She hit the ground with a thud, knocking the wind out of her lungs. For a minute she could only lie there, stunned. Apparating twice in such a short time had taken its toll, and she needed a moment to breathe.
Except, the moment she did, she remembered Ted. The pleading look in his eye. Their last kiss, the desperation, devotion, and despair had all warped themselves together. The way he screamed out her name.
Her tears began to fall fresh, but she wiped them away. Somewhere around here was Lorie, she hoped. She couldn't imagine them taking her elsewhere. The Lestrange manor was large and expansive, with plenty of places for them to hide a muggleborn from her parents and any ministry official that came sniffing around.
After one more steadying breath, she rose to her feet and approached the large Black gate that led to her home. It was so strange to call it that, after all the misfortune that had befallen her there, but that was still what it was. A part of her belonged there, and maybe it was time to accept that.
The cobbled path that led to her home was lined with fountains, flowers, and elaborate statues. As a child, she had loved to play here, but now the statues and the flowers felt cold and foreboding, like hostile strangers.
The gargoyles that guarded her door followed her movements. They would spring into life should anyone unwanted approach the house, but Andromeda was not unwanted, not yet.
As she reached the giant black door she felt a chill wash over her, but she also felt a fire race through her as she pulled the door open.
The creak rang through the silent hallway, and for a moment, she feared she had revealed herself. But the hall remained silent. That was not uncommon. When they were not expecting company, her family often retreated to their own private corners of the manor.
Still, it was best not to linger in the light, which is why she quickly moved to a shadowy corner. Her manor was too big for her to search for Bella aimlessly, but she hadn't gotten Outstanding in almost all her OWLs for nothing.
"Reveal humans," she whispered. A faint light appeared on the end of her wand, as she rotated slightly, it grew brighter. It was leading her toward the basement. Of course, their basement was essentially only used by Star. The rest of her family would never venture down there.
Ignoring the beat her heart skipped, she made her way slowly down the staircase. The already cool manor draft seemed to drop dramatically as she descended, and soon she was shivering. Though that could have been from nerves. Her wand grew brighter, and soon, she heard voices.
"Nox," she whispered hurriedly, and her wand went out. Doing her best to control her shivers, she quietly made her way down the staircase and into the hallway below. The voices came from a room at the end of the hall, where Star kept many of her cleaning supplies if Meda was not mistaken. She inched forward as closely as she dared, stopping when she could make out what the faint voices were saying.
"—never should have brought her back in the first place." She was surprised to recognize Rabastan's voice. He sounded agitated, and that was putting it mildly.
"If you had managed to nab Andromeda when you had her," Rodolphus' chilling drawl sent shivers down her spine. "I wouldn't have had to."
"Guess manhandling women isn't my strong suit." Rabastan retorted. "I'll leave that to you." She'd never heard Rabastan talk to his brother like that before, with a voice like acid. She had a feeling she knew what Rabastan was referring to.
"You'd do well to follow my example. Can't have a weak thing like Andromeda ruling over you."
Rodolphus's comment confirmed her suspicions. She found herself making a mental note
"Enough. None of this is helping us figure out what to do with it."
"We should let her go. She has nothing to do with this. Besides, Andromeda's too smart to just come waltzing in here after her."
She felt herself flush, even though no one could see. She wasn't sure if Rabastan meant that comment, or was
"After all the trouble I went through to get her?" Rodolphus laughed hollowly. "No, we keep her, until she learns what happens when she meddles in the affairs of her betters."
Andromeda's chest felt like lead.
"Rabastan's right." That was Bella's voice. She'd been so uncharacteristically silent, Andromeda had wondered if she was even there.
"Do my ears deceive me or are you going soft too?" Rodolphus' voice took on an annoyed edge.
"Andromeda's not coming." Bella's voice was harder to read. She sounded both bored and tense at the same time. "We should just rid of it and figure out another way out of this mess."
"What do you mean get rid of her?" Rabastan asked.
Andromeda couldn't see her sister, but she could imagine Bella's cold, dark eyes as she replied. "You know scum like her won't live in our new world anyway. Besides, what better way to prove ourselves to Him than to deliver our first sacrifice?"
Andromeda gasped audibly, and then threw her hand over her mouth. Luckily, Rabastan/'s outburst covered up her mistake.
"Murder?" He hissed. "You want to murder her?"
"It is not murder." Bella replied coldly. "It's pest control."
She held her breath, waiting for Rabastan's response. She wished she could see his face, it would make the agony of waiting for Rabastan's response.
"No," he said finally, and she breathed out. "This is crazy. You're crazy."
"No, it's not." Rodolphus should cut in. "Except, you should do it."
And just like that, she couldn't breathe again.
"What?" Rabastan's incredulity was heartening if nothing else.
"The Dark Lord has reservations about you." Rodolphus no longer spoke in his lazy draw. His words were like fire as he said, "He doesn't think you are truly committed. This could be your chance to prove your loyalty."
Andromeda's whole soul seemed to shudder as Rodolphus' words seemed to sink in. The Dark Lord. He was someone who would rejoice in the murder of a muggleborn. Someone who her sister, and it seemed Rodolphus, were desperate to prove their loyalty too. There could only be one person who fit that description. Voldemort. He was real. Not just a symbol, or a code, but a real person. By the sound of things, he was capable of everything the rumors said. What was worse, it sounded like her sister and Rodolphus were capable of the same. And now they were trying to get their claws into Rabastan. Her dear, sweet Rabastan.
Rabastan was at a loss for words. Andromeda couldn't take any more of this. She had to find a way to get Lorie out, now. For Rabastan's sake as well.
She knew better than too appeal to their humanity, or even reason. Even if she turned herself in and pleaded for Lorie's release, she had no guarantee they would do it. She needed leverage. A way of ensuring her sister would let Lorie go. And now that she thought about it, she and Ted as well.
The thing was, she had it. Because she knew her sister. She knew so much of what her sister was trying to hide, more than she had realized, until now. And she doubted this Voldemort, whoever he truly was, would take kindly to some of his followers being exposed.
It was a risk, especially if Bella didn't believe Andromeda was capable of it, but it was her only chance.
There was one more problem, though. She knew her sister, enough to know Bella could sometimes act—rashly— in order to get what she wanted. She needed a way to protect herself in case Bella resulted in more drastic measures to ensure Meda's silence.
The thing was, she had a brilliant idea of how to accomplish that as well, but she was going to need help. From a very loyal, albeit timid house-elf. Star had already risked herself once for Amdromeda, it was completely unfair to ask her again. But if everything went according to plan, she would never be asking Star for anything again. The thought clenched her heart, but it didn't stop her from raising her wand as whispering, "Reveal house-elf."
To her surprise, her wand immediately glowed bright white, but there was no one in front of her. Whirling around, she found herself face to face with her beloved house-elf.
"What are you doing here, mistress?" Tears pooled at the bottom of Star's eyes and she was trembling from head to foot. "Was my warning not sufficient."
"No, star. " Without thinking, Andromeda fell to her knees and reached out to steady Star. Star started in surprise but didn't recoil from her touch. "What you did was incredibly brave, and I will always be in your debt. But I'm afraid I must ask you for one more please."
Star seemed to relax a little under Andromeda's touch, but worry still crept into her eyes as she said, "You know I cannot refuse your will."
"This time you can," Andromeda forced away her own trembling. She had to be strong for Star. "Because I'm not going to command you. Merely ask, as my friend." She made sure she and Star were on the same level, staring directly into each other's eyes. "Could you deliver a letter to a friend of mine?"
Star stared directly into her eyes, and despite the elve's fear, she didn't look away. "Who is this friend?"
"She's one of the bravest people I know." She smiled. That was probably the nicest thing she'd ever said about Lily Evans. "You can trust her, I promise."
The fear didn't leave Star's eyes, but a look of determination set into her features as she said, "Then I accept your request, mistress."
"Great," Andromeda breathed out a huge sigh of relief. She had given Star a choice, but she had no idea what she would have done if Star said no. "You wouldn't happen to have a piece of parchment, would you? Because I haven't actually written the letter yet."
She didn't have high hopes, as House-elves didn't generally have a need for parchment, but to her surprise Star smiled and snapped her fingers. In a flash a piece of parchment, complete with ink and a quill appeared in her hand.
Andromeda stared at her in shock. Star was always so meek and docile, she had never realized how powerful she was.
With tentative fingers she slipped the parchment out of Star's fingers, took a deep breath, and began to write. After a few moments, she finished. She folded it up and handed the letter to Star.
"I'll find a way to make this up to you, I promise."
Star slowly took the letter, but she didn't move. She just stared at it. Andromeda could tell she was trying to get up the nerve to say something. Finally she said,
"There is no one quite like you, mistress." She glanced up. Her blue eyes were fearful, but also bright. "Please be careful."
She hadn't told Star anything about what she was planning, about why she had come back, but Star had always been very observant. She must know Andromeda was planning to stand up to them, something neither of them had dared to do before.
She nodded, "I promise."
Star didn't respond, just sank into a deep bow. It felt different than the other ones though. More authentic. And then she was gone.
Andromeda tried to ignore the pit that grew in her stomach, but it was difficult. She had no idea when she would see Star again. But she promised herself there would be when, so she could make good on her first promise.
But there was no time to think about that now. She slowly turned toward the door. Hopefully she wasn't too late, and they hadn't done anything rash to Lorie in the meantime.
She could feel her heart pounding in her ears as she walked toward the door, but the rest of her was oddly calm. The calm before the storm, but calm nonetheless. Without realizing it she had been preparing for this moment for so long, and for better or worse it was here.
She reached the door and pushed it open. There was no path for her now but forward.