Disclaimer: I disclaim. Lol. Haha.

AU: Hopefully the end of the flashback! More reviewer responses at the bottom!
This looveeely chapter is dedicated to my special Green Goldfish. D
Far away, long ago,
Glowing dim as an ember,
Things my heart
Used to know,
Things it yearns to remember...

And a song
Someone sings
Once upon a December...

Last Chapter:
"She wasn't supposed to die," whispered Merlin to himself and continued, "Her death could only mean one thing."

Part 1: Chapter 4

-Flashback mode!-

Merlin walked towards his old friend and patted him on his back.

"I think it's time for the people to know the truth about their Queen," he said to Edgard. The King nodded sullenly and beckoned for his son.

"Bastien, tell the guard that it is time to call the entire kingdom to court."

As soon as the Prince had left the room, Merlin spoke quietly, "The lady possesses Dark blood. She cannot die."

Edgard looked up at Merlin's tired eyes and said, "Which is precisely why I have called for you over a century early! With Lady Amarante gone, Dark is free to rise because it holds no opposition." Then hesitantly he asked, "If she cannot die, then why is it a reality?"

Merlin pondered for a moment and replied, "Dark can only take another Dark."

The King looked and sounded exasperated. "Yes. But my wife not only had Dark blood but Royal blood as well! A Dark has not been able to harm a Royal since your blessing!"

The older wizard answered regretfully, "And that is what brings us to our current situation. She took her own life, yes?"

"Yes, but I don't believe it was willingly!"

"Of course, she took it willingly! It was THE ultimate sacrifice. If she had not done it, then the Royal world would have had no chance to overcome another Dark Age!"

King Edgard interjected, "So, she knew the new Dark Age was coming because her time was expiring as a part of her is mortal?"

Merlin continued, "Yes, and instead of waiting for that inevitable, she sacrificed her life to at least give the Royals a glimmer of hope in surviving and triumphing!"

The King finally understood, but there was still one very important piece of the puzzle that was missing.

"All right. So, she took her life to give us hope of triumphing, but what exactly is that hope?"

"Well, did she leave us anything to go on?" Merlin inquired.

"Why, yes. Plenty of things actually, but I can't seem to make sense of them," answered Edgard.

Merlin walked up to Lady Amarante's body as the King pointed towards her cheek.

"Brush that lock of hair from her face," said the King. Merlin did so and found a large but healed gash of black. Tentatively he reached for the scar.

"This is a dragon scar," concluded Merlin. "Their blood is more deadly than acid as it can pierce through even the purest metal. If it were any other person, a drop of blood would have been enough to leave them seriously injured. But this scar is not what killed her. Her Dark blood would have repelled the Dragon's."

He traced the scar once more until it curved at the end almost as if it were pointing to something. Merlin turned towards his friend.

"You're going to have to trust me on this. Do you mind undoing her bodice?" The King looked at him skeptically but still did as he was told. The bodice was levitated from her frame, and on her chest they found a black scale lodged into her heart.

King Edgard choked a sob out and tried to look away. Merlin was already thinking of effective ways to remove the scale, but he knew there was still something else missing.

"Edgard, is there anything else you'd like to share with me?" The King nodded and took out a piece of parchment with very neat handwriting. As Merlin read, Edgard said, "I don't quite understand it. How are we to find this daughter? Is she alive now? And a young dragon? Does a dragon have a heart? I would think that all dragons were going to be in alliance with the Dark. There's still so much that I don't understand!" Merlin finished reading the letter and tried to advice the King as he had done so many times before.

"Do as the Lady says. The Allied Kingdoms must be strong TOGETHER if they are to go up against the Dark. The Everard family plays a very big role, it seems, but there is also another player."

The King's mind was restless, "Who is this other family? We must know of them and tell them quickly." He paused in thought but then continued, "How will a son of theirs become a young dragon? In all my years, I have never once heard of a dragon falling in love with a maiden."

Merlin could almost chuckle at his naiveté. "Do not take it so literally, Edgard. It will become apparent to us soon enough. We must do as the Lady says to ensure that the two players meet."

Edgard responded, "But how does the Everard family play a role?"

Merlin answered, "Who had precious blood in this family?Aside from Royal?"

"Lady Amarante, of course," Edgard said, "But whom else?"

"Your son would have inherited both your Royal blood and her Dark blood."

The King nodded in understanding but was still somewhat puzzled.

"My son is male. Her letter says it is a daughter."

"Then you must do the only thing you can." Edgard finished Merlin's sentence," And wait for the next Everard generation."

-End Flashback-

While Narcissa fussed over Draco, Lucius was deep in thought. He remembered one night so vividly that it still haunted him in his dreams.

As soon as Lucius had informed his lord that his son was born, he had been hard pressed for a name. Lucius chuckled slightly at this because Narcissa was unwavering on having her son be named Draco from the first moment she saw his face.

"Draco," Lucius had answered proudly to his lord. This elicited a rather dark jovial response from his lord.

"A royal prince, a young dragon!" shouted a very satisfied Voldemort. Then he calmed a bit and ordered, "Bring him to me at once. He must become Dark." At this statement, Lucius eyes became very wide.

He tried to beg otherwise, "But, Lord! He was born only a few hours ago. He is much too young!"

Voldemort was infuriated at Lucius' weak begging. "Silence!" yelled Voldemort. "You will comply with my wishes, or your son will have no Mother to comfort him." Lucius became even more frightened.

"Not Narcissa," he whispered. "Yesss," Voldemort hissed, "Your beautiful wife."

Lucius understood what he had to do and quickly set off to find his son. But before Lucius left, Voldemort had spoken once more.

"Oh, and Lucius, no one is to know of your son's existence. He will be first revealed on Everard's Eve." It seemed that he had no choice, and left quickly to hide the tears pouring out from his eyes.

Now it was Everard's Eve and he watched the fragile figure of his wife as she smiled widely at her growing son. Narcissa no longer smiled at Lucius like that.

Draco watched as his father tried his best to hide his somber eyes from his mother. And he noticed how his Mother would try her best to ignore him altogether. He never understood their odd behaviour when he knew that they both loved each other unconditionally. Draco just shrugged and looked out the window. He would finally be able to meet children his age. This was the first time his Father had allowed him to attend a ball, and if he understood correctly this ball would be the grandest one of the entire century!

Lucius turned his thoughts to how the night would be executed. He would have to keep his son and wife as safe as possible even though the Dragon had specific orders not to harm them.

A sweet melody came to them as they exited from their carriage. Narcissa opened her mouth and began to sing the sweetest song that Draco had ever heard.

AU: Chapter 5 is where all that awesome action's at. Haha. So keep reviewing and I'll try to post as soon as humanly possible!

Reviewer Response!

alBBie: Lol. Sorry if all the juicy stuff wasn't here, but you know what? I'm sure Chapter 5 will be pretty juicy. Haha.

BloodJewel: Yay. I did have a happy time writing even though I've got this weird SINUS sickness kinda' thing. Hooray for loyal/royal reviewers. D

Annax3: Hooray! New reviewer! Lol. I'm gonna' post up an FAQ section to answer questions or to clarify things, but if you're patient, then I'm sure you'll find them by yourself in later chapters. Just brace yourself! ;-) Hehe.

FAQ:

Why are Blaise & Hermione twins?
Well, Blaise doesn't really get too much "air time" in HP books, and I find his mysterious sort of character very appealing. So, he now plays a pretty big role in this story! Ahh, spoiler!

Setting?
As of now? Around the capital of France a little bit before the 1900's. Specifically the Everard Palace.

When is the darned couple going to make an appearance together?
Ahh! They areee indeed coming!