Chapter 11

"Tell me about your year, Draco."

Coming out of any other father's mouth, that might have come across as jovial and without any sort of underlying tension or meaning. But coming from Lucius Malfoy, Lord and Patriarch of House Malfoy, it was different. The moment those words pass through his father's lips over dinner, Draco's back straightens. He squares his shoulders, sparing only a single glance towards his mother, who gives him the smallest of nods and the slightest of encouraging smiles.

Spending nothing more than a moment gathering his thoughts, knowing his father not to be a patient man by any stretch of the imagination, Draco licks his lips, swallows as quietly as he can, and begins to speak.

"It went… well, father. As you know, Slytherin won the House Cup again this year. I'm proud to continue that tradition as the representative of our House currently in residence at Hogwarts."

Lucius inclines his head at that, spearing a piece of meat on his plate and sliding it into his mouth, chewing slowly for a few moments before swallowing and eyeing his young son.

"Indeed. Only by ten points, from what I heard. Not quite the landslide victory it could have been, now was it?"

Draco flushes at that and speaks without thinking.

"Oh, well that was just Granger. She-!"

"Ah yes. The muggleborn."

Lord Lucius Malfoy does not use slurs like mudblood, not even in the privacy of his own home. Lord Lucius Malfoy is not such a crass individual. Lord Lucius Malfoy stands at the top of the wizarding world. And yet, the way he addresses Hermione Granger as 'The Muggleborn' drips with derision and disgust. He might as well have called her a mudblood.

Draco shrinks back in his chair just a little bit at his father's venomous tone, and in the ensuing silence, Lucius's next words drip with poison.

"The muggleborn who I'm told beat both you and the eldest Greengrass girl for top spot in grading this year. Tell me about this muggleborn, Draco. Tell me about your failure."

Draco winces, but deep down he knows better. And he knows his father will agree with him once he's done explaining. So, he doesn't shrink in on himself any further, nor does he droop. Both would be unseemly behavior for the Scion of House Malfoy anyways, but in this moment, he knows he's in the right.

"It wasn't failure, father. In fact, I believe I have been nothing but successful."

He speaks with confidence, his head held high and his chin out. He doesn't quite look his father in the eye, not wanting his self-confidence to be construed for defiance and all the punishments that would come with, but he does hold his back ramrod straight as his mother looks between her husband and her son, ever so slightly worried.

"Oh?"

There's a lot of meaning in that one word response, but the most important thing Draco gets from it is 'invitation'. Invitation to explain himself… along with a promise that if his explanation is not deemed satisfactory, there will be consequences. Letting his shoulders sag infinitesimally in relief, Draco begins to elaborate.

"It's true that Granger outperformed me and Daphne academically. She outperformed the entire year, academically. But the most important thing I've learned over my first year at Hogwarts is not something I discovered in the classroom, father. I have learned that raw intelligence only gets you so far. I have learned… that grades are not everything."

He speaks gravely, even as he continues to avoid looking his father in the eye. While it would be nice to be able to study Lucius' face for even one hint of what the older wizard was thinking, Draco knew better. He wouldn't find anything that his father didn't want him to find, and the fact that he was looking for a reaction in the first place would only make him seem weak. Malfoys were not weak.

"Is that so?"

Each word feels like a nail hammering down as they descend from Lucius Malfoy's lips. But at the same time, Draco sees a light at the end of the tunnel, because he hears the vaguest hint of amusement in his father's voice. And that… that might mean approval.

"Yes, father. You see… Hermione Granger might just be the smartest witch of our generation, despite her blood status. As such, I have taken steps to make sure she is my creature and mine alone."

Draco would not bring up Dudley's part if he could help it. He certainly wouldn't tell his parents about the niggling little voice in the back of his head that said Granger was really Dudley's, and that Draco just had her on loan at the other boy's convenience. Honestly, he was grateful to Dudley, because the other wizard had turned out to be quite good at magic. He wasn't as academically sound as Granger, maybe, but he was more magically powerful than her, Draco was pretty sure. The speed at which Dudley picked up the practical lessons they'd been taught this year had been… mind boggling in a way.

But Dudley had sandbagged at Draco's request, and ended up behind Granger, Draco, Daphne, and one of the Ravenclaws academically. At fifth place, he wasn't such a big deal, and hopefully wouldn't hold much of Lucius' attention. And Dudley definitely could have aimed for higher, if he wanted to. Somehow, Draco's friend had managed to get a Ravenclaw Third Year named Marietta Edgecombe to tutor him privately, teaching him advanced magic as well as their society's social norms on the side for some extra Hogsmeade money.

Regardless, his father and mother are reacting to Draco's words. They exchange a look, with Narcissa being the one to speak up… perhaps because of the context of Draco's response.

"Your creature, Draco? I thought she was a Gryffindor?"

Grinning wickedly now, feeling a bit buoyed by his parents' surprise, Draco lets out a soft chuckle.

"She is, mother. That's what makes it so brilliant. They've effectively tossed her out for being a know-it-all. Bullied her, ostracized her. They've discarded her… so I went ahead, and I picked her up. Pulled her up from the ground and put her back on her feet. I gave her friends, mother, father. And in doing so, I've tied her to me most securely. She is a muggleborn yes, but she's quite useful, and she's come to know her place in our society."

Silence falls for a moment, until Draco suddenly lights up.

"Ah! Case in point… have you heard where Vincent and Gregory placed in this year's rankings yet, father?"

Lucius inclines his head regally in Draco's direction at that.

"Indeed. Their fathers were both mightily impressed with their sons' first year results. Even if managing to make it into the top half of one's year really isn't anything to write home about, it's still better than their fathers managed back in their first year."

Smirking smugly, Draco nods his head.

"That was Granger's doing, you'll be pleased to know. Once I brought her into the fold and offered her my protection as well as some… training in how our society functions, she was great help in bringing up their grades, helping them with their homework and studies. And I don't mean she just did it all for them, I mean she quite literally managed to make even those two buffoons get a passing grade on their own merits."

His parents exchange another glance, with Narcissa smiling openly now and even Lucius having something of an approving look on his face. Finally, after several incredibly tense moments (for Draco at least) Lucius nods his head.

"Well done, Draco."

That's all he's going to get… but it's still better than what could have been. In that three word response, Draco had effectively gotten a 'passing grade' with his own father. It meant that there would be no punishments, and that Lucius would not prevent him from continuing his plans into his Second Year. And Draco definitely did have them!

Even if he'd… bent the truth a fair bit with his parents by not exactly mentioning Dudley Dursley or the rather large role he'd played in bringing Granger on board, it was fine. He hadn't told any outright lies, per say. After all, without Draco's support, without the word of a Malfoy Scion, Dudley would have been deemed less than trash within House Slytherin.

As such, everything that Dudley had achieved this year could effectively be considered Draco's achievement as well. Therefore, it wasn't at all unfair to claim credit for the sake of impressing his father. That made sense, right?

With his grilling of Draco finished, Lord Malfoy begins talking with Lady Malfoy again, and Draco remains quiet, not really seeing an angle to interject himself into their conversation as they discuss things that are still above him a little bit. But that's okay. One day, he's going to take his father's place. One day, HE will be Lord Malfoy. He can wait. He can be patient.

Letting the conversation of his parents wash over him, Draco continues eating his meal. As he does so, he finds himself reflecting on the things that had happened this year that Lucius hadn't seen fit to discuss with him. Draco was sure his father was aware of some, while being perfectly uncaring about others.

Like for instance, Lucius Malfoy would not care about Dudley managing to hire Marietta Edgecombe to tutor him. But at the same time, Draco had no doubt that his father knew more about Professor Quirrell's abrupt departure from Hogwarts then Draco himself did. After all, Lord Malfoy was on the Hogwarts Board of Governors, so that old senile man Dumbledore would have to have reported to them by now, right?

Same with Professor Snape. Whatever had happened to the Potions Professor and Head of Slytherin, Draco honestly couldn't say much more than the rumors he'd heard. Supposedly, Snape had been attacked by a dark wizard, or possibly a hit wizard when he'd been outside of Hogwarts on his Christmas Break, traveling for the purposes of finding some rare potions ingredients, or so everyone who wasn't making up lies about him and his condition said.

But while everyone knew he'd ended up in St. Mungo's somehow, no one knew his current state. The latter half of the year, with both Quirrell and Snape gone, had been something of a weird experience, what with the DADA and Potions positions being filled by Dumbledore himself until the Headmaster could find adequate replacements. As far as Draco knew, that was par for the course with the DADA position. They said it was cursed, after all.

But when it came to Professor Snape and the Potions position… well, the man WAS supposed to be Draco's godfather, so he really was supposed to care a bit more, probably. It was just… hard. Especially when Snape had seemed so unsure of whether he disliked Dudley or not, that first half of the year leading up to Christmas. But whatever. Either he'd recover and return to Hogwarts, or he wouldn't. No skin off Draco's back.

His mind ranges further at that, to the end of the year train ride. Granger had been in the cabin with them this time, and Draco had to admit… she was half-passable company, after Dudley trained her up. Certainly, she was more engaging company then Crabbe and Goyle, that was for sure. He just… he wondered what Dudley had planned for her. On the one hand, the two were technically FROM the muggle world, so them going off into Muggle London together wasn't too odd.

On the other hand, the fact that neither of them had had parents waiting for them at the train station had made it seem like they'd made plans ahead of time. Not to mention, there was the casual wink Dudley had tossed Draco's way as he'd led Hermione out of the train and off of the platform.

No matter. Draco would find out all about it next year at Hogwarts. After all, Dudley might be more worthy of the title 'friend' then Crabbe and Goyle, but he was still Draco's minion, at the end of the day. Still lower on the totem pole then the Scion of House Malfoy. Dudley's acceptance of that fact was part of why Draco liked him so much. The other boy knew his place.

Next year would be fun. Draco wouldn't just be learning more magic… he'd finally get a chance to join the Quidditch Team. He was a shoo-in, of course. There was no doubt in his mind that they would accept him onto the team. And from there, he'd be one of the youngest Quidditch Players in Hogwarts History. Just as it should be…

"Draco. You are dismissed."

Blinking, Draco belatedly realizes that dinner is finished. In the middle of his ruminations, he'd eaten the rest of his meal and his plate was cleaned. Wiping his mouth with his napkin and rising from the table carefully, Draco gives his father a bow. As he straightens up though, he can't help but throw out a stray thought.

"It's a pity that Harry Potter never turned up at Hogwarts. There are rumors he turned out to be a squib. It's such a shame… I'm sure he and I would have been best mates."

His father and mother exchange another glance before looking back at him, his mother beaming at him and his father smiling ever so slightly.

"I'm sure you would have been, sweetie!"

"Indeed. Such a… pity."

With that out of the way, Draco turns and leaves the dinner table, heading for his room. He's not so sure he wants to get a start on all of the homework he's been given for the summer just yet… maybe some dessert delivered straight from the kitchen via House Elf is in order first.

He's more than earned it. After all, he's Draco Malfoy.

-x-X-x-

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