What Lies Within

Over the next few days Sophie saw very little of Draco. He would appear only at meal times and then disappear somewhere, not emerging again until the next meal. It was driving Sophie insane, she had no idea what she had done to make him suddenly avoid her.

She spent her time outside, usually in the woods, exploring, or sitting beside the lake reading a book. She really had nothing else to do and it was getting lonely.

"So, Sophie." Narcissa spoke one morning at breakfast. It was four days until Christmas. "I was thinking that you and I could go into town today. We could do some shopping, grab some lunch, and then maybe stop by and see your mother. We could have a girls day, you do need to get out of this house." Sophie smiled at the woman from across the table.

"That sounds wonderful, thank you." Sophie told her, earning a smile from Narcissa.

"Wonderful, we shall leave in an hour then, once you are ready." she told Sophie, who nodded and went back to finishing her eggs. Sophie glanced up from her plate to see Draco watching her from his seat across from her. As soon as their eyes met he quickly looked back at his plate, making Sophie frown. What had she done?

After Sophie finished eating, finishing before any of the others, she excused herself from the table and went up to her room, quickly getting into the shower before she could upset herself anymore about Draco.

She was seeing her mother today! The thought brought a smile to her face but also a wriggling in her gut, as if telling her it wasn't such a good idea, that something was going to go wrong.

She pushed the idea from her head and finished her shower. After stepping out of the shower she wrapped a white fluffy towel around her and ventured out of the bathroom and to her large walk in closet that she had barely filled up as she hadn't brought much from Hogwarts. She finally decided on a pair of light blue skinny jeans, a black long sleeved shirt, and her black Doc Marten boots. Once dressed and back in her bathroom she dried her hair and used a curling iron to give her medium length auburn colored hair some natural looking waves. She left her makeup simple, only a little mascara. She was just finishing up when there was a knock on her bedroom door. She frowned and made her way quickly to the door, opening it to see none other than Draco standing on the other side.

"Oh, you've noticed my existence again?" She said, slightly rude. Draco sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, an apologetic look on his face.

"I've just had a lot on my mind." He told her. "I'm sorry. I came up here with a purpose though. My mother wanted me to tell you that unfortunately she has run into some business that needs to be taken care of and cannot take you out today." Sophie felt her heart drop when Draco spoke those words.

"Oh." She tried to control her voice and make it seem like she was unaffected by the news. "Alright then." She took a step back and made to close the door but Draco stopped it with his hand.

"I was thinking that maybe I could take you out shopping and do all that. We can still go see your mother, as well. If you want to. If you don't want to go with me that's fine, its just an offer." He spoke quickly. Sophie couldn't help but smile at him as she nodded.

"I would love it if you took me out, Draco." She told him, earning a grin in response.

"Brilliant! Are you ready?" He asked, making her nod. "Let's go then, my lady." He did a semi bow before holding his arm out to her, making her giggle before placing her hand on his arm. Together they made their way down the hall and to the stairs. Draco's mother was standing by the front door, slipping on her traveling cloak. She smiled when she saw the two walking down the grand staircase.

"I am sorry I can't take you, Sophie. Something has just come up." Narcissa said.

"It's alright, Narcissa, I completely understand." Sophie assured the woman, making a smile appear on her face.

"Good. I will see you two tomorrow." With that, she disappeared with a pop, leaving the two teens alone.

"So, shall we go?" Draco questioned her, making her nod. He lead her out to the front of the house where there was a red car waiting. When they were seated in the backseat and the driver began on its way to town, Sophie turned to Draco.

"Where did this car and driver come from?" She questioned, making him smile.

"Father got us a car for this Holiday in case we wanted to go somewhere, like now." He informed her, making her nod. They sat in silence for awhile before the car stopped in front of a large shopping mall.

"Do you have any muggle money, Draco?" She asked him as they got out of the car. He laughed and reached over to take her hand as they walked. Sophie couldn't help but think of how right this felt, walking hand in hand beside Draco.

"This isn't some muggle mall, do you honestly think my family would live so close to those people?" Draco spoke, showing Sophie the snobby side of Draco that she knew oh so well.

"Oh, right. Of course." She responded, rolling her eyes at him.

"So where to first?" He asked her, looking around at all the shops. She bother lip, trying to decide. Finally she decided on a store and pulled Draco inside.

They spent the next four hours going from store to store. Sophie tried on numerous outfits, asking Draco's opinion on them. Every purchase that Sophie wanted was bought by Draco, though Sophie argued with him numerous times that she could pay for herself but Draco simply ignored her every time. He even carried her bags for her.

"I'm hungry, would you like to stop for lunch?" Draco asked when they left yet another store.

"Yeah, sounds good." Sophie agreed so they decided on a small restaurant to go to. "Thank you for taking me shopping, Draco. I really needed out of the house." She told them once they were seated.

"Don't worry about it." He assured her. "Now, since I have been here and you haven't, I am going to order you the most delicious meal ever." He told her, making her laugh and nod. So when the waitress appeared Draco ordered himself a steak and Sophie some sort of cheese pasta dish.

"So, are you having a good day?" Draco questioned her, making her grin and nod. She truly was, it was so magnificent,spending so much time with Draco like this. Making jokes, smiling, laughing, and just relaxing. It was the first time since her father died that she had actually felt complete and it was all because of Draco. All because of the tall blonde headed man sitting across from her right now.

"I'm having one of the greatest days that I've had in a long time. I couldn't have asked for a better day, or a better person to spend it with." She told him honestly.

"Well the day isn't over yet." He said, smiling at her. It wasn't his usual arrogant smirk that everyone got to see, it was the soft smile that Sophie was coming to realize only she got to see.

"Can you believe that this is happening? That we can actually be friends like this? Who would have thought?" Sophie jokes, making him laugh and nod his head in agreement. Both of them were thinking the same exact thought though. That they should be more than just friends.

Small chatter continued between the two before their food arrived.

"This looks amazing, Draco." Sophie said as soon as the pasta dish he had ordered her was placed in front of her.

"Just wait until you taste it." He told her while taking a bite of his own food. She smiled and took a forkful of the food into her mouth, immediately emitting a noise of satisfaction as the cheesy deliciousness hit her taste buds.

"This is the greatest thing I have ever tasted." She moaned out as she chewed the food, making Draco laugh.

"I knew you'd like it. It's one of my favorite dishes here. Its so good."

"Want a bite of mine?" She asked him, getting a fork full and holding it across the small table to him. He grinned and took the bite,nodding in satisfaction.

"Just as good as I remember." They exchanged smiles before they continued eating. Soon enough the waitress returned to clear their plates and Draco ordered them a brownie ice cream dish for dessert.

"I don't think I can eat anymore, Draco." Sophie told him after he ordered it but he simply shook his head and smiled, knowing that one small bite of this will make her want more. And he was right. One bite in and she was once again moaning in satisfaction as she savored the deliciousness.

"That's it, you are ordering all of my meals from now on." She told him, placing her spoon down on the table, leaving the last bite for him.

"That good, huh?" He laughed as he scooped up the last bite.

"Amazing." She told him, rubbing her satisfied stomach.

"Here, you have the last bite." He held out the spoon to her but she shook her head.

"No, you go ahead, I've had too much." She told him but he just continued to hold the spoon out to her so she sighed and reached forward to take the ice cream and brownie from his spoon. The waitress returned to set down the check.

"I must say, you two are a very cute couple." The waitress told them before taking the empty dessert plate and rushing off before either of them could correct her. They exchanged a look and simply smiled, both of them blushing.

"Would you like to go see your mom now?" He asked her once they had paid and exited the restaurant.

"That would be lovely." She agreed so they went back to the car, putting her many bags into the boot of the car before sliding into the backseat,the driver quickly setting off in the direction of Hill Manor. The drive didn't take too long as the Hill family did not live that far from the Malfoy's.

"Nervous?" Draco asked her after helping her from the car.

"Yeah, a little bit." She told him honestly. He reached over and took her hand, lacing their hands together as they walked up the front steps.

"Well don't worry, I will be right beside you every second, I'm not going anywhere." He assured her. She leaned over to kiss his cheek, smiling at him.

"Thank you." She whispered. He smiled over at her softly, squeezed her hand, and then led her into the large house.

The front entry way was empty so they made their way down the hall towards the living room where they heard voices.

When Draco pushed open the door Sophie's blood instantly ran cold. Before her was all the answers to why her father was killed and why her mother refused to let her home for the Holiday.

Sophie clutched at Draco, feeling herself start to fall but he easily caught her, holding her against his body as they both looked on at the horror in front of them.