~~PART THREE: SEARCHING FOR THE PAST~~ 

~Chapter 29- Depression and Destruction~

The war had definitely begun. Voldemort had already destroyed a Muggle bridge, resulting in a mass-killing, and dementors had cast a gloomy mist everywhere. The Order had even lost a member to a murder carried out by Voldemort's followers.

There was nothing anyone could do about it. The Wizarding community was trying their best, but all we managed to do was get Cornelius Fudge out of office. He had been replaced by Rufus Scrimgeour, previously head of the Auror office.

I was sitting comfortably in a chair at home, looking out the window. The only thing that gave away the fact that this was summer was the heat. There was so much mist outside that the sun rarely came out. It suited my mood, though. I hadn't felt any happiness since before Sirius's death.

Andromeda was in the kitchen cooking our dinner. Dora was sitting in another chair, staring ahead blankly with her head resting in one hand. Ted was reading the Prophet.

"Have you heard about this?" he asked. "Harry Potter, the Chosen One?"

"No," I answered. "But does it have anything to do with the Department of Mysteries event?"

"Yes," Ted said. "It says Harry Potter will have to be the one who kills He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, or so they predict. It has to do with that-what was it, Lyra? Prophecy?"

"Yeah."

I continued to stare at the gloomy atmosphere outside when an owl tapped on the window.

"I'll get it," I said morosely as I got up from my chair and opened the window. The tiny owl fluttered in with a purple pamphlet addressed to us. I took it from him, gave him a bronze Knut, and went to sit back down as he flew off.

"What's that?" Dora asked me.

I shrugged and read the front page of the pamphlet. "Issued on behalf of the Ministry of Magic: Protecting your home and family against dark forces."

"Oh, yeah," Dora said. "We made those at the Ministry."

She continued to stare blankly again. I began to read the info out loud.

"The Wizarding community is currently under threat from an organization calling itself the Death Eaters ... yeah, yeah, we know," I muttered, once I realized nobody in the room was listening. I began to read in my head.

Don't leave the house alone ... obvious. Try not to go out at night ... be aware of Shield and Disillusionment charms, Side-Along Apparition ... there were bits on Polyjuice Potion and the Imperius Curse ... it wasn't until I read the very last point that I came across any confusion.

"Hey ... " I said. "It says Death Eaters may be using Inferi. What are Inferi?"

That caught everyone's attention. Dora's eyes lost the blank look, Ted looked at me from over the newspaper, and Andromeda had frozen in the middle of stirring something in the kitchen.

"Inferi," Andromeda began, "Are dead bodies that have been bewitched to serve the Death Eaters. You-Know-Who used to have several armies of them ... he killed enough people ... " She trailed off, not wanting to say anything else.

I didn't want to hear anything else. The thought was already making me sick, even more so when I thought of how my parents could have aided Voldemort in creating Inferi but killing people.

Dora sighed and stood up. "Mum, I can't stay for dinner. We have a meeting tonight."

Andromeda, looking somewhat disappointed, turned and said, "Well ... yes, okay."

"I should go now. I'll see you tomorrow, probably."

"Nymphadora, you really should ... come live with us again. With the Death Eaters attacking left and right, it would be best if we all stuck together."

Dora shook her head. "Sorry, but I need to stay close to headquarters. I'll see you later."

She walked out the door. I heard a popping sound, indicating that she had Disapparated. As soon as she was gone, Andromeda sighed. "Something's got into her."

"Yes," I agreed. "She hasn't been right since ... " I didn't say it, but Andromeda understood.

"Do you really think that's it, though?" she asked. "They didn't know each other for very long ... "

"I didn't know him for very long either," I said, my voice cracking.

"Well, yes ... " Andromeda said. She continued to stir the vegetables in the pot she had on the stove. I heard her begin to mutter to herself. She did that when she was nervous or had a lot on her mind.

"Andromeda, what's the matter?"

"Everything," she said with a sigh. "In just a few weeks, everything's become so ... depressing. This mist outside, the people ... I hate seeing everything like this. You and Nymphadora are always so down all the time."

"I know," I said. "But so much has happened ... Sirius ... " My voice cracked again.

"Yes," she said gently. "You know, I used to be close to Sirius. We always felt close because we both thought our family's beliefs were wrong. We were both burned off the family tree. But while I was close to Cissy and Bella, he never - " She stopped abruptly.

"I don't get it," I said sharply - much sharper than I had intended. "Why do you still call them that?"

She shook her head, sighed, and said, "I don't even realize it. It's just a habit." She sighed again. "You know ... I've been thinking about this lately. I want to clean out the attic. There's a lot up there to go through."

Though I was surprised by her spontaneous change of subject, I felt slightly excited. The attic might have answers. There might be pieces of information that I could find, if Andromeda had anything from the past, from her childhood. She was such a nostalgic person that I wouldn't be surprised if she had kept everything before she had been disowned.

"We should do it tomorrow," I said, my voice happier than it had been in days. "I'll help."

The following day, I woke up with enthusiasm. I dressed, left my bedroom, and went up to the attic. Andromeda had already been there; boxes were scattered across the wooden floor. Some were open with papers and faded pictures overflowing at the top.

I walked over to a cluster of old boxes, waiting for Andromeda to come up. I didn't know what she wanted to throw out and keep. Several of the boxes were closed; several were filled to the top with nothing but old school papers and assignments from what I could see. Others seemed to contain pictures and letters.

I sat there, sweating in the summer heat when I spotted something on top of the box. I picked it up. It was an old photograph of three girls, each laughing happily and hugging each other.

The first one had shining black hair and appeared to be the oldest. The second one, who appeared to be the middle girl, had light brown hair. The third had blonde hair, pale skin, and was easily the smallest of the three. I turned the photo over and read in a handwritten font:

1968

Bellatrix, age 12

Andromeda, age 10

Narcissa, age 8

I stared at it. The three looked so happy, so close ... what had happened between them?

I put the picture down and picked up the item underneath. It was a letter written on a very old, yellowed piece of parchment with faded ink that was difficult to read. It said:

September 5th, 1962

Dear Andy,

Hogwarts has been great! I was instantly sorted into Slytherin house just like Mum and Dad. It's great-nearly everyone here is pureblood like us. Two years from now, I'm sure we'll both be together in Slytherin.

Anyway, I'll let you know that I've made several new friends here. It's great. We all immediately became close. There's Evan Rosier-he came from a pureblood family and is fascinated with hexes, jinxes, and curses, even the darkest ones, which he knows about from his family. He knows more than he should for a first year. And there's also Rodolphus Lestrange-the two of us met on the first day and we're practically best friends.

I miss you, Mum, Dad, and Cissy of course. I can't wait until Christmas when I'll get to see you again. Tell everybody I love them and miss them and that school's going fine. I love all my classes, especially Defense Against the Dark Arts. Learning about these things makes me want to grab my wand and cast the spells we learn about!

I've found the Dark Arts particularly fascinating. It's amazing how much a simple incantation can do and the lengths some wizards will go as far as the Dark Arts. I want to know more, but there's a limit on how much they can teach us since we're only first years.

I promise I haven't forgotten about you, Andy. I think about you and Cissy every day. I miss the days where we used to spend all of our time together, but I am really enjoying Hogwarts.

Well, I miss you (as I've said) and hope to hear from you! Please write back.

Much love,

Bella

Wow. I was stunned. When Andromeda had told me that they had been close at one time, she wasn't kidding. I felt heartbroken just imagining what may have gone on between the two. My heart ached to know more; there was just so much I didn't know about my family.

But even if Bellatrix and Andromeda had been close, it was obvious that Bellatrix and her obsession with the Dark Arts had been there from the beginning. The indications in the letter were clear. She was already potential Death Eater.

Unexpectedly the attic door opened and Andromeda stood in the doorway. "Oh ... " she said, noticing what was in my hand. "I thought you were waiting for me."

"I was, but then I ... I saw ... I'm sorry, I didn't really think ... "

"It's okay."

"Andromeda ... can you tell me what happened? How things came to be between the two of you? Please tell me. As your niece and her daughter, I think I have the right to know ... "

"You're right. I've kept everything from you for too long. You were bound to find out eventually. I could tell you, but I'd rather show you ... "

"Show me?"

"Yes. We don't have a Pensieve, but I'm sure someone from the Order does," she said softly. "If I gave you the memories, could you ask the Order if you could borrow one?"

"Yes. There's a meeting tomorrow. I'll have Dora take me with her," I said.

"Okay. Here." She took out her wand and conjured a flask out of nowhere. Then a strange silvery substance poured from her head. She gathered it up and put it in the flask before handing it to me.

"That should tell you everything," she said weakly.

"Thanks. This means a lot."

She nodded, and I noticed a few tears escape from her eyes that she had obviously been trying her absolute hardest to hold back.