Obscura Stellata
-Written for Round Two of the Diagon Alley Grand Battle Challenge-
-Prompts Underlined as per Challenge Rules-
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The room was dank, dark with mould and mildew, the air stale with the stench of vomit and bile. Narcissa Black wrinkled her nose at the stench, tightening her grasp on her fiancé's hand as they descended the rotting wooden staircase, her eyes flitting this way and that to try and discern any shapes in the dim light, cast by a single wavering candle.
A chain rattled, the sound stilling her heart, rusty metal links scraping against each other as the prisoner looked up, matted brown hair and grimy skin almost making him unrecognisable. The rank odour of piss and vomit invaded Narcissa's nostrils as she drew Lucius to the side, hiding them both behind a single crumbling, wooden beam, her eyes narrowing as she took in the captor crossing the room.
"Have you pissed yourself, little mudblood?" cackled the witch, beautiful even in her insanity. Her silky negligee was sheer against her skin, heavily-lidded eyes gleaming with a feral darkness as they set their sights on the filthy man upon the ground. Narcissa cursed under her breath, her sister should still be upstairs in bed with Rodolphus, both held enthralled by her lust charm. Judging by the looks of her sister's knickers though, just visible under the silky negligee, Bella had taken her pleasure and come down to sate another of her lusts, this one much less carnal and so much more sadistic.
The prisoner spat, a globule of bloody red phlegm splattering at Bellatrix Lestrange's feet and Narcissa bit back the urge to scream at the man. She could see why her sister – not Bella, the other, the one who was no longer a true Black – had fallen for this man. Though a Hufflepuff by House, he seemed as brave – or as stupid – as a Gryffindor.
"Filthy little mudblood!" shrieked Bella, instantly drawing her wand and pointing it at the man on the ground. Ted Tonks, that was his name, glared up at her, gritting his teeth to keep from screaming as the cruciatus curse took him in the chest.
He gasped when finally the curse was lifted, face flushed red beneath the caked dirt and blood as Bellatrix stepped forward and kicked him in the groin, her heeled boots squelching as they made contact with the urine and blood soaked fabric. Narcissa fought down the urge to be sick at the sound, for whilst her eldest sister had always been a sadist, this was beyond sickening. There was a difference, a stark difference in her mind, between herself and Bellatrix. They both may fight beneath the Dark Mark, but Narcissa still retained her humanity and it was for this that she had come.
A flicker of amazement crossed her mind as she watched Ted lash out, kicking with a bare foot and knocking her sister of balance. Bellatrix stumbled for a minute before falling, toppling sideways with a shrill shriek. She wasn't down long though, quickly rising and stalking towards Ted, flicking her wand to bind his legs as she drew near.
"You made me bleed," she muttered in disbelief, kneeling and pressing her wand into her captive's throat.
"You lick my wounds and I'll lick yours," smirked Ted and Narcissa couldn't help but marvel at his cockiness. It was then that she noticed the rickety table beside Ted and the few stone ornaments that her mother, Druella, had consigned to the dungeons because she deemed them to hideous for the house itself. A silent word of thanks slid through her mind, her mother's zeal for having a perfect home had just made her task that much easier.
She pointed her wand towards the closest ornament, a grotesque stone manticore, and whispered, "Piertotum Locomotor."
Soft as she was, Bella heard her and spun around, eyes widening in betrayal as the manticore leapt forward, slamming into her head and knocking her out. For a strange reason, Narcissa could not bring herself to feel guilt for what she had just done, now after watching how Bellatrix had treated Ted Tonks, keeping him shackled to rot in his own piss and shit whilst she tortured him.
"Obliviate," muttered Lucius, a grim look on his aristocratic features as she turned to free Ted. Narcissa flicked her wand twice, once for a cleaning charm and a second to remove the chains. She nodded at her fiancé, who extended Ted an arm with a foul look on his face.
Nonplussed but in no position to argue, Ted took the offered arm and got to his feet, grunting as the three of them disappeared into the suffocating blackness of apparition.
With a loud crack, they appeared in the back garden of a quaint home and Narcissa turned away when Ted doubled over, retching into the nearby flower-gardens. She took the opportunity to take in the house and was somewhat taken aback by the sense of homeliness it exuded. In the distance she could vaguely here the sounds of a muggle flying device, a helicopter , she presumed landing at the nearby muggle airport.
A jet of orange light streaked through the chill Autumn air, aimed straight at her husband's back. Narcissa whirled on her feet, her wand slashing the air.
"Protego," she yelled just in time, her shield charm expanding from the tip of her wand and reflecting the curse at a gnarled oak tree, causing a storm of splinters and twisted woods to fill the air as it made impact.
"Dammit, Andromeda," snapped Narcissa, her voice sharp in the still night air, causing a trio grasshoppers to leap away in fright, "It's us."
Her middle sister stepped out from the shadowed doorway, face wand still drawn as she took in her sister and future brother-in-law.
"I'm sorry," she muttered, "The Death Eaters are in the area." Then her eyes widened, life flowing back into them as they fell upon the man beside Narcissa, kneeling beside the flowerbeds, too weak to stand.
"You found him," she whispered, and before Narcissa could react she was caught up in her sister's arms. For a second she relaxed into the familiar embrace, the sweet scents of treacle tart, always her sister's favourite, wafting into her nostrils.
"You asked me to," said Narcissa, gently pushing her sister away. Andromeda took the hint and relinquished her grasp, dropping to her knees beside Ted and hugging him as tightly as she could. In the background, Lucius cleared his throat.
"Thank you, Cissy," Andromeda looked up through wide eyes, brimming with tears.
"You risked a lot for a mudblood, Andy," she muttered in response, "Take better care of him next time, I won't be able to help you again."
"Pureblood, halfblood or mudblood, we all have red blood," Andromeda shook her head at her sister.
"Our blood is Black," snapped Narcissa, closing her eyes as once again, the suffocating embrace of apparition enclosed her.
She stumbled as she came to a landing, a weary sigh escaping her lips as she and Lucius both arrived within their shared room within Malfoy Manor. Narcissa turned towards the ornate mirror, letting her hair fall from its bun as she slipped out of her clothes, tired and ready for bed. Her jewellery was shed next, those precious diamonds that Lucius had bought for her in France the summer after their final year at Hogwarts.
"Accio," she said, summoning her nightgown to her and shrugging it on with a single fluid motion. Turning and walking back to bed, she noticed Lucius staring at her blankly as she climbed in.
"Finite Incantantem," she rolled her eyes at her forgetfulness, but bit her lip as Lucius climbed into bed, his eyes no longer filled with that dreamy expression they had held since her earlier meeting with Andromeda.
"The imperius curse," he grasped her chin and forced her to look into his slate-grey eyes, brimming with anger as his hand tightened on her jaw, "You are becoming more like a Malfoy with every passing day."
"But my heart remains Black," replied Narcissa, training her wand on his chest with her free hand. The final spell was one she was intricately familiar with, one that needed to be cast. Nobody could know of what had happened tonight, save for herself, Andromeda and Ted.
"Obliviate."
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A/N: Reviews are always appreciated,
Prompts Used: "You lick my wounds and I'll lick yours" ; "Pureblood, Halfblood and Mudblood, we all have red blood" ; Lucissa Pairing ; Andromeda, Lucius, Narcissa ; Protego, Accio, Piertotum Locomotar ; Grasshopper, Vomit, France, Autumn, Treacle Tart, Knickers, Helicopter.