The Palladium Reunion
Stepping through the Floo into the Nott Manor, Daphne shook the soot from her hair and patted at her red shirtdress with a sigh before looking around the all too familar parlour.
As was customary, a house elf strode through the doors to the room, sporting a happy grin as she hurried to greet the newcomer at her arrival. “Good afternoon, Miss Daphne,” she bowed her head, clutching the periwinkle-coloured pillowcase she was wearing.
“Good afternoon, Cupcake,” Daphne greeted her, with a nod of acknowledgement, as she navigated her way to the kitchen. “Where is Theo?”
“Young master is in his bedroom. Should Cupcake bring him to you, Miss?”
“Yes, please.”
As the tiny elf scurried away, Daphne fluttered about in the kitchen gracefully, picking up different pots and pans and grabbing different ingredients from the cabinets. Everything piled together on the counter to the left of the unlit stove, looking like a chaotic mess — and yet, there was some order to her actions as she silently moved through her anxieties.
As the aroma of the meal began to fill the kitchen, Daphne felt her tension ebb gradually. Her mood had been deplorable ever since her mother had reminded her of her ultimatum, and it had reached to a point where she could not stand remaining within the confines of her own manor. Her mother's incessant nagging Daphne could handle, but navigating through a list of pretentious suitors?
Daphne Elizabeth Greengrass would much rather pry out her own ribs than parade around like a livestock for sale, thank you very much.
Fortunately, she had a little escapade planned from the hellhole the moment Blaise had owled her to inform his return from Italy. She could not wait to see her friends.
( @theodorenottrp @blaiseaaronzabini )
Theodore sighed as his lover above him littered his neck with kisses, the was nice, this kind of intimacy was nice, it made him feel safe and warm so he reached up to bring his lover’s lips against his own, instead he knocked his chin against their head causing him to let out a sting of curses ‘’Oww!’’ His lover smiled apologetically as they mumbled an apology and pressed a kiss on his chin, before Theo could respond he heard a knock on his door ‘’Yes?’ ‘’Miss Daphne is in the kitchen; she would like to see you.’’ Cupcake replied ‘’Should I let her know you are busy?’’ How could he forget?! Blaise was back from Italy, they were supposed to meet here, he was the one who offered his manor. He cursed under his breath and glanced at his lover who was looking at him with a raised brow ‘’I’m so sorry! I completely forget they were coming and when you owled, It was just so descriptive and I wanted you here doing all that to me and I…’’ His lover pecked his lips to stop him from his rambling ‘’It’s fine, go join them. I’ll see you later’’ and with that his lips caught his lips in another passionate kiss before rolling off the bed, quickly putting on their clothes and apparating. ‘’Tell her I’ll be joining her shortly!’’ Theo grumbled as he slowly pushed himself out of bed, he blindly grabbed his clothes and put them on, not caring how disheveled he must look like, if they commented on it, he could just tell them where to stick it. He couldn’t help but wince as he made his way to the kitchen, his body screaming at him to rest after the morning he had but he wasn’t complaining and he couldn’t wait to see his lover again to make them pay for what they have done to him. The smell of whatever Daphne was cooking had him almost drooling, once again he mentally patted himself on the back, his friends were the only reason he kept the kitchen stocked, he didn’t understand their interest in cooking but they seemed to enjoy it so he said nothing and let himself enjoy the free food. The sight that greeted him once he stepped inside made him smile but before his friend noticed his presence, he crossed his arms against his chest and let out an exaggerated sigh ‘’Look who is here planning to burn down my house’’
“The one and only,” Daphne replied, with an easy smile, as she heard the sound of footsteps inching closer to where she stood behind the kitchen counter. It was during times like this that Daphne found refuge from the troubles that jabbed their edges into her ribs. Things always fell back together perfectly like pieces into place when it came to Daphne and her childhood friends. “I'm making lasagna, but I also brought scones. Fresh out of the oven.”
When she finally looked up at Theo approaching her and situating himself across from her, she couldn't help but narrow her eyes at him. “Why are you limping?” she asked, and almost imperceptibly her mouth parted in understanding. “Ah, nevermind. I think I am better off without the answer.”
She grabbed two plates from one of the cabinets and placed the warm scones on them neatly, offering one to Theo. “Did you get Blaise's owl?”
He smirked at her question but said nothing, let her come to her own conclusion, his lover would be proud once Theodore told them that someone noticed, he knows they don’t realize it yet but they have a knack for exhibitionism and loved leaving marks on his skin. ‘’Yeah but I got distracted so forgot you were coming’’ He waggled his eyebrows suggestively as he took the plate offered to him ‘’I haven’t seen or heard from him ever since before the war, I wonder how he is doing.’’ He may have not said it out loud but both friends worried for Blaise, they both knew very well that he will feel guilty for leaving. He remembers blaise trying to convince him to leave as well but it wasn’t as easy as his friend seemed to think. ‘’This is actually good’’ He said taking a bite trying to distract himself from his own thoughts, he hated thinking of that time.
“He wrote to me last night,” Daphne informed him as her dainty fingers pinched off a piece of her scone and popped it between her lips, letting her tongue relish the taste. “He seems to be doing alright. He said both him and Mrs. Zabini have been well.”
Of course, the situation was a lot more tense than that. It did not require to be said out loud — both Daphne and Theodore had been aware of it. Blaise had been reluctant while leaving for Italy with his mother, especially when he knew his friends were staying back, but both Daphne and Theodore and pushed him to prioritise the safety of himself and his mother first. And they hadn't heard from him ever since.
The parting had been extremely difficult, none being able to promise if they would make it out alive. But they had, somehow. And Daphne could not wait to see him.
Theo's appraisal of her culinary skills broke her chain of thoughts and she threw him a smirk. “Of course they are good. I made them.”
‘’We should visit her later, I’m sure she’ll appreciate seeing a face that isn’t Blaise’s ugly face.’’ Theodore absolutely loathed being reminded, he wished he could move on with his life without ever discussing this again, the trials the ministry are putting him through are more than enough. He placed his plate on the counter behind him then crouched down with a wince to reach the wine rack, he was doing better with his alcohol consumption, he doesn’t want to become his father, even the thought of that was enough to make him want to vomit. He closed his eyes to calm himself down before opening them again to grab a bottle. ‘’You know what will make it better?’’ He turned around with a smug look that quickly turned into another wince as his body kept reminding him to be gentler ‘’This!’’ He opened the bottle and took a swig without bothering to fetch a glass then offered the bottle to his friend
Daphne rolled her eyes at Theodore's comment, but even then the corners of her lips tugged upwards in a smile. “I am sure she'd appreciate the thoughtful gesture,” she commented, before popping another piece of scone in her mouth.
As she cleaned her fingers, her eyes went across the room where a grandfather clock was situated. “Blaise should be here any minute now. I'm almost done cooking.”
She watched Theo as he manoeuvred his way around the kitchen to fetch a bottle of wine and rolled her eyes. “It's twelve in the afternoon. Too early for you to get rat-arsed,” she reminded, even as she accepted the bottle from him. It had been charmed to remain chilled. Raising the bottle to her lips, Daphne took a swig of the drink, feeling the citrusy flavour in the back of throat.
Blaise kissed his mother’s cheek goodbye after she handed him a tray of cookies that they both made earlier today, to say he was nervous would be the understatement of the century. He has already spoken to his friends vie owl but meeting them in person felt different, he was still guilt ridden. He had confided in his mother, she told him that his friends will understand, he believed her, but it didn’t make him feel any better. He clenched his fingers around the tray and closed his eyes as he apparated to Nott Manor, when he opened his eyes again, he was standing on Theodore’s front door. He took a deep breath bracing himself for what is to come as he raised his hand to knock, he was aware that he did not require permission to enter but this somehow felt as the most appropriate action. He straightened his posture as the door creaked open, ‘’ Good afternoon, Mr Blaise’’ cupcake welcomed him, he smiled at the house elf ‘’Hello cupcake, how are you doing? And Can you please let theo know that I’m here?’’ The tiny house elf bowed, their head almost touching the ground ‘’I’m great Mr Blaise! Thank you for asking! Master asked cupcake to accompany you to the kitchen.’’ Blaise nodded and followed the elf to the kitchen, he didn’t need directions, but he knew it would make the house elf happy, so he followed and thanked them once they arrived at their destination and turned to survey his friends. Both look well and healthy, that calmed him, he didn’t know what to expect but seeing them helped ease the anxiety he felt. ‘’Isn’t too early to be drinking?’’ He grinned looking at his friends, it has been too long, and he has really missed them
After handing the wine bottle back to Theodore, Daphne took out the layered dish from the oven and busied herself in garnishing the evenly baked lasagna with parsley. With a deft flick of her wrist, the mess that had accumulated in the kitchen all cleared out, leaving behind a picture-perfect amalgam of professionalism and dedication.
“All done,” she informed Theo, who might as well have emptied half of the bottle by then. “Now we just—”
She was interrupted by another voice — a voice that she was all too familiar with. It broke the ambience of the kitchen, and Daphne almost jumped back, her eyes automatically locating the figure of a smiling Blaise across from them almost instantly.
For a single moment there was a pregnant pause, but the next thing she knew was that she was striding off to him, taking the tray of cookies from his hand and placing them on the marble kitchen counter, and engulfing him the warmest hug.
She knew Blaise was going to drop by any minute. She had been waiting for the moment ever since he had written to her, almost counting the minutes till she got to see him again. And now, when he was finally in front of them, she couldn't find words. It felt surreal. How many months had it been?
“I almost threw the casserole at you,” she murmured, voice low and linen with a torrent of unnamed emotions.
‘’Hello to you too, Daphne.’’ He laughed wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug ‘’And I’m sure I would have caught it anyway, I’m a chaser after all.’’ He loosened his grip so he could lean back and take a better look at his friend ‘’But you missy, have been up to no good. What’s that on your nose? Look at you! Your mother must have had a heart attack’’ He chuckled glancing at Theodore who inched closer to them but there was something wrong, did he get hurt during the war? His smile quickly turned into a frown as his attention turned to Theo ‘’Why are you limping?’ He glanced at Daphne once more then back at Theodore with narrowed eyes as it dawned on him slowly, his hair was a mess, his shirt was inside out and the love bite on his neck was suddenly obvious ‘’Eh, nevermind. I think I am better off without an answer. It’s good to see you haven’t changed, Man.’’ He freed one arm to pull theo into a hug. It felt as if it had been years since he had seen his friends, he just needed Draco and Pansy to be here to make this even better. However, seeing two of them healthy gave him hope that the other two are doing good as well.
Theodore took another swig from the bottle before leaning back against the counter and placing the bottle beside him, no more, he silently promised himself. He watched Daph work around his kitchen like she owned the place, he would never tell her, but he loved it when she came here and did this sort of thing. After their fifth year when his father was arrested due to his involvement at the ministry, he was relieved and convinced himself that he was will be locked away for a long time so he decided to remodel his entire house, he was finally free and he found himself suddenly with lots of free time so he designed every single room in his manor, he didn’t mention to his friends but he had a wing for each one of them, designed with their comfort in mind. He initially didn’t want a kitchen that was accessible to anyone but he quickly realized that two of his friends love working in one so he designed it in a way that will provide them with whatever was necessary, he was even consulted them and found unexpected joy in seeing their excited faces. He was pulled out by his thoughts by a familiar voice, a wave of relief washed over him, it shocked even him, he hadn’t realized the impact of Blaise’s disappearance had on them until now. ’What the…?’’ His eyes widened as he mouthed those words, he certainly did not miss how in synch Daphne and Blaise were, those were almost the exact same words she used. Was he really limping? He didn’t feel any pain, just a little uncomfortable with certain movements and he thought he walked normal but then again, it had been a while since his lover has taken him this way. He scoffed, slapping Blaise’s hand away ‘’And you haven’t changed either, ugly as ever. At least you brought cookies!’’ Without waiting for a response, he grabbed one from the tray and took a big bite ‘’And this is why I keep you around. You made my favorite!’’
“Ah,” Daphne smiled languidly when Blaise pointed out to her nose piercing. “Maybe that was exactly the plan all along. You never know.”
Her tone was playful and yet, all that she said was brutally honest. The recent addition to her splendour was a little diamond, studded through her nose in a quiet act of rebellion against the autocratic, oppressive tradition of the Greengrass clan. While it was not anything radical, it made a statement bold enough: Daphne Greengrass was not meant to be controlled.
She could not help but snort at Blaise's assessment of Theodore's messy appearance, which in turn made the latter jab at him in the most Theo-esque fashion. As she chuckled at their antics, she wondered just how strong the bond had always been between the three. It was not something that required daily contact or saying. Even being separated from Blaise for months at an end could not break them and what they shared. To say that Daphne was grateful would have been an understatement.
“Oh, come on,” she drawled, rolling her eyes as she grabbed Theo's arm and dragged him into the hug. “Stop being so dramatic for a second, it's getting boring.”
Theo tried to get away but her grip along with Blaise’s was too strong to resist so he let himself be pulled forward into the hug ‘’I don’t know why I’m friends with you two, you both suck.’’ He sighed as he reluctantly wrapped arm around each friend and let himself melt into the hug. He was grateful to his friends for not pointing it out when he tightened his hold around them, pulling them closer. Despite his initial protests, this was actually nice but before he become softer, he needed to let go but he couldn’t bring himself to do so ‘Can we stop now? Pansy and Draco will be arriving anytime now, and I would like to fix my shirt at least before they arrive.’’ He mumbled whilst still holding on to his friends
“That is a strange way of saying that we are the best, but fine. We'll take it,” Daphne retorted back, not missing a beat. The smile on her lips grew as she felt Theodore tighten the hug and squeeze them till they were almost a single collective entity.
She pulled back from the hug and regarded her best friends again. She had missed this — their presence, their banters, their laughter. Them. No words within the lexicon could do justice in describing how much she valued their relationship. It was pure and untainted. It was beautiful.
She pulled apart from the hug with a look of amusement on her face. “Wear something nice while you're at it,” she replied, before returning to the kitchen and grabbing different tableware from the cabinets.
“You reckon the rest will be able to make it to the brunch before September 1st?” she asked Blaise, offhandedly. With a flick of her wand, the dishes, tableware and cutlery floated all the way to the dining table and landed on top of it in a perfect order, creating an altogether refined and elegant look.
Blaise rolled his eyes at his friend’s antics, however, his grin widened when he felt Theo squeeze, so he responded with squeezing back his shoulder, silently showing solidarity. He nodded letting Theodore go to change his shirt, he really did need a change of clothing. He took a seat at the dining table as he watched Daphne set it up ‘’The-‘’ a very familiar voice interrupted them before he could complete his thought ‘’It appears the answer is yes to your question.’’ ‘’Draco, Pansy. It has been a while’’ He stood up to greet his friends and survey them, he has heard of what happened so he silently assessed them for injuries, they both looked fine but there was something different, he couldn’t put his finger on it yet but he was sure it will come with time.
Needless to say, Draco, Pansy, and Tracey took their sweet time joining them for the brunch. Daphne was clever enough to have charmed the food beforehand to prevent it from getting cold. To make up for their tardiness, Pansy made sure to bring them a cake from Rosa Lee’s Tea Shoppe in Diagon Alley. Unfortunately, the cake did get to see the light of the day.
Upon their arrival, Theodore’s usual habit of ruffling Pansy’s hair, along with Draco and Blaise’s bet daring Theo to repeat his actions for a hundred galleons, marked the onset of a pandemonium.
Theodore had no qualms in ruffling Pansy’s hair again. What could go wrong? What was the worst Pansy could do to him? Turn his hair pink? In that case…
Theodore immediately plucked Daphne from her seat and dragged into his own lap in hopes to use her as a shield in case Pansy decided to pull any funny tricks. Unfortunately for him, Daphne Greengrass was no fool. Bless her fast reflexes and quick-thinking ability, she ducked just in time, just before Pansy made the box of cake from earlier opened and sent its contents flying in their direction. As it smashed against Theo’s face and dripped to his clothes and her lower back, however, Daphne realized that her clothes did not get to be as lucky as her.
“I’ll pay 200 galleons for Theodore and Daphne’s new robes,” Pansy cooed.
Almost imperceptibly, Daphne’s eyes hardened as she took out her wand and nonverbally cast a 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘰 on her dress, watching the soggy remnants of the cake quickly disappear from the thin material of her cloth, leaving it as fresh as new. Her young face was calm — 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 despite the anger lurking in the pools of her clear, dark, almost colorless eyes as she placed her hand on Theodore’s and immediately freed her body from his grip.
Daphne’s wrath was something no one ever wanted to get a taste of.
As she sat back on her seat, she peered at Pansy, then Theo, then back at Pansy, gaze patronizing and speculative. “Keep the coins. I’m perfectly capable of financing a new dress for myself,” she said, her voice crisp but not quite natural — deliberately imperfect, deliberately neutral. “But I appreciate the thought.”
Pansy was rendered speechless, pursing her lips at Daphne’s reaction, until Draco chose to open his mouth at the wrong moment. “Why so tense, Daphne? It’s just cake,” he said, before swiping a finger full of cake frosting off of Theo’s face and bringing it to his lips. “It tastes good, too.”
Disgusted, Theodore wiped the cake off of his face and smeared it into Draco’s, saying, “Here! I hope it tastes as good on your face, you bastard!”
As Draco groaned in displeasure, Pansy’s maniacal laugh could be heard echoing in the dining room, causing Draco to smear some cake over her dress, which in turn caused the raven-haired witch to jump at his back and smear the cake further on his face and hair.
“Stop behaving like kids, you guys,” Tracey said, with a roll of her eyes, having had enough of the situation.
“I’m not a kid, Tracey,” Draco insisted. “I’m a man, would you like to see?”
“Sod off, Malfoy,” Tracey said, with a scowl.
Daphne studied their actions intently, thoughtfully, her eyes flashing just the slightest. Draco’s comment directed towards Tracey was ridiculous in its entirety — if not all too chauvinistic. What was he about to do to establish his masculinity, anyway? Strip off his underwear? Merlin, the 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘭.
“Why so tense, Draco?” she asked non-committally, grimly amused as she mirrored his tone from earlier. “It’s 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 a harmless remark. Spare us from any nudity, if you will. The food fight this brunch has been reduced to is vomit-inducing enough already.”
Immediately, comments followed suit.
“Show her what, mate?” Blaise’s question was posed tauntingly. “What exactly are you implying? If you have to deliberately try and establish your masculinity then I feel sorry for you.”
“Didn’t peg you to be an exhibitionist, Draco.” Theo tusked, not missing a beat. “But that’s okay, I can direct you to few clubs if you want. I know this FANTASTIC one in Diagon alley. Please spare these poor souls from the sight when you can have someone pay you for it instead?”
“You lot want to see me naked,” Draco accused.
“I’m sure we’d all rather hear a mandrake cry,” Pansy supplied, snickering.
Amidst the chaos, Theodore turned to Daphne and made a whole exhibition out of his appraisal of Daphne’s cooking skills. His biggest priority was to get Daphne to forgive him.
“Oh, the smell is making my mouth water,” he scooped a big portion to his plate and glanced at Daphne from the corner of his eyes before taking a bite. “It is so soft and saucy, the pasta with the combination of cheese and meat only exacerbates the deliciousness. It is so… exquisite and… delectable.”
He closed his eyes and let out a moan “Oh, and don’t get me started on the sauce, the flavors mesh beautifully together. I could cry from how good this is!”
Theo’s sudden and loud shower of extolment of her culinary skills grabbed Daphne's attention. She snapped her head to look at him grab a big portion of the dish and immediately take a bite.
She blinked, stunned for a fleetingly short moment, before her hazel eyes narrowed at him in the slightest. She watched him relish every bite, compliments springing from his mouth relentlessly as he moaned at the taste of the dish. These compliments could easily outnumber the ones he’d offered her regarding her food in the past few years. It was impressive how Theodore’s flair for drama could hardly ever be deterred.
“Oh, stop with the buttering already,” she said, with a sigh, shooting him a patronizing gaze. Even then, despite herself, the corners of her mouth curled upwards in a lopsided smile. “Did you learn the entire English dictionary yesterday or something?”
Needless to say, it was a much-needed episode of normalcy after a long period of time.
