Chapter 1: Thinking Back
Draco was sitting outside of Professor Snape's classroom seething. Once again Snape had taken sides with Harry Potter. He knew that he had not been performing to his usual standards. It was the third time that week that Snape had kicked him out. He had been rude and arrogant towards Potter, which is why he had been kicked out of class in the first place. He had made a snide comment about Potter and Snape had taken Harry's side, yet once again. Draco felt like his life was falling apart. Apart from that he had also melted his cauldron... Again.
He felt himself thinking back to when his life of imperfection all started, he had been five years old and all he heard was screaming.
"Get over here now Narcissa!" Screamed an infuriated Lucius Malfoy. He grabbed his wife by the arm. She tried to get away but Lucius was too quick. Lucius shoved her into the mantle piece that held all the moving pictures of Draco since birth. Everything shattered into tiny pieces. The house elf Dobby restored everything and then ran to join Draco who was hiding under the table and was terrified and was shaking uncontrollably. He didn't understand anything that was happening. "Why did he shove my mother?" He remembered suddenly that his father was having a big dinner for a few guests. People were always coming and going from his house.
Draco tried to cease the memory, but it was too strong.
"Draco where are you hiding?" Cooed Lucius motioning his wife to his side. Draco crawled out from under the table and stood in front of his father.
"Yes Father?" Draco asked in the polite way that his father taught him.
"Your mother committed a terrible crime, I just found out. She has slept with another man," drawled Lucius throwing a sinister look at Narcissa.
"Father what are you planning; what are you going to do with my mother?" asked Draco with a hint of fear in his voice. It was one thing he was forbidden to show in front of his father.
"You will see when I figure it out," stated Lucius without emotion in his voice.
Draco forced the memories to a halt. He couldn't stand to remember the next few years. It was too agonizing. After that night his mother, as well as he went through anguish and misery. He remembered his own words "what are you going to do with my mother?" and realized the consequences after he said them. He began to feel the cold hard floor and stood up.
He noticed students leaving Professor Snape's classroom and received his homework and class work and ask if he could makeup his missed work.
He went back to his common room and then proceeded to his dorm. He paced in his dorm because he couldn't calm himself down. Another memory leaked into his mind.
The
abuse of his mother continued, he had noticed it increase in
severity. She had bruises constantly. He became immune to the abuse
of his mother, until one day.
It had been a cold rainy day; his
father's guests would be arriving in a few hours time. His parents
had been fighting all day; Draco had tried to stop the fighting
several times. On the last time Lucius pushed him out of the way hard
and he had fallen and hit his head; hard. He had become unconscious;
he awoke to find his father's wand in his face and was terrified.
He found out that in less than four years time he would attend either Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry or Durmstrang Institute. His father had let him choose which school to go to, he had chosen the obvious.
He hoped his father would never lay another finger or wand on him.
Two weeks later he witnessed another dispute and screamed "STOP IT NOW!" Lucius picked him up with wandless magic and let him hover for a few moments and then slammed him to the hard floor. Lucius ran over to him and apologized repeatedly.
Narcissa lost her disposition and whispered "Crucio" and pointed her wand at her husband. He laughed mirthlessly, a chilling cold laugh. He retaliated, she screamed, and Draco cried, "stop" but Lucius wanted his wife to suffer. He had heard that she had slept with James Potter before he eloped with Lily Evans from a trustworthy Death Eater who had walked in on them. (This of course was not true.)
Draco stopped his memory once more. He felt anger well inside of him; he never realized how much his father messed up his life.
Draco tried to go to sleep in his four-poster. Yet again he spiraled into another memory.
He had finished his fifth year at Hogwarts. His mother had found him and noticed he resembled nothing more than a slug squeezed into his school uniform. She had him taken to St. Mungo's to have him "put back together again."
His father was in Azkaban because of Harry Potter. He was on his way back to his mansion. He noticed his mansion was too quiet.
Two days after he came home from Hogwarts, Lucius broke free from Azkaban. He discovered his wife throwing away his things with his sons help. Draco turned around and saw hatred and anger in his father's eyes. Draco knew what was coming next; more abuse. He heard his father yell the death curse and watched the green flash come and go quickly. His mother crumpled to the floor. He ran to her, and became angry with his father. His father grabbed him and disaparated to a cave where the Dark Lord was waiting for them. He knew that he was going to become a Death Eater, and take the Dark Mark from the Dark Lord. He felt it burn and then all his pain in his arm disappeared. This was against his will and he knew that he could not escape or he would be killed.
As
soon as he returned to his mansion he ran up to his room and cried.
He cried for the first time in his life. His father had ruined his
life and plans; he murdered his mother. He wanted to die, to get away
from his life. If only he could find the directions for Draught of
Living Death, but what if someone would be able to reverse it. He
wanted to get out of his mansion, yet he knew that he would be stuck
in it all summer or run errands or work for the Dark Lord.
Draco
broke free of the memory. He received his wish, but not in the way he
wanted. He still wanted revenge on his father. His life only improved
slowly…
Another memory seized Draco.
Thirteen aurors showed up at the mansion and forced themselves into the entryway and demanded to know where his father was. He led them to the kitchen where Lucius was eating a snack. Spells shot out and bound him as well as silenced him. He was sentenced to Azkaban for a lifetime. Draco was told to pack his school things and that he was going back to Hogwarts that day. He had never been happier in his life.
Three hours later Draco found himself in a spacious room that was decorated in a pale silver and a deep penetrating green room. It contained a four-poster bed with green and silver hangings, an oak dresser, his trunk, and a turned over picture of his mother. The room was dim and had luminating candles of flickering light. He wasn't sure how to feel, his thoughts were distorted and confusing. It was a month before term would be starting.
Draco noticed that he became lost in his memories; he wanted them to stop. It was too much. He pulled his nightshirt up and fingered the Dark Mark. He felt it burn and became angry. He slipped out of his four-poster and ran to Professor Snape's office. He wanted to ask him if his burned. He knew that he was a Death Eater because of his father's stories. The professor was not there and decided to go back to his private dorm. Once he got there Snape was waiting for him.
"Do not go!" snapped Snape.
"Why not?" asked Draco confused?
"Because I said so!" declared his professor.
Draco marched into his dorm and slammed the door. The next day Draco woke up from a nightmare. He had been standing in a graveyard with a dark hood covering his face. His mission was to kill Harry Potter's friends. He looked into their pathetic eyes and cried "Crucio". He woke up before anything had happened. He was dripping with a cold sweat. He needed to talk to someone, yet he didn't trust anyone.
He skipped all his morning classes and headed to a quiet corridor. He sat down and began to cry. He hadn't cried since the beginning of his awful summer. He wasn't aware that Harry Potter was standing next to him staring down at him.