"The Lestranges should stand here," said Voldemort quietly. "But they are entombed in Azkaban. They were faithful. They went to Azkaban rather than renounce me…. When Azkaban is broken apart, the Lestranges will be honored beyond their dreams."
-Goblet of Fire-
Depth… Behind Dark Eyes: Part II By: Melissa RolandoThe wind graced her skin and raised the small hairs on the back of her neck. Each foot took a nimble leap from rock to rock. The base of the mountain was near, Mel Lestrange had been repelling down the mountains overlooking Hogwarts for a major part of the night. The air was icy and Mel was ready to lay her head down and rest for the night but her wish was fighting her will. Finally, she decided to sleep, gather her strength for tomorrow, and plot her next move. She knew she needed to infiltrate the school but how, she did not know. A small overhang of a cliff gave Mel shelter for the night, she closed her eyes and drifted away into unconsciousness.
The morning came quicker than Mel had expected. She rose and stretched out her arms while taking a deep breath of the crisp morning air. The breeze from last night has died down and Mel was ready finish her journey down the cliffs. She took a few steps out of her refuge and before long an eagle owl swooped down, dropping a package at her feet before landing gracefully upon her shoulder. Mel looked over and the bird stuck his claw out in her face. A tiny piece of parchment was attached to his leg, Mel removed it and read:
Just found out: Dumbledore doesn't know you're a Death Eater.
Good Luck.
The letter wasn't signed but Mel crumbled it up and ate it anyway for safety precautions. Mel ripped open the plain brown wrapping of the box and found a plain black set of robes. Patting the eagle owl on the head, she changed out of her Death Eaters cloak and continued her descent. A new sense of reality swelled inside of Mel as she pictured her every one of her future moves in her head.
Within an hour Mel was facing the familiar, large wooden doors of Hogwarts. She made her way up the front steps and pushed open the heavy, old entry. The air inside the castle was cool and damp and the grey stone rebounded every noise around her. She found herself alone in the Entrance Hall, with nothing else to do but wait she found a seat on the large stone steps that lay ahead of her. It wasn't very long before the doors to the great all burst open causing Mel to jump to her feet as rush of children streamed out and around her. Most of them walked around Mel, completely ignoring her but a few familiar faces eyed her up and down as they continued on their path. A drawling voice came from behind her.
"What are you doing here?" Draco's eyes gleamed with excitement.
"Good to see you, too." She spat back.
"How's my father?" Mel's eyes widened in shock as she grabbed his upper arm and dragged him away from the crowd. Draco, now 16, stood at least a head above Mel. She stared up at him and spoke again.
"No one here needs to know what I've been up to. Got it? You're a little brat."
"Someone's a little bitter isn't she?"
"Why would I be?"
"My father tells me you lost a love." His eyes narrowed as he let out an evil laugh.
"Unlike Lucius, I do not live in the past. Now keep your mouth shut about me." She raised an eyebrow at him and turned back towards the Great Hall.
The golden sky was bright and the air overhead shined with the lunchtime sun. Ahead of her, Mel saw a few familiar faces of teachers she once sat before in class. Without looking too closely, Mel swept behind the teachers table and made her way towards the sparkling white beard that belonged only to Albus Dumbledore.
"Dumbledore!" With a happy squeak in her voice, Mel threw her arms out and embraced the elderly gentleman.
"Well if it isn't Mel Lestrange!" He spoke haughtily. "What have you been up to all these years?" Mel's jaw almost dropped it shock at the question but she kept her cool and responded.
"Oh well… I've been studying the Dark Arts in Albania." Dumbledore peered over his spectacles at her.
"Albania? You're a brave girl to take yourself out there." His face lightened once again "But I always knew you had it in you. So, are you going to be in this area for very long?"
"Well I wanted to stay for awhile, you know to get acquainted with the area again, but I don't have anywhere to stay so I'll probably just…"
"Oh don't be silly! We always have room for guests here." He looked over his shoulder. "Madame Pomphrey! Would you be so kind as to help Mel into a room, she'll be staying with us for awhile so make sure she's comfortable."
She followed the nimble old witch back out of the Hall and up the stairs in the entrance. Shoulders back, she walked briskly, eyeing students as they passed her and wondering if any of them recognized her face. Madame Pomphrey let out a small cough which drew Mel's attention towards her. By the time she faced the students again a pair of heads, one black headed boy barely taller than her and the other with bright red hair that was at least a head taller than the other boy, just passed by. Mel gasped when she realized who she had seen, but Madame Pomphrey spoke to her before she could think much about the boys.
"Oh Mel, its been so long since I've see you last. How are you? How are your brothers? Oh wait, they've been in a lot of trouble lately haven't they?" Madame Pomphrey nervously looked away from Mel, darting her eyes from the side down to her feet before she continued. "Well, at least there was one good egg in the family."
"Heh, yeah." Mel pulled off a smile and continued to charm the people around her. "And what about you? How've you been? You don't look a day older than you did 6 years ago." Madame Pomphrey giggled and then the two were silent up three floors and down two corridors until Mel was led in to her living quarters.
"Don't you have a bag dear?" Mel didn't realized until now how suspicious her lack of luggage was.
"I did but, as I was leaving Albania I got a little too close to a dragon and well… POOF!" She made an exploding action with her hands.
"Oh well, I am truly sorry. It should be snowing soon, would you like me to find you some heavier robes to wear outside?"
"Oh that'd be great! Thanks."
"Okay I will then. I assume you'll be here through Christmas then?" Mel nodded. "You'll be celebrating a birthday here too won't you?"
"No. Not until May. I'll be 24!" Mel flashed a cheesy, overexcited smile at the nurse.
"Oh well then, happy early, early birthday. I'll let you get settled in now. Bye bye." She exited and Mel flopped down onto then bed.
A loud pounding on her door woke Mel up to a dark room. A cold, late November breeze drifted in through an open window. A stifled male voice came from the hallway.
"Mel, they're about to serve dinner. You uh… wanna come down there with me?"
The voice sounded slightly familiar but… why would he be here? She peered her head out the door and saw a 6 foot tall short haired blonde man looking down at her. His blue eyes gleamed with happiness from seeing Mel again and the scar across the bridge of his nose made her remember the tear under her eye once more. Acerbus Caesar, one of her best friends from Slytherin years ago, stood and waited.
"Acerbus? What are you doing here?"
"I got an owl saying my partner in crime came back to Hogwarts so… I had to come right over of course."
"From who? Was it Draco! The little twerp I told him not to say a word about me being here."
"Why? Is something wrong?"
"No. What's for dinner? Let's go." She grabbed his hand and dragged him down the hallway and downstairs.
"Wow, frisky aren't we?" She threw a glare over her shoulder at him and they went to dinner together. Entering the Great Hall they both looked around to see where the staff expected them to sit. With no obvious place, they made their way to the left and seated themselves towards the back of the Slytherin table and against the wall. Mel pushed the food around her plate and was wondering what the real reason Acerbus was with her now.
"Why?" Acerbus inquired.
"Why what?" Mel looked up at him, shocked.
"Why do you care why I'm here? Shouldn't you just be happy I'm with you?" Mel became suddenly nervous and immediately closed off herself to him. A few minutes of tense silence endure then he let out a light laugh. "You forgot I was…"
"Yeah, yeah… practicing Occlumency. I got it, yup." Mel spoke sarcastically and smiled at him. "Just never thought you'd actually get good at it."
"Wow, thanks. Though, I never bothered learning Legilimency so you still have one up on me."
"Are these Thanksgiving leftovers?" Mel's focus returned to her plate as she tried to change the subject. They sat and poked at their food in silence until most of the meal from the tables had completely been devoured and Dumbledore stood for a closing word.
"I have one last word of caution to all the students. Since the recent outbreak of Death Eaters from Azkaban prison I have felt it would be helpful for everyone to have a… Guardian Friend to talk to." He stopped to giggle at the new title he invented but Mel sat stiff as a board ready to listen to every word he said about the Death Eaters. "Don't be alarmed by the outbreak, no news or clues have been uncovered to give any belief what-so-ever that they would have any reason come in or near the school." This made Mel smile a little. "Ah yes, back to my Guardian Friend." A tall, slender man stepped out from the door behind the head table and walked over to stand by Dumbledore. He had a long, auburn colored pony tail and from what Mel could see, a greyish colored eye. "This is Praesidis Otho. He is here for any of you to talk to if you feel uncomfortable at anytime during school. He's not that much older than any of you so please do think of him as a friend. I think that's all, now go and enjoy your day!" Dumbledore began clapping for himself as the students cleared out of the hall.
Mel stood up and stretched her legs and arms out, feeling every muscle in her tired body unwinding, leaving her completely relaxed. She ran her fingers through her hair and tucked one of her long locks behind her ear.
"Ow!" She felt a sharp pain flick off her uncovered cartilage and turned around quickly to see Draco laughing behind her.
"Just wanted to welcome you back properly." He retorted. She couldn't help but to laugh with him.
"You little twerp wait until I get my hands on you!" His eyes bulged and he ran as Mel chased him playfully out of the Hall. For once, Mel finally felt that things were looking up for her, she forgot she was a Death Eater. She chased Draco all around the entrance hall and through the dungeons until finally ending up at the moving staircases. With the constant movement this was a feat in itself, but Mel kept up until the steps shifted unexpectedly and she found herself helplessly drifting away from him. She was now facing a familiar corridor and determined she set off down it and leaned against the wall next to the Fat Lady to wait for the students returning from dinner.
Slowly, students streamed past her, giving her sideways glances before quietly mentioning the password to the large portrait. A set of three girls walked by and gave Mel frightened glances before entering the common room. Within a few minutes the face she was waiting to see was approaching. The 16-year-old, messy-haired boy with the scar seemed to slow down as he approached. Mel stood up and walked closer to the portrait, staring directly at the boy.
"Harry Potter, may I have a word with you?" Mel inquired at once.
"Who the bloody are you?" The tall red-headed boy stepped in front of Mel.
"Ugh, Weasley." Mel muttered under her breath and then put on a big corny smile. "Oooh look how cute you are! I was in school here with Bill! Oh look, the red hair just gives you away!"
"Uh… alright." Ron took a step back, obviously confused by what just happened, leaving a clear path between Mel and Harry.
"Yeah… what did you wanna talk to me about?" Mel didn't say a word but looked over at his friends behind him. "Ron, Hermione you guys can go ahead I'll catch up with you later." Mel walked through an open passageway that lead into a room full of large, plush chairs covered in royal purple velvet. She sat down in one and Harry sat across from her with his back straight and his feet flat on the floor. Sensing his discomfort, Mel slouched down in her chair and kicked her feet up on the highly detailed, solid cherry coffee table between them. Harry immediately took notice and his posture eased up.
"It's a pleasure to meet you yannow? Of course I know all about you." said Mel.
"I don't mean to be rude but… who are you?" Harry questioned.
"Oh, how silly of me." Mel said laughing, "My name is Mel Le…" She caught herself before she blurted out her infamous surname. "Leavitt. Mel Leavitt." She smiled nervously.
"Its nice to meet you." He reached his hand across the table to shake hers. "Now, what did you want to say before?" Mel had never thought about what she wanted to say exactly but she reacted quickly.
"I knew your parents." Mel's heart raced as her lie became thicker and thicker. "I mean, I was young, only seven or eight but I remember them so well. Beautiful people they were and I'm sure its not really any help but I'll be in Hogwarts for awhile and I'd love to spend some more time with you if its not too much trouble. Maybe we could be a link to each other's pasts." Harry smiled, which calmed Mel down and she smiled back at him.
"I'd love that, thank you." With another smile he rose from his seat and headed off towards his common room once more.
Mel sank into the comfy chair and closed her eyes. The fabric, warmth, and soft lumpiness reminded Mel of her den in the Riddle House. Soon the smell of burning fires filled her nostrils and warmed her bones. She felt herself begin to drift off just as someone plopped down in the seat where Harry, sending some books crashing onto the table, nearly missing Mel's feet and startling her back into consciousness.
"Oh! I'm sorry I didn't even see you there! My apologies." It was the man Dumbledore introduced in the Great Hall. "Hi, I'm…"
"Praesidis Otho. I remember." Mel smiled. "I'm Mel Lestrange." She smiled and reached a friendly hand across to shake his.
"Lestrange… are you related to Rodolphus?" He raised an eyebrow at her.
"Yeah, he's my older brother." A smile came across Praesidis' face.
"He was quite a character."
"Oh, were you guys friends?"
"Well, no… I was in Ravenclaw. Haven't seen him since 7th year though. Heard he was part of the Longbottom torture, poor guy." Mel looked at him oddly.
"My brother isn't a bad person."
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you."
"No, it's alright. But I'm kind of sleepy so I think I'm going to head to bed."
"Okay." She began to leave the room but Praesidis spoke up again. "Mel? Would you like to have breakfast with me tomorrow?"
"Uh, sure…" Mel replied uneasily and left towards her bedroom.
A bright stream of light washed over Mel's closed eyelids, turning the blackness to a stinging red. Struggling to open her eyes, she rubbed them and looked over at Acerbus, who had just thrown open her curtains. She made a small grunting moan.
"Come on it's time for breakfast."
"I can't go with you," she explained. "I promised that new guy I'd go with him."
"Praesidis! Dumbledore's 'Guardian Friend'? You've got to be kidding me, what a loser! He must be at least as old as…"
"He was in my brother's class."
"Haha! This guy is like 30, Mel!"
"Oh, go away!" She threw a pillow at him and he playfully dodged it as he ducked out of the room. The walk down the Great Hall had never seemed so long to Mel and to her horror, Praesidis was already waiting for her outside the giant double doors.
"Oh good, I'm glad you made it." He said cheerfully.
"You make it sound like I was dying."
"No, never." They entered the Great Hall, which was unsurprisingly empty for a Saturday morning, and Praesidis headed off towards the long, wooden Ravenclaw table. Mel didn't move an inch, staring at him with a furrowed brow and watched Praesidis notice her with a very confused look on his face. When he realized what was happening he came back to her.
"I'm sorry, how silly of me. Where would my lady like to sit?" Mel gagged at the thought of being his lady. Without a word, she turned her back and headed off to find a seat at the Slytherin table. Mel stared at her plate, poking at her food for as long as she could before Praesidis began talking to her again.
"So, what do think about the Death Eaters outbreak?" Mel coughed on a piece of sausage she was nibbling on.
"Er… what do you know about it?"
"Oh everyone knows about it, Mel! It was all over the papers."
"It was?"
"Yeah, don't you get the Prophet?"
"Not lately, no."
"Oh well what happened is," He stopped for a quick swig of orange juice. "All the Death Eaters the Order of the Phoenix caught in the Department of Mysteries mysteriously broke out of Azkaban, again! Really crazy times we live in you know? That's why I'm here." Mel was itching for him to stop talking. "I'm here to help the students not be afraid."
"Afraid of what? What do you think there is to be afraid of?"
"Oh Mel, everything these days. I was afraid when Sirius Black, the murderer, was on the loose again! Can you imagine…"
"Sirius was an asshole." Mel mumbled over her buttered wheat toast.
"Excuse me? Oh well, I was scared he would come into my home and just kill me for no reason. So, what are you afraid of?" Mel was eager to scream 'YOU!'
"I'm not afraid of anything."
"Oh come on, you can trust me." Mel wondered if he knew the word trust meant nothing to her. "What are you afraid of?"
"Nothing damnit, I'm not afraid of anything. Got it?" With an angry uproar she got up and fled from the Great Hall and back to her room for a mid-morning nap.
Mel could feel someone else's warm form sitting near her feet when she awoke an hour later. She was so warm in her cocoon of blankets she had no desire to check who was in the room with her.
"You sure to sleep a lot." Acerbus' voice drifted through her ears.
"Why are you always here when I'm sleeping. That's kind of creepy yannow."
"Come on, we're going down by the lake. It'll be fun." He grabbed Mel out of bed and stood her upright while she looked at him with utter insanity through dark, dreary eyes.
"It's cold."
"I'll keep you warm." He said with a wink and a smile as Mel made a face at him.
"Let me get my bag." She reached under her 4 legged night stand and grabbed a worn, tan leather satchel and slung it over her shoulder. The December air chilled Mel's skin, causing her to press in closer to Acerbus to block the wind from hitting her. They laid out a blanket on the browning grass near the waters edge. Mel reached into her bag and pulled out a tatty, black leather-bound book and a pencil. She stretched out and opened to a random page in the middle and began to sketch.
"What ya drawing?" Acerbus peered over her shoulder.
"The Lestrange family crest."
"I didn't know you were and artist, Mel!"
"I'm not." A smile crept on Mel's face before she bit her bottom lip in an act of concentration. Acerbus' eyes fell on the words above Mel's sketch.
"Memento Mei. What's that?"
"Family motto."
"Oh… Isn't that in Brenton? Your family is from France?" Mel turned around and gave him a confused look.
"Lestrange… LE-strange. A bit obvious don't you think?"
"Oh, I guess I never thought about it." His eyebrows sank in together above his nose in perplexity. "What's it mean?"
"Remember Me."
"I missed you, Rumelayin." Mel's neck whipped around so fast it almost gave her whiplash. Her eyes bulged out of her head and her jaw dropped down so far it ached.
"WHAT? Acerbus! Don't ever call me that again!"
"Why not? Don't you like your name?" Her eyebrows raised in disbelief.
"I call myself Mel for a reason." The sun began to set on them and Acerbus craned his neck as he stretched.
"We've been out here a long time."
"And I'm freezing! Let's go eat, okay?"
All the students were already gathered in the Great Hall when they got there carrying their bags and blanket. They plopped down near the back of the table and feasted upon roast beef, mashed potato, corn, crème of red pepper soup, and fettuccini alfredo. Acerbus let out a burp with the end of his meal and he caught eye of something behind Mel. She turned around just to see Draco sitting down next to her.
"Hey Mel." Draco said as Acerbus let out a cough that sounded surprisingly like Rumelayin and Mel threw him a nasty glare.
"Hey Draco."
"You guys have been disappearing a lot together." He threw an eye across the table at Acerbus.
"Oh you little pervert it's nothing like that!"
"What are you doing tonight? I thought you might wanna come hang out in the dungeons with me." Hang out… Mel almost forgot about spending time with Harry. "So?"
"Mel and I are camping out by the lake." Acerbus spoke up.
"Oh camping! How long since I've done that?" Praesidis appeared from no where and pushed his way next to Acerbus at the table. Draco gave him a filthy look from his spot next to Mel. "Do you guys want any company?"
"No." Acerbus responded bluntly and left from the table.
"Oh… alright then." Praesidis looked heart-broken as Mel turned back to Draco.
"How about tomorrow night?"
"That's fine. Come down around eight, I'll be there." He also left the table, leaving Mel alone with Praesidis. He pulled a single flower from behind his back and gave it to Mel.
"Er… thanks." Mel was very uneasy as he began to speak to her in a low whisper.
"I like you a lot Mel. I hope that means something to you."
"No… you barely know me."
"I guess it love at first sight then! I hope to be seeing you soon." With that, Mel was alone to swim in her thoughts. Mel thought about how little Praesidis meant to her, she didn't even realize he was coming on to her. She wondered what he would do if he found the pitiful flower that Mel tactfully misplaced on the floor.
Later that night Mel and Acerbus found shade under a tree near the water. The black night air was colder than a solid sheet of ice and the lake began to freeze over and the edges. Mel's eyes twinkled as she watched a group of fairies dance in a distant glade near the forest. Mel relaxed and let the rigid air wash over her and she started to succumb to its comforting chill. Acerbus came up from behind her and wrapped a soft, warm grey blanket around her, giving her as tiny squeeze as he did so.
"What was that for?" She inquired in a feathery voice.
"Eh… I dunno. Guess I'm jealous of you and Praesidis."
"Oh god." She let out a laugh. "Don't tease me now, he's the only man for me." She faded off in a sarcastic tone as she laid down on her side and curled up by Acerbus. He started talking to her but Mel could only hear his voice slowly drifting away. Before too long Mel awoke to an even darker night. A huge, nearly full moon was halfway to the horizon. Five feet from Mel, a male figure glowed against the moonlight. He was taller but still not the size of Acerbus. Once Mel began to move, the male turned and faced her.
"Your not doing your job." Mel let a confused moan escape her lips. "Your too happy right now, Mel. The Dark Lord is not too pleased about this. He wants Potter to him by tomorrow night, I know you won't fail him. You like giving pain Mel, do you even remember pain? CRUCIO!" The words cut through the darkness and hit Mel like a million knives per each square inch of her body. She writhed in pain on the hard ground for what seemed like hours until finally the curse was broken. Exhausted, she brought herself to a seated position. Her mind raced as she was searching for the feeling of pain in her body, but, all she could find was desire for pain. Mel now became more alert, she realized whose voice was drifting through the darkness towards her.
"Rabastan…"
"Mmm?"
"What are you… how did you know I was here?"
"Well, by now everyone at the House knows what our little girl is doing for the Dark Lord. Your almost famous. Almost. I've always been proud of you." His words were meaningful, but no deeper than the smallest puddle, and no warmer than the southern most tip of the Arctic. She looked around in the darkness enveloping them, peeking around Rabastan's body and darting her eyes over the landscape around her.
"Where's Acerbus?" she inquired. Rabastan shifted his weight and looked at her through the night.
"I'm not sure. Just go back to sleep." She gladly obliged and smiled at him through heavy eyelids. She slid her body down and rested her head on her own arm and began to drift off. The scent of the late night, damp grass swamped Mel's nostrils and the moisture in the air quickly put her to sleep.
In the morning Mel woke up alone in the middle of the lawn. Grass was grossly masked to her face and she looked around for her blanket, which she found up a hill about five feet. Knowing she must have been rolling around a lot while she slept, she sat up and saw a few early rising students wandering near the water's edge. Walking back to her campsite and gathering her blankets, Mel wondered why Acerbus made her come camping on the lawn just to leave her there alone.
Mel wandered into the castle and made her way towards her bedroom. She pushed open the door and at once saw Acerbus sitting on her bed.
"Thanks for leaving me." She sputtered testily.
"I had to do what I had to do. We have all day today to be together."
"No. We don't." Mel's anger grew steadily each approaching second. "You always disappear when I'm not around then you show up again while I'm sleeping, or you sneak in and wait for me! You're a creep, you're… you're…"
"Say whatever you feel about me. You won't feel much longer." Mel paused and knew the Death Eater was beginning to flow deeply inside of her.
"You aren't the friend I used to know." Every muscle in Mel's body was ready to break down, but she stood strong. Her heart was made of stone, nothing could stop her now. She finally realized her place and her eyes darkened to a heartless black. "Get out of my life right now."
"Mel." He spoke low, slow, and made a point of each word he said. "I will leave you now, but I promise I'll see you again soon. I'll see you again before the end." He left solemnly and Mel stared him down as he left, and hoped to never see her so-called friend again. Right away, everything began clicking in Mel's head like it never had done before. She reached for her wand and pointed it out towards the hall.
"Accio Harry." She spoke distinctly and within five minutes there was a knock at Mel's door. She walked over and began opening it, speaking before it was ajar completely. "Hello Harry, I've been expecting you." A confused look came over Harry's face once he could actually see Mel. "Come in, sit down." He walked over and gingerly sat down at the foot of the bed as Mel sat in the armchair on the other side of the room.
"I just felt like, coming to see you… for some reason." Harry spoke, very unsure of himself.
"Yes, I've been wanting to see you, too. It's about time we had that talk about your parents." Harry sat up with eager yet weary anticipation. "Not here. I'd rather take you somewhere more intimate. Tonight, come back around nine, I know a cozy little place in the forest." Harry looked a little uneasy, but he agreed and left for his dormitory.
Mel's eyes wandered to the small ticking clock near her bedside. Less than an hour before she needed to see Draco. Millions of thoughts saturated her brain, mainly though of what she needed from Draco and why she was going through with her plans to meet him. She found herself at the wardrobe grabbing in the darkness for the robe Bellatrix sent her on the mountain. A sick empty feeling pitted in her stomach when there was nothing there to cover herself in. In a quick movement, she swept up the candelabrum from the end table and shed light into the armoire. Nothing. Mel was turning around when something caught her eye in the back corner of the unit. She reached down and picked up the black fabric that was haunting her from the floor. At the first touch Mel knew this wasn't the robe she had been wearing during her stay at Hogwarts, this material was very rich to the touch. She began to hold the robe at length away from her and something fell down, gracefully holding to the fabric and let out a soft tinking sound as it hit the floor. A wicked smile took over Mel's face and her heart pounded as she moved the robe aside to reveal her Death Eater's mask staring up at her with two slit eyes. She delicately wrapped herself in her robes, heinously hooded her head, and slipped the mask up her sleeve, out of view. Blowing out the candles, she stepped out of her room and moved toward the dungeons.
The musty hallways held a new challenge for Mel. Darkness overwhelmed every corner and every small passage so that Mel had trouble remembering her way to the Slytherin common room. But soon enough she was standing in the shadowy, stone living space of the Slytherins. Mel glided into a corner examining the tall ceilings once again and watching students pass her by without a second thought. Her eyes barely peeking out from under the rim of her hood gave her a menacing air about her. Draco finally entered the room and came over to her in the corner, staring at her but not speaking a word.
"What do you want?" Mel's voice was dark and brooding in the silence.
"One last look at you." Draco smiled and began to back away but Mel's arm shot out and grabbed his, she dug her nails in as he struggled against her.
"Who is after me?"
"No one."
"FOOL!" Mel flung Draco into the corner and whirled around to face him. Her arm was straight and her wand centered on his face. "Who is after me?"
"No one, really." Draco trembled and his eyes began to swell.
"Don't make me hurt you Draco. Tell me or I'll make you regret inviting me here."
"My father just told me you were destroying yourself." Sickened, Mel backed away and left Draco to whimper in the corner.
She wandered through the corridor mind racing. She thought of Harry and of Voldemort, of Acerbus and Bellatrix. She walked with steady, resolute steps through the blackness around her.
"I knew I'd see you here." Mel started and turned around just in time to see Praesidis stepping out of a shadowing corner. "Don't look so shocked. Remember when we were all at the table I heard Draco say you were going to come here so I had to come see you." Mel continued to walk away from him. "Please don't go I have something important to say to you. It involves your life." Shocked at the words she was hearing she turned around and walked back to him.
"What?" She stood very still in the silence of the passageway.
"It's hard for me to say…"
"Well say it… I have somewhere to be." He looked down at her and into the hooded eyes very gingerly and laid one deliberate, gentle kiss on her pouty lips. Mel stood in disgusted shock as he spoke to her.
"I want you and I to… I want us… I want you to be with me, Mel."
Mel stood very still in the dark, damp hallway and stared into his eyes while her head flooded with thought. The air around her suddenly became very heavy, causing her chin to sink into her chest and turn her back to him. In her silence she could hear every breath he drew in and slowly let out.
"Mel…" he spoke up again.
"Don't talk to me like that." She finally managed to respond over her dry tongue and through her quivering lips.
"I know you've been hurt and I want to give you everything you've always wanted." He addressed sympathetically at her back.
"Don't ever tell me what I want." Mel's voice grew to an intense, shaky whisper.
"I think… Mel, I think I love you."
Finally, Mel turned around and looked up at him with blackened eyes. She clenched her wand forcefully at her side before she began to methodically raise it up to Praesidis' throat. A stunned look washed over his face and while he began to tremble Mel choked out the words 'Avada Kedavra'. Within seconds a pile of flesh and bones that used to be Praesidis Otho laid limp and cold at Mel's feet. She raised her eyes to the darkened corner beyond where he used to stand and let her eyes linger there for a moment as she breathed in the musk of the corridor.
"Come out already. You had your show." A deep, unmistakable laugh suddenly came splitting through the darkness while a tall figure stepped out into the light.
"Aw, did you know I was here the whole time?" Acerbus continued laughing when Mel responded.
"You think too loud. Now help me get his body somewhere out of the way."
"It's fine there. Don't you have somewhere to be?" Mel's deep, untrusting eyes pierced into his as she delved his mind.
"Why are you here?" She responded with an unusual calmness.
"You know."
"I do I just want to hear it out of your own deceitful, dirty mouth. Coming here pretending to be my friend. My partner in crime, remember?" Mel's hand throbbed as she seized her wand in the flowing sleeves of her robe.
"Don't hold on so tight you'll hurt something. I'm not the one you want to hurt here." She loosened her grip. "Okay let's see how to word this… I'm the Dark Lord's right hand man, not you. I've been sneaking around while you were asleep because I've been reporting back on your… lack of… progress with Mr. Potter. Oh yeah and…" He paused as a smile came across his face. "You could easily be killed and replaced at any moment." With that his wand was level with Mel's eyes.
"Don't be an idiot." Mel laughed and dropped her wand, at the same time grabbing Acerbus' wrist with malevolent force. His jaw dropped in pain and shock at her strength as she turned the wand away from her face. "Make sure you let everyone know about this lack of progress." With that her fist met his visage with such might he fell to the floor and lay there unconscious, strewn across the dead body of Praesidis.
Mel faced the edge of the forbidden forest and breathed in the smell of rotting pinecones and dead animal corpses intoxicating her senses.
"I shouldn't go in here. Who are you really? I don't trust you at all right now." Harry's voice was strong and defiant.
"I'm a friend and you have every reason to trust me, I knew your parents."
"You were young you probably knew nothing."
"But you're still here aren't you?"
"I don't know why." In a flowing movement Mel hand her wand at Harry's side, undetected by the boy.
"Because you want to be… Imperio!" A shocked look engulfed his face for a brief moment followed by an unmistakable look of serenity.
"You're right, let's go."
The pair proceeded silently through the woods. Mel knew the way she was about to take and Harry faithfully followed behind her every step. The trees and animals never made a sound loud enough to meet their ears and in turn, neither did they. They seemed to float along over twigs and thorny brushes like dementors in the night. Not even the centaurs, who have the keenest of senses, could hear them. A small incline finally met a challenge for Harry in his cursed state. Mel stood at the summit of the knoll and watched his struggle, getting dirty and bruised as he clawed his way up to her.
"Only a little further." Mel said as Harry lay panting at her feet. Harry nodded in absolute agreement.
The darkness closed in around them so much that the only light they saw was from a strange fire-fly like insect in the air around them. Mel felt Harry's hand grab to the back of her robes as so not to get lost. He peeked around her shoulders and saw nothing anywhere around them. They trod on and on until finally Harry saw a glowing orb of light up ahead. They pursued the light and pushed through the branches blocking their way into the radiance before them. They entered a small, circular clearing no more that ten feet in diameter and finally stopped at it's center. Harry's grip loosened from Mel's garment and he stood to face her.
"Do you know where we are, Harry?"
"No." His voice was now quiet and small.
"We have left Hogwarts grounds. Do you know what that means?"
"No."
"It means we can leave and I can finally show you what I know about your parents. The one thing that can explain their end to you. Do you want to go to it?"
"Yes." Mel grabbed Harry's hand and was preparing to apparate.
"He'll go but I think it would be best for me to take him there." Mel whipped around and saw Acerbus standing at the edge of the clearing.
"You followed me?"
"Yes now let him go or I'll have to take drastic actions." Mel shot a quick glance to Acerbus' side and saw that he had his wand at ready. She smiled.
"You're right I shouldn't make the same mistake twice. Expelliarmus!" Acerbus' wand flew into the dark, tangled mess of foliage that lay behind him. Rage fired in his eyes as he stared down Mel's wand.
"What are you going to do now Mel? Hurt me? Oh no I'm scared." Mel laughed at his remark.
"No it won't hurt too much. Avada Kedavra!" Acerbus' body collapsed from underneath him. He lay in a twisted, horrifying lump half covered by the darkness of the forest. Harry seemed to have no reaction to this. "Let's go, Harry." He smiled down at her as their bodies tingled with light and they were transported to the House at Little Hangleton. They stood on the back lawn and bathed in the moonlight, staring at the old screened backdoor. "Here we are." A strange feeling came over Mel, relief settled into her brain as she looked into the face of the boy wizard under her control.
"You're a hard one to keep under Imperius, Mel." A voice disturbed the sinister night behind the pair. She turned and saw the stringy hair and sunken eyes of her sister-in-law.
"Bella… what? I…" She lost all word from her mouth and struggled to spit out her question. "Imperius? You… me?"
"Of course. You were losing determination, you even fought the curse without knowing it." Mel's eyes told the story of the shock and pain that flooded her mind.
"I did this on my own."
"Well, you did some of it on your own. Killing that thing, Praesidis, that was all your own creation."
"And Acerbus."
"What? You killed Acerbus!" Mel cackled at her feedback.
"Harry, go inside." He obeyed and dragged himself through the creaking screen and into the bleak house.
Mel stepped back and studied Bellatrix with intention. Reaching up into her sleeve she removed her mask and placed it on her face hidden under her hood. Bellatrix laughed.
"Is that how you want to play? Fine." She too masked her face and placed her hood on her crown. The two faceless women stared each other down with blank empty eyes. Mel raised her arm straight out and backed Bellatrix down the hill into the graveyard. Their steps were methodically placed so neither would loose footing or the advantage. As the lawn began to flatten they worked their way around graves and tombstones. Mel took the opportunity and backed her sister into a low, grass covered grave marker causing Bellatrix to slip. Mel fired a bright blue streak of light sending Bellatrix flying behind a tall headstone. From there the two women danced through the darkness firing spell after spell at each other. Every hit was a small victory for the other. The war was easy to navigate under the moonlight but well into the combat the moon was shadowed by dark, massive clouds which hid the women from each other.
Both sunk to the ground, took shelter behind large pieces of stone, and listened for any indication of where they're foe was lurking. The tension in the air was building and both women waited for the other to foolishly make a move. At long last a green burst inundated the air, giving enough light for the females to take sight of each others grey faceless palettes. Spells illuminated the night air one after the other, each slightly damaging the girls egos and bodies.
One of the bodies made herself visible standing up tall in an opening of the graveyard. For a moment the spells ceased and the outline of her body was barely visible. The second girl peeked her head out from the top of her barrier to watch the figure in the night.
"You can't stop me!" A voice echoed into the night.
"I am a Lestrange… by blood!" With that a bright white spell flew threw the air, striking the standing body. Her form at once buckled to the ground and lay lifeless with an eerie blank mask for a face staring up into the night. The clouds parted from the sky and the moon shone down onto the pair in the necropolis.
She stood up from behind her barricade and advanced toward the motionless figure. Removing he mask and hood her long dark hair fell around her as she crouched down to the body.
"But I'm a Lestrange at heart." Bellatrix's words were absorbed by the thick nocturnal scene around her. She turned on her heel and exhaustedly walked up to the house.
Rodolphus and Rabastan greeted Bellatrix with solemn nods as she entered the house. In the empty silence around them the house seemed dead. She walked up the stairs and down the hallway opening a door at the end. Stepping only a few feet into the room she witnessed the Potter boy tied up in the furthest corner from her. A rustling sound came from the chair whose back was facing her, letting her know her he was listening. A smile appeared across her face.
"It has been done, my Lord."
-The End-