The Talent Show

Chapter 7 - Draco's Music Lesson

Draco prided himself on his upper crust education regarding all things classy and sophisticated. It was something all Malfoys learned, but for Draco it held a higher meaning. So many of his friends were educated and stuffy, but Draco fancied that he was the only one who truly enjoyed the arts. He liked to read classical literature, and to learn about the history of wizardry. He appreciated a good piece of artwork, and to his eternal shame, he'd shed a tear when he'd seen Romeo and Juliet preformed live during a private showing for his family and guests.

The point was, Draco really liked knowing and reading and seeing classical things. But, he found that his education had fallen drastically short when it came to classical music. In short, Draco Lucius Malfoy found that he did not own a single piece of music. None. He didn't even have anything by wizard artists. He'd owled home to ask his mother to send the Manor's best pieces and had received a short note saying that they owned none. In fact, when he thought about it, the only music Draco had ever heard as a child were the wordless songs his old house-elf, Mimsy, had hummed while she fed him. 

Draco was going to have to have a serious talk with his parents when he got home. Respectfully of course.

Either way, talking to his parents was going to do nothing for Draco at the moment, because he was currently facing the very real problem of not having a single song to bring to Luna. Draco couldn't even remember more than two words from the dumb birthday song Mimsy had sung him once, and the whole damn song only had six words total. Draco was a failure. He'd been trying to rectify the situation for a whole hour and a half and had only thirty more minutes before he had to meet Luna, and you could bet your bottom he wasn't going to admit to her that he had nothing. So, he'd done the most reasonable thing he could think of: he bought a guitar.

The guitar itself had belonged to a first year Draco had seen coming down from the Owlery. Draco, in his excitement at seeing an actual real musical instrument, had practically scared the poor boy shitless. He'd demanded he be allowed to buy the guitar from the boy for three times to proper amount and then made an outrageous deal to have the child teach him to play in exchange for Draco's subtle protection. That was how Draco ended up on the stairs of the Owlery, new guitar in hand, plucking out chords and cursing at his new teacher. The boy, Jeremy, was a Slytherin whom Draco had yet to terrorize. That was probably the only reason he'd agreed to teach Draco. Draco was forever grateful, even though he told Jeremy to never expect him to express it. Jeremy hated to admit it, but he quite liked Draco, and he thought it particularly wonderful to see Draco sitting on a dirty step, swearing under his breath as he caught another wrong chord.

Draco, for his part, hated Jeremy with every irrational fiber of his being. The rational bits of him, which had taken suspicious leave of his body, quite liked Jeremy. The boy was funny and clever, and had yet to laugh too loudly at Draco's failure. Draco found he didn't mind having to protect Jeremy. Merlin knew the kid would need it. He was scrawny and had a certain air of innocence about him. The kid of innocence that Draco often associated with a certain blonde Ravenclaw. The similarities between Jeremy and said Ravenclaw didn't end there though. The real reason Draco had no qualms about having Jeremy teach him to play was that Draco had heard the boy muttering about Nargles on his way past. It was something of a deal-maker.

Either way, Nargles or no, Jeremy spent twenty-five long minutes saying things like, "Almost. Just move your finger up a bit," and. "That was rubbish. She'll hate you forever."

Because apparently Draco had somehow told Jeremy the whole awful story. Jeremy was very easy to talk to about things like non-feelings. Jeremy was also the only person who could possibly ship Draco and Luna harder than Draco's mind could. His mind was feeling a wee bit threatened to be honest. It was a strange feeling. Suddenly, Jeremy was snapping his fingers right in front of Draco's face and Draco was jolting back a little.

Jeremy sighed and sat down beside Draco, taking the guitar back and fiddling with the tuning pegs. Draco didn't think there was anything wrong with them, but Jeremy fiddled for a good two minutes before saying, "So. D'you think your Ravenclaw girl will fall for this?"

Draco's chest didn't bloom, thank you very much. But it did somersault all the way 'round until it felt like it was actually his back. He did his best to feign nonchalance as he answered gruffly, "Why? Do you think she will?"

Jeremy shrugged and tightened up another string, "I dunno. Maybe if you wrote her a song. Girls love the artsy ones."

"Jeremy, that's the dumbest thing you've ever said to me. And I don't write music or poetry."

Lies! Draco's mind was making a surprise guest appearance at the most inopportune time. You totally, totally write poetry. And you would 110% write some for Luna. Because you looooove her. Haha haha haha haha!!!

Draco's mind belonged in a mental institute. A loony bin. Which made him think of Luna. Oh Circe, he was really whipped.

Jeremy stared at Draco for a long time and Draco paled dramatically, slapping a hand to his mouth. He whispered, "Did I say all of that out loud?"

Jeremy gave him a slow nod and grinned, "It's not the first time either."

"We've only known each other for twenty-seven minutes! How could it not have been the first time?!"

"Every time you get a chord wrong, you mutter about how Luna better dam well appreciate this much effort."

Draco was going to crawl away and die in a hole. A shame hole. Built of shame and fortified with embarrassment. But first, he was going to kill Jeremy so he couldn't tell anyone anything.

• • •

Luna giggled as she watched Draco pounce on the first year sitting beside him. She chortled as the boy squealed and laughed while running away from a fuming Draco. Draco himself made Luna laugh as he tried to run while still clutching a guitar.

Speaking of the guitar, Luna made a mental note to tell Draco that she damn well appreciated the effort.