Beta love to CarbConnoisseur
"How was tea with Andromeda?"
"Good," Draco replied slowly. "Strange. She brought her daughter. Funny little thing. I'm to bring you next time. I got a proper scolding for not making her aware of who you were to me when you met."
Hermione laughed. "Yes, I can imagine. Andy always was a force to be reckoned with."
He hummed. "She wants an invite to the wedding."
"And that's an issue?" she checked.
"No. Just… strange. I never knew her. Not like you did, and Dora… gods Princess, she's tiny! Still as insane, but tiny. The last time I saw her…."
Hermione shuddered as he trailed off. "It won't happen," Hermione whispered. "It won't."
He nodded, his face pensive. "I miss her. I… don't think I expected to, but I do."
"You're allowed to, Draco. It… it's like living with ghosts sometimes and that's… that's hard."
"It hasn't been, not really. I knew Lupin and Sirius, obviously, and Mother was hard. Severus… Severus is enough like himself that sometimes I forget. But Dora… she was the only one who wasn't suspicious when Severus first brought me. Did you know that? She still interrogated me about my intentions, but she told me that no one could fake the look in my eyes when I looked at you. So she trusted I was safe. I spent… hours with her working out how to win everyone else over."
"I remember," she replied softly, dropping her head to his shoulder. "It won't be the same, but you'll have more time this time round. Think of all the things you can teach her."
Draco snorted, before he brightened slightly. "I get to repeat her sex talk."
Hermione's head shot up as she looked at him incredulously. "Oh, my gods. You cannot be serious!"
"I am! It was so fucking awkward, Princess. And this time… this time I get to embarrass her! I'm going to have to speak to Sirius… and probably Severus. He'll be her teacher. She'll be mortified!"
"You are far too happy about this," she muttered.
He laughed. "Got to have goals, Princess."
"Arse," she muttered.
"Tell me about your day," he replied, instead of rising to the bait. She froze. "Princess?"
"I… they did the verification ."
"Uhuh?"
"My parents were squibs," Hermione sighed.
"Is this where you tell me we're related, Princess? Because I'm going to be honest, I'm half Black. I could justify it."
She swivelled to look at him, her jaw dropping before she began to laugh. He joined her, the hysteria hitting quickly as they laughed until they were gasping. "Fuck. That's… Jesus Draco, you can't say things like that!"
"I can," he retorted, grinning at her. "Did you miss me saying I was a Black?"
She shook her head at him. "No, we're not related."
He shrugged. "Fair enough. What came back?"
"Dad was a Dagworth-Granger. I am currently the only one. Mum… Mum was a Nott."
"A Nott?" he repeated.
"Squib sister of Thaddeus Nott, Death eater extraordinaire."
"Fuck," he hissed.
"If things happen as they did… we need a plan for Theo. I… the goblins are keeping an eye on the situation. I'll be informed if I'm needed."
"You intend to take him?"
"What else would we do?" she asked. "I… I had wondered though… he was your friend. It would be strange to become his dad."
"Yes," he agreed slowly.
"What do you think of having a conversation with Sirius and Remus? If we need to."
Draco let out a long breath. "I… Salazar, I could see that actually."
She nodded. "Me too. If they say no though, Draco, we'll need to get over the strangeness. I won't have him go somewhere else."
He nodded absentmindedly, dropping a kiss onto her head as he considered that. "I love you, Princess. Lets… let's hope they go for it because Merlin knows there's strange and then there's becoming the dad of one of your friends strange."
She snorted but did not disagree.
"The ring is cursed. Please, remember the ring is cursed," Hermione begged, hating the unsettling feeling of being left behind.
Amelia looked at her, amused. "We understand, Hermione," she soothed. "I promise we'll be careful. We're taking Lolly and Socks. Everyone's been warned. It's going to be fine."
Hermione nodded unhappily, looking over at the tiny elves holding on to Edgar and Frank's hands. Seconds later they were all gone.
"It's going to be fine," Sirius soothed.
"Is it?" she muttered. "I fucking hate this, Pads. I don't know what to do."
"I know," he sighed. "You're shite at hiding it."
She snorted. "It was always us, Pads. We were always right in the middle and this feeling…. I owe you an apology."
"What?" he asked, startled.
"I owe you an apology. I… I was so fucking angry with you after what happened at the Ministry. You had one job. Stay put; stay alive. And you didn't. I… I think I get it now, so I'm sorry."
His face twisted in a wry grin. "Well thanks, I guess, Kitten. I'm not… quite sure what to say to that."
She rolled her eyes. "Have you ever thought about kids, Pads?"
"What? Are you trying to throw me today, Kitten?"
"No. I ah… look, I might gain custody of a family member. I don't know, but… he was one of Draco's friends and we can't… it would be odd…."
Sirius froze. "And you'd just given them to me?"
"You and Remus."
"Gods, Kitten!" he breathed, hugging her tightly.
"It might not happen but… if it does…."
"Yes! Gods, yes! Maybe we should organise those crups just in case…."
"Padfoot! Sirius! It might not… we don't know for sure what will happen."
"I know, I know! But… an actual kid… what family, Kitten?"
"Oh… Mum was Thaddeus Nott's squib sister apparently."
"Merlin, kitten. That's…"
"Fucking insane, yes. Dad was a Dagworth-Granger, but at least there are no minor relatives likely to need a home from his side."
Sirius barked out a laugh. "Bloody hell, Kitten. You don't do anything by halves do you?"
"Apparently not."
"When… when are you likely to know?"
She shrugged. "I… I think Theo was born in September or maybe early October. I remember his birthday not being far from mine. In our timeline, his mother died in childbirth and he grew up with his father. If that happens… we still have Thaddeus to contend with."
Sirius hummed. "Not long then," he murmured. "Can I… can I speak to Remus?"
"What? Of course, Pads!"
"Now?" he checked.
Rolling her eyes, she waved him off, heading back towards the library where she knew Charlus often hid from the madness.
Alice crept up to the dilapidated house, Hermione's warnings ringing in her ears. By the looks on everyone else's faces, they were experiencing the same thing. "Right. Eyes open and be bloody careful. I do not want to be the one that tells Hermione we ignored her warnings. She's bloody terrifying."
Frank snorted. "She's not that bad!"
"Trained with her, have you?"Alice shot back.
Amelia frowned. "Trained with her?"
"She wanted to ensure her duelling stayed sharp. We've been training in the garden. She's bloody brutal. I think Moody is close to begging her to join the Aurory."
Amelia looked momentarily startled. "Right… I… I thought she had to limit her magic in order to heal?"
"Some days, but she said she wasn't going to die in the last battle because she'd become complacent."
"Sensible," Edgar muttered as he began casting over the crumbling building.
"Real upmarket place, this," Amelia commented, casting her eye over it.
"If ever there was an argument against pureblood inbreeding," Frank murmured.
The rest of them snorted. "Several wards," Edgar announced. "If Amy helps me take down the first one, can you two be ready for the second? It's just a simple muggle-repellant. They get nastier after that, but we'll need to take it one at a time."
"Of course," Alice murmured, her wand ready as Frank scanned the area.
Over an hour later, the wards were finally down and all of them were sweaty and tired. "He really does have a vivid imagination for curses," Frank muttered.
"Doesn't bode well for what's inside the house," Amelia agreed.
"No, so let's be careful. I know we were going to split up, but based on that I think we should stay together," Edgar voiced as they crept forward and into the shack. Slowly, they looked around the dirty room, casting as they went.
"Floorboard," Alice muttered as a reading flared.
Silently, Amelia nodded, advancing on the area cautiously. "I'll lift." Edgar kept his voice even, trying not to betray how unsettled he felt. "Lolly, Socks, try and keep us from doing anything stupid."
"Ofs course," Socks agreed, looking at him as if he were an idiot. "Socks has had plenty of practice with Master Frank."
"Alright, on three. I'd suggest levitating if you can," Amelia commanded, hiding her grin from the tiny elf.
The room felt wrong, an oppressive feeling of despair settling over them the moment the floorboard was lifted. Shakily, Frank levitated the ring out. Immediately the whispers started, driving all rational thought from their minds.
"Master Frank! Master Frank," Lolly called as Frank reached for it at the same time as the other three. All of them bounced off the shield she had cast.
"Lolly?" Alice asked, sounding dazed.
"That bes being a bad ring!" The elf scolded. "Lolly will bes putting it in the box now!"
All of them looked at each other in horror as the tiny elf slammed the lid shut.
"Sweet Merlin," Frank moaned. "I… I think we owe Hermione an apology for being short with her for her repeated warnings."
Pale and shaken, the others nodded their agreement. "Let's get this to the goblins," Amelia muttered.
"After we reset the wards," Edgar commanded. "Let's not make it easy for him to notice it's missing."
Silently the others agreed, traipsing out to reset the wards they dismantled before Amelia took the ring to the goblins, almost crying in relief once she was rid of it.
"Ah, Severus. Sit… sit."
Severus drew up his shields, desperate to get this meeting over with as soon as possible. He didn't want to be here. He wanted to be back at Potter Manor, with Hermione to tease, Draco to discuss potions with, and Lily to talk to. Gods, he'd even take Potter, Black, and Lupin. He'd never admit it out loud, but they weren't anywhere near as bad as he'd believed for the entirety of his Hogwarts years. Helping Lily plan her wedding to Potter would be miles better than this. Hell, helping Black plan his wedding would be better than this. He sat down silently, looking at the man who had promised him acceptance, acceptance that he'd found thanks to a Lucius lookalike and a fluffy-haired harpy. That acceptance didn't come with conditions, conditions like murder and torturous potions.
"Have you found a potion that works for my needs?" his master asked silkily.
"I think so. I am waiting on ingredients to arrive. Several are harder to find. I should have a first batch ready for testing within a month."
The Dark Lord looked at him shrewdly. "You are confident it will do everything I require?"
"No," Severus responded bluntly, hoping he wouldn't be cursed for it. "I am confident that once I've brewed the potions closest to what you desire I will have a starting point to experiment with. There is no potion that I can find that does everything you require, my Lord. I will need to adjust several and I cannot do that without brewing the originals."
"I see," he murmured. "You believe you can do this, Severus? I do not tolerate failure."
"Of course my Lord. Yes, I am confident with some experimentation I will be able to create what you need."
"See that you do, Severus," he hissed. "Now, what information do you have for me regarding the Order?"
Severus took a moment to compose himself. "They are… struggling to agree on the correct course of action, My Lord."
"Oh?"
"One fraction supports Dumbledore and his stance of defence rather than offence. Another wishes to be more proactive. They are considering capturing someone for information."
"Who?"
"They had not decided. Lucius was mentioned. Thoros, Evan. They want someone prominent."
"I see. You will let me know if they reach a decision. In the meantime, I will tell my faithful to be careful. And Severus? If I find your withholding information, death will be a mercy I will make you beg for."
"Of course, my Lord," he murmured, hoping he didn't pick up on how hard his heart was hammering in his chest.
Draco fidgeted in his unfamiliar body as he waited on his mother. Regulus had been amused watching him morph into his clone, but the changes made Draco feel ill at ease. Regulus was shorter and currently in much better health. It had been jarring to lose some of the aches he'd learned to live with. Repeated curses and several months of limited food left their mark, even after healing. Regulus had not had to live through that.
"I… I wasn't sure you'd come," Narcissa voiced softly, sitting down opposite him.
"I nearly didn't," he admitted. "This is… strange. Hermione encouraged it."
Narcissa hummed. "You love her."
"Yes," he agreed. "I cannot imagine my life without her. I… I could have chosen differently, not chosen her."
"But you wouldn't."
"No," he agreed softly. "It feels almost wrong to say given how much we've lost, but I honestly can't imagine how empty my life would be if I'd made different choices."
"I didn't approve."
"No, you did not," Draco agreed.
Narcissa sighed. "Do you still hate me?"
"Honestly? Yes, I think I do," he replied bluntly, not able to sugar coat it given his last interaction with his mother in his original timeline.
She flinched. "I see."
"No," he sighed. "You don't. I know that you haven't done any of what she did. And… when I was little, you were the best mother. You helped keep me as free from Father's expectations as you could. You gave me a childhood where it was possible, but… you also watched as I was handed over to Voldemort. You knew he was back. You knew what he had done in this war and you didn't flee. I told you about how you watched as Hermione was tortured on our drawing room floor. You did not contradict Aunt Bella when she demanded that I watch. You knew who she was to me and you would have made me watch as she was tortured and then handed to Greyback in front of me. So yes… I do hate you. You… died to let us escape, but only after I had incapacitated Lucius. Your views, they saw me tortured in my own home, they saw me poisoned at our dinner table, and they allowed an insane dictator to move in. They allowed a rabid werewolf constant access to our home and the people in it. Those views turned our home into somewhere unsafe, somewhere I hated. There were no boundaries and it can hardly be too much of a jump for you to imagine the types of people involved. We were made to watch as our home was turned into nothing more than a place where evil lived, torture happened daily, and more people, muggles, muggleborns, half-bloods, purebloods, he didn't care, died than I will ever be able to count. Most of them died screaming. I don't think there is a room downstairs that isn't tainted for me. I see you and I see her… and logically I know you're not her yet, but I also know that if nothing changes, you will be. And I don't think I can watch you raise whatever child you have the way that you raised me, with expectations and rules and pointless prejudice."
"What would you have me do?" she asked softly. "You're my son. I… magic knows."
"So Aunt Dorea said," he agreed.
"Tell me what I can do."
"Stop this! Change! Get to know the people you taught me to hate! Help us get rid of Him."
"How?" she asked softly, her face pale. The enormity of what this boy… her son, was asking for had not escaped her. Those views, the belief that the Dark Lord was right, were difficult to ignore after years of indoctrination, but she couldn't bear to see the barely concealed flashes of loathing warring with his clear want to have her in his life. And she'd be lying if she said she couldn't understand. What on earth had happened to make her willingly force her child to watch their partner be tortured? It didn't make sense.
"There's a diary," Draco began slowly, "hidden somewhere in the house. Probably in Father or Grandfather's study. We need it."
"Why?" Narcissa asked.
"I don't feel comfortable answering that," he admitted softly. "I want to trust you."
"But you don't," she sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat.
"No. No, I don't. I've seen how far you're willing to go to keep that monster in power."
Narcissa sighed again. She couldn't blame him, not really. "Very well. I will… look. What will the consequences be if I'm caught?"
"Death," Draco replied bluntly. "Father has no idea what it is. I have no idea if Grandfather does. I can only assume not or Father would have made some very different choices in my original timeline. But if He finds out, your death won't be pleasant."
Narcissa paled. "It's that important?"
"Yes. Regulus was going to put Father to sleep."
"It's not a bad idea," Narcissa mused. "Do you know what protections are in place?"
"No," Draco sighed. "It's… we have several items to find. This is the one we know the least about."
"I will do this," Narcissa declared, pinning him with a look that instantly transported him to his childhood years. "But in return, I want to get to know you. Weekly visits. And I want an invite to your wedding."
"Fine," Draco agreed slowly. "But we need to find somewhere private to meet. I expect you to get to know Hermione too. I'll speak to Aunt Dorea about the wedding."
Narcissa nodded. "I can do that. She seems… protective."
Draco snorted. "Everyone we loved died. Are you surprised?"
She flinched. "Not when you put it like that."