The day of reckoning had begun and Mara knew she was screwed when Professor McGonagall came up to them at the table just before lunch was served, stern as always as she stared down at them like a hawk.
"Potter, Weasley, Longbottom," She said sharply, "You three will be doing your detentions this evening."
Ron dropped his fork onto his empty plate with a clatter. Neville whimpered, hanging his head but Mara, Mara turned two shades whiter at the reminder of her dues.
"Mr. Filch will come to take you, Weasley, and Longbottom, to the trophy room where you will be polishing the silver. And no magic, Weasley - just elbow grease."
Ron gulped. Argus Filch was loathed by every student of the school and he loathed them in return.
"And you, Potter, will be helping Professor Lockhart answer his fan mail," said Professor McGonagall.
"Please let me clean the trophy room! I'll do it by myself if I have to," Mara pleaded desperately, "I'll clean it with a toothbrush, just don't stick me in a room with Lockhart!"
"Certainly not," Professor McGonagall said, raising her eyebrows. She looked particularly unforgiving as she gave Mara a hard stare, "Professor Lockhart requested you particularly. Eight o'clock sharp, both of you."
With that, she was gone.
Even after dinner was served, none of them had a particularly good appetite. Hermione just kept giving them smug looks, like justice had finally been delivered upon their heads.
Harry sighed, hoping Mara remembered to take her illegal wand with her. And Breena. There was no other way he was going to let her stay in a room with that creep otherwise.
"Filch'll have us there all night," Ron complained, "No magic! There must be hundreds of cups in that room. I'm not good at muggle cleaning."
"Honestly, Ronald," Hermione said, unsympathetically, "It'll do you good to learn to do things the hard way. Magic won't save you every time. It didn't last year, did it?"
Ron opened his mouth to retort but then faltered, probably remembering the chaos that was the search for the philosopher's stone. Magic didn't save them with the chess set and it certainly didn't get them through scott free.
"I'd swap anytime," Mara said hollowly, "Mum makes us do chores without magic. But Lockhart…He'll be a nightmare…"
Harry took pity on his sister, glancing at her hopeless expression, and sighed.
"I'll come pick you up," Harry told her gently, "After you're done, I'll escort you back, okay? I don't want you staying alone with him any more than you do."
"Thanks," Mara sent him a relieved smile and Harry hoped things went smoothly.
Saturday afternoon melted away and in what seemed like no time, it was five minutes to eight and Harry was walking his sister along the second-floor corridor to Lockhart's office.
Breena was clutched tightly in her arms but the mini tiger didn't seem to mind as she purred, trying to reassure her bonded. Mara looked like a woman heading to the gallows, dragging her feet along like she was carrying heavy chains around her ankles.
But soon, they reached the door.
"You have your wand and journal?" Harry asked, sharply, for his own sanity as much as her protection.
She nodded, gazing up at him with misty eyes. "How long do you get for assault in Azkaban?"
"Don't be dramatic," Harry huffed, "You've answered fan mail before. Just nod and agree and it'll be over soon. I'll be right here to pick you up."
"Okay," She nodded glumly.
Finally, Mara took a deep breath and stepped up to the door. She adjusted her grip on Breena and knocked on the door.
The door flew open at once and Lockhart beamed down at them.
"Ah, here's the Girl-" His voice died as he caught sight of Breena's narrowed eyes upon him.
"I hope you don't mind bringing my familiar, Professor," Mara said through her teeth, "It's rather dark and she helps calm me down. She won't be a bother."
Harry glared at Lockhart, his arms crossed as the man gulped. Breen's long claws were clutched around Mara's sweater, and Harry knew she let him see them on purpose. It was a warning.
'He does anything, I'll eat him,' Breena said, lightly.
'Please don't,' Mara responded silently. 'I don't want you to get an upset stomach.'
'Fair point,' Harry snorted. Aura was out hunting and he thought it'd be overkill to bring both familiars.
"Of course not," Lockhart smiled like a real professional, only slightly strained at the corners as he tucked his hands behind his back, "Come in, come in."
Mara glanced over her shoulder at him and Harry nodded in affirmation. Mara sighed and stepped inside, and the punishment had begun.
Shining brightly on the walls were countless framed photographs of Lockhart, each of them in different poses but all with that stupid smile or winking at her as she passed, a few of them were even signed. Her skin crawled uncomfortably with that many sets of eyes on her, even if they were just photos.
A large pile of photographs sat on the desk, all signed and sitting next to a large pile of white envelopes.
"You can address the envelopes!" Lockhart told him her, as thought this was a huge treat she should be grateful for having, "The first one's to Gladys Gudgeon, bless her — huge fan of mine–"
Mara set Breena down on her lap, taking a seat at the desk as she grabbed the nearest quill. It was bejeweled with rhinestones.
Mara grit her teeth, grabbed an envelope, and begun to write out the addresses. The minutes snailed by and Lockhart's voice washed away as she focused on the scritch of the quill and dip of the ink. She nodded and agreed with whatever he said, not even paying attention as he rambled on about fame and celebrities.
The candles burned lower and lower as Lockhart watched her and Mara rubbed her aching hand over what felt like the thousandth envelope. She was amused when she found a familiar name on the addresses - Molly Weasley.
That one she thought was a bit funny.
Breena rumbled in a purr, enjoying a quick cat nap on her lap as she only occasionally got up to stretch and walked across the chair she was sitting in. She never left Mara's side and Mara was extremely thankful for that.
Just as she finished up Veronica Smethley, Mara's concentration was broken by a low, chilling voice echoing in her ears.
"Come…come to me…."
It was a voice that was obviously not human. Mara didn't know what it was but it chilled her to the bone. It sounded full of venom but ice-cold in a way she couldn't explain.
Her heart raced and she glanced at Lockhart with wide eyes, trying to find the source of the horrifying sound.
"Let me rip you…let me tear you….let me kill you…"
"What?" She exclaimed loudly, completely unnerved by the voice.
"I know!" Lockhart continued to ramble on, none the wiser, "six solid months at the top of the best-seller list! Broke all records!"
"No," Mara said frantically, "That voice!"
"Sorry?" Lockhart said puzzled, "What voice?"
Mara's mouth snapped shut and if she felt cold before, she felt it double now. There was no doubt she heard the voice. There was no way she could've imagined it.
'Did you hear it, Breena?' Mara asked.
'A voice? No,' Breena responded, 'I did hear something in the walls but not a voice. It was more like something moving.'
Mara bit her bottom lip just as Lockhart exclaimed "Great Scott! Look at the time. We've been here nearly four hours! I'd never have believed it – the time's flown, hasn't it?"
Mara didn't answer, just nodded as she gathered up her supplies. She kept straining her ears to hear the voice again but there was nothing but silence. Mara exited in a daze, Breena pushing waves of concern through their bond.
Maybe it really had been all in her head. That would be the best-case scenario. Mara prayed that was it and there really was no voice in the walls looking to kill.
"Everything okay?" Harry asked, looking a bit pale as appeared around the corner.
Mara jumped in surprise, not even noticing he was there and her bottom lip wobbled as the fear from earlier came back to the forefront of her mind.
"Did you…Did you hear a voice?" She asked, softly, afraid to hear the answer.
His eyes widened in fear and he answered with the worst possible answer he could've given her.
"Yes."
They decided not to tell their friends about the weird voice. Harry suggested a lack of sleep or a shared hallucination which didn't seem at all possible but she was too freaked to argue. She was just hoping Harry was right.
Mara decided to covertly ask her Mom but she had yet to get a reply. Hearing voices was never a good thing- especially in the wizarding world.
And the last thing Mara needed was more weirdness added to the pile.
But Mara had never been good at keeping secrets and everybody knew it, especially her. She'd successfully kept the Dobby one from everyone, mostly out of necessity but this one. Hearing voices?
She was too obvious about it.
And that's why at breakfast the following morning, when Mara trudged into the great hall looking like she hadn't slept in a week but her hair perfectly straight and shiny, Hermione was the first to notice.
"What's wrong?" Hermione asked, frowning as Mara stared tiredly down at her empty plate, a fork in her hand as she tried to scoop the nonexistent food into her mouth. Despite the dark shadows under her eyes, though, Mara's hair was practically glittering with how cared for it was.
"Huh?" Mara asked, blankly, turning to Hermione, "What was that?"
Harry sighed, shaking his head at his sister while Mara gave her a confused look, and glanced down at her plate.
"Hey," She complained, "Where'd my food go?"
"What happened to you?" Ron asked, bewilderedly. "Did you hear something you weren't supposed to or something?"
Mara stiffened, her gaze whirling on him so fast that she got whiplash. "What do you mean?" She giggled nervously, "I didn't hear anything! I'm not hearing things! I can't even hear at all!"
"Uh, what?" Ron gaped at her.
Hermione and Neville stared at her wide-eyed like they weren't sure what to make of what she had just said.
"Mara, just stop talking," Harry sighed.
"Okay," Mara slumped in her seat. "I'm not hungry anyway, so I'll just go take a nap."
She yawned as she slipped off the bench, heading out of the great hall. Behind her, she heard Ron asking, "What was that about?"
It was the end of the first month since school started and as second years, it was a lot more relaxed. Or at least it was supposed to be.
And it was without having to travel the maze that was Hogwarts in order to find your classes, the stress of not knowing anything, and being in an unfamiliar place so far away from home. Now this year's first years could go through that.
The second year was supposed to be easier.
If you didn't count the overprotective house elf sabotaging her, their mom's mysterious radio silence, and oh, the creepy voice in the wall.
But Mara was starting to learn that those were just her problems. None of the first years this year had to fight off a mountain troll or save a philosopher's stones from a teacher possessed by a supposedly deceased dark lord.
Or at least, she hoped they didn't.
Mara covered a yawn as she headed for the common room, hoping to get a nap in before lunch and then start on her transfiguration homework.
It was brutal of McGonagall to assign four pages of parchment on the five properties of transfiguration as a reminder of what they learned last year but not nearly as cruel as Snape was. She'd taken McGonagall's homework over potions class any day.
As Mara turned the corridor to Gryffindor Tower, she collided straight into something. She gasped as she staggered back, the wind knocked out of her but she managed to stay on her feet, her instincts from all the training with her Dad coming in.
Blinking rapidly, she was stunned to see a redhead collapsed on the floor in front of her, a ratty bag open with books, quills, and even ink spilled across the floor.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, let me help you," Mara cried, getting to her knees as she helped the girl gather her things.
"It's fine," The girl replied, quietly, sounding familiar. And Mara glanced at the girl again, double-checking before she grinned.
"Ginny!" Mara said happily, as she recognized the younger weasley. Ginny looked up, startled, and then turned two shades whiter. The quill she had just picked up fell out of her hand as the girl's wide eyes continued to stare at her in absolute frozen shock.
"I'm sorry about that, Ginny," Mara smiled, friendly. She knew the younger girl was shy, especially around her. "Were you heading to the Great Hall?"
Mara piled the fallen books up as she waited for Ginny's head to reboot. As she did, however, she grabbed a black leather book, no title or words on it, just simply blank.
"What's this one?" Mara asked, curiously as she flipped the thing over. She'd never seen anything like it before but the moment Ginny's eyes fell upon it, she screamed "No!"
Mara dropped the book as if it burned her, staring at Ginny with wide eyes as she snatched the book from the floor and stuffed her things into her bag as quickly as she could.
Looking closer, Mara could see now why Percy was so worried about his sister. She looked like she'd spent several nights not sleeping, with huge dark circles under her eyes. She was pale and trembling as she stuffed everything into her carelessly, getting to her feet in a hurry.
"Ginny, are you sure you're alright?" Mara asked, just as Ginny turned her back to run away. Ginny halted in place, trembling slightly and Mara was disturbed by how small and fragile she looked.
"I'm fine," Ginny spat out before she took off running down the hall.
Mara stood up from the floor, watching as Ginny disappeared around the corner.
That wasn't the reaction of stress or worry.
Mara had seen it clearly the moment Ginny realized she was holding the book.
It was fear.
The courtyard was one of the biggest hotspots in Hogwarts. Outside but still protected from the sun by the various large statues and the massive fountain. Even though the fountain didn't have water in it anymore, it was still one of the best places to be.
But good spots were first come first serve and chances were, the higher your year, the more likely it was you got a good spot.
That's why Mara was surprised when Lily invited her to hang out under the fountain one cool September day, saying she had something very important to talk to her about.
Not just a good spot, the best spot in the courtyard, and Lily had somehow snagged it.
Mara quickly found out why, though. The sky was gray and there was no sunshine to be found on this particular day. That meant the courtyard was entirely empty.
Lily sat at the fountain spot, waving joyously to her as she made her way across the empty courtyard. It was unnerving being here when it was so empty but Mara persisted.
Especially when Lily pulled out a bag of crisps from her messenger bag.
Breena greeted the redhead lightly before hopping up next to her and making a cat loaf on the stone. She sent Mara a look of disgust as her bonded stuffed her face full of crisps.
"So, what'd you want to talk about?" Mara asked, munching on the bag of crisps, "And where'd you get the crisps? These are a muggle brand, they don't sell them here."
"I have a deal with Mr. Grey," Lily said, brightly, "He provides me with snacks and I provide him with entertainment."
"Entertainment?" Mara raised an eyebrow.
"Yes," Lily nodded, completely oblivious to the not-so-nice thoughts going through Mara's head, "He finds it fun to try to find my identity. Apparently, to the government, I don't exist."
Mara paused, chip centimeters from her lips as she digested that particular piece of information. Her friend didn't exist? What did that even mean?
'I wouldn't worry your small mind about it,' Breena said sassily.
'Lay off,' Mara said back, as her eyes were drawn back to the crisps in her hands.
Soon, she shrugged, the temptation of her crisps was more important than the vagueness of Lily Moon's identity.
'Typical.' Breena snarked.
"So, What did you need, Lily?" Mara asked, ignoring her familiar as she focused halfway on her friend and half on the crisps in her hands.
"Oh, yes," Lily clapped her hands together, a nervous look on her face as fiddled with the patches on her bag. "I have something to show you but you have to promise to not tell anyone."
"Sure," Mara nodded. "So long as you're not breaking the law. But you wouldn't do-"
Mara fell silent, remembering now how Lily had only briefly hesitated to shoot an unforgivable curse at a dying unicorn, no matter how illegal it was. Or how she'd willingly faced down a Cerberus last year and somehow had taught it to roll over before Hagrid had been forced to release it into the forest.
'Yes, she would.'
Mara frowned, realizing her familiar was right. Lily would definitely do something illegal and break the law.
"Never mind," Mara sighed, "So long as it's not a danger to anyone then."
'That's a pretty low bar,' Breena remarked.
'Shut up.' Mara snapped back.
"It's not!" Lily insisted, laying a hand over her heart, "I swear. Cross my heart! I can even make a vow to you if you want-"
"No need to go that far!" Mara interrupted her, folding up the bag of empty crisps, and then crossed her arms warily, "Just show me."
"Thank you!" Lily grabbed her into a hug, "You're the only person I felt I could trust with this."
"I get it," Mara laughed, pulling away as she smiled at her friend, "Now, what's all the fuss about?"
"Okay," Lily took a deep breath and then pulled her messenger bag off. Mara's eyes widened at the move. She'd never, not once seen Lily without her messenger bag.
Lily set it on the stone bench and then glanced up nervously at Mara. "Okay, just…" She hesitated, then glanced up at Mara with a small smile, "Don't freak out."
Mara raised an eyebrow. She doubted there was anything that could make her freak out. She lived in a world of magic for Merlin's sake.
She was very, very wrong.
Lily reached both of her arms into the bag and began searching for something. There was a hissing of some sort, growling of an animalistic kind, and the sound of several things crashing into one another.
"Aha!" Lily said triumphantly and she pulled out her arms of the bag, thrusting what she was holding in both hands in front of Mara's face.
Mara's mouth dropped.
Breena let out a horrifying screech, the fur on her back standing up before she dropped to the floor, hissing ferociously.
A little pink nose twitched and Mara locked eyes with the wide brown ones of whatever creature was in front of her.
'Filthy creature!' Breena spat, her anger pushing through the bond.
'Behave,' Mara warned her unruly familiar.
Breena huffed, licking her paw and rubbing the ruffled fur on her chest. She stayed far away from the thing, her loathing for it loud and clear through the bond.
"Isn't he cute?" Lily gushed, beaming with happiness.
He was…something.
If Mara had to describe it as something, it would be rabbit-like. Except, this animal was very clearly not entirely a rabbit.
It had the two long ears and furry coat of a rabbit, it had the large hind feet and pink toe pads of a rabbit. Even the big brown eyes and stubby fluffy tail were just like a rabbit.
But that was where the similarities ended.
For this creature's long ears twitched and so did the two antlers in front of it. Large and very sharp looking, they were just like a deer's, except smaller and on the rabbit-like thing.
But in addition to the antlers, its fur was a brownish color of a wild rabbit, speckled with blacks and greys and whites and the pair of wings that flittered on its back were the same color. Just like a bird, the wings were pressed against the furry body, and very clearly real.
Lastly, the most damning piece of all, was out of its tiny mouth were two tiny fangs and they were probably just as sharp as they looked.
The creature hung in Lily's arms, staring intently at Mara as its little legs hung limply between them. Mara would almost think the poor thing was uncomfortable but it clearly had the ability to escape if it wanted to.
"What…is that?" Mara asked, slowly, unable to take her eyes off the thing.
"Cinnabunn!" Lily said brightly. "Isn't he just adorable?"
"Cinnabunn?" Mara said, too shocked to laugh at the ridiculous-sounding name.
"That's right!" Lily nodded, "His fur looked like cinnamon to me but I also wanted to name him after my favorite food so I combined the both. Cinnabunn! Isn't it cute?"
"Lily…" Mara said, hesitantly, finally looking at the sheer joy beaming on her friend's face. "That isn't a rabbit."
Lily blinked in surprise and then laughed, gently setting the creature onto the bench between them. Mara scooted backward, the massive creature taking up the entire room between them and more.
Its little nose twitched as it looked around but it didn't make any move to run or hop away like she thought it might. Instead, it sent what looked like Lily a cross look and then snuggled into itself, looking quite cozy.
"Of course, he's not a rabbit, silly," Lily giggled, "What made you think he was?"
"I don't know," Mara said, crossing her arms, concerned as she glanced between her friend and the creature she had magically pulled from her bag like a magician.
She wondered if Lily should get a black hat, and start a muggle magic show. She'd amaze everyone with this trick.
And expose the entire wizarding world.
"It's not a rabbit," Mara said, uncomfortably, "So what is it?"
"Cinnabunn," Lily emphasized with a pointed look, "is a Wolpertinger."
"Gesundheit?" Mara tilted her head confused.
Lily laughed, reaching down to stroke the apparent wolpertinger between its wings. "The skvader, which is a Norse rabbit with wings was bred with a jackalope native to England in order to produce Cinnabunn's breed. A wolpertinger. He has the wings like a Skvader and the antlers like a Jackalope. Usually, the kits are born with one or the other but Cinnabunn here was special."
"Ah, that makes sense," Mara nodded, the pieces coming together. "Now, second question. What was he doing in your bag?"
Mara pointed to the messenger bag and then Cinnabunn, who was clearly too large to fit inside that thing.
"It's magical, Mara," Lily grinned, "It's got an extension charm on it similar to the ones they use for suitcases. His whole room is in there so that's where he stays most of the time."
Her smile dropped, as she looked at Cinnabunn sadly. "When I first got my Hogwarts letter, I was excited. I wrote to Professor Dumbledore and asked him if I could bring Cinnabunn as my pet but he said no. Wolpertingers are illegal in England, you see."
"Why?" Mara asked, "He doesn't seem very vicious?"
"He's not," Lily laughed, "But Wolpertinger's feed on crops- vegetables and fruits that naturally grow. Unfortunately, the way they do this is by absorbing the nutrients through their fangs. They're a nuisance for English farmers so it's illegal to breed or tame them. They're also…temperamental?"
"Temperamental how?" Mara asked, hiding her fingers behind her back just in case.
Lily smiled sadly, "They're not vicious by nature but they hate humans. Cinnabon likes me enough but that's because I've been with him since I was a little girl. Because of the laws in Britain and the difficulty of keeping them, As far as I know, I'm the only one in the whole world who has a Wolpertinger as a pet."
"So you couldn't bring him," Mara said, understandingly, "So you smuggled him in by using your bag?"
"That's right," Lily nodded, "I couldn't leave him behind. He's been with me since I was about five years old."
Mara frowned. "How'd you even get him anyway? I'm assuming they don't sell Wolper-well, what he is at the pet store."
"Well," Lily hesitated, then glanced up at the sky, "That'll be a story for another day. It's going to rain soon."
The wolpertinger's eyes rolled around to land on Breena and if Mara didn't know any better, she would think it was smirking at her familiar.
Breena hissed, standing her ground as she prepared to pounce on the rabbit-like creature, 'You loathsome beast- I'll kill you!'
"Breena!" Mara scolded aloud, grabbing her familiar into her arms and standing up, "Don't be mean!"
Breena struggled in her arms, her claws fully out and digging into Mara's arms as she tried to wiggle out of the restraining grip and throw herself at Cinnabunn.
Cinnabunn, for all its part, wiggled its nose and buried its head in Lily's leg.
"Aw, Did she scare you?" Lily cooed at him, rubbing her finger between his antlers, "She's just a bit mean old kitty, she won't harm you."
"Uh," Mara disagreed as she struggled to hold back the murderous tiger from devouring him.
'Enough!' A stern voice called out mentally.
Breena stiffened, going limp just as Mara jumped at the sudden sound. Lily's head swerved to the entrance as she covered Cinnabunn protectively with her arms.
Standing there, simply watching them was a black cat. A familiar black cat. One with jewelry on it's ear and tail. It sat there, watching them intently.
Breena huffed, then jumped out of Mara's arms and onto the ground. Breena stared at the cat and Cinnabunn did as well.
"Did that cat say that?" Mara asked, bewildered. She thought only familiars could communicate that way but that cat..wasn't, was she?
Lily shifted uncomfortably, Cinnabunn staring at the cat from her arms.
"I don't know," Lily shook her head, "But I don't think it's a normal cat."
The cat stared at them for a few more minutes and then got to its feet and walked away as if nothing had happened.
Lily frowned uncomfortably before she grabbed Cinnabunn and lowered him back into her bag.
Mara meanwhile, thought back to the first time she'd seen that cat. It was with that one girl in Slytherin, the one everybody called an Ice Queen.
Daphne Greengrass.
Did she have a familiar too?
Once Cinnabunn was settled again, Lily gazed at her pleadingly, "Promise me you won't tell anybody about him, okay? He could get confiscated."
Mara didn't have a choice.
She nodded in agreement, even though something was telling her she shouldn't. Something was off about this and Mara wasn't the right person to be asking the right questions.
Lily's identity was suspicious and now she was harboring an illegal animal in her bag. Had been doing so for the entirety of last year.
Something was wrong here and if it were anybody but the hopeful, willing to believe in people Mara Potter, they would've figured out that something was wrong.
But this wasn't someone else.
And that was a story for another day.
If there was one thing they never told you about familiars, it was that not all familiars were a good thing.
A phoenix was considered the golden child of familiars. Attracted to the kind of people who saw the best in the world and strived for greatness, for better or for worse. Albus Dumbledore had.
Harry Potter would no doubt.
Other familiars took shapes and forms that were harder to figure out. Felines usually represented clever or independent minds who saw things in ways others didn't.
But for Draco Malfoy, who sat on the dark green couch in the Slytherin common room, staring into the burning red eyes of his familiar, he only wished he had gotten something simple like a bird or a cat.
Faelan, as he called himself, stretched his legs upon the other couch, yawning as he slept away peacefully next to the glow of the fireplace. There was no intention of moving and despite the crowded common room full of Slytherins who needed the space to study or converse, none of them were willing to move.
Instead, all the upper years kept sending him dirty looks as they crammed across the common room together. Even his own friends were reluctant to approach as Blaise and Theo sat at a table behind him, unwilling to get any closer.
"I heard it has a venomous bite," Theodore whispered behind him.
"No way. It shoots fire from its mouth like a dragon," Blaise whispered back, "Maybe even its nostrils."
Said beast snorted in its nap, turning on its side as the two boys flinched, ducking behind the couch. Draco sighed, leaning his head against his palm as he glared at his familiar bitterly.
The red-eyed fiend was oblivious to it all, content to snooze away despite how much he had harmed the Slytherin's mental health since Draco had walked in with him.
The biggest blow had been to Draco's social life.
Due to the familiar laws, nobody could say a thing but that didn't mean they were happy about it. The Slytherins tiptoed around the creature, fearful of its every move and though some had been brave enough to try to confront it, all of them backed down the moment they got too close to Draco and the beast showed its teeth.
It didn't help that the dog-like being was tied closely to one of the biggest omens in the Wizarding world. Draco wasn't sure which was worse, a grim or an actual hellhound.
Luckily, no one else had figured out he had an actual beast from hell tied to his soul.
His father had been overly pleased by the beast once he realized it could be used as a motive for control. He would be able to suppress anyone who went against him through sheer fear.
The more power you had, the more respect you earned.
But Draco glanced around, feeling nothing but empty at the glances his fellow students shot him. Even his best friends were hiding away from the creature.
This didn't feel like respect.
It just felt lonely.
Envy coiled its way around his intestines, squeezing until Draco felt nauseous from just sitting in the common room. Faelan opened a single eye, staring at his bonded with a lazy look.
A normal familiar would try to comfort him, perhaps, maybe even say a single goddamn word to him, but Faelan was not a normal familiar.
He shut his eyes again, turning away from Draco as he snorted impatiently.
Draco had never felt so alone before.
"Aw," A young voice popped up and Draco blinked in surprise as he spotted a head of long scraggly gray hair appear over the top of the other couch. A bruised face leaned on the edge of the couch, grinning as they stared down at the hellhound like it was doing something cute.
"He's so sleepy," The girl cooed in a baby voice. "Such a tired puppy."
It took a full minute for Draco to realize exactly who it was that had approached a Hellhound like it was a puppy.
Thana Grey leaned over the edge of the couch, a bright smile on her face as she gently reached down, her open hand approaching the beast.
"Wait-" Draco paled as he reached out to stop her but he was too slow and he stopped fully in his tracks. The room fell into complete stunned silence as every Slytherin eye watched Thana's hand land on the dog's pitch-black coat of fur and she giggled as she stroked down his spine.
"So soft, somebody takes care of their coat, doesn't he?" Thana cooed, looking like she was truly a young girl and not the menace she had been the past month of school. Her eyes sparkled with happiness and Draco's mouth dropped open in shock as Faelan's eyes opened and he snorted, rolling onto his back to expose his stomach to the girl.
"What a good boy," She laughed, immediately rubbing his belly with both hands.
"Uh…she can do that?" Blaise whispered in shock.
"Apparently," Theodore said, both impressed and terrified.
"Shut up," Draco sent them a cross look and then rose to his feet, pinning the first-year with a fierce glare- or what he thought was a fierce glare. "Step away from my-"
"This cutie belongs to you?" Thana glanced at him dismissively, "Bummer."
"You-" Draco's cheeks burned at the blatant.
"Bye-bye, puppy, Come visit me anytime," Thana kissed the hellhound on the top of the head and then jumped down from where she'd been leaning on the back of the couch. She hummed tunelessly as she headed for the door.
"Wait a minute-" Draco snapped but Thana only spun on her foot, giving him a smirk as she made a rude gesture and walked straight out of the common room.
The room fell into a deep silence until–
"You!" Draco growled, rushing after the girl angrily.
Faelan watched his bonded follow after the first year, huffing in a very un-doglike way before he jumped off the couch. The Slytherins kept a wide berth as Faelan stalked after his bonded, his red eyes glowing unhappily.
Draco meanwhile leaped out of the portrait of Salazar Slytherin, ignoring the founder's grouchy yell as he took off down the hallway where he saw Thana disappear.
"Come back here!" He yelled, not willing to let the disrespect of the girl go. Just because he had that deal with Grey doesn't mean he had to accept being treated like he was nothing. He was Draco freaking Malfoy- the heir of the Most Noble and Ancient House of Malfoy.
With his Father's words ringing in his head, Draco barely noticed his familiar following in his tracks, too intent on catching up to the first-year girl who somehow kept slipping away past corners.
By the time he paused to catch his breath, there was no sign of her and he had no clue where he even was.
"Bloody hell!" He slammed his fist into the nearest wall, flinching from the pain but even more so when he heard a loud crack. He stared wide-eyed at the wall, pulling away his red and swollen hand not really caring about the injury so much as the massive pit he'd left in the stone.
Shocked, he glanced at his bruised knuckles, and gently placed his fist into the concave- a perfect match.
Draco swallowed, tucking his robes over his fist and stepping away until his back hit the other wall. He sighed, glancing at his shaking hands, unsure of what to do or where to go at this point.
It wasn't the first time he'd done something that should've shattered his bones- something he couldn't do before but it was getting worse. The more his emotions rose- the more they boiled over and the angrier he felt, the worse things got for him.
And every time something like this happened, he looked up just as he did now and met the red eyes of his familiar, sitting there innocently in front of him as if nothing strange had even occurred.
"Why me?" Draco asked, sounding so small and pitiful to his ears, and hated how weak he felt, how out of depth he was. But of course, the familiar didn't answer.
Faelan snorted at his bonded, looking at Draco as if he was an idiot and much to his ire, Draco felt like one.
"-Malfoy-"
Draco perked up upon hearing his surname, immediately looking around for whoever had faintly called but the hallway was empty.
"-pitiful-"
Bristling like an angry cat, Draco felt his emotions boiling over once more as he stormed down the hall, following the sound like a bloodhound on a scent. Turning the corner, the voices grew louder and he heard a loud smack and a familiar voice cry out.
Draco's eyes went wide as he saw the scene before him.
A group of older girls, dressed in blue-lined robes were standing around in a circle, and at first, Draco didn't know what they were doing until he heard the loud giggling of the girls and one stepped out of the circle. In between the ravenclaws were two small blonde girls, tiny first years kneeling on the floor like they'd been pushed down.
The familiar sniffling was like daggers to his heart as he watched the girls bully his baby sister.
"What? Baby Malfoy going to cry?" The leader of the three girls sneered down, looking like she was enjoying every tear that spilled out of his sister's eyes. "Maybe that's why your Daddy had to buy your way into Ravenclaw."
"I doubt she's even a real Malfoy- they were too embarrassed to have her in Slytherin with the rest of her family," One of the other girls giggled cruelly.
"Th-that's not-it's not true!" Carina stammered, wiping her pale face of the tears that continued to spill over and drip onto the floor. "I-I'm..I'm a real-"
"Aw, l-l-look at the baby stutter," The third girl mocked, giving Carina a smirk, "She can't even talk properly."
"Why don't you just face it already?" The leader stepped forward, leaning down so she was face to-face with Carina. "You don't belong in Ravenclaw and nobody wants you here. Go jump off the Astronomy tower already."
That was the last straw of Draco's sanity as he physically heard the snap in his mind. The harsh, cold, and icy feeling that had slowly been harboring in the middle of his chest grew outward, expanding to every limb like darkness he had no control over, and his eyes darkened to deep, emotionless black.
Faelan gave a deep guttural growl, his gaze leveled at the girls as the fur on his back bristled and for the first time since he'd gained that stupid familiar bond, he could feel they were on the same exact page.
Before he could even blink, his body moved on pure instinct as he found himself standing between his sisters and the three Ravenclaws who were much taller than him. They looked a bit fearful as they stared down at him and some sick form of delight crossed his mind as he watched their fear.
He breathed in heavily, watching the leader of the girl sneer at him, saying something that he wasn't quite listening to. It was like his blood had turned to black sludge, so slowly and coldly pumping through his body- drowning out all the noise around him and that's all these girls were - just noise.
Noise he could get rid of.
The leader pointed her finger in his face and he stared at it, a dark shadow crossing his features before fast as a whip he snatched her wrist, smirking coldly as she screamed something, falling to her knees like she'd done to his baby sister.
But before he could go any further, he felt a tiny hand latching onto his, pulling downward like in so many memories that seemed to burst forth. Startled, he dropped the girl's wrist, turning to the pleading silvery-blue eyes that met his.
And that connection he'd felt- that rope that tied him to Faelan suddenly snapped- died away as he heard a loud and pleading "Draco, No!" echo across the halls.
Draco stepped back, quickly regaining his senses as he looked at his sister still clinging to his hand, kneeling on the floor with wobbly teary eyes. Luna simply sat on the floor, prim and proper completely unfazed by anything going on but her eyes, her creepy eyes stared straight at him like she was looking into his soul.
The three girls who'd been bullying them had stepped back several feet- the leader holding her wrist to her chest as she glared at him murderously- it looked red and swollen from what he could see but luckily, there were no bones or anything sticking out.
"You broke my hand!" She screamed, grabbing her wand in her other hand and lowering it straight at his face. She didn't dare to step any closer though for between Draco and the girl was Faelan, his red eyes gleaming as he gave a loud warning bark.
The girls flinched, shuffling back but the leader kept her ground, gnashing her teeth together despite the hellhound glaring her down like he would maul her at any second.
Draco stared at her, completely cool, and simply shrugged. "You told my sister to jump off the Astronomy tower. I think we're even."
She flinched, clearly not aware he'd been standing there and listening but she quickly recovered, regaining her holier-than-thou attitude.
"You bastard-" She snarled and Faelan gave a warning growl as she stepped closer but before anything else could occur, someone else had appeared at the end of the hall.
"Hollis! Turrand! Michelis!" The sharp voice rang out, a taller form approaching with a cold look on his face. He turned to Draco with a calculating look, taking in the scene, and then faced the three girls, glaring with deep resentment. "I warned you three."
"But-"
"He-"
"You-" The three girls tried to talk all at once, pointing fingers at Draco and Carina but Killian simply sent them a sharp look that silenced them all at once.
"Go back to the common room and have Eleanor fix your wrist. Unless you'd like me to take action myself for disobeying my orders," Killian tilted his head, completely calm and rational like he already knew what choice they would take.
"You don't rule Ravenclaw, Grey," The leader, Hollis snapped. "This has nothing to do-"
"I said," Killian's eyes flashed dangerously with the curtesy warning, "Leave. Now." He flicked his wand out of his holster and into his hand. The girls stiffened immediately, backing away from the scene and finally turning around and grumbling to themselves as they hurried down the hall and out of sight.
Killian sighed, holstering his wand as he turned to Draco and the two remaining girls with a frown.
"I-" Draco started, attempting to defend himself but Killian just shook his head, turning to Luna with a softer look.
"Where's your shoes this time?"
Luna just smiled, tilting her head back as she stared up at the ceiling. Killian and Draco both followed her gaze and sure enough, hanging in the rafters above them were a pair of shoes- the laces tied together and thrown over one of the beams.
"Really?" Killian scoffed, shaking his head, "The pettiness is beyond me." He took out his wand anyway, quickly making a familiar flourish and the shoes slowly lifted away from the beam and down to land gently in front of Luna.
"Thank you," Luna smiled sweetly, "But they would've come back to me anyway. They always do."
"Yeah, save your weirdness, Lovegood," Killian crossed his arms, a deadpan look on his face, "Just keep your shoes on your damn feet. That's the third time this week."
"I'm sorry," Carina got to her feet, brushing the dust off her skirt as she wiped the tear tracks from her cheeks. "I tried to stand up to them like you said but-but I just…"
Her lower lip wobbled again and Draco knew that look. Killian rolled his eyes as a fresh batch of tears rolled out of her eyes and down her face.
He sighed, leaning forward to pat her on the head in what little comfort he could offer her- even if awkwardly.
"They were out of line, not you." Draco reassured her, "And everything they said- none of it's true."
Carina gave him a sweet smile, jumping forward to hug him happily. "Thank you, Drake. I'll be better, I promise. They didn't get to me."
Her kindness, as well-meaning as it was was like poison to him- slowly seeping into every inch of his being. For they both knew that every word out of her mouth was a lie.
Sometimes, Draco thought that perhaps they weren't wrong. Maybe Carina really wasn't a Malfoy. But it didn't really matter to him. Even if she wasn't a Malfoy- even if it turned out she'd been adopted from the fucking Weasleys- Carina was his sister.
Nothing could change that.
"Class is about to start, you'd better go," Draco said uncomfortably, keeping a stone face as he pried his sister's clingy hands off of him, stepping back with the perfect mask his father had conditioned in him.
"Okay, Drake," Carina nodded, giving him one last smile and a pat on the head to Faelan before she offered Luna her hand and pulled her to her feet. Luna wiggled her socked feet- colorful and bright and not at all corresponding with the uniform.
She met Draco's eyes, a knowing look to them that made him feel like he was being seen through before she smiled and nodded at him, then followed his sister down the hall to their next class.
Killian and him waited in silence before they had disappeared and before Draco could say another word, Killian turned to him with an annoyed look and snapped, "What the fuck, Malfoy?"
"That's what I'd like to say," Draco said angrily. "You swore you'd protect them!"
"And that's what I've been fucking doing," Killian growled, "You think a little name-calling and pushing is bad? This is just the tip of the iceberg! I've been on my fucking toes trying to stop those three."
"Why do they have it out for my sister?" Draco demanded, "What did she ever do to them?"
Killian sighed, crossing his arms as he leaned against the wall. "It's Hollis, actually. You probably didn't know but her dad ran a shop in Diagon Alley. It was just a shop selling muggle ware to wizards- nothing big or anything. But those purists in the Ministry caught wind of it and since they couldn't do anything legally due to Dumbledore's interference, they had to get dirty. Shunning, attacks, threats, you name it. It was bad- bad enough to go bankrupt for a few years before her Dad finally wisened up and shut his shop so all of it would go away."
"What's this got to do with Carina?" Draco huffed.
"One guess who was behind all of it," Killian gave him a deadpanned look and Draco swallowed as realization set in.
"My father."
"Bingo," Killian smirked. "You gotta admire his ruthlessness but it makes sense she holds a grudge against anything Malfoy and the fact that your little sister is so weepy and timid makes her a perfect target for that resentment. I've been trying to cut them off but they planned this right when I had a double class with McGonagall. Hence being late."
Draco cursed under his breath, pacing around in a circle as his volatile emotions rose once more. And the more riled up Draco got, the more impatient Faelan did as well.
Faelan let out a low growl, snapping his teeth at Draco's ankle in warning and both he and Killian jumped back at the fierce hound's anger.
"Keep that dog and your emotions under control, Malfoy," Killian scolded him, more on edge than Draco had ever seen him before.
"Oh, you want to try?" Draco snapped, pointing at the dog that had made his life a living hell (no pun intended) since he'd showed up out of nowhere and nearly split his skull wide open.
Faelan turned to Killian, showing his teeth in a snarl and Killian simply raised his hands in defense, turning away like he didn't even see the canine.
"I'm good," Killian said, "But I'm not going to cover for you when you screw up again. That dog mauls someone and you could be expelled for it."
"Me?" Draco huffed. "I don't control that damn beast! It's got nothing to do with me!"
"That's where you're wrong," Killian said pointedly. "He's your familiar. They can't prevent him from coming into school but the moment he fucks up, that's on you. He's your responsibility whether you like it or not, Malfoy."
Draco let out an angry shout, grabbing his hair and pulling at it until he could feel the strands nearly tearing from his scalp. When he finally let go, he slammed his back against the wall and slid down until he had his knees to his chest and a desolate look on his face.
"Things just keep going wrong," Draco muttered, lost and hopeless like the twelve-year-old he really was. "Why couldn't it have been a phoenix like Potter?"
"My guess?" Killian shrugged, taking the spot next to him as they both stared at the windows on the other wall. "Because he's less a prat."
"So I've heard."
"At least you're aware," Killian smirked at him and then frowned at the line of black dots climbing the wall and heading straight out the window. He sighed and then tried his best to ask casually, "And Thana?"
"An absolute menace," Draco said honestly, "Out of control, disrespectful, doesn't care about anything but getting into fights and insulting everyone she meets."
"Yup," Killian chuckled, "That would be her."
"She did say one interesting thing though," Draco mentioned calmly.
"Oh? What's that?"
"She doesn't have a brother."
Draco pinned Killian with a fierce stare, worthy of his father's approval and Killian smirked, a touch of something melancholy and sad to it as he continued to stare at the wall and not at the Slytherin by his side.
"I figured she'd let it slip," He shrugged. "Sooner than I thought but oh, well."
"If you're not her brother, then who the hell is she to you?" Draco snapped, "I don't appreciate being lied to and especially not being toyed with. So what is actually going on?"
"It's just like I told you. Thana is my younger sister," Killian said cooly, "She just doesn't know that."
And logic had jumped out the window. Draco gave him an incredulous look, wondering if the Grey thought he was so stupid he would believe that but Killian just gave a short, humorless laugh.
"I know what you're thinking but it's the truth," Killian ran a hand through his hair, staring up at the ceiling as he leaned against the wall, "Well, truthfully, I suppose we'd be half-siblings."
"So she's…" Draco's eyes widened as he processed it all quickly.
"No," Killian shook his head, "She's legitimate. The rightful heir and the only child of my father's wife. My mother was just a passing fling. She took off right after I was born, leaving me with one angry wife and a father too embarrassed to admit he had a kid with a mistress. Thana came along a few years later and well, our Father made sure to keep us far away from one another. She has no clue about any of this- probably was just told I was a distant relative or something."
"So that's why you can't protect her yourself?" Draco asked quietly.
"That," Killian sighed. "And she hates my guts. I wasn't exactly the nicest to her when we were kids so the more angry I was at her, the more she grew to hate me. She can barely stand being in the same room with me without trying to throw a punch at my face."
"Seems like a reoccurring habit of hers," Draco snorted, remembering how she tried to take on a sixth year in the common room.
"Didn't used to be. She's gotten worse over the years and it's partly my fault, I admit," Killian confessed quietly, "Her magic has gotten more explosive over the years- and the more her temper rises, the more at risk she is of hurting herself and everyone around her. The teachers are trying to work with her but if she doesn't get her temper under control, it won't help."
"And what am I supposed to do to help that?" Draco snapped. "She doesn't trust me or like me any more than she does you! How the hell am I supposed to keep her from trying to duel sixth years or get herself beaten to a pulp?"
Killian pursed his lips and then turned to Draco with an uncharacteristically serious look. "I'm not sure. It's just…last year when you came to me for help, you reminded me of her. Same temper, I guess. I figured if anybody could handle her, it'd be you."
Speechless, Draco could only watch as Killian got to his feet, brushing off his robes as he stretched his arms above his head and casually turned to Draco with a cool look.
"I don't care if she bodyslams you into the lake, you'd better hold up your end of the deal. If you want your sister to be safe, that is," Killian warned him, then nodded to Faelan in mild respect, who simply snorted, curled up on the ground in a large black ball.
And before Draco could say anything more, Killian disappeared around the corner, not looking back even once.
Despite his annoyance and dislike for the girl, Killian was right. He had to get Thana under control or things would just get worse. Draco sighed, turning to his familiar and meeting his blood-red eyes.
"You got any ideas?"