Chapter 6 – Christmas at the Black's
December 1975
"I thought I was going home to celebrate Christmas," Sirius complained. "I didn't expect to walk straight into my own engagement party."
"Well, we all take any excuse we can get to be able to visit," Andromeda said cheerfully as she kept stacking food onto her plate from the buffet.
Her cousin snorted in reply. "Even the cockroaches would decline an invitation to come here."
It was Christmas day and like the tradition was written in stone, the clan of Black had gathered at 12 Grimmauld place to celebrate. Andromeda's aunt Walburga always claimed that Christmas was a silly muggle custom, but she still held onto the traditions with her webs and claws.
The great hall was packed with people from the Black family; not even the most insignificant little third-cousin or half-uncle could get away. A large, sparkling Christmas tree sent out its bright light over the hall and the house- elves were making themselves busy, preparing food for the guests.
As always, Bellatrix was the centre of attention to every young man in the room. She was sitting in one of the couches, surrounded by admirers who stared at her with wide eyes as she tossed her raven hair and smiled mischievously at some joke. Apart from their Black cousins, there were also other families invited. The Lestrange brothers were two of Bellatrix's most persistent beaux, but of course, she would never reflect upon either of them. "Dull as dishwater," she used to call them both.
But to her sister's triumph, Lucius Malfoy had accepted the invitation to join the family gathering. He sat in a chair, watching Bellatrix closely as he sipped a glass of wine. He made no attempt to compete for her attention; he probably knew that he already had it.
Some people were standing in small groups, chatting and drinking. Others were sitting down, enjoying the Christmas dishes. Regulus was looking as stiff as always when he was conversing with some old half-deaf aunt. His good friends Barty Crouch Jr. and Evan Rosier were also present.
Andromeda knew that her Aunt Walburga hated changes and she always tried to make sure that the Christmas celebrations were as similar as possibly every time. And yet, this year, something was distinctly different about the atmosphere.
She glanced up at the banner that hung over the buffet table. It was of green material with huge silver coloured letters. Happy Christmas and Toujours Pur, it said. But beneath it, there was a line of smaller letters. Best wishes for Sirius and Narcissa Black, a future pureblood alliance.
As they settled down at the end of one of the long tables with their plates, Sirius glared towards the other end of the room. His mother was standing with Narcissa and her own mother, talking eagerly. Narcissa was blushing, but she had a delighted smile on her face. She seemed to be smiling most of the time these days.
Andromeda sharpened her ears and managed to catch some pieces of what her aunt was saying. She was making gestures through the air, indicating Narcissa's slim figure. "You will be the most beautiful bride in the world," she said, "My son will be invisible next to you." And her mother followed up with something about: "A good and faithful wife," And "Pureblood babies."
"They are wasting no time," muttered Sirius.
"Are you getting cold feet again?" Andromeda asked with a hint of amusement.
"To tell you the truth, I think my feet were quite cold to begin with."
Andromeda raised her eyebrows. Ever since the great reconciliation Narcissa and Sirius had shared on her bed in October, they had been spending a lot of time together. They had been to Hogsmeade, they had been sitting by the lake together, she had seen them kissing and holding hands.
To Andromeda's surprise, Sirius seemed to enjoy Narcissa's company and he freely came to be with her when he had time. However, she had noticed that he tried to avoid meeting her when he was with any of his friends from Gryffindor. Bellatrix was still suspicious and she had tried to warn Narcissa not to let herself get swept off her feet. Sirius was not to be trusted. He probably just wanted one thing from her and once he had got it, he would move on to some other girl. But Narcissa refused to listen.
Andromeda was quite unsure of what she was going to think about the change of things. "I thought you liked Narcissa," she told Sirius.
He sighed. "I do like her. That's not the point."
"You mean you just don't want to get married?"
He sighed again. "To be honest I don't think I am a marrying man."
"Didn't they say that in some old muggle film?"
Sirius nodded in surprise. "Yeah. Gone with the wind. I didn't know you knew about that kind of things."
Andromeda blushed. "Ah, well, I took muggle studies last year you know...Even though mother and father threatened to burn the books."
"A couple of boys from Ravenclaw have started a film club for students. Dumbledore is letting them use one of the classrooms. You could come with me there some time if you like."
"You should take Narcissa."
"I don't think it's the kind of activities she would enjoy," he said, cringing. "But it should suit you fine. Come on now. Or are you afraid of crossing your parents?"
"I am not," snapped Andromeda. "And you are trying to change the subject. We were talking about you and your future marriage."
Sirius pulled a hand through his long, black hair. "No, I don't want to marry," he admitted. "And I doubt I will feel any different in three years or even ten years."
"Have you said that to Narcissa?" Andromeda asked him sharply.
He gave her a miserable look. "I have tried to bring it up, but she... She is just so happy about it... I don't know..."
Andromeda was starting to take pity on him. "Narcissa has loved you ever since she became old enough to understand the meaning of the word. You must have understood that, haven't you?"
"I was hoping she would grow out of it," he sighed.
"Why?" Andromeda laughed. "Would you prefer if she hated you instead?"
"No... But it's just so damn difficult... I don't want to hurt her and I just can't..." He gave her a desperate look. "Can't you talk to her about it?"
"Me?" Andromeda stared at him. "Are you mad? I don't want to be dragged into your messes. No, Sirius, this is something you must do on your own."
"You know her so much better than I do. You are her sister and..."
"If she won't listen to Bellatrix, she will hardly listen to me, will she?"
"Please," Sirius said. "At least make a try. I just think I am going to screw things up completely and I don't want her to hate me."
"You are such a coward, aren't you?" Andromeda sighed, irritated that she, once again, had allowed herself to get involved in his problems "Fine, I'll try to have a talk with her, but I am not making any promises."
"Sirius!" They both looked up by the sound of Narcissa's cheerful voice. Andromeda couldn't help noticing that her sister had never looked so pretty. It wasn't her red dress robes or her sparkling earrings so much as her radiant smile, her glowing cheeks and the look of excitement on her face.
"Bellatrix and Lucius are opening the dance in the ballroom," she told him. "Don't you think we should join them?"
"Eh.. yes, sure... I suppose so," Sirius mumbled. He barely had time to finish the sentence before Narcissa pulled him to his feet and dragged him with her.
Only Andromeda caught the uncomfortable frown on Sirius face, which contrasted sharply with Narcissa's joy. She felt something squirm in the pit of her stomach. This was bound to end in a bad way, she was sure of it. Someone was going to get hurt and most likely, it would be Narcissa.
"Andromeda?"
She was jerked out of her thoughts and noticed that Regulus had approached her. Even though he wore elegant dress robes, he looked as nervous and uneasy as always. "Would you care to honour your cousin with a dance?" he asked her, bowing and blushing slightly.
She managed a smile and stood. "Of course I would."
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Bellatrix was getting bored. As the host's niece she was expected to dance with as many male guests as possible, no matter how deaf or limp or dim-witted they were. Her toes were hurting from all the times some clumsy fool had stepped on them and her head was aching from the tedious conversations. She wanted to find Lucius, but she knew that she couldn't abandon her duties.
It annoyed her that he had only danced one dance with her; the first one. It annoyed her even more that he had chosen to dance the next two dances with Narcissa, even though everyone knew that she only wanted to stand up with her brainless betrothed. He had even taken a turn with Andromeda who was doubtlessly the worst dancer in the family. She barely knew her right foot from the left one!
Bellatrix had been left to entertain the other guests. Presently, she was dancing with Rabastan Lestrange, who had come to the party with his older brother Rudolphus. Rabastan wasn't so bad, Bellatrix guessed. He was certainly better looking than his brother, but he was just as dull. The only thing he seemed to talk about was his famous French relatives and all of their achievements.
"Oh, and did I mention that my great uncle Jerome instigated La société de la peau? It was a lovely hunting party, before the squeamish French ministry had it banned. We have still got some trophies back home. Rudolphus and I are thinking about starting up something similar here in England. We both like hunting."
Bellatrix tried to wear a mask of polite interest. "Really? Won't that be difficult?"
"Oh, it might be," he said confidently "But there are always ways to get past the ministry, if only you have got enough gold at Gringotts."
"I meant," Bellatrix smiled sweetly. "Will it not be difficult for you to hit the muggles with your wands?"
It took Rabastan some time to realize what she had said. His jaw fell down in complete surprise and once again, he managed to step on her toes. Bellatrix bit her tongue harshly. She faked a smile.
"Well, I guess I am too stupid to understand these things, unlike you and your brother. You have better find a cleverer girl to dance with. If you'll excuse me..."
She made herself free, determined to find Lucius. Her eyes searched through the hall. Andromeda was dancing with Rudolphus Lestrange and judging from the look on her face, it was not an enjoyable experience. Narcissa was taking a turn with Regulus' friend Evan Rosier, but her face was worried and her concentration was elsewhere.
Bellatrix turned around and realized what her sister was concerned about. Sirius was standing by one of the walls, looking angry and defiant. Lucius Malfoy stood in front of him with his arms confidently crossed over his chest. She frowned. She certainly didn't want any fights in this house and Sirius had already given her family a bad enough name.
"If you took the time to think through your worthless propaganda, you would realize that these claims have no more substance than the brain of my house- elf!" she heard him snap angrily.
"I am not making any claims," Lucius said coolly. "I am merely stating fact. Muggles are inferior to wizards. Their filthy blood infects and deteriorates their bodies and souls. They are underdeveloped and have smaller brains and weaker characters. They need to be guided and ruled by the pureblood wizards, for the good of everyone."
"And if this is true," Sirius said sarcastically, "then how do you explain that the best student in my house is a muggleborn? Where is her small brain and weak character?"
Lucius smiled, as if he was amused. "You are stunningly naive. It is rather obvious that her mother must have had a little fling about nine months before she was born. She might be no more than a muggle slag, but at least her daughter should be grateful that she got some blood of the right kind in her veins."
"Was that the best you could come up with?" Sirius snorted. "And what about all the other muggleborn students with great grades? Have their mothers fooled around behind their husbands' backs as well? Or are their brains so small that they can't tell who they are bedding with?"
Lucius face was cold and mocking. "I know they can't be muggleborn, because no muggles have the capacity to be as great as a wizard. It's either that, or they are getting fixed grades from the teachers. It's as simple as that."
Sirius shook his head. "Sometimes I wonder if you really are as stupid as you seem to be, Malfoy."
"And I wonder how long it will take for your family to realize what kind of son they have been cursed with.
Sirius laughed bitterly. "I think they will find out quite soon, if they haven't already." He turned on his heel and left Malfoy behind. Malfoy glared grimly after him.
"He is really embarrassing himself," Bellatrix said as she stood next to him.
Lucius nodded. "He is really no better than that Weasley clan. Just blood traitors all of them. Did you hear what he just said?"
"I did," Bellatrix nodded. "I am ashamed for being his cousin."
Lucius' face softened slightly. "Don't be. He will get what is coming to him. I just hope your poor sister won't have to suffer."
"So do I."
Lucius grasped Bellatrix's slim, pale hands and clutched them lightly. "So..." he said in a low, melodic voice. "Actually there is something I have been meaning to ask you, Bellatrix."
Suddenly, her heart started pounding heavily. "Yes?"
"Would you like to meet me tomorrow at The Leaking Kettle? There are some... questions I would like to ask you."
Questions? Bellatrix thought in confusion. It was supposed to be just one question, no more. "Of course. But... What kind of questions are you talking about?"
He smiled lightly. "You will understand. Let me just say that I need to test your worthiness."
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"So, he didn't actually say that he was going to propose then?" Andromeda asked, stretched out on her sister's bed. Christmas was over and Bellatrix was preparing for what she had described as "the most important moment of her life."
Bellatrix was critically appraising herself in the mirror and glanced at her sister out of the corner of her eye. "No," she admitted. "But I am sure he will. As soon as I have overcome this... test or whatever it is."
"Doesn't that make you feel... kind of awkward?" Andromeda asked carefully.
Her sister shrugged irritably as she picked up her purse. "I don't even know what he has in mind, so it's hard to tell. But I will do whatever it takes. And I have nothing to worry about, no flaws."
Andromeda sniggered. "He is probably going to test your fertility to make sure you can pop out at least one pure blooded little brat a year for him."
Bellatrix glared at her in annoyance. "Well, if that is the case, there won't be any problems. There is nothing wrong with me. In fact, I am stronger than most witches." She straightened her tall, lithe body, as if to empathize just how physically fit she was.
"Don't worry," said Narcissa, smiling. "I am sure you will return with your betrothed so you can have mother and father's blessing."
"Thank you, Cissy" said Bellatrix gratefully and flung her little sister a kiss. "It's good to have support from at least one of your sisters."
"Oh, I support you," Andromeda laughed. "Just bring him here and I will welcome him like a brother."
"You better," Bellatrix said sharply. Then she pulled a deep breath and smiled. "How do I look?"
"Fabulous," said Narcissa.
"Too good to be true," Andromeda agreed.
They waved at Bellatrix from their window as she left on her broom. Narcissa sighed. "Poor Bella. I can't imagine how I'd feel if Sirius would keep me on tenterhooks like that."
Andromeda glanced at her younger sister and decided that this might be a good time for the talk she had promised Sirius to have with Narcissa. "How are things between the two of you?"
Narcissa looked surprised. "What do you mean? We are betrothed. You saw us together yesterday, didn't you?"
"Yes I did, I just... Well, Sirius had yet another one of his arguments with Bellatrix's future husband. Regulus was furious."
Narcissa cringed. "Yes, that was unfortunate. Sirius needs to learn how to control his temper."
"I think it is more than just his temper," Andromeda said carefully. "You still don't get with him and his friends, do you?"
"I can do well without those people."
"Yes, but they are still his friends. And when you are married..."
"Sirius and I have talked about this," said Narcissa dismissively. "His friends are not important to me. I am sure that once we are married, I can change him for the better. He has been too influenced by that Gryffindor house, but as soon as he is out of it, he will see things more clearly."
"I am not so sure about that," Andromeda mumbled.
Narcissa was getting annoyed. "What is it you are trying to say? That his friends are more important to him than I am? Or that he doesn't care about me at all?"
"No, no... I just think that... Well, it always seems like you are the one who gives and he who takes. It doesn't seem quite fair to me."
Her sister's blue eyes narrowed. "Are you jealous? Is that what this is about? I know you have always liked him. Perhaps you had hoped that you would have been betrothed to him instead?"
"Oh come on," Andromeda said with disbelief. "You know I have no feelings like that for Sirius. We are friends, that's all."
"Then I don't understand why you and Bellatrix need to stick your noses into my life all the time. I would be very happy if you would stop treating me like a mindless five-year-old."
"I am just worried about you. I don't want you to get hurt..."
"Oh, you don't?" Narcissa snapped. "Well, I can take care of myself. I am old enough to make my own decisions." She glared at Andromeda. "If I were you I would get a love-life of my own instead of trying to mess up mine."
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Lucius was somewhat late and Bellatrix waited nervously at one of the tables at the Leaking Cauldron. She was relieved when he finally arrived, looking as handsome as always in his robes. He greeted her amiably, but she noticed that there was a particular, determined look in his eyes.
Fortunately, he didn't waste any time; he moved straight to the point. "Well, Bellatrix," he said solemnly. "Wrapping things up in fair words is not my style and I don't think it's your style either. You are a mature young woman, not some silly little girl and I am quite sure that you understand why I asked you here tonight."
Bellatrix nodded and he continued. "We have known each other for quite some time; we share the same pure and noble blood and our families have always held each other in great esteem. A union between the two of us would seal a powerful and important alliance. Together, we could take stand against the increasing decay of the wizard world. We could prove that we still hold on to our old and true belief that only those who share the same blood should breed."
"I know you fairly well by now, Bellatrix and I appreciate you," he continued. "You seem to possess most of the qualities I look for in a future wife. You are young, but you are mature and intelligent. We share the same views and principles and I think you would make me a fine support. You know what my position in life demands and I am sure you understand that I do not only need a wife, but also a lady for my house. Sometimes, I have believed you are too wilful for my taste, but I have convinced myself that it is something you will get over once you have grown a little older."
He made a brief pause to look at her. Bellatrix was holding her breath, waiting for the final question, so that she could finally say "yes!" and relax.
"However," Lucius continued. "As the head of my family, I can't afford to take any risks. I must always be able to trust my wife explicitly. I must be certain that she will always honour and respect me. I want perfection, nothing more or less." He looked sharply at her. "That is why I need you to go through a small test. One that will prove that you are indeed worthy of becoming my wife and mother to my children."
"Of course," Bellatrix said immediately. "I will do whatever it takes."
"I am glad to hear it." Lucius reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out a small bottle. Slowly, he pushed it across the table to Bellatrix.
She glanced unsurely at the bottle. "Is it...?"
"Veritaserum," Lucius nodded.
Bellatrix opened the bottle and brought it to her lips. Without hesitation, she emptied it and swallowed the liquid.
Lucius nodded approvingly. "Very well. Let us get started then." He watched her intently. "Is your name Bellatrix Araminta Black?"
"Yes."
"Are you a pureblood wizard without a hint of muggleblood or the blood of any other inferior race in your veins?"
"Yes, I am."
"If we should marry and your loyalty would be tried, where would it lie? With the Malfoys or with the Blacks?"
"With the Malfoys," Bellatrix said empathically. She was getting more and more confident.
"If I should ask you to disown some more... unworthy members of your family, will you accept that?"
"I wouldn't have to. I'd disown them myself."
"Ah." He smiled slightly. "Are you fertile and fit to bear healthy children?"
"Yes."
"Will you agree to raise them in the traditional way of the pureblood families?"
"Yes, I will. I wouldn't have it any other way."
Lucius nodded approvingly. "Excellent, my dear. Excellent. There is just one more thing I want to know." He took some time to study her face before asking: "Are you a virgin?"
"No," Bellatrix answered truthfully and without thinking.
