~*~

"Draco? You're being awfully quiet." Ginny drummed her fingers against the cover of her journal. Harry and Draco were over but neither seemed to be his normal self. "I thought you would be all excited by this idea. You're the one who's always wanting to get into scrapes. Is something the matter?"

"Nothing's the matter." He stood up. "I think I'm going to get some more of your mom's cookies."

"What's really wrong?" She whispered to Harry as soon as Draco left.

"He's upset about his father. Mr. Malfoy wouldn't do anything about Umbridge and Draco's been in a funk about that all day."

"Well that's a surprise," Ginny said sourly. "He should have seen that coming."

"Just because you see it coming doesn't make it any more disappointing," Theo observed. "Although I question how far along Draco will be able to go with our little plan, or anything else, without running into a severe contradiction of feelings."

"Maybe going out would help to cheer him up. We could go to Vauxhall," Harry offered. "And there should be lots of shops along the way that would interest him and you."

"Better to go on a day when everything won't be closed. It's Christmas, remember?" Theo grabbed the book from Ginny, paged through it and sighed. "I don't know. Maybe this won't lead anywhere. I don't think we have enough clues or the ability to get them. How can we get information from people about a man we barely know? I remember some, but not much and faces don't always have names attached, which means they're of little help. And how will we explain ourselves when people find out we've been asking questions?"

"And you were doing so well, getting up to something," Ginny sighed. "Don't let being reasonable snow on our parade. Keep doing that and you'll get to be like Hermione."

Draco stepped back into the room looking sullen before Theo could retort or Harry could intervene. "Sorry I haven't been much company," he muttered. "My dad put me in a bit of a bad mood. I think I'm going to take off, alright?"

"Back to your place?" Harry wondered.

"No, I think I'm going to drop by Cedric's unless he's tied up with family. He told me I could visit over the break and I could use a talk with him."

"Well alright, but you're welcome back anytime if Cedric is busy," Ginny reminded him as he walked out the door. "Don't get stuck in any snow drifts on the way!"

"I'll be fine!" They could hear a snort and a rapid set of hoofbeats.

"He won't be," Harry shook his head. "Not for at least another day."

"Let him ride, it always helps him blow off steam." Theo took a sip from his cocoa. "He probably won't even make it to Cedric's and if he does, he probably won't stay long."

"What do you think he's really going to do?" Ginny wondered between bites of cookie.

"Knowing Draco he'll probably take off and spend some time alone in the woods. Maybe play with Fluffy a little and then come back, same as always."

"Well I hope he stays warm," Ginny fretted.

"In your mother's sweater?" Theo smiled. "I'm sure he will be."

~*~

"You go ahead back, Fred. I'll get the last one."

Fred looked at his twin warily. "Why? What are you up to? What do you want in return?"

"Nothing, you goose," George laughed, although it didn't sound entirely natural. "Can't a boy do something for his brother?"

"Not a brother like you. Really, what's this about?" He crossed his arms. "I'm not doing your share of the chores if that's what you're about."

"Consider it a Christmas gift then. Alright?"

"Fine. But I know you're up to something and I'm going to figure it out." He poked his brother in the chest with his mittened hand. "Count on it."

"Later, Fred!" George laughed.

He waited until Fred was out of sight, then walked down the street towards the last house. He's almost reached it when a figure stepped out of the lane beside it.

"Got your owl, obviously. Been waiting there almost half and hour, freezing my toes off. Finally convinced him to part ways?" Millicent asked.

"Sorry about that. We took a little longer than I thought. But it didn't take much. to get him to go back. He's freezing too and wants to be back inside as much as anybody."

"I would have helped, you know. I helped you to do the prank."

"Mum was on a tear. She would have probably been more upset if we had help cleaning up our mess. And I wouldn't have wanted you to do it anyway."

"Why?" She scoffed. "Think I'm too much of a lady? I was the one who got those toilets for you, if you remember. I should have done my part and helped get them back."

"Lee helped too and he ran off without a second thought. Anyway, I wanted to give you this, alright?" He took a package out from under his coat and pushed it into her hands.

"A present? For me?" He cheeks were already red from the cold, but they grew ruddier.

"Don't thank me too much. Mum makes them for a lot of our friends. I mean, not that it isn't special, she puts a lot of work into them. I asked her to," he explained as he walked up onto the porch to take back the toilet seat and took the wreath out from behind a bush, replacing it on its rightful hanger. "So it's sort of from me but Mom was really the one who made it. Does that make sense?"

"Shut up," she laughed and tore at the paper. She let the wrapping fall to the ground as she held the sweater out by its shoulders to get a better look at it. "What's that in the middle?"

"An S. Or a snake. I can't really tell. But it's for Slytherin. And it's sparkly. Sparkly is good, right?"

"If you're a girly girl," she huffed. George looked like he'd been kicked in the stomach, so she laughed and punched him in the shoulder. "Only kidding. It's nice. Did Lee get one?"

"No." He looked puzzled. "Why would Lee get one? I mean, I guess we could always give him Ron's. Mum makes one every year but the last couple have come back. I think she's daft for doing it, but she insists."

"Well Ron's a bit of a prick, even if he is in my house. Maybe because he's in my house. Funny how that works out." She balled up the sweater and held it in her arms. "Thanks George, but I think I have to head home now. If I get my boots off and my toes have frozen clean through, I'll hold you responsible. And you know what that means."

"A kick to the unmentionables?" He tried to smile through his worry.

"That's right. See you later!" She waved, then headed back to where she'd left her broom.

George ran back home, kicking up snow all the way, and was red and breathless when he burst through the door.

"Where have you been?" Mrs. Weasley asked while measuring sugar.

"Nowhere," he puffed.

"Well Harry and that lot are visiting and I'm making a fresh pot of cocoa, so you'll be able to warm yourself up with a mug in a minute. Did you get all those toilets?"

"Yes, mum."

"Good." She poured in the milk and melted chocolate mixture. "And I'd better never catch you doing that again."

"You won't, mum," he promised, heading upstairs to change and peeling off damp garments as he went along.

~*~

"Is Cedric home?" Draco blurted his question the moment the door was opened.

"Draco!" Mr. Diggory boomed although he looked a little shocked. "Cedric said that you might be coming by! Of course, of course, come on it." He gave Draco a vigorous push into the hallway of their cottage. "The missus and I are just cleaning up after the morning's festivities. Guess you got out of that, right?" He nudged Draco's chest.

"Uh, yeah," Draco murmured, ashamed to tell him that they had house elves that usually cleaned up after any type of feast or celebration. "How is Cedric?"

"Well why don't you see for yourself?" He said, guiding Draco to the bottom of a set of stairs. "Cedric! You've got company!" He shouted up the stairwell. "It's the Malfoy boy!"

"Don't shout, dear!" His wife's voice scolded from the kitchen.

Any reply he was about to make got cut off by the sound of footfalls rapidly coming down the stairs. "Draco! You came over!"

"Don't run in the house either, Cedric!" The mother's voice floated in a second time. "You sound like a herd of elephants!"

"Sorry, mum!" He took Draco's hand. "You want to come see my room?"

"Yeah!" Draco managed a smile and followed him carefully up the steps. There were pictures over almost every inch of wallpaper on the way up and he glanced at them, each moving to its own rhythm. There were people laughing, wandering in and out of frames, leaning over and passing objects, a symphony of movement that covered the wall.

"Right here. I brought my presents up already if you want to see." He laughed. "But if you don't want me to bore you with that, I understand."

"No, I want to see!" Draco protested. "I'd love to. Did you get everything you wanted? Are you feeling better?"

"Loads. Better than ever, even. You are too I hope?"

"What? Oh. Yeah."

"My uncle gave me this cauldron, which is good because the last one I had was a little bit small. Practical, but I needed it. And my cousins got me these book son Quidditch. A few broom tools, tons of sweets, of course, and... Draco, what's wrong?"

"Huh? Nothing." He shook his head and forced himself to smile. "I'm alright."

"You don't have to lie Draco. What's really the matter? You know you can talk to me."

Draco hunched his shoulders. "Cedric, do you think I'm a bad person?"

"What? Don't be silly, you're one of the best, bravest people I know. You'd fit right in with Gryffindor if you had to."

"And my family? Are they bad people?" He looked at Cedric with dull, hurt eyes. Then he got up. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come over, bothering you with things like this on the holidays. I'll go."

"Sit back down," Cedric told him firmly. "You're in my house and you're my friend. If you need someone to talk to, that's what I'm here for. Even on the holidays. Did something happen?"

"It's my dad. He's not a bad person! Really he's not, he loves me I know he does!" Draco kept his voice low so that it wouldn't drift down to Cedric's parents. "But he does bad things, sometimes. And I don't know if I can trust him."

"We all make bad choices. Maybe what you need to do is set a good example so that you're dad understands he doesn't have to keep doing what he's been doing," Cedric suggested. "And I think there's someone else you need to talk to." He reached across the night stand and grabbed a card. "When I was about your age, there was a girl at Hogwarts a couple of years above me and we got along smashingly. She was there when I needed an ear or messed something up or got into trouble - even if all she did was help me get into more. And I think maybe you should talk to her."

"Why? What would she know about this sort of thing? I trust you Ced, but this sounds a little dodgy." He looked at the card skeptically.

"She's a good friend to me. But she's also your cousin, Tonks."

"What? Cousin? I don't have a cousin named Tonks."

"Well, her real name is Nymphadora, but she never goes by that. And she'll probably deck you if you call her by that name, so I wouldn't advise it. Her mother Andromeda is your mother's sister. She's not the crazy locked up one, she's the other one."

"The one we don't talk about," said Draco flatly.

"Yes, Tonks told me about that once. Something about a tapestry?"

Draco felt a slight stab of guilt as thought back to the large piece of fabric in Sirius' home and the various burnt holes scattered across it. Something else his family did that he hated but couldn't talk about or change. "Yeah, I think I know who she is now." He took the card and opened it up. "Says she wants to catch up on old times."

"Why don't I send her an owl and arrange for lunch. You can come along and when we meet up, I'll introduce you two." He grinned and replaced the card. "She's a 'Puff, like I told you, so I'm sure she'll have loads of good advice and things to say. And I think you two will really get along well."

"I guess." He nodded and the motion picked up enthusiasm. "Alright. I could manage that."

"Great. I'll send the owl today." There was a knock on the door. "Yeah?"

"Here, boys," Cedric's mother pushed into the room. "I brought you kids some fudge and tarts and there's still some cake left downstairs and here's some milk in a carafe along with a couple of cups."

"Thanks," Cedric laughed as they helped her set it all on top of his dresser.

"So what are you two getting up to?" She asked, brushing her hands off on her apron.

"I'm just telling him about my Christmas," Cedric grinned and winked at Draco. "And, you know, guy stuff."

"Well I'll leave you two alone, then," she smiled. "And you enjoy as much as you like, Draco, but Cedric, remember that dinner will be at seven."

"Of course, mum." He carefully shut the door again. "So, care to tell me about what you got?"

"Actually, I've been meaning to say something for a while. It's not a Christmas gift, exactly, but it looked important and I thought you might know something about it."

"Not a Christmas gift? Then where did you get it?"

"I know you might not believe me, but the centaurs in the forest. It was this bow that they said I should have. It was how I beat the basilisk. I think, anyway. I didn't have any arrows, but... the markings on it make it look like it used to belong to Helga Hufflepuff. Have you ever heard of anything like that?"

"A weapon belonging to Helga Hufflepuff? No. And it seems a little out of her character." He frowned. "But I could look into it, I guess. Do you still have it with you?"

"It's in my house. My father put it away so that Dumbledore wouldn't get it. You wouldn't tell him about this, would you?" Draco worried.

"Tell who? Dumbledore or your father? Or both?" He shook his head. "You don't have to worry. I'll keep it confident."

Draco nodded. "Thanks. It seemed like it was important but I can't figure out why they gave it to me."

"Did they say anything?"

"Firenze handed it to me and said something about his clan keeping it for a friend and something else about stars. But he didn't really go into detail and it didn't make much sense. And I don't know what I'm supposed to do with it or what I should do with it. I was hoping you could help."

"Hold on to it for now," Cedric said carefully. "I'll try to find out what I can. But I would keep it safe and I wouldn't tell too many people about it either. I mean, I'd like to see it given the chance, but otherwise it seems like if it's important, you should be sure it's secure."

"I already figured that. But why give it to me?"

"I'm not sure," Cedric said with a shrug and a grin. "Maybe you're more special than you know."

~*~

"I could really kill Lucius Malfoy," Sirius thundered and slammed the door on the way in.

"What's wrong now?" Remus, cup of tea in hand, poked his head out from around the corner. "Other than the usual."

"Draco did like he promised he would," Sirius muttered, throwing his cloak towards the coat rack, but missing so that it ended up in a pile. "He talked to his father about speaking out against Dolores Umbridge. And just as predicted his father turned him down flat."

"It was considerate of him to even bring it up," said Remus quietly. "We both knew he didn't have much of a chance of success."

"It was! And he doesn't deserve a father like that!" Sirius followed Remus into the kitchen, still storming as Remus poured him a cup without asking. "There are days I would like to bite through that man's throat just to get Draco away from him. He's going to break that boy's heart, you know." He dumped mounds of sugar into the tea before stirring. "Draco loves him and the day is going to come when he sees Lucius Malfoy for what he really is. Lucius is going to let him get hurt or get a friend killed and it's going to snap his heart in half."

"I think you're selling Draco short," Remus remarked. "He loves his father but he's not blind. He'll come to terms with it as he grows up, just like you did."

"I hope he has the sense to tell the old man where he can stick it and move away like I did too." Sirius slurped down his tea. "I feel cramped here. You want to go out for Christmas dinner?"

"You think that's wise?" Remus looked skeptical. "I know you wanted to keep a low profile."

"It's Christmas and who cares? All the reporters in the world won't keep me from celebrating. Get your coat Remus. Let's make this a night worth remembering."

"Why does that make me feel so nervous?" He sighed, but complying and getting his coat nonetheless.

~*~

A/N: Sorry for the delays. I feel like I've lost the spark a bit with this story and hoped some time away would help. Don't know if it has, but I haven't forgotten this story and I will try to finish it, one way or another.