An edge- grating on the nerves. They speak, yet she cannot hear. There is only the faint crackling in veins- no oxygen for a world so underwater. Bellatrix cannot tell what is really going on, but she goes along with it anyways. It is her first night as a Death Eater, her first real test.
She is supposed to eliminate a family of four- mudbloods and blood traitors, the lot of them. They are nameless, faceless, only their location known.
The Death Eaters are standing outside of the house right now. The Dark Lord hovers near Bellatrix's right, and she can feel his very presence resonating with power. She is captivated, absorbed.
"Bella, I have a task for you." whispers the Dark Lord.
"Yes, my Lord?" asks Bellatrix eagerly. She will do whatever he requires to prove herself. She has wanted this for so long and she will not fail.
(The newly cursed Dark Mark tingles, but doesn't burn.)
"You know that you are supposed to kill them all, but I wish for you to do it in a way that will be remembered in months to come. This will be a sign to all those that dare go against me."
Bellatrix shivers at the sound of his voice, and then she is drowning as she says, ever so softly, "Yes, my Lord. You will not be displeased."
The hazy dark night blends, and remoulds itself until colour become indistinct, and there is only one thing. One path, and one task.
"Report back to me afterwards, Bella. I look forward to hearing your... accomplishments."
(Some part of Bellatrix stirs, and that part knows that death is not an accomplishment. It is more of a necessity, and this isn't necessary, is it?)
The Dark Lord apparates away in the still silence, and Bellatrix is left alone. She takes a breath, and there is a faint rustling of dead leaves on the earth. In the moment it takes for her to exhale, all misgivings have dissipated into the air.
(They will never come back.)
Bellatrix has her wand at the ready, and she waits for it- ah yes, the exhilaration rushes through her veins as she realizes the gravity of what she is doing tonight. She will be the Dark Lord's avenging angel, for he doesn't care if she runs a little out of line tonight- in fact, he wants that from her. He is everything to her, and she will be anything for him.
She strides towards the door, and with a tap of her wand, it flies open. It is dark inside. They must have heard her coming. Bellatrix peers through the darkness and spots someone dashing up the staircase. She smiles, a condescending one. Did they really not think to have any protection? She goes up the staircase slowly, wanting to build up the tension and fear. They must be afraid.
As Bellatrix reaches the top of the staircase, she cackles. Four people are huddling in a corner of the hallway, and they are utterly vulnerable.
(Much like herself, but she doesn't know it yet. )
(She never will.)
They see her, and the little girl lets out a scream.
"Crucio."
Her scream is ear-splitting. Bellatrix never liked loud noises, much.
(She would learn to tolerate it in later years, and even enjoy it. Cacophony is an acquired taste.)
"Silencio."
"Leave her alone, please!" screams the mother.
"And what will you give me in return?" laughs Bellatrix.
"You can have me- just not her! Please!"
"We'll see. Come in front of me."
Bellatrix has no intention of sparing any of them, but she does like to play with her food. The mother crawls in front of Bellatrix, quaking.
"Imperio."
"NO! PLEASE!"
It's the father this time. Bellatrix has never liked her own father- he always saw his children as a hindrance. He doesn't love any of them, and he would never trade anything for her life. So she pretends, because he is going to die anyways and she wants to get something out of it even though he won't.
"Imperio."
Now, only the two children are left. The boy is school age, the little girl much younger than her brother.
"Decapitate the girl." Bellatrix tells the mother.
To Bellatrix's satisfaction, and the boy's horror, the mother draws a kitchen knife from her sleeve and walks towards the girl.
"Mom, what are you doing? MOM- "
The girl's head falls off cleanly and rolls to the boy. He screams, and stares at Bellatrix with horror.
"You- WHAT THE HELL-"
A ray of moonlight shines through the window, and Bellatrix feels vaguely sick. In the light, the girl looks remarkable like Cissy. The boy has Andromeda's shade of hair. A moment passes, and then Bellatrix realizes herself.
She cannot fail. He is waiting.
Her first love, and her last.
The Dark Lord.
"Crucio."
The boy twitches on the ground, and Bellatrix notices that he doesn't scream.
They're supposed to scream.
She makes a slashing motion with her wand, and then he does. It is an ear-splitting screech- she has slashed his body in half. She leaves him there, waiting for him to bleed to death, and turns to the father.
"Kill your wife."
She turns to the mother.
"Kill your husband."
After that, Bellatrix drowns in a sea of red. She curses and watches, and when they're all quite really dead, she stops. She takes their now-severed heads and levitates them out of the window. Once they're far out enough for passersby to see, she blasts the bodies into pieces. With an odd smile on her face, Bellatrix heads outside. There is a distinct iron tang, and she realizes that it is coming from herself.
(It's not a tang of regret, because she's so far gone already.)
She is dripping with blood, and when she casts the Dark Mark into the sky, she realizes that she doesn't quite mind. Gravity has no pull on her anymore, and a little blood here and there doesn't matter. With a turn, she disappears on the spot.
As she arrives at the Dark Lord's hideout, Bellatrix realizes that her Dark Mark doesn't tingle anymore. It doesn't even feel like it's there.
It has become a part of herself.
As she kneels at the Dark Lord's feet, she feels distinctly whole.
"Bella, you're dripping with blood." the Dark Lord says with amusement.
"Yes, my Lord. Do you mind it?"
"No, I think it's a rather suitable fragrance for you."
He pulls her to her feet, and an electric shock runs through Bellatrix's veins. Oxygen- who needs it? She has forgotten to breathe, and doesn't want to either.
He moves an inch closer, until their noses are almost touching. She stares into his crimson eyes, unabashed, unafraid.
There is nothing to fear, because she wants this so badly.
"Bella- my bloody angel." he whispers, and Bellatrix feels a foreign rush of something. It is intoxicating, and she wants more.
So when he closes the distance between them, she is euphoric.
(And the fact that she's almost as human as he is doesn't bother her the least. )