"Harry?" Monica called.
"This explains so much," Ginny said.
"What do you mean?" Neville asked.
"All the sneaking around those three have done in the past four years without getting caught," Ginny said.
"You've used it, haven't you Ron?" Fred asked.
Ron smiled. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
"But… where did Harry go?" Reggie asked. She and Lynne looked around the room, searching.
"BOO!" yelled Harry's head in midair between their faces.
"EEK!" They shrieked in unison. Harry laughed. The twins glared at him. A gust of wind blew out of nowhere at him. The invisibility cloak blew backwards completely off of Harry's shoulders and for a moment Hermione's head disappeared. She reached up and pulled the cloak off her head. Harry's head was suddenly and mysteriously dripping wet.
"Don't mess with us Harry," Lynne said.
"We're everywhere." Reggie finished. Harry stood there looking stunned while everyone else laughed now. Then he was dry and the air stilled.
"I won't be asking you two anything," Harry said smiling wryly.
"Weren't you restricted from the Hogsmeade trips third year because you didn't have permission?" Neville asked suddenly. "I remember that you were very upset about it."
"Yeah… I went anyway." Harry said. He flushed a bit as he went back to his spot. Rhia's smiling eyes followed him back in her direction. He didn't seem to notice, but Draco did.
"How?" Daniel asked. "They wouldn't let even an invisible you into the carriages."
"That's where we come in," George said. "We showed him the secret passage behind the statue of the hag."
"Caved in now." Fred said. "Quite sad really. No other way to get to Hogsmeade now except through the Forest."
Hermione and Ron glanced at one another. The twins obviously didn't know about the passage under the Whomping Willow. "Actually," Harry started. "That's not entirely true."
"What do you mean?" Reggie asked.
"There's another way?" Fred asked eagerly.
"There's a passage from the grounds to the Shrieking Shack." Harry said.
"Where?" George asked.
"I don't think they need to know that," Rose said. "Harry who do you chose?"
"Aw… come on Rose, be a chum," Fred said.
"Let him tell us, it's not like we'll do anything… I mean we already have a direct link to the Forbidden Forest and to the Headmaster's office and we haven't abused those." George said.
"Not to my knowledge you haven't but I wouldn't be surprised…" Rose said. She faced Harry. "Well?"
"Truth or Dare Rose?" Harry asked, grinning at her.
Rose looked at him a moment. "Dare," she said, her eyes swirled blue and gold.
"I dare you to not say 'Blessed Hell' for the rest of the night," Harry said.
"What?" Rose asked.
"If you do," Harry went on, "you have to kiss Trevor."
"What?" Rose asked again.
Fred grinned, "If you say 'blessed hell', you have to kiss a toad."
"Trevor… the toad… Is he even in here Neville?" Rose asked a little hopefully.
"He's in Andra's box recovering from the potion Snape made me give him. Made him quite sleepy." Neville answered with a wave at the green box beside his bag.
"Oh. Lovely." Rose said. "Thanks Harry."
"You're welcome." Harry smiled. Rhia grinned at her sister.
Rose looked around the room. "Ana, Truth or Dare?"
"Oh." Ana sat up a little straighter. "Truth I suppose."
Rose pondered, petting Vestan meditatively. Draco was starting to sweat in his handstand. His hair had somehow been cleansed of gel and was now sticking straight down from his head in a thick white-blond cloud. His face was bright red, but he managed to continue to stay upright. His arms weren't shaking yet and that, not that they would ever admit it, surprised many of them.
"Oh. Erm… Draco you can get down now, the potion is finished. Sorry for interrupting Ana. Go ahead." Ginny said, flushing.
"I don't mind," Ana said. She smiled at the little redhead, then sat thoughtfully as Draco flipped back over and calmly sat on his pallet, tailor-fashion. He didn't say a word as his hair fell into his eyes.
"You all right?" Monica asked.
"Fine," Draco said. He was sitting very still.
"Light-headed?" Monica asked.
Draco closed his eyes a moment and slowly turned his head to look at her. He blinked again. "What do you think? I've been upside down for thirty minutes." Someone snorted. Draco didn't move.
Trying not to smile, Monica brushed his hair out of his eyes with one hand. She touched his forehead a moment. "Better?" she asked.
Draco took a deep breath. "Yes thank you," he said, relaxing a bit. "What's Ana's question Rose?"
"I've got it. What's the worst thing that you have ever done?" Rose asked.
Daniel raised his eyebrows at Rose. "Ana doesn't even curse." He turned to Ana. "Do you?"
Ana didn't answer him. Instead she stared down at her lap. "The worst thing I've ever done…" She was thoughtful for a moment. "I… I started an earthquake to spite my father. I didn't know that's what I did at the time but… now I know it was. I was angry at him because he wanted me to go to a muggle school after the Chamber of Secrets episode. He's a muggle you see. Because of the underage magic law, I couldn't prove exactly how awful that would be, so all my arguments were in vain." She paused.
"How did it happen?" Daniel asked. He watched her closely, mildly startled. Segan had draped himself around her shoulders like a big furry scarf, whirring.
"I was in the kitchen with my mother. She was telling me about how being a witch was about making compromises to live in the 'real' world. She doesn't do magic in front of my father. It… upsets him. I was angry at her for believing what she was saying to me and angry at him for forcing her to deny such a large part of herself. The ground started to shake and I watched out the window as a large boulder tumbled down the hillside behind my house. It bounced over the garden and crashed into my father's tool shed. He was in its doorway at the time… he wasn't hurt, but… everything in that building was destroyed. I think now that my mother knew it was me that had done it… because her eyes got very large and she stared at me, even as my father came running into the house to check on us, grumbling about his tools even as he looked us over. She turned to him and said, 'I am sorry about your tools dear. We're fine. Antar is going back to Hogwarts in September. Are you all right?' He just looked at her, then at me, and that was the end of it."
"That's the worst thing?" Draco asked, eyebrows up.
"I nearly killed my father, and I destroyed many of his possessions. That's pretty awful." Ana responded.
"Ah, but you didn't even hurt him. Plus you had a right to be angry with him. He was trying to make you something you aren't. He couldn't see how special you are. All you did was force him to see it." Daniel said. "Or rather, you showed your mother that her life was not for you."
"She knew what you were after that, and knew you needed to be here," Rhia said.
"And you didn't even do it on purpose." Reggie said.
"I suppose…" Ana looked at Rose. "Do our parents know who we are?"
"Shards I hope not," Draco muttered. Monica brushed his hair out of his eyes again. He glanced at her, then back at Rose.
"Some do, some don't." Rose answered.
"Mine wouldn't understand," Hermione said. "They're wonderful, but they are muggles."
"I've been wondering how that happened." Ron said. "I mean, no offense to your parents Hermione, but a Guardian coming from an ancient Atlantean line of descent being Muggleborn? It's a bit odd."
"I was wondering too Ron," Hermione said. She looked at Rose.
"You already know the answer to that," Rose said.
"So the search for knowledge really doesn't have anything to do with magic then," Hermione said.
"It does and it doesn't. Remember the women with your gift had to hide well. For a time, women weren't even known to have souls, so to actually be smart was social suicide, and the line had to be passed on. You were a surprise to Raine, if you'll recall. He thought your line had faded from time." Rose said.
"I think our parents know," Daniel said. "Summer before my third year they asked me if any odd women had been at the school. I told them it was a school for wizards and witches. Of course there were odd women about."
Ana elbowed him. "I remember that," Reggie said. "It was in the kitchen, right after you caught the knife that Mom had knocked over."
"You moved so fast… Dad asked if they were going to make you a seeker with those reflexes and Mom asked about the women." Lynne grinned. "I suppose she meant you." She nodded at the Jamesons.
"Hmmm… I'd like to know how she knew about us… but enough of that. Ana?" Rose queried.
"Truth or Dare Daniel?" Ana asked.
"Dare of course," he said grinning at her.
She smiled for the first time since telling her Truth. "Let's test those reflexes of yours. I dare you to spin around in place until I tell you to stop, then we'll toss a few things at you to see if you can catch them."
"I accept. I'm a Beater though, not a Catcher." Daniel said.
"Making excuses already? Draco said. "Saturday's game should be easy then." Daniel glared at him as he stood up.
Twenty minutes later, the room was full of laughter and… bubbles. Daniel had spun for ten minutes, then had five balls thrown at him. Two coshed him on the head, but he caught the other three.
He then, dizzily, asked George, who chose Truth, to tell him how he and Fred had managed to set up shop in Zonko's. After a triple shared glance, Harry's silent partner status came to light. The looks he got then made Harry reach for his invisibility cloak. Rhia stopped him with a hand and a smile.
Then George asked Ron, who chose Dare; perhaps expecting that since he was his brother he'd get off light. He was wrong and as such was the source of the bubbles. The Dare had been to try one of the newest of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Now, every time he opened his mouth, a large soap bubble came out. When the bubbles popped, his words could be heard, but not before.
"So Reggie, truth or Dare?" Ron asked with Hermione popping the bubbles for him.
Reggie, giggling managed to say, "Truth."
"What exactly did you do to Desiree? Bloody Bubbles… That shed was destroyed. Brotherly consideration…" Ron's bubbles said. He scowled at George.
Still giggling, Reggie said, "Oh I blew her against the wall, hard. Wasn't' my fault it wasn't built to withstand hurricane force winds."
"I helped," Lynne said.
"You pummeled her with a deluge," Reggie acknowledged.
"Nice," Rose said. "Next?"
"Rhia, Truth or Dare?" Reggie asked. Everyone waited.
Ron swallowed a bubble halfway out of his mouth. He made a face. Hermione looked at him. He opened his mouth again and a much smaller bubble appeared. Hermione popped it with her pinky finger. "Better than slugs," came out in a distant sounding whisper. Hermione giggled. Draco smirked and Monica looked confused.
"Dare please," Rhia said.
"I dare you to go owl, and fly against me," Reggie said.
"Can you fly?" Harry asked, aware even as he said it that he should know this already, but he didn't.
"We'll see, won't we?" Rhia smiled at him and then shifted. A flash of light revealed an owl no bigger than Pigwidgeon, but in shades of gray rather than brown. She hooted softly.
"Pick her up Harry," Ginny said. "She can't start on the ground that way." After glancing at Ginny, Harry held out his hand and Rhia-owl hopped into it. He rubbed her feathery cheek, as he did Hedwig when she was being affectionate. Ginny giggled. She merely shook her head when the others looked at her questioningly. Rhia ruffled her feathers and turned wide eyes to Reggie.
"Whenever you're ready," Reggie said, watching her.
She hooted. Harry held his hand above his head and Rhia launched herself into the air. She zoomed about, again reminiscent of Pigwidgeon, before finding her rhythm. She hovered above Reggie, waiting. Then she caught the building air currents and soared around them, under the high ceiling. At first, flying against the wind wasn't difficult, but gradually, the wind grew stronger as Reggie concentrated.
Finally, Rhia's wings were fluttering so quickly that it was difficult to see them, though she was merely struggling to stay in one place. Though Reggie kept the wind in the upper region of the room, it was now strong enough to make even Rose's long braid move. Above them, Rhia did a flip midair and was suddenly zipping around the room. Reggie brought the wind down and Rhia slowed until she was able to glide silently to her pallet.
The little gray owl flashed and Rhia sat there, face glowing with exertion and breathing heavily. Harry tried not to stare. "Blessed Hell," she panted. "That was a difficult one."
Reggie grinned. "I know. Owl feathers are soft so that they can glide silently. They aren't really meant to fight the wind."
"So that's why you chose an owl. I thought so." Hermione said.
"Let's hear that brilliant mind of yours," Rhia said. "Truth or Dare?"
"Truth," Hermione smiled.
"Have you found anything in the Book that you are afraid to tell us?" Rhia asked.
"What… what do you mean?" Hermione asked in response.
"Come come, Hermione," George said. "You haven't been keeping something from us now have you?"
"Well…" Hermione started.
"There's something worse than the Prophecy you told us earlier?" Lynne asked.
"It's… it's another prophecy I think. I didn't want to tell you about it until I understood it," Hermione said. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to wait?"
"You can't truly understand a prophecy until it has come to pass," Rhia said. "Before that, it's interpretation."
"I'll take that as a no then." Hermione said. She stood and went to her bookcase. Instead of coming back with the Book, she returned with her Muggle notebook back to the circle. She sat again and Ron touched her hand.
He opened his mouth and a bubble appeared. Fianna popped it with a swipe of her paw. "I'll read it if you like," said Ron's speech bubble. Such an offer, considering his current condition caused nervous laughter to flutter through the room. Andra waved at it as it faded out the window and into the night.
"No thank you Ron," Hermione said with a gentle smile. She did however take his hand in hers before opening her notebook. She flipped to a page covered in neat writing done in various colored inks. She looked at all of them again. "You're sure?"
"We'll not let you carry the burden of knowledge alone any longer," Harry said.
Hermione simply nodded. "It begins thus…
'Heart shall cast light in shadow and what was hidden shall be revealed.
That which was separate shall be joined when Nature heeds the Voice.
The Healer shall find the Dragon when an ancient peace is broken.
The Archer lights the Flame when the Staff bearer finds what was lost.
The Earth shall shake the Blade when the Serpent returns to the Fallen place.
A storm awakens Wind and Water when lightning strikes twice.
The Warrior learns and the Seeker fights when the Others gather.'
Hermione looked up. "That's all of it."
"So… it's a timeline of sorts," Fred said. "It's a prophecy of events that will happen, once others do."
"As far as I can tell, yes." Hermione said.
"It refers to us all," Monica said. "well, except for Rhia."
"I'm not in the Book very often. And I wasn't in the Phoenix book at all." Rhia said.
"The names in it… Those are what we are in the scheme of things?" Lynne asked.
"That's how we are referred to throughout the Book. It doesn't have our names. That would be too difficult, considering it was written thousands of years ago." Hermione said.
"Our names, up to the last Gathering were written in the Records… the Phoenix book." Rose said.
"The ancient peace that was broken… do you suppose that was referring to when the book was stolen from Draco?" Monica asked.
"Why? Did you find a Dragon or something then?" Harry asked, with a grin.
"What? Oh… forgot about that part," Monica said in a odd voice, glancing at Draco. Hermione narrowed her eyes.
"Why don't we all get into our pajamas before we continue?" Rose suggested. "It's getting late and we should be comfortable."
"I'm comfortable," Draco said. He got a couple of Looks. "well I have been in my pajamas for over an hour." Ginny giggled.
"Okay then," Rose said. "Ladies first in the bathroom to change." Rose said. There was a sudden flurry of activity as the girls gathered their things and went through the portal to the bathrooms. This left the seven young men alone.
Ron said something, but of course all that came out was bubbles. He glared at his brothers. Draco smirked.
"Any chance of those letting up soon?" Harry asked, trying not to laugh.
"Oh right. Sorry Bro," George said. He pulled out a gaily wrapped candy. "This ought to settle those bubbles of yours. The only antidote for Bubble Trouble Taffy, is a Cinnamon Pop." He held the candy out to Ron.
A rather wary looking bubble appeared. Harry popped it. "This isn't going to make it worse…" a smaller bubble followed. Harry popped that as well. "Is it?"
"It shouldn't…" Fred said.
"At least we don't think so…" George said.
"There was that incident with the frog…" Fred started.
"But his tongue grew back," George added.
"What?" Ron exclaimed. The bubble popped on it's own that time.
"Come now, Weasley… it can't really make it worse now can it?" Draco said.
"You don't know the Weasley Wizard Wheezes," Neville said. "Their Canary Cream kept me in feathers for hours." He looked at the portal. "How long do you think they are going to be?"
"Knowing my sisters… A half hour at least." Daniel said.
"Hmmm, Why don't we change out here then?" Harry suggested. "That way we'll be ready when they are."
"Good idea Harry," George said. "Ron take the candy." He tossed the Cinnamon Pop at Ron, who caught it and still obviously wary, put it in his mouth. A few moments later he was sweating, and once again glaring at his brothers.
"An unfortunate side effect," George said. "You have to sweat out the bubble formula." He was rummaging in his bag for his pajama shirt.
"It's a work in progress." Fred said.
"All right, I know I didn't forget a shirt," Neville said. Everyone looked at him. "I put in three… Just in case," he said. "And now I can't find any of them."
"I can't find mine either," Harry said.
"Mine is gone too," Daniel said.
George and Fred looked at each other. "Ours too."
"Nothing here either," Ron said. Though his voice was a bit hoarse and smoke seemed to be coming from his tongue, he was speaking normally. Then the portal opened and in came the girls.
Now this might have been unknown to the gentlemen before this, but a girls' nightwear tells a lot about her. For instance, Hermione wore a long pale blue nightgown, with eyelet lace at the neck and cuffs. Rose wore a black tee and shorts. Reggie wore sky blue pants with clouds on them and a matching blue tee. Lynne wore sea-green pants and shirt with little orange fish all over them. Ginny wore a big pink nightshirt with a teddy bear on the front. Rhia wore plaid shorts and a gray tank top, Ana wore a long purple nightgown with double spaghetti straps, instead of sleeves. Monica wore leopard print satin pants and a tank top edged in black lace.
The guys on the other hand, with the exception of Draco wore pajama pants, flannel, mostly plaid, though Daniel's were green, and Neville's were bright yellow. They all stared in silence as the girls took their seats. "I see we're all ready now." Rose said. "Hermione?"
"What did you do with our shirts?" Ron asked, still hoarse.
"Ron, you got rid of the bubbles," Hermione said with a grin.
"You didn't answer his question," Neville said.
"I haven't done anything to them," Hermione said. "Monica, Truth or Dare?"
"Truth please," Monica said. The boys pondered, looking around speculatively. Draco smirked, finding this highly amusing.
"What do you know about your line in the prophecy that you didn't tell us?" Hermione asked immediately. Monica stared at her. "Did you find a Dragon that you aren't telling us about?"
"I… I did… but it's not my place to speak of it." Monica said. Draco wasn't even smirking anymore. His face was perfectly blank.
"What do you mean?" Ana asked. "Where is it?"
"You found a Real Dragon?" Reggie asked.
"Did it hurt you?" Lynne asked.
"What? No it wasn't a live dragon, so of course it didn't hurt me …exactly… as to where it is… that too is not my place to say." Monica answered. She glanced at Draco. He finally looked back at her. She nodded and said, "It's Draco's."
"Draco is the dragon you found?" Ginny asked.
"She did find him that morning," Daniel said.
"No…" Draco said softly. "The dragon is on me."
"I don't understand," Reggie said.
Draco didn't say anything else, merely slipped out of his dressing gown and shirt, and turned his back on them. The dragon etched in his skin in the scars shown silver. There were gasps around the room.
"What the hell happened to you?" George asked.
At the same time, Rose said softly, "Blessed Hell." She flushed, realizing what she had said, but no one else seemed to have noticed, so she didn't say anything else.
"My father happened to me," Draco said, turning back around to face them. Monica put a hand on his bare shoulder.
"But… that's child abuse," Lynne said. "Isn't it?"
"Malfoys are above the law," Draco said sardonically. He managed an almost smile at her, "Or hadn't you heard that little one?"
Hermione stood and walked over. She went to stand behind Draco. "Do you mind?" She asked. He shook his head, albeit reluctantly. She studied his back a moment. "It looks almost as if the majority of the scars are actually there to hide the dragon. Like camouflage," Hermione said.
"That's what I think as well… Like it's a sign of who he is or something." Monica said. "And this one here, the most recent one, seems to complete the picture." She traced it with a finger. Draco jerked. "Sorry," Monica said, though she didn't sound sorry at all.
"But Lucius doesn't know the you are a Guardian," Harry said. "Or we'd all be in trouble."
"No he doesn't." Draco responded. "I only found out a month ago, so he couldn't have known."
"But…how could he not?" Ginny asked. "I mean you have a bloody great dragon on your back. That's a pretty big sign. Every time you had your shirt off…"
"He never saw it." Draco said. "My old Nurse used to give me a concealing potion to hide the… the scars. As soon as I was old enough, she taught me how to make it myself. My father took it as a sign of vanity, perfectly acceptable in a Malfoy. I didn't even really know that it was a dragon until Monica saw it, that morning after the book was taken."
"There are spells, potions that can heal without scars…" Hermione said. "Why didn't you do that?"
"He couldn't. There was something used… I don't know what," Monica said. "Something that blocks even my magic."
"So an alliance was broken that night. Someone in your own house attacked you for the book." Ron said. "But who?"
"If I knew that," Draco said, "I wouldn't have taken that Forget-Me-Not Potion."
"So Monica… Lynne or Fred next?" Rose asked.
"Wait a minute Rose. You said those two little words. We all heard you." Rhia said, grinning.
"Neville, where is Trevor?" Harry asked.
"You aren't really going to make me kiss a frog, are you?" Rose asked plaintively.
"He's a toad," Ginny said.
"And yes we are." Fred added.
Rose shuddered as Neville brought a blinking Trevor out of Andra's box. The kit sniffed him and whirred. Neville carried him over to Rose and the Weasley twins. "No offense Neville," Rose said. "But he is really quite hideous."
"He's a toad," Neville said in response. "He looks exactly how he's supposed to look."
Rose shuddered again. Neville held Trevor in front of her. "Now give him a big smooch," Harry said. Rose leaned forward slowly, pursed her lips, and kissed the toad.
Neville would swear later that Trevor actually blushed. The toad may not have truly been red, but Rose was definitely green. Trevor did put up quite a struggle after the kiss. Legs kicking, he fought his way free of Neville's hands and hopped back to the box. Rose swallowed. "Excuse me," she whispered, then she fled to the bathroom. Running water could be heard before the portal had even closed all the way. Everyone was still laughing when she came back, mouth scrubbed until the whole lower portion of her face was red.
Finally, Monica asked Lynne if she wanted a Truth or a Dare. But before the girl could answer, Draco noticed that his shirt was missing. His dressing gown was still present, but a shiver from Monica had prompted his offering it to her. She wore it now. His pajama shirt had disappeared however. "All right, something's going on," Harry said.
No one responded. Instead, Lynne answered Monica, asking for a Dare. Still ignoring the predicament of the males in the room, Monica responded by daring Lynne to dunk her head in the water tank for as long as she could. Lynne accepted, but before she did so, she whispered to Reggie everything she needed to know, no matter what Fred's response. Then she dunked her head in the tank.
"Truth or Dare Fred?" Reggie asked.
"Dare," Fred said with a grin.
Reggie grinned, "Lynne dares you… to go the rest of the night without playing a joke on anyone."
"What?" Fred asked, rather theatrically stunned.
"Exactly what I said. Excluding future dares for people. I'm sure those candies of yours will come back into play again."
Fred frowned and looked at George. "Okay… I suppose I accept."
"Wow, that was a good one Reggie." Daniel said.
"Lynne's idea, not mine," Reggie said. She smiled at her sister, though Lynne couldn't see it. Her head was still in the tank.
"Anyone else cold?" Ginny asked. There was a chorus of yes's around the room. As Ginny went to speak with the fire salamander in the fireplace, Rhia looked at Harry. She reached into her bag and pulled out his robe. She offered it to him first, but he waved if off, suppressing a slight shiver. She smiled gratefully at him. Neither one said a word as she put it on.
"Second round," Fred said, a trifle less cheerfully than at the beginning of the first. "Draco, you've got a truth to tell now."
Draco nodded. Fred focused in on him and was thoughtful a moment. "What is your deepest, darkest, secret?"
Draco, already pale from the discussion of his scars, went completely white. He went so white, that Harry caught himself looking at the floor, expecting to see blood pooling there. He wasn't the only one. Draco looked at the little twins. "They leave first," he said seriously.
"No way," Reggie said. "We're Guardians too."
"But you don't need to know this," Draco said through bloodless lips.
Lynne tapped on the glass of the tank. "No way," Reggie translated.
"Anything you say will be told to them anyway. Might as well tell us all in one go." Daniel said, though he looked a little worried. They were his little sisters after all.
"She's been in that tank for ten minutes," Neville said, gesturing at Lynne.
"Go ahead and let her out," Monica said. Reggie tapped Lynne's back. She lifted her head, water sheeting off her hair. In a moments was perfectly dry.
"That was refreshing," she said cheerily.
"How…?" Ron asked.
"I am the Water Guardian," Lynne said simply. "All right Draco. Spill."
Draco nodded. The dannikits started running around the room. They each passed Draco and each touched him with a paw or a tail in support. Monica took his hand. He merely looked at her. Taking a deep breath, he began.
"Last year, during the Tri-wizard Tournament, I… I was jealous of you Harry, because you always seemed to get everything that I felt I deserved. Even though I knew how dangerous it was… perhaps because of how dangerous it was, I wanted to be one of the entrants." Draco said.
"I was only in it because Crouch had bewitched the Goblet," Harry said.
"I know that… and I figured as much then. I didn't know who had done it, just that there was no other way an underage wizard could get into the Tournament. I didn't sabotage any of the events, impossible for a student… I went to my father's study during the break to speak to him about the Tournament, to figure out how you had gotten into it. I saw his Mark then, burned black as his heart. I knew then that something was going on with Voldemort. I even overheard my father talking to someone about a Portkey… and how you had to be the one to win Harry." Draco paused. Took a deep breath. "I knew what was going on. I knew what he planned to do. But I did nothing. Told no one. And you were your usual disgustingly fair self… and shared the trophy with Cedric… and he died… and you were hurt… and Voldemort came back."