A/N: Hi, guys! Just to let you know, this is my first attempt at writing a fanfic. After years and years of reading them, I thought I would give it a go! Feedback is always, always, always appreciated, (especially since I'm inexperienced with this type of thing). I hope you enjoy it!
It was a late Saturday evening towards the end of the summer; the day had been gloomy and gray. As if introducing the night, the wind was blowing all throughout Britain, spreading the darkness faster it seemed. Audrey was laying on her bed listening to the trees dance in the gust, trying to catch up on some light summer reading. She suddenly closed her book and looked toward her window, sullen that she would not be receiving the owl she had been expecting all summer. She wasn't the most studious of sorts, but she still wanted to do well on all her marks. After all, how else is she going to get a good job after school is over?
Audrey would be graduating in two years and she didn't feel one ounce of ready for the real world. She was entering her sixth year at Bauxbaton's School for Witches in France. Bauxbaton's wasn't where the girl had wanted to go at first, but her mother insisted it would be much more suitable for a "young witch of her stature" than Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The all-witches school took getting used to for Audrey, since all of her childhood friends and siblings went to Hogwarts, but after a couple years there, she decided to make the best of it and surrounded herself with the type of girls her mother would approve of. She forced herself to conform and act like a witch with a name to uphold.
Interrupting her thoughts and anxieties, she heard a pop echo throughout the air. Audrey almost fell off of her bed from being startled so suddenly. Her long black hair whipped behind her as she turned to look for the cause of the sound.
"Tink is so sorry. Tink never meant to scare Miss Audrey. Tink only wanted to tell Miss that she is expected to be in the dining hall in an hour. The Master and Missus has invited guests." One of their house elves squeaked apologetically with her big brown eyes looking up at her nicest owner.
"That's okay, Tink. Thank you." Audrey responded with a slight smile, dismissing her from the room. She heard another pop and Tink was gone. Rolling off of her bed and walking to the wardrobe, she tossed through some dresses to wear to this dinner she's been made to go to. She could only wonder who her parents have invited over, though she was sure it was one of their many elitist friends who she would have to be forced to save face with.
This was turning out to be a long night.
After finally having decided on a simple black dress and a pair of equally simple black heels, Audrey went to the bathroom to freshen up. Turning on the faucet of the shower, she waited until the water was a mild warmth and stepped in. Showers were her escape from the outside world. She didn't know whether it was the warmth of the water caressing her skin or the sense of solitude it provided, but it sure was therapeutic. Spending about half an hour cleansing her mind of her current anxieties, Audrey decided it was best to get out so she could start dressing and make herself look presentable.
Upon struggling to put her little black heels on after she had gotten dressed, she took notice to the scar, no bigger than her ring finger, running vertical, slightly above her ankle. In her pensive mood, Audrey reflected on how she got it and slightly smiled. "Not all scars are bad, right?"
A knock sounded at Audrey's door.
"Come in," she continued trying to put on that godforsaken heel, once again being pulled from her thoughts.
"Do you know who's been invited to the Manor tonight?" Audrey's brother, Remington, walked in and asked in a hushed voice.
"No, do you?"
"No." Remington answered nervously, watching his older sister cross the room to put on a nice necklace with only a silver chain and a light blue stone that resembled her eyes. It complimented her simple outfit composed of a knee-length black dress and her heels (that she swore up and down had been cursed to give her a hard time).
"Well, we'll see who it is soon." Audrey responded with a slight sigh, turning to him in the process. "Are you ready to head down?"
"Yeah. We need to hurry; if we don't get there soon, Mother and Father will feed us to Voldie's pet for being late." Remington joked with a slight smirk. Audrey rolled her eyes at his lame attempt at a joke and left her room with him in tow.
The brother and sister walked down a flight of stairs and through a web of elaborately decorated hallways. Arriving in front of double doors, that were probably about twelve feet tall, Remington gave Audrey a glance as he pushed the door open to the dining room.
"Ah, there they are! You guys are right on time!" Their mother, Eleanor, announced their arrival enthusiastically as they crossed the doorway and entered the room.
The dining room was, like most of the manor, lavishly decorated. Taking up the large room, was a long, rectangular dinner table. It was dark brown, almost the color of dark chocolate. Around the table were a decent amount of tall chairs of the same color. The amount of chairs were charmed to match the number of people dining at the table. In this instance, there were seven total; one chair at each of the ends of the table, three on the side closest to the siblings, and two on the opposite side, in front of the deep purple curtained windows. Above the furniture hung an equally extravagant crystal chandelier. Though it was gigantic and suspended proudly in the air, it didn't give enough light to fill the room, so dinners were always accompanied with a dim lighted ambiance.
Remington had said something in response to their mother, but Audrey hadn't heard a word he spoke; she was too busy noticing who had filled the seats across the table from where she was standing. "Could this night get any worse?" She thought.
And then they made eye contact. "Apparently it can."
His eyes were the same frosty color she remembered them being, and just like they used to, they cut through her soul. He had a way of making her feel vulnerable, like she was transparent and easy to read. They held each other's gaze for a slight moment longer before Audrey's father interrupted the intense staring contest.
"Audrey, aren't you going to greet our guests?" Reginald's voice was deep and stern, like a father's should be. She looked to her father who was sat in the chair at the right end, and then to the woman who was sitting across the room from her, as well.
"Good evening, Mrs. Malfoy. It's a pleasure to see you." She greeted with a smile and a slight bow of her head.
"Likewise." Narcissa responded with a small smile that held sincerity.
"Draco." Audrey shortly acknowledged the boy with the cold eyes with a nod. He nodded at her in response, avoiding eye contact except for the second it took him to acknowledge her back.
"Well, William should be here any minute, then we can begin dinner." Eleanor declared, looking to her daughter, giving her a pointed stare as if to tell her to behave. Then her mother quickly looked from her to the chair in front of her, discreetly telling her to take a seat.
Audrey picked up on the cue and walked to the chair that was supposed to be hers, which happened to be right across from Draco. They both kept their heads turned away, looking anywhere but at each other, as neither of them wanted to experience the vulnerability and nostalgia they just had moments ago. She looked to her left at her brother who had the remnants of a smirk on his face. "That bastard."
After waiting and participating in small talk for what felt like hours, (though it had only been mere minutes), the Reynolds and the two Malfoys turned their attention to the double doors opening adjacent to the table. A tall, black-haired, sleek looking man walked in.
"Sorry I'm late, Mother, Father," the man nodded to Eleanor and Reginald, "I had urgent business to attend to." The man greeted with a voice that would make anyone hearing it for the first time shiver. It was smooth and intimidating.
"We mustn't discuss such things at dinner, William." Eleanor responded with a slight scold in her tone, looking at each member of the table uneasily.
Audrey looked around and found Narcissa intensely eyeing her eldest brother, Draco glaring at him, her father looking at him with pursed lips pressed into a thin line, and Remington looking a cross between bemused and disgusted. She hadn't been aware of her body language in the moment, but she hoped she hadn't given away her true feelings of disturbance. When the topic of William's 'duties' came up, she would rather had been ignorant to the whole ordeal. She didn't want to think of all the horrible things her brother had probably done in the past few hours.
William never said anything back, but instead continued to take his seat with his head held high and a smirk etched on his face. He turned his attention to Draco and Narcissa.
"Pleasure to see you two again." he greeted with empty words and a slight nod. They nodded and muttered something back that Audrey couldn't quite make out. "How's Lucius?" Her eldest brother had always been keen on tormenting others. She assumed it was his way of asserting dominance, which he no doubt learned from their father.
Narcissa and Draco shot a glare at William—Draco's more blatant on his face than his mother's. Eleanor's face looked as if it had been drained of all blood while her husband had an ever-so-slight twinkle in his eye. You could have dropped a feather in the room and you would have heard it.
Narcissa spoke first, "he's fairing." Her voice was cold and firm.
"Now that we're all here, I see no point in delaying dinner any longer." Eleanor switched subjects before anything else on the matter could be said. "Tink!"
A familiar popping sound echoed throughout the room. "Yes, Missus?" the house elf asked, bowing to her mistress.
"Do tell the others to serve dinner." She ordered.
"Yes, Missus." Tink bowed once again and disappeared.
Before Audrey could snap her fingers, a plate of food appeared on the table in front of her. The smell of oven-roasted turkey wafted through the air. Accompanying the turkey, there were also green beans and potatoes on the plate. She didn't realize how hungry she was until the delicious smell of the meal hit her nostrils, and she guessed the others had felt the same because without another word, everyone began eating.
The dinner carried on with light conversation, mostly between Eleanor and Narcissa. Her mother did ask her if her OWL scores had arrived yet, to which she responded with a polite "no, ma'am," but other than that Audrey tended to focus on her plate, trying to avoid accidentally giving Draco attention. When everyone had finished their meals, Eleanor cleared her throat as if to make an announcement.
"There is something Reginald and I would like to announce." She looked to her husband, expecting him to continue the conversation.
"Yes, Audrey, we would like you to attend Hogwarts with your brother and Draco this year." He looked at his daughter with hardened eyes. Audrey was dumb-struck; she had wanted to go to Hogwarts for so long, but she had never expected her mother to actually allow her to.
"What? Why?" the girl asked in surprise. She was curious as to what changed their mind.
Her mother responded, "After talking with Narcissa, we all feel that it would be best for you and Draco to attend the same school this year." Both her mother and Narcissa's face darkened slightly. She looked to her father to ask him to try and make sense of this, but all he offered her was a stern stare. Something about this didn't add up.
"Mother, what is she talking about?" Draco sounded just as confused as she was, if not slightly agitated. But then again, he always sounded agitated now-a-days.
"What Eleanor is trying to say is we feel it's best that you guys spend more time together before you two get married." Narcissa was referring to the arranged marriage between Draco and Audrey that has been planned since before their birth. The official engagement would take place after graduation.
"We've noticed that you both are at odds with each other now. Going to the same school will give you guys the opportunity to make up." Eleanor added.
Audrey and Draco both tensed at the mention of their dispute, and awkwardly shifted at the mention of them making up—both teens thought their problem with each other was too serious to put behind them for the sake of getting along. Draco didn't reply to what the mothers had said, though he was confident that he and Audrey would heatedly discuss it later. The young girl was overall excited to be going to the school she had always wanted to go to. She'll finally be able to wear a more comfortable uniform. (Merlin knows those tight blue Baubaxton's ones were annoying.) However, she doubted the reasoning for her parents wanting her to switch schools— something about it all didn't quite add up. She knew better than to question her parents further, so she kept to herself about it.
"The headmasters of both schools have already been notified of your transfer. We will go to Diagon Alley for your school supplies after you receive your letter." Reginald informed. Her father hadn't always gone school shopping with the siblings, but in these dark times, they saw it necessary. "Remington, Audrey, you are excused."
"Draco, you are excused as well." Narcissa added.
The three teenagers nodded in respect to their parents, stood up from their seats, and made their way out of the room. Draco didn't look too pleased to be excluded from whatever discussion the adults were about to have, and William smirked at him as he exited the room because of it.
After they shut the doors behind them, they each relaxed a little bit. Draco and Audrey still held a palpable tension between them, but it was less strained since now they didn't feel the pressure to get along in front of their parents. The two siblings walked down the hallway towards the stairs. Draco followed slightly behind them.
"How 'bout that, Audrey? Now we get to go to the same school." Remington was excited that he would be able to spend more time with his older sister. "We can go to Hogsmeade together." The fourteen-year-old boy was smiling at the idea.
"How touching." Draco spat sarcastically. His hand touched his chest where his heart would be 'if he had one.' Audrey chuckled to herself at her thought.
Audrey scoffed in response, "Piss off, Malfoy."
"Using last names now, are we, Reynolds?" It was a good thing that she had her back to him at the moment because her face turned into one of disgust. His voice didn't sound right calling her by last name, but it's something she would have to get used to now that they aren't on good terms. Maybe if she ignored him, he would go away.
When they got to the stairs, Audrey had every intention of going to her room to let the news she had just gotten process, but Draco apparently had different plans for her. He grabbed her by the arm and spun her around to face him. Remington stopped, wanting to stay by his sister's side. The younger boy knew why she was angry at her friend.
"We need to talk," he demanded, and with a glare at her brother he added, "alone." Remington wasn't moved by his menacing look, instead he looked to Audrey to make sure she was comfortable with the situation.
"It's okay, Rem. You can go upstairs." She assured him as Draco let go of her arm.
"I'll wait for you in your room." The protective brother walked upstairs, and Draco didn't continue talking until he heard a door shut. He looked down at her as she avoided his frosty gray eyes.
"We can't keep fighting forever, especially now that we're going to the same school. Our parents will expect us to get along again."
"If you don't want to fight, then you know what you have to do." Audrey replied bitterly.
"I can't do that, Audrey. You, of all people, should understand why I can't."
She shook her head, "But I don't. There are ways out of this, Draco. You don't have to become one of his."
"It doesn't work that way. You can't just refuse the Dark Lord." He responded with a hushed, harsh tone. The girl in front of him didn't respond, instead she bit her lip; something she does when she doesn't want to say what she's thinking. "Tell me what you're thinking."
"You don't want out of this. You want the power. You think you'll restore the Malfoy name and be a hero to your family, but it's not gonna go like that. I don't know what task he's assigning you, but it won't be glamorous like you think it will." Audrey retorted with anger.
Draco ran a hand through his platinum blonde hair, "So what if I do want to be a hero to my family?" He argued back, "Audrey, he chose me. I'm the 'chosen one' this time."
"Congratulations, Draco." She responded sarcastically with an eye roll, "Congratulations on being the stupidest arse in the wizarding world." With that, Audrey turned away and walked up the stairs to her room. She heard the blonde boy sigh in frustration behind her.
She entered the room to find her brother sitting on her bed with his head in his hands, running them through his dark brown hair. Before acknowledging him, she went to her bathroom to change into her pajamas. Since it was summer, she wore a tank top and shorts. When she came back into her room, her brother was pacing, waiting for her.
"What did he want?" Remington asked with annoyance gracing his voice.
"For me to put aside my morals and values, and accept him for the future deatheater he will be."
"He's ridiculous. Don't let him get to you, Sis." He supported her and, fortunately for her, believes in the Order like she does.
"I'm just worried. Whatever the Dark Lord has planned for him isn't going to go well. I don't have a good feeling about this."
"How can anyone have a good feeling about this? It's the Dark Lord we're talking about. Emphasis on the dark."
Audrey chuckled at her brother; the boy could find humor in anything. "This is just so frustrating. He's too damn stubborn."
"That he is. He'll have to learn the hard way. At least now you can keep an eye on him at Hogwarts. Make sure he doesn't do anything too stupid." Remington always knew how to make her feel better.
"You're right." She agreed, ready to put the conversation to rest and go to bed.
"Always am," he joked with her, smirking as he did so. "Well, Sis, I think I'm going to call it a day." Remington stood up and walked to her door.
"Me too. Goodnight, Rem."
"Goodnight," he responded before leaving her alone to her thoughts. She wondered what her next year at Hogwarts would be like—and when that damned owl would come with her OWL scores.