Wednesday, September 11, 2013

الراحة في الجنة


"Do you believe in God, Malfoy?" 
Draco started, and turned to look at him in disbelief. "Do I what?"
"You heard me," said Harry, uncomfortably. "Do you believe in God - at all?"
Draco looked dubious. “I guess I believe in God,” he said. “Sometimes I think he has some pretty strong reservations about me, though.”
"What about heaven? And hell?" Harry asked.
The other boy shook his head. “What is this about? Anyway, of course I believe in hell…we saw Slytherin get dragged off somewhere by those demons. Where did you think they were taking him? All-expenses-paid balloon tour of the Urals?”
"What about heaven?"
Draco shrugged again. Harry had a feeling he was making the other boy very uncomfortable. “Stands to reason there’s a heaven, if there’s a hell.”
"Well," said Harry, sitting forward, "what do you think it’s like?"
Draco leaned back against the wooden post of the bed, his mouth a crooked line of bemusement. “You’re asking me what heaven’s like, Potter? Come on, you’ve had your name down for entry there since before you had your name down for Hogwarts. Whereas I…”
"Whereas you are going to hell in a handbasket, I know," Harry interrupted. "In the meantime, use that ferocious imagination of yours for a second, will you? I really want to know what you think."
"Do you?" Draco’s eyes were the color of quartz crystals, and about as readable. "I think heaven would be different for everyone who goes there. For you, it’s probably bunnies and Christmas and optimism and everyone shoving flowers in their ears."
"And for you?"
Draco was silent a moment, looking out the window at the dark world flashing by. “A place to rest, I think,” he said finally.
- Draco Veritas, Cassandra Claire

I think I'd forgotten how much this story impacted my teenage psyche.

2 comments:

turkey said...

The ANGST.

Shamiah said...

yes, isn't it angsty. I realised I internalised a lot of Draco's angst and it got mixed up with a lot of my own so I became this crazy, angsty, depressed child. hahaha.