Chapter 4

Draco popped back home with a sigh of bliss. His girlfriend was something… something absolutely special. Sometimes he tried to imagine what it would be like without her, really, what if they hadn't met then… strange thing, fate is… and it hit him so suddenly! They'd be happy together; he'd go today, in fact right now… It would definitely be a silver ring. He is going to ask her to marry him! They'd go to dinner and everything, he'd do it properly! He could just imagine himself standing on his knee, facing her, and producing a small velvet box from his pocket, her gasping in surprised happiness and tears glistering in her eyes, and then… then she'd say 'yes', without hesitation and she'd give him one of those kisses, driving him mad, wanting him to be a part of her, breath through her only…

And then as suddenly his memory flashed to another scene. Everything dark, a small room, more like a broom cupboard even, noise coming from outside of a great mass of people but here in the room, only hopeless sobs of a girl, struggling weakly but he was too strong for her…

"No! I don't want to remember… it didn't happen, it wasn't me… it's just a dream, a stupid dream…" he found himself collapsed on the coach after this flashback, skin slippery with disturbing cold sweat, same as last night. No, he just can't go on like this, he's starting a new life with Violette, he's putting this things out from his memory, his mind, his life.

He got up and went to the kitchen, where his already stone cold breakfast of cheese, toast, eggs, bacon and jam stood. Pouring some coffee into a cup, he sat down and tapped the cup and the plate with his wand absentmindedly. His jam began to boil. Draco cursed, coming back to reality, as hot sugary droplets fell on his palm. He tapped the bowl more accurately once again. He decided to stay focused on reality.

The rest of his breakfast went by quite peacefully and all the time he kept on thinking of Violette, his life together. How he is going to go to sleep with her beside him, and wake up to see her near him every morning, every day, for the rest of his life. Someday they are going to have kids. He wanted a girl first, he didn't know why; he just did, not as usually men want sons, no. A daughter would be nice. He smiled at that though. Even though at times he felt like a kid, he was still getting more mature, older, with every day of his life.

After finishing his lunch and cleaning the dishes (with a wave of his wand, what did you, guys, think!), he dressed and appearated at the Diagon Alley. First of all, he wanted to get a bottle of Butterbeer to celebrate the beginning of 'the big day'. Then he made a reservation in the fanciest, the most expensive and the most recent wizarding restaurant in whole London, even whole England. But his ring Draco decided to buy in a muggle store. He thought wizarding rings somewhat silly. It was a either a heavy ring with some unknown crest on it or it was shouting or singing stupid things. Once even, last Christmas, when looking for a present for Violette, he heard one imitating a muggle singer. It went something like, "Last Christmas I gave you my heart…" in wheezy voice, full of cigarette smoke. He burst out laughing right there in the shop and people, who examined the ring, obviously marveling at it, looked at him like he was a total lunatic and had no idea about expensive fancy rings.

So he came to a conclusion he's better of with a simple but delicate muggle ring. He was thinking of white gold encrusted with diamonds and some bigger stone in the middle. He walked about, sometimes briefly glancing at the shop windows, sometimes lingering a little longer.

He was standing at one of the fanciest counters, waiting for the salesperson to bring in the velvet pad with some of the rings he liked, when he glanced outside into the autumn street, which despite the warm night now gave away a mid September chill, and saw a little girl sitting just opposite the shop windows on a bench all alone. She looked about five years old, wavy brown shoulder length hair falling on her face but she didn't really seemed to notice or care, as the chilly breeze caught her locks, rattling them about and then dropping again to repeat the process after a couple of minutes. The girl was holding something in her hands, concentrating hard on the object.

"Sir…"

"Huh? What?" Draco's thoughts were broken by the inquiring look of the salesman, holding the glittering assortment of rings. "Sorry, I was just thinking… mm, I think I'll come by a little later, save those ones, will you?" he gestured carelessly at the rings and glanced outside. The girl was there, as still as before and as unnoticed by anyone.

Draco exited the jewelry shop and approached the girl. She didn't seem to notice him even when he sat beside her. Her frizzy brown hair covered her face but he finally saw what she was concentrating on. It was a little puzzle box, where you scramble numbers and then put them in the right order. The girl did that in less then two minutes. Draco was very surprised, for she was so young. He cleared his throat. Something gave him a very firm idea that she wasn't waiting for anyone but was, in fact, lost. He cleared his throat and opened his mouth to talk, but the girl's been there first.

"I do not talk to strangers", she said, not raising her head. Her voice had a childish note to it but the tone of her voice was of a serious grown woman. Draco was quite startled the second time in the last five minutes.

"I-I just thought that you'd need help, lost or something…" it was the first time he was so awkward, talking to a child. It felt weird.

"Well, I actually am", she said and raised her head, showing her face to him for the first time. She had a totally serious, unchild-like expression, but what struck Draco most, were her eyes. They were icy blue-grey, not hard, but such intelligence was lurking there that he was very taken aback. Besides, her eyes… so familiar… and the look of her face… though he couldn't recall that as hard as he tried… it definitely had something to do with his past, but how and what, he didn't know…

"I though you weren't talking to strangers", he said and smiled at her softly, somehow he couldn't bring himself to coo with this child, like he'd do with any other and he was totally positive that she hated being talked to that way anyways.

"Well, for a fact I know that you are a nice one", she said, but didn't smile. She was studying him thoroughly.

"Really? And how is that?" Draco smiled wider. He started to like this girl, very much so.

"I just do…" there was a faraway expression on her face now, a little frown but the seriousness still stayed, this made Draco's heart twinge. Lucky was the father of this marvelous creature, he thought, and sighed. If he had a daughter, he'd wish to have one just like this girl, so intelligent and beautiful, most probably like her mother…

"Excuse me, mister…" she was looking at him attentively.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Could you take me home, please? I thought of going myself but the thought of taking the tube, all those drunkards and maniacs, made me sit here, pretending to wait for someone. I was thinking about waiting for someone nice, here you turned up. I've already get rid of two. A woman, kind one but a drunkard, and a man, he had a shifty look to him, I say". She smiled there for a couple of seconds. So beautiful, thought Draco. He wanted right there and then to give her a hug I never let go. For moment he had a crazy idea to take her to leave with him and Violette but… he dismissed it feeling kind of stupid.

"So, will you?" She inquired again politely. "Because I just started to feel a bit chilly…" she inquired again politely.

He gave her a smile and nodded, "Of course I will but would you like a hot chocolate or ice cream first?"

She frowned and he thought she is going to dismiss him, saying he is a maniac, but she had different ideas, "Ice cream? At this time of year? Oh no, I wouldn't want to get sick with all these temperature jolts. You're a grown up man, having such ridiculous ideas, I am appalled". She turned away, as if mad at him, and gave an insulted sniff that more then ever reminded him of someone… he shook the ideas away.

"Okay, okay, calm, but I don't think chocolate will be too bad. C'mon", he said getting up and stretching his hand for her to take. For a moment she considered, looking him in the eye, but then lightened up with one of those amazing rare smiles and took it pleasantly. Draco felt all warm and comfortable. It wasn't hard to pretend that she was his daughter; after all, it felt like she was the one…