A/N – Hey Hey! This is just another little fic thing that my odd mind came up with. I don't have any idea why I came up with it, but here it is! Enjoy

Love

Sarafina

          He watched the ring as it fell to the ground and landed with a dull thud on the fluffy, blood red Persian carpet that lined the living room and the foyer, winding and dragging itself up the marble stairs only to meet with black tile. He sighed as he got up and crossed the large living room, bent over to pick up the ring, and sat down in an antique medieval style chair. He looked at the ring. It was a gorgeous silver color, with an intricate, thin gold design of a snake winding its way around the band. A large ruby was set in the middle, deep and dark red, yet clear so you could see the serpent picture in the center of the priceless stone. It was a very small piece of jewelry, and very feminine. It was truly fit for a lady. He pocketed the ring, knowing his mother would want it back after she had gotten over her anger.

          He heard his parents coming down the stairs, yelling hateful words at each other, slinging empty threats back and forth, each one trying to make the other back down. He examined them both as they stopped yelling and were merely looking at each other with looks of utmost repugnance. His mother was obviously backing down from the fight, as her beautiful features were slowly turning into a look of pity and defeat. She bit her top lip, but very slightly, it was something you wouldn't notice unless you were really observing her. She lifted her chin and drew back her shoulders in an act of defiance and walked gracefully down the stairs, her long white dress and deep green cloak billowing out behind her. She walked into the kitchen and slammed the door with such force, a small blue and white china plate that had held its home on a mantle near the kitchen door for 5 years, toppled over and broke into pieces. Draco Malfoy could hear his father give a small laugh and turned in time to see him smirk. Lucius Malfoy leaned on his long black cane, obviously pleased with himself. Giving a small nod to his son, he turned and walked back up the stairs to his study at the beginning of the hall.

          Draco got up from his chair and walked into the kitchen where a few house elves were working feverishly, trying to prepare lunch for the Malfoy's and the guests that would be coming later this afternoon. Draco looked around, surveying the kitchen, slowly taking in all the details. It was an old kitchen, only one window provided a small curtain of light, leaving the rest of the place slightly dark and casting eerie shadows along the walls, making grotesque forms out of anything. It was under this window Narcissa Malfoy sat, the light dancing off her blonde hair and making him squint as it bounced off her white dress. This was her favorite place to sit and sew, as she was doing now. She loved to talk to the elves and they loved it when she came to sit among them and tell them stories about her life before the manor, when she was a top student Hogwarts, and about how she often got caught sneaking off with Lucius at night, taking walks and such. Narcissa raised her head from her sewing and took notice of her son, smiling and beckoning him over with one of her long slender fingers, the nails painted an acid green and sharpened to a dangerous tip.

          "I thought I'd bring this back, knew you didn't want to lose it." Draco said as he reached into his pocket and handed his mother her wedding ring. She looked extremely pleased as she picked it up and slid it on her finger.

          "Well, thank you very much and I hope our yelling didn't bother you. Don't worry; we were just having a little quarrel over your school. Lucius still wants to send you to a school far away, but I simply won't let him take away my boy." She said lovingly as Draco felt himself blush. After a few more moments of chatting with his mother, he got up and turned to leave, but found that Narcissa was holding onto his shirt with her strong fingers.

          "I forgot to give this to you, Dragon. It's just your school letter; you'll need a few more books. I'll run down to Diagon Alley tomorrow and pick them up for you. Just leave the letter on the table in the foyer and I'll get it before I leave to go visit Mirande." She said as she handed him the familiar piece of parchment that he had gotten for the past 5 years. He smiled at her and walked out of the kitchen, examining his shirt where his mother's fingernails had been. Her nails were so sharp they had ripped three tiny holes in sweater. As the blonde boy was walking up the stairs, he saw one of the house elves approach him.

          "Mister Malfoy, sir, you're father wants you to see him in his study, sir, he says it very, very important, sir." The elf said, trembling with excitement at having delivered her message fully and without interruption. Draco gave her a nod and walked all the way up the steps, took a turn left and found himself at the entrance to his father's study. The door to the study was a deep green, with black and gold snakes swirling in and out of branches and a large snake's head for the door handle. Lucius was very private and had hexed the door, so that if Lucius didn't want someone to come in, the snakehead handle would deliver them a nasty bite. Draco's hand slowly, and cautiously, went towards the handle, and, feeling an intense amount of relief when it didn't attack him, opened the door into the dark study.

          Draco had never been in Lucius's study before. It was home to a thick black carpet with deep green skulls bordering either side. A mahogany desk occupied the middle of the room, and before it was a large black chair, lined in green that had very obvious claw marks on the wooden armrests. The only source of light was a candle that sat on the desk, making the room look even more uninviting and scary. Draco stared at the walls, as they were lined with books of every size and language possible. Then heard a thumping sound, and traced it to Lucius, as he was thumping his fingers against the desk with his right hand, and lovingly petting his cane with his left.

          "Sit down, Draco. Stop acting like a fool, just standing there and gaping. We have important things to discuss." Lucius said in his deep, eerie voice. Draco immediately sat down in the horrible chair and his eyes became fixated on the array of knives on display behind his father's head.

          "Pay attention! Now, as you know, you are entering your sixth year at Hogwarts. A lot of things can happen now that you are considered 'of age'. I hope you know what one of those things are, Draco." Draco searched his mind for answers, but found none and just stared at his father, waiting for him to continue.

          "Oh, you don't? Well, then let me enlighten you. As you have read in the Daily Prophet, they are saying the Dark Lord has been revived and is looking for his servants to come back to him. I have decided that you are old enough to finally attain glory and power." Lucius said while smiling sardonically.

          "I don't quite understand what you mean father."

          "Well, you never were that bright. I think you are just perfect to become a Death Eater. Let's see, it shall be done over the Christmas Holidays. That sounds good. You may leave now." Lucius waved his hand as though dismissing him and started to scribble something down in his leather bound book that he always carried with him. Draco practically raced out of the study and rushed down the stairs, all the time thinking, 'I need to find my mother, she'll stop this, I know she can. She can make father do anything! Damn, where is she?' He entered the kitchen and yelled for her but she didn't answer him. She wasn't sitting on her stool, she wasn't chatting with the elves, and she wasn't peeling oranges or chopping lemons or baking a cake. She wasn't anywhere. Draco pulled aside a house elf and frantically asked where she was, and the elf said matter-of-factly,

          "The Mistress left early to go visit her lady friend, sir. She has taken your list and left, sir. She said she would be back in a week, sir."

          Draco felt as if a he had swallowed a rock and it now lay heavy in his stomach. 'But she can't so that to me! I have to leave for school in three days!!' At that moment, Draco knew there was nothing he could do but accept it, or at least try to think of better things. He had never hated the thought of Christmas so much.

A/N – Okay, end chapter one. I hope you enjoyed, and I shall try to update as soon as possible. I dunno if I'm gonna add slash or not, only if people want it, I really haven't thought about any couples yet. But it's almost 3:00 in the morning, so I am leaving now. I hope to have an update soon!! Thanx for reading,

Love

Sarafina