The Forgotten Ones

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Chapter 1

Alicia Malfoy looked at the imposing castle that was the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It wasn't as scary as some made it out to be. In fact, she was grateful to be back after so many years... Despite the mixed memories the place held for her. There were good ones, bad ones, horrible ones, and amazingly sweet ones. Albus Dumbledore had always been a high point of it all. He had become Headmaster just a few years before she started.

She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and becoming aware of her surroundings. Trees to her right, open field and plain--or moor, depending on how you chose to look at it--to her left. It was quiet, but only quiet in the way one expects wild things to be. If you listened hard enough, you could hear the wind, however slight, in the trees, and the rustle of birds' feathers in the air, and the shuffle of small animal feet on the wild floor.

She smiled, opening her eyes again. Oh, how she loved it here! She laughed, the sound almost melodic, thinking how funny it was that a Malfoy could love anything. Of course, she would protest angrily against almost all of the stereotypes against the Malfoy name, most particularly because she felt she did not embody them.

The one assumption she hated most was that all Malfoys believed Voldemort to be the true lord. She snorted indelicately. As if she would ever believe that melodramatic bastard to be anything of value. But she had to admit it helped in her role...

Her role as a spy.

She had the Dark Mark, but she had not allowed it to control her life. Her mother had been strong against her father, and she would be strong against the Dark Lord. She would never let him win, and that meant never showing weakness, and never giving in. Despite the mark that declared her evil to the world, she had retained as much innocence as she could. She cherished moments like these, when she could stand uninterrupted in the wild breeze, the wild land, and let its innocence wash over her, make her feel like anything but evil, as had been happening lately.

She had received the Dark Mark a mere year after her graduation, the horrid ceremony fifteen years earlier forever burned into her mind, never leaving her be except in those few blessed moments such as the one she had experienced earlier.

Her nephew, Draco, was an important part of her life. Had it not been for him, Alicia had a very strong feeling that she would have broken down years ago. Years ago, when her fiancé had managed to throw both her heart and her future out the door in one fell swoop, she had visited her brother. His wife had just gone through nearly two days of labor--announcing afterwards, very loudly, that she would never do that again, so the child had bloody well better have been a boy--and he walked up, beaming, to the nursery where the small child was sleeping. She had instantly fallen in love with the little baby.

Lucius was a proud father. Alicia truly believed he loved his son, and for that she was grateful. But he had let his devotion to the Dark Lord cloud not only his aspirations, but his dreams, his world, his future... His son. Draco was such a stoic little child, so much like his father that it almost scared her. She often gained permission from her brother to take him out and about, to Diagon Alley, her office--Quidditch games even.

Draco had always been interested--and good--in Quidditch, and his father had been pushing him to play, especially for his house team. She had wanted it to be his own choice, but she knew the dominating force that was her brother would not allow anything other than exactly what he wanted. So she had kept her mouth shut, as much as it pained her. She had tried to advise him in other things, such as girls and school, but she was never certain how much he took heed of her words.

She had been Head Girl in her day, and was a prefect in both her fifth and sixth years. She had graduated with honors, and recommendations from all her teachers--even McGonagall, whose history with Slytherins had never been very good. But even the older witch had to admit that Alicia was good at what she did and could do. Her favorite subject had been, surprisingly enough to those not Slytherin, Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Professor Dayley, the professor, was fun, funny, and knew what he was talking about. He was older, probably close to age with Professor Dumbledore. When the time had come for him to retire, she had been nearly devastated. He had retired after her sixth year, and she had found seventh year Defense Against the Dark Arts a complete waste of time. And so had begun the cursed job, professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts.

She had payed close attention in the news, especially after both Quirrell and Lockhart had pretty much disappeared after their short terms as the professor for her favorite class. Then when it had been announced that Professor Lupin was a werewolf--the entire Wizardingworld knew about it as soon as Rita Skeeter got hold of the story--she was shocked, and yet also not surprised. She had felt incredibly sorry for her nephew, though, who had seemed to be enjoying Lupinas a teacher, and because of that, the Defense of the Dark Arts. The fact that his life would be filled with the Dark Arts because of his father was why she was so upset that his chance to learn about the defense against them had been missed.

But the job seemed to be cursed. And then... Goddess, how she had ever gotten the straight story of what had happened in her nephew's fourth year was beyond her, but somehow she had.

She had pieced it together, little by little, from her meetings with Voldemort and her friends and colleagues from school and work, along with her nephew. He had been a large source of information, especially since she had gotten hold of all the information before Skeeterhad. He honestly had no idea how much help his information was.

Alicia sighed, beginning her walk towards the school. She really shouldn't be acting as though she were going to her doom, she chastised herself silently. After all, the place had been home to her for nearly seven whole years... What was so different about it now?

Because your status has changed, a little voice whispered in her inner ear. She knew it was right. Her status had changed, and because of that, she was nervous. She was no longer a student. If caught doing something wrong, there would be no angry glances and glares when Slytherin lost points. No sympathizing glance from her brother or his best friend, Severus Snape--who she had to admit she had entertained a bit of a crush on in her early Hogwarts years.

"Alicia!" a fatherly voice called from the entrance to the school.

She smiled in response, hastening her steps. "Hello, professor!" she called happily. Alicia shook her head inwardly. Was there nothing the man couldn't do? She had been rather depressed just a few seconds earlier, and now she was as happy as a clam. She stifled a laugh, wondering, not for the first time, just where that expression had come from. As soon as she reached him, he opened his arms, and she nearly leapt into them, so happy she was to see him.

He hugged her close. "It's so good to see you, Alicia. How long has it been?"

"Just a couple of years," she smiled, pulling away slightly to get a better look at him. His hair was just as silvery gray as ever, and his eyes still had that sparkle to them that she remembered.

He waved a hand dismissively. "Meetings really don't count."

She grinned. "Sixteen years then, I suppose."

A small, sad look overtook his face. "So long..." he whispered quietly, seemingly forgetting she was still there. How he could do that, she would never know. Especially since she often wondered whether he forgot anything. Recovering, he smiled again. "It is quite good to see you my dear. So glad you've deigned to join me. Come, Minerva is in the Great Hall. We were supposed to be starting the lesson plans for next year, but I wanted to get you first."

Alicia smiled. "Thank you. I don't have to stay, I could just--"

He waved a hand. "No, no, you will stay. You've already agreed to it after all."

They walked in companionable silence to the Great Hall, where they found McGonagall bent over some papers. As soon as she heard the door open she said, without looking up, "Oh, Albus, I've completely forgotten! Do we even have a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?"

Albus Dumbledore smiled. "Of course, my dear. In fact, she's right here." He pulled Alicia to stand beside him.

Minerva McGonagall looked up, a shocked look on her face as she processed the identity of the person beside the Headmaster. Then a rare smile appeared on her face, and she said, in a voice only her most favorite students had ever heard, "Alicia Malfoy, so wonderful to see you again."

Alicia just smiled.