A little bit of Draco and Ginny, but this one's mostly just Draco. And it really gets the climatic (so I like to think) ending started. Ya'll enjoy now, you hear?

Disclaimer: Rettop yrraH nwo ton od I.

Chapter 37: The Truth Shall Set You Free

For Draco, the following weeks were a blur. The morning after his and Ginny's excursion in the tunnel, Pansy had been welcomed back to the school. Dumbledore even announced her presence at breakfast. However, Madame Pomfrey had been unable to remove the ears. Even with the help of many of the teachers and Albus Dumbledore himself, the ears simply would not disappear. They had had a terrible time of trying to calm Pansy down once she had woken up, so Draco had heard. In the end, before she had been released from the Hospital Wing, they put a concealment charm on her ears so that it appeared as if Pansy still had human ears. Draco was the only person other than the teachers and Pansy herself that knew about this; Dumbledore had decided to clue him in on the details since he had been the one to rescue her.

The only problem with this was that Pansy also knew that Draco had been the one to find her and turn her in. She was constantly clinging to his side, thanking him, saying that she knew Draco would always protect her. Though Pansy had absolutely no idea of what had gone on during her absence from the school nor who had taken her, she was still proclaiming that at any moment she could be kidnapped again and that that was the reason that she needed Draco to always be by her, to "save" her again, as she put it.

Every time Draco would enter the common room, Pansy would look up from her group of giggling girls, smile at him lovingly, and then saunter over to him. No matter how many times Draco would tell her to shove off, she kept coming back. The only pleasure Draco got out of her situation was when he'd pass her in the crowded hallways in between classes. Her new ears were concealed, but they were still there. If she walked too close to another student, the ears would knock into said student, causing quite a commotion. Pansy usually played the situation off by either yelling at the student or threatening to curse them. Draco eventually suspected that Pansy had decided to tie the ears back because from then on, she was able to move about without the ears getting in her way anymore.

About a week after Pansy was returned, Neville Longbottom was discovered in the dungeons, completely unconscious. Neville's return, more than any other student's, caused quite the uproar. When Neville had finally woken up in the Hospital Wing with absolutely no knowledge of how he had disappeared, who had taken him, or what had happened to him, he had found a mountain of get well cards and candies from every house except Slytherin sitting on the bed next to his. This more than anything astonished him. It seemed that since he had been gone nearly two full months, students assumed that he had been in the most danger. This suddenly made Neville almost as popular as Harry Potter.

The only thing different about Neville now that he had been returned was that he was no longer intimidated by Pansy Parkinson. Draco could only imagine what those two had been through together, but when Pansy would snap at him in the halls or in class, Neville just looked at her with a curious expression and walked away. Pansy seemed to ignore the fact that both she and Neville had been kidnapped at the same time. She did, however, treat Neville even worse than before. And when Neville would shrug indifferently at her insults, she would get even angrier and turn to Draco for his support, which Draco never gave.

The other thing that helped the weeks and months fly by for Draco was Ginny. Every time Draco thought of her, he was sure his heart beat just a little faster. In the hallways in between classes, they hardly even made eye contact with one another. Once in a while Draco would throw an insult at her just to make sure nobody suspected anything, and she would shoot one right back at him, all the while her eyes sparkling mischievously.

It was hard for them to find time for one another since they couldn't see each other in front of others. They had taken to secretly sending each other notes and meeting in the Astronomy Tower almost every night. There they were able to talk with each other without the fear of being seen. Draco and Ginny would spend hours together at night. However, when Draco noticed Ginny fall asleep one morning in the Great Hall and spill pumpkin juice all over the place, he insisted that they cut down on their late-night trysts. Ginny had protested with him, but in the end, she had given in to Draco.

And with final exams coming ever closer, what little meetings they did have ended altogether. With his N.E.W.T.S. approaching, Draco barely had time to finish all of his homework let alone see Ginny. He suspected that she was having a hard time too, though not as hard as he was.

In addition to his tests, Draco also had to put up with the letters he was receiving almost daily from his father. Lucius was constantly reminding Draco of the training he would be receiving upon the end of school, trying to prepare him for what was to come. Mostly he was just threatening Draco.

Every night when Draco went to bed, his conscious would bother him, telling him that he was only endangering Ginny's life by having a relationship with her. Though the thought of what Lucius would do to Ginny if they were caught made Draco's breath catch in his throat, he simply could not ignore how happy he felt when he was kissing her, holding her. It just felt so right. And when Ginny ever sensed what he was thinking, she would furiously ignore all reasons he gave why they shouldn't be together.

Another thing Draco was learning was that Ginny Weasley had a terrible temper. Of course, he already knew this, but it seemed she was twice as easy to anger when they were dating. When Draco had learned how much fun it was to kiss away her anger, he had taken to upsetting her on purpose every once in a while. He loved the way her eyes flashed when she was dangerously close to hexing him. But whenever it almost got out of control, Draco would pull her into his arms and kiss Ginny with a fiery passion until he was sure that all of her hateful thoughts regarding him were long gone.

One place where they were both free to playfully hate each other though was on the Quidditch pitch. As Draco had predicted months ago, Slytherin did not win the cup. Slytherin didn't even come in second place. Through very fierce practices and even fiercer games, Slytherin did, however, manage to secure third place, with Ravenclaw coming in last. No matter how much he hated Harry Potter and wanted to see him lose, Draco couldn't help but be happy for Ginny when Gryffindor won the Quidditch cup. On the pitch during the showdown between the Hufflepuff and Gryffindor teams, he had booed Gryffindor along with the rest of his housemates. Afterwards, though, he had congratulated Ginny in private and was rewarded with such a breathtaking smile that he himself couldn't help but smile in return.

Draco had wanted to go back down in the tunnel and discover what was up with the monster, but he hadn't had time to. With the end of the year exams coming ever closer, it was all Draco could do to complete his homework each week. In addition, the teachers, especially Professor McGonagall, had taken to having pop quizzes in the middle of class; Draco was now forced to study after classes as well as do his homework. Just last week he had been unable to answer most of McGonagall's questions, and he vowed that he would not let Harry Potter or Ron Weasley beat him on the N.E.W.T. He had long ago given up on ever topping Hermione Granger, but he would not lose to her friends.

Even though curiosity was eating at Draco, he hadn't gone back down since the night they had found Pansy. Ginny had asked a few times when they were going to explore again, but Draco had told her that they weren't going to. The first time he said that Ginny had gotten upset with him, but after that, the stress of final exams seemed to outweigh whatever curiosity Ginny had. Draco just figured that whoever had been taking the students had finally called it quits.

So on the final day of exams, Draco found himself sitting in Defense Against the Dark Arts wishing he could be out on the Quidditch pitch, with Ginny, with his mother, anywhere but in the stuffy classroom trying to remember what the pros and cons of an energy-abolishing curse were. Professor Juriac was reclining in his seat, his feet resting on the desk. Eyes closed and arms folded behind his head, the teacher looked like he was sleeping though Draco had a feeling that he was quite alert to what was going on in the classroom.

Turning back to his paper with an irritated sigh, Draco tried to concentrate. However, Draco couldn't help but think about what was to come long after his tests were finished. After this last test, Draco was officially finished with school; he'd be leaving Hogwarts for the last time. His stomach rolled every time he thought of returning home. His father would be anxious to start Draco's training and get him marked by Voldemort. Draco was surprised that Lucius had not come back to torture Draco for information on Narcissa's whereabouts, and though Draco wasn't complaining, he did wonder why Lucius had changed his mind after he had threatened his son earlier that year.

Draco sighed again, staring at the same spot on his test. Another thing bothering him was Ginny. He did not want to be separated from her, but he knew that when the trains took students home in two days, his and Ginny's relationship would be put to the test. The intensity with which Draco cared for Ginny surprised him; every time a guy even looked at Ginny with more than friendship in his eyes, a storm seemed to brew inside of Draco and it was all he could do to stop himself from punching the unlucky bloke.

There was only one thing that Draco knew his feelings for Ginny meant: trouble. He was mad at himself that he had become so reliant on anybody. He had always prevented himself from becoming real friends with anybody because he had known what his future would be; he would become a Death Eater after Hogwarts. Draco knew that if he was good friends with anybody, let alone had feelings for a girl, then becoming a Death Eater and possibly betraying them would be ten times harder to do than if he was alone.

The only thing comforting Draco was his firm resolve that he would not become a Death Eater. Crazy and rational ideas alike of what he'd do after Hogwarts came to mind during his final weeks at school. Some of the crazy ideas included himself and his mother running away to another country and trying to start a new life as a muggle. Some of the more rational ideas consisted of turning to Dumbledore for help, maybe even joining the Order. Though Draco was loath to consider help from Dumbledore, whom he had been taught to hate, he could see no other way. If Draco was able to convince the man that he was trustworthy, maybe Dumbledore could hide Draco and his mother. It was a long shot, but Draco did not really want to live as a Muggle. Though that option was probably safer, if Draco joined the Order, there was a chance that he might be able stay with Ginny. Even if it was secret, Draco would be with her. And other than his mother and his freedom, that was all that mattered to him.


Nearly an hour later, Draco had finally completed his test and was walking surreally through the hallway.

He was done.

With all of his last classes.

For good.

Draco shook his head. It all seemed like a dream. He thought back to his beginning at Hogwarts, to when he had first started hating Harry Potter when his friendship had been rejected in Madame Malkins robe shop in Diagon Alley. He remembered how angry he had been when Potter had gotten on the Quidditch team a year earlier than he was supposed to. He remembered when he had first seen Ginny the summer before his second year, how he had called her Harry's girlfriend.

Now she's my girlfriend, he thought with a wry grin. Oh what he would give to see Weasley and Potter's reactions to that news. Things had certainly turned out differently than he had thought they would. Draco had thought, long before he even went to Hogwarts, that upon his graduation, he would be looking forward to his life as a Death Eater, be proud to kneel before Voldemort and make the life commitment, torture innocent people, enjoy it.

It was the complete opposite though. Draco himself was different than when he had started his seventh year. He still loved to hate Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and lots of other people, but he no longer sought the approval or love of his father, no longer cared for Voldemort's ways.

Draco sighed. This was the beginning of a new life for him. In two more days, Draco would either be going home or running away. If Draco simply did not get on the Hogwarts Express and didn't go home, his father would realize Draco's betrayal sooner than was needed.

But if Draco did go home to his father and pretend for a while longer that he would become a Death Eater, Draco would be able to buy some time to think things through more carefully. It would give him some time to find a place for his mother.

That's what Draco needed…time. And time was the one thing he could not control.

Draco grumbled under his breath as he made his way to the Great Hall for lunch. He felt the need to see Ginny again, to see her smile. Her smile seemed to take away all of Draco's troubles. At least, he seemed to forget about them while he was with her. He supposed that was one reason why he liked being with her so much. She was able to make his life seem normal, easy.

When Draco sat down at the Slytherin table, he grabbed a plate and put some food on it, trying to get a look at the Gryffindor table without anybody noticing. That had been something hard for both him and Ginny to do; while at meals, they were always tempted to look at each other, but because of the circumstances, they had rarely been able to do so. However, Draco did see Ginny sitting next to that twerp, Colin Creevey, obviously laughing at something he'd just said. A stone of jealousy rooted itself in Draco's stomach, but when Ginny turned her head, still smiling, and looked straight at Draco, he felt his jaw unclench. Noticing that Crabbe was watching him, Draco sent a quite convincing sneer towards Ginny, who good-naturedly stuck her tongue out at him before turning back to Creevey. It was all Draco could do to keep his smirk from showing.

"Bloody Gryffs," he muttered, turning to Crabbe.

"Yeah," Crabbe shook his head sadly. "Look at them, all smiles and junk." Draco looked curiously at his companion of seven years. "Don't see why they're so bloody happy about graduating," Crabbe snorted. "S'not like they got anything to look forward to like we do."

Draco looked away, knowing exactly what Crabbe was thinking about. He and Goyle both were facing the challenge of becoming a Death Eater; both of their fathers were Death Eaters as well. However, Draco didn't know why the lump of a boy was actually looking forward to it. Maybe it was the idea of feeling worthy for once, or maybe it was the prospect of gaining power that appealed to them. Draco shook his head to himself, knowing that it would be nothing like how his friends were imagining it. If they thought they'd be gaining power, then they were fools. They'd be giving up everything, and Draco actually felt sorry for them. They had always been too stupid to know what was good for them.

After Draco was finished eating, he got up and walked out of the Great Hall, passing the Gryffindor table as he went. Resisting the urge to look at Ginny, he sent a sneer towards Potter, Weasley, and Granger.

When he got out of the Great Hall, he stood around for a few minutes, knowing that soon Ginny would come out as well. Sometimes if Ginny was able to get away without anybody being suspicious, she would come out when she saw Draco leave and they'd go off down the halls where they could talk in privacy while everybody else was eating.

Today was no different, for when Draco, standing by the stairs, saw Ginny walk out of the Great Hall and glance at him, he immediately turned around and started down the hallway that led to the dungeons. He knew Ginny was following him at a respective distance so that if anybody happened to see them, they wouldn't think that she was actually following him.

Draco turned a corner, now completely out of sight from the Great Hall, and waited less than impatiently. As soon as Ginny rounded the corner, before she had even had time to properly smile at Draco, he pulled her body flush against his and proceeded to kiss her quite heatedly. Even though it had only been two days since he'd last been with her like this, it felt like an eternity to Draco.

He sighed contentedly against her lips and felt Ginny grin. "Miss me?" she asked, looking up at him. Draco leaned in to kiss her again, wrapping his strong arms around Ginny's waste. Ginny seemed to accept his answer for she snaked her arms around Draco's neck and puller him closer to her.

"So," Ginny said after a while, "you're done, aren't you? With classes, I mean."

"Yeah," Draco said. They started walking down the hallway hand in hand. "It doesn't seem real."

"I know," Ginny said quietly. "I still have a year left, but still…I always feel like this at the end of the year." Draco glanced down at her, but he said nothing. "I mean," Ginny continued, "when I first get here every year, it seems like summer is so far away but then when that time finally comes, it seems as if I just got here yesterday. Does that make any sense?" Ginny asked, looking up.

"It does," Draco agreed. It certainly did. It felt strange to know that in a few days, he'd say goodbye to this school forever. He'd never been too emotionally attached to the school, but it had provided a refuge from his father over the years, and Draco felt he was going to sorely miss it. "What classes do you have left?"

Ginny sighed. "I've just got my Potions final in a few minutes and then that's it." She looked a bit ruefully at Draco. "I wish I was done like you."

"You'll do fine," Draco grinned.

Ginny looked as if she didn't believe Draco, but she shrugged anyway. "I'll see you later, yeah? I'd better go. If I'm late, Snape will eat me or something…maybe just take away more house points." She snorted. "He's been doing that a lot lately. Especially with Ron and Harry, so they say. I figure Snape thinks this is his last chance for him to pick at their pride and he's taking full advantage of it."

Draco grinned again. That simple action, which once used to come so hard to him, seemed so easy around Ginny. "I'll see you later tonight," Draco said, letting go of her hand so she could leave.

"Okay," Ginny replied, starting to walk away.

"And Ginny?" Draco called after her.

She stopped and turned around. "Yeah?"

"Good luck," he said. He winked at her. The smile dropped off his face as soon as he turned around, though, his heart too heavy to hold it up any longer. Draco knew that Ginny was feeling the oppression as well. Though she was trying to hide it, Draco knew she was afraid of what was going to happen to them once Draco left Hogwarts.

And she should be, Draco thought as he entered the Slytherin dormitory and headed towards his room. His future was so uncertain. And Ginny knew it.

Shaking his head, Draco walked inside only to stop in the doorway. Blaise was sitting on his bed with a piece of parchment clutched in his hands. Blaise's pale face jerked towards Draco, and then he hastily stood and shoved the parchment into his bag. Draco's eyes narrowed but he didn't say anything. Instead, he walked to his own bed and reached for his trunk. Blaise hurried out of the room, his bag slung over his shoulders, without a word.

Opening his trunk, Draco dug around until he found what he was looking for. It was the small glass ball that his mother had given him. Once Draco had found out what it really was, he had hidden it. Even though it looked like an ordinary ball of glass, he didn't want anybody finding out what it really was; the thought that anybody figuring it out was ridiculous since it had taken Draco four years to find out himself.

He was planning on visiting his mother that afternoon and he wanted to show it to her. He still had some questions about it, such as who she had gotten it from. Draco knew from the letter that had been encased in the ball that it had been an heirloom from the Black side of the family, but he wanted to know more about it. And since Draco had to go and see her anyway, to talk to her about what he'd be doing after school, Draco thought it'd be the perfect opportunity.

So, leaving his Slytherin robe behind since it was now too hot to wear it outside, Draco grabbed the glass and left the Slytherin dormitories. On his way out, he uneasily noticed that Blaise Zabini was nowhere in sight.


"Hello," Narcissa Malfoy greeted Draco as he walked into her room. Over the past months, Draco had grown used to the way his mother hugged him every time he came to see her; he supposed she thought she had to make up for lost time. Normally Draco was put off by such show of emotion, but he had grown used to it. So when Narcissa proceeded to hug Draco affectionally, he had no problem in returning it.

"So, you've graduated then, haven't you?" she asked, beaming with pride.

"Yes," Draco said. "I just finished my last test before lunch. There's a celebration feast for us tomorrow night, and then Professor Dumbledore will add up all the house points to see who's won."

"That's nice, dear," Narcissa said. "I'm sure that Slytherin has won."

Draco just smiled at his mother. He didn't have the heart to tell her that he already knew who won, and it certainly wasn't Slytherin. He had seen that the Gryffindor hourglass in the entrance hall had many more points than any other house. Slytherin did have second place though. Draco still got angry every time he remembered that he had come second-best to Potter again.

"We'll see," Draco replied, sitting down on the bed. He unclenched his hand and held the glass ball out to his mother. When she saw it, she sucked in her breath.

"May I?" she asked, reaching tentatively for the glass. When her son nodded, Narcissa gingerly picked it up and looked at it. After a moment's hesitation, she said, "Draco Malfoy."

Draco moved to stand behind Narcissa and saw an image of himself standing behind his mother, looking down into the glass. He smiled, and Narcissa looked up at him. Draco saw the Narcissa in the glass do the same.

"It's amazing," Draco said softly, sitting in a spare chair that had been brought up weeks ago.

"It is," exclaimed Narcissa, sitting on her bed.

"Where did you get it?" Draco asked. "I read in your letter that it was in your side of the family for generations, but who gave it to you?"

"My mother," Narcissa sighed. Draco couldn't tell if it was a happy or sad sigh, though.

"Grandmother Druella?" Draco asked with a frown. He had met the woman a few times before her death. She was never pleasant to talk to. However, she had given him the chain necklace that the ring Ginny had given him now hung on. It was still around his neck.

"Yes," replied Narcissa. "She said that on her side of the family, it had been passed down from mother to daughter for years. Her own mother, my grandmother, had given it to her, and she decided to give it to me."

"But why you?" Draco asked curiously. "You have two other sisters. Why not one of them?"

"Well," Narcissa started, "after Andromeda ran off with that horrid muggle, she was disowned and rarely spoken of again, so she was out of the question. And then Bellatrix married Rodolphus and they joined up with the Dark Lord." Narcissa frowned. "I think Mother would've given it to my other sister, but Bella and Rodolphus both were sent to Azkaban so I was the only one left."

"So," began Draco, "it's been in the Rosier family, then?"

"Mm-hmm," acknowledged Narcissa. "I'm glad that you still know our family history. Yes, Mother was a Rosier."

"But how does it work?" Draco asked, still frustrated that he didn't know where the magic came from.

"I don't know," Narcissa said, shrugging her shoulders. "I never got a chance to ask Mother. She died very early. All I know is that if you say the name of whoever you want to see and retain contact with the glass, then you will see them."

Draco looked back at the glass in his mother's hand. "Can it show you anybody you want? Can it show you places?"

"That I do know," Narcissa nodded, "and no, it can't. I tried myself and it will only show you someone you've seen before. And it will only show human beings. Though, I suppose if you knew where someone was and wanted to see the place that they were at, then all you had to do was say their name."

Draco stood and walked to his mother. He took the glass ball and looked more intently at it, thinking of somebody he had never met before. "Andromeda Black," he said. The glass ball did not change; it remained completely blank. Draco frowned. "Andromeda Tonks," he said, wincing at the sound of the muggle name. Again, the glass did not change.

"You never met my sister," Narcissa said thoughtfully, quietly. "She ran off right before you were born. But it doesn't matter," she shook her head, her voice hardening. "My sister was a fool for betraying the noble house of Black that way. We were once considered a legendary line of purebloods. My cousin, Sirius Black, was the last of them. But I hear that he died…killed by Bella, in fact." Narcissa sighed, looking down at the ground. "Sirius and Bellatrix never did get along."

Draco looked away. His mother still had not changed in her beliefs any; she still thought that being a pureblood was a title worth bearing. Draco knew her pride was nothing like Lucius's and would never cause her to be any real harm, but it was still slightly disconcerting. What was even stranger was that Draco had once been even more prideful than his mother. While Draco still was proud to be a pureblood and have such a background, he did not look upon half-bloods or even muggle-borns with as much scorn as he used to. Muggles, however, were still incredibly feebleminded in his eyes as ever.

With a determined sigh, Draco looked back at the glass. "Alphard Black," he said clearly; Narcissa's head snapped towards him upon the mention of her uncle's name. Though Draco had never met the man, he had heard of him. To his disappointment, the glass remained blank.

"Why would you speak his name?" Narcissa asked in shock, and Draco noted a bit of disgust in her voice. "He is just as bad as my sister, gave money to Sirius Black. He too was disowned."

"I was just wondering," Draco said with a shrug. He thought again, this time of someone he had met before.

"Cygnus Black," he said, stating the name of his maternal grandfather. He had met him along with his grandmother. This time, the blank glass changed to show a picture of a graveyard, centering on one grave in particular. Upon closer inspection, Draco could clearly read the epitaph engraved on the top of the stone: Cygnus Black, husband to one, father to three, loyal to Him.

"I guess it shows you dead people," Draco said quietly, looking up at his mother.

"My…father?" she asked hesitatingly. When Draco nodded, she stood up and looked over Draco's shoulder at the image of her father's grave. Draco looked uncertainly at his mother, wondering what her reaction would be. Instead of the tears Draco expected, he only saw a stoniness that eerily reminded him of himself.

"I hated that man," she hissed. "Always talking about the Dark Lord as if he were some god, treating my mother, my sisters, and myself with contempt. But Bellatrix loved him all the same," she said, sitting back on the bed. "That's where she got her love of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."

Draco was silent. He set the ball on the nightstand and watched as the image faded. Then he spoke, "After graduation, I'll be going home for a bit."

As Draco had expected, Narcissa looked at him fearfully and started to shake her head. "No, Draco, you can't –"

"Don't worry about it," Draco said a bit more roughly than he had intended. "I'm not going to do anything stupid. I just need some time to sort things out. I'm not going to become a Death Eater," he said pointedly. "I won't be Lucius."

Narcissa looked back at Draco with a mixture of both relief and pride on her face. Draco, however, ignored it and continued on. "If I refuse to go home, he'll suspect something. I already think he does, so…I've just got to pretend that I'm going to be a Death Eater. That'll give me enough time to figure out what to do with us."

Narcissa nodded slowly. "I suppose…" She sounded reluctant, but Draco knew she'd learn to accept his decision over time. At least he hoped she would.

"I should be going though," he said, grabbing the glass ball. "I'm meeting up with some friends later on." By friends, he meant Ginny, but he tried to avoid talking about anything to do with the Weasley family in front of his mother. Likewise, Narcissa refused to acknowledge Ginny's part in her rescue.

"Okay," said Narcissa, smiling at her son. "Have fun."

"I will," he said. "And…" he paused, not sure how to word what he was thinking. "If I don't see you before the train leaves in two days, don't worry. I'll come back for you." He went over and hugged his mother. "I'll always come back for you," he whispered in her ear. Then he smiled at her and turned around, walking out of the room.

When he got to the bottom of the stairs, he saw Reina sitting at her desk. She, it appeared, saw him too.

"Well hello, young Draco," she said cheerfully. Draco cringed and bit back a scowl. Reina had recently taken to calling him "young Draco" every time she saw him, and it bothered Draco to no end; he always felt five years old when she said this.

So instead of the many retorts that Draco was thinking of, he simply said, "Hello." After all, he still felt in debt to Reina ever since she had opened her doors to Narcissa.

"Why don't you stay and I'll make you a cup of tea? Good." She said, not giving Draco any room to turn her down. She stood from her desk and pushed Draco towards the kitchen, where she promptly sat him in a chair and turned to the stove, heating the water.

"And how is Narcissa today?" she asked, sitting down with Draco.

"She's good," Draco replied truthfully. "I just wanted to come see her once before I went home in two days."

"Ah," Reina said, nodding. "Home." A strange look came over her face, as if she were remembering something. "I remember waiting for my brother to come home from Hogwarts every summer. I was always so excited to see him."

"You have a brother?" Draco asked, leaning back comfortably in his chair.

"I did," Reina said with a sigh. When she saw Draco's eyebrow raised in question, she said, "He died twenty-eight years ago."

"Oh," Draco replied uncomfortably. He shifted in his seat. "Erm…sorry," he said, not used to condolence. "How did he die?"

"Death Eaters," Reina replied, her voice filled with hate. "Death Eaters killed him." Draco's face hardened at the mention of the vile creatures and he was reminded of just why he was resisting his father. Too many people had died when they should have lived. "He wasn't supposed to die," Reina continued, looking down at her lap. "If he hadn't been so headstrong, he wouldn't have. I always was the more rational twin," she said, a sad smile coming to her face before it slipped away.

"You were twins?" Draco asked. Reina nodded slowly, still not looking at him. "What was his name?"

"Oleaney," replied Reina quietly.

His eyes widening, Draco sat up in his seat. His heart started to pound quickly in his chest. Had he heard correctly? He knew that name. Hesitatingly, almost afraid to get an answer yet feeling an unquenchable desire to know, he asked slowly, "What's your last name?"

"Juriac," Reina said after a moment's silence. Raising her head to look Draco straight in the eye, she said, "My name is Reina Juriac."

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A/N: So how's that for a teaser, eh? I bet the wheels in your head are starting to turn now. This chapter was hard to write. The Black family history is a bugger to research. Took me forever to figure out how their family tree worked, because parts of it were missing. But once I got into it, it was pretty fun and I got sidetracked and spent about an hour just reading about them all instead of continuing to write this, which is what I was doing. But here it is. Oh, and just so you know…you pronounce "Juriac" like (jury-ack) with the accent on (jury).

Review and I shall love you forever.

Lauren