Cruel Sisters
Mum and Aunt Alcyone are chatting over sherries in the sitting room when the owl comes. I am seated by the window working on my summer homework, so I'm the one who lets the bird in when I hear the clack of its beak against the glass.
"It's for you, Mum," I say, handing the parchment to her and returning to my seat. I pick up my Standard Book of Spells (Grade 3), but only pretend to read. The letter was addressed from my elder sister, Andromeda, and I am eager to hear what she is up to. Andromeda's an awful suck-up, and my parents are always telling me to be like her, so I hope that she has finally slipped up and written something that will make Mum and Dad have second thoughts about her Continental tour. (After she left school, not sure what career to pursue, Mum and Dad gave her the gold to travel a bit with her friends in hopes that she'd pick up a bit of extra culture. I hope they do that for me – I'll use it better than Andromeda, who's disgustingly shallow and silly, and just wants to have fun, although she's managed to convince our parents otherwise.)
Holding her sherry in one hand, Mum reads the letter in silence.
Then: "Oh!" and she has the most peculiar look on her face, of delight mixed with trepidation, which slowly changes to worry and then to downright horror. The glass falls gently from her hand. I strain my ears.
"What's the matter, Maia?" asks my aunt, who looks as curious as I felt.
The warning line is very deep between Mum's eyes, and her lower lip starts to tremble. "Bellatrix, please leave the room."
"But Mum! Can't I hear about Andromeda?"
"No. Out. Now."
Leaving my book open on the windowsill, I shuffle off sullenly, closing the door behind me. Then I whip around and press my ear against it. All I can hear is the murmuring of Aunt Alcyone's concerned voice. Silence; then a bellow of rage. Angry footsteps: I prepare to flee, but my aunt is merely pacing back and forth across the room. My mum starts crying.
"SHE'S A BLACK!" shouts Aunt Alcyone. "Who does she think she is?"
"I can't believe this," Mum weeps.
"This is a disgrace on our whole family! We have to put a stop to this!"
Mum blows her nose.
Aunt Alcyone rants on for a while, shrieking about Andromeda's character and Hogwarts' Communist influence, but although I hang onto her every word I can't figure out what Andromeda has done, except that it has something to do with Mudbloods.
"Come on, Maia," she says finally, hoarse from all the shouting. "Let's go find Alphard and tell him exactly what his perfect daughter's done now."
"He'll be so proud of her," says Mum bitterly, her voice made funny by tears.
Her robes rustle as she rises from her armchair As they approach the door, I jump behind the stuffed demiguise in the alcove across the hall.
When they have disappeared down the corridor, the owl that delivered the letter squawking under Aunt Alcyone's angry grip, I tiptoe back into the sitting room. Next to Mum's chair, the thick base of a sherry glass lies among the shards of its own shattered rim, the brown liquid soaking into the carpet; and I find the letter shredded on top of the unlit logs in the fireplace.
"Kreacher!" I call quietly.
The house elf, ready as always to attend our family's every summons, creeps into the room and bows. "What does the young mistress wish?"
"Fix that paper." I point at the bits of letter.
"But – the young mistress is aware – house elves are not permitted to do magic! Kreacher is sorry –"
"I don't care, Kreacher," I snap impatiently. "Neither are under-age witches. Nobody will find out. Just do it."
"As the young mistress wishes," it answers, and points at the fireplace. There is a thwip! I snatch up the mended parchment and run out of the room.
Shutting the drawing-room door, I sink into my favorite armchair. (I have convinced my bratty little sister Narcissa that it is upholstered in Muggle skin; her reaction was very amusing, and she will no longer enter the drawing room of her own free will. This means I will be left to read the letter in peace.)
Dear Mum, Andromeda has written.
Sorry I haven't written for so long – we've been ever so busy! Last month we were in the Black Forest – what a place! It's full of Dark creatures, little Sirius would love it and I've got him a lovely (well, he'll like it) souvenir for his birthday present.
I suppose the Black Forest is not really a place of refined culture except for the castles, we visited one whose owner had to kill about twenty vampires before he could move in, he told us some fantastic stories at dinner. But we did have to use so much of the things we learned in Dark Arts at school, you'll be pleased to hear. If Bellatrix likes I can tell her some of the things that happened, she might get some points for the extra knowledge!
She is such a snivelling little sycophant.
We're in Italy now (after a fright in the Alps with a Yeti – Sandra actually got a picture of that one, which I'll send a copy of once we get them developed) and it's the most WONDERFUL place. We finally used some of that gold for a nice hotel, since we don't know anyone to visit here, and then we did the tourist thing and visited the Oracle at Delphi and saw a dance put on by dryads and satyrs. (More photos of these forthcoming!)
But the main reason Italy is such a wonderful place is that the most wonderful thing happened here, something I've been dreaming of secretly for a long time. And I hope you'll try and like it, Mum, because I've finally figured out what I want to do – what I need to do – with my life.
You don't know most of the people in our group, but they all went to Hogwarts in my year (except for Marie who was a year behind us) and they were all my friends, and one of them in particular I've admired so much for years. Since we've been travelling we've talked so much and found we have so much in common, and Mum, I really fell in love with him!
And then he started paying attention to me, you know, THAT way, and I was so happy… and, you know, it wasn't rushed or anything, we've been friends all through school really, and we saw so much of each other when travelling. Well, at the Oracle of Delphi we were looking into the crack where the steam comes up, you know, where they put the tripod, and everyone else wandered off, and oh Mum, it was so romantic! He took my hands, and pretended to be receiving a prophecy, and said "There is one who loves you with all his heart. Apollo declares that you ought to marry him," and then he took out a ring.
Isn't that the most ROMANTIC, SWEET thing you've ever heard of? And of course I said yes, and we started thinking about the wedding right away.
Oh, Mum, I know you haven't met him, but when you do you HAVE to love him, he's so wonderful. He's clever and handsome and polite, he's a perfect gentleman really, and a brilliant wizard,, and his family's ever so rich so you'll never have to worry about THAT. Oh, he's just perfect, except for one little thing, which when you think about it is so tiny compared to all of the tremendous marvelous fantastic things about him, but I know you won't really like this, which is why I'm giving you this warning, so you can get used to it, but I promise, when you meet him you'll be so delighted that you won't even believe he's Muggleborn.
I really really hope that you'll give him a chance, Mum, I know you can, because I love him so much and we're going to be so happy together, and all we need now is Dad's and your blessing.
We should be back to London in a couple of weeks, I'll owl you again before we arrive, and then you can meet your luckiest daughter's charming handsome fiance!!!
lots of love,
Andromeda XOXOXO
I can't believe it. I know Andromeda is shallow, but she made good marks at school. I never thought she was stupid. What is she doing, hanging around with Mudbloods? How can she possibly think that Mum will calmly accept the fact that her eldest daughter wants to marry one?
She is going to be in so much trouble.
Mum and Dad will never let her marry him, of course. And they'll hush it up – Aunt Alcyone will probably never even tell my uncle or cousins about it. I doubt they'll even think to inform me or Narcissa of our sister's treachery.
Why haven't I heard about her disgusting Muggle-loving tendencies before? Our times at Hogwarts only overlapped by a year, but surely there must have been rumours about a Slytherin prefect – and a member of the Black family at that – fraternizing with such rubbish.
But I haven't heard anything. The upper-level students never talk about Andromeda much, but I figured that was because she was such a toady and teacher's pet. She was probably quite popular in Gryffindor house.
I will never speak to her again.
No, scratch that. I will never speak to her as my sister again. She isn't my sister. She is a blood traitor, and I'll treat her as such until she feels the shame she's brought upon our family.
I lean back in the armchair, smoothing down my hair. I am a loyal daughter. I have respect for the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. I will show them all what a true pureblood witch is; I will be the best and strongest and most faithful of them all. They will see.
I am wrong about the hushing-up part. I'm still curled in the armchair planning glorious futures when a whole group of people marches in the front door and down the hall.
Stuffing the letter down the side of the chair, I manage to look bored as Aunt Alcyone bursts into the room. Her wand is out, and she grips my dad by the wrist the same way she held the owl. Mum, Narcissa, Uncle Alcor, Sirius, and little Regulus enter the room after them.
"There you are," Mum says unenthusiastically. I glance up. She's stopped crying and probably charmed the red from her eyes, but she looks like she could crack any moment. I wish she would get a grip on herself.
"I told you she'd turn up," replies Uncle Alcor.
"What is it?" I ask my aunt.
Standing in the middle of the room, Aunt Alcyone draws herself up. Her hair is tumbling out of the black cap she always wears; she has let go of Dad and she digs her long nails into her wand grip. She looks quite mad, and everyone pays attention.
"Children," she begins. "It is very important that you remember what you see and learn here today. You are all Blacks. Remember that. There is nothing more important in your life than that you honour and uphold the dignity of our ancient House. You are its future, and there is nothing more heartbreaking than a shining future destroyed. But that is what has happened – what must happen – today.
"Regulus!"
The baby of our family at five years old, he struts out from behind Uncle Alcor's legs. "Yes?" he asks importantly.
"Regulus, darling, can you tell me what kind of person little wizards must never play with?"
He thinks for a moment. "Muggles!"
"Good boy. Sirius!"
My elder cousin, a year younger than Narcissa, shuffles his feet.
"Sirius, when you went outside last week without permission, and then came home all upset because you saw a horrible dirty boy hitting a dog, what kind of nasty boy was that?"
He flushes and glares at the carpet, but finally mutters, "A Muggle."
"Yes. Narcissa!"
My little sister is chewing on a bit of her long blonde hair, which she drops guiltily from her mouth as everyone's attention focuses on her. She looks very frightened, and I remember with some sympathy the way I tricked her with the armchair. She is my only sister now, though she is a brat; I will have to treat her better.
"Narcissa, love, when you go to Hogwarts next year, how will you treat the Mudbloods?"
"I won't touch them!" she bursts out, and trembles.
Aunt Alcyone nods at her with a look of satisfaction, then turns to me. "Out of the chair, missy."
I stand up tall. Whatever I say will make her proud.
"Bellatrix, when you were in your first year and Andromeda was in her seventh, did you ever observe any… unbecoming behaviors in her?"
I haven't been expecting this question. But I say, regally, "I hardly associated with her, Aunt."
She gives me a piercing look, but moves on. "Children, your cousin and sister has become a cause of great grief to us. She has behaved in the most unbecoming way imaginable, Bellatrix. She has taken a Mudblood for her companion, Regulus. Narcissa, she has let them touch her; and, Sirius, they have made her filthy!
"The House of Black will not be sullied by such an abomination. Your parents and I have decided that the traitor must be expunged from our family."
Aunt Alcyone stalks over to the tapestry, beckoning us to follow.
"No," whispers my father, speaking for the first time.
"What did you say, Alphard?" my aunt asks dangerously.
"No. You can't do this," he murmurs. "My own daughter –"
"She isn't your daughter any more. She spurned that privilege!" Aunt Alcyone shrieks.
My father flinches and covers his face with his hands. A surge of hate grows in me. Filling my voice with venom, I coo, "Aaaaaah, does Daddy love his precious little traitor?"
Dad turns and rushes out of the room. Mum gasps, "Bellatrix!"
Then the room is silent. Nobody moves, except for Sirius, who folds his arms tightly across his chest. Again Aunt Alcyone measures me with her stare.
"Very well," she says. "It shall be done."
She turns to the tapestry, and points her wand at Andromeda's name. Mine and Narcissa's are to the left and right of it: if her hand were to shake! My sister, my only sister, is standing in front of me; I cannot see her face. I rest my hand lightly on her shoulder.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" shouts Aunt Alcyone, and the light flashes green. When my eyes are no longer dazzled, I can see a little thread of smoke coming off the tapestry. There is a charred round hole where the embroidery was. Aunt was accurate with her curse.
She turns to face us, the mad light stronger now in her eyes. "The House is forever pure. We shall never speak her name again."
fin
Author notes:
1. I only realized at the end that Andromeda's name was between her sisters' on the tapestry, which probably indicates that she's the middle sibling, not the eldest. But including that fact would have changed my whole story, and who knows? there could be another explanation for the order.
2. Rowling doesn't give us the names of three out of four adults in this story, so I just selected star names that seemed fitting. Alcyone means "one who wards off evil"; Maia means "mother"; and Alcor means "black horse or bull." This information came from the Web site at this link: http:www.ras.ucalgary.ca/gibson/starnames/starnames.html
3. "Cruel Sisters" is the title of a completely unrelated short story by Patricia C. Wrede, which can be found in her anthology Book of Enchantments.
4. This was written for ofbadfaith in saeva's Harry Potter Genficathon.