Okay. No serious author's notes from me today! Crowd cheers Just the rest of the tale about dear Bellatrix and Gilderoy.
Before we start, I have a dedication: Tikvah Ariel and QuidditchMoke! Yes, the twos a' ya. Reasons: If it wasn't for T-Ariel's brilliant challenge, this fic wouldn't have started. And if it wasn't for Q-Moke's first review, I would have left this as a crappy one-shot with an evil ending. I don't know why, but I would have. So now, onto the fic.
Disclaimer: You know the drill. Not in possession of anything HP related.
Passerby in the Forest
Chapter 5: What are the Odds?
"Boys, let her down." Adrian Liverwort, Healer-in-Charge repeated. He brushed his dark hair out of his eyes and peered intently at Bellatrix Lestrange in the flesh.
Reluctantly, the haughty Auror—who had Mobil Corpus'd Bella—lowered his wand so she sank to the floor. Someone had put a Weak-Knee spell on her. She couldn't have run if she tried. However…these spells could be broken if only one was patient enough…she thought.
"What is it about you Bellatrix?" The Healer asked calmly, conjuring a straight-backed chair out of nowhere, and gently pushing Bella into it. He flicked his wand, and thin chains sprang out and bound her wrists behind her back.
"What about me?" She inquired sweetly, knowing an interrogation would ensue. However, Bella also knew her rights: They couldn't Crucio her no matter how much they'd like to. She smirked to herself…It was against the law!
"You haven't got a backbone, have you? Your, eh…master tells you to do something, and you spring up to please him. Never once did you consider that I might have known what you were up to." The Healer began.
"It was considered." Bella said vaguely, working hard to dull the Healer's voice in her mind. If she could concentrate…if only she could concentrate…she'd have these spells broken in no time.
"Was it really? Judging by your shabby work, I'd say you didn't…or are you just out of practice?"
In Bella's mind, she had broken his voice down to a mere whisper, while her patience grew into the strength of a tornado.
"Or perhaps your master expected too much from you…are Voldemort's expectations a little too high?"
That brought Bella back to reality.
"Shut your mouth."
The Aurors exchanged glances, each renewing his grip on his respected wand.
"Surely thirteen years in Azkaban was scarier than hearing Voldemort's name?" The Healer taunted passively. .
"Shut your mouth." She tried to focus back on the spell cast on her knees, but she couldn't.
Him! Him with his unworthy lips! How dare he say the Dark Lord's name!
"Bellatrix." Adrian said with an air like they were old pals. "Bella, with all due respect, don't make this hard for yourself. Regardless of what you do or say here, you're going back to Azkaban. If you cooperate with me, you'll return to your cell and perhaps nothing more will happen to you. But…if you attack me—which I'm sure you'd love to do—it wouldn't be a shocker if you find yourself dealing with a higher form of the law. Death penalty, maybe."
"You use big phrases to express a simple point." Bella told him, giving up on trying to break the Weak-Knee-Charm.
She decided to try and undo the chains binding her wrists without anyone seeing. Adrian Liverwort was pacing before her, and his back was now to her. The two Aurors seemed more concerned with watching her face than her hands. And that strange woman? Well, she sat in front of Liverwort's desk, completely oblivious to the scene before her.
The Healer smiled. "Alright Bella. Why don't you tell me what Vol—"
"Shut it!"
"Why don't you tell me what Voldemort wants with me."
"Yeah." Bella agreed sarcastically. "I'll give you that right along with the key to my Gringotts vault."
"What does Voldemort want me for?" Adrian repeated, ignoring Bella's cheek.
"The Dark Lord would like…" Bella began, continuing inching her wrists into a more maneuverable position. "…A Potions expert…" Ever so slowly, she rotated her left wrist. "…And a charismatic person…" The fingers of her left hand grappled with the chains on her right. "…And somebody who'd be a worthwhile candidate to our cause…" She twisted, feeling the chain links shift subtly. "…Naturally, none of these things describes you."
Adrian smiled. "And he also probably wants a loyal servant who can get out of a chain-wire without being caught."
Bella froze.
The haughty Auror pointed his want at Bella's cheek and cried, "Relashio!"
Bella shrieked as white-hot pain licked her face. She felt welts and bumps arise all over her stinging and smarting cheek. Once the initial shock wore off, Bella burst out laughing.
"Ha, ha! That was a good hit! Just the right amount of rage and everything! But I do say, my sister Narcissa could throw a better curse than that."
The Auror said nothing, but the Healer narrowed his eyes. Bella grinned at him—though it hurt her face—because she knew he was getting frustrated with her.
"Alright, you want to know why my master wanted to see you?" Bella asked. She hoped to throw him off as she slowly began the process of twisting her wrists again.
"Yes."
"Because you're a wanted man. St. Mungo's has been a center controlled by the group known as the Order of the Phoenix for decades."
"I know nothing of that cause." Adrian said coldly.
"Don't give me that." Bella sneered, emboldened after taking the upper hand. "You've been giving aid to various wizards and witches known to be in the Order. We have the proof. You tried to stop us murdering Mr. Bode last year, and to no avail! And now you're worried we're gonna do you like we did Bode!"
"To do me? You mean to murder me? Azkaban will have you for this, Bella."
"Ah, that's quite an extrapolation, Adrian." Bella said, her rising voice masking the sounds of the undone chains sliding across her wrists and to the floor. "I never said anything about murdering you."
"Yeah, you did just now." The Auror Dwalish said.
Bella glanced at him. "I implied it…and there's no reason to get immature."
He blushed in spite of himself, but maintained a steady grip on his wand.
"An implication is not enough to get me locked away in prison." Bella continued, keeping her wrists behind her back to pretend like they were still tied. "It's the tangible stuff…"
"You mean like the Longbottoms." Adrian said. His voice was cold and dry as he spoke. He had personal relations with the people Bellatrix had tortured into insanity. He was a friend of their boy—Neville Longbottom—and his grandma.
For the second time that night, Bella felt that crazed grin slide over her face as she thought of the Cruciatus Curse. Only this time, she was happier because thinking of Frank and Alice brought back happy, personal memories.
"Ah yes, Frank and Alice…" She said fondly, "They took a long time to crack, they did…"
"Furnunculus!" bellowed Adrian, pointing his wand at Bella's face. Rage surged throughout him, burning in his veins. She did it! It was her! It's because of her that those people can't recognize themselves or each other! Or their son!
Boils erupted all over Bellatrix's face. She howled initially when the spell hit her, but like before, she ended it laughing.
"Did I hit a nerve there, Adrian?" She inquired sweetly.
"Silencio." Said the haughty Auror. "Had to shut her up." He added to Adrian, whose dark eyes were blazing.
"No." Adrian said, shaking slightly. "You can't act unless ordered to. Lift that spell."
The Auror looked like he wanted to disagree, but he didn't argue. Bella soon felt the spell lift. She was able to speak again.
"You're proud of what you did, aren't you?" Adrian hissed at Bella, stepping in front of her chair. He bent so his face was inches form hers. "You enjoy thinking of all the pain you caused those people, don't you?"
"Yes." She answered with a crooked grin.
"Look at her." Adrian commanded, pointing to the dark haired woman who was sitting at the desk. "This poor woman's name is Melanie. Is she funny to you?"
Bella glanced at her. "Not as funny as Frank and Alice, but yes, she does make me giggle."
WHAM!
Adrian's hand swung from out of nowhere and hit Bellatrix in the face. The burn from Relashio started stinging and some of her new boils ruptured, but Bella grinned anyway.
"In the future, you'll want to aim a little higher." She said. "You tend to hit a little below-target."
"You mean like this!" He shouted, drawing his hand back and smacking her in the face again.
Bella forced herself not to wince. She's taken worse pain before. A slap was nothing. "Yes, that was better."
Adrian was shaking almost uncontrollably. "You're sick…You're twisted…"
"You're not saying anything I haven't heard before!" She cried in a crazed voice, feeling a bruise form on her cheek, and hot pus from the boils ooze over the Relashio welts.
Adrian resumed his position in front of Bella, his face inches from hers. "Tell me for real, Bellatrix, what does Voldemort want from me?"
"Think reasonably, Adrian…" Bella began, gathering her nerves for the stunt she was about to pull. "Ever heard of a guy named Horace Slughorn? Yeah, you got the same potions talent he has, and you're smarter than he is…but you've also wronged my Lord in the past. That's why you're special, that's why he wants you. Did you really need me to tell you that?"
Adrian contemplated her for a moment…he had suspected Voldemort's supporters to come after him at one point in time…Adrian had paused for a moment to many. Before he had tie to pull away, Bella lashed out at him, closing her hands around his neck…choking him…gagging him.
Destination! She thought frantically. The Riddle Mansion, Little Hangleton, Great Britain! Determination! Deliberation! Determination, deliberation!
There was a loud crack, and Bella felt the familiar Apparating sensation of the walls closing in around her. But there was something wrong…something was holding her back.
Now she felt decidedly peculiar…the office seemed to be flashing before her very eyes, switching briefly with a vision of a dingy sitting room. The Apparating sensation was coming and going very rapidly, like the room was expanding and contracting a mile a minute.
"Oh…Hell…no!" She heard someone yell. The voice sounded very distant, but she could feel hot breath on her face. How very odd…"No…Apparation…from…you! Arrgh!"
With a violent lurch, the room expanded for the last time. All of the sudden, everything went sideways, and stars appeared. What's happening! Then Bella realized she had merely fallen off her chair, and when she tried to stand, that Weak-Knee Spell made her crash to the floor. The stars were a result of her head hitting the ground.
"No!" Adrian yelled. His voice sounded distant, but Bella could feel his breath. "Don't let her Apparate! I had to stop her before!"
So that's what happened…Bella realized, Adrian had realized what she was up to, and he had Apparated them back to the office. That's why she couldn't get away.
"Stun her!" Adrian cried, "Stun her! I've lost my wand! Take her out!"
Bella cursed loudly, and began pulling herself to the door with her arms. If she could get close enough…she might be able to Apparate…
"Stupef—Arrgh!" Bella deflected an attempted Stunning spell by Dwalish by flinging a broken leg of her chair at him.
"Impedimenta!" The haughty Auror shot a curse at her. It whizzed by her face, missing by centimeters because the stumbling Dwalish bowled him over.
Bella had army-crawled to the door, and heaved her body into a sitting position. Yes! She could just reach the doorknob.
"No! Accio wand! Accio! Ah, forget it!" Adrian abandoned the search for his wand, and dove at Bella himself.
He latched his strong Healer's hands around her throat and tried pulling her back into the office by the neck. Bella grappled with his arms, but no avail—he was stronger. She did the only thing she could think of doing; she made a guttural noise in her throat, and spat in his eye.
"Arrgh!" Adrian hollered, but he didn't let go.
The two of them continued their struggle, and Bella took advantage of his moment of surprise. She raised her left arm and gave him a sharp left-hook in the eye. He cried out, but he still wouldn't let go. Adrian tightened his grip around Bella's throat, keeping stale air in her lungs.
Dark spots appeared in her eyes, each leaving her line of vision before she could actually see them. He was suffocating her. She kept making these involuntary wheezy sounds as she fought to take in more oxygen. If her brain had a voice, it'd be screaming. Bella's arms flailed in all directions, but never came close to Adrian—their target.
"Is this funny?" He asked her. "Is this funny to you!" He shrieked. Rage for what she did to the Longbottoms licked his insides. He decided one thing; he would kill this woman!
Vaguely, Bella made eye contact with him. His eyes were a deep hazel color, and they were burning…and what was that? It wasn't only rage flickering in his eyes; there was something else. Revenge? Partially. Hate? Most definitely, but there was still something else…something brutal, something fiendish. And Bella felt her face contort into another vicious smile…He was no better than she was.
All her life, she'd been called a sadist. But look at him…look at Adrian! This unconditional revenge was making him, well…happy. Bella smiled another savage grin. That's sadistic.
He was no better than she was.
"Is this funny, Bellatrix!" His voice had gotten so loud that his throat felt ready to rip. Crazy Bellatrix Lestrange continued smiling.
Suddenly, all sadistic happiness vanished from Bella. This was no longer a matter of what Adrian's eyes said…she was loosing her life slowly. Her whole body started twitching…and that's when she noticed her knees weren't under a weakness spell anymore.
She kicked out as hard as she could, sinking her foot into Adrian's belly. Even he couldn't ignore that. He yelled, released her, and doubled over in pain.
Bella didn't even think about her actions anymore. She sprang to her feet—surprised they could hold her up—as she took in the much-needed gulps of air. She bolted for the door, noticing Adrian had dragged her a good ten meters away from it. Unfortunately, an Auror was on her faster than she could say 'Crucio'.
"No!" The Auror yelled. Bella noted it was Dwalish. "You won't get away that easily! Nyaaah!"
The little man dove at her, and latched onto her back. Bella staggered and crashed headfirst into the door.
To her surprise—and horror—her head broke the door. Her whole head became hot, and she knew full well blood was running down her face.
Her eyes lolled, and rolled back into her head; the last thing she saw was some person lying in a crumpled heap. She didn't even care about whom that person was. Everything was becoming warm and white. Vaguely…blissfully…white. All consciousness left her at that moment, and Bellatrix Black-Lestrange faded into a calm…chalky white dream.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
So this is death.
Master, it's…pleasant. Perhaps you should just destroy those Horcruxes and let the Potter brat kill you. If this is what death's like, we should stop wasting our time on that wretched planet of the living…
I'm sorry I couldn't bring Adrian Liverwort to you. Somehow—and believe you me, I don't know how—he was tipped off about our plan. But then, anyone could have put together why we wanted to capture him…even the Potter brat…even my stupid cousin, Sirius—that is, if you gave them enough time. But hey, it's not important. You could rule so much more forcibly here…here in death…wherever I am…
I, your most faithful servant, regret more than anything that I failed you. But please, please, please understand how sincere I am about how…wonderful…this realm of the dead is.
And I doubt there are any Muggles allowed here. They are not worthy…
For the first time since she was a little kid, Bella felt…happy. She was comfortable, if not slightly confused. Her unexpected death was a shock—even to her—and she was still trying to figure out all about what it was like to be dead.
Some people are going to get seriously haunted!
Then, all of the sudden, her little shell of happiness and warmth seemed to flicker then crash.
What the Hell's going on here?
"She's waking up!" somebody was shouting. The voice seemed fuzzy in her mind.
"Damn near died, I'd say." Somebody else added in an even more distant voice.
"What of Lockhart?" Asked another.
And as if it went through that door again, Bella felt like her head would crack in two.
"AAARRRGGGHHH!" Somebody screamed. It was a high-pitched, disturbing scream…wait a minute, that's my scream!
Suddenly, colors swam into view. The grey, stone ceiling of an office slid into focus. Bella had been here before…yes! This was where she died! Just behind her was a broken door where her head slammed through! She knew it!
After a moment, Bella had the sense to close her mouth. That piercing scream died away. All her senses were coming back, and fast…too fast. She tried to sit up, but hands on her shoulders pushed her back down. Bella took this moment to try and shake the lingering confusion.
Crouching on her left side with his hands over his shoulders was a dark-haired man…Bella knew him from somewhere. Beyond him were two more men, one tall and haughty, and the other too small for his own good. Aurors. They were Aurors! Sitting in a chair against the wall was a dark haired woman with cold eyes and a sadistic smile…Melanie? That name kept ringing a bell.
But who was that first man? Bella knew she knew him…wait a second…
"You! You tried to kill me!" Bella shouted at the man. She tried to lift an arm to point accusingly at him, but she found her arm was too heavy.
"Speak for yourself!" He shouted back.
"Adrian Liverwort, the Dark Lord will make an example of you!" And to her horror, her normal charismatic demeanor left her, and she finished her threat lamely.
"Mmmm." He nodded, "Well, I'll just have to deal with that later, won't I?"
Bella glared daggers at him. "What happened?" She asked finally.
"You got your head slammed through that door behind you…actually, you slammed your own head through it. It wasn't anybody's fault but your own. Anyways, you had a concussion; it's a common—Muggle—head injury." He sneered to M-word, watching Bellatrix's reaction. "Fortunately—for your sake, that is—it's an easy one to cure. The moment your healthy, it's the Ministry of Magic for you. To Azkaban, Bellatrix Lestrange!" He cried, the familiar feeling of hate coming back rapidly.
She smirked at him. Suddenly, she heard a strange moaning sound to her left.
"Who's there?" She asked.
"That would be mister Gilderoy Lockhart; a suffering from a concussion because of you." Adrian answered.
"Why because of me?"
"When you slammed through that door, he had somehow made it to the other side. You took him out with you." Adrian said. He turned to the Aurors. "Guess we have to tighten security round here, eh?" They nodded.
Bellatrix sat up successfully. She expected her head to throb, but she felt surprisingly good.
She glanced around at Lockhart. The man was lying straight as a board on the office floor; his golden blonde hair flipped everywhere. She looked at his chest and saw his breathing was ragged and uneven. Then Bella received a shock she couldn't prepare herself for. She felt somewhere in her chest—somewhere over her heart—give a strange throb. Her heart began beating very rapidly as she looked at the man who once made her sing a song about a sticky moose named Fred.
Adrian gave her a quizzical look. Bella turned to him, prepared for an interrogation, but she was saved the difficulty when Lockhart started to stir.
"Gilderoy." Adrian said.
"Where…where…where…?" The man spluttered.
"It's all right, Gilderoy, you're alive." Said Adrian slowly. "You're in St. Mungo's hospital."
Lockhart tried sitting up, but changed his mind about halfway through. Clearly, his was pounding.
"St. Mungo's…yes. I moved in here about—what was it—three years ago? Yes, three years. When…when…I was Obliviated."
"Yes, that's right—woah!" Adrian yelled. "Gilderoy, you, you, you remember being Obliviated?"
"Well, yes I do, sir." Gilderoy answered, sitting up successfully. "Of course I do. I was in the Ch-chamber of Secrets with two little boys. Yes! They discovered the secret, and I, their fearless teacher, was supposed to kill a beast!"
Adrian was staring at Lockhart, amazed. "You—you remember being in the Chamber with Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley?"
"Yes, I do! I remember! I was appointed teacher of the Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. It's because I'd done so many great things. Yes, I'd done great things…feel free to see my set of published works!" Gilderoy cried triumphantly. "Wait!" He shouted again, this time pausing for a good two minutes. "Wait. I remember now…it wasn't me."
"What do you mean, 'it wasn't you'?" Adrian asked.
"I wasn't me who'd done all those great things in those books. No…they were other people. And I…I stole their credit, and look where it landed me!" He gestured frantically at the stonewalls of St. Mungo's.
Adrian seemed to have been struck speechless. This closed ward patient had miraculously regained his memory after a three-year loss! And it was all because of that Bellatrix Lestrange when she went through his office door.
Bella herself was staring at Lockhart. Her heart continued to palpitate, as she looked him over. Why? She wondered, what spell's been cast over me?
Then she realized something else. Gilderoy was…well…cute. Yeah, that was it! He was really cute! And she didn't know why it took her a head injury to see that. She continued staring at him…him sitting there with a newfound respect for life shining in his eyes. She could feel herself becoming infatuated…Wow! He's really cute! Suddenly, memories of Rodolphous, her 'husband' rotting in Azkaban, became vague. Memories of her service to the Dark Lord became pointless. Gilderoy was all that mattered.
Then Lockhart himself looked over at Bellatrix.
"My word, you're…beautiful." He said, flashing her a brilliant smile.
And Bella did something she had once sworn never to do…she giggled.
"What's your name, my dear?" Lockhart asked.
"Bellatrix Les—" She began, but stopped. "Bellatrix Black. My name is Bellatrix Black."
"Well, Miss Black," Lockhart began, "has anyone ever told you that you are the most gorgeous woman on the face of this earth?"
Bella continued giggling and simpering. "Stop it," she laughed, "you're making me blush!"
Adrian Liverwort stared at the two Aurors over Lockhart and Bella's heads. What the Hell's going on here? He mouthed.
Bellatrix turned to Adrian. "Adrian, listen. I'm sorry for almost killing you. I promise I will never try it again."
"Damn straight, you won't!" He agreed, "It's Azkaban for you!"
"Adrian, no!" Lockhart cried. "Adrian, please. I've just met the love of my life! You can't send her off to that wretched prison!"
"Gilderoy, you do not know Bellatrix as I do. She is a con artist. She is a back-stabber. She's twisted, she's evil, she's sick!"
"She's beautiful!" Lockhart added. "Belle Bellatrix."
"No. No, you don't understand. With her, the ends justify the means…always!"
"She's changed. Haven't you, Bella?"
"Yes." Bellatrix agreed.
"How do I know…how do I know if you're lying or not? You could spin around and stab Gilderoy in the back by tonight!" Adrian yelled.
But then he made eye contact with Bella. Somehow, the sadistic glimmer seemed to be draining from her black eyes. Could she really be trusted? Adrian wondered. There was a way to find out…
"Bellatrix, what comes to mind when I say…Frank and Alice Longbottom?"
Bellatrix winced, no trace of a smile on her face. And even she wasn't that good of an actor.
"I will give that boy a sickle a day until he graduates Hogwarts." Bellatrix said, looking Adrian deep in the eyes. "Neville Longbottom…I will set him up for life after school in the beginning of my life-long payment to him for what I'd done…and Harry Potter. Yes, a sickle a day for him too. After all, it is my fault his godfather is dead."
Adrian blinked, and locked eyes with her again. In that moment, he realized Bellatrix Les—Bellatrix Black had truly reformed.
"Your Master, Bella." Adrian said suddenly. "He'll find you."
"Voldemort?" Bella asked unflinchingly. "Nah, he won't. He doesn't realize that I've perfected my own Fidelius charm."
"You have?"
"Yes. The way it works is this: The Caster sets the spell so anyone with mal intentions for her or her family's well-being is officially under the influence of the spell. They could not find the caster or her family to save their lives. Ad even if they ask—or Imperius—someone else to do it, the spell moves over to the said person!"
"Brilliant…" muttered Dwalish, the Auror.
Adrian shook his head. "What are the odds…?" He muttered to himself before looking up at the man and woman. "Bellatrix Black and Gilderoy Lockhart…"
"Yes?" They asked together.
"Have…" He shook his head, clearly not even believing what he was going to say. "Have a nice life."
Bella slipped her hand into Lockhart's. "Will do, Adrian…will do."
Wee! I'm done everybody! Now it's time for me to talk to the reviewers.
BAGGE: Hi there! This fic is one of my best? Thanks! You're the only one who's ever commented to me about internal conflicts. I appreciate that because I spent all of my previous school year practicing that in English class. Bellatrix is a fun character to write. Almost as fun as Sirius, but not even close to Luna! I hope I cleared up who the characters were, and that you like the conclusion of the story.
And about Iceland…it's green! It's too green for the Crumple-Horned Snorkack. However, Iceland did have some Long-Horned Snorkacks. Slightly less common, I'm afraid. And American wizards are a lot like Swedish wizards in that they don't believe in Snorkacks. (Not even the Snub-Nosed Snorkack, which is native to America.) Good luck to you and/or Luna. Once those photos are printed, we'll be laughing! Ah hahaha!
And Forlat alla Norman som laser detta (with various circles and dots my computer won't type)…? Deb-lil is all confused! Points off to the sky somewhere beyond Bagge's left ear. When he turns, she takes off running.
Queen o' da Badgas (aka QoB) (aka Queen of the Badgers): Your reviews were sidesplitting! I was laughing like a maniac, I'm pretty sure my family thought I was laughing-gassed. The thesaurus was a great invention, I agree. Only problem…it sounds like a type of dinosaur. And meese? Wow. Meese. What the Hell kind of a word is that? It sounds like 'geese', and that's a stupid word. But meese are kind of cute…if you can get past the horrendous smell. And I was in shock when I read about Moosey's suicide note! That's terrible. And get this; a similar event took place in my school!
So we were reading the play "Inherit the Wind" about the Scopes "monkey" trial. As a joke, my teacher put stuffed monkeys all over the room. I guess the next class didn't like them, so they took one of the monkeys—Jimmy—and hung him from the ceiling with a tape measure. Naturally, we were disgusted and angry. So a few friends and me taped Jimmy to the chalkboard and drew (in chalk) him holding a knife. There was a speech bubble saying, "Jimmy will get you. Jimmy will get you good. Jimmy will get you like you got me. Mwa haha!"
Let's see. I call Bella 'Bellabitch' because someone reviewed my story 'A Series of IhateUmbridge Propaganda' and put that in as Bella's name. I thought it was hilarious. And what else did you say….ah yes. Well, this isn't two chapters, but it's a long one! Hope you like it! (And I'll be getting back to your Tommy story when my computer decides to be nice and let me open it up.)
Dead-Luthien: What are you talking about? You are Miss World…er...2006. That's where the confusion comes in. Not 2005, but 2006. So I guess that makes Bella guilty. Ah well. Thanks for always reviewing my stories. I hope you like the ending!
Marauder4ever: Yes, Bella got caught, but the turn of events in this chapter made her…well, innocent. So does that make her guill-cent? I don't know. That's for reviewing, and I hope you like this bit. And I can't wait for the epilogue about Ronald McD. I'm gonna read that funny fic over again.
Thanks again to all the people who've bothered to leave a review. Deb-lil really appreciates it. If you wouldn't mind leaving one more…? Ha, thanks. See ya!
Deb-lil