Title: The Cousin Of Ipswich

Author: Kyra

Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't own it! If I did, I probably wouldn't be writing fanfiction.

Summary: After refusing the Dark Mark the summer after 5th year, Draco Malfoy runs to his cousin Reid Garwin in Ipswich, Massachusetts.

Pairing: Draco/Tyler, Caleb/Reid…and Pogue is still a surprise, so you have to wait to find out who he's with.

Spoilers: HP – Starts the summer after 5th year, so everything up through OotP. Covenant – Starts the summer after the movie, so almost a year later. Chase is dead and all four Sons have just graduated and they've all Ascended.

Warnings: Slash! You have been warned!

A/N: Yay! A new chapter! And some Drake/Tyler cuteness in this one!

HPxCovenant HPxCovenant HPxCovenant


Chapter 17: September First

Drake sat on his balcony staring off into space, so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Tyler joining him. He jumped as he felt arms wrap around his shoulders and turned to look at his boyfriend, sending him a small smile.

"Hey," he greeted softly, leaning up to give Tyler a quick kiss.

"Hey," Tyler replied. "Where were you? You seemed to be a million miles away."

Drake shrugged lightly as he turned back to the Ipswich landscape. "It's September first," he said distractedly, his thoughts drifting away once more.

Tyler waited for his boyfriend to continue, but when a few minutes passed and Drake was still silent, Tyler spoke up once more. "What's September first?" he asked curiously, thinking that maybe it was a friend's birthday, or perhaps, his mother's.

"I should be on the Hogwarts Express on the way to school right now," Drake said. "It's so weird for it to be September first and not be on the train to school. Every year for five years, I got up early, made sure everything was packed and went to King's Cross. I boarded the train at Platform nine and three-quarters and spent most of my day making the trip to Hogwarts. Then, when we got there, it was a carriage ride to the school, the Sorting of the first years and then the Welcoming Feast before heading off to bed." He glanced up at Tyler and shrugged, "It just feels weird not being on the train and heading for Hogwarts."

Tyler was quiet for a moment as he thought over his boyfriend's words. After a few minutes, he asked the question he wasn't sure he wanted the answer to. "Do you wish you were?"

"What?" Drake asked, looking at the older boy in confusion.

"Do you wish you were on the train to Hogwarts right now?" Tyler asked, clarifying. "Instead of here?"

Drake stared at Tyler for a moment before shaking his head. "No," he replied, "I'd rather be here. I'm so much happier here than I ever was back in England. I don't have to pretend here, I can be myself. Here, I'm just Drake. Not the Malfoy heir, future Death Eater, Slytherin Prince. Just Drake. And I like that. You guys don't expect me to be anything other than what I am; I never had that back in England. I feel like I belong here. You, Reid, Caleb, Pogue and Aunt Lilah; you're my family." He paused to grin up at Tyler. "Besides, if I was at Hogwarts, I wouldn't have such a sexy boyfriend to spend all of my free time with."

Tyler grinned down at Drake. "Well, with a reason like that, I can see why you'd rather be here," he said sarcastically, pulling a laugh from his boyfriend.

Drake pulled Tyler around in front of him then tugged him down onto the chair he was sitting in, the two boys barely fitting. Drake leaned over and kissed Tyler softly, gently tracing his lips before slipping inside for a moment. Pulling back, he leaned his forehead against Tyler's and smiled softly, locking his eyes with Tyler's crystal blue gaze. "Seriously, Ty," he whispered softly, "There's nowhere else I'd rather be."

Tyler smiled back at Drake, seeing the truth of his statement in the silver-grey eyes staring into his own. Tyler pressed a soft kiss to Drake's lips before snuggling into his boyfriend's side and resting his head on the blonde's shoulder, sighing softly as he felt Drake's fingertips lightly skimming up and down his arm.

The two simply relaxed together, content in each other's company.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(Meanwhile, At Hogwarts)

Harry Potter looked at his two best friends as they made their way from the carriages to the Great Hall of Hogwarts for the Welcoming Feast. "I'm just saying it's weird, Hermione," he said as they crossed the Hall to the Gryffindor table. "I mean, Malfoy didn't try to harass us once on the train. When was the last time that happened?"

"He has a point, Mione," Ron Weasley said, the tall, lanky redhead agreeing with his best friend. "And he wasn't at the Prefect's Meeting, either. I don't think he was on the train at all."

"He must have been," Hermione stated, pushing her bushy brown hair away from her face. "He probably just thought he was too good to go to the Meeting. And that we weren't important enough for him to waste his time on bothering us."

Harry looked over at his friend as they sat down, wondering if she actually believed her own words.

"I mean," Hermione continued, "why wouldn't he be on the train?"

Ron and Harry exchanged a look before shrugging, neither able to come up with a reason why Malfoy wouldn't have been on the train to Hogwarts. Their conversation was put on hold as Professor McGonagall led the new first years into the Hall and the Sorting began.

Soon the last of the first years had been Sorted and Professor Dumbledore had made the start-of-term announcements. As the Headmaster sat back down, food appeared on the tables and everyone started filling their plates.

"He's not there," Harry said as he placed a slab of roast on his plate.

"What?" Ron asked, looking at the black-haired boy in confusion.

"Who's not where?" Hermione added.

"Malfoy," Harry replied. "He's not at the Slytherin table.

Hermione and Ron turned to look over the Slytherin table and sure enough, the silver-eyed, blonde aristocrat was nowhere to be found.

"I wonder where he is," Hermione murmured curiously.

Ron shrugged as he turned back to his food. "Maybe he joined the Death Eaters," he suggested.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous, Ronald," Hermione snapped. "He's only sixteen; I doubt he's joined the Death Eaters already."

"Maybe we should ask Professor Dumbledore," Harry suggested. "Maybe he knows."

"Maybe," Hermione conceded and the conversation dropped as the three focused on enjoying their first meal back at Hogwarts.

Once the Feast was over, the Trio agreed to meet back at the Gryffindor Common Room and Harry headed toward the Headmaster's office to talk to Professor Dumbledore.

Just as he was about to turn the last corner before the gargoyle guarding the entrance to Dumbledore's office, Harry heard the Headmaster talking to Professor Snape and froze in place, listening in on the conversation.

"Still no word on young Mister Malfoy?" Harry heard Professor Dumbledore ask, his voice low.

"No," Snape replied. "I have no idea where the boy might be. Narcissa doesn't seem to know where he could be either."

"No one else has been able to track him down?"

"No, it's like the boy simply vanished off the face of the Earth when he activated that port key," Snape said. "The Dark Lord is quite angry that no one can find him; he wants Mister Malfoy dead."

"With the refusal you told me Mister Malfoy gave, that doesn't surprise me a bit," Dumbledore said. "No, telling the Dark Lord to kiss your arse and then slipping though his fingers as he tries to kill you is not a good way to endear yourself to him."

Snape snorted as the Headmaster stated the obvious. "Do you think he's even still alive?" he asked. "He's been gone since his birthday in early June; that's nearly three months now. He doesn't even have his wand! And you said your contact at Gringotts told you that he has not tried to access his vaults. I don't see how he could be surviving. That boy grew up having everything handed to him; he's never had to provide for himself."

There was a soft whisper followed by a scraping sound as Dumbledore gave the Gargoyle his password and the entrance to his office opened.

"I do not know, Severus," Dumbledore replied. "We can only hope that isn't the case."

Harry stood there wide-eyed as the voices faded and the Gargoyle slid back into place in front of the entrance to the Headmaster's office.

"Ron and Hermione are never going to bloody believe this," he muttered to himself as he set off at a quick pace towards the Gryffindor Common Room, his mind whirling with the information he had just overheard.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Tyler chuckled as he heard Drake's stomach growl. They had been sitting together out on Drake's balcony for a couple hours now and Tyler wasn't surprised his boyfriend was hungry. Standing up, he stretched, his back popping a couple times as he did so, before turning to smile at Drake. "Come on, let's go get you something to eat," he said, holding a hand out toward Drake.

Drake smiled as he let Tyler pull him to his feet, using the hand in his to pull Tyler into his arms as soon as he was standing. He leaned down slightly and pressed his lips against Tyler's, a small moan escaping him as Tyler's lips automatically parted for him. His arms slipped around Tyler's waist as he held him close, deepening the kiss. His tongue traced the inside of Tyler's mouth, remapping the well-known territory. Pulling back, he grinned at Tyler. "You know, we still have some unfinished business from the other day," he said, waggling his eyebrows.

"We do," Tyler agreed with a nod, leaning in to kiss Drake once more. He pulled back with a laugh a second later as Drake's stomach gave another growl. "I think we'll have to wait a bit longer to finish it, though," he said, continuing to laugh. "You're stomach sounds pretty insistent."

Drake stepped away from Tyler with a sigh and glared down at his stomach. "Traitor," he grumbled, causing Tyler to laugh at him once more and shake his head.

"Come on, let's go get you some food," Tyler said, sliding his hand into Drake's and heading for the balcony door and into the house.

Drake followed his boyfriend with a pout, letting Tyler lead him as he continued to glare at his grumbling stomach, muttering darkly.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

What do you think? I had a couple requests to see what was happening at Hogwarts and I figured 'why not?' And I figured that showing Drake's feelings about it being September first and not being at Hogwarts would be a good way to lead into that. Plus, it meant that I could add in some really cute Drake/Tyler moments. Anyway, I hope you all liked it!

~ Kyra