Can't get this out of my head
Harry and Ron apparated in seconds before Hermione did. Harry didnt even hear her as he stared horrified at the damage. Malfoy manor was not somewhere he ever wanted to see again, but to see it a hollowed out burned wreck was unexpectedly saddening.
The ministry didnt even know what happened until it was too late to save anything. By the time the Aurors got there they found nothing salvageable except the wand Draco had been given after his probationary sentencing together with a note. " Jesus Wept" it said. That was it. Harry had no idea what that could have meant.
Harry watched as the last pillar of the great front balcony crumbled to the ground before forcing his eyes away. When he did he noticed Pansy Parkinson a few feet away gathering the three peacocks. She straightened when she noticed him looking.
"The Aurors already said I could take them. Draco may be gone but he wouldn't want me to just leave them." She said stiffly.
Harry shifted slightly, throwing a glance..at Ron and Hermione behind him.
"You believe he did this? " he nodded towards what was left of the house.
Pansy narrowed her eyes at him "of course I do. You do too or you wouldnt be here. Draco said himself during his trial that he would raze the place to the ground."
Draco had said that. Today was supposed to be the last day of his probation. Tomorrow he would have come to the ministry to get all the restrictions lifted from his wand.
"How did he do this so quickly though? The ministry hardly got word of the breach in the wand restrictions before getting here and everything was already over. And Draco left without a wand apparently. This would have taken time. Someone would have noticed. It almost looks as if a muggle bomb went off." Hermione asked, her brows were furrowed, taking in the destruction.
Pansy scoffed "you lot always underestimated Draco" she said waiving off any protests.
"Always" she said sharply "you always believed the worst in him and never took him seriously, yet you wondered why he refused to go to you for help. I'll bet you didnt even believe he was helping when he tried did you? Did the brightest witch of our age tell you who gave her the correct book to look at back in first year? Did our lovely snake slayer tell you who told him about the usefulness of gilliweed? I'll bet you thought it was a coincidence Uncle Snapes old book was in that cupboard dont you Potter? I'm sure it means nothing to you lot that he bloody gave you his wand there at the end does it? You have always underestimated him and he always let you so dont feel too bad about it. Poor sod always letting you win" she paused eyeing the three friends and silently reveling in the varying looks of shock and guilt among them.
" I wonder if this will change that. You 3 always thought yourselves better than him. Braver maybe, smarter probably, but for all you boy who lived nonsense you will never be the wizard he is." She spat, turning back to the pure white peacocks.
Harry stared in shock taking in what she said. He knew he wasn't particularly powerful. It didnt take power to defeat Voldemort. The connection they accidentally forged between them was mostly what made that possible. Plus the backlash of the spell. The one possible because he used Draco's wand.
Harry sighed and looked back to Pansy, but before he could say anything she spoke up again.
"Draco did this with a ministry regulated wand, in seconds, then apparated away without one. Imagine what he could have done throughoutiou war, good or bad, had he actually tried."