A/N: I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters created by J.K. Rowling.

Chapter Ten

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Sirius had accepted the position as DADA professor, alongside Remus.

They would each work a week and had spent hours pouring over a calendar to make sure that Sirius was always working on the week of a full moon and that Remus was always working on the week that Harry would age a year.

It had been a long conversation and once the timetable had been sorted out and owled to McGonagall, their joint attention had turned to Draco.

It had taken two hours and a lot of raised voices from Sirius, more so because he was easily excited than anything else, before even Draco couldn't deny that the prospect of studying magic again did have a faint sheen of appeal for him. His conditions were simple; he'd be tutored at home in private and study whenever he could. Any and all home work was to be taken to him and to the respective professors to be marked via owl or Sirius. If he was able to pass all the theory and written exams with good grades, then as soon as the restrictions on his magic were lifted, he'd be able to sit the practical exams.

Maybe there was something waiting for him on the other side of his torment.

As it stood, the only thing he had looking forward to in the coming week was for Potter to officially turn three years old.

They weren't going to be having another party. Draco was glad for that; there was only so much leftover cake a boy could take.

He'd written to his mother informing him of his decision to continue on with his studies. She had been pleased of his decision, stating that he had nothing but time on his hands these days, so he may as well make the best of it all.

He didn't tell her about all the muggle appliances he had to learn about, though. Perhaps after Christmas, but not right now. It still felt like his skin was dirty every time he flipped the light switch.

McGonagall, in her wisdom, had also stated that he was more than welcome to return to school to use the facilities for his studies, although he was pretty sure Sirius would allow him to brew potions in one of the unused rooms. She had explained in her letter to him, that should he ever wish to come to the school grounds, she would ensure that he have a personal escort so as to discourage any wand-waving whilst his back was turned.

He appreciated the sentiment, however he knew how shitty students could be.

He'd been one of them for years. To think of all the pranks he'd gotten away with without being scolded for it.

It all felt too neat, too practical, too easy.

He wasn't ready to let any of it settle and become real in his head, not yet.

A quick glance at the calendar made his insides twist. There was only a week and a half until term officially started. He had yet to go to Diagon Alley and get the books on the list McGonagall had written to him. Of course, there were less practical things to buy, so it shouldn't cost too much money for Sirius to acquire what he needed. He still felt like a leech having to take money from a man who had been exiled from his own family.

The thought … struck a cord within his chest.

Stifling a yawn, he reasoned that it was getting late.

Potter was already asleep in his cot in the nursery and Sirius was sprawled out on the sofa in the lounge, watching that infernal T.V.; apparently tonight there was some crime related documentary that he was 'into'. He'd asked if Draco wanted to join him, but he'd declined, instead retreating to the coolness of the kitchen to pen a letter to his mother and read over the various papers he'd accumulated over the last few days.

Shuffling the papers into a neat stack, he tucked them under his arm, manually turned off the lights and then climbed the stairs to his bedroom. The low murmur of the T.V. was becoming more familiar to him now. In a way it was comforting to know that he wasn't alone in the huge, dark house.

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Placing the papers on the top of the dresser, Draco stripped down to a muggle t-shirt and his boxers before pulling back the thick duvet and lying on top of the cold, rumpled sheets. A shiver ran over him and he laced his fingers over his stomach, staring up at the canopy over his bed. He wondered what the next few months would be like, in the lead-up to Christmas. Remus and Sirius would be busy trying to figure out what lessons to teach what age-group. Draco was going to be studying, with Remus as a more level-headed aid.

Perhaps he would get to see his Mother on Christmas Day?

The thought of Christmas in general made him nervous. What if the Weasel family wanted to come back over? What if it wasn't just the parents but the offspring as well? Draco felt his lips curl into a sneer out of habit. What if Granger showed up too? How was he supposed to face all of them?

His heart seemed to speed up at the thought.

He didn't have to see any of them. He could do as he'd been doing since day one; staying in his room, making no noise and pretending that he didn't exist.

It was better from everyone involved, anyway.

No interaction between himself, Granger and Weasel was ever going to go well, least of all in regards to Potter's current predicament. Granger would immediately start thinking of ways to reverse the potion, or at least speed the process up … to what end? She was dating Weasel, so why would she need Potter around?

As fucked up as it all was, Potter being a baby made sense after what he'd been through.

Granger and Weasley wouldn't see that, though.

They'd blame Sirius for being too childish and incompetent and blame Draco for simply being a Death Eater and in the same house.

Letting out a groan, Draco cupped his hand over his face and sighed. Why did he even care what those two morons thought about him? They'd always hated him, another year of dealing with their insolence was hardly going to break his bleeding little heart.

What if they wanted to come over regularly to be around Potter?

"Fucking brat," Draco hissed under his breath, feeling the ugly heat pooling in his belly.

He rolled onto his side, trying to get comfortable. From downstairs, he heard Sirius turning the T.V. off and slowly make his way upstairs. He stopped off to check-in on Potter in his little nursery. He walked by Draco's door and paused. For a fleeting moment, Draco froze, barely daring to breathe. What if Sirius came in to check on him? He barely remembered the night they'd slept together in the same bed. He'd felt safe, comforted and as though he was understood, if even for a brief moment.

Swallowing thickly, he listened for the click of the door.

There was none.

Sirius continued on his way along the landing until he got to his own door and went inside.

Draco lie stiffly on his bed, ears strained for the tiniest sound of movement. He heard the creak of the springs in Sirius' bed as the man lie down on it. Would he sleep at all? Was he just as worried about what the coming weeks would bring? Eventually, Draco let himself relax, letting the coolness of the room lull him into a disjointed sleep.

~0~

"Are you sure you can handle all three of them?" Remus frowned, glancing over as Draco stood as still as a statue on the edge of the room, arms folded tightly against his chest.

Andromeda pursed her lips at her son-in-law. "I'm perfectly capable of copying, Remus," she stated briskly. "Teddy is a chirpy little thing, Harry can walk by himself now and Draco is quickly becoming my new favourite ornament, so kindly stop worrying yourself wretched and go with Sirius to sort out your office."

"We won't be gone too long –"

"Remus, everything will be fine," Sirius assured, slinging his arm around Remus' shoulders. "Like you said, we'll be there a few hours tops and then we'll be back to take everyone home for a nap and then their dinner."

Remus wrestled himself free from Sirius' embrace, ignoring the broad grin the brunette wore. "You'll floo us if anything happens, right?"

Sirius sighed, "Remy, do you want to stay here with the kids while I sort out the office?"

Amber eyes flew wide. "Absolutely not!" he snapped, flaring his arm in a decisive arc. "Knowing my luck, all the furniture will be bought from Zonko's and the rest will be bought from the Weasley's!"

"Then kindly get in the fireplace and floo your backside to our office."

"What about the rest of me?"

"Oh, go splinch yourself for all I care. Maybe you can leave that smart mouth of yours here for a change!" Sirius barked out, grabbing a handful of floo powder and stepping into the fireplace. "Hogwarts School, Houndstooth Office!"

In a flash of green flames, he was gone.

Remus' jaw dropped to the floor. "McGonagall let him name the office, I should have known!"

Andromeda smirked at her son-in-law. "I suggest you go after him. There's no telling what that man will do just to one-up you."

"He's been gone all of thirty seconds, how much trouble do you think he'll cause?" Remus sighed.

Andromeda dropped a pointed look down at Harry who was staring up at her with wide, green eyes, and then cocked an eyebrow at Remus. "I don't need to tell you, dear, that thirty seconds is long enough for Sirius Black to be left unattended."

Grumbling, Remus snatched at the floo powder on the mantelpiece and repeated the name Sirius had shouted out. There was a flash of green flames and he, too, was gone.

Turning her attention to her temporary guests, Andromeda bounced Teddy up onto her hip and announced, "Who's ready to get baking?"

The look of fear on young Draco's face was almost enough for her to cackle. Almost.

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From his position at the kitchen table, Draco watched as his Aunt and Potter made a mess of the baking ingredients. He wrinkled his nose at the clouds of flour that permeated the air. The counter-top was littered with broken egg shells and chocolate crumbs. Teddy seemed happy enough in his little carrier that had been charmed to rock gently whenever he got unsettled. Draco had an invitation extended to him to come and help, but he'd declined. It was bad enough that he was done to his last clean outfit –he kept eyeing the so-called washing machine in the kitchen but still had too much pride to ask how it worked –before he'd have to resort to muggle clothing.

He was not going to get it dirty.

Potter squealed as Andromeda starting mixing the icing the muggle way. Draco frowned but didn't comment; if he reminded anyone of his presence, they'd ask him to participate. He'd gone to the beach, hadn't he done enough already?

"That's the cupcakes all done!" Andromeda announced cheerfully, as she wiped her hands down on an apron. Picking Potter up, she flicked her wand at the kitchen counters and immediately they jumped up and started to wash themselves in the sink. Another flick made both herself and Potter clean again. Settling down at the kitchen table, she finally fixed her dark eyes on Draco. "Are you going to do anything other than sulk, Draco dear?"

He froze. Her mannerisms and her wild mass of dark curls –so much like his Aunt Bella.

She furrowed her brow before understanding dawn in her eyes. "I am not my sister, Draco. I fell in love with a muggle for crying out loud. Even if Bellatrix polyjuiced as me, she'd sooner eat her own vomit that even pretend to live my life."

"She'd dead," Draco murmured.

"I'm not sorry to see her go," Andromeda stated. "Once upon a time she was my sister. The woman who died was not the same girl I grew up with."

Draco's insides twisted, but he said nothing.

"So how are you finding it living with my dear cousin and little Harry?"

Draco almost rolled his eyes, but he had to remind himself of his manners. "It has its challenges," he said. "Sirius can be erratic at times. Potter is usually with him."

Andromeda stroked Potter's dark tuft of hair as he scribbled on a piece of paper with some weird, waxy sticks. "How have his friends taken the news of his predicament?"

Draco's head shot up. "I –I don't know. They're not my friends. They seem to be pretty preoccupied."

Andromeda hummed thoughtfully. "I can imagine it's been hard for Hermione. Last I heard they were in Australia trying to bring her parents' memories back. Imagine, having to erase your life from your own parents'? It doesn't bear thinking about."

Draco drank in her words without comment. Granger had obliviated her own parents before the war? How –How did she have the strength to accomplish that? A cold weight sank into his gut. All those times he had mocked her for being a muggleborn, all those times he had sneered at the very idea of her parents, and she'd sacrificed ever having them again, just to keep them safe.

He could never be that brave.

Tears glossed over his eyes and he tried to blink them away.

"Do you think they'll want to visit Harry when they come back to England?" Andromeda asked, pulling him out of his own head.

"I … I'm not sure. I suppose they will as soon as they know what's happened."

"That's true," she agreed. "School starts up again in just over a week. They might drop by unannounced before then."

Draco felt his shoulders tense. "There's no need for me to speak to them. If they've been reading the prophet then they'll know I'm living there, too."

"Have you enrolled in the new school year?" she asked, rhythmically bouncing Potter on her lap.

"Yes, but I'll be studying privately, avoiding the castle as much as I can." He let out a long sigh, "I can't go back there yet. Not after what I've done."

"I understand," she said. It sounded as if maybe she did. "For what it's worth, Draco, the war forced a lot of people to grow up before their time. People will come around eventually. Until then, just focus on what you want to do and what you need to do to get through this difficult time."

Draco tried to force a smile before taking a sip of his lemonade.

Potter grizzled and demanded Andromeda's attention of his pictures, most of them ridiculous scribbles. She crooned and cooed and ruffled his hair, even pressing a kiss to his cheek. Draco needed to remind himself just how un-jealous he was.

The floo in the kitchen fireplace roared to life, making Potter gasp, "Oh!"

The clock on the mantle chimed for 5pm. Where had the time gone?

Sirius and Remus ducked out of the floor, brushing soot from their clothes. Andromeda cleared her throat with a raised eyebrow. Both men froze, flushed and then banished the dirt from her kitchen floor.

Upon spotting Potter, Sirius beamed brightly and immediately scooped the brat into the air, twirled him overhead and them pressed big, sloppy kisses all over Potter as he squealed and laughed at Sirius' antics. Remus smiled adoringly, before lifting his own son out of the carrier and holding him tenderly against his chest. Teddy's hair flashed bright pink.

Draco swallowed past the lump in his throat. He was all too aware of how much of an outcast he was, even here.

As if sensing his thoughts, a hand rested on his shoulder.

"How're you holding up, kid?" Sirius asked, grinning down at him. Potter peaked around Sirius' mass of curls, his wide eyes watching Draco.

"I'm fine," he replied curtly.

"Did you bake cupcakes with Harry?"

"No."

Remus frowned from across the table. "So you just sat in the chair all afternoon?"

"Oh Remus don't fuss!" Andromeda admonished. She busied herself with levitating a tray of drinks over the table. Ice cubes clinked in the glasses and both men took one each, clearly relieved. "So, how did setting up the offices go?"

"It went well enough," Remus shrugged. "We had to enlarge the office to twice its size to fit both our desks and other equipment in. For the most part, though, it'll work well for us."

"Although Minerva has informed us that she'll be writing a letter informing the parents that she is employing a werewolf as a professor. She even has it approved by the Minister, just to shut up the board of governors. The last thing we need is a torrent of owls telling us werewolves aren't fit to teach," Sirius sneered at the last sentence.

"Paddy," Remus said, his voice low and soothing. Sirius looked up at him, their eyes locking. "It'll be fine," he soothed. "I'm a big boy, I can look after myself."

Sirius pulled a face, but there was no malice behind it. They two men really were like big teenagers. And they were meant to teach a class? Unbelievable.

"Okay, I think we should make a move and get ready for dinner," Sirius announced.

Draco drained the last of his drink and stood up, drifting over towards the fireplace. He leaned against the mantelpiece, ead bowed to the floor as he watched out of the corner of his eye; Sirius kissed Andromeda on the cheek, still juggling Potter against his hip, and then turned to Remus. They exchanged a few words, probably about Remus coming to spend the night at Grimmauld place. The amber-eyed man seemed deflated, shrugging haplessly and shaking his head 'no, not tonight'. Draco could vividly picture a tail and ears drooping at the soft rejection. The way Sirius was holding onto Remus' curved arm, the way his hand stroked down, lingering just a little too long.

Were they …?

"Ready to go Draco?" Sirius asked, reaching across him for the floo powder pot.

Draco jolted, his cheeks blushing. "Y-yes," he said. "Is Remus not coming with us?"

Sirius cocked an eyebrow at him. "No. Remus is staying here tonight. He's had a long day."

Draco nodded mutely, giving a tight-lipped smile and wave over his shoulder as Sirius disappeared through the floo. Taking a pinch of powder himself, he stepped up into the grate, grimacing at the mess of ash that clung to the bottom of his trousers, before clearing his throat.

"Number Twelve Grimmauld Place!"

The green flames roared to life. Andromeda, Remus and Teddy disappeared in a flurry of flames, the emerald green searing through into his brain. He clamped his eyes shut and clenched his jaw hard as the swirling sensation threatened to make him topple sideways. He always tried to stand perfectly still. One wrong move and he'd be falling out of some poor witch's fireplace.

Eventually, the floo network spat him out; he staggered out of the fireplace almost catching his feet on the hearthrug on the other end.

He'd barely bent down to dust himself off before he was hurled backwards against the nearest wall, the engravings biting into his flesh as something thin and sharp was pressed right against his throat. His vision barely caught up with what was happening before a cacophony of shouts assaulted his ears.

"Ron, drop your wand now!"

"Ron, don't you dare!"

Forcing his eyes to adjust to the face leering down at him, Draco forced his mouth up into a sneer, purely out of habit.

"Good evening Weasley," he smirked, even as the fist at his collar tightened even further, causing him to avidly focus on breathing slowly and carefully. He did his best to hide the fear threatening to pour out of his veins as he jutted out his chin and arched an eyebrow. "It's been a while."

A/N: Oh yes I am a right little BEEP BEEP BEEP to end a brand new chapter on a cliffhanger! Mwahahahaha! I couldn't stop myself from doing it :D