selenophile || remus lupin

chapter fifty six

27 December 1996

12:54 pm

Ophelia was sitting upon a couch in the library, reading through a book in French, Malédictions Mortelles De L'âge Des Ténèbres. Of course, the Blacks forbid anything related to muggles or having any knowledge whatsoever that wasn't spreading pureblood ideas or the dark arts. They were graphic, brutal readings, but it was Ophelia's only form of entertainment.

One of the doors to the library gently swung open revealing Regulus, holding a tray with vegetable soup and a bit of bread. He walked in and sat beside her, handing her the tray once she set down her book.

"I had Kreacher make some soup, I told him it was for me," explained Regulus.

"Thank you, Reg. I honestly have barely gotten any food other than from you. I mean, there was the Christmas ball, but other than that you're my only food supply."

"This isn't the first time we've had to do this, and I'm sure it won't be the last. As long as mother and father don't find out, which they won't, we'll be okay."

"By the time we get back to school, it'll have been a few weeks. People will notice that I've been losing a lot of weight. They're going to talk."

"I'll make sure they don't talk. And I'll try my best to get you food, but it's so hard. If anyone realizes, you'll get an even worse punishment, as well as myself."

"Well, thank you, Reg. Thank you for always risking that for me."

"I just don't want you to starve, you don't need to thank me for that."

"Regulus, we have a guest, answer the door!" shouted Walburga from a few rooms over. Regulus sighed and got up, giving Ophelia an annoyed look and leaving the room.

Ophelia took the soup and started drinking it, it had only been about a week and this is one of the only things she's gotten to eat. To a point, it was starting to get nauseating, thinking about eating. A cruel coping mechanism that her body did subconsciously, the less you eat, the less you want to eat. Thinking about food would sometimes make her feel sick to her stomach, even though she was so very hungry. It hadn't been long and her body was already trying to adjust itself to such little food.

If it keeps going, it'll be another week with almost no food, and Ophelia had been starved before at Grimmauld Place, but without Sirius, it was getting harder to distract her parents, with more attention on her. After the night before, they had made it very clear that she was fat and ugly and that the only way Rosier would want her is if she was skinnier. It made no sense, she was already skinny, she didn't need to lose any more weight. But, her parents made no effort to hear her out and made it harder for her to access food.

They no longer invited her to dinners, during all hours of the day, the kitchens were locked and inaccessible, Kreacher was forbidden to make food if he knew it was for her, and Regulus was being watched like a hawk to make sure he didn't sneak anything in. On the extremely rare occasion that he was able to get her a bit, it was just that. Only a bit of food would be given to her, her parents were really digging her grave.

She had gotten so lost in her thoughts that she had barely drunk any of the soup and hadn't even touched the bread, but Walburga had started calling out for her daughter and Ophelia quickly put the food away in case her mother had started to come to find her.

"Yes, mother?"

"Come into the dining room immediately. We don't want to keep our guest waiting?"

Ophelia rolled her eyes at this. Her parents had guests constantly, always having private conversations and meetings, most likely death eater meetings. But today there was only one guest mentioned, and whoever she might've thought it would be, it wasn't who she expected at all.

As she pushed open the large doors to the dining room, she was met with three cruel smiles, all eyes on her: Walburga, Orion, and Severus Snape.

She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion but greeted him nonetheless, "Snape," she nodded stiffly.

"Black," he nodded back, his nasal voice filling the room.

"We alongside young Mr. Snape here have been discussing the dark arts, as we do of course. We got into talking about curses and we swapped a few, and Snape here has one particular spell that he's told us of. He has to leave now, but your father and I are eager to try it out," sneered Walburga.

Snape stood up from where he was sitting and calmly walked over to where Ophelia was standing near the door. She walked up to him, grabbed his tie, and wrenched him over to where her lips were aligned with his ear.

"Do my mummy and daddy know that you're just a pathetic little halfblood? Such a shame it would be if they were to know that they let a crossbreed walk around in this house."

"It wouldn't matter, I don't need their approval after the dark lord's approval."

"Are you implying that you're already a death eater, Snape?"

Snape pulled up his left sleeve very briefly to flash her his dark mark, inked deep into his skin.

"Well, I can't say I'm surprised, I just didn't expect you to get into his ranks so young."

"Of course you didn't, you've never done anything of use or talent in your life."

"Once we get back to school and I can use my wand again, I will slit your throat, mark my words."

Snape smirked at that and swiftly left the room, leaving the three Blacks alone.

Walburga and Orion pushed themselves up from their chairs and walked slowly and elegantly towards Ophelia, wanting to make her back up into the corner and cower. Of course, she would never do that, even if they were about to use the killing curse, she would never show that her parents were getting to her. She stood her ground, waiting for the effects of this new curse to hit her.

Orion grinned evilly before pointing his wand at her and shouting, "Sectumsempra!"

Ophelia felt several large gashes cut into her chest and stomach, immediately drenching her shirt in blood. The last thing she saw was her parents looking like they had just won the muggle lottery before passing out onto the cold, marble floor.