"The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it." – Theodore Roosevelt

Chapter One – The Malfoy Empire

Draco Malfoy: the most important man in Wizarding World history.

Well, maybe not that important. But for me, the key to a successful future in business lay with him, and if I ever wanted to make it big, I needed to make it with him first. He, in a matter of months, became the richest business man in the world, buying up hundreds of businesses around the globe and starting several businesses of his own. Everyone wanted to be a part of the takeover; if you could make it with him and his elite crew of workers, you could make it with anyone.

My parents did not particularly understand my obsession with Draco Malfoy. Apparently they knew the dirty details pertaining to this business king; he underwent a philanthropic change for a while, it seemed, then bought up all of those businesses after inheriting a large sum of money from his now-deceased parents. No one really knew much about Draco Malfoy, since he rarely did anything other than interviews and spending, but my parents knew something.

Interviews were nearly impossible to come by, since Draco Malfoy selected only from those in the top of their classes in wizarding schools around the world, top meaning the best, which I most certainly was not. Young people would stay longer and would be more loyal since other jobs at such a young age were hard to come by, hence the choice of taking from schools. After he ran out of options picking from those students, he picked from the people his son knew and trusted. Then, after interviewing all of those witches and wizards, he picked a select few to be managers and then gave the remainders salesmen jobs.

If I had known all of these details when I was eleven, I would have become friends with Scorpius Malfoy, Draco Malfoy's son. Since I lacked the appropriate grades to be in the top of my class (my mother's brains having gone to my brother instead of me, apparently), I needed an in with Scorpius if I ever wanted to reach my goal. Flattering the son of my future employer was the easiest way to get what I wanted, and yet, all during my time at Hogwarts, I had the hardest time.

I discovered what I wanted to do with my life when I was a fourth year, hearing all about Draco Malfoy's businesses and his inconceivable success. Everyone fawned over Scorpius Malfoy, trying to get on his good side so they could be a part of the business empire Draco Malfoy was creating. People became increasingly wealthy under Draco Malfoy, and I needed it. While my family wasn't poor, we weren't as rich as I had the potential to be. I needed to join Draco Malfoy.

Flattering Scorpius became the only option for me when I didn't receive my expected scores on the OWLs, so for all of sixth and seventh year, I tried to win him over, along with every other girl at Hogwarts. Scorpius, of course, was having none of it, and cut himself off from everyone and everything, becoming more and more reserved as the years went on. By the time we left Hogwarts, he had no one but his money, since his father was rarely around to see him, either.

Astoria Malfoy was not, it seemed, much better. Scorpius' mother, immature for her age, spent money like it grew on trees—and for her, it might as well have. She spent more time spending money than spending time with her son, making me wonder if Scorpius even knew what family was. Having always been very close to my family, extended included, I couldn't imagine the pain Scorpius felt by being mistreated.

My options grew slimmer and slimmer, and as seventh year came to a close, I felt defeated. I spent all of my time at Hogwarts trying to bring my grades up, with only moderate success, getting in good terms with Scorpius, with no success at all, and studying books on wizard business. I prepared only for success and nothing else, never considering that I wouldn't be a part of Draco Malfoy's empire. But as I left Hogwarts, I knew I failed, and I had no fallback.

Needless to say, my parents were not horribly supportive, telling me a thousand times over how they knew I would be disappointed and that Draco Malfoy would never hire a Weasley, anyway. That if I had listened to them, I would've known. The entire summer, I sulked in my room, coming out only to eat and use the bathroom, allowing only a few visitors.

After my brother returned to Hogwarts the following September, and I had reasonable peace, I decided that I needed to do something with my life that might help me get into Draco Malfoy's business. No matter what my parents said to me, no matter how much they disagreed with my dream, I needed to prove them wrong. I still wanted to succeed, and failure, however much in my nature, was no longer an option. I would get that interview, I would get hired, and I would succeed.

I asked my uncle George if I could work in his joke shop, only for the business experience. If Draco Malfoy saw that I knew how to work in a business, he might be more apt to hire me. Uncle George hired me at once, putting me in the backroom to do all of his paperwork. While it wasn't the best job in the world, it was business—working for Draco Malfoy would be like this but better (a.k.a. the pay would be better). Once I was rich enough to leave Draco Malfoy, anyway, I would buy my own business and would leave all of the paperwork to my managers.

Despite the fact that everything involving my uncle's joke shop was so boring, my cousin, Albus Potter, helped make it a little tolerable. He began working at our uncle's joke shop a couple of summers ago, and now, with no school, started working fulltime. Al wanted to join his father in the Ministry, working as an Auror, but until the time came to join, he worked at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Together we ran the shop, with Al helping me with everything I didn't understand.

Al knew Scorpius better than I did, having been in many of the same classes throughout school. Scorpius, a Slytherin, and Al, a Hufflepuff, had a surprising amount of classes together, while most of my classes, as a Gryffindor, were with the Ravenclaws. Though the two of them never became anything close to friends, only acquaintances (and once Scorpius broke away from the rest of the world, nothing), it was still better than I could do. The two of them occasionally talked during school, though not for long, while Scorpius generally ignored me.

Unfortunately, using Al to get to Scorpius had not worked particularly well, either. When Albus and Scorpius chatted, I would sneakily come up and join their conversation, inserting myself wherever I could sound intelligent. However, almost every time I did this, Scorpius would make some excuse to leave and scurry away from Al and me. The occasional time he did not leave, he spoke not a word, leaving the conversation to crash and burn.

I received funny looks from Al, but I never told him what I was doing and why I was doing it. I imagined he guessed it at some point, though he made no further effort to help me win over Scorpius. If he thought it immature and naïve, fine, maybe it was. But my future rested in Scorpius' hands, not mine, and by Albus not helping me in my endeavor, I lost everything. I worked in a joke shop now, not a billion galleon empire.

Time passed and Christmas came, forcing everyone and everything into a craze. The snow fell, covering the streets with a white sheet which slowly turned to mud as everyone stepped on it. Christmas trees were cut, sold, and decorated, while families yelled at each other about where the stockings and ornaments disappeared to. Most importantly, though, people came into shops, browsing and buying and screaming at Al and me when we were out of something. Everyone went mad around Christmas, leaving me cowering in the backroom most of the time. I only journeyed into the jungle when I needed something from Al, which I prayed to never let happen.

Uncle George's business was booming, though not so much as Draco Malfoy's. Every now and again I walked down Diagon Alley after work just to look at his stores. They were all modest and classy, with charm and splendor. The stores offered a variety of items, inexpensive and expensive, with tasteful organization and helpful salespeople dressed in sophisticated red and black uniforms. To think that someday I would be one of them, wearing the silky pants and cashmere sweaters, brought my heart to a dangerous speed every time I considered it.

People always went in and came out of Draco Malfoy's many stores. If he owned half of Diagon Alley, I wouldn't be surprised. While Uncle George owned two stores, Draco Malfoy owned a hundred times more, internationally. When I thought Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes was having a good day, I went to one of the Malfoy stores and saw them doing even better. I knew it was hard to compete with his stores, but since I wanted to be a part of it, I didn't particularly care. Draco Malfoy always paid a large sum for other stores, and if he bought out Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, Uncle George would be wealthy enough to retire now.

Horrible as it was to even think that, since the joke shops were my uncle's pride and joy, it wouldn't be so bad. And maybe it would get me on the fast track to getting a job with Draco Malfoy. I doubted he would be willing to take any of my uncle's previous workers, since it was a joke shop, but if he saw how diligently I worked, it might prove to be beneficial.

I couldn't do that. As much as I wanted to help get this place sold, I was not so coldhearted as to break my uncle's heart. His shop was doing decently at the moment, and for me to interfere with progress would be wrong. I had a conscience. Usually I pushed it back and did whatever I wanted, if just to get me further in life, but I couldn't hurt my family.

Albus came into the backroom to take his break as I contemplated this, trying to decide how I could ever be hired by Draco Malfoy when he didn't even know who I was. I glanced up at my cousin, searching him for an answer that he wasn't about to give. He crinkled his face into a confused expression, tilting his head to the side as he stared at me with his green eyes. Then, reaching for a water from the desk I sat at, he opened it and took a sip.

"Merlin, it's nuts out there today. I've already been yelled at by one little old lady, two pregnant women, a father with a crying daughter, a young boy who was hit in the face by one of the Bouncing Gingerbread Men, and an old man with a cane." He took another sip of his water, watching me over the bottle for a response. I gave none, returning to the paperwork in front of me. "You know those old men with canes are crazy. You have to be able to duck really fast."

I nodded, scratching notes onto some of the papers with my quill. Oh, how I wished I was at one of Draco Malfoy's shops doing this paperwork! It wouldn't be so torturous.

Al set the water bottle back down on my desk, causing me to avert my gaze from my papers. As he started to speak again, I looked back at the paperwork, determined to not get distracted. The less I was distracted, the faster I could get it done and the faster I could leave. My uncle paid me the same whether I was there for four hours or ten, so long as I got all of the paperwork done.

"Christmas this year is at my house, did you hear?" I continued scribbling away, signing documents and crossing lines out on contracts. "The last time it was at my house things ended quite chaotically, do you remember? It was ten years ago, when you and I were both eight, and my father ruined Christmas dinner... dropped everything on the floor. Merlin, it was funny. My mum was so angry, but everyone else thought it was just brilliant." He paused, allowing time for me to give a response which never came. "Hopefully we'll actually get something to eat this time."

I sighed, giving him a response, so he would leave me alone. "Yes, hopefully."

"Well, then, since you're just being so fun and jolly today, I think I'm just going to head back out. I suppose I shouldn't leave Jane all alone out there for too long, right?" He chuckled, and I rolled my eyes. He obviously found some pleasure in torturing his girlfriend, Jane, by keeping her alone in the mob for too long. An intelligent and insightful girl, I often found myself jealous of her wits, wishing that I had her brain instead of mine. Then maybe I would have a hope of getting a job with Draco Malfoy.

Jane hardly ever took breaks, always spending her time checking on customers and working the cash register. In fact, I rarely ever saw Jane at all, since I hid in the backroom while she stayed in the shop. Whenever I went into the abyss that was Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, I found myself being attacked by people and toys. It just wasn't safe out there; contrastingly, at the Malfoy shops, no employee was ever bombarded by Bouncing Gingerbread Men or canes.

Al started out of the backroom when he paused, looking back at me for a moment. I put my quill down, looking at him with narrowed eyes, trying to make him leave. He smiled at me, scratching his chin and looking thoughtful.

"You'll never guess who I saw out here earlier." If he was expecting me to guess, then he was crazy. I didn't play guessing games. Obviously seeing that I wasn't going to respond, yet again, he continued, telling me a name that I wanted to hear. "Scorpius Malfoy."

"What?" I demanded, standing up and walking around my desk towards Albus. How could he not have told me that the boy I wanted to win over, the boy whose father held the key to my perfect future, was in the shop that I worked in everyday? Was he trying to ruin my life? He seemed to be succeeding at it. "I need him!"

Al laughed, his chest moving up and down at a rapid pace. "Need him?" He scratched his chin again, putting the thoughtful look back onto his face. I knew now that he was teasing me, torturing me instead of Jane, though this was simply malicious. Al often teased me, if only because I was his cousin, but never as horribly as this. "Goodness, Rosie, whatever could you mean? How could you possibly need him?"

"Oh, please, Al." I crossed my arms across my chest, shaking my head. "You know that I've been trying to get an interview with Draco Malfoy, and Scorpius Malfoy is the only way I'm ever going to get one. I need to talk to him, see if he could set me up an interview with his father." Al smirked now, apparently find the situation amusing. "Stop. Did you talk to him? Do you know where he's going now? I can find him…"

"Yes, I talked to him, but he came in a couple of hours ago. I have no idea where he is now. But you do know that it's wrong to use someone to get what you want, right? And I would classify what you want to do as using someone to get what you want."

Yes, I would be using Scorpius to get what I wanted. But if anyone was in my position, I was positive they would do the exact same thing. Using people was part of human nature, and wizards and witched were no exception. Besides, I just wanted to ask Scorpius to get me an interview. Maybe I wouldn't even have to win him over. He knew me. He went to Hogwarts with me! Maybe he'd just put in a good word for me, anyway.

"Fine, classify it as that if you want. But what about your father, huh? Isn't your situation kind of the same thing? You want to be an Auror, but the only reason that you will become one is because your father is in charge. Not to mention, Uncle Harry is kind of a hero. If you don't get in, it would just be embarrassing for your whole family. Even if you're terrible, you'll still get in. Wouldn't you count that as using someone to get what you want?" I took my turn to smirk now, and Al's face turned white.

"No. I've been practicing really hard for this, and I think I could get in without my dad's help."

I shrugged, turning back around to go sit down at my desk. This was perfect. Albus was getting upset, I was manipulating him, and he would do whatever I wanted... Well, if I was good at using people, so be it. Albus was the key to getting Scorpius, Scorpius was the key to an interview, and Draco Malfoy was the key to my future. If it worked, great.

"You know what, fine, do what you want with Scorpius Malfoy." Albus sounded defeated now as planned. I knew him too well. It was his fault for being a silly Hufflepuff; he was humble and terribly loyal. If he could do anything to help his family, I was sure he would do it.

I smiled at him, picking up my quill and scribbling more notes onto the paperwork again. "Okay," I replied, "but you have to help me find him."

Author's Note:

It's been a while since I've written anything Harry Potter related. Sorry about that. I was working on NaNoWriMo last month (and I won!), so I didn't have time to write then. Plus, school has been completely insane. Like, completely. But now that everything is over, I decided to start a new fanfiction. I had some inspiration.

The idea for this fanfiction actually came around when I was thinking about what kind of job Draco Malfoy would have—honestly, he wouldn't. Draco Malfoy and work? I don't think it would happen. Plus, he would inherit a ton of money, anyway. But, if he did have a job, it would be something in business. He wouldn't DO any of the business stuff, but he would hire people to do it for him. You know? Anyway, so that was how I came up with this. Kind of. You know what I mean, right?

So, hopefully my updates won't be quite so sporadic anymore. I'm going to get a banner soon, so once I do that… I dunno. I'll just get one.

Thanks, everyone!

Breakaway615