"How are you so good at nonverbal spells? It's not right!"
"Leave her alone. She's great at everything."
"I can see."
Draco and Claire both threw their pillows to hit Theo in the head, making him try to use nonverbal spells that all failed. Claire blushed and pulled her knees into her chest, picking at a string on Draco's sweatpants that she had stolen. They were in the boy's dorm in an attempt to study without being bothered by others. The professors were giving them more homework than ever before, and not all the Slytherins were studious. Unfortunately, Draco and Claire had come back two nights before with new marks on their necks, swollen lips, and messed up hair, so there was more teasing than studying.
"Can we just study?" Claire begged. Draco grinned at her from where he sat next to her in the bed, the two leaning on the wall so they could see the two boys on the bed across from them. Their thighs were pressed against the others, but they had attempted not to be too clingy so they were trying not to touch too much. Luna the cat was happily curled at the end of the bed, her tail lazily flicking as she dreamed.
"I don't know. I like seeing you blush," Theo joked, sending her a flirtatious wink.
"Leave them alone," Blaise defended, but he had a wicked smile. "They're just waiting for us to leave so they can figure out what else Claire is good at."
"Okay, I'm leaving," Claire said, standing up on the bed to step over Draco's legs. The boy gently grabbed her hand and pulled her down until he grabbed her waist, pulling her down onto his lap. Claire grinned and placed a light kiss on his lips. Theo and Blaise started to gag loudly.
"Fuck off."
Blaise smirked while Theo flicked Draco off. Claire situated herself where she was leaning on Draco's chest and sitting between his legs. He placed a kiss on her cheek and wrapped his arms around her waist. They had become clingy since that night, especially since they had officially confessed their feelings and started dating.
"Does Potter and the clan know yet?" Theo asked. Claire groaned and tossed her head back while Draco let out a cold laugh.
"Merlin, no. He'd probably kill me," Draco complained. Theo and Blaise scoffed in understanding.
"Hermione knows, but Draco is right. Harry already looks suspicious by all the turtlenecks," Claire added.
"And Lupin?" Blaise questioned, a small smirk on his lips.
"Professor Lupin should probably find out in person and not by a letter," Draco shrugged. "Who knows where our letters go before they get to their destination."
"We can't tell everyone about us. In fact, outside of closed doors, the school needs to think we had a falling out. It's the best way to protect both of us," Claire said sadly. Draco placed a kiss on her shoulder blade to reassure her that it would be okay.
"What about us?" Blaise questioned.
"Do we have a falling out too?" Theo asked.
"We don't want to give Voldemort a reason to attack you guys. I can't lose any of you. I can't."
Claire's voice shook, making Draco tighten his arms around her waist. Blaise and Theo looked upset but they nodded in understanding, looking troubled as they thought of Daphne.
"Snape is gonna kill us if the Gryffindors get this before us," Draco reminded them. "Let's just practice this spell."
"Only if you two aren't going to be gross."
—————————
"Am I the only one who continued with Hagrid's class?"
The Golden Trio all looked sheepishly at Claire and nodded, making the girl groan.
"Why didn't you drop it?" Ron asked.
"I thought that you guys would continue the class. And Buckbeak is back!" Claire explained. Hagrid had taken Buckbeak back and renamed him Witherwings, and Claire missed the hippogriff for some odd reason. Maybe because it reminded her of Sirius, and she had yet to hear if he was safe from his mission that had gone long.
"Hagrid is going to hate me," Harry sighed.
"He'll just be disappointed," Hermione tried to reassure her friend. Claire groaned and hit her head on the table, making the other Gryffindors look over. Claire blushed and leaned closer to Harry, putting her head on his shoulder. She made eye contact with Draco and he winked at her, making her blush and smile and hide her face in Harry's shoulder.
"I thought you were done with him and that's why you were sitting with us," Ron noted, looking confused. Claire blinked at him and tried to think of a response.
"Why are you oblivious only when we need you to be paying attention?" Hermione complained, which started an argument between the two. Claire was glad to see that Hermione seemed to be getting back to her old self, a small smile on her face. Claire grinned, assuming that her friend's old crush was emerging again.
"So are you two a thing?" Harry whispered, barely hiding the disgust on his face.
"Maybe..."
"Finally," Harry teased. Claire lifted her head from his shoulder to look at him, her eyebrows furrowed.
"I thought you hated him."
"Mixed feelings."
"Hi, Harry!"
Claire and Harry both turned to see Romilda Vane and her friends walk by and start to giggle. Harry looked confused and waved back.
"What was that about?" Harry questioned.
"You're popular now," Ron said enviously, a small frown on his face.
"You're quidditch captain and everyone knows that you were telling the truth," Hermione explained. "But be careful. I heard them talking about love potions and your name came up a few too many times. Don't eat anything they give you."
Harry grimaced, but he looked proud of himself too. Ginny was sitting a few seats down, her eyes going between Harry and her book with a frown on her face.
"Do you have any girls in mind? You could get anyone now," Claire asked, grabbing a cookie from the plate in front of her. She grinned to herself when Harry's eyes went to Ginny for a second before he shrugged. Hermione and Claire shared a knowing look while Ron was oblivious.
"Did Harry tell you about what he saw with Dumbledore?" Hermione asked suddenly, her voice soft so others wouldn't hear.
"I saw that with Gaunt over the summer," Claire whispered, sounding nonchalant.
"Then why did Harry have to see it?" Ron questioned.
"Do I have a beard?" Claire asked. Ron shook his head no. "Exactly. Ask the man with the beard."
"Have you seen anything big lately?" Hermione asked. Claire shook her head, lightly biting her lip and looking worried.
"Emaline hasn't either. I'm scared we're... connected somehow," Claire sighed. "I've tried but nothing. But based on my headache, I'm going to be having a vision tonight. I'll sneak out to Draco's room tonight and I'll hopefully see something important."
"Why do you have to sneak out?" Ron asked.
"Sometimes I talk out loud. Draco, Blaise and Theo won't say anything if I talk, but the girls will."
"But where will you sleep?" Harry pondered, sitting up straight.
"In Draco's bed, I guess," Claire shrugged.
"I'll tell Remus and Sirius," Harry threatened, shaking his head. Claire narrowed her eyes and tried to look threatening.
"I will castrate you."
Harry and Ron both crossed their legs at her tone while Hermione rolled her eyes.
"What about Crabbe and Goyle?" Hermione asked.
"They sleep in another room. The Slytherin rooms only have space for three beds," Claire explained. "They're not a problem either. They share a brain cell with Trevor, and the toad usually has the brain cell."
Ron choked on his cookie as he tried not to laugh. Trevor the toad just happened to hop in front of them, making the four burst out laughing while a confused and panicked Neville scooped up the toad.
"Sorry. He's not very well trained," Neville said sheepishly.
"Oh, we weren't laughing at you," Hermione promised. "It was just a joke about something else."
Neville nodded and sat down next to Ginny, lecturing Trevor about running away.
"Oh, here's the mail," Ron said excitedly. His owl dropped off a copy of the Daily Prophet and a letter for Claire.
"Is that from Sirius?" Harry gasped. Claire nodded and ripped open the letter.
Hello Claire and Harry!
I'm home from my mission. It didn't go as smoothly as we had hoped, but no one died on our side. I wasn't siriously harmed either (see what I did there?). Remus is fine as well.
As for the important parts, Stanley Shunpike was arrested. If you don't remember, he works on the Knight Bus and is relatively well-known. We doubt he's actually a Death Eater, but you never know anymore. Use this is an reason why it is so important to keep your head down and don't tell anyone anything they don't need to know.
Harry, keep working with Dumbledore. These lessons are important. Claire, tell us any visions you have if you're comfortable. Don't tell anyone anything if you're not comfortable.
I love you both.
Sirius
Ps. Hi Claire! Hi Harry! I miss you and love you. -Remus
"What went wrong with the mission?" Claire asked worriedly. Her eyes kept going through the letter in an attempt to read between the lines and see if she could find out anything else.
"He says he's okay," Harry said, but he sounded unsure.
"Oh, Merlin," Ron gasped suddenly. His eyes were wide as he read over the Daily Prophet.
"What is it?" Hermione's questioned, rudely ripping the paper from Ron's hands. Her eyes skimmed over the paper before they widened.
"What is it?" Harry said, looking between the two.
"Mr. Weasley did a search at the Malfoy house," Hermione whispered. Claire frowned and looked over at the Slytherin table where the other students were already whispering and looking at each other. Draco's jaw was tense and he was staring at his lunch with furrowed eyebrows. His eyes flicked up and met Claire's, and he nodded his head outside, telling something to Blaise and Theo before standing up. Claire grabbed her bag and ruffled Harry's hair.
"See you in Defense," Claire said to the group before hurrying to catch up to Draco. He interlocked their hands as soon as she made it out of the room. Their hands fit perfectly together, and Claire swung their arms a few times to get him to look at her.
"They didn't find anything, but it's there," Draco admitted. "Lucius just hides stuff way too well. If they found that..."
"Don't worry about that now," Claire tried to reassure him. Draco nodded and gave her a real smile when they made it to a secluded hallway. "If you want something to get your mind off of it...I need a place to sleep tonight."
"Oh? And why is that?" Draco said teasingly, pulling Claire closer until their chests were pushed together, his arms around her waist as she put her arms around his shoulders.
"Well, I think I'm going to have a vision tonight and you make me feel better when I have them," Claire answered. Draco grinned and placed a quick kiss on her lips. "If it's okay with Blaise and Theo, of course."
"Who cares what they think?" Draco laughed, pulling her closer and giving her another kiss.
——————-
"Why don't we have a say in this sleepover? I don't like this."
"Stop complaining. My skin feels amazing."
"Shut up!" Draco groaned. Blaise and Theo snickered from their beds.
"Which face mask did you like best?" Claire asked.
"Cucumber," Blaise answered.
"I think so too," Claire agreed. Draco groaned and put his face into Claire's neck, making her giggle. While the other three had enjoyed their face masks, Draco had pouted that Claire wasn't giving him attention because he didn't want anything on his face.
"If you two are going to be gross then you need to go somewhere else," Theo warned, only half joking.
"No worries. I'm about to pass out," Claire shrugged. The last thing she recognized was that Draco shuffled so he could hold her better and then she was gone.
"Mum, what's happening?"
Claire looked and saw that she was in Draco's house where he was getting pulled by his mother down some flights of steps.
"He's here," Narcissa said simply. Draco's eyes widened and he cursed under his breath, hurrying to fix himself up.
"Ah, Mr. Malfoy."
A chill filled the room at the voice. Draco and his mother straightened their backs.
"No more excuses. It's time."
Draco's eyes widened and he looked to his mother with panic in his eyes. She looked straight ahead and tried not to cry.
"We have a job for you as well."
A blur went past her and she was suddenly at the top of the astronomy tower.
"You're not a killer."
"How do you know?"
Green lights flashed around Claire. White hair flashed in her vision before she saw Harry under an invisibility cloak. Dumbledore was looking at a familiar face, the one she loved. Tears were streaming down his face.
"Draco, just do it!"
Snape came running up the steps with other Death Eaters.
"Where is she? Where is Claire?" Draco yelled at Snape, but the professor just gave the boy a look that didn't answer anything.
"Severus, please."
Dumbledore fell off the tower, a green light hitting him in the middle of the chest.
"That's so creepy. Why are her eyes doing that?"
"Shut up. She's waking up."
Claire slowly blinked as she came back to reality. Draco was gently holding her so she didn't fall off the bed while Blaise and Theo had moved to sit on the same bed, a game of chess between them.
"What did you see? You looked concerned," Draco asked. Claire blinked at him and then sat up, pushing his arms away. His eyebrows furrowed and he looked upset.
"Come with me," Claire ordered. Draco looked at his friends and nodded his head, making them leave with little to no arguments.
"What did you see?" Draco asked softly.
"Why did Professor Snape an Unbreakable Vow with your mother? And why did I see you...I saw you about to kill Dumbledore. And I saw you getting the Dark Mark."
Draco looked shocked for a moment before he cleared his throat.
"I lied to you."
"Yeah, I've figured that out," Claire spat before taking a deep breath and calming herself down. "We can't have a relationship if you aren't honest with me. I need you to be completely honest with me. Are you a Death Eater?"
Draco took a shaky breath before rolling up his left sleeve. The Dark Mark was burned into his skin, the edges raw and red with marks.
"I covered it up before I showed you. I was forced to, I promise. I'll do an Unbreakable Vow to prove it to you," Draco rushed out. "I just...they want me to kill Dumbledore. But I can't do it. My dad sent me a bottle of wine or something, and I sent it to Dumbledore and I don't know where it is. There's something about a necklace that I keep getting letters about. And there's a cabinet in the Room of Requirement that they want time to fix so they can sneak in and attack the castle. But there's nothing I can do. The only reason they don't use me to get you is because of this mission."
"How can I help? You, obviously, not the Death Eaters," Claire said softly, gently grabbing his hand after handing his a tissue for his tears.
"I need you to believe me that I won't do anything to hurt you. And that I don't want to kill Dumbledore," Draco said quietly. "If you can...if you can find a way for me to talk to your dads, that would help. I need a way out."
"Even if it's the last thing I do, I promise to help you find a way out of this."