Content notice: References to murder. Sexism. It's also probably worth adding incest to this considering it deals with the canonical relationship of Walburga and Orion.
Walburga stood under the steady spray of water, more grateful than ever that her family had been one of the first in London to own a shower. She scrubbed at her hands though the last of the blood had long ago run down the drain. Ghostly traces of Anna clung to her skin, urging her to keep washing.
The burnt ashes of her former clothes and been vanished to the place where vanished things went, never to be seen again. She could only hope that the idiotic house elves didn't question where her dress had disappeared to.
She turned her hands over, looking for spots she had missed. She shuddered under the spray of cool water.
Anna had been her best friend. Walburga hadn't wanted to kill her, but family came first. Always. When Anna had turned Orion's affections into a competition, Walburga had been left with little choice in the matter. She had never concealed from Anna her plan to remain a Black for life. The thought of joining another family, no matter how prestigious their blood, made her stomach twist itself into knots, but remaining a Black wasn't as simple as never marrying at all. She'd be failing the family even more than if she married another. Her only choice was to marry within the family. She couldn't let Anna take that chance away from her, no matter how close the two of them had been.
She laughed as she remembered Anna's pleas that she hadn't meant to fall in love with Orion. She'd gripped Walburga's ropes and cried as if that made a difference. Walburga banged on the wall of the shower in an outburst of anger before gathering herself and with a deep breath.
It didn't matter anymore what Anna had said once upon a time. Orion wouldn't be marrying Anna; no one would. Soon, Anna would be in the ground, her branch on the Malfoy family tree never to sprout.
"What?"
Walburga's gaze shot to Orion when his voice cracked over the word. Arcturus stepped forward, gripping his son's shoulder and letting his fingernails dig into his flesh through his robes.
"Septimus," Arcturus said in a deadly calm voice, "your daughter was promised to my son. That was not an agreement we entered lightly."
"I can assure you, dear old friend, that I did not wish for my daughter's death anymore than you did. Alas, not even Merlin himself could bring the dead back to life. Know that if I could, I would. The only assurances I can offer is that the house elf responsible has been appropriately punished, and that I have every intention of honouring the agreement between our families. As you know, I have one daughter still unmarried."
"No," Orion growled, glaring at Septimus despite his father's continuing grip on his shoulder. "I don't want to marry your pathetic attempt at a replacement. My wish was to marry Anna."
"And Anna is dead," Septimus said with a shrug. "As sad as it may be, it remains the truth, and there is nothing I can do about it, but our families must continue to grow and strengthen. You do plan on producing an heir, Orion? Of course you do. There aren't many families who can provide you with as well-suited a wife for the task as I can."
"With all due respect, you're not the only man with an unmarried daughter suited for the task, Septimus."
Walburga held back her smirk as her father stepped away from the wall he'd been standing against beside her. She face arranged in a frown as if she didn't know what he was about to suggest.
"Who would you suggest then, Pollux?" Arcturus snapped. "The Malfoy family remains one of the purest in Britain." He inclined his head towards Septimus. "If Mr Malfoy is willing to give Orion his other daughter, it's prudent to approve of the marriage."
"Yes," Pollux allowed, nodding towards Septimus. "There are few families as worthy of marrying into the Blacks as the Malfoys. I would never imply otherwise. However, we have been greatly wronged here, Septimus. You must acknowledge that."
Septimus' lips tightened, but he didn't argue.
"Perhaps, considering the circumstances, it would be best to consider the agreement between our families as dead as the girl," Pollux continued, holding out his arm to beckon Walburga forward. She went to him without protest, her features still arranged into those of mourning though her heart pounded in her chest. "Arcturus, you had good intentions when you allowed Orion a love marriage with a family as respectable as the Malfoys, but all hopes of that have vanished. Need I remind you that Walburga is still unmarried, and it has always been our way to keep our blood within the family as much as possible."
Arcturus looked Walburga up and down as if he hadn't watched her grow from the time of her birth. She stood straight, confident in the pains she had taken to become the perfect Black matriarch. Arcturus himself had seen that once, before Anna had gotten in the way. He would see it again.
"It is a smart idea," Arcturus allowed. "One that agrees with centuries of tradition."
"No," Orion cried.
His eyes were rimmed in red as he glared at thim. Walburga's eyes widened as his gaze caught hers. There wasn't a trace of the begrudging kindness he had once shown her. He had deduced the truth. But no amount of anger was enough for him to publicly accuse another Black of murder in front of a Malfoy.
Instead, he stared at them as if they were a stage play he couldn't make sense of.
"Calm down," Arcturus growled, his gaze flickering towards Septimus, who was watching Orion with narrowed eyes. "Septimus, my cousin is right. It is the way of our family, like all of us from respectable lines, to keep our bloodline as close to the family as possible. The Malfoys have always been worthy spouses for Blacks, but considering the circumstances in this case, I am afraid that I agree with my kin on this. Walburga is of prime marrying age after all, and you have no sons to offer her. As the Black patriarch, I am as responsible for finding her a suitable match as I am finding them for my own children.
"Of course," Septimus said with a bow of his head. "You must think of the Black women before those of the Malfoys. That is part of our responsibility to our families. I do not hold this against you, Arcturus. There will be opportunities for our families to strengthen ties in the future."
As the men said their formal goodbyes, Walburga couldn't look away from Orion. Shivers travelled down her spine at the hatred in his eyes as he stared straight back.
But she didn't regret her actions. She had done her duty, nothing more.
Walburga waved her wand and watched with satisfaction as the parlor tidied itself. It had taken her several months to perfect that spell when her instructor had introduced her to it years earlier, and she couldn't help but feel prideful at times when she managed it.
Orion never complimented her housekeeping skills and would often go as far as asking the house elves to complete tasks without consulting her first, as if he didn't trust her to effectively run the household. She ignored it as much as possible despite the clear betrayal of their marriage contract each time he did so.
She had prepared for the job of being a proper housewife since birth only to have her authority continually usurped, but that didn't stop her from pushing forward. Eventually, Orion would have to accept that he had once lived in a dream, not the real world where one needed to do what was best for their family without care for themselves.
Walburga patted her bulging stomach with a smile. That was one area, at least, where Orion had accepted there was work to be done, and Walburga was thrilled to embark on a new aspect of her job that Orion would be less likely to interfere with.
The idea of fostering the next generation of Blacks and ensuring they lived up to the family name sent a shiver of anticipation down her spine.
Her life was bittersweet, perhaps. She hadn't relished killing Anna, and hadn't enjoyed her isolation since the other woman's death. But she'd done what she had to. There had been little choice in the matter, and she wouldn't regret it.
She rubbed her thumb back and forth over her stomach, hoping the baby inside felt the touch. Once he was born, her position was cemented. She would have accomplished the most important task that had been given to her.
Everything else was worth that.
Prompts:
Hogwarts Challenges and Assignments
Seasonal - Water Element: (word) shower
Seasonal - Winter in Japan: Kohaku Uta Gassen - Write about a competition.
Seasonal - Slytherin Themed Prompts: Walburga Black
Seasonal - Days of the Year: Fun at Work Day - Write about someone who loves their job.
Assignment 4 - Mythology: task 9 - Write about something that is bittersweet.
Word count: 1,469