Where The Shadow Ends

Chapter Thirteen - Paint It Black

Chapter Thirteen – Paint It Black

*1949*

The next few weeks passed quickly. A couple of days ago, Elayne had woken up to a small gift on her bedside table. When she opened it, she was surprised to find a beautiful locket. She had put it on straight away and hadn't taken it off since. She had figured that it was a gift from Tom.

Elayne would rarely ever leave her room, which was ironic considering Tom had threatened to lock her in there prior to her losing the baby. House elves brought her meals, but she refused to eat. She had fallen into an almost catatonic state. She never spoke to anyone. She didn't even speak to Tom, though he was rarely up there. She rarely got out of bed and if she did get up, it was to sit out on the small balcony attached to the room.

On one oddly rainy day though, Elayne felt something inside of her snap. She stood up from the bed, feet padding towards the bathroom.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Her features had turned almost skeletal. Her cheeks were hallowed out and her eyes sunken in. Her wild red curls were tangled and even matted in some places.

Reaching for her brush, Elayne began raking it through her hair, not even wincing whenever the brush hit a snag.

Once her hair was throughly untangled, she pulled it up into a tight knot on the top of her head.

After dropping the brush back down onto the vanity, Elayne walked back into the bedroom, heading to the wardrobe.

All of the clothes inside were brightly colored. Elayne sneered at this, shoving different articles to the side.

After several moments of searching, she found a long black dress. Her lips twitched into a small smirk as she pulled it out. She quickly slipped out of her night gown and slid into the dress.

The sleeves were long, almost covering her whole hand. The bodice was tight against her chest and stomach. The skirt flowed out and trailed behind her.

Elayne turned and grabbed her wand from the bedside table, tucking it into a secret pocket just below her waist. She ran her hands down the front of the dress before exiting the room.

Slowly, with bare feet, Elayne walked down the stairs, the back of her dress covering at least three steps behind her.

When she got to the bottom, she realized how quiet the manor was.

Smirking, Elayne made her way to the library. The doors were closed. Another fucking meeting.

Shaking her head, Elayne chuckled to herself. Without any hesitation, she threw the doors open.

The table was filled with people. Tom sat at the head, but as soon as the doors flew open, he stood, ready to start yelling at whoever dared to disrupt them.

"Mind if I join in?" Elayne said, sauntering towards the table. She came to a stop beside Tom's chair. "Don't stop on my account."

Tom slowly sat back down, his eyes narrowed at his wife.

Humming, Elayne perched herself on the arm of Tom's chair, draping an arm over his shoulders.

"What are you discussing today?" She asked, a hand gently tangling itself in Tom's inky curls. Her eyes scanned the table.

Of course her boys were there. Lestrange sat to Tom's right. Avery sat next to Lestrange. Malfoy was on Tom's left with Nott beside him. Elayne recognized a few others down the line. Pucey and Rosier were about half way down the table. Another man, Mulciber, sat towards the end of the table.