Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or it's characters. This is merely a work of fanfiction.

A/N: I will be posting Moodboards and face claims for the characters on my IG. The username is " " if you'd like to see.

Lord Abraxas Malfoy watched with surprise as a swirling cloud of magic deposited a witch on the carpet of his study.

He knelt down beside her, his wand in hand. Her eyes fluttered open, and he looked into gray eyes that were identical to his own.

"Abraxas," she whispered softly.

Then her head lulled to the side, and her eyes closed. Abraxas waved his wand, and healed the wound on her head. Blood stained the floor. He was certain she had landed with enough force to cause a concussion.

Her wand was laying in her right hand, shattered into a thousand pieces.

"Where did you get that?" Abraxas muttered, looking at her neck.

She wore what looked to be the remnants of a Time Turner, though the glass was shattered from her impact. She wore the Malfoy crest on a pale blue ribbon, the pendant hanging over the fabric of her gown.

His eyes carded over her face. She looked practically identical to him. She had the daintiness of his mother, and the coloring of his father. He took the letter in her hands and read it.

"Merlin," he swore under his breath. "A twin sister."

Abraxas watched Peony sleep with concern. Dobby flitted in and out of the room with the other house elves, sprucing up the long unused Heiress Malfoy suite.

He heard a noise, and turned around to see Heiress Renata Lestrange leaning against the doorway.

Her black curls were quaffed perfectly around her heart shaped face, her brown eyes sparkling in the morning light streaming through the window.

"I got your letter. Is she okay, Abraxas?"

Abraxas stood to his feet and stuffed his wand into his robes. He crossed the floor and drew his fiancé into his arms. He kissed her on the forehead once before releasing her.

"The Healer says she'll be fine, but she may experience some memory loss. She hit her head pretty hard. She should wake up in the next few hours."

"So she's really your sister?"

Abraxas nodded, though he had his suspicions. The remnants of the Time Turner were now in his wall vault. Whenever she was from, she was certainly a Malfoy, and she needed help. That was enough for him.

"The blood tests the Healer ran confirmed that she's a Malfoy. She looks just like me. She wears our crest. Just think, a Malfoy maiden, after all this time."

Renata smiled up at her fiancé. She suspected he was lonely, not that he would ever say such a thing aloud. A sister might be just what he needed.

"Did your parents say you can stay?"

"Yes, they've given me permission to stay until we return to Hogwarts. Lala took my bags."

Abraxas sighed in relief. Tom and the other Knight's were supposed to be coming to stay tomorrow. It simply wasn't proper for a lady of Peony's stature to be alone with that many young men. She needed a companion.

His own father and mother had succumbed to Dragon Pox just last year, or perhaps they could have acted as chaperones.

"Speaking of bags, Peony arrived with nothing. I've arranged for Miss Twilfitt to close her shop today. Peony needs a whole new wardrobe. I trust you can help her with that?"

Renata smiled happily and bounced on her toes.

Abraxas was the most generous Pureblood man she knew. Many Pureblood men, including her own father, put the women in their family on an allowance. Abraxas was only too happy to buy her things her father deemed unnecessary, or unsuitable.

"Of course, Brax. It will be my pleasure."

"I'm sure it will. Pick out some things for yourself too, love. No doubt Slughorn will have his little parties. Just tell them to put it all on the Malfoy account."

Renata beamed up at him happily.

"Can you stay with her? I haven't left her side all night. I need to shower and change, at the very least, and write to Gringotts, to get her some protection jewelry."

Renata nodded, and took up Abraxas' post by Peony's bed.

Peony's eyes opened slowly. Her head felt heavy. She tried to sit up, but her entire body ached.

"Stay still, I'll get you a pain potion."

Peony turned her head slowly. A beautiful woman with light brown skin and quaffed black hair was whispering to a house elf. She returned to Peony's bedside with a vial and held it up to her lips.

"How are you feeling?"

Peony sat up and rested her back against the headboard. The pain relief potion began to take hold, and Peony remembered how she had come to be here.

"I feel alright. Thank you for the pain potion."

The woman smiled softly, "Do you know where you are?"

Peony looked around. The morning sun filtered in through the large windows. She laid in a large bed with light blue, and gold hangings. It was gorgeous.

"Malfoy Manor, I assume."

"That's right. I'm Heiress Renata Lestrange, your brother's fiancé. He'll be back soon. He didn't leave your side all night. Do you remember anything? Abraxas said you hit your head pretty hard."

Peony shook her head in consternation.

"It's all mixed up. I remember feeling like I needed to find Abraxas, and then I woke up here."

"Well you found me," Abraxas said from the doorway.

He was a handsome man, tall and broad shouldered, with pale platinum hair, and gray eyes. He wore stylish, well-tailored gray robes.

He entered the room, and came to stand beside Renata. He put a hand on her shoulder and looked at Peony.

"You're safe now, Peony. A Malfoy maiden is a treasure, one I intend to protect."

Peony smiled up at him. He had a reassuring presence. She felt like she could trust him.

"I have friends coming to stay tomorrow Peony, so we need to get you outfitted. I arranged for a seamstress to come later today. Renata will know everything you need. Ren, make sure she gets school robes too. I've written to Headmaster Dippett to ask that she be put in all of my classes. I'm not letting her out of my sight."

"Now Brax, don't you think that's a bit far? It's all men in those classes!"

Abraxas looked at her sternly.

"I don't. She is safer with me."

Renata nodded, "You're right, of course. I hadn't thought of that. Well Peony, you are going to be the best protected witch at Hogwarts."

Peony smiled. For the first time in a long time, she felt like she belonged.

Renata transfigured Peony's ball gown into a white shirtdress with a charming bow belt. She lent her a pair of gloves, and helped her to quaff her long blonde hair into fashionable curls. Her stilettos, she left.

They were timeless.

Peony and Renata sipped flutes of champagne brought to them by house elves, and watched as models walked out in different dresses and suits. They carried cards with numbers on them. Whenever Renata or Peony saw something they wanted they wrote down the number.

Peony sat back and enjoyed the feast for the eyes. Layers of indulgent fabric, gorgeous colors, and full skirts were popular.

The difference between the Magical world and Muggle was stark. Peony knew these styles wouldn't be seen in the Muggle world for years yet. World War Two was just ending, and resources were still tight.

"Oh, that one would look divine on you!" Renata said, scrawling down the number of a green dress. Peony shook her head in an effort to make herself focus.

Ball gowns were paraded in front of them next, and she excitedly wrote down the numbers of a few. Shoes, handbags, gloves, and lingerie, were picked from a catalog.

They gave the list to Miss Twilfitt at the end of the presentation. Miss Twilfitt took it with a greedy smile.

"We'll have these sent over in just a few hours ladies."

After dinner they all convened in the sitting room. Peony's posture was tense.

"Are you alright?" Abraxas asked.

"It feels odd not to have a wand," she admitted.

"We'll go into London and get you one this week. Tom needs to go into town anyways."

Peony's heart took flight.

"Who's Tom?" She asked.

Abraxas set down his glass of firewhiskey, and leaned forward.

"Mister Tom Riddle is a very close friend of mine. I know he doesn't have a Pureblood name, but it's important that you show him the utmost respect. He's a powerful wizard, the future of our world."

"The leader of their little group," Renata teased.

Abraxas smiled at her indulgently. "She's right, though I wouldn't refer to it that way. Tom calls us the Knights of Walpurgis."

Peony did her best to look unaffected.

"Are you interested in marriage?" Renata asked.

Peony startled at the seemingly random question. She knew at this time Purebloods got married exceedingly young. She couldn't imagine herself with anyone but Tom.

No one else would do.

"To a worthy wizard, absolutely. I have no desire to settle for the sake of it."

"Here, here," Abraxas agreed. "I know my line of thinking is most unusual, but I believe girls should be allowed to finish their Hogwarts education before marriage. I had to strongarm Renata's parents into letting her finish. I am in no hurry to marry you off, no matter what anyone says."

"Thank you, brother."

Renata excused herself to bed, and Abraxas watched her go fondly. The door clicked shut behind her. Abraxas shot back the rest of his firewhiskey and set the glass down on the table.

"You need to tell me the truth."

Peony stared at him with wide eyes.

"I didn't want to alarm Renata. She is a trusting, kind woman. I will protect you no matter what. Whether by birth or otherwise, you are a Malfoy. We're family. But I need to know when you're from, and why you ran."

Peony blinked, surprised by his candor.

"You had a Time Turner around your neck, Peony. It's not that hard to figure out."

Peony sagged and put her head in her hands.

"Nineteen-ninety-eight."

Abraxas nodded seriously. He hadn't expected her to be from quite so far in the future, but it didn't matter.

"And why did you come back this far? It shouldn't even be possible."

Peony hesitated, and Abraxas fixed her with a stern look.

"I am your brother now, Peony. Nothing you tell me will change that. Tell me what you can."

Peony took a deep breath as she thought about what to say. She told him a condensed version of the Wars, of her and Tom's roles. She explained how Dumbledore had raised her as a lamb for slaughter.

She told him of her triumph, her loss of Tom, and her desperation to get him back. Finally she told him about the blood adoption ritual, and the Time Turner.

Abraxas rubbed at his temples. He could already feel a headache forming.

"The blood adoption ritual technically makes you my granddaughter. Merlin. Are you going to be able to keep it together around Tom?"

"I can do it. My Occlumency shields are impeccable."

"Good. We won't be able to keep this from him for long. He sees everything, but I recommend you tell him as little as possible at a time. We'll have to keep a wary eye out for Dumbledore if he's as bad as you say."

Peony rolled her eyes with a scoff.

"I think he's even worse than we knew. Let me ask you something. Why hasn't Tom claimed the Lord Slytherin title?"

"He intends to, this week when we go to London. He had to get Morfin and Marvolo Gaunt out of the way."

Peony leaned forward excitedly.

"That never happened in the future I came from! I don't know what happened, but Tom never claimed that title. So much power would have been his, he never would have had to resort to such large scale violence."

Abraxas raised one brow, "Now Peony you should know better than most, he is a violent man. Most of the Knights of Walpurgis are, even me."

Peony waved her hands dismissively.

"Yes, I get it, we're all bad people, but we're not genocidal. There's a big difference."

Abraxas looked at his newly aqquired sister measuredly.

"You really don't mind what he is, what he's done?"

Peony only thought for a moment before she shook her head.

"I don't mind who Tom is. I understand it. We're two of a kind. I hated Lord Voldemort, but Lord Slytherin? I can get behind. I could stand at his side, if he'd let me."

"Oh I think he'll be fascinated by you."

Peony blushed against her will, her now pale coloring working against her. Abraxas shook his head in fond amusement. He pulled a jewelry box out of the pocket of his robes and handed it to Peony.

She opened it slowly. Two pearl bracelets were within. A gold Malfoy crest was the clasp. There between the two bracelets was the Malfoy Heiress ring.

"Protection jewelry?"

Abraxas nodded, "Wear them at all times, especially while you're without a wand. I'd like to think I could trust the Knights, but I find myself unwilling to take that chance. I meant what I said. You're my sister now."

Peony straightened the skirts of her sky blue dress, and pulled on a pair of white gloves. Renata had come to her room first thing in the morning to help her style her hair. It was nearly impossible without her wand.

"Are you excited to meet Abraxas' friends?" Renata asked.

Peony nodded, "Excited, and nervous."

"They'll love you. Don't worry."

Renata led them into the morning breakfast room. Abraxas turned and smiled at them as they entered.

"Ah, there's my girls."

Peony felt a smile light her face. She had shied away from friendships in her past life, not wanting to put anyone at risk, but Abraxas' charm was irresistible. She supposed she could let down her guard for him and Renata.

"Good morning Brax," Renata offered as he gave her a hug.

The Knights began to file in slowly, and Peony curtsied dutifully at all of them as Abraxas introduced her. They stared at her in awe, as if she was a rare treasure.

She froze for a split second when she saw Heir Dolohov, but he didn't seem to catch it. He was the first person she ever killed. She didn't regret it. He was a brute. She'd have to be careful to control her reactions to him.

Mister Tom Riddle stood just out of the room, watching the form of Heiress Peony Malfoy curtsy to his Knights. Abraxas had never mentioned a sister, not once, but the Purebloods kept their secrets tight.

The Malfoy's would have done anything to protect their first daughter in centuries.

She was certainly striking.

She was incredibly petite, had long platinum blonde hair, and the gray eyes of her family. She had no wand, but wore protection jewelry.

She blushed easily.

As pretty as she was, her magic was far more intriguing. It was every bit as Dark as his. She was incredibly powerful, far more than Abraxas, nearly as much as him.

Her magic held no hesitancy, as if she was prepared to strike someone down at the slightest provocation.

Fascinating.

He pushed himself off the wall, and straightened his robes. He walked into the room, and everyone stood to their feet. Their gazes stayed on him as he approached Abraxas and the women at his side.

"Abraxas, what a surprise this is. I wasn't aware you had a sister."

"Yes. She's finally come home. Thank Merlin."

Peony didn't hear a word. She was lost in Tom's blue eyes. She wanted to drown in them, to drown in Tom.

Abraxas watched Tom and Peony with blatant amusement. His prediction was right, Tom was captivated. He loved everything rare. A Malfoy maiden was incredibly rare, and Peony was exceptional.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Heiress Malfoy."

Peony blushed, "The pleasure is mine, Mister Riddle."

He took a step closer to her. The Knights watched with bewilderment. Tom never bothered with women, but clearly Heiress Malofy had caught his attention.

"You may call me Tom," he said in a low voice that hypnotized Peony.

"Peony," she replied.

"You'll sit by me."

Abraxas smiled as Tom laid his sister's hand on his arm and led her to the table. The Knights shifted down, to make room for Peony on Tom's left side. Abraxas sat at his right as usual, and Renata took the seat on the other side of Abraxas.

Tom led their conversation. It flowed freely back and forth as the Knights talked about their summers, and the year to come. Abraxas watched his sister, noting how she tensed when Antonin spoke. It was nearly imperceptible, but he caught it.

Tom caught it too.

When Heir Orion Black went on a rant about blood purity, Peony allowed herself to tune him out, and watch Tom. He was even more handsome than she remembered, his magic even more heady.

She would have to avail the Knight's of the notion of blood purity eventually, but not on their first meeting. They wouldn't listen to her anyways. It would have to be Tom.

She became captivated by the Peverell ring on Tom's hand. He twirled it around his finger as he listened to his Knights conversation. Surely it contained a part of his soul by now.

She wanted it back. She wanted to own a part of him as she always had. Tom didn't miss her staring, her look of want.

He was used to people finding him desirable. He was even used to people wanting to use him to get ahead, once they recognized his inherent power.

This was something different.

Heiress Peony Malfoy looked at him with something akin to love, bolstered by ravenous want. She looked at him like she wanted to consume, and be consumed by him.

The breakfast began to wind down, their conversations coming to an end. Tom dismissed the Knights to their various pursuits, but he dithered at the table. Peony stayed in her seat.

"Join me for a walk around the gardens."

Peony looked to Abraxas for permission. Heiresses needed their fathers or brothers permission for nearly everything. She had never had to follow that rule, being an orphan, but she needed to now. Abraxas was a good man, it was the least she could do.

Abraxas nodded his head. He and Renata could chaperone them from the veranda. Tom took her arm and led her out into the rose garden. The bushes were low and only rose to their waists. Abraxas and Renata stood on the veranda, chatting.

They walked in silence for a moment, until a snake came slithering out from a bush, right in front of Peony. She jolted back so she wouldn't step on the creature, running into Tom. She cursed, the words flying out of her mouth against her will.

The snake slithered away, and Peony turned to Tom. He stared at her for a second, before a charming smile came over his face, and he retook Peony's arm.

"Are you sure you're a Malfoy?" He asked with a laugh.

"Quite sure," she deflected. "Abraxas had me tested and everything."

Tom stopped and stared down into her eyes. She could feel him trying to breach her Occlumency walls.

He put one hand on her bare forearm, and it sent a thrill through Peony. Then he said something that truly stunned her.

"I wasn't aware Malfoys could speak Parseltongue."

Her concentration slipped, for a mere second, and he was in. He saw a flash of what seemed to be him and a girl kissing on a train platform, the scene changed to a near copy of Abraxas doing a blood adoption ritual, and then the scene changed once more to the Abraxas look alike turning a Time Turner, and pointing a wand at Peony's chest.

"Get. Out."

Peony wrenched back control from Tom, slamming her Occlumency shields shut. He kept his eyes on hers, but her shields were ironclad.

"Who are you?" He asked, curiosity overtaking him.

"Heiress Peony Malfoy."

"Have you always been a Malfoy?"

"Not always," she admitted with a sly grin.

He took her hand and put it back on his arm, leading her around the garden again. She clearly meant him no ill will.

"You came back in time for me?"

Peony looked over at Abraxas. He stood on the veranda still, his posture stiff. She waved to him with a smile. He was a kind hearted man, a much better brother than she deserved.

"I did."

Tom looked out at the roses, his thoughts spinning rapidly.

"Why?"

"You put a fragment of your soul into me, albeit by accident, when I was a year old. I grew up with you always there, in my mind. We had incredibly similar childhoods, you and I. Last year that fragment was taken from me."

She bit back tears, looking away from him. Tom came to stand in front of her, and she looked up at him.

"I found that life held little appeal without you."

Tom lifted his hand up and ghosted his fingertips over her jawline. It was tender, possessive. It set Peony's skin aflame.

His.

His horcrux, except not quite, not anymore. His witch then. His horcrux had shaped her into the Dark witch she was. No wonder she was so powerful.

"Who would dare to take me from you?"

"You. Look, look at what you become!"

She lowered her Occlumency shields and Tom saw the snake-like man with red eyes. He was mad. He cackled like a loon. He saw himself fall at her hands, felt her heartbreak as his body was carried away. Tom pulled out of her memories, disgusted.

"Surely your mind exaggerates."

"I assure you it does not, but we can keep it from happening. I know where you went wrong. I studied your life for an entire year. You've been in my mind my entire life. There's no one better to help you to greatness."

"What do you want in return?" Tom asked.

He didn't believe people did things out of the goodness of their heart. Everyone was selfish. She smiled wickedly as she stepped closer to him.

"Everything, Tom."

Her gaze was as Dark as her magic.

"I need time to think."

Peony smiled nonchalantly as if she hadn't a care in the world, and brushed past him, just close enough for her magic to reach out to him, to leave him wanting more, and he did.

"Take all the time you need. I'll be here."

Tom did indeed take the rest of the day to think. He hid himself in the rows of the Library, his eyes seeing nothing, as he flipped through volume after volume. His mind was at war with itself.

He had never relied on anyone, not even when he was a small boy. His self interest warred with his stubborn independence as he thought throughout the day. The Knights steered clear of him. Abraxas finally came to him around dinner time.

"My Lord, it's nearly time for dinner."

Tom sat down the large tome in his hand. He looked up at Abraxas. He was the closest thing Tom had to a friend.

"Your sister is fascinating."

A small smile graced Abraxas' face, "She is."

"You know?" Tom asked.

"I do."

"She has terms by which she'll help me. She says she wants everything, whatever that even means."

"My Lord, you know what she means. She's like you. She wants it all. Will you give it to her? Will you give her the world she deserves?"

Tom straightened his robes, and walked past Abraxas, leaving the question hanging in the air.

Abraxas smirked as he followed Tom out of the Library. It looked like his sister might just become the Dark Lady after all.