Always, Astoria

73. Shattered Glass

2004

Draco felt like a complete arse, to say the least. How else was he supposed to react to such news? So much had been revealed to him that the last three hours felt as if three years flew by.

After Astoria revealed she was pregnant with Draco's child she stormed out and fled. She probably went to Pansy's to sulk and discuss how Draco was a rubbish husband, or how he had no heart.

Maybe he did not have a heart anymore. Every time he turned around someone he loved was getting hurt, or someone was lying to him. So many lies had been told to his face that each one took its own pound of flesh from his bones.

Draco proceeded to pick off the shards of glass on the floor. He waved his wand to repair the damaged photograph, and it did not help his case that the photograph he decided to smash was the first picture they ever took together.

He wanted to drown out his sorrows with a bottle of fire whisky and cracklings of the fire. However, he could not bring himself to perform such actions that felt natural to him. Being lucid during these times is the best, and the only option for him.

Perhaps it would be best to lay out all the facts and try to mentally form a coherent feeling about each event.

Draco could not bear to think about the one thing that was weighing on his mind the most, the fact that Astoria was pregnant, and the Dark Lord demanded it to happen. No, it would be best to start from the beginning.

A few years prior Draco noticed Astoria's weakening condition. She would become more tired when they would go on excursions or take longer walks in town. When he finally confronted her about it, she disclosed to him that a Healer told her that she developed an Ancestral Blood Curse, one that was in the family of Maledictus' but dismay the permanent animal form. It was all fucking lies.

In reality, Lord Voldemort is on the cusp of dying and has been using Astoria as his pick-him-up life source. Like a ruddy vampire. Shamefully, Draco thought to himself that he would have preferred her to have a blood curse.

The next ordeal was about his unborn child. The Dark Lord ordered Astoria to become pregnant within a certain time frame, and she did it. Behind his back.

After Astoria stormed out of the house, this left no time for Draco to ask her more disheartening questions. For example, why she decided to get pregnant behind his back, and when the time comes, handover their child to a dying snake wizard. None of this made sense to him. How could his own wife betray him like this?

Should Draco have ran after her? Like he has countless times in the past? It appeared that when problems rose in their relationship all Astoria knew how to do was flee. A coward's way out, that what she was acting like, a damned coward. Scared to face the damage she caused, and the hearts she has broken by her feast of lies.

No, this time he was determined not to run after her. It killed him that even after all she has done to him, he still loved her. Maybe the universe was trying to tell Draco that his love for Astoria was too intoxicating.

Draco looked around his house, and all he saw were memories. Many of them happy, but more recently, saddening. He needed to leave, go somewhere to clear his head.

Draco grabbed his wand from his jacket pocket and walked outside so he could apparate to his desired destination.

Draco landed outside the Three Broomsticks and noticed in the window the moonlit glow of his platinum hair. He had forgotten to cast the identity charm over himself before he left. But he did not care anymore, let people recognize him. He will hex anyone who comes his way. All he wanted in this moment was to be alone—