Thank you! While this is a filler chapter in many ways, leaving out these scenes would have unbalanced the story.

Draco has eschewed Slytherin tactics, but even more than that, he didn't want to give his mother a hope that he would come back to her way of thinking. Speaking indirectly to her probably would have.

This is one of my stories where I am not entirely certain of what happens next. Glad you're enjoying it.