“Hi there,” he said casually, brushing her shoulder as he sat down next to her. “What should we start with, Potions or Transformation?”
“Hello yourself,” Mariya replied, smiling. “I’m fine thanks, how are you?”
Andon rolled his eyes. “Okay, fine: how are you today, Mariya? You look very nice by the way and I’m glad that I could finagle this secret meeting so we could talk. Now that all the niceties are finally out of the way, Potions or Transformation?”
“Let’s focus on Transformation today“that exam’s a lot harder than Potions and you’re still having a bit of trouble with the concepts.”
“I suppose that’s true. You know what else is true? You really do look nice today.”
Mariya, who’d been bent over her Transformation textbook, looked up quickly, brushing her dark hair out of her face. “Thank you,” she said, blushing. “No one’s ever said something so nice to me.”
Andon was starting to feel uncomfortable; the intensity of Mariya’s happy eyes on his face was making him flush. “Um, you’re welcome. So are we going to start at the front and move toward the back or vice versa?”
“Vice versa,” Mariya said, suddenly no longer willing to make eye contact. “So last week we learned about . . . um . . .”
“We learned about size and function difference Transformation, like turning a handkerchief into a grandfather clock,” Andon prompted, confused at why Mariya was suddenly so forgetful and distracted.
“Oh. Of course. Hey, Andon?”
“Yes?”
“I was wondering . . . well, you know, after exams it’s the Christmas break and . . . well, at home we always have a big celebration and it’s really fun, my brothers and sisters invite all their friends and things, and . . . well, I was wondering if“if you would like to come home with me over Christmas.”
She concluded quite quickly and ducked her head so that all Andon could see was her hair and the tip of a very red ear.
“It sounds nice,” Andon began, dreading what would come next. “But I don’t know if my father would allow it.”
“The Muggleborn thing again?” Mariya spat bitterly, still hiding her face. “People like your father have ruined my life, you know. Every time I try and bring myself a little happiness, your father gets in the way.”
Her voice was becoming thick with what Andon suspected were suppressed tears. His eyes began to prick in sympathy and he tentatively put his arm around her.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry; I’ll talk to him, I’ll see if I can make him see sense. Mariya“” he parted her hair so he could look into her eyes “ “nothing would make me happier than to spend the break with you. I’ll do what I can to get permission.”
“And if you don’t get permission?”
He sighed. “We’ll see. But let me try and talk to Father first, okay?”
“WHAT?!”
“Papa, please, just hear me out, just this once.”
“I TOLD YOU NO SON OF MINE WOULD BEFRIEND A MUDBLOOD!”
“I TOLD YOU! SHE’S NOT A MUDBLOOD! SHE’S A HUMAN BEING! SHE’S . . . she’s my only friend, Papa.”
Andon’s emotions had been too great for him to shout at his father for very long. He hardly noticed when his father’ head disappeared, but he couldn’t help but notice when the soot shot out into his face as his father came to yell at him some more“in person.
“Andon . . .” his father began dangerously.
“Father, no. You can’t control me anymore. I’ve been seventeen for almost two months and you still try to manipulate my life. Well, I’m finally going to act my age.”
“Son, I’m only trying to do what’s best for you. You’re jeopardizing your future and tainting your family by associating with this girl. If I were you, I’d terminate the relationship immediately.”
Andon looked incredulously at his father, who was now using “nice-guy” tactics to try and win him. “Papa, if you were me, you’d never have given Mariya a chance.” He stood up, noting that he was half an inch or so taller than his father. “I see how it is now. You’re worried about the Krum reputation if your oldest son associates with a Muggleborn. Well, Father, if your reputation means more to you than my happiness, so be it.”
“Andon!” Father reached out and grabbed his arm. “No, can’t you see? Our purity is one of the biggest reasons we have so much business. If you’re going to jeopardize that, you’re jeopardizing your entire inheritance. I really am just looking out for your happiness. I wish you could see that.”
Rubbing his nose and jerking his arm away, Andon replied, “I don’t see it, Father. If you want to make Gavril the heir instead, I won’t complain. I’ll make my own way.” He laughed ruefully. “I still think you’re taking this too seriously. It’s not as if I’m going to marry her.”
“Yet,” Father replied brusquely, brushing past Andon and going down the stairs. “What a pleasant surprise for Gavril, a chance to see his father in person.”
“So am I going to be disowned?” Andon said so quietly that his retreating father couldn’t hear him. “I never thought it would come to this. Why”why can’t he just accept her?” The sounds of his father greeting Gavril wound up the stairway. “The conflict is just tearing me in two. Why is it that I have to choose which half to pursue and which to discard?”