Kissing Frogs

Presage

Hermione ate her palacinky quietly as she walked across Charles Bridge, looking all around her. The beauty of the city was beyond what even she imagined. London had history of course, but Prague was a city lost in time. She observed all the artists that lined the sides of the bridge, there were portraits, caricatures, landscape, and even just plain pictures.

Nothing seemed out of the extraordinary except that a man a few feet ahead of her was trying to buy a large landscape painting of the Charles bridge entrance to the fortified city. The artist it seemed was old and getting blind. He wanted to talk about his art while he counted the money from the purse the man had given him with both his feeble eyes and hands to be sure. "I was a young boy when the Nazis came.. They take everything. Arts, supplies, food, it was a difficult time. But they don't take beauty of Prague." He continued. "Hmmm," He voiced as he had somehow found the sole galleon within the pouch of Kuronas.

"That's, that's just a lucky charm of mine." The man trying to purchase the art said in an almost panic, but trying to keep an illusion of calm.

"What strange language." The artist said as his hands ran over the Galleon. "The image is beautiful." He said. It seemed that the artist was seeing the coin with his fingers.

Hermione stopped as she realized that the coin was indeed a galleon, a wizard it galleon. Hermione took a closer look at the stranger, curiosity getting to her. Dark hair rested above a dark black long wool trench coat. Hermione shook her head as she realized that what she had wanted to do was remain anonymous this trip. And with that, she continued on but not without a look back. As she looked back, it seemed the stranger looked at her. Hermione did not recognize him at all, but his eyes had widened almost in shock, like as if he did know her. Just as quickly as he had glanced up, he looked away, his focus once more on the painter.

!~!

The next morning, Hermione breathed a sigh of relief to be back at her quaint apartment. Well it wasn't quaint by most standards. It was a two story home, three bedrooms. However Hermione had converted one of the bedrooms into he childhood dream library and study. Sequoia cherry wood bookshelves lined three of the four walls from floor to ceiling. A fireplace was snuggled on one of the walls, three inches away from the wood bookshelves as two gryffindor marble statues stood guard on both sides. A rolling ladder of the same wood rested between the Charms and Sciences shelves. A roman styled chaise with scarlet plush sat in front of the fireplace. A half round lounge bench with third throw pillows trimmed in gold had been placed in front of the bay windows so one could read in the day as natural light filtered in. Opposite the bay windows, above the fireplace was a large portrait of Winston Churchill, former Prime Minster of England. His half smile if one could even call it that paired with his eyes that seemed to always look in the distance.

Hermione had been researching for a while now, how exactly wizarding portraits worked, how personalities were ingrained in the portraits so that even those that had passed on long before, were able to give their wisdom to those in the present. And Winston Churchill's portrait stirred her on, giving her something to do while in her stasis.

"Even if you were here Mr. Churchill, I doubt you would have an answer for me." Hermione murmured as she passed the room, pausing briefly. She doubted romance was one of the topics Winston Churchill's portrait was able to give her advice on. But who knew, because she certainly did not. He was not known as the great orator for nothing.

!~!

Blaise Zabini had waited all night for a reply from Draco. Even upon waking up he had expected something, an owl at the very least. Yet nothing had arrived.

"That blasted bloke, I do this and that for him, and he does not even have the decency to even say thanks." Blaise muttered as he rolled up his sleeves. With a pop he left his home to enter his so called childhood friend's.

!~!

"Draco?" Astoria Greengrass asked as she realized that her breakfast companion was no longer paying any attention to their conversation. "Is everything okay?"

Hearing his name, Draco refocused his gaze on Astoria. "I'm sorry."

"No its, it's quite alright." She said looking down at her lap as she wrung her silk napkin between her hands. "I just wanted to say thank you for asking me to breakfast. It was a surprise but a very pleasant surprise." Astoria said, smiling prettily, her pale pink lips forming a small smile.

"Am I interrupting something?" Blaise asked.

Both occupants looked up, not having even heard anyone enter.

"Blaise!" Astoria said shocked.

"I'll go grab some breakfast while you two finish up your... date." Blaise finished half-heartedly, already walking in the direction of the kitchen.

Draco and Astoria watched as he disappeared.

"Perhaps I should go..." Astoria said hesitantly.

"Perhaps," Draco answered with a sigh, already knowing why Blaise was there.

"Oh," She stood up. "Thank you again for breakfast."

"Let me walk you to your carriage."

"Yes, thank you." Astoria gave a graceful nod in thanks.

"You do know she wanted you to ask her to stay and make me leave." Blaise said, mid bite, as Draco entered the kitchen.

"What do you mean?"

Blaise held up one finger as he chewed and swallowed his bite of belgian waffle. Draco looked at him in disbelief before rolling his eyes. "Did you not actually hear the way she said perhaps?" Blaise asked.

Draco sighed. No he had not.

"Well, you're hopeless." Blaise simply stated.

"And if your mother was here she would say you were being quite ill mannered."

Blaise shrugged. "I'll give you that."

"You know you could be nicer and more welcoming to Astoria Greengrass. She is a sibling of one of our friends. Well I don't know if Daphne would call you a friend anymore with your manners around her and her sister."

"Now that I blame you."

Draco looked at him sharply.

"You know I do not approve of you courting both the Greengrass sisters at the same time." Blaise said with a grimace. "And the fact that the sisters themselves don't think that is disturbing in of itself, has quite dampened my thoughts about them." Blaise explained with a look of utter revulsion. "I'm not quite impressed with you either, but you're a special case. And you're my best friend. Thus I will do what I can to prevent you from sealing your fate like my parents."