Cornelia Lestrange lay on her stomach in front of a grand ornate fireplace, the wood in the grate glowing a deep red and the coolness of the room already stifling the weak warmth that emanated from it. The chill from the stone floor was seeping through her thickest winter coat that she was laying upon, and the room was dark, the only source of light being the embers of the fire that she stared into. She was partially hidden by an enormous oak dining table that stretched the length of the room, and she would only be seen if someone were to cross the room to the fireplace themselves. The tall double doors to the dining room were open, and constant gust of cool air blew through them.
The skin of her forearms were goose-pimpled where the sleeves of her dress pulled back, and a shiver was beginning to build in her spine, but she forced herself to remain perfectly still, gazing all the harder into the fireplace.
She had been laid in this spot for most of the evening, having run quietly into the room hours earlier and slid silently into a small space between the wall and a large cabinet beside the dining room doors. The sound of footsteps clattered through the hallway beyond the doors, and paused at the entrance to the room. A pale woman raised her hand, a wand held loosely in her slender fingers and cast a beam of light into the room. After peering quickly around the room and under the table, the woman rushed from with an angry sigh, the sound of her heels fading away further down the hallway.
Remaining still for a few more minutes, Cornelia finally stepped from behind the cabinet and scowled around the room. She was wearing the deep purple fur coat then and slid it off her shoulders, beelining for the then roaring flames in the fireplace. And that had been where she'd remained, as the already dim light from the grey skies outside darkened and the fire slowly died and the house fell silent around her. Now she was cold and knew she would soon have to seek out warmth and face the wrath of Aunt Cissy.
She tiptoed across the expansive marble hallway, her shallow breathing echoing across the snowy white expanse. If only she could make it to her bedroom, maybe if Aunt Cissy found her in bed 'sleeping' she might show some mercy. Cornelia knew it was a slim chance and unfortunately luck was not on her side.
She had made it halfway up the wide staircase, thankful for the carpeted runner up the middle that softened her footsteps, when the pale woman appeared silently at the top. Her gaze was as chilly as the house around them as she whipped her hand through the air. Cornelia had a moment of dread at the familiar sense of lightness that stripped her of all of her worries. She stepped quickly towards Aunt Cissy, blissfully unaware of the fury etched into her face, Cornelia's mind was blank apart from the vague sense that she needed to get up to Aunt Cissy as quickly as possible.
Only when Aunt Cissy had gripped the lace collar of her dress did the imperious curse drop and Cornelia realised she was eye to eye with the woman she had spent the evening trying to avoid. "And where have you been hiding?" Her voice was low and dangerous.
Cornelia pressed her lips tightly closed, beginning to struggle against the hold her aunt had her in. The slap of her Aunt's hand on her cheek echoed around the room and Cornelia fell still, resorting to glaring wordlessly into her aunt's icy blue eyes.
"You will tell me where you have been hiding."
The silence extended between the two and eventually, without even a blink, Aunt Cissy turned on her heel and dragged the child along behind her briskly. Cornelia's hardened expression broke and fear punctuated her face as she stared around, fearing where they were heading. Her dark eyes met a pair of blue eyes that peered around a slightly ajar door in the hallway. They were the same shade as Aunt Cissy's but their expression was much warmer, and they stared worriedly into hers until they rounded a corner.
Finally they reached a lone door in the far end of the hallway, and Aunt Cissy shoved Cornelia roughly inside. "You have forced me to do this Cornelia." She said before closing the door between them and locking it with a clunk.
Cornelia was plunged into darkness and panic. There were no windows in the tapestry room, and the fireplace was unlit. The result was freezing blackness that pressed in from all sides and seemed to whisper in her ears. Her breath came quick and shallow, the air dank and musty in her lungs, her senses spreading wearily through the room as she desperately tried to sense the spirits that she was convinced lived there.
She didn't dare to move and strained to hear over the wet thump of her racing heart. Something creaked in the far corner of the room and whatever bound her in place snapped. Cornelia threw herself towards the door and slammed her fists against it, her cries gaining in volume and rising in pitch until her throat was sore and she couldn't shout anymore. She knew Aunt Cissy would have placed a silencing spell on the other side of the door and that nobody would even be able to hear her cries and eventually she collapsed to the floor, drawing her knees to her chest and whimpering weakly, the tears creating a spreading damp patch on the front of her dress. She was even colder than she had been downstairs, leaving her coat on the floor of the dining room.
She closed her eyes and pictured the flames she had been staring into all evening, trying to imagine the warmth spreading across her skin. She focused on the crackle of the logs, the smell of the smoke, the orange glow burning behind her eyelids.
A strange whooshing noise suddenly swept through the room and startled Cornelia's eyes open wide, just in time to see all the candles in their brackets on the wall light themselves and the logs in the fireplace burst into flame, throwing everything in the room into a warm bright light.
Cornelia held her breath as she stared around the room, waiting for whoever it was that cast the spell to show themselves. Nothing moved other than the flames that danced welcomingly in the grate, and Cornelia slowly and shakily got to her feet and dragged herself towards the fire.
The room was eery even when lit what with the lifelike renditions of the Malfoy family woven into the wall, their eyes seeming to follow her as she moved through the room. The chaise longue was a crushed velvet the colour of blood and noise was deadened by the soft walls and the carpeted floor, almost like being underwater.
Cornelia hovered uncertainly by the fire, her nerves frayed from her recent panic attack. It took her a long time to calm down enough to pull the red lounger closer to the warmth and curl up on it. It wasn't the first time she had been banished to the tapestry room and she knew she was in for a long and lonely punishment. At least this time she had warmth and light… at least until the candles and logs in the fire burnt down.
Cornelia had lived with Aunt Cissy and Uncle Lucy for as long as she could remember. It hadn't been a happy childhood, despite being a privileged one. The traditions of being a member of a noble family had been drilled into her, and whilst her cousin, Draco, was pampered and praised, she was disciplined and constantly reminded of the debt she owed her guardians, very rarely experiencing warmth from her aunt and uncle.
She was apparently over spirited and strong headed, especially for a woman, and that needed to be 'squashed' as her aunt put it. Whilst Draco was allowed to meet friends, voice his opinion and, best of all, say "no", Cornelia was forced to remain polite, mild and still.
As it was, Cornelia was just a child and she didn't understand what it was that made her and Draco so different. She was stronger than Draco, both physically and emotionally, she was smarter than Draco, and she was quicker than Draco, and yet Draco was allowed to do what he wanted, Draco was free. It made her blood boil!
Not that it was Draco's fault. In fact, Draco and their house-elf Dobby were her only friends. Draco was there to comfort her when she was punished for racing with him around the grounds, his thin arms gently wrapping around her, his eyes filling with tears in place of her dry ones. When they argued, as children doubtless will, Draco was always the first to apologise, sneaking her treats from the kitchen. Draco would often cover for her, taking the blame if something got broken during their games and every now and then would have a stroke of courage and attempt to stand up to his parents when Cornelia was treated unfairly. Not that it would ever make any difference.
At that moment in time, a little further down the hall, Narcissa and Lucius lay in their kingsize quilted sheets, each holding a corner of a large golden framed oval mirror and staring into it. Narcissa's eyebrows were furrowed, a worried crease forming between them, whilst Lucius held a faint smirk on his lips. Instead of their reflections staring back at them through the glass, the mirror showed a brightly lit room with tapestries lining the walls. Curled up on a blood red chaise longue was a little girl with pale skin and a shock of dark curls.
"She is getting stronger." Murmured Narcissa and Lucius's smirk deepened.
"That she is." He replied. Narcissa glanced over at him upon hearing his tone and her eyes widened at his expression.
"It's dangerous Lucius!" She exclaimed but Lucius shook his head, meeting his wife's gaze.
"No darling, it would be dangerous if she were a weak, pathetic thing."
"For her perhaps, but what about us? If anyone were to suspect…"
"Everyone already knows she is Bella's child. They believe we are heroic for taking her in. You heard what Fudge said the other day." He stroked the crease that was still folded between her eyebrows and followed her nose down to her lips. She leant into his hand, her frown softening slightly. "You've taught her well my love."
"I do feel bad for being so hard on her." She whispered. "If Bella knew…"
Lucius waved his hand and the mirror disappeared, he leant in to kiss his wife's lips gently, whispering against them. "You know as well as I that Bella would be much…" he placed a quick peck on the left corner of her lips "much" another peck to her right "harder."
Something changed after that night Cornelia spent locked in the tapestry room. Upon opening the door the next morning and seeing the still lit candles and burning fire, Cornelia was sure that she was about to face another punishment. Instead Aunt Cissy entered the room quietly and approached Cornelia where she was still blinking sleep from her eyes on the couch. She sat primly beside her, crossing one ankle over the other elegantly and looked into Cornelia's face, her expression unreadable.
She gestured to the walls and the fire and Cornelia was surprised to see a wry smile forming on Aunt Cissy's lips. "So you're a witch now?"
Cornelia wasn't sure what the best response was. "I didn't mean to do it."
"I know. It's impressive that you managed to contain the fire to the candles and the fireplace. Well done."
Cornelia just stared at her Aunt, mouth hanging open. Her Aunt's gaze softened even more. She placed a hand on the slightly crushed curls on Cornelia's head and sighed. "Maybe it's time to start learning some magical theory with Draco. It won't be long before you leave for Hogwarts."
Cornelia wasn't sure what was going on but she nodded quickly before Aunt Cissy could change her mind.
"There are conditions of course." Cissy continued, withdrawing her hand back to her lap. "If I hear of any bad behaviour, such as running away, answering back or showing off, I will take you out of classes and find some other way of punishing you. Do you understand?"
"Yes Aunt Cissy." Cornelia agreed obediently.
"And we will continue with our etiquette classes in your spare time. Yes?"
Cornelia nodded less enthusiastically. Aunt Cissy raised a pointed eyebrow and Cornelia quickly chorused "Yes Aunt Cissy" again.
"Good. Well I shall see you at breakfast shortly, go and clean up."
Cornelia shot from her seat and went to run from the room before catching herself. She shot a quick look back at her aunt whose eyebrow was raised once more, and Cornelia continued to walk, slowly this time, from the room.
As soon as she was out of sight Cornelia shifted into overdrive and ran as fast and quietly as she could to Draco's room. She expertly slipped silently through the door, knowing Draco would still be asleep. Whilst Cornelia was expected to be washed and perfectly presentable for breakfast, Draco could rock up clearly having just rolled out of bed and pulling on whatever clothes were within reach.
His room was predictably dark and Cornelia could just make out a shape in the large four poster bed they often slept in together. She launched herself at the shape which groaned and squirmed beneath her. Finally after much wrestling she had wriggled beneath the sheets with him and pulled the covers over their heads.
"Guess what?" She whispered excitedly into their little cocoon, forehead to forehead with Draco. "What?" He croaked.
"I did magic last night!"
Draco's eyes shot open and his voice lost some of its sleepiness immediately. "No way! What did you do?" Then he looked troubled. "Was mother cross?"
"No she wasn't, she told me well done!" Cornelia was practically buzzing with excitement. "And she said I can start magic classes with you!"
Draco grabbed her hands and did a little celebration wriggle. "Tell me what you did!" He whispered over Cornelia's muffled giggles.
Cornelia relayed the story and Draco was sufficiently impressed. "But weren't you scared in the tapestry room all night?"
Cornelia shrugged, pretending to be blasé about the whole experience. "No, I'm too old to be scared of a room anymore." She lied.
Draco looked like he suspected she was lying and had just opened his mouth to express his suspicions when the delicate sounds of the breakfast bell echoed through the mansion. They both shared a horrified look before simultaneously leaping from the bed and dashing away to get ready. Cornelia sprinted from the room and into her own across the hall, pulling on a dress and tights that were already laid out on the bed, silently blessing Dobby who must have taken pity on her because of last night, and then running down the stairs to the breakfast room just behind Draco.
They skidded into the room to see Aunt Cissy and Uncle Lucy already seated and looking at them solemnly.
"I do not appreciate being made to wait for any meal." Lucius spoke slowly, carefully articulating every word so that the sentence seemed to poke sharply at the children.
"Sorry Father" and "Sorry Uncle Lucius" rang through the dining room.
The silence hung heavily in the air before Lucius sharply said "Sit."
The children waited for Dobby to push the chair beneath them and sat, both holding their breaths, daring to hope that would be the end of it. It seemed that breakfast was to continue as normal as Dobby began serving the food, until it came to serving Draco.
"Don't serve the children." Lucius cut in and both Draco and Cornelia's hearts dropped.
Draco stared bitterly at his plate throughout breakfast and Cornelia at her lap. She was hoping against hope that her being late to breakfast wouldn't cost her the magic lessons Aunt Cissy had promised.
Finally Lucius finished his meal and rose from the table. The rest of the family stood until he left the room. When they heard his study door close behind him Aunt Cissy turned to Cornelia. "Cornelia, did I or did I not tell you to go and get ready for breakfast when I saw you this morning?"
"You did Aunt Cissy."
"Why are you incapable of following such straight forward instructions?"
Cornelia resisted the urge to fidget uncomfortably, knowing it would only annoy Aunt Cissy further. "I'm sorry Aunt Cissy."
"You will stand there and will not move until lunch, do you understand?"
"Yes Aunt Cissy."
Narcissa proceeded to pull out her wand and draw a very tight circle that glowed white around Cornelia's feet where they stood on the ground. "If you move you will miss lunch and stand there until dinner." She said before sweeping from the room.
Draco remained behind, looking at her with the worried expression that haunted his eyes so often.
"Draco!" His mother called sharply from the hallway and Draco left, shooting sympathetic looks at her on his way out.
Cornelia looked down at the glowing circle around her feet and wondered what would happen if she stepped beyond it. Would it hurt? As she looked at the circle she weighed up whether it would be worth making a run for it again. If she hadn't been offered to join Draco in magical classes she would have seriously considered it, but now the price she would have to pay was too high.
It didn't take long before Cornelia was extremely bored, with nothing to look at other than the fields outside the window and the dining room itself. She also needed the toilet. On top of that her feet were starting to ache. She began to shift her weight from foot to foot, and then begun swinging her hips from side to side, and soon she got caught up seeing how far she could swing her hips without moving her feet at all. Of course the inevitable happened and she soon lost her balance, shuffling to the right slightly to catch herself.
Her heart shot into her mouth as her toe brushed the white circle which immediately turned a deep red. Horrorstruck she stared down at it, willing it to fade back to white and cursing herself for her stupidity. Her stomach was already grumbling angrily from missing breakfast and now she would have to wait until dinner! She didn't know if she could survive standing here that long! And what about the toilet? Would she burst and shrivel up simultaneously?
Cornelia waited, her heart skipping nervously and her palms sweating. After what seemed like forever she heard footsteps approaching and Aunt Cissy came into the dining room once again. She took one look at the red circle at her feet and grimaced before turning it back white again and moving to her seat at the table.
"Aunt Cissy?" Cornelia barely dared to whisper. Aunt Cissy ignored her so she repeated herself the tiniest shade louder. Aunty Cissy's eyes whipped to hers. "I need the toilet." She whispered, her face blushing in shame and embarrassment. Half of her expected Aunt Cissy to ignore her again and leave her to wet herself, so she was surprised when Aunt Cissy stood with a sigh and held out her hand to her.
She led her to the toilet and waited outside and then led her back to the dining room and her circle. Before she sat back down she waved her wand and the pain that had been building in Cornelia's feet and legs disappeared. Aunt Cissy didn't acknowledge her for the rest of lunch.
I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of The Noble House of Lestrange! Please feel free to write any questions or reviews and I'll try and get back to you in the notes of the next chapter.
I've got a great story planned for Cornelia so the first few chapters will be setting the scene. She won't have much involvement in Harry Potter et al's adventures or much interaction with them at all really seeing as she has her own shit going on, but she will be influencing Harry's life indirectly in the future! I didn't want to put any pairings in the summary as I want it to be a surprise, but hopefully this won't be a straight forward Mary Sue story for y'all.
Until next time.
** Just a quick note to say that I have uploaded a second chapter but for the past 6 days fanfic . net has been having some technical difficulties it seems with showing new chapters. Sometimes it's there and sometimes it's not! So I'm holding off on uploading more chapters until the problem has been fixed. The good news is that in the meantime I'm building up quite the backlog of chapters to upload, so there will be a nice quick turnaround rate when the website does get sorted. **