“Rachel! Get down here right this instant!”
Rachel Lestrange flinched at the sound of her uncle’s voice. It seemed that he always sounded angry when he spoke to her. Rachel could never figure out what she had done to make him hate her so much.
“Coming!” she shouted back. She quickly stuffed away the book she had been reading, grabbed her wand, and stuffed it in her pocket. She then hurried down the stairs.
“What is it, Uncle?” Rachel asked as she drew closer to him. His eyebrows were drawn together in anger and annoyance.
“We need to get going. I have some business to take care of at the Ministry, and I need you to come with me,” Lucius Malfoy snapped.
“What business do you need to take care of?”
“Must you always ask so many questions? It’s really none of your business. Now, take some Floo powder and get going,” he said angrily.
Rachel sighed as she grabbed a handful of the glittering green powder and tossed it into the fireplace. She then stepped forward and said as clearly as she could, “Ministry of Magic!” The next thing she knew, the world had become a swirling mess of color, as she was transported from fireplace to fireplace, until at last she arrived at the Ministry, where she stepped out into the gleaming Atrium.
Rachel sighed once again as she stood waiting for her uncle to come behind her. If it was her choice, the Malfoys were the last family on Earth that she would choose to live with, but she had nowhere else to go. Her parents had been locked up in Azkaban prison for much of her life because they had tortured two well-known and beloved wizards into insanity. Rachel sometimes ached deep inside thinking of her parents. She couldn’t remember anything about them. She wasn’t even sure that she wanted to know them, if they were so willing to hurt other people.
Lucius stepped out of the fireplace and pushed Rachel forward with his cane in one motion. “Walk quickly and look smart, now,” he said coolly. “No time for dilly-dallying.”
Rachel fumed quietly as she struggled to keep up with Lucius’ long strides. Truth be told, she hated him just as much as he hated her. He was controlling and apathetic, and he hated Muggles and Muggle-borns. Rachel would never tell a living soul this, but she didn’t really see how someone’s bloodline made them worthless-or powerful. From what she had seen at school, the Muggle-borns were just as powerful as the purebloods-sometimes even more so. Why, Hermione Granger, whose parents just happened to be Muggles, could take Rachel’s cousin Draco in a duel any day.
“Stop thinking and look lively,” Lucius broke in suddenly. “The Minister’s coming.”
Rachel paused and stood still. Indeed, Cornelius Fudge himself was walking towards them, looking his familiar combination of a caring grandfather and a foolish man.
The Minister extended his hand to Lucius, and they shook. “Good to see you, Lucius,” Fudge said pleasantly. “How are you?”
“Quite good,” Lucius replied in a velvety voice. “So good, in fact, that I happen to have brought some-ah-spare change with me.” He gave the black silk bag he had tied around his wrist a gentle rattle.
Fudge’s eyes widened. “You plan to make another donation to the Ministry?”
Lucius smiled. “To St. Mungo’s, in fact. They have so many patients that need more care than they’re currently receiving. I do what I can to help.”
Fudge swallowed and nodded. “Of course, of course.”
Lucius gently laid his fingers on Rachel’s arm. “I don’t believe you’ve met my niece Rachel, Minister.”
Fudge turned his gaze to Rachel. “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he said politely as they shook hands.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Minister,” Rachel replied.
Fudge smiled at Lucius. “Such a nice young lady, Lucius. If this is your doing, I applaud you.”
“Well, I suppose I may have had something to do with how she was raised,” Lucius replied. Rachel desperately wanted to wipe that smirk off his face. So that’s he had wanted her to come! So that he could show her off to the Minister of Magic like a grand showpiece! Rachel’s fists curled in anger.
“Say, isn’t that young Harry Potter coming toward us?” Lucius remarked.
Fudge turned and made a face. “Yes, it appears so,” he said grumpily. “We just tried him for using a spell illegally outside of school. He got off. All Dumbledore’s doing, of course.”
“That Dumbledore,” Lucius said cattily. “Always poking his nose into places where it doesn’t belong.”
Fudge sighed. “I couldn’t agree with you more, Lucius. That boy got off by the skin of his teeth and if it had been my decision-well-his wand would be snapped in half and he would never return to Hogwarts again.”
Harry Potter drew close to them then, along with a frowning red-haired man. “Hello, Minister,” the man said nervously. The red hair made Rachel think him to be a Weasley.
“Hello, Arthur,” Fudge replied somewhat harshly.
Lucius smiled at Arthur. “Hello, Arthur,” he, too, said.
Arthur swallowed. It appeared that he would like nothing better than to strangle Lucius. “Hello, Lucius,” he said with force.
Rachel’s eyes shifted to Harry. She could see that his eyes were on her as well. “Hello, Harry,” she said, trying to sound civil.
Harry looked back at her blankly. “Sorry, but er-who are you?”
“I’m Rachel. Rachel Lestrange.”
Recognition dawned in Harry’s eyes, and he instantly recoiled. “Wait-are you-are you related to Bellatrix Lestrange?”
Rachel felt a slight twinge as she replied. “Yes. She’s my mother.”
“Oh,” was Harry’s only reply. She could practically feel hatred radiating off him in waves.
Rachel felt her insides flare with anger. How dare he! He hated her, and he didn’t even know her. That made him just like Lucius. She felt familiar hatred rise up within her.
“But you don’t see me asking questions about your mother, now do you?” Rachel snapped. She leaned forward so that her face was as close to Harry’s as she could muster it. “You don’t see me asking you who you’re related to, so that I can automatically assume that you’re just like them.” Rachel took a deep breath. “That makes you prejudiced, Harry Potter. You may think you’re a great hero, but in reality you’re the same judgmental, pathetic scum as the rest of the world.”
Harry stepped back. “What are you talking about? I didn’t say anything.”
Rachel’s eyes alone accused him. “But you were thinking it.”
“I wasn’t-“
“Harry, we really ought to be getting going,” Arthur Weasley broke in suddenly. “Molly’s expecting us at home. Minister, it was good to see you.”
Fudge nodded. “And you, Arthur.”
Mr. Weasley took Harry by the hand and led him over to the fireplaces where witches and wizards were rapidly appearing and disappearing. Harry looked back his shoulder at Rachel. She made a fist at him.
“Well, I suppose we should be going, too,” Lucius Malfoy said suddenly. “It was, as always, a pleasure talking to you, Minister.”
“And you, Lucius,” Fudge replied. “I’ll be certain to get your donation made to St. Mungo’s.”
“Of course. I'll be seeing you around, Minister,” Lucius replied, then took Rachel by the arm and dragged her along to the fireplaces.
“You’d best make this quick,” he hissed in her ear. “That was quite a display you put on with Mr. Potter. Do not ever speak with him in that manner again or you will face the consequences. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Uncle,” Rachel whispered. He handed her some Floo powder and pushed her forward into the fire.
“Malfoy Manor,” Rachel said forlornly.
This was turning out to be a truly horrible day.
The first words Rachel heard as she stepped out of the fireplace were her Aunt Narcissa’s: “Are you packed? Have you packed yet for school, Rachel?”
Rachel brushed the soot off herself and smiled. Even though Narcissa worried a bit too much sometimes, it was at least comforting that she seemed to like Rachel, unlike Lucius.
“That’s just what I’m fixing to go do,” Rachel replied as she started up the stairs. “It shouldn’t take me too long.”
“All right,” Narcissa replied as Lucius stepped out of the fireplace. Rachel heard her say, “Oh, hello, Lucius. Where have you been?” as she stepped into her room.
Rachel took a quick stock of the things she had to pack and was just sitting down to fold her clothes and put them in her trunk when there were loud footsteps behind her.
Rachel turned. Draco Malfoy stood there, a rather nasty grin on his face.
She made a face and turned back to her packing. “Oh. It’s you.”
Draco walked over and settled down on top of the dresser. “Yes. It’s me. Miss me much?”
Rachel rolled her eyes. “Go away, Draco.”
Draco smiled. “Oh, but I’m afraid I don’t want to. You’re so much fun to torture, you see.” He stretched out on the dresser. “Heard from your parents lately?”
Rachel stiffened. He was moving into painful territory. “Go away, Draco,” she said, this time more forcefully.
Draco grinned. He knew he had hit the jackpot. “Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot. They never write you, do they? They don’t care enough to send even one letter? Pity, pity.” He slowly got up and made his way over to Rachel, where he leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Pity that their daughter’s too much of a goody-goody to ever make a proper servant for the Dark Lord. Pity that Dumbledore hates her, so she can’t even make a decent spy for the Order of the Phoenix. She’s no good to anyone. Pity, pity.”
Draco made one final smirk and sauntered out of the room. Rachel could feel the tears already pricking her eyes as he left. How did he manage to always make her feel so bad?
Oh, she couldn’t wait to get to Hogwarts.
Falling for an Eternity by slytherin_princess_9
Chapter Notes: This is my first stab at writing fan fiction, so don't go in expecting much. =/ I own nothing; Harry Potter belongs entirely to J.K. Rowling. The Abuse and Violence warnings are for later chapters. The Alternate Universe warning is because Rachel is my own original character that does not actually exist in the Potterverse, and because most of Books 5 and 6 are disregarded; the story picks up at the beginning of Book 5 and moves on from there. Thanks for reading!