Chapter Text
Draco Malfoy had to choose between many things, but two things he thought he would never have to choose between were nightmares and being awake during the night.
There had always been supplies for Dreamless Draught in the labs on the ground level floor, but since Malfoy Manor had been ransacked during the war and Draco hadn’t had the energy to get new ingredients, being awake it was. On top of that, the manor had always been quiet, but since both of his parents were... away, the silence had a strange, almost eerie effect. Draco shut his eyes tight, straining his ears for any sound besides his own labored breathing.
None.
It almost made him wish he had someone next to him. He smiled bitterly. As if anyone could ever love former Death Eater Draco Malfoy. His parents’ marriage hadn’t been formed out of love; it had been formed out of convenience and a lust for power. Draco would never find someone to love, someone that would love him.
He rolled out of bed, his bare feet hitting the polished wooden floor softly. “Eli?” he called softly.
A house elf winked in front of him, bowing low. “What can Eli do for Master, sirs?”
“Could you get me a cup of chamomile tea?” Draco asked. “With extra honey?”
“Of course, Master,” Eli said, bowing once again and winking away.
Draco walked into the sitting room, and with a flick of his wand, flames began to flicker and dance on the firewood. He sighed, blowing a pale blonde strand of hair out of his eyes. As much as he hated to admit it, he was lost.
Lost, because his whole world before all that had happened was his service to the Dark Lord. Oh, how he had longed to be free of that burden! Now, he was free, and he didn’t know what to do.
Lost, because his parents were away. Both were in Azkaban, but his mother had been exonerated from some crimes since she had aided Potter by lying to the Dark Lord. She would be home in 6 months. Still, it was 6 months.
Lost, because amidst all that happened, he was still a boy. A boy that had to step into the shoes of a man too early. He missed the mahogany Hogwarts walls, missed the lessons and the books and the homework, missed the buzz of students in the Great Hall during meal hours. So he was going back. He was going back to the only thing that stood steady during this whole mess of things.
Eli winked in with his tea. “Would Master like Eli to do anything else?”
“No, but thanks,” Draco muttered, reaching forward for the tea and sipping it slowly.
He had already bought himself new robes and books with Pansy, Daphne, and Theo the other day. Draco and Theo had been somewhat close before the war, but they now talked daily since Theo was faced with a similar situation to Draco's. His mother had died when Theo was young, and his father, a Death Eater, was in Azkaban. Plus, Pansy and Theo were dating, and Draco wanted to make sure that his closest friend wasn’t with a bad bloke. Of course, that had left Daphne and Draco awkwardly third-wheeling the entire trip, but Draco didn’t mind. Daphne wasn’t interested in him, and he wasn’t interested in her. His mind idly lingered on a conversation he and Daphne had shared earlier.
“Do you know anyone in our year that’s heading back to Hogwarts?” Draco had asked.
Daphne shrugged. “You three, and I heard through the grapevine that Potter, Granger, and Longbottom are going back.”
Draco choked on his Butterbeer. “ Potter and Granger?”
“I know, right?” Daphne rolled her eyes. “Thought Potter would’ve jumped right into Auror training with Weasley; I reckon that’s where Weasley’s going. Granger was supposed to go under Shacklebolt’s wing so she could become Minister of Magic.”
Draco frowned now. It was odd that two out of three of the Golden Trio was going back. And this was supposed to be a relaxing year. He smiled thinly. Without his father breathing over his shoulder, he was bound to get better marks than Granger this year. He drained the rest of his cup and left it on a table nearby. Tomorrow, he had to be at King’s Cross Station by 10:30, or was it today? What time was it? It didn’t matter. He had to be up early to meet Pansy, Theo, and Daphne.
He slipped back into the covers, hoping that maybe whatever god was up there would take mercy on him and give him a dreamless sleep.
* * * * *
The flurry of movement and the trains sliding in and out of King’s Cross Station annoyed him to no end. Usually, he only got super ticked off past noon, but after a particularly violent nightmare, everything seemed to be bent on bothering him. Pansy and Theo forged on ahead of Daphne and Draco, the two bantering playfully.
A flash of red hair caught his eye, and he almost groaned aloud. It was the Weaselette, Granger, Luna, and Potter. Harry bloody Potter. Potter seemed to do a double take as well, eyes widening as he took in Draco, before nodding almost politely before he and Granger casually fell through the wall.
Daphne nudged Draco. “You ready?” she asked. Pansy and Theo had already disappeared, and he nodded, pushing his cart alongside Daphne and stepping onto Platform 9¾. They made their way past screaming children, proud fathers, and mothers frantically making sure that their children had everything they needed.
“Draco! Daphne! Get your arses over here right this second!” Pansy yelled from an open window. “I got us a compartment.”
Draco got on the train first and turned back to give Daphne a hand. She smiled faintly before squeezing past him and leaving him hanging. He rolled his eyes. Girls. He turned around, coming face to face with the Weaselette and Potter.
Ah, so they’re still together. He fought to maintain a neutral expression, and Potter did so as well. The Weaselette, however, drew her wand, eyes fiery. “Malfoy,” she spat.
“Nice to see you too,” he retorted. “If you’ll excuse me.” He tried to move past her, but she blocked his path, her wand trained on his chin. “What-”
“Just because you were cleared of all charges doesn’t mean that you’re a good bloke,” she snapped. “If I had known you were coming back, I wouldn’t have come back myself. Stay away from me, Harry, Luna, and ‘Mione. You’re not ruining our last year here.”
“Ginny!” Potter exclaimed, fucking exclaimed. Couldn’t the “Chosen One” get any more cliché? “That was uncalled for. Come on.” He pushed Ginny past Draco but offered no apology to his enemy. And Draco was fine with that - he didn’t deserve one.
He wandered past empty compartments until he found Pansy’s. “What took you so long?” Pansy asked. “Daphne almost threw up because of Theo.”
“I’m double-jointed and bent my thumb backwards,” Theo explained, shrugging.
“It’s creepy and disgusting,” Daphne whimpered, white as a sheet. Theo smirked, doing it again, and she squealed. “Stop it, Theo!”
“I personally think it’s uniquely cute,” Pansy said, kissing Theo’s nose.
“So it’s come in handy during sex, then, hasn’t it?” Draco deadpanned. Pansy gasped before swatting at him, and Draco held up his hands to block hers, grinning. This was as close as normal as he was going to get - surrounded by his remaining friends, laughing and making crude jokes. As the train sped away from the station, he relaxed in his seat, settling in for the long road ahead. It was going to be a year of healing.