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Ch5: in which Lucious makes an appearance.

The air in the dungeon was cold and musty; Draco wished he had taken a cloak – he's forgotten what it was like down here. The door to Severus's chamber was left ajar, and Draco realized that he was expected. He smiled to himself glad that he and Severus were able to become so close. He tapped the door lightly – "Enter".

"Hey Sev, do I need to ask why you'd stormed out of the great Hall? You didn't even finish dinner, and you really should've stayed to hear what Hermione had to say – she's really a brilliant witch", Snape scowled at Draco's smug grin.

"Oh, be quit", Draco's eyebrows went up at the lack of enthusiasm in his godfather's voice.

"Hmm, I think, and please correct me if I'm wrong, that you need to figure out what's bothering you soon, or you might lose your touch completely. Imagine Hogwarts without a scary Potions master… Do I even need to continue?" Severus chuckled; he's grown to love Draco like a son over the years.

"The only issue that I need to resolve is how best to avoid the girl", Severus raised his hand to silence Draco's objections, "Draco, I'm not like you. I'm neither young, nor handsome, nor do I have a glorious past. In fact, I have a past that I find too frightening to deal with; I can't imagine dumping my baggage onto someone else's shoulders." Severus sighed: "she's a young woman… a girl really, and I'm old enough to be her father."

"Sev, I'd agree with you if we were talking about anyone besides Hermione. You don't know her like I do. Although, I am surprised that you still don't know her after over more than 10 years of torture and ridicule", here it was Draco's turn to raise his hand to silence Severus's protests. "I know that you have a past, but I also know that she is strong enough to deal with it. In fact, she's strong enough to help you deal with it. I can't make decisions for you; I can only ask you to not be stubborn. Oh, and warn you: if you don't handle this right, the old bat Dumbledore will be forced to get involved", both men scowled at the memories of a meddling Dumbledore.

Severus nodded his head and poured out two full glassed of scotch. Both men got lost in their thoughts.

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Harry was sitting by the fire thinking about Draco. He felt absolutely horrible; how could Draco have seen that? The worst par was that Draco misunderstood the situation, but it didn't matter now… Draco didn't want anything to do with him. Harry gulped down his whiskey and sloshed out another glass.

He closed his eyes and pictured Draco's stormy expression when he'd touched his arm. Harry marveled at the ability of Draco's eyes to turn from the brightest gray into angry molten silver. One could really get lost in his eyes. Harry sighed and twisted his unruly locks between his fingers. He was so mad at Draco for walking out, but in reality he was the one who'd messed this up. 'I'm such a fuck up'

No matter how hard Harry tried he just couldn't get the gorgeous blonde out of his head. After not seeing him for so long, he was shocked by how much Draco had grown; he was so much brighter than the boy he had been so many years ago. Harry though about the people who have helped Draco to become the man he was, and hated himself for not being one of them. Who were the lucky ones who got to see his eyes turn bright with laughter and grow warmer and larger? Harry groaned; he did not need to think about the guy who he'll be seeing every day for the next… oh Merlin, how long was he going to stay at Hogwarts?!

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Dumbledore's eyes became troubled as he heard the knock that he's been expecting all evening. Dumbledore got up to admit the elegant aristocratic man he knew would be behind the door: "Enter". Dumbledore's eyes grew larger with worry as the once gallant blonde stumbled in; he was barely able to stand upright.

"Oh Merlin, Lucious, what on earth happened to you?!" the Headmaster rushed out from behind his desk to help keep the man upright; his weight was become too much for Minerva. "Did anyone see you?" the witch shook her head, and the Headmaster visibly relaxed. "Help me move him to a seat, Minerva, the man is exhausted. Would you like some tea or a Lemon Drop, Lucious?" Dumbledore was successfully able to hide his apprehension.

Lucious nodded and gratefully accepted the tea; however, he declined the Lemon Drop. "I can't believe I am going to say this, but I am extremely glad to be here. Thank you for letting me into Hogwarts, Headmaster". Both Dumbledore's and McGonagall's eyebrows went up at the respect that evident in Lucsious's voice. "I don't think I have much time. I must speak with you". McGonagall nodded to Dumbledore and exited his study. "How can I help you Luscious?"

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An hour later, Harry's mind was still preoccupied by Draco. Everything about the man seemed to turn Harry on: he got lost in the memory of his eyes, and groaned out loud when he though about Draco's mouth. 'I need to think about something else'; he reached for a copy of the Witch Weekly that Hermione had left behind. 'Looking at girls should help me cool down a bit'; Harry was finally beginning to slowly relax.

After skimming a few boring articles about fashion, Harry was a bit intrigued to find a little blip about himself. Apparently the public discovered his new position as the DADA teacher at Hogwarts. Suddenly his shoulders grew tense; if everyone knew about him, they would surely know about Draco! Who in hell had thought that hiding out at the school was a good idea? Harry continued to flip the pages hoping to encounter any information that might make Draco's situation clearer. He did not have to wait long: right in the middle of the magazine was a huge foldout of Draco… shirtless!!! How could he agree to pose for something like this? The vain bastard, but, damn, he looked absolutely gorgeous! Draco's head was cocked arrogantly to the side, and his trademark Malfoy smirk was playing on his gorgeous red lips. His bright grey eyes seemed to laugh at Harry's silly expression. His lips stretched into a sensuous smile, and Harry's heart missed a beat when the blonde winked.

Harry's eyes traveled down the man's torso and he began to feel the temperature in the room rising. It had been so long since Harry had seen Draco without a shirt; he was just glad that it was only a picture. His eyes traveled down the man's toned chest down to his well-sculpted six-pack. How could a mediwitch have a body like this?! Harry's eyes continued to travel down the amazing body and finally rested at the very bottom of the page that showed the waistband of Draco's jeans slung very low on his hips. If you looked hard enough (and Harry did) you could see the light blonde hairs that started under the man's belly button and disappeared behind the waistband. Harry tore out the center fold with a shaking hand. 'Have to save that… oh Merlin, have to get out of here'. Harry scrambled off of the couch and raced towards Dumbledore's office.

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It seemed to have taken Lucious a few minutes to collect his thoughts. His silver eyes seemed to focus on something only he was able to see and grasp. Dumbledore waited patiently; he never believed in disturbing the thoughts of a troubled man.

"You may not believe what I'm about to tell you, Headmaster, but I've always had a great deal of respect for you. When many crumpled before the Dark Lord", Luscious grimaced at his inability to call Voldemort by any other name; he chuckled a mirthless laugh, "Well, old habits die hard. To get back to what I was saying about you… I admit your courage and your bravery. I admire you and those who support you. Despite what many believe, I am not a heartless bastard." Lucious's eyes seemed to glaze over, and Dumbledore was shocked when he realized that the man was practically crying.

"Lucious, many make mistakes, but it is never too late to correct them. If you want to join our cause –" he was cut off by his visitor.

"Sometimes, Headmaster, it is too late. In my case, it is too late." Lucious's gaze turned hard and he gripped the armrest so tightly that his knuckled turned white. "I was a fool; somehow I believed that his cause was a good one. I was too naïve to realize that his only solution to the muggle problem was to kill them all. I began to understand that when my wife was pregnant; I could not rebel against him, because I was afraid of what he'd have done to my family." Dumbledore felt his heart swell with sympathy for the man before him. He nodded his head to encourage Luscious to continue.

"I felt proud of Draco when he openly opposed him; I was also terrified for his life. There were many reasons that prevented me from helping him; I also knew that he will have been well cared for. I thank you for that. However, there is something that Draco doesn't know. Something that even I didn't know until a very short while ago; however, it is too important to be ignored." Here Lucious pulled a stack of papers from his robe. He extended them to Dumbledore. "This is a letter to Draco; it explains everything. I trust that you will make sure that he gets it and that you will help him through all the changes", he held up his hand to stall Dumbledore's questions. "There is also a letter for you. I wrote that one because I do not have much time left. No, unfortunately nothing can be done. It is only a matter of time before his Death Eaters realize that I am here. Narcissa took a poison that will be activated in about five minutes. When she dies, it'll only be a few minutes before I am summoned. I will not be able to resist them." Dumbledore thought that nothing could shock him anymore; it seemed that each passing day proved him wrong.

"Lucious, there must be something that can be done…" Dumbledore's comment was greeted by a sad chuckle. "Headmaster, you can't save everybody. You can, however, make my last moment easier. I know something about Draco that I would prefer remain hidden from the Dark Lord; he must not get me alive." Lucious reached into his robes again, pulled out a vile, and placed it on Dumbledore's desk. The Headmaster's eyes grew large again. "Lucious, surely you don't expect me to –"

"Please, there are some things that he just can't know. I will not be strong enough to resist him. This, however, will work instantly; I will be dead before I get there." Lucious glanced at his watch; his eyes grew more urgent. "Should be happening about now. I will feel her death, because we have a love bond – surprise, huh? After that I will be in no condition to resist the Dark Lord. The last stack of papers is the deed. I leave everything to Draco; I have never legally disowned him. There is a personal statement from me and Narcissa about that. Those papers proclaim him to be the sole owner of all the Malfoy assets. Please see to it that he respects his heritage and forgives his parents…" Lucsious's eyes grew wide and he groaned in pain. Dumbledore rushed to his side. "She's dead. Damn it, Dumbledore the vile!" The Headmaster's reaction was instantaneous; he grabbed the vial from his desk, uncorked it, and tumbled the contents into the pale man's mouth. Lucious's eyes rolled to the back of his head, and Dumbledore let go of the man in time to see his unmoving form disappear from the room.

He looked up, surprised to hear a gasp from the doorway. "Come in Minerva, it seems there is a lot that we need to discuss. Would you like some tea?" Dumbledore guided the frightened woman to a seat a poured her a cut of scalding tea and a bit of brandy. "I think I shall take some of that as well".