Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
September 9, 1976 / Serena PoV
It had been over a week since I entered Hogwarts again and a few days since I discovered that Parseltongue was useless for absolutely anything other than talking to snakes. That didn't discourage me. I was currently feeling impatient as the night before had been a full moon. I was waiting for the letter from the old witch. Despite my nervousness, I continued eating in large quantities while storing energy in my Bendalloy-mind, with propriety obviously. I didn't want to be described as the future Ron Weasley with his atrocious way of eating. I stopped when I heard the fluttering of a parliament of owls above our heads.
I looked up and stared at the group of owls. Among them all, there was one bird that stood out, jet black and not an owl. The raven mixed in among the birds dropped the parchment it was carrying in front of me before flying away, but not before grabbing pieces of bacon from the table. I ignored it and took the letter, which held only two words.
'It worked'
A smile grew on my face. "Take that bitch!" I yelled out loud in glee. I knew it would work; there was no doubt in Severus' memories, but the positive response still filled me with happiness and pride. I put down my food and looked around. There were a lot of students giving me weird looks, but I ignored them. My gaze went to the pair of blondes sitting not too far away who were also staring at me. I stood up, jumped on the table, narrowly avoiding the food, and practically bounced towards them. "Luuuciuuuuuusss!!!!!!" I exclaimed happily, not waiting for him to respond. I decanted pewter in my mind, and Lucius couldn't stop me from picking him up and dragging him away while I wrapped my arm around his.
"Serena?!" Lucius exclaimed, confused.
"I have news!" I squealed happily without stopping.
"Serena!? Where are you taking my fiancé?!" I ignored Narcissa, who stood up and started following us. She quickly caught up to us, but I still ignored the questioning of both blondes and went to the first empty classroom I could find.
"Okay, what's going on?" Lucius asked once I let go of him as he turned his shoulder with a grimace. "I take it that was good news?" he asked sarcastically. I held up a finger, stopping him momentarily as I pulled out my wand.
"Muffliato." I silenced the room quickly, and the pair looked at me curiously. "A charm I created to prevent others from listening." Lucius seemed interested. "I'll teach you later, both of you." The pair opened their eyes in surprise before giving me a warm look. Teaching spells that someone had personally created was an important statement, but I didn't mind sharing it with them.
"So? News?" Narcissa asked impatiently.
" Of course," I agreed readily, before remembering the reason for my happiness. "Kneel down mortals, I've just made history!" I exclaimed grandiloquently.
"Just tell us!" Narcissa growled, I didn't let her tone discourage me.
"My anti-lycanthropy potion was a success!" I exclaimed with my arms outstretched, completely satisfied with myself. I waited for their reactions, but after a few moments, I looked at the pair staring blankly at me.
"C-could you repeat that?" Lucius stammered, trying to remain calm.
"My anti-Lycanthropy potion was a success!" I repeated my exclamation in the same way.
"T-that's-" Lucius seemed speechless as he stared at me wide-eyed.
"That's incredible Serena!!" Narcissa suddenly squealed. "Oh Morgana, oh Morgana! This is like- the discovery of the decade, maybe the century!" Narcissa hugged me tightly, and I Preened at her words.
"Serena is right. A cure for lycanthropy is something incredible." I now made a face.
"Well... it's not really a cure." that stopped the pair. "But! It's a relief from the effects! It allows the human to keep their mind during the transformation. "That attenuated the disbelief of the pair a little, and they nodded slightly.
"It's still a huge breakthrough though. Lycanthropy goes back centuries, millennia, and no one ever came close to a cure. It's something to be proud of, Serena. It's more than anyone else could do." Lucius smiled, and Narcissa nodded vigorously.
"What he said! You're amazing Serena, congratulations!"
"Thanks." I smiled widely at the pair, "Now, the reason I brought you Lucius!" I pointed at him, and he looked surprised.
"Wasn't it to share the good news?" he seemed confused.
"Partly, but first, context." I broke free from Narcissa's embrace. "Over the summer, I ran into Potter and the others." The pair frowned. "In fact, they didn't recognize me, and what's more, Black tried to flirt with me." It makes me shudder.
"Sirius flirted with you?!" Narcissa burst out laughing.
"Yeah, make fun of it all you want. I still have nightmares about that." I rolled my eyes, "The point is, as usual, they decided to butt into my business and followed me to the store when I went to work."
"Did they do something to you?" Lucius narrowed his eyes.
"Nothing I couldn't defend myself against." I snorted, "But! They annoyed me enough to want revenge. And what is better than creating the wolfbane potion." I nodded, satisfied with myself.
"Uh... Serena?" Narcissa looked confused. "What does one thing have to do with the other?" I blinked in confusion before slapping my palm against my face.
"Okay, more context," I sighed, "Lupin is a werewolf, so-"
"Lupin is a werewolf!?" Narcissa shrieked palely. Lucius grabbed my shoulders.
"Are you sure?!" Lucius was paler than usual. I rolled my eyes.
"Yes, I am. I found out last year when he tried to kill me. It happened-"
"He tried to kill you!?" Lucius growled. Narcissa gasped with her hand over her mouth.
"AS I WAS SAYING! Black set me up. At the beginning of the year, he told me that Lily was in trouble. So, quite predictably, I followed him without asking. He took me to the Shrieking Shack, where he locked me up. I didn't know it at the time, but it's the place where Lupin spends the full moons, that's when-"
"Sirius did what?!" Now it was Narcissa's turn to growl. "That little bastard, when I see him, I'll hex him until he forgets his name. He thinks he's better than all of us for not following in our footsteps, and the little vermin is worse."
"Alright! Enough! Stop interrupting me!" I growled in annoyance. Lucius wrinkled his nose.
"You can't just drop these surprises on us and expect us not to react," he growled. "I'm sending an owl to my father. I may want to eliminate him, but he's still on the board of governors. They'll be expelling the entire group immediately."
"Wow, wow, wow! Wait a minute!" I quickly interrupted. "You can't do that."
"Why not!?" he growled again, Narcissa gasped again.
"Lupin bit you?" she asked shakily, Lucius staggering as if he had been slapped.
"No!" I exclaimed quickly before they could get an idea. The pair sighed in relief. "Potter saved me before that happened."
"Potter?!" they exclaimed in disbelief, I rolled my eyes.
"Okay, he didn't 'save' me. He stopped Black from doing something stupid and Lupin from killing me so as not to ruin their lives. Saving me was a consequence of that." the pair snorted.
"Of course, he did, as if Potter cares about anyone other than himself and his group," Lucius replied.
"That still doesn't tell us why we can't be reporting it to the board. Hell, we should go to the ministry."
"BECAUSE Dumbledore threatened me and forced me to shut up." I interrupted, and the pair stopped and gave me a dirty look.
"Excuse me, Dumbledore did what?" Lucius hissed.
"The old man knows of my animosity towards the Potter group, so he knew I would open my mouth as soon as I left his office. He gave me an ultimatum. If I spoke, he would expel me from Hogwarts." They both exploded.
"That old bastard! How dare he! I will see him removed from his position even if it is the last thing I do!" Lucius spat with hatred in his words.
"No need," Lucius glared at me.
"You're defending him!? After that?!" I rolled my eyes.
"Of course not. I hate him as much as I hate Potter and his group." I assured, which seemed to calm the pair. "But I have a plan, and I need your help."
"Whatever you need." He said immediately, which made me smile slightly.
"I want the Malfoy name. Specifically, you, to be in charge of the control and distribution of the potion," I smiled sadistically. "And to prevent certain families and Hogwarts staff from being able to acquire the potion anywhere."
"Dumbledore won't let that pass." Narcissa wrinkled her nose, my smile growing wider.
"I'm counting on it." That stopped the pair for a few seconds before they started smiling identically.
"Say no more, my dear, I'll do whatever you want." Lucius said slimily, and then we started to discuss everything necessary for my plans; I still hadn't told him what I was really planning, but they didn't ask. Which I was grateful for; I just hoped we would be successful.