Chapter 23 – Short Straw

“Come in, Draco,” Lucius greets his son.

Draco has been uncharacteristically patient all week, considering everything. Apart from upsetting Holly on that first evening when they all had dinner together, their next meeting had been drama-free. Holly had returned quiet from the Slytherin Common room, but at least she hadn’t been upset. Small wins like that have to be cherished.

“Where’s Holly?” Draco asks, looking around for the girl. “With Potter?”

Draco still can’t keep the snap from his voice at Potter’s name.

“With Severus,” Lucius tells him in a mild voice. “It’s just you and I for lunch.”

Draco perks up, looking pleased though Lucius imagines it’s more due to Potter being deprived of Holly’s presence rather than spending time with his father.

They settle into their seats at the kitchen table.

“How is Uncle Severus?” Draco queries after Lucius summons lunch for them via House Elf.

“He’s doing well,” Lucius replies, pouring them pumpkin juice. “He’s only suspended for one more week, but he’ll be back for the following week.”

As they serve themselves baked chicken and vegetables in silence, Lucius hopes he won’t have to listen to a rant on how Severus shouldn’t have been punished for what he did to Potter. Truthfully, had he not wanted to build an alliance with Potter, Lucius wouldn’t have cared about what Severus did to the boy during term time. In fact, he would have argued against the suspension and the restrictions.

What a difference the Dark Lord’s resurrection has made. Not to mention Holly’s presence. Without the Dark Lord’s threat, Lucius would also stand by Severus’s side to convince Holly to drop Potter. Regulus might have been the only one fighting for Potter to have any sort of access to Holly.

Holly, likewise, is lucky they are catering to her demands. She might not throw tantrums over material items, such as clothes, toys or brooms, as Draco had at that age. However, demanding Potter’s presence in her life is a pretty massive demand. Had Lucius stood behind Severus, Potter would have had no chance. Indeed, the boy is lucky to have Lucius on his side.

“How has your first week of classes been?” Lucius enquires.

“Busy,” Draco answers after swallowing his food. “I still have one more assignment to finish. The teachers keep piling on more work in every lesson.”

Lucius smiles. This week he hasn’t assigned anything too onerous, but going forward, that will change. Most students have spent the week completing surprise tests which he’s used as a gauge to see where they need help and adjusted his curriculum accordingly. He’s had to listen to many grumblings about having to complete a test on the first week of term, but he’s here to teach them, not cater to their need for an easy education. Something, he would argue, given the calibre of past teachers they have already been exposed to.

“Severus and I are here if you need any extra help. And I’m sure you can easily find tutors in the Common room,” Lucius advises.

Draco nods unenthusiastically. Then catching the way his father grimaces after stretching his back, he asks, “What’s wrong?”

“Just some sore muscles,” Lucius says dismissively. “I joined Holly in a particularly rigorous workout session yesterday, and I’m still feeling the after-effects.”

He doesn’t mention that Potter led the workout session. Lucius wants to claim that Potter had conducted the session intending to punish him somehow. However, Holly managed to keep up with no issues, and he didn’t want to look weaker in front of either of them. Especially after Potter kept advising him to rest where needed. In fact, Lucius suspects that the boy took more rest breaks than he usually would for Lucius’s sake. The blond is trying to understand why the boy would do that. They might be allies in certain things, but Lucius is well aware they are not on friendly terms by any stretch of the imagination.

“I’ve already been to see Madam Pomfrey,” Lucius continues before Draco can ask the question, “and she’s given me some potions to take care of it. By the end of today, I should be right again.”

Only to be put through the same torture again tomorrow, he finishes silently. For he plans to join Potter and Holly for their morning workout sessions. He briefly wonders whether he should encourage Draco to join their new exercise regimen. Though having Draco attend at the same time as Potter is folly. However, the gym is open from six am until curfew ends.

“Is this the gym thing that Holly was saying that Potter uses?” Draco questions, surprising Lucius with genuine curiosity and no grumpiness.

“Yes,” Lucius replies. “The room is set up with various equipment to aid different exercises. Holly demonstrated her abilities on different apparatuses. Quite impressive, if I may say so.”

“I’d like to see that,” Draco says with hope.

“I shall ask Holly,” Lucius promises. “The room is open to all students.”  

Draco grimaces to show his feelings at that. “Bet it’s mostly Gryffindors. I’ve not even heard of it before.”

Lucius is well aware of the divide between the Houses. Slytherin has always been on the outside with other students. Other Houses have often banded together to make sure Slytherin loses where possible.

“Then, once Severus returns, perhaps you can ask him if you can have a similar space,” Lucius suggests.

His son looks happier at that advice.

“Then maybe Holly can join us in our gym room.”

At Lucius’s raised eyebrow, he amends, “Sometimes.”

They both know Holly would choose Potter over Draco.

“How have things been in the Common Room?” Lucius broaches, looking intently at his son.

His worry for Draco has not stopped since the boy stepped foot in Hogwarts. There was never a doubt that Draco wouldn’t end in Slytherin. It was expected, though not without its own dangers of navigating the snake pit, making connections, forming their own allies, and deciding who to drop and who to cultivate.

Still, Lucius hadn’t worried too much as he trusted Severus to protect the young Malfoy heir. Until he heard about the troll and how Dumbledore decided to send the students back to their dorms. Uncaring that the Slytherin dorms were in the dungeons, where the troll was last seen.

It was only because Severus had a contingency in place with his prefects that kept Lucius from storming up to Dumbledore’s office the minute he heard. Instead, he mobilised the governors to look at the wards. And he’d been forced to back off when he’d recognised the Dark Lord’s signature. Severus shared his suspicions with Lucius about Quirrell, which he’d confirmed at the end of that year. That confirmation led to Lucius’s actions regarding the Dark Lord’s diary. Actions that had almost torn his family apart. Actions that had put Draco in danger once more.

Draco continued to be in danger year after year. This year, Lucius is here to help Severus. Lucius and his companions might have broken away from the Dark Lord to protect their children, but there were still plenty more who expected their children to serve alongside the newly resurrected wizard. Children who shared the same dorms.

“They’ve been quiet,” Draco replies. “The girls stick together inside or outside the Common rooms. They’ve told us to do the same. Daphne doesn’t want to let Astoria out of her sight, so sometimes the girls have some third years hanging out with them.”

Lucius nods in understanding. The Greengrasses are protective of their children. Astoria, particularly, suffers from a Blood curse that manifested after generations. The youngest Greengrass has a strong mind, yet her body is frailer than it looks. Daphne, particularly, is vicious when it comes to protecting her sister.

“I think we are being watched,” Draco admits.

“By who?” Lucius asks with deceptive calm.

“John Yaxley, Damon Burke, Simone Avery,” Draco lists. Yaxley and Avery are both seventh years. Burke is a sixth year.

The Senior Yaxley and Avery were both high-ranking Death Eaters back in the day, and Lucius has no doubts they will take their places by the Dark Lord’s side and ensure their children are standing there as well.

Draco rattles off a few more names, all lower years, including the youngest Carrow twins, Hestia and Flora, both of whom share dorms with Astoria.

Lucius takes careful notes of the names Draco tells him, resolving to keep an eye on them.

“Travelling together in groups is a good idea,” Lucius praises. “Never walk alone anywhere, Draco. The Ministry is teetering. Fudge doesn’t want to believe the Dark Lord has returned, and the longer the Dark Lord stays quiet, the more Fudge convinces himself that Dumbledore is trying to create a panic to usurp the Minister’s position. I understood straight away that trying to convince Fudge of the truth would only get his back up. That proved true when he tried to capitalise on Potter’s underage magic and have the boy expelled.”

“You could have let that happen,” Draco grumbles, playing with his fork.

“To build a solid alliance, one must sometimes shake hands with people from all walks of life. I never thought I would work with Harry Potter in any capacity, not when you owled me in your first year and told me he was a lost cause.”

Draco flushes and looks away. Lucius never pressed for details as to why Draco never became ... friends, as it were. Draco had told him before even being sorted, the Potter had become close to the youngest Weasley boy and Sorted into Gryffindor.

Lucius had written off any further contact with Potter. Once the Weasleys got their hooks into the Boy Who Lived, there was little chance of swaying the boy. Weasleys were a wiley bunch, whatever facade they presented to the public about their good hearts.

Putting down his own cutlery, Lucius gives his son his full attention to ensure the boy understands the seriousness of this situation.

“Draco,” he starts, then waits until his son meets his eyes, “I’m going to say this one last time. We must work with Potter if we want to survive. Whether you want to believe it or not, Harry Potter holds great political and magical power. I will help him cultivate both because by doing so, I am trying to ensure our family survives this war. Because war is here, Draco. An unforgiving, relentless war. The Dark Lord was close to winning last time, but believe me, both sides lost a lot more than expected. Many Pureblood lines died out from both sides. Then the Dark Lord fell when he failed to kill a child.”

A child the same age as his son, Lucius reflects.

“I am not asking you to befriend Potter. I do not expect you to. Potter might have antagonised you in the past, but should he try to do so this year, I expect you to rise above it.”

Potter will not have time to antagonise anyone this year, given the hefty schedule. That should minimise any encounters between his son and his newest ally.

“I am doing this for you, Draco,” Lucius finishes. “Do you understand?”

Draco nods his understanding, but Lucius can still see the rebellion in his son’s eyes.

“You won’t be able to break apart Potter’s bond with Holly,” Lucius shares, though he feels he’s banging his head on the same brick wall as Severus. Severus and Draco, at least, have bonded thoroughly over their shared hatred of all things Potter. He understands why Severus hated James Potter; he had witnessed some of those humiliations the elder Potter and his friends had visited upon his brother. Severus’s hatred is intensely personal. He wonders what Potter could have done to inspire similar feelings in his son. Neither Draco’s letters home nor Potter’s letters to Eileen indicated anything that inspired this level of animosity.

Lucius will simply have to keep his eye on the situation and hope that Harry Potter is a more mature teen and keeps to his promise to stay away from Draco.

“When are you going to start the Duelling club?” Draco asks, changing the subject. They both return to their food. A Duelling club had been discussed in Malfoy Manor several times, and he’d already secured Dumbledore’s permission.

“Mid-October, earlier if possible,” Lucius replies. “I want to try and get an idea of what level everyone is at first. Some students are more advanced than others.”

There’s a small office, which can be accessed through the Staff room, which contains copies of any homework or tests completed by students. Lucius is particularly interested in Potter’s, but it’s a good way of gauging the level of ability to determine rankings for the Duelling club. Lucius plans on making his club a much better success than Lockhart made his.

 “Will you and your friends be joining?” Lucius already knows the answer but feels he has to ask anyway.

“Of course,” Draco says instantly. “I’ll take the top spot in no time. Especially when you’ll be giving me extra training.”

Lucius raises a questioning brow at his son’s presumptuousness, though not truly annoyed. Of course, he will help his son achieve top ranking.

“I expect you to do well, Draco,” Lucius comments idly.

Draco nods enthusiastically.

“You’ll be great,” Lucius adds with a smile.

ooOoo

Narcissa finishes putting her parcels together for Lucius, Draco and Holly. For Draco, she sends her usual care package of chocolates and biscuits, putting the same together for Holly. For Lucius, she’s put together the requested items, workout clothes and several books to educate him in gymnastics and other sports.

For the books, she had intended to return to Malfoy Manor. However, she decided it was easier to buy new books while out buying new clothes for Lucius. She winces slightly as her muscles twinge in protest. She had joined Regulus and the others when Potter’s cousin, Dudley, took them through a workout. The boy is a harsh taskmaster with little patience, though it was apparent the muggle boy was visibly holding back harsher comments. Much like Lucius, Narcissa thought herself in good physical shape. Though she has no great enthusiasm for flying, she does enjoy the occasional leisurely swim and walks around the Manor grounds. After watching Holly, she had taken up some light skipping and the occasional Yoga poses, but yesterday had been difficult.

Regulus, Sirius, and several others fared much better because they’d had the Potter boy instructing them for several weeks during the summer. It seems she and Lucius are in the same boat of pain at the moment. Andromeda’s potions helped quite a lot, but movement is still the best therapy, even if every step or stretch still hurts.

She takes her packages and notes downstairs, where the others are waiting with their letters. Entering the kitchen, she places her burden on the table, even if it is spelled with a Feather-light Charm.

“Feeling any better, Cissy?” Sirius queries with sympathy.

“Some,” she answers. “I’m not sure I’ve ever done that much exercise.”

“It does take a few days,” Sirius assures her. Then, holding up his cup, he asks, “Tea?”

“Please,” she nods. Noticing the other parcel on the desk, she asks, “Is that your package?”

“Yes,” Sirius replies with his back turned. “Dudley asked me to send some muggle chocolates for Harry ... and Holly.”

Narcissa is not ignorant of her cousin’s feelings towards Severus’s child. Sirius and Severus would never get on; there is simply too much animosity between them. Sirius had always pushed too hard as a child. There were never half-measures with him, no diplomacy and no negotiation. Aunt Walberga’s child-raising techniques certainly left a mark on both her sons. Sirius rebelled by acting out, and Severus received the brunt during their school years. Lucius looked after Severus since the moment the wizard became a Slytherin.

Narcissa already knew Lucius for many years by that point and never thought of him as someone capable of being a big brother to anyone. Yet, to Severus, he had been. Without wanting anything in return. It was an entirely different side to Lucius that she had never seen. Narcissa never confessed to this anyone, not to her sisters, not even to Lucius, but watching a fifth-year Lucius look out for the first-year Severus stirred the beginnings of a crush. Over many years, that crush had become love, and Narcissa never regretted loving Lucius.

Severus didn’t deserve what Sirius put him through, encouraged by James Potter. Having grown up in the Black family, Narcissa understood the darker elements of relationships. James Potter was naive when he started at Hogwarts. Fleamont and Euphemia had all but given up on having children before finding that they had an heir on the way. It was actually based on some potions recipes developed initially by Fleamont that Severus aided in the potions that helped Narcissa get pregnant. James Potter was spoiled rotten by the time he came to Hogwarts. Becoming friends with Sirius was the worst thing that could have happened to either of them. They were toxic together and made everything else toxic around them.

Severus was not innocent by any means. He had no choice but to stand up for himself, and Narcissa knew the Slytherins would have eaten him alive if he hadn’t. Even with Lucius looking out for him.

Sirius judging Holly because her father is Severus is no different to Severus judging Harry Potter because his father was James.

“Holly’s a little darling,” Narcissa remarks, fondness seeping into her voice.

Sirius does not respond, but Narcissa doesn’t expect him to. Sirius is too stubborn to change his mind without it being bludgeoned into his head.

“Dudley seems to like her well enough,” Sirius says with a shrug, still not looking turning around. “And Regulus smiled every time he said her name.”

Narcissa takes her seat, wincing once more as she feels her thighs ache. Sirius places a cup of tea in front of her.

Changing the subject, Sirius smiles, pointing out, “I bet this morning was the first time you didn’t enjoy a shopping trip.”

Narcissa gives a rueful shake of her head. After yesterday’s workout, she wanted nothing more than to crawl into a heated bed and wait for the aches to disappear. She’s taken the potions Andromeda gave her, took an extra long hot bath to soothe her muscles and would have been happy to have spent the day lounging, no matter what her sister said about not sitting still for too long.

Then she’d received Lucius’s letter asking for books and clothes in the late evening. The leisurely lie-in she’d planned was replaced with an impromptu shopping trip. They’d decided not to shop in Muggle London for much of the same reasons that Lucius had. Instead, they headed to Ipswich this morning, joined by Dudley again. The muggle boy had been quite helpful in picking out muggle clothes last time, so Narcissa asked him to join them again for books and clothes.

Regulus had also stocked his library with various muggle books, so it was a productive trip all around. She would have definitely enjoyed the shopping trip more if she wasn’t recovering.

“Lucius’s letter couldn’t have come at a worse time,” Narcissa adds with a slight laugh.

“Never thought you and Lucy would have ever lowered yourself with playing around with muggle exercise or sports,” Sirius remarks in a provocative manner.

Narcissa gives her cousin a cold look over the top of her cup. Sirius gets into these combative moods sometimes. It couldn’t even be blamed on Azkaban, though no doubt enforced incarceration didn’t help. Sirius had always felt the need to be entertained and seemed to enjoy provoking arguments the most. Aunt Walburga had been the same.

“There’s very little you gave thought to, Sirius,” Narcissa replies in a frosty tone.

Sirius’s lips twist, his earlier concern fading away as his new mood overtakes him.

“Ready to send your letters?” Regulus asks as soon as he enters the kitchen, carrying his own package. Picking up on the atmosphere, he sighs and levels an annoyed look at his brother. “What did you do now?”

“Why do you think I’ve done something?” Sirius says defensively.

“Because it’s usually you,” Regulus replies, putting down his package on the table next to Narcissa’s.

“Yeah, sure. It’s always me. I’m the one who’s always in the wrong.”

Sirius flounces away dramatically, storming out of the kitchen. Regulus gives a frustrated look in the direction of the door.

“What’s happened?” Dora asks, giving concerned looks over her shoulder as she walks into the kitchen, followed by Andromeda.

Narcissa reluctantly repeats the last part of the conversation and her own response.

“He’s not wrong,” Dora shrugs.

“Nimmy –” Regulus begins to admonish.

“You’ve been very hard on Sirius for a while,” Andromeda comments, stepping towards the kettle.

“He’s –” Regulus tries to speak, but Andromeda talks over him.

“He needs help,” Andromeda says firmly. “He’s needed help before even Azkaban. We all did.”

“Andromeda,” Regulus tries again.

“Listen to me, Regulus,” Andromeda begins gently. “Our parents were shit parents. They didn’t deserve to have kids and shouldn’t have been left in charge of goldfish. We’ve all suffered under their care. And Walburga was the worst. The Potters tried to help, but even if they hadn’t died, they wouldn’t have been able to because Sirius didn’t share the worst of it. Azkaban certainly didn’t help. You and Sirius certainly haven’t resolved your issues. You’d ignored them in the beginning, and they’ve festered. It doesn’t help that Sirius feels guilty for James and Lily’s death and leaving Harry behind to hunt down Pettigrew. Then breaking out of Azkaban to find thHarry hasgot a much better relationship with his brother than with his own godfather. He has a lot to work through and needs help.”

“Sirius doesn’t act like he wants help,” Regulus says defensively.

“Sirius doesn’t know how to ask for it,” Andromeda corrects. “Neither did you. But you got it when you needed it, and Sirius didn’t. We’re all guilty of not fighting for Sirius when they threw him in jail. As for his comments regarding Lucius and Narcissa, I agree with Dora; he’s not wrong.”

Narcissa couldn’t help but feel hurt.

“You know Lucius better than any of us, Cissy,” Andromeda says gently, “but even we know that he doesn’t make a major change like that without reason. The only good thing I can say about Lucius is that he’s put his family first. If you’d asked me twenty years ago about Lucius, I would have said he’s a calculating, power-hungry, selfish bastard. He’s only taken up Defence professor because he wants to be seen as linked to Harry, and his trump card apparently is an innocent child.”

“Lucius is extremely fond of Holly,” Narcissa says in trembling fury. “He would never hurt her.”

“But she’s not his child,” Andromeda points out. “Don’t tell me he wouldn’t choose Draco over Holly if he had to choose between them.”

Pushing back her chair, Narcissa wills herself to be calm and rises to her feet.

“I, for one, hope such a situation never arises. But you’re wrong about Holly not being family. Severus is Lucius’s brother, and she is his daughter. Lucius wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice himself for Holly as he would for Draco. As would I.”

She, too, leaves. The evening had gone downhill fast.

ooOoo

Tonks pops her head up through the trapdoor to the attic. She’d already knocked on his bedroom door, but he’d not been there. However, Sirius has been searching through various trunks for his something, but he wouldn’t say what.

“Sirius?” she calls out.

“Here,” comes a muffled reply.

Tonks carefully climbs up and follows the sounds of things getting picked up and put down.

“Mum told Regulus off,” she offers as she comes closer.

With his back to her, he says, “He’s not wrong, though. I feel like I’m always messing up. I’ve been giving priority to all the wrong things.”

Giving up on the search, Sirius sighs and turns to face Tonks, plopping himself on the trunk he’s just closed.

“You went to Azkaban just as the war ended and came back to find it wasn’t as over you thought,” Tonks says softly, seating herself on a rickety chair that looked the wrong side of vintage.

“I have a lot to make up to Harry,” Sirius confesses. “Because of me, he lost James and Lily. He should have been living with me, but instead, he was sent to Lily’s sister. Petunia was a bitch when I first met her; I doubt she’s changed much over the years. Harry doesn’t talk to me like he talks to Regulus, but I know there’s something wrong. I know he’s not happy there. I just want to do right by him.”

“You will,” Tonks says encouragingly. The older wizard usually hides his feeling behind jokes and funny anecdotes. It’s the first time Tonks has seen Sirius actually talk about what’s bothering him. She feels honoured that he’s chosen to confide in her.

“I’m truly happy that Narcissa’s back in the family,” Sirius tells her. “But I keep thinking, they’re not here because they want to be. They’re here because they want to survive, and they’re using Harry. They don’t really care about muggles and muggle-borns.”

“Mum’s told Narcissa the same,” Tonks admits. “And she told Regulus off for blaming you.”

“Regulus is still angry at me for letting him down,” Sirius says with surprising insight. “I should have been a better brother to him.”

“It goes bother ways,” Tonks says frankly.

“I should have been a better brother to Regulus and to James. I should have been a better godfather to Harry,” Sirius continues, unwilling to be let off the hook. “Instead, Regulus and Harry have found each other, and I’m left looking at them with a jealousy I’ve never felt before.”

Tonks isn’t good at giving advice like her Mum and Dad. She’s never had siblings, though not for lack of trying on her parents’ part. And she’s never felt as strongly about another person to take them on as family as Sirius and James had with each other. Then her mind flashes to the day she’d seen Lucius look after Snape. The protective way Lucius had cradled an uncharacteristically vulnerable Snape. Neither was a sight she’d ever predicted in a million years.

She’d suffered from seven years of miserable Potions lessons with Snape. A man who relished in being a bully and seemed to love seeing others break down in tears. She couldn’t deny that a part of her enjoyed seeing Snape crying and at the hands of his own daughter, to boot. She loved the little girl just for that opportunity.

“Will you tell me the truth about Holly this time?” Sirius asks with a raised eyebrow.

She can’t help the guilty blush that floods her cheeks.

“I don’t know much about her,” Tonks confesses. “I’ve only seen her a handful of times. I didn’t know about her connection to Harry.”

“But you suspected,” Sirius comments astutely.

“I suspected,” she confirms. “I tried to ask Regulus, but he shut me down.”

Sirius nods, and they fall into silence.

“I’m worried about Harry and Holly,” Sirius admits after a while.

“Why?” She gives the other wizard a puzzled look.

“Because of Snape,” he answers candidly. “When we were in school, Snape was obsessed with Lily. Even after their friendship ended. Lily told us to stay away from Snape, but she didn’t know how he kept following her, and James didn’t like Snape’s eyes on Lily.”

Tonks doesn’t need three guesses to imagine how that turned out.

“Snape did his best to hurt James,” Sirius continues.

Knowing Sirius’s animosity towards Snape, she couldn’t imagine that James and Sirius hadn’t been just as vicious in return.

“I’m worried Snape will hurt Harry, even more, to keep Harry and Holly away from each other. He’s already bashed Harry’s head in once. What’s to stop him from doing it again?”

“Regulus wouldn’t let that happen,” Tonks assures the older wizard. “You know that.”

Sirius nods reluctantly.

“Harry doesn’t deserve Snape’s anger,” Sirius whispers.

“No, he doesn’t,” Tonks agrees.

“And if Holly truly cares for Harry, she’d stay away from him,” Sirius adds.

“That’s an unfair ask from a nine-year-old,” Tonks says sternly.

Sirius stubbornly doesn’t answer.

“Harry will never agree to that either,” she presses.

“I just want to keep him safe,” Sirius says miserably.

“I’m sure he knows that,” the Metamorphmagus says assuringly.

 They fall into silence, each lost in their own thoughts. She couldn’t say she knew either Harry or Holly that well. However, she knows them enough to understand that they are both stubborn and strong-willed individuals. Harry is a curious mix of warrior and protector. She’s seen him in the workout room as he led various sessions, pushing each person with patience, discipline and humility. Harry demonstrated each move with great technique and never asked anyone to do something he couldn’t do himself. He’s already a force to be reckoned with and would only grow more powerful over the next few years.

He was also curiously humble about his knowledge and smarts, which Tonks noticed over the summer. Hermione is book clever and can rattle off great big sentences from thick books from memory, but she struggled with conveying that information in layman’s terms. Harry can easily relay information to others in an understandable way.

The only thing she could say about Holly from their brief encounters is that she is sensitive, clever and passionate. She adores Regulus and is close to the Malfoys but reticent about the Tonks family.

Tonks is curious to see Harry and Holly actually interact. Just talking about Harry and Holly brings a smile to Regulus’s face.

ooOoo

Later the same evening, Tonks sneaks towards the hidden entrance at the Shrieking Shack under a Disillusionment Charm for her meeting with Moody, Kingsley and Dumbledore. It shouldn’t take long.

Moody flicks his real eye in her direction while his fake one rotates to continue to case the place. He doesn’t acknowledge her other than that one look and casually taps the table as Tonks enters, where Dumbledore and Kingsley are already waiting for her. The table and the chairs must be conjured as they are the pieces of furniture that aren’t broken. Given the state of the place, Tonks can believe why the villagers still think the Shack is haunted by particularly violent spirits. The pink-haired witch has never seen a werewolf in the full moon and looking around at the state of the place, she hopes that continues to be the case.

“Wotcher,” she greets everyone.

“My dear,” he smiles at her, standing up to pull out a chair for her.

She gratefully drops her disguise and straightens her back, stretching her neck with relief. Even if You-Know-Who hadn’t returned, Moody would still insist on the cloak-and-dagger act.

“I hope you’ve had a lovely day so far, Miss Tonks,” Dumbledore starts the conversation after Moody has set up his additional wards.

Thinking back to the drama that unfolded not even an hour ago, Tonks shrugs and answers, “It’s been eventful.”

“Let’s get on with it,” Moody says gruffly, but no one takes offence at his tone. Moody’s always been a man of action. He would much rather be on the front lines, cackling his head off and hexing his opponent’s arse off.

“Fletchers recently heard some murmurs about plans to – ah- acquire some Guardian Medallions,” Kingsley starts.

Tonks becomes alert at this. Guardian Medallions are Auror-issued hardware used by those on duty at Azkaban. Not all Aurors can conjure a Patronus; even then, a Patronus is a short-term solution. When on duty at Azkaban, a Patronus, a Medallion helps conserve energy so that the Aurors can patrol the prison without worry.

They are also limited in number, regulated by the Department of Mysteries and takes someone of great skill to key in a specific signature. For Fletcher to hear that someone could be trying to steal them is worrisome indeed.

It could only be You-Know-Who.

Dumbledore’s countenance takes on a grave look. They have limited resources themselves, already stretched thin. Those who work at the Ministry have a roster in place to guard the Department of Mysteries, or more specifically, the Hall of Prophecy. Even though Harry has already retrieved the prophecy, a fact known by only a few, including those in the room, the rest of Order are still under the impression that guarding the Hall is essential. Tonks doesn’t like that they have to waste time doing something like that and hide it from their own people, but Dumbledore believes it was so You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters would still try to enter. Their leader is trying to set a trap. It doesn’t take a genius to know that the prophecy has something to do with Harry or that Harry already knows what it says.

Tonks believes that Dumbledore hopes You-Know-Who will try to make a play for prophecy and expose himself. It’s incredibly frustrating that they have to work against the Ministry rather than have all those resources available. Still, Fudge is the biggest coward ever, more concerned with looking competent than actually being competent.

She can’t wait until Fudge is outed from the Ministry and can only hope that the pleasant news is announced before You-Know-Who can do too much damage.

It seems like the newly resurrected Dark Lord will try to bolster his forces by breaking out his loyal followers from Azkaban.

They spend an hour coming up with a plan to keep those Medallions safe and to patrol the Port near Stroma Lighthouse. Everyone in the Order knows that Snape is under restrictions after his attack on Harry, but Dumbledore assures them that Snape will join the patrols in October.

Tonks makes a note to spell all her winter clothes with a Warming Charm to prepare for the cold, stormy days she’ll be expected to patrol on the Scottish borders for wayward Death Eaters.

“My dad’s cousin has a small cottage in Nairn,” Tonks volunteers when they discuss safe houses in Scotland. “It’s mostly rented out during summer, but Uncle Finley doesn’t have as many people wanting to stay there during winter. If my dad asks, I’m sure Uncle Finley will let Dad borrow the place. We can put up some wards and have it suitable for a few people to stay in.”

Dumbledore nods agreeably.

“Minerva’s brother Robert also looks after their late father’s farm,” Dumbledore tells them. “I shall ask Minerva if the farm is vacant for our use. The cottage in Nairn can be a backup if your uncle is amenable, whereas Minerva’s family farm already has wards in place.”

With apparition, travel is easy in the UK. However, the closer a person is to their destination, the easier the trip, especially in situations where speed is of the essence. Though a skilled witch or wizard can apparate based on coordinates, familiarity with the terrain is even better. So, they also made plans to visit each site. No doubt Moody would check each one for ingress and egress points and set some traps in the scenario where they might be followed or their safe house discovered.

They wrap up the meeting twenty minutes later, and Tonks passes on the package from the occupants of Grimmauld Place that Dumbledore takes good-naturedly to pass on to the intended recipients in the castle. The Headmaster doesn’t ask what it is, though no doubt Moody’s already catalogued it all, even in its shrunken state.

Disapparating with a near-silent pop, Tonks appears in the alley closest to her flat in Milton Keynes, ready for a quiet evening.

ooOoo

Severus hears a knock on his door and knows without opening it that it’s Lucius on the other side.

With a resigned sigh, he knows he has to open the door. He’s not looking forward to being told that he’s already made a misstep with his daughter after only one night.

“Evening, Lucius,” Severus greets the other wizard as he opens the door. “I imagine Holly’s told you everything already.” Then answering his own question, he sighs again, “Of course she has.”

Eying Lucius with narrowed eyes, he adds, “You’re enjoying this.”

Lucius smirks as he makes himself comfortable on the chair, “You’re making it easy for Holly to love me instead of you.”

Severus shakes his head, feeling weary. His dreams of having a family of his own died with Lily. He never expected to have children of his own after her death, as even then, he hoped she might realise she’d made a mistake with Potter and would miss Severus. After discovering that Lily was pregnant with Potter’s spawn, he’d decided there and then he would not have any children and told himself he was better off without them. Becoming a teacher only reinforced his feelings of never having any offspring of his own.

So, after almost three months of finding he had a child of his own, he’s struggling to be a father to a hurt little girl. Someone he hurt by not even being in her life.

Holly had come to him before bedtime last night, asking him to undo the braids in her hair and help her brush it for her. It’s apparently a duty that Lucius had been diligently taking up the last several nights Holly stayed with the blond wizard.

Severus had been hard-pressed not to smile when she’d voluntarily come to him for help and sat in silence as he carefully tried to unbraid her hair. Bearing his inexperience with stoic patience.

He’d tried to fill the silence with inconsequential chatter, something he usually abhors. He wished straightaway that he’d kept his mouth shut.

Upon finding that Potter had been braiding her hair all week, Severus had suggested that she cut her hair shorter so that she no longer needed it braiding.

Seeing straight through his motivations, she’d pushed away his hands and turned around to glare at him.

“I’ll cut my hair short when you cut your hair short!” she yelled before slamming her bedroom door straight in his face.

No doubt, Lucius is here to continue the nightly ritual because he is smarter than Severus and can let things go better than the Potions Master. Then again, the blond wizard doesn’t have the same bitter history with Potters that Severus does. Given Lucius’s enmity with Arthur Weasley, Severus would like to see the blond have to listen to, Draco, for example, extol their every virtue.

Then again, it occurs to him that if Holly insists on spending time with Potter, who is joined at the hip with the Weasley children, Lucius will be subjected to similar conversations that Severus will endure regarding Potter. He hides a smirk at the thought.

“You may as well knock on her door,” Severus suggests. “She’s probably waiting for you.”

Lucius nods, getting up and heading over to Holly’s room. Seconds after Lucius enters Holly’s room, there’s a knock on Severus’s door. He moves to answer it with a puzzled frown, not expecting anyone else.

“Evening, Severus,” Dumbledore says with a smile. “Would Lucius happen to be here?”

“Yes, Headmaster,” Severus answers with a bemused look. “He’s currently with Holly.”

“Excellent,” Dumbledore says with delight. “Please pass these along to him for me.”

He hands several parcels wrapped in brown paper, which Severus takes with deepening confusion.

“Goodnight, Severus and do pass along my wishes to Holly as well, won’t you?”

Dumbledore leaves with the same mysteriousness he arrived, and Severus slowly closes the door, staring at the packages in bewilderment. As he heads towards Holly’s room, the entrance Lucius has thoughtfully left ajar, he studies each label. There seem to be several different parcels.

He knocks on the door, pausing on the threshold.

Lucius and Holly are sitting in similar positions on the edge of the bed, with one leg on the bed and one dangling off. Lucius looks to be more than halfway to undoing the braids.

Holly doesn’t invite him in, though does give him an expectant look.

“Who was at the door?” Lucius asks as he finishes the last of the braid and runs his fingers through Holly’s now loose hair.

“It was the Headmaster,” Severus answers. Holding up the packages, he says, “He delivered these for you.”

“I wasn’t aware the Headmaster performed owl duties as well as all the other work he does,” Lucius voices blandly.

“This seems to have Narcissa’s handwriting,” Severus points out mildly. “Perhaps he’s been to Headquarters and was asked to bring these to you.”

“Oh, oh,” Holly pipes up excitedly with a huge smile, “maybe it’s those clothes you asked for.”

“Clothes?” Severus questions with puzzlement. Then with incredulity, “You can’t have run out of clothes already.”

Lucius was always picky about his clothes, so Severus could reasonably believe the other wizards asked for more.

The blond shoots him a withering glare, but Holly answers before Lucius can defend himself.

“No,” she says, “it’s for the gym. Uncle Luc will be joining Harry and me in the gym with us. Yesterday Harry had to transfigure Uncle Luc’s clothes, but he can’t do that every time. Can we open them and take a look? Please?”

Then without waiting for an answer, she beckons Severus with her hands and invites him with an impatient, “Come in, come in.”

Pleased, Severus steps into the door, shooting a smug look at the disgruntled blond.

She shifts on the bed and pats the empty space for Severus, or the packages. The Potions Master places the packages carefully on the bed and then gingerly sits at the foot, expecting to be booted from the room.

“That’s a lot of packages,” Holly smiles, waiting expectantly for Lucius to reach one. “How many clothes did she send you?”

Severus hides a smirk at the question.

“I’d like to see these clothes too,” Severus adds mildly, ignoring Lucius’s look.

“Don’t you want me to finish brushing your hair?” Lucius says, holding the hair brush aloft.

“We can do that later,” Holly insists, reaching for said hair brush.

Giving in, Lucius lets Holly take the brush and reaches for a package.

“This one is for you,” he tells her. “Seems your aunt has sent us all packages.”

Passing the first parcel to an excited Holly, he reaches for the next package, plucking the letter affixed to the top of it as Holly tears into the wrapping paper.

Severus’s attention is divided between Lucius, skimming through his letter, and Holly, pulling out various sweets and clothes from her package and a thick envelope that has the Potions Master curious.

“Here,” Lucius says, handing a parcel to Severus, “this one’s for you.”

Nonplussed, Severus automatically takes the parcel and opens it carefully. Finding various clothes inside it that he’s not asked for, he looks up to Lucius for an explanation.

“There’s a note for you,” Lucius says absently, moving two packages to the side before reaching for the final two.

Severus hunts for the note within the discarded wrapping and finds two. One from Regulus and another from Narcissa.

He opens Regulus’s first, which is written quite perfunctorily.

Severus,

Lucius wrote to Narcissa asking for workout clothes. It seems to be a common request over the last few days, so we decided to get a bulk of them for everyone. Since Lucius has decided to take up muggle exercise, we thought it wouldn’t be long before you get roped in as well. So, when we were shopping for Lucius, Narcissa and I decided to pre-emptively select some clothes in your size (and Dracos’).

If you’ve been as active as Narcissa over the summer, I suggest you stock up on Muscle soothers and Pain-Killers. Trust me when I say you’ll need them. Perhaps once you begin muggle exercises, you’ll realise why there was a sudden increase in demand for those potions in the summer.

Hope you’ve been using your suspension time wisely.

With care,

Regulus.

Narcissa’s letter is similar to Regulus, though she has included Severus’s favourite Cauldron Cakes and Pumpkin Pasties in his care package, along with an assortment as she does every year. No doubt, she’s sent Draco a box with his favourites, plus his clothes.

When they’d travelled to Muggle Manchester during the summer, they’d bought several clothes, but they’d bought formal wear rather than this stuff Narcissa and Regulus sent.

“Can I see yours?” Holly asks Lucius in a tone that is part question, part demand before sticking a Liquorice Wand in her mouth.

“No sweets before bed,” Severus admonishes, holding out a hand for her care package.

Holly sighs but hands over her sweets and cakes to Severus without argument, to his surprise.

“You may finish the wand,” Severus allows when she is about to hand the half-chewed sweet over.

Lucius reluctantly shows off his clothes to them, looking none too pleased with them.

Picking up on his mood, Holly tells him, “Trust me, it’s better than using magic to change your clothes every day. It’s better to exercise in clothes made for exercising.”

“Yes, darling,” he accepts with a smile, then folds the clothes away with a silent wave of his wand.

“Is that more clothes?” Holly asks, pointing to the second parcel on the bed.

“It’s the books I asked for,” the blond answers. Without prompting, Lucius opens that parcel with less reluctance than he had for the clothes.

Lucius takes out book after book, leaving all three of them looking at Holly’s overflowing bed with varying degrees of surprise. There are more than a hundred books.

“That’s a lot of books,” Holly points out obviously.

“What on earth did you ask for?” Severus questions.

“Various muggle sports,” Lucius says faintly.

Lucius packs the books away again, shrinking the two parcels for him, a third for Draco, and a fourth on the nightstand.

“Is that another for Holly?” Severus queries.

“That’s for Potter,” Lucius says with a warning look.

“I see,” Severus says slowly. “I’ll – I’ll just go put away my clothes.”

He exits his daughter’s bedroom stiffly, placing his new clothes on his new bed, taking deep breaths and schooling his thoughts. Like it or not, Potter’s presence is entwined with Holly’s. It’s bad enough he has no choice but to concede that Holly will spend time with Potter outside his quarters, but another thing altogether when Potter’s belongings infiltrate his private rooms.

Ten minutes later, Lucius comes out of Holly’s room with his packages. Even in their partially shrunken state, they’re the size of a lunch box. He closes Holly’s door firmly behind him, placing them on the coffee table and sitting on the sofa across from Severus.

“Didn’t you already buy several sports books in Manchester?” Severus opens the conversation, deciding to let go of the Potter issue. It’s best for his temper and blood pressure. He feels he’s lost an ally in Lucius regarding Potter. If he ever wanted to complain to Lucius about Harry Potter again, the blond wouldn’t listen with the same patience he used to.

“I did,” Lucius nods, “but I didn’t really do much with them other than store them in my Toy room.”

“What’s brought on this sudden new curiosity? Holly?” They both know he’s purposely leaving off Potter’s name.

“Partially,” Lucius says slowly. “I was in the gym with Holly yesterday, and she showed me more of the gymnastics she does on the equipment. It’s much more impressive than her performance on the grounds of Malfoy Manor. I simply wanted more knowledge of something she’s clearly passionate about. Then, when I was in the Hospital Wing yesterday-”

“Why were you in the Hospital Wing?” Severus interrupts, his demanding tone not masking his concern. “Were you hurt? Was Holly?”

“Relax, Severus,” Lucius says soothingly, holding up his hands in a reassuring manner. He waits until Severus leans back, though his eyes are still intently trained on his friend. “Potter showed me a few workout routines. Not being used to exercise with that sort of vigour, I had to visit Poppy for some Muscle soothers.”

Feeling slightly calmer, his mind flashes to Regulus’s note about needing to stock up on the very same potion.

“How do you-?” he begins to ask, but Lucius seems to have anticipated that question.

“Potter did not purposely push me harder than I was able to,” Lucius says firmly.

“How do you know?” Severus presses.

“Severus,” Lucius says patiently, “trust me.”

Reluctantly, Severus doesn’t push further.

“Is that why you were moving stiffly yesterday?”

“It’s much better today,” he answers with a rueful look, “but any movement was difficult even with Poppy’s potions. Poppy assured me this was normal. Narcissa seems to have suffered the same fate at the hands of Potter’s cousin, Dudley Dursley?”

Lucius says the boy’s name carefully.

Severus doesn’t hide the scowl at Potter or his cousin’s name. Great. More of Potter’s family infiltrates Severus’s family.

“You’ll be joining them again?” Severus asks.

Lucius nods, “I shall. Which is the reason for the books. I simply wanted more information.”

Leaning forward, he reaches for two books, about an inch thick, and hands them to Severus.

“You take these. Since you’re going to be for another week, you may as well read more about gymnastics. Holly’s very skilled at the sport; you already know it can cause injuries. You should use the time to research.”

Severus thanks the blond as he takes the books. There’s a picture of men and women in tight-fitting clothes on the cover of both.

“Think about joining me,” Lucius encourages.

Severus nods again, and he feels something inside him relax. Lucius is treating him like a brother again. The certificate in his inside pocket weighs heavy.

“Have you not been to the gym before?” Lucius asks before Severus can take out the certificate from his pocket.

“Once,” Severus answers. “When Minerva first set it up for her students. She said it was for all students, but I gathered that one of her Gryffindors requested it. It occasionally happens when a muggle-born student wants to open a club for an outdoor sport. They are always granted permission, but it never sticks for long. I helped set up the initial wards at Minerva’s request, but she never mentioned it again after she told me to pass along invitations to my students. I assumed it disbanded long ago like any other muggle club.”

“So Slytherins were invited?” Lucius asks in a deceptively light tone, leaning back on the sofa.

“I passed the information to my prefects, who may or may not have forwarded it to the other snakes,” Severus confirms.

“Draco said he was not even aware of the room,” Lucius explains.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if the prefect never forwarded the message,” Severus admits. Though he had told the one who was half-blood with muggle ties. However, both understand the unsaid statement that no Pureblood would ever agree to attend a muggle exercise club.

“Once you return to the classroom, Draco may ask permission to open up a similar room in the dungeons. He will ask his Housemates to gauge interest but believes the Quidditch team might be interested in doing some sort of training indoors.”

“I’ll grant him permission,” Severus agrees instantly. “There’s plenty of unused space in the dungeons that my Slytherins can use.”

“Will you need to check with Dumbledore?” Lucius questions.

“A formality,” Severus assures him with a negligent hand wave. “After all, Dumbledore would be open to Purebloods learning more of muggle methods. If Dumbledore agreed to let Potter open up the club in the first place, then I don’t see why he wouldn’t allow Draco to do the same.”

For surely, it must have been Potter’s idea in the first instance. Which is the reason Lucius is pushing Draco to join and also why Draco competitively wants to open up a rival club. Without Potter as a catalyst, Lucius wouldn’t have cared about muggle exercise in a million years, no matter his curiosity. Otherwise, he would have read those books he’d picked up in Manchester immediately instead of letting them gather dust at the manor. Buying new ones didn’t matter to Lucius, who had galleons to spare.

Turning serious, Lucius leans forward, his demeanour turning serious. Severus mimics the other wizard, listening with grave intent to Lucius explain about the Slytherin Purebloods who are watching Draco and the others in the Common room. Students he will have to watch out for when Severus returns to his duties.

“I won’t let anything happen to Draco,” Severus promises.

“I trust you,” Lucius says sincerely.

The certificate in his pocket feels like it’s burning, but Severus struggles to bring it out and give it to his foster brother. When Lucius pops back into Holly’s room to retrieve his letters from Narcissa that he realised he’d left on her nightstand, Severus quickly takes it out of his pocket and slips it into the box of books.

ooOoo

Lucius changes into his pyjama bottoms and, with a wave of his wand, sends his new muggle books to the shelf space allocated for them, wanting to peruse the selection so he could select one to read in bed. Then, he sees a thick parchment sticking out between two books on Cricket and Rugby.

Curiously, he pulls out the parchment, wondering what else Narcissa or Regulus might have sent him. With a deeper frown, he recognises the Ministry seal as he turns the thick parchment over. Breaking the seal on the two folds, he pulls it open, his breath catching as he realises what it is.

It’s a Ministry approved birth certificate for Holly. He’s hyphenated her name to Pierce-Snape. It is the bottom that catches the blond’s attention.

Severus has filled in the relevant details showing Holly’s parentage, showing himself and Jasmine as her parents. However, Severus has put down Lucius as his daughter’s godfather. All he has to do is sign his name to seal the magic. He’d been calling Holly his goddaughter for weeks, and it means the world to him that Severus is making it official.

With reverence, he carries the certificate to his desk and reaches for his best quill, carefully inking it and signing his name. His signature glows a soft blue colour, and he knows it’s been lodged at the Ministry, making it official. Should something ever happen to Severus, the wizard would trust Lucius to look after and raise his daughter.

It meant the world to Lucius. In such a short time, he’d come to love Holly as much as he loves Draco.