Just Like You

by HELENz

Summer before 7th Year! Draco looks back on his past, and how he's lived his life, and his father's influence on him. It leads him to a conclusion. What is that conclusion? Contains lyrics to “Just Like You” by Three Days Grace. Oneshot in Draco's POV.

I could be mean
I could be angry
You know I could be just like you

I could be fake
I could be stupid
You know I could be just like you

My name is Draco Malfoy. I'm seventeen and I'm in my seventh year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You've probably heard of my father, Lucius. Who hasn't? He was in the Ministry of Magic, and he was quite respected within the wizarding community. He's also very rich, which gives him a lot of power.

You thought you were standing beside me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

My father used his power and influence to pass laws that pushed back the wizarding world several decades. The laws he passed were ones that were very prejudiced against certain people. They were very hateful laws, made by a hateful man.

You thought you were there to guide me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

You thought you were there to guide me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

I used to follow the rules and beliefs my father followed. I was very cruel to muggleborns because of my father's hate of them. I was cruel to people like the Weasleys, because my father believes that people who have less money than we do are inferior to us. There were other people I teased for various reasons.

I could be cold
I could be ruthless
You know I could be just like you

I could be weak
I could be senseless
You know I could be just like you

My father is in Azkaban. The Ministry of Magic finally got some sense and arrested him after the incident in the Department of Mysteries. He's in there for life unless he somehow weasels his way out. I doubt he'll be able to do that.

You thought you were standing beside me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

I live with my friend, Martin's family now, since my mother was murdered by my aunt, Bellatrix Lestrange. Martin's family is very nice and they don't follow the same beliefs that my family does. Martin is a fourth year in Ravenclaw. A lot of people didn't know I was friends with him until now, especially my Slytherin friends. Martin is like a little brother to me. He hasn't always liked the way I've lived my life. Most of the time he hasn't, because the beliefs towards people I held and the actions I took in following those beliefs conflicted with his beliefs. He had always warned me that my life was going in the wrong direction, but I didn't listen to him until now. I'm lucky he didn't decide to drop his friendship with me – he has always been a good friend to me, more of a friend than Crabbe and Goyle ever were.

You thought you were there to guide me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

You thought you were there to guide me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

My father wanted me to become a Deatheater, a follower of Voldemort. I don't want to, anymore. Last year, for my initiation into the Deatheaters, I was given the mission of killing Albums Dumbledore, one of Voldemort's worst enemies. To make the story short, I couldn't do it, and that's when I realized I didn't want to be Deatheater. Dumbledore was killed, however. Snape killed him with the Killing Curse.

On my own, 'case I can't take livin' with you
I'm alone, so I won't turn out like you want me to

Snape and I went into hiding, but to no avail. Ministry of Magic officials found us and arrested us after three weeks. Snape was given a life sentence for using the Killing Curse. I was not given a life sentence for my crime – using the Imperious Curse, an Unforgivable Curse, on Rosmerta. I was not given the penalty because I was a minor at the time and that somehow excluded me from spending the rest of my life in Azkaban. It did not, however, exclude me from having to spend the remainder of my summer (two months) in Azkaban. Unfortunately, the world isn't as forgiving as Dumbledore. He was willing to forgive me completely for my schemes which landed Ron Weasley and Katie Bell in the hospital wing as well as for using the Imperious Curse on Rosmerta. If the world were more like Dumbledore, I may not have had to spend any time in Azkaban.

You thought you were standing beside me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

My dad thought he was guiding me towards a better life – all he was guiding me towards was a dead end, because if I continue on the path my life was taking up until now, I will end up in Azkaban, and not just for two months – for life. Actually, for me, the thought of returning back there is a reason to change. I really don't want to return there.

Nobody really knows how bad Azkaban is until they're in it. I certainly didn't. It ended up being ten times worse than I imagined. The food was awful. We had dried, stale bread everyday at every meal. The place was absolutely filthy. The atmosphere of the place – grey walls, solitary cells – was depressing. The beds were lumpy and uncomfortable, but it was unlikely if I could sleep anyways. The dementors drained all of the life out of the place, keeping you trapped in your own horrible memories. It's no wonder everyone went insane in there. The only thing that kept me sane was knowing I was getting out of there. Most people didn't have that – they were stuck there for life. When I got out, I remember feeling like I was actually alive. I still have nightmares about Azkaban occasionally, and it was six moths ago that I got out.

You thought you were there to guide me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

You thought you were there to guide me
You were only in my way
You're wrong if you think that I'll be just like you

My father has been mean to people and has had the beliefs that I used to have since I was very little. I guess he was lucky for a while, because his hateful beliefs and actions never got him in trouble until the Department of Mysteries incident. He basically got away with murder. He was a member of the Deatheaters, and he tortured and killed multiple people. He got away with it up until that point because he had enormous influence and power.

I could be mean
I could be angry
You know I could be just like you

My father still has all of the beliefs he has always had. He still thinks he's right. I've changed my beliefs, though. I know that everything I used to believe isn't true, and that I've been given a second chance in living a good life and I don't want to mess it up.

Song Lyrics: "Just Like You" by Three Days Grace

THE END