The Cave of Many Wonders
AN: Written for Ancient Runes at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Hope you enjoy it, and I also hope that you can follow the story.
As the sun climbed into the sky, transforming it from an inky night, to an orange sunset, and finally, a blanket of blue, there came a knock on the bedroom door of one Draco Malfoy.
The ten year-old wizard groaned slightly, and yawned, before saying sleepily, "Come in."
In walked one of the Malfoy family's many house-elves, carrying a breakfast tray, laden with waffles, an occasional treat. This particular occasion was the beginning of Summer, and there were blueberries and maple syrup and cream on the special treat.
"Good Morning, Master Draco." The elf said, and bowed to him. Draco inclined his head towards the elf, Pythagoras, and thanked him.
"What are you planning to do today, young master?" Pythagoras asked him, and Draco thought for a moment.
"I think I will go and explore the world of Mother Nature." He finally said, and the elf left him to eat.
As he ate the waffles, he had a pleasant surprise when it came to the cream; it had been sweetened with honey.
Later on that morning, dressed in a pair of casual pants and a short-sleeved shirt, Draco set off on his adventure. His mother had told him to be back by two, for a late-ish lunch.
As it was only half-past nine in the morning, Draco had four and a half hours to do any exploring he wanted to. He ran outside, and decided to fly around the area, and see if it was worth exploring.
He stopped outside and decided where to go. Normally, he flew in the area downhill from the Manor, but this time he decided to fly uphill. As he flew, his blonde hair flowing behind him, he couldn't help but smile at the beauty of the world around him.
No Muggle filth around here to ruin it for the superior wizards and witches of this area, he thought, as he flew over the top of the hill.
Then, he looked down slightly, and his eyes widened in utter amazement. For someone who was an avid lover of nature like he was, this was paradise.
There, stretched out far below him, was a valley of orchids, nut trees, and flowers. Draco found himself wishing that he had some parchment to capture some of the beauty of his surroundings. But, he didn't, and decided to enjoy the area first, and maybe come back to draw something.
There were trees with purple oranges, and Draco licked his lips. Amethyst oranges were his favourite fruit, as they tasted like orange chocolate chip ice cream, despite their colour.
Smiling, he picked one off the tree, and, to his slight amazement, another one grew in it's place. He then peeled the skin off, and sank his teeth into it, grinning when it tasted like how he remembered.
He walked around the valley slowly, taking his time, and occasionally had a nut or piece of fruit. As he was walking past a small walnut tree, his left hand running across the grassy wall, he felt something hard and wooden.
Surprised, Draco looked at what his hand had touched, and to his amazement, discovered a door, which obviously lead into a cave. Upon the door was a notice: Welcome to the cave of many wonders. Please take whatever you want. The magic of this cave allow the objects to duplicate themselves.
Draco was amazed at the revelation that he could take anything that he wanted, and, knowing that he wanted to see these "many wonders," he opened the door and went in, carrying his broomstick.
The first thing he did was look to see how much time he had before he had to head back for lunch. It was quarter to twelve, but this didn't surprise him, as he'd spent a lot of time exploring the valley. He'd even found a stream, and had cooled off for awhile.
But inside this cave, Draco found a long line of doors, each one with a different symbol set into it. The first door had a gem on it, and Draco walked in, his mouth falling open in amazement.
The cave was filled with jewels, gold, goblets made from gold, and even swords with precious stones set into the handle. He decided to take a souvenir back for both his parents, and so found a goblet filled with gold for his father. He then looked around for something to give to his mother. His mother was fond of diamonds and rubies the most, although she did have a few sapphires as well.
As he looked around, he spotted a treasure chest, overflowing with jewellery. Delighted, he ran through the gold, and opened the treasure chest, wondering briefly if it was wizard pirates who had placed all of this here. He placed his hand inside the chest and withdrew it, holding a lovely silver diadem with a ruby set into it.
However, it was the sort of present his father would give to his mother, not him.
So, he placed his hand back inside the chest, and felt something like a velvet jewellery box. He pulled it out, and opened it. Inside was a beautiful diamond necklace, and under it was a piece of paper that read "Thanks for everything that you've done for me, Mother."
Draco smiled, knowing that he'd found the perfect present for his mother. Taking the gifts in his arms, he headed back towards the door, and found a basket, obviously for the presents.
HPHPHPHPHPHP
Once outside the cave of amazing jewellery, Draco looked at the next door, which had a picture of a candy cane on it. Clearly this cave is filled with sweets and chocolate, he thought to himself, and opened the door to discover that he was absolutely right.
Had Draco known about the invention of movies, he would have said that it looked something between the chocolate room out of Willy Wonka and a sweet shop. For there was a valley of trees containing sweets, but each branch was hollowed out with cakes of chocolate inside.
He looked down at his watch, and discovered that it was ten to one. He knew that he wouldn't be able to see all the rooms, but he could always come back, maybe with his parents.
He collected several types of confectionary, including ice mice, white chocolate wands, strawberry brooms, and several cakes of chocolate, including amethyst orange.
Just then, he realised how incredibly thirsty he was, and noticed a river of chocolate with a mug beside it. Licking his lips, Draco scooped the mug into the chocolate river, and sipped the brown liquid. It was creamy, as if some big gigantic bottle of cream had tipped into the river. He closed his eyes, feeling happy and contented.
When he reopened his eyes, he discovered that it was half-past one. So he left the chocolate room with his goodies, and headed towards the entrance. As he reached the opening of the entrance, he noticed a book with a set of colouring quills.
Curious, he looked inside the book and realised that the pictures were of the things he had seen inside and outside the cave.
Delighted to have pictures to keep of his wonderful morning, Draco attached the basket, now filled with the book and quills, to the front of his broomstick, and set off for home.
HPHPHPHPHP
Draco's parents were very interested to hear Draco's story, and they were delighted with their presents.
"Draco, you are the best son in the world," they said together, and Draco had to agree.
"You'll have to take us there one day, and we can all see the other caves, too." His mother said, and Draco said "Of course I will."
AN: Should I write a sequel?