Fanfiction || Amphierotic Bloodlines || Bellatrix/Narcissa || Part Twenty Five
Title: Amphierotic Bloodlines
Author: Sapphire Smoke cuzimastripper
Beta(s): supershineygirl (chapter two), dolfynrider (chapter three & onwards)
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: NC-17
Length Thus Far: 186,480 words
Main Pairing: Bellatrix/Narcissa
Sub Pairings: Narcissa/Lucius, Narcissa/OC, Bellatrix/OC, Bellatrix/Rodolphus
Summary: Growing up in the 1960s in a family that expected nothing less than perfection, anything less than such was deemed unfit for a young woman of their status and was punished severely. A house that was classified as 'noble' had dark secrets hidden within those walls, a fear that only the people within experienced. The confusion young girls have growing up was more than intensified in there: it bordered on practically unbearable. This is a story about growing up, about surviving abuse, and about finding salvation and love from anyone you can, even if it’s from the last person on earth you know you should ever hold a deep affection for.
Warning(s): Lesbian incest, graphic child abuse, dubcon, sex between minors, anorexia nervosa, forced miscarriage, character death (minor), first chapter is un-beta’d
A/N: For NaNoWriMo 2010. This story is entirely from Narcissa’s POV (though not in first person) and will only include up to her graduation from Hogwarts. I may do a sequel later to cover her adult years, but for now I think this is more than enough.
Other Parts: PART ONE | PART TWO | PART THREE | PART FOUR | PART FIVE | PART SIX | PART SEVEN | PART EIGHT | PART NINE | PART TEN | PART ELEVEN | PART TWELVE | PART THIRTEEN | PART FOURTEEN | PART FIFTEEN | PART SIXTEEN | PART SEVENTEEN | PART EIGHTEEN | PART NINETEEN | PART TWENTY | PART TWENTY ONE | PART TWENTY TWO | PART TWENTY THREE | PART TWENTY FOUR
CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT
“Here,” Bellatrix said gruffly, shoving something into Narcissa’s hand before they left to go to Platform 9 ¾. Narcissa looked down, confusion masking over her features until she realized what it was her sister just gave her.
Condoms.
Narcissa’s face flushed a deep red and she protested, “Bella!” as she shoved them into the pockets of her school robes, feeling incredibly embarrassed.
“You think I really want to be giving you those?” Bellatrix asked, obviously displeased that they had to be in her sister’s life at all. “But fuck if I’m going to see you come back in the summer knocked up… again.”
“We just… forgot last time; it was the heat of the moment, you didn’t need to-” Narcissa started, but cut herself off mid-sentence. She really didn’t want to talk about it. So instead she just muttered an embarrassed, “Thank you.”
Bellatrix clenched her jaw, obviously mad about the whole situation but refraining from yelling about it anymore, considering she had to allow Narcissa to fuck Lucius if she were to be allowed to fuck Gwendolyn. “Don’t thank me,” she told her shortly. “Just be sure it doesn’t happen again. Because I swear to God, next time I’ll kill him; I’ll make it look like a horrible accident.”
Narcissa pursed her lips and looked down at the floor, knowing her sister was speaking truth. She had the stray thought that maybe she should just forgo sex with Lucius all together until she was married, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to do that. If Lucius weren’t getting it from her he would go elsewhere and it made the pit of Narcissa’s stomach burn with jealousy at the thought of him with another woman. It was bad enough that he had already strayed before, but then again, it wasn’t like purebloods were known for their monogamy.
And it wasn’t like she was monogamous either.
Narcissa tucked a piece of blonde hair behind her ear, taking a hesitant breath before broaching a subject she was sure she didn’t want to talk about before she left for school, yet knowing she didn’t really have a choice. “Bella?” she asked tentatively, her eyes flickering up to meet her sister’s. “You’ll… take care of yourself while I’m gone, right?”
Bellatrix looked at her funny, like the question was a rather stupid one. “Don’t I always?”
“No,” Narcissa answered, looking down at the floor; the imperfections in the wood paneling she stood atop of. “That’s the problem. You… I know you think I don’t know, or perhaps that I wouldn’t realize, but it was rather obvious when you didn’t change once you found out I was pregnant, regardless of your attempts to try and be a better person towards me.”
Bellatrix stared at her for a moment, as if trying to figure out what it was that she was being told. But then she understood and her face instantly darkened. “Narcissa, don’t start-”
Narcissa looked up at her sharply, upset coloring her features. “You promised you’d get rid of them, Bella! You told Rodolphus that you would. Why do you insist on taking them? If he finds out, he said he’d throw you out on your arse! How can you risk being dishonored?” She thought about that, then revised quickly, “No, sod that; how can you risk your life?”
“You’re over exaggerating-”
“BELLATRIX BLACK, YOU GIVE ME THOSE POTIONS RIGHT NOW!” Narcissa burst out suddenly, sick of her sister’s excuses; sick of her lies. Sick of quite a lot of it, frankly. Bellatrix stared at her for a moment, a mix of utter disbelief and… was that amusement on her face? Narcissa stomped to better make her point, but that only seemed to amuse Bellatrix more.
“What are you, my mother now? And in case you forgot - that’s no longer my name, so if you’re going to scream at somebody, best know who the fuck you’re speaking to first.” Bellatrix turned, grabbing Narcissa’s trunk before dismissing the entire conversation with a, “Come on, you’re going to be late.”
“I know who it is I’m speaking to,” Narcissa replied heatedly, grabbing the trunk out of Bellatrix’s hands before placing it back on the ground. “And we have a half an hour until the train comes; I’ll be fine. You, on the other hand-”
“Did I not just say I didn’t want to do this now?!” Bellatrix exclaimed, rounding on her with a dangerous look in her eye. She pointed at her, taking a step forward as she ranted. “I get it, Cissy; you don’t like them, you think they’re bad for me. Whatever, yeah? It isn’t your decision, it’s never been your decision and frankly the way you think you can run my life is a bit bloody irritating.”
“I don’t understand why we have to keep coming back to this!” Narcissa exclaimed, a hurt look washing over her features. “I feel like it’s been ages that I’ve asked you to stop taking them; ages that you lied to me and said you would! Why are you doing this; why are you being difficult? Surely you must know by now that no matter if you go mad or not, I’ll stand by your side. I love you, it’s-”
“This has nothing to do with you!” Bellatrix shouted, interrupting her. “Not every damn thing in my life has to do with you, Narcissa! If I wanted to share what was going on, I would; but I don’t. So why don’t you fucking drop it before I end up dropping you on your head.”
It was an idle threat and Narcissa knew it. It was rare that Bellatrix would actually do something to truly hurt her. But it was of no matter really, because that wasn’t the part of Bellatrix’s exclamation that stood out to her.
“There’s something going on?” Narcissa asked, taking a step towards her. Bellatrix took a step back - probably for the first time too; she had always been rather confrontational about… well, everything in her life, really - with a look on her face like she knew she said too much. “Bella, what’s going on?” Narcissa pushed, quite literally backing her into a wall.
“Nothing, for fuck’s sake, Cissy-!”
Bellatrix’s back hit the smooth surface of the far wall and Narcissa trapped her between her arm and the corner. It was strange; their positions being reversed so suddenly. Bellatrix had always been the predatory one; the dominant one. She had always been the stron- oh.
“You’re feeling weak right now, aren’t you?” Narcissa inquired softly, trying not to make her sister feel threatened by her tone as she searched her eyes. But it made sense; that would probably be the only time she would willingly allow Narcissa to advance on her. “Why?” There was nothing that made her sister feel weak, except for the love she held for her. But if it had nothing to do with Narcissa, then she was a little worried to find out what it was about.
No matter her attempt to make her tone sound less accusatory, Bellatrix still exploded fiercely, “I’M NOT WEAK!” Narcissa’s breath was knocked out of her as suddenly their positions were reversed, Bellatrix pinning her against the wall with her entire body. Narcissa knew this was a rather inappropriate time to be thinking this, but she couldn’t help but notice how delicious her sister looked when she had something to prove.
Bellatrix, sensing this (and seeing a chance to divert the attention back to something she could control), pressed her thigh firmly against Narcissa’s center, making her emit a quiet gasp at the unexpected sensation of pleasure. Damnit, her sister always did know how to distract her. A smirk crossed over Bellatrix’s face and she leaned in, whispering seductively in her ear, “We have twenty minutes until we have to be at the station. Would you rather spend that time arguing… or having an orgasm?”
That was the million-galleon question, wasn’t it? And the problem was, Narcissa didn’t know which to choose. She knew what they were arguing about was important, but her body craved the feeling of her sister’s fingers sliding through her folds; stealing her sanity along with her breath. God, the thought of it alone made her wet.
But suddenly a creak was heard coming from the stairwell and Bellatrix was off of her in a flash. Narcissa didn’t have to see him to know it was Rodolphus coming down the stairs. Honestly she had no idea how she reacted so quickly, but suddenly she blurt out angrily, “You can’t intimidate me to get out of an argument, Bella!”
Bellatrix whipped around, playing off of her cover story seamlessly. “I can do what I please; this is my house.” She glared at her before she told her sternly, “Now get your coat, we’re leaving.” She turned from her once more before her eyes connected with Rodolphus’. “What the hell are you looking at?”
“The worst decision I ever made,” Rodolphus deadpanned before descending the rest of the stairs and breezing past her into the kitchen. Bellatrix threw up a finger at his back and though Narcissa was sure Rodolphus knew she was doing it, he didn’t turn and give into her instigating. Which honestly, Narcissa was thankful for. She didn’t want to waste her last twenty minutes here listening to Bellatrix and Rodolphus scream at each other.
Narcissa grabbed her coat before turning to look at her sister; they each had equal looks of worry on their face. It was impossible for Rodolphus to have heard what Bellatrix said to her, but the position they were in did look rather compromising. Even though he didn’t say anything about it, that didn’t mean he failed to notice it.
“Come on,” Bellatrix encouraged as she grabbed Narcissa’s trunk with one hand, extending her other for her to hold. “Let’s get you to the train, yeah?”
Narcissa nodded, tightlipped before grabbing a hold of her sister’s hand. Bellatrix turned on the spot, apparating them both out of the manner. When Narcissa felt her feet land on solid ground she lurched forward, nearly toppling over. Bellatrix caught her smoothly though, helping her to her feet. “God, I will never get used to that,” Narcissa complained lightly as she tried to make her head stop spinning.
Bellatrix pet her hair lightly for a moment, until she seemed to realize they were now in public and affection like that shouldn’t be shown. She pulled her hand away as she responded, “You will, I promise.”
Narcissa doubted that, but regardless, she looked up at the large, analog clock at the station; it was fifteen till. Taking a hesitant breath, she turned towards her sister. “Bella, we need to talk.”
“We’ll talk when you come back in the summer,” Bellatrix hissed, grabbing her sister’s arm and pulling her towards her so Narcissa’s back collided against her chest. Her grip was ungodly tight and it made Narcissa wince, but she didn’t back down. She knew Bellatrix was trying to control her and she was getting too old for those types of games.
“We’ll either speak privately in a waiting room, or we can discuss it here, if you’d like,” Narcissa answered in a low tone, teeth clenched. “I’m sure Lucius will be around any moment; I know how much you love spilling our family secrets in front of him.”
Narcissa swore she heard her sister growl. She clearly didn’t like being threatened either. Her grip on Narcissa’s arm tightened even more so, making Narcissa have to bite her tongue to keep herself from crying out in pain. “Fine,” Bellatrix hissed after a long moment; she was no doubt waiting for Narcissa to back out because of the pain, but that time never came. The one thing Bellatrix always forgot was that pain was a constant in her life too, and there is a lot she can deal with before it actually becomes unmanageable.
Bellatrix practically dragged her into one of the outside waiting rooms; shutting the door behind them so hard she nearly broke the glass. She cast the Muffliato spell on the small area before turning dramatically towards her sister and asking, “What? What the fuck is so goddamn important that we need to do this now?”
“You know what,” Narcissa responded calmly, sitting down on one of the benches and crossing her legs. “Bella, I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s going on. I’ll miss the sodding train; I don’t care.”
“You’re not going to miss the train, Cissy! You have OWLs this year; are you stupid?!”
“I don’t care about my OWLs!” Narcissa shouted, slamming her hands down on the metal bench she sat atop of. “I care about you, you bleeding pillock! How thick are you, really? Do you honestly think that for one moment I would prioritize my studies over you?”
“Well you should-!”
“Well I don’t!” Narcissa told her forcefully, not really letting her sister get a word in edgewise at this point. “Now sit down and have an actual conversation with me for once, instead of being a defensive prat about everything all the time. I’m asking because I care, Bella; not because I’m trying to fuck up your life!”
Bellatrix stared at her for a moment, looking furious but for once not exploding at her. Perhaps something Narcissa said actually made sense to her, or perhaps she was just so desperate for Narcissa to go to school and study that she found it not worth it to argue. Bellatrix did always wish that Narcissa wanted more from her life and believed education would be the way for her to have that.
The silence between them seemed to stretch on forever.
It was broken by Bellatrix sitting heavily on the opposite bench, folding her arms into herself with a huff. Narcissa waited for her to speak, knowing Bellatrix sitting in silence was a way for her to tell her she was giving in; that Narcissa had won. It was such a rare occurrence that Narcissa had to fight the urge to smile at her victory, though only because she was sure it would piss Bellatrix off further and that was the last thing she needed to do right now. And so she waited; quietly, patiently, for her sister to start telling her what was going on.
Bellatrix looked away from her, staring out the window to watch the people bustle around Platform 9 ¾. She clicked her tongue in annoyance before she told her flatly, “I did stop taking them once.”
Narcissa waited for the rest of that, but it didn’t seem it would come. “Why did you start again?” she asked softly, trying to coax her sister to open up a little. Bellatrix still wouldn’t listen to her and now she was tapping her foot rhythmically against the stone flooring, outwardly showing her agitation with this conversation.
“I…” Bellatrix started, but then cocked her head to the side at an odd angle right before she started smacking her fingers against the edge of the bench. She chewed on the inside of her cheek before she looked down at her fingers, making Narcissa furrow her brow. She’d never seen her sister act this way before. Was she… uncomfortable? That was new. “I got… really sick,” she admitted, voice low and without eye contact. “I started shaking and shit; sweating and feeling really ill.”
Narcissa’s eyebrows got lost in her hairline. “What?” she asked forcefully, not believing what she was hearing. How could the healers have given her something like that? If she does take it, it slowly kills her. If she doesn’t, she… she… oh god, are those withdrawal symptoms? She had heard about those; overheard some of the older Slytherin boys talking about drugs. But this wasn’t a drug, right? Maybe it didn’t have to be. “Bella,” Narcissa started, concern coloring her voice. “Are you… addicted to them; the potions?” The question was posed carefully, not wanting to upset her.
“I’m not a slave to anything!” Bellatrix exclaimed, looking up to meet her gaze sharply. Narcissa wondered why she even bothered being delicate about things; clearly it was useless.
“I didn’t say you were!”
“Addiction is a slave’s quality, Cissy. I’m nothing of the sort,” Bellatrix protested strongly. She had a dangerous look in her eye and Narcissa didn’t really want to push the matter right now. The Hogwarts Express was going to leave soon and this conversation was not one that would only last ten minutes.
“Well…” Narcissa started hesitantly. She tried to find an upside to try to calm Bellatrix down a little. It was hard to find, but finally she realized and said, “You’ve stopped having the headaches, right? I haven’t noticed you-”
“They’ve only stopped because I’m taking five doses a day,” Bellatrix muttered, looking away again. Was that shame? It was like seeing an alien descend from the skies; unfathomable in this day and age.
“Five?!” Narcissa exclaimed, horrified. “Bella, you’re only supposed to be taking one!”
“Don’t you think I know that?” Bellatrix snapped, looking out the window once more. “But this way I don’t turn into…” she stopped, clearly not wanting to think about it. “I just don’t. At all. And the headaches stop. And it’s… it’s fine, okay? I’m fine.”
“You’re so bloody far from fine I don’t even know where to start,” Narcissa replied, horrified by this revelation.
Bellatrix didn’t answer her, nor would she even look at her. She just kept drumming her fingers against the steel bench, her fingernails composing a maddening symphony that echoed through the small waiting area. Click, click, click, click…
The Hogwarts Express sounded its horn, giving its five-minute warning.
“You have to go.”
“I don’t have to go anywhere,” Narcissa told her, voice filled with emotion as she got up, crossing the room to sit next to Bellatrix on her bench. She put her hand on her thigh but it was pushed off immediately.
“Cissy, we’re in public. Stop it.”
“Look at me,” Narcissa demanded. Bellatrix didn’t answer, nor comply with her request. “Bellatrix, look at me.”
A light rapping sound came from the doorway. Narcissa looked up to see Lucius through the clear glass of the door, holding out his hands like ‘what are you doing?’ She held up her finger for him to wait, which only seemed to annoy him. She couldn’t hear him, but she could make out his lips form the word ‘insane’ as he pointed to the train.
But that didn’t matter. Nothing mattered besides her sister. Not school, not her fiancée, not the rest of her life. She could see clear as day that her sister was in so much pain and was unable to deal with it, or even express it properly. It reminded Narcissa so much of that time Bellatrix was locked away in her room for ages; beaten and cut off from life, from love, from hope. It was the first time Bellatrix ever truly shut down and Narcissa foolishly thought it was the last.
The bitch of it was, Narcissa was realizing, that Bellatrix had never stopped shutting down.
Bellatrix substituted pain for rage. Sadness for lust. Hope for chaos. She valued strength above all else, because with strength comes the power to hurt, not be hurt. The problem was, Bellatrix thought that the world was black and white; that if she was on one side of the spectrum she’d never find herself on the other. So when she did - when she realized she had become weak - she tried desperately to make it all a lie.
But it wasn’t a lie. Bellatrix Lestrange - Bellatrix Black - had found a chink in her armor. She put her trust in something that wasn’t making her stronger like she had believed; it was making her become the one thing she hated, the one thing she looked down on more than anything else.
And she hated herself for it.
It was strange, Narcissa being able to look at her sister for the first time and truly see who she was, and not the person she so desperately tried to be. It may be fucked, but the beauty in her sister’s self-destruction captivated her; it made her more human than Narcissa had seen in a long time - possibly in forever.
But just because Bellatrix realized she had found a weakness in herself, didn’t mean she was ready to accept it; their conversation prior was a testament to that. And without acceptance, help was impossible. Narcissa knew that more than anyone; when help was forced upon her because of her eating disorder, it only made her retreat into herself more; made her hide it more. It was only when she realized that she truly needed help that it… she doesn’t want to say it ‘ended,’ because it didn’t - it’s still something she struggles with every day - but it did get… better.
Bellatrix did finally look at her, after a moment. Their eyes connected and Narcissa smiled softly at her. “Bella, you’re the strongest person I’ve ever met.” She leaned in, kissing her on the cheek before whispering in her ear, “But if you… do ever want my help, I’m here. All you have to do is ask.”
Her forehead was pressed into Bellatrix’s temple, her lips only a fraction away from her ear. She took one of her sister’s hands in hers, clasping it firmly so she knew, she knew that she would be there for her. Narcissa was aware of how intimate the position was; she was also more than aware that her fiancée was probably watching them through the door. But it didn’t matter; Lucius didn’t have brothers or sisters, so what would he know of appropriate sibling affection?
Finally, Bellatrix nodded softly. Her lips were pursed together as she looked down at their linked hands. The horn on the train sounded again - one-minute warning - and Lucius rapped on the glass again impatiently. “You should go,” Bellatrix told her quietly, untangling her hand from Narcissa’s as she looked up at her. The blonde gave her a soft, encouraging smile.
“Write me, okay? Let me know what’s going on?”
Bellatrix nodded.
“Okay…” Narcissa relented, not really wanting to leave her but knowing she had to. Lucius was rapping on the glass again and she turned to glare at him for his impatience. When she looked back she told her sister, “I love you, Bella. Remember that, okay?”
“I love you too, Cissy,” Bellatrix replied with a small smile. She nodded her head towards the door. “Now go before I have to break every single one of Lucius’ fingers for that repetitive knocking. That shit is making my head pound.” She pressed her fingers to her temple and rolled her eyes a bit dramatically. It made Narcissa giggle before she gave her one last goodbye; she then turned and exited the waiting room.
Lucius grabbed her hand, practically pulling her towards the train with a less than pleased look on his face. Narcissa sighed but said nothing, allowing him to lead her onto the train not a moment too soon. As they entered the Slytherin carriage the train pulled from the station, beginning its journey to Hogwarts. There was only one compartment left; the one that smelled like hippogriff dung. Narcissa turned up her nose at the prospect of sitting there, but apparently that option wasn’t even on Lucius’ mind. He opened up a compartment that had a few second years in it.
“Get out,” he told them sharply.
The boys’ eyes went wide at the sight of a sixth year and quickly scrambled to comply. Narcissa wasn’t even sure why he bothered; he could have just gone into the prefect’s carriage after all, but perhaps he just wanted to sit with her. Narcissa did not have the honor of getting a prefect badge this year - and if she were to be honest with herself, she doubted she ever would - so she would have been left sitting alone. Not that she would have minded honestly, seeing as Lucius looked less than pleased right now about whatever reason. Probably nearly missing the train because of her.
When the second years left, Lucius held the door open for her. Narcissa ducked under his arm to enter the compartment, sitting down without a word. Lucius closed the door behind them before moving to sit opposite of her; he didn’t look happy. He didn’t speak either.
“Just say it,” Narcissa requested impatiently, folding her arms into herself.
“Excuse me?”
“You’re obviously cross with me,” Narcissa explained after she watched Lucius raise his eyebrows at her in that judgmental manner that elitists do when they’re around one another. But they weren’t casual acquaintances - they were about to be sodding married, for Christ’s sake - and so that look annoyed her immensely. She didn’t want to sit here and be judged silently by her own husband-to-be. “So why don’t you just tell me what’s wrong so you can stop acting like a judgmental prat.”
“I had thought it would have been rather obvious why I’m cross with you, Narcissa,” Lucius replied cooly. “You nearly made us both miss the train - for her, I might add. But not only that, you seem to forget all sense of honor and decency when you’re with your sister. Those waiting rooms are not private, Narcissa; there are windows, and the way you held onto Bellatrix like a schoolgirl with a crush was awfully unbecoming, not to mention humiliating for me!”
Narcissa stared at him for a moment, mouth agape. “What?” she asked finally, not being able to comprehend how annoyed he truly was, and why. She had thought he was just being a prick because he had this weird obsession with punctuality. Honestly, if he was ever made late to something he would think it the end of the world; Narcissa couldn’t fathom for the like of her why, though she would venture a guess that it was Abraxas’ doing. Everything always seemed to be, anyway. But now she was staring at him, growing more infuriated by the second that Lucius had to nerve to say she humiliated him.
“You didn’t have to wait for me, you know!” Narcissa exclaimed angrily; she didn’t understand how him nearly missing the train was her fault. She didn’t put her wand to his head and order him to stay behind and wait for her, after all. For fuck’s sake. “That was your decision; not mine, Lucius. And don’t you dare imply I did anything indecent in that waiting room. I was comforting my sister, there is nothing improper about that; she’s my family!Regardless, even if it made you uncomfortable that’s through no fault of mine; no one asked you to stay and bloody watch!”
“It isn’t proper to leave my wife behind!” Lucius protested, like the mere suggestion of him getting on the train before Narcissa was unfathomable.
“I’m not your wife yet, Lucius!”
“You’re as good as!” Lucius replied passionately. Though Narcissa was angry, the words did make her heart swell a little. But that ended once Lucius opened his mouth again, “And I understand you love your sister, but to practically fawn all over her in public is revolting; you’re nearly a woman, Narcissa - best you start acting like one.”
“I do not fawn all over my sister!” Narcissa exclaimed fiercely, offended he would say that; he sounded just like her mother. “And if you value your bollocks I suggest you take back calling me revolting because I’m about a second away from risking our chance of having children in the future!”
“I didn’t say you were revolting, just what you were doing!” he argued; yet still crossed his legs for safe measure. Narcissa seethed at him.
“It’s the same bloody thing! And honestly you getting onto me about the way I act with Bellatrix is getting rather irritating. I’m allowed to care, Lucius!”
“I never said you weren’t! But you need to learn to withhold your urges in public; they’re unbecoming of a lady of your status.”
“Withhold my urges?” Narcissa repeated, half mocking him. “For Christ’s sake, Lucius; you make it sound as if I were humping her leg!”
“You may as well have been,” Lucius muttered to himself. Unfortunately for him, Narcissa heard him. Her hand connected with his cheek so hard that the sound echoed through the compartment. Lucius’ eyes flashed, but he held himself together like a man. They stared at each other for a moment, a battle of wills, until Lucius finally conceded quietly, yet begrudgingly:
“Perhaps what I said was uncalled for.”
“Do you think?!” Narcissa answered sarcastically, still angry with him. “I thought we put this issue to rest, Lucius. Your jealousy of her is getting ridiculous; she could never replace you, don’t you get that? I care about her, yes; but it’s you I’m to spend the rest of my life with, not her.”
It was getting so easy to lie to him, Narcissa noticed. It was nearly second nature now. She did care about him of course, but the truth was that Bellatrix did come first in her life. That was just the way it was.
Lucius did not answer her, which only stood to upset Narcissa more. “I can’t believe you’re doing this to me right now,” she said, hurt coloring her words. “You know what I went through a couple days ago. Yet instead of seeing if I’m doing alright, instead of being a proper boyfriend and being there for me during a difficult time in my life, you start attacking me over petty jealousies that aren’t even warranted! Your priorities are fucked, Lucius Malfoy. Fucked!”
Lucius’ eyes went wide. “Hey, no; don’t turn this around to make me look like the arsehole-”
“YOU ARE BEING AN ARSEHOLE!” Narcissa raged, getting to her feet. “How can you say you care about my well-being when all I see is you caring about you?”
“I do care about you!” Lucius protested, quickly turning his voice from defensive into apologetic now that he realized his fiancée was about to storm out on him. “Narcissa, I do care. I’m sorry, all right? I was being a prick. I didn’t even think-I just…” he trailed off, becoming at a loss for words. So instead he asked tentatively, “Are you doing alright?”
Narcissa just looked at him disbelievingly. “Piss off,” she answered, opening the compartment door. She was so done with this conversation; she was so bloody sick and tired of arguing over the same damn things. Her and Lucius argued over Bellatrix; her and Bellatrix argued over Lucius. Would it never end?
“Narcissa-!”
But Narcissa left, slamming the door behind her. She didn’t care what he had to say.
GO TO PART TWENTY SIX...