Chapter Two:

It was a dump. That was the only thing the pureblood wizard could think as he looked around the basement of the Summers' home where he would be staying until things were sorted out and he was back in his plush dungeon rooms. Of course, as soon as he was back at Hogwarts, he'd have to start trying to find a way to keep himself and his family from being killed by the Lord they had always followed so loyally.

The thought settled uneasily in his stomach, reminding him that his latest attempt, his last hope, had garnered not only failure, but disaster. Not only was he stuck in this Merlin-forsaken heap of a muggle town for an unknown amount of time, he was in for a less than pleasant homecoming when he finally got out of here.

Such unhappy musings did not help his mood as he surveyed the rickety cot he'd been given to sleep on, the questionable piece of furniture sitting only a few feet from the small bed he'd been told belonged to the other British blond. The vampire.

He still wasn't sure exactly what he thought of sleeping so near a creature he had here-to only read about in his Defense Against the Dark Arts textbooks. Sure, he had always excelled in the class, if only because he knew so much about what they were being taught to defend themselves against. Yet, he found himself feeling leery, almost, dare he say it, scared, of the situation he now found himself in.

The heir to the Malfoy fortune silently cursed the mission that had been the cause of so many of his troubles of-late. If it wasn't for the assignment from the Dark Lord, he never would have ended up here, and even if he had, he probably would have reacted a lot differently to everything that had happened. Grindlewald-knew he wouldn't feel this damn sense of helplessness or fear.

He'd never really felt anything quite like it before his failed attempts at completing his task. Sure, he'd known fear, but not from this point of view. He'd always been secure in the knowledge that he was a Malfoy, a Pureblood, and damn good enough to handle anything that came his way. But now, well, after all he'd been through trying to fix the cabinet, he'd developed a disturbing and annoying account of his own abilities.

He knew now that his name and his lineage would not get him out of everything. He knew that his own skills and knowledge, which had inspired so much easy confidence that he had bordered on arrogant, were not quite so formidable as he'd thought. He knew that even coming from one of the most renowned blood-lines in all of the Wizarding World, even having followed his Lord so faithfully, he was not so precious or important as to be indispensable to Voldemort.

The alterations to his once secure reality were anything but comforting. Everything he'd known and believed, everything he'd thought to be right and true was crumbling apart, the pieces of his life tumbling onto him as his very world seemed to turn upside-down. He didn't know how to handle it, any of it, including the vampire currently making his way down the basement stairs towards him. Panic began a frenzied break-dance in his stomach and Draco struggled to keep his breathing even. He would not break down, he wouldn't. Not again. He was a Malfoy, damn-it, he was better than that.

Every ounce of pride and arrogance left in him rallied at his desperate call and just as the taller blond was within two feet of him, the sixth-year managed to square his shoulders and conjure a patent Malfoy-smirk to his pale lips.

Spike was less than impressed.

"Take a seat Malfoy."

Draco bristled at the tone, but despite the show of bravado he was attempting, he didn't have the energy or the confidence left to disobey. The vampire smirked down at the younger blond as he crossed his arms over his chest and waited. He didn't have to wait long, for all the uncertainty and fear the wizard possessed, Malfoys were not known for their patience.

"What do you want?"

"I want to know why you really ended up in the Magic Box."

Draco glared. He was really getting sick of that question. "I already told you-"

Spike cut him off, leaning forward menacingly. "I know what you told us. I want to know what you didn't tell us, 'cause there is something you're not saying, isn't there?"

Draco stiffened, but remained silent.

"Fine, twenty questions it is. You said you got here through your cabinet, right?"

"Yeah."

"How?"

"Something went wrong with the spell I was using, I told you that already."

"Then you're going to tell me again." The growl that accompanied the words sent an involuntary shiver down Draco's spine.

"Where were you trying to go?"

"A shop."

"Which shop?" Icy menace dripped from each word and the young Malfoy had to fight not to lean back.

"Borgin and Burkes"

"And that would be…?" This time he did lean away, the smaller blond swallowing hard as he was forced to put his arms back, letting his elbows support his weight.

"A magic shop, in Knockturn Alley."

"Knockturn Alley, eh? Why does that not sound like somewhere a distinguished bloke like yourself should be goin'?" Draco swallowed again, a lie forming on his lips as he opened his mouth. Spike cut him off before he had a chance to test his invention. "Now you don't want to go lyin' to me mate, it'll land you in a right ugly situation."

Draco automatically tried to back away from the short glimpse of fang the vampire had just flashed him, forgetting that he was already leaning back on the cot. When the wizard ended up flat on his back on the small piece of furniture, Spike glared down at him and Draco couldn't get the words out fast enough.

"It's not, it's Dark."

"Dark? Dark magic you mean?" Malfoy nodded with near-frantic speed. "And why exactly were you wanting to get there?"

"That's were the other cabinet is."

"The other cabinet."

Draco nodded again. "I figured there was a way to travel from one to the other, that's why I was fixing the broken cabinet, so I could try and go through."

"And why did you want to do that? You're a wizard, surely you've got better ways to travel than through cabinets." A fine tremor began to make its way through the young man's body and Spike grinned rather evilly. Damn it was fun to be the Big Bad, the only things he'd been able to question like this lately were demons and while they were fun, humans were just so much better, even if he couldn't physically hurt them anymore.

"You can't Apparate into Hogwarts. And you can't use a portkey anymore, not since the Triwizard Tournament."

"Hogwarts. That's the magic school of yours, right? Why were you wanting to get into school, you go there don't you?"

"I do, but…"

The way he trailed off, and the pungent waves of fear rolling off him told the vampire that this was it, this was what he'd been hiding, so he put even more menace in his voice as he growled at the trembling wizard still laying half across the cot that would be his bed. "But what, mate?"

"They don't. They don't go to Hogwarts, they can't get in, the doddering old Headmaster has too strong of wards around the school."

"Really? And who exactly are 'they'?"

"Death Eaters."

"Death Eaters? Care to be a bit more descriptive about who these lovely blokes may be?"

"Followers, of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, Voldemort, the Dark Lord."

"Dark Lord, eh? Now there's a chap I'd like to meet. Guess you're pretty fond of him too, seeing as you're being so eager to help him and all."

Silver eyes burned, the statement which once would have brought him so much pride now cutting into him like a bitter knife. He couldn't bring himself to vocalize the connection he'd once had – once, but no longer, he vowed – with the Dark Lord. But somehow, he could say the one thing he'd not spoken of to anyone, not even his mother when she had first informed him of the truth. He could say it now, and he did.

"He'll kill me. He'll kill my parents. If I can't get the Death Eaters in the school, if I can't kill the Headmaster, he'll kill us instead. He will, he'll kill me and he'll kill them 'cause I can't do it. I've tried, so hard, but I can't." The despair in Draco's voice began to harden as he spoke, his fear and helplessness forgotten as the frustration and anger once more took hold.

"I might as well throw the lot of us before his evil snake arse and be done with it, 'cause I can't do it. It wouldn't work, none of my plans would work. I tried spells and potions and charms, but this is the only damn place that piece of junk has sent me and now I'm stuck. I can't even try anything else now, and as soon as Voldemort knows I've failed, he'll kill my family and then he'll find me and he'll kill me too. We're nothing to him, we're worthless, disposable, and we're even less to everybody else. The Malfoys are shite, we're evil, worthless shite!"

The young blond's voice grew in volume as his emotions mounted within him until his words echoed up the stairs, out of the basement, and into the ears of Dawn Summers, who stood frozen at the basement door. And even as the sound of them faded away into harsh sobs, the words still echoed in her ears as she turned and went back to her room.

It was no use saying goodnight to Spike now, it seemed the vampire had his hands full of angry wizard at the moment. Besides, after everything she'd just heard, Dawn had a few too many thoughts to sleep anyway.

End Chapter Two