This is a pretty short chapter only because I felt my stopping point was too good to pass up. I hope you like it :)

The rest of the summer passed in a blur for Draco. Between his mother's fussing about packing, and his father's last minute instructions on how to uphold the Malfoy Creed, Draco barely had time to contemplate the odd meeting with the boy in Madam Malkin's shop. However, whenever a free moment arose, Draco inevitably wound up wondering about the boy. He didn't know where the fascination sprung from, perhaps it was because this boy didn't immediately try to befriend Draco for his social status, perhaps it was that this was the first boy Draco had met without his parents' prior approval. Whatever the reason, Draco was becoming rather obsessed.

Several things about their meeting worried Draco. Why didn't the boy have any parents? Draco had tried to think of witches and wizards that had died and left behind a son, but the only wizard who came to mind was "He who is not mentioned in the Malfoy household," or, that Potter brat. Draco reasoned that that boy wasn't Harry Potter, because, as his father said, Potter was hidden away with some relatives being treated like a King. Potter would have had an entourage as he went shopping for his school supplies, not some crazy half-breeded giant. The mystery boy worried Draco, because Draco didn't know what he'd do if the boy didn't want to be friends with him. Draco figured that who the boy was wasn't important as long as they were friends. Even the son of a lower-status wizarding family would be acceptable to the other Slytherins when allied with the Malfoy heir.

Draco's other concern that summer was his father. He knew his parents were dark wizards, and they supported the Dark Lord, but he also knew they were loving and kind to him. In fact, to Draco, his parents were nicer than any of the hypocritical wizarding parents who felt that attempts to gain power was akin to being child-abusing devil worshipers. Draco knew that there was a divide in the wizarding world because of Voldemort, but he couldn't understand why. His parents had told him of the dark wizard, and his deeds, and Draco couldn't understand why the other wizards were so upset about Voldemort's actions. To Draco, the man was simply defending the wizarding world. After contemplation, Draco decided that the rest of the wizarding world was simply too weak to follow the Dark Lord, and therefore jealous.

Draco was concerned about his father because of his frequent trips to the Ministry. Draco worried that his father was selling out, renouncing his ideals in favor of sucking up to the political party currently in power (the supporters of the "light"). Draco knew that at home, his father would never leave the pureblood ways behind, but to show a different face to the public…it simply rubbed Draco the wrong way.

Because Draco's last weeks at home were packed with things to do and strange boys in robe shops to contemplate, September first arrived with the sort of suddenness that left Draco scrambling to pack his personal effects, and wondering where he had left his QuickNotes quill (a gift from Mr. Nott) as he was cramming a slice of toast into his mouth.

On the way to platform nine and three-quarters, Draco's father lectured (again) on upholding the Malfoy honor, while his mother kept glancing at Draco, as though trying to memorize his features before he left for school. Draco stared blankly into space. He had been so excited about starting Hogwarts, but now that the day had arrived, the anticipation and preparations had left him almost numb.

It was on the muggle portion of King's Cross that Draco saw the boy again. Fortunately, the boy was on his own, but unfortunately, Draco had to keep up with his parents as they crossed through the wall and into Platform 9 ¾.

Draco's parents were not the sort for tacky public displays. They helped Draco load his trunk into a compartment, made sure he had enough stationary to write every week, and hugged him tight before leaving. Draco sat in his compartment looking out the window. He sat up straighter when he saw the boy from Madam Malkin's, then slumped when he realized the boy was with the Weasleys. Draco pushed the thought from his head. The boy might have only been standing near the redheaded family.

"Draco! How was your summer?" Blaise Zabini had joined Draco in his carriage. The son of an infamous maneater (in the figurative sense, of course…as everyone knew, the real maneaters lived in the rainforests of the Amazon), Blaise Zabini was an "approved" friend for Draco. Despite this, the two boys got on quite well, and Draco considered Blaise to be his one true friend amongst his other acquaintances.

"My summer?" Draco thought "My summer was good. Most of the time, my mother just took me out to do fun things."

"Mine, too. She kept looking at me and sighing and saying—" Blaise paused

"I can't believe how old you're getting!" Draco and Blaise finished at the same time, and grinned at one another.

"Hey Draco, can we er, put our trunks in here?" asked Vincent Crabbe, with Greg Goyle behind him.

"Sure," replied Draco, knowing that even though these boys wouldn't be useful for their mental intellect, they were fiercely loyal, and quick to do a favor to a friend. The boys stored their trunks and sat down, discussing between themselves the merits of chocolate frogs versus bertie bott's every flavor bean ("Well, the beans can't jump in your stomach!" "Yeah, but the frog is always the same flavor!"). Things were settling down, and the train had begun to move when—

"Oh you'll never believe this!" Pansy Parkinson burst into the compartment "I was talking to Daphne, whose older sister dates a Ravenclaw who overheard a Hufflepuff saying that the Weasley twins said that Harry Potter is on the train!"

Crabbe and Goyle looked up briefly, then returned to their discussion. Blaise and Draco glanced at one another. Who knew the prestige that would come from befriending Harry Potter? Draco thought for a minute, then sighed. There was no angle he could think of for wanting to befriend Harry Potter that would be acceptable to his father. Unless Draco could convince his father—no, it wasn't worth trying to convince his father of something this insignificant. This Harry Potter boy was a dreaded topic in the Malfoy household. Before Draco knew better, he had asked about him, and his father had shattered his wineglass. Now, Draco simply avoided the topic.

"What compartment is he in?" asked Blaise, interested despite himself.

"Well, Daphne didn't know, she just said he was found by the twins who helped to load his trunk. Daphne also said," here Pansy giggled "that he's cute!"

"Pansy, what would your father say if you developed a crush on the cause of the Dark Lord's downfall?" Draco asked disparagingly. "Look, none of us can befriend him, but we can certainly uphold our family names by making his time at Hogwarts miserable! Crabbe, Goyle, come with me, and I'll see what kind of enemy we'll have for the upcoming year."

The boys rose and exited the compartment. Draco led them up the train, checking compartments as they went. Eventually, Draco found the compartment whispered about in the corridors. He opened the door, and his heart plummeted. In the compartment were two boys. One was obviously a Weasley, the other, the boy from the robe shop.

"So it's true, then?" Spoke Draco, heart near his toes "Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts."

That's all for now. I'm sorry that Draco's line is the line from the movie, not the book, but I can't find my copy of the first book! I'll commence my search immediately, however.

Another chapter will go up soon! Please review and let me know how I'm doing.

C