A/N:

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

Chapter 4: The Trip

Platform nine-and-three-quarters was extremely crowded as usual. From their secluded corner, Draco could make out the figures of some of his classmates in the hazy smoke from the scarlet Hogwarts Express.

Why was the train red, anyway? It was so...Gryffindor. All of Hogwarts was so Gryffindor. Everyone loved Gryffindor. And hated Slytherin.

Sometimes Draco wished he wasn't a Slytherin. If he wasn't a Slytherin, everybody wouldn't assume he was an arrogant pureblood. Well, he was, but only because everyone expected it of him. Especially his father.

A small part of Draco was glad his father was in Azkaban. Now he wouldn't have someone giving his a lecture every day about pureblood supremacy and why all muggles and muggle-borns should die.

But the larger part of Draco was proud to be a Death Eater. All those lectures had made Draco hate muggle-borns. Now he could show them who should be in charge.

The train whistle blew and Draco was snapped out of his thoughts. "Well, Mother, I guess I've got to go now," Draco said rather stiffly. He didn't feel like going. He didn't want to worry about his task all year and miss Quidditch and Hogsmeade trips and bullying first-years as a prefect.

The train whistle blew again.

Draco picked up his trunk.

"Draco, please be careful," Narcissa said. "Please, just..." She wrapped him in a hug, which Draco willingly returned. When Draco pulled away, he saw that his mother had tears in her eyes and trailing down her cheeks.

"Mother, please don't cry," Draco pleaded, wiping the tears off of Narcissa's face. "I promise, I'll be fine. I know what to do. I told you I have a plan." Draco lowered his voice. "I won't let him kill you." Draco kissed his mother's cheek and walked briskly toward the train.

Once inside the train, Draco headed toward the compartment that he and his fellow Slytherins always occupied. Crabbe, Goyle, Blaise, and Theodore Nott were already there.

"Hey," Draco said casually, heaving his trunk onto the luggage rack. He sat down onto a seat. "How was your summ-"

Draco was interrupted by a loud squeal. "Draco!" Shrieked a voice from the compartment door. "I've missed you!" Draco felt arms wrap around his shoulders..

Draco almost groaned out loud. It was Pansy. Honestly, Draco couldn't stand her, but he had been friends with her since they were little. Only thing was, she seemed to think that she was dating him. Seriously, you go to the Yule Ball with a girl, and suddenly she's your girlfriend for life.

"Hi, Pansy," Draco said, trying his best to sound enthusiastic. "How are you?"

"Fine," Pansy replied happily. "Oh, hello boys!"

The other boys in the compartment all grunted out their greetings.

Pansy put her trunk on the rack above her head, then plopped down next to Draco. "So," she said, leaning her head on his shoulder. She looked up at him through her eyelashes. "How have you been?"

Draco shrugged and looked up at Blaise, who was trying to restrain himself from laughing.

Pansy was not at all content with this reply. "Did anything interesting happen this summer?"

Draco shrugged again and stretched to put his hands behind his head, causing the sleeves of his robe to come down to his elbow, revealing his Dark Mark.

"Oh my gosh!" Pansy exclaimed, grabbing Draco's left arm. "When did this...?"

"A few weeks ago," Draco said in a casual tone. He glanced around at the other people in his compartment; they all seemed to be in awe.

"But you're only sixteen!" Exclaimed Blaise, looking shocked.

"So?" Draco asked, challenging Blaise.

"Sorry, mate, I just..."

"Why would the Dark Lord need you to become a Death Eater?" Pansy asked, sounding extremely concerned.

"Maybe he needs me for something," Draco said indifferently.

"What, though?"

Draco shrugged for the third time in the past ten minutes. He knew Pansy was getting annoyed with all the shrugging, but he didn't want to tell her about his task.

"Oh, Draco," Pansy sighed. She began running her fingers down Draco's arm, her hands nearing the Dark Mark, but never touching it. Draco desperately wanted her to get her hands off of him, but he couldn't do anything.

Just then, a small third-year boy entered the compartment holding a roll of parchment tied up with a purple ribbon. He handed it to Blaise, then hurried out of the compartment, obviously very intimidated by all the Slytherins around him. Draco rolled his eyes.

Blaise unrolled the parchment, read it, then stood up. "I've got to go," he said with an odd look on his face.

"Why?" Pansy asked, sounding sad.

Good, Draco thought, fall for Blaise, Pansy, good girl.

"I've been invited to lunch with Professor Horace Slughorn."

"Who?" Crabbe asked stupidly. "Is he a teacher?"

"No, Crabbe, he's the new caretaker," Draco said sarcastically.

"Oh," said Crabbe.

Draco laughed at Crabbe's stupidity. "Of course he's a teacher, you idiot!" Crabbed turned read and looked at his lap. Then, Blaise waved goodbye and left.

Somewhere in the hour that Blaise was gone, Pansy managed to get Draco's head in her lap and began stroking his hair. Draco made no attempts to get up, as Pansy was actually giving his head a nice massage. He lay there, listening to Pansy tell him a story about how her house-elf had ruined her tea one day, until Blaise returned.

"How was it?" Draco asked Blaise.

Blaise shrugged. "Okay, I guess. All he wanted to know about us was how are relatives were doing."

"Who else was there?"

"Uh...McLaggen, Longbottom, Potter, Ginny Weasley..."

Draco sat up. "Ginny Weasley? Why was she there? Because it sounds like everyone else who was there has some famous connection."

"I dunno," Blaise shrugged. Then, Pansy started talking about how a lot of boys liked Ginny, and asked Blaise if she would date Ginny. She seemed extremely pleased with his answer of, "no".

Draco lay back down on Pansy's lap. If only Pansy would date Blaise! Then she would leave him, Draco, alone!

"So, Draco," Theodore asked. "Are you going to be spending most of your time on that task?"

"I guess..."

And the conversation ensued.

After some time, the train reached Hogwarts. As everyone stood up and began leaving, Draco hung back.

"I'll catch up with you," Draco told Pansy, who was glancing at him over her shoulder. She left, but reluctantly.

Once everyone was gone, Draco proceeded to deal with Potter, who he had noticed eavesdropping, invisible, from the luggage rack.

"Hey, Potter," he snarled after putting him in a Full-Body-Bind. "Don't you know it's not polite to eavesdrop?" Draco stared at Harry straight in the eye. "Look, I don't really care that you heard our conversation," he said plainly. "But, it's very rude to go around poking your nose into other people's business." Draco promptly stomped on Potter's nose and heard a satisfying crunch. "And that was from my father."

Throwing the Invisibility Cloak over Harry, Draco left the compartment. He walked through the train then hopped off of it and onto the platform, where Pansy and the other Slytherins were waiting for him.

"What were you doing?" Pansy asked him curiously.

Draco smirked. "Teaching Potter a lesson." He began walking toward the carriages, then turned over his shoulder to look at his fellow Slytherins. "Come on. I'll tell you all about it at the feast."