Walburga Black sat in her large blood red armchair in the downstairs sitting room. Her eyes were transfixed upon the silver diamond and sapphire ring which now lay on the coffee table in front of her.

"It arrived by owl?"

Her voice was stern, stiff and barely audible, despite the fact the house was deathly quiet apart from the ticking of the antique mahogany clock which sat upon the mantel; the Black family emblem and Tonjors Pur engraved within its clockwork.

Narcissa, who sat opposite her aunt, wrapped in her nightgown, nodded, trying to stifle a yawn. She had been awoken by Kreacher upon her aunt's return at a quarter to midnight. Walburga it seemed had been absent all day as she had ventured to the Malfoy's Tuscan Villa to discuss the issue of the apparent engagement between Lucius and Narcissa.

"And it came with a note? A note asking you for your hand in marriage?"

Narcissa nodded once more, wondering why on earth her aunt was so eager to clarify such matters at this hour.

"Do you have the note?"

Narcissa shook her head, "No, I don't know where it is now."

Walburga considered this for a moment, leaning back in her chair and twirling her wand in her fingers.

"The ring didn't come from Master Lucius, Narcissa."

Walburga's eyes remained transfixed upon the ring, and her tone remained flat and unfaltering, betraying nothing.

Narcissa, who had previously been struggling to retain interest in the conversation, or rather interrogation, was now wide awake.

"Wha... I mean, pardon?"

Narcissa's face was scrunched up in confusion as she stared from the ring to her aunt, trying to piece together what her statement meant.

Walburga cleared her throat, and rose from her chair, snatching the ring in the process, "I'm confiscating this. You are not to speak of this ring again, nor of this whole engagement mess. Understand?"

Narcissa gulped slightly and nodded, Walburga Black was at all times an intimidating woman, however, there was something about the midnight eerie silence of Grimmauld Place that added to Walburga's terrifying demeanour.

"Very well then Narcissa. To bed. Now."

Narcissa rose quickly and retreated from the room, her cheeks were burning and she could feel her eyes welling with tears. Lucius' absence at the Ball had been upsetting enough, but the embarrassment she now felt was nothing in comparison. The ring did not come from him? Well where was it from? Was this some kind of joke? Something sick twisted game Sirius had concocted? She ran quickly up the staircase, caring little for the noise she was making, and the angry portraits she was leaving in her wake.

Xxxxxxxxx

"Must we have duck", complained Sirius, who after a good night's sleep had now regained his usual manner.

Regulus stood by his brother leaning over the kitchen counter peering suspiciously at the duck that Kreacher was now busily preparing.

"Mistress wants Kreacher to make Duck. Duck is Master Rabastan's favourite", repeated Kreacher with little enthusiasm, for what was surely the tenth time that day.

"But Duck is gross", whined Sirius once more, his nose scrunching at the sight of Kreacher handling the large bird.

"Can you make me and Sirius Chocolate pudding for dinner?", asked Regulus as he flopped down upon a chair in the far corner, "or maybe some Shortcake?"

"Regulus, no", insisted Andromeda as she slammed shut the potions book which she had spread across the kitchen bench, "Kreacher, only make what Walburga has instructed."

Kreacher made no comment; instead he continued to fuss over the duck and mutter what Andromeda could only assume were stifled insults under his breath.

"Come on then, I think we should go", stated Andromeda as she scooped the potions book and the various ingredients she had managed to retrieve from the kitchen cupboards into her arms. Sirius and Regulus followed, both eyeing the duck begrudgingly on their way out.

"Can we play snap?", asked Regulus as they made their way down the deserted hallway and toward the staircase.

"No", snapped back Sirius, "I am so sick of snap!"

"Dromeda?"

"No, sorry Reggie", replied Andromeda as she stood back to usher the boys up the staircase, "I have to make this potion."

Regulus made a face, but continued up the staircase nonetheless, making other suggestions as he went, "maybe chess, or gobstones?"

"No", replied Sirius again.

"We could play with my potion making kit?", suggested Regulus eagerly, almost begging his brother.

Sirius laughed, clearly amused, "No thanks Reg. That thing is made for kids who can't make real potions yet."

Regulus looked defeated and shrugged his shoulders, continuing up the staircase in silence. Andromeda nudged Sirius on the shoulder, communicating her own disapproval of Sirius' sly insult. Being the only one of the Black children yet to attend Hogwarts, Regulus was overly sensitive with respect to such matters – a factor often used by Sirius for the mere purpose of his own enjoyment in creating drama.

Sirius rolled his eyes and followed Andromeda up the staircase, "What kind of potion are you making anyway?"

"It's just a cough syrup", replied Andromeda as they reached the landing, "I woke up with a sore throat this morning."

Sirius nodded and then swung back on his heel with much enthusiasm, "Any chance you could make a batch of the draught of living death. Slughorn mentioned it a few weeks ago. One sip can kill, right?"

"Why in Slytherin's name would you want me to make that?"replied Andromeda as she struggled up the staircase.

"I don't know, maybe we could slip some in Rodolphus' ale?" Sirius had a large smirk etched upon his face as he skipped up the last two steps before reaching the landing.

"Sirius!" reprimanded Andromeda, "That's an awful thing to say. You shouldn't joke about that."

"Did you see his arm?", whispered Regulus, who, like Sirius had seemingly ignored Andromeda's remark, "what happened to him?"

"Maybe Bella beat the hell out of him", joked Sirius, who seemed to find a lot more glee than necessary in such a thought.

Andromeda ignored her younger cousins and continued up the next staircase, making her way to her own bedroom, she would brew the potion in her and Narcissa's bathroom; there she would easily remain undisturbed by the rest of the Black family.

"Andromeda!"

Andromeda turned slightly red, the voice unmistakably was that of Rabastan Lestrange whom it seemed had arrived whilst she had been digging for ingredients in the kitchen.

"You look like you're struggling with that. Here let me help you."

Rabastan Lestrange took the potions book and various ingredients from Andromeda's arms and turned on his heel making his way back up the staircase, "where do you want it all?"

"Ummm... oh just in my room is good", insisted Andromeda, who had not even been given an opportunity to refuse Rabastan's assistance.

Andromeda shuffled forward opening the door for Rabastan as he walked cautiously into the empty room occupied by his sister in laws two younger sisters.

"Just here is fine", indicated Andromeda, as she pointed toward the corner near the dresser, offering Rabastan a small rueful smile.

Rabastan nodded and placed the handful of items on the ground, as he did so the left sleeve of his travelling robe rose slightly, revealing a bandage – not at all dissimilar to the one Rodolphus had sported. Andromeda noticed immediately though before she could make a comment, Rabastan quickly shoved the sleeve back down, trying desperately to act as though nothing had been revealed.

"Bella has mentioned you're quite good at potions."

Rabastan motioned toward the pile of goods, clearly grappling for any conversation topic to detract from what had just happened.

"Oh, well I don't know. I guess I'm better than average", replied Andromeda, who was trying to make it seem she had not seen anything, whilst all the while trying to piece together what could be going on.

Rabastan nodded awkwardly, and then moved suddenly toward the doorway, perhaps realising the improper manner of their present situation – a young man and a young woman alone in a bedroom together. Such a thought had not crossed Andromeda's mind however, as she continued to ponder the bandage. Rodolphus had offered no explanation for his own, rather he had worn long shirts during dinner and covered himself in travelling robes. Bella too had not brought it up, and so Andromeda had dismissed it, despite Regulus' and Sirius' convictions to the contrary. However, with Rabastan now it seemed too much of a coincidence, what in Slytherin's name was going on?

"Perhaps you would like to accompany me to the sitting room?"

Andromeda was broken from her thoughts and she looked up, smiling politefuly, if not rather forcefully toward Rabastan who now stood in the doorway.

"I'd love to, but I was just about ..."

"No, really I insist. Whatever potion you're brewing surely can wait."

Rabastan's tone while still polite was also rather forceful and Andromeda knew it would be pointless to argue otherwise. She nodded and followed Rabastan toward the sitting room, noting as she did the immense similarities and differences between him and her brother in law. Whilst the brothers were of French heritage they both seemed void of the charming gentleman trait that was so often associated with French men. Scruffy dark brown hair framed both their faces, however whilst Rodolphus' fell with an air of almost endearing recklessness, Rabastan's was simply messy. Rodolphus seemed always to walk with an almost contemptuous confidence, one that could intimidate any other suitor, however Rabastan always looked more comfortable when he was positioned on the sidelines; lurking in the shadows. Both brothers were certainly haughty and sarcastic, upholding the values of any perfect pureblood, and there was something about the two of them that had always made Andromeda feel a little uneasy. It was not that Andromeda didn't like Rabastan it was more than she didn't know him, he always seemed distant and disinterested, though lacked the mystery that both Bella and Rodolphus managed to combine with such traits.

Much to it seemed both Rabastan and Andromeda's surprise the sitting room was not vacant, rather it was quite full; both Narcissa and Alphard sat huddled in the armchairs in the furthest corner, their faces buried in the latest issues of Teen Witch and The Warlocks Monthly respectively, whilst Bella sat by the windowsill staring absently into the street below and Rodolphus was hunched over The Daily Prophet, a quill twisting in his fingers as he muttered the crossword clues to himself aloud.

"A horned what is used in boil cure potions...5 letters, ends with s."

"Slugs", said Andromeda without realising, the whole room raised their heads, immediately alerted to Andromeda and Rabastan's presence.

"Well I see you found Andromeda then", came the jovial reply of Alphard Black as he smiled at his niece and then turned to Rabastan, "And she came just at the right time it would seem. Rodolphus has been fuming over that one for quite some time."

Rodolphus offered his sister in law a half smile as he quickly jotted down slugs, "her timing would have been right about 5 minutes ago."

Alphard laughed and turned his attention back to his article on the increasing black market trade in cauldrons.

Narcissa eyed her sister and Rabastan for a moment more before returning to sulk behind her magazine. Andromeda had given up on Narcissa's depressiveness, she had seemed to improve slightly before bed the previous night, but her mood had appeared to intensify overnight, and at breakfast Narcissa had seemed even more upset and bad tempered. Andromeda was sure it was to do with Lucius and while the pit in her stomach concerning the whole affair continued to remain, Andromeda had decided to maintain her present stance – she would say nothing on the issue unless she was specifically addressed, only at that point was she permitted to panic.

"I think we should go out tonight", announced Rodolphus, as Andromeda and Rabastan each took a seat by the fire.

"You can't, Walburga is making duck", replied Alphard without looking up, the tone in his own voice communicated is own dislike for duck and Andromeda couldn't help but smile at the likelihood that Alphard too had badgered Kreacher on the choice of meal.

"No, after dinner", replied Rodolphus, directing his statement toward his wife, brother and elder sister in law, "It's Walden's birthday, he's just having a small get together at the Leaky Cauldron."

The thought of spending her evening helping the moron Walden MacNair celebrate his birthday was not at all Andromeda's idea of fun. MacNair had been in the year above Andromeda at Hogwarts, a fellow Slytherin. Andromeda's memories of him usually involved he and his best crony Augustus Rockwood enslaving innocent first years into writing summaries of their history of magic readings. Andromeda had never been tricked into doing so, being the little sister of Bellatrix Black had made her somewhat untouchable amongst her fellow Slytherins.

"Could be fun I guess", said Rabastan as he absently picked at the threads of the sofa cushions, "what time will we leave?"

"9? I daresay Walburga will have retired to her own quarters by then. She won't miss us in the slightest. What do you say Bella, Dromeda?"

Bella who had remained silent and unfazed till this point rose quickly from the windowsill, "I guess. Maybe, perhaps."

"Great. It's settled then, we'll leave at 9", replied Rodolphus who didn't wait for Andromeda's own response, however Andromeda cared little, she was carefully watching Bellatrix who was making her way toward the door. While Bella was quite often a mystery to Andromeda she knew her sister well enough to know that her present state of mind was elsewhere.

"I'll be back in a moment", said Andromeda to no one in particular as she followed Bella out of the room, closing the sitting room door behind her, "Bella, wait."

Bella paused, and turned slowly on her heel to face her sister, "what?"

"Um, well... you ok?" Andromeda didn't really know what she had expected from her encounter with Bella, in fact she wasn't even sure what she was doing following her out of the sitting room.

Bellatrix seemed both half annoyed and half amused by Andromeda's question, "fine. Thanks", she replied, one eyebrow raised, "and you?"

"I'm good", replied Andromeda awkwardly, "it's just you seemed a little, well, I guess... distracted?"

Bella gruffed in response and spun back around, making her way toward her bedroom door, however Narcissa's voice made her pause immediately, and both Bellatrix and Andromeda turned to face their younger sister; both shocked at her sudden appearance.

"What are you two doing?" Narcissa's misery was still evident in her tone, as she suspiciously eyed her two older sisters, coming slowly closer.

"Nothing", replied Andromeda, surprised at her younger sister's emergence, given that Narcissa had spent the past two days sulking in corners.

"I had something I wanted to ask you both."

Narcissa now stood between Bella and Andromeda, staring between the two of them, she wasn't quite as bubbly as her usual self, though both Andromeda and Bellatrix could sense that she was trying atleast to make an effort to appear happier.

"I want to visit mother."