Guess what?!

I'm baaackkk! ^.^

My apologies for being the absolute worst… You know how life likes to get in the way… So I will spare you my long list of excuses. Just know that this isn't another drill. I have been working hard over the last couple of weeks and now have a bunch of chapters stockpiled. Going forward I plan to release one every Friday for the foreseeable future and only have a couple more left to write before ABM is complete!

I hope this update has found you well, and know that you have been missed! I cannot wait to hear what you thought about this chapter. It has been a few years in the making, lol.

As Always…

Much love,

SlytherclawLuv

P.S. I have finished up with all of that editing I had promised in my last update. There weren't any major changes to the actual story (if you can even remember it at this point, my bad O.o ) but it might be worth the reread.

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"Legilimens!"

Hermione's arm shook with fatigue as she attempted the methodical wand movements that had become second nature over the week and half of practicing. She had only managed to get glimpses inside of Draco's mind. Mostly just simple flashes of mundane bullshit, that she was pretty sure he was giving her freely so she wouldn't become discouraged…

The Quidditch Pitch from a bird's eye view. A random plate of breakfast. Her sitting outside and smiling. Theodore Nott looking confused at the wand that was pointed at his face.

And so many doors that she had lost count… They came in all shapes, sizes, colors and materials- but the message was clear enough. She didn't need the visual obstacle to let her know she wasn't allowed into those memories. The momentary black void that was the most prevalent conjuring did just fine to convey that boundary.

Soon he would make her take a break and she wasn't any closer to her goal than she had been at the end of the last two lessons. At this rate she would barely be able to access any of her parents' memories! Let alone do the delicate work that was going to be required of her.

She took another deep breath to center herself. Willing her own mind to fill with the image of a vast dark nothingness… And in desperation she tried a tactic that had failed numerous times before, without warning she rolled her wrist in the complicated motion and spat out the word as quickly as her mouth could form it, "Legilimens!"

The room quickly faded away in a swirl of darkened mist, leaving her to stand in a dreary alley, surrounded by neglected storefronts that looked sinister under the cloud-darkened sky. Stacks of abandoned trash spilled over into the narrow walkway, adding to the foreboding ambiance.

"Come along now, Draco!" A sharp whisper sounded from behind her, causing Hermione to whip around and take in a very unexpected scene. Narcissa Malfoy, younger but as unmistakable as ever, grasped the hand of the equally unmistakable child at her side. She pulled him along even though he was clearly scared by the setting he had found himself in.

"Is… Is he dead, Mummy?!"

"No, he most certainly is not dead." The clipped response was punctuated with a quick glare over her shoulder at a pair of soiled legs sticking out from behind an outside bin.

"Shouldn't we help him then?"

Hermione's heart broke for the innocence displayed by the miniature version of the callous boy that she had come to know only a few years later. She was unable to give it as much consideration as she wanted because she was forced to quickly follow the out-of-place pair so she could hear his mother's exasperated reply.

"Absolutely not. That cretin deserves nothing from us. He is only one example of the worst that the muggleworld has to offer. Look closely son, they care so little for themselves that they sleep in their own filth. Do we feel pity for the swine that show their instincts by wallowing in the mud?"

Tiny Draco thought over the explanation for a few seconds before shaking his head. "Of course not, Mummy. Father says we should never feel bad for animals 'cause they are..."

"It is 'because', Draco."

"Because they are too dumb to know any better."

Narcissa tensed for a moment. Clearly uncomfortable with the simplistic and blunt summarization of her own lecture, it was almost as if the true implications of their zealotry were being shown to the woman for the first time. She looked down at her child from a moment with a blank stare before suddenly snapping out of her melancholy, giving him a winning smile. "Your father is a wise man but can I tell you a secret, my sweet?"

"Yes!" His blonde head bobbed eagerly.

"I can already see that you will be the wisest Malfoy to have ever been born."

"Really?!"

"There is no doubt in my mind..."

Once again he quietly mulled over the confession for a few moments before leveling his mother with a miniature version of his trademark scrutinous glare. "Or Black?"

"Or Black."

As swiftly as she entered, Hermione was pulled from the memory. Leaving her breathless but ecstatic to have accomplished what had started to feel like her very own Herculean task. She knew her eyes must be wide with the shock she felt at having finally done it.

A full intact memory!

Her euphoric high quickly plummeted when she looked up and saw the measured scrutiny that Draco regarded her with. The way he carefully studied her features triggered her own concern over having committed some unknown transgression, "Did… Did I do something wrong?"

His stiffly set shoulders relaxed slightly at her question for some reason that she didn't understand, but he answered simply, "No."

"I did it!"

"You did." His lips lifted, half-heartedly returning the smile that had spread across her face.

"Are you okay?" Hermione hedged. She knew how hard it was for him to be so vulnerable.

He gave one sharp nod of his head before responding with another one word answer, "Again."

For what felt like the one hundredth time that night she went through the short little ritual of quieting her mind. As soon as the last of the breath from her exhale was past her lips she cast the spell again.

She was engulfed in a darkness that would have been absolute but for the sliver of golden light that poured from the cracked doorway that was directly in front of her. Silhouetted by the body of an obviously spying preteen Draco, she wasn't able to see what had him transfixed without attempting to maneuver around his hunched form. Luckily the conversation was audible enough as long as she leaned an ear towards the thin slice of illumination.

"...be fine." Narcissa consoled.

"You cannot possibly know that. You were not there to witness the waggish displays of my beginning years, dear. You have only heard some of the stories. If our son is half the rascal I was, we should be expecting a letter home every other week." Lucius objected imploringly.

There was a lighthearted laugh from the woman who teased. "Oh come now, you were not that dreadful. You know my father would have never agreed to our courtship if there was whisper of any flagrant wrongdoing."

"I was dreadful enough."

"Mmmm… Yes, of course you were, darling."

"Decorum aside, there is plenty else to be worried over."

"Do not tell me you are having Housing jitters!"

"Haha! Very funny." There was a short silence before Lucius continued, amusement coloring his tone. "Could you imagine if he ended up in Hufflepuff?"

"He will be trading in lifelong debts before the first week is out." Narcissa joked. The underlying pride in her statement was hard to miss and Hermione suspected that the woman's version of the smirk was prominently on display.

"While tallying up lifelong debts would be a beneficial play in the long run, I would hope that the ploy's importance would be second to befriending the Potter boy... Regardless of house ties. His or the boy's…"

"As I said… He will be just fine."

Startled by her own snort of disbelief, Hermione slapped a hand to her mouth. A subconscious act to stop the noise that would have normally given away the shrouded pair's careless concealment. If the elder Malfoys could only see how spectacularly their child would blunder that particular endeavor… Completely oblivious to the fact that his failure had already come to pass, the shadowed figure of eleven year old Draco stood taller. Bolstered by his mother's vocalized belief in his capabilities.

"Come to bed now Lucius. We have a big day tomorrow."

The memory faded when the door was closed, immediately cutting off her senses. She closed her eyes for a second, prepared for the sudden brightness of the room to blind her after being in such dimmed surroundings for so long. It surprised her when Lucius Malfoy's voice reached her ears once more…

"We have been instructed to prepare for visitors."

The elder Malfoy stood over his wife, a grimness that had been absent in the last memory had settled between the matching set of blonde aristocratic perfection. A stark contrast to the otherwise festive atmosphere that surrounded them. The ostentatiously decorated christmas tree to their left clued Hermione into the time of year.

"Visitors?"

"Is that not what acquaintances who come to your home for extended social gatherings are called?"

Narcissa stared up at her husband, her head held high in defiance of the snippy jibe. A long awkward silence stretched between the two until Lucius had the sense to look abashed as he cast his gaze to the ground. Finally the woman spoke from between her teeth. "He has seen enough."

"What would you have me do? Turn away a request from the Dark Lord?"

"Yes!"

"Do you truly think that would be prudent?"

"Have you forgotten so easily, dear husband? What I think has never mattered when discussing the company you have chosen to keep."

A low guffaw sounded from behind Hermione, causing the squabbling couple to turn slightly and look directly through her. The disconcerting reminder of her invisibility was quickly forgotten once she took in the dual expressions of worry that registered across both of their faces as their son hissed. "It's Christmas."

She quickly stepped back and took in the sight of a clearly drunk Draco from two years past. He was lounging back, overgrown bangs falling into his eyes as he swirled the amber contents in the glass he held in front of his face. Distracted for a moment, he watched the shifting light of the fire in the liquid before leveling his parents with a boastful sneer.

"Draco…"

Lucius's unvoiced warning was emphasized by his shoulders instinctively raising to make himself seem taller. The boy silently guffawed again and rolled his eyes before taking down what remained in the glass in one large gulp. Once he was satisfied that every drop had been consumed he set the twinkling crystal down on the nearest side table.

"Darling… Please…" Narcissa quietly implored.

"Darling! Please!" Draco mimicked with another roll of his booze-darkened eyes. "Please don't upset your father on Christmas! Even though he was the one who chose to ditch in the middle of the party that he demanded happen. Leaving his wife and child to clean up the mess his faux pas caused without so much as a half assed apology upon his return."

"Do not disrespect your mother."

"Or what? Are you going to have the Dark Lord sic his snake on me if I do?"

"You will be begging for such a fate if He ever finds out about your insolence." Lucius raked his son with a hardened glare.

Draco stood and for a second Hermione thought the two might come to blows but he just pushed past his parents. Staggering from his impaired state, he grumbled over his shoulder. "Enjoy the presents…"

From where she stood, Hermione was able to watch the loaded glance of concern between the elder Malfoys as Draco made his way out of the room. The memory began to fade with his exit and the last thing she heard before being consumed by the darkness was Lucuis's quiet acquiesce. "I will speak with him in the morn…"

She didn't even have the time to register that the memory had ended before the next began…