Thin Ice

Gwenog Jones stamped her feet impatiently and blew on her hands. "Oi, Cissy, you done with your make-up yet?"

Narcissa smoothed her platinum blonde hair back into its fashionable silver barrette. "Almost." She scanned herself in her compact with scrupulous attention. "Do I look alright?"

Gwenog pulled up one of her stockings. "Of course you do. Now let's get in before Avery eats all the lunch and leaves us to starve."

Narcissa primly shut the compact. "Good! I should be ever so ashamed if I looked a fright the day my family came to collect me. You are coming to stay with us, aren't you? I shall be bored out of my mind if you don't."

"Well, since you spearheaded the efforts to buy me a new broom for my birthday-"

"Oh good! I should be quite depressed if bribery stopped working."

Gwenog laughed and the two picked their way through the snow. It was a breathtakingly pretty day, with snow and ice coating Hogwarts, frost hiding the harshness of the stone façade of the castle. Narcissa loved the winter, loved it even as she disliked the horrible necessity of keeping oneself covered (there was really only so much one could do with a black school robe). The wind blew color into her pale cheeks and Narcissa had the nagging worry that, regardless of the potions she applied to her hair, it would get tangled and messy.

She certainly didn't want that, she thought, tugging at the silver wrist buttons of her gloves. Lucius Malfoy was going to be at dinner when they got home! Admittedly, it was because his parents and hers had (ugh) business, but that business could very well be their engagement. Lucius was (dare she think it?) fond of her and it would be a wonderful match all around. Narcissa didn't allow herself to think much on the match itself. Lucius Malfoy filled her with a fluttery, happy feeling that almost overwhelmed the blind panic at being shoved into the center of Wizarding Society.

"Issat Severus Snape?" Gweong asked, shading her eyes. Her dark ponytail whipped around her cheeks.

"Where?"

"Getting pummeled."

Narcissa glanced over towards the lake, where two boys in red and gold Gryffindor scarves shoved a boy in black (his scarf was missing) out onto the lake. "Whenever a Slytherin gets pummeled, it's always Severus Snape."

"The lake isn't solid yet, is it?"Gwenog asked dispassionately. "Since it just froze over yesterday?"

"Oh- oh!" Narcissa said, cutting herself off from saying something unladylike.

"You ought to do something, you're a prefect."

"And a Black." Narcissa, with a put-on show of bravery, handed her bag over to Gwenog. "Ooo! It's the day before the winter hols! Why couldn't they just leave him alone?"

She marched over, the snow crunching under the heels of her fashionable, high-heeled black boots. "Do excuse me! Break up all this nonsense!" She reached the edge of the lake and tapped her wand in the palm of her gloved hand. "No fighting, you gits!"

A pale, tired-looking boy in shabby robes and a Gryffindor scarf turned to her. Remus... Lupin, was it? Sirius's friend. "They don't mean any harm."

Narcissa pulled on her robe so that that glittering prefect badge caught the pale winter sunlight. If Lupin was there, Sirius was probably out on the ice, pushing Severus around. "Oh really? I find that hard to believe." She raised her voice. "Twenty points from Gryffindor, each! Get off the ice!"

One of the boys spun around neatly, while the other made an unconscious Severus hang in the air by his ankle.

"Why, hallo fair coz," Sirius said, with an exaggerated bow. "How fares my fair lady? Still as cold as ever?"

Narcissa drew herself up to her full height and glared at them. "I'd be warmer if I wasn't standing outside telling two fully grown wizards what they ought to know already- to whit, that they should not be hexing another student, and that they should not be standing on the lake when the ice isn't solid."

Sirius grinned at her. "Come off it Cissy!"

"Don't call me that! Be glad I came upon you before another prefect or the Head Girl did."

"Well, the Head Boy's here...."

The other boy turned around, fluffing up his hair. "Yeah, and as Head Boy, I outrank you Miss Narcissa. I say it's perfectly alright for us to punish Severus."

"For doing what?" Narcissa demanded, lifting up her chin.

"For... existing? That about covers it." James Potter turned to Sirius for confirmation.

"Yep," Sirius said, cheerily.

"You are simply horrid." Narcissa pointed her wand at her cousin with a flourish. "Let Severus go."

"Cissy!"

"Don't call me that!"

Sirius raised an eyebrow, his expression darkening. "Why? Ashamed to be seen on familiar terms with a blood traitor?"

Narcissa's arm trembled. "Move aside. Your childish rebellion has nothing to do with me, or with Severus. I'm warning you!"

"Childish rebellion?" Sirius scowled and looked so terrifyingly dangerous- so much a Black, so much like Bellatrix- Narcissa took an involuntary step back. "Cissy, leaving that house was the best thing I have ever done."

"Well, since you haven't done anything at all admirable in your life, I suppose it must be!" Narcissa snapped.

"Better a blood traitor than a murderer- like Bellatrix," Sirius snarled. "Don't think I'm blind! I've seen what kind of company she keeps."

"Don't you- don't you dare say that about my sister!"

"What do they call themselves? Death Eaters? She'll end up in Azkaban and she'll take you with her. I'm not sure if you don't deserve it. Tell me, will you be a Death Eater yourself?"

Narcissa stepped back as if struck, paling completely. "How- how dare you! How dare you!" She lifted her wand and furiously thought 'Petrificus totalus!' Sirius fell heavily onto the ice, taken completely by surprise. She was so furious the world sharpened and narrowed. She pointed at her cousin and though wordless magic had always been difficult, everything seemed suddenly easy and automatic. She cursed Sirius with everything she could think of that wasn't illegal. Then, Narcissa, trembling with anger but as cold and icy as a snow bank, stepped out onto the ice, her wand level with James Potter's chest.

"What the hell did you do to Sirius?" Potter demanded.

"Let Severus down or I hex you into next week."

"You little-"

"My parents have taught me how to deal with blood traitors," Narcissa hissed. "Do you want to see how, Potter?"

Potter raised his hands in submission, scowling fiercely. "Fine, fine. Have it your way, Miss Black."

Narcissa turned neatly on her heel, her back to Potter. "Finite incantatum."

Severus fell to the ice just as Narcissa heard Potter's wand swish through the air. She wheeled around just a moment too late and skidded back across the ice, the arm of her robe sprouting tentacles, stumbling over a frozen tree root and landing with a painful thump on her back. Her wand flew out of her hand. Narcissa heard the ice crack with a sickening thrill of terror and before she could move or grab or land, she fell through the ice.

The water froze her, sapped her of strength, soaked through the fur lining and black velvet trim of her cloak, sucking her down, trapping her. Her fingers were numb- where was her wand?- and she struggled up desperately, her hands meeting only with ice, and the cold undertow of the lake pulling her down and down and down....

She choked on the water and realized how terrified she was of dying. Narcissa fell into the darkness, still trying desperately to claw her way back up.

When she awoke on shore, she was suddenly, immediately aware of how cold she was. She coughed, spitting out water into her glove and thought of groaning before remembering that a. it was unladylike and b. she was not allowed to.

"Cissy, Cissy, you listening?" Gwenog shook her shoulder.

"It-t's fuh-freezing," Narcissa rasped, trying to prize her eyelids open. She was relatively sure her mascara had frozen together.

"Potter, your cloak."

Potter proved reluctant. "What?"

"Give me your cloak, Potter," Gwenog snarled. "If Narcissa dies because you're a git, I swear I will hunt you down and make you a eunuch. You did this just so you wouldn't lose the match against us at beginning of next term, didn't you? God dammit, my only Seeker, through the ice!"

"She hexed my best friend!" Potter protested, his voice cracking with uncertainty, with fear.

"And you hexed mine! I'd send you to get Professor Slughorn if you weren't such a moron you'd screw it up! Still with us Cissy?"

"I luh-look a f-f-f-fright," Narcissa said, tears leaking from between her eyelids and scalding her cheeks.

"Come off it. You really look like an ice princess now."

Narcissa laughed before she burst into tears.

"What's going on here?" Professor McGonagall asked, striding over.

"I-" Potter began.

"Cissy tried to get Potter and Black from hexing Snape and Potter hexed her and made her fall through the ice!" Gwenog bellowed. Gwenog wasn't captain of Slytherin's first and only all-female Quiddich team for nothing.

Narcissa felt someone else put a cloak around her and felt herself warm as a spell settled around her. Someone pushed her hair out of her face.

"Ooh, that looks bad," Remus Lupin said. Was he... touching her? Oh God, ew. Narcissa tried to pull back and tell him off but only managed a whimper. "Sorry. I suppose that hurts."

"Where are Snape and Black?"McGonagall demanded.

"I-" Potter tried again.

Gwenog would have none of it and started shouting again. "Snape half- fell in but Potter had knocked him out before Cissy made him let Snape go, so Snape woke up when he hit the water and then he and I pulled Cissy out. Snape ran in to get a Professor."

"Is Black underwater?"

"No, they kicked Sirius to shore," Potter interjected.

"Because our arms were full of a sopping wet Narcissa Black, you git! If you'd done something productive instead of standing there gaping like a dead fish then you'd've shown some of the concern you pretend to have for your friend and finite incantatumed him and pulled him off of the ice! If I was Dumbledore I'd nick your badge for blatant stupidity!"

Narcissa felt herself lifted.

"Miss Black, can you hear me?"

Narcissa thought of several very nasty things to say, but she was too scared and too tired to do anything but fall back on the good manners her parents drilled into her. "Yes, Professor."

"How are you feeling?"

"Fine, Professor, thank you for asking."

"Did you fall through the ice?"

"Yes, Professor."

"Is Miss Jones correct, then?"

"Yes, Professor."

"Entirely correct?"

"Yes, Professor."

Professor McGonagall didn't say anything, but Narcissa felt her disapproval. Narcissa was too tired to tell who it was directed at and felt herself unthawing. It was painful and she started to cry again.

"Are you alright, Miss Black?" Her voice was oddly kind, compassionate. Any second, Narcissa thought giddily, Professor McGonagall was going to ask her if she wanted a biscuit.

"I just wanted to go home!" Narcissa said miserably, and hid her freezing face in her frozen hands.

"I am sorry," Professor McGonagall said, her voice soothing and bitter, like too hot tea without any sugar. "There is more happening today than just a fall into the lake. A group known as the Death Eaters attacked Ministry members. They shut down all methods of travel."

Narcissa forced her frozen fingers into a fist and pressed it against her lips, hoping the water washed her lipstick off. Pureblooded ladies did not cry. They were pleasant or witty, they glittered and glowed. They smiled and if there was something that caused them pain, they hid it.

They did not sob like children.

They did not melt.