Chapter Twenty-One
" You thought you could escape me?" Those were the words that Death spoke to her in her dreams that night. They were no longer in his field. She didn't know why. Maybe she had outgrown them. " I will always be with you."
She looked around her. They were at Hogwarts. The walls were crumbling, the building in ruins. Standing in an empty hall, with nothing above her but the bright moon.
Astoria looked at Death.
" You thought you could hold me?" She said, her voice calm. Her fingers were shaking, and she clenched them into fists. " I will always escape. I have love on my side. Love and hope and life-" Death recoiled slightly. " I have a reason to fight you. And I will always fight you."
Death sneered. " Astoria Greengrass . . . ah, so naïve. Others have thought they could escape Death forever as well."
" I don't need forever. Just a few decades. Just enough time to get married, and have babies, and get old, and find grey hairs. Just enough time to fully understand how blessed I am." Her words didn't shake.
Death cackled cruelly, raising his scythe in a menacing gesture, and then bringing it slashing down on the tall weeds that poked through the cracked cobblestones. The cut stalks bled blood. " You want happiness, Astoria? Death will always take it from you. Your precious Draco . . ." Death morphed into him. " He was almost mine."
" But he wasn't," Astoria said firmly. " I'm not afraid of you anymore, Death. Everybody's time must come, and I'll be ready when mine comes, but it's not now. It's not tonight. So go away."
" And if it's tomorrow? If it's the next day?"
Astoria looked at him square in the eye. Black and fathomless. She could see millions of souls in them, and thousands of years. Death was timeless. As old as the world. " Then I'll die happy. But I won't die afraid."
She smiled. A tremulous, thin smile, that grew into a broad grin. She felt freedom like she'd never felt before. Death frowned at her slightly, his lips slowly curving upwards as well. A smile that wasn't taunting. Wasn't cruel.
" I'm not your enemy, Astoria Greengrass," He whispered. " I am merely the inevitable. And it's nice not to be feared sometimes."
And then he was gone, like a puff of smoke. Like a blow of chaff in the wind. Nothing there but the whisper of wind down the broken walls of the ancient castle.
She woke up suddenly, clutching her sheets to her chest. Draco started next to her, rolling over a bit. He groaned. " Did you have a nightmare?"
" No," She said, looking out the window. " Not today. I don't think I'll be having anymore nightmares for a while."
Draco looked at her suddenly, as if he understood completely. " Okay." He slowly lowered himself back onto the bed, wincing.
" Oh, Merlin-" She said quickly. " What is it? Is it the . . . wound?" She pulled back the covers quickly. " Are you hurting?"
He shrugged a little, sweat on his brow, his jaw clenched tightly. " Not . . . not as much as when it happened. So, that's a relief. It's just . . . twinging."
" Do you want me to look at it?"
He shrugged again, his eyes closed tightly. She took this as his proud way of saying, ' yes, please, thank you'. Bending over his chest, she gently pealed back the robes he had fallen asleep in. The bandages were still wrapped around him tightly. Apparently, they had left the hospital in too much of a hurry to take them off. Red streaks had bled through, and she winced in sympathy.
" Is it bad?" Draco asked, through gritted teeth, as she prodded the wound.
" Quite possibly. I think you're going to die, soon, Mr. Malfoy," Astoria dead-panned, a wry grin on her face, masking the worry.
" Ha-ha, very funny- Ah-!" He gasped, as she pulled back the bandages. She heard the sound of them ripping, tearing the wound. " Merlin's beard, Astoria, give a guy a warning next time!"
She winced. " I'm about to do it again-" She said, barely giving him time to brace himself, before pulling the dirty bandage completely off. He hissed through his teeth. " Don't be a wimp."
" You have a lovely bedside manner."
" I've been told. Lie down, you're going to hurt yourself." She gently pushed him back, examining the wound carefully.
The edges of the long gash had been knit together, pink scar tissue already showing. They must have done some massive healing charms on him before he had completely woken. The skin near though had been torn, either by exertion or by the stress of the charms themselves. Nothing was infected so far, but it would sting like the devil for a very long time.
" Do you have any Dittany?" She asked suddenly. He looked startled.
" It's not that bad, is it?" Warily he tried to look down his chest, but she rolled her eyes.
" No, it'll heal with time, but I just thought it'd speed up the process-"
He grimaced. " No. Just do a few Episkeys or whatever. Bind it up tight and I'll be ready to go. They won't need me back at work for at least a few days."
" So, you don't have Dittany?"
" Oh, I do. Behind the bathroom cabinet if there's ever an emergency."
" Then why not-"
" I've only ever had to use it once, and it burned like fire. It does heal, but I'd rather only use it when I'm bleeding out. Not for a teensy little scratch like this." He winced a little.
She stood up, going to the bathroom for some towels or cloths to bind up his wounds. " I'll need to go to the hospital to pick up some bandages." Folding a towel neatly, she laid it against his chest, firmly wrapping it in place with a long cloth belt she had in her suitcase. " There. That . . . might hold. I honestly have no idea. Please try not to bleed on the sheets."
" I'll do my very best, Princess." He rolled his eyes, and she smiled a little.
" You're not hurting too much, are you?"
He sighed a little, and drew her closer to him, his arm wrapped around her. " No. Not too much. Not when you're around."
She didn't look convinced. " Okay. Well . . . Why did you ever need to use Dittany? Was it a . . . . Death-Eater thing?" A feeble attempt to take his mind off the pain, but it seemed to work. Draco looked marginally less martyr-like.
" Kind of. I was being a git. Got into a duel with . . . Potter. It was all at Hogwarts, back when I was stupid. Anyway, he ended up cursing me with this Dark spell. Turns out he didn't know what it did, but I ended up with these massive, gory wounds. I passed out. Woke up in the hospital wing when Pomfrey was dabbing on that stuff. It was like the Crucio."
She made a sympathetic noise. " I've never heard that about it ever hurting that much."
" Neither had Pomfrey. Apparently I was more sensitive or something to it. My skin was- I don't know. Allergic, or something."
" Hmm . . ." She hummed into his shoulder, inhaling the smell of him. Sandalwood and lemon and something else that she would never be able to describe. " Well. I'm glad Potter didn't kick your butt too badly."
Draco made a protesting noise, and she snorted a little into the darkness.
" Good-night, Draco, darling."
" Good-night, Astoria, heart of my heart."
She snorted again, and then they went to sleep.
000
The next morning, Astoria woke up extremely late, her body sore from all of last night's horrific events. Examining herself in the mirror she noticed two wide rope burns around her wrists. Her face sported a rather terrific bruise from when she had hit the ground when Pansy had been cursing her.
" You okay?" She asked Draco when she stepped out of their room. Her nightgown fell to past her knees, yet the way Draco looked at her, made her blush. " How's your chest?"
He grinned through a grimace. " Uncomfortable night. But no nightmares. And it can only go uphill from here, right?" He gingerly touched the side of her face, and kissed her cheekbone. " Are you alright?" He took out his wand, and touched it to the side of her face. The stiffness faded.
" You didn't sleep well?" He had her hand in his, gently tracing the tip of his wand around the burns on her wrist.
" There weren't any comfortable positions." After healing the first, he started on the other.
" You should have woken me up, you know." She sniffed.
He smiled a little. " But you're so adorable when you sleep." His doctoring complete, he stowed away his wand, and gently brushed a lock of hair out of her face.
She rolled her eyes, reaching past him to grab a box of Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans. " That's not creepy at all."
" You're eating candy for breakfast?" She popped one in her mouth.
Astoria gagged, and spat out a rather suspicious-looking tan one. " Bertie Bott's don't count as candy. It's an adventure and mystery and a thrill all tied up in one. Do spinach-flavored beans count as candy? I don't think so. Do horseradish? Do boogers?"
" You've never gotten a booger one before."
She narrowed her eyes at him. " How do you know?"
He cringed. " Oh, Merlin, I'm never eating those things again! What did you just get, anyway?" He eyed the brown bean mistrustfully, and Astoria swept it into the garbage can.
She grinned knowingly. " Coffee."
His eyes widened. " You witch! Those are my favorites!"
She shrugged. " Yes. I am a witch, good observation. And they're not mine."
" How would you feel if I ate all of your favorites?" He grabbed the bag from her, apparently forgetting the vow he had just made to never eat them again.
" I would think it was a strange coincidence because I doubt you know my favorite."
He eyed her irritatedly, pawing through the box. " Don't push me. I know a lot about you. Hm . . . it's probably something really different and obscure because you don't like being like everybody else." He examined a red bean and then threw it back. " But you have a sweet tooth . . . so I'm going to say . . ." He held up an oddly-swirled one. " Lemon Sherbet!"
She laughed. " Nice one, Sherlock Holmes."
" Really?" He looked quite pleased with himself.
" No. I like toffees-" She smirked a little, reaching into the box and grabbing a light brown one. Biting into it, she winced. " Coffee again-"
" Merlin, woman!" Draco said, running a hand through his hair. " Are you planning on taking all of them?!"
She laughed. " What are you planning on doing today, anyway?"
" I don't know. I was thinking that we would just stay here." He shrugged hopefully. " I mean, if we're both going to be off for the time-being-"
" Draco . . ." She made a pouting face, and he groaned covering his face with his hands.
" Do we already have some kind of prior appointment?"
" Our wedding's in three weeks."
He glanced at her through his fingers. " I haven't forgotten."
She smirked. " And we have absolutely no plans."
He held up a long finger. " Correction: you have no plans. I have a brilliant one. So . . . picture this . . . we're at the Leaky Cauldron-"
" I'm not getting married at a pub."
" You didn't even listen to what I was about to say!"
" Did it involve me getting married at a pub?"
He shrugged. She scowled.
" Anyway-" She made a vague shooing gesture towards him. " We need an actual plan."
" A plan for us getting married?"
" That would be the end game, yes. It needs to be a fabulous plan. An elaborate, fancy, battle plan."
" It's not war, Astoria. Merlin's beard."
She looked at him haughtily. " Your parents looked down on my parents for being poor. Now my parents are in jail. How do your parents feel about that? Especially now that the Daily Prophet's calling all you Malfoy's heroes, probably. If they wanted to call off the wedding before, now they probably want me dead."
He winced. " Well . . . I won't say that's not probably true-"
Draco was interrupted by the sound of two resounding smacks against the plated glass window. Astoria and Draco turned in surprise to see two very dazed look owls hovering outside the building.
" Circe-" Astoria grumbled. " You're going to kill the owls by keeping your glass so clean. They keep thinking it's not actually there." Taking out her wand, she mumbled a vanishing spell, and the window disappeared. Once the owls had flown in, she hastily muttered the counter-spell and the window was replaced.
Draco tried to grab one owl, pitch black and small, but it screeched at him, and clawed at his arm. He yelped and scrambled backwards. Astoria laughed, and holding out her arm, the owl flew to it. " It's Daphne's owl, you twit. She trained that beast to attack stranger since the first day she got her. I've been waiting for her answer."
She had owled Daphne a few days before and had been waiting nervously for her reply since. Tearing open the thick envelope, she pulled out the parchment and read aloud:
000
Dear Astoria,
Don't worry, everything is fine. Sorry if I worried you, dashing out like that. Addison's mother, you remember her, don't you? The poor dear passed away in the middle of the night, unexpectedly. Addison wanted me home. He's been quite distressed.
I know the wedding is coming sooner and sooner, and I hope to be there by the first week of January, if Baby permits. She's been very feisty lately. Much like me, Addison has said. If Olivia's the one making your bridesmaids' dresses, please tell her to make mine the size of an elephant.
See you soon, Tori-
Daphne (the best sister in the world)
000
" Oh, Merlin, bridesmaid's dresses!" Astoria said, cursing and kicking the table. Draco looked quite alarmed, as he smoothed the feathers of the large grey owl.
" Uh. . . bridesmaid's dresses? How many do you need?"
" Probably only two. Olivia and Daph, but still- and my wedding dress!" She groaned. " It'll kill me to stand through another dressmaking at Olivia's, though don't tell her I said that."
" Just wear . . . whatever. You can wear what you're wearing right now, and nobody would care-"
Astoria shut him up with one ferocious glare. " Your mother, Draco Malfoy. Your mother will be watching me, and expecting me to fail my job as trophy wife, and I won't let her gloat over the fact that I'd walk down the aisle wearing muggle jeans, if I had my way."
Draco shrugged half-heartedly. " Do you need to . . . please her? Can't you just . . . . do whatever you want? You don't need to make her happy all the time."
" Don't you want me too? I thought you loved your mum."
" I do. I just . . . I don't know. Mums . . . they can be a bit harsh sometimes. You don't always have to listen to them. They are human." He grinned a little. " Besides. I'd love to see her face if you walked down the aisle in muggle clothes. It would be absolutely priceless."
" You'd think it was funny . . ." Astoria mumbled under her breath, deftly un-knotting the parchment tied to the other owl's leg. " Whose this, anyway?"
" Oh, speaking of which, this is Argo. He's one of the owls my family owns."
Astoria's hand stilled on the cord, and the bird gave her a peck. " This is from your parents?"
" Yeah-" Draco said, taking the parchment from her limp hand. " Merlin, Astoria, don't look like that. They're honestly not that bad."
" How can you say that after everything your father's done to you?" She was completely outraged, but more so on his behalf then anything else. " Not that bad . . ."
" I thought we agreed we weren't going to talk about that." His eyes cut her into pieces, silvery and cold.
" We never agreed to anything."
" Well, we're not talking about it." He was sitting up so straight, it looked like it hurt. " I already told you, my father-"
" Is an arrogant, self-centered, jerk!"
" He's blood, Astoria. He's my relative."
" He doesn't deserve to be your father, anymore then my father deserves to be mine! It's absurd, Draco-"
" Don't compare my father to your's! At least my father was strong. He did what he thought was right to protect my family. That's why we followed the Dark Lord! That's why he let the Dark Lord torture him when he came back, instead of my mother or me!"
Astoria had her fists on the table, her black eyes flashing with murderous rage. " Is that why he tortured you? To strengthen you? You have scars, Draco Malfoy! Scars! How is that protecting? How is that a father?"
Draco had erupted out of his chair, sending it spinning and crashing to the floor. " Don't talk to me like that."
" I'm saying the obvious. If you're too coward to hear it-"
He was towering over her, his hands clenched on the counter either side of her, his arms a cage. " I'm not a coward."
" Then why are you defending him?!" She screamed, taking a step back to put some distance between them. " Fathers-" Her voice broke, and she gave a dry sob. " Fathers are supposed to love their kids. Children aren't supposed to be trophies or examples of the father's talent or skill-" She gave another heave. " They're supposed to love them! To always be there for them! They're not supposed to mess up! They're not supposed to hit their kid, or ignore their kid, or get sent to Azkaban because they kidnapped their daughter!" Her voice was high, and then very, very small. Astoria sagged against the counter, and hung her head, hoping her hair covered her face, because a tear had just fallen from her eye.
" Astoria." His voice was quiet again. She couldn't look at him. Wouldn't look at him. " Come on, Astoria, it's okay."
She swallowed past the cannonball in her throat. " Fathers-" Her words was quiet, barely audible. " Fathers are supposed to be there. They're not supposed to abandon you. They're supposed to be there when everything else fails."
Astoria felt Draco's arms around her, and she sagged into him, her body boneless. " Shh . . ." She heard him say, but it was just mindless, calming noise in the back of her head. They sank to the floor, Draco still holding her tightly.
They sat on the kitchen floor for a long time. It might have been hours, or only a few minutes, but it was enough time for Astoria to gather herself together.
" I'm sorry-"
" Merlin, Astoria, don't you dare apologize-"
" No, seriously. I overreacted. I was still . . . stressed from last night, and I felt betrayed, and then you were saying all this stuff about your parents like they were totally great, and I-" She sniffed a little. " I just snapped. I was being ridiculous."
He kissed her hair. " Can I read the letter?"
She nodded a little, taking deep breaths.
Draco neatly unrolled the parchment, and read quickly, his eyes skimming the lines. " They want us to go to Malfoy Manor."
" What?" Astoria started off the floor, and Draco helped her up. " What do you mean? When?"
" Today." He handed her the parchment.
She looked at it, but it only said what Draco had already told her. " But- do you think it has to do with last night?"
He shrugged. " Or the wedding. Or both."
Her eyes were wide now. Filled with . . . fear? Or was it determination. "Do you think they'll try to . . . stop the wedding? The marriage? Now that my parents are in jail, I'm sure it's more than enough to break up the Betrothal legally-"
Draco grasped her hands in his, and looked at her, forcing her to look back. " Astoria Greengrass, you're an idiot."
" Kind words, Monsieur-"
" Don't interrupt, Greengrass. Where was I?"
" I don't know what you were doing, but I was being an idiot-"
" Greengrass-!" His eyes narrowed. " Anyway. You're an idiot. Do you honestly believe that anything my parents might possible say could ever, ever, ever in a million years convince me to break up with you?"
She thought about this. " They could disown you."
" I don't care."
" They could threaten to kill you."
" I don't care."
" Or to kill me-" His hands tightened on hers.
" Nobody's killing anybody, but were it to come to that, then I would laugh in their faces, and take you home, and we could fight them off together."
" So romantic."
" I know, right? Any other reasons?"
" They could say I was pregnant with the Minister of Magic's child."
" Kingsley? I don't think so."
" Or that I was an alien." He pulled her closely to him, and kissed her forehead.
" Then we can have lots of alien babies together."
She laughed. " I think that's illegal."
" So . . . do you want to go now?"
" Now?" Astoria looked at her clothes. A nightgown, thankfully fresh and clean, but still a nightgown. " I'm in my pajamas."
" I'll give you five minutes to change."
She rolled her eyes. " So generous."
Ten minutes later, they were apparating straight into Malfoy Manor. It was nice not having to stand outside the gate, Astoria thought, straightening the skirt of her dress. The parlor they were standing in was very fancy, the decorations luxurious and new. A house elf stood in the corner waiting to be called into service.
" Stop fidgeting," Draco mumbled, out of the corner of his mouth.
" I'm not, you git-" She whispered back, shifting in one of the chairs in the Malfoy's parlor.
" Ah-hem-" Came a delicate sound from the doorway, and Astoria rocketed to her feet, curtsying to the elderly Mrs. Malfoy.
" Hello- good afternoon- Mrs. Malfoy-" Astoria said, jumbling her carefully-prepared speech. " Hi."
Draco snorted into his fist, as he rose and kissed his mother's hand. " Mother. I'm sure you remember, Astoria."
Narcissa Malfoy's face was carefully arranged to display a certain amount of polite disgust, as she examined her future daughter-in-law. " Vividly," She said, pronouncing each syllable carefully.
Astoria winced, and Draco squeezed her hand. " Is Father here?"
" Yes-" Lucius Malfoy said, entering through the same doorway. " Please, sit you two."
Astoria sat on the very edge of her chair. Just in case, she thought, eying the door hopefully. You never know when you might need to run for it.
" So, why did you want to see us?" Draco asked, the epitome of polite, yet bored, interest.
Lucius cleared his throat. " Ms. Greengrass, I'm sure you're aware of your parents' . . . sentence?"
Astoria stared at him blankly, her mouth partially open. " Sentence? I wasn't aware it had been . . . given yet. Surely the Ministry doesn't work that fast."
Lucius gave a ginger smile. " Of course not. But they are certain to be given at least ten years' apiece. At the very least."
" Oh-" Astoria said quietly, sitting back in her chair.
" Yes-" Lucius said, smirking disdainfully. " So, actually, as you have no other close family members, apart from your sister, who is in Bulgaria at the moment, yes? Since you have no family members, I feel obligated to- take care of you- with an agreement."
Astoria narrowed her eyes, her forehead wrinkling. " An agreement?"
" Yes, dear-" Narcissa said. " We'll supply all of your needs, like a daughter, you just need to do a few things."
" Like what?" Astoria's tone, before pleasant, had gone suddenly chilly.
" Narcissa was too blunt, Astoria," Lucius said. " You are not forced to do anything. We just feel that . . . in the stress of all of these happenings . . . you would not want to be forced into another tumultuous relationship. We feel that you should hold off, or postpone, your future nuptials with Draco. At least for a few months."
" Postpone?" Astoria raised her eyebrow. " And why would I do that?"
" Astoria Greengrass." Lucius tsk-ed his tongue at her. " We have everything you could possibly want. The best lodgings, friends in high places, an abundance of food, an allowance, surrogate parents-" He smiled benevolently. " I myself would not want my daughter to be tossed to and fro from relationship to relationship- now that your parents are gone, we feel like you need some stability. Of course we want you to marry Draco. Just wait a few years. We have a nice home in Spain you can visit on occasion-"
Astoria stood abruptly, and Draco's groan was barely audible. " So that's your plan. Ship me off to Spain for a 'few years'. Hopefully Draco will forget me, and any foolish plans he ever had, and find a pureblood wife without any embarrassing relatives. Hopefully one with a rich dowry. Well, I won't!"
Narcissa looked so completely offended and shocked by Astoria's outburst that Astoria almost laughed. Lucius looked quite livid, his face turning white.
" I knew this was what you wanted. I know I don't have family, or money, or anything to hold to my family name. But I have Draco. And I won't let him go. And you can't take him from me." She felt like she could light the curtains on fire, with the sparks shooting from her eyes.
Draco had stood to his feet as well. " I agree with Astoria, Mother and Father. I think our marriage would be the best thing in this situation."
Lucius scoffed, standing. " You don't know what you're talking about, boy. It's hormones talking. Give your marriage a few months, and you'll be sick of her. The only marriages that work are marriages of duty. Passion and love fizzle out after a few years, but duty will last forever."
" That's where you're wrong," Astoria said quietly. " Love never dies. It defeats death. Isn't that what killed the Dark Lord? Love? It's the only thing worth marrying for. Worth dying for. Worth living for. When I marry Draco, I'll marry him because I love him."
Draco had placed his arm around her shoulders. " I think we'll be leaving now. Good-bye, Mother, Father-" He nodded to both of them, and Lucius had just stepped towards them, rage in his eyes, when Draco disapparated.
They appeared outside their apartment building, and Astoria was gasping with shock and barely contained giddiness. " Draco! Draco, their faces!"
But Draco was staring at the ground. Not amused. Thinking. Pondering something. " Astoria."
" Yes?" She looked at him, her good humor killed by his expression.
" They won't let us marry. They'll do anything. They'll bribe officials, and destroy my reputation and everything, and they'll do anything in their power to stop us from getting married."
" But-" Astoria looked at him, puzzled. " But we can still get married. You still want to, right? I mean- your parents-"
" Merlin's beard, Astoria, of course I still want to get married. But it's going to be difficult. They're very powerful, probably more so now that my father is back in semi-good graces."
Astoria stared at the newly fallen snow around them. It had begun to seep into her shoes. " What do you want to do?"
" Astoria. Do you want a big wedding?"
She looked at him, her mind racing. " No. I mean, I honestly don't care, but your father was right. I don't have any family but Daphne. I would want Olivia to be there. But nobody else. Not if it doesn't need to be a big wedding."
" What if we eloped?"
Astoria stared at him, not comprehending the word. " The thing that muggles do where they just . . . get married? Without their parents' permission?"
" Yes! We can do it tonight! You can wear whatever, and invite Olivia, and we can just go to the Ministry and have it done with. We'll be married."
The giddy feeling was returning to the pit of her stomach, and a wide grin spread across her face. " And we'd be married. By tonight."
" Yes!"
" Yes!" She said, hugging him around the waist. He picked her up and spun her around, whooping. A passing muggle stared at them, but honestly, at that moment, the world could've stared and they would not have cared. " We're getting married!"
" We need to get inside-" Draco said suddenly. " You didn't bring a coat, and you're going to get cold. And you need to . . . get ready. For tonight." He was smiling too, and it was infectious.
Laughing like lunatics, they stumbled into the lobby. Greensley looked at them oddly, before letting a thin smile escape his cold exterior. " Good day, you too."
" Good day, Greensley!" Astoria called. " We're getting married!"
The clerk looked quite disconcerted. " I should hope so! You are engaged, are you not?"
" You're absolutely sure?" Draco asked. " I'm fairly confident that the Ministry will marry us, so if that's what you want-"
She silenced him with a finger. " It's what I would wish for if I could have anything in the world, Draco Malfoy. So, please shut up."
Once they had made it back to their rooms, Astoria grabbed her quill and several sheets of parchment and composed two letters to her friend and sister.
000
Dear Olivia,
Draco and I are eloping tonight. Meet us at the Ministry of Magic at 7. We need you to be a witness. Please bring Neil.
Astoria
000
Dear Daphne,
I'm so sorry, but you won't be able to be a bridesmaid. Draco and I are eloping at the Ministry of Magic tonight. Come if you can, but do not injure the baby apparating. So sorry for the late notice.
Love,
Astoria
000
" And you're sure this is what you want to do?" Draco asked, for the hundredth time. " We can wait if you want-"
" Draco! Merlin, it's like you don't want to marry me, or something." They were standing in the atrium of the Ministry. It was mostly empty except for them, and they were waiting for Neil and Olivia to come. The clock read 6:50.
" Of course I want to marry you. I just don't want you to regret not having a big wedding."
" The only thing I could possibly ever regret about marrying you is-" And here Astoria stopped. " I can't think of anything. So shut up."
" That wasn't very smooth, Greengrass."
" Shut up, Malfoy!"
" Glad to see things haven't changed-" Came a familiar voice, and Astoria spun around a huge smile on her face. Daphne stepped out of the elevator, still heavily pregnant, but now leaning on the arm of a very tall, handsome man.
" Draco, Addison, Addison, Draco-" Daphne said quickly. " Oh, Astoria, you look beautiful!"
Astoria looked down critically at the peasant-style dress, the only white thing she owned, and it was embroidered with blue and red thread. " Seriously?"
" No, not really. You look kind of normal. But I thought that's what sisters are supposed to say when their sister gets married."
Addison bowed neatly, and kissed Astoria's hand. " I think you look beautiful-" He said, with his thick accent. Astoria giggled. Draco scowled.
" Astoria!" Came a squeal, and Astoria was bombarded by Olivia who was dragging an unfortunate Neil. " Oh my Merlin, I can't believe you're actually doing this! I love it, I love it, I love it! But I will never forgive you for not letting me make your dress! But you look gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous!"
Astoria laughed. " Thanks, Liv. Hi, Neil-" She nodded to Neil, who nodded back, hanging back. " Olivia, what've you got?"
Olivia held out a huge bouquet of flower. " It was the only bridal bouquet they had the florist's, but it was beautiful, so I got it for you."
Astoria smiled, her eyes filling with tears that she quickly blinked away. " Thanks, Olivia. It's beautiful." And it was. Large white daisies, interspersed with multi-colored wildflowers, tied with a white ribbon.
" Where's Draco going?" Daphne asked, and Astoria turned to see Draco talking with the clerk behind the counter.
" Probably to get a wedding person-" Olivia said. " Oh, look, he's coming back!"
Draco loped back, a lopsided grin on his face. " Okay, they have space for us, which is good. Bad if they didn't. We need to go to the basement, and we can get married in one of the spare rooms."
Daphne wrinkled her nose. " It's not exactly luxurious, is it?"
Astoria rolled her eyes. " I'd get married in a barn, at this point."
Draco's eyes twinkled. " I hear the pub down the street has a spot open."
Astoria rolled her eyes, and followed the others back into the jingling, jangling lift. Jerking a little, the chain let them down past floor after floor. Draco had held her hand, and she looked at him. He mouthed the words, ' Are you sure?' And she scowled at him again mouthing the words, ' Shut up!' He grinned.
The room was empty, the walls and floor made of stone. It was much like a classroom at Hogwarts. Olivia pulled out her wand and a sack of rocks and concentrating very hard said several transfiguring spells. The rocks, poured out over the floor, became several long ribbons that Olivia neatly tied into bows and streamers and hung over the walls with a flick of her wand.
Daphne scowled at her, and not to be outdone swished her wand, and the torches on the wall lit up with spectacular pink and white flames. While almost impossible to make the stoic room look festive, the girls almost managed it.
" Thanks, guys," Astoria laughed, but then the door opened and the marriage wizard came in. Thankfully he was a bit more dignified then their Betrothal wizard, Astoria thought with a wry smile.
" The bride and groom?" The wizard asked in a rather bored tone. Astoria and Draco stepped forward, and the wizard took out his wand.
" You have already been Betrothed. That will make the connection easier." He said simply, and said a long incantation very quickly, in what sounded like Latin. Gold threads spun out of the wand's tip, and encircled Astoria's and Draco's arms together. They stared into each other's eyes.
" Do you Astoria Greengrass, take this wizard, Draco Malfoy, to be your lawfully wedded husband?"
She supposed they were skipping the rest of the stuff. " I do."
" Do you, Draco Malfoy, take this witch, Astoria Greengrass, to be your lawfully wedded wife?"
His voice was quiet, but strong. " I do."
The threads around their arms tightened and slowly sank into their skin, making their veins glow for a fraction of the second, before they returned to normal. " I now pronounce you, man and wife!" The wizard said, and Olivia clapped enthusiastically.
" You may kiss the bride-" The wizard started, but before he finished, Draco had bent down and kissed her on the lips, his arms around her, tangled in her hair. Daphne whistled. Astoria blushed, and kissed him back.
When they broke apart, the wizard had already left, and Olivia had stood from her spot on the floor. " You guys, that was beautiful-" She wiped a hand underneath her eyes. " Absolutely beautiful."
The wizard had left them with a certificate they were supposed to sign, so that they would be lawful in the sight of the Ministry and the muggle world. Astoria picked up a quill and gently signed. Astoria Greengrass. Right next to Draco Malfoy. They were married now. To have and to hold from this day forth.
After many tearful good-byes (Olivia) and bawdy references to later that evening (Daphne), Draco and Astoria disapparated back into the building.
Walking down the hallway, Draco paused before they got to their door. Astoria stared at him questioningly, as she unlocked the door. " What?"
Walking over, he swept her up in his arms, giving her a dazzling smile.
" Oh, Merlin-!" She laughed. " You're such a romantic." She clung to his neck, terrified that he might drop her.
" That's why you married me, Astoria Malfoy-"
She stopped laughing when he said that, but stared at him with an expression he couldn't read.
" What?"
" Astoria Malfoy. I'm Astoria Malfoy.."
" Yeah-" he shrugged. " You are. Do you not want me to call you that? Because I can still call you Greengrass, if you-" She stopped him with a kiss, leaning into his body, as he still held her.
" I really, really like Astoria Malfoy." She whispered against his lips, and felt his smile.
" I quite like it myself." He whispered.
Then he opened the door and carried her into their home.
000
AN: So, I think we can all agree, I'm the most horrible person in the world. So, so sorry for not updating for so long, and then for giving you this incredibly long, train-wreck of a chapter! Sadly, this is the very last chapter (because I'm too lazy to actually have a plot), but I am planning an epilogue. :) Just because epilogues are so much fun. I love you guys so much!
Thanks for reading, and please review! Feel free to complain about the chapter, as long as you review. I absolutely adore reading reviews.