Hey! So it's half past two in the morning and I just can't sleep, so I wrote this instead. Keep in mind it isn't Beta-ed and the hour is late, so please try to overlook any obvious mistakes (SPaG). Hope you'll like it.
This is a story about floriography-the language of flowers. You can find each and every flower used in this fic at the end of it, so don't hesitate to go find your reference.
Enjoy.
...
Astoria Greengrass loved flowers.
There was no denying that. She loved flowers with all her being, as she was a romantic at heart. Her sister, Daphne Nott, often joked that her sibling was born in the wrong century, as Astoria had taken up most of her communication throughout flowers, a necessity for a girl who was born without a tongue.
Astoria Greengrass was mute, and so she turned to flowers. Flowers had a language, a language more compelling to her than the written word or sign languages. She preferred things that way.
Astoria Greengrass was beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that despite her constant silence, men flocked to her side to court her, in a desperate attempt to woo her- some may even have seen her disability as a blessing, for they were men who believed that women had forked tongues and were nagging gossips of the worst kind. However, the young witch always rebuted their advances with a kind smile and a dip of her head, before giving them a single yellow carnation. She would walk away, her long, black, glossy hair simply adorned with a strand of belladonna.
And then Draco Malfoy entered her world. She met him briefly at her sister's home, where he had been visiting his friend, Theodore Nott Jr, her brother-in-law. He smiled at her and kissed her hand most gallantly, in a gesture of the gentlemen of old, a rare practice the romantic Astoria could only be partial to.
The next day, her House Elf brought to her a small bouquet, claiming it was from a gentleman with silver hair, and she smiled softly into the pink rosebuds and the calla flowers.
Astoria did not send him a yellow carnation in return. She sent him a single aster that lay in a box of hawthorn adorned with painted purple lilac.
…
The next months saw them exchanging mugwort, four-leaved clover, bridal roses, sweet William, gloryflower and osier, ivy, passion flower, bluebell, honeysuckle, dwarf sunflower or garden daisy.
…
The next year saw them decorating the wedding chapel with coreopsis arkansa, justicia, austrian rose, white heather and blue violet.
…
Several more months passed amidst the sound of silence and the fragrance of flowers. The newlyweds moved into their own home, where Astoria tended the garden, waiting to someday tend to the nursery.
…
Two years came and went, and still their love shone, although Astoria seemed to thin and pale, still retaining her magnificent beauty and, always, her kind smile. Her husband doted on her, sending her red peonies or cardinal flowers every day from his workplace, and personally handing her myrtle, white lily or spindle tree branches to her every evening upon his return. Astoria had not asked for medical help nor seemed any less happy than usual, and so he hoped in his heart of hearts that their wishes of children were finally coming true.
Then one evening, he stepped into his wife's garden upon his return and stopped in his tracks, his hand fisting a deep pink rose, eyes haunted.
His wife had made several additions to the garden.
A pretty stone bench she had ordered several weeks prior was sitting in the middle of the carefully mowed grass. A tree was planted just behind it, sheltering the bench from the rays of the sun.
A fully grown black mulberry tree.
Planted around the short tree's middle was an array of flowers and other plants. His heart stopped beating as he recognized convolvulus major, sweet pea, a cypress sapling near one of the bench's ends and a locust tree sapling at the other, persimmona, chinese chrysanthemum, marjoram, fish geranium, michaelmas daisy, forget-me-not, aloe, amaranthus, butterfly weed, volkamenia, spiderwort, dahlia, meadow saffron, dog rose, white periwinkle, raspberry, white poppy, harebell, musk plant and woody nightshade.
He fell to his knees, crushing the deep pink rose, and sobbed brokenly.
…
Astoria passed away three months later. He buried her at the foot of the black mulberry tree, having ripped out all other plants surrounding it- he could not bear the sight of them. Her last days had been peaceful and sober, spent in her bed, surrounded by those she loved, and her husband had never left her side. Upon her body, all those she had known placed a last homage to her upon her beautiful, cold body.
Her sister, Daphne, eyes blood-red, placed american cudweed in her lap, whereas Daphne's husband set arbor vitae in her left hand. In her right hand, Draco put a small bouquet of phalaenopsis orchid, red, pink and white carnations. Over her heart, they all placed a sprig of asphodel.
And so, she returned to the garden she had so loved.
…
Five years had passed since a woman set foot in the garden, save for Daphne, who came often to visit the widower and her sister's grave. And yet, on a sunny spring morning, a woman finally did. Draco Malfoy needed an heir, one that his beloved wife did not have time to provide for him, and since the thought of ever laying eyes upon another woman disgusted him to the core, he had filed for adoption. The agency had thus sent a young lady to assess his home and his potential as a single father. Her eyes widened upon noticing the beauty of the garden, then the tombstone, and she walked up to it, looking at the headstone. The name of the departed mistress of the house was engraved by her husband's hand, and a single belladonna was drawn in lieu of a paraph. Draco approached the woman, hands in his pockets, sadness in his eyes, but said nothing as she gazed at his lovely wife's tombstone. He knew the presence of his wife's final resting place within the boundaries of his home would probably be problematic to the adoption process, and yet her place was here. If that meant giving up on fatherhood, so be it.
Finally, she stepped back, rolling up her quill and parchment and placing them in her handbag. She disappeared from his sight as he continued to stare at the tombstone, lost in memory. Then suddenly, she appeared again, looking at him through shy eyes, holding her hand out. He glanced down and stopped in his tracks, before swallowing thickly. Finally, he reached out and took the single white stargazer lily, turning the flower in his fingers before looking at her, finally looking- for the first time since he'd met Astoria- at another woman.
Hermione Granger had grown since her Hogwarts days. She was no great beauty, but she was evidently pretty and held a grace and charm to herself that he'd only seen in one woman before. A glance at her hands told him she was unwed. And if the softness in her large amber eyes was anything to go by, she was sincere in her flower offering.
For the first time since Astoria had passed away, Draco felt something tugging at his heartstrings. So he turned his back on her, and walked slowly towards a nearby patch and plucked a single flower in return, before handing it to her, wondering if she knew what it meant. She gazed at it for a while, before glancing up at him and letting a small grin illuminate her face as she nodded.
…
If anyone asked Hermione Granger what her favorite flower was before she met Draco Malfoy again, she would have struggled to come up with an answer. However, her answer never wavered again after that. She had pressed the flower he'd given her in his garden and kept it with her always after that fateful day. She'd simply smile, somewhat mysteriously, and answer one word,
« Daffodils. »
…
The End.
…
Floriography :
Astoria's Suitors :
Yellow carnation : No.
Belladonna : Silence. This is a reference to Astoria's muteness. Her wearing the flowers in her hair tells the whole world that she cannot speak.
Draco's Declaration :
Pink rosebuds : New love.
Calla : Magnificent beauty.
Astoria's Response :
Single aster : I will think of it. Also, given Astoria's name, the fact that she places a single aster in a box and sends it to Draco can also be interpreted as the gifting of herself to him.
Hawthorn : Hope.
Purple lilac : First emotions of love.
Draco and Astoria's Courtship :
Mugwort : Happiness.
Four-leaved clover : Be mine.
Bridal roses : Happy love.
Sweet William : Gallantry. As a side note, these flowers were part of Kate Middleton's wedding bouquet, a clear reference to her husband's name and the kind of love a prince is supposed to show his other half in fairytales. Nothing to do with the story, but so cute.
Gloryflower : Glorious beauty.
Osier : Frankness.
Ivy : Friendship, fidelity and/or marriage.
Passion flower : Faith, belief.
Bluebell : Constancy.
Honeysuckle : Generous and devoted affection, bonds of love.
Dwarf sunflower : Admiration, gratitude.
Garden daisy : I share your sentiments.
The Wedding Decorations :
Coreopsis arkansa : Love at first sight.
Justicia : The perfection of female loveliness.
Austrian rose : Thou art all that is lovely.
White heather : Good luck.
Blue violet : Love and faithfulness.
Draco's Constant Reminders :
Red peonies : Devotion.
Cardinal flowers : Love and distinction.
Myrtle : Love.
White lilies : Purity, elegance, majesty.
Spindle tree : Your charms are engraved on my heart.
Deep pink rose : Thank you for being in my life.
Astoria's Announcement :
Black mulberry tree : I shall not survive you.
Convolvulus major : Extinguished hopes.
Sweet pea : Departure.
Cypress tree : Death.
Green locust tree : Affection beyond the grave.
Persimmona : Bury me amid nature's beauties.
Chinese chrysanthemum : Cheerfulness under adversity.
Marjoram : Delusion.
Fish geranium : Disappointed expectation.
Michaelmas daisy : Farewell.
Forget-me-not : True love, forget me not.
Aloe : Grief, sorrow.
Amaranthus : Hopeless. This plant is also called « Love lies bleeding ».
Butterfly weed : Let me go.
Volkamenia : May you be happy.
Spiderwort : Momentary happiness.
Dahlia : My gratitude exceeds your care.
Meadow saffron : My happiest days are past.
Dog rose : Pleasure and pain.
White periwinkle : Pleasures of memory.
Raspberry : Remorse.
White poppy : Sleep is my antidote.
Harebell : Submission, grief.
Musk plant : Weakness.
Woody nightshade : Truth.
Astoria's Funeral Gifts :
American cudweed : Unceasing remembrance.
Arbor vitae : Unchanging friendship.
Phalaenopsis orchid : I will always love you, sympathy in the face of grief.
Red carnation : Admiration.
Pink carnation : Remembrance.
White carnation : Pure love.
Red, pink and white carnation as a bouquet : Our love is eternal, I grieve you.
Asphodel : My regrets follow you to the grave.
Hermione and Draco :
White stargazer lily : My sympathies for your loss.
Daffodils : New beginnings.