A/N: More light-hearted things, and from Bella too! Next chapter'll probably have more angst. Hopefully. Only 10 chapters left though!

WC: 988

Wednesday 23rd December 1970, 10 AM

Bella's coat is thrown in her face the moment she comes down the stairs.

"Come on Bella," Cissy screeches, "Sirius and Regulus are having a snowball fight!"

Bella groans. She hasn't even had her breakfast yet. "Do I have to?"

"Yes! It'll be fun!" Meda insists, and Bella rolls her eyes but begrudgingly puts her coat on. If even Meda wants to play and not send her endless letters she thinks no one notices then Bella can make an effort.

"Don't forget your gloves," Cissy tells her as they rush out of the door and into the cold morning winter air.

She's suddenly filled with the strange urge to laugh, laugh as loud as possible and hear the loudness of her heart echo through the white gardens of her childhood home. But, of course, Bella doesn't get the time to do so, because Meda hits her square in the chest before she can say a word.

"Got you!" Meda teases, a bright smile on her face.

"Oh, I'm going to get you!" she warns and runs after her sister, pelting her with snow. Meda laughs.

"Coming to help, Meda," Cissy calls out, and she steps in front of Meda and throws a huge snowball at Bella's head. She misses, but that doesn't mean Bella hasn't clearly identified her as the enemy.

"Sirius!" she calls over to her cousin, who has been hiding behind a snowman she supposes he built, trying to pelt his brother with snowballs. "Come and help me get Cissy!"

Sirius flashes her a wicked grin, and immediately turns his attention to Cissy, who squeals when a snowball hits her in the middle of the back.

"Sirius! You little-"

But Meda's got her back, and she creeps up on Sirius and hits him in the arm.

"Hey!" shouts Sirius and he runs after Meda.

Bella watches amused, until she feels something hit her in the thigh; She turns around, and there is Regulus, looking all innocent, but preparing another snowball in his hand and aiming it at her.

"And what exactly do you think you're doing?" she asks.

He puts on an angelic smile. "Me? Nothing at all."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes!" he says with a laugh, before throwing the snowball at her, and running away as soon as possible.

"Oh, I'm going to get you!" she tells him, bounding through the snow after her cousin.

It's absolutely exhilarating, running around in the snow like this. Okay, it's not the best sensation, as she can feel a bit of sludge slowly making her way down her back, and her fingers are frozen stiff through her little gloves, and she hasn't tied up her hair, so it will be a mess later, but, so far, she hasn't had this much fun with her cousins since Merlin knows when.

For some reason, it sort of reminds her of the absolutely exhilarating raid she went on with the Dark Lord on Monday. There's the same rush of energy, the same excitement, and adrenaline running through her veins. But, of course, it's not the same thing. Here, it's a playful game of snow with her family. There, it was ridding the world of its scum, it was obeying her Lord's orders.

But she's cut off from her musings, when Cissy hits her with another snowball.

"Cissy!" she screeches.

"Come and get me!" Cissy shouts back, and she's running again.

The lawn is an absolute mess. It used to be a pure blanket of white, but now it's all white and grey and green and brown. The snowman has not survived the battle, and the rather lovely hat that once belonged to Mother has been trampled on.

"Bellatrix!" Sirius says, as they meet. "We need a strategy to take them down."

"You're right," Bella says with a nod. "Any ideas?"

It's strange, working with Sirius like this, to take down their respective sisters and brother. She's never gotten along with Sirius, but she supposes miracles must happen from time to time, and it is Yule after all.

"If only we could use magic," he says.

"Magic! Of course!" Bella could almost slap herself. "I'm a legal adult! I can use magic!"

"How did you not think of that before!" Sirius says disbelievingly.

"Hey! Maybe you'd forget too."

"As if," he replies with a smile.

They advance on their enemy, pelting them with snowballs. And though it's three against two, Bella and Sirius take them down. Meda is a legal adult too, but she's forgotten her wand and can't do wandless as well as Bella. Soon, they've completely beaten them, and Cissy is on the ground pleading for a pause, but still with a laugh of course.

"You win! You win!" she says. "We surrender."

"Never!" shrieks Meda, so they continue.

Unfortunately, it ends when Sirius throws a particularly icy snowball at his brother's face, who's nose begins bleeding. It even looks a little broken. Regulus cries loudly, and the blood gets everywhere on the snow.

"Regulus!" Sirius says, "I'm so sorry!"

He only wails a little louder.

"Shh," says Meda, "I'm sure Mother and Father can fix it."

"No!" Regulus says, "Mother and Father can't know."

"Oh, for Merlin's sake," Bella butts in, "I'll fix this in a second. Episkey."

There's a quick snap, Regulus sits up and prods his nose. "It's fixed!"

"Of course it is," Bella says haughtily. "Let's go back in, we can try to blackmail the elves into giving us hot cocoa."

"Sounds like a plan," says Cissy.

"But, we still won," adds Sirius.

"Of course we did," Bella assures.

"Did not!" intervenes Bella.

"Did so!" replies Sirius.

"Did not!"

"Did so!"

Bella lets them argue to their hearts' content, and after a while it does get a little annoying, but she knows they still had a lot of fun. The smile on her face is genuine, and she has a feeling it won't go away so soon.