Strangers Can Change Everything

Two weeks after Arabella's arrival at Malfoy Manor, her father was due to visit her and attend a meeting being held by Lucius. She awaited nervously as she sat in her room feeling very bored, dressed up and waiting for the dinner announcement to be sent up to her so that she could go down and met the rest of the guests.

Arabella was beginning to think that her stay at the house might not turn out to be too bad after all. Lucius was not around very much, though when he was, Arabella felt that his eyes never left her. However, Narcissa's polite friendliness and Draco's charismatic attitude had made her first two weeks stay, more than bearable.

Draco had continued to be a source of Arabella's happiness as he grew friendlier with each day and she enjoyed his company. She had begun to find the mischievous glint in his eye that had been suffocated by so much mystery, very attractive. Their constant battles of wits and flirtatious manner was something that Arabella increasingly became fond of. She had only known him for two weeks but Draco Malfoy was the one person that knew more about her than anyone. Though Arabella found this confusing she also liked being able to confide in him and she grew more trusting every day.

Arabella let her mind wander as she glanced at the old clock that seemed to have hands that moved at an unbelievably slow pace. She was slightly nervous as her father was joining the small dinner party and his presence always put her on edge. She had gotten used to being herself in Draco's company, but tonight would be different, unfortunately. She had to go back to being the innocent daughter. She glanced down at her dress anxiously. The night blue dress with an elegant skirt that flowed out beneath her was very low-cut and the tight corset that Lucy had had problems fastening was not going to allow her to eat very much even though she was starving. It was a stunning dress; she had to admit, even if it had been sent to her by Lucius again. She sighed worriedly, having Lucius Malfoy pick your outfits was not always the best option but she could not refuse the house's Master. She sat on her bed fiddling with the silver chain around her neck until a house elf finally apparated into the room startling her slightly.

"Master has sent for you Miss Ostivia," he uttered, bowing very low as he said her name.

"Oh, thank you," she answered, getting up quickly and making for the door. She turned around to check her reflection in the mirror one more time when she caught sight of the house-elf still bowed down on the floor. "Oh! Please get up, thank you for your message but you don't have to stay down there."

"Mistress is most kind," the house-elf exclaimed as he struggled up and bowed again to her before apparting away again. Arabella shook her head in surprise. She had never known such timid and over-obdient staff. It made her wonder how they were treated behind close doors. She shook her head again and realised that she was drifting, she had no time to think of other things. She hurriedly made her way downstairs.

A few corridors away, Draco leant lazily against the raised seat by his open window that was covered in elegant white silk cushions. A cigarette held loosely in his hand rested on his raised knee. He was dressed in a smart tux, though his green shirt was unbuttoned quite far down his chest in a relaxed manner.

Outside his door, Arabella had made a detour towards his chambers to see if he wanted to go downstairs with her for moral support. She thought that he'd probably already have left, but knocked lightly on the door anyway. After a few seconds an un-interested voice sounded from within.

"What?"

"It's me," Arabella responded as she gently turned the engraved iron handle and nudged open the heavy door. "Hope you're decent 'cos I'm coming in."

"As if you mind anyway," Draco called from across the room smugly.

Arabella stepped into the lavishly decorated room, searching for him and she quickly found him in his favourite place by the window on the far side of the room. "Do you ever stop?" Arabella rolled her eyes. She crossed the room, passing my the neatly made, four-poster bed that was almost completely concealed with cream drapes that hung from the ceiling. She pushed back the transparent silk sheets of material that hung over the cushioned window seat beside the heavy deep green curtains.

Draco's form emerged from behind the layer of thin fabric but he did not look up and continued to gaze out as he often did. Arabella sat down lightly next to him, arranging herself around his stretched out legs.

"So why are you hiding away in here?" she asked.

Draco sighed and looked at her, his head remained leant against the wall but his eyes swivelled effortlessly and his eyes wandered over her. He completely ignored her question but commented on her appearance.

"Ah, I see that my father is still choosing your dresses then, and he must really be enjoying it by the looks of how tight that is," Draco almost laughed with a disapproving tone.

Arabella suddenly felt very self-conscious and looked down at her large cleavage, embarrassed. She hadn't thought that it was that bad, but Draco had obviously noticed. She had still not got used to Draco's strange mood swings.

"Well what do you expect me to do. Send it back and ask for another one which actually has a top half?" Arabella huffed rather irritably.

"Now that would be funny," Draco smiled sarcastically.

Draco rummaged in his jacket pocket and pulled out a cigarette packet and offered it to Arabella as a peace offering. She did not take one but thanked him for the kind gesture. She couldn't stay angry, that cocky look that never left Draco's face melted away any bad feelings even if she didn't intend to let him get away with things so easily.

"So are you going to answer may question?" Arabella continued.

Draco raised his eyebrows in a questioning expression as he took out his lighter, leaning forward as he rummaged in his pockets so that he was only inches from her blue eyes.

"What, did you ask?" he muffled with his cigarette in the corner of his mouth.

She sighed exasperatedly, "I asked why you were hiding away up here and not down with the rest of them."

"I just couldn't be bothered to get up," Draco answered matter-of-factly as if that was a perfectly acceptable reason and blew out smoke lazily.

Arabella gave up trying to talk to him and leant back against the opposite wall. Draco watched her blue eyes shadowed seductively in dark make-up close tiredly and gently open again. My father may be treating Arabella as a prize to show off but he does have good dress taste, Draco thought as his eyes wandered down the length of her body, raising his eyebrow as what he saw impressed him.

Arabella caught him glancing at her and she folded her arms as her cheeks flushed.

"Ok, ok I get it, not a good dress, but there is nothing I can do, ok?" Arabella said. She was used to having to be on display but she didn't like the one person who knew her not just as the shy, young daughter, seeing her as something to just look at.

"Oh, come on," Draco responded, "Where else am I supposed to look?"

Arabella got up swiftly, her eyes conveying how annoyed she was, "Fine, fine, if it's distracting you that much then I'm just gonna go." Her voice was hard and Draco could tell by her tone that he had hurt her.

Draco rolled his eyes and sighed to himself as he stubbed out his cigarette on the window ledge. He had spent the last two weeks in the company of the one girl who he actually had any respect for and she was one of the most beautiful people he had ever set eyes on. That did not make things easy for him. For the last two weeks he had been battling with the urge to just pin her down and kiss her there and then. This was not like anything he had felt before. He liked her just as much for her mind as for her looks but she just didn't understand what an effect she had on people. She didn't realise how stunning she was or how much her little habits drove him crazy. Every time she coiled a loose strand of shining hair around her finger absent-mindedly as they talked for hours, he thought he would literally burst and she had not idea! Draco knew that he had to tell her because he couldn't go on like this for the rest of her stay, and he couldn't watch her walk away on Blaise's arm at the end of it.

Draco stood up slowly, and called her name, she didn't respond until he called again and she finally stopped by the corner of his bed. Her head dropped down and her delicate shoulder bones tensed. She sighed loudly, turning to look at him as if it took every bit of her self-control to do so.

"What Draco?" she asked exasperatedly, her eyes showing that she had little patience for his games today, the worry of seeing her father was putting a great strain on her and Draco could sense it through her weary tone.

He started to pace towards her and then stood by the opposite corner of the bed, his mouth opened to begin a sentence but then he stopped.

"Ah for fuck's sake," he muttered, rubbing his forehead in a confused way as he could not voice his feelings, he had grown up learning to do just the opposite and keep his emotions hidden.

Arabella watched Draco closely wondering what he was finding so hard to say. This wasn't like him, he usually just came out with his blunt responses or just kept quiet.

He looked at her through his strands of blonde hair that framed his searching eyes and started again with a deep breath, "Ok, just listen to me and don't storm off. I know you don't like being all dressed up and everyone tells you that you're beautiful, but they're not exactly wrong!"

Arabella said nothing as Draco waited for her to respond. Had Draco just told her she was beautiful? Is that not just what everyone else says? Has Blaise not said that so many a time? Arabella's mind whirled with questions.

Draco watched as her head tried to make sense of the situation and the confusion flooded her eyes, "No, no, don't think about other people," Draco spoke sharply as he strode up to her. Arabella was startled at how easily he had realised what she was thinking of.

"I'm not Blaise. I'm just saying that it's been hard over the past two weeks, ok? I can't just pretend that you're a normal person, someone I meet every day..."

"Shut-up," Arabella suddenly cut him off as she stared back into those stone-like eyes and at the towering man that stood in front of her with such a presence that could silence a room, just like his father.

"What?" Draco asked caught-off guard, he had not expected that response, but before he could think on it, Arabella had leant up and pulled him forward, and suddenly Draco found himself roughly kissing her. Her hands groped at his open shirt and moved against his chest as her lips kissed him hungrily. Draco wrapped his fingers in her hair instictively, hair-grips flew out in all directions and his other hand wrapped around her waist. She drew back breathlessly after a few seconds,

"Sorry, I didn't mean to surprise you Master Malfoy, but you do talk far too much," she mocked.

"If you are going to apologise every time you kiss a Malfoy then I need to teach you a thing or two," Draco returned as his smug smile grew on his face and he kissed her again, his teeth biting at her lip and she gasped at the pain but then pulled him in closer. Draco traced her jaw-line with his mouth and moved down to her neck, almost lifting her up to turn her round and then she suddenly went rigid in his arms and he heard a small gasp escape her lips. He moved his head to see what was wrong and found her staring over his shoulder. Her hair had all come undone and was trailing down her back, her expression was one of complete shock. Draco turned slowly to see what she was looking at, running a hand through his ruffled hair but his hand stopped dead as he caught sight of the figure in the doorway.

Stood in the shadows of Draco's chamber door was Lucius Malfoy who was almost smiling at the sight that lay before him. Draco and Arabella could not even speak under the his gaze as Draco tried to button up his loose shirt and Arabella's hand remained covering her mouth in shock.

"Well, well, what have we here?" Lucius chuckled sinisterly.