Harry decided not to disclose the contents of his dreams to Draco for fear of panicking him, but this also meant that he was unable to find a reasonable excuse not to visit Narcissa when the day after Christmas rolled around.

The day before had been heavenly, filled with good food and merriment, and the Weasleys had each showered Casper with love and been delighted with their own gifts - something told Harry that their meeting today would be a source of far less joy.

But he dutifully showered and got dressed, chose clothes for Casper (cute stretchy blue trousers with white stripes and his letter C jumper from Mrs. Weasley), and even ran a comb through his unruly hair.

"If it gets weird, we'll get out of there straight away, he'd made Draco promise before they left. "We'll do whatever it takes."

So now they were on a broom again, this time belonging to one of the older Weasleys so more appropriate in size, and heading back to the house in the forest.

"My Mother doesn't know we were here before," Draco warned Harry on the way. "Probably best it stays that way, I don't want any reason to make her angry. As far as we're concerned, this is just a nice family visit. Ok?"

"Fine, Harry nodded. He tightened his grip on Draco, more for comfort and warmth than for security.

"You alright back there, Cas?" he asked, craning his head slightly to check on the baby on his back.

Casper gurgled, happy to be paid attention.

"That's good then," Harry chuckled. "We're going to see Grandma Cissa. Are you going to be good?"

Another gurgle.

"That means 'no'," said Draco unhelpfully.

"Don't be an idiot, Dee." Harry squeezed his waist. "Of course our Cassy will be good. He's always good."

Both of them fervently hoped this was true.

They'd done everything they could to ensure he would be in a good mood and cause as few problems as possible: he'd been fed and burped and changed countless times, and they'd timed the flight with one of his naps, so hopefully he'd nod off any second now and be well-rested by the time they got down to the forest.

They could hope, at least.

Narcissa was waiting for them when they touched down in the woods outside the house, dressed all in black and worrying slightly at a hangnail. She stopped this the second she saw them, and became the image of composure, welcoming them with an almost warm smile.

"Draco, darling! ... And Harry! You're here!"

"Hi, Mother," said Draco awkwardly as they dismounted.

"Does this place look the same to you as the last time you were here? It's enchanting, isn't it?" Narcissa asked eagerly.

Draco smirked, thinking back to the last month he'd been there. "Much the same, yeah," he responded wryly. "Shall we go inside?"

"Of course," Narcissa nodded. "I've some tea already brewing on the stove, you're very punctual."

They followed her in, being sure to bring the stick inside, keeping it close and not leaving it; it would be useful if and when they needed to get away.

"How was your Christmas?" Draco's mother asked, busying herself making the teas.

Draco watched on in silent amazement. He'd barely seen his mother drink her tea herself, let alone make it. She was born with a silver spoon in her mouth like he was, and was used to people doing everything for her. But alright, she knew how to make tea.

"Er, it was fine," he said, remembering to answer the question after a second.

"Hogwarts put on a good spread for us," Harry lied.

They'd agreed it was definitely best not to mention the Weasleys, and instead let Narcissa think they'd remained at school. The Protective Charms were strong there, and several teachers had stayed over the holidays too; Hogwarts was  about as safe as anywhere could be at that time.

"Don't drink the tea," Harry mouthed while Narcissa's back was turned, and Draco nodded.

There was still a long way to go before they could trust his mother.

This idea was only reinforced when she mentioned the subject of Lucius. "I've heard from him, you know," she said lightly, bringing the cups over to the boys and setting them down.

Draco and Harry both tensed. "Did he write to you?" Draco asked. "So he knows you're here?"

"He told Aquila to find me, and she did," Narcissa shrugged. "But I suppose if he tracks her, he might know by now."

"How could you be so careless?" Draco asked in frustration. "Don't you see what you might have done to yourself? What you might have done to us if we were staying much longer?"

Narcissa smiled sadly. "I don't think he's the man you think he is. I think he's changed, Draco, since we left him. He never thought we'd really do that, and I suppose it's helped him to see the error of his ways-"

Draco was on his feet now, clutching Casper tightly to his chest. He was breathing heavily. "Do you hear yourself, Mother? I can't put it any clearer than this: he - wants - to - kill - us. Five or six months without us won't change that."

"He's living with Voldemort, for fuck's sake!!" Harry added, equally panicked. "Don't tell me you trust him?"

Narcissa paused. "Well..."

"Let me see the letters," Draco demanded. When there was no immediate response, he raised his voice hotly. "Give them to me now. NOW!"

His mother sighed, and turned to grab two thick sheets of Malfoy-headed parchment from the cabinet drawer. Draco and Harry skimmed them fervently.

"He wants you to come home?" Draco asked incredulously.

"He wants us to be a family," Narcissa replied. "He forgives you, Draco, for all of it."

"He forgives me?!" Draco shrieked, and Casper began to cry at the loud noise. Both his fathers were too fixated on Narcissa to do anything but half heartedly rock him, and the crying intensified.

"He's willing to forget all about what you've done, he isn't angry any more," Narcissa continued over the racket.

"I can't believe this," Harry muttered furiously. "You're even more of a psycho than I thought if you're seriously going to try and get back on his side. Once a Death Eater, always a Death Eater, right? Even at the cost of your son?"

"Potter, you don't understand about this, so I'd advise you-"

"What's not to understand?" Harry interrupted boldly. He was breaking out in a cold sweat as he remembered the dream that pictured Narcissa on Lucius' side once more, torturing innocents for the Dark Lord.

"It seems pretty clear to me," Draco agreed. "And I don't keep secrets from Harry, alright? We're a team."

"Then you know how I feel about your father," Narcissa tried, and Draco shook his head in fury.

"No, don't you dare equate us!" he yelled. "I have no bloody idea how you feel about my father, he's a raging lunatic who wants us all dead to save his reputation! It is not the same thing as my relationship with Harry!"

"I think we should leave," said Harry hurriedly, and Draco nodded.

"Draco, wait," Narcissa begged, standing up and reaching for him with both arms. He held Casper tighter to his chest and moved back.

"No, Mother. You won't touch me," he said.

And with that, the boys all but ran from the house, leaping on the broom as soon as they were out of the door and shooting straight up, too eager to even take the stairs to the ground first.

Draco still had Casper in his arms, not the best position for flying, but the little boy didn't seem to be squashed, and besides, Harry was a good navigator and knew the way back to the Burrow better than Draco did.

"That was so awful," said Draco once they were out of sight of the forest. "She's genuinely gone insane, wanting to get back with him. Proves she never loved me like she thinks she does, anyway."

"It was scary," Harry agreed. He paused, and decided to tell Draco about his dream.

The other boy was horrified. "It was definitely her?" he asked.

"Oh, yes." Harry nodded grimly. "Undeniably. How do you think it would happen, by the way, Draco - your mum and dad getting back together? Do you think he really would just let her back?"

Draco thought about it for a second, and then shook his head. "She'd have to give him some information to prove her loyalty," he replied, then both boys froze on the broom.

It hung, literally suspended in the air for a few seconds as they realised what 'information' Narcissa would have to give Lucius.

"He doesn't know about the baby," Harry whispered, feeling nausea roll up from his stomach.

Casper had just become the most Wanted baby in the Wizarding World.

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a/n: thank you guys for reading! i can't believe we're so far through already, forty one chapters is mental!

i appreciate all the reads and votes so much and comments absolutely make my day, it makes me so happy to read back through!

stay tuned to find out what happens next ...

~ paradisedraco