A Life to be Loved

~ Chapter 40~

-Lilith-

I sighed. "This is a terrible idea!" I muttered, glaring at Enzo, who was covering my dark mark with all the foundation I owned.

"Trust me, it's going to work." Enzo hissed, covering my arm with some powder.

"Do you even know what you're doing?" I rolled my eyes, realizing that he was using blush. "Let me do it."

I yanked my makeup brush from his hand. After I had fixed whatever he had done, I changed into what I was going to wear for the meeting. Pansy had suggested that I wear something warm and friendly, to make it more believable that the Dark Lord let me out. I pulled on a pale yellow dress and a blue jean jacket, to cover my arm just in case the makeup came off. 

Two days ago, I had sent a letter to my father to tell him that I had been released from the Dark Lord's army. The next day, he had replied with an invitation to the meeting that was taking place at our house tonight. It was the monthly meeting, so everyone would attend. No one would notice if one Weasley went missing at the end of the meeting. Everyone would be panicking about precious Potter, not about a weak, insignificant, ginger.

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I took a deep breath, lifting my hand to knock on the tall door. I looked up at the building, running my eyes over its familiar corners and curves, gazing at the symmetry of the windows, studying the arch of the roof. After another sigh, I finally gathered the courage to knock on the door. It opened immediately, revealing my father. 

"Father." I nodded in greeting, knowing that the pleasantries and hugs that he gave Potter would never be shared with me. 

"Lilith." He mirrored the gesture, moving to the side to allow me to enter. "The meeting will formally take place at 8:00. Don't be late."

I nodded, before making my way to the kitchen, expecting Kreacher to be working. I opened the kitchen door, only to be surprised by Mrs. Weasley waving her wand, conducting an army of kitchen utensils and food. I gazed in wonder at the chopping knives, sizzling pans and boiling pots, all working in unison to create a meal. As I turned away from the kitchen, I heard loud singing echoing from the entry hall. I followed the noise eagerly, meeting the gaze of my grandmother, Walburga Black. Her loud singing stoped instantly, and she beamed. 

"Why, hello, dear! What brings you to this wretched meeting?" She spoke kindly, and I felt like a small child again, exploring the huge house with wonder. 

"I can't tell you right now, Grandmother. I'll tell you next week." I explained, not wanting anyone to overhear me.

"Of course, Lilly. now, find me Kreacher, if you can. He's been hiding away in his, well, whatever you call that cupboard that your father gave him." Her warm voice was replaced with a disdainful tone as she spoke about her son. 

I nodded, making my way to the laundry room. My father had never liked Kreacher, even with all the work and chores that the House-Elf was forced to do. Sirius didn't want to empty out a vacant bedroom full of clutter, so he simply ordered Kreacher to clean out a thin, tall, cupboard in the laundry room. I had begged my father for years to allow Kreacher to live in a bedroom, even a small one, but my father never budged. The House-Elf had to make a bed from a discarded throw-pillow, since that was all that could fit in the cupboard. My father had spent days clearing out the bedrooms for the Order to stay for a few nights, but didn't lift a finger when it came to Kreacher. If only I could stay at home during winter and spring break, to make sure Kreacher had a room, but Father always refused and sent me back.

I opened the door of the laundry room, only to be met by a small, dark room. The walls were covered in cobwebs and mold. Cracks in the floor were hidden by cheap rugs, and the two laundry machines were covered in grime and a heap of clothes. A linen cabinet was standing next to the machines, and Kreachers cupboard sat on the ground. I waved my wand, extending it by a few inches. I heard a small grunt, and the door swung open. The short House-Elf crawled out, and his face lit up when he saw me.

"Mistress Lilith! You're back!" He grinned at me as I crouched to his height, wrapping his thin arms around my neck. 

"Oh, Kreacher! I'm so glad you're alright! Is my father feeding you enough?" I pulled away, taking in his thin frame.

"Oh yes, Mistress Lilith. He's been having women and other people over every night! They always have leftovers, and Kreacher has been eating them all." He patted his belly, which was slightly bigger than the last time I spoke to him. 

I giggled, wrapping my arms around his torso again. "I'll save you some extra food when we eat. I promise. Now, I have to take you to my grandmother. She wants to speak to you."

Kreacher nodded, and followed me to the entryway. My grandmother's portrait was frozen again, and I waved my wand, undoing the spell and allowing her to move. My father had learned how to freeze paintings, so that the objects inside of them couldn't move. He used it often on my grandmother, to stop her loud singing. 

"Thank you, dear. It was getting dreadfully boring waiting for you." Walburga stretched, finally free of the spell that was cast on her. 

I smiled, stepping to the side so Kreacher could speak with her. I watched as the House-Elf bowed to her, and told her about who was attending the meeting. I listened with interest, noting which Weasleys were here.

"Serverus Snape is here, so is Tonks and the werewolf. The mud-blood scum are also here, but the ones at Hogwarts haven't arrived yet. No one else will be here." Kreacher bowed again, and stepped back to stand beside me. 

Walburga nodded, before speaking again. "I'm shall go to another one of my paintings in Malfoy Manor.  I wish to speak with Belatrix and Narcissa. I won't see you until our next meeting. Farewell, Lilith."

"Bye." I mumbled in response, before heading to the dining hall, where the meeting would take place.

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Hi! I'm sorry that I haven't updated for a while, but I've just been so busy! I promise I'll update more often, but don't be mad if I don't update until February. Thank you guys so much for over 50k reads! I really hope we make it to 100k reads this year! 

The other day, @alluira_stark124 sent me an amazing Mattheo Riddle playlist on Spotify! Here's the link!

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5hihWhuVZ0aj8GDiEEEEaw?si=f96f306a616641fc

Just copy and paste it into Google or whatever search engine you use!

Love ya!

xx

This chapter has not been proof read.