The second bite of the apple | Dramoine

What we were allowed to see {part 3}

His malicious taunts were just as she recalled, but she remembered how his words that evening had made her fearful, causing her to pull Ron away abruptly. Had Malfoy actually done her a favor?

And what about the conversation she'd witnessed now between Draco and his mother after she, Harry, and Ron had left? Had Malfoy really been trying to protect her in his own strange way?

As she tried to process these questions, a new scene became clear. Hermione stood with Narcissa Malfoy outside a large mahogany door. Narcissa tapped lightly and opened it, revealing a spacious bedroom.

"Draco?" she said to her son, who was settled at a large window seat flanked by deep emerald curtains. In his lap was a large leather book that he shut hastily and shoved away from him.

"What is it, Mother?" he asked, scowling as he turned to look out the window.

Narcissa walked across the room and sat down on the other end of the window seat so she was facing her son.

"I came to see how you're feeling about tonight," she said gently.

"I feel fine." He lifted his chin. "Fantastic, in fact. Why wouldn't I?"

Hermione had no idea what they were talking about, but she could see that his shadowy eyes told a much different story than his words. He was clearly troubled. He furrowed his brow as his gaze darted from his mother's.

As Hermione assessed him further, she saw the beginnings of the changes in his face that she had noticed distinctly today—he was starting to change from a boy to a man, and she guessed this memory was somewhere around their sixth year.

"It's not too late, you know," Narcissa said, "I could talk to Severus—"

"What's Snape going to do? The Dark Lord's already decided that I'm ready."

"Are you sure you want to be one of them?"

"Of course." His voice was hard and arrogant. "I always knew I would be. It was just a matter of time."

"But—"

Draco stood up abruptly. "If you don't mind, I'd like to go flying before it gets dark."

Narcissa watched her son leave the room, then pulled the book he had been reading into her lap. Curious, Hermione read the cover and saw that it was a Hogwarts yearbook. The date on it showed it was from their fifth year.

"Revelio Visum." Narcissa tapped the yearbook with her wand. Hermione recognized the spell as one that would show what the previous reader had viewed. The book shot open in Narcissa's lap, pages fluttering wildly before settling. Hermione looked closer and saw two spots glowing bright red, reminding her much of a Muggle heatmap.

The first spot glowing was Draco Malfoy's picture with a caption underneath.

Mighty is the man who upholds his family name — Salazar Slytherin.

An angry Draco Malfoy gazed stoically back at her, his mouth set in a firm line. He barely moved, just lifted his head slowly to jut out his chin as if challenging the world, folding his arms at his chest.

Hermione remembered viewing this picture and reading his quote one other time in her life. When she'd received her yearbook at the end of fifth year. She'd known exactly what it meant. Lucius Malfoy had just been arrested for the clash at the Department of Mysteries. Draco Malfoy had been announcing to the world that he was ready to step into his father's shoes and take his place.

When she'd first read it, she'd been disgusted but not surprised. Now, she felt an ache of sadness.

Tearing her eyes away from the picture of the hard boy, she did a double take when she saw where the other part of the page was glowing, even redder and more intense.