Chapter Forty

A/N: No reviewers.

Almost three months had gone by, and the Malfoys were weaving their way through a crowd of Muggles rushing to get to their mundane little jobs. It was difficult not to seem too disgusted, when the men and women swarmed all around them, but Narcissa had bigger struggles on her mind, namely the one that may break her heart in precisely six and a half minutes.

"Now, darling, are you sure you have everything with you?" Narcissa asked. It was a useless question, and she knew it- Draco's trunk had been packed a week ago, and she had checked it almost every day since- but this was her last few minutes to be a mother the same way she always had been. Once the clock struck eleven, her son would be gone.

"Narcissa, stop fussing." Lucius sighed, though his hand was comforting on her back as he steered her through the platform gateway. For all his public bravado, his wife knew that he was quite as concerned about their son's wellbeing as she was.

The steam from the train filled the air around them, obscuring the view ahead. Narcissa looked from left to right, calling her son's name. Her grip on his shoulder as they entered the platform had slipped away in the confusion, and now he was nowhere to be seen.

The terror only lasted a few seconds, until Lucius caught sight of his young son speaking animatedly with the Zabini boy just a few feet away, but Narcissa's pounding heartbeat did not slow. Suddenly, she found herself thinking of all the perils her son would face at Hogwarts, the scores of dangers he would live around for years on end. He would not have his parents there to protect him; if he hurt, he would hurt alone.

"I'm sorry, Mother." Draco's voice was small and sheepish as he noticed the look on his mother's face. "I just saw Blaise and I wanted to see if he'd sit with me on the train, that's all. I should have told you before I ran off."

"It's alright." Narcissa tried to smile, although she knew the gesture was not quite convincing. There was too much worry behind her eyes. "You're alright. But you mustn't be so impulsive, Draco, it could get you into trouble."

Draco nodded solemnly, as if his mother's words were carved in stone as law. "I promise, Mother. I won't get into trouble. I don't want to let you down."

Narcissa wanted to say that he could never let her down, that she would love him with all her heart no matter what he did. But she could feel Lucius watching over her shoulder, ready to crush her encouraging words beneath the heel of his boot. True, he loved Draco just as much as she did, but the boy was not only a child to him; he was the next custodian of a great legacy.

"The train'll be departing in five minutes, Narcissa." Lucius reminded her, though his voice was not as harsh as it had been before. "Time to say your goodbyes."

Narcissa nodded stiffly, then turned back to her son, fighting back her own tears so as not to upset him. A needless gesture, it seemed, for Draco had already begun to cry.

"There there, little dragon." she soothed, pulling the boy into her arms for a final embrace. "It's only three months until Christmas. I'm certain the time will fly by."

"Will you write to me?" Draco asked, trembling.

Narcissa smiled as she pulled away, wiping his tears aside with her thumb. "I'll write every day if you want me to, and you can write to me as often as you like. I'll even send a few little presents in the mail, just to make sure Hogwarts doesn't feel too little like home."

With those reassurances, Draco swallowed his tears, standing a little taller as he faced his father. "Goodbye, Father. I promise I'll try to make you proud."

When the child held out his hand for him to shake, Lucius almost broke down in tears himself. His only son, still a child in truth, but growing far too fast. He clutched Draco's hand for a little longer than necessary, in the hope it would prove his love beyond doubt. "I am certain that you will. Now, off you go. You don't want to miss the train."

With a final smile in their direction, Draco turned and boarded the train with his trunk, alongside some other Pureblood boys who had bid their parents farewell on the platform beside the Malfoys. The boys seemed to fall in line behind Draco as they made their way to their compartment, something the young blond noticed and, judging by his expression, rather enjoyed. It seemed he had claimed his natural leadership just as readily as his father had before him.

Just two minutes more and the train began to pull away from the platform, the steam creating a curtain between the children and their parents, a cruel pathetic fallacy of the separation they had all just endured. Narcissa stood on the platform until the scarlet carriages were completely out of sight. She did not wave, or call out, or blow kisses towards the windows. She simply watched, still and trembling, as the train took her only child away.

Narcissa felt cool leather press against her palm, and through it the warmth of Lucius' hand as he held hers. It was only the slightest of comforts, the most affection they could afford to show among these crowds of people, but it was enough to keep her from falling apart completely.

"We all have to take the crimson train one day. Draco is no different to you or I at that age." Lucius reminded her, smiling gently. "Besides, you said it yourself, it won't be for long. Three months' time, he'll be back in your arms again."

"I just worry about him." Narcissa reasoned, her eyes still fixed on the empty spot in the distance where she had last seen the train. "He'll be all on his own. I was never alone, I had my sisters and my cousins. Friends are hardly reliable at that age, what if he's lonely?"

"Cissa," Lucius whispered, his low voice somehow calming the panic that had begun to swell in her heart. Finally, the woman turned away from the empty tracks, her eyes meeting her husband's. "I promise you, he will be alright. No harm will come to him, I swear."

Narcissa knew as well as he did that it was an impossible pledge to make, but Lucius taking the responsibility for their son onto himself alleviated her fears just enough to allow her to breathe again. Clutching her husband's hand a little tighter, the woman cast a final glance over her shoulder, then followed the man's lead as they disappeared through the platform wall again, leaving behind them only the faintest wisps of white smoke from the train's engines.

A/N: I started writing this chapter and I just couldn't stop! Really hoped you enjoyed my version of Draco leaving for Hogwarts; I'm not sure I've ever read this in a story before, and I thought it was a really important thing to see. Please review!