Another New Teacher
Draco all but ran into the nearest bathroom, bracing his arms on either side of a sink and bowing his head low. He swallowed hard and attempted to steady his ragged breathing. He was fine. He was fine. He was fine. It had just been a cauldron- it worried him that such a small thing elicited such a reaction from him. With trembling fingers he turned on the tap and let the cool water pool in his cupped hands. Once enough water had collected, he brought his hands to his face, dousing himself.
It didn’t help nearly as much as he had hoped, but it was enough for him to gather his wits. He turned off the tap and backed away from the sink. He kept stepping back until he bumped into something solid. He whirled around but… there was nothing. He drew is wand and cast a detection charm. Nothing. His trembling intensified.
Before he could dwell on it, the clock chimed, alerting him that he had one minute to get to his next lesson. Mopping the water from his face with the back of a hand, he strode from the bathroom and willed his hands to stop shaking. It worked… for the most part, and he looked as poised and put together as he had before- which wasn’t saying much. Even so, it was the best he could manage under the circumstances.
He sped off to Transfiguration, but despite his haste, he was still late. Their new teacher glared at him as he entered the room. He had a haughty expression on his too-perfect face, his high cheekbones, pronounced jawline and bright eyes gave him an ethereal appearance. The sneer he adopted when he took in Draco’s disheveled appearance lessened the effect slightly. “Ah,” He said, looking down his nose at Draco, “A Malfoy, are you?” He practically spat the words and then lowered, so only Draco could hear, “Disgraces, the whole lot of you.”
From the look of him, he was sure this man was from a noble family. Perhaps he was a sympathizer, like the Weasleys. He had to be with how disgusted he was by Draco. He had the sudden urge to scream at the wizard, let him know that he was not like his family- or at least… he didn’t want to be. He settled for a soft, “I am not my parents.”
Something sparkled in the teacher’s eyes before he said, “We’ll see about that. Detention, in my office tonight, five o’clock, do not make it a habit of being late.” He stepped aside and extended a hand away from Draco, as though he was welcoming him into the classroom, showing him the way, despite the fact that Draco had spent hours in this very classroom under a different professor for years. He pushed down his annoyance at the clearly baiting gesture and stalked to the nearest open seat, not giving the slightest bit of thought to whoever it was he was sitting next to.
The teacher- Devereux, he thought it was- strode to the front of the classroom and opened his mouth to begin their first lecture of the year, when Potter rushed in. Draco hadn’t even noticed that he wasn’t there to begin with. Devereux’s face twisted with annoyance. “Ah, Mr. Potter, our favorite celebrity.” Draco’s thoughts shifted to that of his old head of house, Snape. Hadn’t he said something similar to Potter when he had first met him? His heart twinged painfully. Snape may have been an asshole, but he was the main reason Draco had never become a murderer. His mother had told him how Snape had made an unbreakable vow with her in order to protect him. “Surely fame doesn’t give you a free pass to come waltzing into class whenever you’d like?” Draco was ripped out of his thoughts by the words and his fingernails tore uselessly into his palms. He hissed at the sensation, but didn’t relent until he felt blood swell at the half moon indents.
Potter narrowed his eyes at Devereux and said carelessly, “I’ve had literal death eaters as teachers, you’re going to have to try a lot harder than that if you want to scare me.”
Devereux scoffed and said, “I’m aware you have a bad record for teachers at this school. But in a normal environment, teachers demand respect, not fear.” He strode across the room, his expression growing smug. “Perhaps you could learn some respect from detention with Mr. Malfoy.” Devereux grinned wide enough to show all of his gleaming teeth and gestured towards Draco.
Potter hesitated for a long moment, holding his angry glare before he lowered his gaze with a muttered, “fine,” and took his seat, just a few rows behind Draco.
Draco was on edge throughout the entire class, both from Potter’s eyes driving through the back of his skull and from the pointed glances Devereux kept sending his way. It was unsettling, and it made Draco want to crawl out of his own skin. He itched to move, to run from the room or jump out of the window if need be- anything to get out of there. The moment the bell rang, he leapt from his seat, shoving his things hastily into his bag as he sped for the corridor. His hand had just brushed the doorknob when Devereux’s booming voice pierced his ears. “Not so fast, Malfoy, I need a word.”
Draco froze.