Chapter 29
The last day of term was a strange one; there was a party atmosphere but it was tinged with melancholy as well. Draco had packed all his belongings into his truck for the last time, deciding to bin most of it once he got to Potty's. His mother still hadn't sent any of his belongings from home, so he would quickly run out of muggle clothes unless he went to his aunts to collect them. Although, he could always replicate some more muggle money and buy some new ones…
"Coming for breakfast?" asked Theo from across the room where he had just finished packing and was sitting on the lid of his trunk to try and force it closed.
"How much stuff have you got in there?" Draco asked him incredulously, as he crossed the room to help. With their combined weight, the masses of stuff inside gave up the fight and the lid shut with a snap.
"Seven years' worth of crap." Said Theo with a grin. "The more pertinent question is where is all your stuff?"
"I took it home each year…" said Draco ironically.
Luckily for Theo, his aunt had written back to stay that he could continue to stay with her until he got his NEWT results and found employment. Draco wondered if Theo's crappy attitude had contributed to his aunt's aversion to him maybe even more than his parent's actions, and now that he was showing willing then she might cut him some slack.
"Let's get some food before the journey." Said Draco, and they both left the dorm and went out into the dungeons to get to the great hall. As they walked past the potions lab Malfoy glanced inside, recalling the times he had sat smugly inside it, firmly believing that Snape was a friend of his father's and that he could coast through the class. He hadn't known it at the time, but despite how biased Snape had been towards the Slytherin's, Draco had still had to work hard for his grades and had learnt loads from the classes. He would be forever grateful to the sullen and complicated wizard, especially now that he knew the full extent of what he had sacrificed and the vow that he had made to Draco's mother.
"I hope they have those little pastry things again, they were awesome!" said Theo, not noticing Draco's sudden reverie.
"Yeah," agreed Draco. He would grab some for the journey if they did! He had no idea when he would next be eating; he had no wizard money which is all the trolley witch on the train accepted, and only a few muggle "notes" left, but he needed to try and keep them for replicating once he got back to Grimmauld place. He had a feeling that Potter would frown on him defrauding the muggles, so he would need to make sure that he didn't see him do it!
Also, would Potty be expecting them to eat together? Draco was feeling unexpectedly nervous about the whole arrangement, he had no idea what the protocol was here.
Sadly there were no little pastry things at breakfast but Draco ate a full English and then secreted several croissants in a napkin to eat on the train, reassured that he wouldn't be going hungry. They had about an hour after breakfast before it was time to take their trunks down to board the carriages to take them to the station and as Draco was already packed he thought he would take the opportunity to go down to the quidditch pitch, borrow a broom and enjoy the sensation of being free for a little while. It was likely to be his last chance to fly for a long time, and he wanted to acknowledge this fact by treating this final flight with the reverence it deserved.
He had been enjoying his solitude for a little while, allowing himself to think of nothing but the adrenaline coursing through his veins and the swooping in his stomach as he ascended and dropped on the broom, evading imaginary bludgers and streaking after invisible snitches. At first he thought that he had imagined the voice yelling "Malfoy!" from somewhere below, part of the little fantasy that he was playing out.
It wasn't until he heard it again that he looked down and saw someone beneath him on the pitch. From the height he was at he couldn't tell who it was, although he had a pretty good idea.
"Alright Potter," he said as he landed, wondering what he wanted. Maybe he had changed his mind about Draco staying with him? He was surprised at the sudden stab of dismay he felt at the thought; he hadn't realised how much he had been relying on going to Granny Black's old house.
"Are you coming straight back from the train?" asked Potter, immediately allaying Draco's worry.
"Yeah, that was the plan." Replied Draco, wondering what else Potter thought he might be doing. He already knew that he had nowhere else to go!
"The ministry are setting up an apparition point in one of the offices at the station so if you are coming back with me we can use that." Said Potter. "I didn't know if you would be going back to Hermione's or something from the station."
"No. We haven't made any plans." Draco confirmed. In fact, he hadn't spent a huge amount of time with Hermione over the past few weeks, something that he was hoping to rectify in the interim period between the end of school and the NEWT results arriving.
Since he had spoken to Hermione and been assured that there was a future for them once school finished, he had been feeling much more serene about not being able to be with her as much as he would like to be at school. In an ideal world, he would prefer them to be together in the room of requirement every night, but seeing as that may have caused problems had anyone noticed their absence, it made sense to bide their time.
"Great," said Potter, retrieving his Firebolt from the broom shed and leaving Draco to continue his flight. Glancing at his watch, he decided that it was time to head back anyway, so stowed his borrowed broom and made his way up to the castle.
It was a chaotic scene that greeted him as he got back to the Slytherin common room. There was a tide of students leaving the dormitory dragging heavy trunks in their wake, forcing Draco to hug the wall as they went past in order not to have his shins barked by wooden edges or poked by errant corners.
Darting through the entrance when there was a pause in the flow (one of the second years tried to use magic to levitate his trunk through the door and consequently ran himself over) Draco quickly collected his things from the seventh year dorm, taking a good look around the room for the final time.
There would be someone else sleeping in this bed in September, someone else looking up at the green and silver drapes and wondering what their days at school would bring. In a way Draco was envious of whoever it was going to be; if he could have his time at Hogwarts again he would do things differently. With a nod Draco left the room; it was time to go.
Joining the scrum, he levitated his trunk through the corridors and down to where the thestral-pulled carriages were waiting, some of them already full and making their way down the winding path around the lake and down to the gates. He had thought of giving some sort of farewell gesture to the school on his way out, but as it was anything he did would have been lost in the noise and bustle of the departing students.
Instead he walked over to the nearest waiting carriage, which already had a couple of Hufflepuff's seated inside, one clutching a large cage with a Tawny owl inside. He vaguely recognised them, maybe third or fourth years, and he nodded to them before he sat down. Surprisingly, they acknowledged him and continued their conversation, a far cry from the reaction he had gotten on the way to school this year!
Once the carriage had trundled its way to the station and after handing down the owl cage to the waiting Hufflepuff, Draco alighted from the carriage onto the road outside Hogsmeade station. It was just as chaotic here as it was back at the school, with the towering figure of Hagrid standing on the platform next to the waiting train.
The Hogwarts Express was always the same; gleaming scarlet and gold in the sunlight, the smell of the coal fire and the hissing of the steam in the boiler. It was something that would forever be in his memory as the herald of a new beginning. Each year had been full of possibility, be it for his own aggrandisement or for the opportunity to prove himself to the dark lord. After that dream had quickly died, it offered him the possibility of redemption.
Once again he had been lost in reverie whilst the current of students flowed around him, and it took someone yelling at him a couple of times for him to see where it was coming from. Hermione was leaning out of the door of one of the carriages at the far end of the platform waving for him to come over.
Heaving his trunk over to the carriage, he couldn't keep the smile off his face; he had someone as smart and beautiful as Granger who wanted to be with him.
"I was wondering where you were!" said Hermione, reaching down to help get his trunk up the step into the carriage.
"Just saying goodbye to the old place," said Draco, trying not to sound like a complete sentimental fool.
"It's a strange feeling, isn't it?" she replied. "It's hard to believe that we won't be coming back."
"Yeah." Agreed Draco, stepping up into the carriage compartment with her. There was Potty, Weaselette, Longbottom and Lovegood already seated inside, myriad trunks and bags slung up onto the luggage racks above their heads.
Longbottom, who was nearest, stood up and helped Draco lever his trunk into the last empty space on the rack.
"Thanks Longbottom," he said, settling himself next to Hermione, who quickly nestled into him.
For a moment it was weird, he felt out of place in the midst of this group, but then Lovegood pulled out a magazine and asked Longbottom if he had heard of a plant called Leophidies that could allow someone to choose their body odour when properly prepared and the tension was broken.
Longbottom started to formulate a kind and measured reply, no doubt with difficulty, and Draco found himself relaxing. Potty joined in with them discussing what people's desired scent would be, whilst Granger pulled out a muggle-looking book and started to read. The only person who still looked unhappy was Ginny, who hadn't said a word since he had entered the carriage.
With a whistle and a jolt, the train started to move and Draco watched Hogsmeade station slide past the window until the quaint little village disappeared into the rugged Scottish countryside.
"That's it, we've left." Said Harry suddenly, showing that Draco wasn't the only one who was feeling a little nostalgic and melancholy today.
"End of an Era," said Longbottom, in quiet agreement.
"Not for all of us!" chimed in Ginny. "Some of us still have to come back next year whilst you are all off doing exciting things!" There was a certain sulkiness to her tone, and Draco imagined that she was feeling pretty left out whilst her boyfriend and friends were all moving on. If it hadn't been for the missed year whilst Voldemort was at large then she would have been finishing now; after all, she was already of age.
"I know Gin," said Harry, "but you will get to do them too after your NEWT's."
She humph'ed and turned away from him, and Draco caught Potty and Hermione exchange a glance. Her behaviour obviously wasn't entirely unusual or unexpected, and Draco decided to just ignore her for the time being.
The conversation flowed easily between the friends, Draco looping his arm around Hermione as she leant against him to read, and the time passed pleasantly enough. It was getting on for midday, and the trolley witch came down the corridor touting her wares.
There was a general scrabble for wallets and in pockets for coins, and Draco fished out his package of pilfered breakfast food. Wishing that he had a coffee to go with the croissants, he tucked in with the others, happily accepting a bite of Hermione's pumpkin pasty when offered.
The food left them all a little sleepy and subdued, the conversation dwindling away. After a little while Hermione's book drooped in her hand and Draco realised that she had fallen asleep. He glanced around at the others, seeing that Longbottom was engrossed in a Herbology book and Lovegood was merrily filling something out in her magazine. Potty had fallen asleep too, but Ginny was sitting bolt upright and glaring at him.
Realising that this altercation was going to happen at some point now that he was living with Potty, he raised an eyebrow at her in askance.
"I'm on to you Malfoy," she hissed, obviously not wanting to wake either of the sleepers.
"Are you?" he asked, blandly. What did she suppose he was doing?
"It won't work. You think that by cosying up to Hermione it will help you to 'reinvent' your image, but we all know what you are; a treacherous little ferret."
"You got me." He said sarcastically. "I couldn't possibly be in love with Hermione because she is kind and clever and beautiful, it must be because she can help save my reputation."
"Don't act like you actually care about her. You're not capable of love!" Ginny's face was a rictus of hatred, making her look disturbingly like his aunt had used to.
"Can't people change? Grow?" He really couldn't understand why she hated him so very much when the others seemed to accept him.
"Not people like you! You killed my brother!"
Draco was quite taken aback; he hadn't done anything to Weasley! As far as he knew he was somewhere else on the train, likely snogging Lavender Brown!
"What?" he asked, bewildered. Longbottom's head had come up now, watching what was taking place between the two of them.
"My brother!" she repeated, louder now. "Fred. You killed him!"
"I didn't have anything to do with your brother," said Draco, wracking his brains for a time when he even saw him during the battle of Hogwarts, let along fought and killed him!
"It was your fault! All of you death eaters should be rotting in Azkaban; there's no such thing as an innocent death eater." She wasn't keeping her voice down at all now, and Draco could feel that Hermione was awake now. Likewise for Potter who was looking groggily at his girlfriend.
"Gin, what are you doing?" he asked her. "This won't solve anything…"
"How can you all just sit there with him like nothing has happened? He would have killed every last one of you given the chance!" she looked round at the other inhabitants of the compartment for support.
"But he didn't Ginny." Said Neville, slowly. "He could have killed both me and Luna when we were in his basement, but he didn't."
"And he could have confirmed who we were to Bellatrix at the manor, but he didn't." said Potter. "We know he was a nasty spoilt twat, but he didn't kill Fred."
Draco sat there, amazed at how this was playing out. Two people, who had more cause to hate him than most, were defending him against one of their own.
"It doesn't help, Ginny." Said Luna, serenely joining in the conversation. "When mum died I was angry, and wanted to blame Dad for letting her try the new spell. It doesn't help, you're still sad. It's much better to love the people you do have left; after all, grief is just love with nowhere to go."
For a second it looked like Ginny was going to argue with Luna and tell her she was wrong, but it was obvious that she would come off as being unreasonable. Draco almost felt sorry for her as she looked around at her friend's faces for validation and didn't find any.
"So that's it. I should just get over, then? Just accept that Fred is gone, George is alone and mum doesn't smile anymore?"
"Yes Ginny, what else can you do?" Hermione said. "It's heart-breaking and awful, but the alternative is that you don't move on. You don't live your own life and just stay feeling like this forever, which you know Fred would think was a waste."
"I should just forget him?" she seemed like she was going to fire up at Hermione next, but Potter stepped in.
"Of course not! But when you remember him, think of all the good times you had with him, not just the last few minutes of his life. Remember the times that he hid Percy's Head Boy badge, or when he pulled off that spectacular hit in quidditch that unseated two Slytherin chasers at once!" Potter put his arm around her and she reluctantly allowed him to pull her close.
Draco let out a breath; what a shit storm! Maybe him going to stay with Potty really wasn't going to work?
The atmosphere in the compartment was now feeling really strained. Hermione's and Longbottom's attempt to make casual conversation failed miserably, so it was a relief to see the outskirts of London coming into view, signalling the end of their journey.
Under the cover of them all gathering their things and getting their trunks down from the luggage racks, Draco managed to pull Hermione to one side.
"When can I see you again, Granger?" he asked quietly, whilst helping get her trunk down.
"I'll come and see you tomorrow afternoon, if that's ok?" she asked with a smile.
"Well, I'll have to check my schedule…" he joked, grinning when she elbowed him in mock-outrage.
The Hogwarts Express pulled into Kings Cross, slowly chuffing alongside the platform that was crowded with parents waiting to greet their precious offspring and younger siblings capering around them. Draco wanted to hang back until the platform had started to clear a little but knew that he needed to stick with Potter to get to the apparition point.
Luckily, Potter seemed to share the sentiment as he made no move to leave either. In fact, the only person who left immediately was Lovegood. With a quick, "See you," she levitated her brightly painted trunk and hopped from the carriage, drifting through the crowds with ease.
"Shall we give it another minute?" said Hermione to Potter, and he gave a nod. Draco then realised why they were still on the train; Potter was more famous than ever and no doubt got practically mobbed when out in large groups of people, Hermione and Longbottom no doubt got their fair share of attention too!
Draco looked out of the window, waiting for the crowd to start thinning. He could see the Weasley mother looking up and down the platform, no doubt searching for her daughter. A little further along he spotted Hermione's father, also looking around expectantly.
"Shall we?" he asked Potter. "The crush has eased…"
"Yes, come on."
Draco opened the door to the carriage, then grabbed one end of Hermione's trunk to help her lug it down the step to the platform. Once she had alighted he went back for his own, ending up helping Potty and Longbottom get the rest of the trunks down on to the platform.
By this time they had been spotted by their families, and both Mr Granger and Neville's gran were bearing down on them.
"Hello, Mr Granger." Said Draco politely after Hermione had hugged her father in greeting.
"Hello Draco, good journey?" asked Mr Granger, reaching for one end of Hermione's trunk.
"Yes thanks," he replied. "Seems strange that this was the last time that we'll do it, though."
"I'm sure it does! Still, onwards and upwards to something better now, eh?" he said with a nod, obviously quite keen to get Hermione home by the way he glanced at the exit.
"I certainly hope so!" replied Draco. He turned to Hermione, feeling awkward in front of her father but still determined to say goodbye to her properly.
"So I'll see you tomorrow?" he said, reaching for her hand. He wasn't quite bold enough to kiss her with her father standing right there.
"Yes, you will." She confirmed, leaning forward and giving him a chaste kiss goodbye before turning and yelling "Bye!" to the others.
There was a chorus of goodbyes from the others and Hermione and her father started back towards the wall that would lead them back into the muggle part of the station.
Neville was being fussed over by his gran but he wouldn't allow her to carry anything. Potter had drawn Ginny to one side and was rapidly talking to her before her mother spotted her, so he gave them some space.
"Want a hand?" he said to Longbottom, eager to have something to do instead of just stand awkwardly waiting for Potter to finish his conversation.
"Thanks Malfoy. We're apparating, so it's only to that office down there."
He and Longbottom grabbed the handle at either end of the trunk and carried it to the apparition point with Neville's grandmother trotting in front.
"I'm guessing I'll see you at the party on Saturday?" said Longbottom as they set the heavy trunk down with a thump.
"Yep, I'll be there." Said Draco, more confidently than he felt. If the scene on the train was anything to go by, he might not still be at Grimmauld Place by Saturday.
"I'll see you then." Said Longbottom cheerfully, and for some reason it felt particularly poignant to Draco. Maybe because the fearful little fat boy was now fit and confident, and was very much Draco's equal if not superior, morally at least.
"See you." He replied, smiling at both him and his grandmother before turning back towards Potter. As he was walking away he heard the grandmother say "Was that the Malfoy boy…?"
Draco didn't wait to hear anymore, not wanting his already battered self-esteem to take another hit. Instead, he quickened his pace towards Potter, who was now standing alone.
"Alright?" asked Draco as he approached, seeing that Potter's expression was strained. He looked more tired than any 19 year old should.
"Yes." He replied, straightening his glasses with resolve. "Let's head home."
They both levitated their trunks and went over to the apparition point, realising that they were practically the last two people left on the platform.
"Names and destination?" asked the tall, balding ministry official, who was standing with a clipboard noting all the apparator's names and destinations. To Draco's mind the man was being overly officious; he would have had to have been living under a rock for the past few years not to know exactly who was standing in front of him!
"Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy, going to 12 Grimmauld Place in London." Potter replied politely, as the wizard quickly noted them down.
"Alright," replied the wizard, seemingly unaffected by Harry's celebrity status but Draco noticed his eyes flick towards Potter's forehead as he ushered them forward. That must be seriously annoying, he realised. No wonder Potty had kept that shaggy haircut all through school even though it didn't suit him at all; it hid the infamous scar!
"Grab your trunk," potter told him, then took his arm, ready for side-along apparition. Draco braced himself for the turning, squeezing sensation, focussing on Harry's grip to guide him. He hated side-along apparition; it made him feel out of control, like he was just a passenger of his own magic. Plus, he was never entirely certain where they would end up, either due to ineptitude or malice on behalf of the lead apparator. Still, needs must…
It was all over in a second, and Draco opened his eyes to find them standing on the doorstep of a grimy terrace house surrounded by similar muggle habitations. Were they in the right place? He had never come to his grandparent's house from the outside before; he had always flued there with his parents in the past.
"Come on," said Potter, tapping the door with his wand and then pushing it open to admit them. Both boys heaved their trunks inside and the door snapped shut in their wake, leaving them in a familiar dingy hallway lit by flickering gas lamps. Yes, he was at Granny's!
"Leave your trunk, we'll sort it later," Potter said over his shoulder, leading the way down the hall towards the stairs. Passing the staircase, he headed for the basement steps that went down to the kitchen, somewhere that Draco had never been.
"Hello!" He called, and Draco wondered who was here. Had Ginny gone on ahead or something?
The kitchen door was thrown open to reveal an ancient house elf standing there. It was small and wizened, with tufty white hair sticking from its large drooping ears. It was dressed in an immaculate white pillowcase that had holes cut for its arms and head, and the kitchen beyond it was warm and clean.
"Master, you're home!" It croaked, then catching sight of Draco added, "And you have brought a guest!"
"Hello Kreacher. How have things been?" Harry asked, walking past the hunchbacked little elf into the kitchen.
"All is well. Are you home for long sir?" Kreacher asked, following behind him solicitously.
"Yes, I think I'm home for the foreseeable future." He told the elf with a smile.
"Then I shall plan a menu for you to approve…" the elf started to bustle around the kitchen. "Shall I do the onion soup for tonight?"
"Yes, please Kreacher." Said Harry, gesturing for Draco to come into the kitchen with them.
Draco entered the room, trying not to be too obvious in his scrutiny of the elf. Was this the same elf that had come to his mother with information last year? It looked sort of the same, but he couldn't really tell for sure. He had certainly never seen someone speak to their elf like that or hang out in the kitchen with one, so who knew!?
"This is Draco, Kreacher, he is going to be staying with us for a while. Are any of the bedrooms made up that he could use?"
"Of course sir, I always keep two of the guest rooms ready for Mr Weasley and Miss Granger. Which one would be best?" the little elf was getting out pans and setting vegetables chopping at a rapid rate.
"That's great, I'll put him in Ron's room. We'll be back in a minute once I've shown him where to go." Harry motioned Draco towards the door, and they both made to leave.
"Very good, master!" said Kreacher cheerfully, carrying on with his work.
"Come on," said Harry, leading Draco towards the stairs. "I'll show you where your room is."
"The elf," said Draco. "Is it the one that came to my mother…?" He couldn't understand why Potter was being so solicitous of it if it was the one that betrayed his godfather.
"Yes. That's Kreacher." Potter clarified. "He's a poor old thing really. He is desperate to continue to serve me but I don't want to ask too much of him as I know he isn't as able nowadays. I must admit that having him around to cook is a godsend, though!"
The interior of Grimmauld place hadn't changed that much, Draco thought, but it was definitely less oppressive. The décor was still all dark wood panelling and dusty tapestries, but the worst of the furnishings were gone. Draco recalled there being a creepy display of stuffed elf heads along the wall that had vanished and various cabinets of curios that had disappeared.
"I'm slowly redecorating," Harry told him, catching him looking around curiously. "There's still a way to go but it was ten times worse when I first came here!"
"I remember a lot of the stuff that my grandparent's kept around the place; getting rid of it couldn't have been easy." Draco told him with a smirk.
"Hermione used to say we were waging war on the house! It certainly felt that way sometimes. There's still some stuff that I haven't managed to get rid of yet; a portrait of your gran for one, and a tapestry depicting pureblood genealogy for another. Most of the rooms are pretty clear now, though."
Draco could imagine Hermione sorting through various artefacts hoarded by his eccentric (if he was being kind, total nutjob if he was being honest!) grandparents with a look of distaste on her face.
"Here you are," said Potter, stopping at one of the bedrooms along the corridor and opening the door. "I'm further down, in Siruis's old room."
Draco was pleasantly surprised with the bedroom he was offered. No creepy paintings or weird pouffe's made out of troll feet or werewolf skin, it had obviously been redecorated in a more modern style, reminiscent of Granger's muggle house. The walls were a light grey, with a fluffy rug on the stained wooden floorboards. The bed was a four poster, made up with a crisp white duvet and there was a sturdy wooden wardrobe, drawers and dressing table with a matching stool.
"Wow," said Draco, genuinely impressed with what Potter had achieved. "I can't believe this is the same place!" He paused for a moment, feeling the need to say more. "Seriously Potty, are you sure that it's ok for me to stay? The scene on the train is possibly only the beginning of grief you are going to get from your girlfriend, and I don't want to be an issue…"
"Honestly Draco, she needs to deal with it." Potter was looking unusually harsh. "Hating indiscriminately is what got us into this whole mess in the first place, and although I'm the first to admit that you did some messed up things, she didn't see you on the astronomy tower or in the manor. I did, and I reckon that you were already being punished for those mistakes even then. Please, rest assured that you are welcome here. Well, at least until I'm fed up of you leaving all your crap everywhere of course…"
"Thanks Potter. I don't think I would risk upsetting Hermione for you though…" Draco goaded.
"And that Malfoy, is why I'm the better man!" Potter said smugly, turning to swagger back down the hallway. "Dinner will be ready shortly in the kitchen." He called over his shoulder.
Waiting until Potter had disappeared downstairs, Draco pulled out his wand. "Accio trunk!" When his cumbersome trunk had bumped its way to him he went into the room and started to unpack; the soup was already smelling good and he was hungry.