THE RATING HAS BEEN CHANGED TO MATURE. There will be implied violence and non-consensual sex. If that makes you uncomfortable, then I would recommend not continuing to read this story.


I apologize in advance if there are any mistakes. I've been quite busy lately and I wanted to get this posted sooner rather than later.


The Fall

By somekindofwildgirl


Chapter 8: The Beginning of the Fall

The muggle world surprised her. Bellatrix had pictured muggles in huts, riding carriages, and they were covered in grime. Everything she had learned about them had seemed barbaric, which is why she had reluctantly crossed the divide. Although Muggle London was dirty, its people were not. Where she visualized carriages, she had never imagined the metal things that drove down the street. The city was loud, the crowds overwhelming. It was ordered chaos. She clutched her cloak despite the odd looks she received and kept walking.

Bellatrix had to find her sister and repair the damage between Andromeda and their father before it was too late. Their family – if you could still call it that – was broken beyond repair. They had lost a mother, but they need not lose a sister and daughter as well. Bellatrix had corresponded with a younger student to find out if her sister had returned to Hogwarts. Andromeda had still not returned and neither had Charles. The rumor was that he was staying with her and helping her with her new duties. She chose to focus on her sister than her betrothed.

"Where is this house?" Bellatrix said cursing.

The sun was setting, casting the city in a golden glow. The crowd was thinning leaving the streets feeling rather lonely. Bellatrix was lost and had almost walked into every shop to ask for directions before talking herself out of it. Her pride was going to be the death of her. It was getting late, she had been gone for hours, and Narcissa would be worried. If only she could summon enough courage to talk to a muggle, she would be home.

"Miss! Miss!"

Bellatrix looked around to find a man running towards her out of breath. She turned to see if he was talking to her and realized that there was no one around her. She did not know what to do. No one had prepared her for this encounter, but the man looked normal enough. He was dressed oddly, but she recognized some of the materials and realized that he must be quite rich. He was rather attractive for a muggle.

"Thank you for waiting," the man said hunched over as he tried to get his breathing under control. "I need your help. My niece has been terribly injured and I need help to get her to the hospital."

Bellatrix looked at her watch and at the rapidly setting sun. She should be getting home. This idea of reconciliation between her father and Andromeda had been an impulsive, foolish decision. But, she could see the worry in this man's blue eyes and pictured the little girl sitting on a street corner alone, scared and hurt. Before she realized what she was doing, Bellatrix was following the muggle as he thanked her profusely for her help. They had been walking for quite some time and Bellatrix started to get impatient. She could have been eating supper and warm instead of trudging through the snowy streets of London.

As if he could sense her impatience, the muggle turned to her. "Just around this corner. Thank you again."

Bellatrix turned where he indicated and looked down the alley. She did not understand. There was no girl, it was dark and she was cold and getting a little scared. Grabbing her wand, Bellatrix turned towards the man. Gone was the bumbling, out of breath man. The muggle stood up a little straighter, smirked and hit her. The blow had been unexpected and her wand was tumbling out of her hand, out of reach. Before she could gather her thoughts, he grabbed her and threw her against the brick wall. Her head pounded against it, her vision went black for a second. Her wand was out of reach, useless and no matter how many times she tried to summon it, her wand did not twitch.

"Release me this instant or you will regret it," she said with more confidence and calm than she possessed. Her head was throbbing, making it difficult to think clearly. It was like there was a haze and it was so difficult to think.

He smiled at her words, his white teeth bright. "I will enjoy every second of this."

"I'll scream."

"Oh darling, I hope you do," the muggle said stepping closer to her.

Bellatrix renewed her efforts to escape, to grab her wand, to do anything. She had heard stories about girls that had been attacked but she had never thought it would happen to her. "Help, somebody help me!" Bellatrix screamed. If she had known more about the muggle world, she would have realized that this was an area of town that was to be avoided. Her screams echoed off the walls, but no one came. The more she fought, the more aggressive he was. Bellatrix – a witch – was powerless against a muggle, had been manipulated. Her eyes widened when she realized his intentions and she pleaded, begged, cried, did everything she could do to try and stop him.

She could not stop him.

Bellatrix felt disconnected to herself, like it was happening to someone else. She tried to yell at the girl to fight, not to give up, but the raven-haired girl stared into space. When the muggle was done, he let her fall to the ground and walked away as if leaving a meeting. The snow soaked into her clothes, freezing her, but she could not find it in her to care, could not feel the cold seeping into her bones. Bellatrix was numb. This did not happen to her, could not have happened. Time was disconnected from her, a separate thing, and she did not how long she stayed there unmoving. It was not until she heard a group of people further down the street that her senses woke up. Bellatrix grabbed her wand, closed her eyes, and apparated without a thought to where she would go.

Somewhere safe.

The tube-like sensation was too much for her battered body and she threw up on the plush carpet. The heat from the room felt like it was burning her, but she ignored the feeling. Wiping her mouth from her sleeve, she looked up and caught his stare.

Charles was standing beside his desk, his wand aimed at her. His face was cast with shadows, the blazing embers in his fireplace the only source of light. It was strange the details that she would remember from this encounter. His walls had recently been painted a dark blue replacing the Slytherin green that had decorated it since they were children. As she looked around, Bellatrix realized that there was nothing of her nor their childhood. It was this empty, impersonal room. This is what she remembered most – the least important details of that night – and she could still remember the coldness in his gaze.

"Who did this to you?" Charles asked, his voice cold as he scanned her appearance.

Bellatrix looked down and swallowed the lump in her throat. She had almost, blissfully, forgotten and the events of that night rushed to the forefront of her mind. She started to tremble, the words on the tip of her tongue, but she could not say the words.

He glanced at his desk before looking at her. "Were you?"

The implication as clear. The question hung between them for what felt like an eternity. A terse nod and he sighed, rubbing his eyes like the very sight of her exhausted him. Like it was her fault that this had happened and how she had inconvenienced him by distracting him from his work. She was too numb to feel angry, just weary.

"You have violated the terms of our betrothal contract and it is now void," Charles said.

Her head snapped up. Her ears must have been deceiving her, because there was no way that he would leave her in her hour of need. But one look at him and she knew it to be true. She thought she was going to be sick again. Bellatrix barely remembered grabbing the floo powder and mumbling her address, his face the last thing that disappeared in the flames.

Bellatrix collapsed in front of the fireplace, tears streaming down her face. This had to be a nightmare; this could not be reality. She stayed in front of the fireplace repeating that thought over and over again. If she said it enough, would time erase the events of that day? She was not sure when Narcissa found her or how, but her sister started talking to her and poking and prodding her. Bellatrix could not focus and the next time she blinked, she was in her bedroom in bed. Her clothes had been removed and replaced by a nightgown.

"Thank Merlin. I am about to call Healer Martin," Narcissa said, but hesitated when Bellatrix grabbed her wrist.

"No healers, no hospitals," Bellatrix said.

The blonde took a seat at the edge of the bed. She could see how terrified Narcissa was. "I need you to tell me what happened. I saw the blood, your wounds, Bellatrix, what happened? Who did this to you?"

Bellatrix shook her head. She could not say the words, because if she did then it was accepting what had happened. She was not ready to do that, doubted she ever would be. "Heal me as best as you can," Bellatrix said and watched her sister disappear and then reappear with supplies.

Her sister turned on the radio to fill the painful silence. Narcissa started working on her wounds, diligently and with care Bellatrix had never seen from her. Bellatrix focused on the song that was playing, something about a cauldron and a brewing luck. When Narcissa finished, the two girls sat in silence, one not knowing what to say and the other not able to say anything at all.

The blonde finally broke the silence. "I think I know what happened. It breaks my heart to know that someone could do this to you. If you ever want to talk about it or if you need someone, I will be there for you. You have been there for me since Mother died. We are the only two left, we have to look out for each other."

Bellatrix nodded and wiped a tear that escaped with the back of her hand. She hated crying, hated to show such weakness in front of her sister. If Andromeda had not been stupid, this never would have happened. Bellatrix never would have gone to Muggle London and Charles would not have broken their betrothal. No man would want her now, only Narcissa was left untainted. Her tears almost got the best of her when the radio program paused suddenly.

"Breaking news from the Minister's office. Minister Leach has just announced that he plans on abolishing the Statute of Secrecy. This law is the reason there is a division between the muggles and wizards. He made a big speech on how a slow introduction to the magical world will create future harmony between us and the muggles. He will be bringing his case to the Wizengamot at the end of the month for discussion and review," the radio announcer said. "That is all, your prescheduled program will now resume."

A chill ran down her spine at the announcement. Bellatrix had seen firsthand what the muggle were capable of, had read her ancestors journals. If the Minister was successful, the magical race would be eradicated or enslaved. Bellatrix could not let that happen, would sooner die than let Minister Leach win.


Author's Note: This has been one of the hardest chapters to write. I have written a couple of drafts for this story and this is the one thing that does not change. Bellatrix does not have a happy story. This is one of the events that happens that sets her on the path to joining Voldemort. Thank you for reading and for your continued support.