REALISING THAT DUMBLEDORE WAS OF NO USE TO HIM, Saros decided to keep his conversation with the Headmaster a secret. He had made a promise to Draco about keeping their father out of Azkaban, but Saros had made a promise years ago to his little brother that caused conflict. Throughout their upbringing in the Malfoy Manor, Saros always made a promise to protect Draco, although he never saw it coming down to the idea of having to protect Draco from their own parents. Narcissa was just as dangerous as Lucius because even if she wasn't an active Death Eater, she still supported her husband, enough that wouldn't turn him either.

However, Dumbledore had a point that Saros couldn't argue the more he thought about it. The Ministry was in absolute denial over Voldemort's return. More than likely, it was out of fear. After all, Voldemort had been the biggest threat to the Wizarding World since the likes of Gellert Grindelwald. It seemed he was going to either catch his father in act of being a loyal Death Eater or the Ministry was going to need solid proof that Voldemort had indeed returned. They weren't going to take Harry's word or Saros' word for it, unfortunately. And that led Saros to believe the Ministry would only believe it when they saw the dark wizard for themselves and Saros had to wonder, by then, would it all be too late?

He wished that Sirius or Andromeda would take the time to meet with him, he was desperate for some guidance. With all his memories intact, Saros couldn't bring himself to relax the way Madam Pomfrey ordered him to. He wanted to work at making everything right, but he had to come to turns that nothing would change overnight. And he had to be mindful about his own condition as Madam Pomfrey reminded him over and over that he needed to take better care of himself, not just physically but mentally.

With strict orders of "taking it easy," Saros was able to leave the Hospital Wing. Making his way through the corridors, Saros had every intention of returning to the Slytherin Common Room to reassure Draco that he was fine, figure out if they had won the Quidditch match against Montague, and then possibly write another letter to Andromeda and Sirius. However, as he walked along, his thoughts began to wander from his task list.

After learning what his father had done to keep Saros in line when he returned to the manor over the summer, it seemed the tragic truth had been the key to unlock the final gate. Finally, he had access to all of his memories, including the ones that involved Angelina. Despite her being by his side since they had returned to Hogwarts, Saros was suddenly hit by the strong sensation of how much he had truly missed her.

Remembering why he had fallen for Angelina in the first place left him with a warm sensation washing over him. It felt like they had been apart for so long and suddenly, he didn't want to wait any longer to see her again.

Of course, he couldn't just simply waltz over to the Gryffindor Tower at the time, and even though he was Head Boy, Saros didn't think he could talk himself out of the situation if a professor caught him on the other side of the castle past curfew.

But rather than heading towards the dungeons, Saros took a detour to the kitchens, in hopes of finding a familiar face. 

With the dinner time long over in the Great Hall, the masses of dishes and silverware were clean and stacked as Saros entered the kitchens quietly. A blanket of silence was seemingly cast over the area as not even the sound of scurrying feet could be heard. Slowly tiptoing his way through, Saros kept his eyes peeled for any sign of life.

"Dobby?" he called out in a low whisper. "Dobby, are you here? Dobby!"

At first, it seemed like Saros was out of luck but just as he went to turn and head out, he spotted the little house-elf standing patiently before him.

"Dobby heard Saros Malfoy call his name, " Dobby said with a wide grin, " is Saros Malfoy feeling better?"

A gentle smile formed on Saros' lips as he lowered himself to Dobby's eye level. "Sorry to bother you so late, Dobby. I'm feeling a lot better, thank you for asking. But I was wondering if you could help me with something?"

Dobby let out a high-pitched squeal of delight, obviously pleased by any request to help. But he was quickly silenced as Saros placed his hand over the house-elf's mouth. He whispered to Dobby to keep it low since it was after curfew hours and he wasn't exactly looking to get caught by anyone. After Saros removed his hand, Dobby didn't say anything but continued to show off his eagerness as he practically hopped around in place, waiting on the request.

Leaning forward, Saros decided to whisper it into one of Dobby's large ears before taking a step back and standing up.

"Do you think you could do that for me?"

"Dobby would be honoured to do that, Sir."

Despite the night growing later and later, Angelina found herself still awake. It had been a wash day for her hair and she found herself still tending to her hair long after finishing up in the shower. It was a long process of parting, sectioning, shampooing, and conditioning her hair, even with the assistance of magic.

As she combed through her hair, she could feel a bit of the conditioner reside as she sat on the edge of her bed. Her dormmates had gone to bed hours ago, but Angelina's mind continued to race. She wanted to focus her attention on possibly braiding her hair, but her thoughts continued to drift to Saros. As much as he occupied her mind as of late, she was going to start having to charge the boy rent.

It seemed like whenever he wasn't struggling with something, he was recovering in the Hospital Wing. She wished she could take his pain away, she wished there was an easy solution to make everything easy for him. And she wished they could go back to simpler times where the only thing they had to worry about was the constant teasing and flirting with one another.

She wouldn't dare tell him to his face because Saros didn't need any more stress in his life, but in a way, Angelina missed him. It didn't matter if he was standing right next to her, part of her knew that it wasn't fully Saros because he didn't truly remember her. He didn't remember the memories they shared that led to the blossoming of their relationship. She wanted to help him, but it also hurt her at the same time to be so close to him and yet, feel such a distance sometimes.

Dropping her comb and her hands into her lap, Angelina let out a sigh. Sometimes she felt selfish, wanting their relationship to quickly restore itself to her former glory, especially when she knew that Saros was suffering. It wasn't like Saros had asked for so many things to happen to him, but she hadn't asked for them to happen either.

She was just about to grab her comb again when she heard a popping sound behind her that caused Angelina to jump. Immediately, she turned her head only to see something suddenly resting on corner of her bed.

A little note.

Reaching over, Angelina snatched it up only to have several little black pellets fall into her lap. She nearly jumped up believing them to be bugs of some sort, only to pick one up right away.

They weren't bugs, but papaya seeds. Which meant the little note in her hand could only be from one person.

Saros waited ( rather impatiently) in the kitchens, every so often checking the time mounted on the wall behind him. While Dobby had agreed to deliver his message to Angelina in the Gryffindor Tower, there was no guarantee that Angelina would actually come. After all, there was a strong possibility that she was asleep, like a normal person. He had given it fifteen minutes before deciding that she probably wasn't going to come and he would have to wait until morning.

Feeling rather disappointed, he shoved his hands into the pocket of his trousers and went to leave the kitchens. However, just as he went to take a step towards the doors, he heard one of them open.

"Saros?"

Saros couldn't help the grin that automatically formed as he looked up and saw Angelina entering the kitchens. She was in her pyjamas and to clash with her outfit, she was also wearing a rather large hat. She looked absolutely confused as to what they were doing in the kitchens, but he was just happy to see her.

"Saros, what exactly are we doing here in the kitchens?" she asked him in a low whisper. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"I know, it's late," he said, "but I just wanted to see you, Angie. I couldn't help myself."

"Yes, well-" Angelina stopped as soon as she processed that he had said her nickname. There was such a softness to his voice as he spoke her name and the hint of a smile on his lips almost made her melt to the floor. "You called me Angie...you called me that because-"

"Because I remember you."

Before Angelina could even react to what Saros was saying, she found herself in his arms that wrapped themselves around her tightly. Her body was pressed to his chest and the only thing she could do was rest her chin on his shoulder.

"I've missed you so much, Angie," he said to her softly, " Merlin, you have no idea. I'm so sorry I put you through all of this. Ever since we started talking, I've put you through hell and back, but you've been so strong through it all. I couldn't have made it this far with you, you know that right? Do you know how much you mean to me?"

Angelina was absolutely speechless as Saros finally loosened his hold enough to let her take a step back and look at him. Was she dreaming? Even before Saros had lost his memories, he had never been one to express such affections. He hid behind flirtatious insults and teasing more often than not.

"Saros, I don't know what to say," she admitted truthfully as she felt an onset of lightheadness. "You're telling me you remember everything, are you sure-"

"Did Harry ever tell you what I told him in the graveyard? My message to you?"

Angelina felt her eyes start to swell with tears before the lump in her throat started to develop. Lightly, she hit his chest with a closed fist.

"You said you were sorry that you weren't going to make it to the end of the maze."

Saros nodded. "And I meant it. I was sorry because it was never my intention to hurt you in any way. I knew if I didn't make it...that well...I knew I made a promise to you and I didn't keep it. I was sorry for that too-"

"Are you really apologising right now?! After everything that happened to you, you're the one apologising to me? You have nothing to be sorry about, Saros, how do you not understand that? Look at everything you've accomplished, look at what happened to you to get here, don't you apologise to me. That promise...it wasn't fair to make, it was my fault. To think if you actually died, feeling like you owed me an apology..."

It hadn't been his intention to have Angelina cry when Saros initially invited her to kitchens to talk.

"You don't have to carry any guilt, Angie," he said, " let it go. I'm here now, all of me. I'm here. I'm here because of you and I'm here for you. I just...I just want to pick up where we left off, if that's alright with you?"

A smile finally made its way to Angelina's lips. "And where exactly did we leave off?"

"Well, if I remember correctly, you promised me a kiss when I got out of the maze, and technically, I did make it out of the maz-"

Nothing more needed to be said as Saros quickly found himself locking lips with Angelina before he could even finish his sentence. He gladly kissed her back, wrapping his arms around her again. Despite it not being the first kiss they shared since Saros' return, it felt like the first time. The way Angelina's hands clutched at the front of his shirt or the way Saros didn't let any space between them was enough to relay the message to one another that they missed each other.

Eventually, they pulled away with Angelina leaving behind several lingering kisses against the sides of his face. Saros met her gaze, letting out a small sigh of relief.

"Had I known that was waiting for me outside of the maze, I would have just set the maze on fire."

"You're a mess, Saros," Angelina chuckled.

"No, what's a mess is thinking that hat of yours matches your pyjamas."

Pushing him away, Angelina glared at him as her hands settled on her hips. "Listen, it's wash day for me and I didn't get to finish styling my hair. I didn't want you to see me like this."

Mimicking her actions, Saros also placed his hands on his hips. "Angie, it hurts me that you would think I would judge you for something as simple as your hair. Actually, I'm highly offended."

With a roll of her eyes, Angelina pulled the cap off her head and looked down at the floor. "There, is that better?"

Stealing a peek out of the corner of his eye, Saros saw Angelina's natural hair that had been hidden before. Almost instantly, he turned to her, grabbed her by the hand and pulled her back to him.

"Much better. "