Point of View

Chapter five: Draco

Draco walked down the grass, kicking a stone and scuffing his shoes. How could Cho do this to him? And with POTTER?! What did she see in him?

Crabbe and Goyle were across the paddock, sitting by the lake and scoffing chocolate muffins. Draco walked over to them. "Don't you two have anything better to do than eat?" he yelled at them, causing the giant squid to stop waving its tentacles in mid-air.

Crabbe and Goyle just stared at him, mouths covered with chocolate icing. Draco got even more annoyed. He took the piece of muffin from Goyle's hand and threw it into the lake. A tentacle immediately shot up and snatched it under the water.

"You - you -" Draco suddenly found that he was to angry to even yell at his 'friends'. So he stormed off back towards the castle, stamping hard on the grass with each step, leaving the indifferent Goyle wrestling the indifferent Crabbe's muffin from his hand.

Draco marched up the marble stairs and through the Entrance Hall. He had no destination to where he was going, which was unusual, and the usually cool and collected Draco Malfoy had his face scrunched up in a scowl, his fists were clenched, and he was walking extremely fast and stamping. And I suppose we should feel sorry for Draco here, because the hurtful words of Cho Chang kept running through his head...

He couldn't bear it, and tore his thoughts away from the words. He looked up, and saw that he was in a corridor, and he also saw that Ginny Weasley was walking down this corridor, reading a sheet of... paper? How odd.

Just then, a figure collided with Ginny. Draco gasped. It was Cho! It was the same Cho Chang that as good as told him that Harry Potter was way above him, and she was beaming. Smiling jovially like she had just won the Triwizard Tournament, not as if she had just broken someone's heart.

"Ginny! Guess what Ginny!" the evil Cho said, "we're going to have a ball! I just went to see Professor Dumbledore and he gave me full consent! Isn't that wonderful? I think the Hall should be decorated in pink... Oh this is sooo exciting! I'm pretty sure Harry would ask me this time. Oh! I've got so much to do! I need to be at a place where Harry can easily find me and ask me to go with him, I need to go to Hogsmeade and get some new dress robes...Well, see you later Ginny." And she walked off, just like that, not even the slightest sign of guilt or regret.

Draco's jaw dropped. And she - she had the nerve to -. That was IT! An eye for an eye - if Cho was going to hurt him, then he certainly wouldn't be giving up easily. Draco was getting revenge.

Draco walked off as well, intending to follow Cho and spy on her (A/N: a little worthless of him, I know, but Draco was hardly in a calm state at the time so he resorted to 'servant jobs' like spying) but she was out of sight before he had turned two corners, off and running like she really needed to get somewhere. Draco could only guess which way she took. Turning another corner, he stopped short of Professor Snape, sitting on the floor, his wand out, and looking down the way Draco was planning to run.

Suddenly Snape turned around and spotted him. "Good afternoon, Mister Malfoy, and where might you be hurrying off to?"

Draco didn't really want to tell Snape about his idea of spying. "I was - I don't know, Professor, I guess I just felt like a run."

Snape raised his eyebrows. "Indeed. But tell me, were you or were you not running after that Ravenclaw girl that just went passed rather rudely?"

"Well, I - I, uh - what are you doing there on the floor, Professor?"

Snape looked a little embarrassed and he stood up hastily. "Never you mind, but do go on, about the girl? What is her name, Miss Chang?"

Suddenly Draco found himself telling Snape everything about Cho. In times of distress and hurt, I'm sure you and I would need someone to talk to. In Draco's case, Snape wasn't ideal, but talking to him was much less frustrating than talking to Crabbe or Goyle.

"...And now she's going to go with Potter, and she promised, she promised, Professor, and I..." Draco trailed off.

Snape was very quiet for a while before opening his mouth again. "So now you are running after her. Why, may I ask?"

"Well," Draco replied, feeling better now that he had told someone his troubles, "I thought I'd maybe spy on her."

Snape frowned and Draco gulped. Maybe Snape didn't approve of spying. "Spy on her, Draco, whatever for?"

Draco took a deep breath and drew himself up, trying to pump confidence into himself. He liked Snape, sure, but he knew that everything that's said to him had to be done carefully. "I have to get revenge on her."

At this, Draco's favourite teacher started pacing, and it was another long while that poor Draco had to stand there. His legs were starting to feel sore when finally, Snape said, "Clearly, Mister Malfoy, you have been wasting your time."

"Oh Cho? Yes I know Professor, that's why I need to get revenge. I know now that's she's a lying, cheating -"

Snape cut him off with a wave of his hand. "No, Mister Malfoy, I did not mean that you needed to get revenge, in fact, I meant that you were wasting your time trying to get revenge on her."

Needless to say, Draco was very puzzled.

"Clearly," Snape continued, "your problem is not Cho. It is, in fact, Potter. You said that Miss Chang wouldn't go with you because you lost Quidditch this year. But think of it this way: who did win? And if that person weren't here, you will be going to this - ball as you wish, would you not?

"I advise you not to go spying, Mister Malfoy. It is below you. Good day." And Snape walked off leaving Draco standing there by himself.

Slowly, all the pieces were coming together in Draco's mind. Yes, he thought, Snape had a point. It wasn't Cho, it was Potter!. Suddenly, Draco turned around and began walking very fast to the Slytherin Common Room, his mind repeating, 'KILL HARRY POTTER'.

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