Act I: I Can't Believe I'm Doing This

Part 11

I'm sitting at home, book in hand, when a thought crosses my mind. I haven't been able to see Narcissa for research since our last meeting over a month ago - just too much work. The last project I was working on just finished, though, and nobody in the department is clamoring for my attention. This is finally my opportunity to put together more hands-on activism! I leap to my feet and rush to my desk - no time like the present to start planning.

An owl startles me out of my work by landing on my shoulder. Was I paying that little attention? I reach up and scratch the owl on the head before taking the piece of stationery tied to its leg.

Hermione Jean Granger,

You are hereby invited to the first annual Black Family Yule Ball, to be held at the Black Family Vineyard in Nice on the twenty-fifth of December.

On the back are instructions to RSVP to Narcissa (simply sign on the dotted line), as well as the date and location again. I sit and run my hand along the edge of the thick stationery, letting a bit of my magic seep into it. Nothing happens, of course, but having that much control over my magic is still novel and exciting.

I've been practicing meditating using one of the old galleons from the Order days. I started by holding it in my hand to feel the magic, slowly increasing the distance between it and my hand until I could feel it from the table in front of the couch. Now, I can feel the coin easily. I've become so familiar with the spell on it that I can feel it even when I'm not focusing on it.

I've found that, if I focus, I can finely control my magic to a degree I couldn't before. Intricate spell work - while something I could do with effort - is now as simple as focusing and feeling. Narcissa was right, of course. I've taken to wandless magic as easily as I took to magic in Hogwarts.

I quickly sign my name on the back of the invitation to RSVP, then push it to the side of my desk and affix it with a sticking charm. Now, back to work...

Several days later, I receive a letter from Narcissa - likely a continuation of the correspondence we have maintained whilst I've been working.

Dear Hermione,

I find myself restless. I have read every book in the Malfoy library at least twice, and I have even fewer answers than before. If we are still functioning under the idea that Bella was under an Unbreakable Vow, we need to find more information about her personal history. I have combed through the items I was allowed to take at least a dozen times by now, and yet I've found nothing.

I wanted your thoughts about possibly reopening Black Manor. As I am the only legally recognized member of the Black family left, I have the capacity to do so, but I admit I am reluctant. That place is dark and dangerous, yet it holds records of our childhood that may offer us insights we can't find elsewhere.

I ask because the danger Black Manor poses is not to me, but to you. Many of the wards in place are specifically designed to punish muggleborn witches and wizards who attempt to enter. It is impossible to physically remove or copy books in the library, so you would need to attend in person.

I can deconstruct the wards that will prevent you from entering, but of course I am no warding expert. Please let me know your thoughts on the matter.

Sincerely,

Narcissa Black

P.S. - I have been researching more into the question you asked about the creation of a potion to permanently alter eyesight, and I have news - though I admit a solution remains unclear. It seems that, with some significant alteration on a typical Polyjuice potion, it may be possible to affect specific parts of the body. Permanency remains unclear, but I am hopeful that this avenue could yield results. Some research was done into a permanent alteration potion in the 1700s, but it is unclear why the project was not continued. I am wary of brewing anything from the tome I found the information in, as it was from the cursed section of the Malfoy library.