Well, I'm still trying to figure out what to call this. Right now, I think I'll put it as The Lessons We Learn as I'm crap at titles.
The Harry Potter franchise does not belong to me, but to JK Rowling, Scholastic Books, Warner Bros., and all others also involved.
Chapter 1: Finding Her
Classes for the day were finally done. It was only the start of the school year, but it seemed this would be the year they were going to just pile it on her. She could only take so much and what with O.W.L.s being this year, it was going to be tough as it was. No, this was just madness. Pulling on the bag she used to carry most of her books, Astoria Greengrass made her way out of the Charms corridor to go find Draco. He should have been out of Transfigurations by now. They had decided to keep their relationship on the quiet side for now.
Neither of them needed the extra attention that was already put upon them. That summer, Draco had been initiated into the Dark Lord's circle and she couldn't have been happier for him. Or, at least, that was what she told him. There was a reason her parents weren't part of his army; they didn't support him all that much. Astoria wasn't that big of a fan of Potter and his crew either, but at least with the Dark Lord's defeat, she could stop living in fear that her sister or parents would die at the bastard's hands.
As she rounded the corner, something made her stop. A noise; it almost sounded as if someone was crying. Taking a few steps further down the hall, the screaming cries became louder. At its loudest point, the cries had her stopped at the door to an empty classroom. Opening it, she saw in the middle of the room sat an infant that looked to be of Middle Eastern origin. Astoria looked around for anyone else, but found no one.
Placing her bag on the dusty floor, she made her way over to the crying child. The baby wasn't naked; but had on what looked to be an oversized jumper. At least someone had cared enough to dress her. Astoria glared at it for a moment before giving into its cries and went to pick her up. She just couldn't help the motherly tendency that overcame her. "Shh, shh." She whispered into the child's ear as she held it to her bosom. "It's okay, just calm down." Astoria kissed the crown of the baby's head where sprouts of black hair had formed. The child looked to be no older than twelve months; but what was a baby doing at Hogwarts.
When the screaming and crying stopped due to her coos and coddling, Astoria looked down into the familiar deep, dark brown eyes. She had seen them before, but couldn't place the face with a name. Holding the baby with one arm, Astoria went to pick up her knapsack and made her way to the Transfiguration hallway where Draco, Daphne, and Pansy were sure to be looking for her. She still didn't understand how she got into their ranks – she just figured Daph had something to do with it – but accepted it all the same.
"Astoria, what are you holding?" Her sister looked on with disgust as the drooling tot played with her Slytherin robes. "Is that a baby?" Daphne asked. Astoria nodded before finding her place in between Draco and Daphne. "What the hell are you doing with a baby? It can't be yours… Mother and Father would have a fit. Plus, I think we'd all know if you were pregnant." Astoria lifted an eyebrow at her older sister before keeping her eyes forward. "Astoria, you need to bring it to Dumbledore. The fool should know what to do with it."
"Daphne, the baby is a girl, not an it." If she were honest with herself, Astoria would say Daphne was getting on her nerves. She knew that baby wasn't hers – it looked nothing like her. She also knew Mother and Father would have a fit if they found out their youngest daughter had had a baby without their knowledge. Plus, it would have been anyone's guess as to who the father would be. And then Daphne had brought up Dumbledore. Sometimes Astoria wondered how she had gotten into Slytherin. She wasn't cruel like most of the other Slytherins; sure she had a bit of cunning and sly in her, but it couldn't have been enough to put her in Slytherin.
Though, she would have nothing to do with the Hufflepuffs. They were all too eager to let her be a "cuddle buddy" as one of the first years had put it. That thought alone had made her shiver. She wasn't brave enough to get into Gryffindor so that was out – didn't help that her parents hated anything to do with Gryffindor too. Then there was Ravenclaw. At one point in her childhood, Astoria had reflected on getting into Ravenclaw. She was certainly a smart girl – top of her class that was for sure.
"Tor." Her elbow bumped with Draco's and she looked up. "We're at Dumbledore's office. Anyone know the password this year?" Everyone seemed to fumble for a moment, trying to figure out what password the Headmaster would have chosen for the year. After a few moments of trying to think of anything, the gargoyle just seemed to move without anything being said. The staircase was revealed to the four teens and baby. No one seemed to move at that moment so Astoria decided to take action and start up the stairs. The three older teens just seemed to follow her dumbly. She knocked on the door and it opened to reveal Dumbledore.
"Ah, Miss Greengrass." Dumbledore said with a smile and a twinkle in his eye. "And Mr. Malfoy, Miss, Greengrass, and Miss Parkinson." He greeted the other three with the same tone and twinkle. "What did I do to owe a visit from you four?"
Astoria waited for a few minutes to see if anyone would talk. The bunch of cowards, she thought but then the thought of her finding the baby not them popped into her head. "Well, you see, Professor;" Astoria began, her arms already starting to tire from holding the baby. She was so grateful when Draco took her pack from her. "I came out of the Charms classroom and onto the Transfiguration classroom when I heard something – or rather someone – crying and thought to investigate. I'm not actually sure why I went to find out who it was, but me feet just seemed to lead me.
"When I got there, imagine my surprise when I find this baby just sitting there and crying. I looked around and couldn't find anyone who was around that she may belong to. I went to find the others to come here with me as they would have been waiting for me and then we came here." Boy was she out of breath when she was done explaining. "I don't know who it is, Professor, or even whose it is." She told him. She looked down at the tot in her arms again. She was holding onto Astoria for dear life as she looked around confused. She almost seemed scared and bounced the child to keep her from crying. Those big brown eyes were filled with confusion and fear. "Shh, it's alright." Astoria whispered into the puffs of hair.
"It seems you have become attached to young Patil." Dumbledore all of a sudden said. Astoria's head shot up as she heard the name. Patil; that was why the baby looked so familiar. It must have been one of those twins. "Miss Parvati Patil came to me, asking if I had seen her sister. She seemed to be in hysterics. As it turns out young Padma was turned into a child; although none of us seem to know how." Dumbledore walked around his desk to take a look at the child in Astoria's arms. The baby began to whimper as she looked on as the scary old man came closer to her. Astoria could feel the baby begin to shake and took a step back. It was then Dumbledore seemed to take in the fear that Padma seemed to be feeling. "Oh, dear child. I won't hurt you. It's okay." He spoke much quieter as he peered at Padma with a sweet smile. "You're safe with us here, my child."
"What am I going to do with her, Professor?" Astoria looked annoyed with the Headmaster's intrigue with the baby. "I could just give her to her sister; let Patil take care of the baby while Professor Snape makes the aging potion required." Dumbledore's twinkle disappeared for the moment as he looked on at the four students.
"I'm afraid that might not be the best for the child." He said. Astoria gaped at him, as if she wanted to ask a question, but Dumbledore quickly started up again. "You see, Miss Patil will remember things as she grows up. And I have spoken with Professor Snape. He thinks an aging potion may not work with this. However, we are going to try all of the possibilities we have. He has started the potion and it should be ready within the next two weeks."
"So you're saying that my sister has to deal with the Patil brat because her twin sister doesn't want to take care of it?" Daphne spoke out, trying to figure out if that was what the old coot was in fact saying. Dumbledore didn't say anything, but he did nod. "That's ridiculous! You can't make Astoria do this; I'll call my father and we'll sue the school. This is absolutely ridiculous."
"Daph, I don't mind." Astoria said softly, rubbing the child's back at her sister's outburst. It had scared Padma so greatly and it made Astoria's heart ache. "She's actually kind of cute. I don't mind sacrificing two weeks, Daphne. There's no need to call Father." Daphne just looked at her sister, mouth agape. "Daph, you might want to close your mouth. That's not a good look for you."
"Are you bloody serious, Astoria?" Daphne screamed. This caused Padma to start crying again. Astoria glared at her sister as she tried to calm the baby down again. Merlin, her sister was annoying so often. She wondered how Draco and Pansy had dealt with her before Astoria came into the group to call out her sister's insults and stupid ideas. "Shut the brat up, will you?"
"Maybe if you stopped screaming, then Padma would stop crying. You're the one upsetting her." Daphne spluttered as she tried to come up with a response. "Please just leave. We don't need a crying baby right now and you're the one upsetting her." Daphne turned to Draco, as if to round on him. "Leave him alone, Daphne. Anything you say might come back to bite you in the arse." Astoria's voice was dead set and cold towards her sister. "Please leave. Now." Again Daphne looked to Draco, but he just shook his head. She grabbed Pansy by the arm and took Pansy with her. The poor girl was probably going to get chewed out by Daphne for not standing up with her in the office. But that wasn't something Astoria was ready to deal with. She felt Draco's hand on her shoulder as if to comfort her in some odd way. But it was oddly comforting. "Sorry Professor. My sister can be a bit thick-headed sometimes."
"Quite alright, Miss Greengrass. You handled that fairly well." Astoria nodded, trying to get this to continue on further. She didn't want to miss dinner and she had no idea when the last time Padma had eaten. She figured it was around breakfast time and that would mean she had missed lunch. Padma was probably hungry. "Now then, the reason I don't want Miss Patil with her sister is because if the aging potion does not work like Severus thinks, then you may have her until she is back to her regular age."
"How long could that take, Professor?" It was the first time Draco spoke and Astoria was glad that maybe he would be willing to help her out.
"I can't say for sure, Mr. Malfoy." His eyes showed a saddened twinkle and for just a second, Astoria wondered how he could do that, before he began speaking again. "We need to see how fast Miss Patil could age and that could take the two weeks it takes to make the potion. We need to be ready for anything. It could take from the two weeks to the entirety of the school year."
"I have my O.W.L.s this year, Professor. I don't entirely have time to watch a baby my entire year."
"Then hopefully Mr. Malfoy will be able to help you." There was a knowing smile on his lips that left Astoria with a feeling of unease. "Right, Mr. Malfoy?" Astoria turned to Draco who just seemed to nod. "Well, everything seems to be well. Bring young Padma to Poppy after dinner just to make sure everything is all set. Now, she looks to be somewhat hungry. Remember Miss Greengrass, soft foods, maybe I can grab hold of some formula for her." With that, Dumbledore the couple to leave with the baby in Astoria's arms. Draco had taken both knapsacks as they slowly made their way towards the Great Hall.
"NO! SHE IS NOT ALLOWED TO TAKE CARE OF MY SISTER!" The high shrill of a voice reached their ears and unfortunately the ears of tiny Padma as she began crying. Astoria gave a wary glance towards Draco who stepped in front of Astoria and the baby as a hysterical Parvati Patil stomped towards them, a helpless looking Lavender Brown trying her hardest to keep her friend under control. "Do not tell me what I can and can't decide, Lav. She's my sister." Parvati was glaring daggers as the girl hiding behind Draco. "Get out of my way, Malfoy. I have no qualms with you right now."
"Wow, Patil. Just a big word for you. Tell me, what does qualms mean? Did Granger tell you?" Draco snarled at the girl in front of him, making sure to shield Astoria and the crying baby. "I suggest you leave. Now."
"Of course, Malfoy, I'll leave. Just give me my sister."
"I don't think so. Dumbledore gave the responsibility of young Padma to Astoria." He almost sounded bored and Astoria had to stifle her snort in order to keep Padma quiet.
Peeking out from behind Draco, Astoria looked at the livid girl as she glared at Draco. He didn't seem fazed though. "Greengrass, give me Padma. I won't ask nicely again." That time, Astoria couldn't keep the snort again and giggled. "I said give me to her." Parvati went to grab at her sister, but found herself with two wands in her face.
"Like I said Patil, I suggest you leave." Draco's eyes narrowed towards Lavender. "Brown, get her away from us. Unless when her twin has returned to her normal age, she is missing a sister." He didn't sound as if he wanted to be messed with at the moment and Astoria couldn't help but feel lucky at the moment that Draco Malfoy was defending her. Brown just seemed to nod and take Patil by the upper arm and drag her away. Weasley seemed to come up and help Brown take Patil further away. Who would have thought that today Astoria would be grateful for a Weasley. "C'mon Tori." Draco said as he began moving again, wand placed back where he kept it. Astoria placed her own back in its holster her Father had gotten for her birthday last year. She followed Draco as she tried to keep Padma from crying. The child was oozing snot and drool as she whimpered into Astoria's robes.
Thankfully, Draco and Astoria made it to both the Slytherin common room as well as the Great Hall without so much as a whimper from the baby or another outburst from a stupid bystander. "You still have that thing? I would have thought Patil would have pried it from your hands." Daphne said as soon as Astoria sat down. She placed Padma down on her lap as she began filling her plate with both whole and soft foods for the both of them. "Why do you still have it?"
"Dumbledore told her to watch Padma." Draco said from the side lines. He wasn't paying too much attention to the sisters' conversation, but felt Astoria had gone through enough for the day. Her day – and possibly even her year – had been turned upside down by a baby singlehandedly. Granted it wasn't the baby's or Astoria's fault. "Doesn't want Patil watching her sister because she might get really confused while growing up."
"Growing up? Dumbledore said Professor Snape is making an age potion." Daphne accused. "Is he not? Is Dumbledore making you watch the imp?"
"Merlin Greengrass, you can get exasperating. How does your sister deal with you?" Draco drawled at the girl. "Plus, they doubt the potion will work. I do believe you were there for that before you had to leave." Draco pointed her with a scowl, daring her to say something. Thankfully, she didn't. Padma didn't cry once during dinner, but she did cling to Astoria for the bulk of it. Padma did hold her hand out for Draco before pulling it back with a whimper when he looked at it with distain.
That got Astoria going on him, telling him that she didn't approve of what had happened. She was not the only one going to be watching Padma and he's have to get used to it. He was about to say something, but it was Astoria's turn to glare at him, letting him know that the decision was made. The moment she was finished with dinner, Astoria stood, told Draco to follow and they both left. She was sure the entirety of the Slytherin table – if not the entire Great Hall – was left speechless at her apparent power of the Draco Malfoy; supposed Prince of Slytherin. However, that was not something she cared about at the moment.
The trio made their way up to the Hospital Wing where Madame Pomfrey would be. Draco had held the door open for Astoria and Padma to enter. A gracious thank you came from her, but Draco just seemed to shrug it off. "Miss Greengrass?" Madame Pomfrey called out as she exited her office. Looking around, there weren't too many people in the Hospital Wing at the moment – a first year with his hand burned; and a third year student who looked just fine to Astoria, until she noticed a bucket by her side. Not paying any more attention to the others there. "Over here, over here, dearie." The Healer commented as she urged the trio to follow her into an adjacent room. "Put Miss Patil on the cot and stand back." Again, Astoria did as told and then moved back.
They didn't stay long in the room. Madame Pomfrey concluded just how young Padma had turned – thirteen months old – and determined that she was a healthy baby girl. "Albus spoke to me and said that he has placed an extra cot in your room, Miss Greengrass; as well as some necessities for the baby. Clothes, bottles, and toys. We're not positive yet, but she may or may not take to the aging potion. If she does not then we will have to deal with that hurtle when it comes." Astoria just nodded as she picked the baby back up. "I wish you the best of luck, Miss Greengrass." Astoria nodded again, but said nothing. Draco led her out of the Hospital Wing and began the descent to the dungeons of the castle to go back to their house.
"You know, Astoria…" Her eyes travelled to the blonde next to her, wondering what it is he could say. "I don't mind taking her every now and then, you know, just so you can get some sleep or something." A neatly combed eyebrow rose as she looked at him. He didn't like babies so it had her wondering. He seemed too flustered at the moment – something she wondered if anyone else had seen. "I mean, you have your O.W.L.s this year like you told Dumbledore."
"Thank you, Draco." Astoria said; stopping the slight rambling he would start to do. "I appreciate that greatly."
"I want her back." Astoria and Draco turned to see Parvati once again glaring at them. "She's my sister. I don't trust a couple of snakes to take care of her."
"Patil, I thought we got rid of you. If you really want your precious sister in your arms, go talk to Dumbledore. He's the one who is putting Astoria up to this." The hatred that flared in the girl's eyes blazed. Lavender stood beside her unsure as to what to do. "Brown, I thought you were going to control her." Lavender squeaked as she looked up at Draco.
"I… I… I…" she stuttered.
"Go get Weasley. He seemed to help a bit last time." Lavender nodded with one last glance at her friend before she went back into the Great Hall to get Ron. Again, Weasley helped remove the frantic girl from their sight, but not before he got to put in his own two cents.
"Don't forget that you're holding her sister, Greengrass. She deserves the right to see her."
"As long as Patil stops harassing Astoria, she can see her sister. That fine with you, Weasel?"
"Draco, be nice." Astoria whispered. He sneered at Weasley before he nodded to Astoria. She then turned her gaze to Parvati. "You stop acting like you've lost your marbles and then maybe I'll let you see Padma. Despite what Dumbledore has said." With that said and done, Astoria and Draco made their way to their house without any more interruptions.
Author's Notes: Well, I think I'm actually proud with how this has come out thus far. I've never written Astoria or Padma so this is all new ground for me. Hopefully I stayed with the characterizations for the most part. I know to only Astoria that I made Draco a bit more soft, but I figured since I put them in a secret relationship he should act kinder towards her, right?
Also, we don't get much more than a glimpse of Astoria so I tried to give her more than just a Slytherin sneer and a cranky attitude. Let's see how this goes.
Parvati's reactions are what I believed they might be. I know if my little brother was shrunk and then had to be watched by someone I hate, I would be rather against it as well... and they're TWINS. So yeah. And I know Lavender is a more withdrawn that she may actually be.
Next Chapter: The two weeks that it takes Snape to make the potion... will it work or will the poor girl have to keep watch over a student she's not to crazy about?