Sorry for the late post guys, but this chapter is FRESH. I need to spend the next couple days writing to build this up.
To answer a question for reviewer Alhena, I actually haven't read and Bellatrix/OC fics, but some good Bella fics in general are Those Gilded Chains We Wear by KuraiBites and Time Heals All Wounds by brightsilverkitty. I can't remember the names of the other ones, but I'll get back to you if you need more reading material!
Huge shoutout to regular reviewer MarvelDweeb, I love getting feedback :) Glad you like it so far!
Disclaimer: I don't own HP or the characters or events or places, JK Rowling does. However I like to think that we, the fans, have claimed HP like a dog during an ugly divorce. She may have created it, but the dog and the fans deserve way better.
Chapter 28
A week passed since Rose had gone home, and she was sure at this point that she would never be able to drink enough water to make up for all the crying she had been doing. Her face was almost constantly puffy, and she didn't want to leave her room.
Fortunately, Katie was stubborn and pushy, and had forced her way into Rose's room.
"Alright, come on. We're going to get you out of this funk." Katie flicked her wand and the bed sheets were ripped away from her friend.
"Hey!" Rose shouted in alarm before Katie was already in her dresser, looking at her clothes and tossing certain items on the floor.
"Jesus Rose, when was the last time you got yourself something nice? Looking at all this is stressing me out, I mean look!" she turned around and held up a ratty old shirt, the design that used to be on it faded beyond recognition. Rose lurched from her bed and snatched her clothes away from Katie.
"Come on, this isn't funny." she grumbled.
"Rose, we're worried about you. Come on, Brian said he had something cool to show us, I bet you're gonna love it." A gap toothed grin and a devious sparkle in her eye told Rose that she was probably not going to love whatever they had in store. Begrudgingly, she got dressed and pulled on a pair of tennis shoes.
"Aren't you guys employed or something? How are you always able to annoy me?" Rose grumped as Katie pushed her in the kitchen to get something to eat.
"The perks of mooching off of the rich." Katie admitted as she also took a cereal bar form the cupboard. Rose laughed at her honesty as she ate a banana.
"Now come on, he's out front let's go." she stumbled as Katie was already leading her out the front door. Rose could already see a shape at the end of the drive, by the gate. Sunlight glimmered off of certain spots, and the brightness hurt her eyes.
"Is that...is that a car?" Rose asked in awe as Katie brought them closer. Brian was leaning up against the side of the vehicle. It had a black roof and a light green body. Rose looked at it curiously as they approached.
"Yeah. It's the Newport my dad got for me. Let's take it for a spin." Brian grinned "Glad to see that you're already in costume for the occasion." he nodded at her clothes. Rose was confused for a moment before she noticed that Brian was wearing jeans and a ringer shirt, not his usual robes.
"Surprise!" Katie cheered as she opened the passenger door and pushed the seat forward "We're going to hang around the No-Maj scene today!" She gestured for Rose to climb into the back seat before moving her seat back and scrambling in, closing the door and rolling the window down. Rose had only ridden in a car once, and that was when she was about eight or nine. Her father had borrowed a truck so he could transport gardening supplies, and she went along for the ride. It felt thrilling then, but now she felt nervous. Brian got into the driver seat and looked over his shoulder at Rose.
"Are you ready?" his smile faltered a little when he saw how Rose was desperately fumbling with her seat belt.
"Yeah, I'm fine." she breathed as the belt finally clicked into place "Let's get this going." she waved a hand as she looked ahead of them down the empty stretch of road. Katie patted the dashboard of the car excitedly.
"Gas gas gas! Show her how this bad baby moves!" she cheered as Brian turned the key in the ignition and the car rumbled and purred. Rose couldn't help a nervous flinch before Brian hammered on the gas, tired squealing and sending up smoke before they rocketed away from the mansion gates. She cried out in alarm and shrank down in her seat as the engine roared and the countryside blurred past them. Hair stung her eyes as the wind whipped it into her face.
"Here! Take this!" Katie yelled over the noise and handed her an elastic band to tie up her hair with. Rose gratefully accepted the rubber band. Eventually, Katie opened her glove box and pulled out a few cassette tapes, reading the labels before she picked one and put it in the player.
"Some of these are a little dated but they're still a bop." she assured Rose, and the brunette smiled before it was wiped off her face in an instant. She would have recognized the opening guitar riff to that particular song anywhere. Hearing it made her stomach ache with anxiety and shame. Though it was over in about four minutes, a sense of dread stubbornly remained in the pit of her stomach.
It was around noon that Katie reached around to tap Rose on the knee.
"Hey, we're stopping for gas, come on get some snacks with me." Katie helped her out of the backseat and went into the little store while Brian casually fueled up while talking to the gas station attendant. While Katie loaded her arms up with chips and dried meat and candy, Rose was transfixed by the ice cream bars in one of the coolers up against the wall. Her friend spotted her and grinned, reaching into the cooler to grab some.
"We're going to have to eat these pretty quick. Brian will kill us if we get his car all dirty." they walked up to the counter, where the old man smiled at them as he totaled up their purchases. Rose pointed to the cigarettes on the back wall.
"Ooh, a pack of those please." she reached into her pocket to get some money, but Katie stayed her arm.
"Nah, I'm footing the bill on this one, sparky." She gave the man his money.
"So, where are you ladies headed off to?" he asked in a friendly manner, and Katie was about to answer before Rose squinted and slowly shifted her arm, where she had her wand hidden up the sleeve of her flannel.
"Why do you want to know?" she asked bluntly, suspicion evident in her tone. Katie looked at her like she had lost her mind before quickly recovering. She gently nudged Rose away from the counter as she gathered up the plastic bags.
"Oh we're headed out to California. I've heard the beaches are great!" she gushed. The man gave Rose an odd look before making more small talk. Brian waved at them as he started up the Newport, and the two witches got back in the car.
"Bum a cig?" Brian reached back as Rose opened her pack and lit one. Katie narrowed her eyes at her friend as she turned around and peered at her.
"What?" Rose shrugged.
"I saw what you did back there, were you really going to fight a No-Maj?"
"Well why was he asking questions, don't you think that's a little incriminating?" Rose queried, raising an eyebrow as she took a drag.
"What? Incriminating how? He's just some old dude?" Katie was even more confused now.
"Listen, all I've learned is that you can't take chances with this kind of stuff, and you can't let your guard down." Rose sighed "Now pass me my ice cream sandwich dude." feeling the cold paper wrapper in her hands made the brunette smile a little bit.
"And why do you have your wand up your sleeve? We're in the middle of nowhere, what could possibly happen?" Katie asked in exasperation.
"You never know. Also, I remember sixth grade geography enough to know that Texas and California aren't exactly very close to each other. Katie, I didn't think you guys were kidnapping me for a road trip." Rose sounded accusatory, but the blonde just shrugged.
"It was a minor detail. Now you can get excited for the final destination. Plus, we're going to check out some cool stuff along the way. Like the Grand Canyon, the site of the UFO crash in Roswell." she ate her own ice cream carefully around an enormous road map that she had procured from the glove box. Rose stretched out across the backseat and watched the dry grassland blur past. It was a little stuffy in the backseat, and the heat was making her sleepy.
"Hey, make sure you head northwest or we'll have to cross through Mexico, and I'm still not allowed over the border." Katie advised Brian, and he grunted in affirmation. Rose drifted in and out of sleep after that.
While she had been reluctant to enjoy herself, Rose was starting to appreciate how simple the trip was. She relaxed while Katie told her stories about things she had missed, and Brian added commentary. They stopped at motels when Brian was too sleepy to keep driving. Rose would stand outside and smoke with Katie, marveling at how clear the sky was. Looking up at it, she searched until she could recognize Orion.
"Hmm. Look at that." she mused as she puffed a ring of smoke.
"Whazzat?" Katie followed her gaze and looked up drowsily from beneath her bangs.
"Bellatrix. She was named after the star. See that kinda dim one on his shoulder, the one that's pulling the string of the bow?" the taller witch gestured, and Katie widened her eyes a little.
"Sorry. That's stupid." Rose muttered.
"You...you really love Bellatrix, huh?" Katie asked quietly.
"I'm trying not to." she admitted after a beat. Katie straightened up abruptly and took Rose by the collar of her flannel, yanking her down to eye level.
"Why? Rose, why? How could you give up on something as precious as love?"
"What?" she spit out her cigarette in confusion as Katie's dark brown eyes bore into her own with ferocity.
"Come on Rose, I know you're gay, you can't fool me by beating around the bush. I'm asking why you would just let your love go that easily. I can tell just by how you talk about her, this wasn't some crush." Katie jabbed her finger in Rose's sternum.
"Because of me, she's in deep shit, that's why. She probably wants nothing to do with me." Rose explained, but this made Katie grab her by the ear.
"You listen to me, sparky, and you listen good; unless she's explicitly stated that she wants nothing to do with you, you now have a responsibility towards her. If you got her into a mess, you've gotta get her out. If not as a loving girlfriend, then as a loving friend." Katie hissed, but there was no malice in her voice. Her words struck a chord in Rose, and a strange emotion wormed its way into her heart.
"But...but I can't go back, no way!" she insisted, suddenly panicked.
"No way missy, now that I know you have some unfinished business, it's my job as your friend to help you get better so you can fix your life. Now, light another butt and let's talk this shit out." She forced Rose to sit in the plastic chairs that were outside their motel room.
"I could just obliviate you right now and I wouldn't have to deal with this." Rose whispered, but Katie gave her a disapproving glare.
"What, not having to deal with your feelings? Tough luck, you're gonna spill the motherfucking beans so I know what I'm working with here."
They were up late into the night talking, and eventually Katie raised her hand for Rose to stop.
"It's clear to me now." she said slowly. Rose leaned forward, feeling like maybe Katie had some answers for her on this. She didn't believe in psychics or fortune-telling necessarily, but in a magical world, anything was possible.
"You're going to be her...knight in shining armor. Well, not really, she sounds scary and bad-ass as hell. But you're definitely going to have to go back there and save her ass. Because what do you think will happen when this wack job of a wizard fails to conquer the world or whatever?" Katie elaborated. Rose shook her head.
"He's...strong, and manipulative. I'm afraid he won't lose."
"Oh, he'll lose. I can feel it. But I digress, what do you think will happen to her if she stays zombified, or imperiused or whatever the fuck is going on? She'll be wrongfully imprisoned, maybe even put to death."
"She would never let them catch her." Rose insisted, and she couldn't help tensing up as she thought of the possibility of this happening.
"Bellatrix might not want them to, but who's to say it wouldn't happen. However, if you were there, you could help her. The two of you against the world, a wanted criminal and a mysterious stranger, it's the love story of a lifetime!" Katie gushed.
"Don't make my life sound so theatrical. But I guess I can see where you're coming from."
"And look at that, just one day into our road trip and you're already starting to get a little better. And you haven't even cried today." the spunky blonde offered her best friend a sincere smile. Feeling exhausted, Rose just sighed and gave Katie a lopsided smirk.
"You're just a regular shrink, aren't you?"
"No, you're just clueless as all hell. Now come on, I don't want to be totally fried for tomorrow morning. I wanna see if we can hit up a diner and get some sweet delicious pancakes." Katie hummed in glee as she thought of breakfast. Rose yawned and nodded in agreement.
The No-Maj diner was an intriguing experience for Rose. When she was a child, her mother had insisted on cooking home cooked meals, and that fast food like burgers and fries were an evil to be avoided. Here, even relatively early in the morning, the small establishment was packed full of truckers, old farmer folks, and young adults like themselves, all traveling on the open road. Rose was blocking out the quiet murmuring of the people and instead opted to stare at the barrel cactus that was by the front door, propping it open so people could come and go as they pleased.
"Do you guys ever feel like a cactus sometimes?" Rose asked absently.
"If I forget to shave, yeah." Katie answered without missing a beat, and Brian spluttered on his coffee a little, but Rose could tell it was because he was going to laugh.
"No, I mean like out of place? Like something isn't sitting quite right? I feel like I'm forgetting something important right now." She checked to make sure she hadn't lost her silver ring, and was relieved to see that Peppers hadn't accidentally fallen off her hand at the motel.
"Oh, you should get a remembrall then. I hear they're popular in the UK right now. But they don't actually tell you what you've forgotten…" Brian advised, but then trailed off as he cut into a piece of sausage. Rose frowned in contemplation, but then eventually brushed it off. Glancing at the cactus again, and then out across the vast open desert, Rose waited until they had paid for their food. As they were making their way out the door, she suddenly bent down and lifted the potted cactus from the ground.
"Hey! Put that down!" a waitress shouted in alarm, but Rose was already sprinting headlong towards Brian's car.
"No time to explain! Come on let's go!" she dove into the backseat and urged Brian to hurry up and drive. Once they were a safe distance from the restaurant, the dark haired wizard looked in his rear view mirror at the lanky witch, who was awkwardly cradling the cactus.
"Why did you steal their plant?" he sounded incredulous, but Katie was cracking up with laughter. Rose shrugged as she stared at the sharp spines and waxy green skin of the plant.
"He was upset, and he wants to go back to the desert. Can we pull over soon so I can put him back?" Rose answered simply.
"Somehow, you've gotten weirder since we last saw you." Katie said thoughtfully.
"Please just let me replant this cactus without ridicule." Rose grumbled.
Jesse began his morning with a healthy stretch and a groan, soaking up the rays from the sun as they filled his room. The first order of business was to get himself a pot of coffee. Wearing a silk kimono that he had...borrowed from a friend, Jesse hummed a happy tune while shuffling from his room and down to the expansive kitchen. He stopped in surprise when he saw his sister in the kitchen with the elves, making an enormous breakfast.
While Barbara was manning the stove, scrambling eggs and placing battered slices of french toast into a pan, house elves were cutting fruit, brewing coffee, and setting an assortment of pastries on the kitchen island. Stopping in the doorway, Jesse watched in fascination as his sister cooked up a storm.
"Look at you go! Hey, if I asked for a baked Alaska, could you make it?" he chuckled, and Barbara just turned and gave him a skeptical look.
"Nice dress. You want coffee?" she asked, and gestured with her spatula to a large mug that had already been poured for him. He accepted the coffee and plopped down on a bar stool, rubbing aimlessly on the stubble on his face.
"Why thank you. It's incredibly comfortable, very freeing around the bits." he snorted when Barbara turned back around to grimace at him "So what's the plan, Barb?"
"Well, seeing as how Rose has been kidnapped by the senator's son and his hippie girlfriend to go on a granola munching journey of self-discovery, I figured I would also confront some of my demons."
"Ah," Jesse nodded sagely "So when should I invite mom and dad over?"
"Oh, I don't know, whenever is most convenient for you I guess." she shrugged as she shoveled more french toast onto the growing stack next to her.
"We're not going to eat all of that by ourselves." Jessie stated flatly.
"Of course not. I made some for Humphrey and Jenny and Max…" she started naming all the elves off the top of her head, and Jesse listened in awe. The elves squeaked in surprise when they heard their names, but other than that they went about their duties, setting the table for two people.
"What's wrong with having a big hearty breakfast before a long day of work?" the older witch reasoned.
"Nothing wrong at all." Jesse beamed, and he ate breakfast with his big sister and a small group of house elves, who were still shell-shocked from having Barbara stroll into the kitchen that morning.
Out in the hot Texas sun, Jesse was busy checking the enclosures on his animal pens. Earlier, one of the jackalopes had tried to fight a wild bird that was too close to the pen, and managed to tear up some of the wire.
"Remember how these guys would get into mom's hobby garden and eat all of her flowers?" Barbara leaned over the low fence to scratch one of the horned rabbits between the ears.
"Yeah, at first it was funny, but these guys are quick and crafty, and those antlers can pack a wallop if you aren't careful." Jesse grunted as he untangled a large section of wire and set to repairing it. His sprawling ranch was home to a wide array of magical creatures, most of which were rescues from shitty foster homes or dangerous non-magical environments. In his spare time, Jesse bred and trained familiars for school children and adult witches and wizards alike.
"So, I heard you went on a little business trip awhile ago, how did that pan out for you?" Barb asked as she helped dump hay into the enclosure where a lone, swaybacked pegasus roosted. It snorted in appreciation as it munched slowly.
"Well, some of those pompous jerks came to visit, but most of them wanted creatures that I would never advise to keep as pets. I offered them snakes, kneazles, even a rare fruit bat, but they were under the impression that I had unicorns or something insane like that. Honestly, I got more of a headache than anything. Some of them even offered to pay me for parts, can you imagine?" Jesse scoffed in disgust. He patted the pegasus on the nose before they moved on.
"After that, I was afraid to give them a tour of the place. One guy, pale as all hell with long white hair, offered me a lot of cash for Mr. Button's heartstrings. I guess he must have been a potioneer, but he wasn't too thrilled when I asked him how he would feel if I took his heartstrings instead." Jesse growled, and Barbara felt a pang of guilt for her brother. Mr. Buttons was the closest thing the wizard had to a familiar, but he was still a wild animal.
"Speaking of, there's my handsome boy." the greying wizard instantly perked up when they neared a cluster of deciduous trees and craggy rocks. The small habitat was home to a snallygaster, a large creature with the head and wings of a bird, but the body of a lizard. Mr. Buttons was fairly old, with patches of feathers missing on his face, but he still moved quickly when he saw Jesse approaching. With a hiss of delight, the van-sized creature scrambled down the rocks where it lay and squawked as it neared the barrier of its enclosure.
"Good morning, sweet baby!" Jesse crooned as he pulled a wad of raw cow's meat from a bag at his side and tossed it to Mr. Buttons. Barbara watched the interaction with a bittersweet pang. Rose was a lot like her uncle in a way with Peppers. The python basilisk hybrid was as mild mannered as the snallygaster, and he was fiercely loyal. There was even a time when the family would joke that Rose was a parselmouth, she talked to her snake so often.
"You're thinking about stuff, I know that frown. What's eating at you, sis?" Jesse asked as he scratched the snallygaster's chin.
"I'm wondering if maybe I made a mistake with how I raised Rose. Was...did I not let John expose her to the No-Maj side of her heritage enough? I feel like I prevented him from having a bigger impact on her."
"All things considered, you did a pretty good job. She's an only child, but she didn't grow up spoiled or super weird." Jesse pointed out, but then he paused "Well, she's a little odd, but she has friends who care a lot about her and her safety. This one girl won't stop sending letters, there's a pile of them just sitting in the box right now." Jesse chuckled.
"But she's not happy. I can tell, and I can't help feeling like I screwed up. I had one job and-"
Jesse stopped what he was doing and walked over to his sister. He placed both hands on her shoulders and gave her a little shake.
"You did everything you were supposed to. Rose has grown up to be powerful and independent. She's still alive, and now she's back home. Everything will sort itself out, Barb. You don't have to worry or hover." he was serious now, and it made Barbara wonder when her little brother had matured even more. He had always been a little goofy, but this was an entirely different side of him. She decided that taking his advice to heart. Taking a deep breath and nodding her head, Barbara briefly made her peace. She looked at Mr. Buttons and smiled.
"He's a pretty handsome guy, you never actually told me how you came across him." she admired the shining grey feathers and carob colored scales on his side. There was slight scarring, evidence of battles that had been won by the large creature. Jesse patted the snallygaster lovingly on his forehead, and he chortled happily.
"Well, I was actually called back to the east coast, Maryland, because apparently No-Majs were seeing a 'cryptid'. It turns out that this guy is very curious, and also extremely bulletproof, as one guy found out. I assume he was quickly eaten after that, because we never did find a body" Jesse said nonchalantly. Barbara was happy to listen to her brother gush about all of his pets.
Rose finished clearing away the sandy soil with magic before gently transplanting the cactus. She smiled fondly when she heard its thanks and elation at being put back. Brian and Katie watched her work, sweating a little in the hot afternoon sun.
"So, like how do you not go totally crazy hearing plants all the time? It must be a nightmare in the woods." Katie asked as she chewed a piece of gum. Rose brushed of her hands on her jeans and stretched her back carefully.
"I think I was able to distinguish the plants from the screams, so I could block them out. But when I got bored at Ted's apartment, sometimes I would sit and listen to the flowers in the window boxes."
"What would they say? Anything useful?" Brian inquired politely. Rose tried to remember but ultimately shook her head.
"Not really. They mostly complained about their soil. And the sun. And the shade. You know, plant things. But they were happy enough because they had grown up in those boxes. This cactus just wanted to be in his own element." she explained. There was a moment of silence, the wind whistling across the flat, cracked earth like a haunting song before Katie clapped her hands.
"Okay, everybody back in the car! We still haven't reached our destination, and the journey has only just started."
And that was part of the beauty of the road trip. Because there was almost nothing to get distracted by, Rose could just let her mind go as her friends steered the conversation.
"So Rose, what do you want to do with your life?" Katie asked as she leaned back in her seat and put her legs up on the dashboard. There was light cloud cover that made the heat in the car bearable, and the three of them were in good spirits.
"What do you mean, like for a job? I haven't really thought of it much, what with the war and stuff. I guess I kind of assumed I would just keep running and fighting." she answered honestly. Katie turned around in her seat and just gave Rose a very long, sad look.
"There's more than that though! Jesus, Brian we lost her to the Brits. We have to recondition you." she said a serious tone, though the quick flash of a smile told Rose that things were going to be okay. She sat back in her seat with a comfortable slouch and started practicing wandless magic, folding a small piece of paper into different shapes as Katie launched into a talk about self-fulfillment and enlightenment.