HP-only Five Things Meme

[runespoor]

The bad news are that I can't go on holidays, my computer crashed, and the USB devices that miraculously held several dozens of thousand words of written words have been infected by some virus which means that said fics cannot be posted on this computer. I am not having my best fandom summer ever.

But! OTOH, there's been the release of Deathly Hallows.

So here's the deal: ask me for a five-things (or five-ways-that, or five-times-that, or whatever) thingie about HP.

If you ask about Andromeda Black, you get another free! five-things! thingie!

(I expect spoilers in comments.)

Comments

Five times Andromeda Black liked her sisters

[runespoor7.livejournal.com]

i.

Ted and Andromeda get married in the middle of what is swiftly turning into a sea of letters from Andromeda's family, warmly congratulating her on the birth of her incredible child and begging her with veiled threats to come back within the family. (There are also Howlers, from Andromeda's aunt, but they don't count.) They get married because Nymphadora needs the legal protection, formally binding her to her father.

Bellatrix is the only one who doesn't send anything at all and pretends Andromeda never existed; Narcissa sends no letter, but a handsome Moses basket for Andromeda's child.

They are the only ones not pretending that Andromeda's choise can so easily be undone.

ii.

Summer in the Black residence. Narcissa is painting her nails for the third time in two days, Andromeda is lounging on Narcissa's bed with her eyes half-closed, and Bellatrix is idly twisting her wand between the fingers on her left hand, while her right hand is twisting a lock of her hair.

"God this is boring," Andromeda sighs heavily, rolling over and vaguely wishing she could have a smoke.

Bellatrix grunts. Narcissa glances up from the pink shine of her nails.

"We could play a little Quidditch," the blond suggests. "If we took our brooms and just let the Snitch free - the first to catch it wins."

"I'm bored, not suicidal," Andromeda retorts.

"Cissy, you're Slytherin's Seeker," Bellatrix reminds her youngest sister before in a long-suffering tone.

Silence stretches out, until Andromeda, who has grown tired with counting the ruffles in Narcissa's sheets, says, "I've got Muggle magazines in my room. D'you want me to go get them?"

Merely thinking about moving is an effort, but if that's what it takes to shake them out of their apathy, she'd be willing to do it. First she'll have to endure Bella's recriminations and Cissy's wariness, of course, but she's used to those being the price to pay for anything fun in life. Bella, Andromeda fleetingly thinks, just doesn't know how to have fun.

But no outraged screeching comes; instead, after a heavy pause, Narcissa's voice asks, in a mildly interested tone, "Do they have personality tests?"

iii.

When Andromeda strode onto the battlefield, baby Teddy on her hip and her eyes dry even when she looked down on her daughter's grotesquely peaceful corpse, the anguished cry of her name reached her ears only a moment before arms were flung around her, shaking, and Narcissa's blond head was buried against Andromeda's shoulder, sobbing and babbling again and again how sorry she was and how Bella was dead, dead.

Andromeda looked up and a dozen of feet away Narcissa's husband and son were standing, both looking so alike, embarrassed, and shaken. Lucius wasn't looking at her until Narcissa wailed Andromeda's name a second time, and then he looked straight into Andromeda's eyes; Narcissa's son Draco was glancing at her repeatedly, then flushed and looked away.

Slowly, Andromeda's free arm rose and gripped her sister's shoulder.

Re: Five times Andromeda Black liked her sisters

[mariagoner.livejournal.com]

Narcissa sends no letter, but a handsome Moses basket for Andromeda's child.

Damn. Damn! This AND the third drabble killed me dead. Your Narcissa is just... DAMN. But still so very perfect!