QLFC Season Eight- Round Three
Dear Theodosia: Write about making a promise to someone.
Lyrics used: 'We'll pass it on to you, we'll give the world to you' as 'I'll pass it on to you. I'll give the world to you'
Optional Prompts: 1.(emotion) regret, 4.(object) candle, 6.(relationship) sisters
Word count: 2332
"You actually got the Dark Mark," exclaimed Narcissa so loudly that she had to be shushed. "And barely out of Hogwarts too. Oh, Bella I'm so proud of you."
All three of the sisters were sitting on the floor of Narcissa's bedroom with candles lit and scattered around them. Bellatrix looked at the candles with disdain. They weren't necessary and she could've easily lit up the room with a spell. However, one of her sisters must've lit the candles as an ode to when they were younger and as such, she resolved to tolerate them.
"The Dark Lord recognises talent when he sees it. I knew all along that I'd be marked," boasted Bellatrix. She had indeed been sure of it; the Dark Lord himself had promised her. Yet, she still felt giddy every time she looked at the mark. Her biggest dream had come true.
"Did it hurt?" asked Narcissa, voice considerably lower. Bellatrix toyed with the idea of snapping at her; it was what she would've done to anyone else had they asked. Or she would've cursed them the instant the words left their mouth. One does not in any way question Bellatrix's loyalty.
"Not in the slightest," she said finally. A huge lie. It had hurt as though sharp knives were being stabbed into her arm repeatedly. Narcissa was bent over Bellatrix's arm, awing at it, and didn't catch the lie. Andromeda however, lifted a single eyebrow, face devoid of all expression and half swathed in the darkness. She would have cut an intimidating figure, thought Bellatrix, if she wasn't her sister.
"Whose idea was the candles?" asked Bellatrix, watching a trail of wax drip onto the floor. She was sure it was Narcissa's, considering her obsession with sentiments. A romantic.
"Mine," came the answer and Bellatrix whirled, surprised.
"Yours, Andy?"
"I like it," declared Narcissa. "Reminds me of when we used to stay awake all night. Talking in hushed whispers and always ready to blow out the candles in case anyone was coming."
Bellatrix hummed mindlessly and waved her wand, levitating the candles slightly off the floor. There was absolutely no purpose to levitate them, other than the fact that she'd felt like doing so. She was taken aback that the candles were Andy's doing.
"Oh, I've missed it. We were so small back then," continued Narcissa. "Now look at us. Bella, you've finished Hogwarts and Andy, you're in your last year too. Everything's going to change so much."
"Hasn't everything changed already?" interjected Andromeda and Bellatrix shot her a glare.
"Things are going to change but it'll be good changes," said Bellatrix motioning at the Dark Mark. "Not just us. The whole world is going to change. Everyone will treat us like royalty, exactly how we're supposed to be treated. We're going to restore the wizarding world to its former glory. The glory it had before those blubbering mudbloods and muggles came and ruined everything." Narcissa was drinking in every word. Andromeda stayed stock still.
"You'll get everything you ever wanted. We're going to make the perfect society with all the pureblood ideals." There was no question on who Bellatrix meant when she said 'we'. Especially since she glanced at her arm. "I'll pass it on to you. I'll give the world to you. I promise."
xxx
Time had become meaningless to Bellatrix. All she was aware of was the darkness surrounding her and the freezing cold. She was in Azkaban, crouched against one of the stone walls of her dingy cell. How long had she been there? She had no idea. It felt like eternity. An eternity of solitude with the worst of her memories for company. It was a wonder that she hadn't gone mad.
No, she wasn't mad. Not yet, she thought, as she looked at her long and grimy nails. They'd have to do a lot more than that to break her. Soon she'd be back to serving her master. The Dark Lord would come back and reward her loyalty. She was sure of it.
The cold had settled into her bones now and she coughed, gasping for breath. Her throat felt like sandpaper from all the times she'd clung to the bars of her cell and screamed. She'd screamed with all the force of her anger and the humiliation at being locked up. She'd screamed when the dementors made her relive her worst memories, screams of pure fright and helplessness. She'd screamed out of hatred, echoes of bitter promises of revenge.
She took in a shaking breath. Her throat was on fire and for a moment she regretted all the screaming she'd done. Still, it was something and what else was she to do? The dementors were sucking the life out of her, she had to do something.
So far, she had two things that kept her alive.
The first was the knowledge of Dark Lord's return; she had full faith in him and she was certain she'd be able to break out then. She'd be rewarded and she'd get to carry out any revenge she wanted.
The second was the promise she'd made to her sisters. She had promised the whole world for them and she had every intention of fulfilling that promise, no matter how long it'd been. She would give the whole world to them both. Andy had run away with filth but surely, she'd realise the error of her ways? Bellatrix wasn't one to forgive betrayals, but Andromeda would be the exception. She'd welcome Andy back, and surely she'd return to her birthright? Yes, Andy would come back, and Bellatrix would forgive her for her youthful delusions.
She took another breath and her throat was burning while her fingers trembled and turned blue.
xxx
"Surprise Andy!" exclaimed Bellatrix, smiling down at the witch on the other side of the bars. Andromeda stood up, clutching the bars so that she was nearly touching the other witch. Her brown hair looked golden in the light of the candle Bellatrix was levitating in front of her.
"You! How dare you Bellatrix!"
"Andy, I brought you back." They were in their childhood home, albeit in the dungeons. Nevertheless, they were back and wasn't Bellatrix the one who had brought Andy back? "Aren't you pleased? Cissy's at Malfoy manor but I'll be bringing her too. It'll be the three of us again, just like it used to be. Aren't you happy Andy?"
"Happy?" Andromeda's face pulled into a grimace. Her tone was deadly, and her voice grew louder as she continued. "You kidnapped me and I woke up wandless and alone in the dungeons of the very place I fled from. And you dare ask me whether I'm happy?"
"But Andy." Bellatrix pouted. Why wasn't she happy? "I saved you from those mudbloods. Don't worry, I'll let you out soon enough. The Dark Lord would give me anything my heart desires, as a reward for my loyalty. For my stay in Azkaban. You'll be forgiven Andy. You'll be part of the family again."
"What family? I was with my family when you kidnapped me." Only Andromeda would've dared use such a snapping tone against Bellatrix while in her captive.
Bellatrix shook her head. Why wasn't Andy understanding? "You'll be back to your real family. We'll be sisters again. Won't it be fun?"
"You are no sister of mine," spat Andromeda, glaring at her. "I have a loving husband and we have a daughter. That's my family. My only family."
"Husband?" Bellatrix frowned. "The mudblood? Don't worry, you're safe from him"
"Safe from him? Safe from him?" Fear was clearly visible in Andromeda's eyes, even in the dull candlelight. "What do you mean Bellatrix?"
"He'll never bother you again."
"Where's Ted? Where's my husband, Bellatrix? Where is he?" Desperation laced her voice and reflected from her eyes.
"He's dead. I killed him."
"No," whispered Andromeda, slumping to the ground as her legs gave away.
Andromeda's shoulders were shaking, and Bellatrix stood stunned before dropping to her knees after a while. The candle floated down to the ground with her.
"Where's my daughter?" whispered Andromeda, eyes locked onto the floor.
"I don't know. There wasn't anyone else at the raid that day. I only killed the mudblood."
"Stop calling him a mudblood!"
"But he is a mudblood, Andy," said Bellatrix impatiently. Why was Andy so preoccupied with these unnecessary details? "He's a mudblood who doesn't matter. Can't you see? I'm keeping my promise to you."
There was no reply from Andromeda and so Bellatrix continued.
"Remember when I promised that you'd be treated like royalty? You and Cissy both. Remember that day when I promised you?"
Andromeda looked up and Bellatrix beamed. Finally, Andy was starting to understand. "You remember that day, don't you, Andy? The three of us were sitting on the floor surrounded by candles. The candles were your idea. You remember, don't you? That's why I brought this candle." Andromeda's eyes slid to the flickering candle. "I promised to give you everything you want. You remember, right, Andy?" Her words came faster as she grew more excited.
"I remember," replied Andromeda after a beat of silence. "I did it so you might remember when we were young and innocent. I wanted you to feel something and decide against making a stupid decision. But you'd already jumped headlong into it. You'd already taken the mark." Andromeda took a deep breath and continued. "Do you know what I want most? I want to kill you."
"But Andy-"
"I wish I'd killed you that night you showed us the Dark Mark. The whole world would've been a better place then. Every time I heard that you'd killed an innocent person, I wished I'd killed you then. Do you know how much I regret not killing you then?"
Andromeda's voice was quiet and calm. Soft even, as if she were mindlessly reading from a book. "I told myself that if I had the chance to go back, I'd kill you. But-" Andromeda laughed humourlessly, "I didn't fool even myself. Even though it was the biggest regret I ever had, I knew I could never bring myself to kill you. Knew that even if I got the chance, I still wouldn't kill you."
Bellatrix stood silently. Finally, in a voice almost as soft as Andromeda's, she crooned, "I know you'd never kill me, Andy. You're going to come back to your real family, where you belong. I'm keeping the promise I made to you and Cissy. You'll both get the whole world."
Andromeda had gone silent. Bellatrix hummed before she got up and left, the candle trailing behind her. Andy would come around once Bellatrix offered her everything. She would understand then.
There wasn't much time left anyway. The Dark Lord was going to attack Hogwarts that night and everything was going to end that night. Pureblood will triumph.
Bellatrix nodded to herself. Yes, Andy wasn't going to turn it down.
xxx
The battle was raging around her, and Bellatrix was easily flicking away the spells that her opponent threw at her, her mind occupied. Cissy had run away from the battle. She couldn't believe it. Hadn't Bellatrix told Cissy that she'd give her everything? Hadn't she promised? Yet she'd seen her with her own eyes as she walked away from the battle, hand in hand with Lucius and Draco.
She was frustrated and two spells later, her opponent dropped dead and she swiftly moved on to another one. How could her sister walk away when she'd been offered the world? Would Cissy doubt her? Perhaps Lucius had made her go away, she had never much respect for the coward. But why hadn't Cissy stayed? She was a formidable witch who could hold her own, and easily against Lucius. Why had she walked away?
No, Cissy would never doubt her. Hadn't Cissy always looked up to her? She refused to believe that Cissy would doubt her.
She had another opponent now. A plump woman with ginger hair pulled into a bun and lines on her face. She smirked. The Weasley matriarch. Surprisingly, she could hold her own and Bellatrix had to come out of her thoughts, now that she could no longer easily flick the spells away. This woman knew how to duel and she was aiming to kill.
Bellatrix cackled and taunted her opponent as she spun out of the way of spells. It was a heady feeling, dancing just out of the reach of spells. This was the Weasley matriarch though, and for her to even think that she could defeat Bellatrix was madness. She tipped her head back and laughed.
A split second later a spell had hit her straight in the chest and her eyes widened in shock.
It couldn't be.
She couldn't be defeated.
Not when needed to see the Dark Lord emerge victorious from the battle.
Not when she was so close to fulfilling her promise to her sisters. She couldn't be defeated, not when everything was finally within her grasp.
Yet she was defeated, and Bellatrix fell to the ground before the last echoes of her laugh had faded away.
xxx
After the battle, only two people mourn Bellatrix's death.
One of them hates herself for mourning Bellatrix, and regrets never being able to steer her away from destruction. She sees herself in the mirror and sees Bellatrix staring back at her, haunting her. She regrets not trying to talk Bellatrix out of the things that set off her downfall. She regrets walking away.
The other one single-handedly arranged for Bellatrix to be buried, without much ado or attention from the press. This one alone stands by Bellatrix's grave, her blonde hair making a startling contrast against her black robes. She regrets supporting Bellatrix into following the Dark Lord and supporting all the prejudice. She regrets not being able to do the right thing until it was too late.
Only her sisters mourn Bellatrix, and both of them loathe themselves for crying over her.