'Damn Father. Doesn't he have anything better to do than plot to kill people and grovel? I mean, sure evil is fun - but not when you're forced to agree with Voldemort's every word under penalty of death. And 'Deatheater,' what the hell is that word supposed to mean!? Do they eat death? No, they just run a higher risk of it. And groveling - literally kissing the hem of Voldemort's robes. It's not evil - it's disgusting.'

Draco Malfoy stood in front of the mirror, getting his robes (top quality, of course) fitted. He swept out of the store with a smirk, having just sufficiently confused and pissed off the Great Harry Potter. O, the fun he would have when he became a certified wizard! Making everyone's life a living hell.but never cringing from someone - or would it be something? - that had been all but destroyed by a mere baby! No, Malfoy would have fun under his own power, not Voldemort's.

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Draco had a more or less uneventful train ride, although what else can be expected when you must pass the hours with no one but those oafs, Crabbe and Goyle? Now people like them really do belong under Voldemort - they could never amount to anything else - but Draco? Never. Draco was more than smart enough not to have to beg to be in Voldemort's favor. He could cause havoc by himself, thank you very much!

Far from willing to condescend to actually initiating a conversation with those two, Draco spent most of the trip thinking of his plans for the years following school. Then, after a brief rendezvous with Potter and his new 'friends,' Draco turned his line of thought to Harry. He was intrigued as to why anyone - especially someone as famous as Potter - would want to associate with filth such as the Weasleys. Probably half the lot were bastards anyway. Draco chuckled to himself as he thought of the repulsive family. Then his thoughts once again turned to Harry. (a/n: Don't worry, this isn't a slash romance!)

'I wonder what it would be like to be friends with the Boy Who Lived. Maybe he'd have a real sense of humor, unlike the two fools father has assigned to me. Probably to threaten me into joining Voldemort. Ha! Like I'd ever do what he says. I'll never follow in his footprints! Sure, I'm not gonna end up like Godric Gryffindor - damn good-doer, I bet he never held a grudge in his life - but I definitely don't want to end up like Father or his friends either!'

Draco spent his remaining hours on the Hogwarts Express pondering the boy. Harry was so well known in the wizarding world, but still, to Draco, a complete mystery. For the Malfoy's didn't deign to have friends; they had servants and masters, the latter always seeming to be more numerous. Draco couldn't even imagine what it would be like to be 'normal,' or at least not a Malfoy. To have friends! Harry seemed so happy, but Draco was forced (for the time being) to be evil, superior, patronizing, and all in all - Malfoy- ish. Of course, Draco was far too proud to drop his malicious streak, but that didn't mean he couldn't drop the perpetual sneer, did it? Sure, he'd have fun with mudbloods (the filth didn't deserve a place in the wizarding world), but maybe he could do it with fellow Slytherin friends, not mere 'acquaintances'. or hell, maybe Potter will come to his senses and be put in Slytherin like any self-respecting wizard! Draco laughed as he realized what his last thought had been. With fools like Crabbe and Goyle, Slytherin was far from the ideal house, but still, better than the idiots in Hufflepuff, the suck-ups in Gryffindor, or the vain Ravenclaws! Yes, Slytherin contained its fair share of fools, but it also housed fellow witty, malicious people who knew how to have fun! Draco knew he'd fit right in. Maybe Potter, too.that would be interesting.