A Boy Named Draco - Chapter 30/39
Chapter 30
The wing being occupied by Lord Voldemort was located on the western part of the manor. It was by far the most opulent area and was said to have housed several visiting ministers of magic and one Salazar Slytherin sometime after the Norman Conquest when the Malfoy family first settled in England.
Draco was slow to make his way to Lord Voldermort. Apprehension made each of his steps heavy. The young man paused in front of the ornate double doors and gripped the handle. He breathed deeply to calm the tremor in his hands.
This could be the end. Dobby had wanted to alert Narcissa but Draco had refused. He didn't want to risk his mother’s safety. If Lord Voldemort wanted to hurt him he would do so even if she tried to oppose him.
Trying to master his fears, Draco opened the door and went inside.
A permanent spell had domed the high ceiling so that it looked like it belonged in a muggle cathedral. Rich designs covered every centimeter of wall space. Draco knew that friezes of Malfoy ancestors leading dark wizards against the soldiers of the light bordered the ceiling. Some scenes where even carved into the oak furniture which was covered in maroon damask and gold embroidered silk. Heavy velvet curtains hung in front of every window blocking the outside light. Only the medieval candelabras and the fireplace kept the gloom away.
The squib walked to the back of the room. Voldermort was seated in a chair that looked very much like a throne. His instinct told him to kneel but instead he met the Dark Lord’s gaze straight on. The wizard smiled coldly.
“Ahh. I see there is a bit of the Malfoy pride in you. And here I thought your many travails had crushed it out. You might be more resilient than you look Draco.”
The boy swallowed but looked on coolly. “What do you want?”
“No longer afraid are you?”
Draco shook his head. “You will kill me and there is nothing I can do about that. Why be afraid anymore?”
“A wise course of action. However it may do you good to know that your death may not be a guarantee. In fact if my plans go accordingly there will be no need for you to die.” He countered smoothly.
“I don’t understand.”
Voldemort rose from his seat and came to stand in front of Draco. “There is much you don’t understand boy. I am feeling magnanimous enough to enlighten you. Put simply, you are not who you think you are.”
“What do you mean?”
“You were never a squib. In fact I am certain that you would have amassed quite a bit of power if allowed to proceed naturally. Unfortunately for you, I did not need another Malfoy acolyte. I needed a suitable vessel.”
Uncertainty settled on the boy’s countenance. “A vessel?”
“Yes, that is what you are. You are the most important piece of a plan that was crafted long before you were born Draco Malfoy."
"That's not my name."
"Ahh yes, your lost birthright. It was an unfortunate necessity and not the only sacrifice you would be called to make."
The Dark Lord’s tone was almost apathetic. Draco's eyes were twin pools of fear.
“Magic.” he said horrified
“Certainly. Your magic was destroyed while you were still in utero. I needed a clean vessel that would contain a piece of my own magic which by its foreign nature would not be accessible to you. "
"But why? I don't understand"
"The promise of true immortality has always been kept outside the realm of accepted magic. Fools were always afraid of even considering this most prized of gifts. Life is power and thus it remains forbidden but nothing is beyond my reach. I came to learn of vessels that could sustain life even when the body has been destroyed. Such vessels can preserve the soul or fragments magic itself. You are of the second kind. You carry a small part of my power embedded inside of you. If my current form is damaged beyond repair the magic that I wield as well as my soul will join that which you have. I will be reborn in you Draco. ”
It was more awful that Draco'd ever imagined. “Why me?”
“You were the most fitting. Although I have surpassed my own unfortunate heritage I wanted to ensure that in my final coming I would be a true pureblood. Your genetic background pleases me. When I claim your form Harry Potter will feel the wrath of my true power.”
Draco shook his head wildly. Fear and anger coursed through every vein. “I…you cannot. I will not be made a party to this.”
A bony hand shot out from the silken folds and grabbed Draco by the neck. Voldermort forced the boy to meet his eyes.
“Silence squib! You have no say in this. I have granted you and your family the greatest boon. You should be proud of your contribution.”
The squib tried to kick and scratch out of the Dark Lord’s hold but he could not push him away.
“What? Be proud of being sacrificed? Of having grown up with my parents disdain. Of being laughed at or being reduced to a servant in my own home. Of…oh God… having to see my own family bring an outsider to replace me even as I was thrown out on the streets. Your great plans, Master, have brought me great misery”
Voldemort released him and grabbed his wand.
“Crucio”
Draco tried to resist and stand his ground but the cruel spell brought him to his knees. The energy coursed painfully through every bone and sinew burning a path as it went. The squib screamed in pain. His tortured cries made the Faustian creature smile.
“Now, now young Malfoy. I tried to be nice to you. After all you possess the body I may someday inhabit. Nothing is set in stone. If Harry Potter dies as he should then you will be free to do as you please. You may even be instated as some sort of ward of the Malfoy family. I am certain that Lucius will agree to give you a place in his household on my orders. Not as the heir but you would be protected and you could see your mother.”
Draco struggled to rise to his feet. His entire body shook with pain.
“If you fail to please me then I will see to it that you are locked away and kept isolated until you die. Think on that Draco. You could be left alone in the dark with no one to speak to you or hear your cries. In fact I will let you experience some of that now. Kreacher!”
The house elf appeared and bowed before his master.
“Take this squib into the dungeons and lock him inside. I don’t want anyone to attend to his needs until I say so.”
Kreacher bowed and grabbed the weakened boy. The sharp crack of the apparition spell announced their exit.
XxXxXxXxXx
Weeks passed entombed inside the dark, moss covered rocks of the Malfoy dungeons. The cold seeped into his numbed body.
It was almost four days before Kreacher brought him some strong tea, buttered bread and a little milk. He would not answer any of Draco’s frantic questions and the boy was left alone with his somber thoughts. He had no contact with his mother or Dobby or any of the elves besides Kreacher.
He would die or he would live and Harry would die. His existence was a mere convenience to the dark wizard who had manipulated it from its conception. Never in his life had he felt more lost. Draco wanted to go to sleep and never awaken to the nightmare that had become his life.
The lonely squib found himself curled on the pallet more and more as the days went by marked only by the arrival of meager meals. He consumed the elf’s offerings and returned to the pallet. His heart was weak and his spirit almost extinguished.
A sudden and unfamiliar noise woke him from his stupor. He blinked as he saw a group of people being pushed into one of the adjoining cells. In the dimness he could not see their faces as they passed his prison.
Once the door clanged shut Draco rose from his bed and went to the bars of his cell. If he pressed against them he could communicate with his fellow inmates. He was starved for some sort of contact.
“Hello… who is there?” he tried nervously.
“What? Where are you?” A disturbingly familiar voice answered his call.
“I am in the adjoining cell. My name is Draco.”
A gasp was audible and he could hear the person rushing to his own bars.
“Draco? Oh gods Draco. Is it really you?”
The squib’s heart beat faster and for a moment he could not answer. It was HIM. His Harry was close enough to touch.
“Harry?”
A white hand extended across the wall separating the two cells. Draco grasped the hand in his as tears fell from his eyes.
“I’ve finally found you Draco.”
TBC.
Author's note: I hope that seemed plausible. I have to warn you that the next chapter is very, very sad. For those that cry easily (like myself) get tissues.