Draco stared at the house, if such it was, in front of which he had just materialized. Its proportions seemed to defy the laws of physics. The teacher woman had headed directly for it the moment they arrived. He cast a sidelong glance at Hermione. She too was looking at the house but with joy and affection in her eyes. Her smile of pure happiness transfigured her face so that she looked positively beautiful. Wow, thought Draco, startled, she’s not that bad looking. She took a step towards the house, and then whirled around in sudden irritation as he caught her arm. The beautifying smile was replaced by an annoyed frown.
“Wait a second, I’ve just been transported I don’t know how many miles by some weird way I probably don’t want to know about, but I need some explanations,” he said, still holding on tightly to her arm, despite her efforts to pull herself free. He wondered at the sudden look of fear that crossed her face. She took advantage of his momentary lapse of concentration to wrench her arm free.
“Look Malfoy, we’ve just reached here, I’m sure Professor McGonagall could answer you questions much better than I could,” Hermione said, avoiding his eyes.
“No, I want answers from you, right now,” he said determinedly. “Where are we? Where’s my wand? What happened to me? And why do you call me Malfoy and not Draco?”
“I- I…” Hermione looked suddenly very uncomfortable and awkward. “We don’t really know each other very well. I found you in a car park, unconscious.”
“Okay,” he said, unconvinced that this was the full truth, “but where are we now?”
“Oh, this is my friends’ house,” she replied, looking relieved at having a simple answer to give. “I really should go meet them, I haven’t seen them in ages.”
“Now wait I have more questions,” he said, raising his voice as she moved away. He ran and seized her once more by the wrist. This time there was no mistaking her fearful expression.
“Who am I? I don’t mean my name, I want to know what kind of person I am. And where is my wand? If you have it, I want it back. Now.”
Hermione gave a heavy sigh. “Professor McGonagall thinks it might be safer if I kept your wand for a bit,” she said carefully. “You don’t presently know how to use it, so you might hurt someone. She also reckons it would be better if you weren’t told about you past life until the right time, it could come as a big shock and that might set you back again.”
He gave her a hard stare, then decided to reserve judgement on whether or not she was lying. He released her arm and she snatched it back hurriedly. She turned and stalked off towards the house.
So maybe she doesn’t like me, Draco thought wryly. But why is she scared?. A door slammed, bringing him out of his reverie with a shock. He realised that Hermione was already inside and hurried after her.
* * *
Hermione scurried quickly into the Burrow. Why did Malfoy have this effect on her? Even if he just looked at her, it sent a shiver of fear down her spine. She frowned worriedly.
“Hermione!” said a familiar voice. She looked up and saw Harry and Ron coming towards her. Her face broke into a huge smile. She hugged Harry and went to do the same to Ron, but he leaned almost imperceptibly away. Her face fell as she realised that he still hadn’t come to terms with her decision.
“I have so much news!” she began, then stopped suddenly as the boys’ faces looked shocked and then quickly hardened as they whipped out their wands and leapt forwards. She heard a small whimper and turned to see Malfoy with two wands tightly pressed against his throat. His eyes were rolling wildly in fear as he backed into the wall.
“Malfoy,” Harry said, in a deceptively calm voice, “what are you doing here?” Ron said nothing, but he shoved his wand further into Malfoy’s neck.
“Put you wands down, both of you,” Hermione said wearily. Harry and Ron turned to her incredulously.
“Hermione, this is Malfoy here-” Harry started to say, but she cut him off.
“No it’s not- I mean, it is Malfoy, but he’s not really himself, he’s-” she broke off as Harry and Ron exchanged exasperated looks. “Just put down your wands. I’ve got his wand already.” They grudgingly obliged, and Malfoy sank to the floor, gasping and rubbing his neck. Two bright red angry spots and appeared on his neck where the wands had been. He gave Harry and Ron a look of pure venom, but they ignored him.
“All right Hermione, what is going on?” asked Harry, with Ron nodding agreement.
“I need to talk to you both,” she said, getting up and walking over to the stairs. “Privately,” she added as Malfoy started to get up to follow her. He scowled and flopped down on a chair. Trying to ignore him, she ran up to Ron’s room to fill her friends in on recent events.
* * *
Draco sprawled in the chair, his mind occupied by dark thoughts. How dare anyone treat him like that! He was Draco Malfoy! Yeah, but who’s that? a snide voice in his head whispered. Quashing it, he rose and slouched over to the stairs and looked up. No sign of them yet. He kicked the banister as hard as he could in frustration, and bit back a yelp at the pain. Cursing himself for being so stupid and impatient, he began walking around the kitchen. He was just inspecting a very strange clock when the door burst open. He turned and had just about enough time to scream before the spell hit him in the chest.
* * *
Hermione had just finished explaining to Harry and Ron when they heard a shrill scream from below. Immediately they leapt up and thundered down the stairs. Ron laughed out loud at the scene that met their eyes.
Fred and George were standing over Malfoy, who’d apparently been hit with a Full Body Bind. They’d looked up as the trio arrived.
“Oh hi Hermione, didn’t know you’d arrived yet,” said George casually. “Any idea where this git came from?” He kicked Malfoy, who looked like he was about to faint.
“Will I break his nose? He did that to you, Harry, last year, didn’t he?” Fred asked, and lifted his foot as if he was about to do just that. Malfoy’s eyes were writhing in their sockets.
“Don’t!” shrieked Hermione. Harry stepped forward and performed the counter-curse. Malfoy hauled himself to his feet, took one look at the twins and then leapt behind Hermione. He was trembling uncontrollably.
“Since when do you protect Malfoy?” Fred asked in amazement.
“He’s lost his memory,” Harry said briefly. “Tell you more later,” he added as they opened their mouths once more.
“Hermione,” Malfoy said in a low voice. She jumped and turned around. He still looked shaken, and his eyes kept darting from her to the twins, as if he was afraid they’d go for him again. “Who are these people? And why have I been attacked twice in the last hour?!” His voice rose almost to a squeak as he finished.
“These are the Weasleys, my friends.” He snorted and stood back.
“Some friends,” he sneered. Harry walked up to her.
“Are you okay?” he asked quietly. She nodded and tried to smile reassuringly
“Malfoy was just asking me who everyone was,” she told him.
“Oh. Well, I’m Harry Potter,” Harry said turning to Malfoy. He was obviously trying not to show his dislike. Malfoy noticed this, and his lip curled and he ignored Harry’s proffered hand.
“I thought you said he was different,” Harry whispered to Hermione.
“Well, maybe if you hadn’t attacked him the second you saw him, he would be,” she replied quietly.
“How was I supposed to know that he wasn’t… himself? And what do you want me to do about it?”
“You could apologise,” she reminded him, and had to swallow a laugh at his indignant expression.
“Apologise to Malfoy!”
“He doesn’t know he’s a Malfoy. As far as he’s concerned, it’s just a name.” Harry shrugged in defeat and turned to Malfoy, who’d been eyeing their whispered conversation with suspicion.
“Sorry about… er… attacking you,” Harry said awkwardly, glancing at Hermione to see how he was doing. “I didn’t know about your… situation.”
“Well. Right. Okay,” Malfoy muttered grudgingly, putting a hand to his throat where the marks from the wands were beginning to bruise. Harry rolled his eyes and went to move away, but Malfoy caught his arm.
“Wait, just tell me this- do I know you?” Malfoy asked, desperate for some information.
“Yeah, I suppose so,” said Harry slowly. “From school.” Malfoy nodded, then seemed to remember something.
“Did I really break your nose?”
“Yeah. I got it fixed though,” Harry said. “And don’t bother asking why,” he added. “We’re not supposed to tell you anything.”
At that moment Professor McGonagall walked in to the kitchen, closely followed by the Weasley parents.
“Good, most of you are here,” she said briskly. “I presume you are all now familiar with Mr. Malfoy’s… state of mind. He will be staying here for a while-” The twins groaned loudly and started to protest, and Malfoy didn’t look too happy either, but Professor McGonagall silenced them all with a stern look. “As I was saying, he will be staying here and I trust you are all mature to put past grievances behind you.”
“Easy for her to say. He never made her eat slugs,” whispered Ron sullenly to Hermione.
“You performed that curse on yourself!”
“I was aiming for him, wasn’t I? How was I supposed to know it’d backfire? Anyway, you’re the one he called a Mudblood.”
“Honestly Ron, some of us are mature enough not to care about petty name-calling”
“You saying I’m not mature?” They carried on bickering and teasing each other as they made their way upstairs. They parted at the top and Hermione went into the room that she shared with Ginny. She was glad that Ron had finally forgiven her.
“Hermione?” She turned and saw Ginny sitting on the bed, brushing her flaming red hair. “What’s going on? I heard a load of noise downstairs.”
“You will not believe what has happened…” Hermione began. When she had finished relating her story she looked at her friend to see her reaction. Ginny was staring at her incredulously.
“So Malfoy is now down in my kitchen at this very moment?” Hermione nodded. Ginny rolled her eyes. “Wonderful. Wait a second- where’s he going to sleep? The twins are back- all the rooms are full!” She and Hermione looked at each other.
“He’ll have to sleep in Ron’s room, I suppose,” Hermione reasoned. Ginny immediately burst out laughing.
“What’s so funny?”
“Can you imagine those three sharing a room as small as Ron’s? There is going to absolute havoc!” Ginny collapsed on the bed, laughing uncontrollably. Hermione stared at her amusement.
“You know, sometimes Ginny, you are worse than the twins!”
* * *
Draco stormed out into the garden. Twice in one hour he had been attacked! Needless to say, there had been no mention of apologies, except from Potter. Why had Hermione brought him here? It was very obvious that they all hated him. But why? He sat down on a hard stone bench and wracked his brain in vain, trying desperately to remember something, anything, from his past.
It must have been hours later when he was woken from his thoughts by his stomach growling loudly. He realised that he hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast. He stood up, stretching numbed muscles, and shook his silvery-blonde hair from his eyes. His hair really was too long, he reflected. He heard someone calling out “Dinner!” and hurried inside.
Draco saw with some trepidation that there were no adults in the kitchen, just the twins, Potter, that redhead, and another pretty girl with a head of violently red hair. He didn’t know where Hermione was. He sidled cautiously inside, trying to appear unobtrusive. Pulling out a chair, he went to sit down- and fell flat on his backside on the floor. His normally pale cheeks heated to a flaming crimson as he struggled back up off the floor amidst gales of laughter. Cursing under his breath, he went to grab his chair. His eyes widened in surprise as it moved away from him. He lunged at the chair, trying to put the howls of mirth from his mind. He caught himself this time before he fell over. The chair had leapt right back and was now hovering in the air. He glared around the table at the laughing faces, and angrily brushed away the tears of shame and fury that had come to his eyes. One of them was doing this to him, but he had as much chance of getting them to stop as there was of Hermione kissing him. Which meant none. Where did that thought come from? Why would you want Hermione to kiss you? Draco shook his head, trying to focus on the matter at hand- getting his chair back. Gritting his teeth, he made a last-ditch effort to catch the chair, and managed this time to hang on to a leg. Panting with exertion, he attempted to pull it back down to the ground. He gave an involuntary yelp of pain and surprise as the chair began hitting him around the head with the uncaptured legs. He released the chair and tried to retreat, but the chair now chased him around the room, whacking him hard. Everyone was crying with laughter. He threw them a look of vicious hatred. Why would anyone do something like this to another human? He bit his lip as a particularly hard clout nearly bowled him over.
“WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?” a female voice shrieked. The chair immediately collapsed, knocking Draco to the floor. Furiously he knocked it off and hauled himself painfully to his feet. His head was throbbing from the blows the chair leg had given him. He tried to pull himself together and maintain some dignity as he sat down, but it was difficult since everyone had just seen him being chased around the room by a possessed chair.
Draco’s saviour, a diminutive red-haired woman, was glaring at everyone in the room. They all had their heads down. He looked with venom at the twins. He was sure one of them had been behind it. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Hermione slip into the room and sit down.
“If I catch any of you behaving like that ever again, you are going to regret it!” said the woman sternly. “Now, we’re all little tight for space, so Harry and Ron, you’re going to share with… with...” she gestured at Draco.
“Draco,” he supplied helpfully.
“Yes, yes, of course.” He couldn’t help but notice that she too was regarding him with a tinge of dislike on her otherwise cheerful face.
Suddenly he realised what she had actually said. He had to share a room with those two?! He glanced over and saw similar looks of horror on their faces.
“But Mum-” the redhead, Rob or something, began.
“No buts,” she said sharply. “It’s settled.”
Draco grimaced. It was going to be a long, uncomfortable night.