Finley Breen sat with his head in his hands on the couch, impatiently waiting for his niece to arrive. He'd only just arrived home from work and made a perfect cup of tea when the fireplace suddenly ignited in green flames.
The second he'd seen Alastriona's professor standing there his hands started sweating and they hadn't stopped.
He needed to see her. He had to see if she was really okay. Alastriona was the light in the dark after his brother had been killed and it had stayed that way for his whole life, as long as she was around then Finn didn't need anyone else. Raising her and watching her grow into such a strong willed, gifted young lass has been the highlight of his life and he sometimes wondered if maybe Elliot would be upset with him for treating her as his own child at times.
Finn's head lifted up at flames erupting and he saw her. Little Alastriona. His niece, looking so small with only her head poking out of the oversized blanket she was clutching around her.
It reminded him of the first time he'd met Alastriona.
It was the day after she was born and Finn, Sloane and Maeve all gathered at Elliot's house.
Elliot was so large he'd made her look even smaller in his arms but he'd passed her to Finn so gently, so carefully, like he was carrying the most precious jewel on earth. And he was.
When Finn took her in his arms he'd gazed down at her, terrified that she'd start crying, instead she shifted ever so slightly before reaching up and pulling on his then short beard. She kept on sleeping, not waking up and not letting go of Finn's beard.
"Uncle Finn?" Her voice was quiet, fragile.
Finn stood up and didn't waste any time, he pulled her in close and cradled her head against his chest.
"My girl." Finn croaked, "My wee lass."
"I'm okay, I'm okay." Alastriona whispered repeatedly.
Finn leaned back, "It was an accident?" He had to make sure.
Alastriona nodded, "I— I lost my balance." She lied easily.
Finn carefully lead Alastriona to the couch and got her to sit down, "I'm just so glad you're okay, I'm going to make you a cup of tea, lass."
He moved to the kitchen and made a cup of tea, using the set he'd been gifted with the previous Christmas. When he handed Alastriona the cup of steaming tea his heart nearly broke at tired, traumatised eyes that were staring back at him. Her hands were shaking slightly and he wished more than anything that he could take away that memory, take away the pain inside her.
They sat silently. Alastriona leant into her uncles arms and just rested, unable to sleep but at least she knew in that moment that she was safe, that her uncle wouldn't cause her any pain.
The daylight was seeping from the sky when Professor Sprout arrived to take Alastriona back to Hogwarts.
Finn stood up and leant down so he could face Alastriona straight on. "Are you sure you want to go back there?" He asked. He had once nearly forced her to leave Hogwarts but now he needed to know if she even wanted to go back there.
Alastriona was silent. Professor Sprout herself was starting to sweat, if it had been her she wouldn't have wished to return.
Alastriona thought of Hogwarts. Of the people there, some who hated her so much that they wished physical harm to come to her... and they were willing to follow through. Then her friends came to the front of her mind. Darcy, the sister she'd always wanted, Theo and Blaise as close as brothers to each other and to her, she thought of Dawn's wide smile, of Cedric's comforting hugs and of Draco. She thought a lot about Draco.
Alastriona met Uncle Finn's gaze and nodded once. "I need to go back and I want to." The answer caused Uncle Finn to smile sadly but he just brought her into his arms and held on tight.
"If you change your mind, lass, you just let me know. I want you to be safe and happy." That was all he'd ever wanted, she'd been through enough for a lifetime.
Alastriona left his arms and glanced back at him. "I love you, Uncle Finn."
"I love you too, little one."
Alastriona hadn't slept. She had cried silently but couldn't bring herself to close her eyes to rest, she knew all she'd see was the bottom of that boat.
The rising sun shone through the window of the Hospital Wing and Alastriona sat staring forwards, the sun warming up her head, creating something akin to a halo around her.
She was sitting stiffly, hugging her knees to her chest when the door to the Hospital Wing slowly creaked open.
Cedric Diggory, hair tousled and eyes blood shot. They lit up when he saw Alastriona though and he rushed to her side, sitting next to her on the cot and holding her close.
"I never got to celebrate your win." She said tearfully.
Cedric chuckled quietly and shut his eyes tightly, preventing tears from falling onto Alastriona's head.
"I shouldn't have left your side." He mumbled.
"It wouldn't have mattered." Alastriona whispered back. "They had something planned regardless."
They were silent for a moment.
"I can't believe I nearly lost you." Cedric whispered, he held her a little tighter at his own words. "And to think you were worried about me." He joked softly.
Alastriona let out a small chuckle at that. "Don't worry, Ced, you can't get rid of me that easily, you'll just have to keep putting up with me forever."
"Forever is okay with me." Cedric said straight away.
The door began creaking open again. Cedric sat up straighter next to Alastriona and his hand slowly went for his wand.
A mop of dirty blonde hair was seen poking around the corner. Round hazel eyes peeked around the door and went wide as a big grin took over Theodore Nott's face.
He ducked back behind the door quickly before running in and jumping to the other side of Alastriona's cot and hugging her tightly, just about pushing Cedric off the bed.
Darcy Mint popped around the corner, Darcy's dark blue eyes were bloodshot and slightly swollen, her nose incredibly red and she burst into tears as soon as she saw Alastriona. She climbed onto the bed and hugged Alastriona from the front, accidentally hitting Theo on the head as she did.
Cedric took this opportunity to stand up, he sat on the cot next to Alastriona's and smiled a little at the group of friends.
Dawn Winston came in next, she walked straight up to the bed and grabbed Alastriona's face in her warm hands and kissed all over her face before drawing her in for a comforting hug. "I'm so glad you're alive." She said plainly before kissing the girls face over and over again, Alastriona was laughing as she did and playfully trying to swat her away.
Blaise Zabini walked in silently and was unnoticed until Alastriona stilled and smiled up at him with tired but kind eyes, she didn't have to wait long for him to sit on the bed and draw her in for a hug. He held her tightly and let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
Darcy, who was sitting back on the cot now, chuckled quietly, "You know we had a plan so we wouldn't overwhelm you."
The others laughed nervously, Alastriona just smiled, "I wouldn't have had it any other way." She looked around at her friends, "Where's Draco?" She asked softly.
The others all looked at Blaise to answer this question, "He's chatting with Dumbledore, he'll be here soon."
The way he'd said 'chatting' didn't sit well with Alastriona but she ignored it and nodded. Happy to be surrounded by her friends.
Alastriona sat back on her bed and listened to her friends chat around her, it was a nice distraction but her eyes flickered up at movement by the door. Draco.
Darcy subtly nodded her head to the others and one by one they all hugged Alastriona and said goodbye as Draco entered the room, he gently kissed the top of her head in greeting before sitting opposite her on the cot.
"I was just with Dumbledore... asking him to reconsider letting Parkinson and Bullstrode stay." He gritted his teeth together but remained calm as he talked to Alastriona. "Why did you tell him not to expel them?"
Alastriona fixed her gaze on her hands, twisting her fingers around, "You know why... you were there."
He sighed and shook his head, "I know, I know... I just hate that they're still walking around Hogwarts, able to hurt you at any time."
"They won't." Alastriona swore, trying to convince him that she'd be okay, that she'd be safe here.
Draco was unconvinced but remained silent.
Alastriona sighed heavily. "I still owe you an explanation." She said quietly.
Draco shook his head, "No, not now, Alastriona. It can wait until you're feeling better." He attempted to reassure her.
Alastriona sniffed and let out a small laugh, "Draco, no matter what I'm never going to feel good about telling you what you need to hear. I may as well do it now while we're alone and I've got no where to run to." It was painful to admit but it was the truth.
Draco didn't reply. He sat stiffly as he watched Alastriona take a few deep breaths, he hated the look in her eyes and the way her body was so tense.
Draco felt guilt at Alastriona's tortured gaze, "Alastriona, this can wait. I don't have to know right away—"
"No." Alastriona interrupted. "No, I want to do this. I need to do this." She wasn't ready to share her past with the entire school but she knew she could trust Draco and she knew as much as he needed to hear it, she needed to say it.
"My mother is alive." Alastriona said. Draco's grey eyes widened but he couldn't find any words to express his shock. He'd always believed, like everyone else, that both of Alastriona's parents were dead, that she was an orphan.
"My mother was Bellatrix Lestrange's protege." Alastriona nodded when Draco flinched, "Your aunt, yes. Madrona, my mother, didn't come under her wing until she was older, but the effect was immediate. It wasn't long after they met that Madrona orchestrated her own parents death, I'm not entirely sure but I think it must've been her way of proving her loyalty to Bellatrix, almost like an initiation for becoming a Death Eater." Alastriona tried not to cringe at the shock they flashed through Draco's stormy eyes.
"My father, on the other hand, was part of an organisation dedicated to stopping the rise of You Know Who, and he was blind to my mother's affiliation with the Death Eaters but he wasn't stupid. My father knew she'd changed during their time together and he wasn't sure he could trust her and so he told her nothing about his involvement with the rebellion."
Alastriona took a deep breath, she'd never said the words out loud, she'd only ever been talked to about this and hated the bitter taste the words left behind in her mouth. "My father noticed the changes in Madrona more-so after I was born. He noticed her attitude, her coolness and indifference towards me and it made him question everything about her, her habits, her schedule, her random disappearances that were often followed by horrible news of a friend of his dying. He told the right people about his concerns but by then it was too late. The war was ended when You Know Who tried and failed to kill Harry Potter..." Alastriona let out a humourless laugh. "My mother did not appreciate that. She came home, to me and my father, we were in the kitchen and he was holding me. She killed him and left me to die in his arms." Alastriona couldn't bare to look at Draco's face, she didn't want to know what he thought of her now.
Alastriona curled up slightly, holding her arms around herself. "I was found several days later, by a group of Auror's and was brought to Saint Mungo's and they caught my mother a few days after that, trying to free Bellatrix Lestrange."
She looked at Draco through bleary eyes, "I didn't get to pick my parents, Draco, none of us do. I couldn't control that, I couldn't control her insanity, her rage or her actions. The only thing I could control was my story. So I decided that if anyone were to ask then I would evade the real question, I would let people think that my mother died as well because to me she never existed. I never had a mother, someone who cared for me unconditionally, I had a father I barely knew and don't remember and I now have my uncle, who raised me. That's enough for me, it always was and it always will be."
Draco didn't respond, Alastriona fidgeted slightly.
"I'm sorry," she apologised, her voice cracking, "I know that you and the others deserved the truth but I don't like the truth! I hate it, I hate my story, I hate her! If I tell people the truth then— then that makes it true!" The words came out so fast there was no stopping her now, tears dripped from her eyes and her breathing picked up too quick to be normal. "True that my mother was a Death Eater, true that she never wanted me, true that she never loved me and true that she killed my father!"
Her panicked breaths broke Draco out of his stupor and he rushed to her side, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her to his chest. He ran a soothing hand down her thick curls and rested his head on top of hers.