Author: Ichigomars
Title: A Wish Before the Kiss Foundation
Rating: T - for language. Don't like, don't read.
Disclaimer: Characters belong to J.K. Rowling, whom is the writer/creator of the goodness that is Harry Potter! But, the plot... I'm happy to say that it is all mine.
Chapter One: Set In Motion!
Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Thump, thump.
Draco Malfoy's heart was beating wildly, his breath was coming out in short, erratic bursts of Carbon Dioxide. The hand that held his wand was shaking so uncontrollably that he could barely keep the right end of it pointed at the man in front of him.
'Merlin,' he thought, 'I can't do this…I can't do this… I haveto do this!' Draco's inner voice was in freak-out mode, and he didn't know how to calm it down. He had broken out in a cold sweat some time ago and small trickles of perspiration decorated his pale forehead. The panicked and frightened look that seemed etched into every curve of his face was heightened in it's intensity by the dull green glow of The Dark Mark that floated above.
Dumbledore stood mere feet away, hunched against the wall in front of his fair-haired student, barely able to hold himself upright, his old face gaunt, and the infamous twinkle in those pale eyes, the one that Draco had come to loathe, was slowly fading.
"I'm afraid there is little time." said Dumbledore. "So, let us discuss your options."
"My options!" said Draco loudly. "I've got a wand here- I'm about going to kill you-"
"My dear boy, please, if you were going to kill me you would have done so as soon as you had disarmed me. Alas, here we are, having this pleasant chat about your ways and means."
Draco's eyes widened. "But, I haven't got any options!" Draco screeched. "If I don't do this, he'll kill me… he'll kill my whole family! You don't understand. I have to do this!"
Dumbledore made a rather pleasant 'hmm…' noise, despite his noticeably pained expression. "Yes, Draco, see that you are in a quite dire situation, and I acknowledge it as such." Dumbledore sighed and slid just a little farther down the stone wall that supported him. His blackened hand lay limp at his side, the other gripped his bent kneecap. "That is why I have not confronted you about it before now. It is most certain that had Voldemort suspected I knew of your plan, you would have immediatly been punished."
If
possible, Draco paled even more at the use of The Dark Lord's name… and at the prospect of Voldemort finding out about Dumbledore
knowing about his plan, as well.
"Had I spoken to you about your mission," Dumbledore continued, "it is very likely that Voldemort would have used Legilimency against you; which, undoubtedly, would have cost you your life. However, here we are, nearing the end of it all… so, I feel that we are free to discuss it now. Currently, you have harmed no one, and your previous unintentional victims have survived. We can move past this situation here," Dumbledore, with his non-blackened hand, gestured between himself and Draco, " and, I can help you. Draco, my boy, you must see-"
"No!" Draco took a step back. "No one can help me. What don't you understand about 'he'll kill my whole family'? I have no choice! I do it, or they all die." Draco, as if he had just realized what failing to complete his task would entail, made a small gasping noise. His face scrunched up with emotion, and his eyes glistened with despair.
"I can help your family, my dear boy. Come over to the right side. We can hide you better than you could ever imagine. Your father is safe in a cell in Azkaban for now… and when the time comes we will protect him as well. I can have Order members fetch your mother…" For the first time in their conversation, Dumbledore made a slight wheezing noise before continuing, "Do the right thing, Draco… you are most certainly not a killer…"
"How
would you know?" A little of Draco's usual sneer had slid back
onto his face, his past feelings of desperation forgotten, "I've come this far, haven't I? Everyone
expected me to have died by now, but I haven't, have I? It was me
who discovered the
Vanishing Cabinets, and it was me
who figured out how
to use them. I let the Death Eaters into the school! And, that fight
downstairs…" Draco paused, gesturing with his shaky hand to the
Tower door. The faint sound of hexes could be heard coming from the
floor below. "All of that is my
doing. Why
shouldn't I be a killer then? I've done everything but
that! I have to
finish this. I have
to kill you!"
said Draco, near yelling.
Dumbledore shook his head. "No, my dear boy…" he said solemnly, "you do not have to…" Dumbledore gave Draco a look that made his heart speed up a notch from the intensity of it. "You have choices, Draco… now, it is time to make the right one."
The scene slowly faded away, Dumbledore's last words echoing in Draco's head. It had been a dream, yes, but it was also a memory. Draco found that the odd time that he did actually dream, it was of that fateful moment in his life; where, basically, everything had gone to hell. He hadn't made the right choice. No, instead, he had hesitated. And, now Dumbledore was dead. Even if it wasn't his own doing, and although he loathed to admit, he still felt a little responsible for it. As well, it was that choice that he made, or lack there of, that landed him where he was. It had been a little over a year and half ago, but still, here he was, paying the price.
Draco stared at the inside of his eyelids. He wondered why people always said that when they closed their eyes, all they could see was black. He didn't see black. He saw colours; little dots of colours, all blended together. And, sometimes, when he opened his eyes for a second and closed them really quickly, he could see the outline of the cell door, imprinted in his mind. It really amazed him sometimes.
Draco sighed, and opened his eyes. Slowly, he sat up. Merlin, was he bored. But, he was always bored. Being stuck in Azkaban for 3 weeks could do that to a person. 3 weeks in Azkaban could also be the reason for the slight haze that had settled in his mind. Yes, he could function relatively normally, if not a little slower, but things looked a little off sometimes; a little darker, gloomier maybe. He found that he was rather unhappy at times as well. Oh, the joy of Dementors…
Draco stood up, and dusted off his ragged robe. At one point, it had been a brilliant midnight black. His father had paid good money for the fabric and tailoring as well. However, since the night in the Astronomy Tower, it had acquired more than a few rips along the hemline, dust and grime had settled snugly into the tight-knit stitching, and they were a little looser around... well, everywhere. Draco yawned.
"I can't believe I slept in Azkaban." Draco thought to himself. He didn't think it was possible. It'd been such a long time since he'd had a good rest. A part of him was a little glad that he had finally gotten some sleep; however, another part of him was wary about being in such a vulnerable position, like... not being awake... while in such a place.
"Who knows what the hell the creepy buggers could have done to me…" Draco shuddered at the thought. By 'creepy things' he meant the mutant rats that he'd seen skittering around the cell. He swore they were the size of raccoons; big… rabid raccoons.
He walked the two steps to the back of his cell, and knelt down. He couldn't tell for sure, but, judging by the light that shone through the crack in the wall, Draco thought that it was about noon.
"Good," he whispered to himself, "they should be here any minute now."
Sure enough, the sound of the guard's heavy footfalls could be heard echoing in the stone hallway, coming toward Draco's cell. Draco, ever the Malfoy, frantically tried to tame his dirty, matted hair, and straighten his wrinkled robe. No Malfoy should be seen in such a state of disarray.
The guard's big boots cast a shadow in the crack under the cell door. He banged loudly on it with the wooden club that all guards in Azkaban Prison carried as a 'just in case'. The rectangular opening at the top centre of the metal door was roughly wrenched open. The dirty face of Draco's guard appeared.
"Oy, Malfoy boy, ye got a visitor," he said in a low rumbling voice. Then, he turned his head to the left, the direction he had just come from, and bellowed, "Wotcha over there for? Get over 'ere and do yer business!" The guard's face disappeared from view.
The sound of light, scurrying footsteps followed. And then, Draco could hear wood sliding against the stone floor. "This guy's short, then…" Draco thought. "He needs something to stand on!" He smirked and waited. Draco was a little surprised when a woman's face appeared in the rectangular opening. "It's a woman? Well, that was a little unexpected. I didn't think women were allowed to do this kind of thing." By 'this kind of thing', he meant going to Azkaban to speak to 'highly dangerous' convicts, such as himself. Draco took a step forward and waited for her to speak. She cleared her throat, and beamed at him.
"I'm Matilda Watford from 'A Wish Before the Kiss Foundation'," she said in a high-pitched voice that grated against Draco's ears, "One thing you want to do in your life… and we'll make it happen before you get the Dementor's Kiss!" Matilda finished with a wink, and proceeded to bat her heavily made up eyelashes.
Draco smirked; a little of his pre-Azkaban-self shining through. "So, it can be anything?" Draco inquired.
"You bet! Anything you want or need, and I'll get it for you." Matilda winked again. Draco wished she would stop that; it kind of gave him the creeps. Not that he would ever admit it aloud.
"Okay. Well then. Hm…" Draco pretended to think. He already knew exactly what he wanted, but he had to make it look like he hadn'tplanned this at all. "I want to see Harry Potter." He dead-panned.
Matilda's smile faltered, and Draco figured that questions, such as; Harry Potter? Why him? Were Azkaban prisoners even allowed to talk to the Saviour of the Wizarding World? And, Wasn't Draco Malfoy a Death Eater?-were going through her head.
"I'm a Malfoy, Miss Watford, as I assume you know, and Malfoy's always get what they want, correct?" Draco cocked his head to the side.
Matilda nodded hesitantly. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure the Azkaban guard was close by; you know, just in case Draco decided to attack her through the 10 by 12 centimetre hole in the door.
"Again then, "Draco said, a vicious gleam in his eye, "I want to see Harry Potter."
Matilda swallowed thickly and plastered a large, toothy smile on her face that, with her frightened bug-eyed look, made Draco smile. All those years scaring little Hogwarts students had come in handy.
"Y-yes," Matilda cleared her throat, "Yes, Mr.Malfoy. I'll get right on it."
Draco Malfoy's plan had just been set into motion.
Ta-da! What did you think? Was it good? Bad? Just okay? Is it worth it if I continue?You tell me!
So, I kind of have an idea as to where this is going, but it's not set in stone. I'm sure you can probably guess where, though. (It's pretty obvious!) Also, I just started a new, evil, mighty beast of a semester that will most likely smother me in homework, so it may be a while before the next chapter gets finished. Anyway, I'm looking for a beta as well. Someone who can check grammar, plot goodness, and all that stuff. You know how it is. So, if anyone's interested, feel free to contact me!
Enough talk! Thanks for reading! And, review if you want! 'Tis much appreciated.