As if he were just as surprised to find me as I was to see him, the wizard clapped his hands over his ears at my sudden scream. I couldn't stop screaming. The wails were wrenched from me as if against my will, shrill and high, repeatedly, as I scrambled to get off of the bed so fast I fell onto the floor.

The bedroom door banged open and Albus Potter stood in the doorway. I didn't spare him more than a glance as I couldn't seem to take my eyes off of my attacker. Al's wand was in his hand, thankfully, and he leaped over the bed, clearing it in one bound, to stand between me and the blonde man who, unmoving, remained in the far corner of the room.

"What the hell?" Albus lowered his wand slowly and the action caused me to find my voice.

"It's him!" It came out as a squeak but at least I managed to speak. "Al, it's him! He's…he's one of them!"

Albus looked from me to the stranger multiple times before saying, "Leona, this is my flat mate, my best friend, Scorpius Malfoy."

I shook my head rapidly, "No, Albus, no! He's one of the wizards that attacked me!"

To my relief I watched as Albus's wand hand twitched and raised, though only slightly. The two of them, Albus and Scorpius, eyed each other closely, as my mind raced. While they had a silent conversation I was realizing that Albus's best friend, Rose's boyfriend, a trusted ally of the Potter family, was a Dark Wizard. Poor Albus! His best friend! I couldn't imagine such betrayal.

Then, as if deciding something, Al and Scorpius said one word at the same time, "Hyperion."

"What?" I gasped out in shock as Al fully lowered his wand back to his side and I noticed for the first time that he was wearing nothing except a pair of loose fitting boxers with a pattern of golden snitches on them.

It was the first time, although I hoped not the last, I had seen so much of him. He was quite objectively the most gorgeous bloke I'd ever had the pleasure of laying eyes on. His muscles were well defined but he was lean. A scant smattering of black hair just in the center of his chest but he was not by any definition hairy. His beautiful black hair was mused, untidy, sticking up in all directions as I remembered that I must have woken him from his slumber with my shouts.

"What is hyperion?" I managed to ask although I was still unable to move from the place where I sat, on the floor beside the bed, with the sheets wrapped around me.

"Hyperion is Scorpius's younger brother. They look almost identical – there is less than a year between their birthdays. Except Hyperion is…" Al trailed off and looked to his friend for help.

"Dark," Scorpius finished bluntly. I flinched at the sound of his voice. "My brother practices the Dark Arts."

"You…you didn't…you weren't the one who…?" I stammered and gestured to myself.

"Blimey, no!" Scorpius sounded appalled that I would ever call his honour into question. "I would never hurt anyone. At least – not without good reason. I never touched you, Leona, I swear." Strangely, I believed him. But his looks. My God, his looks so closely resembled his brothers that I still couldn't make myself move as I remained frozen in my terror.

"Why did you come in here then?" I asked him.

"It's my room," he answered with indrawn eyebrows, as if the answer had been obvious. "Al told me you were staying here of course, but I just assumed-"

"That I wouldn't haven given her your room?" Al cut him off, finishing the thought for him. "Well it seemed the best solution. You should have told me you were coming home."

"Where did you think I was sleeping, the couch?" I grumbled quietly to myself as I closed my eyes and attempted to focus on my breathing – a technique Hermione had taught me.

"I would have told you I was coming, but I didn't even know until about thirty minutes ago. I thought we were supposed to move on to the bank in Lapland, but that got cancelled since their board president resigned unexpectedly due to health issues…Godric, why am I explaining all of this right now? Can we talk in the morning? I am positively knackered, mate."

"Yeah, alright," Al agreed. "We will get all of this straightened out in the morning. Come on, Leona, you can sleep in my room." He held out a hand to me but I shook my head.

"I don't think…I don't think I can get up, Albus," Embarrassment caused me to blush but my entire body was trembling so hard I knew my legs wouldn't hold me.

Albus simply nodded then bent, scooped me up into his arms bridal style and held me against his chest as he carried me around the foot of the bed, out of the room, and across the hall. Along the way he had disentangled me from the sheets, leaving them for Scorpius I assumed since they must be his, and so I was deposited into Al's bed in my oversized t-shirt and panties unceremoniously. Although, to his credit, Al didn't seem to notice my lack of pajama bottoms.

I was left in the room alone for a few moments before he returned and handed me the vial of potion from Hermione. I took a swallow and the effects were immediate. While the fear remained it was muted. My limbs stopped shaking and my heart slowed from racing to just slightly more rapid than normal.

"I'll be on the sofa if you need me," As if he couldn't help himself he reached over and pushed my hair back behind my ear before turning toward the door.

"Wait!" I cried, "Don't leave me!"

Albus looked at me with confused and conflicted eyes. "Why not?"

"I don't…I can't…" I closed my eyes as I admitted, "I will sleep better knowing you're with me."

There was silence for so long that I was forced to open my eyes to find out if he was still even in the room or not.

He was.

Still looking, for some odd reason, conflicted, Albus stood halfway between his bed and his bedroom door. When he moved toward the door my heart fell but all he did was close it, click the lock into place, and come toward the bed.

The only light in the room came from his window, but the moon was bright enough that I could see quite well as Al lifted the covers and slid in beside me without saying a word. I shimmied a little to get closer to him. It felt strange and surreal, as if my recent fear had made me suddenly brave, and I cuddled Albus.

His feel, his scent, even just the sound of his steady breathing helped not only to soothe me but excite me. Albus had been my protector yet again. I replayed the image in my mind of the way he had burst into the room and jumped to my side when he thought I was in danger. The way he risked himself, placing himself between me and the perceived threat. The way his eyes had blazed as if ready to kill whoever dared harm me.

Okay, maybe I was exaggerating that just a little bit, but I couldn't help myself from lifting myself up just enough to kiss Albus full on the lips. He responded, as I had hoped, with his lips moving with mine as if they needed the reassurance of my safety just as much as I needed the reassurance of his presence. Our kissing continued and became more heated as our breathing became labored.

My hands tugged at Al's sides until he finally obeyed them and rolled on top of me. His lips kissed up and down the sides of my throat while my fingers threaded through his hair and soft gasps escaped me – noises that I had never made before and didn't even know I was capable of.

His hands slipped up under my shirt, but only just to hold my sides while he ravished me wish kisses. Impatiently, I squirmed under him and hooked a leg around his hips. Perhaps instinctually he lowered his hips, grinding into me and there was no mistaking the hardness I felt pressed intimately against the apex of my thighs. My body responded, lifting off of the bed, craving more of that delicious friction. Rubbing together through our under garments was driving me crazy and it must have been doing the same to Al because his hands, tangled under my shirt, ripped it from the hem in his hasty attempt to rid me of it.

I pushed Albus back off of me just enough so I could lift my upper body off of the bed. I pulled the remains of my shirt over my head and tossed it aside. In the bright moonlight of his bedroom he could very clearly see me – all of me – from the belly button up. But when my eyes found his, they were on my face.

"Leona," he breathed my name on an exhale, "We should…we should stop."

What? No! I couldn't stop. Did he want to stop? Did he think I wanted him to stop? My brain couldn't make sense of why he would make such a suggestion. But the way he phrased it gave me some hope. He said we should stop.

"I need this," I took his face in my hands, rubbing my thumbs along the stubble on his jaw. "I need this," I repeated breathily as my tongue darted out to wet my own lips. God, I had never meant anything more. I needed him so badly I couldn't think straight.

He groaned as he let his eyes slide down to my exposed chest. Slowly, deliberately, giving me every opportunity to change my mind, he brought his palm up and cupped my breast. His fingertips trailed over my hardened nipple and I threw my head back while pressing my chest up into his grasp.

His lips descended on me again, licking, kissing, sucking, my collarbone, my shoulders, down between my breasts, around my belly button and then back up to circle around my nipples.

I was thrashing on his bed so aggressively that it should have embarrassed me, but I was too lost in all of these new sensations to control any of my reactions to them. When he delved into my panties my legs fell open gladly, letting him explore every part of me. Mindlessly I yanked at his boxers, shoving them down his legs and he kicked them off of the foot of his bed.

His mouth was on mine again, his tongue stroking the roof of my mouth as he pressed into me hard and fast, sliding in to the hilt. I cried out, half in pain, and half in surprise at the suddenness of him being inside of me. Albus stilled over top of me and slowly withdrew. My eyes, which had slammed shut when he entered me, opened to find him staring at me in what could only be described as shock.

"Leona," he sounded almost afraid. "Are you…are you a virgin?"

I motioned between us, "Well, not anymore."

"Why didn't you tell me?" He held himself up on his elbows above me, but I was glad that he wasn't pulling away.

Why hadn't I told him? So many reasons. I didn't want my inexperience to make him even more reluctant to possibly date me. I also hadn't wanted him to think that it meant to me that sex equaled love. Just because I hadn't engaged in sexual activity before didn't mean I was jaded enough to believe that two people had to love each other to do the deed. Then there was the fact that to me, my lack of sexual experience wasn't important. But the reason that came out of my mouth was the most truthful answer in this situation.

"I didn't want you to change your mind."

A harsh laugh escaped him and his head bowed down to kiss my forehead. "I don't think anything would have changed my mind tonight after you said you needed me, but for Merlin's sake, I would have been more gentle…"

"It's fine," I told him, eager to get back to where we had left off. "I'm fine. It doesn't even hurt right now," I saw his wince and stretched up to kiss his jaw. "Please," I squirmed under him and dug my nails lightly into the flesh of his ass, "please keep going," I let myself relax into the mattress.

"Fuck, you are the most dangerous woman I've ever met," he lowered himself back on top of me and this time when he slid in it was with a slow gentleness while he gauged my reaction.

I didn't flinch, but it was still quite sore. He kept his movements slow but rhythmic until I had adjusted enough to the feeling that we were moving in unison, and I was meeting his thrusts with my own.

"That's it, sweetheart," He crooned. It was the first time he had called me any term of endearment and despite the scenario we were in I tried not to let the name go to my head. We were clearly both lost in the heat of this. "Fuck, Leona, I can't…I can't hold off much longer."

I had been so enveloped in all of the new experiences that I forgot eventually this would come to an end. And his words are what did it, combined with him angling his pelvis down to rub directly on my clit with his next thrust. Knowing that I was driving him as crazy as he was driving me – knowing it was me, my body, that was causing him such pleasure, sent me over the edge.

An orgasm stronger than any I had ever experienced rocketed through me, curling my toes, causing my nails to dig in harder to his back. My mouth was on his collarbone which muffled my soft cries as his movements drew my orgasm out and a moment later he found his own release in me. I blinked rapidly as I realized what I was feeling was his cock pulsing in my most intimate parts.

When he had finished, Al wrapped his arms around me and rolled us so he was on his back with me curled up on his chest. We didn't say anything as we basked in the glow of our pleasure. He was gently stroking my hair and, exhausted as I was by all of the events of the evening, I was asleep before he had even softened enough to slip out of me.

….

I woke up alone and it took me a minute to understand why this bothered me. Because I hadn't gone to bed alone. Had all of that really happened last night? Yes, I was in Al's room, snuggled under his blanket, and yes, I was naked other than the bedding. This was the first time I saw his room in daylight and it fascinated me. There was a moving poster on the wall of a Quidditch team and a clock on a different wall that I could hear ticking quietly. His owl was asleep in his cage beside the open window, brown head hidden under a brown wing. When I stood the soft plush carpet under my feet was warm and I approached the window without fearing that anyone might see me standing there naked as Al had told me the building was enchanted so nobody could see in the windows. My hand stretched out to the open window, not feeling so much as a draft coming in. The moment my fingers stretched beyond the window ledge to the outside world the cold air bit at them, causing me to pull my hand back inside. Magic would truly never cease to amaze me. Clearly the window had been enchanted to hold the heat in, even when it was wide open.

Unfortunately my t-shirt hadn't survived our encounter the night before and was torn cleanly down the middle. Irritated that Albus had left me to not only wake up on my own but also without any clothes I didn't hesitate before yanking open his closet door. A broom fell out toward me which I caught and shoved back in. Mostly there were wizard's robes but I managed to find a plain gray t-shirt. Next I rummaged through his dresser drawers until finding a pair of loose fitting sweatpants which thankfully had a drawstring I used to secure them up on my hips.

I wasn't angry that Albus had left me to wake up alone, exactly. After all, I had practically begged him last night for what we did. We hadn't discussed anything. There was no commitment, and as far Al knew, no feelings involved either. I had told him I needed him and his body as a distraction and a way to relieve the stress I'd experienced when finding Scorpius in my bedroom and Al had readily obliged. As Willow had pointed out just the previous day - what bloke wouldn't? No, I was more upset by what this meant. If I had woken up just as I'd fallen asleep - in his arms - then maybe I would have talked with him about what last night meant. But waking up alone sent a loud and clear message with no room for misinterpretation on my part.

Now that was established I steadied myself to exit the bedroom. Would Scorpius know what had occurred? I was completely determined to not show any embarrassment or awkwardness. If this had meant nothing to Al more than a shag then that was exactly what I would pretend it was to me also. With my head held high I opened the door and went to the kitchen.

The simple act of getting out of bed and walking to the kitchen was enough to make me fully aware of how sore I was. Muscles ached that I didn't know I had. The place between my legs throbbed once or twice and I wished I could just pull an ice pack out and sit on it for a bit. This was a surprise to me – I hadn't expected soreness the day after my first time, but I guess it kind of made sense. Nothing had ever – er – pounded – that part of me before now.

Neither man noticed me at first. Albus was seated in his usual chair at the high countertop with a slice of toast in front of him and a mug. Scorpius stood on the other side of Al's high counter pouring something into Al's mug from a pot. "Good morning," I said briskly as I approached.

Scorpius turned and smiled. In that moment I knew I wouldn't have another panic attack around him. In the morning kitchen light I could easily tell he wasn't the man who had attacked me. There was something different about his eyes than his brothers, although I wasn't sure what - perhaps the shape or color. "Would you like a cup?" Scorpius held up the pot in his hand.

"Coffee or tea?" I asked.

"Whichever you would prefer. I am a wizard, my lady," he teased. I couldn't help but chuckle. I would have assumed he was flirting with me except I could already tell this was just his personality. It seemed to just come naturally to him to tease others.

"Coffee then, please," was my request as I handed him a mug I pulled from the cupboard.

As he poured the contents of the pot into my cup with one hand he was making swirling motions with his wand in the other. The beverage coming from the pot was very obviously just steaming water but as it hit my cup it turned to coffee. "How..." I began.

"You cannot magically make food or drink out of thin air," Scorpius explained carefully, "However, you can summon it if you know where it is, or transfigure it if you have some. This coffee is in our coffee canister over on the counter. I'm just filtering it through with magic and the used grounds are going into the bin."

"Right," was my short agreement. Al had not said anything to me yet nor had he looked my way as he ate his breakfast.

Not wanting to sit beside him in that moment I took my mug full of hot coffee to the sofa only barely managing not to wince as I sat down carefully. I couldn't help feeling self-conscious about wearing Al's clothes while stubbornly accepting I hadn't had a choice. What if I had dared to dart across the hall to the other bedroom and Scorpius had been in there dressing or sleeping?

I sipped on my drink and all of us remained in a comfortable silence for a few minutes before Al stood from his chair and came to stand in front of me. It was the first time I looked directly at him since last night. He was holding out a vial of potion to me which I took while asking, "What is this?" It wasn't my potion from Hermione as this one was a dark purple color and in a much smaller glass container.

Lowering his voice he told me, "Morning after potion."

Despite my best efforts to not blush, I felt crimson burn on my cheeks, knowing that despite Al's quiet tone, Scorpius would have to be deaf to not hear those words. I risked a glance over and he was, tactfully, paying rapt attention to buttering his own slice of toast.

"Thank you," I told him, "Do I drink all of it?" It only looked to be one or two mouthfuls anyway.

"Yes," Al instructed. I uncorked it and downed it in one big gulp.

When he took the empty vial back from me it vanished instantly from his hands. Normally he didn't perform a lot of magic in front of me and then it had always been with a wand. "How did you...?"

"Some wizards can perform wandless magic," Albus said, "a vanishing spell is simple enough without a wand."

"Show off," Scorpius said good naturedly. "It takes a powerful wizard to do any wandless magic intentionally," Scorpius continued for my benefit, "any witch or wizard can do wandless magic but to direct the magic to do what you want without a wand is much more difficult." To prove his point he wiggled his fingers and I watched as a cupboard opened and a plate flew directly into Scorpius's outstretched hand. Eggs that I hadn't previously noticed on the stove flew from the pan onto his plate then salt and peppered themselves.

"Who's the show off now?" Al shot back.

Scorpius lifted one shoulder in a shrug then began to eat with gusto. "It feels good to be home," he announced.

"Tell me," I addressed both of them, "What is our next step? Do you go and arrest Hyperion or..." I trailed off as I looked to Scorpius. I hadn't meant to be insensitive. This was his brother. I couldn't imagine discussing something like this about Ella or Gwen. "I'm sorry," I mumbled.

"Don't be," Scorpius continued to eat as though he were completely un-phased. "I have long known who and what my brother is, and Albus is much more a brother to me than Hyperion ever has been."

"We can't just go arrest him," Al answered my question.

"Talk to him then? Try to question him or get a confession?"

"No," Al said slowly, "We can't do any of those things because we don't know where Hyperion Malfoy is."

"I don't understand. Even in my world authorities can find someone's address easily enough. You have magic for crying out loud. It should be easy to find."

"Well, let me rephrase. We know where he lives but have no way of finding the residence."

"I don't understand."

"Has Albus ever told you about my family?" Scorpius interrupted our conversation.

"No," I replied, unsure of what this had to do with anything.

"I didn't want to scare her away," Albus muttered.

"Understandable. We are a scary lot," Scorpius waggled his fingers at me. "My family is the exact opposite of Al's. The Potters are known as heroes of the war. They are respected and adored by our society. My family was on the wrong side of that war. We are feared outcasts."

Albus snorted, "Outcasts?"

"My grandparents are," Scorpius clarified. "Despite being on the wrong side of the war, my grandparents were pardoned of their war crimes because during the final battle they assisted Harry Potter in defeating Voldemort. But that doesn't mean they had a change of heart and suddenly became the 'good guys.' No, my grandparents only helped Harry Potter because it was in their own best interests. They wanted Voldemort to win the war, make no mistake, but not at the expense of losing their only son - my father. My father was in the thick of the battle and my grandparents needed the war to stop as quickly as possible with the fewest amount of casualties to protect their son. As a show of good faith Harry Potter petitioned the Ministry of Magic on their behalf following the end of the war and they were granted a pardon. Their only request was that the Ministry never know where they chose to make their new home. They were afraid of zealots on either side of the war holding grudges against them and seeking them out for revenge. After all, they harmed many who fought on the side of the Light but in the end betrayed the side of the Dark. As a result, neither side wanted to associate with them. My father was young enough at the time that he managed to escape most of the discrimination in his adult life. He hadn't been as responsible for his actions as his parent's had been for theirs."

"As fascinating as all of this is, I don't know why you're telling me now," I interjected when he paused in his story.

"Because it is vital for you to understand all of the background so you can see why Albus will be proceeding the way he is with this case. My brother was born different. Since we were children he was mean to animals, cruel to our House Elves, and much too interested in the Dark Arts. My family feared that he would undo all of the goodwill they worked to build in the wizarding world. They didn't want anyone to think badly of them for my brother's actions. When it was time for him to attend school I was going into my second year at Hogwarts and he was sent to a different wizarding school. Very few people know I have a brother. The Potters and their extended family, of course, but few in the mainstream of our society know about Hyperion. He moved out of my parent's home when he was only 16 and has been living with my grandparents ever since, as they are more...supportive of his behavior."

"But didn't you just say that the Ministry doesn't know where your grandparents live?"

"Bingo!" Scorpius tapped my nose with his forefinger. "So how do you find someone if you can't find their house?"

"Draw them out of their house," I said.

"Exactly. Albus here will be working on a plan to get Hyperion not only out of his home, but preferably away from his friends, and completely on his own. My brother is far too clever to fall into a trap easily. Despite everything, there are still those within the Ministry who would tell my grandparents and brother if a trap were being planned. Albus cannot tell anyone, not even his father, about this yet. If Harry Potter knows then he is required to put it in a report. A report that anyone in the Auror Department or other Ministry Departments have access to and the appropriate clearance to read."

"What does this mean?" I looked at Al, already knowing, but wanting to hear it from him.

"I'll have to face Hyperion alone."

"No! No, Albus, you can't! He's dangerous!"

Al's snort was cocky, "And I'm not?"

"But-"

"That's why we need to draw Hyperion out alone," Scorpius said, "Albus has a better chance facing him in a fair duel."

"I can handle Hyperion Malfoy," Albus's gaze held mine steadily, probably seeing the fear in my eyes, and trying to reassure me.

Reluctantly, knowing I had no other choice, I nodded solemnly.

"Right," Al clapped his hands together suddenly, "I'm off to take a shower. I have a long day ahead of me it seems." He disappeared down the hall.