A.N Would just like to appologise for taking soooo long with posting this chapter! Lack of internet and idea's for this chapter stumped me in my tracks for a while! However with MANY thanks to BellaMioneBlack for her fatastic support the story continues! Also I now have a full storyboard as to where this is going-so this long wait should never happen again! ) Thank you for being so patient! :D enjoy! x
"Bellatrix I have something I wish to tell you. It is my most, precious secret." Voldermort didn't turn around to face her. He stood like a black shadow against the window, in the darkened room, the dust glittered in the air like a mild fog. Bellatrix stood in the doorway, observing her master. It was the first time they had spoken alone. He had sent the others away, but why she didn't know.
"My lord?" She whispered, unsure whether or not to take a step closer towards him.
"You have proven yourself to be most loyal to me, I doubt if another would have taken that curse for me." He turned his head to glace at her over his shoulder.
Bellatrix shuddered at the memory of the pain she had endured for her master. "I would gladly do it again, my Lord." She gave a slow bow of her head as Voldermort turned to face her completely, his dark green robes spiralling around him like smoke.
"Mmm…But first we must cover something of a more, pressing importance." Voldermort now took a stride towards her, while beckoning her in with a gesture of his hand, "your loyalty is moving Bellatrix, but I cannot help but feel your duelling skills are your weakness."
Bellatrix felt a twinge of anger bubble in her stomach, she had taken a curse for him, defeated almost all the other Deatheaters in practice, how could he say that her duelling skills were weak?
Voldermort gave a low chuckle, "it is true, you are better than my other followers, but even the best have room for improvement."
Bellatrix turned to watch her master walk in circles around her, she felt uneasy, his snake-like eyes watched her every move. 'Did he just use Legilimencey on me?' she questioned herself.
"Yes I did. You need to keep your mind closed at all times, you never know whose watching your thoughts." Voldermort confirmed, stopping behind her, his wand out.
Instantly, Bellatrix thought of towering brick walls surrounding her mind, she closed off every memory, suppressing them into her subconscious, until she felt nothing but a black heavy cloud floating in her head.
"Much better Bella, much, much better!" Voldermort sounded impressed, and Bellatrix knew she had just bested him at his third attempt at entering her mind.
"Thank you my Lord." As she looked at him, she spotted his wand in his hand, he was stroking it lovingly with his fingers and Bellatrix longed for him to touch her like that, but did not linger on the thought, there was no time. In an instant Voldermort had pointed the instrument at her, through pure reflex reactions Bellatrix dived out of the way, missing the blue light by millimetres as it whistled passed her left ear.
She scrambled back to her feet, panic growing inside her. Did he plan on killing her? What had she done wrong? She removed her own curved wand from its holster around her belt, and readied herself for a duel.
She noticed Voldermort smirk, as she couldn't help but hesitate at pointing her wand at him. It didn't feel right, fighting her great lord like this. He flicked his wand effortlessly toward her again, yet the power behind the spell was so intense that Bellatrix was knocked backwards despite her deflection.
"Don't hold back!" Voldermort ordered. As he through yet more curses her way. It was then Bellatrix realised, he had no intention of killing her. He was teaching her.
She battled to remain standing, each one of Voldermort's spells seemed as if he was throwing a bus at her. She could feel her frustration growing, she hated being humiliated like this, she wanted to fight back, to prove to him and to herself, that she could easily challenge him, but he seemed relentless sending wave after wave of spells at her.
"Push yourself Bella!" Voldermort's voice was changing, no longer calm instead there was anger building behind it, and his curses grew in power and number. Bellatrix could feel herself becoming tired, just remaining on her feet was a battle.
Then Voldermort paused, if only for a brief second but it was enough, Bellatrix seized her chance and she retaliated, "Expelliarmus!" She cried, yet she was exhausted and it wasn't worth little more than a wave of Voldermort's arm for it to dissipate. Yet he smiled at her, and his eyes glinted in the light.
He strode towards her now, becoming a menacing stature towering over Bellatrixes own tiny figure. The respect Bellatrix had for her lord forced her to avert her eyes away from his. She felt weak, and vulnerable as he leaned down over her, but there was no warmth, instead he drained her of any body heat she had, it was like she had been pushed out of the sun and into the shade.
"You've got to mean it Bella," Voldermort's harsh voice whispered into her ear, sending shivers down her spine, causing her to let out a faint whimper, while nodding subserviently.
"AGAIN!" Voldermort yelled and he sped away from her, while she straightened herself up, readying her wand. Then she felt it, the drop of rage, from being made to feel small, weak, insignificant before the great Lord Voldermort. She seized the rage for all its worth and allowed it to fill up her entire being, until she was shaking with it, until she could feel her blood at boiling point. Before Voldermort had even cast his next curse, she thought it; the spell that she would wield as her own, the spell that she would make her trademark upon. The spell that all would fear to hear from her lips…..
"Mistress 'Mione! Mistress 'Mione! WAKE UP! PLEASE Mistress! Up, UP!" Hermione's eyes shot open, to find minx pulling on her arm as it hung out of her bed. She briefly scanned the window as the elf wrenched her up and out of her warm bed sheets. It was still dark, should couldn't have been asleep for more than a few hours.
"Quickly Mistress! Quickly!" The elf pleaded, dragging Hermione out of the room.
"Minx, what's wrong?" Hermione said, now becoming worried. Minx however didn't seem to think there was enough time to reply and continued to drag Hermione by the arm across her room.
"Must hurry, must, must, must hurrryyyy..." The elf was near teas, her fear covered her expression and Hermione could feel the elf's hands trembling in her own.
"Minx stop!" Hermione said. The elf obeyed, dropping Hermione's hands, "now tell me what's…..?" Then she heard it, the scream, a most piercing scream that shocked Hermione to the bone and caused mix to cover her ears and cower behind the brunette.
Hermione sprinted into Bellatrixes room, bashing the door open with a loud bang. Upon looking into the darkness she could see Bellatrix thrashing wildly about under her sheets, clearly in a nightmarish panic.
"Bellatrix!" Hermione ran over to the woman, whose body was still twisting and contorting into awkward positions. "Bellatrix can you hear me!?" Hermione grabbed the witches arms in an attempt to restrain and calm her down. Hermione didn't know what to do. Bellatrix, now withheld in her grasp was covered in a cold sweat, her face was contorted into a frown but her eyes were moving frantically under her dark eyelids.
"Bellatrix listen to me, you're having a dream, you need to wake up!" Hermione was panicking, she would have used magic to awaken the woman, yet Hermione knew the dangers of waking a witch who was in such a state.
Bellatrix suddenly became stiff in Hermione's arms, observing the woman, Hermione felt a wave of fear, what if Bellatrix was having a fit? "Bellatrix?..." Hermione whispered. She watched as Bellatrix began to shake violently as the raven haired witch was attempting to mutter something, a word, a whisper, and then it was clear.
"CRUCIO!" Bellatrix screamed, sitting bolt upright, flinging Hermione to the side. However now she was fully awake, and fuelled by rage; a rage she had not felt since she had first been trained by Voldermort.