Monsters by Nightfall

Draco's latest revelation: Quidditch was awesome.

Ever since his parents had, begrudgingly, given in to his repeated pleas to join the Quidditch team, Draco had been training non stop. Nothing like Quidditch to keep your mind off of the frustrating search for the person who destroyed your life.

Theo and Blaise had come over more often than not over the summer.

Other than Draco's friends, there had been an increasing amount of other visitors to their manor as well. Most of them Draco recognized from his Death Eater research, which made him feel very uneasy. The idea that the person Draco'd been searching for the last year could be under the same roof as him and he wouldn't know, made shivers run down his spine at any given moment.

Nonetheless, one could see the three teenagers lounging around the garden almost every day. Laughing about meaningless things, telling each other stories that were 90 percent made up and chasing each other over the grounds on their broomsticks.

And if one didn't see the runes specking the white haired boy's body underneath his green and black robes, one could even think all of them were human.

Applying the runes underneath clothing made it harder for sunlight to penetrate them, Draco had discovered, so he could sometimes go a whole week without being reminded of his bloody little problem.

More often than not, however, that made him forget about the bloody part of his problem, turning him more feral when the runes started to get washed away by water, wind and weather.

Blaise and Theo, Draco had discovered, were even more fun to be around then he originally thought.

Blaise had been a little reserved at first but in the last few weeks Draco had gotten to know a whole new side to his friend.
Draco had known how intelligent he was but he hadn't thought him to be this witty. Blaise was the one who laughed the loudest and turned out to be even more of a troublemaker than Draco.

One time after flying all day, they had returned to Draco's room a little earlier. Theo had been yawning a lot already,
- even though Quidditch wasn't really his cup of tea, Theo was incredibly agile on a broomstick, navigating it like a pro, although he lost interest in the game pretty quickly, making it his quest to annoy his friends gleefully -
When they'd suddenly heard footsteps coming up from the office.
Blaise had made the executive decision of cramming all three of them into a small alcove, where the Malfoy house elves kept their cleaning supplies.

They all kept quite, listening for the Death Eaters to pass.

"Haven't you felt it too?"
"It's almost like it's reawakening slowly."
"Mine has gotten darker."
"Do you think it has to do with his return?"
"We would've already heard about it if it had."
"Perhaps it has to do with the reformation of our ranks?"
"Our cause persists. It is our Mark now."
"If he returns, we will be there to follow."

Theo's eyes were opened wide, while the mischievous grin had left Blaise's face. They all knew what this meant. And suddenly they weren't as keen on spying anymore.

--

"Do you think they'll really back You-know-who if he returns?"

Theo asked late at night when Blaise was already asleep. The black haired Boy was draped over their feet, using Theo's calf as a substitute for a pillow. His heart was beating steadily and his breathing had normalized a while ago.

The boys had sneaked in, a few hours after lights out.

They all were now laying on Draco's bed, Theo's head cushioned on Draco's arm, whose hand was placed in the blonde's hair. Curled up together in warmth and darkness.

"I think so. But they just want someone to rally behind. It doesn't have to be HIM."

Draco whispered back, drawing his fingers through the blond strands of hair. Theo made a noncommittal murmuring sound, rolling his head to face Draco.

"My father went to school with him."
Theo had started drawing patterns on Draco's chest.
"He sounds so normal whenever father talks about him. Of course a brilliant student, the best the school has ever seen father says. But still a normal boy like us."

Theo brought his hand up to his mouth chewing on his fingernails. A nervous tick.

"You think we'll have to join him too, if he returns?"

Draco shrugged uncertainly. He had really envisioned his furure differently. Was some halfbreed Vampire even welcome in an army of blood purists?

"Don't know. I think there'll be a choice though."

It went unsaid that their parantage sort of made the choice for them. Theo let his hand fall from his mouth and back to Draco's chest.

"Ew, Theo don't wipe your drooly hands on my shirt. It's silk."

Theo had a hard time keeping his laughter down, wiping whatever fluids were still on his hand on Draco's pajamas in spite. Not without the Vampire's quiet - only for Blaise's sake - protests.

When they finally settled down again, Draco peered down to check up on their black haired friend, who was still soundly sleeping the night away tangled between their legs.

At least they hadn't woken up Blaise yet, who had proclaimed to be needing his beauty sleep.
His hair had gotten a bit longer over the summer, making his curls more visible on the top, while the sides were still neatly trimmed. Draco really liked that hairstyle, but Blaise was probably gonna cut it again before school.

"You think there'll be another war?"

Theo broke the silence again after a period of silent thinking, drawing Draco's gaze away from Blaise and towards the blonde.

Without really contemplating his actions, Draco probed Theo's frontal lobe with his mind, brushing the others feelings in the process. The Ocumency and Legilimency lessons with Severus had been going on for so long that he didn't even need his wand anymore to probe another's mind unnoticed. The trick was, to only graze what was flying around in there. If you looked further, even someone who wasn't skilled in Occlumency would feel your roaming.

Severus had told Draco how even if skilled in Occlumency, it was essential to keep your shields up at all times, so no one was able to steel themselves in unnoticed.

Theo wasn't skilled in Occlumency, however.
Theo was afraid.

Draco could almost feel it himself, tangible when flitting around his head like a snitch. There was this hopelessness as well, as if life was already set in stone for the smaller one. Draco could relate.

"I don't know."

Draco retorted to Theo'searluer question. He could feel the inner turmoil of his friend. Fear, desperation and wariness. And was there a trace of affection? It wasn't bundled up with the other feelings, floating around his head seperately. It was wrong of Draco to probe at all, but suddenly he was so curious.
Who did Theo feel so affectionate about?

And then there was a picture. A scene.
A laughing boy with white hair and pale grey eyes, ruffling Theo's hair.

Draco's hand, which had been carding through the other's hair subconsciously, suddenly stopped. There was concern radiating off of Theo.
Then when Draco started again, the other immediately relaxed.

Nobody should feel this relaxed next to a Vampire. Especially with that Vampire so close to ones neck. If only Theo knew, there would be no affection left. He wouldn't like Draco if he knew and it hurt.

Because that was the only downside to his friends. To having friends at all. Draco knew they would hate him if they only knew.

Theo and Blaise had both been brought up to believe in pureblood supremacy. Sometimes Draco caught glances of Blaise hatred when looking at Mudbloods like Granger or Blood traitors like Weasley. And in the back of Draco's head, some part even agreed. But what was he if not a Mudblood too?

---

When the 18. of August 1994 finally rolled around, Draco was more than excited. His dad had been gifted tickets for the Quidditch World Cup, by the minister himself, attached with an invitation to sit in the Ministers box. And even though, Lucius Malfoy was no sports fanatic, a minister's invitation was reason enough to drag even him out of his study and everyone in the family into their finest robes.

The all black suit, one of the house elves had laid out for Draco, was a little uncomfortable but made him look rather stunning, if he said so himself, so he didn't complain. The process of dressing up was never quite to Draco's liking but the final product made him even more excited for the game. Why people didn't do everything in style, was beyond him.

The answer to that question, however, dawned on Draco when he side-along apperated with his mother, towards the portkey location.
Now he was glad they'd applied self cleaning spells to their pant legs and the hem 9f his mothers dress. Was this how poor people normally traveled?

At least Draco was used to dirt and grime. His parents, however, surely weren't, which was depicted brilliantly on their faces, scrunched up in disgust, when Lucius apperated a few seconds later with a heavy thud, splashing a little mud on their clothes.

"Filthy."

Lucius commented, strutting towards the portkey, while the mud already started to vanish on his shoes.

"At least we don't travel like the Weasleys. I heard their portkey is some old boot."

Draco gleamed when his father chuckled briefly, and they both placed their hands in front of the enchanted white handkerchief, hung on a tree branch before them.

Narcissa stepped up between them, lacing her fingers with the men beside her, when both Lucius amd Draco touched the cloth.
Suddenly they were swirled into the air. Draco clutched the handkerchief tighter. He could feel his mother's hand tightening around his as well. The wind was tugging on his body with the force of a tornado. At least it felt that way.

The landscape beneath was a blurr of green and blue, but there, in the distance, Draco could make out colourful dots, which were rapidly approaching. A little further he caught a glimps of a circular arena. It's roof, a huge enchanted white fabric, flowing in the wind.

"Now."

With a tug from his mothers hand, Draco let go of the handkerchief and stabilized himself in the air, walking through the air, down to the ground with shaky steps. He envied his parents dor looking as magestic as they did when traceling via portkey.

Draco Malfoy was no fan of Portkeys. The prospect of seeing Ireland annihilate Bulgaria in Quidditch, though, was good enough for a smlie to tug itself onto Draco's face, when there was finally ground beneath their feet again.

They had only made a few steps, after righting themselves subtlety, when suddenly a shrill excited voice called Draco, rather loundly, from his left.

Without having to turn his head, Draco already knew who was walking up to them now, stumbling over their own steps in an attempt not to break into a run.
There was no trace left of Draco's earlier smile. Instead mortification had taken over his features, when he looked at the confused but curious faces of his parents fall, at the persons arrival.

Harry Potter, who finally stopped infront of the Malfoys, the largest smile plastered onto the boys face, didn't even seem to notice that he had just single handedly ruined the day Draco had been looking forward to, since the beginnig of the summer.

"Mr. Potter. What a surprise to see you here."
Lucius was the first to speak, making it even clearer to Draco, that his parents both knew exactly who had just stepped before them. His father looked Potter over with scrutiny. The disdain in his voice made Draco cringe, praying to magic, that his parents didn't think they were friends. But Potter had made that claim very hard to disprove.

At least Potter looked relatively acceptable. For the first time, apart from his school uniform he wore at Hogwarts, Potter was wearing a set of well fitted clothes, that actually complimented his appearance and looked rather good. They were even clean, which baffled Draco the most. He hadn't thought that something owned or worn by Harry Potter could ever not be filthy.

Only now Potter, whose eyes had been glued to Draco before, looked up at the two adults next to the Vampire, his smile dimming but not breaking.
"Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy. A pleasure as always."

Potter almost fully covered his sarcasm with his polite smile, Draco could still read it in his eyes though. Suddenly Draco was indescribably happy to have refreshed his runes this morning, when he glimpsed upon the other two approaching figures behind Harry. But although the rune covered the smell of wet dog brilliantly, Draco still threw the werwolf and the ex-criminal a glare.

"Cousin! What a pleasure."
Sirius Black warbled, a grin even bigger then Potter's plastered onto his lips, looking at Nacissa, while he wrapped an arm around his godson's shoulders.
Potter had grown a little over the summer, but Black still towered over the fourteen year old.

A quick glance towards his godfather, made Potter's smile broaden as well. They seemed really at ease with each other. One would think that they hadn't only known each other for a few months, but their whole lifes.

Lupin stepped up on Potters other side. The werwolf seemed a lot happier then Draco remembered him. The scars on his face looked a little discoloured, probably due to an increase in sun exposure. He looked a lot less tense too, though his eyes still flicked around restlessly.

Draco all the while could feel his father tense up, even without looking his way. His mother meanwhile almost seemed to relax.

"Sirius Black."
Draco couldn't get a read on his mother's face, so he risked a look into her head. Amusement? That dazzled Draco.
"I see you've been getting your little Griffindor band back together."

What an odd thing to say. Draco could swear he had once heard Finnigan say something along those lines. But his mother would never reference anything muggle, would she? Most curious.

Black's grin broadened, glinting with recognition.
"Naturally. There are only so many people that can cope with a blood traitor like me, aren't there Remus?"

"Certainly."
The werwolf replied, his eye halting on Draco's glare. Unsure whether the werwolf was a Legilimens, Draco averted his gaze, catching Potters eyes, who had been sneaking glances at him since before his guardians had arrived. When he was caught staring, his cheeks coloured themselves a Gryffindor red, but he didn't avert his eyes.

Sure that Potter wasn't a Legilimens, Draco stared back daringly.

"I don't think we've met. You must be Lucius then."
Bad idea. Draco was sure he could almost hear his father's blood start to boil.
"Sirius Black."
The man with the long black hair put out his hand in greeting, just like Potter had before, and just like his godson's hand, Surius' hand was ignored just the same.

"We would've met earlier, but sadly I wasn't really invited to the wedding."

Sirius withdrew his hand again smoothly, noticing the lack of interest in Lucius' scrunched up face.

"You're Draco, I presume."
The glare that had been set on the smiling Potter, now shifted onto the dark haired maurader before him. His glare quickly turned into another round of mortification, though, when the Black heir went on.

"Harry has told me a lot about you."
Draco went white as a sheet. Of course, he was naturally pale, and then there was the whole Vampire thing. But if he could turn a paler shade, he definitely did. Potter all the while reddened immensely, again - he seemed to do that a lot.

"Only the best of course. Remus as well."
Draco couldn't suppress a slight snort.

"Remus Lupin. Yes the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor."
The werwolf smiled politely.
"Yes. Although I won't be teaching again this year."
Had someone finally reported him to the authorities?

"Since I'm a trained lawyer, additional to my teaching degree, Sirius has employed me to take charge of managing the Black real estates as well as the family funds."
Draco hadn't known that. It seemed to be just as unexpected to his parents.  Contemptuous.
"So I'm sure you'll be seeing more of me."
That seem to do it for Lucius. He had already been ranting the entire summer about how unfair it was for Sirius Black ro still be recognized as the rightous heir of Black. There had been rants about how unqualified and unworthy Sirius Black was, to be in posession of such a fortune.

Before his father could burst into flames and throw unforgivables around, Draco smiled at the little family infront of them.

"It's been a pleasure, but we have to keep moving. The minister's awaiting us."

A mischievous glimmer bloomed in Sirius eyes.

"Is he now. He seems to have invited everyone then! Well then don't mind us tagging along."

"You've been invited by the minister as well?"
Narcissa questioned. Draco could see her tightening her fingers around Lucius hand in an attempt to calm her husband.

"We have. So have the Weasleys I believe. We were supposed to meet them there."
After no Malfoy moved even an inch, Sirius grin broadened again. He so knew that with all the people around, and with the approaching meeting with the Minister, none of them could really voice any complaints without arousing attention or leaving a bad impression on the Minister of all people.

Draco could almost feel the pain, when his father pressed out a semi polite: "Lead the way", And the odd group made their way over to the stadion.