A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys! I love feedback, and constructive criticism so keep them coming. I don't like to clog up my stories with endless replies so I've been sending messages to those of you who are logged in. Those of you who aren't – well you're out of luck for now. I will be going back and editing the previous chapters – probably next weekend, but I can't be bothered right now. It's mostly just grammatical errors there won't be any plot changes.

Also, for those of you who don't know a Barrister is a lawyer who specializes in litigation in England. I used the term interchangeably with Counselor. A solicitor is an actual attorney with the power to contract and everything else we typically associate with a lawyer.

I am updating heavy now. I am going to try and put a good portion up before Thanksgiving because after that is finals and I don't know how active I'll be (the library swallows me then). So enjoy it while you can.

Draco swept through the halls of Malfoy Manor, furious that it was thick with dust. He snapped his fingers several times as he ran a finger down the receiving table in the front foyer. What had the bloody elves been doing? His favorite elf, the one who had cared for him in his youth, appeared and bowed low.

"Master has returned!" the thing said, the tip of its nose almost touching the floor of the manor.

"Why is the Manor so dreadfully…disgusting," Draco asked his voice dangerously low. First Ginny had kicked him off her grounds and barred the gate to him. And now he came home to a disgusting house. Trixie, for her part, looked sufficiently upset.

"Trixie is very sorry sir, but the Ministry ordered all the elves out of the house except for Trixie. The others have been helping Master's mother at her house. Trixie has kept Master's office and suite very clean. But Trixie hasn't been able –"

"That's enough. Collect the others except for my mother's personal elf and clean the Manor top to bottom immediately. Borrow the elves from the villas in France and Italy too. Tell them these are my orders. I want it spotless." Draco snarled. He turned on his heel and heard Trixie pop out of the Manor.

He wandered the halls to his study and pushed open the door. Despite the slightly musty smell from being sealed from all except Trixie, the office was immaculate. He smiled at this and walked to the cabinet. Pulling out a decanter of whiskey he poured a glass and took a long drink. He had missed alcohol during his incarceration. They didn't even allow wine.

Pouring himself another glass Draco retreated from the study and walked down the hall to his suite. Instead of pushing open his bedroom door, however, he turned to the one directly across from it. Tearing the tape off he pushed the door open and stepped into the room.

It was decorated in pale lavenders and earth tones; the comforter was still mussed from where her body had been. There was a thick layer of dust on everything, making the lavender bed cover look dull. He walked over to the vanity and was surprised at what greeted him. He hadn't seen himself since his incarceration; maybe there had been some sense in Ginny turning him away. His hair was long, almost as long as his father's on his deathbed, and looked almost stringy and dirty blonde despite the fact that he had showered right before leaving Azkaban. His face was gaunt from and paler than ever from a lack of sun and dark shadows ringed his eyes which seemed set rather further back in his head. The black sweater his mother had sent with his Barrister hung loosely from his thin frame – he'd certainly lost his seeker build while he'd been away. Disgusted he turned away from the vanity, taking another deep drink from his glass. He stared at the room for a long time before he downed the rest of his glass.

"You've caused quite the mess Astoria. I hope you're enjoying your laugh up there," Draco muttered as he stepped out of the room and closed the door. He pulled his wand out and sealed it so that no one but him could enter. Leaving the tape on the floor he went across the hall to his own room. A shower and change of clothes was in order, and a quick spell to cut his hair, he'd have to look his best when he went to meet his mother.

"Malfoy, hands through the door you have a visitor," a guard shouted, sliding the small square back and Draco stuck his hands through. When he pulled them back they were magically bound. He flexed his hands but stepped back as the guard pulled the door open, wand trained on him.

The two walked the halls in an alarmingly familiar manner. Draco had made the same walk five days a week for the past seven years to meet with Ginny and his Counselor. Never his mother, which somewhat surprised him, and never anyone new. He was aware that Potter had pulled strings with the order to force him into solitary confinement. The Ministry, of course, had been only too happy to comply. They never had been able to punish him after the war.

The guard secured him in the conference room and left. Several minutes later the Warden opened the door. When he stepped back Draco was surprised to see that Ronald Weasley waited on the other side of the door. Weasley entered and threw himself in the seat, his face unreadable. The Warden left with instructions to knock when he was ready to leave.

"Malfoy," Ron said by way of greeting. Draco merely stared at him. "I'm not here to question you…In an official capacity anyway. It's off the record."

"And why should I believe that," Draco snarled in reply. Ron shrugged putting his hands up in a motion of defeat.

"We already know that you're not going to talk. And if you don't want to speak with me then I don't see how I can help you, but I think you should at least listen to what I have to say." Ron said finally.

"Why would you want to help me?" Draco managed to hiss past his incredulity. Ron didn't reply, instead he slid several photos across the table to Draco. They were pictures of his son, who looked much older than he remembered. Draco sighed as he picked the top one up and ran a finger over the curve of his sons face. He was flying in what appeared to be a Quidditch game. A gaggle of other children also in the air, and Draco saw a house in the distance that looked like it was about to fall over – held up only by magic. The Burrow.

"Ginny wanted me to bring those. They're from his birthday. His tenth birthday. I've been reading your file Draco, and as far as I can tell they haven't got enough to actually bring the charges, especially after what your attorney's had thrown out, but they're still trying to build a case anyway. So what I don't understand is why you're still sitting here seven years later. Waiting for a trial that's never going to come. And if it did, seems like you have more to lose than to gain."

"I had nothing to do with her death," Draco started then stopped, staring at the picture. "In the strictest sense."

"If you would give me a statement. I could try to get the charges dropped. Dad doesn't want to drag this out anymore. But…If we helped you there would be…conditions." Draco laughed, a short bark.

"Aren't there always?"

"They aren't from the Ministry. They're from my sister."

"What does she want?" Draco asked, looking slightly resigned.

"An agreement that if we help you, she gets to remain in Scorpius' life. She's grown quite attached you know. But I'd like to see her get her life back. And I'd think you'd like to spend the next year with your son. Before he goes off to Hogwarts for seven years."

Draco seemed to consider this for a long time before he placed the picture on the table with a sigh.

"Well I was ready to concede that anyway I suppose, she's the only mother he's known for a long time. The story's going to take a while – you might as well get comfortable."

Ron nodded. He took out a piece of parchment and a quick quotes quill, showing them to Draco.

"You can read it, before I take it. If you don't like it I'll come back and we can change it. I won't share anything with anyone that isn't already involved with the case," he offered in a rare stroke of generosity. Draco nodded his assent and Ron placed the quote on the page.

"Ronald Weasley, Auror, Order of Merlin Third Class. Statement of Draco Malfoy taken at Azkaban. July 1." He spoke clearly and the quill darted across the page. Draco was pleased to see it documented it in full, without changing anything as Rita Skeeter's quill was wont to do.

"Astoria and I didn't marry for love," Ron snorted at this and Draco frowned.

"I'm sorry, but that's stating the obvious," he replied blithely. Draco ignored him and continued.

"The Greengrasses were pretty much bankrupt after the war. Her father was a drunk and a bit of a gambler and her mother was obsessed with keeping up pretenses. Instead of cutting costs, she bled them dry with balls and tea parties while he spent the little excess on booze and cards. Astoria came to my father. She knew that we needed an alliance outside…the Dark Magic he had surrounded our family with. My father agreed that should she marry me, and produce an heir, then he would give her family an allowance so long as our marriage remained intact and free of scandal. So we married.

When Scorpius was born, Daphne left for the Continent and I'm afraid that Astoria was a little lost. She never wanted to be a mother and she was completely uninterested in caring for Scorpius. She was happy to dump him on house elves. I wasn't particularly interested in being a husband – I hadn't had a choice in the marriage after all – and I was focused on raising our son and managing my company.

She began to frequent muggle bars and on more than one occasion she returned home with the scum she met there. My mother finally put her foot down. I didn't approve of the way she was acting, but I didn't truly care as long as Scorp didn't see and I didn't have to deal with her. Mother started making her attend the functions she herself was required to attend, and tried to morph her into the society wife she was supposed to be.

It was a bit much for Astoria. And she came one night begging me to find a way for her to cope, to get her out of her engagements. I brushed her off, telling her it was her duty as Mrs. Malfoy. Scorpius had been sick for days, and I blamed her. She left that night and didn't come back until I sent a private investigator to find her. She was disheveled, smelled of booze and her eyes were unfocused. When I asked where she was found the investigator indicated that she was in some flat in London, and it appeared she was doing some sort of drug. I put her in her room to detox and left – I was attending a Ministry function that night for international businesses with the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

When I got home that night she was dead. I didn't help her, but I certainly didn't kill her."

"Why didn't you give this statement sooner?"

"I was hoping that your father would let it go. He saw me that night, I was a wreck and I was trying to comfort a sick son. They took him and I lost it. I didn't want the scandal to go into the papers – I don't want my son to know that his mother was a whore…And that she killed herself getting high on some common muggle drug." Draco spat the last part. "But you're right. I'm not doing any good rotting in here. And I frankly couldn't care less what the papers say about her anymore. I was hoping Daphne would help me clear my name but she's taken to the wind again – and it appears that my Barrister has been unable to make the charges go away in any legal sense, even with the help of our family soliticor. And we're running out of money to pay him with most of my assets frozen –" Ron frowned here and backed the quill up to cross this out. The Ministry was supposed to have frozen ALL of the Malfoy assets, he wasn't about to go digging into that. Harry might be set on hanging Malfoy, but Ron was inclined to see his sister happy again. He motioned for Draco to continue when the line was gone.

"With all the motions he's been filing, I'm just stuck here, waiting for the trial that seems like it may never come. And you're right. I would like to spend my son's last pre-Hogwarts year with him."

Draco ran a hand through his hair as he walked up the path to his mother's door. He hadn't been able to do anything about the dark circles around his eyes but had cast an almost competent glamour on them to hide their shrunken appearance. If she didn't look too close she wouldn't notice the magic at all. He had cut his hair to a more acceptable length and tied it back with a thong at his neck, as his father used too, until he could see a Barber – the first thing on his list tomorrow. Trixie had fetched some smaller clothes for him so it no longer looked as though he was swimming in the shirt he was wearing. He suspected she had cast some altering charms on it – but couldn't be bothered to ask because he really didn't care. He hoped when he got into the air again he would regain his lost muscle and fit back into his old clothes. Though a trip to the tailor seemed to be in order for the next day as well.

A house elf answered the door and Draco stepped into the foyer. He looked around the sleek charm of the area with unmasked appreciation. His mother's decorative tastes shone without his father's needs for pretense. He could tell there were some family heirlooms missing though – Black heirlooms – and hoped that she hadn't sold them to pay his bills. He'd told her where the money was hidden, but he didn't know if she'd retrieved it, or how much the almost daily meetings and frequent owls with his Barrister had cost. The same elf appeared to lead him upstairs to his mother's quarters. He was surprised, it was unlike his mother to receive anyone in her personal quarters, and he had not had such a visit since his school days. Certainly not since he'd been married.

The elf gestured to the door to her study and he opened it stepping into the dim interior. He saw her bundled up in front of the fire, a book open in her lap though it didn't look like she was paying much attention to it as the candle had burnt quite low.

"Mother?" he asked. She opened her eyes and offered him a small smile.

"Come give your mother a kiss. You Barrister told me you'd be getting out today," she said gesturing him forward. He was surprised, suddenly, of how old she looked. Her blonde hair was streaked through with silvery gray, where the blacker strands had once beem. He managed to keep himself from frowning and leaned down to kiss her cheek. She motioned for him to take the seat across from her and he felt the heat from the fire burning through his think shirt. He didn't understand how she was under so many blankets.

"I was hoping…that you could owl Ginerva for me…" Narcissa said, gesturing to the parchment on the table next to him. "Ask her if she could bring over some potions for me. Tell her I've run out – she'll know what to bring."

Draco did as he was directed and the elf appeared to take the letter to an owl. Why the elf hadn't been dispatched to fill this task earlier was unclear to him until he noticed her hands shaking.

"Are you sick mother," he asked finally, trying to keep the tremor from his voice. He shouldn't feel like a little boy.

"Nothing Ginerva can't help with," she replied with another small smile. "Draco, I'm just so happy you're home. You can stay here for a spell if you'd like. Scorpius loves it here. He has his own room – I expect you'll have to prepare a room for him at the Manor."

Draco hadn't thought of this either. The last time Scorpius had been at the Manor he had still been in his nursery, attached to Draco's suite. He would need his own suite now – complete with a bathroom and colors befitting a ten year old. Not a pastel blue nursey that belonged to an infant. He frowned.

"I see you hadn't thought of that," Narcissa said with a chuckle. "Did you rush off to scoop him out of Ginny's arms like a knight in shining armor too?"

Draco's frown deepened and his mother's chuckle turned into a peal of laughter.

"Oh I wish I could have seen the lecture she rounded on you."

"I don't think it's funny that I'm being kept away from my son."

"Draco, I'm sure you looked a fright. No mother in her right mind would have let you near her son. Add in the fact that Ginny is as fierce as a bear protecting her cub and you were done for."

"Grown quite close to her haven't you?" Draco asked petulantly – upset that his mother wasn't taking his side.

"Yes, we have had a chance to get to know each other in the last seven years. Ginerva has changed a lot in that time – it would do you well to remember that," Narcissa said gently. "She's not the girl she was when her father showed up on her doorstep with your son."

Draco let out a long whistle of breath at this point and stood to pace.

"She told me that I can visit him for lunch tomorrow."

"Why don't you invite them here. Then you won't be in completely unfamiliar territory – and I had to cancel my visit with him today and I do love to spend time with him."

Draco felt suddenly that his son's time was going to be monopolized but quickly squashed this feeling at the hopeful look on his mother's face.

"Of course," he said finally. Suddenly the floo roared to life and Ginny's head appeared.

"Narcissa I just received your owl, I was wondering if you minded if I brought those over straightaway you really should tell me before –" Ginny paused as Draco stepped into view. "Oh. Hello Draco."

"Now is fine Ginny. Give me a minute and I'll lift the wards for you to floo –"

"Nonsense." Ginny admonished her with a frown. She eyed Draco again before opening her mouth to speak. "I'll just apparate, I have to pop back to the house anyway to pick them up. You know why."

Draco's ears perked at the disapproving tune to Ginny's voice but her head was already gone. He looked at his mother expectantly and she sighed.

"Well I suppose it won't do any harm to tell you now."