Andromeda – The Forgotten Sister
Andromeda Tonks had had very little time to grieve.
Once upon a time, she was a fun loving, life loving, smiley and almost carefree person and she'd had everything she wanted, a family and friends, everyone that she'd need... well, almost everyone.
But now, in the August of the year 1998, she was feeling more alone than ever, as she sat with her orphaned grandson grizzling on her lap, with no one around her, except for him, and he was hardly going to be able to give her the adult conversation she so craved although he could entertain her with his ever changing hair, something she knew from experience, that he wouldn't be able to control for another few years.
"I know, sweetheart. You want your mummy and daddy, don't you?" She sighed, "I wish they were here too, especially your mum," As if he understood what she was talking about, his wispy hair turned a shocking bubblegum pink, strikingly similar to the shade his mother would regularly wear it.
Andromeda choked a laugh with a short sob, pulling the infant to her and cradling him, willing him to rest.
"Come on Teddy, I know you're tired, Merlin only knows I am. I thought I'd given up sleepless nights many years ago," She tentatively watched as Baby Teddy's eyes drooped and fluttered, "That's it, off to the land of nod for the night, or a few hours at least," She relaxed as his breathing evened out and Andromeda was once again taken with an image she'd not seen for over twenty years.
He was so like her; so excitable and colourful. Although, he seemed to have inherited his nose and the shape of his little eyes from his father and Andromeda would be lying if she said she wasn't grateful that he hadn't inherited another trait from Remus, rather becoming a metamorphmagus like Nymphadora than a werewolf.
Not that she had anything against werewolves, heavens, Remus Lupin had to be the kindest, and most gentle person she'd ever met, despite some of his ways of thinking, but he was so burdened by his lycanthropy and she knew that he wouldn't have wished it on anybody, least of all his son.
Oh, how she missed them both so much.
It was in the midsts of her thoughts that a tapping from the kitchen, brought her back to reality.
The tapping continued insistently while she placed Teddy in his Moses basket, hoping the noise wouldn't disturb him, before dashing into the kitchen and spotting the jet black owl, impatiently hoping along her windowsill, his long beak meeting the panes of glass at intervals.
She undid the several locks, a war leaving one paranoid to the dangers of the outside, and let the owl in, untying the letter from its claw and pushing a bowl of owl treats towards it.
She ruffled its feathers, "That's a good girl," It nipped her hand harshly then, and Andromeda snapped it back, "Boy?" It, or he, gave her a look that said her second guess was correct before taking one last treat and flying out again into the dark, "Crazy old hooter," She muttered to herself as she redid all the locks.
Once safe and secure, she absently picked up the letter and returned to the living area, her grandson still blissfully unaware in his snoozing.
Sitting on her snug couch, she flipped the long thin envelope over to see the seal of a family she hadn't had any contact, or pleasant contact rather, with for a very long time. She traced the indent of the 'M' in the jade green mark before grabbing a letter opener from the bowl on the coffee table, and eagerly ripping it open, curious as to what was inside.
After all, why would a Malfoy openly contact her if it wasn't about something interesting?
Taking apart the folds of the letter, Andromeda immediately recognised her sister's writing.
Narcissa Malfoy had been one of many to turn her back on Andromeda and forget she ever existed when she chose the love of her life, her husband, over loyalty to the pureblood obsessive's that were her ancient family.
She never hated her sisters for what they chose. She understood; they did what they did because it's what they believed in and it felt right to them and what she believed in felt right to her. They just had very opposing views on what they thought 'right' was.
The letter was short and the same seal from the envelope was watermarked on the parchment. She scanned it at first before going to the top and reading it over;
Dear Andromeda,
It has been a very long time since I last spoke to you and you have every reason to wish to lengthen that gap and act as though this letter never came to you, but you are my sister and I felt it only right you hear this piece of information from me rather than elsewhere.
Bellatrix is to be laid to rest in the old Black family cemetery, in two days time, at 10am.
There shall be no service, the Ministry believes that someone with her long list of crimes doesn't deserve any special treatment; however I am still going to be present and I wanted to let you know in case you wish to be there to.
As I said, we are still sisters.
I hope you are well,
Narcissa Malfoy.
Andromeda could only gape at the scripture as she studied it for long minutes at a time.
After almost three decades of hatred and disapproval and forgotten families, Andromeda was being asked to attend the burial of her sister, a murderer. Her daughter's killer.
She thought she might very well be sick.
'...we are still sister.'
Oh, and does that mean it'd be okay if she murdered Draco? She didn't think so.
But she couldn't disregard the horrible feeling of needing to go.
Needing to see it for herself that her big sister, someone she'd grown up with and loved, someone who she was reminded daily of looking just like, was really dead and gone.
For Andromeda, she was going to make a very difficult decision.
TheBlackSisters
When Andromeda found herself at the shiny charcoal gates of the Black Family Cemetery, she momentarily wished she hadn't bothered. She'd much rather be sat at home, wallowing to her grandson, while he gurgled back, probably wondering what the hell the woman was going on about while she could be feeding him, something he was able to understand was a much more pleasant thing than listening to something he didn't understand after all the four months he done of living.
Instead he was with his godfather and his girlfriend at the Weasley family home and Andromeda was facing years of built of frustration.
She was going to face things long forgotten and she wondered if they should just stay that way, but Narcissa had sought her out and she didn't think she could abandon her baby sister when she needed her, even though that was exactly what Narcissa, and Bellatrix, had done to her all that time ago.
No, she reasoned with herself, she wasn't like them, and so she let her eyes graze over the acres and acres of land, filled with the hundreds of remains of her ancestral family, some she knew, most she didn't, all long gone.
She finally spotted two heads of almost silver blond hair, and grimaced at the prospect of seeing Lucius Malfoy again, however she was relieved when her sister's companion wasn't her husband, but another male who she recognised as her nephew, a boy she'd never met.
Hearing the footsteps, Narcissa's head snapped up and saw her sibling, and to Andromeda, Narcissa seemed to take a moment, processing how her sister looked since the last time they had been in one another's company.
While she did so, Andromeda noted that all that was there was a small black plaque, solidly placed in the ground, simply engraved with Bellatrix's name and dates of life, and nothing else. No epitaph, no words a well meaning, nothing. The casket, a plain black box, was floating in place above the grave, waiting to be lowered.
"Andromeda," Narcissa finally said, her voice so foreign, yet so familiar to her.
"Narcissa," She said in the same civil tone, before turning to the young man, a slight curve to her lips, "And Draco, I presume."
He looked so lost when his eyes met hers, and like so many others before him, he seemed aware of how similar the woman looked to his other aunt. Once he too had taken in her image, he whispered a "Hello," before looking back on the casket again. At that angle, Andromeda could see a burn gracing his cheek and could only presume it was a womb he'd acquired at the battle weeks before.
Narcissa placed a hand softly on her son's shoulder and quietly said, "Why don't you go and wait for me by the gates, Draco, I won't be long," He bowed his head and left without another word.
Andromeda took his place next to her sister and said, "He looks like Lucius."
"He does," She acquiesced.
They were silent for a while before Andromeda spoke again, sharper than earlier, "Why did you ask me here, Narcissa? After everything she did, everything you both did."
Narcissa didn't look at her sibling, as she replied, "There was no one else left who would come."
Andromeda scoffed, "Oh, so I was a last resort?"
Narcissa finally looked at her again, "No, not at all. We're family."
"Hardly," Andromeda muttered in response, before succumbing to the silence again, not wishing for small talk.
In any case, what do you say to someone with totally obscured beliefs to your own and hasn't had a nice or polite word to say to you for over thirty years?
"I don't quite know what to say to you," Narcissa admitted, "It's been so long, Meda."
"Don't call me that for starters," She bite back, regretting it slightly as she was reminded that she was a Black, no matter what she did, before adding, "Meda, Cissy and Bella died along time ago," A sniffle sounded from Narcissa.
"Maybe to you, but I never forgot."
"Neither did I," She argued, "But I also never forgot how you tried to bully me into leaving Ted in school, or how you told our parents hoping that would stop me from being with him. I also never forgot how you and every other pureblood maniac either forgot I existed, or tried to torment me, as soon as that engagement ring was on my finger."
"Yes, well," Narcissa replied stiffly, "He was never good enough for you."
"Ha!" Her tone was warped with every inch of the sarcasm she intended, "Because someone like Rodolphus or Lucius would have been so much better?" She eyed her sister firmly, "Ted Tonks was better than any husband I could have even wished for. He was a better man than any pureblood our parents could have thrown at me. The fact of him being a muggle-born was just another plus on the list of many. Pureblood is overrated as far as I'm concerned," She finished, more miffed than she'd been in a hell of a long time.
"Well, you would think that," Narcissa conceded tiredly, "But despite what you think, I still missed you."
"And I missed you," She paused, "And Bellatrix," She sighed, "But nothing will ever make us sisters again. Not like before," Narcissa ducked her head, defeated, "Do you mind if I have a moment alone with her? I have something's to get off my chest."
"I have to go anyway," She said, guiltily, "Lucius' hearing is in an hour and Draco and I promised him we'd be there. It's unlikely that they'll be as lenient with him as they were with us."
"Forgive me for being unable to wish him the best," She pursed her lips as Narcissa bent down to the side of the plaque, kissed her finger tips before placing them over the engraved name.
"Goodbye Bella," She murmured before standing and facing Andromeda with a sense of finality, "Will I see you again?"
"I don't know," Andromeda shook her head, uncertain, "I shall contact you if and when I'm ready."
Narcissa nodded, "Goodbye Meda."
Andromeda exhaled heavily, "Goodbye Cissy."
She was quickly alone, her eyes falling on the coffin, "Well, well, well, we meet again, Bellatrix," She spoke, preparing herself for a long goodbye to the deceased in front of her, "I hate that I will never be able to hate you, no matter how much you professed to hate me. You are my sister and I will always have a degree of affection for you, no matter how many times you tried to claw it away.
"You, Bella, have done so many things, to try and destroy me and my life and as crazy as you undoubtedly were, you probably didn't even think about me as you did it.
"Did you think about me, when you murdered my daughter? Did you think about me, when you murdered Sirius? He was the only one left in this mad family to still give me the time of day.
"I didn't think you did.
"I hope, wherever you are, that you are reminded of how you have torn my daughter from me, and from the son she'd had just mere weeks, before you carelessly flicked your wand at her.
"I hope you are reminded of all the times when were children when you and Siri used to play in the house, best friends, before you decided he was deluded in not wanting to harm the innocent and killed him for it.
"I hope that you're so called friends, your husband, are shown the damage they have done, by taking away my husband and my grandson's father away from him before he could even say his name.
"I hope you finally feel regret and remorse and guilt for all the pain and destruction you have caused for some fantasist idea.
"But most of all, I hope you remember that no matter how hard you try to make me not, I still love you, Bella, because, as Cissy said, we are still sisters," Andromeda took a breath, before copying her younger sister actions and placing a kiss on the plaque and standing again.
"I will never, ever, forgive you for feeding me with every sadness I ever experience, whether we were adults or children. Goodbye, and goodnight Bella," With a swift motion of her wand, the casket lowered six feet, and with another, Bellatrix Lestrange was buried and hidden away, never allowed to hurt anyone ever again.
And Andromeda smiled.
A.N. This was just a random thought I had and decided to write in the midst of FanFiction not allowing me to upload ANYTHING for nearly a week (and counting as this is written :/)
Anyway, I don't really write stuff unless its romance and this really isn't so I really want to know how I did.
Did you like? Tell me, please! :D:D:D
Happy Reading,
Jessica.