Story Title/Link: How to get Away with Murder
School and Theme: Ilvermorny and Making Dialogue Flow
Main Prompt: "That's how you get away with murder." How to get Away with Murder
Year: 2
Word count: 963 (10% leeway)
Warning for mentions of character death, and canon torture. Just generally warnings for Bellatrix being Bellatrix. I hope you all enjoy How to get Away with Murder.
The sound of pounding rain against the window of the Dementor proof room sounded like the pounding of Auror Stevens heart in her ear. It wasn't like the sandy blonde haired woman had never been in one of these rooms before. She had. Usually to interrogate one the Death Eaters that give them information in return for a reduced sentence.
But this time was different. She had been sent here with express instructions not to leave until she got the information the Aurors needed. This would be one of the most difficult tasks in the world considering who she was meeting with.
The clink of chains sounded in the hallway outside the door, as the flash of lightning lit up the room. The door opened and in walked the reason for her visit. The dark haired disheveled woman looked at her expectantly.
"What do you want?" she folded her arms over her chest in a manner of one used to getting their way.
"It's nice to meet you too, Mrs. Lestrange." After a beat, Auror Stevens nodded to the chair opposite her. "Please, have a seat. We might be here for a while."
Bellatrix shuffled to the seat indicated but didn't sit down. Isabelle, or Izzy as she was called, knew that the subject would be difficult. She just wasn't expecting her to be this difficult to deal with.
"Let's start, shall we?" she said. She placed the folder down on the table and opened it. Placing several pictures of crime scenes and dead people in front of Bellatrix.
"What if I choose not to help you?" Bellatrix smiled smugly as though she held all the cards in her hand. "What if I choose to say nothing at all until you leave?"
"That won't work." It was a simple fact and Stevens had no problem stating it. "In fact I've been told to stay here until you do cooperate with us. The only person you'll be seeing day in and day out will be me. How does that sound?"
Bellatrix humphed as she sat down, arms still firmly folded over her chest. "How can I help the Auror department?"
"I was hoping you'd ask that." The blonde made a point to hide the fact that her face had just perked up. Instead she opened her case report and started to read from it. "We found a note at the latest crime scene that said there will be more. Clearly, we don't know what that means which is why we thought that coming to someone who was on the inside of the Death Eater organization would be helpful."
Bellatrix laughed. The laughter of someone mentally deranged and out of touch with reality. She leaned forward, hands on the table, teeth bared in a ridiculous facsimile of a smile. "The ickle Auror needs help cracking the case, does she?" Bellatrix cooed as though talking to a small child. "I had nothing to do with the planning of these murders and wouldn't know who did."
"But you're in Azkaban?"
"For what happened to poor ickle Frankie, and Alice Longbottom," she mimicked a sad voice.
It truly did sound like she was sorry for those actions but Izzy had been told not to fall for any of Bellatrix's tricks.
"I'm sure that's not the only reason you're here."
"It is and do you know why it is?" Bellatrix looked at Auror Stevens expectantly. She knew the woman knew the answer or had some inkling of it. "Because I know how to get away with murder."
"I'm not sure how that has any bearing on helping us find out who pulled off these…."
A crack of thunder and spark of lightning lit up the room, turning Bellatrix's face into a mask of deranged mirth. She practically clapped her hands. Like a child wanting to tell some huge story they'd just invented.
"You're not thinking like one of us," Bellatrix pointed out helpfully. "You're thinking like an Auror. To catch a murder, much less a Death Eater, you must think like one."
"Then help me think like one." Izzy slammed her palms down on the table with force. Calming herself a bit she took a deep breath. "If this was your job, how would you go about doing it? How would you go about not being caught?"
"First you have to find yourself a patsy. Someone no one would ever suspect would do something this heinous."
"Like Rosier?"
Bellatrix nodded a look of mixed mirth and surprise on her face. "Very well." She nodded her praise. "Do you know what comes next?"
"You kill someone obviously." Izzy said matter of factly.
Bellatrix laughed, causing a confused look to cross Izzy's face. "Wrong, Auror Stevens. You plan the murder. Every part of it. From where everyone you're working with will be to exit strategies."
"Planning?"
"You don't think we go in blind, do you?" Bellatrix laughed her deranged laugh again. "We don't by the way."
"Good to know. Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet." She smirked. "We're not done. Now we've come to the important part. Now that everything is planned and there is a backup plan just in case something goes wrong, we put our plan in motion."
"That's it?"
"That's it." Bellatrix shrugged as if to say 'you expected something else'. "If all goes well and you aren't caught that's how you get away with murder. Any questions, Auror Stevens?"
"Guards," Izzy called pounding on the door. She turned to Bellatrix with a sigh. "That doesn't really help me, Bellatrix. You're going back to your cell until you cooperate."
As the manic woman was led from the room, Izzy realized with a sense of dread, Bellatrix Lestrange had gotten away with murder. She'd just been told exactly how.
Also for a few things over on Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Forestry: Famous Forests assignment: Write about being in a dangerous place
Insane Prompt List: 355. (character) Bellatrix Black Lestrange
Ultimate Battle Competition: Deadly Stilettos Price 700 words, a Death Eater main character
Sophie's Shelf: Queens Behind Bars - (location) Azkaban
I hope you all enjoyed How to get Away with Murder.