It was about an hour later when a rather morose Hermione Granger sat at the kitchen table eating breakfast, or more accurately pushing porridge around with a spoon. Iggy was already bustling around but the elf wasn't much of a conversationalist and he wasn't going to be able to give her the advice she needed. The Gryffindor just didn't know how to reconcile her moral objection towards slavery and her fierce independence with the fact that she was still aroused from being ordered to perform a sex act upon Bellatrix. What made matters worse, was the fact that she knew she had done it willingly and as an active participant. Hermione could have fought, could have made Bellatrix force her to comply but she hadn't and didn't really understand why. She pushed down her conflicted thoughts and tried to concentrate on something else, anything else but it was hard to focus on anything aside from the throbbing between her thighs.
"Our lists," said Iggy, dropping a piece of parchment in front of her.
"Thank you." Hermione looked down at the paper; noting again that Bellatrix's penmanship was incredibly distinctive, a bold scrawl of classically formed letters, angled slightly to the right and despite always looking rushed, it was easy to read, even at a glance. "Where shall we start?"
"Mistress Bellatrix wants the sit room clean. It's many years since used."
When the elf walked away, Hermione took a final spoonful of porridge, "Guess we'll start in what is presumably the sitting room then." She followed Iggy, who always seemed torn on how to treat her and now was a prime example of that, he waited at the doorway fidgeting and not knowing if he should walk behind her or in front. Though for a second she thought about the irony of being a person who had once campaigned for the rights of house elves, now being relegated to the same status.
It seemed like Iggy had not been joking; the sitting room had clearly not been used since probably before Bellatrix had gone to Azkaban. Every surface was liberally coated with dust, thick grey spiderwebs hung from the ceiling, furniture was faded and looked like mice had raised several generations in the upholstery. The elf gave a very human sigh.
A click of his fingers banished all of the ruined furniture. "I goes to get more." Another click and a large pile of cleaning items. Then the elf vanished.
Hermione gave her own sigh; thinking that the whole thing was redundant, that a magic user could have cleaned the whole room in minutes but without her wand, this was going to be a big job. She picked up a long duster and began to tackle the worst of the cobwebs.
The Ministry
Bellatrix absolutely hated paperwork, and was almost missing the old days when she could take her frustrations out on a victim. Having an outlet from the realities of life is one of the reasons why she began to serve Voldemort in the first place, having the freedom to do whatever she wanted had been a heady experience.
The soul healer at Mungo's however, believed that her inability to concentrate on anything that did not interest her and her lack of impulse control were actually symptoms of some type of imbalance. The potion they had tried her on seemed to be working, as it had been at least two weeks since she had hexed anyone for no reason. It made no difference to her hatred of paperwork though, Bellatrix suspected that no amount of potions would ever change that.
She tossed a folder aside with a huff and put booted feet up on the desk, knowing that it would make her sister crazy if she had been there. She reached out to her drawer to grab a catalogue that had arrived by owl that morning and sat back with a smirk, resolving to do something fun before getting back to work.
Then Bellatrix chuckled, having had a thought that amused her. She would stick with her plan to order some items to use when she played with her slave but afterwards she'd have the girl choose some. Seeing what her mistress had bought would give her some idea of what was to come and having to select her own, well that would be a delicious kind of torture.
The girl was held captive by her own reluctance, so scared of her own desires and Bellatrix longed for the moment she would finally see her uninhibited, wanton. Wanted to see devotion and lust in those pretty brown eyes, without the fear and hesitation that often clouded them.
"Bellatrix." One of her aurors knocked on the door. "Mulciber wanted to tell you that there's rumours of some muggleborns hiding in Bishop's Stortford."
"Can't have that. Get a team together, we'll meet in the atrium in thirty minutes."
"More slaves for market."
Bellatrix grunted, "I'm more concerned about potential threats to our lord, whoever is helping them is far from an ally."
"But more slaves are good too. Talking about slaves, are we ever going to see yours?"
"When she's trained."
The wizard straightened up, "I don't get it. The collar does most of the work. She has to obey."
Bellatrix chuckled, "I'm a Black. I won't have just any slave, I will have the best slave."
Black Manor
Hermione sat on another expansive window box leaning forward to finish shining the glass. With the soft furnishings replaced and the surfaces freshly polished, the room looked completely different. It was appointed in what seemed to be Bellatrix's signature black, white and grey colour scheme but Iggy's flair for decorating made it seem less stark than it should have been.
The elf finished dressing the room with a flourish and then went to make a start on the rest of the chores. Hermione's eyes drifted across the chamber admiringly before catching on a small box atop the mantlepiece that she must have missed before. She dropped the cloth and walked across the dark plush carpet, reaching for the box that should have contained floo powder.
She lifted the lid of the silver box, noting that it was empty except for a small piece of parchment. Hermione unfolded it. 'What did I say about your Gryffindor stupidity getting you in trouble, Pet? You are too intelligent to be this predictable.' Chagrined, Hermione put the box back where she had found it; knowing that Bellatrix was right, that it had been pointless to check the box for floo powder because using it without understanding the wards around the house would have been sheer idiocy.
Hermione sat gingerly on the edge of a very large corner sofa, placing one palm on the smooth surface. It hadn't escaped her notice that the new furniture was all wipe clean leather, perhaps it was just a stylistic choice on the part of the older witch but she doubted that was the case. She suspected that Bellatrix had ordered this room clean, just for… their use. Though at least it wasn't a torture chamber in the basement, which a part of her had been dreading as an inevitable outcome.
At that moment Iggy popped back into the room, interrupting her thoughts and looked at her a little disapprovingly, "Owl post for you." The elf handed her a small parcel wrapped in brown paper with the word Pet on the front of it and then vanished. Hermione traced the letters with a fingertip; thinking that as a nickname it could probably be worse, but that she would much rather hear Bellatrix call her by name. Carefully she tore open the package, giving a loud, annoyed groan when she saw the catalogue that her mistress had sent her.
Amortentia was a magical sex toy company who produced a comprehensive list of products and their new catalogue was resting on her lap. Hermione groaned again, remembering the time a few years ago when Lavender had brought a copy into school and a group of them had sat in the Gryffindor Common Room late at night, drinking butterbeer and giggling. The cover was plain white apart from the logo and had a note from Bellatrix written on it. Pick five things by the time I get home.
Not for the first time, Hermione wondered why the older woman was making her take part in the decision making process. The Gryffindor was torn, not really sure if it was a good thing or not, but even the illusion of choice felt empowering; it was stressful though. She flipped through rapidly and found that Bellatrix had already started a rather long list on the order form at the back. Hermione turned over the page to find another list on the back, "Wow." It looked like her mistress was planning on spending more than a thousand galleons on enough sex toys to open a shop.
Hermione was about to turn back to the start of the book and then realised that she should probably look at what Bellatrix had picked, not only to avoid duplicates but also because it might give her a clue about what the older witch wanted from her, or planned to do to her. She took a deep breath and started to read; vibrators, dildos, various sizes of strap on, butt plugs, a few different kinds of whips, restraints, nipple clamps, rope, paddles, ticklers, a cane and the list went on and on. Chocolate eyes were wide and she exhaled slowly, blinking several times and tried to collect her thoughts. Hermione wasn't really surprised by most of the items, except the anal toys, those had caught her unaware and she wasn't really sure how she felt about that particular topic.
The slam of the front door alerted them to Bellatrix's arrival home from work. Today the older woman didn't call out but Hermione went in search of her nevertheless. Peeking around the corner she spotted a stack of paperwork being tossed on the hallway table by a weary looking witch.
"Hi." Hermione greeted softly with an awkward half wave, stepping into the hall proper. Bellatrix opened her mouth to respond but she had turned to face the younger woman and her words were cut off, "Are you alright?" The Gryffindor took several steps forward having seen dried blood caking one side of her face.
"I'm fine Pet. Just a scratch."
Hermione reached up to touch the already bruising skin. She saw the pureblood tense but Bellatrix made no move to stop her. "Do you have a healing kit?"
Bellatrix sighed, but sounded resigned, "In my bathroom but you don't need to make a fuss Pet, it's nothing."
"Come on, let's get you cleaned up." Hermione walked in front of the older woman, leading her up the stairs. Bellatrix resisted the urge to chuckle, the young witch was cute when she was being bossy and as much as she didn't like being fussed over, it wasn't entirely unwelcome. Nor was the view, as she followed the naked witch up the stairs.
It turned out that Bellatrix's bathroom was through one of the doors that tended to be locked during the day. Hermione wasn't too surprised, having realised some time ago that the Slytherin was making sure that all pleasant activities came from her in the form of rewards. That was presumably why the library remained locked as well.
Bellatrix conjured a chair next to the massive bathtub and sat down. "Kit's in the cupboard under the sink. Brown bag." Hermione bent over and retrieved the item, not quite hearing the quiet intake of breath from the older woman at the sight. She sat on the edge of the bath and touched the silver clasp; a bit startled when the bag unrolled into a massive storage case, containing a huge variety of potions, arranged in such a logical manner that Hermione had no problem finding what she needed.
"Where did this come from? I'm guessing that you aren't secretly a boy scout and healing kits like this aren't commercially available." The young witch picked up the dittany and started to drop it slowly into the surprisingly deep head wound.
"Narcissa made the kit up." Bellatrix paused, "...She fusses too."
Once the cut closed, Hermione began to dab at the dried blood with a wet cloth, keeping a hand on Bellatrix's chin to hold her face steady. "I'm not fussing."
"Hmmmmm." The older witch sounded sceptical. And once Hermione started applying bruise paste to the whole area, she laughed. "You're proving my point."
The young woman shook her own head, "I'm just making sure you're alright. Anyway you healed me yesterday."
Bellatrix wrinkled her nose once again in the gesture that made her look years younger and a lot more approachable. "You were in so much pain that you could barely function. It's a different thing."
"Even so." Finishing with the head wound Hermione sat back upright, fidgeting with her hands. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"
The older witch lifted an eyebrow and gave a very naughty smirk. "You're welcome to check." A wave of her wand repacked the medical supplies and put them back in the cupboard.
Hermione blushed violently and cleared her throat, "I uh… I… What happened?"
"Well there was this huge pile of paperwork dumped on my desk, it was very frustrating and then…" The raven haired woman leaned past Hermione to turn on the bath taps, letting her arm graze against the girl's naked ribs on the way and grinning when she felt her shiver.
"You aren't going to convince me that you came ho… back with a gash on your temple; covered in dirt and soot, from a simple office mishap."
Bellatrix simply turned her head, giving a soft chuckle into Hermione's ear as she did. "In fairness Pet, you've never seen me attempt paperwork." She'd noticed the girl's slip of the tongue, choosing not to mention it for now. "But of course you are right. So after the giant paperwork debacle of nineteen ninety eight…"
Hermione snorted, she couldn't help it. The dark witch was funny when she put her mind to it.
"Do you mind? Now where was I? Oh yes, we had a raid in Essex, and one of my supposedly trained aurors missed what he was aiming for and hit me with a rebounded diffindo."
Hermione closed her eyes, imagining the panic on the young man's face, fighting the urge to giggle. "Perhaps you should have stuck with the office work?"
"Maybe he'll be doing all the paperwork for the next decade. I don't care how many galleons his father donated to the cause." The older woman's counter didn't hold the venom that Hermione might have expected; she wondered to herself, very deep inside, if perhaps Bellatrix Black was starting to mellow.
The dark witch stood and poured a generous amount of purple liquid from a bottle into the running water, filling the room with a spicy scent that Hermione couldn't quite place. Then took a step backwards, not before briefly running her fingers along Hermione's jaw, engaging chocolate eyes in an intense gaze.
Bellatrix started to unfasten her boots by touch alone, not taking her eyes off of the younger woman's face. Ever so slowly she started to remove her sooty clothing; one piece at a time, dropping them carelessly aside, watching the girl's gaze darken as it flitted from her own, to the revelation of flesh and back again. Hermione's tongue darted out to moisten suddenly dry lips and she was glad that she was sitting down because her knees were weak.
Bellatrix slid a hand behind Hermione's neck; grabbed a handful of curls and tugged teasingly. "Are you still bound and determined to deny that you want me?"
The girl bit her lip, then helplessly gave a head gesture that failed to be either a nod or a shake. The older woman chuckled, brushing her cheek against Hermione's. Then she stepped around her and lowered herself into the tub. "Come on Pet," Bellatrix's amused voice was warm and indulgent, "In you get."
The young witch turned, still sitting on the edge of the bath and looked at the hand that was being offered to her for a long moment. Hermione stood and put her foot into the hot water, letting herself be guided until she ended up sitting between Bellatrix's open thighs with full breasts pressed against her back.
The Gryffindor bit back a moan, literally, gripping her bottom lip with her teeth. She wasn't sure which sensation was better, being immersed in a hot bubble bath after more than a year without one or being enveloped by Bellatrix Black.
Fingers tripped slowly down her sides, all the way to Hermione's hips and back up again. "Relax Pet. It's a bath, not a torture chamber." Bellatrix's hands slipped around the girl's front, drawing slow decadent patterns on soft skin, feeling muscles begin to loosen under her touch.
"I know, it's just…"
"Just..?"
A sigh, "You make me nervous."
Bellatrix smirked against the skin of the girl's shoulder, her slave had said nervous; hadn't used terrified, or scared, or frightened. And the Gryffindor wasn't being brave, she seemed genuinely unafraid of her. "That's not really surprising is it..?"
Hermione leant back fully, letting her head rest partly on the older woman's shoulder and partly on the tiles at the end of the bath. She willed herself to relax as Bellatrix's hands continued their leisurely exploration of her body, for now avoiding the more contentious areas. The words continued in a husky growl close to her ear, "After all you are the sweet and innocent young virgin, wherein I am clearly the big bad wolf of this fairytale."
Despite herself Hermione did laugh, "Something tells me that your taste doesn't normally run to sweet and innocent."
"No it doesn't." The young witch moaned heavily when teeth found a sensitive spot between her neck and shoulder, biting none too gently. One of Hermione's hands slipped unbidden from the porcelain side of the bath and accidentally ended up on Bellatrix's thigh. She was about to move it when she felt a nose gently nuzzling behind her ear, then a soft kiss on the back of her neck.
Both of Bellatrix's hands lifted, moving to cup full breasts, gently squeezing and discovering the things that made Hermione gasp. The girl's nipples hardened almost painfully, throbbing with need but the older woman was purposely avoiding them in a way that had them both breathing heavily.
Hermione wanted to say please, to plead, but she didn't, and while she could quite accurately predict that she would end up begging for the older witch's touch at some point - it wasn't going to be now, she wouldn't give Bellatrix the satisfaction of it yet. Instead she shifted the hand she had on a pale leg, beginning her own exploration; remembering how aroused she had gotten from being between those thighs that morning, the feel of wet inner walls tightly clenching around her fingers.
The Gryffindor's hips jerked when Bellatrix's circling fingers flicked across her nipples and she cried out softly in response. Hermione gave another whimper, pushing her breasts harder into the dark witch's hands and felt a soft chuckle against the nape of her neck. The girl's competitive, argumentative side came to the fore and she was determined that this wouldn't be a one- sided thing, that she should affect the older woman as much as she was being affected.
Bellatrix gasped loudly when Hermione's hand slid between their bodies, and between her legs - just barely touching her sex. The pureblood was momentarily taken aback by the sheer audacity of the girl's action, the unexpected boldness but she had never been a person to look a gift horse in the mouth. One of her hands slid down Hermione's stomach, fingers began to toy with the curls on her mound. She lapped at the girl's earlobe, sucking the flesh into her mouth, before nibbling and then whispered, "Does my Pet want to play?"
If Hermione's system hadn't been flooded with arousal, she would have been infuriated by the possessive pronoun, would have resented it bitterly, but in her mental haze of adrenaline and endorphins, the husky note of possession made her blood run even hotter. She rotated her wrist behind her, bringing fingers into intimate contact with Bellatrix's folds and beginning to circle the hooded bump of the older woman's clit.
Bellatrix copied the action, nudging supple thighs apart with her hand before pushing her fingers between slippery folds. The girl's fingers had quite effectively shown her what she liked the previous evening and it didn't take much for the more experienced witch to bring her to a panting, writhing mess. Hermione's pelvis was thrusting upwards, her back arching as she wanted more contact.
Neither woman cared that bathwater was slopping all over the floor, Bellatrix was lifting her hips rhythmically, loving the feel of the girl's backside against her mound and the way that the less experienced witch's fingers stuttered when Hermione lost concentration in response to her touch. The girl was so needy and so readily corruptible that it took her breath away.
Bellatrix took a hard nipple between finger and thumb; tugging at the turgid flesh, rolling and pinching it. She gave a breathless smirk at the telltale way that the girl's breathing hitched when her touch became a little rough. It tied in with the fantasies she had seen in the girl's mind all those months ago and she was dying to know how responsive Hermione would get once she let go of her inhibitions. "You like that?"
The girl gave an incoherent whine of pleasure but didn't answer directly and when Bellatrix pinched harder she let out a loud groan, "Fuck!" Hermione could feel muscles tensing under her fingers and moved faster against Bellatrix, she knew that they were both close to a climax and right now she wanted it so badly.
All of the worry, stress and uncertainty was fading away - the onslaught of hormones was overriding everything else, almost all of her concentration was focused on the throbbing between her legs and the frantic gasp in her ear. "Do you want to cum with me Pet? I'm so close."
For the first time, Hermione admitted her desire, practically growling out the word, "Yes." All the reasons that it was not a good idea were long forgotten and she wanted to give into the rising crescendo of pleasure. Her toes clenched, back arched and she pressed her fingers harder against Bellatrix's sensitive core. The older woman retaliated by pinching the hood of Hermione's clit, worrying the nub with indirect pressure before rubbing hard. Bellatrix felt the girl in her arms convulse;, it was enough to tip herself over the edge, with a final upwards thrust of hips.
When Hermione regained her senses; she was aware that the room was filled with the mingled sound of their laboured breathing, the heaving breasts pressed against her back and the fingers softly moving through her folds, keeping clear of her sensitive nub but instead were teasingly circling her entrance. The young witch tugged her own hand free and let it rest back on Bellatrix's thigh, feeling the way that her leg trembled with the aftershocks of their mutual orgasm.
Hermione's body felt like jelly and she was completely relaxed for the first time in longer than she could remember. She could feel the weight of Bellatrix's head leaning against hers and uneven breath against her skin. A few minutes passed before the older witch spoke, "I must say I wasn't expecting that within half an hour of arriving home."
The younger woman grunted, having heard the emphasis on a particular word that let her know that Bellatrix had spotted her earlier slip. She shifted her legs, trying to ease the older witch's fingers away from her oversensitive and vulnerable sex. "Still so very shy…"
Whatever Hermione might have said in reply to the soft words would never be known. A knock sounded on the bathroom door, followed by Iggy's voice. "Mistress. Iggy is sorry."
A deep sigh was heard and Bellatrix lifted her head, resignedly, "Yes, what is it?"
"Lady Malfoy is here, wanting to see Mistress."
Hermione tensed, reality crashing back in with a jolt. She'd been caught up in the older woman's sensual bubble and had allowed herself not to think about the outside world.
Bellatrix groaned, knowing that the moment was gone. "Pour her a glass of wine and put her in the library."
"Yes Mistress."
The older woman wrapped her arms around Hermione's abdomen for a moment, giving her a momentary squeeze. "Time's up then Pet, go get dried off. I'll get dressed and see what she wants."
Narcissa Malfoy was not a woman accustomed to being kept waiting and she hated it. She had positioned herself in an armchair that gave her a direct line of sight of the bottom of the stairs, legs elegantly crossed as she sipped at the rather fine wine that her sister's elf had given her. Another ten minutes passed before she spotted Bellatrix walking down the staircase, the naked form of Hermione Granger following her before disappearing rather hurriedly into the corridor.
Completely unamused, Narcissa raised an eyebrow at her sister who was only wearing a silk bathrobe, her damp hair pulled back with a leather tie. "Really Bellatrix? I come to check on you after Lucius told me you had a head injury, one that you refused to have treated no less and I find you having a bath with your slave."
"I am entirely capable of taking care of myself," snapped the elder sibling.
"Prior experience would suggest otherwise." Narcissa waved her wand and cast a diagnostic charm, eyes widening as she read the information displayed in mid air. "Who healed you?"
Bellatrix poured herself a glass of wine and yawned, bored with the subject, "Granger."
"You let her?"
"She was rather insistent."
The blonde eyed her sister curiously for a moment, then returned her gaze to the diagnostic before dismissing the charm with a wave. "She did a good job." Narcissa wasn't one to give praise lightly and it made Bellatrix raise her own eyebrows. "Where is she?"
"Around," said the brunette vaguely.
Narcissa narrowed her eyes, not liking the evasion from her sister. "Granger," she called, raising her voice but not shouting because she judged such behaviour to be neither ladylike nor necessary; she imagined that the slave would be somewhere close by.
True to her expectation, only a moment passed before the girl's head appeared around the library door. "You called, Lady Malfoy?" Bellatrix was closer to the entrance and could see Hermione's shaking hand gripping the frame with enough force to turn the knuckles white but she was pleased to note that her voice was steady.
"Come in."
Hermione inhaled deeply, biting her lip hard enough to draw blood but sensing the blonde's impatience, she stepped into the room and walked slowly, coming to stand beside Bellatrix's chair. She blushed when icy blue eyes looked at her, running briefly down her nude body and back again.
"Bella, at least give her something to wear." Chocolate eyes widened at Narcissa's words.
"It's the law dear sister," Bellatrix sounded amused at the slightly affronted tone.
"The same law that insists that you put a collar on her? Like the one sitting on that table, rather than around her neck?" Narcissa hid a smirk behind her glass as black and chocolate eyes both glanced almost guiltily to where the collar lay.
"In public," said Bella. Then she sighed, "She needs to get used to being naked around people."
"And she will, I imagine, get used to it rather quickly. But unlike you I have no interest in cradle robbing and so I have absolutely no desire to see a girl the same age as my son being paraded around naked."
Hermione wasn't sure if she should be offended by the words or not but she was certainly surprised by them. Her shock only increased when Bellatrix uttered another sigh and summoned the slate coloured dress that Hermione had briefly worn a few days earlier from a drawer. Rather incredulously, the Gryffindor took it from her mistress, fighting the urge to moan when long fingers lingered against her own and instead she put the garment on.
Narcissa Malfoy pulled a padded footstool closer to her with an elegant wave of her wand. "Come sit here."
Hermione glanced from the proffered seat to Bellatrix, the older witch giving her a pleased nod of approval, before she obeyed Narcissa. The blonde witch looked at her again, casting another diagnostic charm, this time on the girl who looked healthy enough and gave a satisfied hum at the results. Bellatrix had been rather aggressive with her playthings in the past but that seemed not to be the case with Granger.
"Why did you decide to use the essence of dittany rather than a skin closing charm?"
Hermione blinked, surprised but not thrown by the question, "The wound was deeper than it looked, closing the skin would have potentially led to scarring or infection."
"And you applied the dittany how?"
"By dropper, holding the margins of the wound open until the deeper layers had healed first. For the same reasons."
Narcissa placed her wineglass on the table. "And why did you use bruising paste?"
"Simply for aesthetic and analgesic reasons."
The blonde cocked her head in a way that was very familiar. "You didn't want my sister to suffer?"
Hermione nodded, "Not if I could prevent it."
"Some people might say that she deserved it, for what she's done to you."
The young witch unconsciously rubbed the still tender scar on her wrist but just shook her head. She wasn't the type to cause suffering to get revenge.
Narcissa gave another "hmmmm" in reply but said nothing for a moment, before rising from her chair in an elegant motion that Hermione couldn't help but admire. She thought that she could live to a hundred without developing that degree of innate grace. Brown eyes watched curiously as the blonde strode to one of the more distant bookcases, ran a hand across a shelf before selecting a very large and thick volume.
She returned and sat down once again. "A fact that many people are unaware of when it comes to me, Miss Granger, is that after Hogwarts but before my marriage, I apprenticed as a Healer." Narcissa left out the fact that Lucius had made her quit working. "This is the first year St Mungo's syllabus, each chapter has a written test that will need to be completed to my satisfaction. My sister will give you the time and space required for studying."
"I will?"
Blue eyes narrowed in an icy glare aimed at Bellatrix, but her words were directed at Hermione as though she had never been interrupted, "She is a terrible patient but I for one would be rather grateful to know that you will have the knowledge to deal with an emergency situation."
Hermione gave a nod, not sure what to say or why the women in this family seemed determined to give her books and treat her in ways that she could never have expected. At least Narcissa's motivations were clearer, she wanted to protect her sister. She took the large book, not surprised by its hefty bulk, and ran her fingers over the embossed title.
"Run along now Pet. See if Iggy needs any help with dinner."
"Yes Mistress."
The sisters looked at each other in silence for a few minutes once she had left. "You're right Bella, she has potential." She took a sip from her second glass of wine. "Though I was surprised to see her in such good… health."
"I had her battle injuries and the effects of long term malnutrition healed when I first brought her here."
"That's not what I meant and you know it."
"I haven't hurt her, doing so would damage the trust that we are building."
Narcissa raised a brow once again but didn't vocalise any of the myriad of suspicions and thoughts running through her mind. "Do you want to?"
Bellatrix considered the question seriously. "No." She rolled her eyes at her sister's pleased nod. "Anything else I need to know? From the girl's diagnostic?"
"Elevated stress and hormone levels, nothing unexpected given the situation. Oh…and…"
"And?"
Narcissa thought for a minute, the girl was no longer really entitled to patient confidentiality and it would probably help her if Bellatrix knew. Her sister didn't like surprises or things that interrupted her plans and the eldest Black was remarkably obtuse when it came to the needs of others, "She's due to start her menstrual cycle in about six days."
"And?"
"And she'd probably be grateful to have some clothing at that time, to say the least."
Bellatrix grunted at that but could certainly see her sister's point and resolved to buy the girl some chocolate. Iggy had been providing for her needs in the dungeon and would have taken care of the necessary supplies the previous month. The mark of a good house elf was not having to micromanage them, and so of course, he wouldn't have passed on that information.
They chatted before Narcissa made her way back to Malfoy Manor, joking that Lucius would have probably burnt the place down by now. In truth, the blonde sister had spent the last six weeks eliminating any trace of Voldemort's stay from her husband's ancestral seat and wanted to ensure that it stayed that way.
Bellatrix sat alone for a while, having another drink and thinking about the day's events. Granger was not only still being remarkably compliant but was already showing a healthy appetite for sexual activity. She had not expected the girl to reciprocate in the bath and in fact Bellatrix herself had just been acting on impulse, considering the fact that they were in the bathroom anyway.
A thought occurred to her and she summoned the Amortentia catalogue she had sent the girl earlier, to see if Granger had in fact selected some items as she had been told. The book flew into her hand with an audible thud and Bellatrix turned to the order form. Five additional lines of text had been added after her own.
The girl's cursive handwriting wasn't quite as neat as Bellatrix might have expected, some of the letters joined in a way that looked a little odd to the pureblood but the penstokes were decisive, and deeply imprinted into the paper. The fiery Gryffindor had written this; not a shy, mousey slave and that simple fact made the dark witch smile.
Bellatrix wondered just how long it had taken her to peruse the catalogue and select five items. Part of her wished that she had been here to watch the emotions that played on the girl's face. The first item selected was a short leather riding crop and that was a hell of a way to start the list; in Bella's opinion it was a good addition to the impact toys she had already ordered. The second, a set of Ben Wa balls; the witch flipped back to the book and discovered that they were weighed balls that could be left inside a woman to build arousal even over a considerable amount of time and the idea of going to work, leaving a horny Hermione at home, waiting for her - well the idea itself made her wet just thinking about it.
A set of muggle handcuffs was next and although the idea of a muggle toy made the pureblood wrinkle her nose in distaste, the mental image of the girl shackled in the metal bracelets was certainly aesthetically pleasing. The next item was a waterproof purple clitoral stimulation toy, one that was reputed to work on pressure rather than vibration - in truth Bellatrix had expected all five items to be like this, innocuous, and the type of toy an innocent would order but she had been pleasantly surprised when the girl rose to the challenge she had been set with aplomb.
The final item was completely different, at first glance Bellatrix had been disappointed at the word lingerie because she did enjoy seeing her slave naked. However a second look made the dark witch raise an eyebrow, the garment ordered was assuredly not in Granger's size. The girl had selected kinky underwear for Bellatrix to wear herself. Now, that was a surprise…