Chapter 14

Malfoy Manor

Abner, one of the Malfoy's house elves, approached Aeris, who was curled up on the floor of the parlor. The tiny elf lowered his large ears and frowned as he listened to her sobbing and coughing. He placed his small hand on her gold hair and started stroking her calmly. Her body trembled as he continued to try and soothe her.

"Please don't cry Miss Aeris. Abner will help you," he told her quietly. Aeris propped herself up on her elbows and looked at him through the clear tears that lingered on the brims of her eyes.

"Nobody can help me, Abner," she cried. "I'm alone. I'm a monster and I'm going to marry that foul boy tomorrow." Abner's eyes showed that he was just as upset as Aeris was.

"You haven't even seen foul yet," Draco angrily said as he entered the room. Abner started to shake as Draco laid eyes on him.

"You! Leave us before I have your head!" Draco demanded as he screamed at the small creature. Still frightened, Abner looked to Aeris before stepping in front of her.

"Abner is not going to allow you to harm Miss Aeris," he told Draco as he held his arms out to his sides. Draco drew back his hand, and as he began to swing, Aeris pushed Abner out of the way.

Aeris knew what she had done. She had moved Abner out of Draco's line of fire and placed herself right in it. As his hand swung through the air, she waited for the impact of his hand against her face. She fell backward when Nagini snapped between the two at the very last moment with Draco's hand in her jaws.

Nagini released him when he yelled in pain and hissed. Abner had grabbed onto Aeris' arm as Nagini slithered toward them. Unaware of what was going to happen next, Aeris scooped him up into her arms like a baby and held him against her chest, his small head bobbing forward as her heart beat hard in her chest. Draco gripped onto his wrist as his hand started to bleed while Nagini wrapped her body around Aeris in a protective manner.

"What are you doing?" Aeris asked her without realizing she was speaking parseltongue. Nagini glanced at her for a brief second, then focused back on Draco.

"You're not married yet, so somebody has to protect you. I may not like you but I'll be damned if I let little Draco Malfoy lay a hand on you," Nagini replied. Draco starred at Aeris with a look of fear in his eyes.

"I wasn't going to hit you if that's what she thinks," Draco said as he nodded at Nagini. Aeris narrowed her eyes at him.

"But you were going to hit Abner, a creature ridiculously smaller than you and completely unarmed," she pointed out. Draco scowled at Abner who was still nestled in Aeris' arms.

"Aeris, you must understand that there are classes in this world," he began. "House elves are filthy creatures. They may as well be worms that live in the dirt outside." Nagini uncoiled herself and Aeris stood up after placing Abner on his feet.

"Then there is something that you must understand Draco," Aeris started as she walked toward him. "I am the daughter of a half-veela and a wizard, who just happens to be a very powerful horcrux as well. If we are so concerned about social status, then I believe you're in no place to pass judgement on anyone."

"What do you mean by that?" Draco snapped, appalled at the way she was disgracing his family name.

"Well Draco, in my eyes you could easily be the dirt that worms live in outside," she told him as she poked him in his chest with her finger. He sneered down at her as she kept her eyes locked with his.

Draco wanted to defend himself but there was simply nothing that he could do. He knew better than to get Aeris angry and he did not want Nagini getting in his way again. He was mainly frustrated at this point because he wasn't even going to touch Aeris when he entered the room but that damn elf got in his way. Draco was pulled from his thoughts when Aeris grabbed his bleeding hand.

"Abner, could you heal this?" Aeris asked her small friend. Abner nodded before walking over to the two.

Draco tried to pull his hand from Aeris' grip, but she gave him a stern look and he stopped. He crinkled his nose as the small elf held Draco's hand in his and a pale yellow light covered them. Moments later Abner let go of Draco's hand and the wound was healed. Draco kept his narrowed eyes on Abner.

"Well, it looks like you owe Abner now," Aeris pointed out. Draco sneered at her.

"Shake hands, boys," Aeris ordered. Back in her world, shaking hands meant a bond had been made. She watched as they unhappily did so.

"Good. Now, why are you here Draco?" Aeris asked after clearing her throat. Draco looked at her tear-stained face.

"I wanted to see if you would spend some time with me today," he said as he looked away from her, a bit embarrassed. Aeris raised her eyebrows.

"Really?" she asked. Draco nodded as his cheeks turned a shade of light pink.

"Okay," she told him with a shrug. Draco motioned for her to follow him out of the room and she did.

Nagini hissed at Abner, making him jump, before she slithered out of the room as well. Abner held his tiny hands over his heart and smiled to himself as he closed his eyes. He could still feel Aeris' heart beating even though she was now gone.

"Miss Aeris is a good girl," he told himself happily before returning to the kitchen.

Aeris followed Draco through the hallway and out into the backyard of the Manor. She squinted her eyes as they adjusted to the intense sunlight and looked around. This backyard was more like a meadow connected to a forest. She watched the tall, green grass sway back and forth in the breeze as Draco inhaled deeply beside her. Draco moved to a small wooden box that was sitting on the back patio and pulled a black and green broom out of it.

"What is that?" Aeris asked. Draco smirked.

"This is a Nimbus 2001. It's a really fast broom that my father bought for me when I joined the Quidditch team at Hogwarts," Draco explained proudly as he mounted the broom.

"So what are you doing with it now?"

"I was hoping to take you on a ride," Draco admitted. "You see, I need to speak with you in private and the place I need to do that is pretty far away. This would be the fastest way to get there." Aeris could feel her palms sweating as she imagined falling from the broom.

"I'm not sure about that," she told him. "Besides it looks like only one person is meant for that broom." Aeris did not want to tell Draco that she was actually afraid of heights.

"You'll be fine. Just get on behind me and hold on." With a gulp, Aeris nodded and mounted the broom behind Draco.

As Draco kicked off slowly Aeris instantly grabbed him around his waist tightly. Draco chuckled to himself as he could feel her heart beat against his back. He lifted them a bit higher into the air and Aeris' fingers twisted into his dark green t-shirt. Draco grinned to himself before shooting forward, flying the two of them through the air.

Aeris had her eyes shut tightly at first and when she decided to open them she gasped. She watched as they passed over the green tops of numerous trees, her heart beating as fast as it could. As she watched their shadow chase them on the leaves, she smiled. As unbelievable as it was, and as impossible as it sounded, she was on a broom and flying through the air. Without realizing it, she rested her face against Draco's back.

Draco looked over his shoulder slowly and looked at Aeris. Her eyes were locked on the scenery below them and he smiled to himself. He returned his attention to what was in front of him and he felt his heart growing heavy. His smile faded as he thought about the way he had treated Aeris earlier. Maybe she was right about him. Maybe he was no better than dirt.

As he tore himself up inside, he started to lower the broom into a clearing that was hidden deep within the forest behind his Manor. He planted his feet firmly on the ground and nodded at Aeris, assuring her that it was safe to get off the broom. As she climbed off Draco dropped the broom onto the soft grass below.

"Is this the spot?" Aeris asked as she looked around the clear area. Draco nodded as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yes," he told her. "I come out here everyday. It's secluded enough that no one will bother me. It's nice to just get away from everything sometimes." Aeris turned toward him.

"What exactly are you trying to get away from?"

"Everything." The two starred at one another for a moment before Draco ran a hand through his blond hair.

"Aeris, I wasn't going to harm you back there. I know it may have seemed that way when I came into the room all angry and whatnot, but you need to know I wasn't going to," he told her, his tone serious. Aeris waited before replying.

"You have a frightening air about you, do you know that?" she asked after sitting down on the grass.

"I wouldn't say frightening. Arrogant would fit me better." Draco sat across from her on the ground. Aeris gave him a small smile.

"Are you ready for tomorrow?" Aeris began plucking the grass from the ground. Without meaning to, Draco began to do the same.

"Absolutely not. What about you?"

"Nope." The two sat silent for a few minutes as they pulled the grass out of the Earth.

"I want you to know a few things," Draco said nervously. "I know I'm not really a nice guy or anything, but I'm going to take our marriage seriously. I promise I'll keep you safe and I'll try to make sure that you are comfortable and happy." Aeris looked through her long, black lashes at Draco.

"I believe you," she told him. "I forget sometimes that you were thrown into this relationship too. I haven't exactly been the most warmhearted person so far either. Maybe we will figure out how to actually become friends." Draco looked to her with a small smile now.

"I think that's possible. You need to keep calling me out when I'm being a jerk, and I'll do my best to stop you from being that frightening veela monster." Aeris winced a bit at his choice of words.

"I wish I could control that side of myself," she admitted sadly. Draco watched her for a moment before standing up.

"You have to learn to walk before you can run," Draco reminded her. Aeris nodded up at him.

"Hey," he said as he rubbed the back of his neck. Aeris raised her eyebrows in response.

"Would you, I dunno, wanna learn how to fly?" he asked her as he grabbed his broom again. Aeris smiled before getting to her feet.

"Absolutely!" she told him, beaming with excitement. Draco handed her his broom and chuckled when he noticed it was almost taller than she was.

"Alright, now just put one leg over the side of it, right just like that," Draco began to instruct as Aeris did what he told her. "Now I'm not sure if you'll be able to get off the ground seeing as how you've had no magical training, but we can try." Aeris held onto the broomstick with both of her hands tightly.

"Now I'll help you get steady," Draco told her as he mounted the broom behind her. Aeris felt her cheeks grow hot as he placed his hands on her hips.

"Okay, rest your heels on the stirrups," he told her. Aeris did as she was told and before Draco could speak, the two flew into the air.

Draco was caught off guard by the speed of the leap into the sky and wrapped his arms around Aeris' waist tightly. He hooked his legs around hers so he was not dangling off the back and watched Aeris with wide eyes as she flew through the air expertly. Aeris started to laugh loudly as they flew in circles and Draco joined in. He was impressed with her skill.

"Aerie, you're a natural!" he told her as his blond hair blew in the wind. Aeris smiled to herself when he called her by her nickname.

After a few more minutes in the air Aeris took the broom back to the clearing. Without letting her feet touch the ground she flung her body over the side and skipped around excitedly. Draco stood, mounted on the broomstick and watched her with a confused grin as she threw her fists in the air and jumped up and down. He watched her a bit more closely.

The sun was shining on her long hair and her tan skin showed a few freckles on her shoulders that he had never noticed. He watched her thigh muscles tense as she jumped and he felt his heart growing heavier as he watched her remove her sandals. Her laugh flooded his ears and her smile filled his mind as he threw his expensive broomstick to the ground. He marched up to Aeris, lifted her into the air, and kissed her, hard.

Aeris was entirely taken off guard by his sudden outburst and pulled away slightly. It was only seconds before his lips found hers again and she gave in. Wrapping her bare legs around his waist and her arms around his neck, she kissed him back. She could feel his heart beat against her body and she smiled as it matched hers perfectly. Draco smiled as he kissed her as well, most likely realizing this.

She knew that this wasn't right. Aeris barely knew this boy and the part of him that she did know was not the type of boy that she should be with. Even though she knew that she should stop this she was unable to stop herself now. Draco's lips were sweet and she was hungry for his kiss. The more that she questioned her actions the easier it was for her to come to a conclusion. Draco was usually rude, foul, arrogant and mean, but she was a monster, and the two seemed to go hand in hand with one another. Draco pulled away from her slightly, his hot breath running over her pale bottom lip as he spoke.

"I want to learn how to love you," he told her, his cold eyes looking up into hers. Aeris starred down at him with wide eyes, unsure of what to say.

A/N: Just wanted to give a huge thank you to everyone that is reviewing this! I'm glad you're enjoying the story.