A Time for Hope (March 1.0 Challenge Ficlet)
Title: A Time for Hope
Summary: Draco misses his wife, but is grateful for his son.
Characters/Pairings: Draco/Astoria
Genre: Angst/romance
Rating/Warnings: G, character death, sadness/angst I guess
Medium: Ficlet
Word Count: 565
Can the Order post to Tumblr?: Yes
If yes, your Tumblr username: No username
Draco sipped his late afternoon cup of coffee as he pondered all of the time that had gone by. His wife had loved spending a weekend afternoon together, shopping on Diagon Alley, or walking around a green space. Astoria loved the little things - quiet mornings in bed, surprise gifts, watching their son grow and learn. It seemed unjust that someone so kind and giving had been ripped from the world so young, leaving their family in tatters as they tried to pick up the pieces.
Scorpius was a clever boy. He wasn’t like Draco in his younger years - he was smarter, more aware, kinder and more understanding. Draco knew that Scorpius’s kind nature was mainly down to his mother’s influence. Draco had never been kind. Silently, he cursed his parents, with their bigoted ideas, for leading him astray so young. Draco adored his mother, but she was so proud, so unflinching in her beliefs. And his father, well, he always acted in his own interests, certainly when Draco was younger.
When Draco had met Astoria, all the little pieces had finally clicked into place. They’d connected so deeply, and she’d accepted him, war wounds and all, telling him that she’d love him even if she didn’t agree with actions he’d taken in the past. Almost without thinking, Draco touched the point where his Dark Mark had once been. It wasn’t really there anymore, and it had no magical properties. There was just a faded black line, which sometimes hurt in times of stress or anguish. The night of their wedding day, Astoria had kissed his forearm, a beautiful act of forgiveness for the boy he’d once been, so easily influenced, so desperate to impress.
Now Draco was older, grey, and world-weary. He wasn’t the aggressive show-off he’d been at Hogwarts, though he imagined some still thought of him in that way. Astoria had helped him to become a better person. Draco glanced above the kitchen door, at the simple silver horseshoe they’d been gifted on their wedding day. A symbol of luck, opportunity and hope. They hadn’t been as lucky as they’d hoped to be, but at least they had Scorpius to show for their time spent together. Some days, Scorpius gave Draco the drive to keep going, and keep trying to raise him right, somehow, even without Astoria’s loving guidance.
His youthful years were over, and Draco was a changed man. His heart was broken, his body older and worn-out, but he carried his wife with him, through everywhere he went, and all that he did. He’d seen other people move on and find someone new after losing a spouse, but that wasn’t for him. He didn’t feel right about finding someone new, not when he so dearly loved and treasured Astoria, both as wife, and mother to Scorpius. His son had made jokes on occasion, about Dad finding a new girlfriend, but they both knew that wasn’t likely to happen.
Astoria was for Draco, and Draco for Astoria. Their souls had met one another and would now never be parted. As far as Draco was concerned, he’d lived his life now, and his main focus now was doing the right thing for his son. If only he had Astoria to help guide him in the tougher times. Sometimes he could almost hear her voice, but it grew fainter by the day.
19 points for Slytherin
Summary: Draco misses his wife, but is grateful for his son.
Characters/Pairings: Draco/Astoria
Genre: Angst/romance
Rating/Warnings: G, character death, sadness/angst I guess
Medium: Ficlet
Word Count: 565
Can the Order post to Tumblr?: Yes
If yes, your Tumblr username: No username
Draco sipped his late afternoon cup of coffee as he pondered all of the time that had gone by. His wife had loved spending a weekend afternoon together, shopping on Diagon Alley, or walking around a green space. Astoria loved the little things - quiet mornings in bed, surprise gifts, watching their son grow and learn. It seemed unjust that someone so kind and giving had been ripped from the world so young, leaving their family in tatters as they tried to pick up the pieces.
Scorpius was a clever boy. He wasn’t like Draco in his younger years - he was smarter, more aware, kinder and more understanding. Draco knew that Scorpius’s kind nature was mainly down to his mother’s influence. Draco had never been kind. Silently, he cursed his parents, with their bigoted ideas, for leading him astray so young. Draco adored his mother, but she was so proud, so unflinching in her beliefs. And his father, well, he always acted in his own interests, certainly when Draco was younger.
When Draco had met Astoria, all the little pieces had finally clicked into place. They’d connected so deeply, and she’d accepted him, war wounds and all, telling him that she’d love him even if she didn’t agree with actions he’d taken in the past. Almost without thinking, Draco touched the point where his Dark Mark had once been. It wasn’t really there anymore, and it had no magical properties. There was just a faded black line, which sometimes hurt in times of stress or anguish. The night of their wedding day, Astoria had kissed his forearm, a beautiful act of forgiveness for the boy he’d once been, so easily influenced, so desperate to impress.
Now Draco was older, grey, and world-weary. He wasn’t the aggressive show-off he’d been at Hogwarts, though he imagined some still thought of him in that way. Astoria had helped him to become a better person. Draco glanced above the kitchen door, at the simple silver horseshoe they’d been gifted on their wedding day. A symbol of luck, opportunity and hope. They hadn’t been as lucky as they’d hoped to be, but at least they had Scorpius to show for their time spent together. Some days, Scorpius gave Draco the drive to keep going, and keep trying to raise him right, somehow, even without Astoria’s loving guidance.
His youthful years were over, and Draco was a changed man. His heart was broken, his body older and worn-out, but he carried his wife with him, through everywhere he went, and all that he did. He’d seen other people move on and find someone new after losing a spouse, but that wasn’t for him. He didn’t feel right about finding someone new, not when he so dearly loved and treasured Astoria, both as wife, and mother to Scorpius. His son had made jokes on occasion, about Dad finding a new girlfriend, but they both knew that wasn’t likely to happen.
Astoria was for Draco, and Draco for Astoria. Their souls had met one another and would now never be parted. As far as Draco was concerned, he’d lived his life now, and his main focus now was doing the right thing for his son. If only he had Astoria to help guide him in the tougher times. Sometimes he could almost hear her voice, but it grew fainter by the day.
19 points for Slytherin