(Author's note: I do not own Rabastan Lestrange, Bellatrix Lestrange, or Rodolphous Lestrange, even though they are becoming my writing muses. Another OneShot, this one is a Christmas gift.)
Christmas was here, or atleast, it was nearly here. Most of the students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry had gone home for the Holidays, but a few remained, choosing to celebrate at school. The Professors had gotten an abundance of enormous pine trees, and brought them inside.
There they decorated them, adorning the already beautiful trees with festive ornaments and lights, they decorated the entire castle until it shined like the night's sky on a clear winter night. The holiday cheer was ringing throughout the castle, you could see it clearly.
On the night before Christmas, in the Slytherin Common Room, you would have expected to find presents, and gifts, and candy. But instead underneath the tree, lay a handsome young dark-haired seventh-year, who for once in many, many years, was smiling.
Something about that day was enough to make him smile, even though his fiancee, who he hadn't spoken to his family about, had decided to go home and spend Christmas with her mother and father.
He looked over at the entrance to the common room, upon hearing a faint sound on the other side, as a red-headed boy, around his age stepped into the Common Room, the wall closing behind him.
"Rodolphous." The boy spoke, nodding to the other.
Rodolphous shook his head slightly at his brother, knowing full well that he had been out with another one of his many girlfriends.
Rabastan joined his brother under the tree, attempting to hide the scent of Madrid, or was it Mallory, Hatchett, his newest addition to the already massive collection of girlfriends.
Oh Rabastan was a sly one, during their fifth year at Hogwarts, he had managed to hold down seven different girlfriends without any of them finding out about eachother for two months.
Rodolphous, on the other hand, had always committed to his girlfriends, and because of this, his brother found him very dull.
That is, until he met the girl his brother had decided to commit to.
Bellatrix was amazing, she was everything Rodolphous had ever wanted in a girl, smart, beautiful, clever, one of the best students when it came to curses and jinxes, and obviously, she was pureblooded.
But it was not Bellatrix that Rodolphous was thinking of that night, quite the contrary.
It was Rabastan.
Rabastan and Rodolphous had always been close, despite their dating styles, but lately Rodolphous had been feeling a bit too close to his brother, but he simply blamed it upon missing Bella, and went on with his day.
Rodolphous smiled at Rabastan. "Remember what our Grandmother used to always say, before our father did her in--I mean, before she got Hazel Fever and passed on?" Rodolphous asked.
Rabastan smiled back at his brother. "The best view of the tree is beneath it." He said, propping himself up on his elbows.
Rodolphous brushed a pine needle from his brothers shoulder. "And remember that hot chocolate she always made us on christmas eve?" He asked.
Rabastan's face grew slightly pale. "How could I forget? That was the worst thing I've ever tasted."
The brothers lay under the tree for a while, discussing their past, discussing memories of family members whom their father had done in--..I mean, who had passed on, before the subject of Rodolphous and Bellatrix came up.
"Rodolphous," Rabastan started. "is it true? Are you and Bella.." But he could not finish his sentence, and instead simply left it incomplete, his brother could fill in the rest easily enough.
Rodolphous smiled. "Yes, it is true, Bellatrix and myself are to be married in June." He said.
Rabastan put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "I'm happy for you, mate. She's a great girl." He said.
"Yeah, she really is." Rodolphous said, sighing peacefully.
The warm, elegantly decorated common room grew silent for a while, the brothers exchanged glances every now and then, but neither of them said anything. Rabastan was starting to grow nervous at this point, he could feel himself starting to lose his cool.
Was Rodolphous about to judge him for his questionable actions involving Mallory--or was it Madrid Hatchett? Was his brother about to disown the red-headed Lestrange for not being in a relationship? Did Rodolphous know about those wrong thoughts he was having about him? They were innocent, of course. But to Rabastan, they were more shameful than anything he had ever thought of had been.
'Rabastan, Rabastan, what a mess.' he thought to himself, wiping his forehead with his sleeve distractedly.
Rodolphous turned to his brother, and this time, it was he who broke the silence, but not by words.
He studied his brother momentarily, and then, as Rabastan looked over at him nervously, Rodolphous met his brothers lips for just a moment in a soft, delicate kiss.
When their lips parted, neither one of them said anything about it, but instead went on with their discussions, as if nothing had happened.
Because nothing had happened, it was simply brotherly love.