The Malfoy Chronicles: A Witch in Time

Dawnangel - Your reviews are amazing each time I read them. I'm glad you like this story so far, and I will do my best to make this interesting for you and the sparse people reading it. I only hope one of the others will decide to drop me a line!
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James was up at dawn, as he had done for the past week. For only a moment, he thought he was still at Hogwarts, and that everything was normal, but when he heard the snores of his father and Uncle Ron, he sighed softly. Utilizing their sleep, he gingerly climbed from the bed he was sharing with his father (who had yet to say more than a few words to him), and began to stretch. He regretted having to share a room with them, as he had to actually wear clothes to bed. Sigh.

He bent down to touch his toes, and when he straightened he twisted to the sides. He made his way to the middle of the room, and stretched his wings out to full length.

It just so happened that James’ luck was so bad that Ron decided to wake up at that moment. He opened his eyes, only to be met with the sight of James’ wings at full stretch, the muscles in his arms and back jumping as he raised his arms above his head, and rolled his neck. The place where James’ wings melted into his back was speckled with dark scales, fading seamlessly into the flesh of his back. A small dark line traveled from beneath the band of his shorts straight up his back, and disappeared into his hairline. Ron assumed it was where the neck and back ridges would be on a dragon.

“Oh…that’s….interesting looking…” Ron said. James withdrew his wings, and turned around.

“Morning to you too, Sunshine.” James snipped, before locating the clothes he had received from Sirius, the only one in the house who matched his body and muscle tone. The robes were a bit tattered, and the shirt faded, but they fit fine. James had had to make a few snips and alterations to make room for his wings and tail.

He pinned his Auror badge to the inside of the robes, and swung them around his shoulders, his wings swooping into the correct holes.

“That never ceases to amaze me.” Ron said softly, brushing a few strands of ginger hair from his face.

“I know, I’m hot right?” James said, and twisted a strand of his messy black hair between his fingers, batting his lashes at Ron. Ron shook his head, and chuckled.

“You’re a lot like Harry…” he said. James grinned.

“Except for the wings and fangs, right?” James said, swishing his tail. Ron nodded. “So…want me to do the thing?” James asked. Ron nodded again. James raised his hand, and pointed at Ron. “Somnus!” he murmured softly, and Ron’s eyes rolled back, and he plopped against his pillows. A soft snore reached James’ ears. He left the room, and padded downstairs in socked feet.

Silence told him he was the only one up yet. He went to the kitchen, to discover with dismay that Kreacher was there, half-heartedly sweeping the floor.

“Well, if it isn’t the winged abomination. Mucking up my Mistress’s house with his inhumanity.” Kreacher grumbled.

“Morning to you, Cuddles.” James said, and retrieved a pan from the cabinet. A few pieces of wood and a puff or two of breath lit the stove, and he began frying some breakfast. A few minutes into fixing the eggs, he heard a hungry sniff, and turned his head to see Remus Lupin enter the kitchen, his keen werewolf nose in the air.

“Well, our guest can cook, too!” he said. James smirked.

“I learned a long time ago that when you get up as early as I do, you cook your own breakfast, or starve waiting for the late risers….like my mum and dad.” He said, flipping the eggs with a flick of his wrist. Remus grinned.

“Mind cooking an old vagrant some food?” Remus asked, sitting at the table.

“No, but I’ll cook some for an old friend.” James replied, and dumped the finished eggs into a dish, and levitated them to the table. Then he started on the sausage. Personally he liked his sausage rather rare, and if he remembered correctly, so did Remus.

Remus studied the dark-haired anomaly with interest. He had always seen his old friend in Harry’s face, but never in his eyes. Those eyes were Lily’s, and Lily’s alone. This boy’s face was a carbon copy of his friend Prongs. Those gold eyes full of mischief and friendship were like windows into the past. His body….not so much.

Remus’ stomach made itself known just as James finished up the sausage.

“Toast?” James asked, and Remus nodded gently. James held two pieces of bread in front of him, and toasted them with a steady stream of his breath. Remus chuckled at the display of literal firepower.

Remus took a bite of his sausage, and looked at James. “How did you know?” he asked softly. “I have to deal with the sausage Molly makes because I’m afraid they won’t understand my taste for rarer meat.” He said. James laughed openly, his fangs glinting in the sparse light of the kitchen.

“Don’t worry about a thing, mate! I take mine the exact same way!”

~~

A stretched elbow from Hermione bumped Draca awake. The blonde yawned, and stretched carefully, trying to avoid waking the curly-haired girl. The previous night had been an interesting ordeal. Draca had had to endure several hours of Hermione trying to press something called ‘spew’ onto her. Draca couldn’t understand for the life of her why anyone would want to free house-elves. They were perfectly happy where they were, and some would actually fight to stay there. It was a ridiculous notion, really.

Draca rolled off of the bed, and headed for the shower, her clothes and a towel slung over her arm. She noted that the door was shut, and grunted with dismay when she got close enough to hear the water running. Someone else had beaten her to the shower. Again.

She didn’t have to wait long to see who it was, because a few minutes later the door opened, and a very naked Sirius Black emerged. Draca, in shock, stared at the man longer than she probably should have. Then she yelped, and slapped her hands to her eyes.

“I’m blind!” she howled. Sirius grunted, but disappeared quickly, as several doors opened a moment later. Draca’s hands were still over her eyes, and she began to rub her palms viciously against her closed lids. “Bad eyes! Bad! I’ll have nightmares!” she said. Tonks approached her gingerly.

“Um…are you all right?” she asked softly.

“Just fucking peachy! I get elbowed awake, I’m too late to snag the shower before someone leaves hair in it, and then I get to see Sirius Black in all his naked glory. I’ll be fine as soon as I gouge my eyes out!” she snapped, and walked into the bathroom, slamming the door on a very amused Tonks. A few minutes later Sirius emerged from his bedroom, completely covered, but a slight tinge of red to his face.

“Flashing the guests, now, Sirius?” Molly teased, wrapping her robes tight around her as she prepared to go down to cook breakfast.

“I didn’t know she was awake…everyone else knows I like to air-dry…” Sirius grumbled, and Molly gave a short laugh.

“Well one thing’s for certain, and two things are for sure: She won’t soon forget this morning!”

~~

Draca trudged down the stairs miserably, her hair refusing to do anything but hang limply about her face and shoulders. That stupid Sirius Black had ruined her morning, and she would make sure that he paid for his transgression. Somehow…

She plopped down at the table, earning a look from James.

“Who pissed in your cornflakes?” James asked, causing a small scowl from Draca.

“The same person who beat the crap out of you with an ugly stick.” She snapped, and banged her head against the table. Sirius, who had already come down for coffee, grinned maliciously.

“She saw something she didn’t like.” He said, blowing on his scalding coffee. Severus Snape, who had arrived just before Sirius, looked idly at them from his Daily Prophet. The dour Potions Master looked back, and gently brought his tea to his lips.

“It’s not my fault you walk around naked as the day you were born.” She barked. There was a choking cough, and all eyes were on Snape as he lowered his tea, and reached for a napkin.

“Good Gods, people!” he hissed. Sirius laughed.

“No one is ever up that early, and I….Don’t. Like. Towels…” he said, his own dark eyes locking with her brilliant blue ones. James and Remus could both smell the humiliation coming off of Draca.

“Well, you should be more considerate.” She mumbled.

“Well, you shouldn’t pant after someone old enough to be your father like a little bitch in-” but he never finished his sentence, because an enraged James jumped the table, and had him on the ground before he could.

“Take it back!” James snarled, his lip curling back to reveal his lethal fangs. His clawed fingers wrapped around the man’s throat, and he squeezed lightly. “Take. It. Back.” He growled, his voice low and harsh.

Sirius was being stubbornly quiet. The entire kitchen was quiet, watching intently as James’ fingers snaked back to the man’s shoulders, holding him tight. “Do you want to die? It would be so easy to rip out your throat…” James said, and lowered his face to where it was dangerously close to Sirius’ neck. “Just take it back, and I’ll let you up.” He whispered.

The sound of the boys coming downstairs broke the silence, but James didn’t budge. Ron and Harry came to the door, but both froze when they saw the scene before them. Harry stepped forward.

“Let him up, James.” He said softly. James snarled in Sirius’ face. It was a terrible sound, like an enraged animal. Sirius caved.

“I take it back! I’m sorry! Let me up, you filthy beast!” he yelped. James slinked away from him, his lip still curled back.

James glared at him, and then at the rest of the kitchen, lighting on each of them one by one.

“Say what you will about me, but leave her out of it. You hurt her? You hurt me. And I don’t forgive easily.” He said, his gaze lighting back on Sirius.

“I didn’t become an Auror by taking naps and looking fierce. I trained, and worked, and did my training in half the time it took normal recruits. I’m not afraid of a little sweat, or a little blood. This is everyone’s warning: Don’t fuck with me, or my friends. You won’t live to regret it.”
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Oooh. James is really protective of his friends.

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