Blood Magic ✤ George Weasley ✓

33 - Revelations

musical mood: rip 2 my youth - the neighbourhood

Suicide was once again looking far more appealing to Cass. If it meant not having to face her father, not having to face her brother, she'd do it. She'd do anything to get out of the situation she was in. If only she had her wits about, if only she could find a way to escape, but she couldn't. Her mind had gone to mush.

Lucius had his hand on her shoulder as they approached Bartemius. They had apparated into the Malfoy manor, for some reason, instead of the Crouch home, which wasn't a problem. Cass certainly preferred the dim, creepy halls to Stromness right now. Luckily, Draco was still at school for the holidays, so she didn't have to deal with that pest for the time being.

"I found her in Blarmachfoldach." Lucius explained.

"Bless you." Cass said.

The moment Bartemius came into full view, Cass blinked in shock. His eyes were rimmed red, he'd clearly been crying. His hair and robes were askew, and his arms were outstretched, wrapping her into a tight hug before she could realise what was going on.

"What the hell - stop!" She shrieked, pushing him away with all the strength she could muster, causing him to nearly fall over. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

"Language!" Bartemius snapped, and she rolled her eyes.

"Please, I think my excessive swearing is the least of your concerns right now."

"She's right." Lucius added.

"Oh, shut the hell up, Malfoy!" Cass turned to glare at him, aggression filling her. She'd spent the past day so full of panic, she hadn't had the time to be angry, and now she was allowing the rage to consume her. She'd been lied to her entire life by the adults around her, and she was about ready to rip their throats out. They'd prioritised the life of a murderer over hers, and now they what, wanted to talk?

A moment of silence went by between the three - Narcissa had left already, likely thrown off by the uncomfortable nature of their confrontation.

"Where is he?" Cass broke the silence.

"How...how did you figure it out, Cassiopeia?" Bartemius ignored her question, his tone calm.

I read love letters between Barty and my dead professor who tried to kill me and compared the handwriting to the emotionally manipulative letter I'd received from someone pretending to be you. Funny how those things work out, huh?

"A way that took much longer than I'd care to admit. It's embarrassing, really, that I didn't realise it way earlier." She gulped, before repeating her earlier question. "Where is he?"

"Back home." He answered. "I figured you'd want...space, for when we discuss this. You can't just run away like that. I thought...I thought something might've happened to you."

"You can't just lie to me and break the law for twelve years to hide your fugitive son, but here we are."

Bartemius flinched, and she continued.

"You've put that man, that psychopath, over me for my entire life, and you expect me to what, pretend it's okay? To stay in Stromness? I have nothing left for me there, and I'm smart enough to make it on my own. You can focus on figuring everything out with that man, and I can go about my business."

"You-you can't actually think I'd let you live alone, right? Don't be ridiculous. You're thirteen years old! It's unsafe!"

"It's safer than living on the streets, than under the same roof as a death eater." She intentionally glanced at Lucius when she said this, who was watching their conversation with a pointed amusement. "How did this even happen? He's supposed to be dead!"