Draco may have acted a little rashly. After weeks of Regulus's nonstop protests that he couldn't get his body back, Draco had been thoroughly gobsmacked by the revelation that James might not be as dead as they thought. He was pissed at Regulus and ashamed that he hadn't considered it sooner. After ripping off Regulus's ring in frustration, he just wanted to feel better. He wanted to do more than just sit around the manor waiting for the Dark Lord to curse him, so he channelled his inner Potter and acted on it.
There was a short list of where James's ring could be. If it was anywhere obscure, he'd need months to track it down, but he could at least check the obvious places. Harry hadn't known about its existence, so it probably wasn't part of his inheritance. Lupin had thought Draco had stolen it, so James's friends hadn't ended up with it. If he had worn it as frequently as Harry said, it would have been a staple of who he was, which meant there was a good chance he would have been buried with it.
Hence the slightly rash decision to rob James Potter's grave.
Draco wanted to see the shock on Regulus's face when he was proven wrong, so he kept Regulus's ring sitting in his pocket. Within the hour, he had a rough outline of a plan and snuck out of the manor. The prospect of what he was about to do made him sweat, but he still forced himself to apparate to Godric's Hollow. Everyone knew it was where the Potters had lived, and Draco vaguely remembered hearing about a memorial there, so it was only natural to check first.
It was bright out, with several people milling about the nearby path. Draco didn't particularly want anyone to see him digging up a grave, so he cast a fog charm to blanket the cemetery. He'd never spent much time in graveyards and didn't particularly like the feeling. His family had some fancy mausoleum where he would likely end up, but it wasn't a place to visit outside of funerals. Understandably, his family much preferred portraits as memorials. It was unnerving to think about the bodies lying underneath him.
He walked slowly between headstones, surprised by the sheer number of names he recognised, until he finally reached a large marble headstone with the two names he was searching for - Lily Potter and James Potter. He snorted at the inscription, The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death, wondering if anyone knew the extent of how far James had gone to keep Regulus's death at bay.
Draco took a moment of silence in front of the headstone, hoping Harry would forgive him for what he was about to do. After all, if he was right, he was about to bring his father back to life. He vanished the dirt first, revealing two simple black and gold coffins. Blessedly, they were labelled; Draco didn't fancy seeing an extra dead body. He steeled himself and levitated James out of the grave. The lid came off easily; no one would have guessed that someone would desecrate his grave like this. Draco's breath caught as the body was revealed.
Harry was lying there dead. Except, it wasn't Harry. Draco blinked away the shock. This man was older, and some features were different, his nose slightly larger, brows bushier, but the similarity was uncanny. He looked a little paler than what would be healthy, but otherwise, he could be sleeping. Draco knew that witches and wizards were preserved in death, but seeing someone who had been dead for over 15 years look like they had just fallen asleep made his stomach churn. It was bloody unnatural.
He looked down at James's hands and didn't know if he should laugh or cry. Sitting on his right hand, mirroring his gold wedding band, was an identical-looking ring to Regulus's. Draco tensed, readying himself to touch the body. He knelt and gently removed the ring from the cold hand.
Without thinking, he slipped it onto his, needing to know if James's soul was still around. A figure appeared a few paces away, and Draco's mouth dropped open.
James Potter was alive.
Alive and bloody confused. He glanced frantically around, trying to place himself. Draco moved to stand up, causing James's gaze to fall on Draco, then the open coffin next to him.
"Is that supposed to be me? What's going on? Who are you?" He started forward as Draco ripped off the ring, breathing heavily.
He collapsed into the dirt. He'd actually done it. In a matter of hours, he'd gone from grasping at straws for how to get Regulus back to their best lead yet. A lead he hadn't even known existed. It was such a sweet victory in light of everything. Life had been absolute shit since he left Harry behind at Hogwarts, and now he had brought someone back from the dead.
Nearby voices jolted him, reminding him he wasn't exactly in a private space. He slid the ring into his robes, quickly closed the casket, and reburied the body, refusing to look at it again. By the time he was finished, the fog had lifted, and people were giving him strange looks. Time to return to the manor. Apparating this time was much easier. His normal stress around it paled in comparison to knowing he had done the impossible, and unlike his last impossible task, it was something he was proud of.
He couldn't help the grin that crossed his face as he waltzed into the manor, but it fell the moment he stepped inside. His mother was waiting for him, standing stiff with a stern expression.
"Where were you?" she demanded.
"None of your business." Draco mentally cursed whatever wards alerted his mother to his departure.
"Everything in this house is my business."
Draco snorted. "Oh really? That man in our cellars is your business? The torture that happens here?" She impossibly seemed to stiffen more at his words. He was feeling bolder than he had in a long while. "Forgive me if I needed some fresh air."
"I need to keep you safe," she bit out, taking a step forward and reaching for him.
"I am probably safer outside of this house than in it." He sidestepped her and headed for the staircase. He was certain her eyes were burning holes into him, but Draco couldn't care. She hadn't kept him away from the Dark Lord. She hadn't stopped his father from throwing him back to the Dark Lord's whims. She had no right to keep Draco from anything.
Upstairs, his grin returned as he positioned the ring in plain sight on the desk in his study. He couldn't shake the giddiness as he put back on Regulus's ring. Regulus barely took a moment to take in his surroundings before he tore into Draco.
"You know the rules, you can't just take off the ring cause you get mad, you owe -" Regulus froze as his eyes landed on the desk in front of him. His eyes darted to the ring still on Draco's finger and then back to the one on the desk.
"You found it," Regulus said, awed.
"Sure did," Draco said smugly.
"Where?"
Draco grimaced and said bluntly, "I dug up his grave."
"You dug up his grave?" Regulus said, bewildered, but quickly shook his head. "Have you put it on?" Regulus seemed too scared to get closer; his feet were planted, and he leaned away from the ring.
Draco took a steadying breath and said, "He's in there." Regulus jerked, and Draco continued, lip curling, "Although I think he's pretty bloody confused, considering he saw the inside of his own coffin."
"He - " Regulus choked. "I can't believe this."
"And you wanted to pretend the ring didn't exist," Draco teased.
"Put it on." Regulus was almost in tears.
Draco did. James appeared barely a pace away from where Regulus stood and whipped his head around, demanding, "Where am I?"
Draco looked at Regulus, ready for their heartfelt reunion that Draco was never going to let him live down, but Regulus was looking around frantically, too. They kept looking right through each other.
"You can't see each other," Draco said with a frown.
Regulus's expression dropped as James said, "See who? You? Just tell me where I am." He reached in his pocket for his wand and, when he didn't find it, promptly freaked out. "Give me my wand," he shouted at Draco.
Draco grimaced and took off James's ring, placing it back on the desk.
"You promise me he's really there? You aren't playing me?" Regulus was still glancing around.
"I promise." Regulus met his gaze dead on, and Draco had never seen such a conflicted expression. Regulus was thoroughly overwhelmed and Draco took pity on him rather than pressing him further. He needed some space.
"You go and ponder that for a bit," Draco told him and announced, "I am writing to Harry." He fished out the parchment, said 'Nimbus 2001,' and, finding no other responses from Harry, picked up the conversation.
I had something come up, sorry for taking so long. Do you have other questions?
Remarkably, it only took a few minutes for Harry to respond. Draco hoped it meant Harry was now obsessing over the parchment, much like he had for the last few days.
Are you safe?
As safe as I can be. The Dark Lord has taken over Malfoy Manor. He's… unpredictable.
What is he planning?
With the ministry now fallen, he wants all the muggle-borns dead or their wands snapped. He's been investigating wands for some reason, although I don't know why. Of course, he's still after you.
What are you planning? Are you helping him?
Draco tapped the quill, thinking. Harry couldn't know that he was now responsible for turning him into the Dark Lord. It would ruin whatever trust he felt he was slowly getting back from Harry. He looked over to where Regulus stood, staring at James's ring. There was only one way for this to end.
I want to help you destroy the horcuxes. His death is the only way everyone makes it out of this alive.
Kreacher lost the locket.
Draco could've cried. Harry hadn't said it outright, but this was trust. He was telling Draco something that he would never tell a Death Eater.
What do you mean he lost it? He was supposed to keep it safe. That locket was one of his most prized possessions.
We think it happened while he was at Hogwarts. Someone broke into the house after Dumbledore died and robbed the place.
Then, it wasn't Kreacher's fault. It was the Order's for not keeping it secure. What about the horcrux you and Dumbledore went after? Is it destroyed?
It wasn't a horcrux. We went to the cave where Regulus died. We got his fake.
Draco swallowed. It made that already terrible night that much worse.
We are still missing a few of them, aren't we?
We are, but Hermione has ideas…
Harry opening back up to him was almost sweeter than finding James. He relayed all of the messages Harry wrote, but Regulus was preoccupied. Draco didn't know how to tell Harry about his father, so he didn't. Regulus kept looking at James's ring like it was going to disappear. Once Regulus started blatantly ignoring Harry's responses, Draco reluctantly cut off the conversation. He promised to write to Harry again if Harry promised the same. The responding 'I promise' made his heart soar.
It was finally time to work with Regulus to get James up to speed. Their first attempt went poorly. They planned on using Draco as an intermediary, repeating whatever Regulus thought was appropriate.
In reality, James lunged at him, shouting, "You again?" Draco yelled back that he needed to calm down, but the man was feral, screaming about Lily and Harry. Draco couldn't handle it and promptly took off the ring.
The second attempt had been Draco's idea, and while Draco thought it had mixed results, Regulus was furious. He'd pointed his wand right at James, demanding that he listen, but in true Gryffindor fashion, James's fight instinct triggered rather than his self-preservation. He dove at Draco without a moment of hesitation. The speed at which he moved demonstrated how competent he was, but it didn't matter, considering he passed right through everything. Draco cringed, but James kept trying to tackle him. It ultimately ended with more yelling, so Draco took off the ring again.
Their third attempt was in the form of a letter. They both admitted that their first attempts were stupid. Even if James had initially settled down, he would have kept interrupting hearing about every shocking event that happened in the last decade. He would need time, space, and a calm environment to process how long he'd been dead, and Draco unwillingly admitted that he wasn't good at calm.
Draco physically wrote the letter, but the words were Regulus's. It made Draco's heart ache at how well he knew James. It was far better than he knew Harry. Regulus could anticipate what James would think at each line. Instead of telling everything chronologically as Draco would have, they jumped around, filling in the pieces James could handle first.
They started with what the Dark Lord was up to, namely how he had vanished for over a decade and then returned. Back in the day, James had taken his role in the Order quite seriously, so Regulus hoped it would make him take the remainder of the letter seriously as well. Draco gave an update about Harry next. Ensuring Harry was alive would also help settle him. Then he wrote about the rings. Regulus figured his patience only wore so thin before he started wondering how he suddenly appeared years in the future. Begrudgingly, Regulus let Draco explain that he was in the same position.
Next was an overview of their research progress about the rings, and then they hit the hard points. Peter Pettigrew betrayed him and got Sirius sent to Azkaban. Lily had died to save Harry. Finally, they ended with the horcruxes and how his son was somehow made into one. It physically pained Draco to write out the words, but he knew that James would learn of it sooner rather than later, and if he was half as smart as Regulus bragged about, maybe he could help.
The pages were laid out one at a time since James couldn't flip through them himself. Draco took a breath, waited on the nod from Regulus, and put on the ring again.
Before James could orient himself, Draco stated loudly, "Sit and read that letter. It explains everything."
James glanced at it. "Why should I believe a single word on it?"
"Read the first line." James looked at him wary but glanced down.
We don't trust people because we don't know them.
According to Regulus, it was a quote from James's mother. He had repeated it to Regulus frequently to explain why he was spending so much time with a Slytherin. Regulus had correctly assumed that it would pacify James. He read a few more lines, then collapsed into the chair, reading page after page. His expression twisted and shifted as he read the words, glancing at Draco like he couldn't believe what was written.
When he finished the last paper, he re-read them, expression determined. After the second pass, he looked to Draco. "Do you have proof?"
"Of what?"
"That any of this is real?"
Draco shrugged. "If you aren't annoying, I'll let you stick around, and you'll see proof enough."
James frowned at him. "Why can't I see Regulus?"
"I don't know exactly. But it's probably because my magic is making you appear just to me. Nothing is tying the two of you together."
"Is he here now?"
Draco raised his hand, showing off the ring. "What do you think?"
James scowled, "You're just an unpleasant Slytherin, aren't you?"
"At least I am not as obnoxious as Gryffindors."
"What is he saying?" Regulus interjected.
"That he hates us."
James made a noise in protest. "I just dislike you, tell Regulus that I am glad he isn't dead."
Draco made a face but repeated the words.
"Tell him I am sorry about how it all ended."
Draco's face twisted even more, but he did.
"Tell him I know he tried. No one in the Order knew about the horcruxes," James said with a shiver.
"No. I'm not an owl," Draco said, annoyed.
James gaped at him. "We need to talk somehow!"
"No, you don't. You don't need to talk at all."
James fumed. Draco stared angrily back.
"Let's make a deal," Regulus said, breaking the tension. "Be our owl for an hour or so every night, and I'll make sure he stays in line."
"You really think you can do that?" Draco asked doubtfully, but Regulus nodded. "Make it forty minutes."
"Deal," Regulus said quickly.
"Deal," Draco said with a nod, hoping it would be less annoying than he anticipated.
"What deal?" James looked around, confused.
"Regulus is going to keep you in line," Draco said with a smirk.
"Like hell, I do what I want," James protested.
"Not anymore. There are rules to this."
"How are you going to make me follow them? It's not like you can do anything to me."
"Oh really?" Draco slid on and off his ring. "I decide whether you are around at all."
James scowled as Regulus berated him, "Draco, don't."
Draco ignored him. "You keep your chatting to a minimum when I am around people. I can't be distracted. No bad-mouthing me or my family. That letter wasn't lying. I am trying to help your son, but I need to stay alive, so you'll do as I say."
They talked late into the evening. James's anger and shock faded, and Regulus went from being on edge to exhausted. Draco knew that having James around was ultimately a good thing, but even after an hour, he realised how big of an adjustment it would be. It was confusing to be constantly carrying on two conversations at once. Regulus's cold stability had been an appreciated presence, and Draco wasn't sure if he could handle whatever James's presence was.
It hadn't been a lie when Regulus said he was like Harry, but it wasn't the truth either. James was entitled. He had no qualms with ordering Draco around, and where Harry challenged him because he wanted Draco to be a better person, James wouldn't shut up because he was fully convinced he knew best. It grated Draco. He kept wondering how Regulus had ever tolerated James, let alone fall in love, but no matter how frustrated Draco got, he understood. Despite his ego, James was passionate and focused on saving Harry and destroying horcruxes. While Draco found it bloody annoying to be questioned about every little detail, he couldn't deny that James was smart and more than that he truly cared.
When it was late, he took off the rings under the guise of heading to bed, stating they would continue conversations tomorrow, but Draco immediately put back on James's.
"Why isn't Regulus here?" James asked after a moment. He was sharp.
"I need you to help bring Regulus back."
James looked at him, confused. "You think I wouldn't?"
"I think that you two broke up years ago. That you fell in love with another person, and I have no idea how you feel about him now." James frowned. "And I know that Regulus assumed that he was never getting out of that ring until today, so now that you are here, you are going to get him out."
"You care about him," James said instead of a proper response.
"Yes."
"I care for him too. You can trust me when I say I will do everything in my power to get him out of that ring."
Draco nodded, cautious but believing. He went to bed proud of himself and with the most hope he had since Harry promised to get him out of the Dark Lord's grasp.
"Snevillus is still around?" James said with a sneer. Draco held back his grimace. James had been making comments all day about everything - his parents, Draco's clothes, the manor, even the gaudy wallpaper. If it wasn't for Regulus's assurances that James would settle down after a few days, Draco would've taken the ring off hours ago. There was going to be a meeting with the Dark Lord tonight, and Snape had come by the manor early.
"Draco," Snape greeted, walking up to him. "When are you planning on returning my books?"
Draco looked away on instinct but tried not to look too sheepish. "I wasn't sure if you'd notice."
"I noticed," Snape said coldly. He kept his hand in his robes and Draco wondered how badly they were still shaking.
"Still a git, eh?" James said from beside him.
"I am still reading them," Draco said defensively ignoring James.
"What are you studying?"
"Just cataloguing magic," Draco said, using the same excuse from fifth year. Draco half expected Snape to demand that he fetch and return the books immediately, but he didn't.
"Very well. I am here if you ever want to discuss your findings." He lowered his voice, "You need to be careful about who you talk to about your studies. I know someone who would be quite suspicious of the topics you are looking into."
Snape's gaze was evaluating. Draco felt a phantom brush against his mind and realised Snape was waiting to see if he would read meaning into his words. Draco swiftly blocked his mind and turned away without a word.
"That was weird," James said, turning to look back at Snape confused.
"He knows something," Regulus said, contemplating, and Draco gave a nod in agreement. It hadn't even crossed his mind that the types of books he was reading would be suspicious in and of itself. The Dark Lord would probably do something horrific on principle if he knew Draco had books that dealt with horcruxes.
Draco avoided everyone as they waited for the Dark Lord to arrive. Against his judgment, Regulus had assured him that having James around might help temper his comments. James was still processing everything and needed a dose of the reality they were now in.
All too soon, the Dark Lord arrived, and Draco forced himself to walk steadily to his customary seat.
"That's who killed me? He looks half dead himself," James blurted out, and Draco's heart rate spiked. He needed James to shut up.
It was like most meetings. Death Eaters gave their updates. Bella had been successful in hunting down a blood-traitor family, which turned James's teasing into outrage and then to shock as people were tortured for unsatisfactory information.
"He can't think that this is how you get people to follow you, can he? It's disgusting. No one could ever trust him!" James said, baffled.
But the Dark Lord didn't need their trust. He relied on the fact that they all knew that he would maim or kill anyone who crossed him, and it was bloody effective. No one in this room other than James was a Gryffindor. They weren't going to sacrifice themselves for a few minutes of bravery. James fumed beside him until the Dark Lord turned his focus on Draco.
"And what of your task, Draco? Have you found a way to deliver me Harry Potter?"
"I am still investigating, my Lord," Draco said, bowing his head.
"Look at me," the Dark Lord hissed angrily.
Draco lifted his gaze, and his heart rate hit a new high as the Dark Lord pressed into his mind. He was looking for the plans Draco had. Draco thought quickly, letting his visit to Godric's Hollow come to the forefront of his mind. He obfuscated anything to do with James but let the images of the graveyard show. He thought loudly - Harry might visit his parent's grave. I was scouting for opportunities.
The Dark Lord seemed satisfied with that, but as he was withdrawing from Draco's mind, James said, "Even his eyes are evil."
Draco instantly shoved the thought away, but it alerted the Dark Lord anyway. He was convinced Draco was hiding something. He let out a painful gasp as the Dark Lord speared into his mind. His hand subtly tried to reach for the rings on his fingers as he forced the Dark Lord out of more sensitive areas, but he had to give him something before he tore his way in. He thrust the memory of sneaking out of the manor the night Harry escaped from his aunt and uncle to the front of his mind and, much like the graveyard, kept any notion of Harry out of it. He was trying to befriend the Tonks. He wanted to use them. He wanted to prove himself, but they found him out. Draco was ashamed he couldn't get Harry that night.
He got a grip on James's ring and pulled it off. The Dark Lord retreated from his mind moments later. Draco gasped at the feeling; it was like a hole had been left behind in his mind. His mother reached over to give him a steadying hand, while he got his breathing and heart rate under control.
"Investigating is good, but results are more important," the Dark Lord said coldly.
"I understand, my Lord."
The Dark Lord let his gaze linger before turning to another person. It was over. Draco had done it without removing the memory ring. Regulus gave him a worried look, and he tried to give a subtle nod. He was okay.
The moment the Dark Lord apparated away, Draco practically ran to his chambers. He could sense his mother wanting to talk to him, but he needed to talk to Regulus first.
Halfway up the stairs, Regulus asked, "Are you okay? What did he see?"
"I gave him the graveyard. I promise I didn't let anything go about James," he added urgently as Regulus froze. "He was pulling back when that fucking idiot opened his mouth."
Regulus sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "What else did you give?"
"Tonks. Nothing about Harry, though."
"That was quick thinking," Regulus complimented. Draco saw it for what it was - he was trying to keep his anger away from James.
"He can't do that again. He could have ruined everything because he couldn't keep his mouth shut!"
"He won't do it again," Regulus said firmly.
"You can't promise that."
"Just get upstairs so you can talk to him."
Still stressed and pissed, Draco made it to his room and immediately put on James's ring.
Before he had the chance to speak, James asked, "What just happened?" He looked nervous. Good.
"You almost got me killed."
James swallowed. "What do you mean?"
"He was reading my mind, and when he was leaving you had to open your fat mouth!"
"I'm sorry," James said, still looking confused and a little ashamed.
"Do you understand what he would have done? Killing me outright would have been the kindest outcome. He would have tortured me for information about Harry. Then used that information to finally murder Harry, and then maybe he would mercy kill me after a bit more torture."
"I won't do it again," James and Draco knew it was the truth. He was painfully like Harry, so certain in his promises. Draco sat on the edge of his bed, head in his hands. They let him compose himself for a few minutes.
Regulus eventually broke the silence. "You have our deal to uphold. Tell James he can tell or ask anything to me through you. Tell him he needs to learn to keep his tongue, or it won't just be you that's dead. The Dark Lord won't hesitate to take the rings."
Draco shivered but relayed the message.
"I promise I'll be better," James said certainly. "Can you ask how Regulus is doing?"
Draco did, and Regulus responded, "Tell him I am fine. I've had years to face this reality."
It was awkward, but he kept repeating their words to each other. "You shouldn't have had to deal with this. It's my fault."
"It's not. It's mine for getting killed in the first place."
"No, I did this to you. I knew about horcruxes before. I used some of the same ruins, hoping it would keep you alive." Draco paused, surprised, but told Regulus.
"He was always too smart," Regulus said with a shake of his head.
"Tell me about Harry," James asked, and Draco said with a frown, "He wants to know about Harry."
"You know him better than I do," Regulus said, but when Draco was silent, he relented, "Fine, Harry is a Gryffindor at heart, but he's had a hard life. He's been fighting for years. He's underweight and likely abused. He's nervous yet combative. He doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut, but he's good. So good. He would do anything for his friends. Even those he isn't friends with, he always does what's right. Doesn't even question it. Doesn't have to debate it. You'd be proud of him."
As Draco repeated the words, James started sobbing. Ugly crying, the kind that was hard to get a breath in. Draco had thought James was taking everything in the past day a little too well, but it just took time for it to catch up.
"Oh, and he's bloody good at Quidditch."
Draco repeated the words and felt his own throat tighten as James let out another sob, but through it, James smiled, and it was the same exact same smile as Harry. Draco pulled his arms in tighter, wishing more than anything to see that smile again on a different face.