Disclaimer: I do not own HP!
A/N: Sorry for the super long wait! I had a major writer's block that I couldn't kick. So, I hope you enjoy the chapter and please review!
Chapter 8
"Well, well. If it isn't Potter," the red-haired boy sneered. "What is it? Didn't want to interact with the common people? Wanted more fame?"
Draco rolled his eyes, a truly Muggle gesture, but one that was very effective. Really, he could be such an obvious idiot, especially when it came to people who had more money than his family.
"Sod off, Weasley. Just because your family doesn't have two Knuts to rub together, doesn't mean you have to come over here to drool on our money," he drawled, in a precise imitation of the potions professor.
Weasley blushed bright red, the freckles on his face almost disappearing, before scowling at the blonde haired boy. "As if I'd want to touch your dirty money!"
Draco's eyes flicked over the dirt on the boy's face, the torn and smudged robe, and the muddy shoes. "I wouldn't think you'd mind that, Weasel," he stated disdainfully. "You're practically covered in dirt."
The boy's face abruptly went purple in anger, and clenched his fists so hard that the knuckles went white.
Recognizing the signs, Harry moved off the bench and away from Weasley, making sure to drag Draco with him. Weasley was alarmingly close to throwing a punch, and Harry really didn't feel like being hit today.
Standing to the side and slightly behind Draco, he worriedly watched the irate Gryffindor, wondering when his temper would snap. Naturally, Draco decided to assist the redhead towards his breaking point.
"Kneazle got your tongue, Weasley? Or are you just too stupid to respond?"
With that taunt, Ron exploded, bringing out his wand in one quick motion that made Harry wonder if he would ever be able to use one that easily. Being a muggle born definitely had its disadvantages, most especially when he was ten years behind in common wizarding knowledge.
"Detention," drawled a very familiar voice, making Harry breath a sigh of relief as the confrontation came to a rather quick end.
"Potter and Weasley, my office tomorrow at five," the smooth voice continued without pause, making Harry wonder if he somehow wasn't cursed with ill fortune.
While Weasley stuttered in indignation and mumbled threats, Harry blinked at the complete unfairness of the situation. He hadn't done anything; just stood behind Draco as the situation escalated.
He thought briefly of protesting that he already had detention, but paused when he thought of how it would appear.
Harry wasn't going to be weak and complain about it. He belonged in this world, and the first person he was determined to convince was his overly snarky professor.
-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-
It was one of those rare times when the halls were empty. As it was a Saturday, most upper-year students were enjoying their freedom either out on the grounds or in their dormitories.
The first year students, however, were to attend their first flying lesson this afternoon.
"And there is no way on earth I will subject myself to that torture," Harry muttered as he plodded up yet another stairway.
There was no way he would voluntarily decide to take to the air, of all places, with only a thin wooden stick keeping him from certain death. Thankfully, his fear had given him the perfect excuse to explore the castle, and, more specifically, the Astronomy Tower.
He'd determined after a few questions to Madam Pomfrey during his sojourn in the Infirmary, that the first place he wanted to find was the tower.
According to the mediwitch, who had proved to be a complete mother hen, it offered the best view of the grounds and the surrounding countryside.
Hopefully, it would be an uplifting sight, since, at the moment, his Hogwarts career looked to be a never-ending path leading off into the darkness.
With no friends, housemates that looked rather eager to kill him, and one semi-acquaintance, Hogwarts seemed to be rather similar to his last school. The only change, really, was the addition of magic.
The feeling of doing what his family had deemed impossible and unnatural was indescribable. Truly, it was the only he reason why he was determined to stay. Anything to prove the Dursleys wrong.
Turning yet another corner, Harry followed a large hallway identical to all the previous ones he had passed through, down to torches along the stone walls and the sound of dripping water.
"I should have brought bread crumbs," Harry lamented, more than a little discouraged by the maze he found himself in. "At least then I would know for certain that I wasn't wandering in circles."
Footsteps echoing in the stillness, Harry desperately tried to recall Madam Pomfrey's precise directions. As sure as he was of his memory, Harry was beginning to doubt his location in the upper levels of the castle.
Supposedly, the entrance was hard to miss, but he had the feeling that he had definitely missed it during his wandering thoughts.
Harry paused in the middle of the hallway and thought over his rather limited options. He could, of course, stop where he was and wait for someone else to rescue him.
Honestly, as tired as he was from traipsing about the castle, this sounded like the best idea. This was the back way, however, so he would probably be long dead before anyone found him.
"And it's not like anyone here would voluntarily help me. If anything, they'd help me in the wrong direction."
This was probably his karma for something he did in a previous life. He must have been some kind of evil tyrant or drug lord to have this much ill fortune.
"Well, I guess I should at least keep moving. Hopefully, I'll run across something familiar sooner or later."
Since the only other option, really, was to attempt to use his newly discovered magic to attract attention. With his luck, however, it would be unwanted attention that would once again land him in the hospital wing.
"And I don't want to end up back there," he muttered with distaste. "All the other guys will think I'm some kind of girl."
The silence continued as Harry walked down the never-ending stone corridor, his pressed school robes a stark contrast to the eerie desolation.
Footstep after footstep echoed as he continually moved, passing the occasional side corridor or staircase. Finally, he paused to take a brief rest, sweat beading his forehand as he panted lightly for breath.
Really, walking this much was harder than he thought it would be. Sure, Harry was used to sprinting away from Dudley and his pack of bullies, but it never took that much energy to escape from them.
This power walk from hell, however, was completely different.
"I guess it really couldn't hurt to take a short break. I'm well and truly lost anyway."
Leaning back against the wall, Harry slid down to the floor, the cool stone proving to be a relief against his overheated body. Briefly, Harry resented the requirement to wear the thick robes, but squashed it in face of the fact that they were much better than his hand-me-downs.
Closing his eyes, Harry tilted his head back and imagined a bright future in which he proved to everyone his right to be a wizard.
-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-
"Shit!" he gasped, leaping up from his resting position to gaze franticly down the corridor. That nightmare had been most unpleasant.
Green eyes slightly moist, Harry nervously fingered his wand as he slowly recovered from the horrifying dream involving himself, his uncle, and his very tiny cupboard.
Most unpleasant in the extreme.
Taking a deep breath, Harry ran his hand through his now sweat soaked hair, and scowled in disgust when he realized how much the nightmare had actually affected him.
"Well, if this doesn't prove I'm baby, what does?" Harry snarled angrily. "Honestly, napping in the middle of the day!"
The question bounced down the hallway, and, as previously, didn't receive any type of answer. Waiting in the silence, Harry bit his lip momentarily as he realized that he had slept a good portion of the day away, judging from the sunset he could see in a nearby window.
Determined to keep going until he had found something interesting, he took a few steps forward, only to pause when he noticed an odd light shining into the hallway from an adjacent corridor.
Brow furrowed, Harry slowly stepped forward to the very edge of the corridor, leaned around, and blinked at the sight that met his eyes.
Unlike the others, this corridor seemed to pulse with silver light that was both entrancing and repulsing to his senses.
He stood for the longest time, resisting the urge to just walk down the corridor and investigate the source of this odd light. It really could be dangerous, after all.
"Maybe I should get a professor," he wondered. This was, as far as he knew, not a normal occurrence. He had not heard of any students discussing a silver corridor by the Astronomy Tower.
Harry bit his lip in indecision. He could get a professor, but if it turned out to be yet another stupid prank rather than something dangerous, then he was sure to get in trouble.
Again.
"Better see what it is for myself first," Harry reasoned, his logic honed from years of not relying on adult assistance. "I don't really need help, after all. I'm old enough to take care of it. It doesn't even look dangerous."
Of course, despite his attempt to remain brave in the face of possible danger, Harry was feeling just a little bit unsure. C'mon, he was only eleven.
Gripping his wand a little tighter than normal, he took a deep breath and stepped into the corridor.
-HP-HP-HP-HP-HP-
The next morning….
Draco yawned as he finally crawled out of bed, eager to relive a most pressing problem. As it was almost ten everyone in the house was still asleep, especially after the happenings of the previous night.
Traditionally known as 'Welcome Night,' it was first night of the year for the newer students to prove themselves to the older members of the House.
And they had definitely proven themselves.
Completing his morning ablutions, Draco wearily padded back towards his bed to enjoy a few more minutes of relaxation before he forced himself to get up for the day.
Last night had been pure insanity. The pranks pulled by all the new Slytherins had been received well by the upper years, especially as each one had been more ingenious than the last.
Blaise's had easily been the best, naturally, since his family was full of pranksters. Draco glanced fondly at his friend, remembering the terrified shrieks of the girls when, at precisely one minute to midnight, a horde of mice appeared in their dormitory.
Thankfully, none of them had thought of hexing the mice. Instead, they had all run screaming into the Common Room and jumped onto the nearest piece of furniture.
It was a hilarious sight to see, even more so when at midnight all the mice turned into miniature pumpkins.
Draco smirked at the memory, hands folded behind his head as he stared at the dark green canopy. He almost broke out into a grin, however, when he recalled his Head of House's face when he arrived at the scene a moment later to see all the girls, who hadn't noticed the change, shrieking over pumpkins.
The moment had been priceless.
The night had ended shortly after that, with the professor's terse command to go to sleep immediately or suffer dire consequences.
And so they had, although they did with many evil mutters and threats.
Turning over, Draco gazed at Harry's closed curtains. It was completely odd…Not only had Harry completely missed their flying lessons yesterday, but he had skipped the entertainment last night.
Truth be told, he hadn't worried when he didn't appear for the lesson, since he knew that they boy had never even touched a broomstick, let alone drooled over being allowed to finally fly one.
Last night, he had decided that Harry was most likely sleeping in bed, rather than suffer through the ill attentions of a few of the older students.
But after the entertainment…
Draco frowned thoughtfully. He had seen Harry in bed last night, hadn't he? Scratching his nose, he thought carefully before finally shaking his head.
He couldn't recall whether or not he had seen Harry last night.
And he was pretty sure that no one had left the dorm this morning, since he would have heard the door open and shut.
Sliding out of bed, he took a moment to straighten his rather expensive silk pajamas, only the best for a Malfoy, before walking over to the closed curtains.
Hesitating a moment, he finally reached out and snatched the curtains open. He stood a moment; trying to understand why exactly the bed was exactly the same it was when Harry had thrown a few books on it directly after lunch yesterday, before rushing out the door.
Professor Snape had to know of this immediately.
End of Chapter 8!
Please review! Feedback is extremely welcome and appreciated!
