Book 4: Astoria Greengrass and the Curse of Quennell Park
Song rec: "Fresh Roses" by Juke Ross
"I think you should get a job, mate."
Draco ignored Theodore's comment because he couldn't decide which was worse: seeming lazy and idle, or admitting that he had applied to several places that never wrote him back. Draco didn't have much hope of employment with his last name. Maybe he could start spelling it the way Professor Trelawney always did to see if anyone would hire "Draco Malofy."
"Look, I know you have money out your cauldrons, but it's not good for you to just sit round and be rich. You need a hobby at least."
"Hobby? You know, Theodore, not everyone gets off on indexing a thousand pages of Chocolate Frog Cards."
"No need to be so jealous of my collection," Theodore smirked. "I meant you should do something besides dissociate on broom rides and feed the peafowl."
Theodore had the right idea, but he didn't understand. His last name hadn't been slandered because his dad Obliviated himself in the woods before anything had got too interesting again. So although the name of Nott wasn't going to end up amongst the Aurors, headmasters, or Ministers, Theodore had been able to land a job he found appealing: cutting broom hairs for the Nimbus Woodshop. Theodore got to spend his whole day without having to talk to anyone but the foreman and his evenings reading and writing books. Draco would go mad within fifteen minutes at a repetitive job like that. He grabbed the Daily Prophet, of mind to prove to Theodore that there was nothing for him in the classifieds, but he was struck on the second page by a panoramic photograph of the mansion at Quennell Park. His teeth clamped on his tongue. The Equinox was coming up, and Draco had not been invited because Astoria was not in charge of the invitations.
GREENGRASS FAMILY EQUINOX TO COMMENCE ON HOME SOIL AGAIN
Report by Linda McPonds
East Sussex. The Greengrass family will be holding their annual celebration of the March equinox once again at Quennell Park after spending the war in exile in the United States. The current patriarch, Renfrew Greengrass IX, O.M., Snr Warlock of Herbology, stated, "It is of utmost importance for us to hold fast to the custom that has carried us through the centuries during this time of healing. It brings us together, along with dear friends, during the seasonal renewal of the Earth. We come together to remember those we lost, and to celebrate those we gain."
Wk Greengrass lost his elder son, Faunus, his grandson Renshaw, and granddaughter-in-law Grace (née Page) during the Battle at Quennell Park. He reports tearfully, "I nearly lost my wife and four of my granddaughters, too."
The majority of the Greengrass family was able to escape across the Atlantic by the use of Secret-Keeping. "It's no secret that we were thankful for the opportunity," says Renfrew's wife, Meira Mosby-Greengrass. "Our hearts go out to the many families who lost everything in the war."
It is more than their hearts going out. Thalie Greengrass-Wakeland, elder daughter of Renfrew, has paid for the full restoration of St Cecelia's Wizarding Church, her family's parish in Penhurst, and the restoration and expansion of the Synagogue of Wizarding London, which was damaged in a skirmish. Adam Greengrass, younger son of Renfrew, has donated 5 million Galleons to St Mungo's Hospital and 5 million to the St Illyius Orphanage. Adam, along with his wife Estelle Ciel-Greengrass and brother-in-law Salomon Kippling, has inaugurated the Committee for Muggle-born Equality in Education. According to the committee's official press release (available in this week's issue of Wizarding Education Today), it seeks to "address discrepancies in base knowledge between Muggle-raised and Wizard-raised children upon entering school," in part by way of encouraging teachers to settle on standardised textbooks, "which can be sent to Muggle-borns right along with their Hogwarts acceptance letters." The committee also aims to raise awareness in educators across the country and the continent "of unintended, but very real bias, favouring the penmanship of Wizard-raised children." There is a pervasive 7-point average difference in marks on written assignments for school first-years internationally, found by Smoljenovich et al. in their famous 1993 study.
"It's great to have the Greengrasses back," said Goddard Handle, Healer-Director of St Mungo's when asked for comment about the donation.
Adam's younger daughter, Astoria, would certainly agree with the statement. Astoria was not able to evacuate Quennell Park during the attack and remained in the U.K. during the war, where she was subject to the mandatory attendance rule at Hogwarts. When interviewed, Astoria candidly drew up her sleeve and pointed out a scar round her wrist.
"We were given identification bands saying if we were pure-blood or not. Towards the end, if Alecto and Amycus felt you were betraying your bloodline, they would tear the band off of you. There are many students with the same scar as me, particularly the students who were part of the resistance group, Dumbledore's Army."
Astoria spoke of the upcoming Equinox festivity as being full of history and seemed quite amused when I informed her of the Prophet's enormous archive of Vernal Equinox announcements.
"It's become a cultural artefact. It all started when our first Quennell Greengrass married Astoreth of Battle. Now everyone has the same anniversary."
"We always know what we're doing for our anniversaries, though," said Xylia Greengrass, daughter of Elly Arcan-Greengrass and the late Faunus, who is marrying on the Equinox. "You don't have to come up with any anniversary ideas besides, perhaps, a gift. Dinner and dancing occur each night, and there are indoor and outdoor games. You can't get bored with that many people."
According to the Prophet's archive, the Vernal Equinox at Quennell Park has historically hosted anywhere between 30 and 500 guests, and it is considered a staple of the social season in Wizarding Britain. An outline of marriages and débuts for the upcoming celebration is provided below.
Marriages:
Artemis L. Wakeland and Jophiel K. Almasi
Xylia T. Greengrass and Nicholas W. Vosper
(Detailed announcements on page 3).
Débuts:
Asenath F. Greengrass, 20, of Gryffindor
Adamina J. Kippling, 19, of Ravenclaw, Order of Merlin, Third Class
Daphne A. Greengrass, 19, of Slytherin
Sofronia M. Kippling, 18, of Ravenclaw
Astoria N. Greengrass, 17, of Slytherin, Order of Merlin, First Class
(Biographies on pages 3 and 4).
Draco was decidedly keen to be at Astoria's début, which would take place on the twentieth, with the equinox on the twenty-first. However, there was nothing he could do except gate-crash. Not only had her parents and his failed to approve of their relationship, all four of them actively discouraged it. If Draco had to rank them in order of "ferociously opposed" to "hoping it will go away," it would be: her father, his father, her mother, then his mother. Draco had tried time and time again to strike up conversations with Astoria's parents and show his respect, but they had snubbed him hard. Astoria had never told him, but Draco knew that she often went home from their dates into a wasp's nest of fights with her parents. Their experience of believing Astoria was dead had turned them from protective to paranoid. One would never guess that from the portrayal of the happy family in this Prophet article. He turned the pages of the newspaper, skipping all her relatives' write-ups to read about her.
Astoria Nesrine Greengrass, O.M., 17, is the younger daughter of Adam Greengrass XIV, Ath.M., C.M., O.M., and Estelle Ciel-Greengrass, S.D., C.D.M., the Head Tutor at St Mungo's. Astoria is the apprentice of Aurora M. Sinistra, D.P.C., O.M., Professor of Astronomy at Hogwarts. Astoria has received her N.E.W.T. in the subject of Astronomy prior to her upcoming graduation from the House of Slytherin. Astoria is also known as the vocalist, pianist, and co-songwriter for the reunited band Pariah and has written on Squibs' Rights for Witch Weekly.
Astoria was inducted into the First Class of the Order of Merlin on December 1, 1998, for:
"Her role in saving the lives of her family members during the Battle at Quennell Park by way of the disposal of a Dark organic bomb and defeat of Death Eater Xavier Lofthouse;
"Her role in the defeat of Amycus and Alecto Carrow, Death Eaters who had escaped from captivity during the Battle of Hogwarts with intent to kill members of Dumbledore's Army;
"Her role, along with Prof Aurora Sinistra, in the defeat of Death Eater commandant and war criminal Rabastan Lestrange, who did not comply with the ceasefire;
"Her role in alerting Hogwarts forces to the return of Death Eaters and the end of the aforementioned ceasefire, which had misleadingly spanned longer than it had been declared." (Order 8161, 1 Dec. 1998).
Astoria will sit for licensure in Atmospheric magic in May. She will present her research, "Star Formation in the Cat's Paw Nebula of Scorpius," at the Conference for the International Wizarding Agency of Atmospheric and Space Magic (IWAASM) in Réiser, Luxembourg, in July.
Draco clipped that section out of the paper. He could not have been prouder of her. On the other hand, reading the article aggravated his self-doubt. He wondered what prominent wizards Astoria's parents had invited to the Equinox and if any of them were attractive and interesting enough to grab her attention. He could see it now — one of those Humberston boys from France was going to ask her to dance at her début and then tell her about such-and-such Dark Sky area he had travelled to, and wouldn't she like to go with him sometime… Astoria was going to be the most sought-after débutante there. Draco added spice to his pumpkin juice and swigged it down. Theodore took the newspaper back, shaking out the snipped strips.
"Maybe the wizards will be afraid of her. I doubt she'll wear a long-sleeved dress," Theodore said, a bit insensitively, though he had meant it to help Draco's peace of mind.
"A lot of them won't know what blood magic looks like, especially now that it's hidden with the tattoo. Those who do are probably going to flock to her and ask her for the story," Draco moaned.
Theodore ruffled the paper.
"Well, she won't appreciate being asked that," he said. "Hasn't it occurred to you that Astoria's really into you? If you went to a huge event, you wouldn't leave her just because witches were flirting with you."
"That's because she's amazing."
"Well, Draco, I'm not going to say you're amazing. You're a big old git," Theodore teased.
With his hands on his face, Draco glared at Theodore through his fingers. Theodore made a crude gesture in return.
"You're going to see her like, what? Four days later? It'll still be her Easter holiday from school. I thought you two were going to take a day trip to… wherever it was you were going," Theodore said unconcernedly.
"The South Downs. A lot can happen in four days."
"There's these great things called owls."
"Do you really not get why I'm worried, Theodore?"
"I get it more than you do. You're angsting over sperm competition."
"Ach, don't be weird," Draco spat, and he left the table.
The problem with leaving the kitchen table in Theodore's cottage was that there weren't many other places to go. At Malfoy Manor, Draco could go for a decent walk indoors. Here, it was either the kitchen, the hearth, or the seagulls outside. To Theodore's credit, though, he hadn't turned it into a bachelor's broompad now that his dad was in an old folks' home. It was orderly and simple.
"So who are you seeing?" Draco pried when Theodore stepped in to water the Flitterbloom.
Theodore raised his eyebrow.
"You, in my seat."
"Witch-wise, smartarse," Draco said.
"Oh, er… I don't really. I stop and get food after work and sometimes run into girls from school."
"And?"
"And we say hi."
"And?"
"And I eat and come home."
Draco shook his head, "You should invite one to sit with you sometime or buy her a drink."
"I want to eat alone, though."
"Why?"
"Long day?" Theodore said, shocked that Draco didn't have the same perspective.
"All right, then, Theodore, do you talk to any wizards after your long day?"
"W-Well, yeah!" said Theodore.
"And?"
"We say hi, and I eat and come home," Theodore repeated, having no more confidence dealing with his own gender.
"So are you gonna live alone in this cottage for the rest of your life?"
Theodore settled on the sofa with a grumble, "No, I'm gonna beg for an Equinox invitation, and I'm gonna marry Asenath Greengrass. You know, I bet at least the witches would like this house. They'd think it's cute, and the best part is, it never had a prison underneath."
The Flitterbloom did in fact flitter, right behind Draco's head. He and Healer Young had been working on his tendency to burst with three cauldrons of acid every time someone offended him. So he paid more attention to the lively plant than to Theodore's snarky comment. Draco knew he'd been the one to start it, anyway. Theodore had every right to live his life how he wanted. Draco couldn't seem to get away from the subject of romance, though, and he opened up a bit.
"I imagine Astoria and I would, er, get a different place. She won't want to live at the Manor. And Quennell Park, well…"
"Well, yeah, Draco, you'd have to move elsewhere so Adam Greengrass won't sneak under the dinner table and Vanish your todger."
Theodore followed this comment with a very fast swoop of his hand under the newspaper, and Draco jumped halfway out of his seat.
"Merlin's beard, Theodore!"
"You should've seen your face!"
"I wouldn't put it past Daddy Adam anyway!" Draco exclaimed. "Now you've got my nightmares planned out for the next two weeks, thanks."
Draco was off to a bad start already, since a nightmare about Astoria's parents arrived the same night. When he wrote Astoria in the morning, he made the decision not to ask too many questions about the Equinox. He didn't want to be clingy. She'd tell him about it if she wanted to. Astoria usually told him everything, from the details of Delphini's first birthday, to what marks she was getting in her last year of classes, to what she had eaten for dinner. He loved it all because he loved her.
Draco was pleasantly surprised when Astoria's reply arrived with the suggestion that they accelerate their plans and go out on the twenty-third, when the weather would not be as cloudy. It wasn't like he had other plans, and if he had, he'd move them. On the afternoon in question, Draco waited near the door so he would be the first to answer. He loved that Astoria could Apparate now, but even still, she loved it more. It was the start of her freedom.
Astoria, as always, was so pleasing to behold, especially at such proximity. Her rich brown hair was up in a decorative pin Draco had got for her. She had a little colour on her lips that he hoped would end up on him. Her dress had a poufy skirt, and she wore a heavy cardigan that was extremely soft to the touch. Astoria set down the picnic basket she carried at his feet. Every time Astoria's hands snaked round him, it made him forget all other aspects of his environment.
Draco insisted that she come and have a seat before they left for the downs. He always received his guest properly, and he made sure his parents knew he wasn't about to hide his relationship with Astoria just because they didn't like it. They could ignore it if he ran off immediately, but they couldn't ignore it if she was sitting in their grand parlour. She did not take tea, though, because she was eager to get going.
"Wait, what is that? Oh! You don't have to get me so many gifts!" Astoria exclaimed upon seeing the box in his hand. "Is that wine?"
Draco had decided upon an imported bottle of Moscato d'Asti to celebrate her début. He enjoyed any occasion to get her something to make her smile; she was going to have to get used to getting presents all the time.
"Now, I know that you can only have this much," Draco joked, pinching his fingers to an inch.
"I'm French, Draco, I've had wine," Astoria chuckled.
"What's your favourite?"
Astoria looked like she didn't want to answer him because she didn't know what was in the box.
"No, tell me, so I know for the future," he insisted.
"Rosé d'Anjou," she said.
"Ah, well, this isn't that, but I thought you'd like it."
Astoria unboxed the wine and admired the certification seal upon its neck.
"Very nice. Thank you. I will enjoy this at home, but it won't pair with the picnic I've prepared."
"I didn't intend it to. I'll go get the drinks and dessert, and we can go."
"All right, I'll have to see the peafowl when we come back," she said happily.
When Draco returned from the kitchen with the other basket, he couldn't help but stop in the hall and admire her for a moment. Astoria had her legs crossed and her hands folded upon her knee, watching the birds outside the window. The shape of her profile, sitting daintily in the chair, would change over the decades, but he wanted to be there to always tell her how beautiful she was, and how much her presence in his life meant to him.
"I'm ready," he said.
Astoria retrieved her picnic basket from the corner of the door and took his arm. They were going to the downs to be alone, but really, they could go wherever they wanted like this now. Although, Draco was painfully aware that nobody would compliment her choice in a boyfriend. He didn't want to ruin her social standing, but she must have been indifferent to saving face, or else they wouldn't have had all these dates since the war ended.
They Apparated to Astoria's favourite spot, the Amberley Wildbrooks, where streams sectioned the wide, scraggly grasslands, and dragonflies hovered their jewelled bodies over the marshes in the summer. It was still too cold for what Astoria called "mousearnickle season," but not so cold that the streams would be frozen. They ambled over one of many wooden bridges constructed by farmers in years long gone and saw the reflections of the leafless trees in the gentle water.
"I should like to show you the village some time, too, and show you the castle," Astoria said on their walk.
"I didn't know of a castle. Would you like to go today?"
"Today I look especially witchy, so I can't blend in. There are so many places in the downs I would like to show you. Rhiannon and I already investigated flying spots. I told her about Devil's Dyke, and she said, 'yup that's me all right,' and claimed it as her flying spot with Hestia. In the summer, you and I should take a broom ride off Firle Beacon."
"Oh, I thought you hated flying, though," Draco said curiously.
"Your flying is far better than Rhiannon's. You've flown longer, and you were a Seeker, not a Beater. She kept doing that horrible standing thing, so I ended up screaming at her the whole time. I think I could tolerate you."
Draco was quite pleased at the prospect of having Astoria's arms round his stomach and her head on his back, because he very much doubted a sneaky girl like Astoria was going to bring her own broom. She picked a picnic spot by a trickling stream and dried the ground with magic before setting the blanket. They ate roast beef sandwiches and a five-leaf salad she'd made. He had brought a variety of biscuits to snack on.
"How's, er… therapy going?" he asked awkwardly.
What a horrible thing to ask on a date. What's wrong with you? Draco panicked.
Astoria wasn't offended at the topic. She didn't answer immediately, though, for her face fell in deep thought.
"It's going… well, I think. I know I need it," she said quietly.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to ask… It's really personal…" he continued to panic.
"No, I don't mind. Healer Young is quite helpful at helping me sort things out," Astoria said.
"That's good," said Draco, then put a biscuit in his mouth instead of his foot.
Astoria grew quite serious and said, "May I tell you something?"
And Draco's mouth was full, so he simply had to nod.
"I think… I think that I knew Alecto…" Astoria struggled. "I think I knew what would happen to Alecto when I… you know, killed Amycus…"
Draco tried to look like he knew what to say when he was chewing and swallowing. He used that time to word his thoughts.
"You had to stop him, Astoria. He completely lost it. He would have killed Hestia, then you, and then even more people."
Astoria wrung her hands and said, "I just… I knew that killing one would kill the other, and I… well, there were other ways to stop him. To stop them both."
"No, there weren't," Draco said, more firmly. "Look, you remember Dolohov? People were Leg-Locking and Body-Binding him all throughout the battle, and each time he got out, he'd kill three more people!"
Astoria was listening, he could tell. Still, she was troubled. She rubbed her knees.
"They're still out there, Draco. In the North Sea, that route used for Durmstrang. There's nowhere else for them to go. They're so quiet it's like they're not even granted the outlet of anger. I'm the one who's angry. I'm angry at myself for acting the way I did around them instead of being more like, I don't know, Neville and Ginny. Or Flora and Hestia. I just keep thinking, 'Stockholm Syndrome.' I knew Alecto used me as an outlet on purpose to get control over me, and I still fell for it because I couldn't even begin to fathom a childhood like theirs. I'm so stupid. I'm angry it had to be this way…"
"But you just said it, didn't you? It had to be that way," Draco pointed out.
Astoria inhaled, "That's what Healer Young and I have been talking about. She prescribed me an antephialatic, and… oh, it's so stupid! I haven't been taking it just to punish myself. Just so I continue to have the night terrors. I feel… forgive me, just truly fucked up."
"You're not fucked up, Astoria," Draco said. "It makes sense that it'll take a long time to work through."
"Yeah."
They sat quietly for a few moments, listening to the birds. Draco didn't want to further ruin their date, but his own dark troubles were right on the tip of his tongue. He knew he could talk to two people about them: Healer Young and Astoria Greengrass.
"Crabbe tried to murder Hermione Granger during that battle," he started.
Astoria resituated herself to listen. It made Draco nervous; he had just talked to the side of her face when it was her turn. Now she was looking at him as he spilled the contents of his therapy.
"Well, I mean… Well, it bothers me. You know that year with the basilisk and everything, that basilisk that got Rhiannon's arm? Yeah. The basilisk was going round picking off Muggle-borns, and I said in front of Crabbe and Goyle, 'I hope the monster kills Granger next' or something."
"Those words came straight from your father's mouth," Astoria interjected.
"I know. I know that. But it's like, didn't I have any ability to know better than say something like that? I wasn't a stupid kid, Astoria, I was just nasty. I said that about Granger right in front of Crabbe back then. I distinctly remember. And then before Crabbe was burned alive, he tried to kill her."
"It sounds like you feel partially responsible," Astoria frowned.
"Yeah. I do," Draco admitted. "Because those two followed me in everything I did."
"They used to," Astoria reminded him. "Crabbe wasn't following you when he tried to kill Hermione."
"Well, true," Draco conceded, "but the whole reason we were there was to grab Potter and give him to You-Know-Who. And that… that also…"
Draco couldn't word his self-distaste anymore.
"The only thing you had on your mind when you did that was ending the battle and keeping your family safe," Astoria said. "Am I wrong?"
"No, no, you're not wrong."
"Just because you knew what you were doing doesn't mean you had total control of the situation, Draco. It wasn't like you would have done that if you didn't feel you had to. You even told me before you left that night. I remember."
I remember how it felt to leave you in the common room.
Draco's chest felt so taut it became painful. He moved closer to Astoria even though she was no longer in danger.
"Thank you for understanding," he said.
"Thank you for understanding," she responded.
"No, I mean, just… understanding me," Draco sighed. "Because I don't understand myself half the time."
"I'm happy to take the other half," Astoria said.
After that discussion, they made sure to talk about nothing in particular as they watched the sunbeams pierce through the clouds and dapple the fields. Astoria plopped a sugared violet in her mouth when they were done with their lunch and moved closer.
"You look like you plan to snog me," he teased her.
"I'm thinking about it," she admitted proudly.
Her violet breath tasted sweet in his mouth, and the tips of her fingers were cool as they traced his hairline, cheek, and chin. He reached his hands beyond her draping cardigan and squeezed her waist. He couldn't tug her closer on the picnic blanket from their sitting position, but she crawled further forward the more he squeezed. He bit her bottom lip gently, which led her to smile and briefly break the kiss to remove her cardigan.
"That début was so boring," she revealed. "All those wizards my parents invited only wanted to talk about themselves. I had one — one — ask me about astronomy and then try to explain stellar nurseries to me. Me. You know, the girl with the research on a stellar nursery. Beauxbatons brat. Well, I wasn't going to fake it all evening. I told every one of those snots I had a boyfriend, so that word would get round, and they'd stop trying to court me. 'Go after my sister,' I said…"
Astoria started kissing him much more deeply, and Draco met her with the same treatment. He stroked the back of her bare neck, tickling the wispy hairs that were left over from the updo.
"Well, I had one boy get really rude on me, so rude I had his whole family taken off the address book… Asked me where my boyfriend was, 'if he exists.' I told him… 'He's waiting for me… after… this…'"
"Mm, well, I was…"
Astoria was making Draco's head swirl, snogging him out in the open countryside. He felt somewhat dirty as he half-wished someone along one of the paths would see them together. They had spent various parts of their relationship hiding from others' eyes, and even though they were mostly isolated now, it felt like she was proud to be with him.
"Many in the family… are moving back… to Quennell Park," she said.
Even though Draco hung onto all of Astoria's comments, this one seemed pretty off-topic from what was happening between them right now.
"Aunt Thalie and Uncle Helvetius, they're going to… sell their house… has a lake…"
"Hm? Mm."
"Between Broomer's Corner and Dragon's Green," Astoria said, "Shipley."
"Mm, that's nice," Draco said confusedly, wondering if she was tired of snogging.
"It's already Unplottable," Astoria said, breaking their harmonisation.
Already Unplottable? Okay?
"That's nice it already has that. Er, not everyone can afford to have that done," he said, missing the feeling of her lips already.
"It is nice," Astoria said. "Very nice."
Draco smiled up at her. She had a cloud right above her, making an amorphous halo over her head against the sky. He admired the rise and fall of her excited breathing. Her arms were on either side of his head, and he turned his face to place a soft kiss on her inner wrist. The trick worked delectably. She came back to him.
Later, they spent time exploring South Down Way, and once the day cooled into evening, they returned to Malfoy Manor. Astoria had mastered the art of feeding peafowl, and she entertained the peachicks by making their feed move like insects. Draco picked shed feathers from the peacocks off the ground to clean and make quills out of. His parents never did come down to say hello, and he felt disgusted with them. One of these times, they were going to have to talk to Astoria. He glared up at any and all windows. He couldn't see inside with the glare on the glass, but if they were snooping, they would be able to see his expression.
"Well, I must be going soon," Astoria said once her bag of feed was empty. "Would you like to get together before I go back to school? My friends and I are going to Diagon Alley on the first of April, if you would like to meet there."
"That would be great. What time?"
"One o'clock. We're going to the bakery first."
"I'll see you there," Draco said.
Astoria kissed him goodnight, speaking love into his ear that he fervently returned. She then turned on the spot and Disapparated back to Quennell Park, back to tell her parents that they were wrong about him, that she was going to do what she liked…
Draco sighed and went into the house.
"She's gone, you can come out from hiding," he yelled to wherever.
If only he and Astoria had a place where they could be in peace together, away from her parents' antipathy and his parents' bigotry. What they really needed was somewhere private, not too close to their families, but not across the world.
Between Broomer's Corner and Dragon's Green.
Draco spun round, back to the window, not wanting to accept that Astoria was no longer out there. She had gone home. Draco exclaimed a groan and stretched his face with his hands, and probably spun some more, because he found himself with a stubbed toe. Even though he had heard her, he had completely missed what she had meant about Aunt Thalie's house going up for sale… Unplottable. With a lake. Very nice.
Oh God, Oh God.
Draco was already back outside, and he was going to Apparate to Quennell Park, and he was going to call for her, and he was going to ask her to spend the rest of her life with him.
Oh God.
He couldn't do that — Astoria was likely already in a heated discussion behind the walls of Quennell Park, and he would do her no favour by showing up on her property. He didn't have the house she had hinted about, didn't have a ring, and didn't have a job besides being an heir to two people who wouldn't even come talk to her.
Draco fell into a chair in the breakfast room. He needed to settle down first and then think. He would figure this out. He would do anything for her. He would watch the papers for lists of homes for sale, and if Thalie and Helvetius wouldn't sell the house to him, he would bribe them with an amount higher than the list price. If that didn't work, no one was stopping him from buying another house equally as nice. Not to mention he had earned many O.W.L.s, and had earned N.E.W.T.s in Potions, Transfiguration, D.A.D.A., and Astronomy. Nobody would hire him for the good jobs, or the ones that dealt with people, but a fresh perspective for the classifieds helped him see more opportunities. He could apply for one of the numerous proofreading positions for Transfiguration Today.
That way, when Adam Greengrass would ask, "And what do you do now that your last job didn't pan out," Draco could pick up a copy of the magazine from Adam's very own side-table and say, "I do this." It would work out.
"No."
Adam Greengrass pinched more tobacco into his pipe and looked upwards over his tin to discover that the young Malfoy had not yet seen himself out. Adam regretted having his house-elf Prissy serve tea. It had been out of social obligation, not because he actually wanted the blond boy to sit there and take his good time drinking it. What was in Malfoy's cup wasn't even tea anymore with all the cream he added. One might think the boy had never been weaned.
Adam had never related well to the sentiments of a seventeen-year-old girl, but Astoria's taste in men was absolutely foreign to him. Malfoy looked like one of those pointed-faced, hairless cats that had to wear insulated jackets in the winter. Adam could have cast Lumos and given the little urchin a sunburn.
Adam was convinced that his worst decision had been sending Astoria to Hogwarts. She was successful — brilliantly successful — in Astronomy, but the only worse suitor she could have picked would have been the son of the Goyles. Even the Selwyns hadn't had Tom Riddle himself sleeping in their beds and taking prisoners in their basement! Draco Malfoy was the nephew of the Lestranges and had been involved in the murder of Albus Dumbledore! Adam and Astoria had polarised in the time since their reunion and could barely speak to each other.
Adam and Daphne had had their share of problems, too, which Adam now acknowledged had been his fault, but Daphne had also turned a new leaf. Through Ilvermorny, she had earned N.E.W.T.s in Arithmancy, Charms ("Spellcasting"), and Divination. She was, at present, receiving calls from a few suitors, but Adam had a strong feeling that Ernest Macmillan was winning her heart. Macmillan was exactly what Daphne needed — a Hufflepuff, a war hero, and an accomplished graduate already working for the Ministry. Adam was about to offer Ernest a seat on his new committee.
But Astoria. She had managed to reach past every respectable wizard and snag Draco Lucius Malfoy. Adam had held high hopes for Oronce Karling, an astrometrician from Beauxbatons, but Karling had apparently come across as "haughty" to Astoria. As if the Malfoys were humble creatures! If Draco had been taught humility, he would not be overstaying his welcome right now.
"Mr Malfoy," Adam exhaled, "you must understand my position. I cannot give you my blessing and forfeit my daughter's professional and social future. You were a Death Eater. Your father was a Death Eater. Your aunt was a Death Eater. There are no Death Eaters in my family. Although, I will say, there are those in my family who have died at the Death Eaters' hands."
"Sir… Sir, I am infinitely sorry for my family's affiliation with the army that has caused your family so much tragedy… I was not willingly—"
"I already know you were not willingly a Death Eater, Mr Malfoy. I have heard your side of the story through my daughter many a time. I thank you for the concern and support you have given her throughout the war. The war is over. She graduates and begins her career in two weeks. It may take her all over the world, and she cannot take the name of Malfoy with her," Adam said.
"Sir, she would not have to take my name in any way, not at all—"
Adam grew upset at the boy's spewing. That surname alone was not the point.
"Ah, did you intend for me to gift you the name of our house so that you may hide your history under the moniker of Greengrass? Both sides of your family have sought our blood for many years, Mr Malfoy. Many, many years."
"Sir, I do not seek your blood or your name. Please, sir, it's Astoria… She is everything to me—"
"No, Mr Malfoy, she is everything to me," Adam sneered. "You can either choose to understand my position or choose to bitterly resent me. If you must stay and argue with me, allow me to offer you this insight. Astoria will soon be too busy with her aspirations in astronomy to continue her paramour with you. There will thus be nothing preventing you from seeking witches from other blood your family chases, certain to delight your parents."
Draco stood up, even redder in the face than when he had first arrived. His was not a strapping figure, and regardless, there was no body language that could intimidate Adam into changing his stance.
"Sir, I do understand your position, and I will do everything possible to make a better image for myself if it means Astoria would be happy. Astoria has every right to move on with her life, but do not accuse my love for her as being fickle. I'm more than prepared to wed her against my parents' wishes, and I have come here seeking your blessing so that it would not be against yours. I have made many attempts to be candid about our relationship, to converse with you, and to introduce myself as an individual to your family rather than what you so disparagingly call 'a Malfoy.' Every effort I've made has been met with rebuffs, as though you are testing my devotion to her. Mr Greengrass, I will pass any test you give me because I will always love her more than I resent your treatment of me. Unlike what you think, I love her more than myself. Please remember, sir, that I have asked you for her hand when she gives it to me."
Draco Malfoy tramped out of the drawing room, into the hall, and out the door, which he knew better than to slam. Adam Greengrass refilled his pipe again. That degenerate ex-Death Eater was planning to propose to Astoria in the absence of familial blessing on either side. The thought made Adam ill. He felt even worse when he realised how much had likely occurred between Astoria and Malfoy behind his back over the past few years. They must have romanced at Hogwarts before the fall of the Ministry, and the stress of the war had somehow brought them together. Astoria had initiated many unwanted discussions about Malfoy, and each time Adam reminded her that the Malfoys were not only blood supremacists but also Death Eaters, she would ignite as Adam had never seen her do prior to the war. The most hurtful thing she had ever said to him was "I killed Death Eater after Death Eater whilst you sat on your arse eating Boston cream pie." She had made it sound like he had intentionally left her to fend for herself… If he had been in the war, he would have died to save her without second thought.
Adam would do anything to help Astoria heal from the effects of the war, but she utterly refused to talk to him. Almost all of what he knew about her experience came from her Order of Merlin induction and the troubling bits of information that she disclosed during emotional fights. The people that had tortured his daughter were dead, and they were lucky to be dead before Adam had arrived back on England's shores. How in the world had Astoria accepted Malfoy, who had answered to Voldemort along with the ones who had brought about her suffering? Why had Astoria and Malfoy found so much comfort in each other? How could she, a Legilimens for God's sake, fall for his flirtations and promises?
Why couldn't Malfoy have gone after somebody else's daughter? Adam had thought he lost Astoria in that war. He did not want to lose her again.
Draco returned to Theodore's place after the unsuccessful trip to Quennell Park. Theodore was the only person out there besides Astoria who understood, but he was always too smart for his own good, and he didn't even offer Draco the act of being surprised.
"Have you considered talking to her mum?" Theodore tried.
"Her mum's always at work at St Mungo's. Trust me, I've thought about it, since she knows my mother," Draco answered, "but Adam stands in the way, even of talking to Estelle."
"Hm. So are you really going to propose?"
"I have the ring."
"Yeah, but are you gonna do it?"
"What do you take me for? Of course I am. I want to be with her."
"Good, because she's good for you," Theodore said.
Draco knew that very well, and he was going to be good for her, too.
"Let's go for a swim," said Theodore.
The weather was wonderful, and the engulfing water helped Draco cool down from all the anger Adam Greengrass had stirred up under his skin. The sight of Theodore in silly-looking swim shoes also helped. He was still adjusting them on his feet and rubbing Sunfun and Son's Sun Salve on his nose when Draco had long since been in the water.
"You'll burn, Draco."
"I'm fine."
"You'll step on a dead fish down there."
"It's fine."
About fifteen minutes later, Draco started to feel the heat on his skin from the sun instead of the anger. Rather than get sun salve, Draco stubbornly left the water and sat in the shade of the alcove. Theodore was stomping in the waves with a creel at his hip, looking for good potions ingredients that would occasionally wash up.
"When do you think I should do it?" Draco asked.
"Do what?"
"Ask her to marry me, Theodore."
"You'd go by what I say?" Theodore chortled. "All right. I know Astoria. Take the Floo right now to Hogsmeade and go find her in class. Then you can get it over with and stop your brooding. She won't mind."
"You're such a twonk."
Theodore snorted, "You asked."
Draco decided that he would wait until after her graduation from Hogwarts, since that was the tasteful thing to do. When that day came, though, he realised exactly how busy she still was. Infinite Records had re-released Pariah's back catalogue, since copies of their material had been destroyed in the war, and she was knee-deep in songwriting for their next album. She also was trying to finish her research project and study for her licensure in Atmospheric Charms, since her many successful N.E.W.T.s somehow weren't enough to sweep clouds left and right in the eyes of the Ministry.
Draco and Astoria continued to write daily, but their face-to-face visits had necessarily become more sporadic. One morning, he thought he would simply surprise her by bringing her coffee and biscuits from Honeydukes as fuel to start her day. Now that so many people were living at Quennell Park, he didn't have to fear the inevitability of an encounter with Adam Greengrass immediately after the house-elves saw him in. However, this time, Draco didn't even make it past the house-elf.
"Miss Astoria is moving out today, you see!" said Dimsie importantly. "She will be back and forth through the Floo Network all day long, you see, she will! Dimsie helps get her boxes together for her, so she does!"
Moving? She didn't tell me…
"Where is she moving, Dimsie?" Draco required.
"Miss Astoria tells Dimsie she is keeping a room here at Quennell Park always, so Dimsie will not have to miss her so! But Miss Astoria and Miss Rhiannon are moving out of Quennell Park to live at Lake Greendragon, and Madam Thalie and Master Helvetius have returned! Trading places, so it is, yes!"
"Wait, wait… she got the house? The house the Wakelands lived in? In Shipley?" Draco stammered.
"Yes, so she did, she did!" said Dimsie.
"But with… with Rhiannon Clarke?"
"Yes, and with other friends, the Marrows. No, wait, Dimsie got that wrong, it is the Yarrows. No, wait…"
"The Carrows? The Carrow twins?"
"Yes, yes, Dimsie remembers now. They are all at Lake Greendragon!"
Not once had the Wakeland property shown up in the Daily Prophet. Astoria must have made down-payment arrangements with her aunt privately, and Draco was certain the only way Adam would fall for it and let her move out was if Astoria had roommates. Draco was a bit crushed that she hadn't even mentioned this plan, a bit crushed that Adam had judged two Carrows to be better than one Malfoy, and a bit crushed that he was finding all of this out through a house-elf. To add it all up, he was extremely crushed.
Astoria really was starting her life. Maybe she had misinterpreted his delay in proposing as indifference rather than circumstance. He tried to look on the bright side. He would be able to visit her in the comfort of her own home without Adam Greengrass there. On the other hand, Astoria's roommates would be the same ones she had in Hogwarts, and none of them were especially fond of him. They were going to be all over the house.
"Who is it, Dimsie?" called a voice he wished was Astoria's.
"Mister Draco Malfoy!" the elf announced. "Master Adam said—"
"Don't worry about Daddy, Dimsie. Please continue packing instead."
Dimsie left, and Daphne Greengrass came in from the drawing room, carrying her wand in her prosthetic arm, which must have had a clever core of its own to channel magic.
"Good morning, Daphne."
"Good morning, Draco. Oh, you've brought her coffee. I could use some coffee," Daphne said smoothly.
Like the elf, she, too, met him at the top of the portico steps and did not see him in.
"Astoria should be back any moment now. We're all helping them move. I'll tell her you're here."
"Er… where is your father?" Draco asked carefully.
"Oh, you've lucked out," Daphne said with a high laugh. "Daddy will be at Lake Greendragon all day setting up security. He and Professor Sinistra are going to remodel the house the way Astoria wants this evening. So you are safe."
Draco appreciated the information.
"May I come in?" he tried.
"Well, no," Daphne said. "Aunt Elly couldn't bear it. Now isn't the time."
Ah.
To make Draco feel even more welcome, Ernie Macmillan appeared behind Daphne and gave him a look. The match between Daphne and Ernie was widely lauded, and they got to flaunt their relationship all over Quennell Park.
"Should I get these boxes next, Daph?" Ernie asked, playing with her hair.
Daphne looked ready to tell him yes when Draco heard a similar voice — the girl he had come for.
"Don't touch those, please!" Astoria called from the drawing room.
"What's the matter?" Ernie wondered.
"You keep sending things through the Floo without coming along yourself, and they get very jostled, thank you."
"Oh, sorry, Astoria. I'll carry them next time. By the way," Ernie said, "you have a visitor."
Ernie gave one last look at Draco, and Draco kept his own expression blank for propriety's sake. Ernie led Daphne away by the waist. Astoria replaced them in the door, beamed, and came outside.
"Oh, Draco, did you hear? Did they tell you?" Astoria asked.
"I, er…"
"I got the house in the Downs," she said happily. "Maman and Father were not supportive of the move until they couldn't bear the sounds of our jam sessions and rehearsals one day longer. We're recording demos once I get back from the conference."
"I… that's good… that's great…"
Astoria gave him a big kiss on each cheek, and a warm, memorable one on the lips.
"Let's go sit by the fountain. Oh, coffee, thank you. Do you want anything to drink before we walk out there?"
"No, thank you."
Astoria drank her coffee by the fountain and shared a biscuit with him. Her kiss still resonated in his head. Words were hard to come by. He couldn't help but feel he had missed the window of opportunity. If he had not been so stupid in the first place when she had mentioned the house, and stupid in the second place when he waited until school finished… If Adam "Get Out" Greengrass had given him his ear for ten minutes, then maybe Draco would have bought the house in Shipley, and he would be the one moving in with Astoria instead of three roommates.
"I'm so happy," Astoria said, breaking Draco's unhappy thoughts.
That's what I want, for you to be happy.
He placed his hand on hers, and she gestured with both hands, playing along with the hold. He let his hand and arm be moved. She was too damn cute.
"There are so many windows looking out to the lake! Professor Sinistra is going to change the shape of the kitchen. The house is big, too — well, it's nothing like this, but it's the right size for everyone to have their own space. We have a dock, and row-boats, and a canoe, and we have a beautiful entertainment area outside. There's an island in the lake, too, where Artemis and Erez used to play when they were little, so there's a lot of it that's cleared. It's a great picnicking spot. Oh, and there's a beautiful chandelier in the dining room. There's… well, you'll have the grand tour once things settle down."
"I will, will I?" he said warmly.
"Of course! Well, Hestia's setting up a still room and home apothecary, and Rhiannon's getting the basement set up for music, and Flora's probably going to take the library all to herself, but we can go in there if we ask nicely," Astoria said jokingly.
"And you? You must have a place to stargaze," Draco insisted.
"Oh, I do, I do! I'm the one who put the payment in, so I own the house, and I get the main suite. My room has the upper balcony. It's perfect, Draco, it's just perfect! I could grow old there, truly. Aunt Thalie and Uncle Helvetius moved out at the perfect time. I feel like there's so much I can do now! We can actually see each other! Well, I mean… well, we are seeing each other, but I mean… it's not like anyone will wonder, er, where we'll be."
"Well, you probably won't have time for me," Draco said.
Only once it came out of his mouth did he realise how glum and needy it sounded. Astoria's eyes had been catching the morning daylight in the most beautiful way, and when he made that comment, they lost it. He tried to dress up his sentence by adding, "with your conference and your album. And work with Sinistra."
Astoria raised her head and swatted at insects that must have been attracted to the sweet smell of her perfume.
"Oh, the band and work take time, but I was hoping you would be available to come to the conference with me. It takes place from the thirtieth to the first… if, well, if that's something you're interested in—"
Draco brushed her arm to interrupt her.
"Astoria."
"Yes?"
"Of course I'll go! Come on! I work from home. I can take my job with me anywhere. You know that. And I'll be done with everything by then anyway; the monthly deadline for the magazine is before the trip."
"Well, I didn't know if you'd actually want to. I mean, it's all astronomy."
"I have a N.E.W.T. in Astronomy, you know. I didn't only take the class because you were pretty," he joked.
"So you're coming?" she asked brightly.
"Absolutely."
Draco could not have asked for better plans. He had anticipated moping that whole weekend. Now there would be none of that. The best part was that Astoria's parents didn't have to know; the only person she needed to tell was Professor Sinistra. Professor Sinistra was cool. Unlike Astoria's parents, she wouldn't make comments about Draco, but if she did, her comments were well-founded.
Draco waited until the last minute to tell his parents so that he wouldn't have to deal with their input the whole time. The night before he was due to leave, Draco stared at the small ring box for the better part of an hour. He had had so many grand ideas about it, but the only thing that grand ideas did was postpone the fruition. He couldn't figure out how such a thing would work when Astoria had just moved in with three other people. He hadn't seen how big that house was or what sort of divisions it had, but he supposed he could learn to share the box of Frosted Honey Frogs with Rhiannon Clarke in the mornings if it meant he could be with the woman he loved.
Would she be upset? Would she say, "Draco, I just moved in! Draco, marriage has to be on the Equinox, and my parents won't let you in the house! Draco, you're mad!"
No, Astoria wouldn't say those things. But would she say yes? Could she say yes?
Draco decided to take the ring on the trip. He didn't anticipate the opportunity to propose, and he didn't expect the venue to be anything like what he wanted for her in that moment, but if he didn't take it, he couldn't propose at all, and Draco was tired of all of the "couldn'ts." If she couldn't accept, he still wanted her to know how he felt. If they couldn't get married the Greengrass way, maybe they could just stop by the Ministry and sign the papers. Astoria deserved a wedding, though, but if nobody would come regardless… Well, after the papers, you only needed two people for a wedding.
I messed up my life, he thought, staring at the ceiling.
Healer Young had been trying to get him to change that kind of thinking. Draco wondered what sorts of things Astoria talked about in her own therapy. Did she complain about her parents as much as Draco did? Did flashes of Alecto's boggart and Rabastan's tools still show up in her night terrors? If she slept next to him, he would be there to feel her start from her sleep. He would be able to talk to her the moment it happened and help her.
The morning arrived, and Draco got his things and went on the trip.
Astoria carried a large briefcase on her lap as they rode the Wizarding Transcontinental Line. It held all of her research, and she refused to let it leave her hands and put it in the racks above. When other seventh-years had taken full advantage of the weekend breaks from N.E.W.T. classes, Astoria had travelled across the world to collect data for her project. She had been so relieved to finish the project, but Draco wasn't surprised when she decided to start another one. This was her career path. She was amazing for having known that all along, and the best part was that no one would call her a geek at the conference.
Draco pointed out sights outside the window as they travelled because he sensed Astoria was nervous. He and Professor Sinistra had reached an understanding to talk to Astoria about things other than her upcoming presentation. That didn't work very well, because Astoria started talking about her next project, which would involve using space-magic telescopes (the kind tightly controlled by the Agency) to study the dust band in Scorpius's Butterfly Nebula.
"I'll need grants for that one, though," Astoria added sheepishly after announcing all of her ambitions.
"Grants will be advertised at the conference," Professor Sinistra hinted.
The train sped along through France, and some of the stops no doubt were frequently used by Astoria's family. Draco hadn't been able to impress that side of her family with his poor command of French, but at least that side wasn't going to set up salt circles round their houses when Draco showed up.
A light summer rain made its way across the countryside.
"I wonder how Mrs Tonks is going to do with Doppelvanga-sitting," Astoria said. "She claimed she wanted to…"
"Which can only mean she's never kept one before," Professor Sinistra joked. "If you ask me, that was a mistake. It will copy not only the Augurey's grim call but also the babies' crying. She's in for a loud weekend."
"Doppelvangas can be fun, though. Perhaps she was curious if it would imitate…" Astoria trailed off, making certain eye contact with the professor.
Professor Sinistra wiggled her eyebrows and grinned.
"Are either of you ever going to teach me Legilimency?" Draco interrupted the silence. He was starting to feel like he should have asked Professor Sinistra for Astoria's hand in marriage rather than her parents.
"It won't be me. I don't trust you with my books," Professor Sinistra said jestingly.
"I can teach you Legilimency once I get time again, Draco. Maybe you can help me with Occlumency," Astoria considered, and then she grew a warm, quiet smile. "Although, I don't need Occlumency anymore, do I?"
Professor Sinistra pursed her lips and said, "I understand I can be quite meddling, so you'd best stay in practice, Astoria."
"Oh, yes, you're nosy, Professor," said Astoria.
Draco hadn't pursued the art because he was afraid of the Dark Lord interpreting it as an insurgency, but he started thinking of all the times Legilimency would have saved him. But it also could have got him into trouble, and he couldn't change the past.
The conference centre was set up right outside the small town of Réiser unbeknownst to Muggles. Apparently, the Agency had been using the same conference centre for centuries, and simply packed the whole building up and moved it to different locations each year. It had a heavily enchanted exterior to repel all Muggles and a breathtaking interior, done in the ornate style of architects from Uzbekistan, with mosaics in all shades of blue, green, and cream on the walls. A moving motif of the Huma bird never stopped to rest in any one place. The few parents who had brought their children with them were relieved that searching for the bird would give them something to do. Astoria also spotted it and pointed, but as soon as she did, the bird disappeared into the tiles and appeared across the entrance hall.
The large conference hall where the presentations would take place had an enchanted ceiling to show the constellations, and the Huma streaked across the charmed night sky in quick flashes. Astoria's presentation was scheduled for the second day of the conference, but she spent the first night taking Draco to see all of the most interesting posters and seminars. Polyglot interpreters were everywhere, and they must have been making good money from an event as big as this one.
"Do you really need them to interpret?" Draco wondered, since Astoria's Legilimency was so sharp.
"I do, actually," Astoria said as they took hors d'ouvres from floating trays. "People can feel when strong Legilimency is being used on them, so I don't want to do that. Plus, people don't think the exact words they're saying. I want to pay attention to their actual research spiel, not their thoughts of what they'll have at the bar later. Legilimency would help in some situations, but now isn't appropriate."
The next day, Draco heard Astoria and Professor Sinistra rise early in the room beside his. Astoria's French-language presentation was at eight o'clock, and her English-language one was at nine, so Draco arose, too. Astoria had submitted a full speech presentation, which apparently held more clout than the posters, and Draco could not have been prouder of her. The room in which she would present was filling up quickly, and transcripts of her main speech were being handed out in eight other languages. Draco took a copy of the English-language transcript simply because he wanted to save one.
He wasn't the only one who admired her hard work, since many people asked her questions after her speech and wanted to talk with her afterwards. This put Draco nearly at the back of the line to see her. He didn't mind, though, since he was just going to congratulate her. He already knew her research in great detail from the times she had rehearsed in front of him, and he didn't have any questions except "When do you want to get lunch?"
After lunch, Astoria and Draco tagged along with Professor Sinistra to several more presentations. Sometimes Astoria would make terrible puns under her breath during the presentations, which would force Draco to stifle his groaning laughter lest the whole audience glare at him. His favourite was the comment she made when a presenter was talking about the mass of black holes: "That's how heavy Healer Young said my thoughts were."
Draco figured they would spend Sunday the same way they spent Saturday, so he was more than surprised when Astoria knocked on his door in a swimsuit cover-up.
"There's a hot tub, and nobody's in it because Candace Telleforsar is giving her presentation this morning. She was Professor Sinistra's student, and she's sort of famous now," Astoria said. "Let's go before her audience lets out."
"Damn, I didn't know. I didn't bring—"
"Your choices are to come along naked or get price gouged at the hotel shop," Astoria sniggered.
"I don't mind being price gouged," Draco snorted. "Remember how filthy rich I am?"
"Well… I tried," Astoria laughed and ran down the empty hall.
When they got in the hot tub, Draco tried not to focus too deeply on the frills on Astoria's swim top fluttering in the water. She kicked her feet against the jets. He had thought she would want to spend the whole trip visiting presenters, since this was her first time at a conference. She must have been tired. She had earned this.
"Did you enjoy the conference?" she asked him.
"I did."
"Not my swimsuit, the conference. You should be honest, because I'm going to drag you to these every summer otherwise!"
"I actually enjoyed this. Really," Draco smirked. "I'll be glad to come along."
Astoria sank deeper into the tub unafraid, since she had made her hair Impervius. Her eyes trailed the flight path of the Huma on the wall every so often, but Draco always missed it by the time he turned his head.
"I've sent in the manuscript for this piece I wrote to Mr Davis, and believe it or not, he likes it as it is. I feel like it's missing something, though. I don't have the lyrics yet, but I feel as though the composition itself needs something," Astoria said.
"Well, a listener probably won't think it needs something."
"No, but I can't rest until I feel it's right, you know?" Astoria said wistfully. "I'm really proud of the crescendo, but it's like it needs something quiet…"
"You should whisper the first few lyrics, then," Draco joked.
"Ha-ha."
Astoria raised her hands to the surface of the water and lightly splashed her fingers in the stream.
"Draco?"
Her tone of voice was quite serious considering the silly dance her fingers were doing in the water.
"Yeah?"
"I'm not going to be there when they renew the contract for Pariah."
This had been a long time coming. Astoria sounded a bit sad, but firm.
"Well, that makes sense. Then you can focus on your career in astronomy," Draco said supportively.
"Exactly," she said. "Rhiannon can take the reins. You know that this means you have to actually come to my shows, right?"
"I can come to your shows now, so I will."
"I have big plans for the tour for this album. It needs to be cathartic, this step in my life. I'm giving my all for this last adventure, so erm, I'd really like for you to be out there in the audience somewhere…"
"Are we certain that Rhiannon won't throw tomatoes at me from the stage? She tossed a full goblet of pumpkin juice in my face that one time. It went in my nose."
"Draco, I'm sure you deserved it, plus she was Imperiused!"
"Imperiused? Well, she would have done it anyway," he said.
"True, it was a proud moment for her," Astoria chuckled. "Now that that's all said and done, you're coming to our shows."
Draco was thrilled that Astoria wanted to include him in so many parts of her life, and the weight of this feeling remained with him all throughout the evening. The closing ceremony was held in the courtyard of the conference centre, and a myriad Atmospheric Charms cleared the sky for stargazing within minutes. Even though they were near a Muggle town, the town was not very large, and the sky did not have much light pollution. Astoria paid little attention to the closing ceremony and instead had her neck craned at the sky.
"Oh, where did they say the next conference will be?" she asked once the ceremony concluded.
"They said back in Khiva for the millennium," Draco answered.
Astoria didn't look like she was leaving her seat anytime soon. People were filing out in their way, anyway.
"We'll be on the train much longer, then. That will be neat," she remarked. "Oh, look there, do you see that?"
"See what?"
"There."
"Astoria, there's a whole sky up there; you can't just point," he chuckled.
"It's Draco, silly."
"Funny, I don't remember flying that high…"
"I actually considered studying the Cat's Eye Nebula in Draco for this conference, but it's so heavily studied that I wouldn't be adding anything to the literature. So I thought I'd go with the Cat's Paw in Scorpius."
"You should get a cat."
"I should once I'm home more often. Maman and Father never wanted pets because they're messy. Now I can do whatever I like."
"Cats and dogs aren't half as messy in the house as peafowl are in the lawn."
"How true. You know, I used to look up at this constellation and sulk," she divulged. "I used to think, 'Oh, that bad-mannered Draco from school…'"
"I didn't need a constellation to sulk about you, Astoria," Draco said. "I was always wondering why you were so annoying. It's probably because I followed you everywhere and annoyed you first."
"Hmm, maybe!" she said.
They started reminiscing about good times they had cherished all along. Conference attendees chatted under the night sky or went back into the building, and Professor Sinistra patted Astoria's shoulder and said she was going back to the room. There came a time when Draco realised they were alone, and the conjured chairs that had been set up in the courtyard started to disappear.
"Better stand up," he alerted Astoria before they would end up falling on their backsides.
Standing couldn't make them stop talking, though. They were trying to reclaim what they had been through. Astoria recalled a time before his O.W.L.s when they could "responsibly" study together, and many more times they had sneaked away from their books the next year. Draco would always be plagued by memories of the hidden room and the Vanishing Cabinet, but those memories were followed by the times he had left the room to find Astoria. She was a light, never that hard to find even in such a big castle. She had claimed the Astronomy library for a wide variety of purposes. That she was a teacher's assistant and worked in Astronomy Tower now was surreal. They had both survived, and not only that, they had survived together. Draco had no Dark Mark remnants to see each morning because of Astoria. What he did see was the charmed Huma bird, preening placidly on the arch above the courtyard's doors. Legend had it the bird brought great fortune, but Draco already had something precious right in front of him.
"Do you remember that one time when we were on a walk and I asked you about…" he started.
He took her left hand, and she willingly gave it, but before she could lace her fingers, he grabbed her palm and turned it the other way. Astoria giggled because she had no idea what he was doing, except perhaps playing with her hands. But he remembered. Did she? He drew her arm out to the side and grabbed her hand properly then. He looked at her, waiting for her moment of recognition… and then her face lit up the night like the morning sun. She drew their hands to hover over her heart.
"I do remember!" she laughed musically. "I admit I tried very hard to memorise it, Draco. It's Quennell's Waltz, or, I suppose, our version of it!"
"I prefer the way you taught me, Astoria," he said. "I don't remember it all, but…"
Just as in the dance she had invented for him all that time ago, he drew away at her arm's length with her hand in his. The time and place were not how he imagined it at all, but he couldn't nit-pick anymore. It wasn't lavish, but it was beautiful. He didn't need lavishness and showiness anymore.
He needed Astoria.
In the dim courtyard, Astoria's eyes didn't have all of the colour they usually had, but they were brimming with love. He wanted nothing but to look deeply into them, but he was afraid her Legilimency would seize what was on his mind, because the longer he thought about it, the less he could Occlude it. And he didn't want her to glean it through magic. He wanted to tell her before she pieced it together. He wanted to tell her with his voice.
So he took that simple dance move to his knee, with her hand still in his.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, and she started laughing with so much joy. Draco hadn't anticipated how much relief he would feel at that sound. Her wonderful, happy laughter made him start to smile and laugh, too, but he had to do this right, damn it!
"Astoria."
"Oh, oh my," she said, and she put her face in her free hand, peeking out from it.
"I love you more than anything in the world," he said, and the crooked little curve of her smile made him unable to resist, "and, well, the galaxy."
"Oh my God," she grinned, tossing her hair over her shoulder.
"And I'm so thankful for the time we've had together, all those times we just talked about tonight and more. I want to start my life with you there, Astoria, because you have got me this far, and this time, I will always be there for you."
Astoria's hand was squeezing his tightly. He kissed it gently and presented her the ring. She merely glanced at it; she was looking at him, and her eyes were wet.
"Astoria, will you make me the happiest man alive and marry me?" he asked her humbly.
"Of course, Draco, yes!" she said, and her words embraced his racing heart.
He felt joy and love mix at the top of his throat, and he exclaimed a nonsense sound of bliss as she wiggled her fingers playfully. He took a moment to appreciate that their dance had already provided him with her left hand, and he proudly put the ring on her finger.
"Get back up here and kiss me, Draco," Astoria induced him with fervour, and as he rose, her arms swept over him perfectly.