we grow and change, it's just life.. (someonesmommy) wrote in afic, @ 2011-01-10 10:37:00 |
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Entry tags: | !completed, character: draco malfoy, character: mandy brocklehurst, player: deb, player: missy |
Who: Draco Malfoy & Mandy Boot
When: 10 January, 2005 (after his Ministry visit)
Where: a cafe on the way back to his townhouse
What: a surprise meeting
Rating: PG
Status: GDOCS | completed thread
There were times when the Malfoy attitude was pure defense. Walk tall, carry oneself with pride and a cold sneer, and no one will know that the arm aches like its on fire, or that the temper burns with cold rage. Draco’s robes snapped as he walked with sharp steps, putting punctuation to the sharp edges of his mood. He couldn’t go straight home, not like this. He knew his mother would want to know where he’d been, and he didn’t want to discuss this with her. Not yet, not until he had some distance from it and could put it into calm perspective. And figure out how to keep it from happening to her. Spotting a cafe he often enjoyed, he shifted direction, cutting through the crowd without worrying if they moved out of his way so he could cross the street and enter. He took the table he was shown to, and settled in, trying to relax. Writing would help, perhaps. He took a slim notepad and quill from the inner pocket of his robe and made notes to himself that he needed for his next Wiggleschwarm thriller. Hearing a small giggle as he worked, he glanced up and spotted a small child at a table nearby. There was another child there as well, and a woman he couldn’t quite see, but only the one child seemed to be interested in him. She was turned away from her table, her head cocked with interest. It reminded Draco of his daughter, and brought an unwitting smile to his face. He offered her a wave. | |
Mandy had been spending far too much time at work and not enough time with the twins. She had been relying too much on Terry and she hated feeling like all he did was take care of their children. It was an equal give and take but Mandy didn’t want him to be the one to sit at home with them all the time. When she had started her interior design business, she had only intended on working part time but business was much better than expected and around the holidays she had been working near ten hour days. Taking the twins to lunch and ice cream had seemed like a good way to give Terry a much deserved break and it gave him time to write if he needed to. Sitting in the cafe, she had forgotten how much they wiggled and several times she had to apologise to other customers who had given her stern looks in response to their chattering. She was immersed in the menu, trying to figure out whether the pair of them would accept the same food or fight if she bought them something different. It was always a challenge trying to read their minds enough to prevent the small subtle temper tantrums they were likely to throw. Terry called them well behaved and sweet, Mandy knew better. Alex was a sneaky little girl who had her daddy wrapped around her finger. Pointing out the food choices to Aidan, she saw but didn’t pay much attention to Alex who had slid out of her chair and was looking at another table. Her small whispered “Hi” didn’t register with Mandy as she spoke to the waitress and it wasn’t until Alex slipped behind the chair to approach the other person’s table that she raised her head and frowned. “Alex.” she said in caution, moving a bit to see where she was standing. It was odd to her that Alex would be speaking to a stranger because she was the one who was a bit more cautious and grown up of her two children. “Alex, come back over here.” she said to the child who was mostly ignoring her. | |
“Bonjour, Alex,” Draco smiled at the girl, amused that she had approached when he waved. It tugged at him to see the child, when he’d missed his own meeting with his daughter today, thanks to the Ministry. And her name amused him, almost sounding the same as his own Alys’s nickname. “I think your Mama wants your attention, however.” He couldn’t quite see the woman, but it occurred to him that the last thing he needed was for someone to decide Draco Malfoy was stealing small children to sacrifice or something else equally absurd. The sad part was, he could imagine it happening. He made a note of the concept, knowing he could twist it into a piece of a story. “You should sit, petite fille. Are you here to eat?” It wasn’t difficult for Draco to keep up a conversation. After all, he was used to the fractured sentences Alyssa still produced, not quite having reached the point of seamless speaking yet. | |
Mandy frowned expressively as she realised Alex had slid into a chair opposite of the man she was speaking to and was staring at him with a semi smile on her face. Aidan had abandoned the menu and was scooting toward his sister although he was much more hesitant than his sister. Mandy rose from her seat and came around the table with an apology on her lips and stopped short. She would recognise the pale blonde hair anywhere, Malfoy. She stared at him and the smile on his face. How was it possible that her daughter was speaking to the biggest git she knew and he was actually smiling at her. Mandy looked around at the other patrons of the cafe and closed the distance between herself and her child. “Alexandra Boot.” Mandy said in a slightly disapproving tone as she approached. She was completely perplexed that Malfoy hadn’t summoned her to the table and demanded she remove her child from his presence. “What have I said to you about speaking to strangers?” Mandy looked at the former Slytherin and tried to offer him an apologetic smile. “I am sorry she is bothering you.” she had never been one to judge anyone based on rumours or heresay, yet she couldn’t help but feel a little anxious. “She isn’t usually so..friendly.” Aidan joined them and stood by the table, staring at Draco curiously. | |
When Draco had suggested she sit, he had meant at her own table. But the solemnity with which the child approached him and joined his table amused him, again reminding him of Alys. He glanced up at the mother, sure that he should recognize her: she seemed of an age with himself, and from her expression, he assumed she recognized him. His expression began to close off, but the attention of the child drew him back, leaving him in an awkward middle ground. He knew how Alyssa reacted when he closed off, and he hesitated to disturb this child. “She isn’t bothering me.” His tone was mild as he stood. “And she seems to have taken my attempt to have her return when you called as an invitation to join me. I’d hate to disappoint her.” He pulled out the chair next to his own. “Which means you and her brother should join me as well.” If it were any other day, he wouldn’t have made the invitation. But after the event of the morning, he chose to take the company of this child who gave an unexpected allowance of momentary acceptance. “How old are they?” | |
To say she was taken aback by his apparent friendliness would be an understatement. She stared at him for a long moment before nodding a little and slid into the chair next to him as Aidan took the one next to his sister. It was the last thing she had expected to happen but she was very good at hiding her surprise. “They turned 3 in July.” she said slowly as she looked from her children to Draco. “She is the more reserved which made me curious why she has decided to come over.” She shifted in her seat and swallowed slowly. She had to keep reminding herself that he wasn’t the boogie man or a serial killer, he was just Draco Malfoy. Death Eater and prat in school but she surely couldn’t tell from his calm reaction to her daughter. “I don’t think we have been properly introduced before, I’m Mandy Boot..” She smiled hesitantly, “Brocklehurst in school, this is Alex and Aidan.” she nodded in their direction and smiled affectionately as they both smiled and said hello to him. She could see what Terry always said about them being perfectly behaved, they were certainly acting the part. “We don’t want to interrupt your lunch, I can see you are busy.” She was politely trying to give him an out to their presence. | |
One eyebrow arched, Draco’s tone slightly cooler as she tried for the second time to refuse. “You’re already seated, and your children look comfortable. I have already said it is no bother. Unless you choose not to believe me.” His smile was tight, as he resisted adding that he didn’t eat small children for lunch, nor their mothers, so she had nothing to fear. He tried to remember her, but other than a slightly younger version of her face, perhaps in the background somewhere at Hogwarts, he couldn’t, so he shook his head. “I’m afraid I don’t remember you.” And he didn’t bother to introduce himself; he knew she already knew who he was. He inclined his head politely towards the children. “Bonjour to you as well, Alex et Aidan.” He let the French accent slip through, Alex’s name seeming oddly close to Alys when spoken that way. “My name is either Draco, or Monsieur Malfoy, whichever your mother says you might call me.” He didn’t add that he had a daughter not much younger than them, who called him Papa. Picking up the cloth napkin at his place, Draco twisted it, tying it into the shape of a four-legged dog-like creature. He subtly touched his wand to it, adding a silent charm to let it scamper about the table for them for entertainment. Alyssa always loved the distraction. | |
Mandy stared at him for a moment, her smile faltering as she tried to figure out the situation. He was being passably friendly and she was more than a little confused. It was bloody Malfoy, the boy who was renowned in school for his cold disdain of the whole halfblood and muggleborn populations. She pulled the napkin off of the table and busied herself rearranging it across her lap. “Of course, we will join you for lunch. “ she said finally, smiling at him. “You must understand why I...” she broke off and shrugged. She looked toward the twins and smiled. “Mr. Malfoy is sufficient.” She watched as he created a small moving creature for them and they were distracted enough to completely forget the adults as they giggled and laughed about the queer looking creature. “I don’t think I ever would have realised you liked children, Dra...Malfoy.” she wasn’t sure what to call him and it showed in her pause. She had almost called him Draco, but it had seemed so familiar and intimate. “I appreciate the smiles, the man over there at another table told me to contain my children for looking at him too long.” She nodded her head in the direction of an elderly man who sat haughtily at a table. He was alone and looked remarkably like he had sucked on a batch of lemons. “She rarely means harm unless you are Uncle Michael and then you get the wicked side of her.” Mandy was smiling fondly as she glanced at Alex who was playing with the dog like creature. | |
“A friend of mine has a daughter who is not quite two.” The truth came easily, merely leaving out the part where she was his daughter as well. “Alyssa and I spend a good deal of time together, so I am accustomed to her behaviour in public. I assure you, I doubt your daughter can be more wicked than Alys, when she is chasing her cat.” Draco watched the children rather than Mandy Boot. He glanced at the man she’d mentioned, eyes rolling as he added haughtily, “As for him, I’m quite sure he’d have the same sour expression were I to look too long. Your children, however, are remarkably well-behaved and polite. I have seen far, far worse. I recall one time, several years back, when while out to dinner a small child expressed his displeasure in the peas by throwing them, one at a time, about the room.” One eyebrow arched at the children, a small smile starting. “Don’t think to do the same. I may laugh now, but it was horrific behaviour at the time.” | |
“You surprise me, I wouldn’t have thought you were the type to be around children.” she knew that her words could be taken the wrong way but surely he must know how others saw him. “Not that I presume to know you Malfoy, I am just expressing my surprise.” she clarified quickly as the waitress arrived with the twins drinks. She watched him talk to her children with some amount of reserve that was slowly dissolving into curiosity. She was never one to judge anyone based on past deeds and his behaviour so far was exemplary. Laughing lightly at his story of throwing peas, she gave Aidan a stern look as a look crossed his face. She knew exactly what his little mind was thinking. He was contemplating his options for getting away with something like throwing his food. “We have had several conversations about throwing our food.” she was trying not to smile and tried to use her best mom voice. “I sometimes wonder how we survived the two year old phase, I could have never brought them here then. Throwing food was the least of the issues. Everyone would be wearing it.” She shifted in her chair and watched Alex and Aidan as they poked the dog like creature with their utensils. “Do you have children? A wife?” she asked randomly as she watched them play. | |
Draco arched one eyebrow at her. “No wife. Can you imagine me married, with a child?” It was amazing what one could say without ever lying. “But apparently I’ve turned out to be rather patient with small children. Amelia leaves her daughter with me on occasion.” Or often, as often as Draco could manage. He reached for another napkin,twisting this one smaller, fatter, the ears perking up as it became a small, round cat. Touching it with the same spell, he sent it off to join the fray on the other side of the table. “I suspect they survive simply because at that moment when you are absolutely furious, they will smile, and what can one do in the face of that? But twins-- that must be a handful.” Draco had a thought at that, something to mention to Amelia for their next book. Pulling out his notebook, he jotted down the thought for later, then tucked quill and notebook back into his pocket. | |
“I have no idea,” She replied honestly at his response about the wife and child. “I could never imagine myself married with twins at this age.” she said it honestly as she smiled at the napkin cat. Alex’s smile was contagious, she was genuinely happy playing with the small creatures. Mandy raised an eyebrow at the way he pulled out a notebook and quill to jot down notes. “Are you a writer?” she asked curiously. She had seen Terry do the same on a number of occasions. “My husband is much the same, always thinking in terms of what he wants to write.” She paused to look at the waitress who was hovering nearby with their food. “I brought the kids to lunch today to give him a few moments peace and quiet.” she had no idea why she was being friendly or chatting with Malfoy of all people, like they were friends. She tucked a stray lock of blonde hair behind her ear as the waitress delivered their food. | |
Draco stiffened, then smiled faintly. “Merely making note of something for Alyssa. The twins reminded me.” More lie than truth that time, but then, his livelihood depending on his nom de plume remaining unsullied by his good Malfoy name. “What does your husband write? Anything I can’t live without reading?” As the napkin dog chased the cat towards him, Draco murmured, “Non, non, chaton. Turn back around and play. You are not done yet.” He nudged the cat back towards the twins. | |
I didn’t mean to pry.” she said softly as she turned her attention fully to the twins. She had forgotten for a long moment who she was sitting next to and why she shouldn’t be so friendly. He was someone she should be more cautious around. “Romance novels.” she couldn’t help the smile that graced her face. “Unless you are a big fan of that romantic crap, I doubt you would find it can’t live without it reading type material. “ She was a huge fan of her husband’s writing but she didn’t believe in love at first sight or happily ever after. She watched her children alternate between eating and playing. “I should thank you for the distractions, I was contemplating leaving before Alex came over here.” She picked up her fork and poked at the salad with it. She found she wasn’t really hungry, she set aside the fork and picked up her cup of tea. | |
Romance novels? Draco let a soft snort of laughter slip out. The book he’d cowritten with Amelia certainly had more romantic elements, but he didn’t consider it an actual romance. “The sort of books where a happy ending is required? How amusing. I think I shall pass.” True love, and love at first sight... all twaddle as far as he was concerned. Her lack of appetite didn’t go unnoticed, Draco assuming that it was his company putting her off, a sour taste in his mouth at that. His own lunch was half finished, and he set it aside neatly, waving the waiter over. “Pack this to take away,” he directed. “And bring a plate of biscuits, chocolate ones. And a pan a chocolat for myself. Mrs. Boot?” He raised one eyebrow, inviting her to either pack up what she didn’t intend to eat, or request something sweet for herself. | |
Mandy grinned in response to his snort of laughter. “Trust me when I say the little old witches eat them up.” She had read them and they weren’t her type of book, but she was so very proud of her husbands success. “I am proud of him for writing what he loves and being successful at it, even if I don’t necessarily believe in love or happy endings.” She set aside her salad and asked the waitress to do the same for hers. She was thoughtful for a moment before asking for her favourite chocolate and almond biscuits. “I wasn’t very hungry before the outing, I just needed to get the children out of the house and they wanted to eat.” she said in response to the fact she hadn’t eaten anything. “I will never turn down biscuits or chocolate.” she wasn’t minding his company, although she was still on her guard. If someone had told her she would be having lunch and pleasant conversation with Draco Malfoy she would have scoffed. | |
And like that, as she spoke of getting out of the house, he remembered exactly how his day had begun, the ache in his arm intruding into the pleasantness of watching two children play. “I expect your children will want some of the chocolate ones I’ve ordered as well.” Instinct made Draco shift, about to reach to rub at the aching spot on his arm, but something stopped him, and his lips pressed together. He should go, get to Paris where his own child waited, and try to put today behind him. Not sit here and start to dwell on it, remembering the scent, and the look on Potter’s face. He needed a distraction. “Do you know the spell I’ve used for the creatures?” He could see them slowing down; the spell was far from permanent. “I could teach it so you’ll have it if you need it another day. It seems to keep them entertained.”, | |
“Mention chocolate too loudly and my children forget how to behave. They are fiends.” she said with a small smile. “Ask their father and he would disagree, they are perfect angels all the time for him.” she was smirking as watched the pair of them and looked at him. “I would love for you to teach it to me, I can use it when they have the wiggles.” She was smiling at him. “You do realise you have shocked me today, Mr. Malfoy. We actually shared a space and you were nothing like I expected.” She meant it as a compliment not rudely and hoped he took it accordingly. “More people should learn to venture outside of their little boxes, it might make life easier for all of us.” She broke off as the waitress returned with their sweets. Alex and Aidan abandoned their lunch and looked at her expectantly, their little faces nearly begging for the biscuits. She mock sighed and smiled at the pair of them. “I told you, chocolate fiends.” | |
“You must ask your Maman,” Draco told the two children quite seriously. “Please and thank you both.” He nudged that plate towards her, taking only the pan a chocolat for himself. He set it on the plate in front of himself, picking neatly at the flaky bread with long, delicate fingers that had more than a hint of callous to them now. “None of us are who we were, Mrs. Boot,” he pointed out to her. “Hogwarts was a long time, and now we have what the Ministry tells us of ourselves, matched with that which we saw in school, and little of it matches what is reality.” He shrugged one shoulder, trying to ignore the ache that was becoming once more unignorable. | |
“We are not telling your father you skipped your lunch and had biscuits, deal?” she said quite seriously as she allowed them each to take what they wanted. She rarely told them no unless it was something big and they were quite spoiled. She took one for herself and turned to watch him as he ate. “Will you call me Mandy?” She asked idly. “Mrs. Boot sounds like Terry’s mother and I am too young to be anything like her yet.” She took a few bites of her biscuit and chewed slowly as she looked around the cafe. “Hogwarts was a long time ago and honestly, none of us are who anyone thinks we are. Reality is rarely what everyone sees and assumes.” she agreed and polished off the remaining biscuit and sipped her tea. “The next time you are watching your friends daughter, we should let them play together.” It was a random but genuinely offered sentiment. She had actually enjoyed the shared lunch. | |
The offer -- both offers -- startled him, which he covered with another arched eyebrow as he picked at his sweet. It wasn’t as well made as he’d find it in France, but it was a good dark chocolate, and a buttery pastry, and it at least made him think of Paris and his home there. “She’s in Paris,” he said, but at a glance at the twins he added, “however, if they happen to come to London, I’ll let you know. Alyssa adores older children.” It occurred to him that Alys might well be far different than the Boots expected, with her upbringing amongst Amelia’s Muggle friends, half in and half out of the magical world. If he ever did bring her here, he would need a new place to live, somewhere that her Muggle comforts -- and his laptop -- would work. His arm, however, was beginning to throb. He made a motion with his hand, and the cat and dog came back to him slowly. He touched the cat with his wand and the motion stopped as it became merely a carefully folded napkin once more. The dog sniffed around as if seeking its playmate, and Draco nudged the cat napkin towards Mandy. “Take out your wand,” he instructed. Then he showed her the spell, enunciating the verbal component he had previously omitted, taking care to be certain she didn’t miss anything of it. | |
Mandy resisted eating another biscuit, she indulged far too much and it would end up setting itself completely in her hips. Sipping her tea thoughtfully, she nodded at his response. “Alex and Aidan don’t have many friends, none of our friends have children yet.” She didn’t add that they had to be careful in the current tone of the Ministry about who they interacted with and what they did especially since the not so secret DA meeting. She wondered if associating with a Malfoy was a good idea but she squashed it. He wasn’t who he had been at Hogwarts or during the war and neither was she. Watching him recall the animal, she was visibly impressed that he had done so without an incantation. Wandless magic was complex and nearly impossible to control, the fact that he had done so impressed her and she smiled brightly. She took out her wand and repeated the spell several times before she was successful in making the linen napkin animate itself. Her napkin creature was more lump than animal and she laughed. “I guess I need practise to be as good as you are at it, eh?” she poked the napkin lump with her wand and tried again. She looked up at him and grinned. “Thank you.” she said honestly, meaning for the spell and his company. | |
As Mandy worked to master the spell, Draco quietly offered pointers where he could see the need, making sure she had it close enough that she could practice later. “You’re welcome,” he replied, likewise meaning it more than he’d thought. Despite the pain and the reminders, he felt better than he had when he arrived at the cafe. “I’ve had quite a lot of practice; it is one of Alys’s favorite entertainments, and I don’t expect that to wear away as she grows older. The key,” he reminded her, “is intent. When you create your creature, be certain to give the spell intent so that you don’t end up with a cat that looks like a monkey or a monkey that looks like a cat. Although,” he smiled faintly, “those have their useful moments, when a child needs more distraction than usual.” He waved the waiter over so that he could pay for the meal, being certain to give him enough money to cover Mandy and the twins as well. “I must apologize, but I do have somewhere else I need to be. You’ll have to show me how good you’ve become at the spell after you’ve had some practice, Mrs.-- Mandy,” he corrected himself, as she’d asked, and despite discomfort with the familiarity, it was only polite to speak as directed. He bowed faintly to the children. “Thank you for making my meal more pleasant than I had expected.” | |
“I will practise when I am bored at work before showing the children, otherwise Alex will tease me.” she smiled and nodded at his instructions. She would practise the spell and perfect it before she saw him next. It was in her nature to try something until she perfected it, it was part of why she had been sorted into Ravenclaw. “No apologies necessary, thank you for the lovely lunch.” she said and watched as her daughter stood to return his small bow. She walked over to Draco and motioned for him to lean down so she could whisper in his ear. In her still slightly broken English, she told him thank you and hoped that his day would get better. Mandy didn’t hear any of the words but wondered why her little girl was taken with him. Maybe she saw something in him none of them did, children were a mystery. The could like and dislike without a solid reason and it made perfect sense to them. Returning to her place at the table, she once again ignored the adults and returned to talking to her brother. Mandy smiled at Draco and shrugged. “Children are one of the mysteries of the universe.” she acknowledged his leaving with a nod. “Have a good day, Draco.” It was definitely one of the oddest lunches Mandy had sat through in months but she was pleased that it had turned out so well. | |
Draco crouched so the child could whisper to him, a smile lingering at the way children were so unconditional in their affections. There were times when he wondered if he had ever been this innocent, but then he remembered his young friendship with Ernie MacMillan and realized that yes, he had, before he had tried so hard to impress a father he wasn’t certain had ever been worth impressing. He nodded seriously to Alex, and offered her his hand before he stood and watched her return to chatter with her brother. He glanced at Mandy at her words, and despite the pain and despite how the day had started, he responded, “It is already better than it began.” And with one last nod, he turned and left. |