Fic: Sisters, Challenge #102
Title: Sisters
Summary: Andromeda Black has made her choice to leave the Black family behind, but needs to see her sister one last time.
Characters/Pairings: Andromeda Black, Narcissa Black
Genre: General, I thinkk.
Beta: Not beta'd, so there are probably mistakes
Rating/Warnings: PG, no warnings, I think.
Word Count: 1,250
The balcony doors in Narcissa’s room had been pushed open and the long, violet curtains ruffled gently in the breeze. A gust of wind sent them into a flutter when Andromeda softly closed the double doors behind her. She had always liked Narcissa’s room better than her own. It was airier and lighter. The balcony faced the gardens rather than the woods. Narcissa had a talent for decorating that she had never had. So maybe Narcissa’s room was what felt closest to home in the entire house. Nothing else truly felt like home and it never had, but standing in the middle of her little sister’s room suddenly gave her that jolt of doubt.
She could see Narcissa’s pale legs stretched out on the sun bed as she walked slowly towards the open doors. For a few seconds she stood in the doorway and watched her little sister whose eyes were closed to the sun. Andromeda had always been so protective of her, ever since they were children. She had always worried and protected and cared, and nothing in the world could remove the guilt lodged in her chest over the fact that she would now have to save herself over her sister. What would happen to Narcissa without her protection?
“Andy!” Narcissa exclaimed suddenly. “You scared me!”
Andromeda smiled and made room for herself on the sun bed. Turning her face towards the sun, she opened one of the buttons in her airy summer robe.
“Mother says the Lestranges are coming for dinner again,” Narcissa said. “She wants us in our best robes in the dining room by 5.”
“I wonder what Mrs. Lestrange would say if I wore my old night robes with the unicorns.”
“Oh, stop it!” Narcissa said, smacking her shoulder. “Don’t even joke about that, you know how important this is.”
Andromeda looked over at her sister and smiled sadly.
“Yes, we’re all getting married off.”
“Yes, we are. Of course we are. Why wouldn’t we?” Narcissa laughed.
“Maybe because love can’t be planned,” Andromeda said, knowing that she was moving into dangerous waters.
Narcissa shook her head, as she so often did over Andromeda’s ideas. As if they were silly. And to her they probably were silly, because it wasn’t the proper way.
“Andy, you know I love how you look at everything. It’s like listening to a children’s tale sometimes when you speak.”
Andromeda didn’t smile, maybe because only she knew that it was far from a children’s tale.
“So you don’t think love is important?” she asked, wondering if her presence had done no influence at all.
“Of course it is. Love is the most important thing of all. You have to love your family, with all of your being. Always. It doesn’t matter what they do, they’re always your family and you love them for everything,” Narcissa said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world. “And that’s why it doesn’t matter if mother and father want to decide who we marry. We will love them anyway, because they become our family.”
It was an admirable view. In some ways, Andromeda wished she could share it. It would have made everything so much easier if only she could see things like that.
“What if they’re a terrible person? Could you still love them then?”
“Mother and father would never pick someone terrible for us,” Narcissa said with conviction. “Why would they?”
“You would want to marry Rabastan?”
“No,” Narcissa said. “But he isn’t meant for me, he is meant for Bella. And you must agree that they are good for each other.”
Andromeda didn’t answer. She supposed they were. But it didn’t really matter that her parents could find her a suitable person. It didn’t matter that they could find her someone who was good enough. That wasn’t what she wanted out of life.
“What do you want to do after Hogwarts?” Andromeda said, watching her sister’s face intently.
“I want to be a good wife and have a family. And maybe I could work somewhere in Diagon Alley, if it worked out that way.”
Those were humble dreams, Andromeda thought. It struck her how different they were. And maybe it was just better for Narcissa to stay here, when it was obviously the life she wanted. Maybe she would be just fine.
“Someday you will make a man very happy, Cissy,” she said, instead of all the objections she wanted to voice.
“Thank you.”
There was an air of surprise in Narcissa’s voice and she turned to look at her sister with a searching look.
And then they just lay there, side by side in the afternoon sun. Random bits and pieces from their childhood came to Andromeda’s thoughts. It was the silliest little things, like how Narcissa had always envied her purple ink when she was even too young to write. And how Andromeda used to braid her sister’s hair whenever they had company over. She thought of how it had always been them against Bella, which she both cherished and regretted in retrospect. She remembered how they used to sneak treacle fudge from the kitchen and hide in Narcissa’s closet while they ate them and giggled manically.
Andromeda looked at her sister out of the corner of her eye and resisted the urge to reach out and run her hand through her silky smooth hair. It was her little sister, the one she had always treasured so highly. It was the only real thing that kept her tied to this place and the only thing she would deeply miss. She tried to focus on this moment: on the heat of the sun on her skin, the smell of summer, the small breeze running through Narcissa’s hair, the face of her sweet sister. She needed to hold onto this forever, because she knew that her betrayal of the family would never be forgiven by her fiercely loyal, dutiful, loving Narcissa.
It felt like only a second passed before it was getting too late for comfort. She needed to leave before the guests arrived. She knew she was at the end of her window for escape. With a heavy heart, she touched Narcissa’s hand lightly to call for her attention. Her sister’s blue eyes opened and looked up at her questioningly.
“I need to go get ready,” Andromeda said, her voice sounding foreign to her own ears. “Merlin knows mother would murder me in my sleep if I don’t look presentable.”
“No unicorn night robes.” Narcissa smiled.
“No unicorn night robes,” Andromeda confirmed.
And that’s how it was, then. Her last spoken words to her sister were ‘No unicorn night robes’. She walked back into the room on shaky legs and looked over her shoulder before she placed a sealed parchment in Narcissa’s nightstand. There was one letter for the entire family, and one letter for Narcissa only, encoded in that way only sisters could understand. Without turning back, she closed the double doors behind her and walked towards the entrance to her child hood home for the last time. When she could no longer see her home, she knew she was free. But that one part of her heart would always remain in her sister’s closet eating stolen treacle fudge.
Ing//Puff//47
Summary: Andromeda Black has made her choice to leave the Black family behind, but needs to see her sister one last time.
Characters/Pairings: Andromeda Black, Narcissa Black
Genre: General, I thinkk.
Beta: Not beta'd, so there are probably mistakes
Rating/Warnings: PG, no warnings, I think.
Word Count: 1,250
The balcony doors in Narcissa’s room had been pushed open and the long, violet curtains ruffled gently in the breeze. A gust of wind sent them into a flutter when Andromeda softly closed the double doors behind her. She had always liked Narcissa’s room better than her own. It was airier and lighter. The balcony faced the gardens rather than the woods. Narcissa had a talent for decorating that she had never had. So maybe Narcissa’s room was what felt closest to home in the entire house. Nothing else truly felt like home and it never had, but standing in the middle of her little sister’s room suddenly gave her that jolt of doubt.
She could see Narcissa’s pale legs stretched out on the sun bed as she walked slowly towards the open doors. For a few seconds she stood in the doorway and watched her little sister whose eyes were closed to the sun. Andromeda had always been so protective of her, ever since they were children. She had always worried and protected and cared, and nothing in the world could remove the guilt lodged in her chest over the fact that she would now have to save herself over her sister. What would happen to Narcissa without her protection?
“Andy!” Narcissa exclaimed suddenly. “You scared me!”
Andromeda smiled and made room for herself on the sun bed. Turning her face towards the sun, she opened one of the buttons in her airy summer robe.
“Mother says the Lestranges are coming for dinner again,” Narcissa said. “She wants us in our best robes in the dining room by 5.”
“I wonder what Mrs. Lestrange would say if I wore my old night robes with the unicorns.”
“Oh, stop it!” Narcissa said, smacking her shoulder. “Don’t even joke about that, you know how important this is.”
Andromeda looked over at her sister and smiled sadly.
“Yes, we’re all getting married off.”
“Yes, we are. Of course we are. Why wouldn’t we?” Narcissa laughed.
“Maybe because love can’t be planned,” Andromeda said, knowing that she was moving into dangerous waters.
Narcissa shook her head, as she so often did over Andromeda’s ideas. As if they were silly. And to her they probably were silly, because it wasn’t the proper way.
“Andy, you know I love how you look at everything. It’s like listening to a children’s tale sometimes when you speak.”
Andromeda didn’t smile, maybe because only she knew that it was far from a children’s tale.
“So you don’t think love is important?” she asked, wondering if her presence had done no influence at all.
“Of course it is. Love is the most important thing of all. You have to love your family, with all of your being. Always. It doesn’t matter what they do, they’re always your family and you love them for everything,” Narcissa said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world. “And that’s why it doesn’t matter if mother and father want to decide who we marry. We will love them anyway, because they become our family.”
It was an admirable view. In some ways, Andromeda wished she could share it. It would have made everything so much easier if only she could see things like that.
“What if they’re a terrible person? Could you still love them then?”
“Mother and father would never pick someone terrible for us,” Narcissa said with conviction. “Why would they?”
“You would want to marry Rabastan?”
“No,” Narcissa said. “But he isn’t meant for me, he is meant for Bella. And you must agree that they are good for each other.”
Andromeda didn’t answer. She supposed they were. But it didn’t really matter that her parents could find her a suitable person. It didn’t matter that they could find her someone who was good enough. That wasn’t what she wanted out of life.
“What do you want to do after Hogwarts?” Andromeda said, watching her sister’s face intently.
“I want to be a good wife and have a family. And maybe I could work somewhere in Diagon Alley, if it worked out that way.”
Those were humble dreams, Andromeda thought. It struck her how different they were. And maybe it was just better for Narcissa to stay here, when it was obviously the life she wanted. Maybe she would be just fine.
“Someday you will make a man very happy, Cissy,” she said, instead of all the objections she wanted to voice.
“Thank you.”
There was an air of surprise in Narcissa’s voice and she turned to look at her sister with a searching look.
And then they just lay there, side by side in the afternoon sun. Random bits and pieces from their childhood came to Andromeda’s thoughts. It was the silliest little things, like how Narcissa had always envied her purple ink when she was even too young to write. And how Andromeda used to braid her sister’s hair whenever they had company over. She thought of how it had always been them against Bella, which she both cherished and regretted in retrospect. She remembered how they used to sneak treacle fudge from the kitchen and hide in Narcissa’s closet while they ate them and giggled manically.
Andromeda looked at her sister out of the corner of her eye and resisted the urge to reach out and run her hand through her silky smooth hair. It was her little sister, the one she had always treasured so highly. It was the only real thing that kept her tied to this place and the only thing she would deeply miss. She tried to focus on this moment: on the heat of the sun on her skin, the smell of summer, the small breeze running through Narcissa’s hair, the face of her sweet sister. She needed to hold onto this forever, because she knew that her betrayal of the family would never be forgiven by her fiercely loyal, dutiful, loving Narcissa.
It felt like only a second passed before it was getting too late for comfort. She needed to leave before the guests arrived. She knew she was at the end of her window for escape. With a heavy heart, she touched Narcissa’s hand lightly to call for her attention. Her sister’s blue eyes opened and looked up at her questioningly.
“I need to go get ready,” Andromeda said, her voice sounding foreign to her own ears. “Merlin knows mother would murder me in my sleep if I don’t look presentable.”
“No unicorn night robes.” Narcissa smiled.
“No unicorn night robes,” Andromeda confirmed.
And that’s how it was, then. Her last spoken words to her sister were ‘No unicorn night robes’. She walked back into the room on shaky legs and looked over her shoulder before she placed a sealed parchment in Narcissa’s nightstand. There was one letter for the entire family, and one letter for Narcissa only, encoded in that way only sisters could understand. Without turning back, she closed the double doors behind her and walked towards the entrance to her child hood home for the last time. When she could no longer see her home, she knew she was free. But that one part of her heart would always remain in her sister’s closet eating stolen treacle fudge.
Ing//Puff//47