Bond (Drarry)

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

March 22 - March 23

Day 175, Monday

Snape glanced at the clock, hoping his nervousness wasn't showing on his face. Glanced over at Draco, who was looking slightly ill, for good reason. This meeting...

This was probably one of the trickiest and most delicate positions he'd ever been in, in all of his years working for the Order. Because on the one hand, he was supposed to be a Death Eater who had to help make sure Draco did not do anything foolish to try to save Potter. That's what they all - including Draco - expected him to do.

But on the other hand, he was supposed to be helping the Boy Who Lived maintain his ridiculous title. Giving polyjuice to Granger and Weasley had been distasteful enough, knowing that Draco was going to use it to be with Potter without anybody finding out. Even thinking of trying to nudge Draco towards binding himself to Potter was... quite revolting. No matter how Draco felt about the boy.

Fortunately, his job had been made immeasurably easier by Lucius Malfoy himself, damn him. His heavy-handedness had all but delivered Draco up to Potter in a gift box. All that was missing was the bow, and Snape had a feeling that might be provided today. Snape still shuddered at the memory of Draco's wide grey eyes in the Great Hall, fixed on the Howler as it destroyed him piece by piece. Snape's own heart had been in his mouth the entire time, as Lucius made all of Draco's worst fears come true at once. Shamed him past redemption with his peers, took away almost everything that meant anything to him, and cut him to the bone with his rejection.

And then, the mark he'd put on Draco... Snape felt physically ill when he thought of it. Death Eater though he had been, he could not imagine doing anything like that to another human being. Especially one who trusted and looked up to him, as Draco had trusted and looked up to Lucius, for no good reason Snape could fathom.

'Had' being the operative word. Whatever trust and admiration had been there had been shattered, as far as Snape could tell. And that wasn't all that Lucius had shattered. Draco himself had been... broken ever since then. A non-entity among his fellow Slytherins. Subdued, withdrawn, almost indifferent to the world around him. And he'd gone back to Potter immediately, risking his father's displeasure carelessly. There could be no greater proof of the loss of Draco's filial devotion than that.

And now Draco wanted to help Potter, and was willing to risk Lucius' wrath again, if necessary, to do it. It should be no surprise to anybody. Except Lucius, of course. Lucius would probably never understand, and never understand that his own actions had pushed Draco to where he was now.

Lucius would never understand his own son, never understand that their resemblances were merely skin-deep. Draco would never be as intelligent, shrewd, strong, or heartless as his father, and Lucius would never be able to forgive him for that. Once again, Snape cursed Lucius for not having had the foresight to transfer the boy to Durmstrang, if he was going to use the bond to kill Potter. Because it took exceptional callousness to watch somebody you cared about slowly die while you held their salvation in your hands, and Draco just didn't have what it took.

Snape looked thoughtfully at Draco, sitting nervously on the couch, waiting for his parents to arrive. Observed his quick and shallow breathing, his gaze glued to the floor, and was disturbed to note that he was almost having a panic attack at the thought of facing his own father. And yet he was stubbornly forcing down his fear, steadying himself for the confrontation, for Potter's sake.

This was possibly the one good thing Lucius had done in this whole situation, Snape mused. Forced Draco to show some courage, for the first time in his life.

Draco's breath caught as the fireplace flashed and Lucius came through it, landing gracefully on his feet and stepping away to allow Narcissa to follow. They both dusted themselves off, identical expressions of distaste for the common mode of transportation they were forced to take - the only way to get directly into Hogwarts.