Pure-Blood? I'm B Positive

"What are you making?" I sat down on one of the four oak chairs which were equally placed around the rectangle table which was also made of old oak.
"Beef Stew, Miss. I can make different if you like?" Dee-Dee the green eyed house elf was standing on a stool in order to reach the stove, stirring a large pot.
"Beef Stew is fine, thankyou."
"No need to thank miss. Dee-Dee happy to cook. Linny happy to clean." Dee-Dee looked over to her sister, Linny who was jumping up in attempt to grab the duster, which was on top of the cupboard; clearly out of Linny's reach.
"I'll get that for you." I stood up and walked over to the cupboard, handing Linny the duster she had been eagerly jumping for just seconds ago. Linny backed away looking offended by the offering of the duster.
"I didn't need help. I could get it, miss." She hissed as she spoke, clearly not wanting me to interfere with her cleaning routine.
"Linny likes to... what is the word miss." Dee-Dee tapped her head with the wooden spoon, thinking hard of the word to explain her sister.
"Linny likes to be on her own in her cleaning."
"She likes to work independently?" Dee-Dee looked up at me as I spoke, her eyes were sparkling and her mouth slightly open, with shock.
"Yes miss." As we spoke, Linny began cleaning the Kitchen, every so often looking over at myself and Dee-Dee.
"You should be getting on with dinner Dee-Dee. Not talking to Miss." Linny was clutching a miniature Broom which was clearly adapted so the House Elf's size.
"Yes Linny." Dee-Dee grabbed the pepper shaker and began twisting pepper into the bubbling stew. Linny seemed more relaxed as Dee-Dee got into her normal cooking routine and was scrambling around the kitchen for carrots and onions rather than talking to me.
"Miss, I will go get your bedroom ready for you now. It would be much appreciated if you will stay here until it is ready." Linny bowed her head as she spoke.
"Sure. Thankyou, Linny."
"No thankyou is necessary miss." Linny left the kitchen and made her way upstairs to prepare a guestroom for me, as I restarted my conversation with Dee-Dee.

"So, Dee-Dee. You and Linny are sisters?"
"Yes miss." Dee-Dee responded without taking her eyes off the stew.
"How long have you been here?"
"A long time, I don't really remember before here."
"How old are you, and Linny?"
"Quite young." The answers that Dee-Dee gave seemed honest yet vague.
"Linny is older than you?"
"Nope, Miss. I am oldest, Linny youngest."
"She acts older" The image on Linny came into my mind, she was slightly taller than Dee-Dee and spoke with more depth and understanding.
"Old Master let Linny read. She is smarter, but teaches me little each night." Dee-Dee smiled as she spoke of her younger sister, the blue eyed elf who seemed determined to keep Dee-Dee on top form.
"Why is Linny so strict and up-tight?"
"Up-tight, miss?" Dee-Dee Looked up at me, her forehead wrinkled as she expressed confusion by the word.
"Well, she nags you to work, she doesn't relax."
"She doesn't like rest. She is afraid." After Dee-Dee spoke, I was the one now wearing the confused look.
"Afraid? What does she have to be afraid of?"
"She is afraid of being set free. She wants to stay, so she makes sure she does good work."
"Set free? Sacked you mean?"
"I think that is the word, yes miss."
"I see." I lied, I had no idea what was so terrifying of being sacked, there was always another house to clean. I didn't want to seem stupid, so I just left it at that.

"Dee-Dee? Where is your sister?" Professor Malfoy popped his head around the door and looked straight past me to the elf.
"She is doing Misses room Master." She looked up from her stew pot and twiddled the wooden spoon nervously in her hand.
"Good. When will dinner be ready?"
"When do you want it to be ready, Mister." Dee-Dee seemed adamant on pleasing Professor Malfoy, thinking hard to say the correct thing.
"When it's hot and cooked Dee-Dee! Don't reply with silly remarks." Professor Malfoy spoke with such authority that Dee-Dee began to shake. Professor Malfoy eyed the house elf, and seemed taken aback by the house elves response to his bellowing voice. I watched intently as he awkwardly altered his collar before leaving. Dee-Dee began to mutter to herself, whilst stirring the stew pot violently; occasionally splashing herself with the hot liquid.
"Dee-Dee?" My voice seemed to go unheard and she continued to stir the stew, which was now rocking on the stove - at danger of falling onto the small and vulnerable looking house elf.
Dee-Dee? Stop, please - you'll hurt yourself." I took the wooden spoon from Dee-Dee's hand, tugging at her to let go - for something so small, she seemed to have a lot of strength.
"Miss, I beg. I need to finish the food."
"It's almost done, you can just leave it to simmer for a while." I turned down the stove and put the lid on the stew pot, allowing it to bubble away in the background and Dee-Dee looked up at me, anger etched all over her heart shaped face.
"Calm down." I scoffed and shook my head. At this moment I could now see the family resemblance between herself and Linny. There foreheads wrinkled in the same way when they were angry, their mouths were similar as were their ears.

The door opened silently and the light sound of footsteps gradually got louder as Dee-Dee continued to stare at me with anger as I stood over the stove.
"Dee-Dee?" A high pitched voice vibrated off the walls; Linny was stood to the left of me staring at Dee-Dee in the same way I was moments ago. Dee-Dee ignored her sister, whose expression soon changed from dumb-founded to annoyed. Linny huffed and threw her broom on the floor in protest to Dee-Dee not working.
"Miss, your bedroom is ready. If you please, your things are waiting to be unpacked; Master told me not to touch your things." Linny almost bowed as she spoke; her eyes darting about staring at the floor.
"Thankyou, Linny." I placed down the wooden spoon on the marble work surface, without making a sound and left the room without daring to breath as an attempt to disappear from the odd situation I had put myself in.

***
The room was beautiful. A large bed with a mahogany head board was the centre piece, with a desk to the left side of the room and a matching bookcase propped up on the right wall. The walls were a lighter shade of silver, with many of the accessories being green; the same colours I was forced to identify with all year. However, the colours seemed a lot less garish and way more sophisticated now that the room wasn't filled with arrogant rich kids. I sat on the bed, almost afraid to wrinkle the bed sheets. There was a gentle knock at the door.
"Come in." There was only one person it could be.
"Settling in fine?" Professor Malfoy put his head around the door, smiling at me as I sat on the edge of the king size bed.
"Yea, this is an amazing place. You've lived here your whole life" I looked up and around the room, noticing the ceiling to be as intricately decorated as the headboard on the bed. Professor Malfoy came and sat on the bed next to me, looking up at the ceiling as I had just done.
"Yes. All my memories in this house." Professor Malfoy seemed to force a smile and then the expression of deep thought shadowed his features heavily.
"Hmm. Good memories, Bad memories?" I felt very intrusive asking about my teachers childhood; but he knew my secrets.
"Both." Professor Malfoy looked at the floor and sighed heavily.
"I can't imagine what you would be like as a kid." This was my lame attempt at diverting the conversation without abandoning it completely.
"I was a bully. You know those kids in year 3 that are bossy and arrogant and-"
"Slytherin." I smiled as I imagined the pig nosed boys who assumed they ruled the school.
"Exactly. I was like them, only worse. It's a wonder Neville even talks to me - I wouldn't."
"You went to school with Nev- Professor Longbottom?" I had always imagined Professor Malfoy to be quite a bit older than Neville, I'd have never thought that they would have gone to school together.
"Yea. I bullied him frequently."
"Picking on those in younger years?"
"We were in the same year, but he was in Gryffindor, and he was a lot different back then."
"Wow. You look older than him."
"Oh, thanks." Professor Malfoy chuckled, and for the first time I noticed the youth in his face.
"I didn't mean it like that."
"It's fine, Araina. I understand." He smiled at me in the way I always imagined a big brother would, I smiled back.

"I see you've met my house elves?" Professor Malfoy looked around the immaculate room.
"Yea. Dee-Dee and Linny? They're... odd. That is one thing i'm struggling to understand."
"I can imagine." Professor Malfoy simply nodded.
"Are they like, your house maids?" I looked up at my Professor, I didn't imagine him to be the type of person to have slaves or servants.
"You could dress it up like that, and many people do. But, i'm just going to be honest. They don't work for me, they work for this house. They don't get paid - I own them, in a manor of speaking." Malfoy looked at the carpeted floor and rubbed his hands together.
"So, you're exploiting them. Doesn't seem fair."
"You don't understand. The concept is hard to grasp, but they enjoy working here." Malfoy looked at me and pleaded for my understanding, or at least my tolerance of this.
"Dee-Dee was saying how Linny is scared, that she'll be set free."
"Exactly. House-elves, they're not like wizards or muggles. They feel like their purpose is to work for the family they serve. Linny takes it a step too far, because she was set free before because she broke a vase. Dee-Dee was already working for me, and Dee-Dee saw her in Diagon Alley and brought her home, I told her she could work here with her sister." Professor Malfoy smiled and I nodded in response.
"If they wanted to be paid, or wanted a break - would you let them?" Malfoy seemed quite put off by the hypothetical situation I had put across to him.
"But, they wouldn't. They just wouldn't! I give them food, they have a room in my house for goodness sake; that's more than Dobby ever got!" Professor Malfoy was getting redder and redder in the face.

"Dobby?" I had a feeling in my gut that almost made me feel sick, seeing this man whom until now I saw as a genuine, nice man - I saw so much of myself in him, and now... I didn't know who I saw.
"My families old house-elf. We - well my father - beat him, regularly. The saddest part, is after a while he would beat himself, for doing something wrong. I didn't care at the time, I thought it was normal, it was normal. Now, I don't know who that kid was who would sneer and try to get the poor creature in trouble just for the fun of it." Professor Malfoys grey eyes glistened as he spoke, tears filled them.
"You were a kid. You knew no better. If you're only shown one thing, that one thing is the only thing you'll know until you're shown different." I had no idea what to say, or do. He was my teacher, but I was staying at his house, and he was on the verge of crying - should I comfort him? If so, what's the line?
"I didn't realise it then, but I do now. I was so wrong and I made so many mistakes. I made all the wrong choices... just like him." Professor Malfoy now seemed to be talking to himself rather than me, he stared blankly into nothing and seemed to ignore my presence.
"You were a child. Professor Malfoy, you don't need to tell me this."
"Yes I do, Araina. You're related to the darkest wizard ever, and many people expect you to be his predecessor. If you're not strong enough to fight through the rumours and accusations, then some day you might just be what they think you are." Professor Malfoy held my arms and shook me slightly as he spoke. I physically couldn't speak, I had so much to say but no words. I nodded.

"I grew up through fear. I feared my father, I feared what would happen to my family if I didn't do what was expected of me, and I feared what would happen if I did what I felt was right. All my worst fears came true; my family was destroyed, but so was Voldemort. Now, he's gone - and I can be a person who has a choice. I'm no longer a puppet and I think for myself now, and for the first time I feel secure in myself."
"Why are you telling me this?" I choked out the words, not sure what Professor Malfoy was getting out.
"I had nobody else to tell. I thought you ought to know."
"You've told me all the emotional stuff, but I'm still not sure what you're talking about. I'm guessing we've moved on from teasing the house elf." Professor Malfoy looked defeated and exhausted, in comparison to how energetic and lively he looks in class.
"My family were death eaters, and so was I. I grew up being told Mud- Muggle borns were scum, and that Pure-Blooded wizards were superior; It was hard to get a totally new perspective on what I thought was right and wrong, but with my father no longer being under Voldemorts thumb, it wasn't impossible." He paused, sighing as he thought of what to say next. "I was a puppet, and in my 6th year of school I got told I had to kill Dumbledore. I didn't want to, but really I had no choice. It was me or him." The tears in his eyes were become more and more predominant.
"Did you k-"
"No, this teacher did. He was a death eater, or so we thought..." Malfoy looked up and started blinking rapidly to avoid the tears from falling.
"What else were you supposed to do?"
"I should have said no."
"And be killed? He'd have just got somebody else to do it after killing you. It wouldn't have changed much." I pleaded with him to let go of his guilt. "Your father is the guilty one, for using you like a pawn." I sighed and avoided looking him in the face. Professor Malfoy nodded, then sniffled.
"I guess you're right, but I just wish I could have been stronger, braver. Like Neville." I smiled at the thought of Neville being the heroic savior.
"Well, you're being brave now. You can't change the past, so why dwell on it. Just make sure you do right in your future."
"I will Araina, I will." He smiled at me before standing up. "Well, I best leave you to unpack your things, then i'll give you a tour of the manor after dinner."
"Thankyou, for everything." I smiled and Professor Malfoy nodded.
"No, Thankyou."