Amelia can't hide her disappointed sigh when she hears that she is paired up with Sirius Black in Care of Magical Creatures. She hears Rosier chuckle from her left.

"I thought you liked the blood traitor" he whispers in her ear.

"I do." Amelia snaps back.

"Then what's with the sigh?"

Amelia elbows him harder than necessary, unable to come up with a response without letting her fellow pureblood know what had happened that Friday night. She'd spent the remainder of the weekend doing everything she could to both avoid the Black boy and keep her mind off of him. From doing every assignment she'd had for the next week to running through quidditch drills, and running laps around the campus, she couldn't get the kiss out of her head.

"Alright, disperse and expand your brains." Kettleburn says, breaking Amelia's thoughts.

Sirius approaches her, a large bird cage in hand. In the cage is a Diricawl, the small flightless bird clicking it's parrot like beak in protest. Sirius places the cage on the table between them.

"Remember, the Diricawl has the ability to disappear and reappear wherever it desires. Don't scare it away, or you will have a hell of a time trying to complete the assignment." Kettleburn explains as he settles at his desk to begin grading papers.

Around her, Amelia hears groans of frustration and disappointment as Diricawls already begin to vanish from their cages. Only to reappear on tables, in rafters, next to the fire pit, and even in other cages.

"Hello, beautiful." she greets the bird.

"Hello to you too, Malfoy." Sirius replies.

Amelia blushes earning a smile from Sirius. They both pull out their field books and charcoal, the assignment is to draw the Diricawl.

"Amelia, about the." Sirius begins after a few moments.

"Not now, Black." she shushes him, both in an attempt to get the shape of the beak right and to avoid this conversation completely.

"Why are we drawing them? I didn't sign up for some bloody art class." Rosier mutters.

"It's not the most beautiful of birds, is it?" Mafalda Hopkirk says from her left.

"Bloody tacky, actually." LeStrange replies.

The bird lets out an angry squawk and vanishes from its cage only to reappear long enough to take a bird dump on LeStrange's leg before vanishing again.

The entire class laughs while LeStrange turns scarlet.

"Malfoy, do something." Rosier calls from across the barn where he is currently trying to corral his diricawl into a corner-the bird lets out a gobble before running between his legs and disappearing.

Amelia makes a point to ignore him. She smiles as her Diricawl vanishes for just a second before perching on top of the cage.

She moves her fingers slowly towards the creature, it clicks its beak and ruffles its feathers. "It's okay." she answers the unasked question between her and the Diricawl. The bird leans forward and allows her to pet its brown feathers.

"You can pet him too." she laughs at his timidness. Sirius reaches forward and tentatively touches the feathers on the bird's head.

Their fingers brush just slightly and Amelia removes her hand.

Sirius mimics her motions and returns to his sketch "Bloody glad you're my partner." Black mutters.

Amelia laughs. "If you are just nice and quiet around them, they aren't going to vanish. Look, Pettigrew's doing just fine."

"Ironically enough, so is Lockehart." Sirius says gesturing in the direction of the Ravenclaw boy.

"Lockehart, is actually pretty good with animals. He strokes their egos just like they stroke his."

"I heard that, Malfoy." Lockhart calls from across the room.

"Oi! She's right you know." a Ravenclaw that Amelia doesn't know calls back. He and his partner are also doing well, their Diricawl still in its cage, although Amelia can tell that it is getting restless.

"Malfoy." a voice hisses from behind.

Amelia turns to see LeStrange and Hopkirk approaching from behind her. Five diricawls have sought solace under the bench she is currently sitting on.

"Don't. Move." LeStrange draws his wand.

"Bloody hell, LeStrange. Pointing your wand at the damn thing isn't going to work." Black says.

"Shut it, Black." he snaps as he and Mafalda slowly approach the bench.

Amelia sighs, she stands, causing the birds to scatter.

"Damn it, Malfoy."

Ignoring him, she walks to the front of the class where the remaining diricawls are gathered, circling a large bag. Amelia reaches into the bag, grabs a generous handful of birdseed and scatters it on the ground. Then a smaller one and throws it at LeStrange.

All the Diricawls immediately appear, pecking furiously at the bird feed and a few reappear on or next to LeStrange, squawking and flapping . LeStrange lets out a feminine scream and begins to dance around trying to shove birds away and off of him.

Rosier and the other Slytherins don't bother to help, most of them are laughing at their house member's embarrassment. All of them looking at Amelia with looks of approval or even a glint of a challenge.

"Godric, you're dense." she says to LeStrange as she walks past him.

Feeling the look of admiration from Black, she can't help but sit up a little straighter when she hears Kettleburn's chuckle a "Five points for Hufflepuff."

"Professor!" LeStrange protests.

"It's a bloody bird, LeStrange." Kettleburn chastises before returning to his papers.

"My father will hear about this."


Amelia is cornered by the Black sisters as soon as she enters the castle from Care of Magical Creatures.

"Amelia!" Bellatrix says brightly.

"Hello Bella, Cissy." Amelia says as she embraces the two of them.

"Have you heard?" Bellatrix demands as she links her arm through Amelia's own.

"Heard what?"

"Honestly, you don't know!" Narcissa gasps as she links her other arm with the Malfoy.

"Know what?" Amelia looks back and forth between the two girls.

"He has done it. Lucius has finished his first mission!" Narcissa says happily.

"He did!" Amelia shouts happily, too relieved that her brother is still alive to care about the pang of hurt that clings to her heart.

After a few steps that feeling arises, and she comes to a stop. Not even trying to hide the looks of betrayal and hurt.

"I figured he would've told you." Narcissa says softly.

"Yeah. Me too."

"It must be because he and Narcissa are engaged. That's the only reason why, he has to tell his soon to be wife about his success." Bellatrix tries to soften the blow, despite knowing all too well about her brother's strained relationship.

The three continue walking together, although Amelia hangs back slightly. "Amelia, do you know what the mission was?" Narcissa inquires.

"Yes, please tell us! He said that he can't reveal it." Bellatrix butts in.

Amelia knows exactly what the mission had been she'd been there, wearing her new silver mask, standing next to the Dark Lord himself as his brother bowed before him.

Go master the Killing Curse.

Amelia shakes her head. "Sorry, I don't."

Voldemort invades her dreams that night.

"You have heard about your brother?" she sees him, sitting in an immense black leather arm chair.

"Yes." she answers.

"Do you remember when you mastered the curse?" he is smiling at her.

Amelia shivers and nods. "Yes." that night haunts her. It happened not even three months ago.

"Let's see it one more time."

She is standing in the dungeons of the Malfoy manor, shivering and holding back tears as she watches her brother cast the Curciatus Curse on the muggle man who is locked behind the bars. The man's screams echo off the walls, sweat covers his face as he tries to fight away the pain, to move his body, to do anything.

"Very good." Voldemort says when Lucius lowers his wand.

The man is gasping for breath, blood leaking from his temple. Uniform tattered and bloodstained from where he had been forced to cut himself and bang his head repeatedly against the bars and walls of the cell while under the Imperius Curse.

Her brother took too much pleasure in that particular curse.

"Now." Voldemort steps behind Lucius and places his hands on the younger man's shoulders. "Kill him."

Lucius says the words "Avada Kedavra."

Amelia gasps.

Tiny wisps of green float like smoke from the end of her brother's wand.

Nothing happens.

"Avada Kedavra." he tries again, waving his wand.

Again, only tiny tendrils of green.

Again and Again.

She meets the eyes of the man. Eyes that were once a stormy cloud, now swollen.

He nods, and she draws her own wand. "Avada Kedavra." she yells.

She isn't sure who screamed louder after he was hit with the blinding green light of the spell. The man who she killed or herself for killing him. She falls to her knees and fights the urge to vomit as tears stream down her face. She'd dropped her wand and her hands grip the gold ring.

The placating hands of Lord Voldemort rest on her shoulders.

She sits up with a scream. Rholanda and Helena are immediately by her side. "What is it?" Rholanda asks.

"A nightmare." Amelia gasps.

Helena embraces her.

Amelia is gasping and trying to fight the lump in her throat, but tears are streaming down her cheeks. Her friends hold her as she tries to get her breathing under control and stop shaking. She finally stops and looks into the concerned faces of her friends. "I'm okay." she whispers.

"Ballocks. I'm going to the kitchens. You're going to tell us everything." Helena says as she stands and pulls on her jumper and a pair of leggings beneath her nightgown.

"It was bloody brillant, Prongs." Sirius says as the two of them sit in the kitchens. The two are drinking the famous Sirius Black Hot Chocolate two empty plates that once held coconut cake between them. He is telling his best friend about Amelia during Care of Magical Creatures, how she'd thrown a handful of bird seed at LeStrange and the wonderful screams that the Slytherin boy had made.

James laughs. "I wish I'd seen that."

"You should have heard him! Even his bloody housemates thought it was priceless." Black exclaims through his own laughter.

The door to the kitchens opens and Helena enters. "Wotcher." she greets.

Sirius waves at Helena. "Alright, Riley?" he is used to seeing random Hufflepuffs and a few Ravenclaws make their way through the kitchens for midnight snacks. Sirius had a crush on the Riley girl back in second year, she had been the first one to develop a fine set of breast. Towards the end of the year, the rest of those glorious curves arrived. Sirius still catches himself staring at the girl's chest when she decides to wear a tight shirt.

"Is that coconut cake?" Helena asks indicating to the cake on the shelf.

"Yep." Sirius confirms.

"What's got you out so late?" James inquires.

"I'll have three slices of that, and three hot chocolates." Helena says to the House Elf, ignoring James.

"Three?" Sirius asks.

"Yes three." she answers. Then she realizes what he is implying "You bloody arse! They are for me, Hooch, and Malfoy."

Sirius instantly perks at the mention of Amelia. "She's coming?"

James doesn't even try to hide his groan.

Helena rolls her eyes. "No."

"Why not?" James asks.

"She's needing some girl time is all." Helena replies.

"She alright?" Sirius asks, feeling worry for the girl.

"She's fine. Just a little off." Helena says, narrowing her minty green eyes at him suspiciously.

The House Elf appears balancing three plates of cake and three hot chocolates on a tray.

"Is Miss Riley in need of assistance?" the Elf inquires.

"That would be lovely, thank you." Helena answers with a smile at the Elf.

The Elf beams up at her and the two begin to exit the kitchen.

"Hold up." Sirius finds himself saying as he slides off the bench and jogs lightly up to Helena and the elf. He removes the flask from his pocket and pours a generous amount of firewhiskey into one of the cups.

Once again, Helena narrows her eyes. "So this is the famous Sirius Black hot chocolate."

Sirius preens at the notion that Amelia has mentioned it to her friends.

"Well, give the rest of us some." Helena says impatiently.

James laughs from behind.

With a sigh, Sirius complies.

"Thanks, Black. I'll send Amelia your love." Helena says with a wink before she and the House Elf exit the kitchen.


"Heard you had a rough night, Malfoy." James Potter says as he swoops in to the chair beside her.

Amelia looks over at him with tired eyes and mild surprise.

"Oh. Hello, Evans. Might I say that you look as beautiful as your namesake today." James says leaning behind Amelia to get a good view of Lily who is seated on her other other side.

"To what do we owe the honor, Potter." Lily narrows her eyes.

"Are you jealous that I'm talking to Malfoy and not you?" James challenges waggling his eyebrows at her.

Lily scoffs and tosses her hair. "Not in the slightest. But Amelia, what does he mean that you had a rough night?" concern is apparent in Lily's voice and Amelia immediately feels guilty for not telling her friend. Then again the only words she'd been able to mutter through tears to Helena and Rholanda were a combination of i'm sorry and it was just a bad dream

"Just some nightmares, been having those a lot lately. I'll tell you later." Amelia lies, mostly just to buy time to make up a good lie. She could tell Lily part of the truth, that a muggle man that she'd come to care about was killed by a Death Eater, she'd just have to leave out the part that she was the one who did it.

It was a mercy killing. She thinks. She tries to convince herself.

"I'm holding you to that." Lily says as Amelia pulls out her notes tiredly.

"Potter, why are you sitting with us?" Lily demands.

"Just wanted to check on the lovely Amelia is all." James says wrapping an arm around her shoulder nonchalantly.

Amelia glances at Lily briefly and can't help but notice the briefest bit of annoyance and dare she say it jealousy at James's use of her first name and the familiarity of his gesture.

"I appreciate it, Potter. But I think your squad is waiting for you." Amelia answers as she removes James's arm from around her shoulders and tilts her head to the back of the classroom where the other three marauders are sitting, Sirius and Peter laughing at something that Remus Lupin had said.

"They will be fine without me for one class." James answers.

"Seriously, Potter. You should-" Lily is cut off by the sounds of the door to the classroom opening and Professor McGonagol beginning the lesson.

"Damn." she hears Lily mutter.

She and Lily walk out of the classroom together. "Since when are you and Potter so familiar?"

Amelia laughs. "We're not. I think he's just trying to get a reaction out of you. And from the looks of it, it's working."

Lily blushes. "Get off it, Malfoy."

Amelia laughs.

Lily stops and takes Amelia by the arm, pulling her to the corner. "Are you alright? You look exhausted. How did Potter know?" the questions fly out rapidly.

Amelia blinks, attempting to keep up with the speed of the questions. "I'm fine Lily, just some nightmares that shook me up. He knows because he and Black were in the kitchens when Helena went to get us some hot chocolate and coconut cake."

The redhead wrinkles her nose, "You don't even like coconut."

Amelia laughs weakly. "It's the thought that counts, besides." she sneaks a glance at Sirius Black who meets her eyes and smiles "The hot chocolate was amazing."