Black Night
Part One
Rated R
Narcissa/Rabastan, Narcissa/Lucius, Bellatrix/Severus
August 1st, 1977
The rain fell in sheets, but there was no lightning in sight. Every few minutes, a distant rumble of warm thunder would be audible, but it would fade quickly and leave the two girls shivering again in silence.
They had been told it would be soon, and that it would be here. Nothing more, nothing less.
There were suddenly soft popping noises from all around, and encircling them were perhaps twenty men, all in dark robes that the water seemed to slide off, all standing stiffly and all bathed in a sort of glow. Heat radiated from them, as if they were made of flames.
There was a sound from behind them, and Narcissa started to turn, but she felt her sister's hand tighten around her own and stood still. The cold had gone, but she was very aware that the rain pounding her skin had also made her dress nearly transparent. She could feel many eyes - she could not see them, because the men all had their hoods up and it was very dark.
On her shoulder, she suddenly felt a long-fingered slim hand. She felt Bellatrix on her right stiffen and knew that she was feeling the same thing - a burning sensation, a heat in her head that pushed at the back of her eyes and wasn't quite painful or pleasant.
As soon as it had come, it was gone, and the hand with it, and she heard footsteps behind her, starting to pace behind the two of them just out of her line of vision.
The sound of the rain and the thunder stopped, even though she could still feel the drops of water hitting her skin. The sound of the pacing continued for a moment, then it too halted abruptly.
Lightning struck the ground suddenly, within the circle, mere yards from the girls, but heatless, and remaining - it did not vanish, as if it had been suspended, but it still wavered before them. The circle was suddenly illuminated in dazzling light; none of them so much as twitched. Shapes flashed dark in the lightning. A human skull, jaw open, a single black rose in its mouth, the stem extending down where the spine ought to be. A wicked silver blade, penetrating the rose's delicate center. A snake, curling itself up around the rose, ignoring the blade and the thorns that made it bleed black blood, until finally it emerged from the mouth of the skull and started to slither forwards in the light. Narcissa didn't even realize she had pulled out of Bella's grip or that she was backing away until she ran into something very solid and froze with a gasp.
"Are you afraid?" a soft, hissing, cruel voice whispered in one ear. She could feel the breath tickle her cheek, but it was not hot or cool, simply. . .present.
"N-no."
"Are you afraid?" the voice said again. She was silent with terror, still frozen in place where she had backed into him, and then she whispered, "Yes."
"Good," the voice whispered, sounding both amused and pleased. "Defiance, then truth. You should be afraid, child. You should be terrified."
"I am," she heard her quavering voice say without permission from her brain.
"Good." The hand was on her shoulder again, and it pushed her forwards. She stumbled, finding herself again right next to Bellatrix. Her sister's fingers wound around her own; both hands were trembling.
The light vanished, leaving a blue afterimage on her eyes that would not fade. The footsteps from behind came again, and moved around until Lord Voldemort stood in front of them.
His red eyes glowed with a ferocious, angry light, and he studied the girls with them, for uncountable moments of yet more silence. Then, without turning, he said softly, "Lucius."
One of the men, directly to Narcissa's left, stepped forward quickly, seeming startled, and knelt, bowing his head. "Yes, My Lord?" he whispered - but despite his apparent startlement his voice was cold as ice and smooth as the black silk of the gloves that Bellatrix was wearing.
"Judge this child." The Dark Lord didn't move to indicate which one, but Lucius strode forward, head held high under his hood, and stopped directly before Narcissa. She felt his eyes sweep up and down her, undressing her in his mind, appraising her. He took one more step forward so that not an inch separated them, and she barely heard the Dark Lord address a man named Severus the same way.
The man before her - Lucius - reached up a hand to brush back her silvery- gold hair behind first one ear, then the other. He reached up then with his right hand and lowered his hood.
Only one thought could fit into her head at that moment, because it was a loud, important thought, one larger than fear or apprehension.
He's beautiful.
Lucius was a young man, and his hair was almost precisely the same unusual shade as hers. His was almost as long, and drawn behind his head loosely with a black velvet ribbon. He looked arrogant but fear was in his shrewd grey eyes as they darted away from her toward the place where the Dark Lord was standing. His robes were an angry sort of black. He also wore gloves - black leather with a snake embroidered in silver. The hand that had pushed back her damp hair was still on her jawbone.
His pale lips curved into a smile, and his free hand moved around her waist. She didn't realize she was closing her eyes until after he kissed her.
His hands were moving, suddenly frantic, as if searching for something, desperate to find it soon, and moved across her chest and up to her neck. He was maneuvering her carefully backwards, and she felt his fingers move down ever so slightly again and find the strings tied into a careful bow that laced up the front of her dress.
He was fumbling with it, and very quickly it was undone and he was loosening the strings. There was a pause and when his fingers returned his gloves were gone and he was expertly pushing her back, back, until she felt a tree behind her.
She didn't care that he was doing this because he had been ordered to, she didn't care that there were almost twenty men probably watching. She had soon found out that Lucius tasted like cool mint and hot copper, and that he was very quick with his hands. She had to stop herself from crying out into his mouth as she felt his sharp fingernails dig into her skin and then she couldn't prevent the gasp that followed something his palm had done.
She felt shapes his slim fingers traced into skin that she did not usually bare, and his hand still held her impossibly close to him - surely skin against skin so tightly, so seamless, would meld and fuse together forever and would that bother her? No, to be like this forever would be heaven, it was exhilaration, she was not worthy, he was a dark spirit, a fallen archangel perhaps and she -
And then the burning heat was gone from her skin and she was shivering again as he stepped back, three slow steps, and turned only his head, and gave a short, sharp nod. From behind him, where his eyes had gone when he turned his head, red eyes gave a mad glint, and Lucius turned his eyes back and watched her, emotionless.
She fumbled with the lacing up her dress, wishing that he could do it for her - his fingers were quick, delicate, and expert, and she was sure he would do it much faster - besides, she wanted to feel the heat of his skin on hers -
She turned her head back and forth, and felt her face redden as it had not before - knowing you were being watched and watching were two different things. Severus was still against Bellatrix, pressing her to a tree, their two bodies one, the top half of her dress completely unlaced so that not a stitch covered her down to her waist, where one of his arms was hooked.
As she watched, he moved back three steps just as Lucius had. Bellatrix looked startled and shivered, and their eyes met. Severus turned his head, in an identical motion, and gave a quick nod, and it was then that the soft pop!s came again and there were three people in the clearing. The sound of the rain and the thunder had returned, although Narcissa couldn't have said when, and the Dark Lord's red eyes gleamed, watching the two girls as they silently fumbled to relace their dresses.
Narcissa wondered, from the identical steps and nods that Lucius and Severus had taken, how many times this had happened before, and if it had, what had happened to the other girls - there had been only men in the circle.
Breathless, Narcissa straightened, her dress done up loosely, and shortly thereafter Bellatrix did the same. Bella's dress was slightly neater, slightly less with the appearance of hastiness. But her sister's face was flushed.
Finally, the Dark Lord spoke. "You have been judged," he said, with cold amusement in his voice, "and you have been found worthy. If you still wish to," his eyes glinted at these words, as if daring them to say that they did not, "you may join the Fold. The oath you take with be unspoken, but it will be burned into your skin as the Dark Mark. You must pledge yourselves to me, heart and soul. You must swear fealty and follow my wishes with your life, knowing that I am the Power that binds you and any mistakes are punishable by me, no matter how small. I am the deciding factor, although you may receive orders also from Lucius and Severus, whom I believe you have met." His eyes glinted again. "All this you must swear to. Do you wish join the Fold, Bellatrix and Narcissa Black, for silence and destruction, for life or death, for despair or joy, for victory or defeat?" It seemed to Narcissa that the last word was the heaviest and most important, it was a warning of what would happen if defeat would come and scorn to say that it never would.
Narcissa and her sister shared glances, and then each sank to one knee, if rather clumsily, and stumbled over each other's words.
"I do, My Lord."
"Yes, Dark Lord."
His lipless mouth twitched into the coldest smile ever seen, and Narcissa had a feeling that that smile would inspire fear in the hearts of every soul on Earth for years to come.
August 1st, 1977
The rain fell in sheets, but there was no lightning in sight. Every few minutes, a distant rumble of warm thunder would be audible, but it would fade quickly and leave the two girls shivering again in silence.
They had been told it would be soon, and that it would be here. Nothing more, nothing less.
There were suddenly soft popping noises from all around, and encircling them were perhaps twenty men, all in dark robes that the water seemed to slide off, all standing stiffly and all bathed in a sort of glow. Heat radiated from them, as if they were made of flames.
There was a sound from behind them, and Narcissa started to turn, but she felt her sister's hand tighten around her own and stood still. The cold had gone, but she was very aware that the rain pounding her skin had also made her dress nearly transparent. She could feel many eyes - she could not see them, because the men all had their hoods up and it was very dark.
On her shoulder, she suddenly felt a long-fingered slim hand. She felt Bellatrix on her right stiffen and knew that she was feeling the same thing - a burning sensation, a heat in her head that pushed at the back of her eyes and wasn't quite painful or pleasant.
As soon as it had come, it was gone, and the hand with it, and she heard footsteps behind her, starting to pace behind the two of them just out of her line of vision.
The sound of the rain and the thunder stopped, even though she could still feel the drops of water hitting her skin. The sound of the pacing continued for a moment, then it too halted abruptly.
Lightning struck the ground suddenly, within the circle, mere yards from the girls, but heatless, and remaining - it did not vanish, as if it had been suspended, but it still wavered before them. The circle was suddenly illuminated in dazzling light; none of them so much as twitched. Shapes flashed dark in the lightning. A human skull, jaw open, a single black rose in its mouth, the stem extending down where the spine ought to be. A wicked silver blade, penetrating the rose's delicate center. A snake, curling itself up around the rose, ignoring the blade and the thorns that made it bleed black blood, until finally it emerged from the mouth of the skull and started to slither forwards in the light. Narcissa didn't even realize she had pulled out of Bella's grip or that she was backing away until she ran into something very solid and froze with a gasp.
"Are you afraid?" a soft, hissing, cruel voice whispered in one ear. She could feel the breath tickle her cheek, but it was not hot or cool, simply. . .present.
"N-no."
"Are you afraid?" the voice said again. She was silent with terror, still frozen in place where she had backed into him, and then she whispered, "Yes."
"Good," the voice whispered, sounding both amused and pleased. "Defiance, then truth. You should be afraid, child. You should be terrified."
"I am," she heard her quavering voice say without permission from her brain.
"Good." The hand was on her shoulder again, and it pushed her forwards. She stumbled, finding herself again right next to Bellatrix. Her sister's fingers wound around her own; both hands were trembling.
The light vanished, leaving a blue afterimage on her eyes that would not fade. The footsteps from behind came again, and moved around until Lord Voldemort stood in front of them.
His red eyes glowed with a ferocious, angry light, and he studied the girls with them, for uncountable moments of yet more silence. Then, without turning, he said softly, "Lucius."
One of the men, directly to Narcissa's left, stepped forward quickly, seeming startled, and knelt, bowing his head. "Yes, My Lord?" he whispered - but despite his apparent startlement his voice was cold as ice and smooth as the black silk of the gloves that Bellatrix was wearing.
"Judge this child." The Dark Lord didn't move to indicate which one, but Lucius strode forward, head held high under his hood, and stopped directly before Narcissa. She felt his eyes sweep up and down her, undressing her in his mind, appraising her. He took one more step forward so that not an inch separated them, and she barely heard the Dark Lord address a man named Severus the same way.
The man before her - Lucius - reached up a hand to brush back her silvery- gold hair behind first one ear, then the other. He reached up then with his right hand and lowered his hood.
Only one thought could fit into her head at that moment, because it was a loud, important thought, one larger than fear or apprehension.
He's beautiful.
Lucius was a young man, and his hair was almost precisely the same unusual shade as hers. His was almost as long, and drawn behind his head loosely with a black velvet ribbon. He looked arrogant but fear was in his shrewd grey eyes as they darted away from her toward the place where the Dark Lord was standing. His robes were an angry sort of black. He also wore gloves - black leather with a snake embroidered in silver. The hand that had pushed back her damp hair was still on her jawbone.
His pale lips curved into a smile, and his free hand moved around her waist. She didn't realize she was closing her eyes until after he kissed her.
His hands were moving, suddenly frantic, as if searching for something, desperate to find it soon, and moved across her chest and up to her neck. He was maneuvering her carefully backwards, and she felt his fingers move down ever so slightly again and find the strings tied into a careful bow that laced up the front of her dress.
He was fumbling with it, and very quickly it was undone and he was loosening the strings. There was a pause and when his fingers returned his gloves were gone and he was expertly pushing her back, back, until she felt a tree behind her.
She didn't care that he was doing this because he had been ordered to, she didn't care that there were almost twenty men probably watching. She had soon found out that Lucius tasted like cool mint and hot copper, and that he was very quick with his hands. She had to stop herself from crying out into his mouth as she felt his sharp fingernails dig into her skin and then she couldn't prevent the gasp that followed something his palm had done.
She felt shapes his slim fingers traced into skin that she did not usually bare, and his hand still held her impossibly close to him - surely skin against skin so tightly, so seamless, would meld and fuse together forever and would that bother her? No, to be like this forever would be heaven, it was exhilaration, she was not worthy, he was a dark spirit, a fallen archangel perhaps and she -
And then the burning heat was gone from her skin and she was shivering again as he stepped back, three slow steps, and turned only his head, and gave a short, sharp nod. From behind him, where his eyes had gone when he turned his head, red eyes gave a mad glint, and Lucius turned his eyes back and watched her, emotionless.
She fumbled with the lacing up her dress, wishing that he could do it for her - his fingers were quick, delicate, and expert, and she was sure he would do it much faster - besides, she wanted to feel the heat of his skin on hers -
She turned her head back and forth, and felt her face redden as it had not before - knowing you were being watched and watching were two different things. Severus was still against Bellatrix, pressing her to a tree, their two bodies one, the top half of her dress completely unlaced so that not a stitch covered her down to her waist, where one of his arms was hooked.
As she watched, he moved back three steps just as Lucius had. Bellatrix looked startled and shivered, and their eyes met. Severus turned his head, in an identical motion, and gave a quick nod, and it was then that the soft pop!s came again and there were three people in the clearing. The sound of the rain and the thunder had returned, although Narcissa couldn't have said when, and the Dark Lord's red eyes gleamed, watching the two girls as they silently fumbled to relace their dresses.
Narcissa wondered, from the identical steps and nods that Lucius and Severus had taken, how many times this had happened before, and if it had, what had happened to the other girls - there had been only men in the circle.
Breathless, Narcissa straightened, her dress done up loosely, and shortly thereafter Bellatrix did the same. Bella's dress was slightly neater, slightly less with the appearance of hastiness. But her sister's face was flushed.
Finally, the Dark Lord spoke. "You have been judged," he said, with cold amusement in his voice, "and you have been found worthy. If you still wish to," his eyes glinted at these words, as if daring them to say that they did not, "you may join the Fold. The oath you take with be unspoken, but it will be burned into your skin as the Dark Mark. You must pledge yourselves to me, heart and soul. You must swear fealty and follow my wishes with your life, knowing that I am the Power that binds you and any mistakes are punishable by me, no matter how small. I am the deciding factor, although you may receive orders also from Lucius and Severus, whom I believe you have met." His eyes glinted again. "All this you must swear to. Do you wish join the Fold, Bellatrix and Narcissa Black, for silence and destruction, for life or death, for despair or joy, for victory or defeat?" It seemed to Narcissa that the last word was the heaviest and most important, it was a warning of what would happen if defeat would come and scorn to say that it never would.
Narcissa and her sister shared glances, and then each sank to one knee, if rather clumsily, and stumbled over each other's words.
"I do, My Lord."
"Yes, Dark Lord."
His lipless mouth twitched into the coldest smile ever seen, and Narcissa had a feeling that that smile would inspire fear in the hearts of every soul on Earth for years to come.