The Dark Lord's Pet Princess

48. Little Dragon

Occlumency lessons with Severus, became Larissa's least favourite activity, as she did not enjoy having her mind invaded on a regular basis.
The sessions were not all that enjoyable for Severus either, as Larissa's life had been so miserable thus far, and he didn't like having to watch her painful memories.
Although Larissa hated her evenings with Severus, she knew that she had to become good at Occlumency before she saw Sirius. As she didn't want to put her brother in danger.
Luckily for her, Voldemort didn't care what she got up to in her free time, so whenever Severus wasn't teaching at Hogwarts, he could train Larissa.

It wasn't long before the school term ended and the holidays began.
This meant that Draco Malfoy would be returning home for the holidays.
Voldemort wasn't at Malfoy Manor all the time, and even when he was, he stuck to his room and saw no one.
So no one was worried about Draco bumping into him.
But since Larissa lived at the manor permanently, she was going to have to meet Draco.

Since Larissa hadn't seen Draco in nearly 14 years, she was nervous about meeting him again.
She also wasn't sure how he'd react to seeing her, as his parents were breaking the law by allowing her into their house, and Larissa wasn't sure how Draco would feel about that.
When Draco arrived home, he was brought to one of the small drawing rooms where Larissa was waiting.
"As we told you on the way over, we have a guest staying with us" informed Narcissa, as she pushed open the drawing room door.
Draco followed his mother into the room, and Lucius brought up the rear.

"This is my cousin; Larissa Black" continued Narcissa.
Since Bellatrix was in Azkaban, Andromeda was an outcast, Regulus was dead, and Sirius was in hiding, Larissa was the first Black family member that Draco had met.
Orion, Walburga, Cygnus and Druella had all died several years earlier, so Draco didn't really have many memories of them either.
"It's good to see you again Draco. You won't remember me, but I used to babysit you when you were a baby. I'm sorry I haven't been around much, but things all went a bit wrong and I had to go into hiding for my own safety" admitted Larissa.

"Larissa is presumed dead, as no one has seen her since the dark lord's disappearance all those years ago. She will be staying here for the time being, and it goes without saying that you must speak of her to no one" said Lucius sternly.
"Yes father" mumbled Draco.
"How about you leave us alone to get reacquainted?" Suggested Larissa.
"That's a wonderful idea" replied Lucius.
"Don't be too long though, as dinner is not far away" reminded Narcissa.
"We will meet you in the dining room" said Larissa.

Once Lucius and Narcissa had left, Draco seemed to relax a little, and Larissa began to get a better look at him.
"You look a lot like your father" complimented Larissa.
"Thank you" replied Draco.
"I used to like coming here and watching over you when you were small. I used to call you little dragon" admitted Larissa.
"Really?"
"Yes, because of your name"
"I don't remember anyone calling me anything other than Draco"
"Well, I've been away for a long time, so it's understandable that have no memories of me".

"Where have you been exactly?" Questioned Draco.
"I'm sure whether or not I can answer that. Tell me, what has your mother told you about me?" Asked Larissa.
"She said that you are a lot like my aunt Bellatrix. She also said that you serve you-know-who" Draco said quietly.
"It's true, I do serve him, but I think you'll find that I am nothing like your aunt. We may have been similar a long time ago, but as we became adults, me and Bella stopped being so alike. However, I expect you know little about her either, since she's been locked up for nearly 14 years".
Larissa decided not to use Voldemort's name in front of Draco as she didn't, want to frighten him.

"So, it's true, you really do serve him?" Quizzed Draco.
"I do... I am a Black. Certain things were expected of me, so I really had no choice but to join the death eaters. I was with him on the night he lost his powers, and I have been in hiding with him ever since. I have had little contact with the outside world these past 14 years" admitted Larissa.
"But you're here now"
"I am. I trust you know about your father, and the things he did in the first wizarding war?"
"I know that he was a death eater, but that's all I know".

"Has your father told you that the dark lord has risen?" Asked Larissa.
"Yes" answered Draco.
"Good. You can't tell anyone about him, since the Ministry are currently denying his existence right now, which suits the dark lord just fine" replied Larissa.
"Is he here too?"
"He does often stay here, and I'm sure you will have the chance to make his acquaintance before your return to Hogwarts in September. However, he is a busy man, and he doesn't stay in one place for very long. I'm just glad that he has decided I can remain here with my family, instead of following him around".

"Are you and my mother close?" Questioned Draco curiously.
"We weren't as teenagers, but towards the end of the war, after your birth, we became very close. I always saw your mother, Bella and Andy as my sisters. And a lot of people actually thought we were" revealed Larissa.
Draco frowned, "Andy?".
"Your mother's sister, Andromeda. We used to call her Andy. She was cast out of the family for marrying a Muggle-born. None of us have seen her since then"
"She married a Mudblood?".
"Yes. Now you see why your mother never mentioned her. We were forbidden from talking about Andy after she was disowned. She was removed from the family tree and cast out for all eternity".

"She deserves it, for marrying a filthy Mudblood" sneered Draco.
Larissa sighed, even though her feelings towards Muggle-borns were different to other death eaters, she knew that she had to pretend to hate them like everyone else.
"Yes, Andy dishonored her family in a way that is unforgiveable... Now, let's go and see if dinner is ready" suggested Larissa.
"Good idea. After spending all day riding on a train, I'm starving" admitted Draco.
"I bet you are" replied Larissa.