Dear Wizarding Britain
Disclaimer: I own nothing. If I did, I probably wouldn't be playing around on fanfiction.
A/N: And here is the final draft of this chapter. I only found very few typos that needed correcting, so don't feel you need to reread it, because I haven't made any changes that would affect the plot of the chapter.
Daphne sighed inwardly, as she noticed her sister hovering nearby, waiting for her arrival in order to walk down to the dining hall with her. Guilt attempted to eat at her, as she pretended to listen to Astoria prattle on about something or another.
Astoria's personality had become more and more shallow over the years, Daphne hoped that it was just a mask that Astoria had learned to wear perfectly, as she herself had perfected the Ice Princess of Slytherin mask, but as more time passed, the less Daphne was able to convince herself that Astoria wore a mask. It was becoming more and more apparent that the sweet little girl that Astoria had once been was gone, and in her place was a girl who cared for little more than her social standing and the latest gossip.
Daphne was jarred out of her musings when she heard Astoria say the words betrothal contract. "I apologize, I was lost in thought, what was that you just said about a betrothal contract?" Daphne queried.
Astoria huffed, "I knew you weren't listening. You never listen to me when I speak anymore. Always with your head in the clouds like Loony Lovegood these days for Morgana's sake." Astoria then flicked off an imaginary speck of dust from the sleeve of her dress, while Daphne forced herself to remain polite and not lash out, as Astoria probably wanted her to.
Finally, after a full minute of silence, Astoria relented and responded with an air of nonchalance, "I overheard father speaking with Lord Nott in his study about writing up a betrothal contract between our houses." Astoria looked sideways at Daphne as they continued to slowly descend the stairs to the dining hall and added with a slight smirk, "Lord Nott and Heir Nott were then invited to dine with us this evening, after which they will further discuss the terms of a contract."
Daphne had to force herself not to react in a negative manner, though it was a near thing. She noticed Astoria's disappointment in not receiving the kind of reaction she had hoped to elicit.
After Daphne counted down from ten in her head, she responded, "What an honor indeed, mother and father must be thrilled with such a match as to one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight." Inwardly, she was seething at the possible kink in her plans, there was no way she would be able to escape at midnight, if she were forced to sign a Merlin-damned betrothal contract this evening.
After a beat, Daphne was startled out of her thoughts when Astoria grabbed her hand in a surprising act of comfort, before she quickly released it and walked ahead, leaving a shocked Daphne behind.
Daphne looked around quickly enough to see that there were no portraits at this point in the halls to spy on what had transpired, so she quickly looked down and found that Astoria had passed her one of the Weasley Twins products that students used to use to get out of classes. She didn't know which illness this would imitate, but there were two capsules: the green one that simulated the illness, and the blue one that counteracted it.
She quickly conjured a glass and filled it with an aguamenti, before she threw that green pill in her mouth and swallowed it down with the conjured water, before vanishing the glass and remainder of water, then stashing the cure in the bodice of her dress.
She gradually started feeling the effects of the product, her cheeks began to feel flushed and she soon began to feel very feverish, as she slowly began the trek back downstairs, with a hand gripping the bannister in order to help keep herself upright.
Her estime in her sister increased greatly when she reached the doors in time to hear Astoria say, "I'm sorry to tell you, but Daphne is feeling rather indisposed at the moment. She was very obviously feeling unwell and I offered to convey her apologies for not being able to join us for the evening meal; however, our Daphne is too stubborn by half and was quite insistent that she would at least attempt to attend." Then Astoria turned around and saw Daphne there leaning on the doorframe and quickly ran over to her.
"Daphne!" Astoria exclaimed. "Why didn't you return back to your room? I told you I would convey your regrets."
Merlin, when did my little sister become such an actress without my knowing it? Daphne thought to herself, as she felt Astoria dab at her forehead with a conjured handkerchief. Daphne gave a wan smile and whispered a little hoarsely, "I thought I was well enough to join the family for the evening meal. I didn't realize how poorly I felt until I began the journey downstairs."
Daphne's statement seemed to startle their mother into action, as she walked briskly over to her daughters and touched her hand to Daphne's forehead, "My dear, child. You are burning up!"
"I am feeling a little faint, Mother," Daphne replied with a hoarseness in her voice, as she stealthily observed the reactions of her father and both Notts. Her father was eyeing her with a look of concern, but remained where he was next to Lord Nott; Lord Nott was looking at her with a frown on his face; and Theo Nott was looking at her with a grimace, which was far more welcome than the leer that usually adorned his expression during the moments that she noticed him watching her.
Her attention was brought back to her mother when her mother said, "I apologize, Lord Nott, but I insist that you excuse us, while I escort my daughter back to her room and get her settled into her bed to rest."
"Of course, Lady Greengrass, if the young lady is unwell, then of course she should be abed," Lord Nott said with a gracious nod of his head. Lady Greengrass gave a brief curtsy, before wrapping her arm around Daphne and helping her back out the door and up the stairs towards her room. The door was closing when Daphne heard Lord Nott's comment of, "It's not as if she needs to be present to sign the contract." And Daphne didn't hear any more as the door closed, she was unable to hold back the shudder his words elicited.
Lady Greengrass attributed Daphne's shudder to her illness and she gently rubbed her shoulder in comfort during their ascent upstairs and said, "There, there, dear. Once we get you tucked into bed and give you a Pepper-Up, you'll be right as rain."
All Daphne could say was, "Yes, mother," in a hoarse voice.
All was quiet as they finally entered Daphne's room and Daphne was led to her bed by her mother. As her mother started to help her undress, Daphne remembered the other capsule hidden in the bodice of her dress and insisted to her mother that she was not so invalid that she couldn't ready herself for bed without aid, and knowing how stubborn Daphne could be, Lady Greengrass relented.
"I'll just see to that Pepper-Up for you and order the house elves to bring a serving of broth for you, while you get ready for bed." Lady Greengrass said.
"Thank you, Mother," Daphne said with bright eyes.
Lady Greengrass gave Daphne a loving, motherly smile before saying, "Of course, dear." And then left to go do as she said.
Daphne quickly took the capsule and hid it under the candlestick on her nightstand, before quickly changing into a nightgown and returning her dress to her trunk. She finished getting ready for bed. She was in the process of opening her window for some fresh air, when her mother returned.
"Daphne, you know how your father feels about leaving the windows open," Lady Greengrass said with a frown.
Sighing, Daphne said sadly, "I just wanted some fresh air to try to sleep with."
"You're already ill, Daphne, you do not need to catch more of a chill by leaving your window open," Lady Greengrass said, as she moved towards the window to close it.
"Fine," Daphne said with a sigh, as she began to lower the window, having already snuck a small pebble into the window frame to keep the wards on the window from engaging. Then she walked over towards her bed, where her mother now stood with the Pepper-Up and a tray with a steaming bowl of broth.
Once Daphne was settled in bed, her mother sat the tray down across her lap and watched as she downed the Pepper-Up. Daphne felt the steam escape through her ears, and silently thanked Merlin and Morgana for the Weasley twins' brilliance, as the potion was unable to nullify the prank product, leaving her mother to frown down at her in concern, obviously torn between leaving her to return to her duties as hostess, or to remain by her side.
Noticing her mother's hesitation, Daphne said softly, "I'll be fine, Mother. I'll go to sleep as soon as I've finished my broth, I promise. I'm sure I'll be just fine in the morning and only need to sleep this off."
"If you're sure, dear," Lady Greengrass said with uncertainty.
"I am," Daphne said with a small curve of her lips. As her mother reached for the door, Daphne added softly, "I love you, Mother. Thank you for always taking care of me." She tried not to make it sound like a final goodbye, and hoped that her mother just believed her to be more sentimental due to her illness.
Lady Greengrass's hand stopped on the door handle before she turned and looked at her daughter with a very serious look on her face, "I love you so much, daughter, and I only ever want what's best for you. I'll always take care of you, no matter what." Her gaze stayed on her daughter a moment longer before she opened the door and closed it behind her.
Daphne let out a shaky breath after her mother was gone and fought her tears. She cursed Voldemort and the Death Eaters to the darkest part of Hades for ruining her life and forcing her to choose running away over a forced marriage into a Death Eater family.
She eyed the place she had hidden the blue capsule and then eyed the clock. It was about four hours to midnight, so she decided to set her alarm for 11:45 p.m., she would get some sleep until then, but remain feverish just in case someone came to check on her before midnight.
As she drifted off to sleep, she dreamed of a life free from Voldemort, a life free of pompous little shits like Theo Nott, a life where she can marry for love, no matter their blood status. She drifted off into sleep, dreaming of the bright, green eyes that she only allowed herself to think of as she slept.
Daphne woke up with a start, as she felt the vibration of her wand under her pillow, telling her it was time to get ready to go. She quickly disengaged the alarm and made sure her room was clear.
Not seeing anything out of the ordinary, she reached out her hand for the blue capsule and noticed a piece of parchment that wasn't there when she went to sleep. She quickly took the blue pill to counter the fever induced by the green pill, then got out of bed, changing clothes by the light of the moon coming in through the window. Not wanting to waste time reading the note she found, she shoved it into a pocket, along with her shrunken trunk.
Finally, all she had left to do was to put her boots on and grab her broom, so she could fly out the window and past the wards. She checked the clock and saw she had five minutes. She waited another two, because she wanted there to be no time for her father to catch her as she escaped the wards.
After one minute, she eased open the window and removed the pebble she had placed, placing it in her pocket, then she quickly mounted her broom and flew off. She felt it the moment she passed through the wards and landed, gripping tightly onto the broom handle as she waited for Lopsy to come to her.
She spun around in fear when she heard a pop, only to see it was Lopsy, who smiled at her warmly and silently grabbed her hand. They were gone in a swirl of colors, but there was no uncomfortable pull from her navel. Just as quickly, they were somewhere else.
Daphne could only take a moment to gather her bearings before she was wrapped up in strong arms and heard the familiar voice of her brother in all but blood say, "Daphne, thank Merlin, it worked!"
A/N: No promises to post today, but I do intend to start work on the next chapter today.