The rest of the day went by fast. Before I knew it, I was already in the Gryffindor Common Room, starting on my homework. I expected Professor Snape to give us homework on the first day. It was an essay on the first chapter we just learned today. I didn't even know what I was supposed to be writing about. I even considered asking Hermione, but I decided not to. When we came back from classes, she barely made eye contact with me. Was being on top of everyone else that important to her? She was still the brightest witch in our year. So why was she still mad at me? Was she not talking to Harry as well?

"Max?" I looked up from my essay and to my surprise saw Hermione standing there with a sympathetic look on her face.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure this first essay is crappy. I don't want to make a higher mark than you if it'll make you get upset again," I snapped, looking back at my essay.

"I came to apologize for earlier today. I didn't mean to snap at you like that," she explained. "Really, it was stupid of me to overreact. You're right. There are other ways to do things."

"It was only one assignment," I pointed out.

I sighed, putting my stuff back in my bag and standing up. "Whatever." With that, I walked past her with my stuff and up the steps to the dorms.

"Hey, Max," Harry called out from behind me. "Come back down here. I have to show you something."

"If it's more notes you found in that Potions book, I don't want to know," I told him.

"No, it's something else," he said as I approached him. "It's a note from Dumbledore. He wants us to meet him after dinner."

I looked at the note and nodded. "Okay. I'll see you, then."

"You're not coming to dinner?"

"I really don't want to deal with Hermione and her crap right now."

"You two are still not speaking to each other?"

I scoffed, crossing my arms. "We did speak just now. But I may have been a bitch about it."

Harry huffed a sigh and gave me a serious look. "Max, I'm sure she meant her apology. She is one of your best friends, after all."

"That still doesn't change the fact that what she said hurt me."

"You and I both know that you can't stay mad at her forever." With that, Harry went back to the Gryffindor Common Room. I went up to my room and threw myself on my bed, thinking about what my brother just told me.

I wasn't going to lie, Hermione was the smartest witch in our year. Without her, Harry, Ron, and I wouldn't last two days without her and that brain she carried around. And like Harry said before, she was one of my best friends. I couldn't let her go.

Ugh, why was Harry right for once? I hated it when he was right. It made me look stupid. And we were twins. That made me look even more pathetic and sad, as if I was the dumb twin.

"I swear, I'm going to kill Harry before Voldemort does," I said to myself. Groaning to myself, I headed back down to the Gryffindor Common Room and went up to Harry and Hermione.

Both of them turned around and stared at me. "Yes, Max?"

"I'm sorry for being a bitch earlier, and I accept your apology," I replied.

Hermione smiled at me and stood up, giving me a hug. "I'm sorry as well."

At the corner of my eye, Harry gave me a smile as well. I rolled my eyes at him as I pulled away from Hermione. She gave me a smile and I returned the favor.

Ron came downstairs and rubbed his hands together. "Okay, so when do we eat? I'm starving!"

"When are you not hungry, Ronald?" Hermione asked him, laughing as she walked past him.

The three of us followed her down to the Great Hall to finally eat dinner. I was actually pretty hungry myself. But not only was my empty stomach on my mind, but that note Dumbledore gave us. Why would he want us to meet him in his office? Were we in trouble? I hoped not. It was only the first day back. There was no way Harry and I already got ourselves in trouble, even though it had happened before. Second year brought back so many memories. I was sure Ron remembered as well. He was with us. In fact, he was driving the car when we ran right into the Whomping Willow and almost got killed by a fucking tree. At least I had a story to tell my kids when I got older.

"Max, did you notice in all of our classes that Malfoy couldn't stop staring at you?" Hermione informed me.

My face slightly turned red as she looked at me. "I didn't notice."

On the way to the Gryffindor table, I spotted Draco sitting by Blaise at the Slytherin table. But Blaise was too busy talking to Theodore Nott to even pay attention to the tired, blond boy sitting beside him. Other than our encounter today, Draco looked miserable all day in our classes. Not even the little moments we shared in Potions did anything to make his day less boring. It really bothered me.

"He's looking over here, Max," Hermione whispered across the table.

"Shut up!" I hissed at her.

"Calm down. It's not a big deal. It's not like you like him or anything," Harry said.

But I did like him! I wanted to tell Harry that. Of course, I didn't like him like that. Only as a friend. The trio would go mad if they knew what happened over the summer. In fact, I didn't think they would forgive me, not even Harry, which was why none of them knew about it yet. I was too scared to tell them. I was scared of their reactions when I finally confessed. It would be hard losing my best friends. Especially when one of them was my brother, my twin.

"I'm not hungry anymore. I'll meet with you after dinner." I got up from the table and walked out of the Great Hall.

I heard footsteps echoing ahead of me as I almost cut the next corner on the right. I carefully poked my head around the corner to see who it was.

It was him.

"Draco?" I called out.

He turned around and smiled weakly. "Hey."

"Are you okay?" I asked, walking up to him. "You don't look like yourself."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he questioned, raising his eyebrows.

"I mean, this morning, after Potions, you seemed fine. I'm not trying to offend you or anything. I'm just worried."

He suddenly smiled and nodded. "I know. You have every right to worry about me. We're friends, remember?"

I nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we are. I'm glad we're friends, you know."

"Me, too."

I sighed, pausing before talking again. "So, are you okay?"

He nodded, clearing his throat. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's only the first day and I'm already stressed out over classes."

I chuckled a little. "Right," I paused for a moment. "You haven't told anyone else about...you know, what happened over the summer, have you?"

"No. Why, have you told anyone?"

"Of course not. That's the last thing I want my brother to find out about."

"I thought you said that he didn't care about who you dated."

"I know, but this is different, Draco. We're not dating. I lost my virginity to you. There's a difference between dating and having sex with someone."

The blond huffed a sigh and crossed his arms. "I have to go."

"Where are you going?"

"None of your business, Max. Don't follow me," Draco snapped, turning around, and walking away from me.

There was no point in calling after him. He wouldn't listen to me. I felt bad about bringing it up again, like I was ashamed of what happened. It wasn't our fault. It was just a spur of the moment. I just couldn't help myself when I was with him. I wanted to feel loved, like the way Cedric loved me. I wanted to feel that feeling again. But I now realized that I only wanted that feeling to come back was because I missed Cedric so much. I still missed him. I would always miss him.

I ended up sitting against the wall after Draco left. There was no point in going back to the Gryffindor Tower. Harry would find me here. He would know what was wrong without even asking me. Harry knew me so well. Even when there were times I didn't think he had the answer to my problem.

"Max?" Speaking of Harry, there was his voice as he came closer to me. "You ready to meet Dumbledore?"

I nodded, standing up while Harry started walking. I caught up with him and gave him a weak smile.

We were both silent on the way to his office. What was there to talk about? I wasn't in the talking mood, or any mood. I just wanted to get this meeting with Dumbledore over with. Whatever he wanted it probably dealt with Slughorn. I still didn't understand why he wanted us to get to know him. Maybe Hermione was right about Dumbledore. He was getting old.

Once we entered Dumbledore's office, he was putting something away as we approached him. "Ah, Harry. Max. I see you got my message. How are you?"

"Fine, sir," we replied.

"Enjoying your classes?" We nodded. "I know Professor Slughorn is most impressed with both of you."

We paused. "We think he overestimates our abilities, sir," I said.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Do you?"

"Definitely," we responded.

He chuckled again. "What about your activities outside the classroom?"

We were both confused. "Sir?" Harry spoke up this time.

"Well, Harry, I notice you spend a great deal of time with Miss Granger. I can't help wondering if you and--"

"Oh! No, no. I mean, she's brilliant and we're friends, but no." Harry slightly blushed a little.

"Forgive me, Harry. I was merely being curious. But enough talk. You two must be wondering why I summoned you here tonight." He stood up and took us over to the Pensieve. "The answer lies here. What you are looking at are memories. In this case, pertaining to one individual, Voldemort. Or, as he was known then, Tom Riddle. This vial contains the most particular memory of the day I first met him. I'd like both of you to see it."

Since the Pensieve was only big enough for one person, I decided to go first. I took the vial from Dumbledore and poured the memory into the Pensieve. Once it turned black, I stuck my face inside and let the memory unfold itself.

*******

A man was walking in the rain. He was walking up to a building, where a woman answered the door. He was at an Orphanage.

"I admit, some confusion upon receiving your letter, Mr. Dumbledore," she informed him. "In all the years Tom's been here, he's never once had a family visitor. There have been incidents with the other children. Nasty things." The two went to a room and opened the door. "Tom, you have a visitor."

"How do you do, Tom?" the old man asked him.

The brown-haired boy looked terrified to see him. "You're the doctor, aren't you?"

"No. I am a professor."

"I don't believe you. She wants me looked at. They think I'm different."

"Well, perhaps they're right."

"I'm not mad!"

"Hogwarts is not a place for mad people. Hogwarts is a school. A school of magic. You can do things, can't you, Tom? Things other children can't."

The boy paused for a moment. "I can make things move without touching them. I can make animals do what I want without training them. I can make bad things happen to people who are mean to me. I can make them hurt, too, if I want. Who are you?"

"Well, I'm like you, Tom. I'm different," he replied in a low voice.

"Prove it!" he snapped.

Dumbledore's response was lighting his wardrobe up on fire. "I think there's something in your wardrobe trying to get out, Tom."

The boy hesitantly got up and opened the doors. He grabbed a box and laid out everything inside it on the bed. Then, he looked back at Dumbledore.

"Thievery is not tolerated at Hogwarts, Tom. At Hogwarts, you'll be taught not only how to use magic, but how to control it. You understand me?"

Tom didn't say anything. He just looked at Dumbledore. With that, the old man stood up and began to walk out. "I can speak to snakes, too! They find me. Whisper things. Is that normal for someone like me?"

All Dumbledore could do was stop and stare at the boy in curiosity.

*******

I shot up and took a deep breath, running my fingers through my hair as Harry took his turn looking at the memory.

"Well? What do you think?" Dumbledore asked me.

"That was not what I expected," I replied.

"Nothing is what it seems, Max."

After about five minutes, Harry slowly raised his head and simply looked down at the Pensieve. "Did you know, sir? Then?"

"Did I know I'd just met the most dangerous dark wizard of all time? No. Over time, while here at Hogwarts, Tom Riddle grew close to one particular teacher. Can you two guess who that teacher might be?"

We started to put two and two together. "You didn't bring Professor Slughorn back simply to teach Potions, did you, sir?" Harry asked.

"No. You see, Professor Slughorn possesses something I desire very dearly, and he will not give it up easily."

"You said Professor Slughorn would try to collect us," he reminded Dumbledore.

"I did."

"Do you want us to let him?" I asked.

"Yes."

The three of us stood there for a moment. Dumbledore then sent Harry back to the Gryffindor Tower and he told me to stay.

"I wanted to ask you something, Max. I thought it would be best to wait to ask you after Harry was gone. It's something I didn't think you'd want him to hear."

"Okay." I nodded. "What is it?"

He stared at me for a moment before replying. "I know what happened over the summer, Max."

I widened my eyes. I was too surprised, embarrassed, and speechless. How did he know? "Sir, do you mean--"

"About your affair with Draco Malfoy? Yes, that's exactly what I mean. I know about it. I asked Narcissa Malfoy to keep an eye on you this past summer. She really does care for you. Now, tell me, what happened that night?"

I sighed and sat down across from him. I tapped my finger on the armrest, trying to find the words to start the story. "I had another nightmare about Sirius dying and Draco came in to comfort me." I paused, clearing my throat. "Then, one thing led to another. That's all there is to it, sir."

Dumbledore nodded after listening to everything I just said. "I kept you at the Malfoys, because I thought you and Harry needed to be apart after what happened to your parents that night. I thought you two would be safe that way. Of course, I didn't think Lucius' power would've been so extreme, especially on a young girl like you."

"It's hard to read people, isn't it?" I replied.

"Indeed it is. Narcissa admitted that she was scared to tell me what was going on all these years, thanks to Lucius having her keep quiet about all of it." He paused. "I must apologize, Max. I should've kept a closer eye on you and seen the signs of what was going on. Really, I should've put you with Harry at your aunt and uncle's home. After all, they're your family, too."

"It still doesn't explain why you picked the Malfoys."

He nodded his head. "Because Professor Trelawney made a prediction about you and Draco destined to be together. Sound familiar?" A grin came upon him as I recalled the one Divination class in third year. "She mentioned it during her interview for this job here. I took a chance, a silly one, really, having you stay with Draco to create some sort of bond with him, and hoped it would all work out, which I have a feeling it did." He gave me another smile. "That is all, Max. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, sir." With that, I left his office and started walking back to the Gryffindor Tower.

Destined to be together, huh? There were times where I thought Dumbledore was crazy, but at the same time, he was right. This was one of those times.

~~~~~~~

A/N: An update! About time I posted. Lol.

Sorry I've been gone for this entire month. School is really killing me right now. I'm also trying to keep a social life and deal with drama. It's hard. But I really hope you guys like this chapter.

So, do you think Max and Draco are destined to be together? What do you think will happen when Max finds out about what Draco is hiding?

COMMENT, vote, ship Drax. Love you all!

-A