A/N Sorry, this was supposed to be out sooner, but I had to go and get sick (ugh), so progress was delayed.  But, it's finally here :) Ok, no mutilation since those who didn't want it were firmly against it and those that thought it would be ok said they didn't mind either way, so I'm just not gonna put it in.  Either way, it didn't matter to me but I figured I'd see what you guys thought.  There will continue to be mental abuse, though, I'll leave the physical for Lucius to take care of.  And, I upped it to PG-13 because you know what they say, better safe than sorry and all that...  Now, this is the chapter with Hermione in it, I promise this time.  Also, explanations of Draco's "training" are coming up, soon if not in this chapter.  I'm also thinking of doing a chapter focusing on Lucius' thoughts and another one on Narcissa's.  Well, what will come, will come.  Again "~~~~' " are scene separators and " ~* " indicate song lyrics.  I told you flashbacks would return and they have, indicated by "~~~~~" not to be confused with the scene separators.  Sorry if it's confusing, but Microsoft is out to get me.  The lyrics in this one are from "The Best Is Yet To Come" by SR-71.  I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter and I hope this one is good as well.... Replies and then the story....

Blacksnow: Thank you very much!  It feels so nice for people to actually like this, being my own worst critic and all.  I'm glad you like that part, because I didn't want to turn Draco pure white or anything.  I adore his dark side and, as long as it's not hurting anyone, feel it's a valuable part of his character.  Thank you again :)

Ms. Padfoot: Thank you for reviewing!  As I said, I have ideas for either path, so it made a little difference to me what people decided.  I understand what you mean, too, about the characters.  I've read some mutilation stories and like them (Such as Struggle), but I do admit it's nice to have characters that are apart from those things.  Anyway, I'm glad you like how this is going, I love hearing what people think :)

Autore Kozoma: Thank you for reviewing! Well, I won't be using the self-abuse, physical anyway, but I love Draco with dragons also.  Thank you for you opinion, maybe I'll eventually do a fic that does involve the burning since it's kind of on my mind, but it won't be this on.  I laughed after I read over and understood the "drag on" comment, I like your English teacher, lol :)

Cinnamon: Thank you for reviewing! How could I not?  I really liked it and mentioned it here since it dealt with the same things my story does :)  I'm very happy you updated and hope you do again soon.  Perfect?  You're way too kind, but thank you very much.  I like when Draco turns nice but I also love his darker side so much that there's no way I could have erased it completely from him.  Ah, yes, patience is a virtue.. one I don't have either :) I like Hermione's character a lot, if you ever think she (or anyone, and this goes for all reviewers) is way OOC, please tell me. Much as I adore Draco, I thought it was great when she slapped him, absolutely perfect.  I mentioned before about not doing the mutation but, as I told Autore, I may do another one with it, even if it's just a chapter just to get it out of my head.  I think cutting in stories is fine, it's just that burning stuck to me for some reason.  Your welcome about your story, but it was really nothing.  It's a great story and I hope you update quickly :)

Darcel: Thank you for reviewing! There will be no mutilation, not in this story anyway :)  I'm glad you liked the chapter and hope this one proves just as pleasing :)

~*You see yourself being so small
Running into every brick wall*~

No one would believe them if they told anyone, most would believe they were crazy.  But the fourth year group of Ravenclaws talking in the library knew what they saw, and they saw Draco Malfoy walk right into a bookcase.  It really didn't make sense to them, though.  People who walk into things are people who aren't paying attention, who are daydreaming and letting their mind wander.  But Draco was always in control, he didn't space out, didn't randomly stare at walls.  His eyes were always straight ahead, ready to meet anything.  Unfortunately, this time what they met was hard wood, up close and personal. 

The cluster of Ravenclaws, made up of both males and females, looked at each other for a moment in shocked silence.  All tried to bite down the threatening smiles, but it really was a losing battle.  The first spurt of laughter escaped from somewhere in their circle and, after that, there was no holding it back.  Not even the deadly glares from Madam Pince could quell it.  After all, how many times did one get a chance to see the great Malfoy being clumsy?

~*It's not as far as you can go
The road is twisting turning*~

Draco stepped back from the bookcase, a bit confused.  Did he just walk into it?  Impossible.... wasn't it?  He would have noticed... wouldn't he?

"You were too busy contemplating how alone you are" chimed in the voice with a harsh laugh.

Damn, that bothersome noise was right.  He hadn't been paying any mind at all to where he was going, was lucky he'd even ended up at the library. 

"Can you believe it?" the phrase was choked out between giggles from a Ravenclaw named Krissy.

That got Draco's attention and he became aware that their amusement was at his expense.  "Just ignore it, walk further in, where you can be alone", he instructed himself softly.

~*A life is living learning*~

"You're just going to let them laugh at you?  Pathetic", now it sounded very much like his father.

Just as the Slytherin was about to tell his head to go to hell, he caught another snippet  from the group's conversation.

This time, it was a boy named Jake, "Too bad Harry, Ron and Hermione aren't here, can you imagine how much they'd love this?"

That did it.  Draco spun around and graced them with the most Malfoy look he could muster, which turned out to be quite the frightening sight.  The laughter halted immediately and, after a few garbled attempts at some sort of comment, they fled.  "Imbeciles", he mumbled, looking around for somewhere to hide.. er... work.

"Much better".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~'

~*There's so much more for you to know*~

Apparently, banging his head wasn't enough for Draco to remember to take in his surroundings better.  As he searched for an isolated area, his thoughts wandered once again.  He really had to get a hold of himself, this just wasn't who he was.

"And who exactly are you?"

Draco ground his teeth in response.

"That's what I thought".

"Well, I don't have to worry about Father dearest killing me, I'll do it myself", he managed not to speak out loud this time, but kept the comment in his head.  What was he to do?  Usually when people bothered him, he used his intimidation skills to scar the offender for life.  It worked on everyone, with the exception of the 'three Musketeers'.  However, now it was his own mind that was driving him crazy, how could he fight himself?  What kind of person let such things control them?  "Maybe Father's right and I am uselessly weak", he thought darkly.

"Oh, are we going to sulk now?  Have we forgotten we aren't five anymore?"

"Even when I was 5 years old, I wasn't five and I'm damn well not being it now".

~*If you could lock the past away
Step back through the doorway*~

Wonderful, absolutely brilliant, now he was have debates with the voice that lived in his head.  "I'm crazier than Harry".

"You called him Harry", it called out in a singsong.

~*This ride has just begun
If I could change your point of view
Is there someway I can show you*~

"Did not!" he contradicted in his head, knowing full well he had and furious over it.

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

Suddenly, everyone was staring at him again and Madame Pince's face was turning red.  Draco realized he must have yelled the last one out loud.  The whole library had seen him walk into a bookshelf and then argue with himself.  It was disgraceful, Malfoy's were not laughed at.  It was a direct quote from his father, said after Hermione had slapped him their third year and everyone had thought it hysterical.  Everyone but Lucius, that is.  Not even bothering with a spell that time, he'd used his bare hands to show how displeased he was.  Draco's left eye had swollen shut, one of the multitude of leftovers from the punishment. 

~*The best is yet to come*~

"There now, don't cry about it", sarcasm dripped from the sharp words.

Draco's startlingly blue eyes turned icier than they ever had before, making him look even more like his dear old dad.  He stared out, seeing nothing but his own thoughts, and a first year Hufflepuff in his line of vision literally ran out in terror.  "There now, don't cry about it"...the phrase kept repeating itself, in the same disgusted tone.  Unwillingly, Draco was sucked back to a few weeks before his Hogwarts letter came...

~~~~~~~Lucius was being particularly bad tempered lately, due to the fact that Draco's letter hadn't come yet.  He knew his son wasn't a squib.  Besides the fact that he was a Malfoy and part of one of the oldest pure blood families around, Lucius had, quite illegally, been teaching his son a few things and letting him use his father's wand.  There was also the fact of the accidental magic that kept popping up, especially when Draco was angry.  So, it was not that he worried his only son was not magic, but that Dumbledore might have found a reason to deny Draco.  The annoying old bat had always been rather suspicious of Lucius and may try to keep his son out.  The head of the Malfoy family was generally not so paranoid, but there had been rumors that Voldemort was finding a way to rise again and this worried him.  He wasn't entirely sure if he wanted his old Lord to return.  After all, Lucius had escaped Azkaban while many of the Dark Lord's followers had gone there willingly.  How would Voldemort react to the man's betrayal? 

~*Not every problem can be
Solved so easily*~

And thus it came to be that Lucius Malfoy was in a very bad mood.  This did not bode well for his wife or son.  Fortunately, said son was outside that day when the post came as his parents sat in front of the fire place.  Unfortunately, he also managed to come in just as his father picked it up, but managed to hide in the doorway to judge the atmosphere before entering.  The wizard began to feverishly look through it, searching for a certain envelope with a Hogwarts seal.  Just like all the days before, he didn't find it. 

~*Not every answer is the one
Above the flood of emotion*~

Narcissa happened to be sitting next to him and he rounded on her, "Did you say something to Dumbledore?!"

His wife was very confused and answered in her quiet voice, "About what, dear?"

Deep red anger marred Lucius' fair face and he backhanded her, causing the woman to grab her chair in order to not fall off, "Don't lie to me!  I knew you were trying to sabotage me!  What?  Did you mention how your husband was a loyal deatheater?  Or maybe how I'd been preparing Draco?  Why else would his letter not have arrived yet?!"

She took a deep breath, knowing quite well that no matter what she said, it would make no difference to her husband, "I'm sure it will come soon.  There's still plenty of--"

Another slap cut her off, "Deceitful bitch".  This time she couldn't catch herself and fell to the floor on her side. 

She closed her eyes and gave a resigned sigh.  He was much stronger than her, much bigger, much more cruel.  Narcissa Malfoy was no match for her husband and never had been.  A smirk formed on his face as he raised his leg, about to deliver the blow, when...

"NO!" Draco shot out from in the doorway and dropped to his knees next to his mother.

~*It's all about forward motion
Define your place in the sun*~

"Move, boy", Lucius ordered harshly.

"No", he repeated, a bit more shakily this time, "Leave Mum alone."

Narcissa took his hand, "Draco, honey, go to your room, please."

"I'm not leaving you", he squeezed her hand.  Usually, his father beat his mother out of his sight.  When he did see it, he was just too frightened to do anything.  However, Draco was tired of being a coward, this was his mother!

~*If you could lock the past away
Step back through the doorway*~

"Aww,, how touching", the sub-zero voice drawled, "Finally found some spine, have you Draco?"

The boy forced himself to meet his father's eyes, "Leave".

"Do not give me orders, child", he came closer.

"Get out of here!  Look at her!  You could kill her!"

~*This ride has just begun
If I could change your point of view*~

Lucius injected as much scorn as possible into his reply, "There now, don't cry about it.  You'll find certain people are", he flicked a glance to his wife, "expendable".

For a moment, Draco almost got up and left, almost ran and hid from the horrifying look on Lucius' face.

~*Is there someway I can show you*~

But, then he looked down at his mother, so small, so beaten down, so broken and that image pushed out his next, and admittedly foolish, words, "Do you think this makes you strong?  The fact that you're able to beat someone smaller than you, you're just a weak bully!" the snarl on the older wizard's face deepened and it really should have indicated that silence was the best option, however, "Did you ever think that maybe this is all your fault?  Mum isn't the one who became a deatheater, you are!  She's not the one that jeopardizing us, it's you and your greed!"

The next thing he knew, Draco was being thrown into the wall by a well placed kick by his father.  The last thing he heard before blacking out was his mother's screams.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~*The best is yet to come*~

Narcissa didn't come down for breakfast the next morning, Draco remembered, hadn't gotten up at all that day, as a matter of fact.  After a few minutes with his father, it was easy to piece together that the woman's extra harsh treatment was due to her son's interference.  He never tried to protect his mother again after that.

Sweat began to ooze from every pore, suddenly his arms and legs seemed to be falling out of place, and his eyes had gone to a soft, palest of pale blue. 

~*Try to hide
It's all inside*~

Head down, he hurriedly entered the first room he came too, sitting down without even looking around.  There was a painful tightening in his chest and his air supply lowered, as if his lungs were growing narrower.  The wall in front of Draco disintegrated into fuzzy, squiggly lines.  Everything was dim, then dark, almost black...

"It's called breathing".

~*You can find a place where the pain and guilt can fall away*~

The voice knocked him out of the panic attack and he did his best to slowly inhale, exhale, etc.  After a moment or two, the room became lighter and the wall built itself up again.  The teenager was now shaking slightly from the cold caused by air hitting the sweat, but he slowly pulled himself together.  Finally, he glanced around the room and found there was one other occupant: Granger, who was looking at him with a mixture of shock and worry. 

Of course, it just had to be her.  After cursing himself a few hundred times, Draco said the first thing that came to mind, "So, this is where you are."

The shock and worry began to recede as she saw he was okay, she decided to think about his state later and raised an eyebrow, "Looking for me?"

Damn her, "Of course not, Mudblood", he really did the haughty thing quite well, "Just figured you'd be off pleading with the Headmaster to save you from Snape."

Hermione's eyes flashed at the insult, "Unlike you, Malfoy, I actually take responsibility for my actions.  I won't be having the Headmaster, or my father", she couldn't help adding, "get me out of this."

A Lucius-like sneer came over his face, "Don't try to throw principles at me, Granger."

Her mouth dropped in sarcastic surprise, "You actually know what those are?"

~*If you're spitting truth*~

"Watch it".

Hermione told herself that she should just walk away, Malfoy wasn't worth the effort, she could be the bigger person.  Yet, it was as if the outburst in Potions had awakened something inside of her... something that didn't want to stay silent.  So, she faked intense fear and, almost in a whisper, responded, "What?  Going to sic your father on me?  Maybe some of his little deatheater friends?  Or are you one too by now?"

~*Bulletproof*~

"She does this rather well.  Can't believe you're losing a battle of wits to a Mudblood".

"Shut up", he answered his mind, then retorted to Hermione, "You should be more careful about making assumptions".

"Oh please", she rolled her eyes, "Face it, Malfoy, you are your father's son."

The "stay calm" chant in his head was blow away by her comment.  Draco jumped up, yelling, "I am not him, dammit!"

~*Crashing through the walls that separate me and you*~

"Oh yeah, real good job at the whole hiding emotions thing", the tone half bored, half sarcastic.

Again her mouth dropped, but in real surprise this time, "What's going on?" he opened his mouth but she stopped him, "Don't say it's nothing.  First I hear all sorts of shouts and laughter, then you come in here, even paler than usual, looking like you're going to faint.  Now, you're insulted at what would normally seem to you a compliment.  So, I repeat, what is going on?"

~*Now you'll find with everything you lose*~

"Why do you care, Granger?" he had resumed his arrogant stance and rose a brow much like she had earlier.

"Curiosity".

"Well, you are going to have to suffer.  Do you really think I'd share anything with such a filthy excuse for a witch as yourself?"

~*Your path clears with everything you choose*~

"Your father would be so proud". 

~*If you could lock the past away
Step back through the doorway
This ride has just begun*~

The comment made Draco shudder internally, "Oh god, I am becoming him".

Hermione didn't notice him stiffen... she had had enough.  Gathering up her books, her brown eyes intently gazed into his artic ones and she said softly, but firmly, "You can't shut out the world forever, Draco", before leaving the tall blonde boy there, very confused.

~*Change your point of view
Is there someway I can show you
The best is yet to come*~

He stared at the door, what had just happened?

Sarcastic sweetness dominated the voice's answer, "She called you Draco".

~*Is there someway I can show you
The best is yet to come*~

Ok, what do you all think?  Please review and tell me if you liked it, hated it, what was good, what was wrong and anything else.  The Hr/D thing will start out with friendship and proceed from there.  I was going to have them have a semi civil convo, but I think it's too soon, plus I love when they fight :)  It won't be easy, what with Draco's trust issues and etc, but that's where the fun is.  I'm going to try to make Snape someone that he can trust.  I don't know how well that will work out though, so we shall see... :)