The Eagle and The Snake: A Tragic Love Story

51. Pure-blood Protection

After Carly had packed her bags and said goodbye to Nymphadora and Ted, Andromeda called the Knight Bus to take her away, for what would be the last time.
Andromeda couldn't even bring herself to hug Carly goodbye, now that she knew that Carly was a death eater, so they said a verbal farewell instead.
Carly took the Knight Bus to the Malfoy Manor, and walked down the long driveway, passing several white peacocks on the way.
When she reached the manor, she knocked loudly on the door, and waited for someone to open it.

"Carly, this is a suprise. I didn't expect to see you so soon" admitted Narcissa, as she opened the door, and let Carly inside.
"I wasn't expecting to be back here this evening either. But Andy found out that I'm a death eater, and kicked me out" revealed Carly.
"Merlin's beard. Well, come in and head to the living room, while I go and fetch Bella" instructed Narcissa.
"So, you don't mind if I stay here for a while then?"
"Of course not. This will be your home now. We'll take your things up to one of the guest bedrooms, once I've found Bella, and we've decided what to do next".

Carly dragged her belongings into the living room, where she waited for Narcissa to return with Bellatrix.
"Cissy just told me what happened. Are you alright?" Bellatrix asked, as she entered the room with Narcissa at her side.
"I'm fine. It just hurt to hear Aunt Andy say such awful things about me and the choice that I made" sighed Carly.
To Carly's surprise, Bellatrix opened her arms, and embraced her.
"I'm sorry you had to go through that" Bellatrix said softly.

"Is Andromeda going to tell anyone about you?" Asked Narcissa.
Carly shook her head, and extracted herself from Bellatrix's arms.
"She promised that she wouldn't" answered Carly.
"Andy always knew what Lucius and I were, during the first wizarding war, and she never said anything to anyone. So, I have a feeling that your secret will also be safe with her, just like ours was" reassured Bellatrix as they all sat down in separate armchairs.
"Are you sure?" Quizzed Narcissa.
"Positive. Although Andy wouldn't like to admit it, she is subconsciously still loyal to the Black family. She wouldn't wish for anything bad to happen to any of us. Especially not the girl she raised as if her own" replied Bellatrix.

"What will happen to me now?" Asked Carly.
"You'll stay here with us of course. No one outside of the family needs to know that you are no longer living with Andromeda. So, your life will go on as normal" answered Bellatrix.
"Are you sure about this? Looking after me, I mean. Because I feel bad forcing you guys to look after me, since you didn't ask for this" admitted Carly awkwardly.
"We would never turn you away. You're our own flesh and blood. And you're not a baby, as you can pretty much look after yourself. Besides, Cissy has Draco, and Andy has her own half-breed daughter, so I don't mind taking responsibility for you, and treating you as my own, since I don't have any children"
"Thank you"
"You're welcome".

"Why did you never have kids of your own though?" Questioned Carly curiously.
"Well, when my father Cygnus forced me into an arranged marriage with Rodolphus Lestrange, I told my father that I would never give him an heir and carry on the family line. And I kept my promise" revealed Bellatrix.
"I'm sorry that your father made you do that" replied Carly.
"Arranged marriages were all the rage back then, and I knew what was expected from me, as a member of the Black family. But Rodolphus has no love for me, for me for him. My loyalty has always been to the dark lord, and not to my husband".

Carly turned and looked at Narcissa, "Were you forced into an arranged marriage with Lucius as well".
"No, I formed a relationship with Lucius, while we were at school. And since he was another pure-blood from a good family, I was allowed to marry him" informed Narcissa.
"If my dad hadn't died so young, do you think he would've been forced into an arranged marriage with a woman, to further the family line?" Asked Carly.
"It is very likely that would have happened, yes".

"But enough with all that sad stuff. You're here with us now, and we are going to do amazing things together. With you living here, I can give you one to one lessons, like I've been doing with Draco" smiled Bellatrix.
"Is that wise? I mean, we both still have the Trace on us. Shouldn't we be keeping our underage magic to a minimum?" Suggested Carly.
"Don't worry about that. The Trace cannot detect who performed the spell, only that someone used magic around a person who was underage" reminded Bellatrix.
"So, that means the Ministry of Magic knows that either me, or someone around me, has been using Unforgivable Curses" gasped Carly.

"If you had been using magic out in public, then you would be right. But while you are here, the Malfoy Manor will protect you, and hide any magic you perform, from the Ministry" revealed Bellatrix.
"Really?" Questioned Carly.
"Yes. You see, the Ministry of Magic has not always controlled its people by placing the Trace on underage wizards. It's a more modern type of magic that they use to keep tabs on us. But pure-bloods have a way around this. Our homes are enriched with powerful magic, forbidding anyone we don't want, from apparating on our grounds, and stopping anyone from tracing any spells that get performed here. Several pure-blood families have the same enchantments around their ancestral homes; the Blacks, Lestranges, Malfoys, Potters all have the same protection" explained Bellatrix.

"Wait, so the Potter's cottage in Godric's Hollow also has this protection?" Quizzed Carly.
"I'm not sure, for that cottage is not the Potters main residence" replied Bellatrix.
Carly frowned, "It's not?".
"Of course not. Did you really think a powerful and rich pure-blood family resided in a tiny little cottage? They have a mansion, just like the rest of us. Although, it's probably nothing more than a pile of ruins now, as no one has been maintaining it since Fleamont and Euphemia died" informed Bellatrix.
"But I thought the cottage has been in the Potter family for years"
"Oh it has. They may have even descended from that very area hundreds of years ago. But the Potters were rich even before Fleamont doubled the families fortune by selling his company. So of course they have their own manor, just like we do".

"So, I have inherited a mansion, on my father's side, as well as my das's?" Asked Carly greedily.
"I doubt it. Blood inheritance is a powerful thing. And since your father already has a son, who is older than you, I expect he will inherit the property" admitted Bellatrix.
"Great. That's just another ancestral home that Harry has taken from me" grumbled Carly.
"Don't worry, you'll get your own back on him eventually"
"Yes, I'm sure you will".

"Right, I think it's time we showed you to your new room" announced Narcissa.
"Lead the way Cissy" encouraged Bellatrix.
"I think I will give you one of the bedrooms on the same floor as the rest of the family, instead of putting you in a guest bedroom on the floor above. That way you will be closer the rest of us" said Narcissa, as she headed out of the room.
"I don't mind going wherever. I don't want to be any trouble" admitted Carly.
"You could never be any trouble" replied Narcissa.

"That's another advantage to being a pure-blood. You own lots of houses, and they all have many rooms inside" smiled Bellatrix.
"You must own lots of properties, since you're the eldest in your family" replied Carly, as they all began to head up the grand staircase.
"Since I have no children, I decided to make Draco my heir, and give him my parents house, as it's of no use to me. Especially at the moment, while I'm on the run. But maybe I can change my will and leave it to you instead, since Draco will inherit the Malfoy Manor. I do also own the Lestrange ancestral home as well, since my husband is the oldest in his family too. 12 Grimmauld Place would've fallen to me as well, if your dad had died without an heir" informed Bellatrix.

"I doubt it, since Sirius left 12 Grimmauld Place to Harry, in his will" revealed Carly.
"That little traitor. How dare he leave one of the Black manor's, to someone who doesn't share our blood. Especially a half-blood with a Mudblood mother" spat Bellatrix.
"I was just as angry as you, when I found out that Harry legally owned my house, since no one knows that I'm a Black as well as a Potter" replied Carly.
"We will make that boy pay. While you're here, I am going to up your training. And I'm going to start by teaching you how to apparate, since the Ministry won't be able to detect it, as long as we are on pure-blood grounds"
"I guess it pays to be a pure-blood"
"Yes, it really does".

"Does Luna's home also have the same kind of protection?" Asked Carly.
"I don't think that the little shack Xenophilius lives in, really counts as an ancestral home, so I doubt it has the same kind of protection around it. Which means that while you are at Luna's home, you must not use any magic until you are of age, just to be on the safe side" warned Bellatrix.
"Don't worry, we'll be careful" promised Carly.
"I'm sure you will".