Draco Malfoy and the Chamber of Secrets. Book 2.
Draco waited in the shadows for the golden trio to make their way to the great hall. Draco met Harry's eyes and entered a small corridor, waiting for the boy to follow. A few seconds later Harry joined him, "Listen… I didn't mean to stand you up on the train…"
Draco put up a hand to silence the black haired boy. "I know… flying car… thought it would be much more fun to fly around with a Weasley." Draco took a moment to look at Harry, taking in the handsome looks of the boy. Though they were the same age, Harry was a bit taller, his arms and legs lanky and thin. There was an odd cuteness to Harry, that made Draco want to monopolize him.
"It wasn't like that. I HAD to. When I tried to get on the platform, the barrier closed! I don't know why… but it seems everything has been working against me this summer…" Harry seemed to be looking at Draco too, studying the blond boy.
Feeling a bit self conscious, Draco stroked a piece of hair back into place. " Well… if we are to still TRY and be friendly, even if it is in private, I suggest we meet after classes when the rooms will be unused. Send me a note when you feel like arranging something." Draco moved past Harry looking up to the boy as he brushed by, "oh… and Harry… I expect your come backs to be as witty as mine shall be."
Harry rolled his eyes, "I still don't understand why you insist on doing this…" He nodded, and Draco left to the great hall for breakfast.
Once sat down to the Slytherin table he watched as Harry joined his friends, eating porridge and catching up. About halfway through the meal, owls began to flood in, and Draco took his own letter from Rancor. He perched proudly in the middle of the table, watching a fifth year boy cautiously as he stole a bit of ham from his plate. Draco smiled as the bird flew off with his stolen booty, but as Rancor departed a worn out owl nearly collided with him. The owl seemed to dive for the Gryffindor table, and fell before Ronald Weasley.
Draco looked curiously at the table as some of the students began to move away from the red headed boy. It wasn't a surprise why, though, as Draco saw the letter float up from the owls mouth, and transform into a large mouth. A roar of sound filled the huge hall, shaking dust from the ceiling.
"—STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE —"
The sound made the plates and spoons rattle on the table, and it echoed, deafeningly, off the stone walls. People throughout the hall were swiveling around to see who had received the Howler, and Ron sank so low in his chair that only his crimson forehead could be seen. Draco smiled, Crabbe and Goyle pointing over to the boy.
"—LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD BOTH HAVE DIED. ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED — YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME."
A ringing silence fell. The red envelope, which had dropped from Ron's hand, burst into flames and curled into ashes. Harry and Ron sat stunned, as though a tidal wave had just passed over them. Draco burst out laughing in the silence, his eyes watering up too much to see just how red Ron's face was getting. The whole Hall broke out in a chorus of laughter, whistles and jeers.
Draco's first class had been Potions, and he was relieved to be in the classroom once again. Draco was surprised to see that Snape was sneering at Mr. Lockhart, who had taken it upon himself to take a potion of barkskin to help the Whomping Willow.
"Oh, hello there!" Lockhart called, beaming around at the assembled students. "Just been showing Professor Snape the right way to doctor a Whomping Willow! A bottle of Barkskin by the roots does the tree wonders…"
Severus rolled his eyes, "You go ahead and try that… see if the tree feels better." Severus hoped the Willow might hit Gilderoy hard enough to knock some sense into the man. Using a potion for turning human skin into bark would hardly help a tree…
After the man left Severus turned to his students, his gaze cold as he surveyed them. "Get to your seats." Severus called their names, checked over their homework, and evaluated their progress on the grasp of potion making.
Professor McGonagall's class went smoothly as usual, her teaching style not changing much from the pervious year. Draco had felt a bit bored in her class at times, but the subject of changing anything he touched into a useful item was not beyond Draco's curiosity. He needed to get a pass to check out the Restricted Section for Transfigurations and Their Implementation.
His most dreaded class came all too quickly, Gilderoy Lockhart waited for them to file in. He grinned at all of them, his smile almost glittering in the light.
"I am of course, Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award, but I don't talk about that. I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her!"
He waited for them to laugh, but almost none of the Slytherins seemed to care for his joke.
"I see you've all bought a complete set of my books — well done. I thought we'd start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about — just to check how well you've read them, how much you've taken in —"
When he had handed out the test papers he returned to the front of the class and said, "You have thirty minutes — start —now!"
Draco looked down at his paper and read:
1. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?
2. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?
3. What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?
On and on it went, over three sides of paper, right down to:
55. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's most valuable asset?
Draco wanted to gag. He can't be serious, Draco had studied the books, but to remember such asinine things was too much. He clenched his fist, looking up at his now most hated teacher.
Draco put his head on his hand, feeling his eyes close as he drifted to sleep in Lockhart's class. The man was droning on about the correct answers, but it all soon faded. He felt his body become light and peaceful, Hedwig hooted at him from a tree branch just outside. He floated over to her, asking her to bring him to Harry, she answered, "He's coming, MATE."
Draco's eyes flew open as he felt Goyle nudge his arm. He shook his head and looked up to see Gilderoy speaking with a student just two desks in front of him. "Ah… Mr. Malfoy! I went to school with your father, how is our dear old Lucius?"
Draco looked up coldly to the positively vibrant man, "Father is well, he's a governor of the school now."
Gilderoy didn't seem phased, "Ah, how smashing. Still married to the wonderful Narcissa Black?" He asked casually, Draco just nodded, "Ah, such a woman of beauty should not be kept alone in a manor." He ruffled Draco's perfectly slicked back hair, "Do send my regards."
Draco's hair stood in strands and frizz above his head, and his friends could feel the waves of anger coming off the small boy. Crabbe and Goyle both backed away a few feet, but Draco calmly tapped his hand with his wand, and slicked his hair back into place.
Lunch could not come soon enough, Draco ate his fill and quickly found a place with his friends where they had some peace and quiet. He found a rather large oak tree, which was rather comfortable when he settled into the higher branches. He could see the courtyard easily from his vantage point, and found it a treat when he saw Harry settle into a grassy area with his friends. Draco's eye caught the small movements of a mouse, a small first year was trying to sneak up on Harry, a camera in his hands.
Draco jumped down from his perch, striding down towards the four of them. Draco listened in as the boy got the courage to come out in the open.
"All right, Harry? I'm — I'm Colin Creevey," he said breathlessly, taking a tentative step forward. "I'm in Gryffindor, too. D'you think — would it be all right if — can I have a picture?" he said, raising the camera hopefully.
"A picture?" Harry repeated blankly.
"So I can prove I've met you," said Colin Creevey eagerly, edging further forward. "I know all about you. Everyone's told me. About how you survived when You-Know-Who tried to kill you and how he disappeared and everything and how you've still got a lightning scar on your forehead" (his eyes raked Harry's hairline) "and a boy in my dormitory said if I develop the film in the right potion, the pictures'll move." Colin drew a great shuddering breath of excitement and said, "It's amazing here, isn't it? I never knew all the odd stuff I could do was magic till I got the letter from Hogwarts. My dad's a milkman, he couldn't believe it either. So I'm taking loads of pictures to send home to him. And it'd be really good if I had one of you" — he looked imploringly at Harry — "maybe your friend could take it and I could stand next to you? And then, could you sign it?"
"Signed photos? You're giving out signed photos, Potter?" Draco's cool eyes looked over the very small frame of Colin, knowing the boy would be quite weak. A small gathering of people came over to see what Draco was on about. "Everyone line up!" Draco roared to the crowd. "Harry Potter's giving out signed photos!"
"No, I'm not," said Harry angrily, his fists clenching. "Shut up, Malfoy."
"You're just jealous," piped up Colin, whose entire body was about as thick as Crabbe's neck.
"Jealous?" probably. But half the courtyard was now listening in. "Of what? I don't want a foul scar right across my head, thanks. I don't think getting your head cut open makes you that special, myself."
Crabbe and Goyle saw Ron rushing up to Harry's side, and they cracked their knuckles, ready for a fight.
"Eat slugs, Malfoy," said Ron angrily.
"Be careful, Weasley," Draco warned. "You don't want to start any trouble or your Mommy'll have to come and take you away from school." He put on a shrill, piercing voice. "'If you put another toe out of line'—"
The small crowd gathering around them laughed loudly at this.
"Weasley would like a signed photo, Potter," smirked Draco. "It'd be worth more than his family's whole house —"
Ron whipped out his Spellotaped wand, but Hermione shut Voyages with Vampires with a snap and whispered, "Look out!"
"What's all this, what's all this?" Gilderoy Lockhart was striding toward them, his turquoise robes swirling behind him. "Who's giving out signed photos?"
Harry started to speak but he was cut short as Lockhart flung an arm around his shoulders and thundered jovially, "Shouldn't have asked! We meet again, Harry!"
Pinned to Lockhart's side and burning with humiliation, Harry saw Draco look menacingly at the professor. Harry was unsure then, if Draco's anger was because they had been interrupted, or if it was because Lockhart was touching him.
As Draco began his trek back up to the castle a curious sight caught him. The Weasley girl was entranced with a book, seemingly oblivious to the world around her. Draco interested in what she could be reading snatched the book from out of her hands, and looked at the text. He frowned at the empty pages.
"Wha-What are you doing?" She stammered, Crabbe pushing her away as Draco flipped through the pages of the book.
They were completely empty, she must have bewitched her diary to be only read by her. He just tossed it back to the girl who look mortified at being caught with it out. Draco rolled his eyes at the Weasley girl, "Here have your stupid book back…" They went on their way, Draco's mood not improving over the course of the day. The comment that Colin had said was true, Draco was jealous. He was jealous of Ron, Hermione, even a simple first year like Colin that could get close to Harry without any trouble.
AN: Thank you for the words of encouragement, Corvin, migsantiago, We want wizard cookies, I just wanted to let all of you know that it's really inspired me to keep writing, and try to get these books done quickly! ^_^ Next chapter is going to be a bit sad… I hope your alright with a bit of Dark Snape past…