This chapter was fun to write, as I love my Andromeda scenes. :D I really enjoyed her interaction with...some of the other characters too. Hahaha

Do enjoy this chapter, and leave a review if you have a second! Thanks!

Dora


Some of the Death Eaters were laughing among themselves as they marched their prisoners down to the dungeons, though Andromeda grasped onto Dolohov when he attempted to shove her down the steps, nearly causing him to fall as well. "Bitch," he hissed at her, planting a slap across her face as Rabastan outright laughed at him.

Andromeda motioned to her mouth, her face betraying no discomfort as he smirked, pretending to misunderstand her. She shied away from him, her eyes boring into his. "Unsilence her," Rabastan sighed, rolling his eyes at the man. "She needs to be able to speak meaningless words of comfort to her soon-to-be Death Eater brat."

Dolohov chuckled, though turned to Andromeda, pulling her closer as he took the charm off of her. "If I ever find special favour with the Dark Lord," he smirked at her, "you will be the first thing I ask for."

Andromeda gave him her best look of pureblood disdain as she drew herself up to speak. "You fall far short of any such hopes, Antonin."

He merely grinned evily, pushing her toward the steps, and she led the way into the dungeons, Remus following with Teddy, Nymphadora out of sight behind them. Nymphadora came down the steps moments later, looking slightly confused as she held a small pink bassinette in her hands. "What...is that?" Andromeda said before shaking her head. "Why do you have that here?"

"The older Lestrange gave it to me," Dora muttered. "Said we couldn't let a newborn sleep on the dungeon floor."

"He's gone soft in his old age?" Remus couldn't help joking, though no one smiled.

"Not at all," Andromeda sighed. "He has a weakness for children, though it will be of no use to us, only to Teddy."

The three tried to look around the room, though none of them could see much through the darkness, their eyes having to get used to the almost complete lack of light. "It's just a huge, stone room," Dora sighed. "I've been here before—well, I think I have. It's lighter than I remember, though that may be because I had a blindness spell on me..."

She jumped in shock as her husband wrapped his arm around her comfortingly. "We're in this together," he said softly, Dora looking up at him, still unable to see his face.

"But...Remus," Dora breathed, "whatever they ask me to do—I must do it, for Teddy's sake, and for yours?"

"For Teddy, you must," Remus said quietly. "But Dora, if it's me, don't bend."

"Remus," Dora sighed, "you know I won't let anything happen to you if I can help it—" she gasped in shock, realising they weren't alone. "Who's there?" she demanded of the darkness.

"What other unfortunate souls lie imprisoned in the shadows?" Andromeda scoffed, and Nymphadora shuddered.

"Mum, don't talk like that," she said. "Ergh. You sound like Bellatrix."

Andromeda sighed. "No, she'd sing it, and add something more distasteful."

Nymphadora gasped in shock, able to see the outline of someone standing a few feet from her and Remus. "It can't be," she muttered. "Draco?"

The two stared at him, Andromeda following their voices until she bumped into Nymphadora, making the girl yelp in surprise. "Sorry," the older witch said quickly, turning to see the young man. "Since when did you make your bed in the dungeons, young Malfoy?"

Draco shuddered. "Bellatrix murdered my father after the battle," he said, his voice unsteady. "Mum lied to the Dark Lord during the two hour period, and he was furious. He's half murdered her—"

"Draco," Andromeda breathed, realising who the person on the floor behind the boy was. "You and your mother are prisoners in your own home?"

"No," Draco said quickly, then shuddered. "Yes. Can—can you see if you can help Mum? She won't talk, and I'm afraid she'll die too—"

"Of course," Andromeda nodded immediately, following the young man to his mother's side. "Cissa," she breathed in horror, only vaguely being able to see the crusted blood on the witch, her torn robes and her dirty hair. "Oh dear Merlin—"

Nymphadora and Remus watched, though they stayed back, wondering what had possessed Narcissa Malfoy to put her family in such an awful situation. "Narcissa?" Andromeda asked hesitantly, touching the witch's am and hoping that her once sister wasn't too awfully hurt.

The blonde witch struggled to turn her head to see who was talking to her and froze in horror, her eyes widening before she turned her head away again, refusing to look at her.

Andromeda glared down at her sister. "You simply can't be serious to ignore me after all that's happened now and all that has happened to your family!" she stormed. "Surely if Bellatrix has written us both off you can at least look at me!"

Draco took his mother's other hand in his, rubbing the back of it with his thumb. "Mum, please," he asked her so quietly that only she and Andromeda could hear. "Please let her help if she can. For my sake, if nothing else."

When Narcissa turned back to the older witch, Andromeda saw tears trickling down her sister's face. "Sorry," Narcissa choked before her body seized in pain, the witch clenching her fists as she fought the pain.

"Cissa," Andromeda breathed, "I'm going to see if I can help you. If I hurt you, I don't mean to." The witch didn't reply, and Andromeda touched her hand to her sister's arm again, allowing her magic to test whatever Dark magic was working on the witch. "I don't know if I can do this wandlessly," Andromeda bit her lip.

"Mother, the restraints," Nymphadora said warningly.

"I had Dolohov take them off," Andromeda replied. "He...likes me."

Draco looked slightly disturbed, though focused on his mother as Andromeda looked back down at the witch. "They are debilitating," she sighed. "Brilliant spells, really."

The boy glared at her. "Just help her!"

Narcissa squeezed her son's hand weakly and he looked down at their hands, his blonde hair falling into his face. "Dromeda," Narcissa breathed, looking up at the witch as she struggled to make herself heard, "if you can, I'd be—grateful."

Andromeda nodded, closing her eyes as her hands hovered an inch or two above the injured woman's head. She allowed the feeling of the magic to guide her as she worked cautiously, worried that her lack of practise would cause her to harm her sister. She heard the witch groan softly, though she didn't look up, continuing to even out the magics that were coursing through Narcissa's body. Andromeda took a deep breath, beginning to draw the Dark magic from the witch's system and diffuse it into the earth.

"Shh," she said softly, hearing the witch take a breath and realising that her sister was crying again. "You'll be okay...just let me finish. I'm almost done."

No one spoke until Andromeda sat back with a sigh, watching her sister in concern. The blonde witch moved her arm, tensing for a moment before she tried to sit up. Draco reached out to stop her, but Andromeda slipped her arm around her sister and drew her to lean on her. "I'm sorry," Andromeda breathed into the witch's blonde hair. "I shouldn't have abandoned you to Bellatrix and her insanity."

Narcissa sniffed. "Don't—don't say things about her that you don't understand," she said. "She's had terrible experiences...you can't blame her for a lot of it."

"I can, and will," Andromeda said sternly. "She decided to become what she did, became obsessed with the Dark Lord—"

"Dromeda!" Narcissa cried, grasping her by her sleeve. "Hush! You don't know what you're saying! You will be killed for speaking against her, against them. He chose Bellatrix to serve the most honourable purpose, in her eyes."

"Which would be?" Nymphadora scoffed. "The insane torturer and madwoman that sickeningly fawns over her master?"

"You will call him master," Narcissa hissed as she shifted and jumped at the residual pain. "Though I do hope you will not mother his child!"

Andromeda stared down at Narcissa, the blonde witch's eyes clouding for a moment before she buried her face in Andromeda's dress. "Narcissa, what did you just say?" Andromeda whispered in horror. "Bella...she didn't—"

Narcissa was cringing, hiding her face from the others. "I wasn't to speak of it," she whimpered. "The child—Bella used her as an excuse for the Dark Lord to keep me alive—told him I could be a valuable babysitter. But I can't be of any use—how would Bella trust me after I lied to the father of her child?"

Nymphadora's mouth was still open in shock as Remus said, "No one knows of this child? This...heir of Lord V—"

"DON'T SAY HIS NAME!" shrieked Narcissa and her son at the same time in terror.

"Narcissa," Andromeda said softly, rubbing her back gently. "Only you and Draco and who else know?"

"Rodolphus," Narcissa shuddered, seeming to be unable to keep herself from telling the truth. "And Rabastan. I—I think that's it. I helped Bella with the birth, but—of course I disapproved of her actions."

Nymphadora took Teddy from her husband, cradling the child close. "How could she do something so...revolting?" she shivered, an urge to be sick coming over her.

Narcissa looked over at the youngest witch in the room. "When you are trained as a Death Eater, Nymphadora," she said knowingly, "you will do things that you would never thought you'd do. You will find them...necessary."

"I will not change at heart," Nymphadora said stubbornly. "I will remain the same, no matter what I must do."

"They'll break you," Draco said with a nod. "They will change you at the core, and you will not be able to hold to your righteous nonsense."

She glared at him, but Remus wrapped his arm around her again, hugging her to his side. "What's her name?" Nymphadora asked Narcissa after a moment.

"Delphini," Narcissa said, briefly hesitating.

"Well, Mum, you and Bella have the same terrible taste in names," Dora rolled her eyes. "Draco got lucky."

"You call this lucky?" Draco snapped bitterly.

Nymphadora rolled her eyes again. "Please be a pathetic heap on the floor, Malfoy. Suck it up. None of us have had lives so fine as yours, but none of us are ready to throw up our hands and quit! Are you the son of your father, or not?"

Andromeda looked between the two, seeing Draco's furious glare. "Don't," he hissed, "you say a bad word about my father."

Narcissa began to cry again softly, and Andromeda hugged her close, rocking her gently as she kissed her head. "Narcissa," she said quietly, "I know it hurts to lose the one you love, more than anything else in the world, but we've got to pull ourselves together and fight for the moment. You'll be needed no doubt, if Bella indeed wishes you to care for her...daughter. You can't just lie here and cry. You are a Black; you are a Malfoy. You cannot give up, and I will not let you."

Narcissa held to her sister for a few moments more, then asked, "Draco, where did they put the water?"

"I moved it so that it wouldn't spill in case of new prisoners," Draco answered, getting to his feet. "I'll get it." The boy carefully made his way across the dark room and came back with the cup of water, kneeling next to his mother as he offered her some. Together he and Andromeda made sure that she drank deeply of it, though she made a face at the taste of it.

"So are we the only prisoners?" Remus asked the two.

Draco shook his head. "There's...there's lots of them," he said. "There's a whole wing of the Manor that was going to be for the more important, necessary prisoners. Azkaban is going to be used, as well as some other pureblood manors, I believe."

Nymphadora looked down at her baby as he began to cry, most likely cold, and she bounced him gently, trying to get him to quiet down. She looked to her mother, who suggested, "See if he's hungry."

She backed away from the others to take shelter in the darkness and adjusted her robe, helping the child find his meal. Nymphadora was surprised to hear the sound of material ripping and was shocked when Remus approached her, holding what appeared to be the skirt of her mother's dress.

"No," Andromeda sighed, almost laughing, "that is one of the bottom layers, Dora. Keep the child warm."

"So...do we ever get food?" Dora asked, leaning back against the cold wall of the dungeon.

"Only when they remember," Narcissa answered. "We've gone three days without food before."

"Oh." Nymphadora bit her lip slightly as Remus helped her wrap Teddy up in the material. "Well, Bella promised to be here bright and early to drag me off and torture me—"

Draco frowned, and Andromeda said, "She means, teach her to be a Death Eater, dear."

The boy scowled into the darkness in his cousin's direction. "She is the worst. You'll come back here unable to think straight and wishing you'd died instead of being captured."

"Her hair will be white," Andromeda nodded. "And she'll probably be incoherent—"

"All of you are so encouraging," Nymphadora snapped. "Shut up. I have to do this!"

"We know," Andromeda sighed. "I wish it could be me instead."

Narcissa made a small sound of disapproval. "Bella would kill you," she told Andromeda. "She would not teach you anything that she means for your daughter."

Nymphadora sighed. "Tell me what to expect?"

"Nothing that you would expect," Draco nodded. "Except pain. Very unique, delicately destructive forms of torture."

"Great," Nymphadora nodded. "Now I guess we just wait?"

The dungeon fell into silence as they all fell into thinking much more of their fears, and much less of their hopes.


Yayyyyyy! Delphi has been introduced, and Andromeda and Narcissa are reunited! This can only get more interesting from here. XD

Dora