Chapter 13

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter world obviously belongs to JK Rowling and not me. Obviously.

… … … …

Leila awoke to the sunlight streaming into the room through the window panes. She looked around the room in confusion. The last thing she remembered was being tortured by Bellatrix downstairs after her failed attempt to escape. Not only had the whole thing been a set-up, but she finally admitted to herself that she truly was still in love with Draco. This only made the situation even more confusing because she loved Fred too. Only she may never see Fred again. Another night like last night she couldn't handle because she might not make it. Leila slowly sat-up in bed ignoring the pain. When she finally was upright the door to her room began to swing open.

"Go away, Draco," Leila groaned.

Only the person who came through the door wasn't Draco, it was his mother, Narcissa. Leila's hands immediately clasped over her mouth when she noticed her mistake. Narcissa walked over to the wardrobe carrying something in her arms. She hung whatever was in her arms in the wardrobe and walked over to the chair conveniently placed beside Leila's bed.

"I didn't expect you to be awake yet," Narcissa said stiffly.

"Sorry," Leila responded.

"There's no need for that. Now, would you like some tea? I can send for a house elf if you'd like," Narcissa said.

"Could I get some pumpkin juice instead, please?" Leila asked.

"Of course," Narcissa answered.

Narcissa snapped her fingers twice and house elf popped into the room, which Mrs. Malfoy commanded to get a goblet of pumpkin juice for Leila. Just as the house elf was commanded, it left the room to fetch some pumpkin juice. Narcissa quickly stood up and walked over to the window and busied herself with the curtains. Leila watched Draco's mother in confusion. Why was she here? The whole time Leila had been prisoner here, Leila hadn't seen her enter Draco's quarters once. A goblet of pumpkin juice appeared on the bedside table which Leila instantly reached for. She slowly brought the goblet to her lips and sipped the liquid which tasted so sweet to her tongue. When Leila set the goblet back down, she notice Mrs. Malfoy watching her intently.

"There are new clothes for you in the wardrobe. I guessed at your size, but if you need them altered just give them to one of the house elves," Mrs. Malfoy said.

"Thank you," Leila replied.

"Well, I should probably let you rest some more," Mrs. Malfoy commented.

She adjusted the curtain once more before walking for the door. Leila watched as Mrs. Malfoy gracefully moved across the room. She grabbed hold of the door as she exited and the door was almost shut before it fully opened. Mrs. Malfoy looked over to where Leila sat on the bed, with an expression that said she had something to say. Leila looked to the older woman before her not exactly sure what she was supposed to think.

"I'll be back to check on you and Draco later," Mrs. Malfoy commented lightly.

Mrs. Malfoy closed the door gently behind her as Leila plopped back onto her pillows. She placed her hands on her stomach when realized that she was in different clothes and that her beaded bag was no longer safely hidden on her person. Leila began to panic as she sat up once more to look around the room when she spotted her beaded bag on the vanity. She carefully stood up and gingerly maneuvered about the room until she reached her bag. She snatched the bag and began to dig through it. Nothing appeared to be missing from the bag, which caused Leila to sigh in relief. Leila moved to an armchair which she practically collapsed into and quickly fell back asleep. She awoke once more to find Mrs. Malfoy hovering over her.

"I thought I told you to stay in bed," Mrs. Malfoy said sternly.

"My bag, I needed to check my bag," Leila said.

"I didn't look through it when I changed your clothes. I should have brought it to the Dark Lord, but I figured if Draco has let you have it this long that he's already looked through it," Mrs. Malfoy responded.

"He has," Leila muttered.

"Very well, let's get you back to bed," Mrs. Malfoy said calmly.

Draco's mother reached for Leila's arm and helped her to her feet. She then carefully led Leila to the four poster bed and gently helped her up back into the bed. She pulled the blankets back over Leila and smoothed out the crinkles at the end of the bed. These actions confused Leila. Couldn't a house elf easily do what Mrs. Malfoy was doing?

"Your dinner should be here within the hour," Narcissa said.

Narcissa looked into Leila's eyes and bit her bottom lip in slight frustration. Leila looked away and to the window to avoid Narcissa's gaze. Draco's mother cleared her throat before she continued.

"Leila, I know you probably don't think much of me; but from a mother who loves her son very much, I want to thank you for what you did for Draco. He means everything to me. So if there's anything I can do for you to make your stay a little more comfortable, within reason of course, please don't hesitate to ask me. I owe you for what you did for my Draco," Narcissa said.

Leila simply nodded in response. Mrs. Malfoy nodded back and walked for the door. Once she reached the door, she turned back and attempted a smile.

"I should tell you that next time I see you, I want to see you in that bed; but if you're as stubborn as Draco says you are I shouldn't expect you to stay put," Narcissa commented.

"He's told you about me?" Leila asked.

"He's my son. He says more than he thinks he does," Narcissa answered.

Leila nodded once more. It was definitely weird having a conversation with her ex-boyfriend's mother. She wasn't exactly sure what she was supposed to say or do, not to mention that she was technically here against her will. Mrs. Malfoy left the room once again. Leila waited on her bed until her dinner arrived on a tray on her bedside table. She grabbed the tray and brought it over to her bed. On the tray were a tin of chicken pot pie, silverware, and a goblet of pumpkin juice. She hungrily dug her fork into the pot pie and brought a bite to her mouth. Slowly, she savored each bite and washed it down with a gulp of pumpkin juice. When she had devoured her portion of the pot pie and pumpkin juice, she set the tray back onto the bedside table. She leaned against the headboard as her thoughts turned to Draco. She wondered how he was doing. Was he awake yet? She only was ready to sacrifice her own life for the boy.

She needed to know, so she carefully and slowly walked out of her room and into the sitting room. She crossed the sitting room to find Draco's door slightly ajar. Gently, she pushed open his bedroom door to find him sleeping. Leila chuckled to herself at the way he slept with one foot dangling off his bed despite having more than enough room to fully fit on it. Draco tossed on his bed and Leila bit her lip to silence any chuckles. She hoped that he didn't notice her standing in his doorway. The last thing she needed was Draco to jump to conclusions. Luckily, he didn't wake so Leila quietly slipped back out of his room and back into the sitting room. She curled up on the sofa before the fireplace, staring at the flickering flames. She felt so powerless. Her one escape attempt proved to be futile and a trap. Was it simply better to just give up?

Leila stretched her arm over her head causing something to fall from the side table. She looked to the floor to see what had fallen: a book. Curiously, she bent over and picked the book up and before returning to her original position on the sofa. She thumbed through the book and found it to be a book on the House of Black. It looked much like the tapestry in number twelve Grimmauld Place, except it gave a bit more detail than a picture or scorch marks. Had this book always been on the table? She couldn't remember it being there the other times she had been in this room. While flipping through many pages of Black ancestors, Leila wondered if Sirius would be in this book; so she turned to the index and looked for his name. She missed Sirius so badly, but she tried not to get emotional over him. Normally, she tried to stay strong for Harry because he had stayed strong for her when she mourned Cedric's death. But she couldn't help but remember the Christmas Sirius had given her the necklace that had once belonged to her mother. A necklace no longer in her possession…

~*Flashback to Christmas Eve 1995*~

Leila sat in the room she shared with Ginny at Grimmauld Place alone. She had been downstairs with Harry, Ron, and Ginny until she arrived. Hermione Granger had practically waltzed into Grimmauld Place and into their Christmas plans. For once, she thought she was going to have a Granger-free holiday; but things weren't in her favor. She supposed it wasn't the fact that Granger had shown-up that made her isolate herself; it was the fact that she was fawning over her brother. Everyone was fawning over Harry since he had "seen" Mr. Weasley get attacked by a snake at the Ministry. The Weasleys were Harry's constant companion. "Harry this, Harry that," Every time she turned her head something had to be about Harry. She loved her brother, but she was getting quite annoyed with the situation. Annoyed and jealous. Yes, she'd admit to jealousy.

She ran her hair through her short hair that fell almost to her shoulders. She had cut her long, flowing locks last summer; last summer after Cedric died. Cedric's death had left her in a dark place and she knew it. It didn't help matters that the Daily Prophet was dragging her name into everything with Harry and Dumbledore. She was practically an outcast at school and she felt the same way now with Harry getting all the attention. Leila flopped back onto her pillow as she heard Sirius' voice ringing through the halls with the song "God Rest Ye Merry, Hippogriffs." Since her door was open a crack, she saw Sirius pass her room before taking a step backwards to open her door further.

"Leila, what are you doing?" Sirius asked.

"Nothing," Leila muttered.

"Why aren't you with Harry and the others?" Sirius asked.

"Dunno, just didn't feel like it," Leila shrugged.

Sirius nodded and stepped further into the room. He sat at the end of Leila's bed and patted the blankets in the place where her feet were underneath.

"Come on, Leila, talk to me," Sirius said.

Leila forced herself to sit up as Sirius turned further toward her. She sat with her shoulders hunched and her hair falling in front of her face.

"What do you want me to say?" Leila asked.

"Tell me what's going on with you," Sirius suggested.

"What's it to you?" Leila questioned.

"I may not be your godfather since Remus has the official title, but don't think for one second that you're not important to me," Sirius said.

"Good to know," Leila mumbled.

"So, what's going on, Leila?" Sirius asked.

"It's nothing, rather stupid," Leila said.

"Let me guess, you're feeling a little left out with all the attention Harry's getting," Sirius guessed.

"How did you know?" Leila asked.

"I felt the same way in this house when my parents were more devoted to Regulus than me. Can't say that I mind looking back on it now; Reg turned out to be their perfect little Death Eater," Sirius spat

"And how exactly does that help my situation?" Leila questioned.

"Because you know that Harry won't turn his back on you; as far as brothers go I'd say you made off better than I did," Sirius smiled.

Leila chuckled in response which made Sirius smile more.

"I knew a smile was in there somewhere," Sirius chuckled.

She bit her lip trying to hide her smile; but that just made her smiled more. Sirius ruffled her hair with his hand so Leila chuckled

"I know that you're always hearing how much you look like Lily; but just so you know, you have James' smile," Sirius said lightly.

"I don't remember them," Leila said sadly.

"I wouldn't expect you to. You were only a baby when they died," Sirius responded.

"The only thing I have to remember them by is the photograph album Hagrid gave me at the end of first year," Leila commented.

"I was going to wait until tomorrow, but I suppose now will work just as well. I'll be right back," Sirius said.

Sirius suddenly stood up and walked out of the room leaving Leila sitting on her bed a bit confused. She had no idea what he meant, but was surprised when the door opened moments later. Only this time, Ginny walked through the door. Ginny plopped onto her stomach on her bed, looking at Leila.

"You didn't miss much," Ginny commented.

"I didn't figure I would," Leila said.

"Are you okay?" Ginny questioned.

"I'm fine, Gin; just didn't feel like being down there with everyone," Leila sighed.

"So what have you been doing up here all alone?" Ginny asked.

"She hasn't been alone; she's been with me," Sirius said walking back into the room.

Sirius walked over to Leila's bed holding a small wrapped parcel in his hands. He held it out for Leila to grab, which she took from his hands. She looked at him in confusion.

"Usually when you're given a present, you open it," Sirius chuckled.

Ginny walked over to Leila's bed and sat down next to her as she slowly unwrapped the present. Underneath the wrappings was a small box. Leila looked up to Sirius, who nodded for her to continue opening the present. Carefully, she took the lid of the box and was surprised what she saw inside: a beautiful silver necklace with a delicate "L" pendant. She gently took the necklace out of the box and dangled it before her.

"It's beautiful," Ginny whispered.

"This is the first present your dad ever gave your mom. Well technically, it's the first one Lily ever accepted. You know that your dad was sweet on your mom for a long time. He just didn't always have the right way of showing it; but she couldn't resist this present," Sirius commented.

"How did you get it?" Leila asked.

"That's a secret between Mundungus Fletcher and myself; a secret I intend to take to the grave with me," Sirius answered.

"Thank you, Sirius," Leila sniffled with a tear running down her cheek.

Leila got off her bed and flung her arms tightly around Sirius' neck; embracing him in a hug. Several more tears slipped from her eyes as she hung onto Sirius. He sniffled, which caused Leila to look back at him. He wasn't crying, yet; but tears were shining in his eyes. Leila slowly released Harry's godfather and sat back on her bed.

"I miss them," Leila sniffled.

"I do too, Leila. I'm just sorry you never got the chance to know them. They would have been so proud of you," Sirius sighed.

"You think?" Leila asked.

"No, I know," Sirius smiled.

"Thanks again, Sirius," Leila said wiping away a tear.

"Anything for Prongs' little girl," Sirius responded.

~*End Flashback*~

Leila turned back to the index and was surprised to find three Sirius Blacks listed. She turned the pages to the first Sirius Black listed:

Sirius Black I (1845-1853) pure-blooded wizard, eldest son of Cygnus and Ella (nee Max) Black, and older brother of Phineas Nigellus, Elladora, and Isla. Sirius died when he was only eight years old of dragonpox.

So this Sirius had been related to Phineas Nigellus, the man in the portrait in her bedroom. He looked young and sickly in his picture. It was hard to believe that he died when he was only eight; but that was something else beside his name he had in common with her Sirius. Both had died rather young. Leila turned back to the index in hopes of finding the Sirius she had known. This time, she flipped through the pages in the book to the last Sirius listed:

Sirius Black III (1959-1996) pure-blooded wizard, eldest son of Orion and Walburga Black, and older brother of Regulus.

The book didn't provide any other information on him besides his picture; but she supposed she should be thankful that he wasn't written-off or burned out of the book like the tapestry back in Grimmauld Place. Leila turned the page to find information on Sirius' younger brother:

Regulus Arcturus Black (1961-1979) pure-blooded…

Leila looked back at his name again: Regulus Arcturus Black. It couldn't possibly be what she was thinking.

~*Flashback*~

Leila opened the locket to find a piece of parchment hidden inside. She unfolded the parchment and read aloud:

To the Dark Lord,

I know I will be dead before you read this

But I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret.

I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can

I face death in the hope that when you meet your match

You will be mortal once more.

~R.A.B.

~*End Flashback*~

The idea seemed impossible and rather insane. Sirius had always said that his brother had been Voldemort's loyal follower until his death; but then again, Sirius didn't have the greatest relationship with his brother. It was possible. In order for someone to recognize the Horcrux for what it was they probably needed to know something about Dark magic. The message was addressed "To the Dark Lord." The only ones that called Voldemort that were those who followed him or in the very least approved of him and what he stood for. The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed that Regulus was the elusive R.A.B. they had searched for upon discovering that the locket was a fake. But that still didn't explain what happened to the real Horcrux. If Regulus had taken the locket, what had he done with it? That was a piece of the puzzle Leila still hadn't figured out.

Staring at the wall with a puzzled expression on her face, she didn't even notice Draco standing in the entrance to the sitting room from his room. He crossed in front of the fireplace and sat on the sofa beside Leila. She uncomfortably shifted with the book still in her hands. Draco reached for the book and grabbed it from Leila. He opened the book and paged through it, while Leila focused on the wall straight ahead. She was unsure of how to handle the situation; but Draco broke the silence.

"Mother must have been looking at this," Draco said softly. "Anyone specific you were looking at?"

Leila grabbed the book back from Draco and opened again to Sirius' page before handing it back to him without speaking a word.

"Mother's cousin, Sirius," Draco spoke.

"I was surprised to even see him in there seeing as his mother blasted him off the Black family tapestry," Leila commented.

"Mother gets a bit sentimental about him sometimes," Draco said.

"She didn't even know him," Leila scoffed.

"Actually, Mother and Sirius were close when they were younger; before they went to Hogwarts," Draco added.

She didn't respond to Draco's comment. Instead she stood up to walk back to her room, when Draco weakly grabbed her arm. Leila moved to push his hand from her arm when she made eye contact with him. Those eyes, she couldn't resist those eyes no matter how hard she tried.

"I have something I want to give you," Draco said.

Leila opened her hand near Draco but he shook his head and patted the sofa. Rather reluctantly, Leila sat back down on the sofa as Draco fumbled to get something out of his jacket pocket. Leila looked at him with slight unease.

"Don't worry; I'm not going to pull my wand out on you. My mother has it," Draco commented.

"They don't even trust you with your own wand," Leila muttered.

"There's that sense of humor of yours; but no, they didn't trust you not to find it," Draco responded.

"Of course," Leila sighed.

"The Dark Lord knows you're a bright witch," Draco said.

"Just not bright enough," Leila sighed.

"Close your eyes," Draco said changing the subject.

"What?" Leila questioned.

"Close your eyes….please," Draco said tacking on the please.

She bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes lightly. Draco grabbed her hand and her first instinct was to pull away; but she stopped fighting him when she realized that he was pressing something into her hand. He released her hand and told her to open her eyes. Slowly, she opened her eyes and found a necklace in her hand. Not just any necklace, but her mother's necklace. Leila stared at him in disbelief wondering how he possibly could have gotten it.

"How did you get this?" Leila asked.

"I'd rather not say," Draco said.

"This really means a lot to me," Leila said.

"It belonged to you and I thought you should have it back," Draco shrugged.

"Thank you, Draco," Leila whispered.

Leila reached for his hand and squeezed it. When she did so, she locked eyes with him once again. Damnit, she really shouldn't have done that; but she couldn't help herself. Something about his eyes made her feel safe.

"Leila, about last night…" Draco began.

"Draco, please don't," Leila pleaded.

"You risked your life for me," Draco responded.

"No, I was keeping a promise. When I broke up with you, I did it to keep you safe. You were about to die, what else what I supposed to do?" Leila retorted.

Draco reached for her hand once more and pressed something cold and metallic into her hand.

"I gave this to you. I want you to have it back," Draco said.

Leila looked down at her hand to find Draco's Slytherin ring that had once been attached to her necklace in her hand. Leila shook her head in attempts to refuse him. She didn't want his ring. She couldn't handle this right now. She may still have feelings for Draco, but she had never ended things with Fred. Besides, she wasn't sure that she would choose Draco over Fred. She and Draco fought all the time and his family hated her; well, at least they used to.

"Draco, I can't accept this," Leila whispered.

"Why not? I think last night proves you still love me," Draco scoffed.

"It's not about that," Leila sighed.

"Then what is it about? Are you mad at me for something?" Draco questioned.

"I'm just done; done with love," Leila sighed.

"You're serious?" Draco asked.

"I am," Leila said.

Draco looked at Leila for a moment before looking to the fireplace.

"The Leila I know wouldn't give up so easily," Draco said.

"I haven't been that Leila since the night on the Astronomy Tower," Leila retorted.

"I didn't want things to end like that," Draco sighed.

"But it's how they did end Draco. Your insecurity was at its best that night," Leila argued.

"Insecurity? You would have done the same thing if you had been in my position," Draco furthered.

"No, I never would have betrayed you or anyone else for that matter. I loved you so much, Draco; but you gave up on us," Leila added.

"I gave up on us? You broke up with me, in case you've forgotten, and that somehow translates that I gave up on us?" Draco hissed jumping to his feet.

"You gave up on us when I told you that I knew you had been branded as a Death Eater, maybe even before and you know that's the truth," Leila argued.

Leila stood up and stomped away from Draco. She was livid. She walked over to the wall which was covered from floor to ceiling in books. She toyed with one of the books on the shelf, sliding it in and out of its place.

"And there's your brilliant solution to everything: to walk away," Draco sneered.

"Truth is, it keeps me from saying stupid things to you," Leila hissed.

"You want to talk truth Leila? Let's tell the truth: you gave up on me. You didn't have any faith in me that I could do the right thing," Draco said.

"Because clearly you did the right thing," Leila scoffed.

"Or maybe you just didn't care. You didn't care because the whole time we were together was one big act for you to feed information to Dumbledore," Draco raged.

"If I never cared, then why did I keep everything you told me from Dumbledore, from Harry, and from every damn person? Even when Parkinson outed us I never outed you. Never!" Leila shouted.

She grasped a book firmly in her hand.

"You said that things were different with me," Leila yelled.

The book that was in her hand she threw at Draco.

"You said we were meant to be together," Leila raged.

Another book flung toward Draco.

"You said you loved me!" Leila hissed.

Three more books flew toward Draco.

"I wish you never had said any of it, because you didn't mean a single word you said. Clearly, I was the only one with my entire heart into our relationship!" Leila shouted on the verge of tears.

Draco walked over to the place where Leila stood with a sneer on his face. Once he reached where she was he grabbed her hands from the bookshelf so that she couldn't grab anymore more books, keeping her hands locked in his. He purposely towered over her looking coldly into her emerald eyes.

"My heart wasn't in it? I let you in last year, even though I knew it could jeopardize my mission. I asked you to come with me so that I could keep you safe. I kept my mouth shut so far on your fling with Weasley because I know how badly I hurt you. I pleaded to the Dark Lord and even took a few curses to keep you out of the dungeon. The list goes on Leila. Even after we broke up, it seems like everything I do is for you," Draco hissed.

Leila bit back a response and looked to Draco with tears shining in her eyes.

"Fine, if that's how things are going to be," Draco responded.

"Draco, I'm sorry," Leila sniffled.

"Just not sorry enough," Draco scoffed.

"Draco," Leila sighed.

"I think we should both go to bed before you start round two," Draco said.

Leila slowly nodded her head in agreement as Draco released her hands. She watched as he pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration before he walked away. He walked into his room and shut the door. If she would have known that they'd have gotten into such a big fight over something as stupid as a ring, she never would have opened her mouth. Draco was the only one watching out for her and now she probably just drove him away. Speaking of the ring, Leila walked back over to the sofa to find her mother's necklace and Draco's ring carelessly strewn on the floor. She picked both pieces of jewelry up, clutching them both tightly with tears streaming down her face.

Draco wouldn't understand. She loved them both; but it wasn't fair to either of them to give part of her heart. Either way she was going to be left with a slew of what-ifs. It was just easier if she stayed away from love. Maybe Voldemort was actually right about something. Love only seemed to complicate matters because either way she was hurting one of them. Either way she was causing her own heart pain by breaking another's. If she couldn't give her heart to both without repercussions, she wouldn't give it to either. She'd let them take what they already had of her heart, but the rest she would hold onto, careful not to let it be torn further. Love seemed to tear her apart and Voldemort knew it to be her weakness. Leila walked to Draco's door and was about to knock on it to return his ring, but she thought better. Instead she walked back to her room and pulled the music box Fred had given her out of her beaded bag. She twisted the key to the box and that haunting melody began to play. She lifted the lid to the box and placed Draco's ring and her mother's necklace inside. Making the music box a tribute to everything she had lost to this damn war: Fred, her parents, Sirius, and more-than-likely Draco.