After giving hugs to Tonks and Remus and a scratch behind the ears to Sirius, I Disapparated from the platform quickly, wiping my eyes as I strolled down the streets of Diagon Alley to Mulpepper's.
By the time I got home tonight, the house would be quiet and back to just Sirius, Remus, and I. Moody and Kingsley each had their own homes and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were returning to their home out in the country at some point today. While I would miss the hustle and bustle of the house, I wouldn't miss all the tension between Mrs. Weasley and I. In fact, that was the only thing I wouldn't miss.
I wiped my eyes hastily one final time before walking through the door of the apothecary. I couldn't let my new boss know that I was crying over my boyfriend leaving, no matter how kind he seemed.
"First day of the rest of your life," I muttered, pushing any sad thoughts from my head. "Here we go."
The door flew open at my touch, the wind pushing it open forcefully. The bell above it dinged lightly, and Mr. Mulpepper appeared from behind the curtain that separated the storage room from the rest of the shop. When he saw me, his face burst into a grin.
"Miss Malfoy! Welcome, welcome, very exciting! Your first day as a Potioneer's apprentice!" Mr. Mulpepper exclaimed, helping me remove my cloak and hanging it on a rack behind the door. "Did you get the chance to say farewell to your friends?"
I nodded quickly. They hadn't even been gone thirty minutes and I missed them all terribly – Ginny's quick-witted comments, Ron and Hermione's banter, and Fred's…well, everything – and I didn't want to be sad for the rest of my first day.
"Right then! Well, what should we have you start with?" he mused, looking around the shop wildly. "I know this probably sounds boring, my dear, and you'll have to forgive it, but why don't you start by refilling some inventory in the back? I've gotten some lavender sprigs and honeywater in the back that need to be counted and poured in vials. Again, my dear, I do apologize-"
"It's alright, sir," I said quickly with a smile. "I'm just glad I'm not doing inventory as a punishment – I'm rather used to that. Besides, it would probably do me good to learn about more of what you sell here, no?"
He was clearly taken aback by that response, not expecting me to be so amenable to menial tasks. Little did he know that I had spent an entire school year and summer doing menial tasks, and I was rather used to it by now.
"Very well, then!" he said happily. "I'll show you where I keep all my clean vials and jars for dry goods, and you'll be on your way!"
I nodded, then followed him back to the storeroom, purple robes billowing out from behind us. Before he said anything else, he turned around to face him, his eyes full of concern suddenly.
"Miss Malfoy, if I may be so bold, as to say this," he began, "I must admit I had some…reservations about bringing on an apprentice with such a close connection to…well, to-"
"To the Dark Arts?" I finished, now annoyed. "To He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?"
He gave a halfhearted, sad smile, as if to say that he was sorry.
"You must forgive me, my dear," he said quietly, his shoulders hunched over slightly. "I lost a sister and an uncle during the first war. Killed by Death Eaters. My father and mother were wizards, but my mother's brother married a Muggle and my sister was a Squib. They didn't stand a chance, really. Quite silly to think they ever did."
My face fell. Was he, too, affected by the cruelty of my family? More specifically, my father? I couldn't bear the thought of working for someone who'd had their loved ones murdered by him. I already had to deal with that all summer – I wasn't ready to do it again.
"What I mean to say, Miss Malfoy, is that I did have some reservations. But, Albus reassured me that you were nothing like your father and your aunt. I'm pleased to find that, well, I believe they're right. I'm quite thrilled to have you're here, my dear. I want you to know that straight away."
I breathed a sigh of relief. That was the most long-winded compliment I'd probably ever received, but I was glad it turned out to be exactly that: a compliment.
"I'm happy to be here too, sir," I said with another nod. "And for the record: I'm nothing like my family. I don't want to be like them. If there's to be a second war, I'll be fighting for what's right, not for whatever twisted blood supremacy they believe in."
He smiled again, a grateful, wise smile, then left me be in the back room. As I began organizing lavender sprigs and pouring honeywater and dragon's blood, I couldn't help but wonder how Fred was doing. What he was up to, how long it would be until they reached Hogwarts. I also couldn't wait to tell him all about my first day, even though it had only just begun.
First day of the rest of your life, I thought to myself. Not bad, right?
Most of the day had been devoted to restocking and reorganizing inventory for the front of the shop. Mulpepper's shop had pretty much been depleted of its usual contents during the weeks leading up to the first day of school at Hogwarts, and it was up to me to return the store to its former bounty. Little did I know that it would take nearly five hours to do so.
While I was wandering about the back of the store, I heard the bell above the door ring again, followed by the sound of heels clicking across the old, wooden floors.
"Ah, hello – or should I say, bonjour, Miss LaCross!" I heard Mulpepper say jovially.
"Bonjour, Claudius," I heard a young woman say in a light French accent. The sound of her voice was airy like windchimes, but as decadent as a sweet, elf-made wine. When I wandered out from behind the curtain to the front of the shop, I was caught off-guard by Mr. Mulpepper introducing me out of nowhere.
Ah, Clotilde, have you met my new apprentice? This is Cassiopeia Malfoy, it's her first day in the shop and doing rather well, I should think," he said, gesturing to me with a grin.
I smiled sheepishly at the beautiful witch who stood in front of me. She wore robes of all black – brocade trousers, a lace blouse, and matching cape, the hood tucked halfway across her thick, curly black hair, which was held back by a pink, jewel-encrusted pin. For all I knew, she had just Apparated here from Paris, she looked and sounded that elegant.
"It's Cass, nice to meet you," I said, reaching out to lightly shake her olive-toned, outstretched hand.
"Cassiopeia? Like the stars?" she asked with a grin. "Pretty name. I'm Clotilde, but it's Clo to everyone except Claudius."
"Clotilde's family and I have known each other for many years," Mr. Mulpepper explained. "Clotilde's father was once an apprentice of mine, long ago. Quite an accomplished Potioneer, he was."
"Yes, before he moved to Paris and met my mother," Clotilde explained. "I attended Beauxbatons Academy and finished just last June. I'm an apprentice with Madame Malkin, just down the street. Perhaps you have seen me there?"
I shook my head.
"I think I'd remember you," I breathed, still transfixed by her beauty. She looked like an apprentice in a clothing shop, with her head-to-toe glamour in a way that made it seem effortless.
She giggled, rolling her eyes at my comment. My cheeks burned. All my life, I was never good at making friends, and comments like that were probably why.
"She's charming, Claudius," she remarked to him. "Perhaps you'll set her free soon so that I might take her for a drink?"
"If Miss Malfoy's finished in the back, I see no reason not to," he replied, bustling around behind the counter to pick items for Clotilde. "Miss Malfoy, are you finished back there?"
"Not quite, I've got a few more vials of honeywater to pour and then I'll be done," I said quickly.
"Very well, you go on and then I'll set you free, as Miss LaCross says," he said, gesturing to Clotilde next to me. "My dear, I've packed all the usual ingredients. Will you be needing anything else?"
"I don't believe so," she replied, handing him a bundle of coins before turning to face me. "Another friend and I have started going for drinks at the Leaky Cauldron around seven. That's where we'll be when you're through here."
I nodded. Despite the girl's warmth and invitation to the Leaky Cauldron, I felt the same as I did the day I met Tonks: completely confused. This girl had known me for five minutes and now we were friends? It threw me for a loop, but I wasn't going to turn down the invitation. After spending the summer mostly alone and only with my boyfriend, friends were certainly on the list of things I desperately needed.
I checked my watch. Fred and the rest were probably at Hogwarts by now, getting off the train and into the carriages to take them up to the castle for the welcoming feast. It was the first night I'd spent without him in weeks, but perhaps being out with girls my age would do me good. Maybe.
"Ah, you're here!" Clotilde exclaimed, standing up to kiss my cheeks in greeting. "I didn't order you a drink, what would you like?"
"I usually get firewhiskey and ginger beer," I said offhandedly, "but I'm in the mood to try new things. One glass of Daisyroot Draught, please!"
"It's on me," Clotilde said, putting a manicured hand on my wrist. "For my new friend."
I couldn't even respond before the bartender, Tom, handed me a glass goblet full of Daisryroot Draught. I took a careful sip of the golden wine and let it sit in my mouth. It was floral and sweet, but just as strong as firewhiskey. This will be dangerous, I thought to myself.
"Sit down, sit down," Clotilde said, gesturing for me to sit at a small table with three chairs. "Francis will join us soon, they're always late. I must apologize for catching you off-guard today in the shop! I've only just moved to England a few months ago, and I'm trying to make new friends. I am a stranger in a strange land, as it were."
"I can't see you having a hard time making friends," I said, taking another sip of my drink. She raised her eyebrows.
"Yes, well," she said, waving her hand dismissively and taking a sip of wine. "I'm terrible at talking to people. I'm grateful that Claudius told me your name, and now we're here! So, tell me about yourself. Where did you attend school?"
Taken aback, I took another large sip and began to speak.
"Hogwarts, er, I went to Hogwarts. Left in July, now I work for Claud – I mean, Mr. Mulpepper. You went to Beauxbatons?"
She nodded.
"Oui. You say you left school in July? So, you were there for the Triwizard Tournament?" she asked, her eyes now shifting from intrigued to concerned. "Did you know him? The boy who died?"
My ears buzzed at the mention of Cedric. Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry.
"Yeah, he and I were rather close," I said quietly. "I'd known him since I was eleven."
"Ah," she said, nodding. "I think I remember you – you were crying? With his mother and father?"
I nodded, my throat closing up and my eyes starting to sting at the memory. My brain was now flooded with the image of Amos and Serena holding their son's body close to them and wailing, mourning, publicly grieving the loss of him. I hadn't gone back to that place in a while, and it was the last place I wanted to be now.
Clotilde could see my discomfort and reached out to touch my sleeve.
"C'est la doleur. It is painful. You don't have to talk about it," she said softly, her eyes smiling when her lips weren't.
I shook my head. "It's alright. I…what about you? You finished school recently, yeah?"
She nodded again.
"I grew up in Paris," she began, sipping her wine again. "My father was a Potioneer, as you heard, and he met my mother in a wand shop, when she was a wandmaker's apprentice. They married, had me, then divorced when I was seven. My father came back to England, I remained in Paris. I attended Beauxbatons, I graduated, and now I am here."
I nodded slowly, hanging onto every word. I'd learned only the bare minimum about this girl and I was completely intrigued.
"So, how did you end up at Madame Malkin's shop?" I inquired.
"Ah, of course. I am a talented witch, I won't deny that," she began, "but I really wanted to study fashion. I want to design clothes and dress witches and wizards and make them feel beautiful."
I blinked.
"Why fashion? You're the daughter of-"
"Of a Potioneer and a wandmaker? I know it sounds strange, but wizard fashion...I don't know, it's been centuries and centuries of robes, and I think 'how dull'! Muggle fashion, on the other hand, is what inspires me. I remember when I was five years old, and my mother and father had a television. They had it on one morning, and there was a wedding on one of the channels," she explained, trying to remember parts of her story. "What's the name of the princess here in England? Her husband has the big ears?"
"Princess Diana?!" I exclaimed. "Princess Di?"
"Oui! Yes, Diana," she said, clapping her hands. "I remember seeing Princess Diana in her carriage in that enormous dress. When she got out, with the bows and sleeve and train, how beautiful she looked…knowing that human hands created a dress like that, a dress that's taken on a life of its own just because she wore it, is magic to me."
"Wow," I said, raising my eyebrows as high as I could. "I never expected-"
"Never expected a witch to want to design clothes?" she giggled. "Yes, we exist. Over the last year, my father's health began to fail. I'm his only child and his siblings are all gone, so I decided to move back here to care for him. I go to the apothecary once a month to get ingredients for the potions he needs. It was Claudius who told Madame Malkin to bring me into her shop. I owe all of this," she gestured around the dimly lit pub, "to his kindness. Ah, there's Francis! Over here, Franz!"
I turned my head toward the door of the Leaky Cauldron, where the most stunning individual I'd ever seen was sauntering over to us.
They were extremely beautiful: tall and slender, with strawberry-blonde hair that fells in unruly, shaggy waves that ended in the middle of their chest. They had wide, dark eyes, high cheekbones, and a strong, pointed jaw, with tattoos on their arms poking out of their robes. When they smiled at me, I felt a burning sensation in the pit of my stomach, like I was unworthy of being in the presence of such great good looks.
"She's done it this time," they said, slapping a Muggle newspaper down on the table, which Clotilde picked up quickly. "I'd kill for that jacket. I wish that blue looked good on me."
"You'd look perfect in jewel tones if you actually gave them a chance, Francis," Clotilde joked, leafing through the paper and landing on a photo of Princess Diana in a bright blue jacket over a short, black dress. She really did look beautiful, I had to agree with this stranger called Francis.
"Oh, Francis, meet my new friend, Cass," Clotilde say, gesturing between us. "She works at Mulpepper's now. Today was her first day."
Francis smiled at me, a smile of straight, white teeth and pink lips.
"Francis Gray," they said, shaking my hand. "You look really familiar. Have we met before?"
"Er, no, I don't think so," I said. "Where'd you go to school?"
"Hogwarts, class of '93. Slytherin House," they replied, sitting down next to me. Suddenly, something click in my memory.
"Wait, you said your surname's Gray – as in Gray family? The-"
"Second oldest pureblood family in the country, next to the house of Black? Yeah, that's the one," they replied, waving to the bartender to flag him down. "You go to Hogwarts too?"
"Yeah, I finished this past summer," I said. "I was Slytherin too, but I don't really remember you. Sorry."
"Believe me, I wasn't terribly memorable in school," Francis chuckled, taking a sip of firewhiskey and knocking it back. "What'd you say your surname was?"
"Malfoy. It's Cassiopeia Malfoy, but you can just call me Cass," I muttered quickly. Francis's eyes widened, wiping their lip with a ring-laden finger before speaking.
"Malfoy? Is someone in your family a Black?" they asked, eyes wide.
I nodded.
"You're a Black, I'm a Gray!" they exclaimed. "'Two houses both alike in dignity,' but the only things they have in common are their penchant for blood supremacy and wizard fascism."
"Are you really going to talk about the sociopolitical climates of wizarding Britain that led to the rise of blood supremacy in front of our new friend?" Clotilde asked over another glass of wine. "If you are, I'd like to listen. You know I love when you go all passionné d'histoire on us."
I turned to Francis, who was still knocking back firewhiskey.
"Are you a historian or something?" I asked, cocking my eyebrow.
They shook their head vigorously.
"Want to be one," they explained. "After Hogwarts, I was supposed to move to Godric's Hollow and spend the summer with Bathilda Bagshot, transcribing some of her works. Now I'm actually a shopkeeper on the other side of town. If I had it my way, I'd leave it all behind and get a job in the Department of Magical Artefacts or something. Anything to get me closer to actually being a magical historian, I reckon."
"So why don't you do that?" I asked. They gave me a knowing look.
"It's what the family wanted, me working for Borgin. If the Gray family wants you to do something, you do it, no matter how heinous it is. You're a Black, I'd expect you to know that."
"YOU work at Borgin and Burke's?!" I exclaimed, a little too loudly. Francis and Clotilde both grabbed my arms and shushed me harshly. I felt extremely stupid for shouting that out.
"I do, but that's not really something I say out loud," they muttered, leaning into my ear to whisper. Their hair tickled my cheek, making it burn.
"Right, got it. Won't say it aloud," I said with a nod. "Sorry."
"S'alright," they said, shrugging. "What about you? What's your story?"
"I'm a Potioneer's apprentice, I'm working for Mulpepper's," I explained. "If you want advice on running away from the pureblood life, you're free to ask me. I got kicked out of our house last summer. Blasted off the family tree and everything. Just another blood traitor now, I guess."
Francis's eyes widened, They ran their hands through their hair, revealing hundreds of freckles across their face. Tiny stars. They reminded me of Fred's.
"Did you really?" they breathed. "How'd you manage?"
"I didn't for a while. Lived under bridges for a couple months, almost go arrested, but got rescued by an Auror, who turned out to be my long-lost cousin," I said simply, telling the story to my new friends as though it were common knowledge.
Francis's eyes widened again. Clotilde looked up from her Muggle paper. They exchanged looks of equal parts surprise and profound respect. I beamed a little bit, proud of being seen as interesting by these total strangers.
"And I thought my life story was interesting," Clotilde said, shaking her head. "Clearly I've been one-upped."
"It's a good thing I like stories," Francis said, putting their lips to their glass one more time. "I'd like to hear more of yours, if you're willing."
I smiled, then glanced at my watch. Sirius and Remus would probably be worried sick if I didn't come home soon. Hell, they were probably already worried when I didn't come home after six. I couldn't keep them awake and paranoid – especially if one of them got ahold of Tonks, or worse, Moody.
"As much as I'd like to, I can't," I said sadly, standing up from the table. "My cousin's probably really worried that I haven't come back home yet. I didn't get ahold of him after work to tell him I'd be out. Maybe we can continue this another time?"
Clotilde and Francis exchanged looks again.
"I'd love that," Francis said quickly.
"Same time, same place, next week?" Clotilde asked.
I nodded, grinning widely.
"That's perfect. It was really lovely meeting you both, truly," I said with another grateful grin, before heading out the door of the Leaky Cauldron, the cool September air chilling me to the bone as I turned on my heel and vanished into the air.
"WHERE ON MERLIN'S GREEN EARTH HAVE YOU BEEN?" Sirius bellowed from the fourth floor as I hurried into Grimmauld Place.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Sirius, I ended up making some new friends after work," I explained, putting my hands up in a display of innocence. "We got caught up in the Leaky Cauldron, I'm really, really sorry for worrying you."
"While I'm glad you were out making friends, you should've had a guard with you. I'd also ask that you at least tell someone where you are if you're out late," he said, hurrying down the stairs to greet me. "We've all been in a bit of a state all day. Sturgis has been arrested."
"WHAT?!" I exclaimed. "What happened? Is that why he wasn't at the platform this morning?"
Sirius nodded. "He was on duty last night. Ministry guards caught him outside the door of the Hall. He wouldn't tell them what he was doing there at one in the morning. Six months in Azkaban."
I leaned against the door, the happiness of the past few hours completely leaving my mind and body. This was the first time I'd known someone from the Order that had gotten into serious trouble on a mission. Six months in Azkaban, just for guarding the door?
"Godric…Sirius, I'm so sorry, is there anything we can do?" I asked stupidly. "We can't just let him rot there for six months!"
"Cassie, as much as we'd like to, I don't think we can," Remus chimed in from the top of the stairs. "No one's supposed to know what Sturgis, or any of us, are doing when we're outside that door. When it's your turn to go on guard duty, you'll understand. That's why you need to be careful – we thought you'd gotten arrested too."
"Or worse," Sirius muttered. I tried to give them both reassuring smiles.
"I'll always come home, alright you two?" I said. "I'm sorry I wasn't in touch today, but I promise I will be next time. Alright?"
They nodded. I gave Sirius a quick hug before I bolted up the stairs, gave Remus another hug, and retreated to my room for a night of rest. For better or for worse, it had been a day of twists and turns. At the end of it all, there was still only one person I wanted to talk to.
I wondered what kind of night he was having. Maybe he and George had already started testing products. Maybe they were planning the most epic pranks for their seventh year or getting ready for Quidditch. In any case, I wanted to tell him all about my day, my job, and my new friends. I grabbed a quill and ink, let Lyra out of her cage, and began to write.
Freddie,
I know you just left today and I'm already writing. I don't care, though.
It's been a rather wonderful day – my first day at the apothecary was brilliant – Claudius Mulpepper is full of wisdom – and I actually made two new friends. Clotilde and Francis are close to my age and we all work in close proximity to one had drinks at the Cauldron and were probably out for nearly three hours (Sirius and Remus were worried sick when I didn't come back right at six – whoops!).
I think it'll be good for me to have some friends nearby. Sirius and Remus and Tonks are great, but I need a bit of a social life too. I keep thinking about you and the kind of day you're having, and that your seventh year is starting in a few short days. While I'm here and you're there, I want you to know that I'm always with you, just like you're always with me. You've only been gone twelve hours and I can't wait until the day I can see you again.
Do write back as soon as you can and let me know when the Hogsmeade weekends are. I might be able to persuade Moody to let me come see you for a day. Merlin knows I'll probably need it.
I miss you already. I love you so damn much, Freddie, and I'll see you soon.
All my love,
Cass
A/N: I'm SO thrilled to be introducing new characters to y'all! Clotilde and Francis are going to play big roles in Cass's life from here on out. Now that Fred's back at school, Cass is going to go through some pretty intense development and self-discovery - who she is, what she wants, and who's she supposed to be (or be with). She's going to ask a lot of questions, try new things, make mistakes, and learn more about what it means to love people. Things won't always be perfect with her and Fred, but is growing up ever perfect? I didn't think so. In any case, buckle up. This is going to be a heck of a ride. Until next time. -j