It Started on the Train

18

"Mrs. Malfoy, a pleasure to see you again." I say to Narcissa as she welcomes my mother and I into the Malfoy Manor.

"Addilyn, how are you?"

"I'm well, and you?"

"I am doing just fine." She then turns to my mother. "I'm so sorry for the lack of hospitality, but we really should get started. Addilyn, Draco should be here any minute. Stephanie, this way." She and my mother walked off to another room.

I looked around and admired the paintings on the wall.

After a few minutes, Draco appeared from the hallway, looking slightly red and flustered.

"Hey Addilyn."

"Hey Draco."

"Come on, let's go to my room."

We clasp hands and he leads me to his room.

Once inside he practically collapses onto the couch.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah just a bit worried."

"About what?"

"Nothing. Just my mother said that the Dark Lord is going to discuss something with her. She said he told her that he had a task he needed done."

"Do you have any ideas of what it might be?"

"Not really, but it can't be good. The Dark Lord is furious over my father's mistake at the Ministry."

We sit in silence for a moment, considering the significance of what he said.

The Dark Lord is angry, and that is never a good thing. He wants revenge for what Lucius cost him, so most likely, he will not be giving Draco an easy task.

In fact I wouldn't be surprised if he gave Draco a task that he wouldn't survive.

I shake away those thoughts.

"Is there anything we can do?" I ask.

"Not really."

We sit in silence for a few more minutes, then suddenly, Draco stands up.

"Well, you're only going to be here for two and a half weeks, and there's no point worrying about it if we don't even know what it is, so let's have some fun." He says, running a hand through his hair to tame it a bit.

"Alright. What do you want to do?" I stand up too, and he reaches for my hand again.

"It doesn't much matter." I see a book on his desk, and it catches my eye.

"Alice in Wonderland?"

"And Alice Through the Looking Glass." Draco says bashfully.

"This is one of my favorites."

"I like it too."

"Do you want to read?"

"I would love to." He picks up the book, and sits down on his bed, back resting on the headboard. I sit down next to him and he wraps an arm around me.

We then start taking turns reading chapters.

We read for a few hours, and get mostly through Alice in Wonderland, and by the time I finish reading the last chapter out loud, Draco's breaths are even, and his eyelids are closed.

I gently nudge him, not really waking him up, but still it gets him to move into a laying position.

I lay his head on a pillow and put a blanket over him.