A/N: Alright, here's the third chapter. I have a question for readers: Would you prefer me to keep this story only in Draco's POV or would you like me to switch it to Cecilia's POV at some point? I'm not exactly sure if I should keep it one way or the other, so some feedback would be appreciated. :3

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Though he would never admit it, Draco was glad to have an excuse to get out of the room. Maybe he would have liked not to have to show the girl around, but at least he didn't have to worry about those red, soulless eyes looking into his. He was away from the Dark Lord prying his mind open and glancing into all that Draco held so close to himself. He had learned early on to keep his mind as sheltered as possible when he was around the Dark Lord, or else the consequences for what he might or might not be thinking would end in pain. He had learned that if he could keep his barriers up around his mind, there would be no pain.

Well, once he figured that out, he had quickly worked on perfecting the art of occlumency. He hadn't dared ask his father to teach him, and when he asked his mother, she sent him to Severus Snape. Snape had shook him off with impatience, while grumbling something about 'already teaching one hothead'. Draco couldn't be sure if that was what he actually said, however. In his near-desperation, he had gone to his aunt, Bellatrix, one of the most powerful witches he knew. She had been a cruel but effective teacher. She had also taught him how to master nonverbal spells, and theCruciatus and Imperius curses. I never want to learn anything from her again, though, Draco mused with a shake of his head. He had learned the Unforgivables the hard way.

"Ahem."

Draco whirled around at the unexpected sound, immediately pulling out his wand, an action that was habitual for him by now. However, instead of facing an attacker, he found himself looking down at the stranger he was supposed to be showing around. She had her eyes on his wand and was backing away slowly. "Are you always this jumpy?" He could tell that she was trying to sound nonchalant but the all too obvious quiver in her voice gave her fear away. How weak of her. Of course... She was a Hufflepuff. Weakness could only be expected from them.

He sneered down at her, quickly pocketing his wand. "What do you want?" This girl was below him and wasting his time already, and he figured he should make that clear. Apparently his tone of voice hadn't been enough, though, because the girl kept a pleasant look on her face as she tilted her head to the side.

"Well, I was under the impression that you were going to show me around this place," she mused, shrugging as she did so, "but you've been staring off into space for so long that I was starting to wonder if you were still here." Her voice was no longer filled with fear, since he had lowered his wand, but he could tell that she was extremely wary of him, almost as if she were testing his sanity in a most patronizing way. I am mentally stable! Draco was positively seething. Didn't she know who he was? Didn't she have any respect? She should be groveling at my feet! I could kill her without saying one word! Doesn't she know that? Oh yes, this girl certainly was stupid.

Then again, Puffers were not known for their superior intellect.

"I don't have any intention of showing you anywhere," he spat, using the condescending tone he had so long ago perfected. I'd gladly show you to the door, he thought as he turned on his heel and made to stalk away. Before he had gone five steps, he heard her call out again.

"Well, then, can I have a map?" What the bloody hell?

Draco spun around, now feeling completely exasperated. "A map of what?" Sure, their library had lots of maps, but he didn't understand why she was uttering such a useless request. Hufflepuffs were the dumbest of all people, apparently.

"Of this place, of course," she answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"We don't have a map of our home!"

"You should make some, and then hand maps out to your guests. I have a feeling that this place is like a labyrinth." Draco just stared at her with an incredulous expression on his pale face. She was just standing there amid the dark, smooth wood of the mansion, looking as if her suggestion was a practical one. He was so perplexed that he couldn't even focus enough to sneer at her or make a snarky comment. Is the world ending yet?

"That's a wonderful idea, don't you think Draco? You start at the dungeons and I'll start in the attic and we'll meet in the middle." Draco looked over his shoulder to glare at his aunt, who had been the one to make the sarcastic comment. Thankful for this distraction, Draco snickered and nodded.

"Oh yes, could we? That would be splendid," he replied with exaggerated enthusiasm. This was his forte, of course: bullying. He had done it since the moment he had made 'friends'. He had always pushed people around, laughed at their ideas and made a fool out of them. He never really knew why he did such a thing, but he knew that he did like to see their reactions to him. He watched her closely to see what she was going to do about his words, but to his immense annoyance, she kept the peaceful look on her face as she looked at him and his aunt with mild interest. She knows that she can't do anything about it, he thought with almost disappointment.

At least when he got back to Hogwarts he would be able to take out his pent up aggression on Potter. He wanted to get under someone's skin and make them lash out. Potter, the weasel and the mudblood were prime targets of his. Draco Malfoy was not one to waste efforts, and if the girl wasn't going to react, then he wasn't going to even try.

"Draco." At the sound of his name, he froze. His mother's usually soft and soothing voice was as hard as steel and twice as cold. Draco didn't dare turn, for he did not want to see the disappointment and embarrassment in his mother's eyes. "I expect you to be polite to our guests, young man," she continued with the harsh voice only a mother can use when she is upset with a child she loves.

"Yes, mother." To his mortification, his voice cracked and came out weak instead of the haughty tone he felt like he should be using.

"You will take Cecilia to the guest quarters at once. The Dark Lord wants to keep her family close. They'll be staying here for a time." Draco's blood boiled at these words. Why did they have to stay here? In his home?

He only managed to nod curtly at his mother, afraid that if he were to open his mouth and speak, many curse words would spill out instead of civil words. He motioned for the unwelcome girl to follow him as he took off, leading the way to the guest quarters. He had much longer legs than she, so it gratified him to hear her almost jogging to keep up with his fast pace. Good, more than one person was suffering because of this new twist.

He kept waiting for her to complain, to ask for him to slow down, anything. However, she just kept quiet in a way that drove Draco crazy. He was used to his aunt making comments behind him and making him shiver with her words. He was used to his mother trying to keep a conversation with him and his father, which was nearly impossible. He was used to the harsher words that came out of his father's mouth, but he wasn't used to silence. He was used to hearing screams and pleads, and he could handle it. He was able to hide in his room and let emotions take over for a time and let himself be vulnerable while someone was in so much more pain than him. Silence was one thing that he just couldn't handle.

"You know, I figured you were a mudblood," he said suddenly, still keeping his pace fast. There was still no complaint from the girl behind him. She was most definitely jogging to keep up with him, however, which still gave him a weird kind of gratification.

"I would never have guessed." Much to his satisfaction, there was a hint of anger in her voice this time. He looked behind him to see her working hard to keep her facial expression quite neutral.

"Want to know why I thought you were a mudblood?"

"Not really, no." He ignored her completely and went on.

"I saw you playing a muggle game once," he stated, stopping suddenly. She smacked right into him and immediately doubled back. She stared up with him with a raised brow, as if to say, 'go on?' "What is it called? Toe-sphere? Feet-kick?" Oh, shit, he couldn't actually remember. It has something to do with feet and a ball. That much I know.

"Football?" Draco nodded, effectively shaking his blond hair into his eyes.

"Yeah. That's it. Football," he confirmed. "That is a muggle game, isn't it?" She nodded. "So why, if you are a pureblood, were you playing it?" She looked confused at his questioning.

"Um, because I wanted to?" Cecilia countered, shrugging. Draco felt like shaking some sense into her.

"Purebloods do not play muggle games! Any self respecting pureblood knows that!" She had to be a self respecting person. With parents like hers, she should act like he did, like everyone else was below her, because they were! Well, not Draco himself, he was more important than anyone at Hogwarts, and everyone knew that.

"Well, I wanted to, and that's that," she motioned for him to keep moving. He growled and shook his head.

"So, you're a muggle lover? A blood traitor?" He sneered at her as he began walking again. This was just unbelievable! How could the Dark Lord let someone like her be in his presence?

"It was a one time thing." She waved her hand dismissively.

"Really? You looked like you knew what you were doing," he countered, now leading her upstairs and to the left. He didn't even need to look where he was going because he knew the house by heart. He had spent many years wandering the place, and still did when he was bored and had nothing to do. The girl wasn't speaking and he was content to leave her thinking. Merlin knew she needed some sense talked into her, and hopefully Draco would have many more chances to do as such. He had found a weak spot, and fully intended pressing it until she gave the reaction that he wanted.

Only when Draco showed her to a room she could call her own during her stay did Cecilia speak again. Her voice was carefully under control and that made him even more annoyed at her. "Everyone thinks that the Gryffindors and the Slytherins are opposites. They always have," she mused, leaning against the doorway and gazing up at Draco who was feeling more confused than ever.

"Well, yeah. That's because it's kind of true," he stated slowly and carefully, as if he were afraid she had a mental problem. She only glared at him and shook her head.

"No, it's not true. Being clever and being cunning is the same thing, only different words. Slytherins are ambitious and Gryffindors are brave. They go together, because without bravery you can't go after your ambitions," she began while frowning, "Hufflepuffs are loyal, Slytherins only backstab. Hufflepuffs are true and honest, Slytherins are sly and slide around the truth."

Draco hated that he could understand her. "Yeah? What's your point?" He was an impatient person and longed to be out of the muggle lover's presence.

"Oh, I don't have one. I just wanted to give you something to think about." With that, she entered the room and shut the door. Draco just stood there for a minute longer, shrugged and muttered confused profanities.

He turned from the door and started down the stairs, calling out as he went, "Dinner is served at eight o' clock sharp!" Draco almost sprinted the way to his room, managing to avoid running into any family member or Death Eater. He was glad to be free of everyone's company and in his own room where he was safe to just be himself and not have to chat or suck up. He wasn't safe in his own home, and he knew that. Isn't home where I should be the most safe? Isn't home where I should always want to be? Well, not anymore. Not since the Dark Lord came back.

This isn't my home anymore. It's headquarters. Oh, how did Draco hate the thoughts that were running through his head, and more than ever before, he hated the war. He hated his home. He hated the Dark Lord, and he was able to in the only safe place he had left: his mind. And now, as he thought on the words that the girl had said, he wondered exactly how safe his mind was anymore.