Common

She accepts his compliment with quiet grace, her gaze dipping breiefly towards the ground before lifting once again. When she peers at him from beneath her lashes, Draco finds himself staring without really meaning to. It may be an uncouth thing to do, but he cannot seem to help it. There is something in her composure that somewhat unsettles him in a way he does not dislike. Many of the mares in his care were bold, sharp-tongued and hot-headed, temperamental and capricious and confident. He admires those traits and is all too happy to meet them with his own fire, to disarm them with his brash wit and a flash of cocky charm.

Yet this mare - with the gentle curve of her lips, the subtle sparkle in her eye, the softness with which she speaks - awakens something unfamiliar in him, a deep urge. Not to conquer, but to coax. Not to overwhelm, but to carefully draw her closer. For once, he does not rely on his swagger alone. She seems the sort who would place far more value in something more subtle, something sure and steady, if the way she speaks of her desires is any indication.

Then she speaks again: 'If you can tell me you are those things, Draco, I shall give you my name in return.'

A slow smile curves its way across his dark lips. Perhaps she is not as demure as he thought her to be, if she is wont to play such games. Yet it only serves to intrigue him more, a soft huff of laughter, low and warm and amused, escaping him.

"I can tell you with confidence," he replies, chancing another step towards her, then another, until their noses nearly touch. This close, he can feel the warmth of her, can breathe in the scent of her, can look deep into her eyes as he says, "that I am all of those things, and more." Draco's amber gaze drifts over the delicate lines of her face, lingering particularly long on the curve of her lips in the hopes he might see her smile again.

"They say actions speak louder than words, though, so why not give me an opportunity to prove it to you? To show you that I would give you anything you ask for and then some?" Because he would, if given the chance. Draco may not wholly own the Hills, his claim on it may not be ironclad, he may not be able to offer her lofty titles or political clout, but what he could offer was no less substantial. Loyalty. Fierceness. Protection.

A family, if she desired it.