Narcissa Malfoy knew of the upcoming years' proceedings and she knew she needed her son away from Hogwarts. Even though he had started his school year later than the norm and returned to Hogwarts at Halloween because the Malfoy Manor had then become an unsafe place to be, Narcissa then decided he needed to be home as the new year bought with it, solid and dreadful plans for the historic school.
Draco was beckoned from his bedroom at Malfoy Manor, Bellatrix was crouched on the floor in the dining room and in her hands, she brutally held on to the hair of a boy, she yanked his face upwards towards Draco Malfoy with an expectant grin widening her own. She thought the boy might be Harry Potter and she desperately needed Draco to confirm this before they called for The Dark Lord's presence. Draco's fear of being wrong outweighed his frantic desire to be the apple of his father's eye and to fulfil their master's orders. He couldn't hide his fear as he stooped to get a better look at the boy's face. It was hideously disfigured. His father furiously willed him to recognise this boy as Harry Potter. Draco's family heavily influenced his future and the life choices he made, which made his vindictive and mean persona a necessity for him, but underneath Draco's cruel façade, he'd always held a yearning to be friends with Harry Potter.
"I don't know," Draco said and walked away. He recognised that Harry Potter's friends Ron and Hermione were also in the room, but he wasn't certain that the boy on his knees was Harry.
The events, speed and energy of the room suddenly accelerated once Bellatrix recognised something that belonged to her and something that was stolen from her vault at Gringotts bank. The snatchers who had captured the trio were swiftly bound by thick ropes that propelled from the end of her wand, the Malfoy family edged away from the rapidity and violence of her attack and once the snatchers were disposed of and the Sword of Gryffindor was back in Bellatrix's nasty hands she ordered the boys to be put into the dungeons hidden below the dining room. They were manhandled by Wormtail down to the cell and once he returned to the large dining room Bellatrix pounced on Hermione to squeeze out of her how the sword came to be taken from the bank. Hermione gallantly denied any wrong-doing but that did not deter Bellatrix's tirade.
Draco Malfoy watched Hermione squirm under the weight of Bellatrix who was sat on top of her, he flinched and sheltered his eyes away from the pair as a Cruciatus Curse convulsed through Hermione's nerves.
Narcissa saw her son look to her in shock and she knew he couldn't cope with much more of the girl's verbal anguish, she returned his stare with a stern look of her own for him to keep quiet as they cowered by the fire place.
The goblin that was held captive in the dungeons below was summoned and interrogated about the apparent feeble security at the bank. The air around Bellatrix Lestrange buzzed with the intensity of her rage. She was desperate to know how the sword came to be removed from her vault, she continued to demean the goblin and slashed his face with a dagger she had removed from a strap at her ankle just before the room lit with sparks that flew from two intruders that had escaped from the dungeon cellar.
Ron Weasley and his disfigured companion came to Hermione's aid. Spells flew across the air, Narcissa Malfoy was disarmed and Lucius was hexed and sent flying across the room quicker than Draco's mind could process. The Malfoy's old family elf dropped the lavish chandelier on to Bellatrix, in the commotion Draco had his and Bellatrix's wands ripped from his hands as the trio, Dobby the house elf and some other prisoners attempted to apparate from Malfoy Manor. Bellatrix's fury relinquished to joy once she realised her dagger had been swallowed up into Dobby's apparition when she launched it in their direction.
Draco Malfoy breathed rapidly as he crouched behind an armchair, his father laid on his back, groaning on the wooden floor of the dining room and his mother calmly watched her sister's crazed movements switch from ferocity to hilarity. He had to admit to himself that he had lost possession of his wand because he didn't have the courage to fight for it, he was conflicted by his heads desire to become a powerful wizard like his father once was and the fear of killing and bloodshed that festered deep within his stomach. His mind was ravaged by memories of his home with the profuse stench of iron that perpetually leaked from the walls.
Voldemort had many allegiances and therefore had many places to hide but in the months that came after the potential sighting of Harry Potter at the Malfoy Manor he took great pleasure from inflicting torture upon Lucius Malfoy for the failure of that night. At the end of the month of June Mr Malfoy returned home with a fracture to his collarbone and sternum, his face was black and blue with bruises and a swelling which forced one of his eyes to be closed. He walked with a limp up the gravel pathway and found his wife and son in the dining room of the manor after he stumbled his way up the flight of stairs. His mouth was crusted with old darkened blood as he parted his lips to speak. Although he couldn't bring his heart to hate his son, no matter how much he tried, he was fizzing with anger towards him.
"Draco, come." Lucius spoke as he leant his weight on one hand on the dining tables' wooden surface and the other arm, he held close to his chest as he heaved air into his tired lungs. His face exposed just how much pain he was in to breathe and with a strained voice warned Draco that the Dark Lord was expecting a visit from him.
Draco Malfoy shook his head slowly just the once, his eyes glassed over with the sting of hot tears before he looked to his mother. He had to work hard to swallow the lump that had developed in his throat, before he peeled his eyes away from his mother's comforting eyes and back to his injured father. His face a vision of the dread that rose in his chest.
Lucius lost his patience and roughly grabbed the boy by his shirt collar. Their noses almost touched.
"Don't disobey my orders!" he spat, literal saliva combined with blood splattered on the boy's face. "You have to redeem yourself ... and this family!" Lucius yelled.
Draco threw his father's hands off his shirt. He tried to retreat to his room, but his left forearm burned suddenly and excessively. He grabbed at his sleeve as though it confined the flames within the layers of fabric, he suppressed his screams to his throat and once he ripped both his dinner jacket and shirt off, he resorted to clawing at his marked skin. With a defeated huff, he expelled his body away from the manor and towards the man who called for him. The halls of Malfoy Manor echoed with the clap of his apparation and left behind in his place were his clothes that laid crumpled on the floor.
Draco Malfoy walked through a forest of trees to Voldemort, the boy held his arms clasped together sheepishly in front of his bare torso. It was June, the weather was brightening but as the day darkened the air was cool and crisp. The Dark Lord stood gallantly against the breeze which ruffled the silk layers of his robes, he stared upwards at something with his back turned to Draco.
Draco bravely pushed himself forward and as he approached Voldemort and stood by his side, he quickly realised they were standing at the edge of the Forbidden Forest and looking up at Hogwarts. Draco's heart pounded hard against his lungs and he tried to mask his emotions however his nostrils gave him away when the oxygen was desperately sucked in to feed his racing heart. He pleaded with his body to calm and steady itself in front such a powerful and dark wizard.
"Your family..." Voldemort started with a slow but majestic voice, he turned to face Draco. Voldemort's face was pale as usual, and his blue eyes glowed with the true hatred that ran through his veins. His lips slapped against his teeth as the distinct look of disgust came over his face. "Your family pains me Draco... come boy, look..."
Voldemort turned his face back towards the castle, Hogwarts looked so very large as they stood shrouded by a row of trees, at the bottom of a hill. The Dark Lord Spoke again.
"How calm the castle looks tonight... they're so very foolish" spoke Voldemort in a slow manner, the words rolled off his tongue and he was truly frightening. "Inside, there is something hidden, something that is very precious to me... something you must find." A cruel chuckle rumbled from the depths of his voice chamber as he remembered the murder that he had committed in order to attach a small piece of his soul to the object he spoke about.
Draco lowered his head and eyes, he strangely wanted to look upon The Dark Lord, he struggled to take an elongated look at him without being noticed. His eyelashes delicately flickered when he withdrew his eyes away from Voldemort's body and back up to view Hogwarts.
"A diadem, it once belonged to Rowena Ravenclaw." Voldemort hissed, he turned his body to Draco and planted his harsh stare on the boy's face. "You must find it..." Voldemort spoke painfully slow "... before Harry Potter."
Back at Malfoy Manor Narcissa worked effortlessly to magically heal her husband, all was achieved aside from a headache that split through his ears and leaked red blood from his nose and his broken bones would take just a bit longer to heal. Once she looked over her husband once more and checked his face by holding his chin between forefinger and thumb, she uncurled her hand to embrace his cheek. She knew he had taken the beating to spare Draco and for that she was thankful but inside her head, she held him responsible for her boy's plight. Lucius pulled his face away from her hand, his ego was hurting more than his physical body and he seethed with rage. Mrs Malfoy left the dining room, Mr Malfoy watched her walk away and his mind was empty for just a moment before he sought after the girl who could always release his pent-up anger with, the girl whom was still under his Imperius Curse albeit a weakened version after all that time. He quietly and cautiously found the secret cell that housed the girl that was now kept a secret also. Whilst he checked over his shoulder every now and then as he walked, he continued with confidence.
Once Lucius broke through the enchantments across the door and momentarily paused to listen for anyone that may have been alerted to the break in, he walked over to the girl asleep in the bed. Aurelia laid on her side with her back turned towards the door, Lucius set his eyes upon the dipped curve at her waist cause by her shoulders and hips. Hips that he knew cradled a baby within her womb. Lucius commanded her to turn, and she did.