Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

A/N: 1) Thank you all for the inundation of lovely reviews! 2)You have been patient readers. This is short but hopefully gratifying.

Ten: The Truth

Draco didn't know what had possessed him to ask Astoria to go for a walk with him, and he was already regretting it. It definitely had to be kept a secret. It wouldn't matter how much they insisted it was innocent. Blaise would react badly, as he had constantly reminded Draco not to get involved with Astoria. Draco didn't even want to think about how his mother would eye him icily, and then tell Astoria that she really ought to leave, it was getting dreadfully late. He didn't even know why he had asked her to begin with, though he did have to admire his own nerve.

He was especially surprised that Astoria hadn't declined his offer, as it would reflect more terribly on her than it did on him. Even so, he now crossed the hallway and opened the door, beckoning for her to go through first. Once he was outside, he realized that it was freezing, and Astoria only had a light shawl over her dress. He felt a little guiltier.

"So," he began, his voice trailing off a little. He didn't know where to begin. "Where would you like to go? To see the peacocks? Or perhaps the fountain?"

Astoria just shrugged. "Wherever." She smiled in a way that Draco couldn't quite place. That was one of the many frustrating things about Astoria. He could read most of his friends very well, but her-well, with her he just had no idea. Not that she was really his friend, exactly, but they did seem to be running into each other an awful lot lately. Now, where to take her... he decided that she might like the fountain, as it was bewitched to have heated water, and would give off some warmth. He tugged his dress robes a little more tightly around him. It was a very cold December night.

"Right. Well, I think you'll like the fountain. It's very, er, pretty. Come this way." Things used to be so easy with girls back at Hogwarts. Not that Astoria was a girl, at least in that way. She was just the rather pretty baby sister of his friend, he reminded himself sternly.

They walked in a silence that was only a little uncomfortable, at least to Draco, as he had already resigned himself to the idea that they really didn't have anything to say to each other. He led her down the winding path to where their fountain was located; it was of a wizard, some ancestor, undoubtedly, with water flowing out of his wand. It was shimmering and giving off light, a charm that had been performed years before Draco was born. He congratulated himself on picking this spot.

"It reminds me of the statue they used to have in the Ministry of Magic," Astoria said, holding out her palms to be warmed. "Do you remember? It was before the one the have now, and before the one before that. It was my favorite thing about visiting Father at work."

Draco wracked his brain, trying to think of a time he had visited the Ministry before the war. Then he saw the statue, of all the "Magical Brethren." He frowned a little. "Some people thought it was offensive."

Astoria nodded. "I suppose so. I guess that centaurs aren't overly fond of wizards, so they wouldn't like it very much, but the house elf was so happy." The conversation was very strange. It was flat, as far as Draco could tell, with no double meaning. They were just sitting there, talking plainly about an old fountain, of all things.

"I miss it," he admitted, "the way the Ministry used to be." She turned to him. Her eyes were opened a little wider in surprise. "It was so much... grander, when that fountain was there."

She smiled. "Maybe it's just because we were children. I mean, I never saw that statue when I was any more than four and a half feet tall. That made it pretty impressive. The one that's there now isn't so special, especially because I walk by it everyday."

That was something that Draco had been wondering about. "Why do you want to work there, anyway?" He hated the place. He hated it because of how it had been during the war, and he hated it because of all the people he saw when he went there. Once, he had run into Harry Potter, even. They had just nodded at each other and moved on. He was determined never to speak to him again, if it could be avoided.

He realized that Astoria had been speaking, and he just caught the end of what she had been saying. "-so I guess it was just to give me something to do. It's actually quite pleasant, even though it's a little boring." He nodded, though thinking about how he would never really be able to get a job. No one would hire him, because of his past. It's not like he needed one. His family had other ways of increasing their fortune.

"Daphne thinks I'm mad," Astoria continued, smiling wryly. "Pansy, of all people, told me that it was a good way to distract myself. This was after I was already hired. I think she just wanted me to stay away from-" Astoria cut herself off and looked away. It was hard to tell in the darkness, but from the light from the fountain Draco was pretty sure that she was blushing.

"Pansy always works towards her own motives," he said, as evenly as he could. It was all he could do to keep himself from blurting out that they had absolutely no romantic connection, and that Pansy was just clinging onto something that was long gone. He decided that he was so tempted to tell Astoria because they had been the subject of a false rumor together, and so she was more likely to believe him. Even so, he kept his tongue.

"Well, she was a Slytherin," Astoria pointed out, she was now smiling at the stone wizard before them. "We have ways of getting what we want."

"Of course." It wasn't fair. Draco never got what he wanted, anymore. He hadn't had what he wanted since the end of his fifth year at Hogwarts. He felt like telling Astoria this, too, but their time of sharing thoughts had ended when their letters had. Draco wondered if him being more open with her would have led them to a different result. What that result would be, though, he had no idea.

"Did you really kiss Pansy?"

The question was so blunt, so forward, that it took Draco completely off guard. He wasn't used to being addressed so plainly, and Astoria clearly wasn't used to speaking that way, as she immediately looked pointedly in the opposite direction from Draco. "I- well, in a manner of speaking," he sputtered. There was another silence, broken only when he said, "She kissed me."

"Oh." Astoria was still looking in the other direction, so Draco had no idea what was going on with her face. Maybe that had been part of her plan. He didn't know what to say, so he didn't speak. He didn't even dare ask if she wanted to go back inside, so instead he just stood, looking at the back of Astoria's head. It must have been several minutes before she turned around, a strange look of what could only be determination in her face.

Then, before Draco knew what was happening, Astoria was on the tip of her toes. She pressed her lips against his just once, but it was long. He wasn't quite sure what was going on in his brain, but whatever it was, it was very pleasant.

Then she pulled back, and it was over as quickly as it had happened. "Merlin's-! I'm sorry, I don't know what I was thinking, I just-"

"No, it's fine honestly, it was alright." He paused, and then added, "It was more than alright." She'd just kissed him, so he figured that it couldn't hurt all that much.

Astoria step towards him, her eyes searching, but not heavy like she wanted him to kiss her. "I don't- I'm not- I'm just not sure. About anything." He nodded, something inside him felt very satisfied; Draco felt like this was something that he had been wanting to happen for a long time. He realized that this was because he had wanted this to happen for a long time, even though he hadn't known it. Or perhaps he had.

"I need time to think about-things," Astoria said, after a moment, "but I'll write you. As soon as I sort everything out, I'll write you." She collected her skirts and started walking back up to the manor. Draco knew better than to follow her, and decided to wait a few minutes before he went back inside. He still couldn't help himself from calling out to her.

"Astoria!" she turned around. He smiled. "This is all," he paused, searching for the right words, "alright with me." He hoped that she would understand what he was trying to say. He thought he saw a hint of a smile as she turned back around. That was fine, he decided. It was a good sign.

The thing was, he didn't want Astoria in the same way he had wanted countless girls at Hogwarts. Sure, she was good-looking, but there was something about her that made her irresistible. Maybe it was how she was so understanding, or how she wasn't afraid to break certain conventions. Draco watched her until she was back in the manor, and then started walking up towards the party, himself.

Once he reentered the room, he was accosted by his mother. "Where were you?" she whispered, her voice harsh.

"I went for a walk."

"A walk?" his mother actually laughed, but in an icy way that Draco had learned to fear. It meant that he was in trouble, and though she no longer really punished him, her wrath was not something that he was keen to deal with. It would make braver men than he quake with fright. "This is no time to be going for a walk, Draco. Go around! Socialize! There, there's Miss Parkinson. Go talk to her, if you're not going to associate with others!"

Draco had no desire to talk to Pansy, especially after all that had just happened. In a way, the thought that he should thank her, though he reminded himself that all that he knew about his and Astoria's situation was that she was going to write him. Whatever that meant.

He spotted a distant cousin, and went in the other direction.

The party ended at midnight, and Draco went up to bed shortly afterwards. He fell right asleep. However, he was awakened by a tapping on his window: one that he had unknowingly grown to miss. The clock on his bedside table said that it was just past four.

"Hello, you wretched creature," he said to the owl, as he opened the window. He stroked its head and it hooted indignantly, and held out its leg so that he could take Astoria's letter.

Dear Draco,

I think that the odds have been against us. I mean honestly, more than a few people have told me that we would be terrible together. I was thinking about writing you and telling you that I'm sorry, but this just isn't going to work out, but why? Because Daphne says so? I don't know if you're aware, but Daphne isn't always the best to take advice from, even when it seems sound, like it does now.

Let me put it this way: If you ask me to go somewhere with you, I won't say no. But I don't want people to know, at least, not yet. The last thing I need is my sister on a drunken rampage, and Pansy will make my life as unpleasant as possible if she finds out. I don't mean for this to be a secret forever, but if everything breaks down after just one time out together, there's really no point in alerting the masses to the fact that we tried, right? I don't know if you've noticed, but people talk, and the last thing we need is another rumor about us. Even if it's true.

Yours for now, Astoria.

Yours for now. That was exactly what Draco wanted to hear. As much as he liked her, he had hoped that she wouldn't' be another Pansy, obsessed and absolutely lovestruck. Being secret might actually be rather fun. This in mind, he found a clean piece of parchment and a quill, and carefully crafted his reply.

Dear Astoria.

I agree about the odds. Blaise hasn't exactly been keen on us getting together, either, and Pansy would throw an absolute fit. (If it happens, I want to be present for it. She can be amusing when she's scary, as I'm sure you know.)

Have you ever heard of Black Fowl Inn? It's a little bit like The Leaky Cauldron, except dodgier. I used to go there a lot two or three years ago, but I don't think anyone will know you there. We could go late the night before New Years Eve, though I think we should both make a pact to stay sober.

My perhaps-temporary affection, Draco