Lucius pulled the curtains around his bed. He couldn’t let anyone see him like this. He couldn’t act like this for seven years, hiding away from everything and being so weak. His father would be disappointed in him.
Every day, the thought of his father haunted him. Lucius tried to act like he knew his father would want him to. Tough. Brave. Like a true Slytherin. But that would never be possible. The Sorting Hat saw something in him that he never saw in any other Malfoy. He held back more tears at the thought of that awful morning, when the gasps of students followed the unbearable echoes of the word “Gryffindor!”
Instead of feeling relief, like most anxious first years would, his body tightened. He felt sick as he walked towards the table where all the surprised Gryffindors were sitting. This was humiliating to Lucius. He had been bragging during the whole train ride that everyone in his family had been in Slytherin.
As soon as the feast was over, he found his broom and ran outside. He didn’t care about the rain. He didn’t care that he would get detention on his first day. He liked the thought of that, actually. Slytherins were known for their disregard towards the rules.
His broom was old, but it didn’t matter to him. He loved it. It belonged to his father, Draco Malfoy. It was his old Nimbus 2001. Lucius remembered the story his father proudly told to him when he was little. He remembered fondly sitting in his father’s lap, hearing about his amazing skill, and how he had the best broom in his second year.
After that story, Lucius was given the broom. He flew in the backyard every day after that. His dream was to go to the Quidditch World Cup. He knew his father would like that.
Long after dark, Lucius entered the Gryffindor common room. Everyone was long asleep. He put his broom away, and though exhausted, couldn’t sleep.
That had been one of the worst days of Lucius’ life. That day reminded him that he would have disappointed his father. And that he would never have a chance to make it up. His father was gone.
Before he could let all the bad memories get to him, He grabbed his broom and ran towards the Quidditch Pitch He’d been cooped up all day. He needed to get out.
As Lucius was flying, the Headmaster noticed him. He watched and waited for Lucius to come down. When he landed, the Headmaster walked up to him.
"Jones?” Lucius stammered. “I-I’m sorry, I…”
The Headmaster put a hand out to stop him. “Everything’s fine, Lucius. I just wanted to let you know that I think that you have great skills in flying, and if you would like to join the Gryffindor Quidditch team, we do have an opening.”
Lucius’ spirits lifted. “Really? What position?”
“Seeker,” Jones said.
“Jones, I thought first years weren’t allowed to play on the Quidditch team.”
“That is true, but for talent like yours, I think we can make an exception.”
The next day, he started training with the Gryffindor team. The captain wasn’t like Lucius expected him to be. He was lazy and all he did was sit on the bleachers and tell everyone to fly around the field until practice was over. Most people just flew slowly and talked to each other, but Lucius was determined to win the first game.
Even when practice was over, Lucis stayed on the field. When he finally came in, he felt better than he had in a long time. But he was forced back into reality when he heard the sobs of his classmate, Emily Potter.
Someone Lucius did not recognize ran up to him and started talking way too fast in a panicked voice. “Did you hear? Emily’s dad just died.”
"You mean…Harry Potter?” He gulped.
“Yeah, some Death Eaters got him. Been looking for him ever since You-Know-Who got defeated.”
“Oh my God,” Lucius whispered.
Just when things were starting to get better, everything had to go wrong. Harry Potter, the one who brought everyone’s misery to an end, was dead. And he was killed by the same people who killed his father. He should have known. The Death Eaters wouldn’t give up that easily. They still want everyone’s life to be miserable. They were meanest, most unforgiving people he had ever known. All Lucius’ father wanted was to leave for a while and take a break. They refused to let him, so he left. He didn’t see them for seven years. He did everything in his power to stay away from him. Then they found him in Hogsmeade one day, and killed him.
Lucius would never forgive himself. His father left because he thought there was no hope for the Death Eaters without Voldemort. So he tried to leave before Lucius was born. He wanted to spend time with Lucius.
The Quidditch game was approaching. Lucius spent every free minute practicing. Whenever he couldn’t take the pressure anymore, when the fear was taking over, he would go outside and play Quidditch. It didn’t matter if he got caught. It was worth the long hours of detention. It was his only escape.
Within a few days everyone knew about Harry’s death. Everyone was mourning the loss, not in the mood to talk. People just walked silently through the halls. All of this depressed Lucius. It reminded him of what the rest of his family was like after his father died. It was just like this. When his father died, the house was always silent, except for the sounds of stifled tears. Everything was so depressing.
He didn’t have the time to fly either. Out of sadness and anger the professors had grown impatient and were giving large amounts of work that not many students bothered with anyway. But Lucius refused to give up. He needed top grades to become an Auror. He couldn’t just let Death Eaters kill everyone for no real reason.
Lucius was the last one in the Gryffindor common room, working incessantly to finish his homework. He crumpled a piece of paper and threw it across the room. He started the assignment over again. “The teachers should think that we have enough to deal with after what happened to Harry, but no. They just give us even more homework!” Lucius said to himself, practically screaming by the end.
Tears blurred his vision. Lucius wiped them away with his hand and saw that several words had been smeared. Lucius abandoned his work and stomped up his stairs to his bed. He had forgotten about being tough or brave. He just laid there, sobs racking his body. He forgot to pull the curtains around his bed. It was several minutes before he realized that Emily Potter was standing by his bed.
“Hi,” Emily said.
“Who’s there?” Lucius was caught off guard by this. He turned around and saw Emily. “You aren’t supposed to be in here.”
“I know. You woke me up, so I decided to come see what was going on.”
“Oh” Lucius said quietly. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay. Everything’s changed here since my dad died. I’ve heard a lot of people talk about him.”
Emily and Lucius were in the same classes, but they never really saw each other. Lucius always thought that Emily was beautiful, with her bright red hair and emerald green eyes. But now that Lucius had gotten to know Emily better, there was something else about her. She was sympathetic. She seemed to understand Lucius like no one else did.
Lucius became embarrassed to have Emily in the boy’s dormitories. “Um… Emily, it’s late. I should go to sleep.”
“Okay. Good night, Lucius.”
Lucius wasn’t sure why, but he felt better. He took a deep breath and fell asleep.
He managed through the next day without too much trouble. Finally, the Quidditch game was here. He woke up early, and was in the locker room getting ready before anyone else. The captain was the last to arrive. He didn’t have any motivational speech for the team. He just said, “Good luck” unenthusiastically when everyone was headed out of the locker room. The team was just as lazy as the captain, but Lucius didn’t mind. It was the Seeker that mattered most; he could win the game for them.
The whistle blew and everyone was in the air. The Slytherin team had brand-new brooms, but it didn’t make a difference. Lucius flew through the air, getting that feeling of freedom he had been wanting for days.
Despite his uncaring team, Lucius knew he was winning. He had spotted the Snitch and the Slytherin Seeker didn’t notice him for a few seconds, giving Lucius just the head start he had needed. The Slytherin Seeker then darted towards Lucius, who had almost reached the Snitch. He and Lucius ran into each other a few times. Lucius put out his arm for the Snitch. A Bludger approached the Seekers. The Slytherin Seeker ducked and the Bludger hit Lucius in the back. He was thrown forward and managed to grab the Snitch as he fell off his broom and onto the ground.
Gasps could be heard throughout the field. Lucius was in great pain, but smiled as he held up the Snitch. The fear turned to joy and cheers erupted in the crowds.
Lucius couldn’t stop smiling. He knew his father would have been proud.