After The Magic Has Faded

Joey couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and he tilted his head slightly to the side, resembling a puppy,"And why is that?"

Astoria looked up at him once more and sighed. "Well.. If this was all a dream.. The war would be gone. Non existent?" She answered, pulling her hands away, finally.

"I suppose," Joey said quietly as he moved to sit on his cot, laying down. He couldn't imagine alife without war, not even in his dreams. But he could imagine her.

Astoria watched him lay down, then she turned and blew out the candles. The only light was a strip of moonlight shining through and the jar of fire. She felt her way to her cot and laid down, shivering slightly, looking up at the ceiling of the tent.

"Goodnight,"Joey called out into the darkness, before rolling over and closing his eyes. It was beginning to get easier to fall asleep, but the nightmares were pretty regular. Good dreams were happening as well, mainly of Astoria, of coars.e

"Goodnight." Astoria answered, before dozing off. She heard screaming.. She heard a gunshot.. She was running for a young girl that was strapped to a table, then another gun shot and she was down.. Astoria gasped and sat up quickly. The fire in the jar has gone out and the snow storm was harder than ever, causing the wind to whistle. She slapped a hand over her mouth and stifled a sob, though she didn't need to. The wind was loud enough.

Joey rolled over and noticed her silhouette sitting up and he sighed softly,"Are you okay?" He knew she wasn't, she suffered from nightmares just like her did... But sometimes they were worse than usual.

It was so cold that she felt like she couldn't breathe. She clutched her chest and breathed deeply, trying to calm her pounding heart. Tears ran down her cheeks but froze. "Y-Yes. I'm okay." She answered softly.

Joey didn't need to say anything, her could hear it in her voice. He got up, realizing just how cold it had gotten, and grabbed the fire jar. He also grabbed her wand and slid it into her fingers so she could light it. They needed warmth before anything else.

Astoria looked down at the jar and lit the flame in it, before closing the lid over it and putting her wand down. She wiped her face with her sleeve and looked up, finally able to see Joey with the flicker of the flames.

"Hey, it's okay," Joey said softly, shivering as he sat beside her and helped her rid her face of the frozen, salty tears.

Astoria looked into his gentle eyes and felt herself calm down slowly. "I know." She whispered, though her voice was still shaky. "I'm sorry that I woke you."

"I wasn't sleeping," Joey said, shaking his head as he rubbed his exhausted eyes. He yawned tiredly and shook his head, "It's too cold to sleep."

She nodded in agreement. "Indeed it is.." She grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around the two of them, so they had to huddle up. She grabbed his hands and lifted them to her lips, breathing warm air into them, like he did for her earlier.

He couldn't help but break into a smile, and slowly laid down, patting the spot beside him,"Come on... There is no way we are getting warm enough to sleep by ourselves..."

Astoria looked down at him, stunned, then she slowly laid down next to him, turning on her side to face him. She could faintly see his face with the aid of the fire.

"Was it about your sister?" Joey asked quietly, noticing her watching. Sometimes, talking about nightmares helped, and sometimes it really didn't.

Astoria averted her eyes and looked at the pattern of his shirt instead. "Yes." She answered softly. "I was reliving it." She sighed and looked back up into his eyes.

"Well, you're here with me now, and she didn't have to see how horrible the world could be," Joey said gently, reaching out and rubbing her arm.

She smiled at his gentle touch. "I know." She answered, reaching out to rest her hand on his soft cheek. "I'm glad that you're here." She whispered, scooting closer for his warmth.

Their eyes caught one another in a soft, tired gaze and Joey leaned forward a bit, her hand cupping his cheek perfectly in a way that made his heart melt for her. Their lips grazed before them met slowly.

As soon as their lips touched, Astoria felt tingles run all over her body pleasantly. She closed her eyes and found herself kissing him back. She's kissing a Muggle. But she didn't mind. Not at all.

His hands slid to her waist, the blankets making a cocoon around them with the fire jar above their heads on a small table, lighting their faces with a dim lighting as they kissed. His body felt warmer than any flame could have provided, her lips softer than he ever could have imagined.

Her hand slid around to his back, bunching up a little bit of his shirt in her fist. She felt almost hot. She didn't feel remotely cold anymore. She tilted her head, to deepen the kiss only slightly. She didn't want this moment to ever end.

Joey inhaled slowly, tilting his head as she did. They had a connection and a flow that made sparks fly, and they weren't made by her wand either. The way she pulled at his shirt made Joey hold her closer, tighter.

The way he was holding her made her feel so safe and so secure. She hasn't felt that way since before her sister died. She kissed him until she absolutely couldn't breathe anymore. She reluctantly and pulled away, breathing a little heavily, her cheeks flushed.

Joey grinned as they both has to inhale, their breathing slightly staggered as he rubbed her side and kissed her cheek, unable to keep his lips too far from her. She made him feel absolutely alive.

Astoria smiled back, her lips still tingling. Being here with him feels so right. She wrapped her arms around him and snuggled into him, gently pressing her lips to his neck.

Joey smiled and wrapped his arms around her, pulling the blankets back around them and holding her close, warmly. It felt so right to be right here, with her, and he could stay right here.

No words needed to be said. It was a comfortable silence. They laid there, listening to the roaring winds, enveloped in warmth. Eventually, Astoria dozed off, happy and content.

That night Joey slept sounder than he had in his entire life, and they slept well into the morning. He shifted enough to wake up and look down, Astoria's hair in his face and her head on his chest. He gave her a squeeze, staring at the top of the tent before he heard someone calling from outside. What was going on?

Astoria groaned when she felt him moving, and she slowly woke up, hearing the voices. She quickly got up and grabbed her wand. She bent down so that her lips were at his ear. "They can't see us. Just be silent." She whispered. She slowly stepped outside, her wand held aloft.

Joey stayed still, listening. It sounded like... Celebration? "We won! The war is over! The war is over!" It was over? No more? His hope was quickly splintered by the sound of fireworks and spell casting. The wizards won... Muggles were over with.

Astoria slowly lowered her wand, her heart pounding. After all these years.. Was it really over? She tucked her wand into her pocket and slipped back into the tent, silently watching Joey.

"This is good... The fighting is over," Joey said quietly with a nod, sitting up and rubbing the back of his head, "You don't have to hide anymore..."

Astoria shook her head and listened as the cheers of the wizards slowly became distant. She took a deep breath and sat down next to him, gently taking his hand

Joey squeezed her hand softly, staring at the ground. What did this mean? She was safe... But, what about him? His people?

Astoria looked down at their hands, a soft sigh escaping her lips. It was all over. But what was going to happen now? She looked up and gently grasped his chin, turning his head to face her. "I won't let anyone hurt you." She said firmly.

Joey nodded,"I know... But you can't hide me forever, you're free.. You can go out and make something of your world."

Astoria shook her head. "No." She held his face in her hands. "I'm staying with you. And that's final. There aren't enough wizards in the whole world to start a new world. We need the muggles and they'll understand one day. But until they do.." She leaned in and kissed his lips briefly. "I'm staying."