Work Text:
The day after Blaise was bitten by a vampire was the day Daphne knew life had changed for the… Well, worse wasn’t quite the right word, but life would be more terrifying. Not because of his new fangs or sudden cravings for blood.
No.
Life was going to be more trying; it would challenge Daphne’s patience with the man.
Because she knew he would complain endlessly about being unable to eat garlic.
It started three weeks after he was turned and if Daphne were being honest, she was surprised - and secretly proud - that he’d lasted as long as he did. Then again, she was also severely disappointed in herself because she was the reason the problem was even noticed.
When Astoria invited her sister and fiance over to the Manor for dinner, she’d asked Daphne what food she and Blaise would like. Instinctively, she answered with, “Oh, your spaghetti with bolognese sauce, Tori, please. And not Kippy’s version though it’s not bad. Your version.” The younger Greengrass sister laughed and promised to do it herself.
Which is how Daphne and Blaise walked into the informal dining room of the Manor where Draco was setting down a giant serving platter of pasta. Daphne walked up to her brother-in-law, kissed him hello on the cheek, and breathed in deeply. “Merlin, it smells delicious in here. Doesn’t it, Blaise? Blaise?”
The man was frozen in the doorway, eyes wide and darting around the room until his gaze zeroed in on the food. Slowly, he made his way to the table, not looking away from the serving plate. When Draco tried to say Hello , Blaise held a hand up to stop him from talking. As soon as he reached the table, he breathed in deeply, and to the shock of the other three - Astoria had walked in with a plate of bread - Blaise wept.
“Oh gods, are you okay, Blaise?” Astoria was the first to ask, setting down her plate and moving toward him. She yelped when he snarled at her. “What in the world?”
“The garlic ,” he cried out.
“The - Oh, shit,” Draco said under his breath.
Because despite knowing Blaise was now a vampire, most of their group tended to forget about it since he was still so normal . He still ate regular food and drank with them; he just needed to refuel with blood every now and again and thanks to Granger and her ultimate need to help all creatures - ahem , beings - blood was donated to curb accidental killings in England.
“Get it out, get it out,” Daphne cried. She took her wand out and began casting cleansing spells and air refreshing charms.
Draco, for his part, kept his cool while the sisters moved frantically. He approached Blaise cautiously. “What do you need?”
Blaise looked up with bloodshot eyes and a pained expression. “It burns,” he said somewhat pitifully. Draco summoned a glass of O Positive and handed it to his friend. He’d bought it as a treat or for a celebration but Draco thought it was needed now. Blaise downed it and heaved out a sigh before he pouted. “I didn’t even get to savor it!”
In record time, the room was cleared of all food and smells. Daphne checked on Blaise, who was now lamenting, “I can’t believe it never occurred to me that I couldn’t have garlic anymore. As if the reflection thing wasn’t bad enough!”
Inwardly, the other three occupants of the room groaned. Ever since Blaise had been bitten, his number one complaint was that he could no longer look at himself in a mirror. Or a window. Or a sparkling wine goblet. The lack of reflection had him whining and pouting endlessly. Daphne often reassured him that he was still as gorgeous as ever, even more so honestly with the enhanced features of vampires. But alas, nothing made him feel better since he couldn’t actually see himself, not even when Draco admitted he was disgustingly attractive and had cheekbones to rival that of the Malfoys.
And now there was a new thing for Blaise to whine about.
“... I mean, my god , whoever thought it was a good idea to bite an Italian vampire must have been insane! Do they not realize what a horrible life we’ve now been thrown into?”
Astoria leaned into Draco to whisper, “Turning into a vampire wasn’t horrible enough?”
“Bruschetta! Garlic bread! Spaghetti aglio e olio!”
“Has Blaise ever actually eaten any of that with you?” Draco asked Daphne, who gave him an incredulous look before shaking her head. “So why is he –”
“The horror! No more pizza!”
“Pizza?”
Draco had enough and stepped up to Blaise and very neatly slapped him across his left cheek. Blaise hissed at his friend as his fangs lengthened.
“Get a hold of yourself, man!”
Breathing heavily, Blaise shut his eyes and counted backwards from ten. With each passing second, his body visibly relaxed, and when he reached one , he opened his eyes and let out a sigh. “My apologies. I don’t know what came over me.”
“Garlic,” Daphne murmured. “Fucking garlic.”
