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Chapter Three:

Draco was curled up in his private office within the Cottage, going over some paperwork and generally wasting time. He knew that he had to meet with the others and that they needed to return to finish the last week of school, even though it was a lot of doing nothing while the 7th years finished their NEWTs. Technically speaking, he could get out of it because he was in mourning, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to. The idea of separating himself from Harry by that kind of distance didn’t sound fun.

Besides, he needed to feel some things out and make arrangements for the next year. Being that it was Saturday, Draco would send word that they would return to school the next day. That way, they could get whatever repercussions that were left from leaving out of the way. From what he had heard, Dumbledore showed up at the end, and Draco hoped that meant the old goat was back in charge. As much as he hated the old fucker, he knew that the Headmaster was the lesser of two evils between him and Umbitch.

“Apollo,” Draco called as he scribbled a quick note for his Godfather. When the house elf popped in, Draco sealed the note with his new seal and then turned to hand it to him. “Take this to my Godfather, please. Stay to get his response. I am inviting him to the cottage for the day to discuss our return to school and summer plans.”

“Very good, Master Draconis,” Apollo confirmed with a deep bow, and Draco smiled, shaking his head at the elf. “No need for such formalities, Apollo. You can still call me Master Draco. You did, at one time, change my diapers if you recall. I think that deserves some form of informality between us.”

“Stinky diapers, they was too,” Apollo snickered, taking the letter and popping out. As Draco waited, he wrote a second note to see if Gragin was available to come that day, agreeing to the extra weekend charge for the in-home visit. He was in the middle of approving the requested changes Demeter wanted to make in the kitchen as well as the plans for the greenhouses, when Apollo popped back in with Jordy and Severus.

“Uncle Sev,” Draco said immediately, getting up and heading straight for the older man. “I was afraid you wouldn’t come. That I had made you mad or that you were too disappointed in me.”

“Whatever would I have to be angry or disappointed in you for, Brat?” Severus asked, wrapping Draco up in the most comforting hug. No one hugged him like his Godfather, and Draco didn’t realize how much he’d needed that hug until he was wrapped up in it. “I am so sorry, Draco. I know how bad things were between the two of you, but for him to try and kill you… I never imagined that Lucius would stoop so low. Not that your mother and the Dark Lord believe that is what happened.”

“Mother,” Draco muttered sharply before leading Snape over to the sitting area. “Have you seen the letter that she wrote me?”

When his Godfather shook his head no, Draco summoned it from his desk and handed it over, wanting the older man’s take on the wording. The more the man read, the deeper the look of concern was on his face. “You are going to need to be very careful, Draco,” Severus warned as he handed the letter back.

“I don’t know what game your mother is playing, and to be frank I am not confident in how much use I will be there. She is much too familiar with how close you and I are for me to get any real information out of her. If anything, I may be a hindrance because I could very well see her using me to set you up for something. As much as Lucius played at being ruthless, your mother has never played a day in her life when it comes to that. If anything, she hides her true self under the facade of a submissive wife.

“Now though… Now she has nothing to hide behind, and I am not sure how she will react to that. I have always been sure where her feelings lie when it comes to you, but I do know that you stand between her role as Lucius Malfoy’s wife and her getting full control over the House of Malfoy. I can assure you that it displeases her greatly. Why, I do not know. Isn’t the Malfoy line a patriarchal lineage?”

“It is, except for one very specific last resort reason. Should there be no more male heirs available, if there is a female alive who was once Lady Malfoy, she would inherit the Ladyship on a temporary basis. She would then continue to keep her seat until a male heir could be chosen or created. So, while mother could no longer carry a child naturally, we both know there are magical ways for her to conceive an heir. As long as I can remember, it has been drilled into my head that nothing is more important than to carry on the Malfoy line.”

Draco watched as Snape sat back hard in his seat, with one hand curled into a fist. “So your father’s plan was to…?”

“Kill me and create a new heir with someone other than my mother. Whether that person was a mistress or he offed mother and married someone much younger than him, I know not. Honestly, I am not sure how sane he was, frankly. Whether it was genuine insanity or something… forced upon him, I do not know.”

Draco watched Snape rub his thumb pad along his jawline in obvious concentration. Knowing it meant that his Godfather was mulling over something important, Draco stayed quiet in his seat until the older man finally spoke.

“Your mother has always longed for power. As the youngest daughter, she never had any control over her own life and was basically sold to Lucius. I always thought it worked out for the best because, outside of their arguments, which we both know could be explosive, they seemed perfectly in sync. That being said, there have been times over the years when your father made decisions that didn’t make sense to me.”

“What are you saying, Uncle Sev?” Draco asked, watching his Godfather carefully.

“I’m saying what if Lucius wasn’t always fully in control of his own mind? What if your mother was occasionally in control when something came up, she wanted the power over. Your father claimed that he was under the Imperius Curse during the first war to avoid charges. What if that wasn’t as far off the mark as everyone always believes?”

“Could Mother really do that? Is she powerful enough?” Draco asked skeptically. Severus, though, looked severe and unimpressed by his doubts in his mother’s abilities.

“One thing that I learned very early on, and I suggest you learn very quickly. Never underestimate a woman from the House of Black. They are far more cunning and ruthless than anyone gives them credit for. Bellatrix is by far the most obvious, but that is because, in my opinion, her insanity is a little too real for her to be able to successfully overcome. Andromeda and Narcissa, though, are two very formidable women. If your mother is truly after your life because she has her sights set on the House of Malfoy Head of House seat, do not underestimate her. Now tell me what has been going on that I missed.”

Draco snorted and rubbed a hand over his face before deciding to start with Harry and go from there. By the time that he was done, Snape looked flummoxed. “You should have called me earlier, Draco. I would have found a way to come to you. There was no need for you to go through all of that alone.”

Draco chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment, trying to come up with a reply that wouldn’t immediately set Snape after Sirius. In the end, he decided that there wasn’t really any good way to ensure that without lying, and he certainly wasn’t going to do that.

“I need you to listen and not immediately go off because it’s Sirius Black, and he treated you horribly. I love you, Sev. I love you as if you were the man who helped create me because you have always acted more like a father than Lucius ever did. As far as Lucius was concerned, I was a commodity that he used when it suited him and put back on a shelf when I  just needed to be out of the way. There is no one now and there is no one at any time in the future who will supplant your place in my life.

“That being said, there are things that I need that you cannot help me with because of the position you are in. It is horrible, and I know that we both hate it. It doesn’t make me love you less, but it is just a fact.”

“And those things are,” Severus asked softly, and only because he knew him so well was Draco able to hear a smidge of hurt in his Godfather’s voice.

“I need someone who can hold my proxies for me with both the Wizengamot and Hogwarts Board of Governors. I need someone who can help me with accounting things both with Gringotts and general House accounts that I do not know as I will have time for.

“I need to save my cousin because it’s a stain on the House of Black to let him linger as an escaped convict. When I know from things I have seen with my very own eyes that he is not guilty. Then, once cleared, it would be a waste of resources not to use him to my advantage. I need…

“I am afraid I am going to hurt you with this, and I hate it. I hate it because everything I told you at the start is true, but it doesn’t make the needs of my heart ache any less.”

“Draco, out with it. Do not worry so much about my hurt feelings. I am fully aware that I am the adult in this relationship and that you are the child. So just say what is on your mind and let me worry about my feelings.”

“I need a connection to my bloodline. I need some kind of family who is not corrupted! My father outright tried to Avada Kedavra me. I believe my mother wants me dead, but if not, she is actively playing games with my mind. Even if by some miracle she’s had a complete personality change and she has only the best of intentions, the things that she has already done may be too much to overcome.

“I want Sirius to love me. I want someone in my line to look at me and say Draco, you are enough. I want someone of my blood to attend the wedding I will have someday. I want to present my future child to someone who knows what it means to be either a Black or a Malfoy.

“I have had more than my fair share of surprises and blows in the last few days, and I need something predictable. If nothing else can be said about Sirius Black, then you have to admit that family is everything to him, even if at times it has been the family that he created for himself instead of the family that he was born into.

“I know that there are those who would say he left his parents. He turned his back on his brother because he sorted into the wrong house. He killed one of his best friends. Only his parents turned their backs on him first because it was Sirius who sorted into the wrong house. I don’t have a justification for turning his back on Regulus, only that I am sure at that point Sirius was jealous and hurt and frustrated, and it was just one more thing that Reggie seemed to have done right, and Sirius did wrong. As to Peter, we both know the truth behind that scam and who the real betrayer was.”

Draco sniffed and wiped the tears off his face with his hands before he continued. His eyes pleaded with Severus to understand.

“I need him to stand beside me because his blood is my blood. His line is my line. Our ancestors are the same, and that has to mean something! Please don’t tell me that everything I have sweated and bled and been tortured for was a lie. Please tell me that Lucius was right about something and that family is important because they know where you have been because they came from the same place. Please?”

“Family is everything. Whether it is the family you were born to or the family you make for yourself. That is no lie. A broken clock is right twice a day, and a manipulative, lying parent does occasionally tell you things that mean something.  I’m not hurt because you need Sirius. If I had a member of the Prince family who suddenly wanted to be part of my life, it would mean everything to me. It would not make me love you less; it would just mean I have more than just you and your mother.

“I love you, Draco Lucius, and no one can change that fact. The day that your mother put you in my arms and asked me to protect you for the rest of my life, you became the most important person to me forever. I know you see me as a pseudo father replacement, and I take that responsibility seriously. If you need Sirius, then I will do my best to swallow down my teenage anger and at least be civil with him. What are your plans for the last week of school?”

“I have made Malfoy Cottage into a sanctuary location, and by dinner time, I will have five classmates that have been granted sanctuary and either people staying here for the summer, either through sanctuary or on their parent/parents’ orders. We will all be going back to Hogwarts on Sunday for the last week- ish of school. I have things that I need to do. I will be requesting the Lord’s accommodations next year. I need to make sure there is no one else who needs help that I have overlooked.

“I don’t expect there to be simply because most of the school doesn’t trust me, and those that are within Slytherin that do, most aren’t in the right place yet. One of the things I need to work on is some image work. Solely so that we can help more people. I have apologies I need to make. I don’t know if I can do that now, though. I just… I need to go back. People will whisper and talk as they watch me walk through the hallways, but I need to go back. Plus, it will give Harry and me time to keep getting to know each other better without temptation and hormones getting in the way.

“I need something to do that isn’t lying in bed sad because now my father will never be the father I always wanted. I need to be a child for a little longer because I am fairly certain that my days of being a boy who has no more responsibility than homework and trying to get the snitch before my opponent are over. I need friends and pretty boys, and my soulmate who I am trying to blend friendship circles with. I need to not be here in the place that always reminds me of Grandfather.”

“Is that going to be an issue?” Severus asked, the worry evident in his tone, and all Draco could do was sniffle and shrug.

“I’m already tired of crying because Lucius doesn’t deserve my tears, but I don’t want to be some emotionless shell of a person like he was either. I love this place because it represents the only thing I have left of the one person who loved me as a child, because I was of his line, and I hate it for the same reason.

“Is it going to be an issue? I don’t know, maybe, but I literally have nowhere else to go to. Even though mother knows exactly where I am because of the wards on this place, which now include Draconian War Wards on top of the Wizarding War Wards that I already have, it is the safest fucking place I could go.

“Frankly, Hogwarts is more of a risk for me than this place, and my own safety is very much at the front of my mind. I can’t help anyone if I can’t keep myself alive.”

“And Potter? I know that you are not going to believe this, but I do not hate the fact that he is your soulmate. I am not even shocked that the two of you are soulmates. Honestly, it makes a lot of sense. How are you really feeling about him being your soulmate, though? I know your feelings about him are complicated.”

“Harry is everything I have ever dreamed of wrapped in a ball of guilt and shame for how I have treated him. Harry says it isn’t just a one-sided issue and that we just need to move forward. We’ve talked through things as much as we want to. Are there things that may come up? Yes, but I suppose that happens in every relationship.

“When I stepped onto that train as a naive eleven-year-old, the only thing I knew about making friends was how I had seen my father treating people. It didn’t work out and led to five years of fighting and jinxes between us. Now we’re going to be real friends. The thing that each of us needs the most is someone who will never leave us. Who will look at us and love us despite our faults? And now we both have that person. He has a history and background with his Muggle relatives that isn’t any better than what I lived under with my mother and father. We’re devoted to being friends, real, true best friends, before we take it anywhere near romance and hormonal snogging. What do I do about Dumbledore? Can I trust him at all? Because I am not sure that I can fight Mother and the Dark Lord and Dumbledore all at the same time.”

Snape nodded in understanding, and Draco called for some tea for them both while he listened to his Godfather explain the Headmaster. “Albus Dumbledore is a complicated man who, I think, has forgotten some very vital things. At the heart of it, I will tell you that I would not devote myself to him as tightly as I have if I did not believe that he was, in the end, a good man. I think that he has already defeated one dark lord and therefore believes that the same equation of sticking to the greater good and doing everything his way is what will defeat this one.

“The problem is that it didn’t work the first time we battled Voldemort, and I do not believe that it will work the second time either. Unfortunately, I think those of us who are closest to Albus tend to overlook his failings because we know in the end his heart was in the right place. What that has led to, though, is students that don’t trust him, a whole house that he has alienated, and one particular student that he has indirectly, or directly, depending on how you look at it, led to be abused and neglected.”

Severus sighed and steepled his fingers as he stared off into space. Giving him time to think, Draco poured them each tea and then filled their plates with their favorite finger sandwiches and pastries. He watched his Godfather and mentor nod his thanks, nibbling on the offerings, before he continued on.

“I think the first thing that Black and I need to do is to have a frank conversation with Albus about what he has done thus far and what needs to change. Maybe I should invite Remus and Minerva as well so that we have some level heads to help keep things somewhat calm. We definitely need to talk to him, though and have a coming to Merlin meeting with him. Because he has an opportunity here to do something that makes a real change, but it isn’t going to happen if he keeps on doing the thing that he’s always done.”

“Do it then. Do whatever you feel needs to be done. I trust you.” Draco nodded his agreement. “Do it today if you can so that he and I can have a real conversation next week while I am there. I am willing to be the figurehead for those who are stuck in the middle with the Dark Lord and their families on one side and Potter and a Headmaster on the other. And the fact that said Headmaster acts like they are evil incarnate just because of a house sorting at eleven years old does not help the cause. Do not worry. Take care of your business with the Dragons and Black, and I will take care of Dumbledore. Is your meeting here or there?”

“Here,” Draco said absentmindedly, casting a quick tempus spell before swearing under his breath and standing. “I need to run. I need to shower and change clothes before Gragin gets here. I don’t think he would be impressed by my pajamas and nightrobe. Thank you for coming, Uncle Sev. Can we return via your floo?”

After getting approval, Draco ran off, and Severus was left to find his own way back out of the cottage. Shaking his head, Severus called for Apollo and went off in search of Black and Lupin before he left. Draco had a point. There was no time like the present to get things worked out.

Just after lunch found Severus climbing the stairway to the Headmaster’s office with Sirius Black and Remus Lupin following him. He had sent a missive to Minerva half an hour prior, explaining what he needed and why. He only hoped that she would be on board with the plan and on their side. It was a little risky not talking to her beforehand, but the two of them had discussed Dumbledore enough times in the past that he felt like he could predict what she would say on the matter, which was why he was forging ahead with the plan.

The fact of the matter was that the things he had told Draco were right. Dumbledore, at the end of the day, was a good man, but the problem was that he fell into the same trap that many of those with power before him had fallen into. He decided that because his way had worked once, he was the one who knew best in all situations going forward. This wasn’t the past, though, and Voldemort wasn’t Grindelwald. He had an advantage with Grindelwald because Albus knew the man in a way that those around him and the others fighting the man didn’t. This time, he was not the most knowledgeable, and he was making decisions born out of his own prejudices and misjudgements.

Knocking on the headmaster’s door, he got permission to enter and headed inside, holding the door for Lupin and Black before following them into the office. “Severus?” Dumbledore asked, and Snape took a deep breath, nodding to Minerva before focusing his attention on his mentor and friend.

“We need to have a serious conversation, and it needs to happen now, because the children who went to the ministry will be returning tomorrow.”

“That is good news. Not only am I happy to hear that, but I am sure the aurors who have been tryin to get in touch with them will be happy as well. By the way that you say that, though I am guessing that neither of those things is what you are referring to.”

Snape sat in one of the chairs with Sirius and Remus settling on either side of him, with Minerva perched next to Dumbledore behind the desk. “Do you know what the Muggle saying a coming to Jesus meeting means, Albus?”

The headmaster blinked, surprised and glanced at Minerva, whose expression was as unreadable as always before glancing back to Severus with a nod. “A quaint term where someone has the truth or harsh realities forced upon them due to needed accountability in order to bring about necessary and often significant changes in behavior or direction. I do believe it is not a comfortable conversation, and one that happens when there are no other options left. Is that what is happening now, Severus?”

It was Minerva who responded, and Severus was glad to hear her taking the point. “The death of Lucius Malfoy has given us an opportunity that none of us ever believed we would have. The problem is Albus, that you are standing directly in the way of this chance, and it is you and your actions that may prevent us from saving a whole house of children. So, yes, that is what is happening here.”

Dumbledore blinked and looked to Sirius, who nodded. “Albus, as you know, several of us, mostly students but not all, disappeared from the department of mysteries battle without anyone being able to trace where we went. I cannot tell you the location, but I can tell you that it was my cousin Draco Malfoy who took us in and gave us a place to go.”

“So you are saying Mr. Weasley was correct? Even

I did not believe that Draco Malfoy could kidnap a whole group of people.” Albus answered disbelievingly and Severus sighed.

“That,” he said, trying not to glare or lose his patience. “That right there is the problem. No, Ronald Weasley was not correct, but your assumption that something bad is being done by a Slytherin child is the problem.”

“Tell me something, Albus,” Remus picked up when Severus stopped. “When Sirius left home, where did he go? How was he able to do so and not be homeless?”

“The Potters were generous and kind-hearted enough to open their house and family to include him.”

Sirius nodded, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “Tell me, Albus, what student in Slytherin house has that ability? Who do any of those students have to go to to save them from their unwanted and often abusive home lives? Who, right now, on the light side, is in a place where they are willing to take in a child who needs a safe place to land?”

Dumbledore opened his mouth to answer and then closed it, frowning. “You say that as if you believe any of those students would want to be saved, Sirius.” The elderly wizard shook his head sadly before continuing. “The fact of the matter is that those children are already lost to us. The moment they were born, they were filled with darkness and sent on a road that we cannot rescue them from. The only thing that we as adults can do is to minimize the damage they can do to the other houses.”

“That is the most disgusting thing that I have ever heard someone say about a child, and if that is truly how you feel, then you do not deserve to be the headmaster of this school.” Minerva scolded angrily, and Albus looked up at her, shocked.

“No child is a lost cause, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. I am serious. If you truly feel that way, I must insist that you give up your position right now, and I will be going to the board to demand it.” Minerva pushed off the wall angrily and paced to the other side of the office to throw herself down in a chair in front of Fawkes.

“Minerva!”

“Did you know that Harry was supposed to be a Slytherin?” Sirius asked casually, diverting the headmaster’s attention. “And for the record, I agree with Minerva. Not only do you not deserve to be the Headmaster of Hogwarts, but you do not deserve to be the leader of the light. How dare you say such a thing about a child!”

Dumbledore shook his head and then slumped in his chair. “Tell me.” Sirius rubbed a hand over his mouth before he continued speaking.

“Draco Malfoy, who by the way is now Lord Draconis Abraxas Arcturus Black-Malfoy Emrys, Earl of Avalon, has voluntarily turned his home into a sanctuary house where he will be taking in those that need protection because he cannot trust you to save them. So far, he has saved five students and is housing three others whose parents want to make sure they are safe from the Dark Lord’s clutches. He has nowhere to go. He has no adults but Severus and I to support him, but he and his friends have come up with a whole plan on how they can do their part to defeat the monster that is destroying their families.

“You have turned your back on them and yet they might be doing more to defeat that thing than you have to date. The order meetings are mostly ineffectual because all you people do is argue and point fingers while calling people like Severus’ snakes irredeemable. And this is coming from the man who thinks Peter Pettigrew should get a chance at being redeemed, even though he is directly responsible for killing James and Lily! How dare you!!”

Sirius just huffed and shook his head, unable to continue, so Remus spoke up next. “The fact of the matter, Albus, is that you are wrong. Horribly wrong. You are wrong about so many things in this war that it is no surprise that we are having to fight it a second time. Children are children, no matter what house they were sorted into. Dark Magic is not evil, it’s just a different kind of magic. Those that practice it and whose magical traits lean that way are no more irredeemable than you are, because I guarantee you are not a light affiliated wizard. You are most likely grey, but you call yourself light because you are ashamed of that which Lady Magic gifted you, all because your father did terrible things.

“You placed Harry with abusive Muggle relatives because you and you alone decided that was where he should be. You overrode Minerva, James, and Lily’s will to put him with people who have beaten, starved, and both mentally and emotionally abused him. You close your eyes to the truths of his circumstances because in your arrogance, you  cannot stand to consider that you might be wrong.”

“You think that because you defeated Gellert a certain way, that you need to do the same with He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named. Well I can promise you that if the whole of Magical Britain ever discovered what conditions you left Harry in, they would be horrified. I am horrified daily, but you have long since stopped listening to me on the subject. You have become an arrogant and neglectful man. These children deserve better than you. The Slutherins deserve better than you, and Harry deserves better than you.”

“Here are some truths for you, Albus,” Severus took over as Minerva got up and made them all some tea after a house elf popped some in. “Draco Malfoy is going to save as many people as he can, and both Sirius and I are going to help him. He already has Harry on his side because he and Draco are soulmates with an infinite bond. You will never be greater than Merlin Emrys because you frankly and maybe unfairly are no Dragon Mage. Merlin Emrys is known as great as he is because he was thrown out of the dragon realm for wanting to know muggles and was beloved in the magical world because it is he who shared his abilities with us, saving our King Arthur Pendragon more than once with his magical abilities. Abilities that you just don’t have, and that is ok Albus. You do not have to be Merlin Emrys to be a great man. You do need to be a much better man, though gto be even close to him. Merlin never would have turned his back on the Slytherins and called them irredeemable because they sorted into Salazar Slytherin’s house.

“Here is a question for you. What do you think will happen to the oath that I made to you if I went to the Dragons right now and asked to be cleansed? I ask because I already know the answer. They have advised me that the oath is already broken. The only thing holding me loyal to you is myself and my honor. You have long ago broken that oath, making it useless. Just like the only thing holding this mark on my arm is my own stubbornness for not asking them for help sooner.

Well, I can tell you that I will be having this mark removed. My Godson deserves better than to have the person he sees as a pseudo father figure putting him behind a narcissistic megalomaniac and a false light leader who has written him off because a light wizard dared to be sorted into the house of the snakes.”

“You are not currently a great wizard, Albus,” Minerva said quietly and gently as they practically watched the elderly wizard age before their eyes. “You’re not even a good wizard. A good wizard would not have left Sirius Black in Azkaban for 12 years when they had the resources to force a trial. A good wizard would work harder to save the house everyone writes off as evil, not turn his back on them. A good wizard would have used his powers to do better for the creature born and would care more about justice than redemption. Redemption is good when it is just. It is not good when it is redemption just for the sake of redemption.”

Sirius then stood and moved to lean against the desk directly next to Dumbledore. “You have a chance here, Albus. Because, as hard to believe as it is, Draco has not written you off yet. He is willing to give you a chance to do better by not just him, but his house and all those whom you have wronged. Fix the things in the school that are wrong, like the curse on the DADA position and all the classes that you and Dippet took away that could make the muggle raised students’ entrance into the magical world easier.

“Apologize to the Slytherins and tell them that you will do better by them. Tell them that they are as important to you as the other three houses and that you are not going to write any of them off. I’m not telling you that none of them are on the Dark Lord’s path, because that would be stupid. Just like believing there are no future Death Eaters in the other three houses is stupid. Support Amelia Bones in her attempts to clear my name.

Stop keeping secrets. I am not saying to tell everyone everything, but you need to form an inner circle who does know everything. Stop asking fucking children to win this damned war for us! I don’t care how many prophecies there are; we are not asking Harry or Draco or anyone else to do this for us. We are grown men and women, it is we who should be protecting him, not the other way around.

“Prove us wrong and show us that you are a good wizard/ Start there. Start with good because frankly you have a long way to go to get to great. Do all of that and maybe someday we can say that we were proud to stand by your side because all I feel right now is shame.”

Dumbledore nodded and hung his head, staring down at his hands. Severus was not sure he could buy that they had truly gotten through to Abus, but he hoped so. He did believe that they needed him to defeat the Dark Lord. The question was whether he would be willing to admit his wrongs and make them right.