Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. If I did Voldemort and my muse would argue even more than they do already, and that would not be very pleasant. Please don't sue.

A/N

Tadaa! Back again! Anyway, yes sorry... I'm excited about this chapter. It came to me rather unexpectedly, so I'm sorry it might not quite fit in with the previous ones. Please bear with me, I know it's unexpected.

Thank you so, so, so much for the reviews. You all rock! You're all what keeps this story going and I hope you continue to enjoy it... this chapter is bringing in some new ideas and is extremely dark and nasty at the end.

However, for those of you who have questioned Voldie's intentions, his supposed fatherly love.... and all who have begged for him not to turn out nice... Here we go. (By the way, this chapter doesn't necessarily mean that Harry won't go dark, just that there will be more nasty stuff on the way).

Chapter 8

A Fake World Covering Hurt

- Draco Malfoy's Pov-

It was all fake. A show put on for the sake of deceiving the Boy Who Lived, son of Lord Voldemort.

Draco was sitting tensely in a corner of his bedroom, reasonably terrified. Harry Potter had slipped out of their clutches. Voldemort was furious, which meant Lucius was angry... which meant Draco was in danger.

Draco was a talented actor, so were his parents - a Malfoy trait. In order to entice Harry into the dark side, they and the other Death Eaters had put on a play of pretence, faking a happy world that Harry might warm to after the cold malice of the Dursley's.

Problem was, Draco hadn't wanted it to end. No one had hurt him when Harry was around, they were too cautious in case it alerted the Boy who Lived to what life was really like. Draco knew Harry was to be introduced to the real sharp side of the knife, but not until Voldemort had a firm grasp on him.

Crash!

Draco winced. Something in the next room had been broken. Many things were destroyed when his father raged, Draco pushed himself further into the wall. Sometimes when he was with Harry he wanted to scream "look! Can't you see it's all fake?! No one usually acts like this! It's not real! Just a trick..." But Draco Malfoy was well bought up and well trained.

The masks he had been moulded into would never allow him to confess. Personally, Draco thought he had done exceedingly well with all the acting in the past weeks, taking on a happy-go-lucky point of view. Making Harry think life with Voldemort was bliss and cake. It hadn't been easy and it had made Draco feel sick. The way his father looked at him when Harry was around. The affection Draco was given in order to deceive Harry. Love Draco so yearned for, yet when he did receive it... it was all just an act.

Draco leaned and pressed his boiling forehead against the only crack in the otherwise perfect stone wall. a picture usually hid it, but Draco had pulled it off. Now the coldness swept over him and Draco couldn't decide whether he liked it or not.

Coldness. Draco knew all about hardening himself up again the world. It had been beaten into him from an early age. In fact, Draco was unlikely to have survived without it. The cold and hard wall built between him and the world was his only protection. The only comfort he had. It guarded his secrets, his emotions... who he really was.

That was another thing Harry was responsible for. Draco's time with him had melted some of that wall, Draco knew it would be difficult to rebuild. He was such an idiot! You were not meant to get attached to your assignments! It was such a cliche; yet so true.

The door swung open and clanged heavily against the bare wall. Startled, Draco looked up in to the reckless eyes of his father and shrank against the wall. No more lies now, there was no reason to pretend to be happy any longer. All that remained was pain and fear.

"The master requires your presence," announced Lucius, with a cruel smirk at the fright in his son's face, "come!"

Stumbling to his feet, Draco numbly joined Lucius, who grabbed hold of his shoulder far too tightly as he lead him along.

"In there!" barked Lucius, taking Draco into Voldemort's study and leaving him there.

Alone with the greatest dark Lord in history... Draco felt somewhere near petrified. He kept reminding himself that Harry was Voldemort's son and it would be in the dark Lord's best interests not to kill his son's best friend. Draco tried to reassure himself of the friendship he had forged and his abilities - Draco knew he was good at pleasing people. Some people at least, his father was not one of them... but possibly Voldemort might be.

"Draco Malfoy," hissed the callous voice, curiously.

"My Lord," trembling, Draco dropped to his knees and bowed his head.

"Approach, and come closer," the Dark Lord ordered. Nervously, Draco did so, as Voldemort appraised him. He was not smirking like Lucius did. he more appeared to be assessing and sizing Draco up. Then, Voldemort suddenly smiled in a rather intimidating way.

"Quite the actor aren't you, Draco Malfoy," Voldemort commented softly, "You certainly had little Harry quite enthralled. Were there any truths in the friendship you ... formed?"

"One must understand the character before he becomes it," Harry replied stiffly.

Voldemort chuckled at this.

"Such words of wisdom to come from a young boy," he mocked, "tell me Draco: does Harry care for you?"

"I believe he does, My Lord," Draco shuffled nervously. There was no way of lying to Lord Voldemort. He had tried once, and the result had been most unpleasant.

"So he would... help you?" Voldemort continued thoughtfully, "should you so desire it?"

"Yes," Draco answered struggle, not liking where this was going.

"Would he do something if you were being hurt?"

"I-" Draco looked around the room for some inspiration, feeling as if he would either bolt or faint.

"Hush Draco," Voldemort raised a hand, "I do not mean to scare you. Now... do you fear your father?"

"Do you think I should?" Draco asked, and immediately winced. How much cheek could you get away with when facing Lord Voldemort?

Fortunately Voldemort seemed to find this amusing too.

"Perhaps you should, Draco, perhaps you should. However, would you rather stay and do whatever task I assign you, whether it be research or writing, a game of chess or merely talk and tea... or would you prefer it if you went back to your quarters with your father? Tell the truth now... I will not punish you."

But, of course, was the unspoken inference, Lucius might.

Draco was torn. On one side... tea with the Dark Lord? It had a sort of bitter and twisted humour about it, however he knew that whatever happened Lucius was going to hurt him. And if Draco got into the favour of Lord Voldemort - it might give Lucius less opportunity.

Draco jerked as he noticed a thing lying prone on Voldemort's desk. It was a fake tooth Draco and Harry had used as a prank on one of the Death Eaters a week or so again. It was with shock that Draco realised that although he had been safe with Harry, now the Death Eaters would not be happy about the amount of pranks. They were sure to want to punish him. But Draco had had no choice! Harry had loved the practical jokes, he had to go along to make Harry happy.

Draco slowly looked from the fake tooth to Lord Voldemort. The Dark Lord returned Draco's look, but then also nodded at the prank.

If Draco accepted Voldemort's invitation, it would be another day before the Death Eaters could punish him.

"I..." Draco's throat was stuck and tight. He felt so trapped! If only Harry was here... or if he hadn't come in the first place! If that idiot had never turned up than Draco wouldn't have had a chance to find out what it would be like without the constant fear of being harmed.

"You will stay?" Voldemort asked, staring at Draco so hard he felt even more nervous. He nodded slowly, not daring to meet Voldemort's eyes.

"Good boy," Voldemort smiled again.

* * *

The portraits whispered and pointed at the small boy sitting quietly in the empty room. As soon as Dumbledore's back was turned, he had ran, and not stopped until his legs had given way. He had been terrified by the moving staircases, the vast halls and classes of students, however he was used to the portraits from the home of Lord Voldemort.

Did all good things disappear so quickly? And was it normal to long for them back so badly? Harry had not a clue of what was happening around him, after the Dursleys the complicated wizarding world was like trying to teach an animal to play chess.

After sitting with his head in his hands for several hours, feeling lost and scared, Harry slowly realised that he was not alone in the room. He could hear someone else breathing, and it wasn't from a portrait either. Harry was so tired he wasn't entirely sure he cared, or if he wanted to know. Yet soon Harry's curiosity got the better of him, and he looked up.

It was the rather greasy haired, hooked nose and slightly nasty looking man from the office at the Ministry. Harry didn't remember his name, but now he was looking at Harry with something... not quite dislike, but not the misguided, unasked for love everyone else had showed. A neutrality that seemed to Harry more real, more truthful.

Neither of the two said anything at all. They stayed in a comfortable silence. Harry felt a little better, and started to calm down a bit. He didn't really mind the man's presence so much. He didn't seem to be trying to enforce anything down on him, or trying to win Harry's trust either. It was quite pleasant, and so much more easier.

*

It was nearly midnight, Draco sat sleepily in his seat, sipping a drink of... well come to think of it he wasn't sure... and reading a book on Dark Curses while listening to the scratching of Voldemort's quill on some paper. It was strange to think that Draco actually found the Dark Lord's company reassuring. He couldn't exactly say that he was enjoying himself, but it was more relaxed, more secure than anywhere else Draco had been. So far Voldemort had showed no inclination of harming him. He was safe from his father and the other Death Eaters. Of course, Lord Voldemort might choose to curse him - and probably would in the near future. But Voldemort hexed everyone, Draco wouldn't be singled out, separate from the rest.

"Hardly bed time reading, what you're doing now, Draco," Voldemort mused as he leaned across to read the book over Draco's shoulder.

"My father used this spell the other day," Draco admitted, nervously. He had soon discovered that when Voldemort chose to make conversation, he preferred it when Draco didn't keep quiet. Even if it involved volunteering information he would usually bury deep into his mind.

A short knock interrupted the two of them.

"Enter, Lucius," Voldemort commanded, but his eyes were on Draco - and he didn't miss the jerk, nor the twitch of fear.

Draco's father slipped into the room.

"I've come to collect-"

"Yes, yes," Voldemort motioned for Draco to rise, "do bring him back tomorrow... won't you?"

Lucius bowed, and lead his son back to their quarters. They remained silent the whole way, and Lucius did not even look at his son until they were safely in a locked and warded room. Draco looked around their home nervously. His mother was no where in sight.

"What did he talk to you about?" Lucius asked sharply, with a fierce look at Draco. He advanced onto him, until Draco was backed against the wall, glancing around for an escape. There would be none, there never was. Draco could not get away from his father.

"Harry, mainly," Draco replied, standing up straight and trying not to show how afraid he was.

"Harry... and what did the Dark Lord want to know about... Harry?" Lucius hissed.

"Just... whether he liked it here, what I thought about him, what I thought his perceptions were."

"Really? Well... I see," Lucius stepped back from Draco and smirked as his son visibly relaxed slightly. Lucius sat back down on the comfy chair, leafing through some documents that he had left there. It was a medium sized room, the stone floor spelled to look like wood and badly lit. There was a coffee table and only one cushioned chair, which Lucius now occupied. The others were purposely rough and uncomfortable. Draco stayed lined up against the wall, he had not been given leave to move. He was also rather nervous at the so far un violent mood of Lucius. Draco knew it would not stay, soon it would come... the slight lilt in his voice, the intensity focussing in his eyes....

"So, tell me, Draco," continued his father from behind the paper.

Yes, here it started, Draco thought. He wanted to close his eyes, but forced himself to continue staring, emotionlessly at the wall.

"How does it feel to be inferior in the eyes of everyone?" Lucius resumed, "to be forced to make friends with the boy who will always be better than you? I don't like to be so harsh, my son, but I am a good judge of character. I don't like to proclaim you weak, but... there is not denying that it is your own fault that we punish you so severely."

Draco stiffened. He had nothing to say.

"Oh, what are we to do with you?" Lucius murmured, "the Dark Lord is kind, I myself would not take it upon me to try and cure such a diseased creature. Whatever went wrong in your birth? For such blood of mine to be so... useless."

Useless. Draco could stand with being called anything, being told anything.... but to be called useless. To be declared of such little worth as he was now... this was the one thing that got passed Draco's so cleverly and intricately constructed wall.

"Will," Draco choked, not wanting to cry, not allowing himself that release, "will you punish me for it?"

"I'm not sure, son," Lucius replied quietly, "do you think you should be punished? Do you want to be? Of course... I will only do it for your own good. It seems the only way that you might ever be shaped into something that is not a mere shadow of a form."

"I, I..." Draco couldn't speak anymore, he knew he would crumple. He merely stared, his face ashen and anguished, into the frozen eyes of his father.

"Come here, Draco," his father smirked, "you will get your punishment."

____________

A.N (oh grief, not another one).

Well... for those of you who wondered whether everything really was as nice as it seemed....

As you know, I have had a lot of problems with this story, but this chapter has opened up a lot of ideas.... I am likely to focus a little more on Draco aswell as Harry now. Let me know what you think about the new developments.

I hope you liked this! As you can see the updates are much more regular, I'd really love any comments you might have. Please, please review.