Poison Part Two – What Hurts the Most
Chapter One – The Dark Mark
"What's bothering you, Draco? You look horrible."
Summer break with his father. Oh boy, this just couldn't get any worse.
"Haven't been sleeping well, father." He didn't have the nerve to look him in the eyes.
"Are you sure you're not… hiding something from me, Draco?" his father inquired.
"Like what?" Draco looked up, desperately hoping his father would stop trying to unravel his well-kept secret.
"Well, it's not so hard to find out, is it?" Lucius Malfoy's wand flashed.
"Legilimens!"
Draco felt how his mind was entered and how his father went through his memories of last year.
He's going to kill me…
"Protego!" The connection was severed. Lucius hadn't seen it all.
He raised his eyebrows at his son.
"Well, well, Draco… So our Lord was telling the truth after all. You were the one that lured Potter into the maze. You gained his trust… Very impressive!"
Draco looked down at his hands, feeling utterly disgusted with himself. The thought that his father saw him as Voldemort's little whore was unbearable to say the least.
"I knew you would make me proud some day, son."
With extreme effort, he managed to smile at his father. He got out of the room as soon as possible and ran to his own quarters.
In front of the mirror in the bathroom, he stared at his reflection. His father was right. He did look terrible.
I failed him… I sent him off to certain death…
He could see Harry's face. How he had been beside himself with grief after he had been transported back to the Tournament Grounds.
My fault… He has suffered so much, and I made his life even worse.
Tears were dripping down on the sink. Draco clenched his fist and hit the mirror so hard it shattered. His hand was probably broken, but it felt good to hurt. He deserved it. He had no future except becoming a Death Eater and a loyal follower of his own mortal enemy. He hated the Dark Lord. He hated his father. But above all, he hated himself.
I deserve to die. It will make his life easier.
He got his wand and aimed it at his head.
"Avada Ke…"
-
Harry woke up, gasping for air.
Draco. Please tell me that it was just a dream.
He closed his eyes and saw Draco put the wand against his head. He cried out mentally, but there was no reply.
"Harry? Are you alright?" Ron was awake as well.
"Fine," Harry said. "It was just a dream."
-
The rest of the holiday he was kept busy. They were staying at Sirius' place, trying to rid it of the evil that lived there. Harry went to the hearing and got cleared of all charges. Before he went in, he saw Lucius Malfoy talking to the Minister. When Draco appeared next to him, Harry's scar burned. Draco Malfoy looked at him with empty eyes.
You didn't.
There was no answer. The Draco Malfoy he grew to love last year was gone.
The dreams got worse after that. Voldemort was looking for something, and Malfoy was helping him get it. Harry felt sick to his stomach every time he woke up from another nightmare.
We were never meant to be… He was right. He'll fulfill his destiny, I'll fulfill mine. We can never be…
It hurt more than he could say. And the worst part was, he couldn't talk to anyone about this.
Soon he was on the train to Hogwarts. For the first time in his life, he wished he didn't have to go.
-
School sucked and got worse. Harry was totally messed up after finding out Malfoy had become a Death Eater. He was aggressive to everyone around him and picked fights with other students. But the person he grew to hate most was professor Umbridge. She kept denying that Voldemort was back and gave Harry detention for arguing about it in class. She tortured him with her special quill. He never gave in, but it hurt.
He was studying the red scars on the back of his hand, when he noticed Malfoy was looking at him. He was obviously amused with Harry's pain. Harry thought back to the day Malfoy had told him they couldn't see each other again.
Calm down, Draco. You're scaring me.
Am I? Get used to it, Potter.
The mental link was gone. Harry felt relieved about that, but also missed it. He was torn apart inside. Some part of him hoped that Draco was still in there somewhere. Another part of him wanted to kill Malfoy for becoming a Death Eater.