There was a light rap on the door.
"What do you want? I'm busy." The young man sat cross-legged on his bed, papers and books strewn haphazardly in front of him. He had a very pale, pointed face that would've been quite handsome, had a sneer not been lingering on his lips. Eyes of gray flicked about the parchments before him as he fiddled with his quill. "McGongall'll want hers in on time, the old bird, but Snape'll give me a little extra--oh, what do you want?!" He threw up his arms in frustration as the knock came again.
"Unlock this door, boy," snarled a voice. The boy rolled his steely eyes as he pointed his wand at the door. It opened with a click, and in stormed the tall man. There wasn't a garment on him that wasn't pitch black. "What are you doing, locking me out?"
"Homework, Father," the boy muttered. "Just because it's holiday doesn't mean I'm on vacation." Lucius pursed his lips as he closed the door behind him.
"Don't get smart with me, Draco." His son curled a lip as he shuffled through his parchments, muttering incoherently. Lucius arched a silvery brow. "What did you say?" Draco looked up with a grin too large to be honest.
"I said 'whatever you wish, Father dear.' "
"You're really pushing it." Draco scowled at his father's words.
"I'm just doing what you've always wanted me to do; old nose to the grindstone, right?" When no response came, he picked up a report on belladonna and pretended to be interested in it. "How's she doing?" he asked quietly.
"Who knows?" Lucius growled, stalking over to the window. "She won't even come downstairs anymore. She won't let me in to speak with her. I swear, that woman--"
"And you've given her loads of reasons to leave her room, right?" The words came out as an angry hiss, making Lucius's head snap up.
"What did you say?" His voice was quiet, but Draco could care less.
"You beat the poor woman half to death on a regular basis! I wouldn't be surprised if--" In one swift motion, Lucius grabbed him by the collar and pushed his face towards his son's.
"You are never to say that ever again, do you understand?" Draco, too angry to realize what he was doing, glared at his father with pure hatred.
"I will say it as many times as I want because it's the truth! Let go of me!" Malfoy stared at him in shock, then recovered his scowl and slammed Draco against the headboard of the bed.
"You are not to speak to me with such insolence. I am your father!" The boy gritted his teeth.
"And I am your son! Doesn't that mean anything to you?!" Lucius blinked those icy eyes. Draco could actually see the rage bubbling up behind them. When no words came, the young man glanced down at the ground. "Forget it. Put me down." There was a moment of silence, tense silence that was almost tangible. Then the rage broke through and Malfoy did put him down--Lucius lifted Draco from the headboard and, putting every ounce of strength he had into his arms, threw him to the ground. His son hit the floor with a meaty thud. Pain screamed through Draco's body, causing a cry to attempt escape. No, he wouldn't let his father know, would show no weakness. The yelp choked in his throat, filling his mouth with the bitter taste of hatred and fear. He lifted his head and glared up at his father.
"I hate you." The young man said each word slowly, deliberately, his tone acid enough to eat through steel. Lucius simply sneered at the insult.
"I wasn't fond of my father either, boy."
"Yeah, and look how good you turned out," hissed Draco through his teeth. The room was silent again, thick with the promise of more anger and violence.
I'm doing this for your own damn good
You'll make up for what I blew
What's the problem
Why are you crying
"On your feet, boy," snarled Lucius. "We'll settle this like men." Draco hauled himself to a kneeling position.
"I'm not going to fight you." His father didn't heed his words; Malfoy snatched the boy's wand from the bed and tossed it to him.
"On your feet. Stand and deliver." Draco let the wand roll to his feet. He didn't touch it.
"I'm not like you, you violent bastard," hissed the young man, anger making his words hot. Lucius stared at him, then grinned darkly.
"You were always a pansy. A sissy boy. Never good at anything." Malfoy scowled down at his son, giving him a kick in the side. "Get up, you yellow little coward." Draco winced at the kick, struggling to his feet.
"No. Leave me alone!" He wobbled a little, the pain even stronger. His gray eyes welled up with hot tears; tears of anger, resentment, pain, humiliation. "Just go away." Lucius stuck his face in front of Draco's, seizing him by the collar again.
"Are you crying?" he said, the syllables drawling tauntingly. It was all Draco could do to not to curse his father right there.
"Put me down."
"Boy, I will put you down when I'm good and ready." Draco could feel the anger inside, boiling like a pot left too long on the stove.
"Put me down right now--Father." Lucius, the irritating little smirk still on his lips, lifted Draco a bit off the floor.
"Stop crying, you little pansy. You're a sorry excuse for a Malfoy." The young man, feet grazing the floor, stared at his father. There was a short pause, and then the anger broke free.
"You bloody son of a bitch! Put me down this instant, you spiteful bastard! Did it ever occur to you that I might not want to be a Malfoy?!" The burst of rage caught Malfoy by surprise; he stared at his son in almost comical shock.
"What did you say?" The young man began struggling violently.
"I don't want to be a Malfoy!" Rage coarsed through his body, making him stronger than before. Draco landed Lucius a good hard kick in the shin. His father winced slightly, but didn't cry out. He pushed his tight, pale face into his son's.
"The blood of Salazar Slytherin runs in your veins, boy," whispered Lucius. "The pure, untainted blood of the Dark Lord coarses through you and you don't want to be a Malfoy?" Draco's lips were pressed tightly together, his eyes narrowed, body rigid.
"No." Again came that awful silence. The very air vibrated with the rage coming from father and son. Lucius' cold gray eyes bored into Draco's. The boy stared back in firey rebellion, knowing quite well the danger he was facing. This had gone on too long; he didn't care any more. Draco met his father's steely gaze steadily and, just to spite his father, sneered.
Lucius snapped.
With a surge of adrenaline-pumped power, the man hurled his son into a full-length mirror that hung on the wall. Draco's back met glass with an immense shatter. The mirror splintered, razor-sharp pieces rising into the air like a horde of silver butterflies. The glinting remnants lingered in the air for a moment, then fell to the ground in a shower of sparkles. Draco lay on the floor, eyes open in shock, too much in pain to move. For a moment, Lucius seemed surprised as well. Then his stony disposition returned.
"Get up, boy." Draco tried not to wince in pain and failed.
"I can't." Malfoy glared down at his son.
"What do you mean you can't? Get up."
"My back. It hurts--a lot," murmured the boy. Lucius growled, appalled at the inconviencence presented to him, and dropped to a knee.
"You still say you don't want to be a Malfoy?" Draco met eyes with his father and, through the pain, nodded.
"Yes." This, apparently, was not the right answer. Lucius grabbed his son by the silver-blonde hair and turned his face towards the ground.
"Look at yourself. Look." Draco stared at the shattered fragments of a mirror on the ground. There were too many pieces to count; a thousand pale faces stared back at him. Malfoy pointed. "You see that? You see? Your eyes. They're already completely changed. You see?" Much as he didn't want to admit it, Draco could plainly see the eyes that had once been so blue had slowly been faded to gray.
"So?" he muttered, not yet willing to drop his defiance.
"You cannot change your blood, boy, no matter how much you hate it," snarled Malfoy. He pushed his son's face closer to the jagged pieces. "You are a Malfoy, and a Malfoy you will always be."
Be a good boy
Push a little farther now
That wasn't fast enough
To make us happy
A hot tear landed on a piece of the mirror with a plop, marring the reflection.
"Whatever you say, Father dear," Draco whispered. Lucius released his hair and stood, sneering down at his son with contempt.
"Clean this up." The man began for the door slowly. Each step crunched glass harshly. Malfoy paused by Draco's bed, then snatched the wand from the ground. "You are not to heal yourself by any means. If you do, I shall see to it that you are punished." He pointed a long, threatening finger at the boy. "You are not to tell a soul of what happened in this room. Your 5th year starts next week, and I'll be damned if you dirty our family name more than you already have." And then the door opened, releasing the black ominous figure from the room. Draco laid on the ground, debating whether to stand or not. Any movement made his back ache. But his father had said to clean up the room, and as much as he detested the orders, he did what he was told.
Draco heaved himself to a sitting position and, tears streaming down his face, set off to find a broom.
We'll love you
Just the way you are
If you're perfect
"What do you want? I'm busy." The young man sat cross-legged on his bed, papers and books strewn haphazardly in front of him. He had a very pale, pointed face that would've been quite handsome, had a sneer not been lingering on his lips. Eyes of gray flicked about the parchments before him as he fiddled with his quill. "McGongall'll want hers in on time, the old bird, but Snape'll give me a little extra--oh, what do you want?!" He threw up his arms in frustration as the knock came again.
"Unlock this door, boy," snarled a voice. The boy rolled his steely eyes as he pointed his wand at the door. It opened with a click, and in stormed the tall man. There wasn't a garment on him that wasn't pitch black. "What are you doing, locking me out?"
"Homework, Father," the boy muttered. "Just because it's holiday doesn't mean I'm on vacation." Lucius pursed his lips as he closed the door behind him.
"Don't get smart with me, Draco." His son curled a lip as he shuffled through his parchments, muttering incoherently. Lucius arched a silvery brow. "What did you say?" Draco looked up with a grin too large to be honest.
"I said 'whatever you wish, Father dear.' "
"You're really pushing it." Draco scowled at his father's words.
"I'm just doing what you've always wanted me to do; old nose to the grindstone, right?" When no response came, he picked up a report on belladonna and pretended to be interested in it. "How's she doing?" he asked quietly.
"Who knows?" Lucius growled, stalking over to the window. "She won't even come downstairs anymore. She won't let me in to speak with her. I swear, that woman--"
"And you've given her loads of reasons to leave her room, right?" The words came out as an angry hiss, making Lucius's head snap up.
"What did you say?" His voice was quiet, but Draco could care less.
"You beat the poor woman half to death on a regular basis! I wouldn't be surprised if--" In one swift motion, Lucius grabbed him by the collar and pushed his face towards his son's.
"You are never to say that ever again, do you understand?" Draco, too angry to realize what he was doing, glared at his father with pure hatred.
"I will say it as many times as I want because it's the truth! Let go of me!" Malfoy stared at him in shock, then recovered his scowl and slammed Draco against the headboard of the bed.
"You are not to speak to me with such insolence. I am your father!" The boy gritted his teeth.
"And I am your son! Doesn't that mean anything to you?!" Lucius blinked those icy eyes. Draco could actually see the rage bubbling up behind them. When no words came, the young man glanced down at the ground. "Forget it. Put me down." There was a moment of silence, tense silence that was almost tangible. Then the rage broke through and Malfoy did put him down--Lucius lifted Draco from the headboard and, putting every ounce of strength he had into his arms, threw him to the ground. His son hit the floor with a meaty thud. Pain screamed through Draco's body, causing a cry to attempt escape. No, he wouldn't let his father know, would show no weakness. The yelp choked in his throat, filling his mouth with the bitter taste of hatred and fear. He lifted his head and glared up at his father.
"I hate you." The young man said each word slowly, deliberately, his tone acid enough to eat through steel. Lucius simply sneered at the insult.
"I wasn't fond of my father either, boy."
"Yeah, and look how good you turned out," hissed Draco through his teeth. The room was silent again, thick with the promise of more anger and violence.
I'm doing this for your own damn good
You'll make up for what I blew
What's the problem
Why are you crying
"On your feet, boy," snarled Lucius. "We'll settle this like men." Draco hauled himself to a kneeling position.
"I'm not going to fight you." His father didn't heed his words; Malfoy snatched the boy's wand from the bed and tossed it to him.
"On your feet. Stand and deliver." Draco let the wand roll to his feet. He didn't touch it.
"I'm not like you, you violent bastard," hissed the young man, anger making his words hot. Lucius stared at him, then grinned darkly.
"You were always a pansy. A sissy boy. Never good at anything." Malfoy scowled down at his son, giving him a kick in the side. "Get up, you yellow little coward." Draco winced at the kick, struggling to his feet.
"No. Leave me alone!" He wobbled a little, the pain even stronger. His gray eyes welled up with hot tears; tears of anger, resentment, pain, humiliation. "Just go away." Lucius stuck his face in front of Draco's, seizing him by the collar again.
"Are you crying?" he said, the syllables drawling tauntingly. It was all Draco could do to not to curse his father right there.
"Put me down."
"Boy, I will put you down when I'm good and ready." Draco could feel the anger inside, boiling like a pot left too long on the stove.
"Put me down right now--Father." Lucius, the irritating little smirk still on his lips, lifted Draco a bit off the floor.
"Stop crying, you little pansy. You're a sorry excuse for a Malfoy." The young man, feet grazing the floor, stared at his father. There was a short pause, and then the anger broke free.
"You bloody son of a bitch! Put me down this instant, you spiteful bastard! Did it ever occur to you that I might not want to be a Malfoy?!" The burst of rage caught Malfoy by surprise; he stared at his son in almost comical shock.
"What did you say?" The young man began struggling violently.
"I don't want to be a Malfoy!" Rage coarsed through his body, making him stronger than before. Draco landed Lucius a good hard kick in the shin. His father winced slightly, but didn't cry out. He pushed his tight, pale face into his son's.
"The blood of Salazar Slytherin runs in your veins, boy," whispered Lucius. "The pure, untainted blood of the Dark Lord coarses through you and you don't want to be a Malfoy?" Draco's lips were pressed tightly together, his eyes narrowed, body rigid.
"No." Again came that awful silence. The very air vibrated with the rage coming from father and son. Lucius' cold gray eyes bored into Draco's. The boy stared back in firey rebellion, knowing quite well the danger he was facing. This had gone on too long; he didn't care any more. Draco met his father's steely gaze steadily and, just to spite his father, sneered.
Lucius snapped.
With a surge of adrenaline-pumped power, the man hurled his son into a full-length mirror that hung on the wall. Draco's back met glass with an immense shatter. The mirror splintered, razor-sharp pieces rising into the air like a horde of silver butterflies. The glinting remnants lingered in the air for a moment, then fell to the ground in a shower of sparkles. Draco lay on the floor, eyes open in shock, too much in pain to move. For a moment, Lucius seemed surprised as well. Then his stony disposition returned.
"Get up, boy." Draco tried not to wince in pain and failed.
"I can't." Malfoy glared down at his son.
"What do you mean you can't? Get up."
"My back. It hurts--a lot," murmured the boy. Lucius growled, appalled at the inconviencence presented to him, and dropped to a knee.
"You still say you don't want to be a Malfoy?" Draco met eyes with his father and, through the pain, nodded.
"Yes." This, apparently, was not the right answer. Lucius grabbed his son by the silver-blonde hair and turned his face towards the ground.
"Look at yourself. Look." Draco stared at the shattered fragments of a mirror on the ground. There were too many pieces to count; a thousand pale faces stared back at him. Malfoy pointed. "You see that? You see? Your eyes. They're already completely changed. You see?" Much as he didn't want to admit it, Draco could plainly see the eyes that had once been so blue had slowly been faded to gray.
"So?" he muttered, not yet willing to drop his defiance.
"You cannot change your blood, boy, no matter how much you hate it," snarled Malfoy. He pushed his son's face closer to the jagged pieces. "You are a Malfoy, and a Malfoy you will always be."
Be a good boy
Push a little farther now
That wasn't fast enough
To make us happy
A hot tear landed on a piece of the mirror with a plop, marring the reflection.
"Whatever you say, Father dear," Draco whispered. Lucius released his hair and stood, sneering down at his son with contempt.
"Clean this up." The man began for the door slowly. Each step crunched glass harshly. Malfoy paused by Draco's bed, then snatched the wand from the ground. "You are not to heal yourself by any means. If you do, I shall see to it that you are punished." He pointed a long, threatening finger at the boy. "You are not to tell a soul of what happened in this room. Your 5th year starts next week, and I'll be damned if you dirty our family name more than you already have." And then the door opened, releasing the black ominous figure from the room. Draco laid on the ground, debating whether to stand or not. Any movement made his back ache. But his father had said to clean up the room, and as much as he detested the orders, he did what he was told.
Draco heaved himself to a sitting position and, tears streaming down his face, set off to find a broom.
We'll love you
Just the way you are
If you're perfect