Disclaimer: Nope, don't own either. Wish I did, but we can't all get what we want, eh?
Thanks to willowfairy, Strixvaria, Aaliyah-Charity, and Lils for the reviews! They inspired me to waste countless double physics periods in order to write more… Ok, so maybe it wasn't that hard to slack off in physics…
Chapter 3
Crabbe and Goyle sat in the Slytherin common room, talking.
"Grunt," said Crabbe. "Ugh, grunt grunt, huh?"
"Ugh," Goyle responded. "Bleh, ugh grunt grunt grunt, oogla-boogla. Ach, goo urp huh goo grunt blah."
"Ungah-oof," Crabbe said, disgusted.
(Translated, from Crabbe-and-Goyle talk to some form of recognizable English:
Crabbe: Goyle, what on Earth do you see in that dumb Gryffindor?
Goyle: I dunno. Beauty, brains, a great personality. Oh, and a really great ass…
Crabbe: Oh, that's disgusting. I mean, come on, really, that's revolting. I think I might just go gouge my eyes out with a spoon; it was that disgusting. Yeah, definitely going to go find a toilet and throw up now.)
Draco walked in just as Crabbe spoke his last sentence. "Yes, please do throw up," he said. "Maybe you'll lose some weight after all those brownies you ate last night." A pause. Did I just understand that junk? Draco asked himself, highly confused. He shook his head, trying to clear it of any stupidity inherited from Crabbe and Goyle. He followed the two to the Slytherin table where he piled food on his plate, but he didn't touch it. Draco gazed around the Great Hall, his eyes wandering aimlessly. As he looked down the Slytherin table, he found his gaze falling on the red-haired girl at the Gryffindor table. He couldn't look at her… he couldn't stop looking at her. The way her hair cascaded down the back of her black robes… the golden glint bouncing off her hair as the sun hit it… the profile of her face… Draco was head-over-heels infatuated with the youngest Weasley.
As Draco walked into the dorm, he found a sleek black bird perched on his bed, looking like he was Lord of the Bedroom. Grumbling, Draco moved to take the letter from the bird, allowing it to fly back to Lucius. He lay down on the velvet bedspread and slit the envelope open with his finger, already knowing what the letter would contain.
This is not an option, Draco… The Dark Lord awaits news of your official sworn allegiance… He is not a patient man… "Blah, blah, like I care," muttered Draco. You will be meeting with him over the holidays… Draco, who up until this point had been muttering things like, "Ooh, the scary Dark Lord," or "Does he even know how corny this sounds," suddenly fell silent. Sure, he had always known that Lucius was an evil git, but this really hit home. Without even consulting as to the day of it, Lucius had officially signed Draco's life away. Draco started to panic. Wild ideas, like running away and joining the circus, ran through his head. He felt like he was trapped in a corner by wild dogs, just waiting for them to tear him into pieces. As soon as he couldn't stand the pressure, he shouted, "They're never going to take me alive! Ahhhh," and Goyle walked into the room.
"Uh, you okay Malfoy?" he asked, confused as ever. Draco stared, realizing what exactly he'd said.
"Yes, of course I'm fine," he snapped. Why did Goyle always walk in whenever he did anything like that? Seeing the lard still standing there, Draco said, "You can go now!" He gave the other boy a deadly glare, and Goyle went running from the room, screaming for his Mommy.
Half an hour later, Draco found himself standing in front of the potion master's door. After reviewing all of the ideas that had come into his head during his wild rampage and discarding most of them (including running off to join the circus), he rationally decided to go talk to his Head of House. Hopefully there was at least one person in the castle who was mentally stable.
Tentatively, Draco knocked on the door and heard a gruff voice speak, "Enter." Turning the doorknob, he opened the door to face his teacher. Snape looked up from his desk with surprise on his face, not expecting a student to come in to talk to him.
"Mr. Malfoy, come in," he said pleasantly. "What can I help you with?"
Draco stepped into the office, highly nervous. He sat down in front of the desk and stared at his hands for a moment before starting. "Well, I received this letter from my father yesterday. It's not the first time, either. It's all about how he wants me to join the Death Eaters, but…" He trailed off.
"But?" Snape questioned, wanting to hear the rest of the boy's story.
"But… I don't want to," Draco replied softly. "My father decided to make a life out of that, and that was all fine and dandy for him, but that's not what I want to do."
Snape considered this for a moment. "So what do you want to do?" he asked. Suddenly, he realized that he was proud of this student. Defying all the rules he had been raised on, Draco Malfoy made the noble choice to do what he wanted to, and not just what was expected of him. There just might be hope for the future of Slytherin House after all.
Draco sat pondering the teacher's question. Finally, he responded, "I don't know." Seeing Snape look up at him prompted clarification. "I mean, there's so much out there in the world. There's so many things to choose from, and I just want to be able to have that choice, to do whatever I want."
"That's very admirable, Draco," Snape said. "Well, just know that my door is always open if you ever need someone to talk to."
"Thank you," Draco said sincerely as he rose to get out of the chair. Snape stood up as well, and then led Draco to the door. "I'm just glad that there's someone I can confide in." Draco turned and walked out the door, almost looking like a completely different person.
Snape watched him walk down the hall, and then he turned back into his office and closed the door. "Well, there may be hope for him after all," he said.
Draco returned to the common room, felling as though a gigantic weight had been lifted off of his chest. He slumped into the soft, black leather chair, where he sighed in relief. There was a solution to his problems, after all.
"I just need a purpose," he exclaimed happily.
Purpose,
It's that little flame
That lights a fire
Under your ass.
Purpose,
It keeps you going strong
Like a car with a full
Tank of gas.
Everyone else has
A purpose
So what's mine?
Draco felt something hard smushed against his bottom. He lifted his bottom off of the chair, felt around, and pulled out a Knut. He inspected it.
"Hey, look!" he exclaimed. "It's from the year I was born!"
It's a sign!
Ba-ba-ba-ba
Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo
I don't know how I know,
But I'm gonna find my purpose.
I don't know where I'm gonna look,
But I'm gonna find my purpose.
Gotta find out,
Don't wanna wait!
Got to make sure that my life will be great!
Gotta find my purpose
Before it's too late.
I'm gonna find my purpose
I'm gonna find my purpose
Could be far, could be near
Could take a week,
A month, a year
At a job, or smoking grass
Maybe at a pottery class!
Could it be?
Yes it could!
Something's coming,
Something good!
I'm gonna find my purpose
I'm gonna find my purpose
I'm gonna find it!
What will it be? Where will it be?
My purpose in life is a mystery
Gotta find my purpose
Gotta find me.
I'm gonna find my purpose!
Purpose purpose purpose!
Yeah yeah!
Gotta find me.
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