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How much can one single event impact history?
Depends on the event, you might answer
Well my dearest readers, what would be an event that changes history?
Something big, probably.
Does a child having a nightmare constitute a ‘something big’?
And now you’ll laugh. Of course not!
I’m here to prove you wrong.
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Narcissa Black, at the not-so-ripe age of five, had a nightmare. This was the big event.
She had a nightmare and she cried. She cried so much that she woke up her sister Andromeda, who slept in the room next to her.
Andy, in her sleep-induced fog, went to comfort her little sister. But she knocked into the dresser and made some metal knick knack fall. This woke up the last Black sister.
Bellatrix groaned as she woke up, but she heard her little sister crying and...she hated it, but she got up.
Except Cissa just wouldn’t stop crying. Even as the two older sisters managed to make her stop sobbing, the tears just kept flowing.
Andy and Bella then decided to go to their mother. This was an extremely rare occurrence: Druella Black’s moods were extremely volatile. Sometimes she’d be a caring and loving mother, others she’d curse her girls, or yell at them for the tiniest things.
So the three sisters went down the stairs through the kitchen: the light had been on and they could imagine their mother was not asleep.
“Why would you do this?” screamed someone inside
“Why?” their mother’s voice snarled. The three sisters stopped dead in their tracks. This was not a good moment. They decided silently to go back to their room
“You think I’ll let my daughters around a failure such as yourself?” Druella spit out.
Bella stopped. She wanted to know what was going on.
She climbed inside the house-elf’s passage from where she, and her sister when they followed, could see inside the kitchen.
A woman was tied to a chair and their mother was pointing her wand at her.
“I didn’t do anything!” the poor girl screamed
“You disobeyed” Druella said ,like doing so was the worst possible thing to do.
“What?” the girl asked, confused.
“I told you to behave at the party. I told you to do as I decided. You denied me”
“Aunt Druella…”
“SILENCE!” said their mother “You’re no niece of mine. And you will know the pain that comes with not doing as I tell you” Druella raised her hand
The girl eyed the wand “Please…”
“Crucio” Druella said calmly.
In the House Elf’s passage, Bella instinctively covered Cissa and Andy’s mouths. It was pretty useless, as the girl’s screams covered the three sisters’ gasps.
“You WILL do as you’re told!” screamed Druella. Then she cast the red spell again.
For too long Druella kept casting the crucio, and the three sisters looked on. Only when the girl’s screams were hoarse and she could barely talk, Bella snapped out of her trance like state.
She took her sisters’ hands and she brought them back to her room, careful not to step on the cricketing steps of the stairs.
As soon as she closed the door Cissa looked up, her big gray eyes full of tears
“Do you think she’ll do that to us?” the question, said out loud, chilled them all to the bone.
Both Bella and Andy had been asking that to themselves, but they didn’t want to answer it.
“I don’t think so” said Andy, trying to calm both herself and her sisters.
“Oh please. Mother would. And she will.” answered Bella. At that Cissa let a few tears fall, and Andy turned to her and hissed
“DO you have to?”
“Come on. It’s going to happen some time. And you lying to her is not going to help her.” she answered pointedly
“What is going to help then?” asked Cissa, half hidden between Andy’s arms
“I don’t know” answered Bella honestly
“That’s useful” commented Andy
“Like you have any other idea” shot back the black haired girl.
“We’re not going to separate. Right?” said Cissa suddenly “I don’t want to be alone if that happens” she explained, drying her tears on Andromeda’s nightshirt.
Bella and Andy looked at each other “Of course not” said Andy
“What a stupid idea” said Bella, and the other two knew it was her way of saying that no, they weren’t going to be separated.
“We’ll have to pretend. Don’t take unnecessary risks. Don’t get caught. And most importantly play it like they want it. It’ll be like a charade. Constantly playing a part. They’ll never realize we’re faking it if we don’t get out of character”decided Bella
In the end that night the three sisters went to sleep in Bella’s bed. They held each other close, comforting one another.
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The most successful idea came to them a few years later while on a dinner with their cousins Sirius and Regulus.
“AND THEN I’LL RUN AWAY TO UNCLE ALPHARD!” yelled Sirius to his dad
“Like he would ever care for a little brat like you” snarled Orion.
Regulus’ face told them that this was a pretty regular occurrence, and that that night Sirius was going to pay for it.
But it gave them an idea: they just needed to hold on until Bella was going to be seventeen to act on it.
None of them had ever thought about running away, about defying their parents in such a ways. But it was possible, and there was little their parents could do about it:
In her second year at Hogwarts, Bellatrix could already read in the library without their mother knowing what topics she’d research. She could find a way to keep her sisters safe. They’d have to hold on for another five years. It was doable. They’d have to. And after that they wouldn’t have to mask their true selves anymore.
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So as soon as the winter holidays ended Bellatrix spent afternoon after afternoon in the library, hidden in one of the secret alcoves. She read about how she could have her sisters safe from her parents, their mother especially.
“Black, what are you doing here?” asked a light voice from behind her
Bella jumped “Lisa! Hi” she said, using one hand to put her wild hair behind her ear, and another to swiftly hide the book she was reading
Lisa smirked “I asked what are you doing here, missy”
“Reading! It’s a library” she said, and Lisa threw a look at her books: most of them had been momentarily deprived of the color on the cover.
“Just because you’re the best girl in Slytherin that doesn’t mean that you can go off reading from the restricted section”
“I’m not,” Bella said, truthfully. But her face was red from the compliment, and Lisa must have thought she was lying.
“Don’t let me catch you again. I’m head girl, I’m supposed to report these things” she said with a wink. Bella blushed, and the other girl left.
Their mother was happy with Bella: she was a great student, and she didn’t give problems.
This ensured that she could be on her own devices so long as she kept a low profile. And that was just how she liked it.
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When Andy came to Hogwarts the following year she did her best to emulate her older sister: she was in Slytherin, and made friends with the “right” people (and others. But their mother didn’t have to know that). Like her older sister she tried to keep a low profile.
That was the year when Bella started to take a liking to dueling. She got very very good at it, incredibly quickly. Professor Flitwick was impressed with her skills.
She loved learning how to attack, defend, parry, and a miriad of other things that could ensure that she’d prevail. She would prevail, always. Endless days and nights made sure of that.
Bellatrix trained her sisters with the knowledge that it might save their lives one day. She forced them to learn positions, spells, tactics, because she knew that it was important for them to know how to defend themselves.
The three would become a well-oiled machine, and they’d take down everyone who’d stand in their way. Bellatrix promised that to herself and to her sisters .
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Meanwhile Cissa was left alone at their house. This worried her sisters, but she was Very good at going around undetected.
She ate in whatever dining room her parents were not in, she showered with silencing charms on, she basically made her home in a few rooms of the house, where their parents never looked. She lived in silence, and made sure to never be noticed. She was so good at this that when their father went to pick up the oldest at the station he kept waiting for her as well. Bella and Andy looked at each other in worry when they realized what was going on.
To the olders’ relief, Cissa came to Hogwarts two years after. And she, like her sisters before her, was a model child. She was sorted in Slytherin and she hung out with “proper” and “respectable” people, keeping low for the time being.
Cissa did her best to glide through the first year in Hogwarts unnoticed, but Lucius Malfoy was already courting her.This, in Bella’s opinion, was very weird: he was almost Bella’s age, and none of her sisters liked it. So Cissa didn’t give in. She let him talk to her, but stubbornly refused his courting.
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The first time someone broke the charade was that winter. Andy argued with their mother because she wanted to play Quidditch, her mother thought it was ‘unbecoming’. Druella had raised her wand, and Andy stopped arguing. It broke her heart: Andy loved flying, and she was a great Quidditch player, she knew she could make the team. But she also knew not to cross her mother, never. She had to make this sacrifice, if only to ensure her own safety, and her sisters. Their mother never Crucioed them, but what if she started now?
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Sirius came to Hogwarts after Cissa. And everything went to the dogs. He was in Gryffindor. And he made friends with a Potter, and two half bloods.That was bad.
Andy and Bella couldn’t clap. Sirius walked to the Gryffindor table with his head raised high. He knew that at home they wouldn’t be pleased, and Andy and Bella tried their best to tell him that they were on his side, and that they’d help him.
It was during that summer the girls finally learned about it. The abuse.
Regulus blabbered about it to Cissa: he was scared that when his father would come back, things with Sirius would be “worse than usual”
“What’s the usual?” had asked Cissa, concerned
“You know. A curse here and there. Being left in your room for days alone. The usual” he had said calmly, as if the knowledge that her little cousins were being hurt by their own parents didn’t break Cissa’s heart.
“Reg...that’s not the usual” she had said, unable to say more due to just how shocked she was.
So Bella, Andy, Cissa and now Sirius, started to pitch in ideas on how to get Sirius and Regulus out of their house too.
They decided to create a brand new home. They couldn’t stay with their parents after all.
They took their grandfather’s folder on all the black properties, and chose the one that was least used. One afternoon, Bella pretended to go to her friend’s house, but went to Diagon Alley instead: she bought a house elf for herself.
With her newly acquired asset she went to the property they had chosen: it was a big field with a house on it. Except for the fact that the house was falling apart and that the grounds around were in a horrible state.
Bella bound the elf to her magic, and she asked her to fix the house and the grounds. Then she went back home, to her sisters.
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With Bella in her last year, about to be seventeen, all the cousins felt somewhat giddy: the preparations were ready, the documents signed by all those who could (without alerting their parents), any proof of abuse had been documented and registered in multiple locations. Bella had her elf ready to create a bank account at Gringotts with her name only, ensuring that the vault was full with early investments.
That summer none of the cousins would go back to their houses; instead they’d pick us Regulus and they’d leave. They were all so excited, it was almost over!
But their charade was cut short by their DADA teacher.
Professor Hoggins used to be a monk, and he was very prudish in all things he did. When a second year Hufflepuff asked to go to the bathroom because of her period, Professor Hoggins told her not to come back.
So when he brought in Andromeda Black and Ted Tonks...Well everyone could imagine what was happening.
He was carrying the two lovers by their arms through the doors of the Great Hall, but Andy tripped and fell.
The professor didn’t even try to hold her up. He just screamed “Get up! Get up, you whore!”
Andy was a prefect, and she knew this would be her social downfall. She had to make sure this wasn’t her whole downfall.
“Bella,” she said. Still on the ground, tears threatening to spill
“GET UP SLUT!” yelled the professor, but Andy ignored him
“Bella, we agreed to play this charade,” she said, trying not to sob. Bella nodded.
“Bella, when do we stop it?” she asked, just a couple of tears carving her cheeks
“I can’t keep it up anymore” Andy said shaking her head
“GET UP!” the professor yelled again, but Andy was focused on her sisters
“This is my final act” she said “I’m sorry, I know I had to keep it up a little longer, I got reckless” she pleaded “I’m sorry Cissa, I’m so sorry”
And finally she cried: the tears fell and fell, and wouldn’t stop. While professor McGonagall yelled at Professor Hoggins, with Ted unable to do anything, as their professor was still holding him tight, Andy stayed there, on the dirty ground crying.
And that couldn’t stand.
Bellatrix Black stood up. She motioned to Cissa to come with her.
The sisters reached Andy quickly, and while Cissa crouched down and comforted her, Bellatrix started.
“How dare you?” she snarled “YOU DARE SHAME A MEMBER OF THE GREAT HOUSE OF BLACK! OVER WHAT? OVER YOUR INABILITY TO HOLD AN ERECTION?” half the great hall gasped, but Bella was not nearly over
“I couldn’t give less of a fuck if you want to yell at anyone else. But you yelled at my sister. You are slut shaming her? You’re as good as dead. You will not have peace as long as I’m alive: no one hurts my family and goes unpunished”
“Miss Black!” scolded Professor McGonagall
“I won’t apologize, professor. He on the other hand. Will beg for his life under my hand”
“MISS BLACK!” yelled Professor McGonagall
“BITE ME!” Bella screamed back. This stunned the professor so much, she didn’t have an answer. No one talked. No one commented. The only audible sound was that of a storm incoming
“You fucked up, Professor Hoggins. And not just for yourself.” She took her sister’s hand and helped her up.
“The charade is over, bitches. Now we’re playing with our cards in the open” she smiled, and everyone in the room could feel shivers down their spines. She was wearing the look of a psychopath, and they knew she was dangerous.
“Let’s see who will survive” Bella scoffed, like she knew that no one could survive them.
The girls left, and Sirius ran after them
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From the next day onward it was like the veil had been uncovered. The Black sisters had almost a new aura around them. And everyone knew just how dangerous they were.
Especially after Narcissa, a third year, fought and won against a sixth year who badmouthed Andy.
When one of the Black sisters was around it was impossible not to notice,
and when the three of them were together well...the only advice around was to run.
They received letters from their parents, of course. But Bella learned quickly how to destroy the howlers before they started speaking.
Bellatrix kept true to her promise: she mentally and emotionally tortured their professor. Never getting caught, obviously. She hurt him in the most subtle ways. And she drove him insane.
He killed himself the second week of July.
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After her graduation, just as the summer holidays begun, Bella apparated her sisters and Sirius to the house she had her elf build. Then she apparated to Grimmauld place, where she knew she’d find Regulus.
As fate would have it there was also her Grandfather Arcturus.
“Grandfather” she said, with the tone of someone who came for business, but the posture of someone who was protecting a loved one.
Regulus peeked at their grandfather from behind his cousin
“I will be taking my sisters and my cousins under my care, effective immediate.” she said, in a no nonsense tone
Arcturus raised an eyebrow “And why would I allow such thing?”
“I’m not asking” Bella corrected him, and Arcturus only said “Oh?”
“Should you sign, there would be less problems, of course. But I will be taking them with me. They’re safe with me. And I won’t allow Cygus and Druella to control our lives, not I’ll let Orion and Walburga hurt my cousins”
Arcturus thought she was being a brat, but he quickly realized that it wasn’t the case “Excuse me?” he asked
“Uncle Orion and Aunt Walburga have been hurting Sirius and Regulus. And My mother and Father have been trying to get us to abide to each and everyone of their desires. I refuse.” Bella produced a folder from thin air
“That’s proof of what I’m talking about. My parents have never been in our lives, ad expected us to be perfect, only what they wanted. They left us on our own ever since we were little. That is neglect. My sisters will not be subjected to it. Ever again.”
Arcturus was, with wide eyed, reading through the folder
“I don’t need your permission, but it’d be appreciated. We don’t really want to involve the ministry, don’t we?” asked Bella with a devilish smirk. In that moment the front door opened, and Bella heard and her parents’ and uncles’ angered voices. She thought that it was high time they got out of there
“We’ll be going now. Let us know what you decide to do” she apparated on the spot, leaving the house behind. For good.
Arcturus stayed at the desk, reading over the folder his granddaughter had given him.
He granted them his permission immediately.
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Life was so much better. They didn’t have to hide, they were free to do whatever they wished. No one held Sirius’ house against him, and no one forced the girls to behave in one way or the other.
Bella made some fruitful investments, heaving long established a good relationship with Goblins. That along with the ‘pocket money’ their grandfather sent each of the cousins, money wasn’t an issue. Uncle Alphard, out of the blue, helped them out with everything they needed, despite the fact that Walburga had cast him out from the family tree.
In that time, Regulus and Sirius became closer than ever. Not having a psychopathic mother that puts you against one another will do that to people. Even Regulus’ sorting in Slytherin didn’t break the bond between the two brothers. And the Black Sisters watched proudly as their two cousins grew to become wonderful men.
Not without help, of course. When Narcissa found that Sirius and his friends were bullying Severus Snape she took action where no one else did.
She cornered Sirius and his friends, and with her wand in hand she told them, not so calmly, that nothing warranted that kind of behaviour.
When sirius tried to protest, she asked him
“What if that was Regulus?” That shut him up.
Dumbledore took points from Slytherin because of that discussion: according to him it was nothing more than some jokes, boys being boys.
Narcissa didn’t agree, and she knew that if her cousin didn’t want to be very hurt, he would agree too.
To her satisfaction Severus Snape was never bullied again by the Marauders. There were pranks, in retaliation, but nothing over the line. And that was what mattered to her.
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Andromeda graduated with top marks, and she celebrated with her sister and her friends at a muggle pub. She enjoyed the night, knowing that the next day work awaited her. Andromeda had decided to become a healer. She knew there would be a lot of work involved, but she also wanted, no she needed to know how to heal.
Bellatrix had learned to protect, and to hurt. Andromeda wanted to know how to heal.
Her sisters had her back and that was all that mattered. Ted was on her side too; he was working on becoming a lawyer and he had promised her a full fledged courting once they were both done with their degrees. She had told him not to bother, that their love was enough. Bella and Cissa were shaking their heads in the background, and Ted had to pretend that he wasn’t about to be murdered by the Black sisters.
“I know, our love is enough. I just want the whole world to know how much I love you, and I want to marry you. But I want to do it properly”
At that Cissa shrieked something along the lines of “You’re too cute” and Bellatrix nodded her approval.
It was a slow process, but they were all healing. Slowly but surely.
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Two weeks later Bellatrix gathered all her family (her sister and their cousin, that is) in the living room to tell them something.
“I am seeing someone” she started. Regulus and Sirius wolf-whistled
“Her name is Anna” she said. For a moment there was silence, none of them sure on how to react. Bella braced herself for the worst
Then Regulus and Sirius wolf-whistled again, and Andy asked her “Does she know how crazy you are?” Bella threw a pillow at her, while Cissa laughed at her.
When they all calmed down, Cissa went to sit next to Bella, and with her heart on her sleeve she told her sister
“You know we’ll always love you, right?” and at that Bella burst into tears.
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The years passed, and once again the new generation of Blacks were attending a graduation: Narcissa left Hogwarts with straight Os in her NEWTS. Her family was very proud of her.
What surprised all of them, was Malfoy: Lucius was there, and, as soon as the ceremony was over, her proposed Narcissa to start courting her.
What surprised everyone else, was how Cissa said yes.
Bella still wasn’t sold on it, nor was Sirius. But apparently Lucius and Narcissa had been exchanging letters in secret for years, and they had been falling in love.
Bella didn’t directly object to their courting, but she did threaten Lucius. A lot.
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While the Black sisters bloomed into their potential, and their cousins slowly worked on unlearning their parents’ lessons, dark forces worked in the shadows. One Lord Voldemort was growing stronger and stronger, his followers popping up like daisies.
The Blacks wouldn’t have cared. They didn’t care, in fact.
But when some death eater tried to accost Regulus during his fifth year, to have him join the death eaters...Let’s just say that none of the cousins was pleased.
Andy had to miss a couple of classes, but she joined Bella and Cissa in an attack against the Death Eaters, who had just started to show their true colors.Voldemort had just publicly threatened both the ministry and any “impurity” of the wizarding society.
The three of them stormed the Mansion in Little Hangleton and killed or incapacitated all the people inside, Tom Marvolo Riddle included.
They sent an anonymous letter to the aurors, and they came and collected all the unfortunates that were in there.
The majority of death eaters spent some time in Azkaban or they even got off without penalties. For ‘Lord Voldemort’ he was to spend three years in Azkaban, but he died after few months.
And that was a lesson to the whole magical world, one they all learned and they never forgot. No one tries to hurt their family. Bella was ready to defend them with everything she had. And with her sisters by her side, no one was even able to stand a chance against them.