Chapter 51

When Draco and Ginny stepped back out of the fireplace, Dumbledore was there waiting for them... along with two aurors. Draco's eyes darted between Dumbledore and the Aurors. Dumbledore didn't seem pleased. That didn't bode well.

"Calm yourself." Dumbledore said, noting his furtive glances and tense posture. "They are only here to shut down the floo network."

"Shut it down?" Ginny asked, shocked.

Dumbledore nodded gravely, motioning them to follow as the Aurors went to work on the fireplace. He continued again once they were out in the hallway, lowering his voice, "I'm afraid they were able to determine that your father's escape, and very obviously his arrival as well, were made through the floo network. There was a small farmhouse not far outside Hogsmeade... a wizarding family... I'm afraid the family... didn't fair well at all. They found them in the cellar. The Death Eaters appeared to have spent some time there, undoubtedly awaiting their opportunity to attack. The father tried to resist and is currently in the Critical ward at St. Mungo's. Whether he will survive or not is still unknown. The mother, two daughters and son are being treated for... other injuries."

Draco looked away, his eyes stinging angrily. He could guess what kind of injuries he was talking about. "I want all of their medical bills paid for from my account at Gringotts. I'll owl Cullis Tirova before we return to Slytherin and have him get over there to see if there's anything he can do for the father. He was always the healer father used for himself, and therefor the best. Of course Cullis never really liked my father, which is the only reason I'd trust him. I'll give them some money for themselves to help them deal with the trauma as well. I know it's little comfort, but at least it's something."

Dumbledore nodded, "I'm sure they would appreciate it. I believe they have wiped the children's memories already. The mother may have to be wiped as well, especially if her husband doesn't pull through. Very sad. Very sad indeed. There was quite a bit of damage to their home as well. Of course most of that was from the Aurors." He said, shaking his head ruefully. "Our Minister of Magic decided that the floo network was entirely to blame for the attack and subsequent escape. He decreed that it was too dangerous a tool for Voldemort, and has closed it down almost entirely. There are only a few strategically placed connections left that the public can utilize. I was only able to keep this one open long enough for you to return because he felt it was 'only fair' seeing as you weren't notified before leaving and were scheduled to return soon..." Dumbledore said, his voice getting a half-amused, almost sarcastic tone.

Draco rolled his eyes. "He was afraid he would piss me and my mother off and ruin any chance for future contributions more like!"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "That was my assessment as well. Unfortunately it means students will not have the option of flooing home for the holidays. All the houses were informed and owls sent to all of the parents telling them that the Hogwarts Express would be delivering them to King's Cross unless they are able to make other arrangements."

Draco groaned, "What a crock! Bad enough tradition demands we ride it here for start of term, and home after... taking most of the day simply sitting in a train and traveling seems so... wasteful! Now we're supposed to waste a good chunk of our holiday on a train?"

Dumbledore sighed and nodded commiseratingly. "Except for the students old enough who have passed their apparition tests, I'm afraid there are few other options at this time."

Draco looked thoughtful for a moment, then a smile spread over his face, "I can think of one..."

Dumbledore smirked. "I thought you might manage to. Just be very careful, and please promise me that, should you chose to make your own way there, you will not go unprotected."

Draco smiled. "I think I have a few friends I could convince to tag along with us."

Dumbledore straightened, watching warily as the Aurors made their way towards the Entrance Hall. "So... had a good visit I hope?"

Draco brightened, "Yes... as a matter of fact I wanted to ask you if you're free Christmas Eve?"

Dumbledore smiled warmly, "I was wondering which day you would pick. I kept my schedule for the holidays flexible to make sure I'd be available when you needed me. What time should I be there?"

Draco smirked. You just couldn't get one past this man. "I'd say by two at least. Mother has the ceremony planned for five, but I'm sure she'll have a lot to go over with you."

Dumbledore nodded. "I'll be there."

-------------

"Christmas Eve?!?" Ron asked, shocked.

"Seems mighty snappy to be getting hitched..." Fred said suspiciously.

"There isn't a reason you have to be married right away, now is there?" George asked shrewdly.

"Actually, there is..." Draco said, noting that they all stiffened slightly at this comment, "But not what you probably think." He quickly added. They visibly relaxed, but remained wary. "It's because of some bloody marriage contract my father made when I was a baby. If I don't get married this year, I'll be legally married to Pansy."

"Oh..." Ron said softly, darting a glance over at Pansy. She was bright red, staring fixedly at her hands. Blaise pulled her over onto his lap, kissing and nuzzling her comfortingly. She huddled against him.

Draco couldn't help but notice a slight movement in the group of Slytherins that had gathered around them to hear the news. He spotted a mousy little fifth year girl shifting back in the crowd, hugging herself self-consciously. He vaguely recalled her being a Flint, first cousin to Marcus, the former Slytherin Quidditch captain if he remembered correctly. She'd always been unusually withdrawn for a Slytherin, especially considering how outspoken the Flints usually were. Her gaze shifted from where it had rested on Pansy, and she realized he was looking at her. Her eyes went wide and she quickly slipped away, disappearing down one of the hallways.

Draco felt that sick feeling growing in his stomach again. He was pretty sure he'd just discovered one of the other 'contestants' in his father's sick little marriage game. He glanced around, and much to his displeasure, discovered that there were two other girls in the crowd studiously not meeting his gaze. He resolved to dig into his father's records and find out exactly who the other girls were, no matter how disturbing it might be for him. He knew he wouldn't feel right until he had made amends for what his father had done, or at least as much as was possible.

"Well, we'll have to owl mum." Ron said, still looking a bit disconcerted.

"No!" Draco said immediately.

"Why not?" The twins asked in unison, their brows furrowed.

"If father finds out about this we'll all be in danger, especially Ginny. We'll be seeing your mum tomorrow. That will have to be soon enough."

Ron sighed and nodded his agreement. He could well imagine what Lucius' reaction would be like. He didn't care to meet up with the man ever again, especially not if he was in a particularly foul mood.

"Well, now that that is settled," Ginny said briskly, not wanting to give her brothers very long to contemplate possible objections. "I think we should all be getting ready for the Ball. Dinner starts in about fifteen minutes."

"And please," Draco added quickly, "This doesn't leave Slytherin."

They all nodded in agreement without question, then most of them disbursed, excitedly discussing the marriage and the Ball.

Draco looked over at Harry, who was perched on the arm of the couch, looking rather content. "Were you planning on going to the Ball?"

Harry smirked. "No. You don't have to worry about me. Just planning on hanging about in my room... I'm sure I'll find something to occupy my time..."

Draco smirked. "Where is she anyway?"

"Taking a little nap. She's a bit worn out..." He said with a smirk.

Blaise cringed, trying to avoid getting visuals. He deflected his attention back to Draco, "I'll send your mum a pass onto the grounds and a letter to give our elves. I'll probably send it by house elf actually. They could apparate most the way once they sneak off the grounds. I doubt an owl could get it past the Ministry without it being searched. I certainly don't want those daft bastards having a key to my home!"

"So you're ok with us having the wedding at your place?"

Blaise laughed. "Are you kidding? It's bloody brilliant!"

Pansy chuckled, "You boys can discuss this later. We have to get ready!"

Ron looked over at Blaise with trepidation, "Do I really have to wear the green robes?"

"You look absolutely adorable in those robes! What's your issue with them?" Blaise asked petulantly.

"Nothing... I mean they're great and all... but... I mean I get enough stares and teasing without going out dressed in Slytherin colors..." Ron said, his cheeks coloring.

Blaise made a dismissive sound. "Come on! They're not Slytherin color... they're... Christmasy!" He said with a smirk.

Ron rolled his eyes, "Fine." He said in a resigned tone.

Blaise just smirked, slipping his arm around him, the other looping around Pansy as they headed off.

Ginny looked up at the twins, who were still looking a bit disconcerted. "So... you going to take Kulia? Since you're Hogwarts students again and all..." She asked with a smile.

"Naw..."

"It'd be great to see the old gang..."

"But we'd best not draw attention to us bein here..."

"And besides..."

"Kulia's not up to it..."

"She's laying down."

"Seems she's starting to feel a bit gippy."

Ginny's eyes widened, "Is she ok? She shouldn't start having morning sickness for at least a couple more weeks or so I thought..."

"She says it's normal."

"For Snow Elves that is."

"Seems they progress faster."

"And the stronger the magical talent of the baby,"

"The faster and harder it hits."

"We can tell she's really unhappy about having to take the train in this condition,"

"Since she can't apparate."

"But she's trying to hide it."

"Well I hope she'll be ok." Ginny said, concerned.

"I'm sure she will." Draco said with a smile, slipping his arm around Ginny, "She's withstood an amazing amount in her long life. I'd wager she'll get through this just fine. Just remember she's of a different species. I don't want her reaction to scare you off of having children!" He said with a smirk.

She grinned back. "Don't worry. I'm well familiar with what a woman goes through during pregnancy. Mum's the self appointed authority for such things, and dispenses that information freely whether you want her to or not! If she could handle it six times and still be so enthusiastic on the subject, I think I can handle it at least a couple of times!"

------------

Draco shook his head in disgust as he looked over the contract once again. He looked over, flipping through the large ledger. The more he read, the more he found he loathed Pansy's father, and he'd never even met the man! Well, maybe he had. It was so hard to tell one pompous jerk from the next at his father's parties. He usually just nodded and smiled when it seemed appropriate and overall paid as little attention as possible. It was the only way to survive those functions with your sanity intact.

He and Ginny had enjoyed the Ball well enough, even though it was a bit odd having the underclassmen there. It was disconcerting to be kissing Ginny and having a group of eleven and twelve year old Hufflepuff girls giggling at them. They had decided to call it an early night. It had been a long day anyway... and Draco had been dying with curious about the contract ever since he'd gotten ahold of it.

He had flopped down on the bed and started going over it as soon as they got back. Ginny, sensing his need to get the curiosity out of his system, had just smirked, shook her head and gone over to the desk, looking over her texts.

After seeing the stipulations in the contract, Draco had consulted his ledger, which was magically kept up to date with his financial information. When requested, the ledger would show more detailed information about any aspect of his finances. When he had asked for the information on Sulla Parkinson, it nearly fill the entire ledger.

Draco looked up as there was a tap at the door. He had been so engrossed in his reading that he hadn't even noticed when Ginny had gone off into the bathroom to take her bath. The door opened before he even had a chance to open his mouth. He rolled his eyes as Blaise walked in, completely oblivious to the impropriety of his entrance. "Hey Draco." He said, flopping onto the large bed beside him.

Draco was a bit surprised to see Ron follow him in. Ron at least had the courtesy to look properly contrite at their abrupt entrance. He came over, standing a bit away from the bed and flashing Draco a little embarrassed smile.

"While I appreciate the knock, it is traditional to wait for a response before actually entering." Draco said with a little smirk, looking back down at the ledger.

Blaise sighed. "Sure. Whatever." He said, sounding almost depressed.

Draco lowered the ledger, looking over at him in concern. "What's with you?" He didn't recall ever hearing the boy so low.

"Nothing. Everything." He sighed deeply, "We were having a perfectly lovely time tonight, then we get back here and Pansy's bloody father was waiting..."

"Her father?" Draco said sharply, "Has he left?"

He shook his head. "He wanted to talk to her alone. He seemed pissed. She's upset. They went back to the room for some privacy."

"You left her ALONE with him?!? Are you daft?" Draco cried, bounding off the bed and racing out the door before Blaise could even sit up. He darted down the passages to Blaise's room. He grabbed the knob when he reached it, but it was locked. He jerked out his wand and pointed it at the door. "Alohomora!" He tried it again, but it hadn't worked, the door obviously having been magically sealed. He stepped back and pointed the wand again, "Bombarda!" He cried.

The door shattered with a percussive blast. As soon as it was gone he could hear Pansy's shrieks. He kicked the jagged remains of the door out of the way and stormed in. Sulla Parkinson was looking up with surprise and anger. He had Pansy pinned down on the floor and had obviously been trying to force the contents of a small vial down her throat.

Without a word, Draco grabbed the man by the front of his robes and jerked him off of her. Sulla jerked out of Draco's grasp angrily. It was a mistake. Ron had just entered the room. He took one look at Pansy disheveled and sobbing on the floor and strode over, grabbing the man by the throat with one hand and slamming him against the wall with a bone jarring thud. He drew his arm back to strike him, too furious to even realize that a direct punch from him with his current strength would almost certainly kill the man.

Blaise caught his wrist, stopping the blow from landing with a bit of effort.

Ron looked over at him, "Let me go! This bastard was hurting Pansy!"

"I know, Ron. I just don't want you going to Azkaban over the slimy piece of shite." Blaise said, glaring hatefully at the man. Once he saw that Ron had calmed enough not to kill the man out of hand, he hurried over to check on Pansy, who was laying curled up on the floor and sobbing.

"Besides, we need to know what he has in his hand." Draco said, glaring at the man and holding out his hand.

Sulla clutched the tiny vial convulsively, making it completely disappear in his hand. "That's none of your bloody business!" He gasped. "This is a private matter. Make this oaf release me immediately and get out!" he demanded, trying to sound authoritative.

Draco snorted. "This is your last chance. Hand it over or we'll take it. That won't be pleasant for you. Trust me." He said, moving his hand under the man's and glaring at him expectantly.

Sulla puffed up a bit, "Why you insolent little..."

"Ron!" Draco snapped angrily. Ron darted his free hand over, grabbing the man's wrist. His hand tensed and Sulla let out a shriek of agony that didn't quite drown out the sickening crunch, his hand opening spasmodically, dropping the vial into Draco's waiting palm.

Draco carefully picked it up, smelling the dark blue-gray drop that had spilled out. "Bloody hell!" He growled, hurrying over to Pansy. He carefully set the vial on the bedside table, then used his wand to remove the remainder from his hand before crouching beside her. "Pansy. Pansy!" Draco said, trying to get her attention. She was sobbing into Blaise's shirt.

Blaise gently shifted her over onto her back. "Pansy, calm down. Draco needs to talk to you." He said soothingly, gently brushing away her tears.

As soon at her red-rimmed eyes had turned towards him, Draco started examining her face. There were several smudged of the dark fluid around her mouth and one smudge across her bottom lip. "Pansy, did you swallow any of this?"

"I don't know... I don't think so..." She said shakily.

Draco sighed irritably, "Pansy, this is very important. Did any of that potion get in your mouth?"

"I... I tasted it... it was bitter... but I spit it out..."

Draco growled in irritation, looking around. There were quite a number of Slytherins gathered watching through the shattered door, Ginny standing at the front of them wearing only her bathrobe and shoes, her hair still dripping water. "Get Snape! Quick!"

Ginny darted off without question as a couple of the other Slytherins went the other direction in case he wasn't in his room. Draco carefully cast cleansing spells to remove the potion from Pansy's face, and a few drops that had fallen on the stone floor.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Sulla tried to pull his wand, but Ron caught the movement and snatched it away before the man even had a chance to bring it to bear, snapping it with his fingers like a twig. He tightened his grip on the man's throat and glared at him for a moment, daring the man to try to do or say something about it. Sulla glared at Ron venomously.

Draco glared at the man as well, then looked back down at Pansy, putting him out of his mind, "I'm going to need you to calm down Pansy. Snape will be here in a moment and he can put this right, but you have to be calm!"

She gave a little nod, taking deep breaths and trying to calm down.

"You little bastards will go to Azkaban for this, mark my words!" Sulla hissed angrily, his voice full of pain as he clutched his shattered wrist to him, glaring at them imperiously.

Draco glared over at him, noting the way the man's voice made Pansy's eyes tear up again. "Ron, if he utters another word before I give him leave to, crush his throat." He growled evenly.

"It would be my pleasure." Ron said, glaring at the man with utter loathing.

Sulla swallowed eyeing Ron warily. He looked disgruntled, but remained silent.

Pansy's eyes suddenly widened and she clutched her stomach, letting out a pained groan.

"Shh..." Draco said soothingly, "Stay calm, Pansy. It's ok..." He slipped his hand onto her stomach, pushing hers aside and started murmuring softly in elvish. He tapped the back of his hand with his wand and a wash of blue light flowed over it like water, sinking into Pansy's stomach. Her face was still a bit pained as she watched him fearfully, but the tension in her had eased some as the flow of blue light continued flowing into her.

Ron's head snapped back around to face Sulla, his glare absolutely poisonous, shifting closer. "If anything happens to our babies, you will die tonight." He hissed in a low, deadly promise.

The man's eyes widened, then narrowed as he looked Ron over appraisingly. Ron ignored him, looking over gratefully as Snape hurried into the room followed by Ginny. He snatched up the little vial when Blaise pointed to it, sniffing it cautiously. He set it back down with a hiss of anger, immediately dropping down beside Pansy. He pulled open his robe, searching through the many tiny pockets and pulling out bottles and vials.

"Do you have your Potions supplies?" He snapped at Blaise, not even looking up.

Blaise jerked out his wand. "Accio satchel!" He called out. A very heavy looking satchel flew out of one of the trunks so fast the trunk lid cracked against the stone wall behind it before slamming back down with a bang as Blaise easily caught the ponderous bag. He set it down, opening it where Snape could reach it.

Snape snatched up the mortar, quickly gathering ingredients in it while Draco continued his soft chanting, the blue light still flowing from his hand. In moments Snape had the contents ground into grayish paste. "Open." He snapped as he gathered a dollop of it with his finger, having no other utensils. Pansy opened her mouth, her eyes streaming with tears of pain. He placed the paste on her tongue, then quickly closed her mouth, pressing his hand firmly over it. She made a coughing, gagging sound as the taste registered, his hand the only thing keeping her from spitting it out reflexively. She clenched her eyes shut and forced the foul stuff down her throat.

Snape released her mouth. Pansy was panting, the pain slowly easing from her face. After a moment, Draco stopped chanting, letting the spell he had been maintaining fade away. When he took his hand from her stomach he sat back, looking thoroughly drained.

They sat there, watching Pansy in silence for a moment, then Snape looked up. "Blaise..." He said softly.

Blaise nodded, needing no further instruction as he let his eyes go opalescent. He gazed down at her stomach fearfully, then let out a sob of relief, slipping his arms around her and holding her tenderly. "They're ok..." He said, his voice aching with emotion as he cradled her, his eyes returning to normal.

Snape had finished replacing the ingredients he had taken from his robes and rose, reaching over and taking the tiny vial from the bedside table once again. He looked around, spotting the discarded lid and snatching it up off the floor, recapping the vial as he strode over to where Sulla was still pinned against the wall. He motioned Ron away. Ron glared at Sulla, pulling him forward a bit and shoving him back against the wall smartly enough to make the man's skull knock against the stone bruisingly before reluctantly releasing him, going over to see how Pansy was.

Snape glared at the man before him for a moment, then held up the vial. "You would murder your own grandchildren?" he asked with a note of disgust in his voice.

The man glared back at him, drawing himself up a bit taller, though the growing purple of bruising around his neck and his need to hold his wrist took away from the confident stance. "She's still underage, and therefor mine to deal with as I see fit! She was stupid enough to get herself in trouble and jeopardize her future. I was merely doing my paternal duty to protect her from herself." he said haughtily.

Snape's eyes narrowed more as he viewed the man with open disgust, "Paternal rights don't include murder."

The man's eyes narrowed as well. "It isn't murder. Those little mistakes should never have been allowed to happen! I am merely removing the taint she has allowed to soil her. She knows very well that her future is already planned. She obviously did this to purposefully try to interfere with those plans. I can't let her do that." He hissed.

"We'll see what the Ministry has to say on the subject then, shall we?"

Sulla looked daggers at him, lowering his voice so only Snape could hear. "Involve the Ministry and the Dark Lord will be very displeased with you, Snape."

Snape's eyes widened marginally. He seized the man's left sleeve (which luckily for Sulla was his uninjured arm) and pulled it up, examining the unblemished skin before sliding it back down. He smirked at Sulla. "Doesn't appear as if you have any pull in that area Parkinson."

Sulla leaned forward a bit, his voice lowering still more, "He doesn't mark all of his supporters, Snape. That would be daft, and he is anything but, as you well know. Some of his best, highest positioned and most esteemed supporters are left unmarked. It's just you insignificant peasants that he brands like cattle!"

Snape's eyes narrowed to no more than slits. "Well, seeing as this 'peasant' has not been informed that you hold any esteem whatsoever, I feel no compunction against making sure you pay for this cowardly attack. He has granted me full authority over the students of Hogwarts, and since I was uninformed of your little visit here, it means you are here without authorization, and uninvited..." He said, smirking as a thought occurred. "Of course, if you would rather I not inform the Ministry officials we have stationed at the gates, I could always just hold you in the cell we are keeping Lucius' demon in until I am able to verify that you are, indeed, in favor. I'm sure it would enjoy the company. It's rather fond of playing with uninvited guests."

Sulla paled, obviously having heard about the incident with Fudge. He tried to cover his slip in composure, straightening. "Fine. Go get the Ministry men. If they even bother to take me in, I'll be released with a full apology by morning, mark my words!"

"We'll see." Snape said, then turned back to his students, many of whom had filtered in from the hall, looking Pansy over with concern. "This man is not to leave Slytherin Dungeon before I return. Do whatever is necessary to keep him here." He announced to the gathered Slytherins.

They all nodded grimly, glaring at her father.

After Snape swept out of the room, Sulla seemed to regain a bit more confidence. If Snape was going to get the Ministry, they would know he was there, and soon they would know about the injuries and indignities inflicted on him by these children. Feeling much more his usual, arrogant self, he glared down at his daughter. "Are you happy now you little whore?" He hissed. "All this bother just because you couldn't keep your bloody legs together! You really are your mother's daughter, aren't you? Fucking a Weasley for Merlin's sake! I'd rather you have gotten knocked up by a bloody troll! Bunch of filthy, dirt poor Muggle-lovers that breed like rabbits! Is that why you aren't planning on getting married? He can't afford it? I can see it now, in no time at all you'll be a penniless beggar living in a lean-to with a dozen little redheaded bastards running around your ankles! Sound nice to you, does it?" he growled.

Ron got to his feet with a growl of rage, but Ginny beat him there, smashing the man's nose with a single well aimed blow, making him crumple to the floor. She nailed him between the legs with an angry (and from the reaction, very hard) kick, making him shriek like a woman before Draco was able to wrap his arms around her, pulling her away as she tried to drop down on the man to continue the beating. Sulla lay there in obvious agony, clutching his family jewels with his good hand as his nose bled profusely, his eyes watering with pain.

"This is a very unwise place to insult Weasleys." Draco growled, still holding the struggling Ginny, though he seemed more than a bit reluctant to restrain her.

The man lay there gasping and trying to disguise his sobs for a moment before regaining a measure of control. He glared up at Ginny through watery eyes, "I'll see you in Azkaban for this!" He hissed, "Your bloody brother too! When I'm done with you and your ilk there will be a whole bloody family reunion in there! They can set aside a Weasley cell block!"

"I think not!" Draco growled. He moved Ginny aside, releasing her. Seeing the anger in his eyes, she refrained from going after the man again. "Ron, if you would be so kind as to bring Mr. Parkinson along, I'd like some witnesses for this."

The man's eyes widened as Ron went over to him. He flinched back as Ron's arm darted down, seizing the back of the man's robes at the scruff of his neck. As Draco made his way out of the room, Ron dragged Sulla after him, not bothering to clear the shards of shattered wood from their path. Blaise gently swept Pansy up into his arms, following as well.

When they reached the Common room Draco went to the mantle, tapping it with his wand. "Counsel." He said, and they could vaguely hear his voice echoing down the halls, the message repeating in every room in Slytherin Dungeon.

In moments, it looked as if every single Slytherin was crowded around the Common room, all looking at the bloodied man at Ron's feet curiously. Anger was working it's way through the crowd as those who had witnessed the scene in the bedroom told the others what was happening.

Draco surveyed the crowd. When he determined that the audience was pretty much complete, he started, raising his voice as the others went silent. "This man is Sulla Parkinson." He said, indicating the man, "He's Pansy's father. He came here tonight to murder her unborn children."

There was a roar of anger from the gathered Slytherins, especially those to whom the news hadn't yet had a chance to reach. They had all become very much attached to the idea of the babies, those in the sixth year and below quite looking forward to having them in the dormitories next year.

"He didn't succeed," He reassured them, "But not for lack of trying. If you should see this man anywhere near Pansy again, feel free to curse him at will." Many of the students looked ready to do that without any further provocation.

"You have no authority to keep me from my daughter! She is scheduled to be married in February, and I'll not let her fuck that up! Lucius Malfoy will not authorize a marriage between her and his only heir if she's knocked up already!" He growled.

Draco walked up to him, then dropped down onto one knee before him, folding his arms on top of his raised knee and looking at the man with a bemused smirk. "Take a good look at me. Do I remind you of anyone?" He asked as if talking to a particularly slow child.

The man blinked, his eyes widening, "Malfoy?"

Draco chuckled, reaching out and patting him on the top of his head, "There's a good boy. Quick on the uptake too. Very good." he said in a thoroughly condescending tone.

The man glared at him, "Well then why did you stop me? You don't want a couple of redheaded bastards to be your first born, do you?"

Draco struck him soundly on the side of his face that remained unbloodied, leaving a brilliant red handprint. "Couple points here." Draco then said lightly, as if he hadn't just struck the man, "I fully expect that my first born will be a redhead, as all of my children probably will be. I know this because the future mother of my first born and any that follow will be a redhead, with red hair running quite dominant in her family." He shifted around a bit to give him a clear view, holding his hand out to indicate Ginny, "That beautiful and vivacious redhead right there as a matter of fact. She's my fiancée, a Weasley, and the only woman I would ever even consider marrying. I have no intention whatsoever of marrying Pansy. I'm quite content leaving her to pursue her own love life, and look quite forward to seeing her children, and with any luck, our children will be able to play together growing up. I couldn't be happier for her."

Sulla narrowed his eyes. "I have a contract!"

Draco smirked. "I plan on fixing that, and soon."

Sulla growled angrily, "I'll sue you for breach of contract!"

Draco laughed, "Give it a try. My representatives will tear you apart and leave you a social and political corpse."

Sulla growled. "Fine. If you don't want her, there are others who do! I had offers from other families. They might not have offered quite as much, but at least I'll not be handling her off to the first pauper who managed to knock her up!" He tensed, realizing he'd just spoken ill of the Weasleys again, but Draco didn't strike him this time. Instead he smirked at him. Sulla found that even more unsettling.

"What other families?" He asked, only mild curiosity in his voice.

The man straightened some, glaring at him at the implication that he might be lying about other offers. "There were a number of them who came to me with offers... Warrington, Crabbe, Pucey, and Goyle. To my knowledge, none of them have yet made other arrangements for their sons."

Draco smirked. "All Death Eater who have been disavowed by the Ministry and have no current authority to force their sons to marry. That would leave the decision up to the boys themselves, now wouldn't it?"

"So? You might not care about your family name, but many of them would probably jump at the chance to marry a Parkinson! We have a very long and prestigious history!" He growled angrily.

"Oh really? Well let's just see about that, shall we?" Draco said, rising. He looked around at the gathered Slytherins. "This man wants to make a marriage contract for Pansy against her will, and kill her children to do so. He has had offers for her hand. How do the offers stand? Warrington?"

"Rescinded." Warrington said, crossing his arms across his chest and smirking down at the battered man.

"Crabbe?"

Crabbe gave an amused chuckle, "Rescinded."

"Pucey?"

Pucey looked at Pansy, who was now curled up on Blaise's lap in one of the chairs. "She's a brilliant shag, no doubt about that... but her heart's already taken, so what would be the point? I'm going to have to rescind the offer as well." He said, sighing dramatically.

"Goyle?"

Goyle snorted in amusement. He was only half dressed, an attractive seventh year girl on each side of him in a similar state of undress. He reached over, slipping an arm around each of their waists and drew them up to him, "I'm afraid I'm a little too attached to being a bachelor. I'll have to rescind as well." the girls giggled, cuddling up to him, then sticking their tongues out at Sulla.

Draco smirked, then looked down at Sulla. "Afraid your backup plans are out the window. Wouldn't this make for an amusing little article... a father's attempts to sell off his unwilling daughter to any man who'll pay for her. I'm no expert, but that sounds like prostitution to me."

"I hope I'm there when your father gets ahold of you, you insolent little prat!" Sulla hissed angrily at Draco.

"I hope so too." Draco said, his voice lowering dangerously, "Because when I'm done killing that bastard I would be more than happy to finish off your miserable arse!" He straightened, glaring down at him.

Sulla, seeing intimidation had no chance of working on Draco, glared over at his daughter again, "If anyone so much as breaths a word of this to the press I swear I'll disown you! You'll be cut off and left to raise pigs or some such thing to survive!"

Draco brightened, smiling in a way that made Sulla nervous. "Brilliant idea. Never would have thought you capable of it! Do be a good boy and wait here." He said, turning without another word and making his way through the crowd towards his room.

Sulla had no choice but to wait, gathering from the looks on the students surrounding him that they would like nothing better than for him to try to get away.

It was a good couple of minutes before Draco returned. He was carrying his ledger along with a scrolled of parchment and a jet black quill. When he reached the middle, he planted his foot on a coffee table and shoved it over to Sulla, making him pull back a bit to keep from being hit by it. Then Draco moved around to crouch near Sulla, setting aside the quill and scroll, then plunking the ledger down before him. "You are familiar with this type of ledger?" Draco asked lightly.

Sulla glared up at him, then glancing around at the others, uneasy as he was getting an inkling of where this was going. "Of course I am. I have one of my own."

"Good. Then you know they cannot lie." He said, flipping it open. The pages now displayed balance sheets, all of the balance entries of which were written in red. "Anything here look familiar?" He asked, starting to flip through page after page, the total quickly escalating.

"Pansy Dear," Draco said, not taking his eyes off of Sulla. "I regret having to be the one to tell you this, but all you would inherit from this man is debts. The Parkinson fortune that he inherited was pissed away on bad investments and a lifestyle that far exceeded his means within ten years after his father died. For nearly twenty years now, he has been borrowing from the Malfoy family just to maintain his appearance of affluence. At this moment, he owes me, as Malfoy heir, the equivalent of three times the value of all his assets combined. What my father offered him for you was forgiving his debt at the time the contract was signed, which is a relatively small portion of this current debt, and an expanded credit line."

Pansy had sat up and was staring at her father, her mouth open and her cheeks coloring with anger. "You bastard! How many times have you lorded that bloody inheritance over me? Threatened to cut me out of your will if I didn't obey! You let that bastard do that to me just for the chance to drive our family even further into debt?!?" She was practically screaming by this point, Blaise's hold on her now the only thing keeping her from going after the man. "Well you can keep your bloody inheritance, and your bloody name! I don't want either! The way you go on about how poor the Weasleys are when they're bloody well rich compared to you, now aren't they? I've never heard of them building up debts to leave to their children! They may not have much money, but at least what they have is theirs!"

Sulla's face clouded with anger, but a sharp look from Draco made him hold his tongue. "Your actions against your own daughter show you to be a conniving, duplicitous person, and I no longer wish to have any kind of commerce with you." Draco said in a soft, utterly calm voice, "As of this moment, your credit has been rescinded. All debts are now due. Your assets, including your home, house elves, beasts of burden, livestock, pets, properties, potions, enchanted objects, etc., etc. will be confiscated to help settle your debt. The rest you'll have to somehow come up with yourself."

The man sputtered with anger and indignation for a moment before finding his voice. "You can't do that!" he growled.

Draco smirked. "Oh I can and I will..." He looked down and addressed the ledger. "Loan. Sulla Parkinson. Display father's loophole." The balances flowed off the pages as the text of what was obviously an extensive contract scrolled up, then it paused on a tiny paragraph, highlighting it in gold. Draco pushed it closer to the shocked man so he could read it over. "Father never makes a contract without a loophole. When you sign a contract with him, you never know what you're getting yourself into. According to this contract, that you signed in blood, I even have the right to take you as my servant until such a time as you have worked off you debt doing whatever I deem fitting at whatever pay rate I choose. I could own you."

Sulla's face gone pale as he read and reread the short paragraph, wondering how he could have possibly missed it before. Sure, the contract had been thirty seven pages long and in minuscule script, but still...

"Or..." Draco said leadingly, a mischievous smirk on his face.

"Or?" Sulla asked quickly.

"Or I could let you keep your clothing and some other family items like portraits and such that have little market value, and one property. Then I could absolve the remainder of your debt and leave you to fend for yourself, a free man."

Sulla's eyes narrowed. "And what would I have to do for you to do this?" He asked shrewdly.

"Just sign a couple of things." Draco said, grabbing up the scroll. As he unrolled it, it came apart into two sheets of parchment. He flattened them out on top of the ledger. One was already filled in, the second he tapped with his wand. The deal he had just proposed pouring from the tip and flowing into place in neat script on the parchment. "They aren't as complicated as my father's contracts, but they should do. Since you are the legal head of household, your signature alone should be sufficient. You can explain it to your wife while you pack under the watchful eyes of the group of Gringotts Goblins that are dedicated to the Malfoy account. Just don't touch anything of Pansy's, and I wouldn't suggest trying to sneak out anything valuable. Trust me, they have no sense of humor."

Sulla looked over the first parchment. It was a somewhat worn legal document to dissolve all parental rights. As Draco tapped it, Pansy's name filled itself in in the space marked Minor, and the date followed. "I've been carrying that about since I was nine, hoping to find father blitzed enough to sign it." He said with a rueful smirk.

Sulla glared up at him, then dropped the parchment irritably, snatching up the second. He growled as he read it. "The house just outside London? It's a wreck! Haven't been in it in years! Only bought it as an investment, and then the neighborhood went to pot! Not to mention it's only one floor with less room than my dinning room! It's little better than a Muggle flat! You can't expect us to live there!"

"Yes, I can. It's for your own benefit actually. It's the only property you own that you could possibly maintain on your own without any house elves, and it's within easy commuting distance of Diagon Alley, so you should be able to find yourself a job..."

"A JOB?!?" He said as if Draco had said something utterly reproachful. "No Parkinson has held a job in the last six generations!"

Draco laughed, "Well then, I think I see your financial problem. Look, I'll make this simple for you. Either you sign these and deal with real life, or I take everything and make you my little house elf... in fact I think I'll make you the servant of my house elves! And in the summer I believe I'll have you weeding and de-gnoming Molly Weasley's garden... you know, given some time I think I could find a good many things for you to do as my indentured servant. Don't worry, I'll pay you a galleon a day for your efforts. Or rather mark a galleon off what you owe me. You can even eat and sleep in with my other house elves free of charge."

Sulla's eyes were wide as saucers as he stared at Draco. "You bastard!" He breathed.

Draco's smirk grew. "You better believe it!"

"You really are Lucius' son." He growled hatefully.

Draco's smirk disappeared, his eyes narrowing angrily. "Sign quick before I change my mind." He growled dangerously.

Sulla glared back, but his confidence seemed to be wavering. He glared down at the parchments angrily. "This one here," He said, pointing at the first, "I have to sign her over to someone else or it isn't legal. I don't see anyone here of legal age who'd want the little tramp!"

"Then you aren't looking very hard."

He turned quickly, noting Snape for the first time. He was standing just inside the Dungeon door, glaring at him coldly. He strode over to the coffee table, snatching up the quill and signing his name to the bottom of it in bright red, not even flinching as his signature was sliced into the back of his hand, then faded away. He dropped the quill in front of Sulla, straightening and folding his arms across his chest. "Hurry up and sign. I don't appreciate you bleeding all over my Dungeon." He said, glaring down at the man.

Sulla stared at the signature in shock, then looked around at the gathered group. Many, including Pansy, looked surprised (well Pansy was closer to downright stunned), but most were just looking angry and impatient.

He looked at the parchments again, then slowly took up the quill. He started to pull over the second parchment, but Draco quickly shook his head, "Ah ah ah! Second one isn't legal until the first is signed. See the second line?"

Sulla looked at it, then glared at Draco hatefully before pulling over the parchment Snape had already signed. He hesitantly scrawled his large, rather ostentatious signature across the proper line. He gasped and dropped the quill as his signature was sliced into his skin, covering nearly his whole hand.

"Next." Draco said with a smirk.

Sulla glared up at him, but then took up the quill again. The signature on that one was quite noticeably smaller and had less unnecessary flourishes.

When he dropped the quill again, he glared up at Pansy. "I hope you're happy. You've ruined us! Enjoy your pig farm!" he spat.

Pansy just smirked happily. "I am happy, and it's you who ruined your name. Luckily it's no longer mine!"

Blaise smirked, "And I very much doubt she'll be doing any pig farming unless she wants to as a hobby. I'll be taking very good care of her, don't worry. Your name might be dirt now, but Zabini still demands a bit of respect."

Sulla's jaw dropped. "But... but that Weasley said they were his babies!"

Blaise laughed, "No, he said they were ours. One's his, one's mine. Oddly enough, Pansy now forms a link between the Zabini and Malfoy fortunes, since Draco will be marrying Ron's sister, so I'm very glad you signed that parchment. Now she'll be under absolutely no obligation to share even a knut of her money with you. And trust me, she'll have much more than she could ever possibly want or need. And incidentally, if you ever try to hurt Pansy or the children, or utter so much as a expletive at a Weasley again and you'll see what happens to those who cross the Zabinis and Malfoys." he said, his voice still light, but with a threatening edge.

"Now if you will be so kind, I believe my daughter is done with you, so get out." Snape said with a smirk, "Your entourage is waiting."

"Entourage?" Sulla asked, still stunned.

"Of Aurors. You tried to murder my grandchildren if you don't recall, not to mention endangering Pansy's life by using a highly illegal potion. As her legal guardian, I have every intention of pressing charges. They are very interested in talking to you." He said, his smirk widening as his eyes glinted with sadistic glee.

Draco gathered the parchments and ledger from in front of the utterly stunned man, then smirked down at him. "Goodbye, Mr. Parkinson."

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A/N - Sorry I haven't made it to Christmas here yet. Once again, I will not wish you a happy new year, because I have every intention of posting again before that. Let's see if I can get to Christmasthis year! or at the very least Christmas Eve! :) I think the spell 'Bombarda' was only used in the movie (POA), so forgive me if I spelled it wrong :) I'm also not entirely sure what year Warrington and Pucey were in in OOTP, so if they graduated I apologize. As for the black quill, it is like the one used by Professor Umbridge in OOTP. I figured there had to be a practical use for the things, because torturing children with horrific lines can't be the whole purpose for it. I figure signing contracts is it's most likely original purpose.

lil trindle - Sorry, I didn't elaborate on the relationship between Narcissa and Sirius because that was in the books. She's Sirius's like first cousin or something (I'm pretty sure it's first. I could look it up, but I'm tired). Black is her maiden name. That's why Kreacher was able to go to Malfoy Manor (since she was born a Black, and therefore part of the family he served), and help bring about the little trip into the Department of Mysteries near the end of OOTP.

Aahz - Darien got the original Ginevra pregnant. Check out Chapter 17. That's what messed Darien up the most about finding out about her death. She only broke up with him in the first place because she thought it was the only way to protect the baby from his family.

Well, I'm just gonna leave off there and post now, cause I'm tired, it's after midnight and I got work early in the morning!