports on mother's condition or the things they'd done since they last wrote. Instead, it was a cryptic warning regarding Adaralyn Thorn.

She'd never seen her father act like this, whether it be over paper or in person. He always told her everything, even the classified scandal about the Minister taking bribes from Bulgaria.

"Great danger? Isn't that going too far," she murmured. All she did was see her name- nothing else. "What exactly does he know about this? And who is 'they',"

She re-read the last line slowly, processing each word.

DO NOT go looking for her or they will come for you.

"Holy shit," she said, eyes wide. Madame Pomfrey stared at her in disgust. Go looking for her. Her father never said looking for information. He said for her. Which meant she was alive. Adaralyn Thorn was alive.

Yet Adara still didn't understand who was 'they'. Regardless, she stared at the letter in a mixture of horror and awe. Whether she liked it or not, her father clearly knew things about this.

Realization flooded across her face. What if the information he had on Adaralyn Thorn was the reason Luca's family attacked her? She needed to tell him now. That his friend is alive and that this may be the very reason the serpent went after them.

"Think, Adara, think," she whispered. What class would he have now? He always headed down the third staircase after potion's which meant….

"Herbology,"

Scrambling out of the covers, she grabbed her wand. It was time to pay Oakley a visit.

Three minutes later, Adara had crept quietly out of the hospital wing before Pomfrey had noticed. She was now heading for the greenhouses, praying Peeves wouldn't find her.

The cold air made her regret the linen pajamas issued by the school. Shivering, she ran quietly through the grass over to greenhouse three. The letter was clenched tightly in her fist.

As she approached, she could make out various students milling around the interior. There. She spotted Luca in the corner, carefully harvesting Snarglepuff venom. But how was she going to get his attention?

Struck with an idea, she picked up a handful of stones from the ground. Keeping her head low Adara snuck over to where he was standing, trying to avoid being spotted. If she was it would be game over.

Nestling herself between two bushes, she carefully levitated several stones and thrust him against the window where he was standing on the other side. He kept working, oblivious, but his head shot up in surprise when he saw the third. Confused, he looked down and his eyes widened in recognition.

"I need to use the bathroom, Professor Oakley," called Luca, muffled by the thick panes. He ran outside and knelt in front of her, slightly annoyed.

"What the hell is it? You know very well that this is my favorite class but I don't think you would pull me out just for kicks,"

"It's important," she hissed, smoothing out the parchment. "Read. It's a letter from my father,"

He scrunched his eyebrows in confusion but complied, reading over his messy scrawl. After reading, he joined her, crouching in the mud. Luca blinked his eyes a few times in shock and stared at the letter.

"By Morgan's Feathers, what is going on- couldn't you have shown this to me later?" he said sharply. Adara snatched the paper back, shoving it in her pocket.

"Don't you get it? The last line- do not go looking for her. For her. That means your precious Adaralyn Thorn is alive,"

He looked at her, sadness riddled across his face.

"That's impossible-,"

"No, it isn't. I think this may be the reason why your dad's after me. Because my father knows that she's alive and so maybe I do too," she snapped, challenging his stare. Sighing, he wrapped one of his arms lazily around his knee.

"Say this isn't false hope. What do we do then?"

"Why we find her of course," she said wryly, cocking an eyebrow. He looked at her with disbelief, gesturing at the letter.

"It says you'll get hurt,"

"I don't give a crap right now. The point is, we can find your friend. Why are you so against it?"

He met her eyes and the emerald green pierced her very soul.

"Because I can't lose you just to find a fleeting idea,"

Reclining in a chair, the young man smiled quietly. His skin was pale, a sharp contrast against his black hair, falling into his eyes.

You could call him handsome but that would be unfair to all the other men in the world. He was beautiful yet cruel, the most deadly of them all.

"Would you look at that," he said lazily, a parchment dangling from a ringed hand. "The Malfoy's acted without permission,"

"Yes, master," squeaked the house elf.

"Then I believe it's my turn to greet my darling fiancé,"

[EXTRA:HEADCANONS]

James, Sirus and the Potter's were at the grocery store. Sirius was staying over for the summer because Walburga had kicked him out again.

"Are these your sons?" asked the lady at checkout curiously. Embarrassed, Sirius flushed and looked at his shoes.

"Yes. Yes they are," said Mrs. Potter proudly. Sirius was filled with happiness. A small smile formed. She hadn't even given it a second thought.

"Are you saying I have to do anything Remus does? What if he jumps off a cliff?" asked James nervously. He had just completed his latest prank and now here he was in McGonagall's office at two in the morning.

"If Mr. Lupin were to jump off a cliff, he would've done his due diligence regarding the height of the cliff, the depth of the water and the angle of entry," she said primly, folding her hands. "So by all means, If Mr. Lupin jumps of a cliff or chooses not to put a Niffler in Filch's office, go ahead,"

Speechless, James looked at her in shock. Minerva sighed and reluctantly gestured at the tin of biscuits.

Thank you my glorious readers for staying with me! Ya'll are the reason I stay up late at night to finish chapters!