Desmond Lestrange did not miss the attitude change toward the "bloodtraitor brat" in his son Rodolphus. The older Lestrange called his older son into the study and demanded to know what was going on. After Rodolphus had explained what had taken place at the Christmas gathering, Desmond was both horrified and concerned.
"The girl must be protected," Rodolphus said simply. "And it seems that would be my responsibility. It's not Dora's fault that she's here, and it has obviously been a struggle for her. I'm done making it more difficult for the poor child."
"It wasn't wise to bring her here," Desmond said with a scowl. "But I suppose there's nothing for it."
"No," Rodolphus agreed. "Dora's here to stay."
"I'll be relieved when she's off to school," the older man sighed.
"Of course, and then we'll be receiving all her detention notices," Rodolphus mused, shaking his head. "She's too much like Bella for her own good."
One afternoon on a weekend, Andromeda went into Diagon Alley to quickly purchase some some groceries and things for her children. It was not uncommon for her to do this, but what was absolutely shocking to her was seeing her sister's husband strolling through the area with his son and Nymphadora.
Andromeda kept out of sight but watched her only daughter laugh and talk with Ronan and his father. Dora had grown quite a lot in the last few months, and Andromeda's heart ached as she watched the three together. Her daughter seemed so happy with the Lestranges...though Andromeda knew that it wasn't always so easy, of course.
The young mother was struck with an intense longing to steal her daughter back and run home before Rodolphus could stop her. She wanted her baby girl back. A sudden storm of emotions swirled through her, and Andromeda found herself walking away, desperately fighting back tears as she angrily scolded herself for being so weak in public.
There was a sound of apparition, and when Andromeda looked around again, Rodolphus and the children had gone. She knew he had seen her, and almost hoped that Dora had noticed.
With a heavy heart, Andromeda made her purchases and went on home, telling Arthur what she had seen as she put away the groceries. "And I walked away, and they just left," Andromeda said, turning her back to her husband, who was watching the twins, who kept attempting to get up and walk. She dashed away her tears and continued her task, shaking her head. "It's been a year," she whispered. "A year, Arthur. Dora's been gone so long."
"I know," Arthur said quietly.
"She looked so happy," Andromeda sniffed, losing the battle against her tears. "She seemed so content to be there with Rodolphus and Ronan. She'll never want to come back home, Arthur."
Arthur was silent for a few moments until his wife came to him and he wrapped his arms around her, knowing she was ready for some comfort. "If she's happy and safe, that's what we want, right?" he said softly. "I mean, of course we want her to be with us, but at least she's happy with them, Dromeda."
Andromeda buried her face in her husband's shoulder. "I know," she choked. "But she's mine!"
"She is," Arthur agreed, stroking her back comfortingly.
"I want her back," Andromeda wept softly, not wanting any of the rest of her children to hear her. "I miss her."
"I do too," the man murmured. "But it would be more difficult to stage a rescue now than it would have been at first."
"And she may not even want to be rescued," Andromeda whispered. "Why did I let her go so easily?"
"Because you love her," Arthur said, kissing the woman's dark curls. "You wanted her to be safe, and from everything I've seen and heard, she's perfectly safe."
Andromeda was very quiet for a few moments, then whispered, "Can we have another child?"
Arthur did not speak for a few moments, then said, "When the twins are a bit older, we'll talk about that."
"I want another daughter," Andromeda whispered, clinging to her husband. "Then we'll have seven children. The perfect number."
"Dromeda, you know how unlikely it is that we'll have a girl," Arthur warned her, but he was not sure she had heard him at all.
Rodolphus Lestrange was spending a peaceful evening alone in his home, relaxing with a few drinks as his wife had been Summoned by the Dark Lord. The children were out in the grounds, happily playing together as they nearly always did nowadays. A year into the process of integrating Dora into the Lestrange family, and the girl wasn't mentioning her old family as much and seemed to be doing very well.
The man looked out the window of his study into the grounds, hearing laughter, and saw a red-haired blur run through a few of the trees closer to the broomshed. He was shaking his head with a small smile on his face when he froze and stepped closer to the window. It couldn't be...but it was.
Ronan Lestrange, his own heir, was the redhead that was running through the trees. Rodolphus turned from the window, set his glass down on the desk, and set off for the grounds immediately. It did not take him long to find the children, the man immediately realising that the five year old girl must have morphed herself and her cousin to look like twins.
"Nymphadora! Ronan!" he called to them in a voice of authority.
Ronan came to him immediately, asking, "What is it, Father?" but Dora was far more hesitant to approach, sensing the annoyance in the man.
"This," Rodolphus said, reaching down and smoothing his son's vivid ginger locks. "We do not have red hair, Ronan."
"I wanted to look like Dora," Ronan frowned as Dora's eyes narrowed at the man who had become much more kind, but was still too much of an authority figure for her to like.
"And that's fine, but not red hair," Rodolphus answered. "Dora, change him back."
Dora looked as if she were trying to decide whether or not to lose her temper when Rodolphus added, "Please. We're not gingers, Dora."
"But I am," Dora said in a small, sullen voice.
"A dark ginger," Rodolphus answered, realising he needed to be gentle with her and finding it difficult to think. "You can both have black hair, or any other colour."
Immediately, Dora screwed up her face and her hair morphed to dark blue. "What about this?" she challenged him.
"Well, it's not red," Rodolphus said, unable to keep from grinning at the child. He made a mental note not to drink so much when he was home alone with the children.
"It looks good," Ronan nodded approvingly at Dora. "But she always looks good."
Dora giggled a little, then moved closer to him and reached out, changing his hair to dark blue as well. "Do you think Mum will like it?" Ronan asked, grinning.
The girl was unsure, but Rodolphus replied, "I think she will. She might even have other suggestions for you, too."
"May we go, Father?" Ronan asked. "We were going to take the brooms out now."
"Go on," the man answered. "Just be careful."
"Thanks, Dad," Ronan called over his shoulder as Dora pulled him away, and Rodolphus simply shook his head with a helpless sort of sigh.
Andromeda smiled at her twin sons as they toddled around the kitchen at her feet, laughing and playing with each other. She was glad to keep an eye on them since they had both recently shown first magic and she was concerned that they would be destructive, as Dora had been.
She was cooking dinner, hearing Will and Charlie playing upstairs as Percy played quietly in the living room. She was waiting for the children's father to come home, having been nervous and excited to see him all day.
When Arthur arrived home, the children ran to meet him at the door, vieing for his attention and trying to tell him about their day. He laughed and listened and nodded to his three older sons as they followed him upstairs to drop off his things.
Andromeda kept Silas and Regis from trying to follow, though they both protested this with yells and bright red hair until Arthur came back downstairs and was able to calm them down. "Hello, Andromeda," he said, kissing her on the cheek. "The boys behave today?"
"Mostly," Andromeda smiled, reaching out and detaining her husband subtly so that he embraced her for a few more moments.
"You are beautiful," he said, brushing her hair out of her face and kissing her lips. "Just right."
Andromeda didn't reply, but played along with him until later that night after the children were put to bed, her husband made it clear to her that he wanted intimacy. She threw herself full into it, and when he asked her about using contraception, she smirked at him and whispered, "There's no need."
He was confused for only a few seconds, and then let out a gasp of shock. "We're having another baby?" he asked, halted in the middle of what he was doing as he gave her a look of adoration and excitement mixed with concern.
"Yes," she answered, and he lay down beside her, pulling her into his arms and cradling her close.
"I can't believe it," he said, shaking his head as she drew his hand to her bare stomach.
"I want a daughter," Andromeda whispered. "I told you that."
"I know," he answered. "I wanted a seventh child too, but I really think this ought to be the last."
"If it's a girl," she murmured.
Arthur said nothing, but embraced his once again pregnant wife. It had been over a year since their only daughter had been kidnapped, and he had thought Andromeda hadn't really cared at first. Now that time was wearing on, he was beginning to see more and more that she had been deeply hurt by what had happened, and that she wanted another baby girl to replace Dora. Arthur wasn't sure that it was the most healthy thing to do, but Andromeda was already carrying their next child, whatever it was.
"Are you mad at me?" Andromeda asked quietly after a few minutes of silence.
"No," the man answered quickly. "I just wish we could have done something about Dora."
Andromeda closed her eyes, not wanting to talk or think about her lost daughter. "Don't," she said.
He didn't continue, finally beginning to ask her when she was due and all the proper questions he figured he ought to be asking. She seemed disappointed by his response, but he couldn't help being concerned about how she would fare during this pregnancy.
"You did what?!" Bellatrix stared at the blonde witch in shock. "She can't go—Dora's going with us!"
"Well I thought she ought to know her favourite cousin is dead," Narcissa snapped at her sister. "Because unlike you, Andromeda actually cares and didn't have a hand in his murder."
"Narcissa, you can't say that," Bellatrix gasped. "Whatever happened to Regulus, I didn't do it. He disappeared: no one knows what happened."
"Likely story," Narcissa said, crossing her arms with an unusual glare. "Are you not allowed to talk about it, then?"
Bellatrix heaved a sigh. "Cissa, I swear on my magic that I do not know how Regulus died."
Narcissa didn't reply, but said, "She didn't say whether she'd attend the memorial, but I'm sure she will, as she should."
Andromeda was shocked at the news that her young cousin, heir of the House of Black, was dead. After she ended the conversation with Narcissa, she had gone into the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea and had ended up crying in front of all her children.
Will and Percy were concerned enough that they stayed close to her even when Charlie and the other twins tried to convince them to come play. It turned out that the memorial service for Regulus was going to be mid-morning, so Andromeda couldn't leave her children with Arthur—and she wasn't sure she wanted to explain the situation to Alice, either.
Arthur was worried about her taking all of the children with her to the memorial service, but she told him that everyone would ignore them or only sneer. He told her over and over to be very careful, and before he left for work, he told all the children to behave for their mother.
Andromeda hurried to get the five boys ready to leave, took her potions, then gathered her children in the living room. "You all must be on your best behaviour," she told her older three intensely. "We are going to see some of my family, and they are very strict. You must all stay close to me and let me do the talking."
"Will Dora be there?" Will asked almost immediately.
"She might be," Andromeda answered hesitantly.
Charlie looked into his mother's face. "Can we talk to her if she is?"
Andromeda was not sure what to tell her children, but finally said, "We'll see. Bella and Rod probably won't want us talking to Dora. Now, can you help me keep track of Silas and Regis while we're out?"
Will immediately agreed, and Andromeda led her children out of the house, taking a few minutes to calm herself before gathering them to herself and disapparating. It took only a few seconds for people to begin noticing that the Weasley mother had arrived with her five children, and Andromeda marched the children quickly to some seats near the back. They had barely sat down when the door opened behind them, and before Andromeda could say anything to her children, Will called, "Hey, Sirius!"
Everyone within earshot turned toward Andromeda, her family, and the dark-haired young man who had just entered the building. He looked at the child who had called him, then at the child's mother when the dreaded voice of Walburga Black screeched, "YOU! YOU DARE—"
Sirius instantly glared at the woman who had been his birth mother and demanded, "Dare I what? Pay my respects? I wouldn't be here for anyone other than my brother, I assure you."
Percy looked at his mother in concern, and she gently patted his hand as a reminder for him to keep quiet. Will and Charlie were staring with full attention, but the other twins were chattering away in nonsense syllables. It was as Walburga began to yell again that Andromeda locked eyes with the little girl a few chairs away from the woman.
Andromeda's eyes widened in shock, and the little girl frowned, then gave a little gasp, and Andromeda saw Bellatrix put her arm around the girl and whisper something to her. Mother, she saw Nymphadora whisper.
Bellatrix continued to whisper in the girl's ear, and Andromeda could only imagine what her sister would be saying to Dora. She had barely torn her gaze away from her daughter when Charlie let out a gasp of shock, and within seconds, Will had also spotted his sister.
"Mum, Dora's here," Charlie barely whispered.
Dora had gone very pale as she saw her twin and the rest of her brothers, but as Bellatrix whispered in her ear, she shook her head, then nodded, and Bellatrix got to her feet and began to lead Dora from the hall. Before Andromeda could stop him, Charlie had broken free of their row and darted past Sirius and toward his twin and aunt.
"Dora!" he called after her, and as Bellatrix turned toward him with Dora at her side, Will and Percy caught up to their brother.
"What do you want?" Bellatrix asked Charlie, too sweetly.
"She's our sister," Will said, looking up at the dark-haired witch.
"She's my twin," Charlie said angrily, and Dora seemed to look at him in a way that she never had before.
"I'm staying with Aunt Bella," she said to her brothers, glancing up in what seemed to be fear and sadness as Andromeda approached.
"She stole you from us," said the oldest brother to Dora.
"No, she didn't," answered Dora, frowning. "Mum sent me to her."
"No, she didn't," Charlie snapped at his twin. "She—" he glared at Bellatrix "—took you away and you didn't want to go!"
Ronan stepped to Dora's side, also frowning at the three Weasley boys. "She's staying with us."
Will and Charlie both opened their mouths to speak, and their mother said, "Stop, boys."
"Mum, she's ours!" Charlie protested, unwilling to shut up. "She's got to go home with us!"
"Your mother has quite enough children to deal with," came Rodolphus voice from behind Andromeda, where he stood looking very disapproving of the whole situation. "We are caring for Nymphadora at the moment, young Weasley."
"She's been gone for ages!" Charlie cried. "Don't you want her back, Mum?"
"Of course I do, Charlie," Andromeda answered, seeing her sister's hidden smirk. "But Bella's mean when people take things from her. You don't want Dora to get hurt, do you?"
"Mum wouldn't hurt Dora," Ronan said angrily, forgetting that he was in the midst of a pureblood gathering. "We like Dora!"
"She was ours first!" Charlie nearly yelled at the younger boy, and moved forward, ready to fight when Rodolphus stepped forward, his wand out.
"You'll not threaten my son, boy," Rodolphus said to Charlie coldly. "If you're going to stay, why don't you wander on back to your seats?"
"Don't threaten him, Rodolphus," Andromeda answered in the same icy tone. "Twins have a special bond: he can't be blamed for feeling the separation more keenly."
Rodolphus did not answer to this remark, but moved next to his wife, keeping his son close by. Dora moved closer to Bellatrix, who wrapped an arm around the girl again. "I want to go home," she sniffed.
"We will," Bellatrix promised her. "We've got to stay for a little longer."
"I want to go home," Dora said again with a small sob, shrinking away from the gaze of her previous family. "Please."
"Mother, take her home," Ronan said to his mother, ignoring the others in his concern for his best friend. "Dad and I can stay."
"That's probably best, Bella," Rodolphus said in a neutral voice, but it was clear to his wife and Andromeda that it was an order. "I'll make your excuses."
Bellatrix glanced toward the hall where the service was going on, then picked up Dora, who immediately buried her face in her neck. She looked at Charlie and Will, who both looked angry and upset. "See what you've done?" she said to them, motioning to Dora. Turning her back on them, she strode away and disapparated with their sister.
"Dora!" Charlie cried, but she was gone.
Andromeda placed her hand on the boy's shoulder, and he turned and buried his face in her dress. "I know," she said comfortingly, rubbing his back for a moment. "I know, Charlie."
Will was still looking at Rodolphus carefully, but was smart enough not to challenge the man. "I want Dora," Charlie was whimpering, and his mother didn't say anything as they were interrupted by another yell from inside the hall.
"Perhaps you should be getting on home too," Rodolphus smirked at Andromeda. "This isn't the safest place for your kind, is it?"
"The same could be said for any place now, couldn't it? Andromeda replied. "I'm here in honour of what should have been, not what is."
"Andromeda," came a slightly amused, dreadful voice from her past. "How delightful to see you looking so...prosperous."
"Why thank you, Father," Andromeda answered, meeting his gaze with an air of careless defiance. "How kind of you to notice." She did not miss the expression of near hatred on Ronan's face, nor Rodolphus' expression of distaste.
Cygnus Black regarded her as if anticipating a tasty meal. "Now, now, didn't your mother teach you manners?" he smirked. "You have not offered condolences to the family yet, have you?"
"She'd take as kindly to that as she did to her other son walking in the door," Andromeda replied matter of factly. "I don't envy him."
"Yes, well, he's no longer part of the family, whereas you are," Cygnus said in mild amusement. Andromeda gave him a look of ridicule, and he laughed. "Don't you think you would have known if you had been cut off from the family tapestry? The magic would have changed, and your sisters wouldn't speak to you as they do."
Andromeda did not move, her children looking from her to the older man and back. "What are you on about?" she sighed. "Is the Black madness finally taking over?"
Her father moved closer to her, and she automatically put herself between him and her children, making him laugh again. "The truth," he said, "can only be learned once my sister calms down enough to discuss family matters with us."
"I have no reason to discuss anything with either of you," Andromeda said flatly.
"Oh, but you have every reason," Cygnus replied calmly. "But perhaps we should talk another time. There are too many...distractions today." He eyed the children, making both Will and Percy uncomfortable.
"I have nothing to say to you," Andromeda stated. "Now, or ever." She led her children back to their seats and told them not to run out again. To her relief, the service continued and she was soon rising to leave with the rest of the guests.
Andromeda was relieved to arrive home with her children, but as she approached the door, she heard an apparition and whirled around, ready to curse. "Oh," she said upon seeing the young man.
"It might not be the best time," Sirius said quietly, "but we need to talk."
"That's a popular theme today," Andromeda sighed. "Come in, Sirius. I'll fix some lunch. Will, Charlie, Percy, off you go. I'll call you when it's time to eat."
The boys left and went upstairs and Andromeda led her cousin into the dining room. The other twins were placed in their chairs and given a snack before their mother turned to Sirius. "What is it?" she asked him. "I thought you'd want to go be with your friends during this time."
Sirius's face clouded. "None of them understand," he said, shaking his head before looking up at his cousin. "I yelled at James before I left because he thought I shouldn't go and then he wanted to come with me. He's never understood about our family; outsiders just don't."
"No," Andromeda agreed wryly as she turned to begin cooking. "So what did we need to discuss?"
"Did you honestly not know that your father didn't disown you?" Sirius asked, eyeing her intently.
"I'm still not sure I believe that," Andromeda said with a huff of annoyance. "And if he didn't, well, he should have. What was he planning?"
"I was still there when Cygnus sent you away," Sirius told her. "He came over and all of us were in the drawing room discussing your pending marriage. Mother was both furious and delighted that her brother had sent away his partial Metamorphagus daughter to a bloodtraitor family. Father and Regulus and I thought once we rid the tapestry of you it would all be over."
"What happened?" asked Andromeda, glancing at him with a frown.
"I wasn't there during the final discussion," Sirius answered. "But Regulus was—they were already treating him and me like I wasn't there anyway. He told me a week before he disappeared what had gone on in that meeting seven or so years ago."
Andromeda hesitated. "Do I want to know?"
Sirius gave a mirthless laugh. "You've got to know," he said. "Your father asked that we wait and see whether your children showed any of your Metamorphagus abilities before we officially disowned you."
Andromeda was horrified. "He what?" she breathed.
"I think he had the same kind of idea as Bellatrix," Sirius told her. "Except, he wouldn't be giving whatever child to the Dark Lord and he didn't want a girl."
"Has he been watching us?" Andromeda gasped.
"I don't know," Sirius said, shaking his head. "Dromeda, you might want to add some wards to the house. I mean…" he indicated Silas and Regis "this was exactly what he was looking for. He was furious when Dora and Charlie were born—the power he wanted, but in a girl."
"And now Bella's got her," breathed Andromeda. "I've always worried that—"
Sirius gave a small scoff of laughter. "I've heard that the House of Lestrange suddenly took a strong dislike to Cygnus Black and won't have much to do with him," he said. "I'm guessing he tried to hurt the girl. But it seems that Rodolphus has decided that he's her protector, so good for him."
"Surely my children can't continue the House of Black," Andromeda murmured. "It can't continue through me."
"It can," Sirius said. "I'm out. Our parents are too old, and hey, you've got children to spare."
"I do not," Andromeda snapped, pointing her spoon at him.
"You know what I mean," Sirius said evenly.
"This is ridiculous," she huffed. "Both you and Regulus were there at the time. He should have just disowned me."
"Even more years ago," Sirius began, "Desmond Lestrange had a kind of fit at a pureblood gathering and said that the House of Black would end with our parents' generation. Everyone thought it was true because of you three girls until I was born."
"Desmond?" Andromeda asked. "Rodolphus' father?"
"Yes," Sirius answered. "Father thought it was a kind of trance, but no one really knows if he faked it."
Andromeda paused and considered things for a moment before speaking. "Did my father believe something would happened to you and Regulus?"
Sirius scoffed at the idea. "It's far more likely that he wanted his own heir, don't you think?"
"Why would he even think I'd have children?" Andromeda sighed. "It's not as if I wanted to be here."
"No," Sirius agreed, "but you were perfect before you left, so he probably thought you'd become the perfect wife and mother anyway. And I'm sure he knows how fertile your new family is."
Andromeda was horrified. "He purposely sent me here to breed up a male child with Metamorphagus powers and extreme fertility?"
Sirius shrugged. "I'd think so, but then I question whether he's that intelligent."
"Of course," Andromeda breathed, only half-listening to her cousin now. "I wonder what Arthur would say if I told him."
"I'll talk to him with you," Sirius said. "After what I heard Cygnus say today, I'm convinced you'll need better wards, possibly even blood wards."
"Arthur won't like that," Andromeda sighed, "but he won't want to lose another child to my family. The danger ought to be enough to convince him, I hope."
Andromeda brought over the pan and set it before Sirius, motioning him to get some while she retrieved her children. "You know the first day I visited you here?" he said, stopping her. "I thought you knew you hadn't been disowned and were wanting to be difficult."
Her face broke into a pained grin. "I kicked you out," she said.
"You did," Sirius answered, also allowing a grin on his face. "And now you know why I was so angry."
Andromeda shook her head at the nineteen year old. "My rebel cousin showed up at my front door when my family had lost their grandfather and had just moved. It was not a good time."
"Well, we can't always do what's expected of us, Dromeda," Sirius told her, and she agreed, then left to retrieve her sons.