Christmas-Blues (II) [Chapter 216]

~~Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire~~

“Uhh… Mum, can I have a chat with you?” Tonks asked as she arrived in the kitchen where Andi was helping Narcissa with lunch. Since Narcissa had her son back from the vile clutches of the Ministry employees, she decided to do the cooking herself to celebrate the return of her son and Andi simply decided to help her sister with that.

“Yes, of course” Andi said as she looked up from the pot she was stirring. “What’s on your mind, sweetheart?” Andi asked before she started to look down at the pot again.

Tonks quickly slipped into the seat before her eyes went over the spot where her Aunt Narcissa was working on the chicken. At first, she wanted to have a private chat with her mother, but her Aunt was a Black too, so there was a chance that her Aunt might be able to give her some tips on the Black madness. 

“Mum, what can you tell me about the Black madness?” Tonks asked in a careful tone, but both Andi and Narcissa stopped at her question before they gave each other a knowing look. 

“Alef” Narcissa called out and the said house elf appeared inside the kitchen with a soft pop. “Can you keep an eye on the pot while we are gone?” Narcissa asked and Alef immediately accepted the duties with an eager look on his face. He also wanted to help with the cooking even though Draco was never kind to him.

“Nymphadora, are you having some weird urges, feelings, or inclinations?” Andi asked carefully as she approached her daughter and sat down on the opposite side of the kitchenette. Narcissa also approached the duo and sat down beside her sister, so that she could also participate in the conversation.

Tonks was so distraught by Andi’s question that she didn’t even complain about the use of her hated name… “Uhh… I don’t know” Tonks mumbled with an unsure look on her face before she sagged in her seat. “Maybe…” After a few moments of silence, she finally admitted with great reluctance. 

Audi and Narcissa shared another meaningful and worried look before Andi finally decided to start speaking. “What are you feeling, sweetheart?” Andi asked softly.

Tonks blushed slightly before she quickly used her powers to school her features. “I have been having some weird urges, feelings, and inclinations as of late” Tonks admitted, sounding embarrassed, but she refused to reveal her actual thoughts to her mother or her Aunt.

“Oh dear” Narcissa mumbled as she gave Andi another meaningful look. Now, she was certain that Tonks was starting to experience the first signs of the Black Madness.

Andi took a deep breath before she finally decided to start speaking. “You see, there is a trait in the Black Family when the members become particularly obsessed with something, and that obsession is what we refer to as the Black Madness” Andi explained slowly.

“I already know that, Mum. I have already heard this so many times” Tonks groaned irritably. She had already heard this explanation so many times, but she wanted to know if there was a way to suppress or stop the Black Madness in the first place or not. “I simply want to know if there is a way to stop it or suppress it?” Tonks asked in a hopeful tone. There was no way she wanted to give in to her obsession if she could help it. 

Once again, both Narcissa and Andi shared a worried look, but this time it was Narcissa who decided to speak up. “I am sorry, Nymphadora, but there is none…” Narcissa revealed apologetically and instead of snapping or anything, Tonks simply looked down in defeat. She was already expecting something like this, but she at least had to try.

Just like Andi, Narcissa also grabbed Tonks’ hands comfortingly before she started to speak again. “I can understand what you are going through… I was also scared when I started to notice the signs of Black Madness in me… I was in 4th year when I started to get obsessed with comfort” Narcissa slowly explained and Tonks finally looked up.

Even Andi was paying rapt attention to her sister’s story as she didn’t know anything about that. After she ran away from her home and got married to Ted, she lost all contact with Narcissa and even though they were starting to bond again, their bond wasn’t as strong as it used to be before she eloped with Ted.

“Slowly, I started to discover that I wanted comfort more than anything in my life… Before that, I had so many dreams in my life. I wanted to do so much, achieve so much, but slowly all of them started to become meaningless to me and that scared me… I tried so hard, not wanting to give up that part of me, but slowly I lost” Narcissa explained sadly.

“And then I stopped caring… That was when I knew that the Black Madness had won” Narcissa admitted with a nod of her head. She no longer felt bad for giving up on that part of her as she was living in comfort and there was nothing she lacked.

“It happened much later with Bella… She was never a paragon of sanity even when she was young, but she completely lost her…” Narcissa trailed off with a faraway look on her face as she couldn’t find the right word to use.

“Marbles?” Andi suggested helpfully.

“We can go with that” Narcissa agreed with a nod of her head. “...but she completely lost her marbles when she started to become obsessed with power. It happened just after she left Hogwarts and that was also when whispers of the Dark and his unmatched power started to float around” Narcissa explained.

“With how we grew up, thinking that the Mudbloods and Muggle filth are the blight of the society, it wasn’t a surprise that she became smitten with the Dark Lord and everything is history after that” Narcissa finished unhappily. Yes, she might believe herself to be superior than Muggles and Mudbloods, but that didn’t mean that she supported genocide.

If all the Mudbloods and Half-Bloods were to be killed, their society would collapse… After all, there was no way a Pureblood was going to work as a janitor. Narcissa knew that she was thinking along a very dangerous line, and there was a chance that Harry might take offense at that, but it was the unfortunate truth… Nothing else…

"For me, I got obsessed with mediocrity… I didn't want to be anyone special. I simply wanted to have a normal family and a normal life and that is also why I managed to walk away from my Family and marry your dad" Andi explained and Tonks frowned at her whole obsession, but considering her own budding obsession, she didn't have a leg to stand up on.

"Oh…" Tonks mumbled as she looked down at her hands. 

"The thing is… There is nothing you can do to fight your obsession. You can most definitely stall it, but it is going to win, eventually… I know how it sounds and I am sorry if this is not something you wanted to hear, but it is what it is" Andi said with a somber look on her face. She didn't want to lose a part of herself due to the Black Madness, but she didn't want to give her daughter any false hope.

"What about, Sirius?" Tonks asked. It was quite an interesting topic and she wanted to know what he was obsessed with just to distract herself.

"He is obsessed with rebellion" Andi answered with a smile. "He is probably the youngest Black I know who contracted the Black Madness" Andi added.

"Yes" Narcissa also nodded her head in agreement. 

"Rebellion fits him" Tonks also nodded her head before she broke into giggles. "Thanks for the chat, Mum" Tonks thanked her Mum before she stood up and Andi simply smiled at her daughter. "Thanks Aunty" Then she thanked Narcissa. Her Aunt told her something really personal, in an attempt to help her, so she obviously felt grateful to the woman.

"You are welcome anytime, sweetheart" Andi waved at Tonks who started to leave the kitchen. 

"You are welcome to talk anytime, Nymphadora" Narcissa added her own piece as Tonks walked out of the room, but as soon as Tonks was gone, both Narcissa and Andi lost their smiles.

"She is going to have a really hard time, isn't she?" Andi asked worriedly as she bit her lips. She always knew that her daughter was going to become obsessed with something eventually, after all, she was a Metamorphmagus. The Black blood in her veins was probably the thickest, but she was a mother, so there was no way that she wasn't going to worry for her own daughter.

"Yes, I believe she will, but she will get through it… We all do" Narcissa assured Andi that Tonks will be alright, but Andi couldn't stop herself from worrying. "By the way, any guesses what she is obsessed with?" Narcissa asked, trying to change the topic. When they were young, they used to guess what their other Family members were obsessed with. It was a fun little game they used to play.

Andi smiled as she remembered the game they used to play… "Hmm… I just hope it's not a boy" Andi said with an amused snort.

Narcissa also snorted in amusement… "Yes, those always end in disasters… At least, she will have people to hide the bodies" Narcissa said before she started to chuckle and Andi also joined in. Andi might have given up on her Family, but she was still a Black through and through… The cruelty and ruthlessness was part of her very being…