Chapter Eight: Prisoner of Love
"Do you know who she is?"
"No. Do you?"
"I think Draco brought her home, but I'm not sure."
"She's so beautiful. Did our mother look like that?"
"I don't remember. Maybe."
"She looks like an angel."
Alysia couldn't place the children's voices talking around her. Her head was painfully heavy and she was having trouble opening her eyes. When she finally did, she was astonished to see two small children standing next to her. Both had black hair and black eyes with pale skin and pointed faces. They looked amazingly like Draco, though their clothes were ragged and torn.
She moved slightly and became aware of her surroundings. It seemed she was in a room in a castle. She was lying on an amazingly soft bed, draped with blue blankets and linens. Pale light streamed in through a window across the room, which was otherwise quite dark. A smell like dried lavender reached her nose. She had no idea where she was.
"Where am I?" she asked the children standing beside her bed.
The little boy spoke up. "In the Malfoy Castle."
"What?" Alysia sat bolt upright. "How did I get here?"
"Draco brought you," the little girl answered. "He told us to watch you and make sure you weren't too frightened when you woke up."
Alysia wasn't quite sure how to respond. "Did he say why he brought me here?" she wondered aloud, having a vague recollection of screaming and a cloth being pressed over her mouth and nose. Both children shook their heads silently, still staring at her. Alysia leaned back on the mountain of pillows behind her and looked at her hands thoughtfully. It seemed that Draco had brought her to his house as a result of whatever had happened the night before. A sudden thought struck her.
"Does Lucius know I'm here?" she exclaimed. The children again shook their heads.
"Draco brought you here because Uncle Lucius never comes to this part of the house. That's why we're here, too," the little boy explained.
"Uncle Lucius doesn't like us very much," the little girl added, tugging on a strand of her hair. "But Aunt Narcissa thinks that we should stay."
Draco's mother. Alysia had never met the woman, but she had a feeling that she would, soon. Still, the thought of meeting Narcissa Malfoy seemed far more appealing than the thought of having another encounter with Lucius. She turned and looked at the children.
"Who are you?" she finally asked. The little boy spoke up.
"My name's Griffin and that's Zel. We're twins," he explained. "Our mother was Aunt Narcissa's sister. . .we don't have a father."
"Was?" Alysia looked to Zel questioningly.
"Our mother is dead," Zel answered the silent question. "She died two years ago. We were only three."
"Uncle Lucius didn't want us here because our father was a Muggle and he left our mother when he found out that she was a witch. But Aunt Narcissa felt bad for us, so she let us stay here in the West Wing. Draco knows we're here, too," Griffin finished. "Are you an angel?"
Alysia felt a laugh bubbling up. "No. I'm not," she answered.
"But Draco said you were!" Zel exclaimed. "He said you were an angel of beauty."
Now Alysia felt herself blushing. She was about to say something when the door to her room creaked open. A very beautiful and tall woman with blonde hair swept in, wearing very expensive robes. Griffin and Zel ran to her, calling, "Aunt Narcissa! Aunt Narcissa! Alysia is awake!"
"So I see. Sneak very quietly down to the kitchen and see if you can bring up some hot soup for Alysia. Your uncle is home," Narcissa told them gently. Griffin and Zel nodded at her, wide-eyed and slipped through the door quietly. Narcissa slowly walked over to Alysia's bed.
"So," she began, "I finally meet the young lady who my son calls marvelous and my husband calls a demon. Which are you?"
Alysia blinked. "I daresay I am neither marvelous nor a demon, though I must tell you that your husband is a fool and the most horrible man I have ever met."
For a moment, Alysia was terrified that Narcissa was going to start yelling, but she simply nodded her head. "You're right, of course," she finally stated. "I know my husband is a fool and a terrible man. My son, however," she stared hard at Alysia, "is not."
"No!" Alysia exclaimed. "He's wonderful! Your son is amazing!"
Narcissa laughed gently. "It's alright, my dear. You aren't being accused of anything. As long as you promise to remain here in the West Wing, you are safe in this castle."
"Thank you, ma'am," Alysia answered quietly, when the pad of soft footsteps announced the return of Griffin and Zel. Narcissa turned and smiled at them.
"I will leave you here with Griffin and Zel. When you've woken up some, you may feel free to explore this wing of the castle, but do not go downstairs under any circumstances. My husband does not know you are here. . .no one does. If you are found here, it will look terrible for my husband and family. Therefore, Alysia, I must insist that you stay up here." With that, Narcissa marched out of the room. Alysia heard her footsteps go down a set of stairs and turned once again to look at Griffin and Zel.
"Your uncle doesn't like very much, does he?" she queried, taking the bowl of hot soup that Zel handed her.
"No. Draco didn't used to, either, until we moved in," Griffin answered. "Now he's much nicer. Especially this year."
"Why especially this year?" The broth was good and kept dribbling down her chin as she ate. Zel giggled.
"Because he said he met an angel. He's going to be home this weekend. . .it's Aunt Narcissa's birthday," she explained.
"Look at this!" Griffin was now sitting on Alysia's bed. He shoved a copy of the Daily Prophet in front of her face. The headline read, "Student Missing-Thought to be the Work of Death Eaters."
"Oh no!" Alysia dropped the now empty bowl and grabbed the paper from Griffin. She read the article silently, feeling as if someone had just punched her in the stomach.
"Last night, in the chaos surrounding what appears to have been a diversionary attack on Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, sixth- year Alysia Karadhras, daughter of Anaral Karadhras and convicted felon Sirius Black, disappeared from the Hospital Wing. There were no eyewitnesses.
Since the beginning of the term, Hogwart's has been attacked by various trans-species creatures, including what appears to be a rebirthed minotaur. Last night's attack was of a different nature as the halls outside of the hospital wing were set ablaze by a baby dragon let loose in the castle. Authorities suggest that this dragon was set loose simply to distract the faculty and students from keeping watch over Alysia, who, along with her family, has long been a target of the followers of He-Who-Must-Not-Be- Named. They are also often targets of vandalism and attack because of their association with Sirius Black.
When asked about the attack and kidnapping of her daughter, Anaral Karadhras had no comment, and was last seen going into her office with a large black dog. Alysia's friends explain that this dog is a family pet, known as 'Blackie'.
Alysia has also made a few unlikely friendships at Hogwart's, the first being with the infamous Harry Potter. One may find this odd as her father played a large role in the death of young Mr. Potter's parents. Harry declined to comment at time of interview.
The authorities have no leads on this case. Anyone with any information on the whereabouts of Miss Karadhras should contact the Ministry of Magic immediately."
Alysia groaned as she set the paper down. "Well if that isn't the worst thing that's happened to me in a very long time, I don't know what is!" she exclaimed.
"Why?" Zel asked. "What happened?"
Alysia shook her head and rolled over to try and sleep some more. She didn't much feel like leaving her bed at the moment.
It seemed like only moments later when she felt someone's lips against hers. She opened sleepy eyes to see Draco bending over her and felt her lips curl up into a smile. "Why did you kidnap me?" she asked groggily.
"I didn't kidnap you!" he whispered indignantly. "I rescued you."
"Okay, then, why did you rescue me? You've got the whole world worried sick!" Alysia managed to keep her voice down to a whisper as well.
"Because it wasn't a dragon that was burning up the halls. It was. . .well, it sounds odd. It was an echidna," he explained in a hushed tone.
"That's impossible! There was only ever one echidna. . .she lived in Egypt. Right?" Alysia shook her head. "It's just like the minotaur."
"It is." Draco shifted his position a little bit and Alysia could see the moon in the window. "You weren't safe. So I brought you here."
"Draco!" Now Alysia was annoyed. "I was fine. But now you've got the whole world looking for me. They all think I was kidnapped. My mother's terrified something's happened to me. My friends are all worried. I just want to go back to Hogwart's!"
"Not yet!" Draco snapped, his voice suddenly rising above a whisper. "You're not safe there, Alysia. Trust me for once."
"It's kinda hard to trust you, Draco, when you won't tell me what's going on," Alysia answered with an edge in her voice. Draco gave her a half- smile.
"You're a target, Alysia. You and Potter. I don't care about him, but I do care about you," he stated in his old drawl.
"How did you know that I'm a target? Granted, it was in the Daily Prophet today, but how did you know before that?" Alysia's eyes suddenly widened in understanding. "Your father really is a Death Eater, isn't he?"
Draco didn't respond, and Alysia knew she'd touched a nerve. Her tone softened as she asked the question again. "Your father really is a Death Eater, isn't he?"
"Yes, and yours is a convicted murderer," Draco responded, gesturing to the newspaper which lay crumpled on the floor. "I wish you'd told me."
"Can you see why I wouldn't want to?" Alysia retorted. "I don't think I can face school now. The last time this happened, I was getting hexed left and right." Her eyes reflected the pain of the memory. "The worst happened right before I left the play center. The biggest kid there. . .I think he goes to Durmstrang now. . .he somehow got the teacher's wand and used the jellylegs curse on me. I couldn't stand up, so I started crying. The teacher came over and refused to do anything. I'm sure she knew what to do, but she wouldn't do it. She just let me sit there like that for the entire rest of the day. When my mother came to pick me up and saw my condition, she was furious and simply carried me home. When we got back, she reversed it, but I never went back there again."
"Aly. . ." Draco trailed off, smoothing back her hair. "None of that will happen to you. I promise. If anyone tries anything, and I don't care if it's Snape or Crabbe and Goyle, I will personally see to it that whomever did it is fired or expelled."
Alysia looked at him skeptically. "Really?"
"Well. . .maybe just detention. But I would make them pay somehow, Alysia."
She still wasn't sure if he meant it, but she reached up and kissed him anyway. He tasted sweet, like someone who has just eaten something with cinnamon and sugar. When he finally left, she managed to find the strength to get out of the enormous bed and walk over to the closet. Hanging on the door were beautiful deep black robes that looked like they would fit her. She dressed, put on a pair of black boots that also seemed to be for her and stepped out into the hallway.
Things were quite silent. She thought she caught a snatch of haughty laughter from down the stairs and so walked silently past the stairs to explore the halls of the West Wing.
The one hall was long and imposing with vaulted ceilings and gargoyles staring out from around corners. Black curtains hung over whatever windows or mirrors there might have been to give the hallway more light. The only light, in fact, came from the torches that burned dimly every several meters. Alysia shivered. She wasn't sure she liked the West Wing. A hand suddenly touched her side, and she jumped before looking down and realizing it was only Zel. Griffin was, of course, at her side.
"What are you doing?" Zel asked, the torchlight making eerie shadows on her face.
"Exploring. What are you doing?" Alysia shot back for lack of a better answer.
"We're going with you. Uncle Lucius is home so we have to be very quiet," Griffin explained seriously, and then his face lit up. "Do you want to see old pictures of Uncle Lucius at school?"
Lucius had been at school when her parents and godparents and all the people she loved were. Alysia followed Griffin and Zel to a silent room with a single torch lighting up crates upon crates, labeled things like "Old Photos of Narcissa" or "Narcissa and Draco". One caught her eye. In deep black ink it read, "Hogwart's Yearbooks, 1971-1978". She grabbed the torch from the wall and laid it carefully on the floor beside the box. Griffin and Zel followed and knelt beside her as she slowly removed the lid.
A cloud of dust flew into the air and they all stifled their coughs for a moment. Then Alysia pulled out the first yearbook. "Hogwart's Annual, 1971- 1972," she read aloud and opened the cover.
Almost immediately, pictures of her father and his friends were waving at her. They smiled at her from almost every page. She pointed out people she recognized to Griffin and Zel, always choking over the names of Lily and James Potter-her late godparents. Even she was astonished at the similarities between James and Harry. Vague memories of voices and laughter played in the back of her mind, but she ignored them and moved on to the next book.
Here was her mother, Anaral Karadhras. She had not always been so beautiful, Alysia noticed with a laugh. Her mother's hair had been cut short and she had buckteeth. Still, she noticed that in many of the pictures, her father was staring at Anaral admiringly. This yearbook included pictures of Quidditch matches: her father a Beater and James a Catcher.
Before too long, Alysia had reached the fateful fifth yearbook and sure enough, the pictures of Anaral and Sirius were replaced with pictures of Anaral and Lucius, an occasional Sirius in the background looking upset or sullen. There were also more pictures of Lily and James together, always smiling.
"How can so much have gone wrong?" she asked aloud, and Zel put a compassionate hand on her arm.
All too soon, she had reached the seventh and final yearbook. This one proved to be the most interesting of all as it contained little blurbs for all of the graduating seventh-years and special pictures of them that were highly reminiscent of a collection of Gilderoy Lockheart prints she'd seen once.
Her father's blurb was among the first. Next to it was a picture of him stifling a laugh as he pretended to ride on a broomstick. He looked so happy and healthy that Alysia could not help but be sad. She read the blurb aloud for Griffin and Zel.
"Some friends stay with you, no matter where you go. To James, Lily, Remus and Peter, the greatest friends I could ever have dreamed of. The Marauders have taken their final stand at Hogwart's. Also to my sweet Anaral, without whom my marauding would have been meaningless. I love you." Alysia smiled.
"And that's your father?" Griffin asked softly.
"Yes, Griffin. Sirius Black is my father," she answered. Saying it aloud felt odd. She turned a few more pages and came to Lily Evans, who would someday be Lily Potter. Her arms were folded across her chest with one hand reaching up to twirl a strand of red hair around the forefinger.
"My love to Sirius, Remus, Peter and Anaral who didn't care if I was Muggle- born or not. And most especially to my James." Short, sweet and to the point, Alysia noted. Then again, it had to be. Lily's list of activities was written in the tiniest print so that it could all fit on one page. Yes, Alysia determined, that sounded like Lily.
More pages turned and she found Remus Lupin. He was sitting up in a tree and kept leaping down and running closer to the camera. Alysia laughed aloud when she read his blurb. "I would like you all to know that I am indeed a werewolf. And I would like you all to know that I don't give a damn. Thanks to those who did. . .you know who you are." She reached to turn the page and suddenly felt bile rise in her throat. Lucius Malfoy.
He was a spitting image of Draco, sneering and looking down on the cameraperson as if he or she was below Lucius' normal level of association. His blurb was even shorter than Lily's, though without need. "Hail the Pure of Blood," Alysia read softly and Griffin and Zel seemed to understand immediately and helped her turn the page.
Peter Pettigrew and James Potter were on facing pages. Peter looked solemn and serious in his picture. "I haven't caught up with the Marauders yet, but I will someday. . .I swear it. Thanks for being my friends. . .Marauder loyalty forever!" Alysia read in disgust. "Funny, I didn't know forever ended when you decided to join forces with Voldemort."
Griffin and Zel flinched visibly. "Don't say his name!" Zel whispered, looking at Alysia with big, frightened eyes.
"Zel, never forget this: fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself. You don't need to be afraid of him. . .he's nothing but a very bad man with a very bad temper. Like your Uncle Lucius," Alysia explained, trying to soothe Zel.
"But I'm scared of Uncle Lucius!" she exclaimed, and Alysia smiled at her sympathetically.
"Don't be," she ordered, and pointed to James' picture, the spitting image of Harry Potter. He, too, was riding atop a broom, not laughing as her father had, but waving good-naturedly. "There are days and moments to remember, but far too many to count. There are lives to be lived, but far too many to know. Those I know, I love. My beautiful flower, my Lily, you have my love now and forever. Marauder loyalty." Alysia choked. She thought of him writing those words, not knowing that so soon thereafter, he would be dead along with his wife. His son would be living with the world's worst Muggles and his loyal best friend would be imprisoned. She drew in a deep breath and realized that her cheeks were wet. Zel put her hand on Alysia's cheek.
"Don't cry, Alysia. Be happy. . .you're safe," she promised.
"Am I?" she asked dryly.
"Yes," came a drawl from behind her. Draco dropped to his knees beside her and pulled her into his arms. "I may not care about anyone else in this world, but I care about you. You're safe here. I promise. As long as you are my 'prisoner', you are safe."
"Your prisoner," Alysia repeated. "Your prisoner of love."
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A/N: Awww, isn't that kitschy? Sorry, LOL. I'll try to make the next chapter less fluffy. Still not sure if I like Draco, but it might be alright, as long as he keeps reiterating that he doesn't care about anyone else. I hope. . .R/R!
"Do you know who she is?"
"No. Do you?"
"I think Draco brought her home, but I'm not sure."
"She's so beautiful. Did our mother look like that?"
"I don't remember. Maybe."
"She looks like an angel."
Alysia couldn't place the children's voices talking around her. Her head was painfully heavy and she was having trouble opening her eyes. When she finally did, she was astonished to see two small children standing next to her. Both had black hair and black eyes with pale skin and pointed faces. They looked amazingly like Draco, though their clothes were ragged and torn.
She moved slightly and became aware of her surroundings. It seemed she was in a room in a castle. She was lying on an amazingly soft bed, draped with blue blankets and linens. Pale light streamed in through a window across the room, which was otherwise quite dark. A smell like dried lavender reached her nose. She had no idea where she was.
"Where am I?" she asked the children standing beside her bed.
The little boy spoke up. "In the Malfoy Castle."
"What?" Alysia sat bolt upright. "How did I get here?"
"Draco brought you," the little girl answered. "He told us to watch you and make sure you weren't too frightened when you woke up."
Alysia wasn't quite sure how to respond. "Did he say why he brought me here?" she wondered aloud, having a vague recollection of screaming and a cloth being pressed over her mouth and nose. Both children shook their heads silently, still staring at her. Alysia leaned back on the mountain of pillows behind her and looked at her hands thoughtfully. It seemed that Draco had brought her to his house as a result of whatever had happened the night before. A sudden thought struck her.
"Does Lucius know I'm here?" she exclaimed. The children again shook their heads.
"Draco brought you here because Uncle Lucius never comes to this part of the house. That's why we're here, too," the little boy explained.
"Uncle Lucius doesn't like us very much," the little girl added, tugging on a strand of her hair. "But Aunt Narcissa thinks that we should stay."
Draco's mother. Alysia had never met the woman, but she had a feeling that she would, soon. Still, the thought of meeting Narcissa Malfoy seemed far more appealing than the thought of having another encounter with Lucius. She turned and looked at the children.
"Who are you?" she finally asked. The little boy spoke up.
"My name's Griffin and that's Zel. We're twins," he explained. "Our mother was Aunt Narcissa's sister. . .we don't have a father."
"Was?" Alysia looked to Zel questioningly.
"Our mother is dead," Zel answered the silent question. "She died two years ago. We were only three."
"Uncle Lucius didn't want us here because our father was a Muggle and he left our mother when he found out that she was a witch. But Aunt Narcissa felt bad for us, so she let us stay here in the West Wing. Draco knows we're here, too," Griffin finished. "Are you an angel?"
Alysia felt a laugh bubbling up. "No. I'm not," she answered.
"But Draco said you were!" Zel exclaimed. "He said you were an angel of beauty."
Now Alysia felt herself blushing. She was about to say something when the door to her room creaked open. A very beautiful and tall woman with blonde hair swept in, wearing very expensive robes. Griffin and Zel ran to her, calling, "Aunt Narcissa! Aunt Narcissa! Alysia is awake!"
"So I see. Sneak very quietly down to the kitchen and see if you can bring up some hot soup for Alysia. Your uncle is home," Narcissa told them gently. Griffin and Zel nodded at her, wide-eyed and slipped through the door quietly. Narcissa slowly walked over to Alysia's bed.
"So," she began, "I finally meet the young lady who my son calls marvelous and my husband calls a demon. Which are you?"
Alysia blinked. "I daresay I am neither marvelous nor a demon, though I must tell you that your husband is a fool and the most horrible man I have ever met."
For a moment, Alysia was terrified that Narcissa was going to start yelling, but she simply nodded her head. "You're right, of course," she finally stated. "I know my husband is a fool and a terrible man. My son, however," she stared hard at Alysia, "is not."
"No!" Alysia exclaimed. "He's wonderful! Your son is amazing!"
Narcissa laughed gently. "It's alright, my dear. You aren't being accused of anything. As long as you promise to remain here in the West Wing, you are safe in this castle."
"Thank you, ma'am," Alysia answered quietly, when the pad of soft footsteps announced the return of Griffin and Zel. Narcissa turned and smiled at them.
"I will leave you here with Griffin and Zel. When you've woken up some, you may feel free to explore this wing of the castle, but do not go downstairs under any circumstances. My husband does not know you are here. . .no one does. If you are found here, it will look terrible for my husband and family. Therefore, Alysia, I must insist that you stay up here." With that, Narcissa marched out of the room. Alysia heard her footsteps go down a set of stairs and turned once again to look at Griffin and Zel.
"Your uncle doesn't like very much, does he?" she queried, taking the bowl of hot soup that Zel handed her.
"No. Draco didn't used to, either, until we moved in," Griffin answered. "Now he's much nicer. Especially this year."
"Why especially this year?" The broth was good and kept dribbling down her chin as she ate. Zel giggled.
"Because he said he met an angel. He's going to be home this weekend. . .it's Aunt Narcissa's birthday," she explained.
"Look at this!" Griffin was now sitting on Alysia's bed. He shoved a copy of the Daily Prophet in front of her face. The headline read, "Student Missing-Thought to be the Work of Death Eaters."
"Oh no!" Alysia dropped the now empty bowl and grabbed the paper from Griffin. She read the article silently, feeling as if someone had just punched her in the stomach.
"Last night, in the chaos surrounding what appears to have been a diversionary attack on Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, sixth- year Alysia Karadhras, daughter of Anaral Karadhras and convicted felon Sirius Black, disappeared from the Hospital Wing. There were no eyewitnesses.
Since the beginning of the term, Hogwart's has been attacked by various trans-species creatures, including what appears to be a rebirthed minotaur. Last night's attack was of a different nature as the halls outside of the hospital wing were set ablaze by a baby dragon let loose in the castle. Authorities suggest that this dragon was set loose simply to distract the faculty and students from keeping watch over Alysia, who, along with her family, has long been a target of the followers of He-Who-Must-Not-Be- Named. They are also often targets of vandalism and attack because of their association with Sirius Black.
When asked about the attack and kidnapping of her daughter, Anaral Karadhras had no comment, and was last seen going into her office with a large black dog. Alysia's friends explain that this dog is a family pet, known as 'Blackie'.
Alysia has also made a few unlikely friendships at Hogwart's, the first being with the infamous Harry Potter. One may find this odd as her father played a large role in the death of young Mr. Potter's parents. Harry declined to comment at time of interview.
The authorities have no leads on this case. Anyone with any information on the whereabouts of Miss Karadhras should contact the Ministry of Magic immediately."
Alysia groaned as she set the paper down. "Well if that isn't the worst thing that's happened to me in a very long time, I don't know what is!" she exclaimed.
"Why?" Zel asked. "What happened?"
Alysia shook her head and rolled over to try and sleep some more. She didn't much feel like leaving her bed at the moment.
It seemed like only moments later when she felt someone's lips against hers. She opened sleepy eyes to see Draco bending over her and felt her lips curl up into a smile. "Why did you kidnap me?" she asked groggily.
"I didn't kidnap you!" he whispered indignantly. "I rescued you."
"Okay, then, why did you rescue me? You've got the whole world worried sick!" Alysia managed to keep her voice down to a whisper as well.
"Because it wasn't a dragon that was burning up the halls. It was. . .well, it sounds odd. It was an echidna," he explained in a hushed tone.
"That's impossible! There was only ever one echidna. . .she lived in Egypt. Right?" Alysia shook her head. "It's just like the minotaur."
"It is." Draco shifted his position a little bit and Alysia could see the moon in the window. "You weren't safe. So I brought you here."
"Draco!" Now Alysia was annoyed. "I was fine. But now you've got the whole world looking for me. They all think I was kidnapped. My mother's terrified something's happened to me. My friends are all worried. I just want to go back to Hogwart's!"
"Not yet!" Draco snapped, his voice suddenly rising above a whisper. "You're not safe there, Alysia. Trust me for once."
"It's kinda hard to trust you, Draco, when you won't tell me what's going on," Alysia answered with an edge in her voice. Draco gave her a half- smile.
"You're a target, Alysia. You and Potter. I don't care about him, but I do care about you," he stated in his old drawl.
"How did you know that I'm a target? Granted, it was in the Daily Prophet today, but how did you know before that?" Alysia's eyes suddenly widened in understanding. "Your father really is a Death Eater, isn't he?"
Draco didn't respond, and Alysia knew she'd touched a nerve. Her tone softened as she asked the question again. "Your father really is a Death Eater, isn't he?"
"Yes, and yours is a convicted murderer," Draco responded, gesturing to the newspaper which lay crumpled on the floor. "I wish you'd told me."
"Can you see why I wouldn't want to?" Alysia retorted. "I don't think I can face school now. The last time this happened, I was getting hexed left and right." Her eyes reflected the pain of the memory. "The worst happened right before I left the play center. The biggest kid there. . .I think he goes to Durmstrang now. . .he somehow got the teacher's wand and used the jellylegs curse on me. I couldn't stand up, so I started crying. The teacher came over and refused to do anything. I'm sure she knew what to do, but she wouldn't do it. She just let me sit there like that for the entire rest of the day. When my mother came to pick me up and saw my condition, she was furious and simply carried me home. When we got back, she reversed it, but I never went back there again."
"Aly. . ." Draco trailed off, smoothing back her hair. "None of that will happen to you. I promise. If anyone tries anything, and I don't care if it's Snape or Crabbe and Goyle, I will personally see to it that whomever did it is fired or expelled."
Alysia looked at him skeptically. "Really?"
"Well. . .maybe just detention. But I would make them pay somehow, Alysia."
She still wasn't sure if he meant it, but she reached up and kissed him anyway. He tasted sweet, like someone who has just eaten something with cinnamon and sugar. When he finally left, she managed to find the strength to get out of the enormous bed and walk over to the closet. Hanging on the door were beautiful deep black robes that looked like they would fit her. She dressed, put on a pair of black boots that also seemed to be for her and stepped out into the hallway.
Things were quite silent. She thought she caught a snatch of haughty laughter from down the stairs and so walked silently past the stairs to explore the halls of the West Wing.
The one hall was long and imposing with vaulted ceilings and gargoyles staring out from around corners. Black curtains hung over whatever windows or mirrors there might have been to give the hallway more light. The only light, in fact, came from the torches that burned dimly every several meters. Alysia shivered. She wasn't sure she liked the West Wing. A hand suddenly touched her side, and she jumped before looking down and realizing it was only Zel. Griffin was, of course, at her side.
"What are you doing?" Zel asked, the torchlight making eerie shadows on her face.
"Exploring. What are you doing?" Alysia shot back for lack of a better answer.
"We're going with you. Uncle Lucius is home so we have to be very quiet," Griffin explained seriously, and then his face lit up. "Do you want to see old pictures of Uncle Lucius at school?"
Lucius had been at school when her parents and godparents and all the people she loved were. Alysia followed Griffin and Zel to a silent room with a single torch lighting up crates upon crates, labeled things like "Old Photos of Narcissa" or "Narcissa and Draco". One caught her eye. In deep black ink it read, "Hogwart's Yearbooks, 1971-1978". She grabbed the torch from the wall and laid it carefully on the floor beside the box. Griffin and Zel followed and knelt beside her as she slowly removed the lid.
A cloud of dust flew into the air and they all stifled their coughs for a moment. Then Alysia pulled out the first yearbook. "Hogwart's Annual, 1971- 1972," she read aloud and opened the cover.
Almost immediately, pictures of her father and his friends were waving at her. They smiled at her from almost every page. She pointed out people she recognized to Griffin and Zel, always choking over the names of Lily and James Potter-her late godparents. Even she was astonished at the similarities between James and Harry. Vague memories of voices and laughter played in the back of her mind, but she ignored them and moved on to the next book.
Here was her mother, Anaral Karadhras. She had not always been so beautiful, Alysia noticed with a laugh. Her mother's hair had been cut short and she had buckteeth. Still, she noticed that in many of the pictures, her father was staring at Anaral admiringly. This yearbook included pictures of Quidditch matches: her father a Beater and James a Catcher.
Before too long, Alysia had reached the fateful fifth yearbook and sure enough, the pictures of Anaral and Sirius were replaced with pictures of Anaral and Lucius, an occasional Sirius in the background looking upset or sullen. There were also more pictures of Lily and James together, always smiling.
"How can so much have gone wrong?" she asked aloud, and Zel put a compassionate hand on her arm.
All too soon, she had reached the seventh and final yearbook. This one proved to be the most interesting of all as it contained little blurbs for all of the graduating seventh-years and special pictures of them that were highly reminiscent of a collection of Gilderoy Lockheart prints she'd seen once.
Her father's blurb was among the first. Next to it was a picture of him stifling a laugh as he pretended to ride on a broomstick. He looked so happy and healthy that Alysia could not help but be sad. She read the blurb aloud for Griffin and Zel.
"Some friends stay with you, no matter where you go. To James, Lily, Remus and Peter, the greatest friends I could ever have dreamed of. The Marauders have taken their final stand at Hogwart's. Also to my sweet Anaral, without whom my marauding would have been meaningless. I love you." Alysia smiled.
"And that's your father?" Griffin asked softly.
"Yes, Griffin. Sirius Black is my father," she answered. Saying it aloud felt odd. She turned a few more pages and came to Lily Evans, who would someday be Lily Potter. Her arms were folded across her chest with one hand reaching up to twirl a strand of red hair around the forefinger.
"My love to Sirius, Remus, Peter and Anaral who didn't care if I was Muggle- born or not. And most especially to my James." Short, sweet and to the point, Alysia noted. Then again, it had to be. Lily's list of activities was written in the tiniest print so that it could all fit on one page. Yes, Alysia determined, that sounded like Lily.
More pages turned and she found Remus Lupin. He was sitting up in a tree and kept leaping down and running closer to the camera. Alysia laughed aloud when she read his blurb. "I would like you all to know that I am indeed a werewolf. And I would like you all to know that I don't give a damn. Thanks to those who did. . .you know who you are." She reached to turn the page and suddenly felt bile rise in her throat. Lucius Malfoy.
He was a spitting image of Draco, sneering and looking down on the cameraperson as if he or she was below Lucius' normal level of association. His blurb was even shorter than Lily's, though without need. "Hail the Pure of Blood," Alysia read softly and Griffin and Zel seemed to understand immediately and helped her turn the page.
Peter Pettigrew and James Potter were on facing pages. Peter looked solemn and serious in his picture. "I haven't caught up with the Marauders yet, but I will someday. . .I swear it. Thanks for being my friends. . .Marauder loyalty forever!" Alysia read in disgust. "Funny, I didn't know forever ended when you decided to join forces with Voldemort."
Griffin and Zel flinched visibly. "Don't say his name!" Zel whispered, looking at Alysia with big, frightened eyes.
"Zel, never forget this: fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself. You don't need to be afraid of him. . .he's nothing but a very bad man with a very bad temper. Like your Uncle Lucius," Alysia explained, trying to soothe Zel.
"But I'm scared of Uncle Lucius!" she exclaimed, and Alysia smiled at her sympathetically.
"Don't be," she ordered, and pointed to James' picture, the spitting image of Harry Potter. He, too, was riding atop a broom, not laughing as her father had, but waving good-naturedly. "There are days and moments to remember, but far too many to count. There are lives to be lived, but far too many to know. Those I know, I love. My beautiful flower, my Lily, you have my love now and forever. Marauder loyalty." Alysia choked. She thought of him writing those words, not knowing that so soon thereafter, he would be dead along with his wife. His son would be living with the world's worst Muggles and his loyal best friend would be imprisoned. She drew in a deep breath and realized that her cheeks were wet. Zel put her hand on Alysia's cheek.
"Don't cry, Alysia. Be happy. . .you're safe," she promised.
"Am I?" she asked dryly.
"Yes," came a drawl from behind her. Draco dropped to his knees beside her and pulled her into his arms. "I may not care about anyone else in this world, but I care about you. You're safe here. I promise. As long as you are my 'prisoner', you are safe."
"Your prisoner," Alysia repeated. "Your prisoner of love."
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A/N: Awww, isn't that kitschy? Sorry, LOL. I'll try to make the next chapter less fluffy. Still not sure if I like Draco, but it might be alright, as long as he keeps reiterating that he doesn't care about anyone else. I hope. . .R/R!
