Taking just one step out into the light made her body surge with anxiety. She didn't know what to focus on. Between the rushing of the automobiles, the hurried muggles that filled the sidewalk, and the spread of immense buildings that seemed to stretch endlessly along the street, she'd prefer to just hide away within the run-down building that her floo powder had taken her too. Maybe she should have written to Lucius, he would have come and rescued her in a heartbeat. But, it was too late for that now — she had to find her sister.
Narcissa was surely in Southampton, the billboard advertisements said so — but how far was she from her exact destination?
She finally stepped away from the door and immediately caught the attention of the passing civilians. People stared and squinted at the bizarrely dressed girl holding a huge burlap sack. Even she knew she looked out of place.
A business-looking woman with a briefcase caught Narcissa's attention. Promptly, she stepped in front of the commuting muggle and held herself up proudly.
"I am in need of assistance finding…a certain location."
Growing up, Druella Black taught her daughters how to be pretty, pristine and punctual at all times, while Cygnus taught them how to remind the lower class of their place. Submission was to be reserved for wizards of their own class, anyone else was to be seen as nothing more than either an inconvenience — though useful when necessary.
This seemed not to translate into the muggle world. The woman scoffed angrily as her face twisted into a frown. "What? Do I look like a tour guide to you!? Get out of my way, I'll be late for work!"
The blonde witch showed offense while glaring darkly at the woman. "How dare you speak to nobility in such a —"
"If you need to get somewhere, get yourself a bloody taxi!"
The muggle woman used the arm that held onto their brief case to shove Narcissa aside and continue on her way down the sidewalk. Bewildered by what just happened, she began cautiously traversing the sidewalk, looking around at the different structures and outfits of the muggles that passed her by. She remembered learning about muggle technology in her first year, a subject that her father and a lot of others fought to have removed from the curriculum. Narcissa found it to be somewhat interesting, though. She was able to identify the cars, the skyscrapers, the airplanes that occasionally soared threw the air high above the ground. She found herself to be less disgusted with where she was, and much more intrigued.
"Oi, Blondie! A man called out from a doorway beside her. "You look a little lost there. Why don't you come inside for a bit, huh — rest your feet."
She looked up at the sign the hung above the entrance to the building. The neon outline of a woman in a suggestive pose was similar to the signage used in Knockturn Alley to denote the establishments designed to cater to men seeking 'paid female entertainment'.
Narcissa wrinkled her nose at the man's offer and kept on walking, ignoring him as he continued to call out to her.
Something she couldn't stand about this place was the noise. Diagon Alley was a bustling area, only ever going quiet once every shoppe that lined the bricked street had closed for the day. But this — this was a different level of noisy. And the vulgarity of the advertisements displayed everywhere. Half-naked women dressed in nothing but the slightest suggestion of proper undergarments with the name of the stores proudly displayed beside it — how garish! The havoc this type of imagery would wreak on the reputable young men of high-wizarding society would be cataclysmic! It was only when she caught her reflection in the window of a shoppe that she suddenly realized. This wasn't her world. Pureblood status doesn't transfer over into the muggle realm. She was a nobody here…
The feeling of light tugging on the hem of her dress made her look to her feet. There, barely reaching up to her waist, was a little boy staring up at her as if she was some sort of goddess. He smiled when she looked at him.
'Awww, no one told me how cute muggle children could be.'
Narcissa despised the idea of dealing with kids. She didn't even intend on having any of her own. All she wanted was to marry the love of her life and spend her days traveling. Mountain ranges that she could hike up, beaches that she could relax on, and far away cities to try new foods and clothing were all experiences that she longed to share with Lucius without the added baggage of a child. Still, this little boy was simply adorable.
"Are you the girl from my storybook?" The little boy asked as his green eyes stared up at her with admiration.
Narcissa chuckled, "Who?"
"Timmy! There you are!" A worried looking woman called out as she ran up to the boy. "You can't just walked up to strangers like that."
The little boy turned to the woman and pointed at Narcissa while jumping up and down enthusiastically. "Mommy, mommy, look! It's the girl from the storybook!"
The woman collected her child into her arms and gave Narcissa an apologetic look.
"I'm so sorry about him. His favorite story is Alice in Wonderland. He asks me to read it to him nearly every night."
How peculiar. Narcissa recalled her mother reading her that very same tale when she was little. She wasn't aware that muggles were privy to the same magical stories that she had back in her world. Narcissa definitely felt as though she fell down a rabbit hole and ended up in Wonderland, if only the circumstances were better. But how could they be? She would never traverse the muggle world for fun.
Narcissa chortled and waved the woman off to let her know that her worries weren't warranted. "How sweet. It's quite alright."
"It is her, mommy! It is her!"
The woman shook her head and laughed before glancing back up at the blonde girl. "I do love your dress — very whimsical. Where did you get it?"
Whenever complimented on her attire, Narcissa was taught to flaunt her wealth and stauts proudly. But here, there was no point. This woman had no idea of the noble background she was born into — nor did she most likely care.
"Oh, um…thank you. I actually had it made. I have plenty of others like it, as well."
The woman smiled earnestly. "Well, it's simply gorgeous." She looked down at her little son, who was still clutching at who he thought was a fictional character come to life. "Come along Timmy, we're going to be late for you haircut."
Narcissa gave a half-smirk as she watched the little boy toddle off with his mother. This one interaction wasn't enough to undo the nasty encounters with the other two muggles prior, but it felt good to receive a bit of kindness, nonetheless. She remembered something that the angry businesswoman said.
'Get a taxi'
Taxi…they had those in the magical realm. She had never taken one, it would besmirch the Black family name to been seen utilizing such low-class transportation that was inspired by muggles. She wasn't sure how to go about finding one. As she walked the streets, ignoring the stares from the passer-bys, every now and then she would spot a yellow vehicle with 'TAXI' written in bold black letters all over it. She would watch as it drove by, thinking that she could just use her magic to immobilize the car so she could hop in. But to use her magic in the presence of muggles would lead to her immediate arrest and probable return to her father.
Across the busy street, she noticed one of the yellow taxis pulling over to a muggle that was waving to it. She watched as the person got in and drove away. Was it really that easy?
She kept walking, her shoulders getting sore from taking turns supporting the weight of the galleon filled sack. She'd wished she could shrink it, but wizard currency had special properties to it that didn't not allow for any sort of tampering in any capacity.
The next taxi that she spotted heading her way she began waving, to see that someone else in front of her on the sidewalk was also making an attempt to wave it down. Narcissa went into overdrive, she dropped the sack and began jumping and flailing her arms in the air frantically.
As luck would have it, the bright yellow car sped past the man in front of her and pulled up along side her. Narcissa grinned, picking up her bag of money as the taxi driver hopped out and came running around to her side. He was as a short man with a very jolly look about him. The driver opened the door for her and gestured for her to get in. Finally, someone who recognizes how to properly treat a woman of high-class. Setting her bag in first, she pushed it over and hopped in. The driver even helped her to make sure the skirt of of her dress was entirely inside of the car before closing the door and hoping back into the driver's seat.
"Where are you heading to, Miss?" He asked as he looked at her in his rear-view mirror. "Are you off to a party?"
He must have made that assumption based on her attire alone. Considering the outfits that she had seen most of the muggles wearing, she understood his reasoning.
"Just a friend's house. I have the address here," Narcissa said as she delicately handed the paper to the driver. He took the note and glanced it over.
"Ah, not too far from here. Should only take about fifteen or so minutes to get there."
Narcissa nodded with a pleasant look on her face as the driver began to head down the busy road. The seats of the taxi were stiff and uncomfortable, even through the volume of her dress, she still had a hard time getting comfy on the cheap seats. The inside of the car smelled of a mix of colognes and some sort of food. Discreetly, she withdrew her wand and casted a charm that smelled of bright florals and sweet sugars that immediately filled the cabin of the vehicle. The driver took in a big whiff.
"Wow, I'm not sure what perfume you wear, but you smell splendid."
'You poor, poor man. If only you knew about the magical wonders your kind is missing out on.' She thought to herself.
Narcissa resorted herself to staring out of the window, mesmerized by the scenery that looked so different to that of her world. The buildings were so incredibly modern and sleek, bridges seemed to be made from thin and spindly materials that somehow were still able to support the weight of the driving cars, and huge odd-looking ships carrying metal boxes entered the marina in mass.
It wasn't long before they were rounding the corner of a street lined with some of the smallest houses Narcissa had ever seen. She was sure that each individual home was the size of just one of the many drawing rooms that her ancestral home had within it.
The taxi driver pulled over to a house with the numbers '613' near the front door. Narcissa's insides leapt with joy, so much so that she almost immediately dashed out of the taxi until the driver spoke.
"Alrighty, looks like that'll be fifteen pounds-twenty."
Pounds? Oh god, money. More specifically, muggle money. She had none.
'Um…"
Awkwardly, she reached for her sack of galleons and took some within her hand, gliding over the coins with her well-manicured fingers.
"…is gold of any value to you?"
The driver turned around to look at her confusedly. He raised an eyebrow. "Well…technically yes. But I don't know if I'm allowed to accept—"
He needn't say more, Narcissa was already scooping a handful of galleons into her hand and holding it out for the man to take. He stared wide-eyed the coins, seemingly unsure if he should actually take them or not.
"Uh, Miss? I think this is a bit too much."
Narcissa scoffed, impatient that she wasn't already inside the house with her sister. "Oh, it's fine. Just take it."
The many nodded rapidly as he accepted the coins into his hand. Narcissa then took the rest of the money and strode from the taxi at once. She ran up the paved path to the little house and practically banged on the door, loud enough for the other houses in the neighborhood to think someone was at their doors. She had her fist ready and raised to knock once more before the door swung open.
A man, about her height in heels, answered the door with a surprised expression. He almost seemed scared, not in a way that suggested that he was about to run for his life, but scared in the sense of unease. Fair enough — she understood why.
"Hello, Ted," she said as she unintentionally looked him up and down in a judgmental manner, "Is my sister here?"
He snapped out of his trace like stare and moved out of the doorway to allow Narcissa inside. "She is, but—"
She wasted no time. Barging through the door, her shoes repetitively clicked up and down the tile flooring as she searched for her sister. It took her only a matter of moments to search the entire bottom floor considering how compact the home was.
While looking for her sister, Narcissa recoiled inwardly at the awful decorum. Everything was a bland shade of brown and cream. The furniture lacked grandeur, the wallpaper that coated the walls was tacky, and the kitchen seemed no bigger than a broom closet. Who could live like this?
"Andi?! Where are—"
There, at the top of the carpeted stairs, a familiar woman stood carrying something wrapped in a pink blanket. Narcissa stood like a stone statue, unable to move. Out of shock, she dropped the sack of money. A sharp "Ouch!" was heard as Narcissa spun around to see that Ted was right behind her with his foot in his hand, rubbing it profusely.
"Sorry," she offered.
She watched as Andromeda glided away into a room before emerging just a few moments later without said object in her arms. Andromeda's creamy skin looked positively glowing. Her chocolate brown hair looked longer and healthier than ever while her simple, plum-hued dress swayed around her knee's with each step. Narcissa expected to view a miserable and sunken version of her sister when she arrived. Thankfully, Andromeda looked to be the furthest thing from that.
It was hard to fathom really. While Narcissa knew that she and her sisters were all grown women as of late, whenever she would think about the three of them together, she saw them as they were during their Hogwarts days — three sisters with a bond like no other. She could see the three of them exploring the castle and getting into mischief. Bella would always take the fall for the other two — bold as she was. Perhaps all people continued to feel the same as they did in their adolescence, no matter how old they became.
"I have some tea brewing in the kitchen," Andromeda mentioned, "But, from the looks of those dark circles under your eyes, Perhaps you need a bit of coffee."
Andromeda led them into the kitchen. Ted joined them, rustling through the cabinets to look for sugar and honey. Narcissa had almost forgotten he was even there. Andromeda started a pot of coffee before pouring herself some hot tea and sitting down at the small, round table with her sister. She looked at Narcissa as she took her first sip.
"You're so pale."
The sun beamed through the small window above the kitchen sink, illuminating Narcissa's washed out and somewhat sickly appearance.
Narcissa shrugged, slouched in her chair from exhaustion. "Yes well…I suppose crippling fear and lack of sleep will do that to a person. I haven't slept since I woke up to board the train home.
Andromeda set her tea cup down with a click to the wooden table, her dark-brown eyes looking down to her sister's shaky hands. She also noticed her subtle glances toward the various windows around the room, as if she was on edge about her father finding her sitting with her banished sister. Andromeda reached across the little table and gently placed her hands onto Narcissa's. The blonde witch took a gaze at the silver wedding ring on her sister's finger as it glinted in the light.
"He won't come here, 'Cissy. You don't have to be so nervous."
Narcissa's eyes snapped upwards. She knew her sister was right. As much as Cygnus wanted Narcissa, his level pureblooded pride simply wouldn't allow him to traverse the muggle world for any reason. She'd hope that was the case anyway.
"I know. It's just… I know that I can't just spend the rest of my life here, but I don't really have a plan otherwise. I have nowhere else to go."
Ted joined the two ladies, he handed a mug of coffee to Narcissa before sitting down near his wife as he somewhat awkwardly sipped on his tea.
"Let me know if you want any more cream of sugar for you coffee."
His kindness hurt her. Not because Narcissa was offended or insulted, but because she remembered how awfully she treated the two of them during Andromeda's banishment. Narcissa stood by her father silently and perfectly poised as he ripped into Andromeda and Ted for disgracing the Black family, only speaking up when Cygnus commanded her to express what a terrible person her sister was for choosing love over the family.
"I…I never got a chance to tell you that…I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said to you. And I'm sorry for not doing more. Father, he found me crying in my room after you two left. He sat down to comfort me after you two left. He agreed to let you stay in the family if I let him…"
Her voice began to crack from attempting to hold back her sobs. Trying to utter what came next in her sentence was like trying to push herself over a spiked fence.
"Absolutely not," Andromeda piped up, "Under no circumstances would I accept that of you. Father is sick and doesn't deserve to have his detestable desires fulfilled. Even knowing that, I still would have chosen banishment rather than to let him defile you."
Narcissa's we're running now. She stared at the table, embarrassed as she spoke. "He's relentless, Andi. He just won't stop. I finally had to just run away. I couldn't bare to be in that house a moment longer."
"Hasn't Aunt Hestia offered to take you in for the summer like she did last year? She knows what father is doing to you. From what I remember, she said that she wouldn't stand for it," Andromeda inquired.
Narcissa patted a runaway tear and sniffled. "That all changed as soon as Violetta began her courtship to Lucius. Aunt Hestia won't have me anywhere near Rosier Hall anymore. She thinks I'll steal Lucius away from her 'precious daughter'."
The sarcasm in her tone made Ted snicker a bit. Andromeda had told him all about that side of her family, and how self-preserving they were.
"Doesn't she know that you and Malfoy have been dating for some time now?" Andromeda queried, "Why did she establish a courtship between the two of them?"
Narcissa sighed as she took a sip of her hot coffee. Her hands a little less shaky than before. "Apparently Lucius' father arranged it. He wants to have a leg up in the ministry, and uncle Ambrose will certainly allow him that if his darling Violetta marries into the Malfoy family."
"She must still use the beautification potions then, I'm sure," Andromeda swiftly added, "Lucius would head for the hills if he saw her in true form."
Narcissa chuckled softly, "I'm not sure if he has ever seen what she truly looks like. I've even forgotten myself. It's been so long."
Andromeda was silent for a moment, her eyes roaming around her sister's appearance. Her stare stopped at Narcissa's ankle, for even through the high-denier of her white stockings, the bruise was painfully visible.
"Ted, darling. Could you fetch an ice pack?"
He nodded and hopped up from his chair as Andromeda did the same, kneeling down and taking her sister's limb into her gentle hands.
"Oh, that. I keep forgetting."
Andromeda reached up and unclasped the suspenders that held the garment up before delicately rolling down her leg to expose her bare skin. An unbelievable deep-purple bruise had coated the entirety of her ankle and begun spreading up her leg.
"Oh god, 'Cissy…How in Merlin's name have you been walking around with your ankle in such bad shape? And in shoes like these?"
Narcissa shrugged, "All I own are pumps. My uniform shoes were laying near my bed in plain view. Father could have easily grabbed those if he wanted to, but when he found me this morning he brought me these. I suppose he didn't want to make it easier for me to run away from him. Thankfully he's not one to beat me in public — destroying a building in front of all of Diagon Alley in broad daylight seems to be perfectly fine, however."
"Destroy a building?" Andromeda asked as she looked up from her sister's ankle. Ted brought over the ice pack and handed it to his kneeling wife.
Narcissa nodded with her coffee mug in her hands. "That nice diner that he'd take us to when we were little — it's gone, the inside was practically blown to smithereens."
Ted's head snapped over to Narcissa, as of something had just registered to him. "Wait, he puts his hands on you?!" He then turned to his wife urgently. Andromeda nodded without him even asking his question.
"All the time — Bella, too. She and I knew what he was trying to do to 'Cissy. We would always help her evade him. We would hide her around the house, occupy father's time in anyway we could, even stand in his way so that he'd punish us if it meant that she was safe from him for that much longer."
"Why am I just learning this?!" He asked in disbelief, trying to keep his voice down as to not disturb their sleeping daughter upstairs.
Andromeda sighed as she held the cold compress to Narcissa's ankle. "Because I'd rather not speak on that topic if I can help it. It was no secret that our father was bad — I didn't feel like getting into the specifics."
Narcissa hung her head in shame as she used the tea spoon in her mug to stir her coffee, the gentle sounds of clanging came from the silver spoon hitting the inside of the glass.
"I still feel immensely guilty about it every single day."
Andromeda waved her sister off. "Bella and I would have taken endless beatings if it was the only way to ensure that father wouldn't have the time for you. He hasn't succeeded since I left…has he?"
Narcissa shook her head, giving Andromeda some much needed relief. "Oh thank Merlin."
Ted looked from his wife to their guest and back again. He gave a hesitant look while rubbing the back of his neck before he asked his burning question.
"I just want to make sure I'm on the same page as you two. Your father, he—?
"Wants to have his way with me? Yes."
Narcissa's words were blunt and hit Ted like a brick wall at high speeds. He looked appalled and even more uncomfortable now.
"Bloody hell…I'm really sorry. No daughter should have to fear that from her own father."
Something was happening. The more and more Narcissa conversed with Ted, the less and less she thought about his blood-status. Not that she was becoming indifferent to the idea of blood-purity — no, it was just nice to be around a kind and caring man. Seeing her sister sitting next to her love made her envious, but not in a hateful way. Soon, she would hopefully take her place next to Lucius as his true love, and one day, maybe even his wife. Pleasant memories began filling Narcissa's head. The time when Lucius took her on a nighttime flight around the castle grounds on his shiny new broom during her third year. The time he snuck her down into the Hogwarts kitchens and had the house-elves prepare them a special meal. The beautiful charmed music box that he gifted to her before he graduated.
"The music box…"
Narcissa's eye's widened with sadness.
"The one Lucius gave you? What about it?" Andromeda inquired. She remembered how her sister was all to happy to show her new gift to her and Bella.
"It's still at the manor. I didn't have time to grab it with me this morning."
Narcissa's face face sunk as her demeanor turned distressed. She put her face into her hands as if she was about to begin sobbing.
"It's just a silly trinket," said Andromeda, "He can buy you a new one."
Narcissa removed her hands from her face, staring at her sister. From that last state my, Andromeda clearly knew what her she was about to suggest.
"I mean…All of my clothing is still there. Every I own in fact. If I am to seek refuge here or anywhere else, I'll need my belongings…"
Andromeda sighed somewhat angrily as she closed her eyes and fell back in her chair.
"'Cissy, you can't be serious..."
Ted examined the two confusedly. The two witches seemed to be having an entire silent conversation using just their facial expressions. He was about to interject when his wife turned to him with an apologetic face and said: "Are you able to watch Nymphadora for the night?"
The unsure was on his face remained. "Technically yes, but why?"
"My sister is right. She needs at least some of her belongings if she is to stay here. Her and I are going to have to go back to the manor and get what she needs."
Ted swallowed thickly and remained silent for a moment, seemingly doing some calculations in his head.
"I'll phone my mother. She'll watch over Nymphadora while I'll come with you two."
The two girls stared at him with uncertainty, glancing at each other before looking back at ted.
"Are…are you sure?" Narcissa asked with squinted eyes.
Ted sat up in his chair, giving the two sisters a look of assurance. "Absolutely. Three is better than one. I can be a look out or something. Anything to help you both."
Andromeda and Narcissa looked at each other once more, both shrugging after a silent moment.
"Alright," said Andromeda, "We should wait until nightfall when father will hopefully be asleep. Until then, let's get you rested up a bit."
Andromeda helped her sister out of her chair and carefully led her around the corner to the stairs. As they walked up, Narcissa watched the passing picture frames that housed pictures of her sister and Ted, looking happy as ever. Some of the pictures showed the pair in front of various popular landmarks while some looked as though they were taken right here in this very house. Ever since her sister's banishment, Narcissa struggled to see how anyone could give up a life of wealth and prestige for a life…well, like this. But alas, the two never looked happier.
Andromeda pushed open a door to a bedroom situated across the hall from the one that she had settled her baby in. It was small and sparingly furnished space with a bed, dresser and some sort of boxy looking thing on top.
"Is that a television?"
Andromeda nodded and smiled slightly. "Very good. You remember your muggle studies well."
She drew back the blanket to the bed and fluffed the pillows as watched. The bed was so small, even her crib as an infant was larger than this thing.
"You can get undressed if you want. Either me or Ted will come wake you when it's time to go. But for now, don't think about anything other than rest. You look like you'll collapse any moment if you don't get some sleep."
Narcissa nodded as she sat down onto the small bed. The sunlight from the window of the room caught her gaze, resulting in Andromeda withdrawing her wand and closing the curtains for her.
"Get some sleep, alright?"
Narcissa nodded, smiling at her sister's kind words as she watched her leave the room and close the door.
After a few minutes, the endless layers of Narcissa's clothing had laid in a pile of white and blue fabric near the side of her bed. She slipped under the covers completely nude and entirely comfortable, knowing that she was safe once more. She didn't even care about the cheap feeling of the sheets that she was laying on or the stiffness of the pillows, this was a level of comfort fit for royalty compared to what she had endure the past twelve hours. Within moments, Narcissa slipped into a dreamless and peaceful slumber, the comfort of being reunited with her beloved music box being enough to keep the bad thoughts away for the time being.