Draco woke up the next morning, wiped the drool from his face, and glanced at his Hogwarts letter and envelope inside Advanced Magical Theory.
I swear I tossed the envelope to the floor last night…
His stomach felt tight, either from the sweet smell of crepes wafting from downstairs or from the excitement of the robe fitting in Diagon Alley. Maybe it was both. He got dressed and ran down the staircase, taking two steps at a time.
Draco stopped abruptly before entering the dining room and pressed himself against the wall as he heard his father speaking in a hurried, hushed tone to his mother.
“The stone is going to be taken today. We cannot be seen in Diagon Alley.”
“Draco starts at Hogwarts next week. We planned to pick up his robes today,” his mother countered.
His father was silent for a few long seconds. “I will go with you.”
“I thought you were to meet with the Minister and distract–” the rest of Narcissa’s response was cut off by a tap on Draco’s leg.
“Master Draco, you shouldn’t eavesdrop. We’ll get in trouble.” A pointy-eared house elf wearing a tattered burlap sack looked at him with giant eyes.
“You mean you’ll get in trouble,” Draco smirked and grabbed the house elf by an ear, dragging him into the dining room.
“Father! I found Dobby with his elephant ear against the wall listening to you talk!”
“N-No, Master Malfoy, I was just polishing the marble. Th-the floor had a scuff and-and I know how you like the marble to shine,” Dobby stammered.
Lucius Malfoy’s chair scudded against the floor as he stood. Narcissa was faster as she sprang out of her chair. “Dobby, the chandeliers need cleaning. You are to take the crystals off one by one and shine them. If one is broken, you’re not to eat for a week.”
Dobby bowed repeatedly as he walked backward as fast as his short stature could carry him. “Yes, Mistress Malfoy. I’ll start right away, Mistress Malfoy. Thank you, Mistress Malfoy.”
“That bloody house elf,” Lucius cursed under his breath.
“He’s been sworn to never speak of what he might hear in this home,” Narcissa said as she sat back down to eat. She smiled at Draco. “Draco, honey, come sit to eat. We have to leave soon and your father is coming with us to Diagon Alley.”
Draco sat to the right of his father at the head of the table, across from his mother . His plate was piled with crepes filled with fresh fruit and cream, his favorite. He dug in.
“Sit up straight, Draco,” Lucius said without looking up from the paper he was reading.
Draco pushed his shoulders to the back of his chair and slowed his pace instead of shoveling food into his mouth.
The Malfoy family spent the rest of their breakfast in silence until a bang from the front door of Malfoy Manor slammed shut.
Lucius’s face scrunched and his mouth tightened as he slowly rose from his chair.
“Go grab your shoes from your room, Draco,” Narcissa motioned for her son to get up. “The ones Dobby polished last night.”
“I wasn’t finished!” Draco protested.
Slap!
Lucius’s hand cracked across Draco’s face, causing food to fly out of his mouth and back onto the plate in front of him. Tears welled in his eyes. Lucius looked down at his son. Draco looked toward his mother who wouldn’t look back at him. It was enough for a tear to escape and trail down his face.
“Malfoys do. Not. Cry,” Lucius as he walked away, his footsteps echoing across the marble floor as he left to see who had arrived.
Draco continued staring at his mother, waiting for her to meet his eyes. Say something. When he realized she wasn’t going to look up from her plate, he stood shakily, threw his napkin from his lap onto the table, and ran to his room to put on his shoes, wiping his eyes before anyone else could see.
