Draco paced in front of the hospital wing as he waited for Dumbledore to come get him. The headmaster was inside, speaking with Harry Potter about the events in the dungeon. Finally, Madam Pomfrey came out to retrieve Draco.

He walked in slowly and found Dumbledore complaining about earwax flavored beans.

Potter saw Draco walk in and glared at him.

"Quit saving my life," he said.

"Is that a command?" Draco asked.

"Yes."

"And where would you be had I not saved your life?"

Draco thought he heard something along the lines of "dead".

Potter glared at him and asked, "Why did you tell Quirrell that you lured me there?"

"Because I did, didn't I? Technically speaking. I highly doubt your brilliant Gryffindor friends would have been able to get you to Quirrell, anyway."

"I was trying to stop him."

"No, you were trying to stop Snape since you were - and still are - absolutely clueless and unobservant. This, Potter, is not called bravery. It's called recklessness. One day, trying to save someone is going to get them killed. For example, say The Dark Lord was trying to lure you to him and pretended to threaten your godfather or something. You'd either end up killing yourself, him, or the both of you."

"It's not called recklessness!" Potter cried indignantly.

"Maybe you should get Granger to study with you sometime; she might be able to help your vocabulary."

"Just because you saved my life-"

"-twice-" Draco added.

"-doesn't mean that I'm going to be buddy-buddy with you. This is probably just a trick, anyway."

"Right. I'll be willing to figure out what this 'trick' of mine is."

"I believe that's enough," Dumbledore said.

"Oh, Potter," Draco said, "if you mention any of this to anyone - and I mean anyone - I will personally make sure you don't remember how to breathe. Actually, I think I'll learn a memory charm over the summer just in case."

"Sir," Potter complained to Dumbledore, "he's threatening me!"

"Harry, the day Draco Malfoy tries to kill you of his own will, and from the bottom of his heart, I might add, is the day Rubeus Hagrid becomes a Death Eater."

"Professor Dumbledore," Draco started, "you don't want to go around making promises like that."

"You're quite right, Draco. Let us leave Mister Potter to rest."

Draco followed Dumbledore out of the hospital wing, both wizards knowing fully well that Draco would never intend to harm anyone who was against the Dark Lord.

________________________________________________________

Draco sat at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall the day before the students' departure. He still wasn't speaking to Blaise which meant that Theo and Adrian wouldn't come near Draco either. So Draco had to resort to Crabbe and Goyle. He didn't understand how members of the Dark Lord's innermost circle could have children dumber than domestic turkeys. Honestly, some turkeys had been known to drown in a heavy rain shower because they didn't realize that it would be dry and safe inside their hutches!

How did Draco know that? Apparently, this had happened to his great-Grandfather's turkeys on Thanksgiving once. Speaking of turkeys...

Crabbe and Goyle were so busy stuffing their mouths with the bird that Draco could hear it! For a couple of purebloods, they sure didn't act like it. Then again, Weasley didn't either.

It was hard to believe that Granger's parents had come from pureblooded families considering the fact that they were both squibs.

His father's words came back to him: "She's as good a Mudblood as any of them."

Was that true? Of course it wasn't. So why did his genius father believe in this rubbish?

Before Draco could wonder more about his father's decisions, McGonagall tapped her spoon on her glass to get everyone's attention.

Dumbledore rose from his seat. "Another year gone. And now, as I understand it, the House Cup needs awarding. And the points stand as thus: In fourth place, Gryffindor with three hundred and twelve points. Third place, Hufflepuff with three hundred and fifty-two points. In second place, Ravenclaw with four hundred and twenty-six points. And in first place, with four hundred and seventy-two points, Slytherin House."

Draco's house burst into applause and cheers while the other houses clapped politely.

Dumbledore continued, "Yes, yes. Well done, Slytherin. Well done, Slytherin. However, recent events must be taken into account. And, I have a few last-minute points to award."

Draco groaned; he knew exactly what this would be about.

"To Miss Hermione Granger, for the cool use of intellect when others were in grave peril, fifty points."

The Gryffindors cheered and Draco rolled his eyes, even though he knew his anonymity was important.

"Second, to Mister Ronald Weasley for faith and encouragement to his friends, fifty points."

This was frustrating. Dumbledore was practically giving out points for free.

"Third, to Mister Harry Potter, for pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor House sixty points."

"Outstanding courage," Draco mocked. Courage, when Draco had done all the work. He looked at the hourglasses; his house was tied was Gryffindor.

"Fourth, it takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies. But, a great deal more to stand up to your friends. I award ten points to Neville Longbottom."

"When did this happen?" Draco muttered to himself.

"We are not done yet, however," Dumbledore said. "It is hard to stick with your friends, but even harder when your two groups of friends are enemies. I award ten points to Mister Blaise Zabini."

The Slytherins cheered since they were once more tied with their rival house.

"And finally," Dumbledore said, "there is one young man here who has risked his family, his friends, and might I add, even his pride to save our three Gryffindor heroes. He wishes to remain anonymous, and I shall respect that wish. Fifty points to Slytherin! I believe these points put Gryffindor in second while Slytherin remains in first. Slytherin wins!"

Draco joined the other Slytherins in clapping and patting each other on the backs even though he knew which young man Dumbledore was talking about. One quick glance at Dumbledore and a wink from the older man confirmed Draco's suspicions that the headmaster of Hogwarts hadn't forgotten about him. Draco smirked back and congratulated his friends. He caught the eye of his former best friend.

Blaise saw Draco and caught his eye. He genuinely smiled and nodded because he knew that Dumbledore had awarded those last fifty points to Draco. Draco smirked and nodded back before grabbing Crabbe and Goyle's heads and pulling them out of their plates.

Blaise rolled his eyes. He wondered how hard it was to be "friends" with those two idiots.

_________________________________________________________

Draco shoved his trunk into the train compartment and set his caged owl next to it. A whole summer with his parents. Draco had endured years with his parents, but after one year at Hogwarts and the sudden change in his parents' cruelty growth rate, he didn't want to leave.

He remembered the look on Granger's face when he'd told her that the potion in the bottle Potter had drunk from had refilled automatically.

"So you lied about being able to do N.E.W.T level magic!" she had cried.

"No, Granger, I can do some N.E.W.T stuff. I just lied about the potion. Then again, you should be an expert on lying, especially after the troll incident."

Draco chuckled as he remembered Gryffindor's golden girl's cheeks flushed in embarrassment at his reply.

Blaise passed him on the train. "We can sit together until a few minutes before we arrive at Kings Cross Station."

Draco agreed and told him he'd be there after Crabbe and Goyle had fallen asleep. A few minutes later, Draco stepped into the compartment with his "former" friends.

"So Blaise tells me you're the savior," Theo said to Draco the moment he entered.

Draco's eyes became cold and threatening as he said, "Don't you dare repeat this to anyone else."

Adrian smirked at him. "Don't worry, Draco, we can't risk losing you the way you risked losing us."

"I didn't! You know how my father would react if I told them I refused to be friends with Dumb and Dumber and would rather hang out with you three."

"Which one's Dumb and which one's Dumber?" Adrian asked.

"Goyle and Crabbe, respectively."

After a moment's silence, Blaise said, "Feels strange to be going home, doesn't it?"

"I'm not going home," Draco said. "Not really."

And he wasn't.

A/N: I encourage you all to share this book with your friends, comment, vote, and keep on reading! Thank you all so much!