the blood curse: a drastoria fanfiction

demands

"'The truth.' Dumbledore sighed. 'It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution.'"
                                             - harry potter and the philosopher's stone 

Draco stopped Astoria again the next day, this time in the hallway between classes. "You saved me," he said triumphantly. "At the ball. You pushed me out of the way instead of saving yourself." She rolled her eyes and tried to push past him. "So you must like me." 

"Well, I don't want you to die just because I despise you," she said reasonably, the venom barely concealed under her voice. 

"But you don't. You don't despise me, that is." 

She rolled her eyes again. "We've been through this, Malfoy."

"You like me." 

"I think if I roll my eyes any more than I already have, they'll get stuck in that position." 

"What do I have to do?" he blurted out, immediately embarrassed by his desperate tone. "What do I have to do?" he repeated, looking away from Astoria's grinning face. 

She thought a little, relishing Draco's sudden weakness. "Well, you can start by dumping Pansy. Stop trying to make me jealous, it isn't working. In fact, don't hook up with or date anyone at all." 

Already, Draco's face had grown paler (something Astoria didn't think was possible). She continued, "You'll also treat all Muggleborns with respect. If I hear the word 'mudblood' escape your lips one more time, I'll never talk to you again." 

Draco's face was the color of fresh paper. 

"Lastly, tell me why you cheated." Astoria was embarrassed to admit that she really wanted to know. 

The boy looked around the now-empty corridor, making sure no one could overhear them. "I was scared," he said quietly. "Everything was too good to be true, and I knew it wouldn't last. If I burst the bubble then rather than when it would inevitably be burst later-" 

"You're pathetic," Astoria spat. "Learn to accept that you don't have a set amount of happiness to be given. And follow the rules. Maybe I'll actually like you again." 

She walked off to Charms, feeling way too happy for her own good.  

°

Weeks passed. Draco appeared to be sticking to his promise.

°

"Hey," Daphne said, sitting across from where Astoria was silently brooding in the dining hall, "I wanted to talk to you about Draco." 

"Why?" Astoria asked, suddenly annoyed. 

"He was talking to Granger today," her sister said, nose wrinkled. "Didn't look happy about it, mind you, but he was." 

"Good for him. What does this have to do with me, again?"

"When I asked him why he was talking to her, he said he was doing it for you." 

The younger girl rolled her eyes. 

"I think he really likes you, Astoria," Daphne said quietly. 

"But he's a git and he cheated on me," Astoria pointed out. "Not that the two are related." 

Her sister sighed and ran a hand through her blonde hair. "I'm not saying you should date him or anything, I'm just saying that maybe you should try and -"

"Forgive?" 

"Yes," Daphne said. 

"No," Astoria countered. "If he changes, then yes. But not otherwise." Looking over her shoulder to make sure no one had eavesdropped on their conversation, she left the hall, her hair - once black, straight, and shoulder-length, now white streaked, long, and wavy - flying behind her.

°

The class of 1999 graduated a day later. Astoria looked stunning in a black dress with silver accents. Her hair was down, and her eyes very clearly said, don't cross me. The fainting was getting worse, but she wouldn't tell anyone that.

Or the fact that she'd started going to St. Mungo's twice a week. 

Draco attended the party after the graduation with no one, nor did he accept offers to dance or walk outside with any girl. He just watched Astoria. 

°

"Astoria, I've followed your rules. I've become a good person. Can you please just forgive -"

The girl snorted, not even bothering to look back at Draco's figure in the doorway to the girl's dormitories. "Good person? Please. I saw you hexing a Gryffindor first year the other day." 

"You never said anything about hexing Gryffindors on your list -"

"It was implied, Draco. Now, I need to pack. Leave me alone." 

"But we're leaving tomorrow, and you still haven't forgiven me! And if you don't now, we'll probably never see each other again, and I'll never have another chance..." 

Astoria looked at him, her eyes alight. "Then I guess we'll just never see each other."