The journey was uncomfortable, to say the least, with little to no conversation. They took the Hogwarts Express and after that, they Apparated in front of the largest and darkest Mannor that Katherina had laid eyes upon. This entire thing didn't quite sit well with her. People making decisions for her had never been a position with which she was accustomed, even though at the time, it did seem like the most rational. It was barely past sundown when they had arrived and she caught sight of a house-elf in the corner of her eye, quick to hide from them.
She followed Malfoy in silence. Draco seemed excited as he ran ahead and opened the door. A woman was waiting for them in the hallway with her hair in two colors, both black and platinum, in a very strange, but pleasant contrast. She was pale and wore bright red lipstick. Katherina tried to read her and was slightly relieved to see a smile directed at her, even if it was subtle and polite - probably fake, but she couldn't tell yet.
"Mother! You wouldn't believe it - I was a hero today!" Draco began to brag as she stroke his head and rested her hand on his shoulder.
"Very well done, my dear! Before you tell me everything about it, let's welcome your friend into the Malfoy Manor. I'm pleased to see you have accepted our invitation."
Skeptical, the girl took a few hesitant steps forward. "Thank you," she mumbled. What invitation? Neither of the Malfoys told her a single word about this being an invitation.
"Please, come in, don't be shy. Draco has told us a lot about you." The lady gestured towards a large room with dark sofas and armchairs.
Katherina walked inside with small, careful steps. Her eyes immediately noticed the tens of candles lighting the room, gathered in metallic holders mounted on the wall and an exquisite chandelier in the middle. However, her attention was drawn away from the obvious luxury by a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf that covered an entire wall. Her eyes couldn't make out the titles, but she thought she recognized some of the spines from the library at Hogwarts. For a brief moment, Katherina forgot all about being in a strange place, in the company of two of the most powerful people in history from every point of view. She headed towards the bookshelf and followed its many levels, catching glimpses of titles and authors. There was an entire shelf with the books of Salazar Slytherin!
Lucius coughed as he took his usual seat in one of the armchairs, crossing one ankle over the knee and playing with his cane.
"Don't touch anything," he warned her.
The girl turned on her heel. What good to have such a treasure if she wasn't allowed to explore it?
"If anything sparks your interest, please let one of us know," his wife said in a much sweeter tone. Again, Katherina suspected it to be simply polite, hallowed of any true kindness, but she did appreciate the effort.
"I'm sorry," she mumbled as she returned to the sitting area. She sat down on the sofa closest to her.
Draco had a smug grin on his face. "Bet you're glad I'd beat you in Wizarding Chess now."
"I would like an explanation, if possible," she said softly. The girl felt like walking on eggshells while wearing war boots.
The woman looked at her husband surprised. "You haven't told her yet?"
He raised his eyebrows and Katherina could swear he looked disappointed for a second. "I thought she might have figured it out by now."
"Dear, I am certain you have a bright future ahead of you. Severus Snape had also confirmed your brilliance, among others - I believe you are acquainted?" When she nodded slowly, Narcissa continued. "Amadeus Caesarius had been a long time collaborator and friend of ours, and although not a wizard himself, many of his businesses were addressed to the wizarding world. I have spoken to my husband and I believe Draco will agree with our decision to have you at the Manor over the holidays and summers, facilitate your education, and when you will be both of age, welcome you into our family."
The boy looked from his father to his mother and back again. He had a look of confusion on his face.
"...I thought you wanted her here so you could take over those businesses of her father's," he said. "What's this you're saying, you want to adopt her?"
Narcissa smiled. "Not exactly. I expect you two to be married."
Katherina's eyes widened in surprise, while Draco cringed. He was quick to protest before the girl had a chance to even consider the idea and how it made her feel.
"Ew! I don't want to marry her!"
"Do you have any other suggestions, Draco?" his father asked in a way which suggested that indeed, there was no answer to his question.
Draco stood up. "I don't know! All I know is I can't marry a-!"
"A muggle-born," Katherina finished his sentence for him. "Although... Mr. Malfoy mentioned as we were about to leave that I should say my mother was a witch and my father, a squib. This, in turn, would make me a pure-blood."
"One of the half-noble origins," Lucius felt the need to add. "We, in this room, are the only ones aware of the arrangement. I will make it appear everywhere in the papers, officially."
"A few people at Hogwarts will still know," Katherina said. She couldn't bring herself to be her usual brave and outspoken self in front of this man.
Narcissa waved her hand as if to say it was some unimportant detail. "We can say it was all just a misunderstanding. The Avery family had certainly stained their name with the recent events. To cast out an illegitimate newborn does not seem beneath them, wouldn't you agree? When Draco wrote to us about your undeniable connection to them, I asked my dear Lucius to go through the archives and verify your lineage."
Crossing his arms over his chest, Draco threw himself back on the sofa and looked away. "Well, nobody asked me about this!"
"Draco, darling, you spoke so well of her... Certainly, you could find a way to accept each other."
Katherina bit her tongue. Putting Draco in his place in front of his parents couldn't bring her any favors. She still commented on his every word in her mind but tried hard not to let it show.
"You will also continue your education over the summer, Draco," his father informed him.
The boy forced himself to suppress the tantrum he was dying to throw. He had a million things to say, but he couldn't. Not to his father...
"...Yes, father." He lowered his eyes, studying the intricate patterns of the carpet he knew well enough to replicate in his dreams.
"Will you be a good host and show her around the Manor, Draco?"
He looked up at his mother, ready to refuse, then he felt his father's eyes commanding him to do as he was told. "Yes, mother. Come on." He stood up and waited for Katherina to follow.
The girl followed him with her head down while they were still in the presence of his parents, but as soon as Draco led her down the main hallway, she had raised her chin in the air again. The change was obvious for Draco as well - he had suddenly found his voice again.
"This is all your fault! Now my parents want to force me to marry you!"
Katherina stopped in the middle of the hallway. "How is it my fault, Draco? Did I run your mouth for you in front of your mother?"
"That doesn't matter!" he shifted his gaze. "Keep up the pace, will you?"
The girl caught up with him and held his wrist. "It does matter! Draco, what did you tell them?"
His gray eyes looked at her with anger and anxiety. "...That you won't leave me alone, that's what!"
She tried to read him while accidentally allowing him to see her concern creeping to the surface. "Honestly... I need to know what you told them."
A few moments had passed that way, in complete silence. Draco saw how serious she was and how her eyes were already sparkling in the same way they did whenever one of their Professors from Hogwarts asked a tricky question. She was usually the first to answer those, even before himself or Hermione, before anyone else in their year. Secretly, he admired her for this, but there was no way he was going to say it aloud. He might have let it slip to his mother, though... Might.
"We'll talk," he promised her in a hushed voice. "Right, so here's the kitchen - house-elves and servants territory. On the other side, there's storage, nothing too exciting. In that wing we're not supposed to go, that's where my father has his office, his library, and a few other rooms for discussing business. There's also a side corridor to that wing, a shortcut for the guests. On the first floor, we have a few bedrooms for guests, a game room-"
"Game room? What's that?" Katherina interrupted Draco as she followed him upstairs. Well, he probably knew the best time and place to discuss things. It was mandatory that they did and she hoped he understood this.
"Wizarding Chess, magic cards, and some muggle game with some colorful balls on a weird table..."
The girl smiled in amusement. "Pool? Your father likes to play pool?"
Feeling threatened, he eyed her coldly. "Do you find anything amusing?"
"Not really, just surprising. Let me guess - that room is off-limits, too?"
"Naturally." Draco showed her around the first floor. "Boring guest rooms... On the second floor, we have the ballroom and the music hall, but nobody's using those."
Katherina's eyes lit up. She went a few steps ahead of Draco to look into the music hall and caught a glimpse of a black piano, but Draco quickly closed the door.
"I hate it."
"Why?" The girl followed him, confused about his reaction.
"They made me go through piano lessons! I despised every second of it!"
"...I thought you liked music."
"Yes, I enjoy listening to it, not playing it!" Draco led her up yet another flight of stairs. "On the third floor, we have our quarters. These three are for close relatives when they come to visit; mine is across from it, and this is the study. I'm guessing this is where we'll meet our tutors. This library is free for me to use, but I've exhausted most of it by now. If you plan on keeping any of those books, try to beat me in Chess next time," he smirked as he launched the challenge.
Katherina rolled her eyes with a smile. "How generous of you. What's at the end of the hall?"
"That's my parents' quarters."
She nodded slowly. "So... where will I be staying?" It was getting pretty dark and the Manor was fading from gorgeous to creepy really fast. She had been spotting house-elves every here and there, although she couldn't tell yet if they were afraid of her since she was a stranger, or of Draco who... well, truthfully, he wasn't very decent with other pure-blooded wizards, leave alone muggle-borns or heavens-forbid, house-elves.
A door opened from one of the three doors that Draco mentioned were for the close relatives of the Malfoys and a house-elf disappeared behind it.
"I guess... I should take that as my answer?"
Draco rolled his eyes at her. "I thought my mother would have you taking one of these rooms. They're the best in the Manor, except theirs and my own, of course."
She walked in, looking around. It was dimly lit and decorated in dark shades. As she was about to say it, the candles lining the walls lit up magically and a soft warm glow showed her a very spacious bedroom with a floor-to-ceiling wardrobe on one side and a writing desk on the other, along with a full-size vanity and a standing mirror. Everything seemed trimmed in platinum, while gold was used for finer details. The furniture was rich mahogany and looked like high-quality massive wood, sculpted in intricate patterns.
The curtains of the bed, along with the carpet, throw pillows, sofa, and window curtains were a wonderful shade of emerald, contrasting with accents of white, pistachio, and silver. Her bags were already waiting for her there, on a tufted bench placed at the foot of her bed. She walked around for a bit, amazed by the royal air of her room.
"The bathroom is to your left. Why do you look like a muggle witnessing magic for the first time?"
Katherina went to check out the bathroom while keeping the conversation going. "Let's just say that my parents treasured each other before material things. We had a nice, comfortable house in the heart of Florence, and my mother loved to decorate with white, ashen grays, and pastels."
The boy made a face at her through the mirror of her vanity, through which he could see her in the bathroom. "Pastels?! Seriously?"
"Yes, and gold! Oh, and a lot of ruffles, bows, and lace." She ran her hand over the edge of the sink. "There's so much space in this Manor just for the three of you," she thought aloud. Katherina could see Draco in the room through the mirror in the bathroom. It respected the same warm and dark palette of greens, reminding her of the Slytherin house, or of the tropical rainforest.
"Hm..." Draco raised his eyebrows in the same way his father usually did. "Sounds interesting, minus the whites and pastels."
Katherina chuckled. "What, are you scared it would have burned your eyes?"
"Obviously!" Draco replied. He tried to seem serious, but he began laughing.
Author's notes:
Please follow, favorite, and review! Thank you, Ghostwriter71 for sharing your thoughts on this story. I really appreciate it and I have a feeling you will enjoy the next few chapters as much as I did. Writing the Malfoys is surprisingly not as difficult as I thought - I spent more time worrying than I should have. Anyway, I hope our visions overlap enough to make them believable.