Sweet as Chocolate

Prologue

Draco looked at the enchanted ceiling just as a fork of lightning flashed, disrupting his train of thought. McGonagall had started the sorting of the soppy first years. It appeared as if they had swum across the lake as opposed to sailing.

As McGonagall approached the M's, his heart stopped.

"McDonald, Natalie."

"GRYFFINDOR!!"

Draco let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. She was so beautiful, and she just HAD to be in another house.

Stupid hat.

Draco sulked the rest of dinner. He walked back before the new Slytherins could wreck havoc.

"Salazar," he said. The wall in front of him opened, revealing the Slytherin common room. He stepped in just as the other Slytherins rounded the corner. He walked slowly to his dorm, unnoticed, amazingly. Although Pansy came cooing after him.

"What's wrong, Dray?"

"Nothing. Go away. I'm going to sleep like any normal person. Leave me alone."

So Pansy left; she didn't want to mess with him when he was angry. She left him with a simple good-night wish. He crawled into his green silk pajamas, and lay down. He couldn't sleep, so he pulled out a journal he had hidden. He wrote quickly so nobody would discover his secret.

September 1, 1994

I'm supposed to love Pansy. We're betrothed. But she only wants the Malfoy fortune. Believe me; she'll do anything to get it. Kill me if she must. But my hopes have been lifted. I'm in love...

Chapter one

As he walked into honeydukes, he saw her. She was beautiful. She had waist length auburn hair. She was working at the counter. Her hands moved gracefully as she pointed out where something was for a costumer. And she looked strangely familiar....

Draco shook off these thoughts as Pansy squealed with delight. She wanted sugar quills and as she pointed, she tugged on his arm. Draco slipped his arm from hers.

"Don't pull on me like that! I'll get you your quills. Why don't you wait outside?"

"Fine! Don't get in a huff! Your father would be angry if you mistreated me! But ummmm, yea, I'll wait outside..."

Pansy said the last bit in a floating voice. Draco followed her gaze. His cold eyes rested on the burly form of Blaise Zambini.

Stupid prat she is. But if she wants Zambini, so be it! No skin off MY nose!

By now, Draco had already grabbed the candy Pansy wanted and had made it to the counter.

"Good Afternoon! Will this be it for you, Sir?"

Draco smirked his trademark smirk. Never been called SIR before. Although she IS just doing her job I suppose. I HOPE I don't look old enough to be called Sir... But her voice sounded like the twinkling of sleigh bells, so he couldn't resist acting politely.

"Yea. That will do it. Say, what's your name?"

"Natalie. I'm up at Hogwarts though and I've got to hurry and ring you up. I have a TON of homework..."

Her voice trailed off, leaving Draco a moment to stare. Her voice was so sweet and smooth and velvety, almost as sweet as chocolate. She delicately wrapped the quills to put them in a bag. When he handed her his money, their eyes locked. He was suddenly transfixed in her eyes... They were like two pools of an icy blue lake... he liked those eyes... he wanted to fall forever into them... He couldn't stop staring. He was being pulled into those icy depths...

"You're all set! Thanks very much! But I must be going! Have a nice day!"

Draco was suddenly pulled back to reality as her sweet voice spoke to him. He grabbed the bag, smashing the quills in the process. He was still looking into those beautiful eyes. Before he could stop himself, he asked her;

"Would you like me to walk you back to the school? I go there as well."

"Thanks for the offer, but no. You wouldn't want to keep that pretty girl waiting for those sugar quills..."

So she had noticed pansy. Dang.

"...I suppose I'll see you around school than. Nice meeting you."

I've blown it. Good going Draco... he mentally kicked himself and walked towards Pansy and her admirers. He thrust the now crushed quills into her hand. Pansy could sense the legendary Malfoy temper coming on, so she quietly thanked him and went back to staring at Zambini.

"I'm going back up to the school. I suppose I'll see you in the common room, or at dinner, or something. Anywho, I'm leaving. Good-bye."

She hardly paid him any mind, which didn't bother him in the slightest. As he tramped through the newly fallen snow towards the Hogwarts gates, he caught a glimpse of red out of the corner of his eye. Throwing all caution to the winds, he shouted.

"Hey! Wait up! Wait up will you!"

As he caught up with the group in front of him, he stopped to catch his breath. When they turned around, he lost all the breath he had struggled to gain back as the emerald green glare connected with his cold gray one.

"What do you want, Malfoy?"