That Would Be Enough
The night was dark, and the cool autumn wind was picking up. The trees around them seemed to whisper, and the moon above seemed to watch over them. Her eyes were heavy as she stared at the sky, the glittering bursts of light being the only things keeping her awake. She had had the longest day and needed a rest, but as she lay there she didn't want to close her eyes. She loved staring at the stars; they were such a breath of fresh air – their tranquillity so different from everything else in her life. Her work was more stress than anything else, her family always trying their hardest to 'reconnect', and suddenly she looked at her 'friends' and noticed that she hated almost every one of them. All of this on top of the endless worry she had for her husband, and the chaotic nature of being his wife.
"I don't understand your fascination with the stars, love," his voice was soft as he spoke to her, his arm draped across her shoulder. "You can sit here and stare at them until the dawn, but I can't find them interesting for more than a few minutes." Astoria looked up into his fierce grey eyes and smiled, rolling her own.
"If that is the case, 'love'," she imitated his pet name for her, "why are you still here?"
"Because I am stubborn, as my dear wife always likes to remind me." Astoria turned to look at him, a smile spreading across her cheeks.
"You are stubborn," she laughed, causing Draco to shake his head. Instead of replying, the Slytherin rolled his eyes and placed a delicate kiss of her lips.
"Only because if I wasn't as stubborn as my headstrong wife," he said after a few more moments, "I wouldn't be able to do anything I wanted."
Astoria smiled and looked back to the sky. Her eyes flicked back to Draco's face, lingering on the slightly swollen bit of flesh under his right eye – evidence that he had found his way into another fight recently. He hadn't mentioned anything when he arrived home that afternoon, sporting a nicely purple bruise, or even later that night when she had tried to ask him about it. He only answered with, 'I had a little altercation with a door'.
They had talked about the future many times before, and every time left the pair in an ongoing argument. Astoria wanted a family, and this was something that would never change. Ever since she was young she had wanted a child, her sister had teased her when she begged her parents to get her a doll, like the one she had seen the muggle down the street playing with. Draco, however, couldn't seem get his head out of the war and the never ending fighting, and somehow he always seemed to be in the thick of it. Astoria thought that becoming a healer would help Draco's reputation, and he was amazing at it. But there were still dozens of wizards who refuse his treatment daily, due to the Malfoy name he sported.
It wasn't just his work as well. Draco was often cornered by half-bloods and muggle-borns in the street, threatened and beaten half to death. But he couldn't fight back, and he knew it. If he ever raised one finger in defense he would become, once again, a villain. Astoria often found out from her friends instead of him, when something bad had happened. She would ask why he didn't tell her, and every time he would reply that he didn't want to 'worry her'. She was running thin on patience; not know how to help him, and knowing that he would never let them move on if she didn't. She was determined to make him see her way; to make him see that moving on might be the best option. As she lay there, her head in his lap – her eyes flicking between the stars and his face, she didn't know if she could keep the secret any longer. Her hand lay across her stomach, cradling the tiny bump that lay beneath her shirt. He didn't want to bring a child into a world which would hate it, but it looked like he didn't have much of a choice anymore.
A/N: Words – 719
Prompts – Written for Assessment #10 – Alchemy; 'write about a secret'…
Symbols of May:
1. The month was named for the Greek goddess of fertility, Maia - write about a pregnant character.
2. The Eta Aquariids meteor shower is visible in May - include the stars, or the night's sky, in your story.
3. May's birthstone is the Emerald - Write about a Slytherin Character
5. The first zodiac sign associated with May is Taurus - Use the following three words in your story: stubborn, headstrong, determined.