Chapter Three

As Estrella slept upstairs in her bedroom, Draco Malfoy had just arrived home through the fireplace while using the Floo Network. One had to use a special powder called Floo Powder and call out the destination after throwing the powder into the fire, and then walk through the fire.

He was more than confused as he sensed a new layer of magic attached itself to his house.

He knew all the types of magic in his house, his parents' magic along with Uncle Regulus's magic. He had lived with them ever since his husband (and also brother, Sirius Black) had been sent to Azkaban on false charges, claiming he had murdered another wizard and twelve Muggles.

The young boy had barely glanced around the immaculate parlor room.

The same expensive, antique silver wood furniture along with the expensive chandelier that was in the center of the ceiling. The same white curtains that were resting on either side of the large windows of the room. The soft carpet underneath his feet, along with the bookshelves and portraits of family ancestors. Nothing was out of sorts, everything was exactly where it was supposed to be, which made things quite odd.

"Mother? Father? Uncle Regulus?"

Draco would like to say he didn't jolt when he heard his mother open the parlor room doors but then again it would be a pathetic lie.

He instead made sure to smooth down his expensive, aristocratic clothes.

He reached his hand up and ran his fingers through his blond locks, he looked just like his father. He even shared the same gray eyes that were common both in his father's side of the family along with his mother's side of the family. No one would look at him and not think of him as the child of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy.

"Ah, Draco, darling. Come, sit, I need to speak to you about something. Don't worry, you are not in trouble. I just have something very important to tell you," Narcissa informed him, motioning for him to sit on the antique silver cushioned Victorian loveseat. He sat down and she sat down next to him, also motioning for him to turn and look at her.

"My little dragon, I know that your magic has missed your cousin. We all knew that she was alive, and don't worry, she still is–" Narcissa started, silently cursing herself at how she made it sound like Estrella had died, before she continued.

"It turns out that Uncle Regulus has been taking care of Estrella ever since he found out where she was being taken care of since she was five. It seems as though what we thought had happened, the Order, had indeed Polyjuice themselves to make themselves look like one of our people. They had stolen Estrella from the Lestrange Manor, and she was given to Lord James and Lady Lily Potter. After they were killed, Estrella was sent to live with her Muggle aunt and uncle…"

The glass bowl that was sitting on the coffee table and was filled with fake fruit, began to spin dangerously in the center of the coffee table due to Draco's magic. Narcissa reached out and took her son's hands in hers, squeezing them.

"Uncle Regulus brought her home. She's upstairs in her bedroom, resting, but Draco, I have to warn you that the Muggles did not take good care of her. They abused her, Draco. It's going to take some time for her and us…I just need you to be patient. You can see her tomorrow, but not now."

"That's not fair! I want to see her, you gotta see her! Father, got to see her! I'm her cousin, I should be able to go and see her!" Draco pouted as he placed his arms against his chest, acting like his age for once. He had learnt over the years to not be immature and throw tantrums.

"Draco, calm yourself."

Draco turned his head away from looking at his mother, to see both Uncle Regulus and Father coming into the room. Uncle Regulus turned and looked at the others, and they nodded their heads.

"Come, Draco. I will show you a memory of her recently, just what she looks like, nothing else. So, you can understand why we want her to get adjusted to being here before she can start hanging out with you and being able to be a real child."

Narcissa and Lucius observed their son follow his second cousin out of the parlor room.

Narcissa sighed as she slumped some, smiling some when Lucius came over and sat down next to her. He placed his hand onto her shoulder, in assurance everything was going to be alright. She kissed him on the cheek before she stood up with his hand in hers, leading them out of the room and to the stairs so they could check in on Estrella.

The bedroom door opened to their magic signature, and they slowly crept into the room.

Lucius's eyes softened immediately at the sight of his niece all snuggled up in the comforting blankets on her bed. It had been charmed to have all her family members' magical signatures on it so she could know she was being watched over and loved. He could feel all the signatures swirling around her, loving her, assuring her that she was safe now.

Both him and Narcissa frowned when they saw those despicable glasses sitting on the side table, mocking them and reminding them of all that had happened.

Lucius was over there in the blink of an eye and set them on fire, making sure there would be nothing left of James Potter's glasses, since he had tried to raise Lucius's niece as his own daughter.

He was going to make sure poor Estrella wouldn't be raised and eventually made into a sacrificial lamb all because of that stupid prophecy Sybill Trelawney had come up with in order to get a job as the Divination Professor for Hogwarts.

The Dark Lord had unknowingly sent the Killing Curse towards his own daughter, lost in insanity, believing that James and Lily hadn't stolen his daughter but instead had the daughter naturally. He was going to be regretting that decision as soon as he would get his form back and be welcomed with his daughter once more.

Narcissa went over to her niece and began to whisper spells under her breath.

Slowly but surely Estrella's features took away any Glamor put upon her to make her look like a Potter.

Her eyebrows began to shape themselves more like her mother's. Her nose became more like her father's. Her lips were a shape that was between both of her parents'. Her eyes, having soaked in the Killing Curse and housed the last part of her father's soul, did not change from those vivid green eyes into gray ones. Her skin became as pale as bone marrow, and her hair became pure white, not light blonde like Narcissa's but true white. It made her look more unique, there was a stripe in the back of her head, straight down the middle which was obsidian.

"Come, Cissy. We need to go and comfort Draco. He most likely is distraught at having seen the state that his cousin is in," Lucius whispered, earning a nod from the lady of the manor, before they left the bedroom and the door shut behind them.

Fast Forward to the next day, and Estrella yawned before stretching, prepared to get up and do the chores that were waiting for her. As her eyes opened, her eyelashes fluttering, her mouth felt open when she saw the pink canopy above her with all the twinkling lights around it. She sat upright, her eyes taking in everything around her. She was still in the princess room from her dreams, she wasn't in the cramped cupboard anymore.

She went to grab her glasses but paused, as she saw that they were missing from next to her. In fact, as she slowly became more aware of things, her eyesight was perfect. She was glad her eyesight was fixed, there was a chance that her aunt and uncle had fixed her eyesight when she was asleep, but she was still wondering where the glasses were.

They had always been a fixture in her life, and she always wore them even though the prescription wasn't the same, and they were clunky, uncomfortable for her. They were gone now, as though they weren't even there to begin with, and she had been imagining them her whole life. She didn't know how to feel about them, they weren't her real father's glasses, but they were the only thing that was actual evidence that 'dad' was real. Not her kidnapper, but her dad…now he was a kidnapper, and her real dad was out there unable to return home.

She noticed the mirror hanging on her standing wardrobe and went over to it, only to stumble backwards when she saw herself in the reflection. She brought one of her hands up, noting how the girl on the other side of the mirror was bringing her hand up. She began to mouth random words and made another note which allowed her to know the girl on the other side was indeed herself, the real version of her and not the version her kidnappers had made her look like.

The bedroom door opened, and the white-haired girl turned in order to see who was coming into the room. She loosened herself up when she saw Auntie coming into the room with Mr. Grimm in his cat form. Animagus, that was what he was–he could turn into a cat after going through many different trials in order to get his destined form. A form that he couldn't choose himself, it was a reflection of his personality for everyone to see around him and he happened to be a black cat.

"Auntie? Why do I look like this? What about the glasses?" Estrella probed, as Auntie came up to her and ushered her back to her bed.

Estrella sat down, smiling and running her fingers through Mr. Grimm's soft fur coat while her aunt went over to where her clothes were hanging in the standing wardrobe. She had all different colors of the rainbow when it came to her ensembles. She couldn't wait to try them all on and see how the skirts would flutter from the movement of her ballerina spirals. She had always wanted to do things of that sort, things ballerinas and princesses did.

"When you were taken from us Lily Potter cast a charm on you to look like you were her and James's child and not your real parents'. I took it away while you were sleeping, and as for the glasses it's partly because you wouldn't need them anymore for sight. The other reason being they belonged to James Potter and not your real father. Your Uncle Lucius had decided that it would be best for us to get rid of them. We don't want anything reminding us of them," Auntie explained, delicately, behind her she could hear her cousin purring and relaxing against Estrella.

If she and Lucius hadn't taken Regulus in, then he would have gone insane with any sense of romantic or platonic love. Without the love of his life by his side, Regulus would have done anything to end up in Azkaban to be closer to Sirius.

"Alright, how do you like this dress? We can put your hair halfway up, since it's only going to be family, but you'll have just met Draco," Auntie informed her niece, earning a nod from Estrella as she went over to her tall and elegant aunt. They looked as if they could be mother and daughter instead of niece and aunt. Her eyes were still the alarming green shade.

Turning her attention away from glancing at herself in the standing mirror and instead looked at the Victorian Lolita Jumper Dress with all the proper frillies and black bows. The skirts, which poofed out, would end a few inches above her knees and the sleeves of her elegant sleeves would end at the start of her wrists. Black dress shoes were velveteen in touch and had a small wedge to the bottom of them, giving her an extra inch or two for her height which honestly wouldn't be needed if it were just for height. She was tall for a girl her age, and she was still quite skinny. Her parents had that 'starved English' look about them.

Once Mr. Grimm left the bedroom and sat outside it after the door was closed in order to keep guard, Estrella allowed her aunt to help her out of her nightgown and into her new clothes. She couldn't believe she was wearing proper clothes, she enjoyed how she looked like a little doll. Her white hair was almost absorbed into the skin and fabric that was her, she was almost albino. The same white eyelashes and almost white eyebrows, but the eyes were not sensitive. They were vibrant and weren't the typical light pink hue one would associate albinism with.

Putting on some skin-colored tights, and some white silk gloves, Estrella sat down patiently by her vanity table. It looked as if it had been in the family through the centuries, passed down each generation to the eldest female. It was lovingly worn and was waiting for the next heiress of the family to use it. She brushed her fingers against the surface of the vanity table, where it soaked in her magical signature and focused its intentions to only her and not others.

Auntie pulled the top layer of her hair into a stylish high bun, smiling some when she noticed the beauty streak that was in her hair. It was on the under part of the back of her head, only when her hair would be tied up when one saw the black spot. She remembered her great-grandmother having that same exact birth mark from then. She could be one of the strongest and cruel women, but she could also be calm and gentle at the same time.

"You can come back in now, Regulus," Auntie declared, for only a second later Uncle Regulus came into the room instead of Mr. Grimm. He gave a tender smile towards his goddaughter and another one towards his cousin. It was a wonder how he was able to survive without Sirius by his side, but with the Malfoys things weren't so bad.

"I feel like a proper lady now…" Estrella commented as she ran her fingers across the soft fabric she was wearing. She only wore clothes like this in her dreams, to be able to wear clothes like this in real life was more than incredible. Her dreams had come true, and they were just unlocking doors to even more dreams that she thought had died long ago.

"Would you like to meet your cousin Draco? He's been waiting to see you since he came home from visiting his godmother, Lady Zabini. She has a son your age, Blaise," Auntie offered, earning a nibbling at the corner of Estrella's lip from her teeth before she nodded her head.

She knew that she couldn't just immediately think her real cousin was going to be just like her fake cousin, Dudley. It wouldn't be fair for Draco. She needed to go into this with an open mind, the Dursleys weren't going to ever come for her ever again. She was going to be safe and sound, her real family hadn't done anything to hurt her and the magical signatures around her cemented her into the security of true familial bonds.

"Good girl. Since you are just going to meet him at home and in a normal, relaxed setting you don't have to worry about pureblood etiquette. I'll be teaching you all about how society works in the magical world so by the time you end up going for your schooling you won't have to be worried about doing something wrong," Auntie explained, earning a nod from her niece, allowing her to know she understood and was taking it seriously.

Estrella put her left hand in Auntie's right hand, and her right hand into Uncle Regulus's left hand.

She could tell they wordlessly knew she needed this to ground herself even more.

With their support and immediate acceptance and love for her, she knew that things weren't going to be hard for her. She had finally come home, it felt like home, and she was determined to keep feeling like it was home. Nothing would take her away from them ever again.

Reaching the ground floor, Estrella nervously bit her lip once more when they reached the parlor doors that were closed. She could hear a conversation going on the other side of the doors.

There was a young boy's voice that was speaking, and she had a feeling this happened to be Cousin Draco. The other voice was Uncle Lucius. Cousin Draco's voice was still quite light and airy, since it would still be a couple of years before he would reach puberty like her. Uncle Lucius's voice was strong, and there was no weakness within it. It was very catching, very hypnotizing and made everyone want to listen to it more since he was very charismatic.

She pulled her hands out of Auntie and Uncle Regulus' hands, before the doors magically opened.

She still found it wonderful how the house knew what she wanted before she did.

There was no hesitation when the house wanted to make sure it would accept every whim of hers without any problems. She had been gone from it for too long, it was making up for lost time. She appreciated it and from the humming of its ancestral magical signature it was obvious it was quite pleased she was pleased also without having any issues towards it.

Her eyes landed on Cousin Draco, or to everyone in the wixen world, Heir Draco Malfoy of the Ancient and Most Noble House.

To Estrella he was just her cousin, and she was thankful there was no need for her to have to use his title. She would learn she would have to call him Cousin Draco in public so people would know their relations but other than that she couldn't call him just his name unless they were in private and were in the company of family.

He was tall for his age and had that starved English boy figure.

His light blond hair (almost white but not near as white as her hair) fell a few inches above his shoulders. It was tied back in a low ponytail by a green silk ribbon. He had on white robes over a gray nice shirt, silver trousers, and white dress shoes. His silver eyes were stunning, reminding her of the reflection of the moonlight. His features were sour and pinched, at least that was the case for anyone who wasn't a friend or family member of his, but they were warm and welcoming when he saw his younger cousin standing in front of him.

Estrella gasped, just like she had done when she was able to solidify her familial bond with the others, and her cousin's bond flourished. Tears rose into her green eyes and then before anyone could react, she was rushing towards him and hugging him. She was sobbing, she felt robbed, she had her real cousin taken from her and she was forced to think that Dudley was her cousin. She could feel that Draco was never going to hurt her. He was going to protect her and love her like an older cousin was supposed to do. He would be the closest thing to an older brother to her.

Draco hushed her and kissed her on her head, right in front of where her bun was.

She sniffled and was embarrassed she was crying so passionately, and she could tell he was trying to contain some of his tears too. He was the older one, he was the one who was supposed to be strong, but he had her taken away from him seven years ago and he just now had her back. He was letting her know it was okay for her to cry, it was justifiable for the both of them.

Slowly but surely, time progressed, and many saw that one could not see Draco or Estrella without each other. He always had his hand hovering around the middle of her back, never touching it in public but allowing them to know there was no way in hell they would ever think they could touch her. He helped her sometimes when she was confused about pureblood etiquette and how she should be around boys, though sometimes she rolled her eyes as he would proclaim she couldn't start a courtship with any of the boys at Hogwarts until they graduated.

Whenever Uncle Regulus would be depressed and shut himself in his bedroom, Estrella would sit outside of his bedroom and tell him all different things.

He would listen to her and tell her things about his husband/brother that would sometimes make her cry and other times laugh. She found it beautiful they had never had a lover other than each other; they were made for each other. She did not find it in herself to see a judgment towards their incestuous marriage.

Incestuous marriage was a common practice in her aunt and second cousins' side of the family, which often resulted in children that were born with deformities and sent to stay in what was called a disappointment room (they would be declared stillborn in public, and people would think that without having any doubts about the coverups).

She soon learnt about the man that had sent her to live with her fake living relatives.

His name was Albus Dumbledore, and he was the headmaster at Hogwarts.

He looked as though he could be a reincarnation of Merlin even if it weren't possible.

Merlin was Father Magic and was a deity, being prayed often by the wizards of society in order to have success and health. Dumbledore on the other hand, even with his twinkling blue eyes that were behind half-moon glasses spoke words of honey, which reminded Estrella of the saying you could catch more flies with honey. It was more than the truth when it came to him.

Thankfully since her aunt and uncle were high up in society, they had given some of their memories they had of the abuse they had seen through Uncle Regulus's memories. They even took Truth Serum, which was called Veritaserum, which made it where even with three drops they would spill their deepest, darkest secrets. Estrella had offered to take it, but they didn't want her to take it. The Ministry was hesitant of having a minor taking the truth serum.

Estrella was officially adopted by her aunt and uncle, since Uncle Regulus wasn't able to adopt her due to the fact that he had married a same sex relative.

It would have been one thing if they were of opposite sexes but the wixen world was still full of homophobia. Same sex relationships aren't technically illegal in the wixen world, but they often had their rights taken away when it came to anything to do with children. They weren't able to be on the board of directors when it came Hogwarts in fear, they would try to forcefully make a child be blood adopted and made into their biological child.

Blood Adopted children were discouraged but were still able to happen, only after there was extensive research on the same sex couple.

If they passed and had the right morals towards allowing their children to not be groomed into becoming gay themselves then they were allowed to have a blood adoption. Estrella was certain that she would have been blood adopted by Uncle Regulus and Uncle Sirius if things were different, but she still wanted the blood of her real mother and father.

Now as she and Draco opened their acceptance letters from Hogwarts, they were preparing themselves for the next adventure life would have for them.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: fast forward to them going off to Hogwarts and the Sorting/Welcoming Feast.

as always: Harry Potter doesn't belong to me.

-it'semmynotemma