plummeting meteors, chapter 2
Title: Plummeting Meteors
Author: mercury_rose
Rating: PG
Summary: Threeshot, of Lucius Malfoy's interactions with the Black sisters. Part two: Andromeda.
Word count: 1,109
He couldn’t ever look at Bellatrix the same way again without seeing her at that meeting and the way she had appeared at every other, filled to the brim with fanaticism, but he did look at her more, trying to see some of that insane release of control at school, to look at the people around her and see if they noticed.
Lucius had wondered where her conscience was when he had seen her at her very first Death Eater meeting, but after he had observed her for a few weeks at school, he realized where it was.
Her conscience didn’t accompany her when she went on her missions for the Dark Lord, but it was there, in the form of her sister Andromeda. Where Bellatrix was dark, Andromeda was light, quick to smile and to laugh. She was just as beautiful as her older sister, but her beauty was warm and kind rather than cruel and malevolent.
He supposed it was that which made him desperately want to speak to Andromeda, to see if she had received any of her sister’s madness, or if somehow when Bellatrix was born she absorbed all of the Black family’s tendency to incline towards insanity. Bellatrix’s sisters seemed perfectly normal and sane, but then Bellatrix had too, before he knew, despite being headstrong and bold.
Andromeda was reading in the Slytherin Common Room when he first spoke to her. He settled himself in the chair next to her, and tried to employ all of his charm that he prided himself upon. “Hello,” he said, drawing her attention away from the book she was engrossed in. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you,” he said, although nothing could be further from the truth. “It’s just, I wanted to talk to you.” That was true.
She raised one eyebrow, in the gesture that he had come to associate solely with Bellatrix, and he stopped himself from reacting to it just in time. “I’ve heard that you’re really good at Charms,” he began, “and I can’t for the life of me figure out how to cast the Aguamenti Charm. Do you think you could help me?” It was true, but that wasn’t the reason why he had come. It was pure, simple curiosity, about her, about her connection with her sister.
“Well, why ask me?” she said. “I haven’t learned the Aquamenti Charm yet - ask someone in your own year.” She reached for her book again, plainly irritated at being bothered by someone who obviously wasn’t being honest about his reasons for talking to her.
“I thought you might know.”
She seemed to be debating whether or not to speak further to him, but finally erred on the side of politeness. “I don’t,” she said. “But Bella might; she hasn’t officially learned it in class, but she could help you, probably.”
He didn’t say that he would rather walk through a ring of fire than ask Bellatrix for advice, but instead shrugged. “Sorry for bothering you, then.”
“No problem.”
The silence was exceedingly awkward; Andromeda’s hand rested on the book, drumming her fingers upon its surface, as if she wasn’t sure whether she should return to it or not. He was just about to leave when she finally blurted out, “Do you know how to make a Shrinking Solution?” He wasn’t sure if it was an attempt to break the silence, or whether she truly needed assistance. “Potions isn’t my subject,” she added as an explanation. “And I’m too embarrassed to ask anyone else for help.”
“…and yet you ask me?” he said, nevertheless grateful for the topic and an excuse to talk to her.
She laughed, a musical, light sound. “Since you asked me for help, I think I can return the favor. It’s slightly less humiliating for me.” He could see that, despite her flippant attitude, she was just as proud as her sister when it came to asking for assistance.
“I do, actually,” he said, beginning to describe the process. “You have to be careful so that it doesn’t become poisonous,” he warned. “It’d be better to start over if you’re not sure.”
“I’m really careful about that kind of thing,” she admitted.
He spoke without thinking, and instantly regretted it, but the damage was done. “Really?”
Immediately the relaxed atmosphere became awkward again, as she straightened in her chair to fix him with her most scrutinizing stare. “What do you mean?” she asked, but it was clear that there was no clarification necessary.
There was no option but to tell the truth. “Your sister just doesn’t seem like someone who would be that careful,” he said, reluctantly. “Not that that’s bad,” he added, unsure of how close the sisters were. “It’s just different from you, apparently.”
To his extreme relief, she smiled. “You know, I am a different person than my sister,” she remarked, and he grinned. “I know, you never would have guessed, right?”
“No, never.”
There was a pause, but it was relaxed, and he felt comfortable until she spoke. “You know, I didn’t think you would be like this,” she said bluntly. Lucius wasn’t sure whether this was something she had in common with Bellatrix or not: Bellatrix could be brutally honest, when she needed to be, but she could also lie with ease. And for some reason, he couldn’t see Andromeda lying, not unless it was terribly necessary, in which he thought she might do whatever was necessary. She was a Slytherin, after all.
“Like what?”
“Bellatrix always said that you were an arrogant bastard,” she said, but there was laughter in her voice. “And ‘pompous pretty-boy’ got tossed in there sometimes, too.”
His pride hurt a little, but other than that he wasn’t terribly affronted: he hadn’t expected Bellatrix to speak well of him, given how she had acted toward him during every Death Eater meeting, the only real places where they interacted. Sometimes he felt that those were the only places that she could act like herself, truly, without the confines of what was expected of her.
“Ouch,” he said, playing up the insult’s effect on him, but couldn’t resist adding, “but do you think she’s wrong?”
Although the question had been light-hearted, she seemed to take it seriously, thinking about it. “I don’t know,” she said finally. “I don’t think I’ve figured you out completely yet.”
“I pride myself on that, actually,” he said, and it wasn’t wholly a lie, and she saw that, grinning.
“Well, maybe she wasn’t completely wrong…”
Part one. Part three.
Author: mercury_rose
Rating: PG
Summary: Threeshot, of Lucius Malfoy's interactions with the Black sisters. Part two: Andromeda.
Word count: 1,109
He couldn’t ever look at Bellatrix the same way again without seeing her at that meeting and the way she had appeared at every other, filled to the brim with fanaticism, but he did look at her more, trying to see some of that insane release of control at school, to look at the people around her and see if they noticed.
Lucius had wondered where her conscience was when he had seen her at her very first Death Eater meeting, but after he had observed her for a few weeks at school, he realized where it was.
Her conscience didn’t accompany her when she went on her missions for the Dark Lord, but it was there, in the form of her sister Andromeda. Where Bellatrix was dark, Andromeda was light, quick to smile and to laugh. She was just as beautiful as her older sister, but her beauty was warm and kind rather than cruel and malevolent.
He supposed it was that which made him desperately want to speak to Andromeda, to see if she had received any of her sister’s madness, or if somehow when Bellatrix was born she absorbed all of the Black family’s tendency to incline towards insanity. Bellatrix’s sisters seemed perfectly normal and sane, but then Bellatrix had too, before he knew, despite being headstrong and bold.
Andromeda was reading in the Slytherin Common Room when he first spoke to her. He settled himself in the chair next to her, and tried to employ all of his charm that he prided himself upon. “Hello,” he said, drawing her attention away from the book she was engrossed in. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you,” he said, although nothing could be further from the truth. “It’s just, I wanted to talk to you.” That was true.
She raised one eyebrow, in the gesture that he had come to associate solely with Bellatrix, and he stopped himself from reacting to it just in time. “I’ve heard that you’re really good at Charms,” he began, “and I can’t for the life of me figure out how to cast the Aguamenti Charm. Do you think you could help me?” It was true, but that wasn’t the reason why he had come. It was pure, simple curiosity, about her, about her connection with her sister.
“Well, why ask me?” she said. “I haven’t learned the Aquamenti Charm yet - ask someone in your own year.” She reached for her book again, plainly irritated at being bothered by someone who obviously wasn’t being honest about his reasons for talking to her.
“I thought you might know.”
She seemed to be debating whether or not to speak further to him, but finally erred on the side of politeness. “I don’t,” she said. “But Bella might; she hasn’t officially learned it in class, but she could help you, probably.”
He didn’t say that he would rather walk through a ring of fire than ask Bellatrix for advice, but instead shrugged. “Sorry for bothering you, then.”
“No problem.”
The silence was exceedingly awkward; Andromeda’s hand rested on the book, drumming her fingers upon its surface, as if she wasn’t sure whether she should return to it or not. He was just about to leave when she finally blurted out, “Do you know how to make a Shrinking Solution?” He wasn’t sure if it was an attempt to break the silence, or whether she truly needed assistance. “Potions isn’t my subject,” she added as an explanation. “And I’m too embarrassed to ask anyone else for help.”
“…and yet you ask me?” he said, nevertheless grateful for the topic and an excuse to talk to her.
She laughed, a musical, light sound. “Since you asked me for help, I think I can return the favor. It’s slightly less humiliating for me.” He could see that, despite her flippant attitude, she was just as proud as her sister when it came to asking for assistance.
“I do, actually,” he said, beginning to describe the process. “You have to be careful so that it doesn’t become poisonous,” he warned. “It’d be better to start over if you’re not sure.”
“I’m really careful about that kind of thing,” she admitted.
He spoke without thinking, and instantly regretted it, but the damage was done. “Really?”
Immediately the relaxed atmosphere became awkward again, as she straightened in her chair to fix him with her most scrutinizing stare. “What do you mean?” she asked, but it was clear that there was no clarification necessary.
There was no option but to tell the truth. “Your sister just doesn’t seem like someone who would be that careful,” he said, reluctantly. “Not that that’s bad,” he added, unsure of how close the sisters were. “It’s just different from you, apparently.”
To his extreme relief, she smiled. “You know, I am a different person than my sister,” she remarked, and he grinned. “I know, you never would have guessed, right?”
“No, never.”
There was a pause, but it was relaxed, and he felt comfortable until she spoke. “You know, I didn’t think you would be like this,” she said bluntly. Lucius wasn’t sure whether this was something she had in common with Bellatrix or not: Bellatrix could be brutally honest, when she needed to be, but she could also lie with ease. And for some reason, he couldn’t see Andromeda lying, not unless it was terribly necessary, in which he thought she might do whatever was necessary. She was a Slytherin, after all.
“Like what?”
“Bellatrix always said that you were an arrogant bastard,” she said, but there was laughter in her voice. “And ‘pompous pretty-boy’ got tossed in there sometimes, too.”
His pride hurt a little, but other than that he wasn’t terribly affronted: he hadn’t expected Bellatrix to speak well of him, given how she had acted toward him during every Death Eater meeting, the only real places where they interacted. Sometimes he felt that those were the only places that she could act like herself, truly, without the confines of what was expected of her.
“Ouch,” he said, playing up the insult’s effect on him, but couldn’t resist adding, “but do you think she’s wrong?”
Although the question had been light-hearted, she seemed to take it seriously, thinking about it. “I don’t know,” she said finally. “I don’t think I’ve figured you out completely yet.”
“I pride myself on that, actually,” he said, and it wasn’t wholly a lie, and she saw that, grinning.
“Well, maybe she wasn’t completely wrong…”
Part one. Part three.