If you weren't already aware that this fic is an AU, this chapter would be all the proof you need. Enjoy!

Hope everyone is ready for the train! It leaves in 5 minutes! Happy Hogwarts day!

Chapter 24

Sirius went through first and scanned the group that awaited his godson. Narcissa nodded to him while Lucius only seemed to puff up his chest and raise his chin. Snape was behind them with Voldemort and both stood proudly.

Draco was positioned closest to the fireplace and Sirius moved to his side as Harry came through the floo behind him.

"Draco, I want you to present me as you did to your father on Friday..." Harry murmured.

Draco stiffened while offering his arm to the young lord. "Do we really have time for the niceties?"

"No, but I'll never get another chance at a first impression on your mother." Harry murmured, lightly squeezing Draco's arm. "Please?"

"Mother, Father, uncles..." Draco gave in with a sigh. "I realize you're all acquainted with my suitor's godfather, Lord Sirius Black, Viscount Black. Most of you even know my suitor himself, but... I'm pretty sure Mother hasn't had the pleasure... So please allow me to introduce Lord Harry James Potter, Earl of Inverness."

Harry bowed over Draco's mother's hand before meeting his host's gaze. "Lady Malfoy, it's lovely to meet you. Lord Malfoy, thank you both for hosting this gathering."

Lucius and Narcissa graciously greeted him before moving on to Sirius. "As you're an escapee from prison, you can't really use that title, you know." Lucius muttered.

"In present company, I don't think it really matters." Sirius smirked at his cousin's husband. "Besides, Harry insists on using it. Lord knows why."

Harry smirked, thinking of his plans for the first session of wizengamut. "Professor Snape."

"Lord Potter." The older man's face held a strangely serene expression.

Harry sighed and moved on, shaking his head. "Which title shall I use for you, sir?" He asked Voldemort.

The Dark Lord snorted. "Pray, anything but Moldyshorts."

"Oh, Harry!" Draco fought desperately to hide his amusement. "You didn't!"

"In my defense, I thought I was fighting for my life and decided that sarcasm made a good weapon." Harry allowed his lips to twitch.

Tom snorted. "Draco calls me 'Uncle' but, since we are actually cousins, I suppose you might use 'Tom'."

"Wonderful. Now, where shall we begin our discussion, Tom?" Harry asked as politely as he could. "We have quite a few topics to cover, after all... and precious little time."

"Draco made it seem as if you'd discovered something urgent but if you wish to begin elsewhere ..." The older man trailed off, raising his eyebrow.

Narcissa's eyes widened. "Perhaps we ought to move this conversation into the dining room, my lords."

"I apologise, Lady Malfoy." Harry smirked. "I should've recalled from previous interactions with Slytherins that the setting can have an effect on the conversing parties."

"Harry, not now." Draco sighed.

Tom looked between them. "Trouble in paradise?"

"No, Uncle, just a small disagreement which will be resolved as soon as we have a moment alone with my parents." Draco informed him.

"I wasn't only referring to your comment from this morning." Harry murmured with a shrug.

The group followed a now curious Narcissa into the dining room.

"Now, I have two suggestions that might make this conversation go more efficiently... if nobody minds?" Narcissa spoke softly in a pleasant tone. Everyone glanced at each other and agreed to hear her ideas. "First, I suggest that we all use first names to foster a friendly atmosphere and get everyone into a cooperative mood." Several people wrinkled their noses but when nobody objected vocally, she continued. "And my second suggestion is that - as the person with loyalty on both sides... Draco should take charge of this meeting."

Lucius' jaw, which had been in danger of dropping at his wife's first suggestion, followed through on the threat after the second. It did make a sort of sense that Draco take charge but Lucius was the elder... Lucius was Merlin's heir... but wasn't Draco also Merlin's heir... perhaps even more-so as dragonlord? Having worked through the logic, Lucius turned, thoughtfully looking at his son before nodding silently.

Severus followed his longtime friend's cue and was rather shocked when the Dark Lord did the same.

Harry instantly nodded his assent with Sirius following Harry's lead.

Draco watched the men he'd always looked up to metaphorically bow to his mother and realized that she had a subtle kind of wisdom he needed to master.

"Good. Tea anyone?" She asked.

"Uhm... That was unexpected but... I do have an idea of how to begin." Draco began as his mother conducted her duties as hostess. "I think we should list the topics we need to talk about."

"So, you're saying that we should treat this as a business meeting?" Tom asked curiously.

Lucius lifted an eyebrow skeptically, but Severus nodded. "I see the merit but we seem to have lost the urgency that brought the meeting sooner than planned."

Harry nodded which prompted Draco to continue.

"That's true. Alright, I'll write the topics of discussion on this parchment and pass it around. Feel free to add something." Draco muttered as he did so.

A glance told Harry that his godfather was taking this seriously so he gave the man a reassuring nod as Draco passed the list to Harry. The young lord saw that his partner had gotten all the points he wanted to discuss, so he passed the parchment along.

Sirius added something but everyone else was in agreement with the list.

Draco checked the list and cleared his throat, drawing the group's attention. "Sirius has reminded us that Tom promised to make an oath to guarantee your safety, Harry."

Tom stood with a grimace but quickly lifted his wand. "I hereby swear upon my magic that Harry Potter and Sirius Black will leave this meeting without any hindrance or damage from me or my allies."

"Thank you, Uncle." Draco was gracious.

Harry nodded solemnly, accepting the oath, but glanced at Sirius. "I'd forgotten about that in my haste to talk about other things, Siri, thanks."

"Shall we move along, then? How do you know this word?" Tom asked intently.

"Which word?" Harry asked innocently.

"You know which word." Tom's eyes narrowed.

"I was sure Draco was leading this meeting, wasn't he?" Harry asked in mock confusion.

Draco sighed. "Harry, I was going to suggest that he pick the first topic anyway. Shall we just go ahead?"

Everyone looked at the young lord.

"Very well, I learned it quite recently." Harry told the group. "Before leaving school last night, I was given a brief overview of the term."

Sirius was glancing between them trying to figure out what was going on. "Can we start with the word itself so everyone knows what we're discussing?"

"What exactly did Dumbledore tell you about horcruxes?" Tom asked abruptly. "Did he say what they do or how they're made? No, I rather think not."

"I hope you've heard that I don't exactly trust the old man anymore. I suppose that's where we'll really start." Harry said gently. "His reaction shocked me in June when I told him you'd returned and your Death Eater minions had rebanded."

"He sent you back to your muggle family, didn't he?" Tom nodded.

"He did but then, he sent me back there every year knowing they hated me." Harry said grimly, ignoring Snape's scoff. "But thanks to you, I was able to see the strange light in his eye when I told him we sparred a bit before I got the cup back and returned to the school."

Tom nodded smugly. "He was worried but he still sent you back there to be defenseless."

"Yes. Then my friends weren't contacting me and my letters to them were coming back unopened... the newspaper wasn't even coming and there was no logical reason for it." Harry explained. "So I began watching the skies... and the trees. Owls were coming but they weren't getting close enough to deliver anything to me. Hedwig wasn't restricted but she also wasn't bringing me mail and I wanted to know why."

"Smart boy." Tom smirked.

"So, I went for a walk and a Gringotts' owl was able to approach me." Harry chuckled, thinking about it. "I'm sure you can imagine my surprise and confusion when I'd only been told about my trust vault but suddenly this goblin calling himself my estate manager was telling me I had a whole estate that included multiple vaults and, as if that weren't enough, there was some discrepancy."

Draco had heard this story before but he knew more of the details that Harry was leaving out.

"Anyway, next thing I knew dementors were attacking me and my cousin. I saved us from them, but then my relatives kicked me out, thinking I'd used magic on my cousin. He took offense on my behalf and asked to join me, so I took him with me to Diagon Alley and the bank." Harry went on. "The goblins told me that my magical guardian had refused to bring me in, so I told them I had no clue who this 'guardian' was but he wasn't doing a very good job. After informing me that Albus Dumbledore was the guardian in question, they performed several tests during which they found my ancestry and verified the four baronies that I was entitled to claim along with my cousin's squib status."

"Impressive." Tom commented.

"They also found spells and potions in my system that had kept my full potential bound for years." Harry swung his gaze to the man he'd known as a potion master. "Their healer performed a ritual and gave me a potion to fix the damage."

"This is what you and Severus settled earlier; yes?" Tom smirked.

Harry nodded. "The potions and spells affected every aspect of my life, but I was kept far away from the magical world until my Hogwarts letter arrived... so, how was it administered?"

"After James and Lily died, the only two people who had access to him before he was dropped onto Petunia's doorstep were Hagrid and Dumbledore." Sirius glanced at Harry.

Harry took a deep breath before stating his concern. "Due to our horrible rapport, I suspected Severus of creating the potions for Dumbledore's dastardly plot."

Snape looked uncomfortable.

"A master potioneer would be able to create all of the potions used, after all, and I won't apologize for my suspicions but they've been laid to rest due to Severus' plausible explanation." Harry shrugged and motioned for the older man to explain.

"He has already made us aware of the situation." Tom replied. "Shall we continue?"

"Alright, so as I was leaving the school last night, the Headmaster spoke to me about the hat's prophecy and the puzzle pieces." Harry began, bringing his attention to Tom. "He said that he suspected the founders' objects were the puzzle pieces but they'd disappeared during your attendance at Hogwarts and he was afraid that you'd performed dark magic on them."

"I assume that he elaborated." Tom said with a snarl.

Harry nodded. "He asked if I recalled the diary from my second year and told me that he'd discovered that it was something called a horcrux. He told me it was created by ripping the soul and placing the ripped piece into the object. He further explained that the only way to rip a soul required murder."

Tom stared at him for a silent moment, then abruptly stood up and began to pace. "I was an orphan like you, Harry, only I was raised in a muggle orphanage and had no one I could trust in the wizarding world. Dumbledore came to the orphanage with news that I'd been accepted to a school I'd never applied to. He informed me about magic being a reality and showed me a few tricks. I agreed to attend and was sorted into Slytherin. A few months into my first year at Hogwarts, he called me to his office and told me that, although I was doing incredibly well, he'd noticed something that was a little off. That's when he asked if he could test my power."

Harry took this in with a slight nod.

"I tested quite high and, although I thought it was a good thing, he informed me that it was not." Tom gritted his teeth. "I was told that I was a danger to myself and others. He said that, due to unstable magic, there was a possibility of me becoming an obscurial."

"Sorry to interrupt." Harry signaled. "What's an obscurial?"

"It's what we call a witch or wizard who's magic becomes an unstable, uncontrollable dark force - called an obscurus. It busts out and attacks, and then vanishes." Lucius informed him sadly. He went on to explain that it was caused by repression of a witch or wizard's magic. "The last documented obscurial attack in Europe happened during Grindlewald's time."

Harry swallowed uneasily. "Why did you repress your magic?"

"One of the boys at the orphanage attempted to bully me so I showed him my power and it scared him. I rather enjoyed the feeling of revenge, but I was visited by Dumbledore who reprimanded me." Tom grinned. "A passive power like talking to snakes was fun but fairly innocent, so he said I shouldn't use anything beyond that skill while away from school. After a while, resentment built up toward the other children in the orphanage because they didn't have to hide."

Harry nodded thoughtfully.

"He was certain there was a cure, though, and he told me he would look for it." Tom glared at his far off enemy. "I was sixteen when he told me that he'd found the cure. It entailed a series of difficult spells which would transfer bits of my power into objects and that would stabilize my magic. He showed me books upon books about the making of horcruxes. A light or grey horcrux required animal sacrifice. The larger the animal the darker the horcrux, but human sacrifice would create a dark one."

Harry glared at the table in front of him. "I'd like to see those books."

"Harry, I think I remember Slytherin's secret room having a book that might contain some information about this topic." Draco laid a hand on Harry's arm.

The young lord's eyes snapped to his partner's face. "I need one of my elves."

"Mother?" Draco called.

"By all means, Harry." Narcissa allowed with a curt nod.

"Dobby!" Harry called out and a second later, he appeared. "A book from the Slytherin room spoke of artifacts and enchanted objects. I need it, if you please."

The little elf instantly disappeared and returned a moment later with the exact book Harry needed.

He thanked his friend and turned to face the group. "Ancient relics and artifacts of the magical world." He flipped to the table of contents. "Light and dark uses for objects of shadow... rituals to enchant objects..."

"Mother, Sirius, or I should read it so the information isn't colored by any lies Dumbledore might have told." Draco offered.

The group agreed that since the book was his discovery, Draco should have the honor so the young blond turned to the index and quickly found the page he had been hoping for. "Horcruxes. Page two hundred and ninety three." Draco found himself breathless but quickly turned to the correct page. "It's a whole chapter!"

Harry braced himself and unexpectedly shared a look with the man he was quickly coming to think of as his cousin.

Draco cleared his throat. "A horcrux is any object which is enchanted to hold magical power for the purposes of a spell or ritual. It is a container consisting of one or more cells, in which magical energy is used as a source of power. They can be light, dark, or neutral but this is determined by the ritual used to make them..."

"It sounds like a battery." Harry frowned and when he looked at the others, he realized they didn't understand. "It's a muggle object that holds electric energy and powers other objects. A horcrux is a magic battery and..." Harry felt sick. "He stole your magic to charge it."

"Draco, you said there is a whole chapter on this... what else does it say?" Tom asked, his voice crackled ominously.

"The next twenty pages are on the various rituals for the creation of horcruxes." Draco told them. "Each one is labelled with a black, white, or grey dot."

"How does it say a horcrux is used?" Harry asked. "And what does it say about the destruction of them? I used a basilisk fang to destroy the diary but Dumbledore told methat destroying the horcrux allows the maker of it to feel something."

"I felt something, alright." Tom brooded. "I felt a rush of pain and coherency and I felt the urgent need to hide and recover."

"Speaking of that incident, Father, I need you to view a memory of mine." Draco stared the older man down.

"No, Draco. He needs to see mine." Harry said gently. "You only saw the aftermath."

"What memory is it?" Lucius asked, morbid curiosity coming to the surface.

"The memory of me and Ron Weasley following Ginny into the Chamber of Secrets to save her." Harry told him. "Sorry. I don't know how to take a memory from my head."

"Think of the memory in as much detail as you can." Lucius said softly. If his son believed it was important, he would facilitate the effort. "Then picture it as a shoestring that's being strung through a hole and direct it toward your temple. Once you've done that, place your wand tip to the spot and pull."

Severus saw Draco glance at him and sighed. He produced a potion vial and passed it over.

Draco nodded a thanks to his godfather before speaking to his father. "While you're doing that, I'll read the chapter to see if the answers to Harry's questions are here."

"I've included the memory from the other day, as well." Harry placed his memory into the vial and handed it to Lucius who strode out of the room.

"Here! To use a horcrux as part of a ritual, it must be positioned in close proximity to the caster on an x made of salt or chalk." He muttered as he scanned the page. "Beware of destroying a horcrux - the magic will swiftly and violently return to its maker. The ritual strengthens the object to protect the power inside so destroying one is incredibly difficult as it must be rendered beyond repair." Draco looked anxiously at Harry. "We can't destroy them. Not only would it hurt my uncle, but the objects..."

Harry nodded grimly. "I agree."

"In that case we'll have to release them... I hope that's in here." Draco's mind was racing as he flipped pages to search for the correct spell. "Releasing a horcrux made by oneself will gently give the magic back to the maker, while releasing one made by someone else results in a magical boost to the releaser. It requires a spell and a potion."

"What kind of potion?" Harry asked, glancing at Snape who seemed to be watching Tom oddly.

"It doesn't seem complicated." Draco muttered as he skimmed the passage. "The ingredients include a number of herbs and... oh, this might be a problem - nundu spikes are needed."

Harry's eyes snapped to Tom's face. "You already knew about releasing horcruxes ... didn't you, Tom? That's what you needed the spikes for."

"Indeed. Allow me to thank you for restoring Nagini to health!" Tom nodded. "Nagini, come say 'hello' to our guest."

"Greetingsss, Harry Potter." She said as she slithered into the room.

"Hello, Nagini." Harry sighed grudgingly.

"Come now, young ssspeaker." She said, sounding hurt. "I did not attack you or your family."

"No, you didn't, but you also didn't tell me who you were." Harry hissed.

"Would you have assisted me if you knew?"

Harry glared at the snake but became distracted by Draco's voice.

"Uhm, Harry?" Draco called hesitantly. "What are you saying?"

Harry translated and went back to his conversation with Tom. "So that means you've already released a horcrux or two."

"Only one. Your destruction of the diary sent much of my magic back to me but it was - as you read - quite a violent return." Tom explained carefully that Wormtail had been able to use a ritual to give him a physical body. "The important point here is that the more of my horcruxes I release, the more I will look, feel, think, and act like my true self. I have more than enough nundu spikes to release the rest of the horcruxes. I only need to gather them from their hiding places."

"Why are they hidden?" Draco asked.

"A month after my graduation, I asked to become a professor." Tom confided quietly. "At the time, the headmaster was Armando Dippet and he told me I didn't have enough life experience but he invited me to reapply in a few years. The mantle of Headmaster passed to Albus Dumbledore before I was able to return and he denied me due to my history of unstable magic. While I was there, he made some strange references and so I pretended to leave but hid in the Chamber of Secrets for an hour or so. When I emerged under a disillusionment spell, I spied on him and found he was attempting to use one of my horcruxes. He was standing inside an intricately drawn circle with runes and there was my diary on a chalk X on the ground next to him."

"What did you do?" Harry asked.

"I became enraged." Tom confessed. "I stupefied him and obliviated the last several minutes before stealing the horcruxes from the cupboard where he was 'protecting them for me', and hid them in a number of places."

Harry frowned. "If there are any still at Hogwarts, I can get them to you."

"There is only one at Hogwarts." Tom smiled sadly. "It cannot be reached easily. Nor can it be removed from the school because it is a founder's object - three of them are. He made me use highly prized items, you see."

"Tell us?" Draco asked cautiously.

"The diary held my thoughts and feelings... I wasn't able to express them, after all. After a failed attempt at making a horcrux out of something that wasn't important to me, he suggested that." Tom pursed his lips. "It worked, but only after Myrtle died. I assume it was a dark horcrux."

"Why are the founders' objects important to you, Tom?" Harry wanted to know.

"Hogwarts itself is important to me." Tom winced. "It was the first place I ever felt, truly at home."

Harry smirked sadly. "That's something we have in common."

"Dumbledore told me nobody would ever suspect them of being anything other than the founders' objects so they would remain safe if I used them for this." Tom explained. "I remembered from legends that if more than two of the founders' objects were removed from the castle it would cause catastrophic results. I hadn't been able to make the sword a horcrux so I knew I had to hide at least one there."

"Alright, Tom." Harry said decisively. "I suggest you use your people to get the founders' object horcruxes back. Once they're released, you can call Dobby who will bring them to me. I'll 'find' them in obscure places in the castle before sending the other one to you the same way."

"How many did you make?" Sirius asked, frowning. "How many have you reclaimed?"

"There are six in total." Tom confessed to the group. "The diary was the first and, as you know, it was destroyed. For my next horcrux, Dumbledore took me to my mother's home and informed me of my heritage as the son of a witch named Merope Gaunt - descendantof Slytherin - and a muggle called Tom Riddle. He then had me collect an heirloom - a ring."

Draco wrote it down. "Do you know where it is?"

"I put it back, but that's not important right now. I will have one of my men collect it for me soon." Tom replied. "The third was the Slytherin relic. The fourth and fifth were Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, respectively. The sixth was Nagini, and I have released that one already."

"What are the founders' objects?" Harry asked. "Dumbles said he'd show me a description of them when I got back to the school."

"The Slytherin relic was a locket." Tom revealed.

Draco gasped. "Harry, you were right!"

Harry nodded grimly. "In the secret room of Salazar Slytherin, there was a portrait. The locket was around his wife's neck and I was struck by the notion that it was the object Slytherin chose for his house."

Sirius hummed thoughtfully. "Were the others a goblet and a crown?"

Everyone turned to look at him.

Tom nodded. "I was under the impression you didn't know what they were."

"Harry let me look over Gryffindor's journal and one of the sketches was of a sword, goblet, locket, and crown." Sirius explained.

Harry groaned. "I should've known something so important would be in there! Dobby, bring me Gryffindor's journal please!"

The journal was just placed on the table as Lucius rejoined the group looking sick and morose. "I had no idea..."

Draco looked pleased that his father had been somewhat humbled by the memories Harry had allowed him to witness.

Harry barely spared the elder Malfoy a glance as he flipped hastily through the sketches so Sirius reached out to calm him with a soft word. "I'll find it."

Harry sighed but agreed and turned to Lucius with a searching look. He too seemed to see that Lucius was stunned by the memories. "I am happy to see that the memories have had an effect on you."

"Harry?" Draco called holding out the sketch.

Harry took it and looked down to see the sword of Gryffindor laid across a tabletop with a golden goblet, a silver tiara, and the silver locket from the portrait arrayed around it. "They're beautiful."

"They're all items that can be used in a traditional oath making ritual." Voldemort observed.

Harry looked up at him. "Can you explain that?"

It was Narcissa who answered. "The sword draws blood and the goblet collects the blood, but some societies used locks of hair plaited together and placed into a locket. A tiara can be a symbol of the oath fulfilled, as with a bride-gift."

"Or..." Severus interrupted. "Correct me if I'm mistaken, but this particular tiara was called Ravenclaw's diadem and was enchanted to enhance the wearer's intelligence. A diadem was used to denote authority - was it not? It could've been worn by one who oversaw an oath."

"Nobody knows for sure, right? Perhaps that is what the founders did when they created the school." Harry suggested. "A pagan blood and hair oath to educate young magical children and safeguard the future of magic society."

The group fell silent in awe of the possibilities.

"I've seen that locket before." Sirius couldn't take his eyes off the sketch. "I just can't place it."

"Hmmm. I'd imagine it was in your brother's possession." Tom explained with a sad sigh.

Sirius took a deep breath and shook his head. "I knew Regulus was... and now he's dead!"

"He's not, actually... I'll explain." Tom frowned. "You see, Dumbledore knew I had approached Regulus, asking him to join my movement, and he tried to trick your brother into betraying me."

"Tried?" Harry asked, jumping on the word.

"Yes. He's one of my most loyal followers so it didn't work. You see, Regulus came to me and we devised a plan to get him far away from England." Tom nodded. "Dumbledore sent him to retrieve the locket and he led the bastard to believe he was going to bring it to him but he actually placed a fake locket before faking his own death."

"Then... Where is he?" Sirius asked, with a glance at his cousin.

"Transylvania." Tom divulged.

Narcissa gasped. "Ebony Lodge!"

Tom nodded.

"It was part of his coming- of- age gift from your parents." Narcissa told Sirius. "But I thought he sold it!"

"He did." Tom filled in the blanks. "He sold it to himself under a secret identity before faking his death. The locket is with him."

Sirius wanted to believe it but he didn't know if he could. He looked to his godson and then to his cousin.

"He wouldn't lie to me, Sirius. Lucius and I have known him well and for a very long time." Narcissa told him. "He wouldn't lie to me about this."

"Can you contact him?" Harry asked. "Can he send the locket or bring it to us?"

Tom nodded immediately. "I was in Romania for a while after my injury when you were young. I stayed with him and we settled on a code. I will set things in motion and let you know when we can expect him."

"How will we get the others?" Harry wanted to know.

"Someone will have to visit Bellatrix." Tom told them, shaking his head. "Only she knows where the goblet is hidden."

"I'll do it." Narcissa volunteered.

"I'm her heir, Mother. Shouldn't I do it?" Draco asked.

"Draco, until you're of age, I'm her legal proxy and next of kin." Narcissa said gently. "I will visit and get the information we require."

Harry felt like they'd made progress. He looked around. "When you contact me, do it through Draco or Severus. We don't want Dumbledore to know how far off I've gone from his side."

"Agreed." Tom replied. "Sirius, one of us will be in touch if you can help with anything, but for now, I think our business is finished."

"It is." Harry agreed. "Sirius, would you update Remus and Dudley? Draco and I would like to speak with his parents."

Seeing Sirius' reluctance to leave Harry, Draco suppressed his amusement as Tom seemed to pout but got up from his chair and left with Severus in tow.

"Let's take this to my study." Lucius stood and led the way.

As they entered the study, Harry looked around. The room was larger than the one he and Draco had used at Potter Grove. It had the bookcases and desk Harry had been expecting, but there was also a snooker table, a chess set and a pensieve.

Sitting behind the desk, Lucius looked at his son expectantly.

"Harry believes that Dumbledore will try to separate us and possibly use me against him." Draco explained. "He has a plan to protect our relationship but I don't like it so we want to see what you think."

Lucius shared a look with his wife and sighed in resignation. "It is a very real possibility, Draco."

"What is your plan, Harry?" Narcissa asked graciously.

"The school bylaws say that a lord is allowed to house his siblings or close relatives in his suite along with an advisor or assistant, in my case." Harry began. "But there's one other person a lord is legally allowed to house - his betrothed."

"So you believe that because Draco has a creature mating bond with you and it will happen eventually -" Lucius demanded suspiciously.

"No!" Harry protested. "He thought that too! I just want us to have the opportunity to get to know each other without Dumbledore's interference. He's going to figure me out soon and the rivalry between our houses cannot stand in the face of our relationship, but he won't like that."

Narcissa looked at her son with a sigh. "You saw this as going too fast and not giving your relationship the time it needs to grow."

"We haven't been together very long. Neither of us has spoken of our feelings. We haven't even been on a date yet." Draco nodded solemnly. "It also doesn't help that he wants to keep it secret."

"That is likely a power move, Draco." Lucius observed with a grumble.

Harry nodded eagerly. "If it was truly my choice, I'd shout it from the astronomy tower, Draco. I promise."

"Maybe..." Draco took a deep breath and finally admitted what was really bothering him. "Maybe, I'm just not ready for us to live together."

"Oh, Draco..." Harry's heart dropped. "I admit that I didn't think about that aspect of it. My cousins have dormitory style rooms. I'm not sure what the castle would construct for my betrothed but I'm sure we won't be forced to share quarters if one or both of us aren't ready."

Silence reigned for a moment but it was soon broken by Lucius. "So I am guessing that you envision Dumbledore playing his hand... He commands you and Draco to separate and at that moment you defiantly reveal your betrothal and move Draco into your suite."

Harry's gaze remained glued to Draco's now blushing face as he responded with a simple nod.

Lucius hummed thoughtfully as he came around to the idea. "I suppose it does have a nicely dramatic effect. I rather like it."

"We'll tell our closest friends, Draco, just not the rest of society until we either have to or one of us really proposes." Harry told him softly.

"One of us?" Draco huffed, one hand moving to his hip. "I'll have you know, Potter, that if I go along with this, I expect to be swept off my feet when you propose to me! Nothing less than high romance and sweet nothings shouted from the astronomy tower! Do you hear me?"

Narcissa laughed delightedly at her son's antics. "Lucius, why don't you owl the solicitor to help you draw up a betrothal contract while Draco shows Harry around the manor."

"One thing I'd like included in it is the joining of our wards at the lagoon. In summer, it's a lovely oasis, and in the winter it's a frozen paradise. " Draco told them.

"Not a good idea." Harry said gently. "Not yet."

"Why?" Draco glared at him.

"Remus." Harry confided. "His lycanthropy is too strong for the goblin healer to cleanse him of Dumbledore's magic. They're waiting for the new moon to perform a ritual. We're keeping him away from Dumbledore as much as possible but, after that we'll be able to trust him with all our secrets."

Draco nodded his understanding.

"I can give Sirius access to Potter Grove's wards, though, and he can do what's needed to join them next month." Harry told his partner.

"Alright." Draco sighed happily. "Thank you for discussing this with my parents. I feel much better about it now."

"Go on, Draco, give Harry a tour while I speak to the solicitor." Lucius muttered as he took some parchment from a drawer. "You can read it tonight, then sign and owl it over tomorrow, Potter."

Harry nodded solemnly as Draco opened the door to lead the way.

"They're so young to be thinking of such things." Narcissa Malfoy sighed and shook her head as she watched them leave.

"Too true, darling, but they don't have to be young when they speak their vows." Lucius smiled, nodding with satisfaction as he began to plan the contract. "I'll have to oversee the process as their inheritances must be listed, along with the spousal settlement."

"Indeed. Young Harry should have an idea of the lifestyle to which our Draco has been accustomed." Narcissa smirked as she stood and walked to the door. "Say, I think the Black family lost an artifact to one of Potter's ancestors at auction. I'll look in my father's ledgers. We could ask if it's in one of his vaults and maybe even get it back as part of the spousal settlement."

Lucius sighed sentimentally as it closed behind her. His wife always knew what he needed to hear and that gave him an idea to look into his own ledgers.

"Your thinking is awfully one-sided, don't you think?"

Lucius frowned at the unexpected voice and looked up to see that the room was empty but for him. He shook his head in confusion and caught sight of a strange light. Standing up, he approached the far wall of the study where a thick ancient tome was displayed on a tilted stand. The symbol on the cover was glowing softly... an oak tree with a Welsh dragon.

"Hello, Lucius."

Dear readers, I know it's been a while since my last update here on ffnet. I'm so sorry! My only excuse is technical difficulties, but I've just made a deal that will keep that from happening ever again!

Lori94