Chapter Thirty Two
Daphne's Return
0o0
Astoria awoke for the second time that morning feeling even more panicked than she had the first.
A clean, golden shaft of daylight was streaming in through the gap near the curtains. Disoriented and oddly sore considering she had managed to avoid sleeping on the forest floor, Astoria consulted the watch. It was nearly nine o'clock and she had slept far longer than she had meant to. What if her father had given up on finding her and left without her?
Astoria managed to dislodge the shoe that was still trapped in the blankets and slipped out from under Draco's sprawling limbs in almost perfect silence. Gathering up both shoes and holding them by their straps, (for nothing could have compelled her to put them back on her feet) Astoria unlocked and exited through the patio door quietly.
Considering how desperate most of the crowd must be to return home in light of the terror of the night before, a remarkable number of people still seemed to be camped in this particular lot.
Astoria quickly cleared the stone terrace and made her way back onto the throughway, not wanting to be seen on the Malfoy's property looking so bedraggled and disoriented.
"Scuse!" hollered a wizard wearing lime green overalls, charging past with a wheelbarrow containing a trunk and a large umbrella.
Astoria stepped out of the way, blinking to adjust to the sudden light. Her knee, which had looked so scraped the night before, now only appeared to be bruised. Her dress was white and therefore showed smudges of dirt here and there, but was otherwise surprisingly clean. Astoria ran her hand through her decidedly messy hair, trying to flatten it against her head and caught the faintest trace of the scent of Draco's soap smell there. Blushing for reasons she could not entirely explain, Astoria gave up trying to groom herself and set off down the widest part of the path.
She soon spotted Ernie Macmillan and his mother, sitting around on the grass outside their tent. Thinking that they perhaps had news, Astoria lingered for a moment.
"Slept in?" asked Ernie understandingly, taking in Astoria's confused state. "I don't blame you. Last night was late for everyone, wasn't it?"
"Yeah," said Astoria, feeling bizarrely like a liar despite the truth behind both of these assumptions.
"Dad's off trying to help Ministry," said Ernie. "We're waiting on him before we try to get a portkey out. The line has been jammed for hours. So many people are trying to get to different places. The leaving was supposed to be staggered but obviously that can't happen now, you know?"
Eventually, Astoria broke away and made for her father's tent but before she could reach it, she ran into Mr. Patil, Parvati and Padma.
"Astoria!" remarked Mr. Patil good-naturedly, catching sight of her. "You're looking a little dusty this morning."
"Oh, I was wearing this last night," said Astoria, glancing down at herself, realizing that her current state of desperation would need some polishing over to remain socially acceptable. "When I woke up I was so confused and worried that I didn't bother showering."
"Our tent didn't even have a shower," said Parvati, eyeing her father as though this was something he should feel guilty about.
"Real muggles don't camp with plumbing, sweetheart," said Mr. Patil. "We were just doing our part to blend in. Not that we need have bothered, what with all the racket last night- it'll be a madhouse in London."
"Did you end up in the woods, Astoria?" asked Parvati, her eyes going wide. "Padma and I ended up spending hours in a clearing."
"Yeah," said Astoria, reaching for a reasonable solution to her problem. "Listen, Mr. Patil, are you catching the same Portkey back that we took yesterday?"
"We are," said Mr. Patil, checking the ticket in his hand. "It leaves in thirty minutes."
"Can I come with you?" Astoria asked, trying to appear as casual about this as she could, remembering what Ernie had said and deciding to parrot his story as her own. "My dad's trying to help the ministry and I'm waiting on him to leave, but it could take hours."
"Oh," said Mr. Patil. "Well, I can't see why not- unless, but won't your father be wondering where you went?"
"I'll send my Aunt's house elf back for him," said Astoria swiftly. "I'm just so hungry and exhausted. This way I can shower without breaking the rules!" Astoria laughed, but even to her own ears, the lightness in her tone was slightly unconvincing.
The worry in Mr. Patils's eyes vanished, however. They stopped by Astoria's tent very briefly. Astoria did not expect to find news of her father waiting there- she had only wanted to collect her wand. Once this had been achieved, Astoria tagged along behind Mr. Patil's daughters, trying to keep the shame that she felt for having to lie in order to get home from creeping into her expression.
The Portkey delivered them to the same patch of woods off the road near Belladonna's house that they had departed from the day before. When they reached the asphalt, it was time to go their separate ways. Astoria waved goodbye to Parvati and Padma and thanked Mr. Patil again for his assistance, injecting as much light-hearted and unworried fatigue into her mannerisms as possible.
Astoria was forced to put her shoes back on in order to walk up the gravel driveway a few moments later. Consequently, the first thing she did after opening the front door of her aunt's house and peering both ways, was to kick them off again vehemently, wincing at the sound they made skidding across the floor.
Belladonna was nowhere to be seen- out perhaps, or else in the kitchen. Astoria padded up the staircase as quickly as she could, knowing the grace period before Bonky realized that she had returned was growing smaller by the second and afraid of the questions that might arise from being caught looking so muddy in the hall.
Astoria unzipped her dress the moment she reached her bedroom and pulled it over her head, disposing of it by burying it like evidence in her hamper. Unwilling to send Bonky after her father, certain that Bonky would repeat Astoria's message to Belladonna of she did, Astoria scratched out a quick note to her sister and dispatched it, leaving a message for George at home.
As soon as she had showered and done what she could with makeup to make her face appear less haggard, Astoria went straight down to the first floor. It occurred to her that lingering in her room without greeting Belladonna would appear suspicious, and now that Astoria had put so much effort into avoiding a ruckus, she thought it best to follow through and seek out her aunt's company willingly.
Belladonna was in the kitchen, crushing herbs with a mortar and pestle. A smoldering cauldron bubbled behind her and several of the windows had been thrust open, letting in the peaceful scent of nearby greenery.
"I thought I heard you come in," muttered Belladonna, running her finger along a page in her spell book, distractedly. "The poppies have finally come up."
Astoria's eyes strayed warily onto several seed pods, which were oozing a dark and resinous taffy onto the wooden table top. Belladonna was quite an adept hand at potions but she rarely ever brewed frivolously, without a purpose. Having so recently been somewhat poisoned herself, Astoria gave the cauldron a wide berth.
"What are you brewing?"
"Nothing that wizards haven't been brewing for centuries," said Belladonna, smiling wryly. "Of course, this one is practically legal."
Astoria's sense of foreboding tripled but she did not inquire further.
"So," said Belladonna, sprinkling a pinch of brown powder into the open liquid, which was just starting to bubble. "A crushing mob... panic... and the Dark Mark is seen again for the first time in more than a decade. Have you satisfied your endless boredom for a few weeks at least, my darling?"
Astoria helped herself to a pot of cold coffee, pouring out a large measure into one of the tin kitchen mugs. "I'd say so," she remarked flatly.
Belladonna tapped Astoria's mug to warm the coffee inside it before Astoria could even manage to sip on it, a tiny act for which she was immensely grateful.
"Your father must have been out of his mind with confusion," said Belladonna slowly. Astoria strained to read her aunt's expression, not sure if she was amused or testing Astoria as to her father's whereabouts. Feeling a little paranoid, Astoria settled for a half-truth.
"I guess so," said Astoria carefully. "We were separated for a bit when everyone started running."
Belladonna's eyes flashed dangerously over the steam that was rising from her cauldron.
"Everyone was, though," Astoria went on quickly. "It was madness. I almost got run over by two men from the Magical Law Enforcement Squad and it's their job to help keep order. By the time the Dark Mark went up, nobody even knew where they were anymore. The forest was dark and everybody was in a panic."
"Foolishness," Belladonna tutted. "Too much drinking! The ministry really should have acted more quickly." Belladonna made a few motions over the now spitting potion with her wand and then paused, staring at the liquid's purple surface thoughtfully. "What did the Death Eaters do when they saw the Mark?"
"They all fled," said Astoria at once.
"That's what I thought," said Belladonna darkly, heaving a sigh. "Strange happenings, my dear. Strange happenings. I'm certainly glad that you are alright- when I didn't receive any word from your father, I began to worry that you both might have been trampled."
"I think I'll go to Theodore's later," said Astoria after a thoughtful pause of her own, changing the subject. "He didn't go to the World Cup and I imagine he must be curious."
"That's just as well," said Belladonna. "I'm having the Yaxleys for lunch and I'd prefer it if you were not here." Belladonna gave her potion another little prod and the flames at the base licked the iron bottom of the cauldron almost sinisterly. "I had counted on the World Cup lasting longer than a single evening, of course."
"Are you sure?" asked Astoria, thinking that leaving her aunt alone with Alistair Yaxley was almost as bad as being forced to eat with him herself. Who knew what her aunt might say or suggest if Astoria was not there to hear her...
"Quite," said Belladonna primly.
"Are you switching methods, then?" asked Astoria, her eyes moving back to the weeping poppy pods. "I'd assume you wanted me gone in order to court them, only it looks as though you mean to poison them both."
Belladonna laughed dryly, neither confirming nor denying this theory.
"Be back before dark," Belladonna called after Astoria when she put her coffee cup in the sink and prepared to use the floo.
Mr. Nott's office door was shut when Astoria stepped out of the fireplace. Astoria could hear voices on the other side of the thick wood, but neither of them seemed to be Theodore's.
Perhaps one of Mr. Nott's colleagues had stopped in? Mr. Nott had been a Death Eater, Astoria reminded herself. The happenings at the Word Cup were surely of an abiding interest to him.
Moving silently across the front hall, Astoria made her way towards the door, hoping that Theo, who spent half of his time in the garden reading, might be sitting on one of the benches. Astoria hated trying to find Theodore inside his house; there was always a feeling of breaking and entering about exploring the dusty corners of his home.
Theo was indeed outside but he was not alone. Astoria's theory that Mr. Nott was probably discussing the reappearance of the Dark Mark was officially confirmed by the sight of a very familiar and yet decidedly out of place blonde head directly across from Theo's in the sunken garden.
Astoria froze, feeling a little thrown. She had not expected this. Astoria was quite unused to walking in on Theo when he had company in the first place, (Millicent no longer counted, as she hardly ever spoke anyway) and the fact that it was Draco Malfoy's high carrying voice that floated across the lawn caused a strange rush of anxiety to skip into Astoria fingers and flood her face with warmth.
Astoria had made peace with the fact that she had both cried on Malfoy and then resorted to sleeping in his bed all in the course of one evening, but she had not been counting on having to actually see him again for several weeks. His sudden and unexpected appearance now struck Astoria as both unusual and highly awkward.
A lightning-quick instinct took hold, urging Astoria to return inside and leave before she was spotted. Just as this thought began to form however, Theo caught sight of her over Malfoy's shoulder and blinked in surprise.
"Astoria?" he called eagerly, leaning around Draco.
Draco's head twitched instinctually at the sound of her name. He turned, almost as readily as Theo had, but Astoria could almost swear that she saw some of the same jolted and unguarded panic that she had just experienced herself on his face. Thankful that Malfoy had not at least had the opportunity to see her jump, Astoria continued across the lawn feeling distinctly less tense.
"Hello!" said Astoria breezily, swatting Theodore's feet aside so she could sit on the edge of the stone well between him and Malfoy without having to choose a side. "Talking about the Cup, are you?"
"Yeah," said Theo. "I was going to come over later, but I wanted to give you a chance to get home first."
"Just as well," said Astoria with a shrug, shielding her eyes and glancing up at the cloudless blue sky. "Belladonna's in the kitchen brewing a pot of something- poison presumably- and I only got home an hour ago."
Draco snorted but something about the sound betrayed an odd jitteriness that even he seemed to hear, because he did not go on to make any snide comments about Belladonna's cauldron full of poison.
"It took you that long to get out of the camp?" asked Theo curiously.
"Yeah," said Astoria briefly, wanting to shift away from the subject of the morning, as it was rife with hidden peril.
"Of course, the only people who wanted to get out early were the muggle champions and the foreigners, anyway," said Draco, reclaiming some of his usual swagger. "No one else left early."
"Did you read the paper this morning?" Theo asked, turning toward Astoria.
Astoria shook her head.
"Giant photo of the Dark Mark," said Theo. "Half of the country is in a panic. Some of the shops down Diagon Alley even refused to open."
"Ridiculous," Draco sneered.
"Probably," agreed Astoria fairly. "They didn't catch the person who cast it, I take it?"
"Nope," said Theo. "The paper was terribly paranoid about it- trying to sow fear, saying that only Death Eaters know the spell, but that's not true, is it? All of the pureblood families call it a Morsmordre for a reason, don't they? Because that's the incantation. What do you reckon it was just some kids trying to be impressive?"
"Well," drawled Draco in a tone of maddening smugness, "I don't know about that."
Draco obviously knew something but he was inclined to make them work for it before sharing with them.
"What, you think an actual Death Eater would have been stupid enough to cast the Dark Mark?" asked Theo skeptically.
"Probably not," drawled Malfoy comfortably, savoring the piece of information that he was withholding.
Theo scoffed but Astoria had heard something about this spoken of during the night before, while Draco had been sleeping, so she listened carefully.
"Of course," Draco went on, his eyes on Astoria, who must have seemed like the more active audience, "they did find the wand that was used to work the spell."
"So?" said Theo tightly, not enjoying the goose chase. "I suppose it was in the woods somewhere?"
"No," said Malfoy, "they found it in the hands of Crouch's house elf, actually. You do know who Barty Crouch is?"
"Of course I know who Barty Crouch is," said Theodore almost aggressively.
"Was anyone in the Crouch family ever a Death Eater?" Astoria frowned, causing Theo to pull a very superior face and Draco to scoff loudly.
"No, Astoria," said Theo darkly. "Crouch was a mad man about locking the Death Eaters up at the end of the war. That's how he rose to power and why so many of the old families secretly hate him; half of their relatives are in Azkaban because of-"
"She knows, Nott," interjected Draco snidely, cutting off his rant. "She's got uncles in prison, doesn't she?"
Theo broke off, blushing slightly, clearly having forgotten in the heat of the moment how much Astoria already knew about having imprisoned relatives.
"But Crouch is an old name too, isn't it?" said Astoria slowly, doing what she could to alleviate Theodore's apologetic awkwardness. "Did Barty ever have any brothers or sons that his house elf might have an old loyalty to, or something? Someone else with a Death Eater affiliation that the elf might have met in his house?"
Astoria could tell by the looks on both boy's faces that the idea of a house elf feeling loyalty to anyone other than its current master would have not occurred to either of them, but to Astoria, who had so often resented Bonky's almost singular dedication to her aunt, the idea seemed very logical.
"I mean, maybe," said Theo, scrunching up his face to think. "I'm pretty sure Barty had a son actually, but he died years ago. There was some kind of scandal involved-"
So what if he did?" Malfoy sneered, obviously looking to control the course of the conversation. "Why would Crouch's house elf finally do something about it now? That's absurd."
"The paper said something about bodies being removed from the forest," said Theo, turning back toward Malfoy. "Do you know if anyone was actually trampled to death?"
"Ha!" said Astoria, with a bitter little laugh, causing both Draco and Theo to stare at her.
Astoria did not really believe that anyone had been killed (surely either Ernie or Mr. Patil would have mentioned it that morning) but it suddenly seemed to her that this was perhaps the only way her father had left of redeeming himself after abandoning her so thoroughly. Perhaps he had simply been trampled...
"I doubt it," said Malfoy, shrugging carelessly. "Father would have heard if there had been casualties."
"What did your father say about the whole thing, Astoria?" asked Theo. "Did it ruin his night of party hopping?"
"No," said Astoria tartly, busying herself with picking vines and stray wild flowers. "It takes more than the threat of war to sober him." The flowers were sprouting from between the stones of the well and provided her with a perfect way of avoiding careless eye contact with Draco, whose eyes kept darting toward her shiftily.
Astoria waited in a state of agitation, ripping up stray plants, anxious to see if Draco would give some voice to the fact that Astoria had been abandoned all evening. Perhaps out of fear of what Astoria might say by way of defense however, Draco simply slouched back against the stone wall and settled for a lesser blow.
"Does anything sober him?" Draco sneered halfheartedly. "I saw him with Alistair Yaxley this morning and they were still drinking."
"Alistair Yaxley?" snapped Astoria sharply, momentarily forgetting herself and her weeding preoccupation. This made twice in one day that the Yaxleys had been mentioned. Astoria began to feel the jaws of a trap she had not even known existed start to tighten. "What are you talking about?"
At that moment, Astoria heard voices coming toward the patio and she realized that Lucius must have finished up whatever business he had with Theo's father.
"So what if they were together?" asked Draco accusingly, looking a little put out by the rudeness in her voice. "Aren't you cousins?"
"Were they alone together?" Astoria pressed tensely, wanting to get as much out of Draco as she could before he was summoned away.
But it was too late. Lucius was standing in the clean afternoon sunshine and Astoria knew that his son would not keep him waiting.
"I don't know," said Malfoy, standing up, obviously a little thrown by Astoria's reaction to this bit of seemingly trivial news. "Bertie Higgs might have been with them."
This was as good as alone then, especially if Bertie had continued drinking at the same rate he had established in the late afternoon. Astoria peered at Draco tensely, trying to think of how to phrase a last question so that she might know all that he knew, but she could not think how to do so without giving away more than she wanted to.
"Well, I'll see you at Hogwarts then," said Draco, raising an eyebrow in Theo's direction before shooting Astoria one last inquisitive glance.
"That's just bloody brilliant," Astoria muttered, watching as Draco strode off across the lawn.
"Who cares if your dad was drinking with Yaxley?" remarked Theodore in a reasonable tone which only annoyed Astoria more. "I thought his beef was with your aunt, anyway. I'm sure your dad would have mentioned it to you, if Alistair had said anything suspicious."
"No, he couldn't have," Astoria snapped angrily, "because I lost my dad after the match and never found him again. I had to catch a Portkey home with the Patils. I thought he might have accidentally been knocked unconscious. I had no idea he was drinking with Yaxley instead."
"Are you serious?" asked Theo in mild surprise. "You didn't see him all night? What about after the Dark Mark went up?"
"Nope," said Astoria. "I stumbled about in the woods for hours without a wand and finally went home with the neighbors this morning."
Theo blinked, evidentially unsure how best to respond to this. "I thought the Mendels were there?" he tried.
"They left after the match," Astoria admitted bitterly. "I spent half the night with Draco under a tree, hoping the forest wouldn't catch on fire."
Astoria was surprised to see that this did not appear to be news to Theodore.
"Malfoy mentioned he ran into you," said Theo dismissively. "He almost never comes over with Lucius. I thought he must have done it just to annoy me by talking about you. He made it sound like you were some simpering little damsel, but I knew better."
"No," said Astoria, hating herself more than ever, "he pretty much had the make of it. I didn't have my wand and all I seemed to do well was fall down in the dark."
"Well, you look fine," said Theo dryly. "So obviously it's no real damage done."
"It wasn't enough that my father abandoned me and I was wand-less, either," said Astoria, beginning to prickle with annoyance at the fact that Theo seemed to think she was being dramatic. "Malfoy basically called me a hypocrite for lying about my mother in Azkaban."
Theodore blinked and there was something almost like pity in his expression.
"I'm not surprised," Theodore murmured. "It was really only a matter of time before Malfoy realized."
"I know that," Astoria snapped. "It didn't stop me from hitting him, though. More than once too- you'd think he might have realized that the more he said, the harder I was going to try to smack him."
"Please," snorted Theo scornfully, "he'd do anything else to get your attention. I don't know why letting you hit him should be any different."
"Yeah, well," sneered Astoria "I finally ended up slapping him across the face and then sobbing, so it was really just a great night for everyone."
"You cried?" gaped Theo, thrown at last.
"Yes," said Astoria in the most sarcastic tone she could manage. "Wept might actually be a better word to describe what I did- I wept."
This proclamation, while embarrassing did serve two purposes well; Theodore no longer seemed to think that Astoria was being overly dramatic, and Astoria was now relatively certain that Malfoy had exercised some cunning in his own retelling of the evening. If Theodore did not know about Astoria crying, he most likely did not know that she had slept over with Draco either. Draco had concealed the worst of it. Astoria heaved a small sigh of relief and stood up from the edge of the well.
"What do you want to do today?" Astoria asked, resolutely changing the subject. "I can't go home until later. The Yaxleys are over for lunch and my aunt was pretty specific about not inviting me."
0o0
When Astoria returned home hours later there were three letters waiting for her; one from her sister, another from her father and a third envelope addressed from Aston Mendel. Astoria started with her father's letter, because his was the one she was the most curious to read.
Astoria,
I'm very happy to learn that you're home safe! I can only assume that Aston handled the Portkey for you (you'll have to offer him my thanks!) and that you left sometime in the morning, as I spent all afternoon searching for you.
I've had an idea, darling. Why don't you spend the last week of break here? We didn't spend enough time together at the Cup and I know your sister misses you terribly.
Astoria crumpled up the letter and tossed it into the bin without finishing it. I can only assume Aston handled the Portkey for you...
Well, that explained why her father had been in no rush to find her. It also explained why he had written her back so quickly. Astoria had a hunch that her father was a little afraid of Aston, and would not want to incur his anger. Astoria turned her attention to her sister's note.
Astoria,
I'm so glad that you are safe! I've been reading the papers all morning and it's all just so terrifying! Rita Skeeter went as far as to suggest that there were fatalities! I'm so sorry you were caught up in all the mess! Dad says he thinks you might be here for a week before vacation ends? I hope that's true. I haven't seen you in months.
Astoria did not crumple this note. Instead, she reread it four times, feeling a little warmer with each perusal, searching for a hint of falseness and finding none.
It had been more than a year since Daphne had made it sound as though she was even remotely eager for Astoria's company and the idea that, in an actual crisis, Daphne had been truly concerned about her was very cheering.
Astoria made up her mind on the spot to comply with this plan, despite the fact that she knew her father had only offered it out of guilt in the first place. Astoria promptly flipped Daphne's letter over and confirmed her visit in a short message, sending it off with the same owl that had delivered it.
0o0
On the morning of September first, Astoria lay in bed in her father's house, awake despite the fact that it was almost five o'clock and she had not managed to get a wink of sleep. A storm had been blowing all night and it sounded as though it would go on into the morning. Tiny drops of water clung to the window glass, glistening in the early morning light.
It had been a very long time since Astoria had slept in her old bedroom and she had not adjusted to the change very smoothly. Her last visit home had been nearly a year ago now, and the sounds of her father's house, once familiar to her, had become jarringly foreign. In contradiction to what had otherwise been a surprisingly good visit, Astoria had spent all week in a state of strange insomnia.
George had worked during most of her stay, spending the majority of his time at his office, but Astoria had expected no less. Her real reason for coming had been to spend time with Daphne and this she had achieved.
In fact, without Pansy around to point out the worst or an active audience for Astoria to somehow shame herself in front of, she and Daphne had gotten on almost the same way as they had used to as small children.
"Pansy isn't as bad as you think she is, you know," Daphne had said one afternoon while they were playing chess on the front lawn. "She's only defensive when she thinks she's right- she's actually very loyal."
The Pansy Astoria knew would probably throw Daphne in front of a bus if that was what it took to achieve her own personal ambitions, but Astoria did not have the heart to say so.
"Maybe," Astoria said flatly, moving a chess piece towards Daphne's rook. "She's not very nice, though."
"You are," said Daphne, staring at the board, puzzling over whether to move her rook or her bishop. "You helped her when she was throwing up. Pansy didn't say anything about you for a whole week after that. I think she was too embarrassed."
The fact that her sister even remembered this, much less thought of it as a mark of Astoria's good character, had been so baffling that Astoria fell silent.
"Did you see Tracey over the summer?" Daphne asked almost wistfully. "I miss her, sometimes. Pansy and Flora both think she's nothing but trouble, but I think she'll grow out of it..."
Astoria's stepmother Beatrice was wearing an aquamarine day suit when Astoria finally managed to get out of bed make her way down to breakfast that morning.
"Gracious!" Beatrice squealed, taking in the sight of Astoria's restless hair. "I hope you aren't planning to catch the train like that!"
Astoria rather had been planning on catching the train just as she was and it occurred to her that Beatrice was the last person who should be making comments about how other people went out in public. Still, the reflection in her cereal spoon was enough to drive Astoria back upstairs before they were due to leave, in order to groom herself properly.
Daphne was attempting to cover a spot on her chin in their shared bathroom mirror when Astoria entered the room.
"All packed, Daph?" Astoria asked, dragging a brush through her tangled hair, wincing as the bristles ripped through a particularly ardent knot.
"Yeah," said Daphne absently. "Do I look like Eloise Midgen with this?" she asked, pointing to the spot on her chin.
Astoria snorted, not entirely liking the new sense of vanity her sister seemed to have developed in less than a year. "No," said Astoria. "You look perfectly fine and natural."
"I don't want to look natural," Daphne mumbled under her breath. "I'd rather look like you."
Astoria, not knowing what to say to this, continued to rip her hair apart. There was a part of Astoria that was very afraid of the dark and moody undercurrent returning to her sister's voice now that the promise of Hogwarts loomed over them again and Astoria was not willing to provoke Daphne further by saying something foolish.
George was in a meeting, which meant that it was Beatrice's job escorting them both to London. Several years ago, this would have caused Astoria aches of embarrassment and nervousness (particularly considering the aquamarine suit) but as it was, Astoria was so happy to be boarding the train with her sister that she would have willing gone anywhere with Beatrice, even if her stepmother had decided to go out naked.
The station was packed as usual and very noisy. This turned out to be a small mercy, as Beatrice was wearing a pair of heels that were so tall she was having trouble weaving between students. She left them at barrier with a kiss for Daphne and an awkward, feather light hug for Astoria.
"Well," said Daphne awkwardly, peering about for Flora and Pansy.
"Astoria!" shouted an excited female voice. It was Tracey and Astoria had never been so happy to see her.
They all boarded the train together, Tracey questioning Astoria excitedly about the mayhem at the World Cup, her fountain of speech punctuated only occasionally by comments as Daphne chipped in, because she knew all of the answers herself.
They found a large compartment all to themselves. When Daphne took a seat and produced a magazine, Astoria felt her body relax for the first time all morning.
It was a very gray day outside and the lights in the cabins were all on by the early afternoon. Sporadic rain showers created a churning bathtub-like steam that rolled across the grassy moors as the Hogwarts express chugged through the countryside.
"So," said Tracey, who had been reading Daphne's magazine over her shoulder, "have you lot heard that the quidditch tournament won't be happening this year?"
"What?" asked Daphne, obviously surprised by this bit of news.
"Yeah," said Tracey. "My brother Roger is captain for Ravenclaw and they never sent him a letter about holding team tryouts. There isn't going to be a season, he says."
"Why not?" asked Daphne, her soft, round face marred by disappointment.
"The Triwizard tournament is happening instead," said Astoria, forgetting that this was only old news to her.
"Never!" Tracey gasped, her disappointment about the quidditch cup more than mollified. "Are other schools actually going to be playing?"
The compartment door opened and Theodore, looking out of breath and very put upon, stumbled in.
"Here you lot are," he muttered angrily. "You never look for me Astoria! I always end up having to hunt you down."
"If it isn't prince charming," said Tracey wryly. Astoria hid her smile behind her hand.
Theo pushed Daphne's Witch Weekly and the pink pen she had been using to fill out a quiz onto the floor and promptly began to pick wet grass out of the cuffs of his pants, grunting in annoyance.
"Do you think our school champion will end up being Potter?" asked Tracey curiously, obviously not entirely sure what she made of this.
"Oh," said Theo in disappointment, "you're talking about the bloody tournament as well, are you? I've only just escaped Malfoy. He's been going on about it to Crabbe, Goyle and Adrian Pucey for hours."
"How can you not be excited?" asked Tracey emphatically, her eyes gleaming. "You know what this means, don't you? Other schools will have to send students to Hogwarts to compete!"
"So?" sneered Theo. "We've got our share of amateur celebrities at Hogwarts, haven't we?"
"I couldn't agree more, Nott," said Draco Malfoy, his tone positively dripping gleeful sarcasm as he slid open the compartment door.
"Oh, look," said Theo in a tight, unpleasant voice, "Malfoy followed me."
"We might have our own celebrities," said Tracey pointedly, ignoring Theo, "but we certainly don't have many cute foreign boys. Do you know anyone at Beauxbatons, Astoria? Mendel must have friends that he's introduced you to. Are any of them roguishly handsome?"
Astoria laughed, both at the look of eagerness on Tracey's face and at the looks of twin annoyance on both Draco and Theodore's.
"None that I can think of, off of the top of my head, Trace," said Astoria, "but you'll be able to ask him yourself. Maudlin as good as told me that he's planning on entering the tournament. I'm sure he'll have a few names for you."
"Oh, that's right," said Daphne thoughtfully. "I forgot that Maudlin still has a year of school left. He's really going to enter?"
Astoria could tell by the look of mild skepticism on Daphne's face that even she knew what a bad fit this would be.
"Real go-getter, is he?" sneered Draco at once, irrationally irritated by this. "I suppose you hope he'll be champion?"
"Oh, he won't be champion," said Astoria dismissively. "He'll show up, throw his name in and then spend the rest of the year harassing me about all of my poor choices and the lack of purple in my wardrobe"
"No he won't," said Daphne soothingly. "Who knows? It might be nice having new students around."
"Why don't you think he'll be champion?" asked Tracey, evidentially intrigued by Astoria's lack of faith in her old friend. "Is he quite stupid?"
"No, not at all," said Astoria, backtracking at once. "He's really quite clever, it's just, well-"
"I think he's a giant poof," said Theo briskly, causing Draco to laugh in surprised delight.
"Theo!" laughed Astoria, "You've never even met him! He's just-"
"Refined?" tried Daphne.
"Fond of smoking expensive cigars and wearing velvet shoes?" suggested Theo, describing Maudlin exactly as he had seen him in the photographs from Astoria's last Christmas vacation.
Astoria laughed deeply at this.
"It sounds like you're describing Zabini at fifty," drawled Malfoy, looking distinctly cheered. "I suppose Maudlin wears as much pink as his friend Hundin does?"
"Maudlin's not as arch as Zabini," said Daphne, her brow furrowing at the comparison, "and Maudlin's actually probably better looking, to be honest, which sort of makes up for some of his vanity but I can see what you mean, Astoria. I can't really picturing him being very good at an athletic tournament."
"You've met him as well, have you?" asked Draco in a cold voice that put Astoria's teeth on edge, evidentially less pleased by Daphne's description than Theodore's.
"Once or twice," said Daphne, blushing slightly. "I've never met Alec Hundin, though. I'm actually sort of excited to finally see him."
"You're awfully curious about a couple of blokes you've never met, Draco," said Theo in a flat, insinuating voice. "Looking forward to meeting Astoria's friends, are you?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" sneered Malfoy hotly.
"Draco!" squealed Pansy, coming up behind Crabbe, who was still lurking in the hallway. "There you are!"
Her eyes moved from Draco to Daphne before moving onto Astoria and becoming chilly.
"I didn't think I'd find you here, Daph," said Pansy with a wide, probing look, forcing Draco and Crabbe further into the compartment in order to speak over them.
"Hi, Pansy!" said Tracey very loudly from her seat, forcing Pansy to acknowledge her presence in the most rude way possible.
"Hi?" replied Pansy snidely, glancing at Tracey as though she were some kind of slug before raising her eyebrows at Draco, urging him to quietly mock the lunacy of Astoria's compartment with as well. "Listen, Flora and I are going to get lunch, Daphne. Do you want to come along?"
Daphne hesitated, torn between hunger and not wanting to look as though she had been waiting for an opportunity to escape from Astoria.
"Go on, Daphne," said Astoria calmly, sacrificing her happiness to spare her sister the awkwardness. Surely the best way to peace was to not to create any drama in the first place. "You haven't eaten yet."
Daphne stood up, casting Astoria a very grateful look.
"What about you boys?" asked Pansy, turning her attention onto Draco and Crabbe.
"I ate when the cart went by," said Draco lazily. "I'm sure Crabbe wants to go, though. Goyle's probably following lunch around right now."
Crabbe grunted and a flicker of annoyance crossed Pansy's features. This was obviously not what she had wanted at all and Astoria could not help but feel a faint surge of triumph.
"Fine," said Pansy huffily, stuck with Crabbe when she had wanted Draco, "come on, then."
They continued down the corridor. Astoria waited to see if Draco would strike off on his own but he continued to lean idly against the doorframe, much to Theo's increasing displeasure.
"Who is Alec Hundin and why is Daphne excited to meet him?" asked Tracey, undeterred. "Is he cute?"
Draco laughed nastily at the idea of Alec being described as 'cute'.
"You've never heard of the Hundins?" scoffed Theodore in surprise. "They're like Russian crime lords. Even my dad says that they're proper psychos."
"Please," sneered Draco skeptically. "I saw the son at the World Cup and he was more pastel than a tea party invitation. How frightening could he possibly be?"
"I don't know," said Theo warily. "I heard he tried to murder his father once. Could that be right?"
Draco turned, immensely interested in any story that featured attempted old-money patricide despite himself.
"Could be," said Astoria honestly, shrugging. "They don't get on, Alec and his dad. That's why he went to school in France in the first place."
"So, will your two friends be fighting against each other in order to be Beauxbatons champion?" asked Tracey, excited by the idea.
"No," Astoria sighed. "Alec goes to Durmstrang now. Knowing my luck, both of them will end up competing."
"That would literally be the best thing ever," exclaimed Tracey shamelessly.
"I don't see why," sneered Draco. "It's not like it'll effect you either way, Davis. They probably won't even have time for Astoria once the tournament starts and they know her. They'll have better things to do then hang around with fourth years."
Something about the nastiness of this comment made Astoria's stomach swoop. She didn't very much like the idea of Maudlin or Alec coming to Hogwarts but she couldn't say that she liked the idea of them ignoring her in favor of better or more mature things, either.
"Here's hoping," said Astoria a little falsely, turning her eyes back toward the window and ignoring Draco's reflection, which was staring at her nosily behind her back.
0o0
Well, this was a short little installment. Sorry guys. I had a super busy traveling weekend and I wanted to get a post in as soon as possible. The next chapter will be longer and more plot driven. For now, I thought it was best to just get on back to Hogwarts.
Next chapter will introduce Moody, (who I suspect will get much more dialogue than Lupin did) and will also include Draco's debut as a ferret. (Jeez, I'm really going to have to dedicate some time to Remus in book five because he got totally ripped off in the third year here, didn't he?)
As always, reviews are a rewarding delight!