It was raining in London and Astoria Greengrass hadn't brought an umbrella. And there were Muggles everywhere. She couldn't very well use magic to keep herself dry. She sighed and went ahead down the sidewalk anyway.
Like many, though not remotely all, of the witches and wizards who had attended Hogwarts during the second wizarding war Astoria Greengrass had found herself disillusioned by the wizarding world. As soon as she had finished school a month ago she had moved out of the Greengrass Mansion and rented an apartment in London.
Her parents didn't approve of this decision to mingle with Muggles. Well, mostly her father, Midas, who preferred her sister Daphne. Daphne was ambitious and interested in the family business and that appealed to their father. Astoria's mother, Noriko, tended to favor her instead.
Noriko Akiyama met Midas Greengrass at the Nineteen Seventy-Four Quidditch World Cup Final in France between Syria and Madagascar. She, from a long reaching pureblood family in Japan and he from the notable and wealthy Greengrass family in the United Kingdom. As Astoria's mother tells it, it was not love at first sight.
Noriko thought he was handsome and charismatic but he also struck her as greedy and self centered. And he had big ears, a fact she still commented on.
But she knew his type. Always looking out for the bottom-line, that being their bank vaults and he knew her family had money. Even if he did genuinely find her attractive, and Noriko had no doubts about that, there was no way part of him wasn't working out how her money could become his money.
But for the next year they stayed in contact and he finally convinced her to come to England to visit. Noriko admitted that on this second meeting she found him very charming and when on the last day of her month long stay he asked her to marry him she had surprised herself and said yes.
Her family wasn't happy. They wanted her to stay in Japan. But when she told them of the various ways her marriage would make them all richer, well, they relaxed. Her family and Midas's had at least one thing in common: the love of money. They married in December of Nineteen Seventy-Five and Noriko moved into the Greengrass mansion and estate.
They both agreed that they didn't want children. They were both a bit older, with Noriko being thirty-eight and Midas being forty-four and they both had nieces and nephews. But four years later Midas had changed his mind. He begged Noriko to give him a child and after much resistance she relented and Daphne was the result of that.
After Daphne, Noriko surprised Midas by wanting another child. That child was Astoria, born two years later. She knew all of this because her mother had told her many times growing up. Though how favorably her father came out varied from year to year.
Astoria had often found it hard to relate to her family. Her father was a miser whose only goal was to become richer. Her mother had been loving when she was around. But often when Astoria was younger, Noriko was always away on trips, most of them purely for pleasure. She had longed to see her mother more but it never happened.
Astoria spent most of her childhood alone. And then once she started school at Hogwarts and was sorted into Slytherin she had trouble making friends and she was alone there as well. She didn't fit in with the other Slytherins. She often wondered if she wouldn't have been better off in Ravenclaw. But the Sorting Hat put her in Slytherin and she didn't argue with it or try to persuade it otherwise.
She didn't fit in well in Slytherin. The Slytherin girls never seemed all that interested in her. And everyone worshipped Draco Malfoy. Bloody Draco Malfoy. What did anyone see in him? Sure, he was hot but did that matter if you were an arrogant wanker?
Her sister had done better. Daphne hadn't exactly been the best of friends with the likes of Pansy Parkinson but at least they got along. Of course, Daphne had to avoid mentioning that she fancied Draco around Pansy. Astoria had never seen someone so dedicated to a person as Pansy had been to Draco.
Astoria also didn't relate to the way so many of the Slytherins cared about blood purity. She didn't see what it mattered. And what was the matter with Muggles anyhow? Why did being magical make us better than them, she had thought.
And so now she was in London trying to answer that question. She wanted to see what Muggles were like for herself. She spent time in pubs and nightclubs trying to meet and observe Muggles. Sure they were a bit odd at times and so many of the ways they did things seemed so inconvenient. But they didn't seem any better or worse than witches and wizards.
Astoria sighed happily, looking up. The rain had stopped. She was now standing in front of a bookstore called Black Books. She liked Muggle books. She had gone into another store last week and picked up these books about a red-headed girl who had to pretend to be a boy in order to become a knight. She thought they were very good. The magic in them was a bit strange but she didn't mind. She liked that the heroine's magic manifested in the color purple. She really liked purple.
Astoria looked around. She didn't see any Muggles looking her way. She pulled out of her wand discreetly and performed the hot-air charm to dry off her clothes as best she could.
Astoria entered the store and saw a girl arguing with a man over a book. He was an unpleasant, smoking Irishman with messy dark brown hair. She tried to ignore their argument but something about the girl drew her eye.
She was tall and very thin with spiky blonde hair, hazel eyes and very pale skin. She wore a black long-sleeved teeshirt and a flowing, ankle-length black skirt. She had a sharp, angular face and she wore purple lipstick. She had a deep, raspy voice and an American accent. Astoria thought she was really cute.
Eventually, another man with long unkempt hair and a beard came up and sorted the matter out and the girl bought the book, a fact which seemed to make the other man who was apparently the owner very unhappy for some reason. The girl promptly left the store after completing her purpose and Astoria ran out after her.
"Hey! What was that all about?" Astoria called after the girl. She turned around, the book still in her hand.
"Oh. Yeah. I asked him if this copy of Wuthering Heights was a first edition," the girl said, holding the book out.
"He said it was. I asked him if he was sure. He said he wasn't and that I shouldn't buy it. I asked him how much it was and he said it was twenty pounds. I thought that was too low even if it wasn't a first edition so I offered him a hundred pounds. He got angry and said it wasn't for sale."
The girl was shy and avoided eye contact while she talked, only occasionally glancing at Astoria.
"So then his assistant, or boyfriend or whatever, came up and said they'd take the one hundred pounds. The owner said I was banned from the store," the girl finished then tried to suppress a laugh and snorted instead.
"Wow. That's really strange. What an unusual man," Astoria said then looked back in the shop. The man was seated at the front desk and smoking several cigarettes while looking very upset about something.
"Yeah. Kind of an asshole," the girl said, looking down at her feet.
"I'm sorry… you're American, right?" Astoria asked, taking a few steps towards the girl.
"Yep. I'm from Portland. I just turned eighteen. I decided to spend half a year in the U.K. now that I'm out of school. My parents want me to go to college but… I'm just not really into academics," the girl said looking embarrassed.
"What are you into?" Astoria asked, smiling.
"Filmmaking. I want to write and direct my own movies," the girl said then added, "Oh, I'm Abigail by the way," and extended her hand for Astoria to shake, still looking down.
"Cheers," Astoria said, giving Abigail's hand a light shake. "I'm Astoria."
"Nice to meet you," Abigail said, and looked up to look Astoria in the eyes and smiled then looked away in embarrassment, still smiling.
"So what are you doing today, Abigail?" Astoria asked.
"I was just going to take this back my hotel," Abigail said, lifting the book up again.
"Hotel? You're staying in a hotel for six months? Seems expensive," Astoria said. She didn't really know that much about Muggle hotels or Muggle money for that matter, but she was trying to make conversation.
"My parents have money. I… I promised if they paid for me to stay here for awhile then I'd go to whatever college they wanted and study whatever they thought I should," Abigail said, looking unhappy about this.
"Want to walk with me to the pub?" Astoria asked. Abigail seemed nice and she was very cute. She was obviously a Muggle but Astoria didn't care about that. She thought that she could use a new friend.
"Okay," Abigail said and nodded as she moved next to Astoria and they walked away from Black Books.
"So, what about you, Astoria. Age and occupation?," Abigail asked.
"Eighteen. Just out of school. My parents have money too. I'm basically doing what you're doing," Astoria answered.
"But you're English," Abigail said.
"Well, spotted," Astoria said, laughing. "Haven't spent much time in London before now. My family's mansion… our home is in Canterbury. It's not far, obviously, but I never had much reason come over here. And I went to school much further away so most of my teenage years I wasn't even around here."
Astoria was trying to be careful about what she said. She couldn't tell Abigail that she only came to London to go to Diagon Alley for school supplies every year. She couldn't tell her she went to school in the Scottish Highlands. It might raise too many questions. Why would she be attending a boarding school so far away? It wasn't impossible to explain but she needed to be careful.
"Where'd you go to school?" Abigail asked. Shit, Astoria thought.
"Scotland. It was a boarding school," Astoria answered.
"Oh, cool! I want to visit Scotland while I'm here," Abigail said.
So it wasn't a big deal after all. Astoria liked Abigail. She seemed uncomplicated and nice. And cute. Oh, Merlin she was so cute.
They finally made it to the pub after having spent the rest of the walk talking about the schools Abigail had attended and how much it differed from British boarding schools. In truth, Astoria wasn't sure how much Muggle boarding schools were like Hogwarts but it didn't seem like Abigail did either, at least not enough to pick up on anything strange.
Over a couple of pints they chatted for awhile. Astoria liked listening to Abigail go on about Muggle things. She had always wanted to take Muggle studies while she was in school but was afraid of losing her families approval. But now she had met a nice Muggle girl who could tell her all about the Muggle world.
Of particular interest were something she had only heard Muggleborn wizards mention before: movies. This was the area that Abigail herself was the most personally invested in. She didn't like to call them movies though, only films. She wanted to make dark, experiment films. She wanted to make people think.
"What are your favorite films?" Abigail asked.
"I… haven't really seen any," Astoria replied.
"No way! You're eighteen! How is that even possible?" Abigail asked.
"I… it's hard to explain," Astoria said.
"Let me guess: overbearing parents. Really religious or something," Abigail said.
"Something like that," Astoria said.
"Let's go see something! Like right now!"
"Okay. Sure."
Abigail knew where a theater was nearby and they went there quickly. She suggested they see something called 'The Mummy Returns'. One movie was as good as any other, Astoria supposed.
Astoria very much enjoyed 'The Mummy Returns' to her surprise. It was like some strange cross between reading a book and wizarding paintings. A moving story featuring real Muggles, and Oded Fehr. Astoria was pretty sure he was a wizard.
After the movie was over Abigail explained there it was a sequel and so Astoria just had to watch the original. They went to a store that sold movies and Astoria bought the film on dvd.
Only then they both realized that neither of them owned a dvd player. So Astoria bought one of those and they went back to her apartment where she did have a television (she knew Muggles considered them to be very important) but she had no clue how it worked. Abigail, of course, did.
And so they laid, close but not too close, on Astoria's bed and watched 'The Mummy'.
Astoria enjoyed it though she admitted watching it on a much smaller screen was less thrilling.
They were at odds about which film was superior. Astoria preferred the epic feel of the ending of 'The Mummy Returns' but Abigail insisted the first film's more "horror-esque" vibe made it better. They both agreed that Oded Fehr was hot in the films but Astoria left out the bit about him also being a wizard.
Astoria didn't really care though. She just enjoyed spending time with Abigail. Abigail didn't know who she was. She didn't care about blood status or her Hogwarts house or blood anything about wizards because she didn't know they existed.
As they lay on the bed the sun had set and it was getting dark in the room. They were laying facing each other and laughing about the films and Astoria wanted so bad to lean over and kiss Abigail. But she couldn't do that. Instead she decided to ask her some more personal questions.
"So, are you seeing anyone back home?" Astoria asked.
"Nah. Well, not anymore. Broke up with my boyfriend a few months ago. He wanted me to go to college with him in Seattle. And that just wasn't what I wanted," Abigail said.
"Do you miss him?" Astoria asked.
"Yeah. He was fun and pretty cute. I wasn't really in love with him but we had a nice time," Abigail replied.
Astoria nodded.
"What about you?" Abigail asked.
"Me? Oh, Merlin, no," Astoria said. Shit. She said Merlin. She must be more careful.
"Really? But you're so pretty," Abigail said and Astoria's heart began to beat a little harder.
"I suppose I am. I don't think anyone really noticed. I think people thought I was odd," Astoria said.
"You? Odd. I find that hard to believe. I was kind of surprised when you wanted to talk to me and hang out with me. Girls as pretty as you tend to intimidate me," Abigail said.
"Well, you didn't go to my school," Astoria replied.
"That's a fucking shame," Abigail said. Astoria realized that she was now closer to Abigail's face but she wasn't sure if she had moved closer or if Abigail had moved closer. Maybe it was both.
Astoria closed her eyes and moved her lips towards Abigail's purple painted lips. She had never kissed anyone before. She wasn't even sure she really knew how to. Only that she wanted to.
She felt her lips lightly touch Abigail's when there was a tap at the window and Abigail quickly pulled away and said, "Holy shit, there's an owl at the window!"
Astoria could've died. Not now! Why couldn't it have been an hour from now? Why did it have to be right this very minute?
"It's tapping on the window! Is… is that a letter it's holding?" Abigail asked, completely bewildered.
"Yes, unfortunately, it is," Astoria said, groaning. It was her father's owl, Ares. It was an old and cranky Ural owl. Astoria hated it. She opened the window and when she tried to grab the letter it tried to resist letting her have it, just like it always did.
"Get out of her! Blood annoying bird," Astoria said. Abigail just sat there, mouth agape.
"This will be from my parents. Probably wanting to know exactly what I'm up to and threatening to send my sister to check up on me," Astoria added angrily as she broke the seal and read the letter.
"Yeah, pretty much. I would almost swear they planned that you know. That'd be just like them. Trying to control every damn thing I do!"
Abigail said nothing. Astoria knew she needed to say something but she wasn't sure what. She could try to lie… somehow. Maybe tell her she was in the circus? No, that was ridiculous and anyhow, why wouldn't she have mentioned it in the first place.
Astoria climbed off the bed and turned away from Abigail for a moment before sighing, turning around and saying, "I'm a witch."
Abigail didn't react. Not the reaction Astoria expected.
"Have you nothing to say? That was kind of a big deal for me, just telling a Muggle like that," Astoria said.
"You're a witch? Like Wiccan? And what do you mean Muggle? Is that some sort of insulting term for Americans?" Abigail asked, seeming offended but still very confused.
"Look," Astoria said and pulled her wand out from under the bed where she had quietly stashed it when they got there earlier. "Lumos!" Astoria said and light appeared at the end of her wand. It was twelve inches, chestnut with a core of unicorn hair.
"Holy fuck!" Abigail said.
Astoria nodded and said, "Nox!" and the light disappeared.
"Can you make it do other things?" Abigail asked.
"Loads. I went to school for seven years learning lots of spells," Astoria said sitting back down on the bed. Abigail not longer seemed as offended and in fact seemed a little excited.
"The boarding school in the Scottish Highlands?" Abigail asked.
"Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry," Astoria said.
"And I'm a Muggle?" Abigail said.
"It's what we call non-magical people. It's not meant to be an insult, though some wizards certainly don't look favorably on people like you," Astoria said.
Abigail stared at Astoria for awhile looking contemplatively. Astoria looked away, feeling self-conscious. Finally, Abigail fell back against the pillow behind her.
"This is fucking unreal. You're a goddamn witch! You're magic!" she said eyes focused on the ceiling. "You get mail from owls and can make light come out of your magic wand."
"Listen, Abigail. You can't tell anyone about this. There's a Statute of Secrecy and if word gets out they'll erase your memory and the memories of anyone you tell. You have to promise me!" Astoria begged.
"Yeah. I promise. So how many other… Muggles… have you told?"
"None. You're the first. You're the first Muggle I've ever known, really," Astoria replied.
"Wow. I feel honored," Abigail said.
"Well, you seem like you're a good person. Plus, you're cute and I kind of hoped I might impress you," Astoria said.
"You didn't need to tell me you're a witch to do that," Abigail said and leaned over and placed her lips on Astoria's. Oh, this was nice, Astoria thought, as Abigail's lips softly enclosed her own.
She wasn't sure what to do at first but she tried to imitate Abigail's motions as best she could. And then Abigail slid her tongue inside her mouth and when it touched her own tongue she felt her face become very warm and the rest of her body followed. Abigail touched Astoria's face then pulled away.
Abigail watched Astoria, smiling, clearly waiting for a reaction.
"That was really nice," Astoria said.
"You act like you've never done that before," Abigail said.
"I haven't," Astoria admitted.
"Oh? Well, then I'm happy to be your first kiss," Abigail said.
"I'm happy too," Astoria said.
"I'm going to go now, Astoria the witch. Can I have your number so I can call you?" Abigail said.
"Yeah. I wrote it down somewhere. I don't really understand how telephones work just yet," Astoria said and scrambled around for the number. Once she finally found it inside her dresser she gave it to Abigail who wrote it down.
Astoria walked Abigail to the door of her apartment. Abigail hugged her tightly and said, "Hope we can do this again some time soon. Not bad for a spontaneous first date," Abigail said then winked and walked away.
Astoria closed the door slowly as she watched Abigail move down the hall and then down the steps. She sighed. I think I'm going to love London, she said aloud to herself. But what she was really thinking about was Abigail and her purple lips.