The Nightingale That Refused To Sing - a gift for valkyriekat_47!
Title: The Nightingale That Refused To Sing
Author: flyingharmony
Recipient: valkyriekat_47
Pairing(s): Bellatrix/Narcissa, past Andromeda/Narcissa
Word Count: 1175
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: (Strongly Mentioned) Character Death, Incest if you squint
Summary: With the loss of her sister, Narcissa also loses her voice.
Author's Notes: Thank you so much to Fairy for hosting this amazing fest and also for the beta! You’re amazing, bb <3. To Valkyriekat - I really, really hope that you will enjoy this! I basically loved every single of your prompts and tried to use a few of them for the fic (even if they might not be all that obvious) - it was really wonderful to see how much we have in common!
There were no words to describe how much she missed her. The pain of a broken heart was the most excruciating, the most terrible pain to endure, they said, and it was true. Even now, long after it had happened, some days it seemed sheer impossible to cope. Even now, it still felt as though it had only been days since they’d last seen each other.
Sometimes, she’d still dream of her; sometimes she’d still see her face right before her as though she were here, here with her. Sometimes she’d still hear her voice, quietly whispering into her ear.
She was dead. Andromeda was dead, long gone, and still her presence would haunt Narcissa, would remind her of how much, of how painfully much she missed her.
"You need to forget about her," Bellatrix would tell her from time to time, shaking her head in disdain. "We lost her, Cissy, and mourning the past will not bring her back."
How much she wanted to scream at her. How much she wanted to spit at her for speaking out these terrible words. How much she wanted to escape, escape from everything. Instead she only sank down within her arms, crying countless silent tears.
How dare you speak of her like this, Narcissa wanted to shout. how dare you speak of your sister in such a way? Didn’t she mean anything to you?
There was so much she wanted to say, so much she wanted to… Instead, her mouth remained shut. She had not spoken since she’d lost Andromeda; her lips had been sealed for all those years, ever since she’d knelt there on the floor, eve since she’d held her lifeless body in her arms, begging for her to wake up, begging for her to return, all in vain.
Bellatrix, however, had only watched her from the distance, her large black eyes coldly resting on her. She ignored her desperate cries for help, stood there, just stood there, her wand still in her hands.
"You cannot stay silent forever, Narcissa," Bellatrix had said days later, her voice sharp and cruel. She’d glared at Narcissa with such scornfulness that she felt her blood freeze within her veins. Were she to punish her for her tears? Were she to punish her for her grief? Were she to kill her, too?
Narcissa’s desperate attempt to run away on the fateful night of her sister’s death had failed; she’d had no chance to escape. Of course not. She’d been too weak even to rise from the floor, too weak to even keep her eyes open. And she knew that, if Bellatrix wanted her to stay with her, there would no other option than to stay, not even when she wanted nothing more than to be away. Away… Away from her, away from everything, alone!
Never had she despised her sister more than in the moment she realised what had happened, and yet she’d been helpless, defenceless, had Bellatrix hit her in her weakest moment. She wasn’t afraid of her, had never been afraid of her like so many others, but Andromeda’s death seemed to have changed everything. She was now a prisoner of grief, silenced and paralysed, incapable of refusing.
"You cannot stay silent forever," Bellatrix whispered again, tightly grasping her slender fingers around her wrist. "And one day, Cissy, you will understand that all your mourning was in vain."
But she had been mistaken. Narcissa’s voice was lost; she had remained silent, unable to speak even if she wanted to. And while time had taken away a part of her pain, it would still burn within her heart, never fading. Still she felt unspeakable anger for her sister, and yet she needed her more than anything else. Yet she would allow her to come to her, to touch her, even to kiss her like she had only allowed Andromeda to kiss her. Yet she would cry against her shoulder when once again she was unable to control her emotions. Yet she loved her and loathed herself for her weakness.
"She was a traitor," Bellatrix had told her countless times when she noticed Narcissa's red, tear-filled eyes, her voice soft as if to comfort her with such cruel words. "A traitor, Cissy, nothing but a traitor! She wanted to run away with a Muggle-born… Could you imagine the shame she would have put on our family? Could you imagine how much she’d have disgraced us all?"
Lies. Of course she was lying, of course her words weren’t true! She hadn’t been a traitor, not her, not Andromeda! Not her sister, her wonderful sister, her everything… She’d never have left her; Narcissa knew it! She wouldn’t have left her…
What if it’s true?
No. It wasn’t true; none of it was true. It wasn’t true…
What had Bellatrix done to her over all these years? What had she done to her to make her sheer will-less? What had she done to make her doubt what she had once so firmly believed in?
Narcissa was free, she knew; free to leave, free to go anywhere she desired, but still she stayed, still she was a captive. She’d give in to Bellatrix, would always give in, allow her mind to slip away and lose control over herself more with every day passing. How softly Bellatrix spoke to her sometimes, how lovingly. And then, how cold she could be to her, how cold and unapproachable. It felt as though she were playing a game with her, a cruel game to make her completely and utterly submissive, but then, why would Narcissa still see her cry sometimes, in moments she felt unobserved? Why would she still notice Bellatrix' eyes to be wet with tears?
Once again Bellatrix had come to her once night had fallen, tightly held her in her arms now as though she never wanted to let her go, as though she too needed her in this very moment. How fragile she seemed…
"Cissy…" Bellatrix whispered ,barely audible, gently stroking over her cheek. "Talk to me… Please, talk to me… Just a word…"
Nothing. Narcissa only shook her head, briefly looked into her eyes. How sad they looked, and how sincere… No. It wasn’t sincerity she saw in her, it couldn't impossibly be…
Perhaps she loved her, too. Perhaps she…
Again Narcissa wanted nothing more than to scream, to cry out what she had held back for too long, and again there was only silence. Nothing but silence. Her words had dried out long ago and she knew that one day her tears would also cease to flow. Bellatrix had broken her, yet she was the only person she had left. Bellatrix had done the unspeakable and still Narcissa loved her, still she had nowhere else to go, still she felt safe within her arms.
But she would never forget whom she had loved more than anything else in her life. She would always dream of her, dream of the sister she had lost too soon, silently calling her name in her sleep.
Author: flyingharmony
Recipient: valkyriekat_47
Pairing(s): Bellatrix/Narcissa, past Andromeda/Narcissa
Word Count: 1175
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: (Strongly Mentioned) Character Death, Incest if you squint
Summary: With the loss of her sister, Narcissa also loses her voice.
Author's Notes: Thank you so much to Fairy for hosting this amazing fest and also for the beta! You’re amazing, bb <3. To Valkyriekat - I really, really hope that you will enjoy this! I basically loved every single of your prompts and tried to use a few of them for the fic (even if they might not be all that obvious) - it was really wonderful to see how much we have in common!
There were no words to describe how much she missed her. The pain of a broken heart was the most excruciating, the most terrible pain to endure, they said, and it was true. Even now, long after it had happened, some days it seemed sheer impossible to cope. Even now, it still felt as though it had only been days since they’d last seen each other.
Sometimes, she’d still dream of her; sometimes she’d still see her face right before her as though she were here, here with her. Sometimes she’d still hear her voice, quietly whispering into her ear.
She was dead. Andromeda was dead, long gone, and still her presence would haunt Narcissa, would remind her of how much, of how painfully much she missed her.
"You need to forget about her," Bellatrix would tell her from time to time, shaking her head in disdain. "We lost her, Cissy, and mourning the past will not bring her back."
How much she wanted to scream at her. How much she wanted to spit at her for speaking out these terrible words. How much she wanted to escape, escape from everything. Instead she only sank down within her arms, crying countless silent tears.
How dare you speak of her like this, Narcissa wanted to shout. how dare you speak of your sister in such a way? Didn’t she mean anything to you?
There was so much she wanted to say, so much she wanted to… Instead, her mouth remained shut. She had not spoken since she’d lost Andromeda; her lips had been sealed for all those years, ever since she’d knelt there on the floor, eve since she’d held her lifeless body in her arms, begging for her to wake up, begging for her to return, all in vain.
Bellatrix, however, had only watched her from the distance, her large black eyes coldly resting on her. She ignored her desperate cries for help, stood there, just stood there, her wand still in her hands.
"You cannot stay silent forever, Narcissa," Bellatrix had said days later, her voice sharp and cruel. She’d glared at Narcissa with such scornfulness that she felt her blood freeze within her veins. Were she to punish her for her tears? Were she to punish her for her grief? Were she to kill her, too?
Narcissa’s desperate attempt to run away on the fateful night of her sister’s death had failed; she’d had no chance to escape. Of course not. She’d been too weak even to rise from the floor, too weak to even keep her eyes open. And she knew that, if Bellatrix wanted her to stay with her, there would no other option than to stay, not even when she wanted nothing more than to be away. Away… Away from her, away from everything, alone!
Never had she despised her sister more than in the moment she realised what had happened, and yet she’d been helpless, defenceless, had Bellatrix hit her in her weakest moment. She wasn’t afraid of her, had never been afraid of her like so many others, but Andromeda’s death seemed to have changed everything. She was now a prisoner of grief, silenced and paralysed, incapable of refusing.
"You cannot stay silent forever," Bellatrix whispered again, tightly grasping her slender fingers around her wrist. "And one day, Cissy, you will understand that all your mourning was in vain."
But she had been mistaken. Narcissa’s voice was lost; she had remained silent, unable to speak even if she wanted to. And while time had taken away a part of her pain, it would still burn within her heart, never fading. Still she felt unspeakable anger for her sister, and yet she needed her more than anything else. Yet she would allow her to come to her, to touch her, even to kiss her like she had only allowed Andromeda to kiss her. Yet she would cry against her shoulder when once again she was unable to control her emotions. Yet she loved her and loathed herself for her weakness.
"She was a traitor," Bellatrix had told her countless times when she noticed Narcissa's red, tear-filled eyes, her voice soft as if to comfort her with such cruel words. "A traitor, Cissy, nothing but a traitor! She wanted to run away with a Muggle-born… Could you imagine the shame she would have put on our family? Could you imagine how much she’d have disgraced us all?"
Lies. Of course she was lying, of course her words weren’t true! She hadn’t been a traitor, not her, not Andromeda! Not her sister, her wonderful sister, her everything… She’d never have left her; Narcissa knew it! She wouldn’t have left her…
What if it’s true?
No. It wasn’t true; none of it was true. It wasn’t true…
What had Bellatrix done to her over all these years? What had she done to her to make her sheer will-less? What had she done to make her doubt what she had once so firmly believed in?
Narcissa was free, she knew; free to leave, free to go anywhere she desired, but still she stayed, still she was a captive. She’d give in to Bellatrix, would always give in, allow her mind to slip away and lose control over herself more with every day passing. How softly Bellatrix spoke to her sometimes, how lovingly. And then, how cold she could be to her, how cold and unapproachable. It felt as though she were playing a game with her, a cruel game to make her completely and utterly submissive, but then, why would Narcissa still see her cry sometimes, in moments she felt unobserved? Why would she still notice Bellatrix' eyes to be wet with tears?
Once again Bellatrix had come to her once night had fallen, tightly held her in her arms now as though she never wanted to let her go, as though she too needed her in this very moment. How fragile she seemed…
"Cissy…" Bellatrix whispered ,barely audible, gently stroking over her cheek. "Talk to me… Please, talk to me… Just a word…"
Nothing. Narcissa only shook her head, briefly looked into her eyes. How sad they looked, and how sincere… No. It wasn’t sincerity she saw in her, it couldn't impossibly be…
Perhaps she loved her, too. Perhaps she…
Again Narcissa wanted nothing more than to scream, to cry out what she had held back for too long, and again there was only silence. Nothing but silence. Her words had dried out long ago and she knew that one day her tears would also cease to flow. Bellatrix had broken her, yet she was the only person she had left. Bellatrix had done the unspeakable and still Narcissa loved her, still she had nowhere else to go, still she felt safe within her arms.
But she would never forget whom she had loved more than anything else in her life. She would always dream of her, dream of the sister she had lost too soon, silently calling her name in her sleep.