Chapter 51. Red
"Where is she Bella?" Lucius asked as he stalked into the dining hall of Malfoy Manor. His cane clicked against his black wooden floors, announcing his arrival to Bellatrix before he even spoke a word, she could tell by the pace and tone of each click of the cane that he was maddened. Bellatrix would enjoy the ensuing windup.
"Where is whom?" Bellatrix teased as she stabbed at her lunch from the dining table. Draco seated next to his aunt paled, he knew exactly how this was going to go.
"Who do you think?" Lucius hissed, his hand tightening on the silver snake head of his cane. "Astrid!"
"Hmmmm," Bellatrix dramatically pondered. "Have you tried Severus' bed?"
Lucius reached for his wand, or rather his replacement wand, but Draco stood up abruptly.
"Father," Draco pleaded, with as much confidence as he could muster, but he still sounded pitifully meek. "Please, don't." Draco could not take anymore fighting within the family, his relationships were already strained enough.
"Yes, Lucius, listen to little Draco…" Bellatrix smiled, licking her lips.
"Bellatrix… tell me where she is, I know Wormtail brought her here," Lucius exhaled, he spoke as calmly as he could, with great strain in his voice. He was so easily wound up these days, he remembered a time not so long ago he could keep his cool under even the most stressful of situations, and now a simple jibe sent him toppling into frenzy.
"She's with Dark Lord." Bellatrix answered simply, as she scraped her food from her fork with her teeth, the metal screeching against them. Lucius swallowed hard, closing his eyes for just a second.
"What does he want with her?" His voice hitched in his throat as images of Astrid being tortured and killed flashed in his mind.
"The Dark Lord didn't divulge that information to me…" Bellatrix trailed off, "To end her miserable pathetic life hopefully." She squeaked out a laugh, stabbing at her plate once again. Draco eyes darted between Bellatrix and his father throughout the exchange, his heart torn, he felt as if he was torn between the two halves of his family, his mother and Bellatrix, and his father, Everly and Astrid.
Aunt Bellatrix scared the hell out of him, she wasn't at all like his mother described, or what he pictured, before Bella's escape from Azkaban. His mother was his world, but he wasn't blind to her mistakes or her flaws, as a mother or a person. But he still loved her dearly, more than he loved anyone. His father and he had a complicated relationship, bogged down by years of 'tough' love. He respected him massively, and feared him a little. Astrid… Draco hadn't really had much chance to get to know his former professor, she was kind, kinder than any of them deserved. He respected her, appreciated the way she had bettered his father, somewhat at least. But he would never call her mum. Everly was a different barrel of fish… at first, he felt hatred and contempt for a baby he had never even set eyes on. Then jealousy, jealous of the way his father treated her, adored her. Then love, he had never pictured himself a sibling, he was quite happy being the sole occupier of his parents' attention, but he somehow came to love being a brother, and in that came to love his tiny sister endlessly. The absence of her laughter, her smile, even her screams and cries, had made Malfoy Manor incredibly grim to him once again. He couldn't imagine how his father felt without her here.
"Please, can we stop this fighting… we're meant to be a family, a strong powerful family…" Draco stammered as he sat down with a huff, banging his hands lightly on the table as he shrunk into his seat sulkily.
"We were a family…. Until your father betrayed my sister!" Bellatrix hissed.
"How dare you speak to me that way, in my own house! Your sister is as mad as you Bellatrix you-"
Lucius words were cut off by a sharp whistle coming down the stairs. The fighting family looked to the stone staircase to see Avery descending the stairs, his long leather coat trailing on each step. Astrid followed behind like a little shadow, her face clearly showed her upset, her face pink, eyes reddened, glistening trails left by tears weaved down her freckled cheeks.
"Don't mind me, love a good family feud," Avery smirked as he stepped off the stairs into the dining hall. Astrid descended the stairs slowly, unsure of what she was walking in on, Bellatrix's presence alone was enough to make her heart quicken with anxiety.
"There she is Lucius," Bellatrix jeered, "She's had her fill of Severus and moved onto Atticus."
Avery pulled a disgusted face as he looked over his shoulder to Astrid as she slowly descended the stairs. Astrid locked eyes with Lucius for a moment before diverting her gaze to the floor, hiding her bloodshot blue eyes.
"I wouldn't have gone there before," Avery said with great distaste, "I definitely wouldn't now that I know she's my sister," He spat. Lucius was already making his way to Astrid hurriedly, practically shoving Avery aside to pull the girl to his chest, his hand tangled into her hair as he planted secret kisses to the top of her head, with his back to the table.
"You're joking?" Bellatrix's head flew back with a small forced laugh. She stood and rounded the table curiously, trying to get another look at Astrid, trying to compare her to Antonia.
"Not joking." Avery sighed as he made his way over to a small bar cart in the corner, he poured himself a small measure of fire whiskey and downed it in one. He needed it to relax after the intensity of the meeting, he had never been alone with the Dark Lord before, prior to Astrid's arrival was the most nerve-wracking fifteen minutes of his life. "She's my half-sister apparently… on my mother's side," Atticus spat.
"Are you okay?" Lucius asked, brushing Astrid's stray waves out of her face and around her ear. She nodded weakly. "Is what Avery saying true?"
"I don't know, the Dark Lord says it is… says my father…. Says he…" Astrid whispered with unsteady breaths.
"He fucked my mother… turned her away from the Dark Lord." Avery hissed, pouring himself another drink.
"So that's where sweet Antonia went off to…" Bellatrix tutted as she brushed passed Lucius and Astrid, stepping up the stairs. "I always thought the Dark Lord killed her." She hummed with a small sick giggle, stopping she looked over her shoulder and looked for a reaction, she didn't care who from.
"No," Avery barked, "She did." He nodded at Astrid with a filthy look. Astrid buried her face deeper into Lucius' chest, hiding fresh tears in his black shirt. Bellatrix laughed in response, climbing the stairs once again.
"Remember whose house you're in Avery," Lucius shot at the shaggy haired man.
"Like you'd let any of us forget, Malfoy," Avery rolled his eyes, slamming his glass down on the bar cart. "Right, lets go." Avery sniffed, his eyes falling on Astrid.
"Go? Go where?" Lucius asked, refusing to loosen his grip on the girl.
"Takin' her back to Hogwarts, Dark Lords order." Avery huffed.
"Taking her back to Severus." Bellatrix chimed in as she disappeared around the corner of the staircase, heading to see the Dark Lord.
"I will take her." Lucius announced, he moved his hand to Astrids shoulder and began leading her towards the stairs down to the floo.
"Dark Lord asked me to do it, his orders." Avery protested.
"You should be getting back to St Mungo's, looking out for the Potter boy and his companions, I'll take her back." Lucius told him firmly, straightening up Lucius towered over Avery, who, like Astrid, was of a slighter build, and not gifted with height. Avery and Lucius stared each other down intensely, before the shaggy haired man averted his gaze with a smirk.
"Whatever, do what you want Malfoy," Avery exhaled as he turned on his heels, "See ya' later… sis." He laughed as he walked down a dimly lit corridor, his hands in his pockets, leather coat trailing.
"Come, my love," Lucius exhaled, leading Astrid away. Draco sighed from his place at the table, pushing his lunch away frustratedly he ran his palm over his face with a deep sigh.
Astrid arrived at Hogwarts first, in a poof of green. Severus looked up from his task, a sigh of relief escaping his lips when he noticed Astrid was unhurt, physically at least from what he could tell. He was sat at his desk with one hand furiously scratching away at parchment with his quill. His other hand wrapped around Everly's stomach as she sat on his knee, a small blue stuffed dragon in her hands. She pulled curiously at its wings and tail, shaking the little felt creature around. Upon Everly's return with Astrid, Severus had tasked the house elves with kitting out the chambers up the stairs with everything the child needed, toys included. The little red dragon however, Severus had picked up himself, on a rare trip to Hogsmead to meet with the death eaters watching the little village. He didn't know why he chose the dragon, there was a plentiful collection of stuffed toys to choose from, unicorns, mermaids, hippogriffs… but the dragon stood out to him.
"You're back… how was your meeting?" Severus asked, he had already noticed her tear-stained face and red raw eyes. Before Astrid could answer green flames and smoke flared behind her, and Lucius stepped out of the fire.
"Ah, Lucius… welcome." Severus drawled as he regarded his old friend. Lucius ignored Snape for a moment, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of his immediate attention, instead he headed for Astrid, pulling her into a deep, needy kiss now that they were safe from the watching walls of Malfoy Manor. The kiss took Astrid's breath away, despite the lingering wound from Lucius' betrayal she melted into the kiss, she'd missed it. Missed being kissed so passionately, missed the magnetic hold it had over her that caused the whole world to just stop for a moment.
When Astrid broke the kiss the two pressed their foreheads together for a moment, until they were pulled from it by Everly's gleeful laughter.
Lucius head perked up, looking around for his beloved daughter.
Then he spotted her.
Perched happily, comfortably on the knee of Severus Snape.
Lucius saw red.
Sorry its only a tiny update, this week is a bit crazy for me, but I didn't want to leave you guys with nothing, I'll be back to regular updates from early next week! Please leave a review and let me know what you think, I really appreciate all your kind words and feedback, thanks for reading!