Chapter 22

Dan took me upstairs and down a corridor, at the end of which he knocked on a cream-coloured door.

A, "Come in." resounded from within, and Dan opened the door.

"Hey sweetie, Mr Malfoy's grandson is here to give you a lesson." Dan said, calmly at the small girl lying on her bed and reading a thick tome. Astrology if I identified it correctly.

I was then treated to the humorous scene of the bushy-haired girl dropping her book and jumping out of her bed in a fright to gape at her father.

"Already?" She squeaked, and then froze when she saw me standing beside her father, archaic garb and quirked brow.

A noise resembling the mating call of a sloth escaped her throat, before she waddled towards us a bit, waved her arms as if she was trying to take off into the sky and migrate to Africa, and eventually bent down in what a drunken spectator might ten years later claim must have been a rhinoceros' attempt at a curtsy. "Greetings, heir Malfoy." She managed to stutter out as she did all that.

I honestly would have burst out laughing had I not known that it was the stupidest thing I could have done in the situation. Instead, I completed my own bow, which for the case of a pure-blood greeting a muggleborn was more of a nod. "Greetings young lady Granger. I am gladdened to see that you have taken the book on etiquette that my mother insisted be forwarded to you too heart. It is a most welcome surprise." I said, clearly insinuating that other muggleborns had left her a hefty reputation that she would have to make up for if she were to be taken seriously.

I honestly don't think she actually understood the back handedness of my compliment and the warning that it held. She just smiled at me. Well, she was eight years old. What had I been doing at that age? Climbing trees and throwing sticks at cows?

"Please extend the esteemed lady Malfoy my thanks for the material, it has been most helpful." Hermione eventually said, the pause making it clear that she'd needed some time to come up with the sentence and to garb it in the proper decorum.

"I shall certainly endeavour to do so at the earliest. I will also forward to her that you have not only read it, but also started to apply its lessons. I imagine she will be most thrilled" I said, starting to feel like I was in a crossover between "Harry Potter" and "Pride and Prejudice".

I suddenly changed my body-language from stiff, to languid. "I would, however, suggest we stop with the overblown etiquette for now. It's usually reserved for formal functions and for first introductions. Showing people that you're someone who has been educated with the correct manners so they may then extend you the courtesy of sharing a conversation tinged in a more blasé tone. Suffice to say that while you did not comport yourself perfectly, you made an impassioned enough attempt, and since I am not here to evaluate your poise, but rather to train you in occlumency, I will have to insist that we drop the formalities so we may begin the lessons at the earliest." I said, watching the gears spin behind the girl's eyes as she fidgeted with her brown blouse. "You may call me Draco." I added.

"Ermm, I'm Hermione. Can we start with the lessons then?" She eventually said.

This was the part where Dan interrupted us. "Yes, let's adjourn to the living room, I think Abraxas will want to be present, and your mother won't mind keeping you in the corner of her eye during the lesson either."

We walked back to the living room, me walking with Dan, and Hermione trailing behind us. "Adjourn huh?" I asked, chuckling. "Didn't take ya for such a stiffy, gov'ner." I said in my best imitation of a gutter accent.

Dan gave me an amused look, before shivering. "Hermione has been blazing her way through thesauruses ever since she's gotten that book on wizarding etiquette. She's been wanting to impress your Grandfather. I've probably picked up a few words by osmosis." He admitted.

"Dad, you weren't supposed to tell him that." Hermione whined from behind, before slapping a hand over her mouth if the sound was any indication.

I chuckled.

We made the rest of our way into the living room in silence, both the Granger's exuding a sort of nervous energy. Once there, I didn't let formalities take over once again, and simply explained to Hermione what these sessions would entail, and why they were structured this way.

In no time at all, I thus found myself pointing my wand at an eight-year-old's forehead, about to cast a malicious spell, her parents watching from the side.

The plan for now was simple. I would keep the lessons light, and gain the trust of the girl and her parents. Eventually the parents would trust me enough to not feel the need to be present during lessons. This could be facilitated by me claiming to be unavailable at times where they were not at work. Then, once alone with Hermione, I could dig up more painful memories, that I would avoid for now, and then be her only source of comfort. Gaining someone's trust by healing the wounds that one had created. How droll. The legilimency sessions would also provide me with all the information I would ever need on the girl, making it even easier to manipulate her. It did not hurt that I was likely the only person her age who she would have a connection too, I assumed at least.

And if it were not so, I could make it so.

Most people, girls especially, followed a strict form of social orthodoxy, or one could say, pack mentality. They will follow whatever is deemed socially acceptable by their surroundings. It starts at a young age. Girls being obsessed with being popular, wearing the right clothes, listening to the right music. Although Hermione seemed to be low on the conformity spectrum, it was a spectrum for a reason, nobody was immune, especially at a young age.

To control people, one only needed to control the social norms that they held up to be the most important. To control the social norms, one needed to control the social environment, and while I was unable to replace the entirety of the muggle world with something that would form Hermione into what I wanted her to be, I could take up an important role in her social environment. The role of her only friend/confidant/peer. A role I would then abuse to cut her off from all other venues of social influence, making me the sole solicitor of positive emotions and morality.

The plan spelled out sounded quite evil now that I thought of it.

"Legilimens."