Draco stretched happily as he sat down at the Slytherin table, pulling breakfast items towards him, eating a piece of bacon as he did so, putting other full English items onto his plate, including more bacon.
"Hungry, Drake?"
Draco nodded, grinning up at his friend, motioning for Blaise to sit down.
"What have I missed?"
Blaise shrugged, pulling plates over to himself and loading his own plate up with food.
"Nothing much. Pansy ended up with detention from Lestrange. Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you. Rodolphus Lestrange is our new joint Transfiguration teacher. Apparently McGonagall wanted a little bit more time to herself, so they've pulled him in as a stand in for some of the lessons. We'll have her twice a week and him the other three."
For some reason, Blaise didn't look to happy about the information he had just given Draco.
"What's up Blaise?"
Blaise shrugged.
"It's that…well…you know…he's one of the inner circle. It makes me feel a little bit uncomfortable…"
Draco fixed Blaise with a fierce glance and asked bluntly,
"Have you taken the mark?"
He hissed it across the table, so as nobody would hear, masking Blaise's reply with lots of banging and clattering of his cutlery.
"Yes…I didn't want to. I was forced too…"
Draco nodded, losing the fire in his gaze.
"I know what you mean…"
Blaise's eyes widened.
"You mean…"
Draco nodded sullenly.
"I've been given the task of befriending Potter. I don't know how I'm going to do it. We've been enemies for years now. Ever since we first met. I…That's why I didn't want to pick a fight on the train. I'm going to have to do it."
Blaise swallowed.
"I know. Repercussions are of a magnitude that you don't want to mess with. Who else knows what you have to do?"
Draco shrugged.
"Snape and my Father are. That's the way I intend it to be."
Blaise nodded.
"I have the delight of a totally different mission. I am to report back to him about someone here. I won't say who. I don't wish to get you dragged into this. It will be nasty if they fail and I don't tell him."
Draco nodded, curiosity instantly consuming him.
"Give us a clue. What house are they in?"
Blaise shook his head.
"No. Not giving anything away." Blaise smirked. "You can say what you like Draco. You won't find out who I mean."
Draco shrugged, feigning disinterest.
"O.K. Fine. What lessons have you got first thing?"
Blaise raised an eyebrow at the change of subject, but pulled his timetable out, reaching into his bag again a second time and handing Draco his own timetable.
"Same as you. Snape made sure we were in similar classes. He knows about me as well. Thought it would give us some support. How are you going to befriend Potter anyway?"
Draco chewed thoughtfully, an idea slowly entering his thoughts.
"I've got one idea. Don't know if it would work though. Let me think about it a little bit."
Draco fell into a thoughtful silence throughout the rest of his breakfast, scanning his timetable for the appropriate time to do what he wanted to do.
"Mr Potter, what are you doing to that beetle's eye? It is to go in the potion, not for you to play tiddly winks with. Ten points from Gryffindor."
Snape swept past, ignoring Harry's remark, not wanting to get into an argument with the younger man and sat down again at his desk, noting the nervous glances which Draco kept throwing in Harry's general direction.
He frowned, wondering what his godson was planning before saying calmly to the class in general,
"I intend to do a quick review with each of you in turn to find out how you found the subject last year and to fill you in in more detail of what is expected from you both in your practical work and write up work. I'll give you a projected grade and we shall go from there."
There was a collective bout of muttering which quickly silenced as he cleared his throat.
"Draco, we shall start with you."
Draco, who had just been about to screw up the courage to talk to Potter as soon as Snape left the room, grimaced as he climbed out of his seat and followed his Godfather into a separate room.
"Now, how are you getting on with your extra-curricular activities? Have you made any progress?"
Draco gazed at his teacher incredulously before deciding to speak.
"I've been in the hospital wing for a little under three weeks. What do you think? I was just about to hopefully get the ball rolling after you left with one of your other students but you decided to pick me and ruined my moment. Now, I shall have to find a totally different one to act on. Just leave me to it. I will succeed in my own way. I don't need everyone's help."
He climbed to his feet.
"As for my work, I know that I'm doing perfectly well. I'm passing with good grades aren't I? And that's in everything. In every subject I've taken. I'll talk to you another time about my work."
Snape frowned and snapped, swiftly clicking his fingers to keep the door from opening.
"Draco, I don't appreciate your tone. I expect an apology."
Draco nodded, folded his arms and replied, sullenly.
"Sorry, Proffessor."
Snape motioned for him to leave.
"But very well. We shall speak of your school work some other time. If you need any help at all you know where I am. Now, go and put your idea into action."
Draco nodded, sudden nerves swooping in again.
"I will do. Who do you want me to send in next?"
Snape traced the outline of his chin, feeling the gentle scratch of his one day growth of facial hair.
"Weasley. Send him in next. Get the little orange haired turd out of your way whilst you do whatever it is you're going to do with Harry."
Draco smirked at the slight at Ron and nodded his agreement, whilst turning to the door, opening it and entering the darkened dungeon classroom.
"Weasley, you next."
Ron scowled at Draco, but was surprised when, rather than insult him; he offered a rather forced smile. Draco carried on to his own seat, waiting for Weasley to move to the room where Snape waited within.
After Ron had left, Draco took a deep breath, climbed to his feet again and moved cautiously over to where Harry and his buck toothed friend Granger were sat. He cleared his throat quietly, waiting to be noticed by either of them.
Hermione noticed him first and immediately fell silent.
"Can we help you?"
Draco fixed his gaze onto Harry, ignored everyone else around him and spoke, not allowing any interruption until he'd got out everything he wished to say to Harry.
"Potter, I just wanted to say…thank-you I guess. For taking me up to the hospital wing. If you hadn't, I guess I wouldn't be here, what with the poison and everything. So," He held out his hand for Harry to shake. "Thanks. I don't expect it to make everything better between us, but I hope it makes it…tolerable at least. I owe you."
His hand was held out for what felt like a lifetime before Harry took his gaze from Draco's hand and up to Draco's storm grey gaze.
"And why should I do that? I'd have done that for anyone Malfoy. Don't feel so special or be thinking I gave you any special treatment. I didn't. Remember that. After everything you've done, I don't see why you should have the privilege of knowing me. You've been the one which has annoyed me any chance he got, done everything in his power to get me into trouble and made mine and my friend's lives generally difficult. I think I'm safe to say that my answer is still the same as it was five years ago…the answer is no. I wouldn't shake your hand if you were the last person on earth."
Draco stared for a few seconds before taking his hand back and taking a deep breath, readying himself to drop even lower in his fellow Slytherin peer's eyes.
"I apologise for that Potter. I was acting rather childishly then. I have grown up since then and am willing to put it behind us if you are?"
Harry made a scoffing noise, before shaking his head.
"Still no Malfoy. Run along back to your friends. Like I said, not if you were the last person on earth Malfoy…"
Draco took a deep breath and nodded, before turning away, merely saying quietly,
"Sorry again. Like I said, I have grown up. I'm not childish anymore…"
He saw out of the corner of his eye Hermione watching him, before nudging Harry pointedly, whispering something which Draco couldn't quite catch.
Harry ignored her, continuing with his work, even when Hermione continued to hiss things at him.
Draco rolled his eyes, knowing how irritating it was to keep getting nagged at like that. He went and took his place, immediately accosted by Pansy, who was looking suspiciously at him.
"What were you just doing speaking civilly to Potter and the mudblood?"
Draco closed his eyes for a few seconds as though asking for strength, before turning to her and smiling coolly.
"What does it matter to you Pansy? Be quiet and get on with your work for once. Don't harass me…please?"
Pansy looked slightly taken aback, but nodded, a slight frown finally marring her features as she turned away, her gaze focussing on Harry and Hermione again.
Draco's own gaze followed that line of sight, surprised to see Harry watching him intently, almost as though he was measuring him up. Draco offered a raised eyebrow, coupled with a slight smile, the feeling making him feel ill to just to allow the small friendly movement to Potter.
Harry's face remained impassive, just continuing to watch Draco intently.
He was suddenly suspicious, a slight niggling towards the back of his mind causing him to throw up the strongest barrio he could against someone trying to force their way into his mind.
He felt a presence straight away.
It was new to him, but he knew he had them trapped within the folds of his mind, his own mind carefully pushing against the carefully constructed barriers of their mind, trying to find any form of weakness to which he could gain access to them and find the identity to whom it was he was connected to.
A thin tendril of something flowed away from the mind caught in his defences, inviting him to follow it, akin to the feeling of a breadcrumb trail.
He allowed his gaze to fix on Potter, but his facial expression hadn't changed a notch which he would have expected if it was Potter's mind which he had entrapped.
"Draco…."
The thin whisper of a voice inside his head made him start a little, pulling his defences even harder around the invading person, fearing that they would distract him and break out before he could find out the whereabouts and name of them.
" Draco…don't be so stupid…you can't possibly beat me at this game…"
Draco felt the first beginnings of fear, a tangible taste at the back of his throat as he swallowed, a flicker of recognition to the voice in the depths of his mind.
Feeling a little silly, he thought,
"Who are you?"
There was a slight breathy laughter before the voice replied again.
"Now that would be telling…let's just say I'm someone keeping an eye on you. Helping you to do what's right…Your conscience, in fact…"
Draco rolled his eyes mentally.
"Blaise…piss off…"
Draco suddenly doubled over onto the desk, slapping a hand to his forehead as a fierce burning pain shot through his head, the feeling of nausea overtaking him. He suddenly felt extraordinarily hot and sweaty, as though he was going to pass out. He tried to whimper as the pain increased, mounting to a crescendo within his head.
"Now listen up and listen close to me whelp…you will find a way to get the Potter boy to trust you. If I have to take over you and use my own ways to do it, god knows I will, though it would repulse me to be so familiar with the boy. I thought you said that it would be easy for you to befriend him…prove that point to me or feel the consequences…"
Another searing pain shot through Draco's head, right to his heart, applying a pressure there to make it uncomfortable.
"Put your heart in his hands if you have to to get what it is needed for me. Use any means possible…otherwise, you'll be living to regret lying to your Lord Voldemort…"
The pain was suddenly gone, just an uncomfortable feeling of light headedness consuming him as his barriers were pushed back, unveiling all his thoughts to anyway who cared to be taking a look at that moment in time.
Draco raised his head slowly, his eyes glancing quickly round the room to note who had taken in his strange behaviour.
Only Harry's green eyes were still studying him, a hint of curiosity aroused within the emerald green depths.
Draco sighed, sitting up within his seat again, back erect and sweeping a slightly shaking hand through his silver blonde hair which, he was surprised to feel was dampened lightly by sweat.
Taking a deep breath, he steadied his thought from running into a panicked motion of events as to how the Dark Lord entered his mind with all the supposed protection from the castle grounds.
Biting his lip, he tried to concentrate on the job in hand, still feeling the burning touch of Harry's eyes upon him.
Reading carefully the next direction for his potion, he sighed heavily as he realised he was going to have to collect it from the store cupboard.
"Watch my potion Blaise. Got to go to the store cupboard. Find some fluxweed…"
Blaise raised a hand to show he'd heard, before Draco slipped off his stool and headed for the door, not noticing Harry's already vacant seat.
He slipped into the darkened storeroom, grateful suddenly for the silence and the coolness within it.
Sighing, he simply leaned against one of the shelves, resting his still throbbing head against something cool, hoping to alleviate it some.
"What happened to you out there?"
Draco jumped as the voice of Harry cut the quiet darkness. He turned slowly, not wanting Potter to get edgy and think he was going to start a fight like he usually would have done.
He shrugged.
"Nothing…just got a headache. That's all. Potter…I meant what I said out there…I do want to be friends…I've acted like an arse…I really have. I know this now…"
Harry's gaze became instantly wary, tugging at his hand with his hand.
The movement made Draco smile as he realised he had expected Harry to do that.
"What are you grinning at? This is some big joke to you isn't it? Make friends with Potter, pretend to be his mate for a while and then humiliate him in some way or another…no Dra…Malfoy…I'm not stupid. Take your jokes somewhere else!"
Draco sighed heavily, suddenly feeling very work through, just wanting to escape to his room and sleep.
"Potter…I'm not wanting to do that. What's the point in that? I may as well, if I wanted to do that, humiliate you without trying to befriend you. Think logically. I'd just humiliate you without being friends. You should have known me by now…well…known me then. I'm different now. Please, let me at least prove it to you?"
Harry snorted in derision.
"What are you going to do Malfoy? Snog me?"
Draco did roll his eyes then and spat, a little more harshly than he intended,
"In your sick perverted dreams Potter…"
Harry's gaze narrowed, his arms folding across his chest.
Draco suddenly grinned, realising he had reverted to his old self for a moment there, the bickering and picking on Potter coming a lot easier than he cared to admit. He realised that it was because he was trying to like Harry too much in order to be someone likable to Harry.
"So what's it going to be Potter? Can we not at least be civil with each other and see how it goes?"
Harry's eyes narrowed further as he put two and two together.
"Why are you so keen for us to be friends Malfoy? What do you gain from this?"
Draco felt a twinge in his gut, as he shrugged and replied easily,
"A friend hopefully. Nothing to benefit me apart from that Potter."
Harry sighed and shrugged, shaking his head again.
"Not going to happen Malfoy. Like I said, you've done that much to me and my friends, why should I bother trusting you now? For all I know you could have some plot in mind to bring me down to size or whatever you and your friends would decide it was. No, my answer still stands Malfoy. Not if you were the last man on earth and I had to befriend you to survive."
He turned on his heel, pausing once to collect the ingredient that he needed, leaving Draco feeling utterly lost for what to do next.
Page Break
He sighed; his eyes fixed on the canopy of his bed, his thoughts a strange mesh of Harry Potter and friendship. He knew he needed to gain Potter's trust somehow.
"Blaise…you still awake?"
There was a murmur from the bed beside him.
"Blaise?"
He stuck his head out the curtains pulled securely round his bed, his eyes searching the gloom to where Blaise's bed was.
His friend's head was doing the same, a flash of white showing that he was grinning at him.
"What's up Drake? Can't sleep either?"
Draco shook his head, chewing on his lip thoughtfully.
"How do I befriend the scar headed twat? I can't stand the sight of him. I've tried making him look better than me. You know the whole swallow my pride act and asked him in front of everyone if we can bury the hatchet. I don't know what else to try…"
Blaise shrugged, looking thoughtful for a moment.
"Hmmm…you tried taking the brunt of something for him. You know the whole, someone does something, link it to Potter, then you step up and say it was me or drop the other person in it. You get me?"
Draco nodded, sighing heavily.
"I have the horrible feeling that I am going to lose some friends from Slytherin if I do this…"
Blaise grinned apologetically.
"It needs to be done…."
Draco nodded, a sudden thought hitting him again.
"Blaise…another thing…have you ever had Him try and read your thoughts before?"
Blaise shook his head, a sudden hunted look taking over his features.
"No…not yet…"
Draco nodded, his teeth worrying at his lip even further.
"Do you think if he did, it would mean that he doesn't trust you?"
Blaise shrugged.
"He doesn't trust anyone. Or so my Father tells me…"
Draco nodded, before offering a grin towards Blaise.
"Cheers, mate. I'll let you get some sleep now. I know I need some."
Blaise nodded, his face retreating back behind the cover of the curtains around his bed.
Draco twitched the curtains around his bed back into place before lying back down. He sighed, closing his eyes, wondering who he could get to do something and then take the rap for, if he told the teacher who it was. He decided Crabbe or Goyle wouldn't particularly be bothered, as long as he recompensed them.
Sighing heavily once again, he rolled over trying to get comfortable, his head still pounding from the onslaught earlier that day.
Page Break
Draco groaned as he came back to the waking world. The dormitory was a hive of activity as everyone began to get ready for the lessons that day. He slung his legs over the side of his bed, his head still feeling groggy as he rubbed the heel of his hand across both his eyes to clear the sleep from them.
He frowned slightly as he climbed up out of bed, his thoughts falling on the barely remembered dream he had had.
Sighing and shaking his head, he grabbed up his school uniform, heading for the showers within the Slytherin Dorm rooms, greeting people as he did so before he reached the confines of the shower room.
He smiled slightly as Blaise's voice was raised in some song or another from within one of the shower cubicles.
"Nice singing Blaise…Please don't continue though…I don't want it to be raining for our first quidditch practice tonight…"
Blaise's voice cut out, his hand sticking out of one of the curtained cubicles, making an obscene gesture at Draco as he walked past.
Draco moved into the cubicle next door to Blaise so he could still talk to his friend easily, stripping his own pyjamas off of himself and turning on the shower letting the warm water rinse away his sleepiness.
"Drake…"
Draco opened his eyes to Blaise's voice, sweeping his wet hair out of his eyes.
"Yeah?"
There was a pause for a while, making Draco wonder if he'd imagined Blaise's voice.
"You're a good friend you know?"
Draco nodded, wondering what the matter with Blaise was.
"Thanks…what's got into you?"
There was a pause again, Draco assuming Blaise was thinking through what he was going to say.
"Nothing. Just thought I'd say. Nothing wrong with that is there? You thought anymore of the idea we came up with last night?"
Draco sighed heavily before replying,
"Well, either way I get someone in trouble. I figured it would have to be Crabbe and Goyle, wouldn't it? I could at least tell them what I wanted them to do. Wouldn't he suspect me even more though if I did that of wanting to be his friend a little bit too much?"
He heard Blaise's shower turn off and the sound of Blaise pulling a towel round his waist and exiting his cubicle.
"Don't think so…well…possibly. Pay a Hufflepuff boy off to do it. They'd do anything for you. Try Greg or Simon…"
Draco shuddered as he soaped himself down, visions of how he would have to pay the boys back darkening his thoughts.
"Blaise, you know the way I'd have to pay those idiots back with and I'm not quite that desperate yet…"
Blaise sniggered.
"Just testing you mate. Seeing how desperate you were."
Draco rinsed the soap from his body, turned his own shower off and wrapped a towel round his own waist. He exited the shower, using a second towel to dry his hair off a little, the slight curls within it already annoying him.
"Not that desperate Blaise. I'll let you know when I am and maybe we can practice together…"
He smirked, turning the joke back on his friend, watching in amusement as Blaise's face contorted in disgust.
"Urgh…shut up Drake…"
Draco merely shrugged, heading to where he had left his school uniform, drying his chest as he moved.
"What class have we got first today?"
"Transfiguration with Lestrange. We need to get there on time. He's really arsy about that."
Draco smiled, dressing as he replied,
"Is he fair or does he favour the Slytherin's?"
"No, actually. He is fair. Surprisingly so. He even awarded the mudblood points. He should have taken them if you ask me. She's an insufferable know it all if ever there was one. She needs taking down a notch or two."
Draco smirked, shooting an interested glance at his friend.
"Not falling for the non-existent charms of Granger are we Blaise?"
Blaise shot him a look of such balefire that Draco's smirk failed on his lips.
"I'm joking! Gods! Blaise…lighten up…"
"Let's just get to lesson shall we?"
Draco carried on dressing a smirk still gracing his features, which he tried to pointedly hide from Blaise, knowing he wouldn't hear the end of it if his friend still found him ridiculing him.
Finally dressed, with all his school books in his bag, he hurried down to breakfast with Blaise, who was still acting strangely.
Not bothering to speak to anyone else, Draco began pouring cereal into his bowl, then milk and finally a healthy dose of sugar, before eating it as quick as he could, following Blaise's lead.
"Why are we rushing round so much? He hasn't even left the teacher's table yet?"
Blaise ignored him and carried on collecting his items together, Draco suddenly noting that his friends line of sight was focussed somewhere else. Following it, he was surprised to see it on the Gryffindor table.
"Who are you watching?"
Blaise's gaze snapped towards Draco at that and quickly whispered,
"Seeing how long you've got to set something up for Potter…"
Draco shook his head.
"No. If it's got to be plausible, I can't set it up."
Blaise scoffed at him.
"Come on Drake…you can't rely on everybody to do everything for you."
A frown immediately creased Draco's forehead as he climbed to his feet, swinging his bag onto his back and storming off without a word to Blaise.
Climbing the staircase, he heard someone behind him, obvious haste to try and catch up with him apparent. He slowed, thinking it might be Blaise coming to apologise to him, but was surprised to hear Potter's voice.
"Had a lover's tiff with your girlfriend did you Malfoy?"
Draco turned, his rage immediately boiling up.
"Shut up Potter. I can't be bothered with fighting with you today. Like I've said, I don't want to fight. So don't push it."
Harry looked taken aback for a second, not expecting the reply had given.
"I just want to get to my lesson," Draco continued. "And sit down and relax for a bit."
Harry laughed cruelly.
"Good luck with that in Lestrange's lesson. He makes you work."
Draco shrugged.
"I like work."
Harry raised an eyebrow at that and folded his arm across his chest.
"Since when have you ever worked at school?"
Draco drew himself up to his full height and replied with indignantly,
"I'll have you know that, despite Granger's abnormality, I am actually one of the highest scorers in all my classes, including this one."
Harry remained silent for a few seconds, which Draco took to mean he wasn't going to be spoken to again.
"Hermione isn't abnormal…If you're so clever, how much further down the list are you to Hermione then?"
Draco paused, silently contemplating what to say without sounding big headed.
" I'm not going to brag Potter. Just know that I'm further up than you…"
Ignoring the outraged noise Harry made, Draco continued to walk up the stairs to where the classroom was, his eyes widening as he recognised the charismatic figure of Lestrange already there before him…
Thanks for reading this. Review and let me know what you think! I've not updated in quite a while, bar these three chapters and I apologise for that. I've been that busy with my job! Hopefully though, I should be able to update a lot more frequently soon if I get the new job I've applied for. So, fingers crossed! Otherwise, will update as often as I can, not leaving as long between updates as I have been doing.