Draco was five when he first met Harry Potter.
Draco's mother and father never talked about Harry Potter. Draco had only found out about Harry when Master Arberward - his private tutor - had mentioned Harry in one of Draco's lessons on the history of magic. Draco couldn't believe that a tiny little baby had defeated the great Dark Lord, so he kept asking questions until Master Arberward showed him a book called "Boy who Lived" and they read it together. After that, Draco wanted to be friends with Harry Potter more than anything in the whole world. Harry Potter was five too. It was perfect.
Draco tried asking his father about Harry Potter, but his father had got angry and shouted so loudly that Draco ran away and hid. Draco was sad afterward that he had asked, because Master Arberward was sent away the next day and replaced by Madame Bouchard. Madame Bouchard never talked about Harry Potter, even if Draco tried asking questions. Draco didn't mind too much though, because the day after Master Arberward left, Draco found the book about Harry Potter tucked neatly under his school books in his fold top desk. Master Arberward was the best.
Draco read the book until he knew it by heart. Luckily it was a book for little kids and only had a few difficult words in. Draco knew he would get to meet Harry Potter when he was eleven and went to Hogwarts, but that was six whole years of waiting and Draco didn't want to wait. He wanted to meet Harry Potter and be his friend. He would have to think of a plan.
It took him a week to think of something. He wasn't sure if it would work, but it just might.
Draco only had to wait another few days to put his plan into action, as it was almost time for his parents to go on their summer trip to the villa in France. They went there quite a lot, and usually liked to go by themselves to have grown up time, leaving Draco at home to Concentrate On His Studies. Luckily Madame Bouchard had just got a new boyfriend so was gone the day after his parents, leaving Draco with a pile of books and a hissed threat to keep quiet or else.
Then Draco had the house to himself. He spent the first day running around and sliding down gleaming bannisters and begging the house elves to make him cake, all the while imagining what it would be like to have a friend to play with. His plan had to work, it just had to!
Dobby was a very strange house elf. Draco wasn't sure why his father hadn't just given the elf some clothes a long time ago given how useless and weird it was, but he hadn't. Draco's father kicked and hit Dobby a lot - his father never hit Draco but he shouted loudly at him quite a lot and it felt very scary and horrible. Draco couldn't imagine how bad it must feel to get struck too. He supposed he should feel sorry for the elf, but it wasn't a real person, and Draco felt mostly relieved that there was something else around for his father to get angry at other than Draco.
One amazing thing about elves was that they had strange magic that allowed them to go anywhere they wanted, even places that wizards and witches could not go because of wards. Perhaps even the secret place where Harry Potter lived. Draco decided there was no chance the other house elves would help him with his scheme even if he ordered them to, but because Dobby was a very strange elf he just might.
The thing that Draco had noticed with Dobby though was that whenever the elf was given an order he messed it up. After he noticed that, Draco always tried to remember to ask and not demand with the elf. It really was annoying as it didn’t come naturally to him, but if he didn’t then he always regretted it afterwards. Harry Potter had to be somewhere safe and well hidden, so finding him and delivering a letter would be difficult and easy for Dobby to mess up. Draco was going to have to be careful and extra charming. It was very lucky that Draco was good at being charming, he thought.
"Dobby!" Draco said loudly, and the elf obediently appeared in front of him
"Yes master?" the elf replied, looking immediately nervous at Draco's wide smile
"Would you like to be my friend?"
"Oh master. Dobby is not young master Draco's friend. Dobby is young master Draco's loyal elf"
"Oh" Draco wasn't sure what to say about that, but he thought it might still be OK, so ploughed on
"If I ask you to do something, can you do it for me?" Draco tried to look innocent and sweet, blinking his big grey eyes in a way that often got him what he wanted when he went out with his mother. Unfortunately it didn't calm the elf - Dobby looked even more worried.
"If it doesn't go against Master's and Mistresses' rules, or the rules of elf kind or the wizarding word, then I can" the elf replied. Draco took that as a yes.
"And if I ask you to do something for me will you tell mother and father?"
"If young master asks me not to I will keep it a secret" Dobby replied
Draco smiled in glee - this was going better than he thought it would
"I've got a letter here for Harry Potter. Can you deliver it to him? And keep it secret? Please?" he held out a messy envelope that had been awkwardly sealed with spellotape.
The elf looked at the envelope, then at Draco
"Dobby is not sure. Dobby needs to think" the little elf pulled at his dusty pillowcase, looking anxious
"It's nothing bad Dobby. Promise. I want Harry Potter to be my friend and I've written him a letter. Just take it to him and bring back his reply. Don't tell anyone, and I won't tell either and it will be our secret. Please do this for me if you’re my loyal elf"
At that, Dobby seemed to come to a decision. He drew himself upright and reached out for the letter.
"Of course young master. Dobby is a loyal elf and happy to help. It might take Dobby some time to find Harry Potter, please forgive this elf for any delay"
"That’s OK Dobby"
The small elf apparated with a crack.
Draco's letter said this
To Harry
mi nam is Draco Malfoy. i liv in Witshir wiv mi muver and faber. Wud yu lik to visit miy hus in sumer? i hav lots ov tos and no grunups we can play and et cak al day. we can bee best frends.
luv Draco
x X x
It had taken him a long time to write, and although he was pretty sure he had made a few mistakes, every time he looked at it he had felt excited and happy at the thought of being able to show Harry all his toys and play with him all day.
Luckily he didn't have to wait long for an answer. Dobby popped back into the room a little while later with a small torn scrap of paper in his hand. On the piece of paper was written:
yes plz
Draco's heart felt like it was beating out of his chest with excitement as he held the little note. There was only one problem left. Cripes - he would need to think of another plan.
In the end it was Dobby that came to the rescue. The house elf couldn't apparate Harry straight into the Manor because of the wards, but he apparated Harry to the end of the driveway, where Draco was sitting against the wrought iron gates waiting impatiently.
Draco couldn't help squeaking with glee when he saw Harry - he looked a lot like the drawing of the little boy at the end of his book, with his shock of black hair, the lightning scar, the huge green eyes. In some ways though he was also very different. Harry was terribly small and skinny with horrible, saggy grey clothes, and looked very scared. Draco would have guessed he was only four if he hadn't known they were the same age. He felt a funny feeling in his tummy when he looked at the little boy, and couldn't help running up and giving him a big hug. Draco didn't get hugs very often, but when he did get them from his mother they had always made him feel much better. Harry looked like he needed a lot of hugs.
"Hi Harry. I'm Draco. Are you ok? You look bad. Did something happen?"
Harry shook his head and wrapped his skinny arms round Draco, returning the crushing hug. Draco noticed the boy smelled bad, and was shaking a bit. Maybe something terrible had happened to him. Draco imagination quickly supplied him with an image of Harry trapped in a little dungeon by a bunch of evil wizards, and he hugged the boy even tighter.
"Come up to the house, I'll get you some cake. Winky baked a lemon cake this morning and it is yummy"
He took the boy's hand, pulling him through the clutching wards to lead him up to the manor, talking all the time.
Harry looked around him as they crunched up the long drive. Draco saw his attention caught by the grazing deer, by the ornamental gardens with the strolling peacocks, the fountain - all the beautiful things he was used to seeing were all new to Harry he supposed. It must seem like a wonderful place to Harry if he had come from a horrible prison or something. Draco was very proud of Malfoy Manor and told Harry about the Manor and its grounds and history. Harry listened avidly, and Draco felt so happy that his new friend liked his home.
In the kitchen Harry ate half the lemon cake and drank four cups of apple juice. At the end of it he looked a little funny, but luckily he didn't get sick everywhere. When they were finished Draco took Harry up to his parent's bathroom with the enormous bath for swimming in. He had already decided he would look after Harry as much as he could, and didn't want to upset him even more by telling him he smelled. Draco filled up the tub and poured enough bubble mixture in to make a mountain of bubbles. Harry still hadn't said anything, but he smiled and even giggled when the two of them jumped in and splashed around. Winky had left two piles of clean clothes and towels waiting for them, and after the boys were dried and dressed Draco took Harry over the whole house and showed him everything.
By the time they got to the attics, Harry was looking a bit sleepy and pale. Draco turned and grabbed his hand again.
"Come on Harry, lets go back to my room and we can have a nap"
Harry didn't protest that naps were for babies, so Draco led him back to his room and they both crawled into Draco's bed. Harry was asleep before Draco had even drawn the heavy bed curtains closed. Draco looked down at the little sleeping boy and felt a big wave of feeling sweep all over him. He was going to protect Harry and be his best ever friend.
Even though it was only late afternoon, and Draco hadn't had dinner, he found his eyes drooping too. He tucked himself in next to Harry and fell asleep.
The next day Harry started talking.
He didn't answer Draco's questions about where he had come from, but he did ask a thousand questions about Draco and his family, about magic. Draco realised that Harry didn't know anything about the wizarding world so took it upon himself to teach Harry everything he could. He pulled out his school books and they went through them with Draco being the teacher. He also showed Harry the book about The Boy Who Lived. Harry cried a lot when Draco read it to him, and that made Draco's tummy feel funny, but he just pretended he didn't notice so he wouldn't have to think of the right thing to say.
The two boys studied all morning, then ran around and played all afternoon. Harry turned out to be terrific fun, and he came up with lots of great ideas for games and adventures. By the afternoon Draco's face was aching from all the laughing he had done. He guessed he hadn't had much practice at smiling, so it was no wonder his cheeks felt tired. They ate grand meals at the small nursery table served by the eager house elves, and curled up together in Draco's bed at night. It was the best day that Draco had ever had. He told Harry so before they went to sleep and the other boy grinned back and said the same. Draco fell asleep with a smile on his face.
Each day was perfect. They had an unusual run of glorious weather and within a week Harry's skin glowed golden brown, and his cheeks had gotten rounder. He looked even more like the drawing in Draco's book than ever before. Harry smiled all the time now, and his eyes sparkled like Draco's mother's favourite emerald necklace.
"How long can I stay Draco?" Harry whispered one night, about a week into his stay
"I don't know Harry. Mother and father are usually gone for about a month, but Madame Bouchard could be back any time. Perhaps I can hide you from Madame, but I don't think I can hide you from mother and father. You'll have to go back home before they come back"
Draco had been thinking about it a lot. He wanted Harry to stay forever - but father's magic was strong and he would know straight away if there was an extra little boy at the manor, even if the little boy was hiding out of sight.
Harry looked so sad that Draco hugged him. Harry had finally told Draco a little bit about his horrible family and the horrible place he lived. Draco hadn't been too surprised, given that they were filthy muggles, and he dreaded Harry having to go back to them. Draco supposed Harry was definitely going to miss him a lot - Draco made the best friend ever.
"Don't worry Harry. I'll keep writing to you and sending you food. You can call for Dobby if you ever need help and he will hear. And you can come for a visit every time mother and father go away, which is quite a lot. It will be alright"
The other little boy sobbed and Draco just stroked his wild black hair and held him tight until he fell asleep.
Madame Bouchard was back the next day. She'd fallen out with her beau and they weren't dating anymore, so she was short tempered and shouted at Draco a lot. Harry hid in the secret passageway with the peep holes to watch the morning lesson and wink at Draco. Draco pulled faces at him every time Madame Bouchard turned to write on the board. By the afternoon Madame was in bed with the headache and the boys were running outside again.
More days passed
Draco gave Harry his second favourite dragon necklace, and the two of them made cuts on their hands and vowed to be best friends forever.
Draco showed Harry his training broom and Harry turned out to be amazing at flying. Not as amazing as Draco of course, but really almost as good. They only had one practice broom so took it in turns to fly around the front lawn every day.
They only had one argument. It happened like this: one day Dobby brought in drinks for the boys but tripped over one of the toys on the floor and threw the whole tray at Draco, soaking him head to toe in pumpkin juice. Once Draco got over the shock, he unthinkingly ordered Dobby to punish himself. The minute Dobby started to hit himself, Harry had screamed at Draco to stop before running away to hide. After he thought about it for a bit, Draco realised that Harry did not know that house elves were not proper people. He knew Harry enough by now to know he would not be able to persuade Harry that it was fine to punish elves - the boy could be incredibly stubborn and soft all at once. Instead Draco tracked Harry down and apologised, promising a solemn oath that he would never treat an elf cruelly again. It would be a difficult oath to keep - Dobby was in particular was very annoying - but Malfoys always kept their word, and it was worth it for how quickly Harry forgave him, and for the smile and hug Draco got.
It felt like no time at all before a whole month had passed and Draco's parents were due to return. As usual they had written ahead with an arrival date and time - expecting Draco to be waiting for them outside the house dressed in a fine robe with his hair brushed, to greet them on their return. Draco got the elves to pack a huge amount of food for Harry, kept fresh with preservation charms and packed into a little bag with an Undetectable Extension Charm that he had carried around obsessively as a toddler. He gave Harry one last big hug.
"You remember what to do? You call for Dobby if those horrible muggles hurt you again or don't feed you. I put some books in your bag so you can practice reading, and some extra paper and quills so you can write to me. As soon as my parents go to the London townhouse for the Season I'll send for you again."
"OK Draco. And don't forget to write to me too"
Draco nodded and held back his tears, he didn't want Harry to see him crying. Harry obviously didn't feel ashamed though, the tears ran down his face making his green eyes shine even more than normal.
"You're my best friend ever Draco - thankyou for letting me stay with you"
"Same here Harry"
Dobby took Harry's hand and the two disappeared with a pop. Draco swallowed and stared at the spot his best friend had stood. His tummy hurt. Draco pressed on it hard. It didn't help.
Draco discovered it was so lonely being all by himself again, even for a single day. He missed Harry's company so much.
The boys wrote. Short letters at first, then longer with practice.
Harry had got into a lot of trouble when he got home. He didn’t share many details, but Draco could tell it had been bad. It could have been worse though - luckily Harry had got back just in time for the new year at school, stopping some frightful muggle government department called social services from finding anything out. The muggle relations knew that Harry knew about magic now, but it only seemed that it made them ignore Harry even more than normal. Draco was glad he could keep sending Harry food because the muggles ignored Harry so hard they kept forgetting to feed him. Draco wondered if Harry got so worked up about elves because his family treated him like one. Draco couldn't wait to graduate from Hogwarts so he could go and hex the whole filthy lot of them.
Harry's half term holiday coincided with the London season, so he was back at the manor in October. It only took him a couple of days this time to lose his haunted look. It helped that Draco showed Harry what he'd been working on with the house elves for the past few weeks.
"Can I open my eyes yet?" Harry asked, his face was scrunched up so hilariously that Draco had to smother his laugh
"OK open them" Draco said with a flourish of his arms
They were standing in a clearing in the forest out to the west of the manor. Earlier that year Draco had found a ramshackle gamekeepers lodge deep in the woods and on the very edge of their grounds. It was a bit of a ruin, and not very interesting, so he'd quickly put it out of his mind. But as soon as he started trying to come up with an idea for what to do about Harry he thought of the hut immediately.
It had been easy to convince the elves to fix it up for Harry. After Harry’s first visit, Draco had been scared that the elves would tell on him to his parents, but they all had kept the secret. Draco didn’t think they did it for him - he only had to see them all hovering around Harry and caring for him to know why. Harry was special - and the elves knew it.
The small hut was a good example of their care: within a few days of Draco suggesting the idea it had a new thatched roof, and the single room inside was transformed to a perfect, cozy little space. Then Draco and the elves had filled with books and toys and things that Harry would enjoy. Draco wanted Harry to love it and visit all the time.
"Oh wow Draco" Harry's eyes were round as Draco showed him the little kitchen and cupboard full of food, the small cozy bed piled up with blankets.
The lodge quickly became Harry's safe place. Whenever Harry needed an escape, or had school holidays but couldn't visit the manor because the Malfoys were in residence, he visited the little cottage. Dobby adored Harry and was always happy to help by ferrying Harry to and fro. And Draco became a master at sneaking out of the manor to spend time with him.
Harry grew tall, lean and wild, his body strong from playing in the woods, climbing trees and being fed fine foods by the besotted family elves at any opportunity. He still had nightmares sometimes, and often had bruises or dark circles under his eyes when he came to visit, but nothing could keep him down, and he was always laughing and playing within an hour of being back.
When he was eleven, Harry got his Hogwarts letter. Draco had received his first, and Harry had been on tenderhooks ever since, dreading that his own wouldn't come. Of course he had nothing to worry about. Draco read the messy letter with a smile on his face.
Draco,
My letter came today! Stupid Uncle Vernon didn't even see me hide it under the rug. I'm so excited! I can't wait to be at school with you and see you every day. I can't believe we're going to get wands and learn how to do proper magic! I wrote to the school straight away like you suggested, thanks for lending me the owl. They're going to send a teacher to take me to buy everything I need. Do you want to meet up to buy things? Diagon alley sounds so cool I can't wait.
Harry
After reading it one last time, Draco tucked the letter with the rest that he kept under his mattress. He couldn't wait either.
In the end they didn't have to arrange anything. They were in Diagon Alley the same day, and bumped into each other at Madame Malkin's. Draco smiled and winked at Harry as they both stood on their stools to get fitted for robes, and Harry laughed and reached out to grab Draco's hand and give it a squeeze.
"Where are your parents Draco? I want to get a look at the Malfoys finally!" Harry snarked. Draco snorted.
"Father's buying books next door and mother's gone to look at the wands" Draco replied "I'm going to try to guilt them into get me a racing broom - mother still feels bad that they buggered off to the villa for summer and totally forgot that they'd already arranged for Master Frizzle to stop my tuition that same month so I was left all alone. Not that I care obviously - it was a relief to hang out and not have to hide, but I've been laying it on thick ever since. Which teacher came to get you?"
Then Draco spotted an enormous, scruffy man waving through the window at them like a loon.
"Not..."
"That's Hagrid" Harry chipped in
Draco chewed at his lip. He'd heard all about Hagrid: his father didn't like theman and had gone on a rant about him more than once. But Draco had learned to be careful about repeating his father's comments in front of Harry, so kept his thoughts to himself.
"You'd better go - that ice-cream looks like it's melting. I'll see you at Hogwarts Harry!"
Harry grinned his wide, white approving smile at Draco. Like always, it caused Draco's heart to skip a beat.
His friendship with Harry had been the best thing in Draco's life. The very best. In many ways it had made Draco realise how petty and selfish he could be. When Draco said the wrong thing, Harry only rolled his eyes in a way that said he knew Draco was a snobbish prat, but he loved him anyway. And when Draco managed to stomp on his instinct to make cutting comments, Harry always knew, and Draco got that golden smile.
Harry's good opinion of Draco felt like a gift, and he would do anything to keep it that way. Harry was his, and nothing would ever change that. Draco wouldn't let it.