A prideful snake

Disclaimer: Neither the Harry Potter universe or it´s characters belong to me. I just created a beautiful story about this couple.

Andromeda

When she woke up the next morning, Andromeda felt that she barely slept at all. It didn´t matter the comfortable bed she had slept in nor that her new dorm mates already treated her as if she was from royalty, her dreams left her terrified and woke her up cold and sweaty.

Ted was in them and while they were walking hand in hand Bellatrix came in with her parents. Before Andromeda could yell at Ted to run and save him, her dad came closer and used a levitating spell for breaking them apart; Andromeda tried to help him, but her sister caught her by the arm and forced her to see how they tortured Ted until the moment when her dad looked at her and said "You are such a disapointment. This is what you should do with rottening things before they grew more rots. Avada Kedavra!"

Even when she was taking a hot bath she could feel the cold, the scream that got suck by her throat but the most terrible thing was that she still could see Ted´s unmoving face with eyes wide open while he fell dead at her feet. She couldn´t even explain why it bother her that much. She knew that Ted was just a mudblood whose destiny should be dead in order to purify the wizardry society, but then why was she so scared about what could happen to him?

Andromeda convinced herself that in fact she was more scared about what her parents and older sister would do to her if they found out that she had talked and treated like an equal someone like Ted, so she recomposed easily and finally came out of the bathroom to confront her new dorm mates.

Few students made it to Slytherin, most of them from highly rename and powerful families in the magical world. Fortunatley for Andromeda, she had the pleasure of sharing her room with Alecto Carrow and Annelisse Yaxley, ladies that her father would consider aproppiate for a near future: Both of them had brothers who would made an excellent match for any of the Black sisters.

"It´s amuzing, isn´t it?" Mentioned Annelisse while they made their way downstairs and into their common room "The castle is enormous and I heard that when they celebrate parties such as Christmas and Halloween they tend to decorate it beautifully"

Alecto was many foots taller than Annelisse and Andromeda, so the saying ´Looking down at you´ was more than appropiate when reffering to her. If Andromeda realized, she wasn´t pretty: Her skin was so pale that she always look sick and her eyes were too separete between them, also her front teeth were twisted. Andromeda was sure that it wasn´t going to be easy for Alecto´s parents to find her a husband.

"It´s not as if any of us would stay here during Winter break" She murmured while eyeing the little children that were waiting for older siblings or cousins in the house.

Annelisse shruged in a way that would produce goosebumps to Andromeda´s mother "What´s so wrong about wanting to stay here just to see the decorations?"

"Our parents would never, unless it´s for something important, let Andromeda and me stay at a School under the supervision of an impure fanatic such as Albus Dumbledore."

Andromeda turned around just in time to see Bellatrix sutbly laying on a sofa in the common room. Her black hair was tied on a pony tail that remarked the Black family features, and those deep brown eyes were wearing a bit of make up. Andromeda couldn´t help but notice that many students were avoiding walking in front of her, so she guessed that it was because they were terribly afraid of her older sister just like her.

Andromeda agreed courtestly to her sister´s comment and walked with safe steps to where Bellatrix was "Our parents would never allow us to spend so much time around mudbloods either."

Bellatrix smiled towards her sister and, for some strange reason, this incovenient Andromeda more than the hope she wouldn´t. It was as if the simple fact of knowing she had her good view was more repulsive than receiving her hateful jokes and bad treatment, things that she was already used to at home.

"Aren´t you planning on introducing your friends, Andy?"

"Of course" Answered the girl gently, not even bothering to clarify that she still didn´t have any kind of relationship with the other girls "These are Annelisse Yaxley and Alecto Carrow, Bella"

Alecto inmediatly walked closer with a superiority expresion on her face and extended her hand, that Andromeda was afraid she would lose, towards Bellatrix who simply grabed it with absolute liking. This thing completely uneasing Annelisse.

Alecto spoke with a sweat voice that was full with admiration "My brother is always talking about you at home during summer. He says you are an amazing duelist."

"Well, leave it to Amicus the understimate himself" Bellatrix let out a laught that Andromeda only heard during their family reunions, specially when someone was complementing her "Yet I must admit that your brother is also a gifted wizard. No one maneges non verbal spells like he does"

"Corban says you are a fast learner" Said Annelisse, wanting so bad to be part of the conversation "He has never seen such a young girl learning everything she can in all her lessons"

Andromeda watched with fun how far the hypocrital people would go. The Yaxley family and the Carrows were important, but not like the Blacks, so it must have been logical that the girls were trying to grow fond with Bellatrix and Andromeda just to settle a better status for their families. Specially if they could convince the sisters to help them show their parents that they were a perfect match for a marriage between Sirius, who was the heir of the family fortune, or Regulus.

But honestly, Andromeda felt sorry for the girl who tied the knot with her cousin. She could break into a bark of innapropiate laughter just by imagining Alecto or Annelisse trying to deal with a sharp tongue and famous for his revolutionary ideas, Sirius.

"Corban is an excellent friend, I have learned a lot with him" Andromeda felt doubtful about the true behind her sister´s words, but didn´t comment anything about it. Bellatrix nonetheless seamed bored of having to talk with two girls that were only useful for making ridiculous comments and turned around towards her sister "Would you acompany me to the Great Hall, Andy? I don´t want you to get lost during your first day of classes."

"Of course" She answered even when a voice inside her head yelled at her to refuse it. With a brief assent she said goodbye to the other girls and the two Black sisters made their way.

The dungeons´s halls were very cold and Androme understood it was because they were under the Blake Lake. The armors also looked a bit more darker and some of the portraits were of wizards that her parents revered sickly thanks to the conception they had about pureblood importance; she didn´t expect Bellatrix to talk in a near future, but her hopes were destroyed soon enough.

"Father and Mother will be happy to know that you have made friendship with those families. The Yaxley´s are controlling the ministry and it´s obvious that Corban is going to adquire an enormous title when he graduates next year, but he is older than you which means we would have to convince him to wait for a marriage arrangeament with you at the end of your seventh year. Won´t be difficult, you are gorgeous and we have the Black and Rosier fortunes on our side.

"Do we have to talk about marriage now?"

Bellatrix snorted with exasperation "Defenitly! What do you think you are going to do this year? You must analize possible candidates and bring them home so Father could have better relationships.

"But I´m just eleven" Andromeda whispered with fear.

"I´m not asking you to marry now!" Bellatrix stopped her steps and looked at her sister with something that Andromeda noticed was compassion. When she spoke again, her voice that was oftenly sharp came out soft and calm "Do you remember when I came back for Chrismas break in my first year?" Andromeda assented "Father made me go to his office and slapped me because I dedicaded myself more to my studies rather than bringing a guy friend to whom I might spoke with during the family´s party. He took out his wand and did this" Slowly, her sister uploaded her left arm sleeve to reveal a deep scar that looked like a claw. Andromeda covered her mouth to prevent a scream "He told me that he expected better results from me when the semester was over. You must understand, Andy, that I am just trying to prevent you to obtain a punishment like this. The last thing I want is that Cissy or you have to face our father…for something we cannot control."

"I would do my best" She said with a shock voice and for the very first time in years, looking at Bellatrix as if she was human and on top of everything, her older sister.

Bellatrix smiled and hugged her. Giving thought that none of them were used to phisical contact, it was very short but meaningful for both of the Black sisters that finally had something in common.

"I prefer that you become Yaxley´s friend rather than Carrow" Bellatrix mentioned when they were getting closer to the Great Hall "Amicus is on Third year, but he´s not exactly a gentleman. You deserve better."

"Is that why you are friends with Rodolphus?" Bellatrix said yes "Here between us, he has an idiotic face. You deserve something better, too"

Bellatrix let a laugh fell from her lips and smiled towards Andromed with something close to love "Pherhaps you should try with his little brother, Rabastan. At least we would have the chance of laughting at them far more times."

When they entered the Great Hall, with the smell of food lurking at the doors, Bellatrix stopped her and reasumed her tipical serious face "What happenens in our house stays there. Do you see those people? For them you and me belong to the most noble and ancestral house of Black and that is our shield for breaking through. Your pride as a snake is the only thing that forbids you of being locked up, Andy, always remember that."

Andromeda agreed and sit with Bellatrix and her friends while waiting for her scheadule. It was impossible for her not to look up and clash eyes with Ted, who smiled at her from the Hufflepuff table. Andromed sneered at herself when she felt a weak smile formed on her lips and remembered Bellatrix words.

If her father had cut her sister, who was everything a Black aspire to be, just because she didn´t brought a boy with her so that they could use him, What would he do to her if he found out that she had liked a very well behave gentleman who turned out to be a mudblood? Most importantly What would he do to Ted just to keep him away from her?

It was then when Andromeda realized that, even when she didn´t want to but maybe because his good attitude and easy smiles that she would never find home, she had grow fond of the blond boy as a classmate. And being like that, she would make sure of getting him away from her before he got hurt. It seemed like a prideful snake could help a badger escape his predators instead of bitting him.