Work Text:
Greg remembers a time when he felt like he was worth something. It was a seemingly fleeting moment of time, a few years after the War. Then, a young woman two years younger than him, freshly out of Hogwarts approached him. Her smile was tentative but sweet as she asked if he remembered her.
Of course he did.
Now, Greg stands on the grounds of Malfoy Manor, eyes focused on the window where he last saw her. It had only been a quick glance, a fast glimpse of dark hair tumbling over bare shoulders, and then she was gone.
But still he looks and waits.
It’s Blaise who walks up to him first, arm going around his shoulders, a hand placing a cool glass of amber liquid in his. In a steady voice, Blaise asks, “You okay?”
Is he okay?
There isn’t much about Greg’s life that’s really okay, not now when the woman of his dreams is currently getting ready for this engagement party – and it’s not him who gave her a ring. He thinks of her wide eyes, innocent and sweet yet still all-knowing. He relives the feel of her soft lips against his, initially unsure until a lazy flame rose between them.
But those days are gone, completely done.
“Yeah,” Greg says in a flare tone. “Yeah, I’m alright.”
Blaise leaves and it doesn’t take long before Theo arrives at his side. Theo, who is Draco’s best man, but who also knows what happened between the bride-to-be and Greg just those few years ago. He doesn’t say anything, not at first, but then Theo lets out a long exhale.
“Does she know?” Theo asks after a moment. “Astoria. Does she know you still love her?”
Greg inhales before he lets out a shaky breath. Once upon a time, he loved Astoria Greengrass and she knew it. He doesn’t know if she still knows, doesn’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad one.
The girl in the mirror is perfect. The grey-blue color of her dress reminds her of stained glass; it’s a fitted piece that hugs her curves and drapes over her body like water. Her sister brushes her hair back over her shoulders, settling the dark waves.
“You look beautiful,” Daphne says to her. “Mom would have said the same.”
Astoria gives her a light smile. Their mother died a few years ago, a dark time in their lives. Remembering that time makes her think of a man who understood her grief, who held her tight in his arms, and whispered words of comfort. She thinks of thumbs brushing away tears, fingers that sent sparks over her skin.
“Astoria?”
“Thank you,” she says. She turns her head slightly. “Can I have a moment?”
“Of course. I’ll let Draco know you’re on your way?”
“Yes, perfect.”
Perfect.
That’s what everyone believes of her – she will be the perfect partner to Draco, have the perfect future with him. She doesn’t doubt they will have a wonderful future; she does, in fact, love him and he loves her despite what his parents think. Theirs is a love for the ages, the stories.
And yet, her mind races and wonders if she’s being too hasty, if she’s not trusting her heart enough.
It’s too late. Today is the engagement party, a soiree in the Malfoy Gardens that will continue long past sunset. She knows how long it’s taken Draco to propose, for the two of them to decide that this is what they both want. Their engagement will not be long, for no other reason that they want to be together. There is no impending child, though she’s heard the rumors.
She just hopes that Draco never finds out that a small piece of her heart will never belong to him.
They are bound to run into each other. It takes some time, but Greg finds Astoria when she’s taking a break from the crowds. There’s a quaint gazebo near the edge of the garden and she sits there, quiet and contemplative. Greg watches her for a moment, marveling at her beauty.
“You can come up,” she says without turning her head. She’d seen him earlier but even if she hadn’t, there is something that always tells Astoria when he is near.
“You look beautiful,” Greg tells her. He keeps a foot on one of the steps leading up to her, but he can’t bring himself to go to her, to sit at her side. “Draco is a lucky man.”
“I’m a lucky woman.”
Silence descends over them, emotions warring in their hearts, statements flowing through their minds. Astoria finally looks at him, and he sees so much in her face despite her attempt to show no emotion. He brings his other foot to meet the first on the one step just as Astoria stands. The fabric of her dress swishes around her, settles into a perfect silhouette.
“Greg, I –”
But he stops her with a hand up in the air, palm facing her. He can see it – right there in her eyes – the words she’s about to say. He’s heard them before and longs to hear it again, but he won’t have her say it now, knows he will never hear them again.
They both have to live with that.
“I hope he makes you happy.”
And then Greg steps down – right foot, left foot – and turns. Astoria watches him walk away from her, blinking rapidly and swallowing the words left unsaid.