The soft tinkling of fine china could be heard coming from deep within the garden. Fairies flittered from flower to flower, their bell like laughter being carried by the wind as they danced to a tune only their ears could hear; their small and delicate faces showing only peace and contentment.

Roses lined the garden wall, their petals large and in full bloom. Deep hues of dark burgundy clashed with the bright and beguiling hues of gentle yellow. The heady scent of flowers filled the air, and seemed to have a calming affect on the two children seated deep within this small realm of earth and peace.

They sat together in the very center of the maze, on chairs that appeared to be made of pure silver with sapphire gems adorning the top. Between the two children laid a table of crystal, with small glimmering veins of what could only be magic running through their peculiar furniture. A pot of steaming tea laid in the center between the two, with a tray of scones and biscuits set beside it; clotted cream and jam placed near them both. Their tea cups were of porcelain, with beautifully painted blue flowers and worlds they've never yet seen adorning the saucer holding their similarly designed cups.

"I adored these simple days." Spoke the youngest. Her long light blonde hair seemed almost silver with the summer sun bearing down on her. The soft locks were braided into an intricate french braid, with a crown of wild flowers placed atop her brow to help soften her austere features. A soft smile fell on her lips as her silver eyes looked up with happiness and contentment. "It's been far too long since last we've talked." Her silver eyes crinkled at the sides as she nimbly reached out to grab hold of a small biscuit in front of her.

The eldest of the two hummed in agreement, her own wild black locks being teased by the late summer air. She wore her hair loose, not enjoying the feeling of having it controlled and contained. While both were sisters, a first glance would not reveal such. She was tall for her age, thin but not in any way delicate. She sat up straight and unbowed, her posture refined and seeming to radiate with pride and danger in every movement she made. Her sister on the other hand was the more delicate one of the two, softer and gentle like a spring flower blooming while winter still held it's grip upon the world. Her own eyes were a dark and distant blue compared to the soft silver gaze of her sibling before her. She let her eyes fall to stare at the stray tea leaves within her cup, watching them gather to the bottom. "I'm worried." She revealed, her voice deep and hoarse; not at all as childlike as her body portrayed. "I left yo-"

"You shouldn't." The youngest spoke again, interrupting her without a shred of remorse. The girl smiled, her soft pink lips curling ever so slightly. "Don't worry about the end, instead enjoy our time before it passes."

The eldest shook her head ruefully. "You know I've never been able to do that -" She paused, a frown on her lips. Her heart began to beat faster from within her chest and she felt as though her world had just shifted in such a way as to leave her stumbling behind in confusion. Her brows furrowed as she looked back at her sister, the smile on the girls (woman's) lips no longer seeming calm and assured but filled with sorrow instead. She felt her heart stop when the wind suddenly seemed to come to a standstill around her, making the scent of flowers coming from the garden surrounding them all but disappear.

The soft clinking of the porcelain cup her sister held being placed back on it's saucer brought her out of her thoughts as she looked up and into her youngest sister's eyes.

A sister whose name she couldn't even remember.

"They warned me that this would have to be done… but it was worth it, if only to see you once more..." The girl, her sister?, looked back at her lovingly before pushing away from the table and standing up from the silver chair she rested on. Her gown was pure white, a colour that should not be making her wish to cry as much as it did now.

Two small and delicate hands touched her cheeks, and she startled at just how cold they were.

Almost as if the girl before her were-

"You did so much for me, for all of us." The girl spoke gently, her eyes haunted now and looking far too old upon her young body. "Now, I only wish for you to live." She waved her hand around them. "See the world, and never let your wings be chained again." A harsh wind blew across the garden, scattering the petals from their stems, they were caught in the air; seemingly suspended of all movement.

"This is my gift to you."

The wind roared as it surrounded them both, destroying the garden in it's entirety. Petals ripped apart, the shrubs and plants that made up the maze were torn from that ground that once held them as if their roots were paper thin and just as weak. Soon all that was left was but her and the woman (girl) in front of her. She reached out, her hands grasping for Narci- only for her eyes to widen in shock as the her sister's image seemed to ripple. A woman stood before her, chained down by the expectations of their family- but also there before her stood a child, still so innocent, so naive of the world around them.

"Narcissa." She whispered, tears forming in her eyes. Why, what was going on? Her sister, this was her sister. She had to reach out, had to-

The girl, no, the woman simply smiled, fading from her sight, taking everything with her; leaving her alone in darkness.

And once more, she was falling, the vast abyss her only companion.

Threads from a tapestry began to appear around her, weaving together to form painfully familiar memories. She watched them as she fell, trying to grab hold, trying to burn the images she saw into her mind so that they would never leave.

Hogwarts.

Family.

Toujours Pur.

She felt him before she saw him, the familiar spectre that she doubted she would ever be able to forget. With a wave of his hand the tapestry caught fire, burning away all she ever knew and leaving only ash to remain.

She wanted to scream, to rage and shout; to hurt him as she herself was hurting. But her arms were holding someone tight and she couldn't bear to let him disappear too-

She awoke suddenly, a gasp leaving her lips as bright blue eyes scanned the dark room she found herself in. Pale and sweaty hands grasped at her blanket as her heart pounded a tattoo within her chest.

A dream.

She sighed and shook her head.

Always that damn confusing dream.

A glance at the clock by her bed stand told her it was just after midnight, making her groan as she slowly sat up; knowing she wouldn't be able to sleep more after this.

It was always the same after all. She would wake up from that dream, panicking and gasping for breath as though she were drowning.

It didn't matter that she couldn't remember any of it once she was awake, it still strove to unnerve her even if she couldn't recall what the dream was about.

Getting up she walked towards her bedroom window, looking down at the people still wandering the streets outside. There were a few drunks stumbling about, not too surprising given the hour, along with some dressed in rather provocative outfits; no doubt heading to a club soon.

Her eyes sharpened as she stared down at the darkly lit street, searching for anything off.

Anything… wrong.

Seeing nothing she shook her head and stood back, feeling tired and weary as she stood there listless and alone. Quietly and on the tips of her feet she crept out of her room, listening intently to her mother's quiet breathing before continuing onward.

Her mother's ears could be as sharp as a bloodhounds on a good day, and right now she had no desire to explain why she was up so late when they had plans so early tomorrow morning.

Sneaking past her mother's bedroom she continued towards the last room their apartment held. Slowly, to make sure it didn't squeak she turned the handle and opened the door, smiling softly at the sight before her.

The room was painted in soft hues of blue and green, the result of her mother leaving said cans of paint around her two young and highly mischievous children. They had never painted over the… work of art they'd done, finding it perfect and fitting in an odd way. The room didn't hold much in the way of personal items, but she knew it was simply because her brother found worth in things that others would struggle to fully understand. A few books lined his shelves, and his floor was clean of any clothes or objects, rather unusual for children their age but personally she thought it matched him rather well.

Making her way to his bed she reached out and gently shook his shoulder, smiling as his nose scrunched up and bleary sea green eyes opened to stare at her.

"Bella?" He murmured, his voice thick with sleep.

"Move over?" She asked, not waiting for him to move before she was already climbing into the bed. He grumbled softly before moving aside in order to give her more room. There was a quick tug on the blanket by both parties before they were satisfied with the amount of shared warmth they now had.

"Did you have that dream again?" He asked her, once they were both settled in and comfortable. She pursed her lips before nodding her head.

"Do you want to talk-"

"I'll rather not." She cut him off, before cuddling closer as way of apology.

There was a tense silence between them before he sighed and moved to wrap the blanket tighter around them. "Tell me one day?"

She hummed in response before closing her eyes, feigning sleep.

The secrets she kept were her burden to bear. She was the older sibling after all, it was her job to be worrying after him; not the other way around. She could deal with the strange dreams, she had been dealing with them for as long as she could remember after all.

Her thoughts drifted back to earlier, and with a quick shake of her head she quickly tried to banish it from her mind.

He didn't have to know.

She would never tell him.

Not about… them.

The monsters.

For as long as she was able, she would keep it away from her brother.

Until the world came forth to shatter her peaceful world, she would stay silent and bear it.

For that was the duty of a big sister.

With that last thought in mind, she closed her eyes and quickly succumbed to sleep.

She was eight when she first came to the realization that something was terribly and utterly wrong about the world she lived in.

Her mother, on one of the few days off her work allowed her; had taken the two to central park, letting them run around the statues and play hide and seek with the other children in the area. It was rare for them to be able to play outside by themselves, thanks to the rather horrid luck Hadriel tended to attract to himself. She had long since lost count of how many times she had to pull her brother away from some ridiculously tall and confused looking older man.

Her mother had warned her all about perverts the first few times this had happened. So by now she was ridiculously well versed in simply grabbing hold of her brother and getting lost in the crowd with him as whatever pervert her brother had unfortunately attracted to himself this time around lost sight of them both.

So to be able to play in the park with their mother watching over them both, and with no suspicious men wearing eye-patches in sight was a rare treat. Her brother practically shook with excitement as the other children invited them to play along with them.

She had been 'it' at the moment, and smug in the knowledge that none of them would be able to hide from her for long. Her eyesight was impeccable and she was always able to figure out where everyone was hiding without much issue. She was too good at this game, a pro in her opinion.

She had been gleefully heading towards her first victim when something made her pause. A glimpse, just a small glimpse from the corner of her eye was all it took.

There was a beautiful woman standing besides a stone fountain near their small group. She was dressed in a soft bronze dress that seemed to highlight her lightly tanned skin. Long red hair fell freely down her back as with glowing green eyes the woman stared down at the small boy beside her.

Bella could honestly say she'd never seen someone so beautiful before in her life.

She watched curiously as the woman smiled and cooed at the small toddler before her, wondering what it was about the two that had first captured her attention. It was probably just a mother caring for her son, so why did she feel wary staring at what should be a sweet and peaceful scene?

She watched them both silently, as the boy raised his hands up in the universal sign of wanting to be picked up, making the beauty laugh, a loud and throaty sound that seem to reverberate from deep within her. It was as the woman began to lean down to pick up the child that she finally realized what had seemed so off about the situation.

The boy looked nothing like the woman before him. His clothes were slightly worn, nothing like the tailored dress the woman was donned in. Everything from his hair to his skin seemed to scream at Bella that he wasn't that woman's child.

She had frowned at that realization, about to call her mother's attentions on to the suspicious woman when she felt her eyes sharpen and her breath catch in her throat.

Where once had stood a rather striking and beautiful woman, was now a monster. Dark green and black scales covered the entirety of her body, her legs having been replaced with a long snake tail. Her jaw opened and unhinged, showing off rows of razor sharp teeth as the woman suddenly attacked.

She didn't waste a moment.

Immediately she found her baby brother and grabbed hold of his hand, running to their mother and begging to leave the park, almost hysterical in her wish to get as far away from the monster she'd seen as possible.

A few days later she would hear her mother whisper with the neighbors about a kidnapping that had taken place the same day they'd been at the park.

She never went there again.

After that moment, it was as if the wool was pulled from her eyes. Suddenly she was able to see and notice when something was off about the people around her. Her eyes would narrow and sharpen, and is she concentrated, the glamour they wore would disappear, to be replaced with their true form.

She never let on that she could see them, no matter how much their true appearance terrified her. Some of them brought back flashes, faint memories of something she couldn't yet name and left her with a sinking feeling of dread as she stared at them from the corner of her eye. She knew, deep in her heart; that should they realize-

That should they know what she could see-

Then she'll never be safe again.

And neither, for that matter, would her brother.

A/N: Short chapter to set the stage. Next time we'll be having our last time skip as they finally grow up and allow us to meet some very familiar characters. Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and please leave a review if you did! They help to feed the muses and keep this story going! Thank you so much for reading this tale!