A nice walk in the forest ending with a pinch of angst because I was feeling dramatic
Healing
"Careful, Cissy, you don't want to fall down to the toads, do you?"
"No, Bella, no toads!" Little Narcissa squeaked jumping off the fallen tree branch into her sister's arms.
"Don't worry, Cissy, there are no toads in this river" Andromeda comforted the toddler glaring at Bellatrix. "See how clear the water is" she added jumping too and landing next to the other two. Narcissa shook her head and pulled away from Bellatrix. She looked at the tall trees in front of her and giggled happily.
"Let's go see the unicorns!" she squeaked and skipped away along the narrow path leaving her sisters behind.
"Cissy wait!" Andromeda ran after her grabbing her hand and halting her progress.
"You shouldn't run off into the forest alone, little one" Bellatrix said catching up to them. She took the toddler's other hand and together the three sisters walked deeper into the forest.
"Where did you see the unicorns, Bella?"
"Patience, Andy" the raven-haired girl smiled. She then looked down at Narcissa and her smile grew when she saw her little sister's wide, curious eyes. Suddenly Andromeda gasped.
"Bella, Cissy, look! Aren't those unicorns?"
Bellatrix followed the brunette's gaze and saw a streak of white between the trees ahead. Narcissa used her sisters' distraction to free her hands; she ran forward, blonde tresses flying behind her, eyes on the place she was sure she had seen a unicorn. When she reached the trees she walked past them and into a clearing where she saw two big unicorns and a smaller one. The wiser creatures ran away at once but the trusting foal stepped closer to the little girl.
Still behind the trees Andromeda was going to call out for Narcissa but Bellatrix shushed her.
"Let them be" the raven-haired girl whispered. "It won't hurt her."
Andromeda nodded, albeit reluctantly, but trusting her older sister nonetheless. They both watched their little sister play with the young unicorn. Narcissa was now petting it marveling at its soft, silky mane. At one point the magical creature began circling around the clearing making the toddler run after it giggling and squeaking with joy. Once or twice they came close to a figure standing behind a clump of bushes, but neither of them could see the blonde woman that bore such a striking resemblance to the little girl. She watched them from the shadows for a few more minutes until she heard the unmistakable sound of an arrow being released from a crossbow; a sound neither the girls nor the unicorn seemed to register.
The world around her went black for a second before Narcissa found herself in her living room. She banished the Pensieve and flopped down onto the sofa, conjuring a goblet of wine. The woman didn't need to finish the memory – she still remembered the lesson her father had taught her and her sisters that day: being Blacks meant they would only ever corrupt the pure beings they met. Narcissa laughed mirthlessly as no tears escaped her eyes this time. She had started revisiting old memories to try and heal herself from the trauma; she had thought she'd find a way to feel less alone. Irony, the ever-present presence in her life, had decided to play her again. The irony of trying to heal the loneliness and ending up more alone than ever, Narcissa thought, raising her glass in a silent toast.