Blackbird

Chapter Five

"Seriously, for every meal?" Ted asked.

"Well, not every time, just when we have guests over, which is most of the time."

"Huh." Ted leaned over, seemingly examining her side. He had a sort of twisted, contemplated look on his face, the same look he got whenever Professor McGonagall went over advanced theories in transfiguration. Not that she'd been looking. "If you have an eight-course meal that many times a week, how are you still this thin?"

She threw a roll at his face, which he blocked his arm, and then grinned. It'd had been a week since their first meeting, and they'd met three times since then.

"I could say the same about you, you know." She glanced over at his now empty-plate, which had been overflowing with food moments before.

He grinned. "You could." She stared at him for a moment longer, before hastily looking away.

"So, Andromeda..." he said after a pause.

"Meda, Please." She smiled, and he returned it.

"Right. Meda, you know who you look like?"

"No?" She raised her eyebrows.

"Audrey Hepburn."

She blinked. "Who?" Where was he going with this?

"She's this actress, or singer. You know, for muggles I only know who she is because my mom adores, 'My fair lady.' She used to make me watch it all the time." His words started to rush. "Not that you're anything like Eliza. Well, maybe a little, after she... I mean, you look like her, except she wears her hair up, like..." He reached for her, and she froze. His hand brushes across her cheek as he started to pull her hair up.

She flinched, and Ted quickly pulled his hand away, his jaw dropping.

"Sorry, I don't know why..." He turned crimson, and quickly buried his hand in his hair, like that would keep him from reaching out to her again.

Another silence ensued, only this time, Ted didn't try to break it.

She finished her food, which meant she had no reason to stay. But as tense as things were she didn't want to leave just yet. She reached into a bag and pulled a brush, but stopped when she caught sight of his expression.

"What?" She sounded more defensive than she meant too.

"It's just... you're constantly fixing your hair."

"Well, it's constantly getting messed up."

He flinched, and even though she hadn't been thinking of him when she said it, she flushed.

"Don't you're being a little obsessive?" he asked.

"You think I'm obsessed?" She laughed, trying to ease the mood. "You should see Narcissa; it takes her over an hour to get ready most mornings."

"Huh." He said that a lot. "I would've thought both your sisters would've been like that."

Andromeda's eyes narrowed. "Like what?"

Ted seemed to realize he was treading dangerous waters, but he wasn't one to stop once he started.

"You know what I'm talking about. I'm surprised they can see where they're going with their noses sticking up like that. They're the queens of prudes. They act like they're superior to everyone else they meet. And not just muggleborns, everyone. Although they make it clear that the muggleborns are slugs while they're goddesses walking on earth, or something."