Heyy! I'm sorry for breaking your hearts last week. I promise it gets better! This new update is sweet and sour though, so make sure to buckle up.
I'm super excited because an important character is introduced on this chapter! Always be on the lookout for clues, as I leave at least one on every non-flashback. I was thinking about making a chapter after the epilogue with every little hint and the corresponding chapter. Let
me know what you think!
OH! And yesterday I had the most ridiculous shower thought. I haven't even finished writing this and I'm already thinking about writing the story from Hermione's prespective next LOL. Anyway, I really appreciate you all hanging around. I wish you the very best!
Chapter Text
It had been a couple of weeks since Theo, Blaise and Draco decided to begin an independent investigation about the disappearances. This implied two major things: one, they needed to have their meals with the others in order to spot anything weird. Two, the sneering and name-calling towards Draco and Theo had more than doubled because of their prolonged presence.
Although it was true that they were sort of used to it, their peers' attitude hurt like a siren's wail.
Their techniques for evading were vastly different. Blaise, for the most part, scrutinised crows in his forever silent, hypervigilant way. Theo laughed it off and went on full-blown sarcastic tirades. He said things like "come on, I know you can come up with better insults than that! Rowena would be ashamed" or "that's Hufflepuff's true spirit, if I've ever seen it!" which of course annoyed the hell out of the perpetrators and made them stop nine out of ten times.
Draco, however, took it all in stride.
"You should've died."
"Wait until we go on the first Hogsmeade weekend, you cunt."
"I'd watch your back if I were you, Death Eater scum."
Whenever he heard those kinds of comments he simply used occlumency, smirked and waved. He already had a target the size of a hippogriff on his back, so if he was lucky, they'd hex him all the way to Mungo's for the rest of his sorry life.
For all the evading they did, though, at the end of the day they always ended up holed in the Head dormitories, drinking, investigating and theorizing. It was as straining as it was relaxing.
They'd read months' worth of newspapers, scrutinized every single Quibbler edition and came up with far-fetched theories about what could be happening or who was behind it. There had been no more disappearances after Molly Weasley, and since the abducted had all been order members, it was obvious who were the culprits.
"They must be the hidden Death Eaters," they'd all agreed. Still, there were pressing questions that complicated the matter. What did they want with the abducted? What was their aim? And why was Hermione the only one to leave her clothes behind? The three of them shuddered. That was a hornet nest they didn't want to poke at yet, especially Draco.
While all this was happening, and unbeknownst to his friends, Draco woke up mysteriously every morning on his bed with a Hangover potion neatly clasped on his hand, no matter where he last remembered falling asleep. Lilith did every little thing imaginable to prevent him from drinking too much without major success, so instead she'd stare at him judgingly while he tossed back firewhiskey after firewhiskey. Despite this, she decided to permanently sleep at his feet during the night, using her fabulous cushion only to nap during the day.
Outwardly, and to his friends' amusement, Draco complained that she spent her waking hours on Theo or Blaise's lap instead of his. Inwardly, though, he was thoroughly relieved at her attitude change. She still didn't let him pet her, but was not as wary of him either. Sometimes she even rubbed her head on his legs when he fed her.
It was a rather uneventful couple of weeks.
Lilith had her second episode on the 1st of October. It was another unremarkable Thursday for the trio. Perhaps it had been because the heavy rain made many students more irritable, but they'd been treated like outcasts even more than usual. Blaise had even deflected a hex on an empty corridor, but the culprit made themself scarce and bolted through a hidden passage before they could grab them. Without any real evidence, there was nothing to report to Flitwick.
The poor man looked exhausted. Apart from acting as the Headmaster he'd continued teaching Charms due to the lack of substitute teachers. Meanwhile, the rest of the staff were all jittery and jumpy, as if waiting to be attacked or snatched away at any given moment. It was subtle, but the fear of being suddenly murdered honed Draco's observation skills to an almost paranoid level since the very beginning of the war, so he could detect those behavioural changes right away.
They were on their way back to the Dorms after dinner when a sudden, hollow feeling on Draco's stomach put him on edge. His skin broke out in a cold sweat as his heart began beating erratically and his breathing strained.
Blaise was the first to notice. "Drake? What's wrong?"
"Something- something's wrong with Lil" he answered in a barely audible whisper. His vision began to cloud and his ears rang. It felt like he was having a panic attack, but not quite. The physical symptoms were there, but he retained his ability to think clearly. A harrowing sense of foreboding invaded his every thought as he fought his way to speak with a parched tongue. Without ever stopping, he rushed to the portrait on the alcove he'd grown to yearn.
The lonely Snake on the canvas promptly let them in.
"Lilith!" Draco screamed hoarsely, with Blaise and Theo closely behind. "Lilith, where are you!?"
He looked for her on all her favourite spots. He upturned every single piece of furniture his trembling hands could lift. He triple-checked the windows and hesitantly peeked at the floor right outside of them… alas, to no avail.
He was about to bombarda the whole fucking common room, nevermind the horrified stares of his two useless friends — couldn't they see he needed help? — when, without warning, the portrait flung open, welcoming an unnervingly unbothered Luna Lovegood.
On her arms, she carried a book, and…
"Lilith!" He bolted towards her, his arms outstretched awkwardly, anxious to grab the twitching, glowing feline but reticent to do so. The images of a tortured, filthy Luna were not uncommon during his nightmares and he always shied away from her smiles. He hadn't been able to save her then, either.
"Hello, Draco Malfoy, Theodore, Blaise. That's what you've been calling her?"
The three Slytherins looked at each other, their eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"Does she have another name?" Blaise asked, dumbfounded.
"She'll tell you soon, I reckon." Her soft, dreamy voice felt like a warm embrace, one Draco didn't think he deserved. As usual, she spoke as if she was several steps ahead of them, knowledgeable in all the mysteries of the universe. Then again, it could just be her quirkiness. Sometimes she did get some things wrong.
"Don't worry, Draco Malfoy. You can take her. She's just sleeping."
Draco shifted, skittish yet grateful. He held her lovingly in his arms with a sharp pain on his chest. He chanced a glance at Luna's calming, silver eyes, noticing the ever-present kindness and openness in them.
"What happened to her?" his voice, to his surprise, came out raw with distress.
"She likes to read during dinner. I sometimes accompany her. Her memories must be coming back."
What in Merlin's hairy ballsack was going on.
The only noticeable movement was Draco's hand softly petting Lilith's head, until Theo seized the opportunity. With a graceful flick of his wand, he single handedly fixed the mess around the room.
"We can't thank you enough, Luna. Would you like some tea?" he asked with an incredible amount of charm, not recurring to his clownery at all. He was usually so silly that one could easily forget that he'd been raised to be a gentleman.
"Oh, that would be lovely, Theodore" she agreed, fluttering down to the mahogany table. Out of their daze thanks to Theo's sudden hospitality, Blaise and Draco exchanged secret smiles with each other. Lucky git.
Lilith, who had since ceased glowing purple, had been left to snooze peacefully on her cushion while the three friends enjoyed some tea and light-hearted conversations. Luna masterfully dodged any and all questions they directed at her regarding Lilith, and they decided not to press. It could be one of her delusions, after all, so the wisest decision was to not take her declarations too seriously.
They moved on to other topics and mostly let Theo and Luna interact with each other — which actually went quite well on their opinion. That night, they enjoyed a break from the investigation and from their daily dose of alcohol, though Draco would later take a large glass before going to bed himself.
It was almost midnight by the time Lilith woke up and shook her head with a soft meow. Draco hurried to her side, ignoring her protests in order to check every single inch of her fuzzy body for injuries. As usual, she presented no sign of any external injury.
From the other side of the room, Luna watched the scene with a tiny smile. "Sometimes we forget the things that hurt us the most. But in order to heal, we must remember."
Blaise and Theo were quiet and thoughtful, waiting for her to continue.
"You can always ask for our help, you know? I'm sure that Neville, Hannah and Ginny will want to, especially if it's to find Hermione."
The two wizards were silent, stunned silly by her words. How did she know about their investigations? They certainly were not sharing it with anybody.
Luna proceeded to stand up and stretch, covering her yawn with one of her hands. "Oh, before I forget," she exclaimed before presenting them the book she had been carrying around when she arrived. "This might be useful." Finally, she waved her hand and raised her voice enough for it to travel across the room. "Goodbye, Draco Malfoy. She might let you pet her if you give her a sugar quill."
At the sound of Luna's departure, Lilith marched towards the heavily worn-down tome Theo and Blaise were currently examining on the table, Draco not far behind. She pawed at Blaise's trousers — her unmistakable request to be held — and, once she was in his arms, jumped in front of the book.
"Traitor," Blaise whispered as he scratched her head. Lilith purred contentedly.
"Moste Potente Potions? This sounds like something straight out of Snape's personal library" Theo exclaimed in surprise, idly scanning the contents. "Merlin, Circe and Morgana, these are some gruesome potions."
"Not all of those are gruesome," Draco muttered, shivering at the sudden memory of Sixth Year, when he was looking for options to fulfill his tasks. "Look," he said, turning to a specific page. "This one is a precursor of Felix Felices. And here-" he was trying to point at an antidote for Acromantula venom, when Lilith suddenly placed her paw in one of the pages he was flipping.
His eyes roamed over the heading. " Tristibus Aeternum — Everlasting Sorrow."
Why did she have such a determined expression on her chocolatey eyes?
"Well, as fun as this has been, I think we should go to bed now if we want to get up early tomorrow" Blaise said, cracking his knuckles and giving Lilith a final scratch behind her ears.
Theo mocked the Auror salute, turning on his heel and leading the way out of the room.
Just before he left though, Blaise cleared his throat.
"Drake, we know by now Lilith's incredibly smart. Maybe take a closer look at the page she touched, okay?"
Draco nodded, making himself comfortable in front of the fire.