Hello, this was a bit of a difficult one to write, seeing as Andromeda isn't a character I've ever written before. I started this fic no less than ten times before I was satisfied I could actually write something semi-decent. Oh, and if anyone was wondering 'Nashira' means 'she who brings good news' - I stuck with the star theme that the entire Black family seems to operate on.

Disclaimer - I, sadly, do not own Harry Potter

Warnings - None, really. One or two uses of the word 'bloody', but that's it.

Written for - Snakes and Ladders Challenge, First Roll

In a family like the Blacks, being able to keep a secret was as valuable and rare as gold dust. And yet this was precisely what Andromeda was attempting to do, and, was so far succeeding at, although that may have had more to do with the fact that her older sister, Bellatrix, was trying to rope her into helping organise her upcoming wedding, to one of the idiotic Lestrange brothers (Andy could never remember which one) no less. She loved her sister, despite the often, psychotic, pleasure she seemed to get out of hurting younger students and certain Muggleborns and would have selected a much more intellectual choice, who would challenge Bella's intelligence rather than decrease it.

Whenever her charming Aunt Walburga tried to bring up her age and point out that sixteen was "much too old to not have a suitor, at the very least…" Andromeda skilfully shifted the subject onto preparing for Bella's looming nuptials. She wasn't entirely sure how much longer she could keep this up for though, for as soon as Bellatrix was out of their hair, she was certain she'd be the next one sucked into the never-ending social circles' dinner parties and potential engagements. Nevertheless, for now, she was safe in the knowledge that Ted, her secret, Muggleborn boyfriend was exactly that; a secret. She wasn't stupid enough to believe that her relatives would simply overlook the blood status of her partner; quite the opposite, because they were nothing if not pureblood supremacists. If anyone were to find out, Andromeda was under no illusions that she wouldn't be immediately disowned, blasted off the family tree and kicked out of the house with not so much as a knut to her name.

And yet, regardless of the risks, Andy found herself virtually skipping to her room one evening, after a particularly stressful meeting with the females of the family, her younger sister, Narcissa, glancing worriedly at her as they walked down the hallway towards the stairs. She was well aware that there would be a letter waiting for her on her desk, delivered by her own personal owl, Nashira, just before lunch a few hours ago.

"'Meda? Is there anything the matter?" Narcissa asked, concernedly, her blonde eyebrows furrowing slightly as she frowned.

"No, I'm just glad to be out of there. Old Aunt Elladora was beginning to grate on my nerves." Andromeda flashed a reassuring smile in the younger girl's direction, and stopped when they came to her bedroom door. "I must dash, sis, only there's a letter from Katherine McDougal waiting for me to answer." Understanding crept across the blonde's face; the manners that their mother had been drilling into them since birth demanded that letters be written as soon as possible. What Narcissa didn't know, was that 'Katherine McDougal', while one of Andy's friends at school, was the code name that had been given to Ted when talking about him in front of everyone else.

"I'll let you get to it, then. Goodnight, 'Meda." The shorter of the two began to continue down the corridor before the elder could answer.

"'Night, Cissy." She turned to open the door, the smile she'd aimed at her sister growing into a grin as she hurried over to her desk, One hand reached for the envelope and the other absent-mindedly stroked Nashira.

~xoxo~

Dear 'Dromeda,

How're the holidays so far? I suppose that's a bit of a silly question, what with your sister's wedding and all. I'll modify it a bit; have you murdered any family members yet? Mine have been really interesting! Sorry, that sounds really inconsiderate of me, doesn't it? That's not how I meant it. If I remember rightly, you mentioned spending some time in France over the first few weeks, so tell me about that! There, much better. Anyway, as you know, we flew to Spain last Monday (by plane, you know) and it's a really great place, even if we can't understand what anyone's saying half of the time. We've done lots of Muggle-y things that I'll tell you about/show you when I see you next.

Oh, speaking of seeing; do you fancy meeting up at some point next week? I could show you around Muggle London, if it's not safe for you to be seen with me on the day. If we did it on a weekday, chances are there wouldn't be anyone we know in the Leaky. Let me know what you think about it, and if not, we can do something else.

Got to run, Mum's going mad looking for the sun cream (you remember what that is, don't you)

Love,

Ted x

Andromeda couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face at the letter. They'd agreed not to send messages any longer than one side of parchment, just in case anybody else noticed the amount of them that were being sent. One side was easy to dispose of, once the message was delivered. With this in mind, she flipped the parchment over and began to scribble a reply.

Dear Ted,

In all honesty, they've been incredibly dull. Aside from the odd tiff, I've managed to resist from strangling anybody, so that's a good sign, right? France was possibly the highlight of my first two weeks, which is incredibly depressing, considering the only reason we were there was to visit some great-great-great-something grandparents that shouldn't be alive, they're that old.

I know how you feel, Father bought us tickets to the last Quidditch World Cup, which was held in Bulgaria and none of us had a bloody clue what was going on. I've always wanted to go to Spain; I hear the markets are extremely interesting, not that you'd see them on your Muggle holiday… I'm looking forward to seeing/hearing about your adventures, they sound a lot more interesting than mine! Oh, and you'd better of got me a pressie, too!

I'd love to see you. I think Muggle London would be safer, right now. Bella's been harping on at me and Cissy about meeting someone who's extremely interested in our 'talents', so if we were away from Diagon Alley, I reckon we'd be alright for a day trip somewhere. You could take me to London Zoo! I've always wanted to go there, but Mother wouldn't let me. Hmm, how does Thursday sound to you? I've got more wedding stuff to deal with earlier in the week, but Wednesday's the last of it.

It's that stuff that protects you from sunburn isn't it? I hope she doesn't hurt herself!

Love,

Andy x

She watched her owl fly out of the window, sighing as it disappeared into the night sky and sank down onto her bed. Responding to Ted's letter had reminded her of something she tried her best to forget; sooner or later something was going to have to change, because she couldn't keep him hidden forever. As a Black, it was her duty to choose her family and her bloodline. But as Andromeda, she wasn't sure she could pick them over him, he meant too much. With a frown, she flopped backwards, her arms behind her head and her mind deep in thought. Sooner or later, she'd have to make a decision. But today was not that day, and as long as she didn't let slip, she had time to figure it out.