Draco was perched on the edge of the armchair with his eyes holding Elena's gaze in liquid steel. He watched for some sort of reaction from her, a twitch or any emotion. But Elena held up her poker face well considering all the strange sinking feelings she had from her fiancés admission.

Why did she feel disappointed? She had this theory that even though they were being forced into marriage, that he didn't dislike the idea as much as she did. She should feel pleased, relieved even but somehow she just felt saddened by it. She hated herself for liking him and for wanting him to like her. But of course she was just another girl to Malfoy. Another twisted game of cat and mouse until he got what he wanted.

She nodded, not giving her irritating emotions away but confirming that she had heard his blunt answer. 'No', he didn't want to marry her. He wanted independence as much as she did, although his need for acceptance from his father fuelled the agreement to marry her.

"You're quiet," he said, his voice laced with humour and eyes sparkling.

"I'm thinking," she snapped. After a tense moment of silence, she let her thoughts spill. "How much do you want freedom, Draco?"

"That depends on what having freedom entails," he replied, eyes hardening again as he straightened his back to lean into the chair.

"Well, it's all down to how far this goes."

"How far what goes? What are you scheming, Elena?"

Magdelena smiled mischievously, "I'm not scheming." What she had been planning was rather cruel in terms of betraying trust. She would be playing him at his own game.

"What are you smiling about?" he growled, losing his patience.

"I was planning on ruining our engagement." She answered, twirling a lock of silver hair around her fingers.

Draco laughed.

"And just how were you going to do that then?" He asked with sarcasm dripping from his drawling tones.

"I was planning on seducing you actually, Malfoy," she paused at his amused smirk, looking up from her snowy hair to catch his thoroughly amused smirk and quirked blonde eyebrow. "Don't look at me like that, it's easy! Want to see?" She teased before throwing her hair over her shoulder and composing herself.

"Now, would you like me to be Pansy Parkinson or Lavender Brown?"

"I'd rather you were neither, they're both insufferable." He groaned, eyes following Elena as she got up from the sofa.

"Come on, I know you and Pansy have-"

"Have what? Shagged? Don't you think that's punching a bit below my weight?"

"She talks about it like you have sex with her regularly."

"She wishes." He sneered. "No, I've not shagged Pansy."

"What about Lavender Brown then?"

"You think I'd lower myself to have sex with some self-righteous Gryffindor?" He scowled with his jaw clenched.

"Maybe not, but what about me?" Elena's made her voice turn raspy and light.

"You?"

Elena prowled towards him slowly, purposefully and Draco couldn't draw his eyes away. When she reached him she unhurriedly sank to her knees and looked up at him with a heated stare. She bit her lip gently before she let her hands trail lazily up his suited legs. She lingered on his thighs before teasingly smoothing them back down the insides of his calves and then back up moving closer to the junction of his legs with every movement.

She could hear his breathing become laboured and saw his hands fisting at his sides as he fought to keep his control. She leaned up closer to his face while her hands finally came to rest on his hardening length. Elena could feel the sweet heat of his ragged breath on her lips as she came tantalisingly close to pressing hers against his own.

All of a sudden she delved in, remembering things Pansy had told her that drove boys wild. She cupped his swollen shaft and traced the shape of it through his trousers. Bringing her hands together she began stroking the length of him up and down, surprised of the size of him.

She flicked her gaze back to his and found herself fascinated with the darkness his clear grey eyes. Elena loved seeing his eyes squeeze tight as she held and fondled with his balls through the fabric, she enjoyed seeing the expression on his face, and the way she had power over him.

Smoothly she lent down to press a soft kiss against his neck before whispering, "See Draco. I can seduce you."

He groaned loudly before bringing his hands up to tangle them deeply in her white mane, which curled down her back and shoulders around her, making almost a curtain around their faces.

Elena's jade eyes were bright and playful as she nipped his ear.

"You think I don't know how men work, but I'm far less naïve than you've been led to believe."

"Apparently so," he answered his voice taking a rough turn as he pulled her slim form down onto his lap where he grinded up into her round backside. She could feel his arousal press into her and it made her nervous and heat pool in her stomach.

"I think I've proven my point now, no need to take it any further." She warned.

"Not unless we want to," he whispered hotly into her ear before licking into the shell of it. Elena pursed her lips to stop a moan that threatened to escape from her. "You are so tense when you're on the receiving end, snowflake. Relax!"

Elena felt herself become as stiff as wood at the nickname.

"Draco Malfoy, I'm warning you. If you do not let me go I will blast your balls off."

He sighed before holding his hands up in defeat. Elena pushed away from the comforting yet very uncomfortable position against him and strode away from him, aiming to get as much distance as she could manage without having to leave the room. She stood by one of the bookcases, absently tracing her fingers over the spines of the books that lined the tall case.

"So, what do you plan to do now?" He said, breaking the strained silence between them.

"Honestly, I have no idea." She answered, taking a book from the shelf and reading the front. It wasn't a book she'd ever heard of or seen in the Hogwarts Library.

"Not the faintest idea?" He asked with a disappointed frown.

"Not anymore. I was just going to get you to like me and then betray you, so you would annul the engagement." She turned back to him, with the tome in her hand. "But apparently you'd have no say over whether we get married or not either."

He shook his head, "Not with the way my mother is talking."

"You're mother?" Elena sat back down on the chesterfield, liking the way the quilted leather felt against her bare legs.

"She said that we would need each other when the time came." Draco hated how everything was so vague and spoken in riddles nowadays.

"Now I think about it, my mother said something weird the night of the ball. She said that Voldemort would return this year at Hogwarts." Elena remembered her mother's soft words and haunted eyes. Her mother's visions were accurate and not to be ignored.

"How does she know that? The Dark Lord is long gone." Draco replied, trying to reassure them both.

"My mother is a seer, and a skilled one at that. Do you think they've have planned this?" Suddenly feeling slightly betrayed by her mother.

"I doubt it, but they might be trying to protect us by keeping us together." That was more likely, Elena had to admit. Her mother had said she would try to protect her.

Magdelena got up from the settee and brushed off her velvet skirt, which allowed a surprising about of movement despite the way it clung to her and its corseted back. She smoothed her silver hair that had become wild during her test of her seduction skills.

"Well, are you going to show me about the manor or sit here and dream of me touching you again?" She smiled, walking towards the door.

"You wish, snowflake. But if you insist," He got up from the armchair and joined Elena by the door, before continuing the exploration of Malfoy Manor.

Elena discovered there was only one entrance and exit to the manor and that was where she came in last night. She found the garden to be pleasant but not as spectacular as her mother's gardens at home. So, she found the most comfort in the library where she could read rare material and books to her hearts content, although unfortunately she had to spend such time with Draco.

Narcissa had asked Elena to accompany her out a few times, which was awkward but Elena loved getting out of the rather empty house. She had breakfast, lunch and dinner with the Malfoys every day and found that they weren't unlike her own family.

But as days went past Elena felt more and more like a bird in a cage, she knew that if the engagement went ahead that this would be her life. A life unfulfilled and boring.