So this is the first time that I've done something quite like this so reviews would be much appreciated. This story is set to follow the earlier lives of the previous generation from the books - centering around the Black sisters and their own desires and love interests. Lots of betrayals and scheming along the way before everyone ends up the way they're seen in the books.

And of course - I do not claim to have come up with any of the characters, everything Harry Potter is all copyright to the wonderful J.K. Rowling.

Enjoy?

Narcissa Black

The most important thing to understand about our family is that our parents' word is law. They choose our classes, our allegiances, our enemies, our friends… our husbands. They tell us what to do and we listen. And by "they", I mean our father. Our mother is a mere wisp of a woman, perhaps once strong but now broken. She also follows my father laws. None of us has a choice. It is a strict path to walk but it has been ours since the day we were born and we know nothing else. It is the same path of anyone that has the fortune – truly misfortune – to be born into one of the ancient, pureblood families. Envy us all you want from the comfort of your own warm, welcoming families. Wait until jealousy and desire have turned your faces green and then ask yourself: Could you really be us?

No.

You may think that it all appears so splendid, so elegant, but I will tell you this: you only see the superficiality of it all. The only ones who can actually bear it are those that have no choice, that have never know what it's like to taste that tantalizing thing called freedom. And even sometimes, they still can't. They are fissures, cracks in the perfect appearance of the purebloods. They are names long forgotten, only traceable to the scorched fabric of our family tree. They are shunned, they ceased to exist… And yet none of us can ever stop thinking of them. Imagining what it would be like to be them, to be able to escape from the web that ties us all together and strangles us with its tightness. And just in the same way that you should know that you could never be me, I look at them and know that I could never be one of them. I could never be my cousin, Sirius, sorted into Gryffindor with his back turned to the family. I could never be my uncle, showing kindness in the form of financial aid to Sirius – to one of them – at the price of becoming his very own scorch mark.

And me? I sit here and I wait as envy takes over myself, as I think of all those that have broken free from our family, and I know that I could never do the same. And then I look at the flyaway strands of web, those that are beginning to crack, beginning to stray towards what I never will be able to stray towards. I look at my sister, Andromeda, sorted into Ravenclaw. I look at how my parents disregarded this small error, how they praised her intelligence to the world, promising that it was only a sign of how further blessed she was. I look at how they put on a bright front to the world: smiles flashing, glasses clinking. And I remember the whipping she received the first time she came home after she was Sorted.

Anger fuels me by now, anger serving as a catalyst for everything I do. But it is a slow, manipulative anger that takes the time to think, to predict. It is not the same fierce, erratic anger that Bellatrix lashes out with. It is why we are such a good pair. Fire and Ice. Together, we can accomplish anything. Once we were three but no matter what lies our parents preach to the world, we all know that Andromeda is slipping. She has been ostracized by her own family so who are we to rule that she continues to ostracize herself among her own house mates. That she continues to separate herself from those not pure of blood when those that are pure of blood no longer want anything to do with her, no matter how they mask it with smiles that never reach their eyes.

And though I envy her, I know that I could never be her. I know that as much as I too want an out, a way to separate from the suffocating clutches of this family, I would never take one if it was presented to me on a silver platter. Because of Him. Because I love Him and He loves me and he is as much a part of this as I am, only he has no desire to break free. And in lacking that desire, he condemns me to remain in this life for all of mine. Lucius. Only a name but it is a name with the power to make me do anything. Power enough to make me stay. Excuses I feed myself, in any case. I tell myself that I stay because of Lucius. Because I am madly and passionately in love with him.

But even as I tell myself all of this, I can't help but wonder if the truth lies even closer to my core, guarded by even more walls of armour – armour that no girl of merely fifteen years should have to employ.

I am a coward.

I study my reflection in the mirror, feeling pleased as I admire how I've pinned up my pale blond locks elegantly for the evening. My gaze lowers, sweeping down to take in the heavy emerald gown that was laid out on my bed for me to wear to tonight's celebration. My father's 50th birthday. The house elves have been working themselves into a frenzy for weeks now, scrubbing every last corner of the house, planning out the lavish feast that is to be set out for all the guests. And my mother, for her share of the work, has been hard pressed to find the perfect gowns for my sisters and me. Mine is dark green velvet with lacy cream-colored skirts underneath. It looks like something someone would have worn during the Medieval Ages but the dress code for these types of parties is always rather outdated. The ancient families like to believe that we're still in ancient times.

"Cissa?"

I turn, grimacing at my sister as she saunters into the room. Bella's gown is silver on top of ebony and it looks stunning against her black hair. Stepping in front of me, she leans in closer to the mirror, absentmindedly reaching for some of the products that I haven't yet put away and applying a few extra coats of mascara and some dark lipstick.

"Move over," she urges, and I wiggle to make room for on the chaise. She perches beside me, tilting her head as she studies her reflection for the briefest of seconds before turning her attention to me. "So just how much are you looking forward to this fine celebration?" she inquires sarcastically, her mouth twisting over the words. She rolls her eyes. "At least the Lestranges are attending. Perhaps I can sneak Rodolphus into the library for some fun."

I roll my eyes at that but don't say anything. Where I am composed and proper, Bella is impulsive and hot-headed. She does whatever takes her fancy and deals with the consequences when they arrive. I'm never quite sure whether to admire these qualities of hers or be worried. But I'm pulled out of my thoughts as she gives my hand a sudden tug, smirking at me.

"The Malfoys are coming too, you know," she says slowly, shooting me a wicked grin before turning back to the mirror and pretending to be engrossed in her reflection.

I give a small nod, even though I can already feel my sense tingling in preparation of when I will see Lucius again. It's been a few weeks since I saw him last and that's bothered me more than I've cared to let on. It's embarrassing really. After all, I know that the end of summer is full of events and that he had some business to attend to with his father. I also know that school is starting up again in only a few days and then I will be able to see him every day. In theory. If I wanted to, that was.

Oh, who am I even kidding, faking disinterest. I can't wait to see Lucius again tonight – it's the only thing about this party that I am looking forward to. I've been thinking about nothing but him this entire time. As I powdered my face, as I brushed smoky shadows onto my lids, as I slid a thin line of black eyeliner along the rim of my eyes, as I applied mascara expertly, as I lined my lips lightly and then swept on a pale gloss… I've been thinking of nothing but him this entire time and the fact that I will finally get to see him tonight. I know how this evening will go. He'll arrive, I'll greet him, he'll kiss my hand, we'll mingle with the dreary guests for a few minutes, and then we'll be gone. We'll slip out into the gardens, making our way to my favorite spot by the center fountain and then he'll kiss me and I'll forgive him for making me wait so long to see him again.

"Cissa? Cissa!"

Bella's voice shatters through my perfect thoughts and I narrow me eyes at her for the briefest of seconds before raising one brow in question. "What?" I ask, my lips pursed together.

"It's time to head downstairs. The guests will be arriving any minute now." She snorts, rolling her eyes and glancing at her reflection one last time. Standing up, she tosses her hair over her shoulder proudly – she has not pinned it up as I have, rather, it falls in an abundance of waves and curl. She looks gorgeous, as always.

Oh. I manage a polite smile at that, even though I really feel like letting that smile widen across my face until my cheeks are sore. Something that I would never actually do, of course. "Let's go then," I say instead, rising from the chaise and offering her my arm. She rolls her eyes but makes a giggling sort of noise as she winds her arm around mine, the same way she used to when we were kids – except that then, there were three of us, not two – and we stroll out of the room. Whether it's the way that we're walking and the childhood memories that it's evoking or the fact that I will be seeing Lucius very soon, I don't know, but I suddenly have the urge to skip all the way down the stairs.

(A/N: So this is really just the background set up for what's happening next. Should have the next chapter up soon! And I don't want to be like everyone else and beg for reviews buuut this is my first time doing something like this so they would definitely be appreciated ;) Thank youuu!)