Ethereal Catastrophe | Tom Riddle

chapter nine

"Asteria darling, you must come to try this dress on! It was my grandmothers, it would look especially lovely against your complexion!" Irma Black called from the other room as Walburga and Asteria were getting ready for one of the many high society galas they were to attend in the summer leading up to Asterias first year at Hogwarts.

However, this one, in particular, was seen to be much more important in a young pureblood wizard or witches lifetime.

This was the time where they would mingle around looking for a possible suitor to be betrothed to. The most elite witches and wizards in the wizarding world would come together to keep their bloodline pure- to be let in was a birthright. This time it was held at Malfoy Manor but each year, each pureblood family took a turn to hold it.

"I remember when I was this thin," Irma sighed as she laced the dress onto Asteria. Walburga walked into the room as her mother continued, "I wore this dress when I got engaged to Pollux, as did my mother with my father and as did my grandmother with my grandfather. And now you Asteria, although I know you've already got that understanding with the Malfoys. Perhaps you might have your eyes turned to my Alphard or Cygnus, hm?" She snickered as she smoothed the golden fabric on the dress.

"Abraxas and I are quite happy, Mrs Black. Although nothing is official, so you never know," Asteria laughed as she turned to face Irma. Walburga looked at the way her mother was gazing at Asteria, like a proud parent smiling just because they love their child so much. Walburga had only ever seen that look when her mother was looking at Asteria.

"You are quite perfect together," Irma sighed. "I remember when Pollux looked at me the way that Abraxas does to you. You can tell that he's head over heels for you, I can't imagine him or you with anyone else."

"I thought you were giving that dress to me to wear?" Walburga asked, an ache of envious dysphoria rooting within her chest as she gazed at her mother and Asteria. Its branches twisting around her body, piercing through her skin, suffocating her with its wrath.

"Walburga darling, you are far too large to fit into this dress. You'd break the seams!" Irma said as she pinned Asterias hair in place, smoothing the curled strands as if she was delicately constructing a piece of artwork.

The branches pierced through her gut, stinging her cells with its poisonous ivy as she moved her gaze to the mirror. She analysed how her undergarments hung on her body, the silk draping off her hips as they got wider and wider. How the fabric clung to her bust so tight you could see the threads pulling at each other, getting tighter with each breath. The longer she looked at herself the bigger she got, her arms would swell at her gaze, her stomach would bloat at her mother's words, her thighs would grow like a balloon as she compared them to Asterias.

The mesh fabric flowed over Asteria's slim physique, the signature golden flecks of sparkle within the beige brought out her honey-coloured eyes. From the top of her head to the tips of her toes, she was everything Walburga wanted to be. 

Her tall figure was almost like a praying mantis, her protruding collarbones accentuating her chest giving the illusion of a smaller waist, not that there was much illusion. Where her dress cut off mid-thigh to show off the shimmer of gold within her perfectly crafted legs, invented by Aphrodite herself.

Why can't I look like that?  Walburga thought as she looked back into the mirror. She caressed her stomach, feeling how it was doughier than Asteria's. She felt around her arms clutching the unwanted fat around them and then at her cheeks, and chest, and hips, and jaw, and legs, and everywhere. Whenever Walburga was next to Asteria, all she wanted to do was shrivel up into a corner for no one to see how she looked.

"Oh, Mrs Black, Walburga would look absolutely stunning in this dress! Far better than I do," Asteria started as she tried to untie the dress. "Walburga, try it on please!"