meetings
For a while, it was too hard to explain anything about her sister to Alice. She wanted to preserve her relationship with her girlfriend until things felt more settled. Until she was sure they weren’t going to change again. Even still, getting into all of it would be too much. There is no way to know that she wouldn’t just go running for the hills after being told what she’s gotten herself into. So for now, even if it's hard to keep it to herself, it's still hard to tell her, so she doesn’t.
What she does do, is explain that she’s reconnected with her sister and that it’s all… well complicated. Which is very much putting it lightly. Not even scratching the surface, barely even touching it. But it’s the closest description to the truth. Her and Bellatrix are still working through it anyway. Some days they are best friends, talking every second of the day, acting as if no time has passed since they were children. Others however, one of them is hurt and screaming about one thing while the other is yelling about something else. It’s not the prettiest thing.
Narcissa wanted to keep things in the present separate from the past when she came back to London. Of course she is happy to have her big sister back, even if it was unexpected. But it’s made it harder to start fresh. Emmeline has gotten stuck in more than one argument already, so she’s gotten more of the story than she was ever meant to. She hasn’t fully explained everything, but enough for her to know that asking for more details is opening up a can of worms that she does not want to touch.
The thing is, this feels normal. Not that they fought a lot with each other growing up, but their lives were far from calm. Blacks argue and fight and scream. It’s just how things are. Even through all of it, Narcissa is glad to have her sister in her life again. Having just the two of them is the weird part.
Something is missing. Someone . It’s so clear to both of them, but they hardly talk about it. Everything got weird at home back then once Andy left, of course it’s strange even now. She was the bridge between them, she kept the three of them sane. Narcissa is still a younger sister with just Bellatrix, and Bella is still an older sister with just Narcissa. But that doesn’t change the fact that there should be a third piece to this trio.
It was something unspoken for a while. They needed to work through their shit with just each other before they even attempted to talk about Andromeda. Until Bella picked up a book and saw their middle sister’s life on pages. All of it right in front of her. Then they couldn’t ignore the gap between them. She’s out there somewhere, though they don’t know if she is the one who wrote her own story.
After reading it herself, she can’t deny the similarities. Not even just similarities, it’s exact. Every detail of the story matches up. Everything but their names. But of course whoever wrote it wouldn’t use their names, that would be too obvious. Bella hasn’t been able to get the next one yet, but they know there are more. Four more to be exact. They need those, then they can figure it out.
Tonight Alice and Bellatrix are officially meeting. Spending time together. She’s nervous to say the least. Honestly she’s terrified. Not because of Alice, not even because of her sister. She’s simply never brought a significant other home to meet family before. That wasn’t something any of them did. Though she’s not sure if any of them had partners before leaving home, except maybe Andromeda.
The easy part was surprisingly telling her sister she has a girlfriend. There were no follow up questions to that regarding her sexuality, which she didn’t know what to expect there. Narcissa knows her parents would have quite a bit to say about it, nothing very nice. But Bella isn’t them, she was excited that she’s found someone. Then again, she told her on one of their good days.
Alice is coming over to Bella’s in an hour. She had errands to run for most of the day, so they decided it would be easiest to meet there. Plus they are having dinner here, so that if they need to it will be easy to escape rather than needing to throw Bellatrix out. Something that would not surprise Narcissa in the slightest to need to do.
“Can you stop pacing? It’s freaking me out.”
“I’m not pacing.” She bites back.
“Yes you are. Cissy, I’m going to love her. It’s going to be fine.”
That’s the thing, it will be fine. There really isn’t a reason for Narcissa to be as freaked out as she is. Only everything about how she has been living for over eight years is changing. No big deal. And she’s not pacing. She’s just walking around and occasionally it happens to be back and forth. Though she is picking at her fingers pretty roughly. A bad habit she has had for as long as she can remember.
As she is ripping at the skin on the pad of her thumb, Bella’s hands latch onto hers and their eyes meet. It breaks her out of her head before she managed to get stuck in a loop of irrational thoughts. This is all just a lot. Her past and present were never supposed to mix. She hadn’t even initially told Alice that she has siblings, so this will be a lot. Alice knows now, but it’s something she did lie about.
“I just want it to go well.” She sighs, exhausted.
“It’s going to. What should I know about her before she gets here?” Bella diverts her attention to something she knows she’s good at, talking about her girlfriend.
“Well she’s so sweet and kind and lovely and also beautiful, but you’ll see for yourself soon enough. Oh, I can’t believe I forgot to mention it sooner, she’s an editor. I don’t remember anything she’s working on but maybe you’ll know or have worked with some of the same people.” Narcissa starts to ramble, talking about how amazing Alice is. Her sister just stares at her, smile growing wider, mimicking the younger’s.
“Really? We’ll have things to talk about for sure then. I’m just excited to meet her.” She sounds enthusiastic, though Narcissa can’t tell if she’s only feigning it for her sake.
It’s been a bit since she thought about the first date they went on when Alice talked about work. She doesn’t bring it up often and never in much detail. The latest book she was editing over the summer is all done now, just not out. That she knows of, so she has been a lot more free lately. Which Narcissa will never complain about.
The book comes back in her mind though and stays there. Didn’t she say it was a series about family? It can’t be the same one Bella just read, it can’t be the one about their sister. That would just be insane. As best she can she puts that thought away, no use getting her hopes up for something so impossible.
They aren’t only a person away from the author of the book about Andy. That would be too much. Except they already are, through Dorcas, aren’t they? She doesn’t mention that thought to Bellatrix. She would think it’s absurd, it is absurd. Or she would pounce on Alice the second she arrives for more information. It’s better not to do that. After all, Narcissa wants tonight to go well.
Not to mention that she is content with how things are. Of course they both want to read the rest of the books, to find out more about whatever is going on. But she has Bella and that’s enough for her. That will always be enough for her now. There was a time when she didn't think she would ever have this back, so why would she let anything ruin it? She won’t ruin what she and her sister have once again, and she won’t ruin her relationship with her girlfriend either.
The best thing she can do is pretend everything is normal. As hard as that may be. They never knew normal. Not growing up, not running away, not now. But it’s something they can strive for. Hope for. Reach for. One day. One day they can have normalcy. She would be foolish to hope that the normal could include more than just her and Bellatrix, but that’s what she hopes. One day they can all be together and have normal lives. One day.
one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day one day
One day-
The doorbell rings and she snaps out of it. Now isn’t the time for that, now it is time for Narcissa to find a way to be normal in this lifetime. Here and now. There are no books on her mind, none that she will let come up in conversation. Not tonight.
“I’ll get it!” She yells before Bellatrix can do it herself.
After one last breath, Narcissa opens the door to her lovely as ever girlfriend. Her presence eases her mind. There’s nothing to be worried about. Well not really. Maybe just the fact that there is no turning back after this. All, or at least some of the skeletons in her closet will show themselves tonight. She can’t keep Alice from the other parts of her anymore. This is who she is, and she has to be okay with that.
Her short hair is tousled, but still looks perfect. A few wisps falling down in front of her face, just barely resting over her eyes. She smiles the same way she always does, soft and gentle and inviting. It doesn’t take more than one look from her to ease Narcissa’s mind.
“Hi darling.” She lightly brushes their lips together. “Relax, it’s going to be okay. I’m excited to meet your sister, really.”
Their hands easily slip into each other’s, it’s not even on purpose. It’s just instinct, it feels so natural. Her sister is only a few steps away. She stayed to the side while she got the door to not bombard Alice the second she’s through the door. It’s a nice gesture, but now it makes her want to take her hand and run right back out the front door and not stop until they are far enough away that her past can’t touch her. That her past cannot meet her present.
It’s too late for that. “Hi! I’m Bella, it’s really great to meet you. Narcissa has told me only wonderful things about you.”
“Narcissa?” She looks at her puzzled. “I didn’t know Cis was short for that. It’s a beautiful name.” Narcissa blushes more than she would like to admit, while her sister looks at her just as puzzled. “I’m Alice. I can’t say she’s talked much about her family, but I’m glad to be meeting you now.”
Every time family came up, she would dodge the topic as much as possible. There was no point in talking about people Alice would never meet. That she would never see again. Evidently that didn’t stay true for very long, but she doesn’t regret it. Telling her a shortened name, never revealing too much about her past, it was all to protect herself. She’s never going to apologise for or regret doing that. It’s how she keeps herself going. At least it’s how she used to get through it all.
“Come in, come in. Can I get you anything to drink? I have food in the oven, it should be ready in a bit.”
“Whatever you have!” Alice cheerfully says, squeezing her hand to remind her she’s here.
“Wine for both of us. The bottle you have open already is perfect. Thanks Bel.”
As her sister retreats out of ear shot once again, Narcissa looks over to her. To see what she’s thinking. If she is ready to run or if she’s prepared to weather the storm. The warmth of her eyes draws her in. The way her face has settled into a comforting smile. Her calmness and her steady hand that helps keep her balanced. Alice isn’t going to run. She’s not scared of what comes with knowing her past. She is here to stay, and that makes it easier for Narcissa to decide to stay too.
Only a minute later, the older sister returns with three drinks and somehow it goes well. It’s not even awkward at first. They fall into conversation without missing a beat. Narcissa lets the other two talk to start off, just sitting quietly by and sipping on her drink. They have basic introductions to do, it’s okay if she tunes that out for now. Both of them know she always listens, so it's okay to take a few moments break.
It’s not until a question she was dreading fills the air that she fully snaps back in. “So is it just you two or do you have a bigger family?”
“Oh ah, there’s more. We have another sister, between us.” She softly answers, feeling her breath get stuck in her chest.
“I know you two haven’t seen each other in a while, but what about her?” Alice tries to peel back the layers of what she’s been told, but quickly shakes that away. “You don’t have to answer. Sorry I really didn’t mean to pry.”
Though she takes the question back, it doesn’t seem to leave her mind. Narcissa can see the wheels turning, she would rather they stop. Neither of them are up for talking about Andromeda. They hardly talk about her even with each other. Usually those are the same conversations that end up with at least one of them screaming.
They could both get quite hot headed, especially with each other. Andy could buffer any disagreement they had, she was good at that. She was the bridge between them. Right now isn’t the first time they are navigating things without her, but that didn’t quite workout the first time. She is the missing piece. If they could get her back, then there is no denying that they could fix things. Perhaps not fix, but rebuild. That’s more accurate. With only two of them, it’s not as likely. It’s harder.
Narcissa doesn’t know if they can do it. It’s been going okay, there is a chance that everything will keep going in that direction. That just isn’t a given. Otherwise Bellatrix would have been able to find her sooner, it wouldn’t have taken a car accident for them to get each other back. But now they have each other. Neither of them are letting go. They’ve dug their claws back in and nothing can tear them apart, except themselves.
“It’s okay. We haven’t seen her since she left home. The day after her eighteenth birthday.” She quietly answers, feeling the air in the room grow stale.
“Oh I’m sorry. That must be really hard. I’m glad you have each other now at least.” Alice reaches out to squeeze her hand.
Bellatrix lets herself smile, not exactly forced but not quite natural. “She’s never getting rid of me again. I won’t let her.”
From there it gets easier. Alice knows about her sisters now, it looks like she wants to ask more but she doesn’t. The thoughts sit in her mind, leaving Narcissa to wonder what they are. She won’t ask, and Alice won’t bring it up again. So it will all, whatever it is, remain unspoken. Maybe when they leave here later they can talk. No use getting into a fight, not that it would really be one but still. Usually she can read her pretty well, but for some reason she can’t right now.
“Me either, I’m quite fond of her.”
She can’t stop her cheeks from turning pink, and her sister does no favours by laughing at her. Neither of them dated anyone when they were younger. Well Narcissa didn’t. She didn’t have time, not between dance and school and just trying to survive. Maybe Bella had the time, maybe she has a whole list of exes somewhere, but none ever met the family. No one should be subjected to that. Though she would have liked to meet them, sisters are different from the rest of the family. Narcissa isn’t like her mother, she would have welcomed whoever it was with open arms.
In a moment of silence, she watches her older sister think for a moment. Careful. Calculated. Protective. She’s deciding if Alice is good, and of course she is. She’s the best. Narcissa is sure of it, but she’s the baby sister. The one to take care of. That’s who she has always been even if she doesn’t like it. Though she used to be the one to take care of her cousin, it gave her a purpose and a reason to keep going.
The timer for the oven goes off and breaks Bella’s concentration. She seems content as she gets up to walk to the kitchen, but she doesn’t say anything more just yet. It’s not like her to be so quiet, not around Narcissa. Maybe she’s just overthinking it. That’s all she’s been doing lately. Everything changed yet again, she just has to adjust again. Bellatrix may have grown quieter over the years, that’s all this is.
“Dinner’s ready Cissy! Can you bring my drink in with you?” She calls from the table a room over.
“Do you think she likes me?” Alice whispers.
“She does, she’s just tough. We’ll talk more over dinner. It will be good. She’s going to adore you by the time we leave.”
Who is she reassuring? Who needs to have those words be true? Narcissa or Alice? She wouldn’t care if Bellatrix didn’t like her. That wouldn’t cause her to fall apart at the seams. She would be okay. Maybe a little bummed, but she would live. Right? She’s not here for approval, she’s not here to be adored. She’s here because Narcissa asked her to be. So who needs the assurance? Who needs- who who who who who?
“Narcissa?”
“Oh, sorry. Spaced out for a second.” She shakes herself out of her mind, finding her seat at the table.
Alice sits across from her, their feet meeting under the table, while Bellatrix puts the food down and takes a seat between them on the side. Dinner looks good, really it does, but her appetite is being shrouded by her thoughts. Something keeps nagging at her, eating through her mind. Without announcing itself. She can’t figure out what it is, but something is wrong. That’s the only explanation.
Luckily, the other two can keep a conversation flowing without issue. She listens and tries her best to stay focused as they talk about themselves. Just getting to know each other. It’s not a conversation she needs to be super active in, she knows quite a bit about both of them. Bellatrix skips over talking about her past, as expected. They both have the same instinct to avoid it. She doesn’t talk much about the last few years either, aside from having stayed in London and working at the publishing company.
This is where Narcissa feels her chest tighten again. She doesn’t want it to be true, but what if Alice knows these books? “Wait, you work there? I’ve worked with some publishers there. That’s so funny, what a coincidence.”
She’s never been a fan of coincidences.
“It’s alright. I’m not one to spend time with the majority of my coworkers outside of work. Not really my vibe. It's really crazy that you’re in the same industry. Would I know any of the books you’ve edited? Honestly I couldn’t imagine being an editor, the authors can be bad enough once the books are done, they must be a nightmare during the writing and editing process.” Bella starts to rant, as she usually does when work becomes the topic of conversation.
“Oh you’re telling me. I can’t really talk about any of my current projects, the author is a little insane about that, but yeah. He’s a nightmare, to work with at least. It’s honestly comforting to know that us editors aren’t the only ones who get stuck with them being brats.”
“Let me know once you can talk about what you’re working on, though. I’d love to read what is probably very good editing. I hear you are good at what you do, though you seem to have gotten distracted with my baby sister while you were working. Is that right?” She pulls Narcissa back into it, knowing she has nothing to contribute where the conversation fell.
“Sort of. I told you we met while I was working at the cafe. Technically she distracted me from serving coffee.” Narcissa corrects as she nudges her girlfriend with her foot under the table.
“We distracted each other.” Alice confirms. “But yes, I usually get my work done at the cafe though I hardly could once Cis started working there.”
“That is not my fault!” She huffs and puts a fake pout on her face.
And so it all continues going okay. There was nothing to be nervous about after all. Even once work came into the conversation, neither of them pressed for more details. Narcissa is the one who has the nearly impossible hunch, but she doesn’t mention it. That would only mess things up. She’s choosing not to, she’s choosing for things to be good.
That was hardly a choice she had for the longest time. Even while in France, she couldn’t just let go. She couldn’t let herself be happy. But now she can and that’s exactly what she is going to do. Narcissa has a wonderful girlfriend and has her sister back. That is all that matters. She won’t mess this up. She is letting herself have good things. She is choosing not to mess it up.
Once they finish eating, Narcissa helpfully clears the table. She cleans up as a thank you for Bella making dinner and hosting them tonight. That’s the main reason. But she does also want to give the two of them a moment to just talk to each other without her there. Actually, it’s not that she really wants to but she knows that she should. They have been getting along well enough so far, but this is a little test. Make sure they aren’t just keeping up an act for her benefit.
Once she is out of view, she gets as quiet as possible and leans her ear by the entrance to the dining room. “So, what can you tell me about her that I don’t already know?”
“I don’t know what she’s told you, but of course I have stories about her. First though, I have to ask. You’re going to treat her right, yeah?” Of course Bellatrix is asking, but still it warms her from the inside out.
“I wouldn’t dream of doing anything else.”
“Good. I’ll find you if you dare hurt her. Anyway, I assume you know about her moving back from France after being a dancer there. She was a dancer all growing up. Our parents never started me or our other sister on that, but they did with her. Along with our youngest cousin. We haven’t seen either of them since leaving home though.”
“Oh, I’m sorry about that. It’s good that you have each other though.” That’s all Alice responds to, and it’s short.
The conversation dies in those words. At least she thinks it does, but she doesn’t continue eavesdropping to find out. After another minute, she comes back into the room and the air is thick. No words are being exchanged and both of them look somewhat unsettled. It was all okay just thirty seconds ago, wasn’t it? They were getting along and talking. Until Bella brought up their cousins, that never ends well. She knows that.
On top of not really talking about Andromeda, they don’t talk of their cousins either. Since Bellatrix left practically right after her, she has no idea how they are doing. If they have each other. If they ever got out. It’s too hard to think about, knowing that they were both so young when all three sisters left. Not that they were in the same house, but all five of them used to keep each other afloat. All five of them were needed to survive. Andy leaving was the first spark, the first crack in the foundation that held them all up.
“Alright in here?” She hesitantly asks.
“Of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”
Narcissa smiles, she’s thinking too much. “Just checking. How about another drink? Top off our glasses and move to the… sofa?”
“Good with me.” The elder sister walks out first, with the younger catching up so they have a moment to talk. “Don’t worry about having wine on the couch, I’m not mother.”
“That’s not - Okay maybe I wanted to make sure that was okay. But are you okay? Did something happen while I was cleaning up?”
“It’s all fine.” Bellatrix says, though neither of them are convinced. “Alice seemed to get a little quiet while you were gone, that's all.”
“I’ll talk to her. You do like her don’t you?”
“I do, but you don’t need my approval. You know that.”
“I know, but still.”
They look at each other and don’t need words to communicate the rest. I love you. It’s okay. Patterns are hard to break. Even just being back together brings up memories of their childhood. Narcissa feels it so much, the pressure, the need to prove herself. She was no good at it, she just couldn’t fail. Not after Andy was gone and their parents were so disappointed in her, she couldn’t fail too. Bellatrix was the one who was good, she did what she was supposed to. Until she didn’t.
She still wants to do everything for her little sister, she wants to shield her from everything. It’s not hard to see what she is trying to do. Always. Hardly thinking of herself, at least not until she’s given her energy and love over to Narcissa. The one in dire need of approval and praise, and the one more than willing to give up everything to make sure she is okay. Two sides of the same coin. The question Narcissa hates, but needs to be asked; can they both be okay together, can they both make it through? They have to.
“Okay yeah. It’s okay. Don’t stress about it, kiddo.” Bella smiles at her fondly.
Together they sit and continue talking as if nothing else happened. No one mentions the odd silence, and family is no longer a topic of conversation that any of them dare delve into. It’s better that way. Instead they find themselves talking about an upcoming holiday that Alice is planning. Her family has a cabin in the countryside, and she’s been dying to go once the current project she’s working on is completely finished. So sometime in the new year, Narcissa will be tagging along with her.
She’s also interested to learn more about her sister, since Narcissa has so helpfully not told her much at all. “So, aside from work, what else do you get up to?”
“Honestly not that much. For a while all of my time outside of work went to something I was… working on, but that’s all settled now. I mostly spend time with my friends and get dragged into whatever messes they create for themselves. It sounds boring, but it never is. Not really.”
Listening to her talk makes Naricssa realise how much her sister has grown up. She was a full adult before they left, but still. This is different. She’s settled. Not too much so that she can’t let loose and have fun, but she has a life that she’s content with. More now that she has Narcissa back, but still. She seems to have all she needs and maybe she’s a little jealous. She wants to get to that point.
Instead of saying any of that, she teases her instead. “You’ve turned into such a grandmother. What happened to the Bellatrix that fell off the side of the house while trying to climb back in?”
“I wish this sofa was taller so that it could hurt when I push you off of it.” She threatens with absolutely no malice in her voice. “Besides, that was Rabastan’s fault. He said he was tall enough to help.”
“Why would you ever believe him?”
“No one said I had good judgement when I was 17.”
“Would you say you have good judgement now?” She bites back.
“I would, yes. Alice, don't you think I have good judgement?”
She’s visibly flustered being put on the spot, she hardly tried to get a word in until now anyway. “Oh er- yes?” Alice pauses before leaning over to whisper. “Cis, I agree with you, obviously, but I want her to like me.”
“Your good judgement remains to be seen. Oh, it’s getting late, we should head out.” Narcissa sees the clock on the wall for the first time, not having realised so many hours had already passed.
That’s a good thing. Tonight went well, it wasn’t forced conversation after forced conversation. They genuinely got along well, and Bella approves of Alice. Not that she needs to, but it’s nice. It’s all a weight lifted off of her chest. It’s not something she needs to worry about anymore. In fact Narcissa is barely thinking of anything. Her mind clears, and even if that doesn’t stick for long, it’s nice for a moment. To not be thinking in circles and have her brain in overdrive.
All that’s on her mind is getting to go home, Alice in tow, and curl up with her tonight. They don’t stay over at each other’s places every night, but sometimes. It’s still too early in their relationship to be that attached at the hip, but tonight she’s looking forward to it after a week or so of barely having time to see each other.
“Thanks for having us, Bellatrix. I’ll hopefully see you again soon.” Alice nods with a smile. “Ready?”
“Bye Bells!” She goes to give her a quick hug, something they now try to do because they have eight years to make up for.
Before she can pull away, Bella traps her and lowers her voice. “I have a weird feeling, I’ll text you while you’re on your way home.” Bringing her voice back up once Narcissa is released, she adds, “It was great meeting you, Alice. Get home safe, alright?”
It leaves a weird taste in her mouth, a pit forming in her stomach. Her sister could mean a million different things right now. All she can do is wait for her phone to buzz letting her know what it is. All she can do is sit with the anxiety and hope that Alice can’t feel it too. They both climb into the car, and immediately Alice places her hand over Narcissa’s on the center console. It steadies her.
That’s a good sign. At least to Narcissa, it shows that things between them are good. She can read her and know exactly what she needs. Not only that, but she cares enough to give it to her. The reassurance, the support. Anything, everything.
“You alright, sweetheart?”
“Yeah. Do you think it went okay?”
Alice sighs, but covers it with a smile and bright eyes. “It did. I love her. Now can I take you home and kiss you?”
“Well, you can kiss me right now. No need to wait until we get to mine.”
With that, Alice leans over to press their lips together, just for a second. There is clearly more where that came from waiting in her bed. At the same time they meet, her phone vibrates. They are hardly down Bella’s street, but she already texted her.
Bellatrix [22:05]: I really like her, she’s great.
But she got really quiet whenever I mentioned work or either of us mentioned family
Do you think she knows whoever wrote the books?
Can you ask her or find out somehow?
Narcissa [22:06]: Maybe, I’ll see. What do you mean she got weird? Was that while I was in the kitchen?
Bellatrix [22:06]: Yeah, but all night that seemed to be what would stop the conversation.
It was the most obvious right when I mentioned our cousins.
Just see what you can find out…
She doesn’t respond again. She doesn’t want to mess anything up. This is the first good thing she’s had in her life that’s just hers. Except . Except maybe she’s not. Maybe she’s not hers and she already knows it. What if she starts pulling away after this because she is too close to something she shouldn’t be? What if Narcissa isn’t enough for her to stay?
No, no spiraling , Naricssa tries to tell herself. Spiraling never gets her anywhere, she should just ask the question. Find out the truth. “It’s really funny that you work with people at the same publishing house as Bella. Is that for that series you told me about?”
“Hm? Oh, no it’s for another author. I don’t think I’ve told you about those books, but I can another time, honey.” She easily replies.
“It’s still a small world. Who would’ve thought?”
“A very small world indeed.”
Something about the way she says it, makes Narcissa question the truth in it. She wants to believe her. Really she does, but trust and believing has never come easy to her. This is Alice though, so she’ll try. If she says that it’s just a small world, then it’s just that. Bella is just paranoid. She’s just thinking too much about the possibility of them being so close to one of the other three.
Can’t she just be enough though? As much as she would love to see Andy or either of her cousins again, especially the younger - no offence to Sirius - she is just happy with what she has now. It’s better that way. Instead of hoping for more, trying to pick everything apart and shatter relationships in the process. Narcissa is content to just have Bellatrix back.
Can’t she be enough for her big sister? Really that’s all she wants.