Chapter Eight:

"He never loved you," whispered a far off voice in Narcissa's head.

She opened her sapphire eyes and stared at the stone ceiling above her. Bits and pieces of a dream were rushing in at her mind. A dead body floating on the surface of a bath... Lucius kissing a boy Narcissa didn't recognise... her own lifeless face staring at her whispering those fated words that had woken Narcissa up.

Narcissa shook her head trying to get rid of the remnants of her nightmare. It didn't seem to work and the scenes started to move faster giving her a headache. She sat up in bed, her head reeling, and reached over to her nightstand. Her delicate graceful fingers wrapped around her wand and brought it up to her temple.

She began to mutter a spell beneath her breath a slowly the tip of her wand glowed blue. Narcissa gasped and the blue became a sickening black then faded away to nothing. Happily she set the wand on her bedcovers and slipped out from beneath them.

The spell she had just performed was a simple anti-depressant charm her mother had taught her. It came in handy when Narcissa had dreams like the one she had just had or when she was feeling just plain horrible.

It hurt to extract the bad feelings but the pay off was a day, at the least, of simple happiness.

Narcissa pulled back the sliver hangings around her bed and stretched out her arms yawning. The air was stagnant and somewhat chilly, the downside to being in the dungeons during fall and winter. Narcissa reached over to a chair by her bed and lifted up a fluffy baby blue bathrobe.

She wrapped up her pale body tightly before stepping out of bed and slipping her feet into a pair of bunny slippers that squeaked and wiggled there noses a she walked. Narcissa knew they were a bit childish but when she saw them during a shopping trip to Hogsmeade and she couldn't resist. They even had little cottony tails that shook back and forth.

Armed with a pair of bunny slippers and a brush she had pulled out of her trunk Narcissa marched across the room and stood in front of the Mirror.

"Good morning sweetheart," the Mirror croaked.

"Morning," Narcissa said cheerfully taking her long pale blonde out of the braid she kept it in when she slept. Her hair cascaded softly to the small of her back.

"My aren't we looking gorgeous," the Mirror complimented as Narcissa began to run her brush through her lustrous locks.

"Thanks," Narcissa blushed for a second at the Mirror's kindness. Usually it was cruel and malicious. It had made Kerri Nicholson go into hysterics when it told her she looked hideously fat. Poor Kerri, it had taken many of Narcissa's anti-depressant charms to make her feel better.

"So how did you sleep last night?" the Mirror asked laughingly. Narcissa had a feeling if the Mirror had a face it would be contorted into a devilish grin.

"Fine," Narcissa said curtly, continuing to brush her hair. She wouldn't let this stupid piece of glass get to her.

"Really? That's not what it sounded like to me."

Narcissa resisted the urge to break the Mirror into millions of tiny shards. Instead she began to violently pull the brush through her hair, tugging fiercely at knots.

"I mean with all that moaning and groaning. It was almost as if something had you horribly distraught." The Mirror sounded like it was having far too much fun for a slab of glass.

"Do us a favor," Narcissa snapped," Shut it." She grabbed a long flowing piece of satin and threw it over the Mirror, who had by this point broken into fits of laughter.

"He never loved you," the Mirror laughed mimicking Narcissa's voice perfectly.

Narcissa screeched, her hands flying up to the sides of her head. She didn't want the Mirror reflecting that horrible dream she had just successfully pushed back into the back of her head.

Her bunny slippers squeaked loudly as Narcissa started to hum as an attempt to drown out the cackling mirror. It didn't seem to work. The Mirror's voice continued to pound into Narcissa's mind.

Screaming loudly Narcissa pulled off the cloth and pointed her wand right at the mirror.

"I wouldn't do that deary," the Mirror said, a hint of worry in it's voice.

"Try and stop me," Narcissa growled. "Stupefy!" A beam of red light shot at the mirror bounced off and slammed straight into Narcissa's chest. She was thrown back and fell with a crash onto the stone floor.

The Mirror squeaked and disappeared inside itself. The dormitory door swung open and a girl with red brown hair stepped in. She was drying her hair with a fluffy white towel and didn't notice Narcissa till she almost tripped over her.

"What the..." she said stumbling a bit. "Oh Narcissa." Kneeling down she grabbed Narcissa's wrist to make sure there was still a pulse. When the girl was sure that Narcissa was still alive her eyes roamed around trying to find a cause for Narcissa's unconsciousness.

She noticed a scorch mark on the surface of the Mirror and then everything came together. The girl picked Narcissa's wand off the floor and prodded at it with her own.

"Prior Incantato," she said and a transparent red bolt shot from the tip of Narcissa's wand and slammed onto the far wall disintegrating on target.

The girl nodded and pointed the tip of her wand at Narcissa's chest. "Ennervate."

Narcissa's eyelids fluttered for a second before she sat up. "Where is that damn Mirror?" she hissed. "I swear I'll smash it into shards the size of sand."

The girl placed her hand on Narcissa's shoulder. "Go right ahead. Merlin knows why Rider insists on keeping it here."

Narcissa lifted up her wand. The girl tugged Narcissa's hand down laughing. "Not with your wand stupid. It'll just bounce off and hurt you again."

"Right. Good point Kerri," Narcissa agreed shoving her wand in the waist of her pajama bottoms.

"Is everything all right up here?" purred a calm voice from the doorway.

Narcissa and Kerri looked over at a tall witch with violet robes and long black hair. She was watching them both with a look of such intent that some would swear she was trying to curse them.

"Everything's just fine Professor Rider," Narcissa said straightening out her hair nervously.

"Really? I swear I heard screaming."

Narcissa looked at Kerri. "That would have been me Professor."

Rider's gaze zeroed right in on Narcissa. Her thin black eyebrow arched up in question.

"The Mirror was being rude. I guess I got kinda angry."

Rider sauntered over to the Mirror and watched her reflection begin to take on a life of its own. "Good morning Professor," the Mirror said its gaze shooting humorously to Narcissa.

"What have I told you about insulting the girls?" Rider demanded her voice as frosty as a mid-winter morning.

The reflection looked down shamefully. Rider tapped her fingernails against the Mirror's surface.

Narcissa and Kerri shared a questioning glance.

"That's what I thought," Rider said turning away. "Well you girls should be getting down to breakfast." The Professor turned on her heal, violet robes twirling around, and walked out of the dormitory.

"What is her problem?" Kerri said as soon as she was sure Rider was out of earshot.

"Who knows," Narcissa replied standing up. "But she's right we should get to breakfast. I'm starving." She put a hand on her flat stomach and felt it grumble. Both girls laughed and Kerri left the room to let Narcissa get dressed.

As they walked to breakfast Kerri was trying to get out of Narcissa why she attacked the Mirror.

"Come on Cissa tell me," Kerri pleaded.

"It said I was fat," Narcissa lied not wanting to relive the real reason why she had tried to stun the mirror.

Kerri gasped. "What is it with that thing and calling all of us fat?"

Narcissa shrugged her shoulders as they walked into the packed Great Hall. Owls were fluttering around the gray cloudy ceiling looking for the person they had a message for.

A barn owl swept right up to Narcissa as she made her way to the Slytherin table and dropped a letter at her feet. She bent over and picked it up.

Small cramped letters written in black ink was scratched across the envelope. It read: "Miss Narcissa Black."

Narcissa ripped it open as Kerri stared on. Quickly she read it and gasped. It was instructions for her detention but instead of grading papers like Tracy said Narcissa was now going to be cleaning up the boy's bathroom.

Kerri read the letter over Narcissa's shoulder and made a disgusted noise in her throat. "That has to be against some sort of health code," she said grabbing the letter out of Narcissa's hand for a closer look.

"No it isn't," Narcissa said her gaze moving up the room to where all the teachers were eating. Tracy lifted up her glass in mock greeting as Narcissa glared at her.

"Come on," Narcissa grabbed Kerri's arm. "Let's see if Bellatrix has a way for me to get out of this."

They rushed down the row between the Slytherin and Hufflepuff tables and sat down across from Lestrange and Lucius.

"Hey honey," Lucius said looking up from his conversation.

"Hey," Narcissa beamed, hitting herself for even thinking that Lucius didn't love her.

He grabbed her hand and squeezed it lovingly. Narcissa looked over at Lestrange. "Have you seen Bellatrix this morning?" she asked.

Lestrange laughed to himself and nodded his head. "She went to the Hospital Wing after throwing up in the halls."

"Oh," Narcissa thought for a second and then remembered Bellatrix's little trick. "Ohh... sick right." She gave Lestrange a meaningful look.

He just shook his head and smiled. "You Blacks our a completely twisted family you know that don't you?"

Narcissa smiled and nodded her head. Grabbing a muffin she began to chow down. Looking back up at Lestrange she noticed his eyes were completely blood shot.

"You and my sis have a good night?"

Lestrange shook his head. "Your sister is one party animal."

Lucius coughed a little and looked away.

Narcissa giggled and leaned over the table to kiss Lucius. "Do you two still not get along?" she said playfully.

"Its not that we don't get along it's more we don't share the same ideals about life."

"I don't think anyone shares the same ideals as Bellatrix." Narcissa bit into a sausage.

"That's for sure," Lestrange muttered.

"So do any of you have an idea of how to get me out of detention tonight?" Narcissa asked looking around at all her friends.

Lucius shook his head, as did Kerri. Lestrange stopped to think for a second. "You could make yourself sick like Bellatrix did." he suggested.

Narcissa made a disgusted face and shook her head. "Not my style."

"Okay then how about you over dose on something and go into a coma?"

"Bellatrix did that last year. Remember?"

"Oh yeah. That was a bit freaky. Sorry then that's all I got."

Narcissa told him how much she appreciated his help and siad she would probably just live with it.

"What exactly do you have to do?" Lucius asked.

Kerri shivered and Narcissa handed Lucius the letter. He read it quickly then went over it a second time.

"You have to clean out the boy's lavatory? That's disgusting."

Lestrange snorted in his cup of juice. "Seriously?" he said wiping the drink from his face.

"I'm afraid so," Narcissa moaned.

"Not if I can help it," Lucius stood up and marched out of the Great Hall, the letter still in his hand.

"Where is he going?" Narcissa wondered out loud.

"Probably going to pull some strings. You know Lucius," Lestrange said, pushing his empty plate away.

"Well let's hope he succeeds," Kerri said looking down at her watch. "Looks like we have only fifteen minutes till History of Magic."

"Okay," Narcissa grabbed her book bag from under the table. "See you around Lestrange."

"Bye."

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A/n: Well then how did you like that one? Personally I love it. Anyway one of you asked me why I have everyone call Lestrange, Lestrange and not Rodolphus, or whatever his first name happens to be. And my answer is would you want to be called by that first name? I know I wouldn't. So Lestrange stays. Till next chapter good day and don't forget to review.

And if any of you are interested I have posted a one shot Bellatrix story called "Crazy." So if you're interested check it out.