"This is heaven." thought thirteen year old Narcissa Black, tossing her head slightly and allowing her blonde curls to ripple down her back, as she strode through the snowy streets of Hogsmeade, her older sisters, seventeen year old Bellatrix, and fifteen year old Andromeda, beside her, laughing and joking softly as they walked.
It was getting dark; the snowy streets were all but deserted, and the three sisters were sauntering back up to the castle, all of them ravenous and eager for their supper in the Great Hall.
Suddenly, Narcissa sensed her sisters drop back behind her and bend down to scoop up a handful of soft, fluffy snow each. She sensed it, but she didn't have time to react before two perfectly formed snowballs came out of nowhere and hit her squarely between the shoulder blades.
"Ah! No fair!" she shrieked, glancing around to check nobody was watching before whirling around to give her sisters a piece of her mind, only to find herself being hit full in the face with an entire onslaught of snowballs.
Narcissa pulled her wand from the sleeve of her green and silver robes – Slytherin robes, as befitted a member of the House of Black – and shrieked "Protego!" before turning and running for her life.
Her sisters, older, stronger, faster, set off in pursuit. They caught her easily and knocked her flying into a snowdrift, but, at the last second, Narcissa reached up and pulled them both down with her, so that the three sisters lay there sprawled in the snow, all breathless with laughter.
"Come on. We have to hurry, or we'll miss the start of supper." Andromeda, a Fifth-Year now, and ever the most sensible, heaved her laughing sisters upright.
The girls continued sedately as though nothing out of the ordinary had taken place. And indeed nothing had. A frolic in the snow was quite commonplace for them when nobody else was looking.
However, as the three sisters slipped into the Entrance Hall of Hogwarts Castle, something quite out of the ordinary did take place. Evan Rosier, a pureblood in Bellatrix's year, called her eldest sister's name. "Bella? Bellatrix? Might I have a word?"
Narcissa glanced up at her elder sister in surprise. The three girls – the Black sisters – had gained quite a fearsome reputation over Narcissa's two and bit years at Hogwarts. No other student, not even a pureblood from Slytherin like Rosier, ever spoke to any of them when they were together. They were, if you liked, three demi-goddesses, three beautiful, haughty girls, who were feared, watched, even admired – but only from a distance. They were never approached in the way that Rosier had just approached Bella, no matter what.
Bella, however, remained calm. A menacing smile flitted across her lovely face, and she laid a surprisingly gentle hand on Narcissa's shoulder. "Watch and learn, Cissy. Do what we do, and watch and learn." Bella murmured tenderly. Then she raised her voice, just enough so that Rosier could hear her without her having to bother to turn around and answered him offhandly "You may, Rosier. Come inside this antechamber for a moment and tell me what it is you want."
Bella strode across to the antechamber, Narcissa and Andromeda on either side of her like guardian angels, (or perhaps more like an angel and a devil, for Andromeda was just as dark in looks as Bella), and Rosier followed obediently. He stepped across the threshold of the door a pace or two behind them, and then, almost tentatively for a Slytherin, shut the door behind him.
"I was wondering, Bella – that is to say – the Hogwarts Christmas Ball is coming up in a week or two, and I was wondering – well, whether you might like to go with me? Not necessarily as a couple, but just – together, I suppose you might say."
Narcissa felt Bella stiffen beside her; sensed the tension emanating from her sister, saw, out of the corner of her eye, Bella draw herself up proudly. Then Bella spoke, and her voice was clear, cold and hard.
"Together? To the Christmas Ball? With you, Rosier?"
"Er –Yes. Obviously, if you don't want to that's fine – it was just a thought really." The boy stammered, stumbling over his words - "like a silly little first year" Narcissa thought, and she almost pitied the boy as Bellatrix, beside her, reached for her wand, and gave her sisters the signal.
The girls – two dark and dangerous, the third fair and furious, whirled round as one, and sent three simultaneous curses flying at the unfortunate lad who stood before them. Narcissa didn't even have to think. Growing up in the same house as Bellatrix had taught her a thing or two. She sent a fine, non-verbal, Body-Bind speeding across the room at Rosier, and knew, though she could not hear it, that her sisters would be doing the same.
The three curses hit Rosier before he fully knew what was happening, and he tumbled gracelessly to the floor as his arms and legs snapped together, leaving him unable to do anything but roll his eyes crazily.
Bella stowed away her wand, dusted her hands, and bent over Rosier as he lay prone on the stone flags at her feet.
"There. That should teach you, Rosier. From now on, remember: A Black is never asked – A Black condescends to favour people with attention."
Then she strode to the door, snapped her fingers for her sisters as though they were dogs "Cissy! Meda! Come on, I want my supper.", and with her black hair tumbling wildly down her back, and her eyes burning almost madly, seemingly oblivious to the remnants of the snowball fight which still crusted the hem of her robes and her cloak, Bellatrix Black sauntered merrily off to the Great Hall and her supper. Narcissa and Andromeda glanced at each other, then back at Rosier.
A second later, they were speeding to catch up with Bella, chuckling wickedly as they sank into their seats and reached for the food.
"We taught him all right." Bella toasted her sisters gleefully, raising her goblet of butterbeer across the table at them.
"We taught him." Narcissa chorused, and clinked her goblet so enthusiastically with those of her sisters that half her butterbeer splashed out on to the tabletop. Her eyes met Bella's, and then Meda's, and she laughed quietly to herself as she continued with her supper. There was cause to be merry tonight. A very good cause indeed.