The Devil's Own

by Lilabeth36

A story of one little known man's odd luck and hunt for revenge in a brave new world. *companion story to "Lifeline"*

*Companion to "Lifeline"*

I own nothing. It all belongs to JK Rowling and I do appreciate the fact she's letting me play in her world.

He had the oddest luck of anyone anywhere.

Even when it was good, it was tinged with bad, it seemed.

When he had been a child, his mother had shook her head and sworn he was Karma walking.

For example, he found the love of his life and married her.

She was a raving lunatic and got him thrown in Azkaban for almost fifteen years.

His brother always just swore that he had the devil's own luck. All he knew was that he had very weird luck.

And it was his weird luck that he attributed to the fact that he survived the final battle.

Oh, he fought just as hard as anyone although, to be honest, his heart wasn't in it. Voldemort and his ideals had seemed a good idea at first but he was a rational man. He wanted to exterminate anyone not of pureblood status... that didn't leave a lot of people in the world. If all the non-purebloods were gone, who would do the little things that kept the world running? He didn't fancy the idea of doing some of those little mundane things like running shops. Also, there were very few pureblood writers and artists. Comparatively speaking, of course, and he really did enjoy a good book, a beautiful painting and a well composed piece of music.

In fact, although he would deny this to his dying day, he was rather fond of some muggle music and actually greatly enjoyed a great many muggle authors. He didn't choose to associate with them but that didn't mean he couldn't once in awhile appreciate a nice artistic rendering of any sort. Art was art, after all.

This was his deepest, darkest secret, of course, even more of a secret than the fact that he had actually been the one to accidentally knock over the cake at his sister-in-law's wedding to the blond git. He had blamed one of their mutual associates and to his knowledge, his sister-in-law had yet to forgive him.

But all of that was beside the point. He had survived and he was certain that it was because of his luck.

He only wished he could have extended it to his wife, as well. He didn't give a damn about the rest of them. Not really. Well. Maybe his brother. Maybe. But certainly to his wife.

But he couldn't and he bellowed his fury and pain when the red haired harpy managed to get a lucky strike in and his beautiful wife fell.

And that was when the game keeping oaf's overgrown, half-wit brother knocked him through a window.

The sensation of flying was one of the last things that he knew. That and the realization that whenever you are flying through the air in a manner such as this, you are, eventually, going to land.

And it is never pleasant when you land.

This thought had just gone through his mind when he did, in fact, land.

In about a foot of mud.

And so did half a wall.

Right on top of him.

And so, Rodolphus Lestrange survived the battle and the fall and the round-up of other people he regularly associated with because he was knocked out a window by a miniature giant, had his fall cushioned by mud and had a wall fall on him. If not for the fact that he managed to land right between 2 large pieces of rubble that protected him somewhat, he would have been crushed by the wall.

Later, he was sure he would see the humor in the situation but when he awakened much, much later, he was in pain, filthy and not exactly in the mood for humor.

Besides, Bellatrix was always the one that laughed. Not him.

The thought of her sent a sharp jolt of pain through him and he closed his eyes tight against it.

He camped out that first night after he dug his way out. He was relieved to discover that all he had were severe bruises and cuts and even more relieved to discover that he still had a wand.

That, too, was an example of his luck coming out.

As he climbed out of the rubble, he put his hand into something cold, wet, disgusting and probably directly related to one of the hippogriffs he had seen during the battle. As he cursed and snarled, something protruding from beneath the pile of nastiness caught his eye.

A hippogriff had shit on his wand.

He had stared blankly for a moment, unable to believe this.

The disgusting leaving had actually probably saved his wand from scavengers and such. No one would want to touch that pile and had therefore probably not examined it too closely. As such, no one had noticed the wand lying beneath it.

Cleaning it had been less than fun and even now, he was certain that he could still smell his wand.

He sat in the woods near a muggle highway and stared at the newspaper that he had found on the grounds as he skulked away. It told him everything that he had followed was gone. His wife was dead. His associates were all either dead or being rounded up.

And that bloody bugger Malfoy was probably going to come out smelling like roses because Harry Bloody Potter was claiming that Narcissa had saved his life.

This last bit was insult to injury and he bellowed his rage toward the tree tops.

"I hate that bloody fool! I hate him! I'm glad I knocked over his bloody wedding cake! It was ugly anyway! And I hate those redheaded blood traitors! And I really, really hate Harry Bloody Potter!" With each exclamation, he fired off his stinking wand at the forest in general. A raindrop landed on his nose and before he had a chance to even wipe it away, the bottom fell out of the sky and he was soaked. He started laughing hysterically.

"Join the Dark Lord, you said! Have purebloods retake their rightful place, you said! It will be wonderful, you said! It'll be fun, you said! Thank-you, Bella! I'm having a goddamned wonderful bloody time!" he bellowed, continuing to fire at shadows in fury. At the mention of her name, he remembered. His Bella was gone. That horrible blood traitor had stolen her from him and she was never, ever coming back.

The husband was a disgrace and a fool. The youngest son had helped to bring down The Dark Lord. The girl had caused no end to problems at the school. The twins were just annoying and gave him a headache. The one that had worked at the ministry annoyed him, too, with his prissy manner. And the older two... well, he just hated them because their hair was very bright. That was reason enough.

This was their fault. No doubt that they were all quite smug and happy right now in their horrid little hovel that had a goddamned roof at least which was more than he had right now in their happy little family. Probably still celebrating how wonderful and clever they were to take them all down.

To take down Bella...

It was all their fault that he was sitting here in the forest, in the dirt with a wand that smelled like shit. It was their fault that the halfwit giant had knocked him out that window and their fault that the wall fell on him and it was just all their fault! Everything that had happened in the last year was all their fault!

A dull thud brought an end to his ranting and, frowning, he went to investigate what had ended his tantrum.

At the edge of the trees surrounding his little clearing, there was an auror lying on his back in the mud. Apparently, someone had reported the fire in the woods and, since he was so close to the site of the final battle, an auror had been sent to investigate.

The man had managed to sneak up on him but when Rodolphus started firing wildly and ranting, he had managed to Stun the man before he could do anything. And, from the wand in his hand, he had been planning on doing at least something that Rodolphus probably wouldn't like.

The wand was quickly plucked from the man's hand and, a couple of quick spells later, not only was he completely unconscious but tied to a tree. Contrary to popular belief, not all Death Eaters liked to kill. Oh, he could and would if need be and he had no problem with a spot of torture now and again but to just kill randomly? Right now, that would be silly. It would raise questions and bring him a bit more attention than he would like. So no killing when a simple memory charm would take care of the problem.

He raided the auror's pockets and came away with some money, a newer edition of the newspaper and finally got the chance to completely clean his poor wand using the man's robes and the rain.

He found a much better place to hide out the next time. With a quick spell, he had a nice, safe, dry room at a Muggle inn where not only was there a bed and a roof to keep the rain away but a way to clean himself. He even managed to get some food once he figured out that one quick Stunner to the metal box near a loud machine that spit out ice made muggle snacks flood out of the opening in the bottom.

And so Rodolphus Lestrange found himself in a brave new world that night as he sat on the muggle bed in the cheap muggle motel room eating crisps and other such things while sipping a brown soda that made his nose tingle.

And one thing was for certain, he decided as he pressed a button on a small black box attached to the bedside table which caused the larger box on the dresser to flare to life and almost make Rodolphus to fall off the bed in shock: he did not particularly care for this brave new world and the family that had forced him so abruptly into it were going to pay.

***

One fact not many people knew about Rodolphus Lestrange was that he had a very analytical mind. He was good at paperwork. He was good at remembering facts and organizing and creating a more efficient way of doing things. He was good at it and he enjoyed it.

That was one of the reasons that he was put in charge of keeping a watch over the magical information that came into the Ministry every single day. Every birth, every death, came through his area and he looked at every single certificate and entry that recorded itself into the registry.

And once Rodolphus Lestrange read something, he never, ever forgot it.

That was why as he stared at the ceiling in his dark motel room that he began to come up with a plan. A simple plan. So simple that it bordered on madness.

That witch had stolen from him.

So he would steal from her.

And since she was so protective of her horrid brats then he would hurt them, too.

And he knew just how to do it.

The next day, Rodolphus journeyed to a small building in Muggle London. He walked to the front door and perused the names listed on a metal box beside the door.

"Hello, dearie." He turned, his hand immediately going to where his wand was hidden in the jacket he had... borrowed from a fellow guest that morning. He had also sto- borrowed some trousers and a shirt from the same muggle.

An elderly woman smiled at him as she mounted the steps up to the front door. "Who are you looking for?"

Rodolphus smiled smoothly. "My niece, Audrina Winterbourne."

"Oh, Audrina." the woman smiled. "Such a sweet girl and such a pretty voice! I used to listen to her when she was out in the garden. A lovely young lady." She unlocked the door and Rodolphus pushed it open for her. He even took one of the bags of groceries from the woman and followed her to the main stairs. "But oh dear. She's been gone from here for some time, dear."

"Oh no." he said. "Everything has been so disorganized lately that I have just now found this address." He was ready to cast a spell but the old woman looked at him with deep sympathy.

"Oh, yes. Her husband explained it to me. Such a shame to lose the entire family in a fire. During a family gathering, wasn't it? Poor little Audrina was the only one to make it out, he said. Poor, poor dear. Made perfect sense for them to want to make a fresh start." She continued to chatter away but Rodolphus was no longer listening to her. If she was out of his reach then that left one other choice.

"Here it is!" the old woman cried triumphantly. Rodolphus looked at her. She was waving a piece of paper over her head. "This is where she said she was heading. I wrote it down so I wouldn't forget. Good thing, too, because you know I did almost immediately." She chuckled. "It was there and poof! Like magic it was gone!"

Rodolphus contained a snicker at her words. That was probably exactly what happened. But their plans had been thwarted by an old muggle woman.

"You give her my love when you see her." the old woman said with an innocent smile on her face.

"Madame, I assure you that I will." Rodolphus smiled and contained the urge to kiss the dotty old bat.

He would give her that love and more.

***

He sat in his motel room, eating a pizza that he had sto- confiscated from a muggle just a bit earlier. He made a face as the cheese got stuck on his chin.

He could not wait for it to calm down enough for him to go and retrieve his accounts from those damned goblins.

And perhaps a bit of company would be nice, too.

He had never been alone for so long. He had had a younger brother so that had taken care of childhood. Then he got married so that took care of that. Even in prison, there had been people. A captive audience of sorts. And afterward, there had been his other associates.

As much as he hated to admit it, Rodolphus was lonely.

Very, very lonely.

He even missed Malfoy.

Their rivalry had started in Hogwarts and was something that they both enjoyed. Granted, they both rather loathed one another but they also enjoyed the rivalry. Rodolphus was actually rather pleased to think of Malfoy escaping prison now. It was like the world really was going to keep going and at least one thing was not changing. All hell had broken loose and Malfoy was waltzing out of it like nothing had happened. It gave one a sense of consistency.

Rodolphus banished his thoughts and refocused on his plans.

Getting to his next target would be a bit more problematic than the one that he had investigated today. Well. He had thought it would be. If the damned witch had gone where that daft old Muggle said she had then he would have some serious difficulty in getting to her.

He did admit that he was glad that he had left the old bat alive. She had insisted on making him some lunch and had quite outdone herself. Rodolphus felt she had more than paid for the privilege of continuing to exist. And as an added bonus, he hadn't even had to Obliviate her. She was quite daft on her on. Probably wouldn't remember a damned thing about him by tomorrow.

It had been nice to have the noise of her chatter though. When he was alone, all he had were his thoughts and those were... unpleasant.

He pressed the button on the flat box again and wasn't startled when the larger box flared to life this time. He smiled as he pressed another button and different images flashed across the screen. Then, his eyebrows shot to his hairline.

What in the world?!

Were those two muggle women... together....?

His eyes lit up.

And Rodolphus Lestrange put his plans of revenge on hold for an hour as he found one thing that he liked about the muggle world.

***

It took him almost a week to make his way to Dublin. Once there, he had to search for his quarry. He found a nicer motel this time and sto- took his rightful place in a room.

While there he discovered that his features were somewhat different now. Eating nothing but fast food for a week had already filled out his form to almost what it had been before his unfortunate stay in Azkaban and some scars that had formed from his unfortunate departure from the battle had given him a dangerous, rakish air. Wearing muggle clothing made him look like a completely different man.

He was fairly certain that even that great blond idiot could walk past him without recognizing him now.

He finally caught sight of her leaving a muggle department store. Her short black hair shone in the sunlight and her black leather jacket added some bulk to her small frame. Her eyes were covered by what he had heard called sunglasses (which he actually really liked and had sto- invested in without using money) but he still recognized her from her picture. Slender. Athletic. A pointed little chin. A small, straight nose that could almost seem sharp but suited her face. She was actually rather short. He had expected her to be taller. She wasn't what would be considered a great beauty but she was rather pretty. Almost like a little fairy from a picture book.

It wasn't hard to follow her to her home, a small apartment building in a nicer part of town. He saw her appear at a third story window and knew where her apartment was.

It was easy.

In the next few days, he learned a lot about the pretty young woman. In fact, he almost felt that they were friends.

He knew that she liked to be outside. That wasn't hard to figure out since she went on at least two walks a day and every time she did, she lifted her face to the sky so that the sun washed over it and the breeze ruffled her hair. She would sit on a bench in front of a lake and feed ducks in the evening but she liked to sit on a different bench and read in the morning.

He knew that she ate rather healthy. He watched her order a meal at a deli and then watched her shop for groceries and learned this.

He knew that she was intelligent. He got close enough to see what she was reading and was delighted to discover that it was a book on philosophy. He would have been disappointed if it was something silly.

He knew that she smelled like exotic spices and she wore a charm around her neck that had an odd symbol on it that he was certain he had seen before in some old book somewhere.

He just couldn't place it.

Yes. He knew all of this and much, much more about her.

And what he knew most was that following her, watching her made him less lonely.

She lived a rather solitary life, too, it seemed. Oh, she saw people and she seemed to have people that cared about her but she seemed reserved. There was a distance in her eyes. He once "accidentally" got close enough to her that he actually brushed against her. He touched her. And she looked at him and smiled a little before she walked on.

Maybe even though she didn't know him, he was her friend, too.

In the mornings, he would sit on a bench across the way from her and watch how the sun caught the highlights in her hair and enjoy the quiet companionship.

In the evenings, he would sit across the pond and tell her about his day. He knew, just knew, that when she smiled and laughed, she was smiling and laughing at the anecdotes he told her.

And it occurred to him that this was the nicest relationship that he had ever had.

He wasn't sure when it was that he realized that he had found Bella. The red haired harpy hadn't stolen her completely. In the time he had wasted going after that Audrina bitch, that harpy had smuggled his Bella here to Dublin.

Well, that was just fine because Rodolphus had found her now.

And he was sure that she missed him just as much as he had missed her.

He just had to go and get her and bring her home. Now that the Dark Lord was gone and out of the way, they could have marriage that they were meant to have. They could be happy.

They could have children.

Rodolphus was certain that he would be an excellent father and he was just sure that Bella would be a great mother. Their children would be smart, talented, beautiful and, above all, loyal to their family.

He couldn't wait to see her face when he came to take her home.

***

He went that night to the place that the harpy had hidden her. He walked upstairs and easily unlocked the door. Oh, she had some wards up but that didn't mean anything to him. They were easy to undo.

The flat was warm and inviting. There was a big, soft looking couch in the living room and small but sturdy looking tables on either end of it with a sturdy looking coffee table in front of it. There was also one of the black boxes that Rodolphus had become so fond of past the coffee table.

There was a shelf full of books on one side of the room and a vase of flowers sat on the table in the small dining area.

He smiled.

Maybe they could have a set of rooms like this when they got home. Some place to go back to and relax. They would certainly be bringing the black box home with them.

Especially if they could get those fascinating shows that he had discovered in the motel rooms.

He studied the flat to ascertain any threats but found none. Actually, the home seemed something less than a home. It had all of the furniture and there were odds and ends but it seemed almost as if this place was just a stopping ground. As if whoever lived here hadn't really made much of an effort to make it a home because they didn't plan on staying here.

He stepped further in and heard the sound of water running in a distant room. She was bathing.

Perhaps he would slip in the bath with her and they could reunite properly.

A soft noise stopped him and he turned. He hadn't noticed it at first but there was a basinet sitting beside the couch and something inside of it was making snuffling noises.

He walked over to the basinet, apprehensive. Something in his head was demanding that he remember what had brought him here. Why he was here. It was important. He was sure it was important. But what was it? And then, a small but insistent voice hissed a reminder.

He was here to steal the harpy's grandchild and that grandchild would replace his Bella. The bitch had stolen from him and he would take what was his now. And he would rejoice in the pain that her family of blood traitors felt at the loss of this child.

He shook his head. That wasn't right.

It couldn't be the harpy's grandchild. If it was here with Bella then that meant that it was her baby. And that meant that it was his baby.

His baby.

He smiled eagerly and hurried to the basinet.

A small baby lay on its back, eyes open and gazing up at the small dragon mobile that spun above the basinet. Rodolphus didn't recognize the tune at first but then he smiled. It was a muggle tune! One he knew!

Rodolphus reached out to touch his child while humming along with "Puff the Magic Dragon".

The baby looked at him and he carefully picked it up. It was a girl, he realized from her outfit. What mother would put flowers on a boy's pajamas? Not his Bella!

The baby studied him and he smiled. She had dual colored eyes. One was a silvery blue and one was ebony. She stared at him with a contemplative look and then reached one small hand up to his face. He couldn't help but smile.

His child.

He had wanted a child for so long but at first Bella insisted that it wasn't the time for that. Later, she said. Later when our goals have been met. Then came Azkaban and then they were free and again, she said that there was time enough later. But here was the child he had wanted for so long. Here was the family... he would never be lonely again.

A thump in the other room caught his attention and he realized that while he met his daughter, her mother had finished bathing and was in the bedroom, singing to herself. Hearing her mother, their daughter made a noise that demanded attention.

"Alright in there, baby girl?" her mother called. "Mummy's almost done and she'll feed you. Just give me three seconds!"

Rodolphus lifted the baby to his shoulder and inhaled her sweet, clean baby scent.

They would be such a happy family.

She came from the other room that he presumed was the bedroom. It was separated from the rest of the flat by a sheet of beads that jangled when she passed through. Her head was down and she was toweling her wet hair off as she came. He smiled, anticipating how happy she would be to see him.

She was so happy that she dropped the towel and let out a little shriek.

"I found you!" he told her happily. "The red haired harpy hid you from me but I found you!"

Her mouth, which had fallen open in shocked joy, snapped shut.

"I-I-I-" she started to take a step back but then took a few steps forward. "Give me my baby."

"I'll take her. Don't worry." he smiled at her. "It must have been so hard for you to be alone with her. I should have been here to help you. She's beautiful. She looks just like you, Bella."

"I think you're confused." she said softly. "My name's not Bella."

He gaped at her. How could she not know her own name?

And it hit him. What he had thought was a killing curse was actually a memory spell. The bitch had damaged his beautiful Bella's mind!

There was a buzzing in his head and he shook it in an attempt to clear it.

"My poor Bella." he breathed when the buzzing receded a bit. "Go sit down and I'll make you a cup of tea and we'll talk. It's alright. I'm here now. I'll take care of you. You and our daughter."

He headed in the direction of the kitchen, talking over his shoulder to her. "I've become quite efficient recently. You'll get quite a laugh out of it. When we go home, we shall have to get one of these black boxes with the images inside. I really do enjoy those." He grinned. "We can enjoy it together."

He saw a kettle on the stove and plucked it up, still holding the baby. He even filled it with no problems. He turned the stove on to heat the water and turned. She was standing there, watching him.

He laughed. "No worries, my love. I can make a bit of tea, I promise."

She managed a smile for him.

He walked to her and lifted his free hand to her cheek. "You look so beautiful." he said quietly. "I know that the harpy affected your appearance but you're always beautiful to me. I rather like this new look." He looked down at her. She was beautiful; small and slim but certainly feminine. Her hair was different now. Instead of long and wild, it reached her chin and was straight and silky. Even wet, he could tell that it would stay just as straight and just as smooth. The only jewelry she wore was a necklace with some sort of charm that caught his attention for a moment before other things became more interesting. He would investigate that charm later. She was wearing a small red nightgown that fell to her midthighs and had small slits on either side. It was held onto her shoulders with delicate straps and had a straight cut across her chest, showing just a hint of cleavage. Her breasts pushed against the fabric and he smiled, seeing that she was a bit cold.

"After our daughter is asleep, I'll warm you." he said in a low voice. She blinked, looked down and flushed before biting her lower lip and looking up at him.

"Why don't you let me have her now and I'll put her down while you finish the tea?" she suggested. He smiled and nodded. She extended her arms to him for their daughter and he leaned closer so that she could take the baby.

"What the hell?" The voice behind him triggered an instinctual reaction left over from the war. He drew his wand with his free hand, whirled, putting Bella behind him and cast.

The woman that had come up behind him flew backwards across the small room and crashed into the bookshelf. It collapsed onto her and she lay still. Bella screamed.

"Julie!" She looked up at him with wild eyes. "That's my friend! Julie! She was going to take over the apartment!"

"Ah God!" he cried, hurrying to where the unfortunate young woman lay. "I'm sorry! So sorry! It was an automatic reaction!" Bella hurried after him and fell to her knees, pushing the debris of the bookshelf and the books off the young woman.

He could tell that she was nearing death without touching her. After his life, he was quite accomplished at recognizing death. And now, he recognized her, too. She worked at the place where Bella sometimes bought a drink in the morning.

"Give me my baby. Now." Bella said in a cold, calm voice. Rodolphus looked at her. Her face was pale to the point that even her lips were gray.

"I didn't mean to, Bella." he said in his calmest voice. "She startled me."

"Just give me my baby." she reached out for the baby again. In the kitchen, the kettle was beginning to whistle.

He started toward the kitchen, determined to turn off the kettle and then come discuss this rationally. It was just an accident and besides that, who was Bella to complain about him killing someone?

God knows she had done it enough. In fact, Rodolphus was rather owed some deaths, wasn't he? He had survived this thing with a minimum of killing whereas Bella had killed for fun.

As he walked, he glanced over at one of the pictures hanging on the wall and stopped short.

It was of his Bella in the arms of another man.

He stepped closer, looking at the picture incredulously. His Bella was dancing with a man. Or rather, she was swaying to music with him. Upon closer inspection, he saw that his arms were around her while her hands rested on his shoulders. And she was standing on his feet. Somehow, this made it seem more intimate. She was standing on his feet and that meant that he was in control.

Bella did not relinquish control.

She had never relinquished control to him. Not even once. But there she was. Her little hands on his shoulders, her head tilted up toward him with a smile on her face, her feet on top of his and he. Was. In. Control!

He ripped the picture off the wall and whirled. Bella was right behind him so when he whirled, he accidentally hit her in the face. She stumbled back, clutching her nose.

"Who the hell is this?!" he demanded, shaking the picture at her and ignoring the blood that was seeping from between her fingers.

"Are you having an affair?!" he bellowed.

"You are not well!" she said, moving her hands. Blood was trickling from her nose and she wiped at it with the back of her hand. "I am not Bella! I don't know you! My name is Mia Kelley! That is my baby, not yours! And the man in the picture is her father!"

Rodolphus roared in fury. "Shut up!" Irrational anger flooded through him. How dare she claim not to be Bella? How dare she lie to him and about something so obvious!

How dare she try to steal his daughter from him with her lies!

"I am not who you think I am!" She rushed forward and grabbed for the baby in his arms. The baby began to shriek. He grappled with her, refusing to release his child. The buzzing in his head was combining with the shrieking of the baby, pushing his tolerance beyond the breaking point.

She grabbed again and he pushed her as hard as he could back. She fell against the couch and flipped backwards over it, crashing onto the coffee table which shattered. He yelled again as the baby shrieked even louder, her cries taking on a shrill, panicked quality.

Bella bounced back up, her arm dangling at her side and rushed him again. This time, her fingers on her good hand were curled into claws and she ripped at his face before grabbing for the baby again.

The world went red.

He wasn't in the flat any longer. He was in battle. He cast and he cast but his opponent kept coming back. He yelled his rage and fought back, his wand ripping through the air, sending jets of red and purple.

And then, the red receded and he was back in himself again.

The baby was screaming so desperately that her screams had a gasping quality and her face was almost purple.

The flat was demolished and he could hear a hissing noise coming from somewhere nearby. There were great holes in the wall and some items were smoldering.

And Bella... his Bella lay on the floor like a broken doll. Her arm was still at an odd angle but now her leg was as well and was covered completely in blood. He could see the broken bone coming through the skin. Blood still trickled from her nose but it was now joined by blood from her mouth and a deep gash in her forehead. Her eyes were wide and glazed and fixed on him.

"Ah no! Bella!" he fell to his knees at her side. He saw Death coming for her. She exhaled and blood bubbled on her lips.

"My baby." she breathed and more blood came, spraying across her chin a little.

"She's here, Bella. She's alright. She's right here." His hand moved to touch her but he stopped short, letting his hand flutter over her helplessly.

"Please don't hurt my baby." she breathed.

"Never! Never, Bella!" he said, thinking frantically. He couldn't lose her again! He couldn't lose his Bella!

And then, he knew what had to be done.

Her eyes were fixed on the baby now and she was trying to lift her arm to take her child. Rodolphus took a deep breath. Even dying, she was trying to protect her child. She was his Bella.

He bent down and kissed her, tasting her blood on her lips. She was in so much pain. He could see it in her eyes and her face. He could not leave her in pain like this.

A noise caught his attention. The woman from earlier, Julie, was making a slight noise as she died. He had heard Death Rattles before. She was dying as surely as his Bella was.

He made his decision. Neither woman deserved to suffer.

"I love you, Bella." He started to cast.

The spark of his magic was a literal spark tonight. Rodolphus didn't realize what the explosion was as he appeared a block away, the baby held in his arms. When he cast, the spark ignited the gas escaping from the broken line in the wall and a good portion of the building was blown away. But he didn't know this and even if he did, he probably wouldn't have cared.

He pulled the baby closer to him and walked away into the shadows. For the first time tonight, the buzzing in his head had quieted and he felt relaxed in a way. Like he had accomplished something. Like he had done what he had meant to do.

He reached the end of the block and, before the startled eyes of people coming out of a pub to see what the excitement was about, spun on his heel and disappeared.

***

Many people did not realize that Rodolphus Lestrange liked fairytales. It had been something that he and his mother had that was just for the two of them.

The summer that Rodolphus had been 9, his mother had gone so far as to research spells and potions to recreate her favorites and had included her son in her quest.

Three weeks after the fall of the Dark Lord, Rodolphus had reclaimed a small estate that few, if any, knew of. It was really more of a cottage that his family had used for holidays. He had also gone to the goblins and made arrangements to reclaim his accounts. Since the goblins rarely saw any reason to share information with the wizarding community, he was not concerned that they would report his return from the dead.

To his amusement, he realized that he had that damned Harry Potter to thank for this. The goblins were still a bit annoyed by what they had done to Gringotts. (Rodolphus had to admit that it was still a bit of a mess.)

He hadn't expected any of his estates to survive the Ministry and he wasn't disappointed. Every house that the Ministry had known about was confiscated.

Luckily, what the Ministry didn't know...

Hidden away in Wales, near forests and the coast, was a house that had belonged to his mother and had been a secret hideaway for as long as he could remember. It was perfect and it was hidden and, best of all, no one knew about it. There were a couple of elves there, waiting and maintaining the house. It wasn't much, not what he was used to, but it was enough. And it had added benefits that really, really helped him. Special benefits such as access to caves that no human, magical or otherwise, could hope to find and get to without knowing that they were there. After visiting those caves, it was a relief to return to the house, have a nice, warm meal and bath and visit with his daughter before bed.

He had returned to his life of comfort.

More or less.

He sat in his library with his baby on his lap with a very old book that had belonged to his mother open before him. She sat perfectly still, listening as he read her his favorite story. When he was finished, he looked down at the infant. She stared back at him with an intent look that he hadn't thought possible for a child her age. It was as if she understood every word that he said and was thinking very seriously about each and every syllable.

"The moral of the story is that when you underestimate someone with the capability to use powers that may be considered dark, horrible things happen to you." He smiled down at the child. She cooed her agreement. "And never, ever, ever insult someone like that. Sometimes, they just lose their temper a bit." The baby sighed like she understood and tucked her head against his chest. He pressed a kiss to her black hair. "And don't forget to always invite the bad fairy to the party. You should always keep your friends close and your enemies closer, my darling one."

She still sometimes cried for her mother but was coming to accept him now. He didn't blame her. He missed Bella, too. He cursed himself for losing control that way and giving way to his rage. But what was done was done. All that there was now was to move onward and upward.

He sighed and turned the page to the next story.