Concurrent Existences
Chapter 15: Finding a Place
It looks, it waits.
It's patient with plans.
Finally a container has been found.
It looks, it waits.
The hat was placed on Bellatrix's head and there was silence.
...
You know where to send me, you shitty hat.
"Ah, Isabella Crescent Black." The hat spoke, but more gasps came out at the repeat of the name. Everyone knew that house Black was supposed to be extinct and here is one from it, alive and well.
"Mhm, very interesting indeed. I believe you've already had a very similar experience being sorted hm?" The hat spoke in a knowing tone. It knew somehow that this person right here was Bellatrix. It seemed like both witches had overlooked something.
You are meant to sort people hat, not tattle and prattle. Send me with my witch or I will destroy you. I will tear you apart slowly while burning each piece and flushing the ashes down the toilet after spitting on them.
"Why, what colorful language! I could easily send you to any of the houses as you have each and every one of their strong points.
Make this quick, hat.
"Yes, yes. Loyalty and devotion, right for Hufflepuff. Cunning and sharp, perfect for Slytherin. Fearless and courageous, best for Gryffindor. One of the smartest witches of her age, easily in Ravenclaw. Which one, which one?" The hat suddenly began to slowly smoke.
Burn to cinders, shitty hat.
"Very well, very well. Gryffindor!" The smoking hat was quickly removed and Bella who went straight back to her witch. The applause was slightly delayed due to the shock her name caused as well as the near burning the Sorting Hat almost went through, but the applause still came.
Minerva quickly passed the Sorting Hat to another professor before proclaiming that the students could start feasting on the food.
The two witches failed to notice two extra pairs of eyes looking at them. One looking with curiosity and one with scorn.
Hermione, Bellatrix, Luna and Ginny began heading towards their first class of the day. Ginny had been in her sixth year during the end of the Second Wizarding War, but was allowed to enter her seventh year. Luna and Hermione both chose to retake their seventh year for their N.E.W.T's instead of merely graduating like a few students chose to, probably to avoid bad memories within the halls of Hogwarts.
"So, where is our first shite of the day?" Bellatrix was bored as usual, not really looking forward to the classes that would be dead boring.
"It's Accountancy and Statistics with the new professor." Hermione seemed to be getting used to Bellatrix's crude language, so much for being a pureblood highborn.
"That little goblin? Are you sure I can't set it on fire?" Hermione quickly chided Bella, but Luna and Ginny both laughed at the statement that they thought was a joke. They didn't know that Bellatrix would actually set the goblin on fire if Hermione allowed it.
"Isabella, who's your mum and dad?" Ginny went straight for the point, blunt as a beater to the face. The girl had always been a forceful and independent thing, but damn. The dark witch actually raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised at the bluntness of one of the Weasel spawns.
"None of your business, little weasel spawn." Hermione and Ginny's mouths both dropped at the response. Hermione knew her dark witch was vicious, but apparently she forgot that Bellatrix didn't have any friendly connections in the whole world aside from herself.
Luna wasn't going to be any help since she was staring at something again.
"Little? Weasel spawn? Why, you're bloody smaller than me!" Ginny stopped right in front of Bellatrix, halting all of their march towards the class. Ginny's face was almost as red as her hair. "You're bloody smaller than me in all areas!" Hermione needed to mediate quick. They would be late for class if this continued, Ginny might get hexed badly too.
"Okay, enou-" Hermione tried to get in between, but Bella didn't let her. Instead, Bella went forward and pushed the taller redheaded girl backward with a drawn wand already under Ginny's chin. It was a bit comical since Bellatrix was really smaller than Ginny.
"Did you just call my tits small?" It seemed as if Bellatrix only heard the part about her chest, but that was enough to set the witch off.
Ginny didn't appear to care much about the threatening wand under her chin. The Wizarding War had already hardened her. The redhead had gone against Bellatrix Lestrange and a bunch of other Death Eaters. Ginny Weasley was not going to back down to a fifteen year old pompous brat.
"Yes, your tits and your height! You're what? Fifteen? How did you even get in our year?"
Hermione instantly detected the spike in the dark witch's armlet. Most of their magics already worked through their artifacts and their wand was little more than for show. Hermione still didn't want to create issues this early on though, less watching eyes the better. Ginny was also one of her old friends and didn't want the witch to get hurt. There was no way Ginny would be able to battle the ex-Death Eater.
Hermione quickly, but stealthily pushed between both witches while holding both the dark witches hands. The brunette instantly drained the magic gathering the in Bellatrix's hands before quickly squeezing the dark witch in a tight hug. The dark witch struggled in anger for a moment before slumping against Hermione.
"We will all talk about this later. We will be late to class if we stall anymore. No! No buts from either of you. Let's go." Hermione quickly commanded the three other girls with her. Ginny simply huffed and walked in front of the other three girls.
Luna actually had her wand out, ready to cast a Protego or another spell to stop the fight. Hermione nodded towards Luna and Luna simply smiled back dreamily while sheathing her wand.
The technically youngest witch was still grumbling. It was something about not being able to teach blood traitors a lesson and something about her tits. Only Hermione could hear the grumbling so no further issue was made. She'd have to find some way to make Bellatrix get along with Ginny at least.
"Psst. Luv, my tits are growing right?" The dark witch whispered before all four entered the classroom. Hermione could only kiss Bella's forehead and drag her instead.
"That wasn't an answer!"
Bellatrix pursed her lips as all four of them sat on the same row. Bellatrix on the other side of Hermione with Luna on the other side and Ginny as far away from the dark witch as possible. Bellatrix did not bother to check her schedule, she left all the crap up to Hermione to create and what does she get? Accountancy and Statistics with a green ugly goblin.
"Why in Merlin's name are we in this shite?!" Bellatrix really wanted to know.
"Because it is new and an elective I wished to take. You did tell me to make your-" Hermione was unable to finish her sentence as a large snap echoed throughout the room.
The loud snap came from the professor in front with his pointing stick. The stick was too long to be a wand and goblins were still not allowed to carry wands anyway. The professor had hit the table in front hard while his gaze was towards the direction of Hermione and Bellatrix.
"Why, Miss Granger, do you have something important to tell the class?" Grindhook, the goblin professor sounded and even looked like most of goblins around. The tone he was using was slightly condescending though.
"No, professor. I was just telling Isabella-" Hermione was cut off again. Bellatrix was trying to keep herself from laughing.
"Don't try to pin this on Miss Black." The goblin quickly looked towards Bellatrix. "Good morning, Miss Black. My other colleagues at the repaired Gringotts Bank are awaiting your visit. I am thankful that the Black line still continues." The goblins tone with Bellatrix was nowhere close to what Hermione encountered. It seemed as if the Black's money and treasures stuck in Gringotts would still have a massive pull.
"Uh, yeah. Whatever." Looks like the Goblins did have other plans in mind. How did they move so fast though?
"As for you, Miss Granger, five points away from Gryffindor for talking in my class." The goblin quickly began his class leaving Hermione with a slightly gaping mouth.
Bellatrix quickly cast a small Muffliato on herself to keep the laughter in. "Negative points for Gryffindor! Great start, luv!"
Hermione huffed. "Why I never! I was the one who got minus points when you were talking? Talk about money bias!" Hermione was a little pissed, luckily, the Muffliato was around the two witches or else another deduction might have been given.
"Being a Black is awesome. I did forget about all the properties, money and all the other legal shite. Probably need to sort that out soon." The Ministry would personnel to check if she was who she was, but that was a minor detail. The riches and properties of the Blacks could come in handy one day.
All of a sudden Bellatrix blanched.
"What?" Hermione's eyebrow went up. The dark witch was laughing then all of a sudden goes pale. Hermione was still writing down notes.
"I just remembered something that might screw the plan."
Hermione quickly went through any and all possibilities. There were barely any unforeseeable problems that could happen. If Voldemort or Dumbledore or some other power crazy wizard were alive, then maybe, but as of now? There should be none. "Elaborate?" What could the dark witch possibly be scared of?
"Cissy."
Oh.
After Grindhook's class, Luna and Ginny went separately to another class that weren't in sync with Hermione and Bellatrix's class schedule.
"Bloody bollocks. I knew I forgot about something! Cissy! She will see through this plan with her eyes closed! She may receive the news later because her shitty husband is in Azkaban, but other sources will eventually tell her!" Bellatrix hissed while Hermione dragged her towards their next class. The Muffliato was still in effect, so they still had their own privacy.
Narcissa was close to Bellatrix ever since she was born. Even during the point where Bellatrix was serving Voldemort and even at the point where Bella was about to be incarcerated in Azkaban, Narcissa was there. She'd know for a fact that everything was a farce. Both witches doubted that Narcissa would snitch them, but still, she could be scary sometimes.
"We can explain it to her. I still have yet to use my spell to unlock their memories of me. When Cissy and Andy both hear of all the things Voldemort had done, then everything will be fine." Hermione was sure that everything would work out after everything has been aired out. Voldemort was the reason the girls had so many problems and the reason they drifted apart anyway, especially in Andromeda's case.
Bellatrix still looked conflicted. "I don't know if Andy will forgive me for everything. Cissy has, but after all I've said and done against Andy?" Bellatrix remembered the hateful things she said against her younger sister and the hateful things she did. Anger towards the middle Black sister that came out of nowhere, but she could remember talking to Tom Riddle about Andy. Once she had sorted out her memories without the compulsion spells, it was easy to see that Tom Riddle wanted Andromeda away from his prized Death Eater.
"She will. It may take some time because of what happened to Tonks."
"Tonks? Her husband? Sure, I hexed him, but that was it." Bellatrix was confused. Okay, she hexed and ridiculed Ted Tonks when they were still in school, but that was it. Not talking to Andromeda for over two decades and the hateful words is what she would have been afraid of.
It was Hermione's turn to turn pale. Hermione just realized the Bellatrix in the final battle at Hogwarts was not the real Bellatrix.
Oh my god.
"I may have murdered Nymphadora Tonks."
Bellatrix's head immediately snapped to Hermione. "You may have killed Nymph?"
This wasn't looking good.
"We'll talk during the break." Bellatrix just nodded. She didn't even know Nymphadora was dead. Oh bollocks.
The break came pretty quickly as the two witches barely participated in the next two classes. Both already knew everything about the classes anyway. Both were just a bit shaken from realizing some damning possibilities.
The two witches immediately went to their room, bypassing the lunch in the Great Hall. They had to discuss these problems right now.
"Bella, remember the Adjuro Vas Inane spell?"
"The sex doll?" Bellatrix raised up her eyebrow. What did the sex doll have to do with anything?
"It was reported that Bellatrix Lestrange killed Nymphadora Tonks during the battle." Bellatrix eyes widen as she digested what Hermione said.
The battle sex doll that had been conjured during the Hogwarts battle could have been the one to kill Tonks, that would mean that Hermione indirectly killed Nymphadora by being the summoner. Everyone at Hogwarts was panicked at the time and reports were all jumbled and just accepted half the time, so it was also possible that it wasn't the doll.
No one had seen how Nymphadora died.
Not one person.
The reports at the end just had a few accounts about Nymphadora being killed by her aunt, but no one really had proof. The allegations were just written down and no one even know who said they saw Bellatrix kill Nymphadora, it was all just accepted.
"I don't know what to say, luv. The reports sound like a bunch of bullshit. It sounds like they just pasted a whole lot of kills and plugged my name into it. I mean, how many Death Eaters can you actually name that are competent?" Bellatrix tried to ease the atmosphere, but it still stayed heavy.
"We will have to look into that soon. The sex doll's memory core came from my experience with you and therefore is still connected to me. I should be able to recover the memories and review them to see through the doll's eyes or like a Pensieve." Hermione was going to do this later. The guilt wasn't overwhelming, but it was still there. She needed to make sure that her summoned doll was not the reason for Tonk's death or it would be hard to face Andy.
"You can do that? Get the memories from your kinky doll? So, if I made one, screwed you from above and below, I'd be able to get memories from both?" Bellatrix grinned.
"Bella!" Hermione couldn't believe it. Here she was feeling guilty and everything, while Bellatrix was still thinking about using her spells for sex again.
For now, they would have some lunch with the remaining time in the Great Hall and then proceed to the other new professor's class.
Helena Ravenclaw teaching Defense against the Dark Arts.
Should be interesting.
Adjuro Vas Inane - Conjure Empty Vessel
Pensieve - The viewing memory thingy
AN: The next chapter might be delayed, not sure. I think I'm getting slower and slower with my writing. I mean, I'll try to keep the week thing up, but sorry if I miss a week! Getting inspiration strangled from me at the moment. Only posted this now because I was out all night.
I wasn't able to reread this. Kind of busy atm. I'll reread this later to check for errors I missed.
See~ Hermione didn't need to take money from the time suspension at all! Her girlfriend is rich as heck!
Did the Battle Sex Doll really kill Nymph? That complicates things quite a bit.
Questions, ideas and constructive criticism are always appreciated!
Edit: Tiny grammar errors I found fixed. For some reason I can't put N.E. , had to be N.E.W.T's or it wouldn't go in. Weird.