Thank you so so much for all of your beautiful reviews and messages (and favourites and follows), seriously I couldn't stop grinning when I got some of them through and I am so so happy that you guys are enjoying my story!
Now, a few of you expressed that you were interested in knowing Andromeda's motivation in the previous chapter, so this chapter is for you guys. A previously unplanned chapter I must admit but I hope you guys enjoy it.
So, as always, please read, enjoy and please do leave a review if you have a moment (as you can tell I do love reviews haha)
The Purple Black
Ted Tonks frowned as he walked through the front door of the Tonks household. The moment he stepped over the threshold he could not shake the overpowering feeling that something wasn't right. The usual smell of that night's dinner was absent, the house was dark and the usual sound of his wife listening to the wireless or his daughter getting up to her usual mischief was lacking. Ted walked through to the kitchen, frowning in confusion as half made sandwiches lay on the kitchen side looking as though they had been there for at least a few hours before he had turned up.
"Dromeda?" Ted called out as he drew his wand, suddenly becoming fearful that something bad had happened. "Dora? Anyone? . . . Homenum Revelio."
The man's fear was not satisfied as there was only one presence in the house, he drew his wand as he carefully made his way towards the source of the presence in his home. He was hesitant to call out anymore, worried about who he would find. Were his wife and child okay? Was there someone in his home that had done something to his wife and daughter? Has Andromeda and Nymphadora finally fought to the point where the result had been them killing each other? Ted was saddened to realise that the last option would not have surprised him.
As Ted Tonks approached his daughter's room he took a deep breath, clasping his hand on the cool metal of the door handle as he took a moment to prepare himself. He couldn't help but stumble slightly as the door opened of its own accord.
Andromeda Tonks was sat on the bed, looking to her husband with a tear stained face, though she had a strange air of cool calmness about her as she sat in the room only lit by the moonlight pouring through the window. Ted didn't lower his wand, looking around the room as his confusion only increased. The room was bare. The draws were all partially open, the wardrobe doors open to reveal all of his daughter's clothes gone, the only things that remained were the furnishings and the old posters on the walls.
"Dromeda?" Ted barely whispered afraid to ask his next question. "What happened?"
Andromeda furrowed her brow ever so slightly for a moment before she looked around the room with her mask of emotionless calm back on her features. "Oh, nothing . . . Don't worry, Bellatrix came and took Nymphadora."
"What?!" Ted stared at his wife in shock, unsure he could believe what he had just heard.
"Oh," Andromeda sighed, "don't worry, she wanted to go."
"Andromeda she's not safe—you said so yourself." Ted shook his head, amazed that his wife was acting so calm about the situation.
Andromeda shook her head, looking to the space on her daughter's dresser that used to hold a family photograph though was now painfully bare. "I let her go, Ted."
"Y-You let her go?" Ted gawped, "Why?"
The witch pulled her eyes away from the space on the dresser, closing her eyes as she willed herself not to get emotional again. "Her eyes . . . That look . . . She wanted to go, I told her no, I told her that I loved her and she wasn't safe with my sister and she wouldn't listen. Bellatrix has gotten to her, she has clearly been whispering in our daughter's ear for too long for me to even get the slightest bit of sense too her. I know what she can be like, manipulative, though powerful, alluring, able to bend you to her own ways . . . I didn't warn Nymphadora about her. She asked me about her when she was younger and I never warned her. If I had just—" Andromeda paused for a moment, taking a deep breath before she carried on. "I—I went to curse Bellatrix and she stopped me . . . She stared straight at me and—" Andromeda shook her head "It was that look. It was the same look I remember seeing in my own eyes, when I wanted to leave my family . . . There was no changing her mind . . . She's almost seventeen." The witch opened her eyes as she felt her husband sit next to her on the bed, letting the man take her hand as she forced herself to continue to speak. "I tried still—I tried the only thing I could . . . I thought that maybe if she had to choose . . . it made me pause—for a slightest of moments—when my parents said the same to me . . . I thought if she had to pick between never seeing her parents again or staying here she might— . . . Don't hate me."
Another tear fell down the woman's features as her husband wrapped an arm around her, pulling her into his side as he rested his head against her own. "I could never hate you."
"I lost our daughter." Andromeda said. "I-If I had just given her more freedom to begin with, not been so confining—but she is a child, she needs boundaries, it was for her safety and now . . ."
". . . Is she safe?" Ted barely whispered.
Andromeda hesitated for a moment for she nodded ever so slightly "Bellatrix doesn't want to hurt her . . . She has a plan for her . . . she said she'll be happy." She decided not to mention the 'most of the time' part of Bellatrix's promise, she didn't want to think about it. "I'm sorry, Ted . . ."
Ted sighed as he pulled his wife closer, kissing her head. "You couldn't have stopped it . . . It will be okay."
Andromeda wrapped her arms around her husband, resting her head on her shoulder as she tried not to think. Would it be okay? Would her daughter be okay? Had she made a mistake in not putting up more of a fight? It was obvious that those questions would continue to haunt her for a long time.
Nymphadora didn't say a word, the sixteen-year-old reluctantly letting her Aunt's hand go as they arrived at the manor. She held her head high as much as she could, staring straight ahead as she tried to ignore the rush of emotions pounding through her mind. She followed her Aunt's lead, through the grand entrance of Lestrange Manor and up the staircase towards the bedroom Nymphadora had come to know as her own on her visits to her Aunt and Uncle. Bellatrix pushed the door open, letting the girl go in ahead of her.
The girl sat on the bed, watching her Aunt take her trunk out of her pocket and turn it back to its original size.
"Do you want to go through your things now or tomorrow?" Bellatrix mused as the girl went to sit on her bed, "It can be fun sorting through things sometimes you know, I used to burn the things I really didn't want anymore—We could try that. Anything in here you hate?" Bellatrix opened the case, looking through the top layer of clothes that had been crammed inside in their haste. "Ooh, what about your muggle clothes, hmm? Won't be needing them anymore . . . Dora?"
"Huh?" Dora frowned as she looked to her Aunt. "Uh—Yeah I suppose . . . tomorrow."
Bellatrix looked to the girl, taking in her limp hair and faint forced smile as she looked back at her. The elder witch sighed, walking over to the girl and sitting next to her. "You did the right thing."
"I know . . ." Dora mumbled, picking at the fabric of her skirt.
"Dora, you heard her," Bellatrix looked to the girl with fake sympathy, though the young girl could not see through the lie to the amused joy underneath, "she said she would never talk to you again merely because you wanted to live with your own Aunt and Uncle. What sort of mother does that? Tries to stop you from seeing your own flesh and blood and then disowns you for it?"
"You know . . . you're right." Dora furrowed her brows in thought before she shook her head, "I'm better off without the both of them."
"You are." Bellatrix agreed, smirking as she stood from the bed. "Now make yourself at home, Dora. We can go shopping tomorrow if you like, we can get some things to make the room more of your own."
"Can we go to Knockturn Alley?" Dora asked, "Buy some stuff that I couldn't hide from Mum before?"
"Of course, we can buy whatever you want—I'll have to get you a key to the vault." Bellatrix laughed at the expression on her nieces face.
"Really?" Dora couldn't help but grin.
"Well, I can't have you living with me whilst simultaneously running around in cheap clothes with mediocre things." Bellatrix said, "You are living the pureblood life now my dear, no more mudbloods and blood traitors, you must act the part dear—act the part to be the part."
"Y-You think I can fit in?" Nymphadora bit her lip.
"Of course." Bellatrix smirked, "Perhaps I'll invite Narcissa over to teach you how to act 'proper'—though half of that stuff is nonsense if you ask me."
"W—Won't you get in trouble with your family?" Dora hesitated to say, "They won't be happy with me living here—your Dad didn't seem very happy to see me here that time."
"I talked to father—your grandfather—he'll be fine. Though you may have to meet him properly now, my deepest apologies for that one." Bellatrix grinned in amusement as Nymphadora raised an eyebrow at her, "Don't worry about things that needn't be worried about." Bellatrix walked towards the door, "Now settle in. I'll send an elf for you when dinner is ready."
"Okay. . ." Dora smiled slightly, looking around her new bedroom.
With one last look at her niece, Bellatrix left the room, a sense of joy and accomplishment running through her. Not only had she managed to achieve her goal of finally removing her sister and the mudblood from her niece's life. There was no doubt that Bellatrix would be able to fully train and mould Nymphadora Tonks into being the perfect weapon for her lord the moment he returned. There was no doubt that Bellatrix Lestrange was on a high, though regardless her instincts took over as a strong arm grabbed her and pulled her through the nearest doorway. Her wand was quickly drawn and pointed straight at the person who had grabbed her.
"Put that thing away." Rodolphus growled as he turned to face his wife.
"What was that in aid of?" Bellatrix rolled her eyes, though her a grin quickly returned to her face despite herself. "Must you really attempt to ruin my good moods?"
"Why is Nymphadora here?" Rodolphus asked, ignoring his wife's questions. "I told you not to go over there when you got that letter, Bellatrix. I told you to wait until she was back at school."
"Well, Roddy," Bella pouted, "you know I'm impatient—and this has worked out so much better."
"Why is she here?" Rodolphus repeated his question, narrowing his eyes at his wife in annoyance.
Bellatrix couldn't help but laugh, putting her wand in its holster before she slowly walked over to her husband. She met his glaring eyes with her own now glittering in amusement as she brought up her hands to rest his chest. "You know my plan Rod, it's been my plan for years—our plan."
"Stop avoiding my questions, Bellatrix." Rodolphus wrapped an arm around his wife, his fingers digging into her hip as he pulled her into himself, his patience with her quickly dwindling.
Bellatrix sighed deeply, taking in the small details in his face before she gave him a devious smirk, "Well . . . I went to her house, had a lovely discussion with my sister and we both agreed it was best if she lived with us."
"You what!?"
"Ow, loud." Bellatrix rolled her eyes again even as she could sense the anger rising in her husband. "Nymphadora lives here now."
Rodolphus pushed his wife away from him, ignoring her hiss of discomfort as she stumbled and almost fell over the armchair behind her. "You have invited a 16-year-old half-blood to live with us?"
"Well," Bellatrix huffed as she straightened herself up again "she's stayed here enough in the past, I—"
"You should have consulted me!" Rodolphus yelled as Bellatrix quickly placed a silencing ward on the room lest Nymphadora hear their argument.
"I did, I laid awake in bed last night and had a lovely one-sided conversation with your unconscious form." Bellatrix smirked as her husband growled, "Rodolphus, you knew something like this would happen eventually. She is a great weapon for the Dark Lord, though she needs to be moulded into the perfect weapon. We can only help her so much with hidden rendezvous. What if when she left Hogwarts she decided she wanted to make her own way? That she didn't need dear Aunt Bellatrix anymore. This way, we are her only home and support—her mother disowned her. It was hilarious really, used the same spiel that father gave her about choosing between this and her family. Oh, Roddy, you should have seen it—I'll show you later." Bellatrix paused for a moment, frowning slightly at her husband as his anger seemed to be barely dwindling. "This is a good thing."
"And what do you explain to your family—to society as a whole—why we; a respectable pureblooded couple are housing a teenage half-blood?" Rodolphus asked.
"A metamorphmagus." Bellatrix added, "A half-blood, teenaged, metamorphmagus that will do anything Auntie Bella wants. Even father sees the advantage. We're at no risk of disownment—your parents are dead, you're the head of your household. Are you going to disown me, hmm? . . . No, I thought not. It's for the best, Rodolphus."
"You should have talked to me about it—whilst I was awake." Rodolphus added as Bellatrix went to open her mouth again.
"Perhaps." Bellatrix shrugged. "Though I know you're a smart enough man to see this is the right step to take. You would have agreed eventually, though you would have taken your time about it and Nymphadora could have returned to school—or made up with her mother before I could step in. I couldn't risk that."
Rodolphus thought for a moment, clenching his fists a few times as he tried to numb his anger. "You better be right about all of this."
"I am, as always." Bellatrix giggled, walking up to her husband and slowly snaking her arms around his shoulders, gently placing a kiss on his cheek before she burst into giggles. "You know, Andromeda and Nymphadora fought. The girl accused her mother of not trusting her judgement that I wouldn't hurt her and that I loved her and all of that nonsense. Fool."
"Anyone is a fool for trusting you, Bellatrix." Rodolphus wrapped his arms around his wife again despite his words, his grip more loving this time as the woman continued to giggle.
"Then you must be the biggest fool of them all, dear husband." Bellatrix purred, kissing him fiercely for mere seconds before she pulled away with a grin. "Come on now, I will have to write to father and Narcissa. It is probably best they find out of this from myself than through anyone who may see my niece and I on our little shopping trip tomorrow."
Rodolphus nodded, watching his wife practically skip out of the room and down to his study. The man had long learned it was foolish to think he could stand in the way of what his wife wanted.
So I hope you enjoyed that chapter! Please do leave me a review if you have a moment :)
The Purple Black