Chapter 7 – Draco Malfoy
Time passed quickly for Harry and Ginny. With the completion of their staffs the class time they spent with Christopher was used primarily for potions. Caitlyn would often join her husband on his trips to the castle helping with their lessons or just quietly observing. The four of them usually enjoyed dinner in Harry and Ginny's common room over casual conversation. The group had become very close very quickly.
Weekends were more often than not spent at Christopher and Caitlyn's house. Harry and Ginny loved their comfortable country home which while much nicer and more modern than the Burrow had the same welcoming, homey feel to it. They spent hours exploring the grounds with Icess who had become very attached to the pair.
It was a Hogsmeade weekend, the last before the winter holidays which would begin at the end of the following week and rather than spend their time in the country Harry and Ginny had decided to go to the small wizarding village with their classmates to do some last minute holiday shopping.
They were walking down the street on their way to a small out of the way curio shop when they were grabbed and pulled into a side alley. Drawing their wands Harry and Ginny spun around to find themselves facing a small blond woman and Draco Malfoy. The feelings brought on by the potion came rushing forward their intensity multiplied several times in Draco's presence. Harry and Ginny quickly took hold of each others hands in an effort to fight the urges that were trying to take control and though they dimmed considerably in their intensity they did not go completely away.
"Malfoy!" Harry exclaimed.
Draco stood in front of them with his hands raised trying to make it clear he wasn't a threat. "I'm sorry." he said.
Harry and Ginny both looked confused. "What?" Harry asked.
"I said I'm sorry. I know you'll probably never be able to forgive me for what I tried to do but I'm sorry. I found out what happened after I left you're compartment on the train and brought you something that I hoped might help."
Harry and Ginny stiffened their wands still pointing at Draco's chest as he reached in his pocket and removed a beaker filled with a light blue potion and a shrunken book and handed them to Ginny.
"I took these from my father's potions lab where I got the two potions I was trying to use on you. That's the memory potion. There isn't anymore of the amorous potion but that book is probably what he made it from. It's filled with all the dark amorous potions."
"Why are you doing this?" asked Harry.
Draco sighed. Reaching behind him to the blond woman who had been standing quietly he took her hand and pulled her forward to stand beside him. "Allow me to introduce the only real friend I've ever had and my girlfriend Amy Richards."
"Hello." she said offering her hand which Harry and Ginny both shook in turn. "I've heard a lot about you, I'm sorry for the way he's acted over the years and for what you're going through now. I can't say I was very pleased when he told me what he'd done."
Harry and Ginny both nodded returning their attention to Draco as he continued.
"Amy's a muggle."
Their eyes opened wide and their jaws dropped at the revelation causing Draco to grin.
"I know, never saw that coming did you?" Draco laughed surprising Harry and Ginny again having never heard or even imagined Draco could laugh. "I'm sure you heard all about my escape right?"
"Yes, you faked your death and used an animagus form to escape from the morgue as we understand it." Harry said.
Draco was nodding. "That's right. My animagus form is a raven so after I woke up I flew out through the owl window and away from the Ministry. Unfortunately I was still messed up from the potions and got lost. Eventually I was too tired to fly anymore and landed in some woods but crashed and broke my leg because I was so tired and out of it. Just before I passed out I saw someone standing above me."
The sun was cresting the hills in the distance as Amy left her small home and entered the forest whose border it sat against carrying a small basket she always used when she collected berries. She hummed softly to herself as she wandered past various bushes carefully picking the berries she had come to enjoy as part of her breakfast.
As she rounded a group of trees she noticed someone lying on the forest floor in the distance and went to investigate. Nearing the figure she found a handsome blond man who appeared to be in pain lying in a heap on the ground, his left leg bent in a place where it shouldn't have been. Looking at this face she caught a glimpse of slate grey eyes before they closed as the young man passed out.
After debating for several minutes on what to do Amy set down her basket. Running further into the woods she quickly found two long branches and two shorter ones and brought them back to the young man. Very carefully she removed the funny black cape type garment he was wearing and tore several long strips of cloth from the bottom edge. Using the utmost care she straightened his leg and used the short sticks she had collected and the strips of cloth to create a temporary splint for his injury. After securing his leg into position she wrapped his cloak around the two larger limbs forming a make shift stretcher.
Amy rolled the man on to his right side and slid the stretcher underneath him. She then rolled him onto his back so that he was now lying on her creation. The man was heavy for a small girl like her to carry but fortunately she didn't have very far to go and by taking several breaks she managed to drag him to her cabin.
After dragging him inside she left him on the living room floor and took a seat on her couch to catch her breath. As she rested she took in the sight of the young man, he appeared to be a few years younger than her. His hair was a fine blond and his skin a bit pale, his features and dress seemed to say aristocrat but it appeared he'd had a rough time of it lately. His clothes were a bit unusual, they were nice and made from expensive materials but they seemed oddly out of date and who wore cloaks of the type she had found him in?
Finally rested she roused from her musings needing to take care of the young man she had brought into her home. After a quick internal debate she decided to take care of his leg before waking him. As she collected the items she would need she thanked her parents for convincing her to become a nurse.
It didn't take Amy long to set the break and she cleaned up her mess while the plaster cast was drying. Once it was ready she snapped a small vial of smelling salts in half and waved it under his nose.
Draco's eyes shot open at the horrid scent wondering what was happening to him. As he looked up he found a young blond woman sitting next to him and pulled away in panic. As he did so his leg shifted causing him a great deal of pain.
"Calm down its ok. I'm just trying to help." Amy said softly in a caring voice. Her bedside manner had been perfected while she was going to nursing school.
"Who are you?" Draco asked with a small amount of panic in his voice.
"My name's Amy. I found you in the woods behind my house. Your leg was broken so I brought you here to mend it."
Draco looked down at his leg for the first time and gasped at the sight of the large plaster cast that surrounded it. "What's that?"
Amy was surprised at his question but answered. "That's a cast. It will keep your bones in the correct position while they heal."
The young aristocrat was confused. Why didn't this woman just give him some skele-gro? A quick look around the cabin gave him his answer. Looking back at her in shock he blurted out, "You're a muggle!"
Confusion clouded Amy's features. "What's a muggle?"
Draco realized he had made a mistake. He was disgusted at the thought of being stuck with this muggle but didn't seem to have a lot of options right now with a broken leg and no wand. "It's… I mean… Oh, never mind." he grunted out crossing his arms.
Amy decided to let it go for now. "What's your name by the way?"
"Draco." he replied looking up at the young woman. For the first time since he woke he was calm enough to take in her appearance. He found she was strikingly beautiful with blond hair just a little bit darker than his own, light blue eyes and soft curves. He felt immediately attracted to her but shivered inside as he remembered she was a muggle.
"It's nice to meet you Draco." she said offering her hand to him.
After a brief handshake Amy continued. "So, how did you come to be in the woods with a broken leg?"
Draco thought quickly he sure as hell couldn't tell her he had escaped from a wizarding jail or from any jail for that matter but he also needed her to let him stay at least until he healed. Placing a look of sorrow on his face he began to weave his story deciding to keep it short and simple. "I ran away. My father isn't very nice and… and…"
Amy leaned forward placing a hand on his shoulder. "It's ok, you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." she said softly.
Draco nodded smiling internally at his cleverness. Looking back at her he felt an unexpected pang of remorse for his lies or rather his withholding of information as he continued. "You won't contact him or make me go back will you?" he pleaded.
She sighed not really knowing what she should do. "I suppose you don't have to right away. You can't run from your problems forever though, you know?"
Smiling Draco thanked her. She helped him up and half carried him into her bedroom where she placed him on the small single bed that was there.
"I can't take your bed I should stay on the couch." he said. She may only be a muggle but he was a bit of a gentleman.
"Nonsense, your injured and you need your rest. Now lay down and I'll get you something to eat." Amy said firmly before leaving the room.
Draco sat on the edge of the bed shocked at what was taking place. All of the things he had been taught to believe in were being torn to bits by this beautiful muggle who was helping him for no apparent reason other than he needed her help.
He was lying on the bed when she returned with a tray with a simple breakfast of eggs, sausages, toast and juice. She set the tray to the side and propped him up with pillows before placing the tray across his lap and taking a seat next to him.
Draco looked at the food longingly but couldn't bring himself to eat in front of Amy when she didn't appear to be eating. Noticing his dilemma Amy spoke up with a small smile in place. "Go ahead. I ate while I was cooking."
With a nod Draco dug in surprised at how hungry he was after his ordeal. In between bites he managed a bit of conversation.
"Why are you helping me?" he asked first.
Amy shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. You looked like you needed it."
Draco was confused and a bit ashamed as he realized he had never helped anyone with anything just because.
"Where did you learn to do this?" he asked next indicating the cast on his leg.
"Nursing school." Amy replied. "I just finished and haven't found a job yet. I rented this cabin two weeks ago from my aunt while I look."
"You seem a bit young to be done with school."
"Well yes, I graduated early, my mum is a brilliant medical researcher and I guess I inherited a bit of her smarts. What about you? What do you do?"
"I'm still going to school. Not for anything specific, I'm not really sure what I want to do."
Amy nodded and they continued to talk for a long time before Amy insisted he get some rest.
Several weeks passed and Draco had managed to become very good friends with Amy. It had taken him a while but thanks to this wonderful girl he had finally come to realize that muggles were not the vile and evil creatures that he had been raised to believe they were.
Draco and Amy were sitting on the couch in the living room listening to the radio and chatting about nothing important when she placed her hand on his. He felt electricity flow through him at her touch and looked up to find her looking back. All conversation between them stopped as their eyes met and they began to lean towards each other.
As their lips touched the world around them dissolved leaving nothing behind but the two of them. Draco had never felt anything as amazing as this before and even though she was a muggle the only word he could think of to describe the soft kiss was magic.
Without warning Draco pulled back breathing heavily abruptly ending the kiss before it could deepen further.
"I… I'm sorry Draco. I…" Amy said with a shaky voice tears beginning to form in her eyes at the thought of being rejected by the man she had come to have strong feelings for.
"No." Draco replied placing his fingertips on her lips to stop her from continuing. "It's not you, it's me." He moved his hands from her lips running his thumb along her cheek before pulling away and looking at the floor in front of them not sure if he could hold her gaze as he told her the truth. "I haven't been completely honest with you."
"Draco." she began but he shook his head.
"Please, let me finish." he said looking back at her. "I just hope you don't hate me and aren't afraid of me when I'm done. You probably won't believe me anyway."
Draco was reassured when she grasped his hand and he returned the gesture placing his other hand over hers. Taking a deep breath he looked her in the eye. "I'm a wizard."
Amy sat quietly for several seconds waiting for the punch line only to find there wasn't one. "What?" she said.
"I said I'm a wizard."
"What do you mean wizard?"
"I mean wizard as in witches and wands and flying brooms. I can do magic."
Amy looked at him incredulously her upset at being rejected slowly changing to anger. "Look Draco," she said as she released his hand and stood up, "if you don't like me like I like you then fine but don't give me this crap about you being a wizard, I think after all I've done for you the least you could do is be honest with me. I think I deserve at least that much from you."
Draco wanted to cry. He felt like he was loosing the only thing he had ever truly cared about in his life but he had to tell her the truth. He knew they could never truly be together until he did and keeping this important part of his life from the only person who had ever cared about him was killing him. For better or worse he decided to push forward.
"I can prove it." he said softly.
Amy crossed her arms as she looked angrily back at Draco. "Oh, I suppose you're going to wave your wand and turn the couch into a tree or something right?" she said with no small amount of skepticism in her voice.
Draco's voice was quite and calm though tinged with nervousness as he replied. "No, my wand was taken away from me. But I can still do a bit of magic without it that will prove with out a doubt what I've just told you."
"Well? Go on then, let's see it."
He sighed and nodded hoping she would still at least still want to be his friend after this. "Don't be scared, ok?"
Without waiting for a response he concentrated and with a small pop instead of Draco Malfoy sitting on the couch in Amy's living room there was a small raven.
Amy raised her hand to her mouth and gasped her eyes opening wide in shock at what she had just witnessed. A moment later there was another pop and Draco sat back on the couch grimacing in pain as he reached for his leg.
"Y… You… You…" Amy began to stutter not quite knowing what to think.
Draco nodded. "I'm a wizard."
"Magic's real? You really have a magic wand?" she asked as the initial shock began to wear off.
Once again Draco nodded. "Yes magic's real. As I said my wand was taken away or I would show you more there's not a lot I can do without it. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner but the wizarding world is kept secret from the muggles and there are laws that say I can get into big trouble for telling you."
"Muggles, you called me that when you first came here. What does that mean?"
"It's what we call non-magical people." Draco watched as she nodded in understanding. He began to get worried as her eyes glazed over, her mind drifting off into thought.
"I'm sorry." Draco said the sadness in his voice clear, "I'll leave you don't want me here anymore."
As he tried to get up from the couch he felt Amy's hand on his shoulder pushing him back down. He was surprised when she didn't remove it instead sitting down beside him.
"It's not that Draco, I don't want you to leave it's just a lot to take in all at once you know?"
Draco nodded in understanding as she continued. "I understand why you didn't tell me this but I feel like I don't really know you now. What else haven't you told me?"
He took another deep breath. Telling her about magic had been hard for him to do he was surprised she didn't kick him out or run away from him. He was even more worried about revealing his one lie to her even if it had only been a lie of omission but once again felt he had to be honest with her.
"I… I lied to you about why I was in the woods the day you found me." he said quietly, "Well, I didn't actually lie, but I led you to believe I ran away from my father. That's not what happened; my father is in a wizarding prison. The day you found me I had escaped from a jail cell in the Ministry of Magic. I was angry at a wizard named Harry Potter who put my father into prison. He's my age. There's a train that takes us to and from school each year and during the ride I broke into the compartment he was in with his girlfriend Ginny Weasley and froze them. While they couldn't move I was going to give an amorous potion to his girlfriend and after she left him for me I was going to give a potion to Harry to erase his memory so he wouldn't remember what I did. Before I could a dog appeared in the compartment and attacked me. I was arrested shortly after."
Amy gaped at what she was hearing. The acts Draco was describing couldn't possibly have been committed by the man she had come to care for. As she looked back at Draco she saw tears of sadness and regret streaming down his face.
"Draco how could you?" she asked softly.
Draco was crying now. "I'm so sorry. I wish I could take it back. I never had a real friend until I met you, never had anyone who really cared about me. I was raised to think I was better than everyone else and to hate muggles. I was raised to join the Dark Lord who Harry's fighting against. I'm so sorry Amy, please don't hate me. Please."
Amy sighed, she was shocked and confused. She knew she cared for him regardless of what he'd done and she just couldn't believe that the man she'd come to know over the past several weeks was capable of doing these types of things.
"I don't hate you Draco I just don't know what to think right now. You have to admit this is a lot to take in all at once." she said directing a small grin at Draco as she moved her hand from his shoulder to take hold of his hand.
Draco sniffed and smiled slightly at her gesture returning it with a tight squeeze. "Thank you. I don't know what I'd do if I thought you hated me."
"Maybe you should start at the beginning. Tell me about growing up, going to school, Harry Potter and whatever else you think you should. Make me understand what it means to be you."
Draco smiled and nodded silently thanking whatever gods had brought Amy into his life. After taking a minute to collect his thoughts he began. He told her about his family and the way his parents, particularly his father, treated him as a child. He told her of gifts and punishments of parties and the people who attended them. He told her of Crabb and Goyle and a few others whom he had thought were his friends before he knew what a real friend was. He was getting ready to tell her about Hogwarts when they noticed the time.
"It's late we should probably get some sleep." Amy said.
Draco agreed and was helped back to the bedroom. He felt a flutter in his stomach as she said goodnight and kissed him on the cheek before leaving him to get some rest.
The next morning Amy greeted Draco with another kiss on the cheek and they ate breakfast in relative silence. After cleaning the dishes Amy helped him to the couch in the living room to continue his tale.
Draco began with his first trip on the Hogwarts Express and continued with the boat ride to the castle. He then told her about his first meeting with Harry Potter right before they entered the Great Hall for the opening feast and of being rejected. That rejection had been the start of a rivalry that had culminated in his incarceration but he realized Harry was not to blame and he let Amy know this.
He told her of his first year and the events with Harry and the Sorcerer's Stone as he knew them. Next came the second year and what he knew of the Chamber of Secrets and Harry's part in that drama. He continued on telling her everything he could think of not once trying to smooth over the less glamorous details of his past.
They talked for hours going over his third year and what he knew of Harry's godfather Sirius Black. He told her about the tri-wizard tournament and the return of the Dark Lord Voldemort. His fifth year was next where he described what he knew of the Department of Mysteries incident, the death of Harry's godfather and his father's role and subsequent incarceration. Finally he told her of his building hatred for Harry over the summer and the events that led up to his arrest ending with his escape and arrival in the woods behind Amy's cottage.
Amy's mind reeled as he regaled her with stories of giants, dragons and unicorns. Of flying brooms and monsters, giant castles with lakes filled with creatures from story books, of magic. She sat still for a long while after Draco finished his story processing the mountain of new information before turning to face him.
"Draco, before I say anything I want you to promise me you'll stay here, at least for a while longer."
Draco nodded though he was more than a little bit worried at the tone she was using. "Ok, I promise."
"First I'd like to say that I don't entirely blame you for your actions. Clearly you didn't have the best of role models or most loving of homes but that's not exactly an excuse is it?"
Shaking his head no he looked down feeling about two inches tall.
"I also think the way you've treated Harry over the years is inexcusable though I think you realize that."
Once again Draco nodded ashamed of how he had acted in the past.
"I guess what I want to know is what you plan on doing about it?"
Draco sat wringing his hands as he answered. "I need to apologize to Harry and Ginny for what I did, but especially to Harry. After that I guess I need to turn myself in to the Ministry."
Amy smiled sadly and pulled him into a hug. "I think your right. Maybe if Harry realizes you're serious about this he'll help you out a bit but I would expect you'll have to go away for awhile."
"I know."
"Whatever happens I'll be there for you if you want me too." Amy said much to Draco's surprise.
"You will?" Draco said his voice laced with hope.
Amy leaned forward and placed a light kiss on his lips. "I will."
Harry and Ginny were in shock listening to the story Draco was telling them. Who would ever have guessed Draco Malfoy would fall for a muggle or that it would be this good for him.
"Eventually I asked Amy to be my girlfriend which she thankfully accepted, my leg healed and the cast came off then she started helping me build the muscle back up. I knew this was the last Hogsmede visit before the holiday and hoped you'd be here so I went to Malfoy Manor to get those things to help you. Really I just wanted to tell you both I'm sorry for what I did and sorry for the way I've treated you since first year."
They had all sat on the crates that littered the alley way while Draco was telling his story. Amy was sitting next to Draco holding his hand with a proud look on her face.
"So what are you going to do now Ma… Draco?" Harry asked.
Draco let out a slow breath. "Well, I guess I'm going to take Amy back to her home for the holidays and after turn myself in to the Ministry."
Harry and Ginny nodded not really sure what to say.
Silence reigned for several minutes as they all thought about the conversation they had just had. Finally Draco stood pulling Amy to her feet with him. Harry and Ginny followed suit a second later.
"Well," began Draco, "I'd just like to say I'm sorry one last time and wish you both Happy Holidays."
Harry and Ginny nodded again. "Happy Holidays to you too, it was nice to meet you Amy."
"It was nice to meet you both as well." she replied, a moment later Draco and Amy were gone having left through an exit at the back of the alley.
Harry and Ginny returned to the main street of Hogsmeade holding hands in a contemplative silence. Not really in the mood they quickly finished their shopping and returned to the castle heading for the dungeons and Severus Snape rather than their rooms.
As they entered the potions class room they found the door to the Professor's office open with him sitting at his desk grading essays. A look of disgust at the content of the student's papers was clearly etched across his face.
"Professor." Harry said as they approached his desk.
After several seconds Snape looked up from his work. "Potter. Weasley. To what do I owe the honor of your visit?"
Removing the potion and shrunken book from a pocket within her robe Ginny handed him the items. "We ran into Draco Malfoy in the village today. Apparently he heard about what happened to us and brought us these from his father's potions lab to help."
Snape's eyes opened wide as he realized what the items were and at the revelation that Malfoy was in Hogsmeade. "What happened?" he asked urgently.
Harry and Ginny sat in the seats in front of his desk and relayed the entire story.
Severus sat in silence for several long minutes when they had finished before speaking. "What are you're intentions concerning Mr. Malfoy?" he finally asked.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked curiously.
"I mean he appears to have been somewhat reformed by this muggle from what you have told me. Do you still intend that he should be sent to prison? Or do you believe a lighter sentence would be in order based on what you know?"
"Well, he did seem different from the Malfoy we've always known and I think he really was sorry for what he did but I can't exactly forget what he tried to do to Ginny." Harry said.
"I'm not sure what to think." Ginny added. "Like Harry said I think he really is sorry but what if Padfoot hadn't been there that day? Part of me wants to help him but another part of me say's he brought this on himself."
Snape nodded in understanding. "I would never suggest that he get off without punishment, he most certainly was in the wrong. Perhaps you should spend some time thinking about this. He won't be turning himself in until after the first of the year so you have plenty of time to decide. In the mean time I'll get to work on this book to see if we can narrow down the possibilities some more."
"Thank you Professor." Harry and Ginny both said as they left.
