Draco awoke as a sliver of light cut through the curtains and into his dark room, marking the right side of his face with a sharp white dagger. His eyes fluttered open and he stared up at the ornate ceiling of his room high above him. The date was September 1, 1998. He ran a tired hand up over his face and sat up, tilting his head to keep the bright light from shining into his eye.
Once sufficiently awake, he made his way downstairs, his eyes casting distastefully about the cold halls as he walked. Malfoy Manor had remained quite empty since late May. Draco found this particularly refreshing given the activities that had taken place in his home in the past few years, but also found himself in a house more unfriendly than he had ever remembered. The same lonely, sad air of years gone by hung throughout the manor, as if the building itself remembered the terrible things that had happened there.
Upon entering the dining room, he caught sight of his mother sitting quietly at the far end of the room's long table. He himself sat a couple seats down from her and waited patiently for his breakfast. A glorious plate of waffles adorned with fresh fruit appeared in front of him after a brief wait along with a small carafe of syrup and a cup of orange juice.
Even without the slow churn of anxiety in his stomach, his appetite had managed to make itself scarce the past few weeks. He half-heartedly nibbled on a small bite of fruit and took a tiny sip of his juice. He pushed his food around for a little while, trying to look interested, then stood and headed back to his room. If his mother had noticed that he hadn't eaten much, she didn't say anything. This wasn't unusual. She'd mostly kept quietly to herself since his father had been taken back to Azkaban.
The ministry was still holding trials following Voldemort's defeat in May. The Auror's office, of course, had its hands full with hundreds of parchment-lengths full of wizards to round up and trial. Draco had read an article about it in the Daily Prophet one morning a few weeks after the battle. The headlining story's title read THE CHOSEN ONE TO JOIN AURORS OFFICE IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING YOU KNOW WHO'S DEFEAT.
The article mentioned that following the appointment of Kingsley Shacklebolt as the new temporary minister of magic, Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley, two students previously enrolled at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, had been offered jobs as aurors in the ministry's ranks personally by the new minister. It went on to review the heroic feats of the golden trio leading up to and through the Battle of Hogwarts and revealed that both boys had indeed accepted Shacklebolt's offer.
Draco's father had been one of the first cases reviewed by the new establishment. Though he had abandoned Voldemort's forces in the end, he was still far from guiltless. The judgement passed included a partial reprieve as a reward for a change of heart, but sentenced Lucius Malfoy to seven years for his part in aiding the rise and return of the dark lord's power. His mother had been trialed fully and found not guilty. Draco too had been summoned to speak privately with a few members of the auror's office and was also found innocent.
Hogwarts school was back up and running following what surely had been a summer full of repair. Draco had received his letter in late July along with the usual list of textbooks and an additional insert informing him of his appointment to head boy. His mother had been adamant about his return to school even before the news arrived. Upon learning it, however, Draco soon fell under the impression that should he resist his mother's insistence, he could expect to find himself forced to return at wand-point.
He was not especially excited to return to school for a repeat of his would-have-been seventh year. However, he did understand newly-instated headmistress McGonagall's reasonings behind the matter. The school had been thoroughly ravaged from the battle last spring, but even if there were any intact classrooms left to take them in, no one would have desired to return for the sake of exams. In any case, they had scarcely learned anything at all last year between the Carrow's reign of terror within and Voldemort's without. Repeating the previous year was the most obvious solution, whether Draco liked it or not.
McGonagall had given a speech about the situation to a gathering at the ministry of magic. She had touched on some points that Draco had found particularly curious. He recalled an excerpt from a different issue of the daily prophet. "It is my wish, to see Hogwarts united in a way no one has seen before. The events from the past few years have proven one very important fact to me. Hogwarts has, since its inception, produced some of the finest wizards our world has ever seen. With regret, I admit that, as a teacher, I would wish to take some credit, but the truth of the matter is this: it is not our school that is so great, but our students. I have been blessed, in my years as transfigurations professor, to teach so many wonderful children. I like to think of Hogwarts sometimes, as less like an academic institution, and more like a family. Like all families, we have our quarrels. We let things like achievements, opinions, and our quidditch loyalties draw lines between us from time to time, but when all is said and done, everyone at Hogwarts is there for the same reason. Our students come to perfect their magical craft to become great witches and wizards.
"Our Gryffindors, hearty in spirit, prefer to use bravery on their path to greatness. Our Ravenclaws, their wit and intellect. Our Hufflepuffs know well that friendship and loyalty are important on the road to success. And our Slytherins use their resourcefulness to achieve their boundless ambition. Our school would be horribly incomplete without the presence of any one of these houses. Though each of our houses prizes a different means above all others to achieve greatness, my time at Hogwarts has proven to me that each of our students will often display all of these prized strengths during their time at our school. Throughout our battle last year, there were great deeds performed by all. I saw Hufflepuffs utilizing strategy and willpower- Gryffindors using their intellect to solve problems- Ravenclaws exercising loyalty before logic- and Slytherins acting selflessly and bravely. Indeed, our houses take pride in the things which set us apart. But when faced from without, our houses should be bound by their strengths, not divided.
"I feel that a great disservice has been done to our Slytherin house. Every year, our new students whisper the same rumors about our former Slytherin wizards. 'Not one of them that hasn't gone bad.' Year after year, Slytherins are driven away by our poor expectations based on a rumor that is not even truthful. We need to have faith in each and every one of our students, no matter what house, that he or she is brave enough, smart enough, loyal enough, and ambitious enough to do the right thing. And truly, I do. Which is why, it is my greatest hope to see all of our students back at school with us on September first."
But Draco for one remained uneasy about his return. The hardships he'd faced had changed him, there was no doubt about it. He didn't know what to think or feel any more. He had been raised to believe that a person's blood status held the key to their success. His experiences and the people he had met told him the opposite. He had once held pride in the power Slytherins had wielded throughout history. First-handed experience with a powerful dark wizard had changed his mind and left him scarred. A reminder of this lapse in judgment was now prominently displayed on his left forearm. He was ashamed to return to his old dormitory. What did he have in common with anyone there anymore?
These thoughts reiterated themselves in his mind as he returned to his room and sat down on his bed. They were the same thoughts that had been tormenting him for the entire summer. With a worried expression, he looked over at his packed trunk and then at the pieces of parchment on his bedside table.
Sighing, he snatched them up and read over his Hogwarts letter again. He still couldn't believe McGonagall had appointed him as head boy. Even more incredulous was that things had returned to a normal enough state for the Hogwarts headmistress to give thought to such things. He read over the insert again, making sure he understood the instructions. The only major difference he could see was that this year, instead of attending a presentation in the prefect's carriage he was expected to give one.
The faint sound of his mother tapping came from behind his door. Time to go. With a last regretful look behind him, he levitated his trunk and followed his mother down to the Manor's parlour. A handful of floo powder and some chimney soot later they appeared from a public floo not far from King's cross. After a tensely silent walk, they arrived at platform 9 3/4. His mother turned to him and looked up into his eyes and gave a slight smile. "Draco, I'm so very proud of you."
Her hand came up to cup his cheek and her eyes began to swim. She blinked her tears away and dabbed at her eyes with a lacy handkerchief. Draco felt his heart begin to ache. He knew she struggled with it all as much as he did, whether she let it show or not. Instantly he was sorry to leave her. She had nowhere to go to escape the house of sorrow.
He hugged her close and she did the same. The train gave a warning whistle and Draco was forced to let go. A hiccup of emotion caught in his throat as he looked over his shoulder to see her waving goodbye.
He boarded the train, trying his best to push his way through the crowded halls to the prefects carriage. It was just like every other school year. Talkative first and second years darted energetically about the train, fifth years huffed as they lugged heavy trunks full of books behind them, and the uproar of students' owls, cats, and toads sounding amidst the pandemonium.
He passed through the carriage that his own house had typically commandeered on their way to school and found it packed with a bunch of chattering first years. He wasn't necessarily disappointed, as he didn't know what he would do if he found one of his old dorm mates anyways. Still, he had yet to see a familiar face.
When he arrived outside the prefect's carriage, he stood apprehensively with his hand resting on the door handle doing his best to mentally prepare himself. Last minute, he remembered his badge, and pinned it to himself hastily. Drawing a sharp breath, he turned the doorknob and, upon entering, came face to face with a familiar pair of brown eyes.