Astoria sighed as she leaned (as best as she could) against the back of the carriage, her family and friends already miles behind her. She didn't even look at Draco, instead concentrating on the carriage itself. It was a black, enclosed horse-drawn carriage, the gentle click clack of the horses the only sound she heard. Astoria was aware it was a magical carriage, traveling across a large distance in a short amount of time. It was a lot cleaner than the Floo Network, and a lot safer than Apparating to their destination since it was so far away. So she knew that in a short amount of time they would be pulling in front of their honeymoon destination, and Italian beach house.
That had been one of the few requests Astoria had made, wanting a tropical honeymoon to escape the temperamental weather in London. Since she hadn't participated in anything else concerned the wedding her request was granted. Everyone had been pleased to set up her requested honeymoon, finding a relative who owned the vacation home in Italy who was more than willing to allow them to use it. As Astoria looked out the carriage window she saw the swirling of clouds, able to feel the magic around them as they were pulled away from their wedding day. Under normal circumstances she would be glad such a large event was over. But the fact she would be spending the upcoming days alone with Draco was enough to cause knots in her stomach.
She let out a large sigh as she tried to relax against the back of the seat, the corset it making it practically impossible to do so. Astoria wanted to curse the dress at that moment, regardless of how beautiful it may be. She knew she looked amazing in it, and that the pictures would be beautiful, but she hoped to never wear something so constricting again. Regardless of how many high society events they may have to attend no one would ever be able to convince her to wear a corset again. Astoria knew she was skinny enough without the help of a corset, even though it was almost required with the cut of her wedding dress. She didn't say any of that though as she continued to sit rigidly upright, looking out the carriage window to avoid looking at Draco.
The topic of Draco was something Astoria wasn't ready to think about. If he couldn't trust her enough to talk to her about the past than how could she trust him? Why should she try to make this forced marriage work if it seemed only one sided? Astoria scowled out the window as her thoughts swirled like the clouds she was looking at. She knows she has no choice concerning this marriage. She will fulfill the terms of that damn contract and live up to her family name as well as her new family name, but she certainly wasn't going to be the open and happy wife that everyone imagined, that she had always imagined.
She shivered at the thought of her being a wife, not wanting to accept that term. But she was a wife, she was the wife of Draco Malfoy, and she couldn't change that regardless of what she did. She would be required to be devoted and faithful, to carry at least two Malfoy heirs, to stay home and raise them while Draco was at work. Astoria slightly shook her head at her thoughts, noticing then the swirling of the clouds started to slow down slightly. She wanted to sigh in relief but she wasn't sure if it was relief. Yes, she would be out of that carriage, and yes she would be away from the spotlight of the wedding. But it wasn't likely to be a relaxing honeymoon considering she would be spending it with Draco who she still felt like she hardly knew.
Those thoughts were pushed away though when the clouds finally cleared, revealing a sandy road with a row of houses, the view of the beach just visible behind them. Her eyes darted between the houses, trying to figure out which one they would be stopping at. They didn't travel far down the road before that was answered for her, the horses stopping in front of a large and private beach home. Quickly she took in the house, fenced in with a sandy path to the front door. The house looked to be a shade of blue, at least two stories high, possibly three. The sight looked beautiful to Astoria, the fact that it was on a beach a plus for her. Astoria sighed in relief at the sight, ready to get the dress off. Turning she waited for Draco to climb out of the carriage, letting him help her down the few little steps and onto the pavement. Astoria released his hand then, walking up the main walk of the home, carefully holding her dress up away from the sandy ground.
She heard Draco walk past her to open the door for her, standing back to let Astoria walk into the home. Once she was in the home she released her dress, hearing it brush the hard wood floors. It was as beautiful inside as it looked outside, the large area a combination of the kitchen, dining room, and living room, the back wall full of windows including a sliding door that lead to a deck. They had walked into the dining room, the kitchen to her left, with stairs between the kitchen and the living room beyond it. She turned to Draco then, "I'm going to go change, and get out of this dress." Astoria said briefly, before carefully towards the stairs. On the way she passed a second bath at the bottom of the stairs, but she focused upon what was at the top.
Astoria was relieved to see there were two bedrooms and a large bathroom and quickly made her way into the large bedroom, smiling to see her suitcase sitting on the bed. She dug out her wand, quickly flicking it to release the ties of her dress and finally the ties of her tight corset. Astoria sighed in relief, loving the feeling of the dress sliding down and onto the floor, leaving Astoria standing in her black and white lace lingerie in the bedroom. Absentmindedly she reaffirmed the fact in her mind that she would never wear a corset again as she flicked her wand, sending her dress up to hang in the open closet. Once it was securely hanging she turned to her bed, opening her suitcase with the intention to change into something more comfortable. As she stood there looking at the clothes that were packed for her she heard a sound behind her, turning to see Draco standing in the doorway.
Astoria's eyes widened before narrowing. She crossed her arms across her chest as she looked at Draco, who had the sense to look sheepishly towards the floor. No words came to her mind at that moment. She wanted to curse him, to hex him, to ignore him, but instead she just stood there. Obviously she couldn't do any of the things that came to her mind first. They were now married after all. Anything she did could be against the contract for all she knew. So Astoria stood there, waiting for Draco to break the silence that had fallen between them. Soon enough Draco cleared his throat, seeming to have thought of what to say first.
"I was just wondering if you needed help with the back of your dress, but I can see that you took care of that." Draco's voice seemed to be weighing each word carefully, as if not sure whether his help was welcome or not. Astoria tried not to think too much about what the tone of his voice held, sure it was more than what was obvious. Was that just caution? Or perhaps it was hiding something more. In the back of her mind she thought she heard a bit of heat behind his words. Regardless of how he tried to steady his words Astoria could still detect how the sight of her in her lingerie had affected him. Astoria ignored it though, focusing upon his eyes instead, realizing too late that was a mistake, the lust obvious in his eyes.
She arched an eyebrow at him before saying, "It's called I have a wand, one flick took care of that for me. Thanks for your concern though." Astoria hoped she sounded cold, or uncaring. Regardless of what his eyes and tone didn't say she was determined to only address what Draco had said out loud. After all, she had just married a man she doesn't love, and now she's stuck at a honeymoon she wanted no part in, so why should she let a lusty look affect her now? Astoria slightly shook her head, trying to clear it before speaking once more.
"Now if you don't mind I would like to change clothes. I would suggest you do the same though that's completely up to you." Astoria said before turning her back on Draco and looking back to her bag. Draco said a quick, "Right, sorry." before departing the room, Astoria listening to his footsteps fading away from the room presumably to the other bedroom in the house. With a sigh she turned and sat on the bed beside her bag. Resting her elbows on her knees she placed her head in her hands, rubbing her eyes.
She just wasn't sure what to do. Sleep sounded amazing at that moment, but she knew her mind wouldn't allow her to drift into a blissful sleep just yet. There were still too many things she had to take care of first. So instead she turned towards her bag, pulling out a pair of loose lounge pants and a tank top, quickly changing into the more comfortable clothing. Astoria grabbed her wand off the bed, twirling it around her hair to remove the remained decorations from the wedding. Finally she used her wand to pull her hair into a loose but, sticking her wand into her waistband of her lounge pants. Satisfied she quietly walked towards the door, opening it slowly to look out into the hall.
Relieved to find it empty Astoria opened the door the rest of the way, walking out of the room and down the stairs into an empty living room. While she was surprised to find the downstairs empty as well she didn't pause as she continued to walk towards the back windows. After a moment she found the sliding door she had seen earlier and opened it, walking out into the warm, salty air. After a glance to the ocean Astoria spotted a few chairs on the small deck, quietly walking over to one and sitting down, pulling her knees up to her chest as she looked out towards the water.
It was a relieving feeling to have the air blow through her hair, her bun holding it securely in place. Part of her was vaguely curious where Draco was. Had he taken her advice and went to change? Or had he simply decided to go to sleep early? Astoria was curious, but couldn't bring herself to go and try and find out. She has practically told him to go away earlier so it would probably be best if she didn't try to find him. At that moment she was more content to just sit there, looking out towards the black water. The silence around her didn't last long though when she heard the sound of the sliding door opening behind her.
She wanted to sigh, one of her previous questions having been answered. But she didn't do anything, didn't even move as she listened to his footsteps on the deck, hearing him sit in the chair beside her. Astoria didn't even turn her head to acknowledge him, keeping her eyes focused on the horizon. If her mother had been there she would've been scolded for her rudeness. In Astoria's opinion they were married now, she didn't have to play the game any longer. She heard him sigh, almost as if he both wanted to speak and didn't want to. Astoria didn't turn her eyes to him though, waiting for him to speak if he really wanted to.
They didn't sit in silence much longer before she heard him take a breath before speaking, "Is there something wrong? Did something happen earlier that I didn't see?" She could hear how unsure he sounded, unsure about exactly what though she wasn't sure. It was Astoria though who was unsure. Unsure whether Draco really cared, or if he was asking because he felt obligated. She didn't try to figure that out though, instead trying to determine what to tell him. Astoria sighed before speaking, "Nothing happened earlier, everything went fine." She tried to sound reassuring but she wasn't sure she pulled that off, his next words confirming that she had not sounded too convincing.
"Ok, I can tell something is wrong. It's written on your face." Draco said, Astoria able to hear the smirk in his voice. She scowled towards the water before snapping, "Nothing is wrong, don't worry about it." Astoria quickly stood up, looking at Draco for the first time. She knew what was supposed to happen that night, the consummation of their marriage had even written in their contract, but Astoria couldn't bring herself to even bring it up, and judging from the look on Draco's face he wasn't sure whether to bring it up either. Astoria took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself and the butterflies that had decided to take over her stomach once again.
She noticed then he had changed, opting for a pair of lounge pants, not bothering with a shirt. Unwillingly her eyes traveled over his chest, the muscles sculpted from the years of Quidditch. Astoria sighed as she brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose, trying to rid the sight from her mind's eye. She really wanted nothing to do with this, but if she didn't she would break the contract, which would be more harmful than just obeying it. Breaking it would bring her family to shame, which is something she wasn't willing to do. Any other girl would be jumping for joy at this opportunity, but Astoria was just trying not to overreact at the thought. After a moment Astoria brought her hand back down, crossing her arms across her chest as she looked at Draco.
"So, shall we, uh, go to bed?" Astoria asked quietly, not making direct eye contact with Draco as she spoke. She didn't want to completely outright say what they were going to do, the thought causing her to blush. Astoria tried not to think about what was to come as she waited for Draco to respond, her mind wanting to work overtime on what was about to happen even as she tried to stop thinking about it. Eventually Draco cleared his throat before speaking, "If you're ready to go to bed then I am." Astoria looked at him then, noticing how uncomfortable he also looked.
That managed to calm her nerves slightly. At least she wasn't the only one uncomfortable with the prospect. Astoria took a deep breath before saying, "As ready as I'll ever be I guess." She turned her eyes away from him then, walking towards the door and into the house. Astoria heard Draco following her, closing the door behind him. She led the way up the stairs, towards the bedroom, towards the second part of her marriage contract, her face set in a determined look as she tried not to think about what she was going to do. This was supposed to be an act of love, but all Astoria felt was that it was a requirement that had to be done.