"Master. Madam Riddle. I present to you Mister Rodolphus Lestrange," said Hinky the House-Elf. Bellatrix descended into a respectful curtsy as Hinky shut the main doors behind Rodolphus, who took off his hat and Banished it with his wand to the rack in the corner of the great foyer. Rodolphus bowed, first to Lord Voldemort and then to Bellatrix.
Lord Voldemort. She had begun to think of him that way over the past few days, ever since he'd told her that that was his name, that he wanted her to think of him as Lord Voldemort and not as Tom Riddle. She'd cemented the name firmly in her mind. Now she looked at the boy she'd considered marrying and realised she could have never wanted him. Not really. Not after knowing what Lord Voldemort had to offer.
"I must again congratulate you on the feat of this castle, sir," said Rodolphus. "When I came here for your wedding, I confess I was struck by its size and elegance. They say you created it with your own magic. Is it true?"
"Perhaps it is true," Voldemort said slyly. "But you have come to talk politics, not architecture, eh? Do come in, Mr Lestrange, and let us have at it."
"Madam Riddle," said Rodolphus as he followed Bellatrix and Voldemort down the corridor, "I am so glad to see you so very happy."
Bellatrix smiled a little at him. He was a diplomat, and that was a very diplomatic thing to say. They entered the expansive, beautiful dining room, with its tapestries dancing out scenes upon the stone walls, and Voldemort wandlessly pushed out three chairs - one at the head, and one at each side of him. He moved to sit at the head of the table, and Bellatrix sat to his right, with Rodolphus to his left. Rodolphus smiled again at her, and she could easily tell that he found her pretty. He was staring at her, and he seemed to realise that. Unfortunately for Rodolphus, Lord Voldemort seemed to notice, too.
"What little use it does us," Voldemort said primly, "to perseverate over that which might have been."
Suddenly, a first course of clams steamed with butter appeared on their plates. Bellatrix took a shaking breath and lowered her eyes away from Rodolphus as Voldemort cleared his throat and asked in a tight voice,
"Tell me more about what happened in Russia, will you?"
"Oh. Yes, sir." Rodolphus poked a small fork into a clam and popped it into his mouth. He chewed, took a sip of white wine, and said, "There have been sporadic attacks on Russian Muggles, organised by a segment of the Russian magical population that calls itself the Chistota. With the primary goal of purging Russia of its supposedly disgusting non-magical inhabitants, the Chistota work at night to set homes and Muggle churches aflame. This infuriated other European magical governments, who demanded that the Russian Ministry put a stop to the attacks in the name of protecting Muggles' rights."
Bellatrix pricked up. "But the Russian Ministry did not stop the attacks?"
"No, Madam Riddle," Rodolphus affirmed. "Indeed, the Russian minister stated publicly that he supported the Chistota movement and all its aims. Because of this, the British Ministry of Magic has severed diplomatic ties and pulled all diplomats out of Russia."
"So Russia is now living under a government which wholly backs a movement designed to inflict death upon Muggles?" Voldemort asked, narrowing his eyes. He ate a clam, and Rodolphus nodded.
"Yes, sir. That is the long and short of it."
"How very interesting," Voldemort said. He flicked his eyes to Bellatrix and said, "Perhaps I ought to have built our castle in Russia, Bella."
She smirked a little at him and said, "How then would you build a similar movement here in Britain, My Lord?"
His face went serious. He had not been expecting her to call him that - My Lord - in front of Rodolphus Lestrange. She could tell he was surprised. But he seemed pleased half a second later, and he steadied his face as he turned to Rodolphus. The younger wizard seemed awfully surprised by the exchange he had just witnessed.
"Movement?" He parroted. "You mean to build an anti-Muggle movement here in Britain, sir?"
"That is my goal," Voldemort affirmed. "Though, more than being anti-Muggle, we shall be in favour of witches and wizards. You see, the Russians have it right about Muggles. They are filthy beasts; they hardly ever bathe and do not possess the ability to cleanse themselves with spells."
"I have indeed noticed that all the Muggles I've encountered carry with them a stench, a foul odour of the body," Bellatrix confirmed. "They smell of rot, especially in the heat."
"I have observed the same thing about them," Rodolphus said. He ate his last clam and set down his fork, sipping more white wine. "I have also noticed that they are particularly prone to infectious disease, of the sort that renders whole populations bereft."
"They die in droves due to pestilence," Voldemort sneered. "Their hospitals are filled to the brim with the sick and dying, and they've no real means of helping keep their own alive. No Healing charms or potions are to be had. Their medicines are piddly and weak; their surgeries kill more than they heal. They are a disgraceful lot when it comes to illness and death, and they reek whilst they're alive."
"That's to say nothing of the way they destroy one another in wars," Bellatrix breathed. "Why, just recently, the English Muggles became engaged in a new war. Something about the Austrian Succession. In any case, it means they're now shooting holes in one another with cannon balls and blowing one another to bits with their muskets."
"They are terribly violent creatures," said Lord Voldemort as roast chicken and rice appeared on their plates. He cut into his food and took a bite. He eyed Bellatrix for a moment, and as he sipped his wine, she listened to Rodolphsu say,
"The Russian Muggles are no better when it comes to wars and fighting. They destroy one another with such haste. It astounds. It boggles the mind. They can scarcely think of anything better to do with their time than to kill one another. It is truly staggering, the viciousness they possess."
"And so, you can plainly see why it is that they must be put down for the good of wizardkind," said Voldemort quietly. Rodolphus gulped and took a bite of roast chicken.
"Put down," he said quietly. "Like an ill dog."
"Like a swarm of flies whose presence makes filthy the lands they inhabit," Voldemort said calmly. "They are a scourge. Nothing more, nothing less. Witches and wizards everywhere would do well to remember our place above them. We would do well to seize that place. And we will need a leader to bring us to that glory."
"You," Rodolphus said, sounding amazed. Bellatrix reached on instinct for her husband's hand, and she said quite firmly,
"I stand with you in this fight for justice and righteousness… Lord Voldemort."
He smiled just a little at her, his eyes warming. He nodded, and then he turned to Rodolphus.
"I…" Rodolphus shifted in his seat a bit, but then he said, "I do stand with you. If what you intend to do is to be the hand that guides wizarding Britain to a situation where witches and wizards are comfortably situated atop and away from Muggles, then I am with you. If what you seek is to lead us to a society of Magical purity, then I am at your side, sir."
"Are you? Then I consider us very good friends, Mr Lestrange," Lord Voldemort said, "and I thank you very kindly for coming to dinner tonight. Now. Do tell us more about travel from Russia."
"I thought that went swimmingly."
Bellatrix looked up from her boudoir. She had been braiding her hair and had just Scoured her face of its cosmetics. Now she bound her hair with a ribbon and slowly stood, turning round to face her husband. She planted her hands flat on the front of his nightshirt and mused,
"I do not suppose it could have gone any better. Do you mind terribly that I called you by your new name in front of him?"
"Did I seem like I very much minded?" he asked, and he brought one of her hands to his mouth to kiss her knuckles. She smirked up at him and said,
"Tom Riddle is gone to me now. I know I married Tom Riddle, but he's gone. My husband is Lord Voldemort."
"Oh. You wretched witch, you."
Suddenly Bellatrix was being pushed up toward the wall, and when her back slammed against the wallpaper, she gasped. Voldemort seized her wrists in his hands and pinned them to the wall beside her, and he bent down. He crushed her mouth with his, kissing hard, and suddenly Bellatrix panicked. She had a Witch's Stopper in, but her bleeding had begun a few hours earlier.
"I… can't…" she managed in between his rough kisses. Voldemort growled and moved his mouth to her neck.
"Oh, yes, you can," he snarled. "I'm going to take you from behind. I promise you'll like it. You'll feel so -"
"No, I mean that I really can't. I'm sorry." Bellatrix seized his head and pulled him back a little, and he blinked, looking drowsy as he stared down at her. He seemed to register just what she meant, and half his mouth curled up.
"Oh, good," he said, and Bellatrix was shocked. She scowled. Good? Weren't they meant to create a baby together just as quick as you please? How was this good? It was unfortunate, wasn't it? But Voldemort tucked Bellatrix's hair behind her ear and sighed.
"I've so much to teach you," he said, his voice almost gentle. "I want to teach you about mummies in Egypt. I want to teach you about Cursed jewellery. I want to teach you about magical daggers and nooses, about poisons. I want to improve your Occlumency."
"And you think I couldn't learn any of that whilst I'm with child?" Bellatrix said, feeling just a little wounded.
"No, it's…" Voldemort licked his lip carefully. "I want to teach you to throw Hexes and Jinxes and, yes, Curses, without the slightest abandon. I want you to become utterly fierce. Ferocious. Trained."
"A soldier," Bellatrix breathed. "You think that your movement will escalate into conflict, and you want me to fight in that conflict."
"You are my staunchest ally," Voldemort said. He brushed a thumb under Bellatrix's eye and bent down, touching his forehead to hers. "You are my most loyal advocate. If I had no one else in all the world, I would have you, Bellatrix. Frankly, you are just about all I've got right now. And as my movement grows, I shall need you as my lady, and as my soldier."
"I see." Bellatrix felt her lips go numb. She reached a little until she could kiss him, and then she touched her lips to his. He pulled back and whispered,
"You will always be first."
She threaded her arms around his shoulders and let him push her back against the wall, let him kiss her hard again before he broke the kiss and said again, more seriously this time,
"You will always be first."
Author's Note: Again, thank you for your patience as I deal with Real Life Health Crap. I promise to update whenever possible and do promise that this story will be finished as soon as possible. Thanks for reading and reviewing.