The World Hidden Away From Him

Draco stood by his bedroom window listening to his mother and father bicker. Today was his eleventh birthday and he'd gotten a letter in the mail. One he wasn't allowed to see. His pale hands were clasped behind his back and he stood straight, like a man would stand.

"But Lucius! Why can't he go to school?" Narcissa cried at her husband who merely shook his head.

"Because Narcissa! If you will not allow him to go to Durmstrang then he's not going to any wizarding school!" Lucius yelled.

"But Lucius!" she cried once more. "We both attended Hogwarts! Why can't he go there as well?"

"He's much too good for Hogwarts!" Lucius snarled. "And they let trashy mudbloods in there and I don't want him mixing in with that crowd! He doesn't belong there where he can be seen by the unwashed! Not to mention, word's just let out that Harry Potter will be attending there as well, and I can't have him in school with him either!"

"Harry Potter?" whispered Draco, seeing as he'd moved from his room to the top of the stairs.

"He is not royalty!" Narcissa screamed. "He can handle the real world Lucius!"

"I never said he couldn't," Lucius replied unmoved. "But that does not mean I'm going to allow him to go gallivanting off, holding hands with a bloody muggleborn or half breed or Potter. He can't just make friends with anyone!"

"Well we'll talk to him!" Narcissa said. "We'll tell him to stand clear."

But Lucius was shaking his head vigorously.

"He'll be too easily influenced outside of these walls," Lucius muttered, Draco barely able to hear a word he said. "I don't want him being corrupted while he's away. He's to be taught purely to follow the Dark Lord."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Five Years Later:

Draco sat at his writing desk doing homework his father had assigned him for the night. He'd just turned sixteen on the sixth of June. That was a week ago. He sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes used to the massive piles of work his father bestowed upon him. But Lord God Almighty, Draco wasn't even allowed a summer holiday like normal teenagers his age! He worked years and years nonstop to learn everything his father wished since he was ten years old.

He'd never truly questioned his father's will up until now.

"Is this really necessary?" he whispered to nobody in particular. He put his head down only to rest a moment, knowing his father would want his essay in the morning first thing…but his eyelids were shutting. Ever so slowly. And soon, they didn't open again.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bang!

Draco woke with a start to find his father standing over him, his pale hand placed on Draco's potions book. Draco blinked quite groggy and stared up at his father blankly, his eyes red and dry from all of the reading he'd been doing.

"So," Lucius said sternly. "This is why you didn't come down for dinner?"

Draco stared at his father slightly confused.

"Wha?" he asked.

"You missed dinner last night, Draco," he replied. "It's eight o'clock in the morning right now. I do hope you have that essay done for me."

Draco groaned loudly and let his head fall down onto his desk again, hiding his essay that was already two feet long. It was meant to be two feet six inches. Damn, damn, damn!

"Now, now Draco," Lucius said. "Let me see what you've got there. I admit I've been running you a little ragged this past week," he replied.

"Only a little?" Draco snorted, handing over his unfinished essay. Lucius gave him a stern look.

"Sorry father," Draco murmured quickly.

Lucius nodded swiftly.

"This will do," he replied. "Get some more sleep. It's Saturday."

"Right-oh father," Draco murmured, stumbling to his bed, while stripping off his robes and falling onto his mattress wearing only a pair of black boxers. Thank God for small favors.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draco dear?" came his mother's sweet voice.

"Mmph…" Draco grunted into his pillow.

"Pansy's here to see you," she replied. Draco stood up. Another social meeting arranged by his father. Lucius wanted Draco to be personable so every so often he'd have teenager's Draco's age come by the house to spend some time with his son.

"Right," Draco murmured. "Send her in." He rolled onto his back, stretching his masculine body across his bed, and sighing with relief. His eyes weren't burning any more and he felt truly rested.

The petite dark headed girl entered the room wearing a pair of very short shorts and a black tank top.

"Hi Draco," she said with a smile, slightly pink in the cheeks by finding him in his attire. He smiled kindly.

"It's been awhile," he muttered, stretching again. "I take it you're done with school?"

"Since the beginning of June," she replied. "I missed your birthday though. The sixth was our last day at school."

"It's no big deal," Draco replied. "Father had finals for me."

"Some birthday that must have been," Pansy said, her nose wrinkling slightly. Draco snorted.

"Tell me about it. Although he does say that I'm very bright and I could rival the smartest students in any wizarding school. The Ministry agrees with him. I guess he has to check in with them, to show them my test scores and such. Just to keep my home schooling agreeable with wizarding law."

"I'd like to see you go up against that mudblood Granger then," Pansy said venomously.

"Pardon?" Draco asked.

"Oh nothing. She's just a girl I go to school with," Pansy replied. "I hate her. Her and her stupid friend Potter."

Potter… Yes, Draco was quite familiar with that name. And the fact that the majority of his family and friends hated the boy he'd never met before. He'd almost killed the Dark Lord or something when he was one… What did all this mean to Draco? Well, he was raised to hate Potter as well, but Draco was a logical human being and it just wasn't…well…logical to hate someone he'd never experienced for himself.

"Right," Draco murmured.

"So!" Pansy said, quickly changing the subject, seeing as it wasn't really keeping Draco's interest. "I heard you're getting your Dark Mark soon!" she said excitedly. "I overheard when your father was telling my father about it, the other day when he came to invite me over to visit with you."

"What?" Draco asked.

"Yeah," Pansy replied her eyebrows raised. "You didn't know?"

"No…" Draco murmured. "I didn't."

A/N: Alright. Next chapter. Review if you want more please. If this story doesn't do well I might not keep up with it. We'll have to see.