Author's note:
This is my first fanfiction ever. My native language is not English, so if I have any serious grammar mistakes you are welcome to comment on that. Either way, reviews are very welcome, so please R&R :)
I wrote this because I was a little disappointed that Draco's character never got a serious development, so here is my attempt to make this happen. I might continue this storyline because it's not really finished.. but right now this is all there is.
*All the characters here belong to J.K. Rowling. I praise Sensei's work, and have only admiration for this women!
It was cold, and he was freezing.
Or maybe it wasn't the cold, but something else that made him freeze where he stood. All he knew was that time seemed to have stopped at that moment.
The only thing he could think of was the sight of the people in front of him. Far away on the other side of what could only be described as a battlefield before the battle. These people were not by his side where they should have been. Or was it him that was not by their side. Either way, the entire situation felt surreal to him. He never would have imagined that he would be standing at Hogwarts' gates, surrounded by Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors, whereas his own parents stood on the opposite side, with the black-cloaked crowd. He felt in his heart that he should stay where he is, but at the same time he wanted to be standing by his family.
He knew by now that his father has made some bad decisions in the past that led him to the position he was currently in, but it was too late to change it. His only hope was that the tall blond man in front of him could make just one right decision and switch sides before it all ends.
His father's eyes told him that that wasn't going to happen. He could see that familiar arrogance in them that by now he knew was an inseparable part of this man. But there was also fear. The same fear that was always there when his father was in close proximity to the Dark Lord. This fear he knew was the reason his father will never be able to disobey the fearsome pale wizard who stood in front of him, let alone stand up and fight him. Indeed, fighting Voldemort was the Potters' way of living, not the Malfoys'. The Malfoys do whatever is necessary for them to survive – that's what he was always told.
Narcissa Malfoy was a little different. It is true that she is no paragon of virtue, and was never very kind to anyone outside her family, but she was not as evil as some believed her to be. In fact, the main reason she was there, surrounded by those people, was her loyalty and love for her husband. She knew it was all wrong, but in her mind, leaving the father of her child in this bloody awful mess all by himself – no matter if he has "made his own bed" – was much worse. It also didn't help that her own sister was Voldemort's number one follower. By now she felt that it was her fate to stay with this crowd and deal with the consequences, whatever they might be. The least she could do in this situation was keep her family together. Although right now her family was divided, and her son was standing with the other team.
Just a moment ago the news about Harry Potter's terrible fate was announced. The entire crowd surrounding Draco fell silent, and the only sound that was heard was Voldemort's cold and threatening voice, mocking Potter's death. That was followed by the hysteric laughter of the Death Eaters, as if by cue from their master. Their laughter, along with the whole situation, made Draco feel sick.
This wasn't right.
Potter was the one person whom he believed was as invincible as the Dark Lord.
This must be some trick. They are trying to bring down the moral of the people who believed in Potter. The people who believed that he was their savior, and made him their mascot in this war.
He himself was having similar feelings in the past year, ever since he was forced to leave Hogwarts on his sixth year. Ever since he started to hear rumors about Potter's doing, working on his plan to defeat Voldemort. He felt that if this was a book, then he was a cowardly villain and Potter was the courageous hero. But now the hero's sit might have emptied – which should be a good thing for the villain, but for some reason it didn't feel all that good and reassuring. In fact, it felt like his last ray of hope was extinguished.
Was he putting his faith in Potter? Surely not, it can't be.
However, in that moment for some reason he felt like he was channeling a little bit of Potter's courage, and he was going to use it to do what he thought was right. But just as he was starting to think these very Pottery thoughts, it was interrupted by a familiar voice.
"Draco…" Lucius called out, in a tone that was clearly meant to sound authoritative, but came out quite shaky. He then gestured his son to join them on the other side of the battlefield.
"Draco, come," his mother added with a smile, which made him question his resolve for a second. But he couldn't back down now. This may be the last chance he ever gets to do the right thing.
"No…" Draco answered quietly.
Lucius, surprised and unsure of what he had just heard, had to make sure that his ears weren't betraying him.
"What did you say?"
"No," he repeated, his voice louder this time, as if to convey his resolve, while boosting his own confidence.
The Dark Lord was standing in front of Draco, looking straight at him.
"No?" asked the familiar eerie voice, as if trying to give him his last chance to change his answer. Needless to say, he was confused and angry that a Malfoy can be that ungrateful and disobey him, and in front of so many witnesses nonetheless.
"He doesn't know what he is saying, my Lord," started Lucius.
"Draco," he turned back to his son, half pleading, half commanding, "think of what you are doing. You belong here, with your family, not with those people who are defiling the wizarding world. You would rather stand next to Mudbloods than with your own flesh and blood? "
"Draco, please…" It was his mother now that was trying with all her strength – though there was not much left – to persuade him to join them. And though it broke his heart to see her from that distance and not run to her and lessen her worries, he couldn't bring himself to do so. Not this time.
"Mother… I can't. This is… not right." He struggled to get the words out, but his confidence has waned after hearing his mother's plea, and his gaze slowly dropped to the dirt at his feet.
"Is that your decision?" asked Voldemort.
"It's not!" Lucius declared hastily. "Draco, Tell him-"
"It is!" Draco answered, raising his head. "You cannot decide for me, Father. I'm not a little boy anymore, I can think for myself. And I choose to stay here."
"You have lost your mind. You will die if you stay there!" his father continued, hoping that the fear of death will make his son change his mind.
"I… don't care." His voice was shaking now, but he managed to steady it to some degree when he continued. "You can come over to this side, if you really care about your family"
"Why you…" Lucius' face was turning red, from what Draco could only assume was anger and embarrassment – from his son's sudden straightforward disobedience, and the fact that this whole scene was playing in front of dozens of people.
Narcissa seemed hesitated all of a sudden, and looked worriedly at the now red-faced man beside her. She was always standing by her husband because in her eyes it seemed like the reasonable thing to do. But she couldn't deny that leaving the Dark Lord's side would make her life much easier, and less filled with dread and fear for her family's life. What she wanted most of all was to give her son a good life, and staying beside that pale, snake-like monster was clearly not the way to achieve that.
She only managed to make half a step forward when Lucius grabbed her arm and stopped her.
His eyes still focused on Draco, he talked quietly and steadily to his wife, "Stay strong. You need to set an example for your son. Now, persuade him. If he won't listen to me, perhaps he will listen to you. You do want us all to be together, do you not?"
As much as she wanted to praise her son for his courage to stand up for what he believes in for the first time in his life, and run over to stand by his side, she felt committed to her husband. Years of blindly accepting his words and living her life according to his "perfect plan" made her feel that she was unable to act against his will.
So she nodded lightly and turned to her son. "Draco, you have no choice. We won't be able to help you if you stay over there," she said. "I don't want to lose you. Please, just… come over here."
She could feel the tears filling her eyes and couldn't control it, because after all, she knew that her words were true. She won't be able to help him. And if she lost him – her only son – she wouldn't be able to live with herself, and would rather die than feel that much helplessness.
While emotions started clouding her mind and mixing up her thoughts, somewhere no far from her Voldemort was growing more and more impatient.
"Well," started the cold voice again, "as much as I love this sentimental scene, I don't have time for family disputes. It's clear that this young man wishes to stay where he stands. So, consequently, his end will be the same as his new friends'." This last sentence caused Narcissa to let out a small cry.
"Even more so," he continued, "I feel like I should be the one to personally punish young Mr. Malfoy, for being such an ungrateful boy and a traitor, to his family also." He now turned to glance at Lucius, who looked more scared than he ever was. "Isn't that right, Lucius? Such an ungrateful son… should be punished."
Lucius Malfoy looked now as though he was drained of all his strength, his proud front shattered completely. The rage towards his son that filled him a moment ago was replaced by dread. All he could think of was how he was going to get his family, or at least himself and Narcissa, out of the mess they were in. For the first time in his life the thought of abandoning his son came to mind. He hated it, but Draco was now indeed a grown-up, and he had made his decision. A stupid decision, in his opinion, that he couldn't let ruin all that he had worked for.
"No!" he heard his wife cry out. That scream took him by surprise and reminded him that Narcissa was also there, with him, witnessing what was happening and worrying about the fate of their son.
That sudden loud cry made everyone turn to look at Mrs. Malfoy, who was surprised herself by what she had just done.
"Narcissa, don't." Lucius tried to restrain her once more, but she quickly broke free from his grasp. He was afraid that she was about to do something stupid next, but instead she just came closer to him and he could see the fear in her eyes – such fear and determination that he never saw in his wife's eyes before – and it startled him.
"Lucius, he is going to kill our son!" She claimed desperately.
"Narcissa... our s- Draco has made his decision. A very foolish decision. We can't help him anymore. He is on his own."
Narcissa couldn't believe what she had just heard, from her own husband's mouth. No matter how terrible Draco's actions might be, he still was, and always will be her son. Just then, as her anger was slowly building up, she could see from the corner of her eye that something bad was about to happen. Voldemort was slowly raising his wand to point at Draco.
"Well then... Goodbye foolish boy," he said, and his voice had a hint of disappointment in it – perhaps from what he saw as losing a potentially loyal soldier.
Narcissa's eyes widened in horror as she ran forward, towards the vile wizard, in order to stop what seemed to be her son's definite death. It all happened very fast. She could faintly hear the words "Avada Kedavra", as if the voice came from far away. Almost like an echo. Nothing mattered in that moment. Nothing but her son. If she could help him, just once, she had to. So many times she wanted to help or comfort him, but gave in to Lucius' ways.
X-X-X-X-X
"How will he learn to toughen up and build himself a strong character if you are going to cuddle him like a baby whenever he is hurt or offended? Do you want my son to be a push-over? to be 'soft'?!"
"No, dear. But... he is just a little boy...and he is hurt..."
"This is the most crucial time in his life, Narcissa. I need you to understand this, and to let me handle these issues from now on."
"I understand."
X-X-X-X-X
"Dear, there are rumors that the Dark Lord has returned... is it true?"
"It appears so."
"Can you please promise me just one thing, Lucius?"
"I know what you are going to ask of me. And no. We are all serving the Dark Lord - ALL of us. And that is that."
"But... you are dragging our son to war!"
"There is going to be a war, and he will be caught in it either way. Do you want him to be on the Dark Lord's side when it happens, or fight against him? I think we will have better chances in the current situation. And you know what will happen to us if we try to switch sides now. Don't let it bother you, Narcissa. Everything will turn out for the best. Trust me."
X-X-X-X-X
She always had to stay silence as her husband made all of the choices that affected their lives. She didn't like the outcome of his decisions, yet she kept abiding.
No more.
This is her chance to repent for everything she has never done for her son. For all of the times that she went along with decisions that deep down she knew will ruin his life. This was her resolve.
The blinding green light disappeared as fast as it appeared, leaving the lifeless body of a tenacious mother just a few meters away from Voldemort.
Everyone was shocked by the turn of the events. Even the Dark Lord himself seemed to be a bit stunned. This sight had taken him back 16 years, to when a similar scene played out in front of him. He immediately raised his head to look at Draco, who was still standing in the distance, white as a ghost.
The first thought that came to Voldemort's mind was that he might have accidently created another "Harry Potter", just as he finally got rid of the first one. He wasn't about to let another stubborn child come after him, protected by this unknown spell that he still couldn't understand the nature of. He knew he had to kill this boy right now, before it was too late, but didn't want to look as though he was scared of the pitiful boy. He calmed himself and decided that he must do this right and not rush to kill Draco, or else it will send a message that he, Voldemort, see this young weak boy as a threat. Just then his train of thought was cut by a scream from the other side of the arena.
"Mother!" Draco cried out and ran towards her, leaving the terrified group of people behind him.
Her body lay motionless on the ground. Graceful, as if she were asleep. Laying on her side, her long blond hair slightly covering her face. When Draco was close enough to be able to recognize the sad form on the ground as his mother, he stopped. For a moment he just stared at her, hoping that she would sit up and tell him that the curse didn't hit her, and that she simply fell over. That she was fine and he didn't need to worry.
Then, after taking a deep breath, he approached his mother's lifeless form slowly. He Knelt beside her, his head right above her, his eyes red but he wouldn't let any tears fall down. He remembered his father telling him that he cannot show weakness in front of people, even not in front of his mother. She was always worried about him getting hurt – especially now that they were surrounded by Death Eaters all the time – and seeing her son break down would crush her.
He also remembered his mother telling him a few days earlier, when they were getting ready for the final battle, that he needn't worry, and that they were all going to be fine. His father will be there and make sure they were safe.
"Mother…" her started, his voice so small that not one of the people around them could hear it.
He brushed aside a strand of hair that was covering her eyes. "I'm here. And I won't cry, so you can open your eyes now."
The tears were now threatening to pour out, yet he kept fighting. His hand began to shake as he reached to her head, softly stroking her hair.
"I didn't want this... I don't want this! I'm sorry... I'll come over... to your side, to you and Father-"
"It's too late Draco," called out the voice that now made his blood boil in his veins and his heart beat fast. "Her death was unfortunate, but it does not change your fate. I do not forgive traitors."
Draco raised his head and stared with red eyes at the man – if it was indeed a man – who was standing now very close to him, almost within arm's reach. The one who he once saw as a scary monster that he can never disobey, or else his death will be certain. The one towards whom the only emotion he felt was fear, now what he felt towards him was anger – Pure rage that filled every inch of him and made it hard for him to breathe. It was as though his entire perception has changed, and all he could see when he looked at this deformed wizard in front of him was a target, waiting, challenging him to attack.
Right then he heard a voice calling him.
"Malfoy!"