Love in Motion: BellatrixAlice
Count Your Buttons: Alice Longbottom, "We can't keep doing this."
They sit together atop the Astronomy Tower, legs dangling over the ledge. Bellatrix's eyes are on the night sky; the stars and moon bathe her in a milky light that almost breaks Alice's heart.
Bellatrix Black is dangerous. There's no denying it. Even if she's gentle with Alice, the Gryffindor can still see the darkness in her eyes.
But that's the way it goes, isn't it? The deadly things are always the most beautiful.
"You're staring," Bellatrix says, keeping her gaze fixed upon the sky.
Alice feels heat creep into her cheeks, though she doesn't understand why. Bellatrix is her girlfriend, after all. She has to spend her days stealing glances and longing for nighttime, longing to be with her lover. If she wants to stare now, she should be allowed to. She doesn't say this, though. Instead, she casts a glance at the ground below. "I know."
Bellatrix's slender fingers grip her wrist. Alice pulls her gaze back up, her heart fluttering at the touch. "Something is bothering you." Bellatrix studies her as though trying to pinpoint what it could be.
"We can't keep doing this," Alice mumbles.
It isn't what she had wanted to say. She had wanted to deny it, insist that everything is fine. Bellatrix would have seen right through her; she always does.
She expects Bellatrix to be angry. After all, Blacks are practically royalty. Once you're lucky enough to have one, you should hold on. Instead, Bellatrix offers a lazy shrug of her shoulders. "I know."
The end has been coming for a while now. Happy endings don't exist for people like them. Bellatrix is bound by duty; she will go on and marry a man from a good family and keep her bloodline pure and strong. And Alice? Well, she isn't sure what she'll do. Even though she knows some beautiful forever with Bellatrix is impossible, she'd let herself hope, let herself plan for a future with her.
Bellatrix reaches out, her fingers tangling in Alice's short chestnut brown hair. The Slytherin pulls her closer, smiling that alluring smile. "We can do it for a while longer, though," she murmurs before kissing Alice fiercely.
Alice knows she should protest. Delaying the inevitable will only cause her pain in the end. Somehow, though, as Bellatrix kisses her, she finds herself thinking that the pain will be worth it.