Accomplishment

“Oh, wait. Don’t tell me…”

   Victoire knew what was coming. She suppressed a smirk and looked at her mother from the corner of her eye.

“Sisters?”, the young waiter asked, smiling cheekily.

Cue laughter, Victoire thought.

“Oh, you silly boy!” giggled the older woman, her voice with the slightest hint of a french accent.

   It was a cloudy afternoon when mother and daughter stepped into the restaurant. They had been shopping all day and were eager to rest for a while. Everyone turned to look, of course. How can they not?

   The older woman was Fleur Weasley. Her silver blonde hair was pulled up into an elegant chignon. Dazzling in her exquisite cornflower blue dress and white pumps, she looked 15 years younger than her age of 40. Her daughter, Victoire, was a lovely young lady of 16 years, 11 months and 20 days. She was the splitting image of her mother, except for the very faint sprinkle of freckles on her nose and that her eyes were hazel instead of blue.  She wore her hair in a half ponytail, and had on a green sundress and tan flats.

   They had been shopping for books, quills, potions ingredients, new vials and such. But most importantly, they picked up various dresses for Victoire’s coming out party, which was less than two weeks away.

   Victoire absentmindedly fiddled with her salad fork.

   “We will have a salad each. I’ll have… a spring water. What would you like for a drink, cher?”

   “I’ll have the same, please.”

   “All right. Two salads and two spring waters for two very lovely ladies,” the waiter grinned, and after a flamboyant bow, had skipped in time to the music the restaurant’s pianist and violinist were playing. With a flick of his wand, he charmed the kitchen doors to open for him.

   “Oh mother, can you please turn it down? I hate it when people stare,” Victoire whispered. And indeed, most of the men in the room where doing so.

   “You know very well that I cannot help it.”

   “Yes you can.”

   “It’s inherent in our kind, dear. We can turn it on at will, yes. But we cannot turn it off. Even if we wanted to,” Fleur replied matter-of-factly, “You should know that by now.”

    “I hate it,” Victoire muttered quietly, “Its all people notice.” Victoire had accomplished so much. Head girl, model student, darling daughter. And yet most people just see an incredibly beautiful girl, and that's all they see.

      Fleur held her daughter’s hands in hers. Deep blue eyes looking into hazel, she softly whispered, “You know there’s more to you than beauty dear. And so do the people closest to you. That is all that matters.”

    Victoire smiled and kissed her mother’s fingers. Fleur rewarded her with a hearty laugh and a pinch on the nose. The waiter walked toward them with a tray.

   “Two salads, two spring waters. Bon appetit!”

   It was then when a new song began to play. A lovely dark lady in a red dress sitting in front of a piano and an elegant-looking man with a violin started playing a slow tune which touched a chord in Victoire’s heart. The young lady put down her fork and paused to listen. Everything seemed to melt away.

   “Such a lovely song,” Victoire commented with a happy sigh. Her mother nodded in agreement.

   When the song ended, the pianist walked past their table.

   “Excuse me!” Victoire called out to her.

   “Yes, miss?”

   “What was that song that you played? I don’t think I’ve heard it before.”

   “Oh, it’s a song that mother used to sing to me when I was a child,” the pianist smiled, “It was written by a Muggle, you see, so most wizards don’t know it. It’s called, “Moon River.”

   “Written... Does it have any words to it?”, Fleur queried.

   “Oh yes. But I have forgotten most of the words. I only remember the melody,” the pianist admitted sheepishly.

   “That’s all right,” Fleur replied with a bright smile.

   The pianist looked over her shoulder. “Well, I must be off now. The husband’s in a bit of a hurry”. She motioned at the violinist who looked quite eager to leave.

   “Yes, of course. Thank you…” Victoire began.

   “Audrey.”

   “Audrey. Yes, thank you, Audrey, for the beautiful music.”

   With a final nod, the pianist strolled out the restaurant with her husband. A bigger band had begun to assemble which was made up mostly of men. Upon catching sight of the mother and daughter, goofy smiles appeared on their faces and they began to play loudly. Very loudly. It was hurting the ears of everyone in the restaurant, except the elderly couple that sat in the corner. They seemed to enjoy it and clapped.

Fleur put down her salad fork.

   With a shake of her magnificent head, she said, “Let’s just pay the bill and get out of here. Ehem. Excuse me. Waiter? Check please.”

<3------------------------------------------<<<

   “Mrs. Weasley! Victoire!”, Teddy Lupin called out.

   “Hello there Teddy!”, Victoire exclaimed happily. She felt a slight lurch in her stomach. Teddy Lupin had grown another 3 inches that summer. His eyes were also a bright purple, which clashed magnificently with his turquoise hair. A stranger might’ve thought he was wearing contact lenses but he was in fact a metamorphmagus, a person who can manipulate his own appearance.

   “That’s a nice jacket Teddy,” commented Fleur.

   “Thank you ma’am. It’s dragon skin leather. Uncle George got it for me last Christmas,” he grinned. Noticing the multiple shopping bags, he laughed.

   “Bought out the whole street eh?” chuckled Teddy, “I suppose people might think you’re both shopping for Christmas a bit early. Would you like some help with those?” St that very moment, his eyes turned an emerald green like Lily Potter I and the II.

   “Oh yes, please!”

   Teddy took the  two heaviest looking shopping bags from each woman.

   “How would you like to come over for dinner tonight dear?” Fleur offered as they walked inside a charming inn. It was a quaint looking inn, where the floors shone with polish and the tables were laden with vases and vases of fresh flowers.

   “That would be great ma’am!”

   “Lovely.”

   Mother and daughter stepped into the fireplace. Fleur frowned as a bit of soot got on her skirt.

“Hey Vic.”

“Yes Teddy?”

“We’ll talk later. About your gift,” Teddy grinned as he handed them the shopping bags.

“Some Gobstones would be nice,” Victoire winked and accepted the bags.

“You have thousands of those!”

“A DVD player then.”

“A what?” asked Fleur suspiciously.

“It’s nothing naughty mama,” chortled Victoire, “Honestly.”

“All right then,” the mother replied warily. Dropping some bags, she rummaged inside her purse for a small pouch of floo powder. Grabbing a handful, she threw the powder to the floor.

“Shell Cottage!”



(to be continued)