The Other Side

Chapter Four

Draco should not have contacted Harry. If there was a list of ’Top ten stupid things you’ve done in your life’ this was certainly one of them. He just hoped that Weasley would stop him, since he loathed Draco so much. But Potter was stubborn and that wasn’t very reassuring. Granger would probably think this through and decide not to risk it, but Harry Potter always did the exact opposite of what she decided. For once, he wished that Harry wasn’t so bloody stubborn all the time. He didn’t even want to reach out to him, but he didn’t think that he was going to stay alive much longer so he wanted to apologize for all the bad choices that he’d made, hoping that Harry would’ve moved on by now. He should’ve thought this through. Saint Potter would do anything to protect the world or the universe for that matter. He would’ve applauded his bravery had he not been in this position. He could just hope. Hope that Harry had a plan and wasn’t rushing into this. Partly, he was hoping that Harry would help him get out of here, but after seeing him, he just did not. Self-preservation be damned. He cursed under his breath. In the kindest way possible, he wanted to ask The Dark Lord to stop obsessing over Potter like some teenage girl. If he could just let them live out their lives in peace without his exhaustive strategies, he could conquer the wizarding world later.

He was entirely worn out. This was just like Azkaban, minus the dementors. But then again, this place was depressing already. He longed for the days when the manor would be lively, with feasts and parties. The music echoing beautifully while the most important ministry officials would arrive. The manor was just dark and terrifying now. His father’s verbal accusations weren’t helping either. It was breaking him down mentally because he’d always heard praises from him. He realized that he was just an ignorant child, wanting to please his father. He’d poorly executed his ideas and beliefs, because he’d become arrogant, proud and spoiled in the process. He’d received love from both his parents, especially Lucius Malfoy. But it was so distant. He wished to be with Harry, who made even the dullest places look dynamic, his eyes alone were enough for that. He really was the most beautiful man to walk the earth.

He heard soft footsteps at a distance, approaching the staircase which led to the basement. He couldn’t bear any more of that torture. After the potion that Snape had given him yesterday, for probably the fourth time, he had felt relief flood through his body. But he’d warned Draco of the side effects. Too much of it was physically harmful. His face dropped into his hands, waiting for his father or The Dark Lord to appear and torture him again. They had tried to put him under the imperius curse, but the locket that his mother had given him had done the needful. He’d cast an invisibility charm on it so that nobody would find out about it. His father believed that he was able to resist the curse, so they did not pull that stunt again.

He brushed the hair out of his face, slowly turning to the left. He saw a large black dog, descending down the stairs carefully. Its fur was shaggy, it was walking towards Draco with an authority and with a certain grace. Draco froze. His mind was trying to access a piece of information, but couldn’t. He was mentally drained, so he thought that it a hallucination. The dog halted, gazing at Draco for a moment. Then it’s formed began to change. Draco blinked his eyes a few times. Standing before him, was Sirius Orion Black. He exhaled sharply. Draco struggled to stand straight, still hesitant.

“It wouldn’t hurt to greet your uncle you know?” Sirius chuckled.

“How did you manage to get in? There are wards around the house.” Draco asked, completely astonished.

“Yeah I know. But house elf magic is stronger. Dobby helped.” Sirius explained. “So? Are we going or what?”

Draco smirked. He remembered Dobby. His father wouldn’t allow him to, but he liked the elf when he was a child. He’d grown much more arrogant because of his ideals.