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Though Daphne's dark red cloak obscured her outline, the long, blonde hair made it fairly obvious who she was from a distance as she walked leisurely down the nicer end of Diagon. She'd been quite busy this morning between meeting with the Malfoy PR witch, submitting some advertisements (a charity dinner for the incurables and openning applications for the annual Draco Malfoy Hogwarts Scholarship), and having tea with a few of the more sympathetic Prophet reporters.
The last few months has been a whirlwind of meetings, plans, parties, and strategy. Daphne was trying to get Draco a tactical and bloodless revenge on the Ministry while still having them both look wonderful in the public eye. She knew going in that making the new generation of Malfoys look innocent was going to be an uphill battle, but it was turning out to be harder than she thought.
The lawyers were amassing evidence about the flawed Ministry legal system and searching for previous cases of the wrongly imprisoned unable to seek restitution. The more cases they could find, the better. Draco's side of the story had been printed in the Prophet and been reprinted in a handful of other publications. The Malfoy Scholarship was unofficially earmarked for a half-blood. So long as some poor witch or wizard with a Muggle grandmother or grandfather applied, the money would be theirs. It was important to show some generousity to those of impure blood. They certainly weren't giving the money to a mublood, but a mixed child would be fine.
With all of these plates in the air, Daphne wanted to relax over an afternoon snack. To that end, she'd sent last minute owls to Mandy (with Harry's name for politeness), Draco, and Theodore, inviting them to meet her at the smart, new cocktail and appetizer restaurant that had opened in a loft above a luxury clothing store. If they didn't get the owls in time, she was sure she'd know someone who was there already.
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Daphne had no intention of running home after Draco and was quite glad to see the Theodore didn't seem to think she should. "So, is it generally more efficacious to buy out a company that already has a warehouse or to construct? I know precious little about all of this stuff, but it seems quite interesting," she said as she nibbled from a new tray.
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Theodore helped himself to more of the food. It seemed that Daphne and he would be eating all of this themselves.
"Well, that's all a matter of location, really. In London, it's almost always easier to buy out extant facilities, which sometimes means buying whole companies. It's just really expensive to build and remodel here in the city with all of the necessary Muggle precautions and whatnot. Out in Bath, it's probably cheaper to build. I'm just not sure if a Bath warehouse could sustain itself for very long. That area typically operates out of the Cardiff warehouses."
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Daphne nodded, drinking a bit more while she thought. "But, as Mandy was saying, the area was really growing. Is there anything to be gained in possibly having a smaller-scale operation there? Less a warehouse and more of a boutique, catering to the tourists and nouveau riche?"
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Theodore thought about it while continuing to eat. "I suppose that might be profitable. We normally go big or don't go at all, but a small operation might encourage the start up of several independent shops. The competition isn't necessarily exciting, but it might stimulate the real estate market even more. And the more people that move to Bath, the more profitable our operations there would become."
He smiled at the reasoning. He was proud of the idea. "I think I've let you and Mandy talk me into it. We'll give it a try."
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"Brilliant," Daphne said. "I may just have to do some shopping in Bath... Theodore, I'd like to thank you for continuing the friendship between yourself and Draco despite, well, everything. He may not show it, but it means a great deal to him. Without you and I, he'd be alone," she continued frankly.
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Theodore sighed and sat back in his chair.
"Draco and I have been friends for so long that I cannot remember not being friends. And before you, I think I may be the only person who would ever have considered himself a friend of Draco Malfoy. I've never put up with his bullshit. And I think he respects me for that."
Theodore paused for a moment, contemplating his relationship with Draco. "Our parents fed us a lot of crap growing up. Some of their detractors may have called it brainwashing. And he certainly got the worst of it. It sounds awful, but I suppose I'm lucky that my parents died when they did. I learned the consequences of their fight sooner rather than later. Hopefully, Draco will learn from his pain. 'Til then, I suppose we can only wait and be supportive, and try to keep him out of trouble."
Theodore finished another glass of gin and shook off the seriousness. "So, you've never told me what you think of Mandy dating the Boy-Who-Lived?"
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Daphne nodded along with what Theodore had said, frowning slightly. He was quite right about it all, and she certainly hoped her husband would learn something from his misery. Something that would keep him out of trouble.
The change of subject was quite welcome, and Daphne laughed despite herself. "I find it fantastically absurd. She told me, not long ago, that it started back in the castle. After Granger had passed. Mandy bought into the branwashing as well, more than either of us. She hides it well in mixed company, and these days, she's either in denial or trying to change. So, being near him while Granger was alive was never appealing.
"The fact that I heard nothing of it until more than a year after it began is telling. She hid it from her pureblood circle... I suppose she thought we'd all shun her with him being a halfblood- and the face of all that fights against our idealogical upbringing. I don't know what he's playing at, though. He has to know her thoughts on blood purity and her family's financial backing of the Cause. She can't have hidden it this long. What do you make of it?" she finished, taking a long sip from her drink. This was quite a good cocktail.
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The server brought Theodore another drink. He waited until she left, not wanting her to catch anything they were talking about.
"Well, you know how I was in school, I never really cared much about who was dating whom. I think I recall guessing that something was going on between the two of them. Mandy said something at your wedding that re-confirmed it. I had all but forgotten.
"I can't say that I know what to think about their relationship. Harry's not a fool; I imagine that he's put two and two together. But I assume that something would have to give, and Harry seems far too stubborn to give up on his principles. Maybe Mandy's changing."
Theodore shrugged. It occurred to him that he'd changed a lot himself since his school days. He remembered being so angry at Harry after the Ministry fiasco in fifth year that put his father in prison. But Theodore eventually realized that his father was a fool, and that blaming Harry was useless.
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"Perhaps she is. I think I would be more inclined to believe it if she didn't make a habit of referring to Hermione Granger as," Daphne lowered her voice, "a filthy little mudblood cloud." She frowned slightly as if at least one part of that was uncalled for. "Even so, that might just be the old school rivalry talking. Our class does seem to be couling oddly. I wouldn't have predicted Millicent and Ron Weasley, either."
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Theodore laughed. "Well, Millie always was a contrarian. They've been together at least since your wedding. I remember seeing him there. I wonder if they're settling down. She must feel so out of place among his friends and family."
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"As far as I know, she's still living with Zabini... I really couldn't see her at the Weasley home, and I can only imagine what his mother must think. The Weasleys have always been Gryffindors and sympathizers. I'd be less worried about Millicent and more worried about his family," Daphne said, contemplating it all. Christmas must be so awkward for them. "Zabini's gotten so more songs on the wireless. Amazing he could string lyrics together, really."
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Theodore let out a great big laugh at Daphne's comment about Zabini. It drew more than a few glances from around the room. "Oh, Blaze. You can't imagine how many times I sat and listened to him bemoan his life. Honestly, I know more about the man than anyone would ever want to know."
Theodore briefly recalled his days at the castle, playing listener and confidante to his housemates. He was the quiet type in those days to whom people felt comfortable telling their problems and sometimes their secrets. That's largely why Draco and he had been friends for so long, besides the childhood play dates, of course.
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Daphne laughed softly. "I certainly hope he's gotten over Pansy breaking it off with him, but unless he wrote his latest song quite a bit ago, I wouldn't hold my breath on it. I feel rather bad for him. He really thought she'd look past the poverty and consider him for marriage," she said contemplatively.
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"Well, I would feel bad for Blaise if he'd ever made something of himself, but he's poor and most incapable of skilled labor. Nevertheless, I'm glad the wireless is picking up a few of his songs. I wish him well despite his shortcomings." Theodore wasn't heartless.
"Have you heard from Pansy lately? Or Crabbe?" Theodore asked, it seems that they were just going to cycle through the whole class.
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"Pansy? Merlin, no. I don't think she'll ever be calling me round for tea again since I got involved with Draco. She had a fairy tale wedding planned. In fact, I think she bought a wedding planner and stated filling it out in our fourth year. No, unfortunately, Pansy and I have severed ties, and I haven't heard anything of her... As for Crabbe, he's been keeping a low profile. Last I heard, he was working as a broom maintenance man for the amateur quidditch league," she rattled off, sounding slightly sad at having completely lost Pansy, but certainly not devastated.
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