𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐠𝐨𝐥𝐝.

“ oh, merlin, i’m so sorry. ” she apologized to the person that she had bumped into seconds earlier, shaking her head back and forth shamefully. it wasn’t out of the ordinary for astoria to get worked up over little incidents; accidents that most people would have no issue moving past. though, she seemed to be more on edge than usual, the events of the past couple months weighing heavy on her mind. “ i didn’t see you there. are you alright? ”

“ merlin... if you’re overdressed, then what am i? ” she asked before looking down at her own costume, allowing a laugh to escape from between her lips as she did so. never being one to pass up a chance to get properly dressed up, astoria had decided to go all out for the poison apple’s halloween party. “ i think you look lovely, ‘mione. ” she was being honest (not that she was ever anything but sincere in her conversations with hermione), her friend looked absolutely breathtaking in her joan of arc costume. “ besides, what’s the point of even dressing up if you don’t go at least a little bit overboard? ”

astoria couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face at his choice of words, clearly entertained by the fact that he still insisted on calling her ‘baby greengrass’. it had been quite a while since they had attended hogwarts together, but astoria still held many memories that involved blaise (along with the rest of the slytherin gang) close to her heart. she glanced up at him when he captured her hand in one of his own, an amused look written across her features. “ still as big a flirt as ever, i see. ” she was only joking, of course. “ you know what? i agree. it is rather tragic that you’ve had to go so long without seeing my gorgeous face, isn’t it? ” a laugh escaped from her lips as she wrapped her arm around his bicep, ready for him to lead the way. “ where were you headed, anyways? ”

“ quidditch isn’t really my thing. ” she confessed with a shrug, knowing that it probably sounded like a strange thing for her to say while attending one of the biggest quidditch matches of the season. “ my sister and our friends convinced me to come along. it’s been kind of a let down so far, though. and there are way too many people here. ” she was rambling, and she was aware of it, but she couldn’t help herself — it was a nervous habit, one that she couldn’t seem to shake, no matter how hard she tried. “ that would be great, though. might do me some good to spend some time around new people. who knows? maybe you’ll even be able to change my mind about how boring i think quidditch is. ” 

astoria smiled slightly when her friend wrapped her arm around her shoulders, happy that she had a group of people surrounding here who actually cared about her (physical and emotional) well-being. “ fair enough. ” she admitted, taking the flask of firewhiskey from avalon as it was offered to her. drawing in a deep breath, she shot a dubious glance in her friends direction before taking a sig from the container. “ i don’t even like quidditch. merlin, i don’t know why i even agreed to come. ” it was the truth, she was regretting her decision to accompany her sister and her friends to the match now, more than ever. though, it was clear that there was no way that she could back now and get away with. “ good think i have you to keep me entertained, huh? ”

“ hello, mrs. malfoy. ” the words hung awkwardly in the air after they left her mouth — astoria had spent plenty of time around draco, she was comfortable enough when socializing with him, but his mother was a different story. she was rather intimidated by narcissa, truth be told. “ oh, i wasn’t looking for draco. ” she began, pressing her thumbnail into the pad of her pointer finger absentmindedly (just one of her many anxious habits). “ i was hoping i could say in here for a little while, if that’s alright with you? i'm in desperate need of a break from all the madness happening outside. ”

“ who’s winning? also... who are we supposed to be rooting for? ” astoria asked draco, sheepishly glancing over at him. she hoped that she wasn’t coming off as vapid — she was genuinely curious about all of the commotion that was happening around her. “ i never really much cared for quidditch. my parents forbade me from playing at school, so i never really took the time to learn the ins and outs of the game. ” she admitted, shrugging her shoulders before taking another swig of the drink she held in her hand. “ you played, didn’t you? was it as fun as it looks? ” there was a hint of sarcasm in her tone — astoria had never been able to see the appeal of riding around on a broomstick. it looked terribly uncomfortable. 

“ i am not drunk. ” astoria hiccuped defiantly before playfully punching her friend in the arm.“ you’re drunk. ” she continued, her speech slurred, as she took another sip of the mixed drink that she held in her hand. under normal circumstances, astoria would have hated being drunk around so many people but theo was there with her, to protect her and keep her safe, which made it all a bit easier. “ you know... ” she began, gazing up at theo fondly. “ don’t tell the others, but you’re my best friend. i know i’m supposed to love avalon and wilona and all of my other girl friends more. but, i don’t, i love you the most. ” if taken out of context, it might have sounded as if astoria were declaring her undying love to theodore; which, in a way, she was. it didn’t matter much, though, how it sounded; astoria was already far too intoxicated to worry about carefully choosing her words. 

astoria was on her way to grab another drink - she hoped that consuming even more alcohol would put a considerable damper on her nerves - when she managed to trip over her own two feet. she sat on the ground for a moment, taking in all that was happening around her, before pushing herself up into a standing position. almost as soon as she stood up, astoria found herself on her backside once again; someone had knocked her over. “ geez, could you watch where you’re going? ” it was uncharacteristic for astoria to get so angry over what was obviously an accident, but her nerves were on edge tonight, to put it lightly. “ i’m sorry. i just... ” she began as she got to her feet, giving the person she had just scolded an apologetic look. “ ... i’m having a rough night. i really am sorry, though. is there anything i can do to make it up to you? ”

as she rounded the corner, she looked up and finally snapped back to reality, quickly stepping to the side to avoid running into someone. it took her a few moments to realize who it was that she had almost bumped into, but astoria couldn’t help the smile that began to spread across her face when it finally dawned on her. “ blaise! blaise zabini! ” she called out, jogging to catch up with him again. “ merlin, blaise, i could hardly recognize you! it’s been too long. ”

incorrect quotes : @aastorias & @blondsnake !

incorrect quotes : @monstrovs !

incorrect quotes : @tiimetvrners !

incorrect quotes : @aastorias & @graenger !