thattimeofthemonth | Open RP Post

Ever since the final battle at Hogwarts, where so many had lost their lives and so many more had been injured and the wizarding and Muggle world alike had been saved, it had been difficult. So many had been discovered as His followers or His helpers or long corrupted. People pardoned or thrown into Azkaban or given the Kiss or other things. Lives changed forever.

Remus was no different. With so much of the Order dead, it took everyone available to help out where they could in putting the world right again. Generally they did leave him alone, given his condition and his newborn son, but sometimes he was the only one who could. So when there were muttering of a pack of dementors hiding out in a place where werewolves had been known to hide, they asked him to go.

He never expected to find someone he knew out there.

Traveling out into the mountains hadn't been pleasant but he'd managed, camping where he needed to and wanting to get home. What surprised the hell out of him was the night he finally spotted them was also the night he discovered a home out here, in the middle of no where.

So he followed cautiously, wand at the ready.

"I suggest putting your wand down." Lucius suggested his own wand pointed at Remus. He had been out redoing the various protection charms and wards on their house when he spotted Remus.

He spoke in a harsh voice with a hint of panic in there and rapidly looked around trying to see if other members of the Phoenix were near by. He also looked as if he had seen better days. While he still dressed as his status called for everything looked worn and faded.

"Did the send you to come collect my family?" He asked even though he knew they were pardoned...but with the way things were going he wouldn't be surprised if they changed their minds.

That might have been one of the last voices he ever expected to hear. He had been so focused on the dementors he had failed to pick up on the person getting close to him. Foolish! Damn. Still, he couldn't hide his surprise as he slowly lowered his wand, pardoned or not this man had beena death eater, and turned to face-

"Lucius Malfoy." He looked the other man over, taking a slow breath as he tried to put things together. Was this the reason the dementors were here? Were they his? "...I was sent to handle reports of dementors in the area." No point in lying there. "...I had no idea your family was out here." Did those in charge? The Order Hadnt even known as far as he knew or he would have been warned!

It was Lucius's turn to be surprised at the mention of dementors around. "Dementors here?" Fear filled his voice and he only clutched his wand tighter. He had thought they were all collected by now. To imagine that a group of them found their way here? He found that to be too high of a coincidence. He wanted to grab his family and run.

There was some small relief to know that the Order of the Phoenix weren't able to find him....but who sent the dementors? "This was one of our vacation homes," Lucius answered. "We came here to get away from everything. It almost worked."

No sane man would be unafraid of dementors. They were, in his opinion, the worst creatures imaginable and even if they were part of the dark, as Lucius had been (was?), they only lived for themselves and the promise of more pain. Every being with a soul feared them.

"I was chasing one when you found me. They're close; be on your guard." A none too subtle warning. "If your family is here, they need to be told!" They could deal with semantics later.

It occurred to Remus right then that the Malfoys might be even in more troublr than he first thought. They were a powerful family in their magic, but they were aligned with the dark. They had no light to fight with.

Lucius didn't have to be told twice. Instantly he appearated to go warn his family. Putting up the rest of the protection charms wouldn't suffice. He wasn't sure what they could do at this point since none of their magic would work against a dementor. Not when their magic was aligned with the dark. That's what frightened him the most.

He was hesitant to rely on Remus's help knowing their history together. Then there was the little bit of pride he still had left. This was his family. He had to protect them. He managed to get them out of the mess he caused from the start he could get them out of this too.

If necessary there was another place they could flee too that was isolated like this one. His family followed him with questioned, all them having their wands out. Warily, he led them out where Remus was, unsure of what to do at this point. He hated being in such a position.

Remus gave an uncertain nod of greeting towards Narcissa and Draco, his wand held and ready. Even if it was awkward, they all had a common thing to handle right now. Awkward can come later.

"Can any of you produce a Partronus?" He said softly, not sure if maybe he had overlooked but he needed to be certain. Was he protecting three, two, or one?

Movement caught his eye and he looked hard, eyes narrowing. Damn had that been a flash of ratty robe?

Lucius and his wife shook his head no in answer to being able to do such a charm. Only they glanced at their son when he spoke.

"I attempted to learn the Patronus charm...but I couldn't do a full corporeal one," Draco awkwardly admitted hesitantly looking up at his father before looking at Remus.

Lucius gave an approving nod, proud that his son was able to do so much and had taken an initiative in his education while he had been gone.

Remus was quietly impressed, and gave his own quick nod. "Good. Be ready for it. This home is as good a place to make a stance as anywhere else as there are no other humans for miles. They're most likely to come here."

"Lucius!" Came a quiet word of warning from Narcissa, who had caught sight of movement before even Remus had. She shifted her weight, looking very ready to step in front of her son if need be. Remus' lips thinned as he shifted his stance just as the first one came at them.

It swept down, yet it only flew past them, leaving Remus to grit his teeth. "There are going to be more!"

Instinctively, Lucius stepped in front of his family at the warning his wife gave him. He held his wand up and summoned a shield charm for around them. If anything it would by them time. His eyes never left the dementor knowing that there would be more now they found their prey.

Draco did his best to try and focus on happier memories knowing the stronger they were the better the Patronus charm would be. It was extremely hard to focus when he was terrified beyond belief.

Draco managed to do a sliver of a Patronus as another one came swooping down on them. He kept trying again and again not wanting to give up knowing it was important.

"No you don't," Remus rumbled low, his eyes narrowing as more swept in. There had been a time when the Marauders had been his happy memory - their friendship, their family they had been. Now, he had something far more powerful. The moment Teddy had been put into his arms, crying and wet and beautiful.

He put it all into his thoughts until he cried out in a snap, "Expecto Patronum!" From his wand came the silvery wolf in full leap, landing first on the ground then leaping into the air after the dementors, silently snarling as it defended the four wizards.

At the same time Draco managed to conjure up a full Patronus in the form of a fox. It's silvery form following the wolf as it chased after the dementors. He had used the times before the Dark Lord had resurfaced and things had been safe and sound. His family had been happy then and thats what he had yearned for the most.

Seeing the fully conjured Patronus made Lucius even more proud of his son. He would have to compliment him later. For now he was putting up various shield charms trying to help give Remus and his son more time to ward the dementors off. Always he stayed in front of his family even if Draco could do the Patronus charm.

"Two more to your left, Remus," Lucius shouted just barely seeing them out of the corner of his eye.

Seemed the boy had grown in power since they'd last met! Good because it was far easier with two than one. At Lucius' warning, he whistled loudly and the wolf turned course, all but tackling into one of the monsters.

The other, however, went straight for the family while his patronus was busy. "Draco!" He called out sharply, warning and wanting the boy's patronus to intercept.

"On it!" Draco shouted back as he sent his Patronus to intercept.

Draco had to improve his skills in order to help protect his family. As they could no longer protect him. Oddly he did better out of school then at the school learning everything.

It looked as if there were no more approaching. All three still held their poise unsure if more were going to come. They hoped that was the last of them, but one can never be sure. Even if it weren't the dementors it could be who ever sent them over.

Silence reigned. Between them and the dementors, every living thing for miles was gone or in hiding. Remus breathed out as his Patronus returned to his side, waiting. He saw Draco's slinky through the underbrush, but nothing else moved.

He let out a slow breath. "I think that's it for the moment, but they'll return. Luckily I have a way to trap them, but I don't think anyone was expecting so many. Damn there were at least five of them."

He looked around to the Malfoys. "Everyone unhurt?"

"We're okay...thanks to your warning," Lucius replied. If they hadn't received that warning none of them would have been prepared for the sudden attack.

He then placed a hand on Draco's shoulder and hugged him. "You did well today. I am pleased with how strong you've gotten." Draco returned the hug and was proud of his accomplishment and the compliment his father gave him. The compliment had meant more then anything to him.

Lucius then turned back to Remus. "Do you think they were sent here on purpose or they only gathered because we were the only ones here? And how can we help trap them?"

Sometimes he couldn't understand how a man could love his family so much yet feel so little for others. How he couldn't see how others of any blood could feel the same for theirs. Remus shook his head a little under the guise of wiping his brow, then dismissed his Patronus with a wave of his wand.

"I normally wouldn't impose," he said, waiting until father and son broke apart, "but I'd be grateful if I could spend the night here instead of roughing it. Either way, I can explain about the trapping." It was a lot, asking for shelter from a former enemy and knowing even with the save how Lucius felt about Mudbloods and worse, werewolves.

Also that prank years before didn't help matters.

Lucius looked to Narcissa upon Remus's request. She gave a slight nod. After all, it would be rude to turn away someone who just helped save them. At this point it didn't matter who they were.

"You are welcome to stay for the night," Lucius answered. "It is the least we can do. Narcissa and Draco can take you to inside, while I finish putting up the protection charms."

Things certainly had changed, hadn't they? He could have pointed out a thousand times he would have been dead certain that the Malfoys would have rather burned their house down than let someone of his blood stay in their home, but then again, everything had changed. Absolutely everything. Maybe, in a certain sense, the true death of Voldemort had been enough to finally change Lucius.

Then again he wasn't about to let his guard down completely, either. Really, it had only been the very real fear he had heard in Lucius' voice at the mention the dementors were nearby that had even let him turn his back on the man long enough to fight.

"Thank you," he said honestly, tucking away his wand and shifting the small pack on his back to a more comfortable position. "We've come up with something that can actually capture them, but it's... well, a prototype might be the best word for it."

Perhaps, in the past yes it would have been true. So much had changed that the Malfoys were unsure of where they stood or what to believe in anymore. As much as they hated to admit it Remus was the first person they saw since they went into hiding. He even helped them when he could have turned away.

"We'll be willing to try anything at this point. We really don't need more dementors showing up on our doorstep. It's bad enough we had to leave the Malfoy Mannor temporarily," Lucius commented. "We don't wish to have to find another place."

Narcissa made a motion for Remus to follow her and Draco inside to allow Lucius to do his work. Once inside she showed him into the sitting room and offered him some tea and then went to the kitchen she had been in the middle of preparing their evening meal. She left Draco to entertain Remus in the mean time. The boy eventually had to learn how to entertain guests.

Remus really wasn't terribly used to being treated like this, so despite himself, he did end up looking a hint on the awkward side of things as he sat down after dropping his pack beside him. It was easier to put his focus on the young man with him. The smile he managed to pull up was real, even if he was tired. "Congratulations. Managed a corporeal Patronus." A nod, acknowledging his strength as a fellow wizard. "The Patronus tells a lot about the creator, you know?"

He paused, gave a soft laugh. "Mine is a bit on the obvious side, though, but they're not always that obvious." Small talk (also not something he was fantastic at, but thanks to his family, he was getting better) but at least small talk that wasn't completely failing.

Draco gave a nod, pleased to earn the compliment from his previous professor. The subject about the charm was interesting, but he was more curious of why he could do it.

"How come...I was able to do a corporeal Patronus despite being raised around dark magic? The only other person who I know who could do that was Professor Snape. If we change...does that mean what we can and can't do will change?"

It was strange talking to his professor after all this time. They had never really conversed when he was his teacher...especially after that prank. But to talk to each other as almost equals made the conversation awkward. It was also difficult to decide what was okay to reveal and not.

What else could they do? Sitting in silence would have been worse, but talking with a young man he had seen as a snot-nosed, arrogant brat who he was attempting to treat as somewhat more of an equal... yet there would always the age difference, one that he wasn't entirely certain Draco would respect.

Give it a go, though.

Still, he gave real thought to Draco's question, frowning as he turned over what best to say before starting hesitantly, "...a Patronus... is a spell that is unique. Not every wizard will be able to perform it, even if they are powerful. It is a deeply personal spell, unlike most. You're right, you were raised around dark magic," he wouldn't put that nicely, "but you are not your parents. We each chose our path in life, and your path is not necessarily as dark as your parents."

He met Draco's eyes, brows lifting slightly. "As proven by your casting of the Patronus. However," and here his voice went soft, "if you were to chose to follow the path they had walked before, you would lose the ability... or worse." He was a bit more grave on the last two words.

Draco clasped his hands together and he sat down opposite of Remus, clearly taking in what was said and thinking it over.

"All I ever wanted was to protect my family....just as they always protected me. I was willing to do what it took to do it. Even when I thought I was protecting them they had found a way to keep me from going down their path."

He was secretly glad to be not compared as his parents for once. That he was his own person and had the right to choose his own path. To hear this from Remus was a bit of a surprise for Draco.

It was hard to be vague and still try to say what he wanted to say. He had been willing to go their same path for them, but in the end his parents saved him from doing so. Although, it had cost him his godfather, a debt that he couldn't pay back.

Remus' lips thin as he thought hard on what to say for a long few moments, considering that he was in the home of the Malfoys. Finally, he leaned forward, elbows on his knees, and spoke quietly still. "There are many who would disagree with me on this, given their path, but from what I've seen, your mother and father would have done, would always do, anything they had to to protect you. To protect them in return is honorable, though like them, what you might do to follow it isn't."

The corner of his mouth lifted, just for a moment, before he sighed and leaned back. "You could learn more, if you wanted. More on the lighter side of things. As it is, it'll be easier to have help getting these dementors in this trap." He gave a quiet chuckle. "You need to be able to cast a Pantronus to accomplish it."

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