The beginning of the St. Mungo's internship started off a bit tedious, focused on the usual rounds. Mostly, it was meant as a reminder of how the job worked, having taken a few months off. I began work with Healer Smethwyck on the first floor. Normally I preferred working on the third floor, wanting to focus on Potion and Plant Poisonings, but I wasn't in a position to make demands. Thankfully Healer Smethwyck was also a skilled Potioneer, so that would have to suffice. Creature-Induced Injuries sometimes required brewed remedies as well.

After the initial staffroom assembly, Healer Smethwyck and I headed to his overseen ward. As we walked I brought up a few questions I had in mind, before we got fully started.

"Is it common to have several high-priority patients to balance?"

"I wouldn't say it's common necessarily," Healer Smethwyck answered, leading the way, "but it's to be expected from a ward like this. Of course, all of our patients should be thought of as high-priority, but some do have a bit less urgency than others. For example, the ward we're focusing on up ahead has three particularly nasty bites."

"From the same creature?" I asked curiously.

"No, all different creatures," he assured, "and all different degrees of concern. One among the set is the victim of a werewolf bite."

"A werewolf?" I repeated under my breath.

"Yes, but nothing to worry about," he reassured, mistaking my tone for concern. "A full moon isn't set to happen for a couple of more weeks."

"Right," I nodded with a smile. "And what of the other patients?"

"Another among the group was bitten by some kind of venomous creature, a snake of sorts—"

"Snake?" I accidentally interrupted, this time with actual concern . But thankfully he misinterpreted my tone once more.

"Yes, yes," he dismissed, waving his hand. "But this is no ordinary snake. Its venom, which lingers from the bite, seems to be continuously reopening the inflicted wound. It makes it a bit difficult to remove the bandages."

"So it causes a sort of hemophilic reaction," I frowned to myself. I didn't like how that sounded.

"Precisely," he answered, giving me an approving nod.

"So what is keeping the patient alive, then?" I thought a bit more seriously. "Having a wound that is unable to heal should have caused him to bleed out by now."

"Normally yes," he agreed. "I'm sure he would have, had he not arrived so quickly after the injury. He was rushed inside a few nights ago, having lost severe amounts of blood. But we had him stable soon enough. He is currently being treated with blood replenishing potions, and his dressings get mended every few days. But as of now, those are our two least urgent cases."

"The werewolf and the hemophilic bite are the least urgent?" I asked concerned as to what the third could be. Healer Smethwyck gave me a smile.

"As I mentioned, the full moon is not set to appear for some time," he explained. "The wound itself has been treated, but the infliction is beyond our control. The main concern he presents is his mental state, and coming to terms with his new condition. The snake bitten patient will need an antidote to be fully remedied, but can spend his time in our ward without fear of death. That antidote is most likely what your focus will be during your internship."

"Do you believe it will take that long?" I asked honestly.

"If he were our only patient, no. But we have a hospital's worth of treatment to do," Healer Smethwyck reminded me. "You will also be assisting in other wards, so it is safe to assume your time will be somewhat divided."

"So this last patient…" I brought up, realizing we still hadn't discussed it.

"Our last patient is less of a concern because of her injury, and more so because of how she acquired it. She is refusing to tell us what it was that bit her, making us suspect it was by some sort of hybrid, or possibly an illegal breed. We're trying our best to find out just what it was that took the bite," he added with a sigh.

"Is that really something we need to concern ourselves with?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Of course, our priority is to treat patients. But if there is a dangerous breed out there going unmonitored, that is something of a concern, and something we may need to alert the Ministry of. It would prevent a lot of future injury if we resolved this now," Healer Smethwyck concluded. I gave him a nod. "That, and quick treatment means a quick opening to our ward. That also allows us to onboard more patients for care."

I followed him into the ward he oversaw. He opened the door for us, on it lay its marker:

"DANGEROUS" DAI LLEWELLYN WARD: SERIOUS BITES.

Inside the patients lay on what I assumed were their respective beds. My schedule, being so early in the morning, I expected they'd all be asleep, but only two out of the three looked to be. To the far end of the ward I recognized one of the patients immediately. The light coming from the window just above the bed illuminated the patch of bright orange hair of Arthur Weasley.

"Is there a problem," Healer Smethwyck asked, noticing I hadn't moved from the entrance.

"No," I answered quickly, turning back to him.

Healer Smethwyck led the way to the first patient, in the bed closest to us. It was the woman, and the only one awake. There were dressings on her leg, where the wound must have been. Judging by the fact she was the only female patient present, that meant she was the one considered a high-priority. She spoke nervously to the Healer when we approached, but I was a little too distracted to listen. Glancing around the room, I tried not to focus too much on the person drawing my attention. If this woman was the one bitten by an unknown creature, that meant George's father was either the snake bite or the werewolf. But I tried not to think about what that could mean.

Much to my relief, Healer Smethwyck chose not to wake the other patients. And with the explanations and introductions out of the way, the rest of the morning passed by quickly. Being the first day back, I was only asked to work a half day. I knew most everything I needed to from my time during the summer, this was just a refresher. But I didn't pass on the message to my parents. It was for the best that they not know just how much free time I had for the afternoon. Keeping that in mind I strongly hinted to the front desk receptionists I would be heading straight home, and exited through the building's main entrance.

Upon stepping foot into the main streets of London, a loud gathering of sound filled the air. Muggles wandered in and out of shops, most holding bags with their new belongings. With a small frown I turned behind me. St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries had turned into its fake muggle equivalent, Purge and Dowse Ltd. Trying to focus on my next task I took a few steps away from the abandoned looking building. In the same motion I removed my cloak. Making sure to fold it enough times to properly pack it in my bag, I tried to mix in what little I could to the surrounding muggles. I would rather not but that was one of the benefits of St. Mungo's location, the ability to easily blend in.

Thankfully it wasn't long before I found the proper transport to my brother's home. The building was just as I remembered it. It looked the same as the others attached to it, seeming to not have any space between them, and far too small for what he deserved. Not very private either. The public park across the street was smaller than even half of our private grounds. But it was what he would be willing to accept. So ignoring the loud people surrounding, and the reminder that he deserved much more, I looked for his specific house number.

After searching for longer than I should have, I knocked loudly on the door.

"Princess!" my brother called as quickly as he opened the door.

"Were you expecting someone else?" I smiled as he leaned in for a hug. Obviously I would be the only one to show.

"Princess, it's so good to see you, I've missed you so much, just one more thing, real quick, please, say no for me," Nikolai made his request in one breath. "Please say no, say no, I know how this seems but I'm begging you, when she asks, say—Daisy! Look who's finally here!"

"Hello," his wife said simply having come into view. She turned to my brother with a look as he pulled me the rest of the way into their home. As the door closed behind us, she turned back to me. "Katerina, I'm glad you could come. You're the only person that i've seen come in these last several months."

"As we discussed, yes. Now, you just finished lunch, why don't we go enjoy a meal together," Nikolai attempted to pull her away but she seemed firm in her stance.

"Katerina, I have a question for you," she continued, ignoring my brother. "I know that you've just arrived, but it has been bothering me for some time."

"What is it?" I asked carefully, glancing slightly at my brother.

"Nick mentioned that there's no one else who can come to our home because of the… magic you two did," his wife began, sounding like she was having a difficult time understanding the word. "He said they can't find it?"

"That's right," I answered slowly, still watching my brother's expression. So far the question seemed plain enough, and I was sure that wasn't where he meant the "no" to go.

"But can that change? Can someone still find out?" his wife continued, seeming determined for some kind of answer. "Nick… showed me? Now I have no issues with finding our home. But my mother, you see, was set to visit some time ago, but couldn't find the address."

"I see," I nodded, understanding just what he wanted.

"Since she can never find our home she's starting to believe we don't want to see her," his wife crossed her arms, frowning to herself. "We don't live close so we can't stop by her flat much either. I suppose what I'm asking is, well, isn't there any way to... show my mother? I'm not sure how magic… works. But it's magic, isn't it? I'm sure you could if you tried."

"Unfortunately, no," I shook my head at her, knowing this was where it was meant. "The whole point of this magic is to prevent others from knowing you live here. You actually live here so it's a bit different, and since I was part of it I can see it too. Doesn't really make sense to make a spell only to have it negate itself, does it."

"I told you," Nikolai stepped forward, giving her a small smile.

"I know but… this all seems excessive," his wife mumbled to herself as Nikolai pulled her into his arms.

"Katerina said it herself, we can't do something like that," Nikolai continued. As he pulled his wife against his chest, Nikolai gave me a thankful expression. I gave him a smile.

"I wish you would have consulted me before making these plans," his wife grumbled against him.

"I know, and I've said I'm sorry," he replied softly. I frowned at the tone. "It was an impulse decision, but I've explained why we did it. It's too dangerous to just leave you unprotected, with what's going on in our world… If keeping you safe means less visits from your mother, that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make."

"Oh, please," she pulled back to give him a look. Nikolai smirked widely back at her, before leaning in for a kiss. Frowning again, I turned away from them. I hadn't come to see that.

"Glad to see you're doing well," I mumbled sarcastically to myself. When I heard footsteps approaching, I looked up again.

"I'm glad you are too, considering…" my brother let out a sigh. "And I was glad to get your owl, but you should really be careful—"

"Hence why I left the details vague," I reminded him. In the letter I had simply written a date, figuring he would work out the rest.

"Did your parents let you come visit?" his wife asked.

"Not exactly…" I answered slowly. She began to frown, so I gave a more confident smile. "I'm doing the internship at the hospital again. I was told I would get off early on my first day, and thought I would stop by to say hello."

"Well, come in," she answered, seemingly convinced at that. "I just finished making lunch, we can all chat over our meal."

"We both have the day off today," Nikolai clarified, noting my confusion.

"Goody," I mumbled under my breath. Having heard, my brother stepped closer. He placed an arm around my shoulders, leaning in to me.

"Nice, remember," he called with a look, before leaning in to kiss my forehead.

"I already did you a favor today, don't get greedy," I looked back. At that his expression broke into a smile. Nikolai shook his head at me as he began leading me into the kitchen.

It was a small thing, not even half the size ours was. Even so, from what the muggle had shown me, this house had been the better of the options. Still, he deserved more. But the ones I thought more appropriate, Nikolai would have never accepted. He had far too much pride, an unfortunate characteristic that ran through our family. If it hadn't been for the alternative, having to live with the horror muggle mother of his, I was sure he would have declined even this. The stubborn—

My brother flicked my forehead, snapping me away from my thoughts. Over the years he'd developed the annoying habit of guessing what I was thinking. He narrowed his eyes as I pouted back. After a silent round of bickering, we both turned back to face the kitchen, where his wife was turning back to us. In her hands she held a stack of plates. Walking opposite to where their dining table lay, she came to stand in front of us.

"Nick, set the table, would you?" his wife barely asked, handing him the stack of dishes. Nikolai leaned in to kiss her cheek, accepting the task.

"Of course, love. Princess, come help," Nikolai beckoned walking away, leaving me in the kitchen. Noting I wasn't following, he stopped and circled back. "Are you coming?"

"Well, no, Nick," I crossed my arms, making him roll his eyes at me. "I didn't hear my name in there."

"Katerina," he emphasized, before nodding back to the small dining room. "There, now you heard it. So grab some place settings, and come help."

I grumbled lightly and looked to the side, to his smiling wife. She reached out her hands to me, in them the place settings and some silverware. Taking them from her hands, I gave her a stiff smile. Once I turned, my face filled with a frown again. I still didn't see why I had to do any of this; I was never asked to do this in my own home. More importantly, Nikolai was acting insane. Not only had he readily agreed, but he wasn't even using magic. Physically, he moved around placing the dishes atop the place settings. Leave him alone for a year and suddenly he's turned himself into the help. Not just that, but now he was making me suffer just the same.

"I come for a visit, and you make me do literal manual labor," I frowned at him.

"You know..." he chimed, moving around the table to grab the silverware from me. "Sometimes I forget how much of a spoiled pain I was, then you come and remind me. Then again, you were always more demanding than me, huh, Princess."

"So quick to do what you're told. Has that muggle job of yours broken you so deeply?" I continued, ignoring the snide remark.

"It has its moments," he admitted, "but I come off it alright."

"What is this incessant need of yours to work?" I continued, watching him place the remainder of the settings.

"It's called survival. Now, there," he turned back to me, placing the last of the utensils, "you're not dead, are you?"

"Might as well be," I crossed my arms at him. My brother chuckled at me in return.

Coming over to meet me, Nikolai gave me a hug once more. I fought for a moment, but couldn't help and smile back. It was good to see him doing well. A noise startled me from behind, reminding me we weren't here alone. Having finished setting the table, she had begun to serve our meal. My brother pulled away to help her serve, leaving me to pout onthe side until it was time to eat.

"I just wanted to say," his wife spoke up, once we were all sat for our meal, "it is so lovely having you here. And thank you again, for helping us with this wonderful home."

"Thanks. And you're welcome," I spoke into my food before taking a bite. She was an alright cook at least, so my brother's life with her wasn't a complete misery.

"So, Katerina, how is school going?" she insisted on speaking, as I leaned in to take another bite. "Any fun subjects?"

"Well, in our Defense Against the Dark Arts course, there is a horrid woman who doesn't know what it means to teach," I grumbled before taking a bite of my food. "She's just set on brainwashing students into thinking dark wizards don't exist, as a way for the ministry to regulate us within school grounds. It's the undersecretary, Dolores Umbridge, remember her?"

"Oh, yeah…" Nikolai answered my tangent with a pitying look. Thinking about it a bit more, he pointed his fork in my direction. "I remember her. That's that pink troll of a woman who acts like everyone who isn't 80 is 8, right?"

"Yes, well," his wife cleared her throat, calling attention back to her. "That sure does sound exciting. Nothing like what we have here…"

"Now, don't say that. Old Beth just redid her tulip garden out back. That sure was a knockout," Nikolai called sarcastically, giving his wife a side smirk. She looked at my brother and giggled, reaching out a hand to him. My brother held it in his, his smile still on her. Taking a breath, I turned to my drink.

"So, besides the tulips, anything noteworthy?" I grumbled, setting my cup back down.

"Thankfully, no. Everything has been quiet," Nikolai answered, knowing what I meant. I nodded at him but jumped as his wife aggressively set her cup down.

"Oh, that's right!" she called, in a tone of sudden realization. Excited to have some topic of conversation it seemed, she turned to face me. "Katerina, didn't you say the last time you were here you had a boyfriend? How is he?"

"She doesn't have a boyfriend, Daisy," Nikolai waved a hand at her dismissively, shoveling more food into his face. I rolled my eyes.

"Yes, I do. George and I are still dating," I reminded, but my brother paused. Setting his own cup down, he looked carefully at me.

"Why did you say it like that?"

"Like what?" I frowned, not sure what he meant.

"You said you're still dating," he insisted, not clarifying anything.

"We are still dating—"

"No, no. That tone you used… Did he do something to you?" Nikolai frowned in my direction. "Because, if you did have a boyfriend, there's no shame in breaking up with him. Or asking your brother for some help in getting rid of him. Now that you mention it, I have been thinking of a few—"

"He didn't do anything to me. I just said we're still together—stop it," I interrupted myself, noting the same doubtful expression on his face. "George and I are fine."

"Why do I not believe you then?" he argued, making me throw my arms up at him.

"Probably for the same reason you won't accept that I have a boyfriend in the first place," I argued. The sound of his wife laughing distracted me from whatever else I was going to say. I had forgotten she was still here.

"Now, Nick, she's a grown girl," she inserted herself into our conversation, reaching a hand to my brother once more.

"No she's not," my brother rolled his eyes. "As far as I'm concerned, she's nine, and she will stay nine so long as I have anything to say about it."

"First of all, you don't have any say about it. And second, I don't even get double digits?" I frowned, slightly insulted. Nikolai shook his head at me.

"Nope," he replied with a smirk. "In more than one way, you will stay single, so long as I have a say."

"I just said—"

"Alright, no boyfriend talk I suppose," his wife spoke up, interrupting me. I gave her a frown but she was too busy looking at my brother to notice. "I know from experience Nick can get a bit protective. So how about you tell us about your friends? You mentioned one in particular last time you were here… David?"

"I'm going to get some more iced tea," Nikolai called as he stood, tipping the cup he had in hand to properly empty it. More than just figuratively, he was physically avoiding the conversation. It made me smile; it had been a long time since I had seen him do that.

"Draco," I corrected, turning back to his wife. She cleared her throat again, nodding to me.

"Yes, Draco. How is he?"

"Well, I don't know if you read all the letters I send to my brother," I tried to keep the resentment out of my tone, but it was obvious she had clearly read through a few, "but we've been spending more time together at school. So, I would say we're great."

"That's great! It's always great to spend time with people you care about. Right?" she added, turning to my brother who had just returned from refilling his drink.

"If you're asking me, I think they spend plenty of time together, as is. He's always been like a little parasite, latching onto your side like it'll kill him to let go," Nikolai grumbled into his cup. After a sip, he shrugged in my direction. "I'm sure you could find better friends."

"I don't want better friends," I frowned at him. Nikolai smiled, finding it amusing what my comment implied. "I like my friends plenty. Shut up."

"Make me. I'll give you the first shot," Nikolai smirked, opening his arms and dropping all defenses. At the gesture I let out a giggle, and his wife did the same.

"I don't know much about your friends," she spoke, making my expression turn more serious. "You've only ever mentioned Draco, at least enough to remember. What about everyone else?"

"What about them?" I asked in return.

"Daisy," Nikolai interrupted, before she could speak. With a warm smile, he went on. "Love, would you mind getting our desert. I just got comfortable again, I don't really want to get up."

"Sure," she nodded with a small smile, before excusing herself.

I turned down to the table to realise I was the only one still not finished with my meal. Noting the same thing, his wife made her way around the table, only picking up my brother's plate. He gave her a silent thank you, before leaning to give her a kiss. I took a bite of my food to hide my frown. My plans for coming here had not included watching them do that a million times in one day. As his wife made her way out of the room, Nikolai reached towards me, and squeezed my cheek. I struggled trying to pull away, as my brother gave me a smile. Eventually he let go, just as his wife returned, cake in hand. With a stiff smile still on her face, she placed the treat in the middle of the table before taking a seat again.

"So you and Draco have been spending more time together, you said," his wife prompted, distributing the dessert among us. "Were you too busy to spend time with him before?"

"Sort of…" I mumbled, not really wanting to get into the topic of Bulgaria just yet. Maybe never. Never was probably a better option, knowing how prone Nikolai was to overreacting. "I joined our House team, he was already the Seeker. It just worked out that way."

"House?"

"Hogwarts—her school," Nikolai interjected to explain, "they do things a little bit differently than what I've mentioned of Durmstrang. They separate their students into four subsections, or "houses", at the start of their first year. It's done for a number of reasons, but each has their own set of dormitories, house heads, and the like."

"I see," his wife nodded, not sounding too sure of herself.

"Did you have fun playing Quidditch then—it's a wizarding sport. The one I mentioned I played in school," Nikolai turned to translate for his wife once more. She gave a nod, seeming more sure of that one.

"I didn't like all of my teammates, and having to practice so often was a bit annoying… It's not the most thrilling thing I could have done, but… yes. Yes, it was fun," I smiled, thinking of the practices we spent together. Seeing my expression, Nikolai let out a frown.

"Alright, now what is that look for?" he pointed his fork at me accusingly. I rolled my eyes at him.

"What look? Do you mean a smile? Am I not allowed to do that now?" I asked sarcastically.

"Not like that, if you're talking about that little troll Malfoy," he persisted.

"I talk about him all the time!"

"That's a problem in and of itself! But it's even more so when you go add that smile—"

"Nick," his wife spoke softly, grabbing his hand. Nikolai sighed at her before turning back to grumble at me.

"Why don't you spend more time with that one girl from the Greengrasses? Seems like you're close, and she doesn't have any Death Eater ties—I'll explain that one later," he added to his wife, seeing her frown with thought. It would probably be a longer, more serious, explanation than the others he had gone through.

"I like Daphne fine, and we actually spend more than enough time together," I frowned down at my plate, debating whether I wanted to finish it or go straight to dessert. "But she reminds me too much of our mother. It's… disconcerting."

"And you remind me a lot of our father, but I don't hold that against you," he raised his brows at me. At the comment I let out a giggle.

"Are you a lot like your father, then, Katerina?" his wife once again inserted herself into our conversation.

"In some ways, yes," Nikolai answered for me, in a low tone. Now done with his cake as well, he looked back up and smiled at me. "But not in the ones that matter. So she'll still be my little princess."

"I'm not little," I mumbled, not being able to fully deny him the name. Knowing that as well, his smile grew.

"You're nine, and that is the end of that conversation," he concluded with a wave.

I gave him a look, ready to rebut, when a loud shrill noise made me jump. The ringing sounded distorted, and came from back in the home. Instinctively I reached for my wand but paused, noting no one else had moved. Beside me, Nikolai sat unconcerned, grabbing the last bite of his cake. His wife stood just as calmly, gazing out to the edge of the kitchen.

"I'll get that. It's probably for me," she called, stepping away from the table.

"I thought you told her you'd be busy today," my brother slightly frowned.

"Don't start," his wife ruffled her napkin in front of his face, making Nikolai chuckle. She leaned down and gave him a kiss before turning to me. "I'm sorry, I have to answer that. I'll be back, but I might be a minute."

"We'll clean up," Nikolai called out to his wife as she stepped away. From off in the corner of the kitchen I heard the noise stop as she began to speak.

"We?" I frowned over to him. He watched her for another moment before turning back to me.

"It's a telephone," he answered a question I hadn't asked.

Not asking for help, Nikolai raised his wand, raising the dishes from the table. Empty plates made their way to the sink as any leftover foods sat themselves on the counter. Glancing briefly at the dishes washing themselves, Nikolai turned back to me.

"Muggles use it to communicate with one another," he went on with the explanation. "A little faster than owls, but it makes an obnoxious sound, doesn't it? Works sort of like the Floo Network, only with just sound."

"Those aren't very secure. Anyone could listen in…" I noted, but Nikolai shrugged.

"It's the same with these "phone calls". If the muggle news is to be believed, at least," he explained letting out a stretch. "But I'm not too concerned. The only people who use these are muggles, and the only calls we ever get are from work or her family. Usually it's her sister, saying she ran out of money and begging us for some. Or it's her mother, who only calls to complain to Daisy about how I won't let her come visit, how marrying me was the worst mistake she's ever made, blah blah, the usual. Come on, you can eat that in the living room."

My brother patted my head before placing an arm around me. Pulling me into a hug, he kissed the top of my head, dragging me forward and into the living room. I followed along, dessert in hand. Nikolai let go of my shoulders and threw himself against the sofa once it was within reach. I sat myself down beside him, much more calmly as to not drop the cake, and glanced behind me into the kitchen. His wife still stood there, device in hand, listening to the disembodied voice coming from it.

"You sure lie to your wife a lot," I commented, watching him stretch once more. Nikolai furrowed his brow and rested his arms against the back of the seat.

"I don't lie… I…" he began, but stopped at my look. "Alright, so I lie a little. Only about things that would cause her trouble. Daisy is a muggle, it's difficult for her to grasp certain concepts."

"So what could she not grasp by telling her there can be multiple secret keepers?" I asked, taking a bite of my cake.

"Most actual witches and wizards have a hard time understanding the details of such a complex and ancient spell… That, and, I don't have to explain how I can hate her mother but still love her," Nikolai let out a laugh, as if being reminded of something hilarious. I gave him a smile in return.

"I can understand that," I mumbled, partly to myself. "I do love Draco, but cannot stand his parents—"

"That's not the same thing," Nikolai interrupted with a tone. "I'm talking about my wife, not some friend."

"Of course," I replied quickly. "I certainly didn't mean it like that. Draco and I are friends. I was just bringing up someone, anyone, I care about."

"Are you sure?"

"This again?" I groaned, knowing what he was referring to. "Like I said before, it was just a smile."

"It's not just that," Nikolai leaned forward, on his face a serious look. "You have been talking about him more recently. And that's saying something, considering you've always talked a lot about him. I understand, with things at school the way they are, you can't send out many letters, but recently in each one you've sent you ended up talking about Malfoy for about half the parchment. Nearly everything you've written has involved him."

"He's my best friend, and we're in the same house, same classes, temporarily on the same team… We are bound to spend the majority of our time together," I defended, noting the tone he was trying to hide. "If I do something, anything, at Hogwarts, it's likely Draco would also be involved."

Nikolai sighed at me, reaching up to scratch the back of his head. At the motion, he glanced into the kitchen to look at his wife. She still stood, holding the oddly colored device, saying who knows what to whatever muggle was at the other end. In between her sentence, she locked eyes with my brother and smiled. Pointing to the thing she was holding, she made a childish face at my brother before whoever was on the other end of the conversation called her attention back. Nikolai gave her a smirk The dumb expression still plastered on her face, his wife continued her exceedingly long conversation with the unknown recipient. Nikolai took a second to take a breath as he sat. For a moment he looked at me, then slowly, he let the breath out.

"Alright," Nikolai mumbled after a moment, "let's pretend for a second that you get a boyfriend."

"I do have a boyfriend," I answered, not knowing why I was even bothering.

"Good, you're playing along," Nikolai nodded approvingly, making me roll my eyes. "Now, as the amazing, loving, older brother that I am, I would like it if this imaginary boyfriend of yours was someone I could count on to take care of you. Obviously no boyfriend would be better but, for argument's sake, if you did have one, I would like for him to be reliable, trustworthy. But that can't really happen if he has ties to Death Eaters, the Dark Lord, or anyone with those silly ideals of blood supremacy."

"Well, that eliminates about half the people in my life. Possibly more," I half joked, knowing the statement was partially true.

"I know it's hard, being in that environment," Nikolai spoke softly, patting my head just as lightly. "We were brought up in an environment with regular contact to people who should, frankly, have been given life sentences in Azkaban by now. I know it's difficult, complicated. I just got out of it myself and it feels like an entirely different world."

"You're cleaning up your own dishes," I argued, pointing at the plates that had still not found their place. "The size of your living room is barely the size of your old room. You have to work. This is a different world."

"My point is," Nikolai replied, ignoring everything I just said, "I love you. And I just want you to be safe. I'm being selfish in seeing you like this, but you shouldn't even be wandering around, going to London all on your own…"

"That's just what Draco said. I even suggested he come along—"

"Funny. That's funny. You telling a Malfoy the location of my home. Hilarious," Nikolai ended the sarcasm with a fake smile, one that disappeared within a second. I pouted in return.

"Obviously I wouldn't do that," I mumbled, not wanting to admit I had been seriously considering it. "Not when I know you don't trust him. But I still do. Either way, he's the one who said it was probably not a good idea.

"So he's not a complete idiot," Nikolai continued in the same sarcastic tone. "Even still, try to spend some time with that Greengrass girl. She seems to be the least troublesome in your little friend group.

"I suppose you could look at it that way," I mumbled, thinking over why he might think that.

Going down the list of candidates… Draco was excluded for his Death Eater family ties. So was Theodore. So were Crabbe and Goyle. Pansy was… well, Pansy. Millicent only ever spoke to Pansy. And Blaise was… definitely not someone my brother would approve of. So it would seem that Daphne won by default.

"You know, Daphne does keep insisting that I should break up with George and marry Draco. How do you feel about her after knowing that?" I asked curiously.

"I'll take the first half," he shrugged, making me giggle.

"Well, not to disappoint, but Daphne is currently in Greece, so I won't be seeing her much during Holiday," I shrugged in return. "But she is one of the people I spend the most time with at Hogwarts, besides Draco, I mean. Possibly even more than George, considering we are roommates and all. But it feels as though I am getting the usual treatment at home, so I haven't really had time to miss her."

"What treatment?" Nikolai asked curiously. At that I let out a sigh.

"Mother has been overbearing recently, it just reminds me of how Daphne is at Hogwarts," I tried to explain, but my brother's face only grew more confused.

"Mother? Our mother? How? " Nikolai asked again, chuckling a bit in confusion. Or perhaps he thought I was joking. Trying to prove my point, I explained how things had been since I returned.

Having lived eighteen years with the woman, Nikolai would have also realized how strange some of the things she had done were. Not just the meals together, or the outbursts she seemed to have when talking about certain topics, I mentioned all the little I hadn't even bothered to tell Draco. My brother listened patiently, keeping his face even as I repeated the last couple of weeks at home. Nikolai let out a slow breath but remained quiet, even after I concluded my explanation. After a few seconds more, he sighed and leaned back against his seat. His gaze shifted to where his wife still stood, talking to whoever the other muggle could be. But this time he didn't wait for her to make a dumb face at him. My brother turned back and, slowly, began to lean in close to me.

"She has done something similar in the past," Nikolai finally answered.

"What do you mean?" I asked, trying to match his low tone.

"A few years back… when the Dark Lord had first risen to power… I remember something like that happening. You wouldn't remember, you were too young, not to mention our mother was always smothering towards you as a baby. I think it had to do with the fact you couldn't talk back then, but I digress," Nikolai shook his head, getting himself back to the topic at hand. "Around that time she became… far more attentive. She insisted on spending time together as a family, had us eating our meals together, and our father played along. He always did do whatever made her happy, no matter how unreasonable. At the time I just saw it as an unpleasant side effect of having a new kid in the house, but…"

"You think it has to do with the Dark Lord's return?"

"It's possible," he nodded, before leaning against his arm to think. "Honestly, it's hard to find an explanation for that behaviour, considering it's her we're talking about. I've never understood what goes on in that woman's head… But you said it just started, when you returned for Holiday?"

"Yes," I confirmed with a slight frown. "So wouldn't this have all started during the summer, if it really was about his return."

"It's possible they didn't think about the repercussions until after you returned to school… Or, perhaps, they know something we don't," Nikolai frowned.

Having thought of that now, it did seem like the most fitting answer, considering. I frowned down at my half-eaten cake. It would explain some things, if that were the case. So, either they're acting that way from guilt, or from concern. One of the many annoying things my mother had gotten into the habit of doing since holiday was making it clear that they cared about me. Not that I didn't already know that to an extent, they were my parents after all, but she had been a bit insistent. It was possible Nikolai's reasoning had something to do with it.

"I hate that they always keep things like this from us," I grumbled, taking an annoyed bite of my cake. Nikolai let out a smile.

"Well, I am disowned, and you're nine, so what can you do," he shrugged in return.

I let out a giggle and Nikolai's small smile turned into a full smirk. It was hard to take seriously even this sombre of a topic with him sometimes. He always knew the right words to say to make me feel at ease. He was always there when I needed him. I loved him. No matter how dangerous these trips may end up being, I would risk everything to keep seeing him like this.

"Done already?" Nikolai piped up. Looking in the same direction he was, I saw his wife quietly making her way back to us. When she reached the sofa, his wife raised a hand in the air and dropped it quickly against his forehead. It was hard enough to make a sound. I turned to glare as Nikolai merely smiled up at her. "Ow."

"I told you, that's cheating," his wife placed her hands at her hips with the gesture. My brother gave her one more smile, making her roll her eyes. She leaned down and kissed his forehead, where she had just struck him.

"It's faster this way. My sister has never cleaned a dish in her life, she would break about half of our plates… Oh, I get it," he suddenly inserted, narrowing his eyes at his wife. "You want her to break them, so you'll have an excuse to buy a new set. Such a selfish—"

"Stop it," she smirked back, pushing against him on the sofa. She squeezed herself into the spot next to him, far too small for her, forcing her to stay close to Nikolai's side. He acted as though he didn't mind, grabbing her and pulling her by the waist. "We said no magic, remember?"

"What? Scared that someone is going to walk in and see it," Nikolai joked, knowing that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. His wife raised her hands towards him, but he grabbed them from her. Using them he pulled her in for a kiss. I turned away, sticking a big piece of cake in my mouth to hide my disgust. "Come on, it's not every day my sister comes to see us. I'll wreck my hands with it tomorrow, I promise."

"Alright, I suppose," his wife answered, almost teasing, and still sitting far too close to my brother.

Nikolai gave her a smirk, which only made her smile back. Still, my expression hadn't changed from the frown it had grown just a moment ago. It wasn't just because of the nauseating way they were acting, far too laid back and comfortable. But, more so, it was about what she had said, and how she had said it.

"What's wrong with magic?" I asked, interrupting their, whatever that was. The way she had said it, she made it sound as though it were something to be ashamed of.

"Oh, no, nothing is wrong," his wife quickly shook her head at me. "That's not what I—"

"Ow!" my yelp interrupted her excuse when Nikolai hit me upside the head. His wife slapped a hand across my brother's chest, but it didn't seem to make him any more remorseful. "What was that for? I was asking a perfectly legitimate question."

"No, you weren't, you were being a brat," he replied, pinching my cheek with his free hand. His other was still wrapped around his wife. "Obviously, she doesn't think there is anything wrong with magic. But, as someone who grew up surrounded by it, we sometimes forget it's not as common within the muggle world.

"I didn't forget, just didn't think it was relevant," I mumbled, rubbing a hand against my cheek.

"Well, now that I'm married to one, it is," he countered with a look. "If it's my turn to do the dishes when visiting Daisy's family, and suddenly dishes start flying around the room, how do you think her mother will react?"

"It would certainly be a shock," his wife answered with a vacant look, as if already picturing the event.

"Muggles don't always handle learning about magic well," Nikolai continued. "Her mother might die from the shock. Or worse, she might survive and then the Ministry could get involved—"

"Hey," his wife slapped his arm lightly. "Why is that worse than killing my mother, huh?"

"I could explain, but I don't think you'd like the answer," Nikolai replied with a smirk. His wife slapped his arm once more, making him chuckle in return.

"Alright, I get that," I interjected, not wanting to watch that scene repeat itself again. "I just don't see how you can live like this."

"Katerina," his wife began, with a tone and look that made me have to really focus on the expression my face was projecting. "Listen, I know it seems like I stole your brother away—"

"Ow—would you stop that!" I snapped as once again my brother pinched hard on my cheek. But his face didn't seem as playful this time around.

"Stop saying unnecessary things. I'm quite happy here," Nikolai spoke clearly.

He began to scoot a bit closer to me, leaving an adequate amount of room for his wife to finally sit in. Nikolai used his now free hands to pull me closer, and into a hug. Using that same motion, he leaned in to kiss my forehead.

"Princess," he began with a sigh, "of course I miss you like crazy. Every day I think about what things would be like if I had stayed, and how you're doing without me. But even so… I am happy here."

"Are you really?" I mumbled lightly. Not sure if he heard me, Nikolai continued to speak.

"Daisy didn't steal me away, I chose to be here. There are some inconveniences, sure, but I don't regret what I did. I love Daisy… and you need to accept that," he whispered the last part, low enough that even I barely heard. Turning up to look at her, his wife returned to me a smile.

"I was going to say," his wife spoke up, "I know it seems like I stole him away, but in reality I'm just borrowing him. Your brother talks about nothing but you. When your letter arrived saying you were planning a visit he was beaming the whole day. Nick made sure to get time off work; he moved everything in his life to see you."

His wife leaned happily against my brother's back, thinking her point made. I forced a smile in return. She was making it out to be some grand gesture, but obviously he would do what he could. If we were lucky we saw each other a few times a year, she was with him all day every day. She didn't even realize how lucky she was. Nikolai was one of the greatest people I knew. He was an incredibly talented wizard, always gave me peace of mind, made me laugh, made our house feel like a home… And now all of that was gone from my life, all because of her. Talented as he may be, now he apparently wasn't even allowed to use simple magic on something as trivial as cleaning up after himself. All because of her. She did this to him. She—

"Princess," Nikolai spoke slowly, an even look on his face. Either my frustration was beginning to show, or he had simply guessed my thoughts again. Placing a hand on my head, he gently stroked my hair. "I know things are complicated now, but when all of this blows over, I promise I'll meet you halfway."

"When?" I repeated doubtfully.

"When," he repeated with a nod, sure of what he had said.

Nikolai gave me a smile, that confident smile he had always been known for. It was as if he knew what was going to happen. There was no seer blood in us, at least none that we knew of; our mother's side of the family had always been a mystery. But even with all that confidence, I knew it was a lie. The war was just ramping up, things didn't look great for anyone opposing the Dark Lord. As things were, if he was caught alive and with a muggle then… because of her… he would—

"You worry too much about me," Nikolai interrupted, knowing just where my thoughts were leading me. "I'm your older brother, remember? I'm supposed to take care of you. Your only job should be to annoy me."

"I can do both," I mumbled as he pet my hair. His wife let out a giggle, but my brother didn't look convinced. He watched a moment more before giving me a small smile.

"Well, I think you're slacking," he teased. "Barely one letter a month recently, how am I supposed to get annoyed with that?"

"You did hear me mention Umbridge was working within Hogwarts," I reminded, figuring that should be enough to explain why I was careful about sending letters. Even so, he waved a hand at me.

"Yes, yes I heard that excuse," he leaned down, still teasing.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know you were trying to get caught," I smiled back finally. "I would have just told Papa to drop by. Maybe Draco can come as well."

"Alright, that's not funny anymore," Nikolai pouted.

Not enjoying my smile much anymore my brother reached towards me, and, with one hand, squeezed both my cheeks. I swatted at him to no avail, while his wife giggled off to the side. My frown shifted slightly towards her, clearly still not understanding all that she had cost him. Nikolai said he lied to her about things that would trouble her… That probably included letting her know everything he had sacrificed to live in squalor with her. But as he pulled me in for a hug, I had to admit, he did look happy. For now, I would just have to let him live with his mistake. So long as she didn't make things worse for him, that is. If the time ever came, where her presence became more than just a passive hindrance, I would have to take care of things personally.