�Aurora!�

�What, Mom?�

�I asked you to turn that nonsense down! Please do it.�

�Fine!� Aurora Borealis walked over to her silver Aiwa sound system and turned Destiny�s Child down. Survivor was her favorite CD. Good lyrics. Great beat. Three independent women from Texas. What could get any better? But her parents refused to see it as anything but trash.

�Mom?� Aurora�s brother had stepped into the hall and was arrogantly leaning on the doorframe.

�Yeah. She doesn�t understand the difference between real music� Aurora motioned towards her sound system �and *that*!� Aurora made a face and pointed to the floor. Lyra had just turned on her latest Bach recording. �How do you keep her from hearing yours?�

�That�s my secret.� Draco winked at his sister and turned back to his room. Sensing that Aurora was not following, Draco stopped, turned around, and said, �Well, don�t you want to find out?�

�Oh!� Aurora crossed the hall in record time and waited for her brother to open his door. When Draco opened his door, Aurora was hit with a force equaling that of a class five tornado! She was shocked into stiffness. Draco pulled her in by the arm and shut the door quickly.

�What is this?� Aurora was screaming at the top of her lungs. She couldn�t even hear herself think. Finally, Draco got the point and clicked off his stereo. Other than the fact that it was green, Draco�s sound system was identical to his sister�s. �How did you do that?�

�Sit down. This could take a while.� Draco pulled his desk chair around behind Aurora. She plopped down, still recovering from the adrenaline rush. When he saw that she was ready to listen, Draco began, �Sound proofing. It�s a simple charm.�

�Oh! Not *this* again!� Aurora threw her hands up in the air and got up to leave but her brother pushed her back into the chair. �When will you come to grips with reality and see that that stuff is *not* real?!?�

�But it is! I know you don�t believe me, but just listen. Ok?� Draco looked at Aurora pleadingly.

�Fine. But if you try to turn me into a frog, I�ll kill you.� Aurora saw no out. I might as well listen to his explanation. Just so I don�t have to hear it again. It could be interesting to laugh at later. Aurora had no knowledge of it, but Draco was about to change her life.

�Where do I go to school?�

�What kind of question is that? I thought we were talking about that outrageous theory of yours. You know, that one that says *magic* exists.� Aurora looked highly skeptical with her arms crossed over her chest.

�Just answer it. Where I go to school is the key to all this.�

�Fine. Houston Correctional Facility for Boys.�

�Nope.�

�What do you mean? I had to sign the registration papers saying that I would not �aid you in any homework assignment� that you had over the summer. Of course you go there. Where else would you go for nine months out of a year?�

�I don�t even go to school in America. I go to a magical school in Scotland. It�s called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Aurora you have to believe me.�

�You know what? Daria was right! You *are* delusional!� At that Aurora stood up and stomped out of the room.

�Why did I do this? Draco, you�re such an idiot. You knew that she�d never believe you. Stupid curse!� Draco pummeled his pillow and laid back on it. After reinforcing his Silencing Charm, he turned his sound system back on with the remote. Creed blared in his ears as Draco drifted off to a fitful sleep.

He was running. Running in a dark forest. He couldn�t see it, but he knew something was following him. He tripped and fell hard on the ground. crack! His ankle was broken and his hands were bleeding. As he rolled over on the ground, writhing in pain, he saw it. A tall, dark figure standing over him. It blocked out the full moon and cast an ominous shadow over him. It threw its hood back and�There she was. The girl of his dreams was standing before him. Why had he run? He was not afraid of her. He would have welcomed her with open arms if he�d know what she was. Then he remembered the beginning of this dream. It had recurred so many times that it was predictable. He had killed her. He had been standing in the center of a circle of cloaked figures with a jeweled dagger in his hand. Tied to the stone altar, also in the center, was Daria, his one and only love. He�d looked up to receive the signal from the Master. A nod of His head. A swish of the blade. A blood curdling scream. All in succession. And she was dead. No sooner had the life gone out of her had each of the members of the Dark Circle revealed themselves. All had the face of Daria. All had her flowing red hair. All had her brilliant green eyes. All had her perfectly slender body. However, each had equally menacing teeth. They were long fangs, covered in blood. The Master, to the likeness of Daria�s sing-song voice, spoke �Finally, we have reason to come after you.� It was then that he ran.

Draco�s screams for comfort continued into the night�unheard.

***

�Why do you want to know now?� Lyra was astonished. Aurora had never asked about Daria before. She�d simply accepted the fact that she�d died and moved on. Why was she interested now?

�I don�t know. I�ve had a lot of free time on my hands lately, and I got to thinking about it. You know it wasn�t that long ago. Well, today I realized that no body had ever told me how she died. I need to know.�

�Fine. I�ll tell you, but not now. Not here.� Lyra dropped her voice to barely a whisper.

�Then when?�

�Midnight. Behind the pool house.�

Aurora almost fainted. Lyra was the most forceful advocate of curfew and here she was, wanting to meet her daughter in secret and after hours. �Ok.�

It�s set. I am going to know.

Lord, help me. I am about to metaphorically commit suicide.

�Hello, Ladies.� Rigel had walked into the kitchen where Aurora and her mother were sitting at the kitchen table. No food was present. �How are y�all?�

�Great! What would you like for dinner, Darling?�

God, she�s a good actress. Everything is not great.

�How about we go out?�

Yes! Something good is coming out of today. After the Draco fiasco this afternoon, I need some hott guys to keep my mind *focused*.

�Sure. Aurora, will you go get your brother?�

Damn. I spoke too soon. �Yes, ma�am.� Aurora trudged up the beige carpeted stairs to face her doom. After mentioning Daria like that, he�ll probably curse me with one of his *spells*. Ha! How can he truly believe in that stuff?

Remembering what happened the last time *that* door was opened, Aurora knocked.

�Draco! Get out here. We�re goi�Oof!� Aurora suddenly felt the brass handle fall from in front of her. She stumbled forward into something soft yet hard at the same time: abs of steel covered in silky skin. Bare, as always. Mmm� That looks great!

�What do you want?� Draco�s voice was unusually soft and caressing.

�Uh�We�re going to�uh�� Aurora glanced down at his chest and looked back up at his face. He was smiling. ��dinner.�

�Then I should get dressed, right?� I can see it in her eyes. It worked.

�Uh� yeah�� Aurora had lost all thought and was now so close to Draco that she could feel his heart beat. Mmm�This feels great! Aurora was totally lost in her fantasy that she hadn�t noticed Draco pulling her closer and shutting the door. His right hand slid up her skirt while the left one entangled itself in her short curly hair. Aurora couldn�t resist. Her hands flew to the small of his back. Their mouths moved closer and all too soon, Draco and Aurora were enveloped in a deeply passionate kiss.

I wonder what she thinks of this.

>Mmmmm�Keep going, Draco�<

However, as Draco moved to unbutton Aurora�s blouse, reality sunk in: This is my brother!!! Nasty! Aurora promptly removed her tongue from his mouth and pushed him away. �Draco! What were you thinking? We�re related!!!�

�Are we?�

�What the hell is that supposed to mean?�

�It�s time you were told.� Lyra and Rigel had just opened the door and heard the last part of their conversation.

�I wake up this morning and all hell brakes loose! I have my mother wanting to meet with me in secret, my brother kissing on me, what about you, Dad? This better be good.�

�Aurora, sit down. This could take a while.� Rigel motioned to the desk chair.

�No. That�s where this whole thing started. I am *not* sitting. Explain now!�

�Ok. Draco is not your brother.�

�Oh! And this is supposed to make me feel better? Then who have I been sharing my deepest secrets with for the past�oh�17 years?�

�Aurora, my name is Draco Malfoy. I am not your brother and these are not my parents, although I wish they had been. I am a wizard. And, if you can handle any more surprises, you and your parents are magical as well. Your parents are a regular witch and wizard that have been living as Muggles since your birth. This has been to protect you because you are not a regular witch.�

Silence.

Aurora�s head should have been buzzing with questions, but, instead, she had only one: �So, what am I?�

�You are a Mage. A Mage is a witch or a wizard that is able to do magic with out the help of a wand or talisman. Every person on this earth has some magic in their blood, some more than others. People with a low MagiCell Factor are Muggles, but they are still magical. Their magic manifests itself in what they call human instinct and intuition. It is those that have a high MagiCell Factor that become witches and wizards. Since The Beginning, there has always been the possibility that a human�s blood will have a 100% MagiCell Factor. The Wizarding World has come to know these witches and wizards as Mages. Mages are extremely rare and are more likely to be female. There are only 5 Mages on the Earth today and you are one of them.�

Aurora�s questions that had spawned from Draco�s explanation were banished from her mind by his last sentence. �Who are the others?�

� Harry Potter, Virginia Weasley, You, and Me. The Fifth Mage is unknown to the world.�

�Who?�

�You�ll meet Harry and Ginny soon enough. However, not even the most skilled witches and wizards of our time have been able to figure out who the Fifth Mage is. All we know about him is that he is a Dark Wizard. But I�ll let Harry go into more detail on that. Right now, you need to get some sleep because you have a big day tomorrow.�

�I know, this is a lot to swallow, Aurora, but Lyra and I are still your parents and we will always love you. No matter what kind of music you listen to. Ok?� Aurora nodded.

�G�night, y�all. I love you too.� Lyra bent down to kiss her daughter�s forehead then followed Rigel out of Draco�s room. Aurora stood up to leave, but shut the door and sat back down. Draco was confused.

�Aurora, your room is over there.�

�I know, but I have to ask you something.�

�Ok, shoot.�

�When I came to get you for dinner I noticed things about you that I never had before.� Aurora looked away and blushed. �Mainly your body.�

�And that�s a *bad* thing?�

�No. What I�m trying to say is: why didn�t I notice those kind of things before. I still thought you were my brother, so it couldn�t have been a mental thing��

�Well, that�s the thing I�ve hated most about this job. When Dumbledore (you�ll meet him too) brought me to your parents, he had to put a curse on you. It was to make sure that when you got to the age where a guy�s body was everything, you wouldn�t notice mine. There was only one way to break the curse and only Dumbledore knew it. Today, he sent me an owl (I�ll explain that later) telling me how to break the curse and that today was the day that I should tell you about me.�

�So it was to keep my infatuations subdued?�

�Basically.� Draco, still in his boxers, stood up and walked over to Aurora. He took her hands in his and gently pulled her to a stand. Once again, it happened. Draco wrapped one of his muscular arms around Aurora�s middle while the other ran through her hair. Aurora slid her arms up his chest and around his neck. Slowly, their lips moved closer�and closer�until�

�How do you think she�s handling this?�

�Quite well. I expected her to hurdle something at us and run away screaming �They're mad! Stark raving mad!��

�Draco sure held his part well. Five years is a lot of time to pretend to be a brother.�

�I�m amazed he didn�t try to convince Dumbledore to use Harry instead. Living with us and all.� Lyra and Rigel were sitting at the kitchen table discussing what had just happened. �Did you hear something?� Rigel cocked his head to one side and listened. A high pitched moan came echoing down the stairs.

�It�s coming from Draco�s room.�

�But it sounds like Aurora.�

Rigel and Lyra exchanged knowing looks and laughed hysterically. �Well, we can�t blame him. It�s really hard to hide affection for five years, especially with Aurora parading around the house in just her underwear.�

�And it�s not like we could stop it if we tried. The Prophecy specifically said to let the Four work out their relationships by themselves. Prophecies never lie.�

�So, knowing that, should we show them how it�s done?� Rigel winked at Lyra.

�Why not?� Lyra stood up and put her husband�s hands around her waist as she led him off to their bedroom.

That night Draco and the Borealis Family gained a new appreciation for the Silencing Charm.
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