Black Rose (Draco Malfoy)

The Beginning of the End

Chapter 56: The Beginning of the End

The next couple of weeks passed by much better than I ever expected. Draco returned to school, but the tension that had previously developed between us was now gone. Instead, we acted like acquaintances, which was better for my sanity. I did not see Ginny much because she was always around Harry, but I spent more time with Ernie, who turned out to be a pretty cool kid. Perhaps the best part was the new openness between Snape and me. I was not the only one initiating conversations anymore; he would openly ask me questions or volunteer something about himself. It made me feel good to know I had gotten through to him when few others had succeeded.

Occlumency proved to be a difficult skill to matter. Snape assured me I was making progress, though. "You're much better than Potter when I attempted to teach him," he said almost scathingly the last Friday of May.

"Thanks," I said, though I felt a little uneasy at the mention of Harry. Another question came to my mind, and this time I did not hesitate to ask it. "Professor, why do you hate Harry so much?"

Snape paused before answering; the look on his face suggested he had not been excepting me to ask. "He's just like his father," he said in a gruff voice. "He's stubborn, arrogant, self-righteous, attention-seeking, a rule breaker, and he thinks he knows everything about that which he knows little."

I thought about this description. I could definitely see where it came from; I had been unfortunate enough to see this side of Harry. It would have been easy to agree, thereby confirming both of our biases. However, I knew this would hardly be fair; I had to do the right thing. "I've seen that as well," I began slowly. "He does sometimes come off that way. He hasn't been treating me very well recently. But-"

I paused and noticed that Snape was looking at me with interest. "I know that's not the whole story. Everyone has two sides to them – good and bad. Harry can always be loyal, kind, brave, and he cares deeply about those close to him." I shrugged. "Maybe I shouldn't be talking because I'm guilty of trying to only see the bad when it comes to him. It's not easy to focus on the good when the bad is so apparent. I like to think I do a better job than others. Perhaps it's just different kinds of people I'm guilty of judging."

I paused again. Snape was still watching me intently, though I could detect no other emotion. "What I'm trying to say is, it's wonderful that you're trying to protect Harry for Lily – and I'm sure she's grateful for it – but do you think she would have wanted you to try to see her in him?"

Snape looked away so I could not see his expression. "You sound like Dumbledore," he said in a low voice.

"Is that a bad thing?" I asked. When there was no response, I continued with another question, "Lily's Patronus, was it a doe?"

There was a pause. Then, "Yes."

A small smile flickered on my face. "I thought so."

***

The first Monday of June started off as a normal day. Nothing out of the ordinary happened. I kept mostly to myself, only talking when necessary. I sat at the end of the Gryffindor table by myself at dinner. Throughout the meal, I thought I could feel someone's eyes on me, but whenever I looked, I could see nothing.

I left the Great Hall earlier than most of the others. I had just reached the Entrance Hall when I felt a hand on my shoulder, causing me to jump in surprise. I turned around and saw Snape standing there. I took deep breaths to calm myself from the scare.

"I need you to do something," he said curtly. "I don't have much time to explain. Wait until everyone in your house has gone to bed, and then come find me in my office. Got it?"