Winter Wonderland. Chapter nine – Lucius' problem By: Takanori Kawakami
Disclaimer. Of course I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters, ideas, made up words or worlds. This story is set in the children's sixth year. Thanks J.K. for letting me play with your kiddos!
Uh due to the awesomeness of POA I'm working on this again! Yay! Saw the movie came home and then read some Draco/Hermione fan fiction and decided I should work some more on my own! Haha. So yay!
I'm currently working on what I like to call "the side dish" of this story, Draco's Christmas. I guess it will just be an extra long chapter that has no point really but to have fun with the cloned Draco Malfoy. (Man what I wouldn't do to have one of those.or at least a Tom Felton clone.)
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. More Lucius!! Yay! He makes me happy. Ha-ha. I'd say I'm about half way through the story so there is still a lot more to come, and who knows how many other little side dishes may spawn from this crazy story. I'd like to change the title but I guess there isn't much I can do about that, huh? So Winter Wonderland it will remain.
Well I hope you guys like this and please review! To those who did, thank you and my comments to you are below the story. Thank you all!
Takano.
"What took you so long Lucius, you're usually the first one here." Lucius took a look around the cold room all of the faces were masked. Lucius could still feel their eyes on him.
"Just get on with the meeting." Lucius snapped slipping into one of the overstuffed armchairs (along with the others within Voldemort's most inner circle.) before a mass of death eaters. The lot of them began to whisper to one another.
"If you have something to say to each other bring it before all of us." Lucius snapped. The crowd quickly quieted down and one stood slowly.
"We all know that the Dark Lord has returned, its been two years now Governor Malfoy. Were getting restless, when will he make his move? We've been loyal all these many years and still nothing. We know he has the power, what are we waiting for?" Lucius recognized the voice as Johnson McGlutton, a fellow Hogwarts governor. The crowd went into an uproar again.
Lucius looked over to Mitchell Parkinson. Those sitting in the armchairs knew the reason why. They were the only who had actually ever spoken to Voldemort himself. Parkinson nodded to Lucius slowly then stood.
"Lord Voldemort has fully regained his power, we all know this." He paused; the death eaters had fallen silent at the mention of their master's name.
"The other Governors and myself will retire for a brief moment." With a quick swish of his robes he turned his back to the tumultuous band of masked men and fled into a dark room, the other Governors rose from there chairs and fallowed suit.
"What are we supposed to tell them? McGlutton is right they are all restless. How can I tell them something when I myself don't even know?" Parkinson paced the room that had been quickly lit by a pathetic looking house elf.
"You don't have to tell them anything." Another Governor growled from the corner where he sat cross-armed.
"What do you mean I don't have to tell them anything, have you been listening to everything that's been said tonight?" Parkinson raged.
"Gentlemen, please, calm down." Lucius said in his normal drawling tone. "Your no worse then those outside these hallowed doors. Arguing is going to get us nowhere." The eyes of the room watched him. "I can tell you what I know, and from there you can decide if you want to share it with the others."
"Tell us then."
"Voldemort may be back to his full power but even at his peek strength he cannot beat the one. You all know whom I speak of. There's only one way to get that burden out of the way but first we have to find it. The legend has awakened." Lucius clenched his jaw.
"And how do we get rid of it? Didn't you say you were going to contact your son about it? He's at Hogwarts with this legend." Parkinson spoke up.
"As is your daughter, but I hardly think she's fit for the job." Lucius turned on him but received a hard glare from Governor Parkinson.
"He's certainly taking his sweet precious time then." Parkinson was on the defense now.
"There's only so much you can do in a small amount of time. My son is an amazing wizard but he's not a miracle worker, these things take time and delicacy. He can't rush into it, but he will find out who it is because he is, after all, a Malfoy." Lucius looked around the room daring anyone to say the opposite.
Lucius was confident on the outside, but on this inside he was squirming. Dumbledore's visit to the manor had him on pins and needles. The truth of the matter was that he had no idea that Draco was still under his very nose, sent back to the Granger's. Lucius would never let on to the fact that he did know though, not even to Draco.
"Your confident in young Draco." Parkinson's sharp blue eyes cut through him.
"Of course I am. He will take care of this so-called legend, rest assured. I, like none of you, want to let down Lord Voldemort." Lucius looked over the room of fifteen death eater governors. "Shall we adjourn?" Lucius made his way for the door to re-enter the Death Eater meeting.
Draco stared hard at the paper in his hands it started to quiver and ink gathered in the corners veining its way into the middle leaving words in its path.
It is not he who's in the next room. You're safe for now but all to soon he'll come for you. Then what will you do? Draco stared with disbelief at the paper he said the words over and over again in his mind watching as the ink bleed black into the parchment.
'Well at least we're safe for the time being.' He thought to himself and turned to Hermione, only she wasn't there. Draco began to panic.
"Hermione!" He called. He head Crookshanks hiss in the next room He began to dread the worst, visions of some crazy wizards standing over a blood soaked Hermione flashed though his head.
"I'm in here!" She called. Draco took in a deep sigh of relief before fallowing her voice. It would be a bad thing for him to lose her after only a few minutes of officially 'Protecting' her.
"I was right. It was just Crookshanks, you should have listened to me. I don't know why you got all jumpy, it's not like you really." Hermione looked up from cleaning small splinters of glass out of the rug.
"He broke a lamp." She began to explain. "But I don't blame him really. I wonder what spooked him. Poor Crookshanks." Hermione swept the enormous ginger cat up in her arms and kissed his fat furry face. "Silly Draco thinking poor Crookshanks wasn't the one in here, what was he thinking? I knew it was you. Didn't I?" Hermione sweet-talked to the fur ball.
Draco had a look of disgust on his face. For once he would have agreed with Ron on something: that Crookshanks had to be the most horrid cat he had ever laid eyes on. Whatever Hermione saw seemed to be quite the opposite of what Crookshanks really was. The cat seemed to glare at him with its beady little eyes as Hermione stroked at his fluffy fur.
"What the hell." Draco managed out.
"Why were you so spooked yourself?" Hermione let go of Crookshanks as if he were a tiny tender kitten and stood.
"I wasn't spooked." He defended. 'Oh that was convincing.' Draco thought miserably to himself.
"Sure. Well either way will you go get me a bag to put all this glass in?" Hermione reached up and moved some loose hair away from her face. Draco nodded and went into the kitchen.
"Hold it open for me." She instructed when he returned with the sack. She moved the large pieced of what was left of the lamp into the bag. Draco's mind, as it had been quite frequently now, was off in another world. He had tons of things he needed to ask the scroll now that he knew how it worked. He felt the bag be taken from his hands.
"Draco?" Hermione waved a hand in front of his face. "Are you in there?"
"Get your hands out of my face you fil-" Draco quickly caught himself.
"What were you saying?" Hermione's eyes had teared up a little.
"Nothing.just, nothing. Look I have things I need to do." He retreated up the stairs.
After making sure the door to the guest bedroom was closed securely Draco unrolled the parchment on his bed putting his standard book of spells (grade six) and the Slytherin Quidditch playbook on wither sides so it would roll itself up. Deciding he'd better test the paper first he asked a question he already knew the answer to.
"Who am I?"
The ink returned.
Draco Malfoy is your name
Your blood is pure your family famed. Keeper of the heir you are To tell you more would be to far.
Draco had to take a double take at the last two lines of the rhyme. He quickly asked another question as the ink faded away.
"What heir am I keeper to?" His voice was frantic.
The Heir of what, you need to know
Only she can tell you so.
The papers rhymes were beginning to wear think on Draco's nerves. He tried to make since of everything he knew he knew so far. He knew that he had to protect Hermione, he didn't know why still. The paper had told he was the keeper of an heir but to what was unknown.
"When I asked what heir it said to ask a She." Draco pieced all the parts together out loud. "If Hermione is the heir do I just ask her? Dumbledore made it quite clear that I had to be discreet about it all." Draco roughly ran his fingers though his hair in thought.
"Is Hermione the heir?" He spoke clearly to the paper. It of course was a long shot that the paper would just out and out tell him but at this point anything was worth a try.
Hermione Granger fair and true
Born from Muggles through and through Legend in her blood of old Family lines cannot be told The heir of something she may be Protect her and you shall see.
The ink lingered longer then normal. Things were making a littler more since now, not much but a little was better then none at all. Draco sighed; he decided to ask a more personal question, one that had bothered him since his ride with Dumbledore.
"Did I make the right choice? I mean that was it right for me to come back here and leave my father?" The ink seemed to be slower coming in onto the page. Draco waited anxiously straining to make out what he could of the green blur. He could make out the second word 'Father' in the writing, which was now getting thicker.
More words were coming into view now. Slytherin, father, finish and Granger were among the few that he could make out. Just when almost everything was becoming legible there came a loud knock on his door.
Draco quickly reacted throwing the books off of his bed and shoving the parchment into his trunk. He'd have to find out the answer to his question later on.
Hermione peeked in just as he stood upward from locking his trunk.
"What are you doing?" She entered his room all the way.
"Studying, what does it look like? I figured I better get started early if I want to beat you in the O.W.L.s, which I will by the way." He said smugly. Hermione let out a quick "Ha!" to his comments.
"I don't think there's anything about Quidditch on the test Draco." She held up the playbook.
"Give me that. The last thing I need is you to go telling Potter all of my masterful plans and plays." He snatched it from her.
"I wouldn't do that! That's cheating. Besides Harry doesn't need to know your plays to beat you, he does that pretty well on his own, don't you think?" Draco and Hermione exchanged hard glares. "I don't even understand any of this gibberish." She looked at the cover of the green book. Annabelle Walters, a particularly beautiful Slytherin seventh year, stuck her tongue out at Hermione after blocking a speeding quaffel on the cover of the book.
"Either way, I don't want you touching it." He threw the book onto his desk. Annabelle gave Draco a look of shock from being tossed and almost fell off of her broom.
"Don't you trust me?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.
"Only sometimes." Draco snorted.
"Your not angry about what I said about Harry, are you?" She could tell that she had hit a nerve when she said something about Harry being better then him. They had been competing for six years now.
"No, why should I be jealous of him? I won him last Quidditch match." It was true. They had both been equal in Quidditch and the Slytherin and Gryffindor games were always the most packed. Not only did the Slytherins and Gryffindors show up but the other houses did as well.
"You do seem a little uptight about it though." Hermione eyed him.
"No I don't." He let out in a defendant tone.
"Oh poor you, If it make you feel any better I'll make sure I root for you next Quidditch game, even if I have to root against my own team." She smiled at him. Draco looked at her a little skeptical.
"Oh common, lighten up."
"Fine. Will you wear Silver and Green?" Hermione bit her lip at his request.
"Deal." She held out her hands and shook with Draco.
"And a large hat and glasses to hide who I am." She mumbled.
"What was that?" Draco turned on her.
"Oh nothing, just planning out my next Quidditch outfit." She smiled cheekily at him. He gave her a sideways glance trying to size her up.
"So." He slipped out the door hoping Hermione would quickly fallow suit. "What have you got planned for us today?"
Hermione scanned the room quickly before she fallowed and answered him. "Well I wasn't sure. We only have one last assignment remember we both decided that Christmas would count as our free choice?" She stopped behind him. Draco thought a moment.
"Remember?" Hermione said a little louder thinking that Draco was in a daze.
"Oh. Oh yeah! Glad that's out of the way, so what's next again?" He turned to her. "Just a popular muggle place." Hermione shrugged.
"All right, lead the way." Draco waited for her to make a move.
"Well you see I haven't though of a place yet." She grabbed his hand and led him downstairs.
"I wouldn't mind going back to the London Eye." Draco said quickly.
"Draco." There was warning in Hermione's voice. He looked at her like he hadn't said anything bad.
A loud hoot caught both of their attentions.
"Oh hello again Surnia." Hermione said recognizing the sleek owl. Draco's breath caught in his throat. Surnia held out her claw and Hermione quickly untied it. Surnia looked up for some gratitude.
"Upstairs with Pseudo." Draco ducked as Surnia flew past his head to get some food and rest.
"It's for you." He took it from her. "I figured this much. Well I'm going to go read this and you think of something for us to do.
Draco went upstairs the letter clutched in his hand. He already knew it was from his father and that couldn't be a good thing. Not this time at least. He quickly tore open the seal, as he stood in the hall upstairs.
Draco.
I suppose Dumbledore thinks he's terribly cleaver sweeping you off like this. Don't think that I don't know where he's swept you off to. You aren't safe yet. You must have realized by now that you made a mistake going with Dumbledore. This is partly my fault, I thought you would have had the since to tell Dumbledore that you didn't want anything to do with him or his ludicrous muggle projects.
I have other plans for you that you need to begin work on. Something has surfaced that affects our whole family's well being as well as many of your Slytherin households family's. There is an heir that is in our Lord's way and whom ever this heir is in the way of his reign Your job, son, is to find out who this is and put a stopper in their life no matter what.
I know you wont let me down. You wouldn't dare.
Lucius S. Malfoy
Draco scanned the letter again. Lucius' last threat sent a chill down his spine. He could almost hear the words hissing out of his father's mouth as he read them.
"Heir.our school?" Draco's earlier thoughts had been confirmed now. "Hermione, it has to be her. I have to kill her?" Draco put his forehead down on the open letter on his desk. Before the idea of an excuse to kill any mudblood would have been music to his ears. His father always held him back (though it made him proud) when Draco had barely mentioned bringing harm to a Mudblood at the school. Draco now had his chance and he still ached to take it but not against Hermione. Any mudblood but Hermione.
"I can't."
Ah-ha. Wonderful, I've finished it. (Okay, so its been finished I've been waiting on a beta reader) Anyways I'm not abandoning this story I'm just taking my sweet precious time with it! LOL Hope you've enjoyed. Harry Potter and the COS comes to DVD and Video on April 11. JOY! I can't wait to see the extra scenes. There better be some Draco-ie goodness. Thanks for reading and (I hope) reviewing! Takanori
To those who reviewed:
Risquer: Thanks a ton for always reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!!
Jozii: I've uploaded. Unfortunately not as quickly as I would have liked! Hope you enjoyed this chapter and the ones to fallow! Thanks for your review.
Samson: Thanks, it took me a while to come up with it. What a dork I am! :D Anyways, thank you for reviewing and I hope your looking forward to more chapters.
TriGemini: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it! Sorry about the cliffhangers (I hate those) but sometimes I can't help but put them! Thanks for reviewing!
Ravyn Nyte: Haha! I hoped people would think that! Sorry that it seems to take me forever to get these things up. It's taking me a while but the story must go on. I love my Draco/Hermione lovin'! Thanks for reviewing!
Akina: Okay! Sorry that you couldn't go on to chapter nine, now you can! Thanks for reviewing!!
Cavaradossi: Wow, I never knew that it meant something false but I like the idea of that much more then it being the first name in the scientific name of a flower. Sue-doe sounds better too, I was just guessing, honestly. Thanks for reviewing.
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Reanne080: Im curious to see where it goes too, I've narrowed it down to two endings and I'm not sure which way I'm going to go with it. It should be good though either way. :D Thanks for reviewing!!
Hobbit shortness: Hope you are just as excited about this chapter as you were the last one! Hope you have another great day too! Sorry my updating is few and far between! Thanks for reviewing!
Jozii: Again? Hum. Well thanks again for reviewing! Gum-Addict: (I can relate) Here's more and I hope you like it! I am going to tell more about Christmas in a "side-dish" as I like to call it. So make sure to keep an eye out for it! Thanks for the review!
Kadama: Mystery, yay! Thanks I tried not to rush Draco or Hermione into anything. Hope you enjoy this chapter and thanks for reviewing!!
Karly: Thanks, I'm beging to hate the letter because now I've made it tell him everything in rhymes.which can get quite annoying. Rambling to myself helps me think sometimes, SO when I get going I just let it go. This story is a product of my rambling XD Keehee. Anyway, thank you for your review!
Witch Green Eyes: Thanks I like this chapter more then the last, hope you will to. Sorry for killing you with suspense. I'll check out your story when homework allows. Thanks for reviewing!!
Cinnamon-eyes: Here's more! Thanks for putting up with my lack of fast posts! Thank you also for reviewing!
Lil-Spitfire: You will soon find out all the wonders of Draco's Magical Christmas Kahaha. I liked making Draco's mom nice, she seems like she should be nice and that she really only putting out a front to make her husband happy. Thanks for the review!!
MeggieBaby81: Thanks, hope you keep loving it! Thanks for the review!!
Alexis McLean: I have! I hope you haven't passed on yet, if so read and review from heaven if you can. I'll be sure to attend you wake and let everyone know it was all my fault. Thank you for the review!
Paper Star: (yay!) I tried sending this to you but I was having trouble so the next one you have full reign to pick over! XD My Internet sucks! Anyway, thanks for still taking the time to review and for helping me out through this! Look out for my side-dish Christmas! Thanks for everything!
Wormmon ABC: LOL I didn't forget you, here you are! Thank you so much for reviewing (like always!) Hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Couch-Potato01: Isn't it? Thanks for reviewing!!
Hedwig7up: Have you had that DNL stuff yet? You name reminded me of it suddenly. Anyway sorry this took forever, I hope you're still reading!! Thanks for reviewing!!
Plastic: This chapter is pretty long! I hate it when the chapters of some stories are like only three paragraphs! It drives me nuts! Roar. Me sadistic, never.XD Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter and thanks for reviewing!!
Disclaimer. Of course I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters, ideas, made up words or worlds. This story is set in the children's sixth year. Thanks J.K. for letting me play with your kiddos!
Uh due to the awesomeness of POA I'm working on this again! Yay! Saw the movie came home and then read some Draco/Hermione fan fiction and decided I should work some more on my own! Haha. So yay!
I'm currently working on what I like to call "the side dish" of this story, Draco's Christmas. I guess it will just be an extra long chapter that has no point really but to have fun with the cloned Draco Malfoy. (Man what I wouldn't do to have one of those.or at least a Tom Felton clone.)
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. More Lucius!! Yay! He makes me happy. Ha-ha. I'd say I'm about half way through the story so there is still a lot more to come, and who knows how many other little side dishes may spawn from this crazy story. I'd like to change the title but I guess there isn't much I can do about that, huh? So Winter Wonderland it will remain.
Well I hope you guys like this and please review! To those who did, thank you and my comments to you are below the story. Thank you all!
Takano.
"What took you so long Lucius, you're usually the first one here." Lucius took a look around the cold room all of the faces were masked. Lucius could still feel their eyes on him.
"Just get on with the meeting." Lucius snapped slipping into one of the overstuffed armchairs (along with the others within Voldemort's most inner circle.) before a mass of death eaters. The lot of them began to whisper to one another.
"If you have something to say to each other bring it before all of us." Lucius snapped. The crowd quickly quieted down and one stood slowly.
"We all know that the Dark Lord has returned, its been two years now Governor Malfoy. Were getting restless, when will he make his move? We've been loyal all these many years and still nothing. We know he has the power, what are we waiting for?" Lucius recognized the voice as Johnson McGlutton, a fellow Hogwarts governor. The crowd went into an uproar again.
Lucius looked over to Mitchell Parkinson. Those sitting in the armchairs knew the reason why. They were the only who had actually ever spoken to Voldemort himself. Parkinson nodded to Lucius slowly then stood.
"Lord Voldemort has fully regained his power, we all know this." He paused; the death eaters had fallen silent at the mention of their master's name.
"The other Governors and myself will retire for a brief moment." With a quick swish of his robes he turned his back to the tumultuous band of masked men and fled into a dark room, the other Governors rose from there chairs and fallowed suit.
"What are we supposed to tell them? McGlutton is right they are all restless. How can I tell them something when I myself don't even know?" Parkinson paced the room that had been quickly lit by a pathetic looking house elf.
"You don't have to tell them anything." Another Governor growled from the corner where he sat cross-armed.
"What do you mean I don't have to tell them anything, have you been listening to everything that's been said tonight?" Parkinson raged.
"Gentlemen, please, calm down." Lucius said in his normal drawling tone. "Your no worse then those outside these hallowed doors. Arguing is going to get us nowhere." The eyes of the room watched him. "I can tell you what I know, and from there you can decide if you want to share it with the others."
"Tell us then."
"Voldemort may be back to his full power but even at his peek strength he cannot beat the one. You all know whom I speak of. There's only one way to get that burden out of the way but first we have to find it. The legend has awakened." Lucius clenched his jaw.
"And how do we get rid of it? Didn't you say you were going to contact your son about it? He's at Hogwarts with this legend." Parkinson spoke up.
"As is your daughter, but I hardly think she's fit for the job." Lucius turned on him but received a hard glare from Governor Parkinson.
"He's certainly taking his sweet precious time then." Parkinson was on the defense now.
"There's only so much you can do in a small amount of time. My son is an amazing wizard but he's not a miracle worker, these things take time and delicacy. He can't rush into it, but he will find out who it is because he is, after all, a Malfoy." Lucius looked around the room daring anyone to say the opposite.
Lucius was confident on the outside, but on this inside he was squirming. Dumbledore's visit to the manor had him on pins and needles. The truth of the matter was that he had no idea that Draco was still under his very nose, sent back to the Granger's. Lucius would never let on to the fact that he did know though, not even to Draco.
"Your confident in young Draco." Parkinson's sharp blue eyes cut through him.
"Of course I am. He will take care of this so-called legend, rest assured. I, like none of you, want to let down Lord Voldemort." Lucius looked over the room of fifteen death eater governors. "Shall we adjourn?" Lucius made his way for the door to re-enter the Death Eater meeting.
Draco stared hard at the paper in his hands it started to quiver and ink gathered in the corners veining its way into the middle leaving words in its path.
It is not he who's in the next room. You're safe for now but all to soon he'll come for you. Then what will you do? Draco stared with disbelief at the paper he said the words over and over again in his mind watching as the ink bleed black into the parchment.
'Well at least we're safe for the time being.' He thought to himself and turned to Hermione, only she wasn't there. Draco began to panic.
"Hermione!" He called. He head Crookshanks hiss in the next room He began to dread the worst, visions of some crazy wizards standing over a blood soaked Hermione flashed though his head.
"I'm in here!" She called. Draco took in a deep sigh of relief before fallowing her voice. It would be a bad thing for him to lose her after only a few minutes of officially 'Protecting' her.
"I was right. It was just Crookshanks, you should have listened to me. I don't know why you got all jumpy, it's not like you really." Hermione looked up from cleaning small splinters of glass out of the rug.
"He broke a lamp." She began to explain. "But I don't blame him really. I wonder what spooked him. Poor Crookshanks." Hermione swept the enormous ginger cat up in her arms and kissed his fat furry face. "Silly Draco thinking poor Crookshanks wasn't the one in here, what was he thinking? I knew it was you. Didn't I?" Hermione sweet-talked to the fur ball.
Draco had a look of disgust on his face. For once he would have agreed with Ron on something: that Crookshanks had to be the most horrid cat he had ever laid eyes on. Whatever Hermione saw seemed to be quite the opposite of what Crookshanks really was. The cat seemed to glare at him with its beady little eyes as Hermione stroked at his fluffy fur.
"What the hell." Draco managed out.
"Why were you so spooked yourself?" Hermione let go of Crookshanks as if he were a tiny tender kitten and stood.
"I wasn't spooked." He defended. 'Oh that was convincing.' Draco thought miserably to himself.
"Sure. Well either way will you go get me a bag to put all this glass in?" Hermione reached up and moved some loose hair away from her face. Draco nodded and went into the kitchen.
"Hold it open for me." She instructed when he returned with the sack. She moved the large pieced of what was left of the lamp into the bag. Draco's mind, as it had been quite frequently now, was off in another world. He had tons of things he needed to ask the scroll now that he knew how it worked. He felt the bag be taken from his hands.
"Draco?" Hermione waved a hand in front of his face. "Are you in there?"
"Get your hands out of my face you fil-" Draco quickly caught himself.
"What were you saying?" Hermione's eyes had teared up a little.
"Nothing.just, nothing. Look I have things I need to do." He retreated up the stairs.
After making sure the door to the guest bedroom was closed securely Draco unrolled the parchment on his bed putting his standard book of spells (grade six) and the Slytherin Quidditch playbook on wither sides so it would roll itself up. Deciding he'd better test the paper first he asked a question he already knew the answer to.
"Who am I?"
The ink returned.
Draco Malfoy is your name
Your blood is pure your family famed. Keeper of the heir you are To tell you more would be to far.
Draco had to take a double take at the last two lines of the rhyme. He quickly asked another question as the ink faded away.
"What heir am I keeper to?" His voice was frantic.
The Heir of what, you need to know
Only she can tell you so.
The papers rhymes were beginning to wear think on Draco's nerves. He tried to make since of everything he knew he knew so far. He knew that he had to protect Hermione, he didn't know why still. The paper had told he was the keeper of an heir but to what was unknown.
"When I asked what heir it said to ask a She." Draco pieced all the parts together out loud. "If Hermione is the heir do I just ask her? Dumbledore made it quite clear that I had to be discreet about it all." Draco roughly ran his fingers though his hair in thought.
"Is Hermione the heir?" He spoke clearly to the paper. It of course was a long shot that the paper would just out and out tell him but at this point anything was worth a try.
Hermione Granger fair and true
Born from Muggles through and through Legend in her blood of old Family lines cannot be told The heir of something she may be Protect her and you shall see.
The ink lingered longer then normal. Things were making a littler more since now, not much but a little was better then none at all. Draco sighed; he decided to ask a more personal question, one that had bothered him since his ride with Dumbledore.
"Did I make the right choice? I mean that was it right for me to come back here and leave my father?" The ink seemed to be slower coming in onto the page. Draco waited anxiously straining to make out what he could of the green blur. He could make out the second word 'Father' in the writing, which was now getting thicker.
More words were coming into view now. Slytherin, father, finish and Granger were among the few that he could make out. Just when almost everything was becoming legible there came a loud knock on his door.
Draco quickly reacted throwing the books off of his bed and shoving the parchment into his trunk. He'd have to find out the answer to his question later on.
Hermione peeked in just as he stood upward from locking his trunk.
"What are you doing?" She entered his room all the way.
"Studying, what does it look like? I figured I better get started early if I want to beat you in the O.W.L.s, which I will by the way." He said smugly. Hermione let out a quick "Ha!" to his comments.
"I don't think there's anything about Quidditch on the test Draco." She held up the playbook.
"Give me that. The last thing I need is you to go telling Potter all of my masterful plans and plays." He snatched it from her.
"I wouldn't do that! That's cheating. Besides Harry doesn't need to know your plays to beat you, he does that pretty well on his own, don't you think?" Draco and Hermione exchanged hard glares. "I don't even understand any of this gibberish." She looked at the cover of the green book. Annabelle Walters, a particularly beautiful Slytherin seventh year, stuck her tongue out at Hermione after blocking a speeding quaffel on the cover of the book.
"Either way, I don't want you touching it." He threw the book onto his desk. Annabelle gave Draco a look of shock from being tossed and almost fell off of her broom.
"Don't you trust me?" Hermione raised an eyebrow.
"Only sometimes." Draco snorted.
"Your not angry about what I said about Harry, are you?" She could tell that she had hit a nerve when she said something about Harry being better then him. They had been competing for six years now.
"No, why should I be jealous of him? I won him last Quidditch match." It was true. They had both been equal in Quidditch and the Slytherin and Gryffindor games were always the most packed. Not only did the Slytherins and Gryffindors show up but the other houses did as well.
"You do seem a little uptight about it though." Hermione eyed him.
"No I don't." He let out in a defendant tone.
"Oh poor you, If it make you feel any better I'll make sure I root for you next Quidditch game, even if I have to root against my own team." She smiled at him. Draco looked at her a little skeptical.
"Oh common, lighten up."
"Fine. Will you wear Silver and Green?" Hermione bit her lip at his request.
"Deal." She held out her hands and shook with Draco.
"And a large hat and glasses to hide who I am." She mumbled.
"What was that?" Draco turned on her.
"Oh nothing, just planning out my next Quidditch outfit." She smiled cheekily at him. He gave her a sideways glance trying to size her up.
"So." He slipped out the door hoping Hermione would quickly fallow suit. "What have you got planned for us today?"
Hermione scanned the room quickly before she fallowed and answered him. "Well I wasn't sure. We only have one last assignment remember we both decided that Christmas would count as our free choice?" She stopped behind him. Draco thought a moment.
"Remember?" Hermione said a little louder thinking that Draco was in a daze.
"Oh. Oh yeah! Glad that's out of the way, so what's next again?" He turned to her. "Just a popular muggle place." Hermione shrugged.
"All right, lead the way." Draco waited for her to make a move.
"Well you see I haven't though of a place yet." She grabbed his hand and led him downstairs.
"I wouldn't mind going back to the London Eye." Draco said quickly.
"Draco." There was warning in Hermione's voice. He looked at her like he hadn't said anything bad.
A loud hoot caught both of their attentions.
"Oh hello again Surnia." Hermione said recognizing the sleek owl. Draco's breath caught in his throat. Surnia held out her claw and Hermione quickly untied it. Surnia looked up for some gratitude.
"Upstairs with Pseudo." Draco ducked as Surnia flew past his head to get some food and rest.
"It's for you." He took it from her. "I figured this much. Well I'm going to go read this and you think of something for us to do.
Draco went upstairs the letter clutched in his hand. He already knew it was from his father and that couldn't be a good thing. Not this time at least. He quickly tore open the seal, as he stood in the hall upstairs.
Draco.
I suppose Dumbledore thinks he's terribly cleaver sweeping you off like this. Don't think that I don't know where he's swept you off to. You aren't safe yet. You must have realized by now that you made a mistake going with Dumbledore. This is partly my fault, I thought you would have had the since to tell Dumbledore that you didn't want anything to do with him or his ludicrous muggle projects.
I have other plans for you that you need to begin work on. Something has surfaced that affects our whole family's well being as well as many of your Slytherin households family's. There is an heir that is in our Lord's way and whom ever this heir is in the way of his reign Your job, son, is to find out who this is and put a stopper in their life no matter what.
I know you wont let me down. You wouldn't dare.
Lucius S. Malfoy
Draco scanned the letter again. Lucius' last threat sent a chill down his spine. He could almost hear the words hissing out of his father's mouth as he read them.
"Heir.our school?" Draco's earlier thoughts had been confirmed now. "Hermione, it has to be her. I have to kill her?" Draco put his forehead down on the open letter on his desk. Before the idea of an excuse to kill any mudblood would have been music to his ears. His father always held him back (though it made him proud) when Draco had barely mentioned bringing harm to a Mudblood at the school. Draco now had his chance and he still ached to take it but not against Hermione. Any mudblood but Hermione.
"I can't."
Ah-ha. Wonderful, I've finished it. (Okay, so its been finished I've been waiting on a beta reader) Anyways I'm not abandoning this story I'm just taking my sweet precious time with it! LOL Hope you've enjoyed. Harry Potter and the COS comes to DVD and Video on April 11. JOY! I can't wait to see the extra scenes. There better be some Draco-ie goodness. Thanks for reading and (I hope) reviewing! Takanori
To those who reviewed:
Risquer: Thanks a ton for always reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!!
Jozii: I've uploaded. Unfortunately not as quickly as I would have liked! Hope you enjoyed this chapter and the ones to fallow! Thanks for your review.
Samson: Thanks, it took me a while to come up with it. What a dork I am! :D Anyways, thank you for reviewing and I hope your looking forward to more chapters.
TriGemini: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it! Sorry about the cliffhangers (I hate those) but sometimes I can't help but put them! Thanks for reviewing!
Ravyn Nyte: Haha! I hoped people would think that! Sorry that it seems to take me forever to get these things up. It's taking me a while but the story must go on. I love my Draco/Hermione lovin'! Thanks for reviewing!
Akina: Okay! Sorry that you couldn't go on to chapter nine, now you can! Thanks for reviewing!!
Cavaradossi: Wow, I never knew that it meant something false but I like the idea of that much more then it being the first name in the scientific name of a flower. Sue-doe sounds better too, I was just guessing, honestly. Thanks for reviewing.
Emote Rellish: Thank you for adding it to your favorite list! Sorry that I've kept you waiting so long! Thanks for reviewing!
Ragcey: Sorry it took so long! Thanks for reviewing!
Reanne080: Im curious to see where it goes too, I've narrowed it down to two endings and I'm not sure which way I'm going to go with it. It should be good though either way. :D Thanks for reviewing!!
Hobbit shortness: Hope you are just as excited about this chapter as you were the last one! Hope you have another great day too! Sorry my updating is few and far between! Thanks for reviewing!
Jozii: Again? Hum. Well thanks again for reviewing! Gum-Addict: (I can relate) Here's more and I hope you like it! I am going to tell more about Christmas in a "side-dish" as I like to call it. So make sure to keep an eye out for it! Thanks for the review!
Kadama: Mystery, yay! Thanks I tried not to rush Draco or Hermione into anything. Hope you enjoy this chapter and thanks for reviewing!!
Karly: Thanks, I'm beging to hate the letter because now I've made it tell him everything in rhymes.which can get quite annoying. Rambling to myself helps me think sometimes, SO when I get going I just let it go. This story is a product of my rambling XD Keehee. Anyway, thank you for your review!
Witch Green Eyes: Thanks I like this chapter more then the last, hope you will to. Sorry for killing you with suspense. I'll check out your story when homework allows. Thanks for reviewing!!
Cinnamon-eyes: Here's more! Thanks for putting up with my lack of fast posts! Thank you also for reviewing!
Lil-Spitfire: You will soon find out all the wonders of Draco's Magical Christmas Kahaha. I liked making Draco's mom nice, she seems like she should be nice and that she really only putting out a front to make her husband happy. Thanks for the review!!
MeggieBaby81: Thanks, hope you keep loving it! Thanks for the review!!
Alexis McLean: I have! I hope you haven't passed on yet, if so read and review from heaven if you can. I'll be sure to attend you wake and let everyone know it was all my fault. Thank you for the review!
Paper Star: (yay!) I tried sending this to you but I was having trouble so the next one you have full reign to pick over! XD My Internet sucks! Anyway, thanks for still taking the time to review and for helping me out through this! Look out for my side-dish Christmas! Thanks for everything!
Wormmon ABC: LOL I didn't forget you, here you are! Thank you so much for reviewing (like always!) Hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Couch-Potato01: Isn't it? Thanks for reviewing!!
Hedwig7up: Have you had that DNL stuff yet? You name reminded me of it suddenly. Anyway sorry this took forever, I hope you're still reading!! Thanks for reviewing!!
Plastic: This chapter is pretty long! I hate it when the chapters of some stories are like only three paragraphs! It drives me nuts! Roar. Me sadistic, never.XD Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter and thanks for reviewing!!