bittersweet and delicate

Veritaserum! Frank & Open 31 October 1980, Potter Residence

One drink in and a few un-thought through words spoke out loud left Frank being overly cautious about who he spoke to. As it was, he was going out of his way to avoid people unless it was Alice since she knew him better than anyone else at the party. He was doing pretty good about it for the most part and could count the biggest challenge of the night as not begging his fiancée to go home.

A low scoff escaped when someone neared him and the words came out before he could stop them. “I can’t believe you thought that was a good look,” He scowled, expression faltering the moment he realized he spoke the thought. “Dammit. I swear I’m not usually this crude.”

~

Narcissa was trying to make the rounds, although it was getting to be rather difficult the more people seemed to arrive. She didn’t even know half of them, and she was doing her best to avoid the people that she didn’t know. She had danced with Lucius, which had been nice, and now she wanted to find someone that she recognized. She wasn’t used to being around so many people that she didn’t know. When you were a Black it often felt like she knew everyone that mattered.

She had spotted Frank and made her way over to him. She was taken aback by his words, however. She narrowed her eyes as she looked at him. “Well that’s rather rude, don’t you think? But what is it that you don’t like?” She questioned, placing a hand on her hip, a dangerous edge to her voice. “I’m sure Alice would love to hear that.”

who: rita dolohov & open where: halloween party when: october 31st, 1980

There was nothing that would stop Rita from stepping over the threshold into this home once word had made it to her just how many individuals would be in attendance. Alcohol, costumes, and close quarters meant that this was the perfect place for people to spill some secrets that they didn’t mean to. She’d been a princess long before she’d slipped on the costume she wore thus while some would find the corset back suffocating Rita wore it like her second skin. 

She wasn’t sure who’d thrust the drink into her hand but she accepted it with a smile, not yet taking a drink as she looked around for a familiar individual, her eyes settling on one in particular. “I’m surprised to see you here.” She murmured as soon as she was close enough, a smile pressed to her perfectly painted lips. “This doesn’t really seem like a place that would grab your attention.”

~

“Rita!” Narcissa greeted with a smile when she saw the other woman walk by. She shrugged her shoulders. “Well, Sirius is helping to throw the party so I figured we would come,” she explained.  It was a part of trying to be a better cousin to him than she had been to Regulus. And well...it wasn’t a society party. She felt like she had the opportunity to be more of herself than she could at a ball. She didn’t know what it was that had her feeling more free than she had in the past few weeks, but she wasn’t ready to let go of the feeling. 

“I didn’t think that you would be here,” she mused. “You look amazing, though, I love the costume,” she complimented. She glanced through the crowd and spotted Lucius talking with Rodolphus a few feet away. She quite liked the glittery tux that they had charmed, it made it easier to spot him when he was in the vicinity. “How are you, Rita?” She questioned. “It feels like it’s been forever. You need to come over for tea one day. Or drinks,” she offered. 

who: marlene mckinnon & open where: halloween party when: october 31st, 1980.

Hesitation was deep down in her bones when it came to the thought of attending this party. She hadn’t felt like doing much partying since graduating, it also didn’t help that her career kept her busy, but even more so this had grown far past a crowd that she trusted. With everyone here someone was bound to get hurt, mistakes were likely going to be made. But with Dorcas by her side she was willing to brave the whole crowd but just like that the two were separated and Marlene was left on her own.

She found comfort in the glass of firewhiskey she’d found, hiding in the back of the home in the yard where only a few stragglers seemed to have found themselves so far. The scent of a cigarette filled her nostrils, nose wrinkling for a moment as she leaned a little closer to the individual. “Those things will kill ya.” Marlene murmured with a smirk tugging at her lips as she leaned back away from the person before her.

~

Narcissa’s good mood had turned when she overheard someone say something absolutely horrendous about Andromeda, and she had needed to escape. She had no idea where Lucius had gone off to, and a part of her just wanted to go home, but she knew that Lucius would worry and she had no intention of telling him about what she had heard. They had never even mentioned Andromeda’s name before to each other, and she didn’t want to be in this state when it finally came up. And she had no idea how Lucius would feel if he knew that she was grieving her sister. 

So Narcissa had escaped the house and made her way outside, figuring that the fresh air would do her some good. She had spotted someone smoking a cigarette, and she had bummed a cigarette off of them. It was a horrible habit. She knew if her mother knew that she ever touched one she would be furious, and she had no idea what Lucius would think so she didn’t smoke often. But there was something oddly calming about it. Narcissa nearly jumped when she heard Marlene’s voice, her cheeks turning pink, a guilty look passing over her face. “I didn’t see you there,” she replied. How long had she been there?

Narcissa had snuck out of the party to get some fresh air when she sensed someone hovering behind her. She assumed that it was Lucius perhaps, following her outside, so she was rather surprised when she saw James Potter standing behind her. “Hey,” she greeted. She still didn’t quite know how to feel about James Potter even all of these years later, but he was a friend of Sirius’s, and that was good enough for her, she supposed. She had found herself seeking out Sirius’s company more and more in the aftermath of what had happened to Andromeda and Regulus, and she had come to terms that that meant that she might have to interact with his friends as well.

“You boys did a good job,” she complimented, although slightly grudgingly. She had been sure that the party would turn out just fine since Sirius had been helping, and he was a Black after all, but she had admittedly been a bit hesitant to come. But she had saw it as a good way for her and Lucius to be seen together, and it could be a fun night for them. Narcissa had desperately needed a fun night without being in her head. “Although...do you guys really know all of these people?” She questioned. She thought that Sirius had said that it would be a smaller thing, and well, tonight seemed like the opposite of small.

Narcissa had been enjoying the night, mingling amongst the party-goers, and dancing with Evan for half the night. She felt lighter than she had in weeks, and she had lost track of Lucius a while ago, but she wasn’t worried. She was sure that he would show up. She had been avoiding the alcohol so far, wanting to enjoy being in the moment and feeling the best that she had since everything with Andromeda. She worried that drinking would bring her good mood down, or make her want to go home, she tended to be a lightweight, and well...it was too soon into her marriage for Lucius to see her at her messiest. He really had no idea how much of a struggle she had been having lately, and she intended to keep it that way. 

But she finally decided that maybe she would partake in something, just one drink would be fine, and she made her way through the throng of people, smiling at people that she recognized here and there, and stopping to say hello when she saw someone that her mother would want her to talk to. Finally making it to the drink table, she got herself a drink and she was about to take a sip from the glass when she looked over and saw Alice standing there. “Hey!” She greeted, feeling warmer towards the other woman than she had in the last few weeks. “You look great! Where’s Frank? I haven’t seen him yet,” She told her. 

“Oh my God,” Narcissa squealed when she spotted her cousin. He was dressed all in gold, just like her, but she didn’t find herself feeling jealous or mad. If it had been anyone else, she would have been furious, but it was Evan. “Evan! You look incredible!” She exclaimed, laughing as she looked over her cousin’s costume. She wasn’t surprised that he and Nellie looked incredible, she expected nothing less of her cousins, but there was something about Evan’s costume that she just adored. “I’m obsessed. We’re practically matching too.” Evan and Nellie were the only people that she could accept dressing better than herself and Lucius. 

She felt lighter tonight than she had since Andromeda’s death. She felt a twinge of guilt for being happy while Andromeda was gone, but she pushed those feelings to the back of her mind. She deserved to have a night of happiness. She deserved to smile and dance and drink and be a normal person again. Things had been so hard lately and she just wanted one night of not thinking about all of the sad things. She was sure that she would feel it in the morning, but for now she wanted to be in the moment and enjoy herself. 

Lucius & @nrcissamlfoy​ Potter residence, 31 October 1980

Jealousy, although he wouldn’t label it as such, was a new feeling for Lucius. It hit out of nowhere and left him feeling confused at the sudden rush of emotions that accompanied seeing Narcissa dancing with someone else from across the room. There was no explanation for it and the worst part of things was his barely thinking things through. One moment, he was speaking to an old acquaintance. The next, he was excusing himself to cross the dance floor and intercept his wife.

“I’m cutting in,” He narrowed his eyes at the person Narcissa was dancing with. It took a slight eyebrow raise for his words to be taken seriously. The look lingered until they were out of sight. A deep breath was needed before he was able to trust himself with calmly speaking to his wife. He slipped one arm around her waist and held onto one of her hands with the other, thumb brushing over the back of her hand before he spoke.

“My apologies,” Lucius met her gaze and forced out a chuckle. “Usually I would ask but I-” He paused, trying to find the right way to phrase what he was thinking. “I have no idea what came over me.”

~

Narcissa hadn’t seen Lucius in some time, but she had figured that he had run into one of his friends or an acquaintance and had been sucked into a conversation. She had been enjoying her time with Evan, dancing, and she had just started to dance with one of Evan’s friends and someone that she knew from society parties and the like. She didn’t think there was anything wrong with it, and well...it was clear to her that Lucius had had no interest in dancing with her anyway. She had been a tad disappointed, but she reminded herself that she and Lucius were still getting to know each other, and she had had to convince him to come tonight anyways. She thought that it was entirely possible that he just wasn’t that into Halloween, which was fine. 

At her husband’s sudden voice, she turned to look at him and let go of Sebastien’s hand, biting down on her lip. She had never heard that edge to his voice, or seen the look on his face. It was a curious thing as he reached out and wrapped an arm around her waist and took her hand in his. “Hey,” she greeted softly. Was he upset with her? That was something that she hadn’t considered. Perhaps she should have been more attentive. 

At his apology, she shook her head and met his gaze. “It’s okay. I’m happy to dance with you,” she told him. “You’re a much better dancer than Sebastien anyways, but you didn’t hear that from me,” she teased lightly. “I’m sorry if I wasn’t being as attentive as I should have been.”

…

In the safety of their flat, Nellie was allowed to grieve freely. Her anguish at losing both one of her best friend’s and her cousin was felt all the time, but she couldn’t afford to feel it outside the walls of her home. Knowing that Narcissa lost a sister, and a cousin, but was in an environment where she couldn’t grieve freely, Nellie was desperate to give her that space. Besides, the last thing she wanted was for Narcissa to feel alone. Both her cousin and one of her best friends, Nellie would do everything she could to be there for her. Their parents might be fine with writing Andromeda off, but she knew Narcissa wasn’t anymore okay with it than she or Evan were. 

These days, Nellie was grateful that her cover was still so firmly intact. It allowed for her to remain in contact with Narcissa, and with Bellatrix, which was something she loathed to give up. She coudn’t imagine a life where she didn’t have Narcissa beside her. Given the loss they’d just endured, who could blame her for wanting to hold onto her a little tighter. Opening the door, she gave her a small smile, “Hey, honey.” 

Opening the door wider and stepping aside, she nodded, “I figured. I imagine it’s been very stifling.” Shutting the door, Nellie gave her a soft look, “Cissa, you know you don’t have to wear any masks here, yeah? You’re safe to feel anything here. Evan and I know how to keep a secret,” she promised. 

~

All her mother had wanted to talk about was the wedding, which was only a few days away, while Narcissa wanted to lock herself in her room and cry and scream and rage at the world. She had been bottling it all up, after Trix had reminded her that Andromeda was a traitor, she didn’t dare let her emotions out. She wished desperately that someone would acknowledge what they had lost, would say something. But it was truly like Andromeda had never existed. She wondered what her parents were thinking and feeling, she had been watching for a slip of their masks or a tremble in their voice, but she hadn’t heard anything. It was truly like nothing had happened. Narcissa was starting to feel like she was the only one that cared about what had happened.

But one look at Nellie’s face and she knew that she was feeling it too. Even in the small smile that Nellie had on her face, Narcissa could just tell. She suddenly felt like she had made the right choice, coming here. Evan would never judge, sometimes she felt like she could commit the worlds worst faux paus and he wouldn’t bat an eye, and she knew that Nellie would never say anything. That she would keep any secret that Narcissa told her. 

She offered her a grateful smile as she walked through the door and looked over at her cousin. “Yeah,” she agreed, nodding her head. “Mother’s been going on and on about the wedding.” When Nellie spoke again, and gave her that look, her resolve crumbled and tears started to flow down her cheeks. “It’s not fair,” she whispered. “Why did Andromeda have to be so stupid? Why did she leave me?”

♚

The idea of mentioning Andromeda was downright laughable in Lucius’ opinion. It was something that would need to be discussed eventually but he wasn’t sure how to approach the topic in a way that wouldn’t make things more awkward than they already were between him and Narcissa. He and Andromeda had stuck to keeping up appearances and acknowledging there was little between them past the arrangement. Even with years to settle into the idea of the marriage, there had been minimal attempts at getting to know each other past reaching agreements about how they would conduct themselves in public. Handholding and the occasional peck on the lips had been the extent of things, with Andromeda claiming anything else would have to wait until after the wedding. He had been content with things remaining that way since he was in no position to argue or do something to jeopardize the arrangement.

The betrayal had come as a shock and the suggestion of marrying Narcissa had been one he didn’t expect his parents to accept. There had been minimal warning about it past him and Narcissa knowing they couldn’t afford to have things go wrong. Lucius wouldn’t dare admit it out loud but he had no idea what he was doing in regards to be married.

They had fallen into a routine of sorts and that certainly helped things but he still felt as though he barely knew Narcissa. He couldn’t ask his parents for advice since the two were cold enough to each other for him to know they wouldn’t have anything helpful to give. The only thing he was aware of was not wanting to have things between him and Narcissa end up the way his parents were. That meant putting in some sort of effort regardless of how awkward it made him feel.

“It is up to you,” He gave a low chuckle when Narcissa spoke, knowing full well the conversation would go in circles if one of them didn’t make a decision. “I do though,” The thought was accompanied by a shrug. Dancing came as naturally as playing piano — one of the handful of skills his mother expected perfection on.

“Certainly would not say no if you are feeling up to it,” He murmured. “I don’t want my opinion on it to force you into saying we can if you would rather not though.”

~

Narcissa wanted things to work. No, she needed them to work between her and Lucius. There was no other option here. She worried about where her family would be if Lucius hadn’t been the one to suggest the marriage. She couldn’t deny that it hadn’t been what she wanted at first, she had worried about what people would think, her marrying her sister’s fiancé, but she couldn’t deny that it hadn’t done what it was supposed to. People had accepted their marriage and people were still telling her how beautiful their wedding had been. People didn’t dare mention Andromeda or the scandal to her face, and she certainly hoped that that continued. She wasn’t sure how she was going to react when someone brought up what had happened to Andromeda. Especially if it was someone that was of the believe that they had gotten what they deserved. It would completely break Narcissa on the inside, although on the outside she would remain impassive, unfeeling. It was what she had to do to protect her family and now, her husband. 

So she was going to do whatever she had to to make sure that she and Lucius got to know each other, no matter how awkward it might seem. She wished that she could ask her mother if things had been so awkward between her parents when they had been first married, but she didn’t want to bring her mother and her opinions into her marriage. It felt nice to have something that her mother couldn’t micromanage, even if she meant well by it. 

She smiled at him and laughed softly. “I think we could probably play this game forever,” she mused. One of them would have to take a stand, and she was unsure of why Lucius wasn’t the one to make it. He certainly wasn’t what she had expected, but in a good way. She appreciated that he seemed to care for her comfort and what she wanted. 

At his admittance that he did enjoy dancing, she nodded her head. ‘Me too,” she told him. She finally stood up and offered her hand to him, realizing that her mother would probably think that she was being too forward, but she decided that it didn’t matter in the long run. “Let’s dance then.”

♚

He had never had a reason to speak to Narcissa besides exchanging pleasantries and making sure he was polite enough to not upset her or Bellatrix. Family was a tough topic for Lucius since he was an only child with two of the most controlling people he had met as his parents. Abraxas and Katya had done their best to make sure their son was raised with the highest of expectations. There was no room for error and Lucius was well aware of that.

They hadn’t needed to speak to him about the expectations of the family dinner. The conversation where Lucius threw out the suggestion of marrying Andromeda’s younger sister out as an option had proven to be effective enough. Thankfully, Abraxas hadn’t laid a wand or hand on him but the threat was still there. He was certain his father wouldn’t be as forgiving if he did something to further jeopardize the family’s name.

“I intend to be back before dessert,” He murmured when he caught his mother’s gaze from across the table. Neither parent said anything but Abraxas gave a nod. That was the most he could ask for given the circumstances. “Gladly,” Lucius exhaled once Narcissa took his arm. He took the lead toward the garden, only allowing a sigh of relief to escape once certain they were out of earshot.

“Let me begin by assuring you I had nothing to do with the wedding date remaining the same,” He forced out a chuckle. Words were proving hard to find but he could at least acknowledge he would have wanted to know Narcissa a little better instead of being paired together mere days after Andromeda ruined everything. “Only credit I can take was putting my foot down about letting you pick your own gown out. They were considering saving money by adjusting the gown they already have.”

~

It was difficult to imagine her life married to Lucius. She had spent years imagining her life in Paris. But she knew what she was expected to do and she needed to forget about what she had been planning and focus on what was happening. And that was a marriage to Lucius Malfoy. Watching him from across the table, she couldn’t deny that he was handsome and he seemed like a gentleman so far. Of course she had no real way of knowing since she hadn’t had a real conversation with him. But she was hopeful that it would work out.

Her mother had been going on about how this match suited her more than Henri, and that she would be happier staying in England with her family. She had said that they should have betrothed her to Lucius in the first place, that Andromeda was always going to turn out to be a disappointment. She knew that it was just her mother’s way of dealing with what had happened, but it had still stung. Narcissa knew that she shouldn’t, but she still loved Andromeda, always would, even if she was locked up in Azkaban for the rest of her life. 

Despite the dinner going well, Narcissa had been glad that Lucius had suggested they go for a walk. Perhaps she could get a better sense of who he was, and of what he liked. Everything was happening so quickly, their wedding would be in just a few short weeks, and she didn’t even know Lucius. She wished that she could slow down time, or convince her parents to move the wedding back, but she knew that it was no use. Her parents wanted her married to Lucius as fast as possible, before the Malfoys could back out of the arrangement.

“Oh,” she said with a light laugh. “I didn’t think that you had anything to do with that.” She knew that it was her parents not wanting to give them an opportunity to change their minds. “It only makes sense...we wouldn’t want them to throw out all of the um, work that they’ve put in.” Her mother had been planning this wedding for years it seemed, she wasn’t going to throw aside all of her hard work. At his next words, she looked up at him, grateful. “Thank you,” she said softly. “I um...that means a lot to me.” She hadn’t wanted to wear the dress that Andromeda had picked out, and she was just glad that Lucius had put his foot down on it. “It was a nice gown... but um, you know. Not what I would want to wear,” she said awkwardly.

TW: DEATH MENTION the deception of her sister had come without expectation or inkling. although if you were to look back at her past decisions ( dating the mudblood, falling for him ) perhaps it wasn’t such a surprise. but bellatrix had been sure that when she’d told her sister to put a stop to the embarassing entanglement, she would have. they’d grown up with the very firm notion and belief that family came first above all. yet the mudblood hadn’t been the only thing she’d been hiding under her sheets it seemed. god, trix had been angry. she’d been at the ministry handing in a report when the news broke. she’d stayed and watched her sister be brought in before being sent to azkaban. please be a mistake, her heart screamed. and yet the faint tear tracks and angry expression was all that her sister saw.

destroyed. it was a strong notion, and yet bellatrix had felt it. she’d apparated home and destroyed the east wing of the lestrange manor. she’d screamed, she’d shouted. she’d cursed and she’d jinxed. and then the news of her death came. and despite all that rage and betrayal and disappointment, was a roaring wave of grief that gripped her like a hand around her throat. a hand that wouldn’t let go. with a haphazard silencing charm cast around the wreck of the room she’d been stood in ( another victim to her vexation ), she’d collapsed to the floor, her hands and knees holding her up from laying down, and she’d wailed. she’d cried. she’d lamented. she’d sobbed. andromeda was gone. the lying, betraying, bitch ( that she loved intrinsically, more than she could ever properly vocalise ) was dead.

house elves had been tasked with cleaning the mess and returning the wing to it’s glory as bellatrix left the house in a hurry. heading, for the first time in a while, to the black family manor. she knew she needed to see her parents but more than that, she needed to see narcissa. so when the blonde came into view, bellatrix had to resist the urge to pull her into her arms and hold her close. their parents would not approve.

the brunette nodded her head. she saw her sisters tears. “she is a traitor, narcissa,’ she uttered as a reminder, and yet her own eyes grew heavy with tears ( ones she wouldn’t let fall ). “she was…” she realised the words, quietly. bellatrix turned on her heel and disappeared into her father’s study. after a while, there was a noise and she came crashing out, her cheek red, her eyes wide. “do you want to take a walk?” she asked lowly, trying to level herself.

~

Narcissa felt her cheeks turn pink when Trix reminded her that she was a traitor. “I-I know,” she whispered, her voice cracking from holding in the tears. Was. Andromeda was a traitor. Just like she was dead and Narcissa would never be able to see her again. She needed to get her emotions in check, she knew that. She couldn’t cry over Andromeda, it wasn’t proper, and her family wouldn’t approve of her grief. Her parents had barely shown any emotion at the news before they had went their separate ways to their respective rooms. She had no idea of what was going on behind the closed door of her father’s study, or in her mother’s bedroom. But she was sure that whenever they emerged, Andromeda would never be spoken of again. It would be like they didn’t exist at all, and Narcissa had no idea how she was supposed to go on. 

It didn’t help that she had been wracked with guilt ever since Andromeda had been sentenced to Azkaban. She had known that something was going on between Andromeda and Ted Tonks and she had let it happen. If she had spoken up would Andromeda still be here? Or would it have just ruined their relationship to a place that it couldn’t be fixed? She supposed that it didn’t matter, but she would have to carry the guilt and the what ifs for the rest of her life. Narcissa could never speak up about what she had seen that day in the hallway outside of Andromeda’s flat. She didn’t know how Bellatrix would handle the news if she ever said something. She just wished that she could go back and fix things, go back and stop Andromeda from making such a big mistake. Why had she thought that she could stop the dark lord? Why did she have to fall in love with Ted Tonks? He had been her undoing, she was sure of it. 

When Bellatrix emerged from their father’s study, Narcissa hadn’t moved and she hadn’t read a single word on the page of her book. She didn’t think that she had even turned the page once, although she couldn’t really remember. The book was supposed to be a distraction, to get her out of her own head, but she had realized that trying not to cry was taking up all of her, that at any moment the façade was going to break and the tears would come. But she couldn’t do that. Not after Trix’s reminder that Andromeda was a traitor. 

At her question, Narcissa nodded her head and closed the book before she stood up to face her sister. Trix was the only sister that she had left. The thought sent another fresh wave of grief through her that she struggled to bury. She was quiet as they walked out to the garden, but when they got outside, she glanced up at her sister. How did she do it? Remain so calm? Narcissa could see the red tinge to her eyes but Trix was always so put together and she had no idea how she did it. “Lucius and his parents came for dinner the other night,” she finally spoke up. “Mother... we’re going to pick out a wedding dress this week. Do you want to come?” She offered. It was strange. She was going to marry the man that should have been Andromeda’s husband. It felt wrong, but she knew what she had to do. “I would really like it if you came.”

❃

“No familial ties if I take the brunt of the trouble,” Ted shook his head. He didn’t necessarily think lowly of himself but it would make the most sense for him to take the blame if something were to happen. “Less damage done than if it turns into ‘Meda taking the fall. One person missing me instead of everyone missing her.” He glanced back up at Narcissa and shrugged at her question.

“Tears,” Ted repeated with a nod, expression unreadable while he struggled to figure out how much could be said without giving too much away. The apprehension from Narcissa left him assuming not much had been said in regards to him and Andromeda. Where Narcissa wasn’t his sister, he wasn’t comfortable with saying much. There wasn’t any knowing how much could be said before too much was revealed. He wasn’t sure if Narcissa could be trusted — even with her saying she would forget running into him happened. “I shouldn’t have mentioned it.”

The thought came out in a whisper and Ted shifted uncomfortably, lips pressing together in an attempt at hiding the frown that desperately wanted to crease over his lips. “It isn’t my place to say but they… We’re…” He trailed off, gaze promptly dropping to his feet. “We are well aware of the consequences.” It hadn’t been what he initially wanted to say but there was too much that Narcissa wasn’t aware of to try to say anything else.

He and Andy were under two weeks away from their decided date for eloping and leaving the country. Thoughts of turning their back on the magical community were among the discussion from the morning along with trying to figure out if there was an easier way of going about handling things. The less people that knew, the better but that meant more harm done on Andromeda’s end. “‘Meda’s set on finding a way to make things work,” It was the least dangerous way of hinting toward Andromeda not being happy about the way their life was going. “And is not willing to take calling things off with me into consideration.”

~

He had a point, as much as she didn’t want to admit it. Andromeda falling from grace would hurt the family and it would hurt the Malfoys, putting their families into a difficult situation that nobody wanted to be in. But she didn’t want to see Andromeda hurting either, and she knew that if Ted was harmed, than Andromeda would have to deal with that and carry it for the rest of her life. It was clear that Ted meant a lot to Andromeda, more than Narcissa had ever imagined. “Well if you get hurt than I don’t think that Andromeda will ever forgive any of us so there’s no point in putting her in that position,” Narcissa pointed out.

Narcissa felt her anxiety over the situation grow at the mention of there being tears. Tears for what? Andromeda’s wedding to Lucius was looming over them, growing closer and closer by the day and it was time to make a choice. Andromeda didn’t break things off with Ted when they should have and now it was growing too late. Narcissa wished that Andromeda would have done the right thing all those years ago when Ted first entered into her life. She didn’t think that the Malfoys would be understanding about this indiscretion. And that wasn’t even taking into account what their father would say if he were to find out what Andromeda had been up to, who she had been spending time with. Cygnus Black would be furious, and Narcissa hated to see her dad that angry.

“No, you shouldn’t have,” she agreed, looking up to meet his eyes. “But you did.” She thought that he owed her an explanation of sorts. Or...at least some sort of sense that Andromeda was okay and doing the right thing. “Andromeda’s stubborn.” There was a sinking feeling in her stomach in the way that he said it, that they were aware of the consequences. “Always has been, always will be.” 

Her stomach flopped at his revelation. Andromeda wasn’t going to give him up? Then what other option was there? The wedding was mere weeks away and she was certain that the Malfoys wouldn’t approve of Andromeda consorting with a muggleborn. What was it about this muggleborn that Andromeda found so appealing? That they were willing to throw it all away. She couldn’t understand. She lived for their family, lived to be a Black and to uphold the standards that their family had put on her since she was little. “I don’t want to know any more,” Narcissa finally said firmly. “I can’t know anything else. My parents will be furious with me if they knew that I knew this much and didn’t tell them.” It would put her into trouble with them and she couldn’t have that. “Just...don’t hurt Andromeda, okay? Promise me.”

The knock at the door had taken Narcissa by surprise. She wasn’t expecting anyone, and Lucius was out for dinner with some people from work so he wasn’t expecting anyone. She glanced down at her outfit, glad that she hadn’t changed into her pajamas just yet. Narcissa could only imagine what the gossip mill would think of her answering the door in her pajamas. They would look for any excuse to ridicule her or find a reason to find fault with her. Bellatrix would never have to deal with those whispers, but she reminded herself that they were all just jealous of who she was, of who she was married to. 

Narcissa made her way into the foyer and pulled open the door to find Kingsley Riddle standing on the threshold. She thought that she managed to hide the look of surprise that flashed over her face for a moment, and she tried to push down the feeling of anxiety in her chest at the sight of him. His father was the reason that Andromeda was gone but she knew how important it was that he didn’t suspect the resentment and anger that she felt towards him and the dark lord. 

“Kingsley! You must come in, this is such a surprise,” she greeted him, stepping aside so he could walk into the foyer. “Can I get you anything? I’m so sorry, you just missed Lucius, he isn’t home,” she informed him. What had brought him here for an impromptu visit? Had Lucius agreed to meet with him and forgotten? That didn’t seem to be like Lucius, but she couldn’t find any other explanation for his unexpected visit.

—

Things had felt a little tense with the Black family lately. Alice could understand. She had been the one to escort Andromeda to Azkaban after all. It was well within reason to believe they blamed her. Of course, it was Andromeda’s own sister that her ratted her out to the world. But sometimes it was easier to blame someone outside of the family. So, it had felt tense. Alice didn’t like. She had been around the Black family for longer than she could remember. They were her family. Narcissa and Andromeda had felt as much her sisters as Bellatrix did.

She hadn’t seen Narcissa in a while. The brunette wouldn’t if the other Black sister was ignoring her, or avoiding her. It would make sense. “Cissa.” She murmured with a smile. “Oh…. I’m not sure actually….” She mused with a delicate shrug of her shoulders. “I’ve barely seen her today actually.”

~

It was hard to be around Alice without remembering what had happened. But Narcissa knew that she had to try to go back to normal. She knew that it wouldn’t do to be too upset in public about what had happened, that people would misconstrue her love for Andromeda as disloyalty. And Narcissa couldn’t afford that, her family couldn’t afford that, and she was sure that Lucius would have something to say about it. So she needed to get better at hiding her emotions in public and around people that would look at her like she was less because of her soft spot for her sister. It wasn’t fair, that was for certain, but she hadn’t been dealt a fair hand. 

She bit down on her lip when Alice admitted that she had barely seen her today. “Oh,” she said with a sigh. The thought of going back to the house to wait for Lucius to come home was unappealing. “I don’t suppose that you would want to grab lunch with me?” Narcissa offered. “I mean I completely understand if you’re busy...but we haven’t spent any time together lately and we need to fix that.”

…

After the loss of Regulus and Andromeda, Nellie was holding tight to the family she had left, even if they didn’t necessarily stand on the same side. Of course, no one could know where Nellie’s true loyalties rested, and as such, she would have had to keep up appearances anyways. However, Nellie wasn’t showing up for their weekly meet up out of obligation, she was going because she wanted to. Cissa was one of her favorite people in the world, and she would always choose to spend her time with her, at least as much as she could. Their Sunday drinks were the part of her week she consistently looked forward to. She had worried at first, in the early days of Cissa and Lucius’ marriage, that their Sunday tradition would cease to exist, however, she needn’t have worried. 

Spotting her cousin easily, Penelope grinned widely, making her way through the crowd so that she was standing before her. Returning her hug, adding just a little bit of an extra squeeze before letting go, Nellie gave her a bright smile. “Hiya, Cissa. Great place you picked out,” she greeted, genuine in her compliment. She took a seat across from her, getting comfortable for the evening. Nellie took in the pub, impressed with how it managed to be both cozy and still rather classy for a pub. As a general rule, Penelope wasn’t all that fussy about location or food. She was raised on the finer things, but they held little importance to her, and when she was able to travel, she had quickly found that more often than not, the best food came from the smaller, local joints. Still, this was lovely, and Nellie was quite comfortable with their environment. 

“So tell me luv, how are you? What’s going on in the world of the esteemed Narcissa Malfoy?” she asked, grinning at her. 

~

Getting to see Nellie every week was one of the biggest pluses of staying in England and marrying Lucius. Besides Bellatrix and Andromeda, Nellie was easily one of the people that she was closest too, and she had been sad about the prospect of not getting to see her as often as she currently did. Of course she would have had a guest room for her to stay in whenever she wanted to come visit her in France, but it wouldn’t have been the same. With her world so upside down, she was clinging to the things that she could be grateful for, and to the things that really mattered to her. In the wake of Andromeda’s loss, she was finding that she needed to be surrounded by the people that she loved. The thought of losing another person that was close to her paralyzed her with fear and made her feel like she was drowning. 

“Oh thank you. This is one of my favorite pubs, the board at St. Mungo’s ate here once and I thought that the food was so good. And I just love the atmosphere here.” Narcissa had inherited her mother’s taste for luxury and that certainly extended to the places that she ate. She wouldn’t be caught dead eating in somewhere like the Leaky Cauldron. Just the thought of eating somewhere with the name Leaky in it’s name made her feel rather ill. Some people might call her spoiled but she liked to think that she just had high standards. It had certainly worked out for her, marrying Lucius. His family was just as wealthy as hers and she had a feeling that Lucius’s mother had similar tastes to Druella’s. She just hoped that it meant that they could get along once she and Lucius had settled in more and she got to know his family a little bit more. It still felt strange, being married to Lucius. 

“I’m good. Busy getting things ready for a dinner party that Lucius wants to host for the Board of Governors. It’s been a complete headache to tell you the truth, but it’ll all come together one way or another.” She smiled. “You know, it’s still weird to hear that,” she laughed, shaking her head. “And what about you, Nellie? Conquer any dragons this week?”

❃

Ted was far too tempted to argue about the coffee not being necessary. It wouldn’t be worth the fallout if one of Narcissa’s family members caught them together. He was already wary of Bellatrix. There was no tangible proof but he had a few too many close calls in seeing them to think it was merely by chance. All he needed was Bellatrix or one of the other Blacks trying to claim he was speciously close to Andromeda and Narcissa.

The idea of welcoming someone else’s company instead of sulking outweighed the danger so he gave a nod in reply. “Thank you,” The words were accompanied by a shrug. It didn’t need to be said but it was long overdue— at least when it came to acknowledging that she hadn’t been the one to say anything about him and Andromeda.

The question about how he was doing caused his expression to drop, Ted unable to immediately answer since he couldn’t read her tone. “Are you asking as small talk or asking because you care enough to know?” He asked before thinking his words over, looking away from her when he realized what he said.

“Fine if it’s small talk,” He forced a chuckle then gave another shrug. “Barely getting by if the latter option.” He wasn’t sure why he felt comfortable with giving a mostly honest answer to her. “What about you?”

~

Narcissa was glad to have Calliope as an excuse. She was sure if someone saw them together that she could easily explain it away that he had rescued her dog, which everyone that was close to her knew was incredibly important to her. She didn’t think that even Bellatrix could hold her wanting to thank Ted against her. Although...she did wonder if they would hold it against Ted. She just hoped that that didn’t become a problem.

A part of her wanted to know more about Ted and Andromeda, but another part of her didn’t want to know more, didn’t want to know how deep her betrayal went. She couldn’t understand throwing away your life for someone that you loved and turning your back on everyone that loved you. And she wasn’t sure if Ted would be able to answer that question for her. 

Biting down on her lip when he asked if she was asking as small talk or if she cared enough to know. It gave her pause. She was surprised that he was speaking so candidly, but it wasn’t an unwelcome thing. Was she asking because she cared? She couldn’t be sure. She knew that Andromeda loved him, and that that should mean something. And it did. But she wasn’t entirely sure what it meant. 

Nodding her head thoughtfully at his answer, she gave Calliope a few pets and sighed when he turned the question back to her. “About the same,” she admitted, glancing over at him with a small shrug. “Some days...some days I don’t want to get out of bed. But I have to, you know? I have places to be and a house to run.”