tw : violence (quidditch world cup)
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Draco
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Blaise, Theo and Draco froze in place, despite the dozens of people running in the opposite direction.
"Death Eaters." Theo murmured, his voice trembling.
They watched the masked men walk towards them, and suddenly one of them pointed his wand at the tents and doused them in flames. One after another, the cloth tents burst into flames, doubling the intensity of the screaming and crying. The other Death Eaters followed suit and rushed to destroy as many tents as possible, from which frightened wizards were escaping.
Suddenly, when the Death Eaters had already crossed half the meadow, a man came out of his house in his pyjamas, followed by his wife and their two children.
From what little he could see of them, Draco knew at once that they were Muggles. They were staring at the spectacle before them with round eyes. But before they could do anything, scream or run away, a Death Eater waved his wand and all four of them were suddenly thrown into the air. Draco could hear the greasy laughter of the masked men as they amused themselves by spinning them around, ignoring their panicked screams.
"That's... Horrible." Blaise gasped.
The Death Eaters, all wearing pointy hoods of some sort, were now flipping the Muggles in all directions. The woman was turned upside down and her nightdress fell off, revealing her underwear, which she tried in vain to hide. The Death Eaters continued to advance, the Muggles suspended in mid-air like inanimate dolls above them. Draco could hear laughter through the chaos.
Suddenly, Theo moved, as if he'd just reanimated:
"Fuck, that's my dad!"
He fiercely grabbed the sleeve of Blaise's t-shirt to pull him back. Draco had no idea how Theo could have recognised his father in the mass of wizards with pointed hoods. He himself wouldn't have been able to recognize his father in there. He immediately believed Theo, however, and turned to flee from the horror. The three boys fled at full speed across the meadow.
But Theo's father must have Apparated, because suddenly he was right beside them, and grabbed Theo by the arm, who let out a terrified yelp.
"Ah, there you are, Theodore." said his father in a falsely gentle voice, through his mask. "So, you're enjoying the festivities without coming to say hello to your father?"
He had a mocking laugh, and his breath was heavy with alcohol. Theo failed to reply, too frightened to dare. His face had turned livid and he looked at his father with eyes widened by fear.
Theo's father tightened his fingers on his son's shoulder who groaned in pain:
"Do you want to come with me, son? Torture Muggles, as they deserve, and show us that you do deserve to bear that name?" he said in his hissing voice, like a snake.
"NO!"
Blaise, who was the bravest of the three, stepped between the two and wrenched Theo's father's arm from his grasp. He glared at the Death Eater, full of anger and defiance, and whispered:
"He is not coming with you."
The Death Eater gave an evil laugh, the kind of mirthless laugh that chilled the blood. Draco then saw that he was reaching for his wand. But before he could point it at any of the three boys, Blaise yelled:
"Theo! Draco! RUN!"
Draco obeyed, suddenly regaining the use of his legs which had been paralysed by fear. He grabbed Theo's wrist and ran backwards at full speed, narrowly escaping a red jet thrown by the Death Eater that grazed his hair. He ran with all his might, still holding Theo by the arm. He could hear Blaise's laboured breathing beside him as he ran even faster. They soon reached the end of the meadow, jumped over the fence and continued their frantic race.
By the time they reached the edge of the woods, they could barely hear the detonations of the Death Eaters' wands behind them. Draco turned round, out of breath, but saw nothing but darkness and people shouting.
The moon shone a little on the faces of Blaise and Theo, who were both shaking. Theo was as livid as ever, bent double and coughing out of breath. Blaise was holding his ribs and the three of them took a good minute to recover from their emotions.
"My father was there too." said Draco suddenly. "He hinted that he was planning to do this. My father's a Death Eater, like yours, Theo."
Draco was dazed, lost. He never thought he'd see his father do this. He knew he was a wizard adept at dark magic, but he never thought he could really practice it like this. The thought of those Muggles being used and the mocking laughter nearly made Draco vomit.
Then he remembered something, and his heart fell sharply in his stomach. Granger. His father had seen her at the match, had even glared at her in disgust. Could he be targeting her tonight? Could he be so atrocious?
"Come on, we've got to get into the woods so they don't find us." said Blaise, still panting as he walked further into the forest.
Theo followed him, but Draco did not:
"Go on, I'll find you." he said without looking at them.
"What? No! We stay together, Dray!" ordered Blaise.
"I'll be there in five minutes, I just need to check something. Go on!" he urged.
Blaise and Theo moved reluctantly into the darkness. Draco's heart was racing. He had a side stitch and couldn't breathe properly because of the panic. He absolutely had to warn Granger of the danger; she had to go and hide. He was sure that Potter and Weasley would take her with them, forgetting her nature, and he didn't want to think that his father would spot her and attack her in the same way he had attacked Muggles. The thought terrified him.
He had no idea where she could be, he hadn't seen the Weasleys or Potter since the end of the match. He walked haphazardly between the tents that were still standing, not knowing what to do. Perhaps they had already gone back home after the match, without sleeping there?
His theory fell apart when he spotted a red-haired man in the crowd. He stopped and squinted: it was three Weasleys, but there was no Granger in sight. They had the Weaslette by the hand and were taking her with them to protect her from the Death Eaters.
"George!" shouted one of the twins. "Where are the others? Ron, Hermione and Harry?"
Draco strained his ear:
"I don't know, behind us I think... Come on, we'll look for them. Ginny, are you all right?"
The Weaslette nodded, though she looked shocked. They looked around in the hope of spotting one of their own, but when they couldn't find anyone, one of the twins made up his mind:
"Let's go into the woods, we can find them more easily there."
And off they went, disappearing into the darkness. Draco could hear the hundreds of frightened voices around him. He continued to search the crowd for Granger, and the more minutes passed, the more panicked he became. He knew Granger well by now from watching her to annoy her, and he knew that she had probably joined the fighting. Weasley and Potter hadn't protected her. Perhaps she was already cursed, swung around by Death Eaters for fun, helpless, perhaps she was even...
Suddenly, he saw her. She was running, her wand pointed at her like a weapon. She didn't look as panicked as Weaslette, just very focused. Seeing her so far away from the Death Eaters, he breathed a sigh of relief that eased the tension from his shoulders. She was fine.
Just as they were about to enter the edge of the woods, Weasley then did the only thing he was good at: making a fool of himself. He caught a tree root in his feet and fell forward. Granger stopped in her tracks and bumped into Potter in the back, who hadn't anticipated her braking.
"Ron, where are you?" she asked in a worried voice. "Lumos!"
She lit the path in front of them and found Weasley struggling to his feet. Draco went to meet them, though he had no idea how to talk to them without showing that he was really worried about Granger.
"Tripped over a tree root." grumbled Weasley.
"Well, with feet that size, hard not to." Draco said in the calmest voice he could muster.
Granger suddenly turned towards him. He could see she was scared, it was written all over her face, and her hand holding her wand was trembling slightly.
"'Screw you, Malfoy." Weasley spat.
Draco didn't even pay him any attention. He was thinking of a tactic to prevent them escaping without really giving them any advice. He knew that Weasley and Potter were easy to fool, but he was afraid that Granger would understand his intentions.
He decided to make Weasley and Potter angry. It was the only way he could avoid appearing too nice, and this way he could warn them off.
"Language, Weasley." Draco snapped. "You'd better hurry. You wouldn't like her spotted, would you?"
He nodded towards Granger, who was looking at him nastily, though there was a gleam of fear in her eyes. Weasley turned stupidly towards her, as if he'd just realised she was in danger. How could he be so slow? He felt as if he were talking to Crabbe and Goyle.
There was a noise behind Draco, like an explosion that gave him goose bumps. The Death Eaters were getting closer, soon they would be here, and they were going to attack Granger. He did his best to appear detached, but he was sure Granger had understood his reasoning, from the way she was scrutinising him.
"What do you mean?" she asked stubbornly.
"Granger, they're after Muggles." he replied, staring at her. "Do you feel like showing off your knickers by walking around in the air? If that's what you want, why don't you stay where you are? They're coming this way and I'm sure it would give us all a good laugh."
In reality, nothing frightened him more than that. He imagined Granger being thrown through the air like that Muggle family and the thought made him gag. She arched an eyebrow, and he was sure she was about to utter her eternal line, "and why do you care?" She was cut off by Potter:
"Hermione's a witch."
Draco had to restrain himself from pinching the bridge of his nose. They really were stupid. This discussion was pointless and allowed them to push the Death Eaters even closer to them.
"Have it your own way, Potter." Draco said through gritted teeth. "If you don't think they're capable of spotting a Mudblood, why don't the three of you stay here?"
He hoped his tone was threatening enough to scare them off.
"You watch your mouth!" exclaimed Weasley.
Draco put all his hopes on Granger. He hoped that behind his mocking tone, she could sense the real panic he was feeling. With each explosion, his heart beat faster and harder, and he tried to make her understand through his eyes, begging her to escape before she got caught. He was almost whispering "run, run", and he could see that she understood. She tightened her grip on her wand, but didn't move.
Another explosion, even closer this time. Draco feigned a laugh, trying not to let the fear show in his voice:
"Scare easily, don't they? I suppose your daddy told you to hide? What's he up to? Is he trying to help the Muggles?"
"Where are your parents?" snapped Potter. "Out there wearing masks, are they?"
He felt a little pang in his heart when he heard that, because it was true. His father was over there.
"If it were true, you don't think I'd tell you, Potter, do you?"
He gave Granger one last imploring look, and she finally responded:
"All right, that's enough." Granger said. "Let's go join the others."
Now she understood. Draco closed his eyes for a few seconds, relieved that she was going to hide. Weasley then gave him a suspicious look. Had he been too nice? To be sure, Draco insisted:
"Keep that big bushy hair down, Granger."
"Come on!" she repeated, turning to her two friends.
Just before she ventured into the woods, she turned her head towards him one last time. She looked conflicted, troubled by his behaviour. He gave her a slight nod, hoping she would understand that he was really afraid for her, and she disappeared into the darkness.
Draco immediately turned to find Theo and Blaise, who had gone off in another direction. He walked haphazardly through the trees, passing people crying as he went, children hiding behind their parents and panicked girls whimpering in fear. Finally, he saw Blaise's silhouette in the distance, towering over everyone:
"Blaise, Theo!"
They were sitting alone at the foot of a huge tree. Blaise gave him a slight nod, clearly relieved to see him again. Draco sat down next to them, against the tree trunk. The atmosphere of melting marshmallows amidst singing and dancing was very distant, as if it had happened hours ago. Draco did his best to calm his still ragged breathing. He wondered where Granger had hidden. Had she understood his ploy to make her leave, or had she thought he'd just been mean?
Theo didn't speak, playing absent-mindedly with the twigs at the foot of the tree, his chin resting on his legs, which were folded against him. He had obviously been shaken by his father's sudden appearance. The Irish flags they had painted on their faces were now pale and dripping a little.
Draco, on the other hand, had been so focused on leaving and protecting Theo and Granger that he hadn't weighed up the fact that his father was a Death Eater. Yet he was sure he was. Thousands of questions ran through his mind: Did his mother know? Had he been planning this for months? Did he feel any remorse for those poor Muggles?
He knew that his father was a blood supremacist, but to torture these poor people... Draco couldn't help thinking that they hadn't deserved it at all.
Suddenly, there was a small bang that startled all three of them. Theo covered his head with his arms, Blaise pointed his wand at the noise, and Draco looked up at the sky, where a sudden green light had appeared. At first, it blinded him too much for him to see what it was, but as his eyes adjusted to the glow, he could clearly make out a huge skull and crossbones, standing out against the black sky. A snake protruded from its mouth and coiled around the skull, producing a faint greenish smoke around the illumination.
"It's the Dark Mark!" shouted Theo.
Draco had heard of this symbol before, the sign of the Dark Lord. He opened his mouth in shock, but didn't have time to detail it again, because Blaise violently pulled at the sleeve of his shirt. He had risen to his feet and was struggling to hold Theo, who was more livid than ever.
"Come on, Dray, let's get back to the tent. Come on!"
Draco stood up and helped Theo to lean on him to walk. They walked slowly between the trees. The strange skull and crossbones gave off a green light that illuminated the path ahead. When they passed the meadow, there were no Death Eaters left - they must have Apparated to avoid being caught by the Ministry. There were still flames burning the remains of tents and stalls.
Draco, Blaise and Theo found their tent, and fortunately it was intact. They went inside and all three of them shivered, but Draco couldn't tell if it was from cold or fear. They sat down on the huge sofa and Theo finally seemed to regain some colour. They shivered for long minutes in complete silence.
"Tea?" suggested Blaise.
He didn't wait for an answer and quickly put the kettle on.
"I'll light a fire." said Theo in a small voice.
Theo approached the fireplace and examined the pack of matches which lay beside it. They couldn't do magic until they were seventeen, so Draco was forced to watch Theo try to light a fire like a Muggle, for about ten minutes before finally managing to produce a flame worthy of the name. He threw it into the wood, which burst into flames.
Blaise brought three cups of tea and Draco drank his, despite the fact that it was scalding hot. Watching the flames dance before him, he finally dared to speak in his hoarse voice:
"I never thought my father could do that."
Theo patted him sympathetically on the shoulder:
"We don't know that he was in there, Draco."
"He was. He hinted at it to me, before he left... He said 'they'll be sorry'. He'd planned it."
There was a silence, and Blaise finally whispered:
"The Dark Mark... It means You-Know-Who is back, doesn't it?"
"Only Death Eaters can cast that spell." Theo explained after taking a sip of tea. "Maybe they did it to scare people, or maybe he really is back. It's impossible to really know. In any case, the mark has a bad omen. If he's back... it means we'll have to join him."
Draco shuddered:
"What? What do you mean?"
"Both our fathers are supporters of You-Know-Who." said Theo. "Your father is a Death Eater, Draco. If he's back, your family will be forced to follow him."
There was a long silence in which Draco stared absently at the fireplace. Then Blaise ended the conversation:
"No. Anyway, he's not back, it was probably one of the Death Eaters who got carried away and did it just to scare people. We'll get some sleep, and everything will be better tomorrow, okay?"
Theo and Draco nodded.
"Yeah, you're right."
"Let's go to bed." Theo agreed.
And even though there were six rooms in this huge tent, Draco, Blaise and Theo all fell asleep on the sofa.
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Hermione
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"Listen to me, now, it's very late and if Molly ever hears what's happened she'll be worried sick." said Arthur. "We'll sleep for a few hours and try to catch a Portkey early tomorrow morning to get home."
Hermione nodded and rose from the bench, still shaking. She turned to Ginny, with whom she shared the second tent next door, and in a mechanical gesture, they held hands.
"Good night, everyone." Ginny said in a whisper.
Everyone mumbled a reply and Hermione and Ginny went to find their tent. There were two rooms in it, but they didn't even need to speak to know that they were going to sleep in the same bed. Ginny picked up her bag, without leaving Hermione's hand, and it wasn't until they were both in bed that they let go of each other's hand, as if now they were safe.
"To think that just a few hours ago we were at the game!" Ginny said in a whisper. "Can you realise that? It feels like it's been days. So much has happened since then."
"Where have you been?" asked Hermione in a low voice, too. "We lost you, just after Ron fell to the ground."
"Fred kept going without stopping, he thought you were right behind us, and when we realised you were gone, it was impossible to find you in the crowd."
Ginny moved and turned to Hermione. Her big hazel eyes barely peeked out of the sleeping bag she was lying in, and a lock of flaming red hair barred her face a little.
"Did you hear who did that?" she asked, intrigued.
"Yes." said Hermione.
"And you didn't see anything?"
"No, it was too dark, we couldn't see anything at all. He was hidden by the trees."
They were silent for a moment, but neither of them had their eyes closed. Through the canvas of the tent, Hermione could hear the footsteps of people putting out fires.
"Something else happened." Hermione confessed slowly. "Something... weird."
"What?" asked Ginny, eager to know.
"Draco Malfoy was there, by the edge of the woods."
"Yes, Ron said you ran into him, and that his father was probably one of the Death Eaters who attacked the poor Muggles."
"He was... I don't know, it sounded like he was trying to make a point to me."
"What do you mean?"
"He wasn't his usual self. I mean, he was as acerbic as ever, but it was like he was hiding something behind it, like he wanted to warn me of the danger I was in."
"Maybe he was really worried about you, because he knows what his father is capable of." Ginny guessed.
"Maybe..." said Hermione evasively, staring at the canvas of the tent behind Ginny.
"Did Ron and Harry say anything?"
"No, they didn't notice. They just thought he wanted to make fun of us. I'm the only one who saw that he looked... I don't know, confused? Anxious?"
She met Ginny's bewildered gaze and shook her head:
"I'm probably imagining things. Fatigue and anxiety must be playing tricks on me. Let's get some sleep and we'll talk about it tomorrow." Hermione said.
Ginny agreed and snuggled into her sleeping bag.
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Draco
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They had barely slept when the first rays of sun broke through the thin tent. The fire had died down, leaving only black embers. Draco sat up slightly and saw Blaise and Theo both lying next to him on the sofa. Theo was clutching a pillow, and Blaise was lying full length, one leg on Draco and the other sticking out from the sofa, with one arm over his eyes. When Draco moved, they both woke up:
"What time is it?" grumbled Blaise.
"I don't know, early. I think we should go home."
The two boys agreed and together they packed up their things and went out into the campsite. The campsite was nothing like it had been the day before, littered with burnt bits of tent, torn Irish banners and a light film of dust flying over the ground. They left the tent where it was and hurried to the Portkey point. Draco had no idea what time it was, but he knew it was very early, because the sun had barely risen over the horizon.
They queued up and gave their destination to one of the wizards who managed the returns, who handed them a crumpled old newspaper:
"You'll be leaving at 6.17am, in 3 minutes!"
Theo, Blaise and Draco grabbed hold of the newspaper, and suddenly, without any preamble, they were thrown forward. Draco closed his eyes, clinging to the newspaper at all costs. When they reached land, none of them had fallen.
Blaise and Theo said goodbye to Draco and headed back to Blaise's Manor, while Draco took the opposite route. In the distance, he could see the outline of his own house against the rosy sky. He walked along the scrubby path to the black gate, which he passed through as if it were invisible.
As he opened the front door, he heard his mother cry out from the reception room. She came running into the hall and when she saw him, she sighed with relief.
"He's all right, he's all right!" she cried.
As she approached him, he saw that her eyes were red and her face streaked with tears. She then did something she rarely did: she took him in her arms. For a second, he was thrown against his mother, before she released him:
"Oh, Draco, I was so scared... I tried to come back, but all the Portkeys were blocked, and I couldn't Apparate... Are you all right?"
She stroked his hair and he winced in pain: he had a cut, just below his hairline, which he'd made the day before and hadn't looked after. At the sight of the wound, Narcissa's worried face turned into a mask of anger.
"LUCIUS!" she shouted.
Draco's father arrived in the hall in his turn. Compared to the day before, he was much less confident. His back was a little hunched and he didn't dare look at his wife, or Draco.
"Come. Here." Narcissa hissed through clenched teeth.
Lucius approached sheepishly and barely looked at the cut on Draco's forehead.
"You told me he was fine, you told me he was safe." she said, her voice trembling with anger.
"I... Narcissa, darling... It's all right, it's just a small cut, nothing serious..."
"Nothing serious? NOTHING SERIOUS? LUCIUS! YOU ATTACKED MUGGLES IN THE MIDDLE OF A MEADOW! IN FRONT OF EVERYONE! AND YOU DID IT IN FRONT OF OUR SON, WHO WAS THERE, CRASHING, WHO HAD TO RUN AWAY FROM HIS OWN FATHER!" Narcissa exploded, her eyes bulging with rage.
Draco had rarely seen his mother so furious. It was usually Lucius who threw this kind of outburst, and Draco was so used to it that he didn't even flinch anymore. On the other hand, when his mother was in this state, it was twice as impressive as Lucius. Lucius cowered slightly, and even though Narcissa's anger wasn't directed at him, Draco had the same reaction. She continued, still shouting but taking care to detach each word:
"DID YOU THINK ABOUT HIM? THE DANGER YOU'VE PUT DRACO IN? COULDN'T YOU HAVE HELD BACK?"
"But..." cut in Lucius, still as pitiful as ever. "He wasn't in any danger, it was Muggles we were attacking, not Purebloods, I could never have done anything to Draco, you know that..."
"DO I?" asked Narcissa.
She left quickly and returned to the hall, her dark eyes burning with hate. She threw a newspaper into Lucius's hands, who caught it in mid-air. It was the Daily Prophet, and on the cover was a photo of the skull and crossbones Draco had seen in the sky the day before. The headline was "Scenes of terror at the Quidditch World Cup."
"I've read it all, Lucius. All of it. You didn't care about Draco's safety, he could have been in your way and you wouldn't have even noticed. Knocking Muggles upside down, really, Lucius? Didn't you have anything better to do than that?"
Lucius didn't reply, clearly taken aback by Narcissa's anger. Draco could hardly believe that the man who had attacked those Muggles and destroyed the meadow the day before was the same man who was now standing sheepishly in front of him.
Draco's mother suddenly took her son by the arm and led him into another room. Lucius did not follow. She opened a door, which led to Narcissa's study: a large room with bookcases everywhere and a wide desk. In the corner were two armchairs, one facing the other. She sat down in one of them, and Draco took a seat opposite her. She massaged her temples silently, then called out in a shrill voice:
"CHUBBY!"
The house elf instantly materialised.
"Yes, mistress?"
"Bring me a medical kit and two cups of tea. And quickly."
Chubby nodded and disappeared, returning about thirty seconds later with a tray, which he placed on the small table between them, then disappeared again.
"Mother, it's fine, it's just a..."
She interrupted him with a wave of her hand and opened the kit. She took out several instruments that Draco was unfamiliar with and bent down to treat the small cut on his forehead. In reality, it wasn't much, but his mother seemed so worried that he let her treat him without flinching. She applied a slightly sticky potion to it, then put on a bandage that he could easily cover with his hair.
"Right, now..." she said, taking a small cup of tea. "You're going to tell me exactly everything that happened, please."
Draco told her everything. He left no detail out, especially the moment when they had seen Theo's father. When she heard this, Narcissa opened her eyes wide, but let him continue. Of course, he didn't say anything about when he'd spoken to Granger, Potter and Weasley, preferring to tell her that he'd stayed with Blaise and Theo the whole time. When he had finished, she asked him:
"Why don't Theo and his dad talk to each other any more? Theo's living with Blaise at the moment, isn't he?"
"I can't tell you that, Mother. I'm sorry." said Draco.
She raised her eyebrows:
"You can tell me anything, Draco. What's happened to him? Did he get kicked out of his house?"
"Sorry." repeated Draco. "I promised Theo I wouldn't say anything."
She puckered her lips, but didn't insist.
"Anyway, if he needs to, he can always live at the Manor. He knows that, doesn't he?"
"That's kind, I'll tell him."
Narcissa then placed her cup of tea on the tray and put both hands on her lap:
"I think you should go and see Pansy. She's very worried about you."
"What?" he asked, caught off guard. "How do you know that?"
"She's the one who came to bring me the newspaper." said his mother. "She looked really scared, you should go and see her."
Draco got up immediately and left the study without finishing his tea. He crossed the corridor again, the hall empty, and opened the door to the back courtyard. He walked to the fountain, but Pansy wasn't there, so he continued on to the hedge at the back, stepped through the opening and found himself in his best friend's garden. The sun had risen by now, but the sky was still pink.
He saw her before she saw him. She was sitting on her doorstep, her legs folded up against her in the same position as Theo had been the day before, when they had taken refuge in the woods. When she looked up, Draco could see an expression of relief immediately relax her features. She got up and ran across the garden to join him, and took refuge in his arms:
"Oh, Draco! Oh, I was so scared, so scared..."
"It's all right, we're fine. Blaise and Theo are back too."
"What happened? Come on in, my dad's not here."
Draco followed her inside. She offered him tea, coffee and something to eat, and even though Draco's stomach was screaming for food, he refused, too nauseous to accept:
"Honestly, Pans'... I think I just want to sleep."
Draco had hardly slept all night. Pansy nodded and they headed for her room. The bed was all made up, and Draco wondered if she'd managed to get some sleep, too. She lifted the duvet so that Draco could slip into it, then did the same. He immediately felt a sense of security that he hadn't felt for several days.
Pansy snuggled up to him and gently stroked his hair. Draco wanted to tell her what had happened, but he was suddenly too exhausted to do so. Fortunately, she didn't ask. She simply ran her hand over his hair, again and again, in a gentle, comforting movement that quickly pushed Draco to the edge of sleep.
"What have you got there?" she asked in a whisper as she felt the bandage on his forehead.
Draco didn't even hear her question, because he had already fallen asleep.
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The rest of August was no happier. Draco had finally explained, with the help of Blaise and Theo, the whole story of the Quidditch World Cup to Pansy. Despite seeing his father again, Theo had recovered quickly from the event. Draco, on the other hand, had decided to forget about it. He wanted to put that frightening moment in the past.
But his parents weren't helping. Whenever Draco came to the Manor, his two parents ignored each other, causing a particularly heavy atmosphere. Narcissa still hadn't come to terms with what Lucius had done, and Lucius seemed to want to make himself as small as possible in the hope of avoiding his wife's wrath. So they ignored each other and didn't even speak, much to Draco's dismay as he didn't know where to stand.
So he spent all his time with Pansy. From morning to night, until bedtime, they were together, sometimes with Blaise and Theo. When Pansy's father wasn't around, they spent the night together at her place, and she even came into his room one or two nights. Draco knew that this was strictly forbidden by the Malfoy rules, but for once he didn't give a toss. Besides, his parents had other problems than checking that Draco's flats weren't occupied by someone else.
Soon, Draco had to leave for Hogwarts. He packed his trunk carefully the night before, locked Ebony in his cage and Apparated with his mother to King's Cross. His father, with whom he had not exchanged a word for the rest of the summer, had not come to accompany him.
Narcissa and Draco joined Pansy, Blaise and Theo, who were all waiting outside platform 9 ¾. When they arrived in front of the Hogwarts Express, Narcissa placed a kiss on Draco's forehead:
"Send me letters, will you?"
"One every week, as usual, Mother." Draco promised.
She smiled slightly, then turned to Draco's three friends. She seemed to hesitate for a moment, then gave all three of them a quick hug, which surprised everyone. Draco noticed that the one she gave Theo lasted longer than the others:
"Have a good term. And none of you are entering this Tournament, is that clear? I couldn't bear to worry about any of you. Go on, and have a good trip."
They dragged their suitcases onto the platform, boarded the train and entered the usual empty compartment. They were soon joined by Crabbe and Goyle:
"Hi guys!" exclaimed Goyle.
As always, Draco was the only one to reply:
"Hi. Good summer?"
"Great." said Crabbe as he sat down on one of the benches. "Did you see what happened at the World Cup? Hell of a thing, huh?"
"Yeah, we saw that." said Theo with a wry laugh.
Despite their usual stupidities, Crabbe and Goyle seemed to understand the certain tension this subject had brought into the compartment, and didn't talk about it any more. The train started, and for a long time there was only silence. Theo took his book and lay down on the bench to read it at his ease, as he did every time he travelled on the Hogwarts Express. Draco and Blaise shared the latest Quidditch magazine, Seeker Weekly, and Pansy immersed herself in her own magazine.
For a long time, no one broke the silence, everyone immersed in their reading. Crabbe and Goyle had fallen asleep next to each other on one end of Draco's bench. Suddenly, Theo called out, startling everyone:
"Pansy, what are you reading?"
Draco turned to Pansy, and more importantly the magazine in her hands. She often read magazines like Witch Weekly, or fashion magazines, but Draco had never seen this one. It was called "Crystal Ball" and the photo on the cover showed tarot cards superimposed on each other.
"My magazine?" said Pansy, surprised by this intervention.
"Is it a Divination magazine?" asked Theo.
"Yes?"
"What? How can you believe in this shit?" he asked, flabbergasted.
Pansy was immediately offended.
"I beg your pardon? Do I make remarks about your reading?"
She pointed with her chin to the book in his hands. Draco knew she was referring to Theo's Muggle reading, but since Crabbe and Goyle were there, she didn't mention them. Theo didn't seem fazed by this:
"I'm reading a book about Adalbert Waffling, for your information. And it doesn't change the fact that you're reading a Divination magazine."
"So what? I love Divination, it's my second favourite subject."
"What?!" gasped Theo, sitting up sharply against the bench. "You mean you believe in that sort of thing?"
"Believe? I don't need to believe it, it's genuine." said Pansy.
Draco had rarely seen Theo so indignant in all the time he'd known him. His eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of their sockets.
"But Pansy... That's a load of bollocks, you know that, right? You can't really believe that?"
"Yes, I can!" insisted Pansy. "It's all true in there, horoscopes are always very accurate. I read yours every month."
"You know our signs?" interjected Blaise, impressed.
Pansy rolled her eyes:
"Of course I know your signs! Draco is a Gemini, Theo you're a Virgo, and Blaise you're a Scorpio, just like me."
"What about us?" asked Crabbe, pointing at himself and Goyle.
Pansy ignored them completely.
"I didn't know you were interested in that..." said Theo, scandalised.
"Here, I'll read you your horoscope." she said with a mischievous smile. "Virgo: This autumn, you'll redouble your efforts in terms of work. You won't be counting the hours, despite your tiredness. Try to get some rest! Health: You're in good shape, except for a 3-day cough from September 18 to 21. Love: Singles, expect some madness this month! Perhaps the person you have your eye on will take a step towards you? You'll find out on September 30."
Pansy raised her head as Theo burst out laughing:
"Pans', that's rubbish!"
"Well, it describes you perfectly."
Pansy and Theo argued about the legitimacy of Divination the whole ride. Draco and Blaise didn't interfere, but that didn't stop them from having an endless debate. Theo wanted to convince Pansy that Divination was unproven, and Pansy listed "infallible" proofs to contradict what he was saying.
About halfway through the journey, Draco couldn't stand listening to them argue any longer, so he woke Crabbe and Goyle.
"Come on, let's go and annoy Potter." he said with a smirk.
Blaise sighed:
"What? Haven't you had enough, Draco? Every year it's the same thing, won't you leave Potter alone for once?"
"Traditions are traditions, Blaise."
He ignored his best friend's exasperation and walked out into the corridor, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle who looked very happy to be of some use. He headed for the compartment that Potter, Weasley and Granger used most often. They were there all right, he could see them through the glass.
If he was being completely honest with himself, making fun of Weasley and Potter was just an excuse now. He didn't really feel the need to annoy them any more. The real reason he'd come was because he wanted to see her. He knew that she wouldn't dare throw her usual quips at him in the presence of her two acolytes, but he wanted to see her all the same.
And it was also to check that she was all right.
Even if he wouldn't admit it to anyone in the world.