AN: This is my entry for round eight of the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition. I don't know how fluffy this is, but I recently started shipping Blaise and Astoria and I really love what I wrote :)
Prompts - Crusiatus Curse, Beastly, The Poet to Death, by Sarojini Naiju, No letter J.
I do not own Harry Potter. Enjoy!
Right in front of the Slytherin's Silver trio, also known as Draco and Blaise and Theo, summer house there is a sea. The three own the part of the beach which is right next to the house, and you only need to walk through the back door to get there. However, right now the beach is dark and the only thing you can hear are the waves crashing on the shore. It is night, yet Blaise and I are walking towards the beach, only because he offered.
Blaise brought me here this afternoon, after I had another fight with my mother. She wants me to be with Draco, still, even though both of us explained her a couple of times that we are not a couple, or planning to be one. We are friends, good friends, but we are missing something to be lovers. My mother can't understand it, she thinks the missing part will appear when we'll try to be together, yet we did, which makes me want to use the Cruciatus curse on her.
And that is all I can think of while looking at the big black space, which are the sea and the sky in front of me. The Cruciatus curse. Daphne used it on me once, when she was going through a weird angry phase. I annoyed her by buying myself muggle clothes and she simply lost it, going on and on about what an embarrassment I am to her and things like that. I don't know what really made her angry enough at me to use that curse on me, but that year was a difficult one for her and she kept acting weird during it.
The blackness in front of me reminds me of the blackness I saw a few seconds into the curse. I thought I was going to die that day. Thoughts about all the things I wouldn't do because of my death ran through my mind, also because I tried to distract myself from the pain that got all the way to my bones. Blaise was in many of my thoughts during those moments and I hated the thought of being without him; we have many great memories together and we are good friends.
He drove here with me to make an opportunity for me to relax a bit and let go. Theo and Draco tried to help me and cheer me as well, but Blaise decided to do everything he can to help. We might be good friends, but lately he has been doing so much for me, so much more than before, and I think I know the reason. I do think that he has feelings for me, yet I rather not bring up the topic to him. I think that I am worried about causing more drama, even though I think I have feelings towards him myself.
Blaise's hand grips mine and he walks closer to the sea, making me follow him. His hand helps me walk through the sand, which becomes deeper a few steps later, but it might not be the only reason for him holding my hand. Those thoughts distract me as we walk closer to the big darkness, even though my eyes get used to the dark and I can see a bit clearer. I wonder what attracts Blaise so much in the sea, because all it makes me feel at the moment is fear.
Through the fear, I try to remind myself how much I trust Blaise and how he never fails to surprise me and make me smile. We also had a few heart warming moments, one of them was when he and Theo found out that Daphne used the Cruciatus curse on me. Theo laughed about Daphne's stupidity, but his laugh quickly turned to anger at her stupidity. He left the room about a minute after I told the two about what happened, leaving Blaise and me alone. Blaise gave me a long stare and I was sure he was going to kill my sister, until he reached out and hugged me. I hugged him back and reassured him that I was fine.
We stop walking, or more correctly Blaise stops walking and I stand beside him. I glance at him, mostly because I would rather look at him than at the sea. Whether he feels that I am looking, or not, he looks back at me. His chocolate colored eyes seem darker because of the lack of light around us, yet they still manage to make my breath stop. I think I might be falling for him.
''Let's swim.'' Blaise says suddenly, a smirk forming on his face when he sees my surprised expression.
''But it's dark, the lights from the house barely get to the water.'' I point out, ''We can drown, or die in other ways.''
''Come on, Greengrass. Take a chance. I promise I'll save you, if anything happens.'' He replies and let go of my hand.
I want to keep protesting, but Blaise doesn't waste time and takes his shirt off. Even in this light I can see his muscles and appreciate his body. When he takes off his pants my eyes are still looking at him, though when my eyes lay on his underwear, I look away, almost blushing. I hear Blaise's words in my head and I tell myself to let go and get into the water with him. Gripping the edge of my summer dress, I pull it up and remain in my underwear and bra. When I pull the dress down through my head and arms, I see Blaise's eyes on my body.
While I put my dress on Blaise's clothes, so it won't get dirty with sand, he rushes into the water, leaving me alone. Soon enough, he gets into the water and my gaze follows him as he gets deeper into the ocean. I become worried, feeling like in every possible moment he might disappear into the water and not come back. Fortunately, he doesn't get too deep, the water is reaching the middle of his stomach when he turns around to look at me.
What Blaise didn't know when he found out about the incident with my sister, is that I had nightmares. He thought and thinks that after a day or two I was already alright, but for six months I had nightmares, almost every night. Sometimes I still have nightmares, but not as often as I did back then. Standing here, in front of the big dark space, the memories of the nightmares and the way it felt to be cursed reappear in my head.
Looking at the ocean, all I can feel is fear. I don't expect to walk into the water and feel the way I felt that day, but it reminds me of it and that is enough for me to wish to be somewhere else. It feels like my entire body froze, a bit like only wanting to move in the opposite direction. But I shouldn't be afraid of the water, should I? It makes me feel stupid. I already took off my dress, which is like an agreement to take a night swim. Swallowing, I wonder what to do.
Blaise is still looking at me and I hear his voice in my head again. If anything happens, he'll save me. I trust him with my life and this is the exact moment to remember that. He will save me. I focus my gaze on him and breathe slowly, his presence calming me without him even realizing it. Right before I take the first step, I can see him beginning to move in my direction, however, when he sees me walking towards the water, he stays to stand in his place.
Exhaling and inhaling; that is all I do while walking through the wet sand. Telling myself to be a Slytherin, have fun, go wild, helps my confidence a bit and so does Blaise's words from before. The moment my feet are in the water, I look down, seeing my feet through the water. It's only water, Astoria. Though many thoughts rush through my mind, I let my legs take me deeper into the ocean. As I walk, I can feel my heart beating beastly in my chest. Trying to breath slowly doesn't help and so does Blaise's gaze on me, yet I keep telling myself things that are supposed to help me calm down.
When I get close enough to Blaise, I see the way he is watching me with curiosity, making me feel like he might know what I'm feeling. ''Are you afraid?'' he asks when I reach him.
''I'm better,'' I reply simply and give him a small reassuring smile.
He nods slowly and begin to swim deeper into the water. I follow him, ignoring the coldness of the water as well as the bad feeling I have. Looking down, I can see my hands coming in and out the water and remind myself again that it is only water. Luckily, the waves aren't very high, which makes it easier on us to move forward in the water and helps me to worry less about us drowning or anything like that.
Right before Blaise stops and stands up, I point out to myself how far I have come into the water and how I am fine. I'm getting over my fear, not allowing my sister and her actions to affect me. The sand beneath my feels nice when I stand as well, no rocks or shells and if I'll swim a bit more, I'll get used to the temperature of the water.
''Do you want to race? It will help us get warm.'' Blaise offers with a competitive smirk.
''Alright,'' I say, raising my eyebrows, as if to say bring it on. ''Where to, Zabini?''
Blaise's eyes scan the water around us for a few moments, until he takes a step closer to me and points to my right. ''See that reflection coming from the house's light?'' he asks and I nod, ''I'll race you there.''
After standing next to each other, we begin swimming. At first I have a good start, but, soon enough, Blaise catches up with me. For a few seconds, we swim in the same line, until he starts swimming faster, and wins. We decide to have another race to the direction which we came from. Blaise begins swimming, while I take a deep breath and dive into the water. When I come up to the air, I am in the same line with Blaise and we both reach the so-called-finish-line at the same time.
''That was not fair. You weren't suppose to dive.'' He protests, causing me to smile.
''Do you want to make a diving competition as well? I'll win.'' I suggest, ''Or are you not good at that, Zabini?''
''The first that goes up looses.'' Blaises states and I stand next to him, so we are in the same line.
On the count of three we both take a deep breathe and dive in. I keep my eyes open to be able to see where Blaise is and spot him a bit behind me, though I tell myself to stay focused. I am kicking this fear and the Crusiatus curse in the arse, metaphorically speaking, by diving. Using my legs to help me move forward, I can feel my confidence growing, also because Blaise is somewhere behind me.
Suddenly, I feel myself being pulled back. Uncontrollably, my mouth opens in surprise, causing water to get into my mouth. I begin to choke, too confused to understand what is happening or what I should do. I become certain that something bad is happening, maybe even something that has to do with Voldemort and Death Eaters. Coughing in the bottom of the ocean, I figure moving forwards to escape is the best strategy, even if I can barely breathe.
Then something pulls me out, right when I think that I am about to be out of air. I realize it is someone after feeling two arms wrapped around my stomach and chest. When my head is out of the water and I am standing, I realize my eyes are closed and I hurry to open them. I look around, seeing nothing unusual, but still feeling someone's arms around me while I struggle to breathe.
Blaise appears in front of me a second after the hands let go of me, which makes me guess that he saved me. My sight is blurry, but I can tell that he is the one standing in front of me by the color of his skin and his height. I continue coughing to get the water out of my throat and lungs, as well as blinking to get my vision into focus.
''Hey, take it easy, love.'' Blaise's voice says and I can feel his hands cupping my cheeks. ''Are you alright?''
''What happened?'' I ask as my vision becomes clear and I find a worried Blaise standing right in front of me.
''I pulled your leg so I could catch up with you and win, but when I turned around I saw you were…'' Blaise explains, his voice becoming softer and quieter while he speaks.
''That was you?'' I ask, furious and cough a few more times, taking his hands off me, ''You asshole! You almost bloody killed me!''
''I know, love. I'm sorry. Are you alright?'' he says, pure concern written on his face.
''No, you arse.'' I say and give him a push. My breathing becomes normal, but my body feels a bit weak and I take deep breaths, hoping it would make me feel better. It does help me and after a minute I feel normal. I still feel angry at Blaise for being so stupid. He is still staring at me, worried, and I notice the tears on my cheeks, probably because of what happened.
Blaise walks towards me, even though I pushed him away seconds ago. ''Do you want to drown me again?'' I ask sarcastically and see the pain that the question causes him.
He keeps walking and I think about stepping back from him, but I know how much it will hurt him and how he is the person I love the most. I simply watch him walking closer to me, feeling a certain will to walk away, yet I feel my stomach turning and the butterflies. My heart continues to beat beastly, even now when I am out of danger. Before I notice, Blaise is in front of me, much closer than he usually is.
''I told you I would save you,'' he whispers, causing shivers to run down my spine, and wipes away my tears, ''if anything would've happened to you, I would have died. I'm sorry, love.''
Taking another step forwards, he presses his body against mine. My stomach turns into a roller coaster, because I know what is about to happen. Without over thinking it, I wrap my arms around Blaise's neck and our heads move closer until our lips meet. We begin kissing and I feel his hand on the small of my back. His lips feel warm and soft and I feel like my entire body is boiling. However, Blaise disconnects our lips me after a minute.
His eyes are questioning and I know what he wants to ask. He wants to make sure that this is happening because we want to and not because I almost died and I don't know what I am doing. As an answer, I kiss him. He kisses me and smiles into the kiss, causing me to grin as well. Right after I allow his tongue access into my mouth, I lift my legs and wrap them around his waist. His hand holds my waist, keeping me in place, while our tongues touch, exploring each other.
Blaise makes me feel good, whether or not I am standing in the middle of a dark ocean. I trust him so much, I should have known he would save me, like he said he would. The saltiness in my mouth and throat disappears and all I can feel is his lips on mine.
''Does this count as CPR?'' Blaise asks with a big smile.
''Shut up, or you'll be the one needing CPR.'' I say with a smirk and crash our lips together.