Disclaimer: I, like many other fan fiction writers do not own Harry Potter! What a surprise eh?
I know probably everyone has done an AU style school fiction, but I couldn't help my self! This idea has been mulling around in my head for quite some time and quite frankly bugging the hell out of me until now. So here's my stab at it. I only hope it's different to the rest…
Bullet With Butterfly Wings
- Chapter 1 -
It was the end of the summer holidays and the beginning of another school year. For most that meant catching up with friends they haven't seen in six weeks, or for a few people it meant desperately trying to catch up with coursework from the year before. Every school all over England could be seen alight with the buzz of gossip and laughter throughout the halls, teachers smiling briskly behind a hot cup of coffee in the teachers lounge and an upheaval of parents driving home.
Hogwarts Secondary school was no exception.
At the sound of the morning bell signalling the start of registration students filed in through the grand oak doors; the familiar hum of chatter and laughter filling the empty halls once more.
One boy though didn't join in with the commotion surrounding him. He held his eyes low even when people barged into his shoulder - whether on purpose he didn't care nor did he feel brave enough to shout at them. Instead he kept his eyes on the dismally white floor, hoping no one would notice him as he walked through the corridor to his class room.
No one normally did anyway. But it was those few, those who thought themselves better than the rest that seemed to notice him for all the wrong reasons. In the past it may have upset him to the point of crying - but now he only felt anger towards himself for letting his life turn out like this.
He came to a stop and took a deep shuddering breath. The second bell had rung and not wanting to be the last into his classroom he sped up, but only ever so slightly so he would not make a scene. That would be the last thing he wanted, more people staring at him as if he was an animal in the zoo. Though the way people behaved towards him was a far sight worse treatment than people do to animals!
His shoulders tensed when he saw who he was walking closer to. A group of tall boys, two of which seemed just as brawny length wise as they were tall, that he recognised was in Professor McGonagall's tutor group. They smirked and turned their sight towards him. The only thing he could do was keep looking at the floor and hope if he didn't look back at them then they would just leave him alone.
A hand shot in front of the door, blocking his entrance. His jaw clenched irritably and he almost choked on his breath when his back was pushed into the wall, dropping the bag he held in his hand onto the floor. "Well well! Look what we have here boys."
Oh how he hated the person the icy drawl belonged to. Blaise Zabini. He heard laughter but he refused to look at them. There was a murmur of quite talking among the people watching - just watching him being pushed into the wall with vice like hands digging into his arms.
"Get of me." he muttered head bent to the side so he couldn't see everyone staring at him.
"I don't believe you have ever said a word before, have you?" there was laughter again and he pushed his arms relentlessly against Blaise trying to get himself free.
His hand clenched into a fist uselessly at his sides. He repeated it again, albeit more ragged. "Get off of me!"
"Do you know what? I don't think I will, you ponce." Blaise pushed him harder against the wall, one arm across his chest shoving him against the wall and the other holding his arm painfully.
"Hardly!" he rasped out, daring a look at everyone watching and then back down at the floor. "You're the one pushing me against the wall."
Everyone was quiet for a moment including Blaise who had dropped his arm in disgust.
"You would like that wouldn't you?" Blaise leered and walked back glaring at the boy in front of him. He raised his fist as if he was going to hit him, and then punched the wall beside him growling curses under his breath.
Someone, a boy he didn't recognise had grabbed Blaise's shoulder and turned him around. He couldn't contain the moaning sigh that escaped his parched lips, partly from fear of the boy leaving and from the fright of what he had said.
The door swung closed after what he supposed was the last person in the hallway, excluding himself. His eyes closed momentarily breathing the air deeply and trying to stop his arms from shaking.
He was somewhat startled when he heard a rustle beside him and someone handing him his bag, gently pushing it towards his chest.
"Are you okay?" he flinched away when he felt a hand on his shoulder and opened his eyes. He didn't recognise the boy standing not so far away, his deep green eyes resolutely on his face as if deciphering the answer for himself.
"You 'kay?" he asked again.
All he could manage was a nod and shifted his bag without the use of too much movement into his hand again.
"Were you going in there?" the brunette indicated with the tilt of his head towards the door next to them.
"Urm. Yea. Yea I was." he murmured looking anywhere but at his face.
"Great so was I! Who doesn't love a bit of history first thing in the morning?" the boy exclaimed sarcastically.
He laughed slightly; worried it was the wrong thing to do but got a smile in return from the green eyed boy.
"We better be going in then, Mr Binns is probably wondering where we have got to." the brunette spoke again and walked to the door. He followed in after him, bitterly thinking he would be surprised if anyone noticed if he was there or not.
He walked in with his head down and took the first seat he saw at the front of the class. Most people were sat at the back, preferring to be away from the droning teacher - but he always chose to sit away from everyone else, thus suffering the elderly teacher making World War One sound boring!
He noticed the boy who had handed him his bag animatedly talking to a girl with bushy brown hair, which he immediately recognised from being in his art class, and a boy with vibrant red hair that sat to his left. He looked away again, preferring to stare at the blackboard as the teacher wrote the day's lesson on it and with a dulling tone he turned around and read from the register, receiving weary 'yes sirs' from the students.
He turned his head to the side again when he heard the boys ever so familiar bored tone say 'yes' from the corner of the room.
Harry Potter.
He was called Harry. He smiled and looked away when Harry looked his way and copied the task of the board, etching his own name into the corner of the page.
That day went by quicker than normal for him. He found it easier to do the work that was set and even found himself talking to the person next to him in art about what they would like to do for their project - though he was not quite sure why he felt remotely braver.
His mother smiled warmly from the seat of her car as he left the school building, her eyes glistening atop the sun glasses she had perched on her nose. He slung his bag on his other shoulder and opened the door with his hand. A mop of brown hair caught his gaze and then startling green eyes turned towards him, a warm smile greeting him. Harry waved at him, and lifting the corner of his mouth weakly he raised his hand back and sat in the car, closing the door with a click.
"So Draco did you have a good day?" his mother asked, turning her head around to look at her son.
"Yes mum." the blonde boy smiled.
She watched him for a moment and then smiled herself. "I can tell," she murmured and turned around, shifting the gear stick so they began to drive. "Do tell me Draco, was that your friend?" she asked watching her son fidget uncertainly in the mirror.
She sighed and turned the car around a corner and down a street with trees lining the side of the road.
"It's a nice surprise to see you so happy Draco." she added and glanced again at her son sitting in the back.
"Mmmhh." he mumbled nonchalantly watching the trees pass. He sighed to himself and smiled at his mother in the mirror. "How's father? Is he still away with work?"
"I'm afraid so, yes."
"Okay." Draco muttered and looked out of the window.
When his mother pulled into the drive way he jumped out kissing her on the cheek. He ran up to his bedroom after telling her that he had some homework to begin. He didn't though because what homework he did have he had done it in the library instead of going to lunch.
He had surprised himself that day - talking to people in art was one thing, but standing up to the school bully? To say he was surprised by his actions would be an understatement!
And Harry. Well, he pondered; he still couldn't understand why the brunette had chosen to be nice to him, though he was grateful someone was able to smile at him without the trace of a scornful smirk. It was a nice feeling to be finally treated like a human, and now, sitting cross legged on his bed, he couldn't wait to go to school the next day.
…To Be Continued…
Please review. If I know people are going to read this I will aim to update faster.