Before Narcissa could even get the words out, there was a soft click at the door. Lucius walked into the room with his usual steady steps. The moment he saw the little girl lying there on the bed, eyes squeezed tight shut and her whole body curled up into a small ball, his eyes narrowed in a quick flash of worry.
"Dad, the inhibitor…" Draco started to say right away. Seeing his father there made him feel a little calmer inside, but he still could not stop himself from asking again about the medicine and whether they could use any healing spells yet.
Lucius lifted one hand to stop him gently but firmly, and his voice stayed serious and low. "Draco, we have to listen to what Snape says on this. We cannot just try healing magic on Da'er right now, especially when her symptoms are starting like this."
When he heard those words, the little boy with the pale platinum hair let his head drop down in disappointment. His shoulders slumped a bit, and he looked so sad sitting there by the bed.
"Snape has always wanted to see Da'er in person so he could figure out the best way to help her," Narcissa added quietly. "With Christmas coming up soon and our days already so full with everything else, perhaps…"
She and Lucius shared a quick look across the room, and he gave her a tiny nod that was almost too small to notice.
"Is Da'er going to Spinner's End? Then I am going too! I have to stay right by her side the whole time."
Draco had guessed exactly what his parents were thinking, and he jumped in right away to speak up against it. His voice came out strong and determined, like he would not take no for an answer.
In the past years, even though the Malfoys always had lots of parties and visits to handle around Christmas time, they had never once missed their own family dinner together, just the three of them. This year felt different because Estelle was now part of their home. It seemed like the perfect chance to let the two little ones stay with Snape for a few days. That way the grown-ups could also have some quiet time together after all the holiday rush.
"Of course, Draco," Lucius answered right away, without any pause. "You do carry some of the blame for Da'er getting hurt today, so starting now you must take very good care of her. Do you think you can do that?"
Draco nodded his head up and down fast, his eyes wide and serious. "Dad, I will not leave Da'er's side for even one second!"
He kept talking, the words spilling out. "If I had not been standing there talking about the new Nimbus broom with Blaise today, I would not have let my attention slip away from her… It is all my fault."
It was not often that the young Malfoy boy would say out loud that he had done something wrong. Both Narcissa and Lucius could not hide the small look of surprise that crossed their faces when they heard him admit it so plainly.
Narcissa let out a gentle sigh and reached over to run her fingers softly through her son's smooth platinum hair. She did it slowly, like she was trying to comfort him as much as she could.
"Draco, Da'er has lost her parents," she said in a soft voice full of care. "She is a little girl who needs us to look after her with a lot of love and gentleness. We can never let ourselves be careless with her, not even for a moment."
Draco made a quiet "Mm" sound in his throat and kept his eyes on Estelle's pale face resting on the pillow. Just like Mother had said, she really was like a little rose that needed to be protected and looked after so carefully. Now the only people left to do that were the Malfoys. Da'er, sweet Da'er, he thought to himself, I promise I will never let you walk behind by yourself again. I will always stand in front of you to keep the wind and rain away. We will stay side by side from now on, no matter what.
Just then a soft "Meow~" broke into Draco's quiet thoughts. He, Lucius, and Narcissa all turned their heads at the same time to see Mammon walking toward the bed. The big cat had come into the room without making any noise at all, and its long tail was held straight up in the air like a proud flag.
In its mouth the cat was carrying those two round black things again, the ones that looked so strange and dark.
"Mammon?" Narcissa said. She usually could not resist soft furry animals, but right now she stepped forward a little because she did not want the cat jumping onto the bed. "Poor little Da'er is not feeling well and needs her rest. Let her sleep, Mammon. Be a good kitty now."
The misty-blue cat meowed again, but the sound came out a bit muffled because of the things it was still holding carefully in its mouth.
"It is all right, Narcissa," Lucius said suddenly. He reached out and gently took hold of his wife's arm to stop her.
"What is it?" Narcissa asked, her face showing confusion.
But then Mammon leaped lightly onto the bed, lowered its head, and gave Estelle's scratched arm a few soft licks with its small pink tongue. Right before their eyes the bluish-purple marks started to fade away, disappearing like water pulling back from the shore after a wave. The look of confusion on Narcissa's face turned straight into pure shock.
"Meow—" Mammon gave its tail one quick swish, then placed the two dark fruits neatly on the pillow right next to Estelle's head. After that the cat curled its body up tight and settled in close against the little girl's side. Its misty-blue eyes closed slowly, and soon soft purring snores filled the quiet room.
"Lucius, Mammon… it…" Narcissa could hardly get the words out. She was so surprised she just stood there staring.
She had always thought this cat was nothing more than a pet that Estelle had brought along because she felt shy around new people. For the last few months the cat had followed the two children around the manor whenever it felt like it, getting into little bits of trouble here and there and making them laugh. No one had guessed that the cat could actually heal Estelle when her symptoms came on so strong.
Draco watched as the tight lines on Estelle's forehead slowly smoothed out while she slept. He sat there with his mouth open a little, completely amazed. Could it really be some kind of magical creature? But besides Dumbledore's phoenix named Fawkes, they had never heard of any other magical animal that could do something this powerful and wonderful.
"I have looked through many old books," Lucius said in a low voice, "but I never found any mention of a creature like Mammon anywhere." His eyes looked deep and thoughtful as he spoke.
"Dad, you knew about this the whole time…" Draco stared up at his father with big round eyes.
Lucius gave a small, helpless smile. "If you had come with me that first day when we went to pick her up outside Belling Manor, you would have felt right away that Mammon was something very special."
After all, even the winged horse from the old stories, the one called Pegasus that could tell good luck from bad luck, seemed to treat Mammon like an equal and a friend. The Malfoys had always been good at noticing things like that, even when it was just between two animals.
"Merlin…" Narcissa whispered softly. "The Belling family truly is…"
She did not finish the sentence, but both Lucius and Draco understood exactly what she meant without needing any more words. Maybe for hundreds of years the Belling family had stayed strong and done well because they had Mammon and Pegasus by their side the whole time, working together like a team.
When Estelle finally opened her eyes again, the night had grown very deep and quiet all around the castle. Everything was still and peaceful. Her small hand was being held in a cool, steady palm. She lifted her head a little and saw a familiar platinum head resting right beside the bed on the edge. It was Draco, fast asleep in the chair he had pulled close.
"Meow~" came a soft sound before she could even finish waking up. Mammon padded over across the mattress, leaving tiny little dents where its paws pressed down.
"Mammon…" Estelle said in a sleepy voice. She reached out with her free hand and gently stroked the cat's soft fur.
"Little Estelle, you are finally awake," Mammon said. It kept its voice extra quiet on purpose, probably so it would not wake Draco and could have this short moment alone with her.
All the memories from right before she had passed out came rushing back into her mind. When she thought about Pansy and what had happened by the lake, her small face turned pale for just a second.
Mammon seemed to read her face perfectly, like it could see straight into her thoughts. It spoke again right away to comfort her. "Do not worry about that nasty girl. She not only got a good swat from me, but Lucius also put a Memory Charm on her so she cannot go around telling stories about anything she saw."
"Of course, because of the pressure from the Malfoy family she did say sorry too. But you were in the middle of your episode then, and her apology did not sound real anyway. You did not miss anything important by not hearing it."
"I see…" Estelle looked down at her arm and noticed that every single scratch mark had completely disappeared, like it had never happened. A happy smile spread across her face, making her eyes crinkle up at the corners. "Thank you, Mammon."
Back in the old days when the three of them—Pegasus and the others—would run around playing in the deep forest behind the family home, the little girl would sometimes get scratches from the sharp vines and branches. Even then Mammon had always been there to act like her own personal helper, taking care of every little hurt and making sure she felt better fast. It was just like having a small hospital wing that followed her everywhere she went.