The Squib In The Basement

31. Friendly Face

**TW, miscarriages and arranged child marriages**

A few days after Cassiopeia waved goodbye to her brothers on Platform 9 and ¾, there was an ominous knock at Alphard's front door one evening.
Cassiopeia was immediately put on edge, since they didn't normally receive any visitors, especially not at that time of day.
Alphard approached the door with his wand raised, but he lowered it when he saw Narcissa standing on the other side.
"Cissy" squealed Cassiopeia as she ran forward in excitement and hugged Narcissa.
"Hi Cassie. Uncle Alphard, may I come in?" Asked Narcissa.

Unlike Cassiopeia, Alphard was not filled with excitement at seeing Narcissa, and he wore a skeptical look on his face. Despite his fears though, he did allow Narcissa into the building.
"I was wondering if I could talk to Cassie alone?" Questioned Narcissa.
"I would prefer it if you didn't" replied Alphard coldly.
"I swear that I mean Cassie no harm. I just want to talk to her" insisted Narcissa.
"I'll be fine with Cissy, she would never hurt me. Just let us catch up" pleaded Cassiopeia.
"Alright, Narcissa, I will allow you to talk to Cass, if you leave me your wand" said Alphard.

Narcissa raised an eyebrow, and then sighed when she realised that Alphard was being serious.
She rolled her eyes and handed over her wand.
"Happy?" She demanded.
"Yes... I will be in the drawing room if you need me" informed Alphard, as he placed Narcissa's wand into his pocket.
"Let's go up to my room" suggested Cassiopeia.
"I'll follow you" replied Narcissa.
Cassiopeia smiled and began leading her cousin up the stairs towards her bedroom.

"Uncle Alphard has a nice house" commented Narcissa, as the girls sat down on the sofa in Cassiopeia's bedroom.
"I love it. It's so much nicer than Grimmauld Place" admitted Cassiopeia.
"Speaking of Grimmauld Place, care to tell me why you have moved out of your family home?" Asked Narcissa.
"It's a long story. And I've only moved into another one of the homes our family owns, so it's not that big of a deal. Anyway, what have you been up to?"
"Look Cassie, I haven't come here to swap stories and catch up. I am here because your mother asked me to talk to you".

Cassiopeia frowned, "Why?".
"She felt that a friendly face like me, would have a better chance at getting in here to talk to you, than she would" answered Narcissa.
"I get that, but what I meant was why on earth would you agree to talk to me on her behalf?" Questioned Cassiopeia.
"She's my aunt, and quite an intimidating woman. I couldn't just say no to her" admitted Narcissa.
"But I thought we were friends, as well as cousins. I didn't expect you to take her side in this situation"
"I am loyal to the Black family, even if my surname is Malfoy, and nothing will ever change that".

"Is that why Alphard was rude to you earlier? Did he know that you were here on mother's orders?" Quizzed Cassiopeia.
"He probably suspected that was why I came here. That's why he took my wand. He knows where my loyalty lies" sighed Narcissa.
Cassiopeia felt a stab in her heart, at being betrayed by her own cousin.
"I would have expected this kind of behaviour from Bella, but not from you... Go on then, give me the message from my mother" snapped Cassiopeia, as she stood to her feet and folded her arms.

"Look, I don't appreciate being put in the middle like this, just for being the only one trying to hold our family together" admitted Narcissa.
"What family? Half of the decent people in our family have been cast out, and the other half care more about how people view them, than they do about their own children" spat Cassiopeia.
"I know that our upbringing wasn't exactly perfect, but it's the price we pay for being born into the richest pure-blood family in Britain" replied Narcissa.

"Our upbringing was about as far from perfect as humanely possible. Me and Sirius used to get daily beatings from our mother, and sometimes she would even use Unforgivable curses on us. That is not normal!" Exclaimed Cassiopeia.
"She only beats you when you disobey her. If you did as she said, then she wouldn't need to beat you" pointed out Narcissa.
"Mother didn't just beat me when I did something that she didn't like. She beat me just because I'm a Squib, which is something I cannot change. I cannot help how I was born. But this didn't stop mother from locking me up the basement, so that she didn't have to look at a disgusting Squib like me".

"I didn't know that. And I'm sorry she did that to you. But look, I'm not saying that Aunt Walburga was right to treat you differently for being a Squib. But things are different, now that Sirius has been cast out. The Black family has lost its heir, making you more important than ever before. So, Walburga won't be able to treat you badly any more" said Narcissa.
"Mother has Regulus to be the perfect heir. She doesn't need me" mumbled Cassiopeia.

"With Sirius gone, and Bella refusing to have any children, Walburga needs you to carry on the family name" said Narcissa.
"I'm not going back home, just so mother can marry me off to the son of one of her pure-blood friends" replied Cassiopeia.
"But if you were married, you wouldn't have to be around your mother anymore. Wouldn't that be a good thing?" Questioned Narcissa.

"I am too young to be getting married, end of story. And if I do marry, I want it to be for love, not to further our family line. Besides, the Black family doesn't need me to make perfect little pure-blood kids, because they've got you for that" reminded Cassiopeia.
"I know" Narcissa muttered, lowering her eyes to look at the floor.
Cassiopeia's anger left her as she looked at the pain on Narcissa's face.
"What's wrong?" She asked softly.
"It would appear that having children isn't as easy as our parents made it out to be" revealed Narcissa.

"What do you mean?" Questioned Cassiopeia.
"Me and Lucius have been trying very hard to have a child. But so far, all of our attempts have been in vain" answered Narcissa.
"Just because you haven't gotten pregnant yet, it doesn't mean you won't in the future" replied Cassiopeia.
"I didn't say I haven't gotten pregnant in the past... I've actually had several miscarriages, some at a few weeks, and some at a few months. I've not been able to carry any of my babies to term"
"Oh... I'm sorry".

Cassiopeia sat back down beside Narcissa, as an uncomfortable silence filled the room.
Tears fell down Narcissa's face, but she made no sound as she quickly wiped them away.
"I know how much pressure is on me to produce a male heir for this family. And after every miscarriage, my father forces me and Lucius to try again straight away. I don't get time to mourn the loss of my child, before I am forced to try and get pregnant again. It's not just the Black family that needs an heir, the Malfoy family does too" admitted Narcissa.

Cassiopeia took hold of Narcissa's hand and squeezed it tight.
"You are still young. You have plenty of time to try for children in the future. You need to give yourself time to rest and recover from all these pregnancies" she said softly.
"With this much pressure on me, I can't afford to waste any time. I must keep trying... I'm sorry for coming here. It was wrong of me. I've just felt like such a failure lately because of all these failed pregnancies, that I thought if I could get you to return to Grimmauld Place, then I wouldn't be such a failure, as I would have succeeded at something" revealed Narcissa.

"You are not a failure, and don't let the people in our so-called family, tell you otherwise. No one could convince me to go back home to live with my mother, not even you. If I were to return there, it would mean certain death. And I have no intention of dying at my mother's hand. If I want to be free, then I have to stay as far away from her as possible. And live the way I want to" informed Cassiopeia.
"I wish I could have the freedom that you do. But it is too late for me now. I have made my bed, and now I must lie in it... I'm sorry for coming here, I shouldn't have done it. But don't worry, you won't have to see me again" replied Narcissa.

"I don't want to not see you again. You don't have to come here on my mother's orders next time. You can just come to see me. We can spend time together, just like we used to" said Cassiopeia.
Narcissa smiled and shook her head, "You know as well as I do, that people inside this family cannot talk to those who have been cast out".
"But me and Alphard haven't been disowned yet" reminded Cassiopeia.
"It is still too dangerous, for the both of us to have any contact. I will only come back here again, if I'm ordered to do so... Take care Cassie, and live your life to the fullest" encouraged Narcissa, before leaving the room and heading off to find Alphard, so that she could retrieve her wand.