Twin Flames

Return to Hogwarts

After a teary good bye to his mother, and a warning for her to be safe, Draco apperated to kings cross station. Finally able to do magic, he had practiced all morning doing silly thing like levitate his belongings all over his room, a satisfied grin on his face as he felt the thrum of magic at his fingertips once more in use. He had conjured a beautiful bouquet of spring flowers for his mother at breakfast, Lucius looking over at him with a raging hatred and jealousy. Draco looked about the station in search of his friends, a tall dark skinned man and a tall brutish man he recognized stood together looking around searchingly. He walked over and then noticed the small girl between them, a full head and shoulders shorter than the two males and Draco himself. When her eyes shot up to see him walking towards them she sprinted and leaped into his arms, eyes wide like she wasn't sure he would show.

"Your out," she said face pressed to his chest. "Now we all have to make sure you stay free." she said pulling her head back and looking over her shoulder to the other two strolling more casually over to greet him.

"Good to see you in the flesh." Blaise says to him patting his shoulder blade in a brotherly gesture,

"Are you wearing muggle clothes?" Greg says looking at Draco like he has a second head.

"Why yes Gregory, how astute of you to notice." Draco retorts to his friend. "They're comfortable, and Pansy is wearing muggle clothes too."

"Nothing wrong with it, just never seen you wear them before, makes you look less .... Er ..Malfoy." Greg said defensively, obviously still worried he'd upset Draco.

"Good." Draco says cheerfully, "I was hoping to look less 'Malfoy'." he laughed at the confusion on Greg's face before feeling sympathy for the oaf. "Don't worry about it mate, or at least don't hurt yourself thinking to much." he quipped sarcastically nudging the boy with his shoulder "Lets go!"

They kept their heads down once they passed through the gate to the platform that holds the Hogwarts express, quickly moving towards the train weaving through the mass of people until they got to the door and entered not wanting to linger on the platform. The four of them knew they were not likely welcome, even though Draco had no choice but to be here on the train, he was grateful to his friends for choosing to be with him, they would be by his side to suffer the ridicule, snide remarks and hate filled stares, they would do that for him, so he wasn't alone. It made his chest swell, just as it had when Luna had accepted him as something akin to proper family. The returning students and a few N.E.W.T students from foreign counties were to have a separate compartment at the end of the train, so they made their way back and entered what looked to be a very luxurious compartment. It was long with several lush seating arrangements strewn along it and what appeared to be a bar area, with refreshments and snacks. A house elf was actually stationed at this bar and was wearing for lack of a better description, an elf sized tailcoat and trousers with a white button shirt and bow tie. He had never seen a house elf in clothes before, because clothes meant they were free, the elf looked happy at his station and Draco realized he had also never seen a happy house elf before, they always seemed emotionless or skittish. He fleetingly thought of his own child hood elf Dobby, his father had confiscated him at the end of 2nd year and he never returned. Draco had thought his father had the Elf killed, until he appeared and rescued Potter at the manor during the war. Hatred for Lucius burned again in his chest because the only experience he had with house elves where the ones at the manor and, shame curled its way into his stomach as he remembered exactly how the man treated the elves, he felt ashamed that he had trusted his father when he had told him house elves were beneath them, that it was wrong to care for the beasts, he was so naïve.

Trapped in his thoughts about how much of an idiot he had been to just blindly trust Lucius, to just follow and not question. A trained soldier for the use of another, brainwashed was what it was. Pansy broke through his thoughts when after they had found some seats on their own she cooed,