The Thirty-first
They had brought Percy home this morning, and even though he was better already, his pale, drawn looks still made Molly want to cry more than once in the course of the day.
She pulled herself together, though, and it was only in the afternoon, as she watched Arthur make his son drink tea from a cup Percy was still too weak to hold, that she wasn't able to hold back her tears any more.
No one saw Narcissa watch from the doorway before she left for her room, and no one was there to hold her as she cried.
The Thirty-second
After a long talk with Percy and some sleepless nights, Arthur had gone to visit Ron.
Meanwhile, there was little Narcissa could do to calm Molly down, who was fussing with her cup so nervously that she finally dropped it. They ended up on the couch, with Narcissa patiently listening to Molly's list of reasons why it wouldn't work.
"…they'll never admit – "
Molly fell silent as Arthur appeared in the doorway. He looked exhausted, his eyes suspiciously red. But there was a smile on his lips, and Ron tightly held to his side.
At that moment, Narcissa hated them.
The Thirty-third
Narcissa had gone back to the kitchen to get Percy's cup, which they had forgotten there, to the living room.
Pouring her own tea, Molly suddenly heard a strangled outcry, then a heavy "thud" like from a body hitting the ground. Within seconds, she was in the kitchen, only to find Narcissa unconscious on the floor, together with the daily prophet, which had been lying in a corner unread since morning.
The headline next to the picture of a haggard, black-haired woman was printed in red, covering almost the whole front page:
BELLATRIX LESTRANGE: CAPTURED AND BOUND FOR DEMENTOR'S KISS!
The Thirty-fourth
"Narcissa, please. Won't you come down for tea today?"
Three days ago, Bellatrix had received the kiss, and since then, Narcissa had hardly stopped crying. They hadn't even allowed her to visit her sister a last time.
Just like the previous days, she received no answer, and so, instead of making tea, Molly sat down on the bed next to her and stroked her hair until half an hour later, the other woman fell into an exhausted sleep.
There had to be something she could do, Molly decided. That night, she and Arthur had a very long, very serious discussion.