This story is dedicated to Savva and all of you who read my stories.

The Stag Lord as depicted here is my intellectual property.

My sincere thanks and deep appreciation to the readers who have taken the time to appraise my work, it makes my work all worthwhile.

I would like to hear from you readers. I have listened to many requests for more chapters. Eventually, we will get to the Stag Lord, not this time, but you will read about him this time around.

Bonfires of the heart ended around five years after this story starts. The new chapters cover Rodolphus Lestrange's story. It will uncover more of the story and of the Stag Lord.

Rodolphus. The prodigal son-

February, nineteen weeks after Samhain-

"Mr. Lestrange—," Hermione didn't want to be there, and it made no difference that Rodolphus Lestrange had been overly courteous. Furthermore, she could sense his hunger to please her. Moreover, his overly solicitous attitude actually grated on her already frail tolerance and barely controlled contempt.

The approved pardon from Kingsley had been turned down by the Wizengamot. The petition had to be formally presented to the court in order to win their approval, and they were given two weeks.

"No Mr., please call me Rodolphus; after all we are closely related; if what I sense is correct, you are carrying the Lestrange's heir." It wasn't a question but rather a statement, and he looked at her with something akin to reverence.

"Heiress, it is a girl," she interrupted. He had seen thru both the robes made to disguise her growing belly and the concealment charm, just as Rabastan had warned her. After all, it just was impossible to hide the magic of a Lestrange child to one of them.

"A girl, Sacre Bleu, may I," the haughty and cold wizard stood up and fell on his knees right in front of Hermione. Rodolphus hadn't seen the witch since the battle, and now she stood in front of him with a swollen belly, filled with the Lestrange's heir growing inside her womb. He was in awe of the delicate witch, whose beautiful face and glow around her, brought about disconcerting emotions that robbed him of the little peace he had.

His entire demeanor was changed; gone was the arrogant dark persona, and in its place stood a wizard wrought with conflictive feelings. And, without hesitation, unaware of the tears forming in his tear ducts, his long and elegant hands reverently touched her growing belly, which the baby acknowledged with a strong flutter, that took him aback .

"Was that?" he asked with wonderment, his eyes never straying from the precious bump, albeit of torrential tears clouding his vision, which she couldn't see.

Hermione remained quiet upon her baby's disconcerting reactions. She wouldn't tell him this was the first time her baby had moved, and it was clearly triggered by him; it was neatly an affront. Notwithstanding recent concerns about the baby's delayed signs, the fact remained it had been for him, which most certainly disturbed her.

She knew he had been under a dark curse but not at first. He had married the Black witch out something; love, sex, whatever, and he had the Dark Mark for six years by the time the curse was conjured.

His case wasn't as clear cut as Rabastan's, and she couldn't get his past actions; namely, his loving and shagging Bella.

Bellatrix her tormentor and her husband Rodolphus, used to come to her in nightmares in an endless succession. During those dreams, she always relived the terrible pain of the cutting and the Cruciatus' curses. She dreamed of the knife carving words in her belly and in her brain; thus, effortlessly, she conjured the memories and angrily pushed his hands away from her.

The unseen

While she remembered Bellatrix and her irrational hate, the tall man, invisible to their mortal eyes, with the grey robes, porcelain skin, and red hair made out licks of fire, growled in anger. He would visit Hades and find the soul of the one who had injured the shinny-beautiful soul and body, of the human he wanted for his own, of his chosen bride. It was just unacceptable; he needed to rectify the unforgivable affront.

He would make a trade with one of his less favorite brethren, the Lord of Hades, and send the nasty witch's soul to the realm created by Zealot. It was an entity brought to being by the humans who dreamed of such creatures, and the eternal punishment they inflicted causing extreme pain. The place shouldn't be allowed to exist, it was abhorrent, and there were many who wanted to tear it down. Meanwhile, unspeakable creatures took charge of all those under their care, they tore their bodies piece by piece and then ate them. Once they were done, they would put the dammed together once more, so they could die again and again. It was said, it wouldn't last much longer.

Something made him reconsider, if she ever found out, and even in his peaceful realm there were lose tongues; and as result, she might hate him, because it was in her nature to be repelled by evil. He just would make sure the Bellatrix's monster could never, ever experience any joy, and he knew just where to put her.

XxxxxxX

"Stay way from her, you cannot touch her with hands that held and loved Bella. Your touch is tainted. Do you want to see the scars you carved right above where the Lestrange's heir is growing?" She hissed at him with aversion, and felt a deep sense of betrayal she couldn't comprehend.

He dropped to the floor of the interview room, not the cleanest surface since housekeeping spells were often ignored by those in charge, but he didn't care.

His head stayed down, and he started to sob, his body tortured by the wrenching deep cries; but Hermione was unmoved, and stood straight as a board. The feeling of his hands on her were an abomination, and she couldn't stop shaking. He angered her for betraying a future he didn't even know at the time, for not waiting for a family that could have been. Moreover, he sickened her in a mostly, incomprehensible manner.

Her desire to fly away from this nasty place prompted an impetuous decision. She would no longer defend any Azkaban inmates, not while she was carrying new life. She could feel eyes watching her and could feel evil seeping all around her.

All at once, the need to tell Rabastan of her inability to defend his brother, clouded her logical and rational mind. She could still see Rodolphus' evil and cold eyes upon her, all while his knife made small painful cuts on her belly; it was unfair considering his free will was gone by then; It had been gone since the year she had been born.

His heart wrenching cries had no impact on her; and neither did the words he kept repeating, "Please angel, please forgive me. Hate me if you must, but allow me to know my niece, and I beg you, not to deny me of the one good thing in my wretched life. I am not proud, and I will kiss the edge of your robe, I will be your bodyguard, will sleep on the floor, but grant me to know my family." Over and over his clamors continued.

She had sat there for ten more minutes when she felt a panic attack upon her. She ran to the door, "Open up," her breath shallow and wheezy. The worse thing was that she felt her daughter moving stronger, right on his direction, towards the traitor, which Rabastan had also said would happen, because the bond between the two brothers.

For a baby who had moved for the first time, she would not stop moving, which made Hermione want to scream, "Not for him, not for him, you are my daughter, he is a traitor, not for him."

The door opened and two guards came in, one a greasy burly wizard, the other with the face of a killer, both came in running and ready to deal with a crisis. At the sight of the sobbing Dark wizard collapsed on the floor, their wands went down, and they looked at each other confused.

"Mrs. Lestrange, are you well. Should we call you a healer?"

"Yes, I am well but let me out." They had never seen her like this. She was always polite and very calm.

The porcelain man with the crown of horns could no longer see her; she was out of his reach. He needed the pain and suffering of dark souls to see her light. He wanted his beloved to come back, in dreams he would convince her. She needed more powerful husbands, who really loved her, that way he could come to her through them. They must learn to love her for an eternity, because she would need her own court when she came to his realm; and to fill the halls with her future descendants. He needed to think.

The guards escorted her outside where Harry waited. She fell into his embrace crying, her body was cold, and her skin pale. He caressed her back soothingly, "Shh, it is okay. Hermione, if you ever need anything tell me; know that you can cry on my shoulder as much as you want. Let's go to get Rabastan and his parents, and we will wait here for them," and tenderly kissed the top of her head.

He loved her more than he loved anyone else. Not physically, not any longer, at least it was what he told himself daily. He knew that once, in another time and place, he would stand by her side. He would follow his Hermione, his sister, his mate wherever she went, for an eternity if required of him. He knew that their bond transcendent this world and even others.

Ginny was unhappy when Harry gave up his Auror job; but, she was more than happy with the gold he would be paid, and would fill up their vaults. She did, however, resent his closeness with Hermione, and when he decided to move to France near her a big fight ensued.

However, he had told her clearly, "Ginny, it is your choice; I will go to live near her with or without you. You were happy enough when I told you how much will be my share and didn't complain. Hermione is my only family before you or anyone else, and of course you and the children. I will give you a piece of good advice, never, ever, ask me to give her up, or you might regret my decision, I won't."

That was over a month ago; afterwards he had been called to talk to Arthur and Molly, and he politely declined. The refusal made him no friends, but things were much better now. He felt bad for Arthur who was having trouble pretending where his loyalties lay. To Arthur, Hermione was blood of his blood, the daughter of his soul, he was hers to command.

One week later. Revelation

Hermione read the scroll once more, she stretched her hand looking for the herbal tea just brought to her, and instead she touched a large, slender hand.

Rabastan brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. A shiver ran through her back.

He was kissing each tip slowly, gently sucking each one, "No more work, come here, I have been dying to have you for what now seems hours."

His soft voice commanded her. She looked to her right, at her husband half-kneeled on the sofa cushions, he only wore the bottom of his dark pajama pants, and his sight made her stomach clench with desire. His arousal was obvious, the loose waistband didn't contain it, and she saw his stomach hard and shuddering. He brought her hand over his hard sex, and he bit his lips not to cry.

She had been staying away from him after the argument initiated by her. Her Mère, Rabastan's mother, and his fathers, Père and Père Martin stood by her side, which made the rift all together worse. She remembered.

"Darling, please, I beg you to help Rodolphus, he has told me the action he regrets the worse was the torment inflicted on you by that monster; and the other is the Longbotton's torture, amongst others."

"He would have to say it with you there. He dated Bellatrix and was married years to the monster, and I cannot forgive that. My dear friend Neville has to live with the pain every day of his life, and he isn't the only one."

Harry sat closer to the window of the hired car they were riding. He didn't agree with her; besides her tone bothered him; it nearly sounded as if she were jealous. Why was she angry about Rodolphus' life with Bellatrix?

"Rabastan leave the girl alone, she has been upset enough for one day. And she is right; your hard-headed brother married the Black witch against our united counsel. She was beautiful and powerful, but we all could see that something was wrong with her. If she cannot defend him, so let it be. We can pay someone else, your wife is your main concern, don't forget that. We love Hermione as our own daughter, please don't make us chose between Rodolphus and her, just remember she is first to us."

The discussion got worse, and the parents made Rabastan Portkey back home. They'll had to deal with Hermione crying the entire time it took to return, nearly two days.

"I am so sorry for making you upset," his eyes wouldn't leave her, she had dropped the quill and thrown the scroll aside as she moved towards him, a lioness seeking her prey.

She wore a loose gown made out thin batiste, he let go of her hand, and with his strong arms pulled her onto his lap. His eyes darker with need, "I missed you." His voice thick and slow, as she straddled him, her naked wetness made him whimper with need. With a hand wave he divested them, and their naked bodies pressed against one another, rejoicing in their closeness.

For a few minutes nothing was said. He hid his head on the crook of her neck, as his hips moved closer to her. His fingers were the first to move, as his body pressed against hers.

He knew how to bring her to a swift climax, so she could play with him a little longer.

"Love, tell me what you want, talk to me," well knowing she was unable to do so. He craved her strangled words overwhelmed with desire lighting his passion even further. Besides the thought of losing her was unbearable and wanted to hear her love declarations.

They both shuddered the moment his sex touched hers, and he taunted her right at her entrance, waiting for her words, "Yes, my love, my Rabastan...I love you, now, now, inside, now. I love you, I do. "

Much later in their bed she confided, "Rabastan, I am sorry for being so hardheaded about Rodolphus. "Harry talked to me, and he is right. It is my choice but I've defended worse than him; and he is important to you and should be to me. And there is the thing you should know; the baby moved anxiously at his touch and has not given it a rest since. The healer sent by Lucius cannot figure it out, and he is concerned because the baby's heart rate is a little elevated, do you know why is the baby at such unrest?"

He wanted to lie, but at the last minute decided to go for it, and to let the chips fall where they may. He was going to tell her what she needed to know, her revelations about the baby confirmed his suspicions about the curse; he no longer doubted that it was still active, and he didn't want to take any chances.

"My love, I haven't told you the entire truth about Lestrange wizards, I was afraid if you knew you wouldn't marry me."

Her skin lost its coloring, "What about the Lestrange wizards?" Her voice was nearly inaudible.

"What would you say is the commonality amongst my cousins, uncles, and other relatives, is there something which you can easily see?" He didn't feel well, he should have withheld the truth, but he could't risk the baby's life.

"Only that almost everyone is in a triad, and there are no Lestrange females, other than the wives."

"Yes, and you are having a daughter, right?"

"True, I am pregnant with a baby girl as it is often the case with the firstborn children in my mother's family." She didn't like where this was going.

"One of the reasons that Bella's marriage failed so soon was because I refused to marry her, as she expected; she was already a Lestrange and had the right to ask and to expect me to conform to her wishes."

"Are you saying our marriage is going to fail because I haven't asked Rodolphus?"

"No, I said that was the case with Bella and Dolphus' union, she wanted the triad, her right as his wife and I ignored her plea. Moreover, when my brother asked me, I said no. Even worse, it was done with malice because I wanted their marriage to fail; hence, her wild ritual with the baby might have been my fault. Here sit comfortably, I am going to tell you a true story."

He stood and got extra pillows for her, tucked the pillows under her feet and lay next to her, holding her hand. She hadn't said a world.

"Long ago, around the start of the eighteen century, there was a duel between two Lestrange brothers, and it wasn't the first time, they fought all the time. They couldn't get along, finding reasons to fight over witches, over how run the business, and just over everything." He leaned to kiss her cold cheek and to pat the baby.

"Something went wrong during a duel, and a running hex killed a young neighboring witch. Her mother was feared by both magical and Muggle folk alike. Her evil made Bellatrix look like an angel; she apparently ate the flesh of babies, and only feared the Lestrange. It is said, she just went away, but before she did, she hexed the Lestrange heirs. The curse was not apparent. That is the reason they couldn't figure it out, not until she was long gone. By that time, she hid well."

He paused to look at her and was disturbed at the way she held herself. He continued, nonetheless.

"They found out the only way they could have children, was for the brothers to be married to the same witch, and for her to come to the union on her own; no small feat considering their animosity. As for baby witches, there have been none since. The books said the dark witch screamed, 'If I am denied of my darling daughter's joy then the Lestrange bastards must be equally punished.' Yes, many heard her scream that; it is all in the library." He came closer to Hermione, who was no longer looking at him.

"There was more to it, if one brother married without the other's consent, their marriage would be barren; or if one married without including the other, the married couple had to allow the unmarried brother into their union upon his request, otherwise the witch would die a horrible death."

He stopped to look at her, she was distant and remote.

"It didn't stop brothers to marry different witches, but there were no babies out those marriages. As the curse weakened, over the centuries, there were cases of one married and one unmarried brother, and the witch was able to get pregnant; however, the babe wouldn't quake until it was around the unmarried brother."

Her voice came distant, "That must not have changed, it is what happened to me," her voice was low, merely a whisper and hard to understand.

"Yes my love, you are right. There is more, once the babe responded, he would call for the missing brother. Eventually if the unmarried brother wasn't around for whatever reasons, the babe would die. I was hoping this wasn't the case because you conceived a girl. We were all hoping the curse was finally broken."

"Wait, are you saying I must be around Rodolphus and marry him? You should have told me. He loved Bellatrix; he is a traitor to...err; he betrayed his future and that makes him despicable." Her eyes were flat. Inadvertently, she had revealed the jealousy consuming her; it was directed to Rodolphus for his role in her current misery; she hated that he had not waited for her; plus, he had loved and sided with Bellatrix; all unforgivable, according to her.

"No, as I said the curse has weakened, and he just needs to be around. He hasn't asked for his rights, meaning if he did, I would have to allow him into our marriage bed, or you or you and our child/children are doomed. You must first consider most of the triads for the last century or longer, have been mostly happy; actually the witches wouldn't have it any other way. It was like that until Bellatrix. "

"Rabastan, are there any chances you might be wrong?" She looked desperate, and she knew it was all true. She could feel the baby's unrest, the poor little girl was in a turmoil, and Hermione now worried all the time. Foremost, she didn't want her baby to suffer. The worse part was knowing how the baby had loved Rodolphus, and that is what had made her soften towards Rabastan, this night.

"No, however, the witch said the curse would be lifted with the birth of a Lestrange girl. You can now understand all the excitement. Who knows, maybe the curse has already been broken, and I am certain Rodolphus won't ask for his right, mostly, because he respects you too much. What I have told you is only known by the family. "

She felt betrayed and angry, "You should have told me this from the start, so I could have made an informed decision, on my own."

"My love, I never had a choice, I told you I loved you since the first time. Please forgive me, I love you so much the thought of hurting you is killing me inside."

Xox

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