Come What May || Draco X Reader (18+)

1 | Neighbors

You stared out the tinted window as the car drove through miles and miles of lush green scenery.  Rolling hills dotted the landscape against the afternoon sky. As beautiful and distracting as it was outside, you couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that continued to grow inside you as you traveled to your new home in Wiltshire.  Along with your mother and father, you had been traveling for hours having taken no-maj transportation from California to New York and onward to England.  Traveling just seemed to add to the exhaustion, both physically and mentally, from the worry that constantly ate away at you.

You looked up and narrowed your eyes at your father who was currently nodding off.  Honestly, what could have been going through his head when he decided to travel by train through the states, only to board a week long cruise ship across the Atlantic Ocean?  What was wrong with floo powder? Portkey? It was like he was purposely torturing you by making you sit in one spot for hours contemplating on different excuses you could use to keep yourself from attending a new school.

You were to go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a fantastic school by all standards. You heard lots of rumors about the school and the students in it, but then again, who hasn't?  It was an elite school surpassing Ilvermorny where you had attended the last six years. From what you heard, Harry Potter – a boy who survived an attack from you-know-who – attended Hogwarts. You had seen a picture of him once and thought he was quite attractive with his messy black hair and soft green eyes.  Maybe if you were lucky enough, you could end up meeting him and possibly befriending him. But other than Harry Potter, you didn't know much about the school itself. Besides the few paragraphs mentioning it in the popular Witches 13 teenage magazine that American girls swooned over, you never gave Hogwarts much thought until you were suddenly accepted as a transfer.

You sighed and switched your attention back to the scenery. The knot in your stomach made you feel like throwing up. You weren't going to deny it, you were scared as hell. So what if it was your last year of school? You knew no one there. You would be the new girl, something you never wanted to be. Here you were in an entirely different country where you wouldn't know where the nearest coffee shop or bookstore were. How were you supposed to survive in a new school? You gave yourself two weeks before you would start whining to your parents to ship you back home. Literally.

You closed your eyes momentarily, drawing in a deep breath and then releasing it before opening your eyes to look out the tinted windows once more. The once open green fields and hills that you had grown accustomed to seeing were now hills covered in thick patches of tall, dark trees.  After five minutes or so, you noticed a handsome, but dark manor grow in the distance.  Your mouth opened in awe as your car passed the wide driveway leading up to this glorious estate that was closed off by a pair of wrought-iron gates. Seeing that particular manor made you realize just how far away you were really were from your American home.

As soon as the dark manor was out of sight, the car turned right. Passing a pair of iron gates, the tall hedges disappeared revealing your gorgeous home that was hugged by a forest of trees and accented with large fountains. The front of the manor was covered in vines up to the second floors with huge golden trimmed windows that seamed to gleam brightly as they reflected the sun.  It was unlike anything you had ever seen.  All your worries and fears suddenly melted away as your mouth opened into a grin.  The car slowly came to a halt in between one of the fountains and the steps leading up to the front doors of the manor.  Your driver quickly came around and opened the back doors for you and your family.

"It's so beautiful! Is this really our home?" You asked as you took your driver's gloved hand and eagerly climbed out of the car.  You ran to the base of the front steps and turned around, grinning at your parents. You felt like a child given a new doll house.

"Of course!" Your father chuckled. "I figured that if we're going to be starting anew, why not live in style." You watched as your father held his arm out for your mother to take and led her up the steps to the front door.

As you stood on the steps, you looked out over the fountains and trees into the distance. You could see the pointed roofs of the dark manor in the distance and felt the excitement of your new home slowly slip into the back of your mind.  For whatever reason, the dark manor had piqued your interest. It was almost as if it was beckoning you.

You glanced behind you to see your parents had disappeared into the house. Turning back around, you gazed over at the dark manor again, finding yourself taking a step down the front steps, and then another. Without realizing it, you were soon walking back down the driveway. Once you reached the iron gates which opened automatically once you approached, you walked to where your driveway met the main road and peaked around the corner.  No cars, no pedestrians. Just the dirt road bordered by tall yew hedges.  You glanced once more towards your home. With no sign of your parents, you smiled to yourself and walked down the road towards the dark manor.  All you really wanted was a better look at it. 

With a slight skip to your walk, you walked until the hedges parted revealing a wide gravel driveway that led up to tall black wrought-iron gates.  From here, you could see the true beauty of the gothic inspired home with its pointed roofs.  You knew you were being nosy as you peaked around the hedge up at the manor, but you were curious as to what type of people your "neighbors" were.  Were they no-majs? Or were they magic folk?  Purebloods?  Halfbloods? Would you ever get a chance to see them?

The sound of footsteps on gravel behind you cut off your train of thought. You gasped and quickly turned around to find yourself staring up into a pair of pale-blue eyes, framed by platinum blond hair and pale skin.  He was dressed in a black suit that seemed to be tailored perfectly for his body. He stared at you first with confusion, but his expression quickly melted into an intense glare.

Who was he? How long has he been there? Oh Merlin, does he live here?

"What business do you have standing here? Who are you?" He spat as he looked you up and down, making you feel self conscious. He suddenly took a step toward you, his height making him loom over you. As intimidating as he was, you couldn't help but notice how handsome he was as you gazed up into his face.

"I—I'm (Y/n). (Y/n) (L/n). I've just moved in down the road. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude!" You took a step back, your heart racing loudly in your chest. He stared down at you, his brows turning up slightly in confusion.

"(L/n), you say?" He scoffed as he walked past you into the driveway of the dark manor, purposely shoving into your shoulder as he did. This caused you to furrow your brows and whip around to look at him.

With a small smirk plastered on his face, he said, "I wouldn't wonder too far from home if I were you, (L/n)."

You had just opened your mouth to respond when your ears caught the sound of angry shouting in the distance.

"(Y/n)!"

Your eyes widened as you looked down the road to see your father in the distance.

Looking back up the driveway, your eyes darted around but found no sign of the guy you were just speaking to. You bit your lip in slight disappointment. You were confused as to who he was, but confident that he lived here.  You took one last look at the beautiful dark manor before rushing back down the road towards your home.

[Note: Your manor is pictured above.]