second chapter
With his heart racing and his mind fuzzy, Harry ran up to the bathroom, shutting the door behind him, breathing heavily. He was so mad. Everything seemed like it's falling apart instead into place and the questions just kept coming and he didn't know what to do, with anything.
He looked into the mirror, his green eyes darker. He had no idea of who he was anymore. He washed his face with cold water because he couldn't stand the heat that seemed to be all around, he was so angry yet a part of him was relieved that Draco was alive. He didn't have time to think about Draco at all, but there was always this squeezy feeling in his stomach that made him feel worried about where Malfoy was, what he was doing and if he even was alive. Harry took a deep breath, he didn't have time to waste on his stupid feelings, he had to find and destroy horcruxes.
The black haired boy slowly opened the door and found Sirius sitting outside in the hallway.
“Harry, are you alright?” Padfoot asked carefully as he stood up, facing his godson.
“Yes, I´m fine.” Harry started, his eyes a bit red from crying.
“Listen, we’re sorry about letting Malfoy stay here, we can talk about it, I mean, me and Moony don’t trust him either, fully at least, we’re keeping an eye on him, but he’s just a boy, like you, who didn't have much choice in picking a side in this war.” Sirius explained, placing a hand on Harry’s shoulder.
Harry hesitated but then sighed and nodded. “I- well, I need to talk to you about something. It’s to do with Voldemort. I sent you a letter already about the horcruxes and the one I found with Dumbledore-” Harry pulled the locket out of his pocket and showed it to Sirius. Ignoring how his heart squeezed when he said Dumbledore's name “There’s just a small hiccup. It’s a replica. Isn’t that just brilliant?” Harry asked with a sarcastic tone in his voice and scoffed slightly.
Sirius didn’t look too happy with how quickly Harry had moved on from the previous topic involving the blonde downstairs, but decided that it’s best to leave it for now, Voldemort being a greater matter.
“-But there’s a note inside of the locket.” Harry opened the fake horcrux, pulling out the note and spreading the piece of paper, handing it to Sirius who scanned the note and his eyes slowly widened, realization washing over his face.
“No.” He said. “No.” Sirius shook his head and rubbed a hand over his face. “That bastard was on our side all this time?! He-” Harry could see tears glistening in his godfather's eyes and didn’t understand anything that was going on before him.
“Do you know who took the real horcrux? Do you know who R.A.B. is?” Harry asked, feeling hope rise in him. Sirius looked too conflicted to answer him at the moment, as if he himself just received a crucial piece of information. He gestured for Harry to follow him and soon they arrived in front of a room with those exact three initials on it. R.A.B.
“Was he your-” Harry started. “Brother. He was my brother.” Sirius finished.
Sirius told Harry about Regulus, about how he left him in this house and ran away to James, about how Regulus was too scared to join him, about how Regulus became a death eater and Sirius thought that his little brother turned out like the rest of his family. But he wasn’t. He was a good person and wanted to rid the wizarding world of Voldemort. Harry listened, sitting with his godfather on the floor of Reguluses room that seemed like it was opened just now, like Sirius never went in before.
When they returned downstairs, Remus was building a house from cards and Malfoy was just bumping his leg nervously, they both looked up when they heard Sirius and Harry enter the dining room, but Malfoy quickly looked back down. Remus immediately noticed Sirius’ red eyes and stood up, making the card house shatter.
“You two look like you really need some chocolate.” The former defence against the dark arts professor smiled sheepishly, trying to lighten up the mood. Sirius gave him a thankful smile. Harry was too busy trying to think about where the real locket could be but his mind seemed too blank. He couldn’t seem to think with Malfoy in the room. Remus gave both Sirius and Harry a piece of chocolate. Malfoy was still bouncing his leg.
“Are we gonna talk about how come he’s here?” Harry nodded to Malfoy, his eyes not as cold as he might have wanted.
“I'm not good. I'm not the one for you.”
“You can't have feelings for me, you're supposed to hate me. Hate me, Potter. Hate me.”
“No. I'm not. I'm not! You don't know who I am. You can't go to the third task. You can't.”
Draco did try to warn him. Harry did feel worried about him, not sure if he’s alive or not, but that still didn’t change the fact that Malfoy betrayed him and it hurt, Harry could’ve died.
Malfoy looked up at him, but he didn’t dare say a thing. He looked sorry, troubled, tired.
“Alastor Moody brought him here, said to keep an eye on him, explained what happened. Malfoy was unconscious, so we let him sleep. We didn’t ask many questions, Moody seemed like he’s in a hurry and he tends to not get into details.” Remus explained, because Sirius still seemed like he’s processing the information about his little brother.
“Mad-eye? But-” Harry looked over to Malfoy and then back at Remus. “Moody wasn’t Moody, it was Barty Crouch junior on polyjuice potion.” Harry said quickly and instinctively placed a hand on the pocket where his wand was. “Malfoy is a spy.”
Draco’s eyebrows shot up and he looked at Remus who was processing the information and then looked at Draco, the blonde boy's hand bound to the chair and his wand upstairs in the bedroom they let him sleep in. “Wait- I’m not a spy. I swear I didn’t even know Crouch would bring me here. I don’t even know why he’d save me, he never liked me.” Malfoy finally spoke up in an attempt to defend himself.
“Harry, if what you’re saying is true then it does make a bit of sense, but him? a spy?” Sirius joined the conversation.
“Yeah, you wouldn’t suspect a seventeen year old, scrawny, blond, pretty, innocent and helpless looking boy to be the spy, right?” The cups in the cupboard started shaking as well as the chandelier. “That’s why it makes even more sense, because you wouldn’t expect him to betray you, right?” Harry was raising his voice, clearly getting angry again and pulling out his wand from his pocket almost automatically.
“Harry, calm down, he’s unarmed.” Sirius raised his voice and Harry’s hand faltered, noticing how Malfoy looked scared, watching Harry with eyes that pleaded him to understand his situation, but Harry didn’t understand. He didn’t understand anything that was going on, Merlin, he was gonna explode.
“Malfoy? Say something. Defend yourself. Deny it.” Harry hardened his gaze, scanning Malfoy’s pale face.
So the blond boy took a shaky breath, a breath that Harry would wanna steal away with a kiss, if it wasn't for the gutwretching feeling in his stomach every time he even so happaned to think about Draco Malfoy. “I'm not a spy. I don't have a clue why Crouch brought me here. I am a death eater. I did betray you. I didn't want to. I- I tried to help you and then I got knocked out by someone.” Malfoy explained, his eyes fixed on Harry’s. Grey meeting green. “I don’t expect you to forgive me.” he added and finally looked back at the ground.
The cups stopped shaking completely as the chosen one calmed down slightly.
Harry was silent for a moment. “Okay.” He finally said and put his wand back in his pocket. He didn't forgive Draco, but he found himself trusting every word the Slytherin said, as absurd as it might sound. “Crouch is in Azkaban now anyway.” Harry said, looking at Sirius and Remus who still seemed a bit wary. “And Moody’s back to his own self. Dumbledore told me before he-” The chosen one hesitated, remembering the events that happened just a few days ago, still shaken. Hermione told him it’s not his fault, but Harry felt guilt rise within him every time he thought about the light going out of the headmaster's eyes.
Remus nodded slowly. “At least we know what’s what now.” He said quietly. But did they? Harry doubted any of them knew anything of what actually mattered, but one thing was certain, he had to follow in Reguluses footsteps. He had to find that locket and destroy it.