A/N: Well, the point of this story is basically to get it out of my head because, if I didn't, my head was going to asplode. Just sayin'. It's my first HP fanfic and I admit, there's a ridiculously good chance that there will be AU parts or parts that I altered a bit to fit my purposes... I intended for this to be a one-shot, but surprise again, It's gonna be at least two chapters now! I decided that I didn't want any smut until the next chapter, but I promise there will be some! As always, keep your hands and arms inside the fanfiction until the story comes to a complete stop. Please exit to the right to make room for the new readers to board. Enjoy your ride!

Summary: Draco is presented with the rare opportunity to watch as his father enjoys some alone time in his study, but will he be prepared for how it affects him?

I own nothing! Nothing I say!

He hadn't been home for long. He just never really enjoyed his time at home and he really wasn't expecting this summer to be any different. He always felt stifled, ridiculed. His mother was always out with her socialite friends, his father always cooped up in his study. Ultimately, Draco Malfoy always spent his summers alone. No friends came to call, no girls wanting relationships or even sex, though he knew there were several who were more than willing. He spent most nights in his room reading, sleeping, or getting closely re-acquainted with his right hand. Sometimes, just for a change, he decided to give his left hand a chance too.

He would probably never admit it to anyone, but when the summers came, Draco missed Hogwarts severely. He missed ruling those halls as a Malfoy rightly should. He even missed the 'Golden Boy' and his two lackeys. However, the one thing that stung more than missing the wizarding school was the way he returned home every year.

The sun, high above the enormous manor belonging to the Malfoys, shone with a burning heat upon the stones and glass of the building. Roughly 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Narcissa waited outside the door to the manor, a soft smile on her lips as she watched the highly expensive sports car drive up the winding path approaching the house. As it pulled up to the doors, the driver stepped out and opened the backseat passenger door, revealing the Malfoy heir. Draco stepped out into the bright sunlight, smirking at his mother as he often did. He really didn't smile. Smirking was his thing. He could only figure he had gotten that from his bastard father.

"Hello, Draco. It's so lovely to have you home again."

"Hello mother, you're looking as lovely as ever." Draco spoke as he as his mother embraced awkwardly.

"Where is father?" The blonde-haired boy asked, a hint of hope in his voice.

"He's out for the day, dear. He promised he would be back this evening, however. I'm sure he'll be delighted to see you as well."

"Of course, though I'm sure he has work to do in his study."

Draco's heart fell. That was it. The worst thing about coming home was that his father just never cared. He never took the time to greet him. He never just sat and spoke to him. He really just remained aloof, leaving Draco to his thoughts about how much Lucius must hate him.

"I'm going out now, love. I wanted to wait to see my favorite son before I left."

"I'm your only son, mother." Draco pointed out with a slight smirk.

Giving a soft laugh, Narcissa gently kissed Draco on the cheek, being unable to reach the top of his head anymore, and walked past him, sitting down in the back seat of the car her son had recently vacated. She coldly instructed the driver as to where she was to be taken before she blew one last kiss to the young man standing a few feet away. The driver hurriedly closed the passenger door, nodded to Draco, and made haste in getting the car on its way to its newly given destination.

With a soft sigh, Draco took a moment to look around at the surrounding acres which his home sat on. He knew gardeners worked tediously to tend to the healthy, emerald green grass. They spent hours on ladders to trim the trees per his mother's requests. They seemed to spend days on end in the gardens which were hidden from view by the home itself. Draco mused about those flower-filled plots. He wondered how many hours he had spent alone walking those intricately paved paths, especially at night when the moonlight and stars seemed to give him more comfort than anything else in his world.

"Or anyone else…" He thought silently.

Finally deciding that he had nothing better to do, the youngest Malfoy turned and entered through the large wooden doors into the most familiar, yet empty place he had ever known.

Nighttime had fallen long ago and only one Malfoy was in attendance. Narcissa, not surprisingly, was still 'out' and Lucius had yet to make an appearance. However, as the metal hands of a large grandfather clock threatened to cover three, a loud thud echoed down the empty halls as the front doors to the manor were closed heavily. Soft tapping accompanied tired footsteps as Lucius Malfoy made his way first to his bedroom and then to his study. One of the largest rooms in the house, the study was located at the end of a hallway, just a few doors down from Draco's room and a guest room. As he approached, Lucius placed his hand on the brass doorknob he had turned so many times to enter his haven. Just as he was moving to open the door, however, he was compelled to turn towards a similar door located just feet away in the other direction.

"Hell, I forgot Draco returned today." He spoke under his breath.

Creeping towards the boy's room, Lucius paused to stealthily rotate the knob in his grasp and open the room to his view. The elder Malfoy looked inward and his gaze softened upon seeing the room as it was. A candle burned low upon a bedside table, the wax threatening to spill over the edge of the holder onto the wood. Its glow wasn't nearly strong enough to light the entire room, but it illuminated the most important parts.

Draco, sleeping heavily, was tangled within the deep green sheets of his king sized bed. He had chosen the bed linens to represent a small portion of his love for being a Slytherin. A plush silver comforter was draped, in a mess with the sheets, across his midsection and legs, though one of them was exposed and dangled halfway off of the bed. What could be seen of his body was bare, his chest rising and falling evenly. Lucius trailed his gaze over his son, examining everything about him. He had grown to be quite the young man, a true example of what a Malfoy should be; handsome, intelligent, talented in class and as a wizard. He made his father proud, though he admitted that he didn't always show it.

His ears picking up a soft groan, Lucius looked to his son's face. White blonde hair was mussed and splayed out wildly on the pillows, sticking to Draco's face in places. He seemed uneasy and distraught, perhaps caught up in a nightmare. Although he was a bastard, he was still a father and Lucius quickly moved to sit on the side of the bed, placing his hand on the younger male's shoulder. Shaking him gently, Lucius attempted to wake his son from the darkness of sleep.

"Draco. Dragon, wake up. You're dreaming." His deep voice emanated quietly from his lips. "Come now, boy."

"Bloody hell…" Draco groaned, his heart racing as he drifted back into his conscious body. He became increasingly aware of a hand on his shoulder and a deep, familiar voice pulling him into a more aware state.

"Dragon…"

Silvery grey eyes opened to meet with similar smokey ones. Draco was more than surprised to find his father at his bedside.

"Sir…?" Draco asked quietly.

"You appeared to be caught up in the throes of a nightmare. I was just looking in to check on you and decided to wake you from it."

Draco sighed heavily and closed his eyes once more before replying to his father.

"It was a nightmare father, an old one. Even though I've seen them before, they never get any easier to cope with."

"There's nothing to be ashamed of, Draco. We all have nightmares."

"But I shouldn't be so weak. I shouldn't be so afraid of something that's not even real." The young man opened his eyes and looked away, clearly embarrassed in front of his ever-powerful father who had made sure to not raise a coward.

"Dragon…" Lucius spoke gently as he took his son's chin in his hand and tuned his head back around until their eyes met once more.

"Even I have things I fear, and in the world of dreams, not even I can control what I do and do not fear."

Finishing his last words, the older Malfoy trailed his eyes down the pale body beside him. He suddenly stiffened, pulling away his hand and standing in one motion. He straightened his clothes and ran his hand over his hair to smooth it back a bit more. Clearing his throat, Lucius nodded to his son politely and moved to leave.

"Fathe-"

"I have work to finish Draco. We shall speak in the morning, I'm sure." Lucius said flatly, never looking back as he left the room and closed the door behind him.

Draco frowned slightly as he heard his father's footsteps decrease in volume and the door to the study open with a soft creak. He sat up and placed his head in his hands, shivering as the covers slipped down his torso to pool in his lap and allow the cool air to attack his skin. He looked towards his bedroom door, then towards a clock hanging on the wall to his right.

"You're joking? It's bloody 3 o'clock in the morning and he has work to do? Like hell he does. This is ridiculous." Draco spoke to himself angrily as he swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood. The sheets and blankets tumbled to the floor, leaving him in no more than his deep green boxers. Hey, his loyalty to Slytherin ran deep. "I'm going to march over to his study and give him a piece of my mind for once. I haven't even been home one day and he's already avoiding me like the plague. He was almost a father for a moment there…"

Draco sighed and tried to compose himself as much as possible, running his fingers through his hair until it was somewhat neat. He then began to tread softly across his room and out his door until he was inches from the last barrier keeping him from telling his father how he really felt.

"Bloody hell..." He thought as he tried to force back the terror that was slowly creeping into his body. With one last sigh, Draco reached for the door knob.

A/N post-story!: Well, I know it was kind of short... but it felt awkward for me to just jump right in to the next scene. Sorry, folks! The good news is that the next chapter will be up very soon! Thanks for reading!

-Foxy