Draco C. Malfoy

I told Blaise that I have an essay to write, and that's why I'm not down in the common room celebrating. I've gone to the library, instead. So if anyone else asks, could you just tell them that I spent so much time working on the banners and flags that I got behind in my homework?

Father's furious with me. Harry, too. He almost seemed as angry as he was when we freed that stupid hippogriff. I suppose in that case I'm lucky that all he did was order me to write an essay on the inferiority of mudbloods. Normally that would be easy enough, but he says if it's not thorough or convincing that he's going to talk to Mr Tenebridge about taking my name off the credits for "Hey, Hey Merlin." He also said I have to Anyway, hopefully that won't happen.

Harry's been punished too, by the way. But I wouldn't ask him about it, if I were you.

Father's last Owl mentioned the importance of writing in my journal and not just writing comments in everyone elses'. I hadn't forgotten, only I've been awfully busy and I'm looking forward to Easter holiday because I think that when I get back, my detentions are over at last.

This last week's detentions were with Professor Lockhart. He wanted me to clean and polish the gallery of art in his office. It's all photographs and paintings of him, usually with someone famous, though in some of them he's standing with one foot on the back of some dark creature that he's conquered. There's really a great load of pictures, and they go all the way up to the ceiling so its good he has one of those sliding ladders like there are in the library. It was funny, though, because I thought the pictures would just be dusty but instead a lot of them were sort of..smeary, I guess. So cleaning them really wasn't that easy.

The real problem was that Dennis came in and tried to help me. I didn't even see him because I was way up on top the ladder and he was way down low near the floor. Only Professor Lockhart came in to check on me and he said he was disappointed that I would recruit my mudblood servant to assist me. Dennis tried to tell him that he came in on his own to help and that Master Draco didn't know he was there, and Professor Lockhart just laughed after that and sent him on his way. But of course Dennis didn't move because he waits until I send him away before he leaves. So I sent him away. But I see now why Harry didn't think Dennis was a very good servant. Because he wants to help you so much but he's too little, or something, to know when and where he should be helping sometimes. I tried to talk to him about never doing anything for me unless I specefically ask for it, and he said that he wouldn't be a very good slave if he did that. That he needs to be able to anticipate my needs to be the best slave there is. I like the idea of him anticipating my needs, but so far he's not very good at it. So after my detentions are over I think I'll have to work on that with him.

One thing I like, though, is that even though they know Dennis is a mudblood, his magic has never manifested - at least not yet. He told me he hopes it never does and I told him I hope so too. If mudbloods steal magic they must steal it from the people they're closest to, so if he decides he can't help it and he needs magic, I'm positive that it's mine that he'll get. I really do wonder how they do that, though. I suppose it's something that the grownups will figure out, eventually.


Here's something else: did anyone see my Aunt Bellatrix at school last week? Around Thursday I think? If she was here it must have been important business, because she didn't come round to say hi to me or to Harry.