⋆.ೃ࿔*:･ (ii. the snakes bite)
↳ in which he gets bitten for the second time
'SCREW STITCHES ON YOUR HEART,
THE MORE IT BURNS THE LESS IT SCARS'
British Ministry of Magic, Level 5:
Office of International Magic of Law
━━━━ August 19th, 2000
Asteria sat in her office ━ the office of International Magic of Law ━ on Level 5 of the Ministry, just down the hall from the Department of International Magical Cooperation head office.
The room itself was decent in size, featuring a solid oak desk in the middle of the room which Asteria had Transfigured herself on her first day ━ the tiny, worn-down desk that had been there before having seen brighter days.
Two large, black filing cabinets stood in either corner of the room; each with an Undetectable Extension Charm cast on them in order to contain the centuries upon centuries of laws, edicts, and regulations that were passed by the Wizarding government. Of which, Asteria was tasked to organise, revise and pass on to Percy Weasley for further amendments.
To say Asteria had been surprised on her first day of work to find that not only would she be working, essentially, for Percy Weasley but that he had been the one to request her for the job, was a severe understatement.
She had sent in her resume to numerous Departments within the Ministry ━ all of which she was more than qualified for given her outstanding NEWT results, and all of which she had been denied further progression to on account of her name and family heritage.
Percy Weasley was the first to give her a chance - whether it be out of the debt he thought his family owed her for saving his brother's life, or because he understood how it felt to be looked down on, Asteria wasn't sure. But she was unbelievably grateful.
She had worked in the Department for a little over a year now, and whilst herself and Percy were nothing more than work colleagues, they did share a common ground. They had both briefly been on the wrong side of the War, and knew how it felt to be subject to harsh and criticising opinions (whether they were justified or not).
Though Percy's experience wasn't nearly as harrowing as Asteria's had been, he wasn't a stranger to being judged unfairly and watched with a cautious eye. He could somewhat relate to her which offered him a position to be able to understand her. Something most others in the Wizarding World had overlooked.
In between filing away new regulations and supervisions on matters of magical secrecy and security, Asteria had spent the last couple of weeks making a list of those banned from International Travel and Apparition upon request of Gawain Robards - Head of the Auror Office.
Most names that appeared on the list were those of ex-Death Eaters, which was relatively unsurprising to Asteria. Whether the ban was justifiable or not was another matter entirely; Asteria didn't doubt most were under surveillance based upon the notion of their familial heritage and not a result of a criminal offence.
"Good morning, Asteria. Pleasant day today, isn't it?"
Asteria turned her focus from the growing list up toward the figure in her doorway and smiled. The tall, lanky redhead offered her one back as he walked into the office, taking a seat on the other side of Asteria's desk - though he took extra care not to wrinkle his sharply ironed suit.
"Good morning, Percival. How's Penelope?" Asteria asked the sophisticated looking man with a teasing smirk. Percy had dated Penelope Clearwater briefly during his sixth and seventh year at Hogwarts, however their relationship quickly fell apart once Percy got swept up within the Ministry's corruption.
After the War had ended, the third eldest Weasley child set about rebuilding the relationships he'd previously left to burn - changing his ways and apologising whole-heartedly for his previous mistakes. He had made great effort to reconcile with his family who had been wary to accept him at first (none more so than Fred and George), and was considerably happier than he had ever been before.
His luck, it seemed, was beginning to change and fate was finally on his side. Or at least, that's what he told himself the morning Penelope Clearwater had fallen (literally) into his life again a couple of weeks ago. He had yet to shut up about it to anyone willing - or rather, unwilling - to listen to him.
"My personal life isn't something you should be invested in, Asteria," Percy responded with a clipped tone as he nodded with a pointed expression toward the files lining her desk. "The new Apparition laws are."
Asteria rolled her eyes at her boss - a virtue only she had been awarded, "please, Perseus. Have a day off." Percy grumbled under his breath, as Asteria continued to smirk at him - a look of pure amusement and torment swimming in her eyes. "Have you taken her to the Royal Oak Tavern yet?"
The Royal Oak Tavern was a cute little Muggle pub that had recently opened in Trafalgar Square. Evan had taken her a couple of weeks ago and Asteria had not hesitated to tell Percy about it; insisting it would be the perfect destination for his and Penelope's first date.
"That isn't my name," Percy stated with a firm tone, only causing Asteria's grin to widen. "And no, I haven't," the redhead admitted with a heavy sigh, his cheeks tinted red with obvious embarrassment. "I can't seem to find the right words."
Asteria smirked tormentingly, raising a brow at the wizard in a challenging manner. "Seems that reckless Gryffindor bravery isn't all it's cracked up to be, huh?" Percy rolled his eyes, crossing his hands over his legs as he changed the direction of the conversation.
"I take it you've heard about the International Quidditch Tournament." Asteria nodded her head; she had to have been either deaf or completely ignorant to not have given it had been the talk of the Ministry for the last 4 months.
After the defeat of the Dark Lord, the six Wizarding nations that formed the Wizarding Commonwealth (Britain, Ireland, Bulgaria, France, USA and Egypt) had proposed the idea of an International Quidditch Tournament to strengthen the relationship between them and commemorate their union.
In essence, it was an embodiment of the Quidditch World Cup - however, less competitive and played by non-professional players. Instead, teams were made up of regular wizards and witches who were employed by their nations Ministry.
"Personally I think it's all rather idiotic, but the Minister has asked me to put forward names from the Department - as I recall, you were a rather gifted Chaser." Percy leant forward slightly, raising a sharp brow at Asteria curiously.
The witch looked as unconcerned by the insinuation as Percy felt about the whole Tournament on a whole. It was true, Asteria was a rather renowned Chaser - having won Slytherin House the Quidditch Cup single-handedly since she joined the team in her second year, but she had no interest in playing for the Ministry.
Though the thought of Percy Weasley ever attending a Quidditch game at Hogwarts did amuse her greatly. "And you think it wise for the Ministry to elect an ex-Death Eater?" Asteria questioned with a bored tone as she raised a brow at the Wizard.
Percy visibly faltered - shifting awkwardly in his chair at her blunt words causing Asteria to smirk. The witch had always found great amusement in making others feel uncomfortable. "The Minister doesn't wish to discriminate," Percy stated through an awkward cough.
Asteria stared at him blankly for a moment - her expression completely void of emotion as she returned her attention to the files in front of her. "Tell the Minister I'm not interested."
"At least think about it," Percy interjected with a heavy sigh, looking at the witch almost desperately. Asteria rose a brow as she peered at the Wizard curiously over the Travel Ban list, "I thought you believed the Tournament to be 'idiotic'?"
"I do," Percy agreed with a nod of his head, "but having more members of my Department on the team will higher my chances at becoming the next Deputy Minister." Asteria chuckled lowly - no matter how much Percy Weasley had changed over the past year, his cunning ambition remained. It amazed Asteria the Wizard had not been sorted into Slytherin.
"Sorry, Percillius. I'm still not interested."
"That one's just ridiculous," Percy muttered with a roll of his eyes. It had become a running joke for Asteria to call the wizard everything other than his actual name; a joke that had both brought Asteria the greatest amusement and left Percy cursing his entire existence.
"I'll leave you to think about your decision," the redhead announced as he stood from his chair. "In the meantime, I need the reports on the new Travel and Apparition Laws as soon as possible, and Robards has requested for the Travel Ban list to be passed on to his office."
Asteria huffed in annoyance as Percy exited her office. She did not need more time to think on her decision - the answer was a firm no, and it was quite unlikely for it to change. The witch didn't want, nor need, the extra attention.
She didn't need more eyes watching and criticising everything she did - ready to condemn her and ship her off to Azkaban for the smallest of mistakes. She was rather content with sitting behind her desk, flying as low under the radar as she possibly could.
. . .
The Leaky Cauldron, Diagon Alley
━━━━ August 16th, 2000
The Leaky Cauldron was as packed as it usually was on a Friday night with crowds hauling in from either entrance of the old pub. The numerous candle-lit chandeliers created a homely atmosphere which was completely juxtaposed by the sound of cheery drunken yells and the clink of glasses.
The Leaky had become the rendezvous point for Asteria and the rest of her fellow Slytherin friends to meet up each Friday night after work - given the people that passed through were either too ignorant or too drunk to recognise and stir trouble with the former Death Eaters making it the perfect spot.
Plus, the Firewhiskey was cheaper there than it was in most pubs in Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley. "Shame Flint's been reported missing - the guy was a tosser but he was a bloody decent Keeper," Evan spoke before taking a hefty swig of his Firewhiskey - wincing only slightly as it burned the back of his throat.
Evan Rosier was a rather attractive Wizard - with his dark curls and green eyes that left most Witches, and even a few Wizards, breathless. He, Asteria and Daphne Greengrass (Asteria's cousin) had been in the same year at Hogwarts though they had been friends since they could talk given their families were all rather close.
As per every Friday night tradition, the trio were joined by Theo - Asteria's younger brother - Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy to discuss the latest gossip. Blaise Zabini and Luna Lovegood joined them on occasion when they weren't busy working, or more accurately, shagging.
Asteria raised a brow at Evan from across the table. "Flint too? Calliope hasn't shown up for her shifts at the cafe for the past week and nobody's heard from her," the brunette informed, her hand nursing her glass of Firewhiskey.
"Flint's the seventh ex-Death Eater to have been reported missing in the last three months," Daphne muttered in concern, her expression growing worried as she looked between each of her friends. "Are the Ministry not even slightly concerned?"
Pansy scoffed bitterly from across the table, visibly angry by the entire situation. As if being constantly looked down upon as a result of your family heritage wasn't bad enough, it was now becoming increasingly more dangerous to be a known ex-affiliate of the Dark Lord within Wizarding Britain.
Over the last three months, various ex-Death Eaters had been reported missing - however, as a result of no evidence of foul play or abduction, the Ministry had simply swept the situation under the carpet even though any were yet to be found.
Evan shrugged, "if they are they're not letting up about it."
"The Ministry won't do a damn thing," Draco cut in, his tone firm and viscous. "Kingsley's fairer than most, but the man's powerless in response to a collective voice of prejudice. We're ex- Death Eaters. The Ministry will view it as nothing more than a weight off their shoulders."
"Can't say we don't deserve it, either," Draco grumbled in his usual moody manner before downing the rest of his Firewhiskey. The rest of the company were silent, mulling over Draco's words with a shared dejectedness. His words, after all, hadn't exactly been a lie.
Whilst none of them were willing followers of the Dark Lord, they had all dabbled in a fair bit of evil. None of them were innocent - though that didn't mean to say they hadn't repented for their previous actions and reshaped their futures.
They certainly didn't deserve to be ignored by the Ministry or endangered by the Wizarding community.
Theo snorted, rolling his nearly empty glass of Firewhiskey in a circular motion atop the table. "Well, you're all fucking cheery - I take it none of you have gotten laid recently," the dark-haired Wizard spoke with an arrogant smirk.
Asteria scrunched her nose up. Whilst she was no stranger to her brother's crude behaviour - it certainly was no secret that Theodore Nott lacked a filter - that didn't mean to say she wasn't disgusted most times Theo opened his mouth.
Pansy scoffed as she turned her attention towards the drunken wizard, "you're a pig, you know that?" She and Theo had been involved in a very lengthy on and off again relationship since their fifth year at Hogwarts. Neither one possessed the ability to commit completely.
Theo smirked lazily as he leant closer towards Pansy, "I'll be whatever you want me to be, doll." Pansy visibly faltered under Theo's gaze, broadening the youngest Nott's smirk as he winked at her. Across the table, Evan chuckled heartily - his infectious laughter even bringing a small smile to Draco's face.
"I'm not nearly drunk enough to be able to block this out," Asteria grumbled under her breath, quickly downing the rest of hers and Daphne's drinks in the hope to burn the memory of watching her brother shamelessly flirt from her mind.
Placing the empty glasses back on the table, Asteria stood - making her way to the crowded bar to get another round in. "Same again, Asteria?" Hannah Abbott asked with a smile as she noticed the brunette approaching.
Asteria offered the kind witch a polite smile. "Better make it five this time or I doubt Theo will make it into work tomorrow." Hannah chuckled, nodding her head as she moved to make the brunette's drinks, just as a familiar redhead joined Asteria's side at the bar.
The Nott witch sighed under her breath - the mere presence of the Weasley twin enough to set her on edge. "Great, I left one revolting creature to find myself in the company of another."
Fred smirked arrogantly, not the slightest bit offended by her words or her tone as he leant against the bar. "A victim of the snake's bite twice in one week? Whatever did I do to deserve such a pleasure," the redhead responded sarcastically.
Asteria rolled her eyes, turning her attention away from Fred's infuriating smirk before she did something rash. The brunette ran her eyes over the interior of the pub - a small, malicious smirk curling at her lips as she spotted Angelina Johnson sat at a table in the corner of the room, her deadly glare locked straight on Asteria.
"Well, let's hope you don't grow too attached to my poison, Weasley," Asteria smirked wickedly as she turned back towards Fred, leaning towards him slightly just to piss Angelina off more. "Something tells me your girlfriend wouldn't like that very much."
Fred lifted his head a little, his gaze settling on the questioning expression of his girlfriend over Asteria's head. The redhead shot Angelina a small smile before turning his attention back to Asteria, "jealous, Nott?"
Asteria chuckled lowly; as if she'd just been told the funniest joke in the world, "hardly." Fred's grin did not falter, instead, his amusement seemed to grow upon the knowledge that he was successfully annoying the brunette. "She gawks at you as though you've just discovered the cure for Dragon Pox - it's rather quite pathetic."
A hint of guilt flashed in Fred's eyes as he registered Asteria's words - returning his gaze towards where Angelina was now chatting happily with his brother, Lee Jordan, and Alicia Spinnet. Though it was gone as quickly as it came - long before Asteria had noticed, at least.
"The snake's heart is made of stone? What an interesting development," Fred drawled sarcastically, nodding towards Hannah who began to pour him another two Butterbeers. Asteria scoffed bitterly at the redhead - whilst his words didn't affect her, her biggest pet peeve was being prematurely judged. Though she didn't hesitate to judge others.
"I'd rather go without a heart than be someone else's lapdog," the brunette spat venomously, her brow raised at Fred as she plainly judged him. Hannah, seemingly ignorant - or rather careless - to the growing tension, placed a tray filled with five glasses of Firewhiskey down in front of Asteria.
Fred smiled flatly, "loneliness is a hefty price to pay for spite," the redhead responded condescendingly as though he were teaching the witch an important life lesson. "Though, I'm sure with your affiliation to the darkness you're more qualified to handle it than most."
Asteria snarled, clenching her jaw as that same, familiar accusatory tone made an appearance once again. Nobody, it seemed, managed to infuriate Asteria quite like Fred Weasley. "You're an ignorant prick, Weasley."
"And you're a heartless bitch, Nott." Fred grinned as he picked up his two Butterbeers from the bar - a baby's drink according to her brother - "the sooner you make peace with it, the easier it'll be." The redhead offered her a tormenting wink as he brushed past her, making his way back to his table with a grin as though he hadn't just offended her.
Asteria stood fuming at the bar, watching as Fred was greeted fondly by his friends. As soon as the redhead had sat down, Angelina had scooted closer to him placing her hand on his leg as they both laughed at something George had said.
Turning her head, the brunette looked towards the table containing her own friends - the drastic change in atmosphere chilling her spine. Theo was no longer self-aware as a result of the many Firewhiskeys he'd consumed, relying on Pansy to care and fuss over him.
Beside him, Draco stared dimly at the table; his expression vacant as though his mind was elsewhere. Daphne and Evan weren't much better; both scanning the pub with eyes of paranoia to make sure they weren't being watched.
There was no trace of happiness among her group of friends. Not in the normal, usual sense at least. There was only fear, paranoia, and desperation to be free of cautious stares and devastating opinions.
In that moment, Asteria found herself cursing Fred Weasley's entire existence and then cursing herself for being jealous of how easy it was for him to find happiness when she could not.
. . .
SERENDIPITY | ROUGH WATERS
Talia Mar ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ jack