𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐒 | f. w

xxx. the truth at last

chapter thirty
THE TRUTH AT LAST

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» » "WHAT ARE YOU talking about?!", Edith's eyes flicked between Lucius and Alexander, the latter refusing to meet them at all. Her breath stuck to her throat, her hands growing sweaty against her lap, and her heart beating rapidly within the comforts of her chest. Time stood still yet again, and it seemed as if nothing would help her calm down in that very moment.

Lucius only snarled her way, his lip twitching into a degrading grin as he continued to munch on whatever food was placed before him.

"Alexander didn't tell you?", he huffed, casting a glance at the pale and grief struck half of a man sitting by the far end of the table. Alexander remained quiet, only whimpers leaving his mouth now and again. "Oh my. This is too exciting".

"Shall I tell the story then?", he asked with a seething tone. "Very well".

"You see, dear Edith, your mother and father haven't always been —shall we say—-entirely upfront with you. In fact, many years ago—24 to be exact—your mum and dad had a big argument which lead them to separate for a few months time. Your dear ole' dad here wanted to leave the Dark Lord's side and run away from his duties to his family—you. Your mum, overcome by anger and grief, threatened to kick him out, and your father left, only to come back three weeks later. Now—", Lucius placed his hands on the table before him. "who wouldn't be there, to comfort poor Rosalind in such a time of need—but me?".

Edith felt anger bubble up inside her, her every nerve catching fire from within. She wanted nothing more than to stand up, walk over to Lucius, and serve him a right punch to the face. However, the restraints that kept her seated made such a thing impossible.

"You're lying", she hissed, struggling to free herself. "It's not true".

The blonde haired man grinned. "Oh, but I'm afraid so".

"She wouldn't!", the girl spat. "It's not possible".

"But it is. Rose was so filled with anger and resentment towards Alexander here, that she jumped straight into bed with a stranger, and a devoted Death Eater no less. Imagine my surprise when she let slip she was pregnant, with my child. With you".

At this point, Edith's mouth hung agape as if her jaw had locked itself shut, and her gaze kept falling on Alexander.

"It's not true", she whispered under her breath. "Tell me it's not true!", she screamed, as if out of agony.

✦✧✦

A week ago

Fred Weasley waited and waited. The completely and utter agony of not knowing where Edith was or if she was even alive tore him asunder. He had to fight the urge to pull his hair out and rip his heart out from his chest; although it felt like it was already squashed like a bug underneath someone's boot.

"She didn't come home last night. Something's  wrong, I can feel it", he told Ravi and Violet as he paced around the room of the apartment. He had stayed on the couch of Ravi and Edith's shared flat all night, waiting for her return, and when she didn't—he found himself losing it. Violet was called over the minute he realised something was wrong.

"What do you mean? She didn't stay with you last night?".

Fred, who was completely lost in his own head, didn't even acknowledge the question.

"Fred—"

"Hmm?", his gaze fell on Violet, who raised a questioning eyebrow. She too, was beginning to panic. "Yeah. She went to meet her father last night. She promised she'd be okay. She promised".

"Okay, let's think rationally about this. There's no need to panic, it'll only set us back. Now—where exactly was this meeting supposed to take place?", Ravi spoke up, the only person of the three being seated. He tried to remain calm, if not for his own sake, then for Fred and Violet's.

Fred let out a deep breathe, tugging at the roots of his ginger flamed hair. "Sh-she was meeting Alexander at the Three Broomsticks. Shit. He can't have taken her from me. Not my Edith". At this point, Fred was no longer close to tears, but in fact full on crying. His eyes glistening with sadness, and his body slouched in panic. "We have to find her".

"We will", Violet piped up reassuringly, placing a calming hand on Fred's shoulder, who barely took notice. He was too busy pulling at his own hair. "We'll go to the Three Broomsticks. Ask anyone there if they've seen her. Someone must've".

"What about Rose? She might know something". Ravi asked, grabbing his wand.

"I'll go. Let me know if you find anything out. Be careful", Fred said.

Violet and Ravi gave Fred a halfhearted smile, both there hearts beating rapidly out of fear. However, no one was quite as scared as Fred Weasley. He ran the risk of losing the love of his life, before they even had enough time together.

"You too", he frowned, Apparating to Gannon Manor.

✦✧✦

"Please. Let us go. I don't understand why you're doing this", croaked a terrified Edith as she watched her father (yes he wasn't her biological father, but he raised her and despite everything, a part of her still considered him to be her dad) being tortured by an enraged Lucius Malfoy. "Stop. He can't take anymore. You're killing him, please". She continued to plead, but Lucius didn't budge. He had his heart set on beating her down, on having her witness what happens to those who defy him.

Lucius Malfoy used to be a Death Eater. He was one of Lord Voldemort's most loyal followers, and he'd do just about anything to please his master. Even torture one of his closest friends.

Yes, Alexander Gannon and Lucius Malfoy used to be close. Lucius had spent the remainder of the day exposing Alexander's past life, telling Edith of their relationship during Voldemort's reign. They met some 30 years ago and eventually they became each other's closest confidants, trusting each other with their lives. Unfortunately for Alexander, trusting Lucius was a big mistake.

"You see, when Alexander tried to leave, I wasn't very pleased with him. Oh no. I didn't see a reason for him to throw years of our friendship away for some girl and her spawn", the blonde haired ex-Death Eater paused amidst the torturing, smiling at Edith, who tried to keep her gaze anywhere but on the bloodied and bruised man lying on the floor. "And now that I've finally reunited with my dear old friend, I can have my sweet revenge. It's been a long time coming after all, Xander, don't you think?", he grinned, before raising his wand once more.

Edith knew what was coming next, yet she couldn't keep from closing her eyes so hard that she saw white dots forming behind her eyelids.

"CRUCIO".

As the curse hit him, Alexander fell unconscious once more, leaving Edith sobbing into her hands.

⬩ word count: 1175

I hate this chapter. I'll probably come back to it and edit it soon enough.

update 18/1-21: I edited a bit. hahha