A/N: Written for the International Wizarding School Championship.
School: Beauxbatons
Year: Year 1
Theme: Athena - Wisdom, Intelligence, Peace
Main Prompt: 5.) Andromeda Black [Character]
Side Prompts: 8.) Venus by Shocking Blue [Song]
Word Count: 2862
Andromeda paced around her dorm, muttering to herself. "I shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have done that."
"Shouldn't have done what, Andy?" Asked a dainty voice from the doorway. The curly-haired teen jumped at the sound and spun to see her little sister standing there.
"Oh, hi, Cissa," she said to her fifth-year sister. "What's up?"
"Well, I have a bit of an issue that I'm hoping you're not going to be mad at me for, but I think yours is the more pressing problem right now. What's wrong?" Asked Narcissa.
Though Narcissa was only two years younger than Andy, she looked nothing like her. With straight long blonde hair, Narcissa was the odd one out, as no one knew where it had come from. No one in the family had hair like that. Narcissa came in and sat down primly on her elder sister's bed, smoothing her skirt and Slytherin robes.
Andromeda sighed; she trusted her little sister, but what she was about to say would get her disowned if anyone found out. She flopped down next to her sister on the bed, and Narcissa started to play with a couple of strands of her hair. Andromeda closed her eyes; she'd have to start at the beginning.
Andromeda was sitting in her favorite alcove in the library, soaking up the limited sun that she was getting. She had finished all her homework a while ago and was reading Greek Mythology. It had always fascinated her, the stories about the goddess Athena especially so. She had just finished one of her favorite stories and was turning to the table of contents when a shadow had loomed up over her. She closed her book and looked up at who had come over. It was a Muggleborn Hufflepuff, something Tonks, looking especially nervous. She sighed; people knew of the reputation that Bella, her elder sister, wore like a crown. Once people learned about her, then that meant that the rest of the Black daughters were to be feared. Obviously.
"Yes?" Andromeda asked, trying to look helpful and not scary.
"You're Andromeda Black, right?" The Hufflepuff asked
Andromeda nodded.
"Well, the thing is, I'm kind of failing in Ancient Runes, and Professor Byrne is always gushing about how great you are, so I was wondering if you could tutor me? If you're willing, that is," He said, looking at the floor the entire time.
"Sure, why not?" Andromeda asked, smiling at him.
"Great, thanks! I'm Ted, by the way. Ted Tonks."
That had been three years ago.
"Okay, so basically you decided to tutor a Muggle-born Hufflepuff three years ago and now you're regretting it?" Narcissa asked, finishing up the braid that she'd been working on on the left side of her sister's hair. She moved to start on the right side.
"No, that's not it. I did start tutoring him in fourth year, but that's just the beginning of it. I'm still tutoring him in Ancient Runes, and in return, he's given me help with Transfiguration and knows lots about Greek Mythology, so we've talked about those lots. But that's just the beginning."
"Keep telling your story, then. After that, can you help me with my problem?" Narcissa asked, running a comb through her sister's curly locks.
"Sure."
It was a snowy winter's night in 1969, and Andromeda and Ted were sprawled out on the floor in the Room of Come and Go, a room Andromeda had discovered when she had the need to brew potions without any interference. They had Transfigured it to become a cozy mix between the Slytherin and Hufflepuff Common Rooms, and there was currently a fire crackling in between yellow and green banners. They were lying on the floor finishing up some extra work from Charms, sharing notes and bouncing around ideas off of each other. They had become good study partners and better friends in the course of the past year and worked very well together. Andromeda's family didn't exactly approve of her working with a 'Mudblood' in their eyes, but once she had swallowed the lump of anger growing in her throat, she had assured them that she was only using him for his extra knowledge. They had been extra proud of her manipulative plan and had praised her highly for it, something she felt bad about. In her eyes, being manipulative wasn't the same as being cunning, and that shouldn't be what made her more 'Slytherin' or more 'Black'.
"Finally!" Andromeda exclaimed, dropping her quill to the side.
"You finished that essay?" Ted asked, looking up from his book on formulating spells.
"Yeah. I'm hungry," Andromeda commented, thinking for a quick second. "Daisy!" She called. Soon enough, a house elf from the Hogwarts kitchens appeared.
"You called, Miss?" Daisy asked. Daisy was one of her favorites, as she had given her a few of her favorite recipes at the start of her second year.
"Could you please make us a pot of tea, please? And maybe a snack?" Andromeda asked, stretching her arms above her head.
"Of course, Miss. Right away," Daisy said, disappearing away with a snap. Quick as a flash, she reappeared, holding a pot of tea with it's fixing and two hot sandwiches.
"Thank you, Daisy," Andromeda said. The elf nodded and disappeared away. The two teens quickly tucked in on the food, and it was gone within an instant.
"Do you want to take a break?" Ted asked, pouring a cup of tea. When Andromeda looked hesitant, he sighed. "Look, Andy, I know OWLs are notoriously hard, but you have got to take a break! You're going to wear yourself out!" He said, taking away her quill.
"Hey!" She exclaimed, reaching to grab it back, but he held it out of her reach. "Fine," she conceded. "What do you want to do?"
"Just sit still for a second, maybe?" He asked. Silence followed as the pair relaxed.
"Who's your favorite Greek god?" She asked suddenly, turning to him.
"Uh, I'm not really sure. I haven't ever really thought of it, why? Who's yours?"
"Just wondering. I'd have to say Athena is my favorite. She's the goddess of wisdom and peace, and she seems to be the type of person that everyone would come to for advice. I try to be like her, though that's probably not very Slytherin of me."
"I'd say that you're actually more of Athena and Venus in one," Ted replied suddenly, turning to Andromeda. "Well, I guess Athena and Aphrodite, if we're sticking solely to Greek Mythology."
"What do you mean?" She asked, confused.
"Well, you're beautiful like Venus and wise like Athena," He said. Andromeda blushed. The two talked for a while more until it was time for curfew.
"So a Muggleborn called you pretty? And a cute one at that? I mean, you are going to probably be betrothed to Luci - Malfoy soon, but is that really so bad?" Narcissa asked, turning slightly pink.
"That's not all, Cissa. And...wait. Cissa?" Andromeda asked, things falling into place in her mind.
"Yes?" Narcissa asked, the picture of innocence. When Andromeda raised an eyebrow, her sister sighed. "Fine. I… might kind of like Lucius Malfoy, even though he's a seventh year like you and will probably become betrothed to you. Please don't be angry! And please don't tell anyone!" Narcissa said, looking distraught.
Andromeda leaned over to console her sister, hugging her as she cried her pretty blue eyes out. As she was rubbing her sister's back, something popped in her head. Something so brilliant that it would make even Athena proud. Andromeda grinned and laughed a laugh of relief; they could both get what they wanted; they could both be free from both of their struggles.
"Are… are you laughing at me?" Narcissa asked, looking hurt.
"No! No, of course not, Cissa! I just had an idea, that's all," Andromeda said, suddenly starting to doubt her plan. What if Cissa didn't want to go through with the idea? What if she didn't support the idea of her sister being in a relationship with a Muggleborn? Andromeda knew that her parents most likely wouldn't approve, she might even get disowned, but the more time she'd spent listening to their ideology, the more she'd started to disagree.
She wasn't even sure she loved them anymore. She loved Cissa, and still loved Bella, though Bella had started to become more of a blood supremacist, and that was really it for her family. Her cousins Sirius and Regulus were pretty great, too, but Siri was a hothead and Reggie was too quiet to really stand up for himself. They were the only reasons that she still had hope for her family.
"Andy? Are you okay? You look… lost," Narcissa asked.
"I'm okay, Cissa. Do you want to hear the rest of the story?"
"Sure."
"Hey! Venus! Come back!" Ted called, laughing as he chased Andromeda through the halls.
'Venus' was the nickname he'd coined for her after that blustery night they'd spent studying last year, and Andromeda had just stolen his wand and was laughing as he chased her through the school.
"Never!" She laughed, dodging a pair of scared-looking Ravenclaw second-years and swerving around Hagrid, who was carrying a bag full of chickens to the kitchens. She ran out to the courtyard, which was green and beautiful. It was April of her sixth year, and Andromeda and Ted had been eating breakfast. Until, that is, she had stolen his wand. Andromeda quickly hopped up a tree and swung her legs over the branch so that she was hidden in the foliage. She giggled; she knew she was acting childish, but it was fun to let loose once in a while. She quickly clamped her hand over her mouth as the leaves underneath rustled.
"Now, where is Venus?" Ted asked, obviously knowing where Andromeda was. "Maybe I'll just climb this tree to look for her!" He grabbed onto a branch and swung himself up so that he was on the same branch as Andromeda. "Ah! There you are! Now, how about my wand?" He asked.
Andromeda grinned evilly. "Never!" She shouted as she jumped down. She ran out of the courtyard and down to the lake. She reached the lake and ran out onto the dock. She was panting and catching her breath as something rammed into her, knocking her off and into the dark depths. "Ahhh!" Andromeda screamed as she went plummeting down. She was terrified of water; neither she nor her sisters had ever been taught to swim. 'Too Muggle,' her parents had said when she'd asked.
The water hit her like a cold wall of bricks; the icy water slapped her feet as she kicked. Water filled her mouth and she realized that she didn't have any breath in her lungs. She screamed as she sunk farther into the water. The dark waters became foamy and white above her; she felt something grab onto her hands and yank her up. She kicked more furiously and felt herself start to move upwards. She broke the surface of the water, gasping. A second later, another head broke the surface, spraying water over her face as he shook out his hair. Ted grabbed a pillar of the pier and hauled himself up. He reached over and helped Andromeda up. She flopped up onto the wood and started coughing.
"Andy, I am so, so, so sorry. I didn't mean to knock you over, I know you can't swim," Ted said, talking a mile a minute.
"Ted. It's okay. You saved me," Andromeda said, putting her hand on Ted's arm to stop him. "I'm okay, Ted."
"You're sure, Andy? Do you want to go to Madame Pomfrey? It's really cold out, you know," Ted said, taking off his outer robe.
"And let my parents know? Please," Andromeda snorted, also taking off her outer robe. "Do you know a drying charm? Or a heating one?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'll do it," Ted said, silently casting the Hot-Air Charm. "Hey, I did it! I've never been able to wordlessly do that charm yet!" He exclaimed, eyes wide in excitement.
"That's great, Ted! Congratulations!" Andromeda said, hugging him. She breathed deeply and inhaled the scent of his shampoo; it was orange scented, and he had given her a bottle of it for her birthday last year, as it was a Muggle product.
The two spent the rest of the day on the pier, talking and laughing.
"Okay… so, you almost drowned? And I'm just finding out about this now?" Narcissa asked, sounding far too calm. That was her tell that she was getting angry.
"Yes, but that's not the point of the story. Now, shall I finish? I'm almost done," Andromeda asked.
"If you tell me your plan after."
"Okay. This is what I was muttering about earlier."
Potions class with Professor Slughorn was always one of Andromeda's favorites, besides Ancient Runes. She was part of his elite Slug Club, along with Cissa, and was always fascinated by the process of composing a potion. It was also a favorite of hers because the Slytherins took the class with the Hufflepuffs, so she would almost always partner with Ted.
"Alright, class, today we're going to be doing something new," Slughorn said jovially as the bell rung, signaling the start of class. "Each pair of partners will be given a tablet with a different potion recipe. You will make this potion, identify it, and write a twelve-inch parchment on how you identified it, due at the start of the next class." The class collectively groaned. Slughorn started to pass out the tablets as people started to gather their supplies. Slughorn handed Andromeda and Ted theirs with a wink and a 'Good luck!' Andromeda quickly glanced down at the ingredients list and sent a quick glance at Ted, one he returned, equally confused. Slughorn had given them the Amortentia potion. Shrugging, Andromeda started to collect the ingredients.
The pair worked in silence and their potion bubbled away. When they were finished, Andromeda leaned over the potion and sniffed it. It smelled like chocolate, the lake, and… orange shampoo. Dawning washed over Andromeda's eyes as she realized where that smell had come from. She watched as Ted took his turn in smelling the potion, and the same look of dawning crossed over his face as he scribbled on a sheet of parchment and slid it over to Andromeda. She caught it before it fell off the table and quickly read it: Meet me after class. She nodded at him once and crumpled the parchment into a ball. She shoved it into her bag and waited as the rest of the class ticked away, second by second, in torturous silence. Finally, the bell rang, and everyone collected their things and made their way out. Andromeda thanked the professor and exited, walking down the corridor to the left, where she knew Ted would be.
"Yeah? What's up?" She asked once she had reached him.
"I think you know what's up," Ted said, raising an eyebrow at her. "I think you know what I smelled in that potion in class," He said, walking over to her so that they were face-to-face. Andromeda had to look up to keep eye contact. She gulped; she had never seen him like this.
"Ted… I…"
"No, Venus, let me speak. I smelled your perfume in that potion. I think I've loved you ever since you started tutoring me. I know you're about to be betrothed, but please, just tell me if you feel the same," Ted begged.
Andromeda knew she couldn't lie. "I do, Ted. I love you too," She said, smiling. "I just realized it, but I love you!" She said, throwing her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.
"Maybe… maybe this summer you want to come and visit my parents and me at our house?" He asked, hopeful.
"I'd love to, Ted."
"So now you see what's wrong," Andromeda said, picking at her nails.
"Oh, Andy," Narcissa said, hugging her sister. "I get the feeling that this has something to do with your genius plan?"
"It does, actually. You know how I don't necessarily agree with Mother and Father in their pureblood ideals, and how if I were to marry Malfoy, I'd be a bit trapped with those ideas. So, I was thinking that when I visit Ted, you could tell Mother and Father how you feel, and how you don't think that I'm worthy, or good enough, or whatever, for him, and that you'd be better suited for him. We could both be happy," Andromeda finished.
A slow smile spread across Narcissa's face, "Now I know why Ted said that you're similar to Athena. You're a genius, Andy. I love you."
"I love you too, Cissa."
A/N: Hope you enjoyed! If you did, please review! I'd love to hear from you!