In the Eyes of the Enemy

In the Eyes of the Enemy- Chapter One The Offer

"Lucius, I see you have brought your son with you today." Voldemort eyed the young blonde before him.

"Yes, my Lord. My son and heir is ready to take his place among us. I have trained him myself and know he will serve you with honor." Lucius grinned at his Lord, proud to be presenting him with such a fine gift. Voldemort noted the boy's obvious resemblance to his father, but would he be as loyal to him as his father has been these many years? Of this he wasn't sure.

Since his rebirth, nearly all of his Death Eaters had returned to his side, though he questioned the loyalty of several. Lucius, though eager for power himself, would never betray his master, and Voldemort knew this. However, Draco had a gleam in his eyes that told Voldemort this boy wanted power, and more like himself than his father, would do anything to gain it. To allow him to join him, to bring him into his inner circle, would give him a strong servant of that he had no doubt. He was also cautious enough to realize it would leave him vulnerable to attack.

Voldemort had long ago learned not to underestimate the power a child may possess, as he was nearly destroyed by the one-year-old Harry Potter. On that night, half of Voldemort's powers had been transferred to Harry. Harry did not realize how much power was locked inside of him, and the only way for Voldemort to regain his lost powers would be to end Harry's life. Though Voldemort had made several attempts, he had so far remained unsuccessful.

Until he was able to retrieve the reminder of his powers from Harry Potter that had been transferred on that fateful night, Voldemort knew there was chance he could be attacked by one of his own. Until now, none of his Death Eaters had even thought of trying. They had never doubted their master was destructible. This boy, however, had the look in his eye that if he could kill Voldemort, he would, and take his place--for that was what Voldemort himself would do. So how to handle this situation? To refuse the boy would anger Lucius; to take him could be dangerous to himself. He came upon the perfect solution.

"Before you join our ranks, Young Malfoy, you will prove yourself to be loyal to your Lord and deserving of the honor placed on you."

Draco's cold gray eyes gleamed with the sound of a challenge. He smirked and then announced to all in the room, "Master, I, like my father, am your faithful servant. Anything my Lord desires will be done in his honor for his glory."

Voldemort grinned at the boy. "Then, Draco Malfoy, in order to prove yourself worthy of this honor, you will be given the challenge of ridding me of Harry Potter." Voldemort knew he was sending him on a fool's errand but should he be lucky and complete the task, his powers would be fully restored, he would no longer have a reason to fear an attack from within.

Draco lost the gleam in his eyes and the smirk fell from his face. Though he hated Potter without a doubt, he had never killed anyone. What good it would be to become a Death Eater if it landed him in Azkaban or worse should he be given 'the kiss'? Draco, though, was riled. How dare the Dark Lord demand him to accomplish this task? He was a smarter and stronger wizard than most of the others in the room and should have been given the position for that alone. Instead he was set with the task of killing Potter, something even the Dark Lord himself had failed these many years to do.

As his mind was whirling, he heard his father speak. "Dear Lord, certainly you would want the honor of killing Potter yourself. Should not my son deliver him to you, so that you might have the satisfaction of watching him die?"

Voldemort spoke out loud what he was thinking in his mind. "Yes, I would like to see that boy squirm and wiggle before me gasping as the last of his breath leaves his body." His head snapped up, realizing he had been tricked. The boy would now not need to kill Potter, but for Draco to bring Potter to him would be just as good, and just as unlikely.

Lucius breathed a sigh of relief; not that he loved his son, and cared if he was killed or sent to Azkaban, but such things would tarnish his name which he prized more dearly than any child. The Malfoy name, and money, had saved him many times from going to prison. Though on several occasions he had been linked to attempts on Potter's life, the charges had never amounted to anything, as he was always able to bribe or blackmail his way out. If Draco were to kill Potter, 'The Boy Who Lived,' there would surely be repercussions, which no amount of money could fix, for should the magical community lose their precious Harry Potter, they would be looking for blood.

"Then it is settled, Draco. You will bring Potter to me, and once he is dead, you will be given the honor of joining me as one of my Death Eaters." With that Voldemort dismissed them all and disappeared from the room.

Lucius and Draco glanced at each other knowingly and apparated back to Malfoy Manor. Once home, Draco turned to head for his room but stopped when his father gripped him by the shoulder, twirling him around to face him. "Draco, you will not fail the Dark Lord in his request. Is that understood?" Draco nodded in agreement to his father. Lucius's piercing blue-gray eyes glared at his son.

"You return to Hogwarts in two weeks. I expect you to use this time to decide exactly how you intend to accomplish this task, and discuss it with me before leaving, so that I might 'fix' any flaws in your plan." With that said, Lucius released Draco's shoulder, and Draco turned to head for his room.

Once inside the confines of his room, Draco screamed in pure outrage. "Who the hell do they think they are, telling me what I am to do?" He paced the length of his room, mumbling and cursing under his breath, thinking, I didn't ask for this, I'm doing them a favor, ridding them of Potter! If they were so damn good at it, he would be dead by now and out of my way. Though Draco would not miss having Potter out of the way, he was irritated at the thought that his father needed to look over his shoulder as to how to accomplish it.

How was he going to take care of Potter anyway? The boy was always squeaking away with his life, usually with the help of that Mudblood bitch and flame haired weasel by his side. Potter had Dumbledore and most of the professors in his pocket, so attacking him at school seemed almost out of the question. There was also people popping out of the woodwork at odd times coming to aid Potter. Who could be trusted, how could he be taken to the Dark Lord and without anyone knowing? It wasn't like Potter would go of his own will to grovel at the Dark Lord's feet.

A tick, tick, tick on the window stirred Draco from his thoughts, and he glanced up to see what was causing the noise. Tapping at the window of his room was a large brown owl holding in its right-clawed foot what Draco immediately recognized as a Hogwarts letter. Draco opened the window and took the letter from the owl and with a wave of his hand it was off.

Draco dropped down on his bed, fondling the crisp letter in his hand. This would be his seventh year at Hogwarts, and he knew he was in the running for Head Boy this year. This was what Draco had been working towards for years. Slytherin hadn't had a Head Boy come from its house in over ten years, and before that it was his own father, and before him Tom Riddle, Voldemort himself. Draco knew being named Head Boy would bring great things to him, but not being named Head Boy would bring unthinkable anger from his father, who fully expected him to attain the position.

His marks were strong, second only to that Mudblood Granger, and Potty Head had never been named a prefect for his house so he was not in the running, otherwise Dumbledore would give it to him just for being 'The boy who lived', 'The boy who got away with anything', and 'The boy who everybody loved'. With the last thought, a lump rose in Draco's throat.

He himself, though born into grandness, could buy anything he wanted, but he had never been loved. His parents were cool calculating people, and did not show emotion for each other let alone their only son. There were plenty for girls at school willing to spend an evening satisfying his every desire, and true, there were many who fancied being married to him for his money, power, and looks, but he had never found anyone who could say they truly loved him.

Pushing these thoughts from his mind, he turned over the envelope and broke the official Hogwarts seal.

Draco Malfoy

Mister Malfoy welcome to your seventh and final year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry during this year you will be required to bring the following texts:

Standard Book of Spells Grade 7

What Your Dreams Mean to You- by Lara Spellbound

Arithmancy Grade 7

Winged Beasts and the Magical Landscape- By E. Terbe Eton

Lurking Inside You: The Part of You, You Never Knew- By Meradith Flappinsworth

Transfiguration for Two- By Fay Lett

Potions a Plenty: From Love to Loss -Toilin Trobel

Seventh Year students are also reminded that they will take part in the annual 'Like Muggles in London Weekend' This trip will take place the weekend before All Hallows Eve. Please bring Muggle appropriate clothing for this weekend. Also during this excursion we will take part in a costume party, costumes will be required for all attendees.

We look forward to a great year.

Minerva McGonagall and Albus Dumbledore

As Draco turned to read the second page a sparkling silver badge dropped into his lap and a smile erupted across his face.

Congratulations, Draco Malfoy. You have been named Head Boy this year by the faculty and board of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You will share duties with Head Girl, Hermione Granger. Following the dinner feast you are to meet with Headmaster Albus Dumbledore to discuss duties and be escorted to your new living quarters.

Hogwarts Board of Directors

Draco's face tensed up after he finished reading the letter. Though he was ecstatic about being named Head Boy, he had forgotten it would mean sharing a dormitory with that Mudblood Granger, who would have the Golden Trio in tow violating his personal space. It was bad enough to have to be around that filthy Mudblood, but to have Pot Head and Weasel within ten feet of him all the time was going to be a nightmare.

As Draco lay back on his pillow, imagining the Trio laughing and smiling while he would be a prisoner of his own quarters, a thought occurred to him: if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. How was he going to accomplish it? It was not as though they would be welcoming him with open arms. Then with a thought of the new Head Girl, a smile broke across his face, as he thought to himself, it was going to be a good year after all.

One month later...

Lucius paced back and forth in his study, eyeing his son carefully to judge his resolve on the matter. "You're sure the Mudblood is the key to Potter's undoing?"

Draco sighed. They had been going over the plan for hours, and though his father hadn't 'fixed' anything, he was obviously not happy with what Draco had decided upon. "Yes Father, that Mudblood Granger is the smartest one in their group. Without her, Potter couldn't figure out his way out of a bathroom, let alone the Dark Lord's grasp, especially if he was giving himself over freely to save her."

Lucius shook his head again. "So why don't we just take her and wait for Potter to find her, rather than having you fraternizing with that filth? The other pureblood families would be horrified at you having relations with something so vile, it would besmirch the Malfoy name."

Draco growled, "Not in the end, when the Dark Lord has Potter. The families that matter will see that it was all a hoax to get Potter, and the Malfoy name will be given more honor than ever before." One look from his father told Draco he was still not convinced. "The only way to get Potter to Voldemort, without risking him taking shots at us or the Dark Lord, is to get him to trust me and think he is saving her." That had done it, his father had always been about self-preservation above all things, and not wanting to risk a full attack from Potter and his Pals in a rescue attempt, Lucius had nodded in agreement to Draco's plan.

Draco wearily headed back to his room for one last night at home before heading back to school the next morning. It had been a long night arguing with his father over what he intended to do, he wanted to get as much rest before boarding the train, as he was about to give the performance of his life.

The next morning, Draco woke to find his house elves busying themselves about his room packing his items carefully in his trunk. He trotted downstairs to have breakfast before his father would take him to platform nine and three quarters to catch the Hogwarts Express later that morning.

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"MUM!" Hermione screamed from the top of the stairs to her mother who was in the kitchen cooking an enormous going away breakfast for her only child.

"Yes, Hermione, what do you need?" her mother lazily replied from the confines of the kitchen.

"I can't find the book we bought yesterday in Diagon Alley."

Mrs. Granger smiled. "Dear, there were so many, could you be a bit more specific?"

Hermione replied crossly "Top of the Class: Head Boys and Girls of Hogwarts."

Hermione was too busy tearing through the rooms looking feverishly for the book to notice the nervous look on her mothers face at the mention of this book.

Her mother relaxed her features and asked her daughter, "Hermione, dear. You're already Head Girl, and your picture won't be in it till next year. Why are you fretting over this now? We can find another copy with your picture in it, wouldn't that be even better?"

Hermione gasped, "Absolutely not, I had to look for 2 hours in Flourish and Blotts for the book, and it was only by accident that I found it at all. It was stuck behind the shelf covered in dust. It was at least 2 years old, since it didn't even have the last 3 Heads in it, but lucky for me I already knew them."

After casting a scowl at her husband who was hiding in the corner behind a paper, she looked over to her daughter who was now destroying the living room, and asked, "What do you want the book for dear?"

Hermione turned from her place in front of a couch surrounded by pillows that had been cast on the floor. "I want to know what every Head before me accomplished, so that I can uphold the high standards of the position. Since Malfoy is Head Boy, any accomplishments will need to be on my end, as he will be too busy tormenting students and abusing his power." Mrs. Granger sighed. She knew her daughter had always been an overachiever. It sometimes worried her that she took too much on, but she trusted her and knew it would all work out in the end.

"Hermione, it's getting late. Why don't you sit and have breakfast? I promise that if I find the book, I'll send it right to you at school."

Hermione smiled. "Thank you, Mum. As soon as you find it, send my owl with it. I'll leave her here until you can send her with it. I'll use a school owl or Harry's if I need to write you before the book turns up." Her mother shook her head reluctantly, and motioned for her to go eat while she started cleaning the wake of destruction her daughter had left behind.

Once Hermione had gone upstairs in a low agitated whisper, Mrs. Granger turned on her husband who was still hiding behind the paper and asked, "Albert Granger, I thought you said you got them all?"

He halfheartedly grinned back at her stating, "I've got them all now." Andrea Granger was not a woman to anger and she was obviously more than angry

"This is not a joking matter, Albert. I did this for you and your father, but if you're not going to help, then what was the point of it all?" She had tears in her eyes now so he held her against his chest softly rubbing her hair and back.

In a gentle voice he said, "It was for her dear that's why we did it."

Nearly sobbing, she said, "I know, but when she's with Harry and Ron, she gets into more trouble than I like to think about. I just wish I was there to protect her."

He nodded in agreement. "Me too, dear ... me too."

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"Heads up, Harry, " Ron screamed as a terrified garden gnome was hurled in Harry's direction.

"Dammit Ron, will you stop throwing them at me and start throwing them over the wall?"

Ron lowered his eyes sheepishly. "Sorry Harry, maybe if you moved to the other side of the garden, it would be better. You're just in front of my whipping tree."

With a confused look on his face, Harry asked, "Whipping Tree?"

Ron smiled back and pointed out the thick oak no more than five feet behind the fence to Harry. "When I was little, I learned that if I whipped them hard enough at the tree, they'd be knocked unconscious long enough that I wouldn't have to degnome again for a week." With that Ron's smile widened into an ear to ear grin.

Harry chuckled. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? Your mum's had me out here every third day since I got here two weeks ago."

Ron laughed. "I was doing you a favor. If she thought you were too good at degnoming she'd have Dobby helping her convince you to forgo your final year at Hogwarts in favor of being the Weasley family gardener."

Harry retorted with, "So how did you manage to not get the job then since you're such a pro?"

Ron smirked. "Don't ever tell Mum, but every day I'd come out and take a nap behind the shed at the back of the garden. She would always tell me I was the worst gardener the family had ever had, and that I better study hard at school because I was going to need it to get a real job." With that the boys were rolling on the ground laughing so hard tears were pouring out of their eyes.

Hearing the commotion outside, Mrs. Weasley ran outside to see Ron and Harry rolling on the ground in a fit of laughter, and panicked. "Oh no, boys you didn't take any candy from Fred or George, did you? I know they are working on 'ticklish taffy,' but they promised they wouldn't use it on you boys until they worked out all the kinks, as they can't stop the laughing, so please pull yourselves together."

Harry and Ron stopped their fitful laughs and calmed Mrs. Weasley. "Don't worry, it's okay. Fred and George didn't give us anything."

Harry finished with, "Ron was just telling me he was going to be a gardener once he finished school."

"Oh no he won't," Mrs. Weasley shouted. "Ronald Weasley, you will study harder this year, as I don't see a Head Boy badge on your chest, and we both know you would be a horrid gardener since you can't degnome a garden to save your life."

With a knowing smirk to Harry, Ron replied, "Okay, Mum. I promise. No gardening for me." With that Mrs. Weasley shooed the boys into the house. It was getting late and the cars would be arriving soon to take them to Kings Cross Station.