The Eagle and The Snake: A Tragic Love Story

88. Gifts For All

When Carly woke up on Christmas morning and saw the large pile of presents waiting for her at the end of her bed, she smiled.
Her grin grew even wider when she saw Luna standing behind the pile of presents.
"Merry Christmas Carly" smiled Luna.
"Merry Christmas Luna" replied Carly, before throwing off her bed covers and running over to embrace Luna.

"I can't wait for us to open our presents" beamed Luna, as Carly released her from the hug.
"Me too. I can't wait for you to open my gift. But we will have to wait a bit, as all gifts have to be opened downstairs, with the rest of the family. It's a Black and Malfoy family tradition, which this year includes us. We had also better get dressed first, as we can't go down in our pyjamas, since that would be seen as improper. Christmas at the Malfoy Manor is a black tie event, and not a casual fluffy jumper kind of thing" reminded Carly.
"Don't worry, I will wear something nice" reassured Luna.

Luna left Carly alone, so that they could both get dressed for the day.
Then they both reconvened in the sitting room with their presents, before being joined by the Malfoy's.
Unlike the year before, Carly felt like there was a black cloud around their Christmas celebrations.
Her brother's outburst the night before had brought her mood down.

None of the Malfoys seemed particularly jolly, as the dark lord's rise to power had sucked the life out of all of them. Not that any of them would ever dare to admit it.
The one person who was always guaranteed to bring the mood up, was absent, as Bellatrix was spending Christmas morning with her husband. Since it was one of the only days of the year she could tolerate being around him.

Once everyone had arrived in the sitting room, then began working their way through the vast amount of presents they had all accumulated.
"Did you send Harry anything this year?" Luna whispered to Carly.
"I don't even know where he is, so I wouldn't be able to send him a present, even if it wanted to. Not that I would want to, after what he said to me last night... Who's that from?" Asked Carly, looking down at the book Luna had just unwrapped.
"It's from Bellatrix. It's a book on dark spells" answered Luna.
"Bella got you a gift?"
"I'm as suprised as you are. But she got you something too".

Luna pointed to the present with matching wrapping paper in Carly's pile, which Carly then grabbed hold of and began to unwrap.
"I have also got a similar book on the dark arts. And Bella has also gifted me with an expensive looking necklace from the Lestrange family vault" revealed Carly.
"Wow, that looks as if it is made of real emeralds" gasped Luna.
"Well, the Lestranges are very rich, so for all I know it could be".

Narcissa looked over at them and smiled, "I see that Bella has gifted you with some of her jewellery. My sister has no children, and nor does her brother in law; Rabastan, so she probably wants to give away as many Lestrange family jewels to you, so that they don't go to waste, when the Lestrange line dies out".
"She should give them to you, since you're her sister" insisted Carly.

"She has given me a lot of Lestrange jewellery over the years. But I have no daughters to hand anything to, once I am gone. Since you are a Black like us, Bella probably would prefer to give all her gems to you, rather than them ending up with any potential daughter in law I might have in the future" informed Narcissa.
Draco went red at the mention of Narcissa having a daughter in law one day. But he said nothing, and continued opening his presents in silence.

"Who's that letter from?" Asked Luna, when she saw an envelope in Carly's pile without a present.
"I don't know. Let's find out" suggested Carly, as she picked it up and tore it open.
Her eyes widened as she began to read the letter.
"Well? Who sent it?" Questioned Luna.
"It's from Nym" mumbled Carly.
"Oh... What does she say?" Quizzed Luna.
"She wishes me a Happy Christmas, but admits that she has no intention of seeing me over the holidays"
"That can't have come as a massive shock to you, given how she feels about us".

"That's not what shocked me" admitted Carly.
"Then what's wrong?" Luna asked quietly.
"She's pregnant" revealed Carly.
"Merlin's beard. How far along is she?"
"She says that she is over half way there... She's been pregnant for all this time, and she never told me until now. I can't believe she waited this long to tell me that she is going to have a baby... We used to tell each other everything"
"That was before we became death eaters though"
"Yeah, I know. I just thought she would have told me sooner".

"Does she say anything else in her letter?" Questioned Luna.
"Yes. Neither her nor Andy have heard from Ted in months, and they are both very worried about him" answered Carly.
"That confirms it then, he must have gone on the run to avoid being taken in for questioning by the Muggle-born Registration Committee. He's definitely a lot safer on the run, and this way he also gets to keep his wand" replied Luna.

"I can't believe that the man who helped raise me, is currently on the run because of something I did. I helped that law exist, and now he is Merlin knows where, and it's all my fault. He can't help being a Muggle-born anymore than we can help being gay, and he shouldn't be punished for it" insisted Carly.
"Shh" whispered Luna, gesturing to the other people in the room, who were still focused on opening their own presents.
"Carly, you can't say things like that when we are not alone. Besides, there is nothing you can do to help Ted, and you know it. If you were able to offer him protection, I know you would. But you can't. So, there is no point in making yourself feel guilty. Especially since the dark lord would have done this without us anyway. This is not our fault... Anyway Christmas is supposed to be a happy time, remember" Luna continued softly.

Carly folded Nymphadora's letter back up, before nodding her head.
"You're right" agreed Carly.
She then handed Luna a small neatly wrapped box.
"This is from me".
Luna graciously took the box, removed the wrapping paper, and then opened the box inside.
Her eyes lit up and she gasped, as she tipped out the contents into her open palm.
Carly had given her a beautiful golden pendant with a P in the centre.

"I found it in the Potter vault under the Manor. The P stands for Potter, and I thought it would make you think of me when you wear it. The pendant will hang above your heart, as that is where I will always be. You'll always be in my heart, and I know that I will always be in yours" smiled Carly.
"I can't accept this. It's a family heirloom, and it must have cost a fortune when it was originally made" admitted Luna.
"I want you to have it. You saw that vault. It was full of jewellery, and there's only so much that I can wear, for I am only one person. You deserve this, for being an amazing girlfriend. I want to express my love for you in the only way I know how, by making you feel special" replied Carly.

Luna leaned forward and tenderly kissed Carly's lips.
"Thank you" whispered Luna.
"You're welcome" grinned Carly.
"I love you" murmered Luna.
"I love you too"
"I know. Which is why I feel bad that my present to you, will not be anywhere near as good as the one you got me"
"I'll be the judge of that. I know that whatever you got me, came from the heart. I won't be disappointed that you haven't gotten me a million galleon necklace as well, so don't worry".

Luna handed Carly a large box, which she eagerly opened.
Inside the box, Carly found a large glass dome with a floating black rose inside.
"It's beautiful" said Carly.
Luna blushed, "I know it's not expensive or anything. But this flower means a lot to me, which is why I wanted you to have it... It was enchanted by my mum before she died, so that it will never wilt. Mum liked to experiment with spells. And I don't know how she did it, but she made up a spell that would stop this flower from ever dying".

"That's incredible. I wish I had gotten to meet your mum, because she sounds amazing" admitted Carly.
"She was. And I know she would have loved you" Luna said sadly.
"I'm surprised she chose a black flower, since most people go for the brighter colours" replied Carly.
"My mum had a way of seeing the beauty in things that others despised and overlooked. She found all colours beautiful, including black. Which is why she chose this flower to go on forever".

"Are you really O.K with me having this, as it's something so personal that your mum left you?" Asked Carly.
Luna nodded, "I have many other things my mum left me. And since you never got to meet her, I wanted you to have this, as I hoped it would make you feel closer to her, and therefore closer to me".
"I think it's beautiful. Thank you for trusting me with this" replied Carly.
"You're welcome. There is nothing I wouldn't trust you with, my Star"
"And I feel exactly the same way about you, my Atlantis".