Malfoy Manor was somehow both less and more opulent than Emma could imagine. Emma stood awkwardly in the extremely white-washed marble foyer, listening to Mrs. Bryce explain the situation further to Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy. Never in her life did she expect to set foot in the Malfoy's home, especially considering her history with Draco and the revelations that were made. It was even worse when it came to light that she was a Black. How such a thing could occur, Emma didn't understand, but it turned out everyone else was just as clueless as she was.
"I just don't understand," Lucius said slowly, turning his attention to Emma. "There hasn't been a Black in ages. The last was –"
"We are aware of Mr. Regulus Black's passing, but, as it would seem, he would not be the last living Black in England," Mrs. Bryce said, gesturing to Emma. "That would be Miss Black, erm, Miss Lupin-Black, standing here beside me. We were able to summon the Black family house elf, which proves her lineage."
"Lupin," Narcissa said slowly, looking between Mrs. Bryce and Lucius with an expression that didn't leave Emma entirely fooled. "He was –"
"The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, yes – the werewolf."
"I was going to say that his father works at the Ministry, no?"
"Oh," Mrs. Bryce said in surprise. "Well, pending investigation, yes. Part of the –"
"Spirit division," Lucius added. "I believe I've met him a time or two during a trip to meet with Cornelius. Quiet gentleman."
"Most of the time," Emma muttered under her breath.
"What was that, dear?" Mrs. Bryce asked Emma, who immediately turned bright red.
"Nothing," Emma said quickly. "I didn't say anything."
The silence that fell in the foyer was awkward for only a moment before Narcissa cleared her throat, standing up straight. "Lucius, darling, why don't you finish speaking with Mrs. Bryce, and I can bring Emma to her room?" Narcissa asked.
Lucius gave her a funny look, shifting the cane he held to his opposite hand. "Why not have an elf bring her? Surely you need to learn more about our…." Lucius trailed off, looking Emma up and down before plastering a tight smile on his face. "Our guest."
"I'm certain that I know enough," Narcissa said, holding an arm out and gesturing towards the stairs. "Why don't you follow me? Your things are already waiting for you."
Emma glanced at Mrs. Bryce skeptically and let out a resigned sigh. She lifted her backpack from the floor with a wince and reluctantly followed Narcissa up the stairs. It was hard for Emma to believe that anyone could live the way the Malfoys did. The entire home felt overly sterile, with not a speck of dust in sight. She knew that several house elves took care of the home – Draco was very quick to boast about it – and Emma had already met the one who brought her to the Manor alongside Mrs. Bryce. Still, it seemed odd. Emma was so used to the hustle and bustle of the children's homes she had been forced into, and both Lupin households were anything but perfectly clean and dust free. Her grandfather's home was certainly clean, but he had no issue leaving a plate or two out, and Emma could only imagine the dust that had accumulated in the cottage when she was at Hogwarts with her father. Emma was so lost in thought that she had no idea exactly where Narcissa was taking her and was somewhat startled when the very tall and very blond woman suddenly stopped in front of a door, unlocked it, and gestured for Emma to step inside.
If Emma thought Persephone's room was big, the room she was presented with was far larger. It was almost like she had her own private suite. Her bedroom had the highest ceilings she could ever imagine and a wide, dark wood four-poster bed with brilliant, shimmering lavender curtains. Gone was the marble flooring, instead replaced with an exceptionally plush beige carpet. A set of French doors appeared to lead out onto a private balcony on the far wall, with two large windows flanking either side. To Emma's sheer relief, she spotted her trunk sitting just to the side of the bed next to a tall bureau. It took everything she had to keep herself from making a mad dash for her things, but to her disappointment, Emma noticed a distinct lack of an owl cage in the room. She would've liked to have had Aurora with her. As if Narcissa was reading her mind, she spoke.
"Your father thought it might be prudent to provide you with a different pet of your own," Narcissa explained. "He did not believe you would mind if he held onto your owl for you."
"You've spoken to my father?" Emma questioned, an eyebrow raising. Why would Remus ever think that a different pet would be better? Instead of answering, Narcissa ignored her question, her lips pressing into a thin line as she studied Emma closely.
"Well, it would appear that we are cousins," Narcissa said quietly.
"So it would seem," Emma replied just as quietly. "But I don't want to be used as just a pawn in whatever it is you're playing at in taking me in, the sad little werewolf girl with a tragic story–"
"And just what exactly would we gain by taking you in?" Narcissa asked, offended by Emma's statement.
"Well, who am I to know? This is one of the last places I expected myself to be."
"You might not be Pure blood, but there were not many options left. We were asked to take you in as a member of the Black family. If word gets out –"
"Let me guess. I'll need some form of protection. Need to be kept away from the world's prying eyes as the mysterious Black who came out of nowhere? And how do we even know that I'm a Black, anyway? Is a house elf really supposed to confirm that?"
"Among other things," Narcissa commented with a sniff. She hesitated for a long moment before continuing, "It isn't just for protection. I shall leave you to it. If you are further questioning where you come from, I assure you, more proof shall be found in this very room. I have also left you something on your nightstand, an heirloom, if you will. If you need further assistance, feel free to call a house elf. They are at your disposal."
"Hey, wait," Emma said as Narcissa started to leave. Narcissa turned, half in the room, half out, with her hand resting on the doorknob. "Erm, where is Draco?"
"Draco is currently at the Goyle's for the day. He will be returning in time for dinner. A house elf will retrieve you if we do not hear from you."
The moment Emma was alone in her room, she was very aware of how vast and empty it was. She sat down on the bed and let out a contented sigh at how soft the mattress felt. Against her better judgment, Emma crawled into the center of the bed and laid down. Even the beds at Hogwarts weren't as plush, and Emma didn't want to leave if she didn't have to.
Still, Emma found herself curious about what exactly Narcissa had left for her. She forced herself to sit up and looked at the small velvet-covered green box on the nightstand. Emma crawled to the nightstand and picked up the box, frowning at the inscription across the top: Toujours pur. Emma had heard Sirius utter the phrase sarcastically many times and listened to how he complained about the Black's family motto. With a sigh, Emma inspected the box – a jewelry box of sorts – and opened it, eyes widening at the ring sitting on a plush cushion.
It was a brilliant silver color, the Black family crest emblazoned on the front, just like the ring Draco wore with the Malfoy crest. Along either side of the crest, on the band, were engraved dogs meant to look as though they were holding the crest. Curious, Emma pulled the ring out of the box to inspect it closer. Engraved on the inside of the band was the Black family motto, and Emma huffed out a laugh. Nothing could be less pure than her with her blood.
Curious and wanting to explore a bit before digging through her trunk for her things, Emma forced herself off the bed and wandered around. There wasn't much to the room, and a distinct lack of clutter left Emma slightly uneasy. She was afraid to dare make a mess, but a part of her wanted to just out of curiosity, but then she thought of the house elves and frowned. As much as Emma wanted to rebel, she wasn't about to subject someone to her ire, not the house elves, at least. They had nothing to do with her predicament.
The walls in the room were surprisingly the least barren part of the room. Ornate picture frames were spread around the room, but that wasn't what caught Emma's eye. What she found curious was the tapestry hanging along the wall across from the bed. It wasn't very large, about half the size of the wall, and held up by an ornate silver-colored string strung from what looked to be an iron post at the top. From the bed, it looked as though it was a tree interwoven with some sort of fruit, the backdrop of a deep green and full of silver string. When Emma got closer, she realized that the odd-looking fruit objects were frames, and each frame had words. She brushed her fingers over the fabric when she spotted names and looked up at the top of the tapestry.
"The Black Family," Emma read out loud before looking back down at the names in front of her. "The family tree," she added quietly in understanding. She had heard Sirius speak of the family tree and how he was blasted off the one at his old home, but this tapestry didn't appear to hold any burn marks. She frowned slightly, comparing Sirius's description to what was in front of her. It was far smaller and less decorated than she thought it would be, but the tapestry seemed as though it was made to be transported. After all, it would be silly for there to be only one.
Emma's gaze trailed across the names on the tree, pausing at the first instance of the name Sirius that she saw before continuing. Though she knew most families were related, she was startled to find the Potters listed on the tree, along with a small section with a Weasley, a Longbottom, and was that a MacMillan, she saw? Emma frowned, face twisting slightly at the singular name of Melania Black, who was once a MacMillan. Did that mean she was now distantly related to Ernie, of all people? The thought made Emma shiver, but still, she moved along.
She skimmed past most of the other names, most of them not meaning much to her. It wasn't until she reached the level with Sirius's name – her Sirius, of course – that she started to pay more attention. She stared at her name underneath Sirius's, startled to see "Emma Black" listed beneath it, but it wasn't her name that she was fascinated by; it was the others.
Emma knew that Sirius had a brother but hadn't realized that he had died the same year she was born. She frowned, peering at Regulus's name, curious about his story, but forced herself onward. There were other names that she didn't know. Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa all had the same parents, all sisters. While there wasn't an adjoining line for Bellatrix, Emma was surprised to see one for Andromeda. Nymphadora Tonks? She wasn't that much older than her or Draco, but Emma couldn't recall a Tonks during their time at Hogwarts. Granted, if her math was correct, Nymphadora would have been a 7th year if they were in school together, but it was still surprising. There were other cousins?
The door to her room was suddenly slammed open, making Emma jump and stare in alarm at the noise. She stared wide-eyed and open-mouthed as she found a fairly irate-looking Draco staring at her. She was even more startled by the tall wolf hounds that bounded in the room in front of Draco, tails wagging and tongues hanging out.
"What are you doing here?" Draco asked, brows knit closely together.
"And here I thought you would be away until dinner like your mum said," Emma muttered as she finally got over her initial shock. She ran a hand close along the scars across her face self-consciously as Draco's eyes followed their path. "I suppose I could say the same thing."
"I live here."
"Well, so do I…for now," Emma replied. She tried to hide her grin as the furry heads next to her kept butting different parts of her body. "So…dogs? Never would have guessed."
"Come, Cora, Eloise," Draco said under his breath. The two dogs reluctantly pulled themselves away from Emma and sat obediently on either side of Draco. "What do you mean you live here? Mum just said we had a guest."
"An extended guest."
Draco stared at Emma for a long moment, a hand resting on one of the dog's heads. He looked as though he wanted to say a thousand different things at once before finally settling on something that made Emma scoff, "I must speak to mother." He promptly closed the door behind him, leaving Emma at a sudden loss of what to do.
Emma wasn't sure how much time had passed since Draco departed, but she was going through her trunk when he returned. He knocked on the door twice before walking in, his expression blank.
"It's true, then?" Draco asked. "You're a Black?"
"That would be correct."
"Unfortunate."
"In more ways than one."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"It means that you're my cousin." Emma couldn't help but put on a cheeky smile and twisted to point at the tapestry on the wall. "But apparently, that doesn't appear to mean much in our family."
Draco's face twisted ever so slightly as he crossed the room to view the tapestry himself. He scanned through the branches the same way Emma did, trying to figure out their family connection. Emma knew he had found it when he froze for a moment, his eyes widening as he turned back around to look at her.
"You're the murderer's child? But I thought –"
"He's not a murderer," Emma said sharply. "He didn't do anything."
"He killed Pettigrew and all of those Muggles."
"Peter's still alive," Emma answered quietly. "I saw him."
"You saw Pettigrew?"
Emma nodded, returning to her trunk and pulling more clothes out. She felt her heart break when she found one of Remus's cardigans amongst her things, and she pulled it out, hugging it tightly.
"How did you see Pettigrew?" Draco asked with a scoff. "He's dead."
"He's an Animagus," Emma replied, glancing back at Draco. She hesitated for a moment, wondering if she should bother continuing, but Draco already knew her biggest secret. What did it matter if he knew more? It's not as though she felt that he would believe her anyway. "He's a rat. The night before my dad resigned, Papa had figured out how to get ahold of him. He found Ron, who was keeping him as a pet, and things went from there. He was the one who killed all of those Muggles, not my Papa."
"So you're telling me that he killed all of those Muggles, cut off his own finger, and then disappeared for 12 years?"
"I'm telling you exactly that."
Draco was quiet, studying Emma closely before bursting out into laughter. "That is by far one of the stupidest things I've ever heard."
"It's not stupid, Draco! I saw him, and he confessed as much that he did it!" Emma practically shouted. She let out a slight growl before shoving everything back into her trunk. "I knew I shouldn't have said anything. No one would ever believe it."
"I didn't say that I don't believe you."
"What?"
Draco smirked, making his way across the room to sit on the edge of Emma's bed. He propped a leg up on his knee and leaned forward. "I said that I didn't say that I don't believe you."
"But you just said it was one of the stupidest things you've ever heard."
"Because it is."
"Why?"
"Well, you said Weasley had him, yeah?"
"Yes?"
"And the rumor is their pet rat has lived for ages, yeah?"
"Yeah? But Draco, I don't understand what you're trying to say."
"What I'm trying to say is why the hell would you ever subject yourself to living 12 years as a rat in that family? Or, better yet, why would you live 12 years as a rat at all? Even if you're trying to stay in hiding, there are plenty of far better ways to do it than living as a rat."
After a very long pause where neither Emma nor Draco said a word, Emma started to giggle, which set Draco off into laughter. When she thought about it, really thought about it, it really was one of the stupidest things to consider. There were so many different things that Peter could have done that didn't involve being a rat, and with how stressed she had been for weeks, the entire thing was hysterical.
Finding herself being friends with Draco again was the last thing that Emma expected, but it happened almost naturally. It took a lot of convincing on Draco's part for her to join the Malfoy's at dinner, one of the few places she remained silent, but during the day, Draco took her around the Manor. He introduced her to the dogs, of which there were several others, who quickly attached themselves to her. Draco showed her the albino peacocks that dotted the wide expanse of land that the manor was built upon. He brought her through the brilliant rose garden that seemed to twist and turn like a maze, and he showed her the purebred horses.
While Malfoy Manor was not home, Emma found a sense of comfort in the familiarity that was her friendship with Draco. To her surprise, Narcissa seemed to approve, with only the slightest of nods in her direction whenever they spotted each other.
Emma's general comfort within the Manor, as small as that comfort was, made her frustrated when she had the misfortunate of an unwanted guest showing up. Night had long since fallen at the Manor, the moon rising steadily in the sky. Emma was working on going through her things, trying to figure out what she needed to replace and what she was willing to part with when she became acutely aware that she wasn't alone.
As if Soleil had magically materialized in the room, Emma felt her figurative hackles raise, and she flinched as she whipped around to see who was in the room. Emma flinching so hard was an uncharacteristic gesture on her part when she spotted Fenrir far closer to her than he needed to be.
How had she missed the sound of the doors of her balcony opening, and how exactly did Fenrir get up there? Apparition, Emma thought to herself. But how had she missed the telltale crack of someone Apparating? And why had Soleil not warned her of such a thing? However, despite Soleil being wholly unaware of Fenrir's sudden presence, it was enough to aggravate the wolf, and pure unbridled rage coursed through Emma's blood. Rather than ask any of the hundreds of questions that were burning on the tip of Emma's tongue, she was only able to ask one thing.
"What did you do, Fenrir," Emma snarled out, unable to be embarrassed by how her lip seemed to curl.
Fenrir snorted, folding his arms over his chest as he took a good look at Emma. There was an odd expression of almost pride as he looked at her, something Emma was less than thrilled with. It was an oddly paternal expression, but as Emma stood where she was, she realized it wasn't the first time she had seen it from Fenrir. "Hello to you, too," Fenrir replied in mock amusement, rubbing his jaw as he chuckled. "And what do you mean by that?"
"Well, it's oddly convenient that I'm a Black, now," Emma growled. "Only explanation that could exist is it's from you."
"Ah, so then it did work," Fenrir muttered, studying Emma's face more closely. He hummed to himself as he wasn't finding exactly what he was looking for.
"What worked?" Emma questioned, her eyes narrowing as she looked at Fenrir. "What did you do? Why are you even here? Do…." Emma looked over at her door and frowned and then over at the opened doors of her balcony. "All I have to do is call a house elf, and they'll get you out of here!"
"Ensured that you would never have to worry about a damn thing a day in your life," Fenrir replied. "A thank you would be appreciated. And please, make my entire day and call an elf."
"And why would I thank you? You ruined me! You ruined my life! You got me shoved in another children's home, you…." Emma sucked in a deep breath and shook her head. "You killed Ward's entire family. Believe me, I wasn't fond of the git, but the children, Fenrir?"
"Oh, please, you're going to complain about a few scratches? You hardly even notice them, and again – I made it so that you never have to worry about anything. And as for Ward? Well, the others were collateral damage."
"It's more than a few scratches, Fenrir," Emma hissed. "Do you even know how deep they are? And collateral damage? Fenrir, it wasn't necessary!"
"Deep enough to send a message – and if you think it wasn't necessary, well then you are in for the surprise of your life."
"A message of what?"
"That you're mine." The statement was so blunt and so entirely wrong that Emma fell silent, staring at Fenrir in disbelief. Fenrir hummed to himself again as he stepped up to Emma, grabbing her face with one hand and twisting it from side to side. "I'd say you're a Black, but….well, at least the scars are healing up nicely."
"But what, Fenrir?" Emma questioned. "And I'm not yours. I have never been yours."
"Says the one who always used to cry when I would have to leave," Fenrir said slowly, meeting Emma's angry gaze. The last thing Emma wanted to do was admit to ever doing such a thing, and she considered arguing for one brief moment, but unfortunately for her, she remembered everything. "That's what I thought," Fenrir added, releasing Emma's face and taking a small step back.
"I'm aware that you're pissed at me, though you shouldn't be," Fenrir muttered. "The fact of the matter is that if I didn't step in, you might as well be good as dead. Are you even aware that Ward and Moon were planning on dragging you out of that hovel the morning after the moon to who knows where? That every bit of what happened that week was intentional to keep you weak so that you wouldn't be able to fight back? Best case scenario, you would have just gone missing again, and I would have had to save your behind from those idiots since your darling fathers wouldn't know where even to start looking. Worst case scenario, and most likely, you would have been thrown in a lake dead. Or, knowing that lot, strung up as a message."
Emma stared at Fenrir in both shock and alarm. She tried to think back about the conversation Ward and Ellis had the night of the full moon. Vague snippets of the night came to mind, each memory foggier than the next from the pain she was in, but one comment that stuck out was Ellis's mention of "No one would ever suspect." Emma closed the lid of her trunk and sat down on it, needing to sit for a moment as she processed what Fenrir had just said. She didn't want to believe him, but there was still not a moment that Fenrir had ever lied to her.
"That's what I thought," Fenrir said quietly. "Unfortunately for you, I know more than you think, and it's in your best interest to start doing what I say. I'll be willing to share, but you need to shut that smart mouth of yours up. You know very well by now exactly what I can do, and the last thing I want to do is hurt you –" Emma couldn't help but snort at that comment " – and with that being said, with everything I've done for you so far, despite your ungratefulness, I need something from you. If you plan on returning to Hogwarts alive, you have no choice but to listen. You don't know what you're up against. None of you do."
a/n: Oh my dear lord, I promise that the intention was not to update on holidays and holidays alone, but uhm...Happy Valentine's Day? Here, take this as your treat again hehe.
As per usual - lots of life, not enough space to really talk about it because eeeeep. It's a lot! Thought things were going to go in a completely different direction between the last update and now, but well, life has a funny way of changing things.
Anyway - this chapter! Took me way too long to write because I wasn't sure how I wanted to approach it. It's once again following a major departure from the original source material and I wasn't sure if I was going to hate it or not. It's shorter than my usual chapters, but I think everything else might follow suit and go along the lines of this length. I'm sorry, but no more 10k word chapters from me because ow. Covid times + depression lead to some really excessively long chapters. But anyywwaaayyyyy, with the departure of the original source material, I think this chapter really puts me back on track to the original story and that's fun. There are going to be some familiar bits coming up for anyone who's read the original, but for everyone else? It's new! So hopefully this also means more frequent updates (we'll see - I'm sorry)
As per usual, I'll make my request to join the Discord, follow my socials - mymoonyandstars AND cstormwrites (for all my professional, not very updated things...I've been awful with it)! I hope everyone has been doing well. I make no guarantees on when I'll post but I'm still here.
And now, without further ado:
to all of my late-night readers, go to sleep.
to all of my afternoon readers, I hope you've had a wonderful day so far.
to all of my morning readers, good morning! I hope that you have a good day.
x,
cat