disclaimer: not mine, don't sue!
The boy stood at the entrance of platform nine and three quarters surveying the scene before him. He was a very attractive person, gaining looks from the girls, and some of the boys, walking around him. He had brilliantly blonde hair, almost white in color, soft gray eyes, slightly pale skin, and a lean but well muscled body, thanks to many strenuous quidditch practices.
He was watching the teary goodbyes from a family standing nearby with a bored expression of distaste. He never could understand why families got so sappy about sending their kids to school. It wasn't like they'd never see each other again. While watching the little girl being squeezed to death, he felt very glad his mother never acted like that. Of course, his mother had never hugged him period, but the boy just told himself he wanted it that way. After all, he didn't like it when people touched him.
"Just look at all the muggle filth in here. It's disgusting," said a haughty, drawling voice from behind him. The boy turned around to face blonde man and woman standing behind him. They both wore expressions of disgust, and were sneering at the little girl and her parents. The father, who must have sensed them starring, glanced over at them. He stiffened when he saw the looks on their faces and quickly ushered his family toward the train. The boy's father snorted and looked down at his son.
"Now Draco, don't forget what we spoke of this summer. Next month you turn seventeen, and when you join the Dark Lord I expect you to deliver Harry Potter to us.
"Yes father," Draco answered, trying not to sneer while he said it. He had sneered this summer and told his father he wouldn't join Voldemort. Lucius Malfoy had been absolutely livid. He had punished Draco severely for speaking against his master and disobeying him.
"Draco, will you please come into my study. I need to discuss something very important with you."
Draco had been on his way up to his rooms to take a shower when his father had stopped him. Turning slowly, he faced his father and nodded slightly, setting his broom and quidditch supplies on the steps to leave for the house elves to take care of. Following his father into the study, Draco sat down on one of the grand leather chairs facing the large wooden desk, which his father was sitting behind.
They sat in silence for quit some time, just looking at each other politely. When Draco couldn't take the calculating look in his father's eyes any longer, he cleared his throat and broke the silence. "You had something important to tell me, sir?"
Lucius slowly nodded his head. "Yes, I was watching you outside. You're quite the quidditch player."
"Thank you."
"And your grades have been phenomenal. Second in your year. That's very good."
"Thank you," Draco said, feeling very confused. His father never told him he was doing well. In fact, just yesterday he had been berating him for coming in below a mud-blood know it all on his class marks.
"Now Draco, you'll be coming of age soon, and with all of your achievements, you've garnered the interest of someone very important. The Dark Lord as been asking many questions about you, and is very pleased with your progress. He can hardly wait for you to join his ranks."
Draco just sat there, dumb founded. He didn't want to join the Dark Lord. He had never told his father that, but he had always thought that he would have at least until he was out of school to come up with some plan to get out of it. Now he would only have a few months. He had to delay it. He just had to.
"But, father, wouldn't it be wise to wait until school is over to take the mark? I mean, Dumbledore might suspect…"
"That old fool? How many times have we been able to get our people past him and into the school? The Dark Lord himself has even been able to get into the school without him knowing. No, as soon as you are of age, you will take the mark."
"NO! I will NOT take the mark! I am a Malfoy; I will not bow before a lunatic half-breed! I will not make the same mistake you did," Draco yelled, standing up and slamming his fist on his father's desk.
"How dare you speak of our master like that? And how dare you disobey me. You will take the mark!"
"How dare I? You are the one the who should be asked that question. How dare you dirty our good name with the likes of Voldemort? We are purebloods! We do not cower before some foul creature who isn't even one of us. Voldemort should bow before us!" he sneered.
"ENOUGH! I will not let you speak of such treason! You will take the mark, and you will join us! Even if I do have to force you." Taking out his wand, Lucius pointed it at his son's chest. "Do you agree to follow my orders? Or do I need to persuade you?"
"I will not join you! I will not disgrace the name of Malfoy any more than you already have!"
"Very well. Crucio."
He couldn't remember much of what Lucius had done to him. All he could really recall was waking up in his bed with all but one of his wounds healed. His father had left him with a broken arm to 'remind' his of who he was. His arm still hurt.
After his father had finished with him, Draco had sworn to himself that he would make Lucius pay. As soon as he got to Hogwarts, he was going to speak with Dumbledore. In exactly one month, he was to be initiated as a deatheater. When that happened, he wouldn't fight his father or Voldemort. He would bide his time, making everyone believe he was a loyal deatheater, while acting as a spy for Dumbledore. And when the final battle came, he would make sure the good side won, and his father was destroyed.
Smirking at the thought of Lucius Malfoy being thrown into Azkaban, Draco made his way toward the train to find his friends. There was no guarantee that his father would stay in Azkaban, of course, he had already gotten out once before, but Draco was confident that he had enough information to put his father away for forever.
When he found his two cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, they were terrorizing the little muggle-born girl his father had been sneering at. Well, he thought, if I'm going to be one of the good guys, I might as well start now. Sighing, Draco made this way over to where Crabbe and Goyle were now throwing the little girl's toad back and forth between them. "Greg, Vin, give the little girl her toad back."
The two boys stopped what they were doing and stared at him. When they still didn't give the toad back, Draco sighed dramatically, took the animal from Crabbe's hands, and gave it back to the girl.
"Thank you, mister," she said, smiling widely and launching herself at him. Before he could say anything to stop he, the girl hugged him around the middle, and then took off running. Draco just stood where he was, shocked at what had happened. No one had ever dared to hug him without his permission before, especially not first year muggle-borns.
"Draco?" Greg's hesitant question brought Draco out of his thoughts. He turned around to find not only Crabbe and Goyle standing behind him, but his other two best friends as well. Blaise Zabini and Pansy Parkinson had arrived just in time to see some cute little first year girl hug Draco, and not get cursed for it either.
"What the hell was that about? Why'd that girl hug you?" Blaise asked, staring after the girl.
"Because I saved her toad from these two," Draco answered matter-of-factly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world for him to do. Pansy and Blaise just stared at him for a while, before Pansy finally managed to stop gaping and ask if she had heard right.
"Yes, you twit, you heard right. Vince and Greg were tossing the poor toad around and I made them return it."
"But why did you make them stop? She was a mudblood, and I thought you hated mudbloods."
Draco paused for a moment, contemplating whether or not it would be wise to tell his fellow Slytherins his plans to become a spy for Dumbledore. Sure, they were all spawns of evil, but so was he. And they were his best friends. His only friends, in fact. And if he found out they couldn't be trusted, all he'd have to do was obliviate them before they got the chance to go blabbing to their parents.
Nodding to himself, Draco turned back to his friends, who were still staring at him, obviously waiting for him to answer the question. Looking around to make sure no one was listening, he leaned in closer to them and said, "Something important happened this summer, but I can't tell you here. Let's go find a compartment." He turned around and walked to the train. On his way, he bumped into a fourth year Ravenclaw, and then shocked everyone listening by apologizing.
The Slytherins he had left standing just stared after him, not knowing what to make of this new Draco. It was true that now he wasn't acting like a complete prat, but what if his father found out? He would kill Draco if he ever found out that he was going around helping mudbloods and apologizing to people. Malfoys never apologized. Ever.
"Umm," Blaise started hesitantly, "maybe we should go find Draco before he does something even more crazy than he already has. That way, if his father finds out, he won't kill him too bad." Nodding in agreement, Pansy started off toward the train, followed by Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle.
Not too far off from where the Slytherins had been standing, Harry Potter stood with his friends and their families. He was staring after Draco and the others with a bemused expression on his face. He had been watching Draco since he had stepped through the barrier. He had seen the tension between him and his father, had watched in shock as Draco helped the little girl Crabbe and Goyle had been teasing, then had found himself smiling slightly at the expression on the blonde's face when the little girl had hugged him.
Harry could tell something was different about Draco this year. He knew it was pretty obvious that he had changed, geez, he had let some first year hug him, but there was more to it. It was the little things that Harry noticed. Like how he no longer sneered at everyone while he passed them, or the slightly wistful look in his eyes as he had watched the little girl and her parents. He had also seen the stark terror and blazing hatred on his face when Lucius had come up behind him. He had also started rubbing his arm while he spoke to his father, almost unconsciously, like he didn't know he was doing it.
They were things that most people wouldn't see, things that only someone who really knew the person would notice. And Harry knew Draco. After almost seven years of antagonizing each other, Harry had learned to always keep an eye on Draco. Like they always say, keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. At least, that's what he told himself he was doing. I mean, it's not as if I actually like watching the ferret. Sure, I'm gay, and sure, I like watching most guys, but not Malfoy. That's just wrong. (can anyone say DENIAL!)
Happy with his rationalization, Harry tuned back into the conversations around him. When he turned to answer a question from Ron, Harry noticed Hermione looking at him intently. When he raised an eyebrow at her, she just smirked knowingly and turned away. Shrugging to himself, Harry answered Ron's question. It wasn't unusual for Hermione to look as if she knew something no one else did. She knew lots of things he didn't, after all.
"So Harry, do you think we'll win the quidditch cup this year? I would love to see the look on Malfoy's face if we beat him again. It's hard to believe this is our last year here, isn't it?" Ron asked, practically bouncing up and down in his excitement.
"Oh Ron, you're such a little kid sometimes. There are more important things in life than beating Malfoy at quidditch." Hermione had come up behind Harry while Ron was talking, and was now frowning at him. "We have NEWTS to study for this year, not to mention the fact that all our teachers will be piling us with homework as well. I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't even have time for quidditch."
Ron and Harry stood staring at her. She just ignored them and started digging through her bag, looking for something. When she finally found it, she pulled it out with a triumphant 'Ha!' When she turned back to them and saw that they were still watching here, though, she rolled her eyes. "Oh, honestly! I was only kidding you two! Besides, there isn't going to be any quidditch this year. I just got the paper from the head girl. We're having some sort of competition with Beauxbatons. Professor Dumbledore is probably going to announce it tonight to the rest of the students."
She handed Harry the paper she had just pulled out of her bag and started to walk away. When she heard a loud thump and Mrs. Weasley's worried shout she smiled somewhat evilly. She could hardly wait for the rest of the students' reactions tonight at the feast. Glancing behind her, Hermione chucked softly. If they were anything like Ron and Harry's, tonight would be a very entertaining evening.
this is my first harry/draco fanfic, so be nice, and NO FLAMES! i do appreciate constuctive criticism , as long as its not mean or condescending.
