Crossfire: Chapter Ten
Andromeda Black

Druella Black's owl always was a harbinger of impending doom, usually Andromeda's own. For six years she would see that fat bunch of feathers swooping over the Slytherin table and cringe. This morning's breakfast had been no different. Austine had let out an irritated cry as he released his precious cargo down into her hands and flew off with an air of annoyance. Clearly he had other plans for his day that did not involve delivering yet another message to her.
She didn't need to open it to know what the letter was about. She had already received three so far that term that had said the same thing each time. She had no desire to begin her day on a sour note, so she had tucked it into her pockets and out of her mind.

As she sat at a table in the dim light of the Slytherin common room, pouring over her Potions notes, the corner of the envelope poked into her skin and she was once again reminded of it's presence. She turned the envelope over in her hands. Her mother's delicate swirling cursive covered the back of it with unnecessary flourish. The family crest sealed it closed on the opposite side with black wax. Her fingers traced the motto imprinted across the bottom scroll, one she knew all too well. Toujours Pur. Always, always, always pure.

Andromeda,
I hope you are doing well. I stress hope due to the fact that you've failed to see any need to write to your mother, who has brought you into this world and has given you everything. Don't act as though you haven't received any of my prior letters either, young lady, as both your sister and your cousin have had no problems with Austine's delivery skills and have found time to reply as well.
Regardless, I am writing to inform you once more that I have begun making invitations for the Christmas party this year and I need to know where I should be addressing the one for your escort and his family or Merlin help you, I will ask Rabastan to bring you again, and you remember how embarrassed you were last time. If you are having difficulty in finding a guest might I suggest you conduct yourself as a lady of your upbringing should and take a hard look at who you are spending your time with in that castle.
Also, I thought you should know that your Uncle Alphard will be joining us this year so you will not be able to pull the stunt he allowed you to pull by spending Christmas on holiday with him. Please be prompt about your reply. I have a seating chart to arrange and these things take time.
Give my love to Narcissa and Evan and for Merlin's sake, do your best to straighten out Sirius. Your Aunt Walburga is in such a state over his sorting.
Regards,
Druella Black

Andromeda's father used to say there were only two certainties: death, and the Black Family Christmas party. The later of which was the night where the socially acceptable pureblood families flocked to her parents' house in their finest and spent the evening congratulating each other on being the pinnacles of Wizarding society. Consequently it was also Narcissa's favorite night of the year.

Her sister's squeal of delight at her side informed Andromeda and everyone within earshot that she had been reading over her shoulder. Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Narcissa's outburst had even grabbed the attention of Isabella, which was impressive seeing as how she had spent nearly the entire evening draped across the lap of Walden Macnair. The two had been sharing a chair by the fire nearly every night for the past week, and when they weren't in the common room he could usually be found trailing behind her like the big dumb puppy he was.

Isabella caught Andromeda's gaze and much to her surprise, rather than her usual sneer, a victorious smile spread across her lips before she turned into Macnair to whisper in his ear.

"Oh, Andi, I'm so excited! Mum and I already placed my dress on hold at Twilfit and Tattings while we were shopping for school robes in the summer! You'll love it, it's the most beautiful shade of green. And I think I'm finally going to ask Lucius if he wants to be my guest this year. Do you think I should?"

"No."

Andromeda thoroughly despised Divination and held no stock in it, but if there was such a thing as a sixth sense, hers was buzzing. Something about Isabella and Walden wasn't right.

"What? Why not?" Narcissa snapped before swatting Andromeda's arm indignantly to force her attention back to her. She was staring at her, wide eyed and open mouthed, clearly offended that she had shot the idea down without even batting an eye.

"Because he's an awful human being," Andromeda answered simply as she thumbed through her pile of parchment.

"I'll have you know that Mother loves him," Narcissa pointed out haughtily. "She says he reminds her of Father at his age, very well mannered and elegant."

"If Father was a pretentious, self serving, egotistical prat at his age too, then I would be inclined to agree with Mother for once," Andromeda teased. "Just looking out for you, 'Cissy."

Narcissa scowled as she closed the cover of her Transfiguration book and swiveled in her seat to face her.

"Well since you insist on being so judgmental of my potential escorts, let's hear yours," she huffed. "Have you given any thought as to who you will be taking?"

"Since Mother has seen to it that hiding in France again this year won't be an option I was thinking about bringing Ted Tonks along. He'd be a laugh," Andromeda answered with deadpan sincerity. "I think Father would absolutely love him, don't you?"

Narcissa's blue eyes went wide and her hand flew to her chest as though her sister had jumped out of her closet and scared her half to death. What was even more humorous was the fact that she wouldn't put it past Andromeda to actually follow through with it. She knew how much she hated the Christmas party.

"You wouldn't dare," Narcissa whispered.

"Of course not. I wouldn't do that to Ted. But the more you and Mum harass me about this the more I'm tempted, just to ruin it and spite you both," Andromeda said, exasperated. "Now, I thought we were studying."

Narcissa grudgingly opened her textbook back up, although Andromeda could see that she was staring blankly at the page. The wheels in her mind still turning over the guest list and not inanimate to animate transfiguration.

"You can always go with Rabastan again...Mother has practically been forcing the two of you together at every turn since Bellatrix married Rodolphus," Narcissa continued thoughtfully after only a few moments of silence. "You're next in line. You two don't look bad together, either."

"You're almost as bad as she is," Andromeda lamented, tapping the tip of her quill on her sister's book. "I'm perfectly capable of finding my own date if I so chose, thank you very much. I don't need any help in the matter, so kindly stop trying."

"Will you be asking Thomas Nott then?" Narcissa finally blurted out. Her expression was playful and she leaned into her sister when she received an aggravated look in response, "Hmm?"

"Asking me where?"

They both jumped as Thomas dropped his bag on the table between them and placed a hand on each of their chairs. He glanced between the two of them expectantly with his usual faux innocent smile.

"To our family's Christmas party," Narcissa piped up before Andromeda could avert the conversation elsewhere. She cast her sister a sly gaze before adding, "I believe you have attended in the past, if I'm not mistaken. Has he not, Andi?"

"I believe he has," Andromeda replied conversationally. Beneath the table her leg bumped Narcissa's and she fixed her with a warning look which Narcissa pointedly ignored.

"My sister and I were just discussing whether or not you might be interested in attending this year, actually," she pressed on, much to Andromeda's chagrin. She had to fight to keep the smile clinging to her lips when all she wanted to do was covertly grab Narcissa's fingers and squeeze them until she stopped talking.

"Now that all depends," Thomas replied, his gaze settling on Andromeda. "Am I allowed to bring a guest with me?"

"Well...I suppose you are, yes," Narcissa stammered. Andromeda on the other hand, had begun sinking lower and lower in her seat in an effort to slip under the table and die of embarrassment.

"Who might you be taking, Andromeda?" he asked. As he spoke his fingers slipped across the back of her neck, collecting her ringlets of hair and brushing them onto her shoulder. She shivered as the back of his hand skimmed her collar bone.

"No one as of yet," she answered weakly.

"How lucky for me," he mused as he lowered his head to her ear. "I would be delighted if you would consider allowing me to accompany you this year. Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll have to decline the invitation. Which would be a shame because I do love a good party."

"That sounds wonderful...I'll send word to my parents and have them arrange for you to stay with us," she answered quickly as she started collecting her belongings from the table. She knew her smile stretched from ear to ear from the look on Narcissa's face as she watched, satisfied with her contribution to the arrangement.

"Well before you do all that, at the risk of taking advantage of your good graces, I have another favor to ask you," Thomas interjected before he reached between the two of them to withdraw a large roll of parchment from his bag. Andromeda recognized the grid of intersecting lines almost instantly. It was a star chart, similar to the one she had been working on that went missing, only Thomas' was noticeably emptier.

"What I originally wanted to ask you was whether or not you would be opposed to giving me a bit of help with all this. It's due tomorrow and your cousin might have mentioned that you have a knack for Astronomy."

"Oh, that's no problem at all, it's a clear enough night. We'll have this done in no time," Andromeda exclaimed as she stood from her seat, parchments tucked under her arm. "I'll get my telescope and meet you there?"

"Oh don't bother, I'll bring mine," Thomas insisted with a grin as he swept his bag off the table and nodded to her sister as he backed his way toward the dormitories. "Sorry for the intrusion Narcissa, you have a lovely evening."

"Oh think nothing of it, Thomas, I would never dream of coming between you and your Astronomy marks," Narcissa assured him as her eyes flicked between the two of them with a knowing gleam. "Enjoy your studies."

"I hope he got permission to use the tower tonight," Andromeda mused as she watched him go.

"I'm sure he didn't, but don't worry, I'm on patrols tonight with Fabian Prewett," Narcissa assured her. "Just keep it down up there and I'll make sure we stay far away."

The Astronomy Tower provided an uninterrupted view of the skies from the highest point in the castle. It was a cloudless night, clear enough that Andromeda didn't even need a telescope to pick out the groups of stars that made up her favorite constellation, her namesake. She tugged her robes tight around her against the the late fall chill that was creeping over the countryside as she ventured out onto the tower's rampart. She rested against the cold stone and raised her fingers to trace out that familiar form in the sky. One by one, she came to life in the emptiness.

When she was young her father would bring his telescope into her room and together they would locate that constellation he told her was right overhead the night she was born. Bellatrix was never interested in seeing her stars and Narcissa had always felt left out that she had no constellation to call her own. Her mother had always hated the subject, so it was Andromeda that her father shared his passion for Astronomy with. By the time she started school she had been plotting the stars for years.

"Fancy meeting you here."

For the second time that night, Thomas Nott had snuck up on her without a sound to announce his presence. She jumped, dropping her hands to grip the wall as she spun around to face him. He stood at the classroom's threshold in the large stone archway that led out onto where the rampart jutted out from the turret, his hands in the pockets of his robes.

"Thomas, really. You scared me half to death," She exclaimed as her hand flew to her heart. She leaned forward and let out a sigh in an effort to slow the pounding in her chest.

"This probably isn't the best place for you to lose track of your surroundings," he replied, his expression strangely grim as he watched her steady herself. "If I wanted to I could have easily taken you by surprise right there."

"Why do you make it sound like such a bad thing?" She replied, tilting her head in question with an inviting smile.

"How do you know it isn't?" he retorted with a questioning expression of his own.

"I don't," Andromeda breathed. "Where is your telescope?"

Thomas chuckled darkly as he joined her in the cool night air, circling around where she stood. His movements were fluid, like a predator slinking around unknowing prey. Her eyes followed him with an unwavering gaze, and she remained still as he drew closer.

"I must have forgotten it," he answered, his voice sounded like a growl. "Silly me."

"Well then I hope your star chart really isn't due tomorrow."

He came to a stop in front of her, one arm circling around her back, the opposite hand firmly wrapped around her thigh, holding her against him. Before she could resist he had effortlessly eased her off her feet to settle on the rampart wall, one hand on either side of where she came to sit as he hovered over her. There was nothing behind her back, just a long drop to the ground below and all he had to do to make that happen was push.

Andromeda's heartbeat picked up again, sensing the dangerous air of this little game.

"So, you were just trying to get me alone then?"

"I suppose I was."

"Well, here I am," she murmured against his ear. She felt the shiver run through his body and he tensed in response. She risked a glance up at his face. His eyes were searching her expression for some hint of apprehension or unease and appearing downright incredulous that he saw none.

"Aren't you afraid?" he asked plainly.

"No..."

Andromeda wasn't sure who moved first, her or Thomas. In an instant his arms were around her, pulling her off the rampart wall and into the warm heat of his body. His lips brushed hers, more demanding than last time but still soft. She opened her mouth and he found a rhythm, that even her own inexperience couldn't miss. It was too easy to push away her worries about appearing clumsy, he seemed so enthralled that it obviously was of no consequence to him.

He walked them back until she heard the back of his legs bump the end of one of the long wooden desks inside the classroom. He turned, pressing her hips into the desk and crowding her until she sank onto it. The arrangement was licentious, with Thomas coming to stand between her parted legs but he caught himself before he pushed her any further. His hands hesitantly slid down her sides to rest his palms on the exposed skin just above her knees. They stopped there as if in the form of a question.

"Andi…," he breathed, ragged, and she felt a lovely heat curling within her at the sound of her pet name on his tongue.

She leaned forward a little, their foreheads touching. Her fingers nimbly unlatched the clasp of his robe at his throat and she raised her other hand to push it back off his shoulders. The sound of the heavy fabric hitting the stone floor was her answer but Thomas still didn't move. She hooked a finger around his tie and pulled slowly until the full length of it was exposed from under his vest. She curled the green silk around her fist and tugged until finally, he smiled deviously and switched his grip to her hips with a sharp yank toward him.

When she arched up into his chest he leaned his full weight into her, one hand pressed firm to the small of her back and the other tangling in her hair, pushing her shoulders back to the hard wooden desk. A clipped groan escaped his lips as he followed her down. She scooted further back and he followed her up onto the table as his mouth found hers again.

Andromeda was sure he could feel the pounding of her heart against his chest, they were so close. She breathed deep, in and out through her nose. The kiss had lost any pretense of innocence and gradually intensified to an urgent, demanding crash of lips. That calculated restraint he had maintained all this time was gone now, replaced only with a longing, desirous fervor that she returned in kind. Emboldened, her hands moved down his sides and slipped beneath the white shirt beneath his vest. Her fingers splayed along the lines of muscle and he exhaled a sigh at the cold touch on his heated skin.

His lips reached her jaw, her ear, and down to her neck where warmth radiated from the spot he found and burst through the rest of her, raising the hairs on her arms. A small surprised noise escaped her throat and she felt him grin against her skin as he returned his attentions there.

She gripped his arm hard and he stopped to lock eyes with her. It wasn't until then that she noticed how much tension her body was holding. It was as if every muscle was locked, taken over by overwhelming anticipation. She relaxed and his hand moved down, painstakingly slow, venturing over the curves of her until he reached exposed skin below her skirt. Her breath hitched and her lips parted.

At first she thought the sound of the door to the tower stairwell opening was the creak of the table from Thomas' movement, but then she heard the noise echoing up the staircase from below.

"-Told you I've already checked up here, Fabian!"

Her sister's usually restrained voice was shrill, her footsteps resounded with all the force her diminutive form could have mustered to warn them of their approach.

"I heard you, but I'm responsible for rounds until you're done with training so I have to make sure. I don't need it coming back on me if someone gets caught up here."

"Damn Prewetts," Thomas hissed as he slid back off the table. He caught her hand and helped her to her feet before collecting his robe and directing her behind the doorway to the classroom. He pressed his back to the wall and she crammed in against him just in time for the door to swing open, shielding them in darkness behind it.

Thomas watched over her shoulder as they listened to the pair of prefects move around the room. She was flush against him and he held her there, still, with both hands on her back. She sucked in a breath and held it.

"Are you satisfied now?" Narcissa's irritable tone sounded from the doorway as Prewett's footsteps shuffled around the room.

"Nothing personal, Black, don't be so testy," Fabian grumbled.

A quiet snort of laughter escaped Andromeda's nose and Thomas gave her a tight squeeze in response but it was covered up by the impatient tapping of her sister's foot against the stone.

"Alright, alright, let's move on," he relented and the door swung back closed with a bang.

"Do we really need to check every wing on the hour?" Narcissa complained loudly from the landing as they made their way back down the stairs.

"I'm just trying to teach you the right way to do rounds is all, when you're on your own you can do as you please," Fabian snapped as the door to the stairway closed behind them.

"You'll have to thank your sister for her subtle warnings," Thomas smirked as he slipped his robe back over his shoulders. "Prewett's on a power kick, it sounds like we had better head back. I'll find you tomorrow?"

"You go first, if we get caught together it will be double the points," Andromeda replied as she shuffled her feet back so that he had room to move past her but he reached out to cup her face with his hand and dropped a kiss to her cheek instead. His lips dragged along the arch of the bone until they met hers again and this time, she realized, his eyes were closed.