Disclaimer: I don't own.
During a rousing battle between Potter and Malfoy in the halls, Harry had resorted to parseltongue. Draco has bent to the floor on impact of the sudden switch… but for reasons unknown. Potter and most of the spectators had ultimately decided Harry must be torturing the blonde. In actuality, the different language triggers something in Malfoy's mind. His mother could speak and sing in parseltongue and, beyond the painful thrashings and remnants of his abusive upbringing, Draco knows he can speak it as well. The back of his mind attempts to explain what is being said by feeding him with a corporation of loose emotions.
He feels strangely turned on by the no doubt horrific snake-infested insults, and compelled to disengage his loathing for a romp beneath an invisible shield. Draco questions his sexuality – moreso than on a regular basis – as well as his integrity. He falls to the floor, pained beyond all compare. Professor Snape rushes over to separate the crowd and Potter from advancing on Malfoy. Of course, Malfoy had started it… but there was no way he could finish anything while a certain Gryffindor spouted the deafening language.
Two days later, Draco had discovered a dark curse that is able to remove his. It is only applicable for those who can withstand ranging amounts of excruciating pain, depending on how much they had suffered in their lives. Draco had suffered quite a lot, being thrashed for even stepping into his own room at the manor without bearing presence of higher company. Draco had been terrified to form the spell and waited until classes had begun.
He is missing herbology, locked in his room shared by Goyle. He breathes deeply and closes his eyes. He clears his throat and speaks in a loud, confident and demanding voice. "Anguis Loqueris."
An intensely sharp pain explodes without warning. It begins in his arms, causing him to drop his wand. The pain swiftly moves throughout his body, tugging unbearably at each edge. He is thrown about, as if a demon were attempting to be set free. Draco is thrown to the ceiling, then slammed from one wall to the next. He bears down on his gritted teeth, unwilling to scream. From the neck down, he feels positively paralyzed.
His throat clears up, as if he were in the process of being buried alive. His eyes are leaking like waterfalls and trying very hard to close. He has a burning feeling as though his head is a bout to implode from millions of thoughts and actions racing about his mind at a warped speed. Suddenly, everything in the world stops for only a millisecond. Draco is thrown onto the bathroom tile. Malfoy is unconscious, the door is locked, his wand is missing, the room is destroyed and the spell is complete.
During the spell, memories flashed before his eyes, almost as if he were dying. One memory has stuck on his mind from seven years ago. Now unconscious on the floor, he finds himself replaying the events.
Draco is playing in a cupboard space benath the stairwell. His father has told him time and time again not to play there. He keeps disobeying and his father continues to reprimand the house elves while scowling at his son. He has been hit for several occurrences such as setting the peacocks free and staying up late to watch the stars from the roof. This time, he is merely playing with his favorite teddy bear and singing a lullaby to it, in parseltongue.
He is six years old, but his mother has been singing the same song to him since he was practically born and failed to cease crying. The only rule is to not speak it outside of the house or under it during visiting company. Just out in the parlour, his father is having a business meeting with his former partner who has decided to return with a clean slate. Draco hears an argument brewing but decides to only hug his bear and sing a tad bit louder. The fight turns ghastly and Draco wanders out, bear in hand.
"Father?" His eyes widen as he notices the older visitor steal away his father's wand with a spell.
"I thought I told you to stay out of there." He declares with a warning tone.
The small bout of distraction allows the other man to unleash a pair of pythons to attack Lucius. Draco clutches onto his bear and begs the man to stop. The older man only laughs at the child's protests. This angers Draco and he does the unthinkable.
"Nxshhhz…" Draco hisses. [translation: cease the attack] He looks directly toward the man who laughed in his face. "Zznshhtt." [he's the one you're after]
Draco stands calmly as the pythons begin to advance on the man. He is scared. Lucius glares at his son and quickly kills the other man in cold blood. Draco is unaffected as he clutches onto his bear and hums the lullaby. Lucius takes the man's body and floos him elsewhere.
When Lucius returns, Draco is shocked to find the house rid of house elves. Draco receives his first crucio. He remains hold of his teddy but lets go after the third curse. His memories begin to fade and he has trouble remembering the dead language. When he finally comes to, no one is around and the room is dark besides the glow from the fireplace. Draco ambles cautiously toward it, to find his beloved teddy bear. Without giving it a second thought, Draco removes the gate with a simple incantation and reaches into the fire for his best friend.
Draco has missed arithmancy, transfiguration and defense against the dark arts. Pansy grows worrisome as he actually fails to show for lunch. After this class is potions, where he had been assigned to work with Potter on a difficult assignment he had been taking obvious pride on. Snape had been confused not to see him but felt all the students need to be working. He cast Potter to contiue working on the project.
Harry had accidentally been distracted by Neville's sprouting and had failed to notice how much of one ingredient he had added. Harry had caused the meticulous experiment to explode. A fuming Snape had taken away two hundred points from Harry Potter alone. The class had fallen silent for the remainder of time.
After potions, Harry normally shared Care of Magical Creatures with Malfoy, Pansy and Blaise. Malfoy still hadn't shown. In the bathroom, however, Draco finally awakes and can move again. He walks into the main room and sees the time. Instead of feeling anxious or whatnot, he hardly feels a thing. He dresses himself with a small spell and lazily begins his journey to Hagrid's hut.
He shows up twenty minutes late with a dazed look on his face. Pansy, Blaise and Hagrid are immediately at his side. The rest of the classmates are paying attention as well, either actually concerned or waiting for another blowout between Malfoy and the giant. Draco wears a blank look on his face. Mumbling, he asks what he's missed. Pansy and Blaise inform him they will be having a chat after class.
"Ye be feeling a'ight, there, Malfoy?"
Draco gives him a half thumbs-up and walks over to the only available seat… next to Potter. There are no snide remarks between the two, though Harry tries to instigate one so the waiting game will be over. After class, Pansy and Blaise practically drag Draco to the common room. They ask too many questions for Draco to handle. The blond ends all questions by vomiting on Pansy's lap, standing and walking back to bed.
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