Disclaimer: I do not own these characters or anything in their magical world. These characters and their world belong to the talented J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros.
Bella awoke to the sound of screaming. But it wasn’t the kind of screaming she was used to. They weren’t screams of terror or fear, not even anger; she was listening to screams of passion. Whoever was yelling, they were doing it because they were exasperated, worried, and concerned. It was clear that the two people loved each other, even as they fought. She couldn’t remember the last time someone yelled at her because they were concerned for her.
It was an effort just to open her eyes, and in the end pointless. The room was pitch black. She could see nothing. She wiggled around, ignoring the pain that surged through her body, and discovered that she was not restrained in anyway. It also appeared as though she was resting on a bed, as opposed to being tossed on some dungeon floor as she would have expected. Where was she? Why she not chained down like a prisoner? Why was it so dark? And, who the bloody hell kept screeching?
She forced herself not to focus on her pain. She needed to listen to the voices. Maybe they would give her some clue as to where she was and what they planned to do with her. It was a male and a female. The male’s voice was unfamiliar, but there was something about the woman’s that she recognized. She was sure that she had heard it before, a long time ago. She was certain that once upon a time she heard that voice on a regular basis. But who did it belong to? She had no idea.
She tried to relax her throbbing muscles, as she listened intently to the argument. With any luck, one of them would let something slip. She needed to grasp the situation. She needed to know how much trouble she was in. Normally, she would flee, but considering she was in too much pain to move and she couldn’t see anyway, it seemed unwise. She would bide her time, until she knew just what was happening around her.
The argument waged on, and she took in every word.
“She can’t stay here,” the male voice yelled. “Why would you even bring her here? The entire Ministry is searching for her. The entire wizarding world is searching for her. What do you think this is going to do to our daughter’s creditability? She’s an Auror, for Merlin’s sake! What do you think will happen to her when it comes out that her mother is attempting hide a convicted Death Eater? Did you even think about her?”
Were they talking about her? Why would someone try to hide her? What did that woman want to do to her?
“She was practically dead! I couldn’t leave her there. She’s my sister.”
Sister?! The word rang in Bella’s ears. That didn’t make sense. Her sister was dead. Narcissa was gone. But wait, Narcissa wasn’t her only sister. Andromeda! She hadn’t seen or spoken to her in years. Did Andromeda find her, and bring her home? Was she fighting with her husband in order to keep her safe? Why? Andromeda didn’t owe her anything. Bella had been horrible to her sister. She had no reason to help her. Andromeda had every right to leave her to die. Why didn’t she?
“She’s evil!” the man screamed, who Bella now assumed had to be Ted Tonks. “She worshipped You-Know-Who with every fiber of her being. Have you forgotten what she did to Frank and Alice? What about their son? He had to grow up without his parents. She killed your cousin, Sirius. Remember him? Why do you want to help her? This is insane. Just let me tell Nymphadora what you’ve done. She’ll make sure that woman is in the custody of the right people, and she’ll keep you safe.”
“No!” Andromeda shrieked, in a desperate voice. “They’ll toss her in Azkaban. She’ll never survive in her condition. You can’t do that to her.”
Bella couldn’t believe the words coming out of her sister’s mouth. Andromeda was willing to risk everything for her. This little stunt could easily land her in Azkaban, and she honestly didn’t seem to care. It didn’t make sense. She had treated Andromeda like rubbish for years. Her sister had no reason to care what happened to her, and there she was doing everything in her power to protect her. Why?
“Why do you care?” Ted demanded, echoing Bella’s thoughts. “She wouldn’t care if it was you. She sure wouldn’t risk her life to save yours. You don’t owe her anything.”
“She’s my sister,” Andromeda sobbed. “She’s the only sister I have left. I can’t send her to her death. I just can’t. Why can’t you understand that? She’s my family!”
“She told you that you were no sister to her. She told you that you were nothing to her. It’s not your responsibility to take care of her. Let me tell Nymphadora. She can fix this. Then we can go on with our lives.”
“I won’t let you send her to Azkaban.”
“She’s going to Azkaban, no matter what we do. You need to decide if we’re going with her.”
“I am not throwing my sister out, and neither are you. She’s weak. She could have died.”
Bella heard footsteps. Fortunately, they were not coming towards her. It didn’t sound like Ted was planning on physically removing her from the house.
A few minutes later, she could hear Andromeda’s voice again. “Where are you going?”
“Out.”
“You can’t have her arrested.”
“I won’t,” Ted told her, in a much calmer voice, “but only because it would result in you going down with her. I hope you use this time to consider the consequences of what you’re doing. It’s not worth it, Andy. She’s not worth it.” With that, the door slammed loudly.
The house became silent, with the exception of footsteps headed towards her. She heard a door squeak, and then her sister’s forced cheery voice, “You’re awake. How are you feeling?”
“Like my entire body is on fire,” Bella told her in a hoarse voice. It was a very true statement. “Why is it so dark in here?”
“What do you mean?”
“What do I mean? It’s pitch black. I can’t see anything.”
There was no response.
“Andromeda?”
“Bella, it’s not dark in here. It’s the middle of the afternoon. Sun is shining through the window. The room is really bright.”
Panic ceased Bella. It was dark. She knew it was dark. She could see. Why would her sister lie about something like that? What was the point? In her frantic state, she jumped into a sitting position, paying no attention to her pain. She waved her fingers in front of her face. Nothing.
Andromeda had no reason to lie. The room must be lit. Then why couldn’t she see. She could feel the tears coming to her eyes, and she did nothing to stop them. She allowed herself to sob loudly.
“I”I can’t see anything,” she yelled, between sobs. “I’m blind.”