Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter; otherwise I would be skipping college and partying. Every day. For the rest of my life.
Alright, embarrassing moment time. It was recently pointed out to me that I am spelling Snape's name as "Severas" and not "Severus" like it's supposed to be (thank you zippy zany). The reason is, I have a friend whose name is Veras, and because I email him a lot, my fingers go right to the 'as' instead of the 'us'. Ooops. So I will try to start spelling his name like it's supposed to be. Sorry, (cringes as tomatoes are thrown) it's just a subconscious thing.
Thank you so much to my reviewers, I've got 12 reviews! As this is the first fanfic I've ever written, it means a lot to me. Special thanks to Alexandria J. Malfoy for your reviews, I'm sorry I can't spill the beans yet.
Thanks to GoldenFawkes as well, yeah, got Zabini's name right, just can't spell Severas, blah! See what I mean. Severus, Severus, Severus. Kk, got it. And thanks also to greensun, DCod and Spaghetti O's. If I could give you all cookies, I would.
So, I finished the fifth chapter tonight and I'm jumping right into the sixth, if that's not devotion, I don't know what is.
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Draco woke up the next day to raised voices.
"You most certainly will not!" exclaimed Poppy in an indignant voice. "He is injured. This is an infirmary, not a law office."
"I realize that ma'am," said a deep voice that Draco recognized as the family lawyer, who was actually a decent man. "But I do need to get this sorted out right away. He is the heir to the entire Malfoy fortune and that entails quite a bit of business that really must be settled as soon as possible."
Draco got out of bed to rescue his solicitor from the grasp of the enraged medi-witch.
"I don't care if you've got business with the Minister himself," said the nurse in self-righteous anger. "I will not have you waking Draco!"
"Well, then everything is fine," Draco said smoothly from the now open curtains. He turned to the middle aged man in the Armani Muggle suit. "Good morning, Mr. Shey. I trust you have come to settle the family estate?"
Shey smiled broadly at the sight of him. "Of course, Mr. Malfoy. If you are up to it, that is."
"I am. Madame Pomfrey, I trust that I may use your office for some rather important matters that must get discussed," he said, in his most dignified voice that would have made the Minister look like a mere secretary.
"I suppose," said Pomfrey dubiously.
"Splendid," said Draco grandly. He turned and led the way into the office, Shey at his heels. Once they were in and the door was locked and sound proofed, Draco grinned and shook hands with the lawyer. "Good to see you again, Bernard."
"And you Draco, though I'm sorry about the circumstances."
"Yes, they are unfortunate," said Draco, dismissing the sympathy. He didn't want to think about it right then, not when he had work to do. "So what brings you here?"
"Well, for one thing to pass over the deed to the Malfoy Manor, it's all yours now. You just have to sign here."
Draco took the parchment and read it over before signing.
"Very good, Draco. At least you picked that up from your father and not his other traits," said Shey. He smiled at Draco's raised eyebrow. "Lucius was a very good businessman, I have no doubt you will be as well."
"Thank you," said Draco. "Now what else is there?"
"Quite a bit actually. Not only did you inherit the Gringott's account, but also the family business. I understand if you just want to sell it, or liquefy it into an actual monetary sum."
"No," said Draco. "I want to keep it running, but I'm pulling the support from a few of the businesses that I don't agree with."
"You sure about this Draco?" asked Shey. "It's a lot of work, and don't you still have school to finish up?"
He did. He had forgotten about the NEWT's that would take place in a little over a week, but once his mind was made up, he hardly ever changed his decision. "I realize that," he said, "But I'm willing to give it a go. I want to do this."
Shey looked at him then smiled. "Alright then, Malfoy Enterprises will stay open, and I think I have something that will make your job a little easier. Your father always refused but it really is more practical." He pulled out a cell phone. Draco recognized it from all of the times Bernard had tried to get Lucius interested in it by explaining to him, very in depth, on how they worked and why it would be good. "I'll get you a computer as well," said Shey. "After schools out that is."
"Good," said Draco, taking the phone and turning it over in his hand.
"Alright, now pay attention Draco," said Shey, getting into his business mode. "I'm going to tell you exactly what running this company entails, and what you have to do to keep it successful. Malfoy Enterprises is basically a company that invests in other trades. It was founded in 1856…"
Draco exited the office two hours later with his mind on overdrive. He never knew how much it actually took to keep a business running and he was beginning to think he had bitten off more than he could even fit on his plate.
"You'll do fine, Draco. Remember, if you have a question, just call me and I'll help you out, okay?"
"Okay," said Draco, shaking his hand at the door.
"You'll do fine, I'm sure you will."
"Thanks Bernard."
"No problem, Mr. Malfoy. I'll send over all the files as soon as I get them from the office. Now you'd better step back from the door, those reporters are still there."
Draco did as he suggested and watched him leave. Once the door was shut, he returned to his bed but Pomfrey stopped him.
"If you are well enough to go conducting 'rather important matters' and start running a business, then you are well enough to return to your own rooms," she said, sounding miffed that he had abducted her office.
"Finally," said Draco, not at all upset.
"After your check-up," said the nurse. "Sit on the chair and take your shirt off."
Draco sighed, but complied, the sooner this was over this the sooner he was gone. He flinched slightly when the nurse's cold fingers grazed his skin.
"Seems to be healing well," said Pomfrey, examining the wound. "It doesn't need to be wrapped anymore."
"So I can go?" asked Draco.
"Yes," said Pomfrey.
"Brilliant," said Draco, standing and pulling the pajama top down.
"Go get dressed and collect your things," said the nurse, already moving on to check on Harry.
Draco didn't have to be told twice. He practically ran to his bed and pulled the curtains shut. Someone had brought up his clothes, and Draco suspected Pansy did so as his garments were not wizarding robes but jeans and a sweater. She knew that he hated his robes because Lucius always bought them for him and so Draco ended up dressed like his father. He changed quickly, his side only twinging once when he pulled the sweater over his head. He then dumped the rest of his things into his bag and shouldered it, sticking his wand into his back pocket.
He emerged from the curtains to see Harry getting fussed over by Pomfrey, and Potter didn't look to happy about it.
"He gets to leave!" he heard Potter whine.
"Mr. Malfoy did not have a link severed as abruptly as you, Mr. Potter."
"But he was stabbed," said the black haired boy. "That's a lot worse than getting some link severed."
"It is much easier to heal, though," said Pomfrey, moving away to shut the curtains again.
Harry looked up and saw Draco watching him.
"Sucks to be you Potter," said Draco, but rather than sneering his comment was sympathetic.
Potter sighed. "Have fun, Malfoy."
Draco nodded and Harry's curtains were shut. He walked to the door and paused in front of them, preparing himself. He knew they were there, reporters waiting to flock onto him. He took a steadying breath and pulled open the door.
His first split second thought was that the hall looked like it was full of refugees. Reporters, cameramen, journalists, and announcers for the Wizarding Network were all camped out in the hall, most sitting on the floor as they revised notes or amended their speeches. Some were talking into microphones that carried their words live to wizards across the nation who were pressed up against their radios. But as soon as he had opened the door, everyone had whipped around to see what had happened, froze for a second, and then they descended.
It was a mad rush to get near him. People were shouting in his ear, waving notebooks and hands to get his attention. Microphones were shoved in front of his mouth while their owners begged him to talk. Flash bulbs went off in his face, blinding him.
"Mr. Malfoy, what brought about your change?"
"Why did you decide to help Harry Potter?"
"Is it true you killed your own father?"
"How is-"
"What happened-?"
"Who made you-?"
Draco was caught in the sea of humanity, all jostling him, pressing close to him. He shoved through them, shouting "No comment!" and finally broke free when he reached the adjoining hall and passed through some sort of invisible barrier, because the reporters pulled up short, still shouting questions, but unable to move any farther. He smirked and turned the corner heading out of sight.
The hall was empty and he realized that it was because the students would be in class. He stopped off at the Slytherin common room and exchanged the contents of his bag for his school books. It was Potions time and he would be twenty minutes late. He didn't bother hurrying; Sev wouldn't mind, plus he was just released and his side hurt when he ran.
He reached the dungeons, pushed open the door, and it was immediately like the reporters all over again, except no one tried to jump him. But the room did become deadly silent and everyone turned to stare at him, unsure of how to react. The students were in partners, and there was a perfectly even number, four pairs of Gryffindors, and one pair of Slytherins, which was made up by Pansy and another girl Felicia, who had helped hide the younger Slytherins in the common room during the last battle.
"Mr. Malfoy, are you sure you are feeling up to joining us today?" asked Sev, concern in his cool voice.
"Yes, sir," said Draco.
Snape raised an eyebrow. "Very well then."
Draco immediately went to the Slytherin pair in hopes to join them, but Snape stopped him.
"You'll be joining Miss Granger and Mr. Weasley today, Draco."
Draco stared at the Potion's Professor, as did everyone else. Draco knew it was his way of reprimanding Draco for being up when his godfather thought he should be resting, but he also figured that Sev wanted him to help bridge the gap that still remained between the houses.
"Yes, sir," he said, and walked to the table holding two-thirds of the Golden Trio. Granger pulled her bag off of the empty seat and he slid into it, the silence in the room becoming stifling.
"Miss Granger, please catch Mr. Malfoy up to speed and everyone go back to work."
Slowly the room became filled with student's voices reading out instructions and assigning chores. Draco turned to the girl beside him.
"So what are we doing?"
"We're making the Wolfsbane, at least, the final stages of it," said Granger.
Draco nodded, realizing that was one of the potions Sev had been working on last class. "Do you need me to do anything?" he asked.
Granger looked surprised, but she quickly covered it. "Yes, could you chop the blood rose roots, we need them as small as you can make them."
Draco nodded and took the proffered roots and knife. Having a Potion's Master for a godfather was useful in that he got hands on experience in the most advanced of potions and also tips along the way. These particular roots could be a pain to slice, unless you knew where to cut. He first sliced them the long way down into thin strands, no thicker than a unicorn hair. Then, separating the strands into small bundles, he looped the bundles in a tight circle and cut once horizontally, then vertically, then at the diagonals. With the knife, he scraped the now tiny pieces to the side and began looping the next bundle.
"Where did you learn how to do that?"
Draco looked up to see Granger watching his progress with fascination. "Sev taught me," he said shrugging.
"Who?"
"Snape," Draco clarified. "I help him sometimes on projects."
"You do?" Granger asked, impressed.
"Nothing big," said Draco, shrugging again.
Snape chose that moment to stop by. "Everything is going well, I trust?" he asked.
"Yes, sir," the three responded simultaneously.
Snape narrowed his eyes. "Good." He knelt beside Draco's chair so they were face to face. "You sure you're up to being around?"
"Pomfrey released me and my side is all healed up."
"That wasn't really what I was worried about," said Sev quietly. "Your parents-"
"I'm fine," said Draco. "I just don't want to think about it right now. I need to do things."
Sev gazed at him a moment then nodded. "Alright then," he said. "I'll leave you to your work." He patted Draco's hand in parting and moved to check on the progress of the other students.
Class went rather quickly as the potion needed a lot of attention during the final stage. Draco had no time to actually interact with the Weasel and Granger, which he enjoyed, and even less time to dwell on the fact that he was recently orphaned. He was disappointed when their cauldron was clean and all of the ingredients put away. He could see why Sev turned to his potions when he was stressed; it was so easy to lose oneself in the brewing process.
The class was dismissed and Draco grabbed his bag, but was stopped by Granger's voice.
"Hey, Draco?" she asked hesitantly.
Draco turned, surprised that she used his name, and saw her and Ron standing in front of him rather nervously. He raised an eyebrow, mimicking Severus. "Yes?"
"I just wanted to say thank you, for saving my life," said Hermione. "I was- well, you- that is- just, thanks. It was…nice of you."
He nodded his head slightly. "Is that all?" he asked.
"And I wanted to say that I'm sorry, about your mum and dad, it's got to be really hard to lose them both so close to each other, and I'm really sorry that it's you that's going through all of this, because I thought it was brave of you to stand up to Voldemort and your father like that," said Granger, all in one breath. "And Ron has something to say too."
Draco raised both eyebrows and turned to the red-head.
"I'm sorry," said Ron, looking uncomfortable, but honest in his apology. "For what I said about your family. I didn't mean it, and I'm glad that you defied You-Know-well, Voldemort. And I'm sorry about your mum."
"Apology accepted," said Draco. "And my condolences about your father. From what I hear, Lucius hated him, so I'm sure that he was an excellent man."
"He was," said Ron, nodding. "He was."
The three lapsed into an uncomfortable silence then Granger spoke up.
"Well, Ron and I are headed up for lunch. We'll see you there, then."
"Yeah," said Ron. "Bye."
Draco let them pass by him then stared after them. That had been a civil conversation. He blinked in surprise, before heading out as well. He was rather hungry.
It was when he reached the door into the Great Hall that he realized he should have gone the long way around. As he was one of the last students to arrive, that meant he would have to walk past all three tables with people staring at him. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't have been a problem, but there had just been a battle in the room in which Draco had killed his father, and he didn't want to attract the attention. He walked in anyways to prove to himself he wasn't afraid.
The first five steps were torture. First the Gryffindor table noticed him and began pointing and whispering. He spared them a scathing glare, and then noticed that half of their house was gone, either still injured or worse, and he had a slight moment of pity. He was passing Hagrid at the Head Table when it happened. The large half-giant brought his hands together in a clap, and then again, and again, and then Dumbledore joined in, as well as Minerva and Severus. He past the Hufflepuff table, who was also clapping and then the Ravenclaw table who joined in, rising to their feet as the occupants of the Head Table stood.
He ducked his head, feeling his cheeks flush ever so slightly and sat down quickly at the Slytherin table, by far the smallest of the four, because not only had many died fighting for the side of light, but also because many had fallen for Voldemort. His remaining Slytherins cheered loudest of all, but even the Gryffindors were adding quite generously to the applause and they too were standing.
Draco was glad when the clapping died down and every one returned to their seats, although he was also touched by the gesture and a small part of him took pride in the fact that he, Draco Malfoy, reported Death Eater, school bad boy, spoiled prat and git, had received a standing ovation from the entire school.
That thought allowed him to eat the first half of his meal without being plagued by the memories of the final battle, but then his mind drifted and he realized he was sitting two meters away from where he had killed his father. He stopped eating, feeling nauseas and was about to leave when an owl flew in and dropped off a large sheaf of papers tied together with twine. He picked up the bundle and headed straight down to the Slytherin Common Room and as he was the only remaining seventh year boy, besides Blaise who was in the infirmary, he was guaranteed peace and quiet. He began to look over the papers.
The first pages were a detailed account of what responsibilities and privileges Malfoy Enterprises was entitled to receive. The next were lists of employees and the next were files on each business ME invested in, how much they invested in it, and what the company did. Draco sorted through the companies he wanted to keep and noticed that there were many companies across seas that ME had a large part of. In fact the majority of businesses were in the States.
He glanced at his clock and noted that he still had an hour and a half until his next class, so he began to write letters to the companies he was going to drop. He managed to get off five on the express owls before he looked at the clock again and realized that he was late. He grabbed his things and ran out the door. He had Transfiguration next and McGonagall hated tardiness.
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That was incredibly long. Wow. Umm, okay, so its not really long, but that's when tried putting it up on the net, it wouldn't fit. So now its in 2 chpts. You know you love me, you know it! R & R!