I AM NOT PROFITING FROM THIS. ANY RECOGNIZABLE CHARACTERS, PLACES, AND OR/EVENTS BELONG TO J.K. ROWLING

Chapter Twelve

New Years passed as the Black sisters and Rose had a small celebration in the Gryffindor common room with the twins. A bit of an awkward affair at first, but everybody relaxed eventually, even Bellatrix. The dark witch never strayed too far from Rose, and occasionally reminded her to take a calming draught if she seemed nervous, or redirecting questions about why she showed up so suddenly. Bellatrix was just as curious as everybody else, but Rose clearly didn't want to talk about it. The first morning of classes starting back up, Rose was sitting at the Gryffindor table again, talking to Terry and throwing playful jabs at the twins that she had gotten to know. Andromeda nudged Bellatrix, who was gripping a piece of toast so tightly in her hands it ignited and turned to ash.

"Bella, you're supposed to eat your food, not burn it." Andromeda put more toast on her plate.

"She always forgets to take her draughts. They don't seem to be helping as much anymore. I feel like something is wrong." Bellatrix grumbled, burning more bread. Narcissa pulled her plate a little farther from her oldest sister. Andromeda couldn't help a little smile.

"I'm glad you two are friends now. It's the first day back and you haven't attempted to murder anybody." she chuckled good naturedly, earning a poke in the ribs.

"Yes well she's not a complete idiot, and I appreciate her…" she couldn't really find an example. She supposed she just appreciated Rose for who she was. A flash of movement caught her eye, and she realized she was staring at the girl in question, who was smiling and gave her a polite wave. Bellatrix quickly put her head down; a dusty pink blush sprung to her cheeks, and the last thing she needed was people thinking she was going soft.

"So Rose, how was Christmas with your family?" Terry asked as she sipped her tea. Rose smiled at the curly haired girl, who didn't noticed how Rose bounced her leg nervously.

"It was pretty good. Did you like that hat I bought you?" she changed the subject, and Terry gushed happily about her entire holiday. Rose tuned her out, but nodded happily and smiled, occasionally inputting an astonished exclamation or a chuckle. Terry didn't seem to notice. Rose was too preoccupied, thinking about Bellatrix, who she would see in potions today. She noticed the girl looking at her across from the Great Hall, and she hoped she was feeling okay. She also felt another pair of eyes on her, ones belonging to her head of house. Professor McGonagall looked less than pleased, and Rose could understand why. Terry was still chattering on, and Rose turned her attention back to her friend. When breakfast was over and Rose got up to go to her first class, McGonagall caught up to her in the hallway.

"I would like to see you in my class for a moment, please." her prim demeanor not at all diminished by the hard glare in her eye. Bellatrix watched from a distance as Rose disappeared into the crowds of students with the Transfiguration professor in the tall pointy hat. As the Slytherin went to Divination, she thought back on one of their chats in the Gryffindor's room.

"Rose, are you afraid of anything?" Bellatrix asked seriously as she tried to sketch Rose's face. It looked absurd. Rose stopped drawing for a fraction of a second.

"Mmm...nothing I can think of off the top of my head." she paused "No I lied. I'm afraid of losing myself. I came here to finish school, and then go back to the U.S. I feel like I'm failing Brian and Katie, somehow." she conceded. Bellatrix crumpled up her paper and tossed it on the floor before lying on her back, her hair a midnight halo around her head.

"I've been curious, you always mention them…" Bellatrix wasn't sure where she was going with this, and wished that she had kept her mouth shut. Rose glanced at her before taking the locket out of her shirt and opening it. Inside was the small photograph, which she took out and enlarged. She handed it to Bellatrix, who held it above her face to look at the three smiling children in the photo.

"I'm assuming that adorable little imp in the middle is you?" Bellatrix chuckled in a low voice that made Rose's breath hitch.

"I'm not adorable shut up. But yeah, that's me. Katie on the left, Brian on the right. He wrote me a letter the other day. He wants to be the president of the Magical Congress when he's older. His father is the Vice President, so I don't doubt that he's on his way there." the brunette smiled fondly as she spoke "He started dating Katie at the beginning of the year."

"Does that make you jealous?" Bellatrix asked suddenly. Rose snorted at this.

"Hell no. I could see from miles away that they were going to end up together. They balance each other out. I'm happy for them."

"Is that why you didn't want to date that other boy? He wouldn't balance you?" Bellatrix was frowning now, but not necessarily at the photo. Rose grimaced a little at the memory. Why was Bellatrix bringing this up again?

"No. I just wasn't interested. He's never appealed to me in that way. Besides," she waved her hand "Terry is into him. I don't want to be in the way."

"You're not in the way. You never are, Damonne." Bellatrix said seriously, again surprising Rose with how thoughtful a simple comment could be "People are in your way. You have a lot of potential, you just need to explore that a little more. You're a living legend waiting to happen." she finished, and put the photograph back in Rose's hands.

"You know, there's one more thing I'm afraid of now." Rose said as she shrunk the photo and put it back into the locket.

"Oh, what's that?"

"Losing a friend like you."

Bellatrix didn't realize she had been standing in an empty hall by herself for some time, replaying those words in her mind, trying to memorize the smells and sounds and feelings. That Gryffindor was bloody crazy for wanting to stay friends. Then again, Bellatrix hadn't given her any real reasons to leave yet. And she didn't want to.

"Five points from Slytherin, Miss Black. Please find your way to class." Flitwick shuffled past her on his way to Charms. Bellatrix groaned and began trudging to the astronomy tower, although it was painfully slow, and she would make the Professor wait, losing more points for her house. When passing a window, she saw that is was a beautifully clear day, despite the chill. Perhaps she would go out and practice today. If there was one thing that didn't confuse her, or throw her off her edge, it was Quidditch. Bellatrix practically kicked down the door to the classroom in her usual fashion and plopped down in an empty seat with a blonde Hufflepuff boy, who looked very tired.

"Late again." the professor marked something down on parchment before continuing the lesson. The dark witch shrugged and leaned back in her chair, a ghost of a smile on her face. Immediately, several of her classmates noticed and began whispering amongst themselves. She ignored them, and hoped that Rose wouldn't be punished too harshly for whatever it was McGonagall had pulled her aside for. She didn't need that stress, Bellatrix thought.

"Would you care for a biscuit?" the Transfiguration professor asked. Rose didn't even look at the weird crumbly British cookies and declined politely. The woman didn't seem too happy. But Rose couldn't tell exactly what the emotion was.

"Miss Damonne...there is no easy way to put this." McGonagall began, nudging her spectacles farther up on her nose. Rose was standing in front of the professor's desk, picking at her nails anxiously. "The Headmaster would like to speak with you. It's about your safety." Rose couldn't help feeling embarrassment and flare across her cheeks and the back of her neck, making her skin prickle.

"S-safety, professor?" she couldn't help a stutter, and she kicked herself for it. These past few weeks hanging around with Bellatrix in relative ease had lulled her into a false sense of security. It was only a matter of time until the truth got to the Ministry. She would be sent to Azkaban, she could feel it.

"Yes. But it's not for me to discuss. I'll escort you to the Headmaster's office." she said gently, the Scottish lilt in her voice comforting in a strange way. But this didn't stop Rose from quickly descending into a panic.

"Um, sure." she tried not to let her voice shake. But McGonagall wasn't getting up right away, and looked at Rose pointedly.

"Miss Damonne, if something is wrong, you should tell somebody. As your head of house, you should know that I'm always here if you need assistance." she sighed "I realize that coming to Hogwarts probably wasn't your first choice, and perhaps I should have done more to help you adjust. I have noticed that the Black Sisters have taken a keen interest in you..."

"They're good people." Rose said quickly, making McGonagall raise an eyebrow at her. Rose wasn't sure why she had chosen to discuss Bellatrix and her sisters. Did McGonagall think that they were some sort of negative influence on her? The idea of getting any of them in trouble made Rose feel incredibly guilty, and she gripped the sleeve of her cardigan tightly.

"Each of them has a lot on their plate, professor. They have to live up to so much, but at the same time, I know that they just want to be kids. Or as much as they still can be. Bella...trix has a lot to deal with right now, more than most in our year. And Narcissa, she's the youngest but she already acts so much older than her age. Andromeda is wise beyond her years!" Rose insisted, defending her friends against any accusations that might have arisen. The professor just smiled a little and nodded, but her eyes betrayed a look of sadness.

"You seem to have grown attached to them. Just as well, I suppose. But you should know, the House of Black is not one to be taken lightly. Remember that in the future, Miss Damonne. And do calm down a little," her eyes crinkled with mirth "my mention of them has gotten you in a tizzy." she stood to indicate they were leaving, and Rose took a few slow breaths to ease up, but the panic still wouldn't go away. Tom was silent, but she could feel him writhing around, and it made her even more uneasy. Something was happening, and it would not go well.

"Thank you professor." Dumbledore nodded to McGonagall, and she left Rose again in the expansive office of Albus Dumbledore, who Rose didn't trust solely on the premise that he made her send Peppers away. That was still a sore point with her. Rose thought grimly for a moment that perhaps she should have asked her Uncle Jesse for a Runespoor to bring back to school, just to spite the old man. This idea brought on an overwhelming sense of joy, which alarmed her greatly.

"Please, take a seat. Would you like a sweet?" he asked pleasantly, then chuckled a little at the rhyme he just made. Rose didn't like this routine. Something told her that he only did this to lull people into a false sense of security.

"No thank you. What did you want to speak to me about?" she said, almost coldly. If Dumbledore noticed this, he didn't mention it, and continued in his same tepid manner.

"It is my understanding that you have been experiencing difficulty while at Hogwarts. Perhaps an unforeseen complication that you wish to be rid of?" he asked, and Rose practically lurched out of her chair. Dumbledore must have noticed her shock, because he nodded to himself and kept talking when Rose didn't utter a sound, only staring at the ancient wizard nearly dumbstruck.

"Magic is wild and mysterious; nobody truly knows the full extent of what it really does or how it really works. Which is why sometimes, things happen that can feel out of our control. However, I believe there is a solution for your particular problem. But, remember you are of age and can refuse help if you so choose."

"I would be an idiot to refuse any sort of help I can get." she thought humorlessly. She hadn't exactly been discreet with her outbursts, and getting called into his office previously might have revealed something, but at this point she was too eager to get rid of Tom to question what Dumbledore had in mind.

"What sort of help?" she asked, keeping up a guise of being cautious.

"Well, in February, you would go to the Ministry and there a team of experts will make sure that you can get the care you need. Are you aware of what Unspeakables are, Miss Damonne?" she shook her head at this, never hearing her mother talk about them.

"They work in the Department of Mysteries. All of them are trained to deal with rare and elusive magic, and I'm sure they would be able to alleviate you of certain headaches." he smiled knowingly, but this didn't make Rose feel as reassured as it should have. Nonetheless, she nodded slowly.

"As long as this is discreet, I'll agree to it." she stated firmly. Dumbledore nodded.

"Of course. I wouldn't expect any less, and I wouldn't want you to suffer longer than you have to. I will inform the Ministry, and I'll send you an owl when the time comes for us to depart. I will accompany you there, but I will not be present for much else." he smiled, and Rose mumbled her thanks before leaving and making her way to her class, which she was now late for.

"I want Bellatrix's opinion on this." she said to herself as she made her way through the halls. It never occurred to her to even ask her other friends.

At dinner later that evening, Rose walked into the Great Hall deep in thought, and shrieked when somebody grabbed her from behind.

"Rose! Yae scaredy cat!" Henrietta snickered. The Gryffindor turned quickly and offered a nervous giggle to the girl with bouncy blonde curls, who started dragging her towards the Hufflepuff table. Rose was about to protest when she realized that sitting with Bellatrix would have been suicide now that winter break was over. When she cast a glance at the Slytherin table, Bellatrix was watching her closely and eyeing Henrietta distastefully.

"Ow!" Henrietta squeaked suddenly, and Rose looked to see the girl rubbing her shoulder as she looked at it. Rose shot a look at Bellatrix, who smirked and went back to mutilating her dinner.

"Hallo Rose!" Hugo seemed cheerier than usual, and not as tired.

"Hugo." she smiled and sat down in between the twins. The group talked amongst themselves merrily, getting back into the swing of their friendship and complaining about their first days back. Rose still couldn't really concentrate on what they were saying, her head feeling like it was full of cotton and buzzing uselessly. Something hit her in the back of the head, and she turned around to see a piece of paper folded up on the stone floor behind her. Everybody watched curiously as she picked it up and inspected it.

"Somebody sent you a note." Cyril observed before looking around the Great Hall, as if he could identify the sender. Rose already knew it was Bellatrix based upon the handwriting.

"Bloody shame they're illiterate." Hugo remarked before shrugging.

"Huh?" Rose asked, looking over the note quickly, seeing no error in spelling.

"It's gibberish. Some of those aren't even letters." Henrietta added as she pointed to a clearly written letter "h". It dawned on Rose that Bellatrix had enchanted the note so only she could read it, and she smiled a little bit to herself before reading it quickly.

Meet me in the courtyard after dinner.

Happy to finally catch up with the raven haired witch, Rose shrugged at her friend's searching glances and incinerated the note with a single tap of her wand. Putting a ham steak with potatoes on her plate, Rose tried her hardest to listen intently to what Terry was talking about. Something tickled at the back of her head, and she turned around again, but there was nothing there. She heard a whisper between her ears, soft a low, like sand blowing in an unseen breeze. Rose swatted distractedly near her ear, staring hard at Terry's mouth as she spoke, trying to recognize the words.

Speak with the girl.

Rose barely heard the whisper as is slithered around her cranium. It wasn't painful or harsh like Tom's voice, but this one sounded like a collection of people whispering, making her spine ache and her skin grow cold. She felt very cold, and hoped that this didn't mean that Tom was coming back to haunt her.

"Rose, you look awfully pale, are you alright?" Terri stopped her retelling of something that happened in Ancient Runes to look at the brunette, who was tugging at her braids and mumbling to herself. Rose snapped out of her trance and nodded.

"Yeah I'm fine, why?"

"Maybe you should see Madame Pomfrey? You could be sick." Hugo suggested, putting the back of his hand to her forehead, but looked confused when his hand met cold clammy skin. "Not a fever, but I'm not an expert." he shrugged. They all leaned in to inspect Rose carefully, who backed up at the close proximity of so many faces. Feeling claustrophobic, Rose rubbed her hands together and got up from her seat.

"I think I'm just going to get some rest. Jumping back into class must have taken its toll on me." she lied and gave a wave before leaving, following behind a group of Ravenclaws that were leaving the Great Hall. Bellatrix didn't waste time in following her out, despite weird looks from other Slytherins.

"Damonne?" Bellatrix asked curiously as Rose took deep breaths and leaned heavily against a wall when the Ravenclaws passed.

"Hey." she said weakly as she shook a little, trying to get rid of the cottony feeling "Let's go to the courtyard now."

"No, you don't look very good. Have you been taking your draughts on time?" Bellatrix watched as Rose's face grew red when she looked at her closely "Now you have a fever. you need to see Madame Pomfrey." she took Rose's hand and tried to pull her down the hall to the medical wing, and Rose went along until she kept pulling Bellatrix down to the courtyard.

"Idiot, it was back that way. This can't wait." Bellatrix grumbled as Rose pushed open the door.

"And what am I supposed to say? 'Oh hey Madame Pomfrey, I've been taking home-brewed Calming Draughts for months now, which is totally against all recommendation, and now I feel funny? And I'm hearing voices?' Yeah, no that won't work Bellatrix." Rose could hear the venom in her words, but she couldn't really prevent it. Scowling, Bellatrix pulled her hand free and raised a black eyebrow and put her hands on her hips. Rose cast a heating charm and stood closer to Bellatrix to keep her warm, and rubbed her forehead. They were quiet for a moment before Bellatrix sighed, rolling her eyes.

"So I'm assuming that McGonagall pulling you aside wasn't to award Gryffindor some house points?"

"No. She sent me up to Dumbledore. He says that he can get me help." Rose said, brushing some stray hairs from her face that had come loose from her braids "I'm going with him to the Ministry in February."

"Salazar's sake," Bellatrix grumbled and waved her wand, muttering something that sounded complicated. Rose's hair undid itself into a milkmaid braid, exposing Rose's face. "You're a witch, you don't need to deal with stray hairs and untidy clothes." Bellatrix reminded her, and smiled smugly at her handiwork "Besides, that looks adorable. Anyway, back to you; the Ministry? They're dolts. They don't know a broom from a toothbrush." she snorted.

"Well if you're so good with magic like that, how come you never fix your hair when curls come out of place?" Rose snarked, but quickly put her hands up "Your hair is amazing, don't actually do anything with it. And Dumbledore said I would be seeing Unspeakables. So there. Those guys must know something." she sounded like she was trying to bargain with Bellatrix, but Rose was also debating with herself that this was the best option for her so far. Currently, she had no idea how to get Tom out of her head short of dying.

"No, you're not going." Bellatrix said firmly. Rose scoffed and looked at Bellatrix with unabashed indignation.

"I'm sorry, but who the hell are you to tell me where I should and shouldn't go? Also, why did you hex Henrietta at dinner? That was uncalled for! You can just go around zapping my friends!" her voice rose as she spoke, pointing at Bellatrix. The dark haired witch, on the other hand, had never actually seen Rose get upset in such a normal manner, and was relishing it.

"Oh, so am I not your friend?" she sneered, backing out of the radius of the heating charm.

"That's not what I said, you moron. Don't twist my words!"

"Well then stop acting so defensive! And you're the moron for just going along with that dusty codger! You know nothing of the Ministry, how sneaky and slimy they are! You could very easily be hurt, and they still wouldn't care! So no, I'm saying that you shouldn't go, for your sake." Bellatrix snapped, a dark eyebrow twitching. Rose made a frustrated growling sound and thrust her arms to her sides.

"Bellatrix, if I can find any way to fix myself, I freaking will! This is the only legitimate solution I can really think of right now. I—I can't…" the air felt like it had been snatched from her lungs as she stopped and turned away from Bellatrix with a startling realization. This didn't go unnoticed, and Bellatrix snorted.

"That's what I thought. Now stop arguing and shut up so we can get you to Pomfrey. I don't want you going downhill again." she paused when she saw Rose's shoulders shake a little bit.

"Damonne?" she stepped forward and went to tap her on the shoulder when the brunette whirled around, tears streaming down her face.

"No," she said firmly, "No I'm not going to shut up. I'm going to the Ministry. I'm going to fix myself, and I'm not letting your or anybody else tell me otherwise. For the first time in my life, I have no fucking clue what I'm doing, okay? I am completely and utterly without a plan, but this seems like a pretty smart decision to make. More like common sense. So fuck you for thinking you can tell me what to do, Bellatrix. Then again, you are just a pure blood brat who always gets what she wants, why should this be any different?" Rose finished coldly, then wiped her sleeve across her face before storming back into the castle, leaving Bellatrix in the cold dark courtyard.

Students and staff alike made sure to steer clear of Bellatrix as she tore through the halls, an aura of positively unadulterated malice coming off of her in threatening waves. Even her mop of hair seemed more unruly somehow, frizzed and puffed at all angles. Nobody knew what had happened, and none of them were about to ask to find out. Andromeda and Narcissa watched her at breakfast the morning after the courtyard incident, angrily scratching at the table with a knife and grumbling to herself. The middle sister cleared her throat gently and tried to catch her sister's eye.

"Um, Bella? What's wrong?" she asked quietly so nobody could pry or eavesdrop. Bellatrix finished her woodworking and stabbed the knife into the table with tremendous force and glared with pure fire across the Great Hall, all the way over to the Gryffindor table. Andromeda followed her gaze and was surprised to find an equally irate Rose glaring back, although her's was a more chilling stare. Placid, like the surface of a lake, but the viewer is aware that a dangerous monster lurks beneath. Andromeda looked back at Bellatrix who was intending to win this staring contest.

"Oh, so you had a fight then? When you followed her out?"

"You could say that." Bellatrix spat between tightly clamped teeth, her hand on the knife again.

"How about instead of possibly injuring somebody with that, maybe take a deep breath and tell me what's wrong? You know how you get when you bottle things up." Andromeda whispered, and this finally broke Bellatrix's concentration, only for her to direct an equally furious look at her younger sister. Yes, she "knew how she got" when she didn't speak about things, but speaking about things allowed people in, and it was clearly a weakness. She had trusted Rose enough to speak to her over holiday, and opened up a little. Yet when she had given advice to her, Rose blatantly ignored her advice and even went so far as to tell her off. She was an idiot for not realizing that she only wanted to keep Rose safe. Salazar knows she had enough on her plate to deal with. Bellatrix snorted to herself, still irate.

"Why am I trying so hard? Who cares?" she thought to herself, but there wasn't any anger behind these words, or even much meaning. Bellatrix was afraid to admit to herself what these thoughts meant, so she cleared her mind as much as she could as chewed out Andromeda for trying to make her feel better.

Rose watched from afar as the Slytherin witch spat at her sisters, and huffed loudly at her meal. Terry looked up from her food and raised an eyebrow.

"Did you not sleep well after last night? How are you feeling?" she asked.

"I'm fine." Rose grumbled and poured herself some cereal, spilling it everywhere by accident as she still stared at Bellatrix, who hadn't looked back at her. The two sets of twins and Cyril all joined them at the table. By now, everybody had grown used to seeing the Hufflepuff students sitting at tables that weren't their own, and vice versa.

"Hallo Rose, feeling better?" Hugo asked as he piled sausage onto his plate. Rose nodded and voiced her thanks for him checking in. The Weasley twins clanged their goblets noisily to get the group's attention, which they succeeded in, and grinned broadly.

"There's a quidditch match today everybody. Slytherin versus us Gryffindors!" Gideon announced.

"And we're taking bets to see who beats who!" Fabian followed up.

"We suggest you join us for this match, I bet you five galleons that this the time that Gryffindor wins." they finished in unison. Cyril laughed and shook his head somberly.

"Oh you'd better hang onto your money, lads. Nobody beats Slytherin. They've held the cup for years now. Besides, you Gryffindors really suck. No offense" at this, a girl with the same red hair as the twins made a shocked and disdainful noise.

"He doesn't mean it Molly, he's just messing about. Right Cyril?" Terry elbowed the Hufflepuff in the ribs pointedly. His only response was a quick squeak. The mention of Slytherin playing made Rose even more pissed, and she was about to announce that she would spend her weekend in her room, when an idea struck her. Part of her wanted to blame Tom for this, but she knew she would attend the game and cheer against Slytherin, and especially Bellatrix, with all her might. It was definitely petty, but for now it would make her feel better.

"Why hasn't anybody beaten Slytherin though?" she wondered out loud, and everybody looked at her like she was crazy. She gave them all dirty looks "Well?"

"Rose, have you never seen who the Slytherin team has? They're almost unbeatable. Top notch gear to boot." Henrietta finally answered in disbelief. Rose shrugged.

"Okay? So just train. Better gear doesn't always mean greater skill. I don't play sports but guys, come on." she said with a coughing chuckle. Gideon and Fabian rolled their eyes and pointed across the Great Hall.

"They've got a new captain this past year, Steven Laughalot. Don't let the name fool you, he's no laughing matter. When it comes to the game, he throws away all that Slytherin 'cunning' and they go in with all brute strength. There's Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, who are all pretty much interchangeable for beaters. Although Malfoy tries to make it a strategy game, he usually gets lumped in with those dog-faced brutes. You've got your average chasers, can't remember their names. Keeper is bloody good though...what's his name again? No matter. What you need to be careful for is that Seeker, Bellatrix Black. Quick as a whip, she gets the snitch before you can say 'quaffle'." Fabian huffed.

"But Molls has been working like a mad dog to get better! They'll go head to head later today." Gideon assured the skeptical faces at the table. Terry squinted and then pulled out a pad of paper and a quill and traced through several notes filled with little numbers before slapping the pad down on the table.

"You idiots. It's Ravenclaw and Slytherin, not bloody Gryffindor. You got us all worked up for nothing." she rolled her eyes as people passed the extensive notes and stats around the table. The red haired twins look a little stunned for a moment as they peeked at the notepad before shaking their heads and pointing at Molly, who had been looking on. Rose didn't know Molly too well, or her boyfriend, but they seemed nice enough. Molly had a sweet matronly look about her, with a sturdy frame and a look about her that said she didn't take anybody's shit. Rose leaned in to see if she could spot her boyfriend, but she couldn't quite see him.

"We were told by the captains that there would be a game. Nobody has said anything otherwise until now, not even the professors. In all honesty, if I can stick it to that vile bitch, I would love to." she pounded her fist into her hand. Rose felt a twinge of annoyance at Bellatrix being called a bitch, but she brushed it off and shrugged.

"I guess we're all in for it now. What time?"

After breakfast ended, the air was buzzing with anticipation. A switch in the game schedule was new and certainly rare. To see the two Seekers go at each other would be something interesting indeed, and with the twins setting up bets, the excitement was practically tangible, charging the air with a fervor that could only be whipped up by sporting events. Rose watched in amazement as somebody fired off bright red and gold sparks from the stands in rapid succession, and a Slytherin on the opposite end did so as well, creating a spectacular show until a professor made them stop, probably Sinestra. Rose sat on the benches between Hugo and Henrietta, who had opted to stray from their stands. Cyril was back at the Hufflepuff section, and Terry had followed him.

"You lions are bloody loud." Hugo muttered and pulled his earmuffs closer to his head, but his sister was up on the bench and whooping and hollering with the rest of them, her black and yellow scarf flapping wildly in the breeze. Rose smiled, but gripped her knees tightly with her wand clutched in her right hand. The second she saw Bellatrix in the air, that's when the fun would begin. The announcer got into the booth and brought up the microphone. The cheering increased tenfold, and the announcer's voice could barely be heard over the din.

"And here comes Gryffindor out of the gates!" he shouted, and an impressive squadron of red robes could be seen flapping in the wind as the players flew out from the bottom of the pitch, like a swarm of well-coordinated birds. The captain took the lead with Molly Prewett close behind, waving modestly and shaking her fists as the crowd to hype them up even more. Slytherin was booing madly, shouting and spitting like a pack of wild animals, and holding up various posters emblazoned with "Scaredy Cats" written on them. As they flew a loop around the pitch and found their way to the center, a second squad of players made their way onto the field, and the roles of the crowd switched on a dime, the Gryffindors now become irate as Slytherin displayed an admittedly more impressive flying formation. The seeker followed the captain, and Rose almost forgot her plan when she saw Bellatrix.

Her hair was pulled into a bun, although it was incredibly messy. Instead of sitting on her broom like any normal or sane person would, she was standing on top with her arms held out to balance herself as she cruised around the air, cackling and sticking her tongue out at the Gryffindors as she passed. For a brief second, Rose and Bellatrix's eyes met and time seemed to stand still. Rose scowled for the first time in her life, and Bellatrix Black looked a little intimidated for the first time in hers, but the moment passed quickly as the Slytherin witch dropped into a sideways sitting position and waved coyly before cackling again, sending the entire crowd of Gryffindors into a state of foam-mouthed fury. Rose watched as Malfoy zipped by with his two goons, and she waved her wand silently in their direction, not uttering a sound, but feeling the magic in her very bones.

The effect was immediate and noticeable, and she smirked in satisfaction. When the whistle was blown the balls were released, Crabbe and Goyle were absolute bumbling idiots as they meandered through the air, and blank look on their faces as they resembled sun-struck flies rather than fearsome athletes. The bludger was knocked by a beater on the opposing team and sailed easily into Goyle's chest, knocking the wind out of him and the broom out from under his body. The crowd was stunned for a moment into silence as the boy fell, only to be stopped by an aresto momentum from a professor. The team captain called for Malfoy to sub in quickly from chasing duty, but he was under the same curse as his cronies. Crabbe surprisingly lasted a little longer, managing to hit a ball that was going directly for his thick skull. The game went on, some measly points were scored here and there, with Slytherin in the lead despite the odd behavior of their teammates. Rose looked to where Bellatrix and Molly were twisting and looping around each other and the snitch, like two hawks after prey. Rose contemplated casting a jinx on Bellatrix when she got closer, but decided maybe that it wasn't a good idea to do it right away. It would look suspicious.

"Another clumsy strike from Crabbe! It's like they've got gnats in their brains!" the announcer shouted in disbelief as the young man in question swung aimlessly and missed by a mile, causing the bludger to hit the tail end of Malfoy's broom and send him into a rapid downward spiral. Gideon and Fabian looked at the scoreboard and at the quickly tiring Slytherins before shouting at their housemates.

"Alright! Place new bets people! If we get a point lead and Molly gets the snitch, you'll all get double!" and the kids went wild. Rose sighed to herself and watched as Crabbe finally managed a fantastic nosedive, sticking his broom in the sand at the bottom of the pitch and landing on his face in an unceremonious heap. A sub was called in, but Rose didn't even bother jinxing him. Malfoy was barely in the air now, shaking his head and flitting around other players in wary confusion.

"My god, that pasty pansy is completely mad. Look at him!" Hugo laughed and pointed, and Rose laughed along. Suddenly Henrietta cried in outrage as the Keeper on the Gryffindor team started vomiting profusely, so much that she couldn't stop a few stray quaffles from flying into the lower hoops.

"Oi! They're cheating! They hexed the keeper!" Henrietta shrieked, her shouting caused a collective cry of outrage. Rose scanned the crowds of Slytherins and easily found the young man casting clumsily from the stands, his friends standing around him and trying to make it look inconspicuous. They failed spectacularly. With a slight careless flick of her wand, the boy sprouted a pig's nose and he shrieked in surprise, which broke his concentration and the keeper recovered, although she still looked green around the gills. Turning her attention back to the game, an idea tickled the back of her skull, and her gut lurched a little when she thought it might be Tom. But it didn't entirely feel like him...she listened to the idea and looked at Bellatrix, who was dangerously close to grabbing the snitch before Molly. Staring at the Comet that Bellatrix was riding she began muttering incantations, never breaking eye contact. It was risky, but definitely producing the effect she wanted. As Molly raced passed her opponent, Bellatrix's broom stopped immediately and lurched dramatically. She shrieked in surprise, then hung on for dear life as it it flung her about wildly. The crowd gasped in shock.

"It appears that Bellatrix Black has lost control of her broom! Molly Prewett is closing in on the snitch!" the crowd went nuts, pinnies and banners waved madly as people either cheered or booed. Only the professors looked on concerned as they watched the relatively seasoned player flailed helplessly. Rose held the spell, even as the broom bobbed near her end of the stands. Remembering how mad Bellatrix had made her in the courtyard, she muttered furiously and the broom increased its efforts to buck the rider. Bellatrix screamed and finally was flung viciously off her broom, against the stands where somebody quickly deployed a cushioning charm, but she was thoroughly battered to high hell. Molly caught the snitch in an impressive dive, and Gryffindor won their first game against Slytherin in many seasons. The thunderous roaring of Gryffindors was almost too much for Rose as she suddenly felt sick to her stomach. While the twins collected and passed out money in the confusion, Rose slipped away and ran as fast as she could down to the bottom of the pitch and out of sight from anybody else.

"Holy shit…" she gasped out, her hands shaking violently as she jammed her wand into her back pocket and crouched helplessly in the snow covered grass. Panic set in quickly, her breath quickening until Rose was hyperventilating, her vision darkening until she could only see a pinpoint of light.

"I just...I just hurt so many people…" she thought between gasps "It wasn't even Tom, that was all me…" blood rushed in her ears, pulsing loudly. Stuck in place and gasping, she didn't notice when somebody cast a warming charm over her and tried to get her attention.

"Andy it's not working!" Narcissa hissed in alarm, looking around in case anybody saw them. Andromeda was crouched in front of Rose and was gripping both her shoulders, staring at unblinking hazel eyes. After leaving the stands, they had seen Rose off to the side behind a drift of snow. The middle sister shook her head and held out a hand to her sister without looking away from the older witch.

"Give me one of those potions Bella gave us. She said that they would help if she was acting weird."

"Bella?" Rose croaked, and both sisters snapped their attention to the witch.

"Yes, Bella sent us to help you. She said you weren't acting like yourself." Andromeda explained.

"She's in the hospital wi—OW!" Andromeda elbowed Narcissa hard before she could finish, but it was too late. Rose hung her head and rubbed her face tiredly.

"Why is that idiot so concerned about me?" she sighed and pulled herself to her feet, Andromeda supporting her under her elbow. Based upon the angle of the shadows, she could tell she had been out here for a bit. She wondered why none of her friends had bothered to come and find her.

"Come on, I want to go see her. And apologize." Rose said sullenly. Andromeda's eyes widened in shock.

"So it was you?" she said in near disbelief. The Gryffindor had to give her a long slow look, as if Andromeda wasn't there on Halloween.

"Yeah it was, now come on."