Marmoris | Rabastan Lestrange [1] ✔︎

27 | BONDS

Christmas break came around only a few days after the Yule Ball. Like most students Phoenix got on the train to spend Christmas with her family – or at least them among others. Although Purebloods usually didn't care about holidays they met up every year at a different household for dinner. That year it would take place at the Lestrange's which made Phoenix' stomach somehow cringe. After Rabastan had shown her a piece of his true identity she couldn't help but look at him differently and she was sure it wouldn't be any different with his parents. She had always looked at his mother Dilia as a kind woman compared to other Purebloods. It was hard to believe somebody as warm-hearted as her was in fact anything but that. Phoenix had considered several times to simply stay at Hogwarts with Dawn who had been disowned right the day using a Howler screaming at her right the day after the Yule Ball at lunch, especially since Maureen would be on vacation with her family as well, but she knew her mother would never allow it. Disowning Sirius had made her only stricter about how flawless the image of her family should be and Phoenix had to admit to not know what she would do in order to keep it scared her a little.

The day of the Christmas dinner Phoenix stood in her room at Grimmauld Place, staring out of the window. Dark clouds were covering the sky as if nature felt the dark times which seemed to be lying ahead. She had always thought of rainy days being comfortable as she loved to read next to the large window and to listen to the raindrops crackle against the class of the window, but somehow it made her feel rather sad. The uncomfortable feeling seemed to be hovering in the air wherever she looked. Everything looked to colourless. Even her own room which she had always liked seemed to be greyer.

Phoenix looked down at the nightstand which stood next to her bed to her left. On top of it lay her necklace, which she hadn't worn since she had seen Ariadne. The sapphire in the middle of the thin twines seemed to be the only colour in a grey world. Slowly Phoenix walked over, touching the jewellery with her hand. It was tempting. She only had to put it back on and she would be able to spend a complete evening without any foreign feelings or moving objects without touching them.

Right then she heard a knock on the door, which opened merely a second later. Her brother stepped in, giving her a smile.

"We want to leave. Are you ready?"

She glanced down at the necklace once more, taking a deep breath before picking it up.

"Almost. Would you help me put it on?"

Regulus nodded, stepping further into the room and taking the necklace from her. As she turned around she felt as if she was back in their childhood when she had insisted he would have to learn how to braid her hair. The two of them had spent hours sitting on her bed, laughing about his remarks about how stupid girls' hair was but in the end he had managed to do different styles of braiding. Phoenix smiled at herself in the mirror placed on the other side of the room as she watched Regulus stick his tongue out of the corner of his eyes in concentration. Soon a content smile spread over his face and he lifted his gaze.

He brushed her partially braided hair over her shoulder and grinned back at her. "In case you wonder, you're looking beautiful, sister."

"Thank you," Phoenix answered, feeling a sudden emptiness as she could feel how her abilities were pushed away.

She shot one last peek at her nearly knee-length white dress with laces on her back and on her arms. It was nothing compared to her dress for the Yule Ball but therefore it meant just as much since Sirius had bought it for her the year before. She simply hoped her mother wouldn't remember.

At last she turned around to Regulus. "We don't want to be late."

He nodded and offered his arm with a smirk. She let out a laugh, but accepted his offer. 

★

Even if her mother hadn't said anything about the dress, Phoenix wished she would have worn something else. Everybody was wearing dark colours, both women with dresses and men with suits. She was standing out like a tree on a hill only covered with grass.

She stood awkwardly next to her brother, who talked to people about subjects she didn't even want to think about. More than once they mentioned the Dark Lord and his army of Death Eaters or how low Hogwarts' standards had become over the years by tolerating Muggleborns as if they were worth just as much as Purebloods. So she kept silent and simply nodded in pretended approval from time to time, but she didn't fully pay attention. Secretly her eyes had lingered more than once on Rabastan who stood on the other side of the large saloon of the Lestrange's residence next to his older brother and his wife – Phoenix' cousin Bellatrix. He seemed somehow different than at school. His shoulders were more tensed, his smile seemed to be forced and his left hand was nervously tapping against his leg. Obviously he was just as uncomfortable as she was – perhaps even more.

Suddenly he lifted his gaze and his eyes met hers, a smirk crept onto his lips as he wiggled his eyebrows, which made her shake her head in amusement. Even if he was uncomfortable, he always knew how to make a situation a little more relaxed. But their eye contact broke of as he turned his head to answer to something Lucius Malfoy, a blonde man about his brother's age, had said. Phoenix too returned her attention to the conversation Regulus and Will's parents were having.

Her attention didn't last long and she looked back to Rabastan, only to catch him already looking at her. He slightly tilted his head towards the door of the room, obviously telling her he wanted her to leave with him, but she shook her head. They couldn't just leave; they weren't kids anymore. He seemed to think differently, pouting and placing his hands together in front of his chest as if he was praying, giving her a pleading look. Phoenix bit her lower lip to prevent herself from laughing out loud.

She rolled her eyes at him before turning to Regulus and whispering: "I'll be right back."

He glanced down at her and nodded. Phoenix smiled at Will's parents, excusing herself and walked over to the door, where Rabastan was waiting already. He opened the door and guided her through it by putting a hand on her back.

Hey hey

Yes, I'm still there. Finally our last week of school is over and I'm ready to post a never chapter. Usually holidays would mean there was more time to write but I'll go on a trip to Milan this week, which means there won't be any other chapters. I'll still do my best to find some time to write on my phone though, because I spent the past weeks with so many ideas for this story in my head and I didn't have any time to write them down. It was pure horror, I tell you.

However, I would like to dedicate this chapter to livlaas who has to listen to all of my ideas and problems all the time and who helped me a lot with this chapter and an upcoming surprise. Thank you so much.

Yours, Enya