Time flew by after his conversation with his grandfather; it had ended with his grandfather promising to tell him in the future. Rodrick had argued about it but was rebuffed, in the end, he agreed reluctantly.
He'd seen his grandfather the previous night, the memory still gnawed at the back of his mind, but he'd kept it in place, he had recently started learning about dueling. Rodrick knew plenty of spells but using them in a fight was an entirely different matter, the troll he'd fought had swung his club around meaninglessly and so wasn't something he could factor on too much.
Morning came by quickly, and Rodrick found himself awake earlier than Daphne for once, he knew because green eyes didn't greet him that morning. He showered quickly before dressing in one of his better-looking robes; today was the day of the Malfoy party. It was also his chance to speak to the head of the Malfoy family, although he wasn't looking forward to it if he was honest.
After getting ready, he went down to the living room and found Roxanne in one of the armchairs reading a newspaper. She greeted him with a friendly smile before complimenting him on his appearance, Rodrick nodded before taking a seat.
Roxanne left to make sure the girls were ready, they would leave in two hours. Rodrick closed his eyes before laying his head on the couch; he felt a breeze wash over him, he wasn't sure if one of the windows was open or it was magically made. He welcomed it either way.
He wasn't aware of how much time had passed, but he felt two hands pull at his hair, when he turned he saw a beaming Astoria behind the sofa. Rodrick had smiled at the girl's antics before he heard another speak.
"Tori! you're supposed to get ready not give other people more work," chastised Daphne although there was a hint of amusement when she saw Rodrick's ruffled hair.
Rodrick made to fix his hair before he saw an approaching Daphne.
"Let me," she spoke, Rodrick quickly shook his head.
"It's fine," she added.
Rodrick didn't react, merely keeping his distance.
The girl huffed in response before she made to reach for his hair, Rodrick pulled himself back. She looked to frown for a second before she sighed.
"Fine, suit yourself," she said exasperatedly
Rodrick raised another eyebrow before he shrugged it off and fixed his hair, there was too much magic on it, and frankly, he didn't have any plausible reason for his hair suddenly changing colour.
...
Their journey to Malfoy Manor didn't take very long; it was a simple matter of flooing. When they arrived, Rodrick found it similar to the Greengrass Manor although the Malfoy's certainly made more use of silver, the Manor looked more luxurious, but then again the Greengrass likely weren't ones to openly flaunt their wealth.
It looked like they were the first family to arrive, Rodrick greeted Draco Malfoy and his mother first, having already met them. He caught Lucius's eyes, the man seemed to nod approvingly at his state, if Rodrick had to guess it was probably both due to his clothing and associates. When he made to shake Lucius's hand, however, he felt something inside get passed to him. Rodrick closed his hands as he moved a step back, the paper hidden properly. Daphne was eyeing the Malfoy patriarch and so didn't notice Rodrick disappear.
He moved away from the group before he noticed more families coming through the fireplace, 'Good,' at least there was a distraction. Roxanne eyed him move away but said nothing; it wasn't exactly expected of him to greet them, he was still an orphan at the end of the day. The thought made the woman frown; she'd grown fond of him over the holidays.
...
Rodrick made sure there were no eyes around him when he opened the piece of paper, what he saw inside made him hitch a breath.
Lucius Malfoy definitely knew who he was...
'I hope our future endeavors coincide in The Greater Good for all.'
Rodrick closed his eyes before he burnt the letter with a nonverbal fire spell. He knew very well who 'all' stood for, anyone with a wealthy name and the right blood. However he was slightly glad, Lucius considered him a potential ally or at the very least he didn't think him an enemy, it meant he could rely on the man in the future, long as he had something of his own to give. Rodrick sighed before he went over to Draco Malfoy, 'Well, best start building some foundation I suppose.' Thought an amused Rodrick.
...
The party was quite dull if he was honest, the only people he really knew there were the Greengrass's and Draco Malfoy, he spent some time talking to the Malfoy heir before he got agitated by the boy's obsession with Harry Potter. He always found something to complain about, not that he blamed him. He agreed, but he really needed to stop being so obvious about it. When the dance started Rodrick grabbed and stuck with Daphne throughout most of it, he was expected to atleast make an effort, her parents didn't look surprised; Daphne had been quite happy about it.
He did wind up changing much to Daphne annoyance but it was to her little sister, the poor girl looked lost in the party, after a dance with her which was more amusing than professional the three children made their way outside to enjoy the scenery.
Astoria was chased by a flamingo. It was a good day.
...
By the time the party was over, everyone felt drained, the three children made their way upstairs and relaxed on Rodrick's bed, Astoria fell asleep in Daphne's arm, the back of her head laid on the girl's chest. Daphne, in turn, left her head on Rodrick's shoulder putting him in an uncomfortable position but unable to move lest he wakes up the two devils.
He stayed like that for a while before he used his wand to send sparks downstairs to get someone's attention. Roxanne showed up to see the two girls and the uncomfortable boy. She had to cover her mouth to avoid laughing. She went to Rodrick side and asked him if he wanted a picture taken. He gave her a pointed glare in return. The smile on her face had increased before she grabbed him into a hug. Roxanne stopped his torture before she picked up Astoria in her arms and proceeded to leave.
Rodrick stared at the retreating woman before he raised and used his wand to send a spark to grab her attention, she turned to him with an amused smile on her face.
Rodrick pointed his finger at the head on his shoulders. Roxanne stared at him with a twinkle in her eyes before winking and leaving the boy's room.
Rodrick was dumbfounded at the situation, 'how the hell did it to get this point?'
He wound up having to force himself to stay awake, if he fell asleep with her there, there was no telling if he could keep his transfiguration in check, it was difficult enough as is. The closer someone was, the clearer magic showed, some were more sensitive than others, such as the blonde Lovegood girl, but at this close distance, even a squib had a chance of seeing through it.
He could've just woken her up but he wasn't sure what sort of reaction that would've gotten him. Best play it safe and let her feel bad. It was easier.
She was bound to wake up soon, he doubted that position was all that comfortable.
...
Daphne woke up two hours laters.
"I am glad you decided to wake up," she heard a hoarse voice speak.
Squinting her eyes before she realized the state she was in, she felt herself flush red quickly before she saw Rodrick's face, he looked tired, completely drained. 'Was he waiting for me to wake up?' The girl thought fondly.
Rodrick turned when he didn't hear the girl reply.
"So... Can I go to sleep or?
Daphne stared at him incredulously. She sighed and made her way off the bed.
...
He sighed as he stared at the girl leave. He wondered how long it would take before his secret went out, he was rather careless when he really thought about it.
He was the grandson of one of the most dangerous Dark Wizards in history. It was at that point that the transfiguration wore off, he stared blankly at the mirror beside his bed, 'When did that appear?'.
He stared at the strands of yellow hair that fell, surrounded by black. He stared at the face he got from his grandfather. The face that could cost him everything he had and what would that leave him? Dark families? who would covet his history? Blaise might stay friends with him, maybe.
He knew Daphne could look past it, but her parents were a different matter, they weren't a dark family, Rodrick couldn't in good conscious let her family fall apart because they both took different sides. He cursed his luck at that moment. He was born to one of the most hated families in Europe; he was cursed with a prophecy his grandfather wouldn't tell him, one that had given him sleepless nights and had him woke him up in screams. He had remembered Lovegood's words before he lapsed, she'd seen some sort of darkness around him.
And what had that strange dream been about? He knew the two places shown were Hogwarts and the Greengrass manor. Was it based on a choice? A choice he'd made when he'd decided to show up to the Greengrass manor for the holidays?
Rodrick sighed in defeat. He transfigured his face back to what the others knew.
...
The rest of the holiday flew by. When they'd gotten back onto the train... There had been a certain shift in tone. Blaise seemed to sense the tension in the mood, he'd taken glances towards Rodrick every now and then but said nothing, he saw the boy stare blankly outside the window, with a book in his hand. Tracey had thanked him for the scarf he'd bought her, but all he gave back was a nod. She and Blaise had pooled their money to buy him a new spell book.
He saw the questioning look the others gave him when he opened one of his textbooks to read through some chapters. He sighed before flicking through some of the spells in the new book. At least it was spells he hadn't yet seen, mostly because his grandfather probably considered them useless.