MMM: Hi everyone! Well, here it is as promised! The beginning of year 4! And as promised, some more events with the summer program between Anya and Draco! Hope you all like this!

Dislcaimer: Don't own Harry Potter. Wish I did.

Ch. 36 Malfoy Manor

Anya was stunned with amazement as she followed Draco and stepped out of the fireplace of Malfoy Manor. Everything about the place screamed majestic and wealth. Beautifully woven carpets, high class paintings, and well-detailed furniture was everywhere. Velvet curtains were pulled open, allowing sunlight in through the very high windows. It was all so amazing.

"Do you like it?" Draco asked, receiving only a nod for an answer as the American witch looked around.

And then her eyes landed on the two other people in the room. Lucius Malfoy stood near the fireplace, dressed in his usual black robes and his silver snake walking stick in hand. Anya surpressed a shiver at the cold glare in his eyes- no doubt directed at her. And standing beside him was who Anya guessed Mrs. Malfoy. Anya thought she was a very lovely woman with her long blond hair pulled back in an elegant twist and light blue eyes gleaming with a calmness that almost made Anya forget about the older wizard in the room.

"Hello dear," Mrs. Malfoy smiled, stepping closer to the two teens and extended a hand to Anya. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm Narcissa, and I'm sure you've met my husband before." She looked over her shoulder. "Lucius... come welcome our guest."

Mr. Malfoy walked stiffly over to the fireplace, grasped Anya's hand, and shook it once before releasing it. Anya could tell he fought the urge to wipe his hand on his clothes, just as she was doing. His handshake left an unpleasant feeling on her skin.

Instead, she smiled and politely nodded her head. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Malfoy. And Mr. Malfoy, it's nice to see you again."

The older woman laughed as she waved it off. "Please dear, just 'Narcissa' will do. After all, you are a part of this family for the next few weeks. And I must say, I feel as though I already know a great deal about you Anya. Draco has talked about you quite often."

Anya's brow shot up to her hairline and she looked at the youngest blonde with an amused smile. "Did he now?" she asked, silently chuckling at the blush that formed on his face.

"Oh yes," Narcissa beamed. "I must say, he never stops talking about you."

She then turned to her son with a smile. "Draco dear, why don't you show Anya where she'll be staying? And then maybe show her around the manor? I'm sure she'd love to see your music room."

"Yes mother," Draco smiled, holding his arm out for Anya to take. "Shall we?"

"Sure," Anya replied. And as she was about to take her things, a loud crack errupted behind her, causing her to jump. She turned on her heel and found herself faced with a house-elf.

"Pinky will take Ms. Collins' bags to her room," the house-elf squeaked and before Anya could protest, she took the three bags in hand and disappeared with another crack.

"That wasn't necessary," Anya stated. "I could have brought my things up to my room myself."

"We Malfoys do not do things ourselves," Lucius sneered. "How idiotic."

Anya ducked her head and quickly followed Draco out of the room, the door closing behind just as Narcissa began to scold her husband.

"Are you alright?" Draco asked Anya, the concern clear on his pale face. Anya nodded meekly as she wiped her at her eyes once she realized she had been crying.

'Oh, this is just great,' she thought bitterly. 'Not even five minutes here and I'm already wishing I was somewhere else. This is going to be a disaster.'

"Hey," Draco cooed softly, pulling Anya's hand away from her face and replaced it with his own. "It's alright. I'm right here beside you. It'll be alright," he said, pulling her into his embrace and gently stroking her hair. Anya sighed through her tears and hugged Draco closer, inhaling the calming smell of his cologne and hair gel and the subtle hint of gardenias.

Once Anya was able to compose herself, she pulled back. "Thanks Draco. I guess I'm just so use to doing things myself that it still seems odd for someone else to do it all for me. I still feel weird when I find my bed made and my laundry is done when we're at Hogwarts."

"It's alright," Draco repeated. Then he leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, causing Anya to blush at the show of affection. "Come on then, I'll show you the place."

,:~:,

Everything about the house was amazing. Anya's room was simply stunning with it's soft, moss green curtains and sheets, the rose-pattern in the iron setting of the canopy bed, and the perfectly polished marble fireplace in front of the two black leather arm chairs. The french doors that acted as windows led to her balcony where a magic staircase led directly to the garden. And her bathroom was bigger than the whole girl's dorm room in Gryffindor tower.

Draco showed her the library, the dining room, a spacious ballroom, the wine cellar, and even the old room that he said his mother had turned into his playroom as a child.

"And this is the music room," Draco announced as he opened the door.

Anya was stunned by all the different instruments in the room: a gold harp, violins, shining silver flutes, and a sleek black grand piano.

"Wow," Anya said in awe as she stepped into the room., her gaze danced over the instruments, taking in the splendor of it all. When she got to the piano, she sat down on the stool, her fingers hovering over the black and white keys.

"Do you play?" Draco asked her, and she shook her head.

"I tried when I was little, but I could never get it right. My fingers were too small, my feet couldn't reach the pedals, and I could hardly see over the keys," Anya laughed. But the laughter died on her lips when Draco came to sit down beside her and he began to play.

The melody was so sweet and calming that Anya could picture the very image in her mind. A grand ballroom filled with dozens of people, the most beautiful dresses she could ever imagine swishing around on the dance floor. A crystal chandelier hanging overhead lit the room with a soft lighting, adding even more beauty to the image. And Anya, dressed in the finest clothes as she danced with Draco.

"Would you like me to teach you?" Anya snapped out of her daydream to look at Draco. She blushed before giving a timid nod.

The next hour was spent with Draco showing Anya how to properly play the piano. At times where she got frustrated when she couldn't play the right notes, Draco would take her hands in his and guide her through it. More than once, Anya found herself leaning back into Draco's strong embrace. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him blush and smile to himself.

The sun was just setting when a loud crack sounded in the room. Looking up, the two teens saw Pinky standing by the doorway. "Begging your pardon, young Master Malfoy, Ms. Collins. But Pinky was ordered to find young wizards and announce that dinner was ready."

"Thank you Pinky. That'll be all," Draco said and the house-elf disappeared. "Shall we?" He stood straight and offered a hand to Anya.

"We shall," she smiled as she took his hand, her smile became wider when he carefully placed it in the crook of his arm and he led her downstairs.

,:~:,

Draco could sense that Anya was a little overwhelmed by the grandness of the meal. He himself was surprised when he saw what his mother had ordered the cooks to prepare: fresh lobster bisque, roasted fish with seasoned vegetables, tender fillet mignon, the best cheese spreads, and the most delicious chocolate mousse he'd ever tasted. It seemed that his mother had gone all out to help him impress the girl of his dreams.

"So Anya, tell us a little about yourself," his mother asked, sipping at her wine.

Anya looked down at her plate, pushing her food around. "Well, there isn't really much to talk about, I'm afraid."

"Well there must be something," his mother encouraged. "You're plans for the future? Personal interests? Friends?"

"Narcissa, really." Draco turned to the head of the table where his father sat. "If the girl doesn't want to talk, then do not pester her." Although he had been slightly nicer than he had earlier and apologized to Anya for his rudeness, it was obvious to Draco that his father was annoyed by the girl.

"Well... I have been thinking about pursuing a career as a healer," Anya spoke up. "I just think that there's a lot of things that could be done to help people and a healer is the most logical choice in my opinion."

"A healer? My, that sounds interesting." Draco smiled to himself at how quickly his mother had taken to Anya. "I'm afraid I could never have been able to work as a healer. I would become far too attached to my patients.

"Draco has said that he's wanted to study to become a musician." Draco almost spewed his drink when his mother turned the attention towards him. "I remember how he use to be so stubborn about his lessons. He was always fussing about how he didn't want to practice the piano or the violin."

"Actually, Draco had just been teaching me how to play the piano," Anya stated. "He's really good at it. I never knew he had that kind of talent," she added with a smile and Draco ducked his head to avoid blushing.

"Yes... but Draco does know that becoming a musician is hardly an ideal career choice," his father spoke up before taking a sip of his brandy.

"With all due respect Mr. Malfoy, the life of a musician is only difficult if one doesn't take the chance," Anya replied almost hotly.

"Young lady, I think I know my son far better than you will ever know him." The table soon grew quiet after Draco's father barked at Anya and the only sounds were the clinking of the silverware. A few minutes later, Draco's mother spoke up again.

"Draco darling, I know it's last minute, but I wanted to remind you that our annual summer party is tomorrow and I was thinking that maybe I should take Anya to town to look for a dress. You know, a little girl bonding?"

"That's entirely up to her, mother," Draco replied.

"Oh yes! Of course. How silly of me!" she laughed before turning to the younger witch. "What do you think Anya?"

Anya smiled. "That would be lovely Mrs. Mal- oops. I mean, Narcissa," she said, catching herself when she saw the amused look his mother gave her. "Thank you."

"It's not a problem, dear," the older woman replied with a smile. Then she stood up carefully. "Well, I think I might go spend some time in the sitting room. Lucius?" She held her hand out and waited until her husband came towards her and led her out.

"Draco? Do you think we could head up to the library for a bit? There were a couple books that I saw that looked really good," Anya asked.

"Of course." Draco was more than happy to please her. He was quick to cross to the other side of the table and escort her out.

"Your mom seems really nice," Anya commented. "Your dad... not so much. I think it has something to do with Dobby."

"You know Dobby?" Draco asked. "I haven't seen him in years! He was a really nice house-elf. Where has he been? "

Anya shrugged in response. "No clue. Back in second year, Harry and I... well, we kind of... set him free?" she cringed, as if waiting for shouting.

Draco would never- could never- shout at this angel. She was so kind and caring, it warmed his heart whenever he saw her kindness. "It's not a problem," he said with a smile.

"You know, I think mother likes you. She hardly ever goes shopping- she usually has the designers come to her," he changed the topic, hoping that it would make Anya feel more comfortable. It seemed of work.

Anya laughed. "I think it's cool. I mean... it gives me a chance to get to know her a bit better. And it also means that I won't have to stick around your dad too much. I'm sorry, I know that sounds terrible... but there's just something about him that creeps me out. I guess it's just because he doesn't like me."

"He rarely likes people. I doubt it's you," he replied.

"Yeah, sure." Anya didn't seem convinced. "To be honest, I'm not a member of his fanclub either. Forget it- it's a muggle thing," she added when she realized that he didn't understand her joke.

The rest of the evening was relaxing. The two teens spent a comfortable time of silence in the library; Anya sitting at one end of a long couch in front of the fireplace with her legs drapped over Draco's lap, reading out loud from The Tale of Beedle the Bard.

Eventually, Anya couldn't stop yawning and after some encouragement from Draco, she decided to go to bed.

"See you in the morning," he whispered to the tired girl.

"See you," she replied with another yawn before closing the door behind her.

MMM: Well? How was that?

AC: Holy shit! I thought I was going to faint half the time. Mrs. Malfoy seems to like me at least. And shopping? I'm not really one for it.

MMM: Well, you're going to have to. It's the next chapter.

Anyway, thanks for reading! Tune in same time next week! Don't forget to review!

Nancy (aka megamatchmaker)