The new chapter is here and the first chapter has been revised. There was just bit of fleshing out in the first chapter and clearer explinations :)
Thanks so much to those who reviewed the first chapter, your constructive criticism was very helpful and appreciated.
Sorry about this taking so long, uni work took over and I've been doing little but since.
Important!
Draco never took the Dark Mark.
Disclaimer - I don't own the characters.
Chapter Two – The Project Members
"She was driving me absolutely crazy!" Ron Weasley complained loudly as he sat down before the fire in the Room of Requirement with a heavy sigh. It had been two days since Hermione had sent out the invites to come to Hogwarts. Since then Hannah Abbot and Susan Bones had turned up. Ron had just arrived, a frown on his face as thoughts of his overbearing family remained at the forefront of his mind.
"I'm sure she's just worried about Fred. He did almost die, you know." Harry said softly, unintentionally causing images to flash before Ron's minds eye as a shiver ran down his spine.
He would never forget the sight of his brother lying on the ground beneath the rubble, so still Ron had feared for the worst. It wasn't until an almost hysterical George had pulled Fred into his arms and let out a relieved laugh, loudly proclaiming that his twin was still breathing, that Ron himself had breathed once more.
In a bizarre twist of fate, not second's later another chunk of ceiling had fallen and would have crushed both twins if it hadn't of been for Draco Malfoy – of all people. The blond had used a simple levitation spell with a wand he must have stolen at some point, but it had been enough to spare their lives, giving George, Ron and Percy enough time to get everyone to safety.
The horror of coming that close to loosing two of his brother's had later helped Ron to accept and support Harry's ideas for a free new world, one not tarnished by hatred or greedy ambition.
Pulling himself out of his thoughts, he let out a loud sigh.
"Yeah, I know that. But she's got to back off a bit. I could hardly breath there. I mean; I got so used to us just doing our own thing without thinking about our parent's thoughts on it. Then to have mum on over-drive and constantly breathing down my throat…" He just shook his head as he rubbed his eyes.
"Don't worry mate, you're here now." Dean tried to console him. Ron, however, laughed bitterly.
"Yeah, you wouldn't believe the argument that caused. It was like Charlie moving to Romania all over again. I wouldn't be surprised if Ginny's stuck eating sandwiches for the next two weeks." Ron mused, a small amount of amusement hitting him at the thought of his mother burning all the food, as she would be too annoyed to focus properly.
"It'll get better, don't worry." Hermione leaned over the back of the couch to give him a warm, encouraging smile, bracing herself with a hand on his shoulder. Ron noticed with a small frown that her usually warm brown eyes were darker than normal, a small crease between her brows telling him that she wasn't as ok as her smile lead him to believe.
He glanced at Harry who was looking at him and shook his head slightly, as if reading his mind. Deciding to follow his lead, Ron said nothing, but made a mental note to ask Harry what was wrong with their female best friend later.
The room lapsed into a comfortable silence as the boys sat before the fire and the three girls sat further back reading their textbooks and magazines respectively. The silence was finally broken by the sound of the door slowly opening.
All eyes turned to the door along with their owner's wands, bodies tense and curses on the tips of their tongues.
"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" Dean snarled, standing up from his seat, dislike shinning in his eyes as he gazed at the Slytherin before them.
Blaise Zabini stood stiffly in the doorway, one hand still holding the doorhandle as if unsure if he should just close the door again and leave.
"I received a letter…" He trailed off, a piece of parchment held in his hand that everyone recognised as one of the letters Hermione had sent out.
"You sent Death Eater scum a letter?" Susan spoke up in an uncharacteristically scathing voice. Obviously the loss of her Aunt had affected her confidence to speak up.
Harry suddenly stood up, putting an end to any further comments as all eyes flickered to the clear leader in the room.
"Blaise Zabini was declared innocent of all charges." Harry's voice was emotionless.
"He tortured people; he never went against the Death Eaters!" Susan yelled furiously.
"It was a war, we all did things we're not proud of." Harry snapped back, shocking them all into silence with the truth of his words.
"The war is over, if you're going to continue with the hatred and ridicule that caused the war in the first place, you can leave immediately. Anyone who comes to Hogwarts this summer clearly wants to put the past behind them and start a new, better and brighter future for themselves and our world. There's no place for those who are stuck in the past here at Hogwarts this summer." Harry looked at all of the people present before moving over to Blaise. He ignored the tensing of the other boy at his approach, before the dark skinned boys' eyes widened comically at the hand suddenly offered to him.
"Harry Potter, Gryffindor eighth year." Harry offered a friendly, if slightly strained: smile, his eyes serious.
Slowly, Blaise let go of the door handle and grasped Harry's hand in a firm handshake.
"Blaise Zabini, Slytherin eighth year." He said confidently, though his brown eyes betrayed his nervousness.
"If you go over to Hermione you'll find she can sort out your schedule for the next few days. Right now, we're just doing small stuff while leaving the big stuff for when more people arrive." Harry said, leading the still nervous boy over to where Hermione was sitting.
"You'll look after Balise, won't you Mione?" Harry sent her a soft, teasing smile. Rolling her eyes she stuck out her own hand, appearing friendly enough, though a hidden test sparkled within her brown eyes.
Blaise, smart boy that he was, saw the test for what it was and offered his own small smile as he reached out and took her hand.
Blaise glanced at Harry in time to see him shooting a warning look at the others in the room before he turned back to Blaise, clapped him on the back in a surprisingly friendly manner before he moved back over to the couch before the fire.
"So," he looked back at Hermione at the sound of her voice. "What are your best subjects?" She asked with an almost shy smile.
***()
The two weeks that followed saw many more of their fellow year-mates arrive. Seamus Finnigin and Lavender Brown showed up together, having met up in the Great Hall while Parvarti and Padma Patil came with Lisa Turpin. Terry Boot, Micheal Corner and Anthony Goldstein all happened to turn up on the same day. While Justine Finch-Fletchley, Erine Macmillan and Zacharias Smith completed Hufflepuffs representation. Millicent Bulstrode, Theodore Nott and Pansy Parkinson arrived and gave Blaise some Slytherin company.
It was exactly two weeks since Hermione had arrived that Harry woke early. He quietly crept out of his bed, mindful of the other beds in what had been labelled as the 'boys dorm'. Due to the almost unanimous acceptance of Hermione's letters, the Room of Requirement had been separated into a few different rooms. It now housed a general common room, two large bathrooms as well as two large dormitories. A few doors down they had set up a temporary eating area reminiscent of the still damaged Great Hall.
Harry managed to shower and dress without having any startled wands pointed at him, though he was sure he'd felt a few pairs of eyes following him curiously. It was as he was about to leave the room when a voice spoke up, confirming his suspicions that people were awake but faking sleep.
"Harry? What's with the fancy clothes?" Neville asked, sounding far too coherent to pass off for someone who'd only just woken up.
"I'll not be here for the majority of the day, I've got a few errands to run." Harry said and slipped out the room before anyone could stop him.
"Errands?" Neville murmured.
"It's the Malfoy trials today." Blaise piped up, staring at the canopy of his bed blankly, arms folded behind his head.
Silence greeted his words; no one quite knowing what to say, as they knew Harry would have heavy sway on the verdict. What they didn't know was if Harry would be helping free the family, or condemning them to hell.
***()
Draco Malfoy sat staring in disbelief at the Ministry judge before him.
"If the Aura's would escort Lucius Malfoy back to his manner to begin his house arrest. Mrs Narcissa Malfoy and your son, Draco Malfoy, are free to go." The moustached man suddenly leaned forward and looked at them with beady little eyes.
"However, remember that the Ministry will be watching your every move. Put one toe out of line and you'll be back in here and next time you won't have as much luck."
A sound similar to that of a gong reverted around the room, announcing the end of the trial.
Feeling numb with shock, Draco followed his parents and the Aura's out of the courtroom. Ignoring the flashes of cameras and yelled questions by the press, he found his eyes fixing on the young man walking towards him.
"Malfoy." Harry Potter – Saviour of the world – stopped before him and offered what was a surprisingly friendly smile.
"Mr and Mrs Malfoy." He glanced at the duo with a small nod, before Draco became the focus of his attention again.
"You'll probably want to spend time with your parents," he began, completely stumping Draco. "However, if you find yourself needing something to do these summer holidays, a bunch of us are staying at Hogwarts and fixing it up after… well, we're fixing it up before school starts again in September. We've got every eighth year we could so it'd be great if you could come too." A very boyish grin crossed his face as he held out a letter.
"This is the letter everyone received…" Draco hesitantly reached out and took it, confusion almost overwhelming him.
"Why?" Was all he could get out, his throat feeling strangely constricted.
A flickering of emerald green and a soft smile were his answer as Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived-to-conquer, walked away.
"Everyone deserves a second chance." Floated back to him.
***()
No one was more surprised to see Draco Lucius Malfoy standing in the Room of Requirements the very next evening then Draco himself. He had opened the letter as soon as he had arrived back at the Manner, unable to wait a second longer.
'Dear Eighth Year Hogwarts Student,
As you know, the war has ended and our world is beginning the mammoth task of rebuilding itself. However, this does not alter the fact that students are going to need a place to learn and grow. That place has always been Hogwarts. Unfortunately, due to certain circumstances, Hogwarts is in need of major repairs. For this job, you and your fellow year mates have been asked to help.
This has nothing to do with the Ministry, any kind of publicity or any other organisation. What is being offered to you is a place of refuge from all the anger and ignorance currently circling around, being fuelled by idiots who can't keep their ridiculous accusation to themselves.
That being said, Hogwarts will not just be a refuge; it is a chance for you to use your skills to help heal both our beloved school and one another.
If you cannot work peacefully along-side members from all FOUR houses, please do not come.
I do hope you consider helping us build this future,
Hermione Granger (and Harry Potter).'
Draco wasn't sure what to do or think. Ever since he had been a child, he had been told it was his duty to uphold the Malfoy name and honour. That family and blood where the two most important things in his life. He had lived by these teachings for sixteen years of his life. He had only began to doubt it during the last two years, ever since Voldemort had began the initiation process into the Death Eaters; he'd never been good enough for the mark, a fact he was infinitely grateful for today. It was then that he finally began to question if this was really the path he had wanted to follow.
After all, what good was it doing him? He only had a few friends, people were weary of him and others just plain didn't like him. How could such a lonely, despised existence be all there was in the world for him?
He wanted people to like him, to want to be his friend. He wanted to joke and laugh loudly in public. He just wanted to be free and accepted for who he was…
He wanted the freedom this letter was offering him.
After a sleepless night of pacing about his room, weighing up his very belief system against what could be a better and brighter future, he made his decision as the sun rose. He packed his bags and went downstairs to where he knew his parent's bedroom was. Flinging open the door in a manner he hadn't done since he was four and had awoken from a nightmare, he gathered the little courage he possessed ad squared his shoulders before entering the room.
"Mother, Father." He gave the two occupants of the room a nod.
"I'm going to Hogwarts to help with the restoration for the majority, if not all, of the summer."
Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy sat sleepily up in bed, shocked more than anything by the appearance of their only son. As their minds cleared from sleep, confused looks crossed their faces.
"Draco, what in Merlin's name are you talking about?" Narcissa asked.
"I've received an invitation from Harry Potter and Hermione Granger to join them and our fellow year-mates at Hogwarts. We're to repair it before summers end so that it can be opened in September." Draco said tensely, praying his moment of confidence wouldn't prematurely desert him.
"Why would you want to do such a thing? They have house-elves and payed workers for that kind of thing." Lucius said dismissively. "Go back to your room and work on your studies if you insist on being awake this early in the morning."
Draco faulted as his father moved to lie back down, intending on going back to sleep. He could feel his resolve weakening in the face of adversity, but he then remembered the letter he'd put in his pocket. Discretely reaching into the pocket, his fingertips brushed the parchment and he felt his confidence return.
'If Harry Potter can defeat a Dark Lord numerous times, I can surely stand up to my father!'
"N-No," Draco protested, voice wavering slightly. His parents froze in what they were doing and looked over at their son in shock. Never had Draco spoken against what his father had told him to do.
"I'm an adult now. I-I will be going to Hogwarts once my trunk is ready. I've been offered a place there with people who are all heading for the same future as I. I want to be a part of that future." Draco took another deep breath. "If you can't accept my decision, well, I'm going anyway, I won't blindly follow you again!"
"Draco! Do not speak to your father and I like that!" His mother admonished him.
"No, I need to say this. I won't follow you both like some kind of trained pet! We should never have gotten involved with V-Vol-Vol-The Dark Lord; he was nothing more than a megalomaniac, so insane and believing in a ridiculous idea. Who really cares where someone comes from, who their parents are or how pure their blood is? I don't care anymore and neither should you. Just because we've got a magical history and lots of money doesn't mean anything in the long run. If we don't accept and love each other, if we're not free to make our own choices: we're nothing. We're just horrible people, too blind with self-importance to be happy." Draco finished his impassioned speech quietly, chest heaving and face slightly flushed.
Looking at his parent's faces, a mixture of shock and anger, he held his head high, an odd feeling of calmness and happiness welling inside of him.
'I should have said this years ago.' He thought somewhat sadly.
"I am going to Hogwarts where I will find some kind of happiness and freedom. I will restore the name Malfoy, but it will be associated with generosity and warmth. If you both cannot accept that, then that is your problem." With his piece said and done, he turned and left his speechless parents sitting in their bed.
As he ordered the house-elves to collect his things, he kept a tight hold of the letter within his pocket, excess adrenalin still pumping through his system.
'I did the right thing. This is what I've always wanted; a place of acceptance and now it's finally within my grasp. I'll do everything within my power to hold onto it and make a place for myself in this new world.'
With determination, he took his belongings and left Malfoy Manner without a backwards glance. He would fix things and he would walk his own path, he'd never take orders like some animal again.
***()
Standing in the doorway to the Room of Requirements later that same day did, however, make him doubt the wisdom of actually turning up. If the unfriendly looks he was receiving were any indication, he wasn't very welcome.
"What the hell do you think you're doing here, Malfoy?" Terry Boot snarled at him from where he stood before a large table covered in books and parchment.
"Come to gloat about how you got away with everything?" Susan Bones asked scathingly.
"You should just crawl back under that rock you came out from." Lavender Brown hissed.
Draco was about to back out of the room and leave; this had obviously been a mistake on his part, when one Harry Potter suddenly stood from where he had been sitting at the back of the room. Everyone fell silent as all eyes looked to the saviour.
"I invited him." Harry said calmly, voice strong and clear in the silent room. "If you've got a problem with him being here, you are welcome to leave." His voice had taken on a dark edge at the end, saying in no uncertain terms that Harry was completely serious.
The room remained silent, everyone wondering if someone was going to protest Draco being there.
The tense silence was finally broken by Neville Longbottom. The boy stood from his seat, causing people to gasp quietly in surprise. Neville picked up his book that he'd been reading before walking over to Draco, causing the blond to tense in preparation for an attack of some kind. However, Neville suddenly offered a small, semi-friendly smile that was more a grimace, as he stopped before him.
"Hey, I'm going to bed; do you want me to show you where you're sleeping while I'm at it?" He spoke as if there wasn't seven years of bad blood between them, stumping Draco into silence. In answer, Draco just nodded mutely.
***()
Once Neville and Draco had disappeared into the boys' dormitories, Ron rounded on Harry.
"Harry!" He hissed angrily.
"Not here." He muttered, quickly walking out the door, Ron angrily stomping after him as the remainder of the students remained quiet in the common room.
Ron followed Harry into an empty classroom and crossed his arms angrily as Harry closed the door behind them.
"Explain." He snapped once Harry turned to face him.
"I meant everything that I've said, Ron. Draco Malfoy is many things; but a cold-blooded killer isn't one of them. I know you don't like him and probably think he wanted everything that Voldemort stood for; but what choice did he really have? He was just another victim of this war, just like us." Harry spoke softly.
Ron remained silent for a long time, blue eyes hard and jaw tense.
"You really think we can trust him?" He asked at last.
"I think we could have a great ally and maybe, one day, friend in Draco Malfoy. I think he wants a better future just as much as we do. I think he's the same as us; he lost pieces of himself in the war, he was forced to do things he didn't want to do, he made mistakes." Harry's voice was barely a whisper as he finished, though he might as well have yelled in Ron's face for how hard those last words hit him.
Guilt once again assaulted him as he remembered his abandonment of Harry and Hermione in the Forest. It was one mistake he would never allow himself to forget. He had vowed to himself that he would never let his two closest friends, hell, his brother and sister in all but blood, down again.
"Ok, if you think this is the right thing to do." Ron sighed as he relaxed his body and ran a hand over his face.
"I'll talk to the others and help them understand." Ron continued.
"Thank you, Ron. These are the first steps for a better future, so they're bound to be some of the hardest. I'm so glad I have you there to back me up." Affection coloured Harry's tone and Ron couldn't have stopped his smile even if he'd tried.
"Let's get back before they start sending out search parties." Ron joked, causing Harry to roll his eyes, but chuckle nonetheless.
Together, the friends returned to the Common Room, ready and united as they set about reassuring distrustful minds and helping others see the reality of Draco's innocence.
So, with that anti-climatic moment over, Hogwarts became the home of all future eighth year students.
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