Whether Draco would rot in a Muggle prison, he did not know; he only knew that he might have run into a little trouble now.
Returning home, he found that in addition to Narcissa and Lucius, two middle-aged men in uniforms were standing in the living room; what they all had in common was that all four of them looked very serious.
"Darling, you are finally back. Nothing happened, did it?" Upon seeing that Draco was safe and sound, Narcissa rushed over to hug him and patted his back.
Then she whispered in Draco's ear: "Go upstairs to bed quickly, don't stay here."
"Don't shield him." Lucius's tone was colder than usual, and he then took out several letters.
"Look at the trouble he has caused." Lucius threw the letters onto the table.
Draco opened the letters, and one of them read as follows.
Mr Malfoy: We have received a report that today at 3:40 PM, you used a Stupefy on a Muggle at a Muggle residence in Little Hangleton.
You know that underage wizards are not allowed to use magic outside of school. If you engage in such behaviour again, you may be expelled from our school (Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, 1875, Paragraph 3).
Additionally, please remember that according to Clause 13 of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, any magical activity that might attract the attention of members of the non-magical community (Muggles) is a serious violation of the law.
Have a pleasant holiday! Mafalda Hopkirk, Ministry of Magic, Improper Use of Magic Office.
"This really is a bit of a little trouble," Draco muttered.
"A little trouble?" Lucius's voice grew louder. "Look again!" He roared, having lost his usual elegant demeanour.
Draco then opened another letter.
It read:
MrMalfoy: We have received another report that today at 4:30 PM, you cast a Muggle-Repelling Charm on an area at a Muggle residence in Little Hangleton.
You know that underage wizards are not allowed to use magic outside of school. If you engage in such behaviour again, you may be expelled from our school (Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, 1875, Paragraph 3).
Additionally, please remember that according to Clause 13 of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, any magical activity that might attract the attention of members of the non-magical community (Muggles) is a serious violation of the law.
Have a pleasant holiday! Mafalda Hopkirk, Ministry of Magic, Improper Use of Magic Office.
The contents of the subsequent letters were coincidentally much the same, with only the names of the spells changed.
The last one:
"In view of your previous actions, which have seriously violated the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, we have decided to impose a severe penalty upon you. Based on the information we have gathered, your grades at Hogwarts appear to be excellent. Under the guarantee of Professor Dumbledore, we will not expel you, but we will confiscate your wand and return it at a later date as a disciplinary measure."
"Your warning letters were sent to our home; my darling never even saw them." Narcissa defended Draco loudly.
"Calm down, Madam," one of the two wizards, who was slightly taller, said slowly.
"We are just following orders," the other, slightly shorter and stouter wizard added from the side.
"Hand over the wand," Lucius's voice grew increasingly grim.
"I think I am willing to cooperate with the Ministry of Magic's work," Draco nodded and handed his wand to the tall, thin wizard.
"No!" Narcissa let out a high-pitched scream, clearly unable to accept the reality of her son being punished.
The two Ministry of Magic wizards could not help showing expressions of surprise. Clearly, they were battle-hardened and had seen many young wizards using magic outside school, but when punishment came down, the youngsters usually either looked miserable or burst into tears, and when it came time to confiscate their wands, most would grip them tightly.
It was the first time they had encountered such a calm young wizard, and they could not help but be surprised.
"Truly admirable calmness," the two praised in unison. "I believe this incident is just a small misunderstanding."
"We will explain the situation to our superiors," the stout wizard said. Clearly, today's matter had been resolved very easily, which made him feel a little goodwill towards Draco, and he was even wondering whether there had been a mistake; how could such an obedient child break the law?
"Thank you very much," Lucius nodded to them.
"Alright, we must return to report; it's getting late," the tall, thin wizard said.
"Stay for something to eat; there are desserts prepared," Narcissa seemed to be making a final effort, wanting to appease them a little more in the hope of reducing the punishment.
"Madam, thank you for your kindness, but we are very busy," the tall, thin wizard declined the offer.
Subsequently, the two of them walked out of the Malfoy home, presumably using Apparition; their bodies gradually became transparent and finally disappeared into thin air.
"Lucius!" Narcissa shouted at Lucius, clearly venting her dissatisfaction.
"Oh, Narcissa, calm down." Unlike the cold and serious tone from a moment earlier, Lucius now appeared very relaxed.
"You tell me to calm down? Our son was almost expelled! And those two men even took his wand away—how can you tell me to calm down?" Narcissa now appeared somewhat hysterical; any mother who heard that her child was almost expelled would likely have this reaction.
"Don't worry," Lucius said softly. "You should learn from our son on this point; look how calm he is." As he said this, he glanced at Draco, who was standing silently by the table, looking relaxed and unaffected.
He continued casually: "When the Ministry of Magic does things, everyone has to give them some face. On the surface e, everything is done officially, so that it looks proper. As for what the letter said," Lucius sneered slightly, "Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic are not on the best of terms; if anything, the more he pleads, the more the Ministry wishes to spite him. If they truly expelled someone, they certainly would not inform that old man."
"As for the wand—well, I think I just had dinner with him a few days ago; sponsorship is not so easy to obtain, is it?" Lucius seemed to recall something.
"Who is he?" Narcissa asked.
"The direct superior of those two men earlier; he is running around looking for investment, stressed over funding for an event," Lucius said with a smile.
"Oh." Narcissa seemed to have all the strength drained from her body and slumped into a chair, completely relieved. Lucius had explained it clearly enough.
"I have someone backing me as well, it seems." Seeing this, Draco was mentally prepared; given Lucius's extremely protective nature, everything just now must have been merely for show.
"Besides, our little one is already almost capable of wandless magic." As he said this, Lucius patted Draco's shoulder, revealing a look of pride.
"Let's not talk about those things anymore; let's talk about something else," Lucius diverted the conversation away from this unpleasant topic.
"How did you deal with that Muggle? Petrificus Totalus? Hmm, the letter just said you used Stupefy." Lucius was clearly more interested in this. "How can you use Stupefy when tormenting a Muggle? That way,h e cannot feel pain or fear. You should…" Subsequently, Lucius began to talk about how he used to torment Muggles in his day, beginning to "personally instruct" Draco.
Afterwards, he added in an admiring tone: "Finally, casting the Muggle-Repelling Charm on the scene was quite good; very prudent." He patted Draco's shoulder encouragingly and said, "Truly worthy of being my son."
"Alright, stop talking about your dreadful business," Narcissa interrupted Lucius. Her mood had improved considerably, and her tone became lighter. "Darling, you must be exhausted today. You have to return to school tomorrow, so go to bed quickly; you must get up early."
"Very well, Mother." Draco felt as though he had been granted an amnesty; he was clearly not interested in those "methods" and turned to walk towards his room.
"I haven't told him about the Unforgivable Curses yet." Lucius patted his head in annoyance. Watching Draco return to his room, Lucius's mood also dropped.
"Do you want our son to take a tour of Azkaban?"
"No, no, no," Lucius quickly denied. "I won't say it, I won't say it." Then he gave two dry, awkward laughs.
"It was just an introduction, not that I would teach him," Lucius muttered.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing." Lucius spread his hands to show he was innocent.
Night fell, and Malfoy Manor was quiet; nothing happened overnight.
---
A/N: Advance Chapter Has Been Uploaded. Please Check It Out. It will really help me out and will keep me motivated to continue.
Support: patreon.com/Narrator_San