Although he never liked to show it, Draco was intimately acquainted with fear. His father wasn’t exactly a loving parent; he treated Machiavelli’s “The Prince” as a parenting manual. Seeking help from Mother wasn’t condoned; she might as well have been a statue in the corner, a trophy wife for the trophy family.
As such, he knew the situation and the situation wasn’t looking good. Whatever would happen would not be pleasant - either from Snape or his father. Worse, his standing among the others in Slytherin was bound to take a nosedive; much of what he’d worked for was gone. And it was all because of those stupid buffoons and that... that...
“Enter,” Snape said, icicles hanging from his tongue. Malfoy shuffled into the office and raised his head, explanations coming to mind through the fear.
“Sir, I can explain -”
”I’m sure you can,” Snape responded, his tone deadpan. “No doubt, you would like to explain to me how Crabbe and Goyle put too much powder in their little prank, and how you never intended it to be as powerful as it was. Considering they showed no regard for potion safety, I should expel them just on their own stupidity.” He raised an eyebrow at Malfoy’s arm. “And, no doubt, you would like to explain that you were faking your injury for some reason other than your own cowardice or your petty vendetta against Hagrid.”
“Um... uh... yes, sir! That’s exactly it!” Malfoy smiled, hoping that charm could at least soften the blow. To his dismay, it only seemed to fuel Snape’s anger; dark eyes blazed back at him. “Um... sir?”
After a few seconds of twitching, Snape finally replied.
“Kneel, Malfoy.”
Malfoy blinked. “Wha -”
“Kneel, worm!” Snape bellowed; Malfoy’s knees hit the floor by reflex. He stared down at the stone floor, terrified beyond belief, wondering what this meant.
A velvet voice purred around him as he knelt. “Draco Malfoy, I suggest you take a good look at the ground you’re looking at - and decide if you want to be looking at that from now on. Because... with the path you’re going, you will be seeing a lot more of it.”
Malfoy looked up, confused. “Sir?”
“Did I say you could look up?” Snape hissed; Malfoy bowed his head. He found his eyes following the cracks of stone as Snape continued. “It is time for a history lesson. While I give it, you will not look up; you will take the words and look at that cold stone and decide if that’s what you want your future to be.”
He heard the swish of the robes against stone as Snape walked around him. “Of the four esteemed houses that form Hogwarts, House Slytherin was the most devastated by Voldemort’s rise. Forty-seven former members of our great house were murdered, including twelve prefects, two best boys, a best girl, and five champion quiddich players - the leaders of the house, and as such the greatest threats to Voldemort's power. The leadership of House Slytherin was decimated; the only ones who survived were those willing to crawl like dogs at Voldemort’s feet.”
A hand touched his shoulder. “Your father is familiar with the view you see now. He bowed at Voldemort’s feet, groveling like a dog, terrified that the dark lord would take his life on a whim.” He heard a tired sigh, and wondered if Snape was winding down. “We all did; we all acted that way. But the best of us - the best of Slytherin House - chose death over slavery.”
He felt a hand on his chin, easing his gaze upward. “Malfoy, you have an incredible amount of potential. Your ambition knows no bounds. However, you lack leadership skills. You prefer to snipe at enemies both real and perceived, and make enemies out of potential allies. You do like your father does, and try to buy or bully your way to leadership - but it never lasts that way.” He smiled. “If you had no money or influence, how would you try to gain power?”
Malfoy blinked. “I... I would find whoever had the power, and ally with him.”
Snape smiled. “You begin to understand. Leadership means working with, not lording over. Voldemort is gone. Your father buys and bullies, but the price simply escalates. Wouldn’t you rather have the sort of power that lasts - the sort of power Miss Hecate seems to gain naturally?”
Malfoy stood there, stunned. He felt mildly insulted at how Snape talked of his father. “You... you sound like Potter,” he finally sneered. It was true, after all.
Snape chuckled. “Potter and the other Gryffindors are delusional. They think that courage and valor alone are enough; it is never enough. You and I both know that.” He walked around to the other side of his desk, and pulled out a paper. “But I’m not wrong. You’ve seen the effect that fool Potter has on others. You’ve seen the way Miss Hecate is uniting the house. Make no mistake, what Miss Hecate is doing is the way House Slytherin was before Voldemort’s rise.”
He picked up a piece of paper. “At this moment, House Slytherin has earned one hundred and sixty-seven points. For Crabbe’s and Goyle’s actions, fifty points each will be deducted from House Slytherin. For your own, sixty-seven points will be deducted.” Malfoy whimpered; how was he going to work with his own house after this? “House Slytherin starts over from this point, Draco Malfoy. I will have similar discussions tonight or tomorrow with Prefect Malaghieri, Miss Hecate, and others who I feel could guide House Slytherin to what it was. I think you can be a part of that as well; how you do that depends on what you do from this point on. It won’t be easy dealing with this setback; however, I think you have it in you to rise to the occasion.” He smiled. “Now get up and go to bed. You have much to deal with tomorrow.”
See other episodes by Nightelf
(Posted Sun, 29 Dec 2002 05:44)
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