The Lost Potter-Draco Malfoy

Chapter 10 ✔️

Charlotte's POV- 

"Where have you been!" Hermione yelled as I walked into the common room, she jumped off the couch, eyeing Harry's dirty bag, my dirty robes, flushed skin, and the smell of the outdoors still lingering on my skin.

"What?" 

"I looked all over for you! I searched all of Hogwarts! I couldn't find you! I thought you were dead! You said you were going to owl your parents, and then just disappeared!" Hermione's eyes were bloodshot. She had been crying for hours, I felt suddenly very guilty, I put my hand on her arm, shaking my head. 

"I'm sorry, Hermione, I lost track of time-"

"Time! Doing what?" Hermione demanded.

"I was-well, I was um with-Malfoy." Why was that he first name that popped in my head? I tried not to be suspicious as Hermione tilted her head at me. 

"Doing what?" 

"He was helping me with some potions work because Snape is forcing him too. I didn't realize how late it had gotten." I explained, Hermione didn't budge, she still looked very angry. 

"Honestly Hermione, don't worry. It's not like she was with Pettigrew." Ron said, I pursed my lips not to laugh, and nodded. 

"You are so lucky I didn't tell Dumbledore or your parents! Or Harry for that matter!" Hermione said,

"I think he'd have a bigger heart attack hearing that you were with Malfoy." Ron shrugged.

"Yes, well, I'm going to bed now, or do you want me to tell you that I'm going to take a shower first in case I'm not in bed?" Charlotte asked. Hermione rolled her eyes, a blush creeping up her face.

"Go, don't stay up too late!" Hermione called after me, as I walked upstairs.

The dorm room was empty thankfully, I needed time to think. I couldn't believe that Peter was innocent, it sounded crazy, but I believed him. I needed James and the others to believe that too, but I didn't know how. 

The manor was one example. All the pictures of Peter Pettigrew had been cut out. James couldn't even say his name or watch the news reports about him. How was I supposed to get him to believe me. 

---

Over the weekend Harry was forced to stay in the hospital wing, while the others went to Hogsmeade. I thought I would go and visit Lupin again, since Harry was too busy sulking. I knocked on his door and heard a faint.

"Come in,"

"Hi, moony," I said, shutting the door behind me. 

"Hi, Charlotte. No, Harry?" Remus asked, as he put down the piles of paper he was grading down, I sat down in front of him shaking my head.

"No, he's still in the hospital wing. You know how Madam Pomfrey is." I said, as Remus handed me a cup of tea and a large chocolate bar. 

"I-um- I wanted to ask you a question." I said unwrapping the chocolate bar.

"Ask away."

"What if, and this is just in a complete made-up thought, Pettigrew was actually innocent?" Remus stiffened up as he stared at me, gripping his cup of tea. 

"Where is this coming from?"

"In just the made-up sense. If he was innocent, and he told you he was, and there was even proof! Would you believe him?" Remus put his cup down.

"You might not know this Charlotte, and I don't want you telling Harry, he'll get too angry, just like his father." He laughed,

"But a long time ago, Sirius, James, Peter, and I were all best friends. You would never see us without each other. We were brothers. Then the war came, and everything changed. Sirius and I turned on each other. He thought I had wanted more rights as a werewolf, and I thought he had gone back to the pureblood ways. We were both wrong. There was a mole in our group. We never suspected Peter, he was our little brother, the baby of the group. Before the war he was just as loud or dramatic as the rest of us but then when it started, he turned quiet, he still laughed with us, but it was never the same, we always wanted to figure out what was wrong, we knew he was different, but it was war and war changed you, so we thought we were crazy. Then you guys needed a secret keeper, so Sirius told Peter to do it, and Peter told Voldemort where you were. Sirius figured it out first, so he ran after Peter, and cornered him on that muggle street. Peter confessed to being the rat, and blew up the street, killed all those people, tried to frame Sirius." Remus explained, he took a sip of his cup of tea. 

"James took it the hardest. He blames himself for not seeing that Peter had changed, but I don't. I blame Peter and his actions."

"But what if it wasn't Peter but someone else?" I asked. I knew why Remus was angry, but I also knew that Peter deserved better.

"How could it be someone else? Peter was the only one who knew where the meetings were, and what we talked about." Remus countered, I signed, if it was this hard explaining it to Remus, how hard would it be for Peter to explain to them? How was I going to get all of them in a room together? I had no clue on how to do any of this.

"I'm going to go; I need to do some homework." I said, standing up. 

"Charlotte, why are you asking these questions?" Remus asked before I could leave.

"No reason, just curious."

"There's nothing wrong with being curious, but don't you go looking for Pettigrew, he's dangerous." Remus warned, I smiled, thinking if only he knew I had done just that.

"I won't."

---

"Why so gloomy Potter?" Malfoy asked, as he strolled over to me, his hands in his pocket, but I shrugged I really wasn't in the mood for a fight today.

"Not today, Malfoy. I'm in no mood." I signed. It had been a couple hours since my talk with Remus, and his words were still echoing in my head.

"Why not? I'm in the mood to bother you,"

"And I'm in the mood to not listen." I snapped back. As I headed towards the grounds, I had gotten some food from the house-elves and was going to bring some to Peter.

"Where are you going?" 

"None of your business."

"You seem to have forgotten that a mass murder is after you." Malfoy laughed looking between me and the castle. 

"No, I know."

"Then you better move your butt back into the building." 

"Draco, I'm busy, know, can you please leave me alone?" I asked. I was about halfway to the dark forest before I stopped, I looked over my shoulder expecting to see Malfoy gone, but he was walking right behind her.

"You seem to be in a hurry? Where to exactly."

"Nowhere really, just on a stroll."

"Yeah, I don't think so. I had to almost run after you, and you call that a stroll?" He laughed, but I ignored him. I could tell he thought I was acting weird, if I saw someone doing the same thing, I would think they were acting weird, but I didn't need to explain it to him.

"All right, I'll leave you be." He said, my eyebrows rose surprised, as I heard his footsteps stop. I looked over my shoulder again, but he just stood there watching me.

"Alright, Malfoy, see you." I said, before I walked into the forbidden forest, there was no way Malfoy would be following me, he was probably walking back inside the castle, he would be way to scared to follow me. I pushed the thoughts of Malfoy out of my head as I looked around for Peter. 

"Peter! Peter! Come out, I've brought food this time!" I heard the bushes start rustling on my right, and Peter stepped out of them. 

"Charlotte," Peter grinned.

"There you are! I've brought you food," I said, opening the bag. I took out a brown bag filled with potatoes, chicken, and veggies for him, along with a bottle of juice for him. I handed him the food, before we both heard a tig snap, and a gasp. I looked over my shoulder, making eye contact with Malfoy, his eyes wide with shock and horror, his mouth open in a big 'o', before he turned around and started running to the castle.