Muchos Gracias all you faithful readers, alerters, favoriters, and reviewers, you all are amazing and keep doing what you do. And a special thanks to my english-orientated beta and my inspiring unbiological sister, 2cool4you. Go check out her fanfictions now, all you twilight lovers! the username is 2cool4you!
-Cassia
Chapter 10
We're Done
Later that day I was wondering the corridors aimlessly with Julie, and she asked the question I'd been dreading.
"Astoria, what did happen last summer? With...with the Death eaters?"
"Well..." I tried to stall, searching my brain wildly for something to blurt out.
"You know, that stuff that you said the night we fought."
"It takes two to tumble," I sighed.
"It's over now. Anyway; there is so many things I've wanted to ask you since, and still do. First-Bellatrix. How did she...you know..." she trailed off.
"Julie...what I'm going to tell you- you can't tell anyone, all right? Not even Lucy and Sarah."
She nodded earnestly.
Then all of it came rushing out, every detail I had been keeping inside. Every event that had added to my stress, everything that kept me awake at night.
Telling her seemed to ease the constant pressing feeling of helplessness and confusion...suddenly, I had someone to let it all out to. I hadn't realized how much I had needed to talk to someone until after, when I felt significantly better.
I saw the horror in Julie's eyes grow as I continued to tell the story, but she never interrupted until I was done, gathering me into a hug.
"I'm so sorry I didn't believe you at first. I didn't know what I was thinking, I thought you were just saying it to...well, I'm not completely sure now,"
"It's fine!" I stopped her. "Really, it's fine. It's over now," I repeated her line from earlier.
"So this werewolf, Fenrir...he used Occlumency to see if you were in Dumbledore's army or not? He read your mind?"
"Yes, he did, but I think Bellatrix already knew that. But she doesn't purposely seek out the other former members of the D.A, so why does she do so to me?"
"I'm not sure- but I don't think you should go home for Christmas. Who knows what might happen if they're there?"
"Well where else would I go?" I asked, mystified, a couple of small first years running past, giggling. \
"Well I was thinking, maybe you could spend it at my house!"
"I would love to, Julie, I really could, But I dunno. I still have to listen to my parents," I grimaced. "And I'm almost positive they won't let me go. But I'll talk to them tonight, alright?"
"Okay. I'm worried, you know."
"Don't be. I have my family's protection- the death eaters won't hurt me as long as I'm part of the family...or if my parents cut off their end of the bargain. They must have reallydone something to upset the death eaters, or they wouldn't be blackmailing them like this."
"Are you sure that's how it is, and they aren't just working with the death eaters because...well, because they agree with them?"
"No, I'm sure," I said quickly, but her words knocked a tiny sliver of doubt into me; until I pulled it out, I would always feel it there.
"Okay, if you say so. But what happens when you're 17 and of age?" she asked. "Will you still have your parents protection when you're out of the house?"
"I dunno, exactly. But what I do want to know is, what kind of information are they giving? Are others dying for me?" I asked desperately, putting voice to the concern that had recently began to take root.
"I'm sure it's nothing that drastic," she assured me. "But we'll find out."
"How?"
"We'll find a way. If you can't come to my place during Christmas at least I could come to yours, and then we'll get to the bottom of this." I smiled at her gratefully.
That night I owled mum and dad, asking them if Julie could spend Christmas break with us, already knowing that asking them if I could spend it at her place the answer would be no. At the same time Julie was asking permission to come.
When two weeks passed with no reply, hopes of me spending any amount of time with Julie over the holidays dwindled like a fast burning candle, while visions of Christmas morning spent with Bellatrix and Fenrir were battling to take over Christmas spirit.
I had finally made up my mind- I just had to talk to Draco about where he was going. It was eating away at me and I had the sinking suspicion that it had something to do with his unknown 'missions.' What was going on? Hopefully, I was about to find out.
The next morning in Arithmancy I scribbled a note hastily and threw it in Draco's direction before Babbling could suspect anything. I saw his eyes skim over the words I had written-
Draco-
We need to talk. Meet me by the room of requirement after classes today. I know you know where it is. -A
I could practically see the gears turning in his head as he gripped his quill so hard I thought it would break, scribbling a note and tossing it back.
I can't.
Came his excruciatingly short note.
Why not? I wrote back, confused.
Other things to do. Alright, now I knew there was something going on.
Cringing at the nosiness at my next note, I had to reassure myself I was doing what I had to do; I had to find out what he was up to.
Like what?
I thought you were going to trust me on this? He wrote back. I rolled my eyes in frustration.
Then why won't you trust me? This isn't going to work if you don't let me in!
What are you insinuating?
I'm saying that it's awfully hard to keep a relationship going with a boy as secretive as you are, Draco! I wrote, jaw clenched. Then just as he put his quill to paper-
"Mr. Malfoy, Miss Greengrass, this is now the second time you have been caught passing notes in my class! That will mean detention for both of you. Tonight in my office, 6:00. Then you will have some quality time to get to know each other, therefore diminishing the amount of time spent scribbling notes when attention should be fully on my lesson.
And Draco was not present for any more of the lessons that day, which in my opinion proved my point even more. I suspected I would get the usual response as well when I asked him where he'd been- Gee Astoria, don't you trust me? I could practically see it now.
After leaving the Ravenclaw common room and trudging down to Babbling's room, narrowly avoiding a mischievous looking Peeves, a creeping sensation of doubt began to drift over me.
All the signs pointed to the fact that Draco was somehow involved in the Dark Arts. This wasn't the first time that I had come to this conclusion,, but it was the first time I had managed to look at it head on. Every time it entered my mind I shoved it away, refusing to let it become a real nagging worry. He couldn't actually...no, I told myself. Just because his parents are Death Eaters doesn't mean that he is, or even that he will become one. After all, what kind of Dark Lord would Voldemort be if he started a trend of picking up 16 year old boys to join his followers? More like a Grey Lord than a Dark Lord, and that didn't sound nearly as intimidating.
I shoved all thoughts of the Dark Arts and Draco aside, telling myself that it was nothing more than my brain's excuse for the unfilled blanks.
I pushed open the door, doubt still lingering in the back of my mind- I really hoped Julie and I would be able to find some answers if it was agreed that she could spend Christmas with me.
Without actually telling her about Draco and I, of course. Despite however much I wanted to have a girl to talk about it with.
I pushed open the door to see Babbling writing at her desk, but the room was otherwise empty of all other people. Merlin forbid Draco be early to anything.
She looked up as the door opened, setting her quill down.
"Ah, Astoria. Do you know if Mr. Malfoy is planning on gracing us with his presence this evening?"
"I'm not sure, Professor. What will we be doing?"
"Well, he still has five minutes," she muttered, more to herself than to me. "And in answer to your question, you will be polishing this selection of the school's trophies until they shine," she motioned to a spot in the corner where a daunting pile of trophies stood that I hadn't noticed when I first walked in.
"Ah, just in time, Mr. Malfoy. Now that you are both here, kindly hand over your wands, there are cleaning supplies in that cupboard, there is no need for magic."
"What?" Draco sneered.
"You heard correctly. Now hand over your wands."
With much grumbling she left with our wands, leaving Draco and I with a whole lot of work ahead of us.
"This is servant's work!" he complained.
I shot him a look of distaste. "Then we might as well start working. Oh, and Draco...this is the perfect opportunity to talk about where you've been disappearing to. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I have a suspicious that it has something to do with your missions," I said bluntly, watching as a emotionless mask covered his face.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he said coolly, not making a move to help me as I began to scrub at a particularly grubby Quidditch trophy, typing my hair up into a messy bun so it wouldn't get in the way.
"I'm not stupid, you know," I snapped, quickly getting fed up with his 'you should trust me even though I don't tell you anything' act.
"Well, you sure are acting pretty thick. What part of "I can't tell you" don't you understand?"
"Why can't you tell me? Is it another girl?" I bristled, firing up at once.
"You bloody well know it's not! And I'm glad to know how little you think of me, jumping to the 'cheating; conclusion right away," he hissed. Suddenly standing in front of me I didn't see the Draco that I had come to love over the past few month, but the other side of him; the arrogant, misguided, cruel-
"Why can't you just butt out of my personal matters?" That was my last straw. My eyes widened.
"Maybe I will! If you can't trust me, than why are we even doing this anyway?" I fumed, breathing hard.
"For the thousandth time, Astoria, why can't you trust me, and just be satisfied that you don't need to know?" he hissed.
"So I'm just supposed to follow you blindly? What, am I even allowed to think for myself? I'll just 'trust you'"- I put finger quotes around this- "And cross my fingers that everything turns out okay?"
"That would be nice," he drawled.
"I am done with you!" I yelled disgustedly, turning my back on him, fuming silently. "And why don''t you suck it up and start working instead of just bloody sitting there? This isn't King Draco's castle, you know~" I said furiously, still turned away from him as I furiously rubbed on a Gobstones trophy's name plate.
Instead of finally hearing him come help me I heard his fast and hard footsteps echoing-and heading out of the room.
"Where the bloody hell do you think you're going?" I yelled.
"Away from you!" he spat, almost reaching the door.
"Ugh!" I couldn't think of anything wittier to say and I furiously chucked my rag at his back but it fell short as he slammed the door behind him, rattling the frame. I stomped toward the door, kicking the rag aside. Opening it quietly I looked both ways in the hallway. Just as I thought- I saw his retreating back headed in the direction of the Room of Requirement. My hands were trembling as I closed the door, as choosing not to follow him after a second of consideration. My breaths came in gasps as pressure built up in my eyes and I tried to hold in my tears of anger and frustration. What an arse! But I was not going to cry over Draco Malfoy, I told myself. I put my back against the door and slid down, kicking out my legs in front of me, enjoying the satisfying thump! They made when I slammed them on the floor.
What had I just done? What had he just done? Had I been the one to end it? Merlin's pants, what had just happened?
"Arghhhhhhhh," I moaned, tilting my head up at an attempt to stop the direction of the tears.
I banged the back of my head into the door several times. It hurt, even though my bludger injury was pretty much all the way healed.
One thing I knew- Draco was doing something that he shouldn't-and he was doing it in the room of requirement.
I was seriously considering chasing after him, but compromised with myself- if he never came back to finish detention with me, or to get his wand, I would go after him, unseen, and see just what exactly he was doing.
Because I knew that whatever he was up to, it was somehow tied into the Dark Lord.
It was no longer just a hunch.
Five minutes to go-no Draco. I was getting kind of anxious about going after him. My fingers were sore and looking more like prunes than anything after two hours of scrubbing. And I still had a lot to go, especially considering I had been doing it alone. Stretching my arms out and yawning, I redid my bun to better keep the ever growing amount of hair falling in my face, off.
Just as I set back to scrubbing I heard the door open and close quietly...
Turning around my heart leapt into my throat at the sight of my ex-boyfriend .
I glared at him, arms crossed, as he walked over to grab a rag and trophy.
"Excuse me?" I said incredulously, raising my eyebrows.
No response.
"He-llo, Draco! "I yelled, bending down.
"What?" he snapped, jumping up.
"Are you under the sad, delusional impression that I'm going to let you make me do all the work, just so you can come sauntering back in at the end so it looks like you did at least half?" I hissed angrily, putting my hands on my hips as he got up to stand over me.
"You can't say anything unless you want another detention, can you?" he smirked, obviously delighted with his fool-proof plan.
"Are you blackmailing me, Malfoy?" I shrieked. "If I were you, I'd want to think long-" I jabbed him in the chest for emphasis- "and-" jab- "hard-" jab- "About that one!" I yelled. And then something happened. Something that hadn't happened since I was much younger and uncontrollable magic sometimes flew out of me before I had it harnessed, something not uncommon in magical children.
Well, that was happening now. A dirty bucket of water sitting on a desk near us suddenly decided to empty it's contents- onto Draco. He gasped and looked murderously at me-I took this perfect opportunity to shove him out into the hallway, slamming the door and kicking it.
About two hours earlier
Draco slammed the door, Astoria's furious face burned into his mind. He was almost shaking from the adrenaline, storming off to the only comfort he knew. He had known this would happen eventually, but there was no way Draco could tell Astoria about his unhappy role as a Death Eater. It hadn't really been his choice to become one, anyway. But she would never support him if he told her, he himself didn't even support him. She was so vehemently opposed to evil that she would never look at him the same way if she knew. No, she would never look at him again, period.
He stormed his way into the room of requirement, glaring furiously at the vanishing cabinet. Draco wondered what would happen if it caught on fire...and Dumbledore died a natural death...he groaned furiously, kneading his temples harshly with his knuckles. Astoria's enraged voice yelling "we're done!" was repeatedly rang through his head. Had he really driven her to do that?
He couldn't do any mending magic on the cabinet without his wand so he skimmed through the book he was currently in the middle of- "Vanishing Cabinets and Their Origins." He sunk down into a couch with stuffing coming out the back, not caring if he got it wet. He continued to read more in hopes of keeping his mind of A-recent events than of actually finding anything that could possibly be of use in his momentous task.
He finally closed the book when he was at the point where his eyes just glazed over the sentences stringed together, no longer processing what he was reading.
Draco closed the door to Babbling's room as softly as possible, even though Astoria would see him sooner or later.
As anticipated she whirled around, glaring. Draco walked sullenly over to the desks to grab a rag, not meeting her gaze. He could almost hear Auntie Bella screaming at him to get back into the room of requirement and to not come out until he had fixed the cabinet
Astoria crossed her arms as he started rubbing at one of the trophies, and Draco pointedly kept his eyes in front of him on his job, clenching his jaw.
"Excuse me?" came her disdainful voice. Every nerve in his body was screaming at him to stand up, to put his arms around her and apologize over and over and over until she knew how truly sorry he was. However, on the outside, he remained impassive.
"He-llo, Draco!" she yelled next to his head, startling him into jumping.
"What?" Draco snapped rudely, jumping up so she wouldn't be able to stand taller than him.
"Are you under the sad, delusional impression that I'm going to let you make me do all the work, just so you can come sauntering back in at the end so it looks like you did at least half?" she seethed.
"You can't say anything unless you want another detention, can you?"Draco smirked. He still hadn't fully accepted that this was how it was going to be now- back to square one. This wasn't just an act put on anymore- just like before this year, they were enemies again.
But he couldn't be with her if she knew about Voldemort- Draco had to accept that, unless he wanted her, himself, and his family, to all die, the Dark Lord had to come first.
So he hardened his heart.
"Are you blackmailing me, Malfoy?" she shrieked, anger in her eyes. Draco glared back with an equal amount of anger-
"If I were you, I'd want to think long-" she jabbed Draco in the chest with a wet finger-" and-" jab- "hard-" jab- "about that!"
No one talked to Draco Malfoy like that-
Suddenly, without warning a bucket of water levitated several inches up off the desk that is sat at and dumped its contents over the front of Draco, drenching him. He was too shocked to form complete thoughts-
For once, he was speechless as he was shoved out of the door.
He knew he wouldn't be getting back in after the click of the lock, so he leaned up against the wall next to the door, arms crossed. He watched Babbling appear around the corner and walk briskly down the corridor to her classroom.
Not long after I closed the door on Draco I heard Professor Babbling's voice outside and unlatched the door, throwing it open to see her reprimanding Draco.
"What in Merlin's name are you doing out here, boy?" she cried.
"She pushed me out!" he protested at the same time I said, "He left and didn't do any of the work!"
The Professor narrowed her eyes at us, crossing her arms.
"That will be another detention for both of you together; tomorrow. Same place, same time. Good night."
She handed back our wands and turned into her office closing the door and leaving Draco and I alone in the hallway.
I turned and walked silently away, trying to stifle the wish for Draco to come after me.
I purposely slowed my walk, trying to will eyes to grow in the back of my head to see if he was looking after me.
No voice called me back.
I wanted Draco to fight for me, to not give up even after I said no. To prove that he really did love me, that we hadn't been just some teenage fling.
"When do you think Katie Bell will be back?" mused Sarah as the four of us satin the great hall over breakfast the next morning. It was snowing lightly and today would be the day I would finally be able to rejoin Quidditch practice, something I had been counting the days. Down until.
I had missed one game against Gryffindo; our stand in seeker had been deployed, and although we played well we had lost the game.
"I dunno, but I wonder if she's even coming back. I know my parents wouldn't let me return if I was in her place," Lucy said gravely.
We looked up along with the rest of the great hall as a swarm of owls swooped in, from blacks to tawny to the occasional snowy white, they dropped packages and letters into smiling students' laps.
:Your parents said it was fine to spend the holidays with us, right Jules?" I ask, anxiously searching for my tawny owl with a white head. It should be easy to spot-if it was there.
"Yeah, now we just have to wait for yours," Julie replies as a crisp envelope is dropped into her lap.
"Wait..." I murmur, squinting my eyes.
Was that?
The large tawny own swooped down over our table, nodding it's white head slightly as if saying, "I'm here." It neatly drops my letter inches from my toast, then flying back out. I drop my fork with a clatter and rip open the mail- inside was a short letter.
Dear Astoria,
Julie may come home with you for Christmas break. We will also be having several visitors present at our house, so of course we expect you both to behave like the adults you almost are.
Enjoy your time at Hogwarts.
Mom and Dad
"Yes!" I pump my fist into the air, shoving the letter in Julie's direction. The mention of 'several visitors,' however ominous it sounded, managed to keep my mind off of my own personal 'he who must not be named.' The one who I had had a yelling match with last night. Leaving a gaping hole in my chest that I tried desperately hard to cover up today.
'Several visitors' weighed heavily on my mind as I looked toward the twelve massive glittering Christmas trees standing proudly decorated at the end of the hall.
I hoped especially that Fenrir and Bellatrix wouldn't be residing at our house over the break.
But whoever it was, I knew it was going to be a Christmas I wouldn't soon forget.
Packing ensued over the next couple of days while classes wrapped up until next year. Which to say, would start in a few weeks.
Draco and I continued to treat each other with coolness and spite. Mine was forced, however his, was likely not. I felt like my heart was breaking with every sneer, glare, and snicker from the boy I still loved. Our new attitude (well, it was only new to us: we hadn't changed in the eyes of our peers. Because to them, our relationship had never happened. And now it had all but vanished to the two of us as well) didn't have to be instituted as much as I thought because he seemed to be missing more and more classes. I neared closer and closer to my breaking point as I saw him with Pansy. Of course, when we were dating he hadn't been flirting back (he couldn't exactly ignore her completely, in order to keep up with out charade) but now he wasn't pushing her away at all.
Not that I cared that much, anyway. Julie had begun to realize something was wrong, but I had a built in excuse- I had told her I was worried about the Christmas 'visitors,' as described in my letter. Or course, it was only half a lie, because that was the second thing causing me stress.
"There goes the blood traitor," I heard above the snickers from Pansy as I passed. For once she was alone, and I was seriously considering taking her on in a duel right here.
"Shut up Parkinson, I'm not in the mood for this," I hissed.
"Ah, touchy, aren't we Greengrass?" she stood up from where she was leaning against the wall, narrowing her tiny eyes at me with in an ugly sneer. "You know- in the opinion of a lot of purebloods- blood traitors are just as bad as mudbloods."
"You mean the opinion of Death Eaters, Pansy? I'll take your word for it, you know much more about that sort of thing than me. Get used to it, because that;s the only subject you can take that claim in." I turned and began to walk away but what she said next stopped me cold, sending slivers of fear down my back.
"Don't be so sure about that, Greengrass. You don't know the whole story, now do you? You don't know the story that surrounds your birth. There's a reason you're not being hunted. But what will happen when you can't hide behind mummy and daddy anymore?"
I was going through the motions of reading the chapters assigned over the break-at least, my eyes were. I wasn't remembering a single word that I saw. Sighing, I closed my arithmancy book and looked out at the darkening Hogwarts grounds from my high up perch in the window seat of the Ravenclaw common room. I gazed over the shadowed mountains, looming over expanses of grassy grounds,the Great Lake just a far off smudge. Then Pansy's voice floats through my head, whispering insistently over the general murmur of the other students occupying the room with me.
"You don't know the whole story, now do you? You don't know the whole story that surrounds your birth. There's a reason you're not being hunted. But what will happen when you can't hide behind mummy and daddy anymore?"
I shook my head slightly, as if the motion would rid the nagging, persistent voice. But she was right, I knew it- there had always been something that didn't add up with my parents. There was a story surrounding my birth, and I had a feeling it had to do with my parents giving information to the death eaters.
Almost 20 years previous
The two newlyweds have run as fast as they could; dodging streets concealed in the cloak of nighttime's darkness. But the dark does not work for one alone. It conceals everyone, even the silver-masked ones, and now the newlyweds are caught. Cornered and captured. And currently wand-less, bound and tied, at the mercy of the silver-masked ones, with everything to lose. Particularly, vital information.
"I don't know!" Jaqcuiline Greengrass chokes back a sob. But she's lying. And the silver-masked ones know so.
"Tell the truth!" a voice snarls, but the owner is obscured by the silver mask of the death eaters. However, she is identifiable, as are the other three. Bellatrix, Fenrir, Alecto, Amycus. And on the receiving ends of pointed wands, Jacquiline and Zacharius Greengrass, 21 years old each, both bearing knowledge concerning the whereabouts of a family in hiding, one the Dark Lord is particularly after.
"I do not know, and neither does my wife. You are misinformed," Zacharius has managed to keep his cool. But he, too, is lying.
Hours later, the couple prove impossible to break. Neither can be tortured, under the Dark Lord's orders. These particular rich sources of information must be kept completely sane. Besides, the death eaters do not make habits of torturing wealthy purebloods. Neither have any family to use as leverage.
Frustrated, Fenrir is about to give up. They can try another time, perhaps, another time when they have gained even more information than now.
And Bellatrix is about to consent, about to ignore the protests of Amycus and Alecto. But one movement catches her eyes. The movement that will ruin it all.
The woman winces, and when she thinks no one is watching, rubs her belly, attempting to loosen the ropes that are especially tight around her midsection. She has concealed the slight bump well with conveniently folded robes, but it is not enough to fool Bellatrix as she dances over triumphantly, daring enough to hope at the prospect of leverage.
"What a mother would do for her baby," she croons softly in Jacquiline's ear, placing her hands on the ropes that bind the woman, the ones roping around her belly. Her wild black curls are brushing the top of Jacquiline's blond ones, a stark contrast.
And then she pulls fiercely, yanking the ropes until they strain painfully against the stomach.
The husband closes his eyes in a grimace as the sound of his wife vomiting fills the room.
"Leverage!" Bellatrix cackles gleefully as the young woman begins to sob hysterically, thinking of the life she has condemned her child to. Because the death eaters will never leave the Greengrass's alone, not with all of their information that came from being a major part in the underground resistance against Voldemort, friends in the order, of housing spies opposing Voldemort. They are one of the best wells of information they can get, if not the best. And Jacquiline knew, without a trace of a doubt, that the one thing their child would be in the death eater's eyes was leverage. They had no morals, what was to stop them from doing whatever they wanted if the child's parents could not do a thing about it?
"She;s got a baby, you idiot! She's pregnant!" Bellatrix shrieked at Fenrir, who had failed to comprehend.
"Now tell me, pretty," she begins in a too-sweet tone. "You know what this means, don't you? You tell us where the Marianns are...or else, your unborn child will pay with it's life."
"No, wait, please!" she screams, sobbing. "Please...leave our child alone! I'll do anything, anything that you want me to! And then...our second child," a plan begins to form. She is a Slytherin, after all. She can talk her way out from here. "We'll do anything you want. And in turn, you will not touch the baby. Not once."
"Not enough," Bellatrix snaps.
"Wait! And our second child... if we do something to displease you..."
"We'd take it and bring it up to serve the Dark Lord, to hate the both of you."
"Y...yes," the husband's voice betrays him slightly.
"So...what do you want, then? In return for staying out of our baby's life?" he continues in a stronger voice, looking at his wife, located several feet away.
One hour and one unbreakable vow later, the Marianns' safe house in Scotland is revealed with many tears shed. The Greeengrass' only hope is that they have changed their location since they last spoke to them. But a feeling much stronger than remorse- they've procured for their child a completely safe life, free of death eaters. The death eaters are to be notified the moment the second child is born.
"That was quite a gamble we've made on our second child's life," the husband says later in the sanctuary of their own house, their own living room, as they look into the flames of the roaring fireplace from their couch.
"Don't you see, Zach?" Jacquiline says softly. "We just won't have a second child."
7 Months later
Daphne is born. The death eaters have hold fast to their word.
5 months later
"No. No! No, no!" something smashes, and the husband rushes up the stairs, scooping up gurgling Daphne of five months to find his wife sobbing, curled up on the bathroom floor.
"Jacquiline!" he shouts, making his way to her, picking his way around the shards of vase. "What happened? Are you hurt?" by now Daphne looks as if she's deciding wether or not to cry. Thankfully, she chooses to yawn instead.
"Z-Z-Z..." she gasps, hands enfolding her midsection...as if shielding it...
And a horrible puzzle piece falls into place.
"You're pregnant," he gasps accusingly. She's thinking of screaming nasty, cutting things at him but instead crumples as she buries her face in her husband's shirt, wetting it with tears. Daphne takes the moment to split the air with a wail.
8 Months Later
"We can't tell them, Zach," the parents stare, entranced at the new baby in her mother's arms. A girl. Astoria.
"We'll move to South America if we must," he promises, kissing her temple.
"Souff Amewiceh!" Daphne peeks around the edge of a wooden table leg.
"Yes, Daphie!" her mother laughs, already noting similarities between Daphne and Astoria's facial features. It was too early to tell what her youngest daughter's eye color yet was; it was still the light blue that all infants possessed early on. But the hair was clearly blond.
The two day old baby yawns in her sleep, opening and closing her small, lined fist.
"She'll be safe," her father promises softly, not for Daphne to hear. "we'll make sure of it, the Death Eaters will never find out."
3 Weeks Later
"You'll open this door now, Zacharius, or believe me, we'll burn this house down!" More pounding. Alohamora does not work; the house is thoroughly protected. But at the husband's silence on the last sentence, Fenrir knows he's unwittingly found the protection charm's weakness.
"You know you won't! You won't kill us, my wife and I are too valuable for you. And if you kill our-child," he falters a bit, his hand shaking even more violently as he aims his pointed wand at the door.
"I heard the stutter on the world 'child', Zachie! Did you perhaps slip up, almost saying 'children?'" Another rough, male voice. Thank Merlin his wife was hidden away, in the attic with his daughters. But not for long.
After the struggle, the Greengrass' sit in the living room, once again at the mercy of the death eaters. Once again, with everything to lose.
All four of them. Cornered. Trapped.
"Once again we meet, Zacharius, and not under desirable circumstances," Lucius Malfoy's cool voice slithers into the crevices of his mind, not dissimilar to a snake.
Jacquiline moves for the first time, standing up and approaching Lucius so fast it's taken as a move of aggression and immediately, half a dozen wands are pointed at the woman and her newest daughter.
"Lucius, please," she whispers, begging. Astoria, clutched to her mother, looks up with eyes that have just began to change from blue.
"Lucius, please, do something! You've just had a child of your own not six months ago-"
"Sit down, silly woman!" she's grabbed roughly and pushed back into her chair beside her husband, holding Daphne who's sleeping soundly.
"Now, I think you both know that hiding her falls into the category of stepping out of line. By trying to save her, you have only condemned her further. Now give the girl here. We like to raise them young, so from childhood they will have grown away from the parents-she won't know any other way but ours," he grins cruelly as if to accentuate his statement. They move in slowly, as if relishing the added drama as they step toward them menacingly.
"Give her now, or-"
"Wait!" Jacquiline's scream almost seems to have power in itself-everything halts. Daphne stirs in her sleep, the advance stops. All eyes are on Jacquiline. "Wait, please. I have...a proposal. Another deal. We'll give you information. Not just once. But as you need it-for you to leave her alone."
"No. Now this is your last chance, woman-"
"Wait." Lucius's voice startles them, and Jacquiline's shoulders relax slightly as a slim ray of hope shines through the clouds.
"How will the Dark Lord reward us if we provide him with such a convenient wealth of information? Beyond measure, that's how, you imbeciles! Now use your brains, if you have any."
They seemed to consider this.
"So you will pass along information, in exchange for leaving your brat alone? And information if you do something we don't like, you or our daughter?"
"Yes."
Dishonorable, betraying her friends. But she loved her daughter more.
1 Year Later
"He's dead, he's gone, he's gone and we're safe!" Zacharius crows, picking up his wife and spinning her gleefully.
"Who, Daddy? Who, who?"
"A very bad man, Daphne. A very bad man is gone."
"Daph-ne, Daph-ne!" his second daughter claps her hands from her spot on the floor.
"And the two of them are safe as well."
"And the death eaters?" she mouths the last two words.
"Azkaban. The only way we will ever have to participate in our dreadful agreement again is if you-know-who comes back! Ha! That, my dear, will never happen. We may sleep easy tonight! Long live Harry Potter!"
"Long live the Boy who Lived!"
We return again to present day
Rubbing my eyes I set my books aside, concluding that I would never retain any information anyway at the rate I was reading through my assignments. Besides, it wasn't due until after New Year's.
Standing up I made my way to the door, hoping a walk would settle my mind. I knew Slughorn's Christmas party was going on tonight, so I suspected I wouldn't be the only student occupying the halls; therefore, a built-in excuse.
Never the less, I lurked cautiously as I headed in the general direction of Slughorn's room: I had no intention of entering, of course, I had just figured I would be least likely to get caught there.
Snippets of loud music, talking, and laughter became more distinct as I neared closer to the party, however, it did not completely muffle the sound of voices coming from the first classroom to my right. I didn't make a habit of eavesdropping so I continued walking, bu the very familiar voice stopped me cold-
Don't you guys love me when I hand you a cliffhanger?
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And, here is the question...please answer this is a review, or a PM. Would any of you be interesting in reading an original story by me, to be published on fictionpress? After this one is finished, of course. Any ideas? :)
Cassia