Chapter 22
Narcissa paced nervously in front of the floo. She'd been sitting in the floo room waiting for over an hour and had taken to pacing ten minutes ago. Finally, her husband stepped out of the fire and she immediately stopped lest she be spotted looking so openly nervous by their expected guest. Lucius just gave her a reassuring nod and a quick, hard kiss before he stepped out of the way so that their guest could come through. She was grateful for Lucius' assurance because Sirius' face resembled a storm cloud, and if she'd gone by his expression alone, she would have been convinced things hadn't gone their way.
She carefully studied her cousin and felt a little tug at her heartstrings as she did so. It had been so many years since she had been able to look at any member of her family with affection. And she hadn't set eyes on Sirius in months. It would have aroused too much suspicion for her to visit him in St. Mungo's. He had been released only hours before and had immediately gone to the Ministry for the hearing which would decide if he was allowed to take custody of Harry Potter. He'd applied for the hearing the moment he'd been told his release from St. Mungo's was imminent a few weeks previously. He hadn't wanted to wait a moment, she hadn't blamed him.
He looked good; handsome, and his frame had filled out even if there was still a certain haunted quality about him. He looked like a Black. Polished, aristocratic, and a little bit dangerous. He actually reminded her of her father in those days when she'd still been very young, and idolized him because of the way he doted on her. Before she realized his attentions were due to her fair looks. Her sisters looked like Blacks, she looked like her mother. She was the one he showed off.
It had been a bitter disappointment, the day she'd figured it out. And she couldn't even blame Bellatrix for her vicious and terrifying resentment. But Andromeda had been there for her. And now it was too dangerous for her to even speak to her sister, but she would do what she could to protect her.
She sighed. "Hello Sirius," she said carefully.
He sighed in return. "I'd love to do something like sweep you up in my arms and give you a smacking kiss on the cheek, which I know you wouldn't approve of, but I'm not in the mood," he huffed.
She frowned. "I thought things went well."
"They did, your cousin is in his predictable Black temper," Lucius drawled, rocking back on his heels in a sure sign of annoyance.
She arched an eyebrow in his direction.
"Your's is always perfectly managed of course, my love," Lucius answered smoothly, "you are, and have always been the best of your House."
"Merlin, but you are ruled by your wife, Malfoy," Sirius snorted.
"You couldn't possibly appreciate what it is to have a wife," Lucius snapped back.
"I've ordered dinner. I was anticipating a celebration, shall we talk over that?" Narcissa suggested attempting to distract them. And much to her amusement it worked immediately. Both men nodded- she supposed they had been confined to the Wizengamot chamber for the whole of the afternoon. She took Lucius' offered arm and they retired to the dining room.
"I would have appreciated it if the two of you had told me what a ruthless old bastard Dumbledore has become," Sirius said, almost as soon as they were seated.
Ah- so Dumbledore had attempted to block Sirius' custody claim. They had assumed he might but had also considered the possibility that he wouldn't object and might even argue on Sirius' behalf in order to make him feel beholden.
Lucius sniffed. "Are you maintaining that he hasn't always been like that? Because I've thought you many things, Black. Stupid and overly trusting, among them, but surely you've noticed that Dumbledore's actions have always been consistent. He seeks control, above all else. He avoids being overtly political but that doesn't mean that he doesn't have a clear objective, or that he is not willing to do whatever he must to achieve it."
"Merlin but I hate to admit it," he almost closed his eyes at the admission, "something about Dumbledore always made me shifty. But I didn't expect him to fight Harry's guardianship. What could he possibly have had to benefit from that?" He took a moment to look between the couple. "You don't seem surprised."
Narcissa glanced at Lucius. "After you were taken to Azkaban he shut down every wizarding families' bid to take possession of the boy. We didn't even try, but I was shocked that he wasn't sent to the Bones', amongst others."
"Lily would have wanted him to know about the muggle world. But they would both have been appalled that he'd been kept from his magical heritage all this time. The Potters were very proud."
"I remember," said Narcissa, "they were a respectable family, despite what I know you heard my parents say, they were a good example of a proper wizarding House."
"You know, speaking of Dumbledore, he's bound to be suspicious that we have some kind of alliance after today."
"Let him suspect," said Lucius carelessly, "I'm certain he's been suspicious ever since I entered his office with Fudge and he realized I was there in a bid to clear your name. Though I personally suspect that at the time, he thought I simply wanted you out of Azkaban so that I could have you quietly killed in order to allow Draco to inherit the Black title. I don't know what he'll think after today. My hope is that he will interpret my support of your attempt to gain custody of Mr. Potter as outrage over the idea that the wishes of an Ancient and Noble House could ever be overruled by a claim from muggles, and nothing more."
"Good thing I'm no good to you dead," answered Sirius dryly. "But that's what I don't understand? He must've known how that would go over with all the old Houses, trying to deny a godfather custody like that. He lost a lot of political capital today. Why is he so insistent that Harry return to those muggles who don't seem to want him anymore than he wants to go back to them? At least according to him."
Narcissa glanced at her husband again and he gave her a slight nod of approval. They'd put together what could only be described as a working hypothesis over the past months using Narcissa's research into parental and sacrificial blood magic. They knew Sirius was not going to like what they'd concluded, but they thought it was important that he had the full picture, lest he fold to Dumbledore's pretty words and manipulations. They knew they would need the old wizard onside eventually, but they wanted to remain free of his machinations for as long as possible.
"Do you remember the story we told you in December about the night Harry, Hermione and the Weasley boy went after the philosopher's stone in a misguided attempt to protect it from Severus Snape?"
Sirius dropped his utensils and took a deep breath. "You mean the night Harry came face to face with you-know-who in the back of his defense against the dark arts professor's head? After conquering a set of obstacles set up by adult wizards alongside a boy who most likely had his parents betrayer in his pocket at the time?" He asked incredulously, eyes boring into hers. "Yeah, Narcissa, I remember that. The nightmares I had in Azkaban are nothing compared to the ones that story gave me."
Narcissa winced but continued. "Harry was saved that night because of the blood protection his mother's sacrifice left with him. We've come to believe that protection could be extended by a certain amount- a little, or a lot, depending on the circumstances. For instance, if Harry was living with blood relatives on his mother's side, it could broaden to encompass the entire dwelling."
Sirius seemed to consider that. "That makes sense, theoretically. But the problem is that Lily's sister and her son are both muggles, they have no magic of their own to power the wards, that would be entirely on Harry, which could be very dangerous for him. You said having you-know-who touching him drained him. What would a sustained assault on that muggle house do? And then, once breached, Harry would be the only one with a wand to defend them. And that scenario only accounts for you-know-who himself. He could send a Death Eater in there at any point and they'd all be sitting ducks." He raked his hands through his hair which he'd pulled free from it's leather tie, and just stared off into space.
"We concluded something similarly," she replied quietly.
"But you don't think Dumbledore has figured that out? You think he really believes Harry is safer in the muggle world?"
"It's possible," she hedged slightly.
"Oh for fucks sake, Narcissa, spit it out!" he yelled, slapping the table.
She jumped, but quickly composed herself. "Before Harry came to Hogwarts he was completely ignorant of the magical world. Hermione says that he knew even less than she did. Hogwarts has made up almost the entirety of his experience in our world. Hogwarts, Dumbledore's school."
Sirius narrowed his eyes.
"Do you know why- exactly- the Potters decided to go into hiding? Because the Dark Lord had been after them for years and they had never backed down before. Even after their child was born."
"No, I thought that was odd as well, but I knew there were things James didn't tell me, it was safest to share as little information as possible in those times and I didn't press him. I know they feared for Harry."
"There was rumor of a prophecy," Lucius interjected.
Sirius visibly started, then scoffed. "You think my godson is the subject of a prophecy? That's insane."
"The Dark Lord wouldn't have thought so. Probably because he was almost fully insane himself by the end. Insane and desperate to take out anybody he saw as a threat. And let me tell you, he was obsessed with tracking down the Potters. And then he did and it got him disembodied." Lucius paused rather dramatically. "Now tell me do you really think it was a coincidence that he was in Hogwarts the first year your godson came to school?"
Sirius downed a glass of wine and then watched as an elf refilled it before responding. "So you think Dumbledore wants to keep Harry close, because of this prophecy?"
"Whether it is due to a prophecy or not, the Dark Lord is after Mr. Potter. Where he is the Dark Lord will seek him. We believe that Dumbledore wants to keep him under his control. Whether it is to wield him like a weapon, use him as bait, or something else, I'm not even sure Dumbledore knows at this juncture. But he knows he'll be important in the coming war. And the Scion of an Ancient and Noble House, educated in his heritage with access to the resources of another Ancient and Noble House is not so easily controlled."
Narcissa watched Sirius absorb this and- in the blink of an eye- his eyes went hard and he leapt out of his seat.
"Incarcerous," said Lucius, almost lazily, and then he levitated the other wizard back into his chair. He met Narcissa's eyes, and cocked an eyebrow, she gave him a hollow smile. Sirius was still too much of a loose cannon for either of them to feel completely comfortable with, but he was also too much of a gift to just throw away.
"Let me go! I'm going to kill him," he ranted, "he knew you-know-who was after my pup and he left him in a muggle house with weak wards. Wanted to keep him there still!" He squirmed desperately within his bonds.
Narcissa wondered if he'd even considered using magic.
"Oh yes, that's exactly what you should do," drawled Lucius sarcastically, "attempt to break into Hogwarts and murder one of the most powerful wizards who has ever lived. A wizard who just stood in front of the whole of the Wizengamot and tried to convince them that you weren't mentally fit to raise your godson. You'd be playing right into his hands. Absolutely brilliant."
"You don't understand," Sirius snapped, face red and eyes full of rage.
Narcissa stood up so that she could lean into his space. "Stop acting like a child. You are a parent now, Harry must be your first thought and your primary responsibility, not some temper tantrum you want to throw. Otherwise they will take him from you. Is that way you want?" She paused and regarded him cooly. "Perhaps it is, you let it happen once," she taunted.
"Low blow," he spat.
"You needed to hear it," she countered, "now if Lucius lets you go will you cease this nonsense and finish talking about this calmly. There are plans that need to be made."
"Yes, fine," he agreed.
Lucius canceled the spell. Sirius visibly gathered himself and they went back to their meal.
"The boy should have extra training. We've been providing it for Hermione and Draco since their first year. But I can only assume it will be even more important for him," Lucius said, by way of restarting the conversation.
Sirius nodded. "I'd actually already thought of that. That curse on the defense post is a real problem. Harry's grandfather hired a tutor for me and James before OWLs. Apparently they had a good teacher at the beginning of this year, at least until somebody got him fired," he said pointedly.
"He is a werewolf," Lucius bit back in return, completely unrepentant.
"Yes, and you're a Death Eater. At least Remus didn't ask to be bitten and turned into a monster."
Narcissa saw the way her husband's nostrils flared and his face colored and quickly intervened before things could escalate. "But the fact is that once a month he does turn into a blood-thirsty wolf who has no control over himself, and no business in the midst of a school full of children," she said quickly, and more gently than she thought he deserved.
"If he takes wolfsbane he keeps his mind."
"If he takes a notoriously tricky-to-brew potion exactly as prescribed. And Dumbledore didn't have any other precautions in place, he just let him lock himself up in the Shrieking Shack. A barrier you know very well was gotten past by a student in the past, considering you were the one who set that up."
"That was a prank," Sirius responded defiantly.
She shook her head. "Well it wasn't funny. And now that you have a child of your own I would hope that you can see that clearly. What would you do if somebody put Harry in that situation? If you want to risk your own life I suppose that's one thing, but you have a responsibility to protect his. We weren't comfortable with the situation with Professor Lupin and we stand by that decision, I'll not be arguing about it any further," she said firmly.
"Well, I've hired him.," Sirius retorted. "I need help getting the affairs of House Black and House Potter in order. They've both been sadly neglected for years and that's much more Moony's department than mine."
Narcissa fought not to roll her eyes at the nickname.
"He'll be good at helping me teach Harry some defense as well. I won't be talked out of it," he continued, sounding like a defiant teenager.
She did roll her eyes this time. "Just keep him far away from my children on the full moon. Otherwise I don't care what you do."
There was a long silence, only interrupted by the sounds of cutlery scraping against china and the elves moving around, making sure all of their needs were fulfilled.
"There are some areas that could use your expertise, Narcissa. If you wouldn't mind," Sirius stumbled over the last words.
He was so blatantly uncomfortable asking for a favor she almost laughed. "What's that?"
"Just some things that are usually relegated to the Lady of the House. Obviously I don't have one of those and there were a lot of domestic issues that weren't covered in my lessons as a child."
She smiled softly, there was no reason to make him suffer, he was actually trying to be responsible about this. "I'm surprised you listened in those lessons," she teased instead.
He shot her a wolfish grin. "Enough to get by, at least."
She chuckled. "Well, I'd be happy to help, but I was also hoping you would reach out to Andromeda."
His eyes went wide. "Andromeda! Yes, I should have thought of that. And she deserves to be reinstated into the family." He eyed her when she remained silent. "You're not going to fight me on that?"
"No. I never wanted to lose Andromeda in the first place. I didn't agree with what she did but I certainly didn't want to see her disowned, I just wasn't in any position to support her. But I'd like to at least know that she's okay."
"She ran off to marry a muggleborn, not to live on the streets," he answered, looking at her like she was daft.
"I'm aware of that Sirius. I know she's not destitute, but there is little I do know about her life. I know she became a healer. I know she has a daughter who was a Hufflepuff- of all things. But I don't actually know if she's okay, if she's happy," she finished with emphasis.
"You could contact her yourself."
Narcissa resisted the urge to do something very unbecoming, like huff in frustration. "That would drag her into this mess, into all these secrets. I don't want to do that to her."
"You had no trouble doing it to me."
"Oh please, Sirius, you were already in this up to your neck long before you ever jumped onto our breakfast room table. I just saw an opening."
He laughed.
When they retired to a sitting room after dinner Lucius and Narcissa exchanged yet another significant glance.
"Okay, Sirius," she began cautiously, "we need to tell you about a diary that has passed into our possession from the Dark Lord, via Lucius' father. It's important. But before we do I need your assurance that we won't have to tie you up again. We're never going to get anything done if we have to keep doing that…"
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When Hermione entered her dorm room Ginny was sitting on her bed cuddling Duke. It was all she could do not to rush forward and rip him out of the younger girl's arms. She knew that Ginny didn't know any better, but the only people who were allowed to touch Duke were her and Draco. She absolutely did not want him smelling like Ginny Weasley and she was already annoyed that the other witch was in her room and on her bed. It was pretty presumptuous behavior for somebody she considered to be little more than an acquaintance. And who rarely had time for her unless she needed something.
"Hey Ginny, what's up?" she said, doing her best to look cheerful.
"Hey Hermione. Does your dragon toy belong to your boyfriend?"
"Uh, yeah, he's had Duke since he was a baby. But how did you know that?"
"You've had him for as long as I've known you, but he's obviously older than that. He's a magical toy so you must've gotten him from somebody who grew up here." She shrugged.
"Oh well, yes," she said, waiting for Ginny to get to her point.
"So, you're going to spend some time at Harry's house over the summer?" she ventured in a way that Hermione could only assume she thought was nonchalant.
Of course- when Ginny sought her out it was almost always about Harry.
"Yes, now that I'm under the protection of House Black, Lord Black is responsible for making sure I'm educated in the ways of wizarding society since I'm a representative of his House. It wouldn't do for me to embarrass him. And since Harry lives with him, then yes, of course I'll be seeing him too."
"How long will you be there?"
Hermione wondered if Ginny had any idea how rude she was being.
"I don't know. Harry and Lord Black have yet to even meet each other. It's important that they settle in first. I would never want to intrude. We're going to discuss it in a few weeks."
"Why do you keep calling him that?"
"Why do I keep calling who, what?"
"Lord Black. He told Ron to call him 'Sirius' and you're his ward now, surely he told you that you could do the same."
"He did," she said impatiently.
"So then why do you still call him Lord Black?" Ginny insisted.
She sighed, it wasn't her responsibility to explain these things to the girl. "He has given me leave to call him by his given name. He has not given me leave to do so when speaking of him to others, and I wouldn't want anybody to think that I don't respect him."
Ginny laughed, "that's so old fashioned. I know you probably read that in a book but nobody does that anymore."
She bit her lip to stop herself from telling her that just because her family didn't do it, didn't mean that it wasn't still considered to be normal amongst the rest of society. She was pretty sure the younger witch wouldn't believe her and would just take it as a slight.
Ron had said something similar to her a few days after she'd returned to Hogwarts from the Christmas holidays. He'd been pouting for days- whenever he wasn't on his new broom, actually- and hinting heavily that he should have been offered the protection of House Black just as Hermione had been. She'd tried to ignore it. But then one night in the common room- tired of seeing Harry looked confused, concerned, and unable to decide between wanting to please his friend and risking upsetting his godfather- she'd snapped.
She'd explained to Ron that it would have been highly inappropriate for Lord Black to offer such a thing to him, as he already came from an old wizarding family. It would be like implying the Weasleys weren't capable of educating and caring for their own children. She'd given him several books to reference. He'd openly scoffed at her and told her that she couldn't learn about the magical world in a book and that she was just making herself sound stupid and typically swotty.
But then Neville, of all people, had interrupted and said that Hermione was absolutely right. He'd quietly, but confidently explained to Ron that he needed to be quiet because people were beginning to notice what he was saying, and it was going to become embarrassing to his family. That had, begrudgingly, shut him up.
She just shrugged at Ginny and again resolved to wait her out, hoping the inquisition was over.
"How did you get Leo's attention?" she finally asked.
Hermione almost laughed. Ginny was so predictable.
'Leo.' That was what Hermione had blurted out when she'd been caught off guard by somebody asking the name of her boyfriend. But it turned out to be rather perfect.
Draco hated it.
'You've named me after a lion, Hermione! I'm no Gryffindor,' he had whined, repeatedly. She'd just laughed at him and told him the same thing over and over. 'I've named you after a constellation, just like your mother did. I could have chosen something less fearsome.' He still grumbled whenever it was brought up, but Hermione had pointed out that she couldn't just change it. She couldn't reasonably explain that she'd gotten her own boyfriend's name wrong.
"I wasn't trying to get his attention. Not like that," she told Ginny with a sigh. She missed Draco, it had been a busy term and they hadn't had nearly as much time together as they'd become accustomed to. But they were returning home for the summer soon and she was practically counting the hours, "we were friends first," she finished with a small smile.
"You're friends with Harry."
"Yes, Ginny but we're just friends," she said emphatically.
"I know. I mean things must be pretty serious with Leo for him to have given you that ring."
Hermione laughed as she remembered the response to her ring had garnered. The moment they'd gotten inside her dorm room that first night back at Hogwarts the squealing had begun and it had been ear splitting. Her roommates had kept her up into the early hours asking her everything they could think of. It was the first time she'd felt like part of the group and she hadn't been sure she liked it. It had seemed shallow.
The next morning news of her new accessory quickly made the rounds and girls came from the other House tables all throughout breakfast to see it and to congratulate her. She was the first girl in her year to receive such a token. A ring wasn't traditional, it was usually a necklace or bracelet, but she'd explained over and over about the concept of promise rings and how he'd thoughtfully acknowledged her muggle heritage. And while she could tell that some people didn't approve of that, she got mostly dreamy sighs in response. She hadn't been sure she'd liked any of that either.
"They are, I love him," she said, returning to the present and the uninvited visitor to her dorm.
"Will you help me become friends with Harry?" she blurted.
Hermione closed her eyes in frustration. "No, Ginny I won't."
She would have, six months before, if she'd thought Ginny was looking for genuine friendship. But since Sirius had been granted his freedom Harry's celebrity had risen to a new heights. Sometimes he seemed to be drowning in it. He needed people who wanted to be around him for the right reasons, now more than ever, and she just didn't trust Ginny's motives.
"Seriously, that's it?" The younger witch scoffed, and Hermione realized that she'd never really thought she would be turned away.
"Yes, Ginny, you haven't given me any reason to agree to help you. I know you have a crush on Harry and that's just not the kind of thing he needs more of right now."
"So what, are you his bodyguard now?" She snapped.
Hermione rubbed her forehead with the heel of her palm, she could actually feel a headache coming on. "Ginny you asked me to help you, I said no," she explained slowly. "If you really want to be Harry's friend then talk to him, get to know him. I'm not going to poison him against you or anything like that, but you're also not getting an 'in' from me."
"You don't have to be such a bitch about it." She tossed Duke down and stomped out the door.
"Oh yeah, that's really going to convince me to help you," she murmured to herself, picking up the stuffed toy and hugging him tight, murmuring apologies for the rough treatment. She flopped onto her bed, silenced her curtains, and pulled out her mirror.
"Draco Malfoy," she said quietly. This was what had really annoyed her about Ginny's intrusion. She'd come upstairs particularly to talk to Draco before he went to quidditch practice (despite the fact that the season was over) because after dinner he was going to be doing something along with some of his fellow Slytherins that she'd decided she wouldn't ask details about, but that she hoped wouldn't get him in trouble during their last days at school. They'd had precious little time to talk lately and now the time they had set aside would be cut short.
"Hey!" he answered breathlessly.
She felt her eyes go wide. "Draco, are you naked?!"
He looked momentarily confused and then he started to laugh. "You didn't call and I assumed you'd gotten held up so I went ahead and started to change," he shifted the mirror so that she could see that while he was topless, he was wearing quidditch bottoms. She still blushed furiously and he laughed even harder. "It's not like you've never seen me without a shirt on."
"I was caught off guard!" she defended, flicking at his face on the screen of her mirror.
"So what's up?" he wondered.
"Ugh," she griped, "I came up here for some privacy and Ginny was waiting for me on my bed."
Draco made a face. "Do you Gryffindors have no boundaries, or is that a girl thing? None of my roommates would dare, much less anybody else."
"I suspect it's a combination of the two," she sighed, "I was barely civil," she admitted.
"What did the smallest ginger menace want?"
Hermione rolled her eyes but she felt her lips twitch with amusement. Draco didn't like the Weasleys, but she knew his derision was mostly a result of the fact that he was just always on her side, and she loved that. "My help befriending Harry."
He whistled lowly. "Wow, I've gotta hand it to her, she has some nerve."
"She first asked me how long I would be spending at Harry's house this summer. Then she asked me how I first got Leo's," she drew the name out teasingly, "attention. And when I told her that I didn't. That we were friends first and it just grew from there, that's when she asked me if I would help her make friends with Harry."
"Like I said, nerve," he laughed.
"She didn't even try to be subtle about it!" She exclaimed, her voice almost a whine.
"It probably didn't occur to her," he shrugged, "she seems to be used to getting what she wants. She's the queen bee of her year, your Potter is the only one who seems not to have noticed."
"Does that mean you've noticed?"
"I've observed her behavior," he replied, refusing to rise to the bait.
"I just, does she really think I'm that stupid or that desperate? I tried to be nice to her, and she rebuked me. Now she sees that I have an 'in' with Harry but am no longer a threat to her because I have a serious boyfriend, and she suddenly wants my help."
"Well, she's a Gryffindor."
"I'm a Gryffindor!" She objected.
"You've been taken in by a den of snakes, we've honed your instincts."
She thought about his words, and then of the warmth and love she felt at Malfoy Manor and started to giggle.
"What?" He questioned.
"It's just very difficult to think of your family as a den of snakes."
"Ah- that's because you persist in considering that to be a bad thing." There was a banging sound in the background. "Sorry, I have to go, that's Flint making sure I'm on my way."
"Okay, be careful at practice. And with whatever you're up to tonight."
"I always am."
She gave him a stern look but he just reached out and touched his mirror with one finger, a sweet- if unfelt- caress of farewell.
Author's note: Thank you Weestarmeggie for beta reading and for listening to me drone on for hours about fictional magical theory for this story. Thanks to all of you for your patience. My other WIP is currently winding down and is getting a lot more of my attention than usual. Speaking of that story, I mentioned I'd created a Pinterest board for it in the A/N of my last update and people actually went and checked it out. So, if you're interested, there is a board for this story too. RiverWriter over there as well. But mostly, I continue to be blown away by the response to this story and I can't thank you enough for that. It's so wonderful to see so much love for something I already love to do. So, as always, thanks for reading!