Hplover4ever3: Hello all! We're so happy to be back and we're gonna start off with one hell of a chapter. So much drama ahead and some serious revelations. As for the chapter title, ignore it. It holds no meaning. Just a private joke between my partner and I. And speaking of, happy anniversary, dear one. Really glad I got bored one day and started writing a random story for you to criticize. This year was one of the most complicated of my life but you were a huge and wonderful reason why. No regrets. And here is to many more years :)

#32. Finally made it!

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K Rowling. Thanks


CHAPTER 32: THE DEED

"How are you not as affected by this, Lucius?" said Narcissa once he came back into the sitting room, having escorted the last of the guests out.

He sighed, loosened his tie and took a seat on the arm of one of the couches.

"I'm affected," he said, looking tired. "But I'm a little more distracted by other things tonight, to care about much else."

His eyes lingered over her dress, waving down gracefully to the marble floors. Narcissa blushed slightly and looked down at her dress too before looking back up at him.

"It really was everything I'd ever imagined it to be," she said quietly.

Lucius cocked an eyebrow at her, and upon her silence, rose from the couch and slowly began to approach her.

"Is that so?"

"It is," she said, her smile wider now.

Lucius reached her finally and placed a warm hand on her cheek. She closed her eyes, loving the feel of his soft touch.

"Well then I consider myself a victorious man," he whispered.

"Do you now?" she said.

"Very much so," he replied. "I've won a fortune, and tonight, everyone got to see just how big."

Narcissa blushed again, looking away from him, her face growing suddenly serious again. Lucius tilted his head at her.

"What is it?"

She bit her lip and shook her head. He tilted her chin so that she looked up at him, and raised his eyebrows, waiting.

"There was just...something about him...that made me feel secure," she began. "You know? At home, even. I can't quite explain it."

Lucius thought for a minute. "I suppose I see your point."

"You do?"

"Sure. He just seemed to understand it all. Like he's been there. Like he knows all of us and what we like...what we don't like..."

"Exactly," said Narcissa. "I just found it so very odd."

"He is your blood," Lucius offered. "You shouldn't find it that surprising. It could simply be that he's a long lost brother..."

"My mother never had more children," Narcissa said, shaking her head now. "It was just Bella and Andy and me."

"Then she had a secret sister somewhere who had a child along the way, I don't know," said Lucius. "The point is, we needn't worry about that now. Today, you and I did something incredible, and I just want to focus on that and worry about all of this tomorrow."

"No, you're right," Narcissa said, nodding her head. "You're absolutely right."

"Always am," said Lucius, tilting his head again to examine her. "And might I add, that you look absolutely beautiful tonight...?"

Narcissa smiled. That was the second time she'd heard those exact words tonight.

"So beautiful, in fact..." Lucius added momentarily, placing his arms around her waist and moving her closer to him, "...that I might have to kidnap you for a while and hold you hostage here..." He put his lips to her ear and smiled, "...Mrs. Malfoy."

"Say that again," she breathed, her eyes closing now.

Lucius leaned in to her neck and brushed his lips against it ever so lightly before he whispered in her ear, "Mrs. Malfoy."

At this, Narcissa wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a passionate kiss. Lucius smirked against her lips and lifted her into his arms, eliciting an ecstatic laugh from her as he apparated them quickly into the master suite of Malfoy Manor, where he would spend the night with his new wife, and wonder about this Draco person tomorrow.


One Week Later. . .


"It's hard to tell, but I truly believe that there's more to it than first meets the eye," Remus concluded, rotating Dumbledore's deluminator device in his hand one last time before sighing deeply and passing it back to Draco.

Draco nodded at him and pocketed the deluminator again. He'd hoped Remus would have the answer. Now, he would just have to resort to the embarrassing task of asking Dumbledore to explain his Christmas gift.

"But I mean it's Dumbledore," Remus continued now. "So whatever that object is, you'd best keep it safe. I have a feeling it's something really unique."

Draco nodded again.

Though he had been aching to ask Remus what his thoughts were on the deluminator, and even more anxious to hear his answer, the first thing that he'd asked upon seeing him on the station platform that morning was how he was feeling after his moon. Remus had assured him, as well as the rest of the group, that it hadn't been too bad. Though the few red scars burning into the sides of his neck would determine otherwise.

The second the boys had boarded the Hogwarts Express, they delved right into tales of their holiday break and detailed descriptions of their Christmas gifts. And just as soon as the gentleman with the food trolley began to make his rounds, the boys bought all the snacks they would need to last them the rest of the trip.

Draco felt relieved to be with his friends again, especially since his only company the last two weeks had been Regulus. And although he liked Regulus and enjoyed spending time with him, he felt somehow disconnected from all the relationships he'd developed since the start of the school year, and he realized this more now, as he sat with his friends in their compartment and listened to their stories.

Sirius looked to be doing much better, which was quite a relief. There was not a scratch on him, suggesting that he'd taken to magically healing his injuries at some point over the break. The boys avoided the subject of his running away altogether, though they did take a moment to comment on his hair, for apparently he had taken it upon himself to cut a huge chunk of it off. Where before it was to the length of his shoulders, hanging in loose black curls, now it was significantly short and revealing his face a lot more. Draco doubted he had ever seen a single Black with such short hair, and it was everything he could do not to ask Sirius why the sudden impulse.

Beside him, James was flipping through a collection of chocolate frog cards and listening to Peter's tale of how he hooked up with some muggle girl on Christmas Eve. He too, looked to be doing much better—far better than the last time they all rode the train together. For one, he was not sitting with his head out the window, ignoring all the boys and making snide remarks and storming out of compartments. He even laughed with them as they shared stories and shared some of his own, detailing the many gifts that he received. But even so, Draco could feel a slight edge to the way James talked to (or even looked at) him now. He couldn't quite pinpoint it just yet, but something had definitely changed in James.

"There's no need to lie about it, Wormy, we'll find you a girlfriend this year," Sirius said once Peter was finished, and the boys laughed in unison. Peter folded his arms determinedly in front of him and looked away from Sirius.

Normally, Draco would have told Sirius to knock it off. He felt bad for Peter most days and wished the boys could just see that if they didn't treat him better now, he would only get worse with time. But at that moment, Draco was enjoying seeing Sirius smile far too much, that he couldn't bring himself to ruin it. He'd honestly believed that he would never see him smile ever again, and it was quite a relief to be proven wrong.

"A trust fund though," Remus said to Draco once the subject was back on the holiday gifts. "That's really great, Draco."

Sirius instantly got busy with his shoelace and Draco nodded.

"Yeah, I mean, growing up in an orphanage and having Dumbledore to take care of me and all...well, he hasn't exactly spoiled me over the years, but it'll be nice to have some pocket money from now on."

"You deserve it," said Peter.

Draco smiled at him, then his eyes fell on Sirius.

"Regulus gave me the Thunderbolt VI."

"I know," Sirius said, looking down at his lap.

"But I'm not playing," Draco continued, still watching him. "It's yours if you want it."

At this, Sirius brought his eyes up to Draco. The boys all looked from one to the other, and Draco swore it had to be the longest silence he could remember.

"Why would you do that?" Sirius finally said.

"Because he's your brother," Draco admitted. "He should've given it to you, not me."

"You're our cousin though..."

"True, but I'm not in Quidditch."

"W-well maybe that's Regulus's way of saying that he thinks you should be," said Peter.

James looked up at Draco instantly, though he didn't say a word. Instead, he gave him the strangest look...like he was trying to tell Draco, 'don't even think about it'. Or perhaps Draco was reading too much into it. Whatever it was that had happened between them, Draco was smart enough to realize that it had changed everything forever. But what had changed everything was really tearing at him, and he had to exercise some serious control in order not to blurt out the question then and there. The way James and Sirius were acting with each other now though gave Draco the impression that whatever it was that was bothering James, Sirius knew about it. He made a mental note of it, wondering if Sirius was his best shot at finding out what the bloody hell he'd done this time.

About an hour before the train arrived at Hogwarts, the boys started up a muggle card game called poker. Apparently, James and Sirius had taken a one-day course over the holidays and learned the basics of it. They also took it upon themselves to purchase some instruction books on tricks and techniques, and now they sat in that compartment, trying to explain it to Remus, Peter and Draco. But after a little while, Sirius clapped his hands, laughing, and then excused himself from the compartment. Thirty seconds later, Draco got up and went after him.

Sirius noticed Draco following him down the corridor straightaway and smiled as they reached the same spot where they'd spoken last time they did this. Just like then, Sirius slipped his hands into his pockets and leaned against the wall, letting his eyes close and feeling the train's rattling vibration against his back.

"I can't wait to be back," he said to Draco.

"How are you?" Draco said. "Really."

"Really?" said Sirius, eyes still closed. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

There was a pause, during which Sirius opened one eye to look at Draco.

"I'm not some broken child you need to keep checking up on."

"I never said you were."

More silence.

"Listen, Sirius, I feel like...I need to explain myself."

"Hmm?"

"Back at Grimmauld Place...what you heard..."

Sirius pulled away from the wall. "Yeah, can we um, not rehash that please?"

"No, I need to get this out," Draco said urgently. Sirius sighed, waiting. Draco hesitated. "Listen, all that...all that Slytherin stuff... and you know, everything I said...and the pureblood things...you know I didn't mean it, Sirius. You know that."

"Do I?"

Draco hesitated again. "Y-yes! I mean, come on, you know me better than that by now!"

Draco sighed in frustration. Even he wouldn't have believed him.

"Well you did seem pretty convincing back there, so you can't really blame a bloke for wondering otherwise," Sirius muttered.

He turned to leave but Draco grabbed his arm and Sirius stopped.

"I need you to believe me," he declared. "And listen, whatever James might've said to you, I—"

"What's James got to do with this?"

"I...he's upset with me, I can tell, but I honestly don't have the faintest idea what I might've done, a-and—"

"Draco," said Sirius, stopping him at once. "Listen, with James...look, it has nothing to do with this, okay?" Draco nodded slowly, confirming his suspicions that Sirius in fact knew it, whatever it was. "But listen, a lot happened over the holidays and...honestly, I reckon it'd be best if we just put it all behind us, what do you say?"

Draco sighed of relief. "I think that's the most reassuring thing I've heard in a long while."

Sirius smiled. They stood in silence for a few more seconds, before Draco's eyes fell on his hair again.

"I did it the night of the wedding," Sirius answered his unasked question. Draco met his eyes again. "Andy came to see us, still wearing her dress robes. She was sort of drunk but she sobered up quickly and the three of us went out."

"I didn't know she went to see you..."

Sirius smiled. "She had us doing all kinds of things."

"Where did you go?"

"To some muggle town," said Sirius, shrugging. "We went to this pub and did these things called shots. They're really disgusting but they sure have an effect on you." He paused to smile at Draco. "I'll be sure to get you to try one sometime."

"And then you got the haircut?"

Sirius's smile faded slightly and he looked away from Draco.

"I did it as an impulse, okay?" He looked back at him. "And I would do it again."

"Okay," Draco said instantly. "I'm not saying anything."

"Good," said Sirius. "Because getting this haircut was the best thing I'd done since getting sorted into Gryffindor. And a tattoo is gonna be next."

Draco let out a soft laugh.

"She liked you, you know," Sirius said, bringing his attention back to him, "Andy."

"S-she did?"

"Yeah, she told us all about how you shared shrimp at the wedding," said Sirius. Draco smiled at the memory. "She also said you looked to be a nervous wreck."

Draco thought for a minute. "It was an overwhelming night." He then looked at his friend again. "Well um, I guess now you and Reg won't look that much alike anymore."

Sirius scoffed. "Yeah, he can wear his long hair in a braid like the rest of them precious Blacks do, for all I care."

There was a moment of silence again. Draco looked on ahead at the corridor where some students were moving in between compartments and laughing about some things.

"He was really worried about you, you know," he said quietly, his eyes still on those students.

"I doubt that."

"No, he really was." Sirius looked at him. "The first few hours, he spent reassuring me that everything was gonna be okay. And then after that, we switched roles and it was me reassuring him."

"You are older so it'd make sense," Sirius muttered. "I mean he's just a kid."

"Yeah, but...wait...older?"

Sirius looked at Draco. "Yeah, you know, older than Regulus?"

"Right," said Draco, sighing deeply. "Yeah, I am."

He watched his friend carefully now. Sirius looked away from him. Any idiot would be able to tell that there was more to that age comment than Sirius had claimed. What if James had in fact found out Draco's secret and had told Sirius and now they both knew exactly who he was?

Don't go there, Draco, it's highly unlikely, said the voice inside his head.

Unlikely, but not impossible, Draco silently argued.

"So there you go," said Sirius, grabbing his attention again. "That's that."

"Here," Draco said suddenly, pulling Sirius's wand out of his pocket and handing it to him. Sirius hesitated before taking it in his hand.

"Thanks," he mumbled, frowning down at it.

"And I brought all your stuff too," Draco added. "In your trunk, it's all on the train."

Sirius looked up at him. "Why...?"

"I didn't let anybody go into your room after you left," Draco said quickly. "I repaired the window myself and I continued staying there for the rest of the break. No one entered without my permission. I kept guard all your things."

"I..." said Sirius, looking stunned. "Well, thanks for getting this back to me." He rotated the wand in his hands again and then pocketed it.

"Yeah man," said Draco. "A-and the mirror too, it's in your stuff."

"Okay," said Sirius. "Um, thanks." Draco nodded. "You really didn't have to do this, you know."

"No, I did," Draco argued. "You left so quickly. You didn't take any of your stuff with you."

"That's kind of the whole point though," said Sirius quietly.

Draco waited a moment. Then...

"Are...are we okay?"

Sirius looked at him.

"Are we really okay? You and me?" Draco repeated.

Sirius thought for a minute, and then gave him a soft, reassuring smile. "Yeah, mate. We're okay."

They got back to Hogwarts in the evening, just in time for a nice welcome-back feast, during which Dumbledore gave a short speech about how he sincerely hoped that everyone had had a good holiday break. He also caught Draco's eye at some point and gave him a prominent look, which Draco knew meant that they needed to talk just as soon as they got the chance. He groaned silently and threw that thought to the back of his mind. He really didn't want to have that conversation with Dumbledore, not now.

About ten minutes into the feast, Draco chanced a glance over at the Slytherin table where he saw Wilkes's little posse gathered together at the corner. Severus looked deep in conversation with Regulus over something and didn't even look at Draco. He looked well though, which was the most Draco could have hoped for.

Everyone everywhere seemed to be in pretty good spirits. The holidays had certainly come at the right time, presenting everyone with the exact sort of distraction that they needed...parties, presents, great food. The Gryffindors certainly looked very pleased as they shared stories of their holiday adventures and marvelled over Sirius's new look. He smiled and nodded at each comment he got about his haircut. Frank seemed to be the most approving out of everyone. He also gave Draco a nod when he spotted him, and so did Alice. Draco nodded back at them, thinking of the nice gifts that they'd sent him and hoping they'd enjoyed his as well.

After dinner, everyone headed back to their dormitories to unpack and get settled into life at Hogwarts once again. The marauders and Draco spread out in the common room and spent some time with their classmates. James was chatting with Frank and a couple of his buddies. Remus was catching up with Lily in the corner of the room. Peter was talking to some other boys Draco didn't know, and Sirius was sitting on the couch and looking into the fireplace, a book sitting upside-down in his lap.

Draco sat with Sirius for a while, then moved to where Remus was in the other end of the room. Upon seeing him, Lily lost all the seriousness in her face from moments before and gave him a small smile.

"Hi there," she said. "How was your holiday?"

"Fine," Draco said, sitting down. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Just stuff," said Remus.

"Like what?"

"War-related stuff," Lily corrected.

"Right," Draco said, already bored with this. He turned to Lily. "I got your gift." She smiled again. "You didn't have to do that." Her smile faded.

"I knew I didn't have to," she began, looking a little hurt.

"Draco," said Remus, but Draco didn't hear him, his eyes still on Lily.

"I just...didn't know we were doing the gift thing, that's all," Draco mumbled. "I mean I didn't get you anything."

"I got something for Remus and Peter as well, it's not just you," Lily said quickly. "Don't go assuming things now."

Draco raised his hands in surrender. Then, seeing the look Remus was giving him now, he excused himself and went to sit with Sirius again.

It was a while before people started heading up to their dormitories. There was far too much excitement for anyone to be sleeping. But at about half past midnight, the last of the Gryffindors had gone to bed, and so the marauders too, headed up the stairs.

"It's gonna be a great second half of the season, though," Sirius was saying as they all dressed.

"When are we due to play next anyway?" asked Remus.

"January thirty," James answered without looking at him.

"So still some time," said Remus. "And who are we playing then?"

"Slytherin," said Sirius, hopping into his bed. "Night guys."

"Goodnight!" said Peter.

"Night," Draco muttered, his eyes on James who turned his back on him in the bed without a word.

Draco was surprised that he'd managed to fall asleep so quickly, but nevertheless he was woken at around two in the morning by Peter's snores. He turned in his bed and groaned quietly into his pillow. After a little while, he gave up on trying to get more sleep and rose from his bed. Outside, snow was falling heavily to the ground and he could hear wind howling. He put on a sweater, grabbed the book from under his pillow and crept silently out of the dormitory and down the spiral staircase to the common room, thinking this would be a perfect time. The trouble was, there was already someone sitting there.

"What are you doing up?" Sirius asked, looking up from the couch near the fireplace, startled.

"I couldn't sleep," Draco said, hurrying across the common room to join him. "You?"

"Yeah, same I guess," said Sirius.

Draco sat down.

"I'm not down to doing schoolwork again tomorrow," Sirius said after a short silence, his eyes moving back to the fireplace. "I need another break, I think."

"It'll be okay," said Draco. "Think of it this way—we're already halfway through the school year."

"Yeah but this half will be more brutal," said Sirius. "Exams, you know..."

"Don't worry about it so much," Draco shrugged. Sirius gave him a look. "What?"

"Since when do you not care about schoolwork? You got a fever or something?"

He reached to touch Draco's forehead but Draco shrugged him away, laughing.

"I'm just saying, there's far more important things in life than bloody school, that's all," he said.

"Okay James," said Sirius, rolling his eyes at him.

Draco laughed again.

"So," said Sirius after several minutes. Draco turned to look at him. "What did you think of Andy?"

"I really liked her," said Draco. "She was a laugh, you know."

"Yeah, she tends to be," said Sirius.

"I can see why she's your favourite cousin."

"You can?"

"Yeah, you guys are very much alike."

"Huh, no one's ever said that...even James, and he knows her well too."

"Well I'm not James," said Draco, prompting Sirius to give him a curious look.

There was silence.

"Have you spoken to him yet?" Sirius asked.

"No," said Draco, turning back to the fireplace. "To be honest, I'm afraid to even look at him."

"Don't be," said Sirius. "He's your friend. He's not gonna be unfair."

"Sirius, he already is being unfair."

"Just...talk to him. Tomorrow."

Draco sighed.

"Yeah... tomorrow..."

His eyes fell on one of the windows at the back where he could see the snow falling mercilessly to the ground and could hear wind pounding hard against the windows.

"Everything's gonna change now, isn't it?" Sirius said softly after a moment.

Draco turned to look at him.

"Tomorrow's gonna be different," he continued. "You know...not like before..."

"I suppose," said Draco. "But sometimes, change is good. Sometimes, it's exactly the thing you need."

Sirius gave him a smile. "You're talking about my haircut, aren't you?"

"It's just too bloody difficult to get used to," Draco laughed.

Sirius also laughed.

There was more silence.

"You...you do believe me...don't you?" Draco finally asked, having been aching to do so all night.

Sirius turned his head in his friend's direction, though his eyes remained on the carpet.

"I didn't mean any of it," Draco tried again. "It was all just an act. Please, you gotta—"

"I believe you," said Sirius. "Alright? You can calm down now. I believe you."

Draco sighed.

"You do?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

"Okay." Sirius smiled. "Come on, let's go to bed."

He stood up.

"I think I'll stay a little longer," Draco said. Sirius raised an eyebrow at him. "You know, Peter's snoring. I'm not gonna be able to fall asleep right away anyhow."

"Suit yourself," Sirius shrugged. He patted him once on the shoulder and descended up the spiral staircase, disappearing at the top of it.

Alone in the common room, Draco sat back on the couch and stared into the fireplace, remembering the night he'd talked with Dumbledore in it, back at Grimmauld Place. Even that seemed like forever ago now, for so much had happened since. He didn't even feel like the same person as that panicked boy back there.

Outside, the wind continued to howl with the snow flying everywhere. Draco moved closer to the fireplace so he could feel its warmth on his skin. Then, looking around the common room again, he pulled out the book with Tom Riddle's name on the back cover and opened it. He picked up a quill and ink bottle from the coffee table nearby, and thought for a minute before writing,

I'm back at Hogwarts now.

The next morning marked the first day of classes. Draco felt odd now, grabbing his books and heading to breakfast, because he himself felt like he had changed so much since last time he'd done this. Sirius was right. Nothing was ever going to be the same again.

The boys ate breakfast together and then journeyed over to the dungeons for their first lesson of the day. They seated themselves at their usual table and Slughorn was sure to give Draco a secret smile, trying desperately to remind him of the important wedding and how the two of them had been there. Typical.

But Draco disregarded this. He disregarded the strange looks that Peter gave him as he examined his new and revised copy of Advanced Potion Making, courtesy to Severus. He disregarded the nervous look that Lily gave him when they bumped into each other at the storage cupboard whilst getting ingredients for that day's brew session. The only thing that Draco was focused on...the only thing that had his full attention...was the way James was purposely avoiding—ignoring—him. He was sitting across from him for once, instead of next to him. And he didn't say a word to him the entire lesson. And then, after Potions, he ran out of the dungeons and by the time Draco and the others were out too, he was gone.

He's got a free period now, Draco thought. There is nowhere he needs to be in a rush for.

But he understood perfectly well why James had run out...

Draco sat with Sirius in History of Magic but soon grew bored with the lesson and began doodling absentmindedly in his notebook. Somehow, Professor Binns had gotten even more boring over the holidays, if such a thing were at all possible. And soon enough, Draco started resenting the fact that it was Monday and that they wouldn't have Defense Against the Dark Arts until tomorrow.

But at least he was sitting with Sirius now and Sirius was acting a little more like himself. People were still commenting on his new look and he was nodding and smiling at them and quietly saying thank you when they complimented him. But other than that, he didn't look too fractured, emotionally at least.

After History of Magic, during which Professor Binns assigned an extensive research essay, Draco followed Sirius and Remus to the Great Hall for lunch, figuring it'd be his best chance to get James to go for a walk with him so they could talk. But unfortunately when they arrived, Peter informed them that James had taken an early lunch because of his double free periods and was now asleep up in the dormitory. Draco tried to hide his frustration as he ate his soup, but he could still feel Sirius's eyes on him.

After lunch, Sirius went off to the common room for his free period while the others went to the Astronomy Tower. That lesson too, seemed to annoy Draco greatly. He didn't even have Transfiguration or Charms today, and the more the day progressed, the more bitter Draco got. It was finally at the bell that Draco's spirits lifted. A free period, at long last.

"We'll see you for dinner, okay?" Remus called after him as he and Peter hurried away to their next classes.

"See you," Draco said, though they didn't hear him against the crowd of students rushing to get to class.

On instinct, Draco began walking to the abandoned seventh floor corridor, his thoughts on Regulus and what class he must be in right now. He hadn't had a chance to really thank him yet for lending him Magick Moste Evile, even though he'd had even less of a chance to actually read it since he got back. But he figured Severus wouldn't show up in their spot today so maybe he'd get some reading done then.

He couldn't have been more wrong.

Severus was sitting cross-legged with his head bent over a book, and he lifted it at the sound of Draco walking up to him.

"Hello," he said, shutting the book in his lap.

"Hey," said Draco. He dropped his book bag to the floor and took a seat next to Severus. "How've you been?"

"Okay," said Severus. "How were the Blacks?"

"Okay," said Draco, shrugging. "It was mostly just...family gatherings and stuff..."

"I heard you met Lucius Malfoy."

Draco's eyes went round.

"Regulus told me about the wedding," Severus explained.

"You know Lucius Malfoy?" said Draco instead. He'd always figured his father and Snape had gotten acquainted after Hogwarts.

"Yeah," Severus said, offering a very small smile. "I mean, not well, obviously. He graduated not long after we started. But yeah. He was one of my favourites at the time."

"I didn't know that," Draco mumbled. "Um yeah, I met him."

"So you saw how much you guys look alike then," said Severus, smiling again.

Draco frowned at him. "How...why have you never said anything before now?"

Severus shrugged. "I didn't think you'd believe me. Wanted you to see it for yourself. You look so like him, it's scary."

"We're all interrelated," Draco began. "It's not that scary."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you guys are brothers," said Severus.

Draco laughed.

"So um, what else did Regulus tell you?"

Severus grew serious suddenly, which answered Draco's next question.

"He told you about that then, huh?"

"Yeah," Severus said quietly. "Quite the scandal."

"What else is new," laughed Draco. "Well at least it didn't make the papers this morning."

"Oh just wait until tomorrow morning," said Severus. "Those papers are always delayed. You and that family will be on the front page, mark my words."

"We'll see," said Draco, highly doubting that. Orion had looked pretty serious about not wanting to get this scandal out, and so far, the only people that knew were immediate family and friends.

"So how is your family doing then?" Draco said.

"I wouldn't know," said Severus without looking at him. "I stayed at Hogwarts."

"You did?!"

"Yeah it was just me and Theo in Slytherin."

"Who?"

"Theodore Nott, Draco," said Severus, looking exhausted.

"Wait but..."

"He left for the night of the wedding and then he came back. Said he'd much rather spend the holidays at Hogwarts and not have to do any wedding stuff. Just attend the actual party and then come back."

"But how..."

"He's of age so he was granted permission to use flu powder so he could attend the wedding. I would've gone too but I'm not of age yet."

"You were invited?"

Severus paused to give Draco a look. "No. I told you, I haven't spoken to Lucius Malfoy in years."

"But then how...?"

"I haven't even met his wife. All I know is that she's a Black. Well, a former one now anyway. Regulus speaks highly of her."

"She's brilliant," said Draco instantly.

"Yeah," said Severus. "So...a Thunderbolt IV, huh?"

"Yeah," Draco smiled. "It was a great gift, but I honestly don't know what I'm gonna do with it."

"You should play." Draco looked up at Severus. "Seriously, you taught me a lot of great stuff. You're a really good player, Draco. You should play."

"Yeah, because that's just what I need, another reason for James Potter to hate me," Draco said bitterly.

"Why does Potter hate you?" said Severus.

Draco sighed. "It's...never mind..."

There was silence.

"Well..." said Severus slowly, "How are you liking Magick Moste Evile?"

Draco looked up at him and Severus smiled.

"What didn't Regulus tell you?"

"Get used to it, the kid has always told me everything, always," said Severus dismissively.

"Noted," said Draco, a little annoyed. He wondered now whether Severus knew about Regulus's little meetings with the Death Eaters and Voldemort himself. But then a bigger thought struck his mind and he sat up suddenly. "Listen, I only borrowed the book because I'm doing research on...something..."

"Hey, I'm not judgin'," said Severus, raising both hands in surrender. "If anything, I'm kinda happy."

"You are?"

"Yeah, because my suspicions were correct after all."

"What suspicions?"

Severus smiled again. "That you're just like the rest of us, despite what colours are on your Hogwarts robes..."

Draco didn't get a chance to see James until later that night, at which point the common room was far too crowded for him to be able to confront his friend. So instead, he resorted to playing Wizard's Chess with Peter while Remus went over all his notes from that day's lessons.

"I don't think we've ever gotten this much homework in one day," he kept repeating as he got through one pile and moved on to the next.

"Yeah, the teachers are really startin' to lose it, aren't they?" said Sirius, who was throwing a small ball up and down while he lay sprawled on the couch.

James had already excused himself to bed and when Draco had crept up there to see if they could talk, he found him sound asleep.

Once again, the marauders were the last to leave the common room that night, and once again, Peter's snores kept Draco awake, though this time he couldn't even get to sleep. He'd grown so used to the quiet and comfort of sleeping at Grimmauld Place that he was finding it rather hard to adjust to being back at Hogwarts.

Just after one in the morning, he gave up on trying to sleep and retreated downstairs instead. Sirius wasn't there this time, in fact no one was. Relieved with this knowledge, Draco shifted to one of the armchairs near a window and settled himself into it with an ink bottle and quill. Then, looking around one last time, he pulled out the little black notebook and opened it to a random page.

I haven't gotten a chance to look through the book Regulus gave me yet.

He waited, hoping he wouldn't have to wait as long as last time. Then, the little slanted handwriting formed on the page.

What is stopping you?

Draco thought for a minute. He knew well that he had to be very careful with his answers because this was the very book that had trained Voldemort himself when he was in school. That's what it told him anyway, that first night that he wrote in it, just after his parents' wedding. If Draco wasn't careful now though, he could end up just like Tom Riddle. But if he was careful, if he was really careful, he could gain almost all of the knowledge that Tom gained from the book, which would eventually be very useful to him. He was sure of it.

Classes are busy.

Yes, that was a sufficient enough answer, and definitely part of the truth. He honestly hadn't been able to find time on his own to look through the book with a proper mindset. Regulus had originally thought it was a good idea—something that would help Draco figure out what kind of magic this little notebook was, since they'd both come to the conclusion that it was definitely dark. But even now, sitting alone in the common room, Draco doubted he'd be up for it. His mind was too crowded with all the information from that day alone.

Is this Draco?

Draco frowned before replying, Who else would it be?

You'd be surprised how quickly this book could fall into the wrong hands.

Draco thought about that for a minute. Then, he shook his head frantically and wrote,

I've been very careful about where I keep you. And I haven't told anyone.

The book took its precious time in replying to this next bit, so Draco looked out the window at the snow gently falling to the ground. It'd been snowing for days now and it didn't look like it would stop anytime soon. His eye then caught the black ink forming on the page again and he squinted down at it under the candlelight beside him.

Regulus knows.

That was true. But Draco wasn't worried about it one bit. He dipped the quill in ink again and wrote, very quickly,

I trust him.

The next morning, Draco watched with pain in his eyes as students everywhere passed the Morning Prophet around the Great Hall, each taking turns gasping and marvelling over the photo of Draco and Lucius, which was on the bottom left corner of the front page. The main photo on the page was one of a group of guests, with Lucius and Narcissa right in the middle. Slughorn was also on the side of it, holding up a champagne glass and beaming at the cameraman. Many of the younger students were huddled around the professor now and begging for tales of the magnificent wedding, like he was some sort of celebrity.

But none of this fazed Draco whatsoever. He didn't care about the whispers and the finger-pointing. All that he cared about was that James was ignoring all of it completely, and seemed far too occupied with the book in front of him as he ate his breakfast. In all the time that Draco had known him, he'd never seen James look so interested with a book at breakfast time.

Draco was relieved to start the day off with Transfiguration. He never thought he'd actually miss hearing Professor McGonagall go on about some concept at the front of the class while everyone took notes. He didn't mind the huge essay that Professor Claybrook assigned the sixth years that morning, or the enormous chunk of reading that Professor Flitwick gave them in Charms. Even History of Magic didn't bother him that much that day. He was just happy to be back at Hogwarts—happy to have school as a distraction again and happy to be around the marauders.

But still, James wouldn't talk to him. He sat with the boys at lunch, but he might as well have eaten himself, because it was as though he wasn't there with them at all. He remained completely immune to their conversations and drowned out everything they said to either him or each other. His book on muggle poker was all he seemed to care about.

After the last lesson of the day, Draco, Sirius and Remus gathered in the Great Hall to get some work done so they wouldn't have much to do later. They spread their books out in front of them and began scribbling instantly, though Sirius looked to be extremely distracted with the bowl of fruit in front of him, and soon enough he stopped making notes on the Confederation of Wizards and began drawing the fruit instead. His sketch was halfway done when Peter showed up, looking breathless.

"I found it," he gasped, placing a piece of parchment in front of Sirius.

"Wormy, not here!" Remus hissed. "Sirius, put that away. Quickly!"

"Hush Moony, it's all good," said Sirius, who lazily picked up the marauder's map and slipped it inside one of his books. "No one knows how to work it, that's kind of the beauty of it." He looked up at Peter. "Don't ever lose it again, you hear?"

"James would kill you if you did," Remus added as Peter sat down, still gasping for air.

"I doubt James would care much right now," Draco muttered, but only Sirius heard him.

"Where is he anyway?" Remus asked Peter. "If he doesn't show up soon, he's gonna be late for Hagrid."

"I don't know," Peter breathed. "I didn't check it, I just brought it as soon as I found it."

"I'll check," Sirius offered.

"Not here!" Remus hissed. Sirius rolled his eyes at him and pulled the map out anyway. He looked over his shoulder quickly, then tapped it once with his wand and spread it out over the table, making sure to cover parts of it with Draco's notes.

"You guys are going to Hagrid's?" Draco wondered out loud.

"You're not?" Remus said.

Draco fell silent at once.

For the next ten minutes, the boys looked around and pretended to carry on an unimportant conversation while Sirius scanned the entire map until his finger finally landed on some corridor on the fifth floor and he cried, "Jackpot!"

"Hush, Sirius!" Remus cried.

Peter looked relieved.

"What's he doing there?" Draco wondered, squinting down at the spot where Sirius was pointing.

"Dunno, he's just standing in one place," said Sirius, also frowning down at it. "Or maybe he's sitting...do you know what, that's what this map seems to be missing. We need to figure out a way to make it possible to see if a person is standing or sitting."

"Right," said Remus, "So while you go and try to figure that out, we'll go and fetch James."

"Don't," said Draco, stopping him before he could get up. "He wants to be alone—let him."

Remus frowned at Draco. "Is there something you want to tell us?"

Draco paused. "Just let him be."

But that answer didn't seem good enough for Remus. He turned to Sirius, who pretended not to notice and continued scanning the map.

"Sirius?" he said, waiting.

Sirius shrugged. "Dunno what you're talkin' about, Moony."

Remus looked back at Draco, who also avoided his eyes and resumed writing in his notebook.

"Come on, guys, we're gonna be late!" Peter said, breaking the silence suddenly.

"Oh is it that time already?" Sirius said, tapping the map and shutting it again.

The boys now began packing up their things hurriedly and piling them all on top of each other. They were already in the Entrance Hall and ready to leave through the front doors when Draco stopped and said he wasn't coming.

"But why not?" said Peter.

"I wouldn't feel right being there," Draco mumbled.

"Nonsense," said Remus at once. "Hagrid's invited all of us for tea before dinner, and that includes you, Draco." Draco looked at him. "It's already gonna be odd if James is not there but if you don't show up too..."

"Guys, it's not that big of a deal," Draco started again. Only Sirius seemed to be unaffected by his little announcement. He was too busy perfecting his fruit sketch as he stood in the Entrance Hall, waiting for the boys to decide on something already.

"Are you sure you don't want to come with us?" Remus repeated, snapping Draco's attention back to him. He had his eyebrows raised as he waited for an answer.

"Um yeah," Draco said. "Yeah, next time, guys."

"But that's what you said last time!" Peter pointed out.

"Yeah it's just...I have all this stuff I gotta go over for that transfiguration quiz," Draco mumbled, collecting the falling books in his hands and gesturing at them. "I'll probably just see you guys after dinner, okay?"

"You're not even coming to dinner?" said Peter, looking exasperated at this point.

"I'm just...not really that hungry, Pete," Draco said, weakly.

Sirius let out a chuckle and Remus rolled his eyes at him.

"Fine then," he said to Draco. "See you after dinner." He turned to leave, then paused and turned back to him. "If you see James at the library, tell him we missed him at Hagrid's. That ought to get him feeling guilty for forgetting."

"Will do," Draco promised, highly doubting that James would turn up anytime soon.

Remus shook his head at him again and then proceeded to lead the way out of the Entrance Hall to Hagrid's Hut. Draco remained rooted to the spot, watching the boys leave. Sirius waved at him over his shoulder once. Draco looked down at one of the books in his hand before suddenly hurrying up the stone steps. It was a rarity that he ever had any time away from anyone to just be alone with his thoughts, and he certainly wasn't going to let the opportunity go to waste now. With Magick Moste Evile tucked safely under his arm, he ran.


"Why can't you just tell me?" he prodded, wanting to shake James at this point.

For some reason, James wanted to tell him something so bad but he still couldn't come right out and say it. The secret, whatever it was, was now starting to eat away at Draco as he sat there, waiting for his friend to say something—anything!

"What?" Draco said, folding his arms in front of him now and tilting his head slightly. James only watched him. "What on earth could I have possibly done that night that's got you all weirded out now?"

Finally, James showed a sign of still being alive—his facial expression twisted ever so slightly into that of a frown, and Draco froze.

"What did I say now?" he said, unfolding his arms and leaning forward. It was like he didn't know James at all!

"Look," James suddenly said, "I didn't mean to...see what I saw...I just... I had went upstairs to get my cloak because we were gonna mess with people, you know? Everyone was drunk and...it was your idea, by the way—"

"James, what are you talking about?"

James finally stopped to look at him. Draco looked as clueless as ever. He knew it. His friend frowned, finally comprehending.

"You really don't know?" he managed to say, his voice extremely quiet.

"NO!" Draco almost exploded, but instead he shook his head, feeling very much aware of how quiet it already was in the library.

James leaned forward now too.

"Draco," he began, his eyes on the table in front of them, "How much of that night do you remember?"

It was Draco's turn to frown now, especially because he didn't have any clue as to what this had to do with anything.

"Just answer the question," James said, sensing Draco's irritation with the subject.

Draco sighed and shook his head. "I dunno, I remember we were all pretty messed up...I remember Sirius snogging like a trillion girls that night and I remember drinking...a lot." He let out a light laugh. "But I mean we all did, right?"

"Right," said James, quickly. "We were all very drunk. All of us."

"Right," Draco agreed, still not sure where this was headed. What could he have possibly done in his drunken stupor? Had he ranted about his original timeline to the wrong person? Had he revealed too much? Had he shared his true identity?

"I guess I believe you," James mumbled.

"About what?"

"About not remembering what happened that night..."

Draco stared at his friend. "And now you're here to tell me?"

There was a pause. Then, James nodded.

"Well, when did this...whatever it was...supposedly happen?"

"Right around the time Harrison Langley stripped naked and took flight in the common room," said James with a serious face.

Draco smiled slightly at the memory and then frowned again. "No, I remember that very well. I was sitting on the couch by the fireplace when his shoe flew past me and then I passed out."

But James was shaking his head now.

"But I did!" Draco cried.

"No," said James, looking up to finally meet his eyes, "You didn't."


The night before the holidays. . .


Once the door shut behind him, he took one look at her in the darkness, kicking off her shoes. After his own were off, he slammed her against the nearest wall without warning and crashed his lips upon hers in a desperate pursuit, his hands clenching her waist. And she responded just as fiercely, her hands moving up from his arms to his face and then to his neck, wrapping around him. The kiss lasted a long time, leaving them both breathless but still willing to keep going.

Draco moved his lips away from hers and down her neck, attacking her with little mercy. But she seemed to be enjoying every second of it, gasping loudly into the silence of the dark room. Draco continued his thorough ministrations of her body, reaching her chest and moving her red hair away so he could taste her skin.

Caught up to breath once again, he attacked her lips and she brought her hands to his hair, grabbing and pulling as though fighting for life. And Draco, who didn't look to be as yet turned on as she, wasted no time in lifting her up and grinding against her once. She moaned into his mouth in response and wrapped her legs around him, pulling him closer. Suddenly, he let out a growl and moved his mouth away, hissing from her bite.

"Sorry," she gasped, her arms loosening slightly around him.

"Yeah," he breathed, his head turned away from her. He shut his eyes tightly and then opened them again, as though trying to gather himself.

And Lily's fingers wrapped around his neck again and she forcefully turned his head to look at her.

"Hey come here," she said, in a very uncharacteristic, sultry voice that could drive any guy mad.

She kissed him fiercely again, pulling him close and doing pretty much all the work, while his hands started to slowly wander down to her shirt. Her hands were on his hair again and she pulled at the strands. Draco growled, but this time, he did not pull away. Instead, he brought his hands to her legs wrapped around him and pulled her away from the wall, forcing them both onto the nearest bed and crashing on it, their lips still connected.

The shoe lying on the window ledge fell to the floor with a light thud and Lily broke away from Draco to let out a laugh.

"Careful, we don't want to break your bed," she teased him, giggling as he nipped at her neck.

Draco pulled away to look down at her. "Who said anything about it being mine?"

Lily gasped and Draco grinned at her in the darkness, now starting to undo the three buttons at the top of her blouse as quickly as possible without tearing them.

"And besides," he added, finally managing all buttons and leaning down on her, "I'm just getting started."

"So am I," she said, laughing again and pulling his lips to hers. She kissed him harder than before until they were both caught breathless once again. Draco then paused to look in her eyes in the dark, and for the longest time, they just stared at each other.

"What?" she said, also having paused.

Draco's thumb circled her bottom lip and then, without warning, he leaned down and bit it. He sucked on it until she threw her head back, earning him a fiery moan. He growled in response, almost like an animal, and brought his forehead to hers, breathing almost as loudly as she was.

"You know," he gasped, "This is...by far...the best Christmas...I've ever had."

Lily laughed out loud again, placing both hands on his back and turning him so that she could climb on top. In the process, his left arm flew onto the bedside table and knocked a lamp off. It crashed to the floor loudly and they both laughed again. Lily got comfortable on top as she looked down at him, one jean-covered leg on each side of him. His words seemed to have given her a whole 'nother power because she looked to be in control now.

At first, she did nothing, just teasing him by looking down at him. Then, when his hands started to wander from her waist to her hips, something seemed to trigger her inside for she became alive once again.

In one quick but damn sexy motion, she pulled her unbuttoned shirt over her head and tossed it to the side, revealing a lacy white bra which could be seen very clearly in the dark. She then kneeled down and they were kissing once again. And the way she moved on top of him now, so skillfully and expertly, was most definitely uncharacteristic. But she seemed to enjoy the shock plastered on Draco's face.

She moaned into his mouth again and he laid his head back on the pillow and breathed, letting her explore for her own amusement. He wasn't touching her anymore. He was just trying to keep his breathing steady. She was doing all the work, moving her lips from his own and down to his neck and then his bare arms. He instead kept his eyes on the ceiling, letting her do this for a while.

And suddenly, out of nowhere, something seemed to trigger him or give him some sort of strength because before Lily could stop him, he sat up and pulled her down on the bed so that he was on top of her once again and could take the control back. But Lily seemed to have no objections to this, wrapping her legs on either side of him and using them to pull him down. He grabbed her face again and kissed her harder than before. She was quick to respond, letting her hands slip under his shirt and clawing her fingers into his back.

Draco buried his face in her hair, his own fingers sliding down one of her straps while hers found his belt buckle. But just as he'd managed one strap and had moved on to the next, just as she'd managed the belt and had moved to the button of his jeans, everything came to a halt. Draco had collapsed his face right into the bed just on the left of Lily's head, and was no longer moving on top of her.

"Ow...Draco..." she muttered, her arms on his back as she tried to move him off of her. He was completely passed out, no longer aware of what was happening.

Once she'd finally managed to slide out from beneath him, she pulled her straps back up and looked down at him, passed out on his stomach with his head facing the window through which moonlight peeked into the room. Lily's breathing was the only sound in the room, apart from the miniscule ticking of a watch that was lying on someone's bed. She looked down at Draco's unconscious form again.

"Oh no," she whispered to herself, bringing both her hands to her head and leaning down. "No, no, no..."

She quickly jumped to her feet, grabbing her shirt from the floor and covering herself with it. She stumbled about the room, apparently dizzy, until she finally located her shoes. Then, with one last look at Draco's unconscious form, she hurried out of the room as silently as she could, obviously dismissing the fact that one of the chairs in the room had just moved at its own accord.


"I can't believe you didn't remember this," James mumbled after his little tale concluded.

"I-I do now," Draco muttered, his eyes somewhere else.

"Well...that's that..." James said in a would-be casual tone of voice that brought Draco's head up to look at him.

"You've been holding onto this ever since that night," he declared, watching his friend but not knowing how to even begin defending his actions which, now that he thought about it, he remembered...vividly.

James only nodded.

"And...the shoe on the window ledge...the lamp on the bedside table...t-that was you?" Draco said. It pained him to say this out loud but he needed to say it nonetheless.

"Oh no, the lamp was all you," James said, his eyes avoiding Draco's.

"Oh," said Draco, nodding stupidly in agreement.

There was silence. Now everything made sense. Now he knew why James had acted so weird that day they left Hogwarts...why he'd been almost unbearable in the train ride to King's Cross...why he hadn't written to Draco all break and why he had ignored him ever since they got back.

"Anyway," said James suddenly, "Thought you should—"

"Y-yeah," said Draco, "Yeah, thanks. I'm, uh, glad you...did..."

"Yeah," James agreed, now rising from his seat. "At least now I know that you really didn't remember until I'd brought it up."

He started to walk away when Draco suddenly cried out, "Hey wait up!"

James did not stop, but continued to make his way out of the library. Draco, obviously not caring that he was getting dangerous looks from the librarian now, rushed his way past desks, causing papers to fly in all directions, until he'd reached James and pulled at his arm. "James, wait!"

James turned to look at him, wrenching his arm free, his eyes distant and stranger-like.

"James," Draco breathed, frowning at him. "I..."

But James only shook his head and went through the double doors. Draco stood, staring after him, caught short of breath. He turned his head to look at the librarian glaring at him from behind her desk. He sighed, nodded at her and turned back to his table.

When he finally reached it, he slowly sat back in his seat and dropped his eyes to Regulus's book. Now that he remembered exactly what had happened that night, he couldn't un-remember it. It was the most horrifying thing he could ever think of doing...in this timeline, anyway.

Feeling as though someone had just electrocuted him, Draco quickly packed up all his things and shoved them into his bag, hurrying his way out of the library and down the darkened and nearly deserted castle corridors. He peeked out every passing window on his way to Gryffindor Tower, by which point he was half-running, half-limping. He finally made it to the common room and looked round, feeling raged, and most of all, ashamed.

Finally spotting what he'd come there for, he walked over to the little table by the fireplace and dumped his book bag onto it with a loud and heavy thud, not caring about his neighbours' gasps. He then leaned down, both fists on the table, eyes blazing with fire.

"We need to talk," he declared, teeth gritted.


Let the reviews begin. . .