malfoy

Draco Malfoy
And the Bloodstone
_ _ _ _ _By Ti'ana

Chapter Two

The three waited for the train to empty before they left. Usually, they were one of the first ones off, but Malfoy waited especially so he didn't have to speak with the odd girl in their train compartment.

When Malfoy figured the train was almost empty, they left for the horseless carriages that would bring them to the school. Only a dozen or so were left (most of them they could still see were leaving), and they boarded the one nearest to them. Malfoy practically exploded when he stepped into it.

"You! You.. you!!"

The sad-eyed girl in the hooded cloak smiled dimly. "Nice to see you, too."

He growled and looked out. All the other carriages were leaving. "This is great, just great." Reluctantly, he sat beside the girl. "Don't talk to me, alright?"

"Wasn't planning to," she answered, staring out of the carriage.

"Didn't you hear what I said? Don't... talk to me."

She laughed a little, but didn't answer him. He wasn't worth getting upset over, and this obviously annoyed him. He slumped back into his seat as Crabbe plopped down next to him, and Goyle pushed them over, causing Malfoy to squish the girl against the wall. She whimpered, respecting his "don't talk to me" rule.

The trip to Hogwarts Academy was the longest it had ever been in Malfoy's four years of studying there. Usually, he and he and his two friend would discuss what they planned to do that year, and most of it dealt with bothering Harry Potter and his Muggle-loving Ron and Mudblood friend Hermione. But with.. with HER next to them, it would take the fun out of all their secretive scheming. So it was a quiet, tense trip.

When the finally arrived, Malfoy climbed over Crabbe in an attempt to get out first, but winded up on Goyle's lap, who shoved him off. Malfoy wound up falling out of the carriage and landing hard on his knees, dirtying his black robe. Grimly, he dusted himself off and made his way over to the entrance hall. The stone walls were lit with torches, and Malfoy made some crack about the first years, clapping at the song the Sorting Hat was singing.

"That means the feast hasn't started yet. Let's go." The three watched the Sorting for a few minutes. They found the Slytherin table as "Pritchard, Graham!" was placed in their house. Malfoy clapped quickly and sat.

He heard a groan beside him, and fell off his seat when he turned to see who it was. "Are you following me or something?!"

The girl frowned. Her hood was no longer covering her face, and Malfoy noted something awkward about her expression, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He had to admit, though, she was a lot prettier than she was pleasant. "I was sitting in the carriage first. I sat HERE first. Maybe you're following me around!"

"Me, follow you!" He laughed haughtily. "I didn't see you at the Sorting. You must have thought you would go straight to Slytherin to..."

"I told you, I am a fourth year!"

"We would recognize a fourth year."

Her eyes darted between the three of them. "Well I know you. Goyle, Crabbe... and Draco Malfoy. It's understandable, though, why I am not memorable." She sighed sadly as the last first year ("Whitby, Kevin!") paraded over to the Hufflepuff table. She continued to speak, more to herself than Malfoy, but the Bloody Baron, the Slytherin House's ghost, was listening intently. He had glided behind Malfoy, who never liked the silver bloodstained specter. "I left Hogwarts less than one month after Sorting. My name is..."

"Lisha Luralby." The voice that finished her statement was the Bloody Baron. "I remember when you were first sent over to the Slytherin house. I stopped Peeves from dropping a.... a.... water balloon, that's it, on you. Foolish poltergeist." Everyone gaped; the Bloody Baron hardly ever said a word.

"Well, why'd you leave?" Crabbe had suddenly taken a great interest in the girl that had vanished from the school.

"Personal reasons I'd rather not discuss."

"Probably extreme poverty, if she's anything like Weasley," Malfoy cracked, whispering to Goyle. His large friend just looked down at him unhappily. Malfoy's smirk was wiped off his face, and he slumped back into his chair. "Pass the gravy," he mumbled incoherently. No one paid attention.

"So you were placed into Slytherin? Do you have any siblings before you?" Goyle ignored Malfoy's pale cheeks turn pink in anger as he leaned across the table to grab the pitcher of pumpkin juice.

"No," Lia said. "I'm the first child. Though my mother was in Slytherin, though. My father was in Gryffindor."

"So, you're a full-blooded witch?" Who else but Malfoy would ask such a question?

Lisha didn't reply. Instead, she took the pitcher of pumpkin juice and poured it into her goblet. After a sip, she noticed everyone was hanging to hear her next words, so she spoke. "I have had a tutor the last few years, and I took an exam that Dumbledore suggested I take if I wanted to reenter Hogwarts. I passed the test, obviously, but I faltered in Potions. Is Professor Snape still the Potions master?"

"That is correct," a voice spoke up behind them. Lisha turned to face the greasy-haired Potions teacher. He looked down at her over his hooked nose with black eyes that were the most unfriendly pair she had ever seen. She smiled politely.

"I've missed your lessons, Professor. I'm sure my tutor has contacted you." She lowered her voice. "And my parents as well?"

Severus Snape was not the one to smile, but his glare had become less intense. "Yes, he has, and so have your parents." He paused. "You have much catching up to do; Your teacher went much too slow with you. But my class will not falter on the account of one student. Remember that." He walked away before she gave him an answer.

"Well," Malfoy said dourly, "I think he likes you." Crabbe and Goyle snickered silently as Lisha shook her head.