*Unintended Consequences*

Unintended Consequences by Pseudonymous Entity

Summary: Draco Malfoy was minding his own business in his compartment alone when a Gryffindor decided to fall from the sky and make their second trip to Hogwarts a bit more exciting than planned. Or the one where Harry isn't confident in Ron's capabilities to fly the car and makes a jump for it when they fly over the train, a little traumatized, and blurts out his problems to Draco Malfoy.

Characters: Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter

Warnings: None really, it isn't long enough for that I think

AN: A scene that's been playing in my mind for a while. I have a notebook full of ideas for one shots and stories and this one just kept coming to mind. One Shot for now. I am working on Friend or Foe, Cake By the Ocean and Adventures in Magic right now, so I can't say how quickly I could get to this story if you lot do decide you would like to see more, but I will do my best.

Ever Yours, Pseu [The clever, magnificent and ridiculously good looking]

"You can be the outcast or the backlash of somebody's lack of love, or you can start speaking up

Kept on the inside with no sunlight sometimes the shadow wins

I wonder would happen if you say what you wanna say and let the words fall out honestly

...maybe there's a way out of the cage where you live."

-Brave

Draco Malfoy walked slowly, calmly toward the Hogwarts express. His expensive trunk floated in the air behind him, pulled by a small rope he'd attached to it. There were many students finding their friends that they couldn't be bothered to visit over the summer, to gush about all the superfluous things that had changed in their absences. Some were taller, some had tanned, some had gained romantic interests or gone on exciting holidays. None of that was of interest to him of course.

Pale gray eyes darted along the corridor. He chose a carriage toward the back of the train. He would be of the first to get off the train when they arrived at the Hogsmeade station, and Crabbe and Goyle would be less likely to search him out. They always found compartments closest to the front. Lazy, the both of them. Even if it did work in his favour just now. He entered the compartment that would be his for this ride. A soft sigh escaped him. Straightening his back -Malfoys didn't waste time feeling sorry for themselves!- he approached a seat and sat. It was along the windows rather than the sides, which he preferred. He didn't much like being unable to see outside for long. It was something that had irritated his tutors when he was younger, the especially spiteful ones would select rooms that had no windows at all just watch him squirm.

Or so Draco thought.

Eventually, the train began moving and the sound in the hall quieted as students grouped together and did whatever it was the rest of them did on the train. Draco chose to stare out the window and enjoy the solitude while it lasted.

Sometime later Draco was drawn from his thoughts by what sounded like a roar. Draco squinted his eyes and angled his head to look out the sides of his window. What on earth could that be? Suddenly a large metal thing roared passed his window. Startled Draco stumbled away from his window seat with a small yell. A suspicious thud then came from the hall. Draco glanced between the window, which was now void of any strange metal beasts, and the hall. Curiosity won out. Cautiously, Draco opened his door and stepped out. A small thud. Draco tilted his head up. The roof? A hatch in the ceiling slid open and a trunk fell to the floor followed by a body.

Draco fell back against the door of his compartment, hand pressed to his chest. It was Potter!

"Are you out of your bloody mind?" He demanded. What was the Gryffindor idiot thinking being on the roof of all places? He could have fallen off and died.

Annoyed he wasn't getting any attention from the-boy-who'd-frightened-him-nearly-to-death Draco stepped forward and pulled him to his feet. He opened his mouth to give him a good dressing down, obviously, he needed someone to tell him when he was stupid and neither the Weasel or Granger was doing so, and was promptly cut off by the boy grabbing him by the shoulders and giving him a shake.

"House Elf," Potter rambled. "House Elf...my house...muggles...punished...he can't fly it, he can't...might have starved...house elf!"

Draco blinked. He glanced side to side and was glad to see there was no audience to Potter's mental breakdown. Making a decision he pushed the door behind him open and dragged the smaller wizard in with him, shutting the door after them. Draco tried to pull Potter's hands from his robes but the inky haired boy was connected to him like he had claws. Well, now what?

"Potter. Potter," Draco repeated, waving a hand in the other's face. "Would you please explain what has caused you to go insane so I might inform the authorities when I have you committed?" He couldn't help it really. Snark and sarcasm were his defense mechanisms and he was quite uncomfortable at the present moment and rather alarmed.

Green eyes blinked. "I...I live with muggles. My aunt and her husband and a cousin. House elf. House..."

"Yes a house elf, so you've said. I'm guessing it wasn't yours?" Draco interrupted, hoping to move the story along.

Potter shook his head. "No my relatives would never have one of those things around. They hate anything abnormal and a house elf certainly is. For them I mean. It told me not to go back to Hogwarts and when I wouldn't it went down the stairs. Down the stairs Draco!"

Draco nodded as if he understood. "Yes, downstairs. Wretched thing. What next?"

"They had guests over. Important ones for my uncle's job. The bloody house elf went invisible and dumped pudding on the wife in front of everyone! I didn't leave my room for weeks. Soup...soup...the worst soup..." Potter lost his moment of clarity and seemed about to have another fit.

"Right, I can handle this," Draco assured him. "Dobby!" He called out.

A Malfoy house elf popped into the cabin. Its ridiculous ball-like eyes widened even more upon the sight of Draco and his companion, Draco resisted rolling his own. "Dobby I want you to keep uninvited house elves from bothering Potter at his residence. Do you understand?" The elf ignored Draco in favour of throwing himself at Potter's robes and sobbing. Potter didn't take this well, backing up quickly. It did little to dislodge the creature from his robes.

"Dobby is sorry!"

The blonde Slytherin pressed his fingertips to his temples. "Explain yourself elf."

"It was Dobby. Dobby is a naughty elf." It wailed from Potter's feet.

Said wizard looked close to passing out, his face paler than usual. Draco frowned. Was he frightened? He tilted his head and considered. He did suspect Potter wasn't too fond of tactile contact with others if the awkward aborted movements to escape when his housemates hugged him at the end of year celebration feast were anything to go by. Maybe he was claustrophobic?

"Dobby, release him. Can't you see you're overwhelming him? Give him personal space you barmy thing." Dobby let go of Potter reluctantly.

Frowning again, Draco walked to the window and slid it open. Perhaps the air would help. He ended up having to pull the Gryffindor over to the window and push him into the seat. "Breathe." He commanded. Draco flicked his wand at the door to lock it. No one needed to walk in on this odd scenario. "Return home elf. I'll be dealing with you another time."

With an annoying squeak, the elf popped away.

Draco watched the Gryffindor, waiting patiently for him to calm down. He loathed to release him to his natural habitat of red and gold before he was coherent enough to make it clear Draco had nothing to do with any of it. Standing there he surveyed the other wizard, looking at his clothing and noting his weight. Was he really that thin or did the clothes -and they were much too big for him- only make it seem so? Everyone knew Harry lived with muggles, and Draco had grown up hearing how important it was to avoid them. How dangerous they could be. Could some of the rambling Potter made have some basis in fact? He did mention something about being punished.

...and he did look sort of small and pathetic just now.

He gave a mental shrug and removed his outer robes, folding them neatly and setting them on an empty seat. He took his beside Potter. The pouch at Draco's belt was untied, opened and turned over to empty a shrunken emergency kit into his palm. It grew to its rightful size after three seconds. His long fingers -naturally pale, unlike Potter!- flipped open the clasps and lifted the lid. Draco glanced over at Potter to find him fixated on the ceiling.

Draco tapped his shoulder and held out a small blue vial. "Calming Draught. Sip it a bit, it'll help."

Only a moment of hesitation that Draco thought was more due to not entirely having his wits collected than anything else, and Potter took it and drank. The unwarranted trust was surprising. He hadn't even smelt it to see if it indeed was what Draco said it was. He could have been trying to poison him. Gryffindors. Honestly.

"I don't suppose you want to share why you fell from the roof?" Draco asked dryly. He kept any sharpness or annoyance from his voice, he only had the one calming draught after all.

Potter turned to him with narrowed eyes. "Don't ever believe a thing Ron tells you. Sure he says he can fly a car but he can't. It's a lie!"

"Are you..." Draco took a breath keep himself calm. "Are you telling me that that...that contraption was the two of you?"

"Actually," Said Potter. "I jumped out when I saw we were over the train. Thought I might have a better chance of surviving." He paused. "I do hope Ron doesn't die."

Draco left Potter to ponder the fate of his favourite red headed idiot, opening the door to their compartment. The trunk was still there. It had to be Potter's, it was too nice to be The Weasel's. Draco levitated it and brought it into the compartment. The two of them got it into the luggage rack together and Draco could report that it did not have featherlight charms. As Potter reclaimed his seat Draco considered the basket that lay inside his own trunk.

He brought it down with him and sat beside Potter. He looked down at the basket and then over at Potter who, yes, did look thin. Feeling awkward Draco cleared his throat. "I've got a care package. Mother always sends one." He removed the lid. "It's not much but you can have some if you like. I've got tea cakes and that container over there has punch. There are cooling charms so it's nice and cold. Oh and strawberries as well."

Potter leaned over to peer in the basket. "That's a lot of strawberries." He noted.

Draco coughed and glanced away. "I like strawberries."

"I can see that."

They spent the next hour eating strawberries and sitting in an amiable silence.

PseudonymousEntity

2017

Notes: Thoughts, Theories, Questions, Comments and Limmericks always welcomed

An: There you go. One shot for now, unless you think it deserved more than the one chapter?

Ever Yours, Pseu