AN: Written for the Houses Competition: Round Three
Gryffindor - 5th Year - Drabble - [setting] Malfoy Manor - 456 words.
Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Harry Potter universe.
A huge thank you to my wonderful beta: Theoretical-Optimist
Then
Draco Malfoy walked silently through his family's home, wondering if he could still call it that.
Home.
Home was supposed to be where people were safe.
Home was supposed to be where people were loved.
Home was supposed to be a place filled with family and friends.
Home was not supposed to be filled with memories of death.
Home was not supposed to be a place where you feared for your life.
Home was not supposed to be a place where you lost your family.
Draco looked around the hallway; he could still hear the screams of the Death Eaters as they had been tortured.
His screams.
His father's screams.
His friend's screams.
He could still see the lifeless bodies of those that hadn't made it out.
Gone.
Dead.
He could still see the blood.
On people.
On the floor.
On him.
He could still remember the Dark Lord's demanding voice.
His father's cautious voice.
His mother's pleading voice.
His aunt's insane voice.
Draco Malfoy looked around his house and tried to remember better times.
Times with love.
Times with hope.
Times with family.
But this was his family.
This is what his family had chosen.
Fear.
Pain.
Torture.
There had been more of his family in the Manor than there had been in over a decade.
It still did not feel like home.
Draco Malfoy wondered if it ever would.
Now
Draco Malfoy walked with a smile through his family's home, happy he could call it that.
Home.
Home, where people were safe.
Home, where people were loved.
Home, filled with family and friends.
Home was not a place filled with memories of death.
Because they had been replaced with memories of joy and laughter.
Home was not a place where you feared for your life.
But a place where you got to live it.
Home was not a place where you lost your family.
But a place where you found it.
Draco looked around the hallway; he could still hear the laughter of his family.
His laugh.
Astoria's laugh.
Scorpius's laugh.
He could still see innocence on his son's face.
Pure.
Kind.
He could still remember his family.
His father.
His mother.
His aunt.
His uncle.
But they weren't who was important anymore.
Draco Malfoy looked around and could remember better times.
The time Astoria had first come over.
The time when Scorpius was born.
Times with love.
Hope.
Family.
Because this was his family.
This is what his family had chosen.
Kindness.
Forgiveness.
Love.
Not all of his family were in the Manor.
Yet those who were there were those who mattered now.
The people he chose.
The people he still cared about.
They were all there.
And finally, it felt like home again.
AN: Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it - reviews make me smile :)