Before she met her husband, Astoria Malfoy had always thought that Muggles were the most fascinating creatures on Earth. That was of course, until the storm that was Draco Malfoy blew his way into her life, with his smooth talk, grey eyes and damagingly dark past, and it didn't take long for Astoria to become infatuated with him.
Though that isn't to say her interest in Muggles ever faded (quite the contrary actually) and after updating the infamous Malfoy Manor library with more modern literature, Astoria found herself exploring this new world, delving into these new depths with a thirst and pure hunger for knowledge. And even though there was a reluctance to begin with, there was inevitably nothing that would stop Draco for fulfilling his wife's desires, including taking her into the Muggle world.
"I refuse to get on my knees and beg you Draco, so instead, I will happily go get a quill and ink and prepare the divorce papers if you do not come with me,"
The teasing tone and the Malfoy-esque smirk was all the ammunition she needed, and before they both knew it, it was the 5th of November, and the couple were huddled together in their coats, hats and scarves, gazing up at the bright starlit sky with hundreds of Muggles surrounding them.
"Are you sure you're warm enough?" Draco whispered, his hot breath against her neck making her shiver.
Astoria rolled her eyes and smiled at him fondly "Love, you made me wear five thick layers of clothing and then proceeded to place three different warming charms on us...I think I'll survive the next hour outside."
"Yes, well, it's not only the cold that I'm concerned about," A condescending snarl morphed onto his face "Salazar knows what diseases these Muggles carry, and we're swarmed by them."
She turned to her husband with a sharp look in her green eyes "Thank you for your input Lucius but I'm quite content where we are."
From the way that Draco physically flinched after the remark, and that he refused to look back at her, she had clearly struck a nerve.
Apologetically, Astoria wrapped her arms around him "I'm proud of you for coming with me today; I know it was a big step for you, but you're better than having that degrading attitude Draco...you've worked too hard in restoring yourself just to revert back to what you were."
He heaved out a sigh, and eventually hugged her back, shutting his eyes and inhaling the addictive scent of her hair and her being. Astoria.
Abruptly, there was a screeching wail up above, and the duo broke apart from their embrace to find bursts of red, blue, yellow and green erupting from the sky, bursting into beams of colour and evaporating into a dense fog seconds later.
Draco was immediately unimpressed, as he'd seen grander fireworks in his lifetime (even by the Weasley's!) however he had to admit that as soon as he caught a glimpse of the childish wonder and joy in his wife's eyes, that it was all worth it.
But then, overshadowing the crash of the fireworks before him, Draco Malfoy's attention was drawn towards the soft tinkle of a baby's laugh right beside him.
"And what colour is that one?" The assumed father animatedly asked his child, whilst enthusiastically pointing his finger, and bouncing the child in his arms "Can you say blue?"
As a logical man, Draco's first reaction was 'how moronic of him to believe that the infant could possibly respond! They don't look older than one!', though by just glancing at the family, the happiness that radiated off the squealing child and the doting father was rather soothing, and through all the negativity that brewed from his and Astoria's constant arguments about having a baby of their own, Draco found a deep part of himself started to crave that bond.
"You aren't getting all sappy in your old age are you?" Astoria peered at him with her knowing stare, clearly having read him like a book.
"Malfoy's don't get sappy,"
"It must be from the Black roots then,"
All he could muster was a withering look at his wife, before turning to keenly watch the fireworks.
Nevertheless, in true Astoria fashion, she refused to back down "That could be us, you know."
A frustrated exhale and his gloved hands crossing over his chest was the only response she was given, which only added more fuel to the fire "I understand your concerns, I really do, but now I can see that you-"
"Astoria," Draco's tone was severe, ironically akin to scolding a naughty child, and left no room for discussion "I'm not having this conversation with you again."
She pulled at his hands and rested them into her own "Look at me."
He did, his eyes sharp and nasty.
"I love you. I think this step will be good for us,"
"Not for you," Draco replied flatly "Carrying a child could be the death of you- we've talked about all this Astoria, there's no need to start a fight."
"I'm not fighting, I'm just-"
"This conversation is over,"
She looked at him pleadingly, but his face remained as still as stone. In defeat, she turned back to watch the fireworks, letting an uncomfortable silence fall between them until the show was finished.
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As soon as they were back inside the warm manor, Draco calmly made his way downstairs to his potions lab, making a point to not look at his wife since their argument. Knowing that her husband needed some time to himself to calm down, Astoria instead perched herself onto the velvet purple chaise in the lounge and started a solo game of Wizard Chess, with a roaring flame magically appearing in the ornate marble fireplace in-front of her.
During her first visit to the infamous Malfoy Manor, Astoria was unsurprised at the nauseating shades of Slytherin that were splattered around every single room. This, paired with the invasive darkness that loomed from the heavy curtains always remaining closed, gave her the overwhelming impression that she did not belong there. But with some convincing from Draco, Astoria spent a lot of time decorating, in an attempt to erase the ugly history that haunted each millimetre of the place.
This was, of course, done without any of Lucius or Narcissa's knowledge, and Astoria couldn't help but feel a burst of pride when she saw the distaste filled sneer on Lucius when he saw the mishmash of potted plants that grew from the sunlight radiating into the living room, and Narcissa's icy glare at the splashes of cerulean blue in the dining room. Though this was nothing in comparison to when Draco stood before his own mother and father, and refused to allow them to reprimand her for bringing him the happiness that his parents failed to bring. Astoria's gratification in that moment was unparalleled.
Taking her eyes off the chess set before her, she leaned back in the chair and started to observe the room, shadows of a younger version of Draco and Astoria painting the walls and rearranging furniture pervaded her vision, and the impulse to talk to her husband overcame her so furiously that the pawns, bishops, knights and rooks collided with the floor in Astoria's haste to leave the room.
Speeding down the stairs, she made a halt right outside the large wooden door, holding onto the cobble wall and attempting to catch her breath. This blood malediction has plagued Astoria since birth, and she's always been consciously aware of it, so she was not blind towards her declining health over the past few years, through her more frequent fainting spells and the inability to breathe easily, but the overwhelming desire to have a child of her own thumped all of her personal health concerns- she just had to persuade Draco...which was easier said than done.
The pair had actually agreed to have a baby back in Spring, though with the want to adopt, however at the glance of the surname 'Malfoy' on the adoption papers, they were immediately rejected, and they both knew the circumstances would be the same when it came to surrogacy. Astoria could tell that this greatly troubled Draco, since it put into perspective how much his surname alone would prevent opportunities for not only Astoria; but a child also. After making this fact clear to his wife, he shut her down every time she tried to bring up the idea of trying for a baby.
Once regaining her strength and courage, Astoria quietly opened the door to be faced with her husband's back, where he was bent over a cauldron that was emitting a thin purple smoke, and a smell that distinctly reminded her of rotting fish, invaded her nostrils, causing her nose to wrinkle in pure disgust. She stood and watched him for a while, though she had to use her fingers to pinch her nose as the scent was starting to make her feel nauseated.
"Enjoying the view?"
Astoria made her way toward him, and wrapped her skinny arms around his waist "Very much so, I must admit."
The rumble she felt from his chest as he chuckled made her smile slightly, and she rested her head against his back as they remained locked together.
"Is this your attempt at distracting me?"
"Is it working?"
He gently grasped her hands and spun around to face her, furrowing his brow as soon as he laid eyes on her pale face "Are you sick?"
"Not physically but that horrifying smell is around 10 seconds away from making me faint,"
Rolling his eyes, Draco turned and waved his wand, causing a vial to barge out of a cupboard straight into the cauldron, coming out with purple sludge dripping from the glass onto the floor. With another wave, the lid slid onto the cauldron, and the now clean vial zoomed straight into Draco's awaiting palm "Follow me."
Without hesitation, the couple made their way upstairs and into the living room and Draco made a motion for Astoria to sit in the chair opposite him, before placing the vial onto the side table next to her.
"This is for me?"
"Yes," he walked towards the corner of the room and pulled out a bottle of fire whiskey and two glasses, before sitting into his own chair and pouring himself a drink "And you will have it all."
Astoria sucked in a breath, counted to five, and chugged the vial in one go, ignoring the painful burn that it created as the substance made its way down her throat. However as she slammed the empty potion onto the table, it was evident that she was struggling with the taste, so Draco cast a quick Aguamenti into the other glass and handed it her, rubbing her back as she drank.
"Merlin...if I didn't know better I would have thought you were trying to kill me!"
Taking the glass off her, Draco sat back into his seat and nursed his fire whiskey "It's another experiment I'm trying to help with the curse- so I'll be monitoring how you're responding to the first dose and go from there."
"Oh joy, I simply can't wait,"
"Don't start with the sarcasm, I'm doing this for you,"
"And I want a baby for you,"
Draco placed his head in his hand "What."
Astoria moved so she was sitting up on the edge of her seat "Of course I want this too, don't get me wrong, but I'm willing to go through this process so that you can have someone when I die."
"I'm not drunk enough for this,"
But before he could move towards the bar cabinet in the corner, Astoria intercepted him and placed her dainty hands on his face "No, you will listen to me and you will listen well."
"You can try every potion or spell or transplant to halt the curse but I'm still never going to live to see old age. Ever since I became apart of your life, you've allowed yourself to change, and not go back to that nasty and depressed person that you were before. But what happens when I go? Every day I think about what would happen if I just suddenly died and it breaks my heart," at this point, tears were slowly trickling down her porcelain cheeks "it really breaks my heart, so I need to know that you have a part of me left, that you can look after just as well as you've looked after me, to comfort each other."
"It's not just your health, it's unfair for a child to have to face the burden of my name, and suffer the consequences for the things that I did as an insolent child. They will be exiled from society just for associating with me, and that is not the world I want them to live in,"
"I understand," Astoria wiped some of her tears away "But maybe that's a sign for us not to stay here. We could live in France, or Germany or even Antarctica for all I care, as long as we make sure this child knows that they're loved, unlike we were, and raise them to be the best version of themselves, then that means that they can accomplish anything. Family history aside."
Draco released a breath that he didn't realise he was holding "Leaving the manor doesn't sound like a bad idea."
"What about creating a baby with the love of your life?"
He really looked at her then, at the beauty hidden behind her red splotchy cheeks, the burning passion sparking in her eyes, and the kindness and warmth that radiated from her very soul, and in that moment he knew that it would all be okay, because he had her.
"Okay."