astronomy • marlene mckinnon

forty

Astraea Black was panicking- no scratch that, that was an understatement.

She was freaking out.

Of course, out of all the people in the world, she had to go choose that one person who was the exact opposite of everything her family believed in to go fall— never mind that.

Of course, it had to be Marlene fucking McKinnon that she smelt in her amortentia. And of course, she had to go see her because they had a project to complete.

Not that she was dreading to see the girl, no, that would be the biggest lie she would say.

She knew the effect the blonde Gryffindor had on her, and Merlin knows the happiness she feels whenever she catches a pair of soft blue eyes looking her way, but she had been pretty sure it would go away.

With the dark mark on her arm, a marriage in less than a year, and her entire future painted out in front of her with strokes of grey and dark blue, she knew that Marlene McKinnon was not going to be a part of her future.

That was until that one potions class.

"You're late for your date," Isabella Fawley entered the room with a graceful and teasing smile on her face as she sat down on the couch, her eyes on the raven-haired girl whose eyes were fixed on the fire in front of her.

"I still have five minutes and it's not a date," Astraea resisted the urge to roll her eyes, "We're just studying, we have our astronomy project to complete."

"Right, study date then."

"Yes- wait no- stop this!"

Isabella let out a soft laugh before she looked down at the girl sitting on the floor, her book bag laying down next to her, her fingers drawing shapes on the wrist of her left arm.

She frowned as she noticed the troubled look flashing through the other girl's deep grey eyes before the walls were put up again. She sighed, "What's wrong?"

"I can't go," The girl looked up at her best friend, "I'll have to change partners, I'll be landing both of us in trouble- her more than me, she could be killed."

"No one will find out," Isabella slid down onto the floor, rolling her eyes as she sat next to the other girl, "You're worrying about nothing, everyone knows you're astronomy partners."

Astraea shook her head and whispered, "I smelled her in my amortentia."

She heard a small but sharp intake of breath and silence for what felt like days.

"I think you know what's next then."

"Everyone knows, but who's to say everyone's ready."

"You'll have to choose eventually, you know that," Isabella put a soft hand on her shoulder, her eyes full of kindness and worry, "you either let go of your family, or you let go of her.,"

Astraea cracked a bitter smile, wondering where her parent's teachings went wrong, "I'm afraid I can't do either."

"And I'm afraid you won't really have a choice."

•

"Sorry I'm late," Marlene McKinnon closed the door behind her, catching her breath, "James wouldn't let us leave quidditch practice, you know- with the Hufflepuff match in two days, my arms are sore- in fact, my everything is sore."

"It's alright," Astraea shook her head which was still very much buried inside her book bag, "I just arrived like a minute ago."

"Yeah?" The blonde walked towards her and sat in front of her, "Why so?"