Never A Memory

A/N: Originally, I had planned to really have Blaise dig his own grave in this chapter, but then decided, overall, there wouldn't be sufficient time for him to dig himself out again. The pace is quickening and there won't be much time for any unnecessary melodrama.

HOWEVER

I like Blaise and, therefore, must torture him. TT_TT

He has a dark secret to reveal.

Read on to find out what it is!

Enjoy.

P.S. I constructed a CAST for the characters of this story. I posted it after the Prologue in case any one wanted to look it over. I'll be adding to it gradually if I create anyone else that's new or bring in any more canon characters.



"Memories fade. They're made that way for a reason." ~Strange Days


~The Plight of Blaise Zabini~

~*~

Martha Lane went into the kitchen to check on the brewing stew she had in the cauldron for dinner and smiled when she heard the front door open, followed by the ritualistic delighted squeals of her two daughters, Tally and Crysta, as they greeted their father at the door. As always, there was the surprised “OOF!” from her husband, Drew Williams when they flung themselves around his neck and the high-pitched giggles that followed after that. Martha made her way into the living and embraced Drew once he had detangled himself from their daughters.

“Hello, dear,” Martha murmured, her gentle eyes the very vision of endearment and love. “How was work?”

Drew Williams kissed her forehead but did not answer, his thoughts straying to the strange visitor he and his partner, Joe Byrne, had denied access to Maximus Cure earlier that afternoon. “What’s for dinner?”

Martha’s eyes narrowed a fraction, the change in subject not lost on her. “Did something happen?”

Williams shook his head, not wanting to discuss it in front of the children, and pulled her into the hall after telling their daughters to go play in their room. Sulking, they obliged, leaving their parents in privacy. “A man came to the office today,” Williams said quietly. “He wanted Cure to be released into his custody.”

Martha's eyes widened a fraction. "Cure? The man who attacked Draco Malfoy all those weeks ago? Who was he?"

True, most Aurors opted to keep their work separate from their home life--and with good reason too--but Martha and Drew had married under the promise that they would tell one another everything...even if it meant Martha waking in the middle of the night, fearing for the safety of her children after being informed of events from a gruesome day of work as an Auror. During these times, Martha hated that her husband did such dangerous work to maintain their lifestyle, but she had known who she was marrying and would bear the horror with her husband no matter what.

Most times, it wasn't all that terrible, strengthening their trust in one another and keeping their relationship alive. Other times...well.

In sickness and in health. In the good times and the bad. Martha was a strong woman, and an even stronger wife. She held her marriage vows close to her heart and bore it all with a resilient pride.

Even so, Drew Williams wished he didn't have to tell her all of this. He didn't like seeing his wife distressed and knew this would do just that. But he could never lie to her, nor could keep anything from her.

"A Wizard called Blaise Zabini," Drew said, taking her hand and leading her to the kitchen table. Sitting, he ran a hand through his wavy hair. "Joe and I looked up what we could of him after we denied him access to Cure. He's got quite a record himself."

"A record?" Martha asked, taking a seat herself.

"He's a known Death Eater," Drew murmured. "The Ministry of Magic of the United Kingdom used him as a double spy, but after the war, they never granted him clemency. Apparently, they weren't sure of his loyalty to either side. He disappeared after the defeat of You-Know-Who and I haven't heard of him re-appearing until he showed up at our office."

Martha frowned, stress-lines forming at the corners of her petal-soft mouth. "Do you think he works now for the Gatherer...the one who contracted Cure?"

Drew scowled. "That's just it. Zabini claims that the Gatherer is dead, that Draco Malfoy killed him when the Gatherer tried to aid a Tulpa in possessing Malfoy's body."

"A...a Tulpa?" Martha wrung her hands. "What is a Tulpa doing trying to possess a human body? Aren't they condensed spirit energy? Why would they...? I don't understand."

"Zabini claimed that one Tulpa, the Black Tulpa called Maul, grew so powerful on dark energy that it learned to think. He claims that this Maul granted You-Know-Who the secret to the Horcruxes years ago in exchange for a branded Host."

"And that Host is Draco Malfoy?" Martha smiled a little. "That poor boy that defeated You-Know-Who? It's a little poetic, I think."

Drew answered his wife's smile with one of his own before growing serious again. "Yes, well, Joe was able to confirm that a Black Tulpa is rumored to exist."

"Where is Draco Malfoy now?"

Drew shrugged. "I don't know. He didn't say."

"You didn't ask?"

Drew met his wife's eyes a little shamefully. "He was pretentious Pureblood, Martha. You know how much I hate--"

Martha rolled her eyes. "When you jump to conclusions around Purebloods, you're no better than those Wizards who look down on you for being Muggle-born. Anyway; why does Zabini want Cure?"

"He wants him for the Inversion Enchantratem. Zabini thinks that it would be a plausible way to detach Maul from Malfoy's body long enough for them to fight the Black Tulpa and destroy it without killing the Host."

"Them? So...Zabini is working for the Ministry? Surely, even if Zabini lied and the Gatherer is alive, they wouldn't want to kill Maul."

"The Gatherer tried to pry Maul loose once already, Martha," Drew reminded her.

"Wizards are prone to selfishness, Drew," Martha replied logically. "Even Gatherers."

"True, but there is no way to know for sure if Zabini is lying or not," Drew said. "He never claimed to be working for the Ministry and wouldn't give us any credentials. He could be here for any reason, and most look grim. Besides, I'll be damned if I'm going to give them a tool to let that thing loose in the world. Do you realize how dangerous that could be?"

"No, Drew," Martha said softly, knowing that what she was about to hear, she probably wouldn't like. "I don't."

"It'd be like You-Know-Who coming back, only a hundred times worse," Drew whispered intensely. "It's rumored that the Black Tulpa holds power granted him by Ancient Magic. It is said that--along with the condensed energy of a thousand evils--Maul holds the power of the Ten Plagues, the Seven Keys, and the Nine Great Horrors. It is said that Maul is the Angel of Death. And if Zabini is not lying, he is trying to possess a great Wizard's body!" Drew shook his head. "Releasing that demon would be more catastrophic than Voldemort ever was."

Martha was quiet for a long time. "That poor boy," Martha murmured.

Drew's head snapped up. "What?"

"Malfoy," Marthat clarified. "It must be a horrible feeling, being a vessel for such great evil...and right after defeating You-Know-Who! Merlin!"

Drew sighed, resting his chin in his hand. "And there's another thing. Zabini claimed to be Draco Malfoy's best friend. According to his file, he is not lying. They've been apart for many years...but it would be one good reason for him to come out of hiding. And, well, if everything he's saying is true, he would never claim that the Ministry sent him because the Ministry wouldn't want to be known for using wanted Death Eaters to do their dirty work."

"During that war, no Government was above using known Death Eaters to do their dirty work," Martha murmured. "If Maul is claiming this as the End of Days, I don't see why the Ministry wouldn't do the same now. Drew, I think this Zabini will do whatever is necessary to take Cure back with him to Britain."

"You think so?"

"I do."

"Why?"

Martha stood and went to stand by her husband. Taking his face in both of her hands, she smiled gently down into Drew's tired gaze. "If it were me, wouldn't you?"

"Yes," Drew replied hoarsely without a hint of hesitating. "Yes, I would."

Martha nodded, rubbing the pads of her thumbs over his cheek bones. "I think that boy deserves more than the Dementor's Kiss, my heart. For all his troubles, you can have a family and live in relative peace and quiet. As can every other Wizard and Witch in the world, Muggle-Born, Half-Blood, or otherwise. I think he deserves a hero's welcome and not a death sentence. And I think Blaise Zabini believes this too, Death Eater or no."

"You think I should hand over Cure?"

Martha hesitated, dropping her hands from his face. "I think you should do what you feel is right. Just...consider all the angles, love. England is only an ocean away, but...if there is a chance that Draco Malfoy doesn't have to die, wouldn't it be worth it to do the right thing? Then, at least, THIS family could properly say thank you to the man who saved the world from a great evil by saving him from an even greater one."

Drew hung his head, his wife's compassionate, resounding words, filling him with shame.

Martha turned to the kitchen stove and removed the cauldron from the heat, stirring the stew within. "Dinner's ready. Girls! Wash your hands for supper! It's ready!" Martha began setting the table but her hands stilled over the bowls she went to retrieve from cupboard when she didn't hear her daughters scrambling to bathroom. They were oddly silent. Martha exchanged a fearful glance with her husband before they both erupted into a flurry of action.

"Tally!" Martha shrieked as she followed her husband up the stairs. "Crysta! Answer me!"

Martha collided with her husband's back as he halted at the top of the stairway, seeing their daughters' joint bedroom door was closed, but a line of light showing beneath it. Drew opened the door, his wand drawn, and his breath hissed to his lungs at what he saw.

His youngest, Crysta, sat dangling on Blaise Zabini's knee where he appeared to be reading her a fairy tale story. Tally sat near them, looking suspicious, but intrigued enough to listen in on the story. All three of them looked up when the girls' parents barged into the room. Martha gasped and clutched at Drew's arm, eyes wide with fear.

Blaise closed the nursery book and set Crysta down. "Go to your mother," he instructed them and they ran into Martha's waiting arms.

Martha pushed them past her and into the hall, telling them to lock themselves into their parents' room. Then she nudged her way around her husband and backhanded Blaise across the face.

"Martha!" Drew barked, trying to pull her away.

"How dare you break into our home and come near my girls?" Martha hissed, struggling against her husband. "Who are you?"

"I would have not harmed your children, my lady," Blaise murmured softly, rising to his feet and offering her a sweeping bow. "My name is Blaise Zabini. I apologize for startling you. May I speak to your husband?"

"You're--"

"Martha!" Drew growled. "See to the girls."

"Drew--"

"See to the girls!"

Martha went, casting a strange look over her shoulder at Blaise who merely bowed again.

"I'm arresting you," Drew grated in a dangerous voice, pressing the tip of his wand into Blaise's neck. "You've gone too far."

Blaise inclined his head. "As you wish."

Drew paused. "That's what you wanted, isn't it? It would get you closer to Cure."

Blaise did not answer.

Drew sighed and lowered his wand, thinking of what his wife had said minutes ago. "Are you hungry?"

Unable to hide his surprise, Blaise opened his mouth, but no words came out.

"If you have something to say to me, I'm willing to listen." Drew paused. "I don't believe you would have harmed my girls."

Blaise blinked. "Why?"

Drew Williams shrugged. "I don't know. If nothing else, your file suggests it was never your style to hurt children."

Blaise winced, remembering the agony of the Cruciatus Curse Voldemort had subjected him to when he had refused to massacre a group of Muggle-Born Hogwart's students during the war. "Even this Death Eater has his limits," Blaise replied with a hopeful grin.

Drew nodded. "If you promise not to harm my family, you can stay for dinner. Then, we'll talk after the girls go to bed."

"You're an odd man, Detective Williams," Blaise said, not quite trusting the offer. "If it were my family, you'd be dead already."

"I suppose that's the difference between you and me," Drew replied. "Just don't prove me a fool for it."

Blaise smiled, a flash of white teeth bright against his dark skin. "You may be a fool, Detective; but that will have nothing to do with me."

~*~

"Coffee?"

"Please."

Martha handed the Englishman a cup of steaming dark liquid and sat down at the table holding a mug of her own.

Blaise took a sip and sighed contentedly as he swallowed the hot brew. "You're an angel," Blaise said to her. "Thank you."

Martha nodded and took her husband's hand as he sat down at the table across from Blaise.

"So," Drew said. "What now?"

"What now, indeed."

Dinner had been a relatively quiet affair, save for the incessant questions Detective Williams' daughters had assailed Blaise with. The Pureblood had born it with a graciousness pretty much every aristocrat possessed, but also with a genuine fondness few Purebloods could muster. Williams' wife eyed him cautiously throughout the meal and seemed to disapprove of his presence at her dinner table, but handled herself gracefully nonetheless.

Blaise admired her, though he couldn't put a finger on why. She struck him to be a woman of tempered steel, but held the gentlest, kindest demeanor he'd ever witnessed. Detective Williams was a lucky man.

Soon after, the girls had been sent to bed, leaving the three of them alone at the kitchen table. Blaise was a little surprised Detective Williams didn't ask for his wife to leave them as well, but then, if he had a wife of her seeming stature, he might keep her by his side also. This was her home too, after all.

Blaise gazed down at his cup of coffee. "I realize my asking for Cure seems unprecedented and irrational, Detective," Blaise began, "but I assure you, I cannot--and will not--leave this city without him."

"You admitted to being a Death Eater," Drew countered. "How could I possibly trust your motives?"

Blaise was quiet before answering. "I anticipated your scrutiny, Detective, and have already planned to take Cure by force. I have no way to prove the purity of my intentions."

"So, you had planned to force me to arrest you to get you closer to Cure...and then what?"

Blaise smiled mysteriously and looked up. "If this conversation doesn't end in my favor, telling the next step in my plan wouldn't help me very much, would it?"

Drew frowned. "Then are we at an impasse?"

"If I should tell you, would you give me Cure?"

"No."

Blaise sighed. "Then I suppose we are." Blaise made to rise, but a small sound from Martha made him pause.

"Could you tell us something true, Mr. Zabini?" Martha asked softly. "Something that might put you at risk but would prove you trustworthy?"

Blaise leaned back in his chair, regarding her thoughtfully. Silence seemed to stretch for minutes before Blaise responded. "Remember that I spoke to you of a Prophecy warning about Maul?"

"Yes," Drew said with a nod.

"Bellatrix Lestrange told me about the Prophecy before she was sent to guard a Horcrux," Blaise murmured, his golden eyes going hard and distant. "It was the last time I saw her. Harry Potter killed her when he retrieved that very Horcrux." Blaise paused. "I am no fool. I knew, as Bellatrix did, that Maul reigning over the Earth would be more than catastrophic; it would be the End of Days. And Bellatrix knew Draco Malfoy had been chosen as the Host; so I did too. During the war, I was conflicted. There were days I truly fought to keep Voldemort alive...because I knew that his reign would hold the Hosting at bay. If Voldemort died, then the Pact he made with Maul would activate. But then...Voldemort's reign was one of terror and I could no longer stand working for evil to prevent a greater one. It was driving me insane.

"So, I began working for the Ministry as a spy, doing what I could, where I could, to cause the downfall of Lord Voldemort. And who should defeat him? None other than the chosen Host. My dearest friend who had been missing for months, disappearing after the murder of his mother, Narcissa. Even his godfather hadn't known where he went. Then he disappeared again. I was terrified when the rumors reached me. Draco had died and then was resurrected by Ancient Magic?

"I had a decision to make. I knew what was at stake. I could not find him, I had no way of protecting him against the Gatherer or--for that matter--against himself. So I decided against pleading for clemency from the Ministry of Magic as so many others did after the war. I went to Italy and began running a network of underground information, locating outlaws and Death Eaters alike. Then I sent them all the same message. 'Kill Draco Malfoy'."

Drew sucked in a breath. Another piece of the puzzle slipped into place.

"Soon, I discovered that Draco was in a coma like state and being held in St. Mungo's, but the price on his head had Aurors crawling all over the place," Blaise continued. "I learned that Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley had become Aurors and were personally assigned to ensuring his protection. It was...almost a relief. If Maul tried to host Draco's body, surely Harry Potter would kill him himself. But then I remembered Harry Potter was ever-noble and may try to save him, if nothing else than to make himself look good. So I continued to watch and wait, seeing how things would unfold.

"Then everything spiraled out of control." Blaise clenched his fists. "Draco awoke from his slumber and, soon after, vanished from St. Mungo's. I couldn't understand how the flashiest Pureblood I had ever known could be so damnably elusive! Months and months passed, and still I searched for him in vain. I raised the price on his head, panicking because I could not find him. But it seemed that another force was stealing Death Eaters from my network. My resources slimming down to almost nothing, I despaired, second guessing my decision to exclude myself from the Ministry's protection. If I had begged clemency and been granted it, I may have had a network of informants within the Ministry instead. Then I could have known Potter and Weasley had sent him here, to Madison, to hide as a Muggle. I could have protected him from the Gatherer. I could have...done something!

"However, I was secluded in Italy until, finally, word reached me." Blaise drew in a shaky breath. "An old friend, worried about the welfare of Draco Malfoy, contacted me. She had seen him, in the company of Harry Potter; they had come to her home! I had found him at last!

"And then I learned he was already showing symptoms of the Hosting. The Gatherer was beginning the Song of Summoning. I went to the old headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix, searching for Draco, knowing that if Potter was trying to hide him in England after the fiasco here, it would be there. I had never seen this place, but had heard of it. Being a spy had its usefulness. There, I met Draco's godfather, who was searching for him too. That was the night the Gatherer nearly succeeded in discarding Draco's soul and aiding Maul to his throne. That was the night the End of Days almost began.

"My network of Death Eaters had been organized into an army for Maul by the Gatherer. I don't know how Potter kept Draco alive long enough for Snape and I to arrive with a squad of Aurors, but somehow, even with an Unbreakable Vow trying to force his hand into killing Draco, he did. We arrived at last and finished rounding up the Death Eaters as Draco defeated the Gatherer. Now, I had no resources to assassinate Draco without soiling my own hands. Now, Maul was weakened, denied the aid of his precious Gatherer and suppressed by the Markaghirelle. Now, I had no plan.

"I watched, dumbstruck, as Harry Potter nearly committed treason to prevent Draco from being sent to Azkaban. I must confess, I was ashamed beyond all reason. Harry Potter was throwing his neck on the line, repeatedly, to keep Draco Malfoy alive, while I, Blaise Zabini, Draco's closest friend in the world, was plotting his murder. I began to think...perhaps it was possible to save Draco. And even if it wasn't...it would be the right thing to try. I had done the right thing so few times in my life, if there ever was a time to start, it was now. For the sake of my friend, who drew the worst lot of us all.

"You said Draco isn't worth the chance of Maul being victorious over the Inversion Enchantratem this afternoon, Detective," Blaise murmured, his eyes beginning to focus back to where he was and meeting Drew's gaze. "But I have never seen such dignity as Draco Malfoy possessed as a group of people discussed his mortal fate in the Minister of Magic's own office right in front of him like they were reading the Daily Prophet. I thought as you do, once, and I'm his closest friend. I think we are both wrong."

His words echoed into silence and Drew turned to look at his wife.

"I don't know if what I've told you proves me trustworthy," Blaise murmured, looking from one to other as they communicated silently. "But it was something true."

At long last, Drew nodded to his wife, who smiled faintly and took a drink of her coffee. Drew turned back to Blaise. "Alright, Mr. Zabini. I believe you. Finish your coffee; my partner's home is on the other side of town. I won't release Cure without Detective Byrne's consent...but I'm sure that if you can convince me, Byrne'll be a piece of cake."

Blaise offered his irrepressible grin, white teeth flashing. "That's wonderful."

Drew grunted and sipped his coffee. "NOW will you tell me how you were planning to break out Cure?"

Blaise raised a brow. "It was a wait and see sort of thing."

Drew gave him a quizzical look.

"But then I waited and I saw. It's what I do."

"And quite effectively," Martha said, with a gentle grin.

Blaise laughed good-naturedly. "Sometimes, my dear lady. Sometimes." Relief should have suffused him like a flood, his laugh should have been genuine; but a shadow on his golden eyes spoke of a painful rock of guilt that Blaise never thought from which he'd be redeemed.

Retrieving Cure had been his act of redemption. Why did Blaise still feel so awful?

~*~


A/N:

Kumori: Awesome. Thanx for your review and I hope you enjoyed the update!

Leentje: Thanx for your review and I hope you enjoyed the update!

Thrnbrooke: Thank you! All in good time. I hope you enjoyed the update!

Gizachick: New reader? Hello! Yes, yes, very un-cool of him. Eventually, he makes up for it. Thank you for your review and I hope you enjoy the rest of the story!

Mangacat: Thank you! Yeah, I wanted, originally, to do something really dramatic with it, like they had to rush to up the Markaghirelle before Maul smote all the firstborn….but then his own host would die because Draco is a first-born, right? So, that idea kinda crumbled at my fingertips when I began to write it. I decided to make it funny because I still wanted to use it. I hope you enjoyed the update!

Lilith: Yeah, he is. Thanx for your review and I hope you enjoyed the update!

Hpobsession: I’m glad you liked it, lol. You never know if what you think is funny will strike anyone else as comical. My bf insists I’m the most unfunny person on the planet. Mostly, I disagree. But then he laughs in my face. *shrugs* I dunno.

Harry and Ron re-appear next chapter. Mangacat and I are cooking up some fun stuff for their little adventure. Can’t wait to post ‘em. Thank you for your review and I hope you enjoyed the update!

Paige Taylor: Another new reader! Welcome and thank you for your kind review! Hmmm, I think there’ll be about sixty chapters. The story is sadly coming to its close….but I’ll try to make it as fun a read as possible. I’ve also been considering an epilogue; but that will depend entirely on you guys and whether or not you think it needs one. :P I hope you enjoyed the update!