And so it began…
Draco sat on the edge of his desk in transfiguration class and watched the fun.
Not that easy to turn a brush into a hedgehog, is it, Potter? He thought. Now look, if you wave your wand like that it is to be expected that some sparks fly off and on your friend Dean's robe. If it's not 'intapda', it's 'intahptha'. There, now you've made Dean's robe all spiky. At least the part where your sparks landed. He'll get a shock when he'll sit down.
'Malfoy!'
Draco turned reluctantly and met the stern gaze of Professor McGonagall.
'Yes?' he said.
'Please show me what you have done so far.'
Draco smiled sweetly and pointed to a hedgehog, which was sniffing the ground in a puzzled sort of way. A few blond hairs he hadn't bothered to remove still stuck between the spikes.
Professor McGonagall bent down and picked the hedgehog up. She examined it thoroughly through her spectacles, turning it over and over. Eventually she set it on the table, and said: '10 points to Slytherin. You can go and help other people now, if you wish'
'Of course Professor,' Draco said smoothly, wondering how polite he could be before Professor McGonnagal exploded. He'd never seen her explode before. It would be an experience.
He dismissed the idea of helping Crabbe and Goyle, who were hitting the hairbrush on the table in hope it would help, and was just wondering if annoying Harry Potter would prove as satisfying as the thought was, when a well known voice made him turn around and grin.
'No, Neville, you're not saying it right. See, it's "intahptha"! Say it.'
' "Intapda",' said a miserable voice.
Draco grinned and came closer.
'No, you have to pronounce the "th" right. Come on, Neville, this can't be so hard!'
'Come on, Neville, it can't be so hard!' Mimicked Draco in a high voice over Hermione Granger's shoulder.
Hermione swiveled around. She glared at him, while Neville looked over her shoulder anxiously.
'Go away, Malfoy,' she said in a cold voice.
'Make me,' Draco said, smiling pleasantly. He stepped past her and picked up the hairbrush Neville was still pointing at with his wand, and examined it. The only thing Neville had managed to change was the rubber- topped metal into brown bristles. He'd also made the brush pointy. With a lot of imagination you could imagine it to be a snout. Without imagination it simply looked like a very deformed hairbrush.
Draco shook his head and put the hairbrush back down. Hermione snatched it quickly, looking around.
'Professor's not here to help you,' Draco said mildly, pointing to Professor McGonnagal on the other side of the room, who was trying to stop Goyle from murdering the hairbrush.
'Get back to your table, Malfoy,' Hermione snapped and sidestepped him. 'Now pay attention, Neville-'
'She told me to help anyone who needed help,' Draco said, hardly containing his inner glee.
'Well, we don't.'
'You sure look like you do.'
'Go AWAY!'
'No.'
Hermione swiveled around and pointed her wand at him.
'If you're not gone by the count of three I'll-' she started, but Draco never found out what she would have done. The world exploded into a mass of colors and sounds, and when Draco opened his eyes again he found he was lying on the floor, covered in…
'Spikes?' Said Draco, his eyes widening in horror as he looked at his hand. A groan from his side confirmed that Hermione as well had been hit by the spell. Though not as badly as he had, Draco noted disappointedly. A shadow fell across him and he looked up into the stern face of Professor McGonnagal.
Shit.
'Kindly explain this,' Professor McGonnagal said coldly, and Draco wasn't an inch relieved to find she was talking to Neville.
Neville crept forward. 'He- he- he-' he stuttered, pointing to Draco.
Draco grinned inwardly and tried to scratch his hand, not a thing to be advised while covered in bristles.
Ouch.
'He was bothering us,' Hermione said quickly.
Die, Granger.
'Is that so?' Professor McGonnagal asked, glancing at Draco, then turning back to Neville, who nodded mutely.
'Well, then both of you are to clean up this classroom, today after lunch.'
'But-' Draco and Neville started.
'And another word from anyone and I'll take 50 points from BOTH houses. Now get back to your places. Malfoy, Granger, to the hospital wing.'
The class dispersed, grumbling, back to their places. Draco got up, wincing as he did so. The spell had covered the front of his robes as well as his arms and part of his face in spikes. It was almost impossible to move without making one part of his body rub against the other, spiky part.
He got to his feet and walked through the classroom, ignoring the sniggers of the Gryffindors or the sympathetic noises of Pansy Parkinson.
Granger had left the door open for him. How very kind.
~~*~~
Draco walked swiftly through the corridors, peering around every corner before rounding it. A Malfoy, looking around corners before he rounded them. Father would have a breakdown.
He completed the last corridor and finally found himself infront of the staircase that led to the hospital wing. Feeling relieved, he marched up it until he came to the large green door which separated the hospital wing from the rest of the castle.
He swallowed the potion Madame Pomfrey gave him in one gulp, wincing at the aftertaste. He sat on the bed, moodily staring at the drawn curtains which indicated Granger was lying in the bed opposite to him. Neither of them said a word. The only sounds came from Draco's bed when he shifted, and of a page being turned over from behind Hermione's curtain. Where she'd got the book from, was Draco's guess. He lay down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling.
He tried not to think. He didn't want to think. He tried counting the cracks in the ceiling but soon gave up because it gave him a headache.
And it didn't stop him from thinking.
You'll see your friends in an hour, Granger. They'll fuss over you, of course, the Potter and the crazy Weasel who's probably the only person in the entire school who still thinks he isn't in love with you. Neverless, he'll fuss over you and probably cuss me to the least, before you make him stop. You will, won't you. Because you're the good one. Because you're Hermione. How sad. How easy.
How I wish I could be like that.
But he couldn't. He was a Malfoy. Draco continued staring at the ceiling. His hand crept to his neck and to the top of his robes, where it lingered until it met the familiar chain hanging around his neck.
~~*~~
Neville lurched down the corridor clutching the bucket of water Filch had given him. It would have been bad enough knowing that Draco was somewhere near without having the bucket hindering his step.
'Need help?' A voice beside his ear said.
Neville yelped and let go of the bucket, which spilt water over the carpet.
'D- Draco,' he stuttered. 'I didn't hear you come-'
'Quite.' Draco said, stepping out of the shadows. He smiled pleasantly at Neville and walked down the corridor, into the Transfiguration room.
Neville stared after him.
It was a while until Neville came. Draco suspected he'd lingered at the door for a while until he had plucked the guts to come in. Draco ignored the boy, who was trying to heave the bucket on to a table, and looked around the room. So. That wall will have to be scrubbed, it's still got hedgehog goo sticking to it, the chairs and tables have to be cleaned, not to mention the floor…
Draco rubbed his hands. 'Seems like we're going to have a lot of fun, Longbottom,' he said brightly, taking the mop from the corner and setting to work. 'And remember, no magic-'
'Yes, Draco,' Neville sighed.
They scrubbed and brushed in silence. Sweat was pearling down Draco's forehead as he tried to scrape something particularly nasty off the floor under a table. At last. He straightened up and banged his head on the underside of the table and resurfaced, cursing. One more wall and he was out of here…
What happened next was only his guess. He tried to straighten up and felt something tugging at his neck. He strained against it before getting to wonder what it was, and was rewarded with a 'pling' as the silver necklace broke and flew off.
Draco looked around wildly, cursing the people who couldn't even make proper tables, just as Neville bent down.
'What's this?' Neville asked, picking the necklace up. 'Someone must have lost it…'
'It's mine,' Draco said quickly.
'What's it for?'
'It's just- be careful where you're pointing that wand!'
Neville looked down at his hand, where the wand was pointing at the locket. Then he looked up, and Draco was alarmed to see him smiling.
'What's it for?' Neville said again.
'It's just… just for keepsake. Memorabilia. You know.' Said Draco, watching the wand.
'Memorabilia? To who?'
'To... look, just give it back, alright? I'm sorry I made you carry the bucket-'
'To who?'
'My sister.' There. It was out.
'Your sister?' Neville looked puzzled. 'How old-'
'She's 19 years older than me, and she was only my half sister, alright? Anyway, she's not here anymore. She got lost. Flying on a broom. On the border to France,' he hazarded.
Neville looked at him, silently. After a pause for which Draco wanted to throttle him ten times over he said: 'I'm sorry.'
'It's-' Draco stopped himself quickly and put out his hand. 'Please?' he said quietly. Give it back to me, Neville, or you are so going to suffer…
Neville walked over to him and wordlessly held out his hand. Draco quickly made a grab for the locket. His fingers touched it, and Neville's skin.
A flash of light. Voices, screaming, above all a voice he knew so very well. Blood, mixing in with the colors which blinded him. He wanted to scream, but he didn't have a voice. He could feel the pain all around him, and with it the person he knew so well, crying, crying, he didn't want her to cry, stop, please…
'Draco?'
Her. A name. Long lost, never to be thought again. It was there. He could see it clearly, with her face…
~~*~~
'Draco! Stop it, Draco!' Neville cried, trying to get a hold of the boy who was flaying about, kicking and hitting and shouting.
'Draco, listen to me-'
And then it was over, and the boy lay still, panting heavily. Neville crouched down, and touched his shoulder. Draco's eyes snapped open.
'Myrren,' he whispered, and pushed himself up. 'Myrren…'
'Um, in fact it's Neville,' said Neville, nervously. Draco glared at him.
'My sister, you idiot!' he hissed, and got up, swaying.
'What about her?' Neville said, straightening up as well and looking anxious.
'She's alive, and I know where she is,' Draco said simply. 'Where's the locket?'
'You're standing on it.'
Draco bent to pick it up, but Neville grabbed his collar.
'Look, do you think this is a good idea?' He said. Draco looked at him blankly.
'Well,' Neville said quickly, 'last time you touched it you went all pale and started having a fit-'
'Malfoy's do not have fits.' Draco said coldly, bending down.
'But I-'
'They don't.'
'Ah.'
For a second Draco hesitated, his fingers an inch before the silver necklace. Then he made up his mind, and picked it up, closing his eyes.
Absolutely nothing happened.
He straightened up, staring at it blankly. Then he looked up into Neville's eyes.
'You. Neville. Touch the locket.'
Neville hesitated.
'TOUCH IT!'
Almost automatically, Neville's hand reached out and touched the cold material with his forefinger. There was a flash, and both boys yelped, trying to pull free- but an invisible force was binding them to the locket as the world around them spun, on and on and around and around, exploding into colors. It was a bit like travelling with flu- powder, Draco reflected later, only much more scary and uncertain. Suddenly the world gave a terrible lurch and both boys landed on their stomachs.
Neville panted and lifted himself up on his elbows. 'Damn you, Malfoy,' he said, before passing out.
Draco got a glimpse at their surroundings before passing out himself. Trees. Trees everywhere.
Great, thought Draco, and knew no more.
Authors note: I accidentally deleted this part when I tried the new chaptering system… my bad. Next part is in progress, but I can't say when it'll come up… Please go to my profiles page, you'll find a super picture there from Izzy which she gave to me in return for the story, which she shouldn't have because it was for your birthday, danggit! But it was so sweet of you anyway… thanks, pal. *hugs*
Anyway, check it out! It's super! ^_^
Thanks everyone who reviewed! You guys rule! Well, all the people that read this story rule.. ::cough::
Have a nice weekend, all! =)