His Angel of Death
A/N: This my first Bella/Roddy fic, and I hope you'll like it :)
Summary: Bellatrix Black is the eldest daughter of Cygnus and Druella Black. At eighteen, she found her calling amongst the Death Eaters, yet it seems that the Dark Lord does not want them to know about her just yet. His plans for her are different from what he keeps in store for the others. So he trains her for a special role, a role that not even Bellatrix fully understands yet. In middle of all this, young Bella meets the handsome and mysterious Rodolphus Lestrange, who seems to take an odd interest in her, even though she keeps pushing him away. Then there are her sisters, Narcissa who spins her own web, and young Andy that is much in need of guidance and parenting. The ever-vigilant Lucius Malfoy glowers in the background, plotting Bella's fall because she has scorned him. Will Bellatrix be able to deal with all of this? Can she remain herself in the midst of intrigues and plots aimed to bring her down? Perhaps. Perhaps not.
Pairings: Bellatrix Black/Rodolphus Lestrange, Andromeda Black/Ted Tonks, Narcissa Black/Lucius Malfoy
Rating: T
Disclaimer: All the characters belong to JKR, but I love them anyway.
Prologue
Pride. It has always been the trademark of Bellatrix Black. Her pride always came first, regardless of the consequences. Her pride was what held her together, her strongest shield against the world and the most vulnerable spot at the same time. Proud, proud Bella Black. This personality trait went unchecked for so many years; it grew stronger and stronger burdening Bellatrix with an unhealthy amount of arrogance that eventually caused recklessness. She knew what she was: the most beautiful, the smartest, the most cunning, and the sexiest witch at Hogwarts. If someone, anyone, tried to reproach her for her arrogance, they were simply wrong. What did they think they knew? They weren't her, they could never know.
After she finished Hogwarts, Bella spent a year or so aboard, learning and relaxing after seven years of hard work. And when she returned to England, she heard rumors, rumors that led her to him.
Good witches are just bad witches that don't get caught, right? Bellatrix Black did not get caught the first few times that she followed her cousin Regulus Black to the secret place, but then again, Regulus was not among the brightest of the family. The transportation was easier than she thought it would be; she just held onto his cloak whenever he apparated to the meetings and he never noticed. And so Bella was a bad witch that never got caught, being bad at night when no one knew, and good during the day when they all saw.
She was never scared by what she discovered at these meetings that she observed, hiding under two invisibility cloaks and a number of her own spells, fearing discovery. But no fear would put a stop to her ever-growing fascination with the darkness embodied by the man who summoned the masked men there. Purebloods to rule them all… Muggles, dirty, stupid Muggles, gone… And he'd make it all happen…
Then, one night, after the meeting was finished, when she was about apparate back home, a spell immobilized her. It was a strong spell, cast wordlessly and she could not break it herself. At the same time, another spell was used to strip off the invisibility cloaks, and she was levitated towards the Dark Lord himself.
"Bellatrix Black, is it?" the icy voice inquired in a mildly amused tone, as the man spun her idly around her axis in the air so she was facing him.
The Dark Lord has not taken on the horrifying appearance he would be known for yet. His eyes, while not completely human, flashed red only once in a while, and they remained a deep shade of black for most of the time. His face was not handsome, nor was it hideous; it spoke of the unknown, unlimited power that he wielded. The medium-length black hair that framed his pale face was neatly combed and the robes that hung to his tall, muscular body were made of expensive material and cut with skill and expertise.
"Yes," Bella whispered, holding her chin up stubbornly, but then, as if she realized whom she was speaking to, lowered her head and corrected herself: "Yes, my lord."
"This is not the first time you are here," it was not a question; he knew. Bellatrix briefly wondered if he knew of her all along, but it soon stopped to matter.
"Ah, Bella- mind if I call you that?" she shrugged, not that he needed her approval to do anything. "Of course I knew; how could I not?"
Bellatrix frowned. She was more than willing to admit that he was powerful, but her spells weren't that bad.
"No, my dear, it was not the spells that gave it away. It was your thoughts that betrayed you."
Bellatrix said nothing, what was the point in talking to someone who could and would read your mind anyway?
"Now, now, Bella," he scolded lightly. "You can't expect me to use Legillimency whenever I am speaking to you. It's impolite."
Bella continued to stare at him with a touch of defiance concealed in her angular features. Her mind was void of all thoughts; she had nothing to say.
"You came to at least seven of our little conclaves, my dear," he observed. "Maybe you wanted to join us," he paused. "Or perhaps, you were trying to spy on us?"
"I am sorry, my lord," Bella replied with a hint of sarcasm in her voice, offended by the implication. "I did not see the sign-up sheet anywhere."
"Hm," his mind was clearly on something else as he twirled his wand in his long fingers. "What should I do with you, insolent Bella? Oh, I know. Crucio!"
Bellatrix writhed in pain after the curse hit her. It felt like she was going to combust and snap back together all at once. She wanted to scream in pain, but she could not, would not, he would not break her as if she was one of the dogs. She was Bellatrix Black, inferior to no one. She was, was…
Next, she heard his cold, high-pitched laughter spilling all over the forest clearing where they usually met. Bellatrix stared at him dumbfounded, the curse was over, he was finished torturing her.
"See what I can do, Bella?" he asked, reading her mind despite what he said previously. "I am more powerful than you."
"I could kill you if I wanted to, my pet," he added, playing with his wand again as a menacing light came to his eyes.
"You are not going to do that," Bellatrix, who seemed to gather her thoughts again, said in response.
"And why, pray, not? You spied on me and my group of—friends, which is simply rude, and you heard conversations that were not meant for your ears."
"You need me," Bella stated bluntly, giving him a cold, calculating look.
"Bellatrix, Bellatrix, I need no one. Not you, not any of them," he scoffed. "They are simply my toys. My puppets, if you will. Just like you. They can be broken and replaced. I can break and replace you too. I should just kill you."
"I could advance your cause farther than any of them," Bella replied, her eyes glittering oddly. "I am more powerful, smarter and better than any of them. And above all, I am more dedicated."
"You?" he giggled. "What are you? A mere girl of sixteen or seventeen, stronger and more powerful than the rich, well-established men that serve me?"
"Yes," Bella purred. "I am more loyal than any of them. More capable. I do not fear death, captivity or torture. What I don't know, I can learn. I can be whatever you need me to be."
"Hm," he paused, deciding to play along with her, but seizing her up as he did so. "Why? Why should I not kill you? I can find plenty like you…"
"You probably can," Bella admitted. "But why wait? You can either get your most loyal and most valuable servant now or you can kill a daughter of the noble House of Black. The choice is yours."
He said nothing, but watched her intently for a few minutes.
"If you are dissatisfied with me, you can always kill me later on," Bellatrix added as an afterthought when he did not say anything for a while.
"You do not fear death."
Bellatrix paused for she never really thought of it in those terms.
"No. No, I don't," she assented.
Voldemort started pacing around; keeping his eyes on her as if he was weighing her potential. Some time passed before he stopped again, and raised his hand. Bellatrix was finally released from the spell, and she fell to the ground with a thump.
"Show me," he ordered.
Bella wished the order was clearer, but because it wasn't, she took it as a test, and raised her wand to cast a spell. She summoned a rock that she transfigured into a mantichore. The animal hissed, preparing to attack, but with another spell, it was shackled, unable to move. Of course, all the spells were done in wordless magic, all of them, except the last one.
"Avada Kedavra!"
The mantichore was hit by a ray of green light that caused its instant death.
Through the whole process, the dark lord showed no sign of being impressed, but he did not scold her either, which pleased Bella, and gave her enough confidence to perform the very last spell.
It was time for her big finale. She raised her wand, and brought it down in one fluid motion as she bellowed:
"Volo hoc revenire!"
It was a new spell that she had never tried before, a spell she had only read about in one of the book she smuggled into her room from Knockturn Alley. She was risking by using it, but if it worked, it would add just the right touch to her little performance.
To her pleasure, the spell worked. The mantichore shook its appendages and raised its head to expectedly look at Bellatrix as if to ask her for orders.
"That would be enough," the Dark Lord stepped in before she had time to think of another spell that might impress him. "I assume that this is your first time creating a semi-Inferus?"
"Yes, my lord."
There was no point in lying to someone who could read her thoughts anyway.
"And do you know the counter-spell as well?"
"No, I don't," Bellatrix admitted, embarrassed.
"Pride, my pet, pride," Voldemort hissed and with one swish of his wand, the mantichore resumed its natural state of being dead.
"But yes, I can definitely work with your talents," Voldemort decided, and Bella could swear that this would be the happiest day of her life.
"You will be a good servant, won't you Bella?" the Dark Lord murmured, holding her chin up to look in her eyes.
"Yes, oh yes, my lord!"
As if he learned what he wanted to learn, her let her chin fall and he turned away from her.
"Should I come to the next meeting, my lord?" Bella inquired before taking her leave.
"No, Bellatrix- beautiful warrior, you must train first. You will be better than any of them," there was a dark prophecy in his words. "Stronger and more powerful."
Bella's thin lips spread in a self-satisfied smile. He thought her worthy!
"I will tell you where to meet me, and when."
Then he disappeared.
And that is how the Dark Lord met what was to become his greatest asset in his war.