Okay, so I know there are a lot of Draco/OC stories out there but I couldn't resist. I would appreciate if there were no flames because to be honest, there is no point in telling a writer that their story sucks. If you don't like the story, then it's simple: Don't read it. However, if you like the story and have constructive criticism, you're always welcome to leave a review. AND, if you like the story, then you should review :) For the disclaimer, the only characters I own are the OC that Draco meets and the OCs that fancy Seamus and George Weasley. Other than that, all other characters belong to the brilliant J.K. Rowling. This story is just to show how Draco started to change near the end of the epic series. I mean, he was always arrogant and cocky and many times an ass (pardon my language), but he also was very conflicted and I want to show more of that side of him, the more personal side of Draco rather than the side we see in the books.

Chapter Quote:
"Longbottom, if brains were gold, you'd be poorer than Weasley, and that's saying something."
~Draco Malfoy

Chapter 1

Draco

Snow swirled around Malfoy's feet as he walked into the Transfiguration Courtyard. He was ditching the dance. His date, Pansy Parkinson, had gotten mad at him for not paying enough attention to her at the dance and then pressuring him into being more than just friends. So he wasn't ready to have a steady girlfriend, and being distant from her, hanging out with Crabbe and Goyle, gave him the escape he needed to avoid such a thing. Draco intended to have a girlfriend one day, just not now, not with everything that was soon to happen, things he knew about, things no one else, not even the annoying Potter, knew.

He started playing the fight back in his head again and the more he thought about it, the angrier he became. So angry, in fact, he threw his wand across the courtyard. Draco regretted it instantly as he realized that sooner or later, he'd have to go get it. He opted for later. Instead, he sat on a bench and stared at the white ground, ignoring the cold atmosphere surrounding him.

Draco never even heard anyone approach him so he was incredibly startled when a soft voice said, "I believe this is yours."

He looked up. The girl was blonde, a darker blonde than his (which wasn't hard); however, it was golden and the moonlight gave her hair the illusion it was shining. She had green eyes… or were they brown? They seemed to change; no matter what color, they were set on a beautiful face, one that could look very young or very mature, making it difficult for Draco to tell how old she was She was wearing a champagne-colored dress that was in Grecian style, and it had one strap going over her left shoulder. On most girls, it would be considered borderline racy, but on her, she made it look sophisticated. Draco had never seen her before which meant he didn't know her name, how old she was, or what house she was in.

"Are you going to keep staring at me or are you going to tell me if this is your wand or not?" She queried with a slight smile.

Inexplicably, he blushed. "Yeah, that's mine. Thanks for bringing it to me."

"The infamous Draco Malfoy said thank you. Call the Daily Prophet!" she joked, grinning. A small smile emerged on my face.

"Do you always talk this much to people you've never met?" Draco queried, not trying to sound rude or impolite.

"No, sometimes I glare at them and walk away. Right now I'm finding it incredible that you're talking civilly to someone who isn't a Slytherin," she remarked drolly.

At that, Malfoy really did smile. "What's your name?"

"Ziva." She held out her hand for him to shake, which he did.

"What house?"

"Well it's either Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw."

"Thank you for the clarification," Draco grumbled.

Ziva sat down next to him, a conservative distance away but close enough to where the wind blew the scent of her perfume his way. It smelled rather delicious.

"Give me your wand," she ordered. Draco looked at her bewilderedly.

"For what?" he demanded.

"Honestly, it's freezing outside and unless you want to go inside where it's warm and risk your reputation by being seen with someone who is not in Slytherin house, I suggest you give me your wand so I can make us a small fire," Ziva explained without taking a breath. Hesitantly, he handed over his wand. She muttered two incantations. The first was Wingardium Leviosa to bring over a small pile of branches that had fallen off the tree on the opposite side of the courtyard. The second was Incendio to light the branches on fire. The warmth, although weak, was welcome. She handed back his wand and he pocketed it.

"If you won't tell me what house you're in, would you at least tell me what year?" Draco prodded.

"What does age matter? You don't talk to younger witches and wizards unless they're Slytherin," Ziva retorted.

"How do you know so much about me?" he asked incredulously.

"Sorry, I just hear things. And that deduction was just sort of obvious to me. I've never seen you speaking to a younger student unless they're Slytherin."

"I'm talking to you, am I not?" Draco countered.

She smiled. "But I have not yet said how old I am."

"I'm guessing you're younger than you look. Third year?"

"Correct. All right, enough about me. What are you doing out here sulking about?" she inquired, shivering. She had on a white wool shawl but otherwise, there was nothing else to keep her warm. Draco conflicted himself on whether he should give his jacket to her. He decided against it.

"Arguing with a friend," he merely replied. He wasn't sure why she was so interested in his problems. He was also wary not knowing what house she was in. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students he could scare easily into keeping quiet; Gryffindor, not so much.

"I'm going to assume it was a girl seeing how a fight with one of your guy friends would not upset you so much that you would walk out of the dance," she guessed.

"You're really freaky when you do that. You're like bloody Granger knowing everything," Malfoy muttered.

"I am top in my class," she admitted with a sheepish laugh. Draco didn't get why she was laughing but the spontaneity of it made him join her, if only by giving a chuckle.

"Listen, Mr. Malfoy, do not let one girl get you down like this. If you told me what she had done or said to make you this mad, I could give better advice but I won't prod."

"Thank you… hang on, what are you doing out here?" he questioned curiously. The idea had just now struck him. What was she doing out here? Had she followed him out here? That would be rather creepy. Or had they just coincidentally ended up in the same place?

"My date for the dance decided to snog with a girl that quite obviously wasn't me or else I wouldn't be out here. I ditched him," she admitted, looking into the fire. Draco watched as she quickly moved the hem of her dress away from the fire; the wind had blown the billowing fabric dangerously near the dancing flames.

"Hogwarts or Durmstrang?"

"Durmstrang. Many of them are cocky jerks," Ziva commented. They fell silent, just sitting there. It was a strange, surprisingly comfortable silence. He hardly knew this girl yet he liked talking to her more than most of the other kids in his house. Ziva was different than the other nuisances called kids that Draco attended school with. He knew, however, that they would most likely never speak to each other again after tonight. The thought seemed dreadful to him.

"I think I may turn in for the night. The night is not getting younger and the air is not getting warmer. It was a pleasure talking to you Draco," Ziva said kindly, standing up. Draco stood up as well. He extinguished the fire and told her, "I'll walk you back to the Grand Staircase. After that it would be best not be seen with each other."

She nodded but said nothing. They went to the walkway that was covered. Draco went right, Ziva went left. Confused, he asked, "Where are you going?"

"There's a secret passage this way leading to the Grand Staircase. Come on, I'll show you." She beckoned for him to follow her and he did without hesitation. Since when does Draco Malfoy listen to anyone but himself? Weird…

The two reached a portrait of a witch in blue robes with white stars scattered all over the garment.

"Chops and gravy," Ziva told the portrait.

"Oooh," the portrait moaned, "Yummy! You may pass Ziva."

The portrait swung open, revealing a dark, dusty tunnel. Ziva entered without hesitation. Malfoy looked over his shoulder to make sure no one was watching before following her. He pulled out his wand and whispered "Lumos!" as the passage door swung shut.

A light from the tip of his wand illuminated the passageway. Ziva led the way and in a matter of minutes, the two emerged onto the Grand Staircase three flights up which the Slytherin student found extremely awesome.

"I'll have to remember that," he mused, looking at the portrait again. He put out the light on his wand and faced Ziva. "It was a pleasure meeting you, I can honestly say."

"Feelings mutual. Good night, Draco." She turned around and headed up the stairs, instantly telling him that she was most likely a Gryffindor. He took the chance and yelled up to her, "You're a Gryffindor aren't you?"

Ziva looked down at him from the banister, winked at him, then continued her way up the stairs. She had said absolutely nothing. What a conundrum she was, Draco thought. He headed down the stairs, to the safety and comfort of his bed.

Like Draco had predicted, neither he nor Ziva spoke to each other again that year but the conversation had never left his mind; she hadn't either. They would pass each other in the hall every so often, and they would give the other a glance, acknowledging the other's presence, then continue on their way. Malfoy's friends never found out about Ziva, he assumed Ziva's friends never knew about him.

It was like neither of them existed to the other anymore.

Okay, so that was the first story. This isn't a one-shot by the way, it actually has a plot line. If you want to see Ziva's dress, go on my profile page and scroll down until you see a lot of blue and one of those will say "Ziva's Dress" just click on that.

I hope you enjoyed and I look forward to the next chapter!