Chapter 16: A Wayward Heir

It had been a little over three weeks since the Malfoy siblings had stumbled (so to speak) upon their father's pensieve and the memory of their parents' breakup. In that time, the three children had worked in their potions lab with Malfoy and studied every potions book that they could read from the Malfoy library.

Milo had even been so bold to ask Malfoy what potions would have the symptoms of the golden tinge around someone's jaw. Malfoy didn't seem to be suspicious by the question, and that made Mila believe that perhaps he really hadn't noticed it upon his viewing. Even questioned if he'd viewed the memory yet. The answer had proven to be underwhelming as there were 'a large variety of potions that can cause such a reaction. Typically, in any mind-altering potion, things that people use for recreational use. Not that you kids need to worry about something like that because you'll never use recreational potions…right?'

Yeah, his answer had only kept them at square two, where they had already been standing within this entire mess. It was with this information when things took a turn for the unexpected, one Thursday morning

Mila was pouring herself a glass of pumpkin juice while Professor Parkinson glared at her. "Do you think she still has a thing for Malfoy? Why else would she be so obsessed with us? I wonder, do you think she's as weird with Scorpius?" Mila asked, leaning into her twin who only shrugged at his response to her questions. Mila couldn't help but roll her eyes at how unwilling her twin was when it came to gossip. Perhaps she should take this quarry up with her roommates instead, but that would require talking to them about Milo… No, no, she'd have to keep this little line of questioning to herself.

"It's career day for the fifth years, Mum was invited to come and speak on the benefits of getting a charms mastery. Uncle Harry is supposed to be here too for auror recruitment, and Malfoy is coming to talk about getting a potions mastery and a second presentation about what it's like to run a business. I think Ethan's parents are supposed to come as well to talk about the joys of architecture and interior design." Milo said, taking a sip from the coffee that he'd just poured before making a face and swapping back to pumpkin juice.

"How could you possibly know all this?" Mila snapped, taking the goblet out of Milo's hand and forcing him to look at her.

"Mum wrote to us; I gave you the letter when I was done with it…" He answered, taking his goblet back just as Jack slid into the seat next to them, taking a piece of bacon from Milo's plate.

"So, you think that Parkinson is peeved that mum is going to be here and that Malfoy is going to be here at the same time?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest, trying to redirect Milo back towards her original point of questioning. Not taking the bait, Milo instead pulled his breakfast out of Jack's reach and shot his best mate a glare pointing out the spread in front of them that was not spoken for.

"Say, Milo," Jack said, pulling Ethan Nott's plate over towards himself, grabbing a chocolate scone from it, receiving an 'oi, get your own, Potter!' "Think if Parks still has a thing for your dad, she might shag you instead? Put a little hair on that pasty chest of yours?" Wiggling his eyebrows at the boy in question before turning his head to watch their head of house in her shorter dress robes. "I think you might have a shot, old chap. Lucky you, I'd like to Slytherin between those thighs if you know what I mean." Jack said, giving an exaggerated wink.

"You're disgusting. What time are they supposed to get here?" Mila asked, addressing both boys.

"In time for the first class, they're clearing out the great hall and it's going to be a full assembly for all the houses. Longbottom canceled Herbology for the day so that he could be there, Parks is still holding morning classes. Professor Acker asked us if we were going to go and see Mum's presentation, I guess it's during our free period so technically we could attend." Milo replied, completely ignoring Jack, and looking only at his sister.

"Yeah, I suppose we can do that," Mila told her brother before looking at Jack. "Are you going to meet up with your dad? The famous Harry Potter, might have to make sure he has the time available." She said, teasing her friend.

"Absolutely not meeting up with him, that's more Remy's style. I wouldn't mind seeing your mum though, especially if she's wearing one of those pencil skirts…" Mila shot a stinging hex at the messy haired boy before pushing herself away from the bench.

"It's too early to deal with you, I'm going to go to class," she said to the boys who were now squabbling over the fact that Jack was not allowed to hit on their mother.

"See you in a bit," Milo replied as he held Jack in a headlock.

"Yeah…see you…Mila…" Jack choked out best he could with his limited air supply.

Walking straight out of the Great Hall and towards the D.A.D.A. classroom, Mila adjusted the strap on her school bag and cast a quick feather light charm. She really needed to make a trip by the library to return a few of these books, but she hadn't been able to find the time yet. Just as she was turning down a corridor towards the stairs that led up to the classroom, Mila was pulled from her thoughts when she heard a now familiar voice calling after her.

"Mila! Hey, Mila! Wait up!" Turning, Mila stood in the corridor waiting for her youngest brother to catch up to her.

"What's up, Scorp?" She asked, as he grabbed her elbow and pulled her into an abandoned classroom just off to the side. "Okay, apparently, we need privacy…" she muttered while Scorpius went about shutting and locking the door.

"I found it, well Pip found it, but I remembered it and knew it was at the manor." The younger boy said, pulling a book out of his school bag and handing it to her.

"Runnings of a Pureblood Estate," Mila read the cover of the book aloud before meeting Scorpius's eyes with her brow raised. "What the fuck is this shit, Scorp? You can't be serious in thinking that this is something I'd want to read. I'm a half-blood and my mother is the most famous muggle born in all of Europe." Mila said, trying to hand the book back to the younger boy when he shook his head and held up his hands, refusing to take it back.

"Just open it to the page I have marked," Scorpius said, rolling his eyes at his sister and tugging nervously at his necktie.

The book easily fell open to the page that Scorpius was wanting her to see, and it made her jaw drop. "A wayward heir?" Mila said, looking back up from the book when Scorpius nodded his head that she had found the right page.

There may be an occasion when we find ourselves with an heir that doesn't understand the importance of blood purity. When this happens, it is a threat to the integrity of our bloodlines. In these instances, we must curve the desires of our heirs and/or heiresses to avoid embarrassment to our bloodlines. It has been discovered that the use of an Odium Potion can curb these impulses. This can only be used if there is a person of fancy and is useless against an heir who does not have a corrupt desire, as a hair will be needed to add to the potion to ensure the loathing is directed at the intended party.

"Scorpius, what the fuck is this?" Mila asked, as her heart started to race at what this could possibly mean.

"It means, I think Dad was drugged with a hate potion. Here, I found, well Pip popped over to Knockturn Alley and grabbed it, but anyway, here," Scorpius said, shoving another book titled Potions Most Rare into her hand and the pages fell open.

Odium Potion:

Also known as a hate potion, is one of the most powerful of its kind. This potion will alter whoever ingests it to show extreme hostility and ill will towards anyone they come across, regardless of one's true feelings towards those they interact with. The opposite of Amortentia, this potion is not to be used without caution. This potion has resulted in wars and ending of alliances. The effects of this potion wear off after forty-eight hours, physical side-effects include extreme perspiration and a golden glow around the jawline.

"This is it…" Mila whispered, re-reading the short passage again before looking up at Scorpius. "This is fucking it. But who the fuck drugged him?" She asked, watching her brother's silver eyes that were almost identical to her own grow a bit darker and a pink flush creeping up his neck.

"It sounds like something that someone obsessed with power would come up with. You saw that fucking contract and the correspondence between Winston Greengrass and my father, or rather the non-replying by Father. I would bet my entire vault on it that Greengrass is involved," the eleven-year-old said.

"Scorpius…" Mila started, knowing that Scorpius already struggled with his mother's side of his family before all this.

"No, Mila. You don't understand what a bastard that man really is. My mother, she…She was never given a chance to live, and he is the reason why. My Aunt Daphne blames herself for how my mother was treated, because she married a muggle and works in the muggle world. It's not fair, the way he treated her, it's not fucking fair!" Scorpius bent his head and hid his face into the crook of his elbow as the tears began to flow. Mila stood by silently watching the younger boy, feeling her heart ache for him.

"She should be here; she should have been allowed to be happy and she should have had a fucking life. Instead, Dad got drugged with this potion and then was forced into a marriage with a woman who was dying." Mila looked around the closed classroom and considered their relationship. They'd crossed lines, a lot of them over the two weeks that she was at the Malfoy Manor for the holiday. Mila hesitated for a moment as she reached out to her youngest brother, before she grabbed his arm and pulled him into an embrace.

They stood there for a time and Mila just kept her arms wrapped around her brother running her fingers through his fine white hair, just like her mother would do when Mila was upset. Scorpius grabbed onto her school robes and buried his face into Mila's shoulder, and she moved her hands so that they were wrapped around his body.

"She's dead and they don't even care." She heard Scorpius say, his voice muffled by the fabric of her uniform. The large tower bell rang, signaling the changing of the hour and Mila knew that Milo and Jack would be looking for her in class, but she pushed those thoughts aside as she continued to hold her younger brother. Right now, he needed her more.

They stayed in the classroom until Scorpius' breathing had evened out and he'd pulled away from her. He'd wiped his hands at his face, his eyes puffy and red from shedding tears that he'd probably been holding onto for a long time. Mila took his calming state as a good sign that he might be able to move about again. "Right, you missed breakfast, let's go down to the kitchen." She told her younger brother, grabbing him by the arm and tugging him into the corridor.

"You know how to get into the kitchens?" Scorpius asked, following closely behind his sister as they moved towards the dungeons.

"Obviously, now hush. We don't have Jack's map, so we don't know who all is hanging around." Mila whispered, dragging him along with her. They stayed in a comfortable silence, pausing at every corner to check and make sure the coast was clear. They'd almost made it all the way to the entrance when they heard someone coming towards them.

Grabbing Scorpius and pulling him into an alcove, Mila peaked her head out just enough so that she could see Mrs. Kelly, the caretaker. She was using her wand to dust the picture frames and torches that lined the corridors.

"Think she'll rat us out?" Scorpius asked, also looking into the hall and seeing the caretaker.

"For sure, and there's no way Parks is missing out on giving me a horrible detention, especially with mum in the building. The cow would probably have a whole conference about it just to make sure to embarrass both of us to the max.." Mila told her brother, just as two other voices could be heard coming, making the sibling press even further into their hiding spot.

"Excuse me, are the two of you lost?" The shrill voice of Mrs. Kelly could be heard, making Mila cringe.

"Oh, hello! You must be Mrs. Kelly." Said a familiar feminine voice.

"Oh no…" Mila groaned.

"How could you possibly know that?" A voice replied, but this time male and not one that Mila would have expected exploring the halls with the woman.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Scorpius whispered, his voice sounding panicked, giving him away. He'd have to get better at masking his emotions…

"Your children attend this school, and you don't know who the school caretaker is. Honestly Draco, they send informational packets to the parents at the start of every year with a list of the entire staff. Including pictures." Her mother scolded, Mila imagined, with her hands on her hips.

"Of course, I read the packet; I just didn't recognize this stunning witch in person." Their father replied, the smirk on his face could be heard in his voice. "Photographs do not do you justice, madam." Mila peaked her head out just enough to see as Malfoy's lips brushed over the very warty knuckles of Mrs. Kelly.

"How much do you want to bet he didn't even open the welcome packet?" Mila whispered to her brother, who had to cover his mouth to stop the laugh from bubbling out of him.

"Oh, you must be here to speak with the fifth years, you must be Mr. Malfoy." Mrs. Kelly said, not sounding like a banshee any longer, instead sounding like a blushing fourteen-year-old. "I'm sorry, I don't know who you are…" Mila now had to cover her mouth to stop the laugh.

"Hermione Granger, my children have been going to Hogwarts for three years now and I've given you a Christmas basket every year, the last one just a few weeks ago…" Her mother replied, not sounding very impressed with the caretaker.

"Are you, hm, you must have shrunk since I last saw you." Both Mila and Scorpius had to clap their hands over the other's mouth to muffle their chuckles. "Well, anyway, right this way. They want you to meet with the heads before giving your presentations…" the clicking of their shoes could be heard as they disappeared around a corner.

"Did she call him Draco?" Mila asked, as the pair slipped from their hiding spots, resuming their trek to the kitchens.

"Yeah, she was still calling him Malfoy at the platform." Scorpius said, shoving his hands in his pockets and looking down at his shoes. His fine white hair fell into his eyes as he kept his gaze fixed on the ground. They'd just reached the painting of the bowl of fruit when he finally spoke again. "Do you think we ought to tell them? You know, about the books and the potion?"

"Oh, I don't know. Probably, but if we do, they're going to know we went snooping in Malfoy's study. I'm not exactly prepared for the wrath of my mother when that comes to light." Mila said, reaching forward to tickle the pear.

"Shouldn't they know though? I mean, yeah they sound like they're on friendly terms now, but this affects their lives the most and I feel like if we know something we should tell them." Scorpius said, just as the painting swung open and let them inside.

There was a rush towards the two students as house elves came forward to serve them. A quick order by Scorpius and the children were set up with enough food to feed five adult men instead of just one eleven-year-old boy.

Once he had a plate filled with toast, scrambled eggs, and fried potatoes, he asked, "what do you think will happen if we tell them?" He dug into his meal as he sat and waited for his sister's response.

"I'm not sure. Mum will go mental, that's for sure. How do you think Malfoy will take it?" Mila asked, playing with the mug of tea the elves had provided her. Scorpius was silent for a while pondering his answer, slowly chewing his food.

Taking a sip of pumpkin juice, he cleared his throat before answering. "If it's Winston who drugged him, he's going to go completely mad. They got a massive settlement after mum…" He paused, taking another drink, "anyway they got loads of galleons and a few properties out of the deal. I overheard Aunt Daph saying that he invested it all into his company because it was going under after the war. What they got out of the marriage started bringing it out of the hole, and then the settlement saved it from a second almost bankruptcy. Dad will be entitled to demand every cent back and Winston will have to give it to him."

"So, should we find out if it actually was Winston who drugged him? Narcissa made it sound like Lucius would know something…" Mila said trailing off in her thoughts.

"You think Lucius will tell us something?" Scorpius asked, an eyebrow raised making him look even more like Milo than usual. "I've never exchanged letters with him, and now months before his release you want to contact him and ask if he knows who drugged our dad, his son?"

"What's the worst that can happen? Who knows, maybe almost twenty years in Azkaban has reformed him. Maybe he'll reply kindly and say that yeah, he totally knows who went after Malfoy and if it was Winston, your dad can, oh, I don't know. Take over his company or whatever else he feels like doing."

"You've read reports about Lucius Malfoy…Right?" Scorpius asked, stopping mid bite to look at Mila as if she'd grown a second head.

"Not exactly, no." That was the truth too. While Mila had read every scrap of news pertaining to Draco Malfoy, the same couldn't be said about how far her investigations on his parents went. She'd ignored her paternal grandparents for the most part; she knew that Narcissa Malfoy only came back to England for major charity events every few years, and that was only because she'd attended those with Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy, she knew even less about aside from the spread that had come out that his twenty-year Azkaban sentence was almost up. There had been a full list of former Death Eaters that were to be released, including Rowle's father.

"Lucius Malfoy will not have reformed. In fact, he might come out more dangerous than when they chucked him in there." Scorpius said, stabbing a potato with his fork before setting it down on his plate. With a heavy sigh, he looked up at Mila then reached down into his school bag and pulled out Runnings of a Pureblood Estate. "This was his copy, traditionally a father would pass this onto his heir in the final stages of their preparation of taking over being head of the house. So well after any marriages and grandchildren had already been produced. Only, Lucius didn't have that option because he was thrown in Azkaban and Father became head by default at eighteen."

Scorpius opened the book and began flipping through pages until he came to one section in particular and slid it towards her. 'Rearing of the Next Scion' was the title of the passage and Mila looked up at Scorpius before diving into the passage. In the margins were handwritten notes that included a detailed account of how exactly Lucius Malfoy 'reared' his son.

Has learned that he is to be seen, not heard. Silencing charms to teach him to hold his tongue while using the rod. Blood quills. Imperius to sit unmoving for a full day. Physically, well bred. Mentally, weak. A week in the dungeon for letting a mudblood best him.

The list of horrors just went on from there. "He did those things to his own heir, his own son," her brother said. "You think he'll care about any grandkids, especially half-bloods and a son of a radical with a blood curse that would have been passed on…"

"Now that you put it that way." Mila closed the book in front of her and slid it back to Scorpius, who put it back in his bag. "So, what should we do then? What about either of your grandmothers?"

"Er, well. I've never actually spoken to my grandmother Anita, and you heard what grandmother Cissa said to Father. I highly doubt if she wouldn't speak openly to him that she'd be more forthcoming with us."

"That's true," Mila said, gathering her things so that they could make it to their next class. "We'll just have to think of something. Now, come on, we can't miss two classes with our parents here. If Mum finds out, she'll have our heads."

She stood up from the bench, holding her hand out to her younger brother. "Come on, they'll be expecting us to join them for lunch and you know my mother will ask you about whatever classes you're taking and what you're reading. Best to not try and lie to her, let her keep thinking that you're this sweet innocent kid she can talk obscure books with." Mila said, winking at her brother who could only look at her with an open mouth before he started laughing.

"Yeah, alright. I have Transfiguration next anyway, and Professor Parkinson wouldn't be very happy if her star pupil were missing." Standing up next to her, slinging his own bag over his shoulder, Scoprius turned and began walking out of the kitchen.

"Wait…What do you mean star pupil? I swear to Salazar, if she's favoring you and Milo because you look like our dad, I'm putting in an official complaint!" Mila yelled, chasing after the laughing boy.

A/N: Hi! Happy Friday everyone! Alright well, now we know what happened to Draco to make him breakup with Hermione! Now the question is who drugged him and how did they get Hermione's hair to put in the potion!

I was going to include career day, but I hated how it was looking with the rest of this chapter and had to pitch it. So, IF you would like to see Hermione and Draco at Career Day, please let me know.

Alright, there WILL NOT be an update next week. This weekend is Easter, then Tuesday is my son's birthday. Wednesday is my youngest son's birthday. AND (I swear it's true) Saturday is my oldest son's birthday AND a triple birthday party. Before anyone is sitting and take too much time to figure out what was nine months ago, I'll just tell you. My anniversary. Yup. 3/4 of my children's birthdays are within four days of each other.

A little tid bit about me, my oldest son died when he was 8 months old, so not only am I going crazy with just having so many birthdays in a week, but I'm also dealing with a lot of grief. He should have been turning 7, and it really fucking sucks.

SO ANYWAY! No update at all next week, but there will be one the following week. Um, I am posting my last chapter of my Vikmione short story 'Closer' on Monday the 18th and you can find that on my page. It's a Ron Bash, no Draco, Friend Pansy, no Harry Potter.

Okay, so other notes from me. Love you all, see you in a few weeks!