Hi, folks!
So, this new story was co-written with my two lovely betas, Snape'sPaige394 and AW Science Geek. Hope you all enjoy!
Harry looked around in wonder at the assortment of robes. Hagrid had told him to stay in Madame Malkin's and look around while he went next door to do some other shopping. He had also told him to pick out a robe or two, but Harry had no idea where to start.
He was so absorbed in watching a clerk's wand levitate a robe off the shelf that he walked right into someone else. Somehow his leg had tripped the boy, because he was sprawled on the floor in front of him, robes strewn about at his feet.
"Oh, God, I'm so sorry," Harry said worriedly, holding his hand out to help him up. The boy's hair was white blonde and his eyes were an unusually striking shade of silver, blinking confusedly at him. "Are you alright?"
"No, sorry, that was my fault," the boy said. "I wasn't watching where I was going." He eyed Harry inquisitively. "Are you getting robes for Hogwarts, too?"
"Apparently," Harry responded. "You?"
"I'm here with my father," he explained. "Unfortunately."
"What do you mean?"
"People don't really like me very much. Especially when my father's around," the boy elaborated.
"Why not?"
"He's not very nice to people," the boy said. "My name's Draco Malfoy."
"Well, I've never heard of the name Malfoy," Harry told him, neglecting to mention that there was no way he could have heard of that name before today.
"Are you a muggleborn?" Draco asked curiously, tilting his head to the side.
Harry shook his head.
"Are your parents shopping with you, then?"
Harry swallowed. "My parents died when I was a baby."
Draco's eyebrows drew together. "That's horrible. I can't imagine not having parents."
"Is your father nice to you?" he asked. He'd always wondered what it would be like to live with family, how much better it'd be to live with his parents other than the Dursleys.
Draco shrugged. "I don't see him all that often. He's away on business most of the time. It's usually just me and my mum."
"Harry!" he heard Hagrid shout, and he turned around quickly. "Come on, now. You don't want to be associating with a Malfoy."
Harry saw Draco's face fall in disappointment. "I guess I'll see you at school." He turned to walk out of the shop, a robe tucked into the crook of his arm.
Harry grabbed his arm immediately. "Wait," he said, thinking on his feet. "Sit on the train with me?"
"Really?" Draco asked, as if he thought Harry was joking.
"Yeah, mate," Harry responded, grinning.
Despite Hagrid's best efforts, Draco was dragged along to the train station. Harry asked him if his father would mind, but he only shrugged and grabbed his bags. They raced to the end of the car and got the last empty compartment.
Draco taught Harry about the wonders of wizard candy, offering to buy him chocolate frogs and acid pops. His eyes widened when Harry pulled out his own bag full of galleons, but thankfully he didn't ask where the money had come from. They spent most of their time trading stories. Draco was very interested in what it was like living in the muggle world, and Harry wanted to know what it had been like growing up a wealthy only child. The time passed by quickly, and after a while they were interrupted by the glass door to their compartment sliding open. A bushy-haired girl pushed her way in, plopping herself down on a seat.
"We should probably be getting our robes on," she said. She looked at both of them, raising her eyebrows imperiously. "I'm Hermione Granger."
Neither Draco nor Harry said anything, too shocked that this girl had burst into their compartment and demanded they put on their robes.
She suddenly gasped, pointing at Harry. "You're Harry Potter, aren't you?"
He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Uh, yeah, I suppose. Is there anything you need?"
She looked distinctly put out. "Sorry, it's just… well, I haven't anywhere to sit. But I'll leave if you want."
Harry didn't answer. Hermione stood up to open the door to the compartment.
"Well, d'you want to sit with us?" Draco asked. Harry looked at him disbelievingly, wondering what had possessed him to ask this strange girl to sit with them.
"If you insist," she said airily, but her flushed cheeks revealed her relief.
Draco smiled at her. "I'm Draco Malfoy. Good to meet you." He held out his hand.
Her eyebrows raised as she took his hand gratefully, clearly glad to have a friend. "Good to meet you too."
"Mrs. Weasley, this is delicious," Draco complimented, digging into his dinner. He was starving after spending all day playing a Seeker's match with Harry.
"Oh, thank you, Draco," Mrs. Weasley responded, smiling at him warmly. "It's always nice to have you here."
Draco turned his attention to his food again. He felt Ron's harsh glare, but he promptly ignored it. That prick had made it his mission to make him feel unwelcome in the Weasley home since he'd gotten here.
"So, when are you leaving, Malfoy?" Ron asked coldly, squeezing his fork in his hand.
"Oh, shut it, Ron," Harry inserted, immediately coming to Draco's defense.
"Yeah, mate," Fred chimed in, stealing a piece of bread off of Ron's plate. "Draco's much more fun to be around than you these days, anyway."
"Ronald Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley scolded him, smacking him on the back of his head. "Draco is welcome to stay for as long as he likes. And you will treat him like you would any other guest!"
"Yes, mum," Ron mumbled, looking properly shamed.
Draco hid his smile behind his hand. Ron knew perfectly well that the meeting with the Order of the Phoenix ended tomorrow, but he was unwilling to accept the fact that Draco was as much a part of the Order as Harry was.
"Where's Sirius?" asked Fred, looking around as if Sirius was hiding under the cupboards in the kitchen.
"Back at Grimmauld Place," Remus responded, a trace of sadness in his voice.
"You're going to pop the question any day now, yeah?" Fred asked. "He'd be thrilled to move into your place."
"Yeah, mate," George added. "Better not wait too long. It's been… what is it, three years?" He raised his eyebrows. "Take it to the next level."
"I don't need you two to give me advice about my relationship with Sirius," Remus scolded them, his pink cheeks giving away his embarrassment.
"We're just trying to help you out," they chorused together, shrugging. It was almost uncanny how in sync they were.
"So," George said, clapping his hands to capture their attention. "Quidditch game tomorrow? Anyone?"
"I'm in," Harry told him.
"Me too," Draco added, using his fork to grab another potato.
"Actually, Draco, we're working on getting your Patronus tomorrow," Remus inserted.
He waved his hand. "I can do that the next day, can't I?" He looked to Harry for backup.
His friend shrugged. "Sorry, mate, Lupin's right. You've got to get it soon. There'll only be more dementors to face when Voldemort gets closer."
Draco sighed. He'd never been able to master a Patronus charm, unlike Harry, who had gotten it down in third year. Remus had been helping him along, but he was still woefully unprepared against any dementors. "Fine."
The front door slammed open as Mad-Eye Moody came through, his uneven steps alerting them all to his presence. "Death Eater attack on Diagon Alley," he grunted. "We need to go."
Draco and Harry glanced at each other. "We're going," Harry said, echoing both of their intentions.
"No," Remus said immediately. "You two are too valuable to him. If you're captured…"
"Then we won't get captured," Harry interrupted. "We can handle it."
"He's right," George said. "They can handle it."
"We can't take the Malfoy boy," Moody said gruffly. "He's too much of a liability. And who knows what he'll do."
"I can take care of myself," Draco responded distinctly. "And just because I'm a Malfoy doesn't mean I won't fight back as hard as any of you."
"Well, Harry?" asked Remus, turning in his direction. "It's your decision. Is he going or not?"
"I trust him with my life," Harry said, the severity of his leaving no room for argument. "He's coming with us."
Remus nodded. Draco left to grab his broom, and they departed for Diagon Alley, deciding to fly because Floo would leave them defenseless.
It was absolute chaos. They were surrounded by screaming witches and wizards. Some of the stores were on fire, and Draco saw a figure in a silvery mask deliver the killing curse to a woman in the window. He saw more Death Eaters flying overhead on broom in large, billowing robes. People were running in all different directions, tripping over each other in their haste to get out of the tiny alleyway.
"Split up," Moody shouted. "We're trying to protect the people here, not trying to kill Death Eaters. But don't hesitate to point your wand at anything in a mask."
They separated, and Draco headed for the Three Broomsticks. He saw the glow of a Dark curse flashing in the building, and a scream. He ducked in through the door, hiding behind a table.
A tiny child was crouched behind a chair. She couldn't have been more than six years old. She looked frightened out of her mind, her arms wrapped around her knees. She flinched when there was another crash outside.
Draco peeked his head out and, noticing the Death Eater must have been upstairs, crouched and ran over to where the young girl was sitting. He quickly cast a silencing spell so the hooded figure wouldn't hear them. "I need you to run," he said, keeping his voice quiet in case the spell wouldn't last long. "I won't be able to follow you out, but I'll be able to protect you with a few charms. Alright? Can you do that for me?"
She didn't answer, her eyes widening in fright.
"I'm going to need you to run very, very fast. You can't look back. Is anyone else in here?"
"My mum's upstairs," she whispered. "I don't know if she got out."
"I'll go upstairs to see if she's alright, but only if you run," Draco said.
She eyed him warily. "Do you promise?"
He thought fast, knowing the most important part was getting her out safe. "Can you keep a secret?"
She nodded silently.
"Have you ever heard of the Order of the Phoenix?"
"My mum used to tell me stories about it. She told me they're the good ones," she said quietly.
"Well, I'm part of the Order. There are other members here, too, and we can get your mum out of here. Yeah? But I need for you to get out first."
She nodded, looking determined.
"Alright," he whispered. "On the count of three, you're going to run very, very quickly to the front door. I'll make sure nothing happens to you. Alright?" She nodded again. "One… two… three!"
When she shot out from behind the chair, he immediately cast three shield spells and an extra disillusionment spell. A curse hit her from the left, but his Protego just barely blocked it. Apparently the Death Eater had seen them. He breathed a sigh of relief when she was safely out the door, hoping she could get herself out of Diagon Alley.
It wasn't long before he felt his barricade rock with a magical curse, and knew it wouldn't last that much longer. When he felt it rock again, he stood up and shot back a stunning spell, which the figure in the mask blocked with an effortless shield spell.
He was about to duck again when the figure lowered its wand arm. He kept his wand up warily. Was a Death Eater actually surrendering?
The figure pulled off its silver mask, releasing long tresses of hair. Dark, curly brown hair.
"Hello, Draco," Hermione said, her voice sugary sweet, tucking the mask under her arm. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
