Light and Shadow

Light and Shadow

Chapter 11 - The First Counselor

A pair of small feet walked hurriedly through the corridor of the house. The five-year-old boy was impeccably dressed in his school uniform, which represented the most traditional wizarding school for children up to ten years. It was the same school his father had studied at when he was that age. It was very similar to the Muggle schools. There, like the Muggle Schools, reading and writing was taught, but the difference was that students were also taught how to control their magic, since they were not old enough to use a wand.

The blond boy stopped in front of a big door, which was closed. He pushed it and entered the big and luxurious bedroom. He walked toward the bed, where he could see there was someone sleeping in it, and, for what he knew of the routine of the house, he was sure that person was his father. He started to get on the bed, but he remembered of the last time he had done that wearing shoes, and the memory of his mother yelling wasn't a thing he could forget that easy. So, he sat on the floor, took off his black shoes and went up to the bed. When he finally made it, after all it was a tall bed, he started to jump on it, which he loved to do.

Draco Malfoy started to feel the bed coming up and down, and he already knew his son was there. How could that boy have the energy to jump at that time in the morning?

"Dad? Daddy, wake up! Won't you take me to school today?" the boy asked, still jumping.

"No Christian, today your mother will do that," Draco said putting a pillow over his head.

"Are you staying at home again?"

"No." Draco was starting to get irritated with going 'up and down'. "Christian, could you please stop jumping on the bed while I'm trying to sleep?" Now the blond had turned and was watching his son jumping on the bed. His son smiled at him.

"Don't be annoying, Draco." Ginny was got out of the closet and walked toward the dressing table. "Christian loves to jump on the bed and you've never complained."

"I never complained because he never jumped with me on it," Draco answered in a bad mood.

Ginny stopped in front of the bed with a raised eyebrow. Well, that was a huge lie; after all, it was him who had taught the son that play, which sometimes, irritated her. Every day after he was back from work, he took his son in his lap and stayed until dinner, playing with him on the bed. Sometimes jumping, sometimes tickling... If anyone were to ever witness that scene surely would never say that the blond having fun with his son was Draco Malfoy.

"Draco, you're not staying at home again, are you? Yesterday you passed the entire day in the bed and you're not going to work today too?" Ginny had her hands on her waist, in a clear position of disapproval.

She just released a tired sigh and looked at the son, who was still jumping.

"Christian, don't crumple your uniform."

"Okay," the little one said, still jumping.

Draco still bore that 'up and down' for a while, until his morning patience reached its limit. He sat down in the bed, took his son and made him sit down too.

Christian sat down and made a moody face, but decided to obey his father. His tone of voice wasn't for jokes. He looked at the bedside table and saw his father's wand. Well, he knew he shouldn't play with his parents' wands, but he was tired of waiting till he got 'bigger', like everyone said, to start making magic. So, he went crawling to the bedside table and when he was about to pick up the wand, he heard his father's voice.

"Don't even think of that, Christian!" Draco was looking at his son seriously and his voice had a warning tone.

With a defeated sigh, the boy crawled back close to his father and sat. He was starting to get bored, because he couldn't do anything. It was when he saw an owl entering through the window bringing the Daily Prophet when his mood changed. The boy's face glowed as the owl dropped the newspaper close to him.

"Dad!" Christian said. "Do you want to see what I learned? I know all the letters of the alphabet," he finished proudly.

"You know?" Draco said with eyes closed. "Then show me." '

Well who knows, maybe this way he'll stay quiet,' Draco thought.

"All right, L..." he started, picking the newspaper. "U... C..."

While Christian said the letters of the first page, Ginny yelled from inside the bathroom.

"Draco, don't forget today we have a dinner at my parents'."

"Do I really have to go?" Draco asked.

"Yes," Ginny said, emphatically, popping her head out of the bathroom with a clear expression that, if he dared arguing, he would be in serious problems.

"Okay," he answered, annoyed.

"E... L... O... R..." Christian finished.

"Very good, Christian," Malfoy said giving attention to his son. "In a few years you'll be reading the newspaper to dad," Draco said, smiling proudly to his son.

But Christian wasn't looking at the father. He was still looking watchful at the newspaper with an intrigued expression, surprised with what he was seeing.

"Dad." Now he was looking at Draco. "My name is in the newspaper."

"It is?" Draco said, finding it funny. Surely the son was mistaken.

'Yes, it is. Look: M...A...L...F...O...Y... Isn't it one of my names? And it has the picture of that man that you don't like."

After what the son said, Draco sat on the bed again and, picking up the newspaper from his son's hands, he could read the front-page news: LUCIUS MALFOY NAMED THE FIRST COUNSELOR. In the center was a picture of Lucius. Suddenly, a cold look appeared in Draco's eyes, the one that always appeared when the subject was his father. He got up from the bed and went to the bathroom.

"Look at this, Ginny," he said, giving her the newspaper.

Ginny took it and after reading, she asked, vacantly, "So what?"

"What do you mean 'so what'?" he asked indignantly.

"Okay, your father is the new First Counselor, that doesn't mean anything. He'll keep staying in his house and you here, like you've always been."

"No, Ginny. This is something for us both to worry about. Do you know what that means? That he's reaching 'the top', and it won't be through dark magic, but through the most conventional way, apparently not catching much attention."

"Draco, your father was only nominated the First Counselor, aren't you rushing into things? Maybe he won't even get to the top and..." But Draco interrupted his wife before she could finish.

"This is how he's getting there. I told you we were working on an investigation of Death Eaters who were trying to get back to power without Voldemort, and that cretin of my father was in the lead." His eyes were a dark blue, like they always got when Lucius was the subject.

"Draco..." Ginny started, but she didn't have the time to finish, because her husband left the bathroom and went to the closet. He had to go to the Ministry to get more information.

Christian stood between the bathroom's door and the closet, just watching the scene. Every time the subject was his grandfather, his father got so weird and didn't resemble the father he was used to.

"Mom?" Christian decided to ask. "Is dad angry because of grandpa?"

Before Ginny could answer, Draco said, "I've already said that man is not your grandfather." Draco showed up in the closet's door, completely dressed and lookin at his son coldly, speaking with a steel voice.

Christian stepped back, scared. His father never spoke to him like that, and he turned to his mother, looking at her clearly frightened.

"Draco, dear, you're scaring the boy," Ginny whispered putting a hand in his shoulder and trying to calm her husband down.

Draco looked at his son, sighed and knelt in order to be as short as him.

"Christian," Draco said with a calmer voice. "I've already told you that man in the newspaper is not your grandfather..." He would have continued, but his son interrupted.

"But isn't he your father? So, if mom's father is my grandfather, then yours should be too." Christian still was far from his father.

"Yes, but it's completely different, because your grandpa Arthur is what you can call a real grandpa. Believe me, now you're not old enough to understand, but when you grow up you won't want to call that man 'grandpa'."

Christian nodded his head, showing he understood what his father said. Draco smiled to his son, but his gray eyes were still worried and angry.

"I'm going to the Ministry to try to find out how it happened. I'll take Christian to school," he said to his wife.

Ginny agreed and gave a quick kiss to her husband. Then, she kissed her son, wishing him a good day, and saying she would pick him later.

"Come,' Draco said picking up his son and putting him on his back, which he loved, trying to calm him down. He was still very nervous. "Didn't you want me to take you to school? Let's go to school, then," he finished.

Christian calmed down and started laughing and giving his father little punches so that he would release him.

* * *

Hermione's day started like every day before a hearing. It was the time to revise the process, her defense and finish what was left. Usually, in these days, she arrived earlier and, this time, it wasn't any different. When Harry arrived, she was already in the office.

"I'm glad you're on time. We have a lot of things to revise before tomorrow," she said without stopping what she was doing.

Harry said nothing. Just supported himself on the doorstep, looked at what she was doing, releasing a tired sigh.

"You still haven't given up on this ridiculous idea of going to court?"

"No." She stopped what she was doing and now stared at the green eyes, very serious.

"Hermione, for God's sake!" Harry said exasperated. "This is not going anywhere, I've already said, take the damned deal!"

"No. Actually, I thought you would be happy in going to court, after all, you were so interested in Katherine, you could pass more time in getting close to her," Mione said, ironically.

"It won't be necessary," Harry said entering in the room and going to his desk. "I believe I'll spend quite some time getting close to her today."

Hermione rose an eyebrow, confused. What did he mean? But she wouldn't ask, because that wasn't any of her business, and went back to what she was doing.

'You know," Harry continued, 'I don't understand why you compete with her."

Mione stopped again what she was doing and looked at him, waiting for the rest.

"I think this whole competition is a waste of time, after all, she wins over you in many queries." Now Mione crossed her arms and looked seriously at him, just waiting for him to finish. "Hearing this will be very interesting," she thought.

"For example, she's a lot smarter than you, once she realized it would be a waste of time going to court in a practically lost case. I must add, she has a lot more class than you, and is also prettier, although about that, unfortunately, there's not much you can do," Harry finished meanly.

Hermione said nothing, just gave an enigmatic smile. If he thought that saying that would affect her, he was committing a huge mistake. She knew she was better than Katherine and it wouldn't be him who would change her mind.

"You expect me to comment about that?" she said seriously, but still with the smile in her lips.

"No, after all, I know you can't comment something that is the pure truth," Harry said looking seriously at her.

"Yes, you two really make a great couple," Hermione said ironically, getting her attention back to the papers.

"What are you trying to say?" Harry asked, sitting down.

Once again she gave an enigmatic smile and looked at him. She really wanted to say "You're a great couple because both aren't worth it". But she wouldn't get down to Harry's level. She was a lot better than him.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing."