Chapter 10

Thud. The thick leather journal landed heavy on Draco's desk and he stared at it waiting for it to burn a hole through the wood like it did his chest. But nothing happened. It just laid there, as if it did not just turn his entire world over and inside out worse than his mother's death did. He took his arms and swept everything on his desk off in one quick motion, objects slammed against the windows, shattering, while papers and books flew across the small space. He picked up his desk chair and flung it across the living room with an agonizing yell, tears flowing freely down his face. He pulled his hands through is hair roughly leaving them in a fist behind his neck.

"Draco?" A timid voice came from behind him making him spin around quickly to meet the wide eyes of Astoria.

"Why are you here?" he asked harshly with hardened eyes.

"I've been here all day waiting for you to come home." She reached out her hand and walked towards him.

"Get out!" he did not want her to be here. He had no desire to dote on her nor did he have a desire to distract himself from his grief. Grief that he was denied as a child. How could his parents, his mother, do this to him? How could she take away his memory of a sister, of her daughter? How many people knew of Cassi?

"I'm not going anywhere," she said firmly taking another step towards him.

"Get. The. Fuck. Out." His jaw clenched making his words take on a dangerous growl. His wand fell from its holster he kept on his right arm and landed effortlessly in his hand by his side.

"No. You obviously shouldn't be alone right now." she stuck her nose in the air as if that was the end of the conversation.

His hand flicked and the front door burst open, "Leave, before I make you leave." He could feel the warmth in his face. The erratic rhythm of his heart beat loudly in his ears while he tried to control his breathing and clear his mind. Desperately wishing the floor would stop spinning below him.

Small sparks started to emanate from the tip of his wand when he started to feel her pressing into his mind, trying to break down his occlumency walls. "OUT! GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

"FINE!" She yelled back crossing her arms over her chest. "But we will be discussing this later."

She was barely out of the door before he slammed the door closed. He let out another yell and fell to his knees and began to pull on his hair again, tears falling mercilessly.

Draco sat on his heels in the middle of the living room until the streetlamp became the only source of light into his flat. His eyes, no longer able to produce tears, were burning and there was a painful lump in his throat every time he tried to swallow. When he looked towards the clock that typically sat upon his desk; he heaved a sigh seeing that it was resting broken under his coffee table. Trailing his bloodshot eyes along to further evaluate the damage, he saw he had cracked his window but did not have the energy to fix anything.

There was a soft knock on his door and when he didn't answer, another knock, harder, proceeded. Still he did not answer, and the person rapped again.

"Malfoy?" Hermione's voice called through the door coated with concern.

He finally pulled himself off the floor with the little energy he had and opened the door without a word. Hermione was standing in the hall with her fist raised, prepared to bang on the door again. When she saw him, her eyes went wide and mouth opened slightly, making Draco huff humorlessly before he went to sit on his couch, leaving the door open.

As soon as he sat down, he placed his head in his hands and leaned forwards on his knees, wishing that the burning in his eyes would stop. He could hear Hermione bustling around in his kitchen but didn't bother to look up to see what she was doing or ask why she was still there. His mind was a whirlwind thinking about Cassi. How did she die? Lucius never said in his journal, nor did he go into detail about her funeral. Was it too difficult for him to even write? Why did they think taking the memory of her was the best thing? Why was he not allowed to grieve?

The couch shifted next to him as Hermione sat down. She placed a cup and a sandwich in front of him, the smell of honey was strong as the fumes of the tea met his nose. "I put some whiskey in it. It's what my dad used to do." She said softly before grabbing her own cup.

They sat in silence for a time. Hermione seemed to understand that Draco had no desire to talk, but her presence was comforting for him. He didn't notice right away when she began reading, but when he finally looked at her, she had his copy of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes open and was completely enthralled. Her feet were tucked under her on the couch and she was spinning a curl around her fingers while biting the inside corner of her mouth.

Taking another drink of his tea, "Thank you." His voice was scratchy and barely audible, but she heard him, looked up and gave him a small smile before going back to reading.

Exhaustion took over quickly after that and the last thing he remembered before falling asleep on the couch was the warmth of Hermione's body next to him and the smell of her Vanilla shampoo.

The following morning, he awoke to a grey light barely escaping the gloom of the clouds as rain gently showered the brick of the road through the autumn tinted trees. Rolling away from the window, he realized he was in his bed and wondered when he had gotten there. He threw the blanket off him and sat up over the side of his bed to realize he had no shirt but was still in his slacks from the day before.

He rubbed his still burning eyes and the faded mark on his left arm caught his attention. "Fuck." He moaned hoping that Hermione had not had to see it. 'How much bloody whiskey did she put in the tea anyway?' Draco thought as he stood.

Lighting the hearth, he looked over his mess from the night before and let out a heavy sigh before he saw a note on his coffee table.

Draco,

I don't know what happened to you yesterday, but I hope you're feeling better. I added a small amount of dreamless sleep into your tea along with the whiskey so you would be able to get some rest. It looked like you needed it. I know how you are about cleaning up your own messes, so I left it alone.

I'm here if you need me.

Hermione.

His lips pulled in a hard line and he nodded his head. Setting the note back down he turned to start cleaning. He stacked the books into a neat pile on the edge of the desk, and quickly repaired the lamp and ink bottle then cast tergeo to clean the ink from the wall. Standing up, he saw the crack in the window that must have alerted Hermione to something being wrong and he fixed that as well.

Moving to gather the loose papers by his couch he found a broken picture frame. Picking it up, he realized this was the picture that normally sat in front of his lamp on his desk. It was a clear warm day on the grounds at Hogwarts, just a few days past his birthday and on either side of him in the picture was Hermione Granger and Luna Lovegood, both laughing, and Hermione had one arm wrapped around his waist. Talking to each other next to Luna was Theo Nott and Blaise Zabini while looking towards Luna. Ginny could be seen on the other side of Hermione ducking and laughing to avoid a quaffle that had been thrown by someone outside of the frame.

Things that day had been wonderful, especially for Draco. He had made it through his final year, hadn't been hexed or killed by other students and even managed to befriend one third of the Golden Trio. Passed all his NEWTS, all within the top three in the class. First in Potions and Alchemy, Third in Transfiguration and Runes, second to Hermione and Theo in all others. He had been accepted into the Healer's Training in America and was expected there at the start of the fall term. He dared to see hope.

Then he saw Harry Potter and Ron Weasley laughing with Hermione, Ginny, Luna and several other Gryffindors and Draco realized that wasn't a picture he deserved to be a part of. He had done so many terrible things before his final year and he had not even begun to make up for it. Ron had seen Draco in the distance and gave him a heated look before turning his back to him and wrapping an arm around Hermione's shoulders.

Knowing he needed to accomplish something worthy of redeeming himself, something that would redeem the Malfoy name before he could even begin to deserve the second chance he'd been given, he left the graduation early. He said his goodbyes to his mother but no one else and took a portkey to America three months before the start of his training.

His mind was reeling with the memories he had from his final year at Hogwarts. The year that turned everything on its axis for Draco. Luna had been such a good friend to him throughout his first couple months, forcing herself into his life to make sure that he was not letting the darkness of his past swallow him whole. She had made quick friends with Theo Nott and Blaise was instantly intrigued by her, even more so after she denied several dates with him. Draco smiled remembering how well Luna and Theo got on, it was like they were the siblings neither one of them were granted. The thought made his heart fill with fondness for their relationship then quickly burst with the freshness of finding out about his lost sister.

"The sky looks different when you have someone up there, don't you think?" She had said to him one day by the lake at Hogwarts. He had assumed she was speaking about the war. But after finding out about Cassi, it could easily mean something else.

"Bloody witch!" Draco cursed. What else had she deduced? He wondered.

Later that day, he had apparated to an open field with rolling hills that led to both The Burrow as well as the home of Luna Lovegood. He chanced a look at the home of redheads and wondered if Ginny were there but then turned to walked towards the small rook shaped home in the distance. When he got close, he could see the multiple greenhouses in the distance that emanated several odd sounds Draco was certain were not from local plants or creatures.

Before he could knock, Luna swung the door open and offered him a large, bright smile. "Hello Draco."

"Hello Luna. Can we talk?"

"Is this about your mother?"

"Kind of. Do you mind?" Draco asked indicating towards the door she seemed to forget she was standing in. Instead of moving aside, she stepped down the steps and looped her arm through his to turn him, making him follow her.

"Luna, this is serious."

She just turned to smile at him, still steering him away from the house. "I know. That's why we should walk. Table feels too formal for friends." She guided them past the greenhouses across a small open field and into the tree line of a small wooded area. "Tell me."

With a heavy sigh, his left hand grabbed her hand that was wrapped around his right arm and began to tell her everything, just has he had done during their final year at Hogwarts. She was easy to talk to, so eager to listen to everything and only comment when it was clear a comment was warranted. He went over exactly why he came back and how he planned to get revenge on whoever it was that killed her. He told her about Astoria and how she was driving him barmy but couldn't figure out how to end things with her and how he couldn't figure out a way to get out of the marriage contract he had. He told her about getting the official position at the Ministry but how the excitement of it was clouded. He told her about the letter he found at the manor, what it said, and finally about the journal and his sister.

She walked with him in silence while he talked. Only making small sounds to indicate that she was still listening as she guided them through the tranquil woods. She squeezed his hand when his voice broke at the mention of Cassi, and they sat down on a stump in the middle of a clearing. Giant white flowers that seemed to glow encircled them while bright green vines hung from the trees ending with deep purple blooms. Small blue and white lights were blinking in and out of sight at random intervals, and the sound of running water could be heard in the distance.

When Draco finally stopped talking, he leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees and waited for her to say something. It took a long time, but he didn't interrupt her thoughts. He could practically hear the wheels turning inside her head and he knew that when she had worked it all out, she would give him the advice he so desperately felt he needed.

Without a word, Luna stood up and made her way towards the vines on the opposite side of the clearing. She pulled off several of the purple flowers and placed them inside one of the giant glowing flowers before she grabbed a hair from Draco's head and added several other items into the flower. She pulled her wand from behind her left ear, tapped the petals three times while whispering an incantation. Draco watch in awe as the flower folded in on itself and rose into the air and created the shape of a small baby wrapped in blankets, glowing just as the white flower did.

The lump that formed in Draco's throat the night before had returned and his eyes began burn, not being able to produce any more tears to let fall. He was speechless as he watched Luna create a beautiful picture before him. The bundle of blankets flowed into a toddler with blonde waves bouncing all around her hair with bright blue eyes and rosy cheeks. A silent laugh visible on her face that was accentuated with a wide smile. A smile that never faltered as the image grew from a toddler to a young child. Her hair was longer, loose waves bushed out over her dainty shoulders.

The image was ever changing; she looked about age 11, laughing with an open smile and wand in her hand. She was wearing Hogwarts robes with a Slytherin green tie. Her eyes seemed to become brighter as the image continued to get older. She was soon an adult blowing a kiss towards Draco before it morphed into a woman going through her 30's, 40's, and 50's. Her hair was shorter and pinned back with small wisps escaping to frame her face. After a few more minutes of watching the figure in front of him age gracefully; a brittle old lady gave him a sad smile and blew him one more kiss before disappearing into a cloud of white smoke.

"I find grief easier to carry when you have someone beside you." Luna was watching the cloud of smoke being pushed around by a light wind with a passive look on her face. "Other times, what we truly need is closure." Her insightful orbs focused onto Draco. "You need to know that grief is not a sign of weakness, but the proof that true and pure love lies within you. The love not even you knew you had to offer. This is why you grieve your mum and now your sister so deeply."

Draco sat with his elbows rested on his knees and eyes locked onto Luna's shaking his head. He had spent the better part of the last day crying and screaming at no one, how could that not be weakness? He now had a bitterness towards his mother, he thought he would never have. How was that not weakness? He had no answers to any of his questions, instead, only more questions. He believed the lies he was told throughout his childhood and was a complete prat because of them. How was he not the poster child for weakness?

"She lied to me." Draco whispered.

"If I were in her position, I would want to save one over losing two."

"She could have told me when I was older."

"She's lost sisters, one to the war and one to death. She understood the amount of grief that would come with it." Luna made her way to sit down next to Draco and placed a hand on his arm. "It seems like she chose to protect you as long as she could."

"Now she's gone, and I can't talk to her about it."

"She will come back to you. Your mother and your sister. They will come back to you. Things we lose always do, just don't always in the way we imagine they should."

They sat in silence for several minutes and Draco, still leaning forward, watched the blue specs of light flash in and out of sight. He was able to finally calm is breathing regardless of the dryness of his mouth and painful lump still residing in his throat.

"You knew." Draco asked quietly. "The first time you talked to me in eighth year. You knew."

"I saw it before then, it was just much clearer after the burden of your war was dissolved." She said.

He shook his head slightly as his lips pulled into a sad smile. "It wasn't my place to tell you." She finished, and Draco knew she was right. He doubted he would have believed her even if she did tell him. He had to hear, rather read about it, himself to know it to be true.

"The prophecy." He snapped his head up, "My father knew."

"Yes, it's a few decades old now. Almost as old as Voldemort and Harry's prophecy would be."

"You said you just got it."

"I did, didn't I." She gave him a smile and her eyes danced in the dimmed sunlight coming through the thickness of trees. "There were several lost prophecies after we broke into the Ministry. It has taken many years for some of the unspeakables to track them down."

"The prophecy you heard, the one your showed me; it was from a memory." When Luna nodded, he continued, "It was from one of you. Some of you heard it without even realizing it that night; the night the Ministry finally accepted Voldemort was back." She nodded again, not able to say aloud a true confirmation or any details of who they had gotten the memory from.

"New threats come and go, but only one is stopping progress of integration right now." Luna said, "That is what you need to focus on. The rest will resolve in time."

"What about my mother, Luna?" Draco's brows pulled together and he felt his heart rip a little bit more than it already was. "She's why I came back."

"She may be why you came back, but she's not the reason you're going to stay." She stood up at this point and offered a hand. He took it and they walked back towards her house arms linked as they were when they first came into the woods.

"She deserves to be avenged."

"Others do too. The line between avenging someone and getting revenge is very thin. The war has made many lose sight of that line because they have crossed it in the name of a loved one without an anchor for them in the light. Who is so lost that they have been consumed by the dark in the name of someone that has been taken?"

They were quiet for the remainder of the walk to her house until a screech started coming from one of the greenhouses and she just laughed saying that the gnomes must be messing with the screechsnaps. When he questioned the reasoning for having them, she answered him in a way that made it seem as it should be obvious.

"I print color photographs in the Quibbler. The ground up stem makes the colors more vibrant."

He shook his head and gave her a small laugh as he walked her up to her door. "Thank you, Luna." He took and kissed the back of her hand.

She gave a slight blush, "That's what friends are for. You need to riddle out the prophecy before we have more to grieve."

"You know more?" Draco's eyes narrowed. What else could she not tell him because of her vow to the Ministry? When she just smiled at him, he knew she did but was obligated to keep it to herself.

He bid her good-bye and apparated back to his flat thinking of the prophecy and what she meant by someone else to grieve. Why was the prophecy more important than who the murderer was? He walked up the steps and went inside to the second set of stairs leading to his front door. When he got there, he saw Blaise banging on his door.

"Oi! Come on! Just open the bloody door!" Blaise was yelling. "Theo's back, we've got to grab a drink! Come on!"

"Blaise?" Draco asked from the middle of the stairs raising his eyebrows at his already inebriated friend. "I can smell the whiskey from here."

"Draco!" Blaise held open his arms like he hadn't seen Draco in years. "Bloody hell! Where have you been?"

"Out." Draco moved past his friend and unlocked his door then stood to the side. "Please, Blaise, make yourself at home."

"About bloody time." Blaise slurred as he stumbled into the flat. "Granger seems to think I'm a bit loud."

"I can't imagine why." Draco went to the kitchen to make some tea and poured Blaise a glass of water. "Drink this, you pissed idiot."

"We are celebrating!" Blaise yelled and down the glass of water like it was alcohol. "What the hell is this?"

"Water." Draco said.

"No! Theo is waiting for us! Let's Go!"

"I'm not in the mood, Blaise."

"Even more reason!" Blaise was already making his way back towards the door. "Well, come on then!"

Shaking his head at his friend, he gave a small laugh. "Blaise, I have some stuff I need to figure out."

"Granger's going! She hasn't seen him either! She's meeting us there! If she can put work off for a night, you definitely can!" Blaise was pulling at Draco's arm and laughing.

"Fine!" Draco put his hands up in defeat. "Bloody wanker." He pulled down on his sleeves and grabbed the coat he forgot when he went to Luna's and followed Blaise out of the door. They apparated to a small pub off Diagon Alley where they met up with Theo, Hermione, Katrin, and even Harry to celebrate that Theo was back from his excursion around Europe and going to be settling back into England.

AN:

Welcome back loves!

These past few weeks have been crazy on my end, but I have managed to make sure to write and I want to keep the story updated for you all. That being said, please let me know how you all like it! And as always ENJOY!