CHAPTER 2

I feel the train stop even with my eyes closed. The car jerks about for a moment before the other children begin to slide open their respective doors. I slowly make my way over to the window on mine and peak through the blinds.

So far I've only had one encounter with another person, the red head. Except for her everyone else seems to avoid me at all costs. Once I…claimed my compartment, no one came near me. Now I had to somehow get to school without detection.

Maybe this year would be easy. Maybe, just maybe, everyone would leave me alone and go on about their business. Hopefully I could make my way through school without causing any waves.

"Is that him?" I heard from behind me.

"Yeah, that Malfoy bloke, I heard his father did some work for...you-know-who"

Maybe, just maybe, that was too much to hope for.

A rough hand attached itself to my shoulder and pulled me back, hard.

"Ugh" I grunted and turned to face my newest friend. The boy who grabbed my shoulder was almost two heads taller than myself. It was quiet obvious that he was older, possibly a fourth or fifth year. He was flanked by three, noticeably shorter boys, not much younger, maybe third years.

"You Malfoy's kid?" he said, rather unkindly.

"Well…that depends, why do you care?"

"Because he's a bloody traitor, that's why. And we don't let traitors go to school here." Said a rather stocky boy with muddy blonde hair and squinty eyes stupidly. His nose was tipped up at the end making him look like a dirty pig.

The three others began to snicker loudly.

Fools.

"Did you send my acceptance letter, then?" I asked. I honestly couldn't stand idiots, all they do it waste my time.

"psssht, no. Only the Headmistress can do that. Are you slow or summit?" he looked back to the others and laughed, he thought I was stupid…

"If you didn't send it you have no say in the matter." I told him. His laughing died instantly and he glared.

"You think you're smarter than me because you're a Malfoy? Think you're so high and mighty? The glare on his face was murderous. I shook my head slowly and backed away.

So much for no waves.

"No, I…that's not what I- I didn't mean…" The tall, older boy grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me closer to him

" You listen up, Malfoy, you watch yourself. Not many people like your family here, and they won't put up with arrogance. You put so much as one toe out of line and you'll get hell. You understand?" His voice had dropped considerably so that the threat in his words was persuasive, but I could tell he meant no harm. He let go of my robes and stepped back to his gaggle of goons smiling.

"I'm Cornby, William Cornby." His hand was outstretched. I was still shocked from his breech of my faces personal bubble. He inched his arm further. I stepped back, pulled on my indifferent mask and said:

"So?" then walked away.

If "Cornby, Willian Cornby" really wanted to be my friend he would find some other reason to talk to me without lecturing me about manners, of which he clearly had none.

I headed to the boats that seemed to pull themselves through the water and looked for an empty one.

I stepped into the closest one and tried to sit inside without tipping the whole thing over. I scanned the length of the boat to see if I was truly alone. I wasn't. At that opposite end a girl sat huddle in the corner. It appeared that her hair was as black as night, because I could only see the outline of her face. Her eyes, which had been staring at me intently since I got on, were an odd light purple.

"Hi." I said, taking my eyes away from her figure. I expected her to squeal and run away as many had before. Instead, she leaned her head towards her right and smiled slowly.

"Hello, what's your name?" she asked in a light, airy voice. You would think she could tell just by looking at me.

"Malfoy." I said with disgust.

No matter where I go, people always have this same reaction to my family. Not many people can forget what my father did during the Great War. At the same time, not many people see what he does now. My father is changed. From the stories I've heard, I know he was a (and I struggle to say this, even to myself) bad guy. My father did things that I have nightmares about. I hate just knowing that he had to go through the things that he did.

But then he met my mother and he changed. He fell in love and made choices to leave his old life behind. He doesn't let people know, but when it's just the two of them he is a different person. It's only with my mother that he smiles an actual smile. Unguarded, unadulterated, unhidden.

That's the Draco Malfoy I know.

"Oh really?" she sounded surprised.

"Yes, can't you see? Blonde hair, fair skin, snobby voice…well, I haven't the voice, but the hair and skin are rather noticeable…"

"So that's what you look like then?"

"Yeah, can't you see? Of course that's what I look like. I only get told about it every day." Honestly, how could she? Who did she think she was?

"Well, I don't know if you really look like that, but you're right about one thing." The girl began to pull something from her bag.

It was a collapsible walking stick.

"I can't see. And we're here." She said before the boat hit the sandy landing roughly.

The girl groped about for a bit, trying to get her bearings. She stepped out and unfolded her stick.

"I'm Eleanor Day, by the way." She said slowly before walking away.