Author's Note: Help! I've fallen into my Graduate thesis and I can't get out! This terrible, never-ending paper is sucking my soul out my eyeballs (kind of like that machine on "The Dark Crystal." Heh.) Anyway, thank you so much for all your wonderful reviews. I'm sorry that I can't crank the chapters out faster right now. (I need a vacation!!!) For some reason, Fan Fiction seems to be having some editing problems tonight, so it's missing some spaces between words.
Chapter Twenty-Five
"Draco, stop!" I yelled after him, but he ignored me and just kept walking back to the castle. I refrained from shrieking obscenities at him, and in a moment I was glad, because Professor Dumbledore suddenly appeared. I saw Draco draw back, startled. Then he spoke heatedly to the headmaster, pointing in my direction. His gestures became more and more animated, but the headmaster appeared as calm as usual. Even from this distance I could tell that Professor Dumbledore's face was lined with fatigue.
"That creep!" I told Moony. "I bet he thinks he's going to get you into trouble." I felt a deep wave of disappointment. "I was looking forward to seeing Draco again, but now I wonder if we should send him back to childhood."
Moony gave me a thoughtful, evaluating look. "Well, it's quite common for boys who are in love to make total asses out of themselves," He said in his quiet, hoarse voice. "Malfoy, of course, had a good head start in that direction anyway." He leaned against the pillows, looking more and more drained and exhausted as time went by. I felt terribly sorry for him, and more than a little embarrassed by Draco's behavior.
"Love?" I said, a bit sullenly. "Draco's not in love with me. He just wants to marry me because I'm 'shag-worthy." I glanced over at Moony's tired but amused expression. "Sorry. He thinks of me as a possession or something."
"It's not typical for Malfoy to walk away from a duel when he's angry," He said. "Harry can vouch for that. I wouldn't have thought it in Malfoy's nature that he could actually care for you, but..."
Professor Dumbledore entered the stable, with a sullen Draco trailing reluctantly after him. "My dear boy," The headmaster said to Remus. "I can't tell you how relieved and happy I am that Miriel found you this morning. Please, let's sit down." He motioned for Draco to sit down.
Draco sat on the seat furthest from me, and refused to look at me or Moony. I studied him for a moment. I had forgotten how handsome he was as a teenager, but that still didn't stop me from wanting to slap that sullen look off his face.
"It appears that Mr. Malfoy has some...mistaken impressions that had better be cleared up." Professor Dumbledore turned to Draco. "You probably did not notice the full moon last night. Mr. Malfoy, can you please tell me what your father's ex-associates do during this phase of the moon in the Forbidden Forest?"
Draco shifted uncomfortably. "Some dark spells are stronger during the full moon," He finally said. "The Dark Lord holds, um, parties and stuff."
"Ugh!" I said with a shudder. "What kind of party would he throw? Never mind, I don't want to know."
Dumbledore nodded to Draco. "Yes, well, I sent Remus to the forest, in his werewolf form, of course, to use his remarkable hearing and perhaps to discover information about Professor Snape and your father. Unfortunately, he was attacked by one of the Death Eaters. Miriel and her unicorn found him in the forest and saved his life."
"Remus was just thanking me," I couldn't help but add.
"It was a long shot," Professor Dumbledore said. "I have been attempting to make some contact with your father, Mr. Malfoy, but all of my tracing spells have failed. Even Fawkes has failed to find him."
"Why do you want to find him?" Draco asked. "Why would you care?"
"Believe it or not, it was never my intention to make an enemy of your father," The Headmaster said. "During his time here at Hogwarts, I believed that he was a talented, intelligent and resourceful wizard. As it is, your father would be invaluable to us in our fight against Voldemort. Do you have any means of contacting him?"
Draco looked thoughtful. "When I was a little kid, I thought I heard him and Miriel talking, when we were at the ice cream parlor. I was under the table. It's kind of hazy, like it happened a long time ago, but I thought he gave her a mirror."
"He gave me a communication mirror," I said, a bit sheepishly. "But it, um, broke."
Professor Dumbledore looked at me over his half-moon glasses, a little reproachfully, I thought.
"Can't it be fixed?" Draco asked Professor Dumbledore.
"Perhaps, perhaps," The headmaster said. "The mirror can be repaired, but the magical link to Lucius might be more difficult. Do you still have the pieces, Miriel?"
I nodded."I wasn't sure what to do with them, so I stuck them in a drawer by my bed."
"Then I shall have Twinky bring them to me at once," Dumbledore said. "Time is of the essence." He clapped his hands, spoke her name, and Twinky suddenly appeared. When she had left to obtain the mirror, Professor Dumbledore's face grew even graver. "Remus, please explain to them what you discovered last night."
The same look of dread that had appeared there earlier crossed Remus' face. He glanced at me, and I could tell that he was reluctant. "I didn't hear anything about Lucius Malfoy," He said. "But Lestrange appeared to be in charge of last nights...festivities. Evidently, she convinced the Dark Lord that Severus is a traitor. The Death Eaters believe that the potions accident that involved the Slytherin boys was not merely an accident. Severus also failed to obtain useful information about Harry and his friends from Miriel. After the Dark Lord heard about Miriel's display of power in the Great Hall, he has become very interested in her. He believes that Severus was withholding information from him about the amount of power she possesses."
"Oh, no!" I whispered in horror. I felt a sickening rush of guilt. I glanced quickly over at Draco, and his features were grim and pale.
"Is Professor Snape still alive?" Draco asked.
"Unfortunately," Remus said grimly. "I believe the Dark Lord gave him to Lestrange as a reward, or a gift, of sorts. He's her own 'pet' now, but I couldn't discover where she was keeping him. The Dark Lord had been quite pleased that she managed to use Dobby to enter the Malfoy estate and assassinate Lucius."
I felt sick. "What's she like? Is she as bad as the Dark Lord?" My mind filled with images of Karl being tortured.
"Nearly," Remus said. "She's a sadist, and a master at obtaining information through torture."
Twinky appeared in the stables with the velvet bag of shattered glass.
"Speculum Reparo," Professor Dumbledore said, tapping the handful of glass with his wand. The small, square mirror became whole. He used a few other spells I had never heard before, and soon the mirror glowed so brightly that the light reflected off the Headmaster's spectacles and the little stars on his robes. Soon, he handed the mirror to me. "If you please, Miriel. Just speak your uncle's name."
I took the mirror, and said, "Lucius Malfoy" to the surface of it. The mirror glowed softly. Unfortunately, nothing else happened.
I looked at Professor Dumbledore.
"Please continue," He urged gently. "It may take him a few moments to answer."
After a while, I tried again. "I don't think it's going to-"
"What the bloody hell took you so long to contact me?" A voice rushed from the mirror. Only it wasn't my uncle's voice. It was a woman's voice, low, sultry and hateful. A pair of dark eyes glared at me from the mirror's surface.
I was so surprised, it took me a moment to find my voice. "Oh, excuse me. I must have the...um, wrong number?" I glanced up at Draco, who looked as surprised as I did.
"Don't be ridiculous," the voice spat. "I have been trying to avoid being found. This polyjuice potion was the best I could come up with in such short notice. At least the donor is a pure-blooded witch. Do you have any important information for me concerning the Mirror of Emit?"
"Um, Professor Dumbledore wants to talk to you, Uncle Lucius." I said hastily. It felt very odd calling a woman "uncle."
I could hear curses through the mirror as I passed it on to the Headmaster. Obviously, my uncle wasn't pleased.
"Lucius, my boy, I'm so relieved that you managed to escape your sister-in-law's plans for your demise," Professor Dumbledore said into the mirror.
"What do you want, Dumbledore?" Even though the voice was filled with disdain, there was also an undercurrent of resignation. I wondered if he had been expecting to hear from the Headmaster.
"I'm afraid that it's Severus," The Headmaster said. "Bellatrix has him held prisoner, where, we do not know. You must have some idea."
"So the Dark Lord finally caught on to him, did he? That's not surprising. The Dark Lord has been using the Dementors that left Azkaban to hold his prisoners now, and he no longer uses the same facilities. Bellatrix could be using the Dementors to lower Severus' defenses to her tactics to gain information. You might not have much time, you old fool, before the Dark Lord knows your greatest secrets."
I covered my face, as hot tears streamed down my cheeks. I remembered the horrible stories about the Dementors I had heard. I felt Moony put a comforting hand on my shoulder.
"I want to offer you sanctuary, Lucius." Professor Dumbledore said. "That offer, of course, extends to your wife."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Draco start at the Headmaster's words, and lean forward, as if eager to hear his father's answer.
"You mean you want me to help you in your fight against the Dark Lord," My uncle said. "Which is ridiculous. The Dark Lord is just too powerful, and that ridiculous prophecy about Potter killing him is a fairy tale. For me to join in with you would be suicide."
"May I point out to you, Lucius, that you don't appear to have many other options. As you can see, I was quite aware of your plan to use Miriel to obtain the Mirror of Emit, and that is something that I can never allow to happen."
My uncle screamed so loudly through the mirror that I couldn't understand what he said. Abruptly, the mirror went black.
"He hung up on you," I said, in shock. I wondered if my uncle actually hated the Headmaster so much that he would rather be alone in exile than ever fight with him against the Dark Lord.
"Well," Professor Dumbledore let out a sigh. "Don't worry," He told Draco in a kind tone. "Your father needs some time to consider my offer. My boy, would you be so kind... I need to talk to Miriel alone for a moment. Have you finished all your packing?"
"Packing?" I asked.
"Now that he has been restored to his former age by Professor Snape's potion, it is time for Mr. Malfoy to return to the Slytherin House," The Headmaster told me. "Run along now, your cousin will join you in a few moments."
Draco did not look happy about this at all. He shot me an "I'll deal with you later" look, before he left the stables. It still amazed me how much he could look like his father.
"I believe that the Minister of Magic came to see you," The Headmaster told me.
"He told me I might be expelled from Hogwarts!" I said.
The Headmaster nodded. "I'm sorry Miriel, but that is true. A few members of the school board are sympathetic to Voldemort's cause. I simply cannot allow them an excuse to have me replaced with another Headmaster right now, when my position here at this school is so critical. I also cannot allow Cornelius to obtain information about the Mirror of Emit."
"But where am I going to go, where I'd be safe from the Dark Lord?" I sniffed, trying not to cry again. My nerves were still on edge about Severus. "What about Amalthea?"
"Don't worry, my dear," Professor Dumbledore said. "I'm not about to set you loose on your own in Muggle London or anything like that. I do have a place in mind. A place the Dark Lord will never find. Or Cornelius Fudge, for that matter. We will teach you to apparate, and you can visit your familiar whenever you like. You know that Hagrid would take very good care of her."
Moony looked a little puzzled, and then he smiled with understanding. "Are you by chance speaking of a 'grim,' 'old' place?" He asked.
Professor Dumbledore nodded, a faint twinkle in his eyes.
"I don't want to go off somewhere and live by myself!" I said. "I just made friends with Hermione! And my mother is here now. And Draco-" I stopped, remembering that I was still furious at him.
"Oh, you won't be alone, believe me," Moony said. "Although at times, no doubt, you will wish you were. The place can get a little hectic at times. Your mother shows up quite frequently, and I happen to know an excellent 'Defense Against The Dark Arts' tutor that lives there. He will be quite happy to guide you in your education, as well as keep you out of trouble." As I wondered what in the world he meant by this, Moony turned to Professor Dumbledore. "But are you sure about this, Sir? What about the, er, cook?" He asked.
The Headmaster sighed, and his voice was laced with annoyance. "She is the one who has placed me in this position. We will all have to learn to get along."
"What are you guys talking about?" I asked. "Who's the cook?"
"Everything will be fine," Professor Dumbledore told me in a soothing tone of voice.
I barely caught Moony rolling his eyes.
"There is a price, however," Professor Dumbledore continued. "For living at this place."
"What?" I asked. "How much does rent cost here in Wizarding England?"
"There is no rent. The price is...absolute secrecy. No one must know about this place. It is unplottable and hidden away behind a Fidelius Charm, in Muggle London, but nevertheless, you must not mention its existence to anyone." Professor Dumbledore stood, and I could tell that our conversation was coming to a close.
"I won't," I said. "But what about Draco? Aren't I his guardian until he's seventeen? Don't I have to take care of the Malfoy Estate?"
"Cornelius knows very well that Lucius' lawyer takes care of all his possessions," The Headmaster answered. "Other than sign a few documents, you have very little to do. Cornelius was hoping to become close to you. Not only to discover more about the Mirror of Emit, but no doubt he was also hoping that you would allow the Ministry of Magic access to the Malfoy Estate."
"There are many things in Malfoy Manor that Fudge would love to get his hands on," Moony told me. "Narcissa was able to hide them from the Ministry during Lucius' short 'vacation' in Azkaban."
"I wish that you would have told me about the communication mirror that your uncle gave to you, Miriel," Professor Dumbledore said. "It could have saved precious time."
"I'm sorry," I said.
"I must ask you if you have any other important information to report to me." The Headmaster peered at me over his glasses, and his silvery-blue eyes were intense.
"Anything else?" Inside, I squirmed uncomfortably under that piercing gaze. "Um, no."
Professor Dumbledore's lips tightened, and his look of reproach turned to disappointment. He waited, as if I would add more to my answer. Finally, he sighed, and turned to the entrance of the stables. "I will be in my office later on this evening," He told me. "I will expect you there. Perhaps you will remember anything else that you have 'forgotten' to tell me." Then he and Moony vanished.
"Damn it, how did he know?" I asked myself. "Does that man know everything that happens at this school?" How did he know about the book of spells the Mirror of Emit had given to me? It was most unfair. Now I was going to have to hand it over, or I'd feel overwhelmed with guilt everytime he looked at me.
It suddenly occurred to me that if I was leaving Hogwarts soon, I had better get a move on with the Mirror of Emit, and contact my mother in the past. It would not be an easy conversation, I was sure of it. She had been in a lot of denial about Karl, and she would be in shock about seeing me from the future.
When I got back to my quarters, I thought something was wrong. It took me a moment to realize that it seemed empty without all the toys flung about and crayon drawings on the walls.
I stepped further into the room. "Draco?" But my quarters were cool and quiet. He must have already left for the Slytherin rooms, and I felt a swift jab of disappointment. It wasn't until I walked to my bedroom that I found him, lying stomach-down on my bed!
I froze as I saw what Draco was reading. "My book!" I said. I had stuck the leather volumn under my bed after I was through reading it last night. "You creep! What are you doing snooping around my things?" A hot flush of anger and horror spread across my face. He did not need to know about these spells! The less he knew about anything, the better.
"Ambrosius was hopping around like mad around your bed," Draco drawled coolly, not even bothering to look at me. "He knew it was there, and he wanted to show me. Keeping secrets, are we? First, communication mirrors, and now spell books?"
"You are such a liar," I yelled at him. I glared at the toad, which was sitting like a big, green blob at Draco's feet. "That stupid toad doesn't know your ass from a hole in the ground." I tried to grab the book away from him, but unfortunately, during the struggle, I heard a loud rip.
"Oh, no!" I wailed. "What did you do? You ripped a page!" Looking down, I cringed. It was the illuminated picture of a werewolf.
As Draco's eyes fell to the page in his hands, his face tightened into a scowl. "What's this?" He said. He read the Latin words to himself. "This is a potion that's supposed to cure Lycanthropy. What? Are you trying to find spells to help your new boyfriend? That werewolf piece of trash? He was always kissing Potter's arse when he was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, did you know that?"
"He's not a piece of trash!"I shrieked. "That's a horrible thing to say! Get-out-of-my-room!" My hands flew out topush him. Before I could see him move, however, Draco grabbed my arm and jerked me forward, until I landed on top of him. I had forgotten how fast he was. The heavy book of spells landed on the floor with a thud.
"Let me go!" I gasped. I struggled, but his arm was like a vice.
"I won't," He said, "Until you tell me that you missed me." His lips found their way to my throat, and his free hand slid up the front of my shirt.
"I didn't miss you!" I tried to wriggle out of his grasp. I became more and more outraged as his hand squeezed one of my breasts. "You bastard."
"You told me that you'd love me when I returned to my normal size," Draco said between kisses. "I remember."
"Well I don't!" Frantically, I managed to reach up and pull my wand out of my braids. As Draco tried to grab it, he released me long enough for me to pull away from him. I pointed the wand at him, and reached down to pick up the book. "You were an adorable little boy, Draco," I said. "You were so nice, and everybody liked you. Even Hermione."
Draco grimaced. "You let that Mudblood take care of me! She gave me a bath! Ugh!"
"Hermione and Moony are my friends, and they're wonderful people." I slowly backedupout of the room."And you are just a hateful, mean coward. It's very sad how you turned out. The Grey Lady was right, I have to see what people are really like, instead of just looking at their potential."
Draco took a step toward me, his face twisted with horror. "Don't say that," He said.
"I'm leaving," I told him. "Did Professor Dumbledore tell you that? I have to leave Hogwarts, and I'm going to live with Remus Lupin. Somewhere where you can't ever find me. He's going to become my new tutor, and I bet he's going toteach me a lot of things you never will."
"My father-" Draco began.
"Isn't here, Draco! I never want to see you again." Before he could say anything more, I ran to my bathroom and slammed the door. Locking it with a spell, I sat on the floor and tried to catch my breath.
"Oh, dearie, are you allright?" My enchanted mirror said. "Are you two having a bit of a row?"
"Miriel, come out, right now!" Draco pounded and kicked on the door, until I put a muffling spell on it.
I cried. I cried for poor Severus, who was probably being tortured by Bellatrix Lestrange even now. I knew it wasn't entirely my fault, but I felt responsible just the same. Why did I have to do something so stupid as to try and curse Ronald Weasley? Why couldn't I have held my temper? I cried that Severus would probably never become my step-father. I cried that poor Moony was a social outcast and the Wizarding world regarded him as "trash." I cried because it was so disappointing to like someone so much as I did Draco, and to have him act so hatefully. He really was a lost cause.
After awhile I calmed down a bit, and absently looked through the pages of my grandfather's book. There were so many spells. There was even a spell for finding a person, but as I read it more closely, I realized that you could only find the person if they were looking into another mirror. I doubted if Bellatrix would be so kind as to give Severus a mirror to check his appearance while she tortured him.
"What are you going to do?" My mirror asked me.
"I'm not exactly sure," I told it. "But I know I have to do something. Can you tell me, how exactly do I get to the Mirror of Emit from here?"
Thanks for all the great reviews! I love you guys! (Sniff!) Where would my self-esteem be without you?
Arsinoe de Blassenville: Naked Remus is always excellent (heh!) Well you can't expect Remus to transform fully clothed, can you? ;-)
Quidditchgal91: Thanks for your nice words. I WISH I could update every day!
Kiwiblue: You're not old enough to have a job yet? Me neither (okay, I'm lying, I'm in my thirties.) I think that poor Draco is a jealous kind of guy. All those insecurities over Harry Potter, you know, and he probably associates Remus with favoring Harry.
Ice-princess42: I'm so happy I've given you a cause to happy dance (kind of like the dance Snoopy does)
Kinkfest: Remus is NOT OLD! He's only 37 or 38. NOT OLD NOT OLD NOT OLD. People in their thirties are young and fresh, I tell you! But I agree, Miriel is a bit of a flirt.
Escaped: I forgot all about poor Macnair getting locked in a room full of angry animals! I loved that scene, too! He really does deserve it. I am kind of ticked off at Draco, too, right now. I always was a sucker for the underdog. Er, underwolf. My brain hurts from all the writing I've been doing for school. Besides the thesis and website, I'm also writing 3 literature papers and doing an oral report. I've got carpal tunnel!
MoonJasmine: Thanks for your review! I can't wait for the conclusion, either. But then it will all be over and I'll be sad.
Badger: Wow- thank you so much for reading and reviewing my story! You're just too cool.
1lonelyangel: Thank you, I try very hard to be original. I love unicorns, too.
Redskin: Hey, how did you know about the angst followed by a big kiss? You must have read a lot of fan fiction! Thanks for reading my story.
