Cookies for anyone who correctly guesses Ulrich's true identity. I think I've given enough clues to figure it out. If you can't then you'll have to wait until I tell you which I will, eventually. Not everything is what it seems.

Chapter Six

Diagon Alley

Rebecca awoke the next morning with a headache. After the Order meeting, she and Draco had gone to Hogwarts. Dumbledore had already retrieved Draco's school things from Malfoy Manor and had delivered them to Rebecca's suite of rooms along with his list of school books for the coming term. Rebecca had made a copy of the list, wondering about her godson choice of classes.

When they'd arrived from London, Draco had gone straight to his room and hadn't left once all night long. Rebecca knew this was going to be a long process and she almost wished he'd try what he was sent to her to do so it was over with. She was not the ideal person to handle teenage rebellion issues. Her own teenage rebellion had been aided by several outside factors, including her uncle's tutelage and her need to prove she wasn't like her father's family.

Rebecca got out of bed, bathed, and dressed. There were many things she had to accomplish before the term began and since Draco had no other clothes than his school robes, she needed to take him to Diagon Alley as well. She needed to make a visit to her uncle's shop, but she didn't dare take Draco with her. She didn't like the thought of any child, teenaged or not, going so deep into Knockturn Alley. She wondered if Molly Weasley was going to take her bunch to Diagon Alley soon. She remembered Molly mentioning it, but she hadn't been paying attention to when the family would be making their trip.

She was about to call in a house elf to bring breakfast when Draco came out of his room. She nodded once and motioned for him to sit at the small dining table. She asked the house elf to bring breakfast for both of them and joined her godson at the table.

"Breakfast will be here in a moment," she said sitting down. "Did you have a good night's rest?"

"Yes."

"Good." There was a knock on the door and with a wave of her hand, Rebecca opened it to reveal Dumbledore.

"Ah, I see you've both settled in. Rebecca, I have just received a query from Molly asking if Mr. Malfoy needed anything from Diagon Alley or if you would like to join them on a day out."

"I do need to meet with Ulrich today."

"There, it's settled then. Molly, Remus, and Sirius will be taking all of the children to Diagon Alley at ten. You both will be there?"

"Yes, Albus," she answered. He nodded and with the twinkle in his eye that she hated, he left her rooms. "Insufferable man," she said, half to herself, but an attempt to get Draco to speak. She remembered well enough how Lucius acted in similar situations.

"Why do you follow him then?"

"Dumbledore is a means to an end at the present moment. He needs me far more than I need him. It was he who asked me to return to England, otherwise I would have stayed in Spain with my family there."

"Your family is dead except for one."

"Yes. I should have known Lucius or Narcissa would inform you of my parentage. No matter. After breakfast we will Floo to Diagon Alley. You need your books for the term and some more clothes and I have a visit to make." The food appeared and Rebecca took the distraction to really study her godson. He looked so much like Lucius it almost scared her, but there were subtle differences and things that were assuredly from Narcissa and the Blacks. He was concerned about his outside appearance to other witches and wizards and she knew the importance of holding up the façade had been instilled in him by his father. She knew well, because Lucius had taught her the same thing. Oh, she had known proper manners and such as they had been all but beaten into her by her father, but the rest-the façade, the look of appearing a Light magic practitioner, and the subtly of murder had been gifts from the Malfoys.

She knew it would take more than subtly to break through Draco's shell of his own superiority. She couldn't make a move until he made one. It would destroy the entire game and since she understood this to be a game, it was one she intended to win. It was like a chess match with Ulrich, she had to know what the next three moves would be before she could even take one.

The tense silence continued. Rebecca buttered some toast and set it on her plate watching Draco as he piled a few things onto his own plate. He began to eat, using proper manners as any Malfoy should at all times. Rebecca had no illusions about what would have happened to Draco if she'd left well enough alone and hadn't attacked Lucius in Surrey. Lucius would have pulled the boy to Voldemort's feet within the next year, initiated him into the Circle and all but ruin his life by forcing him to follow the path of a Death Eater. Rebecca knew the family too well to think otherwise. Marius had forced Lucius to take the Dark Mark, but to a certain degree Lucius had wanted it. Rebecca had wanted it to at a certain level as well; she had wanted to please Marius and Lucius and she had wanted to gather information for Ulrich. She accomplished those things and much more in her decade of service to Voldemort.

"You're not going to return to the Dark Lord are you?"

Rebecca almost started at the unexpected question. "No. I refuse to serve a half-blood lunatic."

"Half-blood?"

Rebecca nodded. "Voldemort was born Tom Marvolo Riddle of Merope Gaunt and Tom Riddle, a Muggle. Merope was the last daughter born into the Slytherin bloodline that we know of at the present time. She was reportedly a squib but used a love potion or charm to get Tom Riddle to fall in love with her and marry her. When Riddle discovered she was a witch, he left her and she gave birth to her son only surviving long enough to give him a name."

"No one knows that."

"Few do. It was shared with me by the Dark Lord himself and the details confirmed by Dumbledore."

"You never told anyone else?"

"Only my uncle who knew most of the story already. He hadn't known the Dark Lord to be the heir of Slytherin."

Suddenly Draco jumped and pushed his seat back from the table standing up. Rebecca kept herself from laughing. The full-grown python had slithered by his leg slithered up to her, it's head resting on her lap. The snake had been a gift to her from Ulrich and it was her most loyal spy and comrade. She didn't even trust Ulrich as much as she trusted the serpent.

"Mistress, I have news."

"What is it, Hycine?"

"The Dark Lord is planting a serpent-spy in the school."

"To spy on whom?"

"He knows your return."

"Anything else, my love?"

"The serpent is death. Sent to kill a traitor."

Rebecca glanced at Draco. "Yes, my love, I know."

"The boy. He smells nice. Keep him?"

"He will be staying here for now."

"Darkness is near him. Tormented soul."

"I know. We will help him."

"He is Dragon."

Rebecca thought the comparison was appropriate even with Hycine's limited conversational language. Hycine could tell the depth of a person and it was something Rebecca had learned to trust. "Yes. He is Dragon."

The serpent slithered to the floor and into Rebecca's private room. She watched it go, thinking. Certainly someone else was coming after her. She could trust Severus' word that Narcissa's plan with Draco wasn't known to the Dark Lord. Another was coming into the school but would they be there to spy on her, Draco, or Severus? Perhaps the Order in general was at risk. Any half-intelligent Death Eater knew Dumbledore supervised the Order of the Phoenix and some of its business would be conducted in the school if there was need for it to be done. As the Dark Lord's former second in command, Rebecca recognized this. Trouble was brewing and it was not something she could identify. If there was one thing she hated, it was being left in the dark.

"Sit, Draco," she commanded. "Do not fear Hycine unless you have a reason to. She will not harm anyone who does not harm me first and if she grows to care for your safety as I do, she will protect you as well. Hycine is very protective of those I care about."

"She's your pet."

"No, she is my friend and ally. Now, finish your breakfast. We should be leaving for Diagon Alley soon."

"To meet the Weasleys." The sneer was back. Rebecca wanted to strangle him.

"Yes. Like it or not, our world is at war. It is time to decide which side you are on."

"And which are you on?"

"My own. I no longer follow the Dark Lord, but I will not follow Dumbledore blindly like many do. I make my own path which is something Slytherin used to stand for. Now all I see is filth, those unworthy of being in the noble house. Oh, ambition is good and nice, but without the intelligence to know what to do with it, you will end up no where.

"You are an intelligent young man, Draco, but you wear your ambitions upon your sleeve. In the current climate of things, knowledge will be your ally, not ambition. Make your own path regardless of all else. I failed to do that for many years and I lost sight of what I had hoped to do and gain in the beginning. Do not make that same mistake. Doing so could cost your life or your soul."

"My father said you did nothing but betray the Dark Lord."

"In the end, yes, I did betray Voldemort and the Death Eaters, but all had betrayed me long before."

"What was that?"

It was a difficult topic for Rebecca to discuss, but she knew the importance of it now. She had Draco's attention and his curiosity. She wasn't going to risk losing it even if she hated talking about these topics. "I was ordered to kill my favourite protégé. The Dark Lord shows no mercy although he jokes about being merciful. I know better. I have been into his mind and he loves no one but himself and he will show no one mercy for anything."

"But Father is his…"

"Lucius got himself captured. Voldemort does not forgive that either. Lucius will pay and if he survives the encounter, perhaps he will still be considered the Second. I cannot tell, I do not know."

"You were never captured."

"I had friends in good places. One of my former liaisons from Hogwarts was an Auror and even though my father tried to kill me several times, in the end, they all failed and I stayed by the Dark Lord's side until I was no longer able to."

"Father said you acted like a figurehead for the Death Eaters, having denied your family heritage."

She shrugged. "Perhaps. My father's family was well known for being heroes. My mother was from a family known for its dark lords and princes. My brother and I were caught in the middle. He turned out to be a hero, I became the opposite."

"So the rumours were true."

"Which?"

"Mother told me you were the heir of Merlin Grindelwald."

Rebecca smiled. She had him. "It is a little known fact, but yes, I have been considered by many to be his heir. Before Gindelwald's death, he named the first child born of my mother's womb to be given over to his teachings under his most trusted advisor. My father had not even known of the arrangement. When I was born, the agreement was sealed by blood."

"But that was what, ten years after his defeat?"

"Eleven, actually, to the day."

"Why did he choose your mother?"

"That, Draco, is the question of the century." She took a drink from her goblet. "I know better than most what it means to defy one's heritage. I betrayed my father and his family name and even taking the surname Black did not save me from my family of blood nor birth."

"What are you trying to suggest?" Draco asked, getting defensive.

"I'm not suggesting anything. I'm just giving you something to think about. Go get ready. We'll be leaving in a few minutes."

"Why are we meeting the Weasleys?"

"Because I have a visit to make in Knockturn Alley and this shop is not one for anyone not deeply immersed in the Dark Arts."

"But Father…"

"Lucius is a fool, he always has been. There are some shops in Knockturn Alley I do approve of but my uncle's shop is not one of them. Do no argue. While I make this visit to my uncle, you will stay with Sirius or Remus."

"Trusting werewolves?"

"Right now, I have more trust in Remus Lupin than I have in most people. Get ready. You're wasting time."

Rebecca knew she'd been short with him. She knew all too well. It was the same way her own father had spoken to her up until the night she'd left, protected by the wand of Marius Malfoy. It was amazing how things had come full circle. She had escaped her family with Malfoy aid and now she'd brought the Malfoy heir into her family. Poetic justice maybe. She sighed and stood up. She wanted something more extravagant than plain black robes for her first public excursion. It was going to be an interesting day. And she had a feeling the Dark Lord would make an appearance.

Rebecca and Draco had arrived in the Leaky Cauldron, silencing at least half the pub into silence with their appearance. Sirius had been impressed. It took talent and even his arrival hadn't prompted that many into shutting their mouths. What had not impressed Sirius was the way Harry and Ron had started muttering about the Malfoy heir. He had known there were problems there and the problems would remain until the brat figured out he wasn't his father, but that still didn't mean he wanted Harry to turn into a replica of his own father.

On some level though, Sirius wanted Harry to be just like James. What was left of his logical mind told him it was impossible. Harry was far too introverted and didn't cause nearly as much trouble as James had. Sirius often found himself comparing Harry to James and it disturbed him when he realized he was doing it. Molly and Remus had both commented on it and Sirius was afraid that maybe he wasn't as balanced as he had hoped he was.

Rebecca had gone over to Remus and the two began to talk. Sirius walked over to find out what she wanted from his friend. He knew Rebecca wasn't the type to ask favours of anyone no matter how much she needed something.

"Thank you, Remus," Rebecca said. "Hello, Sirius."

"Rebecca," he said. "How long do you have his highness?"

"Who? Oh, Draco. For now, until he decides which path he'll follow. I will not hoard a Death Eater."

"Against your morals?" Sirius snapped.

"I have no morals, Sirius, you should know that by now. Then again, I forgot who I was talking to. You don't know much of anything."

"Rebecca," Remus warned.

"What I know is that you killed my brother."

"Sirius, leave it be," Remus said. Ever the peace maker. Remus would never change.

But Sirius ignored him and continued on. "You murdered him."

"Are you quite finished?" she asked. Sirius was now quite aware that almost every pair of eyes in the pub were on him, Remus, and Rebecca. Even Harry, Ron, and the others had stopped fighting with the Malfoy heir to watch the battle between them. Sirius was even aware of how this rivalry must look to Harry.

"This is not the place to discuss this, Sirius," Remus said. "Voldemort's spies are about."

Sirius glared at Remus. How could he try to defend her? With a sweep of her robes, Rebecca turned and began walking to the back. The rest of the group began to follow her and Sirius grabbed his friend's arm.

"What was that?"

"This is not the place to have a discussion about what Rebecca may or may not have done to Regulus, Sirius. Your brother chose to be a Death Eater."

"He wanted to impress her. It was sickening how much he followed her, showing her his notes on spells he'd researched. She took him to Voldemort and then she killed him."

"Perhaps, Sirius, you should ask Rebecca why he died, rather than make assumptions that she killed him on Voldemort's orders."

"Why else would she do it?"

Remus shook his head. "I don't know, but maybe you should talk to her. She does have some morals, Sirius. She refuses to take Draco into Knockturn Alley. She is no longer the morally corrupt woman she was years ago. Come on, Padfoot, let's go."

Sirius followed Remus out of the Leaky Cauldron. He was thinking about Rebecca. Actually he hadn't really been able to stop thinking about her since she had given him the paper declaring his wrongful imprisonment. He didn't know how she had accomplished the task and it left him curious as to what else she was hiding. Sirius had always known she was good at hiding things and she always had been for as long as he had known her. She had hid her training by her uncle from her father for years and as far as he knew, not even Voldemort knew she had received such expertise from someone so powerful.

It was a survival instinct, though, bred into every Slytherin. Secrets were a way of life and a person without secrets could not be controlled or manipulated. Secrets were dangerous and Sirius, having been raised by Slytherins, understood their value to the Death Eaters.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked Rebecca. "What is in Knockturn Alley?" He had followed her down the dark musty path after she had left the group in Diagon Alley with little more than a word. Sirius would not allow her a chance to betray the Order.

"An old friend," Rebecca answered. "Someone who might be able to help us win this war."

"Who?"

"Wait and see." Sirius followed her to the darkest and furthermost corner of the road to an old shop. The sign over the door read "Ancient Artifacts of the Wizarding Wars". Apprehensive, Sirius followed her inside. The shop was dark and gloomy. Shelves were lined with wizarding wears of various stages of age. Sirius wasn't sure what could possibly be in this shop for them to use or who would be there to help them.

"I should have expected he would follow you," a voice said from the shadows. Sirius looked at the man who'd spoken. He didn't have to ask any questions. He knew exactly who this was. Ulrich Gregor, Alesandra's older brother and Rebecca's uncle. Ulrich was someone else too, a person few others knew about, a person supposedly killed in the first years of Voldemort's rise to power. Ulrich had not died but instead moved into the shadows watching and training Rebecca for the rising Darkness. Sirius had never expected to ever see the old man who had destroyed so many lives and families in the course of his life but now that he had, Sirius was curious. The old man did not seem to be the type to have done all the horrible things attributed to him as Grindelwald's Second.

"Have you discovered anything else about what we talked about?" Rebecca asked.

"Go to the back. I'll close the shop and show you what I've found." Rebecca nodded and she took Sirius' arm and led him to the back of the shop. Sirius looked at the wares in wonder. There were items from each of the major wizard's wars. When they entered the back room, Ulrich was seconds behind them with a box levitating in from of him. He set it down on a crate and sat down across from Rebecca.

"What is that?" Rebecca asked.

"Grindelwald's spellbook. Dumbledore hid it in Siberia and I sent Kallie to retrieve it. I think there are a few things in here that I've forgot to teach you."

"I don't know what they could be," Sirius muttered and Ulrich glared. Rebecca was leaning over and opening the box. She pulled out a large, leather bound book. The cover was worn but Sirius could see the book was in excellent shape. Rebecca held it with a loving touch as she opened the cover and began to glance through the pages.

"All of my early spells are in there and everything the spellsmiths created as well. It's all Dark Arts or can be classified as such. I know you will use them well and teach these things to all who will need to know them."

"I will," Rebecca said with what seemed like a humble tone. Sirius wondered what was in the book that had affected her so much. "Is there anything else?"

"No, not now. If I find something else for you, I know how to find you." Rebecca nodded but continued to look through the book. Sirius took her momentary distraction to look at the older man but Ulrich sensed his gaze and they locked eyes.

"What was that?" Sirius asked looking away from Ulrich's piercing gaze. Rebecca and Ulrich looked at each other. Rebecca's eyes glossed over and Sirius watched her.

"An explosion," Ulrich answered after a long minute. He too, had been staring at Rebecca.

"Starting early. I expected better."

"What?"

"Voldemort is attacking Diagon Alley," Rebecca said.

"Harry!" Sirius jumped up and started to leave the room but Ulrich suddenly stood before him.

"Stupid, foolish boy," the old man growled. "Going out there without a plan will do nothing but get Potter killed. Now, the best way to do this will be with the element of surprise. Rebecca, send Porthos out to investigate. We'll enter Diagon Alley using the passages and sneak up on the Death Eaters."

"You have no control over me, old man," Sirius said.

"You'll be killed if you go rushing out there like a foolish Potter," Ulrich said, the name coming out of his mouth like it was poison. Rebecca had left the room and Sirius leaned against the wall dejected. He had to help Harry and the others, but especially Harry. Voldemort wanted him, no other, and there wasn't anyone with Harry who could protect him from the Death Eaters if the really wanted to get to him.

"Twenty," Rebecca said, coming back into the room. "I contacted a friend at DMLE, but Apparation is being blocked. We're going to be on our own, here."

"And Riddle?"

"He's there."

Sirius looked up with wide eyes. The two could have been discussing the weather for all the feeling they were showing.

"I'll take Riddle," Ulrich said. "He may consider himself a Dark Lord, but he has yet to battle me. Rebecca, you know the prophecy, protect them. Black, don't get yourself killed. Follow me."

Resigned and reluctant, Sirius followed Rebecca and Ulrich out of the shop and into the alley. Ulrich lead them through an abandoned shop. Sirius didn't take time to look around and a few minutes late he was greeted by a sight that haunted his nightmares. Death Eaters were standing in the street torturing innocents without much opposition. Sirius could see Remus and Molly struggling with three Death Eaters in front of Flourish and Blotts. Sirius moved to help them, but Ulrich grabbed him by the arm,

"My friends-"

"Can take care of themselves for the moment. The keys to winning this war are inside the shop. Choose your battles. That is not one to get involved in at the moment. Go with Rebecca to the shop. Protect the children. That is all that matters right now."

Sirius could understand the reasoning. Harry was in the shop. Harry needed to be safe. He nodded to Rebecca and followed her. They went around to the back of the book store. Sirius was amazed at how calm Rebecca was but then again, she probably had much experience in these situations-on the other side of the battle.

"What are you and Ulrich planning?" he asked her. He was almost afraid to know what the two would do. Rebecca's plots were usually bad enough but combined with the Dark Wizard's Sirius wasn't sure he wanted to have anything to do with them.

"For now, get information. There's the shop. Go," she said, motioning for him to get ahead of her. His Gryffindor tendencies didn't want to leave her out in the open without aid, but his mind told him she could more than take care of herself should anyone sneak up on them in the alley.

"Black!"

Sirius turned, noting Rebecca had left their hiding place. He rushed out to the open area between the bookstore and the shop next to it to find Rebecca facing off with a Death Eater.

Another came from the street and Sirius found himself in his own battle.

"Ah, so the other has arrived."

"Carrows, how nice to see you again," Sirius said, positioning himself for a duel. Alecto Carrows didn't always duel fair. Sirius had been on the receiving of her curses more times than he'd care to remember-both in school and out.

"Crucio! Imperio!"