Obsidian - A Harry Potter fan fiction

Chapter 9 - Consequences

How was it possible that one vanished from the face of the earth?

Narcissa had searched the entire country for her absconding sister Andromeda. She had hired Aurors as well as muggle detectives, but no avail. Her new best friend Lily Potter had assured her that when you wanted to find a person - wizard or otherwise, these muggle mercenaries were the best. Though she had also warned Narcissa not to call them that to their face. Apparently, muggles had invented ingenious ways of covertly spying - which their government used, very effectively, to track all of its people.Even though Andy wasn't a muggle, every hideout in the muggle world was on the grid - and whatever that was - it sounded awfully efficient. It seemed to Narcissa like a gross intrusion of a person's privacy, however, if it found Andy, Cissa was Slytherin enough not to complain about it

Despite all of the Malfoy resources being employed to search for Andromeda, it seemed her sister had just disappeared, it was as if the oldest Black sister never existed. Narcissa and Bellatrix were beginning to worry. The last person to see her was a strange muggle who lived on the outskirts of Little Hangleton - after that, the trail ran cold.

The Muggle's name was Ted Tonks - he happened to be the only muggle Narcissa's father was rather fond of - mainly due to the fact that he provided a regular source of entertainment as he was never sober! Ted's antics were the talk of the village. The one that stuck to Narcissa Memories like a wart was one where Ted Tonks got really drunk and woke up married to a goat! That the goat was an equally drunk animagus wizard caused a great uproar in the wizarding world. The minister of magic was called to annul the marriage, and Vincent Crabbe (Sr.) -the goat in question - was the butt of all wizarding jokes for a fortnight.

Even the gloomy Black household was, for once, touched by laughter. For Orion Black, on hearing about the misfortune that had fallen his peer, was so consumed with mirth, that he fell off his horse, laughing hysterically. Andy, Bella and Cissa had all been startled to see the uncharacteristically human display by their father. The three girls had been spying on him, trying to gauge his mood, from behind the rose bushes, where they had been hiding from their mother. The sisters had been naughty that day, there were - very secretively - reading muggle fairy tales, and had just managed to accidentally free seven of the Black family's household elves while trying to dress them up as dwarves from the "Snow-White and the seven dwarves" muggle fairy tale. To say that they were in trouble was an understatement. Ted Tonks the crazy muggle's antics had just put their father in a great mood. He, having had his disposition considerably lightened before his daughters were brought before him, readily forgave them.

There were many memories of Ted Tonks antics, littered throughout their childhood. Ted Tonks was many things, a drunk, a lecher and all in all he was mainly responsible for colouring the three sister's views on muggles.

However the last couple of weeks had really been an eyeopener for Narcissa, and she had begun to see Ted Tonks in a rather different light.

-----x----

Black Mansion: 2 Years back

Bellatrix Black had gone to check on all the animals as the night before had been rather chilly. She, having personally overseen all farrier work in the stables, had gone to collect eggs from the chicken coop. Andy was going to make delicious French biscuits called macaroons. Cooking, unlike playing childish muggle games, was a life skill their mother heavily endorsed.Thus, both Bella and Cissa had been given tasks - Bella's was to get fresh eggs and Cissa's was to get fresh roses from the garden.

To say that Bella was looking beautiful that day would be wrong, for Bella was looking as she always did - memorable and fiercely brunette. She had never been one to bother about her looks. Bella was one of those girls who was even more alluring because she didn't believe that she was comely. In looks, Bellatrix and Andromeda were absolutely alike, however, in nature, there could never have been two people more different. While Andromeda and Cissa preferred to stay indoors, Bella took out her horse - Thunder - and rode along the countryside. Bella and her horse were well known throughout the village, having trampled many an unsuspecting muggle unfortunate enough to cross Bella's trail. As long as Bella didn't actually kill one of the muggles from the village, the ministry would look the other way - such was the power behind the Malfoy galleons that Andy was bringing in. Even before, Bella was never in anybody's opinion -docile - however, the incident with the room with the elf heads early on in her childhood had affected her more deeply than any of them had imagined at that time. Bella was fierce, for the lack of a better word, in both her love and hate. And Bella hated muggles, with centuries of the Black family propaganda buried firmly in her core.