Disclaimer: Anything you recognize belongs to J.K. Rowling.
Prologue: Beginnings
He wasn't impressed with her the time first he met her but he wasn't interested in women at the time.
The scars from the Second Wizarding War were still fresh, open. At twenty-two he should have already closed that chapter of his life but he is not ready. He does not have the kind of support he needs to fully purge himself of his sins and guilt.
His parents do not understand.
He deflects the dates his mother tries to set him up on and ignores his father's persistent questions on what he's planning to do with his life.
Draco Malfoy simply does not know. He does not have any answers and finds himself searching for them, seeking them out desperately in all the places he can. His new job as a potioneer for the Ministry fills him with great pride but something is still missing.
There is a hole inside of him that needs to be filled but he does not know how to fill it.
It is because of this feeling he agrees to go on a date. Just one. He does not expect much to come out of it. He does not think he will have a good time but as he stands in the doorway with the sun shining brightly on the young woman he has just taken out he recalls their easy conversations. The fleeting feeling of something waking up inside of him.
The need to know more.
She is not breathtakingly beautiful. She looks like an average young woman with thin pink lips and deep blue eyes that remind him fleetingly of the ocean. Her nose is small and cheekbones are sharp. If she were to lose any of the fat on her face she would look skeletal. Her brown hair does not match her dark brown eyes but he finds he doesn't care. He likes her more because of her slight flaws.
He finds it strange he never realized her at Hogwarts. She was only two years younger than him, same house, but they were not in the same social circles.
"I had a nice time," he murmurs, trying his best not to let the smirk that is threatening to appear on his lips show.
His best friend Blaise told him it makes him look creepy. She grins and giggles at his words, though he hasn't said anything funny.
When he first met her he thought her giggling was annoying. A girl that giggles is afraid to reveal her real laugh.
"You sound surprise. I should probably be offended but I'll let it go for just this once."
Her voice is soft and playful. Now, he can't hide the smirk. It appears involuntarily but she doesn't cringe at its appearance. Her cheeks flush as he brought his hand to her face and brushed a piece of her platinum blonde fringe out of her blue eyes. Her hair is much too blonde for it to be natural and normally he would make a comment but at that moment he does not care what is real or fake.
The sun is shining on them but there is a cool breeze that makes her shiver visibly but she doesn't complain like other girls would. Her shoulders are exposed. The dress she is wearing isn't made for the cool spring weather. At first he minded and mumbled to himself he would have to offer his cloak to her but she never asked and now he wishes she would have so her scent would linger on him for days after their date.
"Will I see you again?" he questions, impatiently waiting for her answer.
Her lips curve up into a smile and he wants to press his own against hers. He fights the urge to cup her face with his hands or to push her small body towards his, letting his fingers trail up her thigh and pull up the sky blue dress she is wearing that is too long for his taste. He stops himself and instead presses his lips against her cool forehead.
It is quick. It is faint but they stand at the doorstep grinning at each other like love struck fools.
She smells like vanilla.
"I don't know," she says, shrugging her shoulders. "Will you?" Coyness does not work for her because the answer is written clearly on her face, yes.
He nods his head and runs a nervous hand through his shaggy blonde hair.
"Yes."
He is not in love. It is too soon to jump into a relationship but as she thanks him and shuffles inside, closing the door slowly behind her he finds he would like to see her again.
His thoughts quickly change to the piece of parchment that sits at his desk at home. His best friend, Blaise Zabini, is in Spain on holiday but he needs to speak to him now. His emotions are too foreign to him he cannot keep them to himself.
Blaise,
I met a woman. She is…
But as he walks away from her doorstep and down the graveled pathway he realizes he does not know how to define her.
She is a pureblood. She went to Hogwarts and has a sister, Daphne, who likes to meet men in the Leaky Cauldron, men who had been effected by the war and broken down to a certain degree they didn't realize they were being used. A pawn in a game she calls life.
Draco has never been a man of many words and later he will find himself telling his mother about their date. He will mention the conversation and how the food had gotten cold because they had not realized they were served since they were too busy talking and enjoying each other's company. He will have to stop himself when he realizes he is about to tell her about the urge he had to kiss her and will excuse himself to his bedroom.
Before he lays down on his bed and wrinkles his black duvet he will stop at his desk. The parchment will be waiting for him and he'll dip his feathery green quill in a pot of black ink.
Blaise
He will write quickly in a loopy cursive, smudging the name slightly with the side of his hand, not bothering to let the ink dry as he continues.
I met someone. Her name is Astoria.
One line. Simple. It is all he needs to say to explain his feelings for her. He will fold the parchment and keep it on his desk, not bothering to summon an owl and send it off.
It will be in that moment he will realize his heart beating in his chest at a louder pace than normal. A funny feeling will rest in his stomach, a nervous but natural one he knows but rarely feels.
For the first time in a long time Draco Malfoy is happy.
Author's Note: This was my NaNo project from 2012. I finished the entire story in 12 days. I hope everyone enjoys it since I never posted anything besides this prologue. I will be posting the other chapters so stay tuned.
As a side note: This story will be focused more on the emotions. Each chapter has a 'memory' that starts and ends the chapters. The rest of the chapters are broken into sections. It sounds confusing but hopefully you'll see what I mean. It was kind of a different way to challenge myself when I was writing.
Thanks for reading and don't forget to review.