Aurors

The young Slytherin took a deep breath after the Auror had made her magic retreat back into its cage again. It was a feeling he had never experienced before. He had started to feel the familiar heat from Potter's magic right before the witch had sent the Gryffindor sliding across the room in the chair but now it seemed like a candle flame compared to hers. Draco looked at the other two Slytherins in the room and it was obvious they had been taken aback by it themselves.

"Bloody hell, Miss. Warn a wizard next time." Auror Blackmoore only gave Blaise a smirk in return before turning back to face Potter with a scowl on her face. The ravenhead was sitting still in the chair now taking deep breaths like the rest of them.

"Do you understand now, Mr Potter?" Draco was surprised by the anger in Potter's face when the Auror had spoken to him and time stood still for what seemed like an eternity before the blond understood that she was using Legilimency on him. After a couple of minutes of silence, the other wizard slumped in the chair out of breath once more.

"That was uncalled for. You could have asked all that." Auror Blackmoore smirked at Potter now.

"Would you have answered?" The Gryffindor looked guilty for a second before he had to shake his head in defeat. His eyes met Draco's then and the blond had to scowl at the guilt that he thought was directed at the Auror now seemed to be directed at him.

A strike of worry shot through the blond when it was the ravenhead that looked away first still with a guilty expression on his face. That had never happened before and it bothered Draco more than he liked to admit. Auror Blackmoore flicked her wand, which the blond now knew was just a fake and let Potter off the chair. The wizard stood up and almost as a kicked puppy walked over to the witch.

"I get it. I need to get my magic under control better. You really want to help me?" A soft smile spread over her face as she nodded.

"Of course, I'm sure the gentlemen in the room would be willing to help you as well. Them being Pure-Bloods and all. Right?" Draco had to keep himself from laughing now that he knew what kind of insane power the witch actually had. There would be no better teacher than her, but then again she had to hide most of her power away so she could not show Potter everything.

The three Slytherins looked at each other with raised eyebrows for a little while and the blond had to peek at Potter from the corner of his eye. The man looked beyond nervous which Draco had never seen before and it fascinated him.

"How will we help, Auror Blackmoore?" The Auror smiled at them all as she put her hand on the other Gryffindor's shoulder.

"This might come as a shock for some of you but Mr Potter here grew up among muggles, so he never learned how to keep control of his magical core early in life." Draco knew this from an earlier conversation he had with Potter but it still gave him a slight shock to be reminded of it. That talk also ended in a big fight before they could finish it properly and he wondered if there was more to the story that Potter hadn't told him back then. He was brought out of his train of thought by Blaise snorting.

"Can't stop being special can you, Potter?" The ravenhead just grinned back at the Slytherin and seemed to relax somewhat.

"Sorry, Zabini." Blaise rolled his eyes but the blond saw the small smirk forming on his face.

"So you didn't learn anything about how to control it before you got to Hogwarts? What about the Weasleys? They must have taught you something?" Potter shrugged in response to Nott's question.

"I thought they had enough of dealing with their own kids and never really asked them about it." Auror Blackmoore gave his shoulder a short squeeze Draco noticed and the pair looked at each other before the witch's eyes twinkled with mischief.

"Mr Potter can make a Patronus but can't control his magic. None of you can make Patronuses but you can control your magic. See where I am going with this?" The room turned quiet for a long while until the blond decided to take charge and stood up from his chair and walked over to stand in front of Potter. The shorter wizard looked almost scared but stood his ground as Draco knew he would as he reached out his hand for the ravenhead to take.

"Let's help each other, Potter. If you're willing to have an ex-Death Eater teach you something that is." He saw that Auror Blackmoore gave him a sad smile but he chose to focus on Potter who in turn looked angry for a second before he became determined. The ravenhead gave his left arm a look before shaking his head.

"You're not a Death Eater, Malfoy. Never were. You got forced into taking that mark and I'll gladly help you if you can tolerate help from the Saviour one more time that is." Potter took his hand as he smiled widely. The blond snorted at the way he had turned the question around on him but he had to smile in return.

"Glad that is settled then. Now, remember what I told you, Mr Potter." The Gryffindor was quick to nod at the Auror who smiled in return.

The other Slytherins had stood up now as well and walked the short distance towards them.

"Imagine, the mighty Hero needs help from the Slytherin house! Never thought I would see the day." Potter chuckled softly at them all as the blond noticed the Auror walking over to the sofa and sitting down. She rubbed her eyes tiredly as she leaned back. The other wizards stopped their antics from behind him and he jumped slightly when Potter pushed him towards her. Looking over his shoulder he was met with the biggest grin he had ever seen on the Gryffindor.

"How about a round on the Quidditch pitch, Zabini, Nott? Malfoy you needed to talk with Auror Blackmoore about something right? You mentioned something about that earlier." Blinking at the shorter wizard it suddenly clicked with him what the man was trying to do and he nodded slowly. Blaise and Nott gave him weird looks but went over to get their book bags and said their goodbyes to the witch. She waved at them as they left and before he ran through the door Potter sent him a last grin. Draco rolled his eyes at the door before turning his attention towards the witch.

"You alright, Artemis?" Finally, alone he was free to use her first name and if felt good the way it tasted on his tongue. The brunette didn't answer immediately and he wondered for a second if she had fallen asleep but before he started to move over to her she answered.

"You really want an answer to that, Draco?" He bit his lip to prevent himself from resorting to something sarcastic. The witch let out a deep sigh as she leaned forward on the sofa again. The blond tensed when her golden eyes met his but he willed himself not to show fear.

"I asked didn't I?" A smirk spread across the witch's face.

"You sure did." Draco suddenly noticed the walls change around him and he spun around in a panic. The cosy interior melted in front of him as the soft chairs turned into hard wooden classroom chairs. He stumbled as the room grew in size and windows, desks and other types of decorations showed up to fill the room. A stage appeared last and the blond now noticed that the witch was sitting on top of it on a wooden chair. She was watching him with her head tilted to one side and with a clear interest in her golden eyes. Confused, he looked around and recognised it as the classroom where they'd had their first Defence class with the Aurors.

"A Defence classroom?" Auror Blackmoore let out a harsh laugh as she spread her arms wide like she was presenting something to an audience.

"Welcome to my personal hell, Draco." The blond's eyes widened as he looked around again. He remembered now from what she had told him that night about how Burns had dragged her into a classroom with the help of other Gryffindors to take out their anger on her. It sent a shiver down his spine. Their eyes met again and all Draco found in her eyes was despair. It was clear the witch was dealing with more emotions than the blonde had first believed. He walked more into the room but stopped before he got to the stage finding it wise to keep some distance between himself and her. She watched his every move like a predator watching its prey. Had he been smart he would try to get to the door and escape the room but his curiosity got the better of him.

"Why not just leave? Never look back." The Auror laughed again.

"Would you let me leave?" The blond bit his lip again. His answer was an obvious one as he shook his head no. Her smirk grew wider as her eyes seemed to grow colder.

"I was hoping the castle would turn into a total ruin after the war but magic can sometimes be a fucking annoying thing. Fixes everything and nothing at the same time. Take this room for instance. I have no clue where the actual classroom is anymore but somehow the castle insists on showing it to me. Like a wound that never stops bleeding." Her voice remained normal Draco noted which to him meant that this was actually Artemis speaking. Finding some courage he walked up to the edge of the stage and looked at her before climbing up. She studied him again as he placed himself next to her.

Suddenly, a faint scream passed through his ear and he turned around quickly but saw nothing.

"Did you hear that?" The Slytherin could feel the sweat starting to collect on his forehead as the witch chuckled.

"The screams? Yes, I've been listening to them for years already." Draco turned his attention back to the witch with a worried gaze.

"It's you, isn't it?" She stood up from the chair and she looked at him again with the same studying look in her eye from before.

"On this stage, they cursed me, over and over, the screams from back then are stuck to the walls it seems. This bloody castle never forgets a thing. Even the floor still has the same discolouration after my blood seeped into the wood." The brunette pointed to the stage floor and the blond had to swallow thickly. Dark red spots could be seen in the contrast of the wood on the stage, just under where the chair stood. Involuntarily, he flinched when she came closer to him. However, his feet were glued to the floor and he started to shiver when the witch touched his chest and started to stroke down the scar that was present underneath his shirt.

"You should thank your lucky stars, Draco, that you did not end up like me." Her voice was changing to that of a more cold and raspy voice and the wizard felt his gut trying to get him to flee but again he willed himself to stand his ground.

"What do you mean, Artemis?" A louder scream filled his ears and something that sounded like a man's voice yelling. He tried to listen to what was being said but one voice slowly turned into multiple and from what he could tell it was both men and women now. Draco's head was starting to hurt as he tried to cover his ears but no matter what he tried he could still hear the voices.

"Please… make it stop." Hands covered his own and the world became quiet once more. Suddenly, he realised that he had closed his eyes and he slowly opened them to meet the gold ones of Artemis.

"Broken beyond repair."

~𓅃~

Something was wrong. Orion could feel it in his core as he walked in the direction of where he thought Artemis would be. The signal was wavering and since Zacharias had told him they had been in the Room of Requirement when he arrived back at the school that was where he was headed first. Eminence's word still clung to him like leeches and his anger flared up when he thought about the young Malfoy having sex with Artemis behind his back. Of course, it didn't have to be true as he found it too far-fetched if he thought about it rationally but the jealousy demon that raged inside him told him otherwise.

The bond was wavering more now, almost telling him to hurry and he picked up his pace and soon he was in a full sprint down the hall towards the door of the room he was looking for. It was not the normally well-decorated door the room favoured to use but an ordinary wooden door and he scowled while taking his wand out of his holster. Taking a deep breath he opened the door quietly and was met with a sight from the past.

The old Defence classroom they had saved Artemis from all those years ago was in front of him like time had not moved. The only difference now was that on stage stood the young Malfoy with his hands around Artemis, enveloping her in a hug. However, black smoke was floating around the room in a carefree manner and the temperature was chilled but not as cold as it usually was when she was in a state of anger. It was more that she was hovering between the demon and herself.

Neither of them noticed his presence as he moved closer to them. Carefully, he climbed onto the stage while he kept a close eye on both of them. It was then he noticed that the black smoke was not touching the younger wizard and instead made what looked like a protective circle around his feet much like what it did with himself. It was familiar to him in a way and flashes of what happened in the room appeared in front of his eyes. When he had been standing in front of Artemis for the first time like locked in a trance. Pocketing his wand he went to stand behind the witch and slowly wrapped his arms around her overlapping the other wizard's hands in the process. This seemed to have an effect as the other blond jolted awake and looked at him with wide eyes.

"A..Auror S… Silver? Wh…" Orion hushed him before he got to say anything else as he motioned to the witch in the middle of them.

"Let go of her. Slowly." Malfoy looked down confused and jumped again as if he just realised where he was. While looking at him the young wizard carefully let go of the shorter witch and just managed to slide his arms free but then came the first problem, Artemis was holding on to his waist and he experimentally tried to move but the witch would not let him. Orion sighed as he leaned down to whisper in her ear and hoped that his theory proved correct.

"That's not me, Artemis. Let him go." Malfoy looked at him with a confused expression before he showed realisation behind the grey eyes. Nothing happened for a few seconds and Orion was about to try again before the other wizard suddenly moved out of the witch's hold with a clear look of relief on his face. He motioned towards the door.

"Leave, Mr Malfoy." The boy stood his ground.

"Sorry, Sir but I won't. I don't know how but I saw you… I was you that day when you saved her." Orion looked down on the floor and noticed the black smoke was still protectively circling the boy and he tightened his hold on the witch that still seemed to be stuck in the past somehow.

"Not the time to be stubborn, Malfoy. Leave. That's an order." The boy had the nerve to shake his head.

"You have no right to order me anywhere, Silver." It was clear the younger wizard regretted his words after Orion sent him an ugly glare but since he had his hands full at the moment there was nothing he could do.

"If the smoke around your feet starts to move closer and go up your legs you run out of here as fast as you can. Got it?" Thankful that the other blond nodded seriously he went back to give all his attention to Artemis who was standing completely still in his arms. The temperature had not changed and the smoke was still floating around lazily. Orion grabbed her chin with one hand and turned her head in the direction of his own face.

"Artemis. You have to wake up." Her eyes opened to look into his but it looked like she was far away and not really seeing him. However, the smoke started to move around in a circular pattern around them like it understood what he was saying.

"Listen to me, Artemis. You have to return to me." He could feel the smoke climbing up his legs and he noticed it was doing the same to Malfoy. The boy shouted something but Orion could not hear him as smoke surrounded him and the witch, like a cocoon and the world grew silent.

~𓅃~

The blond used some time to adjust to the darkness of the coffin of smoke he now found himself in but breathed a sigh of relief when he was still holding on to Artemis who was now turning around in his arms. Golden eyes met his and for once surprise struck him as she was looking at him the same way she had done so many years ago. Her hand touched his face softly as she smiled the same hollow smile.

"Still fearless or even more stupid? You never answered me back then, King." He shivered as she used his nickname in the same mocking manner from a long time past.

"Probably the second one if I'm being honest. I need Artemis to return to me." The smile got softer somehow.

"So she can continue to be feared? Betrayed?" Orion took hold of her hand and kept his eyes locked on her.

"So she can be loved for what she is." What he now knew was the demon laughed a cold laugh as she placed her other hand on his cheek.

"Which can never happen now can it? You made sure of that personally. How will you make the boy forget behind her back?" The wizard gave her a hard glare as he removed her hands from his face.

"I have done what is necessary to keep her safe all these years and I would do it all over again if I have to. This time, however, I will keep my promise to leave the boy alone if it means she will not leave me." The demon gave him a puzzled look as she stepped back to look at him. It was like she was debating something with herself but suddenly she gave him a soft smile.

"Very well. I have no choice but to obey the Master but it comes with a warning." She stepped closer to him again and placed her arms around his shoulders while pulling herself slightly up so she could whisper in his ear.

"If you use my power to attack someone precious to her again being thrown against the ceiling is going to seem like a blessing." Before he got to answer she went limp and he just managed to catch her before she fell to the floor. The smoke around them vanished into thin air and Orion blinked against the sudden harsh light of the room.

"Auror Silver!" The blond turned his head towards the sound of his name and found Malfoy standing a few meters away from them with a panicked expression.

"You were in there for such a long time and I couldn't move… I…"

"Calm down, Mr Malfoy. Everything is fine now. Take a deep breath." For once the boy did as he was told and steadied himself while taking a few deep breaths while Orion picked up Artemis and made sure he had her in a secure hold. She was breathing normally and the bond was now calm. He took a look around the room one last time before walking towards the door.

"The door, Mr Malfoy, if you don't mind." Malfoy managed to get his feet to move then as he ran towards the door and took a peek outside before opening it fully.

"Nobody there." They proceeded to walk through the halls without much trouble as Orion took as many shortcuts as he knew of with Malfoy going ahead to scout.

~𓅃~

All of his other colleagues were in the office when they arrived and all of them got up from their chairs. Without saying anything Orion passed Artemis on to Cyril who looked worried beyond comparison but hurried to the bedroom to put her down. Septimus was quick to follow them as Zacharias was left in the office to give him a weird look.

"What happened now?" The blond shook his head.

"Later. Mr Malfoy come with me." He ignored the questions that Queen shouted his way and marched back out of the painting. The second the portrait closed and he was certain there was no one nearby he grabbed the younger Slytherin by the collar and dragged him into the Trophy room just down the hall. Orion pushed him into the room with perhaps a little too much force but at that moment he did not care and slammed the door shut behind him.

The young blond looked more confused than scared at the moment but as the taller wizard marched towards him and grabbed his collar again while slamming him into the wall his eyes quickly turned towards fear.

"You knowing everything about her is one thing but not listening to me when I have more knowledge about her is something completely different. Do you have a death wish, Mr Malfoy?" Orion had to smirk when the fear turned to anger in the other wizard's eyes.

"You don't even know what happened before you arrived! She was talking total nonsense about how she might as well disappear from this plane of existence when it was she who told me that you have to accept that the bad memories are things of the past and even they will fade with time. Artemis actually came back to me then but something weird happened and I suddenly found myself seeing that painful memory through your eyes." Orion's mind was racing as he processed what he was saying to him. At the moment he didn't quite understand how it was possible but he had to discuss it with Septimus later.

"What if you were dead on the floor when I got her back to herself? What then?" Horror flashed over the grey eyes and he stopped struggling against Orion's grip.

"Didn't think so." The taller wizard let him go but crossed his arms in front of him.

"Now on to something different. I talked with Loftwind this morning and she told me something interesting. When did you and Artemis sleep together?" The young Malfoy looked genuinely confused now and raised his eyebrow in return.

"What are you talking about? I never said that to her." It was Orion's turn to raise his eyebrow at the other wizard.

"Really now? I will admit the witch can be not of this planet on occasion but she is not usually that wrong about things. It is a simple question, Mr Malfoy. Did you sleep with her or not?" Suddenly, Malfoy burst out laughing and the older wizard got more annoyed by the second.

"She actually believed that? I thought she knew I was formulating myself that way on purpose. She is not as smart as I thought she was." Orion pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance when he realised what had happened.

"You told her you had slept with her but you meant that she was sleeping in your room that night. Is that it?" He heard the other wizard laugh again.

"If memory serves me I said that she stayed the night with me, nothing about us sleeping together. Not my fault she actually misunderstood it." The taller blond tried not to let the smirk appear on his face but he soon found himself snickering at imagining the witch's face. However, he quickly turned serious again.

"That better stay a misunderstanding so don't even think about it, Mr Malfoy." Malfoy's expression was unreadable when he nodded as an answer. Sighing Orion walked towards the door and opened it and gestured for the boy to leave. The pair went back into the office where Zacharias was standing in the middle looking uncomfortable.

"Everything alright, King?" Orion nodded and pointed to the Malfoy.

"Follow him to wherever he needs to be at the moment. I'm watching Artemis." Not bothering to wait for an answer he walked into the bedroom.

The older Zabini watched the other Auror leave the office before he turned towards Draco.

"Well…where do you need to be, Mr Malfoy?" Draco shrugged in return. His mind was too busy to even think at the moment and he jumped when the older man touched his shoulder.

"Follow you back to the common room or maybe we can just go to the Great Hall? It's not that long until dinner after all. We can grab a round of wizards chess if you want." The dark wizard was speaking softer than he normally would and it was obvious he understood that something had happened with Artemis and him being present to see it. Nodding he let himself be led out of the office and down the hall towards the stairs.

~𓆗~

They walked in silence which was even less normal when the blond thought about it. Auror Zabini always talked, no matter what he did.

"Sir?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you scared of her?" His question made the taller man stop in his tracks and look at him with interest before he laughed.

"Absolutely terrified. You ask as if you have figured something out." Draco gave him a look of interest of his own before answering.

"Maybe." Auror Zabini started to walk again as he laughed.

"I'm joking, I know that you know. Ace told me earlier in the office. But what I said is true. There is nothing that scares me more than her." Confused, the blond hurried to follow him.

"But how does that work? Doesn't that make a rift in your friendship?" The wizard didn't even take a second to think before he replied.

"Just because fear is a feeling you try to avoid doesn't mean you can live without it. Fear keeps you alive. It's hard to explain but it kinda gets addictive after a while, you know? I wake up every day knowing that my fear is sleeping just two beds down from mine but I also know that I am never safer when she is around." It made sense to him as that was what he felt himself. He felt safe in the witch's presence even if he shouldn't.

"I get it." Snickering the dark wizard patted him on the back.

"It took me a while to get to this conclusion. I have seen her do some terrible things but she still manages to get embarrassed by the smallest things. How bad can she really be then, heh?" Draco smiled at him and nodded.

"Don't hesitate to ask if ya got some questions. Good old' Zach got the answers you seek. Except with the most technical stuff, you gotta ask Ace about that." They walked the rest of the way in silence and the blond's head was filled with thoughts of what he had just seen. No matter what he could not imagine how Burns had managed to get a seat on the teachers' table at the school and wondered if something behind the scenes was pulling the strings.