Khyana had no idea where the others had apparated to, and she didn't want to know. She had arrived back in her own home, glad of the privacy. She wondered briefly if she should somehow get a message to the others to let them know that she was okay, but she was too exhausted. She fell on her couch and was promptly asleep.
They were on the dungeon level, a place Khyana hated on the best of days. In the middle of the night, she hated it even more. But there was no deterring Bella when she got an idea in her head. The adults were all upstairs at the Yuletide Ball being held by Khyana's parents.
And at 7, it was an honour to be included in anything Bella did, let alone be her favourite. Khyana had not believed Narcissa at first when she'd said that Bella liked Khyana best of all the pureblood girls, but Andi had confirmed, and Bella was certainly acting it. The Hogwarts fourth-year was an idol to all the younger pureblood girls.
Bella's giggle reached Khyana's ears, and she couldn't help but get caught up in the excitement of the excursion. It was such fun to cheat the adults and house-elves and do things they weren't supposed to do, under the cover of darkness.
The hallway to the right was a little-used corridor Khyana had never been down. She didn't much want to go now, but Bella did, and Khyana was powerless to deny Bella anything she wanted. They had snuck down the servants' stair at Bella's request, and had come out at the fork of the corridors. Bella, always the reckless one, had chosen to go left from the stairs, not right, toward the dungeons, like Khyana had expected. But Bella was never predictable.
The group of girls--numbering many more than Khyana would ever have dared to lead on such an adventure--hurried, giggling down the hallway. Khyana's heart was racing and she reached for Sara's hand, feeling very scared.
"Are you scared?" Sara asked quietly.
"Of course not," Khyana said defensively, her voice shaking slightly.
"Me either," Sara agreed.
Bella led the way, and the others followed, Khyana and Sara near the end of the group.
"What's down here?" Sara asked quietly.
Khyana shook her head. "I don't know."
The shadows along the walls grew long in the light of the torch Bella was carrying. Despite what she told Sara, Khyana was scared. No, she was more than scared; she was terrified. If they were caught, it wouldn't matter what anyone said, Khyana would be the one in trouble. And she didn't like the dark. It wasn't pitch black because of Bella's torch, but she was not comfortable anyway.
She didn't know why she'd never been down this corridor. She vaguely remembered her parents telling her once that it was out of bounds, that there were magical barriers and if she passed through them, they would know and she would be in big trouble. The memory sent a shiver of fear down her spine.
Bella was moving quickly down the corridor, getting out of the sightline of the other girls, her torchlight fading.
"Bella!" Andi called quietly. "Bella, come back, we can't see!"
Narcissa started to cry. At five, she was the youngest in the group, much to Andi's distress. She had tried to talk Bella out of letting Cissy come, but Bella didn't care, and Cissy wanted to go. Andi could never resist Narcissa's pout.
Andi grabbed Cissy's hand and motioned for the other girls to remain calm. Colby Rosier, Khyana's cousin on her mother's side, looked more scared than even Khyana and Sara.
"My family has a corridor like this one," she whispered to Khyana, clutching her other hand. "I've never been down it. My mother told me I'd be in big trouble if I ever went down it."
"My mother told me the same thing," Khyana replied quietly.
"Are you scared, Khyana?" Colby asked nervously.
Khyana was about to give her the same response she had given Sara but couldn't. "Yes," she replied quietly.
"Me too," Colby agreed, squeezing her hand tighter.
The corridor was now pitch black. Khyana couldn't see anyone, and her heart nearly stopped beating she was so frightened. She would have screamed, but she knew that would bring the adults and she would get in trouble, and that frightened her more than the dark.
"Andi?"
"Hm?"
"Can't you make a light with your wand or something?"
"No. I don't have my wand, and even if I did, I wouldn't be able to do any magic without getting in trouble."
Khyana began to tremble with fear, and not even Sara and Colby's arms around her shoulders could stop her trembling. She eventually collapsed on the floor, sobbing. She knew it was not proper to cry in public, but she was too terrified to scare.
"Khyana!" Andi sounded really worried about her. "Girls, what's wrong with Khyana?"
"She doesn't like the dark," Colby explained, trying to keep her voice even. "We're also not supposed to be down this corridor. My parents have one at our house, they told me it had magical barriers and if I ever penetrated them, they would know and I would be in big trouble."
"BELLA!"
"Shh!" Colby shushed Andi's cry. "The adults will hear you and we'll all get in trouble!"
"I can't just let Bella disappear and leave Khyana like this," Andi countered, frustrated.
"We just need to get out of here," Colby answered.
"Which way is back?" Sara whispered, also scared.
"I don't know," Andi admitted. "I'd go after Bella, but I honestly don't know which way she went. It's too dark."
Khyana's hysterical sobs had softened, and she was now crying quietly on the floor, her back against the wall. It was a testimony to the loneliness of her childhood that she didn't cry out for anyone. Her parents had been cold, distant figures her whole life, and her brother, though loving and doting as any big brother should be, would not have been keen on her display.
"We have to get back before the parents are finished," Sara whispered, fear tingeing her voice.
Andi agreed. "Bella should be back eventually…"
How much longer the group sat there in the dark corridor, listening to Khyana and Narcissa cry, trying to keep their own fear from running rampant, none of them knew. All Khyana knew was she had never been so happy to see her brother as she was the moment she saw his torch light.
"What the…Andromeda, would you like to explain what is going on here?" Lucius asked coldly.
Khyana hurriedly wiped any trace of tears from her face and ran to her brother's side.
"Khyana, I've been looking everywhere for you," Lucius said, his voice betraying a small part of his worry for his baby sister.
"We've been down here," Khyana said quietly. "Bella was with us, but she disappeared."
Lucius' brow furrowed and Khyana knew he was angry with the older girl for leaving them alone in the dark.
"How long have you been here?" he demanded, knowing how much his sister hated the dark.
Andi shrugged. "I don't know, sir. I lost track of time in the dark."
"How long had you been down here before Bellatrix left you?"
Again, Andi shrugged. "Perhaps fifteen minutes."
"Fifteen minutes?" Lucius asked, incredulous. "Andromeda, you children have been missing for nearly an hour and a half."
Khyana barely managed to smuggle her cry of astonishment. An hour and fifteen minutes they had sat in the dark!
"Avery," Lucius said, turning to the young man at his elbow (whom Khyana had not notice until this point), "Continue down the corridor until you find Bellatrix Black, and when you do, inform her that I request her presence in my quarters. The rest of you, come with me. I'll see that you get back to bed alright."
Avery nodded once stiffly, and continued along the corridor. The remaining girls followed Lucius, who kept a tight hold on his little sister's hand, up to their rooms.
"If you'll excuse me now, ladies, I require my sister's presence for only a moment and then I will go and have my meeting with Miss Bellatrix and get a straight answer from her. Goodnight."
Khyana followed her brother out of the room, still slightly shaken from her episode in the dark.
"Are you okay, Khyana?" He asked, trying to mask his worry.
Khyana nodded slowly, then shook her head. "I was scared, Lucius," she said very quietly.
"I know. But you're okay now, right?" he asked, as if willing her to answer so he could move on.
Sensing her brother's impatience, Khyana nodded and turned away from him.
"Can I go back in now?" she asked.
"Yes," Lucius replied, his relief obvious. "Goodnight, SK."
"'Night."
Hearing the endearment especially for her from her big brother made Khyana feel slightly better. She allowed herself a small smile. It was so good to be loved; Bella and Lucius both loved her, and so did Andi and Sara and Colby. Yes, Khyana was quite content with her life.
Fourteen years later, Khyana awoke on her couch, tears streaming down her face. When had things gone so wrong? When had Lucius stopped being her doting, adoring, loving older brother and become her enemy? Khyana did not know; she just knew the change had happened. When had Bella become a blood-thirsty killer? When had she and Colby grown so far apart? And why, oh why, did Sara have to leave her?
Khyana allowed herself another hour of her sobbing pity party. She was content with her life as it was, but for an hour, she allowed herself to wish it had stayed the way it was when she was seven, when her brother had loved her and looked out for her instead of trying to kill her, and Bella, for all her eccentricities, had also loved her and enjoyed her company. Khyana was miserable, for one hour of one night, fourteen years after the fact.
A/N: Well, it's longer than the last one. Let me know what you guys think, I think this is one of my favourite chapters so far. It shows such different sides of characters we all know and love as evil...I was going to have Bella reappear, but I like it the way it is. I already have my idea for the next chapter, so hopefully it won't take long to update. Although I'm pretty busy over the next little while...R&R!