[[ Chapter 1 finished! Keep an eye out for Chapter 2! Reviews are welcome! ]]
It was strange to be boarding the train to Hogwarts without his father there to wish him farewell. The small change made a small rock form in the pit of his belly, grinding uncomfortably against his innards as he wound his way through the crowding students in search of his cronies Crabbe and Goyle. Draco found them doing what they did best – terrorizing a group of first years that looked to be ready to flee the scene of the crime. His customary smirk found its way onto his lips, taking his usual swagger as he approached the two.
"Crabbe, Goyle," He barked their names, looking between the two of them, then down at the first years. It was then that he caught a whiff of something oddly familiar, sweet and a little flowery. It wasn't all that surprising when Ginny Weasley popped out of nearest compartment, wand drawn and leveled at the three of them. "Don't you have anything better to do, Malfoy?" She demanded of the boy before he could think of some witty way to greet her.
Draco fought for something to say, his mind scattered by her sudden appearance. "Don't you, Weasley?" His reply flopped, his heart sinking down into his stomach, knowing that she would have the upper hand. It was somehow always like this when she caught him by surprise, like how when she would be coming out of the school as he was going in (she always made sure to toss him a look of pure hatred as she passed), or like now, when she just happened to be within earshot of what he was doing. As weak as she made him feel, Draco actually liked these surprises… Secretly, but still.
The red-haired angel didn't reply to his quip with words, instead she chose actions – a bat bogey hex hit Crabbe in the face hard, catching the poor Slytherin boy just as unaware as Draco had been only seconds before. Goyle's wand raised, the boy's mouth open as a large man waddled up, grinning from ear to ear. "Goodness, girl, you've certainly got a capable wand, don't you?" Slughorn gave Goyle a significant look, the dunce hesitating before pocketing his wand, eying Ginny furtively. The professor clapped one of his large hands on Ginny's shoulders, getting only a small, awkward smile from her.
"Red hair, freckles, pale skin… You're a Weasley, aren't you m'dear?" He asked, the grin never leaving his face, only seeming to grow as she nodded, unsure. "I've seen adults who couldn't cast a bat bogey hex as well as that, please come join me in my compartment. I'm having a small luncheon with a few select students…" He gave her shoulder a small squeeze, not giving her time to reply, "Splendid! I expect to see you shortly." Feeling put out and left out, Draco followed after the man, hoping that he could convince him to extend his invitation to Draco as well. Any excuse to see her in a friendly environment.
"Professor!" He caught up with the man halfway down the packed corridor, having to grab his arm to get his attention, "Professor Slughorn, I think you might have overlooked me I am—" "Draco Malfoy, I know who you are boy. I do not entertain the children of criminals." All of the warmth that had been in his voice was gone now, his eyes cold. Draco's face fell, taking on a hardness that hadn't been there before. "I see." He said to the man's back, making a mental note that he would make the man pay for this. You didn't snub a Malfoy and get away with it that easily.
With two failures now under his belt, Draco made his way to the Slytherin section of the train to find his friends. He took his customary seat, spreading out across it like he owned the place. "Pity we got interrupted, isn't it?" He said to his cronies, whom had already found their seats across from him. He noted that Zabini was missing but didn't mention it. He'd much prefer to seethe on it internally, knowing without having to ask that the boy had been invited to Slughorn's little 'party'.
"Doesn't matter. I won't have to deal with this too much longer." He started, crossing his arms behind his head, smiling up at the bars above his head. In the corner of his eyes, he saw a flash of something, for just a moment. He narrowed his eyes at the spot; sure that he'd seen something… He wasn't sure what exactly, but it had been something. When nothing appeared out of thin air, he eased back down, not surprised to see that Parkinson had joined him. The girl had her uses, the most important being that she stroked his ego.
Draco permitted the girl to sit with him, resting his head in her lap. She smiled like he'd given her the most precious gift in the world and started grooming his hair, her hands soft and loving. "Just wait, they'll see next year. Things will be different. I don't even see why mother insisted I return this year. Not like it's going to matter in the long run. He doesn't care whether not I've graduated, but mother insisted." He shrugged, as if to say he just wanted to get his mother off his back and nothing else, "Big changes are coming, I assure you."
Parkinson eyed him, her hands pausing, "What do you mean?" She asked, her voice rife with suspicion, "What I mean is that it won't matter in the end. I'm going to keep coming because mother asked me to… But I don't see much of a point in it." She relaxed, returning to her preening of his hair, satisfied that she knew he was coming back to Hogwarts next year. The poor girl held a fantasy in her mind that Draco would eventually come around to realizing he was in love with her. She didn't suspect that he'd trade anything to replace her with a certain redhead.
Again, she'd popped into his mind unbidden, his jaw clenching a bit as he struggled to push that idea back into its secret box, but it had already been released and budded. He could picture it all too easily; Ginny sitting there, her fingers in his hair and a smile on her face as he told her that he didn't think he'd be coming back to Hogwarts next year. In his mind, she stopped just as Parkinson had and looked at him worriedly, had even let her eyebrows furrow just a bit.
The fantasy as broken by Zabini joining them again, looking disgruntled and frankly bored out of his mind. "Enjoy Slughorn's 'party'?" He asked, his tone mocking but eyes reading the boy's face hungrily. The boy shrugged, glancing out the window. "He was just trying to get close to students with connections. I suspect he intends on getting something from us. He has poor choice in people, though. Invited Potter and that Weasley girl." He sneered the two names with the same hatred that all Slytherins had for the Boy Who Lived and the Blood Traitor.
"I'm surprised they didn't invite me," He said, pretending as if Slughorn hadn't openly turned him down in front of a gaggle of second years. His group hadn't seen the public embarrassment so it hadn't happened in Draco's eyes. "I do have a famous uncle, you know." He said, trying to sound casual about it. Truthfully, he barely knew the guy, but if it would get him a leg up and get him the same special treatment he got from everyone else, it would be worth it to play that card.
Zabini rolled his eyes when Draco wasn't looking, glancing out the window, "We're nearing Hogwarts. Better get changed." He muttered, gathering his school robes from his luggage. Draco was thankful for the excuse to get out of Parkinson's grasp, grabbing his own school robes. He felt something warm there, but it had only been for a moment. Once again, he narrowed his eyes, choosing to ignore it. He had an idea about what it could be, but there were too many witnesses. If he was correct, Potter had been listening in on their conversation with the help of his invisibility cloak. It would explain the flash of something he'd seen before.
Draco let that thought simmer as the train slowed down, pulling into Hogsmeade station. Everyone knew that he and Potter hated each other, but over the recent years it had only fermented with Draco's discovery of a little piece of information – Weasley had a crush on Potter. It made him sick to think that she couldn't do any better than that (word was that she apparently could do better, seeing that she was working her way through boyfriends). Potter didn't deserve someone like her… Even if she was a blood traitor.
His friends were waiting on him. "No, you go ahead." He waved them away, fixating on a spot just above him. Slowly, he reached into his pocket, wrapping his hand around his wand firmly. He pulled the blinds down on the windows, pretending like he wasn't interested in that small section of the luggage rack anymore. Without warning, he turned on his heels, "Petrificus totalus!" He shrieked, positively grinning as he heard the solid thunk of Potter hitting the ground.
He kicked the invisibility cloak off the boy, "Didn't your parents ever teach you not to listen in on people's conversation? Oh, that's right. They're dead." He grinned like he'd told a joke, keeping his wand pointed at Potter's chest. "This is for my father," He took a step forward, kicking Potter square in the nose. The crunch underfoot was far too satisfying, the knot in his stomach loosening up just a bit. It was tempting to kick him again, just to make sure the boy would be the ugliest git in the castle, so Ginny wouldn't be interested in him anymore.
No, that wouldn't be good. Instead, he tossed the invisibility cloak back over the boy. "Have a nice trip, Potter." He hesitated, opting that it wouldn't be but so bad to spit on the damned boy as well. Draco left feeling smug, sure that he wouldn't be found until he had reached King's Cross station once again. He would be late from school, possibly even expelled if he showed up too late… Or if he tried to make a grand entrance as he'd done a few years ago. It would be satisfying if he'd gotten the chance to break his nose and get him kicked out.
Draco was positively walking on air by the time he got to the castle, not minding being poked and prodded by Filch and his damn dark detector, nor did he mind being glared at by the various Gryffindors. His mood was only improved as he picked a seat where he could easily view the Gryffindor table, scanning the faces for hers. He found her sitting next to the boy that she was currently 'dating', his stomach burning with acid. Throughout the entirety of the sorting he was given the chance to watch her. It was intoxicating.
The little moves she did drove him crazy, like how she would brush her hair to one side of her shoulder and laugh, her lips curling up just a bit in the corners. He liked how the candlelight lit her face, giving her an ethereal glow. It wasn't possible for her to look more like an angel than she did now, completely unaware that she was being stared at by the person she hated most in the world.
His heart leapt as she turned her head, her hair whipping around her. He could see her eyes light up with happiness, a slow smile finding her face. Her face changed so completely that he was smitten, butterflies tickling his insides. He wanted nothing more than to look at her all day, or to have her look at him with that smile, those softened and bright eyes… It was then that he followed his gaze, his butterflies dying. Potter. He should have known. His nose was healed but blood was dried on his lips, the area where Draco had kicked well-bruised.
Rather than take the more mature side, he turned to his friends and decided to loudly recount what had happened in the compartment, complete with the satisfying crunch that Potter's nose had made underfoot. His friends did their job, all laughing at the top of their voice at him as if he were telling the best of jokes, which brought the attention from Potter's dramatic entrance (he seemed to have penchant for those) to Draco. Even Ginny had turned her eyes from the boy, casting a gaze his way that could have turned the most solid metals into a soft, gooey liquid.
He would take what he could get. His display was brought to an abrupt stop as Dumbledore rose to his feet, not bothering to waste his breath to call the students to silence. His presence was enough to get the conversations to stop, though it was very apparent that the Slytherin house was the last to stop with the muttering. The sight of Dumbledore brought things back to reality for him, his smile slowly falling down into a frown. It was a reminder that even with being a teenager and a Hogwarts student, he had a job to do. And the job was now delivering his speech, keeping things short and sweet.
The weight of the situation brought him down from the temporary high that seeing Ginny's face light up had brought him, his mood turning sour. His fun was over, he knew, as soon as classes started. He would have to find a way to balance his classes and his other assignment. This would mean he'd need a plan to make sure he wasn't caught doing his dirty deeds… But that problem had been solved already. Polyjuice potion wasn't that difficult to make, if he put his mind to it, and it wouldn't be all that difficult to snatch a few hairs from a first year.
The problem he faced now was getting into Snape's inventory without the man finding out. Even with the unbreakable vow to help, Draco didn't like it. He thought it was weak of his mother to do it, knowing full well that it would get back to the Dark Lord that his mother had made the vow to protect him. He wasn't a child anymore, he didn't need her help. But mothers were always far too protective, if you asked him.
With the speech over, the students were filing out to their respective common rooms. It was now that Draco was supposed to be leading the first years to the Slytherin common room, teaching them about the password and how it could be changed… But now was also the perfect time to slip into Snape's stores, while he was busy making sure all of the students found their way to their dorms and didn't sneak off to do things against the rules.
Draco cast a glance at the staff table – Snape was in his usual chair, stuck in a conversation with Professor Slughorn. The man seemed to be talking to him despite the fact he looked completely unenthused, even going as far as to scowl. Perfect. Knowing Slughorn's ability to be long-winded would work to Draco's benefit. It would take a while to slip unnoticed into Snape's private stores to get what he needed – lacewing flies, leeches, powdered bicorn horn, knotgrass, fluxweed, and shredded boomslang skin.
He used the crowd to mask his escape, dodging students of all houses before he made his way down the corridors at a hurried pace, checking over his shoulder every few minutes. Like his office, Snape's private stores were down in the dungeons, through a surprising maze of corridors. I took fifteen minutes for Draco to find the room he was looking for, his heart rising in his chest. He took the ingredients quickly, shoving them into the pockets of his robes before hurrying his way back to the great hall, every hair on his body on edge.
Just when he thought he'd gotten away with it, he heard hurried footsteps behind him. Draco whipped around just in time to feel something warm and hard hit him, knocking him back a few steps. The collision startled him enough to make his hand dart for his wand, a small exclamation of frustration and surprise coming from him. "Who the hell do y-" He stopped dead in his tracks, staring down at the person in surprise.
Out of the hundreds of students at Hogwarts, it just so happened that he had run into the one that turned his tongue to lead and his legs to jelly. His heart leapt into his chest, and for a moment he forgot that he had been in the beginnings of cussing the poor person out. His memory returned quickly, "The bloody hell do you think you're doing down here, Weasley?" He demanded, removing his hand from his wand and pulling it out of his pocket. Ginny's face, which had originally been surprised and apologetic, turned hard, her green eyes challenging him.
"That is none of your business, Malfoy. What were you doing down here, sneaking about the dungeons?" She shot back, quick as a whip. Even with her catching him off guard, the lie slipped out of his mouth as quickly as if it had been the truth, "I saw a first year sneak off this way. I had to do my prefect duties and find them. Must just have been you I saw." He sneered the words, saying 'you' like it was a dirty word he didn't care to come from his mouth.
Her eyes narrowed at him, her hand reaching for her wand. "I didn't sneak off." She told him firmly. If looks could kill, this one would be a mass murderer. The daggers she cut at him were stabbing his heart, which seemed to be floating in his chest. She was absolutely beautiful when she was mad – her cheeks flushed, her face serious, breathing rapid. Stunning. "You're avoiding my question. Too ashamed of what you're doing to talk about it? Is the ickle golden child of the Weasley family misbehaving?" He jeered at her, grinning as she reacted.
Ginny drew her wand in the blink of an eye, closing the space between them to press it against his throat, "Don't you dare try to make fun of my family!" She growled the words, "What I was doing was none of your business. It would be best if you just slithered back into the hole you came from, you disgusting git." Such harsh words from such a pretty mouth. His floating heart felt bruised, but what could he expect from the girl he'd just taunted? He had pushed her too far, and if he kept up she would surely hate him more.
He raised his hands in a form of surrender, backing away from her wand. "I was heading to my common room anyway," He said, trying to sound casual though his heart was in his throat, "Didn't want to waste too much time on a blood traitor." It felt nice to get the last word; though he was sure his insult cut juts as deep as her words. He wanted to leave with her lovely face burned into his mind, his lips in a smile as he turned his back on her and left.
The walk back to the Slytherin common room was in a daze, his mind drifting off to his own personal fantasy land. No doubt Crabbe and Goyle would wonder where he'd gotten off to (they'd been looking for him when he'd last glimpsed inside the great hall), but they wouldn't question him but so much. It wouldn't be wise to let them know he got the ingredients for the potion from Snape, their intelligence (or lack of) would lead to him getting caught for it.
His mind played the last thing he saw over and over again – Ginny's eyes on him, fierce and burning, her wand drawn and face serious. She looked like a warrior witch, ready for battle with the forces of evil. He tried his best to imagine her with a softer look, finding that just as appealing. The dreaming came to an end as he turned the corner and was faced with the door to the common room, pausing. "Salazar," He barked the password, rushing through the door as soon as it opened wide enough to admit him.
As expected, his cronies had waited up to make sure he got back to the common room without incident, both of them meeting him before he'd even sat down. Draco chose his favorite leather couch, kicking a first year off before he spread out on it, watching Crabbe and Goyle take the other one. "I've figured out the answer to our problem, boys," He assured them, turning his head to look up at the ceiling. He wondered if Ginny was any good at potions…
"It's going to take some time, but I've got it all figured out..." He repeated, talking mostly to himself. All they would need now was hair from the people they would be turning into and some robes that they could fit into once they took the form of the (hopefully) smaller students. It would take a bit of acting on their part, but surely they would be smart enough to learn to just keep their big mouths shut and act like a scared first year. Surely even they could manage that.
Tomorrow, he would go to the one place that no student dared enter – Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. It would take a month to brew the potion, but he would make it even if it killed him. Plus, it would give him plenty of time to get everything in the room of requirements set up. He would need to think of the perfect way to keep people out – a way of describing what he wanted so the room would understand the urgency of keeping away anyone who would try to enter. And he'd need total silence from the outside.
"Crabbe. Goyle. I need you two to find a couple of first years – about three for each of you. Get some of their hair and bring it back to me. Do you understand?" He had to look over at them, as they were too stupid to answer him out loud, both nodding emphatically. "Good. Don't fuck this up or your necks will be on the line… And don't forget your fathers serve just as mine does... This is your chance to prove your worth and show what you're made of… If you know what I mean."
The two might be complete morons, but surely even they would understand that he was referencing the Dark Lord. From the smiles on their faces, they'd picked up the hint. "Good." He turned his head back to looking at the ceiling, crossing his arms behind his head, "Just remember that your fate rests in what you do this year… Yours and your fathers'." He wanted to drive the point home, to make sure there were no misconceptions. After a moment of assembling everything in his head, he sat up, leaning in close to them.
Both of the boys leaned in as well, understanding Draco's body language enough that they knew he wanted to tell them something in relative secrecy. Draco cast a glance to the left and right, making sure the common room was almost empty, licking his lips a little nervously. He was risking a lot by telling them, but they needed to know what they were going to be doing. And he needed to get it off of his chest, "Alright, here's the plan…"