Rating:
R
House:
Schnoogle
Genres:
Drama
Era:
Multiple Eras
Spoilers:
Philosopher's Stone Chamber of Secrets Prizoner of Azkaban
Stats:
Published: 08/25/2001
Updated: 12/24/2001
Words: 95,561
Chapters: 12
Hits: 9,501

A Type of Revenge

Myst

Story Summary:
Draco returns from his 6th year at Hogwarts to find his world turned upside-down. Is it enough to make him change sides? Will this new trial make him stronger or will he collapse under the strain? A death changes everything, but whose? And why has Draco taken up the habit of playing the piano all hours of the night? In store for Draco over the year is much mental anguish and a number of suprises for everyone.

Chapter 10

Chapter Summary:
Someone close to Draco dies, and his revenge takes an unusual twist. Caught up in a tangled web of love and death, honour and betrayal, he and his beloved must fight in a war that could lead them to their ultimate destruction, or a new freedom for their world.
Posted:
11/14/2001
Hits:
526

SLASH
TRIADS
WAR
 
Get the picture?
 
On with the story
 
Chapter Ten: Arousal
 
"Where’s Harry?" asked Ron.
 
Seamus shrugged. "He’s probably gone to sleep. He was almost asleep in Potions."
 
Hermione made a disapproving sound. "Why was he so tired anyways?"
 
Ron shrugged this time. "I don’t know. I think he dreamed something."
 
"About You-Know-Who?"
 
"I don’t know. He wasn’t awake enough for me to ask him anything."
 
"Well, he’d better wake up soon. We have Defence Against the Dark Arts in ten minutes."
 
"That soon?"
 
"Yes. Seamus, didn’t you do your homework?"
 
"Of course I did my homework," said the Irish boy indignantly. "I just thought we had more time to find Harry than that."
 
"Harry will have set an alarm spell," said Ron dismissively. "Come on, let’s go."
 

* * * * *


 
Sarainail looked around her Defence Against the Dark Arts class tiredly. She hadn’t had much sleep the night before - even less than Harry. But she hadn’t Dreamed like Harry had, and from all her study she knew that Dreaming was extremely exhausting. So it didn’t surprise her at all when she found Harry missing from her class. What did surprise her was the fact that Draco Malfoy was also missing. From the comments that people in the class were making, it was evident that no one had seen him since Potions, when he and Harry had left together.
 
"Where is Mr. Malfoy?" asked Sarai coldly. She still hadn’t forgiven him for the Cold Iron incident, and she very much doubted that the rest of her triad had either. Just as well neither of them were here.
 
"He’s not here, Professor," said Pansy Parkinson. "He’s probably practicing and forgot about the time."
 
"Do you have any idea where he could be, Miss Parkinson?"
 
"No," Pansy lied, calmly and unrepentantly. If Draco got caught, her lessons were over, and she really wanted them to continue.
 
"Very well. Ten points from Slytherin. Defence Against the Dark Arts is a very important class, and it is not recommended that you skip class - even to get some practice. Here you can be taught properly. And five points from Gryffindor, too, for Mr. Potter’s absence. I know something of the circumstances surrounding his absence, however, tiredness does not count as a suitable reason for missing class, otherwise I am sure that many of you would not be here now." No one said anything, and Sarainail continued, moving easily into the lesson.
 
Seamus could barely keep still for the lesson. Professor Grey talked too much. He had never noticed this fault before, but it was taking forever to get through this lesson. Only when it was over could he find out more about the League, and officially join and learn about training and schedules and what he was supposed to do....
 
"Mr. Finnigan," he heard his teacher saying patiently, "You have been restless for the entire class, but when it comes to doing the practical work you decide to be still?"
 
"Practical work? Cool," said Seamus eagerly. "What am I doing?"
 
Professor Grey’s mouth quirked into a reluctant smile. "You are partnering Miss Brown."
 
He got up and moved over to Lavender. "Oi, Lavender, what are we supposed to be doing?"
 
"Weren’t you listening, Seamus?" asked Lavender, sounding uncannily like Hermione. Seamus told her this, and she glared at him. "I do not sound like that know-it-all," she snapped at him. "And we’re practising that shielding charm that we’ve been learning, and one person is trying to break the other’s."
 
"Oh. What do you want start with?"
 
"The shielding charm," said Lavender promptly. Seamus was quite happy with this, he quite liked trying to break shields and casting hexes. The rest of the lesson passed reasonably quickly, which relieved him. Besides, it was hard to notice time passing when you were trying to prevent someone from breaking your shielding charm.
 
Lavender ducked the tickling charm that broke through the shield she was using, and it shot over her head and broke the window on the opposite side of the classroom. Seamus winced. Lavender shrieked and hid behind Dean, who was partnered with Ron. The curse Dean was aiming at Ron went horribly awry as Lavender knocked him off balance, although that probably had something to do with the fact that she had pressed herself flush against the taller boy’s back. Ron flung himself out of the way as the curse reacted with the one that Parvati had just sent towards Hermione and split off in two different directions. One hit Goyle in the back of the head and the other just missed Ron, slid past Pansy Parkinson’s shield to hit her partner, Millicent Bulstrode on the arm where it promptly started causing nasty boils and stripes. Millicent quite calmly aimed her own hex at Ron, but missed as Pansy swore at her, and grabbed her arm, throwing her off balance. The hex ricocheted off the blackboard, leaving a pale streak where the colour was bleached and Seamus dropped to the ground and hid under the nearest desk as it whistled overhead to shatter against the wall. Suddenly everything froze as Professor Grey called out some words in an alien language which wrapped around him like liquid velvet and made it almost impossible to move, although he could still think and feel and breathe perfectly normally.
 
"Well, this is interesting." Thank God, he thought in relief, she doesn’t sound mad. "I step out of the room for one minute, and this is what I come back to? You are seventh years, not first years, and if you can’t handle something like this, you may not even survive your exam at the end of the year." He tried to look out from under the desk, but the spell, whatever she had used was still in place, and he couldn’t see what was happening. "Finite Incantatum," she called a few time. She must be neutralising or destroying all the hexes that had been floating around. "A captive audience," she mused. "I should get Professor Binns here. You can’t fall asleep in that state." Seamus would have groaned, but found that was also impossible. "Class is over. Those of you who were hexed, stay behind, and I will remove them. The room is to be cleaned up before anyone leaves, is that understood? Illishian timalian sheralia." When she had finished speaking, Seamus found that he could move again. Unfortunately, so could everyone else. The classroom erupted with exclamations of glee and annoyance. He stayed underneath the desk. The Gryffindors and the Slytherins were openly triumphant about the damage done to the opposite house, and they were sympathising with each other about what had happened to them. When the noise died down a little, Seamus deemed it safe to come out from his hiding place. Pansy was already whingeing.
 
"But if you make us clean up, Professor, we’ll be late out of class."
 
"And?" asked their teacher mildly. "I don’t really care if you’re late. You don’t have any more classes today, and you were the ones who made this mess, so you can clean it up."
 
He looked around at the classroom. It was in a mess. He couldn’t really blame anyone for not wanting to clean it up. "Come on, gorgeous," he said to Pansy. "The sooner we start, the sooner it’s finished."
 
Pansy scowled at him and looked like she really wanted to hex him, but couldn’t because their teacher was there. "Don’t call me gorgeous," she hissed at him.
 
"What do you want me to call you then?" asked Seamus naggingly.
 
"Mr. Finnigan, cleaning up would go much faster if you stopped annoying Miss Parkinson and actually did some work."
 
"Yes, Professor," said Seamus obediently, almost dancing on the spot. Yes yes yes. Class was almost over, and then he could learn about the League and about what he would do and how he would work with Hermione and Ron and Harry and anyone else
he had to.... Finally it was over. Ron and Hermione left reluctantly casting anxious glances behind them. Grey shooed them out with an annoyed expression on her face.
 
"I get the impression that they think I might damage you."
 
Seamus looked at her startled. "Well you were furious when we turned up last night," he said, surprise loosening the slight guard he had on his tongue.
 
"Yes. I was. Good security is vital, Seamus." She flicked her wand and the classroom was restored to its original state of general tidiness.
 
"So I gathered." Seamus was silent for a minute or two while his teacher fished out a locked leather bound book, and gestured him towards the door. "What do I sign? When do I start?"
 
"We’ll talk in my office. I have good privacy wards up there."
 
"You should teach them to Harry," said Seamus, babbling because he was nervous, and that’s what he did anyways.
 
"What makes you think that I haven’t?"
 
"He still wakes us... hey, he hasn’t woken us up for ages. Thanks, Professor."
 
"He used to wake you up?"
 
"He has these godawful nightmares," Seamus confided. He wasn’t quite sure why he was telling her.... "Stop it."
 
"Stop what?" There was laughter dancing in the green-gold cats eyes, he was sure.
 
"That thing you’re doing."
 
"I’m walking along the corridor with a student."
 
"No, you’re doing that trust-me thing that you mentioned in class sometime back. The one that the Unselieghe Sidhe use to trick people. Only I thought that only pureblood Sidhe could do it."
 
"Very good." She unlocked the door to her office. Seamus hadn’t been into any of the staff offices before. He and Dean had managed to stay out of serious enough trouble with their teachers, so they’d managed to avoid such a fate. Except for Filch’s office of course, but then, every student at Hogwarts went into Filch’s office at one point of time or another during their time at the school. He looked around curiously. The wall behind her desk was a full bookshelf with some interesting titles, such as The Auror’s Handbook, Volume VII and Animagi: A Guide to Transformation. The other walls had parchments tacked to them with daggers and other sharp weaponry hanging from the walls. There were also broomsticks on display - some of the older ones, a Firebolt, and the one that had just been released. I thought teachers weren’t paid enough to buy one of those. What really caught his attention though, was the window at the far side from the door. You could see out over the forbidden forest from here. It was a dark, shifting green, and Seamus hoped fervently that he would never be called to go into it for any reason. One of the parchments by the window caught his eye, and he walked over to have a closer look at it. It was a bullseye - not such an uncommon thing - but what was unusual was that a picture of a fat, balding man with thinning hair had been taped over the center ring. She had evidently been using it as target practice, since there were a number of neat holes clustered around the man’s heart and head. Obviously he was someone that she disliked very much.
 
"Who’s this, Professor?"
 
Sarainail glanced up from finding the dammed questionnaire that he had to fill out. That was her target practice. Sirius planned practical jokes - some quite vicious ones, Remus made up extremely complicated and dangerous spells, and she threw knives. "That’s Peter Pettigrew."
 
He looked astonished as well he might. Pettigrew was a hero to the wizarding world, but if Seamus was to apprentice to Sirius - and she rather thought that he would - he needed to know the truth. Actually, anyone who joined the League needed to know, so they wouldn’t kill Sirius on sight. "Professor, why does this picture of him have holes in it?"
 
"Because I threw knives at it as a way of releasing tension."
 
"You throw knives at a picture of a dead guy to release tension?" He asked in disbelief. "Never mind - I’m sure I don’t want to know."
 
"If it was what you thought, I wouldn’t tell you," Sarai said mildly. "But Pettigrew is well and truly alive."
 
"How do you know? Have you seen him?"
 
"Not in person, because I was still in Faerie when he came to light. Harry has, and Ron and Hermione."
 
"Anyone else? ‘Cause they come up with some really weird stuff."
 
"Yes. Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and another whom I shall not mention for security’s sake."
 
"Hey," said Seamus, suddenly taken with something, "If Peter Pettigrew is alive, then that means that Sirius Black isn’t guilty."
 
Sarai smiled coldly and Seamus flinched. She knew it wasn’t a smile that was conductive to happiness, but the thought of Peter - the betrayer - made her and the rest of her triad so mad that she could scarce contain her anger. "Precisely. Pettigrew is on the League’s wanted list. Kill or take captive, we don’t care - although I have expressed my desire to skin him alive."
 
"Okaaay." Seamus didn’t seem too nervous of her when she was like this, It was possibly a mistake of his, but he had said that his people had contact with Faerie born creatures, so he knew some of how to act around them, and therefore her. She dragged them back on topic with an effort, tempted to pick up her favourite blade and start shredding something, but she had the feeling that that would unnerve Seamus even more, so she repressed the impulse.
 
"Right, I said I would tell you some of what you would be doing for the League when you finish school, didn’t I?"
 
"Yes, Professor."
 
"Judging from what you have shown skills in this year at school, and also in your third year, it has been thought by the Spymaster that you would do well apprenticed to Sirius Black." She stopped there and waited for the shock to set in. It didn’t take long.
 
"You just got past telling me that Sirius Black isn’t an escaped convict, and now you want me to apprentice to him?"
 
"Actually," she murmured, "He is an escaped convict. He just shouldn’t have been in there in the first place."
 
"Whatever." Seamus waved the distinction away impatiently. "You want me to apprentice to him? What if he kills me like he did the Potters, or betrays the League like he did before?"
 
"Did you listen to anything that I just said?" Sarainail demanded angrily. "Sirius did not kill James and Lily, Voldemort did. And Voldemort only got them because he decided that a soul bound triad would not allow a Fidelius Charm to work very well, so he swapped without telling us, then Peter betrayed them! Sirius would sooner die than betray the Light, and well I know it! He’s tried often enough."
 
"Oh." Seamus made a shocked sounding gasp, but Sarainail ignored him and started pacing.
 
"He’s a dammed stupid man sometimes, but that’s not abnormal. Gain his friendship and respect, and he’ll never betray you. But woe to you if you betray him or his, because then he will hunt you down and kill you and I won’t stop him. He has a temper and can hold a grudge long past its relevance. He’s intensely loyal and...."
 
"You love him very much, Professor?" ventured Seamus cautiously, wary of her after that outburst.
 
"And I love him with all my heart." That would confuse the kid if he picked up on her reference to their triad. Of course, right now was not the time to mention that she also loved Remus Lupin with all her heart too.
 
"What proof can you offer me? That he didn’t betray the Potters? I know what you believe, but...." He held up his hands placatingly.
 
"I never felt any evidence of a Fidelius Charm on him. We are soul bound. I would have felt it. Pettigrew is an illegal animagus. A rat. You knew him by the name of Scabbers. He is missing the forefinger of his right hand, since he cut that off to make people believe that he was dead."
 
"The biggest part of him found was a finger," murmured Seamus to himself.
 
"Exactly. Scabbers had a toe missing on his front right paw." She sighed. "I have not seen Peter since Sirius escaped, which is just as well for him, else he’d be dead right now. However, Harry, Ron and Hermione were there when Peter was revealed, and you can ask them about it. They will tell you the truth. And you could always write to Remus Lupin."
 
"Write to Professor Lupin?"
 
"Remus was there too."
 
"Does Lupin work for the League?"
 
You are a bright lad, aren’t you, thought Sarai ruefully. "Yes, Remus works for the League too. I think you’ll find that a lot of people you know work for us, although we would prefer you not ask about them because of security."
 
"Yes, I know. So, you want me to apprentice to Sirius Black. Why?"
 
"He runs the raids. Everyone works under four people. We don’t know their names, but they do have very good information. The Mastermind does most of the general organisation and the other three have specific areas that they work with. You’ll have the most contact with the Spymaster and the Tactician. Sirius, Remus and I are at another level in the chain of command. So, Sirius actually runs the raids. Goes on them, and all that is involved with that. It has been decided that you would work well in this area, and it gives us all an apprentice, which is a good thing in case one of us dies."
 
"Who’s your apprentice?"
 
"None of your business."
 
"I know," Seamus sighed, "Security."
 
"Precisely. Now here is how you can get in contact with the Spymaster, and how the Spymaster will contact you." Sarainail pulled out a sheaf of papers, and they bent over them, Sarai explaining as they went.
 

* * * * *


 
Harry tapped on the door to Sarainail’s office. He and Draco had gone their separate ways, not wanting to be caught talking amicably together or otherwise. A shiver of excitement ran through him as he thought of what that otherwise was. He would have never guessed that Draco had similar desires to his own. He wasn’t quite sure if those desires were right or even normal, but there was no one he could really ask. He didn’t really want to ask Sarainail, he would be uncomfortable asking Remus and Sirius was currently out of touch. There would be time for that later. For now, he just needed to get used to it.
 
"Come in," called a tired voice. He opened the door and went in. Sarainail looked up and smiled. "Harry. Go to sleep?"
 
"Um. Yeah. For a while. And then it was dinner time, so I’m just coming to apologise for missing class."
 
She laughed easily, locking her folder. "It’s all right, honestly. You did lose some points for Gryffindor, but then, so did Draco Malfoy, and they were mostly practicing shielding charms, and you can do those reasonably well. There’s also a detention for both of you. Even the Boy Who Lived isn’t allowed to cut my class, regardless of whether or not he has a good reason."
 
"Yeah. Hermione told me."
 
"After she’d told you off for not setting an alarm spell?"
 
"Uh huh."
 
"Go to bed, Harry. We can catch up later. The ones who need to know about Bill have been informed, so we’re on the lookout for any traces of him. Security hasn’t been compromised too badly."
 
"Right. Thanks, Sarai."
 
She nodded briefly, turning back to her work. "Oh - before I forget, Seamus Finnigan has joined us. Just so you know."
 
"What, you think they’ll attack me with questions?"
 
"You never know," his godmother said darkly, and Harry grinned.
 
"I’ll see you in class then."
 

* * * * *


 
Draco stumbled into the Slytherin common room late that night. He had skipped lunch because he was with Harry, and hadn’t eaten much at dinner because he was thinking. Fortunately, Pansy didn’t require a lesson tonight - or rather she did, but he preferred to surprise her, and not stick to a strict timetable. So therefore, no lesson for Pansy tonight.
 
He flopped down into an empty chair in front of the fireplace. There was no one up. Some of them may have noticed that he was missing, but he disappeared for long periods of time both alone and with Pansy often enough that it wouldn’t be commented on. Anyways, by now Crabbe and Goyle were well enough trained to fend off any inquiries into his whereabouts. With the Slytherins and most other people, all they had to do was look big and fierce and stupid, all of which were true, and people would back off.
 
He had gone to the music room tonight - detention be dammed - he needed the relief. There he had played out the stresses and tensions and worries of the day. Now he wasn’t all wound up - although some of that had been nice - he could actually think about what he had learned.
 
Bill Weasley. Draco frowned, moving his chair closer to the fire to ward off the inner chill that descended when he thought of that bright-haired man in the hands of You-Know-Who. It didn’t work, of course. Such chills were not so easily removed. But the flames were a comfort. Just like the green-eyed boy who had been haunting his dreams. But he would think about Harry later. He knew what would happen to Weasley in the camp, of course. What happened to him during his initiation would be the least of it. Sex was a great way to break people. Regardless of their gender preferences, being raped enough times would break anyone. Look what being raped had done to him, and that had only happened once. The other way to break people with sex was to make them desire their enemy. Often they would confuse lust with love... or at least have lust turn into love. Especially if that person was their only contact with the outside world. The latter wouldn’t happen to Bill. He was far to valuable a prisoner to be reserved for one person alone. Unless the Dark Lord himself took an interest in him. But he doubted that would happen. From all that he had heard, the Dark Lord preferred those who were able to fight back somewhat, unless it was a power play thing, like at the inductions. Like mine.
 
He shivered, thinking of a summers afternoon and easy companionship. Bill, broken like he had been, before the Dark Lord. Harry had said that he broke. Draco wasn’t surprised. Having the Cruciatus curse cast on you twice in quick succession would be enough to drive a person mad, let alone break them. He knew about the curses, about what they could do. Nearly everyone in wizarding world knew about them - the obvious exceptions being the mudbloods and the very young children. Everyone in his world, the world of the dark and the night, knew about them almost as soon as they could walk. Including Salem. Salem had grown up between the two worlds because of her talent. Being a Bard, she had had to choose. But then everyone had to chose eventually. It was just that her being a Bard meant that the consequences of her choice were a lot greater. And she had paid for those choices with her life. Leaving him alone, and the only one able to take revenge.
 
Weasley and that Sidhe probably would have helped if they were asked to, but Draco considered avenging Salem his job, and would not have accepted the help t’were it offered then. Now maybe he would choose differently, but the options were no longer open to him. He would do what he could for Weasley without compromising his own cover. He owed that to Salem. She had created a Talisman especially for Weasley, and had spoken fondly of him in her letter. And from what was said on that summer day, when they had spent time in muggle London, Draco knew that Bill Weasley had loved her too. And for that he would forgive almost anything - including being captured by Death Eaters.
 
Freeing Bill was now his duty. It increased the stakes somewhat, but he could handle that, as long as he didn’t slip up. Now what was he to do about Harry?
 
Harry? When did I start calling him Harry? [When he asked you to] said that infrequent and annoying voice in his head that spoke the truth far too often for his comfort. He had to do something about Harry. He gazed absently into the dying fire, not noticing the increasing chill as it burnt down to embers. The room darkened along with the fire and still Draco thought, trying to decide not only what would be safest, but what he could live with. At length, he came to his decision.
 
I have to give him up.
 
Technically, Harry wasn’t Draco’s to give up. But after what had happened that afternoon... Draco felt himself becoming aroused at the thought of that afternoon, and hastily redirected his attention. After what had happened that afternoon, he felt that Harry was his. In a certain kind of way of course. But to continue with the cautious friendship started that afternoon would mean that his cover was at risk, and he couldn’t afford to jeopardise that. He couldn’t afford to lose Salem’s revenge. And he wouldn’t be able to help Bill Weasley, which he had already decided that he would do if it was at all possible.
 
So to do that he had to give up Harry. Had to call him Potter again and be nasty, both in public and private. In his current mood that wouldn’t be at all hard to do. For a moment he resented Salem, for dying, for making it impossible to explore this new relationship. Then he realised that he wouldn’t have even had that one afternoon with Harry Potter, if it weren’t for her. If Salem could die to save people she didn’t know, and who didn’t care about her, he could give up this relationship in order to avenge her.
 
His decision didn’t make him very happy, but it was for the best. There would be no going back. He couldn’t risk the possibility of slipping up. Potter would be upset and confused, of course, but Draco didn’t intend to bother explaining. Their relationship would be on a business level, not a personal one. Contact to contact. He wouldn’t forget then. Wouldn’t forget that he was only using Potter for what he could do, rather than being friends. It wasn’t like they could be nice to each other publicly, anyways. But it would have been nice to have someone to talk to, about Salem and what was happening with that bitch, Pansy. Now he had to cope on his own again, without support.
 
He was extra nasty to Pansy in her next lesson.
 

* * * * *


 
Seamus bounced happily on Ron’s bed, ignoring the annoyed looks that he was gathering from everyone in the room, save Harry, who was sound asleep. "Oh, come on, Ron, you want to, you know you do."
 
"Seamus, the middle of the night is not a good time to go and practice charms," said Neville in a surprisingly patient manner.
 
"It’s not that late, is it?" Seamus managed to look completely astonished. "I mean, you guys only went to bed a few minutes ago, apart from Harry, who went to bed early because he was falling asleep in class and-"
 
"Seamus, shut up," growled Ron, "And get off my bed!"
 
"Why, Ron," Seamus pouted, "I thought you liked me."
 
"Not at the moment," Ron snapped.
 
"So that means you must like me the rest of the time," Seamus said triumphantly.
 
The resulting silence was broken only by the sound of Dean’s snickering.
 

* * * * *


 
"All right," growled Ron the next day at breakfast. "Who fed Seamus sugar last night?"
 
"What happened?" asked Harry. He was more awake than the previous day, having gone to bed early the previous night, and sleeping for nearly twelve hours straight.
 
"Oh, Seamus woke us up in the middle of the night by bouncing on Ron’s bed, wanting to practice charms," said Neville, laughing.
 
"But that’s not the funny bit," Dean interrupted.
 
"Shut up, Dean," snapped Ron, going red.
 
"I have to tell them."
 
"You can kill him later," Seamus said helpfully to Ron.
 
"If he doesn’t kill you first," Neville told Seamus cheerfully, "Since you’re the one that made it so funny."
 
Seamus mock glared at Neville. "It was Ron."
 
"That’s what they all say."
 
"Cut out the bickering and tell us what happened," begged Lavender for the other Gryffindors in that area of the table. "We want to know what happened."
 
Ron eyed them suspiciously. "Were you the ones who gave him sugar?"
 
Lavender giggled. "It wasn’t sugar."
 
"Go on," chimed in Parvati, "What happened?"
 
Dean finished explaining what had happened the previous night, much to the amusement of the other Gryffindors, and Ron’s annoyance.
 
"If you like Seamus," sighed Lavender to Ron, "That must mean that you don’t like me."
 
"I never said that," protested Ron indignantly, but Lavender continued over top of him.
 
"And it must mean that you don’t like any of the other girls."
 
"I definitely have never said that," Ron snapped.
 
"Oooooh, that must mean that you like someone," Seamus cried joyfully, delighting in teasing the other boy. "Who is it, do tell."
 
Ron’s face went even redder than his hair, and he bent his head to try eating breakfast.
 
"Well, it can’t be Lavender or Parvati," said Dean, wondering how long it would take Ron to explode, "Because they both like Divination, and he can’t stand it."
 
"I know," Seamus told his friends triumphantly, "It’s Hermione."
 
"Seamus. Shut up." Ron looked really annoyed now, and Seamus knew when it was time to be quiet. Ron left without finishing his breakfast and Seamus slid into his place next to Harry.
 
"So, Harry, do you know who Ron likes?"
 
"What makes you think that I would tell you if I did know?"
 
"So you do know?"
 
"Did I say that?"
 
"Well, no. But you didn’t deny it, so that means that you must know."
 
Harry sighed and changed the topic. "Lavender, if it wasn’t sugar that you gave him, what was it?"
 
Lavender looked up from her exploration of Dean’s tea leaves. "What’s that, Harry?"
 
"If it wasn’t sugar that you gave Seamus last night, what was it?"
 
"Some stuff we found. Seamus volunteered to test it."
 
"That’s really dangerous, you know," said Hermione, raising her nose out of her book. "You should have had it tested or something. It could have been poison or something that Filch put down to kill the bugs."
 

* * * * *


 
Harry watched Draco intently throughout their shared classes that day. He couldn’t help but remember how good Draco had felt against him that previous day - even as he blushed to think of how forward he had been. I am never getting that tired again. It does something funny to me. He picked up his stuff from Care of Magical Creatures and headed back up to the castle. He enjoyed Hagrid’s lessons. They might not be as professional as some of the other teachers, but they were enjoyable. Or at least they were always interesting. Except for the flobberworms in third year.
 
"Haaarrrrry."
 
Harry came back to himself with a start. Wonderful. It’s Seamus. "Yes?" he asked cautiously.
 
"Harry, who does Ron like?"
 
"Why do you want to know?" demanded Harry irritably. "You’ve been asking everyone all day, and if you’re not careful, someone is going to tie you up and gag you."
 
"Why would anyone do that?" Seamus deftly steered Harry away from the direction of the castle and towards the lake.
 
"Oh, I don’t know," Harry sighed, "It might have something to do with the fact that you’re being really obnoxious and annoying, and you don’t use an ounce of tact."
 
Bright blue eyes laughed up at him. "It gets answers though."
 
"Only sometimes. And sometimes they’re not even true." Harry plopped himself down on a rock by the lake. Seamus followed. "I take it that you wanted to talk to me about something."
 
"Yeah."
 
"League?"
 
"Sort of."
 
"I might not be able to answer."
 
"Security?" groaned Seamus.
 
"Yes."
 
"That takes all the fun out of things."
 
"It makes it a lot safer."
 
"But there’s not the element of danger... the adrenaline."
 
"Frankly, I’d rather be safe than be in constant danger and on the run."
 
"Really?" Seamus’ eyes widened. "Even after all you’ve been through already?"
 
"Probably because of all I’ve been through," said Harry wryly. Seamus laughed. It was nice out here before the breeze cooled and the sun went down. But he had a lot of homework to do, and practice, so they didn’t have a lot of time. "What was it you wanted to ask me?"
 
"I’ve joined the League - did Professor Grey tell you?"
 
Harry nodded and cast a privacy charm before Seamus said anymore, so they wouldn’t get interrupted or overheard.
 
"And she said something about me apprenticing to Sirius Black."
 
Harry nodded thoughtfully. Seamus apprenticed to Sirius. That should work, and it meant that the entire triad had an apprentice each. The apprentices would be trained so that if something happened to one of the triad, they would have a replacement. Sirius would probably like Seamus - if he didn’t strangle him first. "It should work."
 
Seamus stared at him. "You mean you approve?" he demanded incredulously.
 
"You’ll like Sirius," Harry started to say before Seamus cut him off.
 
"And it doesn’t worry you that he’s an escaped killer and might kill me?"
 
"He won’t kill you. Sarainail wouldn’t be pleased if he did."
 
"Sarainail?"
 
"Professor Grey."
 
"You call a teacher by her first name?"
 
"She is my godmother. Sirius is my godfather. They work well together."
 
"She said she loved him."
 
"She does. So what’s your problem with Sirius?"
 
"I don’t know anything about the man, except that he’s supposed to have killed your parents and given them to You-Know-Who. And Professor Grey wants me to apprentice to him, and I don’t even know what he does."
 
"Oh. Has she told you anything about him?"
 
"Um. He’s not guilty and if I betray anyone that he loves, I’m dead."
 
"Oh." Harry sat quietly for a minute before explaining what had happened four years earlier.
 
"Freaky," said Seamus when he was done. "You mean Scabbers is Pettigrew?"
 
"Yes." Harry didn’t see the point in saying any more. Seamus talked enough for both of them.
 
"So what’s he like as a person? Have you spent any time with him? Does he have a house? Is he going to adopt you? Will you live with him when you leave here to get away from your muggles?"
 
"Smother me in questions why don’t you?" Harry muttered. "To answer most of those out of order: He’s my legal guardian, so he doesn’t need to adopt me. I don’t think he has a house. Sarainail does though, and I stayed there for a bit last summer with them. I’ll probably stay with them for a while when I leave school. Is that all of them?"
 
"Mostly. You didn’t say what he was like, though." Seamus started skimming stones into the lake.
 
Harry sat there and struggled for words. "I don’t think I can explain him properly. He’s haunted by Azkaban and the last war and that probably makes him both more reckless and security conscious than he would be otherwise. He hates Voldemort, and would dearly like to kill Pettigrew."
 
"Oh. Anything else?"
 
"I can’t tell you any more, Seamus, I’m sorry. I don’t know what to say about him."
 
Seamus sighed. "Well it was worth a try, anyways. When do I get to meet him?"
 
"Ask the Spymaster."
 
"Don’t be horrible, Harry. When?"
 
"I don’t know. Ask the Spymaster."
 
"Okay, then." He was still for a couple of minutes, and then, "Harry, who does Ron like?"
 
"I don’t know," snapped Harry. "Enough with the topic already."
 

* * * * *


 
"Pansy, come here."
 
"Draco, I’m busy." She knew that she was pushing him, and he knew that she knew, which made everything wonderful.
 
Draco sighed and walked over to where she sat chatting to Millicent. Although Millicent was not as clever as Pansy, she was still dangerous. Millicent was a fanatic, and fanatics were always dangerous, since they were prepared to go to any and all lengths to further their cause. He wouldn’t call Pansy a fanatic, since she had enough intelligence to get out when the going turned bad, but would still keep a foot in each camp, insomuch as she was able. Not that anyone would believe that Imperius was really needed to make Pansy join the Death Eaters. Many people, including those damn Gryffindors of Potter’s would find it hard to believe that a Slytherin would join the League. But Slytherins were wily and clever. If You-Know-Who was their best route to power, then that is what they would use. But if You-Know-Who was a hassle and a detriment to power, he would be dumped quickly. Unfortunately most people didn’t think far enough ahead to see that the League and their supporters would fight until they were all dead.
 
Never surrender.
 
Idiots. There are times to fight and times to retreat.
 
This was a time to retreat. He had been flirting absentmindedly with Pansy while he thought about the Slytherins, and she was getting vicious and he was losing control. Everything was about power here. Besides, if he lost this bout, she would be less inclined to kick up a fuss next time, and he had been winning all of them this time. Now he had to extricate himself from the discussion without offending Pansy or Millicent as well as giving the impression that the only reason that he’d left was because he felt like it.
 
"If you’re that set against it, Pansy-love, it can wait. After all, the only reason I’m doing this is you." That was equally true and false. False because he was doing this because Lucius and You-Know-Who had ordered it. True because it wouldn’t have been ordered if it wasn’t for Pansy herself. He knew this, and he knew that Pansy knew this, and it made the game so much more fun.
 
"Oh, Draco, I would now, if I could, but I’m talking to Millicent."
 
"Well, how much longer are you going to be?" he purred. Pansy was going to squirm in a minute. "If this is how you feel about our walks, perhaps we shouldn’t go for any more." That was a not-so-subtle threat. Both Pansy and Millicent seemed to comprehend his meaning.
 
"Draco," pouted Pansy, "You wouldn’t do that to me. Not after all the fun we’ve had."
 
Strike and parry. Pansy was good at this game. But he was better.
 
"Of course not, my dear. Just as you would never give them up." They fought amicably for a few more minutes, neither of them giving an inch before Pansy found herself outmaneuvered.
 
"Indeed," Pansy murmured eventually in response to whatever comment he had just made. "Millicent, would you excuse me? It appears that I need to go for a walk with Draco in order to keep our relationship intact."
 
Draco grinned inwardly. This was the fun bit. "Actually, Pansy-love," he said, using the affectionate term that she had told him she hated for the hell of it, "I don’t think that we need to go for that walk after all. My break time is up. Have fun with Millicent."
 
Pansy’s rather dynamic voice rose in protest. "You mean you’ve wasted all my time for nothing?"
 
"Not all your time," said Draco as a reminder. "And I would hardly say that this conversation was a waste of time. After all, it has helped you to get to know me better, and that’s never a waste of time." He swiftly removed himself from within Pansy’s reach. She wouldn’t be pleased about that comment. He heard her say something furious, but had switched off. It was foolish to bait Pansy like this. She was the type of person who would hold a grudge and remember this until she was in power, and he wasn’t. I’ll just have to make sure that doesn’t happen. That type of behaviour was to be expected amongst Death Eaters after all. It was just another way that You-Know-Who kept them under control.
 
He claimed his usual spot beside Crabbe and Goyle, and started to check over their homework. Unlike Millicent, they were too stupid to be fanatics. But they were loyal to him, and he needed to make sure that they stayed loyal. Loyalty was good. It kept him protected from the more violent people that were around, like the Weasel. The Weasel did tend to react physically. Draco smirked to himself as he thought of all the ways that he had managed to make the Weasel lose control over the years while scanning his followers’ homework. He needed them to pass, and they wouldn’t do it without him. They couldn’t pass too well, of course, because then the teachers would know about this scam that they had running. They wouldn’t have made it to their seventh year without his help. Of course, considering how some people reacted to his jibes, he wouldn’t have made it to his seventh year without having them to run interference for him.
 
"Crabbe, lions are not one of our creatures, although you might be able to feed them to one of Hagrid’s Blast Ended Skrewts."
 
"Huh?"
 
"This word is lion, correct?"
 
Crabbe peered at the smeared piece of parchment that Draco was holding. "Uh, that’s not... that isn’t mine."
 
Draco sighed, not entirely surprised. Goyle had a fascination with muggle things. Particularly the dangerous ones. "Goyle, what is that word?" He pointed at it, waiting for the other boy to decipher it for him. Really, he should get them a DictaQuill for their birthdays or Christmas or something.
 
Goyle studied the piece of parchment closely, eventually taking it out of Draco’s hands and holding it up to the light as if that would help. "Is this my essay for Professor Snape?"
 
Draco bit back an impatient exclamation. Getting angry would only confuse them, and serve no real purpose at all. "How would I know, Goyle? It’s not my homework."
 
Goyle looked more closely at the parchment. Draco started checking another piece for major spelling, grammar or accuracy errors while he waited. "No, this is the thing I’m doing for Hagrid."
 
"What are you doing for Hagrid?" They were just so slow. Why couldn’t have he been blessed with intelligent subordinates?
 
"I’m telling him about the differences between muggle creatures and our creatures. Only the dangerous ones of course."
 
"Why? Why do something like this for Hagrid?"
 
"He asked me to."
 
Draco sighed. He’d forgotten about Goyle’s tendency to take everything literally. "Why did Hagrid ask you to do this?"
 
"I was telling Pansy about some muggle creatures that I scared over Christmas." Draco nodded. He knew the story. All the Slytherins did. Probably the whole school knew about it. "And, um, he wanted me to tell him about their differences in an essay."
 
"But why do it?" Draco knew he sounded impatient. "He’s half giant for crying out loud. Why would you do anything that he says?"
 
Goyle looked at him with something that almost resembled intelligence in his eyes. "I want to get a NEWT or two. I know you help us, but...."
 
"Are you saying that my help is not good enough?" hissed Draco.
 
Goyle looked confused. It’s a normal enough state for him to be in, thought Draco maliciously. "No. No, I’m not saying that."
 
"What are you saying then?" He was growing bored with this conversation. And being bored with Crabbe and Goyle meant becoming dangerous. Last year, they had finally recognised that, after only about five years of being in the same dorm room at school, and having known each other for even longer.
 
"If I can convince Hagrid that I like animals, he might pass me without me having to do any work."
 
Draco snorted. "Who told you that? Pansy?"
 
Crabbe leaned over innocently. "It was Millicent."
 
"And you believe everything Millicent says?"
 
"She sounded serious."
 
"Fine. Do your extra work. Be the teachers pet." He was decidedly annoyed. How dare Millicent confuse them any more than usual. That was his job. If anyone got to confuse them it should be him. That was part of their unwritten bargain after all. He prevented most people from confusing them by drawing attention upon himself, and in return he got to be as nasty or vicious as he wanted to them to relieve tension.
 
"Are you mad, Draco?"
 
"No, I’m not mad. But next time, tell me first, and I’ll tell you if it’s all right."
 
"Yes, Draco."
 
"That goes for you too, Crabbe."
 
"Yes, Draco."
 
Draco sighed again and returned to checking their homework, including the project for Hagrid.
 

* * * * *


 
They were still discussing Seamus’ behaviour the next day before Defence Against the Dark Arts. Harry sided with Hermione on the fact that Lavender and Parvati had been stupid in giving Seamus what was now known as the Fake Bug Poison (FBP) without knowing what it was. The girls protested that they had tested it for dangerous substances. Ron had gotten involved then, and had snapped that unless they had tested it in Potions or something like that, they hadn’t tested it properly. But Lavender had said innocently, "Oh, you do care," in reply, and Ron had shut up, blushing furiously. Dean and Neville had just become involved when Parvati protested indignantly that it hadn’t done any harm, whatever it was, so she didn’t see what all the fuss was about.
 
Seamus glared at her, breaking his self-imposed rule not to speak or look at Parvati or Lavender. "Yes, I love being given FBP, and being told that it’s a new type of candy, then finding out the next day that it was something you found. Would everyone be happy in my position?"
 
Harry privately thought that Seamus was a bit late with the moral outrage. It was either that, or he had gotten so involved in teasing Ron that it had only just sank in.
 
"But you liked it?"
 
"So?"
 
"Having fun everyone?" Draco strolled over languidly, appearing only mildly interested in the conversation.
 
"Go away, Malfoy," snarled Ron. "We don’t want your kind around here."
 
Harry winced internally.
 
"Oh, I didn’t come to see you, Weasel. I came to see if Potter had come to his senses yet. I know it’s a bit late after seven years, but then again, being around mud-muggle born and Weasels might make anyone change their mind."
 
"Come to my senses, Malfoy?" Harry raised an eyebrow.
 
"It’s my final offer. You can come with me, or stay where you are."
 
"A bit late to try again, Malfoy. After all you’ve done to him."
 
"No, but thanks anyways, Malfoy."
 
"You’ll regret this, Potter."
 
"I daresay."
 
Draco stalked off. Now he had a decent reason to be extra nasty to Harry Potter. It wouldn’t be easy, but he had to do it to get Potter out of his mind, and back where he belonged - as an enemy - and in private, a contact only, not a confidante. He leaned against the wall, listening to the Gryffindors argue as they waited for Professor Grey. Apparently someone had given that Irish boy - wasn’t his name Sean or something like that - some sweets that weren’t bug poison - but could have been - to eat. It looked like everyone was ganging up on the girls. All the girls apart from Granger, who managed to look insufferably self -righteous as she lectured them on the evils of littering and eating things that weren’t yours.
 
"Well, we wouldn’t have given it, but it was like there was a compulsion to," cried Lavender in her defence as Professor Grey arrived. Her arrival put a stop to any further discussion, and they entered the classroom for their lesson.
 

* * * * *


 
After the seventh year lesson had ended, Sarainail threw some powder in the fireplace. A startled looking head appeared in it.
 
"Yes?" the person snarled. "I have a class shortly."
 
"This won’t take long," Sarai said grimly.
 
"Severus, what do you mean by testing things on my students?"
 
*