CHAPTER 3: MEMORIES OF SUMMER
Draco woke up in the middle of the night, sweating and panting. He was having another one of those nightmares he always experience since this summer. He gripped his bed sheets, trying hard not to remember the evil face of his father and the way he killed two certain Muggles, but he failed miserably. The memory was still etched in his mind as he continues to dream about it every other night.
~Flashback~
"Daddy, where are we going?" young Draco asked innocently.
Lucius glared at him. "How many times must I tell you not to call me that inappropriate name? Haven't I taught you to address me as Father?!" he said angrily, slapping poor Draco on the face.
"I'm sorry...Father," Draco said and tried hard not to cry as the pain in his cheek stung so badly.
"You should be," Lucius hissed. "Anyway, we are going to play, Draco."
Draco's face brightened. "Play?" he said excitedly. So far, his only playmates were his nannies.
Lucius smirked. "Why, yes. And we're going to visit somebody too," he told him.
"Really? Who will we visit, Father?" Draco asked happily.
Lucius continued walking as if he didn't hear anything. Then, he stopped by a big door. "Ah, here we are," he said and opened the door with a bang.
"Say hello to them, Draco."
Draco looked around at the two people huddled inside. One was a woman with blonde hair and blue eyes and the other with white hair and grey eyes. They looked frightened so Draco decided to cheer them up. After all, he wasn't used to seeing many company. "Hello!" he said cheerfully.
Lucius grinned. "Draco, that is not a proper way to say 'hello'. It's like this," he said, raised his wand and yelled, "Avada Kedavra!" A flash of light came from the tip of his wand and Draco stared fearfully as it hit the people beside him.
"Oh, no!" he cried and went to look at them lying on the ground.
The woman, who had tears in his eyes, cupped Draco's little face and whispered a faint, "I love you" before she and the man passed away. End of Flashback
Draco did not know what he felt at the moment. All he knew is that he couldn't sleep. And so he didn't. He just lied on his bed and gazing at the ceiling, until morning came...
+++++++++++++++
"Good morning, Ginny!" Hermione greeted as she sat beside her friend at the Gryffindor table. She was lucky enough to wake up earlier than usual, so she had the bathroom all to herself and she didn't have to worry about Malfoy.
"Hey, Hermione," Ginny said, smiling brightly.
"What's up?" Hermione asked casually. If this not-seeing-Draco-first- thing-in-the-morning keeps up, she would most likely be a morning person.
"Nothing much. And you? How's living with Malfoy?" Ginny asked.
Hermione tried to think of what to say. She, of course, loathe his every fiber, but on the other hand, sometimes he acts civil and almost nice, Hermione wasn't sure if he was just putting up an act or not.
"Bad?" Ginny guessed when Hermione didn't answer.
"Worse," Hermione told her, though she wasn't sure on what she said. "Anyway, where's Harry and-"
"Hello, Hermione." As if on cue, her two best friends sat down beside her, Ron especially excited to try the new flavored waffles.
"Morning," Ron said and immediately filled his plate with the new waffles, practically drooling.
"Hi Harry, Ron," Hermione said.
"Morning," Harry said.
"You gotta try this, you three! It's delicious!" Ron told them, his mouth full as always.
Hermione sighed. "No thanks," she said.
Ginny wrinkled her nose in disgust. "And to think he's my own brother," she whispered to Hermione.
"I heard that!" Ron said.
Ginny shrugged.
"Um, Hermione..." Harry began.
"Yeah?" Hermione asked absent mindedly.
Harry was looking nervous. "I know you probably have forgiven Ron and I-"
"If it's still about what happened last night-"Hermione interrupted.
"But still, I want to say that I'm really really sorry. I didn't mean to-"
"I *know*," Hermione said. "Just forget it, ok?"
"What I won't forget though," piped up Ron, "is the image of you in..."
Harry blushed furiously. "Yeah, I mean, don't get me wrong, Hermione..." he said.
"Oh, stop it!" Hermione hissed, turning a deep shade of magenta.
Ginny quirked an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? What happened last night?" she asked curiously.
"Nothing!" all three said at once, a bit louder than usual.
If people would've passed the Gryffindor table, they would find it very surprising to see the Golden Trio, faces as red as tomatoes. This did attract the attention of many students, especially those who belong to Gryffindor house.
"Oh, c'mon, spill!" Ginny said.
"What's going on? Why are you inseparable three blushing?" Lavender piped up. She had just entered the Great Hall with Parvati.
The three blushed even harder.
"Oh, it's...nothing at all!" Harry lied.
Hermione gave him a look that told him he didn't sound very convincing.
"Wonder what secret you're hiding..." Parvati said, smiling slyly. Trust these two gossip queens to figure things out.
'S-s-secret? We don't have any!" Ron blurted out.
"Sooner or later, we *will* find out," Lavender said, winking, then joined Parvati and the other seventh year girls in gossiping. Lucky for them, Ginny had also left to go back to the common room, leaving the Golden trio in silence.
At last, Hermione spoke in a hush. "No one should find out about last night. Promise me, you two."
"Promise," Harry and Ron whispered back.
"But then, what about Malfoy?" Harry suddenly asked.
"Don't worry, I'll deal with him later," Hermione said and went back with her pancakes as though nothing really happened, but had a glimpse at the Slytherin table where Draco was seen with Crabbe and Goyle.
"Hey guys, take a look at Malfoy. He looks sick," Hermione told Harry and Ron, jerking her finger in Draco's direction. Draco was unusually paler than usual, and was almost a sick shade of yellow, he had dark circles under his eyes and his hair was a little messed up. He didn't look in the mood to eat.
"Wonder what had gotten into him," Harry said, eyes on Draco.
"Maybe the house elves poisoned his food. Probably got sick of his arrogance," Ron said happily. "I mean, why *else* would he just stare at those mouth watering waffles?"
"Seriously, Ron," Hermione said.
"I must admit it is odd, but it's probably just some evil scheme. Maybe he's pretending to be sick or something, after all, the Quidditch match between Slytherin and Ravenclaw is just around the corner. Remember in third year when he faked that his arm was injured just so his team couldn't compete with Gryffindor?" Harry said darkly.
"Of course! Who wouldn't forget about that!" Ron said bitterly.
"It's not just *that*. It's, I don't know...he's been acting really strange since the first day on the train, like he changed somehow..." Hermione said thoughfully.
"Whatever. Who cares about Malfoy anyway?" Ron said and busied himself with his food.
Harry frowned. "Is it just me or are you actually being concerned about Malfoy's welfare all of a sudden?" he told Hermione.
"Con-cerned?" Ron nearly on his waffles.
Hermione shook her head vigorously. She wasn't concerned at all-or was she? "Of-of course not! What makes you say such a ridiculous thing, Harry?" she said in a high pitched tone.
"Well, you've been noticing him more often..." Harry said.
"I do not! And if I do, I couldn't help it. After all, he *is* Head Boy and we do share a common room. We *work* together. We *live* on the same room. For goodness sake! Are you sure you're ok, Harry? Because maybe you have a fever or something to say things that sound like...like I was sort of developing some feelings for the ferret. As if!" Hermione said. She didn't want to tell them that Draco had actually helped her the other day when she fell off the stairs, though she kept repeating to herself that he just helped her get up, nothing serious. But another part of her brain shouted, "Hello! Draco Malfoy does NOT help anybody!" But she knew Harry and Ron had believed her. She knew one of these days her acting skills would come in handy.
"You're right, Hermione. We're really sorry we, or rather Harry, thought of such a stupid idea,' Ron said.
"Yeah, maybe I do have a fever," Harry said, checking his forehead.
"Why were we discussing *Malfoy*, anyway? Of all the topics in the world! Let's just switch to Quidditch," Ron said and soon became immersed in talking to Harry about the difficult skills a Seeker should learn.
Hermione, feeling a little out of place, continued watching Draco out of the corner of her eye, for reasons unknown.
++++++++++++++
"Drakie-poo, are you ok?" Pansy said for the umpteenth time that day.
Draco was really getting tired at it. "Yes! For the last time, Pansy, yes! Now if you don't keep your mouth shut, I won't be fine and you'll find your head separate from your body!" he shouted.
This seemed to get rid of Pansy because she gasped before running away to the opposite direction. Draco then went to his common room. He reckons Hermione is in the library as usual, studying.
He sat on the couch and watched the fireplace like some interesting TV show. Since that nightmare last night, he hadn't been himself lately. And to his dismay, everyone in school noticed it. He found himself contemplating again about that uneventful, horrible day-that day a week before term started. *Flashback*
"You called me, Father?"
Lucius looked down at the seventeen year old reincarnation of himself. The same tall figure, pale skin, stormy grey eyes, pointed nose, platinum blonde hair and of course, the Malfoy smirk on his face...
"You know very well what I want to ask you...Draco," Lucius said icily.
"And you know very well what my answer is to that, Father," Draco said calmly.
Lucius glared at his son. "And are you sure?"
"Father, we've talked about this loads of times and –"
"Don't take to me in that tone, boy!" Lucius snapped. He placed his hand on Draco's shoulder and smirked when he saw him shudder. "Reconsider your choice. You can be very great, you know. You will become our Lord's heir and the most powerful person when the time comes. You will make your mother and I very proud. Besides, you will only die during the war if you turn your back on us. Join the Dark Lord, join us," he said in a deadly whisper.
"No, Father. I will never do that," Draco said. Lucius knew that when Draco made up his mind already about something, nothing could stop him from doing it.
"Is that so? Well fine. You had dug your own grave, boy. You will meet your doom when the time comes...You disgrace the Malfoy name. All that training and knowledge of the Dark Arts, all for nothing!" Lucius hissed, enraged. "Anyway, come with me, boy. I have a surprise for you, *son*..."
Draco looked at his father skeptically. Whatever Lucius had prepared for him, he was sure it was anything but good. Really bad, he thought as he realized where his father was leading him: in Lucius' old, dusty chamber full of cobwebs. Draco was sure nobody had cleaned it for ages.
Lucius strode towards an unusual chest of drawers, where he pulled a large, thick and heavy green book with the big letter M on the center. Draco's eyes narrowed as he figured out what it was. "This is the Malfoy record book," he said.
Lucius grinned. "Ah, yes..." he whispered. "Go on, don't you want to take a peek?"
"But-"
"Don't worry, it's not hexed," Lucius assured him. But he was smirking and Draco thought this as a bad sign.
Draco took the book in his hands and flipped the pages, turning it to the page where his records were written. Scanning the data, his eyes landed on something...He let out a gasp. Just below the information of his birth date and age, were the letters bearing the words...
Parents: Rhacquel Torrain and Paul Lorrence Vanquer
"What the..." Draco said, eyes wide.
"You see, you're adopted. And you're a mudblood."
*End of Flashback*
Those last words echoed in his head, and listening to it was like piercing him in the heart. Ever since that night, he had seen everything in a different light He even wondered if his parents (the Malfoys) really loved him. But of course he already knows the answer.
"Malfoy, what on earth? Oh, you're such a wreck!"
Draco spun around in his seat to see Hermione gaping at him. He didn't realize that he was sweating and he was looking shaken.
"Hey, Malfoy, are you listening? Malfoy?" Hermione said and when he didn't reply, pinched him on the cheek.
Draco winced. "What was that for?!" he exclaimed angrily.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "You weren't even *blinking*," she said.
"Am I supposed to thank you?"
"No!" Hermione said and made a dash to her room.
"Girls," Draco muttered under his breathe.
++++++++++++
"I'll see you guys later at lunch, ok?" Hermione said as she picked up her backpack.
"Ok," Harry and Ron replied.
Hermione then made her way to History of Magic. Just when she was halfway to the classroom, a sudden throbbing of her chest made her stop. She leaned back against the wall and clutched her chest, making long, shallow breaths.
Oh, my, not now, I've got classes...she thought.
Lucky for her, the hall was deserted so no one saw her in this state. Making up her mind, she painfully made hr way towards the Prefects' bathroom, which is only two rooms away. She undressed, dipped in the tub, and before she knew it, she was bathed in, as Ron called it, "blood".
Draco panted. He turned towards the other corridor and stopped to think. He had seen Hermione and followed her.
*Something's wrong with her...I know it...*
A/N: So how was that? Thanks so much for the reviews, people!!!!
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Draco woke up in the middle of the night, sweating and panting. He was having another one of those nightmares he always experience since this summer. He gripped his bed sheets, trying hard not to remember the evil face of his father and the way he killed two certain Muggles, but he failed miserably. The memory was still etched in his mind as he continues to dream about it every other night.
~Flashback~
"Daddy, where are we going?" young Draco asked innocently.
Lucius glared at him. "How many times must I tell you not to call me that inappropriate name? Haven't I taught you to address me as Father?!" he said angrily, slapping poor Draco on the face.
"I'm sorry...Father," Draco said and tried hard not to cry as the pain in his cheek stung so badly.
"You should be," Lucius hissed. "Anyway, we are going to play, Draco."
Draco's face brightened. "Play?" he said excitedly. So far, his only playmates were his nannies.
Lucius smirked. "Why, yes. And we're going to visit somebody too," he told him.
"Really? Who will we visit, Father?" Draco asked happily.
Lucius continued walking as if he didn't hear anything. Then, he stopped by a big door. "Ah, here we are," he said and opened the door with a bang.
"Say hello to them, Draco."
Draco looked around at the two people huddled inside. One was a woman with blonde hair and blue eyes and the other with white hair and grey eyes. They looked frightened so Draco decided to cheer them up. After all, he wasn't used to seeing many company. "Hello!" he said cheerfully.
Lucius grinned. "Draco, that is not a proper way to say 'hello'. It's like this," he said, raised his wand and yelled, "Avada Kedavra!" A flash of light came from the tip of his wand and Draco stared fearfully as it hit the people beside him.
"Oh, no!" he cried and went to look at them lying on the ground.
The woman, who had tears in his eyes, cupped Draco's little face and whispered a faint, "I love you" before she and the man passed away. End of Flashback
Draco did not know what he felt at the moment. All he knew is that he couldn't sleep. And so he didn't. He just lied on his bed and gazing at the ceiling, until morning came...
+++++++++++++++
"Good morning, Ginny!" Hermione greeted as she sat beside her friend at the Gryffindor table. She was lucky enough to wake up earlier than usual, so she had the bathroom all to herself and she didn't have to worry about Malfoy.
"Hey, Hermione," Ginny said, smiling brightly.
"What's up?" Hermione asked casually. If this not-seeing-Draco-first- thing-in-the-morning keeps up, she would most likely be a morning person.
"Nothing much. And you? How's living with Malfoy?" Ginny asked.
Hermione tried to think of what to say. She, of course, loathe his every fiber, but on the other hand, sometimes he acts civil and almost nice, Hermione wasn't sure if he was just putting up an act or not.
"Bad?" Ginny guessed when Hermione didn't answer.
"Worse," Hermione told her, though she wasn't sure on what she said. "Anyway, where's Harry and-"
"Hello, Hermione." As if on cue, her two best friends sat down beside her, Ron especially excited to try the new flavored waffles.
"Morning," Ron said and immediately filled his plate with the new waffles, practically drooling.
"Hi Harry, Ron," Hermione said.
"Morning," Harry said.
"You gotta try this, you three! It's delicious!" Ron told them, his mouth full as always.
Hermione sighed. "No thanks," she said.
Ginny wrinkled her nose in disgust. "And to think he's my own brother," she whispered to Hermione.
"I heard that!" Ron said.
Ginny shrugged.
"Um, Hermione..." Harry began.
"Yeah?" Hermione asked absent mindedly.
Harry was looking nervous. "I know you probably have forgiven Ron and I-"
"If it's still about what happened last night-"Hermione interrupted.
"But still, I want to say that I'm really really sorry. I didn't mean to-"
"I *know*," Hermione said. "Just forget it, ok?"
"What I won't forget though," piped up Ron, "is the image of you in..."
Harry blushed furiously. "Yeah, I mean, don't get me wrong, Hermione..." he said.
"Oh, stop it!" Hermione hissed, turning a deep shade of magenta.
Ginny quirked an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? What happened last night?" she asked curiously.
"Nothing!" all three said at once, a bit louder than usual.
If people would've passed the Gryffindor table, they would find it very surprising to see the Golden Trio, faces as red as tomatoes. This did attract the attention of many students, especially those who belong to Gryffindor house.
"Oh, c'mon, spill!" Ginny said.
"What's going on? Why are you inseparable three blushing?" Lavender piped up. She had just entered the Great Hall with Parvati.
The three blushed even harder.
"Oh, it's...nothing at all!" Harry lied.
Hermione gave him a look that told him he didn't sound very convincing.
"Wonder what secret you're hiding..." Parvati said, smiling slyly. Trust these two gossip queens to figure things out.
'S-s-secret? We don't have any!" Ron blurted out.
"Sooner or later, we *will* find out," Lavender said, winking, then joined Parvati and the other seventh year girls in gossiping. Lucky for them, Ginny had also left to go back to the common room, leaving the Golden trio in silence.
At last, Hermione spoke in a hush. "No one should find out about last night. Promise me, you two."
"Promise," Harry and Ron whispered back.
"But then, what about Malfoy?" Harry suddenly asked.
"Don't worry, I'll deal with him later," Hermione said and went back with her pancakes as though nothing really happened, but had a glimpse at the Slytherin table where Draco was seen with Crabbe and Goyle.
"Hey guys, take a look at Malfoy. He looks sick," Hermione told Harry and Ron, jerking her finger in Draco's direction. Draco was unusually paler than usual, and was almost a sick shade of yellow, he had dark circles under his eyes and his hair was a little messed up. He didn't look in the mood to eat.
"Wonder what had gotten into him," Harry said, eyes on Draco.
"Maybe the house elves poisoned his food. Probably got sick of his arrogance," Ron said happily. "I mean, why *else* would he just stare at those mouth watering waffles?"
"Seriously, Ron," Hermione said.
"I must admit it is odd, but it's probably just some evil scheme. Maybe he's pretending to be sick or something, after all, the Quidditch match between Slytherin and Ravenclaw is just around the corner. Remember in third year when he faked that his arm was injured just so his team couldn't compete with Gryffindor?" Harry said darkly.
"Of course! Who wouldn't forget about that!" Ron said bitterly.
"It's not just *that*. It's, I don't know...he's been acting really strange since the first day on the train, like he changed somehow..." Hermione said thoughfully.
"Whatever. Who cares about Malfoy anyway?" Ron said and busied himself with his food.
Harry frowned. "Is it just me or are you actually being concerned about Malfoy's welfare all of a sudden?" he told Hermione.
"Con-cerned?" Ron nearly on his waffles.
Hermione shook her head vigorously. She wasn't concerned at all-or was she? "Of-of course not! What makes you say such a ridiculous thing, Harry?" she said in a high pitched tone.
"Well, you've been noticing him more often..." Harry said.
"I do not! And if I do, I couldn't help it. After all, he *is* Head Boy and we do share a common room. We *work* together. We *live* on the same room. For goodness sake! Are you sure you're ok, Harry? Because maybe you have a fever or something to say things that sound like...like I was sort of developing some feelings for the ferret. As if!" Hermione said. She didn't want to tell them that Draco had actually helped her the other day when she fell off the stairs, though she kept repeating to herself that he just helped her get up, nothing serious. But another part of her brain shouted, "Hello! Draco Malfoy does NOT help anybody!" But she knew Harry and Ron had believed her. She knew one of these days her acting skills would come in handy.
"You're right, Hermione. We're really sorry we, or rather Harry, thought of such a stupid idea,' Ron said.
"Yeah, maybe I do have a fever," Harry said, checking his forehead.
"Why were we discussing *Malfoy*, anyway? Of all the topics in the world! Let's just switch to Quidditch," Ron said and soon became immersed in talking to Harry about the difficult skills a Seeker should learn.
Hermione, feeling a little out of place, continued watching Draco out of the corner of her eye, for reasons unknown.
++++++++++++++
"Drakie-poo, are you ok?" Pansy said for the umpteenth time that day.
Draco was really getting tired at it. "Yes! For the last time, Pansy, yes! Now if you don't keep your mouth shut, I won't be fine and you'll find your head separate from your body!" he shouted.
This seemed to get rid of Pansy because she gasped before running away to the opposite direction. Draco then went to his common room. He reckons Hermione is in the library as usual, studying.
He sat on the couch and watched the fireplace like some interesting TV show. Since that nightmare last night, he hadn't been himself lately. And to his dismay, everyone in school noticed it. He found himself contemplating again about that uneventful, horrible day-that day a week before term started. *Flashback*
"You called me, Father?"
Lucius looked down at the seventeen year old reincarnation of himself. The same tall figure, pale skin, stormy grey eyes, pointed nose, platinum blonde hair and of course, the Malfoy smirk on his face...
"You know very well what I want to ask you...Draco," Lucius said icily.
"And you know very well what my answer is to that, Father," Draco said calmly.
Lucius glared at his son. "And are you sure?"
"Father, we've talked about this loads of times and –"
"Don't take to me in that tone, boy!" Lucius snapped. He placed his hand on Draco's shoulder and smirked when he saw him shudder. "Reconsider your choice. You can be very great, you know. You will become our Lord's heir and the most powerful person when the time comes. You will make your mother and I very proud. Besides, you will only die during the war if you turn your back on us. Join the Dark Lord, join us," he said in a deadly whisper.
"No, Father. I will never do that," Draco said. Lucius knew that when Draco made up his mind already about something, nothing could stop him from doing it.
"Is that so? Well fine. You had dug your own grave, boy. You will meet your doom when the time comes...You disgrace the Malfoy name. All that training and knowledge of the Dark Arts, all for nothing!" Lucius hissed, enraged. "Anyway, come with me, boy. I have a surprise for you, *son*..."
Draco looked at his father skeptically. Whatever Lucius had prepared for him, he was sure it was anything but good. Really bad, he thought as he realized where his father was leading him: in Lucius' old, dusty chamber full of cobwebs. Draco was sure nobody had cleaned it for ages.
Lucius strode towards an unusual chest of drawers, where he pulled a large, thick and heavy green book with the big letter M on the center. Draco's eyes narrowed as he figured out what it was. "This is the Malfoy record book," he said.
Lucius grinned. "Ah, yes..." he whispered. "Go on, don't you want to take a peek?"
"But-"
"Don't worry, it's not hexed," Lucius assured him. But he was smirking and Draco thought this as a bad sign.
Draco took the book in his hands and flipped the pages, turning it to the page where his records were written. Scanning the data, his eyes landed on something...He let out a gasp. Just below the information of his birth date and age, were the letters bearing the words...
Parents: Rhacquel Torrain and Paul Lorrence Vanquer
"What the..." Draco said, eyes wide.
"You see, you're adopted. And you're a mudblood."
*End of Flashback*
Those last words echoed in his head, and listening to it was like piercing him in the heart. Ever since that night, he had seen everything in a different light He even wondered if his parents (the Malfoys) really loved him. But of course he already knows the answer.
"Malfoy, what on earth? Oh, you're such a wreck!"
Draco spun around in his seat to see Hermione gaping at him. He didn't realize that he was sweating and he was looking shaken.
"Hey, Malfoy, are you listening? Malfoy?" Hermione said and when he didn't reply, pinched him on the cheek.
Draco winced. "What was that for?!" he exclaimed angrily.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "You weren't even *blinking*," she said.
"Am I supposed to thank you?"
"No!" Hermione said and made a dash to her room.
"Girls," Draco muttered under his breathe.
++++++++++++
"I'll see you guys later at lunch, ok?" Hermione said as she picked up her backpack.
"Ok," Harry and Ron replied.
Hermione then made her way to History of Magic. Just when she was halfway to the classroom, a sudden throbbing of her chest made her stop. She leaned back against the wall and clutched her chest, making long, shallow breaths.
Oh, my, not now, I've got classes...she thought.
Lucky for her, the hall was deserted so no one saw her in this state. Making up her mind, she painfully made hr way towards the Prefects' bathroom, which is only two rooms away. She undressed, dipped in the tub, and before she knew it, she was bathed in, as Ron called it, "blood".
Draco panted. He turned towards the other corridor and stopped to think. He had seen Hermione and followed her.
*Something's wrong with her...I know it...*
A/N: So how was that? Thanks so much for the reviews, people!!!!
R
E
V
I
E
W
!