Elementary Destruction

Elementary Destruction

Pt One: The Schizophrenic Mind

*Chapter One: Strange Dealings with Stranger Non-Human Entities*

Draco Malfoy was the epitome of composure and self-confidence. His icy, bitter demeanour was so frosty, it was almost clichéd. His sleek blonde hair, a constant reminder of his time as a transfigured ferret, lay in a perfect arrangement on his head. His pale eyes glinted malevolently, as always, and a slight smirk was perched on his face.

"Evening, Draco," whispered a voice from in the shadows of the room.

"What do you think you're doing, coming here? You know it's strictly forbidden!" he returned sternly, reminiscent of a certain Gryffindor girl from days far gone.

"Rules have never troubled you before, Mister Malfoy," mocked the voice.

"No. But you're another story," Draco retorted, his upper-lip curling in distaste, a trait he had inherited from his mother.

Shaking himself mentally, Draco made yet another feeble attempt to destroy the psychological dependence he had on these voices he had been tormented by for five weeks now. Call it mental illness, call it being a deranged psycho, he knew there was no way he could shut them out entirely. They were a part of his life, in essence, his "other" conscience, the one that made him doubt his very existence.

"Son! I am speaking to you!" came a bitter voice, for a time halting the war he was waging against himself.

"Yes, Mother. What have you come for?" Draco inquired, dropping his normal swaggering air. Though he was a grown man, his parents still treated him as if he were still a child.

"I heard you speaking to someone. Who was it?" Narcissa smiled suddenly, as if trying to catch her son off his guard. She had some faint inkling of the "abnormalities" that had been paining him of late, yet the reasons simply eluded her. What had she and Lucius done wrong in raising their son? Of course, there was that Death Eater business- ah, well, every family had their tarnishes, even one so perfect as the Malfoys.

"I was speaking with no-one. Perhaps it was the voice of someone else?" Draco suggested, contentedly leaning back in the swivel chair at his desk. Handy muggle inventions, those. Quite comfortable.

"No, Draco, I clearly heard your voice," Narcissa insisted, her light green eyes glittering rather evilly. She walked in a stately fashion to the door, spun around rather menacingly, and spoke,

"I am watching you, son." Then she was gone. Draco shuddered.

"That was close," he murmured, pulling his furs on and producing his wand from his cloak pocket. Little did he know that the suspicious Narcissa had posted herself behind his door, listening to his every word.

"You must be on your guard, Draco. Always," said the Voice.

"Go away. I'm busy right now, and I don't want to talk to you," Draco muttered in return, glancing in the shadows for no apparent reason, Narcissa noted.

"Ouch. That hurt," retorted the Voice in a singsong tone, taunting the already tormented man.

"Oh, sod off already!" Draco sneered, twirling his wand rather menacingly. Narcissa slunk off down the hallway, stunning realization finally dawning on her.

*~*~*

"Draco!" Narcissa insisted, walking into his study, "Would you mind going to Hogsmeade with me? I have an errand to run, and I think we should visit an old friend of mine."

"Coming," Draco said, fastening his cloak in preparing for the cold weather. It was January in Hogsmeade, after all, and there would be snow.

*Chapter Two: The Unfairness of it all!*

Hogsmeade was every bit as cold as Draco had expected. The sky had settled on an imposing grey today, and snowflakes were fluttering down like leaves in autumn. One such ice crystal perched itself on Draco's nose, sending the man into a nostalgic frenzy of his Hogwarts days. Lonely days, they had been. Yes, his grades were exceptional, second only to Hermione Granger's, and he was a good seeker. He was a fortunate boy, but he had always felt overshadowed. Overshadowed by Potter, the brilliant seeker, and Granger, the genius. He had little in the way of intelligent dialogue; Crabbe and Goyle may have been daunting bodyguards, but neither of them was likely to win the Ingenious Wizard of the Year award.

Draco shook himself gently, he had stopped walking in the middle of the street, and saw Narcissa turn rather impatiently. He hustled forward, seeing a group of Ravenclaw students congregating under the eves of the Three Broomsticks pub.

When he joined Narcissa, she led him down the street rather forcefully, like a trainer putting a show dog through its paces. She gave him a light push into a tall brick building, closed the door behind him, and gave a merry little wave. Draco shuddered, then cocked his eyebrow in surprise.

"Ah, Mister Malfoy!" smiled a familiar witch with long black hair seated at the desk in front of him, "The doctor is waiting for you."

Wordlessly, Draco followed her, still shocked, into a backroom.

"Please wait here," the witch said. Finally, Draco found his voice.

"Excuse me, Miss Chang!" he called out. But the girl had left. He remembered her from Hogwarts as well; the girlfriend of Cedric Diggory, the Ravenclaw Seeker, and a year above Draco.

What had Narcissa thought she was doing? Where was he? Sitting up straight as a pole, his suspicious eye darted around the room. This was a psychiatrist's office. He sighed unhappily and looked up at the door.

"Malfoy?" came a startled female voice from out in the hallway. That voice was oddly familiar-

"Please tell me you're not really messed up!" cried that familiar voice, throwing open the door. Draco groaned. It was the Mudblood, Granger.

"Yes, little narcissus boy. Your mother called me yesterday. Hearing voices, are you?" laughed Granger cynically. Draco's eye averted her hard, disapproving glare. She looked so different from the schoolgirl she had been. Her hair seemed to lay a little flatter, but her she was still as bitter as ever.

"If I am, am I likely to tell you?" Draco sneered, looking for all the world the implacable man he was. Seeing through his feigned confidence, Hermione saw his hands twitching rather agitatedly.

There was an odd silence. Neither knew what to say. Finally, Hermione walked over to Draco.

"You are hearing voices. So am I. So is Harry. None of us know what they are," she confided.

"Yes, that's rather ironic. The schizophrenic psychiatrist," Draco laughed.

"That's what I thought," Hermione said bitterly, frowning.

"Whatever, Granger! As if!" Draco retorted, laughing rather scathingly.

"Listen to me, Malfoy. I'm SERIOUS!" she screeched.

"Yeah, well so am I!" Draco sneered back.

"Shut up, already! I've had enough of your senseless blathering!" Hermione said.

"The pot is speaking to the kettle," Draco said lazily, twiddling his thumbs.

"You know what, Malfoy?" Hermione was beyond rage now. She was literally shaking, she was so mad.

"What, Granger?" Draco inquired in mock-curiosity.

"You are the most selfish, narcissistic, vain prat of a person I've ever known!"

"As opposed to a bitter, self-righteous hag who has no friends," Draco retorted calmly.

"You're so not worth this!" Hermione said.

"Of course I am! I am worth every bit of everyone's troubles!" Draco laughed sardonically.

"The trouble with you, Malfoy," Hermione began, smugly, "is that you don't know when to back out of an argument!"

"That's not a deficiency, Granger. It's a gift!" he insisted.

"Just shut up, alright! You plagued my life for seven years, and now I'm quite happy without you!" Hermione sneered.

"Okay, okay! You win, Granger! Truce! Uncle! What am I supposed to say?" Draco said, flashing her the I'm-So-Devastating Malfoy smirk.

"Oh, just repeat after me. It'll be easy!" Hermione smiled, masking her humourous glee.

"Fine, Mudblood."

"Hermione Granger is a brilliant genius."

When Draco said nothing, Hermione smirked and said, "What's the matter, ferret got your tongue?"

Shrugging, Draco repeated, "Hermione Granger is a brilliant genius."

"She is ten times the person I'll ever be."

"She is ten times the person I'll ever be."

"Draco Malfoy knows absolutely nothing!" Hermione finished triumphantly.

"Draco Malfoy knows what he wants. And he wants..." Draco grinned.

"That's not what I said!" Hermione looked rather confused.

"Oh, whatever! Can I leave now?"

"Yes! Get out of my sight!" Hermione snapped all of a sudden.

"Calm down, Beaver Girl! I'm leaving!" With that, he stormed out, Hermione sighing with relief.

Draco literally ran down the street in relentless pursuit of his mother, who would be rather susceptible to involvement in a tempestuous argument in a few minutes.

Narcissa, who had had a pleasant, psycho-free thirty minutes, was just leaving Gladrags Witchwear with several shopping bags full of sparkling new robes. If Narcissa had a weakness, that was it. She was absolutely obsessed with shopping, most likely thanks to her luxurious lifestyle.

"What did you think you were doing, woman?" bellowed Draco, confronting her angrily.

"I did it with your best interests in mind, Draco!" Narcissa insisted.

"You know nothing about my best interests, you silly woman!" Draco stormed.