Draco stood glumly beside his mother in the threshold of the drawing room as fellow Death Eaters filtered from the hallway inside, preparing for the meeting. Some nodded, some spoke to them, others ignored them entirely, and though he could tell from his mother's rigid stance that she did not approve of them constantly coming in and out of her home, especially with her husband in Azkaban, she would ever be the gracious host.

Coming home had not been the wonderful reunion Draco had hoped for. Though he had finally been able to hug his mother and see for himself that she was all right, he had been greeted by a dark and cold home, nothing at all like the home of his youth. The home of a year ago. Aunt Bellatrix still haunted the place, and she was keen to resume training him. The Dark Lord was also still a resident and had required his full report on the vanishing cabinet that very night. Luckily, he was accepting of Draco's progress, though he was sure to remind him of what was at stake.

The worst part of being home again was that he and his mother rarely spoke, even when it was just the two of them. It didn't feel safe to do so… And neither were eager to reveal anything that might make them appear weak. And so, aside from training sessions with his aunt, Draco spent most of his time alone. Until the meeting was announced. He was, of course, expected to attend. He wasn't a child anymore… He was a Death Eater. The youngest of all time, perhaps, but a Death Eater all the same.

Draco's eyes wearily scanned the faces as they entered the house. Many of the men and women were people he knew, had known since childhood. Some of them he had expected to bear the Dark Mark. Others came as a complete shock…

Which is exactly how he felt when Sagun Selwyn walked through the door. Draco's eyes grew big as galleons. For a moment, all he could do was stare. Then, he felt his feet moving, intercepting Selwyn before he could join the others.

"Draco," Mr. Selwyn said solemnly, a look in his eyes like he had known this confrontation was inevitable.

"You're a Death Eater?" Draco spat quietly, still in shock.

"I am," Mr. Selwyn replied, glancing about as others filtered around them. "I have born the Mark since the last war."

His heart pounding, Draco managed to ask, "Does Amaris know?"

Mr. Selwyn scoffed. "Of course not." Draco felt relief for a single moment as Mr. Selwyn glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot before adding, "I've kept her from the Dark Lord as best I can. He would see right through her."

Something bone-cold washed over Draco. At the realization that Mr. Selwyn had not been fooled by his niece's Pureblood disguise, that her only shield from the Dark Lord was the man standing in front of him. "…You knew?"

"Of course, I knew. How could I not?" He sighed, drawing them to the side of the room to avoid being overheard. Even still, he spoke quietly when he said, "My sister was raised right, had proper Pureblood values. And then she met Joseph Grey, the blood traitor, and fell in love." He spoke the word as though it made him ill. "He took her traveling, visiting Muggles around the world, put all these crazy ideas in her head about them. Suddenly, she didn't want anything to do with Pureblood society anymore."

So that was why they had traveled? To learn more about Muggle culture…? That was why they had dragged Amaris around? To teach her about Muggles? It made a sick sort of sense, Draco thought. And even though it didn't matter at all why they traveled—because they were dead, because it was in the past—it still felt important to make this connection, though he couldn't fathom why.

Selwyn's nose wrinkled with disgust as he said, "They raised Amaris will all sorts of backwards ideas about Muggles and Wizarding society. When I got custody, I did what I could to reeducate her, to instill in her proper Pureblood values, but I fear the damage is irreversible."

"That's why you hired the tutor," Draco realized.

"Yes," he admitted. "I thought you knew, too, what with being schoolmates. I was surprised when you showed such an interest in courting her. I wondered if I could truly pass her on to such a prestigious name, or if you were just toying with her."

It disgusted Draco that Mr. Selwyn had known about him, had guessed Draco's intentions even when his own parents had believed him sincere. Made him sick to his stomach to realize that he and Mr. Selwyn were alike in this small way.

"I wasn't sure you were serious until you stood up to Ms. Brumley on her behalf," Mr. Selwyn said with a grin.

That cold that cloaked Draco turned sharp with an icy anger, momentarily quelling his nausea over the fact that he had not confronted the tutor on Amaris's behalf, but rather his own, as he focused on another piece of crucial information. "You mean you knew that bitch was slapping her around?"

"Of course, I did," Mr. Selwyn answered. "I told her to do it."

Draco's breathing grew shallow as that sharp cold spread through his chest.

"Amaris had to learn," he continued, "and it was kinder than what another family might show her."

Anger roared through Draco's veins, choking any response he might have spat. Never mind that it was true, that another family would have been so much harsher in their reeducation. Draco's parents had been loving and fair, as parents should be, as Mr. and Mrs. Grey had been, and it enraged him that the man who had taken her in when her parents had died had instructed her abuse so that he could sell her off to the highest bidder.

"I failed," Mr. Selwyn went on. "She looks the part, yes, and she knows all of her lines, but she does not believe a word of it." He raised his brows. "I was relieved when you seemed to fancy her in spite of her flaws."

Flaws. Draco had once thought so, too. Now the word made him seethe. It wasn't that he didn't see her support of Muggle-born as such any longer, more that he couldn't tolerate anyone insinuating that she was flawed.

"So why pull the match?" Draco asked through clenched teeth.

"The Malfoy name is disgraced," he answered easily. "I couldn't tie the Selwyn name to such scandal."

"But you're a Death Eater, too."

"Appearances are everything, Draco. Surely, you understand."

Draco did understand, and it made him despise the man all the more. "So you'll sell her off to the Goyles?"

Mr. Selwyn shrugged. "If no better option comes along." He sighed. "I realize you have some affection for my niece, and so I must ask you to stay away from her."

"What?" Draco balked. "Why?"

"To protect her. The Malfoys are a sinking ship. Your father has lost the Dark Lord's favor. That he chooses to stay here proves that he is not yet done dealing with your family." His voice dropped to a near-whisper as he said, "If you insist on tying Amaris to you, you will put her in the Dark Lord's path where she will be exposed and killed. Even if she somehow manages to survive, she will be shunned by Wizarding society."

The words struck Draco like a perfectly aimed spell. Mr. Selwyn was right. Draco hated to admit it, but it was true. If he matched with her, it would only result in her death. The Dark Lord's future had no place for blood traitors, and he doubted he could convince her to change her mind about Muggles and Muggle-borns. Not that she would accept him once she found out that he was a Death Eater after all… No one will force me to marry someone I don't love, she had said. She wouldn't have him under any circumstance. Not even Mr. Selwyn could bind Amaris to Draco, even if all he wanted to do was protect her.

"Why bother?" Draco finally ground out. "If you find her values so wrong, why keep her from the Dark Lord at all? Why not just let him make an example out of her?"

"Because," Mr. Selwyn said tightly, "she is still my sister's child…"

And with that, the man slipped around Draco and walked into the drawing room. Draco just stood there in stunned silence, his mind and heart racing.

When Draco returned to school, he did as Mr. Selwyn asked. He avoided Amaris completely.


Author's Note: I apologize these chapters have been taking longer to get out. Holidays are distracting.