Death Eaters at the Memorial
Narcissa's elegantly curved lips stretched into a poisonous smile as she gently placed baby Teddy into Astoria's arms, her eyes glittering with feigned warmth. "Look at your aunt and uncle, little Teddy," she cooed, her voice dripping with saccharine sweetness.
It was two days after the evening of Astoria and Draco's argument. Immediately that evening, their wedding had been solemnized in a hurried and hushed manner, and now Narcissa had dragged her son and his wife to Andromeda Tonks' house.
Astoria held baby Teddy gently, her fingers tracing the soft curve of his cheek. Narcissa's smile was radiant, a facade hiding the intentions behind her eyes. Andromeda stood close by, her gaze flickering between her sister and Draco, her heart brimming with hope. Standing nearby, she smiled through teary eyes, her heart swelling with hope. She believed, for a moment, that her sister had finally let go of their old prejudices and accepted the new family forming around Teddy.
"I-I am so happy to see young Mr and Mrs Malfoy! Bless you both!" Andromeda wept.
Narcissa shed some crocodile tears as well, "Oh, Andi! They are Draco and Astoria, and you shall call them so! Come!"
She went with Andromeda tactfully to offer her water in Andromeda's own house. Teddy had begun giggling.
"You're doing this for show, aren't you?" Astoria hissed at Malfoy, her voice low but laced with anger. "Making me play the doting aunt to prove something to your mother."
Draco's face contorted with frustration, his usual composure slipping. "I didn't ask for this any more than you did," he snapped back, his tone sharp. "This is all a charade, and you think I'm enjoying it?"
Astoria's eyes welled up with tears, her voice breaking. "I'm not just an old aunt, Draco. I want a real family, not this façade. I thought maybe... maybe you could understand that."
Draco's shoulders tensed, his jaw clenched. He lashed out defensively. "Don't act like you're the only one suffering here. This wasn't my choice either."
Astoria's tears fell freely now as she shook her head. "I never asked for your pity," she choked out. "I just wanted honesty, even if it's painful."
Draco's heart ached against his chest, knowing every word of hers was true.
Meanwhile, the voices became louder as the two sisters walked back.
"Don't you worry about cleaning the place and taking care of Teddy simultaneously, Andi! No, listen! Astoria, go to the first floor and clear out the room! We want everything perfect and ready for little Teddy, don't we?" Narcissa said.
Andromeda looked hesitant and yet hopeful.
"NOW!" Narcissa's sweet voice carried a hint of threat.
Astoria's glare bore into Draco with fiery intensity as Narcissa's instructions hung in the air. She clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms as she fought to control the surge of anger and resentment bubbling inside her.
"I am not your bloody servant!" Astoria's voice, although hushed, carried a fierce determination. She and Draco silently climbed the stairs.
Once inside the dimly lit room that once witnessed the love and joy expressed by Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks, Astoria's sobs became audible.
"This is your precious family, isn't it?" she cried out, her voice laced with a mix of sorrow and anger as she threw a heavy book at Draco. "Taking everything away from everyone, leaving behind a legacy of pain and despair."
The heavy book thumped Draco's chest hard. Rubbing his chest, Draco's eyes flashed irritably. "Don't take it out on me," he snapped, his patience wearing thin.
She picked up the next book, which turned out to be The Marauders' photo album. It contained photos of the four Marauders long before one rat betrayed the other, got the other framed, and doomed the third to a miserable life.
She pointed at Lupin, "Professor Lupin! My Defense Against The Dark Arts Professor during my first year at Hogwarts! Look at him, Malfoy! He died because of your pathetic goons!"
"I did NOT kill Lupin!" Draco said in shock. "He died in the Battle of Hogwarts!"
"And who orchestrated it?" Astoria flung the book at Draco, who swiftly caught it and placed it away. Somewhere in the afterlife, three souls heaved a sigh of relief that the album did not get torn or ripped apart.
"Who caused the Wizarding Wars?!" Astoria raged.
"I did not!" Draco shouted, even as Astoria boiled with indignation and fury. Within a few minutes, Lupin's novels, once neatly stacked, were now strewn around like fallen soldiers. As Astoria kept hurling Lupin's beloved novels, her foot caught on a stray pencil, sending her tumbling forward. Before she could hit the ground, Draco's reflexes kicked in, and he caught her in his arms. Their eyes met for a fleeting moment, both their faces reddening with embarrassment.
They quickly pulled away from each other, pretending nothing had happened. Astoria cleared her throat, her eyes still streaming even as she quickly ran out of the house, while Draco dried the remnants of her tears from his chest with his wand.
Astoria ran until she was out of breath.
"Curse my life!" She pulled a branch and flung it away. A group of friends were walking towards her at a distance, engrossed in friendly banter.
"Why can't I have that freedom? Why am I trapped in this loveless marriage, bound by duty and not by choice?" Astoria lamented with longing. She wasn't the only one cursing, though.
Draco furiously kicked at a stone, hurting his own foot in the process. His curses grew louder and a couple at a distance gave him scandalous looks. Draco's eyes darkened with a tinge of envy as the couple hurried away.
"Look at them, so blissfully in love. They have no idea how lucky they are, being able to choose their partners freely." His fists clenched involuntarily.
As he walked towards a park, he saw the petite form of a familiar brunette sitting on one of the benches. He entered the park, feeling a mix of irritation and understanding. He was in the same situation as her. The benches were all small and identical. Her shoulders trembled. She sat on one end of the bench, her head bent. Draco quietly sat on the other end, looking ahead. His frame was massive compared to her petite frame.
"What happened to your parents?" Draco asked, looking up at the clouds.
Astoria's voice shivered, "Oh, finally you decided to honour me with your words!"
"You knew I was here the whole time?" Draco turned towards her.
Astoria lifted her head, "We are both Slytherins, Malfoy. I don't think you need to be told how Slytherins are known to possess cunning and alertness."
"True that!" Draco said, meeting her brown eyes for the first time since their wedding.
"So, why are you here? Did your mother send you to admonish me?" Astoria said, trying to avert her gaze from his grey eyes.
Draco scooted closer to her with a shake of his head, "Take your time. As a matter of fact, I too want some time away from... all of this. Coming back to my question...?"
"They-they have been suffering from dragon pox. It's their final stage now." Astoria said.
Draco put his arms up in the air and rested them on the top of the bench.
"I am exhausted, Malfoy. I don't think I can do all this! Just this morning your mother and my parents spoke to me. My-my parents are convinced that they won't survive for long!" Astoria's voice choked. "And your father, it seems, has your mother trailing after me!"
Her head had begun to droop, her eyelids red-rimmed and heavy. Despite all her resistance, she leaned into Draco's shoulder. Draco wrapped his arm around her securely.
"What did they tell you?" Draco asked as Astoria sniffled into his sturdy chest.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting a warm, orange glow across the park, Astoria found comfort in Draco's steady heartbeat while Draco mulled over Astoria's words.
"They told me the same thing," Draco said after a while, his voice low and contemplative. "They relentlessly treat me like a vessel to carry on the family legacy. Love, choice… those things don't matter to them. It's all about duty, obligation, and tradition."
"Being trapped in this cage they call duty. We have no say in our own lives. It's suffocating!" Astoria's voice was muffled.
"I still leave it to you, Astoria. I won't force you." Draco said, causing Astoria to look up at him and search for something in his eyes.
"You-you surely don't mean it?" She asked in disbelief.
Draco shook his head. "It's a choice both of us should make."
Astoria fumbled with his shirt, "Do you-Have you thought about it?"
Draco shrugged, "Maybe, but you still have your N.E.W.T.S. coming up. Your focus should be on that. Even during the Vold-Voldemort war, I was doing my N.E.W.T.S., you know. Those are important."
Astoria looked at him in a new light all of a sudden. Her gaze made him blush and he stood up, stretching, "We should go, Astoria."
Astoria got up and pressed her face into his chest, her sniffles muffled, "Thanks, Mal-Draco!"
Surprised, Draco wrapped his arms around her, "Okay, Green-Astoria!"
Astoria chuckled into his chest, "I never thought I would love hearing you spell out my name!"
The couple broke apart slowly. Draco's eyes studied Astoria's small frame carefully. She fit so perfectly against him - her head in his chest. Her brisk, brown hair fell like curtains over her face; her chocolate-brown eyes seemed to contemplate something; the faint freckles adorning her cheeks; and the way her eyelashes cast shadows on her skin. The softness of her lips, the rise and fall of her chest, and the subtle scent of her perfume suddenly awoke something in him. He looked visibly flustered.
For her part, Astoria wasn't idle. She intently studied Draco's blonde hair, neatly combed in a pureblood fashion. His cold-grey eyes now had a slight change in demeanour - as if the ice was melting away. His arms and shoulders were wide, possibly from countless Quidditch practices. His chest was massive and sturdy, a place where Astoria found warmth and acceptance. It was her turn to blush pink.
"Let's go?" Draco extended his right arm. Astoria wound her left arm around it and leaned into his shoulder as they slowly walked. The couple from earlier was returning and Draco apologetically looked at them for his earlier outburst.
Astoria and Draco found themselves at Hogwarts a few weeks later. The First Anniversary of The Battle of Hogwarts was finally upon them. Despite the gloom, it was an elegant affair. The couple, as was standard pureblood practice, arrived 30 minutes before the entire ceremony ended. It was all pureblood grooming - arrive at a certain time, walk a certain way, carry that mask of indifference and lack of emotion, look down upon others as if mere cockroaches, enjoy all the services shamelessly, and return like a conquering emperor.
While Draco stared without emotion, Astoria wept silently.
"Why do you care about them?" Draco asked.
"So many... so many lives cut short. Besides, this event is not just about our families but about everyone who lost someone that day." Astoria sniffled.
"I don't see the point. People gather, shed a few tears, and then go back to their lives as if nothing has changed. What have they achieved?" Draco asked.
"It's not just about achieving something tangible, Draco. It's about honour, sacrifice, unity, and love...!" Astoria answered.
Draco raised an eyebrow, "Love? In a world filled with prejudice and hatred?"
Astoria firmly said, "Love exists, Draco."
While Draco would've normally argued, he intently studied Astoria instead. At that moment, she turned to him and their eyes met. Eyes widening, Draco suddenly looked away and swallowed hard. Astoria's cheeks reddened and she cleared her throat rather loudly. Draco made to put his arm around her but hesitated with a blush.
Thankfully, none other than the Boy-Who-Lived came as a distraction. Behind him, a young man with prominent blonde hair just like Draco's, followed.
"And this is Draco Malfoy!" Harry said.
"I have heard so much about you!" The man extended a large pink hand.
Draco hesitated. "You are a muggle, aren't you?"
"DRACO!" Astoria furiously muttered. "Sorry about him, and yes, pleased to meet you!" She pleasantly shook hands with the man.
"Okay, Big D. We should go." Harry dragged his cousin away even as he introduced himself, "Dudley Dursley! Nice to meet you...?"
"Astoria Green - I mean, Malfoy!" Astoria pleasantly said. "Draco here is also pleased to meet you, Mr Dursley!"
Dudley Dursley happily nodded, "I promise not to see your kind as freaks. I am sorry I was brought up that way."
"Big D, you're still so naive!" Harry's voice carried a tiny amount of frustration. "Malfoy doesn't like you."
"You heard Potter?" Astoria rounded off at Draco. "He tells his muggle cousin that you don't like him! That you don't like muggles! After all the Voldemort wars, you still haven't changed, have you?"
"You mistake me. I was - I was taken by surprise." Draco defended.
Astoria's eyes welled up, "I - I thought we had a chance, Draco Malfoy! For a brief moment, I believed you would change! But you proved that you don't give up old prejudices!"
"I promise I will change, Astoria. Please give me time!" Draco implored.
Astoria buried her face in her hands, "H-How much time, Draco? After a third Wizarding War? After more people have lost loved ones, like them?" She pointed towards the Weasleys. Ronald Weasley was talking to Dudley Dursley now. He seemed to be explaining aeroplanes to Ron, who seemed to be listening intently. A pang shot through Draco, as he remembered Fred Weasley.
"Your own aunt, Mrs. Tonks, has lost her daughter in this war, Draco. We lost Professor Lupin in this war! Teddy Lupin has to spend his life as an orphan because of this war and pureblood politics! We held him in our arms not so long ago! What if anything happens to him, Draco?"
The thought of the baby growing into a young, rebellious teenager, and dying in a similar war flashed in Draco's mind. Teddy looked as serene and in peace as his father in death, and Draco gave an involuntary shiver.
Astoria now stood away from him.
"Astoria, please." Even as Draco reached out an arm, a sudden hand grabbed Astoria and covered her mouth. The figure made its way straight into the castle.
"ASTORIA!" Draco bellowed, making everybody in the vicinity jump.
Astoria's desperate cries echoed through the empty halls of Hogwarts, reaching Draco's ears like a haunting melody. Without a second thought, he sprinted towards the source of her wails, his heart pounding with fear.
"ASTORIA!" Draco's voice cut through the tension, filled with raw panic and determination. He charged after the death-eater who had abducted her. He didn't register a familiar voice he had once hated bark orders, "You! Go there! And you - grab that broomstick and corner him from there! And you - alert the Auror Office!"
Draco did not realize he had followed the death-eater all the way down to the Chamber of Secrets. Astoria sobbed uncontrollably, her pleas for help mingling with the eerie echoes of the ancient chamber. The death eater, driven by malevolence, fired a spell at her, hitting her belly. Astoria clutched her stomach in agony, her cries now laced with pain and terror.
Draco arrived just then and cornered him. "LEAVE HER ALONE!"
In answer, the death-eater fired curses at him, and he swiftly shot them back at him.
"You are a traitor to the Dark Lord's cause! You marry a girl from the neutral side of the war and you dare change allegiances! You're such a contrast to your aunt! It's a pity that Bellatrix Lestrange is dead!" The death eater bellowed.
This distracted Draco and now he couldn't find Astoria anywhere. Panic washed over him as he scanned the chamber, his heart dropping to his stomach. He didn't realize why but his heart ached for her, yearned for her safety, and he felt a borderline desperation to protect her. But more masked figures came out of nowhere, duelling fiercely. They laughed maliciously at Draco.
"Astoria - Astoria!" Draco said, his eyes welling up.
"Later, Malfoy! She's safe at Hogwarts now!" Harry Potter's firm voice cut through the tension. Draco turned to see Harry, his expression a mix of relief and sorrow.
"Potter?"
"Later, Malfoy!" It was Ron Weasley this time.
As Aurors Potter and Weasley swiftly subdued the remaining death eaters, Draco's anger boiled over. He kicked the fallen figures, his rage palpable. "Bastards! How am I going to face Astoria now?" His voice trembled with anguish, his grief-stricken eyes searching for answers.
As the captured death eaters were led away to Azkaban, Ron and Harry patted his shoulder.
"She is fine." "Hermione and Ginny are with her in the Hospital Wing."
"This muggle gadget comes in handy whenever we need parseltongue too!" Ron admired a device in Harry's hand.
"Uh, yeah, I recorded it sometime in our sixth year or something," Harry said. "But it's come in handy now! I have another copy of this which I had given to Ginny!"
"But the lapse in the school's security! How to explain that? Who do we suspect?" Ron asked.
Harry shook his head, "You and I will figure this out, Ron. Neville is an expert in finding subtle clues. He will definitely help!"
But Draco wasn't listening. His heart sank and his shoulders slumped.
Hospital Wing
Madam Pomfrey stood in the hospital wing, her face etched with concern as she examined Astoria. "I'm afraid it's a miscarriage," she said gently, her voice filled with empathy.
Astoria's hand moved to her mouth. Eyes streaming, she managed to blurt out, "I was pregnant?"
Hermione and Ginny exchanged surprised glances. "You didn't know?" Ginny asked, incredulously.
Astoria shook her head, her voice breaking, "No, I didn't. I didn't even realize..." Her voice trailed off, and she dissolved into tears.
With a pitiful glance, Madame Pomfrey left the girls alone, having to get some work done in her office.
Hermione placed a comforting hand on Astoria's shoulder. "Greengrass, how could you not know? Were you not... intimate with anyone?" she asked cautiously.
Astoria hesitated before finally confessing, "I was forced into a marriage with Draco Malfoy. It was discreet, our parents insisted on it. The Malfoys wanted grandkids, and my parents are dying, so..." She trailed off, her words heavy with the weight of the truth.
Ginny's eyes widened in shock. "You were forced into a marriage?" she exclaimed, her disbelief palpable. "And you didn't even know you were pregnant until now?"
Astoria nodded, her tears falling freely. "Yes, they wanted us to have children immediately."
Hermione's brows furrowed incredulously, "How could they?!"
Draco led the way in just then, his face etched with a mix of concern and disbelief. Harry and Ron followed closely behind, their expressions sceptical yet curious.
"You can't be serious, Malfoy. Forced marriage?" Ron said incredulously.
Draco's jaw clenched as he nodded solemnly. "I wish it weren't true, Weasley. But it is!" he explained, his voice carrying the weight of the truth.
Harry glanced at Hermione and Ginny, seeking confirmation. Their expressions told a story of shock and sorrow. "Is this for real?" Harry asked, his voice low with disbelief. A nod from the two girls cemented everything.
"Greengrass just found out about her pregnancy, and the circumstances... they're unimaginable," Hermione said.
Ginny added, her voice a mix of anger and empathy, "Both the Greengrasses and the Malfoys forced this upon her and Malfoy."
Astoria's sobs were now muffled, and the four friends turned towards her bed to see Astoria's head sinking into Draco's chest, her delicate form trembling against his huge frame. Draco sat on her bed and rubbed her back, his face betraying loss and sorrow.
"Malfoy told us that he knew the curse was fatal to the baby. We didn't realize at first, but given the circumstances now...!" Ron said.
"We will investigate everything, Ron! We will make sure those death eaters don't go unpunished!" Harry said firmly.
Ron turned to his best friend mirroring his determination, "We will, Harry! Those monsters will pay heavily for this! Draco Malfoy might have been our rival at school, but not even he would deserve such a thing!"
"Justice must be served!" Hermione said.
"The sooner, the better. Justice delayed is justice denied!" Ginny added, amidst Astoria's cries.